Singing security guard who went viral after Taylor Swift concert ‘fired’

Published

8 months ago

August 23, 2023

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A security guard who went viral after he was filmed singing along at a Taylor Swift concert has claimed he has since been fired by the firm he was working for.

Calvin Denker was seen joining in with the song Cruel Summer in footage from one of Swift‘s shows in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the end of June.

However, he has now told followers on TikTok that he was subsequently fired by BEST, the company he was working for.

While the company did not have a problem with his singing, bosses were apparently unhappy as he had passed notes out to crowd members asking them to send him any photos or footage showing him in front of the singer while she was on stage.

“Long story short, I was fired for it,” Mr Denker told his followers in a video posted on social media. “My former security company said that they had a rule against taking photos with any of their performers…

“Every photo of me from that night was from behind the barricade, like any other photo from a fan would be. I never took my own phone out. And above all else, I made sure that Taylor Swift was safe and all the fans had a good time.”

He finished his message by asking followers to refrain from “sending any hate to this company… I still got to work one of the coolest concerts ever… so that is fantastic. And I hold no grudges against my employer”.

After footage of Mr Denker went viral, he released a video explaining why he wanted the job and how he asked fans for photos.

It appears his former employer came across this and realised he had broken their rules.

‘I wasn’t allowed to turn my back’

He said: “So five years ago, I went to [Swift’s last tour] Reputation with my then girlfriend, now wife, who wasn’t the biggest fan of Taylor Swift at the time, so I kind of had to drag her along.

“But I got to talk to a lot of the security guards that night and learn about what positions they can work and how they get to go to a lot of these concerts and any of the sporting events in Minneapolis. And that sounded so cool to me.”

Mr Denker said Swift gigs were always the “goal” when he got the job, adding: “When she announced her Eras tour, I was so excited and I signed up as soon as I possibly could.”

He said he was “amazed” on the first of Swift’s shows in Minneapolis as the “fans were so loud and Taylor was phenomenal”.

However, Mr Denker explained: “I wasn’t allowed to turn my back to the crowd and really watch Taylor perform… After night one, I was realising how close Taylor Swift was getting to me so I really wanted to get a photo to document it.

“I handed out these little pieces of paper that said I wasn’t allowed to have my phone out but if Taylor Swift comes right behind me, please take a photo of me and text it to my number.

“I handed this out to a couple of people in the front row for night two, and they were really kind and really sweet about it.”

Sky News has contacted BEST for comment, as well as representatives for Swift.

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Ireland pledging emergency legislation to send asylum seekers back to UK in wake of Rwanda bill being passed

Published

13 hours ago

April 28, 2024

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Ireland pledging emergency legislation to send asylum seekers back to UK in wake of Rwanda bill being passed

Ireland is pledging emergency legislation enabling it to send asylum seekers back to the UK.

More than 80% of recent arrivals in the republic came via the land border with Northern Ireland, Irish justice minister Helen McEntee told a parliamentary committee last week.

Rishi Sunak told Sky News it showed the UK’s Rwanda scheme was already working as a deterrent after it finally became law last week.

Ireland’s deputy prime minister has said the threat of deportation to Rwanda is causing migrants to head for Ireland instead of the UK.

Micheal Martin said the policy was already affecting Ireland because people are “fearful” of staying in the UK.

The former taoiseach told The Daily Telegraph: “Maybe that’s the impact it was designed to have.”

Simon Harris, Ireland’s latest leader, has asked Ms McEntee to “bring proposals to cabinet to amend existing law regarding the designation of safe ‘third countries’ and allowing the return of inadmissible international protection applicants to the UK”, a spokesman said.

Ms McEntee said she will be meeting UK Home Secretary James Cleverly in London on Monday.

“There are many reasons why we have seen an increase in migration towards Ireland,” she told RTE.

“My focus as minister for justice is making sure that we have an effective immigration structure and system.

“That’s why I’m introducing fast processing, that’s why I’ll have emergency legislation at cabinet this week to make sure that we can effectively return people to the UK, and that’s why I’ll be meeting with the home secretary to raise these issues on Monday.”

People are now “worried” about coming to the UK, Rishi Sunak has said.

He told Sky News: “If people come to our country illegally, but know that they won’t be able to stay here, they are much less likely to come, and that’s why the Rwanda scheme is so important.”

Mr Sunak said the comments from Irish politicians show that “illegal migration is a global challenge”.

