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Live Updates

Sarah Jane Griffiths and Kev Geoghegan

All times stated are UK

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  1. 'You're still here? It's over... go home'

    So said the great Ferris Bueller and who are we to argue?

    But scroll down for record-breaking news on Garth Brooks, Peter Doherty, The Vamps and Chance the Rapper.

    You can also watch and hear live performances from Declan McKenna, Wiley, Banks and Norah Jones.

    We'll see you all on Thursday.

  2. Steve Reich performs 'clapping music' on Radio 4

    Alongside Philip Glass and John Adams, groundbreaking US composer Steve Reich helped transform the 20th Century American musical landscape. 

    Now, as he prepares to turn 80, Steve has been speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Front Row about his long career.

    Presenter John Wilson spoke to Steve Reich about his career and the pair ended up performing Reich’s 'clapping music'.

    Listen below for a taster...

    Video content

    Video caption: US composer Steve Reich performs his 'clapping music' on Front Row

    You can hear the full programme from 19.15 BST.

  3. Dan Auerbach appears in new Pretenders video

    Black Keys frontman Dan Auerbach makes an appearance in the latest video by The Pretenders.

    The promo for Holy Commotion - a mixture of still photography and animation - shows singer Chrissie Hynde and Auerbach in his Nashville studio Easy Eye. 

    The song is taken from Alone, the first Pretenders album in eight years, which is due out on 21 October.

    Following the album's release, The Pretenders will embark on a US tour with Stevie Nicks. 

    Warning: third party content, may contain ads.

    View more on youtube
  4. Mobo announces a whole season of events

    Kano

    Following last week's Mobo Awards nominations, led by Kano (above) and Laura Mvula, organisers have announced a series of cultural events around the ceremony in Glasgow on 4 November. 

    The Mobo Season 2016 will feature films, talks, theatre productions and a social action campaign to recruit blood and transplant donors from young black and south Asian communities.

    Mobo is also teaming up with BFI London Film Festival to showcase new films like A United Kingdom and Queen of Katwe, as well as host a Hip Hop Stars Weekend featuring 90s classics such as Boyz n the Hood with Ice Cube, Set it Off featuring Queen Latifah and Juice starring Tupac Shakur.   

    "Twenty years in, the Mobo organisation has always had a social and cultural responsibility to motivate, elevate and celebrate creative talent and inspire future generations," said Mobo founder Kanya King. 

    "Mobo, champion of diversity and inclusion, are recognising talent within music, culture, arts, fashion, media and larger society as a whole. Something that is much bigger than music alone - that is what the Mobo Season is about.”

    Playwright and artistic director Kwame Kwei-Armah kicked off the series of Mobovation Talks at the BFI in London last night, which will also feature deputy London mayor Rajesh Agrawal and more to be announced.

    Check out the Mobos website for more info or watch the video below...

    Warning: third party content, may contain ads.

    View more on youtube
  5. Declan McKenna makes Later... with Jools Holland debut

    Teenage singer Declan McKenna made his debut on Later... with Jools Holland last night, with a disturbingly assured performance of his latest single Isombard. 

    The 17-year-old - who stripped off his shirt to show the slogan 'Give 17 year olds the vote' - and his band, who also look incredibly youthful, showered the stage with glitter.

    Here he is in action...

    The evening also featured performances from Norah Jones, Slaves and Bee Gees singer Barry Gibb.

    Wiley, aka the Godfather of Grime, also brought his A-game with his latest banger Can't Go Wrong - though we're not sure exactly what his man-bunned mate brings to the performance...

    Wiley's album Godfather is due on 28 October. You can watch the entire show now on iPlayer.

  6. Pete(r) Doherty announces second solo album

    BBC 6 Music

    Pete Doherty, or Peter as he apparently prefers to be known, has announced a new solo album Hamburg Demonstrations due on 2 December, and unveiled a new single I Don't Love Anyone (But You're Not Just Anyone)

    The Libertines frontman recorded the follow up to his 2009 solo debut Grace/Wastelands in Hamburg, having decamped to the German city for six months after "falling in love" with the Clouds Hill Recordings studio. 

    BBC 6 Music reporter Elizabeth Alker got Peter on the phone for a chat about the record...

    Video content

    Video caption: Pete Doherty chats to 6 Music about his new solo album.

    Other tracks on the album include a new recording of the Amy Winehouse tribute Flags Of The Old Regime and Hell To Pay At The Gates Of Heaven, written about the Paris terror attacks last November. 

