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Olivia Newton-John & Amy Sky Sing “Sand And Water” At Nashville Songwriters Hall Of Fame

Amy Sky, Olivia Newton-John and Beth Nielsen Chapman

This past Sunday night, Nashville celebrated the best of the best in honoring this year’s inductees into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Olivia Newton-John and Amy Sky performed Hall of Fame inductee Beth Nielsen Chapman‘s moving “Sand and Water” in her honor. The song is included in the new album from the three artists released last week, LIV ON.

Chapman wrote the song in the aftermath of losing her husband to cancer, and has been featured in several films and TV shows.

I’ve loved the song since I first heard it back in the 90s. As a cancer survivor myself, I’m moved every time I hear the words.

It’s especially touching to see Chapman’s son (who is referenced in the lyrics of the song) perform with Newton-John and Sky here.

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Today Is National Coming Out Day!

Come out, come out, wherever you are!

Today, on National Coming Out Day, the LGBT community celebrates the single most powerful action you can take to make LGBT equality a reality. And that is to come out as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.

Every step forward we’ve seen in the past several years is directly related to the increased visibility our community has when we proudly step up and out as who we are. People who know someone who is openly gay are more likely to support equal rights for LGBTs.

Coming out inspires friends, family and allies of the LGBT community to stand up for what is right, even in the face of discrimination, bigotry and violence.

And on the most personal level, coming out improves our mental health, self-esteem, success and happiness.

Even if the first step you can take today is to come out to yourself, please know millions support your courage to live life authentically.

One of the most powerful moments I’ve experienced writing The Randy Report was when a regular reader reached out to me to come out on National Coming Out Day. I was honored that they trusted me to share the beginning of their journey.

Here’s hoping a lot of folks begin their own journey today.

Be brave. Be proud. Be you.

Happy #NationalComingOutDay, everybody! The objective of this day, first and foremost, isn’t to force anybody out of the closet. That’s something you should do on your own time, when you feel safe, and when you are ready. Instead, today serves as a reminder not to let yourself be bullied into silence. A reminder to each of us to live our truest lives. A life we each define for ourselves, rather than one lived in fear or by other people’s expectations. I can honestly say that the best thing I’ve ever done for myself was taking the time to acknowledge my sexuality and then taking the leap of faith to come out. At some point the pain of holding onto the charade became greater than the fear of letting go and I’m happier than I’ve ever been because of it. Thankful everybody who came out before me and helped pave that road to make my trip a smooth one, hopefully it will be an even less bumpy ride for everybody in the future! 🏳️‍🌈👬👭
A photo posted by gus kenworthy (@guskenworthy) on Oct 11, 2016 at 7:40am PDT

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Updated NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll Shows Clinton Leads Trump By +9

The folks conducting polls for NBC News/Wall Street Journal went back to 400 of those respondents they surveyed after the 2nd presidential debate Sunday night and asked if the debate changed any of their support for either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump.

The follow-up showed revises the original results to indicate that Clinton has a 9 point lead over Trump in a four way contest. Clinton garners the support of 46 percent of likely voters, while Trump has 37 percent, Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson has eight percent and Green Party candidate Jill Stein has two percent.

In a two-man race, Clinton beats Trump by 10 points, 50 percent to 40 percent.

Among the 400 “after debate” respondents, the race tightened to a 7 point lead for Clinton. That “gain” is relative to the sex tape fallout.

It should be noted that 400 in a national poll is a small sampling. And, it goes without saying, a 7 point lead less than 30 days out from the election is significant.

More from NBC News:

The new data incorporate interviews that were conducted after Sunday night’s debate. Poll data released by NBC News and the Wall Street Journal on Monday, which only included interviews conducted before the debate, showed Clinton with a 11 point lead in a four-way contest and a 14-point lead in a head-to-head matchup.

Among only those respondents contacted after the debate, Clinton’s lead shrank to a seven point advantage in both a four-way matchup and in a head-to-head race — reflecting the same margin that Clinton showed in a mid-September NBC/WSJ poll.

