Category: Music

Promoters Cancel Bob Vylan Concert Over Remarks on Charlie Kirk Assassination
A Bob Vylan concert in the Netherlands has been cancelled after comments made by the performer on stage about the assassination of Donald Trump ally Charlie Kirk.
A member of the outspoken punk duo, who caused controversy when they chanted for the “death” of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) at Glastonbury Festival, told the audience “if you chat shit you will get banged” in footage widely shared on social media.
In response, their planned performance on Tuesday September 16 at the 013 in Tilburg has been cancelled, with the venue saying the statements made by the performer “go too far”.
During their performance at Amsterdam’s Paradiso on Saturday, frontman Bobby Vylan, whose real name is reportedly Pascal Robinson-Foster, told fans: “I want to dedicate this next one to an absolute piece of shit of a human being.
“The pronouns was/were. Cause if you chat shit you will get banged. Rest in peace Charlie Kirk, you piece of shit.”
Mr Kirk, who was a prominent political commentator in the US and ally of the president, was shot and killed at a Utah Valley University event on Wednesday, in what authorities called a political assassination.
Hundreds of people attended a vigil for Mr Kirk in central London on Saturday with speakers hailing him as a “Christian martyr” and calling for people to wage a “war on evil”.
A translated statement on the 013 website on Sunday said: “The planned performance by British rap-punk group Bob Vylan on Tuesday, September 16th, at Poppodium 013 in Tilburg has been cancelled.
“The reason for the cancellation is the controversial statements the artist made last night during a show at Paradiso in Amsterdam.
“Despite the controversy that arose after their Glastonbury performance, 013 decided to let Bob Vylan perform in Tilburg.”
The venue said it had an “understanding for the artist’s anger” regarding the violence in Israel and said the duo clarified in a statement that the “death to the IDF” chant was “not an antisemitic slogan, but rather criticism of the Israeli army”.
The statement added: “While we understand that these statements were made in the context of punk and activism, and that the reporting on them is sometimes less nuanced than what actually happened, we still believe these new statements go too far. They no longer fall within the scope of what we can offer a platform.”
In a statement on its website, Club Paradiso said: “On Saturday September 13, during his performance at Paradiso, artist Bob Vylan made statements that many experienced as harsh and offensive.
“Paradiso believes in the power of artistic freedom. Music, and punk in particular, has traditionally been a form of art that amplifies anger, discontent, and injustice without filter.
“In a world on fire, artists sometimes choose language that sounds confrontational or violent. That is part of artistic expression, but not automatically language that we as a venue endorse.
“Paradiso shares the outrage and concern regarding the genocidal violence taking place in Gaza.
“That Bob Vylan raises his voice against it is legitimate and necessary. Should the Openbaar Ministerie (public prosecution service) wish to investigate whether any criminal offences have been committed, Paradiso will cooperate.”
After reports that his comments “celebrated” Mr Kirk’s death, Bobby Vylan said in an Instagram video: “At no point during yesterday’s show was Charlie Kirk’s death celebrated. At no point whatsoever did we celebrate Charlie Kirk’s death.”
The duo, comprised of frontman Bobby Vylan and drummer Bobbie Vylan, have another gig in the Netherlands at Doornroosje which is billed for Monday.
A translated statement on the Doornroosje website, which appears to have been online prior to the recent comments, said: “Bob Vylan plays at Doornroosje because he’s an act that fits within our programming. The band has previously been booked for Doornroosje and played at the Valkhof Festival.”
Following Bobby Vylan’s comments about the IDF at Glastonbury in June, Avon and Somerset Police launched an investigation.
Earlier in the month, BBC director general Tim Davie said the corporation’s decision to broadcast Bob Vylan’s set live was “a very significant mistake”.
While facing questions from MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Tuesday, Davie said the punk duo’s set was “antisemitic” and “deeply disturbing”.
The corporation issued an apology after the Bob Vylan set at Glastonbury, saying: “We deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to apologise to our viewers and listeners and in particular the Jewish community.”
Bobby Vylan said in a social media post that “there was nothing antisemitic or criminal about anything I said at Glastonbury”.
