Old Dominion hit a high note as a group with the release of their 2021 album, Time, Tequila & Therapy. But before they made that project, they went through a difficult period, the band mates admit in a new interview with Rolling Stone.
Part of their challenges came from the COVID-19 pandemic: They weren’t together as much, and it became more difficult to have conversations face to face. “It took away the communication style that we’re used to. You can’t sit and have coffee and say, ‘What do you think?’” explains the band’s Geoff Sprung.
“There were two-day-long text threads. It was like, ‘Is this fun anymore?’ And it wasn’t,” Matthew Ramsey admits.
Adds Trevor Rosen, “It was all the work of being in a band without any of the joy of being in a band.”
Fortunately, with the help of a little Time, Tequila & Therapy — literally — they started to get their groove back. Things improved when the band mates convened in Asheville, North Carolina last September to write and record their new album.
The “Therapy” part of that title is especially important, as several of the band mates are in regular therapy. For Matthew, the experience has helped him communicate effectively with the other guys of Old Dominion.
“This is not a normal life, and the things that come with it are sometimes difficult to wrap your head around,” reflects Geoff. “A lot of it is, ‘How do I adjust? How do you make the transition from being out here where it’s kind of one life and then you go home to another life?’”
Today, the band mates say they’re closer than ever. The lead single of Time, Tequila & Therapy — “I Was on a Boat That Day” — represents the band’s more carefree side.
(TAYLORSVILLE, Utah) — Two Utah police officers are recovering after they were shot by a rape and robbery suspect Wednesday night, police said.
One officer, with the West Valley City department, was shot twice; he was initially in critical condition but has since been upgraded to stable condition, the department said. The second officer, with the Unified Police Department, was treated and released Wednesday night, the department said.
At about 10 p.m., the officers found the alleged suspect, wanted in rape and robbery cases, parked in a 711 parking lot in Taylorsville with a baby inside the car, West Valley City police said.
Officers negotiated with suspect, 20-year-old Anei Joker, to release the 9-month-old, which he did, though he refused to leave the car himself, police said.
Joker later got out of the car and fired at the officers, striking two of them, police said.
Officers returned fire, hitting the suspect, who was taken to the hospital where he died, police said.
The suspect has with history with police and was known to be armed and dangerous, Roxanne Vainuku, public information officer for the West Valley City Police, said at a news conference.
The baby wasn’t hurt, Vainuku said, adding that it’s unclear what the 9-month-old’s relationship was to the suspect.
ABC News’ Timmy Truong contributed to this report.
(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — Former Ohio sheriff’s deputy Jason Meade was charged with murder on Thursday in the fatal shooting of a Black man who was shot and killed while entering his grandmother’s house last December.
In March, the Franklin County Coroner said that Casey Goodson was shot in his back five times, according to ABC affiliate WSYX in Columbus, Ohio. Meade was charged with two counts of murder and one count of reckless homicide.
Goodson’s mother, Tamala Payne, said it had been “a year of grief and a year of pain” at a press conference Thursday morning.
“I’m overwhelmed with joy,” she said in response to the charges. “My emotions are everywhere. We did it y’all. We did it.”
Meade’s attorney, Mark C. Collins, said in a statement that his client “acted within his lawful duties as an officer of the law when he pursued Mr. Goodson,” and said Meade fired his weapon at Goodson in “fear for his life as well as those inside the house.”
Meade turned himself in Thursday and plans to plead not guilty, Collins said.
The attorney for Goodson’s family, Sean Walton, announced that they also filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Meade and Franklin County on Thursday. The lawsuit alleges excessive force, wrongful death and that the practices of the Franklin County Sheriff’s office contributed to Goodson’s death.
Franklin County has declined to comment on the civil lawsuit, citing pending litigation, WSYX reported.
Payne said she ultimately wants Meade convicted and given a life sentence for her son’s killing.
“We are fully aware that this is only the beginning of the fight,” she said at the press conference. “This was the first part of the fight. The ultimate fight is the conviction and I want a life sentence, that’s what I’m fighting for.”
Payne also said that Thursday’s indictment showed that her family’s portrayal of Goodson was accurate.
“Casey is exactly who we say he is,” she said. “Casey was a good son. He was a loving son. Casey was a good grandson. Casey was a good brother, a good role model. Casey was exactly who we portrayed Casey to be.”
Initially, U.S. Marshal Peter Tobin said Meade confronted Goodson after Goodson waved a gun at him. According to the Associated Press, he later withdrew those remarks, saying they were based on “insufficient information.”
Payne argued that the indictment showed that the claim Goodson was waving a gun is a lie, though Collins, Meade’s attorney, pushed back on that claim in a statement, alleging that Goodson was “waving the firearm erratically and tracked Meade with the weapon,” as he drove by Meade’s vehicle.
