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  • As grand marshal of Daytona 500, Nate Bargatze has some ideas for NASCAR

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    Comedian and show host Nate Bargatze arrives for the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14, 2025, at the Peacock Theatre at LA Live in Los Angeles.

    Comedian and show host Nate Bargatze arrives for the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14, 2025, at the Peacock Theatre at LA Live in Los Angeles.


    PATRICK T. FALLON

    AFP via Getty Images

    DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.

    It’s about five hours before the Daytona 500, in a radio room of the Daytona International Speedway media center, and Nate Bargatze has a question.

    How does anyone get any sleep around here?

    Bargatze, the Grammy Award-winning and Emmy-nominated comedian who is the No. 1 earning comedian in the world according to PollStar, slept in a bus on Saturday evening in the infield. He was woken up by cars being worked on, fellow campers who partied into the morning waking up early, too. He’s awake now, though, no doubt. His silver hair is perfectly kept; his white shoes and watch are mint clean. His Nashville, self-deprecating charm is still intact — which is what vaulted him in the nation’s consciousness a few years ago and has made him a two-time host of Saturday Night Live.

    Comedian and show host Nate Bargatze arrives for the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14, 2025, at the Peacock Theatre at LA Live in Los Angeles.
    Comedian and show host Nate Bargatze arrives for the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14, 2025, at the Peacock Theatre at LA Live in Los Angeles. PATRICK T. FALLON AFP via Getty Images

    But his sleep deprivation has him open to sharing some ideas. And he has many of them. And a lot of them are encased in statements that feel like questions — his trademarked kind, ones that you might’ve seen on his Big Dumb Eyes World Tour, which visited Charlotte in November.

    Some of these ideas, even, are about NASCAR. The Tennessee native is a NASCAR fan and is this year’s grand marshal of the Daytona 500, after all — joining a group that has recently included a Pro Football Hall of Famer (Charles Woodson), a global pop icon (Pitbull), Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and President Donald Trump.

    He’s entitled to such opinions and ideas, he said

    He’s entitled to suggestions (!), even, he said.

    “It doesn’t hurt to ask,” Bargatze said. “Grand marshals get nervous to ask.”

    Read up on those opinions and ideas — as well as some insight into his feature film, The Breadwinner, opening in May — in this interview with The Charlotte Observer’s Alex Zietlow. The interview has been edited lightly for brevity. Beware of unrelenting jest.

    Nate Bargatze got some tips from Kevin James

    Zietlow: When did you get to the racetrack today?

    Bargatze: I woke up in the racetrack. I had my tour bus come down, and it was just easy. You want to experience it the best way you can. And you’re grand marshal, you can ask for a few things. So I was like, ‘Can you please put me in the middle of the track?’ So yeah, we woke up there, you open the door, and you’re kind of in it.

    Z: Did you interact with any race fans?

    B: Yeah walking from the bus to here I was able to interact with a few people. So it was cool. I haven’t gotten in the thick-thick of it yet. But just walking a little bit, it’s fun just to see everybody working on cars. We heard a car driving this morning. You get woken up. You’re not going to sleep.

    Z: That’s so true.

    B: That’s what I was thinking. All those people who sleep out there. I’m sure a lot of them have long nights. And then you just wake up to a car going 200 miles an hour.

    Z: Oh by the way, they do not sleep. I’m trying to get out of here at midnight, and they’re doing wheelbarrow races, blasting music. It’s crazy. … You mention being grand marshal. A lot of really interesting people have been grand marshals at the Daytona 500. Anthony Mackie, Captain America. The Rock. Pitbull. Donald Trump. It’s an interesting slate. They all kind of bring their own style to it. Have you studied how they say, “Drivers, start your engines?”

    B: I’ve watched some videos. And Kevin James is one that a lot of people really talk about as his being one of the best. I was with him last week because he came to Nashville. We’re friends. So I was able to talk to him about it a little bit.

    There’s only so much advice they can give you because you’re saying four words. You think it’s going to be this big, ‘OK, here’s what you gotta do.’ But I think it’s all commitment, just go out and do it, and say it. I think people wanna hear the lines. Just do those lines.

    Z: I imagine part of you wants to make people laugh, though, right?

    B: Yes.

    Z: How do you resist that?

    B: They’ve told me it’s only gone bad. I did ask. I was asking. As a comedian, you’re trying to get a joke in somewhere, and then they’re like, ‘Well, you can try, but it’s like, here’s what we’ve seen in the past.’ It’s kind of just best to do the words.

    And I mean, as a NASCAR fan, you’ve seen this your whole life. You’re like, ‘OK, I want to do it and yell that,’ and here those engines start. It’s a pretty crazy moment.

    Growing up a NASCAR fan in Nashville

    Z: Did you ever want to be a driver? Were you a car guy growing up?

    B: I was never a car guy. But I like driving. There are times when I think, ‘Man, I think it would be fun.’ Just last night, I was thinking if I could learn how to race and get into it. So it seems fun. When you’re watching it, and they’re drifting, and their bumpers are touching, and they’re going 200 miles an hour. I love the idea of it all: the slingshot, and all this kind of crazy stuff. Getting to feel that would be pretty unbelievable. But you gotta have full-blown commitment to get into something like that.

    Z: Any opinion on NASCAR coming back to the Nashville Fairgrounds (last hosted a NASCAR race in 1984)?

    B: There were roller coasters over there. What made me nervous about roller coasters: at the fairgrounds, I remember riding it as a kid, and they’d always be working on them. Even when you were riding the roller coaster. Like, ‘Why are these guys working on this roller coaster as it’s going?’ Anyway …

    The fairgrounds. The speedway is beautiful; where it’s at, it’s very accessible. It’s a real big track. Obviously the fairgrounds, it would be nice to have it in Nashville proper. The soccer stadium is over there. So I don’t know. It would be nice if you could switch it up. It’s a smaller track, a different race. Small tracks, they kind of stand out. We have Bristol, also.

    It would be nice if they mixed it up: do the speedway one year, do the fairgrounds one year. I don’t know if I can do this stuff because I’m grand marshal. But that will be one of the things I’ll try.

    Z: You have a lot of power as grand marshal.

    B: Yeah.

    Z: Like, a ton.

    B: Way more than I think. That’s what I’m doing: trying to learn how much power do I have. Just keep pushing the limit.

    NASCAR-centric sketches, ‘The Breadwinner’ and his Daytona 500 pick

    Z: I saw the promotion you did when you became grand marshal. Did you come up with NAYTONA? And do you actually believe you have the power to change some of the elements of the Great American Race?

    B: I do. It doesn’t hurt to ask. Grand marshals get nervous to ask. We talked with the NASCAR team, and I got some comedy writers, so we all just kind of came up with the idea because it was easy to say. So it was just a fun concept to go with. And the day we shot it, it was just fun to play with, T-shirts we made up, acting like we were going to go sell out.

    Z: Do you have any other NASCAR-centric sketches swirling around in your brain? Maybe you get inspiration today?

    B: You know what’s hard? Talladega Nights killed it.

    Z: I know.

    B: That’s what makes it the hardest. There’s stuff they did in that movie where you’re like, ‘Yeah, they did it. It’s unbelievable.’ You’re always looking. You’re always trying to find material, trying to find something to do. I definitely will have my eyes open and see if I see anything. If I do, I need material. I’ve always needed material.

    Z: Wanted to mention your first feature film coming out, The Breadwinner. (Bargatze plays a father with three daughters whose wife goes on Shark Tank, her business takes off, and you keep losing control of a chaotic household.)

    I saw the trailer. I thought it was hilarious. I also thought it was so funny that Kevin O’Leary, after his breakout role in Marty Supreme, is being funny in your movie.

    B: He’s a huge star now. He’s a big problem. (Laughs.)

    Z: Was any of this autobiographical?

    B: A lot of it all comes from truth. I have a joke about not knowing my daughter’s school bus number. It happened. That was just what happened. … I was in PetSmart. I don’t even know what I was getting. Our daughter had a guinea pig. So it all comes from that real thing. And then in the movie, you kind of elevate and exaggerate it even more. … It’s a very fun movie. Everybody can come to it. I think it’s going to appeal to a lot of people.

    Z: Kids are going to laugh at the roof breaking, you falling off the horse, etc.

    B: I would see kids at my show. And it’s like, yeah, when I talk about my wife, and being married, they’re not laughing that much. But when I talk bout a donkey jumping off a high dive, they lighten up a little bit.

    Z: (Laughing.) I probably shouldn’t be laughing this hard. I’m revealing my sophomoric sense of humor.

    B: Yeah, that’s how I get you too. You ignore my wife stuff too. It’s your age to 8-year-olds. You’re going to laugh at more of that than the kids do.

    Z: Thanks so much for your time. And enjoy the race. Oh, by the way, do you have a Daytona 500 winner?

    B: I’m gonna root for Jimmie Johnson. I just love that story.

    Z: It’s his second-to-last Daytona 500.

    B: I saw that. The kid who’s going to three-peat too.

    Z: William Byron! Charlotte guy.

    B: Yeah, that would be pretty wild.

    This story was originally published February 15, 2026 at 11:52 AM.

    Alex Zietlow

    The Charlotte Observer

    Alex Zietlow writes about the Carolina Panthers and the ways in which sports intersect with life for The Charlotte Observer, where he has been a reporter since August 2022. Zietlow’s work has been honored by the Pro Football Writers Association, the N.C. and S.C. Press Associations, as well as the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) group. He’s earned six APSE Top 10 distinctions for his coverage on a variety of topics, from billion-dollar stadium renovations to the small moments of triumph that helped a Panthers kicker defy the steepest odds in sports. Zietlow previously wrote for The Herald in Rock Hill (S.C.) from 2019-22.
    Support my work with a digital subscription

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    Alex Zietlow

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  • Anger, frustration over power outages almost 2 weeks after winter storm hit Southeast U.S.

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    Anger, frustration over power outages almost 2 weeks after winter storm hit Southeast U.S. – CBS News









































    Watch CBS News



    It has been nearly two weeks since a brutal winter storm swept across much of the U.S., but some areas in the Southeast are still without power. CBS News correspondent Nicole Valdes has more.

