James Blunt today announces a special greatest hits album, ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ – out November 19th on Atlantic Records – alongside a huge UK arena tour for 2022 which will see James celebrate songs spanning a stellar 17-year career that has spawned over 23 million album sales, a global smash hit with ‘You’re Beautiful’, two Brit Awards and two Ivor Novello Awards, as well as receiving five Grammy Award nominations.

Amongst the string of hit singles, ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ will also include four new songs (‘Love Under Pressure’, ‘Unstoppable’, ‘Adrenaline’ & ‘I Came For Love’), as well as four exclusive live performances from around the world, including the Glastonbury Festival. It also features stunning tracks from his latest Gold-selling album ‘Once Upon A Mind’, including ‘Cold’, and the heartbreaking ballad for his father, ‘Monster’.

James reflects; “Amazingly, I’m releasing my Greatest Hits. I wanted to call it “Greatest Hit (& Songs I Wish You’d Heard)”, but the good people at Atlantic Records suggested I call it something more sensible, so it’s called “The Stars Beneath My Feet”. If you’d ever wished that James Blunt had only ever released one album – this is that album. It’s 30 awesome songs, including live performances from Glastonbury and elsewhere, and four new songs. To celebrate its release, I’ll be heading out to tour the world all next year. I can’t wait to see you then.”

James’ classic 2004 debut album ‘Back To Bedlam’, was recently named as one of the top ten best selling albums of that decade, and with ‘Once Upon A Mind’, James Blunt reinforced his reputation for writing honest, emotional songs that people can easily relate to. The album marked a return to what James Blunt does best – writing classic songs that touch both the heart and the head. Another side of James – his wit and charm – have in recent times been showcased via his always engaging Twitter account.

As well as his huge 2022 greatest hits UK arena tour, James Blunt and his band will be one of the highlights of this summer during his string of highly anticipated rescheduled UK dates. The tour includes a must-see date at the Royal Albert Hall on 23rd July, the first full-capacity concert at the venue as part of its 150th anniversary celebrations.

James Blunt plays the following 2022 UK arena dates:

February 2022

Thu 3rd BRIGHTON, Brighton Centre

Fri 4th MANCHESTER, AO Arena

Sat 5th LONDON, SSE Wembley Arena

Mon 7th CARDIFF, Motorpoint Arena

Tue 8th HULL, Bonus Arena

Thu 10th BIRMINGHAM, Resort World

Fri 11th LEEDS, First Direct Arena

Sat 12th NOTTINGHAM, Motorpoint Arena

Sun 13th GLASGOW, SEC Armadillo

‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ – Track Listing
1.       Love Under Pressure
2.       1973
3.       Wisemen
4.       Same Mistake
5.       You’re Beautiful
6.       Monsters
7.       Tears And Rain
8.       Bonfire Heart
9.       I Really Want You (live in New York)
10.     The Truth
11.     Heart To Heart
12.     Champions
13.     Postcards
14.     No Bravery (live in London)
15.     Adrenaline
16.     Smoke Signals
17.     Unstoppable
18.     Goodbye My Lover
19.     Coz I Love You (live at Glastonbury)
20.     So Long, Jimmy
21.     Carry You Home
22.     The Greatest
23.     High
24.     Don’t Give Me Those Eyes
25.     OK
26.     Stay The Night
27.     Bartender
28.     Cold
29.     Where Is My Mind? (live in Paris)
30.     I Came For Love

https://www.jamesblunt.com/

Elvis Costello and longtime collaborator, 18-time GRAMMY® and Latin GRAMMY® award-winning producer, Sebastian Krys, have brought together a stunning international cast of some of the biggest Latin rock and pop artists from around the globe to interpret Elvis Costello and The Attractions’ album, This Year’s Model, entirely in Spanish. The inspired Spanish-language adaptations are set to the band’s classic studio performances, culled from the original master recordings, which have been newly mixed by Krys, revealing a new power and intensity to The Attractions’ 1978 instrumental performances. The mixes, sometimes running on, allow us to now hear “What Happened Next:” Costello and Mick Jones of The Clash lock dueling rhythm guitars in a thrilling coda to “Pump It Up” or Pete Thomas almost demolishing his drum kit at the end of “No Action.” There is even the occasional vocal cameo appearance by the bandleader, but the album can now be enjoyed in an entirely new way. Spanish Model is set for release September 10 on UMe.

Watch the video for ‘Pump It Up’ by Juanes HERE

As Costello and Krys began to think of artists that would be a good fit, they discovered that This Year’s Model was an important record to many artists in the pan-Latin world, but its true nature had never been fully appreciated because of the language barrier. They enlisted many Costello fans, a few who Krys and Costello felt would be a great fit for the song, and all of whom have stellar careers and were excited to participate and bring their own styles to the immediacy and poignancy of the original songs, helping to create an entirely new listening experience.

Spanish Model features such artists as: Cami, Draco Rosa, Fito Páez, Francisca Valenzuela & Luis Humberto Navejas (lead singer of Enjambre), Gian Marco & Nicole Zignago, Jesse & Joy, Jorge Drexler, Juanes, La Marisoul, Luis Fonsi, Morat, Nina Diaz, Pablo López, Raquel Sofía & Fuego, Sebastián Yatra, and Vega. They sing these timeless and universal songs, which have been expertly translated and adapted into Spanish to retain their meaning, energy, attitude, and wit. The concept represents what may be a first: an artist replacing their vocals with newly recorded performances by other artists singing in another language, backed by the original music. The full track listing is below:

