Category Archives: Music

Kylie Minogue to appear digitally in new Stock Aitken Waterman musical

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The I Should Be So Lucky singer will play a ‘specially created character’ in the touring show which will feature a string of pop hits by the songwriting trio

Kylie Minogue is to step back in time for a new musical featuring the songs of Stock Aitken Waterman that shot her to chart success in the late 1980s. The Australian singer, currently enjoying a summer hit with Padam Padam, will “digitally appear” throughout the tour of the show, playing what is described as “a specially created character unique to the musical”.

I Should Be So Lucky: The Stock Aitken Waterman musical is written and directed by Debbie Isitt whose series of Nativity! films also inspired a stage musical. The show uses more than 25 numbers created by the songwriting and production trio Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman, including the title song from 1987 which brought Minogue her first UK No 1 hit.

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Taylor Swift becomes first woman to have four albums in US Top 10 at once

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Singer is just third artist in history to have four albums in top 10 concurrently, with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) becoming her 12th album to reach No. 1

Taylor Swift has become the first woman, and only the third artist ever, to have four albums in the Top 10 of the US album chart simultaneously, while also beating a record set by Barbra Streisand to become the female artist with the most No 1 albums in history.

The 33-year-old’s latest album, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), has debuted at the top spot on the Billboard 200 with 716,000 album-equivalent units – a figure that combines physical sales with digital sales and streaming figures. It is the largest week for any album in 2023 and the best since her previous album, Midnights, was released last October.

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Jane Birkin, actor and singer, dies aged 76

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Best known for the sexually explicit 1969 hit Je t’aime … moi non plus, her adopted France took her to its heart

France’s favourite “petite Anglaise”, the British-born singer and actor Jane Birkin, has died at her home in Paris aged 76.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, paid tribute to Birkin, saying she “embodied freedom and sang the most beautiful words in our language”.

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Just Stop Oil protesters disrupt BBC Proms at Royal Albert Hall

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Two demonstrators removed almost immediately after sounding air horns and throwing confetti on the stage

Two Just Stop Oil protesters disrupted the opening night of the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall after running on to the stage, setting off confetti cannon and sounding air horns.

The pair were taken off stage at the west London venue within moments of unfurling their orange banners on Friday evening, according to footage on social media.

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Lisa Marie Presley died from weight-loss surgery complications, autopsy finds

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January death of Elvis Presley’s daughter, 54, ruled as being from natural causes due to effects of small bowel obstruction

Lisa Marie Presley died from complications from bariatric surgery she had several years ago, authorities have said.

The 12 January death at age 54 of the singer, songwriter, daughter and heir of Elvis Presley was ruled as being from natural causes due to effects of a small bowel obstruction.

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AI resurrection of Brazilian singer for car ad sparks joy and ethical worries

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Beloved musician Elis Regina died aged 36 in 1982 but a new Volkswagen commercial shows her duetting with her daughter

The premature death in 1982 of one of Brazil’s most treasured musicians left her homeland reeling. “Brazil without Elis,” mourned one front page after the legendary singer Elis Regina unexpectedly died at the age of 36.

So when Elis Regina recently re-emerged, performing a soul-stirring duet with her daughter, the Grammy-winning singer Maria Rita, there were similarly charged scenes of catharsis and nostalgia.

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US vinyl sales up 21.7% for first half of 2023, report finds

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Vinyl boom continues with another major leap and Taylor Swift’s Midnights leading the pack

Vinyl sales in the US are up 21.7% for the first half of 2023 over the same period last year, according to a new music industry report.

The vinyl resurgence is itself not new – 2022 marked the 17th consecutive year that sales of vinyl records rose, according to Luminate’s music midyear report. But the growth rate this year has reassured experts that the vinyl market did not hit a natural plateau after surging during the pandemic, which caused a 108% increase in 2021.

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K-pop megastars BTS release keenly awaited memoir

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Fans of boyband brave heavy rain to gather at Seoul bookshop for Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS

The K-pop megastars BTS have released their hotly anticipated memoir in South Korea, marking their 10th anniversary as a group.

Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS is the group’s first official book, and contains a chronological summary of their musical career as well as hints at their future endeavours.

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‘You’re in my head, heart and soul’: Elton John thanks fans at farewell show

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76-year-old pays touching tribute to audience as he performs final date of huge tour in Sweden

Sir Elton John has told his fans they will remain in his “head, heart and soul” as he closed the final show of his big farewell tour in Sweden in spectacular fashion.

The 76-year-old has been travelling around the globe performing his Farewell Yellow Brick Road show since 2018, and his second night at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm finally brought the 330-date run to a close.

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Sir Elton John to perform final farewell show in Sweden

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The megastar behind Rocketman and Your Song to call time on more than 50 years of live performance

Sir Elton John will hold what he has described as his “final farewell show” in Sweden this weekend as his tour comes to an end.

The megastar played his last UK date at Glastonbury festival last month and will bring the tour to an end on Saturday at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm.

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No charges to be filed in altercation between Britney Spears and NBA player’s guard

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Pop-star had said she was struck by Victor Wembanyama’s security when she tried to approach the basketball player for a photograph

No charges will be filed following a brief investigation of the altercation involving pop star Britney Spears, San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama and a member of the basketball player’s security team, Las Vegas police said on Friday.

