Madonna is gearing up for the August 19 physical release of her compilation album Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones and celebrated its impending arrival with a new, profane twist on “Material Girl.” She partnered with rapper Saucy Santanato remix his viral track based off her 1984 hit for “Material Gworrllllllll!”
The track is available now via streaming services. A music video for “Material Gworrllllllll!” will premiere this Monday, August 8.
In other news, Madonna will appear on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday, August 10, to talk about her new compilation album. The 50-track physical version of the record will feature all of Madonna’s #1 songs on the dance charts.
Willow Smith is sharing her thoughts on the Oscars slap involving her father, Will Smith, and fellow Hollywood star Chris Rock. In an interview with Billboard, she revealed she wasn’t as bothered as the rest of the world when the incident occurred at the 2022 Academy Awards. In fact, when media scrutiny followed, she said it didn’t “rock me as much as my own internal demons.”
In Willow’s eyes, the slap simply showed that her father was being human — a right that is not always afforded to celebrities, like her entire family.
“I see my whole family as being human, and I love and accept them for all their humanness,” she said. “Because of the position that we’re in, our humanness sometimes isn’t accepted, and we’re expected to act in a way that isn’t conducive to a healthy human life and isn’t conducive to being honest.”
Willow’s thoughts come days after Will issued another apology for his behavior at the Academy Awards.
“I apologize to you, my behavior was unacceptable, and I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk,” he said in a message to Chris. “There is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment. There is no part of me that thinks that’s the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insult.”
Will also issued an apology to his fans, family, fellow nominees and Oscar winners, including Questlove, who accepted his Oscar for Best Documentary Feature shortly after the altercation.
Hollywood is usually better known for cutthroat competition between, rather than words of support from, those within the industry. However, Warner Bros. Discovery’s canceling of its Batgirl movie has brought out the latter for directors Bilall Fallah and Adil El Arbi.
The directing duo whose superhero movie was unceremoniously Thanos-snapped out of existence before it could reach streaming or theaters posted to their Instagram Stories that they’ve received encouragement from fellow filmmakers.
They showed a screen grab of a message sent from Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige, with whom the pair worked to acclaim on Ms. Marvel.
The pair were in Morocco for El Arbi’s wedding when they learned Batgirl’s fate. Feige offered congratulations on El Arbi’s wedding, but also mentioned “the disappointing news.“
He added, “Very proud of you guys and all the amazing work you do and particularly ‘Ms. Marvel’ of course! Can’t wait to see what is next for you …”
The pair captioned the message, “Thanks brother Kevin.”
El Arbi also thanked followers for their support. “Shoutout directors Edgar Wright and James Gunn, your kind words and experience mean a lot and help us through this difficult period.”
Both Wright and Gunn have had their own static in the superhero game.
Wright parted ways with Marvel Studios as the director of Ant-Man over creative differences in 2014, and the film was eventually directed by Peyton Reed.
Gunn, for his part, had been fired by Disney in 2018 after offensive old tweets of his resurfaced. He pivoted to Warner Bros. and shot both The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker for the studio.
Gunn apologized for the tweets and eventually was rehired by Marvel Studios’ parent company, for which he completed his upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Aug 05, 4:05 PM EDT
Russia shelled nuclear plant, Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces shelled the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant Friday.
Zelenskyy said forces twice struck the plant, which is in Russian-controlled territory in the southeast, and called the action “an act of terror,” in a statement released on Telegram.
“Russia should be responsible for the very fact of creating a threat to the nuclear power plant,” he said in the statement.
The facility is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe.
The Russian military, however, claimed it was a Ukrainian artillery strike that led to the reduction of activities of one power unit, and power falling at another.
They claimed 20 shells were fired at the city of Enerhodar and the power plant.
“Fortunately, the Ukrainian shells did not hit the oil and fuel facility and the oxygen plant nearby, thus avoiding a larger fire and a possible radiation accident,” Russia’s defense ministry said, according to Reuters.
Earlier this week, the International Atomic Energy Agency officials said the situation at Zaporizhzhia was “out of control” as routine safety checks had not been observed. IAEA officials have appealed for access to the Russian-controlled plant.
