(NEW YORK) — NASA will return to the moon with a new mission planned for August, the agency said at a press conference Wednesday.
Fifty-three years after the historic landing of Apollo 11 in 1969, the new mission to orbit the moon is tentatively set to begin on Aug. 29, according to agency officials.
Artemis I will be an uncrewed test-launch with a newly developed spacecraft, Orion, to determine if it’s time to send a human crew to the moon next year.
NASA says Artemis I is the first mission aimed to kick start a larger campaign of increasingly complex missions with the goal of bringing astronauts to the moon and Mars.
The powerful new spacecraft underwent its most recent wet dress rehearsal, or test run, on Wednesday, which was deemed a success, according to NASA officials.
However, the agency is still addressing some repairs to the rocket’s systems, officials said.
NASA officials said that they are making strides on these repairs but are still proceeding carefully to ensure the spacecraft is ready to move forward to a launch.
A navigation and control assembly unit has already been replaced, and personnel are testing batteries and checking the interim cryogenic propulsion stage that will help propel the Orion spacecraft for its orbit around the moon, according to a NASA statement.
There is a rigorous set of operation maintenance requirements that the new ship must pass before it can prepare for take-off, Cliff Lanham, senior vehicle operations manager of NASA’s exploration ground systems program, said at Wednesday’s conference.
The tests run long, but the agency has emphasized a few key requirements for the craft.
This includes tests of the flight termination system, the rocket’s engine section, the rocket’s core stage forward skirt that houses flight computers and avionics systems and the Orion spacecraft, officials said.
According to officials, there are three launch windows in place from Aug. 29 to Sept. 5. The mission will last a varied amount of time depending on which day the rocket launches.
The first launch window, on Aug. 29, begins at 8:33 a.m. and lasts for two hours. Using this window would result in a mission lasting 42 days that ends with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on Oct. 10, with the U.S. Navy recovering the capsule.
Next, a window will open on Sept. 2, beginning at 12:38 a.m. and lasting for two hours. Leaving within this window creates a mission lasting 39 days, with a splashdown in the Pacific on Oct. 11. The U.S. Navy will recover the capsule here as well.
Finally, a window will open on Sept. 5 at 5:12 p.m. and last an hour and thirty minutes. This mission would also last 42 days and end with a splashdown in the Pacific on Oct. 17.
There is no launch period from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 because of an eclipse. During this three-day period, the sun and the Earth are out of alignment, so the Orion capsule’s solar arrays wouldn’t be able to produce enough power, as it would in the shadow of the Earth, officials said.
(NEW YORK) — Across the United States, millions are facing extreme heat as temperatures hold steady in the triple digits. For communities of color, underlying systemic inequities increase the chances of heat-related illnesses and death.
Heat is among the deadliest of all weather-related disasters, beating out floods, lightning and hurricanes, according to the National Weather Service. The World Health Organization estimates that heatwaves caused more than 166,000 deaths globally between 1998 and 2017.
The rates of emergency department visits for heat-related causes increased by 67% for African Americans, 63% for Hispanics, 53% for Asian Americans and 27% for white people from 2005 to 2015, according to a report in the Wilderness and Environmental Medicine journal.
Between 2004 and 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Indigenous groups had the highest rates of heat-related death, followed by Black populations.
The impact on people of color in the U.S. during the ongoing heat wave may be exacerbated through various iterations of discrimination and inequity.
Poor urban planning and housing discrimination raises risks
People of color were exposed to more extreme urban heat than white people in almost every major U.S. city, a 2021 study published in the research journal Nature found.
That’s because of “urban heat islands,” where poor urban planning removed much of an area’s natural green lands and replaced them with pavement, buildings and other materials that retain and absorb heat, according to the report.
This type of urban planning causes the air to heat up more than it does in leafier areas. Black and Hispanic residents have the highest average summer urban heat island exposure, according to the study in Nature.
“We find that the average person of color lives in a census tract with higher SUHI intensity than non-Hispanic whites in all but 6 of the 175 largest urbanized areas in the continental United States,” the report says.
