System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian has announced a new solo EP.
The five-track collection is titled Perplex Cities and will arrive October 21. It follows Tankian’s 2021 EP, Elasticity.
“This whole collection of songs within Perplex Cities is a completely different sound than what I’ve done before,” Tankian says. “More electronic, subtle and deeper in terms of its layers of presentation musically. Perplex Cities gives off an aura that is unique and unlike my previous releases.”
Along with the EP announcement, Tankian has premiered its opening track, “Pop Imperialism,” exclusively through the free augmented reality app Arloopa. Each of the songs off Perplex Cities will debut on Arloopa ahead of the EP’s release on traditional streaming platforms.
Here’s the Perplex Cities track list:
“Pop Imperialism”
“The Race”
“I Spoke Up”
“Rumi Loves His Cars”
“Forgive Me Father”
(WASHINGTON) — Mark Frerichs — the last-known American hostage being held by the Taliban — has been released in a prisoner exchange, President Joe Biden confirmed in a statement on Monday.
“His release is the culmination of years of tireless work by dedicated public servants across our government and other partner governments, and I want to thank them for all that effort,” Biden said.
The Taliban confirmed at a press conference in Kabul, Afghanistan on Monday that Frerichs from Lombard, Illinois, was released in a prisoner swap for a senior Taliban detainee and notorious drug lord Bashir Noorzai. Administration officials said Noorzai had been held in a federal prison in the United States but not at Guantanamo Bay as had been reported.
Without getting into the specifics of the negotiations, Biden acknowledged, “Bringing the negotiations that led to Mark’s freedom to a successful resolution required difficult decisions, which I did not take lightly.”
The 60-year-old U.S. Navy veteran and contractor, who had been “in Afghanistan for over a decade working on a variety of civil engineering projects,” was abducted in Kabul in January 2020 after being lured to what he thought was a new business meeting — but which turned out to be a horrific ruse, family members and officials have said. He’s been held in Afghanistan for 31 months.
“I spoke with Mark’s sister today to share the good news and express how happy I am for Mark’s family,” Biden said.
Charlene Cakora, Frerichs’ sister, has long made desperate pleas to Biden on behalf of her brother’s release.
“I don’t think anybody can come home with their head held high until every stone has been turned,” she told ABC in an exclusive interview in June 2021, when the U.S. military completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan and Frerichs was the man left behind.
On Monday, Cakora said that despite “some folks arguing against the deal that brought Mark home,” her brother was back alive because “President Biden took action.” She also credited Illinois Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin for his successful return.
Duckworth and Durbin have not yet released statements about their constituent’s release.
“We are grateful to President Biden, Secretary Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and Senators Duckworth and Durbin for their efforts to free Mark. Senator Duckworth got personally involved – advocating tirelessly within our government to get him home,” Cakora said.
“President Biden did what was right. He saved the life of an innocent American veteran,” she said.
“My Administration continues to prioritize the safe return of all Americans who are held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad, and we will not stop until they are reunited with their families,” Biden said in his statement. “We have much more work to do in many other cases, but Mark’s release demonstrates our enduring commitment. Like our work to free Americans held in Burma, Haiti, Russia, Venezuela, and elsewhere, it is our duty to do all we can to bring our people home.”
Now we know what “news” Paramore was planning on “spreading.”
Hayley Williams and company have announced a show at New York City’s Beacon Theatre on November 13 as part of their upcoming comeback tour, which marks their first live dates in four years.
Tickets will go on sale this Friday, September 23 at 10 a.m. ET via Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan platform. Registration is open now.
As previously reported, Paramore updated their website earlier this month with a calendar of events. Up until the NYC show was announced, the date for September 19 read “start spreading the news.” Now, it’s been replaced by “NYC.”
The next date listed on the calendar is next Wednesday, September 28, which is the same day Paramore’s new single “This Is Why,” their first release in five years, is set to premiere. Currently, September 28 is left blank on the calendar, perhaps suggesting the song debut will be accompanied by more news. Surely, the whole ParaFamily is crossing their fingers for an album announcement.
Paramore will launch their fall tour October 2 in Bakersfield, California.
Ozzy Osbourne‘s Patient Number 9 debuts in the top 10 of this week’s Billboard 200.
