Photo of Cliff Burton, posed, in studio. (Fin Costello/Redferns)
The family of late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton has announced the details for the 2026 edition of Cliff Burton Day.
The celebration will take place on Burton’s birthday, Feb. 10, at the Chabot Theater in his hometown of Castro Valley, California. It will feature an appearance by Faith No More drummer Mike Bordin, as well as members of the road crew from Metallica’s Damage, Inc. tour in honor of its 40th anniversary.
Those who can’t attend in person can watch the event stream live on YouTube starting at 7 p.m. PT.
The Damage, Inc. tour supported Metallica’s 1986 album, Master of Puppets. Burton was killed in September 1986 in a bus accident during the European leg of the tour. He was 24.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and guest James Taylor during Thursday’s February 5, 2026 show. Photo: Scott Kowalchyk/CBS
James Taylor was a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Thursday night, where the host got him to reveal his five favorite songs from his catalog.
The list included Taylor classics like “Sweet Baby James,” the title track from his 1970 sophomore album, and “Carolina in My Mind,” from his 1968 self-titled debut. He also chose three songs because they were liked by other rock stars.
He said that Paul McCartney told him the song “Mean Old Man” was the reason he bought Taylor’s 2002 album, October Road, so Taylor put that in the top five. He also included “Millworker,” from the 1979 album Flag, which was a track that Bruce Springsteen liked and performed. Rounding out the list was “The Frozen Man,” from 1991’s New Moon Shine, because Bob Dylan told him he liked the track.
Colbert also asked Taylor why there hasn’t been a biopic on his life yet, to which he responded, “It’s because God is merciful.”
He noted that he did an Audible memoir, which only covered his life to age 21, joking, “Nobody could really check it because there’s no proving or disproving any of it and most of the people involved are dead or don’t care anymore.”
Taylor added, “Once I get past 1970, basically, I start running into trouble … those people are still walking around.”
Taylor also performed on the show. Joined by his son Henry Taylor, he performed “You Can Close Your Eyes” from his 1971 album, Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. They also offered up a bonus performance of “Line ‘Em Up” from the 1997 album Hourglass.
James Taylor is set to hit the road starting April 26 in Highland, California. A complete list of dates can be found at JamesTaylor.com.
Spencer Charnas of Ice Nine Kills performs during 2025 When We Were Young festival at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds on October 18, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Tim Mosenfelder/WireImage)
Ice Nine Kills‘ Scream 7 song has a release date.
The track, which is called “Twisting the Knife,” will premiere on Feb. 19. It will feature Scream 7 cast member Mckenna Grace.
“Twisting the Knife” is available to presave, and you can check out a teaser video on YouTube.
Scream 7, the aptly titled seventh installment in the long-running slasher series, hits theaters Feb. 27.
Ice Nine Kills released a Scream-themed song called “Your Number’s Up” in 2019. Frontman Spencer Charnas also appeared in the video for Demi Lovato‘s 2023 Scream VI song “Still Alive,” which was co-written by Linkin Park‘s Mike Shinoda.
Director and actor Timothy Busfield looks on before a hearing in the Second District Judicial Court at the Bernalillo County Courthouse on January 20, 2026 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Sam Wasson/Getty Images
(ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.) — A grand jury has indicted actor Timothy Busfield on child sex abuse contact charges after his arrest last month, according to officials.
Busfield is facing multiple counts of criminal sexual contact of a child, according to Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman.
“District Attorney Sam Bregman emphasized that protecting children remains a top priority for his office. The Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office remains committed to doing everything possible to protect children and ensure justice for victims,” the district attorney’s office said in a statement Friday.
Even though she went home empty-handed, Sabrina Carpenter‘s performance of “Manchild” was a standout at Sunday’s Grammy Awards. In a recent interview, she revealed the inspiration behind it.
The production number featured Sabrina in a sexy version of an airline pilot’s outfit, dancing around a baggage claim area in an airport. But what does all that have to do with “Manchild”? As Sabrina explains to Rolling Stone, “Relationships come with lots of baggage, and the song tells the story of many relationships gone wrong. I also wanted to wear the captain hat.”
