The members of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK have not renewed their individual contracts with YG Entertainment.

• READ MORE: Two decades into their story, Epik High don’t look like they’re coming down from their “all-time high” anytime soon

Today (December 29), YG Entertainment announced in a statement to South Korean news outlet Xsportsnews that the four members of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK – Jennie, Jisoo, Rosé and Lisa – would not be renewing their individual contracts with the agency.

“We have agreed not to proceed with additional contracts for [the members’] individual activities,” YG Entertainment said, as translated by Soompi. “We will do our utmost to support BLACKPINK’s activities, and we will cheer on the members’ individual activities with warm hearts.”

The news comes just days after Jennie launched her own label, Odd Atelier (OA). At the time, the singer revealed that she had established the company in November 2023, and described it as “a space that aims to create new things that attract attention in a different way from what is usual or expected”.

In early-December 2023, all four members of BLACKPINK “signed an exclusive contract for group activities” with YG Entertainment. It came after a months-long negotiation process, which started as early as July 2023.

As of writing, it is currently unclear whether the remaining three BLACKPINK members – Jisoo, Rosé and Lisa – will sign with existing labels or establish their own agencies.

BLACKPINK made their debut in 2016 under YG Entertainment, and have since gone on to become one of the most successful K-pop girl groups. Notably, despite not having released any new groups music in 2023, the quartet were still the second-most streamed K-pop act on Spotify for the year.

In other BLACKPINK news, Lisa recently shared a festive cover of Britney Spears‘ ‘My Only Wish (This Year)’ to celebrate Christmas. Elsewhere, K-pop group also premiered their virtual concert, ‘BLACKPINK: A VR Encore’, on December 26.

The post BLACKPINK are not renewing their individual contracts with YG Entertainment appeared first on NME.

Matty Healy has teased the possibility of a new The 1975 album or solo LP on social media, sharing unreleased demos.

• READ MORE: The NME Big Read – The 1975: “I’d rather be a pretend supervillain than some pretend hero”

Healy – who recently wrapped up the massive North American leg of The 1975’s ‘Still…At Their Very Best’ tour – has been taking a break and spending time with his family in Manchester for the holidays.

Much to fans’ excitement, the frontman has returned to his official Instagram page and re-commenced his famous “good morning guys” IG stories in which he shares tweets, headlines, memes and more that make him laugh.

Yesterday (December 27), Healy shared a meme of Sue Sylvester from Glee (portrayed by Jane Lynch) which read: “I am going to create an album that is so good” alongside the comment “I’m feelin it”.

“Eu vou criar um álbum que é tão bom…”

Matty Healy via IG Stories. pic.twitter.com/vEs4MyHSSs

— The 1975 Online (@the1975online) December 28, 2023

Matty Healy is making a new album and teases the track list pic.twitter.com/BNwsrEcvNY

— Miü (@britneyiruma) December 28, 2023

Matty Healy teased new projects!#The1975 pic.twitter.com/2ccsblrOOJ

— The 1975 TH (@the1975_thteam) December 28, 2023

Then, he posted a screen recording of what appeared to be unreleased demos and ideas for potential tracks that are stored in his phone. Some of the demos were named “ringbox1”, “this love 140bpm”, “3011” and more.

Fans have been speculating that the demo titled “Victim 5.18” is a reference to the date May 18, 2023, which was the day that a Taylor Swift fan wrote an open letter to the pop singer about their concerns over Healy and Swift’s speculated romance.

In the mix of demos, a PDF script was spotted with the name “untitled MH plot ‘Cancelled'”.

It is unclear whether the demos would be for a potential new album for The 1975 or if they would be for a solo record. He briefly spoke about working on solo material while appearing as a guest on The Ion Pack podcast last year.

In other news, the band are set to kick off their UK and EU run of dates as part of their ‘Still… At Their Very Best’ tour in February. Check out the full list of dates below and visit here for any last minute tickets.

