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Leading up to his performance in front of tens of millions this weekend, Kendrick Lamar took a relaxing drive — in his GNX, of course — with Timothée Chalamet for an introspective one-on-one conversation about making art.
In a video posted by the NFL and Apple Music Friday (Feb. 7), the rapper — who makes sure everyone’s seatbelts are on — gives the actor a ride in his signature car as the two bond over the similarities in their respective crafts, with both sharing how they push through mental blocks in the creative process. For Lamar, he says it’s all about continuing to write no matter what to keep the muscle strong — not that he has much of a choice, as the Compton musician says penning lyrics is vital “for my own sanity.”
“That’s probably one of the biggest misconceptions about me as an artist,” he told the A Complete Unknown star. “I’m always locked in, and I’m always trying new things — whether or not I like them is a whole ‘nother conversation. But I have to keep the pen warm.”
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“It’s for my own sanity,” Dot continued. “[Writing] has also given me the opportunity to learn [about] myself, you know, find out who I am. When you’re writing, man, you’ve got to sit and go through the emotions and be vulnerable about it.”
Lamar’s pen has also gotten him to the mountaintop in 2025, with the hip-hop titan — who just days prior won both song and record of the year at the Grammys for Billboard Hot 100-topper “Not Like Us” — will take the stage Sunday (Feb. 9) in between halves at the ultimate Kansas City Chiefs vs. Philadelphia Eagles game in New Orleans. His conversation with Chalamet comes in celebration of the upcoming performance — not that he gave the Wonka actor any hints about song picks or special guests.
“I’ve been given no early access,” Chalamet said in a clip with Lamar when the interview was first announced Thursday (Feb. 6). “Top-shelf secrets.”
Toward the end of their drive, the Oscar nominee commended the musician on his success. “Just being a fan of your music forever and knowing like, look where you’re at now,” Chalamet gushed. “It’s just crazy, Super Bowl Halftime Show — you just keep climbing, bro. It’s amazing.”
“I appreciate it,” Lamar replied before revealing a fact about a song on his chart-topping November album GNX. “I mean that s–t, bro — ‘Man of the Garden,’ I mean every word on that motherf–ker, man. That’s probably the easiest record to write.”
Watch Lamar’s interview with Chalamet below.
After a former music executive criticized her speech calling for improved healthcare and pay for artists at the 2025 Grammys, Chappell Roan is clapping back and asking him to open his wallet for underpaid artists.
In a post to Instagram Stories early Friday morning (Feb. 7), Roan responded to Jeff Rabhan’s guest column published in The Hollywood Reporter, in which he called her speech “wildly misinformed.” Over a screenshot from the article, Roan directed her message straight to Rabhan, who is a former A&R executive who has worked at both Atlantic and Elektra Records.
“@jeffrabhan wanna match me $25K to donate to struggling dropped artists?” she wrote. “My publicist is @biz3publicity let’s talk.”
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In a second post, the “Pink Pony Club” singer told her fans that she would keep them “updated on the much awaited @jeffrabhan response,” including receipts of donations, before directing one more message to the former executive. “Mr. Rabhan, I love how in the article you said ‘put your money where your mouth is,’” she wrote. “Genius !!! Let’s link and build together and see if you can do the same.”
That quote in particular came from a section of Rabhan’s column in which he compared Roan to mega-stars such as Prince, Tom Petty and Taylor Swift, claiming that those artists didn’t simply call for change in the music industry (specifically when it came to negotiating better deals with their labels), but acted on it. “Skin in the game earns a seat at the table,” he wrote. “But that table requires a willingness to leave blood on the floor and to put your money where your mouth is.”
In the best new artist acceptance speech Rabhan was critiquing, Roan called out labels for failing to provide a livable wage or healthcare coverage to their artists, pointing to her own experience after being dropped by Atlantic Records in 2020. “If my label would have prioritized artists’ health, I could have been provided care by a company I was giving everything to,” she said.
Elsewhere in her Instagram Stories, Roan took a moment to highlight four artists who she said “deserve more love and a bigger platform” — she shared screenshots for the Spotify pages of Hemlocke Springs, Sarah Kinsley, Devon Again and Baby Storme.
Roan is not the only artist to call out Rabhan’s criticism. In a post on Thursday, Halsey lambasted the former executive’s criticism of Roan, calling his op-ed “boot licking behavior” and pointing out that what the singer was calling for wasn’t unwarranted. “[The music industry is] a game of investment but the investment is towards producing the materials,” they wrote. “the person *the ORGANIC MATERIAL* that is producing that product needs access to things like health care. Shocking, I know. If you want to profit off of someone else’s art; that artist should have the basic living means to feel safe enough to create that art.”
