Babyface and wife Nicole announce divorce after seven years of marriage

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

After seven years of marriage, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds and his wife Nicole Pantenburg have announced their decision to divorce.

In a joint statement to TMZ on Tuesday, the 62-year-old singer and 48-year-old actress said, “After much thought and with great sadness, we have decided to end our marriage. We continue to care and have respect for one another and share eternal love for our daughter and her well-being.”

“We ask for personal privacy for ourselves and our daughter as we navigate these new steps as a family,” they concluded.

Babyface and Nicole married in 2014 after dating for over seven years. They share one daughter, 12-year-old Peyton Nicole.

Prior to Nicole, the R&B singer was married to Tracey Edmonds from 1992 until 2005. They share two sons, Brandon and Dylan.

Garth Brooks sets sights on Baltimore for the next-announced date on the Stadium Tour

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Garth Brooks is headed to Baltimore this fall. The country superstar has announced his first performance in the city for six years, as well as the first time he’s ever played MT+T Bank Stadium.

The show is set for October 2, and tickets go on sale Friday, July 23 at 10 a.m. ET. Those hoping to attend should plan to snag their seats fast, because the Stadium Tour dates Garth has announced so far this year have sold out at a whiplash-inducing rate.

Back in May, fans snapped up 50,000 seats to Garth’s July Salt Lake City show just under 30 minutes after the event went on sale. Not long after, Garth sold 70,000 tickets in the first 47 minutes after sales opened for his Lincoln, Nebraska show. According to the website for football team the Baltimore Ravens, MT+T Bank Stadium has a capacity of 71,000.

Garth has spent much of this summer getting Stadium Tour dates back on the books after the past year’s pandemic-induced touring hiatus. He’s officially back in action as of last weekend, kicking off the tour with a sold-out show in Las Vegas.

As always for Garth’s stadium shows, tickets to his Baltimore set will cost $94.95 all-inclusive. The show will feature in-the-round seating.

Da Baby leaves Twitter divided over interaction with kids trying to sell him candy

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Da Baby has left Twitter at odds after an interaction between him and two kids selling candy made its rounds on the internet.

The moment, which was captured on video, shows the “Masterpiece” rapper holding a wad of cash and approaching the two boys, who say they’re selling Skittles and Gushers in exchange for donations.

“How much for the whole box?” DaBaby asks, to which the young man holding the Skittles box replies, “$200,” despite each unit being only $2 apiece.

He gets the same answer when he asks the other boy how much for his box of Gushers.

After a laugh, Da Baby does the math. “You made $400 off that and you selling them for $2? Let’s count ’em. What’s 34 times two? It ain’t $200. It ain’t even $100. That’s $68,” he explained, before eventually giving them about $4 for some Gushers.

Even though the 29-year-old rapper paid full price for the candy, many took issue with the fact that he didn’t give them more. Others defended the rapper, stating that had the boys not been greedy they probably would have received a generous donation.

“I know y’all did not made [sic] them kids wanting $200 from Da Baby for that candy about integrity. I know y’all didn’t. Not when this generation of rappers flaunts their wealth in the most disgusting ways in front of these same kids who support them,” one Twitter user retorted.

Another commented, “I’m like 99.9% sure if those kids would have gave Da Baby regular price candy he would have blessed them. Nobody likes getting finessed, because now it’s on the floor.”

Thinking out (very) loud: Cradle of Filth frontman responds to Ed Sheeran’s apparent love of death metal

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100

First we had Justin Bieber wearing a Metallica shirt, and now we have apparent death metal fan Ed Sheeran.

The U.K. tabloid The Sun quotes the “Shape of You” and “Castle on the Hill” singer professing his childhood love for bands including Slipknot and Cradle of Filth, adding that he “would not be opposed” to recording a metal album of his own.

“I’m not saying I could ever step into that world,” the quote reads. “I learnt all those riffs on guitar as a kid. That’s something I’ve never thought about doing — but something I would not be opposed to creating.”

It’s unclear where exactly that quote came from, but needless to say, the idea of a death metal Ed Sheeran album has certainly raised a few eyebrows, including those of Cradle frontman Dani Filth.

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Filth wrote in an Instagram post, though he doesn’t seem totally opposed to the idea.

“Fellow Suffolk lad could come good in the end,” he added, referring to he and Sheeran’s mutual home county in England. “‘Dracula’s Castle on the Hill’ anyone?”

