grandson experiments with several different genres in his sound, but he’ll be taking a trip straight into the land of heavy metal and hard rock when he plays Florida’s Welcome to Rockville festival this weekend.
Speaking with ABC Audio, the “Blood//Water” artist acknowledges he can be a bit of an outlier at a festival like Welcome to Rockville, which this year is headlined by Slipknot, Tool, Avenged Sevenfold and the reformed Pantera.
“I feel sometimes like a black sheep [on] the really conventional rock festival lineup,” grandson shares.
Despite that, grandson still wants to play big rock festivals because they bring in “some of the most passionate and excited fans in America.” Of course, that passion can cut both ways.
“I’m gonna give them some mixture of rock ‘n’ roll and whatever else I’m bringing,” grandson says. “Some of them are gonna hate it, and some people will enjoy it.”
“And if they don’t like it, they can leave,” he suggests.
grandson will play Welcome to Rockville on Sunday, after which he’ll resume touring in support of his new album, I Love You, I’m Trying, which dropped earlier in May. He’s hoping that the tenor of the tour will match the more personal and self-reflective tone of the record.
“I’m trying to take these themes of acceptance and this growing maturity that I’m hoping to live up to and apply it to my life on the road so that it is healthier and more sustainable, so that I’m drinking less, and so that I can do it for the rest of my life,” grandson says. “That’s kinda the goal here.”
He adds, “I’m trying to be as present with it as I can, and enjoy it.”
Saturday, May 20, marks the one-year anniversary of the release of Harry’s House, Harry Styles‘ third solo album. And while Harry was already a Grammy-winning star, Harry’s House pushed him over the edge into the kind of global pop domination that only a few — like his pal Ed Sheeran and his alleged ex-girlfriend Taylor Swift — get to experience.
The album, written and recorded during lockdown, was announced in March, with a title Harry claimed was inspired by a 1973 Japanese album called Hosono House.
The lead single, “As It Was,” became Harry’s second U.S. #1 hit and topped the charts for a whopping 15 nonconsecutive weeks, becoming the longest-running #1 ever by a U.K. act. Harry’s House debuted at #1 with a massive 521,500 units sold in its first week.
Upon the album’s release, “As It Was” returned to #1, and three other songs from the album entered the top 10: “Late Night Talking,” “Music for a Sushi Restaurant” and “Matilda.” That made Harry the first British solo artist ever to have four songs in the top 10 at the same time.
Harry promoted the album by taking over arenas in major cities and playing multiple dates: 15 nights in New York City, six nights in Austin, six nights in Chicago and 12 nights in Inglewood, California. A Latin American tour followed.
Concurrently, Harry starred in two movies — Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman — and enjoyed a high-profile relationship with Olivia Wilde, who fans believed inspired many of the album’s songs. The two split in November.
Harry’s House was then named Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album at the Grammy Awards in February 2023, and Album of the Year at the Brit Awards a week later.
Chayce Beckham returned to the American Idol stage recently to perform his powerful new song, “Till The Day I Die.” While there, Ryan Seacrest and judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie surprised him with a plaque for his RIAA-certified Gold single, “23.”
“It was so much fun, man. It always scares the living crap out of me to get on TV and sing for people. But it was an awesome experience getting the Gold plaque for ’23’ and getting to sing ‘Till The Day I Die’ for all those people,” Chayce recalls to ABC Audio.
“It’s so cool when you finally get off, and you get to look back at it and you’re just like, ‘Wow, that was an honestly amazing night.’ And so, it felt good to go back,” he adds.
With only two days until the season 21 finale, Chayce, who claims to have “pretty good gut instinct,” is already predicting a winner.
“I think Iam [Tongi] is the kid on there this year who I really like watching,” Chayce reveals, while praising the Hawaii native’s “incredible voice.”
The 2023 American Idol finale airs Sunday, May 21, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
Chayce’s self-penned “23” is currently in the top 50 and rising on the country charts.
Kelly Clarkson and Maroon 5 have new songs out on Friday.
Maroon 5’s track “Middle Ground” is a different sound for the band: It’s an acoustic waltz with an impassioned vocal by Adam Levine, singing about his own fragility and his hope that we can find a way to end our divisiveness.