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The Voice: Billy Gilman & Andrew DeMuro Go Head-To-Head “Man In The Mirror”

Out singer Billy Gilman sang with fellow Team Adam member Andrew DeMuro in a head to head matchup on last night’s The Voice, taking on Michael Jackson’s classic “Man in the Mirror.”

What did the judges think?

Blake Shelton: “I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a more evenly matched battle. Billy has this voice that just cuts through everything, just like a laser voice. It’s so good, man. Then Andrew has all these little runs and things that he throws in there that separates from Billy. So, I don’t think you can go wrong here either way.”

Alicia Keys: “Billy your voice started out in this crystal space. And then you think of where we are in the world. It ended up making me feel that maybe things aren’t so bad as they sometimes seem, so thank you for that.”

In the end, Adam Levine moved Billy Gilman on to the next round.

I think they really were evenly matched here. Hottie Andrew is right in there, vocally on point and totally present in the moment.

And yeah, I’m always a sucker for a good “Man in the Mirror” cover.

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Out Music: Well-Strung “21 Guns + Pachelbel’s Canon”

Today, Well-Strung released the music video accompanying their brand new single “21 Guns + Pachelbel’s Canon.”

Intertwining Green Day’s hit song “21 Guns” with Pachelbel’s Canon in D, the music video is meant to shine a light on the epidemic on gun violence in this nation.

With so many tragedies like Orlando and Aurora, Well-Strung wanted to convey a meaningful message through music and story that inspires hope and change, especially with the election this year and the opportunity for that change to make way.

“We came up with the idea to juxtapose 21 Guns with Canon because the Green Day song is somber but poignant and lyrical” said Cellist Daniel Shevlin. “And we thought it would be interesting to pair that with a classical piece that is typically associated with joy and happiness like at weddings” violinist Edmund Bagnell added.

The song is currently available on iTunes here.

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ANOTHER Poll Shows Hillary Clinton Leading Donald Trump +11

From The Hill:

Hillary Clinton has an 11-point lead over Donald Trump, according to a PRRI/The Atlantic poll released Tuesday.

Clinton is now favored by 49 percent of likely voters and Trump is backed by 38 percent.

The poll shows Clinton increasing her lead over the Republican nominee. A poll conducted two weeks ago showed both major party’s nominees tied among likely voters at 43 percent.

The new poll finds Clinton has a commanding lead, 61 to 28 percent. over Trump among women. But Trump holds a lead among men, 48 to 37 percent. Trump also leads among white voters, 45 to 41 percent, while Clinton leads among non-white voters, 72 to 17 percent.

An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that came out Monday also showed the Democratic nominee with an 11-point lead over Trump.

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Out Music: Tyler Glenn “Gates”

Tyler Glenn, out frontman for multi-platinum band Neon Trees, shares the new track “Gates,” from his upcoming solo debut, EXCOMMUNICATION which is out on Oct 21st via Island Records.

The album boldly details a journey that’s deeply personal yet universal and issues a stirring call to find and fearlessly embrace one’s place in the world.

Glenn is the lead vocalist/keyboardist for Neon Trees. Known for such multi-platinum hits as “Animal” and “Everybody Talks,” the band has released three albums including 2014’s Pop Psychology (Island Records), which debuted at No. 6 on The Billboard 200.

Raised as a Mormon, Glenn came out as gay in a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone and remained steadfast in his faith until last fall, when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) announced a new policy identifying those in a same-sex marriage as apostates and prohibiting their children from being blessed or baptized. The announcement threw Glenn – and many others – into a tailspin.

“This album is a break up record,” says Tyler Glenn. “It’s been liberating to find a greater sense of purpose, but it’s not been without its sadness. I wanted this album to feel the way it feels to have a crisis of faith. The highs, the lows, the dark and the light – with the end result being a paradigm shift. I feel liberated and more creative than ever. I thank God for that, whoever she is.”

You can also view Glenn’s new video for Shameless here.

Available on iTunes here. Available on Amazon here.