This discrepancy is caused by redlining and housing discrimination that pushed Black and brown communities into neighborhoods with fewer trees and green spaces and heavier traffic, experts say.
The urban heat island effect is worsening, as more people are continuing to move into and grow cities, Dr. Angel Hsu, a climate scientist at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, told ABC News.
“We found that 97% of major cities in the U.S. where more than a quarter of a million people live were seeing the same disproportionate exposure patterns for communities of color and people who are living below the poverty line,” Hsu said. “That seems to suggest that it’s not just a policy that we can blame from the 1960s.”
Around 83% of people in the U.S. live in urban areas, up from 64% in 1950, according to a study from the University of Michigan. About 89% of the U.S. population will live in an urban area by 2050.
Workforce imbalances leave some exposed
People of color are also disproportionately exposed to extreme heat through their occupations, according to health research organization KFF.
Researchers found that noncitizen and Latino migrant workers respectively make up 50% and 75% of agricultural workers in the U.S. It’s a group that’s about 20 times more likely to die from heat-related illnesses compared to other U.S.-based workers, the organization says.
“Some of the big concerns are that the exposure to extreme heat is just one thing that may lead to so many other issues, with regards to access to foods, with regards to people being able to go out to work and provide for their families and afford a lot of things,” said Nambi Ndugga, a policy analyst with KFF’s Racial Equity and Health Policy Program.
Low-income households, especially those in predominantly Black, Hispanic or Indigenous communities, may have a hard time accessing cooling centers or using air conditioners due to the high cost of energy bills, experts say.
“We need to be making sure that people have access to air conditioning in their homes and we know that communities of color have disproportionately lower access to air conditioning and the ability to run it,” Rachel Licker, the principal climate scientist at the science advocacy group Union of Concerned Scientists, told ABC News. “Obviously, that’s becoming more and more of an issue as energy bills are increasing right now.”
Health disparities can lead to increased risks
Health disparities often plague Black, Hispanic and indigenous communities, thanks to inequities in healthcare access, quality insurance, access to healthy foods and other factors, a report in Everyday Health found.
These groups experience cardiovascular and respiratory diseases — such as heart disease, hypertension and asthma — at higher rates, which could increase one’s risk of being hospitalized or dying from extreme heat as well, health experts say.
Extreme heat can worsen or aggravate existing health conditions, the CDC found.
“We know that those communities have disproportionately lower access to quality health care to deal with health-related issues as a result of extreme heat,” said Licker.
(WASHINGTON) — The House Jan. 6 committee’s second prime-time hearing focused on what it said was then-President Donald Trump’s “187 minutes” of inaction — from the time he left the rally at the Ellipse, to then watching the attack on the U.S. Capitol on TV at the White House until he finally called on his violent supporters to go home.
Here is how the hearing unfolded:
Jul 21, 10:55 PM EDT
Cheney asks: Can Trump ever be trusted to hold power again?
Rep. Liz Cheney, one of two Republicans on the committee, criticized Trump for “preying” on the patriotism of his supporters by lying to them about the 2020 election. His conduct on Jan. 6, she said, was “indefensible.”
“In our hearing tonight, you saw an American president faced with a stark and unmistakable choice between right and wrong. There was no ambiguity, no nuance. Donald Trump made a purposeful choice to violate his oath of office, to ignore the ongoing violence against law enforcement, to threaten our constitutional order. There is no way to excuse that behavior,” she said.
“And every American must consider this: can a president who is willing to make the choices Donald Trump made during the violence of Jan. 6 ever be trusted with any position of authority in our great nation again?” she asked.
Jul 21, 10:46 PM EDT
Cheney thanks witnesses for their testimony
In her closing statements, committee vice chair Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., acknowledged the testimony from dozens of Republican witnesses throughout its investigation.
“The case against Donald Trump in these hearings is not made by witnesses who were his political enemies,” she said. “It was, instead, a series of confessions by Donald Trump’s own appointees.”
That included those who served Trump loyally for years and his own family members, she said.
She thanked the witnesses — including ex-staffers Sarah Matthews, Matthew Pottinger and Cassidy Hutchinson — for their bravery in speaking out publicly before millions of Americans.
