Lee Fields Thinks “Old Town Road” Is a Bop, Bill Nye Has A Point
Photo by Sesse Lind.
Extra! Extra! Welcome to “Softball,” where we ask celebrities of every stripe to give us their take on what’s swirling in the modern hellscape of the 24-hour news cycle.
In this edition, Lee Fields—the legendary soul singer returning to the genre with a new album, It Rains Love—responds to some headlines and trending topics ripped from the front pages on Monday, May 13th. The musician, who has worked with everyone from Kool & the Gang to B.B. King, talks Bill Nye the Science Guy’s F-bombs, Felicity Huffman’s arrest, and, of course, Lil Nas X’s yee-haw anthem.
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“‘OLD TOWN ROAD’: SEE HOW MEMES AND CONTROVERSY TOOK LIL NAS X TO NO. 1”
(THE NEW YORK TIMES)
“I love that song. All kinds of music are coming together now. I think that’s a beautiful thing. It introduced a lot of people to country and western that were never introduced to country and western. I think the greater the spectrum of a person, the better. An awareness regarding different things is good. All of that is good.”
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“‘THE PLANET IS ON FIRE’: BILL NYE DRIVEN TO F-BOMB RANT BY CLIMATE CHANGE”
“Well, even though I’ve heard of him, I share his concerns with the planet being in very grave danger. But I think when people have at their disposal mass media, one has to choose their words very carefully because you want people to really take this seriously. And when one becomes a bit unrestrained, it sort of loses some of the importance. I’m congruent with what he’s saying and how at this particular time the planet is at a stage where it’s going to be irreversible—very soon, if not now. And everybody is just going on like ain’t nothing happening. But on that same note, I would like to say this: I think if we put great focus on the issue of this damaged planet, I think all of the issues regarding jobs and other things that we are really concerned about would be alleviated because there would be enough jobs created to clean the planet up.
I think instead of spending all of this capital exploring what’s out there in space… I mean, we have time for that. But right now, it’s like, these are our living quarters. I believe that the Earth and our planetary system, probably the sun is the heater, and all of the other planets are like a gyro system. This is the ship we on. Calmness is what we need among the people, and civility, because it’s like a ship at regular sea. If everybody on the ship’s all going nuts, the chances of that ship reaching its destination is very, very narrow. We’re on this spaceship called Earth and we need to remain calm and resolve the matters of the ship now. It has been damaged. So we must fix the ship. I can’t understand why we all just can’t get on board and do this thing.”
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“THE BEST GREEN SALAD IN THE WORLD”
“I’ve had some salads that were extremely, extremely tasteful. But I don’t know what the salads were called. I judge meals on a one-by-one basis. I love to eat. I enjoy food so much, so it’s hard for me to keep track of all the things that I really like because I like so many things. And salads as well. I’ve had salads from all kinds of different countries. The only thing I know: when it tastes good, it just taste good.”
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“UBER SHARES CONTINUE SLIDING IN FIRST FULL DAY OF TRADING”
“Well, I think the stocks are tumbling due to the way Uber is dealing with the drivers. I was in an Uber a few days ago, and the driver had big complaints. He didn’t think it’s fair the way that money is being handled. Everything is about money. I think Uber is a great idea, and I think it has the potential to grow tenfold in a short period of time. But whatever the issues are with Uber and their drivers, they need to be addressed. It’s like if you’ve got issues in the human body, the liver ain’t working right, the body’s going to shut down. All of the working parts have to be working seamlessly. If Uber’s going to be one body, all things have got to come together to work properly.”
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#KINGSLANDING
(TRENDING ON TWITTER)
“I know people are attached to Game of Thrones, but my energy is being a songwriter. I just try to keep track of everything. I’m familiar with it, but if I was to apply my energies, my thought energies, toward certain things and get attached, then I would be less creative. If I get attached to it, it’s like the Buddha sitting on the lotus plant, you know what I mean? I would lose where I am.”
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“FELICITY HUFFMAN PLEADS GUILTY IN COURT FOR COLLEGE ADMISSIONS SCAM INVOLVEMENT”
(VULTURE)
“That was really a bad thing regarding cheating in colleges. I’m saddened by the fact that anyone has to get arrested for trying to better their family. But by the same token, rules are what we live by. I think what is happening now as far as the masses are concerned, this could be something that will pull us back to what is right .We’ve forgotten what is right and what is wrong. Let the law be the law. When a society forgets what is right and what is wrong, that society is destined for doom. So although I’m saddened about the arrest, it must be done.”
