Following Metallica‘s recent 40th anniversary shows at the San Francisco Chase Center, the venue has released a mini documentary highlighting the community of the band’s international fan base.
The four-minute video, streaming now on YouTube, includes interviews with fans who traveled to S.F. for the concerts from countries including Kuwait, Colombia and Chile.
“[Metallica is] like a soundtrack to my life, and millions and millions of people around the world feel the same way I do,” one fan says.
Metallica’s 40th anniversary shows took place December 17 and 19, and streamed live online. Rebroadcasts of the streams will air via the Coda Collection channel on Amazon Prime Video starting December 24 at noon ET.
Starting in January, AXS TV will begin airing select past episodes of the popular performance series Live from the Artists Den, including shows featuring Ringo Starr, Robert Plant and Sheryl Crow.
The season will kick off on Wednesday, January 12 with a performance by modern rockers Imagine Dragons, and the following week, on January 19, Plant and his former backing group Band of Joy will be featured.
The Led Zeppelin frontman’s episode was filmed in 2011 at Nashville’s War Memorial Auditorium, and includes renditions of Zeppelin’s “Gallows Pole” and “Ramble On,” as well as selections from Plant’s 2010 Band of Joy album. Among the musicians featured in the Band of Joy lineup were Americana artists Buddy Miller and Patty Griffin.
Starr will appear in an episode that will air on March 2. That program was shot in New York City at the Egyptian wing in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2010, and features the former Beatles drummer performing songs by the Fab Four and from his solo career alongside Ben Harper and the Relentless 7 and Joan Osbourne.
Crow’s episode will air on March 9, and captures Sheryl playing some of her best-known songs at New York City’s Grand Ballroom of the Plaza in 2013.
Live from the Artists Den episodes will air weekly each Wednesday from January 12 through March 16 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
Other artists featured on upcoming episodes include country stars, Lady A and Tim McGraw, pop group OneRepublic, and rock acts The Killers, Alabama Shakes and The Wallflowers.
AXS TV programming executive Sarah Weidman notes that Live from the Artists Den presents the various acts “in an intimate setting with a small audience, interspersed with insightful clips that find the performers reflecting on their own work and careers.”
(WASHINGTON) — Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon in south Philadelphia’s largest park following a business meeting.
The congresswoman was left unharmed, according to a statement provided to ABC News by her spokesperson, Lauren Cox.
“Wednesday afternoon, at around 2:45 p.m., Congresswoman Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in FDR Park following a meeting at that location. The Congresswoman was physically unharmed,” Cox said in a statement.
“She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for their swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both the Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety,” the statement said.
Scanlon, who was first elected to Congress in 2018, represents the 5th Congressional District in Pennsylvania, which includes parts of south Philadelphia.
Her spokesperson confirmed that Scanlon’s personal belongings, including her personal and government-issued phones and identification, were stolen by the perpetrators.
Philadelphia’s mayor, Jim Kenney, released a statement condemning the incident.
“I’m appalled to learn of this violent crime that was perpetrated against my friend and colleague, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon. Everyone deserves to feel safe in our city, and sadly, as we know, that hasn’t always been the case this year. It’s disheartening, and quite frankly infuriating, that criminals feel emboldened to commit such a reckless crime in the middle of the day in what should be a place of tranquility and peace—one of Philadelphia’s beautiful parks,” he said in a statement.
“I’m thankful that she was not physically harmed during this incident, and my thoughts are with her during what I’m sure is a traumatic time. I’m also thankful that our police officers have been working hard to identify violent criminals and get them off our streets. PPD is actively investigating this incident. We simply cannot and will not tolerate any acts of violence. If anyone has any information about this incident—or any other crime—please call or text PPD’s anonymous tip line at 215-686-TIPS.”
The incident comes amid a violent year in Philadelphia, which saw a spike in both gunpoint robberies and auto thefts.
Philadelphia is seeing at least an 80% increase in carjackings in 2021, compared with the total number in 2020, Philadelphia Police have said.
Saweetie and Jack Harlow will be ringing in 2022 on a New Year’s Eve television special.
