It appears that Drake announced the release date for his long awaited Certified Lover Boy album in a very mysterious way: with a handwritten note Friday morning on Sportscenter.
The ESPN show opened with its usual montage of sports highlights. Then suddenly, an image appeared, reading “CLB September 3,” as captured by XXL Magazine.
The Champagne Papi’s sixth studio album was delayed after originally being scheduled for release in January. It follows up Drake’s 2018, RIAA five-times Platinum album Scorpion, which features the number-one hits “Nice for What,” “In My Feelings,” and “Nonstop.”
Since the release of Scorpion, Drizzy dropped his Care Package compilation project in August 2019, the Dark Lane Demo Tapes mixtape in May 2020, and his Scary Hours 2 EP in March.
The first single from Certified Lover Boy, “Laugh Now Cry Later,” featuring Lil Durk, was released August 14, 2020 and hit number one.
Did Drake just announce Certified Lover Boy’s release date of next Friday on SportsCenter? 😳pic.twitter.com/nTq3s4OvpM
After years of being one of Nashville’s most in-demand country songwriters and a steadily rising artist in his own right, Ryan Hurd has announced the release of his debut album.
The project, called Pelago, will be out this fall and contain 15 songs, many of which were inspired by the singer’s childhood growing up near Lake Michigan. The track list includes previously-released love ballads like “To a T” and “Diamonds or Twine,” which Ryan has released over the years in part as dedications to his fellow country artist wife, Maren Morris.
Speaking of Maren, she’s featured on Pelago, too: The couple’s current country radio single duet, “Chasing After You,” is the third track on the project.
Additionally, Ryan is celebrating his album announcement with another new song, called “June, July, August.” Pelago will be out in full on October 15, but it’s available to pre-add and pre-save now.
Halsey is comparing their experience being pregnant to a teen mom situation.
In a candid interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Halsey opens up about the struggle of going through a public pregnancy where they were constantly bombarded with derogatory comments. The singer and partner Alev Aydin welcomed their child Ender Ridley Alvin on July 14.
“I’m 26, and I tried very hard for this pregnancy and I’m financially independent, I’m pretty far along in my career, it feels like the right time for me to do it. And I got treated like a teen mom a lot of the times,” she explains.
The singer says that the comments targeting their age and not being married to Alev were damaging to their self-esteem. “It triggered all of these feelings of shame from when I was younger. It triggered a lot of old feelings of shame in me where I was like, ‘How can you have an opinion, that kind of opinion on me making this decision?'” they continue.
Halsey also offered insight into their decision to take a social media break during the pregnancy to ensure the life-changing experience was personal.
“I had to make a choice, especially in my pregnancy, where the girl who’s been the open book for six years, this had to be mine. I was not going to put myself [out there]. The consequences were too high,” the singer says. “The consequences of letting social media stress me out or cause me grief, it’s no longer just me being affected by it. There’s a whole other person whose nervous system is being affected by the status of mine. So I had to make that choice.”
Halsey’s new album, If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, was released Friday.
Queen drummer Roger Taylor recently announced plans to release his first solo album in over eight years, Outsider, on October 1, and now the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has premiered the first single from the record, “We’re All Just Trying to Get By.”
The track features guest vocals by award-winning Scottish singer/songwriter KT Tunstall, and is available now as a digital download and via streaming services.
You also can check out a music video for the tune at Taylor’s official YouTube channel. The clip features footage of Roger in a recording studio singing and playing piano and slide guitar — but not the drums — and Tunstall singing her parts separately.
Taylor wrote the dreamy pop tune during the COVID-19 lockdown while reflecting on what ties all living things together.
“I tried to highlight the great things in life,” he explains. “It’s the simplest statement, really. It’s what every life force on Earth is doing: just trying to get by and proliferate and exist. That’s all we are trying to do, from plants to animals to humans, trying to survive…Also, of course, we are in the middle of a bloody pandemic.”