Aug 05, 6:33 AM EDT
3 more ships carrying Ukrainian grain leave Odesa-area ports
Another three commercial ships carrying Ukrainian grain have departed from Odesa-area ports under a wartime deal, the Turkish Ministry of National Defense said Friday.
The vessels are bound for Turkey, the United Kingdom and Ireland, with a combined total of 58,000 tons of Ukrainian corn onboard. All three ships will undergo inspection in Istanbul, as is required under the grain exports deal, according to the ministry.
The United Nations confirmed Thursday that three more grain ships — two from the port of Chornomorsk and one from Odesa — were cleared to depart through the designated “maritime humanitarian corridor.”
On Monday, the first commercial vessel carrying Ukrainian grain set sail from Odesa’s port under the so-called Black Sea Grain Initiative, bound for the Lebanese port of Tripoli. Last month, Russia and Ukraine signed separate agreements with Turkey and the U.N. to allow Ukraine to resume its shipment of grain from the Black Sea to world markets and for Russia to export grain and fertilizers.
Aug 04, 10:24 AM EDT
Ukrainian fighting tactics endanger civilians, Amnesty International says
Ukrainian forces attempting to repel the Russian invasion have put civilians in harm’s way by establishing bases and operating weapons systems in populated residential areas, including in schools and hospitals, Amnesty International said Thursday.
The London-based international human rights group published a new report detailing such tactics, saying they turn civilian objects into military targets.
“We have documented a pattern of Ukrainian forces putting civilians at risk and violating the laws of war when they operate in populated areas,” Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnès Callamard said in a statement. “Being in a defensive position does not exempt the Ukrainian military from respecting international humanitarian law.”
Between April and July, Amnesty International researchers spent several weeks investigating Russian airstrikes in the Kharkiv, Donbas and Mykolaiv regions of Ukraine. The organization inspected strike sites, interviewed survivors, witnesses and relatives of victims of attacks, as well as carried out remote-sensing and weapons analysis. Throughout the probe, researchers found evidence of Ukrainian forces launching strikes from within populated residential areas as well as basing themselves in civilian buildings in 19 towns and villages in the regions, according to Amnesty International.
The organization said most residential areas where Ukrainian soldiers located themselves were miles away from front lines, with viable alternatives that would not endanger civilians, such as nearby military bases or densely wooded areas, and other structures further away. In the cases documented, Amnesty International said it is not aware of the Ukrainian troops asking or assisting civilians to evacuate nearby buildings in the residential areas, which the organization called “a failure to take all feasible precautions to protect civilians.”
Amnesty International, however, noted that not every Russian attack it documented followed this pattern. In certain other locations in which the organization concluded that Russia had committed war crimes, including in some areas of the city of Kharkiv, the organization did not find evidence of Ukrainian forces located in the civilian areas unlawfully targeted by the Russian military.
Aug 03, 11:21 AM EDT
Inspectors in Turkey clear 1st grain ship from Ukraine, but no sign of more
The first commercial vessel carrying Ukrainian grain under a wartime deal has safely departed the Black Sea, the United Nations said Wednesday.
The Sierra Leone-flagged Razoni set sail from the Ukrainian port city of Odesa on Monday, with more than 26,000 tons of Ukrainian corn on board. The vessel docked off the coast of Istanbul late Tuesday, where it was required to be inspected before being allowed to proceed to its final destination, Lebanon.
A joint civilian inspection comprising officials from Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the U.N. inspected the Razoni on Wednesday morning, checking on the cargo and crew. After three hours, the team cleared the ship to set sail for Lebanon, according to the U.N. said.
“This marks the conclusion of an initial ‘proof of concept’ operation to execute the agreement,” the U.N. said in a statement Wednesday.
It’s the first commercial vessel carrying Ukrainian grain to safely depart the Black Sea since the start of Russia’s ongoing offensive, and the first to do so under the so-called Black Sea Grain Initiative. Last month, Russia and Ukraine signed separate agreements with Turkey and the U.N. to allow Ukraine to resume its shipment of grain from the Black Sea to world markets and for Russia to export grain and fertilizers.
In a statement Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Razoni’s journey a “significant step” but noted that “this is only a first step.”
No other grain shipments have departed Ukraine in the last two days and officials on all sides have offered no explanation for that delay.
The U.N. said Wednesday that three Ukrainian ports “are due to resume the export of millions of tons of wheat, corn and other crops,” but didn’t provide further details.
