ridiculous

Universal Music Group Chief Executive Lucian Grainge called Drake’s lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar’s hit diss track “Not Like Us” a “farcical” effort that’s “groundless and indeed ridiculous.”

In a declaration letter filed Thursday night in the Southern District of New York, Grainge said that Drake’s accusation that UMG (the parent label firm to both Drake and Lamar) defamed him and damaged his career “makes no sense due to the fact that the company that I run, Universal Music Group N.V., has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Drake, including longstanding and critical financial support for his recording career, the purchase and ownership of the bulk of his recording catalog, and the purchase of his music publishing rights.”

Drake signed a new deal with UMG label Republic in 2022 for a reported $400 million, and he’s one of the bestselling artists of the last 20 years. Yet Interscope artist Lamar’s scathing “Not Like Us” famously capped a venomous battle between the two artists, which resulted in a pair of Grammy wins for Lamar, who performed the song at the Super Bowl halftime show.

Drake’s attorneys, in discovery, have recently tried to obtain UMG’s contract with Lamar and information about his personal life (Drake accused Lamar of beating his partner in the song “Family Matters”). Drake has accused UMG of both defamation and running a clandestine campaign to boost “Not Like Us” at the expense of his own reputation and career.

A notably exasperated Grainge wrote to the court that “Given my role, I am accustomed (and unfortunately largely resigned) to personal attacks, and I further recognize that a frequent strategy of UMG’s litigation opponents is to attempt to waste my and UMG’s time and resources with discovery of the sort that Drake is seeking here — either in an attempt to gain media attention or in an effort to force some kind of commercial renegotiation or financial concessions.”

Grainge also denied having any personal involvement in the rollout or marketing for “Not Like Us.”

“Whilst, as part of my role, I certainly have financial oversight of and responsibility for UMG’s global businesses,” he said, “the proposition that I was involved in, much less responsible for, reviewing and approving the content of ‘Not Like Us,’ its cover art or music video, or for determining or directing the promotion of those materials, is groundless and indeed ridiculous.”

In a separate letter to the court, UMG said that “The premise of Drake’s motion — that he could not have lost a rap battle unless it was the product of some imagined secret conspiracy going to the top of UMG’s corporate structure — is absurd.”

US President Donald Trump has criticised Elon Musk’s plan to launch and fund a new US political party, calling it “ridiculous”. The America Party has yet to announce a platform and Musk is not eligible to run for the presidency.

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash says it is “ridiculous” that the chair umpire could not call the ball out when the automated line call system failed due to “human error” during Anastasia Pavlychenkova’s win over Sonay Kartal.

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The US president calls the tycoon ‘TRAIN WRECK’ who has gone ‘off the rails’ after Musk vows challenge to the US political system.

United States President Donald Trump has slammed former ally Elon Musk’s launching of a new political party as “ridiculous”, deepening the Republican’s feud with the man who was once his biggest backer.

The world’s richest man was almost inseparable from Trump as he headed the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), but they fell out hard over the president’s “big beautiful” tax and spending mega-bill.

“I think it’s ridiculous to start a third party,” Trump told reporters on Sunday before he boarded Air Force One on his way back to Washington, DC from his New Jersey golf club.

“It’s always been a two-party system, and I think starting a third party just adds to confusion. Third parties have never worked. So he can have fun with it, but I think it’s ridiculous,” he said.

South African-born Musk announced on Saturday that he would found the America Party to challenge what he called the “one-party system” in the US.

SpaceX and Tesla tycoon Musk says the president’s massive domestic spending plan would explode the US debt, and has promised to do everything in his power to defeat lawmakers who voted for it.

The former DOGE head, who led a huge drive to slash federal spending and cut jobs, equated Trump’s Republicans with rival Democrats when it came to domestic spending.

“When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy,” Musk posted on X, the social media platform he owns.

Musk gave few details of his plan, and it was not clear whether he had registered the party with US electoral authorities, but it could cause Republicans headaches in the 2026 midterm elections and beyond.

