golden gate bridge is a place that so many people want to visit and we have it in our own backyard. get out and enjoy as much as you can. stay cool an hydrated. the "today" show is coming up next. good morning summer soaker. elsa drenching the northeast this morning torrential rain and high winds creating a dangerous commute just hours after a separate system led to chaotic scenes like this. new york city subway stations flooding passengers wading through waist-high water just ahead, what you can expect today and this weekend booster already? pfizer announcing it will soon seek government approval for a third shot but overnight, the fda and cdc saying boosters are not

necessary at this time the new debate as the delta variant sweeps across areas of the country with low vaccination rates. ending america's longest war. president biden sets the final date for the complete withdrawal of u.s. troops from afghanistan. >> the status quo was not an option >> just ahead, the president's message to critics who say the move will throw the region into greater turmoioil and increase e terror threat agnst the u.s. crowd control. team usa athletes react to the decision to ban fans at events in tokyo we're there li as the countdown to the opening ceremony hits just two wee those stories plus - ready for liftoff. the space race between billionaire sir richard branson and jeff bezos heating up. branson heading to the edge of space this weekendnd and the new c-h-a-m-p.

makes history at the scripps national spelling bee, the first african-american winner ever and she's joining us to celebrate, today, friday, july 9th, 2021. >> announcer: from nbc n news, this is "today" with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb from stududio 1a in rockefeller plaza >> welcome to "today" on a friday morning we appreciate you starting your weekend with us. savannah and hoda are back on monday zaila avant-garde. remember that name >> so proud of her she's just 14 years old. she's a spelling champ that twirls this gets me every time. that's just genuine joy. >> she made history. we'll chat with her in a few minutes. >> we begin wi a busy day and a look at headlines making news around the world in japan, new fallout over the decision to ban spectators

from the olympic games with the country declaring a state of emergency over the covid crisis in tokyo we'll take you there live. in the u.s., there's new debate over whether or not people will need a booster shot to help protect against the spread of the delta variant. we're live in the hard-hit a momentand we'll get answers in we start here in the northeast with that wild weather. last night, a fast-moving storm flooded subways here in new york city, and this mornining, millis are dealing with elsa as she makes her way up the coast we'll get a closer look at where the storm is headed. first, kathy park is out on long island in the rain and wind. good morning to you. >> reporter: craig, good morning to you it certainly is a wild start to the morning. elsa has arrived, bringing with it heavy showers and gusty conditions you can see right now, the rain is really coming down. meanwhile, last night, we were hit with another round of

extreme weather. stranding drivers and even flooding out subway stations as elsa slams the nortast -- >> oh, my god. >> reporter: -- overnight, flash flooding and torrential rain from another system battering the region new york city streets under water, cascading into subway stations one woman walking waist deep into the water, other riders using trash bags for cover drivers stranded on the flooded expressway rescued by the police truck. in phidelphia, heavy rain and wind causing downed power lines. in new jersey, dangerous storms pound do you think on neighborhoods. residents snapping photos of golf ball-sized hail drivers navigating flooded roads acss long island >> we're seeing already dangerous rip currents and tides. >> reporter: officials warning residedents to stay safe be prepared for the possibility of power outages >> reporte in connecticut, residents stocking up as elsa moves in and takes aim

>> i have a generator. i have sump pumps. we have plenty of water stocked up >> reporter: now we are in the thick of it right now. the forecaststers are saying th is a pretty fast-moving system, so it should be out of here in the next couple hours. but even in a short window of time, we're expecting some hazardous conditions and things could deteriorate quickly when high tide hits this area around 9:00 this morning. craig. >> kathy park braving the elements for us. thank you. let's get more on today's threats from elsa and those dramatic images of flooding ina. the new york city subway system who better to tell us about is than janice huff she's in for al this morning >> good morning. it's pouring outside our window right now here as tropical storm elsa makes its way up the coast. strongest winds will be along the coast. they are still tropical storm warnings in effect for shores along long island, up through parts of conne well

rainfall totals will be the biggest thing and the wind along the coast. right now,w, elsa's center is fe miles east of atlantic city, new jersey, but it's moving rapidly. it's on a tear right now, over 30 miles an hour off to the north and east strongest winds near the center, but the effects are far reaching heavy rain, wind, gusts of 60 miles per hour at cape cod are possible, and d an isolated tornado and dangerous rip currents are possible as well. look at the rainfall totals from southern new england which includes providence to boston, portland, and east maine, they're looking at upwards of maybe 6 inches of rainfall it's starting to pull away fast. >> we'll come back to you in a few minutes. now to the battle against the coronavirus. and there's a lot to cover this morning. federal surge response teams are now being deployed in areas of the country facing outbreaks from the dangerous delta strain. meanwhile, an announcement from pfizer tied to vaccine booster shots has ignited quite the debate over whether you'll need

one. we have it all covered for you this morning, starting with nbc's shaquille brewster in southwest missouri shaq, good morning >> reporter: good morning, craig. the debate over the need for a possible covid booster shot entering a new phase this morning, but it comes as many of these rural health departments are struggling to convince more people to get one of the shots already available. this morning, the delta variant surging throughout the u.s >> this rapid rise is troubling. >> reporter: pfizer now saying it plans to seek federal authorization for a booster dose of its vaccine, saying initial research shows a third shot within 12 months could boost immunity against the highly contagious strain. but overnight in a joint statement, the fda and cdc saying, "americans who have been lly vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. we are prepared for booster doses if and when the science

demonstrates that they are needed." the immediate focus, vaccinating >> simply put, in areas of low vaccination coverage, cases and hospitalizations are up. >> reporter: a according to the cdc, the weekly average of new covid cases and hospitalizations continues to rise. the delta variant now accounts for around 80% of cases in western and midwestern states. states like nevada and missouri, where the vaccinated population remains low. adam wilson waited to get vaccinated but made it a priority after being unable to visit his 81-year-old father, now battling the virus. >> it's a good time do it now. >> reporter: the white house dispatching response teams and targeting vaccine help to hard-hit communities but missouri's governor is pushing back >> ibject to the federal government coming in, going door to door to anybody's house >> reporter: still, for springfield, missouri's, fire chief, whose department hosts vaccination clinics in fire houses, aggressive measures are necessary.

>> i would equate what is happening to a a mass casualty event happening in slow motion >> reporter: pfizer plans to release and submit to the fda more complete data in the next couple days or weeks we also know that they -- the company is also saying they're already developing a vaccine targeted to the delta variant. they hope to begin those clinical trials as soon as next month. craig? >> all right, shaquille brewster for us in missouri let's bring in medical contributor dr. vin gupta. let's start where shaq left off there. i know you think pfizer jumped the gun a bit in announcing this booster shot, this third shot. why? >> good morning, craig, good morning, sheinelle the fda and cdc got it right that they're preparing and the science isn't there yet. if you're immunompromised, if you have a loved one who is immunocompromised, you will need a booster shot that's what the studies show whatever booster shot is being developed d by pfizer, that's great for that 4% of america

that's going to need it. howewever, for the rest of us, e science just is not there yet. two doses, if you're fully vaccinated with pfizer, moderna, with johnson & johnson, we're having that debate about getting them that second dose. two doses seem like they're critical to giving you full protection from the hospital in light ofof the delta variant, b there is no, you know, i think the troubling part here is pfizer cited an israeli study suggesting t that there was a decreased effectiveness of their vaccine against the delta variant. it was 94% effective agast the delta variant keeping people out of the hospital. that is a phenomenal number here the science isn't there yet. i worry this is only going to hinder or harm our ality to reach the unvaccinated >> what about people watching who received the johnson & johnson vaccine? should they go get another dose of something else? i mean, there are so many opinions about whether you should mix and match, if you will

