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Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes welcomes 1st child with partner Billy Evans ahead of criminal trial

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

MediaNews Group/The Mercury News/Getty Images

(SAN JOSE, Calif.) — Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and her partner Billy Evans welcomed their first child, William Holmes Evans, on July 10, in Redwood City, California, according to birth records obtained by ABC News.

The birth comes as Holmes is awaiting criminal trial for 12 counts of fraud, beginning Aug. 31 in San Jose, California. If convicted, Holmes could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for each count of fraud. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The charges stem from allegations that Holmes, a Stanford dropout who became a media darling, engaged in a multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud investors about her blood-testing company, and a separate scheme to defraud doctors and patients, according to the indictment.

During a pretrial hearing in June, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila stated there would be a quiet room for Holmes to tend to the newborn during breaks in the trial.

Holmes, 37, first informed the court of her pregnancy in March 2021, according to court filings. The news delayed the trial, previously scheduled for July 13, for a fourth time. The date had been moved three times due to the pandemic.

During a Zoom hearing following the filing, the prosecution voiced their frustration, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Leach saying it was “frustrating and disappointing to learn about this now.”

“Right or wrong, that is going to have a bearing on the jury’s perception of her,” Caroline Polisi, a federal white-collar criminal defense attorney, told ABC News’ Rebecca Jarvis in “The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial” podcast. “Those types of things actually play a really large role in trials, even though they’re not supposed to.”

“Not only is that going to help her in her trial, but it will really help her in the event that she is convicted,” Polisi added. “The fact that she is a young, new mother is going to play into any potential sentence.”

However, defense attorney Jose Baez, famous for defending Casey Anthony, thinks it could backfire.

“I really think that could backfire because once a juror feels that one side is trying to manipulate them over another, they’re not going to like it,” he said.

Polisi and Baez, who are not associated with the trial, are among the top legal experts who will be appearing in “The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial,” an upcoming series of new episodes to ABC News’ No. 1 hit podcast, “The Dropout.” Each week, the podcast will take listeners inside the courtroom and track the trial with real-time reporting on the most important developments.

The new episodes will feature conversations between Jarvis and Holmes’ former colleagues and acquaintances, Theranos patients, top legal experts and others who will provide insight into the trial and Holmes.

The podcast will also bring listeners up to speed on the twists and turns since Holmes was first charged.

“The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial” debuts with two episodes on Aug. 31 and is available for free on major listening platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, TuneIn, Audacy and the ABC News app.

New episodes post Tuesdays throughout the trial with bonus episodes as news warrants. It is written by Rebecca Jarvis, Victoria Thompson and Taylor Dunn. Jarvis and Dunn are producers, and Thompson is executive producer.

ABC News’ Dea Athon contributed to this report.

Albums by Aaliyah, Tank and JoJo will finally be released on streaming services soon

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Aaliyah‘s uncle and the co-founder of Blackground Records, Barry Hankerson, has secured a new deal with the EMPIRE music company, which will release previous albums from the late singer, and well as from Tank, JoJo and other artists.

According to Billboard, a total of 17 albums will be released from Hankerson’s Blackground Records label, which is being revived as Blackground 2.0. Some titles will be available on streaming services for the first time, as well as in physical and digital formats.

Aaliyah released three albums before her 2001 death in a plane crash, but only her 1994 multi-platinum debut, Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number, is available for streaming.

As of Wednesday afternoon, R&B singer Tank archived all the images and videos on his Instagram except for three posts dedicated to his first three studio albums — 2007’s Sex Love & Pain, 2002’s One Man and his 2001 debut, Force of Nature — all of which he recorded for Blackground Records.

“I prayed for this day,” Tank captioned each post, revealing that all three albums will be available on streaming services on September 17.

Meanwhile, JoJo’s self-titled debut and her sophomore album, The High Road, will be released the following week, on September 24, according to Pop Crave. Though fans expressed their enthusiasm over being able to stream the singer’s “original” debut album, JoJo says she’d appreciate it if fans support the 2018 version she re-recorded.

“Thanks for the love babe,” JoJo tweeted in response to a fan. “Never telling you what to do, but just so you know…a stream of the re-recoded 2018 version supports me and helps me continue to do what I love. Streaming the original unfortunately does not.”

