Putting on two massive tribute concerts to late drummer Taylor Hawkins this month was undoubtedly quite the undertaking, but Foo Fighters did have a guide to help out.
As Queen drummer Roger Taylor tells Billboard, Foo members Dave Grohl and Pat Smear told him they used the 1992 Freddie Mercury tribute concert as a “model.”
“I was very heavily involved in [the ’92 show], so that was sort of the model they built these shows on,” Taylor says. “Which is nice because we’ve always been tight with the Foo Fighters. We just love that band, like family.”
The Mercury concert was held several months after the iconic vocalist passed away in November 1991 and featured performances from the likes of Elton John, David Bowie, Guns N’ Roses, U2, George Michael and Def Leppard.
The Foos shows were no less star-studded, featuring names like Paul McCartney, AC/DC‘sBrian Johnson and Joan Jett, plus members of Rush, Led Zeppelin, The Pretenders, The Police, The Cars, Def Leppard, Nirvana and Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Taylor and Queen’s Brian May also performed at both concerts, which were held in London and Los Angeles. The drummer tells Billboard that the shows had “different” energies, partially because the London one was livestreamed.
“The one in London was more of seamless show with a lot of little filmed sequence in-between and so many acts,” Taylor says. “[Los Angeles] was more like a real rock parade. It was an emphasis on hard, heavy rock, and just one act after another and a parade of drummers like you’ve never seen, all the best rock ‘n’ roll drummers in the world.”
He adds, “It was a fantastic night, just a wonderful night for my great friend Taylor.”
Rhea Perlman refuses to believe Cheers is officially 40.
The actress told ABC Audio she heard Cheers is turning the big 4-0 — “But, I don’t believe it.”
“Maybe the 20th? Maybe the 27th? But the 40th?” she quipped. “It’s incomprehensible.”
Perlman played wisecracking waitress Carla Tortelli and appeared in all 271 episodes of the long-running sitcom. She joked that she’s been playing “a grandmother since before I was 40” because Carla begrudgingly became one in season six.
Perlman found it impossible to narrow down a favorite memory from Cheers, but said her “favorite thing” was “the people I worked with.”
“It was like going to camp — a good one — not one you wanted to call home every day. It just was a very comfortable, fun place to be,” she recalled. “We had great writers, we had a great cast and and we had fun.”
Perlman saluted series co-creator James Burrows and compared his directing to that of “a maestro.” She said he was so in sync with the cast, he ensured their jokes stuck the landing and got the “real laughs” every time.
“Jimmy had that thing where, you’d be starting on some run and he could see you were slipping into the wrong, so before you blew it in front of an audience, he’d go, ‘A-buh-buh-buh-buh! Let’s take that again,'” she revealed. “The first time is the big laugh.”
Perlman also said there are no plans for a Cheers reboot. “There were years that a few of us lobbied for a revival of Cheers, but it was never to be,” she sighed.
Cheers premiered September 30, 1982, on NBC and ran for 11 seasons. It won a total of 28 Emmys, including four for Outstanding Comedy Series.
Katy Perry serves as a new guest on the upcoming season of The Walk In, where she will show off her denim tribute to Britney Spears.
By that, we mean Katy’s version of the denim-on-denim ensemble Britney wore to the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards with then-boyfriend Justin Timberlake. The “Daisies” singer honored the look for the 2014 VMAs, and nearly a decade later, she refuses to let it go.
The Amazon Music series, hosted by RuPaul’s Drag Race star Mo Heart, is all about exploring music artists’ closets and rifling through their most iconic looks. A sneak peek of Katy’s forthcoming episode was shared on YouTube.
When it came time to dish about the denim outfit, Katy launched into story mode about how she approached rapper Riff Raff to pull off the VMA look.
“We both wore matching Versace that actually pays homage to Justin and Britney,” the Grammy nominee disclosed. “That moment Britney gave us was the moment, and I wanted to pay my respects.”
Katy also revealed something surprising about herself while showing off the tiny tailored waist of the denim suit: she struggled with her body image. “I have spent so much time thinking I was fat. Wasting time thinking I was fat, years ago,” she confessed. “I was never fat.”
In a teachable moment, she told her female fans, “You are not fat!”
