The country superstar has been announced as the final performer of the festival, taking the stage on July 9. His headlining set will come at the end of a multi-week music event that is taking place in Milwaukee from June 23 to June 25, June 30 to July 2 and July 7 to July 9.
The all-genre festival will begin and end with country music this year. Previously announced performer Jason Aldean will take the stage to kick off the fun on June 23, with special guest Gabby Barrett. Thomas’ opening act will be announced in the weeks ahead.
Billed as “The World’s Largest Music Festival,” Summerfest 2022 will feature a lineup that also includes Justin Bieber, Halsey, Cheap Trick and many others. The list of performers for this year is still in the process of rolling out, with concerts taking place over 12 stages. Fans attending the event can also enjoy a variety of foods, beverages and activities during the festival.
The season-one finale of Single Drunk Female airs tonight. The cast caught up with ABC Audio ahead of the episode’s premiere to tell fans what to expect.
Sasha Compére, who plays Brit — main character Sam’s former best friend — predicted that the finale will have fans “tweeting about where Sam and Brit will go from here.”
Brit is set to wed the ex-boyfriend of Sam, played by Sofia Black-D’Elia, but a teaser of the episode shows she has cold feet.
“I think people will be really interested to see how Sam is evolved and they’ll maybe talk about her choices in this finale and how she has an opportunity to step up,” Compére teased.
Lily Mae Harrington, who plays Sam’s friend Felicia, added, “A lot of things come to a head in this finale… There are a couple of things that definitely end up coming full circle.”
Struggling to avoid revealing too much, Harrington said this episode will attack the “underbelly” of the series, which she says is “[f]emale friendship and female relationships, whether that’s mother-daughter or best friends or former friends.”
Garrick Bernard, who plays Sam’s potential love interest James, praised how the show handles those elements, as well as the the themes of addiction and recovery.
“I do love [series creator] Jenni Konner‘s writing,” he said. “The direction that it has is really beautiful in a weird way, where these are funny people doing comedic things at times, but there’s no quirky music behind it. It’s a silent, realistic take on what happens… [with] alcoholism and sobriety.”
Bernard added that the show is a must-watch for those “who are afraid of taking that first step,” noting, “It is just nice to watch someone’s journey through getting better.”
Single Drunk Female airs tonight at 10 p.m. ET on Freeform.
(DETROIT) — A federal judge in Michigan’s Eastern District Court says she will wait to decide whether former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and four others will have to appear before a jury to testify in a civil lawsuit connected to the Flint water crisis.
U.S District Court Judge Judith Levy heard arguments from attorneys representing Snyder, his former aide Rich Baird, Howard Croft, the former director for Flint’s Department of Public Works, and former emergency managers, Gerald Ambrose and Darnell Early, who made their cases in a motion hearing Tuesday to halt subpoenas issued to their clients.
Nine former state officials were indicted on Jan. 14, 2021, for a total of 42 counts of charges related to the Flint water crisis, including Snyder who is facing two misdemeanor charges of willful neglect of duty, which he has denied. Croft was charged with willful neglect of duty. Baird received felony charges of perjury, obstruction of justice, official misconduct and extortion. Earley and Ambrose were charged with several counts of misconduct in office.
The former state officials have pleaded not guilty to their respective charges and are potential witnesses in a civil trial against two engineering companies.
The five defendants answered questions in videotaped depositions made in 2020 before they were charged. While those taped depositions could be played before a jury in the civil trial against Lockwood, Andrews & Newman (LAN) and Veolia North America (VAN), their attorneys argued they should not be forced to testify beyond that to prevent potential incrimination.
Lockwood, Andrews & Newman and Veolia North America, two contracted engineering firms that reviewed Flint’s water system, are being sued by four children who were exposed to lead contamination due to the Michigan city’s tainted drinking water. The lawsuit claims the engineering firms committed professional negligence for adequately advising city officials and not ensure the water being pulled from the Flint River was properly treated. Both LAN and VNA deny any wrongdoing, citing the city’s and state’s efforts to cut costs as the culprit behind the lead contamination.
The engineering firms were not a part of last year’s $626 million settlement litigation involving damage claims against the state of Michigan, the city of Flint, Rowe Professional services and McLaren Flint Hospital.
This latest trial will test the firms’ potential liability and could influence other pending litigations. The civil trial started on Feb. 28 and is expected to continue for several more weeks.
