'80s Legend Talks About His Surprise Remake With Willie Nelson
Perry has covered his 1983 Journey hit 'Faithfully' with music legend for a good cause. The proceeds from the single will benefit Farm Aid, the charity that's celebrating its 40th anniversary that was started by Nelson, and John Mellencamp.
🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬
In a new interview in the Los Angeles Times, Perry, 76, spoke about the project and what it was like working with the 92-year-old music legend.
'I think that the lyrics are so sound that they're timeless. But I must tell you that Willie Nelson set a tone when he sang it. That launched me in his direction, of how to interpret those lyrics and sing with him. It sets the tone and the watermark. Willie is the Sinatra of country music. When you sing laid back like that, like Tony Bennett does, he just says it like he feels it, and he puts it where he feels it. It takes a minute to really fall into that relaxed emotional expression. It was a new experience for me to sing with such a legend like this guy,' Perry told the L.A. Times.
Perry's last solo album was the 2021 Christmas release The Season, but he has guested on other recordings, including 's 2023 all-star Rockstar album, in which he and the country legend covered another Journey classic, 1981's 'Open Arms.''At this point in my life, I'm really enjoying doing anything that feels just emotionally expressive to me. It's a new freedom for me. You know, Willie used to come to the shows in Texas when we were touring in the early '80s, that's where I first met him. When we were doing the song 'Faithfully,' I swear to you, back then, I always wanted to hear his voice on it. This is the 40th anniversary of Farm Aid, so it was the perfect time to just for us to be together, and it's a bucket list thing to sing with Willie Nelson,' Perry told the outlet.
Aside from working with Nelson, Perry told the L.A. Times that 'Farm Aid is close to my heart, because I know how difficult it is to be a farmer. You've really got to love it.'
He also revealed he has personal ties to farming.
'I was raised in the San Joaquin Valley,' he told the Times. 'My grandfather had two dairy farms. I remember getting ice cream made from that fresh cream at the top of that vat. I saw the commitment that farmers have to what they do.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
23 minutes ago
Learn about the 5 people charged in connection with Matthew Perry's death
LOS ANGELES -- One year ago, federal authorities announced that five people had been charged in connection with the ketamine overdose death of Matthew Perry. All five have now agreed to plead guilty, including the personal assistant of the 'Friends' star, an old acquaintance and two doctors. On Monday, Jasveen Sangha, who prosecutors say was a dealer known as the 'Ketamine Queen,' became the fifth and final defendant to reach a deal and avoid trial. Here is a look at each of the defendants. Sangha admitted in her plea agreement that she sold Perry the lethal dose of ketamine in the days before his death on Oct. 23, 2023. A 42-year-old who was born in Britain, raised in the United States and has dual citizenship, Sangha's social media accounts before her indictment last year showed a jet-setting lifestyle, with photos of herself in posh spaces alongside rich-and-famous faces in Spain, Japan and Dubai along with her dual homes of London and Los Angeles. Prosecutors say that lifestyle was funded by a drug business she ran for at least five years from her apartment in LA's San Fernando Valley. They say she presented herself as 'a celebrity drug dealer with high quality goods" and missed no opportunity to promote the idea that she was known to customers and others as the 'Ketamine Queen.' Her lawyers have derided the title as a 'media-friendly' moniker. Sangha went to high school in Calabasas, California — perhaps best known as home to the Kardashians — and went to college at the University of California, Irvine, graduating in 2005 and going on to work at Merrill Lynch. She later got an MBA from the Hult International Business School in London. She was connected to Perry through his acquaintance and her co-defendant, Erik Fleming. In a raid of her apartment in March 2024, authorities said they found large amounts of cocaine, methamphetamine and ketamine. She was arrested and released on bond. In August 2024, she was indicted again with charges that tied her to Perry's death, and has been held without bail ever since. CHARGES: Three counts of distribution of ketamine, one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury and one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises. SENTENCING: A judge will set her