Sheeran, by the way, has hinted at his inner metalhead in the past. In 2018, he ran into Korn‘s Brian “Head” Welch and James “Munky” Shaffer at a Marilyn Manson concert, and he covered Iron Maiden and Limp Bizkit during a 2015 Tonight Show segment.

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CCR drummer Cosmo Clifford releasing archival 1986 collaborative album recorded with late Greg Kihn bassist

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ex-Creedence Clearwater Revival drummer Doug “Cosmo” Clifford has debuted the title track from an upcoming album of previously unreleased archival recordings called For All the Money in the World that he made in 1986 with late Greg Kihn Band bassist Steve Wright.

The upbeat pop-rock song got its premiere Tuesday on The Aquarian Weekly‘s official website and is available now as a digital download and via streaming services.

The For All the Money in the World album is the first in a series of archival project Clifford is planning to release via his new CliffSongs Records label under the Cosmo’s Vaults moniker.

It features 11 tracks co-written by Clifford and Wright, and boasts contributions from a variety of guest musicians, including guitar-whiz Joe Satriani, as well as keyboardist Pat Mosca and guitarists Jimmy Lyon and Greg Douglass, all of whom played with The Greg Kihn Band around that time. Lead vocals were handled by a singer named Keith England.

Speaking to The Aquarian Weekly about the newly released single, Clifford notes, “‘For All the Money in the World’ has a very nice uptempo groove and it’s a love song, as well.”

Regarding the album in general, Doug says, “It’s a rock ‘n’ roll album, that’s for sure, but it covers many different [rock] genres.”

Wright, who died in 2017, co-wrote many Greg Kihn Band songs, including their two biggest hits — “The Breakup Song (They Don’t Write ‘Em)” and “Jeopardy.” He and Clifford both grew up in the same California town, El Cerrito, and had known each other since they were young, before finally collaborating together during the ’80s.

For All the Money in the World will be released on August 27, and can be pre-ordered now.

Here’s the album’s track list:

“For All the Money in the World”
“I Need Your Love”
“She Told Me So”
“Lost Pride Fever”
“I See Your Silhouette”
“Real Love”
“You Keep Runnin’ Away”
“Just in the Nick of Time”
“Weekends”
“Lonesome Boy”
“You’re Gonna Love Again”

Ruby Rose reveals the real reason she left ‘Batwoman’

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Photo: Bettina Strauss/The CW — © 2020 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

Ruby Rose shocked fans in May of last year with the announcement that she would be leaving the groundbreaking CW series Batwoman after just one season. Now she’s finally revealed why.

During an interview on Australia’s The Kyle and Jackie O Show, the 35-year-old actress and model said the real reason she stepped down from her role as Kate Kane was because she was allergic to her latex costume.

“I did find out that I was allergic to latex…unfortunately, my mask is latex,” Rose explained. “I was getting worse and worse, because as you get more contact with it, I guess you get more reactions. I took off the [mask] at the end, and my face was just hives. My throat was all messed up.”

Adds the Australian actress, “It was like it was out of a scary movie.”

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly last year, the Orange Is the New Black alum cited a back injury she suffered while filming Batwoman as the reason for leaving the show.

“I was told I needed an emergency surgery or I was risking becoming paralyzed. I had herniated two discs doing stunts, and they were close to severing my spinal cord,” she revealed back then.

Rose made history as the first lesbian superhero to be cast in a scripted live-action TV series.

Kate Kane was recast with 26-year-old English actress Wallis Day. Javicia Leslie assumed the role of Ryan Wilder/Batwoman, becoming the first Black woman to play the crime fighter.

Don Cheadle, Sonequa Martin-Green share “the fun” and message behind ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

It wasn’t much of a challenge for Iron Man star Don Cheadle to go from superhero to a Looney Tunes supervillain in his new film Space Jam: A New Legacy.

Cheadle, who plays Al-G Rhythm, a tyrannical computer A.I. who hopes to “delete” his competition, says his “evil” Space Jam character isn’t as bad as everyone makes him out to be.

“I think he’s still the good guy,” Cheadle tells ABC Audio. “I’ve played all kinds of guys: good guys, bad guys, unscrupulous characters. Al-G was a lot of fun.”

It was also “a lot of fun” for Sonequa Martin-Green to take on her role of Kamiyah, a character loosely based on LeBron James‘ wife, Savannah. Martin-Green says she “appreciated the way her character was written” because she’s the “matriarch” and “nucleus” of the family.

