Category: Pop Daypop

Kanye West is no long performing at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, pulling out of his double weekend headlining performances two weeks before the event. West was booked for Sundays April 17th and 24th with a special appearance by Travis Scott, who will also no longer be performing.

There’s no word on why West, who legally changed his name to Ye recently, canceled the appearance. Neither Coachella producers Goldenvoice nor West’s team have commented publicly on the matter. The Weeknd may replace West.

A new headlining act is expected to be announced soon; Coachella runs April 15-17 and April 22-24. Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Swedish House Mafia, 88Rising’s Head In The Clouds Forever and more are performing both weekends.

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The 64th annual Grammy Awards were held on Sunday, hosted by Trevor Noah and airing live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on CBS.

Among the night’s big winners were Jon Batiste, who took home Album of the Year for We Are. Olivia Rodrigo took home Best Pop Vocal Album for Sour, and also won Best New Artist.  Silk Sonic, comprised of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, won Song of the Year and Record of the Year for “Leave the Door Open.”

Doja Cat and SZA won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their hit song “Kiss Me More,” while Jazmine Sullivan won Best R&B Album for Heaux Tales and Baby Keem and Kendrick Lamar’s “Family Ties” won Best Rap Performance. Chris Stapleton also won Best Country album for Starting Over. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed viewers at home in a pre-recorded video, where he spoke about Russia invading his country and the ongoing conflict, saying in part: “Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded. In hospitals. Even to those who can’t heart them. But the music will break through anyway. We defend our freedom. To live. To love. To sound. Our land, we are fighting Russia, which brings horrible silence with its bombs. The dead silence. Fill the silence with your music! Fill it today. To tell our story. Tell the truth about this war on your social networks, on TV. Support us in any way you can. Any, but not silence, and peace will come.”

Respects were paid to the late Taylor Hawkins, drummer of the Foo Fighters, who died on March 25. Foo Fighters were supposed to perform during the show, but canceled because of Hawkins’ recent death. A video was shown highlighting Hawkins’ career before the Grammys launched into its annual In Memorial segment, which paid homage to all of those in the music industry who have died over the past year, including Dusty Hill of ZZ Top, DMX, Biz Markie, Stephen Sondheim and more.

For the Full List of the 2022 Grammy Awards Winners, see below.

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Shawn Mendes has released his new single along with a music video for the song “When You’re Gone.” You can check out the video – here.  The video for “When You’re Gone” gives a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the song, including footage of Mendes performing the track for the first time at SXSW music and film festival this month.

“When You’re Gone” is Mendes’ first single of 2022. The song follows his split from singer Camila Cabello in November after two years of dating. Mendes also released the song “It’ll Be Okay” in the wake of the breakup.

Mendes’ most recent album, Wonder, was released in December 2020.

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Silk Sonic, John Legend, Carrie Underwood and J Balvin with Maria Becerra have been added to the lineup of performers for the 64th annual Grammy Awards to be held Sunday, April 3.  Silk Sonic — comprised of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak — are slated to open the ceremony.

Previously announced Grammys performers are Jon Batiste, Brothers Osborne, BTS, Brandi Carlile, Billie Eilish, H.E.R., Lil Nas X with Jack Harlow, Nas, Olivia Rodrigo and Chris Stapleton. The ceremony will also include a previously announced ‘In Memoriam’ salute to legendary Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim performed by Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., Ben Platt and Rachel Zegler.

Silk Sonic are nominated for four awards, including record and song of the year, for “Leave the Door Open.”  Underwood is up for two awards — best roots gospel album for My Savior and best country duo/group performance for “If I Didn’t Love You,” a collab with Jason Aldean. J Balvin is nominated in the new best música urbana album category for ‘Jose.’

Trevor Noah is set to host the 64th annual Grammy Awards, which will air live from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 3 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS. The show will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.

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Milwaukee’s Summerfest has announced its star-studded lineup headed to the amphitheater stage in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Summerfest hosts the music industry’s biggest acts, emerging talent, and local favorites along with approximately 750,000 fans, for an unforgettable live music experience, according to the release. The festival features over 1,000 performances on 12 permanent stages, along with food, beverages, and activities, all in a world-class festival setting.

The festival takes place over three consecutive weekends—June 23 -25; June 30- July 2 and July 7-9.  Headliners include Justin Bieber, Halsey, Machine Gun Kelly, Lil Wayne/Wiz Khalifa/Wu-Tang Clan, Backstreet Boys, Willow, Jason Aldean, The Black Crowes, Rod Stewart, Charli XCX, Thomas Rhett, Steve Miller Band, Anthony Hamilton, The Pretty Reckless, Violent Femmes, and more.  You can view the complete lineup HERE.

A separate American Family Insurance Amphitheater ticket is required for Amphitheater shows. Head toTicketmaster.com for Amphitheater show tickets. Amphitheater shows include: Jason Aldean, Justin Bieber, Machine Gun Kelly, Halsey, Rod Stewart, Thomas Rhett and their supporting acts.

