music
Philip Anselmo Honors Dimebag and Vinnie Paul During Down’s NOLA 25th Anniversary Livestream Show: Watch
Down played their first show in four years over the weekend, celebrating the 25th anniversary of their debut album, NOLA, with a livestream concert dubbed “Quarter Century Throwdown”. During the set, filmed at an undisclosed venue in New Orleans, singer Philip Anselmo paid tribute to his fallen Pantera bandmates Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul. The 15-song concert, which streamed for $9 on Saturday (August 29th), saw Down perform all of 1995’s NOLA (except for the instrumental track “Pray for the Locust”) and three songs from 2002’s Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow. It also marked the live return of founding member Kirk Windstein, who had parted ways with the band in 2013 before rejoining the group late last year. Prior to performing “Lifer”, Anselmo dedicated the song “to all the bands ...
Doja Cat Blasts Off To Planet Hot Pink In Debut VMA Performance
By Harron Walker Doja Cat beamed down from some hot pink alien lady planet for her live performance of “Say So” and “Like That” at the 2020 Video Music Awards on Sunday night, and I, for one, welcome our new TikTokina overlordess. Give in to Doja Cat! All! Hail! Her! Dressed (well, in a sense) in a barely-there pink champagne bodysuit featuring strategically placed light-up gem-encrusted accouterments — looking not unlike what I imagine Britney Spears’s sparkly, regular champagne-colored bodysuit from the 2000 VMAs’ final form would look like — the 21-year-old Los Angeles-born artist kicked off her 2020 VMAs set with “Say So,” a song about waiting for someone you’re hot for to finally make the first move. “It’s about when you go somewhere and you see someone and they don’t appr...
Lady Gaga, VMA Artist Of The Year, ‘Was On a Mission To Spread Joy Through Music’
Claws up, Little Monsters: Lady Gaga is going to need help holding all of these Moon People. The 2020 VMAs have blasted off with a one-way ticket to Chromatica, leaving viewers soaking wet with not only the first live performance of Gaga and Ariana Grande’s joyful jam, “Rain on Me,” but Gaga performing a Chromatica medley featuring tracks from the album: “Chromatica II,” “911” and the album’s lead single, “Stupid Love.” In addition to their instantly iconic live performance, Gaga and Grande’s collaboration also won the VMAs for Song of the Year and Best Collaboration, and Gaga snatched the Moon Person for Artist of the Year. “This is so exciting, thank you so much,” she told the crowd, sporting one of her many ma...
The Weeknd Calls For Justice With His Video Of The Year Speech
In late 2019, The Weeknd pulled a star move by playing himself (though the 2012 version of himself) in Josh and Benny Safdie’s film Uncut Gems. A key scene involves Adam Sandler’s hard-luck character taking a swing at the pop star, though things get broken up before they escalate too wildly. Around that same time, The Weeknd released his vision for indefatigable new single “Blinding Lights,” which chronicled him on a death-wish bender through Los Angeles; he ends up bloody, beaten, and flashing the biggest smile you’ve ever seen. It felt like a sign. Now, that omen has been made clear: “Blinding Lights” just won Video of the Year at the 2020 VMAs. And The Weeknd, who also opened the show with a stratospherically dizzying rendition of the song from ...
Angel Olsen Reveals New Album Whole New Mess: Stream
Angel Olsen has released her new album Whole New Mess. Stream it below via Apple Music and Spotify. Today’s release follows last year’s stunning All Mirrors, which was one of the best records of 2019 and the 2010s overall. However, whereas that effort was an opulent extravaganza of 11-piece string arrangements and orchestral ambiance, Whole New Mess is a decidedly quieter and more intimate affair. It mostly features early, acoustic renditions of songs off All Mirrors, but also offers some new material like the beautiful title track. It’s technically the first true solo album Olsen’s made since her 2012 debut Half Way Home, but she sounds comfortable as ever in this raw and emotive musical environment. In a revealing interview with Pitchfork, Olsen opened up about how the aforemen...
Dua Lipa Unveils Club Future Nostalgia Remix Album: Stream
Dua Lipa already gave us one of our favorite albums of the year in Future Nostalgia. But the pop star isn’t quite done dancing to that record: today, she’s revealed its corresponding remix album, a star-studded affair called Club Future Nostalgia. Stream the entire effort below via Spotify. Helmed with the help of house/techno producer The Blessed Madonna, the Club boasts an impressive and eclectic guest list highlighted by BLACKPINK, Madonna, Missy Elliott, Mark Ronson, and Gwen Stefani, whom Lipa just interviewed while guest-hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live. Hot Chip’s Joe Goddard, Yaeji, Jayda G, Jacques Lu Cont, and Horse Meat Disco were also invited to party. Editors’ Picks Additionally, a number of the included reworks feature fun samples of Stevie Nicks (“Stand Ba...