The 1975 ‘Still… At Their Very Best’ UK & Europe 2024 tour dates are:

FEBRUARY
8 – Glasgow, UK, OVO Hydro
9 – Glasgow, UK, OVO Hydro
12 – London, UK, The O2
13 – London, UK, The O2
14 – London, UK, The O2
17 – Manchester, UK, AO Arena
18 – Manchester, UK, AO Arena
21 – Birmingham, UK, Resorts World Arena
26 – Lisbon, PT, Campo Pequeno
27 – Madrid, ES, WiZink Center

MARCH
1 – Paris, FR, Le Zénith
2 – Amsterdam, NL, AFAS Live
3 – Brussels, BE, Forest National
5 – Hamburg, DE, Barclays Arena
7 – Oslo, NO, Oslo Spektrum
8 – Stockholm, SE, Annexet
10 – Copenhagen, DK, KB Hallen
12 – Berlin, DE, Verti Music Hall
13 – Warsaw, PL, Torwar Hall
14 – Prague, CZ, Fortuna Hall
16 – Zürich, CH, Hallenstadion Zurich
18 – Munich, DE, Zenith
19 – Milan, IT, Mediolanum Forum
21 – Frankfurt, DE, Jahrhunderthalle
22 – Cologne, DE, Palladium 

Elsewhere, Charli XCX recently revealed that she has been working on new music with her fiancé – The 1975 drummer and producer George Daniel.

“We’ve done a couple of things together. We’ve got a few ideas in the works,” she told the Sprout Podcast, revealing that she has already been in the studio to record some tracks for her next album.

The post The 1975’s Matty Healy teases potential album and shares unreleased demos appeared first on NME.

The Kid Laroi has announced his Australian tour next year is being postponed.

• READ MORE: The Kid Laroi – ‘The First Time’ review: the rapper reflects on his rapid rise

The rapper, who was born in Australia but now is based in Los Angeles, was supposed to play six dates across the region in February 2024.

The tour was meant to start Feb 2, 2024 at AAMI Park in Melbourne, before heading west for a show at Auckland’s Spark Arena on Feb 5. The Kid Laroi was then slated to play open-air shows in Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and the Gold Coast.

However, he has now announced that the run of dates has been rescheduled to October 2024 due to logistical difficulties.

“We tried to make February work but it’s proving to be logistically impossible,” reads a statement from The Kid Laroi, real name Charlton Howard. “I’m sorry to make you wait a bit longer but we will need to move the tour to October. We’re working on the details including some new additions to the line up and will let you know ASAP.”

All existing ticketholders for the tour will be notified of rescheduled dates once confirmed and their tickets will remain valid.

The Kid Laroi released his debut album ‘The First Time’ last month. In a three-star review of the LP, NME wrote: “It’s not until ‘Kids Are Growing Up’ the album’s 20th and final track, that Howard attempts to reflect on anything but heartbreak and fame. He speaks on his journey from rap stan to star, the toll it has taken on his family and those closest to him, his eyes now wide open to the trials of adult life: “You would never admit the problems that you had,” he remembers, but “now I got my own problems and understand”. It feels like an emotional breakthrough for Howard, but it comes just a little too late.”

Meanwhile, the artist recently opened up about his love for BTS and their music in a new interview, saying he “[wished he] had gotten into them a little sooner”.

The post The Kid LAROI postpones homecoming Australia and New Zealand tour to October 2024 appeared first on NME.

Childish Gambino has been accused of mistreatment by the people who worked on the artwork for his album ‘Awaken, My Love!’, including the woman who appeared on the cover.

• READ MORE: Childish Gambino – ‘3.15.20’ review: rap’s Renaissance man lets guard down with most personal record to date

Giannina Antonette Oteto appeared on the cover of Gambino’s 2016 album wearing a beaded headdress and she alleged in a statement posted to Facebook that she and the stylist and makeup artist who worked on it were “[taken] advantage of and lied to”, especially in the way of pay.

