Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello Seen Holding Hands Days After Coachella Kiss
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Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello Spotted Kissing at Coachella After Breakup
The Weeknd And Tate McRae Lead The 2023 Juno Awards Nominations
While the next week will rightfully see plenty of focus on the upcoming Grammy Awards, our neighbors up north have announced the nominees for their equivalent, the Junos. Sorry Canadians, but “Canadian Grammys” is pretty much the most convenient metaphor to get Americans to grasp the importance of the Junos — blame G.W. Bush.
The field is led (again) this year by Canada’s number-one pop export, The Weeknd, who’s nominated for Album Of The Year, Artist Of The Year, Pop Album Of The Year, Juno Fan Choice, Single Of The Year for “Sacrifice,” and Songwriter Of The Year awards. Meanwhile, resurgent rocker Avril Lavigne and pop neophyte Tate McRae follow with five apiece. They’re followed by Preston Pablo and The Reklaws, with three nominations each.
Lavigne’s nominations include Juno Fan Choice, Single Of The Year (“Bite Me”), Album Of The Year, Artist Of The Year, and Pop Album Of The Year. McRae is up for the same awards, with “She’s All I Wanna Be” nominated for Single Of The Year.
The Junos will be held on March 13 and broadcast live from Rogers Place in Edmonton on CBC Television, hosted by back-to-back emcee Simu Liu. You can check out the full list of nominees on JunoAwards.CA.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Shawn Mendes, Javier Bardem, And Scoot McNairy All Star In The Singing Crocodile Movie That You Did Not See Coming
Have you ever watched the critically-acclaimed, award-winning classic Paddington and thought “maybe this could work if it was set in NYC, and he was a crocodile who can sing in the same style as Canadian pop singer Shawn Mendes?” Maybe not, but Sony Pictures took that thought and ran with it! Of course, it’s actually based on a children’s book, but the story is the same. Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is an upcoming movie that will likely change the face of cinema for years to come, just like Cats and Minions.
The movie stars Shawn Mendes as the voice of the croc who befriends a child who just wants to show the world how great a singing crocodile can be, naturally. Mendes even told People that he “relates” to the story, which is really telling. And he wears a cute scarf!
It gets better: the movie stars Constance Wu, Javier Bardem, and Scoot McNairy, all of whom look like they are taking the role very seriously. McNairy is known for his serious, dark roles, in movies like Argo and 12 Years A Slave. Bardem is also one to take on more gritty roles, like No Country For Old Men and Mother! It is nice to see them having fun with a crocodile that sings. Here is the official synopsis:
When the Primm family (Constance Wu, Scoot McNairy, Winslow Fegley) moves to New York City, their young son Josh struggles to adapt to his new school and new friends. All of that changes when he discovers Lyle – a singing crocodile (Shawn Mendes) who loves baths, caviar and great music-living in the attic of his new home. The two become fast friends, but when Lyle’s existence is threatened by evil neighbor Mr. Grumps (Brett Gelman), the Primm’s must band together with Lyle’s charismatic owner, Hector P. Valenti (Javier Bardem), to show the world that family can come from the most unexpected places and there’s nothing wrong with a big singing crocodile with an even bigger personality.
Even though the premise is silly, that’s probably what people said about Paddington back in the day. And look at where he is now! The movie will be released in theaters (yes–it’s getting a wide release, not straight to streaming) on October 7th.
From Coldplay To Billie Eilish, Summer Tours Are Putting A Focus On Sustainability
As the music industry adapts to the new era of streaming and TikTok trends, there is another shift that has to be made: making the industry more economically sustainable.
With summer tours kicking off this month, many artists have spent a substantial amount of time working towards curating an exciting show experience, with minimal waste and lower CO2 emissions. Most, if not all, concertgoers aren’t generally thinking about the impact that their favorite artist is making on the environment, but they should: a tour like Coldplay’s “Music Of The Spheres” tour can bring in over 50K eager fans per show, each with their own unique carbon footprint.