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  • Police: Man on the run after high-speed chase and crash in Nashville

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    A man is on the run Tuesday night after police officers in Nashville said he led them on a high-speed chase before crashing and escaping.

    According to the Nashville Police Department, an officer was conducting a traffic stop when the suspect drove off down U.S. Highway 64 eastbound going between 120 and 130 mph.

    Police said the suspect acted like they were going to exit  at Exit 483 near Old Carthage Road, but then attemped to get back on the highway and flipped into the westbound lanes of US-64. The suspect then ran away from the scene towards I-95 and Old Carthage Road.

    Police described the suspect as a African American man in in his 20s or 30s, standing between 5’7″ and 5’8″ and was last seen wearing a gray jumpsuit and no shoes.

    Police said Highway Patrol and the Nash County Sheriff’s Office were assisting them with the search, adding that they had a drone in the air and a K9 officer searching a nearby wooded area.

    All lanes of US-64 are back open. It is unclear how serious the suspect’s injuries are.

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  • Thousands of flights canceled as major winter storm moves across the US

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    Thousands of flights across the U.S. set to take off over the weekend were canceled as a monster storm started to wreak havoc Saturday across much of the country and threatened to knock out power for days and snarl major roadways with dangerous ice.Roughly 140 million people, or more than 40% of the U.S. population, were under a winter storm warning from New Mexico to New England. The National Weather Service forecast warned of widespread heavy snow and a band of catastrophic ice stretching from east Texas to North Carolina. By midday Saturday, a quarter of an inch of ice was reported in parts of southeastern Oklahoma, eastern Texas and portions of Louisiana.”What really makes this storm unique is, just following this storm, it’s just going to get so cold,” said Allison Santorelli, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “The snow and the ice will be very, very slow to melt and won’t be going away anytime soon, and that’s going to hinder any recovery efforts.”Governors in more than a dozen states sounded the alarm about the turbulent weather ahead, declaring emergencies or urging people to stay home. As crews in some southern states began working to restore downed power lines, officials in some eastern states issued final warnings to residents. “We are expecting a storm the likes of which we haven’t seen in years,” New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said Saturday while announcing restrictions on commercial vehicle travel and a 35 mph speed limit on highways. She added: “It’s a good weekend to stay indoors.”Little Rock, Arkansas, was covered with sleet and snow Saturday, giving Chris Plank doubts about whether he would be able to make a five-hour drive to Dallas for work on Sunday. While some snow is a yearly event, Plank was concerned most about the ice.”All of the power lines are above ground, so it doesn’t take very much to end up in the dark,” Plank said.Forecasters say the damage, especially in areas pounded by ice, could rival that of a hurricane. Around 120,000 power outages were reported in the path of the winter storm Saturday afternoon, including about 53,000 in Texas and 45,000 in Louisiana, according to poweroutage.us.In Shelby County, Texas, near the Louisiana border, ice weighed down on pine trees and caused branches to snap, downing power lines. About a third of the county’s 16,000 residents were without power on Saturday.”We have hundreds of trees down and a lot of limbs in the road,” Shelby County Commissioner Stevie Smith said from his pickup truck. “I’ve got my crew out clearing roads as fast as we can. It’s a lot to deal with right now.”All Saturday flights were canceled at Will Rogers International Airport in Oklahoma City, and all Sunday morning flights also were called off, as officials aimed to restart service Sunday afternoon at Oklahoma’s biggest airport. More than 12,000 flights were canceled Saturday and Sunday across the U.S., according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport, a major hub, saw more than 700 departing flights canceled on Saturday and nearly as many arriving flights called off. Disruptions were also piling up at airports in Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville, and Charlotte, North Carolina.After sweeping through the South, the storm was expected to move into the Northeast, dumping about 1 to 2 feet of snow from Washington through New York and Boston, the weather service predicted. “Please, if you can avoid it, do not drive, do not travel, do not do anything that can potentially place you or your loved ones in danger,” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Saturday. “Instead, I urge every New Yorker who can to put a warm sweater on, turn on the TV, watch ‘Mission Impossible’ for the 10th time, above all to stay inside.” Officials in Georgia advised people in the state’s northern regions to get off the roads by sundown Saturday and be prepared to stay put for at least 48 hours.Will Lanxton, the senior state meteorologist, said Georgia could get “perhaps the biggest ice storm we have expected in more than a decade,” followed by unusually cold temperatures. “Ice is a whole different ballgame than snow,” Lanxton said. “Ice, you can’t do anything with. You can’t drive on it. It’s much more likely to bring down power lines and trees.”Crews began treating highways with brine after midnight Saturday, with 1,800 workers on 12-hour shifts, Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry said.”We’re going to do what we can to keep the ice from sticking to the roads,” McMurry said. “This is going to be a challenge.” The Midwest saw windchills as low as minus 40 Fahrenheit, meaning that frostbite could set in within 10 minutes. The minus 36 F reading in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, on Saturday morning was the coldest in almost 30 years.In Minneapolis, the worst of an extreme cold wave was over, but protesters calling for ICE to leave Minnesota on Saturday still faced an outdoor temperature of minus 6 degrees Fahrenheit.Workers from The Orange Tent Project, a Chicago nonprofit that provides cold-weather tents and other supplies to unhoused people throughout the city, went out to check on those who did not or could not seek shelter.”Seeing the forecasted weather, I knew we had to come out and do this today,” said CEO Morgan McLuckie. Churches moved Sunday services online, and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, decided to hold its Saturday night radio performance without fans. Mardi Gras parades in Louisiana were canceled or rescheduled.School superintendents in Philadelphia and Houston announced that schools would be closed Monday.Some universities in the South canceled classes for Monday, including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Mississippi’s main campus in Oxford.Around the southeast, people used the cancellations to have some fun. On a hill outside the Capitol building in Nashville, adult sledders on green discs and inflatable pool animals giggled with joy as they slid in the snow. President Donald Trump said via social media on Friday that his administration was coordinating with state and local officials, and “FEMA is fully prepared to respond.” Nine states have requested emergency declarations, according to a FEMA briefing document released Saturday. The declarations can unlock federal emergency resources. Trump on Friday approved emergency declarations for South Carolina and Virginia, and requests from Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia were still pending as of Saturday morning.”I think there are two parts of this storm that make it unique. One is just a broad expanse of spatial coverage of this event … You’ve got 2,000 miles of country that’s being impacted by the storm with snow, sleet, and freezing rain,” said Josh Weiss, a meteorologist at NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center. “The other part of this storm that’s really impressive is what’s going to happen right afterward. We’re looking at extreme cold, record cold.” Associated Press writers Mike Schneider in Orlando, Florida, Rio Yamat in Las Vegas, Julie Walker in New York, David A. Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri, George Walker in Nashville and Laura Bargfeld in Chicago contributed to this report. Amy reported from Atlanta and Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut.

    OKLAHOMA CITY —

    Thousands of flights across the U.S. set to take off over the weekend were canceled as a monster storm started to wreak havoc Saturday across much of the country and threatened to knock out power for days and snarl major roadways with dangerous ice.

    Roughly 140 million people, or more than 40% of the U.S. population, were under a winter storm warning from New Mexico to New England. The National Weather Service forecast warned of widespread heavy snow and a band of catastrophic ice stretching from east Texas to North Carolina. By midday Saturday, a quarter of an inch of ice was reported in parts of southeastern Oklahoma, eastern Texas and portions of Louisiana.

    “What really makes this storm unique is, just following this storm, it’s just going to get so cold,” said Allison Santorelli, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “The snow and the ice will be very, very slow to melt and won’t be going away anytime soon, and that’s going to hinder any recovery efforts.”

    Governors in more than a dozen states sounded the alarm about the turbulent weather ahead, declaring emergencies or urging people to stay home. As crews in some southern states began working to restore downed power lines, officials in some eastern states issued final warnings to residents.

    “We are expecting a storm the likes of which we haven’t seen in years,” New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said Saturday while announcing restrictions on commercial vehicle travel and a 35 mph speed limit on highways. She added: “It’s a good weekend to stay indoors.”

    Little Rock, Arkansas, was covered with sleet and snow Saturday, giving Chris Plank doubts about whether he would be able to make a five-hour drive to Dallas for work on Sunday. While some snow is a yearly event, Plank was concerned most about the ice.

    “All of the power lines are above ground, so it doesn’t take very much to end up in the dark,” Plank said.

    Forecasters say the damage, especially in areas pounded by ice, could rival that of a hurricane.

    Around 120,000 power outages were reported in the path of the winter storm Saturday afternoon, including about 53,000 in Texas and 45,000 in Louisiana, according to poweroutage.us.

    In Shelby County, Texas, near the Louisiana border, ice weighed down on pine trees and caused branches to snap, downing power lines. About a third of the county’s 16,000 residents were without power on Saturday.

    “We have hundreds of trees down and a lot of limbs in the road,” Shelby County Commissioner Stevie Smith said from his pickup truck. “I’ve got my crew out clearing roads as fast as we can. It’s a lot to deal with right now.”

    All Saturday flights were canceled at Will Rogers International Airport in Oklahoma City, and all Sunday morning flights also were called off, as officials aimed to restart service Sunday afternoon at Oklahoma’s biggest airport.

    More than 12,000 flights were canceled Saturday and Sunday across the U.S., according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport, a major hub, saw more than 700 departing flights canceled on Saturday and nearly as many arriving flights called off. Disruptions were also piling up at airports in Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

    After sweeping through the South, the storm was expected to move into the Northeast, dumping about 1 to 2 feet of snow from Washington through New York and Boston, the weather service predicted.

    “Please, if you can avoid it, do not drive, do not travel, do not do anything that can potentially place you or your loved ones in danger,” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Saturday. “Instead, I urge every New Yorker who can to put a warm sweater on, turn on the TV, watch ‘Mission Impossible’ for the 10th time, above all to stay inside.”

    Officials in Georgia advised people in the state’s northern regions to get off the roads by sundown Saturday and be prepared to stay put for at least 48 hours.

    Will Lanxton, the senior state meteorologist, said Georgia could get “perhaps the biggest ice storm we have expected in more than a decade,” followed by unusually cold temperatures.

