As Asia celebrates its 40th anniversary, the prog-rock supergroup has revealed plans to release a deluxe box set on June 10 titled ASIA in Asia — Live at The Budokan, Tokyo, 1983, focusing on a historic concert the band played in Japan.
The centerpiece of the multi-disc collection is a December 6, 1983, performance that the group gave at Tokyo’s famous Budokan venue, the second of a three-show engagement Asia played there. The concert made history as the first live broadcast from Japan to MTV in the U.S. The band’s lineup for the shows feature Emerson, Lake & Palmer frontman Greg Lake stepping for founding Asia singer/bassist John Wetton, who had just left he group.
The box set will feature a Blu-ray containing video and high-res audio of the concert, as well as two CDs, two colored-vinyl LPs, a 40-page book, an Asia pin badge and various pieces of printed memorabilia.
The LPs and one of the CDs have the audio of the full show that aired on MTV plus a couple of songs that weren’t included in the original broadcast. The second CD boasts newly mastered audio of the concert that Asia played the previous night.
The video featured on the Blu-ray was only previously released on the VHS format.
ASIA in Asia, which you can pre-order now, also will be available as a a two-LP set in a gatefold sleeve, as well as a single CD and via digital formats.
Reflecting on the Tokyo performance with his fellow ELP alum fronting Asia, drummer Carl Palmer says, “Greg Lake did a great job jumping into John’s shoes. So many songs to sing, he did it so well. It was impressive.”
Here’s the ASIA in Asia track list:
Introduction from Mark Goodman (MTV)
“Time Again”
“The Heat Goes On”
“Here Comes the Feeling”
“Eye to Eye”
Steve Howe Solo (“Sketches in the Sun”)
“Only Time Will Tell”
“Open Your Eyes”
Geoffrey Downes Solo (“Ihiri – The Setting Sun”/”Bolero”)
“The Smile Has Left Your Eyes”
“Wildest Dreams”
Carl Palmer Solo
“Heat of the Moment”
“Sole Survivor”
“Cutting It Fine”
“Daylight”
This Saturday, March 19, Queenwill present a special online stream of a 2008 concert that the band played in Ukraine with founding Bad Company/Free singer Paul Rodgers, aimed at raising money for relief efforts for Ukrainian refugees in need because of Russia’s ongoing invasion of that country.
The concert, which took place in Freedom Square in the city of Kharkiv in September 2008, featured Queen and Rodgers performing a 28-song set that included a bevy of Queen classics and gems, select tunes by Free and Bad Company, and a few songs from The Cosmos Rocks, the then-new collaborative album by Queen + Paul Rodgers.
The band was invited by Ukraine’s Elena Pinchuk AntiAids Foundation to play a free AIDS-awareness concert dubbed “Life Must Go On.” The show was attended by more than 350,000 and was viewed by a TV audience of over 10 million people.
Remembering the event, the band says it was “an unforgettable experience…one of those rare things in life you know you will never forget. A meeting in music, but also a coming together to fight a common enemy.”
Queen has decided to revisit the show at a time when so many Ukrainians need humanitarian aid.
Queen + Paul Rodgers Live in Ukraine will stream at Queen’s official YouTube channel on Saturday starting at 1 p.m. ET. Fans are encouraged to make donations to UNHCR – The UN Refugee Agency.
Here’s the set list of the concert:
“One Vision”
“Tie Your Mother Down”
“The Show Must Go On”
“Fat Bottomed Girls”
“Another One Bites the Dust”
“Hammer to Fall”
“I Want It All”
“I Want to Break Free”
“Seagull”
“Love of My Life”
“39”
Drum Solo
“I’m In Love with My Car”
“Say It’s Not True”
“Shooting Star”
“Bad Company”
Guitar Solo
“Bijou”
“Last Horizon”
“Crazy Little Thing Called Love”
“C-lebrity”
“Feel Like Makin’ Love”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“Cosmos Rockin'”
“All Right Now”
“We Will Rock You”
“We Are the Champions”
“God Save the Queen”
(WASHINGTON) — The Biden administration is considering ways to fast-track bringing Ukrainian refugees to the U.S. amid the historic surge across Europe of Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s war, according to U.S. officials.
But the administration faces some legal hurdles to doing so, especially to giving Ukrainians refugee status, and has instead repeatedly emphasized that “the vast, vast majority of refugees want to stay in neighboring countries,” as White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday, adding, “That is where we have been focus our energies at this point.”
That focus comes in the form of U.S. assistance: $293 million so far, with another $4 billion specifically for humanitarian aid in the new funding bill President Joe Biden signed earlier this week.
