{"version":"https:\/\/jsonfeed.org\/version\/1","title":"Pop Culture","home_page_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/","feed_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/json","icon":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/69f72afc26725.jpg","items":[{"id":"o2476-2081-6a6b3e81a0bae","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/awards-announcements-commemorations-pop-culture\/","title":"Awards, Announcements, and Commemorations: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-07-31T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week packed with pop culture updates spanning award shows, television, and the commemoration of an icon.","content_html":"<p>Join me in recapping another week abundant in pop culture excitement, ranging from updates on award shows, controversies amongst the BBC, and the commemoration of Amy Winehouse and her iconic&nbsp;<em>Back to Black<\/em>&nbsp;album. <strong>[Trigger Warning -<\/strong><b>&nbsp;sexual assault addressed in this blog]<\/b><\/p>\n\n<h2><b>Mercury Prize shortlist is revealed<\/b><\/h2>\n\n<p>Thursday came with the announcement of this year&#39;s twelve Mercury Prize Album of the Year nominees, with the show taking place in Newcastle&#39;s Utilita Arena on 22 October. This follows last year&#39;s win by Newcastle&#39;s own Sam Fender, with his third studio album <i>People Watching<\/i>, which spawned the number one hit and BRIT Song of the Year winner &#39;Rein Me In&#39; featuring Olivia Dean.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The list spans various genres and ranges of artist popularity, with the full list of nominees being announced as:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Dave -&nbsp;<em>The Boy Who Played the Harp<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Dove Ellis -&nbsp;<em>Blizzard<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Florence + The Machine -&nbsp;<em>Everybody Scream<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>JADE -&nbsp;<em>THAT&#39;S SHOWBIZ BABY!<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Knats -&nbsp;<em>A Great Day In Newcastle<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Kojey Radical -&nbsp;<em>Don&#39;t Look Down<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Nia Archives -&nbsp;<em>Emotional Junglist<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Olivia Dean -&nbsp;<em>The Art of Loving<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Paul McCartney -&nbsp;<em>The Boys of Dungeon Lane<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>RAYE -&nbsp;<em>THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE.<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>Suede -&nbsp;<em>Antidepressants<\/em><\/li>\n  <li>War Child Records -&nbsp;<em>HELP(2)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>As you can see, the list isn&#39;t just defined by major artists in the UK music landscape, but the accompaniment of smaller and upcoming audiences, which is the beauty of the Mercury Prize in showcasing newer artists as equally deserving of Album of the Year amongst veterans of the industry.<\/p>\n\n<p>Personally, I think Olivia Dean has a major chance of winning the award, solely due to her success last award season at both the Grammys, as well as the BRIT awards. However, Nia Archives has been equally gaining significant traction with her recent&nbsp;<em>Rolling Stone<\/em>&nbsp;interview, whilst cementing her position in the Drum and Bass\/House world for years now, having a collaboration with PinkPantheress on her&nbsp;<em>Fancy Some More<\/em>&nbsp;remix album late last year.<\/p>\n\n<p>Who do you think is this year&#39;s Mercury Prize Album of the Year winner?<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbaZZbeleRg\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbaZZbeleRg\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @mercuryprize and @newcastlecouncil on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>BTS withdraws from this year&#39;s GRAMMYs<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>In other news, this year&#39;s GRAMMYs has suffered the lost of arguably the largest K-Pop band in the world, with BTS&#39; withdrawal from the ceremony following the introduction of the &#39;Asian pop prize&#39; just over a month ago.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The South Korean boy-band have only just recently returned from serving in the country&#39;s compulsory military service, releasing their newest album&nbsp;<em>Arirang<\/em>&nbsp;to global success, dominating the charts and gaining number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with their single &#39;Swim&#39;, which was also a front-runner for this year&#39;s song of the year.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>However, the controversy around the requirements to be considered for the best new &#39;Asian pop music performance prize&#39; meant that &#39;Swim&#39; would be excluded from the category, as it didn&#39;t abide by the &quot;meaningful use&quot; of an Asian language as most of the song is in English. Therefore, BTS have decided to withdrawal their application for submitting music in this year&#39;s awards due to this division in music by culture, a category that was meant to encourage diversity and inclusion in the awards, which has caused more harm and segregation than good.<\/p>\n\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/clyjgyd0225o\">translated<\/a> message to fans, BTS stated:<\/p>\n\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;We have decided not to enter the Grammys this year, I hope that music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.&quot;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n<p>This adds to the debate around the division of English-language pop, from that of Asian and Latin pop, which has also been given its own category in the GRAMMYs, reinforcing this segregation in music and the superiority of English pop over that of other languages. This is despite its undeniable impact on the industry, as well as the ignorance of its popularity, especially by example of Bad Bunny&#39;s dominance of the Latin scene which has bled into mainstream culture since his Album of the Year win at last year&#39;s GRAMMYs.<\/p>\n\n<p>BTS&#39; departure from the awards might not seem like a major deal to the award ceremony itself, but it is certainly a major one across the industry, illuminating the ongoing segregation for artists singing in other languages other than English.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbYUVmMmk4V\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbYUVmMmk4V\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @genius on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Another controversial week for the BBC<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>BBC has once again added to their strive to gather &pound;500m of savings within the next three years by cancelling three fan-favourite shows across the channel. &#39;Blankety Blank&#39;, &#39;Live at the Apollo&#39;, and &#39;Celebrity Mastermind&#39; have each been cancelled in an effort to cut costs in &quot;light of funding changes&quot;, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/clyx8j33k7zo\">BBC<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>These changes have not been received well, despite the falling viewership of the shows (which still remained as high as 2.3m viewers as of the most recent series of &#39;Blankety Blank&#39;), especially with the BBC&#39;s newest advertisement questioning &quot;What has the BBC ever done for me?&quot; - ironic with the series of cancellations they have recently made despite a TV license required to watch the channel.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/koftLxmT6Wc?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of BBC on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Furthermore, this week&#39;s reveal of the newest &#39;Celebrity Masterchef&#39; season has raised questions about who the celebrities actually are, with many fans commenting how it is hardly &quot;celebrity&quot; &#39;Masterchef&#39; anymore due to the lack of actually known contestants. This has also been a common theme with the ongoing announcements of the upcoming Strictly Come Dancing series later this year, which is lacking in A-listers, potentially due to the cuts of BBC funds in an attempt to save more money.<\/p>\n\n<p>In turn, this has majorly disappointed fans, and is more than likely to decrease the viewership of the programmes more than what they have already suffered, so it is a strange decision for the BBC to not direct their attention to arguably one of their biggest shows, Strictly, to retain this popularity.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The BBC have also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cd7lg2nz2x2o\">reported<\/a> on Jared Leto&#39;s sexual assault allegations through their new documentary&nbsp;<em>Jared Leto: Hollywood&#39;s Dark Secret<\/em>. The allegations outline how Leto, famous for his acting roles in&nbsp;<em>Fight Club<\/em>,&nbsp;<em>Tron: Ares&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Suicide Squad, <\/em>as well as his role as the front of band Thirty Seconds to Mars, had assaulted four women, with ten women in total coming forward in the documentary. As for now, the allegations are still ongoing, with Leto denying these claims, but the BBC has had a major&nbsp;part to play in portraying this story in the media through the facilitation of the documentary.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbZP9CMk63G\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbZP9CMk63G\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @bbcnews on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Commemorating Amy Winehouse<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Last Thursday marked fifteen years since the death of British icon Amy Winehouse on 23 July 2011, with this week beginning the celebrations for Winehouse&#39;s breakthrough album&nbsp;<em>Back to Black<\/em>, turning twenty years old this October.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Back to Black<\/em>&nbsp;released on 27 October 2006 under Island Records, traversing the genres of pop and soul whilst addressing the turmoil of her relationship with ex-boyfriend Blake Fielder-Civil, as well as with drugs, alcohol, and rehabilitation. The album sold 20 million copies worldwide, and became the UK&#39;s second best selling-album of the 21st century, behind Adele&#39;s&nbsp;<em>21,&nbsp;<\/em>spawning numerous iconic hits, such as&nbsp;&#39;Back to Black&#39;, &#39;Me and Mr Jones&#39;, &#39;Tears Dry on Their Own&#39;, &#39;Rehab&#39;, and &#39;You Know I&#39;m No Good&#39;, amongst many others.<\/p>\n\n<p>Personally, the&nbsp;<em>Back to Black<\/em>&nbsp;album will always be one of my all time favourites, where Winehouse&#39;s traversal of soul weaved into the artistry of her lyricism made for such a pioneering project for the industry, shaping music significantly to where it is today. Winehouse was undoubtedly so ahead of her time, and it is so important that we commemorate her success and her influence on artists today, where&nbsp;<em>Back to Black<\/em>&nbsp;is perhaps one of the most iconic albums ever made in modern history, especially in the 21st century.<\/p>\n\n<p>Earlier this week, her&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/amywinehouse\/?hl=en\"><em>Instagram<\/em><\/a>&nbsp;teased a celebration of the anniversary of the album, where fans can sign up now on her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amywinehouse.com\/\">website<\/a>&nbsp;in advance of October. No information has been revealed so far, but we can hopefully expect some exciting new material from the&nbsp;<em>Back to Black&nbsp;<\/em>era, perhaps including some hidden photos, demos, or extra songs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, though, we remember the legacy of Amy Winehouse and her death more than fifteen years ago - one that will remain such a pivotal aspect of culture and the music industry, for years to come.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbJC0UojqEQ\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbJC0UojqEQ\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @amywinehouse on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Ariana Grande has released her eighth studio album &#39;petal&#39; - watch out for a review coming next week!<\/li>\n  <li><em>Spiderman: Brand New Day<\/em>&nbsp;has released in UK cinemas<\/li>\n  <li>Singer Madison Beer announced her engagement to American football player Justin Herbert<\/li>\n  <li><em>Netflix<\/em>&nbsp;have announced an opportunity for fans to play against Luke Littler in a new series, where fans will compete to win $501,000 in a game of darts<\/li>\n  <li><em>Love Island<\/em>&nbsp;has ended, with Lorenzo and Julia becoming this season&#39;s winners<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>This has certainly been a jam-packed week of pop culture action - join me next week for another weekly dose of whatever else is new in the pop culture scene!<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Blog cover courtesy of @Tobyleveson on <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:MP22_Logo_RGB.png\">Wikipedia<\/a>&nbsp;under Creative Commons Licenses - remixed\/adapted to remove &#39;2022&#39; label and sponsorship<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a6df966e415b785c01.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85938"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a648f419faff","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/movies-anniversaries-and-americanisation-this-week-in-pop-culture\/","title":"Movies, Anniversaries, and Americanisation: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-07-24T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week abundant in film updates, new music releases, and the first-ever FIFA World Cup half-time show.","content_html":"<p>Join me in recapping a week defined by the huge blockbuster&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>&nbsp;releasing in UK cinemas,&nbsp;and the severe Americanisation of this year&#39;s FIFA World Cup, alongside&nbsp;<em>La La Land<\/em>&nbsp;preparing to celebrate its 10th anniversary.<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong><em>The Odyssey <\/em>debuts with monstrous opening numbers<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Christopher Nolan&#39;s&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>&nbsp;has spent just over a week in UK cinemas, and it is safe to say that the film has more than exceeded the expectations of cinema fans - most apparently shown in its insane opening weekend box-office numbers. Globally, the film generated &pound;196 million, with its second weekend expected to rake in as much as $84 million (&pound;63 million), with the film&#39;s economic momentum only slipping by around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/movies\/movie-news\/the-odyssey-big-second-weekend-box-office-1236656039\/\">32%<\/a> overall - an astounding achievement for a film this size.