Women in music

Emma Burgess-Olson, founding member of the all-female dance-music collective Discwoman, sometimes DJ's wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan "Amplify Each Other." And that's exactly what she and her co-founders Frankie Hutchinson and Christine McCharen-Tran are doing in the world of EDM, addressing a notoriously male-dominated scene and its "stale sexist bookings" by creating a production and promotion outlet for women and gender-non-conforming producers.


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"I think electronic music culture has become a hedonistic monster," says Burgess-Olson, who performs as Umfang. "But it has always had political roots and I feel very connected to that aspect. It's really about humanity and having concern for others' basic needs being met."

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By now, 25-year-old Katorah Marrero, also known as Young M.A, should be accustomed to industry accolades. In the whirlwind year that's followed the release of her 2016 banger "OOOUUU," the wins have been nonstop: a double-platinum plaque, a headline tour, label offers, multiple Beyoncé cosigns. But she says she's still adjusting to all the attention.


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"I didn't know how to react, because I honestly didn't expect that," she tells me on the phone, reflecting on her first VMA nomination this summer. "I just finished being nominated for the BET Awards, and I thought that was it after that."

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Beyoncé teams with Columbian singer J Balvin and French singer-producer Willy William in the remix of the duo's song "Mi Gente."


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Over the pulsating, genre-fusing dance track, Beyoncé sings in both Spanish and English. "My body stay wetter than the ocean/ And he say that Creole in my body is like a potion," she sings. "I can be a beast or I can give you emotion/ But please don't question my devotion/ I been giving birth on these haters 'cause I'm fertile."
The Houston native also addresses the recent tragedies from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria as well as the earthquakes in Mexico on the track. "Lift up your people/ From Texas to Puerto Rico/ Dem islands to Mexico," she sings.

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Haim lead an intricate line-dance in their exuberant video for "Little of Your Love" video, the second single from the pop-rock band's second LP, Something to Tell You. Acclaimed filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson directed the clip, set at L.A. bar Oil Can Harry's.


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Guitarist Danielle Haim opens the clip strutting down the street, decked out in a vintage Stevie Nicks T-shirt, to join the in-progress dance sequence alongside her bandmates Alana and Este Haim. Each musician takes a turn singing into Anderson's swirling camera, and the floor eventually clears to showcase the sisters' playful slides and hand claps.

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"Can we start again?" The tall woman in the vintage Stones T-shirt isn't happy with her scream. She's standing in a vocal booth, sweating a bit. "When I sing really high," she says, "it makes me really hot. And not in a sexy way." The stately guitar riffage of T. Rex's 1972 nugget "Children of the Revolution" kicks back in, and this time Kesha greets it with a feral "Yowww!" Way better. She carries on.

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Kesha photographed in Topanga, California, on August 31st, 2017.Peggy Sirota for Rolling Stone

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Shania Twain's return from a 15-year hiatus went straight to Number One on the Billboard 200 as the country singer's comeback LP Now sold 137,000 total copies in its first week of release.


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Twain last topped the Billboard 200 in 2002 with Up!, her last studio album before her decade-and-a-half break between LPs, Billboard reports. Now also became only the second country album to top the Billboard 200 in 2017, following Thomas Rhett's Life Changes.

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Rita Ora's new video for "Anywhere" romanticizes being young and free in New York City. Directed by Declan Whitebloom (Taylor Swift, One Direction), Ora prances under the glowing screens of Times Square and through the narrow streets of chinatown, singing about the joys of anonymity in the bustling city.


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Ora cowrote "Anywhere" with Andrew Watt, who penned the similarly mid-tempo hit "Havana," for Camila Cabello. "Anywhere" strides forward on a firm EDM beat that's more a metronome guiding Ora's vocal. Unlike her last single, the melancholic Avicii collaboration, "Lonely Together," Ora sounds refreshingly unadorned on this simple song.

"I was in a routine, working every day, and found myself day dreaming about breaking out of the city and going on a road trip with my friends and never looking back," the singer said in a statement. "This is pop at its sweetest, most persuasive form of escapism."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my4ECEXRUEU

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Selena Gomez and producer Marshmello team up for "Wolves," the upbeat, EDM-inflected tribute to the chase.

