ABBA in 2021, in motion-capture suits/Credit: Baillie Walsh
ABBA‘s reunion album Voyage arrives Friday, but the Swedish pop icons have already dropped the first trailer for their ABBA Voyage concert production, which launches next year at a purpose-built theater in London.
In the brief trailer, you can see digital “avatars” of Bjorn, Benny, Anni-Frid and Agnetha, looking as they did in the ’70s, performing on stage under pyramid-shaped lights. It’s set to the group’s 1978 single, “Summer Night City.”
The avatars were created by having the real members of ABBA perform for hours while wearing motion-capture suits. In addition to the avatars and a light show, the concert production also features a ten-piece live band.
More tickets have also been released for sale; you can now buy them for shows through December of 2022.
In what could be a harbinger of future Oscar nominations, some of music’s top names have received nods for the Hollywood Music in Media Awards — the HMMAs — which honor composers, songwriters, and music supervisors for their work in music for film, television, and videogames.
In the category of Song: Feature Film, nominees include Ariana Grande, who co-wrote “Just Look Up” — from the upcoming Netflix film Don’t Look Up — with Kid Cudi, among others. Cudi and Ariana both appear in the film. Ariana is also nominated in the category of Song: Onscreen Performance for “Just Look Up.”
Billie Eilish and brother FINNEAS are also nominated in the Feature Film category for “No Time to Die,” from the James Bond film of the same name. Beyoncé is nominated for “Be Alive,” the song she co-wrote and performs for the movie King Richard, about the father of tennis superstars Serena and Venus Williams.
Jennifer Hudson scored a nod in that category as well for co-writing “Here I Am (Singing My Way Home),” for the movie Respect, in which she also stars as the late Aretha Franklin. Hudson’s also up for Song: Onscreen Performance for performing “Respect” in the film.
In the animated film category, Adam Levine is nominated for “Good Mood,” the song he co-wrote and performs in the movie Paw Patrol. U2‘s Bono is nominated for “Your Song Saved My Life,” which he wrote for the upcoming movie Sing 2 and performs with U2.
After DaBaby‘s career was nearly derailed for the seemingly homophonic comments he made during Miami’s Rolling Loud festival, the same festival is backing the rapper’s newly announced tour.
TMZ reports that executives believe that the “Suge” rapper has grown from the July controversy, which resulted in numerous festivals banning him — including Lollapalooza plus New York’s Governors Ball — as well as intense pushback from his fellow artists, such as Megan Thee Stallion and his “Levitating” partner Dua Lipa.
At last summer’s Rolling Loud festival, DaBaby said during his set in Miami, “If you didn’t show up today with HIV, AIDS, any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that’ll make you die in two or three weeks, put your cellphone light in the air.”
DaBaby not only apologized several times for his remarks, he also accepted invitations from nearly a dozen HIV organizations to speak with Black leaders about the damage his comments may have caused. He also was open to being educated about how to do better and said he apologized to the organizations.
Rolling Loud believes that DaBaby has learned his lesson and, because of that, has signed on to present his recently announced 22-stop Live Show Killa Tour. The tour kicks off November 26 in Chicago and is slated to complete on February 6, 2022 in Los Angeles.
A Rolling Loud representative told the outlet they agreed to present the tour because they believe in second chances.
Tickets are available now on DaBaby’s website and the Rolling Loud representative emphasized everyone is welcome to attend.
If the CMA-nominated video Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd made for “Chasing After You” leaves you dizzy, it’s possible for you to practically step into it.
“The tabletop/spinning part… was done in a studio,” Maren explains. “But the rest of the video, we shot at The Hermitage Hotel here in [Nashville], which I had never been to before, but it’s beautiful.”
“And they were nice enough to let us shoot for the day,” she continues. “But [it] just really had that kind of arched ceiling and walkways and kind of old vibe that we wanted.”
Shot while the legendary Music City destination was shut down due to COVID-19, the clip was largely centered in the hotel’s restaurant and renowned watering hole.
Ever the supportive husband, Ryan reveals his wife did a lot more than just show up and lip sync.
“Maren did a lot of the video conceptualizing with the director, TK McKamy, so she actually deserves most of the credit for all of that,” he says, adding, “That bar is so cool… Oak Bar, yeah.”