(NEW YORK) — As the Democratic National Committee considers changes to its primary calendar, New Jersey Democrats are pitching themselves for consideration as one of the early presidential primary states.
In a letter sent Wednesday afternoon to DNC Chair Jamie Harrison, New Jersey Democratic State Committee Chair LeRoy J. Jones, Jr. asked Harrison to consider New Jersey, suggesting the traditional lineup, which leads with Iowa caucuses, is outdated.
ABC News reviewed the letter, which was also sent to the Rules and Bylaws Committee along with their co-chairs, Lorraine Miller and James Roosevelt Jr.
“Moving to a new, modernized presidential nominating system would send a strong message that the Democratic Party is focused not on the past, but on the future. Our party cannot cling to outdated traditions that do not help us reach new voters and motivate the diverse coalition of supporters needed to win elections and enact our pro-middle class agenda,” Jones Jr. writes.
Jones Jr. argues New Jersey presents a cost-effective alternative for candidates who find other early states’ media markets too expensive, as well as a diverse state that captures many of the party’s key demographics.
“No other state affords its residents the opportunity to wake up in a city, spend the day hiking on a rural trail or mountain, and then enjoy an oceanfront view for dinner the way that New Jersey does — making our state the ideal proving ground for political candidates across urban, suburban, and rural settings. In many ways, we are truly a microcosm of the country,” Jones Jr. writes.
The DNC declined ABC News’ request for comment.
Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status has been critiqued by Democrats for years, and attacks sharpened during the last election cycle in large part due to its lack of racial diversity. Iowa is made up of 90% white residents, according to data from the U.S. Census.
President Joe Biden’s bid for office was all but written off after a stunningly poor performance at the Iowa caucuses before the 2020 election. Momentum shifted after a major endorsement in the South Carolina early state primary.
“Our party is best when we reflect the people we are trying to serve, and it’s just as plain as that,” Harrison said at The DNC spring meeting. “This process will be guided by that north star.”
During the event’s Rules and Bylaws meeting, several members pushed for modernizing the primary process, making clear that Iowa’s status was on the chopping block. Several members also expressed openness to change during the group’s winter meeting in January.
“Now is not a time for us as a party to stand on tradition; now is not the time for us as a party to stand on status quo,” said Rules and Bylaws member Mo Elleithee, who laid out a series of proposed guidelines for state parties to be considered in the early nominating contest.
But unseating Iowa is not a simple process, necessitating changes to state law and Rules and Bylaws members coming to an agreement on guidelines for early state waiver applicants by the DNC’s summer meeting, expected in either August or September.
“New Jersey lies at the center of our party’s efforts to protect our majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, with four frontline incumbent Democrats whose victories are critical to that mission,” writes Jones Jr. “It is time for the Democratic Party to move boldly into the future with a presidential primary calendar that reflects the diversity of our party and nation. Let’s make New Jersey one of the first primary states, and set up future Democratic Party presidential nominees for long-term success.
(NOTE LANGUAGE) On her Instagram, The Boys‘ Karen Fukuhara reveals that she was hit in the head in what’s become a disturbing trend of anti-Asian attacks in this country.
“Today I was struck in the head by a man,” the 30-year-old American actress began a series of messages, explaining that although she’s “physically fine,” after the “hate crime,” she’s fed up.
She added, “This s*** needs to stop. Us women, Asians and the elderly need your help.”
The actress, who plays the super-powered Kimiko on the Amazon series, said she was walking to a cafe when a male came up behind her and hit her in the head so hard her hat flew off.
“I thought about confronting him at first, but he started coming towards me and I didn’t think it was worth the risk,” she revealed.
After he yelled at her, the man walked away, Fukuhara noted, adding, “This is the first time I’ve been harmed physically, although racial slurs and hurtful actions have been directed to me in the past.”
She added that “multi-racial friends of mine…had no idea these hate crimes happen to [us] everyday, regular people…I felt it was important to raise awareness.”
She also vented, “Why is this something we as ‘victims’ have to think about? What satisfaction are these perpetrators getting from hitting women, Asians, the elderly? They need to be held accountable [for]…these horrible crimes.”
