Britney Spears performing on the 29th Annual American Music Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, Ca., Jan. 9, 2002. (Frank Micelotta/ABC/ImageDirect)
Is Britney Spears about to return to the stage?
In an Instagram post on Thursday night, Britney shared a photo of herself sitting on a piano bench at the 2002 American Music Awards after performing “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” She captioned it, “Sending this piano to my son this year!!!”
She went on to write, “I will never perform in the U.S. again because of extremely sensitive reasons but I hope to be sitting on a stool with a red rose in my hair, in a bun, performing with my son… in the UK and AUSTRALIA very soon. He’s a huge star and I’m so humbled to be in his presence!!! God speed, little man!!!”
Britney didn’t specify which son she was referring to, but it’s likely her younger son, Jayden James Federline, whom she has previously shared videos of playing the piano.
In the same post, Britney addressed the many videos of herself dancing on social media.
“Interestingly enough, I dance on IG to heal things in my body that people have no idea about,” she wrote. “Yup and it’s embarrassing sometimes… but I walked through the fire to save my life.”
Spencer and Monique Tepe are seen in this undated photo. (Courtesy Rob Misleh)
(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — The Columbus, Ohio, police chief is speaking out for the first time since the mysterious murders of dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife, Monique Tepe.
The couple was found shot to death in their home on Dec. 30, Columbus police said. Their two young children were found safe inside.
Authorities said they believe the couple was killed between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. on their home’s second floor.
Earlier this week, police released video of a person of interest. Police said the video showed an individual walking in an alley near the victims’ house during that 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. timeframe.
A motive hasn’t been identified, the chief said.
“I know it’s frustrating for people, I know they want answers,” Bryant said. “As soon as we’re able to provide more information, we will absolutely be coming back to talk about that. … But right now it’s premature for us to be able to say what the motive is, or, we don’t have a suspect identified at this point.”
She added, “We want to bring some justice to the family.”
The Tepes’ brother-in-law, Rob Misleh, said they spent Christmas together days before the murders.
“We did Christmas night together, and then the following day we just did a, kind of, post-Christmas lounging and watching movies and had dinner. And the next morning they left,” he told ABC News’ “Good Morning America.” “How would I ever know that would be the last time I would’ve hung out with Spence like that?”
“We were totally blindsided by what happened,” he said.
The Tepes’ family and friends will come together on Sunday for a celebration of life service.
Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin and Roman Griffin Davis in ‘Greenland 2: Migration.’ (Lionsgate)
Most disaster movies depict the moments leading up to a cataclysm, but the new film Greenland 2: Migration explores a world already ravaged by disaster.
Migration picks up five years after the events of the first Greenland, in which a giant comet on a collision course with Earth forces John Garrity, played by Gerard Butler, to take shelter in a giant underground bunker. Butler said his character and his family were everyday people in the first film, which he describes as elevating the film.
“The intimacy of that I found fascinating and gave it surprising heart,” Butler told ABC Audio. “So much of what John has is heart. He has heart, and he has courage, and he’s fighting for an ideal bigger than himself.”
For the sequel, John and his family are forced to leave their bunker on a journey to a potential safe haven. But the world of Migration is a dangerous one, where one is just as likely to encounter warring factions of survivors as they are a rogue electrical storm or a destructive tidal wave.
“It felt like a challenging and interesting idea to say, ‘What does this world look like now? And what are the challenges? What are the practical challenges? How is everybody feeling? How are they living?’” Butler said.
He added that living — not just surviving — is a major theme of Greenland 2: Migration.
“It doesn’t feel like it’s just about their survival, but there’s a sense of what can they bring to this new world? And what can they add?” Butler said.
Butler said the Greenland movies fit into the classic “disaster movie” genre, mixing high-octane spectacle with human stakes.
‘Make-up Is a Lie’ album artwork. (Sire/Warner Records; Credit: David Mushegain)
Morrissey has announced a new album called Make-up Is a Lie.
The 14th studio effort from the ex-Smiths frontman will arrive March 6. You can listen to its title track out now.
Make-up Is a Lie marks the first official Morrissey album since 2020’s I Am Not a Dog on a Chain. He’d recorded an album called Bonfire of Teenagers in between, which he claimed was shelved by his former label, Capitol Records.
Morrissey has since singed to a new label, Sire/Warner Records. He previously released his early solo records on Sire.
Morrissey has a number of live shows lined up, including a run of U.S. shows beginning Saturday in San Antonio. Of course, he has a reputation for canceling concerts; he has already postponed one show and canceled another in 2026.
