Rock & Roll Hall of Famer David Crosby passed away January 18, and now his Crosby, Stills & Nash bandmate Graham Nash has revealed that he passed away after contracting COVID-19.
“He was rehearsing for a show to do in Los Angeles with a full band,” Nash shared on the Kyle Meredith With… podcast. “After three days of rehearsals, he felt a little sick. And he’d already had COVID, and he had COVID again.” He adds, “And so he went home and decided that he would take a nap, and he never woke up. But he died in his bed, and that is fantastic.”
Nash says many people didn’t expect Crosby to live as long as he did, noting he expected him to go “20 years ago.”
“I mean, the fact that he made it to 81 was astonishing,” Nash offers, although he says it was still a shock.
Nash has previously said that he and Crosby had been mending fences before Crosby’s death, and Nash says he was pleased they had been “getting closer towards the end.”
“He had a good life. I mean, what incredible music he made. He was a fantastic storyteller,” he says. “I loved him dearly. In looking back at what separated us, it was just foolish stuff, really. The music is the most important part of our relationship.”
(NEW YORK) — LSU basketball star Angel Reese had a heartwarming reunion Friday with her cousin, UConn’s Jordan Hawkins, who snuck in to the studio to surprise Reese during her interview with “GMA3.”
It was the first time the college basketball stars saw each other since each won their respective NCAA championship games over the past week.
“Have you had a chance to see him?” host Gio Benitez asked Reese, as Hawkins appeared from backstage out of his cousin’s view. Reese said she hadn’t.
Benitez then told Reese to turn around for the big surprise. When she saw her cousin, she screamed, and they gave each other a big hug. Reese told “GMA3” that they grew up playing basketball together at cookouts and family functions.
Hawkins said of his cousin, “I’m super proud, just to see your family doing something amazing is crazy. We’re all proud.”
“I’m happy for him, to see everything he’s done and be so successful,” Reese said.
Earlier in the interview, Reese also spoke about her team’s historic win against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday and addressed criticism she received after making mocking hand gestures while staring down Iowa star Caitlin Clark late in the LSU Tigers’ 102-85 victory.
“I trash talk. So that’s just who I am, and that’s very passionate of me. I’m from Baltimore, so that’s kind of what we do. Caitlin’s a great player, and she understood that. It was nothing personal towards her or any player that we’ve gone at this year,” Reese told “GMA3.”
Some social media commenters argued that the negative comments Reese received perpetuated stereotypes about Black women and exemplified a double standard, noting that Clark, who is white, largely avoided backlash after making a similar gesture in a previous game in the tournament.
In a post-game press conference, Reese said, “All year, I was critiqued about who I was. I don’t fit in a box that y’all want me to be in. I’m too hood. I’m too ghetto. But when other people do it, y’all say nothing. So this was for the girls that look like me, that’s going to speak up on what they believe in. It’s unapologetically you.”
Clark herself defended Reese in an interview with ESPN earlier this week, saying she doesn’t “think Angel should be criticized at all.”
“We’re all competitive. We all show our emotions in a different way. You know, Angel is a tremendous, tremendous player. I have nothing but respect for her. I love her game – the way she rebounds the ball, scores the ball, is absolutely incredible. I’m a big fan of her and even the entire LSU team. They played an amazing game,” Clark continued, adding that “men have always had trash talk.”
The LSU-Iowa game was the most-viewed NCAA women’s basketball game on record, with 9.9 million viewers, according to ESPN.
Reese, 20, started her college basketball career in 2020 in her home state with the Maryland Terrapins. During her freshman season, she suffered a Jones fracture in her right foot and underwent surgery. She transferred to LSU just one year ago, leading the Tigers to win its first ever national championship in her first season with the team.
Reese said transferring away from home was the hardest thing she’s ever done.
“A year and a day later, now I’m in this situation. So it’s crazy how life can change in a year,” Reese said.