>> you know, sheinelle, we need to infer based on the evidence that exists today. in my opinion, yes if you got one shot of johnson & johnson, i do believe a second dose will only provide you additional protection. we tnk j&j will provide strong protection, but optimal protection appears to be two doses. mixing and matching appears to be safe with a sister vaccine, astrazeneca, so cdc is going to wait until they finish the clinical trial that might take six months so i have been approached by my patients who have gotten johnson & johnson, from others it's a really informal process where they're just hoping a cvs or walgreens will give them a second dose. we need to formalize it to make it easy. >> dr. gupta, thanks as always, sir. >> thank you meantime, president biden has now set a new date to bring america's longest war to an end. moving up the thdrawal of the u.s. troops to august, he's also defending his move to critics, calling the move overdue richard engel is i in kabul fors

this morng richard, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the entire region is already adjusting to a new reality the taliban have been visiting iran, meeting government officials. overnight, a taliban delegation was in moscow trying to assure russia that the taliban is not a threat to russia or to central asia so this entire region is preparing for a reality with the taliban either in control or having a dominant t position in this country the taliban this morning are making more advances to take over afghanistan, as u.s. troops leave. the taliban now control or are fighting to control the majority of afghanistan they have formed a ring around bul. president biden forcefully defended his decision to pull out all u.s. troops by the end of august. >> it's up to the people of afghanistan to decide on what government they want >> reporter: but afghan army and

police units are collapsing, surrenderingng to the taliban wh their weapons. many afghans consider their government corrupt and ineffective and appear unwilling to fight for it. president biden also promised to evacuate thousands of translators who worked with american forces. the taliban considers them traitors >> there is a home for you in the united states if you so choose and we will stand with you just as you stood with us >> reporter: in the back room of a cafe in kabul, i met tom, that's what u.s. troops called him. he did more than 150 combat operations and lived with american forces in close quarters did you hear president biden's promise? he said the people like you have a home in the u.s., they can come and live in the u.s >> i got a lot of news, a lot of announcements, but there's no action >> reporter: tom has passed security checks and has reams of letters proving his service. >> i got a lot of certificates,

but every company i got, this is all recommendation letters i got a lot of them. >> reporter: tom put in his visa application four years ago this is a letter signed by an american officer confirming that he received a death threat to him and his family because of his services to the u.s. forces. you helped the u.s now the u.s. needs to help you >> yep >> reporter: simple as that. >> yeah, yeah. we need help so u.s. army, the u.s. government has to help us. >> reporter: seems reasonable. tom says his situation is urgent, that he doesn't have weeks or months. he's's in hiding right now and he says the translators are already getting killed one of his colleagues got killed as he was on his way to pick up the visa he also doesn't haveve money sie u.s. bases are closed so he doesn't have a job it's very difficult to be on the run if you don't have any money, and especially if you're like him and you have a wife and three children so he is on the move, waiting for the visa and says he doesn't

have time to wait. he would like to leave on the planes going now >> scary for his family. richard, thank you a lot more to get to, including breaking news tied to the assassination of haiti's president. a new wave of arrests. two of the suspects, u.s. citizens nbc's gabe gutierrez is here with us in studio 1a with more >> good morning. the manhunt is not over. now, more than a dozen people have been arrested including two haitian-americans. it's not clear what their roles are in this and some in haiti are questioning who was really behind the fatal plot. these are the suspects that haitian authorities say are responsible for the murder of the country's president, lined up for thehe world to see behind a table displaying firearms, machetes, and colombian passports. in a news conference, haiti's police chief said at least 28 people were invovolved in the brazen assassination of

president jovenel moise. so far 50 men have been arrested including 13 colombians and two haitn-americans. four suspects died in a gun battle, and nine others are still on the run the haitian government says they were foreign mercenaries posing as dea agents when they stormed the president's private home, killing him and critically wounding his wife, who is being treated at a miami hospital. the acting prime minister has declared a state of siege, but the country's ambassador to the u.s. denies its martial law. >> i don't think it is it is a way to give more space to the national poli >> reporter: still, there's mounting tension in haiti. protesters gathered thursday outside a police station with some of the suspects were held some raising questions of whether the assassins had inside help, others skeptical that

sophisticated attackers who president's security team wowou there's also uncertainty about the line of succession president moise had named a new prime minister just two days before he was killed and suring the u.n. security council that elections will go on as planned later this year. >> a lot of questions on that one. >> thank you let's turn back to the weather and get the rest of the forecast with janice >> good morning. have a lot going on across the country. of course, we haveve elsa in the northeast, and of course, producing a lot of heavy rain and wind across the northeast and new england, but that's moving fast and out of here. across the northern plains, severe thunderstorms in effect in the upper midwest today the western heat is intensifying look at phoenix's high temperate, 112 today it gets even hotter over the weekend, maybe upwards of 120 degrees. more heavy rain for south texas. they've had up to 15 inches just in the l last three days and they're looking at another four to five additional inches

coming up later on today that's a look at the weather from coast to coast. your local forecast is next in 30 seconds her from coast to coast, your local forecast is next in 30 seconds o. business was steady, until... gogo-foodco. go check it out. whaatt?! overnight, users tripled. which meant hiring 20 new employees and buying 20 new laptops. so she used her american express business card, which giveves her more membership rewards points on her business purchases. somebody ordered some laptops? cynthia suarez. cfo. mvp. get the card built for business. by american express. good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. taking a look at our high temperatures today. ranging from the mid 60s near the coast to the triple digits. up to 103 in livermore and martinez expect a high of 95. 79 today in oakland while san jose will reach 94 degrees. and 100 today in morgan hill. our temperatures will be hot

throughout the weekend for the inland valleys peaking tomorrow and then we'll catch a break from the heat as we go into early next week. back to you. >> thank you, janice still ahead, the state of the olympics with the opening ceremony two weeks away, tokyo in a state of emergency. fans now banned from events. this morning, the reaction and the impact on the athletes and the host nation that spent billions preparing we'll have a live report from tom llamas in tokyo. also, we'll take you inside the final preparations for sir richard branson's voyage to the edge of space this weekend as the so-called battle of the space billionaires intensifies first,

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tingling or numbness in your limbs. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection, and don't change or stop your asthma treatments, including steroids, without talking to your doctor. are you ready to du more with less asthma? just ask your asthma specialist about d dupixent. good morning to you. it's 7:26. i'm marcus washington. here's today's top stories. we're under a microclimate weather alert as parts of the bay area are set to experience extreme heat. >> i'm bob redell in brentwood where it's going to be very hot today, projected to be around 105 tomorrow. even hotter, 110, 111. the national weather service has issued this excessive heat warning for much of the east bay, parts of the peninsula, sf, north bay, starting at noon today. that is your time to hydrated, keep an eye on the pets and also cal iso the

independent system operator issued a flex alert asking to limit your amount of electricity use between the hours of 4:00 this afternoon and 9:00 tonight. zoo good morning. i'm cierra johnson. a lot of folks still talking about that 6.0 magnitude quake that struck 250 miles south and east of san francisco. some folks near the epicenter could see boulders coming off some of the ridges landing on a highway there. chp says no one was injured but there were a few cars that did sustain damage. the topic for today is that weather. meteorologist kari hall is breaking it down for us. >> yeah. it's going to be really hot in our valleys reaching 103 in some spots and even more intense tomorrow. we reach the peak of our heat. excessive heat warnings go up for the inland areas and it will continue through sunday but we will be cooling off next week. mean time, low 70s in san francisco and near the coast.

marcus. >> thanks, kari. another local news update in 30 minutes. i'll see you back here then. oroweat small slice. i wonder if this has the same quality ingredients as the original whole grains bread? great question, dad. and it does. it has all the same nutritious deliciousness as the original slice but only a little bit smaller. just like timmy here. my name's lucas. it sure is bobby.