<\/p>\n\n<p>As an avid film fan myself, I too ventured to the cinema to watch the film in &#39;XPlus&#39; at&nbsp;<em>Showcase Cinemas<\/em>, experiencing the thrill of Nolan&#39;s creation on a gigantic 64.5 feet wide screen. Nolan navigates the watchers through an aesthetically beautiful, emotionally-compelling adventure where Telemachus (Tom Holland) attempts to find his father Odysseus (Matt Damon) in order to save his mother Penelope (Anne Hathaway) from remarriage, and giving away the throne, threatened by Antinuous (Robert Pattinson).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Adapted from Homer&#39;s epic ancient poems, Nolan has created a beast for the big screen, and it is without a doubt one of the most visually pleasing films I have ever watched, albeit a tad lengthy but thoroughly entertaining and action-packed that the time absolutely flies by when in the cinema. If you are yet to watch this soon-to-be classic, definitely make sure you view it before it leaves the cinema! For now, we will just have to wait and see what nominations this gargantuan film ends up garnering, as I am sure that the&nbsp;<em>Oscars<\/em>&nbsp;will appreciate this film for its incredible cinematography and accuracy in its adaptation.<\/p>\n\n<p>For more information detailing the background of&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>, check out my blog from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/films-knockouts-and-world-records-this-week-in-pop-culture\/\">last week<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/Da8JxNDMrw4\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/Da8JxNDMrw4\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @theodysseymovie on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>The first ever World Cup half-time show... might be the last ever one<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Last Sunday saw the introduction of the FIFA World Cup&#39;s first ever half-time show, courtesy of the USA, Mexico, and Canada hosting the tournament. Half-time shows are notoriously popular in American culture, with the Superbowl Half-Time show as a part of American football boasting prestigious artists from across the globe each year, with this year&#39;s being Bad Bunny. However, this does not necessarily mean this aspect of American culture is necessary to inject into such a notorious sporting event, just because of its host&#39;s wishes.<\/p>\n\n<p>Prior to the event, the line-up revealed that Madonna, Shakira and Burna Boy, BTS, Justin Bieber, Gustavo Dudamel, and PS22 Chorus (featuring Coldplay) would be taking the stage - promoting a promising show for pop culture fans from all corners of the globe.<\/p>\n\n<p>Madonna opened up the show, arriving in a buggy singing her song &#39;Music&#39; from the album of the same name, mixed with aspects of her newly emerging hit &#39;Danceteria&#39; from&nbsp;<em>Confessions II<\/em>. Right from the start, the recording of the performance seemed artificial and adorned with a filter - typical of the superficiality of American half-time shows.<\/p>\n\n<p>A segment with some characters from the Muppets shortly followed, with the camera then panning to Korean-pop boy band BTS to perform their viral hit &#39;Dynamite&#39;, solidifying themselves as one of the highlights of the show due to the song&#39;s catchy tune, accompanied by fireworks in the background.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Justin Bieber&#39;s following performance was a stripped down version of &#39;Hallelujah&#39;, made recently popular through TikTok, yet this version did nothing for the half-time show but slow it down and add to its randomness.<\/p>\n\n<p>Shakira and Burna Boy&#39;s performance of their FIFA hit &#39;Dai Dai&#39; was also a great upbeat addition to the show, with Coldplay closing it out preaching the necessity of love amongst the world&#39;s turmoil right now - an important message for all involved, and not involved, in this year&#39;s World Cup.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The performances themselves weren&#39;t the issue that many fans were highlighting, but rather the unnecessary addition of a half-time show in the first place, as well as the severe Americanisation of the half-time show in general - in addition to football fans criticising the length of the break itself, at an astounding 26 minutes long altogether, greatly breaking up the flow of the game.<\/p>\n\n<p>Veteran for the England squad Wayne Rooney was avid to voice his opinion on the ordeal, deeming it as &quot;crap&quot;, which definitely reinforces many attitudes towards the show, and if it should have a recurring place in the world of football. What are your thoughts on the show?<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DaiviOdFPHG\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DaiviOdFPHG\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @tsn_official and @muchofficial on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><em><strong>La La Land<\/strong><\/em><strong>&nbsp;and <em>La La<\/em> &#39;Hand&#39;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>The 2016 blockbuster musical&nbsp;<em>La La Land<\/em>&nbsp;is set to return to UK cinemas this August to celebrate it&#39;s ten year anniversary, following an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DbCNSjnp5wK\/\">Instagram post<\/a> by the official account.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The iconic film, featuring Ryan Gosling as Sebastian and Emma Stone as Mia was nominated for fourteen&nbsp;<em>Oscars<\/em>&nbsp;in total, receiving six in total (following the notorious dispute over best picture against&nbsp;<em>Moonlight<\/em>).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>What is most significant about the announcement of the celebration of the film&#39;s tenth birthday is the changes to its poster - where Ryan Gosling&#39;s hand has been changed, following his anger about the crookedness of his hand compared to that of Emma Stone. This comedic change has been known to fans as&nbsp;<em>La La &#39;Hand&#39;<\/em>, and it is funny to see the acknowledgement of this incident by the studio itself.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you are yet to see the film, definitely make sure to see it this August as it is undoubtedly in my top ten films of all time - and it is showing in cinemas for as cheap as &pound;5.99!<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0pdqf4P9MB8?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Lionsgate Movies on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Sydney Sweeney, known for her acting in <em>Euphoria<\/em>,&nbsp;was rumoured to be pregnant, but these rumours have been debunked. Sweeney is in a relationship with American businessman Scooter Braun, known for his conflict with Taylor Swift.<\/li>\n  <li>Charli xcx released Music, Fashion, Film&#39;, with our full review to be released next week - keep an eye out!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>It has certainly been an exciting week for film fans, and perhaps a controversial week for new additions to the World Cup, but overall its been a pretty positive week for pop culture! Join me next week for further updates...<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Cover image courtesy of <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:FIFAAH-06756_President_Donald_J._Trump_and_First_Lady_Melania_Trump_attend_the_FIFA_World_Cup_Final.jpg?uselang=en#Licensing\">Wikipedia<\/a> under public domain licenses<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a654e03505c64f6aa6.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85894"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a5ab72d67ae2","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/films-knockouts-and-world-records-this-week-in-pop-culture\/","title":"Films, Knockouts, and World Records: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-07-17T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week defined by England's defeat in the World Cup, the debut of Nolan's The Odyssey, and the most bald caps worn at an event...?","content_html":"<p>Let&#39;s recap a somewhat disappointing week in the world of sport, but one definitely filled with some lighthearted records broken and an exciting new film release, projected to be one of the largest of the year!<\/p>\n\n<h2><b>The World Cup and Wimbledon come to an end<\/b><\/h2>\n\n<p>As we all know, England reached their unfortunate end in their strive to win 2026&#39;s FIFA World Cup following a 2-1 defeat against Argentina on Wednesday. Although our journey may have ended earlier than what we&#39;d hoped for, there&#39;s still a chance for England to assert themselves on the podium as we battle France on Saturday at 22:00 in a final playoff, whilst Spain and Argentina battle for the trophy on Sunday at 20:00. It is without a doubt that England have persevered tremendously and certainly exceeded many of our expectations - but here&#39;s to the women&#39;s FIFA World Cup 2027!<\/p>\n\n<p>In other sad news, Britain&#39;s Arthur Fery was unfortunately knocked out of Wimbledon in the tournament&#39;s semi-final last Friday, ending his journey as a wild card in the competition. Fery lost against Germany&#39;s Alexander Zverev 7-6, 6-2, 6-4 in a grueling three set battle, with Zverev advancing to the Wimbledon final last Sunday against returning champion Jannik Sinner from Italy. In the conclusion of the competition, Sinner re-asserted himself as once again the champion of the Grand Slam, claiming the title through eventually defeating Zverev 7-6, 6-3, 6-4 (after an initial set win from Zverev 6-7).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Although we may not have been as successful as we&#39;d have hoped in sport this week, it is undoubtable that we should commend our brilliant sportsmen who have kicked the summer off to an exciting start for sport!<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f6GDOIO9SbU?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of BBC Sport on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Cristopher Nolan&#39;s&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>&nbsp;debuts<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Perhaps the most highly anticipated film this year, Cristopher Nolan&#39;s&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>&nbsp;finally debuted in the UK on Thursday, with a full roll out across cinemas today.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The film marks a monumental strive for recording as it becomes the first ever full length feature film to be shot entirely on 70mm IMAX film, accumulating over two million feet of IMAX film in total! However, this format won&#39;t be available in all cinemas due to the technology required to run the film, with only 41 screens worldwide capable of displaying the film to its full potential, where many have critiqued this format for being &#39;impractical&#39; and &#39;inaccessible&#39; for most.<\/p>\n\n<p>Nolan is notorious for creating films with considerable runtimes, as for his 2023 hit&nbsp;<em>Oppenheimer<\/em>&nbsp;running for an astounding 180 minutes, with&nbsp;<em>The Odyssey<\/em>&nbsp;following this pattern with a runtime of 172 minutes. In saying this, the film is an adaptation of Homer&#39;s notorious Greek poem, so it is without a doubt that it requires a substantial runtime to cater for the amount of material, and to do the screenplay justice.<\/p>\n\n<p>With an extensively star-studded cast, including Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, newly-weds Tom Holland and Zendaya, as well as Robert Pattinson, the film is sure to devour the box-office, potentially becoming this year&#39;s most profitable film yet.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Mzw2ttJD2qQ?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Universal Pictures on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Pitbull achieves two world records at his <em>Hyde Park Festival<\/em> show<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Known as his fans as &#39;Mr Worldwide&#39;, Cuban-American rapper Pitbull took to the Hyde Park stage in London last Friday for an epic show, accompanied by artists Lil Jon, Tinie Tempah, and Kesha.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>As per a viral tradition at his concerts, fans dressed up as Pitbull himself, adorning aviators, a white t-shirt with black tie, and of course the notorious bald cap to complete the look. Indeed, the show last Friday marked an attempt of gathering the most amount of people <strong>ever<\/strong> at an event wearing bald caps, and so Pitbull was able to achieve this feat with an astounding 22,141 &#39;baldies&#39; attending the concert, breaking the Guinness World Record!<\/p>\n\n<p>But it wasn&#39;t only this, Pitbull was also able to break <em>Hyde Park Festival<\/em>&#39;s attendance record, shattering the previous record with an insane 69,999 fans turning up to support his largest show to date - what a heartwarming way to round up this week&#39;s main recap!<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/Dapw1tUAjMy\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @bsthydepark on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Labour elects Andy Burnham as their new party leader, with plans for him to become the UK&#39;s 59th prime minister on Monday - the fifth in just four years.<\/li>\n  <li>Legendary actor Sam Neill died on Monday July 13th, aged 78, known best for his roles in Spielberg&#39;s&nbsp;<em>Jurassic Park<\/em>&nbsp;(1993) and Campion&#39;s&nbsp;<em>The Piano<\/em>&nbsp;(1993).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Another week, another recap, filled with more sport (of course), but ultimately ending on some career-defining achievements for Pitbull - I&#39;ll be here next Friday for another pop culture recap!<\/p>\n\n<p><i>Cover image courtesy of myself (Matthew Jerome) @ Pitbull Hyde Park BST&nbsp;<\/i><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a5ac83770f1ca31aa0.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85787"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a4feba9621ec","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/sport-conspiracies-splits-this-week-in-pop-culture\/","title":"Sport Successes, Wedding Conspiracies, and Relationship Splits: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-07-10T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week fueled by wedding conspiracies, continued sport success, and divorce rumours.","content_html":"<p>Finally - a week characterised by lots of internet drama and speculation, as well as some exciting triumphs for Britain in sport - let&#39;s recap what&#39;s happened in pop culture!