Category Archives: Music

Aya Nakamura, the pop superstar at the centre of a Paris Olympic racism storm

Posted on by

Outrage from the far right over rumours of a performance at the opening ceremony has exposed deep divisions in France

She is the most listened-to French singer in the world, whose relentlessly catchy hits about love and betrayal have been streamed 7bn times and who made history last year when she sold out three Paris gigs in 15 minutes.

But Aya Nakamura, France’s biggest pop superstar who is known for her unique French style influenced by Afrobeats and Caribbean zouk, called out racism and ignorance this week after far-right politicians expressed outrage over the possibility that she could sing at the Paris Olympics.

Continue reading...

Jamaican musician Vybz Kartel has murder conviction quashed

Posted on by

Dancehall star was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 for the murder of an associate

The Jamaican musician Vybz Kartel’s conviction for the murder of an associate more than a decade ago has been quashed, with a London court ruling that attempts to bribe the trial jury meant the conviction was unsafe.

The dancehall star, whose real name is Adidja Palmer, is one of Jamaica’s most popular artists and has collaborated with performers such as Jay-Z and Rihanna.

Continue reading...

Neil Young to return music to Spotify as he attacks ‘disinformation’ across streaming services

Posted on by

Rock star left Spotify in 2022 in protest over podcaster Joe Rogan, but says he can’t keep up fight as Rogan broadens distribution to Apple, YouTube and Amazon

Neil Young is to return his music to Spotify after keeping it off the streaming platform for more than two years.

Young removed his entire catalogue from the world’s biggest streaming company in January 2022, in protest against Joe Rogan whose chart-topping podcast was exclusive to Spotify.

Continue reading...

Rising festival 2024: theatre-maker to be drugged unconscious in ‘deeply unnerving’ show about date rape

Posted on by

A Brazilian artist will have her body manipulated while passed out, in a lauded work about sexual violence that headlines Melbourne’s winter festival

A theatremaker will be drugged unconscious on stage in Melbourne this year, in a controversial and highly lauded theatre work about sexual violence that will have its Australian premiere at Rising festival.

Cadela Força Trilogy: The Bride and the Goodnight Cinderella is directed by and stars Brazilian artist Carolina Bianchi, who recounts her experience of being drugged and sexually assaulted, before taking a drug on stage. Once unconscious, female performers then move her body around, even at one point inserting a speculum and camera into her vagina, with a live video feed shown to the audience in a simulation of a post-rape forensic examination.

Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning

Continue reading...

Vinyl records return to UK ‘inflation basket’ for first time since 1992

Posted on by

Strong sales of Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) help format make an impact, as air fryers also join list

Not since Simply Red’s album Stars topped the albums chart in 1992 have vinyl records been included in the basket of goods used to calculate annual inflation, but a rise in sales over recent years has brought them back as a marker of UK shop prices.

The Office for National Statistics said the “resurgence of popularity” in vinyl records meant they should be included among the 744 items used to calculate inflation each month, in its latest annual shake-up of the basket.

Continue reading...

Alicia Keys criticised for Women’s Day event in ‘misogynist’ Saudi Arabia

Posted on by

The US singer has been called out by human rights activists for hosting a summit and performing on stage in the repressive state

Performer Alicia Keys projects a powerful position on women’s rights, hosting a regular Women to Women summit and posting inspirationally on Instagram on Friday for International Women’s Day. But the singer-songwriter’s message is undermined for some by the revelation that she is hosting the third edition of her summit this weekend in Saudi Arabia.

The American performer and her guests, including Pharrell Williams, best known for his worldwide hit Happy, are to discuss “how women are pushing the culture forward in Saudi Arabia and around the world”, she has announced, before the get-together in the coastal city of Jeddah.

Continue reading...

Israel to compete at Eurovision song contest after changing lyrics to its entry

Posted on by

Song amended after organisers banned entry for seeming references to 7 October attacks, which broke rules on political neutrality

Israel will be allowed to compete at the Eurovision song contest after changing the lyrics to its song, organisers have confirmed.

