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One Way Tour

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From Yerevan: Garni, Geghard, Azat Canyon, Symphony of Stones

Unique tour to Tatev, Khndzoresk, Shaki Whaterfall, Areni winery

Guided tour: Khor Virap, Noravank Monastery, Areni, Jermuk

From Yerevan: Sevan, Dilijan, Haghartsin, Lake Parz, Goshavank

Unforgettable tour to Tbilisi ( 15 sights )

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One Way Tour - All You MUST Know Before You Go (2024)

One Way Tour

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From Yerevan: Garni, Geghard, Azat Canyon, Symphony of Stones

Unique tour to Tatev, Khndzoresk, Shaki Whaterfall, Areni winery

Guided tour: Khor Virap, Noravank Monastery, Areni, Jermuk

From Yerevan: Sevan, Dilijan, Haghartsin, Lake Parz, Goshavank

Unforgettable tour to Tbilisi ( 15 sights )

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

One Way Tour - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

• One Way Tour
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09:00 - 21:00

26.05.2024 17:48 local time

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ONE WAY TOUR is a rapidly growing travel agency in Armenia for domestic, inbound and outbound tourism, since 2011 it has been successfully operating in the Armenian tourism market. Our travel agency is located in Yerevan. The travel agency specializes in organizing tours in Armenia, Artsakh and Georgia.

We are a team of passionate professionals who believe in success doing what we love and we love what we do.

In 2019, we were recognized as the best travel company of the year at the "Tourist Armenia" award ceremony.

Our goal is to provide our clients with unforgettable trips that will exceed their expectations by guaranteeing the best quality service. The proof of this is the fact that the number of tourists from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Spain, France, the USA and other countries and cities of the world is increasing every year.

Our tours are based on your wishes. We offer a wide range of tours in Armenia: individual tours, religious tours, gastronomic tours, active tourism and adventure tours, combined tours in the Caucasus (Georgia, Armenia), entertainment tours.

We take pride in offering excellent, fast and highly professional service to ensure you enjoy your well-deserved vacation to the fullest.

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Scottie Scheffler arrested before PGA Championship Round 2

Scottie Scheffler speaks about getting detained on his way to the PGA Championship. (2:33)

• Senior college football writer
• Author of seven books on college football
• Graduate of the University of Georgia

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested by Louisville Metro Police on Friday morning after trying to drive into the entrance of Valhalla Golf Club, the site of this week's PGA Championship.

Traffic outside the golf course had been stopped after a man was struck and killed by a shuttle bus around 5 a.m. ET.

Scheffler faces charges of second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic. The assault charge is a felony; the others are misdemeanors.

Maj. Jason Logsdon of the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections told ESPN that Scheffler was released at 8:40 a.m. ET Friday without bail. He arrived at Valhalla less than an hour before he was scheduled to tee off at 10:08 a.m. ET.

"This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers," Scheffler said in a statement. "It was a very chaotic situation, understandably so considering the tragic accident that had occurred earlier, and there was a big misunderstanding of what I thought I was being asked to do. I never intended to disregard any of the instructions. I'm hopeful to put this to the side and focus on golf today.

"Of course, all of us involved in the tournament express our deepest sympathies to the family of the man who passed away in the earlier accident this morning. It truly puts everything in perspective."

According to ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington, who witnessed the incident, Scheffler was trying to drive around the crash scene on a median. A police officer instructed Scheffler to stop, but Scheffler continued to drive about 10 to 20 yards toward the entrance.

At one point, an officer attached himself to the side of Scheffler's car. Scheffler stopped his car as he turned into the entrance of Valhalla Golf Club.

After about 20 to 30 seconds, Scheffler rolled down his window to talk to the officer. The officer grabbed Scheffler's arm to pull him out of the vehicle, according to Darlington. The officer reached inside the vehicle to open the door, and once Scheffler was pulled out, he was pushed against the car and placed in handcuffs.

Darlington was standing at the entrance when Scheffler was detained. Darlington said Scheffler turned to him and asked, "Can you help?"

According to Darlington, an officer instructed him to back away.

"You need to get out of the way," the officer told Darlington. "Right now, he's going to jail, and there's nothing you can do about it."

The officer -- Det. Bryan Gillis, identified as Det. Gillis in the arrest report -- was dragged "to the ground" and suffered "pain, swelling, and abrasions to his left wrist" after the car "accelerated forward," according to the police report.

The officer was dressed in a high visibility reflective jacket when he stopped Scheffler's car to give instructions, the arrest sheet said. Gillis was taken to the hospital for his injuries.

Scheffler's attorney, Steven Romines, told ESPN that the golfer attempted to enter Valhalla Golf Club as he had been instructed to earlier, unaware there had been a fatal wreck just up the road.

"He was going into Valhalla to work out," Romines said. "He was getting ready for his tee time. They were directing traffic. He held his credential out and was going in like they'd been instructed to. Apparently, there had been a traffic accident, maybe even a fatality, down the road, and that had changed the traffic patterns, and he was unaware of that."

Romines, speaking outside the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections, said the officer who attempted to stop Scheffler wasn't part of the regular event-traffic detail at Valhalla Golf Club, "so that's where the miscommunication arose."

"They are allowed to go through, that's why they have the credential and the wave-through," Romines said. "[Scheffler] was unaware there had been a wreck, and he proceeded like they'd been instructed to. He did exactly as he was instructed to enter the premises."

Romines said Scheffler would cooperate fully with police and "we'll deal with it as it progresses."

Scheffler, 27, has won four of his past five starts, including his second major championship at the Masters in April.

The start of the second round was delayed after a shuttle bus struck and killed a pedestrian outside Valhalla Golf Club, a spokesperson for the Louisville Metro Police Department confirmed to ESPN.

The unidentified man was attempting to cross Shelbyville Road when he was struck in a dedicated lane for buses. Police said the man died at the scene.

"This morning we were devastated to learn that a worker with one of our vendors was tragically struck and killed by a shuttle bus outside Valhalla Golf Club," the PGA of America said in a statement. "This is heartbreaking to all of us involved with the PGA Championship. We extend our sincere condolences to their family and loved ones."

Several police and first responders were still at the scene at 6:45 a.m. ET. Traffic had backed up on the roadway in dark and wet conditions, and shuttle buses bringing fans to the golf course had been stopped.

The second round had been scheduled to start at 7:15 a.m. ET.

How Big Is Taylor Swift?

Taylor Swift?

As big as the Beatles? Michael Jackson? Beyoncé? We crunched the numbers.

By Joe Coscarelli Graphics and additional reporting by Courtney Cox and Fred Bierman

You might have heard: Taylor Swift cannot be stopped.

