music

Hannah Britt answered the millennial call to see 90s heartthrobs the Backstreet Boys at their 10-night residency in Dusseldorf, and found it to be the very best tonic ☆☆☆☆☆

The new trend among some of the world’s biggest artists is turning concert-going into a musical pilgrimage. Indeed, from Celine Dion’s 26 nights in Paris, to Harry Styles‘ 12 at London’s Wembley Stadium, for many fans a gig ticket now comes with a city break.

Music residencies, which used to be the preserve of Las Vegas mega hotels, have hit the mainstream, with more and more acts opting to stay put and, instead of touring around from place to place, have their fans come directly to them. Talking about his run of Together, Together shows, Harry Styles explained that playing in one place instead of embarking on a traditional world tour would improve the quality of the performance and better support his personal wellbeing.

And the idea is catching. After a run of sold out shows at The Sphere in Las Vegas, everyone’s favourite 90s heartthrobs the Backstreet Boys announced 10 nights at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Dusseldorf, a location chosen as it was the first place the I Want It That Way band cracked outside of America.

A homecoming, they told fans. Wear white. The millennial in me couldn’t resist. I used to kiss a picture of Nick Carter before retiring to my bunk bed each night aged eight. This was my chance to see him in the flesh. What’s more, compared to Vegas, Dusseldorf was practically next door. I simply had to go. And I’m so pleased I did.

A residency turns a pop concert into a cultural phenomenon. I’ll admit, other than knowing Dusseldorf was in Germany, I didn’t know anything about it. But I diligently booked my flight, enlisting my best friend Emily to join the fun.

I saw my first Backstreet Boys T-shirt on the plane. And a quick glance around showed me it was not the only one. Millennial white and baby blue adorned many of the passengers before they’d even left Manchester airport, and their number would only grow as we landed.

Once in the passport control queue in Dusseldorf, the singing began. And by the time Emily and I reached the city centre, we had found full blown boyband mania. Checking into our hotel, the chic and homely 25hours Hotel Das Tour which I’d found on Tripadvisor, and which was situated to the north of the city centre, life size cardboard cutouts of Nick, Kevin, Brian, AJ and Howie greeted us, along with a cocktail list inspired by the band, and a playlist to match.

In the foyer, an excited throng of diamanté-bedazzled women in their 30s buzzed excitedly. With partners and kids at home, a deliciously childlike giddiness replaced the adulthood we’d left behind. I found myself wishing I’d brought blue eyeshadow and butterfly clips.

Venturing out in search of sustenance, Düsseldorf’s bustling centre delivered mania still. A huge hopeful crowd was gathered outside of the band’s hotel, Breidenbacher. In the old town, the city’s bars blasted out the band’s biggest hits, from Larger Than Life to Incomplete.

White and blue balloons decorated the banks of the Rhine, and in the Marktplatz square a Backstreet Boys experience and merch shop drew huge queues. If you’d come to Dusseldorf for a quiet city break you’d have been most confused. But for those of us there for the show, it all added to the fun.

I found the mania endearing. It was exciting, intoxicating. It reminded me of Manchester before Oasis’ comeback shows in the city last year, only with less guitars and more earnest key changes. Even Emily, who arrived knowing one Backstreet Boys song in total, soon declared her desire for a tour T-shirt.

With some time to kill before the main event, we explored the Dusseldorf. Lunch was mussels and chips at the chic Robert restaurant on the riverbank, and views came courtesy of a boat trip down the Rhine, booked with ease on Get Your Guide.

We then partook in what appeared to be the city’s main occupation – drinking beer. Dusseldorf’s Altstadt (Old Town) is famously known as the “longest bar in the world” (längste Theke der Welt) because it packs around 260 to 300 bars, pubs, clubs, and traditional breweries into a compact area of just half a square km. It was brilliant fun, set of course to an ever-present soundtrack of our favourite five piece.

Producing bobbles, we put our hair in 90s bunches. Back home we’d have drawn stares. In Dusseldorf when the population was at a rough estimate 96% Backstreet Boys fans, we looked like we belonged. As we walked back to 25hr we smiled as we heard screaming coming from the Breidenbacher. The Boys had emerged from the hotel to say hello.

That evening, before heading to the arena we went to The Paris Bar on the 17th floor of 25hr. I had a Brian, Emily a Nick. Then we made our way to the show. A sea of denim, white combat trousers and glitter guided us there.

As the Backstreet Boys took the stage, the mania came to a head, but so did the joy. So began a setlist stuffed with nostalgia, dance routines, and all their biggest hits. It was like an injection of pure serotonin. The ticket may have come with a city break attached, but it turned out to be the very best therapy. And as everyone’s favourite key change came in the closing bars of Drowning, you could feel 60,000 millennials healing their inner child all at once.

*For tickets, see here; for more information about 25hr Hotel Das Tour, see here; for more information about Get Your Guide, see here; and for all things Tripadvisor, see here

In 2011, Joe Kay debuted Soulection as a college radio show at Cal State Long Beach, spinning rare B-sides, progressive beats, inventive flips of classic records and soulful underground tracks.

