Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, June 2, 2023

Episode Date: June 3, 2023

A tornado touching down in Texas only a few hours after flash floods swept away cars. A building partially collapsing in New Haven, Connecticut and a new video showing the moment a similar collapse happened in Iowa. A deadly collision in India when a passenger train slammed into a derailed freight train, fiery protests erupting in Senegal after a popular opposition leader was sentenced to prison, and a string of violent tornadoes ripping through northern China. And why one of Shark Tank's celebrity investors wants a restraining order against a family business he helped launch.

Tonight, millions of Americans battling extreme weather conditions. A tornado touching down in Texas just hours after flash flooding swept away cars. Soaring temperatures, shattering records in the Midwest and the Northeast, forcing some schools to let out early. Plus, tropical storm Arlene, the first of the season, brewing in the Gulf, will bring you the latest track. A building partially collapsing in New Haven, Connecticut, multiple injuries reported as first responders combed through the scene. This just days after a similar collapse in Iowa. New video showing the moment that wall came down. What officials there are saying tonight.

Overseas, a deadly collision in India. At least 100 people killed, many more injured, when a passenger train slammed into a derailed freight train. Fierce tonight that the death toll could climb. Firing protests erupting in Senegal after a popular opposition leader was sentenced to prison. At least nine people killed in violent clashes with police. the government is now cracking down on social media use. Plus, a string of violent tornadoes ripping through northern China tearing buildings apart.

The dramatic images coming in. And Shark Tank fused why one of the show's celebrity investors wants a restraining order against a family whose business he helped launch, the War of Words playing out on TikTok and in the courtroom. Top story starts right now. And good evening. I'm Aaron Gilchrist in for Tom Yamis tonight. Extreme weather taking hold in several parts of the country. Late today, a strong tornado touching down in Fort Stockton, Texas. It whipped up dust as it carved a destructive path there in the Midwest and in the northeast. It is the heat bringing the danger, temperatures soaring to unseasonable highs. Schools in Philadelphia forced to let out early to spare the students there from the 95-degree heat in classrooms that didn't have air conditioning. In neighboring New Jersey, the smoke from raging wildfires shutting down a parkway for several hours, dry, hot conditions fueling the flames there, and off the coast of Florida, Arlene, strengthening into a tropical storm on just the second day of hurricane season. Meteorologist Bill Karen standing by the timeout where that heads next.

First, though, NBC's Sam Brock leads us off. Holy crap. Tonight's severe weather, once again, tearing through the country's midsection. A reported five tornadoes, and at least one confirmed touching down, seat here east of Fort Stockton, Texas. This is the time to be taking shelter, getting away from your windows. The twisters coming on the heels of brutal flooding. Just stay there for now. That forced people out of their cars and prompted Governor Greg Abbott today to deploy emergency resources to the area.

This, as day two of hurricane season, has already brought the nation its first-name storm. Tropical Storm Arlene, slowly moving through. the Gulf as problematic weather stretches out across the country. In Philadelphia, temperatures creeping into the mid-90s and forcing schools to close early with nearly 100 buildings in the district lacking full air conditioning. The most important thing is making sure that our students are not exposed to heat-related illnesses. In Miami Beach, preparation for heavy rain and possible flooding. These drain clearing efforts underway for days as the city's been beefing up flood prevention

for years. We've elevated about 11 miles of roads. We've added multiple pump systems. We have enforced our dune system. Even when it's not a downpour, parts of downtown Miami can look like this, street swamps and cars trudging through pools of water. How much rain would it take to create that scene? Oh, rain for like half an hour, maybe, not even, not much. Sam Brock, joining us now from Miami Beach. Sam, you know, given how quickly the city has flooded in the not-so-distant past, do folks who live there feel like they're prepared for the possibility of several inches of rain? Sure.

So we've seen Aaron the kind of damage that just two inches of rain can do in places like downtown Miami. But no, they would be worried about a couple feet of rain, like what we saw in Fort Lauderdale about two months ago. The reality is a lot of these cities like Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale have been transitioning, Aaron, going from a gravity-based drainage system to a pump system, which is more efficient. They're still transitioning right now. In Miami Beach, where they have literally lifted up parts of the street so that water doesn't pull there anymore. They've done 11 miles.