<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Taylor Swift&#39;s extravagant New York wedding<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>It was finally confirmed last weekend that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce tied the knot in an extraordinary celebration in New York&#39;s Madison Square Garden, amongst weeks of speculation.&nbsp;As of now, there are yet to be any photos released from the ceremony or specific details to be confirmed, yet we do know that actor Adam Sandler officiated the couple&#39;s wedding.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The news was confirmed on Friday evening, July 4th, with screens in New York lighting up with the words &quot;JUST&amp;T MARRIED&quot;, as well as hundreds of stars being seen around the streets of the city, heading to celebrate the couple&#39;s big event.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>According to BBC Radio One host Greg James, who attended with his wife Bella Mackie, he described the wedding as an &quot;amazingly strange but exciting dream&quot;, surrounded by approximately 1,000 people on the guest list, full of stars ranging from actors to singers, and that the ceremony was completely confidential, even to his workplace.<\/p>\n\n<p>However, Swift&#39;s crazy wedding hasn&#39;t concluded without significant backlash, with the internet circulating <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/07\/05\/arts\/music\/taylor-swift-wedding-marriage-lyrics.html\">rumours<\/a> about how she walked down the aisle to a rendition of one of her songs, as well as including the lyrics &quot;So it&#39;s gonna be forever...&quot;, from her 2014 hit&nbsp;&#39;Black Space&#39;, embroidered onto napkins at the wedding. As a result, people have named the wedding tacky and cringe, highlighting Swift&#39;s self-centredness and criticising the couple&#39;s flamboyance.<\/p>\n\n<p>As for now, more information is yet to come out about the wedding, but it will be interesting to see if there&#39;s a future Taylor Swift post on the horizon to confirm any of these rumours.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/e-ORhEE9VVg?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Taylor Swift on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Pop legend Bonnie Tyler dies<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>It was announced yesterday that pop legend Bonnie Tyler died unexpectedly, just weeks after coming out of her previously induced coma, following an emergency intestinal surgery, at age 75.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Bonnie Tyler was a Welsh singer best known for her 1983 hit &#39;Total Eclipse of the Heart&#39;, as well as &#39;It&#39;s a Heartache&#39; and &#39;Holding Out For a Hero&#39;, featured familiarly and famously on the Shrek 2 soundtrack.<\/p>\n\n<p>As well as this, Tyler represented the UK at Eurovision in 2013, performing her song &#39;Believe In Me&#39;, placing 19th out of 26 acts in Malmo, Sweden.<\/p>\n\n<p>The news is certainly unexpected and heartbreaking for fans of herself and music alike, where her ballads were pioneering for many years to come; her legacy is sure to last with her unforgettable hits.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lcOxhH8N3Bo?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of bonnietylerVEVO on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Arthur Fery becomes first British Wild Card to reach Wimbledon semi-finals<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>After defeating the Italian Wimbledon favourite Flavio Cobolli in a triumphant match on Wednesday, Britain&#39;s Arthur Fery becomes the first ever male singles British wild card to reach the Wimbledon semi-final, taking place today at 13:30. Fery will be up against Germany&#39;s Alexander Zverev to decide who secure a place in the final, against either 2025 winner Jannik Sinner, or tennis veteran Novak Djokovic.<\/p>\n\n<p>Fery stormed ahead in Wednesday&#39;s game, securing the first set 6-4, second set 7-6 (with a 7-4 tie break out of 70, and finished off dominating the match by ending the third and final set with a 6-0 win on Wimbledon&#39;s centre court.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The 23-year-old was consistently being cheered on by the support of Wimbledon&#39;s British crowd, boasting many prominent figures such as the Queen Consort herself, Camilla, creating an electric atmosphere that will hopefully secure Fery his place in Wimbledon&#39;s final this Sunday.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8_J897V9Qlg?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of BBC Sport on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><b>Jack Antonoff and Margaret Qualley reportedly split<\/b><\/h2>\n\n<p>42-year-old pop producer and front of American pop band Bleachers, Jack Antonoff, has reportedly split from 31-year-old actor Margaret Qualley, amongst rumours of a divorce sparked by Qualley&#39;s absence from Taylor Swift&#39;s wedding last week.<\/p>\n\n<p>Qualley is most popularly known for being the daughter of acting legend Andie MacDowell, but has recently rose to fame for her multiple nominations for her role as Sue in 2024&#39;s psychological body horror&nbsp;<em>The Substance<\/em>, which dominated the box office with its weird and wacky storyline.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The rumoured split comes as a shock to their short three-year marriage, yet it is reported that it is because of differing career lifestyles and issues with their age-gap.<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, there is yet to be specific confirmation about their split, and the reasons for it, but for now Jack Antonoff has removed most of his posts featuring Qualley on his Instagram, so it is likely that the rumours are, indeed, true.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lR5nlovVgvQ?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of MUBI on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>England is through to the World Cup quarter-finals! Catch the match tomorrow as 22:00 against Norway<\/li>\n  <li>The EMMYs have announced the nominees ahead of the award ceremony on September 15th this year<\/li>\n  <li>The Rolling Stones return with their new album&nbsp;<em>Foreign Tongues,&nbsp;<\/em>out today!<\/li>\n  <li>It is confirmed that American Horror Story season 13 will be premiering on September 24th, continuing the Coven (S3) storyline, and featuring the reprise of many veteran actor&#39;s roles, including Sarah Paulson<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>It has certainly been a week full of many surprises amongst many conspiracies, but join back with me next week to see what else is new with the ever-evolving pop culture scene!<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Madison Square Garden image courtesy of ajay_suresh and Epicsunwarrior on <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Madison_Square_Garden_(MSG)_-_Full_(48124330357).jpg\">Wikipedia<\/a>&nbsp;under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a503b9276a462db82c.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85684"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a469c4b10ae0","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/sport-love-celebrations-this-week-in-pop-culture\/","title":"Sport, Wild Cards, and Celebrations: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-07-03T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week of exciting sport celebrations and surprises, as well as a veteran's return to the music scene.","content_html":"<p>Perhaps another slow week for pop culture, but with it has spawned some new exciting news which is certain to appease especially football fans this early Monday morning.<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>England advances to the Round of 16<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>After an intense game against the Democratic Republic of Congo Wednesday evening, England have secured their position in the next round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted by the USA and taking place across North America. Despite an early first goal from the DRC, England brought the score back to win an astounding 2-1, where they will be taking on Mexico this Sunday\/Monday morning at 1:00am.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>In celebration of this, Keir Starmer has announced that pubs across the UK will have the opportunity to extend their alcohol licenses beyond their current thresholds, allowing for them to stay open until 5am to enjoy the game.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>According to the government website, the bid for this extension is hopefully to &quot;boost pubs, bars and football fans across the country&quot;, so it is without a doubt that this is an exciting and very welcome surprise to celebrate England&#39;s continued triumph in this year&#39;s World Cup.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/T3_ekbdc1to?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of ITV Sport and ITV on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Madonna releases Confessions II<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>After a seven year wait, today finally marks Madonna&#39;s return with her fifteenth studio album&nbsp;<em>Confessions<\/em>&nbsp;<em>II,&nbsp;<\/em>and it has already been received greatly amongst critics.<\/p>\n\n<p>The album&#39;s three singles: &#39;I Feel So Free&#39;, &#39;Bring Your Love (with Sabrina Carpenter)&#39;, and &#39;Love Sensation&#39; kicked off the era, and fans have been avid in the comparison of the sound of this album to Madonna&#39;s hit 2005 album&nbsp;<em>Confessions on a Dancefloor<\/em>, which spawned the iconic hits &#39;Hung Up&#39; and &#39;Sorry&#39;. With this album, it is blatant that Madonna has embraced the influences from her perhaps most iconic album, channelling that into something new and refreshing but still nostalgic, utilising disco to re-cement herself in the industry.<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Pitchfork<\/em>&nbsp;have expressed their critical acclaim, marking it as her &quot;best in 20 years&quot;, awarding it an outstanding 8.1 score. The album&#39;s coinciding single &#39;Danceteria&#39; is also a track to watch, with it being a perfect upbeat boost as a club anthem, and just casually on the radio.<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, the album race for number one next week will hang between Madonna and Sienna Spiro&#39;s new album&nbsp;<em>Visitor,<\/em>&nbsp;so keep an eye out on the charts to see who will dominate as they both have great chances, especially with Spiro&#39;s new found virality with her track &#39;Die On This Hill&#39;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DXJzbk9DJ-O\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DXJzbk9DJ-O\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><i>Post courtesy of @madonna on Instagram<\/i><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Wimbledon kicks off to an exciting start<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>This Monday saw the start of this year&#39;s Wimbledon Tennis tournament, lasting until the 12th July.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>What has been most exciting about this year&#39;s tournament is the return of Serena Williams as a Wild Card, coming out of retirement to play tennis in a professional environment, with the reason being that she wanted her children to see her play <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/7410450\/2026\/06\/30\/serena-williams-tennis-comeback-wimbledon\/\">professionally<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Williams may not have won the centre court match against 20-year old Australian Maya Joint, but it was a remarkable return for the 44-year old who won 23 Grand Slam titles before her retirement at age 40.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>It is without a doubt that this was such a major event for tennis fans, and just fans generally of pop culture, as Serena Williams is such an iconic figure both within the tennis world, and outside of it.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ntEqaCIhqCo?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Wimbledon on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Tonight it is rumoured that Taylor Swift will get married to Travis Kelce inside New York&#39;s Madison Square Garden - see my blog from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/tours-surprises-and-rumours-this-week-in-pop-culture\/\">last week<\/a> for more information!<\/li>\n  <li>Love Island saw the beginning and end of its &#39;Casa Amor&#39; section, with more drama arising in the villa this week<\/li>\n  <li>Hayley Williams concluded her first ever solo tour in support of her newest album&nbsp;<em>Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party<\/em>&nbsp;in Ireland<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Yet again another week lacking in masses of pop culture updates, but at least England are still going strong in the World Cup nonetheless!<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Album cover image courtesy of Madonna \/ Warner Records<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a47db858cb7194f4d7.png","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85608"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a3d1993db759","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/tours-surprises-and-rumours-this-week-in-pop-culture\/","title":"Tours, Surprises, and Rumours: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-06-26T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a lacklustre week in pop culture, but one still full of exciting announcements and interesting rumours. ","content_html":"<p>At least this week was full with lovely weather because the pop culture scene is certainly a lacklustre one. However, there are still a couple exciting announcements, returns, and rumours that today&#39;s recap will cover - happy Friday!<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Taylor Swift to get married at Madison Square Garden?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Rumours have been circulating around Taylor Swift potentially having her wedding with Travis Kelce in New York&#39;s Madison Square Garden, in a gargantuan celebration.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/06\/24\/nyregion\/taylor-swift-wedding-madison-square-garden.html\"><em>New York Times<\/em><\/a>&nbsp;has reported that a permit has been filed to block off the surrounding area of MSG from July 2-4, with expectations that the ceremony will occur on the 4th. Fans are consistently looking out for any clues hinting at the potential of this celebration, and if there is any chance for public involvement within the arena.<\/p>\n\n<p>The couple have been engaged since they announced it last August on Taylor Swift&#39;s Instagram, amidst Swift&#39;s record-breaking&nbsp;<em>Eras Tour<\/em>, and it is heavily speculated that the couple are due to be married some time this year, especially with Swift&#39;s low-lying profile in the music industry as of recent, excluding her involvement in the&nbsp;<em>Toy Story 5&nbsp;<\/em>soundtrack.