“Being able to hold an album that I’m on the cover of,” Oteto wrote alongside a picture of her holding a vinyl pressing of Childish Gambino’s album, which appears to have since been deleted. “And having my bestie mom next to me to celebrate! My number 1 cheerleader! This album has been so hard for me to celebrate for many reasons, and for years I resented it even. It put me through a lot but finally being able to celebrate it means a lot!

“Update: I resented it because myself, the makeup artist, and stylist (all black women) were [taken] advantage of and lied to.

Model Giannina Antonette Oteto from Childish Gambino’s “Awaken, My Love!” album cover says he took advantage of her:

“myself, the makeup artist, and stylist (all black women) were [taken] advantage of and lied to. We received low pay but were promised residuals but never… pic.twitter.com/rIljdoy8RZ

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) December 27, 2023

“We received low pay. [They] promised residuals. But [we] never received anything,” she continued. “The only person who received residuals was a white woman who created the headpiece even though she was not on set to work on this (but she also deserves it). After years of lies and silence then finding out statute of limitation complications… it’s been an exhausting, emotional, and overall sad thing to deal with. So it took so much from me especially the fact that we all worked on it with so much love and being proud to represent black artists.”

Oteto concluded by alleging that all of her lawyers’ communications had been ignored by the artist – real name Donald Glover‘s – team.

NME has reached out to Gambino’s representatives for comment.

Meanwhile, Gambino appeared to have been teasing something on a mysterious Instagram account earlier this month.

Yesterday (December 10), on the anniversary of Childish Gambino’s 2013 sophomore full-length, ‘Because The Internet’, an Instagram account supposedly credited to the rapper started an impromptu Instagram Live stream.

The brief, 30-second broadcast reportedly only featured audio without footage. It began with a voice saying, “Can you hear me”, followed by an ominous soundscape and the voice becoming increasingly distorted. Cheering can be heard in the background. A clip of the livestream was recorded and shared on social media by fans.

The post Childish Gambino accused of mistreating ‘Awaken, My Love!’ cover team appeared first on NME.

Katy Perry is reportedly getting ready to release her new album in 2024, and is said to be planning a world tour to go alongside it.

• READ MORE: Katy Perry – ‘Smile’ review: pop icon sounds somewhat recharged, but lacks the fireworks of old

The popstar has not released a full-length album since 2020’s ‘Smile’, and has been hosting her ‘Play’ residency in Las Vegas since 2021.

But someone close to Perry has informed The Sun newspaper (via Music News) that 2024 will be a big year for the singer, and that she has recently been writing her “most personal” music so far.

“Katy has been working on her most personal album ever for much of the past two years,” said the source.

“She has been doing it on her own terms and it is quite different from anything she has released before.”

Speaking about the plans for a world tour, the source continued: “But after so long spent on the West Coast of the US, she feels ready to tour again. The demand is there because she has so many hits, so taking her show on the road is bound to be a big draw.”

“The hope is that she can head out towards the end of 2024, but it is still being worked out.”

Perry first teased her new album back in August during one of her Vegas shows at the Resorts World Theatre. That run of shows concluded in November.

Speaking from the stage, she said, “If you can’t love me at my ‘Witness’ or ‘Smile’ era, then you can’t love me in my KP6 era,” referencing the relatively lukewarm receptions that her last two studio records have received.

Around the same time, Perry revealed that she had been “writing a lot”.

“[I] have written a lot from a place of love because I’m feeling so much of it – so much unconditional love, that love you never knew existed,” she continued, referring to her young daughter Daisy.

“I’m always writing, I have been, but I think what’s really important to me is to be celebrating the world that I’ve got to build with all of these wonderful songs and to be responsible for a life for a three-year-old.”

Perry added: “I will be back, but let me get this right.”

