Pop
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Katy Perry couldn’t be more thrilled about her experience attending Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, which she caught during a brief trip to Sydney in February 2024.
In a new interview, the 40-year-old pop star shared her excitement about being part of the historic stadium tour and her emotional reunion with Swift.
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“I actually went and did a show in Australia very quickly and I had one day off before the show and I was like, ‘Hey girl, I’m gonna come to the show,’” Perry revealed in a TikTok video shared by U.K. radio station Capital on Friday (Jan. 17).
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“And [Swift] was so excited and I was so excited,” the “Dark Horse” singer added, showing a photo of the two stars embracing at the show.
Perry also took a moment to praise the fans at Sydney’s Accor Stadium, describing them as “an adorable, sweet community.” She fondly remembered exchanging friendship bracelets with some of the Swifties in attendance, with some even gifting her their handmade creations.
“I was so excited. People gave me bracelets, and I think Rita Ora gave me a bracelet. I loved it. It’s just like a big community,” she told Capital.
Beyond the concert, Perry and Swift had a chance to catch up, with Perry expressing her deep affection for the singer. “I love her so much,” Perry said.
After attending Swift’s Eras show in 2024, Perry also shared several photos and videos from the concert on Instagram, including a joyful backstage selfie with Swift.
Swift’s Eras Tour, which grossed $2 billion, concluded in December 2024 after an extensive run across the globe. The tour marked an incredible year for Swift, which also saw her win 10 Billboard Music Awards in December, including the coveted Top Artist honor.
Perry’s comments come after the two pop stars mended their relationship following a highly publicized feud. The pair reconciled in 2018, and a year later, Perry made a memorable cameo in Swift’s music video for “You Need to Calm Down,” where they appeared together in matching hamburger and French fry costumes.
Perry has also expressed gratitude for how their friendship evolved. In a 2020 interview with Howard Stern, the singer said, “What I’m so grateful for is we did get to make up publicly and got to be an example of redemption for young girls.” Perry added, “I always wanted the best for her and now we can talk about the best we want for each other.”
Selena Gomez may be “almost done” with making music… but not quite yet. The superstar’s new fiancé Benny Blanco took to TikTok on Friday (Jan. 17) to respond to a fan who commented on a previous video, “Benny please make some new songs for our queen.” In his reply video, he walks into a home […]
As the impending TikTok ban looms over the social media platform, Kesha is reminding fans of the OG “TiK ToK.” The star took shared a video on Thursday (Jan. 16), soundtracked by her breakthrough hit. “TikTok may be temporary but TiK ToK is forever,” she wrote over the selfie-style clip. The 2009 track gave the […]
Carole King’s Really Rosie, her 1975 collaboration with legendary children’s author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, marks its 50th anniversary with a vinyl reissue on Feb. 28. It will be the first time the album has been released on vinyl since its original release on Ode through A&M Records in 1975. (The album was released on CD in May 1999 on Ode through Epic Records.)
King was riding high in 1974 when she worked on Really Rosie, which featured 11 songs which she composed and performed, with story and lyrics by Sendak. The project encompassed an animated TV special that aired on CBS on Feb. 19, 1975 and also a soundtrack album. The album did very well, reaching No. 20 on the Billboard 200 and later receiving a Grammy nod for best recording for children.
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How did a children’s album climb so high on Billboard’s flagship chart? King was riding high at the time. Her previous pop album, Wrap Around Joy, had reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in November 1974 and spawned two top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, “Jazzman” (which received a Grammy nod for best pop vocal performance, female) and “Nightingale.”
There’s a second reason the album did so well. It’s really good. King didn’t “dumb down” her songwriting just because the songs were aimed at kids. AllMusic called it “that rare children’s album with the wit and intelligence to capture the imaginations of adult listeners as well.”
The album was co-produced by industry legend Lou Adler, who produced all of King’s albums from Tapestry (1971) through Thoroughbred (1976), and Sheldon Riss.
