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Easy for You to Spell Jennifer Lopez and Maksim Chmerkovskiy might be dating 29
DEATHS
Comedian Rossi Dies Steve Rossi, one half of the prolific comedy duo Allen & Rossi, died Sunday at age 82. The duo appeared regularly on “The Tonight Rossi Show With Johnny Carson” and “The Ed Sullivan Show.” They also toured comedy clubs nationwide and headlined shows in Las Vegas in the 1960s until they split up in 1968. (AP) QUITTERS
Gordon Ramsay Ending ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ In an announcement on his blog Monday, chef Gordon Ramsay said he is ending his reality show “Kitchen Nightmares.” The series will end with its Spanish proliferation “Costa Del Nightmares,” which airs on Britain’s Channel 4. (E XPRESS)
Hearsay
“Apparently Kim Jong Un plans on watching #TheInterview. I hope he likes it!!” — SETH ROGEN, TWEETING HIS PLEASURE AT A STATEMENT FROM A PYONGYANG
Radio-Ready or Not Ed Sheeran tries out a new sound on his highly anticipated follow-up album, ‘X’
Worth a Listen Standout tracks from Ed Sheeran’s latest album, “X,” out now.
Yes, “Sing” is noteworthy for being a poppier departure from his usual fare, but the song’s video, in which Sheeran pals around with Pharrell Williams and a Sesame Street-style puppet of himself, is the best part. For proof he’s not just the sensitive guy with a guitar, check out “The Man,” in which Sheeran raps about drugs, drinks and an ex-girlfriend. “Don’t” is the most successful of his forays into pop here, his Suffolk accent spitting out a bitter tale of a bad romance with a pop star. And before you ask, no, Sheeran has repeatedly insisted, it’s not about his BFF Taylor Swift. Careful listeners suspect Ellie Goulding is the inspiration. (E XPRESS)
Music Promoting an album kills creativity, says Ed Sheeran, preferring to watch a World Cup game rather than talk about “X,” the anticipated follow-up to his 2011 debut, “+.” The 23-year-old singer-songwriter is drained and distracted from talking up the new album, out now, across the country. “It has to be done,” he shrugs, one ear on the U.S.-Ghana game. The English performer prefers the other parts of his job, writing songs and playing live. He created more than 100 songs to get the 12 tracks on “X,” which he pronounces “multiply.” The result is funkier than his folksy debut, which has sold more than 800,000 units and earned him a pair of Grammy nominations. “X,” with its refreshing new sound, is poised to find the same success. The album has already topped the iTunes sales chart after its first day out in the U.S. on Monday. Several tracks, including “Sing” and “The Man,” invite comparisons to Justin Timberlake for their falsetto vocals and dance beats. Sheeran appreciates the association. “He’s a very talented person and I’ve listened to ‘Justified’ a lot,” Sheeran said. “I definitely took influence from that.” Though Sheeran shares Timber-
MATT SAYLES (AP)
In Brief
Ed Sheeran collaborated with a team of hit makers to find a poppier sound on “X.”
lake’s sweet, almost cherubic image, with his mussed red hair and lowkey fashion sense, a hardness shows through, and not in the form of his sleeves of tattoos. Success is everything he hoped it would be, and he misses nothing from his pre-fame life. “It wasn’t that fun,” he said. But now he has the luxury of working with a handful of hit-making producers — Pharrell Williams, Benny Blanco, Jeff Bhasker and Rick Rubin — in his effort to craft a broader, more radio-friendly sound. “It’s weird, because they’re more polished producers but it’s a more raw sound,” Sheeran said, “so I think they brought an element of rawness to it.” SANDY COHEN (AP)
SPOKESMAN SAYING THAT THE NORTH KOREAN LEADER WILL PROBABLY WATCH ROGEN’S NEWEST FILM. STILL, ACCORDING TO THE GUARDIAN, THE SPOKESMAN SAYS “THE INTERVIEW,” IN WHICH ROGEN AND JAMES FRANCO PLOT TO ASSASSINATE KIM JONG UN, SHOWS “DESPERATION.”
Here Comes the Daytime: “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” received its eighth trophy as outstanding entertainment talk show at the Daytime Emmy awards ceremony on Sunday. The “Steve Harvey” show was honored as outstanding informative talk show, while Steve Harvey won as best game show host for “Family Feud.” CBS led the networks, winning 14 awards. The ceremony streamed exclusively online, reflecting a shrinking daytime audience. (AP)