Page 7358 – 105.7 WDNY

Mariah Carey weighs in on a potential Verzuz battle with Beyoncé

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Over the years, we’ve seen titans square off against each other on the Verzuz stage, such as Chaka Khan, Bobby Brown, Earth, Wind & Fire, Brandy, Monica and many others. But is the biggest Verzuz battle of all on the horizon?

Mariah Carey was asked by E! News if she would ever go toe-to-toe with Beyoncé.. The “We Belong Together” singer tried dodge the question at first, and offered, “I love Beyoncé and I admire her so much as a performer for what she’s done for the world and everything else.”

When asked again, Mariah declared, “I’d be disrespecting myself and I’m not going to do that, because it’s Christmas time.”

While it’s unknown when or if Mariah will accept a Verzuz invitation, she does have an opinion about naysayers who believe she takes the holidays a little too seriously. When discussing her new single, “Fall in Love at Christmas” with Khalid and Kirk Franklin, the Grammy winner remarked, “I know people are like, ‘Ah yeah, look at her making checks,’ like, whatever, Scrooges. I don’t care what you say. Honestly this is the truth. I do love the holidays.”

Green Day, Fall Out Boy & Weezer’s Hella Mega tour among highest-grossing tours of 2021

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The Hella Mega tour brought in a hell of a lot of money.

According to new data released by Pollstar, the tour, which featured a triple bill of Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer, was the third-highest-grossing trek of 2021, earning about $67.3 million. Only The Rolling Stones and One Direction‘s Harry Styles brought in more cash with their tours, which grossed $115.5 million and $86.7 million, respectively.

When it came to the number of tickets sold, Hella Mega was number two in 2021, with just over 659,000. Styles was number one, with over 669,000.

Other artists who made the top-10 highest-grossing tours of the year include Guns N’ Roses, Dave Matthews Band, Eagles and Dead & Company.

Here’s the full list of Pollstar‘s Top 10 2019 North American Tours:

1. The Rolling Stones — $115.5 million, 516,624 tickets sold
2. Harry Styles — $86.7 million, 669,051 tickets sold
3. “The Hella Mega Tour” — $67.3 million, 659,062 tickets sold
4. Eagles — $59.2 million, 257,584 tickets sold
5. Dead & Company — $50.2 million, 588,658 tickets sold
6. Los Bukis — $49.7 million, 357,343 tickets sold
7. Guns N’ Roses — $47.3 million, 351,339 tickets sold
8. Dave Matthews Band — $46.0 million, 583,399 tickets sold
9. Phish — $44.4 million, 572,626 tickets sold
10. Jonas Brothers — $42.5 million, 528,630 tickets sold

The Pistol Annies will have a ‘Hell of a Holiday’ as their fundraiser special airs tonight

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Supergroup trio the Pistol Annies bring their new Christmas album to life tonight, with the Hell of a Holiday special airing on their Facebook page.

The three performers — Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley — will sit down for an intimate conversation during the special, and will also deliver festive live performances of several tracks off the album.

Hell of a Holiday is made up of a seasonal mix of standards, like “Auld Lang Syne” and Merle Haggard’s “If We Make it Through December,” as well as originals, such as “Snow Globe.”

The fun kicks off tonight at 8 p.m. ET. It’ll also serve as a fundraiser for the Music Health Alliance, a Nashville-based non-profit that provides health care resources for members of the music industry. That’s a cause that’s particularly important to the trio this year, as Ashley — one third of the Annies — was diagnosed with a rare type of blood cancer. This morning, just hours before the special airs, Ashley shared a happy update with fans: She just finished her course of chemotherapy.

“My last chemo is done! Merry Christmas everyone,” she wrote on social media. “Thank you for praying for me. I felt them more than you know. I’ve never been more thankful. Ready to come back like never before in 2022!”

Priyanka Chopra shares the secret behind her and Nick Jonas’ three-year marriage

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra, who just celebrated their third wedding anniversary, have revealed the secret behind their successful relationship.

Priyanka, 39, tells Entertainment Tonight that communication is one of the most important elements of their marriage. “I think just being honest and needing each other’s company, obviously,” the Matrix Resurrections actress said. “Communication, having fun with each other. I think that’s the most important key, is to be able to enjoy each other’s company and just have a good time.”

