Wednesday was a historic day in New Zealand as the government finally passed legislation legalizing gay marriage.
It wasn’t just the crowd gathered outside, however, who were ecstatic to hear the news. In what is probably one of the most heartwarming videos I have ever seen, the entire House of Representatives broke out singing the love song “Pokarekare Ana” in Maori, a language spoken by indigenous tribes in the country.
I’m not one to watch televised coverage of parliamentary debates (I prefer Keeping Up With the Kardashians), but this is a must see. Just try to make it to the end of this video without cracking a smile.
If only the rest of the world – I’m looking at you, USA – would follow New Zealand’s lead, we could all be singing too!
Rebecca Black’s infamous ‘Friday’ music video has been pulled from YouTube, reports Billboard.
The video, which received more than 160 million views and 3 million ‘dislikes,’ is no longer available due to a “copyright claim by Rebecca Black.”
Earlier this week, Ark Music Factory, which is the company Black’s parents paid $4,000 to produce the song and video, began charging viewers $2.99 to watch the clip.
Black’s spokesman says the 13-year-old and her team team then sent a takedown notice to YouTube, because of a dispute with the firm.
Lawyers for Black and Ark Music have been fighting over who owns the rights to the song and video, and have removed it until the issues are resolved.
This is actually a blessing in disguise – maybe they will never, ever, put it back onto the internet? And we can all move on and live happy lives.
Willie Nelson has settled a marijuana case in court, reports TMZ.
After cops found marijuana on Wilson’s tour bus last year, the country singer has since struck a plea deal in the case and will only have to pay a $500 fine.
If Wilson stays out of trouble for 30 days, the judge will dismiss the case entirely.
Nelson was originally charged with marijuana possession, but has now worked out a deal with prosecutors in which they agreed to reduce the charge in exchange for a no contest plea. Nelson’s lawyer, Joe Turner, said “Willie is glad to have it all behind him. Everyone was very fair.”
And nobody is shocked. Weed to Willie Nelson is like, just part of his soul. He’s earned the right to do whatever he wants. He’s a legend!
Britney Spears is being sued for $10 million over a fragrance, reports CTV.
Spears and her father, Jamie, are reportedly being sued by licensing firm Brand Sense Partners.
The firm is alleging that the two have breached their contract, and claim that the company has stopped receiving their 35 per cent commission from Britney’s fragrance line.
The company is asking for the singer to appear for a deposition in relation to the suit.
Britney’s lawyers state the singer cannot appear in a deposition, though, because her father Jamie has conservatorship over her and controls her affairs.
The company still wants Spears to appear in court, though, stating: “Ms. Spears is competent to testify, and she is the key witness in this case. She has direct knowledge of the operative agreement at the heart of this dispute and has signed each of them.”
The court hearing is set for July 11, where it will be decided if Spears must participate in the court battle. Spears has released multiple fragrances, including ‘Beauty,’ ‘Fantasy’ and ‘Curious.’
Let’s hope they resolve this quickly. Spears is just getting back on track, and the last thing she needs is a very public legal battle!
Rapper Gucci Mane has been arrested yet again, reports Perez Hilton. Nobody is shocked.
Let’s take a look at his past legal woes. Back in November, Gucci Mane got into some trouble with the law over violent altercation with another person at a traffic stop light, where he was pepper-sprayed by the cops for resisting arrest. Then, in January, he was sent back to prison for a probation violation.
Now, police in DeKalb, GA, say Gucci has been arrested yet again “while visiting his probation officer!”
Yep, you read that right. The rapper got arrested while meeting with an officer of the law. You’d think he would put on a good front then, at least. Apparently, the rapper was charged with misdemeanor battery after he “intentionally caused visible bodily harm to a female by pushing her out of a moving vehicle.”
I mean, this is just ridiculous. Although his offence wasn’t that serious, he needs to get his act together and stop making stupid mistakes. There’s really nothing to say about this story, because it is not shocking, and any advice I offer him publicly won’t be adhered to. So good luck, Gucci, good luck.
The district attorney working on Lindsay Lohan’s case is claiming that Dawn Holland, a Betty Ford Center worker who claims she was attacked by the Mean Girls star, was paid off by the Lohan camp to keep quiet.
