FEATURE: Celebrating a Seminal Hip-Hop Classic: Ms. Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill at Twenty-Five

FEATURE:

 

 

Celebrating a Seminal Hip-Hop Classic

  

Ms. Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill at Twenty-Five

_________

ON 25th August…

the one and only solo album from Ms. Lauryn Hill turns twenty-five. The awe-inspiring The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill celebrate a quarter-century two weeks after Hip-Hop celebrates its fiftieth birthday. One of the genre’s most extraordinary and compelling offerings arrived in a year when there were not too many standout Hip-Hop albums. Apart from Beastie Boys and Hello Nasty, 1998 was dominated by other sounds. We all knew about Hill because of her time with Fugees. I remember talk of the solo album going around and, when it arrived in August 1998, we had heard the single, Doo Wop (That Thing). If some accuse the song as being slight and one of the less sensational offerings on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, it was an instant and (personally, at least) phenomenal example of her stunning command and invention. I think that Doo Wop (That Thing) is one of the best cuts from Hill’s debut solo record. Number one in the U.S. and two in the U.K., The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill masterpiece inspired women in Hip-Hop artists to broaden their narrative and lyrical arc. Often discussed sex and their experiences of being rugged or rough, Hill was heralded as this icon and almost prophet-like figure. Changing the game instantly, it is intriguing and sad that she has not released a follow-up. Such an important, impactful and successful debut solo album perhaps put pressure on her shoulders. How do you follow it?! I think that the songs on the album could score a great Hip-Hp film set in 1998. A great film with those amazing songs scoring a wonderful and moving script. You can see the legacy of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Seen as one of the best albums ever released, I wanted to explore it ahead of its twenty-fifth anniversary next month.

There are a few features about the album that I want to highlight before getting to a review. The Ringer celebrated and dissected The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill on its twentieth anniversary in 2018. After all of these years, it still unveils layers and pearls. They explained how Hill herself is revising and reimagining her debut album – and we are all still finding new ways to understand it:

“Given all that has come in its wake, it is still hard to believe that Lauryn Hill released The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill when she was 23 years old. True, Hill had lived plenty of lives by then, had tried on a variety of roles—straight-A student of Maplewood, New Jersey’s Columbia High School; founder of her school’s gospel choir; promising teen actress stealing scenes in Sister Act 2 and As the World Turns; sole female member of the multi-platinum, Grammy-winning group that the media dubbed “the new conscience of rap”; and of course at her most braggadocious, “Nina Simone, defecating on your microphone.” Yet somehow, none of this quite prepared people in the summer of 1998 for the monumental achievement of her first and, to date, only solo studio album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill—a collection of songs as timeless and disparate as the tough-love anthem “Doo Wop (That Thing),” the break-up dirge “Ex-Factor,” the fire-starting “Lost Ones,” and that tender ode to impending motherhood “To Zion.” When an artist makes such a massively successful, groundbreaking, and format-defining work at a precocious age—think Mary Shelley writing Frankenstein at 20 or Orson Welles directing Citizen Kane at 25—it usually inspires the less precocious members of its audience (so roughly, everyone) to feel some combination of adoration and human inferiority: What were you doing with your life when you were 20, or 25, or 23? But maybe, too, there is something inherently youthful and thus reassuringly communal about such be-all-and-end-all swings for the moon. And so I like to temper this vision of an inhumanly precocious Lauryn Hill with the more human hubris of youth. “Lucky for us, like everyone in their twenties,” writes Kierna Mayo, the woman who famously put Hill on the cover of the preview issue of Honey magazine, “Hill imagined herself wiser than she really was.”

This weekend, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill turns 20, meaning it is nearly as old as Hill was herself when she wrote and recorded it. Its success is still staggering and well documented, and well worth documenting again: It sold 422,624 copies the week it was released, which at the time set the record for highest first-week sales by a female artist. It was nominated for 10 Grammys and won five of them (the most in a single night for a female artist at the time, breaking Carole King’s 27-year-old record), including Album of the Year, an award no black woman has won since. Last year, NPR placed it at no. 2 on its list of the 150 Greatest Albums Made by Women, just behind Joni Mitchell’s Blue, and the album was also selected to be included in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. Worldwide, it has sold more than 19 million copies. Here is a paragraph break so the haters can take a breath.

But Hill’s travails throughout the past two decades have been well documented, too. When the album celebrated its 15th birthday, five years ago, Hill was in a minimum-security Connecticut prison serving a three-month term for tax evasion. There have been lawsuits, canceled shows, and accusations about her treatment of backing musicians. But perhaps most deafening, there has been her silence. Hill has released one-off tracks here and there, and her 2002 MTV Unplugged appearance was released as a (polarizing) live album. But she never released another proper album after Miseducation, and when not performing live, Hill has spent much of the past two decades in exile from her stardom, quietly raising six children and devoting herself to various spiritual practices. She rarely gives interviews, but in 2010 she told an NPR reporter who asked why she had stopped releasing new music, “There were a number of different reasons, but partly the support system that I needed was not necessarily in place. There were things about myself, personal-growth things, that I had to go through in order to feel like it was worth it.”

And yet around that time Hill began performing again, usually not new material but versions of the classic songs off Miseducation, reworked, sped up, and rearranged sometimes to the point that they were nearly indistinguishable. These performances have been mixed (I’ve seen her twice: one show was brilliant, the other a disaster, which seems in keeping with the general ratio). There is something both compelling and a little unsettling about how she still seems to be revising, rewriting, and endlessly tweaking the Miseducation songs live, akin to the creative perfectionism that drove Kanye West to continue reworking his 2016 record, The Life of Pablo, as though the album was not fluid enough as a format to contain his creativity. The culture is certainly not finished with The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, and in some sense neither is she.

As a fan, I have found Hill’s refusal to make another record frustrating and at the same time deeply profound: What can be a louder and clearer message of rebellion than, in a culture bloated with noise and excess, to remain quiet when everyone demands that you speak? Hill quickly and summarily achieved nearly every major milestone in the music industry, and then she walked away from it, as if to show that success is not a proven avenue to personal fulfillment. Hill has sometimes been compared to two other prominent black artists of her generation who disappeared at the height of fame’s demands: D’Angelo (who worked with her on “Nothing Even Matters” from Miseducation) and Dave Chappelle. “Lauryn Hill said something so apt recently,” the Pulitzer Prize–winning writer Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah mused in an interview not long after she’d written a moving essay about her search for Chappelle. “She was late for her show and people complained that she was selfish in her tardiness and she said, ‘I gave you all of my twenties’”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Anthony Barboza

Before moving on, I was interested in an article from The Independent. There will be a slew of new articles to mark twenty-five years of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. The Independent spotlighted one of the most important Hip-Hop albums ever on its twentieth anniversary:

“In a 1999 interview with The Guardian, Hill said the record embodied the notion that “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger”. Yes, it dealt with heartbreak and love, but really, it “was meant to discuss those life lessons… those things that you don’t get in any text book, things that we go through that force us to mature”.

From the moving, slow intensity of “Ex-Factor” (“You said you’d die for me, give to me, give to me, why won’t you live for me?”) to the (admittedly, respectability-heavy) lessons of “Doo Wop (That Thing)” (“Look at where you be in, hair weaves like Europeans, fake nails done by Koreans”), it was – in the 1990s – ahead of its time. So far ahead, that Ms Hill, as she now refers to herself, is still touring almost exclusively off the back of it.

It has not been an easy path for Hill. One odd rumour surrounding the album on its release was that Hill did not want her music to be purchased by white people (a falsehood later attributed to a caller on The Howard Stern Show). The notion that she, with her dreadlocks, Fugees background and distaste for fame, secretly hated white people, was a satisfactory narrative for people who could not reckon with her success. That no one had seen or heard her say it did not matter. Hill and her neo-soul ilk created music that was not only distinctly black in sound, but also in social commentary, and that was enough of a threat in itself.

These days, Hill is, sadly, almost as well known for her tardiness and financial issues as she is for her first and only solo record. Having cemented her superstar status with a US No 1 album, she soon retreated from the public eye, accompanied by a swirl of rumours. Her MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 album – a stripped-back, and at times, rambling, but no less beautiful project teeming with observations about the perils of fame – only increased the whispers.

After a brief Fugees reunion in 2005, Hill ramped up her touring in the wake of a three-month prison sentence for tax evasion in 2013. Hill was back: albeit with frenzied live performances of the classics. And sometimes, there was no performance at all. In 2016 after showing up hours late for a concert in Atlanta and only performing for 40 minutes (a regular occurrence), Hill attributed her lateness to her issues with “aligning her energy with the time”. Disputes over crediting producers, writers and musicians have also plagued the star for some time, with Grammy-nominated pianist Robert Glasper recently suggesting that she had less input into her recorded work than people realised.

That aside, The Miseducation has had a rebirth of sorts this year. “Ex-Factor” was sampled twice – in Cardi B’s “Be Careful” and Drake’s hit feminist-lite anthem “Nice For What” – renewing conversations about the lasting legacy of the 1998 album.

In an interview with Rolling Stone on the 10th anniversary of the album, Hill spoke of her desire prior to its release, to “write songs that lyrically move” her. She wanted us to be “able to hear the scratch in the vocals”, and the “thickness of sound”, as well as creating something with “human element” strong enough to make the hair on the back of her neck stand up. And she did.

There’s a reason that this album refuses to fade into the background. So groundbreaking was it, with its penchant for infusing social commentary with R&B, soul and hip-hop beats, that you could argue that Lauryn’s The Miseducation, like Erykah Badu’s Baduizm the previous year, was one of a small selection of albums responsible for changing the face of soul and R&B as we know it”.

There is one more feature I am keen to uncover. The Quietus shared their thoughts in 2018. Even though The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is primarily a Hip-Hop album, it also leans into Neo-Soul. It is such a rich album that is still teaching us after twenty-five years. One that you should listen to now and experience afresh. It is an absolutely dazzling work from one of the music world’s most potent and important poets:

“So vast has been the expenditure of ink and breath over the years that it's difficult to approach the task of celebrating Hill's magnificent debut with a serious expectation of adding anything to the discussion. The back story has been exhaustively, if inconclusively, mined: from the Fugee rapper-singer's hard-fought battle to get her own music heard, how the doomed affair with bandmate Wyclef Jean bled in to the lyrics of around a third of the record's songs, to the acrimonious fallout with the hitherto unknown crew of producers and musicians she assembled to record it that inevitably diminished its legend. And Hill has remained an enigma, the fulfilled promise of Miseducation apparently coming from a place she has no intention to revisit, even as the approach she minted has continued to have a direct or implied influence on almost every artist who has sought to combine elements of soul, hip hop and pop since.

And yet the music remains, for the most part, the least-explored aspect of this record and what it has come to mean. It's almost another way in which the record was prescient - prefiguring today's increasingly narcissistic public square, where personality and perception carry a far higher price than content; where rumour and innuendo are considered more absorbing and vital than hard-won insights. All this, of course, says more about us than it does about Ms Hill; and none of it is very encouraging.

Instead of retreading that familiar if contested ground, then, let's go back and listen to a record more often talked about and cited than thoughtfully engaged with. In it we find an artist of uncommon gifts caught in a moment of breaking free - personally, emotionally, politically and contractually, from ties of friendship and business constructed with others and from mental and psychological bonds that span centuries and bound billions. Hill's genius in this moment was to be able to capture all these essences inside single, simple phrases, sung and rapped with a lack of affectation that ensures each feels relevant, raw and real.

After an intro setting up the schoolroom scene - of which more later - 'Lost Ones' is an aberration: a combative, predominantly hostile sentiment on a record characterised by its equanimity and empathy. What gives? In one sense it's like putting the bonus track at the beginning rather than the end (and there are already two superfluous, if fascinating, extras added at the back end: a cover of 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' reportedly sung from an only partial memory of the original by a recumbent, eight-months-pregnant Hill, and the slight if sophisticated, but very definitely off-theme, 'Tell Him'). Yet in another, this anger-tinged yet ultimately measured - though still deeply biting - snap back at Wyclef is still a song of upliftment. And it definitely fits the education theme: 'Lost Ones' is Lauryn teaching her ex a lesson, not just literally but metaphorically - her delivery's acid sting hitting harder and digging in deeper than all but a handful of battle rappers are capable of. And, as we shall see later, there are moments where we probably need to have seen these bared teeth: later on Hill will position herself as a spirit of, if not vengeance, then watchful enforcement; to believe her, we'll need to be convinced from the start that this young mother isn't just going to nurture her newborn infant, but will defend him to the death.

They say the great ones have to suffer for their art, and, from a contemporary perspective, that's certainly been the case for Lauryn Hill in the decades following this moment of undimmable greatness. And yet, as an audience, our pressure on her has been thoughtless and unrelenting. Instead of acknowledging the obvious - that The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill was a destination, not a waystation on a journey - we continue to expect, even demand, more of the same. This near-perfect record will continue to dispense new lessons if we approach it with open ears, minds and hearts - yet since its release, Hill's fans have craved more of the same. Her returns to the record racks have been few and far between, and nothing she's put out since has sounded like this LP - but why should it? This record is remarkable, in part, because it's a coherent, complete thought; a unique and singular response to a convergence of people, places, incidents and inspirations - lightning caught in a bottle, a one-off.

Meanwhile, a subset of the mainstream media seems to have made her a particular, peculiar focus. Which other artists, decades on from their moment of worldwide commercial acclaim, have their very infrequent live dates reviewed in daily newspapers, almost always for the purpose of timing the gap between doors opening and artist arriving on stage so that the headline can be about how late she was? She's also criticised frequently and extensively for playing versions of these songs in concert that deviate from those captured on the album - as if the purpose of live performance was to offer a carbon-copy of the past, not allow the education to continue (for both class and teacher) by discovering what new things these songs might be able to mean in different musicians' hands, different historical and political contexts. Outlets seem to believe their readerships demand coverage of Ms Hill, yet publish only those stories that build and rebuild the irrelevancy of her being irascible, obstinate, "difficult" - forgetting how she told us, almost a quarter of a century ago, that 'diva' (that term routinely applied to any woman who won't just jump when told to by a man) is simply another word for 'bitch', and apparently oblivious to what made Miseducation both great art and a huge commercial success was the very fact that Lauryn Hill had to fight tooth and nail to make sure every last note of it - and every aspect of the lives it flowed from, including that of her first child - was the way she wanted and needed it to be”.

I want to finish with an example review for The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. It received massive acclaim across the board in 1998. I think, rather than expect new music or look at whether Hill will create a second album, we need to spend more time with her debut and take guidance from. The world has changed since 1998. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill has inspired so many women and empowered countless people, and yet the world has stayed still in other ways. I feel The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill can keep teaching lessons and making society better. Rolling Stone had this to say when they reviewed Ms. Lauryn Hill’s dazzling 1998 debut. Rolling Stone note how, if Fugees started out slow or underwhelming with 1994’s Blunted on Reality, their final album together, 1996’s The Score, took them to new levels. Hill kept that movement going with a Hip-Hop/Soul album that has a broad reach and appeals to a wide audience:

“After The Score, I was sure the Fugees had made a deal with the devil. A lackluster 1994 debut, Blunted on Reality, made them near-laughingstocks – imagine Digable Planets lite, if that's possible. But with The Score, they served more than 11 million customers – them's Kenny G and Celine D. numbers, mom. In a lightning moment, the three Fugees went from being known as those two Haitian dudes hanging out with that cutie from Sister Act II to being worshiped as musical genius Wyclef, beautiful songbird L-Boogie and moneymaking Pras. It was such a rapid and total metamorph that if it had happened in a movie, you'd say, "Oh, please." There had to be help from below.

Just as Blunted gave no hint of the commercial dam buster to come, The Score, dotted with smart interpolations, left little hint of the creative earthquakes ahead. But with Wyclef's stunning The Carnival and, now, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Lauryn and her Fugee brother have established themselves as leaders in the genre of hip-hop soul. After pushing the commercial envelope, they've returned to push the aesthetic one.

Hip-hop soul is the music of Mary J. Blige, D'Angelo and Erykah Badu, a genre in which artists interpret this generation's experience through hip-hop's beats and outlook folded into soulful melodies and tenderness. Though some artists, like Clef and Lauryn, sing and rhyme, in hip-hop soul the singing and rhyming do not clearly demarcate hip-hop and R&B; – hip-hop soul is fluid enough to largely escape simple definition, though you know it when you hear it, and, generally, what you hear is greater musical ambition and courage than in most traditional hip-hop.

The chocolate-skinned twenty-three-year-old working single mom named Lauryn Hill – blessed with a beauty that attracts the fellas without turning away the sistas – is that rare artist who can be righteous and not self-righteous, who thinks a lot of herself without ego tripping. That's partly because she's so very honest – "Every time I try to be," she says in the title song," what someone has thought of me/So caught up, I wasn't able to achieve" – and partly because within her self-love message you can hear her implicitly saying "Love yo'self." Her confidence – "You can't match this rapper-slash-actress/More powerful than two Cleopatras.... MCs ain't ready to take it to the Serengeti/My rhymes is heavy like the mind of Sister Betty [Shabazz]," from "Everything Is Everything" – makes you feel confident. She sounds like an artist you could, should, look up to, like Chuck D back in his heyday.

She sounds like that before you even realize what she's rhyming about, because the very timbre of her voice – that deep, oven-roasted sound when rhyming, the sweet, melancholy-tinged midrange she owns when singing, the way she always comes confidently from deep within her chest – it communicates a self-respect and self-love. The sound of a woman who takes herself seriously. A sound that recalls, for me, the sharp, strong voice of Joni Mitchell. Joni seems a musical North Star for Lauryn, with her biting honesty, her musical innovativeness that's never exposed in an ornate or showy way, her confidence to keep it simple. Both speak universal truths from a definitely female perch.

Lauryn's epic, adoring tribute to her young son, "To Zion," is one of the album's high points. While the legendary Carlos Santana plays a sweet acoustic Spanish guitar behind her, Lauryn speaks of weighing whether or not to have her baby: "Woe this crazy circumstance/I knew his life deserved a chance/But everybody told me to be smart/'Look at your career,' they said/'Lauryn, baby, use your head'/But instead I chose to use my heart."

She goes on throughout the record vacillating between hip-hop-based shoulder shakers like "Everything Is Everything," dramatic ballads like "Nothing Even Matters," with hip-hop-soul king D'Angelo, and smooth and infectious joints with the warmth of old Stevie Wonder, like the hidden track "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" and the title song. It's an album – like few hip-hop albums, like most hip-hop-soul classics – that you could play at a family reunion, or any sort of multigenerational party, and get everyone bouncing and singing along without anyone ever having to cringe. Lauryn is the sort of young woman whom the old women smile at lovingly, their eyes saying, "With people like you around, this generation, and your music, might just be all right, after all." Maybe it wasn't a deal with the devil. Maybe it was with an angel”.

Turning twenty-five on 25th August, the mighty and iconic The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill will get new celebration and love. I opened by stating how Hip-Hop is fifty on 11th August. A fortnight after, one of its queens and daughters will discover how the world embraces anew her genius debut album. Since 1998, there is always talk about when she will bring us a second album – or whether it might never happen. We need to be thankful for what she gave us in 1998. It is this invaluable and essential music document that we need to…

LOOK back on in order to move forward.

FEATURE: Spotlight: Elle Coves

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

  

Elle Coves

_________

IT is exciting discovering a young artist…

who you just know is going to go a long way. Someone who will be making music for many years to come. That is the case with Elle Coves. Even though the German-born artist has only released a couple of singles thus far, she is already accusing a lot of attention and buzz! Everyone needs to follow her and keep their eyes peeled. I am going to get to a recent interview with her, in addition to some attention and focus her debut single, Before I Fall Apart, received. If you need to know more about Elle Coves, her official website fills you in:

“My name is Elle Coves and I’m an 18-year-old singer/songwriter. My family is originally from Spain, but I was born in Germany, and lived there until I was thirteen, which is when my family moved to Ireland.

I’ve been singing since I can remember. I got my first guitar when I was five and started writing songs when I was fourteen. My mom and I used to go to a lot of gigs around that time, and at one of them we ended up talking to the band members after the show. A few days later my mom decided to send one of the guys in the band a cover that I had posted onYouTube (without telling me), hoping, but not really believing, that anything would happen. Luckily he liked it and decided to mentor me, teaching me how to write songs, and four years later becoming my manager.

Now I’ve gone on tour with Irish acts Moncrieff and Wild Youth throughout Ireland and the UK, played my first ever headline show at the Notting Hill Arts Club in London, and had the incredible opportunity to support Lewis Capaldi at his sold out arena show in Exeter, UK.

My debut single ‘Before I Fall Apart’ is set for release on the 24th May 2023”.

That single is now out. It has been joined by a new one, Summer. These two songs mark out Elle Coves for a long career and future glory. She has a loving and building fanbase. I shall wrap up fairly soon. There are a few things to get to. CLASH are big fans of Coves’ work. They were impressed by a song that went viral on TikTok and connected with a lot of people in different ways:

“Elle Coves has shared her new stunner ‘Before I Fall Apart’.

The release ends one chapter and opens another, the much-anticipated debut offering from an artist with a knack for connecting to her audience. Born in Germany to Spanish parents, the family uprooted themselves and moves to Ireland at the age of 13, where Elle spent her teens.

Perhaps this continual movement suggests why music became so important to her, a unifying facet in her life. Citing Taylor Swift as an influence, you can also hear shades of Maggie Rogers in her work, alongside an abiding fascination with the pristine late 70s work of Fleetwood Mac.

New single ‘Before I Fall Apart’ is technically her debut, and it’s already gone viral on TikTok. Teasing the song with initial snippets, each play has scored millions of views, with fans swooning at the rise and fall of her songwriting.

Coming straight from the heart, ‘Before I Fall Apart’ feels like a massive, massive moment for Elle – it’s a huge pop song, with a chorus that could fill arenas straight out of the bat.

She comments…

“For me, ‘Before I Fall Apart’ is about realising that no amount of running or hiding from your feelings will keep you away from that person; that your paths are inexplicably entangled with one another, and there’s no escaping it. It’s about desperately needing reassurance and hoping that they want things to work out as much as you do”.

If you have not checked out Before I Fall Apart, then I would suggest that you do. It a stunning debut cut. There were some really positive reviews for the track. This blog were among those who were executed by and interested in the magnificent Elle Coves. I do think she is going to be in music for years to come. You can tell those that will go all the way and make a massive impression. Definitely go and follow Elle Coves:

“Elle's debut single, "Before I Fall Apart," is a summer hit, the kind you'd joyfully blast in your car with the windows down and the wind blowing through your hair on a sunny day. Elle battles with internal doubts and fears while appreciating the beauty of her relationship. She acknowledges its potential and is enjoying the genuine care she receives, but her self-sabotaging tendencies emerge, threatening her happiness. The lyrics reflect her struggle: "I try to run but oh my God I can't escape this feeling. Try to move on, it's back to you that all my roads keep leading. You're all I want, so give me something that I can believe in, before I fall apart." Elle recognizes that these negative doubts are just illusions fabricated by her own mind. Self-sabotage tricks us into believing that we are unworthy of the blessings in our lives, stopping our personal growth and blocking our happiness. However, Elle realizes, and declares, "I know it's all just in my head." Yet, overcoming these behaviors requires time and effort. It becomes a journey towards practicing consistent positive thoughts and believing that the good things that come our way are meant for us. Towards the end of the song, Elle swings back and forth between battling her thoughts and doubting herself and the relationship before it even has the chance to get anywhere, expressing, "Fall apart, right before it even starts. I don't want to break your heart. I don't wanna fall apart."

Elle Coves is an 18-year-old pop singer and songwriter born in Germany. At the age of 13, she relocated to Ireland, where she began her songwriting journey. Just a year ago, she completed her education, and a few months ago in February, she had the opportunity to support and tour with Lewis Capaldi. Elle is swiftly establishing herself by consistently investing in her growth as an artist and expanding her audience. Despite "Before I Fall Apart" being her debut single, she has already accomplished impressive things, such as touring alongside artists, headlining her first show at Notting Hill Arts Club, collaborating with the industry's top writers and producers, and surpassing 70,000 streams on Spotify! Stay connected with Elle Coves'  journey by following the links below, and don't forget to check out "Before I Fall Apart" out now on all streaming platforms!”.

I am going to round off with an interview from NME. One of the first publication to interview and spotlight Elle Coves, it was interesting to read how moving away from Germany impacted and changed her songwriting. The more I read about Coves, the more I know we have someone very special on the scene. An artist with an original voice and huge passion or what she does:

“Right now, the UK is starved of shameless summer pop hits. This year, our chart has seen plenty of smooth anthems from the worlds of disco, house, and hip-hop. We’ve had cool EDM-influenced bangers from Kylie Minogue and sleek garage from Jorja Smith. But what about the unabashedly saccharine, the songs celebrating teenage freedom, the summer heartbreaks?

Enter Elle Coves, the 18-year-old budding pop star whose sun-drenched sounds are picking up more and more fans. Her recent debut single, ‘Before I Fall Apart’, is a besotted plea to return to her lover, and its follow-up, ‘Summer’, drops today (July 19). ‘Summer’ has garnered its own reputation for its breezy, anthemic chorus across a series of viral TikToks, and feels ripe for meandering road trips and bonfire parties. Chuck in a Harry Styles shoutout, and you’ve got a legion of pop-obsessed teenagers who’ve been patiently waiting for Coves’ first recorded music for an entire year.

Born to Spanish parents in Freiburg, Germany, Coves was raised near the Black Forest and spent her summers in her parent’s hometown of Alicante. It was moving to Cork in the south of Ireland as a teenager that sparked Coves’ obsession with songwriting. At 14, her mother snuck her into the gig of Wild Youth (AKA this year’s Eurovision Ireland entry). There, frontman Conor O’Donohue was shown Coves’ cover of The Cranberries‘ classic ‘Zombie’. “It was not good at all,” she says. “I don’t know what he saw! So I’m always going to be grateful to him for giving me that opportunity.”

