(NEW YORK) — As Simone Biles’ decision to withdraw from competition at the Olympics sent shockwaves around the world, one facet in particular stood out to former Olympic gymnasts: that she had the power to make that decision for herself.
“I never remember feeling like I ever got to make those decisions, even if I had wanted to,” 2012 U.S. Olympian Jordyn Wieber told ABC News.
When she was growing up in elite gymnastics and going through the USA Gymnastics system, Wieber said, it was a culture where “the gymnasts don’t have the voice, it’s up to the coaches. And I sometimes describe it as we’re just kind of like robots that do what we’re told.”
Biles’ ability to make her own decision to withdraw is representative to many of a culture that is slowly but surely changing, especially after the reckoning the sport has faced for abusive practices in the five years since the last Olympics.
This is the first Olympics since USA Gymnastics was torn up over the public revelation of team doctor Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse of scores of young athletes — and questions remain over who knew what in the organization, and when. Since then, a handful of gymnastics coaches have been dropped, suspended and charged with various types of abuse.
Also since then, after gymnasts’ pressure, USAG closed the infamous Karolyi ranch, a training facility where many gymnasts say they were abused by Nassar. This is the first Olympics in three decades without the influence of Bela or Martha Karolyi, who arguably developed the U.S. program to its recent dominance but did it with a fierce strictness many gymnasts have condemned. They have also been involved in lawsuits alleging their complicity in Nassar’s abuse. They have always maintained their innocence.
“(Biles’) decision demonstrates that we have a say in our own health—’a say’ I NEVER felt I had as an Olympian,” 1996 U.S. Olympian Dominique Moceanu tweeted Wednesday morning, recounting how at 14 she competed in the Olympic floor final minutes after falling on her head on beam.
Dominique Dawes told “Good Morning America” she had actually quit during the 2000 Olympic trials, saying, “I was done after prelims because it was too much on me emotionally. However, I was not able to make that decision. It was very much a controlled atmosphere.”
Dawes went on to compete in the 2000 Olympics, her third.
Rachael Denhollander, a former gymnast and the first to publicly accuse Nassar of abuse, wrote in a series of tweets that Biles’ decision was an example of “the change we’ve worked so hard for” after “gymnasts were raised in a system that not only didn’t care about the damage to their bodies and minds but that twisted reality for them.”
“Hopefully,” Wieber said, “we’re shifting away from the culture of prioritizing medals and money and the success of the athletes over the health of the athlete,” which is something she’s been working on herself as head coach for the University of Arkansas. She said she sees Biles as a “pioneer” and that makes her “really proud.”
Moceanu, who won gold as part of the U.S. team in Atlanta, told ABC News in a written comment that Biles was “finding new ways to be heroic,” saying she was “actually very proud of Simone.”
“What she did was actually very brave and is a positive sign for the future of the sport,” Moceanu wrote.
Biles has said she remained in the sport in part to be a leader and continue to push to change the culture.
Nastia Liukin, who won gold in the individual all-around for the U.S. at the 2008 Olympics, wrote on Instagram about Biles, “Thank you for creating a safer space for current and future athletes to unequivocally be themselves.”
“I think gymnastics has had no choice over the past couple of years than to change,” said Wieber, who won team Olympic gold in 2012. “And a lot of coaches are being pushed to look at, you know, what their own coaching style is and look at how it is affecting their athletes long term and make some adjustments.”
But there’s still a ways to go both culturally and in examining what USAG did or didn’t do about abuse by Nassar and others, added Wieber, who was abused by Nassar and coached by John Geddert, who killed himself earlier this year after being charged with human trafficking and sexual assault.
Noting that no one knows what Biles, who was also abused by Nassar, is going through at the Olympics but herself, Wieber said of competing for USAG, “I can take some guesses and imagine that it’s probably difficult to represent an organization like USA Gymnastics for her, an organization that has failed her so many times and failed a lot of us.”
She continued, “I’m just making assumptions here, but I can imagine that it, it adds to the weight of what she carries with her every day of having to represent that organization.”
(TOKYO) — South Africa’s Tatjana Schoenmaker edged out America’s Lilly King and Annie Lazor to win gold in the 200-meter breaststroke at the Tokyo Olympics on Friday.
Seconds later, Lazor, followed by King, swam over to Schoenmaker to hug her as she celebrated not just a win, but a historic win.
