Billy Joel felt 'hurt' by Sir Elton John's rehab comments
The 76-year-old star admits that some "bad blood" developed between himself and Elton, after the Your Song hitmaker publicly suggested that Billy needed to spend some time in rehab.
In the HBO documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes, he says: "Elton had made a comment that he thought I needed real rehab. He chalked it up to, 'Oh, he's a drunk.' And that really hurt me.
"I said wait a minute? Don't you know me better than that? And there was bad blood for a little while. There was a dovetailing of things that happened during that time."
Billy recalled feeling at "rock bottom" when he read Elton's comments.
He said: "I was disillusioned with what I thought it was all supposed to mean. It was like all the signs were pointing to me: enough. And I wrote this letter to the band. 'I don't want to do this anymore. I'm gonna stop.'"
Elton made the comments to Rolling Stone magazine back in 2011, shortly after they toured together.
Elton explained at the time that they had "so many cancelled tours because of illnesses and various other things, alcoholism".
The chart-topping star - who also struggled with addiction in the 70s and 80s - added: "He's going to hate me for this, but every time he goes to rehab they've been light ... I love you Billy, and this is tough love."
Billy actually spent time in rehab in 2005, and he previously acknowledged that addiction has created "problems" in his life.
The singer stopped drinking altogether in 2021, and he insisted that it doesn't bring any value to his life.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times newspaper in 2023, Billy shared: "I stopped a couple of years ago. It wasn't a big Alcoholics Anonymous kick. I just got a point where I'd had enough.
"I didn't enjoy being completely inebriated, and it probably created more problems in my life than I needed. I don't need it now."
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Perth Now
9 hours ago
- Perth Now
Marc Maron paid $50,000 to use Taylor Swift's Bigger Than The Whole Sky in his comedy special
Marc Maron paid $50,000 to secure the rights to Taylor Swift's song Bigger Than The Whole Sky for use in his upcoming HBO comedy special, Marc Maron: Panicked. The 61-year-old stand-up uses the tear-jerking ballad from the pop superstar's Midnights (3am Edition) album at the end of his routine and they just about managed to pay the fee to use a snippet of the track after the money started running out. After getting in touch with the track's co-writer, Jack Antonoff, who happened to be a friend of Marc, they managed to get in touch with the right people to agree a figure for the usage. The GLOW star said on the Vulture's Good One podcast: 'I think it came out to $50K, around that. 'I did everything I could to get the joke in front of her.' He continued: "I know Jack Antonoff enough to text him, and he's the co-writer on that song. 'I said, 'I don't know what's proper or how to do this, but we're running out of money on this thing. It's probably going to come out of my pocket. Is there anything you can do about this song or talk to Taylor?'' Fortunately, the ticket sales for the show meant it didn't have to come out of Marc's own pocket. He added: 'It was doable. We made enough money. It was tight, but because of the ticket sales for the special, we were able to get that song.' Being able to use Bigger Than The Whole Sky - which tackles grief - was a big deal to Marc. He explained: 'My relationship with that song, and just the fact that I'm playing it on my phone. 'It had to happen.' Taylor's music has also appeared in the likes of The Summer I Turned Pretty and The Handmaid's Tale. Elisabeth Moss wrote a heartfelt letter to Taylor, 35, in a bid to get permission to use one of her songs in an episode of The Handmaid's Tale. The 43-year-old actress explained how much the Grammy winner's "her music means" to her and how the inclusion of the track Look What You Made Me Do would help the show - and she was delighted when Taylor agreed for the song to be used. Elisabeth told Entertainment Tonight: "We've been so excited ... Honestly the feedback was her saying yes. For me, that was really, truly such an honour that she took the time to read, you know I wrote her a letter about what I felt the song meant for the episode and her music means to me and our cast. "So the fact that she said yes to me was all the feedback that I needed. " The song was featured in episode nine of the sixth season of The Handmaid's Tale, which aired in May, and Elisabeth previously revealed she'd wanted to include a Swift song in the series for years and she'd finally found the "perfect moment". Elisabeth told Billboard: "I've been wanting to use a Taylor song for many years on the show and we finally found the perfect spot for a track from her, and I'm so glad we waited because there could not be a more perfect song for a more perfect moment. "Taylor has been such an inspiration to me personally. As a Swiftie myself, and I think I can speak for [co-star] Yvonne [Strahovski] and our entire cast as well, who are all Swifties, it's such an honour to be able to use her music in the final episodes of our show."
