AJR is determined to learn more about the Blue Man Group in a new skit promoting their upcoming shows together.
The clip finds the Met brothers attempting to interview the Blue Men, who, of course, famously do not speak. As they continue with their incessant questions, their interviewees hold up signs that read, “We are here against our will,” “AJR made us do this video to promote the tour” and, simply, “Please send help.”
AJR’s tour, which will support their new album, OK ORCHESTRA, launches in April. Blue Man Group will be on the bill for select shows in May and June.
Blue Man Group also guests on the OK ORCHESTRA song “Ordinaryish People.” The track’s video premiered earlier this month.
Slipknot has released a live video for “The Chapeltown Rag.”
The clip compiles footage from the masked metallers’ 2021 Knotfest Roadshow tour. You can watch it streaming now on YouTube.
Slipknot premiered “The Chapeltown Rag” last fall ahead of their headlining set at the Knotfest Los Angeles festival, marking the band’s first new song to follow their 2019 album, We Are Not Your Kind. A new Knot album is expected to drop later this year.
Meanwhile, the Knotfest Roadshow is set to resume in March, and will stretch into June.
After partnering with Kentucky Fried Chicken in December, Jack Harlow has a new endorsement with New Balance.
The “Whats Poppin” rapper has joined the athletic footwear and apparel company as a brand ambassador.
“I have been rocking New Balance since I was a kid, so to officially join the brand in this way is really exciting,” Harlow said in a statement. “I’ve always loved the 990 and recently the Joe Fresh Goods 993 and collabs with the 550’s have been fire. I’m excited to peek behind the curtain and work with the brand more.”
When the Louisville MC plays Friday at the Ruffles NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, he will debut a New Balance shoe. He’s also wearing New Balance in his new video for “Nail Tech,” which debuts Thursday at midnight.
Harlow is up for two Grammy Awards: Best Melodic Rap Performance for his feature on Lil Nas X‘s “Industry Baby,” and Album of the Year as a featured artist and songwriter on Nas’ Montero.
After being canceled in 2021 due to the pandemic, the Cincinnati Music Festival is returning July 21-23 with headliners Janet Jackson and Charlie Wilson.
Janet will take the stage on the festival’s final night. She will be preceded by The O’Jays, Tank, After 7, and saxophonist Kirk Whalum. Wilson will perform Friday, July 22, on a bill with Anthony Hamilton, Tony! Toni! Tone!, and guitarist Jonathan Butler. BJ The Chicago Kid will open the festival on Thursday, July 21.
Jackson is enjoying a resurgence in her music following her self-titled documentary. As previously reported, her streams have skyrocketed by 109 percent since the four-part documentary premiered on A&E and Lifetime on January 28.
By February 3, fans streamed her songs 10.6 million times. The most listened-to single was “That’s the Way Love Goes,” clocking 778,000 streams in the U.S. alone. Other songs enjoying a major bump in numbers are “All for You,” “Control,” “Any Time, Any Place” and “Nasty.”
Janet also enjoyed a major boost in sales. “That’s the Way Love Goes” leads the pack, with fans snatching up 1,300 copies. Securing the second-most sales was “All For You,” with 1,100 copies sold. “Rhythm Nation,” “Escapade” and “Love Will Never Do (Without You)” also sold over 1,000 downloads each.
Janet’s album sales also jumped by 17,000 units. The leader is Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814, with 4,000 copies flying off the shelves.
According to Nielsen, 2.8 million people tuned in to watch part one of the documentary, and it amassed an additional 1.2 million views via digital download or on-demand. Parts two through four were seen by 4.3 million, 3.7 million and 3.8 million people, respectively, when they aired for the first time.
Todd Williamson/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
SunFest is back after a two-year hiatus. The music festival has unveiled its impressive lineup, which includes Adam Lambert, Goo Goo Dolls, Boys II Men, Melissa Etheridge, AJR and many others taking the stage between April 28 and May 1 on the West Palm Beach waterfront. Tickets are on sale on the SunFest website, where you can also check out the complete four-day lineup.