1. No Action – Nina Diaz
2. (Yo No Quiero Ir A) Chelsea ((I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea) – Raquel Sofía y Fuego
3. Yo Te Vi (The Beat) – Draco Rosa
4. Pump It Up – Juanes
5. Detonantes (Little Triggers) – La Marisoul
6. Tu Eres Para Mi (You Belong To Me) – Luis Fonsi
7. Hand In Hand – Francisca Valenzuela y Luis Humberto Navejas
8. La Chica de Hoy (This Year’s Girl) – Cami
9. Mentira (Lip Service) – Pablo López
10. Viviendo en el Paraiso (Living In Paradise) – Jesse & Joy
11. Lipstick Vogue – Morat
12. La Turba (Night Rally) – Jorge Drexler
13. Llorar (Big Tears) – Sebastián Yatra
14. Radio Radio – Fito Páez
15. Crawling To The U.S.A. – Gian Marco y Nicole Zignago
16. Se Esta Perdiendo La Inocencia (Running Out Of Angels) – Vega

The album includes 16 tracks drawing from the original U.S. version of This Year’s Model (“Pump It Up,” “Radio Radio,” “This Year’s Girl,” “The Beat”) plus several other songs from those sessions. The album will be available on CD, digital and 180-gram vinyl.

This Year’s Model, which has been newly remastered, will also be released concurrently on CD and 180-gram black vinyl with the addition of “Big Tears” and “Radio Radio.” A limited edition version, that pairs both Spanish Model and the new pressing of This Year’s Model together as a 180-gram double LP, will be released exclusively via ElvisCostello.com, uDiscover and Sound Of Vinyl webstores.

Today’s launch is heralded with the release of an exciting video from Colombian superstar Juanes, whose own recently released Origen album was also produced by Sebastian Krys and featured Pete Thomas on drums. His exhilarating performance of “Pump It Up,” (with its spitfire lyrics now in Spanish) manages to match the same intensity and feel as the original, while Costello’s original backing vocals provide the trademark chorus and an instant familiarity. The video plays on this by transforming Costello’s signature video by rotoscoping the original and inserting Juanes’ head in place of Costello’s to create a playfully updated version that’s a perfect blend of the old and new, that this daring album embodies. “’Pump It Up’ is such an iconic and signature song from Elvis’ amazing repertoire, that it was a real honor to have the chance to sing with the original 1978 recording and be a part of that propulsive energy,” Juanes said.

Spanish Model exudes the same kind of energy and spirit as the original but with a Latin twist. With 19 featured artists representing 10 countries and territories across the Spanish-speaking world including:  Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain, Uruguay, plus several from the United States. The album is truly a global, collaborative affair. Costello’s spiky guitars collide with band mates Steve Nieve’s carnival-esque keys and the urgent, propulsive rhythms of bassist Bruce Thomas and drummer Pete Thomas, as The Attractions virtually back a host of Latin music legends, contemporary stars and burgeoning artists for a set of thrilling Spanish-language performances imbued with each artist’s singular identity and style.

The idea for Spanish Model dates back to 2018 when it was sparked by a request by show runner, David Simon (“The Wire,” “Treme”), to turn “This Year’s Girl” into a duet with a singer, Natalie Bergman for the opening credits of the second season of his show, “The Deuce.” Shortly after that came to fruition, allowing Costello to hear his song in a new way, he had a dream where he heard This Year’s Model, but in Spanish. With his curiosity and interest piqued he called his frequent collaborator, Argentinian-born, Latin GRAMMY Producer of the Year, Sebastian Krys, about the idea of having artists sing the entire album over the original backing tracks. It wasn’t long before the two were figuring out how to make the dream a reality.

Since releasing, My Aim Is True, in 1977, the ever musically curious Costello has allowed himself to follow his artistic desires wherever it takes him, often into unpredictable yet exciting territory. Across more than four decades, the iconoclast has reveled in exploring the human condition through a wildly diverse catalog that includes collaborations with Burt Bacharach, Allen Toussaint, Paul McCartney, T Bone Burnett, Brodsky Quartet, Spinal Tap, Anne Sofie von Otter, The Roots and his wife, Diana Krall along with many others spanning a dizzying array of genres, from country and jazz to orchestral, pop, rock, experimental and beyond, all the while keeping his audiences on their toes. After winning a Grammy for Look Now, his 2018 album with The Imposters, Costello recently released a French language EP, featuring French adaptations by Iggy Pop, Isabelle Adjani, Tshegue, Etta Somatis & AJUQ of songs from his acclaimed 2020 album, Hey Clockface.

“Part of the fun of this project is its unexpected nature,” Costello said. “Although, I think people in my audience that have been paying attention are pretty much used to surprises by now.”

“When Elvis told me the idea,” Krys said, “it took me about 15 seconds to answer. I have been in so many situations where I was trying to turn Latin artists onto Elvis Costello’s music. The feedback I heard most often was ‘I love it. I wish I knew what he was saying.’ Spanish Model is an opportunity to turn an entire side of the world onto this great record and through these voices, get these ideas out. Lyrically, This Year’s Model is still relevant today, what the songs have to say and how they say it.” 

Costello and Krys worked closely with all the artists and in some cases with several songwriters, including Elsten Torres, Ximena Muñoz, Luis Mitre, Andie Sandoval, and Vega, to adapt the lyrics so the Spanish versions would seamlessly capture each song. With the lyrics in place, each artist set out to record.

The translation was key as Luis Fonsi explained: “The lyrics felt really natural. Nothing stuck out, and you can’t just read it. You must sing the lyrics to really know if the song will work or not. From the first time I started singing ‘You Belong To Me,’ it just felt natural. It’s true to the original lyric. It has that same energy.”

“It’s tricky,” Fonsi said, “because you want to respect the original version. I tip-toed my way around it. Do you veer off a little bit? What’s the perfect combination?”

“I had a blast singing ‘Triggers,’” La Marisoul said. “The translation was beautiful. I just love ballads where I can get down and sing.”

