Music

The long campaign of U.K. musicians and performers who were unable to perform visa-free in the European Union post-Brexit has finally seen some success with 19 EU nations allowing short-term tours without visas and work permits. “We, as government, have spoken to every EU member state about the issues facing our creative and cultural industries

A large presence in hip-hop star A$AP Ferg’s youth in New York City’s Hamilton Heights neighborhood was the unsung heroes of urban living: the bodegas, or corner stores. “Man, they’re hubs for the community,” Ferg tells Variety. “They’re an intersection between lawyers, garbagemen and students — people from all different facets of life. And when

Eleven national LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS organizations on Wednesday released an open letter to rapper DaBaby in the wake of his recent homophobic statements and awkward attempts at apologies, requesting a private meeting to discuss the facts about HIV and how it is a preventable and treatable condition, and discuss a long-term opportunity for him to

Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s lockdown-inspired single, “Stuck With U,” has now raised over $3.5 million for the First Responders Children’s Foundation, going directly to thousands of first responders’ families around the U.S. The single, which released on May 8, 2020, was recorded in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and donated 100% of its profits

Jennifer Hudson and Carole King each have a lot to celebrate this year. King will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a performer at the next ceremony in October, after previously qualifying as a songwriter. Hudson, who won a supporting actress Oscar in 2007 for her first film role, in

The release of a first single from the forthcoming “Cinderella” soundtrack, a cover of Queen’s “Somebody to Love” by leading man Nick Galitzine, foretells the fact that Amazon Studios’ movie musical will sport a mixture of original material and classic pop songs interpreted by the Camila Cabello-led cast. Epic Records and Amazon Studios announced that the

Longtime KROQ DJ Kat Corbett is the latest voice to exit the iconic L.A. alternative radio station — and although she’s not ready to reveal her next stop just yet, she hints to Variety that several possibilities are on the horizon. “I am talking to some folks that I can’t say just yet,” said Corbett,

Pete Parada, the drummer for the Offspring, has found out the hard way that some businesses — and even bands — are drawing a hard line on requiring vaccinations to come back to work. He posted on his social media Tuesday that he’s been ousted from the group because he won’t agree to get the

UPDATED: Live Nation Entertainment, the world’s largest live-entertainment company, posted strong second-quarter earnings as the concert business cautiously moves ahead amid deep concerns over the spread of the Covid-19 variant and lower-than-sensible vaccination rates in the U.S. Operating income for the quarter was up over $450 million and its adjusted operating income was back in

Showtime has released a trailer for “Bitchin’: the Sound and Fury of Rick James,” a new documentary directed by Emmy-nominee and hip-hop journalist Sacha Jenkins (“Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men”). Judging by the trailer the doc aims to present an accurate look at one of the most controversial and confrontational figures in the history of R&B

“American Idol” judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, as well as host Ryan Seacrest, have all signed on to return for the show’s landmark 20th season, which also marks its fifth on ABC. The network announced on Tuesday that all four will be back when “American Idol” returns in spring 2022. Seacrest has

Craig D’Souza (pictured) has joined WME as a partner, music co-heads Lucy Dickins, Kirk Sommer and Scott Clayton announced today. The UK-based D’Souza arrives from Primary Talent International, where he was an agent for 11 years. D’Souza is credited with building Stormzy as a live act, from club shows in 2015 through to a sold-out

DaBaby has been dropped from two more music festivals, despite issuing a second apology on Monday for homophobic comments he made at and after his performance at the Rolling Loud Miami festival on the weekend of July 23. Reps for the iHeartRadio Music Festival and Austin City Limits confirmed that he will no longer be

Def Jam Forward, the Universal Music-owned label’s task force formed in the wake of Blackout Tuesday and the Black Lives Matter movement last Spring, has posted a report on its progress over the past year. According to its statements, the task force “is committed to fostering a community that values, promotes and demands respect, freedom,

As Tony Bennett celebrates his 95th birthday, and he and Lady Gaga prepare for a two-night stand at Radio City Music Hall beginning tonight, reps for the singer and Lady Gaga have revealed the title, concept and track list for their second collaborative album, “Love for Sale,” a Cole Porter tribute. The Oct. 1 release

