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The members of U2 are making sure the people of Ukraine know that they still have their backs three years after Russia’s invasion.
On Monday (Feb. 24) — the same date Russia launched its full-fledged military operation on Ukraine in 2022, effectively sending the countries into a war that is still ongoing — Bono shared an emotional piano-accompanied reading of Taras Shevchenko’s “My Friendly Epistle” on the Irish rock band’s Instagram. “Break then your chains, in love unite,
nor seek in foreign lands the sight
of things not even found above,” the poem dictates. “Then, in your own house, you will see
true justice, strength and liberty!”
“All who believe in freedom and sense the jeopardy we Europeans now find ourselves in are not sleeping easily on this, the third anniversary of the invasion,” Bono wrote in his caption, revealing that he and The Edge had originally sent the musical reading to Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy days after Russia first invaded three years ago.
“More to say about this and other bewilderments later,” added the “Mysterious Ways” musician.
Bono and his U2 bandmates have been vocal in their support of Ukraine throughout the country’s war against Russia, which began in February 2022 when the latter country’s president, Vladimir Putin, ordering multiple attacks on Ukraine’s major cities as part of a “special military operation.” In April that year, Irish rockers performed on a bill with Celine Dion, Katy Perry and more stars as part of a Stand Up for Ukraine relief show, a month after which Bono and Edge traveled to Kyiv to perform Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” in a metro station.
Last year, Bono also paid tribute to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny — one of Putin’s most outspoken critics who died in Russian prison in February 2024 — during one of U2’s residency shows at Las Vegas’ The Sphere. “For these people, freedom is the most important word in the world,” the frontman told the crowd at the time. “So important that Ukrainians are fighting and dying for it, and so important that Alexey Navalny chose to give his up.”
As Ukraine enters a fourth year of fighting off Russia, its fate remains uncertain. Many Western leaders gathered in Kyiv Monday to observe the date and, in some cases, pledge more military aid to Zelenskyy’s efforts. However, President Donald Trump recently stirred up concern over the United States’ yearslong Biden-era alliance with Ukraine by calling Zelenskyy a “dictator,” while maintaining a cordial relationship with Putin amid Trump’s pushes for a peace settlement.
See U2’s tribute to Ukraine below.
Wu-Tang Clan has announced what’s being billed as the legendary Staten Island crew’s final tour. The Wu is plotting the Wu-Tang Forever: The Final Chamber tour, which was announced on Monday (Feb. 24).
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The trek will invade arenas across North America starting on June 6 in Baltimore to kick off the 27-date tour. Run the Jewels is slated to provide support as an opening act.
There is no pre-sale for the AEG-produced tour, with general tickets going on sale at 10 a.m. local time on Feb. 28. VIP packages will also be available. A Wu-Tang queue is scheduled to open 30 minutes before tickets are on sale.
“Wu-Tang Clan has shown the world many chambers throughout our career; this tour is called The Final Chamber. This is a special moment for me and all my Wu brothers to run around the globe together one more time and spread the Wu swag, music, and culture,” RZA said in a statement.
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Wu-Tang Clan
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He continued: “Most importantly to touch our fans and those who have supported us throughout the years. On this tour we’re playing songs we’ve never played before to our audience and me and our production team have designed a Wu-Tang show unlike anything you’ve ever seen. And to top it off, we’ve got the amazing Run the Jewels on our side.”
Cities on deck include Tampa Bay, Houston, Phoenix, San Francisco, Sacramento, Portland, Chicago, Detroit, Boston, New York City and Toronto, and will wrap up in Philadelphia on July 18.
All nine living members of the Wu-Tang Clan will be participating in the final tour while Young Dirty Bastard will take his late father’s place (Ol’ Dirty Bastard passed away in 2004).
The final tour is being billed to contain a unique setlist of tracks that the Wu never performed in the past while also mixing in the classic hits from the group’s catalog. This marks the culmination of a five-year plan, per RZA.
In celebration of the tour announcement, Wu-Tang Clan is joining forces with Amazon Music to release a live EP with an exclusive vinyl as only 1500 were pressed.
Find all of the Wu-Tang Forever: The Final Chapter tour dates below.
The Backstreet Boys are extending their upcoming residency at Las Vegas’ Sphere. On Monday morning (Feb. 24) the boys-to-man band announced the addition of shows on August 15, 16 and 17, bringing the total amount of announced residency gigs so far to 18.