In September, the pop icon sold the rights to her music for a reported $225million (£180million). It covers the master royalty income and publishing rights for five of the albums the artist released between 2008 and 2020, including ‘One of the Boys’ (2008), ‘Teenage Dream’ (2010), ‘PRISM’ (2013), ‘Witness’ (2017) and ‘Smile’.

The post Katy Perry to release “most personal” album in 2024, alongside world tour appeared first on NME.

Miley Cyrus has shared a video of her covering Journey‘s 80s hit ‘Faithfully’ at an intimate show held at the Chateau Marmont.

• READ MORE: Miley Cyrus – ‘Endless Summer Vacation’ review: a potent reclamation of power

The pop singer’s rendition of the rock classic – which appeared on Journey’s 1983 LP ‘Frontiers’  and was written by Jonathan Cain – was performed as part of an intimate friends and family performance at the West Hollywood legendary hotel for the holidays.

In a black-and-white video posted by Cyrus herself on her official X/Twitter page, the singer is seen performing in front of a lit-up Christmas tree. She also joked around while singing and said: “Dave Grohl is coming out of the Christmas tree for the drums” after the first verse and “You know the words to this one – there are none. It’s ‘woah,’” before diving into the chorus.

Faithfully: Live From Chateau Marmont pic.twitter.com/VHXseiUZxN

— Miley Cyrus (@MileyCyrus) December 27, 2023

This is not the first time Cyrus has held a small performance at the Chateau Marmont. Last month, she finally gave her smash hit ‘Flowers’ its live debut at a private performance at the hotel.

She performed the Grammy-nominated track backed by a modest piano accompaniment before an intimate crowd in a dimly lit room at the famed hotel on October 21. She also debut an untitled new track during the performance.

In May, the singer expressed disinterest in touring her eighth studio album, ‘Endless Summer Vacation’. “I can’t,” she stated. “Not only ‘can’t’, because can’t is your capability, but my desire. Do I want to live my life for anyone else’s pleasure or fulfilment other than my own?”

Her last world tour took place in 2014, in support of her 2013 LP ‘Bangerz’, and saw her playing dates in North America, Europe, Latin America, New Zealand and Australia. Her last live outing took place in 2022, when she played a five-date festival tour across North and South America.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus)

Released in January, Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ has continued to perform impressively on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary charts, reaching the number one spot for the 28th time during the week of October 23. This feat eclipses that of Uncle Cracker and Dobie Gray’s 2003 single ‘Drift Away’, which also topped Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart for 28 weeks.

Upon being announced as a nominee in six categories for the 2024 Grammys, Cyrus praised for her fellow female nominees. “Congratulations to all of this [year’s] Grammy nominees,” she wrote. “Watching women win & rule the music industry makes me proud.”

NME’s Nick Levine gave ‘Endless Summer Vacation’ a glowing four-star review. “‘Endless Summer Vacation’ certainly feels like an accurate reflection of who she is as an artist – and a person – in 2023,” he stated. “And when she sings “But don’t forget, baby I’m a wildcard” on the third-to-last song, you’ll definitely believe her.”

The post Watch Miley Cyrus cover Journey’s ‘Faithfully’ at intimate show appeared first on NME.

Paul McCartney has revealed how William Shakespeare’s Hamlet subconsciously inspired The Beatles track ‘Let It Be’.

• READ MORE: Inside ‘Now And Then’: With a little help from AI, The Beatles live again

Macca opened up about the origins of the Fab Four’s 1970s hit, suggesting that his mother, Mary McCartney said the phrase “let it be” to him in a dream. In an episode of  McCartney: A Life in Lyrics podcast, Macca revealed how Hamlet may have inspired the track without him realising.

“In those days [at school], I had to learn speeches off by heart. So I could still do a bit of ‘to be or not to be’, or ‘O that this too too solid flesh’,” he said.

He continued: “And it had been pointed out to me recently that Hamlet, when he has been poisoned, he actually says, ‘Let it be’ – act five, scene two. He says ‘Let be’ the first time, then the second time he says, ‘Had I but time — as this fell sergeant, Death, Is strict in his arrest — oh, I could tell you. But let it be Horatio.’