‘TRAIN WRECK’

In a sign of how sensitive the issue could be for Trump, he took to his Truth Social network while still on Air Force One to double down on his assault on Musk.

“I am saddened to watch Elon Musk go completely ‘off the rails,’ essentially becoming a TRAIN WRECK over the past five weeks,” Trump posted.

“The one thing Third Parties are good for is the creation of Complete and Total DISRUPTION & CHAOS, and we have enough of that with the Radical Left Democrats.”

In a lengthy diatribe, Trump repeated his earlier assertion that Musk’s ownership of electric vehicle company Tesla had made him turn on the president due to the spending bill cutting subsidies for such automobiles.

Musk has insisted that his opposition is primarily due to the bill increasing the US fiscal deficit and sovereign debt.

Earlier on Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also threw shade at Musk’s attempts to enter the political fray, telling him to stick to running his companies.

When asked by CNN if Musk’s plan bothered the Trump administration, Bessent offered thinly veiled criticism.

“I believe that the boards of directors at his various companies wanted him to come back and run those companies, which he is better at than anyone,” Bessent said.

“So I imagine that those boards of directors did not like this announcement yesterday and will be encouraging him to focus on his business activities, not his political activities.”

Musk left DOGE in May to focus full-time on his corporate responsibilities, with Tesla’s sales and image especially suffering from his brief venture into Trump’s inner circle.

Trump gave him a grand sendoff in the Oval Office in a bizarre ceremony during which Musk appeared with a black eye and received a golden key to the White House from the president.

But just days later, the two were exchanging bitter insults on social media after Musk criticised Trump’s flagship spending bill.

Trump would not comment on Sunday when asked if he would be asking Musk to return the golden key.

The outrageous actions of a content creator seeking the perfect social media image in Thailand have led a Brit tourist to brand her a ‘b****’

A British holidaymaker has hit out at influencer culture for going too far as she urged content creators to let children play.

The comments from @carlyleighgyally on TikTok came as she sunned herself by a beautiful pool in a resort in Thailand.

Carly turned to her social media to express her outrage after a young child who was playing with her dad in the water was asked to move so an influencer could get a perfect picture. She explained: “This family’s here and there’s an adults only pool literally 50 metres round the corner where there are no children.

“This little girl who’s playing with her dad in the pool, she’s on his shoulders, she’s the best swimmer I’ve ever had in my life and she’s like five. I think it’s really wholesome and sweet.”

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Warning: Explicit language in video.

But when a woman arrived and set herself up with a tripod, she wasn’t happy that the stunning backdrop to the beautiful pool – a lush green landscape – was being “spoiled” by the family playing in it. “This f***** influencer pointed to the edge of the pool and was like: ‘Can you go over there?’,” raged the TikTokker.

“‘F*** off’. If you want a private pool to film content… go rent a villa.”

Much to the dismay of the holidaymaker, the “wholesome” family had moved when told and were now not fully enjoying themselves. “Now they’re really uncomfortable at the side of the pool, they’re not doing what they were doing anymore,” she said. “I’m so annoyed at this b****.”

This unnamed influencer isn’t the only one to annoy the public – earlier this year another content creator was slammed for asking a 12-year-old boy enjoying the sea view from Bondi’s famous Icebergs Pool in Australia to move so she could pose. TikTok users were quick to agree with Carly this time around, with one telling her: “My partner makes it his mission to cannonball all influencer shots”.

Another jaw dropping influencer story was shared in response to her video from a TikTokker called Jen, who said: “My fiance proposed to me on holiday and had paid for the hotel to set up an area with flowers, candles and MARRY ME lights. The area was blocked off with a sign saying ‘private event’.

“After he proposed, we sat drinking champagne and these two influencers came over and started taking photos next to us! One of them even moved the private event sign out of the way! So I told them where to go.”

