Category: CHR

The quick green fox jumps over the lazy dog

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ABC News

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Varius sit amet mattis vulputate enim nulla aliquet. Pellentesque diam volutpat commodo sed egestas egestas fringilla. Id cursus metus aliquam eleifend mi. Pulvinar elementum integer enim neque volutpat ac tincidunt vitae semper. Nec ullamcorper sit amet risus nullam. Nisl pretium fusce id velit ut tortor pretium viverra suspendisse. Id velit ut tortor pretium. Lacus sed viverra tellus in hac. Netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas integer. Varius vel pharetra vel turpis nunc eget. Quis eleifend quam adipiscing vitae proin. Fames ac turpis egestas sed tempus. Integer quis auctor elit sed vulputate mi sit. Tortor condimentum lacinia quis vel eros donec. Aliquet bibendum enim facilisis gravida neque convallis a. Nunc consequat interdum varius sit amet mattis vulputate. Commodo sed egestas egestas fringilla. Dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit ut aliquam. Cursus eget nunc scelerisque viverra. Tempus quam pellentesque nec nam aliquam sem et tortor consequat.

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Maren Morris says son Hayes’ first birthday party theme will be “Peter Rabbit”: “He’s just perfection”

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ABCAs Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd prepare for their son Hayes‘ first birthday, the couple is centering the theme around a classic childhood book that holds special meaning to them. 

The crossover country star reveals that they plan to host a party set on Beatrix Potter‘s classic book, Peter Rabbit. “That’s the book I read to him since he was a newborn,” Maren shares with People. 

She also says that due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the gathering will be kept to an intimate gathering with family. “Obviously, we’re going to have a very just a family-oriented party, we can’t do the full invitation thing, but we’re going to have a theme,” Maren says. 

Though he’s still in the crawling stages, Maren says that Hayes is “so close” to walking. “But I’m not in any rush on that, either, because I’ll be chasing him around even more,” she adds. “He’s just perfection.”

Maren and Ryan welcomed Hayes on March 23, 2020. The couple recently released the duet, “Chasing After You.”

By Cillea Houghton 
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Grammys 2021: The backstage scene

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Courtesy Recording AcademySunday night at the socially-distanced Grammys, artists spoke to reporters via Zoom, rather than in person. While some noted that it was an unusual year, it didn’t take away the thrill of winning the music industry’s most coveted award.

“It’s a normal year, we’re out on the road…so you’re feeling the love one-on-one with your fans every single night,” said Dan Smyers of Dan + Shay, who won Best Country Duo/Performance for their Justin Bieber collaboration “10,000 Hours.”

“But…this year has been super tough for our industry as a whole, and you aren’t able to feel the connection,” he noted. “You might have a hit song. You might have a song that climbs the charts…but you’re not feeling the fans singing back to you every single night. So to be acknowledged by our peers…to have tangible evidence of the success and the connection to that song is really cool.“

Dua Lipa, who won Best Pop Vocal Album for her hit release Future Nostalgia, was cheered by the fact that so many women took home awards this year. Indeed, female artists won in all of the “Big Four” categories: Record, Song and Album of the Year, and Best New Artist.

“I feel like there’s been a lot of female empowerment…and so it’s been absolutely amazing to be alongside all that and feel that energy,” she noted.

Along those same lines, Miranda Lambert, who won Best Country Album for Wildcard, noted that every nominee in that category was either a woman, or a female-fronted act.

“It’s really cool,” she told reporters. “To me, it felt like whoever won, we are winning for each other and for Nashville, you know what I mean?…This isn’t just mine. This is ours, especially as a group of women.“

H.E.R., winner of Song of the Year for “i can’t breathe,” said she felt that the track — inspired by the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, would continue to resonate through the years.

“I hope that it’s a tribute to the movement and that it will continue the fight and it will continue to give people hope, because I think that’s what music does,” she said. “It’s so much bigger than this.”

And Harry Styles, who generated over a million tweets Sunday night for his performance of “Watermelon Sugar” and his subsequent win for Best Pop Solo Performance, summed up how a lot of artists feel getting awards for their work.

“I feel incredibly lucky to get to work in music and make music as my job,” he said, reacting to his first Grammy win. “This is an incredibly sweet icing on the cake of what I get to do every day.”

By Andrea Dresdale
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Grammys 2021: The complete winners list

Posted on by ABC Audio

The Recording AcademyThe 63rd Annual Grammy Awards aired Sunday night on CBS, hosted by Trevor Noah.

