Guilty pleasures
By NewsPress Now
Jason Kelce will join ESPN and be part of ‘Monday Night Football’ pregame show
Jason Kelce will join ESPN’s “Monday Night Countdown” after retiring from the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this year, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
The person confirmed the deal to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity on Monday because it was not expected to be announced until the ESPN/Disney upfront presentation to advertisers on May 14. The Athletic was the first to report on Kelce’s choice.
Kelce is expected to replace Robert Griffin III, who would continue with the network as a college football analyst. Scott Van Pelt became the host of the “Monday Night Football” pregame show last season with Marcus Spears and Ryan Clark as the other analysts.
Kelce played 13 years for the Eagles and was the most sought after former player by the networks for the upcoming season. He participated in last year’s NFL Broadcasting and Media Workshop, which used to be known as the “Broadcast Bootcamp.”
“This is all new territory for me. I have even more respect for it now,” Kelce said at the time. “It’s very hard to do something live, reactive of stimulus that just happened and having something clever and meaningful to say.”
Kelce made an appearance on Prime Video’s “Thursday Night Football” during the Eagles bye week last season, when he was an analyst during the second quarter of the game between the Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears.
Kelce is expected to continue doing his “New Heights” podcast with his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
With Kelce off the market, former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick becomes the most sought after TV free agent. Belichick got solid reviews as an analyst on Pat McAfee’s livestream during the first round of the NFL draft last week.
Monday ended up being a busy day when it came to NFL pregame show moves. CBS announced earlier in the day that Matt Ryan is joining “The NFL Today” after splitting time last season in the studio and being a game analyst. Ryan officially retired last week after a 15-year career with the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts from 2008-22.
The network also announced Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason will leave after long runs on the show. Simms came to CBS in 1998 after the network won the rights to the AFC. He was the lead game analyst until he moved to the studio in 2017.
Esiason had been on “The NFL Today” since 2002.
Taylor Swift’s ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ hits No. 1
NEW YORK | Taylor Swift continues to dominate in the week following the release of her 11th album, “The Tortured Poets Department.” The 31-track album has hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, tying Swift with Jay-Z for second-most No. 1 albums at 14. Only The Beatles, with 19 No. 1 albums, have had more.
The double album has amassed 2.61 million equivalent album units, according to Luminate, the industry data and analytics company. A shocking 1.91 million of those units come from traditional album sales — people purchasing downloads, CDs, cassettes and vinyl. Vinyl accounts for 859,000 units sold, the highest number of vinyl sales in modern history.
It is the top-selling album of 2024, eclipsing Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” which sold 228,000 units. (But streaming was a boon: “Cowboy Carter” hit 407,000 equivalent album units, a combination of pure album sales and on-demand streams, earned in the U.S. in its first week.)
“The Tortured Poets Department” hit 891.34 million album streams, according to Luminate, the biggest streaming week for an album in history.
She’s broken the highest single-week mark for an album, passing Drake’s 25-track “Scorpion” with 745.92 million in 2018, his 21-track “Certified Lover Boy” with 743.67 million in 2021, and her own “Midnights” in 2022 with 549.3 million streams.
“My mind is blown. I’m completely floored by the love you’ve shown this album,” Swift wrote on X. “2.6 million are you actually serious? Thank you for listening, streaming, and welcoming Tortured Poets into your life. Feeling completely overwhelmed.”
CBS Sports announces Matt Ryan will join NFL studio show
NEW YORK | Matt Ryan, who retired last week after 15 years in the NFL, will join CBS Sports as a studio analyst on “The NFL Today” and Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason will leave after long runs on the show, the network announced Monday.
Ryan will join James Brown, Nate Burleson, Bill Cowher and JJ Watt. The 2016 NFL MVP and four-time Pro Bowl quarterback joined CBS Sports last season as an NFL game analyst and appeared in studio during the playoffs and Super Bowl.
“Matt had an outstanding first year at CBS Sports, excelling as both a studio and game analyst,” CBS Sports president and CEO David Berson said. “He is the consummate team player and a Hall of Fame person. We love the chemistry he has with the studio crew and we’re excited to see him entertain NFL fans and share his passion, insight and perspective alongside JB, Nate, Coach and JJ.”
The contracts of Simms and Esiason expired after the Super Bowl.
Simms came to CBS in 1998 after the network won the rights to the AFC. He was the lead game analyst until he moved to the studio in 2017.
“Great 26 yrs run with CBS SPORTS. Even though that part of my career is over I look forward to what is next,” Simms posted on social media.
Esiason was on “The NFL Today” for 22 years and was the show’s longest-tenured analyst. Esiason will continue working on a New York sports talk radio show simulcast on CBS Sports Network.
“Phil and Boomer set the standard of excellence for NFL analysts,” Berson said. “We are so grateful for their immeasurable contributions to CBS Sports. We genuinely thank them for being incredible teammates and for their passion, dedication and commitment to elevating CBS Sports’ NFL coverage every season.”
Ryan played for the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts and ranks in the top 10 in NFL history in passing yards (62,792), touchdowns (381), completions (5,551) and attempts (8,464).
The change is the first significant move under Berson, who took over three weeks ago following the retirement of chairman Sean McManus.
Billie Eilish announces ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ arena world tour
NEW YORK | Billie Eilish is hitting the road.
The pop performer will embark on a worldwide arena tour this fall, kicking off in Quebec City in Canada on Sept. 29 and concluding in Dublin on July 27, 2025. She’ll hit many major cities in North America in 2024 before heading to Australia and then Europe.
Presale begins Tuesday, and any remaining tickets will become available Friday at billieeilish.com. A percentage of proceeds will benefit the environmental nonprofit REVERB.
Earlier this month, Eilish announced her highly anticipated third studio album, “Hit Me Hard and Soft,” will be released May 17.
The news arrived via Instagram, where Eilish shared the album artwork showing the pop singer floating in a body of water after being ejected from a door. In the caption, she wrote that she will not drop singles in advance of the release.
“I wanna give it to you all at once,” she captioned the image. “I truly could not be more proud of this album.”
Eilish worked with her brother and longtime collaborator Finneas on “Hit Me Hard and Soft.” The pair recently took home their second Oscar for their big “Barbie” ballad “What Was I Made For?” In doing so, Eilish, 22, became the youngest person by far to have won two career Oscars.
