Gorillaz performs at the Pulse of Gaia Festival, at the Universidad Autonoma on September 20, 2025, in Madrid, Spain. (A. Perez Meca/Europa Press via Getty Images)
After a planned collaboration with Netflix fell through, Gorillaz is ruling out the possibility for a future movie.
“If we’d done a movie 25 years ago, fine but the idea of doing a movie now … no interest in it whatsoever,” artist Jamie Hewlett, who created the animated band alongside frontman Damon Albarn, tells The Zane Lowe Show on Apple Music. “It’s not an interesting idea, it’s not an original idea.”
“We had this moment with Netflix where we were literally told you can do whatever you want and we’re going to give you as much money, and we’re like, ‘OK, great,'” Hewlett continues. “We had some brilliant ideas but it was just moving so slow and the guy we were working with just left, and they said, ‘Don’t worry we’ll find someone else.’ And it’s like, OK, there’s going to be another year of conversations before this starts again. So we pulled out.”
Albarn says that the experience felt like “hanging around for what seemed an eternity.”
While a movie didn’t materialize, Hewlett said Gorillaz spent that time creating a new album, 2023’s Cracker Island.
Gorillaz has since put out another record, The Mountain, which dropped in February. And while we may never get a full-length Gorillaz movie, they did put out a short film to accompany three songs off The Mountain.
RAYE performs at the Montreux Jazz Festival, July 16, 2024 ( Lionel FLUSIN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
RAYE is taking her current tour to the Montreux Jazz Festival and morphing it into a special performance.
On July 3, RAYE will serve as the opening act for the 60th edition of the legendary Switzerland festival. This is the third year in a row that she’ll be performing at Montreux, but this year she’s going to have special guests join her for a performance called This Stage May Contain Moments In Time.
According to the festival, RAYE’s performance will “span six decades of music and mix [her] hits, new collaborations, and revisited classics.”
RAYE was hugely influenced by the iconic performances at the Montreux festival by jazz/blues icons Nina Simone and Etta James, and two years ago she captured her first appearance at the festival on the album Live at Montreux Jazz Festival.
As for the rest of the festival, which runs from July 3 to July 18, performers include Lewis Capaldi, Sienna Spiro, Zara Larsson, PinkPantheress, Tyla, John Legend, Conan Gray and many other stars. Zara and PinkPantheress are performing on different days, so it may be difficult for them to join forces for an onstage collaboration on “Stateside.”
Inductee Carole King performs onstage during the 36th Annual Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on October 30, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame )
Carole King’s music has been covered by a whole host of artists over the years, and a new playlist is highlighting some soulful versions of her classic tunes.
The Soul of Carole King, now available on Spotify, features songs King either wrote or co-wrote, covered by the likes of Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, The Stylistics, Al Green and more.
A post on Instagram notes that the playlist was “Curated to showcase deep-groove covers and emotional performances from the architects of Soul and R&B.” It notes, “The collection honors the songwriting genius of King with gospel-influenced vocals, horn-driven arrangements, inspired instrumentals and intimate interpretations.”
Songs featured in the playlist include Franklin’s iconic version of “(You Make Me Feel) Like a Natural Woman”; covers of “You’ve Got a Friend” from Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson, Al Green and more; Flack’s cover of “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow”; Gaye’s take on “Some Kind of Wonderful”; and The Drifters’ recording of “Up on the Roof.”
Heavy metal vocalist Blaze Bayley performing live on stage at the 2013 Hard Rock Hell festival in Pwllheli, Wales, on November 30, 2013. (Photo by Kevin Nixon/Metal Hammer Magazine/Future via Getty Images/Future via Getty Images)
Iron Maiden has announced some additions to EddFest, their 50th anniversary celebration, happening July 10-11 at Knebworth Park in Knebworth, England.
The rockers revealed that Blaze Bayley, who replaced frontman Bruce Dickinson in Iron Maiden from 1994 to 1999 and appeared on their albums The X Factor and Virtual XI, will headline the Maidenville stage during the Friday, July 10, festivities.
They’ve also added Maiden bassist Steve Harris’ early band Gypsy’s Kiss to Friday’s bill. Harris formed Gypsy’s Kiss in 1974 with singer/guitarist David Smith. He went on to form Maiden in 1975.
