Category: Pop Daypop

South Korean entertainment agency YG Entertainment has confirmed that BLACKPINK’s Jisoo will release her solo debut album this year. YG said in a a press release: “We are currently in the midst of speedrunning the recording process for Jisoo’s solo album. The jacket filming was completed during BLACKPINK’s world tour last year, and Jisoo has been working on the music as and when time permits. We will meet you again with good news about the debut.” Jisoo is the final member of the K-pop quartet to debut as a soloist. Jennie debuted her solo album “SOLO” in 2018, followed by Rosé’s album “R” in March 2021, and Lisa’s album “LALISA” in September 2021.

Jisoo herself had previously confirmed a 2023 release date in response to a fan question on Weverse over the weekend. The solo debut was originally planned for 2022, but it was pushed back to avoid any potential conflicts with BLACKPINK’s recent album “Born Pink” and their current world tour.

In addition, in honor of her birthday on Jan. 3rd Jisoo has created her own YouTube vlog channel as a gift to fans.  You can check it out – here.

Editorial credit: THRUZ PANYAWACHIROPAS / Shutterstock.com

Bad Bunny responded to a short video that recently went viral depicting the Puerto Rican rapper grabbing a fan’s phone and throwing it into the water. Bad Bunny wrote in a tweet, as translated from Spanish via Twitter: “The person who comes up to me to say hello, to tell me something, or just to meet me, will always receive my attention and respect. Those who come to put a phone bastard in my face I will consider it for what it is, a lack of respect and I will treat it likewise.”

In the video in question that’s been circulating on social media, Bad Bunny is shown walking with a group of people, including security, on a path along the water in the Dominican Republic. After an excited female fan walks up to him and holds out her phone to take a selfie the artist, he smiles for the camera before grabbing the phone and tossing it over his shoulder towards the water as the fan gives a shocked reaction.

Bad Bunny recently appeared onscreen as the Wolf assassin in Bullet Train, and will star as the Marvel Comics character El Muerto in an upcoming film from Sony Pictures.

Editorial credit: DFree / Shutterstock.com

Fred White, the drummer for Earth Wind & Fire during the 70s and 80s, has died at the age of 67.

White’s brother and bandmate, Verdine White shared the news on social media: “Our family is saddened today with the loss of an amazing and talented family member, our beloved brother Frederick Eugene ‘Freddie’ White. He joins our brothers Maurice, Monte and Ronald in heaven and is now drumming with the angels! … Child protégé, member of the EWF Original 9, with gold records at the young age of 16 years old! He was brother number 4 in the family lineup. But more than that at home and beyond he was the wonderful bro that was always entertaining and delightfully mischievous! And we could always count on him to make a seemingly bad situation more light hearted! He will live in our hearts forever, rest in power beloved Freddie!! We thank you all for your love, blessings and support at this time. Soar high baby bro, we love you to the shining [star] and back!”

Earth, Wind and Fire also acknowledged White’s passing with a video featuring White from 1979: “In memoriam: Fred White, 1955-2022. Seen here soloing during our performance of Runnin’, during our Tour of the World in 1979, at Rockpalast in Essen, Germany. Rest in love.”

White joined Earth Wind & Fire in 197 and was featured on some of the band’s biggest hits, including “Shining Star”, “Let’s Groove”, “September,” “Sing a Song,” “Boogie Wonderland” and more. He left the group in the mid-80s, but rejoined his bandmates on drums for their 2000 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction.

Editorial credit: Gita Kulinitch Studio / Shutterstock.com

Paris Hilton surprised fans by dropping a re-recorded version of her 2006 hit “Stars Are Blind” on Amazon Music.

Hilton, 41, announced the news on Instagram, posting a photo of the album art alongside a video and photo of a digital billboard in New York City’s Times Square advertising the song and writing the caption:“Surprise! I just dropped an updated version of “Stars Are Blind (Paris’ Version).” Check it out exclusively on @AmazonMusic This song has always meant so much to me, it felt right to close out 2022 with a refreshed version. And seeing my face lighting up Times Square is so special. Thank you to everyone who has always supported my music career. I literally have the best fans on the planet and have loved seeing all of your posts about the new song. P.S. More new music to come in the new year #NewYearNewP#StarsAreBlind”

Hilton’s music career was launched towards the end of her time on “The Simple Life,” which aired from 2003 to 2007. Her debut studio album “Paris” dropped in August 2006, with the tracks “Turn It Up,” and “Nothing In This World” in addition to “Stars Are Blind.” The latter song peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.  For the last decade, Hilton has also been moonlighting as a professional DJ.

Editorial credit: Tinseltown / Shutterstock.com

Miley Cyrus revealed that she will be releasing a new single, titled “Flowers,” on Jan. 13. The singer, 29, made the announcement while hosting her second annual Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party alongside godmother Dolly Parton.

The announcement came when a video showing Cyrus strutting through a street played after a commercial break. In the clip, a snippet of the upcoming tune played with the caption: “NEW YEAR, NEW MILEY, NEW SINGLE. FLOWERS JANUARY 13,” flashing across a black background in white lettering. The same announcement was also posted on Cyrus’ social media.

Rumors of new music from Cyrus began circulating back in November after she reunited in the studio with music producer Mike WiLL Made-It, with whom she worked on her fourth studio album Bangerz in 2013. At the time, hip-hop duo Rae Sremmurd shared a series of photographs on Instagram from a studio session, where Cyrus appeared to be making some new music. Cyrus’ last studio album release was 2020’s Plastic Hearts.. She also released a live album, Attention: Miley Live, in April 2022.

