Author: business

• Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” tour begins April 28th in Los Angeles, with fans anticipating special moments and guests.
• Fans hope to see Blue Ivy Carter perform, along with potential appearances from collaborators like Post Malone and Shaboozey.
• Beyoncé’s wardrobe changes are highly anticipated, with a unique styling team assembled.
• Fans are excited to see if Beyoncé incorporates viral TikTok mashups and line dances into the show.

Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” tour will kick off in matter of days, and the Beyhive is buzzing with excitement in anticipation of how the singer will translate the groundbreaking album to the stage.

In true Beyoncé fashion, few details have been revealed about her upcoming Cowboy Carter and the Rodeo Chitlin’ Circuit Tour, which is set to kick off April 28 in Los Angeles. However, that isn’t stopping fans from dreaming up special moments and surprise guests they hope to see at the concert.

From possible collaborations to nostalgic reunions, fans have been voicing their wish lists online.

Ahead of her SoFi Stadium debut, here’s a look at what they’re hoping to see on the “Cowboy Carter” stage.

Blue Ivy and other special guests

One of the most hoped for special guests is Beyoncé’s daughter Blue Ivy Carter. In 2023, an 11-year-old Blue Ivy made her tour debut, dancing to “My Power” and “Black Parade” alongside her mom and fellow dancers during the Renaissance World Tour in Paris. She also appeared during Beyoncé’s NFL halftime show on Christmas Day.

That performance at the the Texans-Ravens game may have given fans a glimpse into the upcoming tour. During the show, she brought out many notable guests including her “Cowboy Carter” collaborators Post Malone, Shaboozey and “Blackbiird” vocalists Reyna Roberts, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer and Tiera Kennedy. 

One fan said, “I’m hoping to see Miley Cyrus or Shaboozey pop out.” Another fan wrote, “I’m hoping to see Destiny’s Child, but that’s wishful thinking.”

During the halftime show she also brought out a number of other guests, such as bull-riding legend Myrtis Dightman Jr., known as the “Jackie Robinson of Rodeo”; Miss Rodeo Texas Princess 2004 and Miss Rodeo Texas 2015 Nikki Woodward and many more. Beyoncé’s longtime dance captain Ashley Everett made her return, and fans hope she will appear again during the concert.

Beyoncé’s spectacular wardrobe changes

Of course, every Beyoncé show is a spectacle of music and fashion. And many fans are not only excited to unleash their own creativity and wear their best “Cowboy Carter” concert looks, but they are also waiting to see just how Beyoncé delivers her looks onstage.

During Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour, she reportedly donned over 140 unique outfits with the help of her stylists Shiona Turini, Julia Sarr-Jamois, Karen Langley and KJ Moody. And given the Western and equestrian influences of the album, her outfits will likely be a huge component of the concert.

Recently, Beyoncé’s mom Tina Knowles announced that Beyoncé’s former stylist Ty Hunter would be joining the team for this tour.

“So happy to have my bonus son (Ty Hunter) working with us on the tour after all of these years,” she wrote. “We added him to the team a month ago! We are so blessed to have a talented team of Super Star Stylist!”

‘Cowboy Carter’ TikTok mash-ups

As this is Beyoncé’s first country album, many fans are interested to see how she brings the music and culture to the stage. It will be fascinating to see which other songs in her catalogue she chooses to perform with the genre-bending album.

Many fans have already created several mash-ups of her music, and they have been making the rounds on social media. Plus, Beyoncé is known to throw in a viral moment or two in her sets.

One fan wrote, “I’ve been loving the mash-ups I hear on TikTok, and I really want to hear the ‘Tyrant’ mash-up with ‘All Night’ from her ‘Lemonade’ album. I think it’s so interesting and great how we can combine two completely different songs from different genres but the same artist.”

Line dancing and other viral dances

“Cowboy Carter” has also birthed many viral dances and line dances since it was released March 29, 2024. Undoubtedly, fans are hoping to see Beyoncé perform her hit “II Hands II Heaven,” which became a viral dance and internet sensation after a fan paired a snippet of the song to Drea Kelly’s dance moves. Beyoncé even busted out the dance moves at one point, and it’s a matter of time before fans see if she’ll incorporate them into her set.

One X user wrote, “Every time I hear “II Hands II Heaven” I imagine how it’ll sound hearing Beyonce sing it at the concert.”

Additionally, line dancing is not only a huge part of Southern and Western culture, but it has also become linked with this album. Fans might recall Beyoncé’s single “Texas Hold ‘Em” taking the internet by storm with many creating line dances to the tune.

Moreover, songs like “Boots on the Ground” by Douglas Furtick, also known as 803 Fresh, and its corresponding line dance have been taking over social media with many grabbing their boots and handheld fans. This makes for the perfect cultural backdrop for Beyoncé’s country showcase, and it’ll be interesting to see if she incorporates any of these moments or moves.

Follow Caché McClay, the USA TODAY Network’s Beyoncé Knowles-Carter reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @cachemcclay.

There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today’s puzzle before reading further! Split the Pole

Constructor: Zachary Edward-Brown

Editor: Jared Goudsmit

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor

Zach: This puzzle was inspired by the scene in The Burial with Jamie Foxx where a bunch of people squeeze through these poles because they are superstitious. Thanks to the editors for helping me revise this puzzle!

