Briefs

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This article was published 02/04/2024 (890 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Killer Mike booked to play folk fest

Killer Mike, who won three Grammy Awards at the 2024 in February, will play the Winnipeg Folk Festival on July 12.

The Atlanta-born rapper, actor and political activist will be Friday night’s windup act at the Big Blue @ Night stage. Tickets and passes for the festival, which runs July 11-14 at Birds Hill Provincial Park, are available at winnipegfolkfestival.ca.

Born Michael Render, Killer Mike began his recording career with Outkast in 2000, and has since performed as a solo act and with the group Run with Jewels.

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band saying goodbye

The band that helped put Dauphin’s Countryfest on the map will bid a fond farewell to the jamboree June 30.

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, which headlined the inaugural Countryfest in 1990, will be the windup act at the 2024 event, which runs June 27-30. The group said earlier this year that its 2024 tour will be its last.

Texas neo-traditionalist Mark Chesnutt, Nashville artist Jo Dee Messina and Winnipeg’s Don Amero are also on the bill for the Sunday night.

The mainstage shows begin Friday, June 28, with country crooner Clint Black headlining a lineup that includes Alberta singer Carolyn Dawn Johnson, the Great Canadian Road Trip — which brings together Portage la Prairie duo Doc Walker, Michelle Wright and Jason McCoy — and two other Manitoba acts, the C-Weed Band and Quinton Blair.

Alabama, the group that made the song Mountain Music a country anthem, take the stage at the Selo Ukraina amphitheatre June 29 for the first time since 1999.

The evening will have a retro vibe thanks to the Frontmen, a combo that includes ’90s hitmakers Larry Stewart of Restless Heart, Richie McDonald of Lonestar and Tim Rushlow of Little Texas. The 90s Country Ladies, which feature Patricia Conroy, Lisa Brokop and Beverley Mahood, are also on the bill, along with Nashville’s Diamond Rio and Winnipeg rockers Harlequin.

Tickets and weekend passes are on sale at countryfest.ca, which also has a schedule for its two hilltop stages.

Veteran soap opera actress dies

Former actress Jennifer Leak, known for her roles on soaps including The Young and the Restless, Another World and One Life to Live, died last week after a years-long battle with progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare neurological disease. She was 76.

Her husband of 47 years, James D’Auria, confirmed she died on March 18 at their home in Jupiter, Fla.

According to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, progressive supranuclear palsy hinders a patient’s ability to control “body movement, co-ordination, thinking and other important functions.” Leak had been suffering with the condition for the last seven years.

During the 1970s, the Wales-born actress gained traction on daytime TV in a number of soaps, including The Young and the Restless, Ryan’s Hope and Another World. She made her way onto Guiding Light and One Life to Live in the 1980s. Her final acting credit, per IMDb, was as Dr. Hennessy in two episodes of Loving in 1992.

Sabrina star killed in crash

Actor Chance Perdomo has died at age 27 following a motorcycle crash. He rose to fame as a star of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Gen V.

A statement from a publicist said no one else was involved in the crash. No details about the crash, including when and where it took place, were immediately released.

Perdomo most recently played Andre Anderson on the first season of Gen V, the college-centric spinoff of Prime Video’s hit series The Boys. One of Perdomo’s most famous roles was as Ambrose Spellman, a lead character on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

— staff, wire services