Pulse Music

SAM SMITH COZIES UP TO CHRISTIAN COWAN: Sam Smith was spotted getting cozy with NYC-based designer Christian Cowan.  Images published by the Daily Mail show the “Unholy” singer – who is in New York this week to perform on Saturday Night Live – walking arm-and-arm with the designer and giving him a kiss on the head. 

SELENA GOMEZ REPORTEDLY DATING DREW TAGGART: Selena Gomez is reportedly dating The Chainsmokers’ Andrew “Drew” Taggart.  Sources told Us Weekly that the pair are “very casual and low key” and spend their time together going “bowling and to the movies.”  The insider added that “Selena can hardly keep her hands off of him.”

American Idol contestant CJ Harris has died. The singer made his mark on country music when he sang with Darius Rucker at the Grand Ole Opry. He had performed his music hero’s hit song, “Alright” during his television appearance.

Darius posted on Monday afternoon (1-16): “My heart goes out to CJ and his family. Sad Day.”

Following one of his performances, judge Keith Urban told him "You sing because you have to sing, not because you want to sing. That's why it's so believable and real... I just believed it and I felt it." CJ finished sixth place in Season 13 in 2014.

A family member told TMZ that CJ suffered an apparent heart attack Sunday night in his hometown of Jasper, Alabama. He was taken to a local hospital by ambulance where he passed away. He was 31.

Gabby Barrett’s next album will include a song written by Luke Combs. Although she’s still technically on maternity leave following the birth of her son, she’s still working on new music.

She told Country Countdown USA that not only did Luke pitch the song himself, but he all but insisted she cut it.

She said, "I'm a big fan of his. As soon as I heard the song, I was like, 'It really strikes a chord with me.'”

Gabby will include it on her next album coming out later this year.

She didn’t mention a release date but did reveal that she and her husband Cade Foehner, whose also her guitar player, may record a duet together for her new record.

Taylor Swift made a surprise appearance at The 1975's London concert over the weekend and performed "Anti-Hero" live for the very first time.

The audience first saw her appear on the big screen as she walked through the backstage area and were shocked when she actually walked onto the stage for real. Swift and frontman Matty Healy were briefly linked romantically in 2014.

The 33-year-old Grammy winner wore a shiny silver minidress and played a white acoustic guitar. She also did a cover of the band's 2013 hit, "The City."

The 1975 is currently on a tour of the UK and Ireland following a run of North American dates last year.

TL;DR:

• Taylor Swift made a surprise appearance at The 1975's London concert and performed "Anti-Hero"
• She also did a cover of the band's 2013 hit, "The City."

According to TMZ, Britney Spears had a bizarre meltdown on Friday night (1-13) at a restaurant in Los Angles and then stormed out with her husband Sam Asghari.

The couple showed up with a bodyguard at JOEY restaurant in Woodland Hills which was packed with loud patrons, who immediately recognized her and pulled out their phones for photos and videos.

According to an eyewitness, Britney became "manic," and start talking gibberish. That's when Asghari stormed out the door.

Two minutes later, Britney got up and left the restaurant with her bodyguard, who soon returned to pay the bill.

A few hours later, Britney posted an Instagram a video of herself dancing to music while repeatedly flipping the bird.

TL;DR:

• Britney Spears had her husband Sam Asghar, stormed out of a restaurant.
• According to an eyewitness, Britney became "manic," and start talking gibberish. That's when Asghari stormed out the door.

Miley Cyrus kept her New Year's Eve promise to release new music by Friday the 13^th. The lyrics for "Flowers" describe the bright side of the end of a relationship. In the video she's wearing a gold dress that exposes her stomach and later she strips down to black lingerie and goes for a swim.

"Flowers" will be on her eighth studio album, Endless Summer Vacation, expected to be out on March 10.

TL;DR:

• "Flowers" describe the bright side of the end of a relationship.
• In the video she's wearing a gold dress and later she strips down to black lingerie.

Maneskin released their new single called "Gossip." It features Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine.

The band's frontman, Damiano David commented about Morello: "His enormous experience allowed us to take cues on how to work on tracks without overthinking."

Guitarist, Thomas Raggi added that it was "a dream come true" to work with and learn from Morello and called him one of the greatest musicians ever.