Other industry executives and advocates responded positively to Roan’s speech at the Grammys. In an interview with Billboard, the Music Healthcare Alliance’s founder and CEO Tatum Allsep said he was “jumping on my couch” when he heard her speech. “I was like, ‘Gosh, thank you for bringing this up.’ The conversation was started. What’s really important to know for all the young artists who are listening is you don’t have to go without if you are making a living within our industry.”
Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter are both owned by PMC.
Everyone’s curious about the teens and twenty-somethings who make up Gen Z. How do they interact with each other? Do they even dance in the clubs anymore? What’s the dating world like for them? With his new Wonderlove album, rising ATL-bred R&B singer Chase Shakur may have a few answers.
Introduced by singles like “Focus on Me” and the TyFontaine-assisted “Fairytailes in Midtown,” Wonderlove arrived on Friday (Feb. 7) as Shakur’s debut studio album — and his second full-length project under Def Jam. His new record charts its moody, introspective emotional odyssey through a soundscape that amalgamates gospel, soul, dancehall, Miami bass, trap, Afrobeats and more. Inspired by the surrealist world of Quentin Tarantino’s Oscar-winning Pulp Fiction and the globe-traversing DJ sets of his closest friends, Shakur sought to make an album that truly examined what love looks like for Gen Z in 2025.
“Sometimes we look at love kinda surface-level,” he tells Billboard just two days before the album drops. “We look at love for what we can get from it instead of adding to one another. I wanted to make a body of work that feels like a hug.”
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After bursting onto the scene with his 2022 debut project, It’ll Be Fine, Shakur spent the next two years pumping out music and hitting the showcase circuit in 2023. Last summer, he toured the globe alongside The Kid LAROI on the Grammy nominee’s The First Time tour.
A rapper-turned-singer with deep reverence for the roots of traditional R&B, Shakur displays tremendous growth across his debut album, which he began recording while touring London in December 2023 and finished during The Kid LAROI’s tour. On “Fairytales,” he slickly flips Sexyy Red’s raucous “Get It Sexyy” into a brooding, sensuous ballad, and he even buried a trap-inflected hidden track on the back half of the album’s closer, “A Song for Her.”
Billboard caught up with Chase Shakur about Wonderlove, deepening his film knowledge, his forthcoming tour, and honoring his family legacy through music.
Do you have a favorite moment from the creative process for this album?
Just living in L.A. for three months and being hella disciplined. I was on a meal prep routine and going to the gym; we only wore black clothes so we could lock in and not be distracted by anything else.
How do you feel you’ve grown as an artist and as a person since your debut?
I have a better understanding of what I’m trying to do with my career and my art. I’m learning maturity in my music.
What are some elements that you would consider immature in your older music?
Being scared a girl I’m talking to might hear something that I say [on a record] and crash out on me. I used to be nervous about that, but now I’m like “F–k that s—t.”
How do you think your growth manifests itself on Wonderlove specifically?
I’m a lot more fearless on this project. I had a session with No I.D. and Raphael Saadiq, and No I.D. gave a n—a the illest advice about not giving a f—k about perception. Just tell your story and bring those special nuances. I was nervous as f—k because they’re my inspirations, but they’re mad cool. In between recording, I would walk out into the lobby and get to hear how they did “How Does It Feel” with D’Angelo. We [as up-and-coming artists] overthink it. Listening to them talk about how the song was made because D’Angelo was looking for weed… we overthink a lot of the time!
You dropped your first two projects in back-to-back years. Why’d you take a bit more time with this one?
I wanted to make a story that people could understand. This was my first time doing something that had elements of surrealism, but I still wanted to keep it rough at the same time. When I was on tour [with The Kid LAROI], I was watching a bunch of movies that I hadn’t seen but everybody else had seen. I watched Pulp Fiction for the first time, and it felt real but like… your friend not gonna tell you no s—t like that, you know what I’m saying? [Laughs]. I’m trying to blend that world with my production and lyrics and make a full body of work, not just one song.
What does the term “wonderlove” mean and when did you know that was the title?
I came up with the title after coming home from tour and going to my grandma’s house. I grew up in a house with eight people, split between the women in the family and the men in the family. In Black households, we all have that picture that everybody knows. I was flipping through the photo album with my grandma, and there’s a picture of her and my grandpa. I never met my grandpa, but my grandma used to always tell me about the love they had for each other and the type of man he was. In her telling me that, I wanted to make something that was the opposite of what people are talking about right now.
