Metallica have never taken kindly to people using their music in ways they don’t approve of. The latest example is the Pentagon, which was forced to delete and then repost a video featuring Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth boasting about the […]
Ed Sheeran has played gigs in the largest venues all over the world, collaborated with major pop and hip-hop stars (Justin Biebrer, Taylor Swift, Cardi B, Stormzy) and had his songs streamed tens of billions of times.
But on Sunday night (July 13) during the final show of his three-night run at Suffolk’s Portman Road stadium — home of his beloved Ipswich Town FC football club — Sheeran truly took it back to the start when he shared the stage with the singer who made him want to do this all in the first place: James Blunt.
“I rarely get nervous at gigs, I do this so often. I’m very nervous to sing this, because I’ve never sung this with him and this really is a dream come true,” Sheeran told the crowd as he announced Blunt. The two then launched into a duet on Blunt’s sentimental 2004 hit “Goodbye My Lover,” with Blunt taking the lead on vocal and playing keyboards as Sheeran strummed an acoustic guitar. “I’m quite emotional after that actually. That is top three favorite moment on stage ever. Ever,” Sheeran said afterwards.
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Sheeran has long spoken of the huge impact Blunt’s music had on his own desire to write and perform songs and in an accompanying note on the video he wrote, “I saw @jamesblunt when I was 13 opening for @eltonjohn at Portman Road. I bought his album that day, then got obsessed. My dad took me to Cambridge junction to see him months after, and he became my favourite singer songwriter. His songs moulded me, his performing inspired me. I wanted to be him.”
He added, “I wanted to be him so much that I signed to the same management as him. I wanted to be him so much I signed to the same record label as him. I sometimes have to remind myself how much he means and meant to me, because we’ve been mates for well over a decade now. I’m godfather to his son. He’s one of my close mates.”
Sheeran said that he sometimes forgets he was once a 13-year-old boy who got obsessed with Blunt, covered his songs at a school talent show, went to a number of the fellow singer-songwriter’s gigs and has transformed from being just a fan to a both a fan and a friend, which is “super weird” when he thinks about it.
“I asked him to do the final night at ipswich because of that gig 21 years ago where I saw him at the same venue,” Sheeran explained. “And I asked him to sing my favourite songs of his tonight, because he, and the song, mean so much to me. Thank you James for coming today. I know you finished your South American tour two days ago, and you should be resting, but you flew to ipswich to sing with me. And it meant the world.”
The “Bad Habits” ended his note with a reversal of the old saw about meeting your heroes. “Don’t meet your hero’s, unless your hero’s are James Blunt,” Sheeran wrote. “Love you mate.”
It was a magical weekend for Sheeran all around, as he also got to collaborate with another one of his formative influences, British boy band Westlife, who joined him on night one for a joint performance of their 1999 hit single “Flying Without Wings” during the run that included support from Myles Smith, Tori Kelly, Busted, Skye Newman, Dylan and Maisie Peters.
Check out footage of the performance and Sheeran’s note below.
Tame Impala frontman Kevin Parker has teased big happenings in the near future, seeming to confirm a new record with his latest social media update.
Taking to Instagram on Saturday (July 13), Parker uploaded a series of images which captured his last few months. Captioned with the phrase “Been busy,” the collection showed pictures depicting Parker with friends and family, behind-the-scenes shots of the promotional video for his Orchid musical “ideas machine,” and snaps of him surrounded by music-making equipment both in and out of the studio.
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The last image, however, showed a whiteboard which ostensibly has been used to track the progress of the next Tame Impala album. Notably, all tracks included in the image are listed as “Done.”
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The photographic update comes a matter of weeks after Parker previewed new Tame Impala material during a surprise DJ set at Barcelona’s Nitsa Club. “You guys want to hear a new song? “You want to hear a new Tame Impala song?” he asked the crowd. “You’re going to be the first ones to hear it, you realize? There’s no going back from this point on, you realize?”
As it stands, it’s been five years since the last full-length release from Tame Impala. In February 2020, The Slow Rush became the project’s fourth studio record, peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. This was one position higher than the previous album, 2015’s Currents, which served as a commercial breakthrough for Parker.
