ABBA Voyage, the concert experience featuring digital avatars of the Swedish pop icons’ four members, is set to open in London on May 27, and in celebration of the premiere, ABBA has announced plans to release a number of special audio collections.
Coinciding with the show’s premiere, career-encompassing 10-disc box sets featuring all nine ABBA studio albums, including 2021’s reunion project, Voyage, as well as a bonus disc of tracks that originally were only issued as singles, will be released May 27 on CD and vinyl.
Both collections — CD Album Box Set and Vinyl Album Box Set — feature the band’s classic eight original albums, spanning from 1973’s Ring Ring through 1981’s The Visitors, the aforementioned Voyage and the singles compilation, which is titled ABBA Tracks. The CD box set also comes with a 40-page booklet features information about the albums and a variety of photos. The LP set features discs pressed on 180-gram vinyl.
ABBA also will be releasing a limited-edition bundle featuring picture-disc versions of all of their studio albums on June 10. The collection will be available as a discounted eight-LP bundle featuring the group’s first eight albums and as a nine-disc set that adds a picture of Voyage. The picture discs also will be available for purchase individually.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, a new series of lyric videos was launched at ABBA’s YouTube channel that will eventually see clips for all of the songs from group’s classic ABBA Gold compilation premiering over the next 12 months. The first video, “Chiquitita,” debuted on March 18, while the second, “Waterloo,” premieres April 6.
The ABBA Voyage show will take place at the specially built ABBA Arena at London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Visit ABBAVoyage.com for full details.
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(WASHINGTON) — Arizona and Kentucky are moving forward on 15-week abortion bans before a Supreme Court decision in June could decide the fate of the procedure in the United States.
In Arizona, Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill into law Wednesday after it passed the Arizona legislature last week without a single Democrat vote.
The Arizona legislation only includes exemptions for medical emergencies when continuing with the pregnancy would “create serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function” for the mother.
It does not include any exemptions for rape or incest.
“In Arizona, we know there is immeasurable value in every life — including preborn life,” Ducey, a Republican, wrote in a letter announcing the signing of the bill. “I believe it is each state’s responsibility to protect them.”
Ducey has been very vocal about his opposition to abortion and he has signed every piece of anti-abortion legislation that has crossed his desk since he took office in 2015.
“This bill stigmatizes and shames our patients who are making choices about their bodies and their lives,” Brittany Fonteno, president of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, told ABC News. “We know this is just a political move to strip people of their rights. It’s not based on any medical evidence and politicians should not play doctors.”
Under the legislation, women cannot be prosecuted for having an abortion, but doctors who perform abortions after 15 weeks would face felony charges and could see their medical licenses suspended or revoked.
Meanwhile, the Kentucky state legislature passed a similar ban Tuesday as well as other abortion restrictions.
Under what is known as HB3, any drugs used for a medication abortion — a nonsurgical procedure typically used up to 10 weeks in pregnancy — must be provided by a physician licensed to practice medicine and in good standing with Kentucky.
An in-person examination needs to be had at least 24 hours prior, during which women are informed about any risks. The drugs cannot be sent through the mail.
Abortion advocates say this will prevent many women, particularly low-income, from accessing abortion if they have to go to a clinic to receive it.
“Those with the means will always be able to access abortions; they can afford the planes, the hotel rooms,” Tamarra Wieder, state director of Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates – Kentucky, told ABC News. “But those who are poor, live in rural communities, so far away from care, already are going to be further disenfranchised. It’s a massive burden for those who have time off work or school, find child care and make sure they can afford gas.”
Additionally, the bill requires the names of physicians who provide medication abortions to be published and a state-run “complaint portal” will be set up so people can anonymously report abortion providers who are violating the program.
Meg Stern, director of the abortion support fund for Kentucky Health Justice Network, an advocacy group, said this could lead to complaints filed by people who have personal vendettas against abortion providers.
She added that she has experienced harassment herself as a volunteer clinic escort at EMW Women’s Surgical Center, one of only two abortion providers in Kentucky.
“I’ve been physically assaulted, I’ve been followed, I’ve had my picture published on social media, I’ve had my address published — and I’m just a volunteer escort and an abortion funder,” Stern said. “I’m not giving people medicine, I’m not doing abortions, but I’m accessible, so what do we think will happen to the providers? It’s creating a headhunter type of situation.”
Wieder agreed, calling it “a hit list” that could put abortion providers in harm’s way.
Several other states, including Texas and Idaho, have passed abortion bans.
Currently, it is unconstitutional to pass abortion bans before a fetus is viable – anywhere from 22 to 26 weeks. The states are hoping the Supreme Court will change this.
