Music News LIVE: Queen tribute to Orlando shooting victims

One of our favourite pop songs of the last 12 months was Aftergold, a joyous hopscotch summer jam by dance producer Big Wild.

After racking up more than 4m plays on Soundcloud, it's been given a fresh lick of paint by Swedish pop star Tove Styrke, who adds a playful, catchy melody over the original track. And, much like Sophie Ellis Bextor on Spiller's Groovejet, it improves the song ten-fold.

Styrke's lyrics poke fun at her more financially-obsessed colleagues: "How cool would it be to have diamonds on the soles of my feet / Cause I've worn these sneakers since I was 13," she sings.

The video sees Tove perform in contrasting locations - from Las Vegas' consumer belt to the remote mountain wilderness.

For some reason, though, you never see her eyes. It's probably a metaphor that went over our heads. 

Jess Glynne has announced her first ever debut arena tour including a show at London’s 20,000 seated O2 Arena.

Fortunately, she has has some practise in front of big crowds after slots at Radio 1's Big Weekend a few weeks back and Capital FM's Summertime Ball this weekend (see below).

She will plays dates in cities including Liverpool, Dublin, Birmingham and Cardiff.

Rapper, model and controversy magnet Iggy Azalea is joining the line-up of TV reality show The X Factor (in Australia).

The news was announced on Twitter. Like this.

Speaking to Australia's Daily Telegraph, the star sounded slightly surprised to find herself on the show, but stressed she had signed up for "multiple reasons".

Quote Message: I really didn’t picture myself being a judge on any kind of television show but I think that actually this could be a good fit for me so I said yes.

I really didn’t picture myself being a judge on any kind of television show but I think that actually this could be a good fit for me so I said yes.

Quote Message: Initially I didn’t know but then I thought it would be good to come back to Australia and have an opportunity to spend some time there and obviously to see my family, who live in Sydney.

Initially I didn’t know but then I thought it would be good to come back to Australia and have an opportunity to spend some time there and obviously to see my family, who live in Sydney.

Quote Message: So I think it will be a good situation for multiple reasons. I’m really excited and I don’t really know what to expect. from Iggy Azalea

So I think it will be a good situation for multiple reasons. I’m really excited and I don’t really know what to expect.

The rest of Australia's X Factor line-up has yet to be announced. Last year saw Dannii Minogue joined on the panel by James Blunt, Chris Issak and 2015 Eurovision contestant Guy Sebastian.

Sony PicturesCopyright: Sony Pictures

Following in the illustrious footsteps of Bobby Brown's On Our Own, G-Eazy and Jeremih have penned a song for the new Ghostbusters film.

Their poppy, synth-heavy contribution is titled Saw It Coming, and it tips its hat to Ray Parker Jr's immortal* theme with the lyric: “Something’s got you up all night, so tell me who you gonna call?”

Meanwhile, Missy Elliott and Fall Out Boy have re-recorded the Ray Parker Jr song. We'll reserve judgment on that until we hear it**.

* Pun intended

** It's going to be awful, isn't it?

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

BBC Radio 2 has started to announce the line-up for it's big Hyde Park show this summer, with Elton John headlining and support coming from Madness.

Dubbed "Festival in a Day", it all takes place on Sunday, 11 September, a day after Proms in the Park.

Chris Evans announced the acts on his breakfast show this morning - and will be unveiling the rest of the line-up throughout the week.

Last year's concert saw Rod Stewart joined by Bryan Adams. The Corrs and Giorgio Moroder amongst others.

Superstar DJ Diplo has a regular slot on BBC Radio 1Xtra - but he usually shares out his broadcasting duties with a rag-tag bunch of collaborators and cohorts. Hence the show's title, Diplo and Friends.

But this week, he piloted the ship solo, delivering a two-hour, 62-track mix that featured new music from Major Lazer, Kanye West and DJ Snake.

You can listen in the player above - and see the full tracklist on the 1Xtra website.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

A fortnight ago, we got the first new single in 16 years from The Avalanches. A calypso novelty song, Frankie Sinatra, was unveiled to a pretty mixed reception - although the melody is forever planted in our brains.