    “Ice is a whole different ballgame than snow,” Lanxton said. “Ice, you can’t do anything with. You can’t drive on it. It’s much more likely to bring down power lines and trees.”

    Crews began treating highways with brine after midnight Saturday, with 1,800 workers on 12-hour shifts, Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry said.

    “We’re going to do what we can to keep the ice from sticking to the roads,” McMurry said. “This is going to be a challenge.”

    The Midwest saw windchills as low as minus 40 Fahrenheit, meaning that frostbite could set in within 10 minutes. The minus 36 F reading in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, on Saturday morning was the coldest in almost 30 years.

    In Minneapolis, the worst of an extreme cold wave was over, but protesters calling for ICE to leave Minnesota on Saturday still faced an outdoor temperature of minus 6 degrees Fahrenheit.

    Workers from The Orange Tent Project, a Chicago nonprofit that provides cold-weather tents and other supplies to unhoused people throughout the city, went out to check on those who did not or could not seek shelter.

    “Seeing the forecasted weather, I knew we had to come out and do this today,” said CEO Morgan McLuckie.

    Churches moved Sunday services online, and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, decided to hold its Saturday night radio performance without fans. Mardi Gras parades in Louisiana were canceled or rescheduled.

    School superintendents in Philadelphia and Houston announced that schools would be closed Monday.

    Some universities in the South canceled classes for Monday, including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Mississippi’s main campus in Oxford.

    Around the southeast, people used the cancellations to have some fun. On a hill outside the Capitol building in Nashville, adult sledders on green discs and inflatable pool animals giggled with joy as they slid in the snow.

    President Donald Trump said via social media on Friday that his administration was coordinating with state and local officials, and “FEMA is fully prepared to respond.”

    Nine states have requested emergency declarations, according to a FEMA briefing document released Saturday. The declarations can unlock federal emergency resources. Trump on Friday approved emergency declarations for South Carolina and Virginia, and requests from Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia were still pending as of Saturday morning.

    “I think there are two parts of this storm that make it unique. One is just a broad expanse of spatial coverage of this event … You’ve got 2,000 miles of country that’s being impacted by the storm with snow, sleet, and freezing rain,” said Josh Weiss, a meteorologist at NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center. “The other part of this storm that’s really impressive is what’s going to happen right afterward. We’re looking at extreme cold, record cold.”

    Associated Press writers Mike Schneider in Orlando, Florida, Rio Yamat in Las Vegas, Julie Walker in New York, David A. Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri, George Walker in Nashville and Laura Bargfeld in Chicago contributed to this report. Amy reported from Atlanta and Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut.

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  • Country star Russell Dickerson says small-town upbringing meant ‘rodeos and tractor pulls,’ not the movies

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    NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

    Russell Dickerson is reflecting on his small-town roots.

    The country music star, who grew up in Tennessee and is best known for hit songs like “Yours” and “Blue Tacoma,” has spent the past decade building a successful country music career that has taken him from rural fairgrounds to some of the biggest stages in the genre, including an upcoming performance at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. 

    While speaking with Fox News Digital, Dickerson said that entertainment in his household growing up revolved around small-town traditions.

    COUNTRY STARS LAINEY WILSON, LEANN RIMES AND KELSEA BALLERINI DAZZLE ON CMA AWARDS RED CARPET IN NASHVILLE

    Russell Dickerson reflects on his small-town Tennessee roots and a full-circle career moment ahead of his Houston Rodeo appearance. (Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo )

    “Absolutely… we didn’t go to the movies that much really. We went to rodeos, we went to tractor pulls and that was my redneck entertainment growing up.”

    WATCH: COUNTRY STAR RUSSELL DICKERSON SAYS SMALL-TOWN UPBRINGING MEANT ‘RODEOS AND TRACTOR PULLS,’ NOT THE MOVIES

    That upbringing is now coming back around in a very real way for the country singer as he prepares to take the stage at one of the most iconic rodeos in the country.

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     “So to bring it full circle at RodeoHouston, I get to perform my music there is unbelievable.”

    For Dickerson, the milestone carries added meaning beyond his own career, as it’s a moment he wants to share with his family.

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    “Yes, I mean, surely we’ll bring my oldest son, Remington. Surely he’ll be there, ‘cuz this is the biggest show of my entire life. And he’s gotta see that. I think he’ll flip out.”

    Country music singer Russell Dickerson performs onstage in front of a live audience.

    Russell Dickerson performs during a recent live concert as he prepares for a milestone appearance at the Houston Rodeo. (Gilbert Flores/Getty Images)

    On Wednesday, Jan. 7, Dickerson helped bring a taste of RodeoHouston culture to New York City, taking part in a pop-up performance in Times Square as part of the event’s national promotion. The appearance gave fans a preview of the Western traditions that shaped his upbringing ahead of his upcoming HoustonRodeo performance.

    “I’ve never seen this many cowboy hats and boots stomping around Times Square. It’s a beautiful sight, and country music is universal like that.”

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    The Times Square New York City appearance was just one part of a bigger moment for Dickerson, as the RodeoHouston invitation marked a major milestone in his career.

    WATCH: RUSSELL DICKERSON SAYS COUNTRY MUSIC TOOK OVER TIMES SQUARE AHEAD OF RODEOHOUSTON MOMENT

    Dickerson said the opportunity was especially meaningful as an artist.

    “I remember when I got the call. I was just in the gym, you know, and my manager — they were like, there was all three of them on the phone. And I was like, ‘This is weird.’ And they’re like, ‘Hey, we just wanted to all tell you at the same time that you got invited to play the RodeoHouston.’ And I just, like, ‘Oh, I mean, absolute bucket list.’ So it’s already been said, but an absolute honor to be one of those artists that’s in that lineup this year.”

    The moment comes as Dickerson is riding one of the biggest years of his career. His song “Happen to Me,” released in March 2025, took off and helped introduce his music to an even wider audience.

    Dickerson said the response caught him by surprise, calling it “absolutely out of nowhere,” and thanked fans for embracing the song and showing up along the way. 

    Country music singer Russell Dickerson poses with his wife, Kailey, at the CMAS

    Russell Dickerson poses with his wife, Kailey, with whom he shares two sons. (Taylor Hill/WireImage/Getty Images)

    He is set to perform at RodeoHouston on March 5, 2026, joining a star-studded lineup that includes Chris Stapleton, Kelly Clarkson, Luke Bryan, Lainey Wilson, Tim McGraw, Lizzo and Cody Johnson, among others.

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    Danielle Minnetian is an entertainment production assistant for Fox News Digital.

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  • Keeler: CU Buffs transfers wonder what 2025 under Deion Sanders would’ve looked like if they stayed: ‘They missed out’

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    Noah Fenske had his luggage with him Saturday. It wasn’t Louis.

    “Just Under Armour,” the former CU Buffs offensive lineman texted me from his vacation in Nashville.

    While on the road with his fiancée, Fenske’s also been keeping an eye on an old CU teammate, Alex Harkey. Oregon’s starting right tackle? Yeah, he used to be a Buff.

    Harkey, a 6-foot-6, 327-pound redshirt senior, is prepping for a Friday night showdown with Indiana — and another former CU player, the Hoosiers’ Kahlil Benson — in one College Football Playoff semifinal. The Ducks’ bruiser helped Oregon put up 245 passing yards and convert four fourth-down conversions on The Best Defense Money Can Buy, blanking Texas Tech 23-0 in the Orange Bowl.

    He’d transferred into CU as a 305-pounder out of Tyler (Texas) Junior College, a 3-star who was weighing offers from Middle Tennessee and Old Dominion. After appearing in 12 games, largely as a reserve guard, Harkey was one of the kids from CU’s 2022 recruiting class swept out in the great Deion Sanders roster purge during the spring of 2023.

    Fenske, who played in seven games with the Buffs in ’22, was Harkey’s roommate at CU. He got swept away, too. Under Armour was out, Louis Vuitton luggage was in.

    “(Harkey has) done incredible, man,” Fenske gushed. “Because when he first came in (to CU), he wasn’t what he is now. And just seeing his transformation from being a (backup) guard on a 1-11 team to being a first-round or second-round (NFL) draft pick …”

    Big Alex could play. So could wideout Jordyn Tyson (Arizona State). And cornerback Simeon Harris (Fresno State). And quarterback Owen McCown, once he’d had some more brisket. McCown, who played as a wafer-thin true freshman at CU in ’22, threw for 30 touchdowns at UTSA this past fall — including three in a 57-20 win over Florida International in the First Responder Bowl.

    “We just stay connected, support each other’s success,” Harris, who still belongs to a group chat of former Buffs, told me over the weekend. “You’ve got to expect the unexpected. That (purge) hit us all in the mouth.”

    CU fans talk a lot — a lot — about 1-11 in 2022. About rock bottom. About Coach Prime lighting the candle for the climb out of obscurity.

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    Sean Keeler

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  • Who’s performing at tonight’s Times Square ball drop for New Year’s Eve 2026?

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    As revelers from around the world ring in 2026 in New York City’s Times Square, they’re being treated to a New Year’s Eve packed with live performances. 

    Crowds have gathered to watch the ball drop from atop the skyscraper at One Times Square on New Year’s for more than a century. At this year’s festivities, organizers unveiled a star-studded lineup of entertainment featuring Diana Ross, Ciara, Maren Morris, Little Big Town and more. 

    But it’s not the only New Year’s celebration with A-list performers on tap. Some top country music stars usher in 2026 on CBS’ “New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash,” with Jason Aldean, Lainey Wilson and CeCe Winans just a few of those taking the stage.

    Here’s what to know about who is scheduled to perform, and when, this New Year’s Eve.

    Full list of Times Square New Year’s Eve performers 

    New Year’s Eve celebrations officially kicked off in Times Square at 6 p.m. ET with the lighting and raising of the ball that will drop at midnight. The evening features performances from some big names in the entertainment world:

    • James McCarthy
    • B.o.B 
    • Ciara 
    • Tones And I
    • LE SSERAFIM
    • AGNEW, a New York dance group
    • Robyn
    • Little Big Town 
    • Xavi 
    • Maren Morris
    • Ana Barbara 
    • Diana Ross

    When is Diana Ross performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Legendary singer Diana Ross is scheduled to perform a medley of her hit songs, including “I’m Coming Out” and “Upside Down,” on the Countdown Stage in Times Square beginning at 11:37 p.m. ET on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” on ABC. Ross is the recipient of two Grammy Awards for Lifetime Achievement — one as a solo artist and one with the Motown group The Supremes — as well as a Tony, multiple American Music Awards, a Golden Globe and Kennedy Center Honors.