But as the needs grow — as cities like Warsaw and countries like Moldova are overwhelmed — there’s growing pressure on the White House, including from some U.S. lawmakers, to do more.
The refugee resettlement process, however, is complex and time-consuming, with very few avenues to expediting cases from the point they are referred to the U.S. by the United Nations refugee agency, through the vetting process, to their resettlement in a local community.
But Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed the administration is “looking at things that we can do ourselves and do directly.”
“As this and if this goes on, as the numbers increase, as the burden increases for European partners, we will certainly do everything we can to help,” he added Thursday, saying it was “something we’re very focused on right now” and previewing “more to say on this in the coming.”
So far, the White House has ordered some steps. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security announced it had granted Temporary Protected Status for Ukrainians already in the U.S. by March 1, allowing them to stay legally and work for at least the next 18 months.
In addition, U.S. embassies and consulates in the region have been expediting visa processing for immediate family members of U.S. citizens, but they are overwhelmed.
“We are throwing many, many resources at the assistance for U.S. citizens in this region as well as visa processing, but the demand, as you can imagine, is very high,” a senior U.S. administration official said. “We are not able to process the volume of the people who are thinking about that as an option.”
That pool of people is also already limited. Immigrant visas only apply to immediate family members as defined under U.S. law — spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents.
If a U.S. citizen’s family member doesn’t fall into those categories, there’s a process to petition U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to approve their case, but that is not being expedited, according to the senior administration official, meaning their application could take months, even years.
Refugee advocates, however, say there are potentially thousands of Ukrainians for whom the USCIS has confirmed their familial relationship, but haven’t yet fully approved their petition — arguing their cases can and should now be expedited.
It’s unclear if the administration is weighing that. Blinken told reporters Thursday they were “looking at steps we may be able to take on family reunification.”
Wait times for nonimmigrant visas are often shorter, and applicants can request your application be expedited. But the senior administration official said there’s a risk of being denied because these are “not the appropriate tool to begin an immigrant, refugee, or resettlement process.”
“If your plan is to go to the United States and you have absolutely no idea what you’ll do after that — which I have to say on a human level is very understandable — as U.S. consular officers who are charged with executing U.S. immigration law, they [Ukrainian applicants] would be well advised to have much more of a plan afterward,” they said.
The Department of Homeland Security also has the ability to provide another kind of temporary legal status known as humanitarian parole that allows a foreigner to enter the U.S. usually for up to a year. Reuters has reported that Customs and Border Patrol agents have been granting humanitarian parole to Ukrainians crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.
DHS declined to comment to ABC News about those reports.
“We address an individual’s claim for humanitarian relief as they are presented to us,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday. “We are looking at other programs that we can implement to expand the avenues of humanitarian relief.”
But DHS continues to use a public health authority known as Title 42 to send the majority of adults attempting to cross the border back to their country of origin. The policy was enacted at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic by the Trump administration, and despite intense pressure from immigrants’ rights group and progressive Democrats, the Biden administration has yet to lift it.
Mayorkas said DHS has issued guidance to all CBP officers on the border reminding them of the exceptions to the Title 42 authority and how it relates to Ukrainian nationals “and everyone else” attempting to make credible fear claims at the southern border. But Psaki said revoking Title 42 “wouldn’t be done in response to a war in a European country. It’s done by — a decision would be made by the CDC and then it would be implemented.”
The push to “fast track” the refugee process, however, is unlikely to yield results, with the program defined by law and requiring a referral and thorough vetting. The senior administration official said it “is not an emergency response program, so our goal would be to provide humanitarian assistance to keep people safe where they are for now” instead.
For many refugees seeking to move to the U.S., it is a years-long process. There are already 7,000 Ukrainian refugees who have been in the pipeline for resettlement, according to Church World Service.
While Blinken said “of course we will take referrals” for new refugees, he also emphasized the administration is “looking at steps that we can take in the near term.”
Refugee resettlement agencies say the administration is considering using the Lautenberg program as one way to potentially expedite refugee status. The Cold War-era program allows religious minorities, including Ukrainian Greek Catholics and Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Christians, to bring family members to the U.S. with refugee status.
One agency told ABC News there are thousands of Ukrainian applications that the U.S. could swiftly admit, but it’s not clear the administration agrees.
ABC News’s Ben Gittleson and Sarah Kolinovsky contributed to this report.
(FERNLEY, Nev.) — Nearly a week after authorities believe a Nevada teenager was possibly kidnapped from a parking lot in her own car, the search for the missing person and a vehicle of interest continue.