Her new album , “The Tortured Poets Department,” sold 2.6 million copies in its opening week last month, earning Swift her eighth Billboard No. 1 album since 2020.

At the Grammy Awards in February, she became the first artist to win album of the year for a fourth time, breaking a tie with Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon.

And earlier this month, Swift’s Eras Tour, the 152-date, billion-dollar stadium takeover that began last year, resumed abroad before it returns to the U.S. in October.

Taylor Swift onstage at an Eras Tour show in New Jersey last year.

In 2023, according to the data tracking service Luminate, one in every 78 songs streamed in the U.S. was by Swift.

With a mix of prolific artistic output and relentless business savvy, plus cultural dominance as a celebrity, Swift, 34, has created such a swell of momentum that she is probably more popular — more omnipresent — 19 years into her professional music career than she ever has been.

That is not normal.

Swift fans in the parking lot of MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

But just how big is Taylor Swift, in terms of the all-time pop pantheon?

The singer’s ongoing surge has inspired inevitable debates about how her success stacks up not only against her pop peers, like Beyoncé and Drake, but to the greats that came before them. Even Billy Joel said he could only compare this Swift moment to Beatlemania.

Enraptured Beatles fans in 1964.

It may be impossible to do an exact, one-to-one comparison between Swift’s career and that of the Beatles — or Madonna, Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John or your icon of choice. Besides music being personal and subjective, the nature of success (and how it is calculated) has changed drastically over time. Much of a star’s grip on the zeitgeist is also intangible — a vibe in the air, their influence moving subtly but undeniably through culture.

But the absence of a truly scientific comparison has never stopped the amusement that comes from the eternal sports and pop culture debates of our time: Jordan vs. LeBron (or Kareem, or Kobe). Brady vs. Montana (or Marino, or Mahomes). “Star Wars” vs. “Star Trek” (or Harry Potter, or the Marvel Universe).

Even without definitive conclusions, it’s impossible for certain loyalists, haters and obsessives not to wonder how giants match up using whatever evidence might be available.

So with Swift’s career still peaking late into its second decade, we ran the numbers and analyzed the data, taking stock of what she has accomplished so far — and when — alongside some of the heaviest hitters in each category.

Taylor vs. the Beatles Hit Singles

First, there are the Beatles, who for most music fans still represent the gold standard of pop mania in modern times.

When it comes to Billboard No. 1 singles …

… they set the benchmark.

From the early 1960s, when pop music usually came in the form of two-sided vinyl singles, until the Fab Four broke up in 1970, the band released 64 songs that landed on Billboard’s all-genre chart, known as the Hot 100.

In that time, the Beatles helped to usher in the rock ’n’ roll revolution — and the album age — by releasing more than a dozen LPs.

But many of the records they set for hit singles still stand today.

THE BEATLES

TAYLOR SWIFT

‘Change’

‘We Are Never Ever Getting

Back Together’ (2012)

Let’s look at how Swift’s Top 10 hits compare to the Beatles’ over the course of their careers, starting with the year each of them released their first original single in the U.S.

What is incredible to remember is that almost all of the Beatles’ success — and their entire artistic output — happened very quickly.

Of the band’s 35 total Top 10 hits, 32 of them arrived in just eight years. (Three more Top 10s came after the band split.)

The Beatles came in hot, then they were gone — a risk for groups, with their various egos and complications, that Swift will never have to face.

Her career, on the other hand, has been a much slower burn, as she grew from country music ingénue to full-bore pop star.

Swift’s first Top 10 song (“Change”) didn’t hit until around her second album, “Fearless,” in 2008.

When we focus on No. 1s, the Beatles really dominate, with more chart-toppers than any other artist, a record they’ve held since 1965.

Out of the Beatles’ 20 No. 1s, the majority also came quickly, with 11 songs , including “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “Love Me Do” and “Yesterday,” topping the chart in 1964 and 1965, their earliest years as a fresh-faced phenomenon.

Swift’s first chart-topper, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” in 2012, needed a more dramatic twist.

Seven years into her career, she left behind her Nashville sound and collaborated with the pop guru Max Martin, who trails only John Lennon and Paul McCartney with 25 career No. 1s as a songwriter.

The bulk of Swift’s singles success has come even later, with seven of her 12 total No. 1s, including “Fortnight,” “Cruel Summer” and “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version),” arriving in the last five years , as her career entered its teens.

By that point in their musical lives, the individual Beatles were well into their various solo endeavors, with McCartney experimenting with new wave and George Harrison writing songs about race cars .

But as with any comparison across eras, there must be footnotes and asterisks. When we look at Top 10s from the 1960s, we’re only counting an artist’s actual “singles” — songs released for purchase outside of a full album.

After 1998, the rules began changing to include any song on the radio, regardless of how it was released, and eventually counting digital downloads and streams. By today’s rules, the Beatles would have even more hits than Billboard’s official count.

Swift, whose new album features 31 songs, each of which hit the Hot 100, has dominated with these new metrics: In 2022, she became the first artist to occupy the entire Top 10 on the Hot 100 at once following the release of “Midnights.”

She repeated and expanded upon that feat last month with songs from “The Tortured Poets Department,” which filled the top 14 spots on the singles chart.

This might measure a different kind of fervor than the musical ubiquity of the Beatles or others who ruled the radio later — a depth of obsession for Swift’s fans who stream her music billions of times and purchase it in multiple formats.

The length of Swift’s career has allowed her into the Beatles’ vaunted ballpark by giving her the chance to evolve her sound, grow her loyal audience and take full advantage of technological advances.

Yet as wild as it is for the Beatles to have accomplished so much in so little time, Swift’s longevity might be considered equally impressive in pop music, which often overvalues the new and — especially among female artists — the young.

Taylor vs. Michael Jackson Album Sales

Despite Swift’s streaming success — and ability to move even vinyl records — the high bar can only be Michael Jackson when it comes to album sales.

Like the Beatles, Jackson reached heights pop had never seen, changing the very nature of stardom, for better and worse, by kicking off the MTV video age and ruling popular culture amid tabloid mayhem.

Unlike the Beatles’, Jackson’s career was relatively long, from his time as a child star in the Jackson 5 until his death in 2009 at 50.

MICHAEL JACKSON

PLATINUM CERTIFICATIONS

‘Thriller’

‘Fearless’

‘1989’

ALBUM SALES

‘1989

(Taylor’s Version)’

But the meat of Jackson’s solo career lasted from 1972 through 2001, during which he put out 10 albums and followed a fairly typical arc for a pop career …

… the release of starter albums like “Got to Be There” and “Ben” in the early 1970s, then a big breakthrough — “Off the Wall” in 1979 — and a peak, before Jackson slowed down somewhat, at least commercially.

