Maren Morris has made good on her desire to audition for Wicked.
The Grammy-winning country star has made an audition tape for the beloved Broadway musical, in which she sings a portion of “The Wizard and I,” a solo number sung by the character Elphaba. Standing in front of a backdrop, Maren lets her vocal chops fly as she sings, “And I’ve just had a vision/Almost like a prophecy/I know it sounds truly crazy/And true, the vision’s hazy.”
“The THEATRE dah-ling IS JUMPING OUT,” the country singer captions the audition, along with a green heart emoji, adding, “prepping for this audition is harder than I thought.”
She goes on to discuss the technicality of the vocal range required for the character, noting how Elphaba’s songs transition from falsetto to full voice, often while singing the same word. “It’s very technically skilled and I can do it, but the idea of 8X a week is daunting!” Maren admits. “As a singer of my own music, I can belt, but rarely.”
Maren revealed earlier this month that she was interested in auditioning for the acclaimed musical that chronicles the story of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch from The Wizard of Oz. Wicked is currently being adapted into a feature film starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.
(NEW YORK) — The number of births increased in the United States for the first time in seven years, according to a new federal report.
Provisional data published Tuesday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics found there were 3,659,289 babies born in 2021, a 1% increase from 2020.
It also marks the first rise in births since 2014. Prior to this report, the number of births had been decreasing by an average of 2% per year.
The report did not explain why the number of births increased, but Pew Research Center polls have suggested Americans delayed having babies during the first year of the pandemic due to public health and economic uncertainty, so the rising number could be the result of a rebound.
“When it comes to changes in fertility behavior, we’re limited,” Dr. Brady Hamilton, from the NCHS Division of Vital Statistics and lead author of the report, told ABC News. “That’s where you need a survey about what’s behind the decision-making process.”
The report also showed the fertility rate — the number of live births per 1,000 women between the ages 15 and 44 — was 56.6. This is up from 56 in 2020 and the first increase since 2014, according to the CDC.
However, the total fertility rate — the number of births a hypothetical group of 1,000 people would have over their lifetimes — was 1,663.5 births per 1,000 women.
This is still below what experts refer to as replacement level, the level a population needs to replace itself, which is 2,100 births per 1,000 women.
The team found birth rates among women aged 25 and older increased while decreasing for those aged 24 and younger.
“That sort of suggests [that] when we saw the decline in births from 2019 to 2020, probably a lot of births were postponed,” Hamilton said. “People were waiting to see what happened [with the pandemic] and rates rose in older women as they may have proceeded to have that child.”
Among teenagers aged 15 to 19, the rate of birth declined 6% from 15.4 per 1,000 to 14.4 per 1,000 — a record low for this age group.
Teenage births have been continuously falling since 2007 by an average of about 7% through last year.
“When you look at it across time, that’s a 77% decline since 1991 and 65% decline since 2017. That’s astonishing,” Hamilton said. “That’s certainly good news. And it will be interesting to see when we go into next year if it continues on.”
Meanwhile, for tweens and teens aged 10 to 14, the rate of birth was 0.2 per 1,000, which is unchanged since 2015, the report found.
Additionally, researchers also looked at births by race and found that white and Hispanic women each saw the number of births increase by about 2% from 2020 to 2021.
Meanwhile, Black and Asian women saw the number of births decline by 2.4% and 2.5%, respectively, over the same period, while American Indian/Alaskan Native women saw their numbers fall by 3.2%.
The report also examined the type of delivery and how early the babies were born.
Data showed that 32.1% of babies were born via cesarean delivery in 2021, up from 31.8% in 2020 and the second increase in a row after the rates had declined from 2009 to 2019.
The percentage of C-sections increased among all racial and ethnic groups, with the highest seen among Black women, from 36.3% to 36.8%.
While C-sections can lower the risk of death in women with high-risk pregnancies, they are associated with complications such as infection or blood clots, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The preterm birth rate also rose by 4% in 2021 from 10.09% to 10.48%, which is the highest reported rate since 2007. Increases were seen in babies born early preterm, which is before 34 weeks gestation, and later preterm, which is 34 to 37 weeks gestation.
