Avie Lee Parton’s ‘Smoky Mountain Mama’ (Owepar Entertainment)
It’s well known that Dolly Parton traces her musical talent to her mother’s side of the family, but did you know her mom actually recorded an album?
Avie Lee Parton’s Smoky Mountain Mama record has now been remastered and is available to stream.
The collection of mountain ballads and folk songs was recorded in 1974 and 1979 at Dolly’s urging, as a way to preserve the music the Parton kids had grown up hearing. It didn’t come out until 1990, when it was only available on cassette at Dollywood and through mail-order.
As a teen, Avie Lee sang in a gospel trio with her sisters. She later formed a gospel group with her daughters Willadeen, Stella and Cassie. They recorded an album titled The Parton Family Sings In the Garden, which was reissued in 2024.
Recorded in Nashville, Smoky Mountain Mama features “Little Rosewood Casket,” which morphed into “Rosewood Casket” for Dolly, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris’ first Trio album in 1987.
Dolly’s often championed her mother’s significant impact on her life, once telling Jennifer Nettles that Avie Lee was “me without the glitter” when she played her in a TV movie.
Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson in the upcoming film ‘Michael.’ (Lionsgate)
It seems progress is being made on a sequel to the Michael Jackson biopic Michael.
Lionsgate Studios Motion Picture Chair Adam Fogelson said he’s “really excited about the progress we’re making” on a sequel to Michael during the company’s quarterly earnings call on Thursday.
“All the conversations that we’ve been having with all of the appropriate parties continue to go exceptionally well, and I would say that there is a ton of incredibly entertaining Michael Jackson story, and much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalog that were not touched upon in the first film,” Fogelson said on the call.
As for what events from Jackson’s life would be covered in a potential second film, Fogelson said the studio “can go forwards and backwards in telling this story.”
“There are so many other events that happened, even in the time frame of the original movie, that weren’t touched upon. So we’re very, very confident that we’ve got an incredibly entertaining movie that will appeal once again to a global audience as the pieces come together,” Fogelson said.
The Lionsgate executive also said the studio has “25% to 30% of a second movie already shot from the prior production activity.”
“Obviously that will have some benefit ultimately. But we’ll make sure we make a big and satisfying movie for a global audience once again, so I wouldn’t want to quantify exactly what that’s going to look like. But undoubtedly that 25% to 30% will be material,” Fogelson said.
Michael opened in theaters on April 24. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film starred the King of Pop’s nephew Jaafar Jackson and also featured Colman Domingo, Miles Teller and Nia Long.
Madonna on stage at the first London concert of her Confessions world tour held at Wembley Arena. (Justin Goff Photos/Getty Images)
Madonna is going to release a sequel to her 2005 album, Confessions on a Dance Floor, so would it be so strange for her to do a sequel to her 2006 Confessions Tour?
The Confessions Tour kicked off May 21, 2006 — exactly 20 years ago Thursday — and Madonna paid tribute to it on Instagram by posting a montage of scenes of herself onstage during that trek. She wrote in the caption, “Happy 20th anniversary!! Confessions Tour-Part 1.”
The words “Part 1” grabbed fans’ attention, with one commenting, “TOUR PART ONE???!?” and another writing, “COME ON NEW TOUR!”
After he was initially misquoted as saying that he wasn’t sure she’d ever tour again, he later clarified, “That’s ridiculous. Of course she will tour again. She wants to share her music with her fans. Not sure yet the plans. Stay tuned!”
Madonna’s most recent outing was her Celebration Tour, which ran from 2023 to 2024 and grossed over $225 million.
President Donald Trump speaks at an event with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin on May 21, 2026 in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Al Drago for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) — President Donald Trump said on Friday he will not be attending his son Donald Trump’s Jr.’s wedding this weekend, and that he will stay at the White House instead.
“While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr., and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so,” Trump wrote in a social media post.
“I feel it is important for me to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during this important period of time,” Trump added. “Congratulations to Don and Bettina!”
Trump previously said he would “try” and make his son’s wedding this weekend, which is reportedly taking place in the Bahamas — though he said the event is “not good timing” for him given his responsibilities surrounding the war in Iran.
