Ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer says producer Rick Rubin was a “hindrance”

After eight episodes and a whole lot of ‘Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve and Talent’, Spankie Jackzon (37) was crowned the winner of Season 2 of Rupaul’s Drag Race Down Under.This Kiwi drag performer started her drag career over 15 years ago, with 12 of them spent establishing her credentials in the Melbourne drag scene. In Melbourne she was known for hosting ‘Nurse Betty presents’ parties.Spankie was previously the winner of season 2 of the Kiwi show House of Drag and is the official host and roving reporter of The Wellington International Pride Parade.On being named Australia’s Next Drag Superstar, Spankie, with tears in her eyes, called Kween and Hannah onto the stage with her, saying, “Honestly, I don’t give a fuck about the crown— these two girls here are the fuckin wind because I wouldn’t have made it here to the end if it wasn’t for their love and support and kindness and our friendship.

Ethan Shanfeld Jack Antonoff, who has produced some of Taylor Swift’s most popular songs, from “Out of the Woods” to “Lover,” and who shared her album of the year Grammy for 2020’s “Folklore,” returns for her upcoming album “Midnights,” out Oct. 21. Antonoff appears prominently in a new behind-the-scenes video posted to Swift’s Instagram, with the caption: “The making of ‘Midnights.'” In the clip, the pair are seen working on music in Antonoff’s studio for Swift’s next record, playing keyboards and MIDI controllers while Swift cuts vocal takes. An uncredited song snippet with the lyric, “It’s just the life you lead, but it’s yours,” soundtracks the video, but it’s unclear whether this is original material being teased, as the voices seems to be male. Meanwhile, a shot of Swift walking through a snowstorm indicates she and her co-pilot have been working on “Midnights” for a while. Another clip showcases test pressings of differently colored vinyl records, presumably the ones Swift put on sale in her web store for a limited time over Labor Day weekend.

William Earl Right before the pandemic hit, Red Hot Chili Peppers fans were thrilled the learn guitarist John Frusciante had once again joined the band. He had left in 2009 to focus on solo work, and frequent collaborator Josh Klinghoffer took up the axe in the band for their next two albums, 2011’s “I’m With You” and 2016’s “The Getaway,” and the subsequent tours. While the band continued to deliver high-energy shows and released many solid tracks, things never meshed as during the Frusciante days. Yet Frusciante’s return to the fold has ushered in prolific new era for the band, as 2022 brought two lengthy new albums — “Unlimited Love” in April and “Return of the Dream Canteen” in October — and a global stadium tour. As rejuvenated as they’ve been in the studio, the sparks flying in this classic lineup is the best special effect in their live shows. The stripped down production of the band’s Sept. 13 SiriusXM Small Stage Series show at the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem made it clear to the 1,500 frenzied fans that, even as the band members enter their sixties, they’ve never seemed closer or played tighter.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Joshua Jackson could be on his way to being Hollywood’s next big mogul. Maybe not, but his company Liquid Media Group is doing what they can to help indie filmmakers get their movies made. “In its most basic form, it is a studio for the modern age,” Jackson told me earlier this summer shortly after being named Liquid Media Group’s interim CEO. “I’ve gone through this as an independent producer. It is like pulling teeth to try to find the right agent to package it and then to find the right financing for it and then find the gap financing at the end for it and then find all the creatives who you need to like get the thing done and then get it edited and then get it finished and then get it distributed.”

A.D. Amorosi When Demi Lovato debuted her fresh, hard, alt-rocking material on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” earlier this summer, the blonde guitarist headbanging alongside the vocalist tore into her six strings as if they owed her money. That was Nita Strauss, the Los Angeles-based guitarist whose crunching chords and pummeling rhythmic interplay lift the rocking arrangements and curt, hurt lyrics of Lovato’s “Holy Fvck” tracks to another level in a live setting. “Once the sonic journey that my latest album, ‘Holy Fvck,’ takes listeners on became clear,” Lovato tells Variety via email, “I knew I wanted to bring in a band for the ‘Holy Fvck Tour’ that is not just very skilled at live instruments, but also know how to have a good time on stage, and are performers in their own right.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Adding to its slate of auteurs from all over the world, Raphael Berdugo’s Cité Films has boarded “The Fire Doll,” from Chilean director-to-track Niles Atallah (“Rey”) and “Left Over,” from San Sebastian Gold Shell winning Turkish director Yesim Ustaoglu (“Pandora’s Box”). Produced by Catalina Vergara at Chile’s Globo Rojo Films, “The Fire Doll” (“La muñeca de fuego”) is one of the 14 projects to be pitched at this month’s San Sebastian Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum, one of the Spanish festival’s centerpiece industry events. Atallah, whose second film, “Rey,” won a Rotterdam Special Jury Prize in 2017, turns in “The Fire Doll” to the transformation process experienced by a 9-year-old girl, Aurora, who loses part of her memory and goes to her the countryside to spend Easter wither father, an alcoholic in remission.