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>> that is correct >> how great is she? that is zaila avant-garde, a 14-year-old from louisiana, and 2021 scripps national spelling bee champion >> the twirl makes it, and genuine surprise by the confetti she holds several guinness world records. coming up, we're going to get some time with zaila

we'll talk about her manany talents. she's going to join us right here on "today." >> we'll start this half hour with your 7:30 headlines georgia police say they have made an arrest in the shooting deaths of a golf pro and two others he faces three counts of murder and other charges. he shot gene siller at a country club last saturday he was killed after witnessing a crime involving two other men. two more bodies were found in the bed of a pickup truck nearby the motive for those murders is still unknown. attorney michael avenatti was sentenced on thursday to 2 1/years in prison for trying to extort up to $25 million from nike he rose to prominence in 2018 when he represented stormy daniels in lawsuits against then-president donald trump. he was convicted last year of extortion and other charges, but his legal problems don't stop there. avenattiet to go on trial next year accused of defrauding

daniels out of hundreds of thousands of dollars she was owed for a book deal the u.s. coast guard has been called in to help free a river boat stuck on a sandbar in kentucky since wednesday. "the american jazz" is carrying 120 passengers and more than 50 crew members the boat originated in memphis but it's been stuck in lake barkley for two days somehow it veered out of the marked channel and into an area that's only four feet deep the "american jazz" was supposod to be on a seven-night cruise to nashville. meanwhile, the world now just 14 days away from those opening ceremonies of the tokyo olympics >> delayed for a year by the pandemic, the coronavirus is continuing to impact the games, with tokyo now in a state of emergency and a ban on spectators just announced. nbc's tom llamas is in tokyo with more. this keeps developing, tom >> reporter: that's right, sheinelle. good morning the scramble is on for athletes, broadcasters, organizers, even the first lady, all getting

ready for a very unique olympic experience the white house says they are checking out the feasibility of getting dr. jill biden here to tokyo while it's under a state of emergency this as we're speaking to the athletes and asking them, how are they getting ready to compete for the tokyo games without cheering fans. this morning, the olympic torch now in tokyo, completing its journey around the country as the games head into uncharted territory. the prime minister declaring that covid-19 state of emergency, the olympics forced to move forward but without spectators from the opening ceremony at the national stadium to gold medal competitions across tokyo, the athletes will be there but in empty arenas the goal, to limit olympic festivities. restaurants and bars also being asked not to serve alcohol even the olympic rings that illuminate tokyo bay are being shut off early at night because

they don't want to attract crowds and now the athletes also preparing for an olympics like no other u.s. diver krysta palmer will be competing in two events on the springboard. she's already visualizing competing in an empty facility how do you get yourself in the zone >> i think for me, i will visualize the fact that there won't be anybody in the stands, but that's okay because i know there's going to be all of my teammates there supportinge. >> reporter: and hoda recently sitting down with the u.s. women's gymnastics team, asking simoneiles, who is used to competing in front of sell-out crowds, how the lack of fafans y impact her >> do you think it will affect how you perform, simone? >> personally, i thrive under pressure, so i'm a little worried how it's going to affect me once we get ovever there. >> reporter: two-time olympian and gold medalist katie ledecky said the ban on fans won't take away the spirit of the games >> everyone is getting together

in this one city for the opportunity to pursutheir goals that they worked for, for five years and i still think that's a really beautiful thing and i know it's going to be nd of a made-for-tv olympics. >> that's another piece of this, tom. how will all these changes impapact or change the way the games will look on tv for all of us watching at home? >> reporter: yeah, it's the big question i spoke with nbc sports and executive producer molly sullivan, who is in charge of the olympics she says they have been preparing for this because they thought it was a possibility and they have produced sports during the pandemic so this is not their first rodeo. here's what's new, what she tells me she says we're going to hear the olympics like we have never heard them before. without all that crowd noise, we're going to hear the athletes more we'll hear what they hear, and we're also going to be across america in living rooms as the loved ones of the olympic athletes are watching in real time we have to do this because those relatives couldn't travel to tokyo. so it's going to b be a new and different olympic experience, but all the excitement is still going to be the.

>> absolutely. we'll make it work tom, thank you not to toot our own horns, but if there's an operation that can pull it off, it's nbc sports >> i second that just ahead, the countdown to a historic trip to space sir richard branson set to blast off this weekend and win the race with jeff bezos >> t costello is live with the final preparations and what the means for the future of sending paying passengers to the stars right after this ns andhat the w discover card i just got my cashback match is this for real? yup! we match all the cash back new carard members

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antidepressants may increase suicidal thoughts and worsen depression in those under 25. call your doctor about fever, stiff muscles, and confusion, which could be life-threatening, or uncontrollable muscle movements, which may be permanent. increased cholesterol; weight gain; high blood sugar; decreased white blood cells; unusual urges; dizziness on standing; seizures; trouble swallowing may occur. when depression sets you back, keep moving forward. make an appointment to talk to your doctor about adding rexulti to your antidepressant. we are back with in depth today, just over 48 we are back with "in depth today." just over 48 hours now, from now, the so-called battle of the space billionaires, bezos versus branson, may be settled. >> sir richard branson set to lift off on a passenger test flight to the edge of space. tom costello talked to mr. branson at the space port, and this morning, tom is in new mexico a lot of folks on the edge of their seats, tom >> reporter: this has gotten an

awful lot of buzz. two very well-known billionaires who spent billions on their space program, and as you know, whatever they do, this is going to opepen up the door for everyy people to fly to the edge of space, hopefully as soon as next year it's the last place you would expect to find two billionaires, jeff bezos in the desert of west texas, sir richard branson here. if you didn't know better, you would think you really are in the middle of nowhere. >> well, you are in the middle of nowhere the middle of new mexico, which is sort of the middle of nowhere. >> reporter: new mexico's brand-new space port america, branson is now just 48 hours away from fulfilling a dream to fly his own spaceship and cross the carmen line, the boundary between earth's atmosphere and space. the air force and nasa put that invisible boundary at 50 miles above the earth. >> wow look at that view.

