Capitol Records NashvilleJon Pardi fans are in for a surprise: The singer dropped his new Rancho Fiesta Sessions EP today, an eight-track collection of songs pulled from his favorite artists’ discographies.
“All of these covers are of artists that I admire and I look up to,” Jon explains. “There are all kinds of great names and styles of songs on here — from legends. I think the magic and the fun of it all is in these eight covers of songs that I really like or grew up singing.
Unsurprisingly, classic country gold is a dominant theme on the project, with selections from George Strait, Joe Diffie, Dwight Yoakam and Merle Haggard. Jon delivers a faithful take on Diffie’s performance of “Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die),” for example.
But the singer also looked outside the country genre for inspiration. He offers his interpretation of “The Waiting” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, as well as a searing performance of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U.”
The Rancho Fiesta Sessions songs were cut in one evening, as the product of a jam session with Jon’s touring band at his home in Nashville.
“We mainly did it to have fun and record, and it sounds like we’re in your backyard playing for you,” Jon reflects. “….It turned into something special because it’s a year where we are off the road, and we recorded it live in real time, out at my house.”
As for the EP’s title? Jon says that’s a nod to where it was recorded.
“I nicknamed my place out here Rancho Fiesta because it was fun and sounded uplifting,” he says.
NBC(NEW YORK) — Amy Schumer is getting candid about her future baby plans.
The 39-year-old comedian and her chef husband Chris Fischer currently have one son together, 15-month-old Gene David, who they conceived through in vitro fertilization, however, when it comes to expanding their family, the couple doesn’t plan on taking the same route.
“We did IVF and IVF was really tough on me,” she says during the upcoming episode of Sunday Today with Willie Giest, according to People. “I don’t think I could ever do IVF again.”
Despite the rough time with IVF, Schumer revealed that they’ve explored other options but aren’t necessarily ready to pull the trigger on them.
“I decided that I can’t be pregnant ever again,” she shared. “We thought about a surrogate. but I think we’re going to hold off for right now.”
In the meantime, the I Feel Pretty star is enjoying being a mother and spending time with her son.
“Life is so much more beautiful,” she said of motherhood. “He’s the best thing in my life.”
Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for National Board of Review(CONNECTICUT) — They say the fastest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach… and women in Connecticut are doing just that with their newest neighbor Bradley Cooper.
According to Page Six, the A Star Is Born actor has been seen roaming the streets of the coastal city of Fairfield. He was spotted jogging around and pumping gas in June, sparking an intense manhunt to find out where the Hollywood hunk is hiding out.
Well, women think they finally found the multi-million dollar mansion Cooper is staying at and are hoping to bag him as a boyfriend.
Rick Higgins, a real estate agent in the area who is representing the property rumored to be Cooper’s vacation spot, says women have been going full Stepford Housewives to get his attention.
“We have had things like women dropping off cookies or muffins that they bake at the gate with the request that he return the dish personally, dinner party invitations, etc.,” says Higgins.
However, there’s one problem. That house where they’re dropping off all their cookies and banana loafs is not where Cooper is staying. The confectionary avalanche became so bad, Higgins was forced to make a giant graphic that reads “Bradley Cooper has NOT purchased 640 Sasco Hill Road… despite the rumors!”
Still, the rumor train is still chugging along with people in the coastal cities of Fairfield and Westport attesting that it’s not only Bradley Cooper who’s staying in the area, but also Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt… despite their agents claiming that all three are West Coasting.
Warner Music NashvilleDevin Dawson may have written his brand-new single, “I Got a Truck,” solo, but he had a little extra help from an inspiring conversation with none other than country hitmaker Tim McGraw.
Back in 2018, Devin was the supporting act for the Soul2Soul Tour, headlined by Tim and his fellow superstar wife Faith Hill. A late-night conversation between the two men about how humble beginnings can lead to big accomplishments gave Devin the push he needed to write his dreamer’s anthem.
“As someone who writes songs every single day, I don’t ever take any inspiration for granted,” notes Devin. “Sometimes you use tricks you’ve learned along the way to kick start that inspiration, and other times it just lands right in your lap.”