The song is from Måneskin's upcoming album Rush! To be released on January 20.

TL;DR:

• Maneskin released their new single called "Gossip," it features Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine.

Metallica frontman James Hetfield took to social media to call out imposter accounts. He wrote on the band's Twitter page, "There are people online that have assumed my identity, spreading misinformation, and have caused damage to other people. There are imposters and predators out there. This is out of my control, but it is in your control who you choose to connect with. Please be careful on socials and vet people before getting in contact with them."

He continued, "To be clear...I am not on any social media forms, Facebook, Instagram, etc. The only connection I have with social media is through the official METALLICA website and official METALLICA socials."

He continued, "If you are following or communicating with someone who you think is or is portraying themselves as me... it is not me. I hope this helps those who have been or are getting deceived and are ashamed to talk about it."

Reports say that Kim Kardashian has never been fond of Kanye West's new "wife" Bianca Censori. As previously reported, Kanye and Bianca exchanged vows last week in a secret Beverly Hills ceremony. Although no marriage license has been filed, The Daily Mail has reported that the two were spotted wearing shiny wedding bands. Bianca is a Yeezy architectural designer from Austrailia and she's been working for the company for the last few years.

According to Page Six, with a source saying "Kim hates her." The source said that Kim suspected that Censori had feelings for Ye. The source explained, "She's pretty. And Kim hates pretty girls." Censori, who has a masters in architecture, has worked at Yeezy for several years.

Once the news broke about Kanye and Bianca's marriage, Kim Kardashian posted and deleted on her Instagram Stories, "I'm in my quiet girl era, I don't have much to say. Just much to do."

Ye and Bianca reportedly tied the knot just two months after his divorce from Kim Kardashian was finalized.

BIANCA CENSORI'S FAMILY SPEAKS OUT

Meanwhile, Bianca's family has weighed in on their wedding. According to The Herald Sun, Bianca's sister Angelina Censori said, "It's very exciting news for both my sister and the family, but we choose to have some privacy for the time being".Another relative Alyssia Censori said, "I'm super happy for them both."

It's being reported that Kanye and Bianca exchanged vows earlier this week in a secret Beverly Hills ceremony. Although no marriage license has been filed, the Daily Mail has reported that the two were spotted wearing shiny wedding bands.

Other reports say that they enjoyed their honeymoon at Amangiri, an upscale resort with 34 suites with one four-bedroom Mesa home, located on 600 acres in Utah's Grand Circle of National Parks and Monuments last week.

Ads for Demi Lovato's Holy Fvck album has been banned in the U.K. for being blasphemous.

After posters of Lovato in full-body bondage laying on a crucifix-shaped bed starting popping up in London, England's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) got involved. According to the publication, The Drum, it was too offensive to Christians and considered inappropriate for children.

The regulator stated that linking sexuality to the sacred Christian symbol as well as the crucifixion of Jesus Christ would cause "serious offense" to members of the religious group.

Humanist U.K. is challenging the ruling, stating that the decision was "unacceptable stifling of the right to freedom of expression."

When the album was released in the U.K. last year, it debuted in the Top 10.

TL;DR:

• Advertising for Demi Lovato's Holy Fvck album has been banned in the U.K. for being blasphemous.
  
  The image in question is Lovato in full-body bondage laying on a crucifix-shaped bed.
• It's considered too offensive to Christians and considered inappropriate for children.

On Wednesday (1-11) Sam Smith dropped a new song called "Gimme." The track features breakout Jamaican reggae/rap star Koffee and R&B singer Jessie Reyez.

Describing the track as "filth," Sam Smith said, "I'm a sexual person, I like sex. It's something I'm teaching myself to not be ashamed of. Me and Jessie were basically drunk, drinking whisky in Jamaica, two in the morning, running around absolutely wasted, like two girlfriends having a laugh."

"Gimme" is from Smith's fourth studio album, Gloria, which will be released on January 27. A video should be out soon.

TL;DR:

• Sam Smith dropped a new song called "Gimme" featuring breakout Koffee and Jessie Reyez.
• Smith describes it as "filth.

On a recent podcast, The Chainsmokers talked about sex and relationships. Member Alex Pall shared a story about a girl he dated that his mom hated.