Fifteen years later, the niche local broadcast on K-Beach Radio has ballooned into a cultural movement that extends far behind his alma mater’s campus. Beyond its flagship on Apple Music with nearly 750 episodes (Grammy-winning producer Swizz Beatz was a recent guest DJ), Soulection is also an independent record label, live event and clothing brand. Operating under the banner “the Sound of Tomorrow,” the collective championed artists like Kaytranada, Brent Faiyaz, Bryson Tiller and Snoh Aalegra before they were household names.

Still, Kay remains hungry for more. “There’s so much more to do,” says Kay, who released his first project “If Not Now, Then When?” last year.

“We’re at this breaking point of not just being underground,” he adds. “It’s like we’ve been D-1. We’ve been to the playoffs. Now we’re like how do we get to the championship and not just show up to the championship, how do we win?”

On Saturday, Kay and his tight-knit crew are celebrating Soulection’s 15th anniversary with a festival at Reframe Studios Outdoors in Atwater Village. The lineup includes DJ sets from Kay, Grammy-winning producer and artist Kaytranada, Sango, Esta, DJ Miss Milan (who DJs for Doechii), Ayanna Heaven and surprise guests. (Kay doesn’t even know who all will show up.)

Ahead of the hallmark event, Kay spoke about how he continues to find emerging talent when everyone’s an artist or DJ these days, building long-term staying power, his new dance music concept and why he’s nowhere near done pushing the limits of what Soulection can do.

Joe Kay and his team are celebrating 15 years of Soulection on Saturday at Reframe Studios Outdoors in Atwater Village.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

This weekend, you are celebrating the 15th anniversary of Soulection with several guests, including Kaytranda, who has been connected to the brand for years but has yet to be on an official Soulection lineup until now. What does this homecoming mean for you?

It’s special. Just having Kaytranada, it’s been long overdue but right on time, and to me that’s all that matters. About four years ago, we did a private party in L.A. in between Coachella, and it was him, Peggy Gou and myself, and it was a really cool party. So we played together, but in terms of a public, front-facing event, this is the first time he’s been on one of our lineups. What I appreciate about him is his work ethic. That man just doesn’t love to DJ, but this man works so hard. I work really hard, and then I see him and it makes me just want to go harder. This man is constantly on tour and he just finds a way to keep putting out music that people care about so much. I think that alignment between him, Esta and Sango is special. Even having Miss Milan, it’s one thing to be a DJ for someone like Doechii, but to also see what she does independently, I really admire that. There’s not a lot of women in the space who are moving like that and are recognized. She’s a boss on stage. Then, Ayanna Heaven is from New York, but she’s Jamaican and we’re lucky to have her.

What else can we expect at the show?

We’ll have a sunset set of Soulection and Friends, so special guests will pop out to do a couple songs. We’re not even sure who’s going to be popping out completely, but we have a handful of names and there’s some good people who I feel like have been part of the Soulection sound and Soulection radio. In London, people were like :We wanted a party. There were a lot of performances.” So now we’re giving people the party and we’re trying to move, but there will be a portion where everyone does a couple of songs. I love how we listen to feedback from one event and we make adjustments. I think that’s part of why we’re still around.

Soulection was pivotal in giving early platforms to artists like Brent Faiyaz, Bryson Tiller and Anderson .Paak before they became global superstars. What is your internal filter for spotting rising talent and has this changed over the years?

It’s a loaded question because talent and gifted people are everywhere. I find those people everyday. But in terms of who has the “it factor,” that one takes more layers. It’s not about “Does this person have to have that ‘factor’ for me to give them an opportunity or to be excited about them?” It’s more so an internal feeling. Nowadays, content is important so it’s the music and it’s mainly how they message themselves. How are they communicating their work, their vision and is it resonating with me? Then I scan their socials. I have no problem following anyone. I’m not one of those guys like “I have to have my following ratio at a certain amount and I’m too cool to follow you.” If I’m interested, I’m interested. I think today it takes a lot more to stand out. It’s a saturated [market], but I feel if you can break off and stand out now, it says a lot more than ever because everyone’s an artist and a DJ. Whereas 10 to 30-plus years ago, it was so much more of a rarity. It was a lot harder to be an artist so now that’s what makes it a bit more complicated.

It’s been over a year since you released your debut project “If Not Now, Then When?” You’ve talked about overcoming impostor syndrome to make it. What did you learn about yourself throughout the process?

It went by really quick. I’m really glad we dropped that project. It taught me a lot. When people ask, “So what do you do? Or can I find you on Apple or Spotify?” It’s nice to have something to direct people to outside of the radio show, there’s a body of work. I get emails every week of how many people are still discovering the music even though it might be old to us. Working on this project taught me a lot about accountability. I realized putting out a project as a label head and allowing artists to share their vision versus how I would do things are two different worlds even under Soulection. I’m so used to being on the executive or A&R side and letting people cook like “We’re here to help market it, but this is your work.” I honestly was proud of it because in my opinion “This is how I think you should do a rollout” and it was nice to show proof of concept. Also, working with all these great artists. I’m still in awe when I think about D-Mile being on two records. Bruno Mars is on tour right now, selling out SoFi Stadium. He’s doing like 8-10 times what we’re doing and D-Mile is a big part of his sound. To know we had him be a part of my project was a blessing and says a lot about the work that has been done.