    When is Ciara performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Grammy-winning singer Ciara‘s Times Square performance is expected to air sometime between midnight and 12:30 a.m. ET on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” according to an ABC spokesperson. Twenty-one of the R&B artist’s songs have made it onto Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, including her 2004 hit “Goodies,” which claimed the No. 1 spot for seven weeks. Earlier this year, Ciara released “CiCi,” her first album since 2019.

    When is Little Big Town performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Country music group Little Big Town is scheduled to play a medley of their hits starting at 9:35 p.m. ET on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.” The band has been together for over a quarter-century with 32 songs making Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, including their 2014 hit “Girl Crush,” which was No. 1 for 13 weeks. Along the way, Little Big Town was named vocal group of the year six times by the Country Music Association and four times by the Academy of Country Music, and they’ve won three Grammys.

    When is Maren Morris performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Country music star Maren Morris is scheduled to perform a medley of her songs starting at 10:33 p.m. ET on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.” The singer-songwriter, who released her latest album “Dreamsicle” earlier this year, rose to stardom with her 2016 hit “My Church.” The song won her a Grammy and peaked at No. 5 on the Hot Country Songs chart.

    When is Robyn performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Swedish pop star Robyn is scheduled to sing her 2010 songs “Dancing on My Own” and “Call Your Girlfriend” as well as her new single “Dopamine” starting at 9:18 p.m. ET on CNN’s “New Year’s Eve Live.” “Dancing on My Own” was named the top song of the 2010s by the Associated Press’ music editor. More recently, a writer for Britain’s The Guardian likened it to Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” and Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”

    When is Tones And I performing on New Year’s Eve?

    Australian singer-songwriter Tones And I was set to perform her hits “Dance Monkey,” “Fly Away” and “Gone Gone Gone” starting at 8:03 p.m. ET on the official livestream of the festivities in Times Square. She’s expected to return at 11:55 p.m. for her version of John Lennon’s iconic song “Imagine” before the countdown to 2026. “Dance Monkey” climbed to the No. 4 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart in 2020, and “Gone Gone Gone,” her new song with David Guetta and Teddy Swims, has been on the chart for the past three weeks.

    Schedule for tonight’s Times Square performers

    When are your favorite acts performing? Here is a list of the scheduled times for each performance (all times Eastern). Organizers note that the times on the live schedule may not match the exact broadcast time.

    • 6:03 p.m.-6:05 p.m. — James McCarthy sings the national anthem
    • 6:30 p.m.-6:43 p.m. — B.o.B performs two of his hits plus a new song
    • 8:03 p.m.-8:14 p.m. — Tones And I performs three of her hit songs
    • 8:26 p.m.-8:32 p.m. — LE SSERAFIM performs their hit songs on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” on ABC
    • 8:41 p.m.-8:46 p.m. — AGNEW, a New York dance group, performs
    • 9:18 p.m.- 9:31 p.m. — Robyn performs three of her hit songs on “New Year’s Eve Live” on CNN
    • 9:35 p.m.-9:42 p.m. — Little Big Town performs a medley of their hit songs on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve”
    • 10:02 p.m.-10:08 p.m. — Xavi performs a medley of his hit songs on “Feliz 2026” on Univision
    • 10:33 p.m.-10:41 p.m. — Maren Morris performs a medley of her hit songs on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve”
    • 11:02 p.m.-11:08 p.m. — Ana Barbara performs a medley of her hit songs on “Feliz 2026”
    • 11:37 p.m.-11:46 p.m. — Diana Ross performs a medley of her hit songs on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve”
    • 11:55 p.m.-11:58 p.m. — Tones And I returns for a special performance ahead of the ball drop
    • After midnight — Ciara performs a medley of her hit songs on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve”

    Who’s performing on CBS’ “New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash”?

    Music stars help welcome the new year in Nashville on CBS’ “New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash.” Five hours of festivities air from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET/PT and 10:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. ET/PT, on the CBS television network and streaming on Paramount+.

    Jason Aldean, Lainey Wilson and Bailey Zimmerman headline the celebration, with special guests CeCe Winans and the Fisk Jubilee Singers. Comedian and actor Bert Kreischer and country music artist Hardy serve as hosts. 

    The Nashville event includes a countdown at midnight and the city’s traditional Music Note Drop and fireworks, the organizers said.

    Here’s a list of scheduled performers and special appearances:

    • Jason Aldean
    • Lainey Wilson
    • Bailey Zimmerman 
    • CeCe Winans
    • The Fisk Jubilee Singers
    • Dierks Bentley
    • Brooks & Dunn
    • Rascal Flatts
    • Zach Top
    • Keith Urban
    • Gretchen Wilson
    • Stephen Wilson Jr.
    • Riley Green
    • Megan Moroney
    • Dwight Yoakam 
    • Marcus King
    • Cody Alan
    • Caylee Hammack
    • Comedian Dusty Slay
    • UFC champion Kayla Harrison
    • Entertainment Tonight’s Cassie DiLaura
    • Sirius XM host Buzz Brainard

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  • Prayers Up! Young Mother Fatally Struck By Two Cars While Crossing The Street The Day After Christmas

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    Kira Phillips, a 20-year-old young mother, was fatally struck by two cars while crossing the street in Nashville, Tennessee, the day after Christmas.

    RELATED: Livestreams Gone Wrong: Social Media Calls Out Dangerous Trend After Fatal Crash | TSR Investigates

    Kira Phillips Is Fatally Struck By Two Cars While Crossing The Street, The Day After Christmas

    According to a press release from the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, the incident occurred on Friday, December 26, just before 5:40 p.m. A preliminary investigation reportedly asserts that Phillips apparently was crossing the “continuous left turn lane on Bell Road” when “she was struck by the driver of a northbound Nissan Versa who was turning left onto Rice Road.”

    Subsequently, Phillips was “thrown into a lane of travel and struck by a second vehicle.”

    The 20-year-old reportedly passed away at the scene.

    More On The 20-Year-Old Young Mother & The Aftermath Of The Incident

    According to WSMV, Phillips was in the middle of planning her daughter’s first birthday party when “she went missing.”

    “We didn’t know anything. We were trying to reach out to her, contact her… just was kind of nervous, didn’t know what was going on because it’s not normal for her to just disappear like that,” Lateeka Brooks, the mother of Phillips’ boyfriend, told reporters.

    Now, those who loved Phillips will be holding on to her memory.

    “She was quiet, she loved her mom and her little sisters. Kira, she always had a smile on her face, and that’s one thing that’s gonna be missed the most, her quiet smile,” Tawanta Crutcher, a friend of the 20-year-old, told the press.

    Before The Incident Involving Kira Phillips, A TikToker Made Headlines For Fatally Striking A Pedestrian

    Before the incident involving Kira Phillips, another collision involving a pedestrian made headlines. As The Shade Room previously reported, in November, a TikToker named Tea Tyme was allegedly livestreaming. This, when she struck a pedestrian. Furthermore, all while allegedly driving with an 8-year-old  in her backseat. Darren Lucas was killed, and earlier this month, Tea Tyme was arrested.

    RELATED: Popular TikToker Tea Tyme Arrested After Allegedly Fatally Striking Pedestrian While Livestreaming & Driving (VIDEO)

    What Do You Think Roomies?

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    Jadriena Solomon

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  • Nashville shooter Audrey Hale allegedly used federal student aid to buy guns for school attack

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    NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

    Newly released FBI records connected to the Covenant School shooting in Nashville include writings made by shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale that shed further light on her motivations, planning and personal finances.

    The FBI released more than 100 pages of Hale’s writings following litigation, which included journal entries believed to date back to late 2021, handwritten notes outlining preparations for a school shooting and references to weapons Hale intended to acquire.

    Some of the writings list “Christian school (hate religion)” as a reason for targeting the Covenant School.

    GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL SHOOTING SUSPECT LOOKS DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT IN COURT

    Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale, 28, pictured in a driver’s license photo and on school surveillance video released by Nashville police. Hale killed three 9-year-olds and three adults Monday morning at a private school linked to a church. (Metro Nashville Police Department)

    Hale, 28, carried out the March 27, 2023, attack at the Christian elementary school she once attended, killing six people before being shot dead by responding Metro Nashville Police Department officers.

    The victims were identified as school staff members Katherine Koonce, 60; Cynthia Peak, 61; and Mike Hill, 61; along with students Hallie Scruggs, Evelyn Dieckhaus and William Kinney, all 9.

    Surveillance footage released by police following the attack showed Hale moving through the school armed with multiple firearms.

    Authorities have said Hale entered the building through a side entrance and moved through several areas of the school before being confronted by officers.

    INDIANA TRANS STUDENT ADMITS TO PLOTTING VALENTINE’S DAY SCHOOL SHOOTING, KEPT ‘SHRINE’ TO MASS KILLERS

    The two officers and Hale

    Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake identified the two officers who fatally shot suspected school shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale on March 27, 2023. (Metro Nashville Police Department)

    Shortly before the shooting, Hale sent a text message to a friend describing the planned attack as a “suicide mission” and stating the friend would likely “hear about me on the news after I die,” according to summaries released by officials.

    Among the newly released FBI materials is a handwritten page seen by Fox News Digital and labeled “Account Savings Record,” and referenced federal student financial aid.

    In the entry, Hale wrote that “FAFSA [sic] grant checks started at $2,050.86,” followed by ledger-style notes documenting payments from Nossi College of Art and Design in Nashville, where Hale was enrolled at the time.

    UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE STUDENT ALLEGEDLY MAPPED OUT ATTACK ON CAMPUS POLICE; ILLEGAL WEAPONS RECOVERED

    Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale is seen inside Christian school

    Metro Nashville Police Department released a video of 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale carrying out a shooting at Covenant school on March 27, 2023. (Metro Nashville Police Department)

    The financial entries appear alongside extensive notes about firearms Hale planned to purchase and use in the attack.

