Ariana Grande has some SERIOUSLY dedicated fans, who will back her up no matter what the circumstances are. Even if it means destroying a new song of hers to replace it with a slightly newer banger.
The Sweetener singer has proven herself to be a good sport, and now she's supporting a campaign against her own single (and pure BOP) 7 Rings.
The pop star's fans have randomly launched a movement called #Boycott7Rings in order to dethrone the song from the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, but not for the reason you think…
Basically, the 25-year-old singer has dropped track after track for her loving fans, and they want her latest single Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored to take the number one spot.
The song features on her new album (the second in six months) called Thank U, Next, and has some pretty controversial lyrics.
Some call it toxic femininity to encourage a man to break up with his girlfriend to get with her, others say it's just another incredibly catchy banger from our gal. Oh, and the video features the SEXINESS of Charles Melton.
If you're unfamiliar with Melton's work, he's basically one of the hottest lad on the Riverdale planet. And there are many of those, as we know.
Ari's fans are either sneaky or pure genius, we can't decide. It seems the singer herself is very open to the chart swap, throwing her support behind the campaign.
She wrote to Twitter; "Y'all are so insane and funny and I love you. Nothing's funnier than “boycott seven rings”….. I can’t. Whatever’s meant to be will be, babies. I ain’t going nowhere."
They really are insane. To be fair, the campaign is a total win-win for pop's reigning princess.
Fans begged her to tweet the hashtag, which she did but later deleted, writing, "Are you happy now?" We're guessing they were ecstatic.
An especially devoted fan is having a streaming party to block the song, to which Ariana replied:
"This is a wild time for us, do ur thing but also like how is this our problem right now …… what the f*ck." Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored is 100 percent a stand-out hit from her new album, and the saucy music video is helping.
The gal can't escape the huge chart success, so we wish her our congrats. She deserves it with all those tunes she's dropping, and even got a Grammy out of it.
Ariana Grande has reportedly pulled out of her Grammy Awards performance after having a disagreement with the producers over which songs she would perform.
Sources at Variety are claiming that she felt "insulted" after the producers refused to allow her to sing 7 Rings, her latest single from upcoming album Thank U Next.
The album is due out two days before the Grammys, and the 25-year-old singer has appeared on billboards across the USA promoting the show, which takes place this Sunday.
Not only will she not be performing, she won't even be in attendance. YIKES…also devastating. We'd have loved to see her perform.
A compromise was apparently reached where 7 Rings could be sung as part of a medley, but she pulled out after the producers insisted that the second song choice was theirs to make.
The source also stated that such stipulations were not imposed on any other show performers, which is interesting.
Grande has been absolutely KILLIN' IT this year, with Billboard number one album Sweetener and singles Thank U Next and 7 Rings.
Who can forget the tunes God is a Woman and Breathin' too? She's been a gift. She's nominated in some of the Grammys biggest categories, including Best Pop Vocal Performance for God is a Woman and Best Pop Vocal Album.
The story is super similar to that of Lorde, who pulled out of the Grammys performance last year when producers told her she wasn't allowed to perform a song from her second album, Melodrama, which was nominated for Album of the Year.
Danish band Lukas Graham have landed in hot water after covering the late rapper XXXTenacion's song SAD!, claiming to have no knowledge of his violent past.
The track was covered as a stripped-down version for the Spotify Singles series, and now the lead singer Lukas Forchammer has stated that the song will be removed from streaming services.
He posted a now-deleted statement to Instagram, writing; “Our cover of ‘SAD!’ will be taken down ASAP. I had no knowledge of his violent history. I’m very sorry for the pain I’ve caused. Again, I’m very sorry.”
The band allegedly had no clue about the deceased rap artist's controversial history with the law.
At the time of his death back in 2016, he was facing trial for a number of charges including false imprisonment and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman.
The band's apology referenced XXX's domestic abuse charges from October 2016, after he was shot and killed in June of that year.