Last year, you talked about potentially releasing an album this year. Are you still planning to do that?

It truly is extremely difficult to get a project done when you’re on tour and that’s why it didn’t get done. I did about 30 cities and when you’re going city to city, country to country, there’s really no time. When you’re putting together these projects, I feel like you have to literally be stationary for weeks at a time when you wake up and that’s all you think about. It’s very difficult when you’re stopping and going and nowadays. There’s a lot of chasing with the artists. Even if they are down, artists have their own projects, their own rollouts, their own tours. We’ve also been working on this 15-year celebration for the last year and a half, so I would say the album is the next focus.

You’ve been cooking up a new concept called Tempo. Can you tell us about that?

I’m very passionate about Tempo. If I could launch it today, I would. I’ve been using that word so much because I keep trying to tell people we’re trying to make people dance. If the women move and are having a good time, everyone’s moving. That’s why we love dancehall, Afrobeats, amapiano and now as we’ve seen in the last years, Afro House, and these other genres. It’s essentially dance music. I’m also very close to South Africa, specifically Cape Town and Johannesburg. That’s a place I’ve been going since 2015 and I’ve built a really good connection with people out there. As these new subgenres started to come out in like 2018, I’ve been very passionate and researching that music. A couple years ago, I was there and I curated these shows with some really great local artists and producers. I’m just very passionate about trying to push those artists to a higher scale. Imagine Brent [Faiyaz], Leon [Thomas], SiR or Snoh Aalegra or Kwn, hearing their vocals on an Afro House record or just the right tune that has that tempo. Now all of a sudden, you have Shimza, Keinemusik or Francis Mercier playing the records in front of 30,000 to 50,000 people. I feel like we have those relationships with the artists. They need to be told like, “This is who you need to work with. Trust me.” Then bringing them together and not feeling like we have to make it pop or saturate the music or make the drums lighter and more radio-friendly. I think we do it in an organic Soulection style. To me, that’s really the goal of Tempo. It’s not just an event, but it’s also like a sub label of Soulection that focuses on electronic music, a lot of Afro electronic music but not just that — just house music in general. There’s no boxes or boundaries to it. If it moves you, we’re going to put it out.

Joe Kay will be DJing alongside Kaytranda, Sango, Esta, DJ Miss Milan and Ayanna Heaven at the Soulection anniversary show on Saturday.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Looking back on the last 15 years, what are you most proud of what you’ve built with Soulection?

There’s a couple things. One, it’s nice to have my team who have been with us for over a decade. It’s a testament to what we’ve built, that people still want to be here. It makes me feel good that I have a loyal group of people who are my friends, who I’m grateful to call my family and who go up to bat for me and the team everyday. It’s not easy. Now that we’re older, I feel like, we choose to be here. Secondly, to think about all the artists and collectives that have been motivated by Soulection and have gone on to create their own businesses or have gone on to sign to agencies or get a manager. To know they were listening to Soulection at one point, that’s all it was meant to be — to inspire. It’s not about being on Soulection, it’s more of how do you take this motivation and create your own. It’s nice to be a part of that, but also they did the work.

That’s cool because it makes me think of how you were heavily inspired by labels like Stones Throw. You wanted to intern for them, but ended up creating your own thing and now Soulection is a blueprint for others.

I’m still inspired by Stones Throw. They literally just hit 30 years, so they’re literally two times what we’re doing. That had me thinking like, “Damn, what are we at year 30?” To see them still doing it, it’s very admirable. To be [a blueprint] is still great, but I don’t feel complacent. We just feel like there’s so much more to do. You asked, “How do I stay excited to show up to work everyday amongst all the craziness” and I think it’s my curiosity. I’m just grateful to provide for my family and for so many others for just doing something that I love everyday. Being about music, arts and highlighting people, that’s a blessing. I think we can take that for granted, but I don’t and I really do wake up everyday like, “How are we going to change someone’s life?” That’s the best part about it.

A couple of years ago, in a column about Father Greg Boyle, I noted that he is quite particular and even a bit preachy about the right way to eat a steak.

It should be medium rare, never well-done, and served with a proper elixir.

Doors drummer John Densmore took note. One thing led to another, and in July, Densmore, Boyle, former Times reporter Greg Krikorian and I went to dinner at the Smoke House in Burbank.

We did not necessarily follow Boyle’s meat and beverage protocols, but we jabbered away in a red leather booth, and a good time was had by all.

Then, in August, I got an email from Boyle.

“John walks into the Homeboy Art Academy,” he wrote, “and starts jamming as the homies are playing ‘Stand By Me.’”

Boyle sent a short video, and there’s Densmore, still keeping perfect time at 81.

John Densmore enjoys an upbeat moment while teaching a music class at Homeboy Art Academy.

I wasn’t surprised. Densmore’s a busy guy, with various charitable causes and artistic ventures. He and former Public Enemy rapper Chuck D just fused music genres on an album called “No Country for Old Men.” But he’s an admirer of Boyle and his decades-long mission of gang intervention and rehabilitation.

“Hey,” Densmore told the musicians he played with that day, “maybe I can do something here.”

He suggested that he return and stage a music workshop or a drum circle.

They said of course.

On Wednesday, before the music began, Densmore insisted that I see the Homeboy Art Academy, whose founder is artist Fabian Debora.