Spears said she was struck by a security guard as she tried to approach Wembanyama on the way into a restaurant in a Las Vegas casino complex on Wednesday night. Wembanyama said a person – he later was told it was Spears – grabbed him from behind.

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Kanye West sued by teacher fired from his California private school

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Former employee Isaiah Meadows of Yeezy Christian Academy says he was fired in retaliation for reporting unsafe conditions

Kanye West is facing legal action after a former employee of his private school in California alleged that he was fired after reporting unsafe conditions in the school.

Ye, as the rapper now goes by, was named as a defendant in a lawsuit by former employee Isaiah Meadows of the Yeezy Christian Academy, a private Christian school started by Ye, according to the lawsuit shared with the Guardian.

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Leeds hospital trust apologises after rapper MF Doom Dumile Daniel Thompson died in its care

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London-born musician Dumile Daniel Thompson, 49, had a lack of oxygen to his brain after a reaction to a blood pressure drug

An NHS trust has apologised for the substandard care given to MF Doom, an underground rap icon who died aged 49 while having hospital treatment.

The artist behind songs including Accordion and That’s That, whose real name was Dumile Daniel Thompson, died in October 2020 due to a lack of oxygen to his brain after a reaction to a drug prescribed for blood pressure.

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Hong Kong-born singer Coco Lee dies by suicide aged 48, siblings confirm

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The singer was known for voicing Mulan in the Mandarin version and becoming the first Chinese American to perform at the Oscars

Coco Lee, a Hong Kong-born singer and songwriter who had a highly successful career in Asia, has died by suicide, her siblings said on Wednesday. She was 48.

The star had depression for several years, Lee’s elder sisters Carol and Nancy Lee said in a statement posted on Facebook and Instagram, with her condition deteriorating drastically over recent months.

In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 800-273-8255 and online chat is also available. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org

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Rick Froberg, acclaimed post-hardcore frontman for Drive Like Jehu and more, dies aged 55

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Impassioned singer and guitarist, who has died of natural causes, also fronted the bands Hot Snakes, Pitchfork and Obits

Rick Froberg, the strident frontman with US post-hardcore bands Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes, Pitchfork and Obits, has died aged 55.

His death was announced by longtime collaborator John Reis, who wrote on Instagram:

Rick passed away suddenly last night from natural causes. His art made life better. The only thing he loved more than art and rock n roll was his friends. He will forever be remembered for his creativity, vision and his ability to bring beauty into this world. I love you, Rick. I will miss you for the rest of my life.

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How much is Taylor Swift making from the Australian concerts of her Eras tour?

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It is estimated the seven shows will earn the singer $35m on top of the expected $700m for her US concerts

Australians will be playing their part in possibly inducting Taylor Swift into the billionaires club, with some industry insiders estimating the pop star could pocket as much as A$35m from the Australian leg of her Eras tour alone.

Estimates in the US put Swift’s earnings at an average of US$13.6m (A$20.5m) a show, based on an average ticket price of US$215, meaning she would gross more than US$700m from the 52 dates in the North American leg. That is without taking into account the more than 50 concerts she is performing around the world.

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Texas grand jury declines to indict Travis Scott over deadly festival crush

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Rapper, promoter Live Nation and others had been investigated after 10 died and thousands were injured at Astroworld in 2021

A Texas grand jury has declined to indict the rapper Travis Scott in a criminal investigation into a massive crowd surge that killed 10 people at the 2021 Astroworld music festival in Houston, his attorney said on Thursday.

Lawyer Kent Schaffer confirmed that the grand jury had met and decided not to indict his client on any criminal charges stemming from the concert. Schaffer said he was not sure what charges the grand jury had considered.

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Taylor Swift: extra tickets added with two more shows in Sydney and Melbourne announced

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After an estimated 4 million people queued online for tickets on Wednesday the US pop star has announced two more Australian concert dates

Taylor Swift has announced two more shows in her Australian tour next February after record-setting ticket sales on Wednesday.

Presale tickets to three Sydney concerts and two in Melbourne sold out in hours after more than 4 million users joined the online queue for under half a million tickets – though some of the numbers may have been fans opening multiple browsers to maximise their chances.

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Madonna postpones tour after suffering ‘serious’ bacterial infection

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Pop singer’s 35-city Celebration tour was scheduled to kick off in Vancouver on 15 July

Madonna’s upcoming Celebration tour has been postponed after the singer was hospitalized with a “serious bacterial infection”, according to an Instagram post from her longtime manager Guy Oseary. The tour was scheduled to kick off in Vancouver on 15 July.

“On Saturday, June 24, Madonna developed a serious bacterial infection which led to a several-day stay in the ICU,” he wrote. “Her health is improving, however she is still under medical care. A full recovery is expected.

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Taylor Swift Sydney and Melbourne presale tickets sold out after record 4m users join Ticketek queue

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Australian fans faced hours-long virtual queues and tried a range of strategies as second tranche of Eras tour presale tickets went on sale

Taylor Swift has broken a national record with more than 4 million users vying to gain access on Wednesday to highly coveted presale tickets to her Sydney and Melbourne shows.

The second round of tickets went live for Swift’s three Sydney shows at 10am, amid unprecedented demand. By 1.43pm, all general Frontier presale tickets for Sydney had sold out, Ticketek Australia said in a tweet.

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