Music Review: Billie Eilish’s ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ is zealous outsider pop in a league of her own

Music Review: Billie Eilish’s ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft’ is zealous outsider pop in a league of her own

“Am I acting my age now?” Billie Eilish, 22, wonders aloud on the opening track to her ambitious third album, “Hit Me Hard and Soft.” “Am I already on the way out?” The 10-track release sees a once-in-a-generation pop performer once again rewriting the rules: If Eilish’s first record introduced the world to her brilliant … Read more

K-pop fans around globe rally for climate and environment goals

K-pop fans around globe rally for climate and environment goals

JAKARTA, Indonesia — JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Fans of Korean pop bands around the world are increasingly channeling their millions-strong online community into climate and environmental activism, protesting business deals linked to coal power, urging K-pop entertainers to cut waste and raising awareness about climate-related issues. Other climate activist groups have begun joining forces with … Read more

Music Review: Miley Cyrus, Lorde and more team up for fun Talking Heads’ ‘Stop Making Sense’ tribute

Music Review: Miley Cyrus, Lorde and more team up for fun Talking Heads’ ‘Stop Making Sense’ tribute

In 1984, Talking Heads ‘ concert film and live album “Stop Making Sense” captured the alt-rock quartet at the height of their powers. Forty years later, a new 4K restoration of the film is streaming on MAX, and A24 Music has released “Everyone’s Getting Involved: A Tribute to Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense.” The album … Read more

Swiss fans get ready to welcome Eurovision winner Nemo back home

Swiss fans get ready to welcome Eurovision winner Nemo back home

BERLIN — Swiss Eurovision fans were getting ready Sunday to give a hero’s welcome to singer Nemo, who won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest with “The Code,” an operatic pop-rap ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing a nongender identity. The singer, who is Swiss but currently lives in Berlin, was to land in Zurich … Read more

How to watch (and stream) the Eurovision Song Contest final

How to watch (and stream) the Eurovision Song Contest final

MALMO, Sweden — Get out the glitter ball and put on your dancing shoes: It’s time to find out who will be crowned the 68th Eurovision Song Contest champion. Acts from more than two dozen countries will take the stage in Malmo, Sweden, on Saturday to compete for the continent’s pop music crown. Millions of … Read more

Eurovision Song Contest reaches its final with tensions around Israel and doubt over Dutch contender

Eurovision Song Contest reaches its final with tensions around Israel and doubt over Dutch contender

MALMO, Sweden — It’s time for many people to don sequins and spangles — and for others to pick up protest banners and Palestinian flags — for Saturday’s final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest. The competition that pits nations against one another for pop music glory is reaching its conclusion in the Swedish city … Read more

Eurovision explained, from ABBA to Zorra, as the song contest is shadowed by the Israel-Hamas war

Eurovision explained, from ABBA to Zorra, as the song contest is shadowed by the Israel-Hamas war

MALMO, Sweden — Scores of musicians, hundreds of journalists and thousands of music fans are gathering in the Swedish city of Malmo, where the Eurovision Song Contest is building towards Saturday’s exuberant, glitter-drenched final. Even Eurovision can’t escape the world’s divisions, however. Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters are also expected in the city for demonstrations urging … Read more

The Eurovision Song Contest is kicking off with pop and protests as the war in Gaza casts a shadow

The Eurovision Song Contest is kicking off with pop and protests as the war in Gaza casts a shadow

MALMO, Sweden — Competition in the 68th Eurovision Song Contest kicks off Tuesday in Sweden, with the war in Gaza casting a shadow over the sequin-spangled pop extravaganza. Performers representing countries across Europe and beyond will take the stage in the first of two semifinals in the Swedish city of Malmo. It and a second … Read more

Inside the Met Gala: A fairytale forest, woodland creatures, and some starstuck first-timers

Inside the Met Gala: A fairytale forest, woodland creatures, and some starstuck first-timers

NEW YORK — Sauntering through the hallways of the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the way to cocktails, James Corden spread his arms out comically, like he owned the place. “Let me know if you want me to talk you through any of this,” he said, pointing to the precious art on the walls, joking … Read more

Madonna’s biggest-ever concert transforms Rio’s Copacabana beach into a massive dance floor

Madonna’s biggest-ever concert transforms Rio’s Copacabana beach into a massive dance floor

RIO DE JANEIRO — Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro’s vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans. It was the last show of The Celebration Tour, her first retrospective, which kicked off in October in London. The … Read more