“I grew up in the projects when Father Greg first came in,” Debora told me, referring to Homeboy’s early days in the 1980s, when Boyle was pastor of Dolores Mission Church in Boyle Heights. “Through the arts, I found my way to healing and transformation. Then I said, ‘How can I fulfill a need that was missing in my life?’”

The answer is the academy he now runs with Dre Comers, located near Metro’s Chinatown station, providing art instruction to tens of thousands of people. On Wednesday, teachers were busy helping students with artwork in various stages of completion, including a painting of Boyle with a halo.

Most of the participants are young adults, many of whom were born decades after the Doors’ last album was released. One student, in his 20s, welcomed us and asked Densmore what he was known for.

“I’m a drummer,” Densmore said.

He was known to far more people in the music room, including longtime musician/instructors Joe Calderon and Martin Flores. They’re part of the Young Musicians Foundation’s Music Heals program, funded in large part by legendary songwriter Mike Stoller, who co-wrote dozens of hit songs including “Jailhouse Rock,” “Hound Dog,” “Poison Ivy” and “Stand by Me.”

The latter song appears on a brand new “Music Heals” album designed by art academy participants and released Tuesday, so with Densmore’s arrival on Wednesday, it was a big week for Homeboy arts.

“When you’re playing music,” Densmore told about 30 students and instructors, you can enter a state of timelessness. “It’s kind of like a meditation … A little bit of infinity creeps in … And everybody can get into that space. If you want to be a professional musician, cool. If you wind up playing the piano in a closet and nobody hears it, you’re still getting into this space that kind of heals and feeds you.”

And then it was concert time, with Densmore on drums and instructors Calderon on guitar, Flores on percussion and Mackenzie Azela on bass. Fabian Debora Jr. (bass and vocals) and Ralph Quintero (vocals) are both in the Homeboy rehabilitation program.

The band kicked off with a blues number called “Got My Mojo Working,” then it was Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” followed by Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love.”

It all went off pretty smoothly for a group that hadn’t worked together except for a quick minute on Densmore’s previous visit. The musicians were smiling, the spectators tapped and clapped, and that magical sense of timelessness was real, spanning multiple generations.

In a place filled with people confronting the challenge of rebuilding their lives, the lyrics of one particular song were a reverie.

No, I won’t be afraid.

Oh, I won’t be afraid.

Just as long as you stand by me.

Doors drummer John Densmore, right, leads a jam session while teaching a music class at Homeboy Art Academy in downtown Los Angeles.

Debora Jr., 27, told me it was pretty cool to be playing with a member of the Doors, a band he knew about through his elders. Quintero, 50, who is studying psychology and wants to be a drug counselor, said he still couldn’t believe he had just performed with a member of the Doors.

“It’s an honor,” he said.

Everyone in the room grabbed either shakers or a small drum, and with Densmore instructing and conducting, the ensemble conjured what he called the heartbeat of Mother Earth. The music rose and fell, rose and fell as the players became one, followed by an orchestrated hush that served as a silent accent.

“Like sex,” Densmore said.

He moved on to a brief Q&A, and one of the first questions was about what it was like to be around Doors lead man Jim Morrison.

“I miss his artistry,” Densmore said. “I don’t miss his self-destruction. So I’m 81. He died at 27. And there’s different ways to do this. Hopefully you guys will keep on breathing like I am.”

As Densmore packed up his things, a young man named Jeremiah asked the drummer if he’d record a short video for the family of his girlfriend. She had just lost her grandfather, a longtime Doors fan.

“That was their go-to music, every car trip,” Jeremiah said.

He sent the clip to his girlfriend and asked her what the family’s favorite songs were. “Riders on the Storm” was one. Along with “Break on Through,” “Touch Me,” and “L.A. Woman.”

John Densmore, right, congratulates musicians Joe Calderon, from left, Fabian Debora Jr., with bass, and Ralph Quintero after they performed.

At Homeboy, Boyle’s mission has been twofold, in a sense. To show love to his charges while preparing them for lives unlike the ones they’ve known. And through his books and teachings, to remind us all that we belong to each other.

There was a bit of that gospel in the note that Flores, program director at Music Heals, sent Densmore after his visit. He thanked him, telling Densmore he had “provided our students with not only an incredible artistic experience, but also a deep sense of connection, inspiration and hope as they navigate their journeys.”

Densmore answered immediately.

“I think I might have gotten more out of it than I gave.”

steve.lopez@latimes.com

OLIVIA DEAN may be the queen of singing about self-worth, but she won’t be feeling the love right now.

The British chart-topper is facing a messy legal battle after being sued over her song I’ve Seen It.

A fresh lawsuit has been filed claiming she copied the melody of Bill Withers’ 1981 soul classic Just The Two of Us.

Publishers of the late singer’s catalogue allege Olivia’s track, which appears on her album The Art Of Loving, “shares musical features so striking” that they cannot be by chance.

Rather than going after Olivia or her co-writers directly, the lawsuit lists Olivia’s American record label Capitol Records and its parent company Universal Music Group as the defendants.

The song has been streamed 246million times on Spotify alone.

‘WHO HURT HER?’