Artists like Coldplay have teamed up with various organizations to help encourage their fans to educate themselves about their individual impact on the environment and provide resources for them to reduce said impact. Coldplay’s tour aims to be as waste-free as possible, with a focus on recycling and reusing. Before the show, the band introduces a short film with different ways their tour has worked with venues across the world to ensure a cleaner show. Single-use plastics have been discouraged from their tours, being replaced with special edition Ball Aluminum Cups, which can be taken and re-used, or recycled at the venue. The band also sells custom water bottles, with proceeds going directly to ClientEarth. Their popular LED wristbands are also made of plant-based, compostable material. These little steps make a larger impact when they are being promoted to thousands of fans every night. It also helps when they make it fun– fans are invited to dance on kinetic floors and use stationary bikes to help power the stages. Just one night on the bike can generate 11kWh which can power their c-stage performances.
“Artists and music have always been at the forefront of social change and advocacy.” Live Nation’s Director of Global Sustainability Lucy August-Perna said, explaining that big artists have the power to inspire action from an individual level. August-Perna notes that Coldplay worked for over a year in order to make sure every aspect of the tour was addressed in order to see where they could improve their sustainability efforts. One aspect that was often overlooked was fan transportation to and from the show.
“Our Green Nation rep worked together with Coldplay management and local public transport authorities to help incentivize and subsidize public transportation to and from the shows,” August-Perna explains. For their MetLife tour stop, fans were encouraged to purchase railway tickets instead of driving, which were discounted in partnership with NJ Transit. Other fans can log their commitment to sustainability on the World Tour App to receive discount codes. “It has been a win-win for everyone involved, bringing awareness to an important solution to climate change – public transportation infrastructure. It also helps reduce traffic congestion, which is good for the venue, fans, and the local community. These kinds of high impact, focused executions are what we’re looking to accomplish.”
While Coldplay has been actively working on its suitability effort for many years, other big-name artists have been following in their footsteps. Billie Eilish and Shawn Mendes, who are both embarking on worldwide tours this year, have teamed up with REVERB, an organization that has been educating fans and artists alike about the environmental impact of their tours.
REVERB brings initiatives like free water stations and battery recycling to various tour stops, with some stops offering donation boxes and bringing in local organizations for community outreach. REVERB manager of communications Chris Spinato says that fan outreach is a major component when it comes to making an impact. “Much like a guitar tech or sound engineer, our ‘on-site coordinator’ acts as a green tech, making sure that all sustainability measures for the tour are in place,” Spinato says. “Those measures can include waste diversion including recycling, composting, reusable service ware, and water refill stations backstage, in catering, and on buses, collection of batteries for proper disposal (or donation to local shelters if they are still useable), coordinating local food for catering, and much more.”
For Harry Styles’ sold-out 2021 tour, REVERB helped eliminate over 30,000 single-use plastic bottles over nearly 100 tour dates. The practice has been trickling down to merch creation as well — Eilish partnered with REVERB to create a sustainable edition of her album on vinyl, created with vegetable-based inks, a recycled sleeve and jacket, and bio-wrap “plastic” that is made from sugar cane. Lorde, who has been actively promoting sustainable practices by not physically releasing Solar Power cds, also worked with REVERB to create her eco-friendly merch.
Despite the big-name acts being at the forefront of the sustainability movement, these practices can easily be transmitted to smaller bands without a sustainability team. Encouraging fans to take the necessary steps to even just be aware of their impact can help trigger a widespread movement. “It would have been great if it had been happening decades ago, but that’s true of the environmental issues in every industry,” Spinato adds. “What’s unique about the music industry is it not only has a real opportunity to meaningfully reduce its environmental impacts, but also an outsized ability to influence change. Music has always had immense cultural power to change hearts and minds. If we can unleash that power to combat the climate crisis and other environmental issues, big things will happen. It’s already starting.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Billie Eilish, Chloe x Halle, Coldplay, And More Sign Global Citizen’s Letter To End Extreme Poverty
Billie Eilish, Coldplay, Charlie Puth, Shawn Mendes, Chloe x Halle, and 5 Seconds Of Summer have signed Global Citizen’s new open letter to end extreme poverty, which is part of its 2022 campaign. It calls for “breaking systemic barriers that keep people in poverty” and “empowering young women and girls across the world,” demanding that global leaders focus on these urgent issues, especially climate change.
