(AURORA, Colo.) — A 14-year-old girl named Taniya Freeman went missing in Aurora, Colorado, over the weekend. Her family and the Aurora Police Department are now asking for the public’s help to locate her.
Taniya left her father’s home between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. on Jan. 2 and they haven’t seen her since, her mother, Tiana Wilder, told ABC News.
Wilder urged her daughter to come home.
“We miss her. We love her, of course, and the safest place for her to be is here with us,” she said.
The Aurora Police Department said Taniya has long hair with pink streaks and may have a backpack with her. Wilder said that she believed her daughter was wearing a black hoodie and red pants.
Wilder said that her daughter doesn’t have a history of running away and that there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, as far as arguments or yelling, that night.
“I have no idea who she is with; where she is at and that’s my concern,” Wilder said. “So as far as any harm coming, yeah, I am worried.”
Agent Matthew Longshore, a spokesperson for the Aurora Police Department, told ABC News that the department was working with limited information. “Our investigators are still following up on different leads and we’re trying to find her,” he said.
“If her friends know something, tell us. And [don’t] think that they are snitching on her or getting her trouble,” Wilder said. “Whatever they know that could be helpful is what we need to know.”
If you have any information about Taniya’s whereabouts, the police department said you can call Aurora911 at 303-627-3100.
Taylor Swift‘s life and career has taken many twists and turns, but you wouldn’t exactly call it true crime — or would you?
Disgraceland, the world’s number-one most downloaded music podcast, and the first one to combine music with true crime, is kicking off its ninth season on January 11 with an episode all about Taylor.
According to the trailer for the new season, the Taylor-themed episode will focus on her “dodging deranged stalkers,” while a press release notes that the program also will touch on her “vanishing masters, love letters and more.”
On Instagram, host Jake Brennanadds that Taylor’s episode will detail how she used “facial recognition software at her shows to recognize the creeps that were stalking her and keep them out.”
Other artists featured on the new season of Disgraceland include late Beatle George Harrison, late legends Tom Petty and Miles Davis, Motown icons The Temptations, classic rockers The Eagles, late rapper Juice WRLD and the ’90s band Sublime.
New episodes of Disgraceland will be available exclusively on Amazon Music starting January 11, and then across all other podcast platforms on January 18. Visit DisgracelandPod.com for more information.
Coincidentally, Taylor’s BFF Selena Gomez stars in a TV series about a true crime podcast: Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building.
(ROCKY MOUNT, Va.) — A year after a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol 260 miles away, a quiet community in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains is still reckoning with the fallout and ties to its Confederate past and conservative politics.
Rocky Mount, which is predominantly white and staunchly Republican, was thrust into the national spotlight on Jan. 6 after two of its active police officers were spotted among the crowd rampaging through the halls of Congress.
Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson, both military veterans, are among the 17 current or former law enforcement officers charged by federal authorities for alleged participation in the riot, according to an ABC News tally.
“They needed to be exposed, because it is not only just them. They’re just the body of the evil here,” said Rocky Mount native Bridgette Craighead, a small business owner, Black Lives Matter activist and former candidate for state delegate.
While the passions poured out at the Capitol surprised few – and have long since subsided, many residents say– the high-profile alleged involvement of two of their neighbors continues to roil the close-knit town.
“Everyone I’ve talked to was totally shocked that those two men would do that,” said Carol Yopp, a local artist and informal Rocky Mount historian. “In fact, I’ve never heard anyone say that they applaud them whether they agreed with what was happening or not.”
It was seven months before the riot that Fracker and Robertson were celebrated by local African American residents for standing in solidarity with demonstrators at the town’s first protest for Black Lives Matter. Cellphone video even shows the cops holding signs for racial justice and dancing the Electric Slide with organizers.
“I really felt we were the example of what a community needed to do to get through this type of trauma,” said Craighead who was encouraged by positive relationships forged that day.
On Jan. 6, however, that shining example of unity and budding personal friendships were shattered, she said. Circulation of Fracker and Robertson social media posts ripped open a deep and longstanding racial and political divide.
“I don’t see how you can support Black Lives Matter but then support the insurrection of the Capitol,” Craighead said, citing elements of racism and white power in the events that day. “It’s also hypocritical: You want us to be peaceful protesting but then you go be a part of a riot that was not so peaceful.”
Robertson wrote on Instagram that the men “attacked the government” to “stand up for their rights,” according to federal court documents. Fracker posted to Facebook: “I can protest for what I believe in.”
Craighead led calls to get the officers fired, which in turn made her a target of their supporters.
Both now-former officers have pleaded not guilty to federal charges of disorderly and disruptive conduct and obstruction of Congress. In local media interviews the men have insisted they didn’t participate in violence and that their message is not incompatible with support for black lives. Trial dates have not yet been set.
