Page 7018 – 105.7 WDNY

Michael Keaton teases Batman return with iconic suited-up silhouette

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NOTE LANGUAGE) While waiting for Robert Pattinson‘s first turn as the Dark Knight in The Batman, Bat-fans are freaking out about an Instagram post from the guy who first wore the suit in 1989.

Michael Keaton dropped a post last night that didn’t need any caption: A photo of his unmistakable silhouette as the Caped Crusader, first seen in Tim Burton‘s groundbreaking Batman film.

As previously reported, Keaton agreed to return as the iconic hero in both Warner Bros.’ Ezra Miller-led film The Flash and HBO Max’s forthcoming Batgirl movie.

Both of these projects are separate from the Gotham City created by Matt Reeves for Pattinson with The Batman, which premieres March 4.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter last summer, Keaton said of returning to the character, “Frankly, in the back of my head, I always thought, ‘I bet I could go back and nail that motherf***er.'”

However, the Oscar winner admitted that The Flash‘s time-shifting plot that will allow Keaton to occupy the Batsuit, reportedly along with Ben Affleck‘s Caped Crusader, went over his head. “They had to explain that to me several times,” he confessed.

That film hits theaters on November 4, 2022. There’s no release date yet for the Batgirl movie starring Leslie Grace as the heroine, and which Keaton is now shooting overseas.

Hollywood Undead unleashes “Chaos” with new single

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Hollywood Undead has released a new song called “Chaos.”

The track is the first offering from the rap-rock outfit of 2022, and follows their two 2020 albums, New Empire, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. You can listen to “Chaos” now via digital outlets.

Last year, Hollywood Undead released a pair of songs with electronic artists Imanbek and Blasterjaxx called “Runaway” and “Shadows,” respectively.

Hollywood Undead will hit the road next week on Papa Roach‘s U.S. Kill the Noise tour, which begins March 1 in Anaheim, California. Bad Wolves is also on the bill.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

Paul McCartney adds second Boston show to 2022 Got Back tour of the US

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Paul McCartney‘s recently announced Got Back tour just got an additional show. The new date, which was added “due to overwhelming demand,” is scheduled for June 8 at Boston’s Fenway Park, and joins a previously announced June 7 concert at the historic stadium.

Tickets for McCartney’s June 8 performance will go on sale to the general public on Friday, March 4, at 10 a.m. ET.

American Express card members can get pre-sale tickets starting Monday, February 28, at 10 a.m. ET, while PaulMcCartney.com also is offering pre-sale tickets beginning at 12 p.m. ET that same day. For all the details, visit PaulMcCartneyGotBack.com.

As previously reported, McCartney’s Got Back tour, his first since his Freshen Up trek wrapped in 2019, launches April 28 in Spokane, Washington, and is scheduled to wrap up on June 16 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The U.S. outing currently features 15 shows.

Final Season of ‘Killing Eve’ arrives Sunday with “fun murders,” “amazing costumes” and a question of change

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The fourth and final season of Killing Eve debuts this Sunday on BBC America and AMC+, and it kicks off with Jodie Comer‘s assassin character, Villanelle, attempting to become “good” by, of all things, joining a church. Laura Neal, the show’s lead writer and executive producer, tells ABC Audio that the big theme this season is whether or not people are actually capable of change.

“Can Villanelle really change? Can she become a good person after all this time of being, you know, a murderous psychopath?” says Neal. “And likewise for [Sandra Oh‘s ex-intelligence agent] Eve — she hasn’t been a murderous psychopath, but can she become somebody who can do very dark things and be very self-serving?”

But this season’s big challenge, Neal notes, was creating an exciting plot that would also lead to a satisfying series finale.

“We did have a sense of where we wanted these characters to end and how we wanted their stories to kind of collide,” she says. “And then, of course, you have to make each episode thrilling and include all of those things that the audience of Killing Eve has come to expect — like fun murders and amazing costumes and amazing locations.”

Neal adds, “We definitely had to balance the overarching intention for the series with the individual episodes, and making those feel fun and light and not too weighed down by the expectation of the ending.”

