Kylie Minogue Talks Tour, ‘Tension II’ and the ‘Mind-blowing’ Success of ‘Padam Padam’

Kylie Minogue’s red-hot moment isn’t cooling off anytime soon.

Australia’s “princess of pop” started her week in Singapore, where she performed for the crowds gathered for the Formula 1 Grand Prix, and fulfilled a lifelong dream when she waved the chequered flag.

Then, on Thursday, Kylie’s name was called out — five times — when the nominations for the 2024 ARIA Awards were announced. Only Royel Otis (with eight) and Dom Dolla (six) collected more nods.

Next month, the Melbourne-raised pop veteran releases Tension II, Kylie’s 17th studio album and the sequel to her 2023 hit Tension, which led the national charts in the United Kingdom and Australia, and peaked at No. 21 on the Billboard 200.

Tension II is scheduled to arrive Oct. 18, and is led by “Lights Camera Action,” the lead single due out this Friday, Sept. 27.

There’s no slowing down for Kylie who, in the early months of 2025, embarks on a global tour.

Choosing which songs to stack in her setlist is a “juggling act,” she tells ABC Breakfast in her homeland. It’s “the hardest part of every tour.”

Of course, Kylie will deliver “the biggest hits and leave some space for some oddities. Not just the same old songs you’ve heard time and time again on tours,” she admits.

The global success of Tension hit “Padam Padam” was both “mind-blowing” and “life-changing,” says Kylie. “I didn’t set out to do that. I just consistently worked and consistently try and keep achieving.”

Tension II has “a similar vibe” to its predecessor, Minogue confesses, and features “a few random collaborations which I’ve really enjoyed,” with The Blessed Madonna, Orville Peck, Bebe Rexha, Tove Lo, and fellow Aussie Sia among them. “You feel like some of the pressure’s off you when you share the load.”

Kylie can apparently do no wrong. Earlier in the year, she scooped the Global Icon Award at the BRIT Awards, becoming just the second woman to win it following Taylor Swift in 2021, and went on to win the Billboard Women in Music Icon Award.

Kylie landed a Grammy Award (best pop dance recording) for “Padam Padam,” completed her inaugural Las Vegas Residency, and signed with United Talent Agency (UTA) for live representation in the U.S. and Canada and acting roles worldwide.

The Tension Tour 2025 is scheduled to kick off Feb. 15 at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, following by pan-Asian dates in March, and a trek through the U.K. and Europe in May.

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