Taking off her goggles after the finish, Schoenmaker, 24, turned around to see her time and her eyes lit up. She put her hand over her mouth in happy disbelief — she had set a world record.
Schoenmaker’s 200-meter breaststroke time of 2:18:95 beat a world record that was set in 2013 by Rikke Moller Pedersen at 2:19:11.
It was one of those moments that make the Olympics so special as King, Lazor and Schoenmaker’s South African teammate Kaylene Corbett came over to celebrate with her in a group hug in the pool, telling her she was “amazing” and exclaiming, “You did it!”
It was especially emotional for Lazor and King, who trained together, since the death of Lazor’s father in April, reportedly due to COVID-19.
“The last few months for me have been far from easy, but she has dragged me through the mud and pushed me every day and distracted me,” Lazor said of King a few days ago, according to ESPN.
This was Schoenmaker’s second medal in Tokyo after winning silver in the 100-meter breaststroke.
Due to COVID rules, athletes have limited personal support at these Games, and for the most part are being supported by families and friends watching on TV back home.
Earlier in the day, there was another multinational celebration as the gymnastics all-around winners — America’s Sunisa Lee, Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, and Russian athlete Angelina Melnikova — shared selfies together after they got their medals.
Cradle of Filth will return October 22 with their 13 studio album, Existence Is Futile.
The follow-up to 2017’s Cryptoriana — The Seductiveness of Decay was recorded during lockdown in 2020 and, as the band notes, “pieced together in isolation, at Grindstone Studios in Suffolk.” The band’s website describes the new music as “pitch-black, perverse and at times absurdly brutal, following a nihilistic concept both evocative and relentless.”
The album is available for pre-order now. The first taste of the new album is a single and video called “Crawling King Chaos,” which is out now.
“The album is about existentialism, existential dread and fear of the unknown,” frontman Dani Filth tells Metal Hammer. “The concept wasn’t created by the pandemic. We’d written it long before that began, but the pandemic is the tip of the cotton-bud as far as the way the world is headed, you know?”
“I guess the title, Existence Is Futile, does sound a little morbid,” he adds. “But again, it’s more about recognizing that truth and saying that everything is permitted because nothing really matters…We all know we’re going to die, so we might as well indulge life while we possess it.”
Summertime…and the livin’ is all about Sublime. We’ve got more information about the rollout of merchandise and content marking today’s 25th anniversary of Sublime‘s self-titled third album.
Today, you can look back on the album — which featured the hits “Wrong Way,” “Santeria,” “Doin’ Time” and “What I Got” — by watching an episode of Behind the Album Cover. Opie Ortiz, who created the album’s iconic artwork, tells the story behind the image.
Next, an official music video for the track “Pawn Shop” will be released in the coming weeks. The animated clip is done in a “psychedelic/surfer/punk/graffiti” style, and features Sublime’s iconography.
Most importantly, new sales plaques have been presented to Sublime drummer Bud Gaugh, bass player Eric Wilson and, posthumously, late singer Bradley Nowell, the latter being accepted by his widow and son. The plaques commemorate sales of more than 18 million units in the U.S. for the Sublime album.
As previously reported, Travis Barker is currently working on an album of re-imaginings, remixes and collaborations based on songs from the original album.
Exactly 20 years ago this weekend, Blake Shelton released his debut album, Austin, a project that would kick-start his career in country music stardom.
To celebrate, Blake has shared a new Amazon Original acoustic version of the album’s title track, which was also his debut single and first-ever number-one hit.
“Man — 20 years may have passed, but sometimes I still feel like the kid from Oklahoma I was back then,” Blake tells People of the milestone.
“‘Austin’ is the first song we ever released from the album, and it is still a cornerstone of my live shows. I’m excited to share a new version of one of the most important songs of my career with an Amazon Original,” he continues, adding that he’s grateful the song’s message continues to resonate with fans, even its lyrics are a little outdated.
“I’m not sure how many people actually have an ‘answering machine’ anymore, but the song is still as powerful and special as the first time I ever sang it,” Blake adds.
The 20th anniversary of his debut album’s release comes during an exciting moment in the singer’s personal life: Just under a month ago, he got married to his pop superstar girlfriend of five years, Gwen Stefani.
Coming up, Blake will hit the road, resuming his Friends and Heroes Tour after over a year of pandemic-induced shutdowns. The 2021 dates kick off on August 18 in Omaha, Nebraska.