XXXtenacion was charged with false imprisonment, witness tampering, and aggravated battery of a pregnant victim in OCTOBER 2016. Even after all of this he dropped his album on August 25th 2017 and his album still fucking debuted number 2 on the Billboard 200.
The 20-year-old's multi-platinum-selling posthumous album ? has been boosted and featured by a number of famous hip-hop and rap artists.
The rapper confessed to “f*cking up” his ex-girlfriend, in addition to a number of other violent crimes in a secret video which was made public after his death.
Real name Jahseh Onfroy said in an interview with the podcast No Jumper that he nearly killed his gay prison inmate who was staring at him. He laughed throughout the interview, showing no remorse.
"I was going crazy,” he told the interviewer. “I smear his blood on my face, on my hands. I got it, like, in my nails. I got it all over me. I was going f*cking crazy.”
He sees it, he likes it, he wants it, he GETS IT. America's Next Top Model icon Nyle DiMarco, who is also an avid activist for the ASL community, has created his own version of Ariana Grande's 7 Rings music video in American Sign Language.
AND IT'S AMAZING. With DiMarco's assistance, the video was directed by Jake Wilson, and features a range of models absolutely slayin' the game to Ariana's number one hit song, alongside closed captions.
DiMarco was the second male winner and first winner who is hard of hearing to be crowned America's Next Top Model. He's been a public advocate for closed-captioning videos for the deaf community ever since.
He asked Grande herself via Twitter to request that her thank u, next video be available with closed captioning for the “466 million people with hearing loss” who want to view the art too.
Could you ask @Vevo to add captions for 466 million people with hearing loss
"Deaf here and we do enjoy your music," Nyle added. He has been campaigning for representation for years, and has achieved some major milestones while he's at it.
He also reached out to Vevo, writing, "You earn more than $650 million per year and can't even add captions to Ariana Grande's thank u, next video."
"There ARE closed caption service that will cost you ONLY six dollars (or less) to instantly appeal to a wider audience," he added.
"There are 466 million people with hearing loss, thank u, next."
YAS HENNY. He's right, of course. The deaf community face struggles with music videos daily, with only a handful of major artists providing closed-captions on their video work.
Grande took notice of the criticism, and made sure that when her 7 Rings music video debuted this month, there were lyrics available to read onscreen
DiMarco has now released an ASL version of whole iconic music video, and he's looking INCREDIBLE in a diamanté fishnet top;
Him and his male model pals are killin' it in the video, recreating Ariana's girl power song with American Sign Language to boot. Fair play lads, fair play.
Representation matters, and we all have to play a role in encouraging the fight against albeism.
Nyle continues to break down the barriers for his community, we're so glad Ari took notice.
Only days after the death of XXXTenacion, real name Jahseh Onfroy, the pregnancy was revealed in June of last year. The 20-year-old was shot and killed in Florida in his car.
According to the statement, the name Gekyume was “specifically” chosen by the late musician ”for his first born son”.
The family say the name “means ‘different state’ or ‘next’ universe of thought,” adding that they are “honoured to fulfil his wish”.
A posthumous XXXTentacion record was released last year entitled Skins, and featured prominentartists such as Kanye West.
The controversial rapper was facing a shocking 15 felony charges when he died, and was accused of multiple counts of domestic abuse, including an incident of physically assaulting a pregnant woman.
The rapper had been charged with the aggravated battery of a pregnant victim, domestic battery by strangulation, false imprisonment and witness tampering, and was due in court the week after his death.
It looks like we're FINALLY getting some updates on Bad Gal Riri's forthcoming album, after R&B legend The Dream revealed some details in an all-encompassing interview.
It's been almost three years since her last work, 2016's ANTI, and since then Rihanna has taken on world domination through fashion and cosmetics.
Savage x Fenty and Fenty Beauty have been hugely successful, and we thank her for those gems, but now we need the TUNES to match, mmkay?
Fans have been waiting a long time to hear more music from the iconic singer, and her newest record is "about done", according to The Dream. The singer has worked closely with Rihanna since 2007.