    The Tennessee Star also reported those records may lend support to statements Hale’s parents made to Metro Nashville Police Department detectives shortly after the shooting.

    Hale’s parents reportedly told investigators in 2023 that their child used federal Pell Grant money to purchase the firearms used in the attack.

    ONLINE ‘GORE’ FORUMS ARE ‘GATEWAY TO EXTREMISM’ IN MASS SHOOTINGS, NORMALIZING HORROR FOR KIDS: EXPERTS

    Memorials for the six victims who were killed in a mass shooting are placed outside of The Covenant School

    Memorials for the six victims who were killed in a mass shooting are placed outside of The Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. On Monday, three adults and three children were killed inside the school. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)

    Hale’s mother also reportedly told police that because Hale was over 25 and enrolled as a student, parental income no longer factored into financial aid eligibility, allowing Hale to qualify for grant funding despite being unemployed.

    Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake previously confirmed that investigators recovered a manifesto and hand-drawn maps from Hale’s vehicle after the shooting.

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    While portions of Hale’s writings have since been released, both city police and the FBI have continued to resist public records requests for the full manifesto.

    Emma Bussey is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Before joining Fox, she worked at The Telegraph with the U.S. overnight team, across desks including foreign, politics, news, sport and culture. 

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  • Democrats, Republicans go all in on final 2025 congressional ballot box showdown

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    With one week to go until Election Day in a hotly contested race for a GOP-controlled vacant House seat in a solidly red congressional district in Tennessee, both Republicans and Democrats are pouring resources into the race.

    Republican-aligned groups are spending millions of dollars to run ads in the Dec. 2 special election in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, to avoid the possibility of a major upset and protect the GOP’s current razor-thin 219-213 majority in the House.

    President Donald Trump carried the district — which is located in central and western Tennessee, stretches from Kentucky to Alabama, and includes parts of Nashville — by 22 points in last year’s presidential election.

    But Democrats, energized following the party’s sweeping victories earlier this month in high-profile ballot box showdowns from coast to coast, are also spending big bucks in the race.

    TRUMP-BACKED CANDIDATE WINS CROWDED GOP PRIMARY IN BATTLE FOR VACANT HOUSE SEAT

    Democratic congressional nominee Aftyn Behn, a Tennessee state representative, is running in a Dec. 2 special election for a vacant U.S. House seat. (Aftyn For Congress)

    “The stakes are exceptionally high, especially in the light of the results from the 2025 elections,” Vanderbilt University professor of political science John Greer told Fox News Digital. “Republicans are worried that this district, which is normally safe, could in fact swing to the Democrats.”

    Republican nominee Matt Van Epps is facing off against Democratic nominee Aftyn Behn in the race to succeed former GOP Rep. Mark Green, who resigned from office in June to take a private sector job.

    Democrats were laser focused on spotlighting the issue of affordability in this autumn’s elections, and Behn, a state representative, former healthcare community organizer and rising progressive star who some have dubbed the “AOC of Tennessee,” is keeping to that script.

    “Angry about high grocery prices? Worried about health care costs? Feeling burned by tariffs? Then Dec. 2 is your day to shake up Washington,” she says in her campaign’s final ad.

    By casting herself as the candidate who will put a check on Trump’s party in Congress, Behn sees a path to victory.

    While Democrats privately acknowledge that the path to victory is narrow, Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin, who campaigned with Behn earlier this month, argued that she has “an excellent shot to win.”

    Republican congressional nominee Matt Van Epps

    Republican congressional nominee Matt Van Epps casts his ballot at an early voting site in the special election for the 7th District, Nov. 12, 2025, in Nashville, Tennessee. (George Walker IV/AP Photo)

    Van Epps, a military combat veteran and former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services who is backed by Trump, is showcasing his military career as part of his cost of living focus.

    “Matt Van Epps. Nine combat tours. True American hero,” the narrator in one of his ads says, before Van Epps adds, “Now, I’m on a new mission: to bring down prices, create good-paying jobs and lower healthcare costs for working families.”

    SCOOP: TRUMP-ALIGNED MAGA INC. JUMPS INTO HIGH STAKES BALLOT BOX CONGRESSIONAL SHOWDOWN

    While both candidates are running commercials, it’s the aligned super PACs and other outside groups that are flooding the airwaves and digital landscape.

    The Trump-aligned super PAC MAGA Inc. and the fiscally conservative powerhouse Club for Growth have each dished out seven figures to run ads in the race.

    “It’s going to be a hard race. They all are, but he’s [Van Epps] going to win that race because he’s more in line with Tennessee,” Club for Growth President David McIntosh told Fox News Digital. “I’m confident of him, and we’re going to help him do it.”

    Republican candidate for Tennessee's 7th Congressional District Matt Van Epps

    Matt Van Epps talks with attendees before a debate at CabaRay Showroom in Nashville, Sept. 5, 2025. (Nicole Hester/The Tennessean/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

    Also playing in the race is Conservatives for American Excellence, which is financed by GOP megadonors.

    While not spending as much, Democrat-aligned outside groups are supporting Behn. And last week, House Majority PAC, the top group that backs House Democratic candidates, announced it was pumping $1 million into the Tennessee showdown.

    Over the past week, Republicans have been targeting Behn over her past comments from a 2020 podcast.

    “I hate the city, I hate the bachelorettes, I hate the pedal taverns, I hate country music, I hate all of the things that make Nashville apparently an ‘it’ city to the rest of the country. But I hate it,” she said in the podcast.

    TENNESSEE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE CAUGHT SAYING ‘I HATE NASHVILLE’ AND ‘COUNTRY MUSIC’ IN RESURFACED CLIP

    The district is solidly red, but includes parts of the Democratic stronghold of Nashville, Tennessee’s capital and its most populous city, and a major national center for the country music industry. The district encompasses parts of north and west Nashville, including the downtown area which has long been a very popular tourist destination.

    “The Democrat running in a special election for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, Aftyn Behn, is running on the message: ‘I hate this place, elect me!’ Tennessee deserves better,” the Republican National Committee argued in a social media post last week.

    Democratic congressional nominee Aftyn Behn

    State Rep. Aftyn Behn attends a campaign event on Nov. 13, 2025, in Nashville. (George Walker IV/AP Photo)

    Republicans are also taking aim at Behn over an op-ed titled, “Tennessee is a racist state, and so is its legislature,” that appeared in a 2019 edition of The Tennessean newspaper.

    The RNC, pointing in a social media post Wednesday to the six-year-old opinion piece, asked, “If Behn hates Tennessee so much, why is she trying to represent it?”

    Also resurfacing in recent days are anti-police comments Behn made on a now-deleted social media account.

    Behn campaign manager Kate Briefs, pushing back, said in a statement Monday,” The attacks from Washington Republicans are getting louder because their agenda is deeply unpopular—and because early vote returns show this race is a dead heat. They can’t talk about fixing healthcare, lowering costs, or protecting our hospitals because they have no plan. So instead, they’re throwing mud.”

    Behn’s campaign is pointing to what it says is “a surge of first-time and infrequent voters” turning out for early voting.

    CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

    But Greer, who is co-director of the Vanderbilt Poll, predicted that the special election in an off-election year “is likely to be pretty low and early voting is certainly an indication that it’s going to be pretty low.”

    “I still think the Democrats have an uphill climb,” Greer said. “But the fact that Republicans and Democrats are pouring money into the race, both sides see some evidence it could be close.”

    Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast.”

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  • 2025 CMA Awards: Red carpet fashion from Country Music’s Biggest Night

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    Thursday, November 20, 2025 1:02AM

    Lainey Wilson attends the 59th Annual CMA Awards at Music City Center on November 19, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee.

    Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

    Take a look at the photo gallery above to see what your favorite stars wore to the 2025 CMA Awards!

    Country Music’s Biggest Night broadcasts live now on ABC from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

    Follow @OnTheRedCarpet on Facebook, X and Instagram for full coverage of the 58th annual CMA Awards in Nashville.

    Copyright © 2025 OnTheRedCarpet.com. All Rights Reserved.

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  • How Gary Sinise is helping the nonprofit CreatiVets build ‘a place to go when the PTSD hits’

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    NASHVILLE (AP) — Richard Casper shakes his head as he touches one of the boarded-up windows in the once-abandoned church he plans to transform into a new 24-hour arts center for veterans.

    The U.S. Marine Corps veteran and Purple Heart recipient said he was an arm’s length away from military officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, at Marine Barracks Washington when he learned the former church his nonprofit CreatiVets just purchased had been vandalized.

    The physical damage to the building and its stained glass windows saddened Casper. But what worried him more was that the church had remained empty since 2017 without damage. That vandalism came just weeks after CreatiVets bought it, suggesting that maybe he and the veterans in his program were not welcome.

    “I almost just left,” Casper said. “It put me in a weird headspace.”

    However, Casper, 40, a CNN Heroes winner and Elevate Prize winner, needed more support for the center — “a place to go when the PTSD hits.” Like so many veterans, he said his PTSD, caused by seeing a close friend die on patrol in Iraq, would generally come in the middle of the night, when the only places open are bars and other spaces that can be ”destructive.”

    He figured a 24-hour center where veterans could engage in music, painting, sculpture, theater and other arts could help. It could “turn all that pain into something beautiful.” The artistic element factored in when Casper, who suffered a traumatic brain injury while serving in Iraq, returned home and found it hard to be in public — unless he was listening to live music.

    So he completed his mission that night in Washington, introducing new people to CreatiVets’ work. Then, Casper returned to Nashville to practice what he has preached to hundreds of veterans since his nonprofit opened in 2013. He asked for help.

    And help came.

    Within weeks, CreatiVets’ Art Director Tim Brown was teaching a roomful of volunteers how to create stained glass pieces to replace those that were vandalized. Brown said the volunteers wanted to give back to the organization, “but also because of the impact that these activities have had on them.”

