‘Crouching Tiger’ actress denies paid sex with Bo

Kochi, Feb 7: The younger brother of noted playback singer K J Yesudas was found dead in the backwaters near here, police said.

The body of 62-year old K J Justin, who had reportedly gone missing from his house in Thrikkakara near here on Tuesday evening was found floating in the backwaters near Vallarpadam Container Terminal on Wednesday, they said.

The relatives identified the body, police said adding it was later sent for autopsy at General Hospital here.

A General Hospital spokesperson said the body was handed over to his relatives on Thursday evening after autopsy was performed.

The funeral is expected to be held after the arrival of Yesudas from abroad, police sources said.

Police said the initial investigation suggested it was a case of suicide.

According to police, Jusin's relatives have informed the investigation team that he had been showing signs of suicidal tendency for the last one week as he was allegedly facing some financial problem.

His relatives were not available for comments.

Son of the renowned musician late Augustine Joseph, Justin is survived by his wife.

Justin had been a regular presence at popular ganamela programmes here in the past, sources said.

Los Angeles, May 11: Iconic soul and R&B singer Betty Wright has died after a battle with cancer. She was 66. According to Entertainment Weekly, the Grammy winner passed away on Sunday in her hometown Miami, Florida, Wright's niece confirmed.

The news comes a week after singer-songwriter Chaka Khan tweeted praying for her "beloved sister", without mentioning the cause of ailment.

"Calling all my #PrayWarriors | My beloved sister, Betty Wright, is now in need of all your prays. 'Que Sera, Sera | Whatever Will Be, Will Be' In Jesus Name We Pray for Sister Betty All My Love Chaka," she wrote.

Wright, whose real name was Bessie Regina Norris, was born in 1953.

She started singing as part of her siblings' musical group called the 'Echoes of Joy', but she rose to fame in the 1970s.

The singer was a member of the gospel ensemble until they parted ways when she was 11, leading her to embrace R&B music.

Wright signed with the label Deep City Records in 1966, a year later becoming a local hit with songs "Thank You Baby" and "Paralyzed".

Her first album My First Time Around wasn't released until two years later featuring the hit "Girls Can't Do What the Guys Do."

The biggest hit of her career Clean Up Woman came a year later, which was certified gold barely days after her 18th birthday.

At the age of 23, she went on to win her first Grammy Award for Best Song, Where is the Love?

Wright continued writing and producing music for two decades, her final hit  No Pain, (No Gain) was released in 1988.

Wright also collaborated with talent in the industry including fellow Miami superstar Gloria Estefan, for whom she arranged the harmonies on the 1991 track Coming Out of the Dark, as well as Jennifer Lopez, Kelly Clarkson, and Joss Stone.

She served as the vocal coach of the girl group Danity Kane on "Making of the Band" (2006).

With her collaboration with The Roots titled Betty Wright: The Movie, Wright again came under spotlight in 2011. This was her first album in a decade.

She scored a Grammy nod for the song Surrender from the album. Her work has been sampled throughout the years by Beyonce, Mary J Blige, Afrika Bambaataa, and Chance the Rapper. Several names from the music industry such as Snoop Dogg, John Legend, and DJ Khaled condoled Wright's demise on social media.

Snoop shared a video of Wright singing "Tonight is the Night" and thanked his mentor for inviting him to "thankful Thursday's" at her Florida house years ago.

"I know god is pleased with your work. Tonight is the night you get to heavens gates. Long live. Betty Wright," he wrote on Instagram.

Legend said Wright will be missed.

"She was always so loving and giving to younger artists. Always engaged, always relevant," he tweeted.

Khaled shared a clip of his performance with Wright on the song "Holy Key" at the 2016 BET Hip Hop Awards.

"Betty Wright, you are an angel. You one of my realest friends I have! You are like a mom to me! You had my back from the very beginning! We made beautiful music together! Betty Wright is an icon! And the Mother of Miami," he wrote.

Wright was married three times - her final marriage was to reggae legend Noel 'King Sporty' Williams from 1985 until his death in 2015.

She had five children: Aisha McCray, Patrice Parker, Patrick Parker, Patrice Parker, and Chaka Azuri. Her son Patrick was shot to death on Christmas Day 2005 at the age of 21.

London, May 8: Actor Florence Pugh says the most terrifying aspect of starring in the upcoming superhero film "Black Widow" was doing the Russian accent.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe's stand-alone film, the Oscar-nominated actor plays Yelena Belova, a sister-figure to Scarlett Johansson's Natasha Romanoff/ the titular Black Widow who was trained in the Red Room.

"I was scared because my Russian accent was going to be out there and I didn't know what it sounded like.

"I'm also playing a character who no-one's seen before but they've read about her. I didn't know whether people were going to hate me!" Pugh told ELLE UK for its June issue.

The 24-year-old actor also said the idea of joining the MCU itself was quite "daunting".

"When you think of Marvel, it's big and daunting. Especially being a relatively small actor to look at it and go, 'Oh! I'm going to be a part of this', that's a big decision," she said.

"Black Widow", which was scheduled to hit the theatres on May 1, will now release on November 6 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Directed by Cate Shortland, the film also stars David Harbour and Rachel Weisz.