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Lady Gaga was honored with the Innovator Award at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Monday night (March 17), and her acceptance speech celebrated the notion that “the most powerful innovation is your authenticity.”
She was presented the award by Doechii, who said the superstar helped the “Denial Is a River” rapper embrace her “weird” side, adding, “Gaga was and always is new, fresh and different. Not only is that OK, but it’s ideal.”
After taking the stage, the “Abracadabra” pop star continued that sentiment, honoring the beauty of weirdness and human differences in every aspect, from age and race to sexual orientation and physical expression. “Winning an award honoring my entire career at 38 years old is a hard thing to get my head around,” she began. “On the one hand, I feel like I’ve been doing this forever. On the other hand, I know I’m just getting started. Even though the world might consider a woman in her late 30s old for a pop star — which is insane — I promise that I’m just getting warmed up.”
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She also discussed her “controversial” career moments that defined her career and made her who she is, from her LGBTQ+ anthem “Born This Way” to arriving at the 2011 Grammy Awards in an egg. “If I learned anything in the three decades I’ve been at this, it’s that the most powerful innovation is your authenticity,” she told the cheering crowd. “Every time I was the only woman in the room, the loudest voice was inside my own head telling me not to compromise. Listening to that voice always showed me exactly where I belonged.”
Gaga also acknowledged the community that inspired her, including artists David Bowie, Elton John, Madonna, Stevie Wonder, Cher and her late friend and collaborator Tony Bennett, “who taught me to embrace the classics but never be bound by them.” She also honored the “fiercely brilliant Italian-American women” in her lineage “who reinvented their destinies with nothing but strength and dreams and determination.”
“Those women, my ancestors, they’re the greatest innovators I’ve ever known,” she continued, before ultimately thanking her fans, the affectionately called Little Monsters. “Thank you for always seeing me so clearly from The Fame to Mayhem. Because you saw me, I learned to see myself. To the LGBTQ+ community, you taught me bravery before the world was able to listen. You have changed the world for the better, and your courage fuels mine every single day,” she shared.
Gaga concluded her heartfelt speech by telling the crowd, “To every artist that’s ever been told they’re different, complicated or too much, please never change. Break the mold. The world doesn’t need another copy. It desperately needs your original.”
Watch Gaga’s full acceptance speech at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards here.
Nearly three decades after launching NYC’s Fleadh Festival celebrating global Irish culture, two of Fleadh’s founders Joe Killian and Liam Lynch are again joining forces to premiere Seisiún, an Irish music and cultural gathering at Suffolk Downs in Boston.
The Sept. 6-7 event will be produced in partnership with The Bowery Presents, Lynch and Killian, featuring The Pogues and Boston’s own Dropkick Murphys as headlining artists. The Pogues will include original members like banjoist and songwriter Jem Finer, accordionist James Fearnley and tin whistler and singer Spider Stacy. Seisiún will be the Pogue’s first show in the U.S. since the passing of former frontman Shane McGowan in 2023 and the set will celebrate the Irish folk-punkers entire body of work “while honoring Shane, leaving space for alchemy and magic from very special guest performances,” a press release announcing the show reads. A statement from the band confirmed appearances from “such incomparable artists as Lisa O’Neill, John Francis Flynn and The Bad Seeds.”
The band also said: “We are stoked to return to Boston, pretty much a second home for The Pogues in the US – a city where we have shared many unforgettable performances and experiences. We’re looking forward not just to raising a glass or two but also to raising the roof with our fans and friends, old and new, to celebrate the music we’ve made and the alliances we’ve formed over the years.”
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Other artists on the bill include The Hold Steady, The Waterboys, Cardinals, The Rumjacks and Lisa O’Neill. Additional artists will be announced in the future.
Seisiún was created as a two-day festival experience celebrating global Irish music and culture and honoring the memory of the first Fleadh Festival in 1997 on New York City’s Randall’s Island. More than 60,000 music fans attended Fleadh to see sets by McGowan and his band the Popes, Sinead O’Connor, John Prine, Van Morrison and more.
“We’re launching Seisiún at a time when Irish culture is once again witnessing another rich revival and resurgence. There is such an exciting wave of extraordinary cross-category Irish music talent,” explains Lynch. “With this two-day event our hope is to reignite some of that same sense of gathering, of revelry and of community, while also tapping into that emergent new interest in the genre. Let the music keep our spirits high.”
Tickets for Seisiún will go on sale to the general public on Friday at 10 a.m. ET via AXS.com, the official ticketing outlet for The Stage at Suffolk Downs. Visit StageAtSuffolkDowns.com for more information.
A new large-scale structure will debut at Coachella 2025.
In partnership with Red Bull, the festival will debut Red Bull Mirage, a multi-level, 20,000 square-foot installation located directly across from the festival’s Quasar stage, the lineup for which dropped today (March 17.) See exclusive renderings of Red Bull Mirage below.