Following Meade’s indictment, Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin said in a statement that he asked his staff to review the investigation so the agency could learn from this situation.
“This office has a professional obligation to do everything in its power to ensure the community and our deputies are kept safe,” he said. “As I’ve said from the very beginning, I pray for everyone involved in this tragedy.”
Walton said that the family’s lawsuit would bring some level of accountability to Goodson’s family, who he said had been traumatized by the shooting.
“Since that day, they’ve had to deal with this daily sadness and grief for nearly a year,” he said. “So this day could not come soon enough. But they stayed strong, they never wavered, and they told the truth. And the truth will prevail in this case.”
Nine members of Goodson’s family, including four children, were in his grandmother’s home when he was shot, Walton said.
(MIAMI) — Investigators arrested a homeless man in Miami, who, they said, was responsible for the homicide of a 14-year-old boy in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Police said they took Semmie Lee Williams Jr., a 39-year-old “homeless drifter,” into custody on Wednesday night on the charge of stabbing Ryan Rogers to death on Nov. 15.
According to an affidavit, Rogers’ autopsy revealed that he had been stabbed numerous times in the head and face and his cause of death was stab wounds.
DNA evidence from a pair of headphones found near Rogers’ body was entered into a database and provided a positive match to Williams, police said.
Police said they located Williams in Miami and found DNA belonging to Rogers on a bloody bandana.
The homicide was a “completely random act,” Palm Beach Gardens Police Chief Clint Shannon said in a press conference Tuesday morning.
He described the incident as an “innocent child victim having a chance encounter with a very violent criminal.”
Rogers left his house on his bike on Nov. 15 around 6:40 p.m. local time and was reported missing later that night by his mother when he didn’t return home. His body was found the next day on Central Boulevard near an I-95 overpass, police said.
On Nov. 25, police ruled Rogers’ death a homicide and announced a reward for information linked to it.
Williams has been charged with first-degree murder with a weapon and was presented in court Tuesday morning, where his bond was denied. He holds a criminal record and has been previously convicted for domestic violence, battery and aggravated assault.
Shannon called Williams “an animal who probably shouldn’t be out on our streets” and thanked the public officers and investigators who “removed a very dangerous monster from our street” in the Tuesday morning press conference.
Williams’ next court date is set for Jan. 3, 2022, according to local ABC affiliate WPBF.
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Marilyn Manson has lost one of his two Grammy nominations.
As reported by The New York Times, and confirmed on the official Grammy update page, the embattled shock-rocker, born Brian Warner, was removed as a songwriter on the Kanye West track “Jail,” which is up for Best Rap Song.
Warner still appears to be a nominee as a contributor to West’s album Donda, which is up for Album of the Year. He’s credited a co-writer of another Donda song, “Jail pt 2.”
That Warner has been nominated at all has been controversial, since multiple women, including ex-fiancée Evan Rachel Wood, actor Esmé Bianco, model Ashley Morgan Smithline, and Warner’s former assistant, Ashley Walters, have this year accused the musician of physical, emotional and sexual abuse.
In a statement to The Wrap about Warner’s nomination, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said, “We won’t restrict the people who can submit their material for consideration.”
“We won’t look back at people’s history, we won’t look at their criminal record,” Mason elaborated. “We won’t look at anything other than the legality within our rules of, is this recording for this work eligible based on date and other criteria. If it is, they can submit for consideration.”
Christine Hahn/Resorts World Las Vegas/Concerts West/AEG Presents
Like Celine Dion before her, Katy Perry was attracted to the idea of a Las Vegas residency because it allows her to perform for fans while still spending time with her child, daughter Daisy Dove.
“I really wanted to be able to strike more of a balance — to have a child and take her to preschool — but also be artistic and play with that energy,” she explains in an interview in Modern Luxury magazine.
“I’m not saying that my tours are done, but a residency is actually the perfect thing for me right now,” the singer notes. “I could not have done this in my 20s, and I am not sure that I would want to do it as I go out to pasture. But I definitely want to do this when I am vital and excited [about] creating and offering what I think is my best show ever.”
“I like to bring a visual feast, and this is a set-in-the-’60s, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids movie on mushrooms,” she adds.
To set PLAY apart from the many other residencies flooding Sin City, Katy is also incorporating NFTs into her show — a way to own piece of unique digital content, such as songs, images or videos.
“The first thing we’re going to be auctioning off with the NFT is the craziest thing I’ve ever done. We’ll be creating something unique in the NFT space every single night,” Katy explains. “Imagine if I put my finger up during the song ‘Firework’ and you wanted to own that moment — now you could.”
