Our favorite character is back again, and this time we’re seeing signs that her empire is crumbling.

WGN reported that Dolton is being forced to release their financial statements. After months of refusal, the Illinois Attorney General is making sure the public knows what they deserve to know. They said, “In the opinion, the Village of Dolton is directed to respond as soon as possible to the request,” a spokeswoman for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in an email. “The village has 35 days after the issuance of the opinion to either comply or contest the opinion in court.”

The opinion was dated Feb. 9.

We lost a titan of industry last night.

Bill Post, the founder of Pop-Tarts, has passed away at the age 96. Post created the breakfast snack in 1964 and revolutionized the breakfast industry as a result. The product, named after the “pop-art” movement of the time, was such a hit from the jump that Kellogg’s could not keep it on the shelves.

As of 2024, there are over 20 full-time Pop-Tart flavors, including hot fudge sundae, wild berry, raspberry, and grape.

Maybe technology was a mistake.

A TikTok has gone viral after a McDonald’s worker filmed themselves fulfilling an order that was for a single salt packet. The TikToker opened a McDonald’s bag and she dropped the single packet of salt in. Paige then folded the bag and sealed it with two McDonald’s stickers on each side. After that, she was all done.

It is unknown at this point what the financial toll of this order was.

The year was 2017. We were living in the wake of “Envelopegate” at the Oscars, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were nearing their engagement, Portugal. The Man had just dropped “Feel It Still”, and the Bears were moments away from making a horrible, horrible mistake.

With the second pick in the 2017 draft, the Bears opted not to take the quarterback from Texas Tech, instead hitching their wagon to Mitch Trubisky of North Carolina.

Since then, Mahomes has won 3 Super Bowls in 5 years, including going back-to-back for the first time since the 2003-2004 Patriots.

The Bears are now scouting their replacement for Trubisky’s replacement.

Every Friday, Case the Producer rounds up the most exciting new tunes in music and serves them up in one easy-to-find blog for you, the Q101 Crew Members.

The Black Keys: I Forgot To Be Your Lover

The Black Keys are back with another new track! Following up on last month’s “Beautiful People (Stay High)”, the duo bring us “I Forgot To Be Your Lover”, a two minute bop that sounds like a return to form.

Brittany Howard: What Now

The former Alabama Shakes front-woman, Brittany Howard, is back with her second studio album. Following 2019’s Jaime is no easy task, but Howard shows that she’s up to the challenge with What Now. Clocking in at 12 tracks in just under 40 minutes, Howard’s voice is stunning throughout. We are so thrilled to have her back, making music once again.

The Chisel: What A F*cking Nightmare

Oi oi! UK’s hottest street punks, The Chisel, are back with their second studio album. Following their marvelous debut, Retaliation, is no easy task, but the beautifully titled What A F*cking Nightmare is a worthwhile follow-up. If you’re a fan of acts like Rancid or The Bouncing Souls, The Chisel are made for you.

Declan McKenna: What Happened to the Beach? 

English singer-songwriter Declan McKenna, who hit it big with 2017’s smash-hit “Brazil“, is back with a new album in What Happened to the Beach? McKenna’s brilliant approach to songwriting is present yet again with this terrific addition to his discography.

The Strumbellas: Time Believer 

Hey, The Strumbellas are back! Part Time Believer marks the band’s first full-length release since 2019 and we’re so glad the wait is finally over.

It actually might be happening.

At this time last month, the most realistic move for the White Sox was to Nashville. Now, in the matter of weeks, there is real momentum for the White Sox to uproot to the South Loop in the “new” 78th neighborhood. Last night, renderings were revealed of the Chicago White Sox and developer Related Midwest’s proposal to bring a new ballpark to the plot of land near the South Loop known as ‘The 78,’ which was first shared with WGN News.

The project also proposes the creation of 10,000-plus construction jobs to build the new ballpark, and 22,000-plus permanent jobs in total after construction is finished.

Costco is a wonderful place. It’s the land of opportunity and exploration. It’s also, as it turns out, the land of forgiveness.

Jackie Nyugen went viral on TikTok after she brought her old couch back to Costco for a return. Nguyen explained to the store that she did not have the original receipt, but recalled the date on which she had originally purchased the couch. That allowed a Costco to process the transaction and issue a full refund to Nguyen. 

Last night at the 2024 Grammy Awards, Q101 artists boygenius and Paramore took home a number of awards. For the supergroup boygenius, who consists of Julien Baker, Lucy Dacus, and Phoebe Bridgers, they won Best Alternative Music Album for the record, which became a runaway hit in 2023. The standout single from that album, “Not Strong Enough”, also took home Best Rock Song.

As for Paramore, their return-to-form album This Is Why took home Best Rock Album, beating out the likes of Foo Fighters and Metallica. The title track also beat out Arctic Monkeys and Lana Del Rey, to name a few, for Best Alternative Music Performance.

Taylor Swift took home Album of the Year for Midnights, Miley Cyrus took home Record of the Year for “Flowers”, and Billie Eilish took home Song of the Year for “What Was I Made For? [From the Motion Picture “Barbie”].

Final days of Chicago Restaurant Week (Friday-Sunday) 

Chicago Restaurant Week continues with more than 380 Chicagoland eateries will offer specially curated prix fixe menus for brunch ($25), lunch ($25) or dinner ($42/$59) between January 19 and February 4. With more than two weeks to chow down, there’s plenty of time to make a few reservations and check out some of the best restaurants in Chicago.

Meat Wave at Empty Bottle (Saturday) 

Hard rockers Meat Wave come to the Empty Bottle for a sold out show on Saturday night. A homecoming show for the exciting three-piece, this could very easily be the best show of the weekend.

Meet Me at the Altar at House of Blues (Saturday) 

Emo stalwarts Meet Me at the Altar come to House of Blues for what should be an excellent show on Saturday night. Tickets are available here.

Cider Summit Chicago (Saturday) 

Tickets are now on sale for Cider Summit Chicago, the region’s largest cider tasting. Cider Summit Chicago celebrates local, regional and international artisanal ciders and cider makers. The 10th annual Cider Summit Chicago will feature over 150 ciders, cider cocktails and fruit spirits. This year’s event, Saturday, February 3 at Navy Pier’s Aon Grand Ballroom, expands general admission event hours to 2-6 p.m..

Night Snow Tubing (Saturday) 

Bundle up for an evening of snow tubing. Thrill seekers will meet at the Long Room, where transportation will be provided to a nearby mountain. After you’re done tubing, you’ll refuel with some food and drinks before heading back to the city. Get all the info here.

Bulls host the Kings (Saturday) 

Can the Bulls crawl closer to .500? They face the pesky Sacramento Kings on Saturday night at The UC!

Ben Bradley from WGN is continuing to do the Lord’s work for exposing the corruption taking place in Dolton from their mayor Tiffany Henyard.

According to WGN Investigates, Henyard has spent $67,000 on trips to Portland, Austin, Atlanta and New York City in recent months. This includes a stay at the Four Seasons Hotel in Atlanta. She also brought home a bill of $9,347. Her stay in New York included a $13,098 hotel bill. Airline records show everyone in the group frequently flies first class, as well.

Ben Bradley joins Brian & Kenzie this morning at 8:20am to further discuss the matter.