We heard about that with 90 more to go. But folks here right now, cautiously optimistic that Arlene is not going to be too treacherous in the days ahead. Aaron, back to you. Sam Brock in Miami Beach, thank you. Now, as Sam mentioned there, Tropical Storm Arlene now spinning off the coast of Florida. So let's get right to our meteorologist. Bill Karens is with us now.

Bill, walk us through this. What's the latest track? Arlene hasn't strengthened. Still a weak tropical storm, and that's the way it's going to remain. This one is actually going to be one just for the record books. The fact that it formed right at the start of hurricane season, and it took an unusual path. So it's well off the coast. There is rain over Florida.

But the path to the south is going to take it and weaken it as it approaches Western Cuba. It should even dissipate by the time we get the Saturday night or Sunday. So not going to be a concern. Maybe just some added areas. of rain in South Florida in the Keys, and that is about it. So how about the other stories? I mean, the heat today was incredible. Ninety-seven degrees in Baltimore, 96 in Alentown. And these are all record highs, a lot of New York, Pennsylvania, a couple areas in area of Vermont and also New Hampshire, and Michigan had some record highs. Tomorrow's going to be a little bit cooler

in a few spots, especially New England and the coastal areas, including New York City, D.C. and Baltimore, but still 95 in St. Louis tomorrow, 93 in Indianapolis, and it stays hot in St. Louis, mid-90s all the way out through about Monday. And then the other story is that we saw the pictures of those tornadoes near Fort Stockton. We've had about six tornado reports today. There's the one near Fort Stockton, one right along the border of New Mexico and also Texas. And we still have a threat of additional tornadoes isolated throughout the rest of this evening. But I'm more concerned with all of the heavy rain.

We showed you those pictures yesterday of the flash flooding cars that looked like they were driving in the lake. That is happening right now once again because we have numerous areas with flash flooding anywhere in the maroon. Aaron is where we have heavy rain coming down. So it's still a troublesome night in West Texas. All right. We appreciate the heads-up. Bill Cairns, thank you. Now to the White House where President Biden made his first Oval Office address to the nation tonight, taking a victory lap of sorts for the debt deal that just passed the Senate and now heads to his desk. It avoids what could have been an economic catastrophe.

Peter Alexander has this report. Tonight default averted President Biden delivering his first ever Oval Office address, touting the bipartisan agreement that ensured the U.S. would narrowly avoid a potential economic catastrophe. No one got everything they wanted, but the American people got what they needed. We averted an economic crisis, an economic collapse. The bill is passed. Overnight, the Senate voting in favor of the bill, just days before the federal government was set to run out of money to pay its bills. We've saved the country from the scourge of default.

The deal is also a win for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who was in. able to force Democrats to curb spending after President Biden for months refused to negotiate. Sitting with one house with a Democratic Senate and a Democratic president who didn't want to meet with us, I think we did pretty dang good for the American public. In the end, the new agreement will raise the debt limit for two years, though progressive Democrats opposed the cuts. And many conservative Republicans say the bill did not go far enough. Also tonight, another unexpectedly strong jobs report, with employers hiring more than 330,000 new workers last month. The unemployment rate ticking up to 3.7 percent, still near

historic lows, but underscoring that the jobless rate could go up from here. Still amid high inflation, the hot job market increases the possibility that the Fed could raise interest rates again as early as two weeks from now, with mortgage rates already hovering near 7%. Federal Reserve officials have signaled they're likely to keep interest rates. same at this month's meeting, but they could raise them later this summer. The Fed chair has said he wants to see job growth slow down before he stops raising rates. Aaron. Now to new developments in the audio recordings of former President Donald Trump talking about classified documents. There are new reports that investigators are taking legal action based

on the comments Trump made. Gabe Gutierrez joins us now with more on this. So Gabe, walk us through this. What's the latest in this investigation? Well, Aaron, a source told NBC news that the Republican frontrunner was heard on that tape talking about a classified document regarding Iran back in 2021. Now, a new report says DOG investigators subpoenaed Trump attorneys for that document and that those attorneys say they have not found it. That's according to the New York Times, citing two sources familiar with the matter. That leaves open the possibility that the document is still at large or that Mr. Trump incorrectly described it or that it never even existed. And And overnight, Mr. Trump called the story fake news saying he did everything right.

