MCA NashvilleParker McCollum’s Hollywood Gold EP, his first major-label project, arrived this week. It contains six tracks, including his first-ever top-ten hit, “Pretty Heart.”
The project’s title is a tribute to his grandfather, who purchased an Australian racehorse named “Hollywood Gold” that was promptly stolen from his property and remained missing for months. But as he celebrates his EP release, Parker is on the receiving end of another kind of “Hollywood Gold” for his work on the project.
“Pretty Heart” recently won him his first-ever RIAA gold certification, certifying 500,000 units sold. The song continues to rake in high sales and streaming numbers.
However, on his new EP, Parker puts his biggest focus on the classic “Gold” sound of traditional country music. One of the tracks, “Like a Cowboy,” is a Chris Stapleton-penned tribute to the rugged work ethic of an earlier generation.
Aside from “Like a Cowboy,” Parker co-wrote every track on Hollywood Gold.
(NEW YORK) — A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1 million people worldwide.
Over 38.9 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The criteria for diagnosis — through clinical means or a lab test — has varied from country-to-country. Still, the actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks.
Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica.
The United States is the worst-affected country, with more than 7.9 million diagnosed cases and at least 217,700 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 868,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 837,000 cases and over 744,000 cases, respectively.
More than 190 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, at least 10 of which are in crucial phase three studies. Of those 10 potential vaccines in late-stage trials, there are currently five that will be available in the United States if approved.
Here’s how the news is developing Friday. All times Eastern:
Oct 16, 1:47 pm Denver limits social gathering to 5 people
In reaction to a growing positivity rate, Denver health officials are reducing the social gathering limit from 10 to five people. Additionally, people must wear their face mask when outside and walking with others from outside their household.
The new restrictions are only for Denver County and not the rest of the state.
As of Friday, Colorado has 81,895 COVID-19 cases and 2,162 deaths, as per John Hopkins University data. Denver has 15,383 confirmed cases, and has had 440 deaths.
Oct 16, 1:01 pm New England Patriots cancel practice after positive COVID-19 test
The Patriots are canceling their Friday practice after a positive COVID-19 test, per a source. There is also a second test they are awaiting to confirm is a positive, ESPN reported.
Oct 16, 12:21 pm Indianapolis Colts open for practice after four players re-test negative
The Indianapolis Colts will reopen their practice facility Friday after four individuals’ re-test for COVID-19 confirmed they were negative, the team announced.
The team closed their facility Friday morning after initial positive tests. They involved one player and three staff members, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Indianapolis is scheduled to have a home game Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Oct 16, 11:11 am Governor surges state resources for COVID-19 response
Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Friday that the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Texas Division of Emergency Management surge in resources to support the COVID-19 response in Texas.
Resources include medical personnel, medical supplies, and personal protective equipment for the Panhandle and South Plains areas.
DSHS has deployed 171 medical personnel to these communities, and an additional 100 personnel will arrive by Sunday. DSHS has also deployed 100 IV pumps, 56 ventilators, and 25 oxygen concentrators to the region.
“As the Amarillo and Lubbock communities see a rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations, the State of Texas is providing support to hospitals throughout these two regions,” said Governor Abbott. “The additional medical personnel, supplies, and PPE surged to the Panhandle and South Plains will help these communities care for patients and contain the spread of this virus.” ABC News’ Matthews Furhman contributed to this report.
Oct 16, 9:32 am Czech Republic reports nearly 10,000 new cases, setting another record
The Czech Republic confirmed 9,721 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, its highest single-day rise yet.
The previous record of 9,544 new cases was set a day earlier, meaning it’s the second straight day that the country has reported its highest increase in infections.
The cumulative total now stands at 149,010 cases with 1,230 deaths, according to the Czech health ministry. Almost 50,000 of those cases were registered last week.
More than 84,000 cases were active Friday, including 2,920 patients who remained hospitalized for COVID-19, while over 63,000 have recovered from the disease, according to the health ministry data.
The Czech Republic has the highest rate of COVID-19 infection in Europe. Over the past two weeks, the country of 10.7 million people has reported 701.9 cases per 100,000 population, according to data published Friday by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.
The Czech government said hospitals could reach full capacity around the end of the month due to growing number of COVID-19 patients. Over the weekend, the Czech military will start building a field hospital in Prague that will be able to house 500 patients.
Oct 16, 9:06 am New cases and deaths are both on the rise in US, HHS memo says
The number of new cases of COVID-19 recorded in the United States increased by double digits in week-over-week comparisons, while the number of deaths is also on the rise, according to an internal memo from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that was obtained by ABC News on Thursday night.
The memo, which is circulated among the highest levels of the federal government and is used to determine daily priorities for the agencies working on a COVID-19 response, said 38 U.S. states and territories are in an upward trajectory of new infections, while eight jurisdictions are at a plateau and 10 others are in a downward trend.
