Elvis Costello will take part in a four-day music and vacation event that will offer his fans the chance to explore the island nation and see special performances by the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.
The event, dubbed Elvis in Iceland, is scheduled for May 25 to May 29 and will be based in Reykjavik, Iceland. It will include a private performance by Elvis and his longtime keyboardist Steve Nieve, plus prime seats to a May 28 show at the city’s Harpa Concert Hall featuring Costello and his old friend and collaborator Nick Lowe.
The excursion also offers accommodations at a four-star hotel, Q&A sessions with Costello and Lowe, photo ops with Elvis, Nick and Steve, a limited-edition poster signed by the three musicians and concerts by local music acts.
In addition, those who register for the destination event will be treated to meals at fine restaurants and will get a fly-over tour of Reykjavik, a spa visit to the Sky Lagoon, a Golden Circle tour of the Icelandic countryside and more.
Registration for the extravaganza is open exclusively at ElvisInIceland.com, with a 10% discount available through December 25; use the promo code “ICELAND.”
In a message posted about the event on YouTube, Elvis says, “For many years I’ve been thinking to myself, ‘When am I going to get to come back to Reykjavik? When am I going to come back to Iceland?’ Well, it seems that May 2023, marks the time when I will return! I will be there with Steve Nieve, a huge stack of songs, and many stories to tell you on my Elvis in Iceland trip.”
The gang from Fast and Furious has gone from swiping DVD players from box trucks in its 2001 original to literally going to space in Fast 9, but if the head of Universal Pictures has her way, they might soon shatter some glass ceilings.
With a planned 11 films in the series — not counting the hit spin-off Hobbs & Shaw — the Fast movies have always featured strong female characters, beginning with Michelle Rodriguez‘ Letty and Jordana Brewster‘s Mia, and expanding to include Gal Gadot‘s Gisele, Nathalie Emmanuel‘s Ramsay, and more recently, Charlize Theron‘s baddieCipher and even Helen Mirren as Magdalene Shaw. The upcoming Fast X, coming in 2023 will also add another Oscar-winning woman to the family, Brie Larson.
In a chat with Business Insider, the chairwoman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, Donna Langley, says she wants to tap all that girl power for a spin-off.
“I would love to see [an all] female Fast, the executive enthused. “So would Vin [series star and producer VinDiesel].” Langley added, “We have so many great and amazing female characters in our franchise and now there’s the new addition of Brie Larson to add to the incredible roster. I would love to see us do a female Fast.”
(AUSTIN, Texas) — Families of the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting victims slammed the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Col. Steven McCraw, at an ongoing public safety commission meeting in Austin on Thursday.
Brett Cross, guardian of 10-year-old Robb Elementary School victim Uziyah Garcia, said Thursday that police waited outside as the children were “slaughtered.”
Cross called for McCraw’s immediate resignation, saying he “disgraced the state.”
“If you’re a man of your word, you’ll resign,” Cross said before he read the names of the 19 children and two teachers who were killed.
Jesse Rizo, uncle of 9-year-old victim Jackie Cazares, said at the hearing that the aftermath of the shooting was “unacceptable” and was “adding insult to injury.”
“Mr. McCraw, you have all the resources in the world,” he said. “Yet you come out, your staff comes out, [providing] misinformation after misinformation. And it continues to happen.”
“You basically lit a match and set the town on fire,” he said.
“All we want are answers and full transparency,” he said. “Take urgency and responsibility and tell us where you and your departments are on the investigation and how soon we’ll have a complete report.”
Kimberley Rubio, whose 10-year-old daughter, Lexi, was killed in the massacre, told ABC News Thursday morning that she’s attending the hearing to support another parent who is speaking and to push for McCraw to resign.
“DPS officers failed Uvalde students and teachers and our community,” Rubio said. “He is the leader, and sometimes when those below you fail, you have to take responsibility for that.”
Democratic Texas State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who addressed law enforcement at the start of the hearing, also called for McCraw’s resignation.