Over the past year, Devin has kept busy as a songwriter and duet partner, co-penning Blake Shelton’s 2019 multi-week chart-topper “God’s Country” and lending his voice to Hardy’s current single, “One Beer.”
But the “All on Me” is ready to slide back into the spotlight as an artist with the release of “I Got a Truck.”
“I’m fired up that I get to be the one to help tell this story — because when it’s this real, honest and true, the rest is easy,” Devin adds. “I found so much of myself in this story and in this song and I can’t wait to hear how other people find their story in it as well.”
Ovidiu Dugulan/iStockBy WILLIAM MANSELL and ELLA TORRES, ABC News
(NEW YORK) — The novel coronavirus has now killed more than 753,000 people worldwide.
Nearly 21 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 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.
The United States is the worst-affected country in the world, with more than 5.2 million diagnosed cases and at least 167,242 deaths.
Here’s how the news is developing today. All times Eastern.
12:18 p.m.: Half of Americans know someone with COVID: Survey
The number of Americans who know someone in the U.S. who has tested positive for coronavirus has reached a new high, according to a new survey.
Half of the country’s population now says they know someone who has contracted the virus, up from 41% last month, according to the Societal Experts Action Network.
The survey also shows that the virus has touched all regions of the country, with 51% in the Midwest and South knowing someone who has tested positive, 49% in the Northeast and 47% in the West.
While the numbers were comparable among racial groups, Black and Hispanic people are much more likely than white people to know someone who has died from coronavirus.
For Black and Hispanic people, the numbers are respectively 35% and 28%. For white people, the number is 16%.
The study also showed that pessimism in the country remains, with two-thirds of people saying the situation is getting worse.
Moreover, 74% of Americans favor a national face mask mandate. On Friday, President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, told CBS News This Morning that Trump does not want to tell people to wear masks.
“If people feel more comfortable wearing masks, they absolutely should. I do think it’s a public health — a good thing to do. But President Trump does not believe that Washington should be telling people how to live their lives and all the different states,” Kushner said.
Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden has taken the opposite stance, saying that governors should institute mask mandates.
11:57 a.m.: Museums to reopen in NYC
Museums and cultural institutions can reopen in New York City beginning Aug. 24, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Friday. They have been closed since mid-March.
Cuomo said they will operate at 25% capacity and both timed ticketing and face coverings will be required. There will also be pre-set staggered entries.
Other businesses are also set to reopen, with bowling alleys starting Monday. Protocol for gyms will be released Monday, he said.
Cuomo also provided an update on COVID-19 cases in the state. Out of the 85,455 tests reported Thursday, 727 — or .85% — were positive.
Total hospitalizations fell to 554 and there were four COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, he said.
5:33 a.m.: CDC: Up to 200,000 deaths by Labor Day
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicted in its latest forecast that the U.S. coronavirus death toll could reach 200,000 by Labor Day as children across the country head back to school.
Its national ensemble forecast predicts that 4,200 to 10,600 new COVID-19 deaths will be reported for the week ending on Sept. 5 and that 180,000 to 200,000 total COVID-19 deaths will be reported by that date.
Last month, the CDC predicted there would be between 160,000 and 175,000 deaths by Aug. 15. As of Aug. 13, with more than 1,000 deaths a day every day for more than two weeks, there have been 167,097 deaths.
The U.S. surpassed 100,000 COVID-19 deaths on May 27.
New cases continue to decrease across the country week-over-week, but the rate of new deaths have increased over the same period, according to a Federal Emergency Management Agency memo obtained by ABC News.
There were 7,517 deaths recorded from Aug. 5 to 12, which marked a 2.3% increase in new deaths compared with the previous week. The national test-positivity rate remains at 6.5%.
ABC News analyzed state coronavirus trends across all 50 states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, and found there were increases in cases in two states (Hawaii and Illinois) and Puerto Rico, increases in the daily rate of positivity in 15 states plus D.C., increases in hospitalizations in 19 states, and increases in daily deaths in 23 states, D.C, and Puerto Rico.
Capitol Records NashvilleJon Pardi fans are in for a surprise: The singer dropped his new Rancho Fiesta Sessions EP today, an eight-track collection of songs pulled from his favorite artists’ discographies. 
