Southeast
Meet Michael Warren, Black country singer, songwriter performing at CMA Fest, taking the genre by storm
Country music stations are rocking to the brim with newly released songs by a blend of genre veterans and new artists, but few singers find themselves chart-topping and successful.
The music industry is cut-throat and not for the weak of heart.
Michael Warren, 41, a country music singer and songwriter from Hoover, Alabama, was discovered by many fans when he earned his spot at the top of a number of Spotify channels, and his story is unique in the way that this is his second go at the music industry.
“I feel like I got a second lease on life,” Warren told Fox News Digital during a video interview.
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Michael Warren, country singer and songwriter from Hoover, Alabama, is performing at CMA Fest 2024 for the first time. (Lauren Abram’s; Michael Warren)
When Warren was in college, he received the call of a lifetime from Grammy award-winning artist Toni Braxton. The “Un-Break My Heart” singer hoped to record some of Warren’s songs. However, backpedaling to where it all began, Warren recalls that his immersion into music began during his formative years, long before his opportunity with a former subsidiary of Atlantic Records, Atlantic Songs.
“I started music at a very, very young age,” Warren recalls. “I instantly gravitated toward the writing.”
The country music singer credits his dad, a former band member at the University of Notre Dame, for his passion for music. In their basement at any given time, Warren said he could find 800 records from megastars, from Willie Nelson to Earth Wind & Fire to James Taylor and Michael Jackson.
“Growing up in that household, we had so many different musical influences,” Warren said.
In middle school, Warren and his buddies channeled their love for performing on the school playgrounds and sang their hearts out to the schoolgirls.
“We thought we were Boyz II Men,” Warren laughed. “I fell in love with it.”
From there, he joined the church choir, where he says he started taking music seriously.
During his two years in junior college, Warren says he didn’t socialize much.
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“I locked myself in my bedroom, and picked up my guitar, and figured out how to play the guitar,” he said. Two years later, Warren enrolled at the University of Alabama, where he scored understated gigs in the dorm room common areas, birthday parties and house parties.
“I actually spent more time playing the guitar than I did going to class, and luckily my dad didn’t get too mad about it,” Warren said.
As Warren became a hometown favorite, he leaped from the corridors of the bustling dorm hallways to the big college bars at Mississippi State and Auburn, among other schools, and then found himself invited to fraternity and sorority parties.
Late at night, Warren hunkered down with his dad’s camcorder and recorded his own audio. He recalls that sometimes, his dad would accompany him on all-nighters to handwrite his information on burned CDs featuring original songs. Warren burned 300 to 400 CDs at a time and prowled outside popular bars at the University of Alabama to hand only girls his originals.
“I knew if I got the girls to the show, guys would come,” he said.
Michael Warren told FOX News Digital he immersed himself in music at a very young age. (Lauren Abrams)
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Unbeknownst to him, Warren’s music traveled to New York City, and Craig Kallman, chairman and CEO of Atlantic Records, was so impressed that he called Warren himself – a handful of times.
“I get a call on my cell phone from the president of Atlantic Records on a Sunday. I’ll never forget it,” Warren said. “I thought it was my friends pranking me, so I kept hanging up the phone. But he kept calling me back.”
Though he left that meeting with no record or publishing deal – or a commitment to a follow-up – Warren was hell-bent on making the most of this moment and emailed Kallman for four weeks. He offered his work ethic to Atlantic Records in any capacity and even pledged to work in the mailroom.
“I just wanted to get into the game,” he said.
From there, Warren signed a songwriting deal, which turned into a personal call from Braxton for a song he had written in his mom’s kitchen.
“That was the first big break in my music career,” Warren said. “Toni Braxton is the queen, in my opinion.”
Since then, he has written songs for Jennifer Lopez, Flo Rida, Akon and Cody Simpson, among others.
“I guess my path was supposed to be that,” Warren said. “Next thing you know, I’m putting out these songs, I’m getting these incredible rights.”
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He added that gratitude is a trouble-free emotion to come by daily, and that every step of his journey, especially the hard times, is worth celebrating.