Regarding Tunstall’s participation in the recording, Roger notes, “The track was all finished, and it was suggested it might be nice if we got KT involved…I love what she did, I think it really adds to the track…She’s a very talented singer and musician, and it’s lovely to have her on the track.”
Adds Tunstall, “What a pleasure to work with such a brilliant writer and musical hero.”
Outsider, which can be pre-ordered now, is available on CD, as a vinyl LP and on cassette.
“Tides”
“I Know, I Know, I Know”
“More Kicks”
“Absolutely Anything”
“Gangsters Are Running This World”
“We’re All Just Trying to Get By” — featuring KT Tunstall
“Gangsters Are Running This World” (Purple Version)
“Isolation”
“The Clapping Song”
“Outsider”
“Foreign Sand” (English Mix)
“Journey’s End”
Ahead of the September 3 release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Marvel Studios has surprised fans by dropping on Disney+ All Hail the King, one of its “One-Shot” short films that previously was only released on the DVD for Iron Man 3.
The short takes place after Shane Black‘s 2013 blockbuster, which had a twist that its menacing villain, who called himself “The Mandarin,” was actually a has-been actor named Trevor Slattery, played by Oscar winner Ben Kingsley.
However, All Hail the King, written and directed by Iron Man 3 co-writer Drew Pearce, reinforces that there is a real Mandarin — who appears in Shang-Chi — and he, as is the rest of his deadly Ten Rings organization, is understandably none too happy with Slattery. Kingsley, too, appears in the upcoming film.
Some fans are still vocal about the Iron Man 3 twist, which somehow stayed secret in the age of social media — something that shocked Pearce. He told ABC Audio, “How did we get away with having an actual twist that nobody knew about in advance!? We were at the London premiere. “We were like, it’s a week ’til this comes out in America. This is not going to be a surprise to any human in the world. And for some reason, people like respected it as a twist, you know.”
And Pearce clarified that All Hail the King wasn’t an “apology” for the Mandarin twist, as some fanboys had snarked. “I always thought it was weird that like to somehow placate the people that were annoyed by Trevor Slattery, I would make a whole new film with Trevor Slattery where he’s even more Trevor Slattery-ish than he was in the original film,” Drew laughs.
He added, “[W]e stated fairly clearly in [Iron Man 3] that the Mandarin was a mantle that had already existed and would continue to exist. And All Hail the King was really just in the lineage of that.”
Pearce adds, “I’m so proud of Iron Man 3, like it’s so esoteric as a superhero movie that I don’t think people even remember that until they re-watch it. It’s its own movie, and it’s pretty bonkers in places. And I love that.”
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.
R. Kelly‘s sex trafficking trial continued Thursday with his ex-manager, Tom Arnold, taking the stand as the twelfth witness, testifying that the singer would punish employees by withholding pay, or fining them over small transgressions.
Arnold served as Kelly’s studio and tour manager from 1998 to 2011, reports Billboard, and told the court Kelly would punish staffers by hitting them in the wallet, and that there were “quite a few” occasions where Kelly docked his pay over “menial” mistakes.
One standout claim was that Kelly “fined” his employees “because someone ate his donuts.” Arnold also alleged he lost a week’s salary because he hired a male tour guide, instead of a woman, to take Kelly and his companions around Disney World. Because of that, Arnold said Kelly docked his pay $1,500 and canceled his Disney getaway.
Arnold said he quit after that, telling the court, “My wife wasn’t happy, I wasn’t happy, Rob wasn’t happy,” referring to Kelly by his birth name, Robert.
Arnold’s testimony was similar to claims made by former assistant Anthony Navarro, who also told the court about Kelly’s methods of punishing staffers.
During cross-examination, Arnold recalled the number of famous individuals visiting Kelly at his recording studio and confirmed people around him were “eager” to sue him. Because of that, Kelly required all guests to sign confidentiality agreements.