When asked about the versatile artists' newest work, he said; "She’s cooking, she’s about done. She’s about done. Super close." TAKE IT OUT OF THE OVEN.
He flat out refused to give any more details about the Disturbia hitmaker's album, but also teased that Beyoncé is "doing something" in the studio. Praise the Lawd, the Queens are returning to their thrones.
Speaking in an interview with Ebro Darden, he said: “I actually haven’t talked to her about it – I’ve talked to the team about it because it’s kind of just being coordinated. But she’s doing something."
RiRi recently joked to her fans that her internet connection was too poor to answer their questions about her album, though many are saying her ninth studio album is close to being finished.
The singer posted a video to her Instagram Stories which featured her waving a wad of cash, smiling and blowing a kiss to the camera, with the caption, '"Fans: "Where the album?" Me: sorry my connection poor."
Kuk Harrell, who worked with the star on ANTI, and co-wrote songs such as Umbrella and Only Girl (In the World), recently responded to one of the singer’s fans who asked about the album, saying;
"R9 is great. R9 is amazing. It’s incredible, And that’s all I’m going to say." Obviously it's amazing, but we need it NOW.
There have been zero announcements yet on a release date, but we'll be patient for Bad Gal RiRi.
Just two days after telling the world she'd drop the tracklist and cover art for her newest album, due February 8, Ariana Grande essentially said "F*ck it". And we love her for it.
She's only gone and posted them EARLY, sharing the iconic tracklist (Break up with your girlfriend, I'm bored is our fave) and debuting the cover art for Thank U, Next.
The cover is, of course, pink. Our homegirl Ari is also upside down, with spraypaint across her chest reminiscent of the 7 Rings cover.
Telling her fans, "This is my favourite album cover, I think. Brain painted me. Fredo shot me. Made with true, deep friendship and love, just like this music."
Adorable, she clearly has a wonderful support system of family and friends around her since her much-publicised break-up with Pete Davidson.
The singer has claimed she's stanning the single solo life in 2019, after being asked who she's dating now; "Spoiler for the rest of this year/probably my life: it's no one."
she still upside-down. but this time she kinda ……… fucks w it lol.
After Ari's upside-down Christmas tree, to embody her life currently being in an upside-down universe, she's brought that energy to her latest album artwork.
While her life remains topsy-turvy, Grande's here for it. "This time she kinda…f*cks with it." Damn right, she does.
2019 is going to be Ariana's year, we can feel it. If you need us we'll be blasting 7 Rings on our way to Tiffany & Co.
Ariana Grande is doing things HER WAY from now on, including dropping an album whenever the heck she wants, reminiscent of Beyonce'e Lemonade.
Despite the fact the 25-year-old singer only dropped Sweetener in August, and blew our minds with its girl power greatness, her forthcoming album Thank U, Next will drop on February 8.
We, for one, CANNOT WAIT to hear the tunes in all their pop gloriousness, judging by how incredible her latest song 7 Rings is.
two albums in six months huh. that’s deep. love u. talk sooon.
Ari has given us a taster for what's to come, posting the album's setlist to her Instagram account and sending her fans into a frenzied furore.
The gal can pretty much do whatever she pleases considering her phenomenal success, a Billboard number one album and numerous Top 100 songs from the same release.
The album has 12 tracks, including recent tunes such as Imagine, 7 Rings and, of course, the great Thank U, Next.
She grouped the songs into three categories of four, which probably has a deeper meaning but we sadly don't have this insider knowledge as of yet. Hit us up if you know any deets.
The names are already iconic; Fake smile, bad idea, ghostin, NASA, make-up, and our personal favourite, break up with your girlfriend, I'm bored.
Ari had a rough year in 2018, with her much-publicised break-up, her ex-boyfriend's overdose and the grief from Manchester's bombing attack.
She has recently tweeted that releasing the album just before Valentine's Day isn't to get her fans in the mood for love, it's to get them empowered as strong, single woman. We stan.
