Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Whether you’re interested in great country music or great food, there’s plenty to love about Trisha Yearwood. The country hitmaker and Grand Ole Opry member is also the host of her own Food Network cooking show, Trisha’s Southern Kitchen.
Off the road, Trisha loves to cook simple, one-dish meals for herself and her country superstar husband, Garth Brooks. According to the Food Network’s website, one of her favorite weeknight meals is risotto.
Trisha’s even got a recipe for mushroom, asparagus and pea risotto, so fans can eat just like the country power couple.
When Garth’s in charge, however, their meals trend towards casserole form. “Anything that’s a one and done kind of thing, because he likes to eat the whole meal in a pan,” Trisha told Mashed recently, saying that broccoli, chicken, cheese and rice casserole is often on the menu.
The 20th — yes, the 20th — season of American Idol premieres Sunday night on ABC. While other singing competitions have come and gone since Idol premiered in 2002, judge Lionel Richie says there’s one thing that continues to makes it the gold standard.
“Don’t get me wrong…there’s talent on other shows, but I’m talking about talent that goes on to have careers,” he says. “That’s serious. And so what I love about this is, very clearly, we are looking for the stars of tomorrow, and that’s what American Idol delivers. Twenty years later, we’re still doing it.”
Lionel, who describes himself as the “wise old bird” of the judging panel, says there’s one thing that he and fellow judges Katy Perry and Luke Bryan look for in contestants above all else.
“You have to get our attention…the first time you open your mouth,” he explains. “Is that voice of yours identifiable? Because that’s how it works when you listen to music.” He adds, “Instant identity is everything.”
Katy Perry, meanwhile, tells ABC News that this season the contestants are “really going for it,” adding that the talent “just continues to get more legit.” She notes, “I think [it’s because] every season people are tuning in, especially singer-songwriters and real artists…and they’re seeing other real artists…trying out.”
Katy adds, “People are having success, they’re changing their lives…they’re getting awards nominations — [Season 16 runner-up] Gabby Barrett, she’s massive now. So it feels good that there’s still stars coming out [of the show].”
And host Ryan Seacrest, who’s been there for all 20 years, tells ABC Audio, “I think this franchise has another two decades ahead of it…it’s still a wonderful premise…so I’m excited that we’re still going strong.”
The Scorpions‘ long-awaited 19th studio album, Rock Believer, the band’s first new record since 2015’s Return to Forever, arrived today.
Frontman Klaus Meine tells ABC Audio that with the album, exemplified by its title track, The Scorpions deliver the message that they believe hard-rock music is alive and well, and that they know their fans feel the same way.
“The lyrics [of ‘Rock Believer’ are] about saying, ‘We are the essence of rock believers, doing this for so long,'” Meine explains. “And, of course, it was addressed to all the rock believers out there, addressed to the hard and heavy community.”
Meine says the band’s objective with Rock Believer was “for us to have great songs, powerful songs for our live set, and…for the hard and heavy fans out there hoping The Scorpions this time would not focus too much on ballads.”
Having said that, Meine notes that alongside various fast and mid-tempo rock songs on Rock Believer, there is indeed one ballad, “When You Know (Where You Come From).”
Asked to name some of his favorite songs on the album, Klaus says “When You Know,” “Rock Believer” and “Call of the Wild,” which he says is “a cool little…bluesy song.”
He also singles out “When I Lay My Bones to Rest” which he says he likes because it’s “a fast song, it’s so powerful, with really funny lyrics.”
The Scorpions recorded the album during the COVID-19 lockdown, and while some of the songs feature lyrics inspired by the global health crisis and other serious issues, Meine says he focused more on writing tunes “for the fans to enjoy and get away from this whole corona thing…and just to rock out with us with positive energy.”