Here’s the Make-up Is a Lie track list: “You’re Right, It’s Time” “Make-up Is a Lie” “Notre-Dame” “Amazona” “Headache” “Boulevard” “Zoom Zoom the Little Boy” “The Night Pop Dropped” “Kerching Kerching” “Lester Bangs” “Many Icebergs Ago” “The Monsters of Pig Alley”
Cover of The Black Crowes’ ‘A Pound of Feathers’ (Silver Arrow Records)
The Black Crowes’ Chris Robinson said in his holiday message to fans that there would be new music coming — turns out, it’s a whole new album.
Chris and brother Rich Robinson just announced that The Black Crowes will release A Pound of Feathers on March 13, marking their10th studio album and their first since 2024’s Happiness Bastards.
“We made this record in eight to ten days,” Chris shares. “Bringing the high and inspiration from Happiness Bastards into this album, it was a natural progression. We experimented more, we wrote on instinct and how we were feeling in the moment. Rich brought a spontaneity to the record that I can’t describe, but it’s the best sh** he’s ever done.”
“This album feels transformative to us,” Rich says. “Going back to our roots, we felt that spark in the studio and how we work together. Lighting a fire that hits harder, more jagged but is still true to our musical essence.”
Here is the track list for A Pound of Feathers: “Profane Prophecy” “Cruel Streak” “Pharmacy Chronicles” “Do The Parasite!” “High And Lonesome” “Queen of the B-Sides” “It’s Like That” “Blood Red Regrets” “You Call This A Good Time” “Eros Blues” “Doomsday Doggerel”
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks during a press conference following the Federal Open Markets Committee meeting at the Federal Reserve on December 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Hiring ticked down in December, defying the Federal Reserve’s effort to boost hiring with a recent series of interest rate cuts, a jobs report on Friday showed. The reading fell short of economists’ expectations.
The U.S. added 50,000 jobs in December, which marked a slight drop from 64,000 jobs added in the previous month.
The unemployment rate dropped to 4.4% in December from 4.6% in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said. Unemployment remains low by historical standards but had ticked up from previous lows.
As in previous months, the healthcare sector accounted for the lion’s share of hiring in December, adding 21,000 jobs, according to the BLS. The food service and social assistance industries also contributed to the hiring figure.
In all, the economy added an average of 49,000 jobs each month in 2025, registering a significant slowdown from 168,000 jobs added per month in 2024, the BLS said.
The fresh data comes two weeks after a blockbuster report on economic growth appeared to rebuke worries about the wider economy prompted by the hiring cooldown.
The U.S. economy grew at a robust annualized rate of 4.3% in the third quarter in the government’s initial estimate, marking an acceleration from 3.8% growth recorded in the previous quarter, the U.S. Commerce Department said in December.
A boost in consumer spending helped propel the economic surge, the department added, suggesting that many consumers continued to open their wallets even as their attitudes worsened.
Meanwhile, inflation dropped in November, the most recent month for which data is available. The cooldown ended a monthslong acceleration of price increases and offered some relief for households strained by cost hikes.
Inflation remains well below a 2022 peak but stands nearly a percentage point above the Fed’s target of 2%.
The onset of elevated inflation alongside sluggish hiring has put the Fed in a difficult position.
The central bank must balance a dual mandate to keep inflation under control and maximize employment. To address pressure on both of its goals, the Fed primarily holds a single tool: interest rates.
Starting in September, the Fed cut interest rates at three consecutive meetings, opting to address the flagging labor market. The benchmark rate stands at a level between 3.5% and 3.75%.
That figure marks a significant drop from a recent peak attained in 2023, but borrowing costs remain well above a 0% rate established at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Futures markets expect two quarter-point interest rate cuts this year, forecasting the first in April and a second in the fall, according to CME FedWatch Tool, a measure of market sentiment.
After the Fed’s most recent rate cut in December, Fed Chair Jerome Powell suggested the central bank may be cautious about further rate reductions.
“We’re well positioned to wait and see how the economy evolves,” Powell said.
A multi-storey apartment block in the Darnytskyi district is damaged by a Russian drone strike during a massive overnight attack on the capital, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on January 9, 2026. (Photo by Danylo Antoniuk/Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)NO USE RUSSIA. NO USE BELARUS. (Photo by Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
(KYIV, Ukraine) — Russia attacked Ukraine overnight with a massive barrage of 242 drones and 36 missiles, including one that was nuclear-capable, the Ukrainian Air Force said Friday morning.
The missile types used in the attack, which began Thursday night, included 22 cruise, 13 ballistic and one medium-range ballistic, according to the country’s air force.
Ukraine’s air defense system destroyed or suppressed 226 drones, 10 cruise missiles and 8 ballistic missiles. However, strikes from 18 missiles and 16 drones were recorded at 19 locations across the country, the air force said.
