Me And Mrs Jones Singer Billy Paul Has Died

Billy Paul, the soul singer best known for the ballad Me And Mrs Jones, has died aged 80.

Paul's co-manager, Beverly Gay, said he died at his home in Blackwood, New Jersey, on Sunday.

Paul had been recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, Ms Gay said.

Paul was one of many artists who had success with the Philadelphia-based writing and production team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.

Me and Mrs Jones, a seductively arranged confession to an extramarital affair, was released in 1972 and won a Grammy award - and enjoyed more recent success thanks to the movie Bridget Jones' Diary.

The song was by far his biggest hit, although he did have some success with Let's Clean Up The Ghetto, Thanks For Saving My Life and other releases.

Ohio Slayings 'A Sophisticated Operation'

Authorities have described the killing of eight family members in southern Ohio as "a sophisticated operation" that has shocked the rural community.

Attorney General Mike DeWine said seven adults and one teenage boy were found with gunshot wounds to their heads, adding that the killings appeared to be the result of planned executions.

Investigators also revealed that several marijuana-growing operations were found at the crime scenes, although it remains unclear whether what role, if any, the operations had in the killings.

Authorities earlier released audio from 911 calls made after the slayings. In one call, a frantic female voice is heard describing the horrific scene inside one of four homes where the killings took place.

"There is blood all over the house," the woman tells an emergency dispatcher. "My brother-in-law is in the bedroom. Looks like someone has beat the hell out of him."

In a separate 911 call, a relative of one victim says: "I just found my cousin with a gunshot wound."

"Is he alive?" the dispatcher asks.

"No, no," the man responds.

Authorities said the first 911 call came in shortly before 8am on Friday, with the second call coming several hours later from a different location.

Eight family members were killed in what police believe were targeted killings at four separate homes in the Ohio community of Piketon, in Pike County.

The victims have been identified as Christopher Rhoden Sr, 40, Christopher Rhoden Jr, 16, Dana Rhoden, 37, Kenneth Rhoden, 44, Gary Rhoden, 38, Clarence Rhoden, 20, Hannah Gilley, 20, and 19-year-old Hanna Rhoden.

An infant and two other small children who were in the homes at the time of the shootings were not hurt.

The exact timing of the shootings remains unclear, and the gunman or gunmen remain on the loose.

Local law enforcement urged the victims' family members to take precautions while investigators continue to hunt for suspects.

Kanye West Interrupted a Wedding Speech in a Throwback to That Taylor Swift Moment

Kanye West took the opportunity of a friend’s wedding this weekend to poke fun at himself, revisiting the infamous occasion when he interrupted Taylor Swift at an awards ceremony with the words: “I’mma let you finish, but…”

In the middle of a speech at the wedding of West’s friend Dave Grutman in Miami, the rapper grabbed the mic, the New York Daily News reports. West then made a clear reference to the 2009 moment, when he cut in on Swift’s acceptance speech for best female video at the MTV Video Music Awards because he felt the award should have gone to Beyoncé.

“I’mma let you finish, but Dave and Isabela had one of the best weddings of all time!” West says in a video from the wedding on Saturday.

The 2009 interruption was the start of a sometimes acrimonious relationship between West and Swift. Most recently, a recent track released by West, “Famous,” raised controversy with the line: “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex/ I made that bitch famous.”

Prince 'Worked 154 Hours Straight' Before Death

Prince reportedly worked for 154 hours straight without sleep in the days before he was found dead inside his Paisley Park estate.

Speaking after a private family service at the estate, the artist's brother-in-law Maurice Phillips reportedly claimed the singer worked for six days before his death.

Mr Phillips said: "He worked 154 hours straight. I was with him just last weekend. He was a good brother-in-law."

Prince was found collapsed in a lift at Paisley Park by staff members on Thursday.

He was last seen alive 12 hours earlier when he was dropped off at the estate. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death after authorities said they had "no reason to believe" Prince committed suicide.

Authorities added that there were "no obvious signs of trauma" on his body.

Employees at the Electric Fetus record shop in Minneapolis said the musician appeared to be "pale" and "weak" when he visited five days before his death.

Max Timander, who works at Electric Fetus, told the Press Association: "Everyone I've talked to on that Saturday said he looked kind of pale and he was not totally looking in the best shape as he normally is.

"It sounded like he was looking kind of weak. I know he had just got over the flu supposedly.

"He was a huge supporter of the store. He bought six CDs, including a Joni Mitchell CD, a new Santana CD and a used Stevie Wonder CD.