Here is the complete list of winners in the major categories:

Record of the Year
“Everything I Wanted” by Billie Eilish

Album of the Year
Folklore by Taylor Swift

Song of the Year
“I Can’t Breathe” by Dernst Emile II, H.E.R. & Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)

Best New Artist
Megan Thee Stallion

POP

Best Pop Solo Performance
“Watermelon Sugar” by Harry Styles

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
“Rain On Me” by Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
American Standard by James Taylor

Best Pop Vocal Album
Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa

ROCK/ALTERNATIVE

Best Rock Performance
“Shameika” by Fiona Apple

Best Metal Performance
“Bum-Rush” by Body Count

Best Rock Song
“Stay High” by Brittany Howard

Best Rock Performance
“Shameika” by Fiona Apple

Best Rock Song
“Stay High” by Brittany Howard

Best Rock Album
The New Abnormal by The Strokes Alternative

Best Alternative Music Album
Fetch the Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple

R&B/RAP

BEST R&B PERFORMANCE
“Black Parade” by Beyoncé

Best Traditional R&B Performance
“Anything For You” by Ledisi

Best R&B Song
“Better Than I Imagined” by Robert Glasper, Meshell Ndegeocello & Gabriella Wilson, songwriters (Robert Glasper feat. H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello)

Best Progressive R&B Album
It Is What It Is by Thundercat

Best R&B Album
Bigger Love by John Legend

Best Rap Performance
“Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé

Best Melodic Rap Performance
“Lockdown” by Anderson .Paak

Best Rap Song
“Savage” by Beyoncé, Shawn Carter, Brittany Hazzard, Derrick Milano, Terius Nash, Megan Pete, Bobby Session Jr., Jordan Kyle Lanier Thorpe & Anthony White, songwriters (Megan Thee Stallion Featuring Beyoncé)

Best Rap Album
King’s Disease by Nas

COUNTRY

Best Country Solo Performance
“When My Amy Prays” by Vince Gill

Best Country Duo/Group Performance
“10,000 Hours” by Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber

Best Country Song
“Crowded Table” by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby & Lori McKenna, songwriters (The Highwomen)

Best Country Album
Wildcard by Miranda Lambert

DANCE/ELECTRONIC MUSIC

Best Dance Recording
“10%” by Kaytranada feat. Kali Uchis

Best Dance/Electronic Album
BUBBA by Kaytranada

GOSPEL/CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC

Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
“There Was Jesus” by Zach Williams & Dolly Parton; Casey Beathard, Jonathan Smith & Zach Williams, songwriters

Best Gospel Album
Gospel According to PJ by PJ Morton

Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
Jesus Is King by Kanye West

Best Roots Gospel Album
Celebrating Fisk! (The 150th Anniversary Album) by Fisk Jubilee Singers

LATIN

Best Latin Pop or Urban Album
YHLQMDLG by Bad Bunny

Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
La Conquista del Espacio by Fito Paez

Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)
Un Canto Por Mexico, Vol. 1 by Natalia Lafourcade

Best Tropical Latin Album
40 by Grupo Niche

COMEDY

Best Comedy Album
Black Mitzvah by Tiffany Haddish

MUSICAL THEATER

Best Musical Theater Album
Jagged Little Pill (Glen Ballard, composer; Alanis Morissette, composer & lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)

MUSIC FOR VISUAL MEDIA

Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media
Jojo Rabbit (Various Artists) Taika Waititi, compilation producer

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media
Joker by Hildur Guðnadóttir, composer

Best Song Written For Visual Media
“No Time to Die” by Billie Eilish O’Connell & Finneas Baird O’Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish) Track from: No Time to Die

MUSIC VIDEO/FILM

Best Music Video
“Brown Skin Girl” Beyoncé, Blue Ivy & WizKid
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter & Jenn Nkiru, video directors; Astrid Edwards, Aya Kaida, Jean Mougin, Nathan Scherrer & Erinn Williams, video producers

Best Music Film
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
Linda Ronstadt Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman, video directors; Michele Farinola & James Keach, video producers

By George Costantino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

“Love Story (Taylor’s Version)” is Taylor Swift’s first number-one debut…on the country chart

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Beth GarrabrantTaylor Swift has just accomplished something that only country icon and American treasure Dolly Parton has managed to do before: Hit number-one twice with two different versions of the same song.

As Billboard reports, “Love Story (Taylor’s Version),” the re-recorded version of Taylor’s 2008 hit, has debuted at number-one on the publication’s Hot Country Songs chart.  It’s her first number-one debut on this chart, and her eighth number-one on the chart overall. 