It really is the year of nostalgia; Between the Spice Girls, Westlife and Carrie Bradshaw, it's clearly comeback o'clock.
News recently broke that one of the biggest legends of the early 2000s is making a musical return, with her sophomore album expecting to be released before the end of 2019.
We've all got more than fond memories of tunes such as Gotta Tell You and Always Come Back To Your Love, and soon we'll be hearing brand new music from the versatile singer.
We sat down for a chat with the woman herself, and once our starstruck fever calmed down, we managed to ask her a few questions.
There have been whispers of musical comebacks for many years now, considering her first album Gotta Tell You was released back in 2000 when she was only sixteen-years-old.
While the rest of us were figuring out creative ways to abandon school for a few hours and day-dreaming of Zack Morris from Saved By The Bell, Samantha was making CHUNES.
So why choose now to release her long-awaited album number two? Samantha is a woman of many talents, trying her hand at Masterchef in 2017, as well as appearances in Dancing On Ice and on ITV's Loose Women.
“It’s been in the works for a couple of months, so for me I did Manchester Pride last summer, and I was so blown away by the response. As I was onstage I was literally like, why don’t I have any new music to perform? This is stupid, like it’s ridiculous. I’m one of those people who gets in their own way all the time. Even if I think of doing something, I’ll think of 20 reasons not to do it. I thought, ‘No, enough it enough’. I was afraid to do it again. The timing just feels good, and now I’m seeing that everyone is coming back, I thought, ‘What is going on?’ Hang on a second, I was coming back first!”
Damn right she was. Samantha's popularity with a range of audiences and people of all ages has to be noted, but why do so many listeners seem to relate to her?
“That’s a great question, and I don’t really know the answer. It’s just one of those things, a nostalgia thing. I also think because I was so young when I started, a lot of people literally feel, and they have, like they’ve grown up with me. People have even stopped me in the street to say, ‘Oh hey, how are you?’ as if they know me. I’ve been around for a while, I think there’s that kind of connection where people have really gotten behind me, it’s like I’m a cousin of theirs. It’s that kind of thing, it’s brilliant.”
Samantha still returns home to Dublin fairly regularly, and her little daughter Sage calls it her home too. We wondered if she had stayed up to date on Ireland's current homelessness crisis?
“It’s scandalous, it’s absolutely shocking. That’s why I thought this Just Eat campaign was just such a no-brainer. I’d love if they could double what they did last year, which in itself was incredible. Even especially being home at the minute, and it’s so cold, you just think, ‘Oh my God’, it’s not right. There’s a lot of young kids that are homeless, and it’s heartbreaking. Being a mother now myself, it’s just awful. You never know what goes on in someone’s life, it can happen to anybody, you just never know what kind of bad things could come somebody’s way. It can happen to everybody, and everybody should chip in," she says.
She's partnered up with Just Eat this year for their annual National Takeaway Tuesday to raise funds for the Peter McVerry Trust, who do vital work for the homeless. To date, Just Eat customers have generated over €50,000 for the Peter McVerry Trust, enough to move five people out of homelessness and into better futures.
Samantha comments; "This takeaway campaign is perfect, because you can order food on a Tuesday, get a 10 percent discount and chip in 10 percent to 2019’s Just Eat charity of choice, the Peter McVerry Trust. So you’re doing something good."
Does she notice the homelessness which is also prevalent in Los Angeles too, while she's spending her down-time there?
“Again, who am I to talk about anything, but there are definite areas. Santa Monica area and Downtown area, what I find is that a lot of the problems there are mental health. These people should be in facilities, in LA for me I notice, it’s a lot more of that. Whereas here, it’s more people who are getting a bad run of things. It just seems to be different circumstances, I suppose," she emphasises.
Her daughter Sage was born in 2015, with her husband Torray Scales. We're immediately jealous of Sage, because she's already heard some of her mum's new material;
‘Nightmare before Christmas is her thing. We listen to that soundtrack, and I love it as well, so it’s great. Sometimes she said, ‘I wanna hear mummy’s songs’, she approves of the new songs, thankfully. She’s very sweet, but other times she’s like, ‘Ok, back to Disney’, she laughs.
