THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

GLAAD's fifth annual #SpiritDay concert will take place in Los Angeles at The Belasco on Wed., Oct. 18, per a press release. GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis and this year's host, Frankie Grande, will present the event, which will spotlight some of the music industry's top performers and emerging queer intersectional artists. Powered by Live Nation and The Recording Academy, the annual GLAAD tradition will be open to the public for the first time and will feature performances from Lauren Jauregui, VINCINT, The Scarlet Opera, Wayne Brady and more. Learn more about #SpiritDay at glaad.org/spiritday.

Janet Jackson, Megan Thee Stallion, Kendrick Lamar, Lil Kim and El Debarge are among the scheduled entertainers at One Musicfest, taking place Oct. 28-29 in Atlanta's Piedmont Park, according to its website. ONE Musicfest (OMF) says it "is the Southeast's largest two-day, urban progressive music festival." Over the past 13 years, the festival has had artists such as OutKast, Lauryn Hill, Santigold, Janelle Monae, The Roots, Kelis, BJ the Chicago Kid and A$AP Rocky perform.

Genderfluid muscle fem pop singer/adult-film star Queen Sir JET has released the high-energy dance single, "Male Femininity, per a press release. "My parents never had a problem with their son being homosexual, but they had a huge issue with him being gender queer," the artist explained, adding that the music industry has had problems also. Produced by Velvet Code distributed by So Fierce Music, Queen Sir JET's "Male Femininity" is available on Spotify on all major platforms. Queen Sir JET hopes the song will inspire listeners to shun society's ideas of what they should conform to and embrace their true selves.

Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman is getting ready to spill secrets and drop "big bombshells" as he announced he will be writing a new tell-all memoir, according to The Blast. Just a few weeks ago, Jackman announced that he and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness were ending their 27-year marriage. He is reportedly in the early stages of writing the memoir.

Musical icon Melissa Manchester marked her forthcoming 25th album, RE:VIEW—her debut project with Green Hill Productions—with the release of the LP's first new single, "Whenever I Call You Friend," featuring another legendary singer, Kenny Loggins, and out longtime saxophonist Dave Koz, per a press release. It only took 40 years for the stars to align so Kenny Loggins and I would finally make a recording of the hit song we had co-written, 'Whenever I Call You Friend,'" said Manchester. "It was a fantastic experience and more than worth the wait!" RE:VIEW, slated to be out early next year, will feature legendary guest artists and will revisit several of Manchester's hits that made the charts.

Multi-platinum award-winning singer, songwriter and actor Josh Groban will commemorate two decades of his six-times-platinum album, Closer, with Closer 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, per a press release. The new album will be out on two CDs and Digital—as well as a limited-edition orange vinyl 2-LP set—on Nov. 17. This enhanced vision of his sophomore opus features the album remastered for the first time; in addition, it includes six rare or unreleased bonus tracks, including "She's Out of My Life" and an extended version of "You Raise Me Up."

Troye Sivan's body image is under fire once again—and, on Instagram, he addressed comments about how he looks, Out noted. "I like my body and I think that makes some people uncomfortable," he wrote. In a smaller font on the side, he added, "Don't ask me about this in interviews. I don't want to talk about it unless I wanna talk about it, which I think is fair. Ty." Sivan initially faced backlash for the music video for his single "Rush," as it was criticized for not showcasing a wide enough variety of body types. When the video was released in July, Sivan said, in part, "We just made the video, and there wasn't a ton of thought put behind that."

Lesbian soccer icon Megan Rapinoe played in her last National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) home game in Seattle for her longtime club, the OL Reign, Yahoo! noted. The Reign brought her to a midfield podium for a pregame ceremony. Teammates, opponents and the biggest crowd in NWSL history (34,130 people) turned their attention to the stadium's video board, where famous friends, sports icons and even Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff congratulated and thanked Rapinoe, and banners were raised. Incidentally, the Reign played the Washington Spirit to a scoreless tie.

In the UK, legendary singer Dame Shirley Bassey was recognized as an "Honorary Gay" at the 2023 Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards, powered by Jaguar. The London show raised money for the Attitude Magazine Foundation to help LGBTQ+ causes. Singer Jacob Lusk opened the award segment with a rendition of Bassey's James Bond hit "Diamonds Are Forever." Dylan Mulvaney, Layton Williams and Luke Evans were among the attendees; and Mulvaney, Lusk, soccer player Jake Daniels and Le Gateau Chocolat were some of the other award recipients, according to Attitude Magazine. Alan Carr and Amanda Holden hosted the event.