“Having the opportunity to put together our very own festival at Knebworth, and celebrate 50 years of Iron Maiden, has given me a chance to bring together friends past and present and create a really special weekend for the fans,” says Harris. “I’m very pleased that Blaze is able to join us and perform some of the songs we wrote and recorded in the [’90s].” He added, “He has been a big part of Iron Maiden’s career, and I know the fans will be really excited to see him on stage at EddFest.”
Harris notes, “It’s also great to have Gypsy’s Kiss playing with us at Knebworth too. They were a big part of my musical heritage and it’s really exciting to have them play at the Maidenville stage.”
Iron Maiden will headline EddFest at Knebworth Park on July 11. Other artists performing include The Hu, The Darkness, Airbourne and The Almighty. More info can be found at IronMaiden.Knebworth.com.
Events leading up the 61st ACMS (Academy of Country Music)
The list of stars headed to Vegas for the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards is growing.
Randy Houser, Lauren Alaina and Rodney Atkins are now set to play ACM Lifting Lives Country on the Green: Riley Green & Friends on Friday, May 15, taking the stage before the “Don’t Mind If I Do” hitmaker at Topgolf Las Vegas.
Tucker Wetmore joins ACM Next Wave: Country’s Beach Bash, playing the Saturday event at Mandalay Bay Beach that will now be hosted by Ashley Cooke and Dasha. Flatland Cavalry and Braxton Keith also join the lineup.
Members of the 2026 Opry NextStage class, namely Hudson Westbrook, Vincent Mason, Tyler Braden, Emily Ann Roberts, Alexandra Kay, Graham Barham and Willow Avalon, are the previously announced talent.
Stay tuned for more info about the 61st ACMs in the days to come. The show will stream live from MGM Grand Garden Arena on Prime Video on Sunday, May 17.
Charlie Puth, ‘Whatever’s Clever!’ (Atlantic); Meghan Trainor, ‘Toy With Me’ (Epic Records)
Back in 2015, Charlie Puth released his debut single, “Marvin Gaye,” featuring Meghan Trainor. On Tuesday, both artists dropped new videos. Charlie’s is another duet with a female artist, while Meghan’s is an all-girl extravaganza.
Charlie’s video is for “Sideways,” his duet with singer/actress Coco Jones from his new album, Whatever’s Clever! Both artists performed during the Super Bowl pregame show earlier this year: Coco sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” while Charlie sang the national anthem.
In the moody visual, Charlie and Coco sit in a room, together and separately, while their positions change from sitting on chairs, to lying on the floor, to sitting and lying on the ceiling. “Even if it goes sideways/ Even if we scream out enough’s enough/ I believe that we’ll always find a way to weather the storm,” Charlie sings.
Meghan’s video is from her upcoming album, Toy With Me; it’s for “Get in Girl,” which also inspired the name of her new tour. It starts with Meghan getting a call from a woman complaining that her man is obsessed with his car. “I’m in a throuple with a Maserati,” she wails. “Bring me that car,” Meghan commands.
When the woman drives up in the Maserati, Meghan and her girls spray-paint it in pink glitter and advise her to dump the guy: “I’ll pack up your bags/ I’ll send him your keys/ I’ll call him myself/ say, ‘Sir, you’re dead to me’/ He’s only a man, it ain’t that deep/ It’s time to leave and I’m on your street/ Get in, girl.”
At the end of the video, Meghan blows up a toy replica of the Maserati, and the guy freaks out when he sees that she and the girls have “bedazzled” the real thing.
Roboto (Kristen Wiig), Man At Arms (Idris Elba), Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), Teela (Camila Mendes) and Cringer in ‘Masters of the Universe.’ (Amazon MGM Studios)
Amazon MGM Studios released the full-length trailer for the upcoming live-action film based on Mattel’s franchise of the same name on Tuesday.
Travis Knight directs the movie, which stars Nicholas Galitzine as He-Man and Camila Mendes as Teela.
The trailer finds Galitzine’s He-Man reminiscing on his years away from his home world and living on Earth, where he was known by the name Adam Glenn.
“I know most of you don’t remember me, but I know all of you. Even though I was stuck light-years away on Earth, I never stopped trying to get back home,” He-Man says.
We also see Mendes’ Teela accompanying He-Man on his journey back home.
“Everything changed since you left,” she tells him as they fly above the war-torn landscape.
The trailer also shows off the villainous character of Skeletor, played by Jared Leto.
“The universe shall quake in my shadow,” Skeletor says. “You may have the power, but you’re too scared to use it.”
He-Man simply responds, “Trust me, I know how to use it.”
