Monthly Archives: August 2020

Public Enemy returning ‘home’ to Def Jam – Music News

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Hip-hop veterans Public Enemy have returned to Def Jam Recordings, the fabled label with which they first found fame.

The rap stars, fronted by Chuck D and Flavor Flav, have signed a new contract with company executives to release the album What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down, more than two decades after parting ways with the label.

To mark the occasion, the group has dropped the lead single Fight the Power (Remix 2020), a revamp of the 1989 Public Enemy classic, which was performed at the opening of the BET Awards in June, with Nas, Black Thought, Questlove, and YG, among others.

In a statement, Chuck D told fans: “Cultural Institutions are important. Being an integral part of one is an honour bestowed and to uphold. Public Enemy songs are forever sonic prints in the sands of time. And it’s time – it’s necessary – to bring the noise again from a place called home. Def Jam. Fight The Power 2020.”

Fellow rapper Flavor Flav added: “Def Jam is like the house we grew up in. It’s cool to be home.”

What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down, the follow-up to 2017’s Nothing Is Quick in the Desert, will hit music retailers on 25 September.



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Ciara’s breakout hit Goodies almost went to Britney Spears – Music News

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Ciara almost lost her hit breakout song Goodies to Britney Spears.

The singer released the dance floor anthem in 2004 as her debut single and was shocked to learn the tune was being shopped to the Toxic hitmaker behind her back after she thought she had won the rights to sing the track.

“I had to reaudition again, to be picked up and to be made a priority on the (Jive Records) label,” Ciara recalled on her programme Level Up Radio with Apple Music, noting: “I did that, had a showcase, rocked it. OK, boom, check.”

Thinking the song was a done deal, Ciara was surprised to learn the track had also been floated to Britney: “Behind the scenes, there was a conversation about this song being potentially taken from me and given to an artist like Britney Spears, who was on the same roster as me.”

Goodies went on to become an international hit, earning Ciara prestige and worldwide stardom. The star admitted she would have ‘fought tooth and nail’ for the track if she knew her label bosses entertained handing it over to another artist.

“I knew that it was a very, very special record,” Ciara recalled, telling fans she was ‘heavily involved’ in writing the song behind the scenes.

“This was my very first song that I put out into the universe,” Ciara remembered fondly: “My first song, and by God’s grace, it also was a number one song, and it lasted on the Billboard charts for eight weeks. It was just kind of surreal to see that my dream was coming true.”



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Patti Smith: ‘New York will recover from COVID-19’ – Music News

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Patti Smith has shared that she is not concerned about New York City’s future as a musical hub when the COVID-19 pandemic passes.

In a new interview with the Wall Street Journal, Patti said she has no fear about Big Apple performance venues coming back – saying other parts of the world have far larger problems.

“I mean, we’re worried about what’s going to happen but you look at places in East Africa where there’s billions of locusts,” she offered, telling the publication: “They have the biggest epidemic of locusts, where all of their crops are gone.”

Smith added: “In Yemen, children are dying every day from starvation. We have what is happening in terms of climate change.”

She concluded New York’s plight is minor by contrast: “So I’m not fixated on what’s going to happen in New York City.”

Gushing over her hometown, Smith said: “I’ve been all over the world and I still think it’s one of the most diverse cities. I’ll always love New York City.”

The punk rocker has been forced to postpone her latest world tour until next year and said the performance hiatus is hitting her hard.

“Because I’ll be going into my 74th year, it was possibly going to be one of my last such vigorous tours, so I spent a lot of time on it – developing a mindset toward public life, collaboration, travel,” she detailed.

Smith recounted that as she was ‘mentally and physically prepared’ for travel and media attention, abruptly switching to solitude was a shock for her.

“Having to go from the extroverted life of a performer to the introverted life of a writer was a challenge because I wasn’t prepared for it,” she confessed.



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BTS score first UK Top 10 single as Joel Corry & MNEK lead singles chart – Music News

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K-pop group BTS claim this week’s highest new entry with Dynamite, which opens at Number 3. It’s the group’s highest charting single and first Top 10 in the UK – their previous best was a Number 13 peak with Boy With Luv ft. Halsey (2019). View BTS’ Official UK Chart history in full here.

