Kanye West, Pharrell and Drake lead tributes after ‘genius’ designer Virgil Abloh dies aged 41
Kanye West, Rihanna and Drake are among many celebrities paying tribute to US fashion designer Virgil Abloh, who has died at the age of 41 after a private battle with cancer.
The influential Louis Vuitton menswear designer and founder of fashion label Off-White was diagnosed with cardiac angiosarcoma – a rare, aggressive form of cancer – in 2019, the design house’s parent company LVMH revealed on Sunday.
Abloh first came to prominence as rapper West’s creative director but later made history as the first African-American to lead French luxury brand Louis Vuitton.
West paid tribute to him with a message on the website of his creative agency Donda, which showed a grey background with the words: “IN LOVING MEMORY OF VIRGIL ABLOH THE CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF DONDA.”
West’s Sunday Service choir performed a cover of Adele’s Easy On Me which was livestreamed in his honour on Sunday, according to NME.
Their cover was a reworked version of the song’s original lyrics, with the choir singing “Go easy on me, father, I am still your child, and I need the chance to feel your love around” in the chorus.
Abloh was often hailed as one of the most influential designers in the fashion industry but was also a DJ, artist and had degrees in civil engineering and architecture.
He was a DJ at house parties through college, later playing internationally including in Ibiza and Las Vegas.
A first-generation Ghanaian American whose seamstress mother taught him to sew, Abloh had no formal fashion training but gained success with groundbreaking fusions of streetwear and haute couture.
Drake shared a series of photos of himself with Abloh and said: “My plan is to touch the sky 1000 more times for you… love you eternally brother. Thank you for everything.”
“My heart is broken,” musician and producer Pharrell said.
“Virgil you were a kind, generous, thoughtful creative genius. Your work as a human and your work as a spiritual being will live forever. Sending love and light to your wife, children, family and day ones. You’re with the Master now, shine.”
Supermodel Gigi Hadid said he “will be deeply missed, cherished, and celebrated by me and all the people and industries that have been lucky enough to work around & know the true supernova behind this man”.
She added: “I picture him now like our Mickey Mouse .. forever with us, forever adored, forever magical, forever guiding us.”
“RIP Virgil, you did so much for all of us and showed me so much love early on,” British rapper AJ Tracey tweeted. “Thank you for everything, so sad.”
Justin Timberlake called him a “force” that was “taken too soon”, adding: “You gave the world so much, in so little time. And created with intensity… knowing better than the rest of us that life is short, but anything is possible.
“I’m honored to have known you. Thank you for sharing your gift with us.”
Virgil Abloh was the first African-American to become Louis Vuitton’s artistic director
Rihanna shared a photo of the designer from her Instagram Stories.
American musician Questlove wrote on Instagram: “The teachable lesson here is disrupt. Provoke. Be controversial. Push buttons. Be a conversation piece…. live as a true artist.”
A statement on Abloh’s Instagram page said that throughout his illness his “work ethic, infinite curiosity and optimism” never wavered.
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It said he was driven by “his dedication to his craft… his mission to open doors for others and create pathways for greater equality in art and design”.
Abloh’s final Louis Vuitton collection, titled Virgil Was Here, will be presented in Miami on Tuesday.
Samantha Davis, the wife of Star Wars and Harry Potter actor Warwick Davis, has died aged 53.
Samantha co-founded the dwarfism charity Little People UK and featured in the final Harry Potter film, alongside Warwick.
Warwick announced the news in a statement shared to the BBC, revealing she had died on 24 March.
“Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family. I miss her hugs.
“She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life she had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes.”
He added that she was his “most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career”.
Their two children together, Annabelle and Harrison, also paid tribute to their mother, saying: “Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives.
“Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers.”
The couple met on the set of George Lucas’s film Willow and married three years later in 1991.