“I know it’s a historic hotel…” Maren interjects. “We should tell more people like, ‘Hey, come to the Hermitage Hotel. It’s where we shot “Chasing After You.'”
The hotel’s revamped restaurant and bar, Drusie & Darr, is set to open around the middle of the month, perhaps an appropriate place for Ryan and Maren to celebrate, should they take home trophies for Musical Event or Music Video for their duet.
Maren also defends her Female Vocalist title on the 55th CMA Awards, which air live from Nashville Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
The recently reported special screenings of an updated version of the Doors concert film Live at the Bowl ’68 take place in select theaters around the world tonight, November 4, to celebrate the 50th anniversary this year of the release of the band’s classic album L.A. Woman.
The event, dubbed The Doors: Live at the Bowl ’68 Special Edition, will feature the full movie, as well as footage of a new performance by surviving Doors guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore, plus a conversation with Densmore, Krieger and the group’s manager, Jeff Jampol.
Krieger recently shared some details about the new performance with ABC Audio. Robby revealed that the performance was filmed a few weeks ago at his recording studio, and featured him and Densmore playing a couple songs with former Chicago singer/bassist Jason Scheff.
As Krieger explained, Jason has an interesting familial connection to The Doors.
“[H]is dad [Jerry] played bass on L.A. Woman,” Robby noted. “[A]nd he had his dad’s old Sunn amp that he actually used to play [on the] album.”
Jerry Scheff also played bass on a few other Doors albums, although he’s best known for being a longtime member of Elvis Presley‘s TCB Band.
Live at the Bowl ’68, which originally was released in 2012, features restored footage of a historic July 1968 show that The Doors played at Los Angeles’ famed Hollywood Bowl that’s widely considered one of the band’s best filmed performances.
The screenings feature a remastered audio mix in Dolby ATMOS and 5.1 surround sound created by longtime Doors engineer Bruce Botnick, who recorded the original Hollywood Bowl show.
Eagle-eyed fans believe Ed Sheeran found a not-so-subtle but perfectly on-brand way of telling the world just how many kids he plans on having. Thanks to a new tattoo on the “Shivers” singer’s back, fans firmly believe he is aiming for a family of six.
Sheeran, who is married to Cherry Seaborn and is the father of their 1-year-old daughter Lyra Antarctica, recently got his little one’s footprints tattooed as a framed picture on the back of his right shoulder.
However, as seen in his new “Overpass Graffiti” music video, fans noted that there are three additional empty picture frames also inked onto his back — leaving many to believe they are reserved for three more sets of tiny footprints.
According to British publication The Sun, their assumptions are correct. A source close to the Grammy-winning singer spilled, “Ed’s new tattoos represent the four children he hopes to have. He has Lyra’s footprints in one and is saving the other spaces for the three more kids he wants.”
Sheeran backed up the source’s intel and recently told the outlet that, while he would “love more kids,” he will defer to his bride because “it’s her body.”
He also proved that he’s Seaborn’s biggest fan when revealing why he is so “proud” and “in awe” of her.
“She did a whole Cambridge degree which she started two weeks before giving birth, new baby, and I went to her graduation three days ago at Jesus College and people were saying like, ‘How did she do this with a baby?,'” he laughed.
Ed and Cherry wed in a secret ceremony in 2018 and welcomed Lyra in August 2020.
ABC airs the latest in its Family Singalong franchise tonight: The Queen Family Singalong, paying tribute to the iconic British band via songs belted out by the likes of OneRepublic, Adam Lambert, Alessia Cara and Pentatonix. But the a capella group says it was tough for them to convince the show’s producers to let them sing their preferred song from the Queen catalog.
“We actually fought for that song!” Pentatonix member Matt Sallee laughs. “We said, ‘Oh, please can we do ‘Somebody to Love?’ ‘Cause it has so many harmonies and so many vocal parts, and it’s just so theatrical and it just fits an acapella arrangement really well.”
The problem, member Scott Hoying explains, was “The people running the show had some ideas of what [songs] we could do.”
“They were like, ‘We really are inspired by y’all doing this song.’ And we were like, ‘We’re so down for that…But can we do ‘Somebody to Love?'” he laughs. “And they were like, ‘We’ll see.'”
