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While Dua Lipa‘s “Levitating” recently made headlines for inspiring not one but two copyright-infringement lawsuits, it shows no sign of slowing down on the Billboard Hot 100. In fact, it’s just broken a longstanding record.
“Levitating” has just racked up its 70th week on the Billboard Hot 100, which is the most ever for a song by a female artist. The previous record of 69 weeks was sent in 1998 by LeAnn Rimes‘ “How Do I Live.” “Levitating” spent 41 of its weeks on the chart in the top 10 — again, the most ever for a song by a woman.
In the history of the Hot 100, which dates back to 1958, only four other songs have spent at least 70 weeks on the chart. Leading the pack is The Weeknd‘s “Blinding Lights” with 90 weeks, followed by “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons with 87 weeks, “Sail” by AWOLNATION with 79 weeks, and “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz with 76 weeks.
A couple of songs that are currently on the chart might just hang around long enough to challenge those numbers, though: Glass Animals‘ “Heat Waves,” which is number one for a second week, has spent 60 weeks on the Hot 100 so far, while The Weeknd and Ariana Grande‘s “Save Your Tears” has been on the chart for 62 weeks. It’s currently #17.
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Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates has added a six-show second leg of dates in the Western U.S. to his recently announced spring solo tour featuring Todd Rundgren as opening act.
The new run kicks off May 12 in Seattle and also features concerts on May 14 in San Francisco; May 16 in Los Angeles; May 18 in Denver; May 20 in Tulsa, Oklahoma; and May 22 in Austin, Texas.
Tickets for the newly added shows go on sale to the general public this Friday, March 18, at 10 a.m. local time via LiveNation.com. Pre-sale tickets also will be available for most of the concerts. Visit LiveNation.com for more information.
As previously reported, Hall’s trek with Rundgren begins with an eight-date series of concerts that runs from an April 1 concert in Chicago through an April 16 show in National Harbor, Maryland, and includes stops at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and New York City’s Carnegie Hall on April 5 and April 14, respectively.
The tour coincides with the April 1 release of Hall’s first-ever solo compilation, BeforeAfter, a 30-track collection that features selections from all five of Daryl’s solo studio albums, as well as eight performances from his acclaimed TV/web series Live from Daryl’s House, six of which are previously unreleased.
The Live from Daryl’s House performances include duet between Hall and Rundgren on Todd’s 1978 hit ballad “Can We Still Be Friends.”
Last year, Madonnathreatened singer/rapper Tory Lanez over what she called his “illegal” usage of her song “Into the Groove” in his track “Pluto’s Comet.” Now, Lanez is under fire for his alleged use of another ’80s classic by an iconic pop star.
Variety reports that the estate of the late George Michael is trying to get Lanez’s song “Enchanted Waterfall” taken down from digital streaming services for what it says is the unauthorized sampling of George’s 1985 smash “Careless Whisper.”
A statement obtained by Variety states that the “requested permission for this use had been declined in June 2021,” noting that the estate is taking “immediate action…to prevent further exploitation,” adding, “We will not tolerate any unauthorized use of any songs within the catalogues of George Michael and/or Andrew Ridgeley.” George and his Wham! bandmate Ridgeley co-wrote “Careless Whisper.”
Variety notes that the song was removed from Spotify earlier this year, but it’s still up on YouTube and Apple Music.
Lanez already has enough legal problems: He’s been accused of shooting rap superstar Megan Thee Stallion in the feet in 2020. The next hearing in his trial is scheduled for April 5.
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Though rumors about the fate of the daytime talk show The Real have been circulating since last week, show host Loni Love says there is no official word yet.
In an Instagram post on Sunday, the comedian solicited grace for more than 100 crew members who will be affected if the show does come to an end.
“It’s been a busy few days but I got a call from the studio…no official decision has been made about #TheReal …I will be ok but please give grace to the 150 crew members this may affect,” Loni wrote. “We will finish Season 8 and wait for official word.”
The Real first aired on local Fox stations back in the summer of 2013, and then became a nationally syndicated show later that year; it has gone on to acquire NAACP and Emmy awards. The show originally featured current hosts Jeannie Mai, Adrienne Bailon and Loni Love, along with Tamar Braxton, who exited in 2016, and Tamera Mowry, who left in 2020.
If The Real is canceled, it will be added to the list of recently canceled talk shows hosted by people of color, including Wendy and Nick Cannon.
She’s about to launch her latest film, The Lost City, on March 25, but after that, Oscar winner Sandra Bullock is going back to being a full-time mom.
