Darlene Love

Jimmy Fallon and his house band the Roots were joined by legendary diva Darlene Love and Anna Kendrick in a rendition of the festive number 'Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)' using only classroom instruments. It's still one of the best segments on 'The Tonight Show'.

Anna Kendrick at 'Pitch Perfect 3' premiere

Who knew a casio keyboard, bongos, shakers, a xylophone and sleigh bells could come together to create such a beautiful version of this 1963 Christmas hit? It's definitely better than what you did in elementary school that's for sure, and Anna Kendrick looked thrilled to be singing along with such a stand-out voice from the iconic album 'A Christmas Gift for You from Philles Records'.

Continue reading: Anna Kendrick Joins Jimmy Fallon And Darlene Love For 'Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)'

Just two days after Stephen Colbert aired his final Comedy Central episode, David Letterman – aka the man Colbert will be replacing as of next fall – had an equally sentimental finale on The Late Show. This one was just a mid-season ending, before Letterman flies south for winter – or whatever it is that late night hosts do for the holidays – but the TV vet pulled out all the stops anyway.

Letterman hosted a cheesy, old-school finale, to match his cheesy, old-school run on the Late Show. And I mean that in the best way.  Of course, it’s not really Christmas, if you haven’t heard Darlene Love croon out Last Christmas. Having her sing on the Late Show was kind of like a warm hug, followed by a mug of hot choc with marshmallows in TV form...

Watch Love's final Late Show performance below.

Continue reading: David Letterman Is Sticking Around, But The Late Show Says Goodbye To Darlene Love

In the weeks leading up to the Oscars, pundits were divided about which documentary would win the big prize, most predicting The Act of Killing, the innovative, staggeringly powerful exploration of Indonesia's death squads. But anyone who had seen the background singer doc 20 Feet From Stardom knew it was probably more likely to take the award.

Darlene Love in '20 Feet From Stardom'

Not only is the film a hugely crowd-pleasing movie that leaves audiences smiling and tapping their toes in joy, but it has serious subtext as well, examining America's civil rights struggle through the eyes of musical artists. It also makes a potent statement about today's digital, auto-tuned recording industry in which non-singers make records and do their own backing vocals, but neglect to infuse their records with the passion and energy that fills the classic songs of the past few decades.

Continue reading: Why '20 Feet From Stardom' Deserved The Oscar For 'Best Documentary'

20 Feet From Stardom - Morgan Neville's stunning examination of the lives and experiences of backing singers in the music industry - was named Best Documentary at the 86th Academy Awards on Sunday (March 2, 2014). The movie has featured strongly on the festival and awards circuit, though it's safe to assume even the producers didn't expect to beat the visceral The Act of Killing to the Oscar.

Darlene Love Performing on '20 Feet From Stardom'

20 Feet From Stardom, the highest-grossing documentary of 2013, was certainly a popular winner inside the Dolby Theatre and the legendary Darlene Love gave an a cappella performance to the delight of the star-studded audience, including Bill Murray, who kicked off a standing ovation.

Continue reading: Is Oscar Winner '20 Feet From Stardom' The Perfect Music Documentary?