Naomi Irion, 18, was last seen inside her car on March 12 around 5 a.m. in the parking lot of a Walmart in Fernley, Nevada, outside Reno, according to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office.
Surveillance video captured a man getting into the driver’s seat of her car and leaving in an unknown direction with Irion in the passenger seat, said the sheriff’s office, which has characterized her disappearance as “suspicious in nature.”
Irion was sitting in the driver’s seat, but the suspect “did say or do something to Naomi to make her move over,” her brother, Casey Valley, who said he has seen the video, told reporters at a press briefing Thursday.
Irion was waiting for a shuttle bus Saturday morning to take her to her job at Panasonic Energy of North America in the Reno area, according to the Missing Persons Advocacy Network.
Valley, who lives with Irion, reported her missing on Sunday when she never came home from work. “I knew something was wrong,” he said.
Irion’s cellphone was last pinged in the area of the Walmart, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies found her car, a 1992 Mercury Sable, on Tuesday in an industrial park about a mile from the Walmart without her in it, the sheriff’s office said.
“Evidence suggesting Naomi’s disappearance is criminal in nature was located in the vehicle,” the sheriff’s office said, but did not provide any further details.
Investigators have identified a Chevrolet pickup truck whose driver they believe may have a “direct connection” to her current whereabouts, the sheriff’s office said.
“We’re making a plea to the public right now to locate our person of interest vehicle,” Lyon County Sheriff Frank Hunewill said Thursday.
The sheriff’s office released a photo of the vehicle — described as a dark 2020 or newer Chevrolet 2500 High Country 4-door pickup truck — on social media. It has also released the last known images of Irion, taken from surveillance footage the morning she went missing, as well as images from video surveillance that showed the suspect from the back with a hood pulled up over his head.
The surveillance video captured the suspect walking from a nearby homeless encampment, though it’s unclear if he is a person experiencing homelessness, Hunewill said.
The sheriff’s office said Thursday it is working with the Pyramid Lake Police Department and the FBI to search an area in neighboring Wadsworth “for any possible evidence linking to Naomi’s disappearance.”
“We’re doing all that we can do, with the resources that we’ve got — not just that we have, but Churchill County, Washoe County, everybody, FBI — to pull this together and try to get as much information as quick as we can because time is of the essence,” Hudewill said.
A community search is scheduled for Saturday morning. Sheriff’s deputies will be on hand to assist in the search.
Irion moved to Fernley in August 2021, a little over a year after her brother moved to the city from Wyoming.
The family emotionally expressed gratitude for the community’s support in the search for their sister, including posting missing person flyers.
“To the people of Fernley, the people of this area, the amount of support you have given us, it’s amazing,” Valley said. “Thank you.”
Irion’s sister, Tamara Cartwright, urged anyone who sees anything on social media that looks like Irion or the truck to contact the sheriff’s office.
“We have to stay optimistic,” she said through tears. “There’s no choice.”
Irion is 5’11” with black hair and a septum piercing. She was last seen wearing a blue Panasonic T-shirt, a gray cardigan sweater, gray pants and brown boots and carrying a black purse.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office at 775-557-5206 ext. 2, call or text Secret Witness at 775-322-4900 or go online at www.secretwitness.com.
The Harder They Fall director Jeymes Samuel and Jay-Z are teaming up again for the Netflix adaptation of the comic series Irredeemable and its spinoff, Incorruptible. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the two titles will be combined into one feature film written by One Night in Miami writer Kemp Powers. Jay-Z will be a producer on the project. He was a producer on The Harder They Fall as well.
D-Nice is going to the Oscars. The DJ, who rose to fame with his virtual Club Quarantine parties, will be performing during the March 27 ceremony as well as the post-show Governors Ball. Tonight, at 6:30 p.m. PT, he’ll be hosting the official Oscars Club Quarantine pre-party on Instagram Live. Tune in to @djnice or @theacademy. Percussionist and frequent Prince collaborator Sheila E., as well as rock drummer Travis Barker, will also be performing during the Oscars ceremony.
Kerry Washington and Serena Williams will be among the presenters at the 33rd Annual Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, March 19. Other presenters include Nick Jonas, Kristen Stewart, Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, Lin-Manuel Miranda and more. Issa Rae will be honored with the Visionary Award at the ceremony.
Matthew Hutchins, the widower of slain Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, took to Twitter to note the latest in his extended family’s plight in their native Ukraine.
Hutchins explained Friday that his sister-in-law, Halyna’s sister Svetlana, “made it safely from Kyiv to Romania with her 3 year old daughter and will continue onwards to Western Europe.”
He added, “Parents stayed in Kyiv to prepare for the worst.”
