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Olivia Dean has announced details of her upcoming second studio album, The Art of Loving, and shared lead single “Nice to Each Other.” Dean will release her new LP on Sept. 26 via Capitol Records, and it will be the follow-up to 2023 debut Messy. Her debut album hit No. 4 on the U.K.’s Official […]
As Pride Month kicks off, former Little Mix member Jade Thirlwall is saying avada kedavra to transphobia, courtesy of her latest words against J.K. Rowling. During her set at London’s Mighty Hoopla festival on Saturday (May 31), the “Angel of My Dreams” singer led her crowd in a call-and-response chant during her song “FUFN” (that’s […]
Yungblud has enlisted Florence Pugh for an emotional music video for new single “Zombie.” The emotional ballad will feature on his upcoming fourth studio albums, Idols, out June 20. Pugh, who current stars in Marvel’s Thunderbolts has form for appearing in music videos. In 2023, she played the leading role in rising British indie star […]
Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet is back at No. 1 on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart for a fifth non-consecutive week on Friday (May 30). The “Espresso” star first hit the top spot upon release back in August 2024, and the LP has returned to the summit intermittently ever since; Short n’ Sweet was last […]
Benson Boone has announced a run of arena dates in the U.K. and Ireland later this fall. The U.S. star’s run will kick off at Belfast’s SSE Arena on Oct. 23, before heading to Dublin’s 3Arena, the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, Glasgow’s OVO Hydro, the Utilita Arena in Birmingham and closing with a two-night […]
The saga around Zak Starkey’s departure from The Who continues to rumble on. In a new Instagram post on Wednesday (May 28), the band’s former drummer called reports that he “retired” from his position in iconic group as “f-kin total bollox” while insisting that he was, indeed, “fired” from the group.
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Starkey’s position as the band’s drummer has been uncertain since a show at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March. Reports suggested that Daltrey was unhappy with Starkey’s playing on the night, and a number of songs were cut short. Starkey – Ringo Starr’s son and a prolific session drummer – has been a part of the live lineup since 1996. In a statement, the band said, “The band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall. They have nothing but admiration for him and wish him the very best for his future.”
His position was reinstated briefly after “communication issues” were resolved, but following the announcement of The Who’s farewell tour dates in North America, guitarist Pete Townshend confirmed that time had “come for a change” in relation to their drummer, and that Scott Devours would be taking on the role.
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On Monday (May 26) the drummer shared an Instagram post stating that Daltrey had said that Starkey had not been “fired,” but “retired” to work on his project with supergroup Mantra Of The Cosmos, which includes Starkey and members of Happy Mondays. The group’s upcoming debut LP features a song written by Oasis’ Noel Gallagher; Starkey was Oasis’ drummer from 2004-2008.
Two days later, on Wednesday (May 28), Starkey shared a new update with a screengrab of a news story that again indicated that he “retired” from the group. He called the report “f-kin total bollox,” insisted that “I was fired” and that Daltrey’s “new word for it is ‘retired’ to complete my other musical projects.”
He continued, “I called Roger last week and told him in person I had spent nearly 2 months at my studio in Jamaica completing my studio projects. That I had a mantra of the cosmos single out next week and then I was completely available for the foreseeable future… he was a little surprised but understood. It’s true – I have no plan’s whatsoever for the fall as I thought I was touring with The Who and my mantra band mates are v busy in oasis and happy Mondays until the new year . So this is simply a load of bollox … Am I fired , retired, deffo not tired as I’m 20 years younger than these guys as they keep saying.
Starkey added, “Dropping two beats on our second show is not a firing offence – I’ve watched the show on tv I can’t see where I dropped them – I looked everywhere- it’s the who ffs if it was perfect it would be so f–king boring …”
A spokesperson for The Who offered no comment on the latest update when approached by Billboard U.K.
The Who will kick off the U.S. leg of their farewell tour on August 16 at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, FL.
Global success enjoyed by the likes of Central Cee, Charli xcx and Dua Lipa helped lift British music exports to a record high of £794 million ($1.72 billion) in 2024, according to new figures from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).
