Unlike Kneecap, Green Day used their music to deliver Palestine message at Coachella - and won't have gigs cancelled
Make your protest, sing your songs, rap your words… but maybe it's wiser to allow music to speak for itself
In 1939 a young black singer called Billie Holiday took to a New York stage and performed a song called Strange Fruit for the first time. It set the music industry off on a new tangent, as a vehicle for protest.
Widely regarded as the first 'protest song', it pricked the consciousness of a nation. The 'strange fruit' she sang about were the bodies of two young black Americans hanging from a tree.
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Daily Mirror
17 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Who is Love Island's US star Antonia as fans divided by first bombshell
Love Island's first bombshell has been revealed as American pool waitress, Antonia Laites, who is bound to cause a stir among the class of 2025 as the new series gets underway on ITV Love Island's first bombshell is already in the villa and has caused a stir among fans as a new series of the ITV dating show gets underway. Fans couldn't wait for the sexy show to start last night and are in for a whole heap of drama as the new arrival was told that her entrance would send an 'original' girl packing. Pool waitress, Antonia Laites, from Sin City, Las Vegas, arrived as the end of Monday's launch episode to cause a stir among the saucy singletons. While the boys looked thrilled to see a new female in the house, not everyone was impressed. "Oh I can't be doing with the 'dramatic' twists already. Why can't you just see if they get on or not . Bring back the OG style of Love Island and the smoking round the fire pit," complained one fan. "Dumping someone after 2 days. What's the point in getting them in. Absolutely crazy. Waste of time waste of energy. They'd have prepped and gymed and dieted for weeks for this and told their work or whatever. To then be dumped after a day," fumed another. Other fans moaned about the arrival of the first American star in the villa, with one swiping: "Don't we have enough beautiful people of our own?" Stunning Antonia, 24, who was born in Connecticut, but has also lived n Miami, looks after the swanky VIP cabanas at the lavish Fontainebleau Resort in Vegas, where she waits on the rich and famous, while they soak up the sun. Speaking about bagging her 'coveted' job, she said: "I'm always the number 1 in sales at both hotels I work at. I'm a workaholic. You have to audition to get the job I've got - over 1000 people applied. There's only 10 cabana servers! For the audition they set up a fake pool deck, they tell you to load up trays and zig zag through the chairs. "The trays are heavy with pitchers and our large cocktails are really large! I've definitely dropped drinks on people before, but on the whole I'm really good." According to The Sun, Antonia has already sashayed into the villa, with a source saying: "Antonia landed as part of a huge first day and everyone is very excited." When asked who she is looking for in the villa, the American quipped: "Someone that can make me laugh - I'm super outgoing. And someone that's quite active. Maybe one day we could start our own family together." Ahead of her ITV debut, Antonia dubbed the dating scene in the states a 'mess', saying people are there for a 'good time, not a long time'. She also reckons she loves the British accent, claiming "British men are just more polite". She continued: "I've lived in three different states and I'm still single. It's time to try something new! I have some British friends and they're pretty charming. I think all Americans love a good accent. British men are just more polite, with better manners." However, she does have some deal breakers. Listing her "icks", she said: "Bad hygiene. Bad breath. Not getting hair cuts. If we're going on a date and you're not dressed for the occasion, then that's a bit of an ick! "I like to be treated like a lady, going to nice spas in Vegas, being taken to nice restaurants. I'm still waiting to be taken on vacation for a date." Heading into the villa, the brunette said she is looking for someone with "darker hair, definitely muscular but not too muscular. Super fit. Clean hair cut." Antonia has also revealed that she suffers from ulcerative colitis, which is an inflammatory bowel disease and can sometimes lead to life-threatening complications. Explaining that she was left hospitalised and needing an infusion when she younger, the bombshell said she almost missed her school prom but was allowed to go as long as she was back in hospital at 11pm "like Cinderella". Love Island host, Maya Jama, teased Antonia's entrance in last night's show as she purred, while sporting a silk dressing gown: "Oh, I've got a text... I've been expecting this one." She then listened to the message, which teased: "Hey Maya, I heard you want more twists. How about an American bombshell? Get ready, I'm on my way." * Love Island is on ITV at 9pm tonight
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
'Princess Diana asked when I'd play for England - I knew racists didn't want it'
The legendary former cricketer looks back at some of his most remarkable meetings during his heyday, dealing with racism and the words of Viv Richards which still resonate Rocking and rumbling, as David 'Syd' Lawrence used to describe his bustling persona, the promising fast bowler greeted visiting royalty with his customary genial warmth. Voted Young Cricketer of the Year by a jury of learned scribes, Lawrence collected his gong at the most memorable net practice of his life. 'What made that award extra special was that it was presented to me by the patron of Gloucestershire Cricket Club… the Princess of Wales,' said Lawrence. ' Princess Diana visited the club and had a tour of all the facilities, including watching us have a net. I was only jogging in off a few paces but she still thought I bowled extremely fast. 'Naturally I was shocked by her sudden death in 1997 and thought back many times to that day she spent with us at Gloucestershire. As a result of her patronage, three people from the club were invited to her funeral at Westminster Abbey, and I was one of those asked to attend. Jack Russell and Andy Stovold were the other two. 