“[Hutchinson] knew all along that she would be attacked by President Trump and by the 50-, 60- and 70-year-old men who hide themselves behind executive privilege,” Cheney said.
Jul 21, 10:38 PM EDT
Trump’s conduct on Jan. 6 a ‘supreme violation’ of his oath: Kinzinger
Rep. Adam Kinzinger said one area where all Americans must agree is on Trump’s behavior on Jan. 6.
“Whatever your politics, whatever you think about the outcome of the election, we as Americans must all agree on this: Donald Trump’s conduct on Jan. 6 was a supreme violation of his oath of office and a complete dereliction of his duty to our nation,” the Illinois Republican said.
“It is a stain on our history,” Kinzinger continued. “It is a dishonor to all those who have sacrificed and died in service our democracy.”
Jul 21, 10:35 PM EDT
Trump in Jan. 7 statement outtakes: ‘I don’t want to say the election is over’
The House select committee shared never-before-seen raw footage of outtakes from former President Donald Trump’s recorded message on Jan. 7, in which he “still could not say that the election was over,” Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., said.
“This election is now over. Congress has certified the results,” Trump starts to say, then adding, “I don’t want to say the election is over.”
“I just want to say Congress has certified the results, without saying the election is over, OK?” he continues.
Trump had refused to record the address for hours, Luria said, but ultimately relented “because of concerns that he might be removed from power by threats of the 25th Amendment.”
The 25th Amendment lays out the procedures for replacing the president in the event of death, removal, resignation or incapacitation.
Jul 21, 10:11 PM EDT
Panel airs new footage of urgent call between congressional leaders, defense secretary
Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., introduced what she called “never-before-seen” photos and videos of what lawmakers were doing during the attack.
Congressional leaders called then-acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller at 4:45 p.m. that day to regain control of the Capitol.
“We’re not going to let these people keep us from finishing our business,” GOP Sen. Mitch McConnell can be heard saying in a huddle of lawmakers. “So, we need you to get the building cleared, give us the okay so that we can go back in session and finish the peoples’ business as soon as possible.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., then asked Miller if he agreed with one assessment that it was going to take “several days” to secure the area. Miller disagreed, stating it would take four to five hours.
At one point, Schumer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Steny Hoyer grouped together taking a phone call about securing the Capitol.
Jul 21, 10:03 PM EDT
Trump went off-script in never-before-seen footage of Rose Garden message
When President Trump recorded his message in the Rose Garden more than three hours after rioters stormed the Capitol, he went “off the cuff,” according to committee testimony.
“His staff had prepared a script for him to read, but he refused to use it,” Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., said.
The prepared script said, “NO ONE should be using violence or threats of violence to express themselves. Especially at the U.S. Capitol.”
The committee shared raw footage from the recording, in which Trump told his supporters, “We love you. You’re very special,” while urging them to go home.
The committee juxtaposed the filming of this message with footage of the heavy violence still occurring on the Capitol at that moment.
Jul 21, 9:53 PM EDT
Kushner testifies that a ‘scared’ Kevin McCarthy asked for help during riot
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and White House adviser, told the committee in taped deposition that House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy wanted help to stop the violence as rioters breached the U.S. Capitol building.
Kushner said McCarthy told him it was “getting really ugly.”
“He was scared, yes,” Kushner said of McCarthy’s state of mind during their call.
The committee also discussed a tense phone call between Trump and McCarthy where Trump alleged it was Antifa at the Capitol — an allegation that’s been debunked by FBI Director Chris Wray and other intelligence officials. McCarthy told Trump it was “your people” and told him to call them off.
Jul 21, 9:40 PM EDT
Donald Trump Jr. texted that his father needed to ‘condemn’ riot
Text messages displayed by the committee show Donald Trump Jr. thought more needed to be done by his father besides his two tweets calling on rioters to “stay peaceful” even though violence had already begun.
Trump Jr. texted chief of staff Mark Meadows the message: “He’s got to condemn this sh**. Asap. The capitol police tweet isn’t enough.”
