Today probably isn’t the best day to release surprise brand-new music to the world (now that Beyonce has proved she essentially rules December), however perhaps the only other person who can get away with it would be 2013 wonderkid Lorde, who has just unveiled new single No Better.
The track, a brand new piece of original material NOT featured on her latest debut LP Pure Heroine, is pure Lorde, however sounds not too far off M.I.A.’s Paper Planes, which is no bad thing.
Anyhow, take a listen below and as always let us know your thoughts. No Better is set for a release this Monday:
Facebook exclusively premieres the first part of Self-Titled, a mini documentary feature that gives a glimpse into the entire project. It details her mind-set and artistic vision throughout the making of BEYONCÉ. By embracing an ever-evolving digital landscape, she creates an innovative, fully immersive, multiplatform experience for the first visual album of her career, completely changing the way her fans will consume music.
Not one to stand on past achievements, this is an artist who thrives on evolving, challenging herself and raising the bar. This creative process gave Beyoncé power over her music and provided an opportunity to control how the music is heard. She is not playing by the rules and breaking what is expected, preferring to put music out as an entire body of work.
20th February 2014 – SSE Hydro Arena, Glasgow
23rd February 2014 – LG Arena, Birmingham
25th February 2014 – Phones 4 U Arena, Manchester
28th February 2014 – London’s O2 Arena
1st March 2014 – London’s O2 Arena
2nd March 2014 – London’s O2 Arena
4th March 2014 – London’s O2 Arena
8th March 2014 – Dublin, The O2
Monday, March 9 – Dublin, The O2
Wednesday, March 11 – Dublin, The O2
Watch the full visual below and hit the iTunes link to buy Beyonce’s new album, now:
In probably the biggest news story we’ve broken, Beyonce has surprised the world by unveiling her brand new album.
When explaining further about the new release, dubbed a ‘visual album’, Beyoncé said “I see music…. It’s more than just what I hear. When I’m connected to something, I immediately see a visual or a series of images that are tied to a feeling or an emotion, a memory from my childhood, thoughts about life, my dreams or my fantasies. And they’re all connected to the music.”
She continued… “I didn’t want to release my music the way I’ve done it,” she states. “I am bored with that. I feel like I am able to speak directly to my fans. There’s so much that gets between the music, the artist and the fans. I felt like I didn’t want anybody to give the message when my record is coming out. I just want this to come out when it’s ready and from me to my fans.”
The self-titled effort, Beyonce’s fifth studio outing features fourteen tracks and seventeen (yes, seventeen!!) videos, and features collaborations with ex-Destiny’s Child bandmates Michelle Williams and Kelly Rowland, along with Pharrell, Timbaland, Jay Z, Sampha and many MANY more.
Whilst no new single preceded the album’s launch, according to Billboard, two tracks are set to be announced next week in different formats. Additionally, it’s understood that iTunes have the full exclusive for one week, with further formats (and retailers) being eligible to sell the album after this period.
Hit the iTunes link now to buy (yes, it’s out NOW!) and watch the previews below, along with the image gallery of press shots:
Salaam Remi has premiered the official visual to his single One In The Chamber, taken from producer’s acclaimed Grammy Award-nominated album of the same name.
Check out the full video, which features Akon on collaboration, below:
Following his recent unveiling of new song Puppets and Strings over a fortnight back, Kano has premiered a new track, Busketeer (Ghetto Yout Fi Rich), featuring dancehall star Elephant Man.
It’s unclear at this stage whether Busketeer will appear on a forthcoming full-length album from the British grime star or whether this will be the start of a continuous stream of new music.
Either way, listen to the full track, produced by Benga, below, and hit the download button to cop it for free:
Further to last week’s announcement of a fully-packaged album of all his #MusicMondays releases, Justin Bieber has unveiled the full artwork to his forthcoming Journals album.
The project, which includes all ten (very impressive) tracks from the weekly series, also features five further songs ft Lil Wayne, Diplo, Big Sean and Future. Bieber’s #MusicMondays series has earned him credibility based on the growth and maturity of the records included as the star tries to position himself as a formidable pop/R&B crossover.
Check the full artwork of all the Journals‘ covers in the gallery below, along with the newly unveiled track art.
Tinie Tempah has premiered the official video to latest single Lover Not A Fighter.
The track, the third release from the UK rapper’s latest album Demonstration, also features acclaimed British producer/rapper Labrinth who makes a cameo appearance in the visual too.
Instagram have unveiled a new feature to their hugely-successful photo-sharing platform, Instagram Direct.
The new feature, which comes on the same week where Twitter announced photo inclusions in their direct messages, allows users to send photos and videos privately to up to 15 friends.
Both modes (single, and group) will allow full conversations privately along with the ability to see who (in group-mode) has seen the associated photograph/video.
The feature will also allow users to accept content from users they do not follow, providing they accept a ‘pending request’. This feature has been put in place to minimise spam requests (though, even with the security of Twitter, we all know Spam is never 100% foolproof).
Check the full video below for more information on Instagram Direct; the updated Instagram app will be available as of today in the iOS and Android stores.
Capital FM presenter & JLS star Marvin Humes has been announced as the new presenter of the Vodafone Big Top 40.
The performer will take over the UK’s biggest chart show every Sunday from 4pm starting in January. Marvin will also front a new evening show across the Capital Network weekdays from 7pm, starting Monday January 6th 2014.
Talking about the new shows Marvin said, “I’m over the moon to be a part of the exciting 2014 line up on Capital. What an amazing opportunity. I remember being on The Big Top 40 as an artist and to now be presenting the show is a dream come true.”
Marvin joined Capital back in March kicking off the Capital Weekend with his mix of the hottest club tracks and Capital playlist anthems, which he’ll continue to do every Friday.
It was also announced today that fresh on the back of his incredible set at the Jingle Bell Ball 2013, Tinie Tempah will stand in for Marvin this weekend presenting two shows across the Capital Weekend.