September 15, 2025
Sean Kingston Sentenced to 3.5 Years in Prison for $1 Million Fraud Scheme
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.—Singer Sean Kingston was sentenced to three and a half years in prison Friday after being convicted of a $1 million fraud scheme in which he leveraged his fame to dupe sellers into giving him luxury items that he then never paid for.
Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Paul Anderson, and his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, were convicted in March by a federal jury of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. Turner was sentenced to five years in prison last month.
Before U.S. Judge David Leibowitz handed down Kingston’s sentence, the singer apologized to the judge in the South Florida courtroom and said he had learned from his actions. His attorney asked if he could self-surrender at a later date due to health issues, but the judge ordered him taken into custody immediately. Kingston, who was wearing a black suit and white shirt, removed his suit jacket and was handcuffed and led from the courtroom.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton described Kingston as someone addicted to his celebrity lifestyle even though he could no longer afford to maintain it.
“He clearly doesn’t like to pay and relies on his celebrity status to defraud his victims,” Anton said Friday.
The federal prosecutor described a yearslong pattern by Kingston of bullying victims for luxury merchandise and then refusing to pay.
“He is a thief and a conman, plain and simple,” Anton said.
Defense attorney Zeljka Bozanic countered that the 35-year-old Kingston had the mentality of a teenager — the age he was when he vaulted to stardom. The attorney said Kingston had almost no knowledge of his finances, relying on business managers and his mother.
“No one showed him how to invest his money,” Bozanic said. “Money went in and money went out on superficial things.”
Bozanic said Kingston has already started paying back his victims and intends to pay back every cent once he is free and can start working again.
Leibowitz rejected the idea that Kingston was unintelligent or naive, but the judge said he gave Kingston credit for accepting responsibility and declining to testify rather than possibly lying in court. That was in contrast to Kingston’s mother, whose trial testimony Leibowitz described as obstruction.
Kingston and his mother were arrested in May 2024 after a SWAT team raided Kingston’s rented mansion in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Turner was taken into custody during the raid, while Kingston was arrested at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California’s Mojave Desert, where he was performing.
According to court records, Kingston used social media from April 2023 to March 2024 to arrange purchases of luxury merchandise. After negotiating deals, Kingston would invite the sellers to one of his high-end Florida homes and promise to feature them and their products on social media.
Investigators said that when it came time to pay, Kingston or his mother would text the victims fake wire receipts for the items, which included a bulletproof Escalade, watches and a 19-foot (5.9-meter) LED TV, investigators said.
When the funds never cleared, victims often contacted Kingston and Turner repeatedly, but were either never paid or received money only after filing lawsuits or contacting law enforcement, authorities said.
Kingston, who was born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, shot to fame at age 17 with the 2007 hit “Beautiful Girls,” which laid his lyrics over Ben E. King’s 1961 song “Stand By Me.” His other hits include 2007’s “Take You There” and 2009’s “Fire Burning.”
August 16, 2025
Taylor Swift Confirms New Album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl,’ Set for Release
Swift, who has won 14 Grammys including an unprecedented four for Album of the Year, made the announcement on a podcast with boyfriend and football star Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce.
“This is my brand new album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl’,” Swift said while holding a blurred-out version of the cover in a clip from the New Heights podcast on Instagram. The full podcast episode is set for release at 7 p.m.
The official release date of the album will be announced later, according to Swift’s website.
The vinyl version is available for pre-order on the website for $30. The cassette version costs $20, and a CD with a poster of Swift is available for $13.
Her last album, “The Tortured Poets Department”, sold 2.61 million albums and streaming units during its first week of release in the United States.
Billboard said it was the largest streaming week for an album ever and the largest sales week for an album on vinyl in the modern era.
Spotify said “Poets” was its most-streamed album in a single week, surpassing 1 billion streams.
In May, Swift purchased the master recordings of her first six albums, giving her full control of her music after a dispute with her former record label.
She had signed with the world’s biggest music label, Universal Music Group, in 2018.
Swift, 35, has been setting music industry milestones and boosting local economies with The Eras Tour, a phenomenon that some economists have termed “Swiftflation.”