So what about that ending? After all Villanelle and Eve have been through, will they end up together? Neal shares what she says when people ask her.

“I stay very tight-lipped,” she laughs. “I normally say, ‘What do you think happens?’ and then I mine them for ideas!”

The eight-part final season of Killing Eve debuts at 9 p.m. ET/PT, and encores Monday on AMC at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

BTS teams with Nordstrom for new merchandise collection

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

If you’re hoping to grow your collection of BTS merchandise, you’re in luck. The “Butter” hitmakers have teamed with Nordstrom for an exclusive line.

The collection, dubbed BTS Themed Merch, went live on Friday both online and in stores and features unisex clothing, buttons, stickers and a whole bunch of other goodies. Items range in price from about $10 to $110 USD.

The line even includs photo flags that fans hoping to catch their next live performance can wave around in the crowds, but the $9 offerings that had group and individual photos are mostly gone.

Other offerings include a “Boy with Love” pink robe for $110 that comes with matching slippers for an extra $25, a gender inclusive “Black Swan” sweatshirt for $80, a “Mic Drop” black fleece pouch for about $40, and a “Dynamite” reversible knit scarf. Fans can also snatch up exclusive sweatpants, mugs, beanies, stamps, tee shirts, jackets, and even throw blankets.

Items are selling out already, so if you are dying to grab a little something, better act fast.

Breland explains how he responds to trolls who don’t think he’s country enough

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

As one of country music’s fastest-rising newcomers, Breland has gotten his fair share of attention from listeners on the Internet — including some negative comments.

“There are people on the Internet who like to troll and I definitely have gotten some pretty hateful messages from people that don’t feel like my brand in country music is authentic,” the singer tells E! Online.

Hailing from New Jersey and pulling influence from gospel standards to Justin Bieber-era pop and more, Breland does indeed have his own distinct sound, which he’s dubbed “cross country.”

But he’s far from the only country artist to make the genre their own. His duet partner on his remixed version of “My Truck,” Sam Hunt, is just one example of someone who’s pushed the boundaries of country music and been hugely successful in the process.

Breland’s message to his haters? “Okay, well, you don’t have to love it. Music is interpretative,” he reflects. “Just because you don’t think that this is country enough doesn’t mean that it isn’t.”

Most recently, Breland joined forces with Dierks Bentley and Hardy for Dierks’ hit single, “Beers on Me.”

Daryl Hall releases 2012 cover of Eurythmics’ “Here Comes the Rain Again” featuring Dave Stewart

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Hall & Oates singer Daryl Hall has released a live version of the 1984 Eurythmics hit “Here Comes the Rain Again” that he performed with the latter group’s Dave Stewart as an advance track from his upcoming solo compilation, BeforeAfter, due out April 1.

The performance, which features Daryl on vocals and piano and Stewart on acoustic guitar, comes a 2012 episode of Hall’s Live from Daryl’s House show. The track is available now via digital formats, while a video of their rendition of “Here Comes the Rain Again” has been posted on Hall’s official YouTube channel.

Hall has had a collaborative relationship with Stewart that dates back to Daryl’s 1986 album, Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine, which was produced by Dave and includes three songs that he co-wrote.

As previously reported, BeforeAfter is a 30-track collection that features selections from all five of Hall’s solo studio albums, as well as eight performances from the Live from Daryl’s House series, six of which are previously unreleased.

Other Live from Daryl’s House performances on the compilation include a rendition of Todd Rundgren‘s “Can We Still Be Friends with Rundgren, and covers of Ruby and the Romantics‘ “Our Day Will Come” and Gladys Knight and the Pips‘ “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye).”

Coinciding with BeforeAfter‘s release, Hall will embark on his first solo tour in a decade, with Rundgren as his special guest. The eight-show trek runs from an April 1 concert in Chicago through an April 16 show in National Harbor, Maryland, and includes stops at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and New York City’s Carnegie Hall on April 5 and April 14, respectively.

Judy Greer on the emotional “escape” of shooting ‘Family Squares’ remotely during the pandemic

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NOTE LANGUAGE) The new dramedy Family Squares is now in theaters and on demand, following a group of people shaken up by video messages left by the family matriarch after she passes away.