That peak just happened to be “Thriller” — arguably the peak of all pop peaks — which came out in 1982, when Jackson was 24.

For albums, going platinum — or selling one million copies — is the go-to stat. Let’s look at Jackson’s platinum albums vs. Swift’s , starting with the beginning of their careers as solo artists.

In the four-plus decades since “Thriller” was released, it has been certified 34 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, making it one of the most successful albums of all time.

Swift’s biggest albums so far are “Fearless,” which is officially 10 times platinum, and “1989,” at nine times platinum.

However, Swift’s platinum certifications are not totally up to date and do not yet count the sales of her redone “Taylor’s Version” releases, which have not been officially tallied by the R.I.A.A.

(It’s also worth noting that an album “sale” now means something different: a set amount of song streams or downloads is considered the equivalent of one album sold.)

Using the more recent sales data available for Swift’s albums, which can help us estimate where her R.I.A.A. certifications will be when they’re updated …

… she starts to approach — and even pass — Jackson’s monster platinum totals, giving us a better idea of how Swift will stack up to Jackson long term. Remember, Swift’s albums have about 30 years less of collective sales when compared to “Thriller” — and they’re still being actively promoted.

Swift’s “1989” — also released when she was 24 — may be the closest thing she has to Jackson’s biggest blockbuster …

… and she’s been strategic enough to release it twice, elongating what could be considered her career peak by stretching it across two distinct eras nearly a decade apart.

Part of Swift’s genius as she’s run up the stats these last few years — releasing nearly 200 songs since the pandemic — is that the music that first made her a star in the mid-to-late 2000s is exploding again alongside her latest hits, giving new fans a fresh entry point.

Already, Swift has released more solo albums than Jackson ever did, and with her productivity — including those two different versions of four of her albums so far — she can approach the King of Pop.

In all, Jackson’s 10 solo albums have been certified 72 times platinum. Swift’s 11 original albums have been certified 50 times platinum. But her album sales tell us that number, including Taylor’s Versions, is likely to be closer to 90. And she is very much still going, with “The Tortured Poets Department” already topping three million in about a month.

Taylor vs. Britney Spears A Pop-Star Arc

Swift’s extended peak becomes even more of a standout when compared to a more typical pop trajectory — even one with towering highs.

Like Swift, Britney Spears released her debut single at age 16 and came to absolutely dominate the cultural conversation (sometimes in ways that discounted her music in favor of her love life).

Commercially huge in its moment, Spears’s music career was also relatively short-lived, which tends to be the case more often than not, especially for singers who are known as performers and celebrities more than quote-unquote serious artists.

Swift, unlike Spears, has been firm in branding herself as a songwriter from the beginning, helping stave off some sexist criticism of her music as frivolous.

BRITNEY SPEARS

‘... Baby One More Time’

For reasons that became more complicated as time went on, Spears’s career sloped downward commercially basically from the moment it began, if you’re looking at album sales .

“ ... Baby One More Time ,” Spears’s 1999 debut, sold impressively. It’s certified platinum more times than, say, “Abbey Road” ...

… but it’s not quite “ 1989 ” even in raw numbers, leaving aside any questions of authorship, artistic merit and staying power.

The diminishing returns of Spears’s subsequent releases represent a sadly common path for the kind of pop singers that audiences can treat as disposable, with a new model always on the horizon.

Taylor vs. Madonna Era After Era

Madonna’s ability to reinvent — to persist as a woman in pop — is the reason we talk about artist “eras” to begin with. Another path-breaking solo pop singer with a huge peak, a long run of domination, a savvy command of marketing and unexpected longevity, Madonna has had a career that is 43 years long and counting.

From her breakthrough second album, “Like a Virgin,” released in 1984, when she was 26, through “Bedtime Stories” in 1994, Madonna was inescapable, pushing the boundaries of visual and sonic reinvention that are now considered prerequisites for top acts.

‘Vogue’ (1990)

‘This Used To Be

My Playground’(1992)

‘Music’

Let’s look at Madonna’s Top 10 Billboard hits compared to Swift’s, which shows how consistent both artists have been over extended periods of time — but also when in their careers each was most in the mix.

Madonna scored No. 1 hits across three decades, beginning with the title track from “Like a Virgin” in 1984.

In her first 10 years dominating the charts , Madonna had 10 No. 1s, ruling radio, MTV and nightclubs. She also appeared in blockbuster movies like “Dick Tracy” and “Evita,” expanding her cultural omnipresence.

Madonna’s peak was fueled in part by the kind of polarizing, shock-value controversy — think “Like a Virgin,” “Like a Prayer” or the “Sex” book from 1992 — that Swift has studiously avoided. (Although she, too, has had her share of extra-musical headlines, like the Kanye West V.M.A.s moment in 2009.)

But it was Madonna’s multifaceted fame as a triple threat that helped lead to many of her No. 1 hits, including “ Vogue ” (from “I’m Breathless,” the “Dick Tracy” soundtrack album) and …

… “ This Used to Be My Playground ” (the theme from “A League of Their Own”).

Swift has also dipped a toe into Hollywood, although her roles in “Valentine’s Day,” “Cats” and David O. Russell’s “Amsterdam” are less fondly remembered (and have resulted in no hit songs).

The most recent of Madonna’s 12 No. 1 hits (“ Music ,” from 2000) came 19 years into her career — where Swift is now — at the age of 42.

Madonna’s eight-year comeback period , from “Ray of Light” in 1998 to “Confessions on a Dance Floor” in 2005, resulted in six Top 10 hits. She has 38 overall (with none since 2012), compared to Swift’s 59 so far.

Taylor vs. the Veterans Touring and Awards

Alongside a pop survivor like Madonna, now 65, acts like Elton John, 77, and Bruce Springsteen, 74, are an interesting comparison point for Swift because of their productivity, longevity and critical acclaim — all of which has paid off on the road.

(See also: Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones, who are not included here, but would be interesting points of comparison using slightly different metrics.)

While Madonna has slipped on the charts — none of her most recent four albums has gone platinum — she remains a major live draw, a standard give-and-take for a top-tier legacy act.

John and Springsteen, both veterans about 50 years into their careers, also had periods of commercial dominance beginning in the 1970s with albums like “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (released when John was 26, that pop-star sweet spot) and “Born to Run” (from when Springsteen was 25).

But as they settled into pop-star middle age, plateauing commercially, they too have persisted with uber-successful, long-running tours fueled by fan allegiance and critical acclaim.

