Billie Eilish, Finneas, Maroon 5, Brittany Howard & More Push Congress to Act on Climate Change Bill

Billie Eilish, Finneas, Maroon 5, Brittany Howard and more artists are banding together to push Congress to support President Biden’s “Build Back Better” bill in support of strong climate provisions.

On Wednesday, the stars will enable their millions of fans to take action by launching a massive social media campaign by posting images of a large red exclamation point, alternating with scenes of extreme weather conditions, while using the hashtags #CodeRedClimate and #CodeRedCongress. The campaign will include a link to a page where fans can email their local representatives and push support for the largest climate protection bill in American history. During the week of Sept. 27, Congress will vote on the bill that outlines how to get the country to 80% pollution-free electricity by 2030; provide tax incentives for solar, wind, energy-efficiency, electric cars, charging stations, and more; and cut subsidies for fossil fuels.

The “Build Back Better” bill also plans to drive major investment into communities disproportionately hit by environmental injustice.

Other artists and actors participating in the #CodeRedClimate campaign include: Jon Batiste, Public Enemy’s Chuck D, Dave Matthews Band, Alec Benjamin, Melissa Etheridge, Kurtis Blow, Dead & Company, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jane Fonda, Mark Ruffalo, Damian and Stephen Marley, GROUPLOVE, Huey Lewis and The News, among many others.

Additionally, the National Independent Talent Organization (NITO) is reaching out to its members to participate.

If the “Build Back Better” bill passes, President Biden can enter global climate negotiations on Nov. 1 with America setting out to cut climate pollution 100% by 2050 and encouraging other major nations to act accordingly.

Musician Annie Farman, Superfly and Bonnaroo/Outside Lands festivals co-founder Rick Farman, Adam Gardner and Tanner Watt of the environmental music nonprofit REVERB, and Global Citizen are also among those organizing the #CodeRed campaign. Global Citizen’s 24-hour series of concerts on Sept. 25 will also shine a spotlight on the initiative.

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Maurice Fayne of ‘Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta’ Sentenced In Ponzi Scheme

A former cast member on the reality television show Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta has been sentenced to more than 17 years in federal prison for conspiracy and wire fraud related to a Ponzi scheme and related charges involving a fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loan application.

U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen sentenced Maurice Fayne, also known as Arkansas Mo, to 17 and a half years behind bars and five years of supervised release. Fayne, 38, of Dacula, Georgia, also was ordered to pay restitution of nearly $4.5 million to the victims.

Fayne pleaded guilty to the charges on May 11. Those also included charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution involving a loan application for the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP.

“Fayne planned to use the PPP program as a cover for his long-running Ponzi scheme,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine in a news release Wednesday. “The funds the program supplies serve as a lifeline to many businesses desperately trying to stay afloat during the pandemic, and unfortunately his fraud helped deplete those precious dollars.”

Erskine said from March 2013 through May 2020, Fayne ran a multistate Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 20 people who invested in his trucking business. Instead of using investors’ money to operate the business, he used the funds to pay personal debts and expenses and to fund an extravagant lifestyle, Erskine said.

During the scheme, Fayne spent more than $5 million at a casino in Oklahoma, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia said.

In April 2020, Fayne submitted a $3.7 million loan application to United Community Bank, falsely claiming that his trucking business had 107 employees and an average monthly payroll of $1.4 million.

Prosecutors said that instead of using the money to retain workers and other business expenses, Fayne used the loan to cover expenses including $40,000 in past-due child support, $50,000 for restitution owed in a previous fraud case, $85,000 for custom-made jewelry, $136,000 to lease a Rolls-Royce and $907,000 to start a new business in Arkansas.

Fayne appeared on season 8 of VH1’s Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta as the love interest of longtime cast member Karlie Redd.

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ABBA’s ‘Gold’ Returns to Top 40 on Billboard 200, New Singles Make Chart Debuts

ABBA is back in the top 40 of the Billboard 200 albums chart for the first time in over three years, as the Swedish pop pioneers’ Gold: Greatest Hits surges from No. 114 to No. 34 on the Sept. 18-dated survey.