Meanwhile, NBC News learning that former Vice President Mike Pence will face no charges over his handling of classified documents found that his home. The DOJ closing its investigation, according to a letter sent to Pence attorneys, Eric. And Gabe, with the Trump investigation is still going, the former president is also facing this growing battle in his campaign, right? the one against the former, or rather the current governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis. Yeah, that's right, Aaron. The campaign season is really heating up. And this is seven months before those critical Iowa caucuses. I just returned from New Hampshire and saw Governor DeSantis there. He's in South Carolina today.

And the rivalry between the two top Republican candidates is really intensifying. Trump is calling his escalating battle with DeSantis a war. And DeSantis stressing to me he could serve two terms in the White House, unlike Trump. So I said to tame the deep state, you need two terms. He's not going to be able to nix the deep state in six months. He had four years. He didn't make a den in it. Give me a break.

There's a big fundraiser in Iowa tomorrow where many of the current declared candidates and potential candidates plan to be at. And also, Aaron, some news today in terms of the first Republican debate scheduled for this August, the Republican National Committee announcing rules that will require participants to have at least 40,000 individual donors and be polling at least at 1% in multiple national polls. That is not sitting well with some of the lesser-known campaigns who are already starting to push back, Aaron.

Now to a catastrophe in Connecticut, part of a part of an apartment building under construction suddenly caved in, trapping workers in wet cement. The race to pull them out comes as rescuers begin on. a long-weighted dig for survivors at a different collapse in Davenport, Iowa. Here's Maggie Vespah. Tonight in Connecticut, chaos on a construction site when part of a New Haven apartment building where crews were pouring concrete suddenly caved in.

Firefighters raced to make rescues before the concrete hardened. It looks like his legs are buried. We're in the process. We're starting to take him out. Of the 36 workers on site, officials say eight are hurt, two in critical condition. Several persons in varying degrees of injury from broken bones to three that were partially buried under the rubble. The catastrophe out east comes as the dig gets underway in Davenport.

Five days after a large portion of this six-story apartment building suddenly collapsed, specialized crews from Iowa Task Force One using heavy machinery, shovels and canines to try and find three men likely trapped in the rubble. At times, signs of hope, but tonight, no one found. I believe if we could have started this process earlier, you know, we may have could save the life. Could this search have been started sooner? We were here Sunday. We did do searches. And new tonight, a recording of a 911 call from Saturday, the day before the collapse.

On it, a man who says his employee was working near the building tries to warn authorities. He was cleaning up in the back parking lot. said that the wall is balty now someone is there working on it and told him to get out of the way because it's not looking good city documents detail a history of complaints and necessary repairs some of which were underway when this building collapsed and the owner has not responded to questions about those concerns meanwhile these crews are expected to search for days erin maggie vespah thank you we head overseas now where a deadly train disaster is unfolding in eastern india at least 100 people killed and more than 800 injured after trains collided.

NBC News foreign correspondent Matt Bradley has more on the rescue effort underway. Tonight in India fears passengers are still trapped after a massive and deadly train crash. People urgently searching through twisted metal for survivors who described complete chaos when the crash happened. Everything went topsy-turvy. People started falling on each other, said this passenger. My mind stopped working. whole coach was tilted. The death toll expected to rise. Hospitals tonight overwhelmed. Some passengers describing horrifying scenes. When I came out of the train, I saw someone had lost their hand. Someone had lost their legs, said this passenger. Emergency workers now in a round-the-clock

rescue operation. We are naturally concerned about looking after the bodies and removing all the living to the hospitals. It's unclear exactly what happened. The collision may have involved two or three trains. Railway accidents are tragically common in India, occurring several hundred times per year. Authorities have said more than a hundred survivors may be trapped under the rubble. Rescue efforts are expected to continue throughout the night. Aaron? Matt Bradley for us tonight and staying overseas, at least nine people are dead after violent protests in the Western African country of Senegal. The clashes there erupting after a top presidential candidate was sent to jail. Supporters calling it a political foul as opponents flooded the streets in outrage that the sentence wasn't severe enough.