Quasar itself will feature two unique lineups across both weekends of Coachella 2025. For weekend one, The Martinez Brothers will play b2b with Loco Dice on Friday, April 11; Barry Can’t Swim will play alongside 2ManyDJs and salute on Saturday, April 12; and Tiësto will play the stage on Sunday, April 13.
For weekend two, deadmau5 will play under his Testpilot alias alongside Zhu on Friday, April 18; Kaskade will play a redux set with Idris on Saturday, April 19; and Alesso will play one of his house-oriented Body Hi sets alongside Gorgon City on Sunday, April 20.
Near Quasar, Red Bull Mirage will offer hang opportunities for all ticket tiers. GA attendees will be able to access bars, activations and shade. The structure’s first level will offer a high-level dining experience, with details forthcoming. The second level will function as an invite-only loft space for artists, industry and media. Meanwhile, the top level will be a private perch for artist and guests to mingle and take in views of Quasar and the polo field beyond.
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Quasar itself debuted at Coachella 2024 as a stage hosting extended dance/electronic sets. The stage was a hit during its debut last year, drawing huge crowds for three-plus hour performances, many of which were special b2b pairings. This year’s addition of Red Bull Mirage indicates that Coachella is investing in the long-term future of the stage.
Upon last year’s announcement of Quasar, Goldenvoice’s Executive Vice President Jenn Yacoubian called it “a stage where we can book talent on it in a way that we’ve felt we haven’t been able to in the past. We’re looking at it as a traditional kind of DJ stage. The thinking was that we wanted people to see a longer format DJ set.”
Red Bull Mirage Renderings:
Red Bull Mirage
Red Bull Mirage
Red Bull Mirage
Appearing on producer Zoomo’s album Absolution, released in October of 2024, the music video for “Good Orderly Direction” featuring Navy Blue is finally here.
Directed by Paul Merelle, the visuals are just as soulful as the beats and the bars as Zoomo and Navy find themselves taking in the sights and sounds of Central Park on what looks like a damp, autumn day.
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With the beat switch in the middle, “Good Orderly Direction” is essentially two songs with the West Coast rapper doing what he does best by getting introspective. He starts off the first verse telling the listener to chill out a bit, rapping, “Alone on a path tryna get the thoughts freed up/I’m goin’ in the game 4-3 up/If you movin’ through this life on the gas, better ease up/Jesus Christ on the cross, gotta bleed/River full of fish, be weary of the greed/Solve our problems with a spliff, every young brotha’ need love.”
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He then ends the with, “It only gets harder as you go/You alive, and that’s the sacred part of how you grow,” reminding us to keep on keeping on because life is a garden, dig it?
On the second verse, after the beat switches a bit, Navy Blue talks about the beauty in facing your anxieties as he stands in the middle of Central Park’s Naumburg Bandshell. “Even when I’m hurt, I’ma smile,” he raps. “I done learned just to love me a bit/Fear stacked, I was perched on a pile/Down bad, I can gladly admit/Imperfect, I’m searching aloud/Loose garment, I can’t wear a shroud/And this sack bring a brother closer to God.”
In case you’re not familiar with Zoomo, he’s a producer out of North Carolina who’s down with YL and Starker’s NYC collective RRR and has been bringing the feeling back with beat tapes — a medium in hip-hop that has become a rare occurrence these days — his most recent project Absolution features instrumentals and includes features from Navy, Da$H, AKTHESAVIOR, YL, Starker, Wiki, ANKHLEJOHN, Aasir, VIP Skylark, Goya Gumbani, and Papo2oo4.
You can check out the video below.
Something beautiful this way comes for Miley Cyrus fans. The pop star has seemingly begun teasing her next musical era, with new visuals popping up on her website and social media, as well as on posters around the country. In a black-and-white photo that serves as Cyrus’ new profile picture on Instagram, the backlit singer […]
Playboi Carti showed some love to Kim Kardashian‘sSkims on his new Music album, and the shapewear brand shout-out made it onto the reality mogul’s radar. Kardashian returned the favor by reposting Carti’s “Fine Sh–” lyrics to her Instagram Story on Monday (March 17). “I bought that h- a lot of clothes, but she love her […]
AEG Presents is finally planting its flag in Austin.
While the city has long been the home of Messina Touring Group — AEG Presents’ highly successful global touring outfit — the live music giant hasn’t held any real estate in the fast-growing metroplex.
That changes now that AEG has announced plans to open a 4,000-capacity indoor venue in the so-called “live music capital of the world.” The 65,000-square-foot, yet-to-be-named venue will anchor River Park, a 109-acre mixed-use development in East Austin that will combine residential housing with office space, retail and restaurants.
“Designed for both world-class performances and unforgettable events, the venue will feature state-of-the-art sound and lighting, luxury suites, VIP seating, and best-in-class hospitality — all with a front-row feel no matter where you’re standing,” a press release announcing the project reads. “The artist experience is just as carefully considered with spacious, artist-friendly dressing rooms, green rooms, and top-tier production capabilities.”