Other than Pulp Fiction, what else were you consuming while making Wonderlove?
I listened to a lot of stuff. Reggae, a lot of Afrobeats, R&B of course. I watched Belly and Paid in Full – I know, I’m supposed to have been seen that shit – and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I’ve just been studying film, man; I’m trying to make my visuals stand out with those elements of surrealism.
I think when people see me – I don’t know what they think really – but I feel like there’s an element of mystique. And with mystique, there’s a little bit of magic.
How did the Smino collaboration come together?
I was on The Kid LAROI’s tour, and he sent his verse a month before I left Baltimore. I randomly got it on the bus, and I was like, “What the f—k!” In my personal opinion, we got the best Smino verse in a minute. The video for that is gonna be wild too, so I’m excited. There’s always an element of unpredictability; I was playing his s—t months before that particular exchange even transpired. I like having a blend of vocals or a different contrast when I collaborate with people. I also want to step outside [my comfort zone] and mix genres.
You got a track on here called “Sex N Sade.” What’s your favorite Sade song?
“Soldier of Love!”
You end the album with a slightly more traditional piano-led ballad. How do you keep traditional R&B present in your style?
For this album, I would say the [main traditional] element was gospel music. With “2ofUs,” my mentor, Ari PenSmith, really helped me understand how to use my voice in a way that still has what I grew up on: the gospel and blues elements of traditional R&B.
In the past, I undermined my vocal evolution. I listened to the last project I dropped a couple of days ago, and vocally, I’ve made a 180 [degree turn]. When you listen to the first joint and then listen to me now, I’m much more confident and open.
“Undercover Angel” is a sick mix of Miami bass and dancehall. What was that studio session like?
Everybody thought I was crazy when I said [that was gonna work], ain’t gon lie. That’s slick how it goes a lot of the time, and then it works! A lot of my friends are DJs, and I go to their events and listen to their mashups and s—t. I record them when they blend Afrobeats and all that, I think it’s cool. I don’t know what made me want to have those dancehall elements, but I just wanted people to have fun. People be like, “What the f—k?” when they hear it – especially when the bass drops.
“Face” also has some overt house influences. Do you plan on exploring dance music further on future projects?
I try everything in the studio. I have rock songs, I got jazz songs, I got country songs, everything. When I tried making dance songs for the first time, it wasn’t cause I could dance. I can’t f—king dance. When I started working on this album, I was going to a lot of clubs where it wasn’t section culture. I’m in Atlanta, so I’m pulling up on R&B nights and seeing it’s possible for us to have fun and be cool at the same time. That’s what inspired me to make and throw out more dance songs.
How have you grown personally and professionally since signing to Def Jam?
I learned that everything is a choice. Somebody told me that, at this stage, you can choose to do three shows a night or do one show and go home. But it’s all up to you to put in 10,000 hours — not just with recording, but performing and being an all-around artist too. I know I want to be an artist with longevity, and being on Def Jam is teaching me ways to be patient with that.
Do you have any tour plans?
It’s gonna be a family affair, man. I’m excited about the tour. I got SWAVAY opening up and my family with me. Got a couple of shows being opened up by artists from the [Forever N September] collective. We’re coming with a stage that tells a story. It’s my first time doing some stage design, so this is a real learning process. I’m most excited to perform “Say That You Will.”
Oasis are prepping a 25th anniversary reissue of their fourth studio album, Standing on the Shoulder of Giants, which will be released in a pair of limited-edition vinyl versions on Feb. 28.
The fourth album from the Britpop superstars was released in February 2000 and marked a left-turn into more electronic-based psychedelic sound featuring drum loops, electric sitar, Mellotron, synthesizers, backwards guitar and samples layered into their signature heady, Beatles-inspired rock sound on the bull rush opening track “F****n’ In the Bushes” and the swirling “Put Yer Money Where Yer Mouth Is.” The collection also featured one of their classic acoustic ballads, the single “Go Let It Out,” as well as singles “Where Did It All Go Wrong?,” “Who Feels Love?” and “Sunday Morning Call.”
Friday’s (Feb. 7) announcement came just 147 days (but who’s counting?) before formerly battling brothers singer Liam and guitarist/songwriter/occasional singer Noel Gallagher kick off their eagerly anticipated 2025 reunion tour.
