U2 is the latest artist to join Spotify’s Billions club.
The band’s classic tune “With or Without You” has reached 1 billion streams on the streaming service, their first song to cross that milestone.
“Massive thank you for streaming With Or Without You ONE BILLION times on @spotify, (We couldn’t do it without you.),” they shared on Instagram.
“With or Without You” was the lead track off U2’s #1 album The Joshua Tree. The track went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent three weeks in the top spot. It’s one of only two U2 songs to hit #1. The other is “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” from the same album.
Cher will be providing the entertainment for amfAR’s annual gala, which will take place May 23 at the Cannes Film Festival, Variety reports.
AmfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, was established in 1985 with Elizabeth Taylor as its founding national chairperson. The first amfAR gala was held at Cannes in 1993. Since then, the annual event has raised $264 million for the organization’s HIV/AIDS research programs.
Variety quotes Cher as saying, “I have such wonderful memories of being invited to host one of the first amfAR events in Cannes by my friend Elizabeth Taylor. I am extremely proud to be returning for this event’s 30th anniversary, and to continue to support the incredible work of this organization. It will be a very special evening.”
Cher was honored with amfAR’s Award of Inspiration at the 2015 gala. AmfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost is quoted by Variety as saying, “Cher has been a steadfast supporter of amfAR and people living with HIV/AIDS since the early days of the epidemic and we could not be more proud to have her with us once again for what promises to be an unforgettable evening.”
The Who’s Roger Daltrey has announced some more North American solo dates.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer initially announced a couple of one-off shows, but that’s now been expanded to a nine-date tour hitting the U.S. and Canada this June.
The tour promises fans “a mostly acoustic set of Who gems, rarities, solo nuggets and other surprises,” with Daltrey also answering questions from the audience.
KT Tunstall and Dan Bern are special guests on the tour, which will have Daltrey backed by a “hand-picked ensemble of musicians,” including his bandmate Pete Townshend’s brother Simon Townshend on guitar and backing vocals.
The tour kicks off June 12 in Vienna, Virginia, with dates in Bethel and Port Chester, New York, Boston and Lennox, Massachusetts, Detroit and more, before wrapping June 29 in Highland Park, Illinois. He is also playing a show in San Diego, California, on May 6. A complete list of dates can be found at thewho.com.
Tickets for all shows go on sale Friday, March 22, at 10 a.m.
Next up, The Who is set to play two Teenage Cancer Trust charity shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall on March 18 and 20. Daltrey is also headlining a special show, Ovation, a Celebration of 24 Years of Gigs for TCT, on March 24, celebrating his 24-year career as curator and host of the Teenage Cancer Trust shows. It will feature special guests Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Pearl Jam‘s Eddie Vedder, Stereophonics’ Kelly Jones and Paul Weller.
Lenny Kravitz has a lot of folks thirstin’ on Instagram.
The 59-year-old rocker shared a shirtless photo on social media, showing off his ridiculously chiseled abs as he bathed in the warmth of the sun. He captioned the photo, “Standing in love and gratitude.”
The photo prompted a response from actor Channing Tatum, who is engaged to the rocker’s daughter, Zoë Kravitz, and is known for having similarly impressive abs. “Jesus Christmas Lenny wtf you’re gonna hurt someone on this platform. Hahaha,” he commented.
And he wasn’t the only one impressed. Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland commented, “And just like…..I’m headed to the gym!!!” Actress Rosario Dawson added, “Just blessing the sun with your shine.”
Kravitz is set to release his new album, Blue Electric Light, on May 24. He’s also nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year. Inductees will be announced in late April, with the induction ceremony set to take place this fall in Cleveland.
Another legendary band is getting ready to say goodbye to the road.
Jeff Lynne’s ELO just announced dates for The Over and Out Tour, which is being billed as the band’s final tour.
The 27-date trek is set to kick off August 24 in Palm Desert, California, with stops in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, Nashville, Dallas, Phoenix and more, before wrapping October 25 in Los Angeles.
Lynne’s ELO will be launching an artist presale Wednesday, March 20, at 10 a.m., with tickets going on sale to the general public Friday, March 22, at 10 a.m. A complete list of dates can be found at jefflynneselo.com.
This will be the first tour for Jeff Lynne’s ELO since 2019, although they did play Joe Walsh’s VetsAid in Chula Vista, California, in 2023, treating the crowd to such classics as “Evil Woman,” “Don’t Bring Me Down” and “Mr. Blue Sky.”