Kelly, 54, whose birth name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, faces state and federal charges for sex trafficking, racketeering, coercion and other charges related to the alleged abuse and exploitation of six women — three of whom were underage at the time — over the course of 25 years. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
Kacey Musgraves continues to roll out new music this week, unveiling another new song off her recently-announced star-crossed album. That song is “justified,” the sixth track on the upcoming collection.
In its lyrics, Kacey comes to terms with the non-linear, zig-zag pattern of healing that follows a breakup. “If I cry just a little and then laugh in the middle / If I hate you and I love you and then I change my mind / If I need just a little more time to deal with the fact / That you should’ve treated me right / Then I’m more than just a little / Justified,” she reflects in the chorus.
Set to a mesmerizing, bubbly pop beat, the new song follows “star-crossed,” the atmospheric album-opener that Kacey dropped earlier this week.
Along with “justified,” Kacey also shared a music video, which follows her as she’s driving down a variety of different rural roads and city streets, tracing a complicated emotional range that bounces between tears and laughter.
The end of the music video teases another new song ahead: The car radio static fizzles into the sound of Kacey’s voice singing “Don’t go through your camera roll” against a somber musical backdrop. Her phone beside her starts buzzing and lighting up, showing her old photos from her camera roll that are titled things like “The day it fell apart” and “denial.”
Kacey’s new collection will arrive in full on September 10, along with an accompanying film. Two days later, she’ll give the world premiere performance of the title track of star-crossed at the 2021 MTV VMAs.
Taylor Swift and Big Red Machine are reuniting under “Birch.”
The indie folk bank of Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon called on the superstar singer for the cinematic “Birch” that’s led by piano with hints of a flickering pop beat and soft saxophone. Taylor supplies haunting supporting harmonies on the chorus as she and Justin sing, “Well, if you cannot tell/I’ll tell you right away/If I’ll stay a spell/Or if I cannot stay/I am less at ease, not the best at these/See the forest trees, call what’s these what’s these.”
“Birch” is the latest in a line of successful collaborations between the two acts, as Taylor also appears on the previously released “Renegade.” Both songs are featured on Big Red Machine’s new album, How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?, which dropped on Friday.
Additionally, Aaron is co-producer behind Taylor’s Grammy-winning album Folklore and its follow-up, Evermore, while Justin — aka Bon Iver — co-wrote a duet with Taylor, “Exile,” and the title track of Evermore.
The Rolling Stones are planning to go through with their 2021 U.S. trek following the death of drummer Charlie Watts on Tuesday, according to the tour’s promoter.
“The Rolling Stones’ tour dates are moving ahead as planned,” the promoter, Concerts West, says in a statement, RollingStone.com reports.
The U.S. leg of the band’s No Filter Tour, which was rescheduled from 2020 after being postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic, is slated to get underway September 26 in St. Louis and is mapped out through a November 20 show in Austin, Texas. The trek features 12 dates, and tickets can be purchased at VividSeats.com.
Earlier this month, The Rolling Stones announced that Watts likely wouldn’t be joining them on the tour because he was recovering from an unspecified medical procedure. According to the announcement, Steve Jordan, who played drums on all of Keith Richards‘ solo albums, was picked by Charlie to “stand in” for him on the trek.
According to a statement from his spokesperson, Watts “passed away peacefully in a London hospital [on Tuesday] morning surrounded by his family.” He was 80.
(KABUL, Afghanistan) — Chaos has enveloped Kabul after Afghanistan’s government collapsed and the Taliban seized control, all but ending America’s 20-year campaign as it began: under Taliban rule.
Two suicide bombers affiliated with ISIS-K carried out what the Pentagon called a “complex attack” outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Thursday, killing at least 13 American service members and wounding 18, among scores of Afghan casualties.
President Joe Biden has addressed the nation on the attack from the White House Thursday, saying, “America will not be intimidated.” Biden sat down with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos for an exclusive one-on-one interview at the White House last week, the president’s first interview since the withdrawal from Afghanistan, and warned of the threat of attacks on the ground.