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• ASL (8D: Language in the film “Hear and Now”) Hear and Now is a 2007 documentary by Irene Taylor Brodsky. The movie tells the story of Paul and Sally Taylor, Irene Taylor Brodsky’s parents, who were both born deaf. In their 60s, Paul and Sally Taylor both had cochlear implant surgery, which allowed them to hear for the first time. The documentary follows their journey. American Sign Language (ASL) and English are used in the movie.
• TEN (43D: Messi’s jersey number) Although I just wrote about [World Cup star Lionel] MESSI yesterday, I did not mention his jersey number. If I’ve previously known that he wears number TEN, I’ve forgotten, so I needed the help of crossing answers here.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• UNO (21A: Half of dos) and ONE (24A: 21-Across, in English) This is a nice clue pairing.
• HER (33A: Dating app founded by Robyn Exton) HER is a dating app geared to “LGBTQ+ women and queer folks.” Robyn Exton founded the app, which was launched globally in 2015.
• BTS (35A: “Dynamite” band) “Dynamite” is a 2020 song by the K-pop band BTS. It was the band’s first song fully in English. BTS has paused their musical activities to allow the members to complete their 18 months of mandatory South Korean military service. All of the BTS members are scheduled to complete their military service by June of this year, but the timing of a possible BTS reunion is still unknown.
• POWER COUPLE (36A: Duo such as Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce) and FAN BASE (44A: Group of Swifts, for example) Taylor Swift’s FAN BASE is certainly interested in any news about the POWER COUPLE of singer Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs football player Travis Kelce.
• CIA (41A: Spy org. in “Jason Bourne”) Jason Bourne is a 2016 movie, the fifth of the Bourne movies, which are based on the character created by Robert Ludlum. Matt Damon portrays the title character, a former CIA assassin.
• AGAVE (48A: Plant used to make tequila) AGAVE are spiky-leaved succulents that grow in the hot and arid regions of the Americas and the Caribbean. The sap of the AGAVE plant is fermented to make an alcoholic beverage called pulque, which is distilled to produce the spirit, mezcal. Tequila is mezcal made from a variety of the plant known as blue AGAVE. (All tequila is mezcal, but not all mezcal is tequila.)
• CASINO (53A: Place to play Omaha Hold ’em) and POKER TABLE (58A: Place to play Omaha Hold ’em) I definitely experienced a moment of “Wait, didn’t I just read this clue?” when I came to the clue for POKER TABLE shortly after filling in CASINO.
• HIPPOS (1D: Semiaquatic African mammals) HIPPOS are native to sub-Saharan Africa. The full name of the HIPPO – hippopotamus – comes from Ancient Greek and means “river horse.” HIPPOS spend their days in the water, in order to stay cool. They emerge from the water at dusk to graze. Fun fact: The closest living relatives of HIPPOS are whales.
• OWN (5D: “A League of Their ___”) A League of Their Own is a 1992 movie set in 1943. It tells a fictionalized account of the real All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The 2022 TV series of the same name is an adaptation of the movie.
• RADON (7D: Rn, on the periodic table) The atomic number of RADON is 86, and its chemical symbol is Rn. RADON is one of six naturally-occurring noble gases (along with helium, neon, argon, krypton, and xenon). As RADON occurs naturally, some level of RADON is present in all buildings. Exposure to high levels of RADON has been linked to lung cancer. (According to the EPA, RADON is the number one cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.) Like all noble gases, RADON is odorless and colorless under standard conditions. Therefore, its presence must be detected by testing. If high levels of RADON are detected, RADON mitigation systems can be installed to decrease the RADON level in the building. 
• OUTER EAR (18D: Where the tympanic membrane is located) The tympanic membrane, also known as the eardrum, separates the OUTER EAR from the middle EAR.
• OHIO (26D: Midwestern state associated with Gen Alpha) Sometime in the last few years, those in generation Alpha (those born between 2010-2024) adopted the word OHIO to refer to anything strange or odd. I’ve written about this previously.
• BLAB (35D: Let the cat out of the bag) My cat, Willow, says, “Don’t even think of trying to put me in a bag!” This picture shows my view of Willow the other day when I was sitting at our kitchen counter and she was on my lap.

• PARASITE (36D: 2019 Bong Joon-ho film set in South Korea) Parasite, directed by Bong Joon-Ho, is set in Seoul, South KOREA. The movie is about a family that insinuates itself into a wealthy household. Parasite won four Academy Awards, including Best Director.
• WACO (56D: Texas city home to the Dr. Pepper Museum) WACO, Texas is located along the Brazos River, approximately halfway between the cities of Dallas and Austin. WACO is where Dr Pepper was created in the 1880s by a pharmacist named Charles Alderton. Dr Pepper was nationally marketed in the U.S. in 1904, and is now sold worldwide. The Dr. Pepper Museum in WACO opened in 1991 in the first building constructed specifically to bottle Dr. Pepper.
• TIL (60D: “Was just taught…” acronym) TIL = Today I learned…

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• POOL NOODLE (17A: Buoyant, pasta-shaped toy)
• POWER COUPLE (36A: Duo such as Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce)
• POKER TABLE (58A: Place to play Omaha Hold ’em)

SPLIT THE POLE: The word POLE is SPLIT by each theme answer: POOL NOODLE, POWER COUPLE, and POKER TABLE.

