On this day in 1959, this country legend was born in North Carolina. He’s known for hits like “Forever and Ever Amen,” “Three Wooden Crosses” and “I Told You So.” Can you name him? ANSWER: Randy Travis.
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On Monday, Bill and Melinda Gates shared a joint statement on Twitter, announcing their divorce: “After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives,” they said, referring to Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the largest private foundation in the world worth over $40 billion and was founded in 2000.
The statement concluded: “We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life.”
The billionaire Microsoft co-founder, 65, and the philanthropist and former general manager at Microsoft, 56, married on the Hawaiian island of Lanai on January 1, 1994. They share three children: son Rory John, 21, and daughters Phoebe Adele, 18, and Jennifer Katharine, 25.
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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Monday that capacity restrictions in New York City will be lifted on May 19, which will include Broadway theaters. Restaurants, museums, movie theaters, retail stores and more will also be having their capacity restrictions lifted in New York City on May 19.
Though Broadway will be allowed to reopen on May 19, it doesn’t mean shows will be taking place right away. Cuomo said: “Broadway for example has a schedule. They have to produce a play before they can sell the play, so there is a schedule for them. But from a capacity point of view, they can all reopen on May 19.”
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio previously said in March that Broadway was aiming to reopen by the fall. All Broadway performances were suspended in March 2020 and then canceled for the remainder of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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As Dierks Bentley‘s latest hit, “Gone,” breaks into the top ten this week, the part-time Colorado resident’s still working on its accompanying album.
For Dierks, the forced slowdown of the COVID-19 pandemic has given him a chance to spread his wings creatively.
“We’ve been working on songs all last year,” he tells ABC Audio. “I’ve been in the studio a bunch this year and just kind of using COVID as an excuse to really explore different sounds and ideas.”
The changing way fans enjoy music in the digital age has also affected the way Dierks views his follow-up to 2018’s The Mountain.
“I feel like every record could be the last one you ever get a chance to make,” he says candidly. “Certainly records aren’t consumed like they used to be. We’re really making these things, in some ways, just for your most hardcore fans, and mostly for ourselves…”
“The record’s almost separate of radio and everything else,” he adds. “You do the record, you just kind of make it almost I feel like for just longevity, what you want to look back on and be proud of the process and what you did. So [we’re] taking our time, getting it right.”
Meanwhile, Dierks is itching for his first chance to play “Gone” before a live audience.
“I have been writing a bunch of songs, but I also cut outside songs too, and that was an outside song,” he explains. “And I can’t wait to go play it live and see what the reaction is with the crowd. It’ll hopefully be a number one by the time we get out there on the road.”
Dierks’ first stop on his High Times & Hangover Tour is just days away: May 11 in Isle of Palms, SC.
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Midland announced their fall headlining The Last Resort Tour with special guest Hailey Whitters. The tour will kick off October 7 in Phoenix, AZ, and run until the end of the year.
Tickets for The Last Resort Tour go on sale May 7 at 10 A.M. local time via MidlandOfficial.com. Spotify fans in participating markets will receive a special pre-sale code via email Tuesday, May 4 to get early access to tickets. Separately, those who have signed up for Midland’s mailing list will be emailed a promo code Wednesday, May 5 for early access.
For more information, you can visit Midland’s official website.
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Jordan Davis had recruited none other than Luke Bryan for his upcoming, eight-song EP Buy Dirt, set to drop on Friday, May 21. Bryan lends his vocals for the title track on the EP. The EP serves as the follow-up to Davis’s 2020 self-titled EP and his debut album, Home State.
Buy Dirt was produced by Paul DiGiovanni and features seven tracks co-written by Davis. Davis’ current single, “Almost Maybes,” is currently Top 10 on the country radio charts. He will return to the road this fall on Kane Brown’s Blessed and Free Tour.
You can pre-order/pre-save Buy Dirt at the link- here.
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The 2021 Billboard Music Awards will be hosted by Nick Jonas. The ceremony will air live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, May 23 at 8 PM ET/ 5 PM PT on NBC. Jonas currently serves as a coach on NBC’s The Voice; his fellow coach on The Voice, Kelly Clarkson, previously hosted the Billboard Awards for the last three years. Jonas tweeted about the hosting gig, posting a video saying “Truly an honor to have already received the first preemptive 2021 #BBMAs award. Best host ever?! Wow!”
This year’s Billboard Music Awards are based on the chart period of March 21, 2020 through April 3, 2021. Billboard Music Awards’ finalists and winners are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital song sales, streaming, radio airplay, and social engagement, tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including MRC Data. Fan-voted categories include Top Social Artist and Top Collaboration.
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The Weeknd and Ariana Grande’s newly-remixed version of “Save Your Tears” has hit No. 1 on the Hot 100. The track, which serves as the latest single from The Weeknd’s After Hours album, first broke into the top 10 after he performed it during his Super Bowl halftime show.
“Save Your Tears” is the sixth Hot 100 No. 1 hit for both The Weeknd and Grande. The Weeknd has topped the Hot 100 on his own with “The Hills,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” “Heartless” and “Blinding Lights.” Grande’s solo No. 1 hits include “Thank U, Next,” “7 Rings” and “Positions” and her collaborative hits include “Stuck With U” with Justin Bieber, “Rain on Me” with Lady Gaga and now “Save Your Tears” with The Weeknd.
“Save Your Tears” marks the third time The Weeknd and Grande have teamed up. Their track “Love Me Harder” peaked at No. 7, and last year they joined together for Positions album cut “Off the Table,” which broke into the top 40.
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Michael Ray has new music coming this week.
The hitmaker teamed up with Hardy and David Garcia to write the autobiographical “Picture,” set for release on Friday.
According to a statement, the song is inspired by memories from a family photograph, and finds Michael reflecting on the changing seasons of life as he sings, “One day we're barefoot, young and alive/The next we're a story in a three-by-five/That somebody's sure glad to have.”
The Florida native wrote the song the day of his Uncle Terry‘s funeral in 2020 and was inspired by a quote from his friend about how, after we pass on, we become memories that loved ones can reflect on through photos.
“I wanted it to write it very autobiographically. This last year has made me so appreciative of the people who can just sit still with me, reflect and reminisce,” Michael shares. “I hope that when people hear this song, it's not something that brings sadness. It's something that brings joy.”
Michael’s is currently climbing the charts with “Whiskey and Rain,” the lead single off his forthcoming album.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTxXInO54Z8]
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Jake Owen is celebrating his newest number-one hit, “Made For You.”
The romantic ballad, featured on his latest album, Greetings from…Jake, is now the top song on country radio, marking his ninth #1 hit overall. His previously hits from that album include “I Was Jack (You Were Diane),” “Homemade,” and the top 10 single “Down to the Honkytonk.”
“Yall!!! ‘Made For You’ is #1 song in the country! YOU all made this happen. This really was MADE FOR YOU,” Jake shared in a Tweet to his fans, teasing, ” I can't wait for y'all to hear what we've got comin.'”
“Made For You” also serves as the first chart-topper for the song’s writers, Benjy Davis, Joey Hyde and Neil Medley. “It's so special to share this with them. Songs change lives. This one hits different,” Jake adds.
Jake’s fiancee Erica Hartlein stars in the video for “Made For You,” along with his eight-year-old daughter Pearl from a previous marriage and two-year-old daughter Paris, whom he shares with Erica.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uvIf9cSegE]
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