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Sports Daypop

LeBron James becomes part-owner of Boston Red Sox

L.A. Lakers star LeBron James has reportedly bought an undisclosed amount of Fenway Sports Group (“FSG”) shares. James previously held about a 2% share of the Liverpool soccer franchise when he bought it in 2011. However, with his newest purchase, he becomes a part-owner of the Red Sox as well as other FSG subsidiaries, including NESN, Roush Fenway Racing, and Fenway Sports Management.   

James, along with longtime friend and businessman Maverick Carter, entered the venture together. FSG also reportedly approved a $750 million private investment that would make RedBird Capital partners its third-largest partner.

With this deal, James and Carter become the first and only Black partners in FSG history. FSG is the fourth-most valuable sports empire and is valued at $6.6 billion. Only Jerry Jones, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment and Liberty Media were valued higher. In 2020, James was the highest-earning basketball player in the world and the fifth-highest athlete overall at $88.2 million. 

Report: LeBron James to own share of Boston Red Sox

Via sports.yahoo.com
 

Editorial credit: Marcio Jose Bastos Silva / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Sports Daypop

Jacksonville Jaguars sign cornerback Shaquill Griffin to 3-year, $45.5M deal

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed Seattle Seahawks cornerback Shaquill Griffin to a three-year, $44.5 million deal on Tuesday. Griffin’s deal will reportedly include $29 million in guaranteed money.  Griffin has been with Seattle for the last four seasons after being selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He earned his first career Pro Bowl selection in 2019, and racked up a career-high three interceptions in 2020. Seattle finished No. 15 in points allowed last season.

The Jaguars are in the midst of a lengthy rebuild as 2021 approaches. They hired former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer in January, and they are expected to select Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Jacksonville has also reached agreements with seven players as of Monday, including defensive tackle Roy Robertson-Harris and safety Rayshawn Jenkins. Running back Carlos Hyde will also join the Jaguars in 2021 on a two-year, $6 million deal.

Former Seahawks cornerback Shaquill Griffin to sign with Jaguars

Via news.yahoo.com
 

Categories
Country Daypop

Texas Rangers dedicate new training field to country music icon Charley Pride

The Texas Rangers are paying tribute to country music legend Charley Pride by naming the team’s new training field after him, dubbed Charley Pride Field. The new field is located at the Texas Rangers’ new spring training complex in Surprise, Arizona. 

General manager Chris Young shared during the unveiling of the eponymous field: “Charley Pride was a very special person. As we dedicate this field to him today, it’s important to remember who he was and the way he lived his life. This guy left nothing to chance. He lived life to its fullest. And I think every time we take this field or any field for that matter, we want to do the same. We honor Charlie, we honor all Ranger fans with the way we go about it on a daily basis. … Charley’s name on this field represents who we are and what we want to be. Charlie was a champion, our number one fan, and this is a special day to celebrate him.”

Charley Pride passed away due to complications of COVID-19 on December 12 at the age of 86.  Pride had an extensive history in baseball, spending seven years as a pitcher. Between the years 1953 and 1960 Pride played for the Memphis Red Sox and the Birmingham Black Barons, and the singer was named to the Negro league All-Star team in 1956 and 1957. Pride was part of the ownership group that purchased the Texas Rangers in 2010, and he held that position until he died. 

Charley Pride Honored by Baseball’s Texas Rangers

Via www.thecountrydaily.com
 

Editorial credit: Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Country Daypop

Blanco Brown and Parmalee hit No. 1 on country charts with “Just The Way”

Country music quartet Parmalee have reached No.1 on the Billboard and Mediabase Country radio charts in the U.S. and Canada with their new single “Just The Way” featuring Blanco Brown.  The new No. 1 marks the first time Parmalee is back at the top of the charts since their 2013 hit, “Carolina.”

The music video for “Just the Way” reflects the song’s empowering sentiment, and the visual inspired fans to create their own videos to the tune on social media platforms like TikTok, creating an early streaming success story before being sent to radio. 

Check out the music video for Parmalee and Blanco Brown’s No.1 single, “Just The Way,” at the link: here.

Parmalee & Blanco Brown Top Country Airplay Chart: ‘This Song Is About Celebrating the Women in Our Lives’

Via www.msn.com
 

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Entertainment Daypop

Elliot Page opens up about coming out as transgender in Time magazine article

34-year-old actor Elliot Page is “really excited” about acting after coming out as transgender. Page said in the March 29 issue of Time magazine that he feels “fully who I am” after coming out as transgender in December. In the interview, Page said he’s had top surgery since his coming out, adding that the surgery has “completely transformed” his life, calling it “not only life-changing but lifesaving.” 

Page rose to fame after his role in the 2007 film Juno. He recalled how used to struggle with his image that came with fame, saying, “I just never recognized myself. For a long time I could not even look at a photo of myself.” Page said his top surgery restored the energy he used to spend on feeling uncomfortable in his body, saying,  “I’m really excited to act, now that I’m fully who I am, in this body. No matter the challenges and difficult moments of this, nothing amounts to getting to feel how I feel now.”

Page will continue to play Vanya Hargreeves, a cisgender woman, on the Netflix series The Umbrella Academy. The series has started production on its third season.

Elliot Page Opens Up for First Time After Coming Out as Transgender

Via www.msn.com
 

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

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Entertainment Daypop

AMC’s ‘Killing Eve’ to end with Season 4

AMC Networks announced on Tuesday that “Killing Eve” is ending with Season 4.  Starring Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, Killing Eve is scheduled to begin production of its fourth and final season early this summer in the UK and around Europe, according to the network. AMC also announced it is working with Sid Gentle Films Ltd. “to develop a number of potential spinoff ideas to extend the show’s iconic universe.”