In June, the court will review a 15-week ban in Mississippi and whether or not it is constitutional. If the court determines the bill is constitutional, this could mean Roe v. Wade is either overturned or fundamentally weakened.
“My personal opinion is that Kentucky lawmakers are confident SCOTUS will gut, if not destroy, Roe v. Wade,” Stern said. “And they’re counting on, even if doesn’t happen, Texas has showed a way to ban abortions despite Roe.”
(NEW YORK) — Lizzo is known for making fans feel “Good as Hell” with her music, and now she is doing the same with an upcoming shapewear line called Yitty.
“This is a dream 5 years in the making” the Grammy Award-winning superstar wrote on Instagram about her newest venture, which is slated to launch on April 12.
In partnership with Fabletics, the “no-shame, smile-inducing shapewear” is designed for all body types and will include undergarments ranging in size from XS to 6X.
“I was tired of seeing this sad, restrictive shapewear that literally no one wanted to wear,” Lizzo said in a statement. “I had an epiphany like, ‘Who can actually do something about this?’ I decided to take on the challenge of allowing women to feel unapologetically good about themselves again.”
Regarding her own journey as a body-positive advocate, Lizzo said she felt she was always told, through social constructs, that her body wasn’t good enough.
“And, in order to be considered ‘acceptable’ I had to inflict some sort of pain upon it to fit into an archetype of beauty,” she said. “Because of this, I’ve been wearing shapewear for a long time, maybe since I was in fifth or sixth grade.”
The collection will include three different drops, including Nearly Naked, which is a lightweight seamless collection designed to comfortably shape and firm your natural curves; Mesh Me, which will include smoothing mesh styles that can be worn as underwear or outerwear; and Major Label, which will be an assortment of everyday lifestyle pieces that are super soft.
Additionally, everything included in the lineup has a musical spin with vibrant names such as Tempo Lavender and Headliner.
Yitty, which is named after Lizzo’s childhood nickname, comes on the heels of another dream fulfilled for Lizzo. The star says she was “crying in an ice bath” on the day her body-positive dance reality show “Watch Out for the Big Grrrls” premiered.
“Instead of thinking about size in this linear way, we’re thinking about it on a spectrum where everyone is included,” Lizzo said. “Everyone’s size is just their size. It’s not high, it’s not low. It’s not big, it’s not small. It’s just your size.”
Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — A lawsuit has been filed against the State of Florida over the newly signed Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” law by critics, just three days after it was signed.
“Through H.B. 1557, Florida would deny to an entire generation that LGBTQ people exist and have equal dignity,” the complaint reads. “This effort to control young minds through state censorship — and to demean LGBTQ lives by denying their reality — is a grave abuse of power.”
The complaint was filed in a Tallahassee court Thursday by LGBTQ rights organizations Equality Florida, Family Equality and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, as well as several Florida families.
The complaint alleges that the law violates the constitutionally protected rights of free speech, equal protection and due process of students and families.
“We made a promise to defend the rights of all students to have a healthy environment to learn and thrive and for all parents to know their families are included,” Equality Florida said in a statement.
The law will ban classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade or instruction on those topics “in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards,” according to the legislation, HB 1557.
Under this law, parents can also decline any mental, emotional and physical health services available to their children at school.
Schools will be required to notify parents of their child’s use of school health services unless there is reason to believe “that disclosure would subject the student to abuse, abandonment or neglect.”
Parents could sue their school district if they believe there is a violation of any of these requirements or restrictions.
“This lawsuit is a political Hail-Mary to undermine parental rights in Florida,” a spokesperson from Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office told ABC News. “This calculated, politically motivated, virtue-signaling lawsuit is meritless, and we will defend the legality of parents to protect their young children from sexual content in Florida public schools.”
His office slammed the lawsuit, stating that the complaint claims are “erroneous.”
“This law does not chill speech — instead it returns speech on these topics to the parents,” the office said. “The law does not prohibit teachers from having opinions, lifestyles or advocacy in their personal right on their own time, and this law does not prohibit teachers from responding to student questions.”
The Sarasota School District and school board declined to comment. The other defendants in the case did not immediately respond to ABC News’ requests for comment.
Several families with LGBTQ students are listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
“My school has been a safe environment where I have been able to express my identity,” said Zander Moricz, an 18-year-old high school senior and plaintiff. “I would not have been able to learn and thrive without that support. My teachers have already told me that they will no longer be able to have some of the classroom discussions that helped me feel accepted in school.”
One parent expressed concern for her transgender daughter.
“I am frightened that this new law will prevent my daughter’s teachers from protecting her from bullying at school,” said Lindsay McClelland, mother of plaintiff Jane Doe, a transgender fifth-grader at a Florida public school. “All I want is for my daughter to be able to learn in a safe environment like any other student.”
