Rob LeDonne

As one of Instagram’s biggest crushes, Manu Ríos’s path to global stardom has led him from his hometown in Calzada de Calatrava in Spain to a burgeoning acting career in the breakout Netflix drama Elite and a role in the new Pedro Almodóvar short Strange Way of Life. Along the way, the 24-year-old mega-influencer has become a fashion It boy with memorable appearances at the last two Met Galas and head-turning looks on red carpets the world over.
It just so happens that his fortunes have risen...

“It’s a significant moment for the entire world when the Beatles have a new song,” so says one of the Fab Four’s biggest fans—a man who just happens to also be one of Hollywood's most beloved directors. Peter Jackson was a precocious teenager when he first came across the Red and Blue compilations in a record store in his New Zealand hometown, buying them with the cash he originally intended to spend on model airplanes.
It kicked off a musical obsession that has, now 50 years later, bled over...

Throughout his acclaimed filmography, Martin Scorsese has been known for left-of-center casting choices. His longtime collaborator and casting director Ellen Lewis said in an interview that they always “try to go outside the box in interesting ways.” For evidence, consider memorable appearances by Scorsese’s mother, Catherine, in “Goodfellas” and the writer Fran Lebowitz as a judge in “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
The director’s epic new drama, “,” is no exception. The film tells the story of a ...

"Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" is more than a yuletide classic; it's breaking records decades later. Here's the rockin' history behind Brenda Lee's enduring earworm.
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It may only have been October, but the atmosphere in Nashville's Quonset Hut Studio on the 19th of that month, way back in 1958, was downright festive.
"We had a Christmas tree up and Christmas lights," recalls four-time GRAMMY nominee Brenda Lee 65 years later, of what would be a fortuitous recording session. "The...

Giles Martin, who co-produced “Now and Then” with Paul McCartney, talks to TIDAL about how the historic new track came together — and what John Lennon is expressing through it.
November 1, 2023 by Rob LeDonne
“When you’re working on something like this, you can’t think of the scale,” the producer Giles Martin says with equal parts affability and awe in his voice. “If you do, you’d be like a rabbit in headlights and be constrained by what you’re doing.”
When Martin uses the term “scale,” he’s ...

There are few figures as emblematic of—and beloved to—New York City culture than Spike Lee. In the modern era, maybe Fran Lebowitz or Aaron Judge compare. Along those lines, a list would also have to include Lady Liberty herself.
But like that mighty green copper statue, Lee is as much a mascot of the city he grew up and lives in as he is a beacon of cultural light. Ms. Liberty may have a torch, but Lee has those spectacles through which he gazes with his unique and singular view of the world...

I’m in the land of my ancestors, in glorious Italy. I’m traversing Puglia, to be precise, speeding past vast groves of olive trees on my way to discover the popular region and maybe (definitely!) have some libations along the way.
The downside? Well, my driver is currently on the phone going back and forth with his son, steering the wheel with his knees.
Such is that laissez-faire life here in Italy, to borrow a phrase from the French. Around these parts, the pure enjoyment of life is colloqu...

The most famous anthem for one of the most unique cities comes courtesy of the Italian singer Pino Daniele. “Napule è tutto nu suonno. E a’ sape tutto o’ munno,” he croons in the aptly-named 1977 hit Napule è.
The lyrics translate to “Naples is really just a dream and the whole world knows it,” and are a deft description of the hectic, crowded city, which, unlike Rome, doesn’t cater to tourists, and unlike Milan, has a certain amount of grit. What it does have in common with the rest of Italy...

There’s a flurry of activities inside Spotify’s New York City’s offices in the Financial District. “It’s almost like election night,” Louisa Ferguson, Spotify’s global head of marketing experience says, referring to a bustling newsroom. At the same time, she feels like Santa Claus putting presents under a tree. “Honestly, it’s a pretty apt analogy,” she says on a brief respite during what constitutes her busiest day of the year. “It’s really like we created this gift of music and then we get ...

Plunging into an ice bath, in the middle of an unforgiving New York City winter? Just thinking about it had my teeth chattering. Would I crack under the pressure? Would I experience the same embarrassing fate as Prince Harry, on his trip to the North Pole? Then again, if Drake can do it, it’s probably not going to kill me to try.

This region of Italy is famous for its waistline-expanding potential, but it also is central to music history.

The 2022 Song Of The Year nominees at the 2023 GRAMMYs showcases talent from pop, dance, R&B, rap, and more. Here are the nominees — Taylor Swift, Adele, Bonnie Raitt, GAYLE, DJ Khaled, Steve Lacy, Lizzo, Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, and Harry Styles.

“I really hope that’s not the most important problem in the world,” says Oscars co-producer Ricky Kirshner. He’s talking about the prospect of another slap, having been behind the scenes for last year’s calamitous ceremony. But while it might not be a genuine concern, it also has factored into the planning for this year’s telecast, taking place this Sunday.
Everything you always wanted to know about the 2023 Oscars but were afraid to ask
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“Well, there have been teams of people the Ac...

In a new documentary directed by Gottlieb’s daughter, the 50-year partnership between the acclaimed author and the renowned editor is examined