Here’s Rock Believer‘s full track list:
“Gas in the Tank”
“Roots in My Boots”
“Knock ‘Em Dead”
“Rock Believer”
“Shining of Your Soul”
“Seventh Sun”
“Hot and Cold”
“When I Lay My Bones to Rest”
“Peacemaker”
“Call of the Wild”
“When You Know (Where You Come From)”
“Shoot for Your Heart”
“When Tomorrow Comes
“Unleash the Beast”
“Crossing Borders”
“When You Know (Where You Come From)” (Acoustic Version)
(PRIPYAT, Ukraine) — As Russian troops continue to inch their way through its invasion of Ukraine, a secondary catastrophe to the fighting between the ex-Soviet neighbors is possible: another nuclear reaction at Chernobyl.
On Thursday afternoon, Russian armed forces entered the deserted exclusion zone around the Chernobyl power plant, where the world’s worst nuclear accident took place in 1986. By night, Russian forces had taken full control of the area, including the plant itself, according to Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
The heavy fighting inside the “exclusion zone,” a vast and empty land surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear plant that includes the ghost city of Pripyat, is causing concern that it could spark another nuclear disaster. International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano is watching the situation with “grave concern, appealing for “maximum restraint” amid the conflict to avoid putting the nuclear facility at risk.
“It is of vital importance that the safe and secure operations of the nuclear facilities in that zone should not be affected or disrupted in any way,” Mariano said in a statement.
On April 26, 1986, reactor No. 4 at the power plant, about 65 miles north of the capital Kyiv, exploded, spewing enormous amounts of radioactive material into the atmosphere and causing more than 100,000 people in a 1,000-square-mile radius to evacuate.
The destroyed reactor itself was sealed in 2019 under a $2 billion arch-shaped shelter, a stadium-sized metal structure that was built over it to contain, but the other three untouched reactors remain “fully exposed,” said Tim Mousseau, a professor of biological sciences at the University of South Carolina who has been studying Chernobyl for more than 20 years.
“There are more than 5 million pounds of spent nuclear fuel, also uranium and plutonium and a few other nasty isotopes, sitting in the cooling ponds of the the three reactors that didn’t blow up in 1986,” Mousseau said.
The fighting represents an “existential threat” to the environment, Mousseau told ABC News.
Should missiles hit the structure over reactor No. 4, where “quite a bit” of radioactive material is left, or the facility where the spent nuclear fuel that accumulated over the decades of operation there is stored, it would cause large amounts of radioactive nuclear dust to spread throughout the region, Mousseau said.
“If this storage area were to be hit with any kind of any kind of missile, this could release vast quantities of highly radioactive material would spread far and wide, potentially causing an even larger disaster than the 1986 disaster,” he said.
In addition, the area surrounding the power plant is “absolutely the most radioactive place on the planet,” Mousseau said. That, combined with the “tinderbox” conditions left by severe forest fires in recent years, could allow a fast-sweeping wildfires to spew radio nuclides back into the atmosphere and “spread it again far and wide,” Mousseau said.
Russian forces in Chernobyl prove an additional worrying sign for Ukraine, as they are now about an hour’s drive from the capital. Russian special forces have also managed to keep hold of a key military airport just 20 miles from the very center of Kyiv, despite fierce fighting.
“Unfortunately, we are obliged to inform that as things stand the Chernobyl Zone, the so-called ‘Exclusion Zone’ and all the Chernobyl nuclear power station have been taken under the control of the Russian armed groups,” Shmyhal told UNIAN, Ukraine’s main news wire.
Russia’s decision to enter Ukraine through such a vulnerable region as Chernobyl could be emblematic of additional escalation to come, Mousseau said, describing the situation facing the disaster site as “the worst nightmare come true.”
“No one in their right mind would want to engage in warfare in that region for fear of unleashing potentially the largest nuclear disaster ever,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tweeted that Ukrainian troops were fighting and “giving their lives” to avoid another 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
“This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe,” Zelenskyy wrote of the occupation.
U.S. officials had predicted before the invasion that Russia would use special forces to land into the capital before forces from Belarus, which borders the northern side of the exclusion zone, would sweep down rapidly in an effort to back Russia’s lightning strike to seize the city.
