The full Glastonbury lineup has been revealed with a mysterious addition—a band that doesn’t seem to exist, The ChurnUps—sparking rumors of a surprise guest.
Queens of the Stone Age, Rick Astley, Skepta and Tom Grennan are among the acts added to the bill, which takes place in June at Worthy Farm in Somerset.
On Friday between 6:15pm and 7:30pm, The ChurnUps are listed to play the Pyramid Stage. Speculators are saying this could be Blur or Pulp. There are also two TBA slots yet to be filled for the Woodsies Stage on Friday and Saturday evening.
Caroline Polacheck, Digga D, Dermot Kennedy and the Chemical Brothers are more recent additions to the lineup. They join previously announced headliners, Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses and Elton John.
Two key execs have been promoted at Island Records U.K.: Hannah Colson has taken on the newly created role of director of Artist Development while Sam Lunn is now director of Strategic Marketing.
Colson, who joined Island in 2021 and was previously head of Marketing, has recently worked on ArrDee and BRITs Rising Star winners FLO.
Lunn, previously head of Campaign Strategy, has worked on successful albums from artists including Mumford & Sons, Keane, U2, Dermot Kennedy and Ben Howard.
Island President Louis Bloom said Colson's "ability to tap into an artist’s creativity, her innate understanding of how to reach an audience, her instinct for what makes a hit record, and a rare capacity to tie every element across multiple campaigns have made her a truly exceptional member of the Island team.
“Sam is equally invaluable, always making the right choices and invariably coming up with the perfect strategy to benefit our artists. With Hannah and Sam’s vision, passion and strategic flair now fully focused within these new roles, I believe they will play a huge part in writing the next amazing chapter in the Island story.”
The U.K. Government has agreed to set up an industry working group that will explore issues around fair pay for creators in the music streaming industry.
Representatives and experts from across the music sector will make up the group. It’s tasked with exploring and developing industry-led actions that support fair remuneration for existing and future music creators, as part of a successful and globally competitive music industry, according to the Government.
The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee recommended the creation of the group after calling for a “complete reset” of the recorded music industry in its Economics of Music Streaming report, sparking much debate in 2021.
Caroline Dinenage MP, chair of the CMS Committee, called the creation of a working group “a welcome step toward addressing the frustrations of musicians and songwriters whose pay falls far short of a fair level given their central role in the success of the music streaming industry.”
“The Government must now make sure the group is more than a talking shop and leads to concrete change so the talented creators and performers we have in this country are properly rewarded for their creativity,” she said. “The Committee will be keeping a close eye on progress and also looking more widely at artist and creator remuneration to ensure everyone who works in our creative industries can share in its successes."
Two Tina Turner albums are heading for the U.K.’s Official Albums Top 10 as fans mourn the death of the singer. Over on singles, Taylor Swift has three tracks in the Top 10.
Turner’s greatest hits compilation, The Platinum Edition Collection (Parlophone), is set to land at #8 on Friday. The album peaked at #14 in 2009. It could be joined at #10 by Foreign Affair, which hit the top of the chart in 1989.
Two more Turner albums are in today’s midweek Top 40: The Collected Recordings at #12 and Private Dancer at #31.
At the top of the albums chart, Lewis Capaldi looks set for a second week at #1 with Broken by Desire To Be Heavenly Sent (EMI). Swift’s Midnights (EMI) is up eight places to #2 following the release of the Til Dawn Edition.
This week’s highest new entry could be Simply Red’s Time (Rhino), starting at #4. Arlo Parks’ My Soft Machine (Transgressive) is another high new entry, at #5, followed by Sparks’ The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte (Island) at #6.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles midweeks, “Karma” from Swift’s new edition of Midnights looks set to rise 65 places to #2 thanks to its Ice Spice remix. “Hits Different” is a new entry at #8, and the rerecording of “Snow on the Beach” f/Lana Del Rey is also new, at #10.
“Miracle” (Columbia) by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding is on track to remain at #1 for an eighth week.
J Hus could have Friday’s highest new entry, with “It’s Crazy” (Black Butter) starting at #6. “Dance the Night” (Atlantic) by Dua Lipa from the Barbie soundtrack looks set to debut at #16, while Kylie Minogue’s “Padam Padam” (BMG) could crack the Top 20 at #18.
