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Brothers of Liberté: The Doobie Brothers’ new studio album arrives today

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The Doobie Brothers on Friday released their first new studio album featuring all-new songs in over a decade.

Liberté features 12 original tunes by the group’s core members — Tom Johnston, Pat Simmons and John McFee — produced and co-written with John Shanks, who’s previously collaborated with Bon Jovi, Stevie Nicks and many others.

The album is The Doobie Brothers’ 15th full-length studio effort and their first album of new songs since 2010’s World Gone Crazy. It’s available now on CD and digital formats.

Coinciding with Liberté‘s arrival, the band has debuted a lyric video for one of the new songs, “Shine Your Light,” on their YouTube channel.

In addition, to celebrate the albums release, The Doobie Brothers will perform and be interviewed as part of a special that will be streamed on YouTube.com starting at 7 p.m. ET.

The Doobie Brothers gave fans an early preview of Liberté in August, when they issued a self-titled digital EP featuring four songs from the album — “Oh Mexico,” “Cannonball,” “Don’t Ya Mess with Me” and “Better Days.”

Also in August, the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers finally launched their 50th anniversary tour, which was postponed from 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The trek, which sees former singer/keyboardist Michael McDonald rejoining the group, continues tonight in Spokane, Washington. The 2021 portion of the outing wraps up with an October 29 concert in Allentown, Pennsylvania, while a second leg is scheduled to begin on June 2, 2022, in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Visit TheDoobieBrothers.com for a full list of confirmed dates.

Here’s the track list of Liberté:

“Oh Mexico”
“Better Days”
“Don’t Ya Mess with Me”
“Cannonball”
“Wherever We Go”
“The American Dream”
“Shine Your Light”
“We Are More Than Love”
“Easy”
“Just Can’t Do This Alone”
“Good Thang”
“Amen Old Friend”

Jerry Seinfeld explains why he’s not interested in a ‘Seinfeld’ reunion or revival

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Jerry Seinfeld says it’s important to know when to gracefully bow out. Twenty-three years after his iconic sitcom, Seinfeld, aired its last show on May 14, 1998, Seinfeld says he’s still convinced that there’s no need for a revival.

“Has it happened, could it happen, is it happening, or is it in motion — what kind of motion? When will we see something?,” Seinfeld tells ABC Audio of the questions he’s often asked about a potential revival. “There’s absolutely nothing going on.”

Although the award-winning actor considers himself a “nostalgi[c] person” since he still visits his childhood home in Long Island and supports the New York Mets, Seinfeld believes it’s important not to live in the past.

“I believe in going forward,” he says, before sharing that even if he did do some sort of Seinfeld reboot, he’s not sure what it would be about or if it would even “be as good.”

“I think we did a good job,” he says of the original series.

In fact, Seinfeld believes a reboot could even possibly tarnish his legacy.

“I remember I was in a cab one time and the cab driver said to me, ‘Why did you stop doing that show? It was very successful,” he recalls. “And I said to him, ‘Well… we had done it for nine years and I realized I could go off the air right now. And… I could be a legend in the sitcom world, or I could risk that to make some more money.'”

He continues, “[And] I said, ‘What would you do?’ to the cab driver. He said, ‘I’d go for legend.’ I said, ‘Yeah, that’s what I thought.’ So we went for a legend. That’s why we’re not coming back.”

The entire Seinfeld catalogue is now available to stream on Netflix.

DOJ and Texas face off in court over restrictive abortion law

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Lawyers from the Justice Department and the state of Texas squared off in court Friday as the Biden administration seeks an order that would halt enforcement of the state’s restrictive abortion law.

In an overnight filing, DOJ officials accused Texas of mounting a “brazen” effort to enact a law purely designed to obstruct women’s right to an abortion while evading all traditional methods of judicial review.

“S.B. 8’s novel enforcement scheme is calculated to accomplish what no state should be able to do in our federal system: deter, suppress, and render moot rights guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States,” department officials said in their filing. “The State does not dispute that S.B. 8 has virtually eliminated previability abortions after six weeks of pregnancy in the State. Moreover, the approach Texas has taken need not be confined to the abortion context. If this mechanism works here, it would serve as a blueprint for the suppression of nearly any other constitutional right recognized by the Supreme Court but resented by a state government.”