Supporters of the bill argue that schools are indoctrinating students with ideas about sexual orientation and gender identity. They say parents deserve more input in the services children receive and the conversations children are having about those topics.
“I think the last couple years have really revealed to parents that they are being ignored increasingly across our country when it comes to their kids education,” DeSantis claimed at the signing.
He added, “We will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not an indoctrination.”
(WASHINGTON) — Attempting to combat what’s he’s labeled “Putin’s price hike,” President Joe Biden announced a plan on Thursday to release roughly 1 million barrels of oil per day from the nation’s strategic petroleum reserve over the next six months to reduce energy and gas prices.
Biden told Americans “there is no firm answer” as to when gas prices will go down, but predicted they will go down “fairly significantly.”
“Today I want to talk about one aspect of Putin’s war that affects and has real effects on the American people: Putin’s price hike that Americans and our allies are feeling at the pump. I know how much it hurts,” Biden began. “As you’ve heard me say I grew up in a family, like many of you, where the price of gasoline was discussed at the kitchen table. None of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war.”
Biden blamed “two roots” for the high energy costs: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the lingering economic effects of COVID-19.
“When COVID struck, demand for oil plummeted, so production slowed down worldwide. Because of the strength and the speed of our recovery, demand for oil shot back up much faster than the supply. That’s why the cost of gas began to rise last year. The second root is Vladimir Putin,” he said.
Biden predicted Americans could pay “anything from 10 cents to 35 cents a gallon” less at the pump, setting up the national average would fall below $4 a gallon. Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for Gas Buddy, pointed ABC News to a tweet in which he raised some skepticism.
“I do believe the national average could eventually fall under $4/gal in the weeks ahead, but I don’t necessarily think this SPR release is the event that will be the primary catalyst for it,” he said in a tweet Thursday. “If anything it could help get us there quicker, but again, likely at the expense of long term stability.”
Biden announced the major step during a scheduled event to discuss actions his administration is taking to rein in soaring energy prices that have spiked even further following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The action I’m calling for will make a real difference over time, but the truth is, it takes months, not days, for companies to increase production. That’s why the next part of my plan is so important,” he said. “Today I’m authorizing the release of 1 million barrels per day over the next six months.”
He said the release was coordinated with allies and partners around the world.
Speaking directly to oil company executives, Biden told them “enough of lavishing excessive profits” and passing on the cost of oil to consumers, adding that they have “everything they need” and “nothing is standing in their way” to boost production.
“They don’t want to increase supply because Putin’s price hike means higher profits,” Biden said.
He went on to propose a “use it or lose it” policy, calling on Congress to create legislation to tax companies if they’re sitting on idle wells and lands that aren’t producing for Americans.
“No company should take advantage of a pandemic or Vladimir Putin at the expense of American families,” Biden said. “Production and innovation, that’s what they should do.”
“Invest in your customers,” he added, noting that it’s not only “the patriotic thing” but “it’s good for your business as well.”
Senior administration officials also acknowledged relief at the pump may be delayed.
“We’re not focused right now on sort of the immediate short-term price movements,” an official said on a call with reporters earlier Thursday, adding that the focus is on addressing the gap in supply as Russian oil comes off the market.
The first barrels from the announcement are set to come to the market in May for delivery that month. Officials said all the funds from the sale of the oil will go to restocking the reserves.
“We expect that to occur once the oil price has come down, we are no longer in an emergency,” an official told reporters.
About 3 million barrels a day of Russian oil will come off the market in April due to Western sanctions, according to the International Energy Agency, and this plan could help alleviate pain at the pump by helping to replace that loss.
This would be the third time Biden has had to tap into the strategic petroleum reserve. In November, he authorized the release of 50 million barrels as gas prices surged ahead of the holidays, and along with 30 other countries, the U.S. released 30 million barrels following the start of the war in Ukraine, though that did little to ease skyrocketing prices.
As of Friday, there were more than 568 million barrels of oil in the reserve, according to the Department of Energy.
Given the complexity and volatility of the oil market, many geopolitical and economic factors feed into oil prices and there is no guarantee this release will keep prices down for an extended period of time.
Overnight, crude oil prices were down roughly 5% in reaction to Biden’s expected announcement, which means the price at the gas pump could also dip in the coming days.
The current national average for a gallon of gas is $4.23, according to AAA, $1.35 higher than this time last year.
The first-ever CMT Music Awards Week launches next month, culminating in the CMT Music Awards ceremony on April 11.
Beginning on April 9, a stacked lineup of specials will air, with a long list of country A-Listers contributing to the programming. Blake Shelton and Jimmie Allen will make appearances during the Hot 20 Countdown Live, airing April 9 at 9 a.m. ET, a three-hour special also featuring Carrie Underwood, CMT Awards host Kelsea Ballerini and more.
