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Brace yourselves, Glamberts - Queen and Adam Lambert have announced their 2015 UK tour dates!
Kicking off on January 13 at the Newcastle Arena, the guys will also be playing Glasgow, London, Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham. And then it's on to Europe, with stops in France, Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Denmark, and Czech Republic!
"We have a very interesting set design. It's big and daring. We're going to do it to the max." says Brian May.
"Each time we've worked with Adam with our music, he's just the most incredible frontman. He's sensational. He has this amazing range, 'cause Freddie had a great range. Adam can really cover it," added Roger Taylor.
2015 is shaping up to be amazing - Queen is releasing new album 'Queen Forever' in November, which, according to NME, includes previously unreleased tracks with Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson. Exciting!
Here is the UK lineup:
Newcastle Metro Radio Arena (January 13)
Glasgow Hydro (14)
London O2 Arena (17)
Leeds First Direct Arena (20)
Manchester Phones 4 U Arena (21)
Birmingham NIA (23)
Nottingham Capital FM Arena (24)
We can't WAIT!!!
make sure to check out Razorgator for updates on concert tickets for Adam Lambert and Queen!
Music Features
Taylor Swift Praises Bon Iver, Anaïs Mitchell, and Aaron Dessner's "The Latter Days"
Justin Vernon debuted the song as part of a GOTV initiative in his home state of Wisconsin.
10.20.2020
Taylor Swift just announced support for a new song by two of her folklore collaborators: The National's Aaron Dessner and Bon Iver's Justin Vernon.
The song, called "The Latter Days" is, first and foremost, a call to action. Written from the perspective of someone in the future, it asks the question: Have I done enough?
<p>Its enigmatic lyrics were written by folk singer Anaïs Mitchell, whose musical <em>Hadestown </em>was a smash hit on Broadway this year before it all shut down. (Mitchell debuted a song of her own, "Backwoods," as part of the Eux Claires voting initiative).</p><div id="c4115" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="34c53412815da1d40dfe81c242ecf229"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1317078367385124866" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">I love Wisconsin! My granddad grew up there! Praying for y’all to get out the vote! ICYMI it I shared a new song ca… https://t.co/0IkTnrTA9F</div> — Anaïs Mitchell (@Anaïs Mitchell)<a href="https://twitter.com/anaismitchell/statuses/1317078367385124866">1602850927.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Justin Vernon recently debuted their song in a live solo performance on a roof in Wisconsin as part of his "Visit with Vernon Milwaukee" series, where he speaks with undecided voters in Wisconsin.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-632"></div>
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<!-- End Ezoic - under_second_paragraph - under_second_paragraph --><p></p><p> In the video, he talks to a mother and her daughter about voting, action, and protest. While the daughter, who lives in Milwaukee, has been attending protests and trying to educate her mother about social issues, her mother is still having trouble fully understanding and trusting either presidential candidate.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-633"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent1 - mid_content --></p><div id="d3743" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="dc1d5686dcab679432fb934ebacbc1b7"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1316778382575763456" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">One beautiful evening in Milwaukee, Justin visited with Vic and her mother Mary Jane to speak about voting.
