Ken Ehrlich is returning as executive producer of the 62nd annual Grammy Awards for the last time, capping his 40th anniversary with what’s called “music’s biggest night.”The Recording Academy announced Wednesday that Ben Winston will become the executive producer for the 63rd telecast in 2021.The academy says Ehrlich is known …

People everywhere love competitions and the subject is – at times – not that important. Championships are awarded in toe-wrestling, speed burger-eating and mobile phone throwing. The Michigan city of Eau Claire has one of its own – the annual cherry pit-spitting championship. Roman Verkhovsky visited the town to see …

Country singer Luke Combs was just 6 years old when his mom and grandmother snuck him into his first concert by hiding him in the backseat of their car so he could go see Vince Gill play at a minor league baseball stadium.   It came full circle for the …

Starved of advertising revenue and battling a stranglehold on the newspaper industry by the government, Venezuela’s independent media have been decimated by the country’s years-long crisis — with many migrating online to survive.”It was a course we couldn’t get away from,” Jorge Makriniotis, manager at the 75-year-old El Nacional, told …

Johnny Clegg, a South African musician who performed in defiance of racial barriers imposed under the country’s apartheid system decades ago and celebrated its new democracy under Nelson Mandela, died Tuesday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 66.The Grammy-nominated and British-born singer sometimes called the “White Zulu” died …

HBO’s “Game of Thrones” has slashed its way to a record-setting 32 Emmy nominations Tuesday for its eighth and final season.The bloodthirsty saga’s total eclipsed the all-time series record of 27 nods earned by “NYPD Blue” in 1994.   The showing by “Game of Thrones” led HBO back to dominance …

In the 28 years since winning the very first Women’s World Cup, the U.S. women’s soccer team has dominated the game on the global stage, taking home four Women’s World Cups in all, including the 2019 title captured this month in a 2-0 victory over The Netherlands.The U.S. men haven’t …

Pernell Whitaker, an Olympic gold medalist and four-division champion who was regarded as one of the greatest defensive fighters ever, has died after being hit by a car in Virginia. He was 55.Police in Virginia Beach said the former fighter was hit by a car Sunday night. The driver of …

Walt Disney Co. has taken a high-tech route to remake animated classic “The Lion King” with the look of a nature documentary, an update it hopes will lure audiences to a new version of a film considered a masterpiece the first time.The re-telling of the 1994 tale about the lion …

Federal judges will decide how to proceed with bond hearings in two separate federal indictments against R. Kelly.The 52-year-old singer was arrested Thursday night while walking his dog on a 13-count indictment that includes sex crimes and obstruction of justice. A federal indictment was also unsealed in New York Friday …

Artists are often at the forefront of social change, as they use their works to address difficult political and cultural issues. Protecting the environment and cultural heritage are the focus of the annual Ballet in the Bush initiative. As Marize de Klerk reports from Sterkrivier, South Africa, American dancers recently …

Artists are often at the forefront of social change as they use their works to address difficult political and cultural issues. While activist painters, filmmakers and musicians are probably most familiar, choreographers have also addressed social issues with their dance companies.In South Africa, protecting the environment and cultural heritage are …

The power of song can heal the hearts and bring people together.  A girls’ chorus named Pihcintu sings to do just that.  Most members are from war-torn countries and refugee camps around the world. Together they sing as one and spread a message of hope. VOA’s June Soh caught up …

At a time when podcasts, e-books and smartphones are blossoming, old-fashioned books are still popular in the United States. That is why tiny free libraries, where people exchange books, are sprouting up across the nation to help book lovers. For VOA, Iryna Matviichuk visited some exchanges in the Washington area. …

In the United States, summer camps are popular for children. But recently a five-day summer camp took place for adults with a unique twist — it was just for nerds. Mocked for decades in popular culture, nerds are sometimes described as overly studious, socially awkward, and passionate about the arcane. VOA’s …

Egypt’s legendary movie critic and film historian Youssef Cherif Rizkallah, the man who helped popularize Hollywood movie reviews on Egyptian and Middle East televisions, died Friday.His death comes two days after revealing he had kidney problems. He was 76.The famed broadcast journalist, best known as Egypt’s mobile movie encyclopedia, was …

Courses in Islamic studies are being offered at many colleges and universities in the United States. And it’s not just Muslims signing up for those classes, as VOA’s Ali Orokzai notes in this report narrated by Bezhan Hamdard. …

A statue capturing Brandi Chastain’s iconic reaction to scoring the U.S. team’s winning goal in the 1999 Women’s World Cup has been unveiled outside the Rose Bowl.Chastain was on hand for the unveiling Wednesday, the 20th anniversary of the historic win which coincided with celebrations in New York for this …

In her first public appearance since discovering her masters were in the hands of someone she’s not a fan of, Taylor Swift didn’t directly address the issue, but she did play music from that rich catalog, including songs from her groundbreaking sophomore album to her first full-blown pop project to …

It’s early on a Saturday afternoon and nearly 400 weekend warriors have gathered to do battle on the grounds of a state park just outside Nashville, Tennessee. But they do not carry wooden or steel copies of medieval weapons. They take the field armed with arrows, swords and shields made …

Historical re-enactments have been popular in the United States for more than a century. The American Civil War has been an especially popular topic for re-enactors. But reporter Mike Osborne says a new generation is redefining the hobby. He says Live Action Role Playing, or LARPing, is gaining in popularity …

The U.S. women’s national soccer team celebrated their second straight World Cup win in New York City Wednesday, riding as the guests of honor in a ticker-tape parade that drew throngs of fans. Tina Trinh reports. …

Elvis Presley fans can take to the road in his personal stretch limousine, on his last motorcycle or in a pickup truck if they have the money, an auction house announced Wednesday.Kruse GWS Auctions said the items will be part of its Artifacts of Hollywood auction on Aug. 31.Presley drove …

Disney’s “The Lion King” has received no shortage of remakes and spinoffs in the years since its original 1994 release. Now, as the film reaches its silver anniversary, Disney delivers a new take on the animated musical.Cast and crew gathered in Hollywood for “The Lion King” world premiere Tuesday night, …

Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are looking to expand their brands under a new corporate umbrella.The Hollywood power couple on Wednesday announced the launch of a new media venture.According to a statement, Westbrook Inc. will be a cross-platform holding company “formed to execute the Smith family’s global content and commerce …