But this also marks the second time that “Love Story” has been number one on this chart.  The first time was, of course, in 2008, when “Love Story” was first released, and Taylor was a huge country star.  The only other time this has happened is with Dolly Parton’s classic song “I Will Always Love You.”

The original version of Dolly’s song was number-one on the Hot Country Songs chart in 1974, and then again in 1982, in a new version Dolly recorded for the soundtrack of her movie The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

In a statement, Taylor tells Billboard, “This is my first time having a No. 1 debut on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and I’m so grateful to the fans for making this a possibility. They’re the ones who emboldened me to reclaim my music and they really showed up this week to see it through.”

“It blows me away that they’ve sent a song to No. 1 that had its first life over a decade ago,” she adds. “I couldn’t be happier that it happened now, and in this way.”

Taylor’s re-recording is also being played on pop radio stations.

By Andrea Dresdale
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

American Idol recap: Look-a-likes and “top 5 material”

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ABC/John Fleenor

Another week of American Idol means another week of auditions.

Another week where the fate of singing hopefuls vying for the chance to earn the golden ticket trip to Hollywood lies in the hands of judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan.

Here are highlights from Sunday’s episode:

  • After coming into his audition dressed like Thor and screaming Viking terms, Anthony Guzman, shocked the trio of judges with his rendition of Michael Buble’s “Cry Me A River,” keeping himself in the competition a little longer. 
  • Cassie Bishop, 15, was compared to past Idol star Alejandro Aranda by Luke after her audition where she performed “Live Wire” by Mötley Crüe. 
  • Yurisbel gave the judges a workout during his audition, which saw him give his best cover of Pitbull‘s “Fireball.” Although Katy said no to him receiving a golden ticket out fear people would never “trust me ever again,” his upbeat personality won over Lionel and Luke, who had a slight resemblance to the American Idol hopeful.
  • Luke wasn’t alone in the doppelgänger department, as Katy met the country version of herself in 17-year-old Hannah Everhart, who sang Johnny Cash‘s “Wayfaring Stranger” and Etta James‘ “At Last” into a ticket to Hollywood. 
  • Chayce Beckham‘s raspy audition of “What Brings Life Also Kills” by Kolton Moore and The Clever Few had Katy calling him “top 5 material” and hailed him as “the heart of America.” The judges voted unanimously to send him through to Hollywood.
  • Although rattled with nerves, Cassandra Coleman sang “The Way It Was” by The Killers with a voice Lionel described as “angelic as it’s gonna get.” And, after showing off her skills on the piano as well, she effortlessly sang her way to the next round. 
  • 16-year-old Ace Stiles got vulnerable by sharing his story of coming out as transgender after performing his original song “Addicted.” While he didn’t make it to Hollywood, the judges left him with words of encouragement. 

American Idol returns next Sunday, February 28 at 8 p.m. ET. 

By Danielle Long
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Taylor Swift’s rerecording of “Love Story” sells over 10,000 copies in its first day

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Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for AmazonPeople are falling in love with Taylor Swift‘s “Love Story” all over again.  After the 31-year-old singer rereleased her updated version of the single, fans were quick to get their hands on a copy.

Billboard reports that the song sold 10,000 times in its first day of release, which was February 12.  For comparison, just three songs sold that same amount in a week — including BTS‘s “Dynamite” and Olivia Rodrigo‘s “Drivers License.”

In addition, “Love Story (Taylor’s Version)” was streamed 5.8 million times in its first 24 hours of release. 

The juggernaut single again outperformed the competition, with Billboard noting that 55 singles managed to snag more streams… but only after taking an entire week to do so.

“Love Story (Taylor’s Version)” will be the lead single off of Swift’s highly anticipated Fearless (Taylor’s Version) album, due out April 9.

The original Fearless, which Taylor released in 2008, which went onto become her first number one album.  

When appearing Friday on Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, she says rerecording her old music was “extremely fulfilling” because she is taking a stand for all artists so they can control their own music.

“The reason that I feel so passionately that artists should own their catalogs is because if you are the creator of all of this music, you’re the only one who actually knows the ins and the outs of it,” she said. “And because I have learned what I’ve learned, I really just want to make things better for other people.”

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Coachella & Stagecoach 2021 have officially been canceled

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Rich Fury/Getty ImagesAfter missing out last year, fans who were hoping to enjoy Coachella this April are out of luck again.

The festival, as well as its sister country event, Stagecoach, have been officially canceled due to a public health order. Dr. Cameron Kaiser, the Public Health Officer of Riverside County, CA, issued the order due to the likelihood of the festivals becoming super-spreader events, and because of the concern that there will be a fall resurgence of COVID-19 within the country and worldwide.