The series, an off-shoot from the 2018 film Love, Simon, has officially been renewed just a month and a half after season two debuted.
The show stars Michael Cimino as a gay teen coming to terms with sexuality. It also stars Rachel Hilson, Anthony Turpel, Bebe Wood, Mason Gooding, George Sear, Isabella Ferreira, Mateo Fernandez, James Martinez and Ana Ortiz.
Season two ended with a few of the show’s core relationships in limbo. George Sear, who plays Victor’s love interest, Benji, says he can’t wait to explore his character even more.
“I hope we can see more more of an exploration with Benji’s…yeah, his relationship, I suppose, but also some of his personal issues, which you will find out when you watch season two,” he tells ABC Audio. “And also it would be cool to see him sort of follow his dreams with music and become a happier person.”
For Bebe Wood, who plays Lake, she’s excited to explore a new direction for Lake’s love life, which was hinted at in the end of season two.
“I think at the end of season two, there is a sort of little moment with Lake that I find very exciting and very enticing, and I can’t wait to explore that in the future,” she says.
(NEW YORK) — The nation’s two leading health organizations focused on the care of pregnant people have issued new guidelines calling on all pregnant people to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
The new joint recommendation from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) comes as the United States faces both a low vaccination rate and a summer surge of COVID-19 cases as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
Just 16% of pregnant people in the U.S. had received more than one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as of May, compared to the nearly 58% of Americans ages 12 and up who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“ACOG is recommending vaccination of pregnant individuals because we have evidence of the safe and effective use of the vaccine during pregnancy from many tens of thousands of reporting individuals, because we know that COVID-19 infection puts pregnant people at increased risk of severe complications, and because it is clear from the current vaccination rates that people need to feel confident in the safety and protective value of the COVID-19 vaccines,” ACOG president Dr. J. Martin Tucker said in a statement. “Pregnant individuals should feel confident that choosing COVID-19 vaccination not only protects them but also protects their families and communities.”
Both ACOG, a national membership organization for more than 60,000 OBGYNs, and SMFM, a global organization with more than more than 5,000 physicians, scientists and women’s health professionals, previously recommended that pregnant people have access to vaccines and should “engage in shared decision-making” about the vaccine with their doctors.
“COVID-19 vaccination is the best method to reduce maternal and fetal complications of COVID-19 infection among pregnant people,” Dr. William Grobman, president of SMFM, said in a statement announcing the new recommendation, also noting the vaccines are safe before, during and after pregnancy.
Here is what pregnant and breastfeeding people may want to know about the COVID-19 vaccines to help them make informed decisions.
1. When can pregnant people get a COVID-19 vaccine?
Everyone 12 years of age and older, including pregnant people, is now eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccination, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Pregnant people can get the COVID-19 vaccine at any point in their pregnancy, and the vaccine does not need to be spaced from other vaccines, like the flu shot or Tdap booster.
2. What is the science behind the COVID-19 vaccine?
Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use mRNA technology, which does not enter the nucleus of the cells and doesn’t alter the human DNA. Instead, it sends a genetic instruction manual that prompts cells to create proteins that look like the virus a way for the body to learn and develop defenses against future infection.
They are the first mRNA vaccines, which are theoretically safe during pregnancy, because they do not contain a live virus.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine uses an inactivated adenovirus vector, Ad26, that cannot replicate. The Ad26 vector carries a piece of DNA with instructions to make the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that triggers an immune response.
This same type of vaccine has been authorized for Ebola, and has been studied extensively for other illnesses — and for how it affects women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
The CDC has concluded that pregnant people can receive the Johnson & Johnson one-shot vaccine after reviewing more than 200 pages of data provided by the company and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Vaccine experts interviewed by ABC News said although pregnant women are advised against getting live-attenuated virus vaccines, such as the one for measles, mumps and rubella, because they can pose a theoretical risk of infection to the fetus, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine doesn’t contain live virus and should be safe.
3. Are there studies on pregnant women and the COVID-19 vaccine?
Two recent studies found Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines appear to be “completely safe” and effective for pregnant people, according to Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Collins wrote in a blog post that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which both use mRNA technology, were found to provide in pregnant people the levels of antibodies and immune cells needed to protect them against COVID-19.
The vaccines were also found to likely offer protection as well to infants born to a vaccinated person, according to Collins.