Since that fateful meeting, O’Donohue has become Coves’ manager, where he taught her how to write songs and casually introduced her to a friend of Wild Youth, Lewis Capaldi – whom she supported on tour earlier this year. Alongside NME 100 graduate Katie Gregson-Macleod, Coves is part of a generation of savvy songwriters fostered by TikTok that are equally interested in writing catchy choruses as they are poignant poetry. Coves’ music is a lyrical portrait of euphoria, nostalgia, and bliss in 2023: “Screaming to Styles, we must look insane / ‘Cause it feels like summer!” she sings exuberantly.

“I want them to feel different, to feel like they’ve been through something,” she says of the intended impact of her music on fans. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a big fight or something heartbreaking: I don’t want you to be the same person as when you started listening.”

 NME: How did you meet Lewis Capaldi?

“We met at a Wild Youth gig in London. I was opening for them and he went to my soundcheck. We met backstage, but we didn’t really talk a lot – he told me he really liked my songs and my voice, which was very tricky for me to wrap my head around.

“Everyone always asks me if he really is that funny and humble, and he is. At one point, he turned to me and said, ‘Can I give you a piece of advice?’. Everyone went quiet, and I was looking at him. He told me not to move to London and to stay connected to my roots, because it was going to influence my songwriting and keep the essence of who I was. He talked to me as if no one else was in the room.”

You moved to Ireland when you were 13 from Germany – how did that impact your songwriting?

“I was based in Freiburg near the Black Forest. I was raised to go on hikes; the people there are very connected to nature, you’re outdoors all the time. It’s still very important for me to be around nature.

“When I moved to Ireland, I was very excited to move because I always loved speaking English, it was my favourite subject. I don’t think I realised what it actually meant to move somewhere, I realised I wasn’t going to be able to talk to my friends as much and it wasn’t going to be the same.”

You’ve written about a particular friendship drama which went viral. What was the aftermath like? Did it make you reevaluate the risks of confessional songwriting?

“It’s definitely tricky because I have to find the right balance between being respectful of people and staying true to my writing. Sometimes I write songs to process things, but it’s easy for me to say I’m just processing it because I’m not the one who’s being written about. If there’s drama in your friend group and you put it on TikTok and it goes viral, it isn’t really great. I did apologise and we hashed it out, but it’s tricky because I do write from personal experience 99 per cent of the time.”

What’s one new thing you want to see from pop in 2023?

“I want people to stop rhyming fire with desire! It could be the most beautiful song in the world, it’s just… I can’t do it.

“I would also like people to think more about what they’re saying. I’m biased because, for me, lyrics are more important. If a song doesn’t have lyrics that I love, I can’t love it. So I would like for people to think about what they’re saying and what they want people to gain from it”.

I am interested whether Elle Coves is planning an E.P. or more singles. With two excellent tracks out there, she is building in terms of stature. We get something new with each song, in terms of revealing her songwriting personality and colours. Summer is a typically strong and unshakable track from an amazing artist. Elle Coves might be a new name in your thoughts now, but I can guarantee that she will be a huge proposition…

BEFORE too long.

____________

Follow Elle Coves

FEATURE: Groovelines: Billie Eilish - What Was I Made For?

FEATURE:

 

 

Groovelines

PHOTO CREDIT: Jack Bridgland

Billie Eilish - What Was I Made For?

_________

THERE are a few reasons…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Billie Eilish performs at Lollapalooza on 3rd August, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois/PHOTO CREDIT:: Michael Hickey/Getty Images

why I am sort of returning Barbie. I am not talking about the film or Greta Gerwig (its wonderful director and co-writer). I want to move to the soundtrack. I think that it has a fantastic collection of songs. Maybe recent allegations made about Lizzo – who provides one of the best songs on it with Pink – will slightly sour some of the focus on the album. I feel the finest track on the soundtrack is from Billie Eilish. I am going to end by discussing her a director. She directed the video for that Barbie song, What Was I Made For? It is a typically beautiful and slightly haunted song from the Los Angeles-born modern-day icon. It has such fascinating and thought-provoking lyrics. I shall come to them soon enough. I actually want to start with a feature from NME. There was a lot of interest around an artist one might expect to fit into a Barbie soundtrack aesthetic – brighter, more joyous and, well, pink:

“Billie Eilish has released her song for the Barbie movie soundtrack – a soft, piano-led ballad called ‘What Was I Made For?.

The track was written by Eilish and her brother and collaborator Finneas especially for the soundtrack of Greta Gerwig’s new movie. Finneas also produced the song at his home studio in LA.

In the lyrics, the star candidly shares feelings of losing her purpose and not being able to enjoy life. “When did it end? / All the enjoyment / I’m sad again / Don’t tell my boyfriend,” she sings in one verse. “It’s not what he’s made for / What was I made for?”

Writing on Instagram, Eilish shared some insight into how the song came about. “in january greta showed me and finneas a handful of some unfinished scenes from the film; we had nooooo idea what to expect at ALLL… we were so deeeeeply moved.. that the next day we were writing and COULDNT shut up about it lolll andddddddddd ended up writing almost the entire song that night,” she shared. “to be real with you this all seemed to happen in a time when i really needed it. i’m so so thankful for that.

“This video makes me cryyyyy.. it means so much to me and i hope it will mean just as much to you. don’t have much to say other than that, i think it will speak for itself.”

The video, which was directed by Eilish, sees the singer wearing yellow and with blonde hair, sat at a desk in a wide, green-walled and floored space, looking through a box of dolls’ clothes. As the visuals progress, the room shakes, a gust of strong wind begins to wreak havoc, and rain begins to pour on her as she hurriedly tries to hang the clothes on a miniature clothes rail.

Other artists who are set to appear on the Barbie soundtrack include Sam Smith, whose song ‘Man I Am’ will represent the Kens, PinkPantheress, Charli XCX, Karol G, and Dua Lipa. Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice have also teamed up for their second collaboration on ‘Barbie World’, which features a sample of Aqua’s hit single ‘Barbie Girl’.

The first reactions to the Barbie movie, which stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, were unveiled earlier this week, with critics praising the film as “funny, bombastic and very smart”. Barbie will be released on July 21”.

There is a lot to love about What Was I Made For? Written with her brother Finneas O’Connell and produced by Andrew Wyatt, Finneas and Mark Ronson, this song, I feel, signals a new era for Eilish. Others have made that declaration. Now twenty-one, maybe she is saying goodbye to baggy clothes and a certain perception people have of her. Not that the song is a radical departure from what we heard on her current studio album, 2021’s Happier Than Ever. I think that this might be one of Eilish’s best-ever songs – so that was why I am keen to explore it and briefly return to the magnificent Barbie. Aural Crave provide some interpretation and assistance when it comes to the incredible and deep lyrics of What Was I Made For? I think each listener will have their own view on that the song is really about:

“Announced a few days before its release, What Was I Made For? is the single released by Billie Eilish on July 13, 2023. As part of the soundtrack of the movie Barbie, set for release in the same month, the track is an emotional descent into Barbie’s psychology while acknowledging herself. The song’s lyrics are full of meaning: let’s discover them in this article; you’ll also find the complete lyrics at the end.

The lyrics of What Was I Made For? are about getting awareness of what we are and our place in the world. Billie Eilish expresses what would be Barbie’s feelings: apparently, Barbie has gained a new understanding of her life and now wonders what her role is. Basically, it’s the philosophic dilemma “Why are we here?” contextualized in Barbie’s individual life.

Following the lyrics of What Was I Made For?, we understand that the protagonist has experienced a growth phase, after which she now needs to understand her life purpose. From some lines, we may guess that Barbie realized she was part of a plastic world, and now she’s wondering why she came to life.

I was an ideal

Looked so alive, turns out, I’m not real

Just something you paid for

What was I made for?

If that’s true, now Barbie must find a new life purpose. A new way to conceive her life, a new perspective. Which means also changing the way you feel about what happens to you.

‘Cause I, I

I don’t know how to feel

But I wanna try

I don’t know how to feel

But someday I might

PHOTO CREDIT: Billie Eilish

It’s a sad song, and we cannot exclude that Billie Eilish expressed some personal feelings related to Barbie’s condition. However, What Was I Made For? is not hopeless, and that’s the authentic meaning of its lyrics: in the end, Barbie wants to find out why she’s here. She’s sad now but wants to be happy again. She must only discover what can drive her life in this new phase. “Something she can be.”

Think I forgot how to be happy

Something I’m not, but something I can be

Something I wait for

Something I’m made for”.

I am going to finish with some extracts from an interview Billie Eilish did with Zane Lowe. I love these types of interviews. Two people hanging out in a relaxed environment and almost shooting the breeze. Lowe is a great interview that gets some very interesting answers from artists. Let’s get back to What Was I Made For? The video of it will be in this feature, though Billboard highlighted some sections. In fact, before I wrap up, I need to talk about Billie Eilish directing the video for What Was I Made For? It is a gorgeous song that, let’s hope, might find its way onto her third studio album:

“You might just have Barbie to thank for Billie Eilish‘s next album. In a new interview following the release of the 21-year-old pop star’s Barbie film soundtrack single “What Was I Made For?,” Eilish confessed that the project, which dropped with a self-directed music video on Thursday (July 13), pulled her and brother/producer Finneas out of a brutal writing slump plagued by self-doubt.

“Honestly, we were in a period of time where we were both… like through this last winter, we’ve both been incredibly uninspired,” Eilish told Zane Lowe for Apple Music 1. “And we’ve still been working and trying to make stuff. And honestly, that song was the first thing we’d written in a minute. Even though we were coming up with ideas and coming up with this and that, I remember after we wrote that first half, I go, ‘I think we still got it.'”

The “Bad Guy” singer also shared that the writing process began with director Greta Gerwig treating her and Finneas to a special viewing of a rough cut of Barbie at the Warner Brother Studios. The very next day, the brother-sister musicians weren’t having any success in writing music independent of the film — but when they on a whim shifted into writing what would become “What Was I Made For?” from Barbie’s perspective, their writer’s block immediately dissipated.

“We were really in a zone of feeling like we lost it and feeling like, man, I don’t know if we can do this anymore,” she added. “Barbie and Greta just pulled it out of me, I don’t know,” Eilish said. “Those first couple lyrics, ‘I used to float, now I just fall down,’ just came right out.”

IN THIS PHOTO: Billie Eilish photoed (looking super-cool!) attending the World Premiere of Barbie at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on 9th July, 2023 in Los Angeles, California/PHOTO CREDIT: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/Filmmagic

One of the most inspiring things to come out of the writing process, Eilish added, was how a song written strictly from the point of view of Margot Robbie’s titular character in Barbie somehow came full circle, with the “Happier Than Ever” artist realizing that she related to the lyrics without even trying to.

“I did not think about myself once in the writing process,” the Grammy winner explained. “I was purely inspired by this movie and this character and the way I thought she would feel, and wrote about that. And then, over the next couple days, I was listening and I was like, girl, how did this … honestly, and I really don’t mean this to come off a conceited way at all, but I do this thing where I make stuff that I don’t even know is … like I’m writing for myself and I don’t even know it.”

“It is one of the most incredible things I get to experience in my life,” Eilish continued. “Dude, the next week I was playing it in the car all day and playing it for everybody. And I was like, ‘This is exactly how I feel. And I didn’t even mean to be saying it.’ It was truly the trippiest thing I’ve ever experienced in my life. I was like, oh, I absolutely was writing about myself, but I was thinking about myself from a third person”.

One of the most accomplished and incredible artists of her generation, Eilish is also a magnificent live performer. I have often wondered when she is going to go into films. I have not checked IMDB, but I think she may have been in a few bits briefly. In terms of putting her as a lead actor, actually, I can see Greta Gerwig tempting her into a flick. Maybe an Indie film similar to Gerwig’s Oscar-nominated (and scandalously un-awarded!) Lady Bird, Eilish has this naturalness and honesty. She is a phenomenal performer, so you can see her lighting up the big screen – though she could easily step into a T.V. drama or comedy too. The video for What Was I Made For? is terrific. Eilish has directed some wonderful videos before, but this might be her most vivid, memorable and accomplished visualisation. I love the colour palettes and the choice of shots. Eilish showing that she is a naturally skilful director with her own visual aesthetic and storytelling arc. Someone who understands bringing out the emotions, depths and nuances in a song in addition to bringing some wonderful visuals and elements to a video, I can see her directing a lot more. Perhaps this song marks a step to a more autonomous career. Artists like Taylor Swift are directing their own videos more, so maybe Eilish is going to be the helm of all of her videos. I do really think her musical gifts could translate to acting very easily. I can see her having a career as successful as Lady Gaga. What Was I Made For? is a tremendous song from the Barbie soundtrack. It would be excellent to see it included on Billie Eilish’s next album – which has not yet been announced, just to avoid confusion! -, as it is one of her very best and most affecting songs. I actually think it is her best. An outstanding talent who seems to grow stronger with each song, there is no doubting she is an icon! That is why I wanted to dive inside…

ONE of this year’s very best tracks.

FEATURE: An Ocean of Talent: The Brilliant and Hugely Inspirational Karol G

FEATURE:

 

 

An Ocean of Talent

PHOTO CREDIT: Jingyu Lin for The New York Times

 

The Brilliant and Hugely Inspirational Karol G

_________

AN artist who is breaking ground…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Karol G at the premiere of Barbie, held at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on 9th July, 2023 in Los Angeles, California/PHOTO CREDIT: Christopher Polk for WWD

and establishing herself as one of the most remarkable in the world, I must admit I did not know a great deal about Karol G until recently. Her live performances are a thing of unity and joy. She is one of the most astonishing and powerful artists in the world. I am going to end with a playlist featuring some of her best songs. There will be others who do not know about Karol G. Before I get to some interviews, it is pertinent to bring together some biography regarding the astonishing artist born in Medellín, Colombia. I will talk about her potential in the acting world, how she is transforming a particular male-dominated genre, and why one of her most live performance is so revered ands spectacular. First, this website provides us with some useful and impressive background about an artist that everyone should know about:

“Who Is Karol G?

Karol G is a star of música urbana, which includes reggaeton, Latin trap and Spanish-language hip-hop. Her music also incorporates R&B and pop. Karol initially struggled to succeed as a female performer in the male-dominated world of reggaeton. To help her career take off, she sang backup and traveled extensively to perform at small venues and festivals. Doing this, she met fellow musicians who would become collaborators, such as Ovy on the Drums, who went on to produce much of her music. Karol's albums are: Unstoppable (2017), Ocean (2019) and KG0516 (2021). Her hit songs include "Tusa," "Bichota" and "Mamii"; among her collaborators are J Balvin, Nicki Minaj and the Jonas Brothers. Karol has headlined a tour in North America and was the first female reggaeton star to perform at Colombia's Estadio Atanasio Giradot.

When Was Karol G Born?

Carolina Giraldo Navarro was born in Medellín, Colombia, on February 14, 1991.

Early Life and Education

Karol grew up listening to music that included the Bee Gees, Thalía, Spice Girls and Red Hot Chili Peppers. She performed with her father, Juan Guillermo Giraldo, who worked as a musician.

Karol studied music at the University of Antioquia.

Early Career

In 2021, Karol told the Los Angeles Times, "When I started making music in 2006, there was already a very strong reggaeton movement in Latin America. The music I wanted to make was the music I loved listening to."

As a teenager, Karol appeared on "El Factor X," Colombia's take on "The X-Factor." In 2007, she signed with a Puerto Rican label. Her first single came out that same year. However, she found it difficult

After her father bought out her first contract, Karol met with another label in Miami around 2010. The label appreciated her work but wasn't open to signing her. "They said I could maybe be a songwriter, but a woman making reggaeton? That wouldn't work."

Pursuing a music career also led to Karol receiving unwanted sexual propositions. With her career not advancing as she'd hoped, Karol moved to New York. There, a subway ad inspired her to attend a music business conference in Boston and reignited her commitment to music.

Karol returned to Colombia and recorded her own songs in a home studio. She kept performing wherever she could get a gig.

Success in Music

Karol signed with Universal Music Latino in 2016. Working with Bad Bunny on "Ahora Me Llama" ("Now He Calls Me," 2017) raised her international profile.

Karol's debut album, Unstoppable, arrived in 2017 and reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart. Her second album, Ocean, came out in 2019 and also debuted at No. 2 on the Top Latin Albums chart.

Singing about sex is common for male reggaeton artists but more unusual for their female counterparts. Yet Karol embraced her sexuality in hit songs like "Mi Cama" ("My Bed"; 2018) and "Punto G" (2019).

Karol reached another level of success with "Tusa" (2019). The song, made with Nicki Minaj, started at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs—a first for a female-led song since 2016—and reached more than 1 billion views on YouTube.

As the Covid-19 pandemic shut down the world in 2020, Karol worked on her third album, for which she scrapped an almost-done project to create new music that better reflected her.

KG0516 arrived in 2021 and was the first record Karol co-produced. It reached No. 1 on Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart and No. 20 on the Billboard 200. The album featured collaborations with artists from Ozuna to Ludacris.

Karol had another success with "Bichota" (2020). She explained the song title refers to an "empowered, strong woman."

"Ever since 'Bichota,' I am even more connected to my music," she said in an interview with Billboard. "Now, even if there are other songwriters involved, the direction of the lyrics and style are in my hands because I am at that point in my career where I know what I want to and don’t want to release."

Karol's first English-language song, "Don't Be Shy," arrived in August 2021. She worked with Becky G on “MAMIII" (2022), which reached No. 1 on the Hot Latin Songs chart. Karol's "Provenza" (2022) was another No. 1 hit on that chart.

Karol hasn't forgotten the obstacles she encountered on her way to the top. She included up-and-coming artists, like Mariah Angeliq and Nathy Peluso, on her third album. Karol also hosts an Apple Music show called "Bichota Radio" that features Latina performers”.

I am going to be bring a few interviews from earlier this year into the mix. Karol G is one of the most influential and important artists of her generation. Inspiring women hoping to break through in the male-dominated Reggaeton genre, I think that she is going to go from strength to strength and make big changes in the music industry – and open up conversations and enrich Latin and Reggaeton music. I want to start off with an interview from The New York Times. They chatted with her ahead of the release of the brilliant Mañana Será Bonito. Before getting to the interview, I want to swerve slightly and introduce a passage from one of the many impassioned and positive reviews for the album. this is what AllMusic offered:

“What's most immediately noticeable is how in control of her vocals Karol is here -- she flicks between perreo smooth-talker and harmonic seductress on "Gatúbela," breathes sly inflections and layers deep harmonies, slurs into the "beber y beber" loops of "Ojos Ferrari," then lances venom through the sinister "TQG." Her vocals sit naturally and authentically on top of open-air production, a constant presence, subdued when needed but never unremarkable: she is every part the anchor of this album. From this core blooms a range of reggaeton. Karol captures a joyous night on the town on "Besties," coyly crosses lines on "Dañamos la Amistad," and conjures blue skies on the project's arcing title track. The genre bends of fan favorites like "La Vida Continuó" find new avenues in dancehall "Kármika," Regional Mexican "Gucci los Paños" and road-trip cruiser "Tus Gafitas," while opener "Mientras Me Curo del Cora" joins Bad Bunny's "Si Te Veo" as an instant karaoke classic, weaving Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry Be Happy" into an easygoing self-healing anthem. Collaborations form organically with contemporaries, too. Romeo Santos and Quevedo deliver crisp and deep melodies, respectively, Maldy and Sean Paul hammer out calls to the dancefloor, and longtime collaborator Ovy on the Drums adds a sun-washed touch to 11 of the project's tracks. The Shakira-assisted duet "TQG" -- undoubtedly one of the genre's biggest moments of 2023 -- sees both stars standing triumphant in singlehood, fanning their feathers atop a throne of their own making. This is an album of wanderlust, of new opportunities, of the here and now. It's vital and authentic, confident yet emotive, and refined in its simplicity. Karol G has produced her best work yet”.

Let us get to an interview with an artist who has this enormous fanbase. Some people may think that her music and Spanish-language songs might be impenetrable and hard to appreciate and understand. Karol G is an artist who can make her songs resonate and connect with any audience. I think everyone should investigate her latest album:

“From an early age, she knew she wanted to sing. As a teenager, she auditioned unsuccessfully for the Colombian edition of the music reality competition “The X Factor,” but soon afterward signed to record with the Puerto Rican label Diamond Music — a contract her father bought her out of two years later. By 2012, she had grown so discouraged that she decided to give up on music and study marketing in New York City.

“My father stopped talking to me for three months,” she recalled. “He was like, ‘No, you can’t do that. You are throwing away seven years of our hard work. I know who you are. I know we can get it. It’s hard, but when we get it, it’s going to be bigger than the rest.’”

An advertisement for a music-business conference in Boston caught her eye as she was riding buses in New York. On an impulse, she attended, and it was a turning point. “I know I love music and I do this for passion,” she said. “But the teaching at that conference was how the music can be a really big business, and how you can work like that.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Jingyu Lin for The New York Times

She returned to Colombia, enrolled to study music at the University of Antioquia, released songs independently and performed at every opportunity, eventually singing duets with established reggaeton stars like Nicky Jam. Her 2017 debut album, “Unstoppable,” included duets with Bad Bunny and Quavo (from Migos), and it brought her a 2018 Latin Grammy Award as best new artist. Her popularity has only grown since then, stoked by lusty songs like “Mi Cama” (“My Bed”) and “Punto G” (“G-Spot”). In Latin America, she headlines stadiums.

Her constant collaborator has been Daniel Echavarría Oviedo, who records as Ovy on the Drums and has produced the vast majority of her songs. He tailors and refines reggaeton and other beats to suit her voice; he also strives to match her ambitions. “Karol’s mind is always going,” he said in a video chat from Los Angeles. “She always has an objective as to where the direction of the song should be, where the lyrics should go. She’s always thinking what’s the next move, the next step, the next accomplishment?

On “Mañana Será Bonito,” Karol G worked with Finneas (Billie Eilish’s brother and collaborator), the Jamaican dancehall singer Sean Paul, the Bronx-born bachata singer Romeo Santos, the Dominican dembowsero Angel Dior, and her forerunner as a Colombian superstar, Shakira. She also embraces an elder generation of reggaeton with “Gatúbela” (“Catwoman”), a racy duet with Maldy, a Puerto Rican rapper from the duo Plan B, which released its first album in 2002.

PHOTO CREDIT: Jingyu Lin for The New York Times

“I had never done anything with a woman before,” Maldy said in a phone interview via a translator. “But it was very natural. Being with a woman that brings that sensuality made the right combination for the song to have such an impact. She has the charisma to bring reggaeton to another genre. And international collaborations expand reggaeton, to maximize it culturally.”

Karol G stares at the camera, her red hair blowing across her face.

“For me to go to different styles of music, different genres is not hard, because I have music from everywhere that I really love,” Karol G said.Credit...Jingyu Lin for The New York Times

Karol G insists that her hybrids and connections are a matter of instinct, not crossover marketing. “For me to go to different styles of music, different genres is not hard, because I have music from everywhere that I really love,” she said. “I’m trying to show the world more what I do, instead of just doing things to open that door. I want to do it with my real identity. If I feel in my mind that a song has that feeling I go that way: ‘This is a rock, this is a salsa, this is a corrido mexicano’”.

The authenticity and honesty Karol G reveals through her music and interviews has made her accessible and so loved. There is this trust between her and the fans. People can relate because, despite her enormous success, there is this humbleness and sense of earnestness. She is an icon who will inspire so many other artists coming through. Karol G has achieved worldwide domination. ELLE spoke with her back in May. It is amazing learning about her relationship break-up struggles and heartache and how she has responded to that:

“Recently, the stories in Karol’s life have involved healing from personal struggles amid professional triumphs. In 2021, her two-and-a-half-year relationship with fiancé Anuel AA, a Puerto Rican rapper, ended. Around the same time, her third album, KG0516, became her first to debut atop Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart, driven by her megahits “Tusa” (with Nicki Minaj) and “Bichota,” the blustering female anthem that became synonymous with the singer as she embarked on her first headlining U.S. tour in the fall of 2021.

In the aftermath of the breakup, Karol learned to project confidence publicly, despite her private heartache and the scrutiny that came with her rising fame. She channeled the experience into Mañana Será Bonito, a perreo-ready dance album with melancholic undertones. Karol, working with her longtime producer Ovy on the Drums, experimented with more musical influences than ever before, weaving in traditional Mexican banda sounds, electric guitars, Afrobeats, and electronic music. She named the record after a mantra that got her through that time: “Tomorrow will be beautiful.” “I could never have imagined that such a dark period in my life would transform me into the person I am today,” Karol says. “The situation challenged me to learn, to appreciate what I had, to find happiness within myself, not in someone else.…I think that is really the soul of the album and what has made it so successful.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Zoey Grossman for ELLE

On Mañana Será Bonito, Karol also collaborated with one of her idols, Shakira, on the kiss-off hit “TQG,” short for Te Quedó Grande, loosely translated as “I’m Out of Your League.” The two Colombian stars had been eyeing a partnership for some time before Karol sent her the track last year. Riding a catchy chorus and sultry music video—and public interest in Shakira’s high-profile split from soccer star Gerard Piqué—“TQG” debuted at the top of both Billboard Global charts (Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. US) in February and landed Karol her first top 10 hit in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100. “When we were filming the video, and [Shakira] was shooting her scenes, I was sitting and watching, and my life flashed before my eyes,” Karol says. “I was thinking about the World Cups she performed in; I watched Wizards of Waverly Place, and she was in an episode. I couldn’t believe it.”

Karol is venturing onscreen this year, too. A few years ago, she was considered for the role of Anita in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story (a role for which Ariana DeBose went on to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress). Now Karol is making her acting debut as a drug mule on a new Netflix series, Griselda, which stars Sofía Vergara as the head of a powerful Colombian cartel, due out later this year. She’s setting aside time to explore new business ventures and has big plans for her nascent company, Girl Power, including brand deals and investments. (The company recently opened an office in Medellín.) She also appeared in her first luxury campaign this year, for Loewe.

