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Starry Sundance Fest Moves Ahead in Wake of LA Fires 

US actress/singer Jennifer Lopez arrives for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' 15th Annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles on November 17, 2024. (AFP)
US actress/singer Jennifer Lopez arrives for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' 15th Annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles on November 17, 2024. (AFP)
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Starry Sundance Fest Moves Ahead in Wake of LA Fires 

US actress/singer Jennifer Lopez arrives for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' 15th Annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles on November 17, 2024. (AFP)
US actress/singer Jennifer Lopez arrives for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' 15th Annual Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles on November 17, 2024. (AFP)

The US film industry's first big gathering since fires devastated Los Angeles will begin Thursday at the Sundance festival, where highlights include a glitzy new Jennifer Lopez musical and a dark Benedict Cumberbatch drama.

Hollywood's annual pilgrimage to the Rocky Mountains to premiere the coming year's most-anticipated indie films is taking place in somber circumstances, after the blazes that killed at least 27 people and brought the entertainment capital to a halt.

Festival chiefs held lengthy talks with filmmakers, including those "who lost homes or were displaced" by the blazes, before deciding to press ahead, said Sundance director Eugene Hernandez.

Organizers heard "harrowing stories of people running out of their homes, evacuating... with their hard drives under their arms" to ensure their films survived, he told AFP.

"Everybody to a person just wants to look forward and wants to look ahead... it'll be a nice moment of reunion and community."

Among the 88 features being screened in Utah's Park City is "Rebuilding," about a rancher who loses everything in a wildfire.

"It takes on an added poignance, for those who will watch it next week," said Hernandez.

Josh O'Connor, known for "The Crown" and "Challengers," plays the lead role.

"It's an incredible film, and one that we felt was important to show, based on that spirit of resilience," said Sundance programming director Kim Yutani.

"I think it will be a particularly moving one for people to see."

- J-Lo, Cumberbatch -

A-lister Lopez brings her first film to Sundance, with "Kiss of the Spider Woman."

From "Dreamgirls" director Bill Condon, the film is based on the Broadway adaptation of Argentine author Manuel Puig's famous novel.

Lopez plays Aurora, a silver-screen diva whose life and roles are discussed by two mismatched prisoners as they form an unlikely bond in their grim cell.

While harking back to grand Golden Age Hollywood musicals with its fabulous costumes and Lopez's "knockout musical performance," the film is a more dramatic and independent take on the genre, said Hernandez.

Cumberbatch stars in another literary adaptation, "The Thing With Feathers," based on Max Porter's experimental and poetic novel about a grieving husband and two young sons.

"It's one of these juicy roles that big actors relish taking a bite out of," said Yutani.

Family tragedy and fatherhood are also the themes of "Omaha," with John Magaro ("Past Lives") delivering "an emotional gut punch of a role" that could spell awards, according to Yutani.

Rapper A$AP Rocky and late-night host Conan O'Brien make up the eclectic cast of mystery "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You."

And "The Bear" star Ayo Edebiri teams up with John Malkovich for thriller "Opus," about a young writer investigating the mysterious disappearance of a legendary pop star.

- Music, politics -

Music is also a prominent theme of Sundance's documentary selection, which has launched several of the most recent Oscar-winning non-fiction films.

A new "must-see" Jeff Buckley documentary features never-before-seen footage from "three very important women in his life, including his mother," said Yutani.

Elegance Bratton explores the Chicago roots of house music with "Move Ya Body: The Birth of House," while Oscar-winning director Questlove examines funk pioneer Sly Stone in "Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)."

Politics will again be prominent.

Former New Zealand leader Jacinda Ardern is expected in town to promote behind-the-scenes documentary "Prime Minister."

"The Jinx" director Andrew Jarecki explores violence and corruption in the US prison system with "The Alabama Solution."

And, days after the Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect, Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis will unveil her "groundbreaking" new film "All That's Left of You," which has been given a highly prominent Saturday evening premiere at Sundance's biggest venue.

"That is not an accident. This is a really special one," said Yutani.