Soccer stars Ashlyn Harris and Ali Krieger are parting ways, as Harris has filed for divorce from her wife of nearly four years, Out noted. Krieger and Harris first met when they played together for the U.S. National Team in 2010, and they became teammates on the Orlando Pride in the NWSL (and later together on Gotham FC); in 2019, they became engaged. The couple have adopted two children and, according to Page Six, they plan on signing a parenting plan together that will take care of any custody problems..

At the Billboard Latin Music Awards, held at Miami's Watsco Center, Peso Pluma won eight awards, leading everyone else, per USA Today. Actor/musician Bad Bunny—now seen in the Prime Video movie Cassandro, about a gay wrestler played by Gael Garcia Bernal—took home seven awards, including Artist of the Year. Rounding out the leading winners were Colombian pop star and Spirit of Hope recipient Karol G, with five awards, and regional Mexican group Eslabon Armado (four).

Beyonce made a surprise visit to the premiere of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour concert film in Los Angeles, Variety noted. "I'm so glad I'll never know what my life would've been like without @beyonce's influence," Swift wrote on Instagram after the event. "The way she's taught me and every artist out here to break rules and defy industry norms. … She's been a guiding light throughout my career and the fact that she showed up tonight was like an actual fairytale."

Linda Cardellini (Dead To Me), Julie Bowen (Modern Family), Garcelle Beauvais (Spider-Man: Homecoming; Real Housewives of Beverly Hills) and Melissa Peterman (Young Sheldon) were among the attendees at Step Up's 2023 Inspiration Awards at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, per a press release. The lunchtime event also held a live fundraiser at the event bringing Step Up's overall gala contributions up to $600,000—an all time high for the organization. Step Up guides girls, and those who identify with girlhood, toward their unique goals and visions of success.

Openly gay actor Noah Schnapp (Stranger Things) went on Instagram to address followers who tried to justify Hamas' brutal attacks on Israelis, The Hollywood Reporter noted. "I just reposted a beautiful picture of a young innocent girl whose life was taken by Hamas at a music festival. I was met with comments reading 'no one cares free Palestine.' … I am outraged by the justification and celebration of the death of a young girls life," Schnapp said, adding, "Choose humanity over violence." Schnapp also criticized Instagram followers who support Ukraine or address climate change, yet remain silent about the "brutal murders" of Israelis by Hamas terrorists.

Also, Kim Kardashian broke her silence on the situation in Israel, Yahoo! News noted. On social media, she said, "A message to my Jewish friends and family. I love you. I support you. … My heart is broken seeing the videos of these babies and families being terrorized and murdered in front of the whole world! As human beings with a heart, how can anyone not be devastated by these horrific images that we will never be able to unsee?" She also posted, "As an Armenian, I am particularly sensitive to these issues because I have been talking about the Armenian Genocide for years, and now, after months of blockade with minimal media coverage and no external support, Armenians are the victims of an ethnic cleansing themselves in Artsakh."

On the flip side, Kylie Jenner got backlash after posting—and quickly deleting—her support of Israel following Hamas attacks that left hundreds dead, Page Six noted. The reality star shared a post from the pro-Israel account @StandWithUs via her Instagram Story. However, despite removing the post, the negative comments continued on X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram.

The 1975 lead singer Matty Healy defended kissing his bandmate onstage in Malaysia in a 10-minute speech delivered at a concert in Dallas, the BBC noted. He addressed criticism of his conduct at the Malaysian festival, during which he protested the country's anti-LGBTQ+ laws and then kissed his bandmate. In part, he described online anger over the performance as "liberal outrage," adding that criticism of the band for "remaining consistent" by performing its "pro-LGBT stage show" was confusing.

Echoing what happened to Drew Barrymore at a public event, a man walked onto the stage at a Forbes panel featuring Machine Gun Kelly, startling the rapper, who quickly rose to his feet and said, "My man, get the f*ck away from me," Deadline reported. The incident occurred at the Forbes Under 30 Summit at the Cleveland Public Auditorium in Cleveland. The intruder was quickly restrained by security guards as the panel livestream briefly cut out. In August, a man later identified as Chad Michael Busto rushed the stage at a panel event featuring Barrymore; Barrymore was ushered offstage during the incident, and returned to finish the event.