S.B. 8, or the ‘Texas Heartbeat Act,’ bars physicians from providing abortions once they detect a so-called fetal heartbeat — which can be seen as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. But the language of the law makes it so private citizens can sue anyone they “reasonably believed” provided an abortion, and effectively removes any government officials from being part of its enforcement.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced last month that the Justice Department would sue Texas over its law just one week after the U.S. Supreme Court let it take effect. Soon after, the department filed for an emergency injunction seeking to halt enforcement of the law entirely as the legal fight plays out.

In a filing Wednesday, Texas officials urged District Judge Robert Pitman to dismiss DOJ’s request for an injunction — arguing the Biden Administration had no standing to pull it before a federal judge and that the matter should instead be resolved before state courts.

“The federal government asks the Court to dispense with the normal cause-of-action requirement based on unfounded fears that the Texas Heartbeat Act will otherwise “evade judicial review.” Nothing could be further from the truth,” officials wrote in their filing. “The constitutionality of the Texas Heartbeat Act can be reviewed in the same way that virtually all of state tort law is: State-court defendants raise constitutional defenses before neutral judges sworn to follow the U.S. Constitution and, if necessary, appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Also in their brief, Texas officials made an eyebrow-raising counterargument to DOJ’s contention that the abortion law hinders interstate commerce — the state instead pointed to reports of women seeking an abortion being forced to travel out of the Texas to Oklahoma, saying that “is stimulating rather than obstructing interstate travel.”

It’s not clear when Judge Pitman might rule on DOJ’s request for an emergency injunction — though the ruling is likely to face a quick appeal from either Texas or DOJ to try and put the matter before the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which in a separate challenge previously ruled the law could take effect.

Mastodon releases new ’Hushed and Grim’ song, “Teardrinker”

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Mastodon has released a new song called “Teardrinker,” a track off the band’s upcoming album, Hushed and Grim.

Filled with openhearted lyrics and melodic guitar riffs, “Teardrinker” seems to reflect the motifs of grief that are spread throughout Hushed and Grim, which is dedicated to the memory of Mastodon’s late manger, Nick John. Its accompanying video, streaming now on YouTube, further explores those themes with mystical images of giant stone statues crying waterfalls.

“Teardrinker” is the second Hushed and Grim song to be released, following the single “Pushing the Tides.” The whole album is set to arrive October 29.

Mastodon will launch a co-headlining tour with Opeth in support of Hushed and Grim in November.

Katy Perry thanks Orlando Bloom while accepting ‘Variety”s Power of Women honor

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Katy Perry was honored Thursday night at Variety’s Power of Women event in Los Angeles.

The singer took the stage to accept the honor, which celebrates her philanthropic work with her Firework Foundation. She thanked her sister, Angela, who co-founded the organization, as well as her partner, Orlando Bloom.

Katy called Orlando “an incredible father [and] an example to our greatest gift ever, our daughter Daisy — a future powerful woman.”

“I pledge to you to do my best to be an example of one, to never put limits on your dreams, to lead with love, never through fear, and to always be your lighthouse in any darkness,” Katy continued. “…Lest we forget, behind every great woman, there is a great man… And I’m sure whether I like it or not, Orlando, a man that is a friend and an ally to women all around the world. Thank you for handling the insanity of my life.”

Katy also performed “What Makes a Woman” at the event, which honored Lorde, TV executive Channing Dungey, poet and activist Amanda Gorman and actress Rita Moreno.

Kings of Leon cancel remainder of tour following death of Followill brothers’ mother

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Kings of Leon have canceled the remainder of their U.S. tour following the death of brothers Caleb, Jared and Nathan Followill‘s mother, Betty Ann.

The band had shared last week that they were dropping off of two upcoming concerts to return home to Betty Ann, who’d been “dealing with a medical crisis.” Soon thereafter the sad news came that she had passed away.

In an Instagram post Thursday evening, KoL announced that they’d be staying off the road for the time being to “be with our families.”

“We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from our fans,” the band wrote. “Thanks for the kind words and all the love you’ve given to the entire Followill family.”

Along with the Followill brothers, Kings of Leon include their cousin, Matthew Followill, who’s Betty Ann’s nephew.

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Ryan Hurd admits to “Chasing After…” his first top ten, and making one important change

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ryan Hurd‘s enjoying his first top-ten song as an artist right now, duetting with his wife Maren Morris on “Chasing After You.”

Of course, Ryan’s already been to the top of the chart as a writer, having co-written “What If I Never Get Over You” for Lady A, Luke Bryan‘s “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset,” and Blake Shelton‘s “Lonely Tonight.”