ABC News’ Patrick Reevell, Cindy Smith and Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.
Russian occupation forces are trying to seize the #Chornobyl_NPP. Our defenders are giving their lives so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated. Reported this to @SwedishPM. This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe.
(NEW YORK) — Approximately 5.2 million children have lost a parent or caregiver during the pandemic, according to a new study published in The Lancet medical journal Thursday.
An analysis by the same team of researchers in July 2021 had estimated 1.5 million children were orphaned during the first 14-months of the pandemic, meaning they lost at least one parent. But with new variants and a rising death count, the researchers said they felt compelled to re-evaluate the analysis.
Between May 2021 and October 2021, deaths globally nearly doubled compared to the months prior, a jump attributed predominantly to the delta variant. This new study estimates that approximately 5.2 million children are experiencing COVID-related orphanhood.
“What we found was shocking,” said Dr. Susan Hillis, the study’s lead author and a senior research officer at Oxford University, who completed this work while at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The number of children who lost at least one parent at the end of the first 20-months of the pandemic was greater than the total number of COVID deaths, and this gap is increasing, according to the study.
Children aged 10 through 17 were more likely to have lost a parent, with 2.1 million children affected. Still, over 490,000 children between ages 0 and 4, and 750,000 children between ages 5 and 10 lost a parent or caregiver.
Among all children, 3 out of every 4 lost a father, which is even more significant in low-income countries where the father is more likely to be the primary earner.
“COVID-related orphanhood does not come in waves,” Hillis said. “It is a steadily rising slope with the summit still out of our sight.” Although many may recover from an infection, losing a parent is not something that can be easily recovered from, she said.
“These are 5 million kids in one generation that will be living the rest of their lives in a very different way, and this affects us all,” said Dr. Natasha Burgert, a pediatrician and spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics. Burgert was not involved with the study.
As part of their work, Hillis and her team said they developed a real-time calculator to predict loss of parent or caregiver by current mortality data for every country in the world. By the end of January 2022, the estimate had risen to 6.7 million children worldwide affected by COVID orphanhood, according to the research. In the United States, the researchers estimate over 149,000 children have lost a parent or caregiver.
However, despite these staggering numbers, Hillis say there is hope.
For the last 20 years, the U.S. government has been investing in evidence-based programs to ensure orphaned and highly vulnerable children affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic could be protected and supported to reach their potential, the researchers noted.
“We actually know the models that work,” Hillis says. “We have an opportunity to lead by example.”
Experts say these findings underscore the importance of vaccinating adults across the globe.
“Vaccines are keeping people alive in the face of this terrible virus and keeping families whole,” says Burgert.
While authors continue to call for equitable access to vaccines and treatment globally, the millions of children already orphaned still need support, they said.
“We need to be supporting our childcare centers, local schools and larger university systems with the resources needed to create a cushion of support and a safe place for social-emotional learning,” says Burgert. “Educators, counselors, administrators, physicians and legislators need to be preparing for the upcoming impact, and they will need everyone’s help.”
The CDC, WHO and many top experts around the world have agreed to the importance of adding an additional pillar to the world-wide COVID response: Caring for and protecting these children.
There is currently no governmental funding in the United States aimed at acknowledging and protecting these children in their hidden pandemic, the researchers noted.
“We have an unprecedented opportunity to change the narrative in our country away from divisiveness towards shared hope,” says Hillis. “It is a moral imperative for us to do what we know works to help the ones at home and to encourage every country in the world to do the same.”
Emily Molina, MD, an internal medicine resident physician at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, is a contributor to the ABC News Medical Unit.
(WASHINGTON) — Shortly after President Joe Biden on Thursday announced new sanctions on Russian banks and elites — but not on Russian President Vladimir Putin himself — a top Senate Democrat pointedly called on him to go further.
