What's new in the music world this week?
It was an impressive night at the Academy Awards for both movies and music, though it's been a less than easy week for Liam Gallagher. Some brilliant videos have caught our eye and exciting tour updates from the Rolling Stones and Guns N' Roses are revealed...
Music News
The 92nd Academy Awards arrived last night (February 9th) featuring some rather outstanding live performances. Not only did we see Idina Menzel and Aurora performing Into the Unknown from Frozen 2, but Eminem also made a surprise appearance with a version of his 2002 hit Lose Yourself. Meanwhile Billie Eilish stunned audiences with a moving cover of The Beatles' Yesterday for the In Memoriam section of the night.
Eminem performing at the 2020 Oscars / Photo Credit: USA TODAY Network/SIPA USA/PA Images
Liam Gallagher, however, disappointed his audience at his show in Hamburg on Wednesday (February 5th) after being forced to end early just four songs in. He started to experience problems with his voice and was unable to carry on. He apologised via Twitter, claimed his diagnosis was inflamed vocal cords and had thankfully recovered for his show in Amsterdam two days later.
It turns out it wasn't the greatest week for the Britpop hero in many ways, as his son Gene Gallagher was in court with Ringo Starr's grandson Sonny Starkey where they were accused of affray after they were refused alcohol after 11pm in a Tesco Express. The 18-year-olds have denied the charges and are due to return for a hearing on March 9th.
New Releases
Two music videos in particular this last week have captured the world's attention; those being Lil Nas X and Nas' remix video for Rodeo where the young rapper is transformed into a vampire, and Green Day's Meet Me On The Roof which stars the permanently adorable Gaten Matarazzo from Stranger Things.
Meanwhile, Nicki Minaj has returned with a new song entitled Yikes and a new alter ego named Queen Sleeze. She's already been attacked for referencing black activist Rosa Parks in a not so flattering portion of the lyrics, so we're not sure her comeback is going to go so well.
Perhaps more exciting is The White Stripes celebrating the 20th anniversary of De Stijl by sharing some previously unreleased material including some rarities and covers. The material will only be available on the Third Man Records Vault subscription service.
Tour Announcements
The Rolling Stones are hitting the road again for the second North American leg of their No Filter Tour, kicking off in San Diego on May 8th. It could be a difficult one for 76-year-old Keith Richards, however, who has finally quit smoking and proved you're never too old to make positive changes.
Let's Spend the Night Together in one of these fine cities! Sign up for the presale here: https://t.co/aFu75Y310m #StonesNoFilter pic.twitter.com/hUFV2oBDRF
— The Rolling Stones (@RollingStones) February 6, 2020
Also, Smashing Pumpkins have been announced to open for Guns N' Roses during some of their North American tour dates in July. So those lucky enough to have tickets are certainly in for one hell of a night.
Festival Updates
Grace Jones will bring her Meltdown Festival to London's Southbank Centre once again from June 12th - 21st, and this year we'll see some excellent headline acts. Solange, Peaches and Skunk Anansie have all been announced to lead the 2020 line-up, with the latter celebrating their 25th anniversary.
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