Drew Baldridge’s “Love Needs You” (BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville)
Drew Baldridge will launch his Farm Faith Family Tour June 11 in Omaha, Nebraska.
He’ll play a total of 14 shows before he wraps Oct. 18 in Newport Beach, California, with Alyssa Flaherty and Chase Right joining him on the run.
Meanwhile, fans can look forward to the arrival of his new song, “Love Needs You,” on Friday.
It was inspired by the beginnings of his romance with his wife, Katie Baldridge, in Patoka, Illinois.
“We’d drive the backroads past the farm, windows down, listening to country songs like Randy Travis’ ‘Deeper Than the Holler’ and Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s ‘I Need You,’” Drew recalls. “This song feels like a perfect blend of those two influences. It was in those honest, unfiltered moments that the foundation of our life together was built.”
Drew’s latest radio single, “Rebel,” follows his top-10 “Tough People” and his #1 “She’s Somebody’s Daughter.”
In this photo illustration, a PolyMarket logo is seen displayed on a smartphone with stock market percentages on the background. (Photo Illustration by Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — One week after a special forces soldier was indicted on charges of using classified information to wager on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the prediction market Polymarket announced it is increasing its internal monitoring of trades.
Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who prosecutors say helped plan and execute the raid on Maduro’s Caracas compound, allegedly made more than $400,000 on Polymarket by using insider knowledge to place 13 bets on the outcome of the operation.
On Thursday, Polymarket announced that it had tapped a blockchain data company to continually monitor the platform for suspicious trades.
Polymarket and analytics firm Chainalysis said they are working together on a “first-of-its-kind” system to enforce the Polymarket’s market integrity rules by monitoring transactions on-chain — referring to the platform’s public disclosure of transaction data.
“Polymarket was built on-chain because transparency matters, and our platform shows what markets can look like when trades are open, traceable, and accountable by design,” Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan said in a statement.
Through the partnership, the company is looking to confront the longstanding challenge of insider trading by leaning into a decentralized solution based on the public blockchain — essentially a distributed database — on which it can follow the tracks of every trade based on data that’s permanently stored and sealed with unique identifier.
Chainalysis says they will use their technology to quickly provide law enforcement with “blockchain-verified evidence” to proactively identify threats.
While Polymarket already had a monitoring system for insider trading, both companies say the new partnership will help them quickly identify patterns that suggest an trader with insider knowledge is placing bets.
“With this collaboration, on-chain markets have the potential to be the most trustworthy markets for understanding world events,” Chainalysis CEO Jonathan Levin.
Online sleuths have been successful in flagging suspicious trades such as the bet that prosecutors say Van Dyke placed on Maduro’s capture. Posts about the suspicious wager began appearing online within hours of the trade, and prosecutors then took about four months to build their case.
Van Dyke pleaded not guilty to all charges Tuesday in Manhattan federal court and was released on bond.
2026 is a banner year for One Direction fans: All four living members — Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and ZAYN — have either released or are releasing albums, and they’re all touring. Niall, whose album Dinner Party drops in June, says he can’t help but feel proud that all of the guys are still out there making music.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, Niall talked about going to one of Harry’s shows a few years ago and making plans to attend one of Louis’ shows. “You feel a sense of pride watching the boys doing what they love to do, and the communities that they’re able to create,” he noted.
“It’s crazy watching the fans and watching how they’ve grown up, but still have that youthful energy, and what they bring to shows,” he added. “Hearing that roar when each of them come out onto the stage, it’s like, ‘Yeah, I understand that scream. I get it.’ It sounds like a rocket’s about to take off.”
His own tour doesn’t begin until September, but Niall’s ready.
“I’ve already basically made the set list, and we’re six months out from it even starting,” he said. “I have it all in my head. I know exactly what the stage looks like. Giving people value for their money is what I’m trying to do the most.”
Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, speaks during the 76th FIFA Congress on April 30, 2026, in Vancouver, British Columbia. (Photo by Rich Lam – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Iran will be participating in the 2026 World Cup and will play in the United States, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in remarks Thursday.
“Of course Iran will play in the United States of America,” he said. “And the reason for that is very simple, dear friends, it’s because we have to unite.”
He added, “We have to bring people together. It is my responsibility, it is our responsibility. Football unites the world, FIFA unites the world, you unite the world, we unite the world.”
Iran said last month it would not participate in the global sporting event amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. A ceasefire has been in place since April 7.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
The Opry NextStage Class of 2026 will get its moment to shine the week of CMA Fest, as members play a special show Wednesday, June 3, at Category 10 in downtown Nashville.