There were 366,455 new cases confirmed during the period of Oct. 8-Oct. 14, a 16.4% increase from the previous week. There were also 4,893 fatalities from COVID-19 recorded during the same period, a 3.1% increase compared with the week prior, according to the memo.
The national positivity rate for COVID-19 tests dropped from 6% to 5% in week-to-week comparisons. Meanwhile, 24% of hospitals nationwide have more than 80% of beds full in their intensive care units. That figure was 17%-18% during the summertime peak, the memo said.
Arkansas saw its death toll from COVID-19 increase by 25% during the week ending Oct. 11. Case rates continue to rise in rural parts of the state, according to the memo.
A review of death certificates in Georgia revealed that while Black residents make up 30% of the state’s population, they account for 48% of the 7,416 deaths from COVID-19 to date. Just over 82.4% of ICU beds and 81.3% of inpatient beds were occupied in Georgia during the period of Oct. 5-11, the memo said.
In Iowa, 7% of new cases are being reported in the 18-40 age group. COVID-19 hospitalizations across the state reached an all-time high on Oct. 7, with 449 reported admissions, according to the memo.
Kentucky broke its record for weekly case count on Oct. 1 for the third straight week, the memo said.
New Mexico saw its number of new cases increase 53.3% in the week ending Oct. 11, compared to the week prior. The Albuquerque area experienced a relative increase of 89.5% in new cases between Oct. 4 and Oct. 11, according to the memo.
Oct 16, 8:46 am After contracting COVID-19, Chris Christie admits he ‘made a mistake’ not wearing a mask
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie spoke exclusively to ABC News on Friday morning for the first time since he tested positive for COVID-19 and was released from the hospital.
“It hits you like a freight train.” Christie told ABC News chief anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview on Good Morning America. “It all happened very, very quickly. Within 24 hours, I went from feeling absolutely fine to being in the intensive care unit.”
Christie, who has asthma, spent seven days in the ICU while battling COVID-19. He said he received an antibody treatment in combination with the antiviral medication remdesivir early on in the course of his illness.
“The last two or three days, I’ve really kind of turned around in terms of being able to recover and getting a lot of my energy back,” he said. “So I’m not yet 100%, but I’m about a fighting 80%.”
Christie admitted he “was wrong” and “made a mistake” in not wearing a face mask while recently helping President Donald Trump prepare for the debate.
“I was led to believe that all the people that I was interacting with at the White House had been tested and it gave you a false sense of security, and it was a mistake,” he said. “I was doing it right for seven months and avoided the virus. I let my guard down for a couple days inside the White House grounds and it cost me unfortunately in a significant way.”
Christie urged the public to wear masks, saying, “there is no downside to you wearing masks and, in fact, there can be a great deal of upside.”
“I think no matter what you’re doing, whether you’re at a rally for your preferred candidate, whether you’re out at the supermarket, whether you’re at a protest, no matter what you’re doing, you should have a mask on and you should try to remain socially distant from folks,” he said. “I did it for seven months, George, and I stayed healthy. I didn’t do it for four days and I wound up in the ICU.”
Oct 16, 7:23 am Russia’s daily case count tops 15,000 for first time
Russia confirmed another 15,150 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, its highest daily tally yet.
It’s the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic that Russia has registered more than 15,000 cases in a single day. The latest daily case count is nearly 1,400 more than the previous day.
More than 33% of the newly confirmed cases were reported in the capital, Moscow, the epicenter of the country’s COVID-19 outbreak, according to Russia’s coronavirus response headquarters.
An additional 232 deaths from COVID-19 were also registered in the past 24 hours, down from the national record of 286 set the previous day. The cumulative totals now stand at 1,369,313 cases and 23,723 deaths, according to the country’s coronavirus response headquarters.
Russia has been breaking its own records for daily case counts and deaths almost every day since Oct. 9. The country of 145 million people has the fourth-highest tally of COVID-19 cases in the world, behind only the United States, India and Brazil.
Oct 16, 6:37 am Germany sees highest single-day increase in infections
Germany confirmed 7,334 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, its highest single-day increase since the start of the pandemic.
It’s the first time Germany has surpassed 7,000 COVID-19 cases in a single day, and it marks the second straight day that the country has broken its own record for the daily tallies.
An additional 24 deaths from COVID-19 were also registered Thursday. The cumulative totals now stands at 348,557 cases and 9,734 deaths, according to the latest data from the country’s public health institute.
Until this week, Germany’s highest recorded figure was nearly 6,300 cases on March 28, according to data published by the Robert Koch Institute. While testing has increased since then, the country is among several in Europe that have seen a sharp uptick in COVID-19 infections in recent weeks.
Earlier this week, Germany’s federal and state governments agreed to toughen rules on wearing face masks and to have bars close early in areas where infections are high.
Oct 16, 5:47 am US reports over 63,000 new cases in highest daily count since August
There were 63,610 new cases of COVID-19 identified in the United States on Thursday, the country’s highest daily tally since Aug. 14, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University.