Justin… https://t.co/tYVYsgJyAr</div> — Eaux Claires (@Eaux Claires)<a href="https://twitter.com/EauxClairesWI/statuses/1316778382575763456">1602779405.0</a></blockquote></div><p>They don't start by addressing politics directly. "You know I just need to I guess take a little bit more of an active role and even if it's just my own community to help make a difference," the mother said, citing how proud she was of her daughter for participating in peaceful protests.<br></p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-634"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent11 - mid_content --></p><p>Vernon says, "Protesting can be done on a daily basis. Like if you see somebody being belittled or taken advantage of. If you are the witness to it, it's sort of like we can protest that way." </p><p>Vernon then goes on to discuss the importance of helping people in one's own backyard, and he slowly steers the conversation towards the importance of voting. He asks the mother why she isn't sure if she's going to vote, and then she cites her distrust of all forms of media reporting about political candidates. </p><p>"Change is going to happen whether you do something or not," Vernon says. "You not doing anything, it's just you not getting a say in the change being made." Voting, he says, represents our "insignificant significance." </p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-635"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent2 - long_content --></p><p>Ultimately, though, he's not there to persuade his audience to vote for either candidate or to dive into arguments about policies. Instead, he makes an appeal to his audience's emotions, praising the visible love between mother and daughter and then launching into the new song. </p><p>"I think about what it's going to feel like in the future, when we look back and we wonder if we did enough?" says Vernon in the introduction. </p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-636"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent22 - long_content --></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-youtube">
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9810ed6abc95deb0d5873c31eaed99e2"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/31qJBO9LJoM?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">Visit with Vernon Milwaukee</small>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31qJBO9LJoM&feature=emb_title" target="_blank">www.youtube.com</a>
</small>
</p><p>"Dear Wisconsin, Vote early. Text Vote to 56005," the video's caption reads. </p><p>This isn't the first time that Justin Vernon has joined Anaïs Mitchell on a song about the overwhelming challenges of wanting to change the world. He sang the part of Orpheus on the original <em>Hadestown </em>album, and one of his solos, "If It's True," is an anthem for anyone who's ever been caught up in hopelessness about the way nothing ever seems to really change. </p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-youtube">
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="aa58e7acdeebddd4d8b751d879008df3"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9KD92M6ggtA?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">Anais Mitchell feat. Justin Vernon - If It's True</small>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KD92M6ggtA" target="_blank">www.youtube.com</a>
</small>
</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-637"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent3 - longer_content --></p><p>Ultimately, though, Orpheus realizes that hopelessness is exactly what the people in power want you to feel. "And the ones who load the dice / always say the toss is fair," he realizes. "I believe our answer matters more than anything they say. I believe there is a way / I believe in us together / More than anyone alone." </p><p>Now, Bon Iver and Anaïs Mitchell seem to be channeling that same energy—which wavers between despair and hope—into another call to action with "The Latter Days." </p><p>The song has been met with approval by none other than Taylor Swift, who retweeted the video along with the message, "Stunning and important." Swift has previously announced her support for the Biden/Harris campaign.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-638"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent33 - longer_content --></p><div id="876ed" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="006cde5548a050e8354543ac2e4bc369"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1318297296254226435" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Stunning and important. So much love and respect for @boniver https://t.co/rmz8gx90KI</div> — Taylor Swift (@Taylor Swift)<a href="https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/statuses/1318297296254226435">1603141542.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Read the lyrics to "The Latter Days" here:<br></p><p>How long? Is what you asked<br>How long do you think it's gonna last?<br>You at the corner store<br>You were stocking up before the storm<br>Stacked yourself against the odds<br>Talkin' back to an act of god<br>You and your clever mouth<br>You were laughing when the lights went out</p><p><br>I recall it all forever<br>How it found us where we lay<br>With our arms around each other<br>In the latterdays, in the latterdays</p><p><br>How high? Is what you said<br>How high do you think we're gonna get?<br>You at the water's edge<br>On the jetty when you were a kid<br>Passed around a plastic cup<br>Passed out spinning in the house where you grew up<br>You in your childhood bed<br>And the wildest dream you ever had<br><br></p>You recall it all forever<p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-639"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent4 - longest_content --></p><br>How it found ya where you lay<br>And you called out for your brother<br>In the latterdays, in the latterdays, in the latterdays<p><br>How high do you wanna go?<br>How high do you wanna get?<br>How high do you wanna get?</p><p><br>And we called out for our brothers<br>In the latterdays, in the latterdays<br>I recall it all forever<br>How we sheltered in our place<br>And we called out for our brothers<br>In those latterdays, in those latterdays<br>In those latterdays, in those latterdays, in those latterdays</p><h2></h2><p><!-- Ezoic - under_second_paragraph - under_second_paragraph -->
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Film News
Gal Gadot's Cleopatra Biopic Is Missing Intersectionality
A very simple question: Was Cleopatra an Egyptian ruler?
10.19.2020
A very simple question: Was Cleopatra an Egyptian ruler?
If you didn't know, the answer is yes. Do we, as a global consumer society, have access to internationally-acclaimed Egyptian actors who could potentially play the role of Cleopatra? That answer is also yes. So, could Patty Jenkins, the director of an upcoming Cleopatra biopic, have picked an Egyptian actor to portray one of the most iconic Egyptian rulers in the country's history? Say it with me: Yes.
