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Sports Daypop

Veteran outfielder Cody Bellinger agreed to 1-year, $17M contract prior to MLB lockout

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According to multiple reports, the Los Angeles Dodgers and veteran outfielder Cody Bellinger agreed to a one-year, $17 million contract before the Dec. 1 lockout. The deal would allow for the sides to avoid arbitration while giving Bellinger a $900,000 raise from his 2020 salary.

The 26-year-old Bellinger didn’t have an impressive year in 2021, hitting just .165 with 10 homers and 36 RBI in 95 games. Injuries played a part in Bellinger’s disappointing 2021, as he dealt with a hairline fracture in his left leg, a hamstring strain and a rib fracture.  He did fare better in the 2021 playoffs, earning a .353 average with one homer and seven RBI in 12 contests.

In his MVP season in 2019, Bellinger hit .305 with 47 homers and 115 RBI; and in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Bellinger’s average fell to .239, but he still hit 12 homers and 30 RBI in 56 games.

Bellinger will be eligible for arbitration one more time next offseason before becoming eligible for unrestricted free agency after the 2023 campaign.

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Sports Daypop

NFL releases official playoff scenarios for upcoming Week 16

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As Week 16 approaches with just three weeks left in the season, the NFL playoff field remains unsettled, with a number of divisions still up for grabs ahead of the regular season’s final stretch.

The Patriots and Bills remain in a heated battle for the AFC East crown, while the Rams are battling the Cardinals for the NFC West title.

Check out the full list of playoff scenarios for Week 16, head over to NFL.com.

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Country Daypop

Jacob Bryant releases the music video to his latest single “Heartbeat”

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Jacob Bryant has released the music video to his latest single, “Heartbeat.”  Heartbeat is featured on Bryant’s forthcoming Bar Stool Preacher album, which is set for release on Jan. 14.  Stream and download the single “Heartbeat” HERE.

“Heartbeat” follows Bryant’s latest single, “Devil & an Old Six String.” After losing his mother in 2010, Bryant battled depression and anxiety, self-medicated with alcohol and cocaine and ultimately suffered a heart attack at the age of just 19.  He turned to music to heal, and Bryant says: “Music is healing. As simple as that sounds, the process of creating my art about the life experiences I have had is my therapy. From writing the songs, recording, mixing and mastering to finally seeing a finished product in my hands has been extremely therapeutic for me.”

To pre-order Bar Stool Preacher head HERE.

Take a look at Bryant’s “Heartbeat” music video – HERE.

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Country Daypop

Brothers Osborne announce deluxe edition of ‘Skeletons’ due in January 2022

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Brothers Osborne has announced details of a new deluxe edition of their latest album, Skeletons. The album was originally released in October 2020; and the new version will include three new tracks – “Headstone,” “Midnight Rider’s Prayer,” and “Younger Me.”

‘Younger Me” is also in the running for a Grammy at the 2022 ceremony, having been given a nod for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. It has also featured in numerous end-of-year lists, including Rolling Stone’s Best Songs Of The Year and Billboard’s 100 Best Songs Of 2021 and Best Country Songs Of 2021, topping the genre-specific list. “Younger Me” and “Headstone” were written by band members John and TJ Osborne alongside Kendall Marvel, while Paul Moak and Willie Nelson are credited with the duo on “Midnight Rider’s Prayer.”

To pre-order Skeletons deluxe edition, head here.

Brothers Osborne Announce Deluxe Edition of 2020 Album, ‘Skeletons’

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Entertainment Daypop

Tapings of Wendy Williams’ and Nick Cannon’s talk shows are canceled due to COVID-19 surge

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Tapings of episodes of The Wendy Williams Show and Nick Cannon have been canceled because of the rise in cases of COVID-19 in New York City. Williams has been off the show since September as she focuses on her health issues — the talk show host has Graves disease. Guest hosts have been filling in for her while she is away.

The talk show’s Instagram account posted: “Due to the growing number of new COVID-19 cases and to ensure a safe return for our crew members and staff, “The Wendy Williams Show” will now return with new live episodes on Monday, January 10, rather than Monday, January 3, as previously scheduled. @MichaelRapaport, @KymWhitley & @FinesseMitchell and @sherrieshepherd will guest host the shows as previously announced. We continue to observe all relevant New York City health and safety protocols, and wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season.”

Cannon posted on Instagram: “Due to the growing number of new COVID-19 cases and to ensure a safe return for our crew members and staff, “Nick Cannon” will now return with new episodes on Monday, January 10, instead of Monday, January 3, as previously scheduled. We continue to observe all relevant New York City health and safety protocols, and wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season.”

FOX also announced it has canceled its planned live broadcast of the New Year’s special, Toast & Roast 2022 starring former Community castmates Ken Jeong and Joel McHale.  Six and The Lion King were the latest Broadway shows to cancel performances until after Christmas because of COVID-19. They join a list that includes Dear Evan Hansen, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Ain’t Too Proud and Hadestown.

