Page 594 – 105.7 WDNY

In 2025, LOCASH ‘Bet the Farm’ — and it paid off

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

LOCASH finishes 2025 with one of the top five most successful songs of the year, as “Hometown Home” comes in at #4 on Country Aircheck‘s ranking of the year’s top 25.

It’s an especially significant milestone, since the Bet the Farm track was the first release from their own company, Galaxy Label Group. The “Hot Mix” of the multi-week country #1 heads into 2026 as a top-20 hit on the Hot AC chart, as their follow-up, “Wrong Hearts,” is climbing the country ranking.

2025 also brought a year of collaborations between LOCASH and the popular Savannah Bananas, as Preston Brust and Chris Lucas played the first-ever halftime show in an NFL stadium in Tampa in March.

Their halftime gigs continued in November, as the duo kept the energy going when the New England Patriots took on the New York Jets on Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football.

You can check out LOCASH’s original Christmas song, “Snow Angel,” and their cover of “O Holy Night,” which are both new for 2025.

They’re set to ring in 2026 Dec. 31 at Gilley’s in Park City, Kansas.

‘The Odyssey’ official trailer finds Matt Damon as Odysseus on his way home

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

This isn’t an enchantment from a siren: the official trailer for Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey has arrived.

Universal Pictures shared the brand-new trailer for the upcoming film adaptation of Homer‘s epic poem on Monday.

The trailer, which is just under two minutes, finds Matt Damon starring as Odysseus.

“After years of war, no one could stand between my men and home. Not even me,” Damon’s Odysseus says in voiceover atop of scenes of Trojan War soldiers marching.

We then see Telemachus and Penelope, played by Tom Holland and Anne Hathaway, awaiting Odysseus’ arrival.

The star-studded ensemble cast of The Odyssey also includes Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya and Charlize Theron.

Universal describes the adaptation as “a mythic action epic shot across the world using brand new IMAX film technology,” which will bring the foundational, classic story to IMAX screens for the first time.

Homer’s The Odyssey, of course, tells the story of the Greek hero Odysseus’ 10-year journey home to Ithaca after the Trojan War. He is filled with interruptions in his quest to return home to his wife, Penelope, and his grown son, Telemachus, who fights off suitors who are desperate to steal his father’s throne.

Nolan wrote and directed the film, his first since the best picture Oscar-winning blockbuster Oppenheimer. He also produced the movie with his wife, Emma Thomas.

The Odyssey opens in movie theaters on July 17, 2026.

Lady Gaga’s ‘Harlequin’ concert film releasing Christmas Eve on YouTube

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

Merry Christmas, Little Monsters: Lady Gaga‘s Harlequin concert film will hit YouTube on Dec. 24.

Gaga announced the news on Instagram, writing, “Happy holidays to you and yours. Harlequin Live: One Night Only Coming Xmas Eve @ 4pm PT on my YouTube channel.”

The movie, recorded last September at LA’s Belasco Theatre, features Gaga performing all the songs from her Grammy-nominated Harlequin album, which she released as a companion to her film Joker: Folie à Deux.

Variety reports that during a recent screening of the film at the Grammy Museum, followed by a Q&A, Gaga explained why she’s putting out the film on Christmas Eve.

“I’m feeling like: Why not? We have this thing that’s so special to us, so we’re just really happy to share it with the fans,” she said. “It’s kind of a rebellious project. And, by Harlequin standards, Christmas is the perfect time to release something rebellious.”

The Harlequin album, featuring Gaga performing standards from the Great American Songbook in her own style, is nominated for best traditional pop album, but she feels it’s closer to the jazz records she made with the late Tony Bennett.

According to Variety, Gaga said, “This project for me is a really special way to gave my fans some insight into who I want to become, as a jazz musician. This will not be my last jazz record. So it’s just exciting to keep going.”

“And I do feel no matter where music takes me, it’s the one thing that’s pretty insatiable in me — it will never be enough. Because even when I’m in my nineties, I will never have gone through every genre and figured it all out.”

‘Fool (If You Think It’s Over)’ singer Chris Rea dies at 74

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

British singer/songwriter Chris Rea, who had a hit in the ’70s with “Fool (If You Think it’s Over),” has passed away at the age of 74. His death was confirmed in a statement posted on his Facebook page.