He said, while he was touring, he started getting texts from his girlfriend that didn't make sense. Out of the blue, she would write things like "You're a f–king a–hole " and would start an argument and then disappear for days, but never tell him why.

Then one day, Pall was sitting at his kitchen table and saw movement out of the corner of his eye. It was a motion-sensor camera intended to watch the dog and dispense treats. He later found out that his girlfriend had connected the camera to spy on him.

She had even blacked out the recording light with a marker and covered it with a piece of electric tape.

When he realized what had been going on for 7 months, he never confronted her, just broke up with her.

In the podcast, The Chainsmokers also talked about sharing a threesome together and sleeping with fans on the road. The stories are in the latest episode of Call Her Daddy.

TL;DR:

Nick Carter of Back Street Boys released a new song that pays tribute to his late brother, Aaron Carter. Titled "Hurts to Love You," the lyrics are about how he hoped Aaron could conquer his demons.

The former child star struggled with substance abuse and mental health issues before his sudden death in November.

Next week, Nick will perform a benefit concert to raise awareness for mental health, inspired by his brother, it will stream live on Veeps.com on January 18.

Aaron's official cause of death has not yet been released, but police sources previously told People.com they believe he lost consciousness and drowned in his bathtub. He was 34.

TL;DR:

• Nick Carter of Back Street Boys released a new song that pays tribute to his late brother, Aaron Carter. T
• "Hurts to Love You," the lyrics are about how he hoped Aaron could conquer his demons.

The full tracklisting to U2's new album Songs Of Surrender has been announced. The 40-track collection is based around the concept of Bono's recent memoir and is broken down as a two-record set, with each member being represented by a single side of music.

Songs Of Surrender, which drops on March 17th will be available as a full 40-track digital set; a limited edition 40-track double CD with hardback deluxe book; and a limited edition 40-track four-vinyl collection.

The Edge spoke about Songs Of Surrender in the album's official announcement:

Music allows you to time travel, and we became curious to find out what it would be like to bring our early songs back with us to the present day and give them the benefit, or otherwise, of a 21st century reimagining.

What started out as an experiment quickly developed into a personal obsession as so many of our songs yielded to a new interpretation. Intimacy replaced post punk urgency. New tempos, new keys, and in some cases new chords and new lyrics arrived. A great song, it turns out is kind of indestructible.

The process of selecting which songs to revisit started with a series of demos. I looked at how a song would hang together if all but the bare essential elements were taken away. The other main aim was to find ways to bring intimacy into the songs, as most of them were originally written with live concert performance in mind.

Reviewing these sketch recordings with producer Bob Ezrin, it was very easy to see the ones that worked straight off the bat and those that needed more work. We all got into the sensibility of less is more.

Bono explained that at the end of the day, it's the connection between his music and the listeners that makes it matter: "That is, y'know, (laughs) my drug of choice. That's for me, the thing. I cannot believe you hear this melody line in your head and you, sort of, take it down and you find words for it and arrangement for it -- and the next thing y'know, you can be in a car in Tokyo, and it's on the radio. That's really my, my drug of choice. And songs are everything, really, to us."

The complete Songs Of Surrender tracklisting is:

Side 1 - The Edge
One
Where The Streets Have No Name
Stories For Boys
11 O'Clock Tick Tock
Out Of Control
Beautiful Day
Bad
Every Breaking Wave
Walk On (Ukraine)
Pride (In The Name Of Love)

Side 2 - Larry
Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
Get Out Of Your Own Way
Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
Red Hill Mining Town
Ordinary Love
Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
Invisible
Dirty Day
The Miracle Of Joey Ramone
City Of Blinding Lights

Side 3 - Adam
Vertigo
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Electrical Storm
The Fly
If God Will Send His Angels
Desire
Until The End Of The World
Song For Someone
All I Want Is You
Peace On Earth

Side 4 - Bono
With Or Without You
Stay
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Lights Of Home
Cedarwood Road
I Will Follow
Two Hearts Beat As One
Miracle Drug
The Little Things That Give You Away
40

Gwen Stefani stands by her Harajuku era.