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

Anita Pointer, a founding member of Grammy-winners the Pointer Sisters along with her younger sisters Bonnie, June and her sister Ruth, died of cancer on Saturday, December 31st at the age of 74.  Pointer passed away at home in Los Angeles, surrounded by her family.

A family statement read in part: “While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada and her sisters June & Bonnie and at peace. Heaven is a more loving beautiful place with Anita there. She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us.”

The P0inter Sisters released their first, self-titled album in 1973, which was certified gold. They had seven Top 10 pop singles, two of which (“Fire” and “Slow Hand”) reached No.2. They placed a total of 30 singles on the R&B chart between 1973 and 1991, also including such memorable songs as “Automatic,” “I’m So Excited,” “Jump (For My Love),” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Fire.”

Anita’s death leaves Ruth Pointer as the only surviving member of the group. June died in 2006 and Bonnie in 2020. Anita’s daughter Jada died of cancer in 2003, at the age of 37.

Pointer Sisters’ Anita Pointer dies

Editorial credit: Eugene Powers / Shutterstock.com

The Weeknd released his fifth studio album, Dawn FM, in January, and now he is teasing an upcoming video for the song “Is There Someone Else”.  When a fan asked how he felt after a year that saw the album go to #1 on the Billboard sales chart, The Weeknd tweeted back, saying “i feel istheresomeoneelsemusicvideo-ish.”

A video for the song “Is There Someone Else” would be the sixth from Dawn FM.  The lead single “Take My Breath,” and the rest of the singles — “Out of Time,” “Sacrifice,” “Gasoline” and “How Do I Make You Love Me” all have previously released videos.

No further announcement has been made about a video release or who might star in or direct it. In the past, Tesfaye has worked most frequently with directors Cliqua, who recently did the “Out of Time” video, Anton Tammi (“In Your Eyes”), and Grant Singer (“Try Me”).

Editorial credit: Christian Bertrand / Shutterstock.com

Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” became the No.1 song across US radio stations, making Swift the first artist to have landed on the top of Billboard’s Radio Songs chart in the 2000s, 10s, and 20s. Swift earned her seventh Radio Songs chart-topper, tying Maroon 5, Katy Perry, and Usher for the fourth-most No.1s dating to the chart’s beginning in December 1990.

In just eight weeks, Midnights achieved over six million album equivalent units worldwide, three million in the U.S. alone, and became the only artist ever to have five albums with over one million units during release week. Midnights moved almost 1.6 million during its debut week and is the first album to sell over one million physical albums since 2015. Swift also broke streaming, physical and vinyl album sales milestones around the world as Midnights became the fastest-selling album of her career, and became the first artist in history to capture the entire Top 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Chart.

Universal Music Group Chairman & CEO, Sir Lucian Grainge said, “Taylor is a multidimensional creative force whose achievements place her among the most accomplished artists in the history of music, and we are thrilled and honored to partner with her across so many aspects of her career.” Republic Records Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Monte Lipman said, “Taylor’s achievements over the past year have been absolutely spectacular! With more than two dozen historic milestones set by Midnights, it’s nearly unimaginable for any artist to sell more than six million albums in less than eight weeks during any era of our business. These accomplishments further exemplify Taylor’s prowess as the consummate artist and storyteller defining a generation.”

Taylor Swift Breaks Radio Songs Chart Record with “Anti-Hero”

Editorial credit: DFree / Shutterstock.com

BTS’s RM has become the first member of the band to have a solo album enter the Top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart. RM’s ‘Indigo’ has landed itself at Number 3, coming after the song saw its CD release after it debuted as a digital-only album.  ‘Indigo’ included collaborations with several Korean artists and American heavyweights like Erykah Badu and Anderson .Paak.

SZA’s ‘SOS’ topped the Billboard list, with Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ landing at No. 2. Among the other non-Christmas albums in the top 10 are Metro Boomin’s ‘Heroes & Villains’, Drake and 21 Savage’s ‘Her Loss’ and Bad Bunny’s ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’.

Editorial credit: Silvia Elizabeth Pangaro / Shutterstock.com

Former President Barack Obama has revealed his annual playlist of his favorite songs released in 2022. Among the 25 eclectic songs included on the 2022 edition of Obama’s list are Beyoncé, Lizzo, SZA and Bad Bunny, as well as Zach Bryan, Steve Lacy, and Omar Appollo.

Obama captioned a tweet  that also included a list of his picks: “I always enjoy sharing my end of year music playlist with all of you — and this year we heard a lot of great songs. Here are some of my favorites. Are there any songs or artists I should check out?”

Among the songs featured in his playlist are Kendrick Lamar’s “The Heart Part 5”, Bad Bunny’s “Titi Me Pregunto,” and Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul.”  Newcomer Zach Bryan’s “Something in the Orange”, Maggie Rogers’ “That’s Where I Am”, and Burna Boy’s “Last Last” also made the list along with “POF” by Ari Lennox, “American Teenager” by Ethel Cain, “Communion in my Cup” by Tank and The Bangas, “Sunshine” by Steve Lacy, and “Shirt” by SZA.

In addition to his favorite songs, the former president also shared his favorite books of the year, a list topped by Michelle Obama‘s The Light We Carry, and his favorite movies of the year, including Top Gun: Maverick, Descendant, Tár, and more.

Editorial credit: HorizonUI / Shutterstock.com