Premature babies are at a greater risk for problems with feeding, breathing, vision and hearing, as well as behavioral issues.
“Whenever you see an increase in preterm births, that’s concerning,” Joyce Martin, from the Division of Vital Statistics and co-author of the report, told ABC News. “And we saw an increase in early-term babies, and they’re at greater risk than later-term babies of not surviving the first year of life.”
Martin said it’s not clear what’s behind the rise in preterm birth rates but said mothers younger than 18 and older than 35 are more likely to have premature babies.
“And we did see an increase in older moms’ birth rates. It’s not clear if it influences this change yet,” she said.
In what now seems like an inevitable turn of events, Ice Nine Kills has announced a horror convention.
The three-day event, dubbed Silver Scream Con, takes place August 26 to August 28 in Danvers, Massachusetts, just outside the metal band’s hometown of Boston. Or, as the Silver Scream Con trailer puts it, “Less than 5 miles from historically spooky Salem.”
“The Silver Scream Con will bring horror fanatics and INK fans from all over the world together to celebrate their love of on-screen slaughter,” says frontman Spencer Charnas. “This is the chance for our loyal psychos to not only interact with the band, but to meet the stars of the very films that our music pays tribute to.”
Ice Nine Kills’ music, of course, is heavily inspired by horror films. Their latest album, 2021’s The Silver Scream 2: Welcome toHorrorwood, features songs referencing movies Child’s Play, American Psycho, Resident Evil and My Bloody Valentine.
Like any good convention, Silver Scream Con will feature a variety of guests, including Scream‘s Skeet Ulrich, Halloween’s original Michael Myers, Nick Castle, and Danielle Harris, of Rob Zombie’s Halloween. Additionally, Ice Nine Kills will be giving an intimate performance.
The female lead in Jack Harlow‘s video for his #1 hit “First Class” is Brazilian superstar Anitta. But given that Jack’s from Kentucky, how did the two connect? Well, you can blame Miley Cyrus for that.
“Jack Harlow … was the first hug of my year!” Anitta told ABC Audio at the Billboard Music Awards recently. “This year, we spent New Year’s together doing a Miley Cyrus event.” Specifically, the two appeared on Miley’s New Year’s EveParty, which aired on NBC December 31, live from Miami.
“We’d met before, but then we started to have a connection,” Anitta explained. “And then he came to Brazil and we had a great time there. And he invited me … [he said], ‘Do you want to be the girl of my video?’ And I said, ‘Yes!'” She laughed, “It just felt great. I love it. And Brazil went crazy!”
Anitta, who recently graced the cover of Billboard magazine, said she feels that she and Jack are on similar paths, and she’s glad that they’re both doing so well.
“I’m so happy about, like, the way we connected as friends and the way we are in our careers, like, very similar right now,” she said. “And I’m really happy about everything he’s doing … everything I’m doing … I mean, it’s just a time for celebrating!”
Anitta’s new album, Versions of Me, just came out in April and features her hit “Girl from Rio,” plus collaborations with Saweetie, Khalid, Ty Dolla $ign and Cardi B. Jack’s new album, Come Home The Kids Miss You, is currently #6 on the Billboard 200.
Imagine feeling physical symptoms so unusual that you think an at-home cancer test is necessary. Now imagine that same test, which reads positive for cancer cells, is disregarded by your doctor — only to later learn it was, in fact, an accurate reading. That is the case of one of the few women who will join Tamron Hall on her show Tuesday for a discussion about the inequities among women and people of color within America’s health system.
“Medical gaslighting” is a term used to describe incidents in which patients say their illnesses and symptoms were dismissed by doctors or medical professionals. Speaking to ABC Audio ahead of Tuesday’s hour-long special, Hall says most patients who experience medical gaslighting are women and people of color.
“Fifty percent of women say that they are not believed aka medically gaslit by their physicians. And for women of color that number is even higher,” Hall said. “You have far too many women going into doctor’s offices and leaving with the clear understanding that they’re not being listened to.”