Jake Worthington, Carter Faith, Tyler Braden, Emily Ann Roberts, Graham Barham, Alexandra Kay and Willow Avalon will each deliver a solo performance as part of Opry NextStage Live. Look for the evening’s host and more performers to be announced later.
Since the Opry launched the initiative to promote up-and-coming artists in 2019, members have gone on to chart 43 #1 singles, with Opry NextStage alum Lainey Wilson becoming the first to go on to be a member of the Opry.
Guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta enforces the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports against M/T Stream after it attempted to sail to an Iranian port, April 26, 2026. (U.S. Central Command)
(WASHINGTON) — The Trump administration is seeking the participation of other countries to form an international coalition to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to an internal cable sent this week by the State Department to posts around the world.
Dubbed the “Maritime Freedom Construct,” the coalition would help with coordinating diplomatic efforts, including aligning on sanctions and information sharing to help with safe transit through the waterway, according to a U.S. official.
The cable called on diplomats to announce the formation of the new coalition and “ask for partner participation” by Friday.
The Maritime Freedom Construct would take steps to ensure safe passage, including providing real-time information, safety guidance, and coordination to ensure vessels can transit the waters securely, the cable said.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on the cable.
“The MFC’s efforts will enhance maritime domain awareness and support the safe passage of commercial operators and their crews,” a State Department official said.
The United Kingdom and France have already launched a multilateral effort involving 30+ nations toward securing the strait that could eventually involve deploying military assets if a peace deal is reached, according to those countries’ governments.
However, last week during a Pentagon press briefing, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth mocked the European efforts, saying Europe might want to start having “less fancy conferences in Europe and get in a boat.”
He dismissed the U.K. and French effort aimed at ensuring the future security of the critical Gulf waterway as “silly.”
“Europe and Asia have benefited from our protection for decades, but the time for free-riding is over,” he said.
Shahram Irani, Iran’s Navy commander, called the U.S. blockade “piracy” and the U.S. as “maritime terrorists.”
“The Strait of Hormuz is closed from the Arabian Gulf, meaning they have no right of passage from there, and there is no entry. As soon as they come, operational and tactical action is taken against them,” he said.
He went on to call the blockade piracy and american actions as “maritime terrorists”
On Thursday, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned the consequences of continued disruptions to the global energy supply caused by the Iran war and the closure of the strait “grow worse with each passing hour.”
Guterres the worst-case scenario could be “the specter of a global recession” if disruptions to the strait continue through 2026. Even in the best case, if restrictions were relieved today, “supply chains will take months to recover” and warned that developing countries will be hit the hardest by economic instability.
According to the cable, the coalition will be led by the departments of State and Defense through U.S. Central Command.
The State-led component, based in Washington, D.C., will serve as the diplomatic operations hub, uniting partners and the commercial shipping industry. The Pentagon component operating out of CENTCOM headquarters in Florida would coordinate real-time maritime traffic and communicate directly with vessels transiting the Strait, the cable said.
“It will provide a platform to coordinate diplomatic actions and socialize and align economic measures designed to impose costs on Iran for disrupting maritime security,” the State official said.
ABC News’ Desiree Adib contributed to this report.
Jackson Browne performs onstage during the 38th Annual Tibet House US Benefit Concert at Carnegie Hall on March 03, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images Tibet House US)
Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Jackson Browne and Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh are among the artists taking part in concerts featuring the music from director Wes Anderson’s movies.
The shows take place July 10, 11 and 12 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. The sets will feature score and soundtrack selections from throughout Anderson’s filmography, which includes The Royal Tenenbaums, Moonrise Kingdom and The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Others participating include Beck, Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman Karen O, My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, Spoon’s Britt Daniel and actor Jeff Goldblum. The lineup of performers will vary over the three nights.
Taylor Swift and Stevie Nicks onstage at the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards, Jan. 31, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. (Michael Caulfield/WireImage)
As part of Taylor Swift’s inclusion in The New York TimesMagazine‘s 30 Greatest American Songwriters Alive list, the publication tapped someone to write a tribute to her who many feel should have been included on the list herself: Stevie Nicks.
However, Stevie doesn’t seem to feel it’s a slight. She posted a link to her tribute on her Instagram Story and wrote, “It’s always an honor to speak about my good friend Taylor Swift.”
In the tribute, she focuses on Taylor’s Midnights track “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” which she says is the song that “reconnected” her to Taylor. Stevie notes that the song helped her process the grief of losing her Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie in 2022.