'We were sat directly behind a couple of Americans. One was Dr Henry Kissinger, a former US secretary of state and brilliant political thinker, the other was Ruby Wax, a comedian, actress and writer who often appeared on television throughout the 1980s and 90s. 'She would not shut up! I don't think I've ever heard someone talk as incessantly as she did that day. At one point Jack leaned forward and gently motioned for her to be quiet. She smiled and agreed to do just that, and promptly started talking again. "When I spoke with Diana back in 1986, she did ask me about playing for England and whether it might happen soon. I told her I hoped so, and that if I played at Lord's then I might meet her mother-in-law too. She had a chuckle at that, which I dined out on for a little while.' The prospect of Lawrence going on to play for England was not universally approved among the country's redneck fringes. One heinous scrap of anonymous correspondence through the post advised him 'to go back to the f*****g jungle.' For the first British-born Black player to win Test caps, it was a dark reminder of a nation's swivel-eyed tendency. 'English cricket has long been littered with racists and apologists for racism,' wrote Lawrence in his searing new book, after his shattering diagnosis of motor neurone disease. 'Back in 1980 I was playing my first game for the Gloucestershire second team and one evening I was in my hotel room when I got a knock at the door. I opened it to find that one of my team-mates had left a banana skin there for me to find. It was a classic racist trope that was used to compare Black people to monkeys. 'I was the butt of the 'joke'. And it hurt. I wish I could tell you that I confronted the person who put it there and had it out with them, but I didn't. I wish I could tell you that I laughed it off, but I didn't. I sat down on my bed and I cried. If this is the way that my own team-mates see me, then what about those I'm playing against? 'I promised myself that would never happen again and that winter I went to the local gym in Bristol, The Empire, where the Commonwealth gold medal weightlifter Precious McKenzie used to train, and worked so hard on transforming my body into one that was not only fit for purpose on the field but one that wouldn't be messed with off it.' When racist fans bombarded him with Klansman vitriol and bananas in a Sunday League game against Yorkshire at Scarborough 41 years ago, the pond life were lucky 'Syd' didn't wade into the crowd to educate them. Seven years later, at the same venue, it happened again. 'As the bananas started to appear, Yorkshire physio Wayne Morton dived into the crowd to confront the racists and was hauled out by the police who were trying to keep things calm,' recalled Lawrence. 'A punter managed to get to me by the side of the pitch and confront me. 'Lawrence, you Black b******!' he said. I was ready to swing for him, but Darren Gough managed to intervene just in time.' Lawrence was always grateful for the words of his childhood hero and mentor, Viv Richards, whose lecture after a weekend making the acquaintance of Somerset and Avon police still resonates with him. 'You are a young Black man, and it will never be easy being a Black man trying to make your way, but you need to be strong. They are waiting for you to f*** up,' warned King Viv. 'They don't want to respect you and they want you to fail. Don't give them the satisfaction of proving them right about you. Use your cricket ability to prove them wrong.' It is an unjustified allocation of ill fortune that one of cricket's greatest characters, who fought back from the graphic disintegration of his knee during a Test match against New Zealand in Wellington 33 years ago, should be cut down by such a savage illness. Lawrence can no longer walk or talk, and at 61 he has planned his own funeral. But for all its darkness, his memoir is a rocking and rumbling good read.
Time Out
a day ago
- Time Out
Wait, is the Green Mill jazz club being sold? Here's what's going on with the iconic venue
One of Chicago's most storied nightlife landmarks, the Green Mill Cocktail Lounge, is in the headlines again. But don't panic just yet, jazz lovers: While the historic Uptown building that houses the century-old club is officially for sale, the Green Mill itself isn't going anywhere. The two-story structure at the corner of Broadway and Lawrence, where Al Capone once drank and Billie Holiday once performed, hit the market earlier this week. The building spans more than 21,000-square feet and includes eight commercial units, including buzzy neighbors like Birrieria Zaragoza and Le Nocturne. Current owner Dave Jemilo, who bought the Green Mill in 1986 and the building in 2021 for $5 million, hasn't publicly commented on the listing. However, sources familiar with the sale told Crain's that the club's operations are expected to continue uninterrupted, according to Block Club Chicago. That's welcome news for locals and tourists who flock to the velvet-draped venue for nightly jazz, slam poetry and a dose of Prohibition-era Chicago lore. The Green Mill has long been a living time capsule: Its curved bar, vintage booths and dim amber lighting conjure the days when mobsters sipped whiskey in the infamous 'Capone booth,' strategically placed with sightlines to both exits. If that weren't enough intrigue, there's also the tunnel system under the club, a relic of its gangster past. Once used for bootlegging and backroom escapes, the underground lair is accessible by a trapdoor behind the bar and has been featured in several films. View this post on Instagram A post shared by WTTW | Chicago's PBS Station (@wttwchicago) Jemilo's ownership transformed the then-dilapidated joint into an international jazz destination. 'I didn't buy a gold mine,' he once told WTTW. 'I bought a dump and made it a gold mine.' Under his watch, the Green Mill helped birth the global poetry slam movement and attracted generations of jazz talent. Though no asking price is listed, the building's landmark status protects it from major structural changes or demolition. So even if a new landlord steps in, the soul of the Green Mill—the music, the mythology, the martinis—should stay intact. In other words: The neon still glows, the horns still wail and for now, your favorite Uptown haunt isn't closing its doors. Just don't try to sneak into the tunnels.
