BET+ has released a teaser to their original holiday movie lineup that features a star-studded cast including Bill Bellamy, Vanessa Williams, Amber Riley and Loretta Devine.
The eight featured films, which will premiere every week on the streamer starting November 4, are A Christmas Wish, A Rich Christmas, The Business of Christmas 2, Christmas Déjà Vu, Christmas for Sale, The Jenkins Family Christmas, Merry Switchmas, and Soul Santa. They will be available to stream all season long.
In other news, Questlove has teamed up with The Balvenie for the new digital series Quest for Craft. For the debut episode, Questlove enlisted Saturday Night Love alum Michael Che for a candid chat on “how unpredictability and disorder play a role in their respective crafts.” Check out the first episode now available on YouTube.
Finally, six-time Tony Award award winner Audra McDonald is headed back to Broadway. According to Variety, McDonald is slated to star in Ohio State Murders, a new play by Adrienne Kennedy. Directed by Kenny Leon, the play follows McDonald as Suzanne Alexander, a fictional Black writer, who returns to Ohio State University to “talk about the violence in her writing.” While there, a “dark mystery” begins to unravel.
Adele has unveiled the track listing for her hotly anticipated album 30.
There are 12 tracks in all, including the single “Easy On Me.” The standard version of the album doesn’t include any guest artists, though one track, an “interlude” called “All Night Parking,” includes the words “with Erroll Garner” in its title. Garner was a legendary jazz pianist who died in 1977; perhaps she’s using a portion of one of his compositions for the interlude.
The Target edition of the album includes three bonus tracks, and one of those is a duet version of “Easy On Me” with country music superstar Chris Stapleton. Stapleton gets around: He’s also on Kelly Clarkson‘s new holiday album, and Taylor Swift’s upcoming album Red (Taylor’s Version).
Adele is also offering CD and cassette “box” versions of 30, which come with a t-shirt, a photo print of Adele and the album on either CD or cassette with a 16-page insert booklet.
Here’s the track list for 30, due out November 19:
“Strangers By Nature”
“Easy On Me”
“My Little Love”
“Cry Your Heart Out”
“Oh My God”
“Can I Get It”
“I Drink Wine”
“All Night Parking” (with Erroll Garner) Interlude
“Woman Like Me”
“Hold On”
“To Be Loved”
“Love Is a Game”
Target Deluxe Tracks:
“Wild Wild West”
“Can’t Be Together”
“Easy On Me” (with Chris Stapleton)
Ken Jeong got some laughs — and apparently panicked co-anchors — on ESPN’s College GameDay show Saturday night — all for sweetly shouting out his wife.
When asked for his picks in the Saturday evening match-up between UCLA and Utah in Salt Lake City, Jeong admitted football ignorance. Instead, he picked from the heart: “I’m going UCLA because my wife went to UCLA medical school, adding: “Shout out, Tran. You complete me, Ho!”
The game’s analysts, Rece Davis, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, and Kirk Herbstreit cracked up, stunned, with Herbstreit asking, “Did he say what I think he said on the backend there?”
“Relax, relax! Jeong said. “It’s her last name!”
“How dare you, ESPN,” he said in mock outrage.
Jeong, a doctor-turned stand up comic and star of movies like the Hangover films and his own ABC sitcom Dr. Ken, married Dr. Tran Ho in 2004.
Incidentally, he was also shouting out his own 2019 Netflix special, You Complete Me, Ho.
ESPN is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.
The divorce battle between Tyrese and his estranged wife continues as he has reportedly filed a motion to block her “unreasonable” demands.
The Fast & Furious star claims that Samantha Lee Gibson has hired three lawyers and is demanding that he pay high attorney fees, according to court docs reportedly obtained by SandraRose.com. Samantha, who is Tyrese’s second wife, was married to him from 2017-2020. They have a three-year-old daughter, Soraya, and she is requesting $20,000 a month in child support, plus 100% of the child’s expenses, including medical bills, private school, nannies, etc.
The couple announced they were seeking a divorce in December 2020. Samantha alleges that the 42-year-old singer/actor cut her off financially and had locked her and Soraya, out of their home in Georgia.