“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Chris, who died peacefully earlier today following a short illness,” read the statement. “Chris’s music has created the soundtrack to many lives, and his legacy will live on through the songs he leaves behind.”

“Fool (If You Think It’s Over)” peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100, and went to #1 on the Adult Contemporary charts. The track was such a hit it earned Rea a best new artist Grammy nomination in 1978.

Rea’s other hits include 1989’s “Working on It,” which went to #1 on the Mainstream Rock charts, and 1988’s “Driving Home for Christmas,” which went to #1 in the U.K.

Bruce Springsteen releases first-ever live performance of ‘Nebraska’

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

When Bruce Springsteen released the box set Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition in October, it included a present-day recording of The Boss performing his album Nebraska in its entirety at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey. Now, the rocker is giving fans who didn’t buy the box set a chance to experience it.

Springsteen has now made the performance available to rent or own via digital outlets.

Bruce has performed songs from Nebraska live over the years, but he never toured behind the album. This concert marks the first time he performed the record from start to finish.

Springsteen’s longtime collaborator Thom Zimny, directed the concert, which was shot in black and white without an audience. Springsteen is backed by only two musicians: Larry Campbell and Charlie Giordano.

According to the description posted to Instagram, the performance offers “fresh insight through the subtleties of his live performance, while remaining true to the spirit of the original recordings.” The performance is offered without narration or commentary, so, as Bruce notes, “Only the voices of the characters are heard.”

In addition to the concert, Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition includes a remastered version of the original album, along with previously unreleased material such as the long-rumored “Electric Nebraska.” It also features solo outtakes, including additional songs from Springsteen’s original Nebraska home recordings that didn’t make the album, as well as recordings from a 1982 solo studio session.

Lola Young resurfaces: ‘Can’t wait to see you in 2026’

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

After collapsing at a festival back in September, Lola Young wrote to fans that she was “going away for a while” to “work on myself.” Now, she’s checking in with an update.

The “Messy” singer, who’s nominated for the best new artist Grammy, wrote on Instagram, “Hey, I just want to express gratitude to everyone who has given me time and space to gather myself and get my head in a better place.” She thanks fans for their “love and support,” adding, “…[It] has helped more than you will ever know.”

Lola then writes, “I hope to gradually get back to performing and continuing to pursue my dreams. Happy holidays to you all and can’t wait to see you in 2026.”

She sums up by sharing, “Life is a journey, nothing is perfect but today I am doing well. All my love always, Lola.”

Among the celebrities offering Lola support in the comments were Gigi Perez, Flavor Flav and SZA, who wrote, “Love you starfire angel !!!!! Your music is FULL of longevity and substance! We’re so grateful for you.”

Lola was also seen publicly on Dec. 19 attending a Christmas event with Olivia Rodrigo and Lily Allen.

The Flaming Lips post comment on apparent Steven Drozd departure

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

The Flaming Lips have posted a statement regarding the apparent departure of longtime multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd.

Drozd, who joined the band in 1991 and was the longest-tenured Lips member aside from frontman Wayne Coyne, seemed to confirm he left the group in a since-deleted social media post. The post, captured by Stereogum, read, “They’re done with me.”

The Lips’ statement, written by drummer Matt Duckworth Kirksey, reads, “If you haven’t heard this newest iteration of the band, give us a shot. The music, and the show is better than ever.”

“And remember… NONE of this ever happens without Wayne,” Kirksey writes. “This idea that Steven was THE musical genius, and Wayne is just some weirdo artist… [it’s] just not true. Wayne pushes the creativity, the sound, and the show forward, like no artist I’ve ever been around.”

“Being in The Lips is hard,” Kirksey continues. “I remember before I was in the band, I would see them rehearsing for hours and hours and think… man… [that’s] brutal. But once you get to be part of that vision… [it’s] f****** exhilarating. [It’s] f****** FUN. [It’s] Wayne’s drive to be great that makes it all possible.”

The Flaming Lips will wrap up 2025 with a New Year’s Eve show in Washington, D.C.

Barry Manilow announces cancer diagnosis, surgery forces postponement of shows

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

Barry Manilow has been forced to postpone his January concerts so he can undergo cancer surgery, the legendary singer announced on Monday.