    Gary Sinise believes in art’s impact

    Gary Sinise values that impact. The actor, musician and philanthropist had already signed on to donate $1 million through his foundation to help CreatiVets purchase the building. Sinise’s involvement encouraged two other donors to help finalize the purchase.

    The “CSI: NY” star said he believed in CreatiVets’ work and had already seen a similar program in his hometown of Chicago help veterans process their wartime experiences.

    “In the military, you’re trained to do serious work to protect our country, right?” Sinise said. “If you’re in the infantry, you’re being trained to kill. You’re being trained to contain any emotion and be strong.”

    Those skills are important when fighting the enemy, but they also take a toll, especially when veterans aren’t taught how to discuss their feelings once the war is over.

    “Quite often, our veterans don’t want any help,” Sinise said. “But through art – and with theater as well – acting out what they are going through can be very, very beneficial.”

    David Booth says he is living proof of how CreatiVets can help. And the retired master sergeant, who served 20 years in the U.S. Army as a medic and a counterintelligence agent, wishes he participated in the program sooner.

    “For me, this was more important than the last year and a half of counseling that I’ve gone through,” said Booth. “It has been so therapeutic.”

    After years of being asked, Booth, 53, finally joined CreatiVets’ songwriting program in September. He traveled from his home in The Villages, Florida, to the historic Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, to meet with two successful songwriters – Brian White, who co-wrote Jason Aldean’s “Blame It on You,” and Craig Campbell, of “Outskirts of Heaven” fame – to help him write a song about his life.

    Booth told them about his service, including his injury in Iraq in 2006 when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device and detonated it.

    He suffered a traumatic brain injury in the explosion, and it took months of rehab before he could walk again. His entire cervical spine is fused. He still gets epidurals to relieve the nerve pain. And he still suffers from nightmares and PTSD.

    In Iraq, Booth’s unit was once surrounded by kids because American soldiers used to give them Jolly Rancher candies. Snipers shot the children in hopes the soldiers would become easier targets when they tried to help.

    “Things like that stick in my head,” Booth said. “How do you get them out?”

    He also told them about his desire for a positive message and Combat Veterans to Careers, the veteran support nonprofit he founded. Those experiences became the song “What’s Next.”

    Booth hopes “What’s Next” becomes available on music streaming services so others can hear his story. CreatiVets has released compilations of its veterans’ songs since 2020 in cooperation with Big Machine Label Group, Taylor Swift’s first record label. This year’s collection was released Friday.

    “It’s almost like they could feel what I was feeling and put it into the lyrics,” said Booth, after hearing the finished version. “It was pretty surreal and pretty awesome.”

    Why Lt. Dan from ‘Forrest Gump’ launched a nonprofit

    Sinise has seen the unexpected impact of art throughout his career. His Oscar-nominated role as wounded Vietnam veteran Lt. Dan Taylor in “Forrest Gump” in 1994 deepened his connection to veterans. His music with the Lt. Dan Band expanded it. In 2011, he launched the Gary Sinise Foundation to broadly serve veterans, first responders and their families.

    “I think citizens have a responsibility to take care of their defenders,” he said. “There are opportunities out there for all of us to do that and one of the ways to do it is through multiple nonprofits that are out there.”

    Sinise immediately connected with CreatiVets’ mission. When the idea came to dedicate the performance space at the new center to his late son Mac, who died last year after a long battle with cancer, Sinise saw it as “a perfect synergy.”

    “Mac was a great artist,” he said. “And he was a humble, kind of quiet, creative force… If Mac would have survived and not gone through what he went through, he’d be one of our young leaders here at the foundation. He would be composing music and he’d be helping veterans.”

    Mac Sinise is still helping veterans, as proceeds of his album “Resurrection & Revival” and its sequel completed after his death, are going to the Gary Sinise Foundation. And Gary Sinise said he discovered more compositions from his son that he plans to record later this year for a third album.

    After the new center was vandalized, Casper said he was heartbroken, but also inspired knowing part of the center was destined to become the Mac Sinise Auditorium. He decided to take pieces of the broken stained glass windows and transform them into new artwork inspired by Mac Sinise’s music.

    “I told you we’re going to go above and beyond to make sure everyone knows Mac lived,” Casper told Sinise as he handed him stained glass panes inspired by Mac Sinise’s songs “Arctic Circles” and “Penguin Dance,” “not that he died, but that he lived.”

    Sinise fought back tears as he said, “My gosh, that’s beautiful.”

    As he examined the pieces more closely, Sinise added, “I’m honored that we’re going to have this place over there and that Mac is going to be supporting Richard and helping veterans.”

    _____

    Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

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  • Air traffic controller shortages lead to broader US flight delays as shutdown nears one-month mark

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    Travel delays were adding up at airports across the U.S. on Friday as the government shutdown drags on, putting even more pressure on air traffic controllers who have been working without pay for a month.

    U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been warning that travelers will start to see more flight disruptions the longer controllers go without a paycheck.

    “Every day there’s going to be more challenges,” Duffy told reporters Thursday outside the White House after a closed-door meeting with Vice President JD Vance and aviation industry leaders to talk about the shutdown’s impact on U.S. travel.

    The Federal Aviation Administration on Friday reported staffing shortages that were causing flight delays at a number of airports, including in Boston, Phoenix, San Francisco, Nashville, Houston, Dallas and the Washington, D.C. area. Airports serving the New York City area — John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport — were also experiencing delays averaging around two hours, according to the FAA.

    “Currently nearly 50 percent of major air traffic control facilities are experiencing staffing shortages, and nearly 90 percent of air traffic controllers are out at New York–area facilities,” the FAA said in a statement posted on X on Friday evening.

    Staffing shortages can occur both in regional control centers that manage multiple airports and in individual airport towers, but they don’t always lead to flight disruptions. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, flight data showed strong on-time performance at most major U.S. airports for the month of October despite isolated staffing problems that surfaced throughout the month.

    But Cirium said the data also showed a “broader slowdown” Thursday across the nation’s aviation system for the first time since the shutdown began on Oct. 1, suggesting staffing-related disruptions may be spreading.

    According to Cirium, many major U.S. airports on Thursday saw below-average on-time performance, with fewer flights departing within 15 minutes of their scheduled departure times. Staffing-related delays at Orlando’s airport on Thursday, for example, averaged nearly four and a half hours for some time. The data does not distinguish between the different causes of delays, such as staffing shortages or bad weather.

    Last weekend, a shortage of controllers also led to the FAA issuing a brief ground stop at Los Angeles International Airport, one of the busiest in the world. Flights were held at their originating airports for about two hours Sunday until the FAA lifted the ground stop.

    Most controllers are continuing to work mandatory overtime six days a week during the shutdown, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said. That leaves little time for a side job to help cover bills, mortgage payments and other expenses unless controllers call out.

    Duffy said controllers are also struggling to get to work because they can’t afford to fill up their cars with gas. Controllers missed their first full paychecks on Tuesday.

    “For this nation’s air traffic controllers, missing just one paycheck can be a significant hardship, as it is for all working Americans. Asking them to go without a full month’s pay or more is simply not sustainable,” Nick Daniels, president of NATCA, said Friday in a statement.

    Some U.S. airports have stepped in to provide food donations and other support for federal aviation employees working without pay, including controllers and Transportation Security Administration agents.

    Before the shutdown, the FAA was already dealing with a long-standing shortage of about 3,000 air traffic controllers.

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  • Air traffic controller shortages lead to broader US flight delays as shutdown nears one-month mark

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    Continued staffing shortages in air traffic control facilities around the country were again causing delays at airports on Friday as the government shutdown neared the one-month mark.U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been warning that travelers would start to see more flights delayed or canceled as the nation’s controllers continue to work without pay during the shutdown, which began Oct. 1.“Every day there’s going to be more challenges,” Duffy told reporters Thursday outside the White House after a closed-door meeting with Vice President JD Vance and aviation industry leaders to talk about the shutdown’s impact on U.S. travel.The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing shortages were causing flight delays Friday at a number of airports, including in Boston, New York City, Nashville, Houston, Dallas, and Newark, New Jersey. Airports in Boston, Nashville, and New York City were experiencing delays averaging two hours or longer.Staffing shortages can happen at regional control centers overseeing multiple airports, as well as in airport towers, but they don’t always result in flight disruptions.Aviation analytics firm Cirium says flight data showed a “broader slowdown” Thursday across the U.S. aviation system for the first time since the shutdown began, suggesting staffing-related disruptions may be spreading.On Thursday, many major U.S. airports reported below-average on-time performance, with fewer flights departing within 15 minutes of their scheduled departure times, according to Cirium. The data does not distinguish between the different causes of delays, such as staffing shortages or bad weather.Staffing-related delays at Orlando’s airport on Thursday, for example, averaged nearly four and a half hours for some time, according to the FAA.Most controllers are continuing to work mandatory overtime six days a week during the shutdown without pay, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has said. That leaves little time for a side job to help cover bills, mortgage, and other expenses unless controllers call out.Duffy said controllers are also struggling to get to work because they can’t afford to fill up their cars with gas. Controllers missed their first full paycheck on Tuesday.“For this nation’s air traffic controllers, missing just one paycheck can be a significant hardship, as it is for all working Americans. Asking them to go without a full month’s pay or more is simply not sustainable,” Nick Daniels, president of NATCA, said Friday in a statement.Last weekend, a shortage of controllers led to the FAA issuing a brief ground stop at Los Angeles International Airport, one of the busiest in the world. Flights were held at their originating airports for about two hours Sunday until the FAA lifted the ground stop.Some U.S. airports have stepped in to provide food donations and other support for federal aviation employees working without pay, including controllers and Transportation Security Administration agents.Before the shutdown, the FAA was already dealing with a shortage of about 3,000 air traffic controllers.

    Continued staffing shortages in air traffic control facilities around the country were again causing delays at airports on Friday as the government shutdown neared the one-month mark.

    U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been warning that travelers would start to see more flights delayed or canceled as the nation’s controllers continue to work without pay during the shutdown, which began Oct. 1.

    “Every day there’s going to be more challenges,” Duffy told reporters Thursday outside the White House after a closed-door meeting with Vice President JD Vance and aviation industry leaders to talk about the shutdown’s impact on U.S. travel.