“I need peace I need hope I need guidance/ I need more than myself,” he sings. “Tell me/ If I hit the ground/ I’ll fall onto my knees/ Would you hear the sound?”
On May 23, Maroon 5 will perform the song on The Voice finale and also premiere the video, directed by David Dobkin. Dobkin was also behind the camera for Maroon 5’s videos for “Sugar,” “Memories” and “Girls Like You.”
As for Kelly, her song is “favorite kind of high” from her upcoming album, chemistry. It comes with a live video recorded in April during Kelly’s intimate birthday concert at LA’s Belasco Theater.
While introducing the song, Kelly told the audience, “This is a sexy a** song, y’all! I don’t want just some ‘sad, I got divorced and my life sucks’ dumpster fire record.”
“Now, that’s in there,” she laughs. “But I wanted it to be about the whole relationship. ‘Cause one thing I learned in a lot of therapy is, it’s not about just the bad, right? Like, it was a whole thing. It doesn’t mean everything is bad.”
Describing what the song is about, Kelly says, “There’s nothing like that high, like when you first see someone and you’re like, ‘Oh s***,’ y’know? You’re like, ‘I wonder if they’re single?'”
Def Leppard‘s new album, Drastic Symphonies, is out now, featuring 15 of the band’s songs reworked with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are known for putting on a great live show, so would they ever be interested in teaming up with an orchestra to play these interpretations live? If guitarist Phil Collen had his way, the answer would be yes.
Collen tells ABC Audio he’d love to “go around the world” and play live versions of these songs in great venues like the Sydney Opera House or London’s Royal Albert Hall. He adds, “And obviously the states we could do New York, Carnegie Hall, you know, Hollywood Bowl, Berlin Symphony Orchestra. So yeah, I’d love that.”
Collen realizes the logistics and the cost may make such a tour difficult, but he’s still game, noting, “We’re just waiting for the invite.”
Up next for Def Leppard, they’ll kick off the U.K./European leg of their Stadium tour with Mötley Crüe on Monday, May 22, in Sheffield, England. A complete list of dates can be found at defleppard.com.
(LONDON) — An Iranian judiciary banned grape juicing at Tehran’s central fruit and vegetable market on Wednesday. Grape juicing refers to the process of making grape juice in Tehran. Residents buy large amounts of grapes ranging from 120-150 kilograms, which translates to almost 350 pounds, from the local fruit market.
The move is the latest attempt to prevent people from making wine at home during the grape season. Tehran’s fruit and vegetable contractors’ union, however, says the judiciary’s decision was meant to redirect the business owners back to their “authorized licenses.”
Banning alcoholic beverages was one of the first decisions made by the religious officials of the Islamic Republic after the Islamic Revolution took over Iran in 1979. As a result, liquor stores, pubs and bars were closed throughout the country, bottles were removed from the shelves and alcohol was removed from menus. Since then, alcohol consumers have been pushed to secretly make their own beverages and rely on illegal smugglers while risking harsh punishments.
“It is such a ridiculous and desperate move to ban grape juicing,” said Ramin, a 42-year-old Tehran-based writer, who used a pseudonym so he could freely express his ideas. Ramin makes his own alcoholic drinks, such as red and white wine, Roku gin, spiced rum and vodka. “It will be more hassle. But those who have been making their own drinks can’t be stopped by this,” he added.
An Iranian lawyer told ABC News that based on the Islamic Republic judicial regulations, the punishment for consuming alcohol when arrested for the first, second, and third offenses is 80 lashes. “The sentence for the fourth arrest is execution,” the lawyer said, who did not want their name to be disclosed for security reasons.
“Banning the fruit and vegetable market from juicing the grapes is yet another form of punishment the regime is inflicting on us for our participation in the past few months of revolution,” Ramin said, referring to the Mahsa Amini movement in which hundreds were killed and thousands were arrested amid protests ignited by the death of Amini in police custody.
Amini had been arrested for allegedly not fully obliging to wearing the mandatory hijab. “Just like the hijab law, the ridiculous ban on grape juicing is set to remind us who the boss is in public places,” Ramin said.
Explaining the importance of the public space for the regime, Ramin said consuming alcohol in public, or “seeing signs that prove alcohol is made and used in the country” is something the regime tries to prevent to prove its power by simply banning it.