Celebrating the news, BTS tell OfficialCharts.com:

“We feel humbled and honoured to have earned a new personal best on the UK Official Singles Chart. First and foremost, we give all credit to ARMY – without their support and love from Day 1, we wouldn’t have come this far. Dynamite was created in the hopes of bringing some vibrant energy that the world needs right now more than ever. If it made one person happier, then that’s more than enough for us.”

Joel Corry and MNEK hold on to the Official Singles Chart Number 1 with Head & Heart for a sixth consecutive week, holding off a fierce challenge from Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s WAP.

Head & Heart racked up 62,000 chart sales – including 7.6 million streams – to keep its place at the top, finishing ahead of WAP by just 1,700 chart sales.

UK rapper Headie One also scores a big new entry this week at Number 4 with Ain’t It Different ft. AJ Tracey and Stormzy. The track, which heads up Headie’s forthcoming debut album Edna, is his fourth Top 10 and highest charting single yet, following the Number 5 Drake collaboration Only You Freestyle last month.

US rapper and singer 24KGoldn has the biggest climber of the week, zooming 40 places to Number 11 with TikTok viral hit Mood ft. Iann Dior, while Jason Derulo’s Take You Dancing continues to edge closer to the Top 10, up three to Number 16.

Meanwhile, Vera Lynn’s version of Land Of Hope And Glory enters the Official Singles Chart at Number 17 following rumours the song, along with Rule, Britannia! were to be dropped from the Last Night Of The Proms. The BBC reports orchestral versions of both songs will be performed at the concert on September 12 due to there being no live audience and a reduced number of singers and musicians at the event due to social distancing.

Further down, US singer-songwriter Conan Gray makes his UK Top 40 debut with folk-pop ballad Heather, up 19 places to 22; Abra Cadabra’s On Deck sails 35 places to Number 32; and Clean Bandit land their 12th Top 40 single with Tick Tock ft. Mabel and 24kGoldn, new at Number 36.



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The Killers secure sixth Number 1 UK album with ‘Imploding The Mirage’ – Music News

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The Killers fly straight to Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart with Imploding The Mirage.

With 50,000 chart sales, including nearly 42,000 copies on CD, The Killers outsell the rest of this week’s Top 5 combined to reach the Number 1 spot in the UK for the sixth time. Frontman Brandon Flowers now has eight Number 1 albums to his name, including his two solo releases, Flamingo (2010) and The Desired Effect (2015).

The entry extends the band’s record unbroken run of Number 1 studio albums – they’re the only international band ever to have six consecutive Number 1 studio albums from their debut. The Killers’ previous Number 1 albums are: Hot Fuss (2004), Sam’s Town (2006), Day & Age (2008), Battle Born (2012), Wonderful Wonderful (2017).

Meanwhile, Erasure earn their tenth Top 10 album with The Neon, opening at Number 4. It’s the synth-pop duo’s 18th studio album and first Top 5 since 1994’s Number 1 I Say I Say I Say.

Rising Liverpudlian singer-songwriter Jamie Webster makes his Official Chart debut at Number 6 with his debut album We Get By.

The Waterboys make a Top 20 debut with Good Luck Seeker at Number 14. It’s the Mike Scott-fronted band’s 16th studio album and seventh Top 20 record. Indie rockers Bright Eyes land at Number 22 with their latest album Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was, their third Top 40, while US rapper Nas is close behind at Number 24 with King’s Disease.

Finally, Australian singer-songwriter Troye Sivan debuts at Number 34 with his new EP In A Dream, his third UK Top 40 collection.



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Mercury Prize Albums of the Year get the Tim Burgess Twitter listening party treatment – Music News

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A selection of the 2020 Hyundai Mercury Prize ‘Albums of the Year’ are getting the Tim Burgess Twitter listening party treatment.

Some of the shortlisted records for the prestigious honour have been chosen for the popular series, including Laura Marling’s ‘Song for our Daughter’, Georgia’s ‘Seeking Thrills’ and Sports Teams’ ‘Deep Down Happy’.
The Mercury Prize special will take place between September 2 and September 10.

To take part, Twitter users simply put on the record at the time slot for the session, follow The Charlatans frontman on the micro-blogging app, and then tweet their opinions along with the artist.