    The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing shortages were causing flight delays Friday at a number of airports, including in Boston, New York City, Nashville, Houston, Dallas, and Newark, New Jersey. Airports in Boston, Nashville, and New York City were experiencing delays averaging two hours or longer.

    Staffing shortages can happen at regional control centers overseeing multiple airports, as well as in airport towers, but they don’t always result in flight disruptions.

    Aviation analytics firm Cirium says flight data showed a “broader slowdown” Thursday across the U.S. aviation system for the first time since the shutdown began, suggesting staffing-related disruptions may be spreading.

    On Thursday, many major U.S. airports reported below-average on-time performance, with fewer flights departing within 15 minutes of their scheduled departure times, according to Cirium. The data does not distinguish between the different causes of delays, such as staffing shortages or bad weather.

    Staffing-related delays at Orlando’s airport on Thursday, for example, averaged nearly four and a half hours for some time, according to the FAA.

    Most controllers are continuing to work mandatory overtime six days a week during the shutdown without pay, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has said. That leaves little time for a side job to help cover bills, mortgage, and other expenses unless controllers call out.

    Duffy said controllers are also struggling to get to work because they can’t afford to fill up their cars with gas. Controllers missed their first full paycheck on Tuesday.

    “For this nation’s air traffic controllers, missing just one paycheck can be a significant hardship, as it is for all working Americans. Asking them to go without a full month’s pay or more is simply not sustainable,” Nick Daniels, president of NATCA, said Friday in a statement.

    Last weekend, a shortage of controllers led to the FAA issuing a brief ground stop at Los Angeles International Airport, one of the busiest in the world. Flights were held at their originating airports for about two hours Sunday until the FAA lifted the ground stop.

    Some U.S. airports have stepped in to provide food donations and other support for federal aviation employees working without pay, including controllers and Transportation Security Administration agents.

    Before the shutdown, the FAA was already dealing with a shortage of about 3,000 air traffic controllers.

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  • 19 people dead or missing after massive blast at Tennessee military explosive plant, officials say

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    Nineteen people are dead or missing after a massive blast obliterated a building at a Tennessee explosives facility on Friday, authorities said — a “mass detonation” so significant that it rattled homes miles away.The early-morning explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems, which manufactures military and demolitions explosives, left charred debris and mangled vehicles across a vast area. The blast was felt as far as 15 miles away and scattered debris over half a square mile.Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said there are fatalities, but did not want to declare a death toll yet — just that “we’re missing 19 souls.”“I always wish for the best,” Davis said. “Is there a possibility that somebody might be injured somewhere, or somebody that we don’t know about? Yes.”Davis described the aftermath of the explosion as “the most devastating scene that I’ve seen in my career.”“It’s hell,” Davis told reporters Friday evening. “It’s hell on us. It’s hell on everybody involved.”Video below: Aerial footage shows the extent of the damageWork at the explosion site will continue into the night, he said.“We’re working for our people, and we want to take care of our families,” an emotional Davis said. “I understand that some families get mad. I understand that some people get upset … We’re doing the very best we can to take care of this.”Davis said investigators from multiple agencies have been assisting with the response, but have not yet determined what caused the explosion. The FBI will be assisting.“Do I see a short-term explanation? No. Do I see us being here for many days? Yes, I do see that,” he said.Families of the victims were still being notified, said Davis, noting that people were undergoing a “gauntlet of emotions” as first responders continued to search the area. The tragedy hit close-knit communities.“I can tell you right off the top of my head that there’s three families that’s involved in this that I’m very close to,” Davis said. “When you have small counties like this, we know each other, we communicate with each other, we love each other.”The blast shook nearby homes and set off smaller explosions, local officials say.The explosion, which happened around 7:45 a.m. local time, was a “devastating blast,” but responders were able to secure the scene by late morning, Davis said.Three people with “minor injuries” from the explosion were treated at TriStar medical facilities in Dickson, Casey Stapp, the spokesperson for TriStar Health, said. Stapp said two people were released, and one person is still receiving treatment at an emergency room.Accurate Energetic Systems is located about an hour southwest of Nashville, Tennessee, on the Hickman and Humphreys County line, the Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office told CNN.Numerous law enforcement resources from across the state of Tennessee have been dispatched to assist in the investigation, a source familiar told CNN. Those personnel include federal agents and the Tennessee Highway Patrol Special Operations Unit, among other agencies. The relatively remote area is typically patrolled by smaller law enforcement departments, the person said, which has prompted other agencies to volunteer resources for support.Hickman County Mayor Jim Bates said the facility has about 80 employees, but it’s unclear how many were in the building when the explosion happened. Bates said one building on the site was completely destroyed.“It’s pretty devastating to see this,” Bates said.“It’s going to be an investigation that’s probably going to go on for days,” the mayor said. “This facility, they do manufacture, not only military, but demolition explosives for road work and things like that.”Tennessee state Sen. Kerry Roberts told CNN the facility sits on a 1,300-acre campus and is a beloved employer for many people in the community.He said it’s common to see employees at community events and people wearing baseball caps with the company name on them.“It is a well-loved company in the area,” Roberts said. “So this is going to have a devastating impact on quite a few families … it is heartbreaking.”Residents who live near the facility say they felt the impact of the explosion.“I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it,” Gentry Stover told The Associated Press by phone. “I live very close to Accurate, and I realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that.”Cody Warren, who lives in Lobelville, which is 21 miles away from the facility, said the sound from the explosion woke him up, and he thought lightning struck his house.Accurate Energetic Systems specializes in making military explosives, according to the Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office.The company’s Facebook page says it manufactures “various high explosive compositions and specialty products for the U.S. DoD and U.S. Industrial markets.”In April 2014, one person was killed and four others injured during a blast at the plant, CNN affiliate WSMV reported. The explosion, in the back of a building that housed shotgun ammunition, caused extensive damage. At the time, authorities said several companies operated on the Accurate Energetic Systems property but the blast happened in an area operated by Rio Ammunition.In the player below: Here is a look at what the plant looked like after the 2014 explosionLast month, the US Department of Defense awarded Accurate Energetic Systems a contract for nearly $120 million “for the procurement of TNT.”The Hickman County Sheriff’s Office is asking everyone to avoid the area as emergency responders do their work.

    Nineteen people are dead or missing after a massive blast obliterated a building at a Tennessee explosives facility on Friday, authorities said — a “mass detonation” so significant that it rattled homes miles away.

    The early-morning explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems, which manufactures military and demolitions explosives, left charred debris and mangled vehicles across a vast area. The blast was felt as far as 15 miles away and scattered debris over half a square mile.

    Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said there are fatalities, but did not want to declare a death toll yet — just that “we’re missing 19 souls.”

    “I always wish for the best,” Davis said. “Is there a possibility that somebody might be injured somewhere, or somebody that we don’t know about? Yes.”

    Davis described the aftermath of the explosion as “the most devastating scene that I’ve seen in my career.”

    “It’s hell,” Davis told reporters Friday evening. “It’s hell on us. It’s hell on everybody involved.”

    Video below: Aerial footage shows the extent of the damage

    Work at the explosion site will continue into the night, he said.

    “We’re working for our people, and we want to take care of our families,” an emotional Davis said. “I understand that some families get mad. I understand that some people get upset … We’re doing the very best we can to take care of this.”

    Davis said investigators from multiple agencies have been assisting with the response, but have not yet determined what caused the explosion. The FBI will be assisting.

    “Do I see a short-term explanation? No. Do I see us being here for many days? Yes, I do see that,” he said.

    Families of the victims were still being notified, said Davis, noting that people were undergoing a “gauntlet of emotions” as first responders continued to search the area. The tragedy hit close-knit communities.

    “I can tell you right off the top of my head that there’s three families that’s involved in this that I’m very close to,” Davis said. “When you have small counties like this, we know each other, we communicate with each other, we love each other.”

    The blast shook nearby homes and set off smaller explosions, local officials say.

    The explosion, which happened around 7:45 a.m. local time, was a “devastating blast,” but responders were able to secure the scene by late morning, Davis said.

    Three people with “minor injuries” from the explosion were treated at TriStar medical facilities in Dickson, Casey Stapp, the spokesperson for TriStar Health, said. Stapp said two people were released, and one person is still receiving treatment at an emergency room.

    Accurate Energetic Systems is located about an hour southwest of Nashville, Tennessee, on the Hickman and Humphreys County line, the Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office told CNN.

    Numerous law enforcement resources from across the state of Tennessee have been dispatched to assist in the investigation, a source familiar told CNN. Those personnel include federal agents and the Tennessee Highway Patrol Special Operations Unit, among other agencies. The relatively remote area is typically patrolled by smaller law enforcement departments, the person said, which has prompted other agencies to volunteer resources for support.

    Hickman County Mayor Jim Bates said the facility has about 80 employees, but it’s unclear how many were in the building when the explosion happened. Bates said one building on the site was completely destroyed.

    “It’s pretty devastating to see this,” Bates said.

    “It’s going to be an investigation that’s probably going to go on for days,” the mayor said. “This facility, they do manufacture, not only military, but demolition explosives for road work and things like that.”

    Tennessee state Sen. Kerry Roberts told CNN the facility sits on a 1,300-acre campus and is a beloved employer for many people in the community.

    He said it’s common to see employees at community events and people wearing baseball caps with the company name on them.

    “It is a well-loved company in the area,” Roberts said. “So this is going to have a devastating impact on quite a few families … it is heartbreaking.”

    Residents who live near the facility say they felt the impact of the explosion.

    “I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it,” Gentry Stover told The Associated Press by phone. “I live very close to Accurate, and I realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that.”

    Cody Warren, who lives in Lobelville, which is 21 miles away from the facility, said the sound from the explosion woke him up, and he thought lightning struck his house.

    Accurate Energetic Systems specializes in making military explosives, according to the Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office.

    The company’s Facebook page says it manufactures “various high explosive compositions and specialty products for the U.S. DoD and U.S. Industrial markets.”

    In April 2014, one person was killed and four others injured during a blast at the plant, CNN affiliate WSMV reported. The explosion, in the back of a building that housed shotgun ammunition, caused extensive damage. At the time, authorities said several companies operated on the Accurate Energetic Systems property but the blast happened in an area operated by Rio Ammunition.