The adoptive mom of Louis, 12, and Laila, 10, commented to Entertainment Tonight, “I take my job very seriously when I’m at work.”
And now, she says? “…I just want to be 24/7 with my babies and my family.”
Calling being home “the place that makes me happiest,” Bullock noted her break is,”gonna be for a while,” with her attention focused on her kids, “servicing their every need” and acting as “their social calendar.”
The Lost City stars Channing Tatum as a Fabio-like cover model who attempts a rescue after Sandra’s romance novel author is kidnapped by an eccentric rich guy, played by Daniel Radcliffe. Oh, and Bullock’s buddy Brad Pitt also stars, as a dashing guy who, unlike Tatum’s character, is actually qualified for such a rescue mission.
(HONG KONG) — China is facing its worst COVID crisis since early 2020, when the world first witnessed an entire population locked down to contain the coronavirus in Wuhan and its surrounding province.
Two years on, it’s now sending tens of millions of people into lockdown in the entire northeastern province of Jilin, where 24 million people live, and the southern cities of Shenzhen and Dongguan, with 17.5 million and 10 million, respectively.
China, the last major country to relentlessly pursue a Covid-zero policy, reported 1,437 cases across dozens of cities on Monday. That’s a fourfold jump in a week.
Although record case numbers are testing the resilience of China’s no-tolerance approach, there is no sign the country is willing to pivot to ‘living with the virus.”
The epicenter of the omicron variant outbreak is the Northeastern Jilin province, where 895 cases were recorded, but there are also outbreaks and containment measures in place Shanghai, the financial powerhouse, and Shenzhen, the southern tech hub.
Authorities announced on Monday afternoon that all 24 million people in Jilin province would go into lockdown, including the previously locked down city of Changchun. It’s the first provincial lockdown since Wuhan and Hubei in January 2020.
On Sunday, China ordered all of Shenzhen’s 17.5 million residents into a seven-day lockdown, with three rounds of testing. All public transport is halted and all businesses, except essential services, will be closed until March 20.
As a result, Apple supplier Foxconn has shut two of its plants in the area and relocated production elsewhere.
The lockdown and outbreaks threaten manufacturing and tech production in Shenzhen, known as China’s Silicon Valley. It’s home to Huawei and Tencent, and is home to one of the country’s key ports.
Professor Heiwai Tang at Hong Kong University told ABC News that he doesn’t expect these week-long lockdowns to have a significant impact on the country’s gross domestic product.
“It seems the lockdowns will be shorter this time with more tracking, which means a short disruption of work and production,” Tang said. “If it ends up lasting for weeks it’s another issue, including inflation risks.”
Professor Michael Song from Hong Kong’s Chinese University estimated that the two-month lockdown in Wuhan cost China 2% of its GDP.
There’s immense pressure on local authorities to contain the virus, with state media reporting that the Jilin City mayor and the head of the Changchun city health commission were dismissed from their roles over the weekend.
Shanghai-based virologist Zhang Wenhong called the flare-up “the most difficult moment in the past two years” of China’s efforts to stamp out the virus. Shanghai has so far avoided a full-scale lockdown.
Across the border from Shenzhen, neighboring Hong Kong is also still tackling its deadliest wave yet, driven by Omicron. Hong Kong recorded 26,908 cases and 286 more deaths on Monday, officials said. Hong Kong’s death rate is the highest in the developed world, in part because of sluggish vaccination rates among the elderly.
Mega isolation facilities are being built across the Hong Kong for people with mild cases. One facility, with 3,900 beds, was built in a week. ABC News witnessed several busloads of people arriving at the facility from all over the city.
Self-titled “Asia’s world city,” Hong Kong is undergoing strict social-distancing measures and still has strict border measures in place, leading to an expat exodus. Many businesses are closed until late April.
The mental-health strain of the strict lockdown has also becoming apparent. Last month, police reported three suicide attempts in 27 hours at one of the quarantine camps.
Pearl Jam has announced the rescheduled dates for the band’s North American tour.
The outing, which was originally scheduled to kick off in March 2020 before being delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will now launch May 3 in San Diego, and will wrap up September 22 in Denver. The itinerary includes an additional four stops along with the rescheduled shows.
Pluralone, the solo project of ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist and current PJ touring member Josh Klinghoffer, will be the tour’s opener.
Tickets will go on sale Tuesday, March 29, at 10 a.m. local time, exclusively via Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan platform. Registration is open now through Sunday, March 27, at 10 a.m. PT.
