NEWS
Eddie Vedder
Photo by Danny ClinchPearl Jam‘s Eddie Vedder, who’s back on the road after positive COVID-19 cases postponed dates on his solo tour earlier in February, says his own bout with the coronavirus was “pretty serious.”
As Ultimate Classic Rock first reported on Sunday (Feb. 27), Vedder shared his experience in front of a live audience in Los Angeles Friday night. The moment was captured on video by a fan at the show.
“I just wanted to take a quick second to look at this, because it’s very rare,” Vedder said, looking out at the crowd after his daughter Olivia performed her own song “My Father’s Daughter” onstage at L.A.’s YouTube Theater. “It’s incredible. I got the COVID right before we were supposed to start practicing, probably five, six weeks ago, and literally saw my life flash in front of my eyes.”
Vedder continued, “I wasn’t quite sure… because I’ve done some very good things for my body, and I’ve also had a lot of fun. I’ve done some things that could be … some kind of abuse, I mean, nothing really clinical,” he joked. “I won’t get into the details. Just use your imagination!”
“But it was, it felt pretty serious,” said Vedder of his illness. “And to get through that and then be back in a room like this, facing this many people facing this way, listening to us play music for you is really, truly, it’s been a gift and an honor. Thanks for listening. We’re so grateful.”
Vedder and his band the Earthlings — Chad Smith, Josh Klinghoffer, Chris Chaney, Glen Hansard and Andrew Watt — launched the tour support of Vedder’s new album, Earthling.
Listen to Vedder talk about returning to the stage after having COVID-19 in the concert clip below, and watch Olivia perform “My Father’s Daughter,” a ballad co-written by her dad and Hansard.
NEWS
Taraji P Henson performed a parody of Kendrick Lamar's hit song, "Not Like Us," to open the 2024 BET Awards on Sunday night. In doing so, she rocked a similar outfit to what he wore for The Pop Out - Ken & Friends concert in Los Angeles, earlier this month. She also changed the lyrics to “it’s about us.”
Fans on social media had mixed responses to the bit. "This is super corny but that song is hot," one user wrote on X (formerly Twitter). Another remarked: "As proven this track took off because of the beat lol." Elsewhere during Henson's opening monologue, she made reference to Donald Trump's recent comments on "Black jobs" during the first presidential debate for the 2024 election. “[This is] a show packed full of all-stars with Black jobs. Whatever that means,” she said. “But clearly we know there’s a difference – thanks for the info, but we already knew it.”
Since dropping the song amid Lamar's viral feud with Drake, "Not Like Us" has become one of his most successful tracks to date. After The Pop Out, Lamar took to the streets of L.A. to record a star-studded music video for the song. He's yet to provide a release date for it, however.
Check out a clip of Henson performing her version of "Not Like Us" above. Be on the lookout for further updates on Taraji P Henson on HotNewHipHop.