<div id="5186e" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="33b563b6656286b7184d80fc0bfbe392"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1315443922957729792" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">As you might have heard I teamed up with @PattyJenks and @LKalogridis to bring the story of Cleopatra, Queen of Egy… https://t.co/LUtuQQuAB3</div> — Gal Gadot (@Gal Gadot)<a href="https://twitter.com/GalGadot/statuses/1315443922957729792">1602461245.0</a></blockquote></div><p>In light of <em>Wonder Woman</em>'s Gal Gadot being announced to play the historic Egyptian queen, Twitter has been in an <a href="https://twitter.com/Complex/status/1315375321131167746?s=20" target="_blank">uproar</a>. As an Egyptian American, I feel like it's helpful to acknowledge simple history before we get too carried away breaking down each other's 23andMe scores. <a href="https://twitter.com/AbdulElSayed/status/1315431912895320065?s=20" target="_blank">Many</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SameeraKhan/status/1315338540306313217?s=20" target="_blank">feel</a> that picking an Egyptian, or even North African, actor to portray Cleopatra would have been more faithful to her cultural heritage.<br></p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-632"></div>
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<!-- End Ezoic - under_second_paragraph - under_second_paragraph --><p></p><p>The debate gets even dicier as defenders of Gadot's casting have been <a href="https://twitter.com/BlackMajikMan90/status/1315323196548276224?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">all</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/NathalieWriter/status/1315349521271054336?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">too</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/roberthchapman/status/1315532547019988992?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">eager</a> to point out that Cleopatra herself was of Greek descent, and therefore the role is up for grabs for any Greek-passing actor. Probably the most infuriating, gaslighting<a href="https://twitter.com/LKalogridis/status/1315426753175785472?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> tweet</a> is from the writer of the untitled film, Laeta Kalogridis, who undercut Cleopatra's Egyptianness entirely by calling her the "the most famous Macedonian Greek woman in history." Pardon my language, Kalogridis, but kindly f*ck off. Why don't you wait until you've written the movie before you try to rob Egypt of its history? </p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-633"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent1 - mid_content --></p><p>What are we even debating?</p><p>First, race-matching doesn't work here. As NYU historian Arash Azizi<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/gal-gadot-cleopatra-new-movie-about-egyptian-queen-causing-misplaced-ncna1243743?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_ma&fbclid=IwAR3Uzwtycn1GPnOSxusc-hMEmwFpk6Ll1fPXWMKeXVfow7WhFJcqXN1xCqk" target="_blank"> puts it</a>: "The fact that neither [Cleopatra's or Gadot's] background can be easily distilled shows why it's wrong to insist that artists fit rigid identity boxes to qualify for a role." So if you fell down this Twitter rabbithole of people pointing fingers about who's more qualified to portray whom, then you might not make it out the other side.<br></p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-635"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent2 - long_content --></p><p>So let's keep it simple: Gal Gadot is of Middle Eastern descent. As white-passing as she is, her DNA isn't up for debate. So if you want to say casting her as a Middle Eastern leader is culturally appropriate, fine. But apparently, hiring an Egyptian actor was never an option for the project in the first place, since the idea reportedly came from<a href="https://deadline.com/2020/10/cleopatra-gal-gadot-patty-jenkins-movie-deal-paramount-pictures-wonder-woman-reteam-laeta-kalogridis-writing-1234595246/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Gadot herself</a>. So the reason <a href="https://twitter.com/MorganJerkins/status/1315333271438462981?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">people are upset</a> that a darker-skinned actor wasn't chosen to play Cleopatra has nothing to do with historical accuracy and more to do with North Africans not seeing ourselves in films about our own history. When Americans think of Cleopatra, they may think of <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/1998/03/elizabeth-taylor-199803" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Elizabeth Taylor</a>, but when I think of Cleopatra, I think of an Egyptian.