Paul McCartney Reacts To Beyoncé Covering 'Blackbird' And Recalls Its Civil Rights Message
HuffPost
The founding Beatles member said Beyoncé thanked him "for letting her" cover the 1968 song, which was inspired by segregation in the U.S. school system.
Paul McCartney couldn’t be happier that Beyoncé covered one of his most treasured hits.
The founding Beatles member posted a heartfelt tribute Thursday after Beyoncé included a dulcet cover of “Blackbird” in her latest album, “Cowboy Carter.” McCartney, who wrote the 1968 song in an era of high racial tensions, was glad its message is still being received.
“I am so happy with [Beyoncé’s] version of my song ‘Blackbird,’” the 81-year-old wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of him with the singer. “I think she does a magnificent version of it and it reinforces the civil rights message that inspired me to write the song in the first place.”
McCartney wrote the song in a decade that included the assassinations of several civil rights leaders, but was originally inspired by the Little Rock Nine, a group of Black students in Arkansas who were among the first to help desegregate schools in the U.S.
“When I saw the footage on the television in the early 60s of the black girls being turned away from school, I found it shocking and I can’t believe that still in these days there are places where this kind of thing is happening right now,” McCartney wrote Thursday.
The "Late Night" comedian isn't buying it.
The "Late Show" host said the tech billionaire is racing to "kiss" Donald Trump's "ass" with the company's changes ahead of the president-elect's inauguration.
A Robbie Williams biopic about hits U.S. theaters on Friday, but he's one of many musicians who are more successfully internationally than in the States.
The reporter covered major events from 9/11 to the D.C. sniper attacks over the course of his decades-long career.
The pair, who share one son, are splitting after 17 years of marriage.
Jerry Hal Saliterman, 77, of Crystal, Minnesota, was planning to change his plea to guilty on Friday, but has since come down with a potentially life-threatening infection.
The ongoing crisis has displaced tens of thousands of the city’s residents, including numerous celebrities, and prompted other awards shows to postpone.
The actor had to be bleeped as she described the "gnarly" fires and lamented the "catastrophe" in her Los Angeles community.
The Golden Globe-winning "Hacks" actor stirred debate with her out-of-the-box notion.
"No way, this is insane, I didn't want to show this one," the "Tonight Show" host joked about one image sent in by a viewer.
The talk show host decided to forgo an essential part of an outfit while interviewing the comedian.