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The anniversary edition of the album will be issued in silver vinyl and an official store-exclusive blue and purple marble edition on the anniversary of the LP’s original release on Feb. 28, 2000. They also teased a new lyric video for “Go Let It Out,” slated to premiere at 11 a.m. ET on Friday.
A press release announcing the reissue noted that the album marked a new era for the group, with “Go Let It Out” the first release on the Gallaghers’ Big Brother Recordings Ltd. label, established after the sudden shuddering of their former label, Creation Records.
Oasis are slated to kick off their 2025 stadium tour on July 4 with the first of two dates at Cardiff, UK’s Principality Stadium, after which they will criss-cross the UK and Ireland before hopping over to North America on August 24 for a show at Rogers Stadium in Toronto. They will hit Chicago, New Jersey and Los Angeles before moving on to Mexico City, South Korea, Japan, Australia and South America, winding down with a Nov. 23 show in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
See the reissue announcement below.
Eight months after going on hiatus, comedy rock duo Tenacious D are back. Sort of. The Jack Black-fronted two-man band appear on a new compilation album benefitting victims of last month’s deadly Los Angeles wildfires, Good Music to Lift Los Angeles. The contribution is a cover of REO Speedwagon’s 1980 power ballad “Keep on Loving You,” a song they’ve performed live in their patented urgent acoustic style before.
The 90-track compilation released today (Feb. 7) contains previously unreleased recordings, new songs, covers, remixes, live versions and demos from Animal Collective, Blondshell, Perfume Genius, R.E.M., Dawes, Death Cab For Cutie, TV on the Radio, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, MJ Lenderman, My Morning Jacket, Interpol, Mudhoney, Manchester Orchestra, The New Pornographers and many more.
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It was unclear at press time when the band — which also features guitarist/singer Kyle Gass — recorded the song; you can buy the album exclusively now on Bandcamp. The compilation will be available for one day only, with proceeds going to the L.A. Regional Food Bank and California Foundation’s Wildfire Fund.
At press time it did not appear that Black or Gass had commented on the song’s inclusion on the compilation, which comes after they announced a break and cancelled a planned Australian tour following Gass’ controversial on-stage joke about the assassination attempt against then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.
After the comment, Black apologized and announced that the group would take a break in light of criticism from Australia’s right-wing over the joke Gass made at a show in Sydney in July when Black rolled out a birthday cake for his longtime musical mate and asked him to make a wish. “Don’t miss Trump next time,” Gass quipped, just weeks after a 20-year-old gunman opened fire on a Trump rally in Butler, PA, grazing Trump’s ear and killing a rally attendee.
In a deleted post, Gass apologized, writing, “I don’t condone violence of any kind” and saying he was “incredibly sorry for my severe lack of judgement.” Shortly after, Gass was dropped by his agent and the remainder of the Australian tour, as well as a planned fall run of U.S. shows in swing states ahead of November’s presidential election, were cancelled.
Black also posted an apology on Instagram at the time, writing, “I was blindsided by what was said at the show on Sunday. I would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form.” At the time of the tour cancellation, Black’s statement said that “all future creative plans are on hold.”
In August, Black told Variety that the duo needed “to take a break. Everybody needs a break sometime,” while also promising “and we’ll be back.”
In the meantime, earlier this week, Black posted a video from the set of his new movie Anaconda in which he sang the names of his co-stars while one of them, Paul Rudd, accompanied him on a hand drum.
Check it out below.
K-Pop girl group NewJeans announced that they’ve changed their name to NJZ in the midst of their long-running dispute with their label, ADOR. Singer Hanni spoke to CNN about the change, saying that the five-member group decided to rebrand as a means of “turning this rough period of time into something more exciting.”
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The first public outing under the new banner will come at the three-day ComplexCon Hong Kong in March, where Hanni, Haerin, Minji, Hyein and Danielle said they will debut a new song.
“We are working a lot to resolve everything so that we can go… back to normal,” Hanni, 20, added, saying that the band doesn’t want their legal spat with ADOR to “be the focus of our careers.”
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In a statement announcing the name change and upcoming gig, Minji said, “We are thrilled to be stepping onto the stage for the first time as NJZ and share something new with everyone. It’s a big moment for us and we can’t wait for fans to be a part of this journey with us and show the world our new music that we have been eagerly waiting to share.”