“[That] is why you’re seeing multiple countries talk about doing third country partnerships, looking at novel ways to solve this problem, and I believe [they] will follow where the UK has led,” he said.

Shadow minister Wes Streeting said it was unlikely a Labour government would bring people back from Rwanda if some are sent there.

“Once people are settled in Rwanda, they’re settled in Rwanda,” he told Sky News, adding it was doubtful that Labour would “unpick that situation”.

Regarding illegal migration in general, he said it required “putting the money that’s gone to Rwanda into the National Crime Agency so we can have proper cross-border policing to tackle the criminal gangs, speeding up the processing of decision-making, making sure we’ve got serious returns agreements with other countries”.

He added: “Those are solutions that can work.”

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Pope makes first visit out of Rome for seven months after health scares

Published

15 hours ago

April 28, 2024

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Pope makes first visit out of Rome for seven months after health scares

Pope Francis has made his first trip out of Rome for seven months with a visit to Venice where he asked worshippers to “pray for me”.

It was a rare acknowledgement of the strains of the job as he told thousands of the faithful gathered in St Mark’s Square: “This work is not easy”.

During a five-hour visit on Sunday, the pontiff visited an art exhibition and prison as well as conducting mass.

The 87-year-old unexpectedly withdrew from a Good Friday procession in March “to preserve his health”.

He had been battling respiratory problems all winter that made it difficult for him to speak at length.

In December, he was due to go to the United Arab Emirates, but pulled out after coming down with flu.

A painful knee ailment makes it hard for him to walk and on Sunday he regularly used a wheelchair, with Vatican News Television cutting away whenever he was helped into a chair to give a speech, or on to his white golf cart.

The Pope acknowledged Venice’s “enchanting beauty” in his homily at a mass before about 10,000 people in the shadow of St Mark’s Basilica, one of the most celebrated churches in Italy.

But he said the city also faced an array of challenges, including climate change, the fragility of its cultural heritage, and overtourism.

“Moreover, all these realities risk generating… frayed social relations, individualism, and loneliness,” he said.

Venice introduced a €5 charge last week for day-trippers during peak travel periods in an effort to thin the crowds.

He started the day by flying by helicopter into a women’s prison where the Vatican has set up an exhibition that is part of the Venice Biennale, a prestigious international art show that has never been visited by a pope before.

The pope has repeatedly called for society to rally around the poor and neglected, including prison populations.

“Prison is a harsh reality, and problems such as overcrowding, the lack of facilities and resources, and episodes of violence, give rise to a great deal of suffering. But it can also become a place of moral and material rebirth,” he told inmates and guards on Sunday.

He also addressed a group of young Venetians, urging them not to spend their life glued to their smartphones, but to help others.

“If we always focus on our self, our needs, and what we lack, we will always find ourselves back at the starting point, crying over ourselves with a long face,” he said.

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Russian journalists jailed over alleged work for Alexei Navalny group

Published

16 hours ago

April 28, 2024

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Russian journalists jailed over alleged work for Alexei Navalny group

Two Russian journalists could face at least two years in prison after they were arrested on “extremism” charges, accused of working for a group founded by the late Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny.

Konstantin Gabov and Sergey Karelin are accused of preparing materials for a YouTube channel run by Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting Corruption, which has been outlawed by Russian authorities.

Russian courts have ordered them to remain in custody pending an investigation and trial.

They will be detained for at least two months before any trial begins.

They face a minimum of two years’ jail time and a maximum of six years for alleged “participation in an extremist organisation”, according to Russian courts.

Both journalists deny the charges.

Follow live: Tajikistan issues temporary travel ban to Russia

The journalists are the latest to be arrested amid a Russian government crackdown on dissent and independent media that intensified after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian government passed laws criminalising what it deems false information or discreditory statements about the military, effectively outlawing any criticism of the war in Ukraine.

Mr Gabov, who was detained in Moscow, is a freelance producer who has worked for multiple outlets, including Reuters, the court press service said.

Mr Karelin, who has dual citizenship with Israel and has previously worked for The Associated Press, was detained on Friday night in Russia’s northern Murmansk region.

“The Associated Press is very concerned by the detention of Russian video journalist Sergey Karelin,” the AP said in a statement. “We are seeking additional information.”

Their arrests come after Forbes journalist Sergei Mingazov was detained on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military on Friday, according to his lawyer.

A number of journalists have been jailed in relation to their coverage of Mr Navalny, who died in an Arctic penal colony in February.