The Advertiser
a day ago
- The Advertiser
Marc Maron paid $77k for a minute of Taylor Swift song
Marc Maron has paid $US50,000 ($A76,648) to use just one minute of a Taylor Swift song in his stand-up special. The 61-year-old comic felt he needed Bigger Than the Whole Sky - a bonus track on the 3am edition of Taylor's 2022 album Midnights - for a pivotal moment in his HBO show Marc Maron: Panicked. He got in touch with mutual friend Jack Antonoff for help in licensing the track, and while his pal was able to offer advice on going through official channels, he could not obtain him a discount on the fee. Speaking on Vulture's Good One podcast, Maron said: "I know Jack Antonoff enough to text him - and he's the co-writer on that song. "I said, 'I don't know what's proper or how to do this, but we're running out of money on this thing. It's probably going to come out of my pocket. Is there anything you can do about this song or talk to Taylor?' "It was doable. "I would have gone over the minute, (but) it would have been more money." Maron did not know if Swift has heard the specific joke that her team signed off on letting him use the track for, but he was "manifesting" that she would like it if she had. "It had to happen. The real fear (was), like, (if) she doesn't let you use it, and then what do you do? You can't do the bit on the special." Maron previously explained he studied Midnights on a hike while trying to "figure out" why people like Swift's music so much. He said on his WTF podcast in 2023: "I'm an open-minded guy, and I like music. I (wanted) to try to figure out what it is about Taylor Swift that everyone never shuts up about." After listening to the record, he said: "I'm like, 'All right. I get it.' It's pop music, but it's not dance music (and) it's, sort of, emotional. There's a lot of longing and sadness and isolation and processing these overwhelming feelings of melancholy." Maron previously hailed his new special, which premieres on Friday, as the "best work" he has ever done. Marc Maron has paid $US50,000 ($A76,648) to use just one minute of a Taylor Swift song in his stand-up special. The 61-year-old comic felt he needed Bigger Than the Whole Sky - a bonus track on the 3am edition of Taylor's 2022 album Midnights - for a pivotal moment in his HBO show Marc Maron: Panicked. He got in touch with mutual friend Jack Antonoff for help in licensing the track, and while his pal was able to offer advice on going through official channels, he could not obtain him a discount on the fee. Speaking on Vulture's Good One podcast, Maron said: "I know Jack Antonoff enough to text him - and he's the co-writer on that song. "I said, 'I don't know what's proper or how to do this, but we're running out of money on this thing. It's probably going to come out of my pocket. Is there anything you can do about this song or talk to Taylor?' "It was doable. "I would have gone over the minute, (but) it would have been more money." Maron did not know if Swift has heard the specific joke that her team signed off on letting him use the track for, but he was "manifesting" that she would like it if she had. "It had to happen. The real fear (was), like, (if) she doesn't let you use it, and then what do you do? You can't do the bit on the special." Maron previously explained he studied Midnights on a hike while trying to "figure out" why people like Swift's music so much. He said on his WTF podcast in 2023: "I'm an open-minded guy, and I like music. I (wanted) to try to figure out what it is about Taylor Swift that everyone never shuts up about." After listening to the record, he said: "I'm like, 'All right. I get it.' It's pop music, but it's not dance music (and) it's, sort of, emotional. There's a lot of longing and sadness and isolation and processing these overwhelming feelings of melancholy." Maron previously hailed his new special, which premieres on Friday, as the "best work" he has ever done. Marc Maron has paid $US50,000 ($A76,648) to use just one minute of a Taylor Swift song in his stand-up special. The 61-year-old comic felt he needed Bigger Than the Whole Sky - a bonus track on the 3am edition of Taylor's 2022 album Midnights - for a pivotal moment in his HBO show Marc Maron: Panicked. He got in touch with mutual friend Jack Antonoff for help in licensing the track, and while his pal was able to offer advice on going through official channels, he could not obtain him a discount on the fee. Speaking on Vulture's Good One podcast, Maron said: "I know Jack Antonoff enough to text him - and he's the co-writer on that song. "I said, 'I don't know what's proper or how to do this, but we're running out of money on this thing. It's probably going to come out of my pocket. Is there anything you can do about this song or talk to Taylor?' "It was doable. "I would have gone over the minute, (but) it would have been more money." Maron did not know if Swift has heard the specific joke that her team signed off on letting him use the track for, but he was "manifesting" that she would like it if she had. "It had to happen. The real fear (was), like, (if) she doesn't let you use it, and then what do you do? You can't do the bit on the special." Maron previously explained he studied Midnights on a hike while trying to "figure out" why people like Swift's music so much. He said on his WTF podcast in 2023: "I'm an open-minded guy, and I like music. I (wanted) to try to figure out what it is about Taylor Swift that everyone never shuts up about." After listening to the record, he said: "I'm like, 'All right. I get it.' It's pop music, but it's not dance music (and) it's, sort of, emotional. There's a lot of longing and sadness and isolation and processing these overwhelming feelings of melancholy." Maron previously hailed his new special, which premieres on Friday, as the "best work" he has ever done. Marc Maron has paid $US50,000 ($A76,648) to use just one minute of a Taylor Swift song in his stand-up special. The 61-year-old comic felt he needed Bigger Than the Whole Sky - a bonus track on the 3am edition of Taylor's 2022 album Midnights - for a pivotal moment in his HBO show Marc Maron: Panicked. He got in touch with mutual friend Jack Antonoff for help in licensing the track, and while his pal was able to offer advice on going through official channels, he could not obtain him a discount on the fee. Speaking on Vulture's Good One podcast, Maron said: "I know Jack Antonoff enough to text him - and he's the co-writer on that song. "I said, 'I don't know what's proper or how to do this, but we're running out of money on this thing. It's probably going to come out of my pocket. Is there anything you can do about this song or talk to Taylor?' "It was doable. "I would have gone over the minute, (but) it would have been more money." Maron did not know if Swift has heard the specific joke that her team signed off on letting him use the track for, but he was "manifesting" that she would like it if she had. "It had to happen. The real fear (was), like, (if) she doesn't let you use it, and then what do you do? You can't do the bit on the special." Maron previously explained he studied Midnights on a hike while trying to "figure out" why people like Swift's music so much. He said on his WTF podcast in 2023: "I'm an open-minded guy, and I like music. I (wanted) to try to figure out what it is about Taylor Swift that everyone never shuts up about." After listening to the record, he said: "I'm like, 'All right. I get it.' It's pop music, but it's not dance music (and) it's, sort of, emotional. There's a lot of longing and sadness and isolation and processing these overwhelming feelings of melancholy." Maron previously hailed his new special, which premieres on Friday, as the "best work" he has ever done.
News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
‘Too woke': Star rages after being cut from ‘And Just Like That'
Bobby Lee thinks wokeness is to blame for his exit from And Just Like That, the New York Post reports. The comedian, 53, spoke to Entertainment Weekly at San Diego Comic-Con over the weekend about why he wasn't asked to reprise his role as Jackie Nee, Carrie's (Sarah Jessica Parker) podcast co-host, on the third season of the show. 'Some of the woke elements of the show, they got rid of, and I think I was a part of that,' Lee stated. 'I think Sara [Ramirez] didn't come back and some other people,' he added. 'They tried to put minorities in, and — I don't know. I never saw the show.' Lee departed AJLT between Seasons 2 and 3, as did Ramirez, who played Miranda's (Cynthia Nixon) non-binary love interest Che Díaz, and Karen Pittman, who played Dr. Nya Wallace. Season 2 wrapped up Carrie's podcast storyline, which allowed the show to write off Lee and Ramirez. 'Number one, I don't even know why they asked,' Lee told EW about being cast in the HBO Max series. 'And I was super scared to do it. Because it wasn't my brand, really. You know what I mean? But I did it. I walked through the fear.' Lee added that getting to work with Parker, 60, was a highlight of the experience. 'Sarah Jessica Parker is the nicest person I've ever met. She made me feel so at ease,' he shared. 'I like everyone on there. It was fun. I never have bad blood with anybody. You know what I mean? I am nice. I show up on time.' Lee previously revealed that working on the Sex and the City reboot pushed him to get sober. 'I was in Hawaii and I was blackout drunk and my agent called and said, 'They need you in New York,'' he recalled on Rachel Bilson's Broad Ideas podcast in 2023. 'This is one of the reasons why I'm sober … On the plane, I thought, 'I'm just gonna get sh*t faced,' so I was in a blackout when we landed in New York.' Lee said that he learned he was expected to film AJLT that day when he realised that his driver wasn't taking him to his hotel. 'I remember going and being so high and drunk,' Lee revealed. 'When I was reading the script, I couldn't even understand what the f*ck it was even saying. It was a nightmare. I remember thinking, 'This is never going to happen again — I have to get sober.'' New episodes of And Just Like That stream Thursdays at 11am AEST on HBO Max.
