Listen to Peter Gabriel singing on new Arcade Fire song, “Unconditional II (Race and Religion)”

Listen to Peter Gabriel singing on new Arcade Fire song, “Unconditional II (Race and Religion)”
Listen to Peter Gabriel singing on new Arcade Fire song, “Unconditional II (Race and Religion)”
C Flanigan/Getty Images; Columbia Records

Peter Gabriel appears on the brand-new Arcade Fire song “Unconditional II (Race and Religion),” from the band’s latest studio album, WE, which was released Friday.

On the track, Gabriel delivers harmonies alongside lead vocals by Arcade Fire’s Régine Chassagne.

In recent interview with the Montreal Gazette, Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler said about the collaboration, “[Gabriel] came to the studio and we had a day to work on it. He does this thing where he double-tracks his voice, high and low. As soon as he put the high vocal down, I was like, ‘Oh s***, that’s Peter Gabriel.'”

You can check out “Unconditional II (Race and Religion)” now at Arcade Fire’s official YouTube channel.  The track and the album also are available via various digital and physical formats.

Gabriel previously recorded an Arcade Fire song, the Neon Bible track “My Body Is a Cage,” for his 2010 covers album Scratch My Back.

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Hospital admission totals tick up after weeks of rising COVID-19 cases

Hospital admission totals tick up after weeks of rising COVID-19 cases
Hospital admission totals tick up after weeks of rising COVID-19 cases
FS Productions/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — Following weeks of increasing infection rates, a growing number of Americans are heading into the hospital in need of care.

On average, nearly 2,400 virus-positive Americans are being admitted to the hospital each day, up by 17% in the last week, according to federal data. Forty-one states and territories have reported increases of 10% or more in their daily number of COVID-19-related hospital admissions.

In the U.S., there continues to be an uptick in the overall number of patients requiring care for COVID-19, with now about 19,100 patients hospitalized across the country. Overall, the total remains significantly lower than every other COVID-19 surge. In January, there were 160,000 patients hospitalized with the virus.

The U.S. is reporting more than 68,000 new cases every day, up by 20% in the last week, and 52% in the last two weeks. The nation’s daily case average has more than doubled in the last month.

Over the last week, nearly every state in the county — 45 states and territories — have seen increases of 10% or more in their daily COVID-19 infection rates.

Last week, counties across the Northeast moved into the “high” risk category for COVID-19 risk, after weeks of increasing cases and hospitalizations.

The “high” community-level transmission suggests there is a “high potential for health care system strain” and a “high level of severe disease.” Thus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people wear a mask in public indoor settings, including schools.

As infection rates continue to increase across the country, some health experts are questioning how much higher totals are than initially reported.

“We’re probably missing a lot,” David Dowdy, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told ABC News last week. “I would not be surprised to find out that our confirmed case count is under-counting the total number of cases by a factor of two or three. I think it’s quite possible that we’re having right now, as many cases as we were during the, you know, the delta wave of August or September, certainly not what we had this past winter, but we probably are having a lot more cases than what’s currently being reported.”

While some epidemiologists suggest that hospitalization data has become less reliable, as states stop reporting key metrics, health experts said they are more reliable than case numbers.

“We see that the number of hospitalizations being reported has again increased by about 20 to 30% from the low back in April. So while we may not have a perfect read on those numbers, they are more reliable than the case counts,” Dowdy said.

Despite increases in other metrics, the average of daily COVID-19-related deaths remains at a persistent plateau. The average currently stands at 340 fatalities a day. That is still much lower than during the omicron peak in early February, when the U.S. was reporting more than 2,600 deaths every day.

The U.S. is also now less than 2,500 deaths away from hitting 1 million COVID-19 related deaths, putting the nation on track to reach the milestone in the next week.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

‘The Late Show’ pausing taping episodes while Stephen Colbert has a “recurrence of COVID”

‘The Late Show’ pausing taping episodes while Stephen Colbert has a “recurrence of COVID”
‘The Late Show’ pausing taping episodes while Stephen Colbert has a “recurrence of COVID”
CBS/Mary Ellen Matthews

While he resumed taping of The Late Show last week after testing positive for COVID, Stephen Colbert is back to isolation.  

“Stephen is experiencing symptoms consistent with a recurrence of COVID,” The Late Show‘s Twitter feed announced Monday. “Out of an abundance of caution for his staff, guests, and audience, he will be isolating for a few additional days. The Late Show will not be taping new episodes until further notice.”

Colbert himself, who is vaccinated and boosted, replied to the post, noting, “WORST. SEQUEL. EVER.”

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Warren Haynes to perform at 20th anniversary Little Kids Rock benefit next week

Warren Haynes to perform at 20th anniversary Little Kids Rock benefit next week
Warren Haynes to perform at 20th anniversary Little Kids Rock benefit next week
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Gospel/soul legend Mavis Staples and Goo Goo Dolls frontman Johnny Rzeznik will be honored Ex-Allman Brothers Band singer/guitarist Warren Haynes is among the artists slated to perform at the 20th anniversary benefit for the Little Kids Rock charity, which will take place May 17 in New York City.

