Latest news with #GingerBaker
Forbes
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
The Spiritual And Amusing Sides Of Bad Company Bad Boy Paul Rodgers
British songwriter/singer Paul Rodgers and guitarist Jimmy Page of The Firm at Meadowlands Arena, May 9, 1985, East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo By) Getty Images In Part 1 and Part 2 of our interview series with classic rocker Paul Rodgers, we covered quite a bit: his impending induction into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, an amusing anecdote from a Bad Company tour in Spain, his initial thoughts on the great super-group Cream, the first time he heard his own song on the radio, where the name Bad Company came from, his work with the not-for-profit Adopt The Arts, his medical situation with a number of recent strokes, ex-band manager Peter Grant and Led Zeppelin, his upcoming memoirs and his epitaph. Below is the third and final installment in the series. Jim Clash: You were in the short-lived super group The Firm, with guitarist Jimmy Page, and toured with short-lived super group Blind Faith, with drummer Ginger Baker. Paul Rodgers: I don't think the tag "super group" is helpful to any band, really, because so much is expected of them. But yes, I toured with Blind Faith in Free when they first came out. I got to see Ginger Baker in action. He was known for throwing from the stage with incredible accuracy one of his sticks, bopping people on the head. The guy would turn around, wondering where it came from, and Ginger would just be playing away as if nothing had happened, you know [laughs]. I was standing on the side of the stage watching him one night, and he fixed his eyes on me. I thought, "Oh my God, I'm dead." He almost threw a stick at me, but he didn't [laughs]. Rock band "Blind Faith" in 1969. (L-R): Steve Winwood, Ric Grech, Ginger Baker, Eric Clapton. Photo by Bob Seidemann. (Photo by Michael) Getty Images Clash: Like Ginger, you were a bit of a bad ass in your youth. Who is the real Paul Rodgers underneath it all? Rodgers: You know, Jim, I'm still finding out, I really am. I'm not sure. But he's been a lot of people. What I'm working on now is my spirituality. I think that God exists. He's the entire universe, all consciousness and benevolent. If you think of God as a fire, we're all sparks of that fire. But I have been spiritual for a lot of my life. When I first heard The Beatles in London while doing my own thing, George Harrison talked about meditation. I discovered it at that point. Our lives had suddenly become very crazy. Sometimes meditation's gotten away from me, but I always come back to it to ground myself. Eventually, I've come to the point of understanding that's where I belong. Clash: Do you ever pray? Rodgers: I do pray when I need inspiration. In fact, one of The Changels choir boys during a quiet moment turned to me and asked, 'Do you believe in God?" [see Part 1 link below for context]. I was a bit flabbergasted, and said, "Yes I do actually, and I think he's everywhere." The boy simply said "Okay," and ran off to be with the rest of the choir [laughs]. Clash: Earlier, you had mentioned a heart-warming anecdote about some blind girls who had attended a Bad Company show in Spain. How about a funny anecdote from touring? SAITAMA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 26, 2005: (L-R) singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor of the British group Queen at Saitama Super Arena. (Photo by) Getty Images Rodgers: During the Queen Plus Paul Rodgers tour, we were always playing gags. One day my wife went to Jim Beach, Queen's manager, and mentioned that I wanted to speak with him. Each night, the maids would decorate the hotel bathrooms. They had put a chaise lounge in ours, with a sheepskin rug. So my wife bought this feather boa. She set me up on the lounge chair with the boa around my neck and called Jim into the room. Now I'm just laying there and my wife starts feeding me grapes. Jim says, "Oh no, you want to go back to the days with Freddie!' He thought Freddie had rubbed off on me. Later, as I went out to the stage, Jim kept pleading with me to take off the boa [laughs]. Poor Jim, but what a great guy.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Meta reportedly exploring stablecoin deployment, plans to bring crypto support to Facebook, WhatsApp
Representative image Facebook parent Meta is once again testing the deployment of stablecoins. This move comes three years after abandoning its ambitious Diem (formerly Libra) cryptocurrency project due to regulatory pushback. According to a report by Fortune, Meta is in preliminary talks with crypto infrastructure firms to explore stablecoins as a payment solution, particularly for content creators across its platforms — Facebook, WhatsApp. The company is reportedly considering multiple stablecoins, such as USDC and USDT, rather than relying on a single provider. Meta's crypto strategy The report further adds that this renewed interest in digital currencies suggests a potential shift in Meta's strategy, possibly driven by the evolving regulatory landscape and the growing adoption of stablecoins. Companies like Visa, Stripe, and Fidelity have recently entered the space, signaling broader acceptance. Meta's Vice President of Product, Ginger Baker, who specializes in fintech and payments, is leading the company's stablecoin exploration. Baker previously worked at Plaid and serves on the board of the Stellar Development Foundation, a crypto organization managing a layer 1 blockchain. Meta is reportedly evaluating stablecoins for cross-border payments , aiming to reduce high transaction fees associated with traditional banking methods. The company's move reflects a broader trend of non-crypto firms integrating blockchain-based financial solutions. While the details of Meta's plans are still emerging, this development signals the company's continued interest in leveraging blockchain technology and digital currencies. AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Finextra
12-05-2025
- Business
- Finextra
Meta investigates stablecoins for payouts
Years after being forced to abandon its crypto project, Meta is in talks with digital asset firms about integrating stablecoin payments into its platform, according to Fortune. 0 Citing sources, Fortune says Facebook has been talking to crypto infrastructure players about introducing stablecoins as a way of managing payouts. Stablecoins could prove useful in enabling payouts to individuals across different regions more efficiently and with lower fees than more traditional payment options. No final decision has been made, but the Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp parent could take a multi-token approach and integrate support for the likes of Tether's USDt and Circle's USDC. Meta has hired Ginger Baker, board member of the Stellar Development Foundation and a former Plaid exec, as a VP, product specialising in fintech and payments to help explore the possibilities, says Fortune. Meta has largely steered clear of crypto since the collapse of its ambitions project to use a stablecoin, dubbed Diem, to back its own digital wallet called Novi. After years of work led by former PayPal boss David Marcus, Meta abandoned Novi and Diem amid fierce regulatory pushback. However, recently the regulatory environment has changed significantly, thanks in large part to US President Donald Trump's crypto enthusiasm. Progress was stalled last week, when Democratic Senators blocked the Genius Stablecoin bill although both sides agree that regulation should be brought in.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Meta Is Looking to Enter Red-Hot Stablecoin Market: Fortune
Tech giant Meta (META) is looking to use stablecoin to manage payouts, Fortune reported, citing five sources familiar with the matter. Meta has also hired a vice president of product, Ginger Baker, who has crypto experience to help with its stablecoin efforts, Fortune said. The company's foray back into crypto is worth noting, given that its 2019 blockchain project Libra, later renamed Diem, came to a crashing halt in 2022, after intense regulatory scrutiny. If Meta goes through with this project, it will enter the sector at a time when stablecoins—digital tokens pegged to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar—are becoming the hottest trend among crypto and TradFi firms. Companies such as Ripple, Mastercard, Visa, Dutch bank ING and Stripe are all joining the stablecoin industry. In fact, Standard Chartered said the stablecoin market could grow by $2 trillion by the end of 2028. However, lawmakers in the U.S. are also scrutinizing stablecoins. A vote to open a floor debate on a bill regulating this sector of the crypto industry failed earlier Thursday after lawmakers expressed concerns about some of the bill's consumer protection and legal provisions, as well as about U.S. President Donald Trump's own foray into stablecoins through World Liberty Financial's (May 8, 20:15): Updates to add more details about the stablecoin bill.
