Griff has opened for some of pop’s biggest stars. Now she has a debut album of her own to tour
British singer-songwriter Griff’s career has been an unmistakable whirlwind. Less than two years after releasing her first single, she won the Brit Award for Rising Star. Then she opened for Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay and Taylor Swift. In between those gigs, intimate solo shows and single and EP releases, she was working on the songs that became her debut album, “Vertigo.” The 23-year-old, whose full name is Sarah Faith Griffiths, told The Associated Press that the usual steps that a new artist takes have been upside-down for her. She tracks the dizzying emotions that have accompanied her journey in her new album. “Vertigo” is out now.
The son of Asia’s richest man is set to marry in the year’s most extravagant wedding
MUMBAI, India (AP) — Global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians are arriving in India’s financial capital to attend the wedding of the youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, the world’s ninth richest man. Anant Ambani is marrying his longtime girlfriend, Radhika Merchant, in what many have dubbed the wedding of the year. The celebrations in Mumbai are the culmination of months of wedding events that featured performances by popstars Rihanna and Justin Bieber. The wedding guest list includes former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, the Kardashians, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake and David Beckham. Ambani is Asia’s richest man with a net worth of $116 billion.
LL Cool J relearned ‘how to rap’ on his first album in 11 years, ‘The FORCE.’ Here’s how
NEW YORK (AP) — LL COOL J, the Grammy award winning rapper, actor and author, will release his first new album in 11 years, “The FORCE” on Sept. 6 — 40 years into his hip-hop career. He’s always tinkered in the studio, he tells The Associated Press, but over the last two years, the pursuit became more serious. A Tribe Called Quest’s Phife Dawg came to him in a dream, resulting in LL COOL J enlisting Dawg’s band mate Q-Tip to produce the album, which is out Sept. 16. He says this album is about showing people that rap veterans can still contribute to and have an impact on modern hip-hop.
These Picassos prompted a gender war at an Australian gallery. Now the curator says she painted them
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — An Australian art museum curator has divulged that she was the creator of three paintings that she presented as works by Pablo Picasso — and which prompted a gender discrimination case when she only permitted female gallery patrons to view them. The paintings were part of an exhibition called the Ladies Lounge at the Museum of Old and New Art in Tasmania curated by Kirsha Kaechele, who said this week that inquiries from the Picasso Administration about the works had prompted her to confess she had painted them. The paintings have been displayed at the museum for more than three years.
On NYC beaches, angry birds fight drones patrolling for sharks and struggling swimmers
NEW YORK (AP) — A new initiative to monitor swimmers and sharks on New York City beaches with surveillance drones is bringing a backlash from shorebirds. City officials say the drones had been repeatedly swarmed by birds that have forced pilots to ground the devices on several occasions since the program launched in May. The city is now avoiding known nesting areas, but the attacks have not stopped. Wildlife experts cautioned the drones could provoke a stress response in the birds forcing them to abandon their nests. Attacks have mostly been carried out by American oystercatchers. The beach is also home to piping plovers, a federally designated endangered species.
Booming Turkish TV drama industry captures hearts and minds worldwide and boosts tourism
ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey has emerged as a leading exporter of television dramas, bolstering the nation’s international image and drawing millions of viewers and tourists to…
