Watch NBA star Steph Curry join Paramore for a performance of ‘Misery Business’


NBA star Steph Curry made a surprise appearance on stage with Paramore at a recent show. Check out footage of him singing the chorus of ‘Misery Business’ below.

The athlete – who plays for the Golden State Warriors – delighted fans in San Francisco last night (August 7) when he made an appearance on stage with Hayley Williams and co.

The moment took place during the rendition of their 2007 hit, ‘Misery Business’, in which the pop-punk front woman usually chooses a lucky audience member to join her on stage for the track. This time around, however, it was pro athlete Steph Curry who was hand selected by the members.

Curry was watching the show as he takes time off in the off-season, and Williams told the crowd that the NBA star was a close friend.

“So look, you know us and Steph, we go back a few years,’ she said to the audience. “And tonight is our reunion… Tonight we’re going to sing something together. Listen, from the moment Steph takes the mic, this is no longer a Paramore show, this is a Steph Curry show.”

From there, the 35-year-old, wearing all black, took to the stage as the band broke into the song – bouncing around as confetti fell and even joining Williams to sing the chorus. Find footage of the moment below.

Originally, the show was set to take place Saturday July 22. However, taking to social media, the band confirmed that they would be forced to reschedule their gig at the Chase Center due to “sickness within the touring party”.

Shortly after the announcement, they then went on to shelve three further gigs on their North American tour, including stops in Seattle, Portland, and Salt Lake City. They also said that the reasoning behind the change of schedule was “in the interest of our health and the ability to put on a show you all deserve”.

Williams also revealed her struggle to remain fit and healthy on tour, explaining that it is harder for her to tour now than when she first started.

She told fans that she became ill during the Houston gig, and “muscled all the way through [their] LA [show]”.

“By the time the excitement and all the nerves from all the LA shenanigans wore off, my body just gave out,” she said. “Touring is different at 34 than it was at 16, when leaving home felt like the greatest escape.”

After receiving criticism for the postponed shows, the singer later took to social media to criticise the “internet bros” who sent hateful comments her way.

Hayley Williams of Paramore. Credit: Marcus Ingram

“Internet bros have been pressed by my proximity to rock music and all its subgenres since 2005. The only thing that’s changed is the platform from which they spew their ignorance,” she wrote.

“Don’t think for a second your fav bands – metal or punk or otherwise – endorse your weird incel ass lifestyle. So many of these bands have stood side stage at our shows and treat us with respect. Why? bc they aren’t threatened by a strong woman front[ing] a great band in a completely diff genre of music.”

Paramore’s North American tour is scheduled to conclude in Salt Lake City on Sunday (August 13). You can find any remaining tickets here.

Following the end of their US Tour, Paramore will be heading to the UK and Europe as a supporting act on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, beginning in May 2024.





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"Jessie's Girl" Musician Rick Springfield Cites EDM as Primary Influence Behind New Album

Rick Springfield says electronic dance music was a primary influence when recording his new album, Automatic.

Perhaps best known for 1981’s “Jessie’s Girl,” the power-pop star found inspiration in the world of electronic music to inform the 20-track effort, a high-energy offering of kick drum-driven rock with doses of dance grooves.

Springfield’s new album flows continuously from start to finish like a fine-tuned mix. He says he’s been particularly keen on incorporating low-end electronic effects into his work as of late, an approach that’s on full display in the rugged titular track, “Automatic.” Meanwhile, cuts like “Did I Just Say That Out Loud” exemplify some blissful contrast, incorporating colorful, saw-like synths and funk guitars.  

“I wanted it to be very kick drum-based. I’ve been listening to a lot of EDM, and it’s kind of like punk was an inspiration for me for Working Class Dog, and my first album, which a lot of people never really got,” Springfield told American Songwriter. “We’ve been playing a couple of songs from it [Automatic], and they’re pop, but they’re very punk-inspired with their energy. EDM probably informed these songs as much as anything as far as a new influence.”

Take a listen to Automatic, out now via SongVest Records, below.