Many tributes to the late Sinéad O’Connor poured in following her death in July 2023, but this latest one comes from a bit of an unexpected source.
The company Bratz has shared a mock-up of the “Nothing Compares 2 U” singer as one of its signature dolls in celebration of March being Women’s History Month.
“Women’s Month continues with Sinéad O’Connor, an Irish singer, songwriter, and activist with a passion for 90z grunge fashion,” Bratz writes in an Instagram post. “O’Connor, who passed away in 2023, first debuted her scorchin’ buzzcut in 1987 when she was just 20 years old — two years after she signed her record deal.”
Fans in the comments seemed split on the idea of a Sinéad O’Connor Bratz doll. While some left comments such as “We need this IRL,” others were less enthused, writing, “Wow she would not be happy about this.”
Neil Young topped the Billboard singles chart with “Heart of Gold,” his first, and to this day, only solo #1 single.
The track featured backup vocals from Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor.
“Heart of Gold” was featured on Neil’s fourth studio album Harvest, which spent two weeks on top the Billboard Album chart, and was Billboard‘s top album of 1972. It also included the hit single “Old Man,” which was a top 40 hit for Neil.
Young is due to head out on the Love Earth Tour with his band Crazy Horse this year. The 15-city tour is set to kick off with two nights in San Diego, April 24 and 25.
The public is getting its first look at Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan.
People has shared photos of the actor on the New York City set of the upcoming Dylan flick A Complete Unknown. In the pictures he’s seen in a green jacket with a yellow backpack, hat and brown scarf, carrying a guitar.
A Complete Unknown, directed by James Mangold, has been in the works for more than four years. It is expected to cover the early ’60s in New York, when a 17-year-old Dylan comes to the Big Apple and meets artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Joan Baez, and follows him through his famed 1965 performance at the Newport Folk Festival, when he shocks the crowd by plugging in an electric guitar.
In addition to Chalamet, the film stars Edward Norton as Seeger, Monica Barbaro as Baez, Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo, Boyd Holbrook as Johnny Cash and Nick Offerman as Alan Lomax.
A new vintage of Rush beer will be available for fans in the coming weeks.
Henderson Brewing Co. is about to release a 2024 vintage of their Moving Pictures Belgian dark strong ale with riesling must.
According to the description, the beer was first brewed by the Toronto company for the 40thanniversary of the classic album Moving Pictures, which was released in 1981 and features such songs as “Limelight” and “Tom Sawyer.”
“This Belgian Dark Strong Ale with Riesling Must pours a gorgeous deep, ruby color with a fine, tan head,” the company says. “The taste is complex, with notes of dark fruit pudding, toffee, dates, cherries, honey, bread crusts and a slight booziness.”
Moving Pictures (2024 Vintage) is available for preorder now and will be shipped within four to six weeks.
Henderson Brewing Co. is also offering a limited-edition four-pack of Rush beer, which includes the Moving Pictures (2024 Vintage), along with X-1, a Belgian black ale with cherry, Xanabrew, a Belgian extra strong ale and Signals, a Belgian-style blonde with riesling must.
They are also celebrating the band with Rush Day 2024 on August 25, which includes a day of Rush music with special guests, a new Rush beer, Rush beer tastings, a pop-up museum filled with memorabilia and a screening of the 2010 film Beyond The Lighted Stage. Tickets are on sale now.
Neil Young announced Wednesday that his music would be returning to Spotify, two years after he pulled the tunes off the streaming service in protest of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. Well, now Rogan has commented on Young’s latest move.
“By the way, Neil Young came back to Spotify. Congratulations, Neil,” Rogan said in his episode featuring political commentator James Lindsay. “And his excuse was he said that because all of the platforms are now allowing my disinformation, he’s just going back on Spotify, too.”
“Great to know you’ve got some ethics,” Rogan added, with Lindsay chiming in, “Well, everybody’s doing it these days—disinformation.”
Young demanded his music be pulled from Spotify back in January 2022, accusing the service of “spreading fake information” about the COVID-19 vaccine on the podcast. At the time, he said they “can have [Joe] Rogan or Young. Not both.”
In the announcement of his music’s return, Young said it was because both Apple and Amazon were also carrying The Joe Rogan Experience, noting he couldn’t leave them too “because my music would have very little streaming outlet to music lovers at all.”
