HOT: Spotify Out Here Scaring Kids
A strange horror-movie-themed TV commercial for Spotify with the tagline “Killer songs you can’t resist” was deemed too scary to show on British television. The 60-second clip features a spooky doll that seems to come to life every time Camila Cabello’s Pop hit “Havana” comes up on shuffle, scaring the shit out of a group of roommates in their apartment. The U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority ruled that it was likely to scare the shit out of kids, too; in its ruling banning the ad, the ASA said because of the “bedtime setting” and doll, “it was particularly likely to cause distress to children who saw it.”
WARM: RiRi Takes a Knee
The announcement of the artist chosen to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show is usually a big deal, but when it was revealed that successful-but-hardly-superstar Pop act Maroon 5 scored the honor for the next Bowl, it was largely greeted with some head-scratching and a big yawn. According to a recent report, Adam Levine’s band wasn’t the first choice for Super Bowl LIII’s festivities. Rihanna reportedly turned down the offer, citing her support of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who has been unable to procure a job in the league after instigating the ongoing NFL players’ protest of police brutality and racial injustice by kneeling on the sidelines during the National Anthem on game days. The NFL initially seemed in favor of punishing players for engaging in the kneeling protests, but right before the start of the season, after pushback from the players' union, the league announced it wasn't doing anything about it this year.
COLD: Nuge in the Rock Hall?
In an interview with online Hard Rock publication My Global Mind, not only did guitarist Ted Nugent declare himself worthy of Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, he called his omission “the most outrageous and disgusting lie you have ever seen.” Ever. Nugent said an “ultra leftist liberal CEO driven gang” is to blame for him not being inducted, and dissed Patti Smith, Grand Master Flash and ABBA for getting in before him. Hall of Fame curmudgeon David Crosby cut Nugent down immediately, responding to the interview on Twitter by saying, “he’s not good enough and he never will be… a hack player and no singer at all… could not write a decent song if his life depended on it.”
