Ed Sheeran just wrote a new song for BTS, but the group’s current single has outperformed Ed’s new song on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Butter” has racked up a sixth week at number one, while Ed’s “Bad Habits” enters the chart at number five. According to Billboard, “Butter’s” staying power is thanks to several new versions and remixes, plus the sales of the vinyl and cassette versions of the single, which recently became available.
The song Ed wrote for BTS, “Permission to Dance,” will be released on Friday as part of a “Butter” EP.
As for Ed, “Bad Habits” is now his eighth Billboard Hot 100 top 10 in the U.S., and his first since 2019’s Justin Bieber collaboration, “I Don’t Care.”
“Bad Habits” is also doing well on Billboard charts that only measure radio airplay. “Habits” has jumped from #23 to #10 on the Pop Airplay chart and from #21 to #13 on the Adult Pop Airplay Chart. Meanwhile, it debuts at number 15, a career best for Ed, on the Adult Contemporary chart.
(WASHINGTON) — After years of legal wrangling, the Department of Defense has canceled its cloud-computing contract with Microsoft that could have been worth $10 billion.
The contract to build a cloud-computing system for the Pentagon was the subject of a lengthy legal battle, as Amazon alleged it was passed over for the lucrative deal due to political reasons.
The Department of Defense did not mention the legal battle, but said the contract was canceled due to evolving requirements, tech advances and different needs than when the contract was first offered.
“With the shifting technology environment, it has become clear that the JEDI Cloud contract, which has long been delayed, no longer meets the requirements to fill the DoD’s capability gaps,” a DoD spokesperson said in a statement.
Instead, the Pentagon will now offer deals to Microsoft and Amazon Web Services — the only companies cleared to meet the military’s security requirements — for individual contracts for specific needs.
The Jedi Cloud can be thought of as the military’s classified version of Apple’s iCloud where information could be stored securely and shared across the military’s computer system.
Amazon and Microsoft did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment Tuesday after the news broke.
(NEW YORK) — Crude oil prices briefly reached their highest levels in six years early Tuesday before retreating slightly, as surging post-pandemic oil demand and fizzled talks among producers casts new volatility over energy markets.
Futures on West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. crude benchmark, were trading at $73.32 a barrel by midday Tuesday after topping $76.90 a barrel earlier. The price of WTI crude has skyrocketed by more than 50% since the beginning of the year.
Futures on Brent crude, the international benchmark, was $74.50 by midday Tuesday, a slight fall from its early morning high of $77.82. Since the beginning of the year, prices for Brent crude have climbed more than 45%.
The volatility comes as the waning pandemic is leading to a surge in demand for oil as industries reopen and global travel bounces back. In addition, a meeting of members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries scheduled for Monday was abruptly called off. In a brief statement, OPEC Secretary General HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo did not give a reason for the last-minute cancellation, saying the date of the next meeting will be decided “in due course.” The oil producers were expected to discuss increases in production after failing to reach an agreement last week.
Americans are also seeing no relief from soaring gas prices at the pump. On Tuesday, the national average gasoline price was $3.13 per gallon, according to American Automobile Association data.
Moreover, the AAA predicts that gas prices will increase another 10 to 20 cents per gallon through the end of August, bringing the national average to more than $3.25 later this summer.
“Robust gasoline demand and more expensive crude oil prices are pushing gas prices higher,” Jeanette McGee, an AAA spokesperson, said in a statement. “We had hoped that global crude production increases would bring some relief at the pump this month, but weekend OPEC negotiations fell through with no agreement reached. As a result, crude prices are set to surge to a seven year-high.”
States that saw the largest weekly increases at the pump include Idaho (which saw an average increase of 10 cents), Alaska (a 9 cent increase) as well as Washington, Oregon and Colorado (which all saw an increase of 7 cents).
The AAA noted that the last time the national average gas price was $3.25 was in October 2014.
Gas prices have been steadily climbing since the beginning of the year. The national average on Tuesday was 95 cents higher on average than during the same time period one year ago.
LucyHale, who recently celebrated Pretty Little Liars‘ 11th anniversary, wishes nothing but the best for the show’s upcoming reboot.
Speaking with ABC Audio, the actress weighed in on Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin — a reboot that comes not even four years after PLL aired its final episode on Freeform.
“I personally don’t have a problem with it. This is the honest truth,” said Hale, who starred as Aria Montgomery in the original series. “I’m very curious to see what it is even going to be [about]… I don’t know if it’s the same characters or the same storyline or what’s even happening!”
“I love Pretty Little Liars, so I think I’ll like the reboot,” Hale continued. “I wish them well. I truly do. I hope it’s a major success.”
Hale, 32, noted that reboots allow new actors to get their start in Hollywood and, as a reminder to PLL fans, referenced her own big break.
“I’ve been a part of reboots, I did the Bionic Woman reboot,” she explained, referring to the 2007 re-do of the series that originally ran between 1976 and 1978. Hale played Becca Somers, the teenage sister of the titular character.
“I know some friends that have been a part of reboots and got trashed for even being a part of it, but I think as an artist, you always have to be supportive of other people,” Lucy continued.
Hale, who recently partnered with the sustainable dog food brand KARMA, said the reboot will allow more people falling in love with Pretty Little Liars.
“I think a lot of people will be discovering it for the first time, too, like they won’t even know the original people, which is really funny,” she smiled. “I only have well wishes for everyone involved.”
Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
After paying tribute to Tommy Lee, Post Malone is now turning his attention to all of Mötley Crüe.
According to an Instagram message from the “Circles” artist’s manager Dre London, Post is premiering a new track called “Motley Crew” — spelled correctly, dictionary-wise, and with no umlauts — this Friday, July 9.
