Actress Annie Idibia clarifies she is “not a single mum” but a single woman raising two daughters after separating from music star 2Baba.

Justin Timberlake sues to block release of police video from 2024 drunken driving arrest in New York.

The pop star’s lawyers argued in a lawsuit filed Monday against the Village of Sag Harbor and its police department that release of the video would “devastate” Timberlake’s privacy by revealing “intimate, highly personal, and sensitive details.”

They also said it would cause “severe and irreparable harm” to his reputation by subjecting him to “public ridicule and harassment.”

“The footage at issue depicts Petitioner in an acutely vulnerable state during a roadside encounter with law enforcement, capturing intimate details of Petitioner’s physical appearance, demeanor, speech, and conduct during field sobriety testing, the subsequent arrest, and Petitioner’s confinement following arrest over the next several hours,” the lawsuit reads.

A judge didn’t immediately rule following a Monday hearing in state court in Riverhead, according to Vincent Toomey, a lawyer for Sag Harbor. Instead, Judge Joseph Farneti asked the two sides to confer on a possible resolution and report back later in the week, he said.

Timberlake’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

The #NSYNC singer-turned-solo artist and actor pleaded guilty to impaired driving in September 2024. Police said he ran a stop sign in the village center, veered out of his lane and got out of his BMW smelling of alcohol that June.

The Tennessee native told officers he had had one martini and had been following some friends home in Sag Harbor, a former whaling village among the affluent beach towns of the Hamptons, some 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of New York City.

Timberlake agreed to give a public safety announcement against the perils of drunken driving as part of the plea deal that knocked down his initial misdemeanor charge to a noncriminal traffic violation. He was also sentenced to a $500 fine, 25 hours of community service and a 90-day suspension of his license.

U2’s new music honours Renee Good and draws inspiration from world events, The Irish rock band released the six-song EP “U2 - Days of Ash” on Wednesday. Its first track, “American Obituary,” is dedicated to Good, who died Jan. 7 in Minneapolis during an encounter with a Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent. The song is a call for peace and a dedication to Good’s life.

“Renee didn’t just believe in kindness; she lived it, fully and fiercely,” said Becca Good, her partner, in a statement released with the project. “She believed every person deserved the same compassion, care and dignity regardless of who they were.”

The band released the EP on Ash Wednesday, describing it as an immediate response to current events and inspired by the people “fighting on the front lines of freedom.”

Frontman Bono has frequently incorporated social themes into U2’s music, and the new songs maintain that approach. Some tracks reference international tensions and humanitarian concerns, including the war in Ukraine, developments in the Middle East and immigration debates in the United States. One song also mentions Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen, whose death last year in the Israeli-occupied West Bank drew international attention.

The project marks U2’s first major release of new original material since 2017’s “Songs of Experience,” although the band has remained active through touring and rerecorded projects in recent years.

Antonio Romanucci, an attorney representing Good’s family in a civil case connected to her death, said the tribute reflects a broader message.

“We certainly feel the urgency of the country’s situation reflected in the band’s powerful call for coming together,” he said in a statement.

Throughout its career, U2 has used its platform to highlight issues ranging from global poverty initiatives to human rights advocacy. The EP was released alongside lyric videos for each track and is available on major streaming platforms.

Good’s parents and siblings also described the song as an honor and said they hope it encourages reflection and unity.

“It’s an incredible honour to have the talent and impact of U2 spreading the message of peace in Renee’s name,” the statement read. “We certainly feel the urgency of the country’s situation reflected in the band’s powerful call for change and coming together.”

Jonathan Landrum Jr., The Associated Press

Austria charges youngster over Taylor Swift concert attack plot. Austrian prosecutors have filed terror charges against a 21-year-old over a plot to attack a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna, they said on Monday, which had led the U.S. megastar’s shows in 2024 in the Alpine nation to be scrapped.

Three dates in Swift’s record-breaking “Eras” tour were cancelled in the summer of 2024 after authorities warned of the plot.

