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Fontaines D.C. frontman Grian Chatten joined The Pogues on stage to perform “Streams Of Whiskey” in Dublin, Ireland on Tuesday night (Dec. 17). Watch fan-filmed footage here.
The Pogues played a one-off show at the city’s 3Arena yesterday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their 1984 debut LP, Red Roses For Me. The gig featured a wealth of special guests, including Nadine Shah, members of Lankum, rapper Kojaque and John Francis Flynn, among others. Fontaines D.C. drummer Tom Coll also performed as part of the live band.
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Following the death of singer Shane MacGowan last year, the current Pogues line-up consists of singer Spider Stacy, and founding members Jem Finer and James Fearnley. The band recently announced their first headline tour in 13 years – and first since MacGowan’s passing – to mark the 40th anniversary of their second album, Rum Sodomy & The Lash.
Scheduled for May 2025, the upcoming trek will include dates in London, Leeds, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester, and Newcastle. Further details and ticketing information can be found via The Pogues’ official website.
Chatten paid tribute to MacGowan after he died aged 65 last November. “So long North Star,” he wrote on Instagram. “I will love you forever.” Speaking to Billboard earlier this year, he explained the impact that the songwriter’s passing had on the recording process for Fontaines D.C.’s fourth LP, Romance.
“We were in the middle of recording the album when Shane died,” he said. “And I had to f–king take a break. I was really, deeply affected by it. Partly because he enhanced my relationship with my family! You know, he connected me to my Irishness maybe in a way that I wouldn’t have been able to do without him.”
In 2020, Fontaines D.C. shared a cover of “I’m A Man You Don’t Meet Every Day,” a traditional Irish song made famous by The Pogues, for SiriusXM.
Mariah Carey has overtaken Tom Grennan in the race for the U.K.’s Christmas No. 1 Single, as per a new report from the Official Charts Company published Tuesday (Dec. 17). Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Moving to No. 2 in the midweek charts, Carey’s festive classic “All […]
50 Cent, Davido and Mary J. Blige have announced a special gig scheduled to take place July 3 at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The date will see the three global superstars perform together as co-headliners for the first time. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. GMT this Friday (Dec. 20) via Ticketmaster.
For Blige, the show will follow her spring North American headlining tour in support of new LP Gratitude. On Nov. 29, the R&B legend also celebrated the 30th anniversary of her sophomore album, My Life, which spawned the singles “Be Happy,” “I’m Goin Down” and “Mary Jane.”
Speaking to Billboard earlier this year, Blige described the record as being “pivotal” to her success, adding that its creation allowed her to find herself as an artist. “My fans have given me so much, and when I say, ‘We did it,’ I mean my fans and I,” she said.
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50 Cent, meanwhile, has another huge U.K. show scheduled for July. The following week will see him headline Glasgow’s TRNSMT Festival (July 11), alongside Irish pop act The Script. The rapper recently landed his second video in the YouTube Billion Views Club with 2005 hit “Candy Shop,” joining “In Da Club.” His last studio album arrived in the form of 2014’s Animal Ambition.
In March 2023, Davido released his Timeless LP, which peaked at No. 37 on the Billboard 200 and was nominated for best global music album at the 2024 Grammy Awards. Its Musa Keys-assisted track “Unavailable” went on to hit No. 3 on the U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart.
The Nigerian-American artist is slated to drop his next album, 5ive, early next year. He unveiled lead single “Funds” with Odumodublvck and Chike earlier on Dec. 5; it featured a sample of the 1997 track “Vuli Ndlela” by South African singer-songwriter Brenda Fassie.“This one is straight from the heart – my story, my truth, my growth,” Davido wrote on Instagram uponn the song’s release. “This one’s for the dreamers, the go getters and everyone chasing what’s theirs! Thank you for riding with me.”
Northampton rapper Slowthai has been cleared of raping two women after one of his shows. The 29-year-old (real name Tyler Frampton) had previously been accused of sexually assaulting them following his performance at The Bullingdon in Oxford in September 2021.
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Frampton and his co-accused, Alex Blake-Walker, were both found not guilty on three joint counts of rape following a trial at Oxford Crown Court. Blake-Walker was also cleared on one count of sexual assault. The not guilty verdict was announced Monday (Dec. 16) following 10 hours of deliberation by the jury.