In a new interview with Allure about her vegan beauty line GXVE, the No Doubt singer opened up about criticisms of cultural appropriation. It began with the Japanese artwork used to market her 2004 debut studio album Love. Angel. Music. Baby., and continued with the 2008 launch of her Harajuku Lovers fragrance.

She told the outlet she had a revelation when she finally visited Japan for the first time, "I said, 'My God, I'm Japanese and I didn't know it.'"

The Voice judge added, "If people are going to criticize me for being a fan of something beautiful and sharing that, then I just think that doesn't feel right. I think it was a beautiful time of creativity… a time of the ping-pong match between Harajuku culture and American culture."

She elaborated further: "It should be okay to be inspired by other cultures because if we're not allowed then that's dividing people, right?"

Bad Bunny, BLACKPINK, and Frank Ocean will headline the Coachella music festival this April.

Bad Bunny kicks things off on Friday, April 14th and will take the stage again on April 21st. K-Pop superstars BLACKPINK will take the Saturday shift on April 15th and 22nd, and Ocean will close things out on Sunday, April 16th and 23rd.

Additional performers include Gorillaz, Burna Boy, Blondie, the Kid LAROI, Charli XCX, Bjork, Latto, Willow and YUNGBLUD.

Nick Jonas will be one of the speakers at this year's South by Southwest.

Organizers announced Tuesday (January 10th) that Jonas Brother will speak on the health-focused panel "Crushing: The Burden of Diabetes on Patients".

Blxst and Wu Tang Clan's RZA are also among the musicians set to speak at the event. SXSW will take place March 10th-19th in Austin.

REPORT: BEYONCE REACHED OUT TO BRITNEY SPEARS FOR A COLLABORATION: Did Britney Spears turn down the opportunity to work with Beyonce? According to a report from Page Six, the "Break My Soul" singer asked Spears to appear in a new music video, but the collaboration ultimately didn't come together. It is unclear why the plan didn't go through.

SOURCE: MARIAH CAREY IS PLANNING TO FILE FOR PRIMARY CUSTODY OF TWINS SHARED WITH EX NICK CANNON: Reports say that Mariah Carey is planning to file for primary custody of her twins Moroccan and Monroe, whom she shares with ex husband Nick Cannon. According to RadarOnline, a source said, "The reality of the situation is that Monroe and Moroccan are usually with Mariah anyway. Nick doesn't see much of them." The source added, "But she wants to put him on notice that he can't just flit in and out of their lives while he attends to his other children. And she wants legal standing as the twins' primary caregiver."

THE WEEKND IS BACK IN THE STUDIO: The Weeknd has new music in the works. He told the Hollywood Reporter Monday (January 9th), "I've definitely been inspired. I've been in the studio." The star, born Abel Tesfaye, just celebrated the one-year anniversary of his most recent album, 2022's Dawn FM.

Jin has a heartfelt message for fans as he serves his mandatory military enlistment in South Korea.

The BTS singer said in a pre-recorded YouTube video posted to the band's Bantam TV channel Monday (January 9th), "Hello everyone, this is Jin of BTS. I won't be a civilian by the time the video is out. But I am here in front of the camera because I wanted to leave you something, even if it is just leaving a message.

"I may not be by your side, but I'll go looking for you soon, if you just wait a little. I'll be back soon. That's all for today. Next time when I have the time, I'll share another video."

He began his 18-21 month service in December.

Nick Carter is gearing up to release a song about his late brother, Aaron Carter.

Music industry sources told TMZ Monday (January 9th) that the Backstreet Boy got to work on the song shortly after Aaron passed in November and it's a "very emotional track."

According to Nick's social media account, his new single will drop on Wednesday (January 11th).

Olivia Rodrigo is teaming up with Sour producer Dan Nigro to create new music.

The "drivers license" singer posted a clip of the two rocking out at a piano on her Instagram Story Sunday (January 8th) night.

She captioned the video with, "Working on so many new songs I'm excited to show u! thank you for everything."

Harry Styles revealed Monday (January 9th) that Wet Leg will open for his rescheduled Love on Tour dates in Los Angeles.

The Grammy winner was forced to cancel several dates at the Kia Forum in November because he became sick with the flu.

He will make up for the lost shows by performing on January 26th through 29th.