He may have spent months on the American Idol stage, earning millions of votes in order to be crowned the 11th champion in series history, but Phillip Phillips is not anxious for a break. Speaking to reporters for the first time since undergoing kidney surgery , the singer said he’s sick of recovery and excited to perform in front of fans this summer on tour. “I’ve kind of been going crazy just looking at the four walls surrounding me,” Phillips said, adding that he loves to sleep, but he’s ready to be active once again. Phillips has mostly just been “resting and recovering” since the June 7 procedure, but he can pick up a guitar now, which bodes well for his presence at the July 6 tour opener in Detroit. “I’m pretty confident,” he says of joining the nine other Idol finalists as they visit various cities over the next couple months. “I’m just going to have fun with it … It’s going to go well, I believe.”
This just in: Justin Bieber is very popular. Within a day of the 18-year old singer releasing his latest studio album, “Believe” ranks first on the iTunes Top Albums chart in the United States, Spain, New Zealand, Belgium, Finland… and you get the idea. In all, the Biebs sits atop this chart in a whopping 34 countries! We now have proof: Justin is popular ” All Around the World .” Justin Bieber Album Preview There’s little doubt that Justin will take over number-one on next week’s Billboard 200, as well, which tracks number of album copies sold in seven days. But that’s where things could get awkward: Usher is at the top of that chart at the moment. Sorry, mentor. You’re gonna have to make room for your protege.
Who says celebrity can’t be used for good? Angelina Jolie marked the 20th of June – World Refugee Day 2012 – with a donation of $100,000 for the U.N.’s work in helping Syrian refugees. “Unfortunately, the world is producing displaced people faster than it is producing solutions to displacement. And the solutions are not exclusively humanitarian, they are also political,” the 37-year-old actress said in a statement. “The international community should rededicate itself to preventing conflict, addressing it when it erupts, and solving it more quickly, for that is the only way to create durable solutions for the refugees whose strength inspires us on this World Refugee Day.” Seeing Angelina Jolie as Maleficent is very cool, but seeing her continue to wield her fame and fortune for important causes is an inspiration. Her full message appears below: UNHCR believes even 1 person forced to flee is too many. And it’s true. Every individual refugee matters. Each has their own story. Each has suffered and survived more than I could ever bear. And yet, they rise up to live another day. We risk forgetting the individual when we speak in numbers, but the numbers tell an important story. In the past year 4.3 million people have become displaced. There are still 2.7 million refugees from Afghanistan. 12 million people are stateless. And for the fifth consecutive year the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide exceeded 42 million. Sadly, a person who becomes a refugee is likely to remain one for many years – often stuck in a camp or living precariously in the city of a developing nation. 70 per cent of refugees under UNHCR’s protection have been in this situation for more than five years. Their safety and well-being depend on the continued generosity of those countries who have kept their borders open to refugees, and on the vital efforts to deliver humanitarian assistance wherever and whenever it is necessary. Unfortunately, the world is producing displaced people faster than it is producing solutions to displacement. And the solutions are not exclusively humanitarian – they are also political. The international community should rededicate itself to preventing conflict, addressing it when it erupts, and solving it more quickly, for that is the only way to create durable solutions for the refugees whose strength inspires us on this World Refugee Day . [Photo: WENN.com]
Charlize Theron is one of the most beautiful women in the world – and she’s testing the boundaries of that beauty with a new look. The Oscar winner was photographed in Los Angeles yesterday (holding adorable son Jackson), donning a hat that could not fully cover up the obvious: she has gone all Willow Smith on us! Sources confirm that Theron, who is ruling the box office these days with Snow White and the Huntsman and Prometheus , shaved her head for a role in Mad Max: Fury Road . It starts shooting next month in Africa. Compare her new look with her old one now and vote on your favorite:
Angelina Jolie will almost certainly not direct Fifty Shades of Grey , but she will star in a new PSA for a project much more important to her. The 37-year-old actress always makes time for those near and dear to her heart. In this case, that means the refugees of the planet Earth. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees special envoy is helping raise awareness for World Refugee Day, coming up June 20. In a new PSA, Jolie points out that there are over 43 million refugees around the world. That’s 43 million human beings displaced from their homeland. Of those in need, UNHCR provides life-saving assistance to nearly 34 million. The organization’s goal is to share the poignant stories of refugees so that people across America will extend their generosity, concern and support. Jolie has served as a UN Goodwill Ambassador for more than a decade, and has visited refugees around the world. For that, our hat is off to her. [Photo: WENN.com]
Angelina Jolie will almost certainly not direct Fifty Shades of Grey , but she will star in a new PSA for a project much more important to her. The 37-year-old actress always makes time for those near and dear to her heart. In this case, that means the refugees of the planet Earth. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees special envoy is helping raise awareness for World Refugee Day, coming up June 20. In a new PSA, Jolie points out that there are over 43 million refugees around the world. That’s 43 million human beings displaced from their homeland. Of those in need, UNHCR provides life-saving assistance to nearly 34 million. The organization’s goal is to share the poignant stories of refugees so that people across America will extend their generosity, concern and support. Jolie has served as a UN Goodwill Ambassador for more than a decade, and has visited refugees around the world. For that, our hat is off to her. [Photo: WENN.com]