The Weeknd Performs “Blinding Lights” High Above NYC to Kick Off 2020 MTV VMAs: Watch
The Weeknd has kept up a relentless schedule since dropping one of the year’s best albums so far in After Hours. Following a virtual concert on TikTok and collaborations with both Juice WRLD (“Smile”) and Calvin Harris (“Over Now”), the R&B singer also known as Abel Tesfaye took his magnetic energy to the 2020 MTV VMAs on Sunday night. The Canadian crooner kicked off the awards show with a high-flying performance of “Blinding Lights” from atop New York City’s Hudson Yards. He was even accompanied by a wave of fireworks. Watch him sing one of the best songs of 2020 below. Hosted by Keke Palmer, this year’s VMAs were originally supposed to take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. However, due to the ongoing pandemic, the evening’s performances were filmed with “limited or no audien...
Miley Cyrus Performs New Single “Midnight Sky” at 2020 MTV VMAs: Watch
Ever since 2013, Miley Cyrus has been known to stage memorable, jaw-dropping awards show performances. That was certainly the case on Sunday night at the 2020 MTV VMAs, where the pop star rolled out the live debut of her new single “Midnight Sky”. Channeling the track’s self-directed music video, Cyrus flaunted a glitzy biker chic aesthetic as she sang “Midnight Sky” from a brightly lit soundstage. In a call-back to her famous “Wrecking Ball” video, Cyrus concluded the performance by ascending a flight of stairs and straddling a large swinging disco ball. Watch the video replay below. The 27-year-old recently revealed that her long-teased She Is Miley Cyrus project — a compilation of three six-song EPs — has been put on hold. In an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music, Cy...
Doja Cat Went From Viral Superstar To PUSH Best New Artist
By Lauren Rearick 2020 is officially the year of Doja Cat. The performer, who also made her VMAs debut tonight with a performance of TikTok’s favorite singles, was crowned the PUSH Best New Artist winner. Accepting her award with a lengthy list of personal appreciation shout outs, Doja Cat also paid tribute to her fans, remarking that their “support meant everything to me.” Joking about her refusal to cry, the singer also asked for fans to stay safe, acknowledging that “it’s been a really hard year.” Before leaving the virtual stage, she gave one last important thank you to her mom. Prior to winning Best New Artist, Doja Cat performed a medley of “Say So” and “Like That,” two singles which have catapulted to popularity on TikTok. Although the performer has gained a much larger following th...
Keke Palmer And CNCO Are The VMA Doubleheader We Needed
By Harron Walker Two major musical acts made their VMA debuts back-to-back at the 2020 Video Music Awards, and we don’t know which one to rave about first! First up, we had Keke Palmer pausing on her hosting duties to whip out a snippet of her new summer jam, “Snack,” followed by Latin American boy band CNCO giving us their extremely playlist-friendly track, “Beso.” Where to begin? Well, since Keke held down the whole shebang, let’s start with her. Clad in a neon yellow zip-up leotard that stretched all the way to her Day-Glo manicured fingers, which she paired with a lime Jell-O see-through visor, Palmer kicked off the doubleheader with her feel-good, feeling yourself anthem, “Snack,” off of her new EP, Virgo Tendencies, Pt. 1. From the high-energy choreography to the lyrics promotin...
Lady Gaga Wins First-Ever MTV Tricon Award And Knows ‘A Renaissance Is Coming’
Lady Gaga: singer/actress, fashion icon, and activist. And now, fittingly, she’s also the first recipient of the MTV Tricon Award, an honor that spans everything Gaga is and does. “You can’t just call her a triple threat,” Bella Hadid said to introduce Gaga as this year’s award winner. “She turns pop music into high art. She redefines fashion,” Hadid continued, calling Gaga “a powerhouse” actor and someone who “inspires and empowers all of us” with her activism. When she took the stage in one of her latest visionary 2020 VMAs looks (including a mask, of course), Gaga said she was eager to share the prize. “I want to share this award with everybody at home tonight, everybody at home who is their own form of a Tricon,...
Black Eyed Peas Lit Up The Stage (And Their Crotches) At The VMAs
By Lauren Rearick Before closing the book on the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, the Black Eyed Peas made their VMAs live performance debut, sharing a classic and a new single with viewers. Taking the stage with “glowing crotches,” the Black Eyed Peas performed their new single, “Ritmo” along with a special performance of the always classic, “I Gotta Feeling.” For those that don’t remember, “I Gotta Feeling” was a true staple of 2009, appearing at middle school dances everywhere, and atop the Billboard charts. Ahead of their VMAs appearance, BEP had teased fans on social media with a promise for “something awesome.” The group had also talked of their anticipation for performing in a pre-show interview with MTV, pledging to bring joy and energy to the stage. Based on the social media reaction ...