And by adding the #TimsTwitterListeningParty to their post, fans can interact with Tim and fellow fans.
The parties will kick off with Laura Marling’s ‘Song for Our Daughter’ at 8pm on September 2, and wrap with ‘Deep Down Happy’ from 9pm on September 10.

So far, Tim’s Twitter Listening Party has featured albums by the likes of Blur, Franz Ferdinand and Oasis.
Dua Lipa, Stormzy and Charli XCX lead the 12 albums shortlisted for this year’s Mercury Prize.

The pop superstar’s second album ‘Future Nostalgia’ is in the running along with Grime megastar Stormzy’s ‘Heavy Is The Head’ and Charli’s DIY isolation record ‘how i’m feeling now’.

Rapper Kano’s powerful LP ‘Hoodies All Summer’ and Michael Kiwanuka’s self-titled LP ‘Kiwanuka’ have also been shortlisted.

The albums were chosen by a panel of artists and music industry professionals, including Anna Calvi, Annie Mac, Supergrass’ Gaz Coombes, Jamie Cullum and Jorja Smith.

The overall winner will be announced on September 24.

The timings for the Hyundai Mercury Prize special are as follows:

Wednesday 2nd September
8pm Laura Marling ‘Song for Our Daughter‘
9pm Moses Boyd ‘Dark Matter‘

Thursday 3rd September
7pm Georgia ‘Seeking Thrills‘
8pm Anna Meredith ‘FIBS‘
9pm Porridge Radio ‘Every Bad‘

Wednesday 9th September
8pm Lanterns on the Lake ‘Spook the Herd‘

Thursday 10th September
9pm Sports Team ‘Deep Down Happy‘



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Katy Perry celebrates album release from hospital bed after giving birth to daughter Daisy – Music News

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Katy Perry took to social media from her hospital bed to celebrate the release of her new album Smile two days after welcoming her first daughter with fiance Orlando Bloom.

The pop superstar announced the arrival of Daisy on Thursday, and dropped her fifth album, featuring the hits Never Really Over, Daisies, and Smile, on Friday.

Taking to Instagram, the hitmaker shared a video of the Smile back cover artwork, featuring Perry wearing a clown nose and crying teardrops that reveal the titles of the 12 tracks on the album.

Alongside the teaser snippet set to the song Cry About It Later, she wrote: “IT’S HERE! IT’S REALLY HERE! I finally got back my smile!”

“Hope this record puts one on your face #SMILE IS OUT EVERYWHERE NOW! LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH ENJOY,” she continued, adding that her post was “sent from my hospital bed lol (laugh out loud).”

Ahead of the album release, the new mum shared another post making light of the short time span between delivering her daughter and dropping the album. The snap showed a woman tossing her baby over to her husband, who Perry tagged as Bloom.

“Me after feeding all day handing Daisy off to daddy bout to deliver this 2nd child #SMILEISCOMING lezzgo,” she joked in the Instagram caption, while she also wrote on Twitter, “Delivering a baby and a record in the same week, dont f**k with mama.”

Famous pals including Perry’s American Idol co-judge Lionel Richie, who is name-checked in Smile, and Bloom’s ex Miranda Kerr sent messages of congratulations to the couple following the happy news.



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Katy Perry celebrates the release of her new album ‘Smile’ from hospital bed – Music News

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The ‘Never Really Over’ singer’s fifth album has arrived into the world just a day after she gave birth to her first child, a baby girl named Daisy Dove Bloom, with fiance Orlando Bloom on Thursday (27.08.20).

Alongside a promo clip of the record, Katy wrote on Instagram: “IT’S HERE! IT’S REALLY HERE! I finally got back my smile! Hope this record puts one on your face #SMILE IS OUT EVERYWHERE NOW! LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH ENJOY (sent from my hospital bed lol) (sic)”.

The ‘I Kissed A Girl’ hitmaker had quipped on Twitter: “Delivering a baby and a record in the same week, dont f*** with mama.”

The 12-track album sees the 35-year-old pop superstar pay tribute to her future husband on ‘Champagne Problems’, on which she dishes on the “dirty work” she and the ‘Carnival Row’ actor – who split in 2017, before rekindling their relationship – have put into their romance.

