Mick Ralphs, Founding Member of Bad Company & Mott the Hoople, Dies at 81
Mick Ralphs, the co-founding guitarist of rock bands Bad Company and Mott the Hoople, has died at age 81.
In a post to Bad Company's official social media account on Monday (June 23), the guitarist's bandmates announced his death to the public. Ralphs is survived by his partner, Susie Chavasse, and his three step-children. A cause of death was not shared at press time.
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In a statement shared alongside the news, Ralphs' bandmate and Bad Company lead vocalist Paul Rodgers celebrated the life of his friend. 'Our Mick has passed, my heart just hit the ground. He has left us with exceptional songs and memories,' Rodgers wrote. 'He was my friend, my songwriting partner, an amazing and versatile guitarist who had the greatest sense of humour. Our last conversation a few days ago we shared a laugh but it won't be our last. There are many memories of Mick that will create laughter.'
Drummer Simon Kirke shared his own tribute to the band's post, calling Ralph 'a dear friend, a wonderful songwriter, and an exceptional guitarist,' and simply adding, 'We will miss him deeply.'
The news of Ralphs' death comes just two months after Bad Company was announced as one of the inductees for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Class of 2025, which the band called a 'fitting tribute to the band's enduring influence' in their memorial post for the guitarist. The band will be formally inducted to the Hall of Fame on Nov. 8.
Bad Company's debut, self-titled 1974 album earned the band their first and only No. 1 album on the Billboard 200. The band's debut single 'Can't Get Enough' reached a No. 5 peak on the Billboard Hot 100, which remains their highest-charting song on the list to date. Mott the Hoople, meanwhile, earned their highest-ranking track on the Hot 100 in November 1972, when the David Bowie-written 'All the Young Dudes' reached No. 37 on the all-genre chart.
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Yahoo
29 minutes ago
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'Drag Race's Naysha Lopez claps back at Violet Chachki & Gottmik's Roscoe's shade
for The London Edition;(L-R) Violet Chachki and Gottmik at an intimate Pride dinner at The London Edition's Penthouse in support of the Pink Noise Foundation in London, England; Naysha Lopez at the grand premiere event of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars season 8 in New York City. RuPaul's Drag Race superstars Violet Chachki and Gottmik released a spicy new episode of No Gorge, their joint podcast, on Thursday, June 26. While the two drag artists explore various topics on this new episode, certain negative remarks from the episode are making the rounds within the Drag Race fandom and queendom. For instance, this new No Gorge episode features Violet bringing up different tangents related to her season 7 costars like Trixie Mattel, Katya, and Ginger Minj. Meanwhile, Gottmik gets candid about her Snatch Game-winning impersonation of Paris Hilton. There's also a surprising (and random) mention of Roscoe's Tavern — a prominent queer venue in Chicago that's been a staple of the LGBTQ+ community since 1987 — that comes up in the No Gorge episode. After catching wind of the comments made by Violet and Gottmik about Roscoe's, Naysha Lopez made space in the All Stars 10 episode 9 viewing party live-stream to defend the venue and clap back at the comments made on No Gorge. Here's our full breakdown and timeline explaining this new drama. New episodes of are released every Friday on . Quotes always make more sense when they're presented with some context, so let's unpack the polarizing quotes from Violet and Gottmik in their latest episode of No Gorge — which was titled "We Have an Announcement… and We're Losing Our Minds." It all starts with Gottmik warning fans that the Snatch Game-winning impersonation of Paris Hilton will be sunsetting in the near future. "We're filming this pod and then I'm going to the airport. I'm going to be Paris Hilton for a month," Gottmik says on No Gorge. "You guys, this is the last time. I cannot do this anymore. That was years ago." For context, Gottmik is referencing the Snatch Game Live on Tour by ITD Events, which starts this Wednesday, July 2 at the Llewellyn Hall in Australia. The tour will also feature Drag Race stars like Hannah Conda (as Liza Minnelli), Jimbo (as Shirley Temple), Jujubee (as Eartha Kitt), Pythia (as Zeus), Tia Kofi (as Anne Boleyn), and Trinity The Tuck (as Caitlyn Jenner). Drag Race Down Under judge Rhys Nicholson will be hosting the event. "I literally texted our manager today and I was like, 'What the fuck Rick and Morty-ass timeline happened that I'm a professional Paris Hilton impersonator?'" Gottmik notes, jokingly. "That is so embarrassing." Violet replies, "The Drag Race thing, I fear, is going to haunt us for the rest of our lives." Paramount+/ Ginger Minj in promo image for RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 10; art made by Violet explains, "I got my haircut today…That's like my one