Ultimately, Pentatonix got the green light. “We were really excited to get to do it,” adds Matt. “I mean…Queen! They’re massive…they’re iconic… all the words, you know? And so what an honor to be able to be a part of an event like that.”
Other performances include OneRepublic doing “We Are the Champions,” Alessia Cara doing “Killer Queen,” and Adam Lambert, who’s currently the lead singer of Queen in real life, belting out “The Show Must Go On.”
“You’re going to hear Queen songs in new and different ways that you’ve not heard them before… and I think there’s a lot of surprises in there as well,” says Adam, adding, “I can’t wait for people to see it!”
The Queen Family Singalong airs tonight at 8 p.m EDT on ABC.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference is taking place in Glasgow, Scotland through November 12, and some of the world’s top musical artists are using their social platforms to help spread the word about the importance of taking action against the global threat.
The goal is to mobilize half a billion people to urge the leaders to accelerate action against climate change, which can cause flooding, fires, extreme weather and destruction of species, not to mention its impact on poor and marginalized populations.
“We’re grateful for all of the celebrities who are helping promote climate change as a human rights crisis,” says David Clark, founder of Right Here, Right Now. “It is critically important that we humanize the issue through a human rights lens, as people need to understand the choices they make, have real impact on the lives of others.”
Other artists participating in the initiative include Jason Mraz, Pentatonix, Natasha Bedingfield and Camila Cabello.
After being off the road since 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Carl Palmer and his current band ELP Legacy launches a new U.S. tour tonight in Warrendale, Pennsylvania.
The trek, which currently features 14 dates on the East Coast and Midwest, is mapped out through a November 21 concert in Wayne, New Jersey. More shows will be added to the schedule soon.
The tour will feature Palmer’s ELP Legacy marking the 50th anniversary of Carl’s old band, the legendary prog-rock trio Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
“Finally! The band and I are very eager to get back on stages in America, and around the rest of world, where possible,” says Palmer in a statement. “The show will have some material we have not played in years, as well as ELP’s best loved material. Visually, we will include footage in the show that reflects the highlights of ELP’s career.”
ELP Legacy is a power trio that also features guitarist/singer Paul Bielatowicz and bassist/Chapman stick player Simon Fitzpatrick.
Palmer is the sole surviving member of ELP, as keyboardist Keith Emerson and singer/bassist Greg Lake both died in 2016.
Meanwhile, Carl notes that the ELP Legacy tour marks the launch of a three-year series of events and releases celebrating the music and history of Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
Future plans include a limited-edition biography about the group, a new Palmer art collection focusing on ELP’s five main studio albums, a documentary, a film based on the band’s classic song “Karn Evil 9,” and a special trek that will feature Carl performing alongside archival footage of his late band mates.
Visit CarlPalmer.com to check out ELP Legacy’s full list of upcoming tour dates.
Patti LaBelle, who has suffered from diabetes for over 25 years, is speaking to Congress on Thursday in conjunction with National Diabetes Awareness Month to advocate for better access to care for people with Type 2 diabetes.
“Diabetes is often invisible to everyone except those living with it, so we need to make it visible and help people access the care and technology they deserve,” the “On My Own” singer says in a statement.
LaBelle is joining the Diabetes Leadership Council for a virtual event that will convene policymakers, advocates and healthcare professionals to explore how disparities in diabetes caregiving and technology access impact vulnerable communities, especially in communities of color.
In an Instagram video, the 77-year-old icon revealed she discovered she had diabetes after falling during a concert in the 1990s in Albany, New York. “The stage was moving around, so I passed out, but I thought was I dizzy,” Patti recalls. “I was rushed to the hospital and the doctor came and said you’re type 2 diabetic.”
For those who try to hide the illness, the two-time Grammy winner says, “My advice to those who are shamed of saying they’re diabetic is that you’re crazy. Say it and live with it and smile. I have diabetes, but diabetes does not have me.”
The “Diabetes Technology: Disparities, Access, Equity” event with Congress, featuring Patti, can be viewed this Thursday, November 4, at 12 p.m ET/ 90 a.m. PT, on The Hill website.