In a statement on Instagram, Manilow writes that he’d recently suffered through weeks of bronchitis, so his doctor ordered an MRI to “make sure that everything was OK.” He goes on to say that the test “discovered a cancerous spot on my left lung that needs to be removed.”

“It’s pure luck (and a great doctor) that it was found so early,” the 82-year-old singer writes. “That’s the good news.”

The bad news? Manilow says he has to have surgery to have the spot removed.

“The doctors do not believe it has spread and I’m taking tests to confirm their diagnosis,” he explains. “So, that’s it. No chemo. No radiation. Just chicken soup and I Love Lucy reruns.”

Since he’ll need a month to recover, Manilow will be rescheduling his January arena concerts for February, March and April. He lists the rescheduled dates in his message, noting that ticket holders can use their existing tickets for the new shows.

“I’m very sorry that you have to change your plans,” he writes. “Just like you, we were all looking forward to the January shows and hate having to move everything around.”

Manilow says he’s “counting the days” until he can get back to the Westgate Las Vegas, where he normally performs, for his Valentine’s weekend concerts on Feb. 12, 13 and 14, as well as the rest of his 2026 shows. “Something tells me that February weekend is going to be one big party!” he writes.

Manilow signs off by saying, “I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year. And remember, if you have even the slightest symptom … get tested!”

Manilow was treated for throat cancer in 2020.

Judge to hear arguments over whether ICE can re-detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The federal judge overseeing Salvadoran native Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s immigration case is scheduled to hear arguments Monday over whether ICE should be allowed to re-detain Abrego Garcia while the government attempts to deport him to Liberia or another country.

Abrego Garcia was released on Dec. 11 after the judge, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, found the government had detained him “without lawful authority.”

In part, Judge Xinis said he had not been issued a formal order of removal during his immigration proceedings in 2019, when a judge also barred the government from deporting him to his native El Salvador due to his fear of persecution.

Following Abrego Garcia’s release, an immigration judge “corrected” the error and added a removal order to his record, finding that it “was erroneously omitted.”

Abrego Garcia, who had been living in Maryland with his wife and children, was deported in March to El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison, despite the 2019 court order barring his removal to that country, after the Trump administration claimed he was a member of the criminal gang MS-13, which he denies.

He was brought back to the U.S. in June to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee, after which Judge Xinis released him from ICE detention while he awaits trial. He is scheduled to go to trial on the Tennessee charges, to which he has pleaded not guilty, in January.

On Friday, his attorneys filed a motion seeking sanctions against the Trump administration for allegedly violating a court order that barred officials from making extrajudicial statements that could impact the case. After Abrego Garcia’s release from ICE detention, Chief Border Patrol Agent Gregory Bovino called him an “alien smuggler” and “wife beater” on national TV, his attorneys said.

Jillian Lauren opens up on arrest & Scott Shriner divorce

December 22, 2025 by WDNY Radio

Jillian Lauren has opened up about her April arrest and her pending divorce from Weezer bassist Scott Shriner.

Lauren was arrested and charged with attempted murder following an incident in her Los Angeles neighborhood, in which she allegedly fired at officers who were chasing unrelated hit-and-run suspects.

“I was doing the best I knew to protect my family,” Lauren tells Rolling Stone in her first interview since the arrest. “[The] impulse was self-defense.”

“My world fell to pieces around me in a heartbeat,” she continues. “It’s like, you spend your whole life just getting an entire deck of cards in order. And just take them and throw them up in the air one day, and I’m still waiting to see how they’re gonna land.”

The charges were later amended to felonies for negligent discharge of a firearm and assault with a semiautomatic weapon, to which Lauren pleaded not guilty. She was granted a mental health diversion which is expected to lead to her charges being dismissed.

As for her marriage to Shriner, Lauren says they’d already been growing apart before the arrest, which was the “crisis” that ultimately led her to file for divorce earlier in December.

“The headlines about the divorce were the ones that really hurt me,” Lauren says. “I was the one who served my husband, but still, to see it in the public was really painful. It was definitely a day [spent] under the covers, blocking out all the noise. Divorce is painful, I don’t care who you are.”

“He’s still my best friend,” she adds of Shriner. “We still have beautiful kids together and have always really supported each other in our various transformations.”

+ More