I was not familiar with the 2023 movie The Burial, which Zach mentioned in his notes, so was not aware of the context of SPLIT THE POLE. In fact, I was not familiar with the phrase “SPLIT THE POLE,” though now that I’ve learned it, I’m aware of the situation it refers to. When you are walking with someone else and come to a POLE, such as a sign post, telephone pole, or bollard, if you walk on opposite sides of the POLE, you have SPLIT THE POLE. Some people consider that practice to be bad luck. Fortunately, the title gives a clear description of the theme, even without that context. For people familiar with the movie, I imagine there might have been a nod of recognition upon reading the title. Thank you, Zach, for this enjoyable puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

Although they tried to retain a united front, the strong majority alliance began to let infighting break them apart during the latest episode of “Survivor” Season 48.

The ninth episode, titled “Welcome to the Party,” saw the majority alliance of six members begin to turn on each other as paranoia crept in. Even after the majority group promised to play the game of “Survivor” with integrity and honor, deception and lies remained the real name of the game as allies turned on one another to vote out a castaway.

At the start of the episode, there were nine players left and two members on the jury who will help cast votes for the $1 million winner and “sole survivor” of Season 48 of the long-running reality competition show. After this episode, only eight remain in the game, with three on the jury.

Here’s who was voted off this week.

Who went home on ‘Survivor’ Season 48, Episode 9?

The majority alliance, consisting of David Kinne, Kyle Fraser, Joe Hunter, Shauhin Davari, Eva Erickson and Mary Zheng, valued their physical strength and promised each other to play with honesty and integrity.

But all is not as it seems, as Kyle has a secret alliance with Kamilla Karthigesu and was forming a side alliance with Shauhin, as both players distrust David.

Eva was also holding onto her own secret after finding an advantage clue in the last episode. She snuck away from camp at night and earned a very useful safety-without-power advantage, allowing her to leave a future tribal council before votes are read, therefore saving herself from being voted out.

At the immunity and reward challenge, players had to stand on a small platform holding onto a bar holding a ball up on a metal chute. Should they step off the platform or move their arms, therefore moving the ball, they would be out of the challenge.

As has often been the case this season, the challenge became a showdown between the physically stronger players, and David and Joe battled it out for immunity. David eventually dropped out unexpectedly, letting Joe win and allowing him to take three others on a food reward.

Joe chose Eva, Shauhin and Mitch Guerra, who had not yet been on a reward challenge and was very hungry after days with low to no food.

Two names emerged as possibilities to go home as tribal council approached: David and Mitch. Feeling suspicious of fellow alliance members Shauhin and Kyle and a possible immunity idol that could be played on Kamilla, David urged players to vote for Mitch. Frustrated by David’s gameplay and possible knowledge of his secret alliance with Kamilla, Kyle urged players to vote for David.

It was a fairly close vote at tribal council between David and Mitch, but in the end, David, a 39-year-old stunt performer living in Buena Park, California, became the latest person voted out and the third member of the jury.

‘Survivor’ Season 48 cast: Meet the 18 castaways hoping to win $1 million in Fiji

Who went home last week on ‘Survivor’ Season 48?

During the challenge, five pairs worked as a team, moving through several stages of an obstacle course. Only three teams would make it to the second stage, and only two teams would make it to the third and final stage, where they would compete for individual immunity.

The first two teams eliminated didn’t get the reward of tacos and had to take a “journey,” where they stood to lose their vote in the night’s immunity challenge.

Immunity came in a survivor classic challenge: “Get a Grip,” where players must hold onto a narrow, tall pole for as long as possible.

Eva Erickson, Joe Hunter, Mary Zheng and David Kinne competed in the immunity challenge, with Eva taking home her first individual immunity of the season.

Going on the journey were Kamilla Karthigesu, Shauhin Davari, Star Toomey and Mitch Guerra. They had to compete in their own challenge that involved strategically picking up red and grey balls from a chute. The first player with three red balls lost their vote, and after a secret strategy between Mitch and Kamilla, Star was unable to cast a vote in the night’s tribal council.

Luckily for Star, her name wasn’t on the chopping block. Players quickly honed in on sending either Kamilla, Shauhin or Chrissy Sarnowsky home. Panicked at the thought of Kamilla, his closest (and secret) ally leaving the game, Kyle desperately tried to convince others to vote for Chrissy instead, raising David’s eyebrows and planting suspicion of an undercover alliance.

But at tribal council, Chrissy expressed her frustration at the so-called strong player alliance between David, Eva, Joe and Shauhin, calling out Eva and Joe’s close alliance and pleading for other players to recognize their gameplay.

Her outburst was enough for a near-unanimous vote against Chrissy, and the 55-year-old fire lieutenant from Chicago became the latest person voted out of Season 48 and the second member of the jury.

How to watch ‘Survivor’ Season 48

Season 48 of “Survivor” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET / PT on CBS and streams on Paramount+ for subscribers of the Paramount+ with Showtime plan.

Episodes can be streamed the next day for subscribers of any Paramount+ plan.

The previous 47 seasons of the show are all available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription.

Watch every season of Survivor on Paramount+

Who is the host of ‘Survivor’?

Jeff Probst has hosted all 48 seasons of the show, which has been on the air since 2000. He also serves as an executive producer.