Dan McDermott, president of original programming for AMC Networks, said in a statement: “Killing Eve exploded in popular culture and attracted a dedicated and committed fan base from its very first episode. Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s brilliant adaptation of the source material, the unforgettable characters  given life by Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, and the entire cast, along with our partners at Sid Gentle Films, have delivered a one-of-a-kind roller-coaster ride that has taken our breath away.”

The final eight-episode season is scheduled to premiere next year.

‘Killing Eve’ to End With Season 4, But Spinoffs Are in Development

Via www.rollingstone.com
 

Editorial credit: Featureflash Photo Agency / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Rock Daypop

U2 to launch online concert series on St. Patrick’s Day

U2 is celebrating St. Patrick’s Day this year by launching their brand new “U2: The Virtual Road” streaming concert series on their official YouTube Channel. The series will feature four concerts that will be broadcast for the first time and will be available to view for just 48 hours. Three of the shows– Slane, Red Rocks, and Mexico– have never been available digitally.

The series will kick-off on March 17th with the broadcast of U2 Go Home: Live From Slane Castle which celebrated the band’s return to the legendary Irish concert site on September 1, 2001. The second show in the series will be broadcast on March 25th featuring U2: Live At Red Rocks recorded on June 5, 1983, at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado on the band’s War Tour. On April 1st they will share their The PopMart Tour stop in Mexico City from December 1997 at the Foro Sol Stadium. April 10th will feature the launch of the band’s December 2015 concert where the band returned to Paris less than a month after the November 13th terrorist attacks on the city for two rescheduled shows. iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE: Live in Paris marked the final performance on the tour.

U2 announce YouTube concert series The Virtual Road

Via www.loudersound.com
 

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Rock Daypop

Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang was ‘hurt’ by Grammys tribute to his father

Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang says he was ‘hurt’ by the Grammy Awards tribute to his late father.  During the In Memoriam segment of Sunday’s Grammy Award ceremony, Eddie appeared briefly on screen while extended tributes were paid to Little Richard, Kenny Rogers, John Prine, Gerry Marsden and others who died in 2020. Wolfgang said that he expected a larger tribute for his father, who died aged 65 from cancer in October. 

The 30-year-old Wolfgang also revealed he declined an offer from the Recording Academy to play Eruption, his father’s famed guitar solo, during the segment because he would not be able to live up his father’s legacy. Wolfgang wrote on Twitter: ‘The GRAMMYS asked me to play Eruption for the ‘In Memoriam’ section, and I declined. I don’t think anyone could have lived up to what my father did for music but himself. It was my understanding that there would be an ‘In Memoriam’ section where bits of songs were performed for legendary artists that had passed. I didn’t realize that they would only show Pop for 15 seconds in the middle of 4 full performances for others we had lost. What hurt the most was that he wasn’t even mentioned when they talked about artists we lost in the beginning of the show. ‘I know rock isn’t the most popular genre right now, (and the academy does seem a bit out of touch), but I think it’s impossible to ignore the legacy my father left on the instrument, the world of rock, and music in general. There will never be another innovator like him. 

Wolfgang concluded: “I just wanted to explain my side. I know Pop would probably just laugh it off and say “Ehh who gives a sh**?” He was only about the music anyway. The rest didn’t matter. I’d love to get the opportunity to speak with The Recording Academy not only about the legacy of my father, but the legacy of the Rock genre moving forward.’ 

Wolfgang Van Halen ‘hurt’ by how Grammys handled Eddie Van Halen tribute

Via www.msn.com
 

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Pop Daypop

Demi Lovato to release new album ‘Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over’ on April 2nd

Demi Lovato announced that her new album “Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over” will arrive on April 2. Alongside the announcement, Lovato shared the project’s cover art.

The 28-year-old pop star shared the news while in a room on the Clubhouse app, and said that the original title was just “The Art of Starting Over” before she added “Dancing with the Devil” to tie in to her upcoming YouTube Originals documentary of the same name.

You can pre-save/pre-add Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over at the link – here.

Demi Lovato Is ‘Dancing With the Devil’ on Her New Album

Via www.papermag.com
 

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Pop Daypop

Drake makes history by becoming first artist to have 3 songs debut in Top 3 on Billboard Hot 100

Drake is making history: his new single ‘What’s Next’ has debuted at the number 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart; and his other two new songs, ‘Wants and Needs’ feat. Lil Baby and ‘Lemon Pepper Freestyle’ with Rick Ross are entering the chart at #2 and #3, respectively.  By having 3 songs debut in the top 3 spots on the Billboard 100, Drake becomes first artist in history to achieve this feat. Drake joins The Beatles and Ariana Grande as the only acts in history to rule all of the top 3 positions of the Hot 100 simultaneously in the same week.

‘What’s Next’ has become Drake’s 8th number 1 on the Hot 100, extending his run as rapper with the most #1s on the chart. Drake released Scary Hours 2, a new three-song EP, prior to his long-awaited (and delayed) Certified Lover Boy album. “What’s Next” becomes Drake’s sixth #1 hit as a lead artist and eighth overall (counting his appearances on Rihanna’s “What’s My Name” and “Work”) as well as the 49th song in the chart’s history to debut on top. 

Drake Makes Historic Hot 100 Start at Nos. 1, 2 & 3, Led by ‘What’s Next’

Via www.billboard.com
 

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com