The massacre “shattered” Texans’ “illusion” that they could trust law enforcement, Gutierrez said at the hearing.
“These children waited 77 minutes” for help, he said. “Children trapped in a classroom had the courage to seek help by calling 911 over and over again. Law enforcement knew there were kids inside.”
He went on, “We’ll never know how many children could have been saved.”
Gutierrez said the parents of the Uvalde victims “wake up every day from a dream thinking life’s OK. A minute later knowing that they’re living in this horrible reality.”
McCraw is expected to give an update on the shooting probe and the DPS’s internal investigation at Thursday’s meeting. This marks the first public update since mid-July.
Nineteen children and two teachers were shot and killed with an AR-15-style rifle in the May 24 massacre. Nearly 400 officers rushed to the school, but didn’t go into the classroom where the gunman was confined with his victims until over an hour later.
That slow response has led to a wide chorus of criticism for the responders. The school district’s police chief was fired, as was one of the first Texas state troopers to arrive at the scene. A second trooper who left DPS to work for the Uvalde school system has since been terminated by the district.
Uvalde’s entire school district police force has also been suspended.
Prince Harry’s highly anticipated memoir now has a release date.
Harry’s memoir, titled Spare, will be released on Jan. 10, 2023, the book’s publisher, Penguin Random House, confirmed Thursday.
The publisher said the book contains “raw, unflinching honesty” and described it as a “landmark publication full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.”
When the book was first announced last year, Harry, the Duke of Sussex, said it would be a “firsthand account of my life that’s accurate and wholly truthful.”
The memoir’s title appears to be a nod to Harry’s birth order. He is the younger brother of Prince William, the heir to the British throne. Harry is fifth in line to the throne, behind William and his three children, as listed on the royal family’s official website.
Penguin Random House announced Thursday that Harry will donate proceeds from Spare to British charities.
Drake and 21 Savage’s joint album has been postponed.
The album, Her Loss, which the two announced in the middle of their “Jimmy Cooks” music video over the weekend, was due to drop on Friday, October 28. But Drake took to his Instagram Story Wednesday to tell fans it’s been pushed back a week.
“Our brother [producer Noah “40” Shebib] got Covid while mixing and mastering the crack so he’s resting up,” Drake wrote. “NOVEMBER 4th is HER LOSS day we’ll see you soon.”
21 Savage posted the same message on his own Instagram Story.
When your mom plays two sold-out shows at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, you’ve gotta dress up — even if you’re a shih tzu.
Most Carly Pearce fans know she’s the proud owner of pups Johnny and June — named after Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, naturally. The dogs even have their own Instagram account, which features adorable snapshots of them enjoying life together.
Wednesday marked day one of Carly’s Ryman shows — she’s playing a second sold-out set at the venue on Thursday — and she shared her excitement by posting a photo of Johnny and June all dolled up in their best doggie duds.
June’s wearing a black outfit with matching bows, while Johnny is rocking similar colors, donning a black cowboy hat that the Man in Black himself would be proud to wear.
“We dressed up because our mom is playing the Ryman tonight & tomorrow!!!!” the post’s caption reads.
A look back through Johnny and June’s social media feed reveals it’s not the first time the pups have dressed up together. Back in March, their Instagram account posted a snap of the two dogs rocking matching cowboy hats, plus a bonus cameo from their superstar mom.
Taylor Swift‘s album folklore came out during the pandemic, so opportunities to perform its songs live have been few. But she finally gave one of the album’s tracks its onstage premiere Wednesday night in London.
Billboard reports that during Bon Iver‘s show at the OVO Arena Wembley, folklore contributor Justin Vernon brought Taylor out onstage for a performance of their folklore duet, “exile.” Taylor’s other folklore contributor, The National‘s Aaron Dessner, was also part of the performance.
In fan-recorded video of the moment, which has been uploaded to Twitter, Vernon calls Taylor “the most talented person in the world,” and she replies by calling both Vernon and Dessner “the most talented person in the world.”
“All right, good night everybody,” Vernon jokes after the performance. “We don’t know what to do now.”