PHOTO CREDIT: Zoey Grossman for ELLE

ow did Karol come to dominate a Latin music industry that is notoriously difficult for women? Part of her success is due to timing; she ascended in the U.S. just after streaming broke barriers for Latin artists, who had struggled to get airtime on American radio stations or distribute their CDs in mainstream record stores. Latin stars once needed English lyrics to find success here. Shakira’s breakthrough 2001 album Laundry Service, for example, featured her first fully English-language songs, and some of the tracks were released in both English and Spanish. Today, American listeners are more receptive to listening to music in a foreign language, particularly Spanish. As of 2020, Latinos represented 19 percent of the U.S. population, up from 13 percent in 2000. Another part of the answer is Karol’s resilience, and the years she spent honing her rich voice and confidence onstage. She is also meticulous, according to her sister Jessica Giraldo Navarro, a lawyer who joined her management team full-time in 2019. “Everything you see onstage, in a video, in a commercial—she was involved in every detail,” Jessica says. Her dad describes Karol as a perfectionist, especially on her latest album, for which she wrote 40 extra songs.

But what really differentiates Karol from other artists, especially in Latin music, is her approachability. “Her superpower is being so real and authentic that it makes people fall in love with her,” says J Balvin. He and Karol first met when he performed at her cousin’s quinceañera in 2008, and they later became close friends. Karol’s vulnerability is never more apparent than on Mañana Será Bonito. “This was a moment when I wanted to say we’ve already taught women how beautiful it is to be self-confident and empowered,” she says. “But it is also beautiful to reach this point, to use a platform as global as mine, and tell people that it is okay not to feel good. It’s normal....That’s my personal experience.” As she sings on arguably its most personal track, “Mientras Me Curo del Cora,” “Está bien no sentirse bien”—it’s okay to not be okay”.

I am going to round things off soon. Before I get to the last few bits, I want to source a GQ interview. They underlined how this Colombian superstar is taking on and domination the Reggaeton's boys' club. That is one of many reasons why she is such a vital artist. Any genre dominated by men needs to be shaken up and changed. It means that future generations have a more open and welcoming space:

“Karol G is part of an emerging nucleus of reggaeton artists, producers, and engineers centred in Medellín – a city that’s exploded in recent years as both tourist destination and nightlife mecca. Reggaeton originated in 1980s-era Panama, when Black musicians created renditions of Jamaican dancehall and reggae tracks in Spanish. The nascent genre then reached Puerto Rico, where MCs melded hip-hop with lyrics often decrying police brutality, racism, and social inequity. Then called “underground”, the movement picked up steam in the ’90s, despite the Puerto Rican government’s attempts to criminalise it. But in the early 2000s, when stations started playing Tego Calderón’s “Cosa Buena” nonstop and a song called “Gasolina” hit the radio, reggaeton was suddenly everywhere, and it was worldwide.

The Medellín scene began coalescing around studios like La Palma, launched by teenagers out of their garage in 2002. Karol says that producers making those early reggaeton beats tried to emulate the sounds coming out of Puerto Rico, but they didn’t have the same drums or beats in their music libraries. Their attempts to interpret those ideas meant that a “different kind of dembow” would emerge.

For all the momentum behind her, Karol’s become part of the debate about why non-Black Latino reggaetoneros, such as Maluma and Bad Bunny, are bestowed heightened visibility in a genre with undeniably Black origins. And like a lot of successful artists, she’s had her share of stumbles. Karol caught heat during the 2020 racial reckonings after she posted an image of her black and white bulldog, with a caption in Spanish that translates to “the perfect example that Black and white together look beautiful.” Karol says she never intended for the photo to come off how it did, and admits that she didn’t fully realise the scale of racism’s pervasiveness at the time. “I feel that I learned a lot of things,” she says of the moment. The post was “ignorant,” as she puts it now, adding that, “Sometimes, you make a mistake and there is nothing you can do to explain it.”

For all her gifts, she’s still learning how to best express herself. Karol’s longtime producer, Ovy on the Drums, notes that the thing that distinguishes Colombian reggaeton is the simplicity of the instrumentation. “TQG,” for instance, is pretty minimal – a bass, some drums, a distant bell sound – that nevertheless manages to elicit tension. Ovy says the success of a song like that comes from Karol’s ability to connect with her audience and tap into their feelings. “She’s always been very clear about what she wants to express, what she wants to tell people,” he adds. “Another artist can sing a Karol G song and it might sound good. But when she sings it, she transmits something through her music.”

 IN THIS PHOTO: Karol G performs during Lollapalooza at Grant Park on 3rd August, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois/PHOTO CREDIT: Erika Goldring/Getty Images

Although the music industry might be fairly open and welcoming of Latin artist, maybe they are still considered quite niche and uncommercial. If they sing in Spanish for instance, there is a fear people cannot literally understand the music and will not appreciate it. The fact is that artists like Karol G cross language and genre borders. She made history recently she is the first Latin female artist to headline Lollapalooza 2023. NME explain more:

“Karol G has made history by becoming the first Latin female artist to headline the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago.

No Latina artist has ever headlined the famous music festival since its inception back in 1991. The first Latino artist to headline the event was J Balvin back in 2019. Taking on the first day of the four-day fest, G’s set began at 8:40 pm and went on for two hours.

The Colombian singer has reached a few other milestones this year such as being the first Latina in history to reach the Number One spot on the Billboard 200 chart with her album ‘Mañana será Bonito’. The previous Latin singer to hold the spot was Bad Bunny with 2022’s ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’ and 2020’s ‘El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo’.

She is set to release her fifth album, ‘Mañana será Bonito (Bichota Season)’ on August 11 via Interscope. Visit here to pre-order the album.

In a five-star review of G’s history-making Lollapalooza headlining set, NME shared: “The performance and set list is perfectly edited for both old fans and new, and the importance of the history-making moment is palpable. Whether it be the doodle-like stage design that reflects her album artwork her band made entirely of talented women or her sweet interactions with the crowd, G easily cements the festival’s choice to have her close out night one.”

I am going to flip ahead to a surprise album that is due from Karol G. In such a busy year – I think that we will hear even more news and music from the superstar before 2023 is done -, we are being gifted with yet another album from the Colombian wonder. Variety tell us about what we can expect on 11th August:

“Karol G is celebrating the launch of her first stadium tour across the United States with the release of a new surprise album titled “Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season),” set to arrive on streaming platforms the same day her trek starts on Aug. 11.

News of “Bichota Season” was revealed with a 30-second video trailer starring the pink-haired Colombian singer who, over a hard-hitting beat, draws her new album’s artwork using grains of pink and black salt. Towards the end of the clip, a voice ebulliently announces the start of “Bichota Season.”

In the caption of the teaser on Instagram, Karol wrote: “…this tour would not be the same without the end of this story,” alongside a note to pre-save the album with the link that appears in her bio. The album will be her second of the year, following the February release of “Mañana Será Bonito.”

Karol previously released the single “S91,” an EDM-infused track produced by Ovy on the Drums, with a matching music video directed by Pedro Artola. The video, which has since amassed over 30 million views on YouTube, teased “Bichota Season” with the message that it would be arriving soon though the news of the incoming album remained unclear seeing that “Bichota” is a trademark Karol has used for the past several years.

The single was released under Bichota Records LLC, Karol’s new imprint under an exclusive license to Interscope Records which she signed with shortly after the chart-topping release of “Mañana Será Bonito,” earlier this year.

“‘Mañana Será Bonito,’ marked a new era for me that came with many unforgettable milestones,” Karol shared at the time of her signing was announced. “I’m continuously amazed at the support my fans give me, which motivates me to deliver the best of me, and I’m certain that this partnership with Interscope and their incredible team will help us continue building and making history. I’m thrilled to see what’s to come.”

“Mañana Será Bonito” made history on the Billboard 200 earlier this year as the first all-Spanish-language record by a female artist to hit No. 1. The 17-song collection — which makes the most of pop, rock, reggaeton, regional Mexican and electronica — is also the artist’s first leader on the Billboard 200.

“Bichota Season” will drop on the same day that Karol will launch her first-ever stadium trek across the U.S. Produced by Live Nation, the six-date tour is set to begin on Aug. 11 at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium and will hit Pasadena, Miami, Houston and Dallas with an end date of Sept. 7 at the Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey”.

I, like millions, have so much respect and love for Karol G. Pioneering and groundbreaking, here is a female artist who is making waves and redefining a genre (Reggaeton) once dominated by men. A fairly homogeneous style of music, I think Karol G is adding so much personality,. colour, flavour, variety and brilliance to the pot. She is such an empowering artist; I feel we will be talking about her decades from now. An early interview I sourced did mention Karol G’s previous acting work. Not to lazily link her to Jennifer Lopez – another iconic Latin artist -, but I feel she has that same star power and cinematic pull as her. Karol G is going to feature in more massive films. She has that electricity and natural talent that means she will be in demand as an actress for many years. I am excited to see how that side of her career blossoms. Like contemporaries such as Taylor Swift, Karol G is bringing her brilliance to the big screen. Karol G is one of the most remarkable artists we have. I think this is a statement that…

NO one can deny.

FEATURE: I, Object: Why Is There a Disturbing Decline in Etiquette at Gigs?

FEATURE:

 

 

I, Object

IN THIS PHOTO: Rapper Cardi B recently threw a microphone into the crowd after a fan threw water towards her face during a gig

 

Why Is There a Disturbing Decline in Etiquette at Gigs?

_________

I have written about this before…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Harry Styles has repeatedly had fans throw things at him (it is usually as a sign of admiration, it also is a very dangerous thing to do)/PHOTO CREDIT: Lillie Eiger

after there were a few incidences of fans throwing objects at artists. In baffling behaviour, some felt the need to endanger the security and safety of the artists. Recently, Las Vegas police dropped a criminal investigation into an incident involving Cardi B, in which the rapper was seen throwing a microphone at a member of the crowd at a concert after a drink/water was thrown at her. I can understand the reaction from Cardi B. That could have been acid or God knows what that was thrown! Maybe it was a violent reaction but, if you threaten an artist like that, then they need to defend themselves. I know, during that set, Cardi B encouraged fans to throw water at her p*ssy - but she threatened when someone threw water towards her face. It also, hopefully, sends a message not to do it in the first place. Sadly, I do not think we have heard and seen the last of it. I am going to offer some thoughts as to why this new trend (if that is the most appropriate word!) is happening. First, The Guardian reported on a rising number of cases where artists are being attacked by fans:

“Concertgoers have been sharing footage of numerous artists falling victim to unruly fans. Harry Styles was hit in the eye with a sweet in Vienna, Bebe Rexha received stitches after she was hit in the face with a mobile phone in New York, and Pink was left stunned when someone threw their mother’s ashes on stage in London. In perhaps the most extreme incident, Ava Max was slapped mid-song by a concert-goer in LA.

The man charged with assault over the Rexha incident later said he threw his phone because he thought “it would be funny”.

“This kind of disrespectful behaviour has become the new norm at live performances, but it must stop for the sake of an artist’s and crowd’s safety,” Sam Allison, the head of events at independent music store chain Rough Trade, said this week.

IN THIS PHOTO: Bebe Rexha

Some believe that the rise in incidents may be driven by social media, with fans trying to become a part of the show, in order to post videos of stunts that could potentially go viral.

In response, Allison has shared his advice for concert etiquette “so all fans attending feel safe, secure and most importantly, continue to enjoy live events”.

“Never throw anything on to a stage or at an artist while they are performing,” Allison said. “Phones, soft toys, food, drinks, flowers, and clothing are some of the most common items thrown by fans on stage, but when thrown in proximity and at a fair speed they can cause injury and also be a major safety hazard on stage.”

Alongside throwing items on stage, Allison said, other behaviours deemed distracting to an artist were flash photography, shouting and attempting to engage a performer in conversation.

Footage from the Cardi B concert last weekend showed the rapper taking matters into her own hands after a member of the audience threw a drink over the performer.

According to Las Vegas police, a concertgoer had filed a police report for battery after being hit by “an item that was thrown from the stage” – though it was unclear whether it was the same person accused of throwing a drink. But the Grammy-winner will face no charges due to “insufficient evidence”, police said.

The spate of incidents has prompted a number of performers to speak out. Last month, during her Las Vegas residency, Adele told her audience: “Have you noticed how people are like, forgetting show etiquette at the moment? People just throwing shit on stage, have you seen them? … Dare you to throw something at me and I’ll kill you.”

IN THIS PHOTO: Charlie Puth

The singer Charlie Puth has also urged concertgoers to cease the “disrespectful and very dangerous behaviour”, while Tyler the Creator urged his fans to “stop throwing your shit on stage”, and Kelly Clarkson told an audience they could only throw diamonds at her.

Some fans exasperated by other people’s behaviour have taken the matter into their own hands, posting advice on how best to deal with antisocial behaviour during concerts. Taylor Swift fans have even created a concert etiquette guide.

Dr Lucy Bennett, a lecturer at Cardiff University who studies the relationship between fans and musicians, said collective action by fans could create a sense of belonging within their community and allowed them to express their identity.

“However, I think something is changing more recently and we’re seeing more isolated, disruptive, individual physical acts such as throwing items,” she told the BBC.

Bennett also said people’s attitudes might have changed since the Covid-19 pandemic “where we couldn’t be physically present at concerts”. Organisers of other live performances, from musicals to stand-up shows, have long complained of rowdy or misbehaved crowds since the isolation of the lockdowns.

Myah Elliott recently told her nearly 500k followers on TikTok: “We need to normalise calling out toxic fan behaviour, when people at concerts are doing things they’re not supposed to be doing that affects other people’s experiences.” This included shoving to get to the front, she said. “Do not be afraid to shame them”.

@weweregolden THI IS NOT OKAY! STOP THROWING THINGS @ ARTISTS ON STAGE, wtf is wrong with y’all?! 🎥 @Kelsea Central @Kelsea Ballerini #kelseaballerini #heartfirsttour #stopthrowingthingsonstage ♬ original sound - kelsea ballerini fans 💛

Whilst some of the things thrown at artists has been unusual and has a slightly odd edge – like P!nk being handed a wheel of Brie! -, you have to ask whether it is this escalating thing where fans are seeing stuff happen at other gigs where artists are getting things thrown at them, and that sort of provokes a copycat reaction. It has happened in the past, though I am not sure that we have seen so any cases where the boundary between fans and artists is being violated in a very dangerous and real way. I think there might be a general anxiety and stress building. Maybe political events and the general state of the world means that, in the heat of a moment at a gig, some fans are finding ways release some of that tension. I feel social media playing into this. If someone can make a viral moment by lobbing water or an object at an artist, then that gets in the news – and, with it, gives that fan a sense of brief and peculiar notoriety! Not only is it disrespectful to artists by risking their safety and mental health. Where does it stop?! What is a fan goes even further and hospitalises an artist…or even worse. There should be a basic code of conduct at gigs. Etiquette that everyone should abide by. When attending gigs, fans should respect the rules and guidelines set out by a venue. By throwing an object at the stage, it disputes the gig and annoys other attendees. It also could escalate one time where someone attacks someone attacking an artist. Before you know it, you have a real problem on your hands!

Cardi B’s no-nonsense approach to a fan throwing water at her should let other fans know that artists will react strongly and fiercely if they are threatened. In a wide sense, it makes artists fearful of going on the road. It is hard for artists to ensure so many gigs to please fans and make a profit for it. Thrown into the mix is this new and peculiar habit of throwing objects at the stage. Maybe it goes beyond attention-seeking and social media focus. Some sites have theories as to why this aggressive and needless trended is happening. Following the Cardi B indecent recently, new theories have come out as to why fans are blurring lines and creating hostility. Billboard are among those who investigated a series of fans-vs-artists interactions that are dangerous and disturbing. Billboard spoke with John Drury, who is a Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Sussex. He noted how it is not only music where certain member of the public see fit to outrage and scare artists (it is happening in theatre and other areas of the arts). We do not want to get to a point where physical barriers are put in front of the stage! Extra security is expensive and, to be fair, impractical. No venue can monitor and police every inch of a venue:

“The incident is just the latest in a recent spate of similar occurrences. Among other episodes, fans have thrown a sex toy at Lil Nas X; a teddy bear at Lady Gaga; and a cell phone at Bebe Rexha — the latter of which caused visible injuries and reportedly led the 27-year-old man who hurled it to be charged with a felony. It’s enough that some event security professionals are worried the trend could tarnish live music’s post-pandemic comeback.

“People have been talking about changes in fan behavior since the return of live events in 2021, and it’s not just in concerts but at sporting events, theater and live comedy as well,” says John Drury, a professor of social psychology at the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. Widely recognized as one of the leading experts on crowd behavior at concerts, Drury says that high-profile examples of rule-breakers experiencing the consequences of their actions can serve as an important deterrence against boundary-crossing that can go “beyond throwing things on stage…includ[ing] rudeness, aggression and dangerous behavior.”

Earlier this year, Drury and his colleagues at Sussex’s department of social psychology received funding from concert promoter Live Nation to study the causes of negative behavior at concerts and develop potential strategies for reducing instances of fans acting out. While the visual of Cardi B hurling a microphone at an unruly fan might serve as an important reminder that actions have consequences, it’s unreasonable to expect artists to physically enforce conduct rules at their shows.

It’s more reasonable to task venue personnel with identifying and deterring bad actors from engaging in bad behavior — but that, says Drury, is only slightly more effective. Most venue staff members are responsible for different elements of show production, while security staff is often tasked with defensive objectives like keeping fans out of dressing rooms, enforcing credentials and controlling access to meet and greets. But fans behaving badly in the audience is largely a blind spot.

“Fans are a venue’s most effective resource for preventing show stoppage and disruptive behavior,” says Drury, who advocates for greater resources to train venue staff. Through training and education, Drury wants to see venues develop fan communities that police themselves and deter bad behavior.

Drury’s theory that fan behavior can be externally formed and channeled in a way that encourages self-policing comes from a career spent studying crowd dynamics. Unlike traditional crowd control, which he says was initially created to understand the “madness” of the crowd, crowd dynamics looks at the beliefs and values of crowds. Even an unruly crowd like the one that took part in the Watts Uprising in 1965, Drury says, can help academics understand the dynamics drawing them together.

“While the dominant representation of [those who took part in the Watts Uprising] wasn’t positive and from the outside looked like chaos, violence and disorder, if you look closely, you can see there are limits,” says Drury. “[They] picked only on certain targets … there are limits that serve as a function of who they are, in line with their social values and identities.”

Drury also utilizes historical research, survivor interviews and sends researchers to observe festivals around the world to shape his models on what he calls “the power of the crowd.” That can be critical when dealing with issues like a spike in cell phone throwing that Drury says feels driven by a need for individual attention. After all, fans and bands have famously thrown things at each other for decades. Underwear was tossed at crooner Tom Jones, mixtapes and CDRs were frisbeed at mashup DJs like Girl Talk and millions of bouquets were thrown on stage for legends like the late Selena Quintanilla and Jenni Rivera. Alice Cooper once had a live chicken thrown at him on stage while performing in Toronto, leading the shock rocker to cup the chicken with both hands and throw it back into the crowd, thinking it would fly off. It didn’t”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Wendy Wei/Pexels

Last month, Los Angeles Times wrote about a series of events where fans threw various objects at artists. Even though this ‘Rock & Roll behaviour’ is old and has happened for decades, there seems something more sinister and unmotivated when you look at why fans now would behave like this and the type of artists being targeted. This is not a case of wild fans reacting to the energy of a gig and rebelling. Many incidents seem to suggest, after social distancing during the pandemic, people seem unsure where the boundaries are now between fans and artists:

“We knew at the beginning of this concert season that crowds were more rambunctious,” he said. “Young people want to get crazy. They lost a huge part of their lives during the pandemic.”

Carla Penna is a psychoanalyst and crowd researcher in Rio de Janeiro, and author of “From Crowd Psychology to Dynamics of Large Groups.“ She said that social media and fan culture have shifted the borders between fan and artist, and that influences the sense of physical space at shows.

While throwing a cellphone at an artist seems irrational, the object could carry a psychological meaning for fans.

“With the support of unbounded social media, the real or fantasized distance between the fan and the artist diminished,” Penna said. “Thus, in a show, the audience might feel entitled to join the artist in person on the stage or join the artist in a symbolic way by throwing objects that represent or symbolize themselves.”

Penna agreed that “misogyny is a possibility” when it comes to the recent spate of attacks, saying, “Female artists have always been targeted as victims of criticism or violence.” But she also cited changing consumer expectations and post-pandemic rage as reasons why the border between fan and artist is deteriorating.

“After 2½ years of lockdown and social distance, people changed their behavior, and many still feel uneasy in crowded or confined spaces. Domestic violence, self-harm, intolerance to noise, feelings of disrespect and invasive behavior increased,” Penna said.

Simultaneously, “Audiences became more demanding and assured of their rights as consumers,” she said, citing a recent instance at the Rock in Rio festival where fans threw bottles of urine at metal bands they didn’t care for. “Crowds are demanding. We should never ignore for good and for worse their power.”

 

There may not be much a venue or an artist’s crew can do about a fan who really wants to throw a phone — or a relative’s remains — from the distance of a pit seat. (Rexha has since taken to wearing protective goggles onstage.)

Still, artists should be vocal about demanding venue safety and crowd control, Wertheimer said. After the mass shooting at Las Vegas’ Route 91 Harvest festival, the deadly crowd crush at Houston’s Astroworld concert and last month’s fatal shootings at Beyond Wonderland in Washington state, any chaos in the crowd is cause for fear”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Taylor Swift/PHOTO CREDIT: Beth Garrabrant

I am going to end with an article that suggests there is a two-way street here. If artists throw stuff to fans during a gig, then why can’t fans do the same?! I would argue that, for the most part, artists throw souvenirs and their clothing/instruments as gifts. This is a loving gesture and a way of artists showing their appreciation to the audience. Sure, there is a melee when fans all try and grab the item that has just been thrown. That quest for unique memorabilia can turn a bit ugly! I do feel that that response of chucking something at an artist is not the same. That is more aggressive. It is not a fan thanking an artist or showing them love. It is assault and a very stupid thing to do! Also, artists throwing instruments and objects to a energised crowd does not stop gigs. If an artist is injured or they feel vulnerable, then that could mean a gig is cut short – which then negatively impacts everyone there. Journalist Sinead Butler looked at this problem for an article last month. She noted how Taylor Swift has beefed up her security because fans were throwing friendship bracelets at her. Whilst this may seem cute and non-threatening, it is distracting for artists to face that. Also, what if something other than a friendship bracelet was thrown too?! I can respect fans who want to show love like this, yet they need to be aware of the implications and possible psychological and physical harm it can cause to artists:

“Paul Wertheimer, a crowd safety manager believes the increase in this kind of behaviour stems from post-pandemic aggression as we continue to simulate back in life without lockdowns, after being stuck inside for three years when nobody could go to gigs.

“We all said that crowds would be more rambunctious, disorderly, and energetic after people came out of being cooped up,” Wertheimer told The Guardian.

“When crowds get rowdy, people can feel anonymous, and that leads them to do antisocial, dangerous things."

Music fans have also reflected on this point with people criticising concert etiquette post-pandemic, with people sharing their rules on the do's and don'ts when attending gigs.

However, performers also interact with fans in this way too as we have seen Beyoncé throw a pair of sunglasses into the crowd on the second night of her 'Renaissance' World Tour concert in London.

While Harry Styles often splashes water on the crowd before he sings his song 'Kiwi' and DJ Steve Aoki throws a cake at the crowd when playing his song 'Cake Face.'

“There is a long history of artists throwing guitars, bottles, and clothing into the crowd,” Wertheimer said.

“It’s a two-way street: if artists don’t want to be hit by projectiles, they shouldn’t throw projectiles themselves. There’s mutual respect there.”

Although Wertheimer believes "increase staffing" in the crowd can "help subdue antisocial behaviour," Bob Brecht, the CEO of TSE Entertainment notes to The Guardian that mass shootings and stampedes are more of a safety concern.

IN THIS PHOTO: Beyoncé during her Renaissance World Tour/PHOTO CREDIT: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Parkwood

AstroWorld in the US, Seoul at Halloween in South Korea and, Asake at Brixton Academy in the UK are some of the recent tragedies that have occurred.

"That’s where most of the fatalities have occurred, so that’s where the efforts are being made to set safety standards," he said.

All in all, there is no foolproof way to prevent fans from throwing objects on stage without creating a space big enough between the crowd and the artist to stop this from happening.

"But an artist would never stand for that, because they get a lot of their enthusiasm and excitement from a crowd," Brecht added”.

I do think that, eventually, fans throwing things at artists will fade a bit – though it is always going to happen at some point. Many of the artists being targeted are women. That seems extra-concerning, though many male artists have been on the receiving end of fans’ reckless behaviour. Artists like Cardi B or Harry Styles should not have to be on their guard whilst they focus on giving a good performance! They should not have to have a ring of security around the stage and make the set look like a fascist rally or something very cold and police. Fans, of course, can show their appreciation. They need to respect the artists, the people around them, in addition to venue rules and safety guides. Even if it is throwing flowers on the stage at the end of a gig, I think there needs to be this boundary. Artists might also feel it is cool to thrown an instrument, piece of clothing or something a fan would love into the audience. Not that interactions between artists and fans will be sterile or non-existence. It is just that the verbal interaction takes the place of physical ones. If an artist comes into the crowd to interact and bond with their fans then that is fine. I know it is a hard situation to define, rationalise and tackle, because there are so many genres and situations where physical interaction between fans and artists is always going to be different – such as a Metal act encouraging something more raucous and dangerous. In any case, recent events how that we need to respect artists and their safety! Getting to a place where artists cancel gigs through a fear for their safety would be…

A devastating and heartbreaking thing.

FEATURE: Rewind, Pause, Fast Forward: Given the Rise in Demand for Physical Music, Why Are Manufacturers Not Responding?

FEATURE:

 

 

Rewind, Pause, Fast Forward

PHOTO CREDIT: rawpixel.com via Freepik

 

Given the Rise in Demand for Physical Music, Why Are Manufacturers Not Responding?

_________

THIS is something that I keep coming back to….