"I have not seen a film about a Palestinian family told in quite this way."

The 2025 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 23 through February 2.

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Entertainment

At Grammys, 'ICE Out' Message Loud and Clear

Billie Eilish accepts the award for Song of the Year for "WILDFLOWER" as Finneas looks on during the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, US, February 1, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Cole
Billie Eilish accepts the award for Song of the Year for "WILDFLOWER" as Finneas looks on during the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, US, February 1, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Cole
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At Grammys, 'ICE Out' Message Loud and Clear

Billie Eilish accepts the award for Song of the Year for "WILDFLOWER" as Finneas looks on during the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, US, February 1, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Cole
Billie Eilish accepts the award for Song of the Year for "WILDFLOWER" as Finneas looks on during the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, US, February 1, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Cole

Music's A-listers on Sunday lashed out at the immigration raids rocking the United States at the Grammy Awards, with Puerto Rican megastar Bad Bunny setting the tone.

Anger was palpable at President Donald Trump's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, whose heavily armed and masked agents have been deployed in multiple US cities.

The killing of two US citizens by federal agents last month in Minneapolis raised the temperature for many Americans, already anxious over what they think are unfocused operations unjustly sweeping up anyone who speaks Spanish or has brown skin, said AFP.

"Before I say thanks to God, I'm gonna say 'ICE out'," Bad Bunny said to cheers from the audience in Los Angeles -- only a week before he is due to headline the Super Bowl halftime show.

"We're not savages, we're not animals, we're not aliens; we are humans and we are Americans," the singer said after being given the Grammy for Best Musica Urbana Album.

The reggaeton star was not alone in calling out the actions of ICE, one of the lead agencies involved in the crackdown.

Among the couture frocks by Valentino, Chanel and Saint Laurent on the red carpet, several of those attending added an "ICE out" button to their outfits.

They included power couple Justin and Hailey Bieber, veteran songstress Joni Mitchell, US singer Jordan Tyson and actress and singer Helen J. Shen.

Here are some of the other comments made by musicians at the show in Los Angeles:

- Gloria Estefan -

"I'm scared, I'm very worried," Gloria Estefan told AFP backstage after winning the Grammy for best tropical Latin album.

"I don't think anyone would say we want a free-for-all at the border, but what is happening is not at all 'criminals being arrested'.

"These are people that have families, that have contributed to this country for decades, little children. There are hundreds of children in detention centers. It's inhumane. I don't recognize my country at this moment."

- Olivia Dean -

"I guess I want to say I'm up here as a granddaughter of an immigrant," British singer Olivia Dean -- who has an English father and a Jamaican-Guyanese mother -- said after scooping the prestigious Best New Artist Grammy.

"I'm a product of bravery, and I think those people deserve to be celebrated."

- Shaboozey -

"Immigrants built this country," the breakout country star Shaboozey, who was born in Virginia to Nigerian parents, told the audience after winning the Grammy for best country duo/group performance with Jelly Roll.

"So this is for them, for all children of immigrants. This is also for those who came to this country in search of better opportunity to be a part of a nation that promised freedom for all and equal opportunity to everyone willing to work for it," said the artist.

"Thank you for bringing your culture, your music, your stories and your traditions here. You give America color."

- Billie Eilish -

US singer Billie Eilish, whose "Wildflower" scored the Grammy for Song of the Year, said she felt grateful for the award.

But, she added: "As grateful as I feel, I honestly don't feel like I need to say anything, but that no one is illegal on stolen land.

"It's just really hard to know what to say and what to do right now. I feel like we just need to keep fighting and speaking up and protesting, and our voices really do matter, and the people matter."

- SZA -

"It's incredibly dystopian that we're dressed up and able to celebrate accolades... and people are getting snatched up and shot in the face on the street," said R&B singer SZA, who shared Record of the Year honors with Kendrick Lamar.

"It just feels bizarre, and I find so many of us don't really know how to feel right now, besides rage and hopelessness," she said.

"I just don't want everyone to fall into despair, because when you lose... morale, change becomes impossible."