The set vaults following the release of two new singles from the quartet on Sept. 2, the announcement of a forthcoming studio album – Voyage, its first in 40 years, due Nov. 5 – and a series of concerts in 2022.  

Gold earned 15,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 9, up 61%, according to MRC Data. Of that sum, album sales comprise 5,000, also enabling the set’s 33-11 jump on the Top Album Sales chart.  

Gold was last in the top 40 of the Billboard 200 on the chart dated Aug. 11, 2018, when the set ranked at No. 40. It was last higher than on the latest list just one week earlier, when it placed at No. 25, its peak. Gold was released in 1993 in the U.S. and has spent 186 weeks on the chart in total.  

On Catalog Albums, Gold rallies from No. 30 to No. 3. (The Catalog Albums chart ranks the most popular older albums of the week, generally defined as those at least 18-months old and no longer within the top 100 of the Billboard 200 chart.)  

ABBA Goes Global: ABBA’s two new songs previewing Voyage, “Don’t Shut Me Down” and “I Still Have Faith in You,” both bound onto the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart in the top 40: “Shut” at No. 26 and “Faith” at No. 37. The former starts with 13.9 million streams and 23,900 sold outside the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 9, while the latter opens with 14.1 million streams and 20,300 sold.

On the Billboard Global 200, “Shut” begins at No. 54 (15.4 million streams; 26,900 sold worldwide) and “Faith” enters at No. 62 (15.7 million streams; 22,600 sold).

Meanwhile, Back on the U.S. Charts: On the U.S. based Digital Song Sales chart, ABBA’s 1977 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 “Dancing Queen” is the group’s top seller, re-entering at No. 19, a new best, with a 314% surge to 3,900 sold. “Shut” starts at No. 32 (3,000).

“We took a break in the spring of 1982 and now we’ve decided it’s time to end it,” ABBA said in a statement released Sept. 2. The group will return to live performances with its residency, ABBA Voyage, set to begin May 27, 2022, in London, in which the act’s members will be depicted as avatars (aka, “ABBAtars”), circa 1979.

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Cuba starts vaccinating 2-year-olds, as COVID cases spike among children on the island

Thousands of COVID-19 infections and at least 12 deaths among infants, small children and adolescents in Cuba prompted authorities to start vaccinating children as young as age 2 this week, … Click to Continue »
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Ex-UM professor charged with shipping genetic equipment to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions

Since early this year, federal investigators have been building a case against a former University of Miami assistant professor suspected of doing business with Iran and violating U.S. sanctions against … Click to Continue »
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Federal judge says parents of students with disabilities must work through schools on masks

A federal judge in Miami Wednesday declined to block Gov. Ron DeSantis’ ban on public school mask mandates, saying the parents of students with disabilities who sued the governor had … Click to Continue »
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Disney Store closings leave one Florida location open. Miami fans, gas up for a long drive

The first wave this year of Disney Store closings in March took out the Aventura Mall and Tampa’s International Plaza locations. The stores at Shops at Sunset Place in South … Click to Continue »
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Ahmaud Arbery murder trial still on for Oct. 18

The Ahmaud Arbery murder trial is still set to begin on Oct. 18, a judge decided Wednesday. During a conference call, Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley, who is presiding over … Click to Continue »
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In Honor of Hispanic Heritage, Here Are The 20 Longest-Leading No. 1s on the Top Latin Albums Chart

Music distribution has changed over the years and so has the way it’s consumed, but one thing’s certain: Whether it’s popping a disc into your CD player or downloading an entire track list to your phone, music junkies love albums.

As a Latino millennial who grew up listening to everything from Juan Gabriel’s tearjerker songs to Selena’s empowering anthems, and who’s currently jamming to an intense reggaeton playlist, collecting CDs and/or buying a digital album has been my longtime favorite hobby (shout-out to those who relate).

With Hispanic Heritage Month in full swing, Billboard has put together the 20 longest-leading No. 1s in the history of the Top Latin Albums chart. The list includes everything from albums that we were obsessed with in the ‘90s to Bad Bunny’s YHLQMDLG and El Último Tour Del Mundo just last year.