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The band — AJ McLean, Nick Carter, Brian Littrell, Kevin Richardson and Howie Dorough — are the first pop group booked to perform at the Sphere, with McLean telling Billboard last week that they are planning “one incredible experience” for the “Into The Millennium” run that Carter promised would giver fans “sensory overload.”
The Live Nation-produced run will find the group performing their entire career-peak 1999 Millennium album in full along with greatest hits and their new single, “Hey,” at the shows that will kick off on July 11. The gigs will continue throughout the rest of the month, with gigs on July 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 24, 26 and 27, followed by shows on August 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 and 10.
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Tickets for the new dates will go on sale first through the BSB Fan Club pre-sale beginning Tuesday (Feb. 25) at 9 a.m. PT. Fans who previously signed up for the Artist Pre-Sale can access tickets for the three added dates beginning on Wednesday (Feb. 26) at 9 a.m. PT, followed by a general on-sale kicking off on Friday (Feb. 28) at 9 a.m. PT; click here for details.
BSB will make history as the first pop band to touch down in the futuristic arena that to date has hosted U2, Phish, Dead & Company, the Eagles, EDM act Anyma and, later this spring, Kenny Chesney. “Die hard fans are going to get a great experience, a great nostalgic moment,” McLean told Billboard. “Even just playing the whole Millennium album, there’s some deep cuts in there that we were just discussing the other day,” Dorough added. “[We were] reminiscing about some of the songs like ‘The Perfect Fan’ and ‘No One Else Comes Close to You’ [and ‘Spanish’] Eyes,’ which are songs that the fans probably haven’t heard since the Millennium tour.”
The 25th anniversary celebration of the album that topped the Billboard 200 for 10 weeks and has sold more than 24 million copies to date will coincide with the July 11 release of Millennium 2.0, a two-CD collection featuring a remastered version of the original, along with six demos from the sessions for the album, b-sides from international releases, six live tracks and the previously unheard track “Hey.”
Roberta Flack, the beloved, Grammy-winning 1970s R&B singer best known for such hits as “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” and “Killing Me Softly” died on Monday (Feb. 24) at 88. At press time a statement from Flack’s spokesperson revealed that she died peacefully, with no official cause of death available.
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“We are heartbroken that the glorious Roberta Flack passed away this morning, February 24, 2025,” read the statement. “She died peacefully surrounded by her family. Roberta broke boundaries and records. She was also a proud educator.”
A classically trained pianist from an early age, Flack received a music scholarship at 15 to attend Howard University and was soon discovered singing at Washington, D.C. nightclub Mr. Henry’s by jazz great Les McCann, which led to her signing with Atlantic Records. She scored her first break in 1971 when Clint Eastwood used her version of the moon-y ballad “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” in his directorial debut, Play Misty For Me.
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A master of the “quiet storm” style, Flack’s effortless, soothing vocals soon became a staple of R&B and pop radio, leading to a two-decade run of chart hits.
Flack was born Roberta Cleopatra Flack in Black Mountain, N.C. on Feb. 10, 1937 and raised in Arlington, Va. where her mother, Irene, played organ at the Lomax African Methodist Episcopal Church. She learned to play piano on a funky junkyard instrument her father — a jazz pianist himself — found and restored for her, on which she practiced Handel’s Messiah and Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, as well as Mozart’s Requiem.
After getting her public debut playing piano as an adolescent in the Lomax church, Flack studied piano at Howard, then moved on to a music educator program after being told that the racial barriers at that time for a Black classical concert pianist were too high for her to achieve her dream. Following her father’s death in 1959, Flack returned to North Carolina and took a job teaching music at a public school, later moving back to D.C., where she taught at several middle and high schools for a decade.
Flack released her debut LP, First Take, in 1969 which included her first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” which also helped the album reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart; the song would win the Grammy for record of the year in 1972. She hit No. 1 again in 1973 with “Killing Me Softly,” from the album of the same name, with the song winning the 1974 Grammy for record of the year. It was later famously covered by the Fugees in 1996 on their second album, The Score.
Flack’s unprecedented back-to-back Grammy wins for record of the year feat wasn’t achieved again until U2 scored the same two-fer with “Beautiful Day” (2001) and “Walk On” (2002). Flack regularly recorded with fellow soul great Donny Hathaway, scoring duet hits on the Hot 100 with the singer on a covers of “You’ve Got a Friend” (1971, No. 29) and “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” (1971, No. 71), as well as “Where Is the Love” (1972, No. 5), “The Closer I Get To You” (1978, No. 2) and “You Are My Heaven” (1980, No. 47), among others.