Katy also will revisit some of her best tour looks and the outfits she wore when she took over the Super Bowl halftime show in 2015. As for how her old wardrobe continues to stay in mint condition, the singer revealed they are stored in a special warehouse “where we have everything hung in garment bags.”
Season 3 of The Walk In premieres October 3 on Amazon Music.
(MELBOURNE, FL) — A pregnant Florida woman braved strong winds and potentially dangerous flooding to get to a hospital after she went into labor during Hurricane Ian.
Hanna-Kay Williams, from Melbourne — about 70 miles southeast of Orlando — started to experience contractions late Tuesday evening.
The area was already experiencing signs of the hurricane to come with fierce wind gusts and rain already coming down. Williams said she knew she was going to go into labor soon, so she, her fiancé and her mother drove through the treacherous conditions to Health First’s Holmes Regional Medical Center.
“I don’t even remember driving through the storm because I was in my own mental hurricane,” she said in a news release.
They arrived at the hospital in the early hours of Wednesday morning, but Williams’ delivery would not come quickly.
According to the release, Williams was in labor for more than 20 hours as Ian unleashed heavy rain and winds of more than 40 mph in the central part of the state.
Doctors decided a C-section was needed because Williams wasn’t fully dilated and there were signs of fetal distress, which occurs when a fetus experiences changes in heart rate or shows signs of oxygen deprivation before or during labor.
Thanks to the medical care, Williams had a healthy baby girl named Wajiha at 10:11 p.m. ET, weighing 7 pounds 13 ounces and measuring 20 inches, after the C-section.
“Her name means beautiful woman, glorious, and she was phenomenal throughout the birthing process,” Williams said.
After the difficult labor and severe weather, she said she and her family feel grateful Wajiha is doing well.
“We came out on top, we definitely did,” Williams said in the release. “I felt when she first arrived and they sat her on my lap, the first thing I said was, ‘That’s a big baby’ and then I looked at her and thought, ‘That’s my twin,’ even though I already have a fraternal twin.”
Williams said she thanks the nursing staff and everyone on the medical team for keeping her calm during the challenging childbirth.
“They made me feel like everything was going to be fine even through the hardest parts,” she said. “They gave me so much love and care and for someone who works in the medical field, I know how important that is for patients.”
After battering the southwestern coast, Hurricane Ian moved towards central Florida, bringing heavy flooding, resulting in people being rescued from homes, cars and even nursing homes.
In Orlando, a record rainfall of 12.5 inches was recorded in 24 hours. In New Smyrna Beach, about 50 miles northwest of Florida, 28.60 inches of rain fell in 27 hours.
During a news conference Thursday morning, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Central Florida was experiencing “a 500-year flood event.”
As of Friday afternoon, nearly 2 million people are without power in the state, including more than 600,000 across Central Florida, according to poweroutage.us.
Megadeth‘s Dave Mustaine hasn’t been in Metallica for nearly 40 years, but he’s leaving the door open to work with James Hetfield again.
In an interview with site VWMusic, Mustaine shares that he’s been “secretly hoping” that he and the “Enter Sandman” rocker might be able to “write together again.”
“I think the world really does want us to do that, and I think there is a pretty good possibility of it happening down the line,” Mustaine says. “I do think that it’s possible that one day James is going to come around and that he and I are going to be able to do something together again.”
“I guess that’s one of the things that has always kept me pushing forward,” he adds. “I think it’d be good for Megadeth, and it could be great for Metallica too.”
Mustaine was famously fired from Metallica in 1983 and replaced by Kirk Hammett, who remains the band’s guitarist today. Following his dismissal, Mustaine went on to create Megadeth.
Megadeth, meanwhile, just released a new album called The Sick, the Dying…and the Dead! in September.
Today, September 30, marks the 25th anniversary of the release of Bob Dylan‘s lauded 30th studio album, Time Out of Mind.
The collection of 11 new original tunes was considered a return to form for the influential singer/songwriter, who hadn’t released an album of his own new compositions since 1990’s Under the Red Sky.
Time Out of Mind reached #10 on the Billboard 200, Dylan’s first studio album to break into the top 10 of the chart since 1979’s Slow Train Coming, which peaked at #3.