Little Kids Rock is a nonprofit with the goal of restoring and expanding music-education programs in public schools.

Also at the event gospel/soul legend Mavis Staples and Goo Goo Dolls frontman Johnny Rzeznik will be honored, respectively with the Peace & Freedom Award and the Rocker of the Year prize.

The event also will include performances from Run-D.M.C.‘s Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, pop singer Jon Secada and The Voice‘s season-three winner Cassadee Pope.

This year’s benefit will be held at New York City’s Terminal 5, beginning at 6 p.m. ET in May 17. Tickets and tables can be purchased now at LittleKidsRock.org.

To raise additional funds for Little Kids Rock, a silent auction will launch on Tuesday, May 10, at the organization’s website.

Proceeds raised by the benefit and the auction will go toward funding Little Kids Rock programs, teacher training and instrument donations.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Music notes: Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Camila Cabello and more

Music notes: Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Camila Cabello and more
Music notes: Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Camila Cabello and more
ABC

Olivia Rodrigo revived the ’90s by covering No Doubt‘s hit “Just a Girl” during the Philadelphia stop on her SOUR Tour. A fan caught video of the surprise cover of the Gwen Stefani-led band’s 1995 hit. Olivia previously covered Avril Lavigne‘s “Complicated” on tour, and the pop-punk singer crashed her Toronto show. Fans are hoping Gwen will do the same.

It’s now easier to get your hands on Lady Gaga‘s Haus Laboratories Beauty Line. The Grammy winner announced on Instagram that “select” Sephora stores will start selling the beauty line on June 9. In all, Haus will be coming to over 500 locations and will be releasing “new products this fall.”

Camila Cabello is headlining the opening ceremony of the 2022 UEFA Champions League, which kicks off May 28 in Paris. “I’ve got lots of surprises in store for you,” Camila teased to her soccer-loving fans.  According to the press release, Camila will perform a medley of her hits during a carnival-themed celebration.

Sara Bareilles is playing the Baker’s Wife in a limited engagement of the musical Into the Woods, which runs until May 15 at the New York City Center. She told Variety, “Blink and you’ll miss it.” She adds that, while rehearsals for the limited run were grueling, seeing the cheering audience “reminds you that all of the stress is worth it.”

Nick Lachey celebrated the 16th anniversary of his sophomore solo album, What’s Left of Me. He joked on Instagram, “My second solo album, #WhatsLeftOfMe is officially old enough to have a driver’s license.” Nick added that it was “hard to believe” his work is that old. The album’s title track peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Mavis Staples, Goo Goo Dolls’ Johnny Rzeznik to be honored at Little Kids Rock benefit next week

Mavis Staples, Goo Goo Dolls’ Johnny Rzeznik to be honored at Little Kids Rock benefit next week
Mavis Staples, Goo Goo Dolls’ Johnny Rzeznik to be honored at Little Kids Rock benefit next week
Erika Goldring/Getty Images; Daniel Knighton/Getty Images

Gospel/soul legend Mavis Staples and Goo Goo Dolls frontman Johnny Rzeznik will be honored at the 20th anniversary benefit for the Little Kids Rock charity, which will take place May 17 in New York City.

Little Kids Rock is a nonprofit with the goal of restoring and expanding music-education programs in public schools.

Staples, a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Blues Hall of Fame inductee, will be presented with the Peace & Freedom Award at the gala. With her family group The Staple Singers, Mavis marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., performed at President John F. Kennedy‘s inauguration, and topped the charts. Later on, she sang at the White in front of President Barack Obama and was recognized as a Kennedy Center honoree.

Rzeznik will be honored with the Rocker of the Year prize at the event. Johnny has served as lead singer and guitarist for The Goo Goo Dolls for over 30 years, during which time the band has enjoyed plenty of chat success, including scoring three top-10 hist on the Billboard Hot 100 during the 1990s — “Name,” “Iris” and “Slide.”

The event also will include performances from ex-Allman Brothers Band singer/guitarist Warren Haynes, Run-D.M.C.‘s Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, pop singer Jon Secada and The Voice‘s season-three winner Cassadee Pope.

This year’s benefit will be held at New York City’s Terminal 5, beginning at 6 p.m. ET in May 17. Tickets and tables can be purchased now at LittleKidsRock.org.

To raise additional funds for Little Kids Rock, a silent auction will launch on Tuesday, May 10, at the organization’s website.

Proceeds raised by the benefit and the auction will go toward funding Little Kids Rock programs, teacher training and instrument donations.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Production on ‘Ahsoka’ series is now underway

Production on ‘Ahsoka’ series is now underway
Production on ‘Ahsoka’ series is now underway
Lucasfilm

With a tweet from Star Wars‘ official social media channels, it was announced that production on Disney+’s small-screen spin-off Ahsoka got underway Monday.