APPROXIMATE GROSS FOR TOP TOUR

Taylor Swift

Eras Tour (through mid-Nov. 2023)

Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour (2018-23)

Sticky & Sweet Tour (2008-9)

Renaissance World Tour (2023)

Bruce Springsteen

Springsteen and the E Street Band Tour (2023)

Michael Jackson

History World Tour (1996-7)

It’s All a Blur Tour (through mid-Nov. 2023)

All figures in 2023-24 dollars

APPROXIMATE GROSS PER SHOW

Let’s look at the total grosses for the best-selling tours by John and Springsteen, which put them in the company of more commercially dominant artists like Swift, Madonna and Jackson.

John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, a late-career greatest hits show named for his biggest album, made nearly $1 billion in part because it lasted for six years and more than 300 dates.

Madonna’s best-selling tour was Sticky & Sweet , from 2008 and 2009. (Like Swift’s Eras Tour, Madonna’s recent Celebration Tour highlighted all the periods of her four-decade career, although it was less profitable and played arenas rather than stadiums.)

If you look at how much these major tours made per show, the list changes.

This is where Swift shines, taking in more than $17 million per concert. By the time it’s over, the Eras Tour could bring in over $2 billion in ticket sales.

One notable aspect of Swift’s career so far is that it seems to bridge the gap between two kinds of artists, both of which can become legacy acts with strong enough catalogs and fan bases: the sustained, hit-making entertainers who may be overlooked, at least at first, as musicians, and the serious singer-songwriters who tend to be more critically lauded.

The Grammy Awards, love them or hate them, are voted on by other musicians and provide a proxy stat for prestige and overall acclaim in the moment.

NOMINATIONS

TOP CATEGORY

Let’s look at Grammy nominations among the crop of top artists we’re considering.

While Swift has already outpaced Jackson and Springsteen, it’s Beyoncé — another artist who has changed the way we talk about pop stars — who has the most nominations ever.

Looking at Grammy wins …

… we see artists like John and Drake, another modern juggernaut, drop on this list, having converted fewer of their nominations to victories compared with, say, Jackson and Springsteen.

Springsteen has won 20 Grammys across the decades, from his first for “Dancing in the Dark” in 1985 to his most recent, in 2010, for “Working on a Dream.”

Beyoncé is the winningest musician ever at the Grammys, where she has been awarded 32 times, topping the conductor Georg Solti (31) and the producer Quincy Jones (28), who was behind Jackson’s “Thriller.”

Yet Beyoncé has still never taken album of the year — where Swift has four trophies — and has won only once in the top categories , which include record, song and album of the year, plus best new artist.

It's been more than a decade since Beyoncé earned a top-tier Grammy, when “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” was awarded song of the year.

Madonna didn’t win her first Grammy until 1992 (for best music video!) and only has scattered victories since, indicating she may have been viewed by her industry peers as more of a commercial force than a musician’s musician.

It is worth pointing out that the Beatles won just four Grammys while active, including two in the big four categories, out of 20 nominations, demonstrating how hard it is to quantify musical quality and how esteem tends to shift over time. (Three more nominations and wins came after they broke up.)

The band took the top prize just once — for “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” the first rock album to win, in 1968 — in part because the Grammys, until the late 1960s, were quite conservative, often recognizing old-school, traditional pop acts like Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand. (“Help!” and “Revolver” both lost to Sinatra.)

Looking at stats like that, you could argue that the most popular musicians are taken more seriously as artists now than ever before, in no small part because of acts like the Beatles, Jackson and Madonna.

Taylor vs. Beyoncé and Drake Modern Heavyweights

While Swift’s overall pound-for-pound standing in each of the categories we’ve looked at puts her in rare historical company, it is notable that two of her most immediate contemporaries — Beyoncé, 42, and Drake, 37 — are also legitimate challengers across the board.

All three artists have maneuvered the industry transition between CDs, downloads and streaming to become defining modern superstars while also maximizing those intangibles like cultural reach and celebrity domination.

Beyoncé, now 23 years into a solo career after her time with the group Destiny’s Child, stands with Swift when it comes to versatility and longevity, plus sustained commercial dominance.

‘I Am ...

Sasha Fierce’

‘The Tortured

Poets Department’

‘Cowboy

Carter’

Let’s look at their album sales as solo artists side by side.

Beyoncé’s commercial peak (so far) came with “ I Am… Sasha Fierce ,” released in 2008, when she was 27. That album has sold more than nine million copies.

Since then , while selling fewer records, she has focused on different pillars of legacy, pioneering the visual album format (“Beyoncé,” “Lemonade”), experimenting with genre (“Renaissance,” “Cowboy Carter”) and pushing the limits of an extravagant live spectacle (Coachella, the Renaissance World Tour).

Both Beyoncé and Swift have had big-selling No. 1 albums this year , during fresh periods of productivity.

Like Madonna and Swift, Beyoncé has continued to stretch the limits of what a woman’s pop career can hold, landing two chart-topping singles in her 40s (with “Break My Soul,” in 2022, and again earlier this year, with the country-influenced “Texas Hold ’Em”).

She has also performed twice at the Super Bowl — something Swift has yet to do — a stage where acts like Madonna, Jackson and Springsteen have solidified their unquantifiable grasp on culture.

And then there is Drake, a relentless hitmaker. Like Swift, Drake has optimized his output to take advantage of the way streaming has reshaped the industry and its accolades to set new records, including 328 total entries on the Hot 100.

Swift, with 232, is the only other artist with at least 200.

Featured Artist

Drake has 78 Top 10 hits so far in his career …

… and 13 No. 1s stemming from a variety of projects: official albums, less official mixtapes, streaming-only “playlists,” one-off singles, collaborative albums and more.

As a rapper and frequent guest artist, Drake, unlike Swift, has appeared on many hits by others …

… like his first No. 1, on Rihanna’s “What’s My Name?” in 2010, accounting for a wide reach beyond his own releases.

Yet somehow Drake and Swift have never released a song together, despite sharing a certain canniness and expressing mutual appreciation for one another.

Even in his recent battle with Kendrick Lamar, Drake made clear that he sees Swift as his only real contemporary competition. (He has also rapped about having “more slaps than the Beatles” and frequently invokes Jackson’s success as a touchstone.)

Drake, Beyoncé and Swift all have this modern characteristic in common: They’re each actively playing for legacy, one eye on history and another on the record books. Ambitious and autonomous, they’re proudly writing their résumés in real time, juicing Billboard numbers and even gunning for accolades.

