July 11, 2022 - Page 2 of 2

Rina Sawayama Drops Latest Single ‘Catch Me in the Air’

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

Japanese-British Rina Sawayama has released a new single from her upcoming album, Hold the Girl. “Catch Me in Air” is written to pay homage to her mother, who raised her as a single mom.

“I really wanted to write about this weird relationship with single parents,” Sawayama said about the single. “You do catch each other in the air.”

The visuals for the new single are amazing. They show footage of Sawayama playing live, which fans submitted to make it even more special.

“Catch Me in the Air” is written by Sawayama, with Oscar Scheller, Gracey, Clarence Clarity, and Stuart Price. They wrote it “in-between lockdowns,” according to the musician.

“I wanted the whole song to sound like it was on an Irish coastline, like a Corrs video. We put in a key change to go into the chorus at the end of the pre-chorus to make it lift and soar like a bird. I then worked on it more with Clarence before taking it to Stuart Price,” she said.

“This was the first song that Stuart and I worked on together, and it was the most incredible experience. I’m such a huge fan of his work with Madonna and Kylie, so it was a dream come true. We would send each other stock images of coastlines, people doing yoga on a pier, meditating in the middle of a field, hay bales, etc., to get inspired sonically,” she continued.

Gwen Stefani is an inspiration to many people, including Sawayama, she said in an interview with Zane Lowe.

“I was like, ‘Why don’t we just pretend to write for Gwen,” she stated.

“But after that, I was like, ‘Ooh, I’m so about pre-chorus key changes at the moment. So, I think it was going into the chorus or maybe even going into the pre-chorus. But anyway, I was like, ‘Oscar, come up with a key change, please.’ And he was racking his brains because doing a key change is really hard… and what’s harder than an obvious key change is a really subtle key change.”

Hold the Girl will be released on September 2nd through Dirty Hit. Last month, Sawayama revealed her album to fans alongside its lead single, “This Hell.”

Kate Bush Thankful to the Duffer Brothers for Bringing Her Song Up the Charts

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

Kate Bush is thankful to the Duffer brothers for making her song “Running Up That Hill” into a musical spotlight.

The song’s involvement in season 4 of Stranger Things helped save Max (Sadie Sink) from the Demogorgon Vecna. The epic track became an instant hit with audiences everywhere, especially the show’s fans.

The track by the British singer has reached No. 1 on the UK charts and attained a high ranking in America’s Billboard Hot 100.

As the song continued to climb up the charts, Bush issued a statement during the weekend called “On Top of That Hill,” expressing her thanks to the Stranger Things creators for how they used the song.

“The Duffer Brothers have created four extraordinary series of Stranger Things in which the child actors have grown into young adults. In this latest series, the characters are facing many of the same challenges that exist in reality right now,” the note read.

“I believe the Duffer Brothers have touched people’s hearts in a special way, at a time that’s incredibly difficult for everyone, especially younger people. By featuring ‘Running Up That Hill’ in such a positive light – as a talisman for Max (one of the main female characters) – the song has been brought into the emotional arena of her story. Fear, conflict, and the power of love are all around her and her friends.”

Bush further wrote in the statement that she looks up to the Duffer Brothers “for their courage – taking this new series into a much more adult and darker place. I want to thank them so much for bringing the song into so many people’s lives. I’m overwhelmed by the scale of affection and support the song is receiving, and it’s all happening really fast as if it’s being driven along by a kind of elemental force.”

She concludes, “I have to admit I feel really moved by it all. Thank you so very much for making the song a No. 1 in such an unexpected way.”

This recent thankful acknowledgment to the Duffer Brothers for using “Running Up That Hill” is not the first time. Following season 4’s launch on Netflix, she ran to her website to say how the song was “given a whole new lease of life by the young fans who love the show – I love it too!”

“Because of this, ‘Running Up That Hill’ is charting around the world and has entered the UK chart at No. 8,” she said at the time. “It’s all really exciting! Thanks very much to everyone who has supported the song. I wait with bated breath for the rest of the series in July.”

Stranger Things season 4 Volume II will premiere on Netflix on July 1 with two lengthy episodes.

Doja Cat Asks Stranger Things’ Noah Schnapp a Favor

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

We all feel thirsty and dry during the summer… pop stars included.

Doja Cat, for instance, has made it clear that she wants to get hooked up to Stranger Things’ newfound favorite, Joseph Quinn. So she has asked Will Byers, aka Noah Schnapp, for help.

