Three countries, three musical traditions, one shared dream. Slavalachia is a cross-cultural collaboration of folk musicians from Belarus, Ukraine and the Appalachian region of the US. The project was meant to be just about the music, but then reality got in the way. Mariia Prus has the story. Camera: Kostiantyn …

Toni Morrison is on the list. So are John Green and Harper Lee. And John Steinbeck and Margaret Atwood. All wrote books that were among the 100 most subjected to censorship efforts over the past decade, as compiled by the American Library Association.  Sherman Alexie’s prize-winning “The Absolutely True Diary …

Three Bollywood actors, including top star Deepika Padukone, were questioned by India’s narcotics agency on Saturday as part of an investigation into the movie industry’s alleged links with drug peddlers and cartels, officials said.Padukone was the first to arrive at the Narcotics Control Board’s office in Mumbai. She had received …

From dark, crowded venues, to social-distanced back yards, stand-up comedians are adapting to life in the nation with the world’s highest death toll from COVID-19.  VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias found comics in the Washington, DC area who, despite their own struggles, are still succeeding to make people laugh. Camera, producer: Veronica Balderas Iglesias …

Mysterious creatures like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster are more than just fun scary stories that we tell ourselves. Myths and superstitions that are passed down through the generations can provide insight into a culture’s perspective. As VOA’s Dora Mekouar  reports, they can also function as a warning. …

The Jerusalema Dance Challenge, a South African internet craze, is sweeping the African continent.As the Jerusalema spreads across Africa, in Zimbabwe, the wildlife is joining in. Staff at Zimbabwe’s Wild is Life sanctuary for rescued wildlife have seen their online dance video with elephants, giraffes and other animals go viral.The …

Sir Harold Evans, the charismatic publisher, author and muckraker who was a bold-faced name for decades for exposing wrongdoing in 1960s London to publishing such 1990s best-sellers as “Primary Colors,” has died, his wife said Thursday. He was 92. His wife, fellow author-publisher Tina Brown, said he died Wednesday in …

Fans disappointed once by the delayed release of superhero movie Black Widow are now disappointed twice after The Walt Disney Co. again pushed back the opening on Wednesday.Starring Scarlett Johansson, the spy thriller was scheduled to debut on November 6 and was among the last movies expected to open in …

India’s iconic 17th century Taj Mahal monument reopened Monday after its longest shutdown even as the country grapples with rising coronavirus cases.The reopening of the famed white marble Mughal-era monument in Agra town after six months is a signal that the world’s second-worst hit nation by the pandemic will steadily …

Quirky comedy “Schitt’s Creek,” media family saga “Succession,” and dystopian drama “Watchmen” dominated the Emmy Awards on Sunday in a show where the coronavirus pandemic meant most celebrities took part from their sofas and backyards dressed in a variety of gowns, hoodies and sleepwear.”Hello, and welcome to the PandEmmys!” said …

In a stunning performance for the ages, Tour de France rookie Tadej Pogacar won cycling’s showpiece race Sunday on the eve of his 22nd birthday.Pogacar became the second-youngest winner of the 117-year-old event that this year braved, and overcame, France’s worsening coronavirus epidemic.Turning him from promising prodigy into cycling superstar, …

The first volume of former President Barack Obama’s memoir is coming out Nov. 17, two weeks after Election Day. It’s called “A Promised Land” and will cover his swift and historic rise to the White House and his first term in office.   The publication date for the second volume …

Only about six percent of the world’s professional classical music orchestras are headed by women. But in France, there is a drive to change that, including La Maestra – an international competition for women conductors in Paris.  The winner of the contest, which attracted more than 200 applicants from Asia, …

Much has been written about the 102 Europeans who crossed the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower in 1620. Much less has been written about the Wampanoag Native American community the Europeans met on the other side. After four centuries, a new exhibition in the place where the ship set sail aims …

A Paris court has sentenced former World Athletics chief Lamine Diack to four years in prison on charges of corruption, money laundering and abuse of confidence.  The charges stemmed from a Russian doping scandal, and for accepting Russian money to finance the 2012 election campaign of a Senegalese president.   …

The massive El Dorado wildfire in the U.S. state of California was reportedly started by a reveal party, a growing trend in the United States in which couples come up with increasingly elaborate ways to announce the gender of their expected child. For some couples, the revelation of the baby’s gender …

“Mulan” has been one of Jewher Ilham’s favorite movies since she was a little girl. She says she remembers sitting with her dad and watching Disney’s 1998 animated version of the tale of a Chinese woman who disguises herself as a man and wins acclaim as a warrior.“I was so …

“Mulan” has been one of Jewher Ilham’s favorite movies since she was a little girl. She says she remembers sitting with her dad and watching Disney’s 1998 animated version of the tale of a Chinese woman who disguises herself as a man and wins acclaim as a warrior.“I was so …

At the start an otherwise dreary academic year for many college freshmen because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boston College — a Jesuit Catholic university — treated incoming freshmen to a pep talk from one of the biggest stars in American music. “If you completed your assignment and read my book, you …

At the start an otherwise dreary academic year for many college freshmen because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boston College — a Jesuit Catholic university — treated incoming freshmen to a pep talk from one of the biggest stars in American music. “If you completed your assignment and read my book, you …

Country-turned-pop star Taylor Swift is coming back to her roots with a performance at this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards.The nine-time ACM award winner will perform from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, where the awards show will be broadcast Wednesday on CBS.Swift will perform “Betty” from …

The Los Angeles Lakers are going to the conference finals for the first time in a decade, ending the longest drought in franchise history. LeBron James is going there for the first time since 2018. For him, that also qualifies as ending a drought.   James scored 29 points and the Lakers wrapped …

After one errant forehand in the first set of the U.S. Open final, Naomi Osaka looked at her coach in the mostly empty Arthur Ashe Stadium stands with palms up, as if to say, “What the heck is happening?”  Surprisingly off-kilter in the early going Saturday, Osaka kept missing shots …

Chloe Zhao’s “Nomadland,” a recession-era road trip drama starring Frances McDormand, won the Golden Lion for best film Saturday at a slimmed-down Venice Film Festival, which was held against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.Zhao and McDormand appeared by video from the United States to accept the award, given virus-related …

For years, U.S. businesses have been trying to get a piece of the Chinese market, and that’s also true for Hollywood. However, as Disney is currently experiencing, doing business with China’s authoritarian government can be tricky, especially in light of current political tensions between the U.S. and China. VOA’s Elizabeth …