HOLLYWOOD—Lady Gaga is looking forward to her upcoming role in “American Horror Story: Hotel” and is taking her upcoming part very seriously. The entertainer has tweeted and instagrammed about her debut role as the Countess, owner of the Hotel Cortez. She even shared one of her scariest “AHS” photos, showing her character poised above an array of creepy characters, which will premiere on October 7 on FX.
But that’s not all: Lady Gaga is the woman of the year, according to Billboard magazine. Billboard announced on September 29 that the pop star will be honored at its December 11 Women in Music event in New York City. The decade-old-event will be televised for the first time on Lifetime on December 18. Meanwhile, Lady Gaga released the collaborative jazz album, “Cheek to Cheek,” with Tony Bennett last year. It actually won a Grammy award, and the duo performed songs from the album on a 36-date tour.
Lady Gaga has always been very special to me. Not only does she follow me on Twitter, her father graduated from the same high school as my children. She plans on releasing an album next year. The Women in Music event also honors the year’s 50 most powerful female executives in the music industry. She will also be performing at amfAR’s LA Inspiration Gala honoring “American Horror Story” creator Ryan Murphy, which wil take place on October 29 at Milk Studios.
Murphy will be receiving the Award of Inspiration from the Foundation for Aids Research for his contributions to TV and film as well as his work in the fight against AIDS. The black-tie event will be hosted by Gwyneth Paltrow and presented by Harry Winston and MAC Viva Glam. Event chairs will be Aileen Getty, Kevin Huvane, and amfAR Chairman Kenneth Cole. The co-chairs include: Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Darren Criss, Matt Bomer, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brad Falchuk, Cuba Gooding Jr., Bryan Lourd, Stevie Nicks, Lea Michele, Amy Pascal, Evan Peters, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts, Mark Ruffalo, Chloe Sevigny and Dana and Matt Walden.
Another celebrity who inspires is Pharrell Williams. Last year he was named the top producer of the past decade by Billboard magazine, as one half of the Neptunes. Pharrell was behind hits for Nelly (“Hot in Herre”), Jay-Z (“I Just Wanna Love U [Give it 2 Me]”), Justin Timberlake (“Rock Your Body”), and Britney Spears (“I’m a Slave 4 U”). He produced and co-wrote Robin Thicke’s mega-hit, “Blurred Lines.” But it was his first solo hit, “Happy,” that Pharrell Williams himself suddenly went stratospheric.
Now, Williams has launched a “Happy” campaign for young readers. The singer has partnered with FirstBook, a non-profit literacy organization, to donate up to 50,000 books to children in low-income families. Pharrell’s publisher, Penquin Young Readers, announced on September 29, that the Twitter hashtag #readHappy had been established for fans to post thoughts or images on why reading makes them “Happy.”
Every post shared elsewhere on social media will lead to a donation, according to published reports. “Every child on this planet deserves to experience the joy of reading,” he said in a statement issued through Penguin. Pharrell’s picture book, “Happy,” based on his song, comes out next week.
While the song “Happy,” has taken off on the charts, the legendary song by Bob Dylan “Like a Rolling Stone” has been described by U2’s Bono as “a Black eye of a pop song.” Dylan is set to release a new CD featuring 20 alternate takes of Like a Rolling Stone. Interesting. Acknowledged as one of the greatest songs, of all time, the six-minute organ-led classic was originally recorded back in June 1965 for the Highway 61 Revisted album.
Dylan wrote the song, about a debutante cast from upper-lass society, at the age of 24. It reached number two in the US Billboard charts and number four in the UK. Rolling Stone Magazine even named it the greatest song of all time. Just last year, the manuscript, said to be the only known draft of the final lyrics, garnered $2 million at Sotheby’s.
Rose’s Scoop: Pop star Selena Gomez was in London where she performed on Radio 1’s Live Lounge last week.
