Peter Shep

Stormzy given honorary degree by University of Exeter

Stormzy has been given an honorary degree by the University of Exeter – watch him give a speech at the graduation ceremony while collecting the diploma below. READ MORE: Stormzy live at Reading Festival 2021: festival return is another rockstar moment The rapper (real name is Michael Owuo Jr.) was given the degree in recognition of his “remarkable contribution to society and extraordinary talent”. Professor Lisa Roberts, University of Exeter’s Vice-Chancellor described the star as “an outstanding musician and wordsmith [who] inspires people to speak openly about their beliefs and fight for their rights”. Advertisement She added: “The University of Exeter has put social justice at the heart of its new ten-year strategy which includes opening doors to people from all walks of life into higher education and it was wonderful to hear Michael’s powerful speech today to students and graduates.” Stormzy addressed the graduating class while receiving the honour, praising them for having “the guts and the grit and the dedication that it takes to study for years and to finish your degree”. “I got my AS results in my first year of college and said ‘Yeah, see you later’,” he said, reflecting on his own time spent in education…. Read More →

21JUNNews

Watch Kasabian take a late-night stroll in trippy ‘Chemicals’ video

Kasabian have shared the official video for their latest single ‘Chemicals’ – you can watch it below. Released earlier this month, the track followed ‘ALYGATOR’ and ‘SCRIPTVRE’ in previewing the Leicester band’s upcoming seventh album ‘The Alchemist’s Euphoria’ – their first since the departure of ex-frontman Tom Meighan. READ MORE: Kasabian talk ‘SCRIPTVRE’ and new album ‘The Alchemist’s Euphoria’: “This is a re-set” Today (June 21), Serge Pizzorno and co. have dropped the trippy new visuals for their most recent track, which sees Kasabian’s newly-appointed lead singer taking a stroll through his hometown in the early hours. Advertisement The clip, titled ‘Chemicals – 3:21am In Les-tah’, was directed by LOOSE (IDLES, Fred Again.., Joy Crookes) and filmed, as its name suggests, at 3:21am. Speaking of the single, Pizzorno explained: “It is me telling myself that it is going to be OK. It was me seeing myself in those few weeks when everything kicked off [with Meighan’s exit].” He continued: “It’s the future me saying to that person: ‘This is shit, but don’t worry, it will get better’. So having a song about talking to yourself is universal, I think. We all have to find a way to deal with the complications, the… Read More →

21JUNNews

Blue Rojo Is A Musical Volcano Of Queer Desire

By Lucas Villa Blue Rojo is leaving a colorful mark on Latin pop music. As the Mexican-American singer continues to take the genre to new places by fusing seemingly disparate elements of electronic and punk with reggaeton, he also lyrically pushes boundaries as an openly gay musician. Seeking to find himself after a few years of fleeting fame, Blue’s authenticity as an artist led him to sign with Universal Music Group last year. After releasing an album about being in love with a straight man, he continues to stay true to himself with his latest single “Soy Tu Payaso Papi 3000.” “It’s a dream to sing about gay love,” Blue tells MTV over Zoom from his home in Mexico City. “It’s so hot. It’s super passionate. It makes me feel alive. It’s what I am. I’m singing about what I am.” Before becoming one of Mexico’s freshest new voices, Blue Rojo was born Santiago Ogarrio in San Diego, California. As a child, he grew up in the border town of Tijuana, where he was able to embrace the pop culture of both the United States. and Mexico. Blue cites MTV’s TRL as the foundation of his musical influences. “I was… Read More →

21JUNNews

German record stores launch petition to fight DHL on rising vinyl shipping fees

Record stores in Germany are fighting back against the German Post and DHL, after the organisations detailed pricing changes that will heavily affect the cost of international shipping. READ MORE: 10 of the world’s greatest record stores – according to the author of a new book on the topic As of July 1, the dimensional criteria for packages shipped under the category of ‘Warenpost International’ – the standard for shipping vinyl records overseas – will be reduced. Once the change is enacted, packages will need to come in at under 25cm wide. Given that 12-inch records come in around 31cm before packaging is even factored in, record stores can no longer rely on Warenpost International for orders shipped into or out of Germany. At the moment, shipping a record through DHL or German Post will cost between €5 and €10 (£4.29-8.58). When the changes come into effect on July 1, however, sellers will need to begin shipping stock under the category of ‘Päckchen M International’, which can cost up to four times more. Advertisement Speaking to Mixmag, Andy Vas – owner of the German-based Yore Store – said: “There’s no way people will want to pay €20 for shipping on a… Read More →