The rappers will perform on Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party, hosted by Miley Cyrus and Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson, which airs December 31 at 10:30 p.m. ET on NBC. 24kGoldn and Kitty Ca$h will also add hip hop flava to the show.
Meanwhile, Saweetie, who graduated from the University of Southern California with a bachelor’s degree in business in 2016, is headed back to USC in 2022, this time as a guest lecturer. The “Icy Grl” rapper, who is nominated for a Grammy for Best New Artist, will teach two separate courses for students pursuing entrepreneurial studies. She will also speak to high school students during USC’s summer programs.
The 44th annual Kennedy Center Honors special airs tonight on CBS, featuring star-studded tributes to Joni Mitchell, Motown Records founder Berry Gordy Jr. and Bette Midler, as well as Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels and opera baritone Justino Diaz.
Among the performers and presenters who took part in the gala, which was held December 5 in Washington, D.C., were Paul Simon, Graham Nash, Stevie Wonder and many more.
Nash was featured as the narrator of a video presentation celebrating Mitchell, who was his one-time romantic partner. Among the performers who paid tribute to the legendary Canadian singer/songwriter were Herbie Hancock, Alabama Shakes frontwoman Brittany Howard, Norah Jones, Brandi Carlile and Ellie Goulding.
Simon, a close friend of Michaels, performed his classic Simon & Garfunkel tune “America” in honor of Lorne. The segment also featured tributes from Steve Martin and various former and current SNL cast members, including Jimmy Fallon, Amy Poehler, Kristen Wiig, Seth Meyers, Kevin Nealon, Pete Davidson, Kenan Thompson, Kate McKinnon, Michael Che and Colin Jost.
The event’s finale featured a salute to Gordy, which included musical tributes from Wonder and Smokey Robinson.
The Kennedy Center Honors special airs at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on CBS.
Back in October, Chris Martin told NME that Coldplay will stop making records after putting out their 12th album. Now, he’s put a date on that finish line.
Speaking with BBC Radio 2, Martin reveals that Coldplay’s “last proper record” will be released at the “end of 2025.”
“I think after that, we’ll only tour,” Martin says. “Maybe we’ll do some collaborative things, but the Coldplay catalog, as it were, finishes then.”
When host Jo Whiley asked if Martin was joking, he assured her he was not.
Coldplay just released their ninth album, Music of the Spheres, this past October. It includes the single “Higher Power” and the hit BTS collaboration “My Universe.”
Both The Wendy Williams Show and the Nick Cannon show have been shut down until the new year due to COVID-19. Announcements were made on their Instagram pages. Williams’ show will return with new live episodes on Monday, January 10 featuring guest hosts Michael Rapaport, Kym Whitley, Finesse Mitchell and Sherrie Shepherd. Wendy continues to recover from Graves disease and a thyroid condition
New episodes of the Nick Cannon show will resume Monday, January 3. Two weeks after losing his five-month-old son, Zen,Nick Cannon is finding some joy as he celebrated the first birthday of his daughter, Powerful Queen. Her mother, model Brittany Bell, posted several videos of their birthday party on her Instagram Story, as reported by People. The bash featured sledding on real snow, and a visit from Santa Claus. Nick was in the holiday spirit, wearing a necklace of large Christmas lights.
In other news, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and Oprah Winfrey are teaming for a new reading project.
Will and Jada’s Family Foundation, the WILL Book Club, and Oprah’s Charitable Foundation are launching reading groups and events for young adults inspired by the King Richard star’s memoir, simply titled WILL.
For the memoir’s release in November, the former Fresh Prince created the WILL Book Club “to transform the path of youth around the world — deepening their love of reading, culture, self-expression, self-healing and self-awareness.”
(WASHINGTON) — The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack sent a letter on Wednesday to GOP Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, requesting he appear for an interview with the panel about his communications with President Donald Trump on and before Jan. 6.
The request from Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., to the staunch Trump ally is the committee’s second such request to a GOP lawmaker.
On Monday night, the committee requested a meeting with Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., to discuss his communications with Trump Justice Department officials about false claims of election fraud and efforts to install Jeffrey Clark as the acting attorney general.
