Doechii Rocks the Edge — 100 Stories Above New York — With Short But Spicy Set

Doechii Rocks the Edge — 100 Stories Above New York — With Short But Spicy Set

Although it occasionally hosts performances, the Edge — the sky-scraping outdoor observation deck and club 100 stories and 1,130 feet above New York City — is not really known as a concert venue. But as part of Samsung's multi-faceted partnership with red-hot rapper Doechii — who was named "Hip-Hop Disruptor of the Year" atVariety's 2024 Hitmakerscelebration — around its new Galaxy S25 Edge phone, the Edge was the setting for not only a short but powerful livestreamed performance on Friday night, the entire place was tricked out as a "swamp in the sky," filled mock-tropical scenery (playing off of her frequent alligator theme), complete with jungle plants and lots of dry ice. More from Variety AT&T Has the Best Deals on Samsung Mobile Devices and Accessories Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Review: The Best Smartphone to Buy in 2025 Samsung Launches AI Capabilities Across Products at CES In a double-take moment, we saw ads for Doechii's Samsung partnership on the subway ride to Hudson Yards, the mini-megalopolis where the Edge is located — and even more surreally, as we arrived at the Edge, after a fast elevator ride where your ears pop a least twice, there was fog outside the venue, as if the dry ice were somehow leaking out of the windows. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jem Aswad (@jemaswad) Of course, that was actually a cloudy front moving in, which made for some San Francisco-like views as fog shrouded the city's skyline and only the tops of the tallest buildings poked through the clouds. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jem Aswad (@jemaswad) That was the scene inside as several hundred specially invited fabulosos attired in "casual chic" mingled and sipped on the free drinks and snacks served by the wait staff. Shortly before 8 p.m., the doors to the observation deck were opened and the attendees streamed down the illuminated stairs leading to the deck. Music thumped through the powerful speakers as specks of rain fell from the sky, but luckily the serious rain held off until much later in the evening. Finally, after Edge staffers had dried off the double-height steps leading down to the stage set at the edge of the observation deck, the old-school beat of "Peanuts" kicked in and Doechii appeared at the top of the stairway, clad in a billowing beige jacket, matching high socks and spike heels. She and DJ Miss Milan spat verses back and forth as the rapper worked her way down the towering stairs, with each step about two feet below the next — not an easy thing to do while rapping in spike heels, but she pulled it off without a hitch. (Watch a song from the performance near the end ofthis video.) Doechii gradually made her way through the crowd to the stage, swaggering through "Denial Is a River," "Nissan Altima" and one or two others before making her exit. Some were surprised that she didn't play "Anxiety," her biggest hit, but the set focused on high-energy songs and that one's slow tempo would have brought down the energy. (Plus, although artists rarely play full concert sets at events of this nature, one couldn't blame her for wanting to finish before the rain moved in.) And with that, the crowd walked back through the faux-everglades and lined up to catch the elevators back down to the ground floors and reality… or whatever passes for reality in the city-sized megamall of Hudson Yards. Best of Variety What's Coming to Netflix in June 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? Sign up forVariety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us onFacebook,Twitter, andInstagram.

byAlex Wise

in

May 31, 2025

Doechii Rocks the Edge — 100 Stories Above New York — With Short But Spicy Set

Doechii Rocks the Edge — 100 Stories Above New York — With Short But Spicy Set Although it occasionally hosts performances, the Edge — the s...