Hutchins also noted that his mother-in-law, Olga, is “still working as [a] nurse at the hospital where she worked for 30+ years.”
Last week, Matthew Hutchinssaid “Halyna’s family is trapped” in the war-torn country. He also voiced support for the Ukrainian people, saying in part, “Ukraine’s defender are inspiring the world with their bravery. Keep telling the truth about Putin’s invasion and atrocities.”
Hutchins lobbied people to “support refugees,” and support the locals fighting the Russian Army, “with aid and any intervention possible to protect the Ukrainian citizens and their independence.”
Haylna Hutchins, the mother of the couple’s 9-year-old son, Andros, was fatally wounded on October 21, 2021, when a pistol allegedly aimed at her by Alec Baldwin discharged on the movie’s New Mexico set. The live round that had been loaded into the pistol also struck and injured the movie’s director Joel Souza.
A criminal investigation into the incident is still ongoing.
(WASHINGTON) — Concerns in the U.S. over the wellbeing of Brittney Griner are growing as Russia extends the pre-trial detention of the WNBA star. The extension comes amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.
Russia media reported on Thursday that Griner’s pre-trial detention was extended until May 19 by the Khimki court of the Moscow region. The two-time Olympic gold medalist faces drug charges for allegedly smuggling hashish oil last month into Russia.
Griner, a Houston native, faces up to ten years in prison, according to Russian media reports.
Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee, D-Tex., whose district includes parts of Houston, has called for the athlete’s release and told Nightline in an interview on Thursday that she wrote a letter to President Joe Biden and met with him regarding Griner’s case.
“I did write a letter to the president of the United States and met with him on this issue of Ms. Griner, again recognizing the need for privacy and respect of our family members, and the need for a genuine support from across the nation,” Jackson-Lee said.
“But I feel that the government is aware and ready to move on helping Brittney. And we are encouraging, as a member of Congress, to have the government move as swiftly, as profoundly, as strongly as it can do – without, in any way, undermining what is best for Brittney,” the congresswoman added.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price told ABC News Live on Thursday that U.S. officials have been in “constant contact” with Griner’s legal team, but are “concerned” because officials from the U.S. embassy in Moscow have been unable to meet with the WNBA star since her detention to “evaluate the conditions … in which she is being detained and to provide all forms of support.”
“The Russians have not yet permitted us to do so,” Price said. “The Russians are obligated to permit, to allow this type of consular access under the Vienna Convention. We’re going to continue to insist that they allow us access to Brittney Griner just as we be permitted access to all Americans who are detained in Russia.”
The extension of Griner’s detention comes during a volatile time for U.S.-Russia relations as Russian President Vladimir Putin escalates attacks on Ukraine.
The U.S. also imposed a wave of new sanctions on Russia, including personal sanctions on Putin and some of his close associates, but has continued to oppose a no-fly zone and the deployment of U.S. troops to fight Russia in Ukraine.
Biden labeled Putin a “war criminal” during a press conference at the White house on Wednesday amid a State Department review of whether the U.S. considers Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian civilians a war crime. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that he personally believes war crimes have been committed in Ukraine.
Rep. Jackson-Lee said that the conflict between the U.S. and Russia over the invasion of Ukraine should not impact Griner’s chances of being released.
“You know, there are international protocols that should be held in spite of conflicts,” the congresswoman said.
“This is a major conflict. This is a major act of violence. This is an invasion. Brittney Griner had nothing to do with that,” she added.
Griner was detained in Russia in mid-February at a Moscow area airport for allegedly having vape cartridges in her luggage containing hashish oil — an illegal substance in Russia, the Russian Federal Customs Service announced earlier this month.
Although RFCS initially did not reveal Griner’s name, she was identified on video released by Russian officials showing her going through security at the Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow.
“We are aware of the situation with Brittney Griner in Russia and are in close contact with her, her legal representation in Russia, her family, her teams, and the WNBA and NBA,” Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, told ABC News in a statement on March 5. “As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further on the specifics of her case but can confirm that as we work to get her home, her mental and physical health remain our primary concern.”
Griner is a seven-time WNBA All-Star, who has been playing for the Phoenix Mercury since 2013 and was reportedly in Russia to play basketball in an overseas league.
The Phoenix Mercury said in a statement on March 5 that the team is in contact with Griner’s family, representatives and the WNBA and are closely monitoring her case.
“We love and support Brittney and at this time our main concern is her safety, physical and mental health, and her safe return home,” the Phoenix Mercury said.
The WNBA expressed support for Griner, saying in a statement earlier this month that she has the league’s “full support and our main priority is her swift and safe return to the United States.”