sentencing in the coming months after she appears in court to officially change her plea. She could get up to 45 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: Sangha's lawyer Mark Geragos says 'She's taking responsibility for her actions.' Iwamasa, Perry's live-in personal assistant, was intimately involved in the actor's illegal ketamine use, acting as his drug messenger and personally giving injections, according to his plea agreement. It was the 60-year-old Iwamasa who found Perry dead in the hot tub of his Pacific Palisades home on a day when he'd given him several injections. He would become the first to reach a deal with prosecutors as they sought to use him as an essential witness against other defendants. Iwamasa said he worked with co-defendants to get ketamine on Perry's behalf, including Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who taught him how to give Perry the injections. 'Found the sweet spot but trying different places led to running out,' Iwamasa told Plasencia in one text message. Iwamasa said in his plea deal that he injected Perry six to eight times per day in the last few days of his life. CHARGE: One count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. SENTENCING: He's scheduled to be sentenced November 19 and could get up to 15 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: Iwamasa's attorneys have not responded to requests for comment. 'I wonder how much this moron will pay?' That was a text message Plasencia sent to a fellow doctor when he learned Perry wanted to be illegally provided with ketamine, according to a plea agreement where the doctor admitted to selling 20 vials of the drug to the actor in the weeks before his death. Plasencia, a 43-year-old Los Angeles-area doctor known to patients as 'Dr. P,' was one of the two main targets of the prosecution and had been headed for a joint trial with Sangha when he reached the plea agreement in June. According to court records, Perry was connected to Plasencia through another patient. Perry had been getting ketamine legally from his regular doctor as treatment for depression, an off-label but increasingly common use of the surgical anesthetic. But the actor wanted more. Plasencia admitted to personally injecting Perry with some of the initial vials he provided, and left more for Iwamasa to inject, despite the fact that Perry froze up and his blood pressure spiked, after one dose. Plasencia graduated from UCLA's medical school in 2010 and had not been subject to any medical disciplinary actions before the Perry case. He has been free on bond since his indictment. His lawyers said he is caregiver for a toddler child. Plasencia even got to keep practicing medicine after his indictment, but had to inform patients of the charges against him and couldn't prescribe dangerous drugs. He now intends to voluntarily surrender his license to practice, according to his lawyers. CHARGES: Four counts of distribution of ketamine. SENTENCING: He's scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 3 and could get up to 40 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: His lawyers say he's 'profoundly remorseful for the treatment decisions he made while providing ketamine to Matthew Perry.' Fleming, 55, was an acquaintance of Perry's who learned through a mutual friend that the actor was seeking ketamine, according to his plea agreement. He told Iwamasa in text messages that he had a source known as the 'Ketamine Queen' whose product was 'amazing,' saying she only deals with 'high end and celebs.' In all, prosecutors say, Fleming delivered 50 vials of Sangha's ketamine for Perry's use, including 25 sold for a total of $6,000 to the actor four days before his death. CHARGE: One count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. SENTENCING: He is scheduled to be sentenced November 12 and could get up to 25 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: Fleming's lawyers have declined comment. Chavez, a San Diego doctor who ran a ketamine clinic, was the source of the doses that Plasencia sold to Perry, according to their plea agreements. Chavez admitted to obtaining the ketamine from a wholesale distributor on false pretenses. Chavez, 55, graduated from UCLA's medical school in 2004. He has surrendered his medical license. CHARGE: One count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. SENTENCING: He is scheduled to become the first defendant sentenced, on Sept. 17. He could get 10 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: His lawyer says he's 'incredibly remorseful,' has accepted responsibility and has been 'trying to do everything in his power to right the wrong.' ___ A version of this story first ran on Aug. 15, 2024.