Entertainment

Kendrick Lamar, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga Face off at Grammys

Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny performs during his second show of the "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" World Tour at Atanasio Girardot Stadium in Medellin, Colombia, 24 January 2026. (EPA)
Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny performs during his second show of the "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" World Tour at Atanasio Girardot Stadium in Medellin, Colombia, 24 January 2026. (EPA)
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Kendrick Lamar, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga Face off at Grammys

Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny performs during his second show of the "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" World Tour at Atanasio Girardot Stadium in Medellin, Colombia, 24 January 2026. (EPA)
Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny performs during his second show of the "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" World Tour at Atanasio Girardot Stadium in Medellin, Colombia, 24 January 2026. (EPA)

Music's A-listers are set for Sunday's Grammy Awards, the industry's biggest night, with superstars Kendrick Lamar, Bad Bunny and Lady Gaga hoping to make history in Los Angeles.

All three are angling to add to their trophy cabinets by taking home the gala's most coveted award, Album of the Year, for the first time.

Lamar, the Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper, has nine nominations this time around for his album "GNX" -- the most of any artist.

The 38-year-old California native, who won five gramophones last year thanks to his smash diss track "Not Like Us," is also up for Record and Song of the Year for "Luther" featuring R&B artist SZA.

Pop chameleon Lady Gaga and Puerto Rico's Bad Bunny also are competing in all three top categories.

Also nominated for Album of the Year are pop princess Sabrina Carpenter; R&B singer-songwriter Leon Thomas; Tyler, the Creator; hip-hop duo Clipse (Pusha T and Malice); and pop superstar Justin Bieber -- with his first studio effort in four years.

Lady Gaga, Bieber, Carpenter and Bruno Mars are set to lead a starry list of performers that also includes Lauryn Hill and a tribute to late rocker Ozzy Osbourne featuring Post Malone.

- Bad Bunny's hot streak -

Standing in Lamar's way for Album of the Year is Bad Bunny, who is on a world tour in support of his album "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" (I Should Have Taken More Photos) after a hugely successful residency in San Juan.

"It was a very exciting album," musicologist Lauron Kehrer told AFP.

"It touched on so much in terms of thematic material and musical material," Kehrer said, pointing to the allusions to decolonization and use of traditional Puerto Rican rhythms.

The 31-year-old Latin megastar, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, will headline the Super Bowl halftime show a week after the Grammys, where he is up for six awards.

His "Un verano sin ti" (2022) was the first Spanish-language album nominated for Album of the Year honors. A win on Sunday would give Bad Bunny another mention in the history books.

Lady Gaga, 39, made a splashy comeback to touring with "Mayhem," her collection of pop bangers with a dark edge that embraces her dramatic side. She has seven nominations.

A win for Album of the Year would complete her hat trick of top awards.

She took Record and Song of the Year honors seven years ago for the soundtrack hit "Shallow," from "A Star is Born" -- which also earned her an Oscar.

This time around, Song of the Year -- which honors songwriting -- is a crowded category that includes Carpenter's "Manchild" and "Golden" from the Netflix animated smash hit "KPop Demon Hunters."

Many pundits believe the energetic K-pop hit will triumph.

Up for best new artist are Alex Warren, girl group Katseye, Britain's Olivia Dean, TikTok dancer-turned-singer Addison Rae, The Marias, sombr, Lola Young and Thomas.

- 'Reactionary' -

For musicologist Kehrer, the infusion of rap, reggaeton and K-pop in the top Grammy categories reflects changes in the composition of the Recording Academy's voting group.

More than 3,800 new members have been admitted. Half of those new members are age 39 or younger, and 58 percent of them are people of color, the academy says.

Invitations were also offered to all members of the Latin Recording Academy.

"The Grammys are more reactionary than anything else," said Kehrer.

"These artists winning those major awards is more of an indication of climate, rather than trying to move or change the climate."

The Grammy Awards will once again be hosted by comedian Trevor Noah.