Costello first hinted about the release last year when he created an “October surprise” playlist, 50 Songs for 50 Days, which included a, briefly available, preview of Spanish Model with Gian Marco and Nicole Zignago’s politically charged version of “Crawling To The U.S.A.” Costello and Krys recently discussed the origins of Spanish Model at the 2021 Latin Alternative Music Conference last month.

“This Year’s Model is about desire and how that relates to love, fashion and to the male gaze towards women and control, especially in political control over us all,” Costello said. “I don’t think there’s anything that somebody in another language would not have encountered. Some of the lyrics might be a little obscure because I use peculiar English idioms, but I constantly fall in love with records in other languages in which I don’t even know one or two courtesy words. What you respond to is the humanity, the pride, the sorrow, the celebration.”

Ultimately, Spanish Model echoes the personal journey of celebrating influences and inspirations that Costello has embarked upon in countless creative ways over the years, whether taking him outside his comfort zone, expanding his musical repertoire or, as with this project, discovering something new altogether.

ELVIS COSTELLO

FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | TWITTER | YOUTUBE | WEBSITE

The Feeling have come together with Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Jamie Cullum and friends to re-record the classic Christine McVie (Fleetwood Mac) song ‘Don’t Stop’ in support of National Thank You Day on July 4th. The single and video are released today (June 25th), available on all digital service providers HERE. Watch the video HERE.

Recorded at the iconic Studio 1 in Abbey Road, the artists were joined by the chorus of the West End hit Everybody’s Talking About Jamie. The track was inspired by an initiative from community choirs to mark National Thank You Day on July 4th, who will be singing the optimistic classics outside of care homes and hospitals. The track will be played and sung at ‘thank you’ events up and down the country on July 4th.

The Feeling’s Daniel Gillespie Sells, says: “ The last 18 months has been hard for so many of us but as we begin to emerge we all have so many people to thank. We were inspired by all of the community choirs taking part in national thank you day and thought recording the track and helping to provide a soundtrack to the day was the best way we could help and say our own thank yous.”

Sophie Ellis-Bextor also comments; “One of the few good things about the last 18 months has been our community spirit. But we can’t take that for granted. Moments like thank you day give us all a chance to reach out and keep it going.”

Jamie Cullum adds; “It was a real privilege to be asked by The Feeling to play on their version of this glorious song “Don’t Stop” for Thank You Day – a great cause and concept within this incredibly challenging time.”

Another big supporter of National Thank You Day, Simon Cowell said of the song: “‘Don’t Stop’ is a great song choice for the Thank You Day on July 4th and I hope everyone has a fantastic day. This day obviously is about saying thank you, and on a personal note, I would like to say thank you to all of the healthcare workers for an incredible job.”

As well as supporting music groups and individuals up and down the country to get together and sing or play, artists are getting behind Together With Music. Over 500 community choirs and schools are participating in Thank You Day, singing outside care homes and hospitals across the country; united together to say thank you! The idea of Thank You Day came from a grassroots campaign to hold the country’s biggest ever thank you party in our local communities as a way of thanking each other and of building on the community spirit that so many felt during lock down. This opportunity to unite across the country, through music at 3pm is a wonderful call for togetherness after a year of isolation, particularly across the music industry.

Thank You Day is supported by hundreds of organisations including the NHS and the Royal Voluntary Service, the National Citizens Service and the Scouts, UK Music and UK Sport. Thousands of events are being planned across the country, including a ‘Power Hour’ with mass community tidy ups, Big Lunches, ‘Cheers for Volunteers’ moments, and a BB-Thank-Q – the nation’s biggest ever Cook Out led by Levi Roots – and schools across the country contributing to a giant national thank you card.

To find out more please go to www.togetherwithmusic.org.uk & www.thankyouday.org.uk

To enquire about interviews please contact:

adam@apmcommunications.co.uk & anthony@mbcpr.com

MORE INFO:

Many organisations getting behind Thank You Day are part of the /together coalition, which is made up of community groups across the country and some of the UK’s best-known organisations. What unites its members is the collective aim to help build kinder, closer and more connected communities in the aftermath of COVID-19. For further information, please see www.together.org.uk

Universal Music Operations Limited shall donate 100% of its net proceeds from the sale of this single and accompanying video (after deductions only of actual costs, sales taxes and third party publishing payments) with a minimum donation of £0.50 for any single track download  to The Together Initiative (registered charity 1193060). Universal Music Publishing shall donate 100% of its net profits from the sale of this single (after deductions only of taxes, society commissions and writers’ royalties) to The Together Initiative (registered charity 1193060).

The incendiary opening track of FOO FIGHTERS’ critical and commercial smash album MEDICINE AT MIDNIGHT — also the first song in the encore of the band’s triumphant Madison Square Garden show — blazes in a whole new way with “MAKING A FIRE,” the Mark Ronson Re-Version. 

Produced by Mark Ronson, the re-version features members of Antibalas, the Budos Band, the Dap-Kings, El Michels Affair, La Buya, Menahan Street Band, the Tedeschi Trucks Band and Tuatara — all providing a combustible new backdrop to Dave Grohl’s unmistakable vocal, as well as the irresistible refrain by a back-up vocal quartet featuring Violet Grohl.

Check out “MAKING A FIRE” (Mark Ronson Re-Version) HERE

Metallica marks the 30th anniversary of its self-titled fifth album — a/k/a The Black Album — with two landmark releases, both out September 10th on the band’s own Blackened Recordings: 

The Black Album is one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed records of all time. Its 1991 release not only gave Metallica its first #1 album in no fewer than 10 countries, including a 4-week run at #1 in the U.S., its unrelenting series of singles — “Enter Sandman”, “The Unforgiven”, “Nothing Else Matters”, “Wherever I May Roam”, and “Sad But True” — fuelled the band’s rise to stadium headlining, radio and MTV dominating household name status. The album’s reception from the press was similarly charged, building over the years from the top 10 of the 1991 Village Voice Pazz & Jop national critics poll to becoming a constant presence in the likes of Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. The album’s impact and relevance continue to grow—as proven by one indisputable fact: The Black Album remains unchallenged as the best-selling album in the history of Nielsen Soundscan, outselling every release in every genre over the past 30 years. 