The series stars Rosario Dawson as the titular former Jedi character she played on The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett; the show will also star Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, as well as Aladdin‘s Mena Massoud, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ivanna Sakhno, Ray Stevenson, Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Lars Mikkelsen.

Recently, ABC Audio spoke with Dawson — a life-long Star Wars fan and self-described geek — who enthused, “It’s really exciting to start getting into it, you know, like I literally am like, ‘I can’t hang out because I’m saber training.’ Like, that’s an actual thing I got to say, which is really, really fun and cool!”

First voiced by Ashley Eckstein, Ahsoka Tano made her debut in the Star Wars universe in the Emmy-winning animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Initially a Padawan learner under the tutelage of reluctant teacher Anakin Skywalker, Tano developed through that series, and also appeared in the subsequent animated show Star Wars: Rebels.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

‘Candy’ stars Jessica Biel, Melanie Lynskey on the surprising way they relate to their characters

‘Candy’ stars Jessica Biel, Melanie Lynskey on the surprising way they relate to their characters
‘Candy’ stars Jessica Biel, Melanie Lynskey on the surprising way they relate to their characters
Hulu

The true story of a 1980’s murder is at the center of the new series Candy, which debuts its first episode today on Hulu.

So, what’s it all about? For starters, it’s about a woman named Candy, who is played by Jessica Biel.

“Candy is a very normal suburban housewife and mom who is a churchgoing leader in her community,” Biel tells ABC Audio. “A fun, nice, kind woman who has a lot of emotional things that she’s incapable of sharing, and is incapable of knowing how to express herself in a way that that can keep her life on a regular track.”

She continues, “And she comes up against an experience where she commits a terrible act of violence. And it changes her life and her friend’s life.”

Biel also shares that Candy is a character with which she surprisingly could “very much relate to as a wife and a mother.”

“You know, just a normal-ish type of person,” she says. “And, you know, being pushed to the edge and then making a decision that, you know, you can’t take back.”

Likewise, Melanie Lynskey, who plays the woman Candy murders in the series, says that her role was also one that she could relate to.

“I’m a pretty shy person and I feel like I can be extremely awkward in groups of people. And that was something that I found very endearing about Betty,” she explains. “I also understood very deeply, and I cared about her. There was just something internally that felt right to me when I read the script.”

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Alec and Hilaria Baldwin say baby #7 will be a girl

Alec and Hilaria Baldwin say baby #7 will be a girl
Alec and Hilaria Baldwin say baby #7 will be a girl
Walt Disney Television/Yolanda Perez

On their Instagram pages, Hilaria and Alec Baldwin announced that their seventh child will be a girl. The news was broken with a video in which mom and dad, along with some of their kids — Carmen Gabriela, 8; Rafael Thomas, 6; and Leonardo Ángel Charles, 5 — gave the coming bundle of joy some life advice.

“One characteristic doesn’t define you,” Alec said, smiling. “You are a complicated and multifaced human,” Carmen added. “No one can define your cultures,” Leonardo followed.

“You don’t have to prove yourself to anyone,” Hilaria commented, adding later, “Feel free to immerse in and express all parts of your identity.”

Of course, their two youngest children — almost-20-month-old Eduardo Pau Lucas Baldwin, and 15-month-old Lucia — were too young to add their two cents, but they’re shown playing with their siblings.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

“There goes my entire personality”: Halsey reveals they’re allergic to coffee

“There goes my entire personality”: Halsey reveals they’re allergic to coffee
“There goes my entire personality”: Halsey reveals they’re allergic to coffee
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for REVOLVE

Halsey is very upset to learn they’re allergic to a favorite drink of theirs.

“Just found out I’m allergic to coffee so there goes my entire personality,” Halsey captioned a TikTok video of them sipping on an iced green drink while a remix of Fleetwood Mac‘s “Dreams” plays in the background.

Halsey revealed they are also allergic to a bevy of other things, including yeast, wheat, potatoes, onions, milk, mustard, shrimp, shrimp, soy, almonds, blueberries, squash and a lot more.  But Halsey assured fans “Everything is fine!” although when one fan empathized with the singer about being allergic to garlic, Halsey admitted, “The Italian in me is weeping.”  The singer said to another fan that she is seeking more answers because “this is just a WILD way to live.”

In other Halsey news, the singer recently issued a warning to their more squeamish fans about their upcoming tour, which “contains mature themes.”  

“The show will contain visual images that may not be appropriate for all audiences,” they announced on Twitter. “With that being said however, this show is vulnerable and powerful in a way that I am so proud of.  It is unlike anything I’ve ever done before and I can’t wait for you to see it.”

Halsey’s Love and Power Tour kicks off May 17 in West Palm Beach, Florida.

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