Sabrina’s chat with Rolling Stone was to promote her Super Bowl commercial for Pringles, in which she builds herself a boyfriend out of Pringles chips. “Listen,” she tells the magazine. “There’s plenty worse out there.”
At the end of the clip, Sabrina’s edible boyfriend, Pringleleo, gets knocked over and crushed, and she and some of her fans start eating him. So what kind of snack would she want her next boyfriend to be made of?
“Can I choose a liquid man? Yerba mate for sure,” she says. “Think of the energy he would have!”
“this one’s for the lover girls,” Megan Moroneywrote on her socials as she prepared to drop “Cloud 9,” the title song and opening track of her upcoming album.
Megan’s also introducing the unique Songwriter’s Edition of the record.
“i’m floatin’ on air!!!” she posted. “This is the final variant & my personal favorite because all the songs are in the order in which they were written. all new packaging, handwritten lyrics & a deeper look into my heart.”
Luigi Mangione appears for a suppression of evidence hearing in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan Criminal Court on December 18, 2025 in New York City. Curtis Means-Pool/Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione spoke out in court on Friday as Judge Gregory Carro tentatively scheduled his state murder case to begin on June 8.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett announced that Mangione’s federal trial will begin with jury selection on Sept. 8 and opening statements on Oct. 13. But Carro said Friday that he believes the state case should go to trial first.
“It appears that the federal government has reneged on their agreement to let the state, who did most of the work in this case, to go first,” he remarked at the beginning of the hearing.
Carro ended the hearing with a stern directive to defense lawyers, who repeatedly pushed back on the June 8 trial date.
“You have done a great job, so be ready on June 8,” Carro told the defense. “That’s it.”
Seconds later, Mangione himself protested the judge’s decision as he was escorted out of court.
Mangione, shackled and wearing tan jail attire, looked toward the gallery and loudly said, “One plus one is two. Double jeopardy, by any common-sense definition.”
Defense attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo repeatedly argued during the hearing that the June date would leave them unprepared and would be unfair to Mangione.
“The defense will not be ready on June 8,” she said. “Mr. Mangione is being put in an untenable situation that is a tug of war between two different prosecution officers.”
Prosecutor Joel Seidemann responded by arguing that the defense is trying to deprive [them] of a right to try the case” by creating a double jeopardy issue.
“It is absolutely unfair that Mr. Seidemann wants two bites of the apple,” Friedman Agnifilo said. “New York state has a double jeopardy law for a reason.”
“Counsel is seeking to jeopardize us out of the federal case,” Seidemann responded. “We have every reason to be the prosecuting authority.”
Seidemann argued that state prosecutors and investigators have done the bulk of the investigation and should be able to try a murder that took place on the streets of Manhattan. He claimed that the family of the victim, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, requested that the state case go first.
“That’s something certainly to be considered,” Seidemann said.
While Carro suggested that defense lawyers could resolve the conflict by asking the federal judge to delay the federal case, Friedman Agnifilo said she would not do so.
“It would be legal malpractice for us to do something that is not in our client’s best interest,” she said. “We have been working round the clock in both cases, fighting both cases.”
Carro said he could push the trial date to Sept. 8 if the Department of Justice decides to appeal a ruling in Mangione’s federal case.
Mangione, who is accused of gunning down Thompson outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel in December 2024, has pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges. The federal judge last week took the death penalty off the table in the federal case.
Cover art for J. Cole’s ‘The Fall-Off’ (Dreamville Records/Interscope Records)
“The real is back. The Ville is back” with the release of J. Cole‘s long-awaited album, The Fall-Off.
The album, which was 10 years in the making, arrives as a double disc, with each side featuring 11 songs and a bonus track.
They serve as updates to his first release, The Come Up, on which he details his goal to “come up” as a rapper. That project also includes snippets of phone calls to his mother and friends as he traveled home to Fayetteville, North Carolina, for holiday breaks following his decision to “come up” to New York and pursue his dreams.