Country newcomer and The Voice alumni Jake Worthington has dropped his self-titled debut album. Out now via Big Loud Records, the 13-song set includes a collaboration with Ernest on “Pop Goes The Whiskey.” Of his release, Jake shares, “I’ve been ready for this for a long time. Country music is what I know, it’s what I’ve always done, and I’ve never thought about doin’ anything else. I’m grateful to finally be putting it out into the world.”
Up-and-comer Payton Smith has an anthemic new song out. Co-written by Payton, Jim McCormick, Danny Myrick and Austin Goodloe, “The Next One” celebrates life, love and all the good things in between. “I love story songs and I’m so proud of the way this one turned out. Crank it up,” Payton writes on Instagram.
Warner Music Nashville’s Ian Munsick has released his sophomore album, White Buffalo. The 18-track LP, which he co-wrote and co-produced, features a collaboration with Vince Gill (“Field Of Dreams”). Of his new record, the Wyoming native shares in part, “All I’ve ever wanted to do as a country music artist is represent the West. The land, people, stories and culture are all what give me endless inspiration to create music.”
Vlad Karkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — The Taliban banned Afghan women from working at the United Nations in Afghanistan this week, adding another restriction to the long list the Taliban has imposed on Afghan women since retaking power in August 2021.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said any ban on Afghan women working for the U.N. mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, would be “unacceptable and frankly inconceivable,” in a statement after the Taliban order was issued.
“This is the latest in a disturbing trend undermining the ability of aid organizations to reach those most in need. It goes without saying, but unfortunately, it does need saying, that female staff are essential for the United Nations to deliver life-saving assistance,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement Tuesday.
The U.N. provides lifesaving assistance to the Afghanistan population, which has become even more necessary since the Taliban regained power in 2021. Several international aid organizations that had been operating in the country left after the Taliban took power and stopped providing assistance as a result of the new government.
“Such orders, as we saw today, violate the fundamental rights of women and infringe upon the principle of non-discrimination. Female staff members are essential to ensure the continuation of the U.N. operations on the ground in Afghanistan,” Dujarric said Tuesday.
The order comes after the Taliban imposed a series of other restrictions on Afghan women over the past year. In 2022, the Taliban restricted women and girls’ access to education. The Taliban also restricted Afghan women’s ability to work for international aid organizations in December 2022, but, until this week, that did not apply to women working for the .U.N mission.
Before this week’s decree, the Taliban attempted to intimidate women working for the U.N. by accusing them of breaking dress code by not wearing hijabs. The Taliban also tried to intimidate Afghan women working for different U.N. offices across the country by contacting them directly to threaten them or passing the message to family members asking them to stop working.
Several Afghan women working for the U.N. have already experienced restrictions on their movements, including harassment, intimidation and detention.
The additional restriction further isolates Afghan women and poses a problem for the Taliban, which relies on support from the U.N. Many women’s rights activists believe the Taliban is using the ban on Afghan women as a tool to get more leverage from the international community.
“They are certainly trying to remove women from every aspect of society, either its simple presence in the society or working environment,” activist Mariam Maroof Arvin told ABC News. “Taliban also use these restrictions as a tool to gain more from international community in terms of aid and to push them to accept their demands.”
The Taliban has not faced severe consequences for the restrictions they’ve placed on Afghan women over the past year. Western countries like the U.S. and international organizations like the U.N. have condemned the actions by the Taliban, but little action has been taken beyond that.
“I hope this time the organizations defending women rights and international community as a whole won’t give up to Taliban’s demand and stand firm against them. That will be the only way out of these evil demands. I hope everyone come together in protecting women rights,” Arvin said.
(NEW YORK) — Several hot-button legal inquiries loom over former President Donald Trump — everything from election interference and misuse of classified documents to defamation of a writer after an alleged rape.
He has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
However, the indictment and arraignment of Trump earlier this week, the first for an ex-president in U.S. history, has drawn the nation’s attention to a rarely discussed white-collar financial crime: falsifying business records.