As a shrewd student of music and fame, Swift may know that she will never achieve the exact kind of domination that the Beatles, Jackson and Madonna had at the height of global monoculture, when everyone might pay attention to the same thing. But she’s certainly trying, taking bits and pieces from each’s career and making sure to maximize her work and reach in all the ways that weren’t available then.

She cares how she’s perceived and how she’ll be remembered when the noise fades and all that’s left are the songs — and the stats.

So far, it’s working.

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2024 PGA Championship leaderboard, winner: Xander Schauffele breaks through to claim first career major

Schauffele bounced back from disappointment to dominate valhalla and pick up the biggest victory of his career.

One week after disappointing in the final round and giving away a tournament victory, Xander Schauffele powered past a stacked leaderboard to win the 2024 PGA Championship in wire-to-wire fashion, breaking through to claim the first major championship of his career. The 30-year-old American tied a major record with a 9-under 62 to open play and never relented, leading after 18, 36, 54 and ultimately 72 holes by going a record-setting 21 under at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville.

Schauffele's 21 under was the lowest score to par in major championship history, while his 263 total score was the lowest 72-hole scoring total in such an event.

With his wire-to-wire victory, Schauffele becomes the 11th player to accomplish such a feat in PGA Championship history joining the likes of Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Brooks Koepka who was last to do so in 2019.

Schauffele, the reigning Olympic gold medalist, has come excruciatingly close at majors throughout his career with six top-five and 12 total top-10 finishes across 27 prior starts. He has frequently been known to pull ahead early but struggle closing at the sport's biggest events; that was a concern again Saturday as his leading margin shrunk with some of the best golfers in the world gaining significant ground during Moving Day.

Ultimately, Schauffele proved his naysayers wrong in convincing fashion Sunday. While 54-hole co-leader Collin Morikawa was unable to find a low number on the day until the last hole, Schauffele carded four birdies to go out in 31 and three more to come in at 34.

After taking a step back with a bogey on the 10th, Schauffele posted consecutive birdies on the 11th and 12th to regain the lead with a birdie on the 72nd hole of the tournament ultimately separating him from Bryson DeChambeau to give Schauffele the championship.

"I was actually kind of emotional after the putt lipped in," Schauffele said. "It's been a while since I've won, and I really just kept saying it all week, I just need to stay in my lane. Man, was it hard to stay in my lane today. I tried all day to just keep focus on what I'm trying to do and keep every hole ahead of me. Had some weird kind of breaks coming into the [club]house, but it's all good now."

Schauffele's greatest challenger Sunday was indeed DeChambeau, who posted a round-of-the-day 64 with four birdies on the back nine, including a brilliant putt on the closing 18th hole. The duo were tied at 20 under as Schauffele completed his final two holes with his own birdie on the 18th clinching the Wanamaker Trophy and $3.3 million winner's share of the PGA Championship's $18.5 million purse .

They say consistency precedes greatness, and there may be no better single phrase to describe Schauffele. After sleeping on the lead for three consecutive nights -- and enduring the criticism of having not won in nearly two full years -- Schauffele kept his head down and stayed straight in Louisville.

Having long been dubbed by his peers as being "the guy," Schauffele finally showed why Sunday.

Taking punches from DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland for most of the day, Schauffele biggest wake-up call came on the par-5 10th when he inexplicably dropped a shot on one of the property's easiest holes. It was the first time he had company atop the leaderboard Sunday (after Morikawa dropped off), and it set up one of the most memorable and clutch finishes in recent major championship history.

"I've had that feeling in the past where I've [failed to close], and I wasn't able to convert the putt. And finally, I got a couple putts to lip in, hit some decent putts with better pace, the ones that were a little more straight uphill," he said.

Schauffele's birdie on the last is what historians will remember, but the moments leading up to it were just as crucial. Receiving not one but two straight bad breaks off the tee across his final two holes, Schauffele showed a depth of toughness he had not displayed previously.

He did well to save par on the 71st hole, creating the opportunity to win in regulation, yet it proved to be no easy task. Hitting his tee shot along the left side of the fairway on the par-5 finisher, Schauffele's ball settled in the first cut and left him with an awkward stance with his feet in the stand. 

Bad bounces like that have affected him previously, but this weekend was clearly different. Instead of curling up, protecting himself and bracing for a punch, Schauffele countered. He laced a long iron up near the green, pitched his third just inside 7 feet ... and the rest is history. 

"I stayed very patient," Schauffele said. "I was looking up at the [leader]board. There's been times where I tried to look away from it until the back nine, but today, I was looking at it. I just wanted to be aware of everything. I wanted to know exactly where I stood. I wanted to know -- address my feelings when they were happening ... and I just kept fighting."

This is what won Schauffele the Wanamaker Trophy. He already flashed all the tangibles. He's a statistical darling. He's sneaky-long off the tee. He is perhaps the most well-rounded player in the professional sport. Still, something was clearly amiss. 

Schauffele found the missing link: toughness. That "you're going to have to pull this trophy out of my dying grasp" mindset. And now, Schauffele finds himself in a club where he rightfully belongs -- among fellow major champions.

2024 PGA Championship leaderboard

2. Bryson DeChambeau (-20): The ultimate showman. DeChambeau fed off three things Sunday: his driver, the crowd and his playing partner. Whenever he was able to pull out the big stick, he channeled greatness. Three birdies across his first six holes put him firmly in the conversation for the second straight major and second straight PGA. He failed to make a birdie on the par-5 7th, but he made up for it with birdies on Nos. 10 and 13 to inch closer to the top. 

The break of his tournament arrived on No. 16 when his tee ball destined for the hay hit a tree and bounced back in the middle of the fairway. He laced an 8 iron from 230 yards to 3 feet and gave himself new life. Surely, he would have loved to split the fairway on No. 18, but the shot he hit from the bunker to set up his closing birdie proved that -- when the lights are the brightest -- he is at his best.

"I played well, didn't strike it my best all week," DeChambeau said. "Felt like I had my B-game, pretty much. My putting was A+, my wedging was A+, short game was A+, driving was like B. You know, shot 20-under-par in a major championship. Proud of myself for the way I handled adversity. Definitely disappointing, but one that gives me a lot of momentum for the rest of the majors. I said today it was closing time, but it will be closing time hopefully, hopefully over the next couple majors."

3. Viktor Hovland (-18): He revealed after his round Saturday that he was thinking about not even teeing it up this week, and let's just say it's a good thing he did. Hovland flashed the form that carried him to the FedEx Cup crown and his Ryder Cup heroics; it all stood as a firm reminder that his best goes a long way. After a somewhat-sluggish start, the Norwegian rattled off six birdies across a nine-hole stretch in the middle of his round. He jumped into the solo lead at one point and looked primed to be the man to chase down Schauffele. Hovland struck the ball great and missed some real chances coming in, notably from about 10 feet on the 17th and 18th. If both those putts drop, Hovland finishes on top.