The record-breaking tour was the first to surpass $1 billion in revenue and created price surges in sectors such as hotels, dining, and travel.
Swift is one of several top artists releasing albums at the moment. Sabrina Carpenter will release “Man’s Best Friend” in August, and Ed Sheeran has a new one scheduled for release in September.
August 12, 2025
Billy Joel Cancels All Tour Dates Following Brain Disorder Diagnosis
U.S. singer-songwriter and pianist Billy Joel said Friday he is cancelling all of his scheduled concerts — including a stop in Toronto — after he was recently diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus, a brain disorder.
The 76-year-old singer is undergoing physical therapy and has been advised to refrain from performing while he recovers, according to a statement on social media.
“I’m sincerely sorry to disappoint our audience and thank you for understanding,” Joel said.
Joel’s condition was exacerbated by recent concert performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision and balance, according to the statement.
The condition, which is more likely in people over the age of 65, occurs when fluid builds up inside the skull and presses on the brain, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Symptoms, such as shuffling feet with short steps as well as memory challenges, resemble those of dementia and can sometimes be reversible within surgery.
The tour, which had 17 stops in the United States, Canada and England, had been due to start in February, but it was initially rescheduled to July due to an undisclosed medical condition.
Joel, known for hits like Piano Man and Uptown Girl, ended his record-breaking monthly Madison Square Garden residency — which had begun in 2014 — last year.
May 23, 2025
Come what may in his federal trial, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs deserves to remain the outcast he has become
The federal trial against Sean Combs that begins Monday in the Southern District of New York follows an indictment that accuses the entertainment mogul of human trafficking and drug trafficking, and of using his considerable wealth and power and brute force to keep his alleged victims silent. Combs has denied all the charges the government has brought against him and rejected a plea deal. The founder of Bad Boy Records is no stranger to the courts or to having trouble swirling around him. But this is the first time he stands accused by the U.S. Department of Justice; he’s never faced charges as serious as those he faces now.
The founder of Bad Boy Records is no stranger to the courts or to having trouble swirling around him.
In November 2023, R&B singer Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura and who had an on-again, off-again relationship with Combs, filed a lawsuit accusing Combs of beating, kicking, stomping and raping her and forcing her into sex with male prostitutes. Combs, who denied the claims the artist made against him, settled with her the next day. A statement from Combs’ attorney Ben Brafman said, “Mr. Combs’ decision to settle the lawsuit does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims.”
Then, in May 2024, CNN released a 2016 security video from a hotel hallway showing Combs physically assaulting Cassie, including kicking and dragging her. Combs responded in an Instagram post that what he did happened during a dark time in his life. “I was f—-d up. I hit rock bottom. But I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video.”
Combs was arrested in September and accused of hosting what he reportedly called “freak offs,” which the government describes as coerced sexual acts that Combs organized and recorded.
Since November 2023, according to The Washington Post, there have been well over 70 lawsuits accusing Combs of sexual assault. He has denied all such allegations. And those cases against him haven’t been proved. But it’s hard not to put him in the same category as celebrities such as R. Kelly and Harvey Weinstein, powerful men accused of sexual abuse going back decades. We should ask ourselves why our society seems so willing to ignore the whispers and rumors and bits of evidence that link powerful men to violence against women.
The violence Combs inflicts on Ventura in that unearthed hotel surveillance video is so awful it’s nearly unwatchable. It’s bad news for Combs, then, that U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian has ruled that it’s admissible evidence the jury will get to see. Prosecutors say the hotel surveillance video shows Combs, wearing only a white towel around his waist, trying to drag Ventura back to a room where a “freak off” was happening.
Since November 2023, according to The Washington Post, there have been well over 70 lawsuits accusing Combs of sexual assault.
To be sure, that video does not automatically make Combs guilty of the charges the federal government has brought against him. But it’s clear why his team fought so hard to keep it out of evidence.
Combs’ team has argued that CNN sped up the hotel surveillance video and ran it out of sequence. CNN has said it did not alter the video its source presented to the network.