Really Rosie is based on Sendak’s books Chicken Soup with Rice, Pierre, One Was Johnny and Alligators All Around – which comprise 1962’s “The Nutshell Library” – and an earlier book, The Sign on Rosie’s Door (1960). The first four book titles mentioned here are song titles on the album.
The TV special was directed by Sendak and animated by Ronald Fritz and Dan Hunn of D&R Productions Inc. King voiced the title character. The special was released uncut on VHS by Children’s Circle in 1993. It has never been released in its entirety on DVD.
Sendak expanded the piece for stage productions in London and Washington, D.C. in 1978, and an off-Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Patricia Birch with designs by Sendak, which opened on Oct. 14, 1980 at the Westside Theatre.
Over the past five decades, Really Rosie has remained a staple for children’s theater groups.
King was 33 when Really Rosie was released, and keen to try new things. In March 1975, she appeared in a small role as Aunt Helen on an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. You can watch her scene here.
Sendak died in 2012 at age 83. King, now 82, has lived to get her roses, as they say. In 2002, she received the Johnny Mercer Prize from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2013, she became the first woman to receive the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The 2014 jukebox musical Beautiful: The Carole King Musical ran on Broadway for more than five years. In 2015, she received the Kennedy Center honors. She has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice – in 1990 in tandem with first husband and collaborator Gerry Goffin and in 2021 as a solo artist
The anniversary edition of Really Rosie will be reissued worldwide on 1-LP standard-weight black vinyl in a gatefold sleeve. It is available for pre-order now in King’s digital store for $26.99.
Complete Track List
“Really Rosie”
“One Was Johnny”
“Alligators All Around”
“Pierre”
“Screaming and Yelling”
“The Ballad of Chicken Soup”
“Chicken Soup with Rice”
“Avenue P”
“My Simple Humble Neighborhood”
“The Awful Truth”
“Such Sufferin”
“Really Rosie (Reprise)”
2025 is in full swing, and a slew of music artists have kicked off the new year with a bang. Mac Miller’s estate gifted fans with Balloonerism, a posthumous album that has been the subject of speculation for years. Balloonerism is a 14-track journey that showcases Miller’s experimental side, blending neo-soul and jazz elements. The album kicks off […]
JP Saxe is using his platform for good. The singer-songwriter is gearing up to release his new song, “Safe,” on Jan. 24, and has transformed what was going to be a single release show into a benefit concert for the thousands of people affected by the devastating Los Angeles fires. The “NY for LA” show […]
ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” is now solely the highest charted song by an act prominent in K-pop (Korean pop) on Billboard’s Pop Airplay chart, as it ascends a spot to No. 4 on the latest, Jan. 25-dated ranking. The song surpasses BTS’ “Dynamite,” which peaked at No. 5 on the radio ranking in December […]
ROSÉ of BLACKPINK had no choice but to get honest about her relationship with Jaden Smith in a new interview with Vanity Fair.
While hooked up to a lie-detector test for the Thursday (Jan. 16) episode of the publication’s web series, the K-pop star first addressed whether her song “Toxic Till the End” is about the Karate Kid star — with whom she’s previously been spotted hanging out. The track — which appears on ROSÉ’s December debut album rosie — finds the performer singing about a manipulative ex who was “jealous and possessive.”
“No, it’s not about Jaden Smith,” ROSÉ clarified, passing the lie detector’s assessment with flying colors. “He’s a good friend, though.”
“Hi, Jaden,” she added, waving to the camera. “Miss you lots.”
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The musician was then asked point-blank if she and Smith have ever dated, to which she gave a straightforward “no.” When the test administrator quickly confirmed that she was telling the truth, ROSÉ nodded and laughed.
“Toxic Till the End” became ROSÉ’s third Billboard Hot 100 entry in December, reaching No. 90 on the chart. rosie also spawned the girl group star’s first-ever top 10 hit with Bruno Mars duet “APT.,” which peaked at No. 5 earlier this month.
When the “Locked Out of Heaven” hitmaker and ROSÉ first announced in October that they had a collaboration in the works, Mars revealed on Instagram that the song’s title had been inspired by a Korean drinking game his duet partner had taught him one night. “Soon after, she tried to kiss me, and I was like ‘woah Rosie! what part of the game is this?’” he wrote at the time, to which ROSÉ replied, “what’s wrong with uuuu.”