Emotional moment Olivia Dean breaks down in tears during love song onstage

OFFER DEAN-IED

Olivia Dean turns down Glastonbury as other Brit set to be named headliner

In comparison, Bill’s hit has 948million global streams.

Talking about penning the emotional track, Olivia previously said: “I’d had a lot of red wine.

“When I heard it back for the first time, I burst into tears.

“It felt like the loveliest note to end on.

“Whether it’s within your friends, your family, or just the love that exists in the strangers around you, it’s there, and it’s inside of you, too.”

APPRENTICE DUO LAND SWEET GIG

IT may sound like a flaky idea, but Apprentice star Lawrence Rosenberg will dress up as a croissant to launch a new bakery.

He is reuniting with Kieran McCartney Jones, his fellow competitor on the BBC One show, at Tuesday’s opening of Signorelli Broadgate in London.

And the pair will replicate the street-trader energy they wowed with on TV.

They gained an army of fans selling out supplies of their team’s carbonara at Greenwich Market this year in Lord Sugar’s talent hunt.

I don’t doubt they’ll make this stunt a success, too.

At the bakery, Lawrence will swap the egg costume he wore during the Apprentice challenge for a croissant outfit. He told me: “We’ll be begging for tips like Lord Sugar’s watching.

“I’ll be dressed in a croissant costume and you can even pretend to be Baroness Brady and mark our performance.”

Sounds like a recipe for making dough . . . 

CONGRATULATIONS to Chris Martin and Coldplay.

Their 2000 hit Yellow has just passed 4 BILLION streams on Spotify. It’s their first song to achieve this, but I’m sure it won’t be their last.

Viva La Vida isn’t far behind on 3.5 billion. No wonder they sold out ten nights at Wembley last summer.

AUSSIE rapper Iggy Azalea is plotting a comeback.

Sliding into Instagram DMs, Iggy wrote: “I stepped away from music for a long time, but now I’m back in the studio, this felt like the right place to share my journey.”

Iggy has had huge hits with the likes of Rita Ora and Britney Spears previously.

LILY STEPS UP DOWN UNDER

LILY ALLEN is legging it Down Under.

The Smile singer shows off her pins in an arty shoot after wrapping up the UK and US legs of her West End Girl show.

Lily is enjoying a break before returning to the stage in Auckland, New Zealand, on October 21.

She will then play six shows across Australia – belting out the brutal album about her divorce from Stranger Things actor David Harbour.

Lily said: “Doing the shows feels like an act of storytelling.

“It’s almost like I’m in a play every night, because I have to brush myself down and take myself back to a time and a place that isn’t now.

“It doesn’t really feel like it’s about me any more. It’s about other women who have experienced something similar.”

PIXIE SHOWS A LOTTA STYLE

PIXIE LOTT looks fashionable as ever as she heads home from another night on stage.

Dressed in a quirky jacket and tiny hotpants, Pixie strutted through London’s West End.

She’s currently starring in Who Killed Marilyn? At the Emerald Theatre.
Pixie plays the lead role of movie legend Marilyn Monroe, who died in 1962 aged just 36.

Talking about Marilyn, she said: “I grew up loving her. She was very strong and intelligent and witty.

“This whole story is told from her perspective.”

SUPERSTAR Ariana Grande is rumoured to be releasing a remix of a track from her hit album Petal.

In February 2024, she teamed up with Mariah Carey for a remix of her hit single Yes, And?

Previously, Ari featured on The Weeknd’s 2021 remix of Save Your Tears.

If she does have something in the works, I see history repeating itself.

DECEMBER 10’S HAIRY NIGHT OUT

DECEMBER 10 are going from strength to strength, but four of the lads were in for a fright this week ahead of Halloween.

John, Hendrik, Cruz, and Nicolas were seen at the scare mazes at Thorpe Park’s Fright Nights.

Simon Cowell‘s boyband have a busy winter of gigs ahead including in London and Birmingham.

Not bad for a band many thought wouldn’t amount to much.

It was Disney Day at Sierra Canyon High, so standout sophomore linebacker Eli Zamorano showed up at football practice wearing Mickey Mouse ears atop his head on Monday.

Walking past, teammates either stared or smiled at the ears.

“He’s a kid who beats to his own drum,” coach Jon Ellinghouse said.

It makes perfect sense, for it was Zamorano as a freshman who was walking in rain and freezing temperatures last November on the field two hours before Sierra Canyon’s playoff game against Santa Margarita going through his pregame routine listening to music from Nirvana and not letting any elements disrupt him.

“I’m not gonna let the weather determine my pregame,” he said. “And I’m actually used to the cold experience. My dad taught me to swim in cold water. That’s who I am.”

At 6 feet 2, 205 pounds, Zamorano is showing signs of becoming one of the best linebackers in the state for a 5-0 Sierra Canyon team that opens Mission League play on Friday against Loyola. He can be the player who’s in on every tackle up the middle or the player covering running backs out of the backfield. He watched his brother, Roman, now at Air Force, play for the Trailblazers last season at middle linebacker and has been taught by his father, Antonio, a former Garfield football player, to focus on toughness and fundamentals.

“It’s the mental toughness our dad taught both of us,” he said. “He played old-school football.”