Post, a big hard rock and metal fan, released a song called “Tommy Lee” last summer with hip-hop artist Tyla Yaweh. He also collaborated with the Mötley drummer on a remix of the track.
You can listen to “Motley Crew” the song while you wait for Mötley Crüe the band to launch their long-awaited reunion tour, which is set to finally kick off in 2022 after being postponed from 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
More details are emerging on Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton’s wedding, which took place at Blake’s Oklahoma ranch on Saturday.
The Voice host Carson Daly revealed he officiated the ceremon — a fitting choice, given Gwen and Blake met on the set of The Voice back in 2014.
“It was incredible to be a part of such an important moment in their lives. The ceremony was a perfect blend of country and glamour, of course, just like Blake and Gwen,” Carson said on the Today show Tuesday.
Carson also divulged that Gwen wrote her own vows and Blake wrote a song for Gwen in place of vows, bringing everyone to tears. Carson shared photos on Instagram, writing, “Here comes the bride … so honored to get to marry two of my favorite people on earth. May God bless you guys in this new chapter of your lives. We love you!”
Gwen wore two custom Vera Wang gowns for her special day — one for the ceremony and one for the reception. According to People, the veil she wore for the ceremony was embroidered with her and Blake’s names, as well as the names of her three sons: Kingston, Zuma and Apollo.
The reception dress was adorned with two love birds symbolizing Gwen and Blake, and three birds representing her children. She paired both looks with stiletto cowboy boots.
Blake, meanwhile, mixed fancy with casual, pairing a tuxedo top with blue jeans on the bottom.
Christopher Polk/E! Entertainment/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
More details are emerging on Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton’s wedding, which took place at Blake’s Oklahoma ranch on Saturday.
The Voice host Carson Daly revealed he officiated the ceremon — a fitting choice, given Gwen and Blake met on the set of The Voice back in 2014.
“It was incredible to be a part of such an important moment in their lives. The ceremony was a perfect blend of country and glamour, of course, just like Blake and Gwen,” Carson said on the Today show Tuesday.
Carson also divulged that Gwen wrote her own vows and Blake wrote a song for Gwen in place of vows, bringing everyone to tears. Carson shared photos on Instagram, writing, “Here comes the bride … so honored to get to marry two of my favorite people on earth. May God bless you guys in this new chapter of your lives. We love you!”
Gwen wore two custom Vera Wang gowns for her special day — one for the ceremony and one for the reception. According to People, the veil she wore for the ceremony was embroidered with her and Blake’s names, as well as the names of her three sons: Kingston, Zuma and Apollo.
The reception dress was adorned with two love birds symbolizing Gwen and Blake, and three birds representing her children. She paired both looks with stiletto cowboy boots.
Blake, meanwhile, mixed fancy with casual, pairing a tuxedo top with blue jeans on the bottom.
Britney Spears‘ lawyer is planning to resign today, TMZ reports.
Sam Ingham, who has been Britney’s court-appointed attorney during her conservatorship, plans to file legal documents asking to be dismissed. Sources tell TMZ that Ingham wants out because he’s upset that Britney told a judge last month that she never knew that she could ask for her conservatorship to be ended. Ingham maintains he’s always told Britney she could, but that she never wanted to.
While sources tell TMZ that Britney did tell Ingham she wanted her dad, Jamie Spears, removed from the conservatorship, she never told him she wanted to end the conservatorship itself. And because Ingham is legally required to inform Britney of her options — which he insists he did — he’s now angry that Britney claimed in court that he never provided her with this information.
As previously reported, Britney’s longtime manager, Larry Rudolph, has resigned, citing Britney’s plans to “retire.” In addition, the wealth management company Bessemer Trust has resigned from the conservatorship, citing Britney’s desire for it to end. In court, Britney called the conservatorship “abusive” and said it was causing her “way more harm than good.”
Sources tell TMZ that at the next court hearing, the remaining members of the conservatorship team will present evidence to the judge that contradicts some of the things Britney said in court.
After making an appearance on G Herbo’s new album, 25, Lil Tjay revealed he has a track with Dreamville artist Bas and label head J. Cole dropping this Friday.
The “Calling My Phone” rapper filmed himself riding around in a Bentley while listening to the unreleased track in a Triller video he shared on Instagram Monday.
“My body different stop…playing with me lol. ‘[The] Jackie’ dropping July 9th @bas @realcoleworld,” Tjay wrote in the caption.
According to another series of Instagram photos, Lil Tjay, Bas, and J. Cole linked up earlier this month to shoot what appears to be a music video for the unreleased track, which Tjay calls the “song of the summer.”
Queens-based rapper Bas signed to J. Cole’s Dreamville label in 2014. He released three studio albums and recently appeared on Cole’s album, The Off Season, which topped the Billboard 200 album chart in May.
Machine Gun Kelly‘s Downfall is continuing through the summer.
During a recent Instagram Live session, captured by a fan and posted to YouTube, the “Bloody Valentine” rocker revealed that he’s planning to release new music in August.
“I’ll be…getting ready for the next album rollout and this tour,” Kelly said. “I’m excited for the album. Me and Travis, we got back in, and everything’s just falling into place and I feel really happy with everything.”
Travis, we presume, refers to Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, who executive-produced MGK’s 2020 pop-punk album Tickets to My Downfall. Kelly will launch a headlining tour in support of the record in September.
Kelly’s been keeping the new music train rolling in 2021 with a number of one-off singles and collaborations, including “Love Race” featuring Sleeping with Sirens‘ Kellin Quinn.