Speaking of AJR, the “Bang!” singers decided to sit down with their “Ordinaryish People” collaborators, Blue Man Group, for an impromptu interview. But it becomes apparent BMG was forced into it after holding up signs that read “We’re here against our will,” “AJR made us to this video to promote their tour,” and “Please send help.” BMG will appear on select dates during AJR’s OK Orchestra tour.
Rihanna‘s Fenty Beauty brand is coming to Ulta, the singer confirmed Thursday. The singer shared a picture of her holding up the chain’s signature orange bag and revealed Fenty is officially part of the “fam.” Previously, Fenty could only be purchased at Sephora or on the Fenty Beauty online store, so this means it’s even easier for fans to get their hands on Rihanna’s brand.
Andy Grammer shouted out one of his youngest fans, who is battling leukemia. “EMMA! Reading about your story this morning made my heart explode! And to think you are DANCING through the struggles this world has sent you,” Andy wrote. He also shared the message her mother sent that explained how Emma, who is nine, would dance to “Lease on Life” to help her through treatment, and added a video of Emma dancing with her nurses.
(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.8 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 930,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
About 64.5% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Latest headlines:
-US daily cases drop from 807,000 to 134,000 in 1 month
-Study: People who survived COVID in 1st few months of pandemic had significantly higher risk of mental health problems
-Updated mask guidance from CDC could come next week
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Feb 17, 5:03 pm
California to roll out COVID ‘endemic’ plan
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday will announce the state’s “endemic” COVID-19 plan — a vague but flexible approach that will change based off the characteristics of new variants.
State officials said clear “on and off ramps” for future restrictions will be created for specific variants.
California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said case rates could be determinative for future restrictions if there’s a deadly variant, while hospital capacity could be the primary indicator if California faces a less virulent variant, similar to omicron.
The SMARTER plan focuses on seven areas: S – Shots; M – Masks “on and off ramps that are tailored for each unique virus strain”; A – Awareness; R – Readiness; T – Testing; E – Education; and R – Rx (Treatment).
State officials are expected to publish a one to two-page SMARTER summary of the state’s current recommendations on COVID-19 in the next few days. The document will be consistently updated so Californians can reference what the state’s current recommendations are.
ABC News’ Matthew Fuhrman
Feb 17, 4:46 pm
New Mexico ends mask mandate
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Thursday the state’s mask mandate is ending, effective immediately, ABC affiliate KOAT-TV reported.
Private businesses and school districts can set their own mask rules, KOAT-TV said.
Feb 17, 12:20 pm
US daily cases drop from 807,000 to 134,000 in 1 month
In January, omicron sent U.S. cases surging to an unprecedented high, with over 807,000 daily COVID-19 cases at the nation’s peak. Exactly one month later, cases have plummeted to an average of 134,000 new cases per day, according to federal data.
Nearly every state is reporting declining case rates, but nearly 97% of U.S. counties are still reporting high transmission. Also, experts continue to caution that many Americans are taking at-home tests and not submitting their results, so case totals may be higher than reported.
Hospitalizations are also continuing to drop, according to federal data. The U.S. has 71,000 patients with COVID-19 currently in hospitals; during the mid-January peak, there were 160,000 hospitalized patients.
Fatalities — a lagging indicator — are slowly starting to fall. The U.S. is now averaging 2,100 COVID-19-related deaths each day, down by nearly 10% in the last week, according to federal data.
ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos
Feb 17, 9:55 am
Study: People who survived COVID in 1st few months of pandemic had significantly higher risk of mental health problems
A new study finds that people who survived COVID-19 during the first few months of the pandemic had a significantly higher risk of developing mental health disorders, including opioid use disorder, in the year after their COVID-19 diagnosis.
The study, published in The BMJ medical journal, evaluated medical records of nearly 154,000 COVID-19 patients in the Veterans Health Administration, comparing their experiences to a similar group of people that didn’t have COVID-19.
After recovering from COVID-19, people with no prior history of mental illness were more likely to develop anxiety, depression, opioid use disorder, neurocognitive decline, and sleep disorders.
In an accompanying editorial, one of the lead researchers of the study argued that the mental health consequences of COVID-19 should be treated seriously and society shouldn’t “gaslight or dismiss long covid as a psychosomatic condition.”
The study only looked at people who survived COVID-19 from March 2020 to Jan. 2021 — before vaccines were widely available. It’s not clear if these findings apply to people diagnosed with COVID-19 more recently.