NBC News foreign correspondent Ali Arusi has that story. Tonight, political protests in Senegal turning into violent clashes between rioters and police, killing at least nine people and leaving the African country on edge. This chaotic scene unfolding in Dakar, protesters firing guns and police launching tear gun, into crowds. Demonstrators, setting buses, cars and tires on fire. The bustling capital city now shrouded in thick black smoke. Protests erupted after the country's leading opposition politician Usman Sonko was handed a two-year jail sentence, threatening his bid for president. Sonko was convicted of corrupting the youth, meaning he was found to have acted immorally

towards someone younger than 21. But the embattled politician was acquitted on other charges of rape and making death threats to his accuser. We have so a satisfaction, but a satisfaction limited, because we're we attend to a condemnation severe. Violent clashes forcing the government to block numerous social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram, TikTok, WhatsApp, and YouTube. claiming these platforms were inciting violence.

SONCO's residents now completely surrounded by police and protesters, as the Justice Minister says he could be arrested at any time. Sonko and his supporters say he's the victim of political prosecution, designed to prevent him from running against the current president, Maki Sal. The government has rejected accusations that the case against Sondko is politically motivated. eliminate in the course of presidential. Is we not going to accept it? Senegal's army now called in to reinforce the streets, which are quieter today,

but the broken glass and the burnt debris still an omnipresent reminder of the unrest. Senegal has long been considered one of Africa's strongest democracies, but Senko's trial and fears that President Sal may try and bypass the two-term presidential limit have led to months of protests culminating in one of the deadliest days of violence in the country's history. And the fear is that the violence will continue because Senko's mostly young supporters

are determined and motivated. Aaron? Alia Ruzi reporting, thank you. And still ahead tonight, a shocking arrest in Texas. A school superintendent accused of trying to prey on a 15-year-old girl, the undercover sting operation that landed him in handcuffs. Plus, a driver being called a hero after her school bus went up in flames,

the split-second decision that may have saved students' lives. And Shark Tank Battle, why one of the show's celebrity investors is asking for a restraining order against a contestant he went into business with. Stay with us. Back now with a group. Brawl in the Shark Tank, investor Damon John, filing a restraining order against a former NFL player, Al Bubba Baker. John funded his babyback ribs business on the Shark Tank show almost a decade ago. Now, this move comes after Baker and his family called the experience with the investor a, quote, nightmare.

NBC's Jake Ward has more. Kevin, I love the fact that you have made us an offer, but I think I'm going to take Danny's deal. Tonight, blood spilled in the shark tank. Celebrity investor Damon John seeking a restraining order against former NFL player Al Bubba Baker and his family. Bless me with the Bubba Baby Back! The Baker's winning an investment from John on Shark Tank back in 2013 with their pitch of pre-cooked babyback ribs. At first, the partnership seemed like a success. In 2017, the show updated its audience.

Bubbecues saying sales went from $154,000 to $16 million in the three years after the deal. But both sides say the relationship has grown icy over the years. Then, an explosive L.A. Times article published in which the bakers claimed John is cutting them out of profits and trying to seize control of the business. That idea is so brilliant, I'll do the exact same deal, but I'll only take 30%. The family also alleging in the LA Times that after the on-air offer of $300,000 for 30% of the company, John revised the terms of the deal to $100,000 for a 35% stake. We don't know these people before. We don't have any information. They do the best of they can. They shop a pitch. They don't say what's wrong with anything, of course. and we then evaluated at the end and come up with an accurate agreement.

In response, this restraining order coming alongside a lawsuit from John, asking that the Baker's be prohibited from directly or indirectly making further disparaging or defamatory remarks against him. John, saying in an exhibit in the lawsuit that the family has made money from the investment while he is still, quote, in the red. A spokesperson for John telling NBC News, this temporary restraining order is due to the Baker's blatant actions to undermine a business partnership and the legal parameters they agreed to

four years ago. The family not backing down, publishing this video on YouTube after the lawsuit was filed. Well, unfortunately, our experience has turned out to be a nightmare since partnering with Damon John. And posting several times on social media, Damon John firing back to his massive following on TikTok. I'm making this video to address this LA Times article that Al Bubba Baker and Brittany Baker intentionally broke the confidentiality and put out and shopped to this reporter. calling the article a false narrative. Al Baker and his family did not respond to our request for comment, but taking to TikTok today to double down on his claims.

Trying to shut me and my family up, but it's not going to work. The temperature rising in this red-hot business battle, and now it seems the courts will decide which shark will get the bigger bite. Jake Ward, NBC News. And we turn now to a sexting-sting operation in Texas that led to seven arrests, including a school superintendent. Investigators say Michael Stevens sent lewd photos and planned to meet up with a girl he believed was 15 years old. NBC's Priscilla Thompson joins us now from Houston.