Linebacker Eli Zamorano wearing his Mickey Mouse ears on Disney Day at Sierra Canyon.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

His father became a doctor, his mother a lawyer. They’ve shown their boys a path to success but each must find their own way, though having a doctor in the family while playing football is pretty neat.

“When we were little, 7 or 8 years old, he would take us to see his patients at the hospital,” Zamorano said. “So we learned a lot there. It’s like we have free health care. He walks in our room and feels the [ankle]. He knows what the risks are.”

Zamorano can play the ukulele, listens to music created years ago and doesn’t pay attention to what others think.

“I would like to say I’m a very enthusiastic kid,” he said. “I still like to live life to its fullest. I’m not going to let any outside voices determine what makes me, me. I kind of don’t listen to the music that people do nowadays, and a lot of people call me out. It makes me Eli. And you know, it’s just who I am.”

When he was 15, he spent nearly three months living in Rapa Nui, one of the world’s most remote Polynesian islands. His grandmother was born there. It’s also known as Easter Island and is a special territory of Chile. There’s wilderness, beautiful beaches, amazing sunsets and time for a teenager to reflect on the future.

“I was down there training hard, learning more about my culture, where my family’s from,” he said. “I actually did dancing. It was a really fun experience.”

Whether walking in freezing rain without an umbrella or wearing Mickey Mouse ears around campus, Zamorano always knows what he’s doing.

“A couple girls said they were cute,” he said of his borrowed ears.

Who’s going to question Zamorano’s choices now?

Sept. 30, 2026 3:01 AM PT

Summer mornings in the Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh are a respite from the dissonance of honking cars and construction of the capital city of Dhaka. It was a welcome change to hear chickens and the sound of … wait, was that Julie Andrews’ voice echoing over the hills?

I was visiting my home country when I heard a group of schoolchildren playing ektaras, a traditional string instrument, and singing the “Do-Re-Mi” song for their morning assembly.

I used my phone to show them a picture of Andrews. “Do you know her?” They immediately leaped in excitement. They didn’t know the composer Richard Rodgers or lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. But they knew Andrews — even though 60 years have passed since “The Sound of Music” and these children live in a remote Bangladeshi village. The recognition is evidence of something extraordinary.

Andrews is turning 91 on Thursday, and there are calls online to bubble wrap her, just in case. She is indeed a global treasure, and she has been earning plaudits and admirers for eight decades.

Andrews trained in the Italian bel canto tradition and from a young age sang challenging coloratura arias with precision, clarity and range. The bright, happy tone, perhaps a subconscious decision rather than anatomical alone, provided her respite from the doodlebug bombs that fell during her childhood in England in World War II. British critics had dubbed her as the “youngest prima donna,” a title usually reserved for opera greats, and it wasn’t undeserved. At just 12, she routinely floated high Fs above the treble staff during live performances.

Yet before opera could claim her, Broadway stepped in. From “The Boy Friend” to “My Fair Lady” and then “Camelot,” she won the hearts of theater goers and creators alike. Lyricist Alan Lerner described her as “an amazingly quick study in music … who meets any challenge with an unabated eyelid that makes you wonder how Britain ever lost the empire.”

Her voice then was so precise that the late maestro André Previn, who led the London Symphony Orchestra, proclaimed: “No one’s diction in any field of singing can come close. … You understand every syllable from the second balcony — I don’t understand how you do that.”

It’s inaccurate to romanticize her legacy in 2026 as simply nostalgic. That would overlook the depth and progressive nature of her characters. She was essentially the first female superhero on the big screen, as Mary Poppins — who could fly and create alternate realities with the snap of her heels, but whose more stunning superpower at the height of the Cold War was to charmingly portray capitalism as dangerous.

In “Victor/Victoria,” she navigated a gender-bending performance that challenged societal norms, playing a woman who impersonates a man impersonating a woman when it was taboo to speak about any layer of that. Her most overlooked and perhaps her best dramatic role was in “Duet for One,” a 1986 film about a musician who suffers from multiple sclerosis. Tragically this became a moment of life imitating art, foreshadowing her own destiny to lose her instrument after throat surgery in 1997.

Rather than retreat, Andrews adjusted and leaned into voice acting with characters like the dominant Queen Lillian in “Shrek” films, Gru’s hilariously villainous mother in “Despicable Me” and the mysterious Lady Whistledown in “Bridgerton,” for which she won an Emmy, twice.

In real life, the flying super governess fought to adopt two babies from Vietnam just after the fall of Saigon, helping to raise awareness of the need for adoptive parents. She then co-founded the Operation USA disaster relief charity and opened the Japanese wing for the United Nations Development Fund for Women.

Whether it was to support UNICEF after the devastating Bhola cyclone hit present-day Bangladesh in 1970 or jetting to Jordan and Senegal to support women’s and children’s activities, she was a quiet champion for the underserved. In her most famous role, in “The Sound of Music,” she was a savior for children being displaced by war.

Andrews is mostly out of the public eye, but her singing is eternal and accessible. YouTube is home to a trove of Andrews performances, including “This Is My Beloved” from “Kismet,” full-voiced “When You Wish Upon a Star,” from pianissimos to fortes, high B-flats and all — her classical skill shines through. These recordings remind us that beyond just the formulaic legato phrasing that singers from the Italian tradition follow, and the clear resonance, her work it set a gold standard for musical storytelling that few have surpassed since.