AEG Presents attorney Shawn Trell explained that the company has “always wanted to build a venue from the ground up in Austin, but we wanted to make sure the timing and location were right, and we had partners aligned with our vision.” Those partners include Texas developers Presidium and Partners Group.
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Austin has seen a number of new venues open in recent years, dating back to the opening of ACL Live at The Moody Theater in 2011. A year later, Live Nation and the Formula 1 racing association opened the Circuit of the Americas, which features auto racing and large-scale concerts. And in April 2022, Oak View Group opened the Moody Center, an 18,000-capacity arena that is regularly listed on Billboard Boxscore’s chart of top venues with a capacity of over 15,000.
“We’re thrilled to bring a new venue to Austin, a city that lives and breathes live music,” said Robin Phillips, vp of AEG Presents Southwest, in a statement. “Our mission is to bring something new to the city that both honors the legacy of Austin and feels completely unique. Whether it’s a headlining show from a national touring act, or a local artist’s breakthrough moment, we want this space to feel like home for musicians and fans alike.”
Two months after the first-ever winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK The Vivienne died, the drag performer’s cause of death has been confirmed. In a statement shared with Attitude, the star’s manager Simon Jones revealed that James Lee Williams — The Vivienne’s off-stage name — died “from the effects of ketamine use causing a cardiac […]
Semisonic‘s biggest hit may have been used in a recent White House video glorifying the deportation of undocumented immigrants, but that doesn’t mean the band approved of it.
After the Donald Trump administration shared a brief clip Monday (March 17) on X depicting Border Patrol agents putting handcuffed men on a plane to the tune of 1998’s “Closing Time,” Semisonic was quick to slam the song’s use in a statement to Rolling Stone. “We did not authorize or condone the White House’s use of our song in any way,” the Minneapolis rock group began.
“And no, they didn’t ask,” Semisonic continued. “The song is about joy and possibilities and hope, and they have missed the point entirely.”
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Billboard has reached out to the White House for comment.
Released as a single from Semisonic’s album Feeling Strangely Fine, “Closing Time” remains Semisonic’s best-known hit. The track topped the Alternative Airplay chart for five weeks and reached No. 8 on Pop Airplay.
The song’s lyrics find frontman Dan Wilson — who has gone on to co-write songs for hitmakers like Adele (“Someone Like You”), Taylor Swift (“Treacherous”) and Chris Stapleton (“White Horse”), among others — singing about patrons exiting a bar that’s closing for the night. “Closing time, you don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here,” he belts on the rock tune. “I know who I want to take me home.”
In the White House’s video, however, the lyrics are reinterpreted in the context of border agents patting down two handcuffed men of color before sending them onto a plane for deportation. Anti-immigration policies have been central to the president’s administration, with Trump emphasizing strict deportation measures — which many who oppose his views have deemed extreme — as part of his “Make America Safe Again” platform.
Semisonic is far from the first act to call out Trump’s unauthorized use of their music in official content, an issue that was particularly flagrant during his presidential runs in 2016, 2020 and 2024. Last year alone, Beyoncé, Celine Dion, Foo Fighters, Isaac Hayes, the White Stripes and more artists distanced themselves from the politician as his campaign used their songs without permission, with some even taking legal action against him.
After Flogging Molly canceled their 2025 tour itinerary, frontman Dave King’s wife and bandmate, Bridget Regan, took to social media to give an update on the Irish-born singer’s ongoing health condition now that they are “safely out of the woods.”
In the statement posted to the band’s Instagram page, Regan wrote that on Jan. 24, “Dave suffered a brain hemorrhage and underwent two subsequent surgeries to save his life. He then spent two weeks in a coma, followed by varying stages of treatment and recovery. On February 28th he underwent yet another surgery and I now feel confident we are on the other side of this.”
Before thanking the doctors for “saving my husband’s life,” Regan wrote, “He is now entering into the next phase of his recovery and wants nothing more than to play music again. The road ahead is uncertain but we, as ever, will roll with the punches and hope to see you all in the near future.”
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Regan concluded her statement by writing, “Please look after each other and tell your people you love them. Life can change in an instant.”
Read the full statement here.
Last month, Flogging Molly announced the cancellation of all their 2025 tour dates, revealing that King was “battling a very serious health condition,” though the group didn’t specify the condition at the time. The band was scheduled their own Salty Dog Cruise, which was set to launch on Feb. 17 as a five-night trip from Port of Miami to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
Flogging Molly’s 2025 tour itinerary was also expected to kick off at the end of February following their cruise, with dates in the U.S. scheduled across February and March, and shows throughout Europe and Canada planned across the summer.
The Celtic punk band released their first album in 2000, with 2008’s Float becoming their most successful to date – peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. The most recent studio album, Anthem, was released in 2022.
