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The man accused of killing 20-year-old Taylor Swift fan Jacob Lewis in a hit-and-run accident as he left the Houston Eras Tour stop last Friday will be charged with felony murder, a prosecutor in the case says.
According to KHOU-11, Lewis and his sister April Bancroft were driving back home from the concert at NRG Stadium when they had car trouble. Lewis started pushing the vehicle to the shoulder when he was struck by a suspected drunk driver — identified by police as 34-year-old Alan Hayes — who fled the scene. A tow-truck driver witnessed the incident and led police to Hayes, who was later arrested.
Hayes is currently being held in jail on $120,000 bond for DWI and failure to stop and render aid. Prosecutor Kelly Marshall told the outlet that Hayes has two prior DWI convictions and was arrested in Montgomery County on drug charges just a few days before the accident.
Meanwhile, Lewis’ sister has expressed gratitude toward Swift fans, who have extended kindness to her and her family in light of her brother’s death. A GoFundMe in Lewis’ name has raised more than $120,000 with the help of $13 donations from Swifties; the family will use the money for funeral costs and a scholarship in Lewis’ name.
“I cannot express the overwhelming happiness and gratitude from every #Swiftie out there,” Bancroft tweeted Sunday. “Thank you thank you thank you. I will get to your messages eventually if I haven’t already, your words have inspired me through my day so much.”
Looks like Liam Payne is a Swiftie!
The former One Direction star went up against Love Island alum Tommy Fury in a Soccer Aid game featuring Payne humming a song and Fury having to guess what it is. The charitable soccer organization shared a clip from the game on Twitter, in which the “Strip That Down” singer is seen humming along to Taylor Swift‘s Red hit, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.”
Fury guesses the track almost immediately, playfully admitting, “I shouldn’t know these songs.”
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Payne then replied, “We’re getting a little secret look into you playlist, aren’t we?” After it was posted, the crooner retweeted the video, adding a hand heart emoji.
The pair are set to face off on the pitch at Soccer Aid 2023 on June 11. The UNICEF event advertises itself as “the world’s biggest charity football match,” and raises money for children in need.
In other Payne news, the singer supported his One Direction bandmate Louis Tomlinson last month at the premiere of the latter’s new documentary All of Those Voices.
“Seeing the world through your eyes last night was the most beautiful thing to experience,” he captioned an Instagram post from the event. “My neck hurts from how much Im looking up to you right now you were already my friend and brother but getting to look through that window into your world and mind I just extends that respect I have for you.”
20-year-old Jacob Lewis was killed by a suspected drunk driver on Friday night (April 21) after leaving the Taylor Swift concert in Houston, Texas, with his sister April Bancroft.
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According to KHOU-11, the two young fans were driving home from the show when they had car trouble on the freeway. Lewis began pushing the car and was struck and immediately killed by 34-year-old Alan Bryant, who fled the scene. Thankfully, a tow truck driver that saw what happened followed Bryant and he was eventually arrested by police.
Jacob’s father, Steve Lewis, shared the devastating news on his Facebook page over the weekend, noting that Bancroft survived, and suffered “only minor bruises and scrapes.”
Steve also shared photos of Jacob and gave insight into his passion-filled life, which included enjoying theater, dance, music and playing video games. “It was Jacob’s love of Pokémon that introduced this family to the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and he would qualify for the Pokémon World Championships 3 times. Jacob competed against players from all over the world in Vancouver in 2013, Boston in 2015, and San Francisco in 2016,” Steve wrote.
“Jacob will be remembered as a loving and faithful young man who was loyal to his family and friends,” he concluded his heartbreaking message. “His last act was to push his sister to safety on a dark street. There is no way to describe the magnitude of this loss and the emptiness left in our hearts.”
See Steve’s post here.
Lately she’s been dressing for revenge! Taylor Swift stepped out in New York City this week with some of her OG 2015 girl squad members, looking stunning in a sleek black mini dress, loafers and her classic red lip.
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Walking alongside her were pals Gigi Hadid, Blake Lively and the HAIM sisters. See the photo via a fan Instagram account here. The outing comes following reports that the 33-year-old superstar and actor Joe Alwyn have broken up after six years of dating.
According to ET, a source said the breakup was amicable and “was not dramatic.”
“The relationship had just run its course. It’s why [Alwyn] hasn’t been spotted at any shows,” the source told the publication earlier this month. The couple has yet to publicly reveal the status of their relationship.
Swift seems to be leaning on friends amid the split, as she also went out for dinner on Wednesday night (April 19) with Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds at Casa Cipriani in downtown Manhattan. A week prior, she was photographed dining with her longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff and his fiancée Margaret Qualley at Via Carota restaurant.
The 12-time Grammy winner is also staying busy with her massive The Eras stadium tour, which is set to take over Houston’s NRG Stadium — temporarily renamed NRG Stadium (Taylor’s Version) — for three nights this weekend before taking the week off and heads over to Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium next weekend.
Frank Ocean was scheduled to take the stage for the headlining slot at Coachella but will reportedly be replaced by Blink-182. Actress Emma Laird posted a photo featuring Joe Alwyn and the Swifties are not happy. Camila Cabello seemingly references her time with Shawn Mendes at Coachella this past weekend on an upcoming track teased on Instagram and more!
“Willow” and “Cardigan” are two of Taylor Swift’s most beloved tracks on Evermore and Folklore, respectively. But what if they didn’t make it into her discography?
That was almost the case, according to the superstar’s frequent musical collaborators The National. In a new interview with The Telegraph published on Thursday (April 20), the band’s Aaron Dessner and Matt Berninger revealed that the two songs were originally intended to be for The National.
