Drake is apologising for lashing out at Rolling Stone for replacing him on the cover with the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. The 27-year-old wrote on his blog on Friday: "I completely support and agree with Rolling Stone" putting the actor on the magazine's latest cover. He calls Hoffman "legendary". Drake added that Thursday was "an emotional day"; he titled the post "Tough Day at the Office". He tweeted Thursday that he was "disgusted" that Rolling Stone put Hoffman on its cover and he was finished doing magazine interviews. — AP
Highway premieres at Berlinale
Highway, the kidnap drama starring Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda, premiered in the Panorama section of the Berlin Film Festival on Thursday. In attendance were the lead stars, the director Imtiaz Ali and the composer AR Rahman. "This is the first time that a movie of mine is at an international film festival. I couldn't have asked for a better one," Ali said in a statement. "It was overwhelming to stand on stage at the Zoo Palast and announce the first show of Highway." The film, produced by Window Seat Films and presented by Sajid Nadiadwala, is out in the UAE on February 20. — The National staff
Now 49 compilation tops Billboard
The latest edition of the Now That's What I Call Music! franchise featuring hits by Lorde and Katy Perry debuted at the top of this week's Billboard 200 album chart, pushing the Frozen film soundtrack off its pedestal. The 21-track compilation also includes songs by Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga and Britney Spears. Meanwhile Bruno Mars' album Unorthodox Jukebox continued to benefit from his recent Super Bowl exposure by climbing four spots to No 3. — Reuters
House of Cards accepts Obama’s endorsement
Barack Obama's latest playful executive order is a tweeted effort to limit House of Cards plot spoilers. The second season of the political thriller about a power-hungry Washington couple premiered in its entirety Friday on Netflix. Obama's official Twitter account notes the occasion along with the request: "No spoilers, please." Cast members revelled in the real-life president's support at a premiere event on Thursday. Robin Wright, who plays the wife of Kevin Spacey's vice president-to-be Frank Underwood, says Obama "knows good stuff". And Kate Mara, who plays reporter Zoe Barnes, double-checked the authenticity of the tweet before celebrating. She calls Obama's message "one of the coolest things that's happened to me". – AP