Latest news with #TheScript
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Watch This ‘Amazing' 23-Year-Old New Orleans Street Performer Get a ‘Life-Changing' Golden Buzzer on 'America's Got Talent'
America's Got Talent has had some memorable singers over the years. And this season's Jourdan Blue is now among them, having made his mark as the second Golden Buzzer awarded for Season 20 of the talent competition. The 23-year-old from New Orleans is a street performer, which he says has given him a lot of cool experiences but is also a struggle. 'I go out and sing from 8 p.m. to 2 or 3 a.m., or until the cops kick me off the street,' he said in a video package. 'That is what I do to provide for my girlfriend and my son. It's hard, but I want to lead by example. I want to show my son [that] you should chase your dreams. I wasn't ready when I had him, but he's taught me there's a lot more to life than I realized.' 🎬 🎬 Jourdan's mother was a cop, and his father was an attorney, which led him to become a rebel. And when he was 16, he ended up on his own, moving from friend's house to friend's house, or sleeping in bathrooms where he worked. 'Until my grandpa found out,' Jourdan explained. 'He drove out there that night and picked me up and said, 'You stay with me now.' I've been with him ever since.' That relationship is so tight that Jourdan called his Grandpappy John before going on stage at AGT and handed the phone to host Terry Crews so that his grandfather could watch his performance. Related: Jourdan explained his living situation to judges Simon Cowell, Mel B, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara, saying his grandfather is a big music listener, which is where his inspiration came from. 'I started street performing in New Orleans because I totally wanted to dive into it,' he said, starting to get emotional. 'As you may remember, at the beginning of the year, there was an attack on New Orleans right on the block where I perform. It made me realize there is so much more to live for. That is what made me choose AGT. I feel this is the best way to level up.' Jourdan chose 'Breakeven' by The Script for his audition. Halfway through, the audience jumped up. And when he concluded, the judges gave him a standing ovation as well, with Simon flashig two thumbs up. 'I mean, I'm in love with you,' Sofia said. 'The hair, the voice, your energy, you're a rock star.' Mel B said, 'It was like I was hearing that song for the first time, which is really hard to do with such a popular song. But your tone and the way you delivered that song was not only pitch perfect but everything perfect, Jourdan. It really was.' Then Simon added, 'You are somebody who lost his way a little bit. But, as you said, through music have now found your way. You have such a distinctive voice, you are so cool, and you feed off the audience. They love you. How you made me feel just then was amazing. Seriously, amazing. Loved it. Loved it.' Then, Howie claimed Jourdan as his own. 'This is Season 20. I've seen dreams come true right where you're standing. Lives change right where you're standing. That stage and that moment can take you anywhere. This is just the beginning of where you can go. You, young man, are going to the Live Shows,' Howie said as he stood up to press the Golden Buzzer. The comic then joined Jourdan on stage, saying, 'I think you're a star. I think your name is going to be on the lips of everybody watching this across the globe.' They were also joined by Jourdan's girlfriend and cute-as-a-button son. America's Got Talent airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Streams next day on This 'Amazing' 23-Year-Old New Orleans Street Performer Get a 'Life-Changing' Golden Buzzer on 'America's Got Talent' first appeared on Parade on May 28, 2025
Extra.ie
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
From the Emerald Isle to Worthy Farm: Irish talent shines at Glastonbury 2025