The first disc — Disc 29 — chronicles Cole’s mindset after returning to his hometown at 29 years old, when he found himself at a crossroads in his life. The second disc — Disc 39 — gives insight into his perspective upon his return at age 39 when he was at peace.
The album’s artwork also looks back on Cole’s humble beginnings as an artist, including a makeshift studio set up on his desk.
The Fall-Off marks Cole’s seventh studio album. He has suggested it will be his final one, though it remains unclear whether he will stick to that plan.
An early album standout is “What If,” in which he raps from the perspectives of The Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac during their feud, imagining a scenario in which they reconcile and resolve their differences.
The Fall-Off is now available on streaming services.
Brent Smith of Shinedown performs at Little Caesars Arena on July 25, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan. (Scott Legato/Getty Images)
Shinedown has dropped off the bill for the Rock the Country festival.
The festival, which is headlined by Kid Rock and country star Jason Aldean, has garnered controversy due to its association with conservative and MAGA circles.
“Shinedown is everyone’s band,” the “Second Chance” outfit writes in a Facebook post. “We feel that we have been given a platform to bring all people together through the power of music and song.”
“We have one BOSS, and it is everyone in the audience,” the group continues. “Our band’s purpose is to unite, not divide. With that in mind, we have made the decision that we will not be playing the Rock the Country Festival.”
The post acknowledges that, “We know this decision will create differences of opinion.”
“But we do not wat to participate in something will believe will creature further division,” Shinedown says. “And to our fans, thank you for supporting and believing in us.”
Several other artists have already exited Rock the Country, including rapper Ludacris. Notably, Shinedown drummer Barry Kerch dubbed Ludacris a “coward” for the decision during a recent podcast interview.
“If he’s not tough enough to stick it out, that’s just silly,” Kerch said. “That’s him being a coward, in my opinion.”
When asked whether Shinedown would ever drop off a show due to negative feedback, Kerch replied, “I would hope not.”
“But it is a democracy,” Kerch continued. “There’s four of us to vote. My vote would be no, but if three of the other guys vote against it, then, again, it’s a democracy.”
Meanwhile, Kid Rock just announced a run of live dates dubbed the Freedom 250 tour, running from May 1 in Dallas to June 20 in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. Tickets go on sale Feb. 13 at 10 a.m. local time.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a bill signing in the Oval Office of the White House on February 03, 2026 in Washington, DC. Alex Wong/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump shared on his social media platform overnight a video that includes a racist animation of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama depicted with the bodies of apes, sparking condemnation from some lawmakers and demands that the post be taken down.
Trump reposted the roughly minutelong video, which focused on debunked claims about the 2020 election, to his social media platform.
At the end of the video, the Obamas’ faces appear abruptly and without explanation for seconds with the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” playing over it. The video then ends back on similar imagery of the conspiracy video footage.
The Obamas had no comment when ABC News reached out to their representatives for a response.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked for comment, said, “This is from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from the Lion King. Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public.”
The video reposted by Trump overnight includes only imagery of the Obamas.
The meme video referenced by Leavitt was shared in October by the Hardin County Republican Party of Kentucky on Facebook, which led the chairman to issue an apology and deleted the post after swift backlash noting the long history of racist tropes depicting Black people as apes or monkeys — a tool of slave traders and segregationists to dehumanize them.
Trump’s overnight repost was condemned by some lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the first Black leader of a party in Congress, wrote on X: “President Obama and Michelle Obama are brilliant, compassionate and patriotic Americans. They represent the best of this country. Donald Trump is a vile, unhinged and malignant bottom feeder.”
“Every single Republican must immediately denounce Donald Trump’s disgusting bigotry,” Jeffries wrote.
Republican Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate and also the head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, posted on X: “Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House. The President should remove it.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, wrote in a post: “Racist. Vile. Abhorrent. This is dangerous and degrades our country — where are Senate Republicans? The President must immediately delete the post and apologize to Barack and Michelle Obama, two great Americans who make Donald Trump look like a small, envious man.”