Priyanka also noted that it’s not a chore to be open and honest with her significant other, attesting, “And it doesn’t feel like work.”

While communication is a key pillar in her relationship, the actress also stressed that Nick is her biggest cheerleader and she, too, is his top fan. An example of this is when the Jonas Brother was among the first people to see Priyanka’s new Matrix movie.

“He loves it,” she grinned before touching upon why it was so “exciting” to watch the film with her one and only. Both were young when the first Matrix film hit theaters, so they both were able to experience the nostalgia of seeing Keanu Reeves return to his starring role as Neo.

“I mean, this is late ’90s, this is me as a teenager watching this movie and watching it change pop culture,” said Priyanka, who plays the exile Sati in the new film. “Then cut to as an actor, it’s kind of really, really cool to be a part of this legacy and being invited to play on this playground with these characters that we grew up on.”

The Matrix Resurrections takes over theaters on December 22.

Tony Stark’s drinking, Hulk’s anger issues: Scientists track superheroes’ health

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

With superheroes everywhere on the big and small screens these days, a group of Australian scientists wanted to analyze what health issues they might have if they were real.

Yes, this was a legitimate study from the University of Queensland of the long-term health effects of Avenging, that was just published in the British Medical Journal, which traditionally lets its hair down for its annual Christmas issue.

Incidentally, Hawkeye examines Clint Barton’s hero-related hearing loss and PTSD, and characters in Spider-Man: No Way Home exchange superheroic wear-and-tear stories — though spoiler etiquette dictates we can’t reveal who does the griping.

For the study, researchers watched 24 Marvel Studios films released between 2008 to 2021, and found superheroes, “regularly engage in physical activity and exercise…and they exhibit a high degree of social cohesion and connectedness, both associated with a reduced risk of dementia.”

In other words, the Avengers assembling was good for staving off dementia, as well as foes from another dimension.

The MCU’s heroes, “also show a positive or optimistic mindset, as well as psychological resilience and a sense of purpose, all of which have been associated with healthy aging.”

“With the exception of Thor and Iron Man, the superheroes do not drink heavily or smoke,” either, the report details.

That said, Thor is a 1,500-plus-year-old Asguardian, so he’s got a cheat when it comes to longevity — though Spider-Man’s yoga-like flexibility, and Black Panther’s vegetarianism can also help us mere mortals.

However, there were some caveats: Hulk’s excess weight and prone to fits of becoming an enormous green rage monster shouldn’t be emulated, and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow’s childhood trauma could have affected her later in life — that is, if she didn’t pitch herself off a cliff in a world-saving sacrifice for the Soul Stone in Avengers: Endgame.

Scoreboard roundup — 12/14/21

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Tuesday’s sports events:

NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Golden State 105, New York 96
Brooklyn 131, Toronto 129 (OT)
Phoenix 111, Portland 107 (OT)
Detroit at Chicago (Postponed)

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Pittsburgh 5, Montreal 2
Vegas 4, Boston 1
Tampa Bay 3 Los Angeles 2 (OT)
Philadelphia 6, New Jersey 1
Ottawa 8, Florida 2
Detroit 2, NY Islanders 1
Buffalo 4, Winnipeg 2
St. Louis 4, Dallas 1
Toronto 5, Edmonton 1
Colorado 4, NY Rangers 2
Vancouver 4, Columbus 3
Seattle 3, San Jose 1
Calgary at Nashville (Postponed)
Carolina at Minnesota (Postponed)

TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Duke 103, SC State 62
Memphis 92, Alabama 78
Auburn 70, North Alabama 44
Houston 71, Louisiana-Lafayette 56
Texas 63, Ark.-Pine Bluff 31
Tennessee 96, SC-Upstate 52
LSU 89, Northwestern St. 49
Texas Tech 75, Arkansas St. 62

Jason Aldean teases a new song about his mom: “I give her a lot of credit for me being the way I am”

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Jason Aldean is beginning to tease new songs off his spring 2022 album, Georgia, and one of the tracks on the project will be a song about his mom, called “Your Mama.” His relationship with his mother is a subject near and dear to his heart, Jason explains in a new video posted to his social media.