To commemorate its 30th anniversary, the GRAMMY-winning, 16x platinum-certified Black Album is receiving its definitive re-release.  Remastered for ultimate sound quality, The Black Album remaster will be available in multiple configurations including 180 gram Double Vinyl LP, Standard CD and 3 CD Expanded Edition, digital, and Limited Edition Deluxe Box Set (containing the album remastered on 180G 2LP, a picture disc, three live LPs, 14 CDs (containing rough mixes, demos, interviews, live shows), 6 DVDs (containing outtakes, behind the scenes, official videos, live shows), a 120-page hardcover book, four tour laminates, three lithos, three guitar picks, a Metallica lanyard, a folder with lyric sheets, and a download card).

Much more than a mere tribute album, The Metallica Blacklist celebrates the enduring influence of this musical milestone with one of the most ambitious projects ever conceived by the Metallica team: An unprecedented 50+ artists spanning an unbelievably vast range of genres, generations, cultures, continents and more, each contributing a unique interpretation of their favourite Black Album cut.

The Metallica Blacklist offers up new dimensions of the record whose gravitational pull first drew the mainstream to Metallica—and provides new insights into the universal and timeless appeal that kept it there: the boundary-smashing influence these 12 songs have had on fans and musicians of all stripes. The Metallica Blacklist’s 53 tracks find singer songwriters, country artists, electronic and hip hop artists sharing their love of these songs alongside punk rockers, indie darlings, icons of rock, metal, world music and many, many more… and for 50+ good causes: Profits will be divided evenly between charities of the artist’s choice and Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation.

The Metallica Blacklist is a fitting and limitless homage, one that features bands who’ve shared stages with Metallica alongside artists who are younger than the original album. It’s a truly staggering, at times mystifying assemblage of musicians, dozens of whom have little to nothing in common other than the shared passion for the music that’s united them for this album: 1 Album. 12 Songs. 53 Artists. Unlimited Possibilities.

The Metallica Blacklist will be available digitally September 10th, with physical formats to follow on October 1st including 4 CD and a limited edition 7 LP vinyl pressing. Pre-orders will instantly receive multi-platinum selling recording artist, songwriter, philanthropist and trailblazer Miley Cyrus’ version of “Nothing Else Matters” featuring WATT, Elton John, Yo-Yo Ma, Robert Trujillo and Chad Smith, and Latin music superstar Juanes’ interpretation of “Enter Sandman.”

* All profits from The Metallica Blacklist will be split evenly between the All Within My Hands Foundation and 50+ charities chosen by the artists who play on the album. All Within My Hands was founded by the band in 2017 as a way for the entire Metallica family to give back to communities that have supported the band by supporting workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services.

Last month, Martha Wainwright announced her upcoming LP Love Will Be Reborn (August 20) and shared the first song and title track from the record, complete with a stunning video.

Today, Martha shares another new track “Falaise de Malaise” – Martha’s first original song featuring a mix of French & English lyrics. Listen to the track here and watch the lyric video here.

Trying something new and truly challenging herself on this single, Martha explains:

“‘Falaise de Malaise’ is a first for me! Not only is it in “Franglais” (a mix of English and French) but I’m actually playing the piano – which I don’t actually know how to do! I’ve been sitting at the piano for years trying to find a song for the simple piano part that my fingers could play. While doing this I thought, well might as well try writing in French too!  I was able to tap into another version of myself – one that was dying to come out. I’ve always sung in French (Piaf record and various covers..) but this is the first time I’ve allowed myself to compose in it.  I’ve always watched others move to the music at the 88 keys but this time I sat down to play them myself. What came out was “Falaise de Malaise” – a dreamlike romp through a mythological landscape.”

Like most records this year, Love Will Be Reborn was made during the global pandemic and recorded in Martha’s hometown of Montreal, in the basement of her brand-new cafe, Ursa which also served as a studio. She enlisted the help of Toronto musicians Thom Gill, Phil Melanson, Morgan Moore and Josh Cole to perform in her band, and producer Pierre Marchand, best-known for his collaborations with Sarah McLachlan producing some of her iconic 90s songs.

Marchand also has a familial connection to Wainwright, having produced Rufus’s second album Poses as well as Martha’s mother and aunt’s record, Heartbeats Accelerating. It was a record made after some time, much like Martha’s gap since 2016’s Goodnight City, and McGarrigle was the same age that Martha is now. It seems like a musical synergy only the late McGarrigle and Martha could have.

Martha will embark on an Autumn UK tour this year which includes a highly anticipated show at London’s Union Chapel on September 20th. Full list of dates below. Tickets on sale now from HERE:

September
Mon 20th  LONDON, Union Chapel
Thurs 23rd  FROME, Cheese and Grain
Fri 24th    SHEFFIELD, Leadmill
Sat 25th  BRIDPORT, Electric Palace
Sun 26th  CARDIFF, Tramshed
Tues 28th   CAMBRIDGE, Junction
Weds 29th  BIRMINGHAM, Town Hall
Thurs 30th   BEXHILL, De La Warr Pavillion
October
Fri 1st   LIVERPOOL, Philharmonic Hall

https://www.marthawainwright.com/

Genre-redefining pianist, composer, and producer Chloe Flower has released a new song and video, “Bohemia,” ahead of her debut album release on July 16th on Sony Music Masterworks.

“Bohemia” blends trap beats with passionate piano and is accompanied by the release of a dazzling and provocative music video featuring Tony, Golden Globe, and Emmy winning actor Jeffrey Wright (James Bond, Westworld).