Julie Andrews is no longer trilling on the Alps, nor is she reprising her role as queen of Genovia in a “Princess Diaries” film, but her voice, and what it represented for more than 80 years, endures. It lives on not just in films and recordings but also ringing in the minds of children and adults alike, from her hometown of Walton-on-Thames to the Hill Tracts of Bangladesh. In an age of doom scrolling (and alarmingly low singing standards), her vast career offers a rare resonance and a continuing masterclass.

Shams-il Arefin Islam, a Yale-Berkeley College associate fellow who works on climate mitigation and adaptation, is a classically trained tenor.

Earlier this summer, Akriila flew to Los Angeles and played two nights at the Roxy in West Hollywood. At 22, the Chilean singer-songwriter, most identifiable by her fire engine red tresses, is one of the most visionary newcomers in the latest wave of post-urbano Latin artists.

Fittingly, Akriila kick-started her career with a trap mixtape. The most-streamed tracks on her debut, 2024’s dazzling “Epistolares,” favor a progressive reggaeton vein. She also collaborated with Milo J on “Llora Llora” — a folksy lullaby off the Argentine rapper’s masterpiece “La Vida Era Más Corta.”

“Hot gays listen to Akriila” became a celebrated slogan on social media.

Turns out she was just getting started. Released Sept. 3, her latest album, “Lucy Miró al Mundo y Notó Que Está Girando” — its title a delicious riff on Beatles lore — eschews reggaeton altogether, in favor of a hallucinogenic collage of shoegaze, electronic glitch pop and South American roots sounds.

A guidepost of Chilean hyper-pop, it is also a heart-wrenching mash of tenderness and distortion. The lyrics describe the trauma of a recent transition, after she left her father’s home and ventured to live on her own — and though she’s now an established artist signed to Atlantic Records, her music is still aching and vulnerable.

“She is a reference point for all of us in contemporary music,” says producer Diego Raposo, a Dominican tastemaker who featured Akriila on his 2023 debut album. “I believe we’re witnessing something that we’ll probably never see again. Her music reminds me of Björk, Aphex Twin, even Shakira — but it’s also incredibly fresh and original.”

A few days before traveling to London for her inaugural European tour, Akriila spoke to De Los about the seduction of second verses, her obsession with ’90s dream pop and the growing pains of living alone.

This is such a dreamlike record. Was that intentional?
I wanted it to feel not necessarily ethereal, but hazy, like you’re inside a bubble. I love the way my voice is processed, sharing the space with so many layers. It’s really cool when the vocals are part of a track instead of lying there in the center of the mix.

I was your age in the ’90s, and this album has a very strange emotional effect on me: It reminds me of what it felt like to be in my 20s, listening to dream pop for the first time.
That makes perfect sense, and it connects with a favorite exercise of mine: Every week — ideally, every day — I listen to a full album from beginning to end. I started with new releases, but then set my sights on the classics.

The Sundays’ [1990 masterpiece] “Reading, Writing and Arithmetic” was the album that opened up the space mentally for what I wanted to do. I always say that I make alternative pop. I start with something that’s catchy and easily digestible, and then mix it with sounds that feel uncomfortable. As I was starting to work on this album, I listened to the Sundays, the Cardigans, and every single record that Prince ever made.

I can definitely feel the ’90s vibe in the closing track, “Lucy.” It’s gorgeous.
That’s inspired by the Sundays’ “Gone,” and the drums sound like Cocteau Twins. I love the art of collage — stealing from different artists, but doing it my way. There are samples of PJ Harvey, Patti Smith, but also Rosalía. When I make videos, I’m always thinking of something that MTV would have played back in the day.

I keep thinking of this record as a concept album, even though the actual concept is more of a feeling than anything else.
I totally get you. It’s not an album like the Who’s “Tommy” — an actual musical that takes the conceptual deal to another level. I feel we’ve forgotten the art of making albums now that we’re so focused on playlists and TikTok. I invest a lot of effort in making my albums conceptual, since I’m not into records that are random collections of tracks. “Epistolares” was all about sending letters and dedications. The deluxe version was more sentimental. This one is a concept album for sure. I could outline in detail why every moment of the record happens when it does.

The bridge on “Abrázame” is incredibly romantic.
That bit really freaked me out in a good way. It was shorter at first, but then I asked [producer] Vinco to make it longer. Those guitars on the bridge are the most beautiful thing he’s ever done. The contradiction of “Abrázame” is that everyone kept telling me that it should continue going up and explode at the end, but I had already overused that device on “Epistolares.” So I did the opposite and gave it a happy ending. That ethereal, ambient thing at the end kills me.

Talking about songwriting devices, here’s a trademark Akriila move: A song may be moving forward, and suddenly there’s a fracture — everything breaks and decomposes. Why?
I think I have ADHD and need things to be constantly changing. I’ve tried to make songs that are plain, but I just can’t do it. My favorite part of songwriting is working on the second verse. You’ve already presented the main idea and shown what the chorus is like. On the second verse you can change the beat or the lyrics, and do anything you like. [Producer] Clemente is just like me in that respect. Sometimes we take things to the limit, and then step back. It’s one of the great things about my creative team: We’re not married to the demos. We may do five versions of the same tune until it sounds right.