The album won a trio of Grammys in 1998 — including his first and only Album of the Year trophy, as well as awards for Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best Rock Vocal Performance for the song “Cold Irons Bound.”
Time Out of Mind was produced by Daniel Lanois, who also worked with Dylan on his 1989 album Oh Mercy. Among the musicians who contributed to the record were acclaimed session drummer Jim Keltner, Augie Meyers of the Sir Douglas Quintet on keyboards, and guitarist Duke Robillard.
Among the notable versions of “Make You Feel My Love” were renditions by Billy Joel, Garth Brooks and Adele. Brooks scored a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1998.
Time Out of Mind has been certified Platinum by the RIAA for sales of 1 million copies in the U.S.
Here’s the album’s complete track list:
“Love Sick”
“Dirt Road Blues”
“Standing in the Doorway”
“Million Miles”
“Tryin’ to Get to Heaven”
“‘Til I Fell In Love with You”
“Not Dark Yet”
“Cold Irons Bound”
“Make You Feel My Love”
“Can’t Wait”
“Highlands”
A close-knit Irish community is torn apart by a lie in the new psychological drama film God’s Creatures. Emily Watson stars as Aileen O’Hara, a mother who protects her son from sexual assault accusations by lying on his behalf.
“He’s charged with sexual assault, and she gives him an alibi,” Watson tells ABC Audio. “And that then spirals out of control, in terms of destroying not just their lives and the victim, but the community around them starts to fracture.”
Normal People breakout Paul Mescal plays Aileen’s son Brian, acting in a role outside of his comfort zone. That, he says, is one of the reasons he joined the project.
“It’s the first time I’ve had to put something into practice in terms of my idea of what acting is,” Mescal says. “It’s not about being politically or morally aligned with everybody that you play.”
Aisling Franciosi plays Sarah, the young woman Brian assaults. She says she felt “really passionate” about not only her role, but the cruel truth of the film.
“Something that feels comfortable and familiar and the status quo – it’s uncomfortable to change that,” Franciosi says. “So, we’re just so much more likely to shut out whoever is making us look at that and just leave them to deal with the repercussions of it all.”
Mescal agrees, noting the film dares people to assess their own lives.
It is “actually interrogating, and holding a mirror up, and being like, ‘This is your community. This is the behavior that your community is exhibiting,’” Mescal says. “And, ultimately, we’re doing a disservice to young women, but we’re also doing a disservice to young men, because we’re not cultivating an environment where change is possible.”
(NEW YORK) — Since the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline launched on July 16, call centers have seen a 45% increase in contacts — primarily in people texting or sending messages seeking help — compared to last year, according to new data from the federal government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
“What we’ve seen is a big increase in text and chat, and some increase in phone calls,” said Tim Jansen, chief executive officer for Community Crisis Services, Inc., in Hyattsville, Maryland. “Fortunately, [CCSI was] prepared. Answer rates have been really good nationally. The national waiting time has been reduced … It’s still not where it needs to be, but it’s significantly better.”
988 is the new three-digit number for the service previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which had been operating with a ten-digit number since 2005. Prior to the launch of the new number — touted as making the service more accessible — advocates worried whether the system was appropriately funded and staffed to handle the anticipated spike in contacts from people in need.
The Lifeline has historically been underfunded and understaffed, the government has acknowledged. Ahead of the 988 launch and an anticipated increase in calls, $432 million in federal funding was invested in shoring up the system, enabling call centers across the nation to hire additional staff. But Jansen told ABC News that whether additional state funding is appropriated for the partner call centers in local areas across the country makes a difference.
“SAMHSA put some money in on the front end,” Jansen said. “I think the SAMHSA funds have gotten everybody sort of off the mark and got everybody into the race. But it’s got to be continued in order for things to move forward. Some states are going to do that easier than others.”
Answer rate data from SAMHSA for the month of August, the first full month of implementation for 988, shows an 84% answer rate for calls, 97% for chats and 98% for texts. The answer rates for chats and texts represent a major increase compared to numbers released by SAMHSA in an appropriations report late last year, which showed a 30% answer rate for chats and 56% rate for texts through December 2020.