 PHOTO CREDIT: master1305 via Freepik

and I feel that it is very relevant. It is always wonderful knowing physical music formats are flourishing. I think that is the case with all physical formats. There is a definite gulf between vinyl and everything else available. Cassettes and compact discs still have their place. I won’t bring this subject up for a while but, as we keep getting news that physical music is being bought and people want to step away from digital a bit, there is not a supply of devices to match the demand. It means, at a moment where something perhaps some consider retro is very modern and relevant. I can understand why C.D. players and record players have sort of faded. Well, we have turntables, yet most of the designs seem quite old fashioned. Not to suggest a hybrid or something like we had way back when with a combined C.D. player and cassette deck, but there does need to be a device or some kind. For home use, actually having a new Hi-Fi system wouldn’t be a bad idea. There does seem to be a lot of waste happening. I know you can’t make a turntable portable, but I wonder how much time and space people have to listen to vinyl. It is very important that those who buy L.P.s actually get to enjoy them – rather than buying them to support artists and then not doing anything else.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Freepik

This feature has been motivated by a couple of different things. I recently shared news that vinyl sales are up in the U.S. That is really encouraging, as it means that more and more are setting money aside to buy albums in their finest form. Even if vinyl is stealing headlines, I don’t think the relatively small increase in cassette and C.D. sales is because people necessarily dislike the format. Whether younger listeners like the retro value or there is the sense that they are cheaper and more affordable way to buy albums, where do they play them?! I am baffled as to why manufacturers have not reacted to the rise in physical sales. We continue to see record players made and widely available. Look online or stores like HMV and you do not see anything like a Walkman or Discman (or non-Sony products). That being said, they do not really stock cassettes. This is confusing. Most artists bring out album bundles with cassettes and C.D.sa included. I am not sure why the cassettes are not sold alongside vinyl and C.D. in stores. Perhaps they feel there is not enough space or demand. I think the availability and visibility of cassettes and something to play them on would be welcomed I feel. I am also thinking about the Barbie film and the feeling that a Walkman would definitely fit in there – a pink one of course! There does need to be some form of symmetry and connection regarding physical music sales and devices to play them on.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Jorge Fakhouri Filho/Pexels

At the moment, people are eager to support artists. That feeling digital music is overwhelming and lacks depth. Something that is not tangible and just disappears. So many albums are being bought and not played. That seems tragic when we have the capacity to produce them. Vinyl is still quite expensive. With a small number of pressing plants around the world, it is expensive manufacturing and shipping. Also, environmental concerns means that physical music does come with this carbon footprint. Cases for C.D.s and cassettes are often made of plastic. I agree artists should keep selling albums on cassette, vinyl and C.D - but, more and more, people are getting them to give money to the artist. They then find they can’t play the album. Portability and accessibility need to be words in the ears and eyes of companies who could manufacture devices that are affordable and environmentally conscious. I can appreciate there would need to be huge demand for a device to play music on. A slight rise in sales of cassettes and C.D.s will not really lead to a massive production of a new version of a Walkman, for instance. There are cassette players available at the moment, yet they are not readily available or on the high street a lot. Many are using ones they had from way back. It is important that we keep alive these formats. Even if they are being bought, so many are left collecting dust because they can’t be played. I hope that someone out there realises this fact and…

 PHOTO CREDIT: rawpixel.com via Freepik

PUTS some into production.

FEATURE: Madonna at Sixty-Five: The Pop Icon’s Best Deep Cuts

FEATURE:

 

 

Madonna at Sixty-Five

 PHOTO CREDIT: Ricardo Gomes via V Magazine

 

The Pop Icon’s Best Deep Cuts

_________

I am doing a few more Madonna features….

 IN THIS PHOTO: Madonnas during the Blond Ambvition World Tour in 1990/PHOTO CREDIT: Redferns

as she turns sixty-five on 16th August. I know it is not great highlighting the age of artists but, as this is Madonna – and she will very much celebrate and salute turning sixty-five -, it seems okay here. The Queen of Pop has this milestone birthday soon. I will do a few other features leading up to 16th August. For the first one, I am doing a playlist of deep cuts. You do not hear them often on the radio. When you hear Madonna songs, they are normally bigger hits and those songs which have had plenty of exposure through the years. Now, and to show the depth of her talent and the various sides of this Pop icon, i wanted to highlight the songs that don’t get as much attention as they deserve. It is a big occasion (her birthday), and it comes not long since she had to postpone the first gigs of her Celebration Tour due to illness. I am not sure when her opening night will be now, but keep your eyes peeled. In the first of a few tributes to one of the most influential artists ever, I have selected some lesser-known songs that you might not be familiar with. All interesting and worthy of more exposure, here are the best deep cuts from…

THE magisterial Madonna.

FEATURE: Hip-Hop at Fifty: The Best of the Genre from the '90s

FEATURE:

 

 

Hip-Hop at Fifty

IN THIS PHOTO: Missy Elliott/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images

 

The Best of the Genre from the '90s

_________

AN important anniversary….

IN THIS PHOTO: Disco fever/PHOTO CREDIT: Sophie Bramly

is coming on 11th August. That date, fifty years ago, was when Kool Herc (Clive Campbell) was credited as discovering Hip-Hop. It was a transformative moment that sparked a revolution and this exciting and powerful new phase for music. I am, going to dedicate this feature to celebrating the best Hip-Hop cuts of the'90s. Just before I get there, this fascinating article discusses Kool Herc’s background, and life leading up to a famous house party where he birthed Hip-Hop. I have split it so there is some lead-up to the 1970s and a lot of the tensions and racism that was engulfing America. A moment in 1973, lit a fuse that would react against the injustice and hatred many people in the Black community felt:

“Clive (“Kool Herc”) Campbell and his sister Cindy grew up with a varied musical soundtrack in their Bronx home at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue. Their father, Keith, a trained mechanic in Jamaica before immigrating to the States and working at Clarks Equipment Company in Queens, raised them on an eclectic palate that included Nina Simone, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, and Jim Reeves. Herc specifically recalled singing Reeves’ country tunes to help “Americanize” his accent.

While it was Herc’s father who instilled in him the value of a genre-less appreciation, it was his mother, Nettie, who showed him how music could have an intoxicating effect on people when absorbed together in the late ’60s.

“I see different guys dancing, guys rapping to girls, I’m wonderin’ what the guy is whisperin’ in the girl’s ears about,” Herc recalled in Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation. “I’m green, but I’m checking out the scene. And I noticed a lot of the girls was complaining, ‘Why they not playing that record?’ ‘How come they don’t have that record?’

IN THIS PHOTO: Delancy Street/PHOTO CREDIT: Jane Dickson

These questions shaped Herc’s musical sensibilities moving forward. He knew firsthand that if a room was full of people, it was the DJ using four-on-the-floor disco rhythms who ultimately controlled the mood at Bronx venues like the Puzzle, the Tunnel, and Disco Fever.

“This guy John Brown used to play at the Tunnel,” Herc recalled in The Record Players: DJ Revolutionaries. “Used to play music and I’m dancing with this girl trying to get my s*it off, and he used to [mess] up. And the whole party, they be like, ‘Y’ahhh, what the [heck] is that…? Why you took it off there? The s*it was about to explode. I was about to bust a nut.’ You know. And the girl be like, ‘Damn, what the [heck] is wrong?’ And I’m hearing his mistakes and I’m griping too. ’Cos he’s [messing] my groove up.”

When Herc was 23-years-old, he contemplated how he could leave his mark on American society in the same way figures like U-Roy had shaped Jamaican culture. However, the influx of gang activity caused these musical venues to become much more dangerous.

By 1970, police estimated that there were 11,000 active gang members in the Bronx alone. “The Savage Seven” would enter clubs around the Bronxdale Project on Bruckner Boulevard under the cover of pulsating strobe lights. Regardless of a person’s age or gender, the Savages were primed to inflict bodily harm. Eventually the Savage Seven’s ranks swelled to several dozens — prompting a name change to “the Black Spades.”

 The surge of energy was palpable. The Campbells’ friend Mike began using Herc’s own vocal cues to turn the fluorescent lights on and off. Herc’s ability to highlight nothing but the record’s “break” and his pioneering “Merry-Go-Round” technique — where he matched two identical records to form one continuous loop — turned the tiny recreation room into a sweatbox as bodies jostled against one another.

Another friend, Coke La Rock — whose moniker stemmed from his love of chocolate milk (Coco) — added to the atmosphere by injecting a touch of Jamaica’s toasting traditions.

La Rock was born in the Bronx. Prior to the party, he had earned a reputation for his agile dance moves, like James Brown. He and Herc became friends as teenagers, attending “night centers” together — a quasi after-school program for older students who could play basketball and shoot pool instead of wandering the streets. But in this precise moment, it was his vocal qualities using the echo chamber that really struck people.

“I was just calling out my friends’ names,” La Rock recalled to journalist Steven Hager.

“The first one was like, ‘There’s not a man who can’t be thrown, a horse that can’t be rode, a bull that can’t be stopped, there’s no disco that I Coke La Rock can’t rock.”

While Herc played his records in the same room where people were dancing, La Rock was by himself in another room with the microphone. He was the Master of Ceremonies meets The Wizard of Oz.

The next day, the party had resonated all over the city. Like so many other young people had done before, Clive and Cindy Campbell had simply thrown a back-to-school party. But this was different. With the ability to move the crowd with groundbreaking techniques, and the experiences he gained while attending parties with his parents, Herc thought differently on August 11, 1973”.

I might have time for one more Hip-Hop feature before its fiftieth anniversary on 11th August. I wanted to tip a hat to the 1990s. A decade where Pop and Rock were flourishing, it was also an amazing time for Hip-Hop. Below are some of the best cuts and jams from the kings and queens of the genre. I am sure there is something in the playlist that will…

 PHOTO CREDIT: Pavel Danilyuk/Pexels

TAKE your fancy.





FEATURE The Kate Bush Interview Archive: 1981: Record Mirror (John Shearlaw)

FEATURE:

 

 

The Kate Bush Interview Archive

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush under the ivy in 1981/PHOTO CREDIT: Clive Arrowsmith 

 

1981: Record Mirror (John Shearlaw)

_________

A man….

  IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional photo for the single, Sat in Your Lap/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

who interviewed Kate Bush a few times, I have used John Shearlaw’s name for this feature before when looking at a 1979 interview with Kate Bush. I am going to take it forward a couple of years. Bush did not release any albums in 1981, but she was releasing music. In fact, speaking with Record Mirror in September 1981, Bush was promoting Sat in Your Lap. It would be another year until she released the album it is from, The Dreaming. In the couple of years before the interview, Bush took The Tour of Life on the road in 1979; her third studio album, Never for Ever, came out in 1980. At the start of the interview, it is said that depression, introspection and reassessment were part of Bush’s life since The Tour of Life. Marking a big shift in sound and direction, Sat in Your Lap sounds like a new lease of life. A burst of energy that she might not have possessed as recently as a few months before she wrote the track. Maybe tired or uninspired, the shock that is Sat in Your Lap got her going again! I am relying on the wonderful Reaching Out directory for transcribing the 1981 interview between Kate Bush and John Shearrlaw. There are a few part of the interview that caught my eye, and that gives us a sense of where Bush’s mind, music and ambitions were in 1981.

“Kate Bush today sets up her own interviews, controls her own photographs, slavishly protects her fans through her club and, more so than ever, works on albums and tours at her own pace. And still we love her for it?

It's been two years now since what Kate calls her "Tour of Life", a massive circus of a tour that won't, repeat won't take place again until next year at the earliest. Again, it's been six months since the last single and Sat In Your Lap, as much as anything she's done, is the start of a new era, another "cosmic cycle" that will see the release of a new album later this year.

And now that all those ideas in the past--a theatrical tour that was a combination of the innovative and the unexpected, an album last year that surpassed all that went before it--have become reality, she's a powerful personality. SHe makes points where she used to make only comments, argues from experience now as much as from excitement, pushes herself as an artist ("one of us", she says, referring to the type) much more than a surprised, precocious talent.

Yet she's still infectious [huh?], vulnerable at times, as open to ideas as ever. Richness and fame don't embarass her; slowness in honing her creativity probably does, just a little.

Her favourite expression on this meeting wasn't one of wonderment, astonishment (ah, the cliche!); rather a dismissive pout of "Pah!" -- almost French, knowledgeable, and nearly coquettish.

"Pah! Let them think that! Pah! That's wrong!" she seems to imply, ready to underline her ideas. Call it a change, call it maturity, call it confidence in her art, for it almost certainly is. Take money:

"I've changed. I don't pretend it's not there any more, which I used to do," she says. "I'm not worried about being rich, I just didn't think of taking advantage of it. Now I buy things that I can use, things that will help me, like synthesisers and drum machines.

"My life has never been into money, more into emotional desires; like being an incredible singer or an incredible dancer; and if I can buy something that can help me, I will now. But I wouldn't buy something that I couldn't live with, like a country house which I don't need. [Actually, about two years after giving this interview, Kate bought--a country house.] I'd rather buy a huge synthesiser that I could live with all day."

She emphasises and explains, thinks out the question, returns to her theme. The easy answers have gone over the years. Take her career...

Kate maintains that there hasn't really been a gap, even though she admits that Sat In Your Lap only surfaced after her longest break to date.

"My slowness at doing things surprises me," she says, "but i have been doing things continuously. It's a battle to keep up with all the things I want to do, and obviously things like dancing are going to suffer. I couldn't spend twelve hours a day in a studio like I'm doing at the moment, and dance, as well."

Again the emphasis on her way of working--the only way. The ups and downs are of her own making, they don't follow rules. And Kate only bows to her own pressures.

“The last album was the first one that I would actually hand over to people with a smile," she says, almost seeming to imply that it was the first one she was actually pleased with, "and that was followed by a greater period of non-creativity, when I just couldn't write properly at all.

"It happened before, when the tour was over, and then I felt I'd just given so much out that I was like a drained battery, very physically and tired and also a bit depressed.

"This time it was worse; a sort of terrible introverted depression. The anti-climax after all the work really set in in a bad way, and that can be very damaging to an artist. I could sit down at the piano and want to write, and nothing would happen. It was like complete introspection time.

"I suppose I had about two months out earlier this year...and that was a break I really needed. It gave me time to see friends, do things I hadn't been able to do for three years.

"It wasn't really as if I was missing out on normality," she laughs. "I'd rather hang on to madness than normality anyway, so it was more like recharging."

But something more came out of it than just a rest?

"Oh yes!" The smile returns. "I felt as if my writing needed some kind of shock, and I think I've found one for myself. The single is the start, and I'm trying to be brave about the rest of it. It's almost as if I'm going for commercial-type "hits" for the whole album.

Drums, Kate enthuses, are as wide a concept as music itself, and she's determined to go further than "a lazy acceptance of a drum kit." Add that to the news that she'll be working with other musicians on the new album--"the best around"--and it seems likely that "Kate Bush 4" will be one of the big surprises of the year.

As a preview she plays me one track that's currently being worked on: a wild soaring collusion with Irish group Planxty entitled Night of the Swallow, which also features one of the Chieftains. Again the sound is unmistakable, but this time it's Kate Bush married to the heartbeat of traditional Irish folk.

Discussing the project brings Kate Bush into larger-than-life focus once more. The burning enthusiasm returns, along with the string of "amazings", "incredibles" and "fantastics". She'd been up all night in the studio the previous night in Dublin, and her reactions are genuine, real and hard to resist.

"I'm still really up from the experience," she says. "In fact, I'm still reeling from it. I asked them if they'd be interested, and the whole thing was so relaxed, it was wonderful. I badly want to work with them again. I'm so excited about the fusion.

"And I think that there's so much of the Irish in my mother that it all suddenly came back to me--it was fate rearing its head at just the right time!"

So that's two surprises already, and although Kate has been making demo tracks since March, and Abbey Road is now her second home, the rest will have to wait until summer completion...if all goes according to plan.

What about the book you're planning to write, though? Again, she sighs (a marginal sigh) and repeats her line: "There's so many things I want to do, and it's so hard to fit them all in..."

But yes, a book is on the cards, hopefully before the end of the year, and she says: "I'd like to write it myself. Without saying anything about the other books, which I don't want to, I feel almost pressured to speak, otherwise there's this huge misrepresented area.

"In one way it's ridiculous--I feel it's much too early to write a book, I've hardly done anything yet. But I really want people to be aware of reality--subjective reality, obviously.

"It'd be about what it's like being me, my feelings, my friends, the people that I rely on. I need to be represented in a positive way, and I'll have to do it myself."

Slowly Abbey Road is beginning to wake up for another Kate Bush day that is likely to last until the early hours of the next morning, and she announces candidly: "I'm beginning to feel like shit. Ireland's catching up on me. And all the things that have to be done. It's impossible to do it all in the time...perhaps if I could stop sleeping it would help."

Twenty-two years old, a Tour of Life and three albums behind her...and the rest can wait. Treading devastatingly and surely between the doubters and the devotees, Kate Bush may well continue to "amaze" us all”.

Every interview with Kate Bush offers such richness and insight. The one above, published when she was only twenty-one, finds her in an interesting places. Three albums and an international tour under her belt, this was this brief period between albums. She had already begun The Dreaming, though people would not get to experience that album until September 1982. This moment (September 1981) is a bridge between one type of Kate Bush and another. A period where she is solo producing her own albums and is more experimental and bold with her music. She said in the interview how people are irritated by her – but she found that this is a good thing in a way. Things would change drastically by 1982. In a way, we get one of the last interviews with Bush before this transformation. The interesting conversation between Kate Bush and John Sherlaw really struck me, so I wanted to share it here. As I always say when sourcing old interviews with Kate Bush: she is this incredibly articulate, wise, warm and…

INCREDIBLE subject.

FEATURE: Come Together: Why There Needs to Be Unity Regarding Women’s Safety and Rights in Music

FEATURE:

 

 

Come Together

PHOTO CREDIT: Alexander Krivitskiy/Pexels

 

Why There Needs to Be Unity Regarding Women’s Safety and Rights in Music

_________

I have written a feature….

 PHOTO CREDIT: MART PRODUCTION/Pexels

about this subject before. In fact, I have written a few features on it. I don’t think that we have had a fully-fledged and significant #MeToo movement in music. Rather than demanding justice for women who have reported sexual assault and harassment, it needs to go wider and deeper. There are so many issues to tackle. From venue car parks and exits not being properly lit and security-heavy – meaning women feel vulnerable -, through to continued imbalance regards festivals, and abuse that many women receive online, there is not too much being done. I have been speaking with Karen Whybro, who is a women’s safety consultant based in Brighton. Her mission is to make all public spaces, workplaces and online platforms safe for women. Whybro shared some of her insight and hopes. Safe Gigs for Women are an important organisation, as are Cactus City. It is not just about making women feel safer and less threatened. It is about inclusiveness and ensuring that there is parity. Karen Whybro explained how she trains night-time economy businesses in creating safe spaces so happy to help too if you want my perspective. Shed stated how festivals are woeful when it comes to adequate lighting and visible security. Latitude is one that she highlighted. Door staff at venues need to be more aware, engaged and conscious of dangers facing women. From lighting and security needs to be stepped up, through to CCTV and other safety measures being put in place, the current music landscape is not putting women first. There are a range of security foundations and organisations like Security Industry Federation (Daniel Garnham is the President). Safe Gigs is another organisation doing great work.

IMAGE CREDIT: Safe Gigs for Women

Protection for women extends far and wide. It is about their physical and mental safety. Ensuring they are not subjected to assault, rape, or online abuse and harassment. The trouble is that most of the time it is women speaking up for themselves and not getting support from many men in the industry. Looking around, and I can see Fabric launched a campaign highlighting anti-harassment a desire to make all women feel safe. I guess a movement that dealt with harassment and sexual assault combined with inequality and discrimination across the industry would be quite unwieldy and hard to draw together. This might be the last feature on the subject for a while. It occurs that some sort of unification does need to take place. I think men in the industry, whether they are journalist, artists or anyone else, are not as vocal and proactive when it comes to tackling difficult subjects which are still alive and well in music. It is concerning that there are still so many incidences of assault and abuse against women. Equality has not got close to being achieved through live music and in terms of the industry offering opportunities and platforms.

  IN THIS PHOTO: Lily Allen

There are invaluable and essential websites and organisations that are trying to bring about awareness of a culture of sexual assault and harassment that needs to be challenged and ended. I shall finish with a view that there needs to be more input and conversation from men, in addition to a definitive and definite movement that mirrors and builds on Hollywood’s #MeToo. Last year, The Guardian published a feature exposing men in the industry who have been accused of sexual assault. As Tamanna Rahman wrote, the fact there has been no #MeToo movement might be because it is hard for women to speak out:

“One of the women interviewed in my first film was Kristen Knight, a DJ. She brought rape charges against the DJ and label owner Erick Morillo, and told me thatshe had initially reported what had happened to colleagues, but that many had shunned her rather than supporting her. Morillo was found dead of a drug overdose just days before he was due to face charges in court. Since his death, multiple women have come forward to make similar allegations.

In 2018 Lily Allen alleged in her book, My Thoughts Exactly, that she was the victim of a sexual assault by a music exec. Almost everybody who’s anybody in the industry thinks they know who Allen’s alleged assailant is, and that it’s someone still working in music. Even if they are wrong, the fact that so many people presume that there would have been no consequences for the accused following Allen’s allegation speaks volumes.

So what is the answer? After all, if it is right that people are innocent until proven guilty, then it follows that a person cannot have their livelihood destroyed on the basis of one allegation. It’s certainly tricky for a record label to sack them on that basis.

IN THIS PHOTO: Kristen Knight/PHOTO CREDIT: Mixmag

The problem is that many record labels do not even seem to try. If you are making your way into the industry, the likelihood is that you’ll work for an independent record label. If you’re assaulted by the owner of that company, or the artist, then who can you go to to complain? There are often no HR structures in place, and even where they do exist, which HR person is going to scrutinise their boss, or the person upon whom a sizeable proportion of the business model relies? And it’s a small world. If you rock the boat, women have told me, you’re labelled a troublemaker, and you may even find yourself frozen out of jobs in other companies. This lack of internal recourse can leave women with only two options: calling out their abuser in public, with all the attached risks, or staying quiet.

The responsibility should be even greater for the major record labels and respected music bodies, where there are HR systems in place. But I’ve been told by dozens of women that when they have made complaints to HR staff, the response has ranged from being gaslit, ignored, threatened with lawsuits, required to sign NDAs or quietly let go. In one example, a junior member of staff told me she had revealed that she had been raped the night before by one of the bosses, and the response from her manager was brief sympathy, but nothing more. In another, an investigation was called after allegations of inappropriate touching. The man in question was quietly shuffled out of the building and given a glowing reference in the music press with best wishes for his future. The woman says she was forced to sign an NDA. And so the cycle continues.

PHOTO CREDIT: GHI/Education Images/Universal Images Group/Getty Images via Rolling Stone

It is worth highlighting that all seven of the women who came forward to make allegations about Tim Westwood are black. They allege he abused his position and power to prey upon them – in fact, the subtitle of the film is Abuse of Power. If a white woman feels a lack of support among her peers and seniors when making allegations of sexual misconduct, their testimony suggests the issue is compounded for black and brown women, who often have to work even harder to make it in the industry.

Music may not have had its #MeToo moment, but those in the industry are increasingly coming together to support one another. There are more female execs, more female-owned ventures, and greater awareness of what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour. Last month, former Atlantic A&R executive Dorothy Carvello launched her foundation, Face the Music Now, to provide a safe space for women to report their abuse and to help them find legal counsel. And it’s not just women. Many of the people I’ve spoken to are men fed up of seeing their colleagues experience abuse, only to then be minimised and dismissed”.

With all the amazing small organisations and crucial resources out there, there could be this unified cause and movement that brings them together and helps to launch a committed and dedicated movement that aims to end sexual assault and harassment within the industry. I also wanted to mention the essential Consent Coalition. You can follow them @ConsentInNotts. Their mission statement is: “The Consent Coalition is made up of 20 Nottingham-based statutory and voluntary sector organisations who are specialists in the sexual violence field.  We are working together to raise awareness on the importance of consent, challenge myths about rape and sexual violence, and encourage victims-survivors to access support and report”. Their incredible campaign asks some important questions: “Do you know what sexual consent means? Do you know how to get consent? Do you know why is it important to understand consent? At the Consent Coalition we know how important it is to educate each other and challenge myths and behaviours about consent and sexual violence…do you? The more you know, the more you can influence positive change, a culture of consent starts here. Click on the posters below to find out more about our consent campaigns”. Even though thewy are based in Nottinghamshire and there is a particular focus on the local area, their objectives, crucial work and campaigns should be a template fore the music industry. I know there are similar organisations and support networks like Consent Coalition, yet there is an opportunity for the music industry to collaborate.

IMAGE CREDIT: Consent Coalition

There needs to be discussion between men as to why we are still seeing so many cases. Information and resources widely and easily available so those within the industry (and gig-goers and music fans). I know there are a lot of issues and problems within the industry to tackle. I am aware that sexual harassment, assault and rape does not only apply to men. Shockingly, in the past week or so, we heard about Lizzo and accusations made against her by dancers who alleged fat-shaming and sexual assault. When stories against artists or those in the music industry break - whether is is Lizzo, slowthai, Tim Westwood or someone else -, there is a lot of discussion on social media. News and music website articles will provide links. Whether that is fore the NHS, Rape Crisis England & Wales, Safeline, Crisis Text Line, or links to Musicians’ Union and reports on sexual harassment in music industry, there is a lot of information out there, yet not a worldwide campaign and motion that utilises this and leads to changes. If Hollywood’s #MeToo movement encouraged discussion and a need for change rather than a definitive end to sexual assault and harassment, there have been some positive changes. It is definitely the case that the music industry has not experienced the same sort of  progress and shift as in Hollywood. I see on social media how so many women feel unsafe or threatened. Those who have experienced sexual assault and harassment. With women almost solely calling for change, highlighting music’s darker side, and sharing their experiences, there needs to be more input and conversation for men. Standing up in support! A music #MeToo movement can only start, succeed and endure when we all…

COME together.