“To see my name within these playlists and show posters and shows with people that I looked up to,” Warren said. “To see it actually come true; it’s like sometimes you just have to step back, because all the things that I’ve dreamed about, I’m actually living them right now. Sometimes, in the hustle and bustle of everything, you have to take time to appreciate where you were, what you prayed to God for, and that he delivered it.”
Today, Warren is gearing up for his first set at CMA Fest on Friday, where he’ll be performing for his growing collection of fans at Blake Shelton’s Ole Red, in Nashville, for Spotify House.
“CMA Fest is incredible. This is what everybody wants to do,” he said. “I remember going to Spotify House last year at Ole Red’s. I was in the crowd. Fast-forward a year later, a lot of hard work, and I’m at Spotify House, CMA Fest, main stage.”
Warren and his band crafted a 25-minute set and will perform at 11 a.m.
“I think if you work hard, and you’re consistent, and you’re driven, and you have the talent and ability, I think that you should have the chance and a seat at the table,” he said. “I think that if you aren’t good, you shouldn’t have a seat at the table.”
Warren said that despite racial setbacks in the past, he feels Nashville has opened its arms wide to him, and he is enthusiastic about their acceptance of him and his music.
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Michael Warren has written songs recorded by Toni Braxton, Jennifer Lopez, Cody Simpson and more. (Michael Warren)
“The way that I look at things is like, obstacles? That’s cool. Put them in front of me. I’m gonna keep going. I’m not gonna stop,” he said. “This year and last year, it was obvious things have changed, and the arms are open.”
He thanks Darius Rucker and other Black, White and Hispanic artists who have broken down barriers and produced inclusivity across the country genre.
Presently, Warren is independent and unsigned to a label. However, the greatest moment he dreams of is playing on the road with Rucker.
“He inspired me and so many others to break down some barriers and be our true selves,” Warren said. “I think I could be the guy that Darius hands his torch over to.”
As for his own playlist, Warren is a fan of music by Morgan Wallen, which he feels is timeless, and he hopes to be face-to-face with the “Whiskey Glasses” singer someday.
“He’s the king of this thing right now,” Warren said. “I love Morgan, Wallen because it’s small-town stories, it’s country, but he’s also able to incorporate pop artists and rappers into his music.”
Warren is working on a full body of work himself and plans to tell his story through self-written music on a 10- to 12-song album soon.
“This music industry is hard in general. So, every artist that’s out there that’s Black, White, Hispanic, this is hard,” he said. “If it happens tomorrow, cool. If it happens five years from now, cool.”
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The suspect accused of plotting a New Year’s Eve attack on a grocery store and fast-food restaurant in North Carolina worked at a Burger King and hid knives and hammers under his bed despite his grandparents trying to secure the potential weapons, prosecutors revealed Friday.
Christian Sturdivant, 18, of Mint Hill, a town outside Charlotte, was arrested and charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina Russ Ferguson said.
“What we do know is that the grandfather secured the knives in the home, secured the hammers, tried to make sure that Mr. Sturdivant did not have them. And, yet, when we executed the search warrant, they were found under his bed,” Ferguson told reporters at a news conference Friday.
Ferguson added the attack was planned to take place in Mint Hill, and the suspect worked at a Burger King.
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Christian Sturdivant, the 18-year-old suspect from Mint Hill, N.C., accused of plotting an attack on New Year’s Eve in support of ISIS. (Gaston County Sheriff’s Office)
“He was preparing for jihad, and innocent people were going to die. And we were very, very fortunate they did not,” Ferguson said. “I can tell you from his notes he was targeting Jews, Christians and LGBTQ individuals.”
James C. Barnacle, Jr., special agent in charge of the FBI’s Charlotte Field Office, said Friday that Sturdivant first caught the bureau’s attention in January 2022, when he was still a juvenile.
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Prosecutors said “law enforcement seized from Sturdivant’s bedroom a blue hammer, a wooden-handled hammer and two butcher knives hidden underneath the defendant’s bed.” On the right is a note titled, “New Years Attack 2026,” that prosecutors said law enforcement found during a Dec. 29, 2025, search of Sturdivant’s home in Mint Hill, N.C. (United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina)
“He was in contact via social media with an unidentified ISIS member overseas. Sturdivant received direction from this unidentified ISIS member to dress in all black, knock on people’s doors, and attack them with a hammer. In fact, Sturdivant did dress in all black. He left this house with a hammer, and fortunately his family stepped in,” Barnacle continued. “No charges were filed at that time. He was referred for psychological care, and he underwent psychological care.