Jansen told ABC News that funding from the state of Maryland, in addition to the federal investments, made sure his facility was prepared. Many states, however, have offered no form of financial support for the system, though they were empowered by Congress in 2020 to enact cell phone taxes to fund the call centers, similar to how 911 call centers are funded.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra has been traveling across the country as part of HHS’ National Tour to Strengthen Mental Health.
Earlier this month, he touted the Biden administration’s investment in 988, saying in a statement: “Our nation’s transition to 988 moves us closer to better serving the crisis care needs of people across America.”
“988 is more than a number, it’s a message: we’re there for you,” he added. “The transition to 988 is just the beginning. We will continue working towards comprehensive, responsive crisis care services nationwide to save lives.”
Advocates for those in crisis, however, worry about the long-term of funding for the system given the uncertainty of future federal investment — with shifting politics and shifting priorities — and, so far, a lack of widespread monetary backing from states.
“We’re going to need continued investment,” said Hannah Wesolowski, chief advocacy officer for the National Alliance on Mental Illness. “One of my fears is that people are gonna think, ‘OK, [the launch], came and went, our work is done.’ There’s so much more work to do. I keep saying we’re closer to the starting line than the finish. But I think this is something that has a lot of momentum, but also is going to help millions of people and we can’t lose sight of that.”
Jansen, with the crisis center in Maryland, said that while “so far, [it’s] been beautiful,” a designated fund via a cell phone tax would also “make a huge difference.”
That scenario would allow his facility to “focus a little less on the fundraising and a whole lot more on service delivery,” he said.
Four states have passed cell phone taxes that would fund the 988 call centers year over year.
“There’s only so much money, and folks prioritize what they see as important,” Jansen said. “Hopefully everybody sees saving lives from suicide is important. I think they do. But you know, it always comes down to ‘where does money get spent?'”
Since the launch of the new number, advocates cite another worry: Misinformation spreading online about 988 using personal information to track callers or send police without cause to the homes of those contacting the service — which those involved say is an exaggeration.
“My biggest concern is that people will lose trust in the system just as it’s getting off the ground and has the potential to help millions of people,” said Wesolowski with the National Alliance on Mental Illness. “I am really fearful that somebody who could use that support and help is going to hesitate to call. We want every life saved. We want every person who’s in emotional distress helped.”
Call centers do have “imminent risk” standards by which they are required to send assistance to people who have contacted 988, though most calls do not reach that level, according to SAMHSA.
“It is important to note that fewer than 2% of calls to the 988 Lifeline require an emergency response, and most of those are done with the consent and cooperation of the caller,” Dr. John Palmieri, acting director of SAMHSA’s 988 and Behavioral Health Crisis Coordination Office, said in a statement. “We want anyone who calls, texts, or chats 988 to know that they are not required to provide any personal information to talk to a trained counselor.”
Jansen noted that “every imminent risk policy underscores least invasive intervention as is possible. So you do the things that are the least invasive.”
“Ninety-nine times out of 100, people are ready, willing and able to participate [with emergency personnel],” he said. “They don’t call, they don’t start a text or chat unless some part of them wants to live. So you have a little bit of an advantage.”
Wesolowski noted that the concerns online of excessive intervention from 988 disproportionately impact marginalized communities, particularly communities of color.
“A lot of communities that are marginalized by our public systems and have seen kind of the worst results from this type of response when it’s been available are skeptical, and it is completely reasonable that they are, given their past experience,” Wesolowski said. “The exact people who can be best helped by 988 and and the system being built around it may not trust it enough to call, and I think that’s incredibly concerning. That means more people aren’t going to get the help they need and potentially many more lives lost.”
Jansen also noted that making sure the 988 system works for everyone is important going forward.
“We’ve really got to look at suicide as sort of a more comprehensive or global issue. We’ve really got to be able to market in a way that we’re getting into communities of color,” he said. “And we’ve got to be getting in touch with them and making sure everybody can use 988 in a way that’s culturally appropriate and appropriate to their community and all that sort of stuff. So there’s some work to be done there in terms of outreach.”
Jansen said the most important part of what his Maryland call center does is meet people “where they are” and start there to help them.