San Francisco Chronicle
3 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Learn about the 5 people charged in connection with Matthew Perry's death
LOS ANGELES (AP) — One year ago, federal authorities announced that five people had been charged in connection with the ketamine overdose death of Matthew Perry. All five have now agreed to plead guilty, including the personal assistant of the 'Friends' star, an old acquaintance and two doctors. On Monday, Jasveen Sangha, who prosecutors say was a dealer known as the 'Ketamine Queen,' became the fifth and final defendant to reach a deal and avoid trial. Here is a look at each of the defendants. Jasveen Sangha Sangha admitted in her plea agreement that she sold Perry the lethal dose of ketamine in the days before his death on Oct. 23, 2023. A 42-year-old who was born in Britain, raised in the United States and has dual citizenship, Sangha's social media accounts before her indictment last year showed a jet-setting lifestyle, with photos of herself in posh spaces alongside rich-and-famous faces in Spain, Japan and Dubai along with her dual homes of London and Los Angeles. Prosecutors say that lifestyle was funded by a drug business she ran for at least five years from her apartment in LA's San Fernando Valley. They say she presented herself as 'a celebrity drug dealer with high quality goods" and missed no opportunity to promote the idea that she was known to customers and others as the 'Ketamine Queen.' Her lawyers have derided the title as a 'media-friendly' moniker. Sangha went to high school in Calabasas, California — perhaps best known as home to the Kardashians — and went to college at the University of California, Irvine, graduating in 2005 and going on to work at Merrill Lynch. She later got an MBA from the Hult International Business School in London. She was connected to Perry through his acquaintance and her co-defendant, Erik Fleming. In a raid of her apartment in March 2024, authorities said they found large amounts of cocaine, methamphetamine and ketamine. She was arrested and released on bond. In August 2024, she was indicted again with charges that tied her to Perry's death, and has been held without bail ever since. CHARGES: Three counts of distribution of ketamine, one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury and one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises. SENTENCING: A judge will set her sentencing in the coming months after she appears in court to officially change her plea. She could get up to 45 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: Sangha's lawyer Mark Geragos says 'She's taking responsibility for her actions.' Kenneth Iwamasa Iwamasa, Perry's live-in personal assistant, was intimately involved in the actor's illegal ketamine use, acting as his drug messenger and personally giving injections, according to his plea agreement. It was the 60-year-old Iwamasa who found Perry dead in the hot tub of his Pacific Palisades home on a day when he'd given him several injections. He would become the first to reach a deal with prosecutors as they sought to use him as an essential witness against other defendants. Iwamasa said he worked with co-defendants to get ketamine on Perry's behalf, including Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who taught him how to give Perry the injections. 'Found the sweet spot but trying different places led to running out,' Iwamasa told Plasencia in one text message. Iwamasa said in his plea deal that he injected Perry six to eight times per day in the last few days of his life. CHARGE: One count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. SENTENCING: He's scheduled to be sentenced November 19 and could get up to 15 years in prison. Dr. Salvador Plasencia 'I wonder how much this moron will pay?' That was a text message Plasencia sent to a fellow doctor when he learned Perry wanted to be illegally provided with ketamine, according to a plea agreement where the doctor admitted to selling 20 vials of the drug to the actor in the weeks before his death. Plasencia, a 43-year-old Los Angeles-area doctor known to patients as 'Dr. P,' was one of the two main targets of the prosecution and had been headed for a joint trial with Sangha when he reached the plea agreement in June. According to court records, Perry was connected to Plasencia through another patient. Perry had been getting ketamine legally from his regular doctor as treatment for depression, an off-label but increasingly common use of the surgical anesthetic. But the actor wanted more. Plasencia admitted to personally injecting Perry with some of the initial vials he provided, and left more for Iwamasa to inject, despite the fact that Perry froze up and his blood pressure spiked, after one dose. Plasencia graduated from UCLA's medical school in 2010 and had not been subject to any medical disciplinary actions before the Perry case. He has been free on bond since his indictment. His lawyers said he is caregiver for a toddler child. Plasencia even got to keep practicing medicine after his indictment, but had to inform patients of the charges against him and couldn't prescribe dangerous drugs. He now intends to voluntarily surrender his license to practice, according to his lawyers. CHARGES: Four counts of distribution of ketamine. SENTENCING: He's scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 3 and could get up to 40 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: His lawyers say he's 'profoundly remorseful for the treatment decisions he made while providing ketamine to Matthew Perry.' Erik Fleming Fleming, 55, was an acquaintance of Perry's who learned through a mutual friend that the actor was seeking ketamine, according to his plea agreement. He told Iwamasa in text messages that he had a source known as the 'Ketamine Queen' whose product was 'amazing,' saying she only deals with 'high end and celebs.' In all, prosecutors say, Fleming delivered 50 vials of Sangha's ketamine for Perry's use, including 25 sold for a total of $6,000 to the actor four days before his death. CHARGE: One count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. SENTENCING: He is scheduled to be sentenced November 12 and could get up to 25 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: Fleming's lawyers have declined comment. Dr. Mark Chavez Chavez, a San Diego doctor who ran a ketamine clinic, was the source of the doses that Plasencia sold to Perry, according to their plea agreements. Chavez admitted to obtaining the ketamine from a wholesale distributor on false pretenses. Chavez, 55, graduated from UCLA's medical school in 2004. He has surrendered his medical license. CHARGE: One count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. SENTENCING: He is scheduled to become the first defendant sentenced, on Sept. 17. He could get 10 years in prison. WHAT THEY SAID: His lawyer says he's 'incredibly remorseful,' has accepted responsibility and has been 'trying to do everything in his power to right the wrong.' ___ A version of this story first ran on Aug. 15, 2024.