>> gorgeous. >> reporter: so far, only virgin's test pilots have crossed the line branson and five others wi weightless for three minutes before gliding back to earth, making them civilian astronauts. this is your baby. you have spent 17 years and now it's coming true >> yeah. it's definitely a pinch yourself moment >> reporter: earlier this week, branson gave us an exclulusive behind the scenes tour the mother ship named "eve" after his mother, that will carry a spaceship named "unity," climbed to 40,000 feet and released "unity" will then rocket to the edge of space. also onboard, three virgin galactic employees >> it's happening. it's actually happening. and i'm really just incredibly grateful >> reporter: the entire flight expected to last two hours max all of it live streamed. meanwhile, in west texas - >> we have liftoff >> reporter: -- jeff bezos' blue origin has also been flying test flights.

no pilots. all remote controlled from the ground bezos is set to fly on tuesday, july 20th. coming along, wally funk at 82, her first ride into space will make her the oldest person to go there. also flying, an anonymous person who bid $28 million for the trip blue origin uses a rocket. virgin galactic uses a space plane with wings that unfold for landing. both plan to soon carry paying passengers with just days to go, branson and team have been practicing in a simulator. >> hello down there. >> you're not nervous? >> i'm not nervous because we have got incredible engineers. we have got the best, the best of the bunch >> reporter: so there is a bit of a disagreement over where is that carmen line, between atmosphere and space nasa and the military say it's 50 miles up. that's w what branson is aiming for.

the bezos team points out the international aeronautical body, kind of governs these things they say it's 62 miles up. so, says the bezos team, branson might not really make it into space. you can see there's already this dogfight between the branson team and the bezos team and bragging rights. >> shaping the n narrative >> oh, those billionaires. >> pretty high up to me. >> thank you, mr. costello we hope it all goes well this weekend. >> all right would you go, janice >> no. because i don't think i could take the g-forces. i know they have training for that, but it wouldn't be a pretty picture i like it here >> how is the weather down here? >> depends on where you are. some areas it's a mess with the tropical storm, but then we have the heat out west, the other big story right now. death valley is going to come close to some all-time records death valley actually has the hottest temperature record on earth, 134 degrees in 1913 but it looks like it may even get just as hot this weekend, if

not hotter in some areas they're expecting highs around 130 degrees sunday and monday. so they'll flirt with that last year, they y made it to 130 degrees, and if they get there again or even up to 131, they will hold the top spot all three records for the world, hot temperature records, will be from death valley. the problem out west is the drought. it worsens now extreme to exceptional drought for 90% of the western states.>. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we're going to be dealing with that heat this weekend. reaching up to 103 degrees today in the inland valleys and even hotter tomorrow. and then sunday, we're still looking at some pretty intense heat here, but it does start to ease off heading into monday and next week is when we catch a break. looking at some mid 80s in the forecast from tuesday through thursday. san francisco is where we can all go to cool off, especially near the coastline. highs near the 60s and 70s for the weekend.

now, here's sheinelle. >> thank you, janice up next, looking to buy new furniture for your deck or patio this summer? you might be out of luck >> vicky nguyen will take a look at what's driving another nationwide shortage, and she also has tips to help you find what you need, right after this. ♪ or how hard we work to find answers, partners, and hope. ♪ we make medicine. ♪ not just for some ♪ but r everyone. ♪

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things you start when you're 45. cocoaching. new workouts. and screening for colon cancer. yep. the american cancer society recommends screening starting at age 45, instead of 50, since colon cancer is increasing in younger adults.. i'm cologuard®. i'm convenient and find 92% of colon cancers... ...even in early stages. i'm for people 45 plus at average risk for colon cancer, not high risk. false positive and negative results may occur. ask your provider if cologuard is right for you. we are back with the we are back with thehe summ struggle facing families all across the country >> with more americans back to firing up the grills and gathering in the backyard, the demand for outdoor furniture is through the roof, and supply can't keepep up. >> nbc's investigative and consumer correspondent vicky nguyen is here with more on that and how to find what you need. i guess you have some time >> you're in the same boat, looking for furniture for your backyard it's the latest summer staple

that is in short supply. we have already seen a run on chlorine, inflatable swimming pools, fireworks, even some grilling favorites erica is roaring back and everyone seems to want everything all at once add that to the supply chain that's waking back up and you have to be strategic this summer to get what you want summer is in full swing. but this year, your backyard barbecues might be missing something. >> i ordered my patio furniture in march and i'm still waiting for it i have this great backyard but nowhere for anyone to sit. >> reporter: there's a patio furniture shortage sweeping the nation and it's hitting homes and businesses in the height of the season >> these are absolutely unprecedented times for us as far as sales, as far as customers coming in, as far as the demand for everything. never seen anything like it. there's no way to prepare for its. >> reporter: jeremy owns gordon's ace hardware in chicago. companywide outdoor furniture sales are up more than 26% >> we're doing everything we can

to try to get product in as quickly as we can. what may be here today is gone tomorrow >> reporter: across the country, many frustrated customers looking to deck out their decks are leaving stores empty-handed. >> they would have display furniture and say, we can get it for you, but it't's not going to be here for six to seven months. >> reporter: even online shoppers are coming up short >> i placed the order december 20th and they're en route. i don't know which route they took, but i'm waiting for them >> reporter: a table and chairs or an umbrella could take weeks to months to get, and they might cost you more. >> when you find something, it's outrageously expensive >> reporter: what exactly is going on amid the global pandemic, demand for outdoor seating skyrocketed with groups looking to gather safely outdoors. consumers are e also competing with restaurants and businesses scooping up much of the inventory for covid compliant outdoor dining on a larger economic scale, stranded shipping containers and a lack of truckers add to the

troubles patio furniture makers we spoke to said the issue might not be resolved for a while, and it could be 2022 or 2023 before that lounger you've been waiting for makes it to your yard. you might want to dust off a blanket and make it a summer picnic if you want to get around those extreme delays, try to be flexible when it comes tstyle and color. if you're at a major furniture store, you can ask what product the store has avavailable at thr nearby stores or at the local warehoususe. consider shopping at a used furniture store or thrift store, and don't forget about craigslist and facebook. marketplace, you can check and see if those items are available. >> i kid you not, i looked this morning. market place >> slim pickings or what's available? >> slim pickings >> shouldn't have waited to the last minute. >> we'll get it in time for next summer >> good attitude >> thank you still ahead, carson is going to join us with "popstart." >> plus live from london, duran duran with a performance of a

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by american express. good morning. it's 7:56. i'm marcus washington. here's what's happening now. >> good morning. i'm cierra johnson. a lot of folks still talking about that 6.0 magnitude quake that struck 250 miles south and east of san francisco. some folks there near the epicenter could see boulders coming off some of the ridges, landing on a highway there. thankfully chp says no one was injured but there were a few cars that did sustain damage. i'm bob redell in brentwood where it's going to be very hot today, projected to be around 105, even hotter tomorrow. that's why the national weather service has issued this excessive heat warning for much

of the east bay, parts of the peninsula, sf, north bay, starting at noon today. that is your time to stay indoors if you can, stay hydrated, keep an eye on the pets, and also cal iso the independent system operator issued a flex alert asking to limit your amount of electricity use between the hours of 4:00 this afternoon and 9:00 tonight. let's talk about that weather today. meteorologist kari hall has been tracking that. kari? >> yeah. we are seeing the excessive heat warnings for these areas shaded in pink for the areas that will be the hottest near parts of the inland areas as well as the north bay down to the santa cruz mountains. we're going to see triple-digit temperatures into the weekend. hot for a period of three or four days and then on monday, we're still looking at some warm weather but it will be coming down some. the relief comes next tuesday into wednesday. san francisco is going to keep it much cooler here with highs in the 70s throughout the weekend. marcus? >> all right. thanks, kari.

we'll have another local news update coming up in half an hour. see you then.