Back in November, NewJeans announced that they were parting ways with ADOR, a subsidiary of the K-pop management firm HYBE, over allegations that the label violated their contract. “Once we leave ADOR, we’ll aim to proceed freely with the activities that we really desire,” Danielle said at the time. “We really wish to be able to release new music for Bunnies, next year, as soon as possible, whenever,” she added, in reference to their fan group nickname. “We really hope that we have the opportunity to meet you guys from all around the world.”
They also noted in November that due to their contract termination, they might no longer be able to use the group name they’ve performed under since 2022. ADOR responded to the news, maintaining that its contract with NewJeans “remains in full effect,” urging the group to continue collaborating with them on upcoming projects. ADOR has disputed the allegations from the group, who’ve accused the label of “manipulation,” “deliberate miscommunications” and workplace harassment and have filed a lawsuit against NewJeans, and, according to CNN, filed for a court injunction that would prevent NJZ form signing advertising deals.
The band’s announcement of their split came after months of rancor in a management dispute between HYBE and ADOR’s former CEO, Min Hee-jin, who also serves as the group’s creative director. Last year, HYBE accused Hee-jin of attempting to take the company independent, a claim he denied; NewJeans said in November that they would like to continue working with Hee-jin.
In response to NewJeans’ announcement of their new name, ADOR told CNN, “we regret the escalation of this matter to court and believe that most claims advanced by NewJeans members thus far have arisen from misunderstandings… We worry that announcing an unauthorized new group name or engaging in entertainment activities before a legal judgement is reached… could constitute a material breach of the exclusive agency contract.”
CNN reported that the group began posting content under the new name on the jeanzforfree Instagram page, which at press time had a “sorry, this page isn’t available” note.
A preliminary court hearing for the injunction is scheduled for March, with the lawsuit set to be heard by a judge in April. While they wait, Haerin said the group are working on making and performing their new music, which she described as having a “very unique and different sound… there’s nothing holding us back anymore.”
Hanni added that they thought long and hard about the new name, considering fans’ suggestions and landing on a moniker that retained the “essence” of their original one. “Even though we have to leave our previous name behind us for a bit, we’re not fully moving on from it,” she said. “And we don’t want to either, because (being NewJeans) was still a very special period of time to us, and it’s something that our fans also probably hold really dear.”
She also said their new era will be “very different” from what fans have come to expect from the group whose 2023 Get Up EP hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Hanni promised that the new image will also come with “different types of performances,” explaining, “Beforehand, we were very focused on being the kind of ‘girl next door’… So, we’re going for a (look that’s) a lot more sharp, a lot more bold,” said the singer, who along with her bandmates serves as an ambassador for global luxury brands Chanel and Louis Vuitton.
“And fashion wise: We love wearing streetwear and non-gendered kind of clothing. I think that concept and aspect is going to play a really strong role in our (new) fashion as well.”
There’s a feeling that something around Inhaler has shifted in the past 18 months. The Irish quartet, made up of Eli Hewson (vocals, son of U2’s Bono), Ryan McMahon (drums), Bobby Keating (bass), and Josh Jenkinson (guitars), has welcomed a new influx of young, passionate fans into their world, no doubt helped by their support slots on megatours with Arctic Monkeys and Harry Styles at their respective stadium shows. Those gigs followed a chart-topping debut on the U.K.’s Official Albums Charts with It Won’t Always Be Like This (2021) and its follow-up Cuts & Bruises (2023), which landed at No. 2.
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But the new tunes that make up third LP Open Wide, released via Polydor, are bright, expansive, and the group’s best yet. The venues keep growing at home and abroad, with tickets being snapped up and sold-out in minutes. Why’s it all come together at this moment?
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“I think we know what we want from our music now,” frontman Hewson responds to Billboard UK. “Maybe when we were a bit younger, we wanted people to like us and wanted people to connect with it – and we still want that – but I think that’s different from making music that we love.”
Open Wide was produced by Kid Harpoon, who had a huge hand in the easy-going sound of Styles’ Grammy-winning LP Harry’s House, as well as the One Direction alum’s 2019 album Fine Line. Elsewhere Kid Harpoon has credits on Miley Cyrus’ Hot 100 chart-topper “Flowers,” and with HAIM and Florence + The Machine.
There’s also an appearance on Open Wide for hit songwriter Amy Allen, a close collaborator of Kid Harpoon with songwriting credits on Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” and “Please Please Please,” as well as on ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” She recently snagged the songwriter of the year award at the 2025 Grammys, becoming the first woman to win the category.
