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Blake Shelton claims he “fried and ate” a lion’s mane mushroom he found growing in the woods

• No Comments • Country Music News

John Shearer/Getty Images for The Recording AcademyYou can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy: Blake Shelton left his fellow The Voice coaches speechless recently when he shared a story about his weekend mushroom-hunting activities.

“I’m also a member of the Wild Mushroom Enthusiasts of Oklahoma group,” Blake said on the set of The Voice.

“You guys can’t be international, since it’s on the internet?” joked John Legend. 

“I found, collected, fried and ate a lion’s mane mushroom the other day, because I follow this group,” Blake continued. “I was walking through the woods and saw one growing on the side of the tree.”

“I can’t believe this is real,” replied John, as coaches Kelly Clarkson and Nick Jonas looked on with equally bemused expressions on their faces. After all, foraging and frying up morels isn’t exactly a popular hobby in Los Angeles.

While Blake didn’t offer any proof that he actually ate a lion’s mane mushroom, it does seem likely that he at least found one: On Twitter, the singer shared a picture of the mushroom over the weekend, captioning his shot, “Would y’all fry this up and eat it?”

When he’s not expanding his mushroom-hunting abilities, Blake is climbing the country charts. His current single, “Minimum Wage,” is a top-30 hit and rising.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

"ENOUGH IS ENOUGH": 'Emily in Paris' star Ashley Park goes viral with Instagram post decrying Asian hate

• No Comments • Entertainment News

CAROLE BETHUEL/NETFLIX © 2020(LOS ANGELES) — Emily in Paris star Ashley Park has gone viral with an impassioned plea about the plight of the Asian-American community, in the wake of Tuesday’s deadly shooting spree at Atlanta-area spas.

Six of the victims were Asian women, and although the alleged perpetrator said he wasn’t motivated by race, the incident comes on the heels of increasing violent incidents aimed at Asians across the country since the start of the pandemic last year.

Park captioned her video, “3 deadly shootings targeting Asian Women in Atlanta yesterday. I couldn’t sleep. …ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.”

Park, who is Korean-American, began the tearful video by saying she posted it because, “I’m so tired of people not knowing what’s going on.”

The actress said that violence aside, there is “societal programming” that degrades people in her community. “The amount of times in my life that I’ve been asked where I’m from before what my name is … you do understand…the undervaluing that does,” she said. “Starting with children, when every Asian kid should be able to be good at math and play a classical instrument…”

The Tony-nominated actress also declared, “This racism starts at a very small level. It starts with things that you say. It starts when someone calls a virus that shut down the whole world the ‘Kung Flu virus.’ It also starts when you roll your eyes or make fun of Asian waiters or Chinese food delivery people and the nail artist.”

“I’m guilty of that, too,” she admitted. 

Park added, “I do hope that this younger generation lives in a world where they don’t have to deal with this, or they at least have the tools and allies to deal with it better than I am dealing with it now.”

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Mickey Guyton’s “Black Like Me” enjoys a sales hike after her Grammys performance

• No Comments • Country Music News

ABC/Image Group LALast weekend’s Grammy Awards performance introduced a new group of viewers to Mickey Guyton, who performed her searing ballad, “Black Like Me,” during the telecast. Now, Mickey’s reaping the benefits.

According to MRC data collected by Billboard, Mickey’s single sold 1,6000 copies after the awards show. That makes her one of the artists with the biggest post-performance sales jumps, a whopping 13,225% increase from her numbers the day before the show.

“Black Like Me” received an overall tepid response from country radio stations after it was released last summer, at the height of Black Lives Matter protests following the death of George Floyd. Mickey’s single failed to chart, and she’s not alone: According to a newly-released study examining representation across the format, songs by women of color made up only 2.7% of country radio airplay between 2000 and 2020.

However, in the wake of her Grammys appearance, Billboard reports that her label, EMI Nashville, has partnered with Universal Music Group’s Republic Records to promote “Black Like Me” to adult contemporary stations. Mickey’s song is getting a new version for its new radio treatment, dubbed “Black Like Me (Our Voices).”


By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

NCAA March Madness set to begin in Indiana

• No Comments • Sports News

TuelekZa/iStockBy ABC News

(NEW YORK) — The NCAA annual basketball tournament returns on Thursday night with its first four play-in games.

One year after being canceled due to coronavirus concerns in March 2020, March Madness 2021 will be played exclusively in Indiana. Players, coaches, staffers and other event participants will undergo regular testing in a bubble-like environment.

Watch the ABC News report:

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

William Shatner's busy pandemic: Horseback riding, cutting albums, a podcast, a hit History Channel show, and more

• No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC News/Stephen Iervolino(LOS ANGELES) — While you may have had trouble doing anything but bingeing TV during the pandemic, 89-year-old William Shatner has been killing it. 

“You know, I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve been really doing well,” the multi-tasking Star Trek icon admits to ABC Audio.

“I’ve been vaccinated. Nobody in my family has gotten the disease, my wife’s got her first shot. My kids are getting vaccinated. I mean, it’s just…been ‘OK,'” he says, seemingly embarrassed. “And, as so many people who have lost loved ones, I have been fortunate enough not to have.”

Aside from being healthy, Shatner has been very productive. “Let me tell you why,” he explains. “I’ve been able to focus on things so there’s no extraneous noise or people.” 

The accomplished equestrian says, “One of the things that I made a giant leap is my ‘seat’ on riding a horse because I’m able to go frequently and focus on that horse. I’ve become a better rider, much better rider.”

He adds, “I’ve been able to create an album, actually two, with a friend of mine who’s a poet and with a guy who’s a musician….We’ve created…two albums [that were] picked up by Universal Records…”

Shatner adds, “I’m doing a podcast. In this time with the distancing, I’m doing a show called The Unexplained, which has become a hit on the History Channel. I got all kinds of things going…”

For good measure, he reveals, “I’m going to interview three authors and do this new idea for a book club. I mean, it’s just one thing after another. It’s fantastic.” 

The Unexplained returns Friday night, April 2 on History.

Oh, and what’s more, Shatner can be seen On Demand on March 26 in the romantic comedy Senior Moment.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.