“You get to see the strength and ferocity met with the grace and the patience,” says Sonequa. “And you see this woman navigating perfectly in and out of these relationships, knowing exactly how to say what, and when to say it… And I think it pays homage to Savannah.”

While both actors can agree that the compelling characters are what make the film authentic and entertaining, Cheadle notes that it’s the messages in the film that provide the important takeaway.

“It’s about individualism and letting people be who they’re going to be,” he says. “Not trying to dictate who people have to be so that you feel comfortable.”

Cheadle continues, “Even as a dad, being a father, that’s one of the biggest challenges… So… it’s about people being who they want to be and letting people experience their lives for themselves and supporting that as a parent at all costs.”

Space Jam: New Legacy hits theaters on Friday.

For whom the bell tolls: Metallica announces 40th anniversary concerts

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Metallica has announced a pair of concerts to celebrate the band’s 40th anniversary this year.

The shows will take place December 17 and 19 at the Chase Center in the metal legends’ hometown of San Francisco. The venue was also the site of ‘Tallica’s 2019 S&M2 concerts, which were accompanied by the San Francisco Symphony.

Tickets will be available exclusively for members of Metallica’s Fifth Member fan club. If you are a member, you’ll be able to enter a raffle to win a reservation code to purchase tickets, which will be sent out randomly.

If you happen to be in the S.F. area but couldn’t secure tickets to the big shows, Metallica will also hosting a series of live music and comedy events, as well as tastings for their Blackened Whiskey, throughout the city starting December 16.

For more info, visit Metallica.com.

Metallica was formed in 1981 when James Hetfield met Lars Ulrich after the drummer posted a newspaper ad looking to start a band.

Meanwhile, Metallica will also celebrate another big milestone when their 1991 self-titled record, aka The Black Album, turns 30 in August. That anniversary will be celebrated with a remastered deluxe reissue, as well as a 53-track tribute compilation dubbed The Metallica Blacklist.

Devastating wildfire conditions in West expected to worsen

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ty O’Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — The already devastating wildfire conditions in the West are expected to worsen Wednesday as the region sees an increase of gusty, dry winds — which is fuel for fire.

More than 60 wildfires are burning across the West. Red flag warnings and heat advisories have been issued in Northern California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

Wildfire season has only just begun, but there are already 14,000 firefighters on the front lines.

In the Pacific Northwest, the Wednesday forecast shows winds gusting up to 35 mph, temperatures soaring near 105 degrees and relative humidity falling to 7%.

The Bootleg Fire in Klamath County, Oregon, is currently the nation’s largest wildfire, clocking in at over 200,000 acres, ABC Portland affiliate KATU reported.

In Nespelem, Washington, all residents were evacuated as a wildfire caused by lightning raced across town, The Spokesman-Review reported.

In Madera County, California, local authorities have declared a state of emergency as the River Fire ravages the area. The blaze has covered 9,500 acres and is 15% contained, according to Cal Fire.

“The extreme heat and winds have proven to be challenging for not only fire personnel, but those working to support those efforts,” Sheriff Tyson Pogue said Tuesday. “This proclamation will provide much needed resources to support our community.”

The massive fires have sent smoke halfway across the country, reaching as far as the Upper Midwest and the Great Lakes. Air quality alerts have been issued from Colorado to Minnesota.

G-Eazy & Carlos Santana team with Diane Warren for new song “She’s Fire”

July 14, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Under “unexpected collaborations,” you can put “She’s Fire,” a new track from famed songwriter Diane Warren‘s debut album that features rapper G-Eazy and legendary rock guitarist Carlos Santana.

“I’m so excited for everyone to hear ‘She’s Fire!!'” Diane said in a statement. “To be able to work with Carlos Santana has always been a dream of mine…I’ve also been very much wanting to collaborate with G-Eazy and this seemed like the perfect song for the two of them to do together. I expected it to be great, and it turned out even better than I imagined, pure fire.”

Diane’s album Diane Warren: The Cave Sessions Vol. 1. will be out later this year, and features collaborations with artists including Celine Dion, John Legend and many others. The first advance track came out this past November. Called “Times Like These,” it features vocals by Darius Rucker of Hootie & the Blowfish.

Diane’s long list of credits and achievements include nine number-one hits and 32 top-10 singles. She’s also been nominated for the Best Original Song Oscar 12 times, most recently earlier this year. Among the hits she’s composed: Aerosmith‘s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” Starship‘s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” Cher‘s “If I Could Turn Back Time,” Toni Braxton‘s “Unbreak My Heart,” and LeAnn Rimes‘ “How Do I Live.”

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