Combs has spent a career being a “shiny suit man” who nonetheless has been accused of disturbing flashes of violence. He was found guilty of criminal mischief in 1996 for threatening a New York Post photographer with a gun, and he paid a $1,000 fine. In April 1999, he was booked and charged with two felonies against rival record executive Steve Stoute, who says Combs and his bodyguards beat him with their fists and with a Champagne bottle and a chair. Combs publicly apologized and Stoute asked for a dismissal of the charges. Combs, whose childhood nickname “Puffy” was a description of the way he’d huff and puff when he lost his temper, pleaded guilty to harassment and was sentenced to a day of anger management classes.
Combs was acquitted, though, after being criminally charged after a December 1999 shootout in a club in New York that left three people injured. A jury decided that the state didn’t prove Combs to be in possession of a gun or that he’d bribed witnesses in that case, but jurors convicted Bad Boy artist Shyne (real name Moses Barrow) and he was sent to prison.
Combs’ history of brushes with the law may have added to his allure. But the fact that he’d never been convicted of a felony seemed to make him edgy and cool enough for Hollywood A-listers and the country’s movers and shakers to keep him as an associate. At the height of his popularity, there didn’t appear to be any celebrity who was too big (or considered him too toxic) to appear at a Combs party.
There didn’t appear to be any celebrity who was too big (or considered him too toxic) to appear at a Combs party.
Too many people reflexively assume that when word gets out that a celebrity is abusive to women that it’s nothing but a smear campaign meant to tarnish that person’s legacy. The race factor also has a peculiar impact. Some people might not always love the person who’s being accused but don’t trust that they’re being treated fairly. And the accused should be treated fairly. No matter how awful the charges against Combs, he has the right to a fair trial.
That said, many might still be denying that Combs has been violent and characterizing him as some kind of victim, but for the hotel surveillance video that captures him attacking Ventura in the exact manner she had described in her November 2023 lawsuit. Ventura is likely to be a prominent witness as the Department of Justice attempts to prove to jurors that Combs has a penchant for abusive behavior and violent tactics.
One of the messages of the #MeToo movement was that for too long, we, the public, have helped enable men, especially powerful men, to routinely hurt women. And as Combs goes on trial, we should be asking ourselves how much has changed since the start of #MeToo.
In trying to keep the hotel surveillance footage out of the trial, Combs’ lawyers said the video “immediately and dramatically turned the tide of public opinion” against their client. They’re right. No matter what happens at the trial, for what he did to Cassie, the bad boy can expect to be a permanent pariah — as he should be.
May 11, 2025
Live Nation’s revenue fell to $3.3 billion in the first quarter
Live Nation reported $3.3 billion in revenue for the first financial quarter of 2025, an 11 percent drop from the particularly strong first quarter the live music giant had posted a year ago.
Adjusted operating income fell 6 percent to $341 million from 362.5 million year over year. In the concerts division, revenue fell 14 percent to $2.84 billion, and ticketing revenue fell 4 percent to $694.7 million. Sponsorship and advertising, however, grew slightly, up 2 percent to $216.1 million.
While the year has started out slower, in its report, Live Nation points to $5.4 billion in deferred revenue for concerts and another $270 million in deferred revenue on tickets — a 24 percent and 13 percent bump for each category — which the company said suggests stronger figures in the months ahead as the concert season gets more into full swing.
Live Nation’s earnings report comes as there’s been significant discourse over the past year regarding the demand for arena and stadium level artists given increasingly expensive concert tickets and a murky economic outlook in the months ahead. Beyoncé, for example, has garnered headlines as there are still tickets available for dates on her just-started Cowboy Carter Tour, leading to the question on if sales are weakening as consumers tighten their belts. (Live Nation itself has disputed the notion of a surplus of tickets and said in March that she’d sold 94 percent of her tickets, according to Billboard.)
In a statement, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino maintained that the company’s seen no indication to expect lower demand from fans ahead despite a less-than-rosy broader economic picture. He said Live Nation is “on track to deliver double-digit growth in operating income and AOI this year.”
