Albany New York (NY)
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Albemarle North Carolina (NC)
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Pittsburgh Pennsylvania (PA)
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Pastor Mark Driscoll left the stage at a megachurch men's conference after he criticized an earlier sword-swallowing performance by Alex Megala (America's Got Talent 2013, Britain's Got Talent 2016), which he likened to something that someone might see at a strip club.
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“Unsung Hero" explores the remarkable journey of the Smallbone family as they relocate from Australia to America in search of new beginnings.?
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Apple has rejected Spotify's new version of its iOS app with in-app pricing information for users in the European Union, the audio streaming firm said on Thursday.The Swedish company submitted a new version of its app to Apple with basic pricing and website information, which is a minimum requirement under the European Commission's ruling in its music streaming case, it said in a post on X on Wednesday.Spotify said the Cupertino, California based-Apple rejected its update in a response directly sent to the company.Apple and the European Commission did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment."Apple has once again defied the European Commission's decision, rejecting our update for attempting to communicate with customers about our prices unless we pay Apple a new tax. Their disregard for consumers and developers is matched only by their disdain for the law," a spokesperson for Spotify said in a statement.In March, Brussels fined Apple with 1.84 billion euros ($1.97 billion) for thwarting competition from music streaming rivals via restrictions on its App Store, marking its first ever EU antitrust penalty, following a 2019 complaint from Spotify.Earlier this month, Apple also announced measures that would let music streaming apps on its App Store in the European Economic Area to inform users of other ways to purchase digital services, as it looks to comply with a European Union mandate.Under Apple's proposal, Spotify and other streaming services can include link to their websites to inform users of payment options outside its App Store. However, Spotify said in the new version submitted to Apple it did not include the in-app link.
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US President Joe Biden published a photo on Instagram on Thursday with the released four-year-old hostage Abigail Idan, whom he met on Wednesday."Last year, we secured the release of Abigail, a 4-year-old who was being held by Hamas," the post read.? "She’s remarkable and recovering from unspeakable trauma.View this post on InstagramA post shared by President Joe Biden (@potus)"Our time together yesterday was a reminder of the work we have in front of us to secure the release of all remaining hostages," the statement added.?
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Beyoncé's right. Whether listening to Cowboy Carter or reading theology, diversity is a good thing.I wasn’t planning to listen to Cowboy Carter, the eighth studio album from American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. I’ve always had a love for her music—but country has never been my thing.Plans changed when I started to read what people were writing about the record, from comments on social media to reviews in major publications. Their reactions were bitter, even cruel. “Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ isn’t a country album. It’s worse,” proclaimed one review in The Washington Post. “Beyoncé has chosen to do Dolly Parton karaoke,” writes the reviewer. “She sounds like she’s doing Wild West bedroom cosplay in outer space.”“The lefties in the entertainment industry just won’t leave any area alone, right?” asked an interviewer on a One America News program. “They’ve got to make their mark, just like a dog in a dog walk park,” responded the interviewee.It’s not that Cowboy Carter is exempt from criticism. Its genre-blending experimentation won’t be to everyone’s taste. Some listeners may have reservations about Beyoncé’s departure from her earlier pop and R & B records. That’s fine. Music, like all art forms, is subjective. Thoughtful critique can serve as a means for musicians to grow as artists, and to engage audiences in meaningful ways.But that’s different from implying that Beyoncé can’t and shouldn’t sing country music simply because of who she is: not a white man from a rural small town, but a Black woman raised in Houston. A “stay in your place” undercurrent cuts through how critics have spoken about her ...Continue reading...
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