FEATURE: You Still Get Me High: Kylie Minogue: Indie Music, a Possible Biopic, and a Look Ahead to the Remarkable TENSION

FEATURE:

 

 

You Still Get Me High

  

Kylie Minogue: Indie Music, a Possible Biopic, and a Look Ahead to the Remarkable TENSION

_________

THERE are a few…

 PHOTO CREDIT: James D Morgan/Getty Images

Kylie Minogue-related things that I want to discuss and pour over. I know I written about her a lot recently but, as she is awesome and about to release an incredible album, it is worth coming back to her one more time. Recently, I reacted to the news that Minogue will begin a residency in Las Vegas later in the year. It will be the first time she has done that. A chance not only to expand her American fanbase, it will give her this consistent and stable live setting where she can do a career-spanning set. I am not sure what form her shows will take when it comes to setlist and feel, but it is going to be amazing. I have returned to Kylie Minogue so soon because she has recently revealed a couple of things that caught my eye. I shall come to those. First, as it is out on 22nd September, make sure that you pre-order your copy of Minogue’s upcoming album, TENSION:

“Kylie’s brand new studio album, Tension, a record of euphoric, empowered dance floor bangers and sultry pop cuts. Tension is eleven tracks of unabashed pleasure-seeking, seize-the-moment, joyful pop tunes with the hypnotic electro of ‘Padam Padam’ opening the album.

Discussing ‘Tension’, Kylie says, “I started this album with an open mind and a blank page. Unlike my last two albums there wasn’t a ‘theme’, it was about finding the heart or the fun or the fantasy of that moment and always trying to service the song. I wanted to celebrate each song’s individuality and to dive into that freedom. I would say it’s a blend of personal reflection, club abandon and melancholic high”.

I have been thinking about Kylie Minogue’s 2023. She scored massive chart success with the lead single from TENSION, Padam Padam. It was played on BBC Radio 1 (eventually!), and she is going to deliver this amazing and near-career-best albums. She recently turned fifty-five and, whereas that may signal that the industry will sideline her or show less love, I think the opposite will happen. The music industry generally does marginalise women when they get past forty. Minogue is so busy and producing this music that is urgent and wonderfully memorable, it is going to be impossible to ignore the legend. I was struck by an NME article, who were reacting to an interview Minogue gave to E! Online. I would usually not parlay that into a feature but, as Minogue talked about Indie music and who she would like to play her in a biopic, I have come back to her feet – I will write about her one more time next month when TENSION comes out:

“Kylie Minogue has spoken about her “love” of indie bands and said she’d most like to collaborate with The Killers.

The singer, who has previously worked with the likes of Nick Cave and Manic Street Preachers, has said she would love to get into studio with the Las Vegas band.

She told E! Online: “I’ve always loved more kind of indie bands, like The Killers. Most collaborations I’ve done have come to me so I haven’t had to make that decision. But whoever I work with, I think there’s always something to learn from people I work with.”

Minogue also said she would like to team up with Beyoncé and Rihanna and reckons Barbie star Margot Robbie should play her in a biopic.

It comes after Cave recently spoke about his 1995 collaboration with Minogue ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’.

He said: “It was a murder ballad that ends with the character killing his beloved… It was quite something at the time for Kylie to take on.”

“I certainly wasn’t in showroom condition,” he continued. “Her management were like ‘This is a bad idea’ because we were a bunch of dark drug-addicted monstrosities… but she was determined to do that.”

The pair performed the track on Top Of The Pops live but Cave said he struggled to “remember much” about it because he was “high”.

Minogue most recently announced her first-ever Las Vegas residency at the new Voltaire nightclub at The Venetian between November and January.

Minogue’s sixth studio album, ‘Tension’, will be released on September 22 via Darenote/BMG. You can pre-save and pre-order the album here.

The Killers’ Brandon Flowers meanwhile, recently teamed up with Elton John to perform ‘Tiny Dancer’ during his final ever UK gig at Glastonbury”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: The Last Dinner Party

There is a lot to unpack there. Kylie’s ‘Indie’ period is one of my favourite. I especially love her 1994 album, Impossible Princess. Even though she is more Disco, Dance and Pop-focused now, I can see Minogue either collaborating with Indie artists on their singles, or the follow-up to TENSION might be more Indie-based. Her working with The Killers might be as good thing, though there are other bands and artists people would love to see her play with. I would welcome a reunion between her and Nick Cave on a new song. There a few bands that I think Kylie would fuse well with. I have always imagined her recording with Blur and Radiohead. Maybe not strictly Indie, I feel that there is something intriguing and different Minogue could bring to their music. I think that new bands would get a real boost from Kylie Minogue’s endorsement. The Last Dinner Party are an incredible new group that I could also see Minogue joining with and producing something amazing! That remark she made about Indie music is going to open up a lot of requests. I think that we will see Minogue performing with some amazing artists. Even though I am not a fan of The Killers, it would still be a good hook-up. That comment she made about teaming with Beyoncé and Rihanna. This would be really tantalising! I think a Kylie Minogue and Beyoncé partnership would be particularly special. Maybe Bey could remix a track from TENSION. At a time when we are seeing joint-tours – two acts/bands going on tour together -, maybe Minogue and Beyoncé could tour together.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Margot Robbie/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images

I will end with Minogue suggesting Margot Robbie could play her in a biopic. I am surprised we have not yet seen a Kylie Minogue one. I have suggested Margot Robbie’s name when thinking of two other biopics – she could play Debbie Harry in a Blondie biopic; suit the role of Stevie Nicks for a Fleetwood Mac biopic. Margot Robbie would be great. She does not do too many film roles where she gets to keep her Australian accent. This would be a rare opportunity! Even though she is taller than Minogue and, at thirty-three, would probably portray Minogue during her Fever/Light Years period (2000-2001) regency, it would be fascinating to see that brought to the screen. In an already big and triumphant year for Kylie Minogue, there is the business of TENSION. I think that the album will get a load of positive reviews. Following that, there are gigs and her Las Vegas residency. I was hooked by what she said about Indie music and a biopic. Let’s hope that this all comes to fruition. It is going to be a very busy next year or two for Minogue. In addition to a biopic, I wonder whether Minogue has ever thought about briefly returning to the big screen. I feel she could bring her talents to film. Cast in a green film, there are so many fans of hers that would really like to see that! I shall leave it there. An iconic, multitalented and chameleon-like talent, there is no telling…

WHERE she heads next.

FEATURE: Levitating or Lifted? Why a New Copyright Claim Around Remixes of Dua Lipa’s Hit Song Is All Talk

FEATURE:

 

 

Levitating or Lifted?

IN THIS PHOTO: Dua Lipa photographed for DAZED’s Summer 2023 edition/PHOTO CREDIT: Thibaut Grevet

 

Why a New Copyright Claim Around Remixes of Dua Lipa’s Hit Song Is All Talk

_________

SOMETHING that has been featured….

 IN THIS PHOTO: Missy Elliott (far left) and Madonna (far right) featuring in The Blessed Madonna’s (centre right) remix of Dua Lipa’s Levitating

more in music news is copyright claims and intellectual theft. Artists such as Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift. Have faced challenges regarding the authenticity and originality of their huge songs. These cases were either all won or dropped, so it seems suspicious that various smaller songwriters and artists launch these claims against huge songs that have made a lot of money and been streamed millions of times. You don’t hear of two many album cuts or smaller songs being challenged and spotlighted as containing lifted hooks, melodies or similar phrasing. In most cases, there is a very slight similarity between songs. Given the number of songs written and released each year, it is always going to happen. You will get songs unintentionally sounding he same. Major artists do not lift or nick bits of other songs deliberately. That is a major risk. What one does find is that a major hit by, say, Ed Sheeran has some familiar edges to it. You play it against another song someone says Sheeran pinched something from and it is never really compelled or too blatant. Without too much evidence and substantiality to the copyright claim, they are dropped or the claimant is defeated – and you wonder whether cashing in and exploiting an artist is motivation over protecting their intellectual property and songwriting.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Ed Sheeran/PHOTO CREDIT: Kate Green/Getty Images

I mention this because, like Ed Sheeran (as per The Guardian “…the heirs of Marvin Gaye’s co-writer Ed Townsend had previously sued Sheeran, his record label Warner Music Group and his music publisher Sony Music Publishing, alleging that Thinking Out Loud infringed on Let’s Get It On’s copyright”) Dua Lipa has been challenged more than once regarding copyright claims. In fact, the song Levitating which was a hugely successful single from her second studio album, Future Nostalgia (and has been streaming on Spotify nearly two billion times), has been brought to a courtroom more than once. This article from The Guardian explains more:

“Dua Lipa faces third lawsuit over Levitating

Multimillion-dollar lawsuit claims the singer unlawfully used a talk box recording from her smash single on subsequent remixes

A multimillion-dollar copyright claim filed in Los Angeles on Monday by musician Bosko Kante claims the singer and Warner Music Group unlawfully used a recording made with his talk box in remixes of the single, the most popular track off her 2020 album Future Nostalgia.

The suit cites a spoken agreement between Kante and creators of the song that his talk box recording could only be used in the original recording, but not subsequent remixes. Kante seeks more than $20m for alleged copyright infringement on several remixes, including one with The Blessed Madonna, the smash remix featuring rapper DaBaby and a performance by Lipa at the American Music Awards.

Kante has yet to comment on the matter, but Billboard reported that lawyers for the musician claim he “made numerous attempts to resolve this matter short of litigation, but such efforts were unsuccessful, due to Defendants’ unwillingness to cooperate or accept responsibility for this blatant infringement of Plaintiff’s copyrights”.

“All three remixes sampled and incorporated a greater amount of plaintiff’s work than that used in the original version,” the suit claims. “Defendants did not seek or receive any authorization or permission to use the composition or sound recording of plaintiff’s work from plaintiff.”

Representatives for the 27-year-old British-Albanian singer were not immediately available for comment.

Kante bills himself as one of the world’s top artists on the talk box, which allows musicians to modify the sound of an instrument and apply speech sounds. He has contributed talk box performances to Kanye West and Big Boi, and in 2014 founded a company called ElectroSpit to sell a proprietary digital version of the tool.

This suit is the third legal action brought against the song Levitating. In March 2022, the Florida-based reggae band Artikal Sound System claimed Lipa stole Levitating’s core hook from their 2017 song Live Your Life. The band dropped their case in June 2023 after a judge ruled there was no evidence the creators of Levitating, including Lipa, had “access” to the earlier track – a key element of a copyright infringement suit.

Another 2022 lawsuit by the songwriters L Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer remains in limbo but faces a similar “access” argument from Lipa’s lawyers. The songwriters claim Lipa lifted the melody of Levitating from their lesser-known 1979 song Wiggle and Giggle All Night and 1980 track Don Diablo. Lawyers for the singer claim she had never heard either track before creating Levitating”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: The Blessed Madonna

I don’t expect this third lawsuit will lead to Dua Lipa and her label suffering any defeat or having to pay royalties. I am not sure what ownership and copyright laws are but, if it was allowed to feature on Levitating, why would it also not be permitted to appear on remixes? It is a grey area, but I don’t think that Warner or the producers of the remixes were trying to dupe or misleads him at all. Normally, when one song gets so many different people claiming it was stolen from them, you tend to find it is more about money-making rather than there being any substance to their lawsuit. I would expect this to go the way of Lipa but, if not, it will be a worry for artists. In terms of the remixes, talk box recording(a) from Bosko Kante would not have been stolen or used deliberately I’d imagine. It does put undeserved negative focus on Dua Lipa who, to be fair, would not have known about the original deal or been looped into the ins and outs of the remixes’ deals and conversations between the Warne label r and Kante. It does seem like a complicated case, but I don’t think that the remixes deliberately defrauded him or intended to steal his innovation. It seems unlikely that any early talks fell through unless he was asking for substantial payment for his recording to be used. I assume Kante would have been paid and signed on his talk box recording being used on the original.

What would the motivating be for suing because the remixes might not have cleared it? If it is a sake of fair payment then that is fair enough. It does seem quite opportune and suspicious granted the amount he is seeking - and where did such a ridiculously high figure come from? It seems a bit odd that Levitating, which was released several years ago, is being taken to court still. The remixes are comparatively fresh but, still, why the delay?! Now that the original track has got almost two billion streams and the remixes are doing pretty well in that respect - and Dua Lipa is an even bigger artist than she was in 2020, having appeared in films like Barbie and accruing even more followers online -, there is this element of opportunism. It seems very suspicious that there is a claim that has no real conviction to it. Any claims of theft and unauthorised use of talk box recordings seem a little weak – and I would expect the court to see that and rule in favour of Dua Lipa. It makes me wonder how many other people will try and claim Levitating took something from another song/sound. Will another Dua Lipa song be targeted?! Most major artists have to worry that multiple artists and sources will come after their songs.

IN THIS PHOTO: Bosko Kante

I do respect artists and estates protecting their rights. Also, if you sign one deal and it is left there, it is duplicitous going around someone’s back and taking advantage of their recording and permission. It isn’t on if an artist knowingly rips from them and makes a lot of money. That happened a lot in the past, especially with Hip-Hop, but things are very different today. Very few artists would hear a song they liked from the past and graft that into their track without crediting and asking for permission. It is too risky to do so and, with these often-prolonged court cases, it can be very damaging and take a lot of time away from the artists accused.  I am not sure what the upshot will be from the new Levitation remixes copyright claim but, with Bosko Kante asking for $20 million, that has almost worked against him. Such a ludicrously high amount – Dua Lipa hasn’t earned that much from the song or the remixes herself! – is disproportionate and greedy! That argument as to whether the claim is trying to capitalise on Lipa’s fortune or it is a genuine musician who wants to ensure that they are credited is easy to answer here: it is another person grasping at straws! I would suspect that the issue of whether the recording could be used on remixes was not raised. It might have been part of that original clause. Even though it is a distinct and he may have helped to pioneer a particular sound and distinction, I can’t see anyone involved with the case ruling in his favour – especially for the amount of money he is trying to get from this! That said, if the new court claim does end in defeat for the treasured British-Albanian artist, then it could be a big worry…

FOR every major artist out there.

FEATURE: Spotlight: CHINCHILLA

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

  

CHINCHILLA

_________

HAVING released….

some awesome music in 2023, I am embarrassed it has taken me until now to discover the magnificent CHINCHILLA. The alias of Daisy Bertenshaw, the London-based artist is someone that everyone needs to watch. Released in April, Little Girl Gone, is her most recent track. I know there will be new music really soon. Even though CHINCHILLA has been on the scene for a little while now, I think that this and next year will be her most successful and busy. She released her debut album, Awakening, in 2020. I know there are a lot of people out there who will be looking forward to a new album. Truly one of the most impressive and important artists out there right now, I wanted to spotlight CHINCHILLA here. I am going to come to some 2023 interviews soon. Before that, Our Culture Mag spoke with the tremendous CHINCHILLA in 2020. This was early during the pandemic. Not an ideal time for an artist who was trying to make an impression and get her music shared, I wonder whether she thought, three years later, she would be talked about as this incredible artist with a hugely bright future. Being played on stations like BBC Radio 6 Music:

“Firstly, how are you, and how have you been coping with the current COVID-19 crisis?

‘How are you’ – the question which means SO MUCH MORE in lockdown… I’m alright! Ups and downs. Thriving and surviving. Focusing on music and checking on friends a lot. Trying not to be glued to my phone and stay hydrated… easier said than done.

You recently released a new single named ‘The Lockdown Getdown,’ how did the idea for it come about and what was the goal of the piece?

Me and one of my best friends Boonif wrote and produced this together, purely as a bit of fun to be honest. We were chatting all things quarantine and he said, ‘have you written a lockdown song yet?’ Which I hadn’t, and we went from there, listing off all the things we’d been doing in lockdown and were sick of. We’d both been having trouble sleeping and burning lavender oil to try and help us sleep, which is where the first lyric ‘lavender on my sheets, but I still can’t get to sleep’ came from. We really just got bored of the mundane new reality and thought ‘fuck this I’m gonna be fabulous’ – just wanted to spread some joy I think.

Were there any challenges making the song?

There are always challenges, Lockdown didn’t make things easy, and actually in the lead up to this single I’m pretty sure I had some sort of version of corona virus, was stuck in bed for 2 weeks which prolonged this song coming out… how ironic. But, in saying that, with this song in particular it really just felt like fun. We had such joy writing it, producing it, recording it, shooting the cover for it, etc. All of it just felt… really fun? I’m lucky to have that kind of team around me. I think you can hear that joy in the song.

If you could give any advice to somebody who wants to become a musician, what would it be?

I’d say trust your instincts. Take in the knowledge of those around you but also know that a gut feeling about something can be powerful as fuck and level out years of experience. Try to stay in the present – not think too much about the future, the past, or compare yourself /your progress to others around you”.

Despite the fact she has released so many terrific songs, Little Girl Gone has taken on a life of its own. It may be the song that most associate with CHINCHILLA. It is definitely one of the best songs of this year. I am keen for as many people as possible to investigate the exceptional CHINCHILLA. Why Now spoke with CHINCHILLA around the release of Little Girl Gone. A song that resonated so quickly, it shows that we have a very special artist in our midst:

“CHINCHILLA’s story, in many ways, epitomises the current climate for emerging artists. Making what she terms ‘feisty pop’ – which traverses between RnB and alt-pop and bears her signature powerful vocals – the London-based artist was previously signed to major label Sony, before the desire for greater artistic freedom proved too great.

Leaving such a backing is never easy, but the artist, writer and producer now finds herself riding a wave of support on TikTok for her latest track ‘Little Girl Gone’, which got its full release today.

With many resonating with the lyrics that tap into a feeling of “feminine rage” – generating millions of views for CHINCHILLA’s videos on the platform in the process – we speak to the artist about her present success, her tour support for McFly, and how Nicki Minaj unknowingly blessed her with her artistic moniker.

CHINCHILLA, it seems things are taking off for you right now, especially on TikTok. How’s that going?

Insane. Last year I said I was going independent and planned all these things. I didn’t have it in mind the first single would completely blow up and basically turn my life upside down. So now I’m trying to manage all the things I already had going on, which was already busy, and then do all this new stuff.

You’ve described ‘Little Girl Gone’ as a comeback song. Where have you been? And what have you been up to?

I had a while where I wasn’t really able to release any music. A lot was going on in the music industry for me, which was super shit, and it was very hard. I had a lot of times when I thought I couldn’t do it anymore, I was really down. The music industry’s hard enough for an artist to break through when you’re doing well. I split with, and lost, a lot of my team, and a lot of my support, and was going through a lot of legal stuff. It’s very hard to be motivated and write your best music when you’re feeling so low.

Then I found anger, which was the next stage. So that’s why I call this my comeback single. This is a really new era for me, and I feel more empowered than I’ve ever felt, especially within the music industry. It’s so nice this song has done well. I love the song, but never expected this kind of reaction.

Does it feel like a vindication in your decision to go independent?

I think it does. And that’s not to say I won’t work with teams of people again, in terms of management and label. But now I’m in a position where I know I can do this myself better than with anyone else. It’s proven that doing this by myself for a bit, and finding that empowerment, being a one-man band, has done the best for me. So if I’m going to bring anyone else on my team, it needs to be people who are enthusiastic; I don’t have the time or energy to be making anyone else feel that about my project – otherwise I’ll do it by myself.

Do you feel part of a community – that “female rage community”, as you put it – trying to turn the tide on all of that?

Definitely. I feel like it’s always been in me, that’s why the people this track has reached couldn’t be a better group of people. That’s the underlying theme of all my songs: some sort of empowerment. Every time I write a ballad, I never want to feel sorry for myself. If someone suggests a lyric in a co-writing session, I’ll say if I don’t like it. Or if it’s too based on another person, I’ll try and make it say something more about me. I think it’s in my DNA that I have this female empowerment thing in my in my bones. I just love boss women.

Why the name, CHINCHILLA?

It’s funny – I don’t have a very good story for this – but I was choosing between names. I always used to wear big faux fur coats, and I have my nails that are usually long. I loved the sound of the word, and always came back to it. I was picking between a couple names in an Uber, because I felt I really needed to pick one at that stage. A Nicki Minaj song was playing; I just wanted a sign and then she said ‘Chinchilla’ in the song [‘Letcha Go’], as I was thinking it”.

I am going to wrap up very soon. There are a couple of other interviews that I want to get to. Spindle celebrated Little Girl Gone – declaring this a new era for a wonderful artist. The incredible Moon Maintenance for Dummies was released in 2021. A brilliant E.P., it further cemented the fact that CHINCHILLA is an artist with a massive future. Despite the fact she is not a ‘rising’ artist as such, she is someone who has not reached all ears yet. I wanted to concentrate on her, because I think that she is on the cusp of something amazing:

“It’s been a couple years since your last EP, ‘Moon Maintenance For Dummies.’ How do you feel you’ve changed as an artist in the last two years?

I think I just feel like this is a big comeback. I feel different in myself; I don’t feel desperate for the music industry’s approval anymore, I just want to make music that I love and that the people who listen to it would love. I feel more connected to the people who listen to my music than ever. And I just feel proud of myself, I’ve really worked on myself and I’m protecting this energy.

You’ve had a pretty amazing journey so far from supporting legends like Sting and McFly, and playing the main stage at Isle of Wight Festival — do you have any goals you’d like to achieve, either in the near future or in general?

I have so many, I have them all written out in a book which no one will find! They say to keep your goals to yourself… right?

Let’s take it back to the beginning — have you always been drawn towards making music? What were your influences growing up?

Definitely, yeah, I loved huge female powerhouses like Beyoncé, Janis Joplin, Christina Aguilera, Aretha Franklin. Big voices I always looked up to and specifically in big boss women. I also always loved the creative artistry of everything, like Katy Perry and the candy cane worlds she made, Paloma Faith’s stage shows, and Lady Gaga’s red carpet looks. I just love breaking rules and getting creative with stuff. Recently I really love Ashnikko, Lil Nas X, and Raye – people who are doing something a bit different and creating their own worlds…

You have such a unique and distinct style, both sonically and also with your outfits. Do you have any major style inspirations, and have you always had an interest in fashion as well as music?

I’ve always loved fashion, yes, I think it’s the only other thing I can think of that I’d do if I didn’t do music. I love a glue gun, and I love making my own hats and things. I really like drawing inspiration from different places like steam punk, the artful dodger (form Oliver!), Willy Wonka, the mad hatter, to Prince to, Rihanna to Helena Bonham Carter! I really like grabbing inspiration from everywhere”.

I am going to finish with another interview around the release of Little Girl Gone. Headliner Magazine chatted with the remarkable CHINCHILLA about a smasher of a single. We also learn more about an artist that people seriously need to follow and show some love for. There is nobody quite like her on the scene at the moment:

“Accent aside, her self-deprecating sense of humour (and choice use of F-bombs) immediately gives away she’s a Brit, although a lot of people assume she’s from the US. Maybe it’s her big hat energy, or the sheer bravado, Headliner suggests?

“Everyone keeps saying this,” she says, delighted. “I’m kind of loving it, I’m not gonna lie. I quite like being this enigma. But yeah, I'm totally British,” she grins.

‘The CHIN’ – as she calls herself – has been releasing music for years, but something hit different with this comeback song, which lands like a gut punch thanks to lyrics which are literally screamed into your ears: ‘Say that again, I didn't quite hear you / Messed with the wrong bitch in the wrong era / I been at work and I got my badge of honour / Honey, I've changed so much since I last saw you.’

The empowering song spits out all the words CHINCHILLA has been bottling up after having it up to here with people-pleasing and being underestimated. She says it’s the most ‘me’ song she’s ever written. It’s pure, feral venom – (‘I like your blood on my teeth just a little too much / So bite me, slap me round the face / Now I'm twisting your arm 'til I hear it break’) – “I didn’t want the lyrics to be glamorous, I wanted to draw up chaos,” she explains.

 I've never had a response or reaction like I’ve had to this song.

Aside from being an absolute banger, Little Girl Gone is a call to arms. It’s a war cry for the broken, the abused, the downtrodden and those fed up of being told to smile.

It’s for every woman who’s had to bite her tongue after being talked down to or underestimated, had to make an excuse after a new bruise appears, for everyone who walked away humiliated after not standing up for themself who wins a new version of the argument in their head later on. People will be screaming this in their cars at full volume after a bad day at work. Forget sad girl music, Little Girl Gone is where to go to channel your rage.

“I write a lot of songs, and every song that I've put out into the world, I'm obsessed with, otherwise I wouldn't have put it out,” says CHINCHILLA.

“So I feel that every song I write has the potential to do really well. Some will do better than others, but I've never had a response or reaction like I’ve had to this song. When I wrote it, my mind was blown and I loved it instantly.

"I was dancing down the street to it on the way home from the session – I don't do that,” she stresses, explaining that the music video immediately came to life as she was getting the words down.

 “I could see the music video in the session,” she nods. “I was writing the song and also writing the music video concept – literally storyboarding the music video while I was not even finished writing the song. I had two documents open on my laptop: one for the music video, one for the song,” she laughs.

“I felt like this song was a bit different. You always hope that it's going to have the reaction that you want it to have, but it's mind blowing what's happened with it?” She poses this as a question rather than a statement, as if at any moment the song’s trajectory could be revealed to be an elaborate hoax.

TikTok exists in its own social media bubble; does CHINCHILLA worry that people will only show her love in the app?

“Yeah, definitely,” she admits. “It can happen where people love the song, but it doesn't go as far as loving the artists. I think because I have a big image, people bought into that, which I'm so grateful for. I think people can see me as an artist, and not just for one song.

"There's also a lot of personality in the song, and people resonate with that – it makes them feel authentic, raw emotions. I was worried about it getting the same kind of numbers on Spotify, but then I was also kind of confident because I really think that people would want to listen to this song. I don't think it's just a TikTok fad, but you never know,” she shrugs.

It isn’t. CHINCHILLA has already been contacted by fellow artists – “musicians that I love are contacting me, there’s some crazy names being thrown around and I've been in some really exciting sessions,” – and she’s just announced a headline show in London this summer, where fans are encouraged to wear their finest hats.

And on those hats, which are as big of a statement as her all-caps name and unapologetic CHIN ethos. CHINCHILLA is not only self-styled, as an independent artist she self-funded Little Girl Gone and its ass-kicking music video.