The latest solo effort from the Prince of Darkness lands at #3 on the all-genre album chart with a total of 58,000 equivalent album units, 52,000 of which were traditional album sales. That latter figure makes Patient Number 9 the best-selling album of the week.
Patient Number 9 is, fittingly, Ozzy’s ninth top 10 release as a solo artist. He’s also notched two top 10 records with Black Sabbath, including a #1 with the metal legends’ 2013 swan song, 13.
Ozzy dropped Patient Number 9 on September 9. Like its predecessor, 2020’s Ordinary Man, PN9 features a whole host of guest contributors, including Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, Pearl Jam‘s Mike McCready, Black Label Society‘s Zakk Wylde, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica‘s Robert Trujillo and late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins.
As part of her celebration of the 25th anniversary of her album Butterfly, Mariah Carey decided to recreate the video for one of the album’s hits with help from her kids…and Millie Bobby Brown.
On Instagram, Mariah and her twins Moroccan and Monroe teamed withthe Stranger Things star and her boyfriend Jake Bongiovi — son of Jon Bon Jovi — and acted out the intro of Mariah’s video for “Honey.” Mariah recreates her role as “Agent M,” who’s tied up in a chair and being threatened by her captors.
Millie and Jake lip-sync her captors’ threats: “You know, I been thinkin.’ I got two choices for ya: The easy way or the hard way.” Roc and Roe lip-sync to comedian Eddie Griffin‘s instructions to one of Mariah’s overweight captors: “Go eat a buffet. They’re having a chicken sale at Dirty Bird.”
Mariah captioned the video, “Reliving the splendor of the Honey video with surprise guests!”
Mariah and Brown were first seen together in 2020 when Mariah posted a photo of the two hanging out and referencing Brown’s then-upcoming Netflix movie Enola Holmes. The sequel arrives this fall.
“Honey” was a number-one hit from Butterfly. This past Friday, Mariah released an extended edit of the track as part of the bonus material included on the album’s re-release.
(NEW YORK) — By the six-month mark of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the conflict had become a largely static one, with neither side conducting significant offensive operations — until last week.
Following a surprising counteroffensive, Ukraine said this week that it managed to recapture over 2,300 square miles of territory from Russia in the Kharkiv region in the northeast, including the strategic city of Izyum. The move also forced Russian troops to hastily retreat in what Russia’s defense ministry called a “regrouping” of forces.
Some military analysts see the counteroffensive as a turning point in the war, marking a likely end to Russia’s ability to mount any major offensives in Ukraine again, while others — including President Joe Biden — have said it’s hard to tell if that is indeed the case.
Retired Col. Steve Ganyard, an ABC News contributor, called the offensive an important victory for Ukraine, though he noted that the battle in the south, near Kherson, is still crucial.
“The frontline is thousands of miles long. The Russians still maintain most of the Donbas and they’re still holding up Ukrainian advances in the south,” Ganyard said. “It’s a terrific victory for the Ukrainians. It will bolster their morale. It will show that they can fight better than the Russians can and it shows how weak the Russian military really is. But it is just one battle. One tactical, one operational victory. The war is still far from over.”
‘Stunning’ breakthrough
Ukraine’s offensive in the north seems to have caught Russian forces off-guard. After publicizing plans for a counteroffensive in Kherson last month, Ukrainian forces also pushed forward in the northeast unexpectedly last week.
“They actually sucker-punched the Russians,” Ganyard said. “The Russians moved 25 battle groups from the eastern front and the northeastern front, down to the area around Kherson to defend, add troops. So this made the lines up north around Kharkiv very thin.”
The Russians may not have thought Ukraine could conduct two major offenses, but Ukrainian troops attacked the weakened front and “flew through the remaining Russian defenses,” Ganyard said.
“It’s very extraordinary,” said. “We went from a relatively static battlefield for weeks if not months, to this amazing breakthrough, stunning breakthrough that the Ukrainians were able to conduct and achieve up in the north around Kharkiv.”
More than 6,000 square kilometers were recaptured, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ukrainian officials said they have retaken control of several cities, including Izyum — which had been used as the main logistical hub for Russia’s assault on the Donbas region.