“Influencers in the wild are the worst people ever,” added Carly of her original video. “You can’t tell children to move, it is the worst humanly thing I’ve ever seen anyone do.”

This Morning viewers were left unimpressed on Monday’s show as they slammed a segment involving two dogs dressed in Bridgerton outfits.

Viewers of This Morning were left outraged by a segment featured in Monday’s programme.

Upon resuming their presenting roles after a week off, Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley greeted two pooches on the ITV show, suitably dolled up as characters from the popular Netflix series Bridgerton.

The pair of pups had bagged accolades at the latest Greenwich dog show for their uncanny resemblance to the regency styles showcased in Best Bridgerton Lookalike category.

Lola, the winner, donned an elegant blue gown with a perched crown atop her wig—a sight to behold, with her owner making sure it stayed put.

Charlotte, the French Bulldog who nabbed second place, sported a blush pink frock coupled with a golden blonde wig, report Wales Online.

As the segment unfolded, Cat couldn’t contain her laughter over the costumes and extended her kudos, although the lighthearted atmosphere didn’t translate to the audience at home.

People on X, previously known as Twitter, promptly voiced their dismay, labelling the canine costuming as ‘cruel’.

One person criticized: “Poor dressed up dog must be so hot with all that crap on! If you want something to dress up, buy a doll! So cruel! Makes me so angry.”

Echoing the sentiment, another shared: “Sorry that dog is not happy! #thismorning.”

Additionally, a viewer suggested: “I’d suggest, if you have to hold the costume on the dog at all times, it’s probably time to stop.”

Some animal lovers were left fuming after the segment, with one viewer tweeting: “ffs this is just ridiculous it’s animal cruelty that’s what it is…”

Another critic blasted: “This show is so twisted. Preaching one minute, the next showing this type of content. Perhaps get Dr Scott on at the same time!”

One concerned fan posted: “I hate seeing stuff like this encouraged on TV #ThisMorning” While another disgruntled viewer commented: “This is just ridiculous….. Just let you dogs be f****ng dogs and not an attempt to make you relevant.”

However, not everyone was opposed to the segment, with one amused viewer simply tweeting: “2 Victorian Dogs. Ah Ha.”

During the chat with the owner, it emerged that Lola had attempted to remove her crown before going on air, with Cat observing: “She seems very happy! Both of them seem so happy.”

The owner agreed: “Yes, I think she’s alright now, she’s settled.”

Ben then raised the issue of animal welfare, asking: “There will be people asking, ‘Are the dogs happy?’ because dressing dogs up can sometimes get some criticism. Are they happy wearing the outfits? She seems pretty unbothered.”

Charlotte’s owner explained that her pet was accustomed to wearing clothes, saying: “She’s pretty used to wearing clothes in general; when we go out, I tend to dress her up and try to coordinate our outfits.”

This Morning continues weekdays on ITV from 12:30pm

From low-slung jeans to loud singing and even 10kg boobs, passengers have been kicked off flights for the most bizarre reasons. Here are some of the wildest stories from the skies

Flying can test everyone’s patience, but sometimes the reasons people get booted off flights just don’t make sense. One particular flying tale probably takes the cake.

A model claimed that her 10kg breasts got her kicked off a flight. Mary Magdalene, 25, says she was removed from a plane because of her “explicit” look wearing leggings and a sports bra, but the airline claimed it was because she hadn’t listened to instructions while wearing headphones.

The model, who’s had over £120,000 worth of cosmetic surgery, including breast enhancements, hit back on Instagram, saying: “I was kicked off the flight for how I look… Obviously, [my outfit] is why she kicked me off because I look too explicit. But that’s not legal, so she had to say it’s because I was sleeping and wouldn’t hear her.”

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Mary added that smaller-chested women wouldn’t face the same treatment, calling the incident “discrimination,” adding: “It’s not right to pick and choose who the rules apply to based on appearance/body type.”

From giant boobs to baggy jeans, and mid-air singalongs to notes in Arabic, here are some of the most ridiculous stories of travellers getting kicked off planes.

