Even though Justin Moore didn’t write his nostalgic hit, “We Didn’t Have Much,” it’s still very much representative of the way he grew up in Arkansas, where he still lives today.
“This sounds like a country song,” he explains, “but we were a family that really did eat dinner together every night. And I was outside ’til dark, I never came in and played with an iPod or anything like that, like my kids do.”
“So that’s something we’re trying to impress upon our own kids as well,” the father of four adds. “And so I think this song kind of wraps all that stuff into one.”
Even though Justin’s hit longs for the good ole days, he admits some of the song’s scenarios still hold true.
“The one line in it that always just kind of makes me chuckle,” he tells ABC Audio, “because it really did happen — and to this day, even my dogs it does happen — is ‘dog barking in the yard at a truck he don’t know.'”
“I mean, that really happens,” he continues. “They know whose truck is okay and who’s ain’t… There’s a lot of those moments in the song that kind of make me smile.”
“We Didn’t Have Much” is the lead single from Justin’s latest collection, Straight Outta the Country, which also includes an acoustic version of his hit.
After teasing its release for weeks, “Stay” by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber is finally out and nobody is happier about that than LAROI himself.
“wowowow I can’t believe ‘stay’ is finally out,” he wrote on Instagram. “this song is so special to me and I’m so f***in happy that you guys finally get to hear it.”
“3 years ago I would of never thought I’d be here but here I am,” he continued. “And I’m so f***ing grateful for everything you guys do for me. you guys have literally changed my life and there’s nothing that I can ever do to repay you.”
He also had kind words for Justin, writing, “dawggggggg thank you so much for being you and all the help and advice you’ve given me. I appreciate you more than you know. I love you I love you I love you guys and I’m so excited to keep movin on this journey with y’all.”
LAROI’s journey essentially started in 2018, when he first posted his music online. He tells ABC Audio that hitting upon his current style — a mixture of singing and rapping — has been a process.
“I went through phases where I was…just hardcore rapping,” he says. “I went through phases where I just wanted to sing and just all different types of stuff. And like, I listen back to some of my old music now and…like, old music, and I’ll be like, ‘Damn, it’s so crazy!'”
“I feel like I’m still getting to find my own sound completely,” he adds, “But, I mean, I’m way closer than I was five years ago. So I guess that’s all that counts!”
Grand Funk Railroad returned to the road earlier this month for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic started in March 2020.
Founding Grand Funk drummer/singer Don Brewer tells ABC Audio that he feels “awesome” about getting to play concerts again, noting that as the health crisis got worse, he’d feared that normal touring might never come back.
“And when it finally started turning around and things started opening up and the vaccines came in, it was like, ‘Man, maybe we can do this again,” he notes. “And now it’s like this is a blessing…that we’re able to get back out and do it.”
The 72-year-old rocker says he’s excited “hear the crowd again and look at the faces and to see the smiles and to see people enjoying what we do.”
The band currently has about 20 confirmed upcoming dates on its 2021 trek, which is called the the Some Kind of Wonderful Tour, named after Grand Funk Railroad‘s hit 1974 cover of the 1967 Soul Brothers Six tune “Some Kind of Wonderful.”
Brewer tells ABC Audio that Grand Funk’s 2021 set list is similar to the one they played prior to the pandemic, although they’re adding a couple of old tunes back into the show, 1969’s “Heartbreaker” and 1970’s “Mean Mistreater,” the latter of which Don says the band hasn’t played since 1998.
The current Grand Funk lineup, which also features founding bassist Mel Schacher, has now been together for 22 years.
“We’re brothers,” says Brewer. “Not only Mel, but everybody. And we lucked out to put this group of guys together, because I don’t think I’ve ever been in a band where you get along with everybody…And we do.”
After his 2018 conviction on sexual assault charges was overturned by Pennsylvania’s highest court, Bill Cosby is reportedly thinking about suing the state of Pennsylvania.
Cosby was sentenced in September 2018 for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting former Temple University employee Andrea Constand in 2004.
The comedian’s publicist Andrew Wyatt says the state violated Cosby’s due process rights.
Speaking to theDomenick Nati Show Friday, Wyatt explained, “We are looking at what recourse, what legal recourse we can take against the state of Pennsylvania” and added that he believes the state has “an axe to grind against black men.”
Wyatt stated Cosby is hoping to obtain “a couple of hundred grand” in compensation.
On Sunday, Montgomery County PA District Attorney Kevin Steele issued a statement regarding misinformation stemming from the overturned sentence. The statement was made after state Supreme Court Chief Justice Max Baer called Cosby’s trial a “reprehensible bait and switch” by the prosecution, in reference to a claim made by Cosby’s legal team that Montgomery County prosecutor Bruce Castor promised not to criminally prosecute Cosby in the Constand case.
