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Lauren Akins opens up on how she felt "estranged" from husband Thomas Rhett after having children

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ABC/Image Group LAIn her new book, Live in Love: Growing Together Through Life’s Changes, Lauren Akins offers an all-encompassing look at her life with husband Thomas Rhett, including the struggles they’ve overcome in their eight-year marriage. 

One of those struggles came after the birth of daughter Ada James in August 2017, three months after adopting two-year-old daughter Willa Gray from Uganda. Lauren reveals that she experienced postpartum depression following Ada’s birth and felt distant from Thomas. 

“It’s so hard to explain, but I started feeling like I just missed him. I felt estranged from my husband. Even when he was in the same room with us” Lauren explains in the book, according to E!. 

The couple got a true wake-up call when Thomas and Lauren each received a delivery.  His was a pair of Gucci shoes and a tuxedo, while her package contained Lysol wipes.  She said it further made her feel as if family was something her husband “did on the side,” with his career his top priority.  Lauren at one point even stated, “I think I hate you.”

The two eventually worked through their struggles via marriage counseling, where they learned to communicate effectively with one another.  And when Lauren returned home one day to find Thomas already there and having done the dishes, she knew they had reached a turning point.  

“It wasn’t just about doing dishes. It was about wanting to share my life with an equal partner — the man I loved — and not allowing some old-fashioned stereotypical view of how marriage is supposed to work get in the way of making our marriage actually work,” Lauren concludes.  “For both of us.”

Lauren continues on her virtual Live in Love book tour through the end of August.

By Cillea Houghton 
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Katy Perry convinced Orlando Bloom to voice Prince Harry in new animated show 'The Prince'

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Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — According to Orlando Bloom, his fiancée Katy Perry is the one who convinced him to take on his latest acting role.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Orlando said he agreed to voice Prince Harry in The Prince, an upcoming HBO Max animated series about the British royal family, because Katy thought it was a great idea.

“Initially, I was like, ‘Hmm, how do I feel about this?’ because I’m a British boy who’s actually very proud of my roots,” says Orlando. “I’ve always understood it as part of my heritage and background, and I’m not someone who wants to poke fun at anyone normally, but this was so clever, witty and affectionately done.”

But, he notes, “Katy was like, ‘You’ve got to do this. This is genius.’”

The Prince is inspired by a popular Instagram account by Gary Janetti, which offers a satirical take on the Royals, and focuses on Prince George, the son of Prince William and Duchess Kate. 

Orlando says he actually met Harry after he took the job and calls him “such a nice guy” with a great sense of humor.”

“I hope he maintains his sense of humor through this because they’re sort of on a pedestal,” the actor adds. “We’re showing real adoration to them in one form or another.”

Katy and Orlando are expecting their baby daughter any day now.

By Andrea Dresdale
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

"Yes! Finally!" Michelle Yeoh rejoices about Asian representation in 'Marvel's Shang-Chi'

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Edwin Koo/amfAR/Getty Images for amfAR(LOS ANGELES) — As part of the magazine’s TIME 100 Talks, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon star Michelle Yeoh enthused about the overwhelming Asian representation in her latest film, Marvel Studios Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Yeoh, who also appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, celebrated the casting of Chinese-Canadian actor Simu Liu as Marvel Studios’ first Asian lead. “When that movie was announced last year and they introduced who they were doing as the Marvel superhero and it was an Asian superhero, it was like, ‘Yes, finally!’ When do we get to be represented like that?”

Yeoh credits one of her films with helping wake Hollywood up, when it comes to casting. “When Crazy
Rich Asians came out, it changed the map,” the actress said of the blockbuster. “It changed the whole way Asians were represented and seen. We were no longer invisible. We were no longer just a token. We were really represented in a contemporary way.”

Yeoh was already a superstar stunt performer and actor overseas before many Americans were introduced to her, in the 1997 James Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies, in which she played a Chinese counterpart to Pierce Brosnan’s suave 007. “…[O]nce I got to America, I was like, I’m really a minority here and I have no representation,” Yeoh recalled.

“I think the turning point really came when I did the James Bond movie… It was a proud moment because here is a Chinese woman who is standing…toe-to-toe with the greatest spy in the world, James Bond. It made such a huge difference in the way we Asians were looked at.”

Shang-Shi, which also stars Awkwafina and Rosalind Chao, opens May 7, 2021.

Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Chris Harrison returns to 'The Bachelorette', promises "most dramatic season ever"

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ABC/Todd Wawrychuck(LOS ANGELES) — After reports surfaced that The Bachelorette host Chris Harrison had to step aside from the show in order to quarantine after dropping his son off at college, he is now back and is already teasing what this season will bring.

Harrison documented his grand return to the show, complete with him being halted by Paul Danner, a longtime stage manager, who is also pointing at a COVID-19 guidance sign.  In return, Harrison has his hand outstretched in a “you have got to be kidding me” gesture.

The second photo in the slideshow uploaded Monday shows the host wheeling his luggage and golf clubs into the sprawling La Quinta Resort & Club in La Quinta, California.

“The most dramatic season ever!,” captioned Harrison on Monday, making light of all the behind-the-scenes changes that have been made in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 49-year-old host had left the show to drop his 18-year-old son Joshua off at Texas Christian University, but learned that by leaving the bubble — he had to undergo a mandatory quarantine to protect the health and safety of the contestants.

Other precautions that have since taken place involve the competition being filmed in one location, the upscale La Quinta Resort and not the Bachelor mansion. Unlike seasons’ past, the show will also not jet Bachelorette star Clare Crawley and her suitors across the globe. 

Beyond these changes, the show has been at the center of several rumors, such as former Bachelorette JoJo Fletcher taking over Harrison’s hosting duties while he underwent mandatory quarantine, as reported by People.

The Bachelorette, which was originally slated to start airing in May, returns this fall on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.  

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The Chicks featured on Barack Obama's summer playlist

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Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesThe Chicks are part of former President Barack Obama‘s esteemed summer playlist. 

Obama selected “Gaslighter,” the title track to the Grammy-winning country trio’s latest album, as one of his favorite songs of the summer.

The Chicks are among a long list of artists on Obama’s yearly playlist, alongside revered Americana artist Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit‘s “Be Afraid” and Sheryl Crow‘s classic hit, “All I Wanna Do.” 

Other artists included on the playlist are John Legend, Rihanna, Otis Redding, Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan, Beyoncé and more. 

“Over the past few months, I’ve spent a lot of time listening to music with my family. I wanted to share some of my favorites from the summer,” the 44th president writes. “As always, it’s a mix of genres that travels through various eras. I think there’s something in here for everybody –– hope you enjoy it.” 

The Chicks are performing during the Democratic National Convention livestream on Thursday that begins at 9 p.m. ET.

By Cillea Houghton
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.