21JUNNews

BTS unveil adorable animated music video for ‘Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)’

BTS have released a new animated music video for ‘Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)’ starring the boyband’s avatars from their new mobile game. READ MORE: The life-changing magic of falling down the BTS rabbit hole In the new clip, the animated BTS members journey through the desert, before a coming across a glass jar containing a tiny island. A whale bursts out from beneath the sand and ferries the group to the island, where they interact with animals, play music and stargaze. The new visual features animated versions of BTS’ members as they explore ‘BTS Island’, which is where their forthcoming mobile game ‘BTS Island: In the SEOM’ is set. ‘BTS Island: In the SEOM’ is currently available for pre-registration, and will be released on Android and iOS on June 28. Advertisement Set on ‘BTS Island’, the upcoming game will be a character management simulation rich in stories and puzzles. The members of BTS were also involved in its development, and helped to design its logo, develop puzzles and test the game, as detailed on its YouTube channel. In other news, BTS’ new anthology album ‘Proof’, which was led by ‘Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)’, has… Read More →

20JUNNews

Tennessee secretary of state arrested for DUI while leaving Bonnaroo festival

Tennessee’s secretary of state was arrested on charges of driving under the influence (DUI) on Friday (June 17) after leaving the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival 2022. READ MORE: 20 festivals to look forward to in 2022 Tre Hargett, who has served as the secretary of state since 2009, was taken into custody at Coffee County Jail around 1.30am local time (by that time: Saturday, June 18) and released six hours later on $2,000 bail (£1,634), as reported by the Associated Press. Hargett said that he regretted his actions at the Manchester, Tennessee festival. He said in a statement: “On Friday night after leaving the Bonnaroo Music Festival, I was stopped by the Tullahoma Police Department and subsequently arrested for DUI. Advertisement “Driving Under the Influence is a serious matter, and I regret the circumstances that led to my arrest. I respect law enforcement and will trust the legal process as we move forward.” The Republican politician is due back in court on July 14. In a statement to WKRN, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) said of Hargett’s arrest: “MADD is appalled every time someone makes the wrong and extremely dangerous choice to drive impaired. It is a crime. When… Read More →

20JUNNews

Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes and Mat Nicholls sign up for charity triathlon

Bring Me The Horizon‘s Oli Sykes and Mat Nicholls have announced that they’ve signed up for a charity triathlon to raise money for UKRAINEPRIDE. READ MORE: Bring Me The Horizon on stepping up for the scene: “Things are better when you’re not the only one” In August, the singer and drummer will take part in the Allerthorpe Sprint Triathlon, which is described as “one of the fastest-sprint distance triathlon courses” in York. Raising money for the LGBTQ+ charity, Sykes pointed out in an Instagram post today (June 20) that UKRAINEPRIDE “needs all the help it get get right now”. Advertisement “yooo so me & @mickypickles r doing a triathlon this august,” Sykes wrote alongside a photo of the two bandmates. “We wanted to raise money for 2 causes that r at the forefront of our mind right now so with the help of my good Ukrainian friend @yavashadasha we settled on @ukraine.pride an amazing organisation that supports the LGBT+ movement in Ukraine which as you can imagine needs all the help it can get right now.” He added: “We have never done any kind of marathon/sports event like this so we are pooping our pants just a little, so the more… Read More →