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"I've been running through the jungle, I've been running with the wolves/ To get to you," Gomez sings over heaps of handclaps.

In the video, released via Spotify, Gomez emerges from the shower to FaceTime the producer. As she writhes melodramatically around her living room in her pink satin robe and damp hair, Gomez shows how hot-blooded pursuits go down when you're home alone, singing to a person who wears a bucket on his head.

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Lana Del Rey said she is retiring her 2012 song "Cola" in an interview with MTV News. The song gained renewed attention in the aftermath of the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault allegations, because it was rumored to be about Weinstein.

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"When I wrote that song, I suppose I had a Harvey Weinstein/Harry Winston-type of character in mind," Del Rey said. "I envisioned, like a benevolent, diamond-bestowing-upon-starlets visual, like a Citizen Kane or something. I'm not really sure. I thought it was funny at the time, and I obviously find it really sad now," she continued. "I support the women who have come forward. I think they're really brave for doing that."

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Taylor Swift gave another taste of her album Reputation with the new song, "Call It What You Want." Reputation will be available everywhere on November 10th.


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"My castle crumbled overnight / I brought a knife to a gun fight," Swift sings over mid-tempo electro-pop. "They took the crown but it's alright."

Swift teased the song on Instagram a day before its release with lyrics typewritten out on a brown background. It is the fourth track off the singer's forthcoming sixth album to be released, following singles "Look What You Made Me Do" and "…Ready for It?" as well as promotional track, "Gorgeous."

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Britney Spears' latest creative venture isn't a musical one – a watercolor painting the singer previously shared on her Instagram account recently sold for $10,000 at a Las Vegas charity auction.


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The piece, which features five flowers (four larger ones and one smaller one) in hues of pink, purple and blue, is now the prized possession of one Robin Leach, the former host of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.

According to an Instagram user who shared a photo of Leach with his purchase, the former TV host was both the auctioneer and the winning bidder.

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Jennifer Lopez turns a grimy subway platform into a steamy dance club in the new video for "Amor, Amor, Amor," the singer's latest Spanish language single.


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In the video, Lopez and featured guest Wisin have their respective troupes showdown in a dance-off at the vacant subway station before the train arrives, at which point the party goes mobile underground. The video ends with both singers' exiting the subway and hopping in Wisin's sleek Abarth.

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Brenda Holloway ~ Every Little Bit Hurts

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Taylor Swift's Reputation scored the best-selling week of 2017 – and became the year's highest-selling album in total so far – as the singer's latest Number One LP sold over 1.2 million copies in its debut week.


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Reputation marked the fourth time Swift crossed the platinum plateau in an opening week – following 2010's Speak Now, 2012's Red and 2014's 1989 – making her the first artist to achieve four million-selling weeks, Billboard reports. Reputation also notched the 10th best sales week in Nielsen Music history.

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SZA delivers a sparse and striking rendition of "Go Gina" in a new video for Vevo's Lift series. "Go Gina" appears on SZA's debut album CTRL.


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Set in a misty forest, the clip finds SZA and a lone bassist stripping "Go Gina" of its drums and synths to craft a beautifully simple arrangement. As the hypnotizing bass line churns, SZA delivers a dexterous vocal performance filled with clever runs that reach a chilling and surreal peak as she suddenly appears before a giant mirror situated in the middle of the clearing.

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Taylor Swift remained at Number One as the singer's Reputation added to its 2017-best sales with an additional 256,000 total copies in its second week on the Billboard 200.


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After going platinum in its opening week – and after another week being withheld from streaming services – Reputation sold 232,000 more traditional copies to hold onto the top spot, making Swift the first female artist since Adele in January 2016 to spend two consecutive weeks at Number One, Billboard reports.

Reputation was already 2017's best-selling album thanks to selling 1.2 million copies in its opening week.

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Taylor Swift notched her third straight week atop the Billboard 200 as the singer's Reputation added another 147,000 copies to its platinum-plus haul.

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Swift also became the first female artist since Adele and 25 in early 2016 to spend at least three straight weeks at Number One on the Billboard 200, Billboard reports.