When Meadows responded that he was pushing hard for Trump to do so, Trump Jr. told him: “go to the mattresses.” “They will try to f*** his entire legacy on this if it gets worse,” Trump Jr. added.
Fox News personality Sean Hannity also texted Meadows to get Trump to instruct the mob to peacefully leave.
Sarah Matthews, the former deputy press secretary, testified White House staff had to ask several times for the president to include the word “peaceful” in his tweet on Jan. 6. She said it wasn’t until Ivanka Trump said “stay peaceful” that he decided to include it.
Jul 21, 9:22 PM EDT
Witnesses react to Trump ‘courage’ tweet on Pence: ‘Fuel being poured on the fire’
The House select committee highlighted strong reaction to a tweet by former President Trump about his vice president amid the riot.
“Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!” the tweet, posted at 2:24 p.m. on Jan. 6, stated.
“He put a target on his own vice president’s back,” Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., said after sharing the message.
Witness Matthew Pottinger, a deputy national security adviser, said it was in that moment that he decided to resign.
“It looked like fuel being poured on the fire,” he told the committee. “I did not want to be associated with the events that were unfolding on the Capitol.”
Witness and ex-staffer Sarah Matthews, who served as deputy press secretary, said she thought the tweet “was the last thing that was needed in that moment” from Trump.
“He should have been telling these people to go home, and to leave, and to condemn the violence that we were seeing,” she said. “For him to tweet out the message about Mike Pence, it was him pouring gasoline on the fire, and making it much worse.”
Jul 21, 9:32 PM EDT
Committee shows Hawley’s raised fist, then video of him fleeing
In a moment that’s resonated from Thursday’s hearing, the committee shared a photo of Missouri GOP Sen. Josh Hawley walking across the Capitol before protesters who had started to gather at the security gates.
“As you can see in this photo, he raised his fist, in solidarity, with the protesters,” Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., said.
Luria said a Capitol police told the committee that the gesture “riled up the crowd.”
“It bothered her greatly because he was doing it in a safe space, protected by the officers and the barriers,” Luria said.
The committee then showed footage of Hawley, who had voted against certifying the results of the election, later fleeing “after those protesters he helped to rile up stormed the Capitol,” Luria said.
Jul 22, 9:14 PM EDT
Secret Service agents began to ‘fear for their own lives’: Witness
The Jan. 6 committee played new audio of Secret Service radio traffic as the attack occurred.
The traffic indicated that officers were very concerned about safely evacuating Vice President Mike Pence after the Capitol was breached.
“If we lose any more time, we may lose the ability to leave. So, if we’re going to leave, we need to do it now,” one agent is heard saying.
An unidentified White House security official said in chilling testimony that members of Pence’s detail “were starting to fear for their own lives.”
“There were calls to say goodbye to family members,” the official said in a recorded interview. “Whatever the reason was on the ground, the DCPD (D.C. police department) felt that it was going to be very ugly.”
Jul 21, 8:57 PM EDT
White House logs show Trump did not make calls to issue orders
White House logs showed that former President Donald Trump “did not call to issue orders,” according to Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va.
Senior law enforcement officials, military leaders, members of former Vice President Mike Pence’s staff and D.C. government officials that the committee interviewed also said they did not hear from Trump that day, Luria said.
Call logs shown during the hearing indicated that Trump did not make any calls between 11:04 a.m and 6:54 p.m. that day.
Kayleigh McEnany, former White House press secretary, testified for the committee that Trump did want a list of senators to call.
“He was calling senators, to encourage them to delay, or object, the certification,” Luria said.
Jul 21, 8:54 PM EDT
Pat Cipollone describes effort to have Trump make a ‘strong’ statement
Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone told the committee he and other officials attempted to push Trump to make a strong statement condemning the violence almost immediately.
“I think it was pretty clear there needed to be an immediate and forceful response, statement, public statement, that people needed to leave the Capitol now,” Cipollone said in a taped deposition.
Ivanka Trump, White House lawyer, Eric Herschmann and then-chief of staff Mark Meadows all felt the same, Cipollone testified.
Cipollone said it would’ve been “possible” for Trump to go to the White House briefing room to make a statement at any time. Sarah Matthews, the deputy press secretary at the time, testified live that it would have taken “probably less than 60 seconds” for Trump to go to the briefing room from his position in the dining room off the Oval Office.