20JUNNews

FKA twigs recently discovered that she and Jorja Smith are cousins

FKA twigs has revealed that she recently found out that she and Jorja Smith are cousins. READ MORE: FKA twigs: “There are so many sides to me that the world hasn’t seen yet” Speaking in a new interview, the ‘Tears In The Club’ singer said she only discovered Smith was her relative after the pair teamed up on twigs’ recent single ‘Darjeeling’, taken from her January mixtape ‘CAPRISONGS’. “I’d never met her before, and I jumped in her car with her,” twigs told GQ, “and I remember thinking to myself, ‘Gosh, that’s really strange. We’ve got exactly the same kind of skin.’” Advertisement She continued: “A few months later, I was on the road to go to LA and [Smith] left me a voice note saying, ‘You’re never going to believe this, but I’ve just spoken to my dad and he’s spoken to his sister and we’re related.’” Elsewhere in the interview, twigs (real name Tahliah Barnett) talked about the creative process for ‘CAPRISONGS’, admitting that she felt a lot of freedom creating the 17-track project. “I didn’t feel trapped, I felt like I was just being myself,” she said. “But I guess I just unlocked a new door, like… Read More →

20JUNNews

Music fans heading to European festivals warned over EasyJet flight cancellations

Music fans who are set to attend festivals across Europe this summer are facing the risk of travel disruption after news that EasyJet has cut thousands of flights. READ MORE: 20 festivals to look forward to in 2022 The European festival circuit is in full flow this year for the first time since 2019 following the wide-scale lifting of COVID-19 pandemic-enforced restrictions on live music events across the continent. UK music fans in particular are expected to travel abroad throughout the summer to get their long-awaited festival fix, with events such as NOS Alive, Lowlands and Open’er Festival among the most popular. Advertisement However, festival-goers’ travel plans may be affected by the news this morning (June 20) that EasyJet are cutting seven per cent of its 160,000 scheduled flights between July and September (via BBC News). The move comes after two of the airline’s biggest airports, London Gatwick and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, both announced recently that they would each be placing a cap on the number of flights taking off during the peak summer season in a bid to combat post-pandemic staff shortages. Flights from other airports are also set to be affected. EasyJet said today that they were “proactively… Read More →

20JUNNews

Bebe Rexha hints at remix of ‘Break My Heart Myself’ with ITZY

Bebe Rexha and ITZY may soon be releasing a new remix of the former’s 2021 single ‘Break My Heart Myself’. READ MORE: NCT Dream on ‘Beatbox’: “We have this music that’s uniquely our own” Last week, American singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha began hinting about a potential collaboration with K-pop girl group ITZY, on a remix of her 2021 track ‘Break My Heart Myself’. “Let’s get @ITZYofficial on the remix of break my heart myself!!!!” she wrote. Let’s get @ITZYofficial on the remix of break my heart myself!!!! — Bebe Rexha (@BebeRexha) June 14, 2022 Advertisement A day later, Bebe teased some “exciting” news regarding the song’s remix, and quoted a tweet from Warner Music Thailand alluding to the upcoming collaboration. ITZY have since re-shared the singer’s tweet, adding that they were “excited too”. Excited too?? @BebeRexha https://t.co/n6o0t0OTzO — ITZY (@ITZYofficial) June 17, 2022 ???? https://t.co/BroxDPKN6i — Bebe Rexha (@BebeRexha) June 15, 2022 Meanwhile, eagle-eyed fans have also noted that Bebe’s producer, Jussifer, recently started following ITZY on Instagram. .@BebeRexha’s producer is following @ITZYofficial on instagram ? bebe x itzy is real yall? pic.twitter.com/27AbcG5UJY — mn (@chaerjimn) June 15, 2022 The singer first began posting about the girl group after members Yeji… Read More →

19JUNNews

The Rasmus follow up Eurovision performance with new single, ‘Rise’