Momentum heading toward winter
While the offensive is seen as strategically important for Ukraine and a major morale booster — with the opposite implications for Russia — there’s still a long way to go in war, Ganyard said.
Zelenskyy has previously stated his goal is to take back all Ukrainian territory from Russia, which still occupies around a fifth of Ukraine’s territory, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington D.C.-based think tank that has been closely tracking the war.
Retaking Kherson, a city on the Dnieper River, would allow Ukraine to sustain its economy, Ganyard said. While a Russian counteroffensive seems unlikely given how “decimated” its military has become, Ukraine could run the risk of becoming stretched too thin, he said.
“The Ukrainians need to be careful that they don’t overrun their supply chain, that they don’t have such catastrophic success that they themselves become too thin and stretched out in the areas that they’ve retaken,” Ganyard said.
One key factor in the ongoing conflict will be the winter and the challenges that may bring.
“Clearly, the Ukrainians have the momentum and they will probably continue to hold that momentum going into the winter,” he said. “The winter season changes everything…Who knows what’s going to happen when things begin to get cold.”
(RENO, Nev.) — One person is dead following a single-engine plane crash behind a residential area during the Reno Air Races in Nevada on Sunday, the racing association’s CEO said.
Frederick Telling, CEO of the Reno Air Racing Association, said during a press conference that the pilot was killed in the crash. The pilot’s name was not released.
The Aero L-29 Delfín crashed in Reno around 3:45 p.m. local time while participating in the air races, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
“The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate,” the administration said. “The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation and will provide additional updates.”
The Reno Air Racing Association confirmed the fatality in a statement posted on Twitter.
“All other pilots landed safely and race operations for 2022 have been suspended,” it said. “We express our deepest sympathies to the pilot’s family and friends, as well as racers and race fans who make up our September family.”
The association, a nonprofit group that organizes the STIHL National Championship Air Races, according to its website, previously wrote on Twitter that it was “confirming details of the incident that happened today during the Jet Gold Race.”
“We can confirm that only one plane was involved. The National Championship Air Races has suspended all operations for the 2022 event,” it added.
The Reno Air Races began Wednesday and were scheduled to go through Sunday.
Beyoncé congratulated Sheryl Lee Ralph on her recent Emmy win with a sweet gift and note — from one Deena to another.
Ralph originated the role of Deena Jones in the 1981 Broadway musical Dreamgirls, while Beyoncé played the role in the Oscar-winning 2006 movie version. Over the weekend, Ralph posted a video of herself opening a card attached to a beautiful bouquet. It reads, “To the original Dreamgirl, sending you a beautiful congratulations. All my love, Beyoncé.”
Ralph just won her first-ever Emmy, for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy for her role in ABC’s Abbott Elementary.
“We’re Your Dreamgirls,” a song from the movie’s soundtrack, plays as Ralph stands there speechless, trying to collect her thoughts. “Oh Beyoncé. Wonderful!” Ralph says in a hoarse voice. “I don’t have a voice, but it’s wonderful!”
In the caption, Ralph wrote, “Every one has their own special dream and all your dreams can come true. Just look in the mirror and love what’s in front of you. Thank you @beyonce don’t forget to dream girls!”
Ralph also posted video of herself receiving a bouquet so massive it had to be wheeled in on a cart. The card read, “Congratulations on the best acceptance speech of all time. I’m still celebrating you. Blessings, Oprah.”
Ralph captioned that video, “I am still basking in the glow of love and I am still smelling the flowers and I am still so thankful and grateful to all of you and Oprah too!!!”
(LONDON) — Prince William and his brother Prince Harry walked side by side at their grandmother Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday.
The brothers were part of the funeral procession and followed closely behind their father King Charles III and their aunt and uncles Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.
William donned a British Royal Air Force uniform for the solemn occasion. Harry flanked his brother on his left for the event, but did not wear a military uniform, as he is no longer a working member of the royal family.
As the royal family proceeded into St. George’s Chapel for the funeral, the brothers were joined by their spouses, Kate, the princess of Wales, and Meghan, the duchess of Sussex. William and Kate’s two older children Prince George and Princess Charlotte also walked in the funeral procession for their great-grandmother.
