All right, recent events are alarming for actual musicians. But "even a more radical artists-rights activist like Kevin Erickson, director of the Future of Music Coalition, is skeptical that AI could outright replace artists, or will inevitably learn on the backs of protected work." - Los Angeles Times
Come for the scoop about people getting conceived on a Garfield ride in Pittsburgh, stay for the philosophy: "Perhaps if we better understand amusement parks, he argues, we can better understand America itself." - Slate
That is to say that Japanese director Yasuzo Masumura, who died 37 years ago, is enjoying a renaissance thanks to the festival. "There is a classic film fan born every minute, but in Karlovy Vary this year, you could feel it happen in real time" during screenings. - Variety
Cher "ran into Dylan in a New York recording studio as her version was climbing the charts. He told her that he dug what she’d done with it, which, Cher writes, 'made me feel like floating away.'" - The New York Times
Chloe Zhao followed up Nomadland with a Marvel tentpole. Greta Gerwig is about to release Barbie. Barry Jenkins is directing ... a Lion King sequel?! Studios used to have more on offer. "Now this is all there is: franchise content, continuing endlessly until the heat death of the universe." - Irish Times
A crayon drawing, maybe. "Vietnamese censors have banned or altered several other movies that showed disputed areas as being under Beijing’s control. The list includes Crazy Rich Asians (2018), Abominable (2019) and Uncharted (2022), among others."- The New York Times
"The union that is in the midst of tense contract negotiations with Hollywood’s major studios published a 42-second video on that showed members wielding staplers and duct tape in the grunt work of making dozens of picket signs." - Variety
"Nero was a national treasure. He appeared with Frank Sinatra, Mel Tormé, Andy Williams, Johnny Mathis and other headliners; released 72 albums; conducted the Philly Pops for 34 years, often with one hand while the other played a piano." - The New York Times
Why did this take so long? Blame the GOP. "In 1997 Michigan Republican Congressman Pete Hoekstra derided The Watermelon Woman as 'possibly pornographic.' ... He decried that the film had been funded by taxpayers." - NPR
Or, you might. "The video was posted to TikTok on Sunday and was flooded with supportive comments. ... On Monday, Warner tweeted that the novel became No 1 in Amazon YA sales, and soon after it was No 1 across all book genres." - The Guardian (UK)
American Ballet Theater principal Cassandra Trenary says, "I’m trying to find a balance between being the most human and the most stripped down and keeping it like a classical ballet. That’s an interesting struggle." - The New York Times
The people are doing it for themselves: "Indigenous musicians are building their own foundation within Canada's music industry after years of feeling excluded from or limited by the system's unspoken glass ceiling." - CBC
"Seeing him mention this is almost anachronistic. The evidence is very clear that whatever may be going on in France, whatever violence is occurring, it certainly is not due to violence in video games." But politicians - even Gen-Xers like Macron - apparently can't stop, won't stop. - NPR
David Sibley: "Drawing is a way of slowing down to take the time to look at something, and drawing also gives you a record of what you thought you saw. It’s not like a photograph; it’s your interpretation of what you saw." - The New York Times
The openly homophobic and transphobic law means that "even if granted parental permission, minors may not have materials available to them." Texas is likely to follow suit, even more harshly. - Book Riot
