Tag: Music

St. Vincent is set to read a children’s bedtime story on CBeebies this evening (November 29); you can watch a clip below.

The singer-songwriter (real name Annie Clark) will appear on today’s episode of CBeebies Bedtime Stories, where she’ll deliver a reading of Henri And The Machine by Isabelle Marinov and Olga Shtonda.

Per a press release, the book is “a charming reflection on learning to appreciate art and its boundless creativity. It tells the story of a boy who asks, ‘What’s the point of art?’ when his class is taken on a school trip to the local art gallery.”

Ahead of tonight’s Bedtime Story, St. Vincent has posted a preview video on her official social media channels. “Hi, I’m St. Vincent, but my real name is Annie,” she tells viewers. “And I’m a musician.”

She continues: “I love writing songs because it gives me a chance to really think about the world around me. And it also means that I get to share my thoughts and my feelings in the songs that I write.

“We all see things a little differently, and sharing how we see the world is how we make paintings, drawings, and songs. It’s how we create art.”

Clark added, “So tonight’s story is about a curious little child who sees things differently, too.” You can watch the video in the post above.

CBeebies Bedtime Stories airs each weekday at 6:50pm GMT on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer; tune in here.

An official synopsis of Henri And The Machine reads: “What’s the point of art? This is the question Henri asks himself when his class is taken on a school trip to the local art gallery. Who wants pictures of old soup cans or melting watches?

“But when he encounters a painting with the most perfect blue, it creates a beautiful feeling. It’s blueberries, oceans, summer skies, and butterflies all rolled into one. And then he wanders into a room with a chair and a sign that reads, ‘Is this really a chair?’ Henri decides to test it out, unleashing an explosion of creativity! Finally, Henri understands what art is all about.”

Other artists to have previously read books on CBeebies Bedtime Stories include Billy Eilish, Dave Grohl, Harry Styles, Elton John, Josh Homme, Jack Black, Phoebe Bridgers, and IDLES’ Joe Talbot.

St. Vincent released her seventh and latest studio album, ‘All Born Screaming’, this April. She recently shared a Spanish-language version of the record titled ‘Todos Nacen Gritando’.

Speaking to NME about the latter project earlier this month, the musician explained: “It was a beautiful exercise and an attempt to offer a little thanks to Spanish-language fans who have met me in my native tongue for seven records.”

When asked how she overcame certain words or phrases that couldn’t be translated, Clark replied, “As a songwriter, the song can have the best groove, the production can be so cool, and singing is great. But if there’s one lyric that’s corny and it’s like, ‘I’m out’.

“I can’t suspend my disbelief. I’m like, ‘Ugh, I was almost there.’ I’m always like, ‘That was a little trite’, or ‘That’s a cliche; they shouldn’t have said that’. This happens in English.”

She added, “Whereas when I’m listening to songs in Spanish, I don’t have the same scrutiny. I’m just enjoying music. It’s such a portal to joy for me—to enjoy it and react to the sound.”

St. Vincent went on to say that she had “no idea” about the sound of her next album: “You always think, ‘OK, the next thing I do will be the best thing I do’. I have to keep going. It has to get deeper. More human, more emotional, better songs. That’s my optimism right there.”

The singer-songwriter toured in the UK, Ireland, and Europe last month and played a one-off show at London’s historic Royal Albert Hall over the summer.

Bob Bryar, the former drummer for My Chemical Romance, has died aged 44.

He was found dead in his home in Tennessee on Tuesday (November 26) after last being seen alive on November 4, per TMZ.

The cause of death is not immediately known, but authorities have ruled out foul play, with his possessions, including musical equipment and weapons, untouched.

Bryar was My Chemical Romance’s longest-tenured drummer, performing with the band from 2004 until his departure in 2010.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1979, he began playing drums at a young age in his school’s marching bands. Following his graduation from high school, he studied sound engineering at the University of Florida.

He initially began working as a sound engineer for The Used and Thrice. He struck up a friendship with My Chemical Romance during their tour with the former in 2004, and soon after became their drummer for their tour that year in Japan, replacing previous drummer Matt Pelissier.

Though his involvement with the band came after the release of their second album, ‘Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge’, he appeared in all the music videos and promotional material for it.

His contributions can be heard on My Chemical Romance’s seminal 2006 album ‘The Black Parade’, the band’s most commercially and critically successful record. It debuted at number two in the United States on the Billboard 200, as well as on the UK Albums Chart.

Upon its release, NME liked the album to Green Day‘s ‘American Idiot’, writing that “it’s a piece of work that will challenge every preconception you ever had about the people who made it.” It was also featured as number 10 in NME‘s 50 Best Albums of 2006.

Bryar was involved in the writing process for the band’s follow-up record, 2010’s ‘Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys‘, but left the band shortly before the album’s release.

In a statement at the time, guitarist Frank Iero wrote on the band’s blog: “As of four weeks ago, My Chemical Romance and Bob Bryar parted ways. This was a painful decision for all of us to make and was not taken lightly. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors and expect you all to do the same.”

In the subsequent years, Bryar continued to play drums before announcing his retirement from music in 2014 to become a real estate agent.