Tyrese is now involved with model Zelie Timothy, and as previously reported, last month they faked they were breaking up to promote her YouTube channel. He made the admission in a nine-minute Instagram video, with Timothy laughing behind him.
“It was my idea,” Tyrese confessed. “We just want to apologize. We broke up for a good three-and-a-half minutes. We did it for the ‘Gram.'”
(MINNEAPOLIS) — The future of the Minneapolis Police Department may be decided on Tuesday.
A ballot measure is asking voters if the city should amend its charter to replace the police department with the Department of Public Safety, which would take a “comprehensive public health approach.”
The new department could include police officers, but there wouldn’t be a required minimum number to employ. The MPD had 588 officers as of mid-October and was authorized for up to 888, according to The Associated Press.
The charter amendment would replace the police chief with a commissioner nominated by the mayor and approved by the City Council. By state law, the charter amendment would go into effect 30 days after it passes.
“It’s a vote for us to all reimagine public safety and to move away from the type of systems that have not produced safety for all communities,” said Rashad Robinson, a spokesperson for Color of Change PAC, which organized in support of the ballot measure.
City Council member Jeremiah Ellison told ABC News that the police department would become a division of law enforcement within the Department of Public Safety.
“Question two is about are we locked into our current system of public safety, this police only model,” he said. “Are we locked into this model, that’s what voting no does, or do we have an ability to transform public safety into the future? That’s what a yes does.”
While supporters of the charter amendment connect it to the calls for police reform that followed George Floyd’s killing last year, opponents, including those who want reform, have said the measure is ill-defined and crafted without enough community input.
“We skipped over a lot of steps that would normally happen when you’re bringing about a change of this magnitude, and people are being sold a proposal that has no plan attached to it,” said Nekima Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis civil rights attorney and activist. “There’s no certainty of what this new department will actually look like, how it will function and whether it will actually address the underlying public safety issues.”
Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo similarly criticized the charter amendment at a press conference on Wednesday.
“It will not eliminate tragic incidents between police and community from ever occurring in our city,” he said. “It will not suddenly change the culture of the police department that has been in existence for 155 years.”
Voters appear divided. North Minneapolis resident Tallaya Byers said that she supports the public safety charter amendment because she feels current police officers aren’t trained to handle certain situations, like those involving people who use drugs or have a mental illness.
“It will bring an element to where they can identify and analyze situations, to where people are not seen as such a threat,” Byers said. “For me, it’s going to help the police officers do their job, analyze situations, have a conversation. It’s that simple.”
Teto Wilson, a North Minneapolis resident who owns a barbershop, said that he plans to vote against the ballot measure because proponents haven’t elaborated on how it will affect people of color.
“I think policing needs to be radically reformed, and they’re proposing this charter amendment like it’s a radical change to policing, but how can you say that you haven’t told us what that means,” he said. “What’s going to be in this Department of Public Safety?”
He added: “They have not told us what it would look like other than, you know, we’re gonna have mental health workers that are going to show up on calls. I can’t see how that’s going to solve our problems.”
Some council members have pushed back on claims that they haven’t explained the proposal thoroughly. Council member Phillipe Cunningham tweeted in August that the city attorney advised council members to not engage on an outline of the ordinance that would explain the functions of the proposed Department of Public Safety because it could be seen as advocacy.
“A charter change is supposed to be as barebones as possible,” he said. “You’re not going to put a bunch of details that might need to be flexible in the charter, you’re going to put a skeleton language in the charter.”
Ellison added that amending the charter would not reallocate funds. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the most recent police budget approved was $164 million, with an additional $11 million accessible if approved by the City Council.
Wilson said he was worried neighborhood crime may increase with fewer officers. Armstrong mentioned a similar concern.
“Many in our community feel as though we have already been underserved when it comes to having to call 911 or receiving an adequate response when there is a crisis,” she added.
Robinson, the Color of Change spokesperson, said that the charter amendment gives the city more tools for approaching public safety issues.
“The community has been doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result,” he said. “This is putting something new on the table and hoping to build some new ways of really bringing about safety and bringing about justice.”
But Armstrong, a local organizer, pushed back on that idea.