The Top 20 Latin Albums list is ranked based on peak position on the Top Latin Albums chart from the ranking’s first chart week on July 10, 1993, to the Sept. 18, 2021-dated chart. For albums with the same number of weeks at No. 1, ties were broken by the most total weeks on the chart.   

Check out the complete list below:

1. Gloria Estefan – Mi Tierra

The Cuban singer’s album peaked at No. 1 on the July 10, 1993-dated chart, where she spent 58 weeks at the top.

2. Bad Bunny – X 100PRE

Bad Bunny’s debut studio album arrived at No. 1 on the Top Latin Albums chart (dated Jan. 5, 2019). It went on to rule a total of 46 weeks, the second-most in the history of the 28-year-old tally.

3. Ozuna – Odisea

Ozuna made history with his debut studio album, becoming the longest-leading No. 1 by a male artist on the Top Latin Albums chart. Odisea nabbed the No. 1 spot on the chart dated Sept. 16, 2017, and ruled for 46 weeks.

4. Bad Bunny – YHLQMDLG

Bad Bunny’s third studio album landed a historic debut on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated March 14, 2020) as he scored the highest-charting all-Spanish-language album ever, the biggest streaming week ever for a Latin album, and the largest week for a Latin title since Billboard began tracking albums by equivalent album units in December 2014. The set continues to rule the Top Latin Albums chart in its 44th week (and counting).

5. Selena – Dreaming of You

Released posthumously, Selena’s bilingual album peaked at No. 1 on the Aug. 5, 1995-dated chart, spending 44 weeks at the top.

6. Luis Miguel – Segundo Romance

The Mexico-based crooner’s set peaked at No. 1 on the Sept. 17, 1994, tally, staying strong for 29 weeks.

7. Bad Bunny – El Último Tour Del Mundo

The surprise release earned el conejo malo his fifth straight No. 1 on Top Latin Albums, ruling for 27 weeks starting on the Dec. 12, 2020-dated list.

8. Ricky Martin – Vuelve

Ricky Martin’s heartfelt album peaked at No. 1 on the Feb. 28, 1998-dated chart and reigned for 26 weeks.

9. Daddy Yankee – Barrio Fino

Daddy Yankee brought reggaetón to the forefront with his No. 1 album (peak date July 31, 2004), remaining at the top for 24 weeks.

10. Aventura – The Last

Aventura revolutionized bachata with The Last album, which peaked at No. 1 on the June 27, 2009-dated list, where it spent 23 weeks.

11. Juan Gabriel – Los Duo 2

His duets with Marc Anthony, J Balvin and other artists nabbed Juanga the leading spot on the Jan. 2, 2016-dated chart, where it spent 20 weeks.

 12. Selena – Amor Prohibido

With timeless songs such as “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” and “No Me Queda Mas,” Selena’s album peaked at No. 1 on the chart dated June 11, 1994, reigning for 20 weeks.

13. Christina Aguilera – Mi Reflejo

Xtina made her way to No. 1 with Mi Reflejo on the Sept. 30, 2000, list, sitting tight for 19 weeks — not too shabby for her first all-Spanish album.

14. Ozuna – Aura

Aura became Ozuna’s second-longest-charting title at No. 1 with a total of 17 weeks at the summit starting on the Sept. 8, 2018-dated tally.

15. Romeo Santos – Formula: Vol. 1

Keeping bachata alive, Romeo Santos’ album peaked at No. 1 on the Nov. 26, 2011, tally and proved that “the king stays king” for 17 weeks.

16. Shakira – Fijación Oral: Vol. 1

The Colombian superstar ruled Top Latin Albums with her set for a total of 17 weeks starting on the June 25, 2005-dated chart.

17. Enrique Iglesias – Sex & Love

With the release of his 10th studio album, the Spanish pop singer ranked No. 1 on the April 5, 2014, tally, remaining on the top for 16 weeks.

18. Enrique Iglesias – Vivir

Prior to Sex & Love, Iglesias nabbed the No. 1 spot on the Feb. 15, 1997-dated chart with his album Vivir, keeping strong at the summit for 15 weeks.