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Sydney Sweeney Confirms She Is Single and ‘Loving It’ Post-Jonathan Davino Split

Sydney Sweeney Confirms She Is Single and 'Loving It' Post-Jonathan Davino Split

In March, it was reported that Sydney Sweeney had broken up with her long-time fiancé, Jonathan Davino, but theEuphoriastar held back on commenting—until now. In an interview withThe Timespublished Saturday, the actress confirmed the end of her relationship after three years being engaged. Sweeney was asked if she was in the midst of planning a wedding, to which she responded, "No." When asked if she is single, the star answered, "Yes." "I'm learning a lot about myself, spending more time with my friends. And I'm loving it," Sweeney added. In late February,TMZreported that the couple had pushed back their wedding, which was set for May 2025. Sources told the publication that the event was "on hiatus" because of the couple's "busy schedule." In March 2025, a source toldUs Weekly,"Sydney and Jonathan have been having major issues but are not fully split. Things are not great right now, but they aren't throwing in the towel yet. They are working on their relationship but have called off the wedding for now." The couple was apparently struggling with Sweeney's busy work schedule. "She doesn't have a lot of downtime, and it causes tension in their relationship," the source said. "Sydney is really focused on her career. Jonathan wishes they were able to spend more quality time together." This meant that the spring wedding was "not happening, and they aren't having further discussions about it," the source said. "Sydney wanted to cancel everything and couldn't handle the stress." Around that same time, another source toldPeoplethat Sweeney and Davino had been "rocky for a long time" when they finally broke it off, and the actress was satisfied with the decision. "She's exactly where she wants to be," said the insider. "Most people would feel overwhelmed by her working schedule this year, but not Syd. She's all about working right now and very excited about all her projects. What did make her overwhelmed, though, was her relationship and her wedding. She didn't feel right about it." They continued to share that Sweeney is "in the middle of this magical career that she could only dream of a few years ago. This is what she wants to focus on right now." "She's not ready to settle down," they continued. "They only lasted for this long because it was hard for her to break it off. They didn't split because there is no love. They split because she just wants to focus on her career right now." You Might Also Like The 15 Best Organic And Clean Shampoos For Any And All Hair Types 100 Gifts That Are $50 Or Under (And Look Way More Expensive Than They Actually Are)

byAlex Wise

in

May 31, 2025

Sydney Sweeney Confirms She Is Single and ‘Loving It’ Post-Jonathan Davino Split

Sydney Sweeney Confirms She Is Single and 'Loving It' Post-Jonathan Davino Split In March, it was reported that Sydney Sweeney had b...

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Helen Mirren stuns actress roundtable by saying 'none of us are beautiful': 'We all have really different faces'

Helen Mirren stuns actress roundtable by saying 'none of us are beautiful': 'We all have really different faces'

Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic Helen Mirrendelightfully stunned her fellow leading ladies by declaring that "none of us are beauties" in a recent roundtable about their craft. The star, an Emmy contender for her work onMobLand, convened with the lovelyKathy Bates,Parker Posey,Niecy Nash-Betts,Cristin Milioti, andKeri RussellforThe Hollywood Reporter's drama actress roundtable, where they waxed poetic about beauty and some of the worst career advice they've received, including being told to lose weight ("I went home and ate a cookie" instead, quipped Nash-Betts) or get plastic surgery. Mirren's unexpected remark to her peers came after she revealed that she was told to get a nose job in her 20s. "Someone said, 'You'll never get work if you don't have a nose job,'" Mirren recalled. "I said no. I didn't want to be a pretty actress anyway. I elected to be not so pretty." Luke Varley/Paramount+ When Bates remarked that an artist's "amazing performance" makes them "beautiful," Mirren said, "Looking at our faces around this table, none of us are beautiful." Bates quipped in response, "Oh, get out of town! I feel more beautiful than I have in my entire life." But Mirren doubled down. "We're not. None of us are beauties," the Oscar wi said. "We all have really different faces, very interesting faces." "Kathy's like, 'Speak for yourself,'" Russell quipped in response, laughing. Bates, who has since spoken out about her health struggles, also recounted an agent advising her to keep her ovarian cancer diagnosis private back in 2003 in fear of her becoming the "poster child for ovarian cancer." The cancer survivor told the roundtable, "I think if I had come out at that point, maybe it would have helped some people." Sign up forEntertainment Weekly'sfree daily newsletterto get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. TheMatlockstar recently spoke about struggling to book roles because she did not always have typical Hollywood star looks, tellingVanity Fairin an interview published earlier this week that the lateGarry Marshall declined to cast herin 1991'sFrankie and Johnnybecause he couldn't envision her as a love interest. (The film is an adaptation of the stage playFrankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune;Bates originated the role of Frankie.) "He couldn't make the leap that people would see me onscreen kissing someone," Bates said. "Me actually kissing a man onscreen — that would not be romantic." Thefull roundtable discussion premieres Sunday. Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly

byAlex Wise

in

May 31, 2025

Helen Mirren stuns actress roundtable by saying 'none of us are beautiful': 'We all have really different faces'