Following on from their appearance at Eurovision last month, The Rasmus have shared a new single, ‘Rise’ – check it out below. READ MORE: Ukrainian Eurovision entry Kalush Orchestra: “This is the highest responsibility possible” Speaking about the new song, vocalist Lauri Ylönen said: ”COVID was the last straw for many people having mental health issues, including myself. In the music video the dancers playing ‘the roots’ represent the evil force and they are trying to pull us down underground. “Still, the song has a positive message, which is not to give up no matter how hard life treats you.” Advertisement Like their Eurovision entry ‘Jezebel’, the song was again co-written and produced by songwriter Desmond Child (KISS, Aerosmith). It’s also the title track of their upcoming album, which arrives on September 23 via Playground Music. Check out the new song here: The band represented Finland at the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest after winning a televised competition in February. The band won that contest in a landslide victory with their song ‘Jezebel’ after it was announced back in January that the band were hoping to represent their country at the ceremony. Speaking after winning Finland’s selection process event – Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) – Ylönen said: “We… Read More →

19JUNNews

Watch Perfume Genius’ surreal new short film to accompany album release

Perfume Genius has shared a new surreal short film that is an accompaniment to his new album, ‘Ugly Season’. READ MORE: Perfume Genius: “I’ve been ‘Fuck you’ my whole life, but I’ve found a new way to do it” The 28 minute short film, entitled Pygmalion’s Ugly Season, is directed by visual artist Jacolby Satterwhite and features music from the album, as well as an appearance from Perfume Genius – real name Michael Hadreas. In a press release, Hadreas said: “I gave him [Satterwhite] free reign,” when it came to directing the short. Advertisement He went on: “We’re both the same age, I feel very aligned with Jacolby when it comes to taste and certain pop culture obsessions. There is also a spiritual harmony between us in the way we approach work and the similar energetic spaces we want to inhabit, realize and share.” You can watch the short film here: Speaking about his new project earlier this year, Satterwhite said: “This project is the genesis of a whole new direction that I’m taking, one that I’ve been thinking about within this endemic culture, since 2020. “Mike and I are both writing scripts. My visual narrative serendipitously mirrors the lyrical direction in his music;… Read More →

19JUNNews

Watch Metallica play ‘Metal Militia’ live for the first time in six years

Metallica played their track ‘Metal Militia’ live for the first time in over half a decade this weekend – see footage below. READ MORE: Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! – Metallica’s Kirk Hammett The metal titans were playing the Pinkpop festival in the Netherlands on Friday night (June 17). During the set, the band performed ‘Metal Militia’, taken from their classic 1983 album ‘Kill ‘Em All’, live for the first time since 2016, alongside hits spanning the band’s entire career. Advertisement Watch Metallica play ‘Metal Militia’ at Pinkpop below: Recently, Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett claimed that he believes the band warned people that streaming services “wouldn’t work” as a new form of business. “We warned everyone that this was gonna happen,” Hammett told Classic Rock in a new interview. “We warned everyone that the music industry was gonna lose 80 perc ent of its net worth, power and influence. When these monumental shifts come you just either fucking rattle the cage and get nothing done or you move forward. “There’s definitely a new way for getting music out there, but it isn’t as effective as the music industry pre-Napster,” Hammett added. “But we’re stuck with it. There needs to be some… Read More →

19JUNNews

Johnny Depp and Jeff Beck cover The Velvet Underground’s ‘Venus in Furs’

Johnny Depp and Jeff Beck have shared a new cover of The Velvet Underground – listen to their version of ‘Venus In Furs’ below. READ MORE: The Velvet Underground review: revisionist doc reworks narrative of New York rock and rollers The pair are set to release a collaborative album called ’18’ next month. The album was recorded over the past three years and is due out on July 15. Depp made headlines last month (May 29) when he was a surprise guest at Beck’s show in Sheffield. The pair performed covers of John Lennon, Marvin Gaye and Jimi Hendrix, and the actor went on to join Beck on stage at a handful of other gigs despite awaiting the verdict in his defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard at the time. Advertisement The album was then announced last week, with the new Velvet Underground cover following. Listen to the pair cover ‘Venus In Furs’ below: Of the collaboration, Beck said: “When Johnny and I started playing together, it really ignited our youthful spirit and creativity. We would joke about how we felt 18 again, so that just became the album title too.” Depp added: “It’s an extraordinary honour to play and write music with Jeff, one of the true… Read More →

19JUNNews

Sports Team think before they leap on wavy new track ‘Cool It Kid’