Riverside District DA David Greenberg “believes that Dawn’s change of heart was financially motivated,” according to an anonymous source. Michael Lohan himself even admits to striking up a deal with Holland.
“Dawn has had her attorney meet with me, negotiate with me, and even propose a ‘deal’ with me,” he said. There was allegedly a $25,000 deal in the works, but a new sum and new terms has reportedly been negotiated.
This incident has encouraged the DA to dig even deeper into Lohan’s still-open case to ensure that justice is fully served.
Oh Lindsay! We thought you were in the clear!
The balance of the universe was shattered late last week as Michael Lohan revealed that he was in some legal troubles – this time with a random woman from Montana.
Pop Eater reports that an arrest warrant has been issued for Lohan in New York State after it was discoved that he owes money in a Montana paternity suit.
When reached for a quote, Lohan said “I was on parole, and was not allowed to leave New York. So the judge in Motana held me in default, and ordered me to pay child support. I asked for three patermity tests, and even Maury Povich asked her to do one with me, but she refused all three.”
Oh snap! You know you’re in trouble when not even Maury Povich can contain the situation!
Lohan begrudgingly began to pay child support to avoid more legal trouble, but had some issues after sending the second payment late. “[The payment was late] because of election day,” He explains. “But I did send it, and I have receipts. So because I was a couple of days late, they issued a warrant. How sick.”
Hmm, this doesn’t sound like the whole story Mr. Lohan… Since when do you have enough cash in the bank to start paying off random alleged babymamas that refuse to take a paternity test? Sounds suspicious to us!
Lindsay Lohan is not taking these recent failed drug tests lying down.
TMZ reports that the Freaky Friday star is beginning to understand and admit that she has a serious drug problem after totally bombing two separate screens, one for cocaine. Friends say that Lohan is “beating herself up over [the tests]…she feels like she just ruined all these really great opportunities that were coming her way.” She’s also been spotted hitting up Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, though her eyes are still looking a little glassy and vacant to us…
Come on Lindsay! We know you can bounce back from this. Remember Mean Girls? That was a great movie! Get better so you can make Mean Girls 2 and earn buckets of money and spend it on normal celebrity things, like hover cars and unicorns!
Do you think the judge will believe in her sobriety efforts when her court date comes around?
TMZ is reporting that Mel Gibson’s latest baby mama, Oksana Grigorieva, is unhappy with the quality of her legal counsel. Oksana is holding several legal meetings in Beverly Hills this week, including one this morning with Neal Hersh of Hersh, Mannis & Bogen.
Oksana’s current firm is battling the courts to get her $40,000 a month in child support from the Braveheart star, a huge boost from her current $5k monthly settlement.
Keep in mind that those numbers are for one baby. That’s barely comparable to the $2,500 cheque she’s receiving monthly for Alexander, her preteened son from a previous marriage. Little Lucia sure is high maintenance!
Neal Hersh may be a good choice for Oksana. Some of his past clients include Pamela Anderson and Denise Richards, both of whom are socially aware ladies with endless amounts of class and grace. Right?
…Okay, well, at least they’ve got money in the bank.
Granted, Oksana is a little nutso, but Mel Gibson isn’t exactly the nicest guy in the world. So if we have to pick the lesser of two evils, we’re pulling for team Grigorieva. After all, how bad can you be when you write delightful ballads for Josh Groban?
Hopefully this settlement gets resolved soon for the Lucia’s sake!
Prince is using an army of lawyers to attack several of the largest fan websites devoted to him.
The lawyers are seeking compensation for the sites’ use of Prince’s likeness, including lyrics, photographs, images, and album covers. They request “substantive details of the means by which [the fansites] propose to compensate our clients [Paisley Park Enterprises, NPG Records and Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG)] for damages…”
The owners of three fansites have banded together and formed PrinceFansUnited.com. According to the site, “It is our opinion that these threats are not made in an attempt to enforce valid copyright as Prince alleges in his threats, rather we believe they are attempts to stifle all critical commentary about Prince. We strongly believe that such actions are in violation of the freedom of speech and should not be allowed. Prince claims that fansites are not allowed to present any artwork with Prince’s likeness, to the extreme that he has demanded removal of fan’s own photographs of their Prince inspired tattoos and their vehicles displaying Prince inspired license plates.”
Alyssa Milano has previously also sued her own fans because of their websites.