T4. Collin Morikawa, Thomas Detry (-15): Morikawa's final round at Valhalla had shades of his final round at Augusta National. It didn't look like he missed an iron shot early, but he was simply unable to get anything rolling on the greens missing chances on No. 4 (10 feet), No. 7 (5 feet) and No. 9 (10 feet). Morikawa carded nine straight pars to turn in 35, and by then, he was four off the pace of Schauffele. His major acumen cannot be overlooked as he now has seven top-five finishes in 18 appearances.

T6. Justin Rose, Shane Lowry (-14)

T8. Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Billy Horschel, Robert MacIntyre (-13): It's not hard to identify the outlier round in Scheffler's 67-66-73-65 performance at Valhalla. The Masters champion ran out of juice on Moving Day after an eventful Friday, and with the conditions as scoreable as ever for a major, he was left in the dust. Scheffler now has 11 top 10s in 19 major starts.

"I think 'hectic' would probably be a good description [of my week]," Scheffler said. "Overall, right now, how I'm feeling, I'm fairly tired, definitely a lot more tired than I have been finishing some other tournaments. But I'm proud of today how we went out there and fought. I got off to kind of a slow start, and I was able to kind of get some momentum and post a good round and give myself some good momentum."

T12. Rory McIlroy, Sahith Theegala, Dean Burmester, Lee Hodges, Taylor Moore, Alex Noren (-12): McIlroy's final round encapsulated his week as it was filled with a lot of stop-and-go work. After an opening bogey, the four-time major champion rattled off three straight birdies ahead of the turn before alternating birdies and bogeys from Nos. 12-16. He had his chances to make his imprint on this championship after opening with a 5-under 66, but the inability to cash in when opportunities presented themselves proved too much to overcome in ideal scoring conditions. The 35-year-old just missed finishing inside the top 10 for the eighth time in the last 10 major championships.

Rick Gehman, Greg DuCharme, Patrick McDonald and Mark Immelman recap the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla. Follow & listen to The First Cut on  Apple Podcasts  and  Spotify .

35 yards away from victory

After receiving a bad break off the tee, Xander Schauffele advances his second up the fairway and near the green and will have a great chance to get up-and-down and win this golf tournament. Birdie he wins the Wanamaker Trophy. Par and we are heading to a playoff.

Xander heads to last at 20 under

It's a beautiful up-and-dow on 17 and Xander Schauffele heads to the last with a chance to win the Wanamaker. A birdie wins the championship and a par means he has a date with Bryson DeChambeau for a three-hole aggregate playoff.

Bryson posts 20 under

HE DOES IT! Bryson makes from 10 feet to post the clubhouse lead at 20 under. Xander Schauffele is the man on the golf course who can win this. He stands at the same number and is currently in the fairway bunker on 17.

Up-and-downs required

Both Viktor and Bryson are unable to find the green in two and will need to get up-and-down to post 20 under (where Xander currently stands). Viktor has about 40 yards short of the green from the fairway while Bryson is rough pin high from the first cut.

Hovland, DeChambeau both miss chances on 17

That could be large. DeChambeau hits his worst wedge of the day and is unable to connect from 22 feet while Viktor Hovland misses his 9-foot birdie putt. They are one back with one to play and will certainly need at minimum a birdie and most likely an eagle to catch Schauffele who just tapped in for par on 15.

Bryson's big break

He was about to be in jail off the tee, but his ball hit a tree and settled in the middle of the fairway. He takes advantage hitting his second from outside 200 yards to inside 4 feet on the 16th. He knocks it in and pulls within one stroke of Xander Schauffele who has a chance from 12 feet on the par-3 14th.

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Soudal Open - Day one digest

Everything you need to know from day one in Belgium.

The biggest of birds helped Sam Jones burst ahead, the eagle landed for the Ryder Cup Captain, Jonas Blixt found his groove and the iron play was on point on day one of the Soudal Open .

Here is everything you need to know from Thursday at Rinkven International Golf Club.

Jones goes low to lead the way

Jones made a spectacular albatross en route to the lowest round of his fledgling DP World Tour career as he opened up a two-shot lead. The Kiwi arrived at Rinkven International Golf Club 168th on the  Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex  but found his form in stunning fashion, carding a 62 to get to nine under and lead the way from English duo Matthew Jordan and Andrew Wilson, Spaniard Nacho Elvira, Frenchman Romain Langasque and Dane Niklas Norgaard. Scot Connor Syme was then at six under, a shot clear of a group of seven players.

Jones' albatross makes it a pair of firsts

When Jones saw his ball hit the bottom of the cup after striking it with a three wood from 273 yards on the 17th, he recorded the first albatross of his career. It was also the first of the 2024 DP World Tour season after we had a remarkable six last campaign. "Initially it was going to be a three-shot, was going to lay it up," said Jones. "Thought about three iron off the tee, hit three wood, pulled it a little bit but hit in nicely. Got up there, had 248 metres to the flag, said to my caddie Keith that it was the perfect three wood, into the breeze a little bit. I was going well already at that stage so I thought if I made a bogey it was no big deal. Just hit it, flushed it, called to it to be good in the air and it was. First ever albatross, not a bad place to do it."

The skipper holes out

Jones was not the only one holing shots from distance - on the third Luke Donald did this from 149 yards for eagle.

Not everyone was holing out - but they were going pretty close.

How's your luck?

Sam Bairstow had every right to feel aggrieved after getting this break.

How unlucky is this?! Sam Bairstow hits Luke Donald’s ball with his pitch and ends up in the rough. #SoudalOpen pic.twitter.com/YHIXshOe0h — DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) May 23, 2024

Blixt in the mix

Blixt had played ten events this season coming into this week and missed ten cuts with a lowest round of 70. But on Thursday he made six birdies with a single bogey to sit in a good position at five under. A three-time winner on the PGA TOUR with two top tens in Major Championships, the Swede will be one to watch if he stays on a roll.

Trio share lead on wet opening day in Odense

Haraldur Magnus, Gudmundur Kristjansson and Andreas Halvorsen all carded six-under-par rounds of 66 to share a one stroke lead on the opening day of the Danish Golf Challenge at Odense Eventyr Golf.

DP World Tour Partners

One way to decrease temporary residents is to make them permanent, ministers suggest

Number of temporary work visa holders went from 337,460 in 2018 to 605,851 in 2022.

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A key method of restricting the population of temporary residents is to offer them permanent resident status, the immigration minister said Friday — but that doesn't mean everyone who wants to stay will be able to.