During an event in the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump said his son wants him to come his wedding with fiancée Bettina Anderson but that the president has “a thing called Iran — and other things.”
“He’d like me to go, but it’s going to be just a small, little private affair, and I’m going to try and make it,” Trump said. “This is not good timing for me. I have a thing called Iran and other things. That’s one I can’t win on.”
“If I do attend, I get killed. If I don’t attend, I get killed by the fake news,” Trump said. “Hopefully they’re going to have a great marriage.”
Donald Trump Jr. is the eldest son of the president who has five children with his ex-wife, Vanessa Trump.
Vanessa Trump announced on Instagram Thursday that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Nicki Minaj attends the world premiere of Amazon MGM’s “Melania” at The Trump-Kennedy Center on January 29, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Taylor Hill/WireImage)
Nicki Minaj showed support for Elon Musk Thursday by attending SpaceX’s test flight in Texas, where the company planned to launch its Starship rocket, testing its capabilities and durability.
Nicki appeared the on the SpaceX livestream, wearing a T-shirt with a Starship graphic, and encouraged fans to join her. “Barbz, come on down, because this is a lot of fun. I’m excited,” she said. “This is historic, this is a major moment y’all.”
She also noted that it was her first time attending a rocket launch.
“Major shoutout to Elon,” she continued.
Nicki later shared a video of herself posing and dancing in the outfit on X, captioning the post, “Even did a lil video for the Barbz. #Starbase#Starships.”
The launch was canceled after “the hydraulic pin holding the tower arm in place did not retract,” Elon later explained on X.
He’s the latest public figure Nicki has publicly supported, alongside President Donald Trump, a topic she addressed in a recent interview with TIME.
“Many celebrities feel the way I do, but they don’t say it,” she said of her support of Trump. “Sometimes you just need one brave person to get the brunt of the impact. I think I am the catalyst for that change.”
“Hopefully when they see me and hear me speak and feel my energy,” she continued, “that will make them say, ‘You know what: Who am I afraid of? What am I afraid of?’”
Charlie Heaton as Charles Shelby in the ‘Peaky Blinders’ sequel series. (Robert Viglasky/Netflix/BBC)
We now know who Charlie Heaton will play in the Peaky Blinders universe.
Netflix and the BBC have revealed that Heaton is set to play Tommy Shelby’s eldest son in the upcoming Peaky Blinders sequel series. A photo of Heaton on set in costume as Charles Shelby has been released along with the announcement.
Heaton’s character had been a mystery since his casting was announced in April. Jamie Bell also joins the sequel series, taking over the role of Charles’ half brother, Duke, who was originally portrayed by Barry Keoghan.
The upcoming Peaky Blinders sequel series is written and created by Steven Knight. It is currently being filmed in and around Digbeth Loc. Studios in Birmingham, England.
This new Peaky Blinders era is set a decade after World War II. It follows the race to rebuild Birmingham as it becomes “a brutal contest of mythical dimensions,” according to a description from Netflix.
“Having fought a violent war, much of it behind enemy lines, Charles Shelby is now embracing normality. He hasn’t seen his half-brother Duke … in years. Charles severed all ties to the Peaky Blinders gang, and the hedonistic Shelby lifestyle. But can you ever escape your own blood?” the show’s logline reads.
Jessica Brown Findlay, Lashana Lynch and Lucy Karczewski are also set to star in the series, in roles that Netflix says will be revealed at a later date.
A medical staff member disinfects a quarantine room in an Ebola treatment center in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 21, 2026. (Str/Xinhua via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The Ebola outbreak in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is “spreading rapidly,” the head of the World Health Organization warned during a press briefing on Friday.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the U.N. health agency has upgraded its risk assessment for spread at the national level from “high” to “very high.” At the regional level, the risk remains “high” while the global level is still “low.”
There have been almost 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths from Ebola in the DRC, the WHO said in a post on X.
So far, at least 82 cases of Ebola have been confirmed in DRC as well as seven deaths, but Tedros said “we know the epidemic in the DRC is much larger.”