Doja’s interest in Quinn, who portrays the beloved longhaired character Eddie Munson, started with the first half of the show’s season 4 when the “Say So” singer dropped a hot tweet: “joseph quinn fine as shit.”

After confessing to this British tidbit – and probably consuming the show’s final episodes – Doja entered Joseph Quinn’s fansite chat on July 6.

And if you thought Doja was playing, Schnapp made a revelation by uploading it to TikTok, where Doja is bravely trying to sneak into Britten’s DMs. The video was released with Doja’s 2020 song “Boss Bitch.”

“Noah, can u tell Joseph to hmu,” Doja queries, immediately adding, “Wait, no. Does he have a gf?”

That’s what a woman would do, yeah? Schnapp went on to advise the award-winning musician to slide into Quinn’s DMs directly. But obviously, she has thought of that, if only she has the means to find his socials.

“He doesn’t have a DM to slide in,” she rants. And then, like the wingman that he should be, Schnapp sent a link to Quinn’s Instagram page with a message, “Right here ma’am.”

We will probably find out the result of Schnapp’s love bridging, perhaps in another TikTok?

Olivia Rodrigo Performs with Natalie Imbruglia in London

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

During Olivia Rodrigo’s show, she was once again surprised by a guest.

Natalie Imbruglia joined Rodrigo on stage at the 5000-seat Eventim Apollo in London on Wednesday to sing a duet of Imbruglia’s “Torn.”

“She’s the most fantastic singer,” the pop star said, presenting her special guest, “and she sings one of my favorite songs of all time.” Imbruglia sang the first verse and chorus while Rodrigo joined in for the rest of the tune.

When the song concluded, Rodrigo then bowed at Imbruglia’s feet, saying, “That was incredible.”

“Torn” is a single from Imbruglia’s debut album, Left of the Middle, released in 1997 – six years before Rodrigo was born.

Imbruglia expressed her gratitude to the “amazing crowd” in an Instagram story, describing the duo’s experience with Rodrigo as “magical.” The couple’s duet came days after Rodrigo covered the song in a Manchester bar after a performance in the city.

Imbruglia is one of the many artists that Rodrigo adores and has shared the stage with her. At the Glastonbury Festival, she performed “F— You” with Lily Allen, which she addressed to the justices of the Supreme Court justices, who revoked the constitutional right to abortion the day before.

“So many women and girls are going to die because of this [decision], and I wanted to dedicate this next song to the five members of the Supreme Court who showed us at the end of the day they truly don’t give an [expletive] about freedom,” stated the 19-year-old.

“We hate you! We hate you!”

Meanwhile, on the North American side of her tour, Rodrigo was graced with the presence of Alanis Morissette to cover “You Oughta Know” in Los Angeles and Avril Lavigne for a “Complicated” cover in Toronto.

Rage Against the Machine Enraged as Ever in First Concert Together in 11 Years

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

While they haven’t dropped any original track recently, Rage Against the Machine sound more crucially relevant than their debut 30 years previously.

In their first-ever performance together in 11 years, Zach De La Rocha and the band sang all the hits, however, kept their most inflaming messages for a video screen onstage, like a direct prod at the latest overturn of Roe v. Wade: “Abort the Supreme Court.”

Rage Against the Machine summoned their, well, rage at the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in Wisconsin on July 9, pouring into their music along with videos their eschew speeches for some influential imagery.

“Forced birth in a country that is the only wealthy country in the world without any guaranteed paid parental leave at the national level,” written in the caption flashed on the screen.

“Forced birth in a country where Black birth-givers experience mental mortality two to three times higher than that of white birth-givers. Force birth in a country where gun violence is the number one cause of death among children and teenagers.”

The captions built up in the urge to “abort” SCOTUS, in all caps.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said other clips displayed included “a border patrol agent posing menacingly with a barking German Shepherd; an El Paso police van burning in slow motion; a boy with a ski mask kneeling in front of a bull; and a boy with a blindfold busting open in piñata that looked like an ICE agent.”

Rage Against the Machine gave $475,000 from ticket proceeds from the Alpine Valley concert and two concerts in Chicago to reproductive rights organizations in Wisconsin and Illinois.

Jamie Campbell Bower Talks About Supposed Game of Thrones Spin-Off

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

Stranger Things wasn’t the only major franchise recruiting Jamie Campbell Bower for a role.