The Emmy-winning talk show host explained her desire to shed light on the disparities, citing new awareness on the topic and the fact that many members of her predominately female-staffed team had personal stories to share.
“The minute I said to my team I wanted to do this show … everyone had a story,” she said.
Hall said the brave guests who’ll share their experiences aren’t out to keep women from going to the doctor. Instead, “they want women to be empowered to challenge what they are hearing and also for doctors to do better.”
Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee, of the award-winning documentary Aftershock, will also join Hall to shed light on the disproportionate number of Black women who die due to childbirth complications in America.
Whether medical gaslighting is happening more frequently or if women are simply talking about it more, Hall said she believes conversation and awareness on the topic can encourage other women to share their stories.
Tyler Hubbard‘s new single, “5 Foot 9,” is a sweet tribute to his wife, Hayley, but he admits the title has one slight error.
In the heartfelt song, Tyler sings of a woman who is “5 foot 9” with “brown eyes in a sundress,” but it turns out, he accidentally missed his wife’s height by an inch.
“She’s actually 5’10”. I went home that night and said, ‘Babe, remind me again how tall you are exactly. You’re about 5’9″, right?’ She said, ‘Yeah, I’m 5’10”.’ And I thought, ‘Well, here’s a new song I wrote today. I’m sorry I cut you short by an inch, but I hope you like it,'” he reveals.
“5 Foot 9” is Tyler’s debut single as a solo artist after spending nine years as one half of the duo Florida Georgia Line. The Georgia native has been on a songwriting kick since embarking on his solo career, writing a collection of new material that tells his story in a unique way. He says that “5 Foot 9” is a “prime example” of a successful day in the writing room and is one of 18 songs that he plans to release.
“I love all of the songs about equally, which made it very difficult. They all have a different purpose and a different feel, and it’s all a little piece of who I am and tells my story,” he says of the unreleased music. “But I think ‘5 Foot 9’ was a good launchpad and a good foundation for the rest of this music and what’s to come in my story and where I’m at.”
Tyler recently signed a record deal as a solo artist under EMI Records Nashville.
A permanent Blue Plaque marker commemorating the late Jimi Hendrix‘s last residence in London, then known as the Cumberland Hotel and now the site of the Hard Rock Hotel in the Marble Arch section of the U.K. capital, will be unveiled on June 10.
The unveiling will be presented by the Hard Rock Hotel London in partnership with Experience Hendrix L.L.C., the family company that oversees the guitar legend’s music and legacy.
The new marker will become the second Blue Plaque honoring Hendrix in London. The first, which was unveiled in 1997, is located at the building where Jimi resided in 1968 and ’69 in the city’s Mayfair section. While living at the Cumberland Hotel, Hendrix wrote lyrics to his sings “Look Over Yonder” and “Suddenly November Morning” on the hotel’s stationary.
In conjunction with the new plaque’s debut, a special ticketed event will be held at the Hard Rock Hotel that will include a screening of the 2020 documentary Music, Money, Madness…Jimi Hendrix in Maui, and a Q&A with longtime Hendrix studio engineer Eddie Kramer; the film’s director, John McDermott; and Experience Hendrix CEO Janie Hendrix, Jimi’s sister.
“I’m so proud of my brother Jimi and his being honored again in London,” says Janie. “His mission was to spread love across the world through his music, and we continue to see that come to fruition all these years later. Eddie, John and I all look forward to interacting with people on June 10, whose lives were touched by Jimi in London — a city that was so important to him and his career.”
Tickets for the screening and Q&A can be purchased at Universe.com.
Dave Stewart of Eurythmics has just released a box set titled Ebony McQueen, a 26-track collection that tells the fictional story of a teenage boy from northern England who is visited by a voodoo blues queen, setting in motion a journey of discovery.
The box set is the first of multiple Ebony McQueen projects Stewart is planning, along with a film and a stage musical.
Stewart tells ABC Audio that Ebony McQueen was inspired by his own life story, based on how he developed a passion for music as a teenager in Sunderland, U.K.
