Music

Lizzo is manifesting her Broadway dreams.  The “Rumors” singer took to TikTok on Sunday to belt out a standout hit from Moulin Rouge! The Musical.

Lizzo sang the chorus from “El Tango de Roxanne,” which is a dramatic version of The Police‘s 1978 hit “Roxanne.”  The track has since gone viral on TikTok, with users fawning over Broadway star Aaron Tveit‘s phenomenal vocals.  It should be noted Tveit won a Tony Award in 2020 for playing the lead, Christian, in the musical.

Lizzo embraced her inner Christian by flexing both her vocal chords and acting chops to put her own spin on the song. She captioned her video “I think I need to be in a musical now. I’ve been on broadway tiktok and I can’t get this song out of my head.”

Moulin Rouge! The Musical came running once they heard Lizzo covered their breakaway hit and raved in the comment section: “Great work, Bohemian! Now do it up the octave.”  Of course, Lizzo responded with a wide-eyed blushing emoji. Musical fans also praised the “About Damn Time” singer’s performance, with many encouraging her to pursue her Broadway dreams.

This isn’t the first time Lizzo mentioned Broadway on her TikTok account.  Last week, when instructing people how to properly dance along to her new hit “About Damn Time,” she revealed what she would have given to have been at the Spring Awakening reunion show, which saw the original cast of the Tony-winning phenomenon get together again to perform the songs during a one-night-only event.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Following the release last month of her album, Blue Water Road, singer-songwriter Kehlani announced the Blue Water Road tour coming to a city near you this summer. 

The 28-city North American leg kicks off of July 30 in Raleigh, NC, followed by European dates in November through December. Washington, D.C. rapper Rico Nasty will join the North America stops while YouTube singer Destin Conrad will appear during all shows. 

“what city you coming to?” Kehlani asked of her followers on Instagram Monday. “tickets on sale friday! performing Blue Water Road, It Was Good Until It Wasnt + more! text (510) 692-4419 for early password tomorrow,” she added.

Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets starting Tuesday, May 10, while general sale tickets will be available for purchase this Friday. 

Upon its release last month, fans praised Kehlani for the vibes and vulnerability displayed on Blue Water Road. The third studio album served as the singer’s fifth consecutive project to land a top-five spot on Billboard’s Top R&B Albums chart. 

For full tour dates and ticket information, visit Kehlani’s official website. 

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The American Idol season 20 finale is going to be packed with country star power. 

Current American Idol judge Luke Bryan, season 16 alum Gabby Barrett, and Thomas Rhett will all perform on the grand finale episode this week. Also returning to the stage is Carrie Underwood, who was crowned the champion in season four and just returned to the show to mentor the top-five contestants on Sunday night’s episode.

Thomas is set to team up with Luke’s fellow judge, Katy Perry, with whom TR collaborated on the title track of his new album, Where We Started. Gabby placed third while competing on American Idol’s 16th season in 2018, where Carrie also appeared as a mentor.

Also performing on the finale is “Strawberry Wine” singer Deana Carter, judge Lionel Richie, Sara Bareilles and Michael Bublé, who will sing with top-seven finalist Christian Guardino. 

The American Idol finale airs on May 22 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Harry Styles will help tuck British children into bed later this month.  He’s the latest celeb to team up with BBC‘s children’s programming channel, CBeebies, and read a bedtime story on the show CBeebies Bedtime Stories.

The BBC made the announcement Monday, saying Harry has chosen to read the book In Every House, on Every Street, penned by author Jess Hitchman.  In addition, Harry will be dressed and ready for bed himself, wearing his pajamas for the read-along.

In a teaser, Harry says of his chosen book, “Tonight’s bedtime story is about a house full of love and laughter.”  The story follows different families and celebrates their diverse households.

Harry now joins a growing list of artists to have entertained children on CBeebies Bedtime Stories, including Ellie Goulding, Elton John, Ed Sheeran, Dolly Parton and many others.

Harry’s read-along will go live at 6:50 P.M. U.K. time on May 23 on the CBeebies channel.  Fans can also listen via the BBC’s iPlayer.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

You shouldn’t expect another AM with the next Arctic Monkeys album, if drummer Matt Helders is to be believed.

Speaking during this past weekend’s DrumathonLIVE charity event about the upcoming new record from the U.K. rockers, Helders shared, “It’s never gonna be like ‘R U Mine?’ and all that stuff again…the heavy riffs and stuff.”

AM singles “R U Mine?”, “Do I Wanna Know?” and “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” were among the heaviest songs in the Arctic Monkeys catalog, and gave the group their first entries on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. While the new stuff won’t sound exactly like those songs, Helders said “there are riffs” and more “up-tempo” material, “even though it’s not loud.”