“I feel that her song is generational. I think it’s all of her relationships written into one song — a little bit of this, a little bit of that — and dropped into my lap,” Stevie writes. “Over time, I have dropped in my own great loves to stand in her story, and it makes me cry for both of us — what we lost, what we learned and how we survived. That is how a great songwriter reaches into people’s hearts and connects with them.”
Speaking generally about Taylor, Stevie goes on to write, “All that beauty and tragedy and life’s lessons have led her down this path of unstoppable creativity; she just doesn’t stop, and that is what has turned her into this beautiful young woman who makes magic with everything she touches.”
Stevie also penned a little poem about Taylor and the song: “You ask about her brilliance. I can only say~ If only I had — written it … For me, this song will always live ~ In my heart.”
Debris is piled up at the entrance to Camp Mystic on July 07, 2025 in Hunt, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
(KERR COUNTY, Texas) — Camp Mystic announced that it will not be reopening for the summer amid ongoing investigations into deadly flooding that killed 25 girls and two teen counselors last year.
The camp said it informed the Texas Department of State Health Services on Thursday that it is withdrawing its application for a summer 2026 camp license.
“No administrative process or summer season should move forward while families continue to grieve, while investigations continue and while so many Texans still carry the pain of last July’s tragedy,” Camp Mystic said in a statement.
The Christian all-girls sleepaway camp said it is choosing to withdraw its application for its Cypress Lake location “rather than risk defending our rights under Texas law in a manner that may unintentionally effect further harm.”
Twenty-five campers and two teen counselors died during a devastating Fourth of July flash flood last summer, after rapidly rising waters inundated cabins at the camp’s location along the Guadalupe River. The director of the camp also died.
Camp Mystic said it had planned to welcome more than 800 girls to its Cypress Lake location, which did not experience any fatalities, this summer, before withdrawing its application.
“This decision is intended to remove any doubt that Camp Mystic has heard the concerns expressed by grieving families, members of the Texas House and Senate investigating committees and citizens across our state. Respect for those voices requires that we step back now,” the camp said.
The camp said it will “continue to fully cooperate with all ongoing investigations, comply with every lawful requirement and continue supporting recovery and healing efforts.”
Families of the flood victims and some officials, including Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, had called on the Texas Department of State Health Services to block Camp Mystic’s license for the summer. Patrick said the camp shouldn’t reopen until the flood was fully investigated and any necessary corrective actions were taken.
The license withdrawal comes after the Texas Department of State Health Services notified Camp Mystic last week of nearly two dozen deficiencies in the emergency plan in its license application.
The department said that all camps that had submitted an emergency plan had received a deficiency letter due to statutory changes and increased emergency plan requirements enacted in the wake of the deadly flooding at Camp Mystic.
The tragedy was the focus of an emotional two-day hearing before Texas lawmakers earlier this week. A Houston attorney hired by the state legislature to investigate the deadly flood presented a review based on interviews with approximately 150 people, including campers, counselors, the camp’s owners and the victims’ families.
The attorney, Casey Garrett, said there was inadequate training or drills for counselors and campers regarding a flood threat.
The Texas Rangers have also opened a criminal investigation of Camp Mystic, according to Patrick.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Steven Tyler of Aerosmith performs live on stage at the Wells Fargo Center on September 02, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Lisa Lake/Getty Images)
Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler just nabbed a win in the lawsuit brought by a woman who accused him of sexual assault.
Julia Holcomb aka Julia Misley filed the lawsuit against Tyler back in 2022. She and Tyler had a three-year relationship starting in 1973 when she was 16 and he was 20. In her suit, she accused him of sexual assault, assault and battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
While Holcomb filed the suit in California, the suit argued that the alleged sexual assault happened in several states across the country. On Tuesday, the judge in the case ruled that the accusations of sexual assault in other states cannot be tried in California and only the California allegations can move forward, which in this case refers to one incident in 1974.
“This is a massive win for Steven Tyler. Today, the Court has dismissed with prejudice 99.9% of the claims against Mr. Tyler in this case,” Tyler’s lawyer David Long-Daniels said in a statement provided to ABC Audio. “The court has decided that only one night, fifty-plus years ago, out of a three year relationship is allowed to remain. We look forward to trying this case on August 31.”
In her suit, Holcomb said she and Tyler were allowed to be together because the rocker got her mother to grant him guardianship over her, which allowed her to live and travel with him. She claimed she “was powerless to resist” the rock star’s “power, fame and substantial financial ability,” and that he “coerced and persuaded” her into believing their relationship was a “romantic love affair.”
Lawyers for Holcomb have not yet responded to ABC Audio’s request for comment.