He was an active supporter of various dog rescue charities. In 2022, he announced he would be selling his original ‘Black Parade’ uniform and using money from the sale to help “abandoned and sheltered animals in areas of Florida and South Carolina that are affected by Hurricane Ian.”.

Prior to that, he sold a drum kit—used during some of My Chemical Romance’s most formative moments—to raise funds for the Williamson County Animal Control and Adoption Center in Tennessee.

ADOR has issued a statement requesting an apology from fellow HYBE sub-label Belift Lab to NewJeans member Hanni.

On November 28, ADOR released a statement on its official stance regarding an alleged incident that took place between NewJeans member Hanni and a manager from Belift Lab.

Hanni claimed earlier this year that a manager had told another K-pop group to “ignore” her when they crossed paths at HYBE amid an ongoing feud between ex-ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin and the parent company. Belift Lab denied the allegations in a statement last month.

“While ADOR has taken a cautious approach to avoid unnecessary disputes that could escalate into controversies for our artist, we now feel compelled to clarify our position as the matter remains unresolved,” said the label per Korea Times.

“Belift Lab’s claims differ completely from Hanni’s account,” it continued, adding that it was “unfair” and “unnecessarily harsh” to expect the singer to recount the incident in detail. “We fully trust our artist’s words and deeply regret the harm Hanni has experienced.”

ADOR added: “We urge Belift Lab to approach this matter with respect and to demonstrate sincerity to ensure this issue does not continue to cause unnecessary controversy.”

This comes amid an escalation of tensions between the members of NewJeans and ADOR two weeks ago, when the group issued a notice demanding the agency resolve several outstanding grievances. NewJeans expressed their intention to terminate their contracts with ADOR if the issues were not resolved.

While they did not make specific contents in the notice public, the girl group and former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin previously called out HYBE’s alleged downplaying of the group’s achievements and undermining their success, as well as its lack of due process investigating Hanni’s claims.

Earlier this week, Min also filed an official criminal complaint against two HYBE PR executives for “breach of duty” regarding their promotion of NewJeans.

K-pop label ADOR has refuted a recent statement by girl group NewJeans, claiming that their contract with the K-pop act has not been terminated.

Yesterday (November 28), NewJeans held an emergency press conference announcing their departure from their label, ADOR. The news came two weeks after the group issued a legal notice to the agency, stating that they would terminate their contracts if ADOR did not resolve alleged breaches of their contracts.

ADOR has since sent out a press release stating that their contract with NewJeans is still in effect. “We regret that the press conference regarding the termination of the exclusive contract was planned and conducted without sufficient review, prior to receiving a response to the legal notice,” said the agency.

The label added that it “has not violated the terms of the agreement” and that a “unilateral claim of a breach of trust does not constitute valid grounds for terminating the contract”.

“The exclusive agreement between ADOR and the NewJeans members remains in full effect,” said the agency, which also requested for the group to continue collaborating with it on their upcoming activities.

Around the same time, NewJeans also released a document from ADOR, which had addressed the girl group’s legal notice to the company earlier this month. According to Korea JoongAng Daily, the label sent the letter an hour after the group called for an emergency press conference last night.

In the letter, ADOR shared the steps it had taken to address the demands NewJeans outlined in their original legal notice. These include getting an apology from the Belift Lab manager who allegedly told another group to “ignore” member Hanni, resolving a dispute with one of their music video directors and reinstating former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin, among others.

In response, the label wrote that some of the group’s demands were “too abstract or overly broad”, and also went beyond its authority and legal obligations. However, it said that ADOR would “take all possible measures” to address NewJeans’ needs.

“We are willing to share progress updates regularly if necessary, and we hope to maintain communication with the artists,” it said, claiming the group are “refusing to discuss plans for their activities next year”.

ADOR then shared that they have not forced the members to attend meetings “out of respect for them”, but are committed to support the group in their activities.

K-R&B singer-songwriter Dean has released a new project titled ‘3:33’ and a visual for the track ‘NASA’.

Today (November 29), DEAN dropped his new two-song project ‘3:33’, led by the single ‘NASA’ featuring French producer FKJ. Its accompanying visual features the singer performing the song with FKJ on the piano as ballet dancers twirl around them.

Also part of the release is the track ‘Ctrl’, which the singer first premiered live at Hypefest 2024 in Hong Kong earlier this month. According to a press release, DEAN and FKJ brought ‘3:33’ to life during sessions in Korea and Japan. “This project is alerting a signal from the future self to the current me,” he said.

‘3:33’ is DEAN’s first release under his new partnership with Island Records and his first new solo music in a year, after last November’s ‘Die 4 You’. He also teamed up with South Korean singer-songwriter BIBI on the song ‘Burn It’ earlier this month.

DEAN debuted as a singer back in 2015 with several singles, notably working with artists like Eric Bellinger, Anderson Paak, Zico, and more. He later gained significant popularity with his 2016 debut EP, ‘130 Mood: TRBL’.

Prior to his debut and early in his career, DEAN wrote music for several popular K-pop groups, including EXO, VIXX, and Block B. He has also collaborated with artists like Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon, Heize, and IU.