Warner Music Group posted $1.34 billion in revenue for its fiscal third quarter ended June 30, the company announced on Tuesday, with a 32.7% year-over-year revenue boost and a 33% jump in streaming. The company saw a 33.8% growth in recorded-music revenues over the same, pandemic-struck quarter last year, up to $1.15 billion from $861

Legendary songwriter, guitarist and singer Johnny Marr — formerly of the Smiths, the The, Electronic and Modest Mouse and a veteran solo artist as well — has signed a new worldwide album deal with BMG. The deal is an expansion of Marr’s relationship with BMG as a publisher, which includes his three U.K. Top Ten

A whole lotta love is headed to the Venice Film Festival, which has just added the highly anticipated Led Zeppelin feature documentary to its lineup. Bernard MacMahon’s “Becoming Led Zeppelin,” which was recently completed, will screen out of competition at the Italian fest, which runs from Sept. 1-11. The film was co-written and produced by

Charles Connor, best known as a drummer for Little Richard in his 1950s heyday, and decades later later a familiar sight to L.A. radio veterans as a security guard at KROQ, died Saturday at age 86. His daughter, Queenie Connor Sonnefeld, told the Associated Press he died peacefully in his sleep while under hospice care

New music from the Weeknd is coming on Friday. On Monday night, the singer announced a new single, “Take My Breath,” via an Olympics promo for the Team USA Women’s Track & Field team. The Weeknd posted the clip on Twitter, which features athletes Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, Athing Mu and Gabby Thomas, along with

The BBC has announced it is broadcasting a star-studded concert live from Wembley Stadium to celebrate Team GB’s return from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The 90-minute concert, which will include artists such as Nile Rogers, Laura Mvula and Yungblud, will take place at The SSE Arena on Sunday, Aug. 15, at 7:30 p.m. in

The Kid Laroi cussed his way to the top this week, as his “F*ck Love” album leaped to No. 1 in its 53rd week of release. Although it’s not technically a new album, it might seem like one, with a deluxe edition released July 20 having added six new tracks. This marked the second deluxe

After his headlining sets at Lollapalooza and the Governors Ball Festival were canceled within 24 hours of each other, DaBaby has issued another, more articulated apology to the LGBTQ community. While it starts off defensively, his statement posted to Instagram does include a more thorough apology than the half-baked ones he offered last week in

Nearly two years after the last BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn concert, the series launched again on Saturday night at the weeks-long festival’s longtime home at the bandshell in the borough’s Prospect Park. As if renaming the bandshell in honor of the great singer-actress-activist Lena Horne weren’t special enough, headliner Ari Lennox brought out superstar rapper J.

In 2016, hot off a career-changing verse on Kanye West’s “Ultralight Beam,” Chance the Rapper released “Coloring Book.” Credited for changing the music industry’s view of streaming and the landscape of hip-hop at a time when the release of a physical edition was still seen as legitimizing an album, the mixtape topped multiple year-end lists, debuted

After a long break, Grammy-winning singer Lizzo is returning with a new single called “Rumors” on August 13, with an album presumably on the way,  although reps did not immediately respond to requests for further information. Sources tell Variety the song is “very different.” It is available for pre-order in a dizzying array of formats

Travis Scott’s Cactus Jack Films has signed a production deal with A24, the content studio whose credits include the films “Moonlight,” “The Florida Project” “Midsommer” and “Uncut Gems,” and the television series “Ramy” and “Euphoria,” among many other projects. Scott and Cactus Jack will produce movies in partnership with A24, which was revealed on Scott’s

A day after DaBaby was dropped from the Lollapalooza lineup for his homophobic comments last week, New York’s Governors Ball canceled his performance at the festival, which takes place in September. In a tweet labeled “Stay tuned for a lineup addition,” the festival’s promoter wrote in a social media message: “Founders Entertainment does not and

The Weeknd teased new music early Monday morning in a snippet posted on social media called “The Dawn Is Coming” and talked generally about it in a new GQ article, calling it “the album I’ve always wanted to make.” The song has a heavy electronic dance groove reminiscent of “Alive 2007”-era Daft Punk, but with

“American Epic” director Bernard MacMahon has revealed the title of his long-awaited and recently completed Led Zeppelin feature documentary: “Becoming Led Zeppelin.” The project, which was first announced in 2019, has unprecedented access to the band, marking the first and only time the group has participated in a documentary in 50 years. Though 1976 doc