As part of a scheme to reimburse former Trump attorney Michael Cohen for hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels, Trump fraudulently recorded $130,000 in expenses as the cost of legal services for Cohen, the indictment alleges.
In Manhattan criminal court, Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to all 34 counts of falsifying business records. He has denied having sex with Daniels.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg characterized the validity of business records as fundamental to a well-functioning economy.
“This is the business capital of the world,” he said. “The bedrock, in fact the basis, for business integrity and a well-functioning business marketplace is true and accurate record keeping.”
Here’s what to know about the crime of falsifying business records and the typical penalties, according to interviews with New York City-based criminal defense attorneys.
What does falsifying business records entail?
Falsifying business records, a violation of New York state law, constitutes the entry of inaccurate information on a business document to benefit oneself.
In other words, a description of the crime is “sort of in the name,” Adam Konta, a senior partner at Manhattan-based law firm Konta, Georges & Buza, told ABC News.
However, the crime of falsifying business records not only requires an incorrect entry on a company form but also an intent to mislead in an effort to reap reward.
“Every crime requires both an act and a criminal intent behind the act,” Matthew Galluzo, a criminal defense attorney in New York City and a former prosecutor in the New York County District Attorney’s Office, told ABC News.
If a boss asks a secretary to mark a form incorrectly and he or she does so without awareness of an attempt to mislead, the secretary is innocent of a crime, Galluzo said.
Similarly, an accidental or harmless recording error falls short of a crime, he added.
The most common example of the crime involves fibbing about a company’s financial information for the sake of evading or minimizing tax payments, or in an effort to hoodwink potential investors, Galluzo said.
Why is the alleged Trump crime a felony and how will prosecutors need to prove it?
The crime of falsifying business records constitutes either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances of a given violation, the attorneys said.
The act rises to a felony when the inaccurate record is entered as part of an effort to commit a different, underlying crime, the attorneys said.
The misdemeanor version of the crime usually means “destruction or falsification of business records,” Konta said. “When you’re doing that in hopes of committing a separate crime, then it’s what’s called a ‘bump up.'”
The standard is akin to the legal treatment of trespassing, Konta added, noting that the mere act of trespassing is a relatively minor crime but the charge becomes far more serious if a trespasser attempts to steal.
In the Trump indictment, Bragg didn’t specify the underlying law Trump attempted to break when he allegedly falsified business records.
“The indictment doesn’t specify it because the law does not so require,” Bragg said at a press conference on Tuesday, later mentioning possible secondary crimes that include illegal promotion of a political campaign and an attempt to make false claims on tax forms.
The defense will likely attempt to force Bragg to specify which underlying crime Trump attempted to commit, while Bragg will try to keep the interpretation open-ended, so the jury merely has to find Trump attempted to commit a crime rather than any specific one, Galluzo said.
“The statute itself seems to suggest you just have to prove he was trying to break a law,” Gallluzo said. “Defense attorneys will say, ‘Well, you have to tell us what law and prove that law specifically.'”
“Prosecutors will try to keep it vague and flexible so the jury can say maybe it was this or maybe it was that, but it’s got to be one of them,” he added.
What is the penalty for falsifying business records?
The maximum penalty for a felony count of falsifying business records is four years in state prison.
“However, there’s no mandatory minimum sentence,” Galluzo said.
Due to Trump’s age and lack of a criminal history, a jail sentence of any length is unlikely if he is convicted, Galluzo added, noting however that the 13-month jail sentence served by Cohen in a related case potentially raises the possibility of incarceration for Trump.
In federal court, Cohen pleaded guilty to two violations of campaign finance law resulting from hush money payments made to Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Trump also denies having sex with McDougal.
In addition, Cohen pleaded guilty to five counts of tax fraud and one count of false statements made to a bank.
Penalties in falsification of business records cases are often driven by the amount of money at stake in the potential fraud, Daniel Hochheiser, a criminal defense attorney in New York, told ABC News.