“Overall, both studies show that COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are safe and effective in pregnancy, with the potential to benefit both mother and baby,” he wrote, later adding, “While pregnant women are urged to consult with their obstetrician about vaccination, growing evidence suggests that the best way for women during pregnancy or while breastfeeding to protect themselves and their families against COVID-19 is to roll up their sleeves and get either one of the mRNA vaccines now authorized for emergency use.”
One study cited by Collins in his blog post was led by researchers at Northwestern University studying people who had been fully vaccinated during pregnancy.
The study, published May 11 in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, is believed to be the first to examine the impact of the COVID-19 vaccines on the placenta, according to the university. Researchers found the vaccine had no impact on pregnancy and no impact on fertility, menstruation and puberty.
The second study cited by Collins, led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, looked at more than 100 women who chose to get either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. Researchers found that the women’s antibodies against COVID-19 after being fully vaccinated were also present in infant cord blood and breast milk, “suggesting that they were passed on to afford some protection to infants early in life,” according to Collins.
An earlier study, a study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology in March found the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are safe and effective in pregnant and lactating people and those people are able to pass protective antibodies to their newborns.
Researchers studied a group of 131 reproductive-age women who received the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, including 84 pregnant, 31 lactating and 16 non-pregnant women and found antibody levels were similar in all three groups. No significant difference in vaccine side effects were found between pregnant and non-pregnant study participants.
The study had some limitations. It was small and participants were primarily white health care workers from a single city. On the other hand, it’s the largest study of a group that was left out of initial vaccine trials.
4. What are health groups saying about the COVID-19 vaccine?
In addition to ACOG and SMFM, other health organizations have also said COVID-19 vaccines are safe for pregnant people.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says pregnant people at high risk of exposure to COVID-19 and those at risk of severe disease should be vaccinated.
“While pregnancy puts women at higher risk of severe COVID-19, very little data are available to assess vaccine safety in pregnancy,” WHO said in a statement. “Nevertheless, based on what we know about this kind of vaccine, we don’t have any specific reason to believe there will be specific risks that would outweigh the benefits of vaccination for pregnant women. For this reason, those pregnant women at high risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 (e.g. health workers) or who have comorbidities which add to their risk of severe disease, may be vaccinated in consultation with their health care provider.”
The CDC says people who are pregnant and breastfeeding “may choose to be vaccinated” and should talk with their health care provider, noting that breastfeeding is an important consideration but “is rarely a safety concern with vaccines.”
“Getting a COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy can protect you from severe illness from COVID-19,” the CDC states on its website. “If you have questions about getting vaccinated, a conversation with your healthcare provider might help, but is not required for vaccination.”
5. What will clinical trials be like for pregnant people?
Pfizer’s phase 2/3 trial will enroll approximately 4,000 women within weeks 24-34 of their pregnancy, the company announced in a press release.
Half will get the vaccine, and half will get a placebo.
The study will include healthy, pregnant woman age 18 and older in the U.S., Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mozambique, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Spain.
Participants in the vaccine group will receive two doses at 21 days apart — and each woman will be followed for at least 7-10 months in order to continuously assess for safety in both participants and their infants.
Infants will also be assessed, up until 6 months of age, for transfer of protective antibodies from their vaccinated mother.
Women enrolled in the trial will be made aware of their vaccine status shortly after giving birth to allow those women who originally received placebo to be vaccinated while staying in the study.
6. Why weren’t pregnant people included in early clinical trials?
Not recruiting parents-to-be in clinical trials and medical research is nothing new, according to Dr. Ruth Faden, the founder of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics and a bioethicist who studies the ethics of pregnancy and vaccines.
“For a very long time, pregnant women were not included in biomedical research evaluation efforts or clinical trials, both for concerns about fetal development and what would be the implications of giving a pregnant women an experimental drug or vaccine and also for legal liability worries from manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies,” Faden told “GMA” last month. “There’s a huge gap between what we know about the safety and effectiveness of a new drug or a new vaccine for the rest of the population and what we know about it specific to pregnancy.”
In the case of the COVID-19 vaccines, health experts have only one of the three sources of evidence that are used to evaluate safety and efficacy during pregnancy: the data on non-pregnant people who were enrolled in the clinical trials, according to Faden.
From that, Faden said, health experts can try to glean what side effects may happen to people who are pregnant, but it is not an exact science.