The BBC reports that Frampton broke down in tears when the verdict was announced, and that there were gasps in the public gallery.
The trial heard that Frampton and his friends were invited to a party in Oxford following the conclusion of his show. The prosecution alleged that Blake-Walker had raped one woman at the encouragement of Frampton, who was then accused of twice raping a second complainant.
During the trial, Frampton said that sexual activity had taken place between him and the second complainant, but insisted that it had been consensual. “I know she was consenting, there wasn’t a question,” the BBC reports that he said during the trial.
Frampton and Blake-Walker had previously denied all the charges, and said the two women consented to all sexual activity.
The updates came after prosecutor Heather Stangoe warned jurors in the closing argument not to be “Wagatha Christies” in their deliberations, referencing the infamous legal battle between Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney in their 2022 libel case in the U.K.
The presiding judge, Ian Pringle, asked jurors to “lay aside any feelings of sympathy or dislike” and make their decision in a “calm and cool manner,” adding that they “must be sure of guilt” if they were to convict the two men.
Patrick Gibbs KC, the lawyer defending Frampton, said in court that there were a dozen “problems” with accusations outlined. He added that Slowthai isn’t “everybody’s stereotype of a rapper,” describing him as a “thoughtful and modest” man who “throws himself, sometimes recklessly, into life.”
Also in the court proceedings, Blake-Walker’s lawyer Sheryl Nwosu, said that the evidence outlined “doesn’t fit with Mr Blake-Walker and his behaviour on the night,” while Judge Pringle said the case was a “question of consent.”
Frampton had been accompanied by his wife, pop star Anne-Marie, throughout the trial, which was held at Oxford Crown Court.
Frampton released his most recent album, Ugly, under his Slowthai moniker in 2023. Following the announcement of the charges that year, he was dropped from festival lineups for Glastonbury Festival and Reading & Leeds.
The race is on for the U.K’s Official Christmas No. 1, and with a week to go, Wham! is set to be the contender to beat as the duo’s 1984 hit “Last Christmas” has landed at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart on Friday (Dec. 13).
The duo, made up of Andrew Ridgeley and the late George Michael, are now at No. 1 for an eighth non-consecutive week in just four years; “Last Christmas” first reached the summit of the charts in 2021.
The song also bagged the coveted Christmas No. 1 spot for the first time in 2023, having been beaten to it in 1984 by Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” LadBaby – the moniker for YouTube influencer Mark Hoyle – holds the record for number of Christmas chart-toppers with five different songs hitting No. 1 between 2018 and 2022, beating The Beatles’ previous record of four.
Wham! saw off a number of other festive classics, and is in pole position ahead of the announcement of Christmas No. 1 in the U.K. on Dec. 20.
Among the other contenders are Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (No. 3), Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (No. 5), and Tom Grennan’s new Amazon Music exclusive “It Can’t Be Christmas” (No. 6).
Speaking to the Bedford Independent earlier this week, Grennan said it felt “crazy” to be going up against “a band and artist that I’ve always loved and admired.” He added: “I was really conscious of not writing a cheesy Christmas song. It would have been so easy to have done that, but I wanted to put out the best I could possibly do.”
Gracie Abrams sees her five-week reign at No. 1 with “That’s So True” come to an end, placing at No. 2. A further slew of Yuletide-themed tracks make appearances elsewhere in the top 40, including Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” (No. 7), Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me” (No. 9) and Laufey’s “Christmas Magic,” (No. 20).
British vocalist Lola Young breaks into the top 20 for the first time with “Messy” (No. 11) following a rise of 24 places week-on-week. Speaking to Billboard U.K. last month, the 23-year-old discussed the slow-burn success of the single and why she believes it has connected with fans. “I choose to give realness and truth. I’ve got a bit of a belly out, I f–king swear a bunch and I have fun,” she said. “And that’s what people are resonating with.”
See the full rundown of the Official Singles Chart here.