Two “Famous Friends” go Gold together: Chris Young and Kane Brown celebrate their newest milestone

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(L-R): Adria DeLaune (The AMG), Kailyn Finnegan (The AMG), Martha Earls (EFG Management), Becky Harris (Huskins-Harris Business Management), Ken Robold (Sony Music Nashville), Chris Young, Kane Brown, Randy Goodman (Sony Music Nashville), Jennifer Way (Sony Music Nashville), Caryl Atwood (Sony Music Nashville), Amanda Good (The AMG), Rob Beckham (The AMG); Alan Poizner

After spending back-to-back weeks at the top of the country chart, Chris Young and Kane Brown’s hit duet, “Famous Friends,” has reached yet another milestone. The song is now RIAA-certified Gold, and the pair received a plaque to mark the accomplishment earlier this week.

“I’m really, really proud of this song and had no idea that it was going to end up blowing up like it did,” Chris said at the time. “And I couldn’t be happier honestly that I get to have a hit on the radio with someone who’s been a friend of mine for a long time.”

That friendship is one that blossomed out of musical admiration: As an aspiring singer, Kane looked up to Chris.

“It’s a full-circle moment for me. You inspired me to get into music and we actually got to take this one to No. 1,” Kane reflected.

“Famous Friends” is also the title track of Chris’ new album, which is due out on Friday. The song also lends its name to his upcoming tour.

On the same night that he was celebrating his current single’s Gold status, Chris was surprised with even more hardware to add to his collection. He was presented with a triple-Platinum plaque for his 2015 hit, “I’m Comin’ Over,” a Platinum plaque for 2018 single, “Hangin’ On,” and Gold certification for his 2017 album, Losing Sleep.

Despite delta, Sturgis Motorcycle Rally poised to ride again

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(Sturgis, S.D.) — While a series of high-profile events have been canceled this week due to the looming threat posed by the delta variant, one that last year contributed to hundreds of COVID-19 cases will not.

South Dakota’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, which begins Friday and runs through Aug. 15, is expected to draw upwards of 700,000 attendees. Last year’s rally, which took place during the height of the United States’ summer surge, had more than 400,000 estimated attendees, many of whom didn’t wear masks as they patronized bars, restaurants and concerts.

The downstream effect was tangible: At least 649 COVID-19 cases were linked to Sturgis, including secondary and third-degree contacts.

“The Sturgis rally had many characteristics of a superspreading event: large crowds, high intensity of contact between people, potential for highly infectious individuals traveling from hotspots, and events in poorly ventilated indoor environments,” a 2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study concluded.

“Such mass events can result in the resurgence of COVID-19 in counties and states even after epidemic control has been achieved through local risk mitigation activities,” the authors wrote.

This year, the CDC has designated Meade County, where Sturgis is located, an area of “high community transmission.” The agency recommends that anyone residing in or visiting such an area wear a mask in public indoor spaces.

South Dakota’s vaccination rate also trails the national average. As of Thursday, 53% of residents had received at least one dose, and 47% were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC, compared with 58% of and 50%, respectively, of all Americans.

Republican Gov. Kristi Noem supports the rally, a major economic driver in the state.

“There’s a risk associated with everything that we do in life,” Noem wrote on Twitter Wednesday. “Bikers get that better than anyone.”

“It’s been extremely busy compared to other years so far,” said Pete Gold, the owner of One-Eyed Jack’s Saloon, a Sturgis-based biker bar. He estimated that at least 100,000 people had arrived in town already.

“There’s not one single person here wearing a mask,” he added. “These people — bikers, Trump supporters, South Dakota Republicans — do not believe in it.”

Despite being unconcerned about COVID-19 or the delta variant, Gold said that he and his family got vaccinated because they want to travel internationally, including to Thailand, where he lives for part of the year.

“I suffered through two Pfizers,” he said. “I have a lot of countries I haven’t been to, so if I don’t get vaccinated, I can’t go.”

LeVar Burton seemingly addresses report that Mike Richards will become new ‘Jeopardy!’ host

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

LeVar Burton says he’s still “blessed beyond measure” amid news that Jeopardy! executive producer Mike Richards is in “advanced negotiations” to become the game show’s host following the death of Alex Trebek.

“I have said many times over these past weeks that no matter the outcome, I’ve won,” Burton tweetedon Thursday.

“The outpouring of love and support from family, friends, and fans alike has been incredible!” he added. “If love is the ultimate blessing and I believe that it is, I am truly blessed beyond measure.”

As previously reported, Burton, who said hosting Jeopardy! was his “dream job,” has been campaigning for the gig since 2013. After fans rallied for Burton to become Trebek’s official replacement with a Change.org petition, the Reading Rainbow and Roots actor was added to the Jeopardy! guest hosting lineup, taking the reins from July 26 to July 30.