Marc Miller met with his provincial and territorial counterparts for the first time since since he announced an unprecedented plan to set limits on the number of new temporary residents.

Several provincial ministers pitched expanding their own immigration programs as a way to transition temporary visa holders into permanent residents.

• Federal government aiming to shrink temporary residents' share of population by 2027
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"The fact people are already here, their impact on affordability has already been baked in, so it's smart," Miller said.

"But it doesn't mean by extension that everyone's entitled to stay here or be here in Canada."

The aim is to rein in Canada's runaway population growth by decreasing the number of temporary residents, from 6.2 per cent of the country's population in 2023 to five per cent, over the next three years.

The new targets will be developed over the summer, after the provinces and territories have had a chance to weigh in, but labour economist Mikal Skuterud said they shouldn't be considered in isolation.

"You can't do that. It's part of the whole system," said Skuterud, an economist with the University of Waterloo.

He was among the first to warn the government to temper the massive rise in people who migrate to Canada on a temporary basis to work or study.

Miller announced plans to scale back the number of international students by putting a two-year cap on new admissions in January.

The government is also attempting to speed up the time it takes to process asylum claims and included legislative measures in the recent federal budget designed to make the deportation process faster when those claims are denied.

The final and largest category that has yet to be addressed is temporary work permit holders. Miller has said it's a workforce the labour market has become addicted to in recent years.

In 2018, there were 337,460 temporary work visa holders. By 2022, that number had swelled to 605,851.

Worker shortages, housing impacts

Skuterud credits that increase to changes in the criteria for permanent residents, which were designed to fill specific labour gaps. Those changes have created an incentive for lower-skilled workers to come to Canada in hopes of getting permanent residency.

"That's what's luring huge numbers to come, and it's creating this problem in the (non-permanent resident) population," he said. He suggests the problem could be reversed by creating a more predictable path to permanent residency for newcomers.

A major focus for the ministers will be negotiating how to allocate fewer temporary visas, which employers have come to rely on.

No matter what, adjusting course is set to come with some complications.

In Manitoba, for example, announcements out of Ottawa about scaling back temporary immigration have been met with an overwhelming surge in applications to the provincial nominee program for permanent residency.

• CBC Investigates Canada's international student spike was blamed on private colleges. Here's what really happened
• Minister was warned about possible negative impacts of lifting international student work limit

Earlier this week, Miller agreed to Manitoba's request to extend the federal work permits for some 6,700 newcomers whose visas were set to expire by the end of the year, to give them time to apply to stay in Canada permanently.

The new temporary visa target will also significantly slow population growth. While that could ease some pressure on housing costs and availability, it could also result in worker shortages, said Andrew Grantham, an executive director at CIBC Economics, in a report published last month.

"Restrictions on population growth could result in companies having to offer higher wages to encourage persons to remain in, or rejoin, the workforce. We could lose some firms that are simply not profitable if they are unable to tap low-paid foreign workers," Grantham said.

The labour needs of each province are expected to factor heavily into Friday's discussions. The new targets for temporary visas will be published in the fall.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Laura Osman is a reporter for The Canadian Press.

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Alaska mayor who wanted to give the homeless a one-way ticket out of Anchorage concedes election

Former Assembly Chair Suzanne LaFrance, poses for a photo at the Delaney Park Strip in Anchorage, Alaska, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson has lost his bid for re-election to his challenger, Suzanne LaFrance. (Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP)

Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson poses for a photo in his office, Sept. 14, 2023, in Anchorage, Alaska. Bronson has lost his bid for re-election. On Thursday, May 23, 2024 he conceded the election to his challenger, Suzanne LaFrance. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, file)

Suzanne LaFrance celebrates early positive results at her election night party at Williwaw in Anchorage, Alaska, May 14, 2024. Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson has lost his bid for re-election. On Thursday, May 23, 2024, he conceded this month’s runoff election to his challenger, Suzanne LaFrance. (Anne Raup/Anchorage Daily News via AP)

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, who wanted to give the homeless one-way plane tickets out of Alaska’s largest city, has lost his bid for re-election.

Bronson on Thursday conceded this month’s runoff election to his challenger, Suzanne LaFrance.

“After a long and hard-fought campaign, today I called Suzanne LaFrance to congratulate her on becoming the next mayor of Anchorage and to wish her the best as she prepares to assume the responsibility of leading our great city,” Bronson said in a statement.

He also pledged to ensure a smooth transition.

LaFrance, a former chair of the Anchorage Assembly, had claimed victory Tuesday, saying her lead was greater than any outstanding ballots. The two went to a runoff election when neither had more than 45% of the vote among the 10 candidates in the April 2 general election.

In the runoff, LaFrance had 54% of the vote to Bronson’s 46%. The assembly will certify the election May 31, and LaFrance will take office July 1.

Bronson had clashed with the assembly throughout his three years in office. The assembly opened several investigations into allegations of ethics violations and mismanagement.

The conservative Bronson, a registered Republican, complained of the assembly’s “woke” policies, but his tenure was also plagued by clashes with assembly members over how to provide housing for the homeless after a record number of people died outside in the winter of 2022-2023.

His unfunded plan to give one-way airline tickets to people who are homeless didn’t come to fruition, and the city scrambled to open a large shelter before winter set in last October.

Another contentious issue in this year’s mayoral race was snow removal.

The city was deluged by snowstorms in November and many streets were clogged with stuck vehicles because streets had not been plowed.

“We’re a winter city, we know it’s going to snow ... and we need to plan for it. And I think that’s what’s so maddening,” LaFrance told the Anchorage Daily News at the time. “It doesn’t have to be this hard.”

Another mayoral candidate, Democrat Chris Tuck, filmed himself plowing part of the street where Bronson lives in a pickup outfitted with a blade.

LaFrance, who is registered as nonpartisan, campaigned to “restore competency” to City Hall.

LaFrance becomes the first female elected mayor of Anchorage, but is not first to serve. Former assembly member Austin Quinn-Davidson became mayor in 2020 when then-Mayor Ethan Berkowitz resigned after a sexting scandal . She did not seek election in 2021.

Commentary | Commentary: Florida springs should be National…

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Commentary | Commentary: Florida springs should be National Heritage Area

Silver Springs is one of the most beautiful places that I have visited. I was always fascinated by the crystal blue waters welling forth from below, this dance of water and light, the interconnected world of underground rivers beneath the bow of the boat.

But Florida is also the “Land of a Thousand Springs.” Florida is unique in that it is home to the largest concentration of freshwater springs in the world. There really is no place quite like it. But unfortunately, the last half-century has also placed many stresses on our springs.