The Masters of the Universe cast is rounded out by Morena Baccarin, James Purefoy, Alison Brie, Charlotte Riley, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Idris Elba, Sam C. Wilson, Hafthor Bjornsson, Kojo Attah, Sasheer Zamata, Jon Xue Zhang and Christian Vunipola.
Masters of the Universe arrives in theaters on June 5.
Poster for Kali Uchi: For The Girls Tour (Live Nation)
Mariah the Scientist is “Burning Blue” and tour hopping, too.
The rapper was announced as the special guest on all dates of Kali Uchis’ newly announced Kali Uchis: For The Girls Tour, which runs from May 26 to Aug. 8 and features opener Laila! on select dates.
Cities on the trek include Albuquerque, Atlanta, Tampa, Phoenix, Houston and Las Vegas.
An artist presale for the tour is underway and will be followed by additional presales taking place throughout the week. Tickets then go on sale Thursday at 10 a.m. local time to the general public.
Kali last went on tour in 2025 in support her album Sincerely. Mariah is currently on the road bringing to life her 2025 project, Hearts Sold Separately.
James Taylor at the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony (Disney/Eric McCandless)
James Taylor, Van Morrison, Sting and Deep Purple are among the artists booked to play the 2026 Montreux Jazz Festival, taking place in Montreux, Switzerland, July 3-18.
All four artists are booked to play the festival’s Auditorium Stravinski, with Sting performing on July 4, Deep Purple confirmed for July 13, and Taylor and Morrison set for July 18.
Deep Purple, of course, has quite a connection to Montreux. The band’s iconic tune “Smoke on the Water” was inspired by the 1971 fire that burned down the Montreux Casino; the title’s a reference to smoke from the fire spreading over Lake Geneva. They last played the Montreux Jazz Festival in 2024.
Tickets go on sale Wednesday at noon local time.
This year marks the 60th edition of the Montreux Jazz Festival. The festival is returning after a two-year hiatus.
(WASHINGTON) — In an 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled against Colorado’s ban on so-called “conversion therapy” for minors as a likely violation of counselors’ free speech rights under the First Amendment.
LGBTQ groups, who have hailed conversion therapy bans as critical to the mental health of minors figuring out their identities during adolescence, say the decision will mean more kids are “traumatized” going forward.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, in the court’s opinion, said the law — enacted in 2019 to protect minors from efforts by mental health providers to change their sexual orientation or gender identity — “censors speech based on viewpoint” and must be subjected to the highest form of legal scrutiny, which a lower court had not applied.
“Colorado may regard its policy as essential to public health and safety. Certainly, censorious governments throughout history have believed the same,” Gorsuch wrote.
“But the First Amendment stands as a shield against any effort to enforce orthodoxy in thought or speech in this country,” he continued. “It reflects instead a judgment that every American possesses an inalienable right to think and speak freely, and a faith in the free marketplace of ideas as the best means for discovering truth. However well-intentioned, any law that suppresses speech based on viewpoint represents an ‘egregious’ assault on both of those commitments.”
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter.
“Our precedents do not compel this conclusion,” Jackson wrote. “Speech uttered for purposes of providing medical treatment may be restricted incidentally when the state reasonably regulates the speaker’s provision of medical treatments to patients.”
A Christian licensed therapist from Colorado Springs, Kaley Chiles, brought the legal challenge, alleging the law violates her free speech rights and prevents her from openly talking with clients about their desire to rid themselves of same-sex attractions or better align with their biological sex.
“Colorado law does not just regulate the content of Ms. Chiles’ speech. It goes a step further,” Gorsuch wrote, “prescribing what views she may and may not express.”
The decision sends the case back to a lower court for further review of the law.
Colorado will likely no longer be able to forbid state licensed providers from attempting to change a patient’s orientation through talk therapy.
“States cannot silence voluntary conversations that help young people seeking to grow comfortable with their bodies,” said Jim Campell, the attorney for Chiles who argued the case before the court. “The decision today is a significant win for free speech, common sense, and families desperate to help their children.”
Conversion therapy has been widely discredited by major American mental health and medical organizations for decades. Half the states in the U.S. have outlawed the practice as ineffective and harmful to minors, often on a bipartisan basis. Those laws are now in question.
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said that more kids will “suffer” as a result of this decision.
“Today’s reckless decision means more American kids will suffer. The Court has weaponized free-speech in order to prioritize anti-LGBTQ+ bias over the safety, health and wellbeing of children,” Robinson said in a statement.
