Alexandra Burke: I was told to bleach my skin to look whiter

Tyson Beckford gracefully bowed out of the modeling game in 2008. But a phone call from Beyoncé pulled him back in for a very special occasion. Ivy Park’s latest capsule collection, lovingly titled IVY HEART, is inspired by love and dropping just in time for Valentine’s Day.

US reality star Kat Von D has listed her LA mansion for sale which means it could be yours for a cool $15 million (£11million).The tattoo artist has announced that she will be leaving California and relocating to Indiana to be closer to her family. As a result, the 39-year-old is currently inviting prospective buyers to look inside which means a host of pictures are available to view.The home was purchased in 2016 for $6.5 million and was subsequently remodelled to Kat's distinctive taste. Let's take a look...

Emmerdale actress Olivia Bromley has revealed the secrets behind her action-packed wedding day and hinted at some of the stunts on the show. Olivia’s character Dawn Taylor is set to marry Billy Fletcher, played by Jay Kontzle, on the soap next week, but it turns into a living nightmare when the Dales’ serial killer, Meena Jutla returns.The Mirror has reported that the killer kidnaps the couple on their big day and tortures them, before Billy has to decide whether Dawn or himself should get shot. In an interview with The Mirror, Olivia hinted at the extent of the explosive stunts as she had several wardrobe malfunctions and had to wear a harness underneath her wedding dress.

Holby City fans were devastated as one of the beloved characters on the soap, Jac Naylor, was revealed to have less than six months to live. Surgeon Jac has been battling brain cancer on the show and fans watched as she desperately tried to find someone to perform life-changing surgery on her. Jac, played by Rosie Marcel, was told that without this operation she would have less than six months to live.

Rihanna has always wanted to be a mom; therefore, she enjoys her first pregnancy and serves unforgettable looks. The mom-to-be superstar chose a bold outfit to step out on her first public outing since announcing the news.RiRi, who is expecting her first child with her boyfriend, rapper A$AP Rocky, showcased her growing bare baby bump while grabbing dinner in Beverly Hills. The singer and beauty mogul wore a black lace-up top with major cleavage.

Joseph Baena grew up in Bakersfield, California, speaking Spanish with his siblings and cooking with his mother. Although the suburban community was labeled as the “armpit of California,” as reported by Men’s Health magazine, and Baena lived in “a humble home,” he lived a happy life as a kid immersed in the Guatemalan heritage and traditions. “That’s a huge part of me,” he told the publication.

Ethan Shanfeld A remake of Stephen King’s “Firestarter” starring Zac Efron debuted its official trailer and announced a day-and-date premiere on Peacock and in theaters on May 13.The film, based on King’s 1980 novel and the 1984 original movie, follows Charlie (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), a young girl who develops pyrokinetic superpowers and is captured by a government agency who wishes to use her gift as a weapon. Sydney Lemmon will play Charlie’s mother, while Efron plays her father. Michael Greyeyes, Gloria Reuben, Kurtwood Smith and John Beasley also star.The explosive trailer sees Armstrong’s Charlie taking on bad guys with fire as her parents try to protect her.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorWelcome to this week’s “Just for Variety.”Add Hannah Waddingham to the list of actors who would love to be in a superhero movie. “Why do you think I’ve done sci-fi things in the past?” says the “Ted Lasso” star, whose credits include the television adaptation of “12 Monkeys” and “Krypton,” a Syfy series about Superman’s grandfather.

Snoop Dogg has discussed his forthcoming performance at this year’s Super Bowl, which will see him team up with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar for the prestigious Halftime Show.“For me, when performing, I never let the moment get bigger than me,” he told the Associated Press.“I’m not going to understand it until it happens,” he continued.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentAward winning film director and historian Mark Cousins (“The Story of Film: A New Generation”) is at Rome’s Cinecittà Studios making a doc titled “March on Rome” that will explore the roots of fascism by analyzing films, photographs, and other documents found in Italian archives.The high-profile documentary — pegged to the centennial of the infamous late October 1922 insurrection by which Benito Mussolini came to power in Italy — will take its cue from the Fascist propaganda film “A Noi” by director Umberto Paradisi, produced in 1923 as an official Fascist party document celebrating the March on Rome.Italian writer and director Tony Saccucci (“The Duce’s Boxer”), who originated the project and did meticulous research for it, serves as a co-writer with Cousins. Saccuci cross-checked Paradisi’s film with other sources of the time to reveal details of the pic that provide a completely new take on the history of those dramatic days, according to the synopsis.

