Music

Alter Bridge‘s Blackbird first took flight 15 years ago.

The record, released in October 2007, marked the sophomore effort from the group, which featured Creed members Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall and Scott Phillips coming together with vocalist Myles Kennedy. Following their 2004 debut, One Day Remains, Kennedy and company felt they had “a lot to prove” with album #2.

“When that first record came out, people had their opinions on things, and understandably so,” Kennedy tells ABC Audio. “So we were essentially trying to figure out who we were, where we were gonna go, what we were gonna be.”

Part of that included Kennedy expanding from just singing on One Day Remains to playing guitar and writing more on Blackbird.

“I’d been used to being the sole writer with [previous band] The Mayfield Four, and Mark had been used to being the sole guitar player with Creed,” Kennedy explains. “So how do you do this delicate dance in the creative realm? Man, that’s a challenge. But I think somehow we landed on our feet.”

With its epic twin guitar solos played by both Kennedy and Tremonti, the song “Blackbird” became an apt metaphor for that delicate dance. Fittingly, the eight-minute epic has also become one of Alter Bridge’s most beloved songs.

“[I] think of all the fans I’ve seen who have ‘Blackbird’ tattoos on their bodies and share the stories of how that song means so much to them,” Kennedy muses. “Yeah, it’s pretty special. It really makes me grateful.”

Alter Bridge’s latest album, Pawns & Kings, drops October 14.

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It was a big night for music at the 2022 BET Hip Hop Awards!

Hosted by Fat Joe from Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, the 17th annual awards ceremony, which showcases the best performers, producers and more, aired Tuesday night.

Hip hop’s biggest night was jam packed with entertainment including performances from GloRilla, King Combs, Clipse, French Montana, Pusha T, Bleu, and more. Joey Bada$$ also hit the stage as part of a tribute to Hip-Hop’s fallen ones.  

The show also included a tribute to LOUD Records and its trailblazing founder Steve Rifkind, which saw David Banner, Mobb Deep, Lil’ Kim, Wu Tang Clan, Three 6 Mafia, Remy Ma, Lil’ Flip, Dead Prez, and M.O.P, perform. 

Another exciting moment came from the high energy cypher with Baby Tate, Deetranada, Sauce Walka, Topaz Jones, Sa-Roc, Reuben Vincent, Jayson Cash, Guapdad 4000, and Big Boss Vette.

As far as awards, Kendrick Lamar led the pack with six wins including Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for his latest project Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. Drake nabbed three wins including Best Collaboration for “Wait For U” with Future and Tems. The highly sought after Best Hip Hop Platform award was a tie between Yung Miami‘s podcast Caresha Please and the DJ EFN and N.O.R.E. hosted podcast Drink Champs.

Trina took home the “I Am Hip Hop” award and delivered a heartfelt speech, dedicating the award to her 17-year-old niece, Toni “Suga” Chester, who was fatally shot in Miami in July.

To end the eventful night, Fivio Foreign and Lil Tjay blazed the stage with their respectful hits “City of Gods” and “Beat the Odds.”

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Lauv knows taking care of his mental health is key to helping him like himself better, so he’s hoping to give fans a chance to do the same.

The singer announced Tuesday he has partnered with BetterHelp, an online therapy platform, to promote World Mental Health Day. To help as many people as possible, he will be giving away $3 million worth of therapy services.

“I’m super excited to be working with them,” the singer expressed in the video announcement. “Therapy has been … so huge in my mental health journey and I think it’s super helpful, obviously.”

Lauv encouraged his fans — from those who have been able to get therapy to those who don’t have the resources available — to visit BetterHelp.com/Lauv to register. Fans who take advantage of the offer will be matched with a therapist and given access to a month of free therapy.

Lauv added “therapy is a great place to start” in improving one’s mental health and signed off with, “Love u to the moon and back and honored at this opportunity.”

World Mental Health Day is October 10.

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Jordin Sparks is on the new season of Dancing with the Stars on Disney+, and on Monday night, she and her partner Brandon Armstrong got their highest scores yet for their sensual rumba.  But Jordin says DWTS feels a bit like being back on American Idol — once again, she’s asking viewers to vote for her.

She laughs to ABC Audio. “Why am I doing this to myself again? I must love it. I must enjoy this kind of torturous pressure cooker!”  But that’s not the only thing about the competition that’s gives her Idol flashbacks.

Jordin explains, “It’s also insane because it films in the same building that Idol did. So I’m walking down these same hallways…the stage is literally a couple feet away…there’s a lot of feels that go on every week when I’m in that building!”

Jordin finally agreed to do Dancing with the Stars this year, she says, because her son DJ is “old enough to understand mommy has to go rehearse” — and because her husband Dana told her, “You can totally do this!'”

“I really have to commend Dana and also DJ for inspiring me to want to do things that scare me!” she laughs.

Another flashback for Jordin came in August, when she joined Chris Brown at his final tour stop to sing their hit duet “No Air” for the first time in 15 years.

“We’d never been able to perform it live…[in a ] concert venue…and so it was really cool to be able to have that moment and…to sing it as adults!” she laughs. “We were [17] when we recorded that song! Now we have kids, and we know what love is…[so] to be able to sing it again in this phase of our life…it was a moment!”