The main suspect, who has been in detention since his arrest in August 2024, is facing terror offenses and other charges, prosecutors said.

The Austrian is accused of having been a member of a terror organisation from May 2023 “by planning and preparing a terrorist attack on the concert of singer Taylor Swift,” they said in a statement.

By sharing IS propaganda through various messaging services and other offenses, he participated and “openly aligned himself” with IS, they added.

Planning the attack on the concert, he allegedly tried to get weapons and worked on making a shrapnel bomb “specific to IS attacks” and received instructions from other IS members on handling explosives, according to prosecutors.

He is also alleged to have been involved in other attack plans abroad, including in Dubai and Istanbul though those attacks never materialised.

If found guilty, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

Last year, a Berlin court convicted a Syrian teenager of contributing to the plot to attack the Swift concert.

The 16-year-old was given an 18-month suspended sentence.

The plot was thwarted with the help of U.S. intelligence.

Swift later wrote on social media that “the reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many had planned on coming to those shows”.

‘Melania,’ panned by some film critics, opens with strong ticket sales for a documentary.

NEW YORK — Promoted by U.S. President Donald Trump as “a must watch,” the Melania Trump documentary “Melania” debuted with a better-than-expected $7 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The release of “Melania” was unlike any seen before. Amazon MGM Studios paid $40 million for the rights, plus some $35 million to market it, making it the most expensive documentary ever. Directed by Brett Ratner, who had been exiled from Hollywood since 2017, the film about the first lady debuted in 1,778 theaters in the midst of Trump’s turbulent second term.

While the result would be a flop for most films with such high costs, “#Melania” was a success by documentary standards. It’s the best opening weekend for a #documentary, outside of concert films, in 14 years. Going into the weekend, estimates ranged from $3 million to $5 million.

But there was little to compare “Melania” to, given that presidential families typically eschew in-office memoir or documentary releases to avoid the appearance of capitalizing on the White House. The film chronicles Melania Trump over 20 days last January, leading up to Trump’s second inauguration.

On Thursday, Trump hosted a premiere of the film at the Kennedy Center, with attendees including Cabinet members and members of Congress. There, Ratner downplayed its box-office potential, noting: “You can’t expect a documentary to play in theaters.”

The No. 1 movie of the weekend was Sam Raimi’s “Send Help,” a critically acclaimed survival thriller starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien. The Walt Disney Co. release debuted with $20 million. The film, with a $40 million budget, was an in-between kind of release for Raimi, whose hits have typically ranged from low-budget cult (“Army of Darkness”) to big-budget blockbuster (2002’s “Spider-Man”).

The Jason Statham action thriller “Shelter” debuted with $5.5 million.

But most of the curiosity was on how “Melania” would perform. A week earlier, the White House hosted a black-tie preview attended by Amazon chief executive Andy Jassy, Apple chief executive Tim Cook and former boxer Mike Tyson.

The film arrived in a week dominated by coverage of federal immigration tactics in Minnesota after a U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

“Melania” didn’t screen in advance for critics, but reviews that rolled out Friday, once the film was in theaters, weren’t good. Xan Brooks of The Guardian compared the film to a “medieval tribute to placate the greedy king on his throne.” Owen Gleiberman of Variety called it a “cheese ball informercial of staggering inertia.” Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: “To say that ‘Melania’ is a hagiography would be an insult to hagiographies.”

But among those who bought tickets over the weekend, the response was far more positive. “Melania” landed an “A” CinemaScore. Audiences were overwhelmingly 55 and older (72 per cent of ticket buyers), female (72%) and white (75 per cent). As expected, the movie played best in the South, with top states including Florida and Texas.

David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm FranchiseRe called it “an excellent opening for a political documentary.”

“For any other film, with $75 million in costs and limited foreign potential, it would be a problem,” said Gross. “But this is a political investment, not a for-profit movie venture, and if it helps Amazon with a regulatory, taxation, tariff or other government issue, then it will pay back. $75 million is insignificant to Amazon.”