“It’s a false dichotomy between voting ‘no’ and keeping things the same, or voting ‘yes’ and agreeing to this new public safety charter amendment,” she said. “Really, we should have had a community engagement process. We should have had evidence-based practices and we should have had options in terms of what kind of structure, you know, the MPD should become, versus being boxed into voting ‘no’ or voting ‘yes.'”
ABC News’ Zachary Kiesch and Briana Stewart contributed to this report.
Halloween is over and the countdown to Thanksgiving is on. A slew of performers have already been announced for the 2021 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is returning to full strength after a limited 2020 version.
Rob Thomas, who has a new holiday album called Something About Christmas Time, will be singing aboard the Hallmark Channel float, while Andy Grammer will be performing and riding on the Entenmann’s float.
Rock band Foreigner will perform on board the New York Life float and other acts who’ll be participating include Darren Criss, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Batiste and country stars Jimmie Allen, Chris Lane and Mickey Guyton.
The 95th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will air from the streets of New York City on NBC from 9 a.m. ET to noon, November 25 in all time zones.
Halloween is over and the countdown to Thanksgiving is on. A slew of performers have already been announced for the 2021 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is returning to full strength after a limited 2020 version.
Rob Thomas, who has a new Christmas album, will be singing aboard the Hallmark Channel float, while Andy Grammer will be performing and riding on the Entenmann’s float. “A-O-K” singer Tai Verdes will be on board the Jenni-O Turkey float.
Other acts who’ll be participating include Nelly, Kelly Rowland, Darren Criss, Kim Petras, “Control” singer Zoe Wees and country stars Jimmie Allen, Chris Lane and Mickey Guyton.
The 95th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will air from the streets of New York City on NBC from 9 a.m. ET to noon, November 25 in all time zones.
Maren Morris‘ upcoming third studio album is complete.
When a fan reached out to the singer on Twitter about new music, she solidified the news they’ve been waiting for.
“Hi we’re ready for that album queen @MarenMorris,” the fan wrote, to which the superstar responded, “It’s finally done, Queen,” accompanied by a check mark and sparkle emoji.
The new project will follow Maren’s CMA Award-winning sophomore album, Girl, which was released in 2019. It spawned two #1 hits: the title track and the crossover hit “The Bones.”
Maren is currently climbing the charts with a duet with husband Ryan Hurd on “Chasing After You,” which is inside the top five on country radio.
Foreigner will help bring some rocking holiday cheer to the 95th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which will air live on NBC from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET on Thursday, November 25.
The veteran rockers will be featured on “The House of Marvelous Milestones” float, sponsored by New York Life. Among the other music artists scheduled to appear or perform during the parade are Matchbox Twenty‘s Rob Thomas, rapper Nelly, R&B singer Kelly Rowland, pop singer-songwriter Andy Grammer, Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth, and country stars Carrie Underwood, Jimmie Allen, Mickey Guyton and Chris Lane.
The annual New York City event will be hosted by Today show co-hosts Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker.
In other news, Foreigner has a series of upcoming 2021 U.S. shows, scheduled from a concert this Thursday, November 4, in Corbin, Kentucky, through a November 21 performance in Estero, Florida. The latter gig is a previously reported benefit show headlined by John Fogerty that will raise money for The Charity Pro’s organization.
Foo Fighters have shared a statement expressing their gratitude following their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame over the weekend.
In a tweet, Dave Grohl and company thanked the Rock Hall and the city of Cleveland, as well as Beatles legend Paul McCartney, who did the inducting honors, and, of course, the fans.
“Most importantly…Thanks to all of YOU for singing along for all these years,” the Foos write. “We wouldn’t be here without you.”
“Can’t wait to see you again soon!” they add.
Along with the induction — which marked Grohl’s second, following his enshrinement with Nirvana — the Foos performed their songs “Best of You,” “My Hero” and “Everlong,” and closed out the night with a rendition of The Beatles’ “Get Back” alongside McCartney.
The 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will premiere on HBO and HBO Max November 20. Other artists who were inducted include Carole King, The Go-Gos, Tina Turner, Todd Rundgren and JAY-Z, as well as Kraftwerk, Charley Patton and Gil Scott-Heron for Early Influence, and Randy Rhoads, Billy Preston and LL Cool J for Musical Excellence.