Billie Joe Armstrong kicked off for wearing low trousers

Not even rock stars are safe. Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong was banned from a Southwest Airlines flight in 2011 for wearing his trousers too low. When told to pull them up, the singer reportedly quipped, “Don’t you have better things to do?” He was promptly escorted off and later tweeted, “Just got kicked off a Southwest flight because my pants sagged too low!” The airline later apologised and offered a new booking.

Alec Baldwin ejected for playing Words With Friends

Actor Alec Baldwin was famously removed from an American Airlines flight after refusing to stop playing the smartphone game Words With Friends during take-off preparations.

Baldwin vented on Twitter: “Flight attendant on American [Airlines] reamed me out 4 playing WORDS W FRIENDS while we sat at the gate, not moving.” His spokesperson added: “He loves WWF so much that he was willing to leave the plane for it.”

Maybe he should have switched his phone off, but regardless, it’s ridiculous all around.

Passenger steals megaphone mid-flight

During a WestJet flight from Toronto to Saskatoon, police were called after a cabin megaphone mysteriously disappeared. It turned out passenger Jake Michael Piasentini, 29, had stolen it, reportedly influenced by alcohol. The theft delayed the flight, and Jake faced a CAD $5,000 fine.

‘Queen of the aeroplane’ comment gets mum removed

American traveller Nicki Gazley was removed from a Frontier Airlines flight after sarcastically calling a flight attendant “the Queen of this aeroplane” during a disagreement over her baby carrier.

Despite complying with requests to remove her son from an Ergo Baby Carrier, the flight attendant took offence and booted Nicki. Frontier Airlines stated that the FAA does not approve Ergo carriers for takeoff or landing.

Tweet about ‘drunk pilot’ leads to ban

Lisa Carter Knight was banned from a JetBlue flight after tweeting photos and comments suggesting the pilot was undergoing a sobriety test following a passenger’s ill-judged joke about a “drunk pilot.”

Though the pilot passed the test, Lisa says she was still not allowed to board. JetBlue denied it was due to the tweets, explaining that passengers exhibiting disruptive behaviour can be removed.

Whitney Houston fan forces emergency landing

A passenger belting out Whitney Houston’s I Will Always Love You aboard a Los Angeles to New York flight was so disruptive that the pilot diverted to Kansas City to remove her mid-performance.

Man kicked off flight for bad body odour

A 27-year-old French passenger flying from Paris to Dallas was removed after the crew complained about his smell. Despite dousing himself in Dior perfume, the crew said his stench was too much.

Police were called, and the passenger filed a complaint. American Airlines denied the odour claims, citing an issue with his US visa.

‘Merry Christmas?’ Not for this passenger

A man travelling from Dallas to New York on American Airlines went into a rage after being wished “Merry Christmas” at the gate and again on board.

After reprimanding staff for the greeting, he reportedly caused a scene and was removed, much to the relief and cheers of fellow passengers.

Confused economist mistaken for a threat

Most recently, Guido Menzio boarded a flight from Philadelphia to Syracuse only to be asked to leave after a passenger reported him for writing notes in what she thought was Arabic and found “threatening.”

Police kept the flight grounded for two hours before realising Guido was an Ivy League economist jotting down math equations for a talk.

Teen removed after coughing fit delays flight

On a Continental Airlines flight from Newark to Honolulu, a 16-year-old on a school trip was asked to leave after waking up with a coughing fit before takeoff. Although given water and cleared by the onboard doctor, the pilot refused to allow her and her teacher to fly. They had to find overnight accommodation and buy clothes and toiletries.

Flying can be a rollercoaster ride, and it’s always best to follow instructions and safety guidelines too. But as these wild tales show, sometimes even that’s not enough to keep you in your seat. Whether it’s baggy jeans or belting out a power ballad, you never quite know what might get you grounded.

So, next time you board a flight, maybe leave the megaphone at home and smile extra brightly at the flight attendants.