“They were both very polite gentlemen, and they were both town police officers. However, it is unfortunate that they are no longer employees of the town,” said J. Tyler Lee, a town councilman and friend of the former officers.
Lee, who at 29 is the youngest person ever elected to Rocky Mount government, has been urging his neighbors for the past year to turn the page.
“I think we have to leave the stuff a year ago, a year ago,” Lee said. “Because if we keep bringing up what happened a year ago, it’s still gonna keep punching us in the mouth. If we can just teach compassion, communication and how to balance a checkbook, those three things, I think you’re golden.”
By many accounts, healing has been slow going, and beneath the surface in Rocky Mount, emotions are still raw.
“People like to fantasize, I call it, saying you know it’s a good old Southern town and all the families get along, and everybody’s happy, etc. And I call that ‘the fantasy,’” said Franklin County school board member and Rocky Mount native Penny Blue.
Blue, who has led a campaign against the town’s Confederate monuments and symbols, considers the riot an extension of painful divisions over race, history and politics that date to the Civil War.
“It was an insurrection, and that’s what [the Confederates] did. It was an insurrection,” Blue said in an interview beside the town’s monument to Confederate dead, newly erected in 2010 after an older version was damaged.
“Trump did not radicalize these people,” she added of the rioters, “he took advantage of what was already here in Franklin County and America.”
The influence of Donald Trump is already shaping Rocky Mount’s next chapter.
Town voters last fall broke heavily for pro-Trump Republican Glen Youngkin for Virginia governor in a campaign dominated by debate over Critical Race Theory.
The town also tapped a new, more conservative representative to the state House of Delegates: a former member of Trump’s 2020 legal team who fought the election results, Wren Williams.
“Church and God is a big thing for us. History – we’re steeped in history and we feel as though people who don’t understand our way of life or they don’t resonate or connect with us,” Williams said of his landslide victory against Craighead in November.
Williams said he condemns the events of Jan. 6 as “riot” but that his constituents are not fixated on what he considers a small group of lawbreakers. “Go out into these small towns and actually see if anybody is talking about Jan six anymore because they’re not. They’re not discussing it,” he said.
While Williams is convinced Trump will run for president again in 2024, others in the community wait anxiously for word of the former president’s intentions. The omnipresence of Trump is complicating a path forward, some residents said.
“If you have any hope of healing, you’ve got to talk about what’s hurting,” said Rocky Mount United Methodist Church Pastor Will Waller. “I tend to believe honesty is the best policy. So, ripping off the band aid is the best way to move forward. So we talk about it. We’re unafraid here.”
A willingness to keep talking to each other was one of the few areas of common ground expressed by Rocky Mount residents on both sides of the political divide.
“We bringing up all these hurtful topics and subjects not to rub it in your face and bring up the past,” said Craighead, “but we have to bring up the past to learn from it, to move on and to heal.”
Lee agreed that respectful dialogue is essential. “At the end of the day, we all may disagree, but you still have to be able to stick your hand out and face it as a champ,” he said.
Waller said faith also has a role to play. “To grow some flowers, you got to disturb the dirt. This has been a disturbing year just like 2020 was, but I believe in growth, and it comes through sometimes seeing things messed up for a bit,” he said.
(WASHINGTON) — COVID treatments that work against the new omicron variant are in short supply, and Republican governors are accusing President Joe Biden of preventing their distribution by purchasing them in such bulk amounts that it prevents states from making their own purchases.
The alternative, though, could be a serious bidding war among states for treatments like antiviral pills and sotrovimab, the only monoclonal antibody believed to be effective against omicron. That’s what happened in the early days of the pandemic when governors fought over the purchase of ventilators, tests and masks and drove up prices.
Still, after an almost singular focus on buying vaccine doses, Biden is now under pressure to find new ways to boost production of treatments for people who become seriously ill from COVID, most of whom are unvaccinated.
“The federal government has cornered the entire market,” declared Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis at a news conference Monday.
Likewise, in Texas, the health department there said several of its regional infusion centers had exhausted its supply of sotrovimab. Texas tied the shortage directly to Biden, noting in a statement “the federal government controls the distribution of monoclonal antibodies” and that the state ran out “due to the national shortage from the federal government.”
The Biden administration has acknowledged that life-saving treatments are in short supply because production has been unable to keep pace with omicron, which has rendered some treatments less effective and caused a sudden spike in cases.
“The low supply is something we need to worry about,” Dr. Anthony Fauci told governors in a private call last month about sotrovimab, according to a readout obtained by ABC News.