Eden Golan, representing Israel at this year’s competition, originally submitted a ballad called October Rain, widely thought to reference the Hamas attacks of 7 October. However, the entry was barred on the grounds of breaking rules on political neutrality.

Continue reading...

Taylor Swift: Singapore prime minister defends deal to secure exclusive access to Eras tour

Posted on by

Prime minister Lee Hsien Loong confirmed an ‘arrangement’ for Singapore to be the only stop on Swift’s south-east Asia Eras tour

Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong has defended an incentive provided to Taylor Swift by his government, to make the country the only stop in south-east Asia on her world tour, saying it was not a hostile act towards its neighbours.

“[Our] agencies negotiated an arrangement with her to come to Singapore and perform and to make Singapore her only stop in south-east Asia,” Lee told a press conference in Melbourne, where he is attending a regional summit.

Continue reading...

Israel asks Eurovision candidate to change controversial lyrics

Posted on by

National broadcaster says it agreed to make changes after request from country’s president

Israel has agreed to revise the lyrics of its potential submission to the Eurovision song contest after organisers took issue with verses that appeared to reference Hamas’s 7 October attack.

The contest, which will take place from 7 to 11 May in the Swedish city of Malmö, can disqualify contestants deemed to have breached its rules on political neutrality. Kan, Israel’s national broadcaster, is tasked with choosing the country’s entry.

Continue reading...

Brit awards 2024 – full list of winners

Posted on by

The winners of every category at the 2024 Brits, updated as the ceremony progresses

• Brit awards 2024: women dominate as Raye scores record-smashing six wins
• Brit awards 2024: as it happened

Blur – The Ballad of Darren
J Hus – Beautiful and Brutal Yard
Little Simz – No Thank You
Raye – My 21st Century Blues – WINNER!
Young Fathers – Heavy Heavy

Continue reading...

Cat Janice, viral TikTok singer, dies aged 31

Posted on by

Singer had documented her experience with a rare form of cancer on platform and dedicated her last song to her son

Cat Janice, the singer who went viral for dedicating her last song to her son and inspired a viral TikTok trend, has died from cancer, her family confirmed on Wednesday.

Her family announced the news on her Instagram account: “This morning, from her childhood home and surrounded by her loving family, Catherine peacefully entered the light and love of her heavenly creator.

Continue reading...

‘Joyful madness’: ANU scientist wins global prize for ‘dancing his PhD’ about kangaroos

Posted on by

Four-minute video features drag queens, twerking, ballerinas, a classical Indian dancer and a bunch of friends from Canberra

The former Canberra scientist Dr Weliton Menário Costa said it “felt like winning Eurovision” when he learned he had won the global “Dance Your PhD” competition, for his quirky interpretive take on kangaroo behaviour.

His four-minute video titled Kangaroo Time features drag queens, twerking, ballerinas, a classical Indian dancer, and a bunch of friends Costa acquired from his time studying at the Australian National University.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accused of sexual assault by male music producer

Posted on by

Allegations, which rapper and mogul denies, is the latest in a series of lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault

Sean Combs, the rapper and mogul known as Diddy, was sued Monday by a music producer who accused the hip-hop mogul of sexually assaulting him and forcing him to have sex with prostitutes.

The suit, filed in federal court in New York, accuses Combs of repeated instances of unsolicited groping and sexual touching. It also says the man had to work in a bathroom while Combs showered and walked around naked.

Continue reading...

Israeli Eurovision song under ‘scrutiny’ for alleged Hamas attack reference

Posted on by

Organisers considering if lyrics breach non-political rules a week after giving Israel all-clear to participate

The organisers of the Eurovision song contest have said they are “scrutinising” the lyrics of Israel’s entry after it was claimed it makes reference to the Hamas attacks on 7 October.