Other celebrities who signed the letter include Adam Lambert, Alessia Cara, Alok, Bill Nye, Billy Porter, Camilo, Cathy Freeman, Connie Britton, Criolo, Cyndi Lauper, DJ Cuppy, Duran Duran, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, Femi Kuti, Finneas, Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness, Lali, Lang Lang, Made Kuti, Måneskin, Muzi, Nancy Isime, Nile Rodgers, Nomzamo Mbatha, Padma Lakshmi, Rachel Brosnahan, Ricky Martin, Sabrina Elba, and Tropkillaz.
Eilish in particular is known for her devotion to bringing awareness to climate issues. Next month, she’ll be hosting a climate change seminar in London that will span six days and include fellow musicians like Vivienne Westwood, Girl In Red, Glastonbury co-organizer Emily Eavis, and more. She also had an inspirational ad campaign that addressed how young people can use technology for good by connecting with each other, inspiring grassroots activism, and pressuring large corporations to be more sustainable. “We all have the potential to make a positive impact on our planet, and I’m hopeful our generation will use their platforms to collaborate and communicate and make a difference,” she said in a video.
The VMAs Add Doja Cat, Chloe Bailey, And Shawn Mendes To Their 2021 Performance Lineup
Last week, MTV unveiled a handful of the artists who will be performing at their 2021 ceremony, and the list included Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo, Lorde, Machine Gun Kelly, and Camila Cabello. Those roster would certainly be enough, but the VMAs tend to go bigger than that, so there were surely more artists to be added. Indeed, more have been: MTV unveiled a handful of new performers, and they are Doja Cat, Chloe Bailey, Shawn Mendes, and Twenty One Pilots.
This is a big one for Bailey (of Chloe x Halle), since it going to be her solo debut. She’ll be performing her single “Have Mercy” from her upcoming solo album. Meanwhile, Mendes is set to perform his recent single “Summer Of Love,” and Twenty One Pilots will perform “Saturday,” It’s not clear what song(s) Doja will perform yet, but what we do know is that she’s up for five awards this year.
The nominees for this year’s show (which is set for September 12, by the way) are led by Justin Bieber and Megan Thee Stallion, who have seven and six nominations this year, respectively.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Hour-Long Versions Of Post Malone And Ariana Grande Songs Are Coming Via The Calm App
It was reported in 2019 that the average length of a song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart was three-and-a-half minutes and that songs that run for under three minutes are becoming increasingly common. So, in general, songs are getting shorter, but now meditation app Calm and Universal Music Group (UMG) taking things in the opposite direction, as they have announced a series of remixed songs that will push their lengths up to an hour.
This Friday (March 19, which is World Sleep Day), Calm will release seven extended tracks: Ariana Grande’s “Breathin’,” Jhené Aiko’s “While We’re Young,” Kacey Musgraves’ “Golden Hour,” Katy Perry’s “Double Rainbow,” Luis Fonsi’s “Sola,” Post Malone’s “Circles,” and Shawn Mendes’ “Wonder.” For three months, the hour-long tracks will be exclusive to the app, but after that, UMG will be allowed to share the songs to streaming platforms.
Calm co-founder and co-CEO Michael Acton Smith told Rolling Stone, “The problem with most music is it’s quite short: When built for the streaming era or even the radio era, it’s three or four minutes long. Even if something is really soothing, you can’t always get into a flow state and drift off to sleep. You have a song for a few minutes and then you go onto the next one and the next one.” He added of the new remixes, “If they’re boring, you’re [less likely] to play them in the first place, and we want your attention. We want you stop thinking about your to-do lists and that silly comment you made at work.”
Courtney Phillips, Calm’s Head of Music also noted, “I was just on a call with an artist’s team talking about tracks. I asked, ‘Would it be cool if he made longer versions?’ And they were like, “Oh my god, he’s been killing us! We keep trying to get him to shorten these down because they’re so long. He would love to make a longer version.’ That’s what we want to be here for. We want to give artists that creative freedom, let them think out of the box and go, ‘Yes! I get to make something really weird, long, and beautiful.” She added, “We didn’t have any comments at all from any of our artists not liking the final mixes. Not one.”