Festival season is well and truly in full swing with the full Glastonbury line-up being announced today. The 1975, Neil Young and Olivia Rodrigo will headline the Pyramid Stage, with other highlights including Charli XCX, Doechii, Rod Stewart, Loyle Carner, The Prodigy and Wolf Alice. While there are some major celebs gracing the line-up, we're more excited by the absolutely phenomenal Irish presence for Glasto 2025. Festival season is well and truly in full swing with the full Glastonbury line-up being announced today. With her recent track 'Take a Sexy Picture of Me,' doing the rounds on TikTok, CMAT is sure to pull a massive crowd at the Pyramid Stage on Friday 27 June. She'll be playing from 1:30pm ahead of Burning Spear and Alanis Morissette. Playing the same stage at 3pm on Saturday 28 June is none other than The Script, who share the stage with the likes of Raye and the Kaiser Chiefs. Playing the same stage at 3pm on Saturday 28 June is none other than The Script, who share the stage with the likes of Raye and the Kaiser Chiefs. Pic: REX/Shutterstock Irish rock band Inhaler will grace the Other Stage on Friday 27 June at 2:15pm while Snow Patrol play the same stage at 6pm on Sunday 29 June. Despite an ongoing legal battle, Kneecap are still set to play the West Holts Stage on Saturday 28 June at 4pm. The Woodsies stage will be exceptionally Irish on Sunday 29 June as Gurriers perform at 12:30pm, shortly followed by Sprints at 2pm. Irish rock band Inhaler will grace the Other Stage on Friday 27 June at 2:15pm while Snow Patrol play the same stage at 6pm on Sunday 29 June. Pic: GMCD Oisin Leech will play the acoustic stage on Saturday 28 June at 1pm with the Coronas taking to the same stage at 5:10pm. The Riptide Movement will also play the acoustic stage at 3pm on Sunday 29 June. Orla Gartland will rock the Avalon Stage at 6:35pm on Friday 27 June while Annie Mac B2B Jamz Supernova will play Arcadia at Saturday 28 June. Jazzy will play Levels on Sunday 29 June at 2:45pm while Gurriers play yet another set on the Leftfield Stage on Friday 27 June at 5:35pm.
West Australian
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Haunting last posts by missing teen Pheobe Bishop emerge
Missing teenager Pheobe Bishop's tragic final posts have emerged, revealing she had decided to not return to her family home. A post on missing Gin Gin teenager Pheobe Bishop's TikTok has given insight into the 17-year-old's outlook on life before she disappeared. In a post timestamped March 31 – just two weeks before the teenager mysteriously vanished – Pheobe revealed that she had been 'in and out' of home for years, but 'this time we're not going back'. Pheobe was living with two housemates at a property in Gin Gin before her disappearance. Her post was part of a wider trend dubbed 'coffee with my younger self', where people shared a hypothetical conversation between their current and younger self to demonstrate personal growth and development. In the post, she references that she had an estranged relationship with her mother, writing that 'we don't see nor talk to her but it's better like this'. She wrote that she was a proud sibling and aunty but felt she had to leave home to prioritise herself. 'Baby we will always need them, but we need to find us more then (sic) anything or anyone,' she wrote The long text concludes with the line, 'I really hope I meet my younger self for coffee again soon', while Adele's Hometown Glory plays in the background. The post has been flooded with comments from concerned friends and followers, with many writing that they are praying that Pheobe returns home safe. The account also shows that Pheobe recently reposted a video published by a different user captioned 'my roman empire is how people who go 'missing' are still somewhere here on this earth, and just no one knows where'. Pheobe spoke candidly about her experiences and challenges on her TikTok account, including alluding to a break-up. Police said the teen had been booked to travel to Western Australia via Brisbane to visit her boyfriend, but she never checked in for the flight. She posted a video to the song The Man Who Can't Be Moved by The Script in December 2024, captioned 'i miss seeing ur face, and i miss seeing you in random places'. 'I'm not built for this town, these aren't my people. So b4 [before] you try n get close to me jus (sic) don't. I refuse to rot,' she wrote in a separate post on March 25. In another TikTok, she wrote 'life teaching me a lot right now'. Pheobe's mother Kylie Johnson wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday that the family was waiting for her daughter to come home. 'Finding it hard to get out of bed today. To find the strength to put one foot in front of the other and know what to do, what to think or what to say,' she wrote. 'People have judgements, accusations and continue say untruths. I'm not going to correct you or be investing what little strength I have to be correcting these statements or people. 'We as a family are just trying to go through the motions of waiting for Phee to come home.' The posts have emerged as police continue to search the greater Good Night Scrub National Park and the Gin Gin areas for Pheobe Some items of interest have been located during the search and will undergo forensic examination.