“988 is your three-digit dialing to mental health and crisis care systems,” he said. “You are going to reach somebody who can help you right now that’s going to be kind and educated enough to connect you appropriately, and most importantly, listen to you in terms of what your situation is.”
If you are experiencing suicidal, substance use or other mental health crises please call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You will reach a trained crisis counselor for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also go to 988lifeline.org.
(WASHINGTON) — A bill to avert a federal government shutdown passed the House on Friday, just hours before the midnight deadline.
The House voted 230-201 to pass the stopgap legislation, which will keep the government funded through mid-December — past the midterm elections.
The bill now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk. He’ll need to sign it before the end of the day Friday to avert a shutdown.
The Senate voted 72-25 to advance the legislation on Thursday afternoon after some stumbles earlier this week over energy permitting reform.
The legislation moved forward after Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., agreed to drop the provision — which was opposed by some progressives and most Republicans — from the continuing resolution. All 25 “no” votes came from the GOP side of the aisle.
The bill includes an additional $12 billion in military and economic aid for Ukraine, $1 billion in heating and utility assistance for low-income families, $20 million in response to the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, and includes a five-year reauthorization for Food and Drug Administration user fees.
The measure also includes money for Federal Emergency Management Agency’s main disaster relief fund, an infusion that comes amid Hurricane Ian’s leveling of southwest Florida and after Hurricane Fiona’s devastation on Puerto Rico.
In floor remarks just before the vote, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., highlighted some of the emergency appropriations included on the bill, including aid for Ukraine and to assist with the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi. She also highlighted a relatively small amount of funding that could be immediately deployed to assist with Hurricane Ian recovery effort, but noted that even more funds will likely be needed.
“This legislation is a package for the people. I urge a strong bipartisan yes on the continuing resolution so that we may swiftly send this bill to the President’s desk,” Pelosi said on the floor.
What’s not included in the legislation is the billions of dollars the White House requested to continue its COVID-19 response. The Biden administration requested $22.4 billion for vaccines, treatments and next-generation research.
“This legislation avoids a very bad thing — shutting down the government — and does a lot of good things: money for the people of Ukraine, funding for communities reeling from natural disasters, aid to families with their heating bills, just to name a few,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said just before the vote.
“Millions and millions of people can breathe easy,” Schumer added.
Republicans tried to get the continuing resolution to lapse early next year, rather than mid-December, in the hopes that the GOP will gain control of the House after the November midterm elections.
Sen. Schumer announced Thursday that the Senate will not return for its next vote until Nov. 14, giving members time to campaign in their home states from now until Election Day.
When the Senate returns for the lame duck session, it will have a hefty to-do list to tackle. Members will have to pass the National Defense Authorization Act, fund the government, confirm nominees and potentially take up legislation to protect same sex marriage.
Schumer warned of an “extremely busy” final two months of the calendar year.
The Beatles have debuted the first take of their classic experimental song “Tomorrow Never Knows,” one of the bonus tracks from the forthcoming deluxe reissue of the Fab Four’s landmark 1966 album Revolver.
The track features John Lennon‘s eerie, distorted vocals over a tape loop of a drum sequence and an Eastern-influenced guitar line that’s slower and more stark than the version that made the original album.
As a new Rolling Stone article explains, The Beatles began recording “Tomorrow Never Knows (Take 1)” on the first day of the Revolver sessions and nearly finished the track by the end of the second day.
Lennon famously told producer George Martin and engineer Geoff Emerick that he wanted “to sound like the Dalai Lama singing from a hilltop” on the track. To achieve the effect, his vocals were run through a rotating Leslie speaker.
The finished track, which was one of the band’s earliest forays into psychedelia, became Revolver‘s closing song.
“Tomorrow Never Knows (Take 1)” is available now via digital formats, while a companion video, posted on YouTube, features archival photos, footage of the Beatles members and animated rotating tape reels, planets, clocks and flowers.
Among the versions of the reissue is a special edition that features new stereo and Dolby Atmos mixes of Revolver; the original mono mix of the album; 31 tracks of session outtakes; a four-song EP that includes the non-album tracks “Paperback Writer” and “Rain”; and a 100-page hardbound book.