The lyrics from Israel’s entry, October Rain, sung by Eden Golan, were leaked to the media. According to the Israel Hayom newspaper, lines in the song include, “There’s no air left to breathe”, and “They were all good children, each one of them”. The song also refers to “flowers”, which the newspaper reported is a military code for war fatalities.

Continue reading...

Danish man on trial over alleged £500k music streaming fraud

Posted on by

Aarhus court hears he may have profited from artificially generated playbacks, in case thought to be first of its kind

A Danish man has gone on trial in the city of Aarhus over accusations that he fraudulently made 4.38m kroner (more than £502,000) in royalties on music streaming sites, in what is thought to be the first such trial of its kind.

Prosecutors allege that the 53-year-old profited from streams of 689 pieces of music across services including Spotify, Apple Music and YouSee Musik. They say the huge numbers of streams required to generate that amount of money could not have been generated by genuine users and that unauthorised techniques were likely to have been deployed instead. The alleged fraud is understood to have happened between 2013 and 2019.

Continue reading...

Three men go on trial in New York over Eagles’ Hotel California manuscript

Posted on by

Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski accused of conspiring to own and try to sell Eagles manuscripts

In the mid-1970s, the Eagles were working on a spooky, cryptic new song.

On a lined yellow pad, Don Henley, with input from his band co-founder Glenn Frey, jotted thoughts about “a dark desert highway” and “a lovely place” with a luxurious surface and ominous undertones. And something on ice, perhaps caviar or Taittinger – or pink Champagne?

Continue reading...

Singapore sought exclusivity deal over Taylor Swift concerts in south-east Asia, Thai PM alleges

Posted on by

Srettha Thavisin claims promoter told him Singaporean government offered ‘subsidies’ of $2m-$3m a show

Thailand’s prime minister has claimed that Singapore sought a deal with Taylor Swift to prevent her from playing elsewhere in south-east Asia on her Eras tour.

Srettha Thavisin said the concert promoter AEG had informed him that the Singaporean government offered subsidies of US $2m-$3m (£1.6m-£24m) a show as part of an exclusivity agreement.

Continue reading...

Elton John to auction off 900 items worth $10m from former Atlanta home

Posted on by

Silver boots, Banksy original, pinball machine and more going under hammer at Christie’s, New York

Fans of Sir Elton John’s flamboyant style will next week have the chance to splash out on his snappiest Versace looks in a huge 900-plus lot auction that includes the contents of the Rocket Man’s $7.2m (£5.7m) Atlanta apartment.

Christie’s auction house in New York’s Rockefeller Center has been transformed into a John emporium for two live – and six online – sales of the singer’s collection, including several pairs of his trademark thick rim spectacles and a vast art collection that features a Love, Lust and Devotion section dedicated to his treasure trove of male art.

Continue reading...

Taylor Swift Eras tour Melbourne concert: relive the pop star’s biggest ever show – as it happened

Posted on by

This blog is closed. The once-in-a-lifetime show has finally come to Australia. For the millions who couldn’t get tickets, might a slightly chaotic blog be the next best thing? The night 1 setlist (spoilers), all the surprise songs, the atmosphere of 96,000 people at the MCG – if you missed it you can read it all again! Start at the beginning.

Taylor Swift sing-along on board Qantas flight to Melbourne

The Taylor Swift hype reached new heights earlier today.

Continue reading...

New Beyoncé song Texas Hold ‘Em gets country music radio airplay after online campaign

Posted on by

Oklahoma’s KYKC initially refused to play the song, but later added it to its rotation after saying it had not been aware of Beyonce’s new single

A country music radio station in the US that initially refused to play a listener’s Beyoncé request has now added the artist’s new tracks to rotation after an online firestorm.

On Tuesday, a Beyoncé fan contacted the station to request her song Texas Hold ‘Em – one of two released in a surprise drop during the Super Bowl where the 32-time Grammy winner also announced the second album in her Renaissance trilogy.

Continue reading...