Details of the Australian band’s new album were revealed earlier this month - it's called Wildflower and it's due out on 8 July.

Now, a new track If I Was A Folkstar, a collaboration with Toro Y Moi, has been uploaded in a Mixcloud mix (listen from 5'17). 

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The singer songwriter Yusuf, formerly known as Cat Stevens, has said the harrowing death of refugee toddler Aylan Kurdi inspired his new song.

Yusuf penned the haunting track, He was Alone, after spending time at a refugee camp in Southern Turkey on the Turkish/Syrian border.

He said he was concerned that in the reporting of numbers, the human face of the crisis was being lost.

He told the BBC: "We see the numbers, the millions and we're trying to make sense of it.

"What I came to realise is that it's the reductionism which has caused much of the problem, that we've forgotten how to understand the human story behind this, and so it's that soul, that young soul, that I visualised in my head when I wrote this this song." 

Read more

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The fatal shooting of singer Christina Grimmie brought back painful memories for the stars of Pantera, whose guitarist Darrell "Dimebag" Abbot was killed in similar circumstances more than a decade ago.

Posting on their Facebook page, the band paid tribute to Grimmie and called for tighter security at venues.

"We are so sad and disappointed to hear that Christina Grimmie was gunned down the same way that Dimebag Darrell was," they wrote. 

"After Dime's murder, we all prayed that our industry (ie club owners & promoters) would do whatever they needed to do to protect artists from gun wielding fanatics. 

"Sadly, that's not the case and another rising star had to pay the consequences with her life. 

"Something needs to change."

The metal band were not alone in their comments, with Kesha and Julianne Moore calling for tougher gun control laws in the wake of the shooting.

"How many times are we as a nation going to read a horrific story like this and DO NOTHING," wrote Kesha on Instagram, accompanied by a picture of her and Grimmie.

"I demand gun control. this is sickening. I am so so so sorry for Christina's fans and family. my heart is with you. she was a beautiful spirit and will not be forgotten."

"Ciaran" / TwitterCopyright: "Ciaran" / Twitter

Can someone sound the "according to sources" klaxon? 

Good... now we can continue.

That poorly-lit image above is apparently Thom Yorke, of Radiohead fame, playing a solo acoustic set at a garden party in Oxford. It might have been for the Queen's birthday. It could equally have been a barbecue or an elaborate hoax.

A Reddit user posted the news on Saturday, having heard it first from his dad.

verylittlesound / RedditCopyright: verylittlesound / Reddit

The user later updated their post to day Yorke had played Desert Island Disk, No Surprises, Street Spirit, Reckoner and I Might Be Wrong.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how journalism works in the 21st Century.

PACopyright: PA

"Pray for me, I'm about to hit the 'Ye button."

Kanye West could probably preface all of his songs (and tweets and interviews) with that disclaimer, which appears at the top of a new song, Champions, which was released last night.

The posse rap track features an all-star cast that includes Big Sean, 2 Chainz, Gucci Mane, Desiigner and Travi$ Scott amongst others.

It's the lead single from Cruel Winter, a compilation album from the West's G.O.O.D. Music label. The star has promised there will be a 15-minute version featuring every artist on the roster. 

Champion was premiered on US radio last night and is available now on Spotify, Apple Music and other streaming / download stores.

Pop band Fifth Harmony led a moment of silence in tribute to Christina Grimmie at the WBLI Summer Jam in New York on Saturday.

Singer Normani Kordei described the 22-year-old as "such a beautiful soul, such a beautiful talent".

"From the moment that we met, she was always nice to us. So humble. We love you and we are praying for your family. And we know you are smiling down from above. Let's all bow our heads down. Chrstina Grimmie."

The entire crowd fell silent and illuminated the auditorium with light from their mobile phones.  

While Isle of Wight and Download catered to the middle-aged rock fans, Capital FM's Summertime Ball shipped half of the Top 40 into Wembley Stadium on Saturday. 

Ariana Grande, Little Mix, Nick Jonas, Craig David, Sigala, Tinie Tempah... They were all there. Except Zayn Malik - who pulled out after an acute attack of stage fright (see our earlier entry for details).