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Reba McEntire is opening up about taking the relationship dynamics with boyfriend Rex Linn to the screen. 

The couple’s friendship spans decades; they met on the set of Kenny Rogers‘ film The Gambler in 1991 and kept in touch. 

Fate reunited them in 2020 when Reba scored a guest appearance on Young Sheldon, where Rex portrays the principal of the high school that titular character Sheldon Cooper attends. When Rex found out Reba was going to be on the show, he jumped at the chance to reconnect. 

“He texted me, he said, ‘Oh my gosh, let’s do dinner when you get through.’ So we did, and we’ve been together ever since,” Reba recalls. 

Last year, Rex played her love interest in The Hammer, an upcoming movie on Lifetime, and now they’re starring together on Big Sky.  

“We love working together because when we’re at home, we get to practice, rehearse and he’s a rehearsal schedule freak,” Reba describes. “He makes sure I know my lines before I ever go on stage.” 

On season 3 of Big Sky, the country singer steps into the role of Sunny Barnes, the owner of Sunny Day Excursions. Rex plays her husband, Buck Barnes, and while he contributes a “strong” presence, Reba asserts that her character is the one calling the shots.  

“Sunny runs the whole operation. Sunny is very dominating, she’s bossy, but she knows how to work Buck,” Reba explains, calling her character “very devious.” “There’s a lot of things Sunny has to do behind Buck’s back because she don’t want to have to explain herself and she don’t want to have to try to talk him into anything. She’ll get her way.” 

Big Sky airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET. 

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WILLOW is hoping to add an alt-metal icon to her list of collaborators.

Speaking with Kerrang!, the “Transparent Soul” artist shares that she would love to do a song with Deftones frontman Chino Moreno.

“He’s so amazing,” WILLOW says.

Deftones is among the many metal influences on WILLOW’s upcoming album, .

“I love Lamb of God,” WILLOW says. “I love Straight Line Stitch — they’re a great band. Also, the main singer of that band is a Black woman, which I really, really love. Crowbar is an amazing band.”

“Obviously Radiohead — I wouldn’t call them metal, but they were definitely a huge inspiration for this album,” she adds. “And I’ve been listening to a lot of Primus, and I love Les Claypool.”

will be released this Friday, October 7.

Deftones, meanwhile, will headline their annual Dia de Los Deftones festival on November 5 in San Diego. The bill also includes Turnstile and Phantogram.

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Kelly Clarkson saluted Jennifer Lopez on her daytime talk show by choosing to belt out “Waiting for Tonight” during her ending segment, Kellyoke. The singer opted for a super stripped-down version, accompanied by just an acoustic guitar to open the passionate and pining performance before the rest of her band slowly joined.

If you want to channel The Weeknd‘s After Hours era for Halloween — you’re in luck. The hitmaker is out with the official costume, complete with shades, a red jacket and pair of black leather gloves. The Weeknd notes “Halloween is just around the corner” and that people should order the costume on his official website before October 10 so it’ll arrive by Halloween.

Pink is showing off the serious pipes her 11-year-old daughter, Willow, has. The singer shared a video of her daughter playing on a skateboard — and she is wearing a helmet and knee pads — while singing at the top of her lungs. Fans were unable to identify the song and believe this is teasing a new collab between the two, just like their pandemic hit “Cover Me In Sunshine.”

Blake Shelton had the sweetest shout-out for wife Gwen Stefani on her 53rd birthday. Sharing a photo of them walking hand in hand, he wrote, “Happy birthday to my beautiful wife @gwenstefani!!! I love you so freakin much!!!!” Gwen shared the tribute to her Instagram Story and included three red heart emojis. She revealed he also bought her a massive flower bouquet.

Sara Bareilles will support victims of domestic violence at a charity concert set for Thursday, October 6, at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, New York. Proceeds benefit the Pace Women’s Justice Center.  The show starts at 8 p.m. ET. 

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Nia Long shared a message on Instagram Tuesday, the first time the actress has posted to social media since the widespread news of cheating allegations against her longtime partner, Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka.

“A tip for mental health,” Long wrote on her page and shared to her IG Story. “Learn to distinguish who deserves an explanation, who deserves one answer, and who deserves absolutely nothing.”

The post comes nearly two weeks after Udoka’s suspension as head coach, following reports he had an affair with a female Celtics staff member.

Prior to her social post, Long shared a statement with ABC News expressing her gratitude for the support she’s been given amid the rumors. 

“The outpouring love and support from family, friends and the community during this difficult time means so much to me,” she said. “I ask that my privacy be respected as I process the recent events. Above all, I am a mother and will continue to focus on my children.”

The Celtics suspended Udoka from his coaching duties for the 2022-23 season. The organization shared news of the suspension on their website and Twitter account.

“The Boston Celtics announced today that the team has suspended Head Coach Ime Udoka for the 2022-23 season for violations of team policies,” the statement reads. “A decision about his future with the Celtics beyond this season will be made at a later date. The suspension takes effect immediately.”

Long, 51, and Udoka, 45, have been engaged since 2015. They welcomed their son, Kez Sunday, in 2011. 

The award-winning actress once told Essence that while happily engaged to Udoka, she was in no rush to get down the aisle. 

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