“I did have a terrible year last year in the music industry,” she shares. “I split with my management, I split with my label. It was very hard to work out my path. I decided to go independent and just went into turbo. I needed to do the independent thing for a bit. I needed to do this myself.

"It really changed me; I made a switch that was basically, ‘I'm not doing this for the music industry's approval anymore.’”

She explains: “I had tons of meetings with new managers last year and I felt so susceptible to being told, ‘This is a hit. This isn't a hit. This strategy won't work. This strategy will work. You can't be too personable, but you can't be too standoffish. You can't show too much of yourself on social media, but you have to show loads of yourself on social media”.

Go and follow the one and only CHINCHILLA. Daisy Bertenshaw has created this wonderful musical persona that is responsible for music that has changed people’s lives. I am excited to see where she goes next. I know there will be an announcement soon enough when it comes to future plans. Championed as a major talent, there is no denying the brilliance of CHINCHILLA. Make sure that you go and check her music out…

WITHOUT hesitation.

______________

Follow CHINCHILLA

FEATURE: Kate Bush: The Deep Cuts: Heads We’re Dancing

FEATURE:

 

 

Kate Bush: The Deep Cuts

PHOTO CREDIT: Guido Harari

 

Heads We’re Dancing

_________

I have written about….

 IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush during the photoshoot for The Sensual World’s cover/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

this amazing and underrated Kate Bush track before. I am revisiting it, as it is relevant and related to the new Christopher Nolan film, Oppenheimer. With J. Robert Oppenheimer inspiring Bush’s Heads We’re Dancing, it is a good time to come back to an amazing, imaginative and compelling song I don’t think I have ever heard on the radio. Featuring on her 1989 album, The Sensual World, Heads We’re Dancing is a song that everyone should hear. Thanks to the Kate Bush Encyclopedia, we get Bush discussing the inspiration behind Heads We’re Dancing:

“That's a very dark song, not funny at all! (...) I wrote the song two years ago, and in lots of ways I wouldn't write a song like it now. I'd really hate it if people were offended by this...But it was all started by a family friend, years ago, who'd been to dinner and sat next to this guy who was really fascinating, so charming. They sat all night chatting and joking. And next day he found out it was Oppenheimer. And this friend was horrified because he really despised what the guy stood for. I understood the reaction, but I felt a bit sorry for Oppenheimer. He tried to live with what he'd done, and actually, I think, committed suicide. But I was so intrigued by this idea of my friend being so taken by this person until they knew who they were, and then it completely changing their attitude. So I was thinking, what if you met the Devil? The Ultimate One: charming, elegant, well spoken. Then it turned into this whole idea of a girl being at a dance and this guy coming up, cocky and charming, and she dances with him. Then a couple of days later she sees in the paper that it was Hitler. Complete horror: she was that close, perhaps could've changed history. Hitler was very attractive to women because he was such a powerful figure, yet such an evil guy. I'd hate to feel I was glorifying the situation, but I do know that whereas in a piece of film it would be quite acceptable, in a song it's a little bit sensitive. (Len Brown, 'In the Realm of the Senses'. NME (UK), 7 October 1989)

It's a very dark idea, but it's the idea of this girl who goes to a big ball; very expensive, romantic, exciting, and it's 1939, before the war starts. And this guy, very charming, very sweet-spoken, comes up and asks her to dance but he does it by throwing a coin and he says, ``If the coin lands with heads facing up, then we dance!'' Even that's a very attractive 'come on', isn't it? And the idea is that she enjoys his company and dances with him and, days later, she sees in the paper who it is, and she is hit with this absolute horror - absolute horror. What could be worse? To have been so close to the man... she could have tried to kill him... she could have tried to change history, had she known at that point what was actually happening. And I think Hitler is a person who fooled so many people. He fooled nations of people. And I don't think you can blame those people for being fooled, and maybe it's these very charming people... maybe evil is not always in the guise you expect it to be. (Roger Scott, BBC Radio 1, 14 October 1989)

Like Mick Karn's bass on 'Heads We're Dancing' puts such a different feel to the song. I was really impressed with Mick - his energy. He's very distinctive - so many people admire him because he stays in that unorthodox area, he doesn't come into the commercial world - he just does his thing. (Tony Horkins, 'What Katie Did Next'. International Musician, December 1989)”.

A song that ends the first side of The Sensual World, I wonder whether many Kate Bush fans know about Heads We’re Dancing. Because of its Oppenheimer links, I am curious whether Christopher Nolan knew about the song and would have used it on the soundtrack. In any case, it is one of those songs that only Kate Bush could have written! That idea of dancing with evil and not being aware of it. Rather than it being a historical fantasy (or nightmare), I have always felt it relates more to curt governments and regimes. The fact that you do almost blindly go into their arms and are then caught aware. With a beautiful composition featuring cello from Jonathan Williams, viola from Nigel Kennedy, and orchestral arrangement from Michael Kamen, we get something lush, sweeping and tender in equal measures. Whereas Bush based the song on an experience of someone dancing with J. Robert Oppenheimer and not knowing who he was, she used Adolf Hitler as the central figure in her masterful 1989 tracks. Some of the lyrics put you right in the song: “You talked me into the game of chance/It was '39, before the music started/When you walked up to me and you said/"Hey, heads we dance."/Well, I didn't know who you were/Until I saw the morning paper/There was a picture of you/A picture of you 'cross the front page/It looked just like you, just like you in every way/But it couldn't be true/It couldn't be true/You stepped out of a stranger”. A gorgeous track from the truly remarkable Kate Bush, I thoroughly recommend people check out this deep cut. It really does deserve to be…

KNOWN far and wide.

FEATURE: A Modern-Day Icon: Greta Gerwig: Celebrating a Phenomenal and Inspiring Filmmaker

FEATURE:

 

 

A Modern-Day Icon

PHOTO CREDIT: Jody Rogac/Trunk Archive

 

Greta Gerwig: Celebrating a Phenomenal and Inspiring Filmmaker

_________

APOLOGIES if this….

 PHOTO CREDIT: Clement Pascal for The New York Times

is a return to film. I sort of said I would step away from non-music stuff for a bit. I did not know that it was Greta Gerwig fortieth birthday tomorrow (4th August). It seems timely going back to her and one more celebration of Barbie. There is news to share about that, an interview regarding the film I will share. I will not source interviews relating to all of her films, but I want to spend a bit of time with 2017’s Lady Bird. Barbie is her most recent film, though she has co-written the screenplay for an adaptation for Snow White, slated to arrive next year. I do wonder whether there will be a Barbie follow-up. It is interesting to see which way her career will go. If Gerwig wants to return to Indie films or is interesting in making bigger-budget pictures. I am going to come to interview soon. Before that, here is some brief Wikipedia biography – just to give you an overview of Greta Gerwig and her incredible success and influence:

“Greta Celeste Gerwig (/ˈɡɜːrwɪɡ/; born August 4, 1983) is an American actress, screenwriter, and director. She first garnered attention after working on and appearing in several mumblecore movies. Between 2006 and 2009, she appeared in a number of films by Joe Swanberg, some of which she co-wrote or co-directed, including Hannah Takes the Stairs (2007) and Nights and Weekends (2008).

PHOTO CREDIT: Leeor Wild/The Observer

Gerwig collaborated with her partner Noah Baumbach on several films, including Greenberg (2010) and Frances Ha (2012), for which she received a Golden Globe Award nomination, Mistress America (2015), and White Noise (2022). She also appeared in Woody Allen's To Rome with Love (2012), Rebecca Miller's Maggie's Plan (2015), Pablo Larraín's Jackie (2016), Mike Mills' 20th Century Women (2016), and Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs (2018).

As a solo filmmaker, Gerwig has written and directed the coming-of-age films Lady Bird (2017) and Little Women (2019), both of which earned nominations for the Academy Award for Best Picture. For the former, she received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, and for the latter, she was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay. Gerwig was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world in 2018. Her third directorial production, the fantasy comedy Barbie, which she co-wrote with Baumbach, was released in 2023 to critical acclaim and box office success, becoming the biggest debut in history for a film directed by a woman”.

Lady Bird is the first film of Greta Gerwig’s that I saw. Marking her out as a hugely influential filmmaker, it starred the magnificent Saoirse Ronan as the titular lead. A huge box office success (it made nearly $80 million), Gerwig was nominated for two Academy Awards – for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. One of only a few women who had been nominated as Best Director at the Oscars, Lady Bird was also up for Best Actress for Ronan, and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Laurie Metcalf. It is a huge oversight that it went away empty-handed! Considered one of the best films of the 2010s, it is a masterpiece that showed just how inspiring and truly phenomenal Gerwig is as a writer and director. She had written and directing a lot before, but this was the first major feature I guess. The breakthrough as it were. I admire hugely filmmakers who are also distinct and successful actors. Greta Gerwig has appeared in a lot of wonderful films – including recent 2018’s Isle of Dogs and 2022’s White Noise. I want to get to the first of a couple of interviews related to Lady Bird. Variety chatted with Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan in 2018 about how they found the voice of Lady Bird:

“Fusing their voices and talent, “Lady Bird” represents a seminal moment in the careers of Gerwig, the mumblecore actress-turned-indie It Girl-turned-screenwriter-turned-director, and Ronan, the 23-year-old Irish-American star whose performance has made her an Oscar front-runner for best actress.

This is the first movie Gerwig has written and directed, and just as she has emerged from the indie world, at 34, as a titanic filmmaking talent, Ronan, after a series of highly revered performances, raises her game to a new peak of emotional purity. There have, of course, been plenty of acerbic hipster high-school girls in movies, but none with this popping-off-the-screen intensity of searching, stubborn passion.

Ronan, as a stringy-red-haired parochial-school semi-misfit named Lady Bird (née Christine McPherson), occupies the furious center of a movie that looks outwardly small-scale. Yet “Lady Bird” possesses an uncanny quality, one that you saw in the New Hollywood films of the ’70s and the indie classics of the ’90s. It has a powerfully distinctive voice — bold, darting, sneaky and new.

Gerwig calls Lady Bird a character who makes no apologies. “She’s a young woman who’s able to stand inside her own desires,” she says. “She is lustful; she wants things. Not to get too gender studies about it, but she’s not waiting for anyone to look at her. She’s the person doing the looking.”

There’s a way to read the current moment that connects “Lady Bird” to a new world of opportunity for women filmmakers. Gerwig came of age admiring directors like Claire Denis, Agnès Varda (Gerwig on Varda: “You’re just as good as Truffaut, or Godard, or your husband!”) and Kathryn Bigelow (when she won the Oscar for director, it said to Gerwig, “This is a job available, to you”). And in a year ruled by the pop gender explosion of Patty Jenkins’ superheroine blockbuster “Wonder Woman,” and one that has ended with nothing less than a paradigm shift in the issue of sexual harassment, “there’s something coalescing,” says Gerwig. “Every year they come out with the numbers. You know, out of the top 100 films, by gross, 4% are directed by women. I think those numbers are going to shift. And it seems like it’s going to be less and less its own category. There are just going to be … directors.”

In the two months since “Lady Bird” was released by A24, the indie maverick behind 2016’s Oscar-winning “Moonlight,” Gerwig’s film has become the rare independent feature that’s a crossover hit ($30 million and counting), a critical darling (99% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and a major awards player. Showered with praise from critics groups, and with four Golden Globe and three SAG Award nominations, the film is now being talked about as a serious contender for best picture at the Academy Awards. Yet what all the success adds up to — and can’t entirely measure — is that “Lady Bird” has become a touchstone, a generational movie landmark hailed for its declaration of a bold new way of seeing.

“I’ve had girls, really smart girls, come up to me, and they’re so excited that they’ve finally got their movie,” says Ronan. “A lot of them say, ‘That was me! I was Lady Bird.’ The film has actually made them understand that whole period a bit more. You feel like it’s almost a photo album you’re looking back on.”

Gerwig has always wanted to direct movies, going back to when she got her start in indie films like “Hannah Takes the Stairs” (2007), which were openly collective efforts. “When I was acting in those little movies,” she recalls, “I was also able to write while I was acting, because we had the characters and the plot devised, and we were speaking improvisationally. It felt like a way of sort of testing what worked as a writer.”

She didn’t dive headfirst into screenwriting until the two films that she co-wrote with her partner, the filmmaker Noah Baumbach. The first, “Frances Ha” (2012), is a remarkable little movie, and watching it you can see the formative stage of the Gerwig aesthetic: It, too, is a film that finds its truth in the flow of moments.

Gerwig constructs her scripts that way, but it’s more than a matter of stringing together anecdotes. “It almost feels like weaving,” she says. “I’ll put everything out in front of me when I’m writing, and I’ll almost arrange it like a quilt. And I feel like I’m pulling things through. As you move from moment to moment, it doesn’t feel like anything’s signposted for you, but a third of the way through you realize it’s starting to catch under you”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Norman Jean Roy

Even though it is paywalled and it is a very long interview – it should be made free, as it is essential reading, but I can understand why they want to monetise it -, Vulture’s in-depth chat with Greta Gerwig from 2017 is really revealing and deep. There is more about Lady Bird but, as we look ahead to tomorrow and her fortieth birthday, the interview takes us back to her teenage years and young adult life. I will get to that part, but I was particularly struck too by the first part of the interview:

“Dave Matthews Band is generally not considered cool anymore. Almost certainly, it never was in the downtown New York world of which the actress and writer Greta Gerwig has become a cool-girl-real-girl avatar in recent years. But in a time and place (America’s vast, yearning middle-class suburbs, in the cultural desert of the Clinton and early Bush years) and to a certain kind of person (such as a teenager aching for the jazz-adjacent cred that jam-band fandom could provide but more comfortable with white ball caps and lacrosse than ponchos and hallucinogens), Dave Matthews Band was Bob Dylan in Greenwich Village in 1966. And so there is a crucial moment in Lady Bird, Gerwig’s solo directorial debut, in which the title character, a Sacramento high-school senior in 2003, confronts the cruelest heartbreak imaginable to her by blasting the band’s ballad “Crash Into Me”: “Sweet like candy to my soul / Sweet you rock and sweet you roll.” The result is both sympathetic, and very funny.

“There was no other song it ever was going to be,” Gerwig said. “In preproduction, I realized I didn’t know what I was going to do if Dave said no [to its use]. I wrote him a letter. ‘Dear Mr. Dave Matthews … ’ ”

Gerwig was sitting at a small corner table near the window at Morandi in the West Village, not far from where she lives with the filmmaker Noah Baumbach. “I thought it was a really romantic song when I was a teenager. I would listen to it on repeat on a yellow CD player,” she said. “I couldn’t imagine a world in which a guy would feel that way about me.”

Maybe it was because of her sexy dirndl skirt of a name, maybe because of her squinting physical resemblance to indie Gen-X avatar Chloë Sevigny, maybe simply because of her distinctive delivery. But since the very beginning of Gerwig’s career, she has been a generational lightning rod of sorts. As what the New York Observer once called “the Meryl Streep of mumblecore” — the hyperlow-budget late-aughts movie movement led by directors like Joe Swanberg and the Duplass brothers — Gerwig was near-instantly labeled an “It” girl and invested with all sorts of theories about what her success and acting style meant. Her brand of hipness was confusing — was she really that earnest? Were they all that earnest? How could that possibly be cool? Critics, especially those of an older generation, were suspicious.

When Gerwig was young, her parents made a point of taking her to local Sacramento theater — she proudly ticks off the names of the companies, and the playwrights whose work they put on, and even the directors. At Barnard, where she studied playwriting, she became a Kim’s Video devotee, methodically working her way through the director-organized shelves. (It was Claire Denis’s film Beau Travail, she said, that made her shift her focus from theater to movies.) She rejected traditional paths like law and medicine. “Chekhov was a country doctor, spent all his time with people and in their homes. I was like, Well, that’s good, and then I was like, Well, I’m not interested in it, and also I don’t like blood, and there are no country doctors anymore,” she said. “The idea that I would become a doctor to become more like Chekhov is a pretty circular route.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Norman Jean Roy

After college, Gerwig lived all over Brooklyn — East Williamsburg, Prospect Heights, deep Park Slope, or “Park Slide,” as she says fondly. She had odd jobs, including at the Box, the Lower East Side cabaret, and began working with Swanberg, whom she had met through a college boyfriend and who was making interesting movies that were unlike anything that had been done before, for almost no money.

Mumblecore was a big deal, for a small movement, in part for what it seemed to reveal about a certain slice of young, college-educated, mostly white people trying to figure out how they related to the world. It was hailed in the Times as something that “bespeaks a true 21st-century sensibility, reflective of MySpace-like social networks and the voyeurism and intimacy of YouTube. It also signals a paradigm shift in how movies are made and how they find an audience.”

Gerwig now physically cringes at the mere mention of the word mumblecore. “I just hate it,” she said. “It feels like a slight every time I hear it. Because of the improvisational quality of those movies, and the fact that everyone was nonprofessional, I have had a bit of an uphill battle just to say ‘I know how to act.’ I didn’t stumble into this. I wasn’t just a kid.” But she credits her roles in those films — Nights and Weekends, Hannah Takes the Stairs, Baghead — with helping teach her to write. “We called them ‘devised films,’ because we’d know the characters and what was supposed to happen in the scenes but not the words. It was a way of writing while I was acting.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Norman Jean Roy

It was also that set of films — which made a bigger splash in the indie-movie scene than in the culture at large — that put her on Baumbach’s radar. (He actually recommended her to his agent before the two had ever met.) When Baumbach cast her in 2010’s Greenberg, released when she was 26, it was her big break. Shortly after he divorced his wife, the actress Jennifer Jason Leigh (Gerwig had trained for the role, in part, by working as an assistant to Leigh’s mother), the two began their romance. Baumbach and Gerwig turned an email correspondence into a project: The duo co-wrote Frances Ha and Mistress America, both starring Gerwig and both markedly sweeter than anything Baumbach had worked on in the past. “I liked what she was writing so much that it made me work harder with my own to impress her,” Baumbach said.

This collaboration led to a spate of headlines referring to Gerwig not as a partner on the works but as their muse. “The actress Greta Gerwig has had the same liberating effect on Noah Baumbach as Diane Keaton had on Woody Allen: she has opened him up, lending his films a giddy sense of release,” went one typical summation in the Economist.

“I did not love being called a muse,” said Gerwig bluntly. “I didn’t want to be strident about it or say, ‘Hey, give me my due,’ but I did feel like I wasn’t a bystander. It was half-mine, and so that part was difficult. Also I knew secretly that I was engaged with this longer project, and wanted to be a writer and director in my own right, so I felt like the muse business, or whatever it was, was a position that I didn’t identify with in my heart. But I think one thing I learned early because of the group of movies that are called mumblecore” — she slowed down, a little archly, over the word, to acknowledge again her discomfort with it — “is not to attach too much to the moment you’re living through from a press perspective. I also had this sense of, Well, they’ll just eat their hat one day”.

I might wrap up with songs from Greta Gerwig’s films (ones she has written and/or directed). There are a few Barbie bits that I want to continue with. I will start with an interview that I sourced a couple of times when I was concentrating on Barbie and the buzz around it. Rolling Stone’s incredible interview takes us inside a box office-busting film that must rank alongside the best of the past decade. It is certainly one of the funniest and most important (and discussed/dissected) of the past decade or two:

“Well before Barbie, Gerwig had one of the most fascinating careers in 21st-century Hollywood. First, she brought a new kind of daffy comedic naturalism to screen acting, from early mumblecore triumphs like Hannah Takes the Stairs to a string of brilliant collaborations with her partner, Noah Baumbach, including Greenberg, Frances Ha, and Mistress America. She co-wrote the last two movies before shifting gears to auteurdom in 2017, writing and directing the exquisite coming-of-age comedy Lady Bird, and 2019’s revisionist take on Little Women.

Barbie, which stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling (and was co-written with Baumbach), is her biggest and most mainstream project. But she insists it doesn’t feel that way. “I’ve never been part of anything like this,” she says. “But in a funny way, it feels like the fundamentals are the same. Even though it is Barbie and it is an internationally known brand, the movie feels very personal. It feels just as intimate as Lady Bird or Little Women.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Ellen Fedors for Rolling Stone

I know you tend to resist autobiographical interpretations, but when Barbie says, “I don’t wanna be an idea anymore,” something about that really reminded me of your transition from a much-discussed actress to a writer-director.

You know what? It’s so funny. That did not occur to me at all. But now that you say it, of course! When you’re directing something, you have to be a bit stupid about yourself, or a little bit unconscious. And, yes, you’re totally right. And also, I had no idea. But that’s true. It’s completely true.

There are things like I grew up in Sacramento, and Ladybird takes place in Sacramento. But so many of the things that are personal that come through your movies are never the things that are the most obvious to you. The things where you really feel unconsciously seen are things like that, where you realize, “Oh, man, I didn’t hide anywhere.” And that’s always part of the joy of making art for people, is sometimes they understand it more than you do, which is unsettling.

Sorry!

No, but it’s good.

How did you come to decide on Barbie’s arc in the movie?

I hope two things made that journey feel surprising but inevitable. I started from this idea of Barbieland, this place with no death, no aging, no decay, no pain, no shame. We know the story. We’ve heard this story. This is an old story. It’s in a lot of religious literature. What happens to that person? They have to leave. And they have to confront all the things that were shielded from them in this place. So that felt like one thing.

There’s a lovely scene where Barbie sees an older woman — a sight she’d never encountered in Barbieland — and tells her she’s beautiful.

I love that scene so much. And the older woman on the bench is the costume designer Ann Roth. She’s a legend. It’s a cul-de-sac of a moment, in a way — it doesn’t lead anywhere. And in early cuts, looking at the movie, it was suggested, “Well, you could cut it. And actually, the story would move on just the same.” And I said, “If I cut the scene, I don’t know what this movie is about.”

The feminism in this film comes out so naturally, just by placing Barbie and Ken in the real world. It starts the moment they arrive in Venice Beach. Ken feels that people are suddenly looking at him with respect, and Barbie doesn’t have the words for it, but she feels she’s being objectified. Did that flow out as naturally as it seems?

I think of the film as humanist above anything else. How Barbie operates in Barbieland is she’s entirely continuous with her environment. Even the houses have no walls, because you never need to hide because there’s nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed of. And suddenly finding yourself in the real world and wishing you could hide, that’s the essence of being human. But when we were actually shooting on Venice Beach, with Margot and Ryan in neon rollerblading outfits, it was fascinating because it was actually happening in front of us. People would go by Ryan, high-five him, and say, “Awesome, Ryan, you look great!” And they wouldn’t actually say anything to Margot. They’d just look at her. It was just surreal. In that moment, she did feel self-conscious. And as the director, I wanted to protect her. But I also knew that the scene we were shooting had to be the scene where she felt exposed. And she was exposed, both as a celebrity and as a lady. To be fair, Ryan was like, “I wish I wasn’t wearing this vest.” [Laughs.] But it was a different kind of discomfort.

When I hear you use the word “humanist,” I feel like I need to gently push back on behalf of the fans who are going to love this movie and perceive its message as unabashedly feminist.

Of course, I am a feminist. But this movie is also dealing with [the idea that] any kind of hierarchical power structure that moves in any direction isn’t so great. You go to Mattel and it is really like, “Oh, Barbie has been president since 1991. Barbie had gone to the moon before women could get credit cards.” We kind of extrapolated out from that that Barbieland is this reversed world [where Barbies rule and Kens are an underclass]. The reverse structure of whatever Barbieland is, is almost like Planet of the Apes. You can see how unfair this is for the Kens because it’s totally unsustainable”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Greta Gerwig had the cast and crew of Lady Bird wear name tags to create a warm atmosphere on set/PHOTO CREDIT: A24 via TIME

Before wrapping up, there are a couple of other articles I want to put in here. I will also drop in videos of interviews with Greta Gerwig, as I want to give you a big and wide an impression as I can – even if I am scratching the surface here. The Atlantic is the next interview that I will come to. You do not often get films where people dress up (in pink for Barbie, of course!). There is this whole scene and world. One of the most-discussed and people-connecting films of this generation, it is no wonder Barbie became the first studio comedy to gross more than $100 million in its first weekend, as well as scoring the highest opening in North America ever for a female director:

“Shirley Li: There are big ideas in this Barbie movie about self-worth and how what we consume—or play with, in the case of dolls—affects who we become. I noticed a little girl at my screening asking lots of questions during the film; she seemed a bit confused by the headier themes but was having a good time, especially when the dolls sang and danced. So I’m curious: When you and Noah were writing the film, who did you picture as your viewer?

Greta Gerwig: I don’t really have a strong sense of, Here’s stuff for kids; here’s stuff for adults. I know there’s stuff that is more heady, but when I look back at my viewing experiences as a kid, it was often the things that were just beyond me that were the most compelling, because they felt like a little window into a world that I was emerging into.

Li: Like what?

Gerwig: This is a very strange, very specific memory, but when I was 5, my dad was working in New York, and my mom and I got rush tickets to Gypsy. I didn’t understand most of it, but when Gypsy is performing in a burlesque club, there are these strippers wearing old-timey stripper outfits with sparkles, and I loved it. I didn’t understand half of what had gone on, but we got one of those big commemorative books, and I remember just studying the pages where all the strippers were, because I thought they were so beautiful. I didn’t have any sense of them being objectified. I just loved that they wore these beautiful, glittery outfits and big headdresses. There’s probably a ton of memories I have like that.

Li: Lady Bird is based on your own experiences, Little Women is a book you loved growing up, and you played with Barbies when you were young. Has using your films to revisit the touchstones of childhood been an intentional choice for you?

Gerwig: Honestly, it’s something that’s been somewhat hidden from me in the making of them, because on the surface they look so different. But now that I’m through this one, I can see that they’re all circling this idea. [Laughs.] You’re interested in what you’re interested in, and I’m interested in women. But I also think—and this sounds kind of silly—one of my obsessions, as it were, is that I truly kind of can’t believe that we live in linear time. [Laughs.] It’s a shocker. Obviously, when you have a kid, you’re extremely connected to that, but you can be connected to it within your life as well. 

