Pop Shots – Big Time Action

Welcome to your weekly dose of pop world musings. Covering all things pop culture, this week Pop Shots is hitting you with thoughts on everything from J.Lo taking a fall, to Cher throwing a verbal jab, to William Shatner climbing down your chimney, and since this is Pop Shots you know everything is seasoned with a little bit of attitude.

* Jennifer Lopez fell while performing during a Las Vegas concert at Planet Hollywood. This begs the question – can you still be mega hot, while possibly needing a walk-in tub? Apparently the answer is yes.

* Quite a few stars attended Taylor Swift’s recent concert in New Orleans, as Ruby Rose and Nina Dobrev were in the house, as were Swift’s cats, Meredith and Olivia. Hmm, so cats can make their way into a Taylor Swift concert? {dusts off Garfield costume} Let’s do this!


* Cher caused a bit of a stir during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. While playing the “5 Second Rule” game she was asked to name three celebrities she’d want to do a duet with, and she answered, “Adele, P!nk, and … not Madonna.” There’s no word on what order those names would be in if she used them to play a game of “F*ck, Marry, Kill.”

* Selena Gomez announced she’s taking another break from social media. This is kind of a non-story being that she doesn’t really use social media all that much anyway, but it is a great excuse for me to post a picture from Spring Breakers.


* Maroon 5’s “Girls Like You,” featuring Cardi B, has reached the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100. According to Billboard, this is the first pop song to be #1 on the Hot 100 since January, ending a record 34-week streak of rap songs – or at least rap adjacent songs (yes, I’m talking about Drake) – in the top spot. Umm, really, Billboard? You sure? Cardi B ain’t exactly playing the xylophone on that song.

* In more Maroon 5 news, the band was named the halftime performer for Super Bowl LIII. Personally, I’m upset that this is yet another year where the NFL has passed over the talents of Uncle Majic.


* Metallica – a band that once claimed illegal downloading was killing their record sales – has reached a milestone, as their black album notched its 500th nonconsecutive week on the Billboard 200 chart. It’s now one of only four albums with 500 weeks or more on the chart, but it’s still WAY behind Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, which holds the record at 937 weeks. Maybe if Metallica’s black album synched up perfectly with The Wizard of Oz it would be #1.

* William Shatner will release his first-ever Christmas album, titled Shatner Claus – The Christmas Album, on October 26th. The album will reportedly feature Shatner giving his own comedic spin to 13 holiday classics, with help from Iggy Pop, Brad Paisley, Judy Collins, and others. Does anyone know what you’re supposed to leave out for Shatner Claus on Christmas Eve? Oh wait, I know …


* The White Stripes are collaborating with House of Pain … well, sort of. Jack White has donated $30,000 to help preserve the home from the 1983 film The Outsiders, which was purchased in 2015 by House of Pain founding member Danny Boy O'Connor, and is in the process of being turned into a museum. Hey, Jack and Danny Boy, while you two are being all cool and friendly, you know a mash up of “Seven Nation Army” and “Jump Around” would be the jock jam to end all jock jams. I’m just sayin’, since you two know each other, it’s just a thought.

* Will Smith celebrated his 50th birthday by bungee jumping from a helicopter over the Grand Canyon. We can assume how his parents felt about this.


And with that, my time is up for the week, but I'll be back next week with more shots on all things pop.