Priscilla earlier today, Stevens was in court. What more can you tell us about the investigation here and what he's being charged with? Yeah, Aaron, 47-year-old Michael Stevens remains in the jail behind me on a $100,000 bond. He's being charged with attempting to solicit a minor for sex. This is an investigation that lasted two months where he was texting with an undercover agent who he believed was a 15-year-old girl. And what we heard in that hearing was really graphic details, messages of him describing sexual acts that he wanted to perform and wanted this person who he believed was a teenage girl to perform. Investigators say that he had also been sending nude photos to this undercover agent. Some of those photos taken in his superintendent's office and that he had.

also requested those photos in return. And investigators feeling very strongly that there's no question that Stevens knew he was messaging with an underage girl. In fact, there is a text message where he says, are you okay with my age? I feel like I might be too old for you, but still he continued the conversation, continued to make those advances. And investigators say that he was even planning a trip to Houston to meet this young girl and engage in what they described as, quote, sexual acts. And so he was arrested late yesterday in front of a North Texas high school. He worked in a building not far from there as the superintendent and investigators feeling very strongly about the case that they have laid out against him as they prepare to see what

happens next here. Aaron? So Priscilla, you mentioned he was arrested in front of a high school. As the superintendent in this district, he potentially would have had access to schools every day, potentially access to students every day. Are investigators concerned about more potential victims here? Yeah, Aaron, not only that, but prior to becoming the superintendent, he served as a teacher, as a coach, as a principal, as an assistant principal in school districts across North Texas. And so investigators are very concerned that there may be other victims given the access that he had to underage children. I spoke with the constable about this just a short while ago, and I want to play a little bit of that conversation. I want to make sure that there are no other victims that are out there.

The important thing of plastering his face and who he is, he was an assistant principal, a principal, and a superintendent. He's been in all facets of the educational system, and that you come in contact with a lot of kids. And investigators are urging anyone who may be a victim to come forward and report that now that this evidence is out there. Erin. Priscilla Thompson in Houston, thank you. When we come back, insurance pause, the latest company to announce it will no longer insure new homes in California as costs from wildfires continue to skyrocket. And a warning from Ford tonight, it's telling some drivers to park their SUV. outside and not in their garages. We'll explain.

We're back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with Allstate confirming it has stopped issuing new home insurance policies in California. The company says it put the pause in place without making an announcement back in 2021 to, quote, continue to protect current customers. Other insurers, including State Farm, have taken similar measures due largely to costly wildfires that have devastated that state. Consumer advocates say smaller insurance companies can help fill gaps in coverage. A Milwaukee school bus driver who is eight months pregnant saving more than 30 students from a fire. Video showing flames engulfing the bus and firefighters working to put out the flames, the driver saying she noticed an odd smell and some smoke and decided to pull over. After trying to communicate with emergency dispatch, she quickly evacuated all of the kids from that bus.

Nobody was hurt, and the cause of the fire is under investigation. Ford recalling more than 140,000 Lincoln SUVs over fire concerns. The company says battery sensors may overheat and possibly start engine fires even when the car is parked. The recall affects Lincoln MKC models from 2015 to 2019. Officials have received 19 reports of fire. so far, owners are being urged to park outside until recall repairs can be made. And North Carolina's largest military installation is getting a new name. Fort Bragg, now officially Fort Liberty. This is part of a broader initiative to rename military sites

named after Confederate soldiers. The naming commission says the new name was chosen because Liberty remains the greatest American value. And coming up, Top Story's Global Watch, destructive tornadoes tearing through China what we're learning about injuries on the ground and Suez Sandstorm massive clouds of dust enveloping the busy canal how it's affecting cargo in that critical waterway back now with top story's global watch

and we begin with a British teenager sentenced for plotting a terror attack in London detectives believe that teen was just hours away from carrying out an attack on U.K. police officers or soldiers when he was arrested in 2022. Authorities say the teen developed extremist views during the pandemic and then began scoping out local police stations and buying weapons online. That team was sentenced to life in prison. And in China, powerful tornadoes sweeping across the country's northeast region. The massive twisters sending debris flying, homes and buildings torn apart, large sections of farmland ravaged there.