Follow Rick Springfield:

Facebook: facebook.com/rickspringfield
Twitter: twitter.com/rickspringfield
Instagram: instagram.com/rickspringfield
Spotify: tinyurl.com/y57te243





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BLACKPINK mark seventh anniversary with tributes from members


BLACKPINK have commemorated their seventh year together with individual tributes from the members and events taking place across the U.S and Asia.

The four members of BLACKPINK took to each of their personal Instagram pages to post tributes to the band in commemoration of the band’s seventh year together as of August 8. Vocalist Rosé wrote a heartfelt letter in her Instagram post, accompanied by an archive of BLACKPINK photos from years past. “Thank you, BLACKPINK for being such a blessing in my life. I have really been able to experience everything and more than what I have ever dreamed of growing up as an aspiring artist,” her caption, written in both Korean and English, read. “Thank you, thank you and thank you a thousand times.”

In Lisa’s post, she wrote in English: “7 is one of my favorite numbers and I hope this year will be a lucky one for us.” Meanwhile, Jennie and Jisoo chose to keep their anniversary posts short, with Jennie writing “I love us I love Blackpink I love Blinks”. Jisoo posted twice in celebration of the milestone, writing in one post, “BLACKPINK is always in your area”, and “Blinks, BLACKPINK forever” in Korean in the other.

Aside from the members’ personal celebrations of their seventh year as a group, BLACKPINK are also set to roll out several special events across the U.S and Asia for the occasion. According to a report from Yonhap News Agency, YG Entertainment will be showing videos looking back on the quartet’s history across several major U.S cities such as Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. These locations will also be coloured in the group’s signature pink.

In addition, 76 screens at New Jersey’s Secaucus Junction Station will be decorated with BLACKPINK adornments, while a special photo booth will be set up at the New York Verdy pop-up for fans from tomorrow (August 9) up till Friday (August 11).

In the Asian region, BLACKPINK have collaborated with Starbucks to roll out a series of limited edition merchandise, beverage and food items for the summer. The BLACKPINK x Starbucks collaboration is being made available in nine countries across Asia: South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam until the end of August. However, two special food items – the BLACKPINK Strawberry Cream Choco Brioche and BLACKPINK Strawberry Cream Choco Baumkuchen – are Korea exclusives.

In other BLACKPINK news, YG Entertainment stocks have been recently falling amid mass uncertainty surrounding the status of the four-piece’s contract renewals. Last month, South Korean outlets reported that Lisa had yet to come to an agreement about a contract renewal with YG Entertainment, and alleged that she was unlikely to opt for a renewal. Following that report, the label issued a statement clarifying that “contract renewals are currently under discussion”, however no official announcements about BLACKPINK’s agreements with YG Entertainment have been made since.





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Naloxone Distribution and Harm Reduction Efforts Reach Grounds of Lollapalooza

Harm reduction efforts have made their way onto the grounds of this year’s Lollapalooza in Chicago.

A graphic for This Must Be The Place, a nonprofit with a mission to provide free, accessible naloxone to victims of overdoses, was spotted in rotation at the festival’s mainstage all weekend long in Grant Park. The organization additionally provides critical naloxone application training to festival attendees who volunteer to carry the life-saving product.

Taking to Instagram, co-founders Ingela Travers-Hayward and William Perry celebrated the fact that carrying naloxone at music festivals is rapidly becoming more commonplace.

“It’s really incredible to think that just a little over a year ago, we were begging promoters to allow us on festival grounds,” their post reads.

View the original article to see embedded media.

The couple had plans to hand out over 4,000 doses of the nasal spray over the weekend. This year’s Lollapalooza drew a record-breaking audience of over 500,000 across four days.

Over 1,800 Cook County residents were victims of lethal fentanyl overdoses last year and city officials caution that the substance should be assumed to be present in any recreational drug obtained off the street, according to WBEZ Chicago.

Read our feature about the need for harm reduction in the electronic dance music community here.



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Matty Healy addresses The 1975’s Malaysia controversy


The 1975‘s Matty Healy has addressed the band’s ongoing controversies in Malaysia after they were banned from the country last month.