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Sia has unveiled the new video for "Ho Ho Ho," the second chapter in a Claymation trilogy showcasing songs from her seasonal LP Everyday Is Christmas.

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Picking up where the "Candy Cane Lane" video left off, "Ho Ho Ho" finds Sia's yarn-haired Claymation character pursuing a snow monster into a secluded house in the middle of the woods.

After befriending the creature, the little girl discovers the root of the snow monster's anger – an icy Midas touch – and, with the help of gloves, helps the monster string up Christmas lights and celebrate the holiday.

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New Jersey DIY heroes Screaming Females unveiled a striking live video for their latest song "Deeply," which features singer/guitarist Marissa Paternoster performing a stripped-down version of the song alongside singer-songwriter Laura Veirs.

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Recorded at the home studio of Thermals frontman Hutch Harris, the pair turn the into an aching folk-tinged number. Paternoster unspools crackling electric guitar lines over Veirs' acoustic strumming, and during the song's simple, affecting refrain – "And I fall/ So deeply and I fall" – Veirs' soft vocals rise sweetly in harmony with Paternoster's rich croon.
"Deeply" will appear on Screaming Females' forthcoming album, All At Once, which arrives February 23rd via Don Giovanni. The record marks the trio's seventh album and follows 2015's Rose Mountain. In October, Screaming Females shared album cut, "Glass House."

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Screaming Females recorded All At Once at Seattle's London Bridge Studio and Red Room with producer Matt Bayles. The record will notably find the trio fleshing out their barebones rock aesthetic with synthesizers, Wurlitzers and xylophones. Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty also guests on album cut, "Soft Domination."

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Kesha released an arena-friendly cover version of "This Is Me" from The Greatest Showman, the P.T. Barnum musical drama. The singer showcases her wide range on the track, belting over a lush arrangement of piano, strings and choir.

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Keala Settle performed the original version of video which appears on the film's recently issued soundtrack. Fellow cast members Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya also appear on the album.

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Mariah Carey will return to Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on December 31st, exactly a year after the singer staged a disastrous performance at New York's Times Square on the 2016-ending special.

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Lana Del Rey warned fans that her potential lawsuit with Radiohead could result in the singer removing "Get Free" – the song accused of resembling the band's "Creep" – from future editions of her latest LP Lust for Life.

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On Sunday night, hours after Del Rey confirmed that she might end up in court after failing to reach a compromise with Radiohead over the song's publishing, the singer talked about the legal situation during her Denver concert.

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Halsey fulfilled "the biggest of all dreams" when the singer served as musical guest on the Sam Rockwell-hosted episode of Saturday Night Live.

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The singer performed to cuts off her latest LP Hopeless Fountain Kingdom, first delivering the single "Bad at Love" before bringing out rapper (and Halsey's boyfriend) G-Eazy for their hit "Him & I," with the duo performing the first half of the song behind a steamed-up window on the Studio 8H stage.

Halsey later tweeted of the "Him & I" performance, "I loved EVERY minute of it. Honored to have him by my side and stoked for us BOTH to prosper. Best night of my life!" In December, the singer said on Instagram that being musical guest on SNL was "the biggest of all dreams come true."

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Spice Girls hinted at a reunion Friday as the "Wannabe" group promised "exciting possibilities that will once again embrace the original essence of the Spice Girls."

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Word of a potential reunion first surfaced after Halliwell posted a photo of the five Spice Girls posing together on Instagram. Hours later, the pop quintet confirmed in a statement they would bring back "Girl Power" in some capacity.
"We are always overwhelmed at how much interest there is across the whole world for the Spice Girls," the group said in a statement. "The time now feels right to explore some incredible new opportunities together."

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Dita Von Teese, the burlesque dancer/model/fashion designer-turned-singer, released a gauzy new duet, "Porcelaine," featuring Sébastien Tellier. The track will appear on Von Teese's upcoming self-titled debut, out February 16th.

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"Porcelaine" is a sultry, mid-tempo tune that captures a distinctly vintage aesthetic with its airy drums and gooey synthesizers. Von Teese and Tellier share vocal duties, their voices capturing a mixture of passion and cheeky intimacy.