“As we seek to impose maximum costs on Putin, there is more that we can and should do. Congress and the Biden administration must not shy away from any options—including sanctioning the Russian Central Bank, removing Russian banks from the SWIFT [international banking] system, crippling Russia’s key industries, sanctioning Putin personally, and taking all steps to deprive Putin and his inner circle of their assets,” Sen. Bob Menendez, chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, urged the administration in a statement.
The Democratic chairman of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Adam Schiff, told reporters Thursday that he, too, would support removing Russia from the SWIFT banking system as many Republicans have called for as tensions worsened.
“We must provide Ukraine with support to defend itself. We also are going to need to, I think, dramatically escalate the sanctions that we place on Russia for this act of naked aggression by the Kremlin dictator. We need to move, I think, to sanction the largest banks in Russia, we have to cut off Russia from the International financing system and its ability to access Western capital. We need to attack its ability to gather sophisticated technology for its weapons systems,” Schiff told reporters at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday.
Asked why SWIFT was not included in his announcement, Biden argued the actions the U.S. had taken Thursday were more significant, but said it was an option that remained on the table, although allies hadn’t agreed on making the move.
“It’s always an option but right now that’s not the position that the rest of Europe wishes to take,” Biden told reporters Thursday during remarks in the East Room of the White House.
Biden briefed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on the evolving situation in Ukraine during a phone call Thursday afternoon.
McConnell described it as “a briefing from the president for the four of us on the events of today and the way forward” but declined to share further details. He noted that he urged the president, both publicly and privately, to “ratchet up the sanctions.”
A spokesman to Pelosi confirmed to ABC News that the call was “classified” in nature.
Across the board, Republicans and Democrats in both chambers of Congress say the administration must act boldly and with more urgency to punish Putin and Russian oligarchs as the deadly attack in Ukraine unfolds.
And while many Republicans have been critical of Biden’s steps up to this point, the actual invasion attack has seen many joining with Democrats in calls to sideline partisan squabbling in the name of NATO unity.
While agreeing to do so, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, couldn’t resist seizing an “I told you so” moment. In a statement released just moments after news of Russia’s advancement into Ukraine broke Wednesday evening. Romney harkened back to his 2012 presidential debate with President Barack Obama, who mocked Romney for citing Russia as the United States’ “number one geopolitical foe.”
At the time, Obama quipped on stage that “the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back.”
Ten years later, Romney argued that Putin’s prior aggression laid the groundwork for the current conflict he’s waging in Ukraine. “The ’80s called’ and we didn’t answer,” he said.
Still, the statement ended on a unifying note, calling on America and its allies to “protect freedom” by working in tandem to impose harsh sanctions on Russia.
Many GOP lawmakers are modeling Romney’s tone, calling for unity despite disagreement with the administration.
In a statement Thursday, following Biden’s remarks, McConnell acknowledged Romney’s consistent warnings about Ukraine, but like Romney, looked ahead.
“Moving forward, how America leads the response from all freedom-loving nations will be measured carefully by our friends, by our adversaries, and by history itself,” McConnell said. “We cannot afford to fail this test.”
Republicans on the House Foreign Affairs Committee also released a statement early Thursday going after Putin. Earlier in the week, they had been more critical of Biden.
“The last few hours have laid bare for the world to witness the true evil that is Vladimir Putin. Today, we stand resolute with the Ukrainian people and resolve to provide them with the tools they need to withstand and repel this unprovoked attack. Every drop of Ukrainian and Russian blood spilled in this conflict is on Putin’s hands, and his alone,” the Republican members said.
GOP divided on attacking Biden
But some Republicans are choosing a more divisive rhetoric, largely unseen in previous international conflicts.
Among a newer breed of Republicans, many of whom have found themselves closely aligned with former President Donald Trump, criticism is extending beyond Putin and to Biden himself.
The third-ranking House Republican, Rep. Elise Stefanik, slammed Biden in a statement Thursday.