‘Survivor’ 50: Jeff Probst talks casting all-stars season, whether he’d play ‘Traitors’

Who won ‘Survivor’ Season 47?

Rachel Lamont won Season 47 of “Survivor,” in a 7-1-0 vote against Sam Phalen, who got one vote, and Sue Smey.

Lamont, a 34-year-old graphic designer from Southfield, Michigan, was originally on the Gata tribe and became the fifth woman ever to win four individual Immunity Challenges in a season.

Where is ‘Survivor’ filmed?

While “Survivor” previously took contestants to remote locations around the world, from the Pearl Islands to the Philippines and Guatemala, the show has been filmed in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji for the past 15 seasons.

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Spoiler alert: This story discusses “The Conners” April 23 series finale.

It’s a TV miracle that ABC’s “The Conners” has existed, much less survived – even thrived – for seven seasons without the family’s working-class superstar matriarch, Roseanne Conner, famously played by Roseanne Barr.

Barr was the Emmy-winning star and the Conner family glue on America’s must-watch No. 1 show, “Roseanne,” from October 1988 to May 1997. The star and executive producer briefly revived the series in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois, two decades later in March 2018. But two months into the hit reboot, ABC abruptly pulled the plug after Barr’s racist tweets, which ABC parent Walt Disney Co. called “abhorrent, repugnant, and inconsistent with our values.”

Against the odds, “The Conners” rose from the ashes that fall, with Roseanne’s TV absence explained by an accidental opioid overdose. Still, the major question going into the two-episode series finale (now streaming on Hulu) remained: Would Roseanne somehow show up? She doesn’t.

“I’m sure there were a lot of fans who would like to have seen it,” says executive producer Bruce Helford, who also executive-produced five seasons of “Roseanne,” including the short-lived revival.

However, the series finale is primarily devoted to Roseanne Conner, which includes a graveside family farewell.

“She’s not there physically,” says Helford. “But we wanted to honor something that she really gave birth to and cared for. We did right by her memory. The audience certainly loved her and her family.”

It’s the middle-class family that has picked up the comedic and dramatic load. John Goodman, 72, who has lost 200 pounds since his “Roseanne” heyday as loving husband Dan Conner, anchors the cast with Laurie Metcalf (Roseanne’s sister Jackie), and Sara Gilbert and Lecy Goranson (grown daughters Darlene and Becky, now parents).

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No lottery, but a payout check opened at Roseanne’s grave

“Roseanne” was initially revived as a do-over of the fan-loathed Season 9, which saw Dan die and the Conners win the lottery. “Our whole mission to start this thing was to undo that,” Helford says.

The finale features Dan’s passionate support of his dead wife during a deposition for a lawsuit against the opioid company. The entire family meets at Roseanne’s grave to open the resulting settlement payment. Rather than lottery riches, the check is for a paltry $700.

“We wanted to stay true to what’s really happening in the legal system,” says Helford. “It’s about family resilience, and shows that money does not create happiness. That comes from the group.”

Each family member gives a grave farewell to Roseanne’s cemetery marker. Dan’s is the last: “Well, Rose, we always said that if the kids were alive at the end of the day, we did our job,” Dan says. “I think we did better than that.” Dan also says he’s “cool” if Roseanne has met another love, “wherever you are.”

Roseanne is Dan’s ‘true love,’ even if he’s married to Louise

Before starting “The Conners,” Goodman told Helford he didn’t want Dan to quickly enter a new relationship.

In Season 4, he remarried high school classmate Louise Goldufski (“Married…with Children” star Katey Sagal). The couple shows genuine love and devotion. But Dan’s deposition in the finale makes clear that Roseanne was “the love of my life.”

“He declares that in front of Louise,” Helford says. “We hit that in an interesting way.”

The $700 pizza party leads to an emotional ‘Conners’ farewell

The $700 is enough to have the entire family over for a pizza party around the family’s famed couch and afghan. Only core characters have seats.

Dan, at the center of the couch, gives the final defiant toast: “No matter how much crap life throws at us, all we got to do is look around. Because if we hang together, nothing can stop us.”

Metcalf starts the farewells, tearing up at the door with “Good night.” Goranson and Gilbert follow with tearful exits that are deeper than a pizza-party ending.

“That was ‘goodbye’ forever,” Helford says. “They wanted to say goodbye to each other. So that’s the actual people saying goodbye, breaking the fourth wall. Once Laurie (Metcalf) said hers at the door, and said it for real, everyone got emotional.”

Goodman, alone on the couch, looks to the camera and says with a wry smile, “Good night,” before walking off, beer in hand.

‘The Conners’ ends with ‘Roseanne’ nostalgia, but without Roseanne

The episode concludes with big-hair vintage clips of the characters from “Roseanne.” Barr is noticeably missing, even in this tribute. But the moment shows how the core “Conners” crew have been together for nearly four decades.

“These actors have been friends for 37 years, playing these characters for 15 of these years,” says Helford. “Literally, Sara Gilbert and Lecy Goranson grew up on this show. Just seeing the changes in everyone and the passage of time shows how momentous this is. ‘Roseanne’ was a very big thing in people’s lives. For many people, this is their family.”

Duchess Meghan is happy as ever.

The Duchess of Sussex got candid about why she’s “the happiest I’ve ever been” on April 23 at the TIME100 summit in New York City while discussing her new podcast “Confessions of a Female Founder” and new business ventures. When asked by TIME CEO Jessica Sibley to make a confession on stage, Meghan had a surprising admission.