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it's 8:00 on "today." coming up, super soaker overnight, another summer storm unleashes onhe northeast heavy rain and flooding causing a mess on the roads and in the subway >> hopping in a trash bag. >> this morning, tropical storm elsa making her mark along the coast. what can you expect? then, shark safety how one woman is looking to change the stigma surrounding the ocean's most feared predator >> they shouldn't be afraid of sharks they should be afraid of a world without shks >> just ahead, what you should do if you ever come face-to-face with a shark

and can you spell winner we'll talk to the 14-year-old basketball star who was just crowned the national spelling bee champion >> that is correct on and >> how she's making history with her skills on and off the stage. >>nd duran duran, the legendary british band will join us live as they celebrate 40 years since first taking the music world by storm treating us to a concert of their old hits and new today, friday, july 9th, 2021. >> today, our grandma is celebrating her 75th b birthday. >> happy birthday, grandma >> good morning, "today" show. we're the joneses from kansas city >> today is our daughter's first birthday >> good morning, "today. >> we're the simmons family from

rosedale, new york >> celebrating my sweet 16th >> and my graduation >> and me not getting in trouble. >> yay >> that's funny. >> lots to celebrate welcome back to "today." thanks for starting your friyay with us. savannah and hoda will be back on monday. up next, we're going to have our second annual summer get-together savannah, ho, al, carson, and i met up in a backyard about a year ago the first time we had all been together in months with restrictions eased this time, we got together at fresco, the unofficial restaurant of the "today" show we ate, drank, lauwegh, right r news at 8:00 a one-two punch of severe weather soaking g the northeast. overnight, a fast-moving storm flooding roads and new york subways, and now another storm,

elsa, bringing more heavy rain nbc's kathy park is in the thick of it this morning she joins us live from long island kathy, good morning. >> good morning to you elsa made landfall earlier this week, but we're still feeling the impact of the tropical storm this morning we keep getting slammed with heavy bands of rain and gusty conditions, but keep in mind, the ground is already saturated from the round of storms we saw last night, which caught a lot of people here in the northeast off guard, especially in new york a lot of drivers were stranded, even had to be rescued off the expressway subway station was also flooded out as well. some people even ventured into the waist-high water other parts of the northeast also had to dealith treacherous conditions thousands are still in the dark this morning, thousands lost power. but fortunately, this is a fast-moving system it should be out of heren the ua certainly did make a big mess throughout the week, sheinelle. >> kathy, thank you.

be careful. there's new debate this morning over whether or not a covid booster shot i is needed. in a joint statement overnight, the cdc and fda say an extra dose is not necessary, at least for now, but they add they are preparing for the possibility. and so is pfizer. that company seeking federal approval for a third dose of its vaccine, saying research shows that the extra shot within 12 months could boost immunity against the new delta variant. the highly contagious strain is fueling a surge of new cases nationwide. >> just one month after the fdfda's controversial approval the first alzheimer's treatment since 2003, the agency is now calling for limits on who gets the drug nbc news medical correspondent dr. john torres joins us with more on the changes and what they mean for those living with alzheimer's. dr. torres, good morning to you. >> good morning, sinelle. >> listen, the fda approved this drug just a month ago. what changed?

>> so the big thing that chang is when they first approved it, they approved it with a label that said it could be used for all alzheimer's patients. the label is instructions doctors get on who they should be prescribing it for. fast forward, now they're saying based on the studies de on those with mild cognitive impairment, early stage alzheimer's, those should be the ones they use it on, not anybody with alzheimer's, particularly not those with moderate or severe alzheimer's because theh studies were not done on them and they don't think it's going to work welln them at all. the big thing you'll notice is who they're going to prescribe it for when patients come in to see their doctor. >> dr. torres, how does something like this happen? usually when the fda approves a drug like this presumably, they would look at something like this before the approval. >> and, craig, if you remember a month ago, this turned out to be a very controversial decision by the fda because they approved the drug even though it showed in one study that was smaller, a decline in cognition of alzheimer's, but in another

study, it didn't show any improvement at all. fda approved it. open label for anybody with alzheimer's. a lot of criticism, a lot of experts came on saying even though you didn't get the advisory committee agreeing on this, you approved it. now they stepped back and said let's make sure we limit it to people just done in the study, and hopefully that helps out and doctors know who they can subscribe it for and patients know when they go in or with their loved ones, they can ask for it at that stage and why they may or may not get it. >> so this is in response to the criticism? >> exactly. in response to the criticism. essentially, and kind of fine tuning. it usually doesn't happen as quickly. sometimes it happens, but not usually a month after the initial decision. >> we'll have to talk with our doctor on this one. dr. torres, as always, thank you. >> news is covered. how about a friday boost. >> it's time. >> hoda is not here, but i'm going to give it a try.

a massachusetts man bringing new meaning to the term "love of the game." he proposed to his girlfriend right in the middle of a softball game. take a look. she's at bat. he sneaks up behind her. into the catcher's spot without her knowing, and here's the big moment. >> oh, that's good. that's good. that's good. >> big cheers from the fans, teammates, even the opposing players, and of course, she said yes. the couple loves sports. he figured this was just the right spot to pop the question. >> i want to see that in slow-mo. did you see how smooth that was? >> that could have gone another way had she swung. >> but he had to practice that a million times. but he stuck the landing. all right, up next, is it safe to swim in the ocean when sharks are around? miguel almaguer is diving in with an expert who says it can be if you take the right precautions. his underwater adventure right after this. welcome to allstate. ♪ ♪

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welcome back it is that time of year again. shark week is upon us, kicking off on discovery channel and discovery plus on sunday night >> my son's favorite week. to get us ready, nbc national correspondent miguel almaguer took the plunge. he went to hawaii for a visit with shark expert ocean ramsey and her friends in the sea mr. almaguer, tough signment, sir. >> ocean ramsey has been swimming in the ocean since she was a little girl and e has made a life out of research and conservation, debunking shark misinformation the way she does that is to get up close and personal with the sharks and ts time, she took us with her. >> reporter: it's estimated roughly 180 million americans make their way to the beach each year and while there's only a handful of deaths from shark attacks during that time, spurred on by movies and stereotypes, the

perception of sharks as terrors of the deep and mindless man-eating machines still persist. ocean ramsey wan to change that if you're looking for her, this is where she'll likely be, studying, swimming with, and getting very close to sharks all around the world let me begin by asking what is it you do. >> we go out every day to collect data on sharks and we get to take people with us to teach them about the biologygy d the body language of sharks. >> reporter: sharks and their conservation are ocean's passion, the vastness of the deep blue her second home. what's the biggest misconception about sharks >> a lot of people think that if a shark swims past you, its are going to come up to you and eat you. that's what's so great about bringing people along with us, is they get to see what sharks are really like. and you're going to experience that quickly here. a huge part of that is just getting them in the water.

>> reporter: for ocean, the best way to protect sharks is to ach people about them. the best way to do that is to get in the water with them so after a quick safety lesson, avoid murky water, minimize splashing. and most importantly - >> keep your eyes in the water especially if they're coming up close, give them extra eye contact. don't turn you back to any of them >> reporter: definitely a little nervous. >> that's a natural human reaction you're going to be floating in 300 feet of water, surrounded by sharks >> reporter: then it was time to take the plunge. most people are obviously terrified about sharks why shouldn't they be? >> they shouldn't be afraid of sharks they should be afraid of a world without sharks sharks are so important for the health of the ocean. they keep diseases from spreading. they keep fish stocks healthy, they keep coral reefs healthy. it's so important to have sharks >> this is free diving, no oxygen and no cages, and because of the strong current and of

course, the sharks, the rule is to hang on to the boat until ocean gives us the okay. then dive. able to hold her breath for minutes at a time, ocean seemed to be able to summon the sharks almost at will within minutes, there were nearly a dozen large galapagos circling, swimming towards the sharks was one thing, holding my breath long enough to get close to them, quite another so we let them come to us. over and over, sharks nearly double my size calmly swam around, beneath, and near me curious, but not aggressive, including mj, a galapagos more than ten feet long when a shark attacks, it's incredibly rare, is a shark hunting a human or is it a mistake? >> 1,000 percent it is not hunting humans, meaning they're definitely trying to go after their natural prey items they have been evovolving, befo dinosaurs, before trees. humans have only been evolving

for around 200,000 years we're not on their menu. >> incredible. amazing how many sharks in just a short little area.a. how quick and curious they are, and they're big. the ocean's most feared predator, but perhaps also its most misunderstood this was certainly an experience of a lifetime. and i can admit, i was a bit scared at times. but it was certainly worth it, and we want to highlight what to do if you are in the waters where sharks may be. we're told you should always look around. awareness is key if you see a shark heading toward you, look at it directly. don't franticalllly swim away. and of course, don't go swimming with sharks on purpose unless you're with an expert. they are apex predators. back to you. >> it looks soalming, but it's kind of counterintuitive because you're swimming with sharks. >> you did it for work would you do it again on y your own? >> i think once was enough, craig.