And I think that in trying to pull it together and understand where you are and where you’ve been, there’s always an ache in it. Clearly that was the way in which I approached adapting Little Women, because I saw the characters as adults, suddenly, in a way that I had never seen them when I was young. And with Lady Bird, it’s a story with a high-school student, and there are certain things that you feel it’s important to hit, like the prom, but actually it’s about your mother, and your leaving. It’s something I return to because cinema is inherently a time capsule anyway, so it already deals in time. It’s what I’m intellectually and artistically interested in, and the medium itself seems to have that already embedded in it.

Li: This is such a massive movie, and it’s a high-pressure moment in your career. You hold a lot of power as a filmmaker now, and I have to ask, what do you intend to do with it?

Gerwig: [Laughs.] What do I intend? Being a filmmaker is an amazing thing, because movies are hard, and you’ll never really get on top of the mountain. Because whatever you’re making next, you haven’t made—so then you’re going to learn what you don’t know about this movie, you know? It’s difficult, and that’s part of the appeal. But then, also, you’re only going to make a movie, if you’re lucky, once every two, three, four years. So if you start doing the math of a life, you realize, What am I going to do, make 15 movies? You know, not too many. But if I’m lucky, I can get to a life that will feel as meaningful as anything I could hope to do. I do want to make movies in my 60s and my 70s, and God willing, maybe I’ll make some extremely strange ones in my 80s.

Li: Now that you’ve done the big-budget studio tentpole, how do you envision your storytelling evolving? I imagine that you haven’t always been doing the math of a life.

Gerwig: I want to be able to make movies at all scales. I like having the skill set to make something tiny, and I like having the skills to paint with the biggest brushes. It’s always about what’s going to give you the most freedom creatively, and that can mean different things”.

Let’s finish things off. A very happy fortieth birthday to Greta Gerwig for tomorrow. I know it is uncouth and a little ungentlemanlike to mention her age, but it is a milestone. I do the same for artists, because you get a sense of how far they have come in that time. As Gerwig approaches her fifth decade of life, she will be looking at new opportunities. Now considered one of the most talented and distinct directors and writers (and actors) around, I guess some future plans might be impacted by the writers’ and actors’ strike in Hollywood. It is a shame that Gerwig cannot instantly build on the momentum of Barbie. Let’s hope things are resolved soon. On 25th July, The New York Times published an interview with Greta Gerwig. They asked her about the early success and box office receipts of a film that has been on everyone’s mind. It is obvious, after Lady Bird and Little Women, this will be Gerwig’s third film in a row (as writer and/or director) that is going to be nominated for Oscars:

“You just had one of the most consequential weekends of your life. How are you feeling?

I’m so grateful. I’m so amazed. I’m at a loss for words, really. I’ve been in New York City and spent Thursday and Friday just spot-checking different theaters, listening to the levels and making sure the picture looked nice and trying to relinquish control, which is difficult. But honestly, it’s been amazing to walk around and see people in pink. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine something like this. It’s just … it’s … sorry, I’m just disintegrating into noises.

What specific things helped you get a grasp on how much the film was resonating?

I think part of the reason I was so fixated on volume levels was because it was a thing I could concentrate on. But mostly, it’s been running into people on the street who are excited and happy and exuberant, because so much of this movie was an attempt to create something that people would want to experience together. So it’s the little things.

My producer David Heyman sent me an email from someone who lives in a tiny Scottish town, and there’s a movie theater there that has been struggling, and they had sold-out shows all weekend for “Barbie.” He was like, “The town is showing up!” And my brother and his sons and his wife all went in Sacramento and sent a picture, then they sent a text saying their oldest son was going back the next day with his friends. These 15- or 16-year-old boys from Sacramento are sending me texts saying, “It was great! We loved the Porsche joke!” Those are the things that feel so amazing. I’ve never quite had anything like this.

The thing I keep hearing from people in Hollywood is “I don’t know how she got away with it.” When a theatrically released movie is made at this budget level, anything idiosyncratic or challenging often gets whittled down by studio notes. How were you able to preserve your sensibility the whole way through this process?

I was originally meant to just write it with Noah, and then we finished the script and that was the thing that made me want to direct it. It felt so clear to me: If they didn’t want to make that [version], I didn’t need to make it. Margot, as the producer and star, was really the first person to line up and say, “I want to do it her way.” And then as we started adding collaborators and gathering more cast, suddenly there was a large number of people who were excited to do something that was this, excuse the pun, out of the box.

Part of me thinks that because it was all so idiosyncratic and so wild, it was almost like no one really knew where to start taking it apart. Like, where are you going to start hacking away at how strange it was? Maybe because there was this sense of sheer joy behind it, it was this hard thing to say, “Oh no, we don’t want that thing that’s sheer joy.” People wanted it to exist, in all its weirdness.

In your mind, is this movie the start of a franchise, or do you feel “Barbie” is a complete story with a definitive ending?

At this moment, it’s all I’ve got. I feel like that at the end of every movie, like I’ll never have another idea and everything I’ve ever wanted to do, I did. I wouldn’t want to squash anybody else’s dream but for me, at this moment, I’m at totally zero”.

A very happy birthday to Greta Gerwig! It is a good reason to celebrate someone who has helped create one of the best films I have ever seen. It brought people together, led to these conversations about feminism and the patriarchy and, more than that, it highlighted the incredible talent and visionary mind of Greta Gerwig. The Sacramento-born, New York-based writer, actor and director is going to be giving the world outstanding films for decades more. From her T.V. and film acting roles to her directing and writing, there is a very distinct Greta Gerwig style and feel. She puts so much character, intelligence, humour and, when required, emotion, into her work. It has been a pleasure, for the last time for a little while, to salute…

THE fabulous Greta Gerwig.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Whitney Houston at Sixty: Her Incredible Songbook

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

IN THIS PHOTO: Whitney Houston performing on stage during the I’m Your Baby Tonight Tour in 1991/PHOTO CREDIT: The Estate of Whitney E. Houston

Whitney Houston at Sixty: Her Incredible Songbook

_________

A music icon….

who we very much miss, the fantastic and legendary Whitney Houston would have celebrated her sixtieth birthday on 9th August. We sadly lost her in 2012. During her lifetime, the New Jersey-born sold over 220 millions records. Like many established and legendary Soul and R&B singers, Whitney Houston sang in church as a child. She became a backing vocalist in high school. This year, Rolling Stone named Houston as the second-best vocalist ever. Having won a slew of honours (including eight GRAMMYs and 16 Billboard Music Awards), she has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and twice into the GRAMMY hold of Fame. I am going to end with a career-spanning playlist to mark her upcoming sixtieth birthday. First, AllMusic provide biography about one of the greatest artists we have ever seen:

“Whitney Houston was inarguably one of the biggest pop stars of all time. Her accomplishments as a hitmaker were extraordinary. Just to scratch the surface, the mezzo-soprano powerhouse became the first artist to have seven consecutive singles hit number one, from "Saving All My Love for You" (1985) through "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" (1988). Her version of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" (1992) became nothing less than the biggest hit single in rock history. Whitney Houston and Whitney, her first two albums, each went diamond platinum, followed by a string of additional multi-platinum LPs including the likewise diamond-earning soundtrack for The Bodyguard. Houston was able to handle big adult contemporary ballads, effervescent, stylish dance-pop, and slick contemporary R&B with equal dexterity. The result was an across-the-board appeal that was matched by few artists of her era, and helped her become one of the first Black artists to find success on MTV in Michael Jackson's wake. Like many of the original soul singers, Houston was trained in gospel before moving into secular music. Over time, she developed a virtuosic singing style given over to swooping, flashy melodic embellishments. The shadow of Houston's prodigious technique still looms large over nearly every pop and R&B diva who has followed. A six-time Grammy winner, Houston was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020, eight years after her tragic death.

Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey, on August 9, 1963. Her mother was gospel/R&B singer Cissy Houston, and her cousin was Dionne Warwick. By age 11, Houston was performing as a soloist in the junior gospel choir at her Baptist church; as a teenager, she began accompanying her mother in concert (as well as on the 1978 album Think It Over), and went on to back artists like Lou Rawls and Chaka Khan. Houston also pursued modeling and acting, appearing on the sitcoms Gimme a Break and Silver Spoons. Somewhat bizarrely, Houston's first recording as a featured vocalist was with Bill Laswell's experimental jazz-funk ensemble Material; the ballad "Memories," from the group's 1982 album One Down, placed Houston alongside Archie Shepp. The following year, Arista president Clive Davis heard Houston singing at a nightclub and offered her a recording contract. Her first single appearance was a duet with Teddy Pendergrass, "Hold Me," which reached number five on the R&B chart in 1984.

Houston's debut album, Whitney Houston, was released in February 1985. "You Give Good Love," its second single, became Houston's first hit, topping the R&B chart and hitting number three on the Hot 100. Houston's next three singles -- the Grammy-winning romantic ballad "Saving All My Love for You," the brightly danceable "How Will I Know," and the inspirational "The Greatest Love of All" -- all topped the Hot 100, and a year to the month after its release, Whitney Houston hit number one on the Billboard 200. It eventually sold over 13 million copies in the U.S., making it the best-selling debut ever by a female artist. Houston cemented her superstar status on her next album, Whitney. It became the first album by a female artist to debut at number one, and sold over ten million copies in the U.S. Its first four singles -- "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (another Grammy winner), "Didn't We Almost Have It All," "So Emotional," and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" -- all hit number one, an amazing, record-setting run of seven straight. In late 1988, Houston scored a Top Five hit with the non-LP single "One Moment in Time," recorded for an Olympics-themed compilation album.

Houston returned with her third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight, in 1990. A more R&B-oriented record, it immediately spun off two number one hits in the title track and "All the Man That I Need" and sold over four million copies. Houston remained so popular that she could even take a recording of "The Star Spangled Banner" (performed at the Super Bowl) into the Top 20 -- though, of course, the Gulf War patriotism had something to do with that. Appeal across mediums fueled Houston as she began focus on an acting career, which she hadn't pursued since her teenage years. Her first feature film, a romance with Kevin Costner called The Bodyguard, was released in late 1992, just after she married singer Bobby Brown. It performed well at the box office, helped by an ad campaign that seemingly centered around the climactic key change in Houston's soundtrack recording of the Dolly Parton-penned "I Will Always Love You." In fact, the ad campaign undoubtedly helped "I Will Always Love You" become one the biggest singles in pop music history. It set new records for sales (nearly five million copies) and spent weeks at number one (14), later broken by Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997" and Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day," respectively. Meanwhile, the soundtrack eventually sold an astounding 18 million copies, and also won a Grammy for Album of the Year. "I Will Always Love You" itself won Grammys for Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.

Once Houston had stopped raking in awards and touring the world, she prepared her next theatrical release, the ensemble drama Waiting to Exhale. A few months before its release at the end of 1995, it was announced that she and Brown had split up; however, they called off the split just a couple months later, and rumors about their tempestuous relationship filled the tabloids for years to come. Waiting to Exhale was released toward the end of the year, and the first single from the soundtrack, "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)," topped the charts. The album sold over seven million copies. For her next project, Houston decided to return to her gospel roots. The soundtrack to the 1996 film The Preacher's Wife, which naturally featured Houston in the title role, was loaded with traditional and contemporary gospel songs, plus guest appearances by Houston's mother, as well as Shirley Caesar and the Georgia Mass Choir.

In 1998, Houston finally issued a new full-length album, My Love Is Your Love, her first in eight years. Houston worked with pop/smooth soul mainstays like Babyface and David Foster, but also recruited hip-hop stars like Missy Elliott, Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, and Q-Tip. The album went quadruple platinum and received Houston's most enthusiastic reviews in quite some time. Moreover, it produced one of her biggest R&B chart hits (seven weeks at number one) in the trio number "Heartbreak Hotel," done with Faith Evans and Kelly Price. Additionally, it yielded the Grammy-winning "It's Not Right But It's Okay." She also duetted with Mariah Carey on "When You Believe," a song from the animated film The Prince of Egypt.

Arista released the two-disc compilation Greatest Hits, a multi-platinum anthology that featured one disc of hits and one of remixes and included new duets with Enrique Iglesias, George Michael, and Deborah Cox, in 2000. It was also announced that year that Houston had signed a new deal with Arista worth $100 million, requiring six albums from the singer. The self-styled comeback album Just Whitney arrived in 2002, followed by One Wish: The Holiday Album in November of the following year. Two years later, her private life became more public through the 2005 reality television series Being Bobby Brown. She eventually divorced her husband and went into intense rehabilitation for drug addiction.

An album of new material was initially set for release by the end of 2007, but delays pushed it -- titled I Look to You, featuring collaborations with Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, R. Kelly, Akon, and Diane Warren -- back to September 2009. It became Houston's first number one album since the Bodyguard soundtrack. She toured the world in 2010, and talked about beginning recording for her next album, but entered outpatient rehab in the summer of 2011 for continuing drug and alcohol problems. That fall, Houston filmed a role in a remake of the 1976 musical film Sparkle, starring alongside Jordin Sparks. In early 2012, rumors swirled that Simon Cowell was courting Houston for a mentor spot on The X Factor, but before anything came of it, tragedy occurred. On February 11, the day before the 2012 Grammys, Houston was found dead in her bathroom at the Beverly Hills Hilton. The cause of death was found to be accidental drowning caused by heart disease and cocaine intoxication. The Grammy ceremony paid tribute to her life with a Jennifer Hudson performance of "I Will Always Love You." Houston was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020”.

On 9th August, the world will remember Whitney Houston on her sixtieth birthday. A chance to play her music and explore her remarkable albums. I don’t think we will see another artists quite like her again. Her fans around the world will…

ALWAYS love her.

FEATURE: Misery Business: Why Hayley Williams’ Recent Comments Around Sexism Highlights Yet Another Issue in Music

FEATURE:

 

 

Misery Business

IN THIS PHOTO: Hayley Williams is the lead of the superb Paramore

 

Why Hayley Williams’ Recent Comments Around Sexism Highlights Yet Another Issue in Music

_________

IT might not seem like a major deal….

 PHOTO CREDIT: Zachary Gray

but something caught my eye. I saw an NME article, where Paramore’s lead Hayley Williams was criticised online for delaying and shelving gigs because of illness. It was not a massive wave of people providing sexist comment, but there were enough that provoked anger from Williams. You wonder how many major male artists would get the same sort of condescending and insulting comments from men online if they were injured or ill and had to cancel gigs. This article explains more:

“Last week, the band delayed their concert in San Francisco just hours before they were set to perform. They shelved three further gigs on their North American tour in Seattle, Portland and Salt Lake City “in the interest of our health and the ability to put on a show you all deserve”.

Ahead of the tour resuming in Tulsa, Oklahoma last Saturday (July 29), Williams shared a statement in which the singer revealed that she had fallen ill during a Houston gig earlier this month.

She went on to explain how her “body just gave out” after continuing with the dates regardless. “Touring is different at 34 than it was at 16, when leaving home felt like the greatest escape,” Williams said.

This week, the frontwoman took to Instagram Stories to call out someone who had criticised Paramore for pulling the shows. “Metallica manage .. Iron Maiden manage,” the person in question wrote (via Stereogum), “all of which are much older than you love.”

Williams wrote above the screenshot: “Neither James [Hetfield] NOR Bruce [Dickinson] are gonna suck your dick for this, LOVE.”

Elsewhere, another person mentioned the time Dave Grohl broke his leg during a Foo Fighters concert but returned to finish the set. The Twitter user said that Williams “bitches about how hard [touring] is at 34”, before calling her a “whiney hypocrite”.

Hayley Williams of the group Paramore performs onstage during night one of the Bud Light Super Bowl Music Festival at Footprint Center on February 09, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona CREDIT: Aaron J. Thornton/WireImage

In response, the singer posted: “I have a lung infection you soft shit! Not a broken limb. One you can sing with for 2 hours, another you cant.

“But worry not! The shows weren’t cancelled, merely postponed a week.”

She continued: “Maybe you should come out to one of them… like Dave did.”

Sharing a longer message, Williams wrote: “Internet bros have been pressed by my proximity to rock music and all its subgenres since 2005. The only thing that’s changed is the platform from which they spew their ignorance.

“Don’t think for a second your fav bands – metal or punk or otherwise – endorse your weird incel ass lifestyle.”

She added: “So many of these bands have stood side stage at our shows and treat us with respect. Why? bc they aren’t threatened by a strong woman front[ing] a great band in a completely diff genre of music”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Peyton Fulford for The New Yorker

In addition to it being condensing and disrespectful to Hayley Williams – who handled it in her typically uncompressing and  impressive way! -, it shows there are different attitudes when it comes to men and women in music. It is a fair point that artists are not as resilient and indefatigable in their thirties than teens or twenties. The realities of touring are different. It can be tougher in general but, to be fair, an artist of any age can get an infection or virus! The fact that someone pointed out that Dave Grohl performed with a broken leg and Williams was whining and whinging (sexist men online’s thoughts and not mine) shows that there is this attitude and opinion that men in music are tougher – whereas women are softer or weaker somehow. Hayley Williams has had to face a lot of sexism during her time with Paramore. This latest case just shows that so many women in music constantly have to defend themselves or answer to idiots online. One reason why this story riled me is because it is hard enough for women to get recognised and taken seriously. There are so few opportunities out there, and festival bills are still imbalanced. When a major band like Paramore emerges, fronted by an incredible female musician, she is then subjected to sexism and misogyny. The thought that, if they show they are human and fallible, then they are open to much more scrutiny and dismissive comments compared to men.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Laura Stanley/Pexels

Sadly, we are going to continue to see a lot of this happening in music. It all adds up to this toxic and depressing landscape where women are continually criticised and held to different standards. Hayley Williams comes out swinging and tackled sexist and misogyny. She shouldn’t have to. I know not all male music fans are culpable of sexism, but it is clear that there is still a massive problem. Whether it is some people’s view that women are less or weak; their music is not good enough for festivals or women playing guitar on stage are faking it or not as good as men, it is incredibly insulting and misogynistic. Everyone wishes Hayley Williams good health! She is going to be back strong very soon. Going forward, she and every other woman in music deserves a lot better! Even if it is a relative minority of trolls and bros online throwing out their crap and ignorant views, it is completely unwarranted and stupid. Criticising someone for cancelling gigs because of an illness that means they are physically incapable of continuing is bad enough. The worst of the critique and hate is still aimed at women. You wonder when it will stop! Artists come into contact with so many people. Touring can be brutal and energy-draining. Musicians develop some sort of tolerance, but they are still fallible and human. The amazing women in music need to be put on the same equal ground as men. Continued and seamlessly undiminished sexism is doing so much amazing and completely unreasonable. They are phenomenal and vital artists who…

DESERVE much more respect.

ALBUM REVIEW: Iraina Mancini - Undo the Blue

ALBUM REVIEW:

 

 

Iraina Mancini

COVER PHOTO Dora Paphides

Undo the Blue

 

 

9.8/10

 

 

RELEASE DATE:

18th August, 2023

PRE-ORDER HERE:

https://needlemythology.tmstor.es/

LABEL:

Needle Mythology

MASTERED BY:

John Webber at AIR Studios

LYRICS:

Iraina Mancini (except Do It (You Stole the Rhythm) (Iraina Mancini and Ed Phillips), and Take a Bow (Iraina Mancini and Ian Barter)

MUSICAL COMPOSITION:

Iraina Mancini, Jagz Kooner, Paul Cousins, Charles Turner, Simon Dine, David Bardon, Oscar Robertson, Ranald MacDonald, Wolfram Brunke, Ian Barter

PRODUCTION:

Jagz Kooner, Oscar Robertson, David Bardon, Jean-Baptiste Pilon, Ian Barter, Erol Alkan (additional)

TRACKLISTING:

SIDE ONE:

Deep End

Cannonball

Sugar High

Undo the Blue

Do It (You Stole the Rhythm)

SIDE TWO:

My Umbrella

Shotgun

What You Doin’ (Featuring Miles Kane & Kitty Liv)

Need Your Love

Take a Bow

_________

I am writing this review….

PHOTO CREDIT: Jason A Miller

on the morning of Thursday, 27th July. In mere hours, we will find out which twelve albums have been selected for consideration for the Mercury Prize. In fact, by the time that this review is online, we will already know the beautiful dozen! I mention this because I think that Iraina Mancini’s debut album, Undo the Blue, is one that should be considered for next year’s Prize – as it has every chance of being shortlisted. I heard the album in digital form before getting a physical copy on vinyl. There is something classic and wonderful when you get the vinyl. Earlier this month, the world said goodbye to the iconic Jane Birkin. A musician and actress that Mancini cites as an influence, you get the feeling that some of Birkin’s effortless and legendary cool seeps through the music of Undo the Blue. It definitely goes into the album artwork and design. James at Schein is responsible for design and art direction. Dora Paphides shot the photos. With an excellent and supportive team at Needle Mythology proudly raving about the album, you know something special is coming into the world on 18th August! The photos of Mancini on the album remind me of Jane Birkin. That same sort of style, seduction and allure shines through and gets into the heart. The colour palette – shades of purple and pink – are perfect. Warm and cool at the same time, you are struck by the tactile wonder and immersive qualities of the physical album! Unlike many albums where you get the credits and track breakdowns in the liner notes, Undo the Blue proudly puts them on the back cover. It is amazing knowing where each track was recorded and who played on it. Who produced and wrote the music. Apologies for any miscrediting above, but with Mancini writing the lyrics (eight solo and two co-writes), she composed alongside some phenomenal people. It is a real treat getting the physical album and admiring its colours, text and photos! It is about time to get down to the business of sharing my thoughts about Iraina Mancini’s debut album. Let’s do some quick housekeeping first. You can follow Iraina Mancini on Twitter, Spotify, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

Having seen her perform live a couple of times – at The Social, and The Lexington in London -, I can attest as to how tight her band is; the amazing chemistry and connection between them. How good she performs live. An extraordinary artist who has incredible stage command and this incredible ability to leave a crowd both spellbound and enraptured after a single song, I would recommend you go and see her live if you can. Undo the Blue is an album that has some studio gloss to it, but it actually comes across like a live album. Something quite intimate and raw through some of the songs. Like you are in the room with Mancini and her band! I love the sequencing of Undo the Blue. Rather than lead-off with one of the newer or more regularly-spun songs such as Cannonball or Undo the Blue, the wonderful Deep End opens proceedings (released as a single back in 2021). I sort of saw the album as a concept piece. Something filmic. There have been videos released of the videos but, if you listen to the stirring and quite epic opening to Deep End, you do think of opening credits. It is almost like a Bond theme. Our heroine says that she always tries to hold back but, invariably, she “always falls off the tracks”. With some standout Farfisa organ playing from Mancini and hornet-buzz and awesome guitar from Charles Turner, Undo the Blue opens with a serious bang. The ‘deep end’ of the song seems to refer to a relationship that is special and addictive - yet it seems to offer up its obstacles and dangers. Maybe some sense of self-regret and reflection: “It's you I adore/Black cherries stains on the floor/I'm over my head/Can't catch my breath/And all of the things that I promised to you/I always managed to undo”. Mancini is brilliant at talking about the relatable and universal…but doing it in a very personal and original way. Her lyrics are so evocative and poetic! Her vocal phrasing and delivery is different on every song. That gives each tracks its own skin and colour scheme – through it is distinctly the sound of Iraina Mancini. With a sound and vibe that places it somewhere in 1970s Italian cinema and some modern-day thriller, it is a wonderful start to an album that offers only solid gems. It was Needle Mythology head Pete Paphides said (of Undo the Blue) that it is an album that has all singles; every track could be a single and succeed. Such is the consistency and brilliance of the songwriting and performances, you cannot argue against that!

I have already reviewed the sublime and unforgettable second track on the album, Cannonball. Suffice to say it is an early highlight. If I had to list my favourite three Iraina Mancini songs, Cannonball would be second – the album’s title track is still at the top of the pile! A musical nod to the whole band, but I am especially fond of Oscar Robertson’s drum work. When I reviewed Cannonball when it came out as a single earlier this year, I noted how there were elements of The Beatles circa. 1966. Before continuing with that train of thought, and keeping with the narrative/film arc, Cannonball seems like having jumped into the relationship and now fully committing. If Deep End was a little nervous and self-reflective in terms of intent and reality, Cannonball is more of an awakening and revelation – “Lost in the floodlights/Hot like a cannonball/Don't let me fall”. The physicality of passion and love shines through already. From the loss and potential disaster of the opening track to the cannonball-hot fall and fly of the sophomore cut, this is one of our finest artists at her very peak. The percussion does remind me of The Beatles’ Rain in addition to And Your Bird Can Sing. That Revolver-period regency where they were untouchable as a band. It is genuine and high kudos to a song that you will revisit time and time again. The sway of the chorus’s start (“So stay true/I’ll be your brand new…”) to the bang and pummel of the end of the chorus (“Don't let me fall/Let me fall/Let me fall!”), it is a magnificent song! Sugar High is a track that Mancini seems to particularly enjoy playing live for eager crowds. A natural stand-out single contender, we are now relaxed into this romance – if we, just for now, continue the story of the film - with this lush and sweeping song. If the first two tracks have a rawness and punch to them, Sugar High has this beautiful and elegant beauty. Like a piece of music one might hear in a French film from the 1970s, Jane Birkin did come to mind when hearing Sugar High. Mancini did say Deep End was influenced by Ye-Ye singers of the'80s, France Gall, and the brilliant Françoise Hardy. I hear some of that influence here too. As a lyricist, there are few who can paint such dream-inducing and smile-widening pictures as Iraina Mancini! A sugar-filled world of deep kisses, sticky fingers, and some candy-rich scents, sensations and colours, this is a sublime song that, like the heroine, lifts you off of your feet – and solidifies Pete Paphides’ claims that Undo the Blue is so good every song could be a single (if I am remembering right, did Mancini say this might be the next single?!).