The statement, obtained by ABC News, said, “To be very clear, prosecutors in this case did not believe there was an agreement not to prosecute or immunity for the defendant at the time we moved forward on the case, and we do not believe it now. If we had believed there was an agreement or immunity, we would not have moved forward in our attempt to bring Cosby to justice.”
“Among a litany of reasons, a promise never to prosecute was not mentioned by Bruce Castor when he issued his press release saying he was declining prosecution,” Steele continued. “Despite the extensive investigation we conducted, we found no credible evidence that Castor had given Cosby immunity.”
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Sunday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Philadelphia 5, Boston 4
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Toronto 3, Tampa Bay 1
Chi White Sox 7, Baltimore 5
Oakland 4, Texas 1
Houston 8, NY Yankees 7
Minnesota 12, Detroit 9
LA Angels 7, Seattle 1
Kansas City at Cleveland (Postponed)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Miami 7, Atlanta 4
Pittsburgh 6, NY Mets 5
Cincinnati 3, Milwaukee 1
San Francisco 3, Washington 1
Colorado 3, San Diego 1
LA Dodgers 7, Arizona 4
St. Louis at Chi Cubs (Postponed)
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Milwaukee 120, Phoenix 100
WOMEN’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Las Vegas 95, Dallas 79
Connecticut 71, New York 54
Indiana 79, Atlanta 68
Seattle 82, Phoenix 75
Minnesota 86, Los Angeles 61
(DENVER) — A tip from a housekeeper led police to uncover a large arsenal of weapons at a hotel in downtown Denver about a block from Coors Field, where Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game is set to be played on Tuesday.
Three men and a woman were arrested and 16 long guns, body armor and hundreds of rounds of ammunition were seized from two rooms at the Maven Hotel in downtown Denver.
The discovery initially prompted police to suspect they had thwarted a possible mass shooting plot in the works. But on Sunday morning, FBI officials in Denver said a preliminary investigation has not turned up any evidence that the episode is tied to terrorism.
“We have no reason to believe this incident was connected to terrorism or a threat directed at the All-Star Game,” the FBI Denver field office said in a statement. “We are not aware of any threat to the All-Star Game events, venues, players, or the community at this time.”
The FBI said it is working closely with the Denver Police Department, the lead investigative agency of the incident, to get to the bottom of why the cache of weapons ended up at the hotel.
A preliminary assessment indicated the stash of guns appears to be connected to a possible illegal transaction involving drugs and guns, according to an internal law enforcement memo obtained by ABC News.
The four people arrested were identified by authorities as Richard Platt, 42, Gabriel Rodriguez, 48, Ricardo Rodriguez, 44, and Kanoelehua Serikawa, 43. The suspects, who are expected to appear in court on Sunday, were being held on suspicion of weapons charges and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, according to Denver police.
Gabriel and Ricardo Rodriguez were being held without bond. It is unknown at this time whether the suspects have lawyers.
SWAT teams and numerous other police officers converged on the Maven Hotel around 7:30 p.m. local time on Friday after a maid at the hotel saw a rifle in one of the rooms being cleaned and reported it.
Denver police said they spent several hours Friday searching rooms on the fourth and eighth floors of the Wazee Street hotel, where the weapons and ammunition were found. Illegal drugs were also found in the rooms, police said.
“The investigation and arrests were the result of a tip from the public, serving as an excellent example of the critical role the community plays in public safety,” Denver police said in a statement, adding that the agency encourages residents and visitors “to always be aware of their surroundings and to report suspicious or illegal activity to police immediately.”
The Sage Hospitality Group, which operates the hotel, praised the police and its own staff for the quick response.
“We are incredibly proud that our team swiftly alerted the authorities in this instance,” the Sage Hospitality Group said in a statement. “We are thankful to DPD for their quick action to safely resolve this situation and will continue to work closely with them to support their investigation.”
The incident came as thousands of baseball fans poured into Denver for festivities surrounding the All-Star Game, including the annual home run derby scheduled for Monday night.
(LOS ANGELES) — For Meg Keene, climate change is something that not only needs to be addressed but is also very difficult to cope with personally.
“As someone with anxiety, I kind of try not to think too much about the future with regards to climate change, because it’s so terrifying,” Keene, 41, said.
Keene’s life has been bookended by devastating wildfires in increasingly hot and dry California. As a baby she survived the 1980 Panorama Fire in San Bernardino. Most of the houses in her neighborhood were burned, her family’s home was one of the lucky ones that survived.
She has also been through the latest extreme wildfires in East Oakland, where she now lives with her husband and her two children.
Keene says she has been struggling with anxiety since she was a kid and for her, talking about the uncertain and changing weather patterns is triggering.
“I find it crippling with my anxiety and depression, but mostly with my anxiety,” Keene told ABC News.