little self-care thing. [But] it's June. I'm ran through. It's Pride Month, so I got to do my self-care moment…My barber's like, 'So have you been watching the latest season?' And I'm like… [Violet makes a face]." The Drag Race season 7 winner clarifies, "I love my barber. He's a gay bear. But…it's been 11 fucking years [since season 7], and because there's drama going on now on the show—" "What is the drama?" Gottmik asks. Violet says, "The drama is about Ginger [Minj]. I can't even… I'm so annoyed." "I saw," Gottmik replies. "Vanjie actually sent me a clip of it the other day, and I was so scared because I was like, 'Why did she send that to me?' Because she never sends me Drag Race stuff. I was like, 'Oh my god, am I like mentioned? Was Denali going off on Roscoe's or something?'" - YouTube After realizing that the clip from Roscoe's Tavern has nothing to do with either of the No Gorge cohosts, Violet starts discussing Roscoe's itself. "Girl, Roscoe's is like…" Violet starts, laughing. "I can't, I can't, I can't," she adds. While Gottmik appears to be avoiding that conversation, the season 13 finalist and All Stars 9 contestant circles back to that discourse right away. "I mean, that actually needs to be studied," Mik observes. "Some of these girls are ready to risk it all—" "Risk it all to sit on a fucking patio chair at some fucking bar," Violet argues. The No Gorge cohosts speak over each other during the next few seconds, but Violet alleges that queens accept these invitations even though "the bar is monetizing boots" on the tea they're spilling through the Roscoe's viewing parties live-streams. Gottmik adds, "And doesn't pay them to monetize…It's wild." Violet repeats, "The bar is monetizing boots on y'all basically spilling the tea. Get a podcast, girl. Why are you letting them monetize all the tea?" "No, it's so crazy to me," Gottmik comments. "Stop doing that," Violet adds. Gottmik circles back to the argument that queens "are ready to risk it all" by taking these viewing party gigs at Roscoe's. "Literally stop risking your careers for Roscoe's," the season 13 star declares before bursting out laughing. "Stop risking your careers for Roscoe's," Violet agrees. "We should make t-shirts." They both laugh again. Logo TV RuPaul's Drag Race season 7 winner Violet Chachki. Violet rationalizes that she's "catching strays" from All Stars 10 because her social media algorithm is showing her "Drag Race stuff about Ginger." Violet continues, "And people are basically tagging me — or I'm seeing stuff — saying that I shouldn't have won [season 7] 10 or 11 years ago, and that she [Ginger] should've won." Even though Violet seems annoyed by the algorithm showing her more "Drag Race stuff," Gottmik hilariously interrupts Violet to ask if Ginger was on her original season. (And yes, she was. That season's top 3 finale was between Ginger Minj, Pearl, and Violet Chachki. In the end, Violet was crowned America's Next Drag Superstar.) "And now people think Ginger should've have won your season?" Gottmik asks. Violet replies," Yes, instead of being on Drag Race 17 times." Gottmik asks "who else" was in the top 3 of season 7. Violet reminds Gottmik that it was Pearl, and they briefly reference the "Is there something on my face?" moment between Pearl and RuPaul in the Werk Room. "Also, Trixie and Katya are doing a Ru-watch of season 7," Violet brings up. "They wanted me to [be a part of it]." However, the crowned queen of season 7 explains why she feels that the invitation from Trixie and Katya was "so weird." "They had their assistant send me a DM asking me if I would send them a voice [recording]," Violet says. "It was like, 'What the fuck?' You guys, call me. You have my fucking phone." Violet adds, "Having your assistant reach out when you're friends with somebody is so like… 'Who do you think you are, girl?' Text me!" "No, they do it all the time," Gottmik responds. "I think they're probably forced, against their will." Violet says, "It's so weird. I would never have my assistant or producer reach out to someone I consider a friend. It's so weird. Anyways…" This portion of the No Gorge episode ends with Violet complaining that she "cannot escape" the ongoing Drag Race discourse. She muses, "Am I going to be like 50 fucking years old, and will I have to get plastic surgery to change how I look, [because] I just want to get my haircut?" Toward the end of this Roscoe's Tavern viewing party covering All Stars 10 episode 9 — which featured Alyssa Hunter and Kween Kong as special guests and took place just one day after this latest episode of No Gorge was released on YouTube — Naysha Lopez declares that she's been given "the green light to express my mind." "All jokes aside, I've been calling them Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and I can really go in…[But] I won't do that. I'm talking about Violet and Gottmik, two of the nicest queens from RuPaul's Drag Race," Naysha starts. "They have a podcast. They do a thing. Blah blah blah, whatever. And they were saying that they don't understand why queens risk their entire careers and come on Roscoe's and, you