Tedros described the situation in Uganda as “stable” with two cases confirmed in people who traveled from the DRC, with one death.
The epicenter of the current outbreak is in a “highly insecure” area — the DRC’s eastern provinces of North Kivu and Ituri — where ongoing armed conflict has sparked a displacement crisis, according to Tedros.
The WHO chief also acknowledged a “security incident” that took place Thursday in Ituri in which “medical tents and supplies were set on fire.” He noted that building trust in the local communities is “critical.”
The WHO’s representative in the DRC, Dr. Anne Ancia, who appeared from the field via video link during the press briefing, said Thursday’s incident “significantly jeopardized” the Ebola response operations her team is trying to initiate in the hotspot area.
She noted that there is still very low contact tracing in Ituri, particularly the city of Bunia, but that there was better contact tracing happening in North Kivu.
So far, one American has contracted Ebola in relation to the outbreak. Dr. Peter Stafford tested positive after treating patients in the eastern DRC.
He was evacuated to Germany and is currently being treated at Charite University Hospital in Berlin in an isolation ward, the hospital said.
Stafford’s wife and children, who are considered high-risk contacts, are also at the hospital and are currently in quarantine in a separate section of ward. The family is symptom free, according to the hospital.
The hospital said that Stafford does not currently require intensive care but is “severely weakened” from his illness.
Kelly Rowland attends Art Of Glam: Honoring The Hands Behind The Beauty at Maybourne Beverly Hills on March 11, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Tullberg/Getty Images)
Chaka Khan and Kelly Rowland will be among the honorees of The Connie Orlando Foundation Presents Black Women in Music Dinner, taking place June 12 at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion in Los Angeles.
Chaka will receive the Vanguard Award in recognition of her legendary music career and lasting influence across generations and genres.
Kelly will be presented with the Velvet Guard Award, honoring “her artistry and presence that have become woven into the fabric of culture” when she’s presented the Velvet Guard Award.
Also set to be honored are music executive Natina Nimene; veteran music journalist and Billboard editor-at-large Gail Mitchell; producer, engineer, musician and A&R executive Ebonie Smith; and choreographer Fatima Robinson, whose credits include work with Michael Jackson, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige.
“Each of these women represents something profound, not just in music, but in the way they’ve carried themselves, led others, and left this industry better than they found it. I am so honored to celebrate them,” Connie Orlando wrote on Instagram.
According to the website, the event serves as a “celebration of excellence, a testament to the [Black women] trailblazers who have paved the way.” The event will also raise funds for breast cancer prevention, research and care through education, resources and support initiatives.
Sir Elton John, winner of The Ivors Academy Honor, poses at The 71st Ivor Novello Awards 2026 on May 21, 2026 in London, England. (Jed Cullen/Dave Benett/Getty Images for The Ivors)
Elton John got an honor that nobody has ever received before Thursday in London.
He was named the first-ever president of The Ivors Academy, a U.K. not-for-profit that works to support, empower and celebrate songwriters and composers. The Academy also hands out the Ivor Novello Awards aka the Ivors, which honor Britain and Ireland’s best songwriters.
Elton got the honor because he’s “reached the pinnacle” of his profession and is “committed to giving back by supporting the community and advancing the Academy’s mission to protect the future of music.” It’s an ambassadorial role, which will see Elton advocate for rights and recognition for music creators worldwide.
In addition to being named president, Elton was given an Ivors Academy Honour, a special award that recognizes his work in championing new and emerging talent, which he does each week through his Apple Music show, the Rocket Hour.
Accepting his awards, Elton said, “To be able to write a song, it is such a personal, wonderful thing. … We’re an amazing country that produces great songwriting. … The new music that I hear inspires me, and I can’t thank them enough for keeping me young.”
At the event on Thursday, Harry Styles was on hand to pay tribute to his musical hero, Thom Yorke of Radiohead. The late George Michael was also honored.
Tulsi Gabbard, director of National Intelligence, following a prime-time address to the nation in the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from her post, a source familiar confirmed to ABC News on Friday.
The news was first reported by Fox News.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