However, it’s considered typical — and many argue ethically appropriate — to study an unknown substance first in healthy adults and then progressively in broader and broader populations. Pregnant people and children are often tested later down the line because of concerns about potential long-term harm.
Some of the volunteers in prior COVID-19 vaccine trials that didn’t include pregnant women directly may still become pregnant during the trial. This will also give researchers some insights about the vaccine’s safety among this group.
7. What risk factors should pregnant people consider?
At this time, the CDC recommends that pregnant women be prioritized for vaccinations and encourages them to speak to their doctors about the risks and benefits of a vaccination.
The question of whether an expecting parent should receive a COVID-19 vaccine will eventually come down to a number of factors, including everything from the trimester, risk factors for COVID-19, ability to remain socially distanced in their lifestyle and occupation, guidance from federal and state officials and recommendations from a person’s own physicians, experts say.
Similar to the flu vaccine, which was not tested on pregnant people in clinical trials, health experts will need to rely on continuously incoming data to make decisions around how safe the COVID-19 vaccines are during pregnancy.
Officials are doing the same for the general population, considering the speed at which the COVID-19 vaccines were developed, according to Faden, who noted that people who are pregnant should not be “unnecessarily alarmed.”
The COVID-19 vaccines can be taken during any trimester. Since other vaccines are recommended during pregnancy, the CDC currently recommends spacing out vaccine appointments a few weeks apart, if possible.
8. Is COVID-19 more dangerous for pregnant people?
Even now, more than one year into the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S., some questions remain about how pregnant people are impacted by COVID-19.
The CDC has shared data showing that pregnant people infected with COVID-19 are at an increased risk for “intensive care unit admission, invasive ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and death,” compared to nonpregnant people.
Health experts say that with or without the vaccine, pregnant people need to continue to remain on high alert when it comes to COVID-19 by following safety protocols, including face mask wearing, social distancing and hand washing.
ABC News’ Sony Salzman and Eric Strauss contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 612,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and over 4.1 million people have died worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 57.7% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC on Tuesday, citing new science on the transmissibility of the delta variant, changed its mask guidance to now recommend everyone in areas with substantial or high levels of transmission — vaccinated or not — wear a face covering in public, indoor settings.
Here’s how the news is developing Friday. All times Eastern:
Jul 30, 1:00 pm
Delta variant leaves vaccinated, unvaccinated with similarly high viral loads: CDC
Data shows that the delta variant leaves vaccinated and unvaccinated people with similarly high viral loads, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a statement Friday.
“High viral loads suggest an increased risk of transmission and raised concern that, unlike with other variants, vaccinated people infected with Delta can transmit the virus,” Walensky said.
“This finding is concerning and was a pivotal discovery leading to CDC’s updated mask recommendation” this week, Walensky said.
-ABC News’ Sony Salzman
Jul 30, 10:45 am
6 passengers test positive on cruise ship
Six passengers on Royal Caribbean’s Adventure of the Seas ship have tested positive for COVID-19 during routine testing, the cruise line said Friday.
Four of the passengers — who were not traveling together — are vaccinated. The other two are unvaccinated minors who were traveling together, the cruise line said.
One person has mild symptoms. The other five have no symptoms, the cruise line said.
“The guests were immediately quarantined, and their immediate travel party and all close contacts were traced and all tested negative,” Royal Caribbean said. “Each guest and their immediate travel parties disembarked in Freeport, The Bahamas, and separately traveled home via private transportation.”
This cruise started in the Bahamas on July 25. Everyone over 16 must be fully vaccinated and test negative before boarding, the cruise line said.
-ABC News’ Sam Sweeney
Jul 30, 10:30 am
Broadway audiences must be vaccinated
As Broadway gears up for its return in September, the Broadway League announced Friday that everyone attending a show must be vaccinated and wear a mask.
Guests will need to show proof of vaccination when they enter the theater.
This rule applies through October 2021 and may change in November.
All performers, staff and backstage crew also must be vaccinated.
Jul 30, 5:29 am
New Yorkers getting 1st dose to receive $100 incentive
Starting Friday, New Yorkers who receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at any city-run site will get a $100 incentive.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio made the announcement during a press briefing Wednesday.
“We will say thank you. We’ll say we’re really glad that you got vaccinated for yourself, for your family, for your community,” de Blasio said. “And here’s $100 to thank you for doing the right thing and to encourage people.”