“Christian Sturdivant pledged his loyalty to ISIS and committed himself to commit to killing Americans on New Year’s Eve.
“Law enforcement also seized from Sturdivant’s bedroom a list of targets, as well as tactical gloves and a vest, acquired as part of the defendant’s planned attack,” prosecutors said. (United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina)
“We do have some intelligence that he was looking at a grocery store because there would be a lot of people there. He knew there would be a lot of people there grocery shopping. … He was looking for a high-profile place,” Barnacle added.
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“There’s a couple grocery stores in Mint Hill. He wasn’t set on just one. He was looking at multiple, whichever one had the most people in it.”
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Southeast
Georgia teen charged with murdering Uber driver in suburban carjacking, leaving him to die
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A 15-year-old boy has been charged as an adult with murder after an Uber driver was found shot to death early New Year’s Day after a carjacking in a suburban Atlanta community, authorities said.
The victim was identified as Cesar Tejada, 58, of Grayson, Georgia, who was working as an Uber driver at the time of the shooting, according to a release from the Lawrenceville Police Department. Authorities said that Tejada was a father of two.
Police responded around 5:20 a.m. Jan. 1 to a report of a person lying in the roadway in the suburban community of Lawrenceville, which is approximately 30 miles northeast of Atlanta. Officers found Tejada suffering from a gunshot wound, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators determined that Tejada had picked up the suspect around 4:13 a.m. and transported him to Groveland Parkway. Police said the suspect exited the back seat, shot Tejada and left him in the road before fleeing the scene.
An Uber driver was found shot to death in the roadway of the nearby 600 block of Groveland Parkway in the Meadow Grove subdivision Jan. 1, 2026. (WAGA-TV)
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Using FLOCK camera technology and working in partnership with Uber, detectives tracked Tejada’s vehicle back to the area where the trip originated. Officers later detained the suspect, identified as 15-year-old Christian Simmons, after observing him walking in the roadway near his residence, police said.
Simmons has been charged as an adult with murder. Police initially withheld his identity due to his age.
Christian Simmons, 15, was charged with murder as an adult after Uber driver Cesar Tejada, 58, was found shot to death in Lawrenceville, Georgia, on New Year’s Day. (Lawrenceville Police Department/Facebook)
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In a statement to Fox News Digital, an Uber spokesperson said the company is saddened by Tejada’s death.
“We’re saddened by this devastating loss, and our condolences go out to the driver’s family during this incredibly difficult time,” the spokesperson said. “We’ve been in contact with the Lawrenceville Police Department to help support their investigation.”
Uber confirmed the rider account associated with the incident has been permanently banned. The company said it employs former law enforcement professionals to assist with investigations and offers in-app safety features such as an emergency assistance button, GPS trip tracking and rider verification.
The Lawrenceville Police Department discovered a deceased Uber driver in the roadway of the nearby 600 block of Groveland Parkway in the Meadow Grove subdivision Jan. 1, 2026. (WAGA-TV)
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Police described Tejada as a husband and father of two and extended condolences to his family. The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with information is urged to contact the Lawrenceville Police Department.
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In 2025, idyllic small towns across America were interrupted by acts of violence from Mississippi to Montana, Arkansas to Washington state.
The murders struck during homecoming weekends, inside neighborhood bars, at campgrounds and along hiking trails.
Together, the cases exposed vulnerabilities in small-town America: unresolved personal disputes, untreated mental health crises and domestic violence.
Clinton and Cristen Brink were murdered at Devil’s Den State Park on Saturday, July 26, 2025. (GoFundMe)
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Devil’s Den, Arkansas:
In northwest Arkansas, a visit to a state park ended in a double homicide.
Clinton Brink, 43, and Cristen Brink, 41, the parents of three children, were stabbed to death while hiking at Devil’s Den State Park on July 26.
The couple had recently moved to Arkansas to be closer to family and begin a new chapter. Friends described them as gentle, active and devoted parents.
“They loved to take the girls and go hiking,” said Mary Hinebauch, a friend from their former church in Montana. “That wasn’t an unnatural place for them to be.”