Trump is alleged to have reimbursed Cohen for $130,000 in hush money payments, though the statement of facts accompanying the indictment claims that then-Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg agreed to a total repayment of $420,000, including other expenses and a year-end bonus.
“Somebody who makes a false business record in a $100,000 fraud is generally punished less severely than somebody who makes a false entry in a record involved in a scheme to commit a $10 million fraud,” Hochheiser said.
“I don’t see any scenario in which Trump goes to jail,” Hochheiser added. “Even if he’s convicted of everything.”
The metal legends have announced a weeklong residency on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! from Monday, April 10, to Thursday, April 13.
Each show will feature a Metallica performance. The “Enter Sandman” outfit will also sit down with host Jimmy Kimmel for an interview on the Monday episode.
“Keep your eyes peeled for other sightings during the broadcast, as we really don’t know what else Jimmy will get us involved in!” the group teases.
The Kimmel residency leads up to the release of Metallica’s new album, 72 Seasons, on Friday, April 14.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET on ABC.
Since Madonna‘s upcoming Celebration tour will be a, yes, celebration of her entire career, fans are wondering which of her many hits she’ll be performing. Well, she may have given us a hint in a video she posted documenting the first week of rehearsals.
Billboard‘s Keith Caulfield, a Madonna superfan, has apparently scoured the video frame by frame and has spotted two things that may indicate a couple of the songs the Queen of Pop is planning to sing.
In the part of the video where Madonna is seen throwing darts at a dartboard, there’s a table to her left. On that table is a lyric sheet for “You Must Love Me,” the Oscar-winning top 20 hit she recorded for the movie Evita.
In addition, Caulfield points out that there’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it shot of Madonna watching something on a laptop, which he identifies as a video of herself performing her debut single “Everybody” at famed New York City nightclub Danceteria in 1982. Meanwhile, the entire video is soundtracked to another early song, “Burning Up.”
So, are “Everybody,” “Burning Up” and “You Must Love Me” on the set list for the tour? We’ll just have to wait and see.
(NEW YORK) — After pleading not guilty to 34 felony counts, former President Donald Trump on Tuesday launched attacks on the Manhattan district attorney and judge overseeing his case — despite the judge’s request that both sides refrain from making inflammatory public comments.
Trump called Alvin Bragg a “failed district attorney” and a “criminal” before taking aim at Bragg’s wife. He also criticized the judge overseeing his case, accusing him of bias.
“I have a Trump-hating judge with a Trump-hating wife and family,” Trump said to a room full of supporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
If the rhetoric were to continue and escalate, it could put Judge Juan Merchan in the precarious position of having to consider a gag order, legal experts told ABC News.
Kevin O’Brien, a former assistant U.S. attorney, said he imagines Merchan “wants to do everything to avoid a situation like that.”
“I do think it’s a tough spot for the judge to be in,” said Sarah Krissoff, a former federal prosecutor in New York and current defense attorney.
Krissoff noted any potential gag order, “no matter how narrowly tailored,” would be appealed and face extensive litigation.
Prosecutors are working with Trump’s team on a protective order to prevent discovery materials from being shared online or elsewhere. However, prosecutors did not request a gag order during Tuesday’s arraignment, and Merchan said he was not inclined to grant one even if they had.
“Such restraints are the most serious and least intolerable on First Amendment rights,” he told the court. “That does apply doubly to Mr. Trump, because he is a candidate for the presidency of the United States.”
But the judge made clear he did not agree with Trump’s attorneys that recent social media posts which stoked prosecutors’ alarm — including one in which Trump threatened “death and destruction” if he were indicted — were just an expression of frustration.
And he gave a pointed warning to both parties to refrain from inflammatory language that could prompt violence and civil unrest, or that jeopardize the safety of any individuals.
“This is a request I’m making,” Merchan said. “I’m not making it an order. But now that I have made the request, if I were to be handed something like this again in the future, I would have to take a closer look at it.”