Kaiser’s order notes that both events attract “hundreds of thousands of attendees from many countries, including several disproportionately afflicted by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.”

“If COVID-19 were detected at these festivals, the scope and number of attendees and the nature of the venue would make it infeasible, if not impossible to track those who may be placed at risk,” the order continues.

Coachella 2020, which had originally been postponed from April to October of last year, was canceled outright in June of 2020. It was to have been headlined by a reunited Rage Against the Machine, Frank Ocean and Travis Scott.  Stagecoach 2020, canceled that same month, was to have been headlined by Thomas Rhett, Carrie Underwood and Eric Church. 

By Andrea Dresdale
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Congress certifies Biden/Harris election win; Trump promises “orderly transition on January 20th”

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J. Scott Applewhite – Pool/Getty ImagesHours after a pro-Trump mob broke into the U.S. Capitol to protest the results of the 2020 election, Congress ratified the electoral votes cast in the general election and certified the victory of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

The announcement was made by Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar at 3:39 a.m. Thursday.  Vice President Mike Pence then repeated the totals at 3:40 a.m., first for president, then for vice president.

Biden will take Trump’s place in the White House on Jan. 20.

Rep. Louie Gohmert and other House Republicans attempted to object to Wisconsin’s electoral votes but did not have a senator join the objection. Gohmert said a senator had withdrawn his objection.

Biden and Harris finished with 306 electoral votes, while Trump and Pence finished with 232.  A minimum 270 electoral votes are needed to win the White House.

In a statement tweeted by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino following the news, President Trump said: “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th. I have always said we would continue our fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in presidential history, it’s only the beginning of our fight to Make America Great Again!”

The statement marks the first time Trump has publicly acknowledged Biden’s victory and agreed to a peaceful transfer of power.

Following Wednesday’s protest and storming of the Capitol, four people are dead, according to Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee.  One woman and two men suffered “medical emergencies” at the protests, and have subsequently died, Contee said during a press conference Wednesday night.

Another woman was shot and killed during a standoff inside the U.S. Capitol between law enforcement and pro-Trump rioters.  The unidentified woman was shot by a Capitol police officer after “multiple individuals forced entry into the Capitol building, and attempted to gain access to the house and attempted to gain access to the house, room, which was still in session,” Contee said Wednesday. She was transported to a local hospital where after all lifesaving efforts failed, and she was pronounced dead.

By Libby Cathey, Catherine Thorbecke, Morgan Winsor, and Rosa Sanchez
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Trump tries to justify chaos at Capitol while Biden, President Bush condemn violence

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John Moore/Getty ImagesAs the chaotic scene continued in the nation’s capital with the world watching, President Donald Trump continued to tweet his repeated his false claim that the presidential election was stolen from him and tried to justify the storming of the U.S. Capitol that he encouraged earlier in the day.

“These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long,” he said.

After hours of chaos and as the Virginia State Police arrived at the U.S. Capitol Building, the president called on his supporters to “go home” in a one-minute video message posted to Twitter — which has since been removed across social media.  In the message, President Trump, without evidence, called the election “stolen” and fraudulent,” but told the protesters to go home “in peace.”

“It’s a very tough period of time. There’s never been a time like this where such a thing happened where they could take it away from all of us from me from you from our country. This was a fraudulent election. But we can’t play into the hands of these people. We have to have peace.”

“So go home. We love you. You’re very special. You’ve seen what happens. You see the way others are treated that are so bad and so evil. I know how you feel — but go home and go home in peace,” he said.

Former President George W. Bush released a statement on what he called an “insurrection” at the U.S. Capitol, calling it “a sickening and heartbreaking sight.”

“This is how election results are disputed in a banana republic – not our democratic republic. I am appalled by the reckless behavior of some political leaders since the election and by the lack of respect shown today for our institutions, our traditions, and our law enforcement,” Bush said.

President-elect Joe Biden, who was scheduled to deliver afternoon remarks on the economy, addressed the unrest at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday afternoon from Wilmington, Delaware, and called on President Trump to “step up” and condemn the chaos being committed in his name.

“I call on President Trump to go on national television now, to fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution and demand an end to this siege,” Biden said. “To storm the Capitol, to smash windows, to occupy offices, the floor of the United States Senate, rummaging through desks — on the Capitol, on the House of Representatives — threatening the safety of duly elected officials, it’s not a protest. It’s insurrection.”

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