“Melania” is Ratner’s first film since he was accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. Multiple women, including the actor Olivia Munn, accused Ratner of sexual harassment and misconduct. Ratner has denied the allegations. Last fall, after Trump’s reported intervention, Paramount Pictures said it would distribute his “Rush Hour 4.”

“Melania,” which will stream on Prime Video following its theatrical run, was released globally. Shortly before its debut, South African distributor Filmfinity said it would no longer release it. The company said it changed course “based on recent developments.”

International ticket sales for “Melania” were expected to be minuscule.

Jake Coyle, The Associated Press

Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar or Lady Gaga could make Grammys history,

LOS ANGELES -- The music industry will hand out its highest honors on Sunday at the Grammy Awards, where Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar and Lady Gaga will battle for the most coveted album of the year prize and a chance to make history.

Trevor Noah is returning to host for a sixth time, which he says will be his last Grammys gig. The show will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+ at 5 p.m. Los Angeles time (0100 GMT on Monday).

Any of the three artists could take home the album accolade during the ceremony in Los Angeles, awards experts say. None of the musicians has ever won the honor, which last year went to Beyonce for “Cowboy Carter.”
A ‘super tight’ three-way race

“It’s going to be super tight,” Paul Grein, awards editor at Billboard, said of the album category.

Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican rapper who is scheduled to headline next month’s Super Bowl halftime show, is in the running for “Debi Tirar Más Fotos.” It would be the first Spanish-language album to win in the category since the Grammys began 68 years ago.

If Lamar wins for “GNX,” he would be the first solo male rapper to win the award. Only two hip-hop musicians have been honored in the category - female artist Lauryn Hill and the duo Outkast.

For pop singer Lady Gaga, the album prize would be the first of her celebrated career. She has never won any of the top four Grammy prizes despite more than two decades in the music business. This year, she is competing with the album “Mayhem.”

Grein predicted the trophy would go to Lamar, who won five Grammys a year ago for the single “Not Like Us.”

Current events may boost support for Bad Bunny, Grein said.
Bad Bunny skipped U.S. shows for fear of federal raids

The singer skipped the continental United States on his recent concert tour, saying he feared federal agents carrying out U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown would show up to arrest his fans.

His selection for the coming Super Bowl halftime show on February 8 also drew objections from critics who argued the National Football League championship game’s entertainment should be performed in English.

“I think the culture wars work in his favour,” Grein said. “There are people who will vote for him in part - not only for this reason, but in part - as a rebuke to President Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric.”

Lamar and Gaga are represented by Universal Music Group UMG.AS. Bad Bunny is signed by Puerto Rican label Rimas Entertainment.

Grammy winners will be chosen by the roughly 15,000 voting members of the Recording Academy — industry peers including artists, songwriters, producers and engineers — whose ranks have been revamped over the past seven years to increase diversity. About 1,000 Latin Grammys voters became eligible to vote this year, and 73% of members have joined since 2019.

Recording Academy Chief Executive Harvey Mason Jr. said the changes reflect the growing popularity of different types of music such as KPop and Afrobeats that now have fans around the world.

“For us, the academy, we had to keep up with that,” he said. “We have to make sure we are responsible and we’re honoring music regardless of where it comes from.”

KPop will be represented in the song of the year category, an honor for songwriters. “Golden,” from Netflix movie “KPop Demon Hunters,” will face off with “APT.,” a duet between KPop singer Rosé and Bruno Mars.

“APT.” also will vie for record of the year, given to the performers and producers, against Lamar’s “luther” collaboration with SZA and Gaga’s “Abracadabra.”

In the best new artist category, R&B and soul musician Leon Thomas is considered a frontrunner. He received six Grammy nominations in total including an album of the year nod for “Mutt.” His competitors include British soul-pop singer Olivia Dean and pop musician Alex Warren.

Scheduled performers include Sabrina Carpenter, Addison Rae and all eight best new artist nominees. Producers promised some surprise appearances among performers and presenters who have not been announced.

Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Additional reporting by Rollo Ross; Editing by Howard Goller, Reuters

Justin Bieber, Tate McRae lead Juno nominations with six each. #TORONTO -- Justin Bieber and Tate McRae lead the Juno nominations this year, with six nods apiece.

The pop stars are both up for artist of the year and album of the year -- Bieber for “Swag II” and McRae for “So Close to What.”

They’ll also face off in the single of the year category with Bieber’s lo-fi “Daisies” up against the Y2K throwback “Sports car.”

Meanwhile, The Weeknd is nominated for five Junos, including album of the year for “Hurry Up Tomorrow” and single of the year for “Cry For Me.”

Newcomer Cameron Whitcomb is also in the running for five, including breakthrough artist of the year, single of the year for “Options,” album of the year and country album of the year for his debut “The Hard Way.”

In the new category Latin music recording of the year, the inaugural nominees are Alex Cuba, Lido Pimienta, Andy Rubal, Isabella Lovestory and Mario Puglia.

The Junos will be handed out at a gala on Saturday, March 28 and during a live broadcast hosted by comedian Mae Martin on Sunday, March 29.

By Nicole Thompson

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 27, 2026.

The legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni has a new star and it is Taylor Swift.

The latest round of legal drama between actress Blake Lively and her “It Ends with Us” director Justin Baldoni offers incredible insight into the support network Lively relied on during and after the movie’s production — including one of her good friends, Taylor Swift.

According to unsealed documents filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Tuesday and obtained by CNN, Lively spoke openly with friends about the trouble she allegedly experienced on the set of the 2024 movie, which she costarred in alongside Baldoni.

Lively has accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and coordinating a “plan” to “destroy” her reputation, according to a suit filed against him and his production company, Wayfarer Studios.

In one exchange with Swift, with whom she has had a longstanding friendship, Lively referred to Baldoni as her “doofus director,” according to the new filing. A year later, the two women texted about Baldoni again, according to the new filing, this time ahead of a New York Times story that burst open the drama on set for all the public to see.

“I think this bitch knows something is coming because he’s gotten out his tiny violin,” Swift texted Lively, along with a screenshot of an Instagram post from People Magazine, highlighting comments from Baldoni about being “sexually traumatized” in his past, according to the legal documents. Swift likened the Lively/Baldoni situation to “a horror film no one knows is taking place,” the documents show.

CNN has reached out to Swift’s representative for comment.

“The newly unsealed evidence shows the concerns of Ms. Lively and others were documented in real-time as early as Spring 2023, and Wayfarer understood them as ‘sexual harassment’ concerns,” Sigrid McCawley, a member of Lively’s legal team, said in a statement to CNN. “The evidence also documents how Wayfarer refused to investigate, but instead attempted to ‘bury’ Ms. Lively and others who spoke up through retaliation,” she said.

Asked to comment on McCawley’s statement, Bryan Feldman, a lawyer for Baldoni and Wayfarer, said “the evidence does not support the claims as a matter of law. A simple read of the newly released message exchanges make the truth abundantly clear. We remain confident in the legal process and clearing the names of all of the Justin Baldoni parties.”

After the New York Times published its article, “’We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine,” Baldoni filed suit against the newspaper, alleging that the story was “rife with inaccuracies, misrepresentations, and omissions” and relied on Lively’s “self-serving narrative.”

The story included contents from a Civil Rights Department complaint, typically kept confidential, that Lively had filed against Baldoni in December 2024 accusing him of sexual harassment and retaliation against her.

Lively then filed a suit against Baldoni. Baldoni followed with a $400 million suit against Lively and her superstar husband, Ryan Reynolds, alleging defamation and that they both “hijacked” his film and were attempting to “destroy” his career.

A judge dismissed Baldoni’s suits against Lively and Reynolds, as well as against the New York Times, in June 2025.

In December 2025, Lively’s suit against Baldoni was postponed from a trial date of March 9 to May 18, 2026.

Swift’s star power first entered the case in May 2025, when it was revealed that she had been subpoenaed after text exchanges were revealed to include the name “Taylor” as part of Baldoni’s suit.