For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit PearlJam.com.
Pearl Jam will be touring in support of their 2020 album, Gigaton.
In his response to a fan inquiring about his new album on Twitter, Luke provided insight into at where he’s at in the process, hinting that fans may have it sooner rather than later.
“How are those final touches on LC3 coming along, @lukecombs?” the fan questioned.
“We’re right at the finish line on ’em,” Luke replied. “I’m real proud of these tunes. Can’t wait for y’all to hear ’em.”
The hitmaker is currently working on the follow up to his wildly successful 2019 sophomore album, What You See Is What You Get, which was named Album of the Year at the 2020 CMA Awards and ACM Awards.
Luke’s current single, “Doin’ This,” is the first track released off his upcoming third studio album. It’s climbing its way through the top 20 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.
(LOS ANGELES) — Los Angeles Unified School District said it’s keeping its mask mandate in place — at least temporarily — even as California drops its requirement for masks in indoor public settings.
Several K-12 schools across the state dropped their face covering requirements Monday after the state lifted its mandate over the weekend.
Last month, Los Angeles County Public Health said it would follow the state’s move and allow the 80 school districts in the country to decide whether or not they want to keep mask mandates.
LAUSD, the second-largest school district in the country, said it does not want to drop the mask requirement yet as it works towards a plan with partners, including teachers’ unions, to move away from mandates and towards “strongly recommending” masks indoors.
“The science that informed the on-ramp to the protective protocols currently in place, which have ensured the well-being of our students and workforce, must, too, inform the off-ramp as health conditions improve,” LAUSD said in a statement on Twitter Friday.
“Los Angeles Unified continues to take a science-based approach to COVID-19 policy and is currently working with labor partners and other stakeholders to transition from required indoor masking to a strong recommendation for indoor masking,” the statement continued.
LAUSD did not indicate when its mask mandate might be lifted.
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in California have been declining for several weeks as the omicron wave tapers off.
As of March 11, the seven-day rolling average for cases was 4,625, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the lowest number recorded since Dec. 1, 2021, before the omicron wave.
Similarly, the seven-day average for virus-related hospitalizations in The Golden State sits at 319, a figure not recorded since July 19, 2021, CDC data shows.
However, parents are divided on the mandate with some saying it’s time for masks to be removed and others still worried about a potential rise in cases.
“I think it’s time,” one parent, Elisa Smith, told ABC News affiliate KABC-TV. “If it’s time for us adults to take them off, I think it’s time for the children to take them off.”
“I want them to keep it on. I do, personally,’ another parent, Claudia Angulo, told KABC. “Why? Because it’s still out there, the virus, just to be safe.”
Ending mask mandates have received some pushback from teachers’ unions.
L.A. County public health officials made the announcement last month regarding the end of mask mandates, United Teachers Los Angeles said in a statement it would be “premature” to drop such requirements.
“The district has requested to bargain with UTLA over health and safety protocols currently in place at LAUSD schools,” a spokesperson for the union told ABC News in a statement. “We met with the district on Friday for an initial discussion over their proposed changes, and a follow-up session is scheduled for Wednesday, March 16.”
Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was featured in a new interview segment on CBS Sunday Morning over the weekend, and he shared some interesting news about new music that he and Mick Jagger have been working on for their band’s next album.
Richards revealed that he, Jagger and new Stones touring drummer Steve Jordan had been collaborating the previous week and “came up with some eight or nine new pieces of material, which is overwhelming by our standards!”
Jordan, who stepped in for longtime Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts when Watts became terminally ill last year, also plays in Richards’ solo band, The X-Pensive Winos, and was Keith’s main songwriting partner on the guitar legend’s three solo albums.
Richards noted about Jordan’s involvement in The Stones, “It’ll be interesting to find out the dynamics now that Steve’s in the band — it’s sort of metamorphosing into something else.”
Keith also discussed the passing of Watts, who played with The Rolling Stones for 58 years before his death at age 80 in August 2021.
“I think he’d been trying to keep [his illness] under the wraps for a while last year, so that [his death] came…as quite a shock,” Richards noted. “He had had a round with cancer a year or two before. And he beat that one. He just got hit with a double-whammy, bless his soul.”
As for whether the band discussed possibly not touring after Watts died, Keith said, “For a brief moment. I think Charlie wanted us to go on the road; he wanted the tour to happen. That’s my feeling, the last time I spoke to him.”
As reported earlier today, The Rolling Stones will launch a 60th anniversary tour with a European leg that kicks off June 1 in Madrid.