Here’s how you can test your early-2000s music knowledge with Joey Fatone and Lance Bass

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ready for some early-2000s nostalgia courtesy of *NSYNC‘s Joey Fatone and Lance Bass?

In celebration of KIDZ BOP’s 20th birthday, Joey and Lance are offering fans the chance to win a virtual 2000s music-trivia night, which they’ll be hosting.

To enter, all you have to do is post a TikTok video of you dancing to the KIDZ BOP version of “Bye Bye Bye” and use the hashtag #KidzBopTurns20.

KIDZ BOP, if you didn’t know, is an album series offering family-friendly cover versions of hit pop songs.

Lucy Lawless reunites with ‘Xena’ co-star Renee O’Connor in season two of Acorn TV’s ‘My Life Is Murder’

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

In season 2 of Acorn TV’s drama My Life Is Murder, star Lucy Lawless will reunite with her former Xena: Warrior Princess bestie Renee O’Connor, the AMC streaming service confirmed Thursday.

Lawless played the lead in Xena, and O’Connor portrayed her pal Gabrielle in the series, which ran in syndication from 1995 to 2001.

This time, however, their meeting will be less friendly. In My Life Is Murder, Lawless plays a cop-turned-police consultant, and in the upcoming episode in which O’Connor appears, she plays a woman suspected of involvement in the murder of her self-help-guru husband.

A trailer for season 2 of the acclaimed New Zealand-set drama just dropped. The new season starts August 30 on Acorn TV.

Bastille chronicles return to live stage with “Give Me the Future” video

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Bastille has premiered the video for “Give Me the Future,” the band’s latest single.

The clip chronicles Dan Smith and company’s performance at England’s Latitude Festival last month, which marked one of the group’s first live shows in over 18 months. Attendees at the festival were either fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or provided a negative test.

You can watch the “Give Me the Future” video streaming now on YouTube.

“Give Me the Future” premiered in July. It’s the second new Bastille single of 2021, following June’s “Distorted Light Beam.”

Meanwhile, you can catch Bastille when they perform on the Good Morning America Summer Concert Series, airing August 23 on ABC.

Injured in a video game? Attorney Bryan Breynolds, no relation to ‘Free Guy’ star Ryan Reynolds, is here for you

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The plight of the poor NPC — that means non-player characters in the background of games like Grand Theft Auto — are at the center of Ryan Reynolds‘ upcoming movie, Free Guy.

In the film, Reynolds plays one of those, a bank teller named Guy — and, as NPCs often do, Guy often finds himself a victim of random crimes at the hands of online players.

Finally, however, there’s law firm to stand up for these beleaguered characters: The Offices of Bryan Breynolds.

In a take-off of cheesy TV slip-and-fall attorney ads, a mustachioed Reynolds asks injured NPCs: “Have you ever been shot at, body slammed, flame-throwered, hit by a train, or emotionally demeaned? We can tell you if you have a case.”

You can trust him: he calls himself the #1 Xbox NPC Personal Injury Law Firm in all of Free City — the video game Guy unwittingly thinks of as his real life home.

Free Guy hits theaters August 13 from 20th Century Studios, which is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.

Dolly Parton lands on Forbes’ 2021 list of richest self-made women

August 5, 2021 by WDNY Radio

In a year where many entrepreneurs saw their profits flagging, Dolly Parton was among those who not only survived, but thrived.

In fact, the legendary country multi-hyphenate saw her wealth increase over the last year, enough to land her a spot as one of Forbes’ 15 new additions to their list of the richest self-made women in the world.

With Dolly’s revenue coming from diverse sources — her her holiday album, A Holly Dolly Christmas, a Netflix film, Christmas on the Square, and of course, her stake in her namesake theme park, Dollywood — the superstar’s net worth topped out at $350 million.

That puts her well over the $225 million cut-off to makes Forbes’ list, and in impressive company. Among those named to Forbes’ new crop of richest self-made women this year are supermodel-turned-skincare-entrepreneur Cindy Crawford, and CEO and chair of PepsiCo Indra Nooyi. At 75, Dolly is the oldest of the 15 women to make Forbes’ list.

Most recently, Dolly is expanding her portfolio yet again with the release of her new line of perfume. Called “Dolly — Scent from Above,” the fragrance is a collaboration with ScentBeauty. To go along with it, she released a new song called — you guessed it — “Sent from Above.”

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