Dessner and Vernon also contributed to Taylor’s folklore follow-up, evermore. In addition, Dessner co-wrote and co-produced four songs on the 3 a.m. edition of Taylor’s new album, Midnights, which features seven additional tracks.
Nyong’o as Nakia in ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ — Marvel Studios
At the Black Panther: Wakanda Foreverpremiere Wednesday night in Los Angeles, stars Lupita Nyong’o, Angela Bassett and Letitia Wrighttold Good Morning America that it’s a surreal feeling to be back with the sequel. Wright, who plays Shuri, called it, “incredible.”
“To be back is surreal — to bring the world of Wakanda back for everyone and hoping that when people see it, they really love it and really enjoy it,” said Wright. “Seeing everybody just dedicate so much love into the script…It’s truly a family.”
Wakanda Forever, directed by Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, is a follow-up to the 2018 Oscar-winning global phenomenon. The role of King T’Challa/Black Panther, which was played by the late Chadwick Boseman, who died of cancer in 2020, was not recast, in deference to Boseman and his fans.
On Wednesday night, Bassett, who plays T’Challa’s mother, Queen Ramonda, shared how they honored Boseman’s legacy in the sequel.
“You’ll see his face, you’ll see his visage, you’ll feel our hearts, and our love for him,” Bassett said. “It’s there, it’s evident in our faces, in our stance, in the detail, in the renderings — we don’t forget him at all.”
Oscar-winner Nyong’o reprises her role as Nakia, said the cast bonded in Boseman’s absence. “Luckily, the story leans into the loss that we experienced, so we could bring our grief to work and put it to good work,” she shared. “And we leaned on each other, you know, because we all lost someone dear to us. And so we had each other for support…”
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever opens November 11 from Marvel Studios, which is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.
(AUSTIN, Texas) — The head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Col. Steven McCraw, is expected to give an update on the Uvalde shooting probe and the DPS’s internal investigation at a public safety commission meeting in Austin on Thursday.
Families of the Robb Elementary School victims are also expected to speak.
This will mark the first public update since mid-July.
Nineteen children and two teachers were shot and killed with an AR-15-style rifle in the May 24 massacre. Nearly 400 officers rushed to the school, but didn’t go into the classroom where the gunman was confined with his victims until over an hour later.
That slow response has led to a wide chorus of criticism for the responders. The school district’s police chief was fired, as was one of the first Texas state troopers to arrive at the scene. A second trooper who left DPS to work for the Uvalde school system has since been terminated by the district.
Uvalde’s entire school district police force has also been suspended.
(GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.) — The Grand Rapids, Michigan police officer charged with second-degree murder in Patrick Lyoya’s death had a preliminary court hearing on Thursday.
Evidence presented in the preliminary hearing will determine if there’s probable cause that Christopher Schurr, a seven-year veteran of the Grand Rapids Police Department, killed Lyoya. If probable cause is determined, the case may continue to a jury trial.
Schurr pleaded not guilty during his arraignment.
Lyoya, a 26-year-old native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was shot in the head on April 4 after Schurr pulled him over for a faulty license plate. His death prompted protests throughout Grand Rapids.
Body camera video showed Schurr shouting at Lyoya to “get in the car.” The footage was released nine days after the shooting.
Schurr can be heard asking Lyoya if he spoke English and then demanding that Lyoya show his driver’s license. Lyoya turned to a passenger in the car, closed the door and started to walk away from Schurr, according to the video.
Lyoya started to run. Schurr grabbed Lyoya and struggled with him before eventually forcing him to the ground, shouting “Stop resisting,” “Let go” and “Drop the Taser,” according to the video. Police said Lyoya grabbed at Schurr’s stun gun during the altercation.
The body camera was deactivated during the struggle, according to police.
Lyoya was then shot in the back of the head, according to an independent autopsy report and the Kent County medical examiner.
Schurr was fired from the Grand Rapids Police Department in June after waiving his right to a discharge hearing.
