Elton John made a virtual appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Wednesday night and shared a couple of stories about fellow musical icons.
In one of the stories, he talked about performing with John Lennon at Madison Square Garden in 1974, which turned out to be Lennon’s last live public performance before his death in 1980.
“It was one of the most magical moments of my life,” Elton said. “Probably for me, the memory of him coming onstage and getting so much applause. I think all the band, and myself, were moved to tears. And it was such a wonderful occasion.”
He also recalled the not-so-magical moment when he almost rejected a birthday surprise from Stevie Wonder. Elton was on board a private plane called the Starship and was bummed out about a performance he had.
“I went up front and sat on my own and they said, ‘Come up to the bow. We want to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to you’ and I went, ‘I’m not interested in my birthday,’” he recalled. “And this happened about three or four times until my publicist burst into tears and said, ‘You have to come up there. Stevie Wonder is at the organ’ — of course the plane had an organ on it — ‘and he wants to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to you.”
Elton finally got to collaborate with Stevie on the song “Finish Line” from his new album, The Lockdown Sessions.
Volbeat has premiered a new song called “Becoming,” a track off the band’s upcoming album, Servant of the Mind.
“Becoming” is the fourth cut to be released from Servant, following the singles “Wait a Minute My Girl” and “Shotgun Blues,” and the song “Dagen Før,” featuring Stine Bramsen. The whole album is set to arrive December 3.
Servant of the Mind is Volbeat’s eighth studio album, and their first since 2019’s Rewind, Replay, Rebound.
Volbeat will hit the road in support of their new record next year on a co-headlining U.S. tour with Ghost, which kicks off January 25 in Reno, Nevada.
(LOS ANGELES) — A California school safety officer has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old unarmed woman.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced the charge against former Long Beach Unified School safety officer Eddie Gonzalez, whose arraignment is scheduled for Friday at the Los Angeles County Superior Court, Long Beach Branch. The case remains under investigation by Long Beach police.
“We must hold accountable the people we have placed in positions of trust to protect us,” Gascón said in a statement. “That is especially true for the armed personnel we traditionally have relied upon to guard our children on their way to and from and at school.”
On Sept. 27, Gonzalez was patrolling an area near Millikan High School in Long Beach when he noticed a physical altercation between the 18-year-old, Manuela Rodriguez, and a teenage girl.
Rodriguez tried to leave the scene and hopped into the rear passenger seat of a nearby car when Gonzalez allegedly fired his handgun at the vehicle and hit Rodriguez.
She was taken to a hospital, where she died Oct. 5. Rodriguez is said to have suffered brain damage before being declared brain dead and taken off life support, according to her family’s attorneys.
“Not only did he commit a horrible crime, he destroyed an entire family,” attorney Luis Carrillo said at a press conference.
Gonzalez was fired the following day by the Long Beach Board of Education for violating the district’s use-of-force policy.
According to school officials, the policy states that officers “shall not fire at a fleeing person,” “shall not fire at a moving vehicle” and “shall not fire through a vehicle window unless circumstances clearly warrant the use of a firearm as a final means of defense.”
In a statement, district school board officials said: “We will continue to monitor the progress of the criminal case and will defer questions on investigatory matters to law enforcement. We acknowledge the impact of this tragedy and we again extend our sincerest condolences to everyone who has been impacted, especially the family, friends and loved ones of the shooting victim, Manuela Rodriguez.”
(PHOENIX) — Arizona Cardinals defensive end JJ Watt will have season-ending shoulder surgery, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The team had already ruled Watt out for Thursday’s game against the Green Bay Packers, and he was listed as Did Not Participate all week during practice.
Watt injured his shoulder during the second quarter of Sunday’s win over the Titans. He ends the year with ten tackles and one sack for the 7-0 Cardinals.
It is the latest injury for the 3-time Defensive Player of the Year. Watt missed 13 games in 2016 after two back surgeries, 11 games in 2017 with a fractured tibia, and eight games in 2019 with a torn pectoral muscle.
This latest injury will be his fourth season-ending injury in six seasons after starting all 80 games in his first five seasons as a member of the Houston Texans.
The team did get good news this week.