Jul 21, 8:45 PM EDT
Witness confirms ‘heated’ exchange in Trump’s SUV on Jan. 6
Rep. Elaine Luria said that there is “evidence from multiple sources regarding an angry exchange in the presidential SUV” confirming Cassidy Hutchinson’s previous bombshell testimony.
Hutchinson told the committee on June 28 that a member of Trump’s security detail told her the president tried to grab the steering wheel as he demanded to join his supporters after his speech at the Ellipse. His team ultimately refused the request.
Sgt. Mark Robinson, a retired member of the Metropolitan Police Department responsible for the motorcade that day, told the committee he heard a similar description of what took place inside the vehicle.
“The description I received was the president was upset and was adamant about going to the Capitol, and there was a heated discussion about that,” Robinson said in a videotaped interview.
Jul 21, 8:27 PM EDT
Trump ‘chose not to act’ during attack: Kinzinger
Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., attempted to explain Trump’s behavior on Jan. 6, when it took him several hours to respond to the riot.
“The mob was accomplishing President Trump’s purpose, so of course he didn’t intervene,” Kinzinger said, noting the congressional certification of Joe Biden’s victory was delayed for hours due to the violence.
“Here’s what will be clear by the end of this hearing,” Kinzinger said. “President Trump did not fail to act during the 187 minutes between leaving the Ellipse and telling the mob to go home. He chose not to act.”
Jul 21, 8:29 PM EDT
Cheney swears in witnesses
Committee vice chair Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., has sworn in the hearing’s witnesses — ex-staffers Matthew Pottinger, who was a member of the National Security Council, and Sarah Matthews, who served as deputy press secretary.
Both witnesses, seen as Trump White House insiders and supporters, resigned from their positions on Jan. 6 in the wake of the riot.
Jul 21, 8:11 PM EDT
Vice Chair Liz Cheney gavels in hearing, committee to reconvene in September
Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., gaveled in the committee around 8 p.m. as Chairman Bennie Thompson participates virtually after testing positive for COVID-19.
Cheney, the committee’s vice chair, will preside over the hearing. Thompson said she will be responsible for maintaining order and swearing in witnesses.
Thompson also gave a preview of what’s in store tonight as the committee analyzes Trump’s response to the attack as it unfolded on Jan. 6, 2021.
“For 187 minutes, this man of destructive energy could not be moved,” Thompson said of Trump. “He could not be moved to rise from his dining room table, and walk the few steps down to the press room.”
Thompson said the committee’s work won’t stop here, stating it will reconvene in September.
Jul 21, 7:59 PM EDT
Bennie Thompson will chair the committee remotely after contracting COVID-19
Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., will chair the committee remotely after testing positive for COVID-19. He announced his diagnosis on Monday.
“Gratefully, I am fully vaccinated and boosted,” he said at the time. “I am continuing to follow CDC guidelines and will be isolating for the next several days.”
Jul 21, 7:56 PM EDT
Hearing expected to show outtakes from Trump’s Jan. 7 message
During Thursday’s hearing, the House select committee is expected to show outtakes from former President Donald Trump’s recorded message delivered on Jan. 7, in which he condemned the attack on the Capitol and pledged a “seamless transition of power.”
But sources familiar with their contents tell ABC News that Trump had to be pressured to condemn the attack, taking about an hour to record this message: “The demonstrators who infiltrated the Capitol have defiled the seat of American democracy. To those who engaged in the acts of violence and destruction, you do not represent our country.”
Sources say Trump argued with aides as the statement was being written and wanted to call the attackers patriots. — ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl
Jul 21, 7:45 PM EDT
Rep. Aguilar: ‘Our responsibility is to find the truth’
Just ahead of Thursday’s hearing, committee member Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., said Americans can expect to learn “exactly what was happening” on Jan. 6 from when former President Donald Trump left his rally to his address in the Rose Garden three hours later.
