Month: October 2022

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News Daypop

Elon Musk proposes going ahead with his $44B deal to buy Twitter if lawsuit is dropped

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Elon Musk is offering to go through with his original $44 billion bid to purchase the social media platform Twitter. The Tesla CEO made the offer in a letter to Twitter, which the company disclosed in a securities filing Tuesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

A letter from Musk’s lawyer dated said Musk would close the merger signed in April provided that the Delaware Chancery Court “enter an immediate stay” of Twitter’s lawsuit against him and adjourn the trial scheduled to begin in two weeks.  Twitter said in a statement it intends to close the transaction at $54.20 per share after receiving the letter from Musk. By completing the deal, Musk would have to go through with the purchase at the original price. The contract Musk signed also has a $1 billion breakup fee.

Musk has been trying to back out of the deal for several months after signing on to buy Twitter back in April. Musk claimed that Twitter under-counted the number of fake accounts on its platform, and Twitter sued when Musk announced the deal was off.   Shareholders had already approved the sale, and legal experts say Musk faced a huge challenge to defend against Twitter’s lawsuit, which was filed in July.

News of the renewed offer caused trading of Twitter stock to be halted for much of Tuesday.
Shares of Twitter closed up more than 22% on the New York Stock Exchange with Twitter stock prices jumping to a $52 a share, yup $9.46, but fell back slightly in after-hours trading. More than 47 million shares changed hands.

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Country Daypop

Country music icon Loretta Lynn dies at age 90

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Country music icon Loretta Lynn has died at the age of 90. The country music superstar’s family shared that Lynn passed peacefully in her sleep from natural causes early Tuesday morning at home in rural Tennessee.  In a statement to the Associated Press, the family wrote: “Our precious mom, Loretta Lynn, passed away peacefully this morning, October 4th, in her sleep at home in her beloved ranch in Hurricane Mills,” adding that a memorial for the beloved songwriter will be announced later. In lieu of flowers the family asks for donations to be made to the Loretta Lynn Foundation.

Lynn amassed 51 Top 10 hits over the course of her 60-year career, and broke down barriers for women with songs like “Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind),” “Fist City” and “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Thanks to the Oscar-winning 1980 film Coal Miner’s Daughter starring Sissy Spacek, Lynn’s story and songs were brought to a wider audience.  Lynn joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1962, won four Grammy awards, seven American Music Awards and eight Country Music Association awards. She was the first woman to win the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music awards for Entertainer of the Year, and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008, and was awarded the Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. In total Lynn sold over 45 million albums worldwide.

Lynn was pre-deceased by her husband of 48 years Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn, her daughter Betty Sue Lynn and son Jack Benny Lynn. She is survived by her daughters Patsy Lynn Russell, Peggy Lynn, Clara (Cissie) Marie Lynn and her son Ernest Ray Lynn, as well as multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Entertainment Daypop

Country music icon Loretta Lynn dies at age 90

shutterstock_440185582-1-2

Country music icon Loretta Lynn has died at the age of 90. The country music superstar’s family shared that Lynn passed peacefully in her sleep from natural causes early Tuesday morning at home in rural Tennessee.  In a statement to the Associated Press, the family wrote: “Our precious mom, Loretta Lynn, passed away peacefully this morning, October 4th, in her sleep at home in her beloved ranch in Hurricane Mills,” adding that a memorial for the beloved songwriter will be announced later. In lieu of flowers the family asks for donations to be made to the Loretta Lynn Foundation.

Lynn amassed 51 Top 10 hits over the course of her 60-year career, and broke down barriers for women with songs like “Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind),” “Fist City” and “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Thanks to the Oscar-winning 1980 film Coal Miner’s Daughter starring Sissy Spacek, Lynn’s story and songs were brought to a wider audience.  Lynn joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1962, won four Grammy awards, seven American Music Awards and eight Country Music Association awards. She was the first woman to win the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music awards for Entertainer of the Year, and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008, and was awarded the Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. In total Lynn sold over 45 million albums worldwide.

