• Mick Jagger and Dave Grohl have teamed up for a hard-rock pandemic anthem called "Eazy Sleazy." "It's a song that I wrote about coming out of lockdown, with some much needed optimism," Jagger said in a statement Tuesday. "Thanks to Dave Grohl for jumping on drums, bass and guitar. It was a lot of fun working with him." The duo recorded the song and video in different studios -- Jagger at home and Grohl in the Foo Fighters studio -- and the lyrics mention "prison walls," "virtual premieres," numbers that are "grim" and Zoom calls. Jagger complains: "I've got nothing left to wear." The song also name-checks Bill Gates, lampoons conspiracy theories and those who deny climate change and gleefully reveals "There's aliens in the deep state." But there seems to be hope. Jagger looks ahead and sees a "garden of earthly delights" when vaccinations are administered and lockdown ends. "Everything's gonna get really freaky/Alright on the night/Soon it'll be a memory/You're trying to remember to forget."
• Backed by an international concert hosted by Selena Gomez and headlined by Jennifer Lopez, Global Citizen is unveiling an ambitious campaign to help medical workers in the world's poorest countries quickly receive covid-19 vaccines. The anti-poverty organization is announcing the musical event -- "VAX Live: The Concert to Reunite the World" -- with the goal of enlisting corporations and philanthropists to raise $22 billion for global vaccinations. The concert, which airs May 8 on ABC, CBS and Fox as well as on iHeartMedia radio stations and YouTube, will also showcase the Foo Fighters, Eddie Vedder, J Balvin and H.E.R. The acts will be recorded at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Gomez said she felt honored to be chosen to host the event, calling it a "historic moment" to encourage people to take the vaccine as well as call on world leaders to share vaccine doses equitably "and to bring people together for a night of music in a way that hasn't felt possible in the past year," Gomez said in a statement. "I can't wait to be a part of it." The Global Citizen effort is one of a growing web of nonprofits and activists that is seeking to achieve wider, more equitable distribution of covid-19 vaccines. As of this month, 60 nations still had not yet received any covid-19 vaccines while 27 million health care workers haven't had access to the vaccine, according to Hugh Evans, CEO of Global Citizen, who called on governments to begin donating unused doses. On Tuesday, Global Citizen also opened its "Vax Because" initiative to encourage people to get vaccinated when they can.