Listen to ‘Bohemia’ HERE and watch the video HERE

Inspired by the 20th anniversary of iconic musical blockbuster Moulin Rouge, the video was filmed at the notoriously exclusive New York City cabaret club, The Box. The scene opens in a cloud of cigar smoke as Wright plays host to a sultry evening with Chloe Flower, the star of the night, ultimately slaying the crowd from the stage with hypnotic beats and seductive piano playing.

With a nod to the Oscar-winning costume design of Moulin Rouge, Chloe Flower stuns the audience in a hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind couture corset by luxury brand with a rebellious twist, The Blonds. 

Chloe notes: “I am used to not fitting in. Growing up, I didn’t always fit in with the traditional asian community and I didn’t totally fit in with my mostly white community.  In music, my experience was exactly the same – I didn’t fit into the classical music scene, but as an instrumentalist, I didn’t fit into the pop world either. Rather than conforming, I decided I would embrace my distinctive style, and ‘Bohemia’ is a perfect example of my new genre, POPSICAL, both visually and musically and I am so happy that my friend Jeffrey joined me in telling the song’s passionate tale.” 

Broken down into three acts (I. Innocence, II. Suffering and III. Hope), Chloe Flower is a sublime collection composed, produced and recorded in the artist’s New York City apartment during the Covid-19 pandemic. The body of work features spoken word from Deepak Chopra and an interpretation of Billie Eilish’s chart-topping hit “Bad Guy.” Encompassing sweet melodies, hip-hop, and trap beats, Chloe is a modern-day classical sensation, pushing the boundaries with her unique self-created Popsical genre.

She is the most talked about pianist in the world following a show-stopping performance with Cardi B at the 2019 Grammy Awards. Chloe is an Artist, composer, producer, activist, and fashion influencer who began playing piano at the age of two. She proudly celebrates her Asian heritage and culture and is a fierce advocate for women’s representation — particularly women of colour — in the music industry.

Chloe also sits on the board of directors for the Liberace Foundation and is a strong voice against human trafficking. She was honoured by the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Activism (CAST) and has spoken at the United Nations as a music education ambassador.

She has collaborated with Babyface, Nas, and Swizz Beats along with producers Tommy Brown (Ariana Grande/Meghan Trainor) and Mike WiLL Made-It (Beyonce/Miley Cyrus) to name a few.

Website // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube // Spotify

Making a grand entrance with highly anticipated new music, GRAMMY® Award-nominated multi-platinum pop superstar JESSIE J returns with a brand-new single entitled “I Want Love” via LAVA/Republic Records. 

Listen to “I Want Love”— HERE.
Watch Official “I Want Love” Lyric Video — HERE.

To bring the track to life, she worked with three-time GRAMMY® Award-winning mega-producer Ryan Tedder [Beyoncé, Adele] who serves as producer and co-writer. 

Jessie J says “I wanted to come back with a song that felt classic but modern. BIG vocals and get everyone on the dance floor. I cannot wait for the world to hear this song and to DANCE and sing along loud.”

As she celebrates the tenth anniversary of her platinum-certified 2011 first LP Who You Are, she continues to also look forward. “I Want Love” sets the stage for her anxiously awaited fifth full-length album, coming later this year, co-written with and executive produced by Tedder.

Back in 2011, Jessie J quietly emerged with the biggest voice in pop. The UK-born powerhouse introduced herself with Who You Are, which not only went platinum, but also yielded the quadruple-platinum “Price Tag” and platinum “Domino.” Not to mention, the record made history as “the first album by a British female artist to produce six or more Top 10 hits in the UK,” while she picked up the 2011 Critics’ Choice BRIT Award and BBC’s Sound of 2011. On its heels, 2014’s Sweet Talker crashed the Top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 and housed the eight-times platinum “Bang Bang” with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj. Throughout 2018, she revealed R.O.S.E. in four parts to critical acclaim and supported it with a sold-out world tour. The same year Jessie J traveled to China and joined the TV show SINGER, a singing competition where she performed each week in front of a television audience of 250 million with a grand finale viewership of a 1 billion. Not only was Jessie J the first international artist to ever compete alongside the biggest artists in Asia, but also the first to ever win. With a once-in-a-generation voice, confessional writing style, and stadium-shaking charisma, she’s back in 2021 with “I Want Love.”

https://www.jessiejofficial.com/

The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund, founded in memory of the late heavy metal icon, will join forces with virtual event producers Rolling Live Studios to celebrate Ronnie’s birthday on Saturday, July 10th. 

The global fundraising event will bring together celebrities and fans all over the world to honor Dio’s undeniable impact both on and off the stage.  The front man for Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, and DIO – Ronnie lost his battle with gastric cancer in 2010. 

Hosted on rollinglivestudios.com beginning at 10:00 PM BST, the event will feature special guest performances, interviews and birthday messages from artists including Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell); Teddy ‘Zig Zag’ Andreadis (Guns N’ Roses, Alice Cooper); Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, Beck, Bogert & Appice); Vinny Appice (DIO, Black Sabbath); Michael Angelo Batio (Nitro, Holland, Shout); Joey Belladonna (Anthrax); Chuck Billy (Testament); Gilby Clarke (Guns N’ Roses, Slash’s Snakepit); Melody Cristea (Liliac); Aynsley Dunbar (Journey, Frank Zappa); Frank Ferrer (Guns N’ Roses); Lita Ford; Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Black Country Communion); Terry Ilous (Great White, XYZ); LA metal band Liliac; Sean McNabb (Quiet Riot, Dokken); Jeff Pilson (Foreigner, DIO); Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne); Glen Sobel (Alice Cooper, Hollywood Vampires); Lajon Witherspoon (Sevendust); and Brent Woods (Sebastian Bach, Wildside).