Tickets for Summerfest are on sale now; visit Summerfest.com for more information.

Justin Bieber, Halsey, Machine Gun Kelly Lead 2022 Summerfest Lineup

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Taylor Swift will receive an honorary degree from New York University – her first — and will address graduates during a commencement ceremony in May. The upcoming NYU commencement will honor the classes of 2020, 2021 and 2022 following the pandemic, to be held on May 18 at Yankee Stadium.

Swift will receive a Doctor of Fine Arts, honoris causa, and speak at NYU’s morning commencement event. Disability rights advocate Judith Heumann will also receive an honorary degree and address graduates.

NYU president Andrew Hamilton in a press release:  “I cannot overstate how thrilled I am to be coming together in person with graduates, parents, faculty, and honorees for NYU’s Commencement. Since 2019, we have been deprived of Commencement’s festive, communal joy, and its absence has been keenly felt. Few groups of graduates are more deserving of a celebration than these classes: their pursuit of their studies disrupted, isolated by a daunting pandemic, these classes — 2022, 2021, and 2020 — have distinguished themselves with their grit, grace, and forbearance. We reconvene at Yankee Stadium with a renewed sense of appreciation for the act of celebrating together in person, a recognition of our graduates’ enormous achievements, and a respect for their character and perseverance.”

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Elton John has announced the final dates of his North American Farewell Yellow Brick Road: The Final Tour, added to his previously announced stadium dates.   John posted on Instagram: “I am loving every minute of these shows and I can’t wait to see you on the last dates of my Farewell Yellow Brick Road The Final Tour    Tickets go on sale on April 6. Join the Rocket Club for an exclusive presale from April 1.  Full info at EltonJohn.com #eltonfarewelltour

Elton will launch the upcoming leg at North American stadiums this summer.  The newly announced shows will include concerts in East Rutherford, NJ, Foxborough, MA, Toronto, ON, Vancouver, BC, and Phoenix, AZ, along with a third show added at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. and stops in Santa Clara, CA, San Diego, CA, and Tacoma, WA.  Elton shared: “This year will see my grand finale in North America, playing stadiums all around the country, with the most spectacular production I’ve ever had. Thank you for sharing this journey with me. I cherish these memories we’re making together. It has been nothing short of incredible and I look forward to seeing you very soon one last time, on my Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour.”

General tickets go on sale on April 6; join the ‘Rocket Club’ for an exclusive presale from April 1.  For more details and information, head to EltonJohn.com.

Elton John Adds More Dates to his “Farewell” Tour

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Rapper Latto is being joined by Mariah Carey and DJ Khaled for the remix of her hit song, “Big Energy.” That original track features a sample from Tom Tom Club’s 1981 single, “Genius Of Love,” which was also used on Carey’s hit, “Fantasy.” The original version of Latto’s “Big Energy” hit No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was the first top 40 hit for the 23-year-old Atlanta rapper,

Latto also just released her new LP, 777, which features other big names, including Lil Wayne, Childish Gambino, and more. Celebrating the release of 777, Latto wrote, “Just up still on a high from all the love I received on my album release day… I used to sell my mixtapes for a dollar dawg. This sh** hit different. I don’t take nothing about it for granted.”

Latto said of “Big Energy” in a recent interview with Billboard: “I basically took this masculine, trendy ‘big d–k energy’ quote from Twitter and made it a thing where all genders can have ‘big energy’ and take it deeper than just [something] sexual. I wanted it to be empowering. It’s an aura that you carry and a confidence. It’s just an overall vibe and when you walk in the room, you have ‘big energy’ and no one can tell you otherwise. It’s an uplifting thing and turning a funny quote into something positive.”  

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Imagine Dragons has announced 20 new shows on their Mercury World Tour.  The North American summer tour is in support of their latest album, Mercury – Act 1 and kicks-off this August in Salt Lake City, UT with special guests Macklemore and Kings Elliot on select dates, before wrapping up in Los Angeles, CA in September.

General tickets for the new shows go on sale starting Friday, April 1st at 10 am local time via Ticketmaster. Verizon will offer an exclusive presale for the Imagine Dragons 2022 tour in the US through the customer loyalty program Verizon Up. Members will have first access to purchase presale tickets for select shows now through Thursday, March 31st at 10 pm local time.

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Harry Styles has announced the first single from his anticipated new album Harry’s House. The new song is called “As It Was” will officially drop on Thursday, March 31, at 7 p.m. Eastern.   You can preorder Harry’s House – here.

Harry’s House will be Styles’ third solo album, following 2019’s Fine Line and 2017’s Harry Styles. The new album shares a title with the 1975 Joni Mitchell song “Harry’s House / Centerpiece.” Mitchell’s official Twitter account wrote to Styles last week: “love the title.”

Later this year, Styles is going on tour and he is also headlining the 2022 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

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