Lynn was pre-deceased by her husband of 48 years Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn, her daughter Betty Sue Lynn and son Jack Benny Lynn. She is survived by her daughters Patsy Lynn Russell, Peggy Lynn, Clara (Cissie) Marie Lynn and her son Ernest Ray Lynn, as well as multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Country Daypop

Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit announce 2023 tour dates

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Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit will launch a 2023 tour in January and February. The three-week run includes shows in Florida, Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina and Kentucky, and will feature Peter One as support.

The tour starts in Florida, kicking-off on Jan. 19 at Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando, Fla., before wrapping up at the Paramount Arts Center on February 3 in Ashland. Kentucky.

Tickets for the Florida shows go on sale Friday, October 7 with tickets for all other newly confirmed tour dates available now.   You can find additional ticketing information at Jason Isbell’s official website.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Entertainment Daypop

Take a look at the new trailer for the sequel film ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’

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Marvel Studios has shared a new trailer for the sequel film ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ featuring Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira and Tenoch Huerta.

‘Wakanda Forever’ is a sequel to 2018’s ‘Black Panther’. The sequel was filmed following the death of Chadwick Boseman, who played T’Challa, aka Black Panther, in the first film. Boseman died at age 43 in August 2020, and his role was not recast.

The trailer for ‘Wakanda Forever’opens with T’Challa’s family and the nation of Wakanda mourning T’Challa’s death. The film will see Wakanda face off with the underwater kingdom of Talocan, ruled by Namor (Tenoch Huerta). In addition, the preview introduces a new hero in the Black Panther suit, who appears to be a woman. The person is speculated to be Shuri (Wright), an inventor and T’Challa’s sister.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever opens in theaters Nov. 11. Take a look at the trailer – here.

‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ trailer teases new hero in the suit

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News Daypop

Biden administration announces $300M to be used to access student mental healthcare

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On Monday, the Biden administration announced that $300 million dollars — taken partially from the new bipartisan gun violence law — will be used to help students access mental healthcare.The U.S. Department of Education will allocate competitive grants of $280 million to help with mental health staffing as schools  across the country.

The Department of Health and Human Services will also allocate funds for emergency departments.  According to a report from the National Center for Educational Statistics, mental health professionals are among the five most understaffed jobs at U.S. public schools.

The funding will come from annual appropriations, as well as from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. The new law aims to help curb gun violence, specifically mass shootings. The law introduces more stringent background checks on people purchasing firearms, including access to juvenile records and information related to mental health. The law also allocates funding to encourage more mental health professionals to work at schools.

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News Daypop

Three U.S. postal workers are arrested in $1.3M fraud and identity theft scheme

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According to the Department of Justice, three U.S. postal workers in New York and New Jersey have been arrested for allegedly stealing credit cards from the mail in a conspiracy to buy luxury items to sell online. The DOJ announced the arrests of three postal workers, and a fourth person, in connection with a 4-year, $1.3 million fraud and identity theft scheme. U.S. postal workers Nathanael Foucault, Johnathan Persaud, Fabiola Mompoint and civilian Devon Richards — in addition to five other people who have not been arrested — face charges that include Conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud, Access Device Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft charges. Each face lengthy prison sentences if convicted.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement: “As alleged, the defendants engaged in a years-long scheme to manipulate credit card companies and major retailers across New York and New Jersey by stealing credit cards and using those cards to purchase, and subsequently sell, luxury goods. The defendants took advantage of the public trust we place in U.S. Postal Service employees for their own financial gain.”

U.S. Postal Inspection Service Inspector-in-Charge Daniel Brubaker said in a statement:  “These nine defendants, three of which are postal employees, sought to enrich themselves by stealing mail directly from hundreds of postal customers  They further compounded their crimes by committing identity theft against those customers to facilitate their elaborate scheme to defraud several national financial institutions.”

The DOJ said the defendants stole credit cards from the mail and activated the cards using stolen personally identifiable information. Other members of the conspiracy used the stolen cards to purchase luxury goods from high-end retailers, such as Chanel, Fendi, Hermes and Dior, and sold them on the website LuxurySnob.com. which calls itself an “online consignment and personal shopping company” specializing in pre-owned luxury items,” but actually sells many items purchased using stolen credit cards.