“I think the confession for you today, that I could very comfortably say, is I’m the happiest I’ve ever been,” Meghan said. “Of all the things that have happened in my life, I never would have imagined that getting here, at this point, I feel just so happy and grateful. I really do.”

I ‘need’ and ‘love’ to work: Duchess Meghan defends Netflix show, brand from criticism

The comments come as the former “Suits” actress, turned partner to Prince Harry, experiences a wave of renewed attention five years after the pair stepped back from their roles as British working royals and flocked to her native California in January 2020.

Meghan and Harry have both been vocal about how public scrutiny and demands of royal life affected their marriage and mental health.

In a now-famous March 2021 post-exit interview with Oprah Winfrey on CBS, Meghan said she was so close to suicide during her time in the palace that she couldn’t be left alone. 

“I didn’t want to be alive anymore,” she told Winfrey, tearing up. “I was ashamed to admit it to Harry, but I knew if I didn’t say it, I would do it. I just didn’t want to be alive anymore. It was clear, it was real, it was frightening, and it was a constant thought.”

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Duchess Meghan has returned to pre-Harry pursuits in 2025

In the four years since their royal departure, Meghan has seen brighter days.

In 2025, she reentered the public imagination and reemerged with a pair of pre-Harry-inspired pursuits: a Netflix show, “With Love,” and a companion lifestyle brand, As Ever. Before meeting Harry, she was the curator of a successful lifestyle blog, The Tig.

She also told Sibley that “tapping into what really ignites my joy” and “being creative” help her take care of herself. During the Time talk, she pushed back at criticism of her choice not to film “With Love” at her and Harry’s Montecito mansion.

“When people say, ‘Why didn’t you (film in) your house?’ Well, I have kids coming home for their nap, and 80 people in the kitchen isn’t really the childhood memory I’d want for them to have,” Meghan said, in reference to the show’s crew, which she compared to over 200 people who worked on “Suits.”

The Archewell founder and Harry share two children: 5-year-old son Archie and daughter Lilibet, 3.

‘I need to work and love to work’: Meghan previously slammed critics of Netflix show, brand

Meghan has defended her decision to start As Ever and star in “With Love” before.

In a profile for The New York Times published April 2 in conjunction with the official launch of As Ever, Meghan explained that the brand gives her flexibility as a mom to her two children.

“I need to work, and I love to work,” Meghan told the NYT, adding that the brand “is a way I can connect my home life and my work.” In the profile, Meghan, now 43, also told the Times that she had a job from age 13 until she met Harry.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) any time day or night, or chat online.

Crisis Text Line also provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741.

Contributing: Maria Puente, USA TODAY

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Germany, ‘Stresstest’

As climate change raises temperatures to intolerable levels, how can cities adapt to become resilient to extreme heat? Curators of the German pavilion have created a sensory experience that addresses this urgent question. Their aptly titled Stresstest seeks to raise awareness by first immersing visitors in uncomfortably warm conditions. A second, more accommodating setting then presents architectural solutions to these challenges. The stakes couldn’t be higher — a recent study warned that global warming could lead to an additional 2.3mn temperature-related deaths in European cities by 2099.
stresstest.world/de

Latvia, ‘Landscape of Defence’

Latvia’s pavilion focuses on another existential threat: war. A recent push to fortify the country’s border with Russia in the event of an invasion has prompted curators Liene Jākobsone and Ilka Ruby and architecture firms Sampling and Nomad to consider how geopolitical conflict shapes the environment. Landscape of Defence looks at the effects of defence architecture such as fences and anti-tank trenches, highlighting not only the physical impact of these structures on areas already vulnerable to attack, but also “the emotional impact on its population”. The curators say the broader aim is to encourage military strategists to take civilian perspectives into account in their national defence planning.
latvianpavilion.lv

Iceland, ‘Lavaforming’

Flowing lava might conjure visions of disaster and destruction, but what if molten rock could actually be used to forge new cities? Taking inspiration from the lava fields of Iceland, mother-and-son team Arnhildur Pálmadóttir and Arnar Skarphéðinsson of s.ap architects have imagined a speculative future set in 2150 where humans have harnessed the power of lava to create sustainable building material. According to Pálmadóttir, a lava flow “can contain enough building material for the foundations of an entire city to rise in a matter of weeks without harmful mining and non-renewable energy generation”.
honnunarmidstod.is

Qatar, ‘Beyti Beytak. My home is your home. La mia casa è la tua casa’

It was recently announced that Qatar’s pavilion in the Giardini — the first permanent structure to be added to the historic venue in almost three decades — will be designed by the Beirut-born, Paris-based architect Lina Ghotmeh. As its multilingual title suggests, the inaugural presentation explores how hospitality and traditions of welcome are translated throughout the architecture of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. It includes more than 20 architects, bringing modernist pioneers such as Sri Lanka’s Minnette de Silva into dialogue with Islamic architecture specialists such as Egypt’s Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil. Among the contemporary innovators is Dhaka-based Marina Tabassum, who won the Soane medal in 2021 and has gained international recognition for the temporary homes she designed to help Bangladesh’s flood victims in recent years.
qm.org.qa

Luxembourg, ‘Sonic Investigations’

Architects Valentin Bansac and Mike Fritsch and architect and cartographer Alice Loumeau shift our focus from the visual to the auditory in Sonic Investigations. Inspired by John Cage’s seminal composition 4’33’’, their project invites visitors to engage in the act of “deep listening” to consider how hidden forces shape our built and natural environments. At its core is a commissioned work by sound artist Ludwig Berger, who has collected field recordings from different locations around Luxembourg. Ultimately the presentation seeks to reveal the joy of discovery when we pause and tune into our surroundings.
kulturlx.lu

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NEW YORK — Rapper Kendrick Lamar earned a leading 10 nominations for the American Music Awards on April 23, including nods for artist of the year and song of the year for his Grammy-winning diss track “Not Like Us.”