Another promising treatment — the new antiviral pill Paxlovid — is expected to begin rolling out this month, but probably won’t be widely available for several more months.
President Biden announced on Tuesday that he planned to double the federal purchase of pills from 10 million courses of treatment to 20 million with the first half available by June, rather than September. The pill is found to be 89% effective at reducing the risk of severe illness and death.
The practice of buying treatments and vaccines in bulk as a way to manage shortages and prevent bidding wars was initiated by the Trump administration. After then-President Donald Trump declared the federal government wasn’t a “shipping clerk” in early 2020, Republican and Democratic governors complained of inflated prices because they were directly competing with one another online.
Then, New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo compared it to “being on eBay with 50 other states, bidding on a ventilator.”
The Trump administration then slowly began amassing a stockpile of supplies that could be distributed around the country based on need. Trump’s Health and Human Services Department initiated bulk purchases of vaccines and therapeutics like Regeneron – a monoclonal antibody taken by Trump when he became ill with COVID.
Biden continued the practice, negotiating with companies to purchase additional vaccine shots and therapeutics and distributing to states for free based on population and risk factors.
But the spike in omicron cases has reignited a political debate on whether that’s the right approach.
Compounding the problem is that two monoclonal antibody treatments are believed not to work as well against omicron, at one point prompting the government to stop distributing them. The federal government has since resumed shipments upon finding it overestimated the number of omicron cases.
The Biden administration now says it will not distribute these types of monoclonal antibodies to regions where omicron comprises more than 80% of cases. The omicron variant is now estimated to account for 95% of new cases in the U.S., as of Jan. 1, according to new data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday.
Not every Republican governor is blaming Biden for treatments being in short supply.
In a statement Monday, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said monoclonal antibody teams expected to arrive on Monday were delayed due to overwhelming demand.
“While we were surprised by the delay in their arrival, we are appreciative of the federal government’s assistance,” said Sununu in a statement. “Since making our initial request a month ago, their assistance has become even more critical now as we manage the peak of the winter surge.”
ABC’s Karen Travers, Will McDuffie and Arielle Mitropoulos contributed to this report.
Kelsea Ballerini is walking into the new year with confidence.
The “Half of My Hometown” singer took to Instagram to kick off 2022 by honestly sharing with fans the struggle she had solidifying her resolutions, explaining that she had written “pages and pages” of ways she wanted to “better” herself, from her body to relationships to her career.
But Kelsea admits that after completing the exercise, it dawned on her that putting these expectations on herself may not be the best for her mental health.
“I realized that was only going to bring more anxiety and unrealistic expectations into my world and I just don’t have the room for it this year,” she noted. “So I ripped the pages out and replaced it with ‘doing my damn best’. And that’s it. That’s the goal for the year.”
Kelsea then added a note of encouragement to her fans, writing, “Because maybe the ‘better-ing’ happens when we just show up and see what meets us simply where we are. Just thought I’d share in case any of your algorithms were also sending you into a shame spiral of not being good enough already. We are.”
Kelsea’s vulnerability drew support from many of her peers, including her husband, Morgan Evans, who commented, “Babe.” Meanwhile, Lindsay Ell wrote, “Love this so much” with a white heart emoji, Little Big Town‘s Kimberly Schlapman responded with several raised hands emojis, and Brittney Spencerreplied with a simple “love.”
Kelsea and Morgan welcomed 2022 in Morgan’s hometown of Newcastle, Australia, where they surprised his family for the holidays.
CardiB is always juggling multiple things at once, but the responsibility she takes the most seriously is being a mom to her two young children.
On Tuesday, the “Up” rapper shared what her morning routine really looks like — dirty diapers and all. Cardi’s day begins super early, she revealed in a series of Instagram Stories posts, starting off with a clip showing a timestamp set at 6:03 a.m. about giving her newborn son his first bottle of the day.
“Just finished feeding him and putting him back to sleep. I’ll be preparing another bottle for when he wakes up in a few,” she captioned the video, later revealing that her little one enjoyed a new round of milk at 7:57 a.m.
At 8:19 a.m., her little one was “awake with full energy while I have NONE.” Cardi then explained that she was waiting to change a very dirty diaper, because “I know it’s coming.” Not even 10 minutes later, the infant left his mom a stinky gift and Cardi remarked, “I know him too well.”
Around 8:52 a.m., Cardi enjoyed some morning snuggles with her newborn and her three-year-old daughter, Kulture, whom she shares with husband Offset. His six-year-old daughter from a previous relationship, Kaelea, also enjoyed their company. The two were playing with their iPads, but their screen time ended a few minutes later, because by 9:06 a.m., Kulture was starting her day with a good teeth brushing.