The decision for the Dublin-born band to head to L.A. during the album’s writing phase gave them clarity and space away from their tried and tested methods. “We sound a lot more like how we’ve always wanted to. It gave us peace and quiet to listen to our gut instincts. When we were in London when we were writing and recording [the first two albums], it always felt like things were up in the air. With this one, we felt very calm all the way through and enjoyed the process. We just heard ourselves out. We weren’t listening to external anxieties; it felt satisfying.”
No wonder there’s a lightness and confidence in these songs. The LP’s title track is built on a pulsing, subtle EDM beat before it hits a typically explosive chorus. Likewise, “A Question of You,” and “Billy (Yeah Yeah Yeah)” do away with the moody reverb heard on 2023 LP Cuts and Bruises and aren’t afraid to embrace a more mainstream-friendly sound.
In February the group will head out on the road in the U.K. for some of its biggest shows yet, including sold-out nights at London’s O2 Academy Brixton. They’ll then play in North and Latin America, Europe and then a massive homecoming show in Dublin to 20,000 fans.
Speaking from Amsterdam while on the press trail, the band discusses the input from Kid Harpoon and Allen, the ever-shifting indie scene, global success for Irish artists and more.
This is your third LP – does release week get any easier or more enjoyable?
Eli: It’s always in the last week before it’s out that the doubts start to come in. We did an album playback yesterday with some fans who heard it for the first time, and they seemed to enjoy it.
Ryan: Yeah, but they wouldn’t say it to your face, though, would they? I’m sure we would have some fans that wouldn’t have a problem with that though…
You’ve mentioned that the pressure was off this time. Why did it feel that way?
Josh: We didn’t have a deadline or tour that we had to be ready for. We had the freedom to create whatever we wanted to and assess it after we made it, instead of getting it straight out.
Eli: With Kid Harpoon, his whole ethos was – which was really shocking given the records he’s worked on – that he didn’t want any labels or managers in the room when recording: “It’s just us making this album and we’ll think about the singles when we’re done.” I found that really refreshing because he was putting the album before anything. We hadn’t really had that approach before. We were chasing singles a lot of the time, and we just wanted to get out and tour, so this was a big opportunity to step back and reflect on what we were making.
What made you want to change things up and work with a new producer?
Eli: Initially there was perhaps fear in all of us. It was the first time that we’d worked with someone different. With our last producer [Antony Genn], we’d been going to him since we were 17. We felt it was the right time to graduate from that, as it felt like our working relationship had gradually run its course for the time being. So it was important for us to work with something new for us to see what else they could bring out of us.
Josh: [Kid Harpoon] is a great person to be around. Initially we wondered if he could work with a band like us, but we when we realised that he did that Kings of Leon album [2024’s Can We Please Have Fun] that really eased all our stress. When we were working with him, he was going darker than us. He’d say, “Don’t put that in, it’s too poppy!”
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What were the sessions like in L.A. and then back in London?
Josh: They were very efficient. We didn’t waste any time. We had about nine days in L.A. before heading to RAK Studios in London, but we made a plan, and we stuck with what we set out to do. We also had a lot of fun with it too.
Ryan: He also wouldn’t send us what we’d done and recorded that day. He’d say, “Yeah, Brian, the engineer, will send it,” but just never did it. But once we got to the end, we realized we’d been going into the sessions totally fresh and hearing the songs and recordings again for the first time. You’re not constantly overthinking it. In the past, we’ve been known to get tunnel vision and overanalyze things.
Amy Allen also had a part to play. What was her contribution like?
Josh: She came in to listen to the songs while we were in L.A. It was so cool to see someone at that level of songwriting and with all of her achievements come in and say, “You guys have got some pretty good tunes.” Hearing her come in and sing some of them was so inspiring.
Eli: It was amazing. She’d just hum something quickly, and you’d think, ‘That’s f—ing amazing.’ We were lucky enough that she was able to stop by because she’d canceled another session, and Tom [Hull, Kid Harpoon] invited her to come in. Whatever she’s tapped into at the minute, she’s doing really well with.
Josh: She had such a beautiful voice, and she came in on a day when we were so tired, and it was much-needed…
Ryan: …it was like a visit from an angel!
How has the band’s dynamic developed over the years? It feels like you’re all pulling in the same direction with this album…
Eli: We’ve managed to keep it all together. It’s a sacred place being in this band. We fight less now than we ever have. We got all of that out when we were teenagers! It’s always felt like the center of everything we do together.
Ryan: We just love to make music naturally, and anything that feels right in the moment we follow. There’s never a discussion about setting rules on an album or doing a certain thing. We’ve never felt any joy out of a situation like that – that’s where it feels like the arguments begin, and ego starts getting in the way. Making music and saying less is what we do better.