Taylor Swift continues her reign over the Official U.K. Albums Chart with The Tortured Poets Department, as the record lands its 10th non-consecutive week at No. 1. Coinciding with the end of her 21-month long Eras Tour last weekend (Dec. 8), the album remains the songwriter’s longest-running chart-topper in the U.K., the Official Charts Company […]
Pozer has shared his psych-influenced new single “Aquatic,” following a year of major commercial and critical breakthroughs. The song (which you can hear below) arrives less than a month after the Croydon artist teamed up with AJ Tracey on collaborative track “Heaterz,” which sampled “Gunshot Riddim” by pioneering grime producer Ironsoul. The 22-year-old has also […]
In 2021, Sam Fender shared “Seventeen Going Under,” the title track to his then-upcoming second LP, a tale of youthful anger, regret, longing and of a British society in collapse. That was how he saw it from his upbringing in the Newcastle area, but it resonated with listeners on the isles and beyond, nearly notching […]
ESNS (Eurosonic Noorderslag), which acts as a key four-day showcase for emerging European music, has announced the lineup for its 2025 edition. You can see the expanded bill below.
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On Tuesday (Dec. 10), organizers shared the full lineup for next year’s festival, which features 19 newly added artists. Recent additions include Istanbul-Rotterdam pop artist Min Taka and Amsterdam trio Housepainters, plus Sudden Lights, an indie-rock band from Latvia.
Delegate passes, tickets and timetable information are now all available via the official ESNS website. Three-day passes start at €100 ($104.98), while individual day tickets can be found for €55 ($57.74).
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Taking place at venues across the city of Groningen, the Netherlands, between Jan. 15-18, the event will host 271 acts from 36 European countries, alongside its innovation and sustainability-focused industry conferences. The festival’s positioning in January allows it to act as a springboard for new music for the year.
Other previously announced acts include the Billboard 100-charting Jordan Adetunji, alongside other key U.K. emerging artists including Alessi Rose, Antony Szmierek, and Jacob Alon. Further European names include Slovenian rockers Astrid & The Scandals and viral Finnish singer-songwriter Joalin.
As part of its European Talent Exchange program, ESNS annually invites festival bookers and promoters from across the continent to witness a slew of new talent, and start amassing their lineups for the following summer. Since its inception in 2003, the initiative has helped 2292 artists to earn major festival bookings across the continent.
ESNS 2024 saw performances from the Mercury Prize-nominated CMAT, as well as Lynks, Clarissa Connelly, and Eddington Again. Previous iterations of the event have bore witness to early shows from global stars such as Dua Lipa and Fontaines D.C. to Sigrid.
Jack White has shared details of a new U.K. and European tour, set to kick off in Feb. 2025. Find a full list of dates below.
The run of shows follow the soloist and former White Stripes member’s surprise sixth studio LP No Name, which hit No. 33 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart and No. 108 on the Billboard 200 upon release in August.
The tour will commence at Paris’ La Cigale theatre on Feb. 21, before taking moving on to venues in Utrecht, London, Birmingham and Glasgow over the following two weeks. The dates will wrap up with a show at the latter’s Barrowland Ballroom on March 3.
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Details of a special fan presale will be shared with those signed up for White’s newsletter, while remaining tickets will go live at 10 a.m (GMT) on Thursday (Dec. 12). Further ticket sale information can be found via the 49-year-old’s official website.
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Shortly after No Name was unveiled, White played a string of surprise club and bar show in southern U.S. states. Taking to social media on Aug. 13, the songwriter and guitarist posted a statement about how these intimate shows were part of a wider unconventional campaign in support of the album.
“People keep saying that these are ‘Pop up shows’ we’ve been playing, well, you can call them whatever you want, but we are on tour right now,” he said at the time. “Lots of love and rock and roll to you all and you are blessed for giving that love to others, we hope that we see you out on the road soon, if not let’s get coffee and a slice of pie sometime? Music is sacred.”
The newly announced U.K. and European gigs will form part of a larger world tour through spring 2025 that includes more U.S. dates as well as concerts in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
Jack White U.K. and European 2025 tour dates:Feb. 21 – Paris, France @ La CigaleFeb. 22 – Paris, France @ Le TrianonFeb. 23 – Paris, France @ Le TrianonFeb. 25 – Utrecht, the Netherlands @ TivoliVredenburg (Ronda)Feb. 26 – Utrecht, the Netherlands @ TivoliVredenburg (Ronda)Feb. 28 – London, England @ TroxyMarch 1 – London, England @ TroxyMarch 2 – Birmingham, England @ O2 AcademyMarch 3 – Glasgow, Scotland @ Barrowland Ballroom