Since Russian forces invaded neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, the cost of grain, fertilizer and fuel has skyrocketed worldwide. Russia and Ukraine — often referred to collectively as Europe’s breadbasket — produce a third of the global supply of wheat and barley, but a Russian blockade in the Black Sea combined with Ukrainian naval mines have made exporting siloed grain and other foodstuffs virtually impossible. As a result, millions of people around the world — particularly in Africa and the Middle East — are now on the brink of famine.
Aug 03, 9:58 AM EDT
Thousands flee ‘hell’ in Ukraine’s east
Two-thirds of residents have fled eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast since the start of Russia’s invasion in late February, according to the regional governor.
Speaking to Ukrainian media on Tuesday, Donetsk Oblast Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said some 350,000 residents remain in the war-torn region.
During his Tuesday evening address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the hostilities in Ukraine’s east “hell.”
“It cannot be described with words,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukrainian forces cannot yet “completely break the Russian army’s advantage in artillery and manpower, and this is very noticeable in the fighting,” he added.
Last month, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said 200,000 civilians must be evacuated from the Donetsk Oblast before the weather gets colder, as there is no proper electricity or gas supply in the area for residents to heat their homes. Russian forces are also destroying heating equipment, according to Vereshchuk.
Zelenskyy has ordered the mandatory evacuation of Donetsk Oblast residents, urging them to leave as soon as possible. Those who comply will be compensated.
“The more people leave [the] Donetsk region now, the fewer people the Russian army will have time to kill,” he said.
Although many refuse to go, Zelenskyy stressed that “it still needs to be done.”
Mandatory evacuation from Donetsk Oblast began on Aug. 1. The first two trains evacuated 224 people to the central Ukrainian city of Kropyvnytskyi, according to local officials.
-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres, Yulia Drozd, Fidel Pavlenko and Yuriy Zaliznyak
(NEW YORK) — Brittney Griner is known for her game on the basketball court, but she’s now become embroiled in a much more dangerous game — a political gambit between Russia and the U.S.
William Pomeranz, the director of the Wilson Center Kennan Institute, is an expert on Russian law and the political developments within the country. He spoke to ABC News Live about the message behind Russia’s sentencing of Griner and what may come next.
He said that Griner’s conviction and nine-year sentence for drug charges Thursday “did not come as a surprise.”
“Russian criminal law treats drug offenses very harshly and I was not surprised that she got basically the maximum sentence,” Pomeranz said.
Griner has been detained in Russia for over five months after she was stopped at an airport for possessing vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in the country. She faced a maximum of 10 years in prison, though she will be credited with five months time served.
Calls to free the WNBA star have escalated in the months since her detainment and put a considerable amount of pressure on the Biden administration to act. Last week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced discussions of a potential prisoner exchange.
He said the proposal includes exchanging Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, who has been detained in Russia since 2019, for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
President Joe Biden said in a brief comment on Friday that he was “hopeful” and his administration was “working hard” to bring Griner home.
Pomeranz said that whether Griner is a “political hostage” is “up for interpretation,” but the only way to get Griner out of Russia is through diplomacy.
“Diplomatic negotiations are ongoing, but, clearly, because the Biden administration has made the most overtures, the Russians are in the driver seat of when and how Brittney Griner gets home,” said Pomeranz.
Pomeranz added that Griner’s guilty conviction under Russian law may help.
“I think the Russians will be more inclined to negotiate. But how fast? I just don’t know,” said Pomeranz.
(NEW YORK) — After Kansas voters decisively rejected a bid to remove abortion protections from its state constitution earlier this week, researchers and activists say state lawmakers are likely to continue efforts to restrict access to abortion.
The Kansas vote was the first state-level test after the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, leaving it up to states to regulate access to abortion. At least four other states will have abortion-related questions on the ballot this November, leaving voters to decide on access to abortion in some areas.
As of Thursday, ABC News reported that 59% of Kansas voters voted “No” to repealing the right to abortion access in the state’s constitution. Researchers told ABC News the margin by which the vote was won was surprising.
The vote came after the state’s Supreme Court decided in 2019 that the Kansas constitution establishes a fundamental right to abortion.