Britney Spears and fiancé Sam Asghari shared photos of them boarding a private plane on Wednesday, but they didn’t tell fans where they were going. The only clue came from Britney, who said in an Instagram post that they’ll be “out of the country.”
According to People, the lovebirds jetted off to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. A source told the outlet, “Britney was very excited. She loves beach vacations and hasn’t been to Mexico in many years.”
Now that the “Toxic” singer is no longer confined by her 13-year conservatorship, she is free to go wherever she pleases whenever she wants.
So, how is she dealing with this newfound freedom?
“She is doing well. She is taking care of herself both physically and mentally,” the insider claims. “She feels very lucky to be spending her 40th birthday with [her fiancé.] Such perfect timing to be out of the conservatorship. She feels beyond blessed in so many ways.”
The Grammy winner recently spoke about how she’s been processing her new life, and wrote on Instagram, “I know I’m lucky to be present and exist today !!!! I fought for that an extremely long time. I’m grateful for that but also I still need lots of healing !!!! Not therapy … but the kind of healing that comes from within !!!!”
Also, Sam shared a peek at Britney’s luxurious birthday cake to his Instagram Stories on Thursday. It’s a multi-layer cake in the shape of the letter “B” and it’s covered in gold-dusted red and pink roses, as well as some macaroons. Yum!
Two music icons who have created hits together for thirty years are teasing heir first joint album.
Timbaland and Missy Elliott grew up together in Virginia, and he produced tracks in 1991 for her all-female group, Sista. Now 30 years later, it appears they are preparing their first duo project.
“Who ready for that @missymisdemeanorelliott Timbo album?????,” the “Give It To Me” rapper/producer commented on Instagram, with a video of Missy and a snippet of a song.
Ginuwine, who began his career as a member of the Swing Mob collective in the 90s featuring the duo, replied, “Absolutely.” Brandy reacted as if this were a dream and commented, “Stop playing!!!”
Tim and Missy have written and produced hits together for numerous stars, including Destiny’s Child, Aaliyah, 702, Total and SWV. They created nine songs on Aaliyah’s 1996, RIAA double-Platinum second album, One In a Million, including “If Your Girl Only Knew,” and the title track.
Timbaland, born Timothy Mosley, also worked as a producer and/or executive producer on all of Elliott’s six solo albums, beginning with Supa Dupa Fly in 1997.
Neon Trees are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their sleeper hit “Everybody Talks,” which shook up the summer charts in 2012, by releasing a brand-new EP next week. The offering, called versions of you, arrives December 10.
For those who may be confused about why the EP is coming out now, it’s because Neon Trees released “Everybody Talks” on December 20, 2011. The track debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 2012 and spent six months climbing up the chart before peaking at number six on September 15 of that year.
The single has since sold over five million copies in the U.S. and is considered one of the band’s biggest hits. To celebrate it turning the big 1-0, Neon Trees rerecorded the song and will release it as part of their four-track versions of you EP.
That’s not the only song that got a 2021 facelift — Neon Tress rerecorded their other hits “Animal” and “Sleeping with a Friend,” which are also featured on the EP. Versions of you will also come with a brand-new song, the title track.
Fans can pre-save and pre-add the EP on Neon Trees’ official website.
A streaming event focusing on a recent concert by Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde showcasing her 2021 Bob Dylan covers album Standing in the Doorwaywill premiere December 26 on the Veeps.com platform.
The show, Chrissie Hynde & Co. Sing Bob Dylan (and Other Songs), was recorded during a three-night engagement Hynde played this past July at London’s Royal Opera House. The concert featured renditions of all nine Dylan songs Chrissie recorded for Standing in the Doorway, as well as a couple of classic Kinks tunes, selections from The Pretenders’ 2020 album Hate for Sale, and more.
Hynde was accompanied at the shows by Pretenders guitarist James Walbourne — her main Standing in the Doorway collaborator — along with Carwyn Ellis on keyboards and Danny Williams on upright bass.
The show debuts at 3 p.m. ET on December 26. Anyone purchasing tickets will be able to re-watch the concert until January 3, 2022, at 2:59 a.m. ET.
Standing in the Doorway: Chrissie Hynde Sings Bob Dylan was released in May, coinciding with the folk-rock legend’s 80th birthday. The album came together over the course of 15 weeks in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and includes renditions of nine Dylan songs that Hynde recorded remotely with Walbourne.
We’re pleased to announce the ‘Chrissie Hynde & Co. Sing Bob Dylan (and Other Songs) Streaming Event’ taking place Dec. 26th
Filmed at Royal Opera House, Chrissie Hynde and Co. perform Bob Dylan covers, classic Kinks, Pretenders & more.