(L-R) Harrison Davis, Warwick Davis, Samantha Davis and Annabelle Davis at the screening of Disney+ series Willow in 2022. Pic: PA
Samantha also played a goblin in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 while her husband played both Professor Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in all eight films in the franchise.
Annabelle, 27, has followed in her parents’ acting footsteps, starring in CBBC’s The Dumping Ground and Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks.
Warwick starred as the titular hero Willow Ufgood in the 1988 original film Willow and reprised the role for the 2022 sequel.
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He also played several characters in the Star Wars film series.
Samantha and Warwick co-founded Little People UK in 2012 to help individuals with dwarfism and their families.
Entertainment
New ‘Drake song’ causes confusion as listeners question whether AI or the rapper is behind it
A new ‘leaked’ song thought to be by Drake is causing confusion among fans, with some questioning whether it is him or an AI clone.
The new song appeared on the internet over the weekend, supposedy after being leaked.
In it, the Canadian rapper seems to hit out at other musicians including Kendrick Lamar and Metro Boomin.
However, fans aren’t sure if it is actually him.
“This is clearly AI,” posted one user on X.
The song hasn’t been officially released and some listeners say they can hear small glitches in his vocal track that suggest it could have been generated by artificial intelligence.
Drake’s AI clone has history.
In 2023, an AI-generated track that recreated the voices of Drake and artist The Weeknd went viral on TikTok.
The song, called Heart On My Sleeve, was created by an artist known as Ghostwriter.
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It racked up more than 230,000 plays on YouTube, with more than 625,000 plays on Spotify, according to industry news website Music Business Worldwide, before it was removed from streaming platforms.
At the time, Universal Music Group, which publishes both artists through Republic Records, said songs like Heart On My Sleeve “represent both a breach of our agreements and a violation of copyright law”.
Drake isn’t helping the current confusion.
He hasn’t claimed the track but has been posting about it on Instagram.
He even posted an AI deepfake of rap producer Metro Boomin in a clip from the 2002 film Drumline, which appears to be a reference to one of the lines in the song, “Metro, shut your h*e ass up and make some drums”.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Sky News approached Universal Music for confirmation of the song’s authenticity but is yet to receive a response.
Metallica frontman James Hetfield has shared details of his latest tattoo – featuring the ashes of the late Motorhead rocker Lemmy.
Hetfield posted a picture on Metallica‘s Instagram account, showing a new Aces Of Spades inking on his right middle finger in reference to Motorhead’s biggest hit.
The singer and guitarist told the band’s 11 million followers the tattoo is “a salute to my friend and inspiration Mr Lemmy Kilmister”, adding: “Without him, there would be NO Metallica.”
He went on to say: “Black ink mixed with a pinch of his cremation ashes that were so graciously given to me. So now, he is still able to fly the bird at the world.”
Pic: Metallica.com
Lemmy, whose real name was Ian Kilmister, was the founder and frontman of British rock band Motorhead. Formed in the 1970s, the band went on to release more than 20 albums, with hits including Overkill, Iron Fist and Ace Of Spades.
He died in December 2015, just days after being diagnosed with cancer.
Hetfield formed American rock act Metallica with drummer Lars Ulrich in the early 1980s, and the band released their 11th album, 72 Seasons, last year.
They are best known for hits including Enter Sandman, Master Of Puppets, Nothing Else Matters and Until It Sleeps.
‘The most badass tribute’
Hetfield has previously spoken about Motorhead’s influence on Metallica, and in 2022 called for Motorhead to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
“It’s just a nod, a tip of the cap. What does it really mean to be in there? I don’t know. But to some of these bands it might mean the world,” he said in a radio interview.
“With the passing of Lemmy, it’s really, really important for me to see Motorhead acknowledged in that – because there’s no more rock’n’roll person on this planet than Lemmy.”
Many fans commented on his tattoo photo, with one calling the inking “the most badass tribute possible”.
Another said: “RIP Lemmy. This is a wonderful gift!”
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