In the time since the last record, Parker has been busy with myriad other projects. In 2023, second album Lonerism would receive a tenth anniversary reissue, and would be followed by the release of the track “Journey to the Real World” for the Barbie soundtrack.
Additionally, Tame Impala would also be credited with remixes of songs from Crowded House and Elvis Presley, and would appear as a guest artist on cuts from Diana Ross and Gorillaz.
In 2024, Parker would serve as a producer and guest musician for Dua Lipa‘s Radical Optimism album, and would also serve as a guest artist on two tracks from French outfit Justice‘s Hyperdrama album. One of those collaborations, “Neverender,” would see Parker win his first Grammy for best dance/electronic recording in 2025.
Most recently, Justice also announced a series of Australian tour dates for December 2025, with a Tame Impala DJ set listed as the main support alongside Busy P.
Just about 52 miles from Manhattan, a quartet of global superstars teamed up as Doja Cat, Tems, J Balvin and Coldplay performed from the upper deck of MetLife Stadium in New Jersey with a view of the Big Apple skyline at their back.
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Produced by Global Citizen and curated by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, FIFA debuted its first-ever FIFA Club World Cup Final Halftime Show on a balmy Sunday (July 13) in the midst of Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain doing battle on the pitch.
Not long after the whistle blew following Cole Palmer’s first half masterclass, fans’ necks and attention turned toward the innovative stage design that felt as if it was floating above the stadium.
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With how much conversation there was around the newly-planted grass at MetLife, concert organizers shrewdly pivoted to the creative multi-level platform hundreds of feet in the sky to avoid game interruption, which was built with 40,000 pounds of staging structures.
J Balvin got the 15-minute party started with his moombahton smash “Mi Gente.” Draped in all-white, the Colombian star was flanked by dancers and drummers repping the colors of his native country.
Tems brought the African vibes with her tender “Love Me Jeje.” The Nigerian singer glided across the stage in a sparkling cold shoulder black top and heels to the tune of her guitar-tinged hit before Balvin returned for “Reggaeton.”
Doja Cat turned the show into overdrive with her empowering “Woman” bop while rocking a glistening red and blue Adidas top and matching white socks, which felt like a mix of Sporty and Baby Spice. She also gave a tease of her upcoming album with her wardrobe as “Vie” was emblazoned across her midsection.
“I’m proud to represent America on this unique stage that will bring people from all corners of the world together,” Doja told Rolling Stone of the performance last week. “I’m also extremely grateful to continue to support global education efforts by raising funds for the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund.”
The surprise of the afternoon came when Coldplay hit the stage for the band’s “A Sky Full of Stars,” which saw the stage’s backdrop turn into a rainbow paradigm. They were joined by Australian artist Emmanuel Kelly, who preached a message of unity while sharing a hug with Chris Martin and Doja Cat.
“I’m so happy we’re here together,” he shouted as fans held up towels spelling out love in various global languages. Kelly made history as the first differently abled FIFA halftime performer. Fireworks filled the sky, but were faint due to the shining daylight.
“Today we witnessed something truly historic — artists representing the Americas, Africa, Europe and Oceania coming together on football’s biggest stage for the first ever FIFA halftime show,” said Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans. “This international lineup perfectly embodied the idea that music and football can unite the world, and when we take action together, we can make an outsized impact to help children around the world access quality education.”
FIFA and Global Citizen have raised $10 million of their $100 million goal to provide educational funding for children through the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. The FIFA-Global Citizen partnership will continue next year when the FIFA World Cup Final Halftime Show comes to MetLife Stadium in July 2026.
Watch the full halftime show performance below.
As rumors swirl regarding a new album from prog-rock icons King Crimson, the band’s manager has urged fans not to get too excited about the prospect.
News of a fresh record from the English outfit first came to light last week when guitarist Jakko Jakszyk spoke to Goldmine Magazine about his recent solo album, and his joining King Crimson back in 2013.
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“It was an amazing thing to have done, and in a way, part of it’s still happening. As we speak, we’re doing a King Crimson studio album,” Jakszyk admitted.