The Arkansas State Police arrested Andrew James McGann, 28, charging him with murdering the couple. Investigators said the killings appeared unprovoked. The arrest came a day after police released “a composite sketch of a man” they were “seeking to identify for questioning in connection with the double homicide.”
“This was a very safe place to be,” Hinebauch said. “It’s pure evil.”
To read more about this case, click here.
The FBI’s Jackson Field Office released this “seeking information” poster featuring four suspects wanted in connection with the Oct. 11, 2025, mass shooting in Leland, Mississippi, that left six people dead and 20 injured. (FBI)
Leland, Mississippi:
On Oct. 11, 2025, just after midnight in Leland, Mississippi, a small city in Washington County where the population hovers around 3,700, the excitement of homecoming weekend was shattered when a shooting broke out following a football game.
At least six people were killed and at least 19 others wounded.
The FBI’s Jackson Field Office announced that four people were arrested in connection with the shooting.
Three men, identified as Teviyon Powell, 29; William Bryant, 29; and Morgan Lattimore, 25, were charged with capital murder. A fourth suspect, Latoya Powell, 44, was charged with attempted murder.
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Investigators said they believe the violence stemmed from a personal dispute, though no final motive has been confirmed.
“This is not who we are as a community,” Leland Mayor John Lee said. “Our hearts are broken for these families.”
To read more about this case, click here.
Main Street in Anaconda, Montana, leads to the Deer Lodge County Courthouse with mountains in the background on Aug. 8, 2025. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
Anaconda, Montana:
In Anaconda, Montana, a quiet bar in a former mining town with about 9,000 people was interrupted when a man opened fire on Aug. 1, 2025.
Authorities said that Michael Paul Brown, 45, an Army veteran and longtime local resident, entered The Owl Bar around 10:30 a.m. and opened fire. Authorities said Brown lived next door to the bar and was known to the patrons inside.
Four people were killed: Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59; Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 64; David Allen Leach, 70; and Tony Wayne Palm, 74. Kelley was working as the bartender; the others were regular customers.
Brown fled, sparking a massive weeklong manhunt involving more than 130 local, state and federal law enforcement officers. The FBI, ATF, U.S. Marshals Service and Montana National Guard all assisted, deploying helicopters, air patrols and ground teams across rugged terrain.
The Department of Criminal Investigations in Montana released a photo of Michael Brown fleeing the scene after allegedly shooting and killing four people at a bar on Aug. 1, 2025. (Department of Criminal Investigations)
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Residents told Fox News Digital that fear settled over the town as the search dragged on.
“The town is just scared,” one bartender said. “Everybody’s on edge.”
Brown was captured Aug. 8 near a barn about five and a half miles from the bar. Authorities said he was armed.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen called the killings “cold-blooded.”
To read more about this case, click here.
Travis Decker was suspected of murdering his three daughters before disappearing into the Washington wilderness. (Chelan County Sheriff’s Office)
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Wenatchee, Washington:
In May 2025, a manhunt was launched for the fugitive father of three accused of murdering his three daughters before disappearing into the wilderness.
The Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said Travis Decker, a military veteran and wilderness survivalist, failed to return his three daughters from a court-mandated custody visit in late May 2025. Days later, the bodies of Paityn Decker, 9; Evelyn Decker, 8; and Olivia Decker, 5, were found at a Chelan County campground.
According to police, the girls had been bound with zip ties and suffocated.
This undated photo provided by Whitney Decker shows Paityn, Olivia and Evelyn Decker. (Whitney Decker via AP)
A manhunt followed, spanning rugged mountain terrain and involving multiple law enforcement agencies. In September, human remains were discovered on Grindstone Mountain, less than a mile from where the girls’ bodies had been found. DNA testing later confirmed the remains belonged to Decker.
“This will bring a close to our case,” Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison said after the DNA results were confirmed. “We wanted to show honor to them and let them know we haven’t forgotten.”
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Court records showed Decker’s ex-wife had previously petitioned to modify the parenting plan, citing his worsening mental health and unstable living conditions.
To read more about this case, click here.
Fox News Digital’s Peter D’Abrosca, Julia Bonavita, Michael Dorgan and Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
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