Music

K-pop sensation BLACKPINK is heading back out on tour, and the girl group says fans won’t have to wait too long to see them live.

The “Ice Cream” singers — Lisa, Jennie, Rosé and Jisoo — unveiled the Born Pink tour, which kicks off October 15 in Seoul, South Korea. From there, the group will hit up North America, Europe, South America, Asia and Australia on their multidate tour, which wraps June 21, 2023, in Auckland, New Zealand.

The girls hinted they might extend their world tour by saying at the bottom of all the listed dates, “And more!”  As for their American dates, they plan on hitting up Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as Newark, New Jersey.

Tickets and venues for the globe-trotting tour have not yet been announced.

This will mark the third time BLACKPINK sets out on tour, following their successful Your Area world tour, which wrapped in 2020. 

That’s not all the singers have up their sleeves — they’re also gearing up for the release of their new album, Born Pink, which arrives August 19.

To tantalize fans, the singers will release their first new single, “Pink Venom,” this Friday, August 12.  They previously released the promotional single, “Ready for Love,” for their collaboration with PUBG Mobile.

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Selena Gomez is thinking about her future and where she’d like to be. While she is a decorated actress and singer, the “Lose You to Love Me” artist hints she’ll give it all up to start a family.

Speaking on TaTaTu’s Giving Back Generation podcast with friend Ashley Cook, Selena said, “I hope to be married and to be a mom.”

Selena said she is “incredibly lucky” to have the career she built for herself but admitted, “Eventually, I’m going to be tired of all of this.” The Emmy-nominated producer estimates that, once she hits that stage in her life, she will “probably … devote most of my life to philanthropy before I peace out.”

Selena credits her 8-year-old sister, Gracie Teefey, for showing her that she’d be a great parent.

Saying her sister “puts things in perspective” for her, Selena continued, “I have to basically watch this little person grow into a human being. There’s no better feeling in the world. I kind of feel like a parent in a way, even though I’m not.”

Selena sweetly added, “It’s so rewarding to just see that life was so simple at one point. I want to enjoy life the way she enjoys life.”

The Wizards of Waverly Place star dedicated a portion of the discussion to describing how having close friends is good for one’s development. Saying she has three best friends, Selena noted, “What is so important to your mental health and being able to communicate with people is finding people that are like-minded.”

Selena stressed it is important to befriend people who will be “honest and be there” during times of great need.

She added, “You are who you surround yourself with and you want to be proud of that.”

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LL Cool J‘s contributions to hip-hop and pop culture have earned him a key to his hometown of Hollis, Queens. The rapper received the honor at the first Rock the Bells concert on Saturday night.

“Hollis, Queens was represented today at @RockTheBells as the @NYCCouncil celebrated a true Queens legend, the one and only @llcoolj!” Speaker of the New York City Council Adrienne Adams tweeted afterward. “It was an honor to present him with a proclamation acknowledging his undeniable impact on Hip Hop and popular culture.”

LL rose to stardom in 1985 with his single “I Need a Beat,” but songs like “I’m Bad,” “I Need Love” and “Mama Said Knock You Out” catapulted him to another level of fame. As an artist and lover of hip-hop, he founded the Rock the Bells festival — named after his album of the same name — to honor the legends who paved the way in the genre.

“I feel like Hip Hop is indisposable,” LL said in a statement. “And I feel like, the same reverence and deference in the way Paul McCartney gets celebrated, the way Bob Dylan gets celebrated or Mick Jagger, I feel like these artists, these kings and queens, deserve that same treatment for this art form.”

This year’s show featured performances from Ice Cube, Jadakiss, Rick Ross, Lil’ Kim, Busta Rhymes and Scarface, as well as food from rapper-owned businesses, including Bun B‘s Trill Mealz Food Court and Trill Burgers, Nas’ Sweet Chick and Ghostface Killah’s Killah Koffee.

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Lizzo’s admiration of Beyoncé is no secret — she once called the powerhouse singer her “North Star” — and it appears Bey feels the same.

Lizzo took to Instagram to celebrate Bey’s latest remix of “Break My Soul,” called “THE QUEENS Remix.” The single samples Madonna‘s “Vogue” and includes a segment where the “Halo” singer shouts out her biggest inspirations.

Lizzo’s reaction to being included was nothing less than iconic. Taking to Instagram, she declared in all capital letters, “I ALWAYS BELIEVED IN ME NOW BEYONCÉ BELIEVE IN ME TOO.”

The video also shows the Grammy winner’s sincere reaction to the shout-out, which includes her shrieking in glee and laughing. She also shared a Story that proves just how full circle this moment is for her.

“I remember when I was telling my friend’s mom [what] my major in college was going to be. And I told her I was gonna major in music performance — and she laughed in my face,” Lizzo said. “She said, ‘Music performance?  Like Beyoncé?’ And laughed in my face.”

Lizzo said she “only has one thing to say” to that woman, which is “Bye!” She also pulled up Bey’s new “Break My Soul” remix to play the exact moment the legendary singer says her name.

Lizzo previously revealed on The Late Late Show with James Corden that Bey inspired her to become the artist she is now.