<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, we will just have to wait and see if anything is further announced or hinted at, but it is without a doubt that this kind of celebration is indicative of the couples&#39; star-statuses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DN02niAXMM-\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DN02niAXMM-\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @taylorswift on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Olivia Rodrigo announces all-women Festival<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Following the success of her recent album&nbsp;<em>you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love<\/em>, Olivia Rodrigo has followed up this era with the announcement of an exciting all-women festival taking place this August in California.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The line-up features some fellow female icons in the industry, with names ranging from Chappell Roan and Bikini Kill, to Katseye and Stevie Nicks. Rodrigo expressed her excitement for&nbsp;<em>Daisy Chain Fields&nbsp;<\/em>on Instagram, explaining how &quot;100 percent of the net proceeds will go to charities dedicated to advancing and advocating for women and girls&quot;, which is a phenomenal achievement and cause for the festival.<\/p>\n\n<p>The festival sold out in just half an hour, but hopefully this is just a predecessor to potential UK dates in the future!<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZ5UZEWBWlv\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZ5UZEWBWlv\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @oliviarodrigo on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Some long awaited returns to music<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Thankfully, this week hasn&#39;t been so dull as by the long-anticipated returns of some indie-music veterans to the scene, with both tours and albums announced for Phoebe Bridgers and Beabadoobee.<\/p>\n\n<p>Phoebe Bridgers hasn&#39;t released solo music since 2020 with her album&nbsp;<em>Punisher,&nbsp;<\/em>but has slowly been returning to the live music scene this year with random pop-up shows across the US, showcasing new music in no-phone concerts.<\/p>\n\n<p>Her new album,&nbsp;<em>Lost Weekend<\/em>, is set to be released on August 14th, with the lead single out today, accompanied by her sold-out &#39;The Lost Tour&#39;, coming to the UK later this year.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZ-EXfdo5h8\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZ-EXfdo5h8\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Post courtesy of @phoebebridgers on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Beabadoobee has also announced her fourth studio album&nbsp;<em>Pylon,&nbsp;<\/em>set to be released on September 18th. The album is expected to be Bea&#39;s return to indie-rock, alike that of her debut album&nbsp;<em>Fake It Flowers<\/em>&nbsp;from 2020, with the lead single &#39;Sun Has Set&#39; out now, named as BBC Radio 1&#39;s hottest record.<\/p>\n\n<p>The album will feature collaborations from Paramore&#39;s Hayley Williams, Turnstile&#39;s Brendan Yates, and Deftones&#39; Chino Moreno, as well as songwriting from Matty Healy of The 1975, under his label&nbsp;<em>Dirty Hit.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>She has also announced an accompanying &#39;The Powerlines&#39; tour taking place this November in arenas across the UK - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ticketmaster.co.uk\/beabadoobee-tickets\/artist\/5297100\">tickets<\/a> go on sale next week.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/OkApy8LE8s8?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of @beabadoobeeVEVO<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Katy Perry&#39;s new song &#39;Watch It Burn&#39; released today, kicking off her newest era - what are your thoughts? Let us know!<\/li>\n  <li>Dua Lipa revealed her wedding dress from her Sicilian celebrations on her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZzrqrGDOH-\/?img_index=1\">Instagram<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>This week may have been lacklustre overall, but the women of the industry have certainly delivered in upholding new material for music fans, with hopefully much more to come next week.&nbsp;<\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a3d2deb320bab6c7c8.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85498"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a32f1929c904","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/stadiums-returns-teasers-pop-culture-recap\/","title":"Stadiums, Returns, and Teasers: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-06-19T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week of live performances, returns to the music industry, and long-awaited film teasers.","content_html":"<p>This week has been characterised by a series of live performances from a duo of returning pop music veterans, some surprise announcements from some unexpected artists, and a controversial film teaser - let&#39;s recap them!<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Harry Styles and Shania Twain take Wembley by storm<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Harry Styles began the UK run of his &#39;Together Together&#39; tour last Friday, June 12th, in Wembley Stadium, accompanied by country icon Shania Twain, as support for his recently released album <em>Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally.&nbsp;<\/em>The residency will span 12 nights at Wembley, concluding on the 4th of July, and the tour has already been a major hit amongst fans, marking the beginning of Wembley&#39;s packed summer of concerts.<\/p>\n\n<p>Before the tour moved over to the UK, following its beginning in Amsterdam in May, fans had been complaining about the layout of the stage, where it spans almost the entire ground of Wembley, almost the size of a football pitch. Previously, there had been multiple &#39;bridges&#39; which raised the stage up slightly in certain areas, allowing fans to pass under them into separate zones of differing ticket prices. This prohibited the clear views promised from the standing area, so fans were avid to voice their complaints due to the stage&#39;s design.<\/p>\n\n<p>However, these complaints were embraced by Styles&#39; team, adapting the stage to improve the visibility for fans, perfect for fans attending across the 12 nights. It is estimated that more than one million fans will attend the concerts in total, generating a huge &pound;1 billion boom to the local London economy, as well as breaking the record for the most nights at Wembley in a single year (surpassing Coldplay), and a single tour (surpassing Taylor Swift), according to <a href=\"https:\/\/home.barclays\/insights\/2026\/05\/Harry-Styles-One-Billion-Spend\/\">Barclays<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ticketmaster.co.uk\/harry-styles-tickets\/artist\/5228999?venueId=287574\">Tickets<\/a> are still available, so grab your them&nbsp;quickly if you endeavour to join Styles and Twain on their record-breaking residency!<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7sxVHYZ_PnA?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p><em>Video courtesy of @HarryStylesVEVO on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Some unexpected returns to pop music<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Along with Harry Styles returning to the music scene, there have also been a couple other veterans who have teased their long-awaited return to the industry.<\/p>\n\n<p>Lil Nas X rose to fame following the success of the &#39;Old Town Rown (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus) - remix&#39;, released in 2019 and propelled by TikTok during lockdown in 2020, topping the UK singles chart for two weeks, and the <em>Billboard<\/em>&nbsp;Hot 100 for a groundbreaking nineteen. His follow up album,&nbsp;<em>MONTERO<\/em>, cemented him as one to watch, spawning his second UK number one single with &#39;MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name), as well as landing the album in the top 10 of the UK charts.<\/p>\n\n<p>Since this success, Lil Nas X has been laying low in the industry, but it wasn&#39;t until Wednesday that he revealed that new music is finally on the way. He detailed how he&#39;s been struggling with bipolar disorder, joking that he has been super unlucky due to being black and gay on top of that, but that he has been in rehab and is feeling &quot;much better&quot;. The video on&nbsp;<em>Instagram<\/em>&nbsp;is a heartwarming, comedic insight into what the singer has been up to, and that we can only hope that new music is imminent, but it is great that Lil Nas X has made a return to social media with such a warm welcome, amongst fans and celebrities alike.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DZsWO0SyxHb\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DZsWO0SyxHb\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p><em>Video courtesy of @lilnasx on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Furthermore, Katy Perry has announced the start of her new era with the single &#39;Watch It Burn&#39; out next Thursday, June 25th. This follows a rough couple of years for Perry, especially with the lack of success coinciding with her most recent era,&nbsp;<em>143<\/em>, and the failure of &#39;Bandaids&#39; late last year. Additionally, the internet have not been avid fans of Perry&#39;s performances on her tour, as well as her random new relationship with former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau since July last 2025.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>So, with the dwindling hype behind Perry&#39;s career in recent years, it will be interesting to see if this single will continue to fuel the internet&#39;s dislike for her, or if it will spark something new to revitalise her once gargantuan dominance of the industry.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZuf9m-TGdd\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZuf9m-TGdd\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p><em>Image courtesy of @katyperry on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Shrek 5 teaser revealed... to continued disappointment<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p><em>Dreamworks<\/em>&nbsp;have also just unveiled the official teaser trailer for the highly anticipated&nbsp;<em>Shrek 5<\/em>, set to release in cinemas next summer. This new trailer comes after the film&#39;s delay from its original date in December 2026, as well as a previous teaser trailer which fans deemed as far detached from the original art style of the franchise.<\/p>\n\n<p>Thus, fans assumed that the team had pushed back the release date for the new film due to this backlash, but the new trailer contradicts just that, adopting this new animation style, and with no intention to revert it back to its original form.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The teaser trailer outlines the film&#39;s plot as characters Shrek and Donkey travelling to the land of&nbsp;<em>Further, Further Away&nbsp;<\/em>on a &quot;whirlwind, big city adventure&quot;. The trailer itself, plot wise, looks fun and interesting, but it is hard to see beyond the complete overhaul of the animation style for the franchise, especially as it is so beloved by its fans.<\/p>\n\n<p>The film will feature returning actors Mike Myers (Shrek), Cameron Diaz (Fiona), and Eddie Murphy (Donkey), with the addition of newly-wed actress sensation Zendaya, as daughter Felicia. Only time will tell if the film will deliver in summer next year, but it is without a doubt that the hype is still there, despite the controversies arising with the teaser&#39;s release.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Swiz1XyfhcI?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p><i>Video courtesy of @UniversalPictures on Youtube<\/i><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Changes to the Grammys&#39; &#39;best new artist&#39; category<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<em>Recording Academy<\/em>&nbsp;have announced changes to the &#39;best new artist&#39; category at the most prestigious music awards: The Grammys. &#39;Best new artist&#39; is perhaps the most controversial category of the award show as it identifies the best new artist who has broken through into the mainstream, which can often happen years after their debut, rather than the actual newest and most current artist.<\/p>\n\n<p>An example of this is Sabrina Carpenter&#39;s win in 2025, following the success of her breakthrough album&nbsp;<em>Short n&#39; Sweet, <\/em>in 2024<em>.&nbsp;<\/em>This was highly controversial because Carpenter has been making music since 2015, following her departure from&nbsp;<em>Disney Channel<\/em>, but the&nbsp;<em>Academy<\/em>&nbsp;awarded this to her due to her impact on mainstream pop. It is without a doubt that Carpenter was hugely influential at this time, especially with her chart-topper &#39;Espresso&#39;, but fans often criticise the&nbsp;<em>Academy<\/em>&nbsp;for their leniency in nominating, and awarding, this prestigious title to older artists.<\/p>\n\n<p>From 2027, the&nbsp;<em>Academy<\/em>&nbsp;will allow for artists to nominate themselves for the award up to four times in total, an increase from three in previous years, allowing for this issue to persist. For example,&nbsp;<em>Billboard<\/em>&nbsp;chart-topper Ella Langley has submitted herself for the past three years, but this new change will allow for her to submit herself once again to the board, potentially allowing for her to be nominated for the award, according to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/music\/news\/grammy-awards-change-best-new-artist-rules-1236782498\/\"><em>Variety<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>Therefore, this change comes with its controversies, but it is still quite early on to predict who will take the award at next year&#39;s ceremony, set to take place on February 7th.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DFmbjdXxA-p\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DFmbjdXxA-p\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p><em>Images courtesy of @sabrinacarpenter on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>The World Cup kicks off<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>The FIFA World Cup opened last Thursday in Mexico City, and it has been an invigorating week of great games, with several unexpected upsets, and many triumphant wins.<\/p>\n\n<p>As detailed in our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/news\/sports\/england-4-2-croatia-world-cup-2026\/\">article<\/a>, England stormed ahead against Croatia to achieve their first win from their first game after a tricky match, but it was a much deserved victory. England still has two more games to play before (hopefully) advancing beyond the group stages, with these being:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>England vs Ghana (23\/06 @ 21:00)<\/li>\n  <li>England vs Panama (27\/06 @ 22:00)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2><b>In other pop culture news...