The capital, Kyiv, was among the hardest-hit areas, where 40 facilities were damaged, including 20 residential buildings, officials said. At least four people were killed and 25 others were injured there, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, which said rescues were ongoing. The wider Kyiv region as well as the regions of Lviv, Kirovohrad and Cherkasy were also targeted.
The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that the Oreshnik intermediate-range ground missile system was used in the “massive strike” on Ukraine’s “critical facilities” overnight.
The Oreshnik, used only for the second time by Russia, is capable of flying at hypersonic speeds and delivering multiple warheads.
The ministry said this was in response to an alleged Ukrainian drone attack on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state residence in the Novgorod region of northwestern Russia last month, which Ukraine has denied.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Russia used the intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on the Lviv region in western Ukraine.
“Such a strike close to EU and NATO border is a grave threat to the security on the European continent and a test for the transatlantic community. We demand strong responses to Russia’s reckless actions,” Sybiha wrote in a post on X “We are informing the United States, European partners, and all countries and international organizations about the details of this dangerous strike through diplomatic channels.”
Sybiha called it “absurd” that Moscow justified the strike as a response to “the fake ‘Putin residence attack’ that never happened.”
“Another proof that Moscow does not need any real reasons for its terror and war,” he added. “Putin uses an IRBM near EU and NATO border in response to his own hallucinations — this is truly a global threat. And it demands global responses.”
Bruno Mars in ‘I Just Might,’ directed by Bruno Mars and Daniel Ramos (Atlantic Records)
Bruno Mars is truly back, with an upbeat, retro-sounding jam about dancing and love.
He’s dropped “I Just Might,” the first single and video for his new album The Romantic, and in it, you get multiple Mars: Bruno sings the song while fronting a band whose members are all himself. While he sings about hoping a woman’s dance moves match her beauty, two other Brunos play guitar, one plays drums, one plays percussion, one DJs and another one films him with an old-fashioned handheld camera.
Bruno, wearing a three-piece light-green embroidered suit and white shoes, sings, “Hey Mr. DJ, play a song for this pretty little lady/ ’cause if she dances as good as she looks right now/ I just might make her my baby.”
“It’s party time! The self proclaimed Aura Lord is Back,” Bruno wrote in an Instagram post premiering the video.
The Romantic arrives Feb. 27 and Bruno will promote it with his first-ever headlining stadium tour, which kicks off April 10 in Las Vegas. You can sign up for the presale now through Jan. 12 at 10 a.m. PT; it starts Jan. 14 at 12 p.m. PT. All remaining tickets will go on sale Jan. 15 at 12 p.m. PT via Ticketmaster.
Luigi Mangione attends a suppression of evidence hearing in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan Criminal Court on December 18, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Shannon Stapleton-Pool/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione returns on Friday to Manhattan federal court, where prosecutors have said they would seek the death penalty if he’s convicted of stalking and killing UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson on a New York City sidewalk in 2024.
The appearance follows a three-week hearing in state court during which Mangione tried to convince the judge to exclude some of the critical evidence police said they found in his backpack, including writings and the alleged murder weapon.
Prosecutors said in a letter Thursday no such hearing is necessary in the federal case.
“The Government searched the contents of the defendant’s notebook pursuant to a judicially authorized search warrant that expressly covered, among other things, handwritten materials, including notebook entries, contained within the defendant’s backpack,” prosecutor Sean Buckley wrote.
“To the extent that the defendant now seeks to challenge the validity of the Government’s warrant — an argument the defendant similarly did not make in either his moving or reply papers — that argument would also fail on the merits because the warrant, which disclosed the initial search of the defendant’s backpack by the Altoona Police Department, was supported by ample probable cause,” wrote Buckley.
Earlier this week, prosecutors disputed a defense claim that Mangione should not face the death penalty because of a purported conflict of interest by Attorney General Pam Bondi.
The defense said Bondi is continuing to benefit from a 401k established while she worked at the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, which represents UnitedHealthcare.
Prosecutors said Ballard has made no contributions to her retirement plan since her Senate confirmation as attorney general, and argued that she stands to gain nothing from a “capital outcome” in the Mangione case.
“There is simply no factual basis for the assertion that outside corporate interests influenced the Attorney General’s charging decision in any fashion. The defendant’s insinuations otherwise rest on an inaccurate financial narrative,” Buckley wrote.
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to federal charges, is also trying to fight the possibility of the death penalty by challenging one of the aggravating factors that makes him eligible.
Paresh Patel, an expert on the federal stalking statute who Mangione has added to his legal team, is expected to argue that stalking is not a crime of violence and, therefore, an improper predicate to making the case death penalty eligible.