“She says she lives in LA and lives in Dublin, she loves being home. She gets totally spoilt rotten at home. The back and forth is her norm, she doesn’t know any different.”
We couldn't let Samantha go without trying to get the dates for her new music to be released, it had to be done. For the good of mankind. Luckily, she was ready for the question;
“I was hoping to have a date already. I have to have it within the next two weeks, because I want my first release to be latest end of March, early April. So we’re working on it. I’d love to have two singles out by the summer, and the album definitely will be later on in the year, but I’m on it.”
Me: “Calm down, Shane. It’s only January 4th.”
Also me: “Okay, Samantha Mumba and Madonna, it’s 2019–where are the new albums?!?”
One core difference between now and when Samantha started is, of course, the power of social media. She's aware of it as a tool, and this time it's going to connect her even more to her fans;
“That’s what I’m enjoying the most, there’s no random people telling me what I have to do, I’m fully in control of everything. That’s kind of the most exciting part for me. The people I’ve been working with in the States are so creative, they’re really pushing me out of my comfort zone.”
In terms of teasing some collaborations in the pipeline, she's revealed a song with MNEK has been created, and we are SO HERE for it. The artist is known for working with some of pop's biggest names, among them are Dua Lipa and Zara Larsson.
“MNEK I have done work with, yes, I adore him. He’s incredible, he’s so talented. I have done one song with him, and I have my core group of people to work with. I think he’ll actually be in LA again in another couple of weeks, so we’ll do another session there as well. I’d love to bring him in with my people, because I think they’d all mesh really well. I’m excited for what that will bring. He’s such a talent and a joy to work with.”
Is there anyone she's especially got her eye on, in terms of new female talent?
“I just discovered her and I’m obsessed, it’s Donna Missal from the US. She’s incredible, I love her."
Samantha is 36-years-old, and time has only given her even more glamour, wisdom and thick-skin for the tough music industry.
Her new album is set to encompass that sense of maturity;
My new music is pop R’N’B, it’s current to where I am, I’m a grown woman who’s lived a life. I have a lot of things to say. I’m just expressing them, and hopefully other women will relate to it."
Samantha is the newest 2019 mood; let her reign begin anew.
The artist captioned the video; "I’m thrilled to announce my new album Wasteland, Baby!"
"The album has been over a year in the making and it’s a pleasure to finally turn out my pockets and share the work. I want to sincerely thank fans and listeners for their continued support in between the records. See you out on the road soon.”
The new album follows Hozier's recent EP Nina Cried Power which features tunes inspired by his love for the world of music.
The singer from Wicklow name-checks civil rights advocates and musicians such as Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, James Brown, Joni Mitchell and Mavis Staples, who appears on the record.
The tracklist from Wasteland Baby! has 14 songs on it, including Movement; his latest single has been streamed over 21 million times in two months.
We can listen to the new song Almost (Sweet Music) while we wait for the album, which is sure to be HUGE.
Only 44 days until the release, but who's counting?
Picture This have been announced as the first act to play a brand new summer music festival in Belfast.
Live At The Botanic Gardens is set to be a series of outdoor concerts which will be held in the aesthetic setting of the famous Northern Irish gardens next June.
Early next year, Picture This are heading off on tour around Europe, Canada and the States, but will return to play Belfast for two nights on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 June 2019.
BELFAST!!
We’re coming back to your beautiful city next June to play 2 nights at The Botanic Gardens.
Tickets on sale Wednesday at 9am!! pic.twitter.com/TjNSON42ri
The Irish alternative rock band have confirmed the release of their second album for February 15, entitled MDRN LV.
The lads dropped the first single from the new album, One Drink, back in October and it has dominated the airwaves as the number one radio song in Ireland for three weeks running.
It has also entered the USA top 40 singles chart, breaking the band into a whole new American audience.
