Women in music

Jesse Jo Stark, the brooding singer-songwriter who was one of Guns N' Roses opening acts last year, released a seductive new video for "Fire of Love." Directed by Chuck Grant, Lana Del Rey's sister, the clip shows the singer writhing around skulls and rocking out in an empty theater.

Stark called the video an "ode to horror," noting references to Salvador Dali and Quentin Tarantino. "The song is an anthem about the fiery nature of passion and relationships," she said. "We wanted the video to have a similar, electric feel."



Based in Los Angeles, Stark is currently on tour with indie rock band, Sunflower Bean, and plans to release her debut LP in 2018. Her first EP, 2014's Down Your Drain, was produced by Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones. Jones contributed one song ("Dandelion") to the forthcoming release.

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Christina Aguilera has unveiled another song from her forthcoming album, Liberation, her first LP since 2012's Lotus. The emotional ballad, "Twice," follows the release of her Kanye West-produced "Accelerate," which features Ty Dolla $ign and 2 Chainz.

On the new, moody track, the singer contemplates the duality that can be found with love and notes that it's worth the emotional repercussions over a sparse piano soundscape. "Sometimes I wonder what is the meaning of my life/ Well I found the price of love and lost my mind," she sings on the chorus. "I will forgive them all of my wrongs and my rights/ I'd do it all again/ I won't think twice."

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Rita Ora has apologized over widespread criticism surrounding her recently released song "Girls" and walked back some of the track's thematic messages.

Ora released "Girls," which also features Cardi B, Charli XCX and Bebe Rexha and discusses themes of bisexuality, last week to a mixed reception. While some praised the song as a "bisexual anthem," others pointed out the problematic undertones and queer stereotypes perpetuated by the lyrics. Many of the issues stemmed from the fact that the songwriting team behind a song extolling the queer female experience was primarily male.

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Björk returned to television for the first time in eight years, performing two tracks, "Courtship" and "The Anchor Song," on Later… With Jools HollandTuesday.

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For her performance of "Courtship," which appears on 2017's Utopia, Björk assembled an ensemble of flutists who layered the track's uncanny birdsong over skittering percussion. Donning a stunning, surreal mask, Björk delivered an engrossing vocal performance, her hypnotic warble peaking at the end with a stunning wail.

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Harry Styles performed a cover of Shania Twain's "You're Still the One" alongside Kacey Musgraves during the British singer's Friday concert at New York's Madison Square Garden.

"We're gonna sing one of my personal favorites," Styles said before launching into the 1997 hit single with Musgraves, who is serving as opening act on Styles' arena tour.

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Lilly Hiatt got a little assistance from friends Margo Price and Brandy Zdan on a fiery cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World,” captured by a fan at Hiatt’s Nashville show last Thursday.

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Michelle Obama danced joyously to Jay-Z‘s “On to the Next One” on Sunday during the rapper’s joint concert with Beyoncé in Paris, France. The former First Lady joined Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles Lawson, in the front row – and even getting a quick onstage smile from Jay-Z.


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Taylor Swift performed “one of my favorite songs ever written,” Bryan Adams‘ “Summer of ’69,” with help from the Canadian rocker during Swift’s Reputation Tour stop Saturday in Toronto.

After proclaiming her love for the 1984 hit, Swift delivered a solo rendition of the song’s first verse before the Ontario-born Adams arose unannounced on the stage’s lift. The two singers then combined for a spirited take on the single that featured an extended outro where Adams and Swift traded improvised vocals.



Swift previously performed an acoustic “Summer of ’69” on a few dates of her Speak Now Tour in September 2011.

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Cardi B faked out viewers at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards by teasing a possible reveal of Kulture, her daughter with Migos’ Offset - only to unwrap a Moon Man statue she was cradling onstage in a blanket. “I am the empress,” she said before the non-reveal, leading into her introduction of Shawn Mendes’ live performance.

Cardi B leads all artists with 10 total VMA nominations, including Best New Artist, Best Collaboration (Bruno Mars’ “Finesse” remix) and Video, Song and Artist of the Year.

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In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the 31st Annual Hispanic Heritage Awards aired on PBS Friday, September 28th. Among the honorees and presenters at D.C.’s Kennedy Center were entertainers who have made great strides for Latinx people in music.



Mexican-American pop duo Jesse & Joy were presented with this year’s Vision Award. The Huerta siblings’ 2017 album, Un Besito Más, won the Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album. The video for the title track follows the plight of a mother and father, braced for deportation, who ultimately decide to leave their U.S.-born daughter behind.

Featuring collaborations with Bad Bunny, Ozuna and Quavo, her 2017 debut Unstoppable debuted at Number 2 on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart. The award was presented by Shakira Barerra, who most recently played the role of Yolanda in Netflix television series GLOW. “This Colombian reggaetonera understood early in her career that she would have to work twice as hard to succeed in a genre dominated by men,” said Barrera. “With her debut album appropriately titled Unstoppable, Karol G introduced herself as a new kind of reggaeton artist, one that would combine trap, urban and pop music with a feminine twist. Her lyrics are driven by her experiences as a woman, telling stories about love, heartbreak, happiness, but most importantly — empowerment. And while she writes with a female audience in mind, Karol G hopes that we will all be inspired by our shared experiences.”

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