Some experts say that the mere discussion of climate change can contribute to that anxiety.
“Climate change can affect mental health by just increasing people’s stress and worry about the issue, the more they hear about it,” said Dr. Susan Clayton, a professor in psychology and environmental studies in The College of Wooster, in Ohio.
“It’s been described as an existential threat, something that really challenges the way we think about the world. And I think it has the potential to really erode our sense of security,” Clayton added.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated climate change “may weigh heavily on mental health in the general population and those already struggling with mental health disorders.”
Other drastic weather patterns like rising temperatures, droughts and natural disasters combined with socio economic stresses could also have a toll on certain people since some communities rely heavily on agriculture, a report published by the CDC says.
According to another report by the American Health Public Association, 25-50% of people exposed to extreme weather disasters are at risk of adverse mental health effects. And more than half of adults and 45% of children suffer depression after a natural disaster, the report said.
The day the sky turned orange
Last September, a mix of smoke and fog caused the sky in some areas of Northern California to look eerie and orange during the wildfire season.
“We were driving along the highway and you couldn’t see the ocean, it just looked like the world ended,” Keene told ABC News.
“I sort of can’t explain how apocalyptic it was. It was like being in some sort of apocalypse movie.”
The scene was so impactful she said she had a panic attack in the car, forcing her to stop driving.
“I was not breathing,” Keene recalled.
According to Clayton, “people experience more mental health impacts” as natural disasters become more intense or more frequent.
“I think we can all recognize that if you experience a natural disaster, it’s a very stressful event. It’s frightening. It disrupts your life, it disrupts your community,” Clayton told ABC News.
The climate impact has also affected Keene’s 8-year-old son and husband. She says both deal with anxiety and depression.
“At one point, my son said, ‘Mommy, I think we’re living through something that’s going to be in history books. I would rather not. I would prefer to live during something that would not be in a history book, ‘” she said.
Hurricane Katrina’s impact on mental health
Tyffani De La Cruz is a Hurricane Katrina survivor. She was 13-years-old when the Category 5 storm slammed the Gulf Coast in August 2005, leaving over 1,800 people dead and an estimated $161 billion in damages, according to the nonprofit World Vision Organization.
De La Cruz’s house was located in the hard-hit 9th Ward. Before Katrina made landfall, the family sought shelter in another family’s house in North Louisiana.
As a result of the historic flooding in the area, their home suffered major damage, forcing the family to relocate to a nearby city.
“I was about maybe 15 or 16, when I realized that Katrina had an impact on my well being as far as just being in totally new environments,” De La Cruz told ABC News.
When De La Cruz enrolled in college, she said she started to disengage from extracurricular activities, miss classes and lay in bed all day as part of the instability she was feeling ever since the impact of Katrina.
“I felt like I was chasing a feeling that I could not give back. I wanted to feel how I felt before Katrina, but I never got that feeling. I never was anywhere that I felt as comfortable as I was before the storm,” De La Cruz said.
After noticing that something was off, she searched online for some of her symptoms, she recalled.
“When you see psychiatrists, or psychologists, you’re like ‘Oh well, I’m not crazy I’m just a little tired,'” De La Cruz mentioned.
A psychiatrist diagnosed De La Cruz with post-traumatic stress disorder. Years later she said she was also diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Nearly 50% of Hurricane Katrina survivors developed an anxiety or mood disorder, AHPA’s report says.
The association also reported that suicide and suicide ideation more than doubled, while 1 in 6 developed PTSD.
De La Cruz says it took her a while to understand and internalize what was happening because of the stigma mental health issues had.
“As a global society, there’s still often a lot of stigma around mental health problems,” Clayton told ABC News.
Despite the reluctance to get help, experts encourage that “it’s okay to get help.”
“There are things that can help you with this, I think we would help people cope,” Clayton added.
Billionaire Sir Richard Branson flew to the lower edge of space and back to planet Earth on Sunday in the first fully crewed flight from his private space tourism firm Virgin Galactic.
Billionaire Sir Richard Branson launched to the edge of space Sunday in the first fully crewed flight from his private space tourism firm Virgin Galactic.
“What a day. What a day. What a day,” Branson said at a news conference following the historic flight. “I think like most kids I have dreamt of this moment since I was a kid and honestly nothing can prepare you for the view of Earth from space.”
He said he was honored to “test the customer experience” and declared, “Welcome to the dawn of a new space age.”
“It’s just magical. I’m just taking it all in. It’s just unreal,” said Branson, who popped a bottle of champagne after he and his crew were presented their Virgin Galactic astronaut wings.
The so-called Unity 22 mission lifted off from the New Mexico desert about 10:38 a.m. ET attached to its “mothership” aircraft VMS Eve and just after 11 a.m. reached an altitude of 46,000 feet, which is higher than commercial airlines fly.