know, give the tea, and this and that, and blah blah blah." The former Miss Continental winner and All Stars 8 star continues, "Two things: When they come here… First off, this is one of the best places you could ever work. Ever. Every single queen that works here is treated like the queen that they are. The implication that they're coming here and we're just making money off them… Baby, every single one of these people up here is getting a check. Every single person is getting paid." "For someone to say, 'Why would you risk your career giving the tea?'" Naysha adds. "Correct me if I'm wrong on the numbers, but I'm gonna say about 90, 95 percent of the girls that have ever been on Drag Race come through this stage, and not one career has been ruined. Not one. And this goes for every single person that says I talk too much… Because yes, I do." Alyssa Hunter & Kween Kong - Roscoe's RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 10 Viewing Party! (VIP Edition) Naysha goes on, "But if you notice, whenever I interject or start talking about something, it's because they… [Naysha points to Alyssa and Kween to illustrate the point that queens starring in ongoing seasons are likely limited within the scope of what they can and cannot say.] When we have girls up there, I tell them what they can't say, and how they should word it: Their opinions, their feelings." "I've been on the show. I've read the contract. I know what you can and cannot do," she argues. "We're aware of it. You are not at risk for losing your career. On the contrary, we're giving you a platform to be yourself, to tell your side. And if the show did not highlight who you are as a person, I'm glad that for 2 hours and 30 minutes, you can do it right here." As the audience claps, cohost Batty Davis says that many queens have gotten redemption from the fandom by appearing on Roscoe's. "No one is here because they're forced to," Naysha points out. "Every single girl from that last season, it has now become, 'I got on Drag Race. When do I go to Roscoe's?' It's a thing." "No disrespect to Violet and her little minion… At all," Naysha concludes. "But when you're gonna say little things like this: Mean what you say, and say what you mean. Don't imply, because that's just lying." "And not to mention… Have we had them on this stage?" Naysha asks. Batty responds that yes, they have. Naysha adds, "Yes, we have. They've been through Roscoe's. They know what's up." - YouTube Violet and Gottmik were featured in a Roscoe's Tavern viewing party live-stream from May 28, 2022. That evening, cohosts Naysha and Batty, along with special guests Violet and Gottmik, watched episode 3 of All Stars 7, a.k.a. the all-winners season. Within the first 15 minutes of the live-stream, Naysha pointedly asked Violet and Gottmik about the response they had been receiving from fans as the two special cohosts of Fashion Photo RuView for the all-winners season of Drag Race. In case you don't remember: From the very first episode of that Fashion Photo RuView season, Violet and Gottmik received tons of scrutiny for negatively critiquing certain outfits worn by fan-favorite contestants. The fan response was particularly intense when Violet shared negative opinions about a look from Raja. On that particular Roscoe's viewing party live-stream, Violet and Gottmik got to speak their minds and share their side of the story even though they had already launched their joint No Gorge podcast at the time. Nonetheless, their statements at Roscoe's made the rounds on social media and helped diffuse the incredibly unfair — but very intense — wave of negativity they had been receiving for just expressing their opinions on runway looks. Editor's note: As of this writing, none of the queens mentioned in this story have shared additional comments about this situation. drops new episodes every Friday on . - YouTube This article originally appeared on Out: 'Drag Race's Naysha Lopez claps back at Violet Chachki & Gottmik's Roscoe's shade
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Tourist Go Home Season In Full Swing In Europe This Summer
A person wears a t shirt with the message reading 'Neighborhood auto defense - Tourists go home' ... More during a protest against overtourism in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, June 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Pau Venteo) The European tourist go home season is already in full swing, although summer has officially just started. Barcelona is once again using its weapon of choice, the super soaker water gun, to drench tourists. The movement is more active and up in arms than ever, although the New York Times makes a joke out of it. 