  • READ MORE: The 1975 at Lollapalooza 2023: lots of hits and “a little bit of drama”

While performing in Hawaii on August 6, Healy addressed the crowd before the band dove into ’28’. “All I’ll say is that I don’t give a fuck about any white saviour complex bullshit. What I’ll say is that doing the right thing often requires quite a lot of sacrifice and very little reward. And being seen to do the right thing requires very little sacrifice, and that’s when you get all the rewards. And me and Ross [MacDonald] nearly shaved our heads because we thought we were going to prison for being f*gs”.

See the clip below.

@tcims

i got pushed by security in the middle im so sorry for the rude interuption #the1975 #matty #mattyhealy #mattyhealy1975 #rattyhealy

♬ original sound – [redacted]

Healy’s comments come after he and The 1975 were banned from Malaysia after criticising the country’s government for anti-LGBTQ laws during their headlining set at Kuala Lumpur’s Good Vibes Festival.

During their headlining set at the Good Vibes Festival in Kuala Lumpur on Friday July 21, Healy gave a speech calling out the Malaysian government for its hardline stance on gay rights. “I made a mistake. When we were booking shows, I wasn’t looking into it. I don’t see the fucking point, right, I do not see the point of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with,” said Healy.

He continued: “I am sorry if that offends you and you’re religious and it’s part of your fucking government, but your government are a bunch of fucking retards and I don’t care anymore. If you push, I am going to push back. I am not in the fucking mood, I’m not in the fucking mood.”

Healy would go on to kiss bandmate and bassist Ross MacDonald on the lips onstage before their set was cut short two songs later – just seven songs into their setlist – and it was announced that the band were banned from Malaysia and had to leave. The following day, the Malaysian government ordered the cancellation of the remaining two days of Good Vibes Festival.

Matty Healy performing live with The 1975 in June 2023. Credit: Thomas Niedermueller/Getty Images.

Yesterday (August 7), Future Sound Asia – the organiser of Good Vibes in Malaysia – revealed that they are pursuing legal action against The 1975, and have sent a Letter Of Claim to the British indie band.

According to a press release, the claim demands that The 1975 acknowledge their liability and compensate Future Sound Asia (FSA) for the damages incurred. It also states that if the band fail to do so, the organisers will pursue legal proceedings in the Courts of England.

“FSA would like to reiterate their strong disapproval of the Band’s behaviour during their performance at GVF2023,” it reads. “In particular, lead singer Matthew Timothy Healy’s use of abusive language, equipment damage, and indecent stage behaviour not only flagrantly breached local guidelines and Malaysian laws but also tarnished the reputation of the 10-year-old festival.”

Following their actions at the headline set last month, the Malaysian LGBTQ+ community have condemned Healy, suggesting Healy’s actions would make life for the LGBTQ+ community in the country worse.

Additionally, it was reported that by the end of July, 18 police reports had been filed regarding the incident and a class action lawsuit was being readied by Malaysian law firm Thomas Philip – which described the incident as a “deliberate reckless act done knowing well [sic] of the consequences”.

Elsewhere at Lollapalooza this past weekend, The 1975 seemed to poked fun at the Malaysia controversy before performing ‘It’s Not Living If It’s Not With You’.

The moment came during the part of their set where Healy begins to say something controversial, before the band abruptly cut him off with the beginning riff of the song. While performing the song during their set at this year’s Lollapalooza, Healy said: “You want my travel tip? Don’t go to…” before getting cut off by the start of the track.





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BTS’ V announces debut solo album, ‘Layover’


BTS member V has officially announced his debut solo album, which is being titled ‘Layover’.

  • READ MORE: Suga of BTS: “You have to find what makes you happy, what brings you joy”

Announced today (August 8), Big Hit Music took to social media to confirm the album, which is due for release in September. In the visualiser below, the album will be available from September 8 onwards.