“When I was shyer, when I didn’t think I was cool and when I was getting picked on, I would listen to Beyoncé in my bedroom and it would transport me. I would feel something. Feel like my life was going to be better,” she said. “The way she makes people feel is how I wanna make people feel with music. She’s been my North Star.”

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Yeah Yeah Yeahs are teasing a new song called “Burning.”

The track — which is set to appear on the “Maps” outfit’s upcoming comeback album, Cool It Down — will premiere this Wednesday, August 10. You can check out a preview of the tune via the band’s Twitter.

“Burning” will be the second song released off of Cool It Down, following the first single “Spitting Off the Edge of the World,” featuring Perfume Genius. The album will arrive in full on September 30.

Cool It Down is the first Yeah Yeah Yeahs album in nine years, following 2013’s Mosquito.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs will perform at Chicago’s Riot Fest in September, followed by headlining dates in New York City and Los Angeles in October.

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Carrie Underwood‘s girls night out turned into a karaoke session. 

Over the weekend, Carrie and a group of friends were visiting Fox & Locke, a restaurant and music venue in Leiper’s Fork just outside of Nashville, when the superstar decided to hop onstage with the band. 

A video posted by local cover band The Heartshakers shows the hitmaker performing a cover of Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty‘s Grammy-nominated collaboration, “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” taking lead vocals as she sings to the packed house, “And baby, you could never look me in the eye/But why you buckle with the weight of the words/Stop draggin’ my heart around.” 

“Girls’ night! OK, so, the guys were there, too, but we were doing our best to pretend they weren’t!” the singer captions the photo of her and a group of girlfriends during their night out on the town. “I am so lucky to be surrounded by so many amazing ladies! [Love] you guys!!!” 

Carrie will hit the road on her Denim & Rhinestones Tour beginning October 15. 

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Jewel says she’s OK after a scary situation over the weekend in which her tour bus erupted into flames in a hotel parking lot.

The “Intuition” singer spoke about the shocking incident on TikTok, saying, “We had a full bus fire. Nobody was hurt. It happened on an off day.”

Jewel, who is currently on tour with Train and Blues Traveler, shared photos of the extensive damage to her bus — including a charred interior, shattered windows and damaged engine. She praised the local fire department for extinguishing the blaze.

“Everybody is safe,” she assured before adding, “We saved the vintage guitar and guitar AMP.” The equipment was saved by her “hero” bus driver, and she sang his praises for “saving the vintage gear.”

Despite walking away from this incident unscathed, Jewel noted that she is upset by the situation and exclaimed, “All’s well that ends well, but how about this bulls**?!”

The singer also noted that was the same bus that broke down in the middle of the night. She didn’t offer an explanation about what arrangements were made so she can continue touring with Train. Jewel also didn’t disclose where the incident took place, except that it was in a hotel’s parking lot.

Train took their AM Gold tour to Morrison, Colorado, on August 6, where they played Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

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With the VMAs just days away, MTV is gradually revealing details about the forthcoming event. The latest update: Nicki Minaj is set to receive the 2022 Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award.

The honor is typically given as a lifetime achievement award or recognition of an artist’s contributions and impact on music video and pop culture.

“Nicki has broken barriers for women in hip-hop with her versatility and creative artistry,” said Bruce Gillmer, Paramount’s president of music, music talent, programming & events. “She has shifted the music industry and cemented her status as a global superstar with her crossover appeal, genre-defying style and continuing to be unapologetically ‘Nicki.’”

Nicki has taken the VMA stage on several occasions, as both a performer and winner of several awards. This year will mark her first appearance on the stage since 2018, when she performed “Majesty,” “Ganga Burn,” “FEFE” and “Barbie Dreams” — a medley of songs from her album Queen. She is also nominated in the category of Best Hip Hop Video for the Lil Baby-assisted “Do We Have a Problem?”

The 2022 VMAs are set to air on Sunday, August 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Meanwhile, Nicki will premiere her Queen Radio show on August 11, followed by the release of her upcoming single, “Super Freaky Girl.”

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Fans of Lil Wayne‘s Tha Carter series are in for some good news: the sixth installment is coming soon. The rapper teased the project Saturday night at OVO Fest’s Young Money reunion show.

“I’m working on Carter VI, coming soon!” he said at the end of his performance, moments before a sign with the words “Tha Carter VI” appeared on an onstage screen. He later took to TikTok to share the news with those who didn’t attend the show.

Lil Wayne kicked off Tha Carter series with its original in 2004, releasing the following installments in 2005, 2008, 2011 and 2018. He first teased Tha Carter VI in 2020; the latest announcement confirms the album is still on the way. 

Lil Wayne’s update came amid his reunion with Drake and Nicki Minaj, which featured performances of their hit songs “BedRock,” “Every Girl” and “The Motto.” 

“It’s been a long time since we been here and been able to do this together. First and foremost, I just wanna say tonight I got to stand in the crowd and watch two of the greatest musicians of all fucking time,” Drake said, reflecting on the special moment. “I’m so grateful to be a part of that team.”

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