It feels like there’s an openness from indie artists and fans to embrace new sounds and to work collaboratively with hit songwriters and pop producers. The question of ‘authenticity’ in these spaces feels quite outdated…
Josh: It’s refreshing to feel like you don’t have to do the same thing over and over again. You can progress how you want to. People can support you and still be open to change. That’s exciting.
Ryan: As long as you’re happy with what you want to make. There are no rules that go with writing a good song, and people are a lot less closed off to how a band should sound in their head; no one knows – neither do we – what they want until they get it.
There has been considerable support and acclaim for Irish artists like Fontaines D.C., Hozier and Kneecap among others over the past few years. Why are these kinds of acts exploding right now?
Eli: The biggest reason is that they’re good! In years past, you’d have to do “the American album.” It was the thing to do because everyone adheres to American culture. But now, if the country has its own indigenous culture, style and tradition, people are finding that interesting and want to know more about it. It definitely makes for better music and art. I doubt it’s something in the water…
It feels like there’s a lot of support for one another…
Eli: There’s always been a strong sense of camaraderie among Irish artists. I don’t think we’ve ever felt like we fit into a particular scene with other Irish artists, so it’s never felt like there’s a sense of competition between anyone. Everyone’s just happy to see other people succeed.
Bobby: I think that support also comes from the fact that we’re a small country as well. Everyone goes to the same venue to get to the next stage and wants the best for everyone else. We played the same venues that Fontaines, Hozier and The Murder Capital have all played. Especially when we’re in the U.K. and see people around and playing shows. I think Irish people really take the idea of playing abroad very seriously. When we first started playing abroad and in London, it felt like the real thing and a real achievement.
What will the new material bring with the live show?
Josh: It’s going to give us some depth and shape shows in a way that we haven’t done before. We’ve always been very ‘go go go’ at our shows, then there might be some slower moments or something a bit groovier, we now have a broad spectrum of songs to choose from.
Ryan: It’s also nice to freshen things up. We’ve been playing some of these songs for so long and it’s nice to have something new to play.
What did you learn on those big tours with Harry and Arctic Monkeys that you’ll take forward?
Josh: I think we learned that it would be something that we loved to do. But also the attention to detail that goes into every show and how it’s set-up, and the amount of work that goes into shows of that scale. It made us want to take things a lot more seriously.
The Weeknd continues his streak of dominance on the ARIA Albums Chart, debuting at No. 1 with his sixth studio album, Hurry Up Tomorrow.
This marks his fifth consecutive studio album to top the chart, following Beauty Behind The Madness (2015), Starboy (2016), After Hours (2020), and Dawn FM (2022). His 2021 greatest hits collection, The Highlights, which peaked at No. 2 in 2021, also sees a boost this week, rising to No. 8. The album, which The Weeknd has described as the final installment in a trilogy, arrives amid speculation that he may retire his moniker and release future music under his real name, Abel Tesfaye.
Meanwhile, Luke Combs’ ongoing Australian tour has reignited interest in his catalog. His 2017 album This One’s For You reaches a new peak at No. 5, surpassing its previous best of No. 7, while his latest album, Fathers & Sons, re-enters the top 10.
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Luke Combs continues to see a major surge on the ARIA Albums Chart thanks to his ongoing Australian tour. His 2017 album This One’s For You climbs to No. 5, hitting a new peak after previously reaching No. 7 in both 2019 and 2022. His latest album, Fathers & Sons, also returns to the top 10, moving up from No. 13 to No. 11.
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Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, British singer-songwriter Lola Young holds onto the No. 1 spot for a second consecutive week with “Messy,” continuing an unprecedented run of female artists dominating the top position since mid-August 2024. This streak has included No. 1 hits from Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Rosé (with Bruno Mars), Gracie Abrams, and Mariah Carey.
Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” remains strong in the runner-up position at No. 2, while Gracie Abrams’ “That’s So True” holds at No. 3. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ collaboration “Die With a Smile” sits at No. 4, with Chrystal’s “The Days – Notion Remix” rounding out the top five.
On the ARIA Vinyl Albums Chart, Hurry Up Tomorrow lands at No. 1, proving its demand across all formats. Luke Combs’ Fathers & Sons follows at No. 2, with Birds of Tokyo’s Universes at No. 3, Gracie Abrams’ The Secret of Us at No. 4, and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft at No. 5.