Also participating will be members of the DIO band–Simon Wright, Oni Logan, Scott Warren, Bjorn Englen and Rowan Robertson, who will also appear with fellow castmate Paul Shortino (Rough Cutt) from the Las Vegas production “Raiding the Rock Vault.”  Radio and television personalities Eddie Trunk and Matt Pinfield will be on hand during the broadcast conducting interviews with artists as well as with DIO producer Wyn Davis and Ronnie’s widow and long-time manager Wendy Dio.  

The STAND UP AND SHOUT FOR RONNIE JAMES DIO’S BIRTHDAY virtual event will feature brand new performances and stories from Ronnie’s friends and fans, as well as exclusive archival footage from Dio’s life and long-spanning career, and never-before-seen footage from Dio Cancer Fund events held in Los Angeles since 2011 when the organization began.  Through musical performances and storytelling, a wide array of guests will celebrate the life of a man who deeply influenced their lives through his artistry and larger-than-life presence.

Throughout his career, Ronnie James Dio was a passionate supporter and contributor to charitable work and numerous animal charities. He was an artist who was not only well respected for his talent, but also admired and loved by his peers and fans worldwide, some of which included renowned celebrities, musicians, and prominent individuals from all walks of life.

Tickets go on sale today (June 9) at https://rollinglivestudios.com/dio with General Admission tickets priced at $20 (Early Bird general admission tickets at just $15 are available through June 16).  In addition to tickets to view the show, Rolling Live Studios will offer special merchandise packages and virtual VIP experiences for fans to take part in this unusual worldwide event.  Included among the value-added items is a specially designed event tee–shirt, baseball cap and laminate plus “grab bags” of vintage DIO and Dio Cancer Fund event merchandise.  Ticket packages that include access to a Pre-Show Virtual Meet & Greet and a Post-Show Virtual VIP Party are also available.  Additionally, a limited number of copies of RAINBOW IN THE DARK:  THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY, written by Ronnie James Dio (with Wendy Dio and Mick Wall) and signed by Wendy Dio, will be made available prior to its publication and availability to the public on July 27.     

The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund (www.diocancerfund.org), dedicated to cancer prevention, research and education, has raised over $2 million in its history.  The organization’s last in–person event was its 10th Anniversary Gala held at the Avalon in Hollywood in February, 2020.  Its annual RIDE FOR RONNIE Motorcycle Ride and Concert and BOWL FOR RONNIE Celebrity Bowling Tournament have been suspended as the result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

STAND UP AND SHOUT FOR RONNIE JAMES DIO’S BIRTHDAY is the latest in a lineup of stellar events produced by Rolling Live Studios. In January, the studio worked alongside Mike Garson to bring together an extraordinary slate of vocalists to perform with David Bowie’s band alumni for “A Bowie Celebration: Just for One Day” streaming concert event.  The following month, YUNGBLUD’s stunning performance of “Life on Mars?” from the event played after millions of viewers watched NASA’s Perseverance rover successfully touch down on Mars. 

About The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund:

The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable fund formed in honor of the legendary Ronnie James Dio, who lost his life to stomach cancer on May 16, 2010. Cancer is a deadly disease that robs families of loved ones, and the Dio Cancer Fund is dedicated to support cancer prevention research, raise awareness and educate the public with the focus that early detection and prevention saves lives.

Monies raised have been committed to the cancer research work of the T. J. Martell Foundation for Cancer, AIDS and Leukemia Research, the gastric cancer research unit of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where Ronnie was treated for gastric cancer during the last six months of his life, and other cancer research projects. Since 2016, the Dio Cancer Fund has also committed funds to support the research of Dr. David Wong and his team at the UCLA School of Dentistry in developing a simple, non-invasive saliva test for the early detection of cancer, which is in keeping with the Fund’s mission of cancer prevention, research and education.

To purchase tickets and VIP and merchandise packages for the Ronnie James Dio Virtual Birthday Celebration, visit https://rollinglivestudios.com/dio

Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund:

www.diocancerfund.org

www.facebook.com/RJDSUASCF 

https://twitter.com/DioCancerFund 

https://www.instagram.com/diocancerfund/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpIsd0Sa3IXQY2t33G3oEEg

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Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music Entertainment, are pleased to present Release Me 2, a new collection of ten previously unreleased studio performances from the legendary Barbra Streisand, available Friday, August 6, 2021.

The first new Barbra Streisand album title since 2018’s Walls, Release Me 2 is the eagerly-awaited second volume of Barbra Streisand rarities, a timely companion to her highly-successful 2012 Columbia/Legacy album Release Me, which entered the Billboard 200 at #7, making it her 32nd Top 10 and 7th consecutive Top 10 album at the time.

Giving fans their first taste of Release Me 2, “I’d Want It To Be You”–Barbra’s irresistible duet with Willie Nelson–will be released via all digital service providers along with a lyric video for the song on Friday, June 4. A track originally intended for Partners, her 2014 album of duets with superstar male singers, this Barbra Streisand-Willie Nelson vocal collaboration was still a work-in-progress as Partners‘ release date approached. Produced by Walter Afanasieff & Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, “I’d Want It To Be You” was recorded in 2014 and 2020.

Please enjoy the video for “I’d Want It To Be You” HERE

Release Me 2 showcases exquisite songs and sublime studio performances recorded over the course of Barbra’s astounding career, but shelved for various reasons. In her notes for the album, Barbra says, “For me, the studio is a combination musical playground and laboratory…a private sanctuary, where the possibility of catching lightning in a bottle always exists. Whenever that kind of magic happens, it’s extremely satisfying. Sometimes though, when the arrangement doesn’t quite gel or the song no longer fits the tone of the album it was meant for, the tapes go into the vault for safekeeping. Working on this 2nd volume of Release Me has been a lovely walk down memory lane…a chance to revisit, and in some cases, add a finishing instrumental touch to songs that still resonate for me in meaningful ways. I’m particularly struck by the ongoing relevance of ‘Be Aware’ and ‘One Day,’ which still speak to our collective sense of humanity.”