The song is part of a longstanding feud between Lamar and fellow hip-hop star Drake, who has sued Universal Music Group for defamation over its release.

Post Malone landed eight nominations including favorite male country artist and favorite country album for “F-1 Trillion.” He previously won AMAs in rap/hip hop and pop/rock categories.

Next on the list were Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan and Shaboozey, who earned seven nominations each. Taylor Swift, who has picked up more AMAs than any other artist over her career, received six nominations in 2025.

Taylor Swift hits high note with AMAs, nominated for 6 awards

Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” which took the top award at this year’s Grammys, was nominated for album of the year and favorite country album at the AMAs. She also is in the running for favorite female country artist.

Fans will vote on the winners, which will be announced at a May 26 ceremony hosted by actress and pop singer Jennifer Lopez. The show will be broadcast live on CBS and also stream on Paramount+ for select subscribers.

Nominations were based on performances on the Billboard music charts, streaming and album sales, radio play and social media engagement.

‘Cowboy Carter’ shines at AMAs: Beyoncé receives more country music nominations

American Music Awards 2025 nominees:

Artist of the Year

New Artist of the Year

• Benson Boone
• Chappell Roan
• Gracie Abrams
• Shaboozey
• Teddy Swims
• Tommy Richman

Album of the Year

• Beyoncé “COWBOY CARTER”
• Billie Eilish “HIT ME HARD AND SOFT”
• Chappell Roan “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess”
• Charli XCX “BRAT”
• Gracie Abrams “The Secret of Us”
• Future & Metro Boomin “WE DON’T TRUST YOU”
• Kendrick Lamar “GNX”
• Post Malone “F-1 Trillion”
• Sabrina Carpenter “Short n’ Sweet”
• Taylor Swift “The Tortured Poets Department”

Song of the Year

• Benson Boone “Beautiful Things”
• Billie Eilish “Birds of a Feather”
• Chappell Roan “Good Luck, Babe!”
• Hozier “Too Sweet”
• Kendrick Lamar “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars “Die With A Smile”
• Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen “I Had Some Help”
• Sabrina Carpenter “Espresso”
• Shaboozey “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
• Teddy Swims “Lose Control”

Collaboration of the Year

• Kendrick Lamar & SZA “Luther”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars “Die With A Smile”
• Marshmello & Kane Brown “Miles on It”
• Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen “I Had Some Help”
• ROSÉ & Bruno Mars “APT.”
• Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone “Fortnight”

Social Song of the Year

• Chappell Roan “HOT TO GO!”
• Djo “End of Beginning”
• Doechii “Anxiety”
• Lola Young “Messy”
• Shaboozey “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
• Tommy Richman “Million Dollar Baby”

Favorite Touring Artist

• Billie Eilish
• Luke Combs
• Morgan Wallen
• Taylor Swift
• Zach Bryan

Favorite Music Video

• Benson Boone “Beautiful Things”
• KAROL G “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido”
• Kendrick Lamar “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars “Die With A Smile”
• Shaboozey “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”

Favorite Male Pop Artist

• Benson Boone
• Bruno Mars
• Hozier
• Teddy Swims
• The Weeknd

Favorite Female Pop Artist

• Billie Eilish
• Chappell Roan
• Lady Gaga
• Sabrina Carpenter
• Taylor Swift

Favorite Pop Album

• Billie Eilish “HIT ME HARD AND SOFT”
• Chappell Roan “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess”
• Charli XCX “BRAT”
• Sabrina Carpenter “Short n’ Sweet”
• Taylor Swift “The Tortured Poets Department”

Favorite Pop Song

• Benson Boone “Beautiful Things”
• Billie Eilish “Birds of a Feather”
• Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars “Die With A Smile”
• Sabrina Carpenter “Espresso”
• Teddy Swims “Lose Control”

Favorite Male Country Artist

• Jelly Roll
• Luke Combs
• Morgan Wallen
• Post Malone
• Shaboozey

Favorite Female Country Artist

• Beyoncé
• Ella Langley
• Kacey Musgraves
• Lainey Wilson
• Megan Moroney

Favorite Country Duo or Group

• Dan + Shay
• Old Dominion
• Parmalee
• The Red Clay Strays
• Zac Brown Band

Favorite Country Album

• Beyoncé “COWBOY CARTER”
• Jelly Roll “BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN”
• Megan Moroney “AM I OKAY?”
• Post Malone “F-1 Trillion”
• Shaboozey “Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going”

Favorite Country Song

• Jelly Roll “I Am Not Okay”
• Koe Wetzel and Jessie Murph “High Road”
• Luke Combs “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma”
• Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen “I Had Some Help”
• Shaboozey “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”