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Categories
Country Daypop

Russell Dickerson announces self-titled third album

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Russell Dickerson is set to release his third studio album, a 15-track self-titled project, on November 4th. Dickerson, who co-wrote on all 15 tracks, also served as co-producer alongside Dann Huff, Zach Crowell, Casey Brown, Josh Kerr, Ben Johnson and Alysa Vanderheym.  Dickerson posted on social media: “RD3. 15 songs. Nov 4th. Pre-order now! ”   To pre-order head here.

A new track from the album, ‘I Wonder’, is out now. Said Dickerson:  “No matter how far we get into this, I want people to know it’s still me. I’m still the hyper, outgoing, fun-loving, crazy dude on stage. But also these songs are so meaningful to me. It’s not all hype and smoke and lights. I am a songwriter, I trust my instincts, and now my instincts are telling me to share 100-percent me, and creatively just let it flow.”

Dickerson’s chart-topping singles include “Yours”, “Blue Tacoma”, “Every Little Thing”, “Love You Like I Used To”, and most recently Dickerson’s current single “She Likes It” ft. Jake Scott, which has already been certified Gold

Dickerson will also embark on a sold-out tour in the UK and headline a tour throughout the US starting in November.

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Categories
Country Daypop

CMT to honor Alan Jackson with ‘Artist Of A Lifetime’ Award

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CMT announced that country music icon Alan Jackson will receive the “Artist of a Lifetime” award at the 2022 CMT Artists of the Year,  during a 90-minute special airing on CMT on Friday, October 14. CMT wrote on Instagram: “The 2022 CMT Artist of a Lifetime ⭐ @officialalanjackson ⭐ Join us as we honor and celebrate him on Friday, October 14 at 9/8c on CMT! #CMTAOTY”

Jackson will join the list of previous “Lifetime” honorees including Randy Travis (2021), Reba McEntire (2019), Loretta Lynn (2018), Shania Twain (2016), Kenny Rogers (2015) and Merle Haggard (2014). CMT said: “We’re honored to recognize the incomparable Alan Jackson as this year’s CMT ‘Artist of a Lifetime.’ For more than thirty years, his traditional sound, iconic voice and beloved catalog of music has captivated audiences across the globe and his talent as a recording artist and songwriter are simply unmatched. From his early beginnings in Newnan, Georgia, to selling out the world’s largest stages, Alan has led fans on a musical journey that proved to be a reflection of their own lives. As his songs continue to inspire new generations of fans, we are privileged to celebrate his lifetime of accomplishments.”

Jackson said in a press release: “I believe I’ve made more videos than just about anybody, and I know how important they have been in bringing my songs to life for the fans, so thank you CMT for all the years and for this sweet honor. I’m very proud.”

The 2022 CMT Artists of the Year will feature some of country music’s biggest stars taking the stage at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center in honor of Carly Pearce, Cody Johnson, Kane Brown, Luke Combs, and Walker Hayes. The star-studded event will premiere on Friday, October 14 at 9/8c.

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Entertainment Daypop

‘American Horror Story: NYC’ to premiere on FX on October 19

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FX has unveiled a title and premiere date for Season 11 of the anthology horror series American Horror Story, tweeting: “New Season. New City. New Fears. FX’s AHS:NYC premieres 10.19 on FX. Stream on Hulu.”

Season 11 will be titled American Horror Story: NYC and have a two-episode premiere at 10 p.m. EDT on Oct. 19. Subsequent episodes will be released in pairs on Wednesdays, with episodes streaming the next day on Hulu.

American Horror Story: NYC stars Joe Mantello, Billie Lourd, Zachary Quinto, Russell Tovey, Leslie Grossman, Charlie Carver, Sandra Bernhard, Isaac Powell, Denis O’Hare and Patti LuPone.

The American Horror Story franchise is created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, and the series has already been renewed through Season 13.  Previous seasons were titled Murder House, Asylum, Coven, Freak Show, Hotel, Roanoke, Cult, Apocalypse, 1984 and Double Feature: Red Tide and Death Valley.

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