<\/b><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li><em>Strictly Come Dancing&nbsp;<\/em>have continued to announce their cast ahead of its newest season at the end of this year, now including Australian&nbsp;<em>Eurovision<\/em>&nbsp;star Delta Goodrem joining the dancers<\/li>\n  <li>Role Model has announced his &#39;Chuck On Tour&#39; tour, visiting London&#39;s OVO Arena Wembley next February - <a href=\"https:\/\/shop.heyrolemodel.com\/pages\/tour?srsltid=AfmBOookhqFACa0j-49FSC7383z35FNFsYYtCuGNNcQd4avm84YkmpwI\">tickets<\/a> go on sale next week<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>This week may not have been the most jam-packed, but there have certainly been some unexpected (and some unwelcome) surprises, of course accompanied by England&#39;s triumphant win to kick off the beginning of their World Cup journey.<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Album cover image courtesy of Harry Styles \/ Columbia Records via <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Harry_Styles_%E2%80%93_Kiss_All_the_Time._Disco,_Occasionally_(album_cover).png\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a340a5495c0d0d1b8a.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85406"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a28a752b6280","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/performances-controversies-cancellations-pop-culture\/","title":"Performances, Controversies, and Cancellations: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-06-12T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping an entertaining, and drama-filled, week of pop culture.","content_html":"<p>The past week has been crammed with all things live music related, with new tours beginning and performances being cancelled, to news about wedding celebrations and relationships ending, so get ready for a drama-filled pop culture recap.<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>A week of controversy for Ariana Grande&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>On Saturday, Ariana Grande kicked off her highly anticipated&nbsp;<em>Eternal Sunshine<\/em>&nbsp;World Tour in Oakland, USA, after a seven year gap since her previous&nbsp;<em>Sweetener<\/em>&nbsp;World Tour shows. The tour has been received differently across the internet, with many raising concerns about the setlist, Grande&#39;s actual performance, and her as a role model to younger girls.<\/p>\n\n<p>What has sparked these concerns, especially, is the internet&#39;s attitude to Grande&#39;s physical appearance, where fans have noticed a considerable decline since her participation in the&nbsp;<em>Wicked<\/em>&nbsp;franchise, beginning in 2023. The photos which have been surfacing on the internet have garnered attention from Arianators due to concern about the fragility of her body, where videos display her struggles to maintain high energy throughout the show, and how the choreography is designed to allow for her to rest more easily.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The majority of the concerns about Grande&#39;s appearance that I&#39;ve seen on TikTok have arose from fellow Arianators raising genuine concern from a fan&#39;s perspective, yet Grande is continuously being criticised for embarking on this &#39;mini stadium tour&#39; in her current state due to the exposure to younger girls who constitute a large proportion of her fanbase. Where this perspective is absolutely valid, Grande has emphasised in the past to not &quot;comment on my body, do not reply&quot; (as by the lyrics of her number one single &#39;yes, and?&#39;), so she is yet to address any of these concerns, but it is harrowing that the most major takeaway from what should been a celebration of Grande&#39;s return to live music is the comments on her body.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>On top of this, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cn0ve7952jqo\">BBC News<\/a> earlier this week confirmed Grande&#39;s split from long-term boyfriend of almost three years, Ethan Slater. The two met on the set of&nbsp;<em>Wicked&nbsp;<\/em>back in 2023, and revealed they were dating in 2024. This news has also fuelled Grande&#39;s criticism this week, where she had previously been named a &quot;homewrecker&quot; by the internet, following Slater splitting from his ex-wife, Lilly Jay, to pursue their relationship. Therefore, the combination of this news and Grande&#39;s tour concerns has meant this has been a week abundant with controversy, despite what should have been one of celebration, especially as she achieved number one last week on both the UK charts and&nbsp;<em>Billboard<\/em>&nbsp;Hot 100 with &#39;hate that i made you love me&#39;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZZPStZlBpp\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZZPStZlBpp\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Images courtesy of @arianagrande on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Primavera Sound suffers from bad weather<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>The annual Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona faced numerous cancellations last minute following severe weather warnings which threatened the safety of the performances.&nbsp;Acts affected include:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Massive Attack<\/li>\n  <li>Doja Cat<\/li>\n  <li>Bad Gyal<\/li>\n  <li>Alex G<\/li>\n  <li>Mac DeMarco<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>The festival organisers have apologised to fans, with refunds being issued for tickets from last Thursday, but are still being criticised for the lack of communication, despite being warned that bad weather was incoming, as well as refunds being only applicable for those with solely Thursday only tickets, so owners of weekend passes were not entitled to any compensation. The festival is extremely popular for tourists due to its guaranteed worthy line-up, similar to the UK&#39;s Glastonbury Festival, yet the management of Primavera&#39;s reaction to the cancellations has left fans with a distaste to the festival&#39;s organisation.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, there have been no updates since the initial compensation announcement, so we can only assume that the organisers are finished with their addressing of this issue, much to the dismay of fans.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZMt-j_iF2R\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZMt-j_iF2R\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Images courtesy of @primavera_sound on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Madonna has something to Confess<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>With less than a month to go until she releases her highly anticipated follow-up to her 2005 hit album&nbsp;<em>Confessions on a Dance Floor<\/em>&nbsp;with&nbsp;<em>Confessions II<\/em>, Madonna has had a busy week promoting the new era.<\/p>\n\n<p>Starting from last Thursday, Madonna announced a secret 15-minute pop up set in Times Square, New York, performing a medley of both&nbsp;<em>Confessions<\/em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Confessions II&nbsp;<\/em>tracks, some for the first time in nearly twenty years. Additionally, Madonna debuted her latest single &#39;Love Sensation&#39;, an electric dance hit destined for the charts, and definitely her best single released so far for her 15th studio album. The setlist in full included:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>I Feel So Free (<em>Confessions II<\/em>)<\/li>\n  <li>Bring Your Love (<em>Confessions II<\/em>)<\/li>\n  <li>Love Sensation (<em>Confessions II<\/em>)<\/li>\n  <li>Get Together (<em>Confessions<\/em>) (First time since 2006)<\/li>\n  <li>I Love New York (<em>Confessions<\/em>) (First time since 2006)<\/li>\n  <li>Hung Up (<em>Confessions<\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Madonna has also been alluding to a second part of the&nbsp;<em>Confessions<\/em>&nbsp;Tour, initially beginning in 2006 as support for the release of&nbsp;<em>Confessions on a Dance Floor<\/em>, where it was the highest grossing tour world-wide of that year. A couple weeks ago, Madonna celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the tour in a now-deleted&nbsp;<em>Instagram<\/em>&nbsp;post, naming the tour as &#39;part one&#39;, so hopefully an announcement is imminent to coincide with the release of her new album on July 3rd.<\/p>\n\n<p>Additionally, Madonna released the&nbsp;<em>Confessions II<\/em>&nbsp;movie this week, featuring a star-studded cast, ranging from fellow singers, to football players and actors, as a visual accompaniment centred around the album&#39;s first six songs. Fans are applauding Madonna as continuously raising the bar and as asserting herself as disco-pop royalty, where this era continues to deliver great visuals and music, over twenty years after the original album was released.<\/p>\n\n<p>To round it up, Madonna will also be appearing on BBC One on <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/programmes\/m002y4g5\">Friday 26th June<\/a>&nbsp;at 22:40 in an interview with Graham Norton for an &quot;in-depth discussion about her incredible life and career&quot;, so we can only anticipate more content surrounding the release of her new album, out very soon!<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yJtckcMHM2g?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of @Madonna on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Dua Lipa&#39;s three-day Sicilian celebration controversy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Over the weekend, Dua Lipa and Callum Turner celebrated their wedding with a three-day gathering in Sicily&#39;s capital Palermo, staying at the Villa Valguarnera with hundreds of guests. The villa is a luscious retreat, charging just over &pound;5000 a night, with estimates predicting that the couple&#39;s getaway generated around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ansa.it\/sito\/notizie\/cultura\/2026\/06\/06\/dalle-nozze-dua-lipa-turner-ritorno-economico-di-268-milioni-per_cd1f81d0-531c-4086-93df-0ba4c3fb3f2c.html#\">&pound;230 million<\/a> for the local economy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The wedding is said to have included golden bracelets for each attendee, embedded with a microchip which enabled access to other venues, such as a private tour of the city&#39;s Galleria d&#39;Arte Moderna. As you can imagine, the extravagance of the celebrations may seem absolutely unfathomably incredible, but it didn&#39;t commence without backlash from locals.<\/p>\n\n<p>Ahead of the celebrations, protesters displayed signs reading &quot;Palermo is not for the rich&quot;, insisting that the gathering would tarnish the reputation of Palermo, and inhibit locals. However, with the predicted economic boost, accompanied by the attention Sicily has received in the last week, it is safe to say that the country has only benefitted from this exposure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>The Mayor of Palermo, Roberto Lagalla,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/palermo.repubblica.it\/cronaca\/2026\/06\/05\/news\/dua_lipa_sindaco_lagalla_lascera_regalo_cultura-425390680\/\">commented<\/a> on the ceremony, expressing his apologies for the inconvenience, but also how residents &quot;must not forget the image boost Palermo receives from occasions like this.&quot; It has also been reported that Lipa and Turner are set to donate a gargantuan gift to the residents of Palermo for the trouble, with talks detailing numbers of around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/tvandshowbiz\/39356496\/dua-lipa-callum-turner-palermo-gift-wedding-backlash\/\">&pound;1.5 million<\/a>, following Lipa donating &pound;5000 to residents immediately following the wedding to compensate for any inconvenience.<\/p>\n\n<p>Overall, Lipa and Turner may have caused some backlash for their luxurious celebrations, but there is no doubt in mind that the inconveniences will be compensated for, especially with the amount of money they&#39;re offering.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZN2inDkhkp\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZN2inDkhkp\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Images courtesy of @voguemagazine on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Chaka Khan and Simple Minds to headline Radio 2 &#39;In the Park&#39;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>BBC Radio 2 have just announced the line up for their &#39;In the Park&#39; festival commencing in Stirling, from September 11th to 13th this year. Friday is for the &#39;pre-party&#39;, with DJ sets from various celebrities taking the stage, such as Michelle Visage and her &#39;Handbag Hits&#39;, as well as Rylan Clark and his &#39;Rybiza Anthems&#39;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Saturday and Sunday are where the acts deliver, with Chaka Khan headlining for day two, and Simple Minds for day three. Accompanying Chaka Khan is:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>The Script<\/li>\n  <li>ABC<\/li>\n  <li>Emeli Sande<\/li>\n  <li>Jack Savoretti<\/li>\n  <li>Lulu<\/li>\n  <li>Texas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Whereas accompanying Simple Minds is:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Level 42<\/li>\n  <li>James Blunt<\/li>\n  <li>Blue<\/li>\n  <li>Cast<\/li>\n  <li>Appleton<\/li>\n  <li>Deacon Blue<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>The festival is perfect for all ages, but is mainly focused for an 80s-loving audience, with both the headliners from this era. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/backstage\/radio2inthepark\/event-info\">Tickets<\/a> were released on Wednesday, with prices ranging from &pound;43 for the pre-party, to &pound;84 for Saturday and Sunday, with VIP tickets available for &pound;146 for the weekend dates, and also &#39;bring your own chair&#39; tickets. &#39;In the Park&#39; is yet to sell out, so jump in the <i>Ticketmaster<\/i>&nbsp;queue if the festival sounds of any interest to you!<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZXPppnMuJw\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZXPppnMuJw\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @bbcradio2 on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><b>A big week for the BBC<\/b><\/h2>\n\n<p>Now shifting over to recapping television, the BBC has announced updates to two of its major franchises: <em>Strictly Come Dancing<\/em> and <em>Doctor Who<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Beginning on Wednesday, EastEnders Lacey Turner was announced as part of the&nbsp;<em>Strictly&nbsp;<\/em>cast, as well as Love Islander Danny Dyer joining her, and re-joining the cast, with Thursday&#39;s announcement.