It was just hours later that Trump took the stage at Mar-a-Lago to air a litany of grievances against those he perceives as political enemies.
“The judge took a hands off approach and I think that was wise,” O’Brien said. “The question is, is Trump going to do something to tempt him to impose a gag order or restriction?”
Gag orders are considered an “extraordinary” remedy given all defendants’ First Amendment rights, but it’s a step taken if comments being made threaten to undermine the integrity of the trial process or potentially poison the jury pool.
In this case, some legal experts said it might be concerns about safety that could prompt a request for a gag order.
“The interests here might be a little different than a normal normal criminal case … It just may be a safety issue, frankly, that imposes a gag order,” Krissoff said.
Police sources told ABC News Judge Merchan’s received dozens of threats in recent days. Bragg’s also been a target, as a letter threatening to kill “Alvin” was sent to his office. The letter contained white powder that was determined to be non-hazardous.
If prosecutors were to push for a gag order, there are a “range of options” the judge can take, according to former Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Daniel Horwitz,
He could impose some limitations, rather than a total gag order, on disparagement of individuals involved while still allowing Trump to make statements about the case in his defense, Horwitz said. If Trump were to violate an order given by the judge, he could be held in contempt and fined.
Top Republicans have argued a gag order in this case would be a violation of the First Amendment. Reps. Jim Jordan and James Comer, the GOP chairmen of two powerful House committees, said in a statement such a move would be “unconstitutional.”
“To even contemplate stifling the speech of the former commander in chief and current candidate for President is at odds with everything America stands for,” the two lawmakers said ahead of the arraignment.
While experts said there are unique circumstances in this case, with Trump being a leading 2024 candidate for Republican nomination and the first former president to be indicted, he is still a criminal defendant.
“The fact that Donald Trump happens to be running for president is somewhat of an added complexity, but at the end of the day, he’s a defendant like every other defendant and he has to obey the rule of law,” said Horwitz.
This month marks the 40th anniversary of the Disney Channel, and a few days ago it posted a compilation of classic “Wand IDs”: interstitial clips featuring some of the channel’s now-iconic stars announcing, “You’re watching the Disney Channel.” But some fans are peeved that one famous Disney kid has been left out of the video: Demi Lovato.
In the compilation, you’ll see a much-younger Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, plus Olivia Rodrigo, Jenna Ortega, Zendaya, Ashley Tisdale and more. But Demi, who starred in the channel’s Camp Rock movies and her own series Sonny with a Chance, is absent.
Many fans replied by posting one of Demi’s “Wand IDs,” clips of her on Disney shows and more. “Put some respect on her name,” one tweeted.
Another angry fan wrote, “Demi did the most for your network; 3 movies, 2 albums, 2 seasons of Sonny With A Chance, & 1 season of As The Bell Rings, and recorded songs for Frozen, A Wrinkle In Time, & Princess Protection Program; and this is how you repay her by disregarding her completely? The audacity.”
Some fans are accusing the Disney Channel of wanting to erase Demi because they’ve spoken negatively about their time there. Demi is also directing a Hulu documentary about child stars and plans to share their personal experiences.
However, there are other Disney stars who don’t appear in that compilation — including Hilary Duff, America Ferrera, Sabrina Carpenter and Sofia Carson — so maybe they’re saving Demi for a future one.
It’s time to make a trip to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, to enjoy spring and summertime at Dollywood.
The DreamMore Resort and Spa in Dollywood is celebrating its annual Flower & Food Festival with a stunning array of blossoms and delectable treats. Guests at the resort will also get to enjoy a variety of unique festival-themed activities, mouthwatering meals and entertainment during their stay.
What’s more, those who book their stay at Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort and Spa now will save up to 10% per night, and receive a pair of one-day Dollywood admission tickets and Flower & Food Festival Tasting Passes to use from April 21 to June 11.
For more information and to get tickets, visit Dollywood’s Flower & Food Festival website.