The latest daily tally is up by more than 4,000 from the previous day but still under the country’s record set on July 16, when there were 77,255 new cases in a 24-hour-reporting period.
An additional 904 coronavirus-related fatalities were also recorded Thursday, slightly less than the previous day and down from a peak of 2,666 new fatalities reported on April 17.
A total of 7,980,461 people in the United States have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, and at least 217,700 of them have died, according to Johns Hopkins. The cases include people from all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C. and other U.S. territories as well as repatriated citizens.
By May 20, all U.S. states had begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The day-to-day increase in the country’s cases then hovered around 20,000 for a couple of weeks before shooting back up and crossing 70,000 for the first time in mid-July. The daily tally of new cases has gradually come down since then but has started to climb again in recent weeks.
The number of new COVID-19 cases recorded in the United States continued to increase by double digits in week-over-week comparisons, while the number of new deaths from the disease continued to tick downward slightly, according to an internal memo from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that was obtained by ABC News on Wednesday night.
Courtesy of BB Gun PressAs Cam readies the release of her sophomore studio album, The Otherside, she’s making arrangements for an unforgettable album release show event from the stage of Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe.
During the show, the singer will bring fans along for the emotional ride that led her to make the album. In between performances, she’ll share some of the stories behind the songs on The Otherside.
Tickets for the livestream show are for sale now, with special virtual “meet and greet” options available, as well as add-on purchases of CD or vinyl copies of The Otherside. The show will take place at 7PM CT on October 30, which is the same day that Cam’s new album comes out.
When she first announced the project, Cam explained that the creative process started in a disappointment and disillusionment she was feeling with the world.
“These past few years, my expectations for the world were severely undercut,” she noted at the time. “Honestly, my idealist heart needed some reworking in order to survive. At the same time all this inner development was happening, I was touring the world and getting better at singing & songwriting. Now in hindsight, from The Otherside, I can hear the through-line of how it’s all made me more myself.”
Cam has already shared a handful of tracks off her new album, including “Redwood Tree,” “Till There’s Nothing Left,” “Diane” and her current single, “Classic.”
The film, which follows a group of anti-Vietnam War protesters who are put on trial for allegedly inciting riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, took 14 years for Sorkin to get released. Sorkin tells ABC Audio that even though his historical drama centers on a specific time of civil unrest, it’s still just as timely for today.
“We thought the film was relevant while we were making it last winter,” he says. “We didn’t need it to get more relevant, but in the most chilling ways it has. When I watch CNN or ABC’s coverage of the clashes between protesters and the police, I think if you just degraded the color on that a little bit, it would look exactly like the news footage we are using from ’68.”
Besides retelling an important story, Sorkin believes his film also sheds light on the injustice that Black Panther co-founder Bobby Seale endured when he was initially charged with the group before his case was later separated.
“You can’t tell the story of the Chicago 7 without telling Bobby’s story,” he says. “This man who just would not allow himself to be bulldozed by this judge and this system.”
“Would not — until his last moment in the courtroom — shut up when the judge tells him to shut up until he’s finally in an American courtroom bound and gagged,” Sorkin continues, sharing some of the harrowing events that actually took place in court. “And you can’t not tell this story without telling that story.”
The Trial of The Chicago 7, starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, is now available on Netflix.
Spencer Combsl/Triple TigersRussellDickerson has been hinting at new music to come for the past several months, and the singer is finally ready to share what he’s got up his sleeve. He announced his upcoming sophomore album, Southern Symphony, on Friday.
A ten-track project that Russell says is a testament to how he’s evolved as an artist, Southern Symphony will be out on December 4. It’s available to pre-order now, and the singer’s also tiding fans over with a brand-new track off the project, “Never Get Old.”
With a throwback ‘90s twang and a timeless message of celebrating and savoring good times, “Never Get Old” is the leading track off of Southern Symphony. Fans can also find Russell’s previously-released “Love You Like I Used To” and “Home Sweet” on the album.
Plus, it looks like there’s an exciting collaboration in the works: The track list of Southern Symphony reveals a duet with Florida Georgia Line called “It’s About Time.”
“Southern Symphony is hands-down the best work I’ve created,” the singer says. “It’s the best songs I’ve written. It’s sonically the best we’ve created. This album is ten honest and true tracks that tell the story of how I’ve grown as an artist and a man. I could not be more proud of every song on this album.”
Southern Symphony will follow Russell’s 2017 full-length debut, Yours. Here’s the full track list for the album:
“Never Get Old” “Home Sweet” “All Yours All Night” “Love You Like I Used To” “Forever for a Little While” “It’s About Time” (feat. Florida Georgia Line) “Honey” “Southern Symphony” “Come to Jesus” “Waiting for You My Whole Life”
MCA NashvilleParker McCollum’s Hollywood Gold EP, his first major-label project, arrived this week. It contains six tracks, including his first-ever top-ten hit, “Pretty Heart.”