Throughout her career, Barbra’s passionate social activism has been a driving force in her art and life. Her performances of “Be Aware” and “One Day (A Prayer)” connect to the core of the human condition. Written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David as response to the plight of world hunger and homeless children, “Be Aware” was recorded in the studio to establish an arrangement for Barbra’s appearance on the 1971 television special, “Singer Presents Burt Bacharach. Produced by Burt Bacharach & Barbra Streisand, “Be Aware” was recorded in 1971 and 2020.

Featuring a melody by Michel Legrand and lyrics by Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman, “One Day (A Prayer)” is an evocatively hopeful message of peace. Barbra recorded the song on three separate occasions in 1968-69, each with a different arranger. All three versions were archived in the vault until 1990 when a rough mix of the Don Costa arrangement was broadcast on The Earth Day Special (ABC), featuring a video of Barbra performing the song. Release Me 2 presents the Don Costa arrangement of this glorious anthem with the finished mix it’s always deserved. Produced by Barbra Streisand & Wally Gold, “One Day (A Prayer)” was recorded in 1968.

Release Me 2 features songs penned by celebrated writers and tunesmiths including Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Barry Gibb, Randy Newman, Michel Legrand/Alan Bergman/Marilyn Bergman, Harold Arlen and “Yip” Harburg, Carole King, Steve Dorff, Paul Williams/Kenny Ascher, and Walter Afanasieff/John Bettis.

In addition to her duet with Willie Nelson, Release Me 2 features Barbra singing with Muppet superstar Kermit the Frog on the classic composition “Rainbow Connection” (originally intended for Barbra’s Wet album in 1979) and a musical collaboration with Barry Gibb on “If Only You Were Mine,” written by Barry Gibb/Ashley Gibb/Stephen Gibb as a potential bonus track for 2005’s Guilty Pleasures. Produced by Barbra Streisand & Jochem van der Saag, “Rainbow Connection” was recorded in 1979 and 2020. “If Only You Were Mine” was produced by Barry Gibb and John Merchant in 2005.

Other highlights on Release Me 2 include Barbra’s interpretation of Carole King’s “You Light Up My Life,” a song from King’s 1973 Fantasy album which Barbra recorded for potential inclusion on her 1974 Butterfly collection. Produced by Barbra Streisand, with additional production and mix by Jochem van der Saag, “You Light Up My Life” was recorded in 1974 and 2020.

Release Me 2 includes a spellbinding studio performance of the Walter Afanasieff/John Bettis composition, “Sweet Forgiveness,” a soaring emotional ballad produced by Walter Afanasieff & Barbra Streisand, recorded in 1994.

Barbra’s heartrending interpretation of Randy Newman’s “Living Without You” was one of four Newman compositions originally recorded in 1971 for Barbra’s Stoney End album. Fine-tuned and polished for Release Me 2, “Living Without You” was produced & arranged by Walter Afanasieff & Barbra Streisand and recorded in 1971 and 2020; the original vocal was produced by Richard Perry.

The earliest studio recording on Release Me 2 is Barbra’s incandescent performance of “Right As The Rain,” an elegant ballad penned by Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg (“Over The Rainbow”) for the 1944 Broadway musical, “Bloomer Girl.” This is one of four songs Barbra recorded in 1962, prior to cutting her debut album the following year. Though she re-recorded the song for The Second Barbra Streisand Album in 1963, this essential early studio performance captures the sound and spirit of a young emerging superstar talent. Produced by Mike Berniker, “Right As The Rain” was recorded in 1962.

Release Me 2 closes with “Once You’ve Been In Love,” a Michel Legrand/Alan Bergman/Marilyn Bergman composition transformed into a stunning once-in-a-lifetime tour de force, a single-take live-in-the-studio performance with Barbra singing directly in front of the orchestra without the benefit of an isolated vocal booth. The effect is remarkable, with Barbra’s voice, the orchestration, the lyrics and the music blending together in a cascading unified complex of sound and emotion. Produced by Barbra Streisand, arranged & conducted by Michel Legrand, mixed by John Arias, “Once You’ve Been In Love” was recorded in 1973.

Release Me 2 will be available as a digital album as well as a CD digipak with a 32-page booklet–featuring liner notes by Barbra Streisand and Jay Landers, the album’s executive producers. Several collectible 12″ vinyl editions, art directed by Barbra Streisand, will be available in a variety of color packages, color vinyl pressings, and a special picture disc.

Barbra Streisand

Widely recognized as an icon in multiple entertainment fields, Barbra Streisand has attained unprecedented achievements as a recording artist, actor, director, producer, screenwriter, author, songwriter and concert performer. Streisand has been awarded two Oscars, five Emmys, ten Grammys including the Legend Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award, a Tony Award, eleven Golden Globes including the Cecil B. DeMille Award, three Peabodys, and the Director’s Guild Award for her concert special — the only artist to receive honors in all of those areas.

In addition, Streisand has also received the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award and the Kennedy Center Honor. She also received the National Medal of Arts from President Clinton, the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama, and France’s Légion d’Honneur.

She is the first woman to direct, produce, write, and star in a major motion picture, the first woman composer to receive an Academy Award, the only recording artist who has achieved #1 albums in six consecutive decades, and the first and only woman to receive a Golden Globe Award for Best Director.

A woman of action, Streisand is a devoted philanthropist who works tirelessly to fight for what she believes in. She founded The Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai and co-founded the Women’s Heart Alliance, helping to raise awareness and push for more research into women’s heart disease, the leading cause of death among women. Through the Streisand Foundation, which she established in 1986, she has fought for progressive ideas. She has been a leading environmental activist funding some of the earliest climate change research. She has long been a staunch supporter of racial equality, women’s rights, civil rights, and the very urgent need to protect voters’ rights.