Jordan, who Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., has described as a potential “material witness” for the committee’s investigation, has said he spoke to Trump on Jan. 6 after the attack — after initially telling an Ohio news station he couldn’t remember when he communicated with Trump and Politico reported that they spoke twice.
Jordan, a leader and founding member of the Trump-aligned House Freedom Caucus, was among the GOP lawmakers who planned to challenge the election results on the House floor. He has said he had “nothing to do with” the attack on the Capitol.
After the election, the Ohio Republican focused most of his efforts challenging the legality of the pandemic-era voting changes in many states rather than some of the more outlandish and unproven theories of election fraud pushed by some Trump supporters.
The committee said it hoped to ask Jordan about his communications with Trump on Jan. 6 and any communications he may have had on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6 with Trump’s legal team, White House officials, or any of the rally organizers and activists based at the Willard Hotel.
“We would also like to ask you about any discussions involving the possibility of presidential pardons for individuals involved in any aspect of January 6th or the planning for January 6th,” the panel wrote.
The committee also noted that it has obtained “testimony indicating that the president was watching television coverage of the attack from his private dining room adjoining the Oval Office during this time period,” which has been publicly reported.
A spokesman for Jordan did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
The committee requested a meeting with Jordan in the first week of January but also said it would be “glad to explore travel arrangements” to meet with him at home in Ohio.
Jordan was among the House Republicans nominated to serve on the select committee by House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blocked him from being seated on the panel given his past false statements about the election results — which led McCarthy to withdraw all his selections to the committee.
The latest COVID-19 surge has claimed more Hollywood events.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Wednesday that the Governors Awards, which usually serve as a kick-off to awards season, have been postponed.
“We have made the difficult decision to change our plans in hosting the Governors Awards in person on January 15,” the Academy says in a statement. “Given the uncertainties around the variants, and the impact this could have on our community, we feel this is the best and safest decision for our honorees and guests. Rescheduled plans will come at a later date as we continue to prioritize the health and wellbeing of all those involved.”
The Governors Awards were set to honor Samuel L. Jackson, Elaine May and Liv Ullman with honorary Oscars, and Danny Glover with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian award.
Also postponed is a special screening event for the Disney+ Star Wars spinoff series The Book of Boba Fett, which was set to take place January 4 at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood. According to Variety, it’s being rescheduled to February 8.
The Book of Boba Fett debuts on Disney+ December 29. Disney is the parent company of ABC News.
Lindsey Nicholson/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Urgent care chain CityMD announced it is temporarily closing more than a dozen of its 150 locations in New York and New Jersey amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and increased demands for testing.
The 19 shuttered clinics include 13 in New York City — impacting every borough except Staten Island — two on Long Island, one in Westchester County, and three in New Jersey.
“To preserve our ability to staff our sites, we are temporarily closing certain locations effective December 22,” a statement on CityMD’s website read. “It is our hope that closing sites now will best allow us to avoid future closures as this surge continues.”
It is not clear when the locations will reopen, with CityMD directing patients to visit nearby locations for testing in the meantime.
This is not the first time that CityMD has closed locations due to the pandemic.
During Thanksgiving last year, the urgent care chain announced all locations would close 90 minutes earlier, citing staff working longer hours than scheduled due to long COVID-19 testing lines
CityMD did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
The closures come as states in the Northeast continue to report record-breaking numbers of COVID-19 cases.
On Wednesday, New York reported record-high infections for the fifth time over six days, with more than 28,000 people testing positive, state data showed.
Additionally, New York City has the country’s highest new case rate, with 1,019 cases per 100,000 people over the last seven days, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
To meet the demand for testing, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the city would be opening more than 20 testing locations this week.
Gov. Kathy Hochul also said the state intends to set up an online portal through which New Yorkers can order at-home rapid tests. The tests will mostly be sent to areas where vaccination rates are lagging and cases are rising.
New Jersey also reported a record number of COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, with 9,711 confirmed infections.
The state already has a program in place for residents to request a free COVID-19 test kit in the mail. The sample is then sent back to a laboratory with results available within 48 hours.