Lack of access to standard products has led to several alcohol consumption crises in Iran. The most severe cases happened in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. About 600 people died after consuming poisonous products instead of normal alcoholic beverages, the judiciary spokesman said. The surge happened as the misinformation spread false claims on how alcohol could create immunity against the COVID-19 virus.
In one of the rare comments made by the Islamic Republic officials, the deputy minister of the interior minister said in a conference in January 2022 that at least “nine to 10% of 15- to 64-year-old people” drink alcohol, as ISNA reported. It means that “more than five million people” out of the 80 million population of the country consumed alcohol every year,” according to the ISNA report.
Reacting to the deputy minister’s comment on alcohol consumption, Mohammad Reza Ghadirzadeh, social worker and addiction treatment specialist, told Roozeno the real statistics might be different, as consuming alcohol is considered a “taboo” in the country.
“Because earning any money by making, distributing or smuggling alcohol is considered as black money, there is no transparency or data on it or even on crimes related to it,” the Iranian lawyer told ABC News.
“What do we do now? We’ll bring those grapes home and juice it ourselves in big buckets with a group of friends over a weekend,” Ramin said. “It is more hassle, but it is more fun and gives us a better-quality wine,” he added.
Metallica‘s Kirk Hammett is parting ways with his beloved 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard, known as “Sunny.”
The guitar, which was featured in the 1996 photo book The Beauty of the Burst, will be available via the Gibson Certified Vintage program.
“Sunny is special because not only is she in immaculate condition, but her tone is so present and bright, it’s like the sun cutting through clouds on an overcast day,” Hammett says. “Hence the name ‘Sunny.’ That’s the truth. The name came because she was so full and bright sounding.”
“The reason I chose Gibson Certified Vintage for the worldwide offering is because having a mint vintage Gibson guitar can sometimes feel like having a brand-new Gibson guitar,” he continues. “They’re made that well. And this is what’s really special; the fact Gibson recognizes this and is willing and ready to re-warranty these beautiful instruments. I think this is just a great reflection of Gibson’s integrity towards the past, present, and future.”
As for how much it costs to purchase a historic guitar owned by Kirk Hammett, it seems to be one of those “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” situations. If you’re still interested, though, you can contact the Nashville Gibson Garage store directly.
Hammett previously teamed up with Gibson to release a recreation of his signature 1959 Les Paul Standard aka “Greeny.”
ODESZA has announced a new concert film titled The Last Goodbye Cinematic Experience, which will screen in movie theaters for one night only on July 7.
The Last Goodbye Cinematic Experience was filmed during ODESZA’s show in Seattle last year touring behind their 2022 album, The Last Goodbye, and also includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the “Better Now” duo.
“We wanted to give a look behind the curtain of The Last Goodbye and spotlight the unsung heroes that make this show come to life,” ODESZA says, naming director Sean Kusanagi as one such hero.
“He has been there with his camera since our first show, capturing the true formation of ODESZA, our life on the road, and the creation of this live show,” the duo continues. “Sean’s hard work and dedication to his craft is apparent in every frame of this project.”
Tickets go on sale Thursday, May 25, at 10 a.m. ET. For the list of participating theaters and all ticket info, visit TheLastGoodbye.film.
In addition to seeing them on the big screen, you can catch ODESZA live on their upcoming tour, which includes headlining sets at festivals like Bonnaroo and Governors Ball.
(NEW YORK) — General Motors is recalling over 660,000 SUVs due to a potential safety issue involving car seats.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration posted a recall notice on its website Thursday, stating that in certain models of Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles, the rear-seat LATCH anchorage bars used to secure car seats may have “excessive powder coating” that would prevent them from being installed.
LATCH (lower anchors and tethers for children) is an attachment system that can be used instead of the seat belt to install a car seat.
LATCH anchorage bars can be found in nearly all car seats and passenger vehicles made on or after Sept. 1, 2002, according to the Department of Transportation.
The Equinox and Terrain vehicles impacted by the recall are from 2020 to 2023, according to GM and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The NHTSA is advising owners of impacted vehicles to temporarily use the car’s rear seat belts to install car seats until the anchorage bars are fixed.