“Where was the president at? Who was talking to him? What was he saying?” Aguilar told anchor Linsey Davis on ABC News Live Prime. “Those are the types of details that we want to get to, because while the Capitol was being overrun and law enforcement officers were providing the last line of defense to save democracy, I think it’s important that the American public knows what was going on at the White House.”
Aguilar said the hearing will also address Trump’s statements on social media the day after the attack.
“The statements and addresses that he made on Jan. 6 and Jan. 7 are both important to his state of mind at the time and what he was willing to say and more importantly, what he wasn’t willing to say,” he said.
Aguilar said the committee continues to receive investigative material that may come out.
“To the extent that we need to share that with the American public, we plan to do that,” he said. “Our responsibility is to find the truth here. And that’s what we plan to do.”
Jul 21, 7:25 PM EDT
Bannon on trial for defying House select committee subpoena
As the House select committee’s last scheduled session gets underway, Steve Bannon, a former top political adviser in Donald Trump’s White House, is currently on trial for defying a subpoena in connection with its investigation.
Bannon was subpoenaed by the Jan. 6 panel for records and testimony and ultimately charged with two counts of criminal contempt of Congress.
His defense attorney, David Schoen, said in court Thursday that Bannon wanted to testify but decided not to based on the advice of his attorney at the time, who reportedly told Bannon that “executive privilege had been invoked and he was not permitted by law to comply with the subpoena.”
The House committee and federal prosecutors have said the executive privilege claims never covered Bannon, since the insurrection occurred long after he left his post as chief White House strategist in 2017.
Ahead of the contempt trial, Bannon had said he would be willing to testify in a live, public hearing.
Closing arguments and jury instructions in the trial are planned for Friday morning.
Jul 21, 7:07 PM EDT
Criminal probe opened into Secret Service’s deleted Jan. 6 messages
A revelation about deleted text messages by the Secret Service is looming large over Thursday’s hearing.
The House committee subpoenaed the agency earlier this month for text messages sent on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6, 2021. But the agency said most of those records were lost in a planned data migration.
So far, the Secret Service has provided a single text exchange to the Department of Homeland Security inspector general investigating the agency’s record-keeping, according to an agency letter to the House Jan. 6 committee obtained by ABC News on Wednesday.
The committee is suggesting the Secret Service broke federal records keeping laws. Hours before the hearing, news broke that the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general has turned the inquiry into a criminal investigation.
Jul 21, 6:45 PM EDT
Kinzinger: Trump was ‘derelict in his duty’ to try to stop mob
The House select committee plans to focus Thursday night’s hearing on what it says was Trump’s dereliction of duty to act to stop the insurrection.
“It’s obvious the president was derelict in his duty, but for all the details you have to watch,” Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., who is co-leading the hearing, told ABC Congressional Correspondent Rachel Scott.
Jul 21, 6:37 PM EDT
Kinzinger previews testimony about Trump watching Capitol attack on television
Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., on Thursday morning teased snippets of depositions previewing testimony from Kayleigh McEnany, former press secretary; Ret. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellog, then-national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence; Molly Michael, Trump’s former executive assistant; and Pat Cipollone, the White House counsel at the time.
In the montage, the former White House officials recall how Trump was in the private dining room off the Oval Office watching television as the violence unfolded.
“To the best of my recollection, he was always in the dining room” McEnany said in her deposition.
Jul 21, 5:53 PM EDT
Former White House staffers to testify about resigning in protest
Two former White House aides are expected to testify before the committee on Thursday, sources previously confirmed to ABC News.
Those ex-staffers are Sarah Matthews, who served as deputy press secretary, and Matthew Pottinger, who was deputy national security adviser. Both resigned from their positions after the pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
At the committee’s June 16 hearing, a clip from Matthews’ prior testimony was played in which she described what it was like on the White House press team as the insurrection unfolded. She said that Trump’s tweet attacking then-Vice President Mike Pence during the attack “felt like he was pouring gasoline on the fire.”
Looks like even Carrie Underwood is enjoying all the warm weather fun of Dollywood.
A few eagle-eyed fans spotted the country superstar visiting Dolly Parton’s theme park this week. Carrie was captured posing for a group shot with some fans, and in another picture, she can be seen waiting in line for a ride with a young boy in a yellow shirt, who looks like he might be her son, Isaiah.