Not the end of the story in Kansas or elsewhere
Despite that ruling, a majority of lawmakers in the state Senate oppose abortion rights and have passed several laws that restrict access to abortion, which are being challenged in the courts, Elisabeth Smith, the director of state policy and advocacy at the Center for Reproductive Rights, told ABC News in an interview.
“We have seen lawmakers hostile to abortion rights in Kansas and other states, continuously enact unconstitutional abortion bans and restrictions,” Smith said.
She added, “It would not surprise me if anti-abortion legislators in Kansas continued to push the issue by passing unconstitutional bans that then the state has to pay to defend, by potentially continuing to attack the state Supreme Court or utilizing other tactics to try and enforce their — clearly unpopular — view.”
Elizabeth Nash, principal policy associate for state issues at the Guttmacher Institute, which researches reproductive rights, said this vote is not the end of the story.
“What we’d seen for the past decade are four other states that adopted similar measures — in Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee and West Virginia — and all of them were approved by voters,” Nash said.
Nash said the margin with which the amendment was rejected was surprising because she said lawmakers had “stacked the deck” against the vote, putting it on a primary ballot and in somewhat confusing language. She said it is likely people started to get a better sense of the harm abortion bans can bring.
The Value Them Both coalition that supported the amendment blamed the results of the vote on “misinformation from radical left organizations.” The group vowed in their statement: “We will be back.”
Despite the vote, Kansas already has a number of restrictions in place with abortions currently banned after 22 weeks. According to Guttmacher, restrictions in place in Kansas include patients having to wait 24 hours after counseling before they can receive abortion, state Medicaid coverage of abortion care is banned except in very limited circumstances, and medication abortions must be given in person because of state bans on telehealth and mailing pills.
What does this vote mean for other states?
Voters in California and Vermont will vote on whether to add protections for abortion to their state constitutions. In Kentucky, voters will decide whether to amend their constitution to say abortion is not a constitutional right. Meanwhile, Montana voters will vote on a statute that says infants born alive at any stage of development are legal persons.
There is also an effort in Michigan to get a proactive constitutional amendment protecting abortion on the ballot. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has filed a lawsuit blocking a 1931 abortion ban already on the books, asking a court to determine whether it is constitutional. A judge granted a temporary pause on enforcement of the law after state prosecutors had said they plan to use it to to bring charges against abortion providers.
While every state is different, Smith said it is very likely that other states that put abortion to a vote could have a similar result to Kansas, but it is unlikely more states will put abortion on the ballot this year. Nash also said elections will be key on abortion issues for years to come.
Kimberly McGuire, the executive director of pro-abortion rights group Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity, which was on the executive committee for the campaign to vote no on the Kansas measure, hailed the vote as a victory.
She also highlighted efforts in other conservative states to enact protections despite bans, including that legislators in San Antonio, Texas, voted to enact protections for abortion Monday, and legislators in Atlanta, Georgia, enacted legislation to provide funds for abortions.
“This is a taste of what is to come. People across the country, in particular young people, are angry about the attacks on abortion rights, they’re angry about abortion bans, and they are fired up,” McGuire said.
McGuire said the results of the Kansas vote are in line with the popularity of abortion rights among Americans.
An ABC News poll released in May showed that 57% of Americans oppose a ban on abortions after 15 weeks and 58% say abortion should be legal in all or most cases.
Nash said a lot of political back and forth can be expected as abortion policy continues to be “in flux” across the country.
Hurdles to access in and around Kansas
An updated map from Guttmacher shows abortion is highly restricted in states surrounding Kansas.
“Most of the states touching Kansas are states that either have implemented abortion bans or are seeking to implement abortion bans. And so it’s really Colorado to the west that will maintain abortion access,” Nash said.
Nash said there is limited access to abortion in the western half of Kansas as well, so maintaining the limited access in the state is “incredibly important.”
She described abortion access in the region as “absolutely bleak.”
“Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri, have total criminal abortion bans in effect right now, and other surrounding states are moving in that direction,” Nash said. “So Kansas has always been and will continue to be an incredibly important access point for abortion care.”
Lizzo is telling naysayers who claim “About Damn Time” isn’t the song of the summer to prove it — because J-Hope of BTS revealed he’s obsessed with the song. She took to TikTok to share the video of the K-pop sensation singing the track and saying it’s his “favorite song.”