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“I’d taken a swing at [‘Cardigan’] and ‘Willow’ and a couple of others, and I wasn’t having a lot of luck, so Aaron sent them to Taylor,” Berninger recalled. “I always have a lot of music to work on, and I am looking for something to connect emotionally. The reverse has happened, too, where Aaron wrote something for Taylor, and I dove right in. It works both ways.”
The National is gearing up to release their ninth studio album, First Two Pages of Frankenstein on April 28, and previously revealed that Swift will be featured on the track “The Alcott.” The group previously collaborated with Swift on Evermore‘s “Coney Island.”
“We’re all big fans of Taylor, and she’s been really generous with us, inviting us to be part of ‘Coney Island,’” Aaron’s brother Bryce Dessner previously shared in an Apple Music interview. “And obviously my brother’s worked with her a lot, and I’ve done a bunch of orchestration for her albums.”
He continued, “‘The Alcott’ is a song that she co-wrote with Matt [Berninger], where she co-wrote the lyrics. It’s really amazing to hear her, the way she was able to take what Matt had done and then reinvent the song, and it’s really a special song.”
Taylor Swift‘s The Eras tour is taking over NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, this weekend and to celebrate, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo gave the venue a Swiftie-themed rebrand.
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Hidalgo announced on Wednesday (April 19) that the stadium will be renamed “NRG Stadium (Taylor’s Version)” throughout the weekend in honor of the pop superstar. To add to the fun, banners with the temporary name will be hung at the stadium’s north and south entrances, according to Chron.
“We know all too well that other areas have done huge things,” Hidalgo said in a video message shared to Twitter, referencing a number of Swift’s songs. “They’ve lit up the town; they’ve renamed streets, they’ve even made you mayor for a day. But we’re going to something even better. I know if I did any of that, folks would say that I am the man.”
“With the name change, I know it’ll never go out of style,” she continued. “Plus, it’s not only the young that enjoy your music. I hope your stay is beyond your wildest dreams, and for everyone in Harris County, let’s get ready for it!”
Swift will perform at NRG Stadium (Taylor’s Version) for three nights, beginning on Friday (April 21) and then continuing on Saturday (April 22) and Sunday (April 23). Beabadoobee and Gracie Abrams are lined up as the openers.
One fan who will hopefully be at the show is a Texas legal-service provider named Karen Vladeck, who wrote a pun-filled letter to her first-grade daughter’s teacher asking for her to be excused from school to attend The Eras tour in Houston. According to Vladeck, the teacher simply responded in all caps, “THIS MADE MY ENTIRE DAY.”
Taylor Swift has been a love song pro her whole career, capturing every stage of a relationship — from the innocent crush to the falling in love to the devastating heartbreak. But the cuts feel a little deeper now, after reports emerged that Swift and her longtime boyfriend Joe Alwyn have split after six years of dating.
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“The relationship had just run its course. It’s why [Alwyn] hasn’t been spotted at any shows,” a source told ET earlier this month. Billboard has since reached out to representatives for Swift and Alwyn, but had not received a response. The couple has yet to publicly reveal the status of their relationship.
We are equally as heartbroken as the Swifties here at Billboard, which is why we compiled 13 of the most heartbreaking Taylor Swift songs to revisit post-Alwyn.
We want to know which song from this list tugs at your heartstrings a little extra given recent news. Let us know by voting below.
Billy Joel has a pair of Swifties on his hands. The Piano Man took his two young daughters to see Taylor Swift during her Eras Tour stop in Tampa, Fla., on Saturday night, much to their excitement and delight.
The “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant” singer shared a carousel of photos to his personal Instagram page on Sunday, which included images of his wife, Alexis Roderick, and their two little girls, Della Rose, 7, and Remy Anne, 5 — who appeared to be dressed in outfits inspired by the folklore/evermore and Lover eras — posing for pictures before the show and later dancing along as Swift sang “Are You Ready for It?”
“Rockin’ into our new ‘era’ thank you @Taylorswift we loved the show! #swifties #taylorswift #theerastour,” the veteran musician captioned the images. The girls also got an extra special treat: They were able to meet Swift herself backstage alongside their mom and dad.
Joel and his family are far from the first celebrities to geek out at Swift’s Eras tour. Selena Gomez, Jack Antonoff, HAIM, Aaron Dessner, Marcus Mumford, Diplo and Shania Twain are among a handful of the tour’s celebrity attendees (see a full list of all the famous guests at The Eras Tour here).
The Eras Tour is scheduled to continue with a trio of dates at Houston’s NRG Stadium this weekend, with Beabadoobee and Gracie Abrams opening. The tour will make stops in Nashville, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis and more before concluding at Inglewood, Calif.’s SoFi Stadium on Aug. 9.
See Joel’s pictures from The Eras Tour below.
Amid Taylor Swift‘s The Eras tour trek, Swifties have been revealing which of the superstar’s album “eras” their lives are reflecting at the moment. Author John Green joined in on the fun this week, when he used a TikTok filter to determine his life’s musical inspiration.
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“So one thing about me is that I know what Taylor Swift era I’m in. It’s something I spent a lot of time thinking about but let’s see if this is correct,” the Fault in Our Stars author says, as the filter ultimately lands on Swift’s 2020 album Folklore.
Green disagreed, noting that he currently relates to Swift’s vengeful, sexy Reputation album. “Right now, I’m in my Reputation era, but when I grow up a little bit, I’d like to get to my Folklore era. That is where I hope I’m headed, but it’s not where I am at now,” he concluded.
Swift’s The Eras tour is taking over Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., for three consecutive nights this weekend, before she takes the week off and heads over to Houston, Texas for three more nights next weekend.
See Green’s album eras discussion below.