“Dealers will inspect the latch anchorage bars, and remove and replace the finish, as necessary, free of charge,” NHTSA said in the recall notice.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says in its car seat safety guide that the use of either a vehicle’s seat belt or its LATCH are “equally safe” options.
The AAP’s guidelines say that just one of the two options should be used at a time, “unless the car safety seat and vehicle manufacturers say it is OK to use both systems at the same time.”
GM notes there have been no accidents, injuries or fatalities related to the LATCH issue in the affected Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles.
“GM is voluntarily recalling certain 2020 – 2023 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles. In these vehicles, the four-seat lower child seat LATCH anchorage bars may have excessive powder coating, which could prevent a child seat from being installed with the anchorage bars,” the company said in a statement to ABC News. “As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, ‘Child Restraint Anchorage Systems.'”
GM said it plans to send letters to impacted owners next month.
Owners may also contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
(WASHINGTON) — As House Speaker Kevin McCarthy expressed his most positive view yet on debt ceiling talks, a group of hardline conservatives on Thursday urged Republicans to stop negotiating altogether.
McCarthy said that while no deal has been reached, they’re in a “much better place” than a week ago.
“We’re not there. We haven’t agreed to anything yet,” McCarthy said during an impromptu gaggle with reporters. “But I see the path that we could come to an agreement. I think we have a structure now.”
But undercutting McCarthy was The House Freedom Caucus, who said there should “be no further discussion” until the Senate passes the Limit, Save, Grow Act — which included substantial spending cuts in exchange for a one-year debt limit increase.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said the bill would be dead on arrival in the chamber.
“The House Freedom Caucus calls on Speaker McCarthy and Senate Republicans to use every leverage and tool at their disposal to ensure the Limit, Save, Grow Act is signed into law,” the group said in a statement.
The House Freedom Caucus, an influential group of GOP hardliners, gave McCarthy a hard time in his ascension to the speakership and forced him to agree to several concessions before handing him the gavel. Their opposition could be problematic down the road if a debt ceiling agreement is reached.
Lead negotiators were on Capitol Hill Thursday for a closed-door meeting on the debt ceiling.
Shalanda Young, the director of the Office of Management and Budget and Steve Ricchetti, counselor to the president, have been working with Republican Rep. Garret Graves to find a compromise.
“They are exceptionally smart. They are tough … it’s very professional how this discussion is,” McCarthy said of Young and Ricchetti. He later added, “They are working night and day.”
Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., described the conversations as “productive” as he left meeting room.
“We’ve got a lot more work to do. Nothing is close to being done,” McHenry said. “But we’re in the right discussions. The right things are being discussed. And we have the right people in the room to get this to the point where the principles can meet and have some agreement.”
In the Senate, Schumer also touted positive momentum as he gave members the greenlight to leave town for recess — but made it clear they would need to return within a 24-hour window to vote on a debt ceiling measure.
“The negotiations are currently making progress,” he said in floor remarks. “As Speaker McCarthy has said, he expects the House will vote next week if an agreement is reached, and the Senate would begin consideration after that.”
Still, some Democrats in his chamber are also urging an alternative debt ceiling fix.
A group of 11 senators led by independent Sen. Bernie Sanders have signed onto a letter urging Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to lift the debt ceiling — an option Biden previously said would likely lead to lengthy litigation.
The lawmakers argue the Republican position is untenable, and that Biden shouldn’t have to negotiate with McCarthy in order to avoid default.
“Is this the perfect solution, is imposing the 14th amendment the perfect solution? No it is not,” Sanders said during a press conference on Capitol Hill. “But using the 14th amendment would allow the United States to continue to pay its bills on time and without delay, prevent an economic catastrophe, and prevent devastating cuts to some for the most vulnerable people in the country.”
Providing more details on a potential timeline, McCarthy said Thursday in order for Congress to avoid the possible June 1 “X-date,” a deal would need to be reached in principle by this weekend. After that, he predicted it would take up to 11 days — four in the House and seven in the Senate — to pass a bill and send it to Biden’s desk.
Biden, who is currently abroad meeting with G-7 leaders in Japan, is cutting his trip short to return Sunday for “final negotiations.”
Moments before he left for Asia on Wednesday, Biden said he was “confident” an unprecedented, likely economically catastrophic default.
“All the leaders have agreed we will not default,” he said. “Every leader has said that.”