The London-based trade body says last year’s total is the highest since it began analyzing labels’ overseas income in 2000, and that it’s more than triple the £243 million ($328 million) from 2013. The result also means that the U.K. remains the world’s second biggest exporter of music, making up around 8% to 9% of global streams, says the BPI.
Driving last year’s stats was a combination of established, globally successful British artists and a new generation of homegrown talent making waves on the world stage. In total, around 600 artists accumulated more than 100 million global streams throughout 2024, including high-charting releases from Central Cee, Charli xcx and Dua Lipa, alongside platinum singles for Myles Smith (“Stargazing”) and Good Neighbours (“Home”).
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Data by Luminate shows that the list of top revenue-generating artists also includes contemporary himakers Adele, Arctic Monkeys, Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles and Sam Smith, as well as icons who first rose to prominence in the 1970s, such as Queen and Elton John.
Consumption of British music increased in all but one of the main global regions in 2024, says BPI. This trend was led by an incrase of 29% in the Middle East and 12% in Africa. North America and Europe remained the biggest regions for export.
The BPI attributes many of these major gains to British record labels’ long-term investment in new talent and established acts. The organization reports that between 2020-2024, label businesses invested more than £2 billion ($2.7 billion) in artist A&R and marketing.
The rate of growth is declining, however. The BPI reports that income from the sales and streams of British music overseas increased by just 1.9% in 2024, compared to 7.6% in 2023 and 20% in 2022. In previous years, the consumption of British music globally was bolstered by extensive album and touring campaigns from superstars including Styles and Lewis Capaldi. Last year, however, no British artists ranked among the 20 most-streamed artists globally, according to the IFPI.
BPI chief executive Dr Jo Twist said in a statement: “It’s brilliant to see British artists, backed by their labels, continue to shine on the world stage, including a new generation of talent such as Charli XCX, Lola Young, and Myles Smith, among others. Their emergence shows we are on the cusp of future success.”
In her statement, Twist also stressed the importance of raising awareness around the government’s potential future approach to generative artificial intelligence training, as well as highlighting the need for further conversation around music education in the U.K.
Twist continued: “If we are to realise this potential in an increasingly competitive global market and keep British music a headline act, we need the right environment where the industry comes together to deliver growth to the UK. We have a Government that values not just the cultural power of British music but also the foundations of its success: creative arts education, labels that are supported and encouraged to invest in talent, successful programmes like the Music Export Growth Scheme, and a gold standard copyright framework that safeguards creativity and rewards human artistry.”
Kings of Leon have pulled all of the band’s U.K. and European shows for the summer following Caleb Followill being involved in a “freak accident.”
The frontman announced the news on Wednesday (May 28) via an update posted across social media. Taking to Instagram, he shared that he underwent emergency surgery recently after breaking his foot.
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“Hello to everyone out there, especially our European fans who are coming to see us this summer,” the singer and guitarist began in his video message. “Unfortunately I regret to inform you that those shows will have to be cancelled due to a freak accident that happened the other day. I broke my foot pretty bad playing with my kids.
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“It’s pretty gnarly and I’ll spare all the details. But we’re fortunate enough to have some great doctors here in Nashville that gave me emergency surgery. I’m on the mend, but they told me that I can’t be on my feet, travelling, or anything for the next eight weeks or so. That’s a big bummer.”
Moreover, he added that the band was planning on previewing some unreleased material during the now-canceled gigs. Followill also reassured fans that he and his bandmates will continue trying to work on new music over the coming months.
“We were so excited, we’ve been preparing for this tour for a long time… We’ve been in the studio recording, we have a bunch of new songs, we were going to debut a few of them on this run,” Followill said. “We had a lot of exciting things planned and now we’re going to have to pivot and find a new way to continue the work that we’ve started.”He concluded: “I’m very excited for when we do get to show you the stuff we’re doing, and in the meantime we’re going to do whatever work we can while I have these limitations. Exciting stuff is coming, I know this isn’t the message anyone wants to hear. It’s certainly not the message I want to be sending, but it’s going to be all right. Hopefully, we will see you all soon.”