Robert L. Knight, board president and founder of the Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute, along with a talented young team of professionals, is spearheading just such an effort. I think that this is a great cause that all of us, as Floridians, can get behind.

Establishing the Florida springs region as a National Heritage Area not only will help to preserve and protect our world-class springs, it also has real potential to improve economic opportunities for our local and regional communities.

A National Heritage Area is not a national park and the federal government does not acquire or manage land. Instead, these areas work through partnerships with local governments, businesses and communities to accomplish their goals. As such, it allows for a community-based approach to help connect citizens to the preservation and planning process and to help improve the regional quality of life.

But in the end, the decision-making authority resides with the local people and communities. National Heritage Areas may also receive financial assistance from the National Park Service.

There will be opportunities in the future for members of the public to get involved and the Florida Springs Institute wants to hear people’s views on the proposal. More information can be found at FloridaSpringsInstitute.org.

As a Floridian, I am thankful for organizations like the Florida Springs Institute and for a man like Knight. He has spent the last four decades working on improving our springs and watersheds for future generations to come. Knight is a conservationist and a rememberer, which the state needs.

He has lived and seen the changes to Florida’s springs, recognizes the signs of deterioration and has dedicated his life to springs restoration and healthy water. He knows what some of us are only beginning to learn — that Florida springs are part of a sacred landscape.

William McQuilkin is a retired U.S. Navy rear admiral. He lives in Ponte Vedra Beach. This opinion piece was originally published by the Florida Times-Union and distributed by The Invading Sea website (www.theinvadingsea.com). The site posts news and commentary on climate change and other environmental issues affecting Florida.

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Alaska mayor who wanted to give the homeless a one-way ticket out of Anchorage concedes election

A NCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, who wanted to give the homeless one-way plane tickets out of Alaska’s largest city, has lost his bid for re-election.

Bronson on Thursday conceded this month's runoff election to his challenger, Suzanne LaFrance.

“After a long and hard-fought campaign, today I called Suzanne LaFrance to congratulate her on becoming the next mayor of Anchorage and to wish her the best as she prepares to assume the responsibility of leading our great city,” Bronson said in a statement.

He also pledged to ensure a smooth transition.

LaFrance, a former chair of the Anchorage Assembly, had claimed victory Tuesday, saying her lead was greater than any outstanding ballots. The two went to a runoff election when neither had more than 45% of the vote among the 10 candidates in the April 2 general election.

In the runoff, LaFrance had 54% of the vote to Bronson’s 46%. The assembly will certify the election May 31, and LaFrance will take office July 1.

Bronson had clashed with the assembly throughout his three years in office. The assembly opened several investigations into allegations of ethics violations and mismanagement.

The conservative Bronson, a registered Republican, complained of the assembly’s “woke” policies, but his tenure was also plagued by clashes with assembly members over how to provide housing for the homeless after a record number of people died outside in the winter of 2022-2023.

His unfunded plan to give one-way airline tickets to people who are homeless didn’t come to fruition, and the city scrambled to open a large shelter before winter set in last October.

Another contentious issue in this year’s mayoral race was snow removal.

The city was deluged by snowstorms in November and many streets were clogged with stuck vehicles because streets had not been plowed.

“We’re a winter city, we know it’s going to snow ... and we need to plan for it. And I think that’s what’s so maddening,” LaFrance told the Anchorage Daily News at the time. “It doesn’t have to be this hard.”

Another mayoral candidate, Democrat Chris Tuck, filmed himself plowing part of the street where Bronson lives in a pickup outfitted with a blade.

LaFrance, who is registered as nonpartisan, campaigned to “restore competency” to City Hall.

LaFrance becomes the first female elected mayor of Anchorage, but is not first to serve. Former assembly member Austin Quinn-Davidson became mayor in 2020 when then-Mayor Ethan Berkowitz resigned after a sexting scandal . She did not seek election in 2021.

Listen to the Soundtrack of 'One Piece' Live on Tour This Summer

Experience the world of 'One Piece' with a live orchestra.

The Big Picture

• Get ready for the One Piece Music Symphony 25th Anniversary Tour coming to the U.S. from July 6 to July 10.
• Composer Kohei Tanaka has created new arrangements for iconic One Piece songs to be performed by a 50-musician orchestra.
• One Piece is a popular manga and anime franchise following the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew in search of the legendary One Piece treasure.

The world of One Piece will be hitting the stage near you. In celebration of the anime's 25th anniversary, the ONE PIECE Music Symphony 25th Anniversary Tour will be making its way to the U.S., playing iconic shows from the show.

This special anime concerto will tour in America for 5 days, starting on July 6 in Los Angeles, and will conclude on July 10 in Las Vegas. According to Anime News Network , composer One Piece 's Kohei Tanaka has prepared new arrangements for some of the songs, that will be performed by a 50-musician orchestra. Some of the songs that will be performed on tour include, “Haha naru Umi” (Mother Sea), the lighthearted “Sekai no ichiban oden da!!” (This is the best oden in the world!!), and the amazing “Ore no saikouchiten” ( Luffy's Gear 5 acclaimed theme), just to name a few

The ONE PIECE Music Symphony is a worldwide music tour that will begin on June 1 in South Korea and will end on December 1, 2024, in France. This concert was first announced back on March 21st 2024 and tickets for the U.S. leg are now available for purchase.

What is 'One Piece'?

One Piece is a Japanese media franchise that started as a manga by Eiichiro Oda in 1997 and received an anime adaptation in 1999, which is still being produced to this day. The franchise is about a group of pirates who are searching for the One Piece, a pile of treasure that was owned by Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. As of writing, One Piece is currently in its 21st season. CBR reported that Oda confirmed the manga's eventual end and that the final chapter is scheduled to come out sometime between 2024 and 2025.

In 2023, Netflix released the One Piece live-action adaptation, starring Iñaki Godoy, Emily Rudd , Mackenyu , Jacob Romero, and Taz Skylar . Oda was one of the executive producers for this live-action and ensured that the Netflix adaptation kept the spirit of the original manga . This adaptation broke Netflix's record of producing terrible live-action adaptations of popular anime and was highly praised by fans and critics. On September 2023, it was announced that One Piece would receive a second season, with Percy Jackson and the Olympians ' executive producer, Joe Tracz , listed as the show's newest showrunner.

One Piece is available to stream on Crunchyroll and Hulu. Meanwhile, all season 1 episodes for the live-action adaptation are out on Netflix.

One Piece (1999)

Monkey D. Luffy sets off on an adventure with his pirate crew in hopes of finding the greatest treasure ever, known as the "One Piece."