Helen Mirren stuns actress roundtable by saying 'none of us are beautiful': 'We all have really different faces' Jon Kopalof...

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India's monsoon floods kill at least 22 people in the country's northeast

India's monsoon floods kill at least 22 people in the country's northeast

GUWAHATI, India (AP) — Landslides and flash flooding triggered by days of torrential monsoon rains in India's northeast have killed at least 22 people, officials said Saturday. Five people, including three from a single family, were killed on Saturday when their homes were buried in a mudslide in Assam state's Guwahati city, an official flood bulletin said. In neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh state, which borders China, seven people were killed on Friday when their vehicle was swept away by floodwaters. Two others drowned in a separate incident in the state. Eight people were killed in the states of Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya in the last 24 hours due to floods and mudslides brought on by the rains, according to official figures. Meanwhile in Assam, authorities disconnected the electricity in several areas to reduce the risk of electrocution, state Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. Heavy rains also led to flooding in many urban areas of Assam's capital city of Guwahati, leading to long power outages Friday night and prompting authorities to shut schools and colleges on Saturday. India's weather agency has forecast more heavy rains in the region in the coming days. India's annual June-September monsoon season offers respite from intense summer heat. But the rains that are crucial for crops planted during the season often cause extensive damage, particularly in the northeast, which is considered one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. Scientists say monsoons are becoming more erratic because of extreme weather and global warming, leading to frequent landslides and flash floods in India's Himalayan north.

byAlex Wise

in

May 31, 2025

India's monsoon floods kill at least 22 people in the country's northeast

India's monsoon floods kill at least 22 people in the country's northeast GUWAHATI, India (AP) — Landslides and flash flooding trigg...

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Turmoil, worry swirl over cuts to key federal agencies as hurricane season begins

Turmoil, worry swirl over cuts to key federal agencies as hurricane season begins