&nbsp;<em>Strictly<\/em>&nbsp;is confirmed to return this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/mediacentre\/articles\/2026\/strictly-come-dancing-2026\">Autumn<\/a>, with specific dates yet to be announced, beginning a new era for the show with the departure of Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly last season. Replacing the iconic duo is presenter Emma Davis, ex-<i>Strictly<\/i>&nbsp;professional dancer Johannes Radebe, and comedian Josh Widdicombe, where fans will have to wait until later this year to see what this means for the running of the show.<\/p>\n\n<p>On another note, the BBC also put out a statement regarding the future of beloved tv series&nbsp;<em>Doctor Who<\/em>. Last year it was confirmed that there would be a festive special this year, yet Wednesday&#39;s announcement confirmed how it would no longer be released. Additionally, Rusell T Davis, the showrunner of&nbsp;<em>Doctor Who<\/em>, announced his leave from the show in an&nbsp;<em>Instagram&nbsp;<\/em>post, leaving fans uncertain as for the future of the show. For now, the BBC seem to be focusing less attention on the main series, but rather directing efforts into producing the new&nbsp;<em>Doctor Who&nbsp;<\/em>animated series for CBeebies, which seems concerning for hardcore fans of the show.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZZqSzANqIK\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZZqSzANqIK\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Courtesy of @russelltdavis63 on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>The 79th annual Tony Awards were held on Sunday, 7th June, celebrating Broadway excellence for the 2025-26 season<\/li>\n  <li>Charli XCX announces her US tour to accompany her new album&nbsp;<em>Music, Fashion, Film<\/em>, and alludes to a UK tour to be announced soon<\/li>\n  <li>Phoebe Bridgers returns to the music scene with &#39;The Lost Tour&#39; in the US and UK, playing in various arenas this November and December.<\/li>\n  <li>Download Festival began&nbsp;on Wednesday in Donington Park, with headliners Limpbizkit, Guns N&#39; Roses, and Linkin Park&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>It is without doubt that this week has been packed with drama in pop culture, with both highs and lows which have made for certainly an entertaining recap. As for next week, we will have to see - so stay tuned!<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Cover image courtesy of BBC Radio 2 &#39;In the Park&#39; Festival \/ User <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:PSBHydePark150919-14_(48768468438).jpg\">Raph_PH<\/a> on Wikipedia under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a2c1807c2016.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85297"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a1f41458a335","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/newly-wed-newly-announced-pop-culture\/","title":"Newly Wed and Newly Announced: This Week in Pop Culture","date_published":"2026-06-05T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Recapping a week of new album announcements, new singles, and new marriages.","content_html":"<p>This week has been bountiful in its pop culture surprises, with an array of familiar faces returning to the music scene through new album announcements and single releases, coupled with an unexpected wedding announcement.<\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Taylor Swift collaborates with <em>Toy Story 5<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>After dropping her most recent album &#39;The Life of a Showgirl&#39; in October last year to overwhelming disapproval, Swift has been pretty much silent since the era, other than releasing a couple new music videos for&nbsp;<em>Opalite<\/em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Elizabeth Taylor,&nbsp;<\/em>but nothing major has been reported about her for a while now.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>This being said, Swifties (Taylor Swift fans) have been keen to notice a trend of &#39;easter eggs&#39; set by Swift, notably a countdown on her website, which occurred twice, depicting a cartoonish background with lots of clouds, where fans drew similarities to&nbsp;<em>Toy Story<\/em>. Additionally, billboards denoting the initials &#39;TS&#39; with thirteen clouds, notoriously Swift&#39;s lucky number and a hint to many of her &#39;easter eggs&#39;, started popping up around the globe.<\/p>\n\n<p>This eventually culminated in the announcement of her involvement on the&nbsp;<em>Toy Story 5&nbsp;<\/em>soundtrack, with her new song&nbsp;<em>I Knew it, I Knew you<\/em>&nbsp;out today, ahead of the film&#39;s release on June 19th. Swift describes this opportunity as something she has &quot;always dreamed of&quot; since she fell in love with the characters at a young age, where she wrote the song following an early screening of the film.<\/p>\n\n<p>However, fans were eager to notice that the photo accompanying the song&#39;s announcement could be a hint to a possible new era, or re-recording, from Taylor Swift. It has been just over a year since Swift re-acquired her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.taylorswift.com\/read-my-letter\/\">masters<\/a> from Scooter Braun after years of turmoil, so fans are anticipating the release of the two albums yet to be re-recorded in her discography: &#39;Reputation&#39; and &#39;Taylor Swift&#39;. Perhaps the thumbnail photo of her post may be alluding to this possibility, where fans have been right in their speculation of Swift&#39;s involvement in&nbsp;<em>Toy Story<\/em>, so anything is possible.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZDXeuSkZjm\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZDXeuSkZjm\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Images courtesy of @taylorswift on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Dua Lipa marries Callum Turner in London<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Last Sunday, May 31st, marked the &#39;secret&#39; marriage ceremony between pop sensation Dua Lipa and actor Callum Turner at the Old Marylebone Town Hall in London, following the announcement of their engagement in June 2025 via Lipa&#39;s <em>British<\/em> <em>Vogue<\/em>&nbsp;cover story. Lipa confirmed their marriage with a simple&nbsp;<em>Instagram<\/em>&nbsp;post captioned &quot;31.05.2026&quot;, following the abundance of tabloids reporting on the two being seen outside the building, with Lipa adorning a spectacular white skirt suit, and Turner wearing a smart navy suit. Many fans have drawn comparisons of the wedding photos to those of royalty, where there are certainly parallels with their outfits and Dua Lipa&#39;s overall infatuation by her fans - it is absolutely impossible not to admire her joy in these photos.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Lipa&#39;s latest album, &#39;Radical Optimism&#39;, turned two years old last month, and she has just recently released <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dualipa.com\/LivefromMexico\/?ref=https:\/\/www.google.com\/\">a live album<\/a> from her accompanying tour, recorded in Mexico, to celebrate the release. Although the album didn&#39;t perform as well as her career-defining lockdown album &#39;Future Nostalgia&#39; from 2020, it is evident that Lipa seems incredibly happy and that she has undoubtedly asserted herself as a British icon, in both the music world and with what she does for charity.<\/p>\n\n<p>It is also speculated that sometime this month there will be a larger ceremony in Italy, so keep your eyes peeled for any additional photos to celebrate this jubilant surprise!<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZFcPkQjMLd\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZFcPkQjMLd\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Images courtesy of @dualipa on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Ariana Grande returns with&nbsp;<em>i hate that i made you love me<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Last Friday saw Ariana Grande&#39;s return to the music scene with the first single from her upcoming album &#39;Petal&#39;, out July 31st, titled&nbsp;<em>i hate that i made you love me.<\/em>&nbsp;The song is a mellow pop track, with involvement from long time collaborators Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh, encompassing the theme of regret over a relationship where the other party fell much harder than she did. Grande hasn&#39;t explicitly alluded to who the track may have been inspired by, and it may be that fans will have to wait until the album is released to piece the song&#39;s ambiguity together, but she has stated how it is &quot;one of her favourite songs&quot; she&#39;s ever written.<\/p>\n\n<p>For now, the song has been received well by fans, debuting at number one on <em>Spotify&#39;s<\/em> &#39;Global Top 50&#39; chart to become Grande&#39;s fourth biggest debut ever, and being steadily on track to debut within the top five on the&nbsp;<em>Billboard Hot 100<\/em>&nbsp;chart for next week. The song has also been accompanied by a music video, premiering on Monday, as well as multiple new versions of the songs, in hopes to boost the song to debuting at the number one spot.<\/p>\n\n<p>Additionally, Grande&#39;s &#39;Eternal Sunshine&#39; tour is set to kick off this Saturday in Oakland, USA, with Grande hinting at the show on&nbsp;<em>Instagram<\/em>, confirming the inclusion of songs&nbsp;<em>Break Free<\/em>,&nbsp;<em>Dangerous Woman,&nbsp;<\/em>and, of course, <i>i hate that i made you love me<\/i>, on the setlist, as well as an announcement of new <a href=\"https:\/\/shopuk.arianagrande.com\/pages\/tour-hub\">tour merchandise<\/a> on her website. With this, it is certain to be a packed week for Arianators keeping track on everything to do with the new tour, as well as enjoying her new single, with hopefully more to follow soon.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/82-jTNka3uc?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of ArianaGrandeVevo on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Charli XCX announces new album &#39;Music, Fashion, Film&#39;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Following the release of two singles and two b-sides, Charli XCX has announced her new album &#39;Music, Fashion, Film&#39;, out July 24th. The album cover features music legend John Cale from The Velvet Underground, fashion icon Marc Jacobs, and&nbsp;film director Martin Scorsese in the same room; Charli even expressed how she couldn&#39;t wait to share the image because it was &quot;such a special day&quot; when the album cover was shot, with each of these giants from their respective industries being together.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Charli has recently traversed the industries as well herself, with her involvement in the film industry with&nbsp;<em>The Moment,&nbsp;<\/em>released in February this year, as a satire to her own &#39;Brat&#39; moment in 2024. Additionally, her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vogue.co.uk\/article\/charli-xcx-british-vogue-interview\"><em>British<\/em>&nbsp;<em>Vogue<\/em>&nbsp;cover story<\/a> alluded to making&nbsp;<em>Rock Music<\/em>, albeit through the song itself rather than a fully physical rock album, and her newest single&nbsp;<em>SS26<\/em>&nbsp;features a music video depicting her walking down a runway. As for now the tracklist hasn&#39;t been revealed, but it is imminent we will see some kind of &#39;Film&#39; related song soon, as by <i>Rock Music<\/i>&nbsp;being the &#39;Music&#39;, and&nbsp;<em>SS26&nbsp;<\/em>being the &#39;Fashion&#39; of this exciting project.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZC0zvyx-u6\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZC0zvyx-u6\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @charli_xcx on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Role Model announces new album &#39;Chuck Timely &amp; The Hourglass&#39;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>Role Model, best known for his viral hit&nbsp;<em>Sally, When The Wine Runs Out,&nbsp;<\/em>has also announced his newest album &#39;Chuck Timely &amp; The Hourglass&#39;, set for release on August 7th. The album follows his folk breakthrough album &#39;Kansas Anymore&#39;, where his newest single&nbsp;<em>High Hopes 3000<\/em>&nbsp;follows this genre of upbeat folk music. He is also set to perform at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leedsfestival.com\/lineup\">Reading and Leeds Festival<\/a> later this Summer as a special guest, so rest assured fans will be getting some live performances following the release of his new album, as well as potentially some more &#39;Sally&#39;s&#39; to continue his iHeart Radio award-nominated tour tradition.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/D_KTG0BzRiI?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of ROLEMODELVEVO on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>Kim Petras releases new album &#39;Detour&#39; amongst label conflict<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<p>After months of struggle with her previous label Republic Records, Kim Petras finally released her newest album &#39;Detour&#39; on her own label, BunHead Records, last Friday. The album follows the restriction of her single releases to certain platforms, lack of promotion of any material, and the reinvention of her art as deeming this once again her &quot;debut album&quot;, a joke amongst her fans due to her plethora of other debuts.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>However, with all the delays and controversy behind the album&#39;s release, it is certain that it was worth the wait to redefine Kim Petras as one to look out for in the EDM scene. The combination of upbeat, catchy singles, notably&nbsp;<em>Freak it<\/em>&nbsp;and <i>I like your Look, <\/i>accompanied&nbsp;with the addressing of growing up transgender in standout track&nbsp;<em>Brutalist&nbsp;<\/em>has asserted this project as one worthy to listen to, especially with the beginning of summer on the horizon.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-album-reviews\/kim-petras-detour-album-review-1235571168\/\"><i>Rolling Stone<\/i><\/a>&nbsp;acknowledge Petras&#39; &quot;detour&quot; from her previous record label and give emphasis to the power of this album in a live scene, awarding it a respectable three and a half stars. The album is curated to be a perfect recommendation to anyone fond of Y2K-inspired electronic music, with Petras&#39; diva pop-star reinvention alike that of Charli XCX&#39;s &#39;Brat&#39;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/OHF1CUuWoCY?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Kim Petras on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h3><strong>In other pop culture news...<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Euphoria finally wrapped up its third and final season on Sunday, with the show having no plans to return after its seven year run.