Favorite Male Hip-Hop Artist

• Drake
• Eminem
• Future
• Kendrick Lamar
• Tyler, The Creator

Favorite Female Hip-Hop Artist

• Doechii
• GloRilla
• Latto
• Megan Thee Stallion
• Sexyy Red

Favorite Hip-Hop Album

• Eminem “The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)”
• Future & Metro Boomin “WE DON’T TRUST YOU”
• Gunna “one of wun”
• Kendrick Lamar “GNX”
• Tyler, The Creator “CHROMAKOPIA”

Favorite Hip-Hop Song

• Future, Metro Boomin & Kendrick Lamar “Like That”
• GloRilla “TGIF”
• GloRilla & Sexyy Red “WHATCHU KNO ABOUT ME”
• Kendrick Lamar “Not Like Us”
• Kendrick Lamar and SZA “Luther”

Favorite Male R&B Artist

• Bryson Tiller
• Chris Brown
• PARTYNEXTDOOR
• The Weeknd
• Usher

Favorite Female R&B Artist

• Kehlani
• Muni Long
• Summer Walker
• SZA
• Tyla

Favorite R&B Album

• Bryson Tiller “Bryson Tiller”
• PARTYNEXTDOOR “PARTYNEXTDOOR 4 (P4)”
• PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U”
• SZA “SOS Deluxe: LANA”
• The Weeknd “Hurry Up Tomorrow”

Favorite R&B Song

• Chris Brown “Residuals”
• Muni Long “Made For Me”
• SZA “Saturn”
• The Weeknd and Playboi Carti “Timeless”
• Tommy Richman “Million Dollar Baby”

Favorite Male Latin Artist

• Bad Bunny
• Feid
• Peso Pluma
• Rauw Alejandro
• Tito Double P

Favorite Female Latin Artist

• Becky G
• KAROL G
• Natti Natasha
• Shakira
• Young Miko

Favorite Latin Duo or Group

• Calibre 50
• Fuerza Regida
• Grupo Firme
• Grupo Frontera
• Julión Álvarez y su Norteño Banda

Favorite Latin Album

• Bad Bunny “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS”
• Fuerza Regida “Dolido Pero No Arrepentido”
• Peso Pluma “ÉXODO”
• Rauw Alejandro “Cosa Nuestra”
• Tito Double P “INCÓMODO”

Favorite Latin Song

• Bad Bunny “DtMF”
• FloyyMenor X Cris Mj “Gata Only”
• KAROL G “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido”
• Oscar Maydon and Fuerza Regida “Tu Boda”
• Shakira “Soltera”

Favorite Rock Artist

• Hozier
• Linkin Park
• Pearl Jam
• Twenty One Pilots
• Zach Bryan

Favorite Rock Album

• Hozier “Unreal Unearth: Unending”
• Koe Wetzel “9 lives”
• The Marías “Submarine”
• Twenty One Pilots “Clancy”
• Zach Bryan “The Great American Bar Scene”

Favorite Rock Song

• Green Day “Dilemma”
• Hozier “Too Sweet”
• Linkin Park “The Emptiness Machine”
• Myles Smith “Stargazing”
• Zach Bryan “Pink Skies”

Favorite Dance/Electronic Artist

• Charli XCX
• David Guetta
• John Summit
• Lady Gaga
• Marshmello

Favorite Soundtrack

• Arcane League of Legends: Season 2
• Hazbin Hotel (Original Soundtrack)
• Moana 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) – Auliʻi Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson and cast
• Twisters: The Album
• Wicked: The Soundtrack – Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and cast

Favorite Afrobeats Artist

Favorite K-pop Artist

• ATEEZ
• Jimin
• RM
• ROSÉ
• Stray Kids

Contributing: Lisa Richwine, Reuters; Edward Segarra, USA TODAY

After almost three years, the second season of the “Star Wars” spin-off series “Andor,” is back on Disney+.

Set before “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Andor” follows Cassian Andor, who works with a band of rebels to steal the Empire’s plans for the Death Star, all setting the stage for the 1977 release of “Star Wars: Episode IV − A New Hope.” 

Season 2 of “Andor” explores how the rebels’ relationships intensify as war draws near and Cassian becomes a key player in the Rebel Alliance, Disney+ shared in a news release.

The series enjoyed large success during its first season, released in September 2022, as it was nominated for eight Primetime Emmys in 2023.

Here’s what to know about Season 2 and when new episodes are set to come out.

How to watch ‘Andor’ Season 2

After the first three episodes of were released April 22, three more rounds of releases are scheduled over the next three weeks for the remaining nine episodes of Season 2.

You can watch episodes exclusively on Disney+ every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

A standard plan with ads has a price point of $8.99/month, while the standard plan without ads is $12.99 per month. Consumers can save money with the standard plan by purchasing an annual plan at $129.99/year ($10.83 per month).

The top option available on Disney+ is the premium plan at $15.99/month or $159.99/year. That includes streaming in 4K UHD and HDR and the ability to download content and ad-free viewing.