19. Daddy Yankee – Barrio Fino: En Directo

Because who doesn’t like a good ol’ concert? Daddy Yankee’s live album peaked at No. 1 on the Dec. 31, 2005-dated chart for 14 weeks.

20. Marc Anthony – Libre

Salsa does not stay behind thanks to Marc Anthony, whose album peaked at No. 1 on the Dec. 8, 2001, tally and reigned for 14 weeks.

Billboard Latin Music Week Presented by Samsung Galaxy. For All News, Videos, and Coverage Click Here. This link opens a new window.

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Marilyn Manson Accuser’s Rape Suit Dismissed by Judge

The lawsuit of the Jane Doe who accused Marilyn Manson of rape has been dismissed by a California state judge, according to court documents filed Tuesday, though she is being given a 20-day window to amend and refile the complaint. Manson’s attorney, Howard E. King, had filed a demurrer to the woman’s complaint in August in an effort to have it thrown out of court.

In his ruling, California Superior Court Judge Gregory Keosian found that the woman’s claims were not valid because the two-year statute of limitations pertaining to her accusations had lapsed. The woman had attempted to skirt the statute by claiming she’d repressed memories of the alleged rape, which she says occurred sometime after meeting Manson (born Brian Warner) at a pre-Grammy party in February 2011 and starting a sexual relationship with him. It wasn’t until reading a February 2021 article that discussed other sexual assault accusations against Manson, Doe said, that the incident came flooding back.

But Keosian found that the woman’s claim of repressed memories around the alleged rape — which the ruling allows “is common for sexual-assault victims” — was “not sufficient” to invoke California’s so-called “delayed-discovery” rule, which effectively postpones the start date of the statute of limitations if the plaintiff can prove that they first became aware of the injury within two years of filing their complaint, regardless of when the incident itself took place.

“Here, the Complaint alleges only that Plaintiff repressed unspecified memories at some point before reading an article in February 2021,” Keosian’s ruling reads. “The complaint alleges neither when the repression began — such as immediately after the events took place, or outside the limitations period — nor its nature or extent, such as what memories were repressed or the extent to which Plaintiff was prevented from recalling them.”

As previously mentioned, the ruling does give Doe some wiggle room, affording her 20 days to amend and refile her complaint to address Keosian’s concerns.

“Marilyn Manson wants to silence our client about her rape,” said Doe’s attorneys, Adam Wolf and Tracey Cowan of Peiffer Wolf, in a statement sent to Billboard. “He tried to use technical legal arguments to get her case thrown out altogether. The judge thoughtfully analyzed the case law, and rightfully held that her case can go forward, so long as she amends her Complaint to add some additional details. We intend to amend with those additional details very shortly, and look forward to the opportunity to make Manson answer for his actions.”

An attorney for Manson declined to comment.

In her original complaint, which was filed May 28, Doe claimed that over the course of their relationship, the musician subjected her to “degrading acts of sexual exploitation, manipulation, and psychological abuse.” She alleged that when she went to return the keys to Manson’s apartment following their breakup, Manson pushed her to the floor, and “with her face down on the carpet, and his hands on top of her,” raped her. Doe further claimed that after the alleged assault, Manson threatened to kill her and “bragged that he would get away with it” if he followed through.

Manson is currently being sued for sexual assault by three other women, including Game of Thrones actress and former girlfriend Esme Bianco, his former personal assistant Ashley Walters and another ex-girlfriend, Ashley Morgan Smithline. The lawsuits all arrived after Manson’s ex-girlfriend, actress Evan Rachel Wood, publicly named him as her abuser in February.

Manson has denied all accusations against him. In July, he filed to dismiss Bianco’s suit, claiming that she and the other women’s accusations were part of a “coordinated attack.”

Stories about sexual assault allegations can be traumatizing for survivors of sexual assault. If you or anyone you know needs support, you can reach out to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). The organization provides free, confidential support to sexual assault victims. Call RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE) or visit the anti-sexual violence organization’s website for more information.

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