The mayor said that New Yorkers getting vaccinated will not only get the cash, they’ll also be able to do “everything else that’s wonderful in this city, including the amazing concerts coming up. You can’t go to those concerts unless you’re vaccinated.”
Jul 30, 4:53 am
Japan to extend coronavirus state of emergency covering 3 of Tokyo’s neighboring prefectures
Japan’s government will put in place a coronavirus state of emergency covering three of Tokyo’s neighboring prefectures and Osaka on Monday, according to public broadcaster NHK.
Tokyo and Okinawa’s declarations will remain in place.
The news comes as case numbers in Japan continue to rise amid the Olympics.
As of Friday, there are 3,300 new positive cases in Tokyo, according to the Tokyo government’s COVID-19 information website. Of those 3,300 cases, 88 are severe and two have turned fatal.
Jul 30, 4:22 am
New CDC brief says vaccines may be less effective against delta variant
An internal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention brief published by the Washington Post Thursday reveals more details about why the delta variant is different to and more concerning than other strains of the coronavirus.
The CDC said the main differences between the delta variant and previous strains is that delta is highly contagious and likely more severe. Plus, breakthrough infections caused by delta may be as transmissible as unvaccinated cases.
“This is an incredibly, incredibly contagious version of virus, it’s almost like a whole different virus,” Dr. Ashish Jha said. “And CDC is estimating that it is probably also more deadly.”
Vaccines prevent more than 90% of severe diseases, but may be less effective at preventing infection or transmission of the delta variant, the CDC said. Therefore, there could be more breakthrough infections and more community spread despite people’s vaccination status.
“Current vaccines continue to provide strong protection against severe illness and death, but the delta variant is likely responsible for increased numbers of breakthrough infections — breakthroughs that could be as infectious as unvaccinated cases,” Dr. John Brownstein, an ABC News contributor, said. “This internal document highlights the challenge we all now face in combating the most transmissible variant of COVID so far.”
Jul 30, 3:38 am
Number of positive cases at Tokyo Olympics reaches 225
There are now 225 positive COVID-19 cases at the Tokyo Olympics, according to a tally kept by Olympics organizers.
That is an increase of 27 cases since Thursday.
Of those cases, three of them are athletes. Two were in the Olympic Village at the time of their positive case, and one was not.
Coinciding with the release of her sophomore album Happier Than Ever, Billie Eilish has released the music video for the title track.
The clip, directed by Billie herself, begins with the singer in a softly lit pastel-colored room as she sings the song into the receiver of an old fashioned telephone as if it’s a conversation to the person on the other line.
As the video goes on, water begins to seep into the room and the lights start to flicker. When Billie opens the door, a deluge of water rushes in and fills the rooms. She manages to swim out and up onto the roof, where she sings the rest of the song as rain pours down.
Happier Than Ever, also featuring the songs “Your Power,” “Lost Cause” and “NDA,” is out now.
A new track that Paul McCartney recorded in collaboration with famed DJ/producer Mark Ronson and synth-pop veteran Gary Numan has been released as part of the soundtrack album for a new Ronson-hosted Apple+ series that premiered today.
Watch the Sound with Mark Ronson is a six-part series that follows Ronson as he “uncovers the untold stories behind music creation and the lengths producers and creators are willing to go to find the perfect sound.” To do that, he interviews artists including McCartney, Numan, Foo Fighters‘ Dave Grohl, Beastie Boys members Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz and “Mike D” Diamond, and more.
Each episode ends with Ronson debuting a new piece of original music created with the guest artist using various groundbreaking techniques and technology.
McCartney and Numan are featured in an episode focusing on the synthesizer, and the tune they created with Ronson is called “I Know Time (Is Calling).”
The six-track soundtrack is available now as a digital download and via streaming services.
Here’s the full track list of Watch the Sound (Original Soundtrack):
Autotune: “Show Me” — Mark Ronson
Sampling: “Why Would I Stop” — DJ Premier featuring Wale
Reverb: “One Life” — Mark Ronson featuring Diana Gordon & Jónsi
Synth: “I Know Time (Is Calling)” — Mark Ronson featuring Paul McCartney & Gary Numan
Drum Machine: “You’ll Go Crazy” — Mark Ronson featuring King Princess
Distortion: “Do You Do You Know” — Mark Ronson featuring Santigold & Kathleen Hanna