Prosecutors say the defense is wrong.
“Volitional conduct by the defendant that simultaneously places the victim in reasonable fear of death or bodily injury and that proximately causes the victim’s death necessarily involves the ‘use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against the person or property of another,’ thereby making the offenses charged in Counts Three and Four crimes of violence,” Buckley argued.
(PORTLAND, Ore.) — Two people were injured in a shooting involving a federal agent in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, according to authorities.
The incident came a short time after an ICE officer allegedly shot and killed a woman in her car in Minneapolis, Minnesota, sparking outrage and backlash against the presence of federal agents there. Similarly, the mayor of Portland called for immigration enforcement operations to halt while the investigation is ongoing.
In both cases, federal officials said the motorists tried to ram agents, who fired defensive shots.
The Department of Homeland Security said the shooting in Portland occurred while Border Patrol agents were conducting a “targeted” stop on a vehicle carrying two people allegedly affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang. The passenger was the target, DHS said.
The agents on the stop were part of a Customs and Border Protection operation dubbed “Operation Oregon,” according to multiple law enforcement sources.
“When agents identified themselves to the vehicle occupants, the driver weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents,” DHS said in a statement.
The driver, who was not the target of the operation, was stopped driving a red Toyota, before they attempted to flee. The agent, as DHS said in their statement, feared for their safety and fired at the vehicle.
Sources stressed the information and investigation are in its preliminary stages and the information could change.
The two that were shot, were treated at a hospital for their injuries and their conditions are unknown, according to law enforcement sources. Both are believed to be connected to the Tren de Aragua gang, according to DHS.
During the press conference, Portland Police Chief Bob Day said local officials “do not know the facts of this case,” but an investigation is ongoing.
Asked whether the passenger is linked to a previous shooting, the police chief said, “I can’t comment on whether or not that’s the case. We don’t know who these individuals are.”
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson told reporters, “We know what the federal government says happened here. There was a time when we could take them at their word. That time is long past.”
“We are calling on ICE to halt all operations in Portland until a full and independent investigation can take place,” he said. “Our community deserves answers.”
Later Thursday evening, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said he was opening an investigation into the shooting.
In a social media post, Rayfield said the Oregon Department of Justice investigation will examine whether any federal officers acted outside the scope of their lawful authority during the encounter. The post said the investigation would include witness interviews and video evidence.
The shooting incident occurred around 2:18 p.m. local time on Thursday, officials said. Portland police officers responding to a call for help found a man and woman with “apparent gunshot wounds,” according to the police department.
“Officers confirmed that federal agents had been involved in a shooting,” the Portland Police Department said in an earlier statement, adding, “Portland Police were not involved in the incident.”
The shooting occurred some 3 miles away from where the victims were found, on the 10200 block of Southeast Main Street near Adventist Health, a medical office, according to Portland police. The victims then drove themselves to an apartment complex in the area of Northeast 146th Avenue and East Burnside Street, where the man who had been shot called for help, according to police.
The FBI was seen in video responding to the scene of the shooting. Portland police are assisting, a department spokesperson said.
Police Chief Day urged calm amid “heightened emotion” following a deadly ICE officer-involved shooting in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” Day said in a statement. “We understand the heightened emotion and tension many are feeling in the wake of the shooting in Minneapolis, but I am asking the community to remain calm as we work to learn more.”
During the press conference, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek called for transparency from the federal government in the investigation.
“The priority right now is a full, completed investigation, not more detentions. My message to the federal government is this: We demand transparency. We demand your cooperation with Portland Police and the Multnomah County DA, because we need to investigate this incident efficiently and effectively so we can rebuild trust with our nation’s government,” Kotek said.
Earlier, Mayor Wilson called the incident “deeply troubling” while also calling on residents to “show up with calm and purpose during this difficult time.”
“Portland does not respond to violence with violence,” he said in a statement. “We respond with clarity, unity, and a commitment to justice. We must stand together to protect Portland.”
Early Friday, Portland police confirmed that at least six people were arrested during protests as crowds gathered outside an ICE facility.
“At about 9 p.m., officers requested that people move to the sidewalk, as traffic remained open in the area. An officer in the PPB Sound Truck, a loudspeaker-equipped police vehicle, broadcast that request repeatedly to the group,” the Portland Police bureau said in their statement. “PPB moved in and made targeted arrests resulting in five custodies,” while another arrest was made later on.
Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez told reporters at the scene of the shooting that he is “very concerned.”
“We are here from this attorney’s office to monitor, to assist and to make sure that there’s a thorough and complete investigation, that evidence is fully preserved, and that we’re certainly hoping that we can get all of the facts about what transpired,” he said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
