Pop Shots – New Heights

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 Taylor Swift’s latest honor, to The Black Eyed Peas’ impressive achievement, to Duran Duran getting the Royal (Mail) treatment, and since this is Pop Shots you know everything is seasoned with a little bit of attitude.

* Taylor Swift will be inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Local business can’t wait to be forced to close while she’s there.

* Ariana Grande wound up stuck in an elevator after the final show of her Eternal Sunshine tour. Hey Ariana, I think Aerosmith has some suggestions on how you could’ve passed the time.

* The video for The Black Eyed Peas’ “Pump It” has surpassed one billion views on YouTube. It’s truly a testament to how often The Black Eyed Peas play their own videos. Seriously, it’s gotta be like a rotation, right, one sits in a room for 24 hours clicking play, just waiting to be relieved by the next member?

* Macklemore was booted from Ed Sheeran’s tour, sparking a controversy that led to all of Sheeran’s opening acts deciding to leave the tour, as well … and not a single ticket holder asked for a refund.

* In an interview on TODAY, Benny Blanco claimed his secret to winning over Selena Gomez was simply being nice, adding, “I didn’t use, like, black magic, or anything.” In reply, a local magic store clerk said, “Oh yeah, then what’s this receipt for!”

* Lady Gaga and her fiancé, Michael Polansky, have reportedly welcomed their first child. I, for one, had no idea they had one on the way. Did they order this child online, or was it like a Madonna thing, where they stole it from another country?

* Spotify has launched a setting that allows parents to prevent kids’ music from affecting their personal taste profile. This will also help any metalhead who sometimes like to jam out to “Wheels on the Bus.”

* The artwork from eight classic Duran Duran albums will be turned into stamps by Britain’s Royal Mail. It’s perfect for the letter you’ve been meaning to send to Rio.

That’s all for this edition of Pop Shots, but come back next Monday for more shots on all things pop.