<\/li>\n  <li>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Ellie Goulding announced her new album <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZFuaYIi4SE\/\">&#39;I Know Too Much&#39;<\/a> out September 4th, following her performance last week at BBC&#39;s&nbsp;<em>Big&nbsp;Weekend<\/em>&nbsp;festival.<\/li>\n  <li>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Paul McCartney featured on Amelia Dimoldenberg&#39;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=V0aq8OB-zwo\">&#39;Chicken Shop Date&#39;<\/a> series on Youtube last Friday, alongside&nbsp;the release of&nbsp;his new album &#39;The Boys of Dungeon Lane&#39;.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>This week has been laden with pop culture updates, and hopefully this is just the beginning of what more there is to come this summer.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Album cover image courtesy of Charli XCX \/ Atlantic Records<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a205bbe53c5e.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85205"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a171db21a465","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/a-big-weekend-whats-new-in-live-music\/","title":"A Big Weekend: What's New in Live Music","date_published":"2026-05-29T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"It's the beginning of live music summer - let's recap this week's newest performances.","content_html":"<p>Last weekend saw the kick off of British festival season with the commencement of the iconic BBC&nbsp;<em>Big Weekend<\/em>&nbsp;in Sunderland&#39;s Herrington Country Park. Starting in 2003, the festival has always sought to bring music fans closer to the most concurrent artists at a remarkably affordable price , compared to that of modern concerts, with last weekend&#39;s pricing ranging from just &pound;34.50 to &pound;44.50 a ticket. The festival garnered the attention of over 100,000 fans across Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, generating a whopping <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thenorthernecho.co.uk\/news\/26136222.bbc-radio-1s-big-weekend-brings-3-5m-boost-sunderland\/\">&pound;3.5 million<\/a> boost to Sunderland&#39;s economy, whilst providing fans access to headliners whose concert tickets have been notoriously difficult to purchase.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DX6TMtsCK3T\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DX6TMtsCK3T\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @bbcradio1 on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Friday was dedicated to the disco-goers and rave-lovers, throwing it back to the 90s with headliner Fatboy Slim delivering <em>Big Weekend&#39;s<\/em>&nbsp;&#39;Dance Party&#39;. Whereas Saturday was dominated by viral star Zara Larsson, accompanied by returning sensation Lola Young debuting her latest single&nbsp;<em>From Down Here<\/em>, kicking off a new era and delivering a pop-packed day to Saturday&#39;s audience. Sunday saw multi-BRIT award winning powerhouse Olivia Dean take the stage to close out the&nbsp;<em>Big Weekend<\/em>, cementing once again her pertinence in the music scene, and the reason for her continued success in recent years.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/sZeGykdv1K0?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of BBC Radio 1 on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Although, I must say, the line up for this year certainly had its impressive acts, but&nbsp;<em>Big Weekend<\/em>&nbsp;has gradually waned in its appeal over the past couple years. Compared to that of 2024, which I was lucky enough to attend in Luton, headliners included Charli XCX on her breakthrough with the &#39;Brat&#39; era, as well as Beabadoobee, Coldplay, Raye, and Sabrina Carpenter, just following the release of her hit&nbsp;<em>Espresso<\/em>. Hence, when the lineup for this year was revealed, it was somewhat an indicator of the decline of the festival&#39;s status.<\/p>\n\n<p>Albeit,&nbsp;<em>Big Weekend<\/em>&nbsp;is still a go-to for fans seeking a cheap and cheerful weekend of guaranteed great music, where this year certainly had a few great acts for everyone to enjoy, and nobody can complain about its affordability.<\/p>\n\n<p><img alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a18a7f7ae822.jpg\" style=\"width: 900.667px; height: 560px;\" \/><\/p>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of Me (Big Weekend 2024)<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>In other live music news, this past week also saw the start of multiple tours in the UK, as well as some exciting new tour announcements.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Doja Cat began the UK run of her&nbsp;<em>Tour Ma Vie&nbsp;<\/em>World Tour in Glasgow last Thursday, and&nbsp;<em>An Evening with Pinkpantheress<\/em>&nbsp;continued from its initial start in September 2025 last Saturday, also in Glasgow. Both of these tours I was fortunate enough to attend, and both delivered an unforgettable night which reminded me of the upcoming joys of live music soon to come this summer.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><img alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a18a831665a6.jpeg\" style=\"\" \/><\/p>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of Me (Doja Cat - Tour Ma Vie 2026)<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Additionally, there have been a range of recently announced upcoming live music events.<\/p>\n\n<p>Nothing but Thieves announced their awaited return to music with a tour to accompany their new album &#39;Stray Dogs&#39;, set to release on September 25th. The tour will commence in the UK next February, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ticketmaster.co.uk\/nothing-but-thieves-tickets\/artist\/1939994\">presale<\/a> beginning on Tuesday, 2nd June, and general onsale Friday, 5th June, for interested fans.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Furthermore, Gracie Abrams has announced her&nbsp;<em>The Look at My Life Tour<\/em>&nbsp;in support of her new album &#39;Daughter From Hell&#39;, set to release on July 17th. Although I&#39;m not personally a fan of her music, Abrams has selected a cohort of openers which fans should be looking forward to seeing live, including Holly Humberstone, The Japanese House, Del Water Gap, and Rachel Chinouriri. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ticketmaster.co.uk\/gracie-abrams-tickets\/artist\/5342542\">Presale<\/a> begins next Tuesday, 2nd June, and general onsale Friday, 5th June, with the tour kicking off next April.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DY4olItlsiR\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DY4olItlsiR\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @gracieabrams on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>So, not only were we lucky with this week&#39;s lovely weather, but we have also been treated with the abundance of live music performances, with loads more to come this summer; who are you most eagerly anticipating to see?<\/p>\n\n<p><em>BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend image courtesy of BBC and&nbsp;Jscarr8&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:BBC_Radio_1_Big_Weekend_Logo.jpg\">Wikipedia<\/a>&nbsp;under Creative Commons license<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a18ab0a45bb2.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/85133"},{"id":"o2476-2081-6a0c7bb2ad35e","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/eurovision-2026\/","title":"Eurovision 2026: A year of controversies and celebrations","date_published":"2026-05-22T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"An overview of Eurovision 2026, amongst its controversies and delivery of catchy tunes.","content_html":"<p>Saturday marked the 70th anniversary of the <em>Eurovision Song Contest,&nbsp;<\/em>hosted in Vienna, Austria, and it was undeniably a night of both celebration and tension right until its conclusion.<\/p>\n\n<p>Austria constructed a beautifully unique stage for the competition, with 2025&#39;s winner JJ performing his operatic hit&nbsp;<em>Wasted Love<\/em>&nbsp;to accompany the flag parade. The opening of the night was a gorgeous display of what&nbsp;<em>Eurovision&nbsp;<\/em>is - &#39;United by Music&#39; - and it is without question that Europe is in desperate need for a sense of unity amongst these uncertain times.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/cwSe7ULswXU?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Eurovision Song Contest on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Prior to this year&#39;s commencement,&nbsp;<em>Eurovision<\/em>&nbsp;was plagued with controversies, with the most significant being Israel&#39;s continued participation in the competition, despite their ongoing war with Palestine. These oppositions arose from the hypocrisy of removing Russia from the competition in 2022 following their invasion of Ukraine, yet nothing has been done to prevent Israel from partaking in the contest. Thus, five countries pulled out of the competition to demonstrate their solidarity with Palestine, being:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Iceland<\/li>\n  <li>Ireland<\/li>\n  <li>The Netherlands<\/li>\n  <li>Slovenia<\/li>\n  <li>Spain<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>All of which participated in the 2025 contest, and most notably Spain being a part of the &#39;Big Five&#39; countries who primarily fund the competition. It is reported that Spain contributed almost&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/eurovoix.com\/2024\/06\/18\/spain-595000-eurovision-2024-participation\/\">&euro;600,000 in participation fees<\/a> alone in 2024, with that being a significant decrease from their previous funding, so it is apparent that the contest would have lost a large proportion of funding from Spain pulling out of the competition. Furthermore, Spain&#39;s entries are always highly regarded, with one of the most recent example&#39;s being Chanel&#39;s&nbsp;<em>SloMo&nbsp;<\/em>in 2022 (which should have won in my opinion), so fans were equally disappointed yet understanding of the decision of Spain leaving for justified reasons.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jSQYTt4xg3I?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Eurovision Song Contest on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>The boycotting of the competition has seemed to work though, with numbers in the UK reporting the lowest audience viewership has been&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/eurovisionfun.com\/en\/2026\/05\/eurovision-2026-tv-ratings-record-highs-historic-lows-and-millions-tuning-in-across-europe-and-beyond\/\">since 2010<\/a> with just 5.2 million. This may have been accompanied by the UK&#39;s entry this year, where LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER&#39;s&nbsp;<em>Eins, Zwei, Drei<\/em>&nbsp;was widely reprimanded, achieving a single jury point, and &#39;nil pois&#39; from the public televote, continuing the UK&#39;s streak of being&nbsp;<em>Eurovision<\/em>&#39;s laughing stock, despite our major involvement in the competition as part of the &#39;Big Five&#39;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>However, apart from the UK, 2026 proved to be one of the best years for&nbsp;<em>Eurovision<\/em>&nbsp;in a while. There was a noticeable more upbeat tone to the competition, where ballads were few and far between, but still often enough to appeal to the masses, accompanied by a large amount of danceable tunes. It is inarguable that this year&#39;s running order was greatly curated so the show didn&#39;t appear elongated or boring to the viewers, allowing for each participant to have their time to shine, compared to 2025&#39;s acts sometimes blurring into one ballad-centred mess.<\/p>\n\n<p>In particular, Saturday&#39;s winner was indisputably the star of the night, with Dara&#39;s&nbsp;<em>Bangaranga,&nbsp;<\/em>achieving 516 points overall, and marking Bulgaria&#39;s first ever win in the competition. The song came as an underdog in the competition, where it unexpectedly cruised its way through the semi-finals and qualified into the grand final with ease. Dara&#39;s performance was absolutely electrifying, with a catchy chorus, engaging set design, and an ode to her Bulgarian heritage, where&nbsp;<em>Bangaranga<\/em>&nbsp;represents &quot;this inner feeling that everything is gonna be alright and that everything is possible&quot;, as Dara revealed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/videos\/cpqpv2153dvo\">BBC Radio 2<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EltgrumKJfk?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Eurovision Song Contest on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p><em>Eurovision<\/em>&nbsp;this year may have begun surrounded by controversy and scepticism, but it is without a doubt that it will continue to prevail for years to come, especially with the introduction of&nbsp;<em>Asiavision<\/em>&nbsp;on the horizon, kicking off in Thailand this November. For now, we can only wait another year to witness who is going to be crowned the next winner of the competition in Bulgaria, 2027.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Image banner courtesy of Eurovision Song Contest 2026 on <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Eurovision_Song_Contest_2026_logo.png\">Wikipedia<\/a> under Fair Use - used for visual identification purposes<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a2ee4a78eb5d.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/84999"},{"id":"o2476-2081-69fdffae13adf","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/summer-2026-next-big-star\/","title":"Summer 2026: Who's the next big music star?","date_published":"2026-05-15T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Who can we anticipate to be this year's next big thing? ","content_html":"<p>Summer&#39;s just around the corner and we are yet to see 2026&#39;s&nbsp;<strong>big <\/strong>summer star cement themselves as the industry&#39;s one to watch. January saw the year kicking off very peculiarly to that of last year, with the reign of Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars&#39; Grammy winning collaboration <em>Die with a Smile<\/em> topping the Billboard Hot 100. Instead, the industry has pivoted dramatically to reside in nostalgia, where pop culture fans have regarded 2026 as &quot;the new 2016&quot;, reconnecting Gen Z listeners to songs resemblant of their childhood while disconnecting them from the uncertainties of today&#39;s world.<\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Pinkpantheress and Zara Larsson<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>On January 16th, Pinkpantheress unveiled&nbsp;the&nbsp;<em>Stateside<\/em> <em>remix featuring Zara Larsson<\/em> as a reworked track from her 2025 mixtape &#39;Fancy That&#39;, leading&nbsp;the pursuit of embracing the 2016 fascination. This followed Zara Larsson resurgence in pop culture following the release of her fifth studio album &#39;Midnight Sun&#39; in September, spawning the title track as dominating TikTok for its associated trend, visual appeal of Larsson&#39;s ocean-aesthetic brand, and commendation for its vocal performance.