To VF, ROSÉ confirmed that she, in fact, never tried to kiss him. “He’s a liar,” she said, laughing. “Bruno Mars is a liar.”
Watch ROSÉ talk about Smith, Mars and more above.
Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
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This week, Mac Miller’s beautiful mind shines once again, Central Cee debates currency with 21 Savage, and Lucy Dacus might break with “Ankles.” Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Mac Miller, Balloonerism
If 2020’s Circles, the first posthumous Mac Miller release, provided fans a sense of closure following his tragic 2018 passing at the age of 26, Balloonerism — a long-sought-after collection of songs that date back over a decade — serves as a reminder of his wonderfully unruly creativity, with songs ranging from the shimmering piano-rap anthem “Funny Papers” to the nearly 12-minute closing exploration “Tomorrow Will Never Know.”
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Central Cee feat. 21 Savage, “GBP”
Considering the success of “BAND4BAND,” Central Cee’s team-up with Lil Baby, it’s no surprise that the UK rapper has previewed his imminent album Can’t Rush Greatness with another high-wattage collaboration — but “GBP,” featuring 21 Savage, iterates on the formula of Cench’s biggest hit, with similarly eerie production but a more spacious flow, which nicely counterbalances 21 Savage’s twitchy delivery.
Lucy Dacus, “Ankles”
Boygenius has become a supergroup that has elevated all three of its members’ profile, and Lucy Dacus’ next album, Forever is a Feeling, will arrive in March with much more fanfare than any of the singer-songwriter’s previous projects; it also helps that “Ankles,” a driving love song with beautiful harmonics on the hook, may be Dacus’ most accessible single to date, and bring in even more fans ahead of the new full-length.
Marshmello & Jonas Brothers, “Slow Motion”
Four years after scoring a hit together with “Leave Before You Love Me,” Marshmello and Jonas Brothers have reunited for “Slow Motion,” which veers toward country-pop territory more than its predecessor: after the JoBros croon the wide-reaching chorus together, their masked producer swoops in a sparkly beat drop, making for a charming bit of pop interplay.
John Summit feat. CLOVES, “Focus”
John Summit’s upward trajectory continues with “Focus,” a hypnotic new dance track with Melbourne singer-songwriter CLOVES, in which the producer tosses out a collection of pulsating rhythms and lets his collaborator weave them into a yearning cry; “Focus” runs for nearly four minutes, but begs for repeat listens (or, fingers crossed, an extended mix).
Mumford & Sons, “Rushmere”
Mumford & Sons have gone back to basics with “Rushmere,” which previews the band’s first album in seven years and finds Marcus Mumford, fresh off a recent debut solo album, leading his group (now a trio, following the departure of banjoist Winston Marshall) toward the stomping, crowd-pleasing folk-rock that made them mega-sellers at the turn of the 2010s.
Hailey Whitters, “Casseroles”
On her first new single in two years, country star Hailey Whitters offers a nuanced reflection on grief and recovery with “Casseroles,” with the Iowa native wondering how people move on from loss once loved ones stop checking in and the comfort food stops arriving. Whitters, who lost a brother over a decade ago, imbues the song with an unsettled sense of hurt, her voice prodding at an uneasy questions for herself and others.
Editor’s Pick: Rose Gray, Louder, Please
The cover of Rose Gray’s debut album depicts the British pop singer on a beach, listening to a Walkman and seemingly screaming along to her favorite song while the strangers around her ignore her cries; Louder, Please will inspire similar fits of passion from pop listeners, with songs like “Everything Changes (But I Won’t),” “Free” and “Tectonic” providing sophisticated beats and top-notch sing-along fodder.
Celine Dion is paying tribute to her late husband, René Angélil, again this week, remembering her love on what would have been his 83rd birthday. On Thursday (Jan. 16), the singer posted a black-and-white picture of Angélil — who died of throat cancer in 2016 at 73 — and a loving message in a tribute […]