Billie Eilish’s life changed drastically at the age of 17, going from another teen raised in Highland Park, Los Angeles to a mega pop superstar who this year pulled in six Grammy nominations for her debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? Understandably such success at a young age can be a lot on anyone and Billie recently opened up to Gayle King on CBS This Morning on how the pressure and fame affected her. 

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

“I was so unhappy last year. I was so unhappy, and I was so, like, joyless,” she said of her first year in the spotlight. “I don’t want to be too dark, but I genuinely didn’t think I would make it to 17.” Billie further explained one instance in Berlin where she questioned jumping out a window, leading her to tears in her hotel room. “I was alone in my hotel, and I remember there was a window right there,” she explained. “I remember crying because I was thinking about how, the way that I was going to die was, I was gonna do it.”

Having made it through to the other side, thanks to her mother and brother, Billie now wants to inspire her beloved fans. “I just grab them by the shoulders and I’m like, ‘Please, take care of yourself and be good to yourself and be nice to yourself. Don’t take that extra step and hurt yourself further and you can’t take it back,'” she added. 

There were the “#OscarsSoWhite” protest and the complaints over the years that the Academy Awards’ lack of diversity is a problem in Hollywood. Entertainers have spoken openly about how they believe the Academy has snubbed actors, filmmakers, and movies considered to be “of color,” but if you ask Tyler Perry about the controversy, he’ll let you know that he doesn’t want any part of it as he minds his business in the ATL.

Paul R. Giunta / Stringer / Getty Images

The studio head caught up with CBS This Morning last week to chat about his recently released Netflix thriller A Fall From Grace. He praised the streaming platform for their diverse staff who met with him when they negotiated the film’s release, but when questioned about the Oscars, he didn’t care to get involved.

“I think that Jennifer Lopez should have been recognized. I think that Awkwafina should have been recognized, absolutely,” he said. “But I don’t have an opinion of it either way. Whereas I said before, build your own table so that you don’t have to keep asking someone to sit at theirs. I think that the Academy has tried to invite more people of color into the voting process.”

With his hands up in the air as a sign of retreat, Perry added, “I’m down in Atlanta doing my own thing. I don’t even want to focus on it. God bless ’em. I wanna let it go and I want to encourage everybody else to be owners, entrepreneurs that take the bull by the horns, become more producers, writers, and direct themselves.” Check out his clip below.

Ever since she announced that she’s backed away from the #MeToo documentary On The Record that profiles multiple women who have accused Russell Simmons of sexual assault. Since that time, Oprah has stated that Simmons attempted to pressure her into distancing herself from the film, but he wasn’t the reason why she decided to exit. 

Ari Perilstein / Stringer / Getty Images

She took a break from her 2020 Vision Tour where she’s been making her way around America while speaking to a few celebrities guests like Lady Gaga, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Amy Schumer, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Michelle Obama to sold-out audiences in the thousands. Stopping by CBS This Morning, Oprah chatted with host and best friend Gayle King about her book club and tour, but right off the bat, Gayle wanted to address the elephant in the room.

“First of all, I just want to say that I have lived #MeToo since I was nine-years-old and was raped at nine. Sexually assaulted from nine to 14 and then raped again at 14,” Oprah said. “And nothing is harder than standing up for yourself when you’re 14 and not being believed. And I was not believed by my own family. So, I stand in support of these women, I believe them It was a hard decision because I knew that Russell Simmons had started publicly pressuring me and that me pulling out of the documentary was going to look like I was being pressured.”

Oprah wasn’t sure how to respond, but she continued, “For me, Gayle knows this, in all experiences in my life, in particular when I’m in a crisis, the only question for me is: What is the right thing to do?” The OWN mogul stated that she had already set the wheels in motion to remove herself from the documentary before Simmons shared his Instagram post bashing the documentary.

“New information had come forward the very first time this was announced and [I said], ‘I think we need to pull out of Sundance and if we can’t pull out of Sundance, I’m gonna have to take my name off,” Oprah added. “I don’t wanna have to take my name off ’cause it’s gonna a big [deal].'” She said she doesn’t care about awards but just wanted to get it right. “I think there’s some inconsistencies in the stories that we need to look at.”

While she wholeheartedly believes the “women deserve to be heard,” as an executive producer Oprah said she “thought some things were not right. I wanted the context of the story to be broadened. I wanted more women brought into the story.” She made sure to note: “This is not a victory for Russell and I unequivocally say that I did not because of Russell. This is not a victory lap for him. I cannot be silenced by a Russell Simmons after all I’ve been through.”

She also called it “ridiculous” that anyone would suggest that she wasn’t standing up for black people. Watch her clip in full below.

On January 25, the documentary starring Russell Simmons’s sexual assault accusers is set to premiere at The Sundance Film Festival. The already-controversial film was thrust into even more scandal after it was revealed that Oprah Winfrey was acting as an executive producer. Both 50 Cent and Russell Simmons publicly denounced the OWN mogul’s inclusion, and later, Oprah announced that she was distancing herself from the project due to “creative vision” differences. The Def Jam mogul has vehemently denied the sexual misconduct accusations against him.

Vivien Killilea / Stringer / Getty Images

Ahead of the film’s premiere, three women who have accused Simmons of assault—Drew Dixon, Sil Lai Abrams, and Alexia Norton Jones—sat down with CBS This Morning to share their stories. “I hope that black women and girls become more visible as a result of this documentary,” said Dixon. “This is violently tackled and raped — while saying no and fighting and crying.”

“I literally worked for him,” she continued. “He was ordering me a car, and he told me to come upstairs and pick up a demo. I thought I would be in his apartment for five total minutes. That’s it. And he showed up naked, wearing a condom and tackled me to his bed, while I screamed and fought and said, ‘No,’ and cried. That’s rape.”

Abrams said she dated Simmons in the early 1990s and alleges that he raped her, as well. “He’ll say, ‘Yes, we had a sexual relationship,’ but he cannot address the fact that I was too drunk to consent, and that the next day I called him up, screaming,” Abrams stated. “And I attempted suicide. He knew, and I told him why, that he had ruined my life, and that I had nothing.”

Meanwhile, Jones accuses Simmons of raping her in 1991 on their first date. “This was a very swift attack, and what was going through my mind more than anything was, ‘Why?’ Because I liked Russell,” Jones said. “And I, you know, I would’ve just kissed him. I would’ve made out with him. I would’ve — he didn’t have to attack me. He raped me right up against the f*cking wall. Excuse my language. But he — that’s what he did. I had to keep this secret.” Watch the clip below.