Per Pop Crave on Twitter (X), ‘Layover’ will be made up of six tracks, one of which will be a piano track. The tracks listed per Pop Crave are ‘Rainy Days’, ‘Blue’, ‘Love Me Again’, ‘Slow Dancing’, ‘For Us’ and ‘Slow Dancing (Piano version)’.

The album’s announcement comes just days after it was revealed that the BTS member would be working with NewJeans’ creative director Min Hee-jin for his upcoming solo album.

Big Hit Music revealed to Sports Donga last week that the singer would be working with Min Hee-jin, the CEO of NewJean’s label ADOR, for his much-anticipated solo album. The ADOR head is set to lead the project, including elements such as the music, choreography and promotion style.

In a statement about the album, V said that he is “nervous” about the project. “But [I’m] happy too. This is an album that has my personal preferences. There will be a lot of things to show,” he added. “I prepared it while thinking that ARMY would be happy, so I hope you all look forward to it. You will be able to see solo artist V, which will show a new side and will be different from BTS’s V,” the singer said.

Meanwhile, bandmate Jungkook says he’s aiming to release his debut solo mini-album by November 2023. The record will follow his official solo debut single ‘Seven’, which dropped last month.

Most recently, it was announced yesterday (August 7), that BTS’ Suga has terminated his enlistment postponement and is currently beginning the enlistment process, as confirmed via Big Hit Music. This will make Suga the third BTS member to enlist, following eldest member Jin in December 2022 and J-hope in April 2023, both of whom are enlisted as active-duty soldiers.





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Atlanta’s rising hip-hop star: KILJ, the fearless rapper redefining the game – Dancing Astronaut


by: Dancing Astronaut Staff


Aug 3, 2023

From the streets of Atlanta, Georgia emerges an 18-year-old prodigy, poised to take the global music scene by storm. Meet KILJ, the trailblazing rapper who’s making waves in the digital realm with his refreshing approach to hip-hop.

Before diving headfirst into the music world, KILJ was no stranger to the spotlight. With a background in national competitive dance and television acting, he knew what it took to captivate an audience. However, it was at the tender age of 14 that KILJ discovered his true calling in music. Hailing from Prince George’s County, MD, the late Juice WRLD served as a profound inspiration, teaching him the power of vulnerability in songwriting – a theme that would become central to his craft.

In January 2019, KILJ kicked off his musical odyssey, refusing to conform to the industry’s norms. Armed with a unique perspective and an unfiltered voice, he shattered the mold of conventional rap, earning himself a distinct place in the contemporary music landscape. Sharing his emotions and experiences through music on digital platforms, KILJ quickly found an audience that connected with his genuine authenticity.

While juggling the demands of a budding rap career and high school education was no easy feat, KILJ’s dedication paid off, as he proudly graduated on time in June 2023. His hard work and undeniable talent did not go unnoticed, as he was invited to the prestigious GRAMMYsNextUp Event hosted by The Recording Academy.

Even without the backing of a cutting-edge studio or a record label, KILJ’s music has struck a chord with listeners worldwide. Surpassing a staggering 25 million streams, his raw appeal has become a lifeline for countless fans facing challenging times. His music transcends the realm of mere entertainment; it serves as a source of solace and inspiration for those who need it the most.

Dreaming big and aiming high, KILJ envisions a future that includes dominating the Billboard Hot 100 Chart with his gold and platinum tracks. But his ambitions don’t stop there – he longs to take his sound on a global tour, forging connections with millions of hearts through his powerful melodies.

Tags: kilj

Categories: Music





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Travis Scott brings out Kanye West during Rome live stream


Travis Scott brought out Kanye West at his special Circus Maximus live stream from Rome tonight (August 7).

  • READ MORE: Travis Scott – ‘Utopia’ review: lofty concept, shaky execution

Travis Scott’s planned Circus Maximus show comes after his original ‘Utopia’ launch show at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt fell apart due to “production issues”. The show was meant to take place on July 28, but was cancelled by Live Nation Middle East a day before.

During the show, Scott was performing new album ‘Utopia’ in full before interrupting the tracklist to welcome Kanye to the stage to perform ‘Praise God’ and ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’.