    In the player below: Here is a look at what the plant looked like after the 2014 explosion

    Last month, the US Department of Defense awarded Accurate Energetic Systems a contract for nearly $120 million “for the procurement of TNT.”

    The Hickman County Sheriff’s Office is asking everyone to avoid the area as emergency responders do their work.

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  • Skydiving instructor dies after falling without parachute, Tennessee cops say

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    Fire crews worked to rescue a skydiver stuck in a tree in Nashville.

    Fire crews worked to rescue a skydiver stuck in a tree in Nashville.

    Photo from the Nashville Fire Department.

    One person is dead and another was rescued during a tragic skydiving incident in Tennessee.

    Firefighters responded to reports of a skydiver in distress on Oct. 4, the Nashville Fire Department said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

    The man was stuck in a tree with an open parachute in a wooded area, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said in a post on X.

    In an update, the fire department said the jumper was rescued and freed from a harness after being stuck for hours. He was helped down a ladder and was in stable condition.

    Police said the man had been separated from a tandem rig, which is a parachute system, with an instructor.

    “The instructor is presumed to have fallen from the sky without a parachute,” police said.

    The instructor was not located right away, but an update from police said the 35-year-old instructor was found dead in a wooded area.

    Go Skydive Nashville said in a statement to WZTV that it is cooperating with authorities investigating the incident.

    “The identity of the deceased is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. Go Skydive Nashville remains dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of training, safety, and professionalism. At this time, the team is focused on supporting those affected by this tragedy,” the business told the outlet.

    Three other skydivers who jumped and the plane landed safely, police said.

    The man who was rescued was taken to a hospital as a precaution, according to firefighters.

    Jennifer Rodriguez

    mcclatchy-newsroom

    Jennifer Rodriguez is a McClatchy National Real-Time reporter covering the Central and Midwest regions. She joined McClatchy in 2023 after covering local news in Youngstown, Ohio, for over six years. Jennifer has made several achievements in her journalism career, including receiving the Robert R. Hare Award in English, the Emerging Leader Justice and Equality Award, the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award and the Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan Award.

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    Jennifer Rodriguez

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  • San Diego FC push to keep West lead as Dynamo chase playoff bid

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    (Photo credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images)

    Following a winless September, Western Conference-leading San Diego FC hit the road for their final two matches, starting with a Saturday night contest against the Houston Dynamo.

    San Diego (17-9-6, 57 points) is tied for the top spot with the Vancouver Whitecaps (16-6-9, 57 points), who have a game in hand. San Diego finishes the season at Portland on Oct. 18, while the Whitecaps still have home games against the San Jose Earthquakes and FC Dallas sandwiched around a road date at Orlando City.

    San Diego FC went 0-2-1 in September, including a 1-0 loss to the visiting Earthquakes last weekend.

    ‘The most important thing now is to maintain calm, know that we are a good team,’ San Diego coach Mikey Varas said. ‘We have good players. We work really hard, and finding that little extra that we need to make sure that we turn these into not just good, statistically speaking, performances, but wins.’

    The good news is that both of San Diego’s final two games are on the road, where the team has compiled a 10-4-1 mark, best in the league.

    Houston (9-14-9, 36 points) is two points behind ninth-place San Jose (10-14-8, 38 points) in the battle for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Dynamo come in off a 3-1 loss at Nashville SC that saw them play the last 81 minutes with 10 men after defender Erik Sviatchenko was shown a red card for a foul on Hany Mukhtar at the edge of the box.

    ‘We’re still in this thing,’ Houston coach Ben Olsen said. ‘We’ve got to look for some results now and all we can do is take care of San Diego at home and hopefully get the results (ahead of traveling to Sporting Kansas City on Decision Day) where we can sneak in with a win there. Six points still give us a good chance.’

    However, Houston learned Thursday it will have to do it without arguably its best player, Jack McGlynn. The midfielder, who has career highs in goals (six) and assists (eight), will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery for a foot injury sustained in the Nashville loss.

    ‘I am very disappointed that I will be unable to help the club push for the playoffs or join the U.S. national team for this important upcoming camp,’ McGlynn posted on his Instagram account. ‘Get behind the team. I know they will make us proud.’

    Houston won the first meeting at San Diego 4-3 on July 5 as Argentine forward Ezequiel Ponce scored a brace, including the game-winner in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Orlando City, Columbus Crew meet in pivotal pre-playoff matchup

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    (Photo credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images)

    Orlando City and the Columbus Crew will meet in Central Florida on Saturday night in a match that will be critical for both teams’ playoff positioning.

    All nine Eastern Conference MLS Cup Playoff participants have already been finalized more than two weeks ahead of the final day of regular-season play on Oct. 18.

    But both seventh-place Orlando (14-7-10, 52 points) and ninth-place Columbus (13-8-11, 50 points) are still fighting to avoid the East wild-card game, which will be between the teams finishing in eighth and ninth.

    For much of the season, Columbus looked on track to be competing for the higher East positions.

    But after a stretch of only one win and six points earned in the last seven matches, manager Wilfried Nancy’s side would face a must-win wild-card match on the road if the postseason began now. With only two games left on the schedule, Nancy is trying to impart to his team that it still has the quality of the side that took 24 points from its first 11 games.

    ‘We are qualified for the playoffs,’ Nancy said, ‘because of the way we started the season. And this we have to think about it. … We are qualified because we had the best start of the season in the club’s history. So they can not forget that.’

    Nancy also suggested leading scorer Diego Rossi is questionable this week after missing the last three matches.

    Orlando’s trajectory has been the reverse, with the Lions at one point winning four straight league games through July and August.

    More recently, the team has used stoppage-time goals from Duncan McGuire and Alex Freeman, respectively, to earn dramatic late results in a 3-2 home win over Nashville on Sept. 20 and a 1-1 draw at FC Cincinnati last Sunday.

    Orlando City have also won three in a row at home and could move as high as fifth with a fourth consecutive home victory and other favorable results Saturday. Orlando also has a match in hand on Charlotte and Nashville, the current fifth- and sixth-place sides.

    ‘It’s something that at the beginning of the season was a challenge, but now we have that record that inspires us,’ Orlando manager Oscar Pareja said of that recent home form. ‘The boys were talking about it … how important the game is, but how important it is to play it in front of our people.’

    –Field Level Media

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  • Nicole Kidman files for divorce from Keith Urban, citing

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    Actress Nicole Kidman has filed for divorce from her husband, country musician Keith Urban, after nearly 20 years of marriage, according to court documents obtained Tuesday by CBS News. 

    The documents show that the 58-year-old Kidman filed for divorce Monday from the 57-year-old Urban in Davidson County Circuit Court in Nashville, Tennessee, where the couple resides.

    She cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason, per the court documents. 

    A separate marital dissolution agreement signed by both Kidman and Urban shows that the two reached a co-parenting arrangement that will see Kidman serve as the “primary residential parent” of their two teenage daughters, with Urban having visitation and other rights.

    As part of their agreement, both are required to attend a parent education class within 60 days.

    CBS News has reached out to both Kidman and Urban’s representatives for comment.

    Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman attend the 2025 Academy of Country Music Awards at Omni Frisco Hotel at The Star on May 8, 2025, in Frisco, Texas. 

    Taylor Hill/WireImage


    Kidman and Urban began dating in 2005 and married in 2006 in Australia, where they are both from.

    “Meeting her and getting married was just, wasn’t life changing, it was life beginning,” Urban told CBS Sunday Morning of Kidman in a 2016 interview. “It was literally, like, ‘OK, life starts.’”

    And in a separate 2016 interview with CBS Sunday Morning, Kidman recounted how Urban rushed to her side following the death of her father in 2014, abandoning a concert in Nashville and flying to California to be with her.

    “I didn’t even know how to get up from this,” Kidman said at the time, saying she got through it “because I had a husband who came right back.”

    “I called him screaming and crying, and he was about to go on stage, and he walked off stage, and he got on a plane — he’d just gotten there — he flew six hours, and he was right back,” Kidman said.  

    Last December, Kidman offered a glimpse into their home life, saying that the family tries to have breakfast together every morning, even with Kidman and Urban’s busy schedules.

    “Even with what I’ve got now, I’ve been able to juggle things to accommodate my family, which is a fantastic thing,” Kidman told CBS News at the time. “I enjoy my home, and I enjoy my family, and I enjoy my work.”  

    Kidman, one of the world’s biggest movie stars, was previously married to actor Tom Cruise for a little over a decade, with whom she shares two adopted children. She is known for films including “Moulin Rouge,” “Eyes Wide Shut” and “The Hours,” for which she won an Oscar for best actress in 2003.

    This is the first marriage for Urban, who has been one of country music’s most well-known acts for decades. He has won four Grammys and served as a judge on “American Idol” for several seasons.  

    Faris Tanyos

    Faris Tanyos is a news editor for CBSNews.com, where he writes and edits stories and tracks breaking news. He previously worked as a digital news producer at several local news stations up and down the West Coast.

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  • Alabama man wanted in 2023 Nashville homicide investigation turns himself in

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    More than two and half years since a 23-year-old man was shot in the basement of an abandoned Nashville home, a man is in custody.

    A 19-year-old from Decatur, Alabama, learned he was wanted by Nashville police from Alabama authorities, according to a Sept. 18 statement from the Nashville Police Department. Decatur is less than two hours south of Nashville off Interstate 65.

    The man turned himself in to Nashville police at their headquarters, the statement said.

    The Tennessean is not naming the man, as he was 16 at the time of the shooting and is charged with criminal homicide in juvenile court.

    Police said the man was visiting Nashville when he lured 23-year-old Jonathan Seda and Seda’s 18-year-old brother to the basement of a vacant home in the 3200 block of Crowe Drive for a suspected drug transaction.

    During the meeting, Seda was shot dead and his brother suffered at least one gunshot wound.

    Officers were alerted to the shooting when they found the 18-year-old on the sidewalk outside of the home. He told police there was another victim inside.

    The 18-year-old was rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he recovered. Seda was pronounced dead at the scene.

    This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Police arrest Alabama man in 2023 Nashville homicide investigation

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