>> exactly beautiful assignment thank you, miguel. again, shark week begins on discovery on sunday night. and we'll have more on sharks for you next week on "today" as well let's get another check of the weather from wnbc's jajanice storm elsa the storm is already near montauk point, new york, about three hours ago, it was near the jersey shore so it's racing off to the north and east, and there's a lot of rain to go especially across new england. three to six inches of rain expected there, especially along the coast, and that means coastal flooding or even inland flooding for your area, so be on the lookout. you still have a few more hours to go. in the meantime, that's not the only wet location across the country. south texas has seen a third day of rain. it's still coming down from brownsville to corpus christi, up to houston and san antonio. flood watches are in effect. they're expecting quite a bit of rain here as well. they have seen up to 15 inches over the past few days it's raining at the rate of

2 1/2 inches per hour. that's what's going on >> good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we're on the other extreme of all of that rain dealing with extremely dry conditions and heat. we're going to see our temperatures today reaching over 100 degrees and hotter tomorrow for our inland valleys. as we head towards sunday, still looking at some intense heat but going into next week we'll be looking forward to getting our natural air conditioning back. highs in the mid 80s there. san francisco will be in the mid 60s next week but we're going through the weekend with highs in the 70s. >> back to craig and >> janice, thank you now to a buzzer beater at last night's scripps national spelling bee >> 14-year-old zaila avant-garde, a spelling and basketball star from harvey, lolouisiana, beat out more than 200 others to earn the championship trophy. the final word that did the trtrick -- murraya >> and the champ up early this

morning. zaila, congratulations >> thank you how are you doing? >> we're doing great how are you doing? >> i'm doing great >> so here's the thing you're the first african-american winner. you're the first winner from the state e of louisiana and as i understand it, last year, you finished 370th, and this year, you win the whole thing. how did you do it? >> um, a lot, a lot of hard work, and my teachers helped coach me, like my main tutor, over the last few weeks, her lot. also a bit of luck and, yeah. >> and a lot of talent, my friend okay, so here's what i want people at home to know obviously, winni the spelling bee is everything. but listen to this you have other awards. i was just reading this this morning. you have three guinness world records for juggling and dribing multiple basketballs at once.

are you aiming for the wnba and spelling on the side >> i'm going to harvard for basketball and then maybe going to wnba or overseaeas or somethg before i go into my next thing of working at nasa or something like that. or a basketball coach. >> i would bet money on you doing all three of those things. zaila, how are you going to spend that $50,000 prize money >> wel when i won $10,000 on another spelling bee, i said i was s going to stick it under t floorboards for security $50,000, that would be a lot of dollars. and i don't think my floorboards can fit it so i don't know. yeah >> really quickly, you know, i want to squeeze this in because it doesn't happen overnight, and i know there's a village behind you. kudos to your family, your teachers, your friends what does your family think of

this >> my family thinks it's like really cool and stuff. especially my father and stuff he's like really happy because, yeah, it was kind of his idea to put me in spelling it was me and his idea to put me into spelling, so he's kind of like the main impetus behind it, but my whole family is super excited. >> absolutely. congratulations. the future is bright, no question about it. zaila avant-t-garde. we'll have to remember your name your 2021 scripps national spelling bee champion and here with us on the "today" show this morning. congratulations. >> thank you >> she's a cutie >> she's the best. >> all right, now time for "popstt. >> got that one. good morning >> oh, no. >> you know, all my kids are -- i don't know they're at camp or -- are you guys sleeping? >> you have to do your own graphics today

>> i don't know where they are i guess i'll just start it off we're going to talk about this young lady, jennifer lopez, who earlier this week, we played you a little bit of a brand-new track with raul alejandro, called "change the step" in english. this is going to be hard let me put it down for a second. overnight, the duo just dropped the official music video for the song, and it's fantastic of course, it's filmed down in miami. why would you not shoot a music video in miami if you could? jennifer dancing around the city, the ststreets, the beach here's more of it. ♪ ♪ >> this is the first time that lopez and alejandro have released a track together, and they havave more music on the w. j. lo set to be featured on his upcoming song, and we're looking forward to hearing more from all

them when it comes out all right, there's j. lo next up, "seinfeld." you hear that sound? that's the theme song for the most famous show about nothing it's hard to picture an episodet of "seinfeld" without that signature slap bass jazz punctuating jerry's opening jokes just like this >> a guy out in the driveway working on something with tools, how all the other men in the neighborhood are magnenetically drawn to this activity they come wandering out of the house like zombies men hear a drill, it's like a dog whistle. they go running upo the living room curtain honey, i think jim's working on something over there >> according to the composer, jonathan wolf, the now famous theme from all nine seasons of "seinfeld" almost never happened, revealing on the interview on sirius xm, he said that the music was actually the number one thing that nbc executives wanted to change about the show after shooting

season one, and the composer credits larry david for saving the day and d insisting thathey keep the original version because david just liked the fact that the execututives were describing the mus as annoying the rest is history. jonathan wolf, by the way, also composed some great other hit themes frorom shows like "will d grace" and "married with children." >> tv execs, what do they know >> that's rit. next up, h.e.r., the grammy-winning artist is sitting down with willie geist on this week's edition of "sunday today. they caught up on what the past year has looked like for h.e.r., that meant taking home the grammys song of the year award for the 2020 track i can't breathe, and in the interview, revealing the unexpected place where she wrote one of the biggest songs of her career so far. >> stays next to my bed in my mom's house. i was at my mom's house during quarantine and i picked up the

guitar i ended up recorded it in my room i was engineering myself, and the dogs were barking. i had to wait for a second and continue recording >> so the song of the year was recorded in a bedroom in your mom's house. >> yes it was >> a great interview we're going to watch it, but it's really great that willie is working out of his house now that's in willie's living room amazing. he has h.e.r., showing off that view there you can catch the full sit-down this weekend on "sunday today," guys looking forward to duran duran >> yes >> go find the kids first. see if you can find the kids >> thank you, carson just ahead, one of the most beloved bands of all time, duran duran, is with us live this morning from london sharing special performances of their hits, old and new, after your local news

. good morning. it's 8:26. it's friday. i'm chris chmura. new this morning, businesses are bouncing back from the pandemic and so is traffic. several big bay area companies like google, apple and uber are all opting for a hybrid workplace. employees will head into the office a few days a week. commuters are back at it and heavy traffic is back at it too. mike has been telling us about that. consider this, bay bridge congestion at peak hours is worse than it was before the pandemic. quick check of the weekend weather. here's kari hall.