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“When that will come out and what format or how—that’s beyond my brief. But yeah, we’ve been doing it piecemeal, and then a couple of months ago, the management said, ‘Can we?’ So, yeah. I’ve been recording that with a view to it coming out in some format at some point. But who knows when?”
Word of a potential new album from the veteran group undoubtedly came as a surprise to many, especially given that King Crimson was viewed as having effectively come to an end following the completion of their 2021 tour dates.
In the wake of mounting speculation, manager David Singleton took to social media to respond to the claims that King Crimson have been in the studio.
“Addressing this very question before he died, Bill Rieflin posed the excellent question ‘why make a studio album? There are excellent live recordings of all the songs out there already,’” Singleton wrote.
“One possible answer would be an album the very sound of which no-one has ever heard before. A sound driven by the three drummers. And it is true that those drummers have now recorded studio versions of their parts – separately, so that there is perfect separation.
“So there is indeed the seed of a new recording,” he continued. “Whether it is an album, whether it sees the light of day, whether it is something else is unknown. As is the outcome of any creative process.
“So yes, recordings have taken place. We are building a new studio, and when it is complete I am looking forward to seeing what may, or may not, exist. Getting excited about the possibility of a new album, as has been happening in some quarters, is however somewhat premature. Carts before horses.”
King Crimson was initially formed in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Ian McDonald, Greg Lake, Michael Giles, and Peter Sinfiel, with the band releasing their debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King the following year.
Initially disbanding in 1974 after seven albums, further reunions would take place throughout the ’80s and ’90s, with the group’s most recent record, The Power to Believe, arriving in 2003.
At the time of their last dissolution, in December 2021, Fripp remained the only continuous member from the original lineup, telling Rolling Stone the following year that future tours from the band would only take place “If I knew for certainty that King Crimson touring was the only way to prevent World War III.”
On Sunday night, (July 13), Drake’s love letter to London concluded during the finale of his Wireless Festival takeover. While the first two nights were frontloaded with special guests such as Lauryn Hill, 21 Savage, Latto, Sexyy Red, Skepta, Central […]
On Sunday night (July 13), Drake completed his three-night trifecta as headliner for the U.K.’s Wireless Festival. After catering to R&B lovers and rap fans during the first two nights of Wireless, Drake aimed for a more global presence. He […]
Swag, the new album from Justin Bieber, tops this week’s fan-voted music poll. Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (July 11) on Billboard, choosing Bieber’s 21-track surprise summer drop as their favorite new music release of the past week. With several […]
When Emmanuel Kelly was 11 years old, he put a note on his mirror that he looked at every day manifesting his dream of sharing a stage with Coldplay. And now, after checking that bucket-list item off after opening for the band in his native Australia last year on their Music of the Spheres Tour, the singer who first rose to prominence with a breathtaking cover of John Lennon’s “Imagine” on The X Factor Australia in 2011 has ticked off another major lifetime goal.
“It’s pretty extraordinary,” Kelly told Billboard a few days before performing with Coldplay at Sunday’s (July 13) 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final halftime show. Kelly, who was found in a box in a park during the height of the Iraq War as a baby, severely injured by chemical warfare, is the first differently abled pop artist to perform at a halftime show, and he is more than happy to take credit for blazing that trail.
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“It’s a market that has never been represented on this scale and someone always has to be the first and for me to be that is a sign of the times,” he said of singing alongside fellow pop icons Tems, J Balvin and Doja Cat and duetting on”Sky Full of Stars” with Coldplay from the roof of MetLife Stadium in New Jersey during the match between Chelsea FC and Paris Saint-Germain.
Billboard chatted with Kelly about the halftime show curated by Coldplay singer Chris Martin — co-produced by Global Citizen, in partnership with Live Nation, Done+Dusted and DPS — and how he turned his childhood dream into a globetrotting reality.
This is the first time a person with a disability will headline a global event or halftime show of this magnitude. How does that feel to hear that?
Extraordinary… the wall and barriers are breaking down and we’re living in a society that recognizes that talent is talent and a gift is a gift. It’s an honor and a privilege and I feel like the luckiest person in the world. I’m a huge fan of FIFA and a huge fan of people being seen for who they are and I get to show that to 2.5 billion people on Sunday.