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Entertainment Daypop

Take a look at the trailer for “Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts”

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HBO Max has shared the trailer for the new special ‘Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts,” featuring Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.

The preview shows Radcliffe, Watson, Grint and other cast members reflect and reminisce on the Harry Potter film series and the franchise’s legacy. Says Radcliffe: “The thing that scared me the most was the implication that the most meaningful thing in our life was done, and there’s something so joyous about seeing everyone and be like, ‘It wasn’t, though.’”  Adds Watson: “When things get really dark, and times are really hard, there’s something about Harry Potter that makes life richer.”

Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltranr, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Imelda Staunton, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Bonnie Wright, Matthew Lewis and Evanna Lynch will also take part in the special, which celebrates the 20th anniversary of the first film, ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.’  The special will “tell an enchanting making-of story through all-new, in-depth interviews and cast conversations.”

Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts will premiere Jan. 1, 2022, on HBO Max.  Take a look at the trailer – here.

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Rock Daypop

Ringo Starr to release coffee-table photo book to benefit charity

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Ringo Starr will release a new hardcover coffee table book, titled “Lifted – Fab Images and Memories in My Life With the Beatles From Across the Universe,” on February 14.  The book’s proceeds will benefit the Lotus Foundation charity, and will be available exclusively online at Julien’s Auctions.

Starr said in a statement: “I am not writing this book as a Beatle historian. I’m writing this book as a Beatle — and there’s only a couple of us who can do that,”  He added: “These fantastic images came back to me in recent years from here, there and everywhere — online and off — and have somehow helped me get back to seeing my life with the Fab Four through fresh eyes. A lot of the photos in this book I spotted on my phone and on my computer, and ‘lifted’ them because they brought back so many fabulous memories. In recent years, I’d gather these Beatles photos that I sometimes barely remembered.”

Starr has enjoyed revisiting the Beatles era in photographic form, saying: “But along with great projects like Get Back, seeing so many of these amazing Beatles images has really brought back those days to me, and all the love and friendship that we four shared back then. So this is a book full of Beatle images that many people haven’t seen and stories that I’m sharing with a little help from my longtime writer friend David Wild. We’ve all been through a pretty tough time for a lot of people who’ve been locked down, and this book has really lifted my spirits and took me back to where I once belonged in a whole new way. And in the end, that’s why this new book is called Lifted. The Beatles changed my life forever. So it’s about getting back and giving back.”

Head to Julien’s Auctions official website for more information.

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Rock Daypop

Soulfly announces U.S. Tour with support from 200 Stab Wounds

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Soulfly will hit the road starting February 2022 with support from 200 Stab Wounds and a currently-unannounced second opener. Soulfly’s lineup will consist of Max Cavalera and his son Zyon, along with Mike Leon on bass and Fear Factory’s Dino Cazares on guitar.

The band returned to touring in August 2021, after the dismissal of longtime guitarist Marc Rizzo. Soulfly will kick off their North American tour on Feb. 7 in Las Vegas, running throughout the U.S. and finish up March 19 in Gallup, New Mexico.

Tickets for the tour are currently on sale here. Check out the full list of dates below.

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Pop Daypop

Coldplay’s Chris Martin says the band will stop making new music by 2025

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Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin has confirmed that the band is set to stop making music in 2025.

Martin made the announcement during a pre-recorded BBC radio show.  A clip in which Martin confirmed the band’s retirement was trailed on the BBC during a separate Radio 2 breakfast show earlier in the day. “Will there come a time when Coldplay stop?” Martin is asked; and he replies:  “Well, I know – I can tell you. We’re going to do – I think we have 3 more – our last proper record will come out at the end of 2025. And I think after that we’ll only tour – and maybe we’ll do some sort of collaborative things or… – but the Coldplay catalogue as it were finishes then.”

Coldplay – comprised of Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion — was formed in London, U.K. in 1996 and have released nine albums since their debut, 2000’s “Parachutes.”  The band have won 7 Grammy Awards and sold over 100 million albums worldwide. The group’s latest record, “Music of the Spheres,” was released in October.

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Pop Daypop

Britney Spears shares on social media that she’s working on new music

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Britney Spears took to Instagram to share that she is working on new music, posting a video of herself singing in her bathroom.

Spears wrote in the caption: “I just realized this today guys… after what my family tried to do to me three years ago… I needed to be my own cheerleader !!!! God knows they weren’t …so I just read up on my self and this is what I found: Multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning pop icon Britney Spears is one of the most successful and celebrated entertainers in pop history with nearly 100 million records sold worldwide. In the U.S. alone, she has sold more than 70 million albums, singles and songs, according to Nielsen Music.”   She then added: “Pssss new song in the works … I’m gonna let you know what I mean !!!!!”

Spears has been celebrating her 13-year conservatorship coming to an end in November.

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