'Will there be water guns? Very likely, at least in Spain. Noting that 'these toys have become a popular symbol of resistance,' organizers have encouraged participants to bring their water guns.' Tourists might not find being attacked so amusing. Admittedly, the hordes of foreigners can provoke long-suffering local people. A crescendo of resentment built up in Venice, as the long-awaited nuptials of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez finally took place there. All the good yacht parking was taken, and there was no room room at the inn at a 500 year old, $2000 to $10,000 per night Venetian hotel. One activist said, 'We can't miss a chance to disrupt a $10 million wedding.' Nonetheless, the plan to block Bezos and bride from the wedding venue by lining the streets with protestors, or blocking the canals with boats, came to naught. But the resentment is clear. Said one activist in Venice, 'They are treating this city like it's Disneyland.' This is a common theme in many heavily visited cities, from Barcelona to Lisbon, Athens, Mallorca, and Dubrovnik. Kylie Jenner and Kendall Jenner sighting ahead of the Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez wedding on the ... More island of San Giorgio Maggiore on June 27, 2025 in Venice, Italy., Italy. (Photo by Luigi Iorio/GC Images) As the NY Times puts it, the demonstrations are to draw attention to the negative impact of ''touristification,' the emphasis on tourism instead of local quality of life.' The idea is to keep pushing European governments on problems created by tourism, like rising rents and housing shortages, environmental damage and neighborhoods losing essential services for residents. No word on whether the protestors want the government to create alternate sources of employment to replace tourism jobs. My Forbes story about similar protests last year was a finalist in this year's 67th Southern California Journalism Awards. Nonetheless, if anything the protests seem more intense than in 2024. This video shows anti-tourism protestors shooting water guns and setting flares, fireworks and smoke bombs , against hotel workers, who respond by cursing and spitting at the protestors. Over-tourism suddenly stopped being an issue from 2020 to 2023, thanks to COVID-19. From spring 2020 to fall 2022, quarantines, airline and border shut downs, and fear of travel kept the streets of hot spots like Barcelona, Ibiza, Majorca, Dubrovnik and Venice empty. Lack of income replace over tourism as a major urban woe. But by 2024 vaccinated, maskless tourists intent on 'revenge travel' had returned in force. In 2019, there were a total of 1.465 billion tourist arrivals worldwide according to Statista. In 2020,that number dropped to just 407.8 million. By 2024, the number had reached 1.465 billion. In Barcelona, tourism is now 14% of the city's economy and provides 150,000 jobs, according to Mateu Hernández, director of that city's Tourism Consortium. Nonetheless, Hernández pointed to 'a perception that Barcelona doesn't want tourists. We are worried about Barcelona's image of over-tourism,' he told foreign correspondents in January. A protester holds a placard that says, no tourist crowding during the demonstration. Neighbors of El ... More Born and Barceloneta, central neighborhoods of Barcelona, have demonstrated against mass tourism that affects them daily with parties, noise throughout the night, dirt and violence. (Photo by Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) Most of the local resentment is economic. While a significant 12.3% of Spain's GDP was from the tourism industry in 2023, according to Statista, tourism jobs can be low end, such as waiter, driver, housekeeper, front desk, etc. Another issue is anger at short-term rental platforms like Airbnb. While Brian Chesky is worth just a fraction of Jeff Bezos at $8 billion dollars, the Airbnb founder and CEO should probably not rent out the city of Barcelona or Venice should he follow Michelle Obama's advice and get married. Working people blame Airbnb for raising the rent in many world tourist cities. In Venice, Bezos and celebrity friends were insulated from local resentment by their wealth and security. Not so middle-class tourists who have saved all their lives (or financed their vacations) for what they hope will be the trip of a lifetime. According to Statista, 'As the demonstrations against overtourism were particularly well attended in Spain, it was no surprise that in a 2024 survey, Spaniards showed the most unfavorable attitude. Similarly, 54 percent of Spanish respondents supported introducing a tourist tax fee to enter popular cities, while less than half of surveyed Italians backed that idea.' In Paris, employees at the world-famous Louvre staged a spontaneous strike to protest overtourism. The museum gets over 8 million visitors per year, more than twice what it was designed to accommodate. The situation is particularly bad at the Salle des États, where the Mona Lisa is housed;20,000 people a day squeeze in to gawk, push, shove and try to get in selfie range. A crowd of visitors take photos of the iconic painting The Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci as staff ... More held a general assembly to discuss the general strike. (Photo by) Still the tourists come. The Barcelona airport handled a record 55 million passengers in 2024. Although it already serves 200 destinations, there's talk of expansion. Barcelona also has a new cruise port, with 800 ships arriving each year. Most tourists come ashore when the ship docks in the morning, tour the town, and sail off in the afternoon. This makes Barcelona's famous La Ramblas pedestrian area and adjoining areas congested with tourists and low-end tourist shoppes. 