Strictly Come Dancing partner, Nikita Kuzmin, 24, were pictured cosying up today.The former dance couple could be seen taking a nap in the back seat of a car following a day swimming at Spring Lakes.The pair reunited with their Strictly co-stars as they took a dip in the freezing lake.Professional dancer Neil Jones took to Instagram to share a snap of Tilly and Nikita sleeping on the way back from the leisure centre.In the picture, Tilly could be seen resting her head on Nikita’s lap as the pro dancer wrapped his arms around her.The post was captioned: “Too much for these two.”The pair were wrapped up in their jackets following their adventurous dip in the cold lake.Nikita and Tilly also braved the wintry temperatures last week, when they  enjoyed a swim in Sheffield ahead of their Strictly Come Dancing tour show.In a video uploaded to Instagram by fellow Strictly star and TV personality Sara Davies, the pair could be seen holding hands as prepared for their swim.Tilly could be heard screaming as they got deeper into the water and headed for the deep end.Sara captioned the clip: “@tillyramsay’s screaming was absolutely fantastic!“Her and @nikita_kuzmin are just the cutest!”The pair had been dealt a blow last month after Nikita was forced to pull out of the show's live tour dates after testing positive for coronavirus.The dancer took to his Instagram to confirm the news to his 109,000 followers.He confessed he was "so sad" to not be featuring in the live shows alongside Tilly due to the Covid isolation.He wrote: "So sad to be missing a portion of the Strictly Live Tour, but unfortunately I tested Positive for COVID-19."Lots of luck to all the amazing Strictly Cast."Will be back as soon as I can," he concluded his

Emily Longeretta SPOILER ALERT: This piece contains spoilers for “The Master Beta,” Episode 4 of “Pam & Tommy,” now streaming on Hulu.For Lake Bell, working on “Pam & Tommy” in the middle of a pandemic was a dream. “This was the job that gave me creative sustenance in a time where we were all locked down,” says the director and actor, who directed Episodes 4 and 7 of the Hulu show.More than that, she was moved by the traumatic experience that Pamela Anderson went through, and the way that “Pam & Tommy” respected that.

Alexandra Burke is opening up about a very disappointing and disturbing part of the music industry — and she’s not holding back at all.

X Factor winner Alexandra Burke has bravely opened up about the horrific racism she has faced during her career in an emotional Instagram video.Speaking frankly in video posted on her Instagram TV page, Alex said: "When I first won the X Factor, I was 19, I got told, 'cos you're black you are going to have to work 10 times harder than a white artist because of the colour of your skin."You can't have braids, you can't have an afro, you can't have anything that is basically my identity."You have to have hair for example that appeals to white people so people can understand you better."She added: "I mean, I was only 19 years old."There's only so much you can understand at 19 and your life has completely changed overnight.

British singer Alexandra Burke shot to fame in the U.K. after winning Britain’s “The X Factor” back in 2008.

X FACTOR star Alexandra Burke has claimed she was advised to "bleach her skin" if she wanted a successful music career after winning the show. The 31-year-old singer won the ITV talent show back in 2008, and said she has "experienced micro-aggression so many times" because she is black ever since.

Alexandra Burke has shared a stark new message about her experiences in the music industry.Taking to Instagram, Burke spoke of how she was told she was “gonna have to work ten times harder than a white artist because of the colour of your skin.”Stating that she “experienced micro-aggression so many times,” Burke said: “This isn’t a video to bash anyone, this isn’t a negative video, this isn’t that kind of thing at all.“This is simply me speaking about what I’ve been through in the past 11 years and finally feeling like… no I’m nervous about it, but feeling like I’m not ashamed to speak about it.” I felt it was time to speak up… This is a scary moment for me. I didn’t always want to speak up..

X Factor winner Alexandra Burke has claimed she was told to bleach her skin and change her hair so she would "appeal to white people".

supports HTML5 videoAlexandra Burke was told to bleach her skin to appear whiter after winning The X Factor.The 31-year-old shot to fame in 2008 when she won the fifth series of The X Factor at the age of 19.And an emotional video, the Bad Boys singer has detailed the racism she has experienced in her career from management, labels and the media.Alexandra told of auditioning for The X Factor’s second series when she was 16, and claimed that after she didn’t make it past judges houses, she was told by an unnamed individual that in a few months, they would sign her. The singer got back in touch to say she was ready to work, but said: ‘The reply and the response I got was “I already have one black artist, I don’t need another”.

Alexandra Burke has shared a video of her fighting back tears as she candidly opened up about her experiences with racism in the music industry.The 31 year old Broken Heels star revealed she has “experienced micro-aggression so many times” as she recalls moments that have most shocked throughout her singing career. Alexandra, who was crowned The X Factor winner in 2008, spoke to the camera in a clip which she posted to her Instagram page.

Alexandra Burke has posted an emotional video on Instagram in which she has opened up about her experience within the music industry as a Black woman.The star, 31, began the 15-minute clip by revealing that she was "nervous" before explaining that it was not a "negative video"."Please forgive me, I'm a little bit nervous because I've been wanting to make this video for a long time. I've just been a bit scared to do it," she said, before adding that she was "really frightened of speaking my truth."A post shared by Alexandra Burke (@alexandraburke) on  Wanting to explain what the video was about, she clarified: "This is not a video to bash anyone, this isn't a negative video.