    The singer will be the first to perform at The Bataclan when the Paris venue re-opens, playing two dates on 16 and 17 November, before mores shows around France.

    He's also working on a new album with The Libertines.  

  7. The Vamps' new album will feature 'grown up words'

    BBC Newsbeat

    The Vamps

    We're yet to analyse the vocabulary on The Vamps' first two albums, but according to the band their next release will feature a host of more complex words as they've "grown up" and have "actually read a dictionary". 

    According to their drummer Tristan Evans, their new music is...

    Quote Message: A bit more like the first album but with more modern production. It feels a bit more true to us, more so than any other album. We've grown up and we've actually read a dictionary. We've discovered new words. Hopefully that'll make it a bit more relatable, span a few more ages and target a different demographic. We're trying to get a few more people on board in terms of writing about things that everyone can understand.

    The band told Newsbeat they'll be teasing a new single at a "certain awards show very soon" (they're playing Radio 1's Teen Awards on 23 October, so we think they mean that), with the new album following next year.

    "I think you'll be able to dance to our new stuff a little bit more than our old stuff," said singer Brad, fully utilising his newfound verbosity, while the band added they've been experimenting with "random instruments" including a "very unique" piano, which is "like an accordion". 

    Read the full interview, including revelations about Brad's love life after a recent appearance on Channel 4's First Dates. 

  8. Listen to Banks' exclusive gig for Annie Mac

    Singer-songwriter Banks flew in from California to the UK to perform an exclusive set for Annie Mac on Radio 1.

    She played two tracks from her new album The Altar - which is out Friday - and a mashup cover of Goapele’s Play and Tirzah’s No Romance.  

    "I'm excited, I feel super-exposed," Banks told Annie about the new album. "It's a crazy feeling, I feel more exposed on this album that my first album.

    "It sinks in just how personal this stuff is and people know so much about you."

    Listen to the full interview and session below...

  9. Garth 'Diamond' Brooks = bigger than The Beatles

    Billboard magazine

    Garth Brooks

    Country star Garth Brooks has smashed a long held record by The Beatles and is now the first musician to have seven diamond albums.

    That means he has seven albums which have sold more than 10m copies in the US.

    Garth, who is already America’s best-selling solo artist, has surpassed the Fab Four who have six diamond releases.

    However, John, Paul, George and Ringo still outrank him in the total number of certified copies sold.

    The latest Garth album to hit the impressive milestone is his 2007 double-CD and DVD Ultimate Hits. 

    It joins previous diamond albums No Fences, Garth Brooks, Double Live, Sevens, The Hit and - our favourite title - Ropin’ the World. 

    Read more

  10. Justin Timberlake concert film to debut on Netflix

    Justin Timberlake and the Tennessee Kids poster image

    If you've never made it to a real life Justin Timberlake concert, the singer's collaboration with director Jonathan Demme (Married to the Mob, The Silence of the Lambs, Talking Heads film Stop Making Senseon a "a visionary concert-film experience" should be the next best thing.

    Justin Timberlake + the Tennessee Kids (the name of Justin's band) will debut on Netflix on 12 October, after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. 

    Filmed on the last night of his 20/20 Experience World Tour at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Arena Garden in January last year, it features hits like Cry Me a River and Mirrors, as well as behind the scenes footage.

    In a play on the now ubiquitous slang term "Netflix and chill", JT tweeted the trailer along with the words "Let's #TimberlakeAndChill"...

    View more on twitter
  11. Chance the Rapper to play Christmas show at the White House

    Chance the Rapper

    He's playing London on Friday to close this year's Apple Music Festival, but Chance the Rapper's also just been booked for a prestigious festive singalong. 

    He'll play the White House's annual National Christmas Tree Lighting, alongside Kelly Clarkson and gospel star Yolanda Adams. 

    The event will take place on 1 December with a free ticket lottery opening on 7 October. 

    Both Clarkson and Adams have performed at events during Barack Obama's tenure, according to Rolling Stone, with Clarkson singing at his second inauguration in 2013 and Adams at two events, including a celebration of Ray Charles.

    It will be Chance the Rapper's White House performance debut, although his track Acid Rain appeared on President Obama's summer playlist and he met with Obama in April to discuss the My Brother's Keeper initiative. 

    His dad even worked for Obama while he was an Illinois state senator. Chance recently told GQ Obama offered him some career advice when they met earlier this year...