Sports Team have dropped off a new single, ‘Cool It Kid’ – check out the song’s video below. READ MORE: Sports Team live in London: connection amid the confetti cannons Taken from the band’s forthcoming new album ‘Gulp!’, which is due out July 22 via Island Records (pre-order), ‘Cool It Kid’ – which also features Sorry’s Asha Lorenz – follows the release of recent singles ‘The Game’ and ‘R Entertainment’. Born from the time the band spent living together in a house share in Camberwell, Sports Team’s new track taps into the frustrations of six people, no matter how much they love each other, driving each other mad by living in such close confines. Advertisement Speaking about the new single, the band said ‘Cool It Kid’ is about “getting too deep in your stress about stuff and sometimes saying to yourself, ‘You know what, maybe sometimes you should sit back and it’s best not to react on your intense irrational emotions.’” Check out the new track below: Sports Team’s last album was their debut release, 2020’s ‘Deep Down Happy’. In a four-star review, NME‘s Will Richards wrote: “They’ll get as much hate as they will adoration: you’re either with them or you’re not…. Read More →

18JUNNews

Aitch announces pool party at Ibiza Rocks, ‘Aitch20’

Aitch has announced a pool party that will take place at this year’s Ibiza Rocks. The Manchester rapper will hold the party, deemed ‘Aitch20’, on August 9 from 2-10pm. You can see the full details of the event, and view ticket packages, here: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ibiza Rocks (@ibizarocks) Advertisement Last month, Aitch shared his latest single ‘1989’, featuring Shaun Ryder. The track sees Aitch rapping over a sample of The Stone Roses‘ ‘Fools Gold’. It is taken from Aitch’s forthcoming debut album ‘Close To Home’, which will be released on August 19 via Capitol. The record has been described as “a love letter to the city which shaped him”. Speaking to NME earlier this year, Aitch said he was “a proud Mancunian” and that his upcoming album will be “100,000 per cent a proper Manchester album,” that leans into the city’s proud musical heritage. Meanwhile, he recently said that he would pay £7million to Liam Gallagher if he would feature on his next album. Advertisement Aitch also reiterated his plans to NME on the red carpet of the BRIT Awards 2022, where he told us of his plans to meet Gallagher at the ceremony and talk… Read More →

18JUNNews

Sean Ono Lennon marks Paul McCartney’s birthday with cover of ‘Here, There and Everywhere’

John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s son Sean Ono Lennon has paid tribute to Paul McCartney on his 80th birthday with a cover of ‘Here, There and Everywhere.’ Check it out below. READ MORE: Paul McCartney: read the exclusive track-by-track story of ‘McCartney III’ Sharing the video, Sean Lennon wrote: “A little birdy told me this was one of [your] fav Beatles tunes.” He continued: “So Happy Birthday! Thank you for all the beautiful music. You have mine and the whole world’s undying love and respect. (This version is a bit rough because it’s such a pretty song I kept getting choked up…!)” Advertisement Check out the cover here: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sean Ono Lennon (@sean_ono_lennon) Fans and stars alike have flocked to social media today to pay tribute to McCartney on the legendary singer-songwriter’s birthday. “They say it’s your birthday Saturday happy birthday Paul love you man have a great day peace and love Ringo and Barbara love love peace and love,” McCartney’s Beatles bandmate Ringo Starr wrote on Twitter. The official Twitter accounts for McCartney’s late bandmates John Lennon and George Harrison each posted a birthday message. Lennon’s birthday shoutout came alongside a playlist of… Read More →

17JUNNews

How Bon Iver’s live sound design prioritises fan experience and “what goes into their ears”