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"When I understood that Sébastien had a duet in mind with 'Porcelaine,' I was excited because I love his voice and I instantly thought of Serge Gainsbourg," Von Teese said of the song. "But don't think Sébastien is a copy of Gainsbourg; he's as good as him."

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Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Patty Griffin will embark on a headlining acoustic tour this May.

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The trek starts May 1st at the Blue Door in Oklahoma City and will feature Griffin performing with longtime guitarist, David Pulkingham. Canadian soul musician Ahi will serve as support throughout the trek.

Patty Griffin Tour Dates

May 1 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Blue Door
May 2 – Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall
May 3 – Des Moines, IA @ The Temple for Performing Arts
May 5 – Columbia, MO @ The Blue Note
May 6 – St. Louis, MO @ The Sheldon Concert Hall
May 7 – Bloomington, IN @ Buskirk-Chumley Theater
May 9 – Franklin, TN @ Franklin Theatre
May 10 – Duluth, GA @ Red Clay Theatre
May 11 – Duluth, GA @ Red Clay Theatre
May 13 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Manship Theatre
May 15 – Dallas, TX @ Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
May 19 – New Braunfels, TX @ Gruene Hall

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Rihanna posted a takedown of Snapchat on her Instagram story, responding to an advertisement of a mobile game that made light of domestic violence. The controversial and since-removed ad referenced Rihanna's 2009 assault by Chris Brown.

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As a promotion for the mobile game Would Your Rather?, the advertisement asked if the user would rather "slap Rihanna" or "punch Chris Brown." Snapchat had already released a public apology and removed the ad before Rihanna's comments.
"I'd love to call it ignorance, but I know you ain't that dumb! You spent money to animate something that would intentionally bring shame to DV victims and made a joke of it!!!" she wrote. "This isn't about my personal feelings, cause I don't have much of them … but all the women, children and men that have been victims of DV in the past and especially the ones who haven't made it out yet … you let us down! Shame on you. Throw the whole app-oligy away."
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Joan Baez honored the victims of the 2015 Charleston church shooting and Barack Obama's tearful eulogy at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in the new video for "The President Sang Amazing Grace." The song appears on Baez's new album, Whistle Down the Wind.

Singer-songwriter Zoe Mulford wrote "The President Sang Amazing Grace" not long after the 2015 mass shooting. Baez was compelled to record her own version after hearing Mulford's on the radio. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Baez said, "I heard that song and I just pulled over. It's so expressive of my thoughts and feelings, which are pretty fucking gloomy, but she did it in such a beautiful way that's as dark as it is beautiful."

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Cardi B has shared her glammed-up new video for "Bartier Cardi," a single off the rapper's upcoming new album Invasion of Privacy.

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The video – which debuted during VH1's new episode of Love & Hip-Hop, the reality series that helped launch Cardi B – features both 21 Savage, who appears to deliver his guest verse, as well as Migos rapper and Cardi B's fiancé Offset, who shows up in the video's final minute to make out with Cardi B in the backseat of a vehicle.

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In the "Bartier Cardi" video, a glamorously styled Cardi B delivers the trap track in a performance that’s broadcasted on a variety of antiquated televisions, including one TV in a room filled with men who have Cardi's name branded on their back of their necks. The rapper also performs "Bartier Cardi" while sitting atop the hood of a moving car.

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Mariah Carey revealed her struggles with bipolar disorder in a new People cover story, telling the magazine she "didn't want to believe it" after being hospitalized and diagnosed in 2001 following a mental and physical breakdown. The singer noted that she recently received treatment after enduring "the hardest couple of years [she'd] been through," which included professional woes, the cancellation of her E! reality show, Mariah's World, and separating from her fiancé.

The platinum-selling pop star told People that, until recently, she "lived in denial and isolation and in constant fear that someone would expose" her illness. "It was too heavy a burden to carry, and I simply couldn't do that anymore," she said. "I sought and received treatment; I put positive people around me, and I got back to doing what I love – writing songs and making music."

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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."

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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.

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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.

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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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