UPI
6 hours ago
- UPI
L.A. woman to plead guilty in ketamine overdose death of Matthew Perry
Matthew Perry attends the screening of Reelz's "The Kennedy's After Camelot" at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, Calif., in 2017. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo Aug. 18 (UPI) -- A Los Angeles woman has agreed to plead guilty in the illegal sale of ketamine that killed 54-year-old actor Matthew Perry in 2023, federal prosecutors said Monday. Jasveen Sangha, 42, of North Hollywood, will take a plea to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine and one count of the drug's distribution resulting in death or serious bodily injury, the Department of Justice said in news release. Five other charges were dropped against the woman, who is known as the "Ketamine Queen" to her customers, according to prosecutors. Sangha has been in federal custody since August 2024. She signed a guilty plea agreement on Thursday because "I am guilty of the charges," DOJ said. Ketamine, a synthetic compound, is a strong anesthetic that people have used for depression, pain and as a recreational drug. Doctors can prescribe the drug for medical purposes. Perry, best known as playing Chander in the TV comedy Friends, had written about his struggles with addiction in his memoir. Sangha, who was scheduled to go on trial on Sept. 23, could face up to 65 years in prison for the five charges. DOJ said the dual citizen of the United States and Britain is expected to formally enter a guilty plea in a few weeks. Mark Geragos, who has defended several high-profile clients, including Michael Jackson, the Mendez brothers and P Diddy, said in a documentary released earlier this year, his client "never met Matthew Perry" and "had nothing to do with Matthew Merry." On Monday, Geragos said she was "taking responsibility for her actions." In earlier court documents, she had heard of Perry's interest in ketamine through an acquaintance, Erik Fleming, 55, who was in touch with the actor's live-in personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, 60, prosecutors said. She offered a sample and boasted her supply was "amazing." Two days later, she sent the drug to Perry. The next day, the personal assistant bought 25 vials for Perry and another 25 two weeks later, along with some ketamine lollipops. Iwamasa injected Perry with three doses on the day he died on Oct. 28, 2023. Perry was found floating face down in a hot tub in his L.A. home. He died of "acute effects of ketamine," the L.A. medical examiner said. After she learned about Perry death, Sangha sought to destroy evidence implicating her, prosecutors said in court documents. When her home was raided on March 24, 2023, 79 vials of ketamine and three pounds of orange pills containing methamphetamine were found along with Ecstasy, counterfeit Xanax pills, cocaine and paraphernalia. In her plea agreement, Sangha also admitted to selling four vials of the drug to Cody McLaury, 33, who died from an overdose in August 2019. Prosecutors said she still sold ketamine from her apartment after that time. Fleming faces up to 25 years in prison and Iwamasa up to 15 years after they both pleaded guilty. Dr. Salvador Plasencia, 43, in June agreed to plead guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine. He was scheduled to go on trial with Sangha. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 3 and he faces up to 10 years in federal prison. Another physician, Mark Chavez, 55, of San Diego, faces up to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty.