BARBRASTREISAND.COM 

COLUMBIARECORDS.COM

LEGACYRECORDINGS.COM

Following a string of emotionally charged singles, rising star Jack In Water has announced his debut album, You Don’t Feel Like Home, out August 27th on Netwerk Records. Alongside the announcement Jack In Water releases his breathtaking new single ‘For You’, a dreamy desperate love song about falling for someone out of a fear of loneliness which was written alongside acclaimed songwriter Justin Parker (Lana Del Ray, Bat For Lashes, Banks) – listen here.

Produced by Oli Bayston (Loyle Carner, The 2 Bears) at his East London Studio, You Don’t Feel Like Home is not a record to rush. A drama-packed delve back to Will Clapson, aka Jack In Water’s, childhood, the album features deeply personal, coming-of-age songs, drawing on the topics of family, friendship and falling in love but also addressing darker, deeply personal issues – sexual abuse, alcohol misuse and the discovery of death.

“Looking back at your childhood, somewhat from a distance, I think that’s how I would sum the album up,” Will reflected. “When you’re no longer tangled up in its ups and downs but you’re still able to see that you’re inevitably a result of everything that’s happened to you so far. It’s allowed me to say goodbye to certain parts of my past as well as to accept that they will somehow always live with me.”

Brought up in a little village in Essex, Jack In Water is the alias of singer-songwriter William Clapson. A string of DIY EP releases to date has an impressive accumulated streaming figure of over 10 million.

Now signed to Netwerk Records and with an album ten years in the making, You Don’t Feel Like Home is a stunning statement of acceptance, as much about moving on as it is about looking back. Enjoy the ride.

Tracklisting:

1. You Don’t Feel Like Home
2. Beast Behind Your Eyes
3. Just Smile
4. For You
5. Unconditional Love
6. If I Cared
7. Anxious Smothers
8. Monster
9. Everyone Will Be Lost
10. Step Down

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Following on from their 40th anniversary celebrations last year which saw them release their greatest hits and anniversary box set, ’Souvenir’, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (OMD) have announced further remastered reissues of their UK Top 20 album Liberator and their 1996 album Universal on vinyl on August 6th on UMC/Liberator.

Frontman Andy McCluskey’s fascination with WWII bombers influenced the title of the UK Top 20 album Liberator named after the B-24 Liberator aircraft. Peaking at number 14 in the UK album charts, the record features singles ‘Stand Above Me’ and ‘Dream Of Me’ as well as a cover version of the Velvet Underground’s 1967 track, ‘Sunday Morning’. Universal, the band’s tenth album released in 1996, also had chart success with single ‘Walking On The Milky Way’ entering in the Top 20 in the UK singles charts and saw the band make their 29th and final appearance on Top of the Pops. 

Both albums, which haven’t been available on vinyl since their first release, will be reissued on 180g black vinyl and were remastered at the iconic Abbey Road studios. The releases follow a string of reissues in the last year from OMD including the limited 12” vinyl of their legendary anti-war hit single ‘Enola Gay’ as well as a limited reissue of the bands iconic debut single, ‘Electricity’, on 7” vinyl. 

OMD will also embark on a UK arena tour in November of this year. The tour, which will see the band perform songs from their iconic album ‘Architecture & Morality’, plus many more hits from their legendary back catalogue, will stop off at London’s Eventim Apollo, and two hometown shows at the Liverpool Empire and Olympia. 

As well as the tour, fans and the band can give back to the tour crew at the ‘You Me & OMD’ livestream at London’s Indigo at The O2 on June 19th. The show is set to raise money and awareness for their crew, whose livelihoods have been so affected in the wake of the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Strap in and prepare for nothing but the best from a band who are unquestionably still at the very top of their game.

The band will play the following UK arena headline shows in November 2021:

2021 UK Headline Tour Dates

November

Mon 1st GLASGOW, O2 Academy

Tue 2nd EDINBURGH, Usher Hall

Wed 3rd GATESHEAD, Sage

Fri 5th HULL Bonus Arena

Sat 6th LEEDS, First Direct Arena

Sun 7th CAMBRIDGE, Corn Exchange

Tue 9th LEICESTER, DeMontfort Hall

Wed 10th CARDIFF, Motorpoint Arena

Fri 12th BIRMINGHAM, Resorts World Arena

Sat 13th LONDON, Eventim Apollo

Sun 14th BOURNEMOUTH, BIC

Tue 16th BRIGHTON, Brighton Centre

Wed 17th OXFORD, New Theatre

Fri 19th MANCHESTER, O2 Apollo

Sat 20th MANCHESTER, O2 Apollo

Sun 21st LIVERPOOL, Empire

Tue 23rd LIVERPOOL, Eventim Olympia

OMD have sold an astonishing 25 million singles and 15 million albums, which has established them as electronic synthesiser pioneers and one of Britain’s best-loved pop groups. Their 13 albums include recently reissued ‘Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark’ (1980), ‘Organisation’ (1980), ‘Architecture & Morality’ (1981) and ‘Dazzle Ships’ (1983).

Liberator tracklisting:

Side A:

Stand Above Me

Everyday

King Of Stone

Dollar Girl

Dream Of Me (Based On Love’s Theme)

Sunday Morning

Side B:

Agnus Dei

Love And Hate You

Heaven Is

Best Years Of Our Lives

Christine

Only Tears

Universal tracklisting:

Side A:

Universal

Walking On The Milky Way

The Moon And The Sun

The Black Sea

Very Close To Far Away

The Gospel Of St Jude

Side B:

That Was Then

Too Late

The Boy From The Chemist Is Here To See You

If You’re Still In Love With Me

New Head

Victory Waltz

www.omd.uk.com