Officials say dozens of people were injured. but because the tornadoes happen mostly in rural areas, no deaths have been reported. And stunning images showing a massive sandstorm engulfing the Suez Canal in Egypt. Take a look here. That video showing large clouds of sand surrounding ships as they pass through the canal.

Authorities saying navigation has not been affected by the weather conditions there. The sandstorm hit Cairo as well, though with less intensity. Sandstorms are common in Egypt during summer and spring, usually causing very little damage. When we come back, a look at what to binge watch and listen to this weekend, the new HBO series starring Lily Rose Depp and The Weekend,

plus a new dating show, perfect for Pride Month, and the Foo Fighters releasing their first album since the death of their beloved drummer. Stick around. We are back now with Bingeworthy, our look at the best things to watch and listen to this weekend. Tim Balthazar, Entertainment Journalist and Friend of Top Story, joining us tonight. Brian, it's good to see you. Good to see you. Let's dive right in here.

First, we have a drama series created by the weekend. It's called The Idol on HBO. Let's take a quick look at that. I'm telling you right now, these people in here are gaugging whether or not you still got it. I just wonder about the strippers. They're kind of outfemming her with the flips and the dips and the... Kak, got a got, got, got out. You're too distracted.

right to block up all the noise. I'm sorry, who are you? I'll sing. Interesting. A few familiar faces in there, including a famous actor's child in this show, Brian. Talk to us about it. Yeah, that's Lily Rose Depp, the daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis.

And this, obviously, as you can see, is a bit explicit, a little bit racy. It premiered at Cannes. And some people thought maybe it was a little bit too much. It's actually premiering on Sunday night. And it's the story of a pop artist who gets kind of drawn into a modern-day cult. So it's intense. Yeah, that sounds pretty intense. It'll be interesting to watch for sure for, you know,

a certain audience there on HBO. Listen, we have the return of Manifest. It's actually back on Netflix for the series finale. Let's look at a quick clip from that. This is it. We have no more time. Anybody can rally the troops as you. We've been given an opportunity. Remind of what's most important. It's time to be with the people you love. love.

Come tight. Police. We're connected, Cal. Angelis. Tomorrow. Tomorrow might be all we've got. So, yeah, this is a series that's had some, you know, sort of ups and downs and been moving around a little bit. Talk to us about what you're hearing about the end of Manifest.

Right. So if you know Manifest, you know, right? It's an intense show about a plane full of passengers that disappears for four years. Lands, and four years have passed, so they did not know what had happened. And now they're starting to see glimpses of what would have happened during that period. There's inklings of the end of days. If you are not, if you're new to the show, I would say don't start the Da Vinci Code from Chapter 8. Like, start from the beginning.

But if you know and love manifest, this is the end. This is the final episodes of this series. A lot of folks who know it are going to be looking for this and really into it. And it's worth, I actually, I started when it started on NBC, I think, right? Yeah, exactly. I watched it early on. Yeah. So maybe something to get back into.

The next one is a new mini-series. This is from Japan, and it actually highlights how the Fukushima nuclear disaster unfolded. It's on Netflix, too. Let's check that out. We're just a lot of what we've got to make you know what? Or, or, or, to-sake-o-no-no-nay-noy-dust-all-all-dhist-all-all-all-all-all-hack-all-all-all-heat-all-all-all-heat-all-all-all-all-heat-all-all-all-her-all-all-all-old. So this is based, yeah, based on real events, right? Talk to us about what we learn in this new series.

Right. So in 2011, an earthquake then led to a tsunami, and basically 18,000 people were killed. They're still dealing with the consequences right now when we're learning about the inner workings at this plant, trying to keep it from melting down and all the things that happened leading up to just before and after in the aftermath. So it's an pretty intense series, yeah. Yeah, and told from a few different perspectives here. Yeah, three different perspectives, yes. Okay.

So now we have a series that's back for a second season. Run the World. This is on Stars. Let's show folks what this is about. It's going to take some time to get back what we lost. I made a lot of decisions that I wasn't always happy with. Ella gave me the hot tea on you three. Life is too short for what if, and there are no accidents.

This is it. I say, go for it. Who's the boss? I'm the boss. Who's the boss? I'm the boss. This is a fun show. It's a fun show.