Cardi revealed that the day was off to a different start, because normally her daughter heads off to school, but “we’re enjoying her right now,” she explained.
That was the “WAP” rapper’s final update because, as she admits, “It gets busy quick” at her house and she needs “both my hands.”
With 2021 in the record books, Heritage Auctions has announced that it raked in a record of its own: $1.4 billion in sales from everything from sports memorabilia to comic books to coins to music-related collectibles.
The 45-year-old institution revealed that among the year’s biggest sellers in the latter category were a collection of guitars belonging to Journey‘s Neal Schon, and a touring piano played by Elton John.
Schon’s guitar collection, which was auctioned in July, brought in a total of $4.2 million, and included 10 instruments that fetched six figures.
Among the more than 90 instruments that were sold was the 1977 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Black Solid Body model that Schon used to record many songs on Journey’s chart-topping 1981 album, Escape, including “Don’t Stop Believin’.” That guitar was purchased for $268,000, including fees.
Meanwhile, Elton’s touring piano, a Steinway grand that the pop-rock legend played on the road for about 20 years, fetched $915,000 at a July auction. Elton wrote a note in black marker on the piano’s gild-iron frame that reads, “Enjoy this as much as I have, Elton John.”
Just a day after Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon told fans that he tested positive for COVID-19 over the Christmas break, his fellow NBC late-night funnyman Seth Meyers says he’s positive too.
“The bad news is, I tested positive for COVID (thanks, 2022!),” the Late Night host posted to his 4.9 million Twitter followers. “[T]he good news is, I feel fine (thanks vaccines and booster!).”
Seth added that Late Night will be cancelling the rest of the shows this week — and intimated that the program won’t be taping anytime soon at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York City.
“Tune in next Monday to see what cool location we will try and pass off as a studio!!!” Meyers joked.
Incidentally, 30 Rock is the same location where Fallon’s Tonight Show tapes, as well as Saturday Night Live, which recently saw its Christmas episode in December starring Paul Rudd severely reworked due to an outbreak of COVID cases there.
Rudd and a handful of stars, including SNL‘s Michael Che and Kenan Thompson, introduced various sketches that were taped earlier in that week, as well as their favorite archival holiday skits from the show.
There was no audience allowed at the taping, although Tina Fey and Tom Hanks also appeared in person, with Fey standing in for Colin Jost in a stripped-down version of the “Weekend Update” segment.
The bad news is, I tested positive for COVID (thanks, 2022!) the good news is, I feel fine (thanks vaccines and booster!) We are canceling the rest of the shows this week, so tune in next Monday to see what cool location we will try and pass off as a studio!!!
Jimmie Allen reveals that he’s taking “musical risks” with his upcoming tour.
The “Make Me Want To” singer will embark on his debut headlining Down Home Tour next month, and in an Instagram post, he gets honest with fans about what to expect from the show that promises theatrics, along with raw emotion.
“Been working on the new show and taking musical risks. I want this to be more than a concert, I want it to be a theatrical journey through music,” he expresses. “We will laugh together, cry together, get inspired together and learn to truly love who we are together.”
Jimmie will bring duo Neon Union on the road with him. They’re the first act signed to Jimmie’s new management and production company, JAB Entertainment.
The CMA New Artist of the Year will launch the trek on February 3 at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, concluding on May 13 at The NorVa in Norfolk, Virginia. Jimmie’s hit duet with Brad Paisley, “Freedom Was a Highway,” is currently in the top 10 on country radio.
BTS members Jin, RM and Suga have overcome their battle with COVID-19 and are officially on the mend, their label announced Tuesday.
Big Hit, which manages the K-pop sensations, confirmed that the trio have recovered and are out of quarantine.
“We would like to inform you that BTS members RM and Jin have made full recoveries from COVID-19 and his quarantine has concluded as of today at noon, Jan. 4,” the label announced in a statement obtained by Billboard. “RM and Jin who had been receiving treatment from home for the past 10 days from Saturday, Dec. 25, are now able to return to their daily activities. Neither member exhibited any particular symptoms during their quarantine.”
Big Hit added that Jin experienced a “slight fever” during his bout of COVID-19.
Suga, who was the first BTS member to test positive for the coronavirus on December 24, was cleared to “return to his daily activities” on January 3. Big Hit said in a previous statement, “Suga did not exhibit any particular symptoms during his quarantine and is currently recuperating while resting at home.”
BTS is currently on an “extended period of rest,” which was announced early last month. Since then, the septet launched their individual Instagram accounts so fans can keep up with their day-to-day lives outside of their music careers.
The group will return to work in March with a performance scheduled in Seoul, South Korea, and will start a “new chapter” with an all-new album due out later this year.