Ironically, his first major success comes with a tune he didn’t write — one that’s been a hot property for some time.

“This song has been around a long time,” Ryan explains. “And it was held by a handful of artists before us, and for whatever reason didn’t make those albums. And when it became available, I remember asking around if it would be something that I could kind of claim.”

“And I remember [Maren and I] were on our first trip together, which was a while ago, and we were on a beach,” he recalls. “We went to the Caymans, I think. I think that’s the night that Maren said she wanted to be a part of this song.”

“And so it’s gone through a few versions of recordings, and we settled on this one,” Ryan adds.

It turns out “Chasing After You” wasn’t even envisioned as a collaboration at first.

“It was originally not a duet,” Ryan reveals. “But I think picturing it and being able to do that, I think once we saw that it could be, it just became much more powerful.”

You’ll find “Chasing After You” on Ryan’s debut album, Pelago, which comes out October 15.

Blake Shelton drops new country music anthem, “Come Back As a Country Boy”

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Blake Shelton‘s new single is out! The Oklahoma native just dropped “Come Back As a Country Boy,” celebrating everything that is right about country music. The song, written by Michael Hardy, Jordan Schmidt and Josh Thompson, is from Blake’s upcoming Body Language Deluxe album, out on December 3.

“I think this song is an anthem for everyday hardworking country people out there,” Blake said of his rocking new single. “We have so much pride in who we are and what we do that, if we ever died and got the chance to live life over again, we probably wouldn’t do it if we couldn’t be country.”

Blake will wrap up his Friends and Heroes Tour this weekend with shows in Michigan and Wisconsin.

Porsha Williams confirms departure from ’Real Housewives of Atlanta’

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Another OG has left the Real Housewives of Atlanta. After 10 seasons on the show, Porsha Williams is handing in her peach.

Taking to Instagram on Thursday, the reality star shared a a few photos of herself along with a montage of clips from her time on the series. Alongside it, she announced, “After ten life-changing, gratifying, incredible years, it is finally time to begin my next chapter. Next season, I will not be returning to the Real Housewives of Atlanta franchise.”

“This was a difficult decision to not only make, but also come to terms with,” Williams continued. “It’s one I have put a lot of thought into and because of that, I know it’s the right one.”

The mom of one extended a thank-you to multiple networks and to her Bravo family, for which she said she has “much love and endless gratitude.”

“You’ve made the past decade a truly special one. One where I’ve dealt with unbelievable highs and unbelievable lows, and I can honestly say I would not have made it through some of them without the unconditional love and support I have gotten from all of you,” Porsha shared.

Williams went on to tease that this isn’t the last fans have seen of her.

“Don’t worry though, I’ll be back on your TV very soon. I can’t wait to share all of my exciting new endeavors with the world-beginning with the release of my memoir, The Pursuit of Porsha, out on November 16,” she concluded. “As for the rest, you’ll just have to wait and see! Love ya!”

Porsha’s exit comes just days after another OG, Cynthia Bailey, revealed she also would not be returning to RHOA for season 14.

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Haunting Disney+ today, the animated musical show ‘The Ghost and Molly McGee’

October 1, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Launching on Disney+ today is the animated series The Ghost and Molly McGee.

Featuring the voice of Emmy-winning writer and Mythic Quest co-star Ashly Burch, the series has her starring as Molly, an ever-optimistic tween girl whose family moves into a new home, only to find her attic room haunted by a curmudgeonly ghost named Scratch.

“He curses her and says, ‘Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be there haunting you.’ But Molly, being unflappable, kind of goes, ‘Well that just sounds like you’re my best friend now!’ Burch tells ABC Audio with a laugh.

“So it’s basically like an Odd Couple kind of thing of these two people that are forced to be together…But… over the course of several episodes, form this really cute, funny friendship.”

Burch explains she was first just called in to consult on the show, by creators Bill Motz and Bob Roth, but soon hooked into the character. “They were sort of like, ‘We’re we’ve never been a tween girl. Do you want to take a look at this…?’ And…I might have just flat out said, like, ‘Can I audition for this character?'”

For Burch, the show, which has already been renewed for a second season, is a dream gig.

“It’s so surreal,” the actress and writer admits. “I loved Disney when I was a kid, I mean, I had Little Mermaid bed sheets, I wanted to be Ariel…So it’s really, really cool to be part of not only part of a Disney show, but to be the lead of a Disney show and [not] only the lead…but it’s a musical!”

“10-year-old Ashly would be losing her mind if she knew,” she laughs.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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