'We feel quite invaded,' lifelong Barcelona resident Joan Albert Riu Fortuny told CNN. And it is not just water guns that tourists should fear in Europe. Vile harassment of young female tourists (this sobbing young woman is afraid to see the city by herself) is a reality in certain European cities. Such harassment is not featured on bubbly TV shows like Emily In Paris, nor is it discussed in depth in the many stories on the growth in solo travel. Big crowds and high prices can also drive tourists away. A union that won the nation's highest minimum wage for Los Angeles hotel and airport employees, hitting $30 an hour by 2028, is now seeking to win the same rate for all employees in the city. The American Hotel and Lodging Association estimates the $30 wage rate will cost 15,000 tourism jobs. Meanwhile, tourists already look askance at a city torn by rioting and devastated by fire. According to the New York Sun, in L.A. 'International travel is down 13.5 percent, Canadian visitation is down 70 percent, and airlines have pulled more than 320,000 seats from LAX.' Los Angeles also has problems of crime and homelessness the city government seems uninterested in fixing. A protester leaps off a burning Waymo taxi near the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los ... More Angeles, Sunday, June 8, 2025, following last night's immigration raid protest. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer) So both locals and tourists have their grievances. I went to Paris for a few days this May, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I must say I was treated well at our hotel (Le Meurice), walking the city, or hanging out at the Rodin Museum. On the other hand, I've been to Barcelona a couple of times. I loved it. But I have no desire to go back. It's hard to say if the crowds of tourists or the local protests are a bigger turn off. My family loves Hawaii, but we have not returned to the islands since 2017. I have instead visited coastal Mexico five times since then. Hawaii's ambivalent attitude towards tourists, and the onerous restrictions placed on would-be visitors during COVID, like arresting honeymooners for violating the 14-day quarantine, does not encourage visitation. Destinations that allow local residents to molest tourists, or refuse to protect travelers from crime and harassment, are at real risk of losing the visitors they mock and complain about. As Yogi Berra once put it, 'It's so crowded no one goes there anymore." Tourists pose for selfies in front of the "Sagrada Familia" (Holy Family) basilica in Barcelona on ... More August 19, 2017,. (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP via Getty Images)
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Today's ‘Wordle' #1473 Hints, Clues And Answer For Tuesday, July 1st
How to solve today's Wordle. Looking for Monday's Wordle hints, clues and answer? You can find them here: So long, June, and thanks for all the fish. July is here and with it more balmy summer days and 31 brand new Wordles to solve. Why don't we skip the pleasantries and solve today's! How To Solve Today's Wordle The Hint: Old cheese. The Clue: This Wordle ends with a vowel/consonant hybrid. Okay, spoilers below! The answer is coming! . FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder . . Today's Wordle Every day I check Wordle Bot to help analyze my guessing game. You can check your Wordles with Wordle Bot right here. I guess I was feeling geographical today because I opened with SPAIN (I find it odd that this works, but it does) and when that turned up zero yellow or green boxes, went for GLOBE on guess #2. That slashed 586 remaining solutions down to 23. HOLLY cut that number to just 2, though I could only think of one: MOLDY for the win! FOLKY was the other one according to Wordle Bot, but it didn't even cross my mind. Look at our words below. What's funny about this is we didn't just tie, we used all different words but had an almost identical pattern. Five grey boxes, then the yellow 'LO' in boxes 2 and three, then the OL and Y in green. The Bot had the 'D' in yellow, but other than that this was almost exactly the same. Today's Wordle Bot I get 0 points for guessing in four and 0 for tying the Bot and the Bot gets the same. We start July where we began with: Erik: 0 points Wordle Bot: 0 points The word moldy comes from the noun mold (meaning fungus), which traces back to Middle English molde or mould, likely from Old English molde meaning 'earth' or 'soil.' This reflects the idea of decay or rot associated with damp, earthy conditions. The adjective suffix -y was added to form moldy, meaning 'covered with or smelling of mold.' The word has been in use since at least the 14th century. Let me know how you fared with your Wordle today on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog where I write about games, TV shows and movies when I'm not writing puzzle guides. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.