William and Harry reunited following the queen’s death on Sept. 8, having escorted the late monarch’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall last week, and leading a standing vigil for the queen’s coffin over the weekend as she lied in state at Westminster Hall.
Both William and Harry were close to the queen and now, as their father has succeeded their grandmother as king, their roles within the royal family will likely change.
“Now, it’s about the king, their father, and rallying around the king,” ABC News royal contributor Robert Jobson said Monday. “They really need to stand up and be by his side, to be his liege men, his wingmen at this moment and hopefully, this sense of tradition, this moment of national celebration and pride as well as mourning will help them realize that they’ve now got to both work together in a way that will help him.”
“I think there’s been many olive branches to Harry and I think that maybe he will look at this and think, ‘I’ve got a role that’s beyond just my family. I may have a role still to play with my father and my brother,'” Jobson added.
Prior to the queen’s death, the two brothers had only reunited publicly a handful of times in the two years since Harry and Meghan stepped down from their roles as senior working royals.
One of the few times they appeared together, at their grandfather Prince Philip’s funeral last year, William and Harry walked in the same row but were separated by their cousin, Peter Phillips.
Twice following the death of the queen, William and Harry have walked side-by-side, first at the procession escorting the queen’s coffin to Westminster Hall and then on Monday in the procession moving the coffin to Westminster Abbey for the funeral.
Last week, the Sussexes joined William and Kate outside Windsor Castle to view tributes to the queen and speak with members of the public.
The appearance marked the first time the two couples, once called the “Fab Four” by royal watchers, had been seen together in public in over two years.
A representative for the prince of Wales told ABC News William had invited the Sussexes to join him and Kate.
After viewing tributes and speaking with members of the public, the four left together in a car driven by William.
The two families now have homes close to each other in Windsor.
William and Kate moved this summer from Kensington Palace to Adelaide Cottage on the grounds of Windsor Castle, which is also where Harry and Meghan’s U.K. home, Frogmore Cottage, is located.
Both William and Harry shared touching tributes to the queen after her death, describing how much she meant to them and to their families.
“While I will grieve her loss, I also feel incredibly grateful. I have had the benefit of The Queen’s wisdom and reassurance into my fifth decade,” said William. “My wife has had twenty years of her guidance and support. My three children have got to spend holidays with her and create memories that will last their whole lives.”
Harry issued a separate statement.
“Granny, while this final parting brings us great sadness, I am forever grateful for all of our first meetings — from my earliest childhood memories with you, to meeting you for the first time as my Commander-in-Chief, to the first moment you met my darling wife and hugged your beloved great-grandchildren,” he said. “I cherish these times shared with you, and the many other special moments in between.”
Blake Lively took a different tactic when dealing with the paparazzi over the weekend, flooding her Instagram feed with pics of her baby bump.
She and husband Ryan Reynolds hadn’t commented about her pregnancy, which was on display in New York City Wednesday when she walked the red carpet at the 10th annual Forbes Power Women’s Summit.
Instead, Lively let the new photos speak for themselves: One picture shows her flaunting her baby belly in a red one-piece bathing suit featuring a flower-like cut-out. Another shows Reynolds touching her belly as they sit in chaise lounges by the pool. In another, Blake poses for a mirror selfie in her underwear.
Blake’s pal Taylor Swift even poses with her and her bump in another snap.
But a closer look reveals the pregnant pics aren’t necessarily recent. In one, she’s posing with Reynolds wearing his outfit from Deadpool 2, which likely was taken when Blake was pregnant with their 5-year-old daughter, Inez.
And while a picture is worth a thousand words, Blake spared a choice few for the paparazzi. “Here are photos of me pregnant in real life so the 11 guys waiting outside my home for a [unicorn] sighting will leave me alone,” she vented.
Lively added a thank-you “for all the love and respect and for continuing to unfollow accounts and publications who share photos of children. You have all the power against them. And thank you to the media who have a ‘No Kids Policy’. You all make all the difference.”
The move was hailed by more than 7.6 million followers of the actress, with the first being Gwyneth Paltrow, who commented, “This is fantastic.”
Reynolds and Lively’s family also includes daughters James, 7, and Betty, 2.