The film was shot remotely during the height of the pandemic by its cast — which includes Archer series star Judy Greer, as well as Emmy winners Henry Winkler, Margo Martindale, Ann Dowd, and Happy Endings star Casey Wilson — and plays out primarily via Zoom.

A fun behind-the-scenes clip runs during the end credits to show what an undertaking it was.

“Even if we were to do it now, it would be easier, but that was still back when we were like, ‘What are these things?'” Greer tells ABC Audio, gesturing to the borders of her Zoom window. “You know, especially…like no offense to actors, but like, we’re not super tech-savvy.”

She adds of the mostly ad-libbed project, “It was nice even just for a few days to have something to take my mind off of everything that was going on with the pandemic and politically. It was just like kind of a godsend for that short amount of time that we shot.”

As one might guess, Family Squares is at times an emotional movie — but real tears weren’t hard to come by during the lockdowns.

“Oh no, no, no,” Greer admits. “It was only hard because we all like we’re just wanting to talk to each other and communicate with each other and shoot the s*** and stuff like that. You know, like after being just like alone in my house with my husband for so long, I was like, ‘I get to talk to my friends!'”

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

CDC to ease masking recommendations for 70% of country, including inside schools

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Some 70% of Americans will be able to remove their masks indoors, including inside schools, under new guidance to be released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Friday, two sources familiar with the plans told ABC News.

Under the new metrics in the updated guidance, more than half of U.S. counties, which make up 70% of where Americans live, will be in areas of low or medium risk and no longer recommended to wear masks, said two sources briefed on the plans but not authorized to discuss them ahead of the official announcement.

A CDC requirement that people continue to wear masks on public transportation, however, will remain in force for now, according to one official.

The official said the new guidance will consider three factors: new COVID hospitalizations, current beds occupied by COVID patients and hospital capacity, and new COVID cases.

It will mark a shift from focusing on daily spread to looking at the overall burden of COVID, with an emphasis on its most severe impacts.

Taken together, the new CDC metrics will consider an area to be “high, medium or low risk.”

Based on that risk level, which could fluctuate, a community could opt to remove mask recommendations indoors.

Schools will not be treated differently under the new guidance as other indoor spaces, according to two officials.

The updated guidance comes after weeks of pressure from governors and state officials who asked for a clear roadmap at the national level.

Though a majority of states went ahead and announced that they will drop mask mandates before the CDC’s guidance was ready, the new information could still aid local leaders and public health officials who are facing vastly different versions of the pandemic even within the same state.

And it will also give states and counties a guide to re-implement guidelines if a new variant pops up, which experts warn is a possibility.

“Never Say Never”: Lainey Wilson “immediately knew” her Cole Swindell duet was special

February 25, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Lainey Wilson knows that “Never Say Never” — her new duet with Cole Swindell — couldn’t be more different than her debut release to country radio, the chart-topping ballad “Things a Man Oughta Know.”

But when she first heard it, after Cole texted it to her while she was “drinking a piña colada on a beach in Mexico,” Lainey says she instantly gravitated toward “Never Say Never.”

“I immediately knew this song was special,” the rising star tells Nashville’s Tennesseean. “Even though it was completely different than ‘Things a Man Oughta Know,’ the song — and no, not the piña colada — made me feel something, so we recorded it.”

That intuition has served her well. Lainey was one of the genre’s biggest breakout stories in 2021, with a hit debut single and an opening slot on tour with Jason Aldean.

“It’s like I was being pulled behind a speedboat on a kneeboard,” she describes, thinking about her ascent to stardom.

There’s more ahead for Lainey, who’s a three-time nominee at this year’s ACM Awards — a turn of events that “blows my mind,” she says.

“I’ve been practicing my dang award-winning ACM speech since I was a little girl, and now that I might have to use it, I don’t know what I’m gonna say,” she adds.

As for “Never Say Never,” Lainey’s gut feeling seems to paying off there, too: The song is quickly cruising towards country radio’s top-fifteen.

+ More