Three tracks in, and we have already seen our heroine fall wild and doubt her feelings; fall madly for someone very special, now she is enraptured and seduced by this perfect world. Undo the Blue changes directions and adds to the story. Already released as a single, many are familiar with the album’s title track. My favourite single of last year…and my favourite of Mancini’s full stop, I adore this track! Sugar High’s strings came from Clementine Brown. I believe here they come courtesy of Jagz Kooner (one of the album’s producers). Not only are there nods to French and Italian cinema, but I hear elements of the sort of smooth and electric Soul and R&B you’d hear from The Temptations back in the day. Maybe some of the Stax sound with the horns. If this relationship is the same as the one mentioned in Sugar High (or it relates to a former sweetheart), things are more strained and unsure here (“…It burns through the energy/Wade through your mistakes/Oh, I feel it all over/I'll reach up for that remedy”). Again, with such a vibrant, vivid, poetic, beautiful and imaginative set of lyrics backed by one of her lushest and most enticing vocals, you are helpless to resists or question the rush power of Undo the Blue! There is so much detail in the song. From wordless vocal hold and coo to the blend and balance of acoustic guitar and Fender Rhodes, it is a sumptuous and divine offering! The first side ends with the magical Do It (You Stole the Rhythm). A  fan favourite that was released as a single back in 2021. Produced by Jagz Kooner, this gorgeous introduction really brings you into the song. So immersive and spine-tingling, Mancini has said about the song “I wrote this about that feeling of pure joy when you are surrounded by people you care about and there is music, sunshine, laughter and great energy. There is almost a magic in the air when all those things are combined, an electricity that makes you feel truly alive. I tried to capture that in this song as I thought now more than ever we are craving togetherness and joy”. What I said about sequencing. This is a perfect way to end the first side! You have this optimistic note to end on. One of two of the ten songs on the album where Mancini shares lyrical duties (the other is Take a Bow), Ed Phillips is credited here.

Whether flipping the vinyl, letting the C.D. run or allowing a streaming platform to transport you to the second side, it is always hard to both keep the quality high, offer some new dynamic and also keep this sense of flow and balance just right. The perfect second side-opening song comes from My Umbrella. Like Deep End, this might be new to some fans. Kudos for not opening the first or second side with the bigger or more recognisable songs. My Umbrella, though, is a diamond that could be another single. Coming into the song, you have this rush and busyness that sort of places you on the street. Like the heroine is on a street in Paris or New York or Rome. In fact, when hearing the vocal and composition, I got nods to Japanese Disco music of the 1970s or'80s– unless I need to clear my ears out, there are some shades of that. Again, with her pen as sharp and genius as ever, Mancini draws you into the tracks and makes you envisage the scene. A track that has a lot of different elements rushing and entwining (like rain, birds and the wind), shout-out to David Bardon and Oscar Robertson!

IN THIS PHOTO: Iraina Mancini deep in thought during a soundcheck/PHOTO CREDIT: Dean Chalkley

With additional production from Erol Alkan, what a treat and brilliant way to pen the second side of the majestic and flawless Undo the Blue! Shotgun is one of the ‘older’ tracks on the album. Released as a single in 2020, its music video was directed by Iraina Mancini. Inspired by'60s and'70s film scores and soundtracks with hints of Jazz, Funk, Cinema and Soul, there is a 1971 sample from Soft Wind by Gary Pacific Orchestra. I imagine, again, maybe a Bond film themes. Perhaps a 1960s film with this very smoky, cool and slinky sound. Combining something ice-cool, hot, sexy and dangerous, Mancini said this about the track: “Shotgun is sexy and seductive. It’s about being wildly and dangerously in love. You know that moment when it’s unhealthy and dangerous, but it’s just too late, you are under their spell and in too deep. Inspired by the album Histoire de Melody Nelson by Serge Gainsbourg, Iraina and collaborator Jagz Kooner (Primal Scream/Oasis) have created something that is simultaneously playful, naughty and wildly romantic. Shotgun could be the title track for a 70s porno, found playing in a late-night Smokey jazz cafe in Paris or the soundtrack to a wild night out in the seediest parts of Soho scored by Quentin Tarantino. “Like an old movie scene we drove for miles in summer rain, I took a chance and left it all and my heart it smiled again“ The accompanying video was made by Iraina at home using an iPhone and 8mm footage. Inspired by vintage film titles for James Bond, Old B Movie’s and live at the Fillmore posters, Iraina involved the artist Grigory Grebennikov and animator Russell Agro to make her vision come alive”. I did get a lot of Quentin Tarantino in the song. A cut you could see in Pulp Fiction or even Jackie Brown, it is another remarkable sonic shift with wonderful arrangement from Iraina Mancini and Jagz Kooner.

The final three tracks of Undo the Blue keep the quality high and offer plenty of variation. The current single, What You Doin’, features Miles Kane’s incredible guitar chops and some phenomenal harmonica work from the wonderful Kitty Liv. The only track to really bring in other musicians (not in her band/crew), it is nice that Undo the Blue offers this consistent band and backbone, but it also has one track offering a couple of new faces to the mix. A stomper that has aspects of Glam, I get impressions of classic T. Rex, David Bowie during his imperial and majestic Aladdin Sane period, with some Goldfrapp. The second single released through Needle Mythology, Mancini has said of What You Doin’: “I wrote about someone not being able to see what’s right in front of them, and If they don’t act soon, then you’re not waiting around! It’s got a lot of attitude and confidence. I love the live feel the song has, it was great to have Miles Kane (guitar) and Kitty Liv (harmonica) come down to the studio to jam on the track. Their parts added an extra sprinkle of magic to the song”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Dora Paphides

I am not sure where we are in our film/story in terms of the rollercoaster. Maybe a new love has renewed her spirits and got her heart beating, the opening lines are wonderfully rich: “Take a little bit of my heart too/Open up I’m in front of you/The bloods spinning round my head/So reach out and touch me instead/Oh if you ever want take a chance/I’ll be waiting here with open hands/Your buzz is so sweet all around me/I'll give you my loving up for free”. With the song’s title repeated like a chant or call, it is an instantly catchy track that goes down a storm when she performs it live! The video, shot at Abbey Road Studios, sort of visualises the lyrics and flavour of What You Doin’. There are nods to 1970s Glam and Funk. But there are also bits of Queens of the Stone Age too. Such an original and standout song that does stop you in your tracks, you have to bow down to Mancini’s incredible ability to blend different sights and sounds and make it all hang together! So much variation on Undo the Blue and yet, as I said, it is distinctly the production and sound of one artist.

Need Your Love is the penultimate track. Twanging and sauntering almost like an Italian Western film, again this could be a film score. It is a truly stunning track. I keep coming back to James Bond (my apologies!), but such is the incredible potency and lustre of the song, it could be on the big screen! I sort of see this, sonically at least, as a companion to Undo the Blue. There is that similar haziness and dreaminess in places. In the chorus, I love the backing vocals (from Mancini) that repeats the song’s title. It adds a beautiful layer. With some excellent talk-singing at the two-thirds point, our heroine says: “I’m strong like a lion/Got a fire in my chest”. I keep saying every song could be a single, but this really could be! I see Mancini in darker red lipstick, maybe in a (purple) suit. Almost like a spy or femme fatale, you get something new from the song each time you pass through. This is a song most people would not have heard. It ensures that you get some more familiar favourites with deeper cuts that will instantly stick in the mind and builds a bigger picture of a superb artist.

PHOTO CREDIT: Dora Paphides

Like Madonna’s 1994 album, Bedtime Stories, Iraina Mancini’s stunning debut ends with a song called Take a Bow. If Madonna’s song was sweeping ballad where she compared a cruel lover to an actor who is asked to take a bow after he took her love for granted, then that is not the case here. One of the simpler songs in terms of musicians – Mancini is credited alongside Ian Barter (piano, guitar and bass) -, it is the perfect end. Some might say end with Undo the Blue or What You Doin’, but I think that Take a Bow is a brilliant finale! Also, I do think Mancini had a story or order in her head that means Take a Bow is the ‘end credits’. You get a real sense of credits rolling as Mancini calls out to this unnamed figure. Asking if their “heart is near”, maybe this is someone who has gone through a lot and needs something new. Asking her other not to make things harder, perhaps we are dealing with a break-up. Ian Barter co-wrote the lyrics. Ghostly, atmospheric and seductive at the same time, this is a remarkable song where Mancini and Barter compose, write and mix.

There are a few excellent different producers through the album so, rather than miss any out at the top of the review and it being quite glaring, Needle Mythology write: “Simon Dine (Paul Weller) Jagz Kooner (David Holmes, Oasis, Shakespear’s Sister) and Sunglasses For Jaws (Miles Kane), who have all produced the record along with additional production from Erol Alkan (The Killers, Duran Duran, Ride)”. This is also worth quoting: “Speaking about the album Iraina comments “The songs on my album are all about reinvention and following your dreams. I really felt like the hero in my own movie, creating a fantasy world were anything’s possible. My album is a huge reflection of my passions, filled with references from my favourite music, films and art. I’m thrilled to be finally putting it all together and sharing it with everyone“. A while ago, I listed my top three albums. At the top was boygenius’ debut, the record. Undo the Blue was my favourite single of last year. Cannonball is my favourite of this year. I think that Undo the Blue might have leapt to the number one spot when it comes to my favourite albums of this year – it is very close to the record at least! Lauren Laverne (BBC Radio 6 Music) has already professed her love of Iraina Mancini. Her songs have been played and backed on the station by the likes of Chris Hawkins.

There is so much goodwill and passion out there for a staggeringly talented artist (and a very modest and warm human who has such a bright future ahead). Mancini is preparing for her U.K. tour. I think we will see her tour internationally soon. There would definitely be a lot of love for her in nations like the U.S. At such a hard and strange time for us all, we, as a people, are dealing with so much scary stuff. Music is an escape and way to make like seem better and more hopeful. On her tremendous debut album, Undo the Blue, Mancini offers ten tracks of glistening and glorious gold. A banquet; jewellery box. So many wonderful and diverse sounds, sung by an astonishing singer with an incredible emotional and dynamic range. Iraina Mancini is a wonderful and versatile red-hot-cool and iconic queen with one of the sharpest, richest, multifarious, and most intriguing pens in modern music. Undo the Blue is an album to buy, cherish, surrender yourself to, and revisit time and time again. Its fabulous and dreamy title track will undo the blue. It is an album that we all…

IN THIS PHOTO: Iraina Mancini mid-performance and in her element at a spellbinding gig at The Lexington, London on 13th July, 2023/PHOTO CREDIT: Lloyd Winters

SERIOUSLY need right now.

FEATURE: "As Long As the Band Behaves Appropriately..." Why The 1975 and Muse Have Made Huge Errors Playing in Malaysia

FEATURE:

 

 

"As Long As the Band Behaves Appropriately..."

IN THIS PHOTO: Muse/PHOTO CREDIT: Sarah Lee/The Guardian

 

Why The 1975 and Muse Have Made Huge Errors Playing in Malaysia

_________

WHILST one….

 PHOTO CREDIT: Thilipen Rave Kumar/Prexels

would never necessarily look to bands such as The 1975 and Muse as being moral guardians and those who fight for the rights of the oppressed around the world, you do expect better of them. Show some basic common sense, decency and dignity. I have seen two stories within as many weeks that shows both of these groups in a very bad light. It is not only really them that are at fault. This feature regards festivals in Malaysia, and the fact that this is a nation that oppresses homosexuals and those in the L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ community. Capital punishment is a possible consequence for homosexuals in the country. This barbaric system and code of morals is something that other nations follow. I have recently written a feature about The 1975 playing the Good Vibes festival in Malaysia. They apparently were not aware of the fact that the country considers the L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ community have no rights. I was going to leave it there. The 1975 played some of their set and, upon finding out about Malaysia’s lack of morals, they caused controversy. Matty Healy kissed the band’s bass player, so the rest of the festival was pulled. The London-based artist and performer bones tan jones (who is queer) wrote for The Guardian about why Matty Healy’s reaction and lash out against Malaysia’s anti-L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ practices and rights:

“In Malaysia, there are no LGBTQ+ rights, with a penalty of up to 20 years in prison for sodomy; Global Trans Rights Index ranks Malaysia as the second worst country in the world for transgender rights. And a privileged white man – the lead singer of British band the 1975 – has inadvertently made this situation worse.

Speaking on stage at Good Vibes festival in Kuala Lumpur, Matty Healy – a champagne bottle in his hand – told the Muslim majority crowd: “I do not see the point of inviting the 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with,” before kissing his male bandmate, Ross MacDonald. “I’m sorry if that offends you, and you’re religious … If you want to invite me here to do a show, you can fuck off. I’ll take your money, you can ban me, but I’ve done this before, and it doesn’t feel good.” The band were indeed banned within half an hour, and the next two days of the festival were cancelled.

Condemnation has been swift from Malaysia’s music scene – friends close to the scene tell me the cancellation has robbed local musicians of the chance to perform on a major stage, and festival vendors of cashflow – and also taken from the LGBTQ+ community, as the Guardian has reported.

IN THIS PHOTO: Matty Healy performing with The 1975/PHOTO CREDIT: Kristy Sparow/Getty Images

Healy’s terrible misjudgment was to steam into this highly complex and historically fraught situation without due care, or seemingly enough research. The British LGBTQ+ rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has argued in these pages that Healy “succeeded in drawing global attention to Malaysia’s persecution of its queer citizens”, and “simply wanted to show solidarity … That strikes me as perfectly valid.” But one queer Malaysian producer and DJ has argued to me in recent days that “careless displays of ‘activism’, in the form of a conceited performance, damage the work of grassroots activists”. Another queer Malaysian has told me that Healy’s behaviour will make rightwing politicians “more paranoid”, and give them more ammo to further anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-music narratives. The fear is that queer artists will find it harder to secure spaces for their events.

To Healy and his fans: if you want to actually help LGBTQ+ people in Malaysia, please consider funding the aforementioned organisations. And to other western artists whose intentions come from a place of solidarity: if we want to stand with causes that affect cultures other than our own, we must think deeply about our position of privilege, utilising our voice in a meaningful, respectful way. Listen to the folks in the countries you want to stand with, the ones whose real experiences are affected by these issues, and think about the repercussions of your actions. No one person is a representative of a whole community, but if we can weave our voices together and put our egos aside – rockstar or otherwise – we can slowly make meaningful change”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Steve Johnson/Pexels

Muse also made a big mistake by playing in Malaysia this weekend. As misguided as they were (even though The 1975 had the gall to sort of criticise Muse for playing), it alarms me that groups are not researching before playing in countries like Malaysia! It seems like they have little concern when it comes to L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ rights in various nations. So long as they get paid and can fulfil their responsibilities then they are not bothered either way. Is this the sort of message we want to send to people?!

“Muse are still set to perform in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia this weekend despite the cancellation of the country’s Good Vibes Festival recently over controversies relating to The 1975.

Last Friday (July 21), while headlining day one of Good Vibes, The 1975’s Matty Healy had criticised the country’s government for anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Healy – who was drinking onstage – also smashed a festival-owned drone and kissed bassist Ross MacDonald onstage, before announcing just seven songs into their set that they had been banned from Malaysia and had to leave.

The following day (July 22), the country’s communications minister announced that he had ordered the rest of the festival cancelled.

Now, concert promoter Hello Universe has confirmed that Muse’s concert will go ahead as planned, sharing set times on social media, as well as queueing details. However, Adam Ashraf, one of Hello Universe’s three founders has revealed in an interview that Muse are altering their set list for the Kuala Lumpur show to better fit the country’s guidelines.

IN THIS PHOTO: Muse's Matt Bellamy/PHOTO CREDIT: Nina Westervelt/Getty Images

Speaking to Rojak Daily, Ashraf shared that following the cancellation of Good Vibes over controversies stemming from The 1975’s headlining performance on July 21, Muse have taken preventive measures to ensure a smooth-sailing show.

“They called us shortly after the incident went global. After discussions, they decided to pull one song out of the setlist due to the title of the song. It’s nice to know they’re eager to entertain while also respecting the guidelines,” he said. Ashraf did not reveal which song has been scrapped for the upcoming Malaysia concert.

When asked if Hello Universe was afraid that the show was going to be cancelled following Good Vibes, Ashraf said: “Of course we were worried. Who wouldn’t be? But thankfully, we got assurance from authorities that the show will go on and as long as the band behaves appropriately, everything should be smooth”.

Ashraf went on to say that he thought the Good Vibes team did they best they could have given the situation: “I personally believe the Good Vibes team has done their best, the authorities did too. No one’s happy that the festival got cancelled. It’s a risk they took and unfortunately, it backfired”.

This article from The Guardian also criticised Matty Healy of The 1975. Matt Bellamy’s Muse have made a mistake by playing in Malaysia without any protest or condemnation. These two experiences need to act as a warning to the rest of the music industry. Artists have no excuse when it comes to not researching. As I wrote previously, if you are going to a new country or city, then you need to know whether there are going to be moral conflicts and issues. Whether that is an anti-L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ stance or a lack of abortion rights, artist need to take a stand and avoid these places. Blame cannot be shifted to anyone else, as it is the artist’s duty to make sure they are not going to cause controversy and make things worse. We are living through a time when there is still massive oppression around the world. The fact that countries like Malaysia are so regressive and show no real compassion for gay rights is a big red flag. I am stunned that the country was even on the radar of bands like The 1975 and Muse! For a start, no artist should ever go and play in Malaysia or any nation that has similar prejudices and prehistoric attitudes. It is angering that something constructive could have happened but didn’t. The bands could have cancelled or not played, protested against the country’s laws, and raised awareness of charities and organisations that support the L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ communities in Malaysia and are there to bring about change. Instead, there has been this anger and backlash. The 1975 and Muse have not set progress back or made it impossible for change to happen, but they have needlessly muddled into a situation and quicksand that could have been avoided. If artists do support L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ rights – which you hope Muse and the 1975 do -, then they have to absolutely make sure that they do it…

THE right way.

FEATURE: On a Night Like This: Inside Kylie Minogue’s Voltaire Residency

FEATURE:

 

 

On a Night Like This

IN THIS PHOTO: Kylie Minogue at the announcement of her Voltaire residency/PHOTO CREDIT: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Venetian Resort Las Vegas

 

Inside Kylie Minogue’s Voltaire Residency

_________

THIS year….

has been a busy and successful one for Kylie Minogue. An iconic Pop artist who has been transforming and shaping music since her 1988 debut album, her new release, TENSION, comes out on 22nd September. I think that this album will be among her very best. The first single from it, Padam Padam, was a chart success around the world. It was eventually played on BBC Radio 1, but it was delayed because the station were reluctant at first. Ageism is still very much alive when it comes to featuring artists. The success and huge wave of love Padam Padam showed that it doesn’t matter how old an artist is – quality is quality and is the only real metric stations should focus on. Going forward, Minogue is looking forward to the arrival of her sixteenth studio album. Whereas 2020’s DISCO and 21018’s Golden had themes, TENSION will not. In terms of sound, TENSION is going to be fairly close to DISCO, in the sense there is abandon, dancefloor celebration and embracing a Disco/Dance sound. It is a musical blend that is very popular and in demand at the moment. In addition to a new album, Minogue is preparing for a residency in Las Vegas. The BBC explained what the residency will involve and when it begins:

“The hugely popular singer has announced her first exclusive residency in Sin City, following in the footsteps of Adele and Celine Dion.

The 55-year-old has not toured in North America since 2011, so her shows at the Voltaire nightclub at The Venetian in Las Vegas will be a major US return.

Minogue has promised extravagant costumes and dances, saying that at this point in her career she has "earned the right to" play Las Vegas.

"I've performed a couple of times at Vegas, but as part of a tour, and particularly when I did the Showgirl tour in 2004 - at that time we said, 'oh, this feels like a Vegas show', the Australian pop star said at a Los Angeles news conference.

Her later Aphrodite tour had featured "so many waterworks in like precision fountains," she continued. "My team at the time kept saying, 'Why isn't this in Vegas? We've got to do it at some point.'"

The show promises to be one of its kind for Vegas: based in a smaller venue that allows Minogue to give guests and fans a more personal show.

"I want it to be the kind of essence of what a Kylie show has become, enough glamour and abandon. I've got some versions of songs that have not been heard, like reinterpretations of songs, which is exciting. Live bed dances, amazing costumes.

"That's the base and then we'll see what surprises we can come up with," she revealed.

And it's finally something she can check off her career bucket list.

"I was thinking years ago I want to do it when I'm younger like, I don't want to do it when I'm at the sunset of my career. So, I think I've got it right somewhere in the middle where I feel like I've earned the right to and have the experience to really enjoy being there."

She will perform tracks from her forthcoming album Tension, alongside many of her greatest hits including Can't Get You Out Of My Head and All The Lovers.

Dubbed the Princess of Pop, Minogue has sold over 80 million records worldwide, won a Grammy and three Brit Awards.

She recently scored her biggest solo hit in more than a decade with the song Padam Padam.

It's the star's first song to break into the UK top 10 since All The Lovers peaked at number three in 2010.

That means Kylie is one of only four women to reach the UK's top 10 in five separate decades, alongside Cher, Lulu and Diana Ross.

For the past 20 years, Minogue has sold out stadiums across Europe, Asia, and Australia, but has a more modest following in the US.

But this residency could bring unprecedented success for the pop singer in America.

In a previous interview with top reality host Andy Cohen, she said she was thrilled that her recent single was doing so well in the States.

"It feels good, 'cuz as we know it's not my main market," Minogue said. "But I would love it if it was to become one of them. I think 'Padam' has really given me a chance to reach everyone."

Minogue's Vegas residency will begin on 3 November 2023 and is expected to include about a dozen shows. Tickets go on sale on 9 August.

While Minogue hopes that the show will bring international visitors, UK fans unable to make the trip across the pond will be able to see her in 2024 when she embarks on her arena Tension tour.

The pop star also headlines Radio 2 in the Park in Leicester this September”.

This is a good move from Minogue. Whilst some artists seem ready-made for residencies – Cher and Elton John spring to mind -, maybe people hadn’t pictured Kylie Minogue going to Las Vegas and doing this sort of thing. Her tour diary is going to be busy this year. I think that this residency will not only get fans around the world traveling to see her but, crucially, it will get her a new generation of fans in the UI.S. America is a nation that has not really embraced Kylie Minogue as much as the U.K. or her native Australia. That said, DISCO did get into the top forty there. Looking at her albums before then; it has been a case of mixed results regarding chart positions in the U.S. I think there is this conscious move to establish Minogue as a vital artists that the country cannot miss out on. At a time when established artists like Kate Bush are only now being truly recognised by America, this residency is going to make Minogue much better known there. I wonder whether there will be other U.S. dates before or after the residency starts. She has moved back to Australia now, so it might be strange relocating for a while when she is playing in Las Vegas. In terms of the set, I do not know whether it is going to be a greatest hits selection, a different set each night, or whether Minogue is focusing on her newer material – with an emphasis on TENSION.

I think many people who are unable to go to Las Vegas to see one of Kylie Minogue’s nights hope that there is a DVD release. I think we will see trailers and some videos closer to the time, but I am not sure about the rights and whether the Voltaire nightclub are going to be quite protective. The venue is actually pretty amazing. I am going to round off with some details from the club’s website as to what we will expect:

“Launching this November at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, Voltaire Belle de Nuit answers the call for a theatrical venue that offers Las Vegas a pre-party, headliner concert, and after party. Themed for daring voyeurism, Belle de Nuit is quite literally a flower that blooms in the night.

Pop sensation Kylie Minogue will be the first headliner to grace the stage at Voltaire. Blurring the lines between an intimate club, concert, and non-stop entertainment venue, Voltaire will usher in a new destination nightlife scene with Minogue at the forefront in an exclusive U.S residency that comes on the heels of her smash hit “Padam Padam” and upcoming “Tension” album release.

Voltaire is the uniquely inspired vision of producer Michael Gruber: an interactive night out with some of the world’s biggest superstars in an intimate, 1,000-seat setting where anything can happen and no two evenings are the same. Voltaire is the pregame, main event, and late-night after party rolled into one – an experience currently unmatched in Las Vegas that unlocks a new evening out that is elevated, transformative, but most of all, fun.

Promising an evening that never has to end, Voltaire will be filled with non-stop entertainment including top DJs, cabaret, burlesque by an incredible cast of performers and headline talent.

The venue’s opening on November 3 kicks off the Australian pop icon’s first Vegas Residency where she will perform tracks from her highly anticipated release “Tension,” alongside many of her greatest hits including “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” and “All The Lovers.”

“The spirit of Voltaire is one of pure, authentic fun. It’s one I resonate with as a pop artist. My new album “Tension” is all about the space where the intimate and universal come together and Voltaire represents just that,” shares Minogue. “The creative team has designed an environment where people can get up and dance at their tables and revel in the night – that’s what Voltaire is and I can’t wait to perform in this intimate and exciting setting.”

Some of the most creative minds in fashion and design were tapped to bring the concept to life. With couture costumes from stage to floor developed by a world-class designer who has created looks for stars from Beyonce to Mariah Carey and of course, Kylie Minogue herself. The heavy couture influence lends the entire evening an unforgettably glamorous lens.

 The space itself brings to life an immersive key-hole themed room design, centered around modern-day art deco fantasy by Emmy and Tony Award winning production designer Derek McLane, who has an incredible array of credits for shows such as the “Moulin Rouge” and “MJ on Broadway,” the Academy Awards, and most recently as designer for the 2023 Met Gala.

Capping at 1,000 people, it’s a venue to come out and lean in. The prevailing theme, Belle de Nuit, or Beauty of the Night is evocative of veils and mystery, of come-to-play, and dress-to-express. A simple but memorable table service includes select indulgences from fine spirits and champagne to caviar and cookies - and an atmosphere where guests can truly connect.

Tickets, tables, and packages for Kylie Minogue’s opening show and ongoing residency go on sale August 9, 2023, and are available for purchase at voltairelv.com”.

Another huge chapter for the amazing Kylie Minogue, this Pop sensation and queen will wow American audiences. Where does she go from there? Based in Melbourne, there is perhaps less flexibility to tour too much, but we will get a lot more albums and music. Many hope that Minogue will be invited back to Glastonbury next summer, and there is definite scope for other projects (a naturally great actress, a brief return to film would be welcomed). A winter treat for Kylie Minogue fans, those at Voltaire in Las Vegas are going to be stunned and moved. It is going to be captivating seeing Minogue in such a terrific venue…

ON a night like this.