内容摘要：JJ from Austria who performed the song “Wasted Love” reacts to voting during the Grand Final of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest, in Basel, Switzerland, early Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

JJ from Austria who performed the song “Wasted Love” reacts to voting during the Grand Final of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest, in Basel, Switzerland, early Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

AP Music Writer Maria Sherman contributed to this report.is hitting the road again. The Grammy and Oscar winner is launching his second headlining tour, promising fresh sounds for his forthcoming album and material from his latest project,

Batiste announced Thursday that his Big Money Tour: Jon Batiste Plays America will begin Aug. 27 in Kansas City. He’ll groove through more than 30 venues across the U.S. in cities like Detroit, Austin, Texas, Nashville, a co-bill with Diana Ross in St. Louis and Philadelphia, before closing in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 31.For the first time, Batiste will grace the stages of the Encore Theater in Las Vegas and the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado. He hopes the tour will offer attendees a deeper connection to him as an artist for the tour, a nod to his ninth studio album.“Every show is both an origin story and a manifesto,” said Batiste, a seven-time

who won an Oscar for his work on “Soul” in 2020. The tour comes on the heels of performing theand “Beethoven Blues,” which reimagined the famed German pianist’s work and debuted No. 1 on Billboard’s classical albums chart.

Batiste, a Louisiana native, is known for his signature rich blend of R&B, hip-hop, swing, jazz and pop. He’s also the former bandleader for the

The multitalented musician will wrap up his intimate Maestro Tour shows on Monday in Los Angeles.MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers approved a slew of bills on Thursday that would expand the use of Christian texts in public schools and limit protections for LGBTQ+ students, in lockstep with a national conservative agenda that has divided statehouses across the country.

Three bills led to hours of debate in the Republican-dominated Alabama House of Representatives on Thursday. The bills — passed with overwhelming majorities — would mandate in public schools the display of the Ten Commandments, ban drag shows, prohibit teachers from displaying pride flags or facilitating formal discussion of sexuality, and allow chaplains to volunteer as school counselors.Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter described the bills as “common sense” while members of the Democratic caucus condemned the legislation as “a waste of taxpayer money” that “won’t bring down the cost of eggs.”

The legislation is part of a widespread effort in conservative states to regulate how schools handle social issues, a mission that has beenAlabama joins at least 20 states that have considered legislation in 2025 that would mandate the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools or state buildings, according to an Associated Press