Baldoni had sought to depose Swift, and requested more time to make that happen, but a judge ruled against it in September 2025.

Swift and Lively are known to have had a close friendship and reference is made in the newly unsealed legal documents to the song “My Tears Ricochet” from Swift’s “Folklore” album being used in the “It Ends with Us” trailer.

Lively directed the music video for Swift’s song “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” and the actress and her husband Reynolds frequently socialized with the singer and her now fiancé, NFL player Travis Kelce, including attending his games playing for the Kansas City Chiefs.

In November 2024, Reynolds confirmed that Swift is the godmother to his and Lively’s three young daughters — James, Inez and Betty. The couple also have a son, Olin, born in 2023.

Swift was not the only one to allegedly complain about Baldoni, the newly unsealed documents show.

The legal documents also included what are said to be messages from “It Ends with Us” actress Jenny Slate, who allegedly wrote in one that “this has been a really gross and disturbing shoot, and I’m one of many who feel this way,” about her time spent on set.

CNN has reached out to representatives for Slate for comment.

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

Released Tuesday by the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office, the report said Naroditsky tested positive for methamphetamine and kratom, an opioid-related ingredient that is increasingly added to energy drinks, gummies and supplements.

Naroditsky was last known to be alive on Oct. 18 when he accepted a food delivery. He was found dead the next day after missing a flight, according to the report.

Friends went to Naroditsky’s house two days before his death after he appeared to be acting strangely online, and they took away 40 pills of the stimulant Adderall. Investigators later also found bags of kratom in the home, according the report.

Naroditsky was a child prodigy who became a grandmaster, the highest title in chess aside from World Chess Champion, at age 18.

Fellow grandmasters credited him with introducing the sport to a wider audience by livestreaming many of his matches and sharing live commentary on others. Thousands of people regularly tuned in on YouTube and the interactive streaming platform Twitch to watch Naroditsky play.

High-speed competitive speed chess flourished during the COVID-19 pandemic, creating a chess community that was soon rife with cheating allegations as players gained access to sophisticated computer programs that could give them an unfair advantage.

Naroditsky was accused of cheating by former World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik. He denied the allegations, which were not proven.

In his last livestream before his death, Naroditsky said the allegations had taken a toll on him.

“Ever since the Kramnik stuff, I feel like if I start doing well, people assume the worst of intentions. The issue is just the lingering effect of it,” Naroditsky said.

The International Chess Federation filed a formal complaint against Kramnik in November, accusing him of harassment and insulting the dignity of fellow players.

Kramnik, who called the federation’s investigation “insulting and fair,” in turn filed a defamation lawsuit against the organization the following month.

In a post Tuesday on the social platform X, he said that Naroditsky’s death an “immense tragedy” and that in the immediate aftermath, “a cynical smear campaign was launched, unjustly linking me — without any factual basis — to Daniel’s untimely death.”

Kramnik said that was followed by “multiple direct murder threats directed at me, my wife and my children, which compelled me to pursue legal action.”

“After viewing portions of his last stream and despite our existing tensions, I publicly urged Daniel’s friends — on what tragically turned out to be the morning of his death — to look after and seek urgent help for him,” Kramnik added. “Regrettably, those efforts were in vain.”

The Associated Press

Nicki #Minaj surprises conservatives with praise for Trump, Vance at Arizona event


U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Sunday the conservative movement should be open to everyone as long as they “love America,” declining to condemn a streak of antisemitism that has divided the Republican Party and roiled the opening days of Turning Point USA’s annual convention.

After a long weekend of debates about whether the movement should exclude figures such as bigoted podcaster Nick Fuentes, Vance came down firmly against “purity tests.”

“I didn’t bring a list of conservatives to denounce or to de-platform,” Vance said during the convention’s closing speech.

Turning Point leader Erika Kirk, who took the helm after the assassination of her husband, Charlie Kirk, has endorsed Vance as a potential successor to President Donald Trump, a helpful nod from an influential group with an army of volunteers.

