Lifestyle

Billy Joel returns to the recording studio with first new song in nearly 20 years

Published

2 years ago

January 24, 2024

Press Room

Billy Joel returns to the recording studio with first new song in nearly 20 years

Billy Joel performs the first show of his Madison Square Garden residency, on Jan. 27, 2014, in New York.

Greg Allen/Greg Allen/Invision/AP

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Greg Allen/Greg Allen/Invision/AP

Billy Joel performs the first show of his Madison Square Garden residency, on Jan. 27, 2014, in New York.

Greg Allen/Greg Allen/Invision/AP

Billy Joel announced Monday that he is releasing his first new song in close to two decades.

The Grammy Award-winning, 74-year-old singer-songwriter’s longtime label, Columbia Records, plans to drop “Turn the Lights Back On” on Feb. 1.

Joel teased the new song on social media with a short clip consisting of a simple chord progression played sedately on the piano.

It’s been more than 30 years since Joel released his last pop album — River of Dreams — in 1993. The final track, “Famous Last Words,” alluded to Joel’s desire to step away from the recording studio:

These are the last words I have to say
That’s why it took so long to write
There will be other words some other day
But that’s the story of my life

But the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer did go on to write songs for himself and undertake projects for others sporadically. Joel’s 2007’s hit “All My Life,” reached Number One on Billboard’s Hot Singles Sales chart.

Even though he has stayed away from the recording studio for so many years, Joel has continued to perform live regularly. He tours internationally and is scheduled to finish up a 10-year residency this summer at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Fans reacted to the news about the upcoming release with excitement on social media.

“BEYOND EXCITED FOR THIS!!!!” wrote fan Tanya Cironi on Joel’s Facebook page. “I hoped one day we would see new music.”

Lifestyle

‘Wait Wait’ for February 28. 2026: Live in Bloomington with Lilly King!

Published

2 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

‘Wait Wait’ for February 28. 2026: Live in Bloomington with Lilly King!

An underwater view shows US’ Lilly King competing in a heat of the women’s 200m breaststroke swimming event during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, west of Paris, on July 31, 2024. (Photo by François-Xavier MARIT / AFP) (Photo by FRANCOIS-XAVIER MARIT/AFP via Getty Images)

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This week’s show was recorded in Bloomington, Indiana with host Peter Sagal, judge and scorekeeper Bill Kurtis, Not My Job guest Lilly King and panelists Alonzo Bodden, Josh Gondelman, and Faith Salie. Click the audio link above to hear the whole show.

Who’s Bill This Time

State of the Union is Hot; The Tribal Council Convenes Again; A Glow Up In the Doll Aisle

Panel Questions

The Toot Tracker

Bluff The Listener

Our panelists tell three stories about a travel hack in the news, only one of which is true.

Not My Job: Olympic Swimmer Lilly King answers our questions about Lil’ Kings

Olympic Swimmer Lilly King plays our game called, “Lilly King meet these Lil’ Kings” Three questions about short kings.

Panel Questions

Cleaning Out The Cabinet; Bedtime Stacking

Limericks

Bill Kurtis reads three news-related limericks: Getting Cozy With Cross Country Skiing; Pickleball’s New Competition; Bees Get Freaky

Lightning Fill In The Blank

All the news we couldn’t fit anywhere else

Predictions

Our panelists predict, after American Girls, what’ll be the next toy to get an update.

Lifestyle

Zendaya and Tom Holland Are Married, Her Longtime Stylist Claims

Published

3 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Zendaya and Tom Holland Are Married, Her Longtime Stylist Claims

Law Roach
Zendaya and Tom’s Wedding Already Happened …
Y’all Missed It!!!

Published
March 1, 2026
6:34 PM PST

Zendaya and Tom Holland are married … so claims her longtime stylist, Law Roach.

Here’s the deal … the celebrity stylist — who started styling Zendaya way back in 2011 — spoke to Access Hollywood on the Actors Awards red carpet where he sang out “The wedding has already happened, you missed it.”

Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.

The AH reporter asks in shock if that’s true … and, Law responds by saying it’s “very true” before walking off.

This isn’t the first time Tom and Zendaya’s relationship status has made headlines on a red carpet … remember at the Golden Globes in 2025, Zendaya had a ring on that finger — and, the next day, we found out the two were engaged.

Zendaya-&-Tom-Holland----Timeline-Thumbnail

TMZ.com

Zendaya and Tom met on the set of “Spider-Man: Homecoming” in 2016, started dating a couple years later and went public with their relationship in 2021.

We’ve reached out to Tom and Zendaya’s teams … so far, no word back.

Lifestyle

Bet on Anything, Everywhere, All at Once : Up First from NPR

Published

14 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Bet on Anything, Everywhere, All at Once : Up First from NPR

Online prediction market platforms allow people to place bets on wide-ranging subjects such as sports, finance, politics and currents events.

Photo Illustration by Scott Olson/Getty Images

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Photo Illustration by Scott Olson/Getty Images

The rise of prediction markets means you can now bet on just about anything, right from your phone. Apps like Kalshi and Polymarket have grown exponentially in President Trump’s second term, as his administration has rolled back regulations designed to keep the industry in check. Billions of dollars have flooded in, and users are placing bets on everything from whether it will rain in Seattle today to whether the US will take over control of Greenland. Who’s winning big on these apps? And who is losing? NPR correspondent Bobby Allyn joins The Sunday Story to explain how these markets came to be and where they are going.

This episode was produced by Andrew Mambo. It was edited by Liana Simstrom and Brett Neely. Fact-checking by Barclay Walsh and Susie Cummings. It was engineered by Robert Rodriguez.

We’d love to hear from you. Send us an email at TheSundayStory@npr.org.

Listen to Up First on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.