She scored a total of 18 Hot 100 hits, and landed four albums in the top three on the Billboard 200 album charts, as well as more than two dozen charting hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
Flack’s chart prominence began to fade by the mid-1980s, but she kept recording, releasing her most recent album in 2012 with the Beatles cover album Let It Be Roberta. Over the course of her career, Flack was nominated for 14 Grammys and won three.
Check out some of Flack’s most beloved hits below.
Tate McRae gets why she keeps getting compared to Britney Spears. The 21-year-old Canadian pop star who first came into our lives as a tween finalist on the 2016 season of So You Think You Can Dance has mastered the art of dance pop temptation in videos like the one for her slinky new single, […]
Mariah Carey has booked a massive summer 2025 gig in the U.K. at Royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk on August 15. The show at the 20,000-capacity venue will feature support from Eternal and Nile Rodgers & Chic. The outdoor gig in Norfolk, England presented by Heritage Live Festivals is the third concert announced for the venue this summer, joining previously announced shows by the Stereophonics (Aug. 16) and Michael Bublé (Aug. 17).
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Tickets for the Carey concert will be available during a pre-sale on March 5 beginning at 9 a.m. GMT (4 a.m. ET). Fans can register for pre-sale access in advance here. A general on-sale will kick off on March 7 at 9 a.m., with information available here.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to bring one of the greatest pop artists of all time to the Royal Sandringham Estate for an exclusive UK headline show. Mariah Carey is an award-winner, a record-breaker, and an absolute global icon – this show will be historic,” Heritage Live Festivals’ Giles Cooper said in a statement. “Mariah’s live show is second to none and with such a catalogue of huge hit singles, it’s going to be an incredible occasion. It will most definitely be an ‘I was there’ event that will live in all of our memories forever.”
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Carey has also booked another U.K summer gig with a headlining slot at the Pride in the Park event at the Brighton Pride festival, which will take place on August 2-3; Carey was supposed to play the Pride fest in 2020, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The singer recently celebrated her second nomination for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, writing on Instagram earlier this month that she was “so grateful” to get her second nod in a row after first becoming eligible in 2016. “It’s always an incredible honor to be recognized alongside so many legendary artists I admire. Thank you to the @rockhall and, of course, to my amazing fans— you are the heart of everything I do. This means so much! ❤️🎶,” Carey wrote in a post that also featured the full list of 2025’s nominees, which includes Bad Company, The Black Crowes, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order, Cyndi Lauper, Maná, Oasis, Outkast, Phish, Soundgarden and The White Stripes.
Noah Weiland, the son of late Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland, has paid tribute to his father with a cover of 1993’s “Sex Type Thing.”
Released on Thursday (Feb. 20), the haunting rendition of the track sees Noah offering up a faithful take on the original, albeit without the angry vocals that Scott included over 30 years ago. Featuring production and additional guitar from Spencer Carr Reed, the cover also comes accompanied by a video which sees Noah making his way throughout Sherman Oaks, CA alongside a Chucky doll which represents the elder Weiland.
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The video features subtitles which see Noah reflecting on the loss of his father. “There was so much I wanted to tell him, like how much has changed on Earth without him,” one caption reads, while a final caption adds, “I wish I could dream about you forever. But it’s ok…because for now I will carry on your legacy.”
“Filmed this about a dream I had long ago about seeing my father again,” Noah wrote about the track on social media. “It’s hard for me to stay in the moment sometimes, but I try.”
Scott Weiland passed away in December 2015 at the age of 48, with an autopsy later declaring his cause of death as an accidental overdose of cocaine, ethanol and methylenedioxyamphetamine. Scott first rose to fame in the ’90s as the frontman of Stone Temple Pilots, who officially formed in 1989 as Mighty Joe Young.
The band’s debut album, Core, was released in September 1992, peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. “Sex Type Thing” was issued as its lead single in early 1993, and would peak at No. 23 on the Album Rock Tracks (now called the Mainstream Rock) chart. Second single “Plush” would also win them a Grammy Award for best hard rock performance.