She sings: “Make-ups to the breakups/Times we coulda gave up/We put the dirty work in/So now we know it’s worth it/ Now we’re celebrating/ I’m so glad we made it this far, ah (Uh).”

While on ‘What Makes A Woman’, which is dedicated to her daughter, she celebrates womanhood.

Katy previously shared: “There is a song on the record called ‘What Makes A Woman’ that is a hope I have for my future child.

“That she doesn’t have any limits on any of her dreams, or what she wants to be, or who she thinks she is and she can change whenever she wants. She can try everything on if she wants.

“I think that song is important to me and important for her.”

Katy previously described her follow-up to 2017’s ‘Witness’ as “75% ‘Prism’ and 25% ‘Teenage Dream'”.

The ‘Dark Horse’ singer explained that the lead single, ‘Daisies’, took on a new meaning for her amid the coronavirus pandemic, and she hopes everyone else will be inspired to follow their dreams no matter what other people think after they listen to the empowering anthem.

She said: “I wrote this song a couple months ago as a call to remain true to the course you’ve set for yourself, regardless of what others may think.

“Recently, it has taken a new meaning for me, in light of what the whole world is experiencing.

“Each of us is one in more than seven billion, with our own story of strength and resilience to tell … I hope it will be the soundtrack to going for your dreams now … especially the ones we left behind.”

Katy was planning on dropping the record in June, but it was pushed back amid the global health crisis.



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Ciara reveals her hit ‘Goodies’ was nearly a Britney Spears song – Music News

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The 34-year-old singer has revealed she was made to “re-audition” for the 2004 track – her debut single from the album of the same name – and had no idea that her label were considering giving it away to the ‘Toxic’ hitmaker.
Fortunately, she nailed the audition.

While hosting ‘On Level Up Radio with Ciara’ on Apple Music Hits, she shared: “I had to re-audition again, to be picked up and to be made a priority on the label. I did that, had a showcase, rocked it.

“Not knowing that behind the scenes, there was a conversation about this song being potentially taken from me and given to an artist like Britney Spears, who was on the same roster as me.

“I knew that it was a very, very special record.”

Had Ciara known that the song was being considered for other artists she would have “fought tooth and nail” to keep it, especially given she co-wrote it.

She said: “It was because it’s a record that I actually was a part of creating.

“This was my very first song that I put out into the universe.

“My first song, and by God’s grace, it also was a number one song, and it lasted on the Billboard charts for eight weeks. It was just kind of surreal to see that my dream was coming true.”

The chart-topping star previously admitted the record still has a “special” place in her heart.

She said: “It’s kind of surreal – it’s like pinching myself, and going, ‘This is literally 15 years ago.’ Like, 15 years ago sounds so far away.

“To see this generation dancing to that song like it’s a new song, and it’s falling right into the pocket of what’s happening now, it’s kind of crazy. It also shows you the cycle of music and how different times repeat themselves all over again.”

Ciara has released seven studio albums, her most recent was 2019’s ‘Beauty Marks’.

And last year, she launched her own record label and entertainment company named after the LP.



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Jesy Nelson: ‘I’m a stone heavier than when I filmed Holiday music video’ – Music News

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Little Mix star Jesy Nelson has revealed she’s gained weight since shooting the group’s Holiday music video.

The 29-year-old stunner showed off her curves in a white bikini in the promo, but has now told fans she looks nothing like she did when the shot the sexy summer video, as she has put on 14 pounds (6.3 kg) since the shoot by “eating whatever the f**k I’ve wanted”.

Sharing a behind-the-scenes snap from the shoot alongside a picture of her out and about with new boyfriend Sean Sagar, Jesy wrote on Instagram: “I currently look nothing like this… just so you all know. I’m a stone heavier since making this video from eating whatever the f**k I’ve wanted and living my best life but for any of you struggling mentally with how you feel about yourselves right now just know I’m there with ya with my podgy belly and chubby cheeks.

“Remember we’re all human and we all have our good days and bad days and days when we feel banging and other days when we feel absolutely rotten and that’s ok. You’re all beautiful in you’re own unique ways and there is no one in the world like you and that is what makes us special (sic).”

Her actor beau praised her for her candid words on his Instagram Stories, calling her post “so powerful”.



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