“My parents got divorced when I was three, and my mom, she was very instrumental in raising me,” the singer reflects. “I was her only child, so everything she did sort of revolved around me and what I was doing.”

Jason says his mom always supported him, whether he was pursuing music or other interests, such as baseball. The singer remembers how his mom used to take him to baseball card shows, where they’d wait in line together so that Jason could get his cards autographed.

“I’ve always been super, super close with my mom,” he continues. “It’s taught me how to be like that with my kids, and I give her a lot of credit for me being the way I am.”

In addition to the personal backstory behind the song, Jason also shared a snippet of “Your Mama” in the video.

The full Georgia album will be out next April. It’s the second half of a double album project that began with the release of Macon last month; together, the discs make up Jason’s 10th album to date.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jason Aldean (@jasonaldean)

Glass Animals, Tame Impala playing 2022 BUKU festival in New Orleans

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Glass Animals and Tame Impala will be playing the 2022 BUKU Music + Art Project festival, held March 25-26 in New Orleans.

The bill also includes Kennyhoopla and Taking Back Sunday. For the full lineup and all ticket info, visit TheBUKUProject.com.

Both Glass Animals and Tame Impala will also be launching their own headlining tours in 2022 in continued support of their respective 2020 albums, Dreamland and The Slow Rush.

Katy Perry says she’s going to give her fans “everything they want” on January 10

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Mark your calendars for January 10 because Katy Perry aims to start off 2022 with a roar. The singer teased she has something big planned and wants her fans to be ready for it.

Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Katy shared her upcoming song collaboration with Alesso, “When I’m Gone,” that is due out December 29, the same day she kicks off her PLAY Las Vegas residency. She also appeared to reveal a small teaser of its music video, which features the two discussing an even bigger announcement.

“Don’t worry y’all, you’ll still be able to #PLAY along with me on December 29th, because #WHENIMGONE with @alesso will be coming,” she captioned the post, and urged fans to pre-save the single now.

However, all eyes fell to the latter half of the caption, which featured the cryptic message, “…And mark ur calendars for January 10th, as it will be the day im give the [Katycats] everything they want.”

That caption matches the words Katy speaks in the video teaser, which shows her talking into a payphone as Alesso listens in at the end of the line, and agrees, “Let’s do it!”

“When I’m Gone’s” official music video drops January 10 exclusively on ESPN during the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship halftime show, according to a press release.

While some fans may be scratching their heads over Katy putting that much hype behind a single music video, it’s also causing others to wildly speculate that the clip might contain a special surprise. The singer has yet to interact with any of the theories her fans have left in the comment section, so we have to wait to see if there’s a separate reason why Katy’s so excited.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry)

Human remains discovered in 1982 identified as former O’Jays guitarist Frankie Little

December 15, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Human remains discovered in 1982 in the Cleveland suburb of Twinsburg, Ohio, have been identified as Frank “Frankie” Little Jr., a one-time guitarist and songwriter for legendary soul/R&B group The O’Jays.

ABC TV affiliate News 5 Cleveland reports that Little was identified thanks to genealogical research conducted by the DNA Doe Project. In 1982, an unidentified skull and, separately, a bag containing additional body parts were discovered behind a closed business in Twinsburg, and the cause of death was determined to be homicide.

Born in Cleveland in 1943 and raised there, Little played guitar and toured with The O’Jays during the mid-1960s, and also co-wrote some of the band’s songs.

O’Jays lead singer Eddie Levert said Little was a sentimental, loving and passionate person. He recalled that Frankie moved with the group to the West Coast, but eventually decided to return to his hometown.

“He could have been a great entity in the music business, but he was in love and love drove him back to Cleveland,” Levert maintained.

While it’s unclear when Little died, detectives believe he was last seen alive around the mid-1970s. DNA from his remains were used to track down potential relatives, and one of those contacted was a cousin named Margaret O’Sullivan, who informed investigators that Frankie had gone missing years ago.

Little’s brother then was contacted, and he supplied a DNA sample that helped confirm the remains’ identity.

Frankie had a daughter who died in 2021, and there’s also a son who hasn’t been located or identified yet, police told News 5.

Twinsburg Detective Eric Hendershott, who has worked on Little’s case, says the next step is to try to figure out details of Little’s murder.

+ More