Bower was one of the cast members of an HBO spin-off of Game of Thrones, which was also piloted with actress Naomi Watts. Thousands of years prior to the series, this idea appeared to be Thrones’ first true spin-off.

However, in 2019 the project was called off.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Bower said in an interview with EW. “I don’t think anything happens by chance. At the time of that spin-off not working out, of course, it’s sad. Of course, it is.”

“This was always there,” he further said about his Stranger Things character. “This was coming. I just didn’t know.”

Bower had an undisclosed role in the Game of Thrones prequel series with Watts, Naomi Ackie, Denise Gough, Miranda Richardson, Josh Whitehouse, Sheila Atim, Ivanno Jeremiah, Alex Sharp and Toby Regbo.

Filmed in Northern Ireland in the summer of 2019, the pilot was set in Westeros during the Age of Heroes, suggesting that the show would likely take place alongside the events of The Long Night, the first battle against the White Walkers that led to the construction of the Wall to the North.

The official logline wrote, “The series chronicles the world’s descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour. And only one thing for sure: from the horrifying secrets of Westeros’ history to the true origin of the white walkers, the mysteries of the East to the Starks of legend… it’s not the story we think we know.”

Bower had ties with Game of Thrones. Earlier, he had been recruited as Waymar Royce for the opening sequence of the original unreleased Thrones pilot.

But HBO settled to not push through with that offshoot series concept and is instead centering on House of Dragons, another prequel series that drops this August 21 and happens during the time of the Targaryen rule in Westeros.

Bower is enjoying his character in the Stranger Things series as Vecna, the new demo creature secretly connected to the origins of the terrors in Hawkins.

“I’ve done things or not done things [in this industry],” he states. “I was born, and now I’m here doing this. Everything I’ve done in my life led to this particular moment talking to you right now on this camera. That’s really interesting to consider.”

Stranger Things is currently streaming on Netflix.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas Revealed their Baby Girl to the World

Music Observer Staff on July 11, 2022

In celebration of Mother’s Day, Nick Jonas and his wife Priyanka Chopra Jonas posted the first photo of their daughter.

The two have uploaded the same photo to their Instagram accounts – Priyanka carrying their baby girl (hiding the baby’s face) and her husband watching them. In January, the couple disclosed that they had their first child with a surrogate.

The caption read: “On this Mother’s Day, we can’t help but reflect on the past few months and the rollercoaster we were on, which we now know, that most people have ever experienced.”

“After 100 days at NICU, our little girl is back home,” the caption continued. “Each family’s journey is different and requires a certain amount of faith, and although ours was a few challenging months, the most obvious, in retrospect, is how precious and perfect you are every minute.”

Both expressed their gratitude to the doctors and nurses at Rady Children’s La Jolla and Cedar Sinai, Los Angeles. Jonas also left a special note for his wife.

“Father, you have inspired me in every way, and you take this new role lightly and firmly,” he wrote. “Thank you for being with me on this trip. She is now an amazing mother. Happy Mother’s Day. I love you. “

The couple began dating in May 2018, and a few months later, in July, Nick knelt to ask for Priyanka’s hand in Crete, Greece.

They finally tied the knot after a few months, and not just once but twice to honor their different beliefs: One at a Christian ceremony in Mumbai, India, and another at a traditional Hindu ceremony at Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur, in December 2018, holding four receptions and wearing a few dresses.

Indeed, the wedding was attended by close friends of the family.

Priyanka and Nick were able to organize multiple weddings in just two months with just a few hands on the porch – a whole team of stylists, organizers, and vendors.

“One thing you should know is that [Chopra’s] wedding was not planned months in advance or anything; it was less than two months, which is a strong framework for the bride,” said Vi India’s long-time stylist Ami Patel.

“It was a challenge, but Priyanka always challenged me, so I was not surprised.”

Even with their 10-year gap (Jonas 29 and Chopra Jonas 39), the couple’s relationship remains stronger than ever. During the episode of Jonas Brothers: Moments Between The Moments, Nick revealed the story of their relationship.

“I used to think I could just walk away, a million miles a minute. I think the last 18 months have taught me how to slow down a bit. In fact, enjoy being at home. When I met Priyanka and we started dating, one of the things we connected early on was that we both had a desire for prominence. And it is rooted and driven. How much we care about our work,” said Nick.

Priyanka replied, “You and I are building our marriage on the basis of our priorities. And it is really amazing to find a partner who puts us first. Our time. “

Photo: CNN