Perth Now
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
‘Not going back': Missing teen's last posts
Missing teenager Pheobe Bishop's tragic final posts have emerged, revealing she had decided to not return to her family home. A post on missing Gin Gin teenager Pheobe Bishop's TikTok has given insight into the 17-year-old's outlook on life before she disappeared. In a post timestamped March 31 – just two weeks before the teenager mysteriously vanished – Pheobe revealed that she had been 'in and out' of home for years, but 'this time we're not going back'. Pheobe was living with two housemates at a property in Gin Gin before her disappearance. Her post was part of a wider trend dubbed 'coffee with my younger self', where people shared a hypothetical conversation between their current and younger self to demonstrate personal growth and development. The last social media post from missing teen Pheobe Bishop. TikTok Credit: Supplied In the post, she references that she had an estranged relationship with her mother, writing that 'we don't see nor talk to her but it's better like this'. She wrote that she was a proud sibling and aunty but felt she had to leave home to prioritise herself. 'Baby we will always need them, but we need to find us more then (sic) anything or anyone,' she wrote The long text concludes with the line, 'I really hope I meet my younger self for coffee again soon', while Adele's Hometown Glory plays in the background. The post has been flooded with comments from concerned friends and followers, with many writing that they are praying that Pheobe returns home safe. The account also shows that Pheobe recently reposted a video published by a different user captioned 'my roman empire is how people who go 'missing' are still somewhere here on this earth, and just no one knows where'. A post Pheobe Bishop re-shared before her disappearance. TikTok Credit: Supplied Pheobe spoke candidly about her experiences and challenges on her TikTok account, including alluding to a break-up. Police said the teen had been booked to travel to Western Australia via Brisbane to visit her boyfriend, but she never checked in for the flight. She posted a video to the song The Man Who Can't Be Moved by The Script in December 2024, captioned 'i miss seeing ur face, and i miss seeing you in random places'. 'I'm not built for this town, these aren't my people. So b4 [before] you try n get close to me jus (sic) don't. I refuse to rot,' she wrote in a separate post on March 25. In another TikTok, she wrote 'life teaching me a lot right now'. Pheobe's mother Kylie Johnson wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday that the family was waiting for her daughter to come home. 'Finding it hard to get out of bed today. To find the strength to put one foot in front of the other and know what to do, what to think or what to say,' she wrote. 'People have judgements, accusations and continue say untruths. I'm not going to correct you or be investing what little strength I have to be correcting these statements or people. 'We as a family are just trying to go through the motions of waiting for Phee to come home.' Police and SES continue to search Good Night Scrub National Park for the missing teen. Adam Head/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia The posts have emerged as police continue to search the greater Good Night Scrub National Park and the Gin Gin areas for Pheobe Some items of interest have been located during the search and will undergo forensic examination.
RTÉ News
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Why it's time to tune into Ireland's female musicians
We present an extract from Why Not Her? A Manifesto for Culture Change, the new book by Linda Coogan Byrne. Through a combination of hard-hitting data, personal testimony, and case studies by activist, PR specialist, and gender equity champion Linda Coogan Byrne, Why Not Her? offers a bold and unflinching examination of the systemic inequalities within the music industry — and far beyond. Most Irish female artists' experiences of music industry and radio support are vastly different from those of their male counterparts — artists like Dermot Kennedy, Hozier, Moncrieff, Robert Grace, Gavin James, The Script, Cian Ducrot, Amble, Kingfisher, Kneecap, Snow Patrol, and Picture This, to name but a few. The list of "breakthrough" Irish male acts feels endless — bolstered by consistent, heavy radio rotation, festival bookings, and widespread media backing. But for Irish women in music, the path has been steeper, quieter, and relentlessly overlooked. Too often, the only route to real success has meant working ten times harder — or leaving Ireland altogether. Artists like CMAT, Orla Gartland, RuthAnne, Bambi Thug, Biig Piig, Áine Tyrrell, Wallis Bird, and Wyvern Lingo have all pursued their careers abroad — in the UK, Berlin, Australia, and beyond — where access, airplay, and opportunities are far more abundant for women and gender-diverse artists who continue to be overlooked in Ireland. Even The Cranberries — now icons of Irish music — famously broke America before being fully embraced at home. It's a pattern that continues