Arizona activated linebacker Chandler Jones and defensive lineman Zach Allen off the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Both players missed the past two games.
(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 4.9 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 740,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
Just 67.3% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Oct 28, 10:11 am
5 states see hospital admissions jump by at least 15%
Hospital admissions have fallen by about 55% since late August, according to federal data.
But five states have seen at least a 15% increase in hospital admissions over the last two weeks: Alaska (21.7%), Colorado (15.9%), Maine (35.3%), New Hampshire (38.9%) and New Mexico (19.6%).
Alaska currently has the country’s highest infection rate, followed by Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota and Idaho.
The U.S. reported approximately 1,600 COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday alone. Deaths are about 1.5 times higher in non-metropolitan areas than in metropolitan areas, according to federal data.
Oct 28, 9:38 am
Colorado ICU beds at lowest point of pandemic
Colorado’s number of ICU beds is at the lowest point of the pandemic following a dramatic spike in hospitalizations and the winding down of extra beds added in the last surge.
Colorado currently has 1,191 COVID-19 patients, according to state data, and 29% of hospitals anticipate an ICU bed shortage in the next week.
State health officials told ABC News that hospitals in El Paso County have turned away transfer requests over the lack of beds.
“We are continuing to move very much in the wrong direction,” Scott Bookman, the state’s COVID-19 chief, said at a briefing.
Oct 27, 6:43 pm
New York City braces for possible mandate-related reduction in fire, EMS service
New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said Wednesday he’s preparing to make major operational changes next week as significant portion of the city’s firefighters and EMS personnel haven’t complied with the city’s vaccine mandate.
“We will use all means at our disposal, including mandatory overtime, mutual aid from other EMS providers, and significant changes to the schedules of our members,” he said in a statement.
The mandate for all New York City public employees will go into effect at the end of day Friday. The FDNY said that 65% of its members were vaccinated as of Wednesday.
An FDNY official told ABC News that by Monday fire and ambulance services could be reduced by as much as 20%.
FDNY leadership has held virtual meetings with uniformed staff explaining the vaccine mandate and imploring them to comply, and will continue doing so throughout the week, the official said.
Oct 27, 3:29 pm
CDC advisers to vote Nov. 2 on pediatric vaccines
The CDC’s independent advisors plan to discuss and hold a non-binding vote on the recommendations for the pediatric vaccine on Nov. 2.
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky will likely endorse those recommendations for 5 to 11-year-olds following the vote that day.
Vaccinations can start as soon as Walensky sends out final recommendations.
Meanwhile, the FDA’s decision to authorize the pediatric vaccine is expected in the coming days.
Oct 27, 10:22 am
Nearly two-thirds of Americans have had at least 1 vaccine dose
Nearly two-thirds of all Americans — 220 million people — have had at least one vaccine dose, according to federal data.
But 111 million Americans remain completely unvaccinated, including about 48 million children under the age of 12, who are not yet eligible to get the shot.
National metrics continue to fall, according to federal data. About 51,000 Americans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, down from 104,000 patients at the end of August
Deaths are are trending down, though numbers remain quite high at over 1,100 fatalities each day.
Costumes emulating both the players and the guards from Netflix’s smash Squid Game are flying off shelves for this Halloween season, but one New York school district has given them the red light.
According to local news site CNY Central News, principals at several upstate New York elementary schools have banned the costumes.
Administrators at Mott Road, Enders Road, and Fayetteville Elementary schools sent emails to parents about the restriction, which also applies to the kids “playing” Squid Game themselves during free time. The breakout South Korean import involves unwilling participants who play kids’ games to win a massive cash prize. But if they lose, they’re executed.
“We have observed that some students at recess have been playing a version of the squid game which is intended for mature audiences, ages 16 and older,” reads the email from Mott Road Elementary school that was apparently not proofread by the English department.
Superintendent Dr. Craig Tice also issued a message about it, reading in part, “Due to concerns about the potential violent nature of the game, it is inappropriate for recess play or discussion at school. Additionally, a Halloween costume from this show does not meet our school costume guidelines due to the potential violent message aligned with the costume.”
Looks like the kids will have to save their money from babysitting or paper routes instead of going for that 45.6 billion won cash prize.