‘Andor’ Season 2 episode schedule

Here’s the full list of release dates for Season 2 episodes of “Andor”:

• Episode 1, “One Year Later”: April 22
• Episode 2, “Sagrona Teema”: April 22
• Episode 3, “Harvest”: April 22
• Episode 4, episode title not yet released: April 29
• Episode 5, episode title not yet released: April 29
• Episode 6, episode title not yet released: April 29
• Episode 7, episode title not yet released: May 6 
• Episode 8, episode title not yet released: May 6
• Episode 9, episode title not yet released: May 6
• Episode 10, episode title not yet released: May 13
• Episode 11, episode title not yet released: May 13
• Episode 12, episode title not yet released: May 13

Watch the ‘Andor’ Season 2 trailer

Contributing: David Hoffman and Greta Cross, USA TODAY

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Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.

“We now understand that plants shape the environment more than it shapes them,” Bas Smets tells me. “So the question I wanted to ask was, ‘how can we use that plant intelligence to produce new types of landscape?’”

The result is Building Biospheres, this year’s Belgian pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale, which is populated by hundreds of plants and trees, rather than the usual models or photographs of buildings. It is a striking display, the white-painted interior occupied by a verdant miniature forest supported by an armature of high-tech gizmos, monitors, lighting and sensors.

“Every time you and I breathe,” says Smets, “we’re breathing air made by plants. But we’re cut off from the environment in buildings. In the 19th century, trees were planted in cities as embellishment; now we’re going to need them to provide oxygen, to filter out particles and absorb excess water and to cool down the city.”

Plants cannot move on the ground, so they need to be able to manipulate the environment around them

Trees and plants, suggest Smets and his main collaborator Stefano Mancuso, pioneer of plant neurobiology, have an intelligence that we are only now beginning to understand. “Plants cannot move on the ground,” Smets says, “so they need to be able to manipulate the environment around them. They need to be able to manipulate birds and bees to come to them. They have intelligence but also an extreme sensibility.”

The aim in this pavilion, commissioned by the Flanders Architecture Institute, is to create what Smets refers to as “a symbiosis” between the plants and the people, the architecture and the organic. Intriguingly, this symbiosis is one in which the plants are in charge, manipulating the environment so it suits them better. Fortunately, as Smets says, “what is good for them is also good for us”.

“What trees want is to grow . . . They want more photosynthesis and that is good for us, lowering the temperature, producing more oxygen. What we’re proposing is a new symbiosis between what the plants need . . . what the building can handle and what we humans like. And we think that in that new symbiosis lies the future of architecture; architecture not as something that is dissociated from nature but a new collective intelligence between humans, plants and buildings.”

Smets, who trained as an architect and engineer before he switched to landscape design, might sound like a dreamer, with his rhetoric about intelligent plants controlling the building’s services, but he is anything but. This is a project engaging scientists and philosophers as well as a technical team including plant ecophysiologist Kathy Steppe of Ghent University and software developer Dirk De Pauw of Plant AnalytiX. It is predicated on an emerging understanding of plant intelligence (something that has, of course, been appreciated by different cultures in myriad ways and eras).

Philosopher Emanuele Coccia has been instrumental in outlining this concept, particularly in his wonderful 2018 book The Life of Plants. And Smets himself is a fascinating though always modest figure who is currently working on the landscape around the newly restored Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris, making it greener, friendlier and more resilient, as well as the huge Astridplein outside Antwerp’s central station.

A prototype of the biosphere pavilion was already set up on the Ghent campus in a greenhouse; photos show a hybrid of high-tech and organic, galvanised steel and odd-looking gear wired up to tree trunks. “The trees will be cyborgs,” Smets grins, “as are we all now, with our phones and headphones, on Zoom calls.” Machines measure sap flow (the movement of fluid around a plant) and soil humidity, while data processors and AI help with calculations around light and irrigation. Smets suggests this is a lab as well as an artwork, an opportunity to monitor the plants over the six-month duration of the Biennale in real time. 

Measuring the plants’ responses helps to accommodate them better, and the better they are accommodated the better the internal conditions get, for us and for them. The trees and plants have been mostly selected as those from a subtropical environment, that climate best suited (or at least most comfortable) to us as well. 

“In a way, we have to rethink how we live on this planet,” says Smets, “and by bringing the most important living organisms that have allowed life on the planet into the building we change the status of that building.”

It’s a curious thing but the Belgian pavilion is very often the best. Belgium had the first national pavilion on the Giardini site (1907) and perhaps that extra experience has made them better at it. Seeings Smets’s plans, I mention that the best pavilion I ever saw in an Architecture Biennale was After the Party by architects Kersten Geers and David Van Severen in 2008, in which the architects built a wall to enclose a garden and then covered the floors of the interior and the garden in confetti while a few cheap café chairs were strewn around. It was a wonderful relief from the cacophony around, a pure, simple idea of a hedonistic moment that had somehow passed, but still utterly beautiful. “Ah, yes,” Smets says, “in a way this is a similar idea, about creating a place in the shade of trees.” The designers worked together recently in, of all places, Bahrain, where their Pearling Path lays out a trail of intimate public spaces. 

In recent years, architects have been reassessing the role of plants in building but the danger has been a certain superficiality. Plants are green, literally, symbolically and environmentally, and the suspicion is that designers have been using them to cover up the less sustainable processes involved in architecture. If anyone can begin to ensure that plants are taken more seriously as real actors in a warming world, it is Smets. “I hope,” he says, “that architects see that plants are not just decoration but an active agent of our climate.”

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