today: for many Irish women, meaningful recognition only arrives once they've made noise elsewhere. One notable exception in recent years has been Jazzy, whose breakout came through a collaboration with two male producers — Belters Only. That track, Make Me Feel Good, became a viral and chart-topping hit, making her the first Irish female artist to reach Number 1 on Spotify's Top 50 Ireland chart, and the first Irish woman to top the Irish Singles Chart in over 14 years. She then carved her own path with Giving Me, which made her the first Irish female solo artist in over two decades to hit Number 1 on the Irish Singles Chart. She carved her own way once the door was opened — and this is what happens when women are given a chance. Watch: Bambi Thug performs on The Late Late Show The team and I in the Why Not Her? collective conducted a 20-year analysis of the Irish Singles Chart — and the results lay it bare: For every female act that reaches the chart, 4.6 male acts do the same. Male acts have seven entries for every single entry by a female act. For each week a female act spends on the chart, a male act spends 11.5 weeks. 71.1% of Top 10 singles over the past two decades were released by Irish male artists and bands. The scale of exclusion is staggering. Women, and especially women of colour, have been absent from mainstream success. Between 2010 and 2020, not a single Irish woman reached the top rank. The system isn't about talent — it's about access. Then came Irish Women in Harmony — 47 women joining forces to record a powerful rendition of Dreams by The Cranberries. Their voices didn't just break a decade-long drought; they raised vital funds for Safe Ireland, supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse. The single went on to reach Number 15 on the Official Irish Singles Chart and Number 1 on the Official Irish Homegrown Chart — a chart dedicated to highlighting the most popular songs by Irish artists across streaming, downloads, and sales. This feat marked the first time a female act topped the Homegrown Chart and the first time in over a decade that an Irish female act had broken into the Top 20 of the Official Irish Singles Chart. Watch: Irish Women In Harmony perform on The Late Late Show It took nearly 50 women coming together to reclaim a space that male artists often occupy alone. Even imagining that contrast should tell you everything. Needless to say, the system isn't broken — it was built this way. And it's long past time to change it. This isn't a coincidence. It's a pattern. Male artists dominate radio playlists and festival stages, leaving women to fight for scraps — or feeling isolated if they are among the tiny percentage of female headliners. And airplay, which is the lifeblood of chart success, is gate-kept in a way that excludes them. Even when women write about resilience, adversity, and triumph, their voices don't get the same platform or visibility. Airplay Isn't merit-based. It's access-based This is about visibility — but it's also about infrastructure. Most Irish women are still releasing music independently, without the label support or financial investment their male counterparts more often receive. Take Orla Gartland, for example — an Irish female artist now based in London. Entirely independent, she recently won Best Song Musically and Lyrically at the Ivor Novello Awards — by herself. No label machine. No major-budget backing. Just talent, work, and vision. Her win proves what we already know: when women are given space to flourish, they deliver excellence on their own terms. Listen: Orla Gartland talks to Oliver Callan And yet, she has received just over 600 total radio plays across her entire catalogue in Ireland so far this year. Her peer? Take Gavin James — one of many male artists regularly championed on Irish radio. He has received over 8,000 plays in the same time period. The contrast is staggering. The system isn't about talent — it's about access. Yet even those with major label backing still don't find their way into heavy rotation playlists — rendering the age-old excuses radio executives continue to use both indefensible and absurd. As laid out in Why Not Her?, here's what they've actually said when confronted: "Men make better music than women." "We don't have the budget to be diverse." "We don't make the rules." "Women just moan." "She's too old and long in the tooth to be making music." "You need to be careful and stop stepping on people's toes in radio." "We actually had some women on a special Friday night show back in February." "It's the label's fault, not ours." "People prefer to listen to male acts; they request them on air!" These aren't thoughtful critiques. They're lazy deflections — sexist, patronising, and structurally embedded. They insult not only the intelligence and talent of Irish women artists, but the audience as well. When Irish radio producers say, "We just play what people want," they ignore a fundamental truth: taste is shaped by exposure — and exposure is controlled. You can't love what you're not hearing. Why Not Her? Why Not Now? Because the next generation is not only watching. They are listening. And they are coming.