Jack Tweed has opened up on how "proud" Jade Goody would have been of her two children Bobby and Freddie.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ were awarded with the golden icon award at Sunday 28 August night's MTV VMA awards. On collecting their award, bassist Flea took the opportunity to dedicate it to the late drummer of the Foo Fighters, Taylor Hawkins.The 50 year old was tragically found dead in a hotel room in the north of Bogota, Colombia, where the band were set to play at a festival on Friday 25 March.

making a surprise appearance as the iconic Moonman — now Moonperson — trophy to kick off the show after winning his sordid, sensational defamation trial against ex Amber Heard.Then there was the performance by Global Icon Award winners Red Hot Chili Peppers, who picked up their first VMAs 30 years ago for “Give It Away.” Seeing the dynamic duo of frontman Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea rock the stage just like they were pushing 30 instead of 60 took you back to the golden era of MTV — when the network actually played videos and was a culture-changing force.Even having classic rapper LL Cool J — who has previously hosted the Grammys — as one of this year’s three co-hosts was a throwback.

Red Hot Chili Peppers dedicated their Global Icon award to Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins at the MTV VMAs 2022 tonight (August 28).The band were honoured at the ceremony, which is being co-hosted by Nicki Minaj, Jack Harlow and LL Cool J at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.After performing ‘Black Summer’ and ‘Can’t Stop’, Red Hot Chili Peppers accepted the Global Icon award. As drummer Chad Smith took the microphone, he paid tribute to Hawkins, saying: “There’s another musical icon, global icon, and his name is my brother Taylor Hawkins.

Red Hot Chili Peppers have returned! The iconic band hit the stage at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday for the first time in over two decades to perform as they received the prestigious Global Icon Award, and used the opportunity to honor the late Foo Fighters rocker Taylor Hawkins.The legendary band was introduced by comedy icons Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, who explained the significance of the coveted honor, sharing, «The award recognizes artists who have left an enduring mark on the world and are just as impactful as ever.»The band kicked things off with a performance of their recent single «Black Summer,» before moving into their 2003 megahit «Can't Stop,» which got the crowd on their feet.The performance marked the band's first time playing the VMA stage since 2000, when they accepted the coveted Video Vanguard Award. Lead singer Anthony Kiedis spoke first while accepting the award, and shared his appreciation for his fellow bandmates.«Thank you to that sassy mistress known as MTV for supporting us for a thousand years and more… I really, really, really, I want to thank Flea and John [Frusciante] and Chad Smith,» he shared, «for giving me a purpose in my life for the last 40 years. I would have been a free-floating disaster in space if not for these boys.

The music and pop culture stars are coming together to celebrate the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards being held at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.

died of a heroin overdose in 1988.But somehow, against all odds, the Chili Peppers made it through to the “Otherside.” And 38 years after releasing their self-titled debut, the quartet will be honored with the Global Icon Award when the MTV Video Music Awards take place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on Sunday. Add that to their long list of laurels, which includes eight other VMAs (including the coveted Video Vanguard Award in 2000), six Grammys and a 2012 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Seriously, who would have ever thought that the Chili Peppers would end up being a slam-dunk to make the rock hall way back when?The Global Icon Award comes as they are still filling stadiums on their “Unlimited Love” tour — which takes its title from their latest album — while the dynamic duo of frontman Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea are both turning 60 in a couple months.When I saw them earlier this month at MetLife Stadium, it was clear that their fan base transcended generations as well as genres with everyone from hipsters to prepsters.

*Be warned there are minor spoilers ahead for “She-Hulk”* While Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner is indeed part of Marvel’s new “She-Hulk” series, he’s not the focus of the Disney+ show. And the creators of “She-Hulk: Attorney Of Law” want you to know that.

MTV Video Music Awards. The iconic stoner comedy duo will present the Red Hot Chili Peppers with the Global Icon Award, per an MTV rep. The band is also scheduled to perform live at the 2022 MTV VMAs, which air Sunday, August 28 at 8. p.m. ET/PT from Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The long-running band, who have won eight VMAs, will return to the show’s stage for the first time in more than two decades, last performing in 2000 when they received the coveted Video Vanguard Award. They scored their 29th nomination — and first since 2006 — in the best rock category for “Black Summer,” the lead single from their twelfth studio album, “Unlimited Love.” The group — which in 2019 returned to its longest-running lineup of singer Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith and guitarist John Frusciante — has sold more than 60 million albums, won six Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.

Red Hot Chili Peppers are set to be honoured with the Global Icon Award at the MTV Video Music Awards 2022 this weekend.This year’s VMAs will take place on Sunday (August 28) at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, with Jack Harlow, Nicki Minaj and LL Cool J set to co-host.The Chilis, who released their latest album ‘Unlimited Love’ back in April, will perform live at the 2022 VMAs, joining a line-up of performers that already includes Minaj, Harlow, Lizzo, Måneskin, Anitta, BLACKPINK, J Balvin, Marshmello x Khalid and Panic! At The Disco.The band, who are nominated in the Best Rock category for their song ‘Black Summer’, will also receive the Global Icon Award on the night, which was presented last year to Foo Fighters.The award celebrates “an artist or band whose unparalleled career, continued impact and influence have maintained a unique level of global success in music and beyond, leaving an indelible mark on the music landscape”.A post shared by Video Music Awards (@vmas)The Chilis’ appearance at the 2022 VMAs will mark their first at the ceremony since 2000, when they received the Video Vanguard Award and performed ‘Californication’. This year’s Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award is being presented to Nicki Minaj.Red Hot Chili Peppers will release their second album of 2022, ‘Return Of The Dream Canteen’, in October.“We went in search of ourselves as the band that we have somehow always been.