>> yeah. it's going to be hot for our inland areas, but still staying nice and cool nears the coast. take a look at the spread in temperatures we have mid 60s in half moon bay but up to 103 degrees today in livermore. so there will be some places where we can go to cool off, but our valleys are going to be very uncomfortable. dangerous heat will continue peaking tomorrow, highs 100 degrees and a brek from the heat by tuesday of next week with highs in the 80s. >> we look forward to tuesday. thank you very much. another local news update in half an hour.

♪ >> where ♪ >> where is savannah we're back with duran duran's debut single "planet earth" in 40 years aer taking the world by storm, they are still going strong >> and roger taylor joining us live from london and we're going to chat with them, and even better, they're going to treat us to a full half hour of music, including a fan favorite, and then some new

music from tir 15th studio album that comes out later this year, which is great it's called "future past." >> but there's more. they're going to be back in the third hour with even more music. also in the 9:00 hour, jill martin is going to stop by with tips on refreshing your morning routine. money-saving ways to pamper yourself and a few celebrity entertaining hacks >> good stuff for you this morning. and there's a lot to look forward to next week on "today," including my conversation with 11 young stars of the u.s. olympic swim team who are ready to shine in tokyo. and chip and joanna gaines will be here in person in studio 1a live as they launch their own magnolia tv network. before all of that, how about one more check of the weather? janice, how are we looking >> we showed you flooding across the northeast earlier from elsa, and also across south texas. now there's the risk of flooding across the upper midwest and the northern plains. 12 million people at risk for severe weather in this area today. damaging winds, 75 miles per

hour or higher hail the size of golf balls and a few tornadoes are possible as wewell these storms are being caused by an area of low pressure rolling along a cold front towards st. louis. they'll spark late in the day and continue overnight so flooding rains are a likelihood for parts of iowa and missouri and back through kansas also they're looking at a lot of heavy rain on saturday there's a flash flood risk that spreads eastward with this into southern illinois and parts of missouri, too. multiple rounds of storms are possible that's why there's the risk of flash flooding, as storms sort of train over the same area, one after another. through sunday, they could see upwards of four, five inches of rain near peoria and st. louis, near indianapolis, too, and back towards kansas city. that's going to be a major problem for them, especially people trying g to get around on the weekend. so a lot of heavy rain expected for this area. that will continue to roll through into the weekend as well we also expect the rain to end

in the northeast as elsa moves away that's a look at the weather across the country. here's your local forecast. >> i'm meteorologist kari hall. it's going to be hot for the valleys reaching over 100 degrees and even hotter tomorrow. we're still looking at some extreme heat into sunday. next week is when we start to see the heat backing off and our temperatures in the low 90s and then some 80s by tuesday into thursday. san francisco is not heating up this go round. we're going to see temperatures in the low 70s and sunshine and upper 60s as the fog returns next week. >> janice huff, thank you. up next, we're going to kick off that fri-yay concert from the one and only duran duran the one and only duran duran but first, this is "today" on

[baby crying] i got it. i got it. ♪ ♪ give grandma kisses. mwah. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ getting some help with the little one, from her biggest fan. some real face time. just an amtrak away. the citi music series on "today" is proudly presented to you by citi. >> let's do it

we're back with our citi music series from the great duran duran. >> the legendary british band has been conquering the world of music for 40 years now, and they're treating us to classic hits and new ones as well, carson >> but first, let's catctch up with two of the members of duran duran. joining us live with probably a little bit of a delay, we have simon le bon and roger taylor. i'll jump right in 2021 marks 40 years since duran duran has become a global phenomenon you look back at the 40 years, what would you say would be the secret to your success >> probably not looking back >> excellent, roger. >> i t think, you know, we try keep looking forward i mean, we've got such a history. there's so much behind us, and so many years that we do actually, i think, generally try to keep in the moment, try to keep looking forward, and try to keep moving on, really

>> we're good mates, and i think that goes a long way to keeping us together as a band. we spend time together and laugh a lot. >> yes >> what's it like toto have you fans now whose parents were fans 30, 40 years ago >> did you catch that? >> i didn't catch that >> what's it like because you have a whole new generation of fans >> it's amazing. i mean, you sort of -- we dididt know what was going to happen. when we started this band, we didn't see further than six nths in the future and now, 40 years ahead, we have got fans of lots of different generations. and it's extraordinary i think we all feel very, very, very fortunate >> you have had such a storied career is there a single achievement of which you are proudest over the last 40 years? >> i think sticking together actually the second time around

you know, we did have a little bit of a split when we got back together in 2001, we stayed together i think that is a real achievement. >> simon, as i understand itit, you went into the studio in late 2018 after you had put out "paper gods," you maybe could have recorded two or three songs and released an ep, but here we are now, a couple years after that, with a full track list that is "future past." where did covid play a role in that >> well, we came in, as you know, about a year and a couple months after we started the project, and it really stopped everything our producer sent us an email saying i'm not coming to the studio anymore and that really stopped everything in its tracks and we were trying to get the album out in 2020, but 202was a complete -- it got written off, really. but in that year, in between when everything closed down and

which also included us coming back to work and getting the project started again, we all had a chance to step back and really in the same way as an artist would with a picture, and we stepped back and we saw where the weaknesses were and where the strength were. we were able to make it a much better album for that. >> very cool a lot of collaborations on it. you have graham from blur playing guitar you have three great producers but specifically, simon or john, tell me about working with mark ronson, because we hear the states know so much of his successful tracks. >> we worked with mark for many years, and we love to work with him. he's such an inspirational guy to work with so it was great to work with mark on this record. it was a great collaborationnerl as though we're in such a great moment right now because we have

been locked away for so long with the lockdown and everything we just finished the album, we seem to be coming out of this whole thing, and it seems such a beautiful moment >> yeah. >> by the way, this is roger, not john i'm the other taylor >> yes right. right. gotcha sorry about that how do you think your music is different from back in the days of mtv i know nick talked a lot about your sonic landscape and the importance of duran duran's music, its r relationship with technology, which you see in the invisible video. how do you think your music has evolved? >> it's evolved as music has evolved. we have always gone into the studio with an experimental mindset. we have always wanted to discover new music for the band. but at the same time, there's a sound that is always duran duran. it has a lot to do with the way i sing it's got a lot to do with the way john plays drums, the sounds

nick mays on his keyboard, but we're always listening to new music as well. i think we're very affected by the great progress and developments that are happening in the art form while we're doing our thing, the stuff that other artists are doing. >> yeah. roger, i'm sorry, i can't see you in my monitor. you're one of my favorite drummers of all time because of you, i bought a five-piece pearl when i was 15 years old from a paper route i got. i fliz apologize for that. hang tight let's get to some music and start with a classic let's enjoy duran duran. here is "notorious." ♪ no -- no -- notorious torious ♪