“It’s hard to explain,” he added.

Arctic Monkeys already surprised fans with their most recent album, 2018’s Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, which followed AM with a more lounge-y, piano-driven sound.

No release date or title for the new record has been announced.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Latto is letting fans know how she really felt when she watched Mariah Carey retool her smash hit single, “Big Energy.”

The rap track samples the 1981 song “Genius of Love” by Tom Tom Club, which was re-popularized by Mariah’s 1995 hit, “Fantasy.”  While “Big Energy” has been out since last September, it received a major boost after Mariah hopped into the studio with Latto for an all-new remix.

“I think I was in shock,” the rapper told Entertainment Tonight at Sunday’s Billboard Music Awards when recalling watching Mariah belt her high notes. “It was so natural for her.”

“She was literally just getting her makeup done like, singing. I’m like, ‘Girl, are you a human?,'” Latto continued, adding that Mariah “was so cool and humble” to work with.

“So normal… I literally overthink the whole process. I was like,’What do I say? how do I act? I don’t wanna do too much, I don’t wanna do too little.’ But she was so cool, and she made the whole process very, very fun,” Latto added. “You know, this stuff can be overwhelming, she made it fun.”

Latto said Mariah’s support means “everything” to her.  “Mimi is a legend, and my mom and my aunts are superfans. Growing up, I remember seeing her posters on their wall, and physical CDs,” she raved. “Mimi is that girl, and I got a song with her so it’s all up from here.”

Latto later performed her hit on the BBMA stage, though without Mariah.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Luke Combs has scored yet another #1 single, and it falls in line with theanniversary of another one of his hits.

Lukeis sitting at the top of the charts this week with “Doin’ This,” marking his 13th consecutive #1 single. Among those 13 hits is his debut single “Hurricane,” which dominated the country charts in 2017.

Luke learned of “Doin’ This” reaching #1 on Sunday, which coincidentally was also the five-year anniversary of when “Hurricane” achieved the same feat.

“Today is the 5 year Anniversary of ‘Hurricane’ going #1. I get to celebrate with my 13th in a row with ‘Doin’ This.’ That’s INSANE!” the superstar raved on Twitter. “Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this every step along the way. Wouldn’t be possible without you. Love y’all!”

“Doin’ This” is the lead single off Luke’s highly anticipated new album, Growin’ Up, set for release on June 24.

Luke’s previous record-setting album, What You See Is What You Get, and its deluxe edition spawned seven consecutive #1 singles: “Beer Never Broke My Heart,” “Even Though I’m Leaving,” “Does to Me” featuring Eric Church, “Lovin’ On You,” “Better Together,” “Forever After All” and “Cold as You.”

Luke’s other hits came from his debut album, This One’s for You, which features “When It Rains It Pours,” “One Number Away,” “She Got the Best of Me” and “Beautiful Crazy.” He’s also a guest vocalist on Jameson Rodgers‘ chart-topper, “Cold Beer Calling My Name.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Before The Wanted‘s frontman Tom Parker passed away, he penned a memoir titled Hope: My Inspirational Life, which is set to arrive on May 26.  According to an excerpt of the posthumous autobiography, the “Glad You Came” singer revealed how Ed Sheeran stepped up in a big way for him.

British tabloid The Sun obtained an excerpt of Hope, which reads, “I’ve never publicly said this before (and he’ll probably be mad that I’m doing it now) but Ed is a very special man.  He even helped out with my medical bills when I was seeking other treatment options and having private immunotherapy.”

“He didn’t need to do any of that, but my wife Kelsey and I are so grateful to him for his support,” the memoir adds. “It meant the world.”

Parker also revealed, “Pretty much from the moment I was diagnosed, Ed Sheeran reached out to me with an offer to do anything he could to help.”  The late artist added he had been friends with the “Shivers” singer for over a decade and they always “had a great relationship.”

As previously reported, Parker was diagnosed in October 2020 with an inoperable glioblastoma, a stage four brain tumor, after experiencing seizures.  His wife confirmed his passing on March 30.

Ed paid tribute to Parker after the tragic news broke, writing on Instagram, “So sad to hear of Tom’s passing. Thoughts and love are with Kelsey, his children and his family. Very sad day, what a lovely guy.”

Parker and The Wanted achieved fame in 2012 with their hits “Glad You Came” and “Chasing the Sun.” He leaves behind his wife and their two-year-old daughter, Aurelia, and one-year-old son, Bodhi.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.