ABC News’ Conor Finnegan, Libby Cathey, Kandis Mascall, Matthew Fuhrman, Miles Cohen and Tanya Stukalova contributed to this report.
A Grey’s Anatomy crew member is suing the LAPD over a March 2021 traffic stop where he claims he was racially profiled, Deadline reports.
The incident occurred near the set of the ABC drama, which was shooting on location in Tarzana, CA at the time. Ernest Simon Jr., an African American shuttle driver for the show, says police wrongly targeted him and used unjust force. He’s seeking $20 million in damages.
Police reportedly believed the vehicle Simon was driving was stolen and drew their guns on him, even as other crew members told officers Simon was a driver for the show and that the “van had been rented by Disney.” The lawsuit says police only released Simon when a white co-worker intervened.
Grey’s creator Shonda Rhimes called the incident “unacceptable.”
“It was another example of a broken system that puts valuable lives in danger and damages spirits,” Rhimes said in a statement obtained by Deadline. “Shondaland stands with Mr. Simon and his family in this complaint.”
On Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed the CROWN Act (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair), in a 235-189 vote which will further put an end to race-based hair discrimination.
This new legislation will prohibit discrimination based on one’s hair texture or hairstyle — specifically pointing to hairstyles associated with a particular race or national origin.
With this new passing, the bill will now head to the Senate to be voted upon with legislative sponsors Democratic New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman leading the charge.
In a Twitter post, Coleman recalled that on the last day of Black History Month, 188 House Republicans temporarily obstructed passage of the CROWN ACT.
“Despite what my GOP colleagues may tell you, this bill is too important to give up on,” she added. “That’s why today, I brought it to the floor again.”
Coleman also elaborated in a statement saying, “Natural Black hair is often deemed ‘unprofessional’ simply because it does not conform to white beauty standards. Discrimination against Black hair is discrimination against Black people. I’m proud to have played a part to ensure that we end discrimination against people for how their hair grows out of their head.”
GOOD NEWS: The #CROWNAct has passed the House! Today, America got one step closer to ending racial discrimination.
The bill now heads to the Senate, where I hope my colleagues will pass it without delay. pic.twitter.com/jBqoSr9qaN
— Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (@RepBonnie) March 18, 2022
As many supporters and sponsors of the potential federal law continue to carry enthusiasm, several have also spoken out applauding the recent House passage.
“Every day in this country, Black women and girls face discrimination because of their natural hair at their workplaces and schools,” said Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Joyce Betty in a statement. “So today, I proudly voted yes on the #CROWNAct to finally end race-based hair discrimination once and for all.”
She continued, “It’s simple — discrimination against Black hair is discrimination based on race. I look forward to swift passage of this critical legislation in the Senate and to standing with President Biden as he signs it into law. To every young Black girl and boy, I say to you, your hair — from your kinks to your curls, from your fros to your fades, from your locs to your braids — is a crown. Be proud of your hair and know the Congressional Black Caucus is fighting for you.”
Today, the House of Representatives passed the #CROWNAct: Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.
President Joe Biden’s Administration has already shown support for the legislation as well by sharing in a statement that the “administration looks forward to working with the Congress to enact this legislation and ensure that it is effectively implemented.”
Following California’s official ban in 2019, the CROWN Act has also seen legislative wins in 13 additional states including New Jersey, Virginia, Colorado as well as in 34 municipalities.
Michael Bublé and his wife Luisana Lopilato recently revealed that they’re expecting their fourth child, but as Michael revealed during an appearance on ABC’s The View on Friday, at least one of his other children is a bit confused about exactly how that happened.
Michael told The View hosts that they broke the news to the three kids — Noah, 8, Elias, 5 and Vida, 3 — on Christmas Eve. “We told them, ‘Mommy has a baby in her tummy and you’re going to have a little brother or sister,’ and 5-year-old Eli was just distraught,” Michael reveals. “And we said, ‘What’s wrong?’ And he said, ‘Why didn’t you invite us to watch when you fell in love and you made the baby?'”
“And I still don’t know how to answer the question!” Michael laughed. “Obviously, they have no concept about how physically it happens. It’s really cute, it’s just so sweet. They just know that mommies and daddies fall in love and have the baby so he just wants to know why he wasn’t invited.”
Michael and Luisana revealed the pregnancy at the end of the video for Michael’s current hit ,”I’ll Never Not Love You,” in which Luisana starred and the children appeared.
Asked what kind of father he is, Michael joked, “I think my kids would say that they feel like I’m one of them. My poor wife now has five children she’s going to have to take care of.”