But the tension on display at the four-day gathering foreshadowed the treacherous political waters that Vance, or anyone else who seeks the next Republican presidential nomination, will need to navigate in the coming years. Top voices in the “Make America Great Again” movement are jockeying for influence as Republicans begin considering a future without Trump, and there is no clear path to holding his coalition together.
Defining a post-Trump GOP

The Republican Party’s identity has been intertwined with Trump for a decade, but he’s constitutionally ineligible to run for reelection despite his musings about serving a third term. Tucker Carlson said people are wondering, “who gets the machinery when the president exits the scene?”

So far, it looks like settling that question will come with a lot of fighting among conservatives. The Turning Point conference featured arguments about antisemitism, Israel and environmental regulations, not to mention rivalries between leading commentators.

Ben Shapiro, co-founder of the conservative media outlet Daily Wire, used his speech on the conference’s opening night to denounce “charlatans who claim to speak in the name of principle but actually traffic in conspiracism and dishonesty.”

“These people are frauds and they are grifters and they do not deserve your time,” Shapiro said. He specifically called out Carlson for hosting Fuentes for a friendly interview on his podcast.

Carlson brushed off the criticism when he took the stage barely an hour later, and he said the idea of a Republican “civil war” was “totally fake.”

“There are people who are mad at JD Vance, and they’re stirring up a lot of this in order to make sure he doesn’t get the nomination,” he said. Carlson described Vance as “the one person” who subscribes to the “core idea of the Trump coalition,” which Carlson said was “America first.”

Turning Point spokesperson Andrew Kolvet framed the discord as a healthy debate about the future of the movement, an uncomfortable but necessary process of finding consensus.

“We’re not hive-minded commies,” he wrote on social media. “Let it play out.”

If you love America, you’re welcome in the movement, Vance says

Vance acknowledged the controversies that dominated the Turning Point conference, but he did not define any boundaries for the conservative movement besides patriotism.

“We don’t care if you’re white or black, rich or poor, young or old, rural or urban, controversial or a little bit boring, or somewhere in between,” he said.

Vance didn’t name anyone, but his comments came in the midst of an increasingly contentious debate over whether the right should give a platform to commentators espousing antisemitic views, particularly Fuentes, whose followers see themselves as working to preserve America’s white, Christian identity. Fuentes has a growing audience, as does top-rated podcaster Candace Owens, who routinely shares antisemitic conspiracy theories.

“We have far more important work to do than canceling each other,” he said.

Vance ticked off what he said were the accomplishments of the administration as it approaches the one-year mark, noting its efforts at the border and on the economy. He emphasized efforts to end diversity, equity and inclusion policies, drawing applause by saying they had been relegated to the “dustbin of history.”

“In the United States of America, you don’t have to apologize for being white anymore,” he said.

Vance also said the U.S. “always will be a Christian nation,” adding that “Christianity is America’s creed, the shared moral language from the Revolution to the Civil War and beyond.”


Those comments resonated with Isaiah White-Diller, an 18 year-old from Yuma, Arizona, who said he would support Vance if he runs for president.

“I have my right to be Christian here, I have my right to say whatever I want,” White-Diller said.
Turning Point backs Vance

Vance hasn’t disclosed his future plans, but Erika Kirk said Thursday that Turning Point wanted Vance “elected for 48 in the most resounding way possible.” The next president will be the 48th in U.S. history.

Turning Point is a major force on the right, with a nationwide volunteer network that can be especially helpful in early primary states, when candidates rely on grassroots energy to build momentum. In a surprise appearance, rapper Nicki Minaj spoke effusively about Trump and Vance.

Vance was close with Charlie Kirk, and they supported each other over the years. After Kirk’s assassination on a college campus in Utah, the vice president flew out on Air Force Two to collect Kirk’s remains and bring them home to Arizona. The vice president helped uniformed service members carry the casket to the plane.

Emily Meck, 18, from Pine City, New York, said she appreciated Vance making space for a wide variety of views.

“We are free-thinkers, we’re going to have these disagreements, we’re going to have our own thoughts,” Meck said.