The Tennessee-formed four-piece were set to perform in Cardiff, Wales, and Lytham, England, this summer beginning on June 29. The former was a slot at the Blackweir Live series, and the latter was part of Lytham Festival, where acts including Justin Timberlake and Alanis Morissette are also set to appear.Other affected gigs included Southsea’s Victorious Festival, Mad Cool Festival in Madrid and Belgium’s Rock Werchter. Rescheduled dates are yet to be announced.In an official statement, the band also shared, “Kings of Leon are updating fans that Caleb Followill has recently sustained a serious injury, shattering his heel and requiring a significant emergency surgery, that will prevent him from traveling and performing.”
“The anticipated recovery process is expected to take eight weeks, under strict guidance of expert orthopaedic specialists,” it continued. “The band regrets to report that they will need to cancel all upcoming U.K. and European festival headline shows in June and July of this year. Caleb took to social media today to detail his injury in a heartfelt apology to all the fans.”The sibling act’s last full-length effort arrived in the form of 2023 LP Can We Please Have Fun. The record reached No. 35 on the Billboard 200 upon release, and hit No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart. The band is set to resume touring on July 18 when they support Zach Bryan at his show at the Metlife Stadium in New Jersey.
Watch Followill’s announcement about his injury below:
Wet Leg has shared the second taste of its upcoming album Moisturizer with the LP’s opening track, “CPR.” The song was released on Tuesday evening (May 27) and follows its live debut at a recent run of live shows. The group – led by singer Rhian Teasdale and guitarist Hester Chambers – headlined two nights […]
As anticipation builds for surprise appearances at Glastonbury 2025, Sir Rod Stewart has confirmed that Ronnie Wood will join him for a Faces reunion during his Legends set. In a new interview on That Peter Crouch Podcast, Stewart explained that he was still in regular contact with the Rolling Stones guitarist. The pair were previously bandmates in the late ’60s/early ’70s blues rock band, alongside drummer Kenney Jones.
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“Woody, I do [speak to] a lot,” the 79-year-old said. “Just recently, ’cause we’re gonna do Glastonbury together.” You can listen to the podcast in full here.
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Faces hinted at a comeback last month, with Jones revealing in an interview with The Telegraph that the band had recorded “about 11 tracks” at RAK Studios in London for a new album – which would be their first full-length effort in over 50 years.“I can’t see it coming out this year. But I can see it coming out next year,” he continued. “Everyone’s doing different things. We do little snippets [of recording] here and there. Then all of a sudden, The Stones are out [on tour] again, Rod’s out again…”
First formed in 1969 through a merger between members of Small Faces and the Jeff Beck Group, Faces existed for six years before guitarist Wood left to join the Rolling Stones, and Stewart continued his burgeoning solo career. The group have released four albums, with 1971’s A Nod Is As Good As a Wink… to a Blind Horse hitting No. 6 on the Billboard 200.
Glastonbury will take place at Worthy Farm, Somerset next month (June 25-29) with headliners The 1975, Neil Young, and Olivia Rodrigo. Stewart last performed at the festival in 2002, topping the bill alongside Coldplay and Stereophonics that year.
The “Maggie May” singer will take to the Pyramid Stage on Sunday afternoon for the Legends slot – one of the most coveted in the festival’s history. Previous bookings have included Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Lionel Richie, Kylie Minogue and Diana Ross, with Shania Twain performing in the Legends slot in 2024.
Shortly after he was announced for this year’s event, Stewart said he was “proud, ready and more than able to pleasure and titillate my friends at Glastonbury.” He was the first name to be confirmed for Glastonbury 2025, which sold out in under an hour last autumn following the introduction of a new online queuing system.
2025’s edition will mark the final event to take place at Worthy Farm before the traditional fallow year in 2026, which sees the landowner Michael Eavis and his family allow the grounds to recover every four years. The festival will return again in 2027.