Carrie’s currently enjoying some downtime as she preps for her Denim & Rhinestones Tour in the fall. She’ll hit the road with Jimmie Allen this October.
Meanwhile, summer at Dollywood is in full swing. The park launched its Smoky Mountain Summer Celebration last month, and it’s also home to Dolly’s very own tour bus, Suite 1986, which fans can stay in when they visit the park.
Kane Brown’s current single, “Like I Love Country Music,” may be on his upcoming new album, but he actually wrote it three years ago.
“I wrote this song in 2019,” the star says. “I remember it was, like, a little writer’s retreat thing on the road. We had two different songs going, one in the back of the bus and one in the front of the bus, and I was in the back.”
But he switched groups when he caught wind of what the songwriters in front were up to. “The writers had this great idea, and they already had some of the first verse,” Kane continues. “And I just remember thinking, ‘This could be a smash.’”
So he started working on the song that would go on to become “Like I Love Country Music,” and though he didn’t put it out for a few more years — “the song just wasn’t ready,” he explains — he never lost that early enthusiasm for it.
His favorite part of the song is its homage to classic country, Kane says. “One of the things I love about it is all the country icons that we listed,” he recounts. “And Brooks & Dunn even jumped on the song.”
That song — complete with a vocal boost from the legendary country duo — is the lead single off Kane’s recently announced next album, Different Man. That project will be out September 9.
Diddy‘s debut album, No Way Out,turns 25 on Friday and he’s planning to celebrate in a big way. The multihyphenate mogul will drop an expanded edition of the project on its quarter anniversary, featuring 15 additional tracks.
Also expected on Friday is the premiere of the remastered video for “Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down,” a single off the ’97 album; enhanced visuals from other songs on the record — “Been Around The World,” “All About The Benjamins (Remix),” “All About The Benjamins (Rock Remix)” and “Victory” — will release later this year, along with a colored vinyl reissue, due out November 4 during Hip Hop History Month.
Diddy’s multiplatinum-selling No Way Out arrived July 22, 1997, and featured the likes of The Notorious B.I.G., Mase, The Lox, Jay-Z, Lil’ Kim and Busta Rhymes. Twenty-five years later, he’s still hard at work, promoting his new “Gotta Move On” video, which dropped Wednesday.
If you hope Pat Benatar sings “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” the next time you see her in concert — you’re out of luck. The Grammy winner has retired the song to protest gun violence.
“I’m sorry, in deference to the victims of the families of these mass shootings, I’m not singing it,” she told USA Today. “(The title) is tongue in cheek, but you have to draw the line. I can’t say those words out loud with a smile on my face, I just can’t.”
The rocker continued, “I’m not going to go on stage and soap box — I go to my legislators — but that’s my small contribution to protesting.”
Benatar says fans are “having a heart attack” that she has permanently shelved the song, but has this to say to those who are upset by her decision: “I’m not going to sing it. Tough.”
The “Heartbreaker” singer notes the 1980 song, which is RIAA-certified Gold, is part of her “holy 14” songs that fans want to hear or they’ll “give us (a hard time).”
In place of “Hit Me with Your Best Shot,” she told the outlet, “We’re doing a lot of songs we don’t always play, like ‘In the Heat of the Night’ and ‘I Need a Lover.'”
Benatar, who is 69, reflected on the numerous tragedies she’s witnessed over the years. While she is disturbed by the rise in mass shootings, she’s also concerned about the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.
“I’m worried, like all of us, about fundamental autonomy rights. This is a slippery slope. It’s about not abortion for me. I’m concerned that people are not paying attention to what this actually means,” she explained.
Because of that, Benatar says her song “Invincible” is more important than ever.
The band — which features Jack White on drums, plus his Raconteurs bandmate Jack Lawrence, Queens of the Stone Age guitarist Dean Fertita and The Kills‘ Alison Mosshart — last released an album in 2015 with Dodge and Burn and hasn’t toured since 2010.
As for future Dead Weather plans, Mosshart tells Consequence, “Your guess is as good as mine.”