"We sold out of everything we had by prince two hours after his death was announced."
The mayor of Chanhassan, the city which is home to Paisley Park, said a private funeral service will be held for Prince in early May.

Fines For Cold Callers Using Withheld Numbers

Cold callers hiding behind withheld numbers could be fined more than £2m in a new law to be announced today.

From 16 May, all direct marketing companies registered in the UK will need to display their phone numbers when making unsolicited calls, even if they have call centres overseas.

Companies can risk fines of up to £2 million from Ofcom and a further £500,000 from the ICO if they continue to bombard consumers with unwanted calls.

The move will make it easier for people to decide whether to answer their phone and to make formal complaints if they are harassed. It will also help the regulator - the Information Commissioner's Office - to investigate those who break the rules by continuing to make nuisance calls.

Ofcom estimates that every year UK consumers receive approximately 4.8 billion nuisance calls, 1.7 billion live sales calls, 1.5 billion silent calls, 940 million recorded sales messages and 200 million abandoned calls.

One in five direct marketing calls is from an anonymous or withheld number.

Steve Eckersley, the ICO's head of enforcement, said: "Any change that makes it easier for us to track down companies making nuisance calls is a change that will reduce the annoyance these calls cause.

"We do investigate unscrupulous companies who hide their identities, and we can track them down, but it certainly makes our job more difficult.

"When people are able to identify the number behind the call they have received they are more likely to complain and that means we are able to take action."

Baroness Neville-Rolfe, the minister responsible for data protection, said the Government was acting because of the "significant harm" that such calls could cause to elderly and vulnerable people.

She said: "The Government is committed to tackling this problem, which is why we are making it easier for consumers to report companies by forcing them to display their phone numbers.

"We are sending a clear message to rogue direct marketing companies. Nuisance calls are unacceptable and we will not hesitate to take action against the companies behind them."

Congo Star Papa Wemba Dies After Stage Collapse

African music pioneer Papa Wemba has died after collapsing on stage.

The 66-year-old was seen falling mid-song before dancers rushed to his aid.

The Congolese rumba star had been performing at the FEMUA 2016 festival in Ivory Coast when he collapsed in the early hours of Saturday morning.

He died before reaching hospital and the cause of death has not been established.

Wemba, real name Jules Shungu Wembadio Pene Kikumba, inspired a generation of African musicians with his fusion of Latin and African dance styles.

Wemba inspired a generation of African musicians

Bands including Zaiko Langa Langa and later Viva La Musica reached audiences across the world.

"Papa Wemba is a golden voice, an artist who has established himself through his work. The proof is that he died on stage," said the Congolese minister of culture and arts, Baudouin Banza Mukalay Nsungu.

But a career spanning five decades was not without controversy.

In 2003, Wemba spent more than three months in jail after French and Belgian authorities accused him of smuggling people into Europe by claiming they were band or crew members.

He maintained his innocence and eventually received a suspended sentence.

Beyonce Drops Cheating Hints In Surprise Album

Beyonce has dropped hints of infidelity in her marriage to Jay Z in a surprise new album release.

Lemonade, the multimillion-selling artist's new 'visual album', premiered on the US cable subscription channel HBO on Saturday night.

In between the album's 11 songs are several spoken elements, some of which contain words that many have interpreted as being about her relationship with her rapper husband.

In one song, Intuition, she says: "In the tradition of men in my blood, you come home at 3am and lie to me. What are you hiding?"

During stark visual imagery in another song, Formation, she is seen in water as she asks the question: "Are you cheating on me?"

It follows extensive speculation around the state of the power couple's marriage following reports Jay Z was accosted in a lift by Beyonce's sister Solange in 2014.

The three were forced to release a statement shortly after saying "families have problems and we're no different" and that "our family has worked through it," but the speculation has refused to go away.

According to Reuters, Beyonce makes clear in the last tracks of the new album that she has decided to reconcile with Jay Z and continue in her marriage to him.

Many music industry observers says the release shows Beyonce being typically innovative because of its visual quality and the way it was premiered.

Lemonade was shown for free on HBO, after being mysteriously trailed, following the pay-TV premiere of Jurassic World and before a major boxing match.

It is due to be shown again on Sunday night before the first episode of the latest series of Game of Thrones, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

As soon as Lemonade had aired, it was made available on the music streaming subscription service Tidal, which is co-owned by Beyonce, Jay Z and many other top musicians.

The album includes interviews with the mothers of two black men, Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin, who were shot by police.

There are also references to the Black Lives Matter campaign and a quote from human rights activist Malcolm X praising black women, which together with appearances by other famous black women, have led commentators to describe the album as a homage to the resilience of females from her ethnic background.