Here are the latest developments. All times Eastern:
Aug 27, 11:06 am
No second suicide bomber: Pentagon
Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor said at a Pentagon briefing on Friday that the U.S. now believes there was just one explosion on Thursday and one suicide bomber — and that there was no second explosion or bomber at or near the Baron Hotel.
“I can confirm for you that we do not believe that there was a second explosion at or near the Baron Hotel, that it was one suicide bomber,” he said. “We’re not sure how that report was provided incorrectly, but we do know it’s not any surprise that in the confusion of very dynamic events like this can cause information sometimes to be misreported or garbled.”
Officials had said at a Pentagon briefing on Thursday that they believed there were two suicide bombers — one outside the Abbey Gate at Hamid Karzai International Airport and one at or near the Baron Hotel, the latter of which has now been retracted.
Aug 27, 10:46 am
170 Afghans killed in the Kabul attack: Afghan official
At least 170 Afghans were killed and 200 wounded in the attack in Kabul on Thursday, according to an official at the Ministry of Public Health who spoke on condition of anonymity with ABC News.
He said among the 170 dead, 34 are male (including two boys and 32 men), and four are female (including one girl and three women). He said that the identities of the 132 other people are still unknown at this stage.
The World Health Organization regional headquarters in Cairo had reported earlier at least 161 Afghan civilians died in the attack in Kabul on Thursday.
Wazir Akbar Khan Hospital in Kabul reported to the WHO it had 145 dead bodies brought into the hospital. The Emergency Hospital in Kabul also reported 16 dead on arrival.
Aug 27, 10:04 am
US continues evacuations despite threats of more attacks
Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command and highest-ranking commander in the Middle East, told reporters at the Pentagon on Thursday that further security threats following the attack in Kabul are “extremely real.”
“We believe it is their desire to continue those attacks, and we expect those attacks to continue,” he said via a videoconference.
“Right now, our focus really, we have other active threat streams, extremely active threat streams against the airfield, we want to make sure we are taking the steps to protect ourselves there. Our focus is on that,” he added.
He said the U.S. is doing everything it can to prepare for those attacks including reaching out to the Taliban, “who are actually providing the outer security cordon around the airfield, to make sure they know what we expect them to do to protect us.”
Despite Thursday’s “complex attack” and threats for more, he said the U.S. will continue its evacuation mission ahead of a full military withdrawal on Aug. 31.
Biden, in remarks from the White House later on Thursday, underscored that he has repeatedly warned that the evacuation mission in Afghanistan was a dangerous one — but one that would continue until the end of the month, even as threats persist.
“These ISIS terrorists will not win,” Biden said. “We will rescue the Americans in there. We will get our Afghan allies out. And our mission will go on.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki, in a White House briefing following his remarks, cited “ongoing threats” as reasoning for why Biden and his military commanders stuck to the Aug. 31 deadline.
Aug 27, 9:11 am
Former Army Ranger details ‘vulnerable’ US position at airport gates
Jariko Denman, a former Army Ranger who served in Afghanistan and was working in Kabul on Thursday alongside other veterans to help get evacuees out, described the conditions outside the airport to ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Friday as one that left American forces vulnerable.
“The way that we were forced to expose ourselves in order to get our people in, made us very, very much vulnerable to it,” said Denman, who was flown out of Kabul and to Qatar just ahead of the attack.
“With the sheer numbers of people coming in, we didn’t have the time to, you know, do those different steps and security of walking up, talk to them, search them,” Denman said. “It was just, you know, a mob of 7,000, 8,000 people arm’s distance away.”
Denman said the conditions outside the gate were the worst he’s seen in his 20 years in the Army which includes 15 deployments.
“Families, people carrying toddlers, babies, elderly, trying to get to these gates, to get to us to get through, and I would describe it as a mosh pit on steroids,” he said. “You know, 600, 700 meters long of compacted human beings trying to get to one little choke point. It was terrible.”