Mariah Carey's liqueur brand is being sued for allegedly not paying a PR firm more than $44,000 in services, according to Yahoo! Entertainment. In court documents obtained by The Blast, Calhoun, run by longtime media-relations expert Katie Calhoun, sued Carey's business partner (the parent company of Black Irish). Carey launched the Black Irish Liqueur line in 2021 with a range of cream liqueurs, explaining that the name was a representation of her Irish and Black roots.

Lenny Kravitz got completely naked in the upcoming music video for his new song, "TK421," Page Six noted. The singer teased his latest project via Instagram, with footage showing him in several sexy positions while fully nude. In January, Kravitz shocked/thrilled his Instagram followers with a photo of himself wading in the ocean in the nude.

Madonna's daughter Lourdes Leon (under the latter's stage name, Lolahol) re-created her mother's iconic "Frozen" video in the accompanying haunting visual for her new track, "Spelling," EW.com noted. "Spelling" features Leon channeling her inner witch (in the forest, as opposed to Madonna's desert setting) as she fronts several shot-for-shot references to Madonna's "Frozen" music video, including the opening scene in which she levitates above the ground—just as Madonna did in 1998. As the song progresses, Leon evokes another sequence from "Frozen," in which her body transforms into a flock of crows before she later morphs into a large Doberman, mimicking a shot from Madonna's video.

Sam Wineman, a producer on Shudder's Queer for Fear series, is suing the streaming service, AMC Networks and Bryan Fuller for sexual harassment, a hostile work environment and retaliation, Deadline reported. Executive-produced by Fuller, the four-episode documentary series Queer for Fear examined the history and role of LGBTQ+ artists and the greater community in the horror and thriller genres. Wineman claims that after reporting Fuller's alleged "abuse …unlawful behavior and comments" and "preoccupation with masturbation" to Shudder VP Nick Lazo and others, he was fired from Queer for Fear in August 2021.

Jada Pinkett Smith has revealed that she and husband Will Smith have been living separate lives since 2016, per The Hollywood Reporter. The actress makes the revelation in her new memoir, Worthy, and discusses the status of her relationship—noting that the pair aren't technically divorced and aren't planning to take that legal step—in a clip from an interview with Hoda Kotb that aired on the Today show. However, as Pinkett Smith confirmed to Kotb, the separation was essentially a "divorce" as she and Smith are no longer romantically together.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson promised to "grow and do better" after getting backlash following the launch of his joint fundraiser for Maui with Oprah Winfrey, according to USA Today. Johnson and Winfrey launched the People's Fund of Maui in August in response to damage caused by the wildfires; they each donated $5 million to kick off the campaign and asked their fans to also contribute. "When you're living paycheck to paycheck, you are easily pissed off. It's frustrating," Johnson said in an Instagram video. "I get it; I understand."

Doja Cat was criticized for wearing a T-shirt with controversial comic Sam Hyde on it in recent social-media pics, per Page Six. In 2017, Hyde pledged $5,000 to neo-Nazi blogger Andrew Anglin and his website, the Daily Stormer, amid the latter's legal battle with the Southern Poverty Law Center over his alleged "trolling" of a Jewish woman, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Former 60 Minutes producer Alexandra Poolos is suing CBS, CBS News and parent company Paramount Global for gender discrimination, claiming she was wrongfully terminated from the newsmagazine program, Variety reported. Poolos said the network fired her after she was falsely accused of bullying an associate producer she supervised. Also, Poolos indicated discrepancies in how her firing was handled compared to several male producers and editors of 60 Minutes who've allegedly been the subject of multiple sexual-harassment complaints.

Musical hopeful Emaza Gibson has alleged that singer Jason Derulo signed her under his Atlantic Records imprint, Future History, in August 2021 and dropped her in September 2022 after she declined his sexual advances, according to USA Today. Gibson is also suing Derulo's manager Frank Harris, Atlantic Records, Future History and RCA Records for allegedly ignoring her complaints. Derulo has vehemently denied the allegations.