“I started to write songs and write a story [about] the [time] in my teenage life when I discovered music for the first time,” he explains. “And it was through playing a blues record [by Robert Johnson] that my cousin had sent from Memphis.”
Dave notes that while recuperating from a soccer-related knee injury, he started becoming obsessed with music, and began learning guitar and tuning in to BBC Radio at the time that The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks were becoming popular.
“In that six to nine months, you have no idea how the radio was so eclectically brilliant,” Stewart declares. “[I]t was…literally like having your mind blown.”
Stewart wound up incorporating various musical styles from that period of his life into the songs on Ebony McQueen.
The box set includes three vinyl LPs, two vinyl EPs, two cassettes featuring acoustic versions of the songs and a booklet with photos, lyrics, drawings and an early script Dave wrote for the Ebony McQueen movie.
Dave says casting has already begun for the movie, which he compares to Billy Elliott and Once, noting, “it’s that kind of film where there’s an epiphany and it changes…your life in a massive way.”
Marvel dropped the first official trailer for Thor: Love and Thunder during Monday’s NBA Eastern Conference Finals on ESPN.
The clip gives us our first good look at Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster wielding Mjölnir, while confirming reports of Christian Bale playing the heavy, Gorr the Butcher.
Narrated by Love and Thunder director Taika Waititi‘s Korg, the trailer catches us up on Thor’s life since the events of Avengers: Endgame, during which he’s gone from “dad bod to god bod.” But just when he thinks he’s ready to reclaim his title as the one and only Thor, he discovers Jane — his old girlfriend who he hasn’t seen in eight years and is clearly not over — has inherited the mantle.
We also get our first look at Bale’s scary Gorr the Butcher, decked out in white robes, white makeup and yellow eyes, and who vows that “All gods shall die.”
Additionally, we see Russell Crowe‘s Zeus, who, in a bit of comic relief, strips Thor of his “disguise” — a little too thoroughly.
Thor: Love and Thunder, also starring Tessa Thompson, Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel and Dave Bautista, opens in U.S. theaters on July 8.
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.
(NEW YORK) — When a disgruntled employee opened fire in the parking lot of a FedEx distribution facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, in April 2021, the shooter did so because he wanted to commit “suicidal murder,” an FBI report released Monday concludes.
That incident, according to the FBI, was one of deadliest mass killings that year.
As a whole, active-shooter incidents in the United States increased by more than 50% from 2020 to 2021, according to the report.
Over the past five years, active shooter incidents have steadily increased, the FBI said, with the most recent in Buffalo, New York, on May 14 when a gunman killed 10 Black people at a local supermarket.
That shooting is being investigated as a hate crime.
The new report, titled “Active Shooter Incidents in the United States in 2021,” says there were 61 mass shooting incidents in the U.S. in 2021, representing a nearly 100% increase in active shooter incidents from 2017, which saw 31.
The FBI defines an active shooter as one or more individuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area. Implicit in this definition is the shooter’s use of a firearm.
The shootings occurred in 30 states, which saw 103 die and 140 wounded, according to the FBI, which says 12 of the shootings met the “mass killing” definition.
The FBI defines a mass killing as three or more killings in a single incident.
John Cohen, the former acting undersecretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security, told ABC News that the United States is seeing a trend with active shooters.
“The U.S. is in the midst of a multiyear trend where we are experiencing an increase in mass shooters who are seeking to advance their ideological beliefs or based on a perceived personal grievance,” Cohen, now an ABC News contributor, said. “A growing subset of our population believes that violence is an acceptable way to express one’s ideological beliefs or seek redress for a perceived personal grievance.”
Nearly all of the shooters were male, and half the accused shooters were arrested by law enforcement. The FBI says 55% of the shootings took place in the afternoon and evening hours.
More than half of the shootings took place in areas of commerce.
“The locations range from grocery stores to manufacturing sites,” the FBI said.
The youngest shooter was 12 and the oldest was 67.
“For 2021, the FBI observed an emerging trend involving roving active shooters; specifically, shooters who shoot in multiple locations, either in one day or in various locations over several days,” the FBI concluded.