“I was interested that I was exposed to those words during a time when I was studying Shakespeare so that years later the phrase appears to me in a dream with my mother saying it.”

McCartney’s mother passed away from cancer back in 1956 when he was 14. Speaking about his dream in which his mother said the phrase to him, he said: “It was great to visit with her again. I felt very blessed to have that dream. So that got me writing ‘Let It Be’.”

In other Beatles news, John Lennon‘s son, Julian Lennon recently spoke out about his relationship with his brother Sean, saying that rumours of an alleged feud between them are “such bull”.

The conversation arose as he looked back at the red carpet premiere of the Beatles’ 2021 documentary series Get Back, which he attended with Sean. Recalling the event, he explained that his younger brother initially had reservations about attending.

“He felt overwhelming pressure. And I didn’t particularly want to go. But he said he felt obligated to go,” he told the outlet. “So, because I love him so much I said, ‘Listen, I’m coming with you. We’ll face the demons together.’

“And it’s funny because there’s always been, especially in the U.K. press, ‘Lennon Sons Feuding,’ this, that. We’ve never had a fight in our life. It’s such bull.”

The post Paul McCartney reveals how ‘Let It Be’ was inspired by Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ appeared first on NME.

Olivia Rodrigo has discussed the inspiration behind some of the “emo” lyrics in her recent songs ‘Lacy’ and ‘All-American Bitch’.

• READ MORE: Olivia Rodrigo – ‘Guts’ review: pop sensation secures her place as a generational talent

Both tracks appear on the singer’s recent second album ‘Guts‘, which was released in September.

Speaking on the Kelly Clarkson Show, Rodrigo gave insight into how she conceived the lyrics for the outro of ‘Lacy’ – “And I despise my jealous eyes and how hard they fell for you / Yeah, I despise my rotten mind and how much it worships you.”

“Very emo of me, writing that,” Rodrigo told Clarkson, laughing. “I took a poetry class at USC,” she continued. “I wrote a poem called ‘Lacy’ for one of the assignments, and I really liked it. I’m like, ‘I’m gonna turn it into a song!’”

Fans have speculated that Lacy could be a number of public figures, including Taylor Swift, Gracie Abrams or Sabrina Carpenter. However, Rodrigo has refrained from ever revealing the subjects of her songs, telling the Los Angeles Times earlier this month that she enjoys when fans craft “more creative answers to who Lacy is,” such as her past self.

“I just think it’s not classy to come out and say it’s about this person,” she added at the time. “I also think that would set a weird precedent where I’d have to clear the air with every song I write.”

Meanwhile, on the subject of ‘All-American Bitch’, Rodrigo explained the meaning of its opening lines “I am light as a feather, I’m as stiff as a board.”

“I always thought it was a really interesting phrase, I’ve been meaning to fit it into a song for a long time,” Rodrigo said. “[The game] seems kind of impossible. So I thought it was a good way to describe the impossible standards that are set for us as women.”

NME praised ‘GUTS’ in a five-star review, saying: “In the orbit of her urgent and riotous second album, the 20-year-old turns her own vulnerabilities into a rallying cry: here, she’s a songwriter of control, diving headfirst into the collective female experience while also pursuing adventure, desire and relief.”

The album also landed in the number two spot of NME’s Best 50 Albums of 2023.

The post Olivia Rodrigo breaks down “emo” lyrics in ‘Lacy’ and ‘All-American Bitch’ appeared first on NME.

Metallica‘s James Hetfield has looked ahead to 2024 and shared his hopes to continue to “try and improve myself”.

• READ MORE: Metallica: “We’re still trying to figure all this shit out”

The metal legends have spent 2023 touring the world as part of their ‘M72’ shows, which are set to continue into the new year.