“In 20 years, I never saw an operating force more sleep-deprived or just working more than these Marines and other airmen and soldiers that were on the ground,” he added.
Denman, who is in touch with people still in Kabul, said he’s hearing the same theme in the wake of the attack: “It was just carnage.”
Aug 27, 7:49 am
‘Every effort was made to destroy’ Kabul embassy staff details, UK says
The United Kingdom said “every effort was made to destroy sensitive material” when British embassy staff in Kabul evacuated their building as Taliban fighters approached Afghanistan’s capital.
“We have worked tirelessly to secure the safety of those who worked for us including getting three families to safety,” a spokesperson for the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told ABC News in a statement Friday. “During the drawdown of our Embassy every effort was made to destroy sensitive material.”
A report published Thursday by British daily national newspaper The Times said its journalist found papers with the contact details of Afghans working for the U.K. government and of locals applying for positions “scattered on the ground at the British embassy compound in Kabul that has been seized by the Taliban.” Some Afghan employees and their families have not been able to evacuate Kabul, according to The Times.
A source at the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told ABC News: “We are grateful to The Times for sharing the information retrieved with us and working with us to enable us to get these three families to safety.”
Aug 27, 6:59 am
US, allies evacuate 12,500 people from Kabul in past 24 hours
The United States has evacuated and facilitated the evacuation of some 105,000 people from Kabul since Aug. 14, when the Taliban closed in on Afghanistan’s capital, according to a White House official.
In a 24-hour period from Thursday to Friday, 35 U.S. military flights carried approximately 8,500 evacuees out of Kabul. Another 4,000 people were evacuated via 54 coalition aircraft. Since the end of July, approximately 110,600 people have been relocated from Kabul via U.S. military and coalition flights, the White House
Aug 27, 6:18 am
Philadelphia airport to receive Afghan refugees
People fleeing Afghanistan are expected to arrive at Philadelphia’s primary airport in the coming days, according to a city spokesperson.
“This is a federal-led operation, and we are collaborating with the federal government in this emergency response, protecting the rights and dignity of the Afghan families arriving in the country,” the spokesperson told ABC News on Friday. “We stand ready to provide medical assistance, housing, and connection to our diverse community of immigrant service providers who can assist with an array of social services.”
The Philadelphia International Airport is the second airport in the United States to welcome arrivals of Afghan refugees, in addition to the Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
It was unclear when or exactly how many Afghan refugees would be landing in Philadelphia.
“Philadelphia stands in solidarity with Afghan refugees and we look forward to providing them a safe haven in our Welcoming City,” Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement.
Aug 27, 5:33 am
UK enters final stages of Afghanistan evacuation
The United Kingdom announced Friday that it has entered the final stages of its evacuation from Afghanistan and no more people will be called to the airport to leave.
Processing facilities at the Baron Hotel in Kabul, outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport, have been closed and the British Armed Forces will now focus on evacuating the U.K. nationals and others who have already been processed and are at the airport awaiting departure, according to a press release from the U.K. Ministry of Defense.
“The U.K.’s ability to process further cases is now extremely reduced and additional numbers will be limited. No further people will be called forward to the airport for evacuation,” the defense ministry said. “Evacuating all those civilians we have already processed will free up the capacity needed on U.K. military aircraft to bring out our remaining diplomats and military personnel.”
U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace called it a “remarkable achievement” that his government has evacuated more than 13,000 people from Kabul since Aug. 13, when the Taliban closed in on Afghanistan’s capital.
“Our top priority as we move through this process will be the protection of all those involved who are operating in a heightened threat environment,” Wallace said in a statement Friday. “It is with deep regret that not everyone has been able to be evacuated during this process.”
“We will continue to honour our debt to all those who have not yet been able to leave Afghanistan,” he added. “We will do all that we can to ensure they reach safety.”