Stone Temple Pilots would split in 2003 after releasing five albums (including 1994’s chart-topping Purple), though would reunite in 2008 and release a self-titled record in 2010. Scott Weiland would be fired from the band in 2013, with Linkin Park‘s Chester Bennington taking over as lead vocalist until 2015.
In 2016, the band launched a search for a new vocalist, ultimately announcing Jeff Gutt as their new singer in November 2017. The band have since released two studio albums with Gutt, with their most recent being 2020’s Perdida.
That same year, it was revealed that Noah Weiland, along with the sons of Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash and Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo, had formed a band called Suspect208, though the group would only last for a year before splitting.
In April 2024, Noah revealed he was being “blackmailed” by an unnamed individual who demanded $2,000 to refrain from leaking a demo titled “Time Will Tell”, which featured previously-unreleased vocals from Scott. Noah instead decided to finish the song with Reed, telling Rolling Stone the idea was to present the track as a familial collaboration.
“Due to the fact that nobody who ‘represents’ my dad actually cares to give the fans new unheard music, let alone keep his name alive in the first place, my friend Spencer Carr Reed and I decided to turn it into a more modern sounding song as if he was still alive and just decided to hop on one of my songs,” Noah explained at the time. “That was the concept behind it.”
Almost four years since founding Korn bassist Reginald “Fieldy” Arvizu announced he was taking a hiatus from the group, the musician has revealed he hasn’t spoken to his bandmates in more than five years.
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Fieldy made the revelation in a recent appearance on the Basement Talk podcast, explaining that his hiatus has featured no contact with any of the musicians he rose to fame with.
“I haven’t talked to those guys since 2019. So it’s like we’re just kind of both…. They’re truckin,’” he explained. “They’re a machine. They’re going. It’s insane. It’s dope that they can keep on going like that.”
Though somewhat vague in his responses, one of the podcast’s presenters inquired as to whether “it’s all love between everybody” between the other members of the band. “Yeah. It’s cool to see them keep on going,” Fieldy added. “I’m, like, I need to chill. I’m just kickin’ it.”
Fieldy served as the bassist of Korn since its inception in 1993, performing on every one of their studio albums to date, including 1998’s Follow the Leader and 1999’s Issues, which both topped the Billboard 200. In June 2021, however, he revealed he would be taking “some time off to heal” and to address the “bad habits” which had “caused some tension with the people around me”.
“I’m going to respect what was asked of me and take that time,” he wrote in a statement at the time. “Unfortunately you will not see me on stage with my band. I will be working towards getting the bad habits out of my system. In the meantime I will be staying creative to keep my mind & soul in a good place.”
In the wake of Fieldy’s hiatus from the band, Suicidal Tendencies bassist Ra Díaz stepped in to take his place. Despite his departure (and his claims that he hadn’t spoken to his bandmates since 2019), Fieldy is still credited as the bassist for the group’s most recent album, 2022’s Requiem, which wrapped recording shortly after his exit.
Four months after announcing his hiatus, Fieldy released a since-deleted video in which he clarified the “bad habits” that he had initially referenced, denying it was in relation to drug use. “I’ve never tried cocaine, I’ve never tried heroin. I drink Bud Light, man. It’s clear,” he said.
At the time, he also addressed his relationship with his bandmates, claiming there is “no beef” between the members of Korn.
“They’re killing it,” he added. “I’m always gonna be Fieldy from Korn for the rest of my life, because that’s part of my legacy. Those are my homies, those are my brothers. We’re just in different places right now. We’re not even mad at each other. We’re all cool.”
After close to four decades as Australia’s own Princess of Pop, Kylie Minogue’s performing legacy has been commemorated with a star at the Melbourne Park sporting complex.
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Minogue – who launched her global Tension Tour in Perth on Feb. 15 – received the honor on Saturday (Feb. 22) ahead of a performance in her hometown of Melbourne in the Australian state of Victoria.
Coinciding with the third of three consecutive performances at the city’s 14,820-capacity Rod Laver Arena, it also coincided with Minogue’s first performance at the venue back in Feb. 1990 when it was then known as the National Tennis Centre.
Since her debut at Rod Laver Arena 35 years ago, Minogue has gone on to play 30 shows at Melbourne Park, amassing sales of more than 350,000 tickets in the process. Her three recent dates brought that total to 33 performances with an additional 36,000 ticket sales, making her one of the most successful artists to ever perform at the Melbourne destination.