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-636"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent22 - long_content --></p><p>What worries me about this Cleopatra biopic is what it has in common with every single other Cleopatra biopic: an entirely white creative team. Jenkins herself is no slouch; she reached international acclaim for her 2003 Academy-award-winning film, <em>Monster</em>, starring Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci. When she was tapped to direct the first Wonder Woman film in the DC Extended Universe in 2017, she made arguably the best-received blockbuster of that summer. In addition to its critical success, <em>Wonder Woman</em> brought in over $800 million against a reported $120 million budget. This was in no small part to Gal Gadot's <a href="https://time.com/4606107/wonder-woman-breaks-through/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">fan favorite</a> performance as the Amazonian Princess, reprising her role from the critically disastrous, albeit financially successful, <em>Batman v Superman</em> film in 2016.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-637"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent3 - longer_content --></p><p>Jenkins and Gadot were <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/01/movies/wonder-woman-gal-gadot-patty-jenkins.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">regarded as an unstoppable duo</a>, successfully shattering a cinematic glass-ceiling that seemingly existed purely out of<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/26/wonder-woman-director-patty-jenkins-people-really-thought-that-only-men-loved-action-movies" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> patriarchal ignorance</a>. Together they proved that not only was there room in Hollywood for a summer blockbuster with a leading woman – there was a craving for it. So after the inevitable <em>Wonder Woman</em> sequel wrapped in 2018, Jenkins and co. set their sights on… a Cleopatra biopic?</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-638"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent33 - longer_content --></p><p>This film is less about telling an authentic story of Cleopatra and more a vehicle for Gadot and Jenkins to flex their filmmaking might. This is made all too clear by Gadot's<a href="https://twitter.com/GalGadot/status/1315444129346789376?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> tweet</a> regarding the film: "To tell [Cleopatra's] story for the first time through women's eyes, both behind and in front of the camera." Nowhere in that statement does she mention an interest in honoring or elevating the history and culture of Egypt – which, personally, I find more important than simply telling the story of Cleopatra "through women's eyes." By that, I mean it matters <em>which</em> women's eyes.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-639"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent4 - longest_content --></p><p>America (and the West at large) has a duplicitous habit of producing Euro-centric depictions of the Middle East whereby<a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Philippe_de_Champaigne_-_Moses_with_the_Ten_Commandments_-_WGA04717.jpg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> white people are portrayed</a> as the main arbiters of influence. I appreciated writer Hannah Flint's <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/oct/14/gal-gadot-cleopatra-backwards-step-for-hollywood-representation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">succinct take</a>: "From <em>The Ten Commandments</em> to… nearly every movie in <em>The Mummy</em> franchise… North Africans are either sidelined, underwritten, negatively portrayed or erased to centre white characters and – especially – to champion white saviors."</p><p>This is harmful representation for all Middle Easterners – and that includes Gal Gadot. It indirectly asserts that white people are the ones who are important to Middle Eastern history, and we, as darker-skinned descendants of the people of that time, are less important. </p><p>To be clear, when you look at Hollywood's track record for depicting Cleopatra in particular, it's <a href="https://youtu.be/UsKK9Z4EUrQ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">very clear</a> she deserves to be portrayed in a story outside the licentious bounds of the male gaze. On the whole, Patty Jenkins and Gal Gadot make an incredibly capable and invigorating team; they are without a doubt the future of big-budget Hollywood hit-makers.</p><p>But when it comes to depicting Middle Eastern history that has long been marred and exploited through a western lens, intersectionality – not just feminism – is needed to give our stories the dignity and respect they deserve. If the only thing Patty Jenkins, Laeta Kalogridis, and Gal Gadot are attempting to do with this film is <em>not</em> to depict Cleopatra from a male gaze, I don't feel that's enough to sincerely do justice to my country's history.</p><p><div id="ezoic-pub-ad-placeholder-640"> </div>
<!-- End Ezoic - incontent44 - longest_content --></p><h2></h2><p>But when it comes to depicting Middle Eastern history that has long been marred and exploited through a western lens, intersectionality – not just feminism – is needed to give our stories the dignity and respect they deserve. If the only thing Patty Jenkins, Laeta Kalogridis, and Gal Gadot are attempting to do with this film is <em>not</em> to depict Cleopatra from a male gaze, I don't feel that's enough to sincerely do justice to my country's history.</p>
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