♪♪ ♪ ♪ i can't read about it burns ♪ i'll doo fine without it the skin from your eyes ♪ ♪ i'll do fine without it here's one you don't compromise ♪ ♪ lies come hard in disguise ♪ ♪ they need to fight it out not says they're part of our lives ♪ wild about it ♪ ♪ who says that's part of our lives ♪ ♪ you own the money you control the witness i need your lonely don't monkey with the business ♪ ♪ you pay the profits to justif your reasons ♪ ♪ i heard promises i don't ♪ noo

believe ♪ keep the sec ♪ no-no-notorious girls will keep your secrets ♪ ♪ so all the boys make it nice ♪ ♪ fools run ringso break up not really gives a something they never destroyed ♪ ♪ grand notorious slam and who really gives a damn for a flaky bandit ♪ ♪ don't ask me to bleed about i i need this blood to survive ♪ ♪ you own the money you control thwitness ♪ ♪ i'll leave you lonely don't monkey with my business ♪ ♪ you paid the prophets t to justify your reasons ♪ ♪ i heard your promise but i don't believe it that's why i've

done it again ♪ ♪ no-no-notorious ♪ ♪ notorious notorious ♪ ♪ you own the money you control the witness ♪ ♪ i'll leave you lonely don't monkey with the business ♪ ♪ you play the prophets to justify your reasons ♪ ♪ i heard your promise but i don't believe it ♪ ♪ you own the money you control the witness ♪ ♪ i leave you lonely don't monkey with my business ♪ ♪ you paid the prophets to justify your reasons ♪ ♪ i heard your promise but i don't believe it that's why i've done it again ♪ ♪ no-no-notorious ♪torious ♪

that that's why i've done ♪ no-no-notorious ♪ that'shy i've done it again ♪ ♪ that's why i've done it again ♪ ♪ no-no-notorious ♪ ♪ yeah that's why i've done it again ♪ ♪ yeah that's why i've done it again ♪ ♪ notorious no-no-notorious ♪ ♪ yeah, that's why i've done it again ♪ ♪ notorious one, two, three, four ♪ >> so fun. so fun to listen to. that's the title track off their fourth studio album, 1986 it came out "notorious." but now we're looking ahead. just like the guys said, we have roger and simon live in london they don't look back

we look forward to their new record, their 15th, "future past." we're going to get a sg off it and chat more with the guys. duran duran'music here coming s when it comes to flooring, i'm hard to please. so, i go to floor & decor where they don't just know the difference between products, they live for it. from american hardwood to spanish porcelain to italian marble, i'm looking for inspiration from every part of the world. so, when it comes to discovering every imaginable tile, wood, laminate or stone without compromising my design, one aisle doesn't cut it. i need an entire store. now, i've got one. explore floor & decor in person or online at flooranddecor.com grass looks great, zeus! hey could you maybe trim the hydrangea too? sure thing, kevin.

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we're back, coming up on 8:4848 with more of our fun friy concert from the legendary duran duran. simon leon and roger taylor join us from l london. >> with the first single off their album, "future past. here they are performing their new w hit, invisible ♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ shy one walking by the wall ♪ ♪ shy one the shadows will not fall ♪

♪ s one is silently ignoring ♪ ♪ quiet one discouraged by the noise ♪ ♪ quiet one living without choice ♪ ♪ quiet one is a life without a voice ♪ ♪ when you can't even say my name ♪ ♪ has the memory gone are your feeling numb ♪ ♪ go on and call my name ♪ ♪ i can't play this game so i ask again will you say my name ♪ ♪ has the memory gone are you h feeling numb ♪ ♪ or have i become invisible ♪

♪ sky light that dreamers wish away ♪ ♪ hindsight is falling on my face ♪ ♪ highlights the shape of my disgrace ♪ ♪ when you don't hear a word i say ♪ ♪ as the talking goes is a one-way flow ♪ ♪ no fault no blame ♪ ♪ has the memory gone are you feeling numb ♪ ♪ and have i become invisible ♪ ♪ invisible ♪ ♪ invisible ♪ ♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ invisible invisible ♪

♪ invisible invisible ♪ ♪ and no one hears a word they say ♪ ♪ has the memory gone are you feeling numb ♪ not a word they say but a voicelesess crowd isn't backing down ♪ ♪ when the air turns red with their loaded hesititation ♪ ♪ can you say my name ♪ ♪ has the memory gone are you feeling numb ♪ ♪ have we all become invisible ♪ >> there you go, guys. nice work, fellas. roger and simon join us. that was invisible, the lead single off their 15th studio record, "future past." i always have associated technology with duran duran. what can you say, and you know, 20 seconds, about huxley, the

artificial intelligence that made that possible >> actually, it's an artificial intelligence creative. you feed in information, and pictureictures of the band, pictures of the world around us, and words of the song and pictures of us and huxley dreams a video for you. >> wow >> okay. >> one of the coolest things you ve to check out that video if you haven't seen it finally, duran duran, the record comes out october 22nd i think you can presale order it now. what's the future for a tour >> you know, the world is just starting to open up again after covid. we're ready, aren't we >> yeah. we're probably going to get to america next year, i think '22 is when we're going to get there, i think it's been really difficult for

us because we love to play and we love to connect with our audience, so it's really exciting to be getting back out again next year. >> simon, roge-- >> we look forward to seeing you in new york. thanks so much appreciate it. >> thanks. it's been a pleasure being on your show. >> thanks for having us. >> our pleasure. >> again, don't forget their album, "future past" is available for preorder now they're back with one more song they're back with one more song in our third hour, but first, dear ms, from day one you've tried to define me. but i never invited you in. it's my life and this is my journey. i've found a way to do things differently with ocrevus, an infusion treatment that's 2-times-a-year. for adults with relapsing or primary progressive forms of multiple sclerosis, ocrevus is proven effective in reducing relapses in rms and slowing disability progression in rms and ppms. don't take ocrevus if you've had a life-threatening allergic reaction to it, or have hepatitis b. tell your doctor about vaccinations or if you've had hep b, as it could come back. a common side effect of ocrevus is infusion reactions, and some may require hospitalization.

it can increase your risk of infections, which can be serious, and may decrease certain types of immunoglobulins. while pml was not reported in clinical trials, it could happen. an increased risk of cancer, including breast cancer, may exist. sorry, ms. you don't get to control every part of me ms can't own us. ask your doctor about two-times-a-year ocrevus.

coming up on hoda and jenna, a huge olympic themed show with mike tirico, some of the athletes to watch. >> first, in the third hour, a super singer. you're going to love her. she modeled for the first time, discovered it in her 70s and now us on our streaming channel today, all day, you can find it on today.com and also check out today in 30, the highlights from all four hours of our show. that today at's

good morning. it is 8:56 on this friday morning. i'm chris chmura. california's electric grid operator issued a flex alert today for later on. rolling outages are possible because extreme heat and demand for things like air conditioning are stressing the grid.

for example, brentwood is expected to hit 105 today and 110 tomorrow. that flex alert runs from 4:00 this afternoon until 9:00 at night. cal iso is asking everyone to conserve energy. here's how, set your thermostat to 78 or higher if your health permits an avoid using major appliances like your washing machine or dishwasher. turn off all unnecessary lights. meteorologist kari hall is tracking the conditions and at midday will map out the heat wave. did you feel it? a 6.0 earthquake struck the ta had area yesterday. seismologists are analyzing the jolt and aftermath. san francisco's tiki bar is getting ready to reopen. the tonga room at the fair month is welcoming back guests after closed for 16 months. last night they had an exclusive invitation opening event ahead of the grand reopening today at 5:00. another update in an hour. it's my 5:52 woke-up-like-this migraine medicine.

it's ubrelvy. for anytime, anywhere migraine strikes, without worrying if it's too late, or where i am. one dose can quickly stop my migraine in its tracks within two hours. unlike older medicines, ubrelvy is a pill that directly blocks cgrp protein, believed to be a cause of migraine. do not take with strong cyp3a4 inhibitors. most common side effects were nausea and tiredness. ask about ubrelvy. the anytime, anywhere migraine medicine. coming back from covid. the tech area company whose workers return monday. >> kari tracks when it will cool down. join us monday.

what if you could push a button and less carbon would be put into the air. if there were a button that would help you use less energy, breathe cleaner air,

and even take on climate change... would you press it?