The star was unveiled to Minogue on the afternoon of Feb. 22 by Melbourne Park CEO John Harnden AM. Fittingly, it is located in the forecourt of Rod Laver Arena, adjacent to a statue of late promoter Michael Gudinski. Gudinski first signed Minogue to his Mushroom Records label in 1987, while his Frontier Touring company has promoted every one of her Australian concerts to date. In 2021, Minogue also performed at Gudinski’s state funeral at the same venue.
“It’s hard to believe it’s been 35 years since I first stepped on stage at this venue, and I’m honoured to be acknowledged in this way in my hometown of Melbourne,” Minogue said of the honor. “It seems appropriate that MG will be watching over my star each day. I’m incredibly thankful to all the fans that have attended my shows over the years.”
“Kylie has a longstanding and record-breaking association with Melbourne Park and it’s only fitting we celebrate her amazing legacy with this star, cementing her name in the history of this great destination for live events,” added Harnden.
The installation of the star also coincides with a campaign to reinstate a statue of Minogue in Melbourne following its removal in 2016. At the time, a bronze likeness of Minogue – along with similar figures of Australian entertainers John Farnham, Dame Nellie Melba, Dame Edna Everage and Graham Kennedy – were removed to make way for a $140 million AUD apartment block.
Since its removal, the statue – which had been first sculpted by Peter Corlett in 2006 – has reportedly been in storage in an undisclosed location.
“I, for one, would love to see her statue reinstated in Melbourne,” Melbourne Mayor Nicholas Reece told The Age. “First, I think she’s a brilliant performer and entertainer who has brought so much joy to so many Melburnians, and secondly because we have a real deficit of statues of great women of Melbourne.
“If we could get a statue of Kylie back up again, it will remind all the boys and girls of Melbourne that great Melburnians come in all shapes, sizes and genders.”
Minogue’s most recent album, II, became her fourth consecutive record to top the Australian ARIA charts upon its October release, and her eighth overall to achieve the feat. It reached No. 98 on the Billboard 200, hit No. 2 on the Top Dance/Electronic Albums, and followed on from 2023’s Tension which saw lead single “Padam Padam” win the Grammy for best pop dance recording.
Marc Anthony officially kicked off the 2025 Viña del Mar International Song Festival on Sunday (Feb. 23) at the Quinta Vergara Amphitheater in the coastal city in Chile.
His set, more than an hour long, began at 7:55 p.m. ET, with the Puerto Rican salsa act performing “Pa’alla Voy.” He then continued with his early 2000s hits, “Valío La Pena,” “Y Hubo Alguien” and “Volando Entre Tus Brazos.” “How cool!” Anthony murmured in the mic as the packed venue of 15,000 fans sang along.
“Thank you so much. Thank you so much, for real,” the salsa artist said to the crowd, which included the presence of his wife, model Nadia Ferreira, in the front row. “What a wonderful time to be able to share with you all after so many years. How wonderful to see you. This next song is one of my favorites. If you know it, sing it with me.”
This is the fourth time the festival has hosted Anthony, following performances in 2009, 2012 and 2019.
He then continued with four back-to-back timeless covers that he’s made popular: Polo Montañez’s “Flor Pálida,” Juan Gabriel’s “Abrazame Muy Fuerte,” José José’s “Almohada” and José Luis Perales’ “¿Y Cómo es El?”
“How exciting, but do you want salsa? Let’s go!” Marc said after the romantic set, continuing with “Que Precio Tiene el Cielo.”
Shortly after, the event’s co-hosts, Karen Doggenweiler and Rafael Araneda, joined the artist on stage. “This quinta [venue] sings, dances and enjoys your music!” Araneda told Anthony as the audience signaled the popular flying seagull hand gesture to give him a trophy.
As tradition holds, the week-long event features local and international artists who compete for either a silver torch or golden torch. On this year’s opening night on Sunday, Marc received the two coveted gaviota trophies before wrapping up with salsa bangers “Mala,” “Te Conozco Bien,” “Tu Amor Me Hace Bien” and “Vivir Mi Vida.”
“It’s incredible,” Anthony said to the hosts. “I was telling Nadia that there is no country like Chile. Stepping on this land is felt immediately. What an honor to be in Chile!”
Each night, Viña del Mar, which has become Chile’s highest-rated television show, features a headliner, a supporting artist, a comedian and an international song festival in folk and pop categories, with contestants competing to win in each.