The actress’ post comes days after the arrest of a suspect caught on tape punching an elderly Asian woman more than 100 times in the lobby of her Yonkers, New York, building. According to WABC-TV, Tammel Esco, 42, was charged with attempted murder as a hate crime and assault as a hate crime — both violent felonies.
Dolly Parton’s still in the running to join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, despite the fact that she asked the organization earlier this week to remove her from consideration.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation issued a statement Thursday acknowledging Dolly’s request, but saying they’ll move forward with her as a nominee.
“From its inception, Rock and Roll has had deep roots in Rhythm & Blues and Country music. It is not defined by any one genre, rather a sound that moves youth culture,” the statement reads, in part. “Dolly Parton’s music impacted a generation of young fans and influenced countless artists that followed.”
Along with Dolly, 16 other nominees have been named for possible inclusion in the Class of 2022 to join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Twenty One Pilots will premiere the video for their single “The Outside” on Friday.
The announcement is accompanied by a teaser clip, which shows frontman Tyler Joseph crawling from the ocean onto a freezing beach.
A tweet alongside the clip reads, “Before this, the odds seemed insurmountable. But now, an equalizer. Everything will be in position. All of the pieces on the board, ready for the final push.”
“The Outside” appears on the new Twenty One Pilots album Scaled and Icy, which was released last May. It’ll be the fourth Scaled and Icy track to get a video, following lead single “Shy Away,” “Choker” and “Saturday.”
While you wait for “The Outside” video to premiere, you can listen to drummer Josh Dun play on a new song called “In My Head” from alt-pop artist Lights. Dun previously collaborated with Lights on her 2017 song “Savage.”
We have one week to go before Disney+ releases its hotly anticipated documentary Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u (a SOUR film).
Olivia took to social media to not only share the key art of her upcoming documentary, but also tease some behind-the-scenes photos she recently snapped. In addition, she directed fans to check out the complete trailer, which dropped Thursday.
The upcoming documentary follows Olivia as she puts the finishing touches on her debut album, which went on to earn her multiple Grammy nominations. The trailer shows the range of emotions she experienced as she toiled over her debut work and the feedback she received from her team. One such clips shows a nervous Olivia pacing around as she’s told she’s “overthinking” the song-making process.
Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u premieres on Disney+ on March 25. In addition to Olivia sharing her memories and thoughts of her debut album, she will also perform an assortment of new arrangements of her biggest hits off SOUR and share her insight of breaking into the music business at such a young age.
The Weeknd’s dream of becoming a Simpsons character is coming true this weekend.
The long-running Fox animated comedy series gave a sneak peek of the singer’s guest appearance in Sunday’s episode.
“Look who’s dropping in on The Simpsons this Sunday,” the show tweeted, sharing a photo of The Weeknd’s animated character sitting next to Bart Simpson on a skate ramp.
“Dream come true,” The Weeknd replied, retweeting the post.
According to TV Insider, The Weeknd will voice two roles in the episode — a famous kid influencer who owns a skatewear brand and his equally-as-cool father.
“The Weeknd is a huge animation fan so he reached out to us, which we were super excited about,” the episode’s writer Ryan Koh told the site. “He’s obviously a very cool human, so he seemed like a natural fit to play a very cool boy and his very cool dad.”
Founding Pink Floyd singer/bassist Roger Waters has added three new shows to his upcoming This Is Not a Drill tour of North America, bringing the total number of dates on the trek to 40.
The tour, which originally was supposed to kick off in July 2020 before being postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, kicks off on July 6 in Pittsburgh runs through an October 8 show in Dallas.
The newly added concerts are scheduled for August 10 in Columbus, Ohio; October 3 in Glendale, Arizona; and October 6, in Austin, Texas.
Tickets for the new shows go on sale to the general public on Friday, March 25, at 10 a.m. local time. Pre-sale tickets to the concerts will be available starting on Wednesday, March 23, at 10 a.m. local time. To buy tickets and for additional information, visit RogerWaters.com.
As previously reported, the This Is Not a Drill concerts will be staged “in the round,” a first for Waters.
In a statement, Roger explains that his performances will offer “a stunning indictment of the corporate dystopia in which we all struggle to survive, and a call to action to LOVE, PROTECT and SHARE our precious and precarious planet home.
He adds, “The show includes a dozen great songs from PINK FLOYD’S GOLDEN ERA along side several new ones, words and music, same writer, same heart, same soul, same man.”
