Faulkner

She’s a gifted singer but she’s often clueless as to how to use it. Her oversinging eventually just became a joke, and then she was better known as a behind-the-scenes bitch who got into fights with P!nk and Mary J. Blige. I do hear “Fighter” a lot in the wild, but people are suckers for a pump-up song. Stripped was just such a grab bag of styles. She also tried to hone in on the Latin pop market too.

I think the Hot 100 alone is a dubious way of measuring the success of artists, considering how much the rules have changed over the years and how artists game the systems in place to land hits. I always go back to “Don’t Speak” being one of the biggest songs of 1996, and it didn’t even chart on the Hot 100 because it wasn’t released as a physical single. I do think it’s interesting how relatively forgotten that era of Xtina is, for all its successes. You do see its impact on Ariana Grande and a few years back with Demi Lovato and Jessie J.

I don’t think he’s saying it’s special in terms of pop history. Just that she had more and bigger chart successes than her peers of that era, which might surprise people who are more familiar with the hits of Britney, BSB, and *NSYNC. As big as they were, you’d think they’d all have five or six No. 1s. (Crazy that “I Want It That Way” or “Toxic” never topped the charts. Those were as ubiquitous as they come.)

So tragic.

From Miami 🇺🇸

Just saw his son tested positive too:

This is Elyse’s husband by the way. No wonder Ramona was so touchy-feely.

Dorinda keeps on referring to Elyse’s history with men, as if she has some scandals. I read that her first husband (and father of her 26-year-old daughter) was a Wall Street mogul who was convicted of insider trading and later acted as an informant to the FBI before they divorced. Then she dated a hedge fund manager and decided to buy an apartment with him. (I’m seeing she said it was a gift from him.) They split before the deal closed. He died in a skiing accident, and his name was still on the apartment, leading to his kids to try to force her out of the property. She launched a suit against his estate, which was dismissed, but she’s still living in that apartment.

From Charlotte, North Carolina 🇺🇸

This is too funny.

Women’s seedings are based on rankings but the committee can intervene (like when Serena got a seeding after having fallen out of the top 100 due to her maternity break).

Luann’s confessionals with that photo of her in the background are hilarious.

The response to the Harper’s letter:

The problem with BH is that they’re almost all unlikable, so it’s hard to pick sides. Aaron’s intentions are good, and he’s not like a Joe Gorga or a Slade or a Peter just trying to get screen time IMO. But he is overbearing and yes, a mansplainer. Denise clearly indicates she wants him to back off. Still, Erika and Teddi are insufferable. It’s funny that Bravo tried to make Erika look badass in the promos by making it appear as if she’d said, “Come see about me, I don’t GAF” to Aaron’s face. She’s definitely a confessional sniper.

From Cape Town, South Africa 🇿🇦

The Crown has gone back to ending with six seasons instead of a truncated five: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/crown-be-extended-six-seasons-netflix-1302590

He doesn’t know when to just be quiet and lay low. And maybe he thinks only talking to Serbian press won’t get out. He’s very wrong. Federer and Nadal probably have egos to rival his, but they have teams that manage them so much better. They choose their moments to speak and act, and they maintain a bit of distance and mystique appropriate for their massive level of stardom. He has the money to invest in a good team, but for whatever reason, chooses not to. Maybe it is ego. Again, he’s giving his haters so much ammo and making it harder for his supporters. A lot of players (most of the French ATP guys, Thiem, Schwartzman, et al) have spoken out in his defense, given that he’s friendly with them, but he’s doing them a disservice. Focus on getting match-ready for USO and/or RG, dude.