<\/p>\n\n<p>Combined with Pinkpantheress&#39; renown as a prestigious producer, the pair created an electrifyingly different arrangement to the original song, but the accompaniment of its rise on TikTok and music video boosted the song&#39;s trajectory to landing on the Billboard Hot 100: peaking at number 6 and currently at number 13.<\/p>\n\n<p>For two artists not typically dominating the charts, the success of&nbsp;<em>Stateside<\/em>&nbsp;lends itself to capitalising on trending topics, and the success of integrating two similar fan bases to skyrocket the duo&#39;s industry presence. With Larsson&#39;s recently released &#39;Girl&#39;s Trip&#39;, a similarly remixed addition to her newest album containing a collaboration with Pinkpantheress on its title track, the traction the duo are garnering is super promising for their potential as summer&#39;s big stars.<\/p>\n\n<p>With London&#39;s <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.allpointseastfestival.com\/events\/lorde-sat-22-aug\/\">All Points East<\/a>&nbsp;<\/em>Festival landing in August, where both Pinkpantheress and Zara Larsson are supporting New-Zealand star Lorde, fans can only anticipate an extension to the duo&#39;s dominance into the summer, and beyond.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lIxQe1R5hs0?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of Pinkpantheress on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>USA and its country music obsession<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>On the other hand, the US charts have been overrun by an invasion of country music, not just in recent weeks but for quite some time now. On observing this week&#39;s Billboard Hot 100, three songs out of the top ten are country, all in which by Ella Langley. Prior to writing this article, I personally had never heard of Langley&#39;s commercial success on the charts, yet it is evident that her music has taken the country music scene by storm.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Accompanying her sits Noah Kahan with his newly released album &#39;The Great Divide&#39; which draws majorly on folk influences, equally gaining traction on the charts through its number one debut in both the UK and the US. In comparison, Kahan is much more pertinent in British pop culture, where he headlined Weekend Two of American Express&#39; annual <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bst-hydepark.com\/2025-memories\/\">BST Hyde Park<\/a><\/em> festival last year, with Gracie Abrams.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Although country is such a prominent feature in the US music scene, it&#39;s difficult to predict whether the presence of even the biggest country stars is potent enough to deliver the same level of hype into the UK, and internationally. In the current state of the industry, it&#39;s pretty safe to say it&#39;s not very probable we&#39;ll see a global country singer this summer who has that star appeal across multiple generations and countries,&nbsp;but regardless the country music obsession is here to stay, even if just in the US.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DUDw2sqkYU2\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DUDw2sqkYU2\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @noahkahanmusic on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>Charli XCX&#39;s legacy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>When thinking of the latest cultural phenomenon arising from a breakthrough in the music industry, most people would cast their minds to Charli XCX&#39;s iconic &#39;BRAT&#39; summer which took the world by storm in 2024. The album&#39;s tone set deep in the club, accompanied by its simplistic aesthetic, skyrocketed Charli&#39;s popularity and finally allowed for her success to reach commercial mainstream.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Alike Charli&#39;s musical landscape, Slayyyter has proven herself to assert a similar retro, club sound piercing into 2026&#39;s industry.&nbsp;Her new album &#39;Wor$t Girl in America&#39; has been widely critically acclaimed following its string of singles garnering attention across music fans dedicated to all genres, where&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/slayyyter-worst-girl-in-america\/\"><em>Pitchfork<\/em><\/a>&nbsp;awarded it an astounding 8.2 rating.<\/p>\n\n<p>Her performance at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=DIsYBr9LOHQ&amp;list=RDDIsYBr9LOHQ&amp;start_radio=1\">Coachella<\/a>&nbsp;attracted a gigantic crowd, where TikTok erupted with seeing her performances being uploaded to the platform, further propelling her exposure in cementing herself as electropop&#39;s newest star to look out for. It is absolutely indisputable that Slayyyter&#39;s newest album is one to watch, and her upcoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.slayyyter.com\/tour\">tour<\/a> later this year, selling out instantly, will only confirm her stardom in the industry; she has the performing skills and the insanely addictive music necessary to grade her as summer&#39;s one to look out for.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TZCE6PfaUWA?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of SlayyyterVEVO on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>A return to the music scene<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>In other news, many familiar faces are returning to the scene, whether that be with upcoming releases, or surrounded by speculation.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<p>Pop powerhouse Olivia Rodrigo is set to release her third studio album &#39;you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love&#39; on June 12th, as well as Madonna following up her iconic disco-pop 2005 album &#39;Confessions on a Dancefloor&#39; with &#39;Confessions II&#39; on July 3rd, and Ariana Grande&#39;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/ariana-grande-announces-eighth-studio-album-petal\/\">&#39;Petal&#39;<\/a> at the peak of summer, out July 31st. All three of these releases will undoubtedly leave their mark on shaping this year&#39;s summer, especially with the combination of veterans and newer artists returning, so mainstream fans will be more than fulfilled in the coming months.<\/p>\n\n<p>Fans are further speculating other veterans to return just in time for the summer, drawing from artist &#39;hints&#39; to sudden performances with brand new music. Beyonce is expected to release her &#39;Act III&#39; of the &#39;Renaissance&#39; trilogy this year, but we are yet to receive any confirmation of the project&#39;s progress or date, except that conspired by the Beyhive - predicting for the album to release on March 29th, following the release pattern of her two previous albums (&#39;Renaissance&#39; - 29th July 2022 and &#39;Cowboy Carter - 29th March 2024). If Beyonce makes a return to the industry, especially after her showstopping entrance at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m4m4HQ4OJrY\">Met Gala<\/a> earlier this month, summer will be dominated once again with her impact on the music scene.<\/p>\n\n<p>In the indie music scene, Phoebe Bridgers&#39; return to music is hopefully imminent for fans who have been waiting years to even hear any update about new material. Last Friday, Bridgers performed her first live solo show in over three years in New Mexico, USA, showcasing three new songs and performing some of her biggest hits with no phones allowed. This abrupt, but very welcome, reintroduction of Phoebe Bridgers to the indie music scene is inexplicably exciting after all these years, and whilst she might not be mainstream&#39;s biggest star for the summer, I&#39;m certain that alternative fans will be anticipating her long-awaited return, hopefully this year.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VJlR3pvgLQA?rel=0\" style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" allowfullscreen scrolling=\"no\" allow=\"accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Video courtesy of PhoebeBridgersVEVO on Youtube<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h2><strong>In conclusion...<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>All in all, this summer is stacked with both imminent and speculated releases, so rest assured that it will not be one of disappointment. Personally, Slayyyter&#39;s continuous hype gathering around her electrifyingly fresh music, along with a new TikTok trend centring around her song&nbsp;<em>Dance...<\/em>, deems her as my 2026 summer star to watch - but in no way am I less excited about any other potential star making their mark.<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Album cover montage courtesy of Slayyyter \/ Columbia Records; Madonna \/ Warner Records; Zara Larsson \/ Sommer House and Epic Records; Noah Kahan \/ Mercury Records<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/6a05efe7064cc.jpg","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/84866"},{"id":"o2476-2081-69f0e4b17a564","url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/blogs\/pop-culture\/post\/ariana-grande-announces-eighth-studio-album-petal\/","title":"Ariana Grande Announces Eighth Studio Album 'Petal'","date_published":"2026-05-08T09:00:00+00:00","summary":"Join me, Matthew Jerome, in exploring all things pop culture with my new blog series. ","content_html":"<p>Ariana Grande has just announced her highly anticipated eighth studio album titled &#39;Petal&#39;, set to be released on July 31st. The exciting release follows Grande&#39;s critically acclaimed album &#39;eternal sunshine&#39; which spawned the hits &#39;we can&#39;t be friends (wait for your love)&#39; and &#39;yes, and?&#39;, both peaking at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart in 2024.<\/p>\n\n<p>The album comes amongst Grande&#39;s upcoming sold-out fourth arena <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ticketmaster.co.uk\/ariana-grande-tickets\/artist\/1688071\">tour<\/a> across North America and the UK, beginning next month on June 6th in Oakland, California, and concluding with an unfathomable ten nights in London&#39;s O2 arena, from August 15th to September 1st. Interestingly, &#39;Petal&#39; is set to release just before the tour&#39;s UK leg, where many Arianators had speculated new music incoming following the tour&#39;s conclusion.&nbsp;Yet, Grande&#39;s abrupt announcement of the new album has been an unexpected but welcome surprise to fans around the world.<\/p>\n\n<p>Preceding &#39;Petal&#39; being revealed on Grande&#39;s Instagram page, Arianators had been quick to notice a plethora of photos of Grande actively in the studio, accompanied by new Instagram account <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/teamariana\/\"><i>@teamariana<\/i><\/a>&nbsp;posting a polaroid photo of two flowers on April 21st. These teasers suggested an end to Grande&#39;s break from the industry, where the past couple of years centred around her role as Glinda Upland in Jon M. Chu&#39;s blockbuster film-duo <i>Wicked<\/i>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Wicked: For Good<\/em>, adapted from the Broadway musical.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DXX21Mfkcfc\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DXX21Mfkcfc\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><i>Image courtesy of @teamariana on Instagram<\/i><\/p>\n\n<p>Grande has undoubtedly had a hectic schedule between her last album release (especially with its deluxe expansion),&nbsp;<em>Wicked<\/em>&#39;s success, and preparation for her world tour, which poses the question of the direction that &#39;Petal&#39; will take in redefining&nbsp;her position in the industry. &#39;eternal sunshine&#39; was an exploration of Grande&#39;s love for house music, where &#39;yes, and?&#39; was heavily compared to Madonna&#39;s 1990 career-defining hit &#39;Vogue&#39;, coinciding with a luscious R&amp;B backdrop well-suited to her discography. Contrastingly, the <i>Wicked<\/i>&nbsp;soundtrack showcased Grande&#39;s ability to turn iconic musical songs adored by fans for over twenty years into her own, showcasing her ability to traverse genres with ease.<\/p>\n\n<p>As for the release of &#39;Petal&#39;, it is certain that we can expect Grande&#39;s return to appeasing her fans with an eclectic range of genres, perhaps returning to R&amp;B once again due to the success of &#39;eternal sunshine&#39;, or pursuing her adaptability into something completely different, all whilst maintaining her dominance in the pop music landscape. Without the announcement of a lead single or track listing, it is difficult to decipher the direction that &#39;Petal&#39; will take, but I, amongst other fans, will be interested to see whether Grande acknowledges her involvement in pop culture over the past couple of years.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DW3_r_NlBl2\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DW3_r_NlBl2\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @arianagrande on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Notably, her relationship with&nbsp;<em>Wicked<\/em> co-star Ethan Slater stirred debate on the internet, deeming Grande as a &#39;homewrecker&#39; after his split from wife Lilly Jay.&nbsp;&#39;eternal sunshine&#39; encompassed her divorce from Dalton Gomez in 2023; Grande is no stranger to curating material detailing her personal life which can only be more highly anticipated and appreciated with the attention that her relationships have garnered in recent years, and throughout her career.&nbsp;Combined with the relentless controversy surrounding the&nbsp;<em>Wicked<\/em>&nbsp;press tour criticising Grande&#39;s appearance, there is an abundance of topics that &#39;Petal&#39; may address as a reaction to her involvement, whether purposeful or not, in pop culture.<\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DCNucROvCjt\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DCNucROvCjt\/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Image courtesy of @ethanslater on Instagram<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p>Nevertheless, there is indisputable demand for Grande&#39;s music, where her website&#39;s signed CDs and vinyl sold out in less than five minutes, and with &#39;Petal&#39; just over the horizon, it is certain that &quot;there are always brighter days ahead&quot; for those who have eagerly awaited Grande&#39;s return to the music scene.<\/p>\n\n<p><em>Album cover image courtesy of Ariana Grande \/ Republic Records<\/em><\/p>","image":"https:\/\/mmo.aiircdn.com\/2476\/69f3d9443a21d.png","author":{"name":"Matthew Jerome"},"_mobile_inapp_url":"https:\/\/www.devote.radio\/_app_pages\/stations\/6698\/blogs\/posts\/84721"}]}