As Pitchfork report, Scott told the crowd: “There is no Utopia without Kanye West. There is no Travis Scott without Kanye West. There is no Rome without Kanye West. Make some noise for Ye.”

See footage below.

Kanye West’s last live performance came in February 2022 at a launch event for his ‘Donda 2’ album in Miami.

At the show, he was joined by a host of artists, including Marilyn Manson, who is facing multiple allegations and lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault, which he has denied, and DaBaby, who faced backlash in 2021 after making homophobic comments during a festival appearance.

Since then, West has shared a spate of anti-Semitic comments, beginning when he tweeted that he was going to go “death con 3 [sic] On JEWISH PEOPLE” back in October 2022. The rapper has since had his social media accounts suspended multiple times due to his remarks.

Many figures in the entertainment world have also condemned West, as have several political figures and organisations that represent Jewish communities.

Additionally, the star lost brand deals with Balenciaga, Adidas and Gap, and had his honorary degree from The School Of The Art Institute Of Chicago rescinded. Adidas later donated the proceeds from remaining stocks of West’s Yeezy shoes to organisations fighting antisemitism.





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Meta Debuts Robust AI Text-to-Music Program, AudioCraft

Meet Meta’s AudioCraft, the latest entrant into the budding text-to-audio space.

According to a blog posted by the company, the Big Tech giant says AudioCraft is actually the composition of three unique AI-driven models: MusicGen, AudioGen and EnCodec. MusicGen is a language model that exports music based on a text prompt, similar to what you’d input into ChatGPT. AudioGen, meanwhile, is geared more towards the generation of an effect, or sequence of sound effects. Finally, the EnCodec decoder facilitates the generation of music with fewer artifacts.

All of the models will be made open-source, a move that Meta explains is part of their commitment to advancing the broader field of generative AI audio.

Meta

Meta’s expansion into the space puts them in competition with fellow big tech counterpart Google, which recently released MusicLM, a powerful language model that also generates music from user-generated text prompts.

Meta hopes the tools will be used by sound designers and musicians alike to broaden their inspirations and brainstorm efficiently. They believe that in time—and with additional controls—the tool will be used as a sort of new-age synthesizer, as though it were a creative instrument in its own right. 

You can find out more about AudioCraft here.



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Enter to win a chance to be the opening DJ at Cascade Equinox, headlined by Pretty Lights [Contest] – Dancing Astronaut


by: Dancing Astronaut Staff


Aug 7, 2023

Cascade Equinox’s inaugural edition already has an absolutely stacked lineup. And now they want YOU to join the more than 50 acts in Central Oregon for one of the most eclectic and dynamic lineups of this year’s festival circuit.

The roster of musical talent for the Cascade Equinox Festival is nothing short of extraordinary, featuring dozens of standouts including Pretty Lights who is coming off a five year hiatus with new tour and new music in tow. With a selection of acts that cover a broad spectrum of genres, the festival’s curators, Gem and Jam and 4 Peaks, are keen on crafting a vibrant soundscape that creates a harmonic convergence of sounds, and styles. And now’s your chance to add to the melting pot of good vibes and deep grooves.

Just submit a 30 minute DJ mix and be entered to win an opening set at the festival, on September 22-24, 2023 at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond, OR.

Enter to win a chance to be the opening DJ at Cascade Equinox, headlined by Pretty Lights [Contest]3svze2

The submission deadline is August 28th at 11:55pm PT. Festival organizers will collectively vote on their favorite mix, and the winner will be notified by September 7th via email. The winner will receive (2) 3-Day Festival Tickets, (2) Inner Circle VIP Upgrades, a car camping pass, and a $100 travel stipend. If you’re the chosen winner, you’ll be notified via email by September 7, 2023.

If you have a friend who’s an aspiring DJ and deserves their chance in the spotlight, don’t hesitate to share this chance with them.

Who knows, if they win, maybe they’ll invite you along for the trip of a lifetime.

Tags: Cascade Equinox Festival, DJ Contest, pretty lights

Categories: Music





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