I think of it as girlfriends meet sex in the city. If you haven't watched it before, this is season two. It was great in season one, and now it's just going to explode, starting with an admission of infidelity, the high style, high drama, and a lot of laughs along the way. I highly recommend it. All right, I have to check that out for sure. Laughs and drama. Can't beat that going into the weekend.

We're kicking off Pride Month, obviously, this week as well. There's a lot of programming that highlights the LGBTQ community. The first show is actually a day. dating reality program that features a bachelorette who believes the perfect match knows no gender as they say let's take a look at that i've always said i don't have a type this is the best day of my life we came here for lexie and you're out here spitting games to other girls what do you think lexie's gonna think if you open your phone and there's just a picture of me as the background why are we causing more drama we need a medic who didn't come here to have people doing things

by your back how who's dating who i've heard of love triangles why don't you're my be in a little bit of a love diamond. Right. So this is called Love Always, not ALW, but A-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-L-W-A-L-W-A-Sexual. Lexi there is pansexual, and so any one of those people on the show is a potential suitor or sutress or

what-have-you. And there are also two love gurus guiding her in two respective teams. But as it may happen, some of the contestants just start getting interested in each other instead of her. Like, you know, that's one of the risks of a show like this. revolutionary. It's on Paramount Plus, and I think people are going to get hooked because literally

anything can happen. Yeah, the uniqueness of this is something that's going to be really appealing to a lot of folks, too. The last thing on our watch list, we have Queen of the Universe. This is on Paramount Plus. It's a singing competition that features drag queens from around the world. Let's show folks a quick clip of this. Tim Drag Vocalists from around the world. In Brazil, we don't get these opportunities. It's one in a billion. I'm not just representing my country. I'm wearing them. And on this stage, There's absolutely no lip-syncing. With unbelievable performances.

The judges are not just looking for someone with great vocals. They're looking for someone who's got it all. She is a pop star. Okay, I don't know, Erin, how much you know or don't know about drag performances. But traditionally, drag queens, drag performers have lip sync to popular songs. It's part of the entertainment. Some of them sing. I don't want to say all of them.

But this one, it is required that they sing. And we have a great host in Graham Norton, who's hysterical. We have judges, Mel B, as you can see. We have Vanessa Williams, and we have Michelle Visage. We see, oh, I mean, the list goes on of great people there. So this is going to be a fun one. I think it's going to be a hit. And it's entertaining, high entertainment.

As drag shows often are, right? It's a big production. You like to see all the wow that comes along with those sorts of performances. I do want to talk about some new music before we let you go. First, the weekend, again, this time he's out with a new song featuring Madonna and Playboy Cardi. It's called Popular. Here's a quick listen. Okay.

from your flashing lights. So this is a single off his upcoming album. Sounds very Weekend. What do you think? Well, I love The Weekends music, and I'm glad to see Madonna performing. Again, Weekend has actually hinted at wanting to do an album with her,

not even subtly. And it's in the top 10 on the iTunes charts right now. I want to hear more, you know? I want to hear more of this. But I like the group. I think it's going to do well. Yeah, it definitely catches your ear. It's a good start for a new album, for sure.

And last thing here is Fuf. Fighters out with a new song. It's called The Glass. Let's listen to this. So this is off the band's new album, which is the first since the death of its drummer, Taylor Hawkins. What more do we know, Brian? Yeah, this song The Glass is really a direct reference to their loss and the loss of his mother, actually. Dave Grohl's mother died not long after Taylor Hawkins.

So this is an introspective, thoughtful song, and there's more to come from them as well. So people are wondering what we're going to happen, what will become of the food fighters, and you can see that they're taking their pain and creating art, and it's really something I think people can connect to. Yeah, nice. There'll be something to listen to for sure. Brian, we appreciate you making some time for Top Story, and I want to let folks know that you can actually catch Brian performing stand-up. That's right? He's going to be at Pridezilla in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. That's June 11th, right? I am hilarious. I'm a national treasure. I'm surprised we really don't lead with this, but thank you. Yes, please check out Pridezilla at Soul Jill Sunnybrook. I'd love to have you. And if people didn't know, you're really humble, too. Oh, yeah, yeah. It comes to the territory. Brian Balthasar. Brian, good to see you, my friend. Thanks.

you. And thank you for watching Top Story tonight. For Tom Yamis, I'm Aaron Gilchrist in Washington. Stay right there for NBC News Now on the way.