They have unveiled their new track Everything or Nothing alongside the music video, and we can't stop listening.
The band are also set to play a huge five night run at Dublin's 3Arena from March 27 until 31 in 2019.
Though they only formed the band two years ago, the foursome from Athy signed to massive US label Republic Records, which boasts Ariana Grande and Drake as other artists signed.
Ryan Hennessy, Jimmy Rainsford, Owen Cardiff and Cliff Deane have achieved incredible success, and are currently Ireland's biggest-selling artists of 2018, with a debut album that enjoyed four weeks at number one.
Tickets go on sale Wednesday 19 December at 9am for Live At The Botanic Gardens on Ticketmaster, and we bet they'll sell out fast.
A photograph taken of our Lord and Saviour Queen Bey and arguably the world's current most popular singer-songwriter has sparked a MAJOR debate online about gender and an artists' 'brand'.
Why? Well, mainly because Ed was dressed like he was popping down to the local Spar to grab a one litre carton of milk, while Beyoncé was dressed, I mean, like BEYONCÉ. Fierce, fiesty and fabulous.
A few Twitter users have claimed that this displays an attitude towards gender norms, showing the expectations which women have on their shoulders to look stunning 24 hours a day, while men can wear whatever they damn well please.
Ed Sheeran is a 27 year old man the fact we’ve enabled him to feel it’s ok to dress like this at all, let alone next to Beyoncé really boils my piss pic.twitter.com/Q6XqgTFuvQ
The two global superstars performed together in Johannesburg, South Africa last weekend to celebrate the Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100.
The duo paid homage to the late Nelson Mandela, who Beyoncé claims has hugely impacted on her parenting principles with her three children; Blue Ivy, Rumi and Sir.
Of course, the pair simply had to perform the gift of their huge worldwide hit, Perfect, which the crowd essentially sang louder than them. Yet their choice of clothing has grabbed nearly the entirety of the focus.
Beyoncé has always worn the most EXTRA outfits in the business because it's part of her essence, her brand and her overall look.
She is a massive lover of fashion, even designing her own lines, while Sheeran has always been open about stripping back everything so that only his musical talent is on display.
Singer-songwriters always perform with the hope that their stories within the songs are what is focused on, whereas Beyoncé is a performer.
She uses choreography, graphics, lighting, backing vocals, political statements, her own music AND fashion to make her statements.
Lest we forget, her iconic Coachella performance was famed for the fashion choice as well as it's artistic mastery. Her On the Run tour outfits have changed the GAME of musical attire, her Formation hats especially grabbing the attention.
They exacerbate her talent, but we all know that if we strip Queen Bey of her dress choice, her choreography and her light show and graphic background, she would still deliver an incredible performance.
Yet numerous Twitter users argue that male artists can stand on their talent alone, whereas women must always have a more-than-presentable appearance, they must always have something else for their audience.
I get this.
Even tho I appreciate good musicians in normal clothes the double standard is ridiculous… what is expected of female vs male artists. https://t.co/xLEcNXVuX7
Ed Sheeran could wear a pin-striped suit if he so desired, but this would not run parallel with the branding behind his music. His image is the fact that he has no image; it's all about his own chill, laid-back vibe.
He has gained notoriety especially in the States for his appearance, or seeming lack of effort, yet this normal attitude towards fame is what allowed him to stand out in the first place.
He wasn't trying to get attention, he simply became a phenomenon for his musical gift alone. He was relatable, a man of simple taste with a great voice and immense penchant for songwriting. Artists should be able to decide their own looks and style, without their labels, the media or even their fans interfering.
Other humorous online statements are simply trying to dispel all the tension…
Plenty of female singer-songwriters wear less elaborate, glamorous clothing, such as our new best friend Sigrid, who noticeably wears zero make-up onstage and sports only a plain white t-shirt and jeans.
Perhaps it would be best if we simply allowed artists, not to mention the general society at large, to wear whatever they please without having to worry about the incessant judgement of fans and random Twitter users.