Here are some of the best performances from the event.

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Florence Welch was among the artists who asked fans to pay their respects to the 50 people killed at an Orlando club on Saturday night.

She tweeted a picture from a show in Illinois...

Omar Mateen killed 50 people and wounded 53 more in the deadliest mass shooting in recent US history, allegedly after being angered by two men kissing in Miami.

Other artists who have tweeted messages of support and defiance include Ricky Martin, John Legend and country star Kacey Musgraves.

APCopyright: AP

Former One Direction star Zayn Malik pulled out of his first UK solo show - at Capital FM's Summertime Ball this weekend - because of an anxiety attack.

He said the "magnitude of the event," at Wembley Stadium had caused "the worst anxiety of my career". 

"I cannot apologise enough," he added. "I promise I will do my best to make this up to everybody I've let down today."

Zayn received messages of support from fellow performers, including Ellie Goulding.

While his girlfriend, Gigi Hadid, posted a heartfelt message of support.

However, some fans walked out of the show - which also featured Tinie Tempah, Little Mix and Dizzee Rascal, once they learned of Zayn's cancellation.

EPACopyright: EPA

Sir Elton John got a bit shirty with the security staff at his show in Leicester this weekend, threatening to walk off stage if they stopped fans from dancing.

"Security guards please sit down otherwise I am not going to do the rest of the concert," he demanded before fixing them with a deadly stare that, according to one report, lasted several minutes.

The situation was eventually resolved and Sir Elton went on to play a 25-song set, ending with the double whammy of Candle In The Wind and Crocodile Rock.

And it wasn't just ticket-holders who got to enjoy it... homeowners who live in the shadow of Leicestershire County Cricket Club's home, held garden parties and barbecues as they took advantage of a free concert on their doorstep.

"I loved it," 76-year-old Joyce Wynne told the Leicester Mercury. "We had eight people round and were out in the garden listen to the music and singing along.

"It was a fantastic night and we didn't even have tickets."

David Bowie gave his last UK performance at the Isle of Wight Festival in 2004, so it was only fitting that this year's event paid tribute to the star.

It was a low-key, if emotional, moment, as clips from Bowie's headline set were played on video screens across the site. Many fans wore "starman" masks, which had been sold to raise money for Stand Up For Cancer.

Then, the rather unexpected pairing of Andrea Corr and Gary Kemp from Spandau Ballet performed an acoustic version of Starman.

You can watch it all above.

You can also check out more BBC coverage of Isle of Wight Festival and some of the weekend's other events including Download and Wild Life.

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APCopyright: AP

The popularity of live music continues to grow. A total audience of 27.7 million people attended a concert in the UK in 2015, up 16% on the previous year.

Of course, that doesn't mean half of the population saw a show... Most gig-goers said they attended six to 10 concerts a year; but 3.6% went to more than 100. Steve Lamacq went to approximately 42,001.

And music tourism, including visits to festivals like Glastonbury and Reading and Leeds, generated £3.7bn in spending.

The Wish You Were Here report, compiled by UK Music, also noted that small venues - the so-called "toilet circuit" - attracted 5.6 million ticket-holders last year, despite a large number facing closure.

Read more.

AP / Getty ImagesCopyright: AP / Getty Images

David Bowie's producer Tony Visconti landed himself in hot water last week after suggesting that Adele's voice was digitally altered in the studio.

“You turn the radio on and it’s fluff, you are listening to 90 percent computerized voices," he told The Daily Star. "We know Adele has a great voice but it’s even questionable if that is actually her voice or how much has been manipulated. We don’t know."  

His comments prompted an on-stage outburst from Adele, who called Visconti a rather rude name.

Unsurprisingly, he's decided to apologise. Sort of.

Quote Message: I’m sorry that what I said in regards to what’s being played on radio was misconstrued yet I cannot apologize for something taken the wrong way. If Adele has taken my comments as offensive that was certainly not my intent.

I’m sorry that what I said in regards to what’s being played on radio was misconstrued yet I cannot apologize for something taken the wrong way. If Adele has taken my comments as offensive that was certainly not my intent.

The full story is on Billboard.