Bon Iver‘s premium sound system providers, L-Acoustics, have spoken to NME about the future of live sound and how they worked with Justin Vernon to design an immersive experience for fans. Before the recent show at New York City’s Forrest Hills stadium as part of the ‘Bon Iver, Bon Iver’ 10-year anniversary tour, Vernon first tapped L-Acoustics in 2018 to help create a panoramic soundscape of high-resolution audio for a gig at California’s Santa Barbara Bowl. Since then, the band have continued to work with the company – using their L-ISA Hyperreal sound technology – to create a deeper, direct auditory connection with fans. Advertisement “It’s the 10 year anniversary of our album release, ‘Bon Iver, Bon Iver’, but it’s also a return after quarantine and COVID lockdown,” Vernon said of focusing on sound on their current tour. “We’ve gotten to be on the ground floor of something new,” he added, noting that “it’s not just two stacks of speakers in a room anymore.” The first time the Wisconsin indie band played their nuanced tracks via the L-ISA high-resolution speaker software, their engineer came up to Vernon after the performance and told him, “That’s the best show you’ve ever played,… Read More →

17JUNNews

Sløtface tell us about their two news sci-fi, HAIM and Caroline Polachek inspired singles

Sløtface have returned with two new singles ‘Beta’ and ‘Come Hell Or Whatever’. Check them out below, along with our interview with frontwoman Haley Shea. After announcing earlier this week that the Norwegian punk band would now just be the project of Shea after the amicable departure of guitarist Tor-Arne Vikingstad and bassist Lasse Lokoy, the first fruits from the new iteration of Sløtface can be heard today. “It’s more like a family or a collective, but it’s definitely my responsibility and my project,” Shea told NME of the current incarnation of Sløtface. “It was a rough 2021 with COVID and then all of these new changes. I didn’t think I could take in any more blows at that point – but there we are. Advertisement “It feels so good to have so many amazing and talented friends involved, who I was already friends with before. The few live shows we’ve done recently have been so fun – not just because we’re back to proper rock shows after COVID but also because there’s a really good energy amongst our entire group.” New songs ‘Beta’ and ‘Come Hell Or Whatever’ were co-written between Shea and songwriter and producer Mikhael Paskalev. The tracks… Read More →

16JUNNews

Mark Ronson launches new ‘BBC Maestro’ course

Mark Ronson has partnered with the BBC to launch an online course in which he will share some of his production secrets. READ MORE: The Big Read – Mark Ronson: “Amy Winehouse turned my song off after about five fucking seconds” BBC Maestro is an 18-class virtual course that will show aspiring producers and musicians exactly how Ronson creates a new track, from writing a song to laying down instruments and playing with digital effects. Ronson said that the goal of the course, which will be released in full on July 5, is to show students “everything I do, and then you can apply this to your own process”. Advertisement In addition to sharing tips about how to craft a song the ‘Uptown Funk’ hitmaker will talk through the process of collaborating with others and deconstruct some of his own records including Amy Winehouse’s ‘Back To Black’. Episodes of BBC Maestro will feature Ronson working with rapper Jon Bellion, singer Niya Norwood, engineer/mixer/producer Ricky Damian, and the Frighteners’ Richard Terrana. “Forget about all those things – commercial constraints, who will listen to this,” Ronson says at the end of the trailer for the course. “Just concentrate on making something that… Read More →

16JUNNews

Kep1er usher in the summer with music video teaser for ‘Up!’

Kep1er have release a music video teaser their forthcoming single ‘Up!’. READ MORE: BTS’ new single ‘Yet To Come’ offers poignant reflection and an optimistic invitation into the future In the clip, the members of the K-pop girl group huddle together for a self-timer photo against the backdrop of a elaborate, brightly coloured set made to recall a beach house. Later, montages of Kep1er enjoying the summer with cocktails by the pool and popsicles, as well as goofy photobooth moments flash by. ‘Up!’ is set to be the title track off Kep1er’s sophomore mini-album, ‘Doublast’. Both the track and the record are due out on June 20 at 6pm KST. Advertisement ‘Doublast’ is set to be Kep1er’s first release of 2022, and the much-anticipated follow-up to their debut mini-album ‘First Impact’. That release had sold almost 400,000 copies in South Korea, according to the Gaon Music Chart, and featured the single ‘Wa Da Da’. The girl group were first announced to be returning with music shortly after they concluded their run as contestants on Queendom season two, the Mnet reality TV series which the girl group had competed in against other female K-pop acts such as Hyolyn, VIVIZ, WJSN, Brave Girls and LOONA. As part of the… Read More →