Have to ask, what’s your team?
I’m a Chelsea fan in general, but for a long time I was a Real Madrid CF fan, but I felt they got too rich and got too many players. But I’m also a fan of players and I gravitate towards individuals who are awesome human beings in whatever form, because all humans have the capability to be great.
Talk about performing with Tems, J Balvin, Doja Cat and Coldplay at the Club World Cup final. That’s a pretty epic stage to be on for what will likely be most of the world’s first exposure to you.
It’s not bad. I like to say they’re all taking the lineup with me. [Laughs] I’ve been a huge fan of J Balvin since he globally popped on the scene 10 years ago and I’m a big Latin music fan in general. Reggaeton was going to be a start for me at one point. … I’ve done a few Latin tours. Doja, she’s a class act and has this unassuming nature but is so cool and vibey. And then Tems, I’ll be honest, I was new to her music until Chris introduced me to her. I’m in love, she has a really cool vibe. I’m in great company with Chris, though I’m not even sure why he’s singing with me. [Laughs] He should be grateful he’s allowed to sing with me.
How did you end up on this bill? What’s your relationship with Chris?
He’s a brother to me. It started in 2016 when we first met.
What was the connection?
Energy, positivity, love. I’m a believer that everything in this universe has its way and there are random acts, but those acts lead to cause and reaction. Where Chris was at in his life and his career and where I was at in my life and career created a random act and the cause of that was Chris learning about me and the reaction was Chris taking action to want to meet me and become my mentor. I told him he’s been an inspiration to me since I was a little kid. One of the first songs I learned when I came to Australia [at 8-years-old Kelly and his brother were brought to Australia by humanitarian Moira Kelly and underwent life-saving surgeries] and could barely speak English was [Coldplay’s breakthrough 2000 hit] “Yellow.” I can only shine so bright, but everybody’s brightness shines because they have electricity around them that fires those bulbs and lights them up.
What was the spark from Chris?
Chris has an electricity that allows me to shine as bright as I can be and he has people around him who do that for him and now we kind of do that for each other. When I was 11-years-old I put a sign on my mirror and looked at it every day and it said I would tour with Coldplay one day. During a dark time when I was homeless in L.A. and lost hope and love for myself, I found a way out by remembering all the good in my life. I let go of ego and pride and asked for help and I took that sign from when I was a kid and put it on the wall again and said, “this dream cannot end.” [Coldplay’s] “Yellow” was the first song I ever learned, before “Imagine,” and I sang it to my mom, who had no idea who they were. Chris is an extraordinary individual who has an electricity that fires a lot of people up. I was going around Hollywood asking everyone — from Snoop Dogg and the Quincy Jones camp to random Joe Blows — if they knew Chris Martin. I asked 1,500 people in the span of six months and the 1,499th person connected me with Dr. Habib Sadeghi [co-founder with Martin of the Love Button Global Movement]. He said “it will happen when it’s supposed to happen.”
You opened four shows in Sydney with Coldplay last year and now you’re jumping up to the biggest stage there is, so describe the plans for the FIFA gig.
Chris will be coming out as my special guest, even though it was all planned by him! [Laughs] We will come together to sing “Sky Full of Stars,” which is a beautiful sentiment for anyone who wants to reach out to the stars and grab them. I believe that this will be one of the greatest halftime shows from a spectacle point of view we’ve ever seen. The way the MetLife stage is set up we’re on the third floor up on the roof and singing in the sky.
You’ve achieved so much against such major odds. If you had a message for other aspiring singers, of whatever ability, what would you tell them?
Be your version of an outlier. Be an outlier and don’t be afraid to be different. Being different is cool. I’ve had labels and execs and shows turn me down because I’m an outlier, and that’s never stopped me. Don’t complain about the situation; fix it yourself. If you don’t like how things are rolling, do something about it. Be the change. You be the change and be the best version of yourself and don’t be afraid to be different.
Drake isn’t letting his feud with Kendrick Lamar fade anytime soon. During his set on the second night of the 2025 Wireless Festival in London on Saturday (July 12), the 38-year-old rap superstar responded as the crowd at Finsbury Park […]
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