Lewis Capaldi has the biggest opening week of his career with Broken by Desire To Be Heavenly Sent (EMI) shifting 95k sales in the U.K. Over on singles, Lana Del Rey has today's highest new entry.
Broken by Desire To Be Heavenly Sent tops the U.K. Official Albums Chart while claiming the title of this year’s fastest-seller to date. The set has surpassed previous title holder, Ed Sheeran’s Subtract (Atlantic), by just under 20k sales. Capaldi’s debut, Divinely Uninspired To a Hellish Extent, shifted 89k first week sales in 2019.
At #3, Take Me Back to Eden (Spinefarm) is Sleep Token’s first Top 5 album; Def Leppard’s collab with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Drastic Symphonies (Mercury), debuts at #4.
The U.K. leg of Harry Styles’ Love On Tour sees his former #1, Harry’s House (Columbia), lift four to #5.
Beyoncé’s RENAISSANCE (Columbia) is up seven to #7 as her world tour also visits the U.K. Covers EP, Phantomime (Loma Vista), affords Swedish rock act Ghost their first U.K. Top 10 at #8.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles Chart, “Miracle” (Columbia) by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding is #1 for a seventh consecutive week.
Two Capaldi tracks are in the Top 40: “Wish You The Best” is up two to #3, while “Haven’t You Ever Been In Love Before?” debuts at #28.
Del Rey’s “Say Yes to Heaven” (Polydor) is today’s highest new entry at #9.
After a history-making week for Eurovision on the Official Chart, a trio of entries hold on for a second week: 2023 victor Loreen is #4 with “Tattoo” (Polydor), Käärijä’s “Cha Cha Cha” is #15 (Warner) and Mae Muller’s “I Wrote A Song” (Capitol) is #19.
Sony Music Publishing U.K. has upped Andrew Spence to general counsel.
In his new role, Spence will oversee business and legal affairs strategies and initiatives on behalf of SMP U.K. and its roster, as well as provide guidance and counsel on its legal and operational matters.
Based in London, he will continue to report to President, Co-Managing Director, U.K., & SVP International, David Ventura and U.K. Co-Managing Director Tim Major.
“I’m also delighted to continue my journey at Sony Music Publishing and be surrounded by so many talented people; from my colleagues to the amazing writers and catalogues we represent,” said Spence.
“It has been a pleasure to watch Andrew continue to grow as an executive over the past few years. This role is a natural progression, positioning him as even more involved in the business and senior management structure,” added Major.
Having first joined the company in 2014, Spence most recently served as head of legal and business affairs since 2019. Prior to joining SMP U.K., Spence—who began his music industry career as a drummer and musician—spent several years in private practice as a music lawyer.
Stormzy and Wet Leg are among the first winners announced for this year’s O2 Silver Clef Awards, which will be held in London on 6/30.
Stormzy will be honored with the flagship O2 Silver Clef Award, which celebrates artists who continue to impact the music industry with their contributions to music.
Wet Leg will receive the New Music Award after hitting #1 in the U.K. with their debut last year. Biffy Clyro will win Best Live Act. Neneh Cherry is the winner of Outstanding Achievement, Mark King of jazz-funk band Level 42 will get the Icon Award, and musician Ayanna Witter-Johnson will receive the Classical gong.
Winners of Best Male, Best Female, Best Group, International and Innovation will be announced in June. The ceremony, which will raise money for music therapy charity Nordoff Robbins, takes place at Grosvenor House on London’s Park Lane.
Beabadoobee perform at London’s Outernet.
The BRITs Week of shows raised £411k across 15 dates in the U.K. this year to aid the charity War Child.
The sum takes the total amount of money raised by BRITs Week since its inception in 2009 to more than £5.5m. AEG Presents produced the series alongside the BPI.
This year, the Mastercard-sponsored series visited the most cities yet, with gigs in London, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow. Artists on the bill included Beabadoobee, Cavetown, Kojey Radical, Rina Sawayama, Sea Girls, Sugababes, The Hunna, The 1975, The Snuts and Years & Years.
Proceeds from the shows support War Child’s work that helps children whose lives have been torn apart by war. The charity aims to reach children as early as possible when conflict breaks out and stay to support them through their recovery—keeping them safe, helping them learn and cope with their experiences, and equipping them with skills for the future.
Photo credit: Patrick Gunning/War Child UK