Poppy has put her own spin on “Taste,” Sabrina Carpenter’s sultry viral hit, delivering a stripped-down yet edgy reinterpretation for Like A Version, the long-running cover series from Australian radio station triple j.
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The performance, which was recorded during her recent Australian tour with Bad Omens, also featured an unexpected nod to The Divinyls’ “I Touch Myself,” seamlessly woven into the chorus. “I love her voice, and I think she’s very pretty,” Poppy said of Carpenter, explaining her song choice. “And the song is really fun to sing, so here we are.”
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Dressed in a sleek all-black outfit, Poppy’s performance brought a darker, moodier edge to “Taste,” stripping back its glossy pop production in favor of a more industrial-tinged arrangement.
Adding to the intrigue was the masked presence of Jordan Fish, formerly of Bring Me The Horizon, handling production duties. The unexpected interpolation of “I Touch Myself”—an Australian classic originally released in 1990.
“The first time I heard [‘Taste’], I thought it sounded like ‘I Touch Myself’, which is also my favourite karaoke song, so combining it made sense,” Poppy said of her choice to add the twist to Carpenter’s track.
The cover arrives as both Poppy and Carpenter celebrate major career milestones. Poppy was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 2025 Grammys for “Suffocate,” her collaboration with Knocked Loose that reached number 50 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs. Meanwhile, Carpenter took home her first two Grammy Awards for Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album.
“Taste” has been a breakout moment for Carpenter, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song, featured on her album Short n’ Sweet, which held No. 1 for four weeks on the Billboard 200.
Poppy, meanwhile, continues to push genre boundaries, evolving from her early YouTube days into an avant-garde force within the metal and alternative scenes.
Poppy’s Like A Version session adds to a long history of memorable covers on the program, which has hosted artists like Billie Eilish, Arctic Monkeys, and Childish Gambino reworking unexpected tracks. Whether this signals a future collaboration between Poppy and Carpenter remains to be seen, but for now, the metal provocateur has put her own mark on one of the year’s biggest pop hits.
Watch Poppy’s Like A Version cover of “Taste” below.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, DEVO, Primal Scream, and more have joined forces for Los Angeles Rising, a new benefit album raising funds for musicians affected by the recent LA wildfires.
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Spearheaded by Kevin Haskins of Bauhaus and Love and Rockets, along with producer Nick Launay, the compilation features previously unreleased tracks from some of alternative music’s most influential artists. All proceeds from the album will go directly to Sweet Relief, a non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to career musicians in need.
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The album, which is available exclusively on Bandcamp, includes a reimagined version of “California Dreamin’” by Jarvis Cocker, an alternate take on Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Turn Into” from Show Your Bones, and a new track from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds titled “Michelangelo.” Primal Scream contributed an orchestral version of their song “False Flags,” while Danny Elfman added his own surreal spin with “Monkeys on the Loose.” DEVO, Gary Numan, and Flea also feature on the 16-track compilation.
Haskins and Launay, both longtime LA residents, were personally affected by the fires and said the project came together quickly as they watched the devastation unfold.
“As the wildfires were raging and destroying thousands of homes around Los Angeles, both my neighborhood and Nick’s were instructed to evacuate. But we were the lucky ones,” Haskins said in a press statement. “The fire threatening our homes and recording studios was thankfully extinguished by firefighters just minutes away, but countless musicians and friends lost everything.”
Launay added, “This harrowing experience and witnessing the monumental destruction of entire communities inspired Nick and I to team up to create a compilation album to raise money for the less fortunate. We reached out to our musician friends for unreleased recorded gems and the response was incredible! PJ Harvey, Nick Cave, Jarvis Cocker, Primal Scream, Gary Numan, and Devo are just some of the artists that rushed in to help.”
“Nick and I were lucky. We had to evacuate, but our homes and studios survived,” Haskins said in a statement. “So many musicians we know lost everything.” The two reached out to artists who had worked with them over the years, asking if they had unreleased tracks that could help raise money. “The response was incredible,” Launay added. “These musicians didn’t hesitate to contribute to something that could directly help their peers.”
The album arrives amid a broader industry-wide effort to support wildfire relief. Bandcamp recently announced that all proceeds from purchases made on Feb. 7 would be donated to MusiCares, while a separate benefit album—featuring contributions from R.E.M., Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service, and more—is also in the works.
Los Angeles Rising is available now on Bandcamp, with vinyl pressings and limited-edition merchandise set to be released later this month. As wildfires continue to impact communities across California, the music industry is once again proving its ability to rally support when it’s needed most.