How far would you run to meet The Chainsmokers? They revealed on TikTok a fan ran 2 miles behind their car to take a selfie with them — and the guys were so impressed, they gave him a snack! Well, it was a bite of Drew Taggart‘s hot dog, but the fan was so stoked, he began singing “Closer.”
Camila Cabello saluted the fifth anniversary of her breakout solo single “Havana” by reminding fans of when the unedited version of the music video’s dance scene was released by accident.
If someone runs up to you on the street, sticks a microphone in your face and tells you to sing an Ed Sheeran song — do it. Sheeran revealed on TikTok he does watch those videos and is judging people on how well they know his songs’ lyrics.
Speaking of Ed, he has a tattoo of a Heinz ketchup bottle — and Sam Smith just raised him a jar of Marmite. The singer revealed on TikTok that they got a jar of Marmite tattooed on their left calf.
The first slate of performers has been announced for the 2022 MTV VMAs and on the roster is J Balvin, Marshmello, Khalid, Panic! at the Disco, Anitta and Ryan Castro. The ceremony airs Sunday, August 28, on MTV.
The first episode of the recently announced four-part Rolling Stones docuseries My Life as a Rolling Stonegets its U.S. television premieres on EPIX this Sunday, August 7, at 9 p.m. ET.
As previously reported, the series, which was produced to coincide with the British rock legends’ 60th anniversary, features four hourlong episodes, each focusing on one of the band’s four main members — singer Mick Jagger, guitarists Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood, and late drummer Charlie Watts.
The first episode profiles Jagger, and looks at how important the frontman’s creative vision and commercial sensibilities have been in guiding the band throughout its massively successful and influential career.
The Jagger episode will be available to watch for free via various cable and streaming services for 90 days after it premieres. The episodes focusing on Richards, Wood and Watts will debut on EPIX on August 14, August 21 and August 28, respectively.
My Life as a Rolling Stone will feature new interviews with Mick, Keith and Ronnie, as well as with Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Chrissie Hynde, Jon Bon Jovi, Joe Walsh, AC/DC‘s Brian Johnson, Metallica‘s Lars Ulrich, Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow, Tom Waits and Dan Aykroyd. The series is narrated by actress Sienna Miller.
(NESCOPECK, Pa.) — At least three people are dead and several remain unaccounted for after an intense fire tore through a home in central Pennsylvania on Friday, authorities said.
Crews responding to the early morning fire in Nescopeck could not initially get inside the home due to the flames and heat, according to Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Derek Felsman.
Three bodies have been found so far, with the victims ranging in age from 6 to 70, Felsman said. More fatalities are expected, he said.
Nescopeck volunteer firefighter Harold Baker, one of the first on scene, said 14 people were in the home, many of them family. He has not heard from 10 of them and expects he lost his son and daughter as well as several grandchildren and his father-in-law, sister-in-law and brother-in-law.
“When we came, pulled up, the whole place was fully involved,” Baker told Scranton ABC affiliate WNEP. “We tried to get into them; there wasn’t no way we could get into them.”
The investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
ABC News’ Leo Mayorga contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to eastern Kentucky Monday to visit flood victims, the White House announced, despite another positive COVID-19 test Friday.
Physician to the president Dr. Kevin O’Connor said in a letter Biden’s cough “has almost completely resolved” and he will continue with “strict isolation measures,” after testing positive for the seventh day in a row Friday.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quarantine and isolation guidelines recommend that people who test positive for COVID-19 isolate for at least five days after a first positive test and avoid traveling for a full 10 days.
The Bidens will join Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and his wife Britainy Beshear in meeting with families affected by the devastating flooding, according to the White House. At least 37 people died and at least two more remained unaccounted for as of a Friday morning news conference.
Over 500 people were being housed in state-run emergency shelters Friday. Biden declared a state of emergency in Kentucky on July 29, ordering federal aid to the affected counties and deploying a team from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assist in rescue efforts.
“Our hearts break for the families of those who have lost their lives or are missing, and to all those who have been impacted,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in a briefing the same day.
The trip will be the second disaster-related visit to Kentucky during Biden’s presidency. He traveled there in December after declaring a state of emergency over the deadly tornadoes that ravaged the region.
ABC News’ Molly Nagle, Will Gretzky and Justin Gomez contributed to this report.