Branson, 70, served as a mission specialist on the flight, the fourth crewed spaceflight for Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity spacecraft. Unity was launched from the Eve mothership at an altitude of 50,000 feet and live stream video showed it shooting into space. Within 30 seconds the spacecraft reached Mach 2 speed and a few seconds later hit Mach 3 at an altitude of weightlessness.
Onboard video showed Branson and the three other astronauts smiling as they looked out the windows of the spacecraft. They briefly unbuckled their seatbelts to float around the cabin and take in view of the curvature of Earth.
At around 11:40 a.m. ET the spacecraft touched back down on Earth, making a smooth landing back in New Mexico to loud applause and cheers at mission control.
Latest upates: Virgin Galatic launch
As of 10:30 AM ET, the liftoff was running 10 minutes late.
At 10:38 AM ET, Virgin Galactic has started down the runway.
On Sunday morning, Branson tweeted that he was “feeling good, feeling excited” and ready for this morning’s launch, along with a picture of himself with SpaceX founder Elon Musk.
Big day ahead. Great to start the morning with a friend. Feeling good, feeling excited, feeling ready.
The billionaire rode his bike Sunday morning to the launch area, Spaceport America in New Mexico.
The crew consists of fellow Virgin Galactic staff: Beth Moses, chief astronaut instructor; Colin Bennet, lead operations engineer; and Sirisha Bandla, vice president of government affairs and research operations.
Pilots Dave Mackay and Michael Masucci will fly the spaceship, with C.J. Sturckow and Kelly Latimer flying the aircraft from which the spaceship will dispatch.
Branson’s role is to evaluate the private astronaut experience to prepare for future customers, which Virgin Galactic expects to do beginning in 2022.
‘Space belongs to all of us’: Branson
Virgin Galactic has taken heat from critics, including the Twitter account of competitor Blue Origin, for stretching the definition of “space” as its flights do not go above the Karman line (62 miles above Earth) that is defined by many — but not all — as the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and space.
“I truly believe that space belongs to all of us,” Branson said in a statement earlier this month announcing his spaceflight. “After 17 years of research, engineering and innovation, the new commercial space industry is poised to open the universe to humankind and change the world for good.”
Branson’s spaceflight comes just nine days ahead of when Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said he will launch into space via his own firm, Blue Origin.
(ORLANDO) — The Orlando Magic have named Dallas assistant Jamahl Mosely head coach of the team, President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced on Sunday.
“We would like to welcome Jamahl and his family to the Magic family,” said Weltman. “Within the NBA coaching community, Jamahl is considered a rising star. His coaching path is rooted in player development. He is a communicator and connector, and we look forward to him leading our group.”
Mosley spent the past seven seasons with the Mavericks and served as the head coach for the Mavericks Las Vegas summer league team.
Before the Mavericks, Mosley was an assistant for Cleveland for four years (2010-14) and worked for Denver for five years (2005-2010) with the last three as an assistant coach.
The Milwaukee native played four years at the University of Colorado, before playing professionally oversea’s for four years.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports the Magic search ended with two finalists, Mosely and Denver assistant Wes Unseld Jr. Unseld Jr. is a leading candidate for the Wizards job.
(Los Angeles) — Fires are continuing to spark in the West as a heat wave blankets millions of residents.
Heat alerts are currently active across seven states in the West as the heat wave continues into Sunday. Temperatures in the triple digits are expected in California, Arizona, Oregon and Idaho. Temperatures are set to break records in cities like Flagstaff, Arizona; Salt Lake City, Utah; Bakersfield and Fresno, California; and Billings, Montana.
Extreme drought and dry conditions are persisting in the West as another heat waves looms, creating matchbox conditions for any spark to ignite into a fast-moving blaze.
In California and Nevada, temperatures in the 90s and 100s — along with single digit humidity values — will be conducive to rapid spread again on Sunday.
The Beckwourth Complex Fire in Doyle, California, is now the state’s largest wildfire at 83,926 acres and is only 8% contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The fire prompted mandatory evacuations, closed portions of U.S. Route 395 and crossed state lines into Nevada, ABC Sacramento affiliate KXTV-TV reported.
The Bootleg Fire in Klamath County, Oregon, grew to more than 143,000 acres on Sunday, prompting evacuations in the area, according to the U.S. Forest Service. It was first spotted in the Fremont-Winema National Forest on July 6 but exploded to 75,000 acres on Saturday, ABC Portland affiliate KATU reported.
Evacuations were also ordered due to the Rock Creek Fire in Craig, Montana, which shut down portions of Interstate 15.
The possibility of isolated thunderstorms in Montana on Sunday afternoon could bring breezy conditions and also cause lightning ignitions.