WASHINGTON (AP) — With predictions for a busyhurricane seasonbeginning Sunday, experts in storms and disasters are worried about something potentially as chaotic as the swirling winds: Massive cuts to the federal system that forecasts, tracks and responds to hurricanes. Experts are alarmed over the large-scalestaff reductions, travel and training restrictions and grantcut-offssince PresidentDonald Trumptook office at both theFederal Emergency Management Agency, which prepares for and responds to hurricanes, and theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which tracks and forecasts them. "My nightmare is a major catastrophic storm hitting an area that is reeling from the impact of all of this nonsense from the Trump administration and people will die. And that could happen in Florida, that could happen in Texas, that could happen in South Carolina," said Susan Cutter, the director of the Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute at the University of South Carolina. Representatives of both NOAA and FEMA say the agencies are prepared. Experts: DOGE cuts diminish FEMA About 2,000 full-time staff have left FEMA since Trump took office in January, a loss of roughly one-third of the agency's full-time workforce, amid Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) mandated cuts. Scholars who study emergency management are concerned by both the reduction in capacity and the "brain drain" of experienced staff. "There's really been a brain drain within FEMA in addition to the loss of overall employees," said Samantha Montano, who teaches emergency management at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. She noted that many who left were in critical management positions. The agency is run by an acting chief,David Richardson, a former Marine Corps officer who served overseas and worked as the Department of Homeland Security's assistant secretary for countering weapons of mass destruction. He does not appear to have any experience in managing disasters. Emergency management requires knowing where to get things, who to call, how things work and how to get it done quickly — which comes from experience and establishing relationships with state officials, Montano and Cutter said. What's happening reminds former Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Craig Fugate of 2005, the yearHurricane Katrinadevastated Louisiana andexposed inexperienced and poorly prepared governmentsat all levels, especially the then-FEMA chief who came from a horse-rearing association. Fugate said he's especially worried about top experienced disaster people leaving FEMA. FEMA canceled various emergency management trainings this spring, moved others online and restricted travel to events such as the National Hurricane Conference. Some trainings have resumed. "Given the reduction in staffing, being unable to do trainings, participate in conferences, there's potential that the federal government's ability is diminished,'' said former Florida Emergency Management chief Bryan Koon, now president of the disaster preparedness firm IEM. FEMA has alsocut disaster resilience programs. Making areas more survivable saves up to $13 for every dollar spent, said Lori Peek, director of the Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado. The federal government promises to be ready for hurricane season, which runs through November. "FEMA is shifting from bloated DC-centric dead weight to a lean, deployable disaster force that empowers state actors to provide relief for their citizens," Associate FEMA Administrator Geoff Harbaugh said in a email. "FEMA is fully activated in preparation for hurricane season." FEMA's relationship with states Richardson promised to push more responsibilitiesto the states. He warned that the agency will only do what the law requires and shift more costs to states. But Koon noted that states haven't budgeted for FEMA's changes, adding: "The biggest issue right now is just the uncertainty." Some states — which coordinate disaster operations — are experienced in catastrophes, have well trained staff and will do fine, such as Texas and Florida, Fugate said. But it's the poorer states that worry the experts. The feds often pick up the entire bill in big disasters and most of it in smaller ones. In the Trump administration, disaster declarations have been denied or delayed. When disaster declarations were issuedfor nine stateslast week, some had been pending for two months and others were only partially approved. "We've just relied on FEMA for so much for so long and not knowing who's going to fill the gap and how we're going to fill it is really scary," said University at Albany emergency management professor Jeannette Sutton. Hurricane center dodges NOAA cuts NOAA, the parent agency of the National Weather Service, has undergone a series of dramatic job cuts, with some people then reinstated. A sizable chunk of the weather service's 121 local field offices as of late Marchhad vacancy rates of more than 20%, what's seen by outsiders as a critical level of understaffing. Local weather offices are crucial in helping people translate national warnings into what to do locally. "It should be all hands on deck and we're being hollowed out," former NWS director Louis Uccellini said. But the National Hurricane Center, which tracks and warns of hurricanes in the Atlantic, Pacific and Caribbean, has been spared. Acting NOAA Administrator Laura Grimm, National Weather Service Director Ken Graham and National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said the agency is prepared for the season with the Miami-based storm center fully staffed and so are the planes that fly into storms. For the first time this year, the hurricane center will incorporateartificial intelligenceinto forecasting because it has shown to improve predictions generally, Brennan said. "Our services have never been better," Graham said. "Our ability to serve this country has never been better. And it will be this year as well." But beyond the hurricane center,weather balloons launches have been curtailedbecause of lack of staffing. In some places, balloon launches have dropped from twice a day to once a day. NOAA hopes to get more balloons launched if needed, Brennan said. Data from the balloons is crucial for understanding steering currents and needed for forecasts, Uccellini said. He said when hurricanes threatened during his tenure he would order the launch of several extra balloons in the Great Plains to help figure out if storms would hit the United States. "Hurricane forecasts, I'm expecting not to be as accurate this year because of that lack of balloon data,″ said former NOAA meteorologist Jeff Masters, now at Yale Climate Connections. ___ Aoun Angueira reported from San Diego. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP'sstandardsfor working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas atAP.org.

byAlex Wise

in

May 31, 2025

Turmoil, worry swirl over cuts to key federal agencies as hurricane season begins

Turmoil, worry swirl over cuts to key federal agencies as hurricane season begins WASHINGTON (AP) — With predictions for a busyhurricane sea...

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