The following day will bring the CMT Music Awards Nomination Special, including another appearance from Carrie — who’s the most-winning artist in the awards show’s history — with Kane Brown and Thomas Rhett sharing some insight into their nominated videos.
The day of the awards show, Jordan Davis will perform his nominated “Buy Dirt” during the CMT Awards Red Carpet Special, beginning at 7 p.m. ET.
CMT’s big week also includes previously-announced specials like CMT Crossroads: LeAnn Rimes & Friends, CMT Campfire Sessions: Little Big Town and CMT Storytellers: Brooks & Dunn.
For the first time ever, this year’s CMT Awards will be broadcast on CBS.
While fans are hoping for an NSYNC reunion, the band has returned in the form of all-new merchandise.
Titled the NSYNC Lifestyle Collection, the new offering is steeped in nostalgia. If you miss the patterns, fonts and colors that were popular in the late ’90s and early ’00s, you’re in luck. The capsule embraces those retro looks through various sweatshirts, sweatpants, shorts and more.
All items contain lyrics, references and other NSYNC influences. One jade-green hoodie capitalizes on the popular “It’s gonna be May” meme — a play on how Justin Timberlake pronounces “me” in the 2000 hit “It’s Gonna Be Me” — by featuring heart-shaped flowers along with the phrase “Guess What?!”
“This new lifestyle collection feels like an evolution in merch style for us,” the band says in a statement. “It’s been fun working together creating a new aesthetic and we are excited to share it! Hope the fans and everyone feel this special line!”
Fans can begin browsing the new, limited-edition merch now on the Grammy-nominated band’s official website.
If you felt a disturbance in the Force, this might be why.
In an unexpected move, Disney+ has announced that Obi-Wan Kenobi won’t be debuting to commemorate the May 25th release date of Star Wars: A New Hope after all. In a short “important news” video to fans introduced by Ewan McGregor, the onscreen Jedi master noted the debut will now be on Friday, May 27.
“But here’s the exciting part,” the Emmy winner added. “The first two episodes will premiere together.”
As previously reported, McGregor reprises as the titular character around ten years after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.
Incidentally, the streaming service moved its premieres from Fridays to Wednesdays last year, with the debut of Loki, in a campaign that saw star Tom Hiddleston declaring, “Wednesdays are the new Fridays.”
Ariana Grande is fed up with what she says are “disgraceful bills” targeting transgender youth. To mark International Transgender Day of Visibility on Thursday, the singer unveiled a new initiative aimed at helping those who would be impacted by such legislation.
Called the Protect & Defend Trans Youth Fund, Ariana announced, “Please join me in donating to this fund i’ve created with @pledge.to to support organizations providing direct services and advocating for the rights of trans youth.”
“Right now there are hundreds of disgraceful bills pending in state legislature that target trans youth and aim to curb their rights,” she continued. “This will provide critical funds to organizations advocating for the rights of trans youth.”
Ariana explained, “All funds will be split evenly between benefiting organizations… I will be matching all funds raised up to $1,500,000.”
Among the programs her initiative will fund are Gendernexus, House of Tulip, Black Trans Advocacy Coalition, JASMYN, and organizations centered in Florida, Iowa, Arizona, Tennessee, Texas and other states that have put forth anti-LGBT legislation.
The “Positions” singer has raised close to $100,000 as of Thursday afternoon, with more donations coming in every minute. Those interested in donating to Ariana’s cause can do so by visiting pledge.to/protect-defend-trans-youth-fund.
The news comes as Oklahoma and Arizona both signed laws banning transgender youth from participating in school sports that align with their gender identity. Other states imposing similar bans include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
She’s one half of the Grammy-nominated R&B duo Chloe x Halle, but Chloe Bailey‘s next project is hers alone.
On Thursday, the “Have Mercy” singer teased her new single, “Treat Me,” which is expected to drop next Friday.
“TREAT ME DROPS 4/8 y’all ready? make sure you pre-save, link in bio,” Bailey said in the announcement.
The 23-year-old Atlanta native shared the update on Instagram along with a half-naked, sexy photo of herself. The revealing image, which gives off ’97 Missy Elliot “Supa Dupa Fly” vibes, serves as a statement maker for the young star.
Chloe recently spoke about the social media body-shaming she’s received in the past, opening up to Taraji P. Henson about her struggle with confidence in an interview on the Facebook Watch show Peace of Mind with Taraji.
“I’ve been like, really insecure for a long time, and I’m finally at that place where I have self-confidence,” she told Henson.
Bailey said that since developing more confidence, she started to post more body-conscious photos of herself.
The cover art of the upcoming single “Treat Me” falls in the line with all the other appealing images.