Frontman Hetfield has since reflected on another year of touring and new music with the band, which also included the release of their new album ‘72 Seasons‘ in April.

“I usually don’t put a lot of stock into New Year’s stuff, but reflecting on the past year, [I’m] super grateful for what I’ve got, what I’ve gone through,” he said during a new episode of The Metallica Report (per Blabbermouth).

“[I] always really look forward to what the next year will bring. The older I get, the harder and easier it gets. So, I’m always looking forward to getting back out on the road, playing some shows, seeing some faces, familiar faces and new faces at the shows.”

He continued: “So, yeah. I don’t know what else. I guess the new year is kind of a cleansing, and I’ve got a new goal or something. I’m really just continuing to try and improve myself, get better, have a better attitude about life, about other people’s lives, and just try to bring as much joy to people as possible.”

This year Metallica unrolled their ‘No Repeat Weekend’ structure for their ‘72 Seasons’ tour – back-to-back nights in one location during which they performed two different setlists.

2023 also saw Metallica mark a new first in their decades-long career, performing their first show in Saudi Arabia at Soundstorm festival. This week they released footage of ‘The Unforgiven’ from the show.

Back in September, drummer Lars Ulrich said he was “happy” people “still stream or buy or steal our records”. He added: “I’m just happy that fucking anybody cares about what we’re doing and shows up to see us play and still stream or buy or steal our records or whatever.”

Earlier in the year, he opened up about how long Metallica will keep touring for, sharing: “There is a point where it’s maybe not going to function anymore.”

The post Metallica’s James Hetfield says 2024 will be about “continuing to try and improve myself” appeared first on NME.

Dolly Parton surprised a terminally ill fan with a personal phone call this month, allowing him to tick the item off his bucket list.

• READ MORE: Dolly Parton – ‘Rockstar’ review: Queen of Country throws up the Devil horns

LeGrand Gold from Utah was diagnosed with stage four colorectal cancer in 2021, but is now entering hospice care after being told by doctors that he only has months to live after treatment stopped working.

After learning of his original diagnosis, Gold, or ‘LG’, created a bucket list which included meeting Parton.

According to KSL TV, LG grew up in Tennessee and has been a huge fan of the country icon his whole life. “He was going through a really kind of down phase of just over everything,” his wife Alice Gold told the outlet. “So just got out the napkin and started saying, ‘What do you want to do? What do you want to do before you die?’”

Alice took to social media in the hopes that Parton might be able to help fulfil one of her husband’s big dreams.

On Friday (December 22), they answered a call with a Nashville area code in the morning, and were surprised to find Parton on the line when they had only expected a call from one of her managers.

“Hey, LG,” Parton said, referring to herself as “Dolly P”.

“I’m just happy to know that I’ve got a fan that devoted and that I’ve had a chance to watch that journey all these years,” she said. “I’m just happy that we got to kind of have our journey together in this lifetime. I always want to make people happy with my music and with the things I do and the things I say and I’m just happy to know that I’ve touched your life in some way. So thank you for honouring me with that.”

The ‘Jolene’ signer signed off from the call by singing “I will always love LG”, changing the lyrics to her hit song ‘I Will Always Love You’.

“She sang a song, put my name in the song. I feel like I’m immortal now,” LG told KSL. “That was really cool. It made me feel good.”

Alice told Parton that their family have regularly visited Dollywood over the years, adding that their children participated in Parton’s Imagination Library, which sends free books to children every month.

Other completed items on LG’s bucket list included visiting Las Vegas for a college basketball tournament and watching Natalie Merchant’s concert in Chicago.

“We’ve been flying above the silver lining for days,” Alice told KSL. “Out of the 11 items [on the list], we thought Dolly would be the impossible, but true to Dolly form, she once again reminds the world that dreams really do come true.”

Back in November, Parton scored her highest-charting album with the feature-stacked ‘Rockstar’.

The post Dolly Parton surprises dying fan to help him complete bucket list    appeared first on NME.