    Quote Message: He brings me up to his office, and we had a really good conversation about what I was working on. He told me I needed to start selling my music. He's a good man. Even if he wasn't president, if his ass worked at, like, Red Lobster, he'd be just a good man working at Red Lobster.
  12. Roc-A-Fella logo legal action against Jay Z dismissed by US court

    Jay Z

    A $7m legal action over the design of the logo for Jay Z's Roc-A-Fella record label has been thrown out of court.

    The action accused the rapper of breach of contract and copyright infringement against a New York clothing designer who claimed to have created the logo.

    Dwayne Walker claimed he designed the artwork depicting a vinyl record with a superimposed 'R' in 1995.

    The logo has been used on items generating hundreds of millions of dollars.

    But Jay, co-founder Damon Dash, Roc-A-Fella and its parent Universal Music Group Inc, argued it was created by an in-house art director.

    US District Judge Andrew Carter said Mr Walker was not entitled to royalties under a contract he allegedly signed two decades ago with Dash.

    The designer's lawyer Gregory Berry said he plans to appeal.

  13. Peter Gabriel pays tribute to Sir Terry Wogan

    Terry Wogan

    On Monday, hundreds of people paid tribute to Sir Terry Wogan at Westminster Abbey, following his death earlier this year at the age of 77.

    The service was attended by an emotional Chris Evans, who took over the Radio 2 Breakfast show.

    Other stars included Joanna Lumley who read a poem dedicated to the great broadcaster.

    Peter Gabriel also performed the Randy Newman song That'll Do...

    Singer-songwriter Katie Melua, who Terry championed from early on in her career, performed her hit song The Closest Thing to Crazy...

  14. Empire of the Sun announce UK show

    Empire of the Sun

    Australian duo Empire Of The Sun have announced their first UK show in three years, and fans don't have long to wait.

    Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore will play London's Roundhouse venue in Camden on 13 October ahead of the release of their forthcoming album Two Vines on 28 October. 

    It was recorded in Hawaii and Los Angeles and co-produced by Peter Mayes, who's worked with Sia, The Killers and Mika in the past. 

    It features bassist Tim Lefebvre, from David Bowie's Blackstar band, as well as Wendy Melvoin from Prince's Revolution and Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham (more Fleetwood Mac news here).

    Tickets for the London show go on sale at 10:00 BST today.

    And if you haven't yet caught the psychedelic new video for their single High and Low, take a peek now...

    Warning: third party content, may contain ads.

    View more on youtube
  15. Craig David joins 1xtra Live line-up

    Craig David

    "He's here, he's there, he's every bleedin' where, Craig David! Craig David!"

    BBC Radio 1Xtra has announced the garage legend has joined the line-up for 1Xtra Live in Liverpool on Saturday 8 October. 

    The bill already includes Stormzy, Damian Marley, Desiigner, Giggs, Lady Leshurr, Sean Paul and Wretch 32.

    Craig is also going to take part in a special ‘In conversation with Craig David’ Q&A session, hosted by 1Xtra presenter DJ Ace on Wednesday 5 October.

    He said: "I’m so happy I’m getting the chance to do it this year, as well as being able to meet young, enthusiastic musicians and share what I’ve learnt as a part of the 1Xtra sessions."

  16. Britney Spears plays first UK show in five years

    Britney Spears wowed the Roundhouse in London on Tuesday night with a stripped back version of her Las Vegas show, as part of the Apple Music festival.

    The celeb-filled audience (think Sam Smith, Rita Ora, Nicholas Hoult and All Saints singer Melanie Blatt) were treated to a 90 minute whirlwind of her greatest hits including Slave 4 U and Toxic.

    She even attempted a, perhaps slightly ill-advised, English accent at one point in the proceedings.

    Debates will rage about her vocals, with producers insisting she sings over a pre-recorded backing track - but in the words of our music reporter Mark Savage: "At this point, expecting Spears to sing live is like turning up at Nando's and ordering truffles: The only person you're disappointing is yourself."

    Read his full review of the night

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  17. Good morning!

    Welcome along to Wednesday's Music News LIVE, where we have a whole heap of exciting news coming up to help you sail through Hump Day. 

    We'll be filling you in on Britney's first UK show since 2011, plus news on Craig David, Empire of the Sun, two Peters - Gabriel and Doherty - Justin Timberlake, Chance the Rapper and many many more.

    So, we'd better crack on - but don't forget to catch up on yesterday's page if you missed it for news on Fleetwood Mac, Bon Iver, Adele and Olly Murs, plus the return of Morcheeba and the nominations for this year's MTV VMA Awards.