PHILADELPHIA – Now that the city has cleaned up from its massive July 4th concert, officials are turning their attention to the next big outdoor show: Jay-Z’s “Made in America” festival over Labor Day weekend.
Logistical details — and the full lineup of performers — have been hard to come by since the two-day music extravaganza was announced in May. And now, Philadelphia is working to downplay safety concerns following a triple shooting near the Independence Day celebration.
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“Made in America” will occupy much of the same real estate as Wednesday’s event, which attracted an estimated 500,000 people to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for fireworks and performances by The Roots, Lauryn Hill, Queen Latifah and others.
Mayor Michael Nutter suggested concertgoers were unaware of the violence erupting just blocks from the stage, and he described the festivities overall as a success.
Police said a 16-year-old carried a gun and a grudge from an outlying neighborhood into downtown and shot two people with whom he had been feuding. The suspect was then shot by police; all three are expected to recover.
On Thursday, police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said he hasn’t begun planning for “Made in America,” which will have a combination of private and public security.
Early bird $99 tickets have sold out, leaving the cheapest two-day pass at $135.
Big Ang expanding her brand
NEW YORK – Big Ang was the breakout star of VH1’s “Mob Wives,” and now the fan favorite is building her brand: She’s writing a book.
Big Ang said Friday that her first book will be released on Sept. 11 through Simon & Schuster. It’s called “Bigger Is Better: Real Life Wisdom From the No-Drama Mama.” She said it will include “all kinds of stuff.”
Big Ang’s real name is Angela Raiola. She first gained attention on the second season of “Mob Wives” as the friendly one and peacemaker when the girls got into fights.
VH1’s website said she’s the niece of Salvatore “Sally Dogs” Lombardi, a deceased captain of the Genovese crime family.
The 52-year-old will also launch her own VH1 reality show, called “Big Ang,” on Sunday.
Big Ang said she’s scouting locations for a store called Big Ang’s Secrets, which will include “spray tans, eyelash extensions, hair extensions. Everything I love.”
Boyle given honorary doctorate
LONDON – Singing sensation Susan Boyle has been awarded an honorary doctorate from a Scottish university.
Boyle, who shot to fame on a TV talent show, accepted the degree Friday from Edinburgh’s Queen Margaret University in recognition of her “contribution to the creative industries.”
The singer once studied for a higher-education certificate at the university.
A 40-something church volunteer from a small Scottish village, Boyle became a global sensation in 2009 after she performed “I Dreamed a Dream” on “Britain’s Got Talent.”
Meyers co-hosting with Ripa for week
LOS ANGELES — Seth Meyers begins a weeklong guest-hosting stint on “Live! With Kelly” Monday.
According to Roger Friedman on Showbiz411, Meyers is the lead choice to replace Regis Philbin as the permanent co-host alongside Kelly Ripa on the show in September. The other two hopefuls are former New York Giant Michael Strahan and singer Josh Groban.
All three have filled in as co-hosts several times since Philbin left the show last November, but Meyers’ upcoming week of shows is the first time a guest host has stayed for a full week since Neil Patrick Harris did it late last year. Harris’ role on “How I Met Your Mother” prevents him from being in the running.
Meyers is currently head writer and host of “Weekend Update” on “Saturday Night Live.”
Beiber cited for reckless driving
LOS ANGELES — Teen pop sensation Justin Bieber was stopped and cited for driving in a “reckless manner” on the busy 101 Freeway on Friday morning, the California Highway Patrol said.
Bieber was pulled over in a chrome-colored sports car by CHP officers on the 101 at Vineland Avenue and Ventura Boulevard, after he drove his car in a reckless manner at speeds in excess of 65 mph, said CHP Officer Ming Hsu.
Bieber’s precise speed was not available, he said.
The 18-year-old was driving a Fisker Karma and allegedly weaving in and out of traffic.
It is Bieber’s latest scrape with the law in Los Angeles. The district attorney’s office already is reviewing allegations that he battered a paparazzo during a confrontation in Calabasas. Detectives have been investigating claims by the photographer that Bieber struck him after he snapped photographs of the singer and girlfriend, Selena Gomez, in May.
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