“After just one year of a weak, feckless, and unfit President of the United States and Commander-in-Chief, the world is less safe. Rather than peace through strength, we are witnessing Joe Biden’s foreign policy of war through weakness. For the past year, our adversaries around the world have been assessing and measuring Joe Biden’s leadership on the world stage, and he has abysmally failed on every metric,” Stefanik said.
It was only later in her statement, Stefanik turned her ire to Putin, saying “Vladimir Putin is a war criminal and deranged thug.”
“Joe Biden has shown nothing but weakness and indecision,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said in a tweet Wednesday night. “Now is the time to show strong purpose.”
GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene blamed the Russian invasion of Ukraine entirely on Biden himself, while giving kudos to his predecessor.
“Everything happening to the poor people of Ukraine is a direct result of a WEAK America under the WEAK leadership of Joe Biden. Under President Trump, America was STRONG and the world was at PEACE,” Greene tweeted Thursday.
Top Senate Democrat Schumer said that this sort of political rhetoric from Republicans attacking Biden at this moment in time, “weakens the attempts we are making to be unified against Putin.”
“That is not the time for this rhetoric,” Schumer said. “Americans should be united as we were united at 9/11, as we have been united in the past.”
House Republican Leader McCarthy released a statement Thursday going after Putin — this time not choosing to level his attacks at the sitting U.S. president, which he often does.
“Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is reckless and evil. The United States stands with the people of Ukraine and prays for their safety and resolve. Putin’s actions must be met with serious consequence. This act of war is intended to rewrite history and more concerning, upend the balance of power in Europe. Putin must be held accountable for his actions,” McCarthy said in a statement.
While Republicans have condemned Putin, one major player in the Republican Party has refused to do so — the former president of the United States.
He called Putin’s actions “genius” during a radio interview Tuesday.
“I said, ‘This is genius.’ Putin declares a big portion of the Ukraine of Ukraine. Putin declares it as independent. Oh, that’s wonderful. So Putin is now saying it’s independent, a large section of Ukraine. I said, ‘How smart is that?’ And he’s going to go in and be a peacekeeper,” Trump said on the “The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show.”
At a Mar-a-Lago fundraiser Wednesday, he continued his praise of Putin, calling him “pretty smart” in “taking over a country for $2 worth of sanctions.”
How will Congress respond to Russia?
Whether and how to further punish Russia and supply aid for Ukraine will be some of the first challenges Congress will have to attend to when it returns from its week-long recess on Monday.
They say they are united in their resolve.
“Our Congress is united that we will reply to this with both standing firm by NATO continuing to provide armaments to the Ukrainians to defend itself,” Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., said Thursday. “We will launch the most unprecedented level of economic sanctions targeting oligarchs, people close to Putin, the banking system, the ability to get technology into the Russian defense industry.”
But differences in policy will be laid bare when members return next week and it’s not yet clear if Congress will act separately from the administration to impose additional sanctions.
Negotiations on a bipartisan sanctions bill stalled last week, and Republicans, led by the Foreign Relations Committee top Republican Jim Risch, proposed a separate partisan bill they still hope will go forward.
“Diplomacy has failed. Those of us who called for more definitive action from the Biden Administration and our allies have unfortunately been proven right,” Risch said Thursday. “We cannot afford to wait any longer, we must take more decisive action.”
The Regrettes have premiered the video for the band’s latest single, “You’re So F***ing Pretty.”
The clip, which is streaming now on YouTube, stars frontwoman Lydia Night as she paces through an empty house, thinking over “a relationship that could have been.”
“Lydia is the best and we just clicked,” says the clip’s director, Serena Reynolds. “I love how we were able to collect so much beauty, frustration and sadness in the video to formulate this idea of a person we never visually see. I think the magic is that this ‘lover’ really feels all encompassingly joyful in the end.”
The Regrettes released “You’re So F***ing Pretty” last December. At the time, Night said the song marked “the first time I’ve ever written directly about a girl I had a crush on.”