The main broadcast begins at 5:00 pm (0100 GMT Monday), but many of the 95 awards will be handed out at a pre-gala event.

Entertainment

Chaka Khan, Cher, Whitney Houston, Fela Kuti Get Grammys Life Achievement Awards

Chaka Khan arrives at the Recording Academy's Special Merit Awards on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP)
Chaka Khan arrives at the Recording Academy's Special Merit Awards on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP)
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Chaka Khan, Cher, Whitney Houston, Fela Kuti Get Grammys Life Achievement Awards

Chaka Khan arrives at the Recording Academy's Special Merit Awards on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP)
Chaka Khan arrives at the Recording Academy's Special Merit Awards on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP)

Chaka Khan, Cher, Carlos Santana, Paul Simon, Fela Kuti and Whitney Houston received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy at the Grammys Special Merit Awards on Saturday night.

“Music has been my prayer, my healing, my joy, my truth,” Khan said as she accepted the award. “Through it, I saved my life.”

She was the only Lifetime Achievement recipient who appeared at the ceremony at the small Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles on the eve of Sunday's main Grammys ceremony.

She was preceded by a short documentary on her career that highlighted her hits as a member of the funk band Rufus and as a solo artist, including 1974's Stevie Wonder-written “Tell Me Something Good,” 1983's “Ain't Nobody,” 1978's “I'm Every Woman” and 1984's Prince-penned “I Feel For You.”

Wearing a shimmering sea green gown, she thanked her many collaborators while admitting not all of them were entirely sane.

“Over 50 years I am blessed to walk alongside extraordinary artists, musicians, writers, producers and creatives,” she said, pausing before adding, “and cuckoos.”

Family accepted the Lifetime Achievement Awards for the Nigerian Afrobeat legend Kuti, who died in 1997, and the singing superstar Houston, who died in 2012.

“Her voice — that voice! — remains eternal,” Pat Houston, Whitney's sister-in-law, close friend and longtime manager, said. “Her legacy will live forever.”

Three of his children accepted the award for Kuti, introduced as a “producer, arranger, political radical, outlaw and the father of Afrobeat.” He's the first African musician to get the award.

“Thank you for bringing our father here,” Femi Kuti said. “It’s so important for us, it’s so important for Africa, it’s so important for world peace and the struggle.”

The audience gave a collective moan of disappointment when academy President Harvey Mason Jr. said Cher wasn't there.

She spoke in a very short video.

“The only thing I ever wanted to be was a singer. When I was 4 years old, I used to run around the house naked, singing into a hairbrush,” she said. “Things haven’t changed all that much.”

Santana also spoke on video, after his son, Salvador, accepted his trophy.

“The world is so infected with fear that we need the music and message of Santana to bring hope, courage and joy to heal the world,” Carlos Santana said.

Elton John's longtime lyricist Bernie Taupin paid tribute to Simon, calling him “the greatest American songwriter alive.”

Taupin was there as one of the recipients of the Grammys Trustees Award, which honors career contributions outside of performing.

Despite co-writing the vast majority of John’s hits, Taupin has somehow never won a competitive Grammy, though he’s nominated for one Sunday.

“I’ve been waiting 57 years for one of these,” he said, looking at his honorary trophy.

Taupin read a list of the songwriting principles he’s always followed. They included “avoid cliches,” “never write songs in cubicles” and “don’t say you’re going to die if she leaves you — because you’re not.”

Eddie Palmieri, a pianist, composer and bandleader who was a great innovator in Latin jazz and rumba, also got a Trustees Award.

Palmieri, who died last year at 88, became the first Latino to win a Grammy Award, in 1975.

Another trustees honoree was Sylvia Rhone, the first Black woman to head a major record label.

John Chowning, whose work as a Stanford professor in the 1960s was essential to the synthesizer sounds that dominated the 1980s, won the Technical Grammy Award.

Jennifer Jimenez, a band director from South Miami Senior High School, won the Grammys Music Educator Award, and “Ice Cream Man” by Raye got the Harry Belafonte Song for Social Change Award.