“As more artists tour the world, fan demand is reaching new heights across ticket sales, show attendance, and on-site spending,” Rapino said. “Ticket sales are pacing well ahead of last year, with deferred revenue for both concerts and ticketing at record levels. To support even more fans seeing their favorite artists, we’re continuing to expand our global venue network, adding 20 major venues through 2026. As the global experience economy grows, the live music industry is leading the way, and we’re positioned to compound growth by double-digits over many years.”
During the company’s earnings call Thursday afternoon, Rapino pointed toward on-sales from April 1st to April 21st, calling it the “most relevant on-sale” period and specifically mentioning strong on-sales for Chris Brown and Lady Gaga tours.
“We haven’t seen a consumer pullback in any genre, club, theater, stadium, amphitheater, we haven’t seen that happen yet,” Rapino said.
Outside of its quarterly earnings, Live Nation of course still faces a DOJ antitrust lawsuit over monopoly allegations as the Justice department called for a breakup of the eponymous concert promoter and ticketing giant Ticketmaster last year. Live Nation has consistently denied the allegations, and CFO Joe Berchtold said at a conference last year that “I expect we’re going to prevail.” Still, both advocates and lawmakers have been vocal in recent months calling for the DOJ to continue to pursue the lawsuit and break up the company.
May 4, 2025
Spotify is boosting its podcasters’ earnings to better compete with other platforms
Spotify informed The Budgets that they have paid podcast publishers and creators over $100 million since the start of January.
The payout is the result of a program introduced in 2025 that opened up new revenue streams to eligible hosts. But it is also an attempt to draw more creators (and their audiences) to Spotify, as the rise of video podcasting has driven many of them to YouTube.
Video has come to dominate podcasting. More than half of Americans over the age of 12 have watched a video podcast — but primarily on YouTube, according to an Edison Research report from January. The service claims to reach 1 billion podcast consumers every month, making it the dominant platform for podcasts — a media king and kingmaker — and leaving onetime audio-only platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts in the dust. (Spotify introduced video podcasts in 2019.)
Compared with YouTube, Spotify has become a podcast underdog, with about 170 million monthly podcast listeners among its total audience of 675 million. One indication of how far Spotify has to go to catch up to the top player: YouTube paid out more than $70 billion to creators and media companies from 2021 to 2024.
The company reports earnings on Tuesday and is expected to make about 540 million euros in pretax income on 4.2 billion euros in sales, according to S&P Capital IQ.
But Spotify, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange but is based in Stockholm, remains a major player in the industry thanks in part to its talent roster — it distributes and sells advertising for the biggest podcast in the world, “The Joe Rogan Experience.” And it achieved its first full year of profitability in 2024. (Mr. Rogan’s podcasts are also available on YouTube.)
The new partner program aims to chip away at YouTube’s dominance. Spotify previously paid creators only by sharing advertising revenue with them, much like YouTube. Now it also gives them incentives to upload videos, with eligible creators earning additional money based on how much premium subscribers engage with their videos.
The company is trying to attract more viewers. At the same time that Spotify announced the partnership program in November, it announced that paid subscribers in certain markets wouldn’t have to watch dynamic ads in video podcasts. Video consumption has already increased by more than 40 percent since January, according to Spotify.
The question now is whether Spotify can persuade creators to shift priorities.
David Coles, host of the horror fiction podcast “Just Creepy: Scary Stories,” said he is re-evaluating his “home platform” after his Spotify revenue recently surpassed his YouTube revenue. Last quarter, Mr. Coles said he received about $45,500 from Spotify. After joining the company’s new partner program, his quarterly Spotify income rose to about $81,600.
This increase can be even more dramatic for larger shows and podcast companies, like YMH Studios, a comedy network with 2.1 million YouTube subscribers that produces popular podcasts including “2 Bears, 1 Cave.” While declining to share exact figures, YMH Studios said its quarterly Spotify revenue more than tripled after joining the partner program.
Although creators emphasized that these are still early days, Alan Abdine, the head of advertising revenue at YMH Studios, called the new payment program “a game-changer” and “a very happy surprise.”
April 29, 2025