“Pretty” is one of two new tunes The Regrettes dropped in 2021, along with the single “Monday.” The band has been working on a new album called Further Joy, release date TBA.
Meanwhile, you can catch The Regrettes on their current U.S. headlining tour, which continues Friday in Milwaukee.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for God’s Love we Deliver
Heart‘s Nancy Wilson has recorded a new version of The Beatles‘ “Here Comes the Sun” with longtime Elton John guitarist Davey Johnstone and actor/drummer John Stamos, and a video for the cover will premiere this Saturday, February 26, during the 2022 gala for the Hillsides charity taking place in Pasadena, California.
Hillsides is a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping children deal with trauma and mental health issues.
You can check out a preview clip of the “Here Comes the Sun” video on Wilson’s Facebook page. John Mahon, a multi-instrumentalist who, like Johnstone, is a longtime member of Elton’s touring band, also contributed to the song.
The year’s fHillsides undraiser, which has been dubbed “Come Together,” will be held at The Langham Huntington hotel in Pasadena and also will be streamed live on the organization’s YouTube channel. In addition to the screening of the “Here Comes the Sun” video, the event will feature a cocktail hour, dinner, a silent auction and a live, silent auction. Among the hundreds of items and experiences up for bid are virtual meet-and-greets with Wilson, Johnstone, Mahon and Elton John drummer Nigel Olsson, and a drumhead signed by various members of Elton’s band.
Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are being recognized for their social justice work.
Ahead of the 53rd NAACP Image Awards on Saturday, the NAACP and BET announced the couple will receive the President’s Award, which is given to those who have dedicated their time to public service. Previous recipients include Muhammad Ali, LeBron James, Rihanna and Jay-Z.
“We’re thrilled to present this award to Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who together have heeded the call to social justice and have joined the struggle for equity in the U.S. and around the world,” Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, said in a statement.
This year at the NAACP awards, Harry and Meghan are also recognizing leaders who are creating change in technology and social justice with the NAACP-Archewell Digital Civil Rights Award.
“Not only do they continue to lead by example, the duke and duchess have also decided to inspire the next generation of activists through the NAACP-Archewell Digital Civil Rights Award,” Johnson added.
Archewell, the couple’s nonprofit foundation named after their son, Archie, was founded in 2020 shortly after they stepped back from their roles as senior members of the royal family and settled in Los Angeles.
This year’s inaugural NAACP-Archewell Digital Civil Rights Award recipient will be given to Dr. Safiya Noble, an internet studies scholar and professor of gender studies and African American studies at UCLA — a pioneer in how digital technologies intersect with culture, race and gender.
The 53rd NAACP Awards will be broadcast live on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on BET.
Remember when Taylor Swift revealed how she tried wooing Phoebe Bridgers to join her on her “from the vault” track “Nothing New“? We now know a little bit more about how it went down, thanks to Phoebe.
According to her, Taylor swiped her producer Aaron Dessner‘s phone to make contact, which threw Phoebe for a loop. Aaron helped Taylor with her Grammy-winning album folklore and its sister, evermore.
“I got this random text from Aaron Dessner that was really weirdly worded for him,” Phoebe told Billboard. “And I was like, ‘What the f*** is this?’ And as I was reading it, I [realized], ‘Oh, my God, it’s from Taylor Swift.'”
The two talked about “all kinds of stuff” and Phoebe said, “It was just a total high. It felt like when you meet someone at a party and you’re in the corner all night being like, ‘Me too!'”
Taylor previously revealed on Late Night with Seth Meyers in November how she got the singer to appear on her Red (Taylor’s Version) album. She said she composed “a very long text that I’ve crafted over many days” and also sent over the song to gauge Phoebe’s interest, adding she reached out because she’s “one of my favorite artists in the world.”
“If she sings it, I will listen to it. I just love her voice,” Taylor said at the time.
It appears the two have yet to meet, with Phoebe saying they’re just “online friends” because of the pandemic, but says they’re “excited for when we hang out for the first time.”