Amazon Studios announced Thursday that its Emmy-winning The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has been renewed for a fifth and final season, ahead of Friday’s fourth-season premiere.
In a statement, Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, noted, “This series has meant so much to Prime Video and the effects of its success will be felt long after its final season.” She added, “I can’t wait for fans…to savor each moment as we embark on the culmination of this groundbreaking and unforgettable series.”
The studio also announced that The Terminal List, an eight-episode adaptation of the Jack Carr thriller novel starring and co-produced by Chris Pratt, will debut July 1.
Pratt, who last year starred in the streaming service’s The Tomorrow War, will be joined onscreen by Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch, Jai Courtney, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Sean Gunn, among others. Also starring is Patrick Schwarzenegger, who’s also Pratt’s brother-in-law.
According to Amazon, Jurassic World and Marvel movie vet Pratt will be playing Navy SEAL James Reece, who survives an ambush on a secret mission only to find “dark forces working against him” when he returns home, putting him and his family in danger.
Frankie ValliandTheFour Seasons are hitting the road once again for a tour of the U.S. and U.K.
The group, whose 1967 song “Beggin'” became a huge hit last year thanks to a cover by the Italian rock band Måneskin, will kick off the tour March 4 in Boston. They’ll be on the road through January of 2023, stopping for a run of dates in June in the U.K.
“I’m so excited to go back on the road,” says Valli, 87, in a statement. “I’ve missed performing for our wonderful fans.”
Old hits by The Four Seasons and Valli have been reintroduced to a whole new generation over the past two years. In addition to last year’s revival of “Beggin’,” 2020 saw Valli’s 1967 solo hit “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” reworked into two separate hits.
Meanwhile, another pop superstar, Nick Jonas, is playing Valli in a new streaming version of the musical Jersey Boys, though it’s not clear when and on which platform it’ll debut.
Evidently, part of an interview with Kanye West‘s reported ex-girfriend Julia Fox is going viral for the wrong reasons, but she’s being a good sport about it.
Earlier this month, the actress and model was on the Call Her Daddy podcast when she referenced the 2019 hit Uncut Gems, in which she played Adam Sandler‘s mistress. But her pronunciation of the film’s title varies — according to the many people who goofed on her for it on social media.
Fox was pontificating about being a “muse” for West — something she claimed to be for Uncut Gems‘ co-director Josh Safdie when she pronounced the crime thriller’s name as something sounding like “UNCO JIAMS” or “UNCLE JENNS,” or various others offerings from online snarkers.
“Omggggg I was stoned leave me alone!!!! Hahahahahah,” Fox said in protesting the online spoofing. For some, though, even that excuse wasn’t enough.
“I ain’t never smoked a weed that makes me speak a new language,” one follower replied.
Last month, Dead & Company was forced to call off its two-weekend Playing in the Sand destination festival due the Omicron surge of COVID-19. But the band’s Bob Weir is planning to hit the road next month with his other band, and tells USA Today that, “God willing,” Dead & Company will be on the road this summer.
Weir’s Wolf Bros, which Weir formed in 2018 with Don Was and Jay Lane, are scheduled to launch a 13-city tour March 9 in Nashville, TN. “It’s looking like, knock on wood, the Omicron effect will be in the rearview mirror,” Weir tells USA Today. “Here’s hoping something else doesn’t pop up.”
If you can’t make the tour, Friday sees the release of the first-ever vinyl Wolf Bros LP, Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros: Live in Colorado, recorded in June of 2021. Released on Third Man Records, it’s the first volume of a two-volume collection, due out later this year.
Asked to reflect on his musical legacy, Weir — whose resume also includes Ratdog and Furthur in addition to The Grateful Dead, Dead & Company and Wolf Bros — refuses to be pinned down to being famous for just one thing.
“There are great musical cultures and great music to be found. But there is nothing quite as magical as the American songbook. I spent 60 years or so delving as deep into it and as intently as I can,” he says. “I just love the stuff so much…be it country, blues, R&B…I try to play it all.”
Weir adds, “I guess in years to come, when people listen to me they’ll make note of the fact that he tried to play it all. We’ll see how successful people think I got.”