“Maybe one day we’ll all be home at the same time and get together and do something again,” she says, explaining that forming The Dead Weather back in 2009 was a “happy accident.”
“We walked into Jack’s new recording studio at the time to test out the room and the gear, and walked out with a whole record in the blink of an eye,” Mosshart recalls. “It was a real, ‘Holy s***, what have we just done?!’ moment … We had no plan or desire to start a band, but the music just seemed to kidnap us.”
Getting The Dead Weather back together now, Mosshart thinks, would have to recapture the “magic” of those early recording sessions.
“It’ll have to feel just right,” she says.
White, meanwhile, has been busy with his solo career. His latest effort, Entering Heaven Alive, is out Thursday. It’s his second solo release of the year, following April’s Fear of the Dawn.
Welcome to your dirty 30s, Selena Gomez! The singer, actress and producer turns the big 3-0 on Friday, July 22. What are her plans to mark the big day? A few weeks ago, she told ABC Audio what she was going to do.
“I think I’m just going to have, like, a few people over,” she said. “I guess it’s a big deal, you know. So, I’m going to make it fun. I want to enjoy it!”
While some say 30 marks the start of true adulthood, Selena’s definitely accomplished an amazing number of things in her young life. As a singer, she’s released three albums with her band The Scene, three solo albums and an EP, earning a Grammy nomination and a string of top 10 hits, including the number-one “Lose You to Love Me.”
As an actress, she’s starred in several TV series — including The Wizards of Waverly Place, Selena + Chef and Only Murders In the Building — and more than two dozen movies and short films. She’s also executive-produced a number of film and TV projects, such as 13 Reasons Why, the documentary Living Undocumented and the latest Hotel Transylvania film.
As a businesswoman and philanthropist, Selena established the Rare Impact Fund charity to raise mental health awareness. It’s an offshoot of the beauty brand she founded, Rare Beauty. She also co-founded a mental health company called Wondermind, invested in the delivery service GoPuff and is a co-owner of the Serendipity dessert brand.
So, do Selena’s Only Murders co-stars — 76-year-old Steve Martin and 72-year-old Martin Short — have any advice for her as she hits this milestone?
“Yeah — don’t turn 30!” Martin cautions. Short adds, “Because before you know it, you’re gonna be 70, and then, happy 90th!”
As previously reported, the stripped-down collection of live performances is dedicated to the band’s longtime bassist, Dusty Hill, who died in July 2021 at age 72.
“I think nothing could be a more fitting tribute [than] to release something that was so telling of how ZZ Top actually came about,” singer/guitarist frontman Billy Gibbons tells ABC Audio.
The 11-track album was recorded live at historic Gruene Hall in New Braunfels, Texas, in conjunction with the famed blues-rock trio’s 2019 documentary That Little Ol’ Band from Texas.
The album features ZZ Top’s classic lineup — Gibbons, Hill and drummer Frank Beard — playing versions of various songs from their back catalog, including hits like “Legs” and “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” and as well two tunes from the band’s 1971 debut album: “Brown Sugar” and “Certified Blues.”
Gibbons says the performance was unplanned, noting the film’s director had invited ZZ Top to Gruene Hall for what the band thought was just a photo shoot.
“Upon arrival, we discovered that some wires had been crossed,” Gibbons notes. “The ZZ Top equipment crew had not been told it was just a photo session. They set up the entire backline. We had guitars, amps, drums, the works.”
Gibbons says the trio proceeded to play a bunch of songs, and while footage of some performances were featured in the movie, Billy maintains he wasn’t aware that audio of the full set had been recorded until an engineer informed him a few months later.
“Upon listening to it, we all took a shine,” Gibbons notes, “and said, ‘Gee whiz, this sounds like the ZZ Top we’ve always known. That’s how we started.'”
Here’s Raw‘s full track list:
“Brown Sugar”
“Just Got Paid”
“Heard It on the X”
“La Grange”
“Tush”
“Thunderbird”
“I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide”
“Gimme All Your Lovin'”
“Blue Jean Blues”
“Certified Blues”
“Tube Snake Boogie”