As teased earlier this week, Imagine Dragons has released a new song called “Enemy.”
The track, a collaboration with hip hop artist JID, was recorded for the upcoming animated Netflix series Arcane, which was inspired by the popular League of Legends video game.
You can download “Enemy” now via digital outlets. Its accompanying video, which features animated versions of ID and JID spliced in with Arcane footage, is streaming now on YouTube.
By the way, Imagine Dragons previously entered the League of Legends world with their song “Warrior,” which was recorded for the game’s 2014 World Championship.
As for ID’s non-LoL music, the band just dropped a new album, Mercury — Act 1, in September. It includes the singles “Follow You” and “Wrecked.”
Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
This weekend in Cleveland, it’s the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. And each year, there’s always a story about an artist who doesn’t want to go because they either don’t like Rock Hall, or they’re feuding with their former band mates. Back in 2017, Steve Perry was one of those artists who wasn’t going to show up for his induction as a member of Journey…but now, looking back, he’s really glad he did.
“Yeah, it turned out to be one of the most fun things I’ve ever done,” Perry told ABC Audio. In his case, he said he was concerned because “it had been so many years and the band’s moved on.” In addition, he didn’t want to make Journey’s current lead singer, Arnel Pineda, feel uncomfortable.
“I love Arnel and I thought, y’know, out of respect for him and just where they’d gone, I thought I would just leave it alone,” he says. “Then I had a friend of mine telling me, ‘Look, you deserve to be there — you should be there too.'”
“One thing led to another, and I went,” he recalls. “And backstage, it became clear to me what I was doing there, and what I needed to say. I sketched some stuff on a paper, and when I got out there, I pulled the paper out and said, ‘I got some things to say!'”
He laughs, “They gave us all about five to six minutes…and I thought, ‘That’s not going to cut it for me!’ So I went ahead and took the moment, and thanked everybody.”
The first person Perry thanked was ex-Journey manager Herbie Herbert, who was responsible for him joining the band. Herbert passed away Monday at age 73.
Perry’s first Christmas album,The Season, is out November 5.
Ava DuVernay says she and Colin Kaepernick had a similar story in mind when it came time to create the Netflix limited series Colin in Black & White.
“It wasn’t just [a] story that appeal[ed] to me, it was a story that appealed to Colin Kaepernick as well and the things that we wanted to say about his early life,” DuVernay tells ABC Audio.
Serving as both co-creator and director, DuVernay says the six-episode journey allows viewers to see “how anyone’s early life really adds up to who they are today.”
“And it’s worthy of examination,” she says. “It’s worthy about thinking, ‘Where do I come from? And how do I get these thoughts in my head? And do I still believe those things? Or is this just a habit?’… And all of these questions that we embed in the piece.”
While the Kaepernick-centered series primarily focuses on Colin’s young-adult years after being adopted by a white family, DuVernay says the drama also showcases an experimental “new form” of storytelling which includes elements of animation, live action, and social commentary.
“I think some people think this is a documentary, it’s not,” she says. “Some people think it’s just a straight kind of celebrity childhood biopic thing. It’s not that either. And so discovering a new form for it was really challenging, but fun.”
Meanwhile, Jaden Michael, who plays a young Kaepernick, thanks DuVernay for consistently creating opportunities for people of color to tell these important stories.
“I think with time… we will have greater and more nuanced conversations,” he says. “And I think Colin in Black & White is a great way to start that conversation of ‘Let’s change it up a little bit.'”
Colin in Black & White launches on Netflix Friday.
Forget never never land, Metallica is off to the classroom.
The metal legends are launching their own Masterclass series, in which they will teach “being a band,” including everything from making an album to “navigating egos” and “giving criticism.”
“We have sustained our bond for more than 40 years because we’ve learned a lot about each other and ourselves over time,” says frontman James Hetfield. “In our class we not only teach MasterClass members how we write songs and find inspiration for our music, but how the experiences we’ve had together have contributed to successful creative collaboration.”
All four Metallica members will take part, and will be breaking down the making of classics including “Enter Sandman,” “One” and “Master of Puppets.”
For a preview of what you can expect, you can check out a trailer for the Masterclass streaming now on YouTube. Additional info can be found at MasterClass.com.