Your Chilean roots shine through on “Partedemipartedeti.” I listened to those folk bits and thought: Here’s someone who grew up listening to Los Jaivas and Inti-Illimani.
When I first started obsessing about music, the stuff that I liked was all in Spanish. I listened to tons of records from Chile, Argentina and Mexico. “Carta a Mi Papá” is like a traditional balada from Chile. I stole those chords from “Quizás, Porque” by [Argentine supergroup] Sui Generis. I listened to a lot of Pescado Rabioso when I was a teen. My partner has a cassette deck in her car, and she’s always playing [Charly García’s] “Piano Bar.” I don’t identify only with Chilean music. It’s more of a música latinoamericana thing. I don’t think gringos are that good in the lyric writing department. Artists like Bandalos Chinos, Alex Anwandter and Zoé are really great composers.

Do you think you’re an old soul?
People always tell me that [smiles]. We’re a team of three; I think Clemente is a really young soul. Vinco and I are the old ones.

Before making this record, you stopped living with your dad, moved to a place of your own, and experienced a time of profound loneliness. What does your father think of the finished album?
He loves it. He is a musician himself, and it must have been hard for him when we started living apart. It was also difficult for me to get home and feel so lonely because there was no one waiting for me anymore. My dad still comes to my place once a week; he doesn’t want to bother me, so he leaves food in the reception area. It’s his way of making sure that I’m doing fine.

RITA Ora pulls up her socks and shows off her ’80s moves.

The singer and actress, 35, was seen dressed in long woollen socks and orange shoes as she shot the video to new single All Natural — directed by hubby Taika Waititi.

Like Jennifer Lopez’s 2003 video to I’m Glad, it is inspired by the 1983 movie Flashdance.

She posted pics and footage online, with the caption: “Talk to me.”

Her fourth album is expected out next year.

Speaking to Bizarre’s Jack at a London screening to mark the 10th anniversary of his hit film, Hunt For The Wilderpeople, Taika said Rita’s long-awaited album was “amazing”.

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He added: “This new record is incredible. I’ve heard a lot of it.

“It was such a departure from stuff that she’s probably known mostly for. It’s a different sound.”

Taika directed the sultry video for Rita’s latest ­single, All Natural, and also directed and starred in the video for 2023’s Don’t Think Twice.

Getting Oscar-winner Taika to work on your project can’t come cheap, but Taika assured us with a wink that he and Rita had come to an arrangement.

He chuckled: “There is a very mates’ rates deal going on. I think it’s been free each time. It’s just fun to get to work together.

“It’s great because we’re kind of in similar ­industries, but they’re very different disciplines – and when you’re with someone, you want to be able to do some work together.

“I’m really amazed and surprised at what she does, but also super- confused all the time.”

“Heartwarming” is a cliche of theater reviewing that I have studiously tried to avoid, but I’m tempted to use the word in my review of “Begin Again,” the new musical based on the 2013 John Carney romantic comedy about two dreamers trying to rekindle the love of making music that the industry nearly destroyed.

The show, which is having its world premiere at the Old Globe’s Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage, is just so damn heartwarming that I can’t help but resort to the language of blurbs. But let the ticket buyer beware: Heartwarming is a feeling, not a complete verdict.

Featuring a book by Jenna Clark Embrey and Molly Beach Murphy and a score by Pat Monahan and his bandmates from Train (Jerry Becker and Matt Musty), “Begin Again” does a pretty good job of distilling and updating the movie. Carney’s film, notable mostly for the vibrantly gritty New York setting, the Oscar-nominated song “Lost Stars” and the lived-in performance of Mark Ruffalo, couldn’t help languishing in the shadow of the filmmaker’s breakout hit “Once,” which later became a Tony-winning musical.

“Begin Again” the musical is likely to suffer a similar fate. It lacks the quirky originality that made “Once” an unexpected Broadway juggernaut. But the new show, directed by Lorin Latarro and choreographed by David Neumann, has heart — there I go with that overused word again!

I succumbed to the show’s charms despite being aware that the comedy isn’t as freshly articulated as it should be and the music, while exuberant, doesn’t seem to emanate from the soul of Gretta, a reworked American version of the singer-songwriter character indifferently played by Keira Knightley in the movie.

Emma Busse as Gretta, center left, and Kevin William Paul as Max with the cast of “Begin Again.”

(Jeff Lorch)

Gretta relates to her songs as though she were the next Joni Mitchell, but the new material she’s composing on the fly with her new friends doesn’t seem particularly intimate or revealing. I liked the indie rock sound, but mostly for the collaborative liftoff. Lyrically, I wasn’t drawn in. But who could resist the ecstatic momentum of her ad hoc band members buying into her grassroots dream?

Gretta, played with folksy innocence by Emma Busse, has traveled to New York from Pennsylvania with her boyfriend Max (Kevin William Paul). A musician with frontman good looks, he’s about to be packaged into a rock star. Gretta’s songwriting has paved the way for this opportunity, but Max is told that he’s being signed as a singer-songwriter and sharing credit is a deal-breaker.

Selfless, naive Gretta gives Max her blessing and her rights, and almost immediately he betrays her with another woman. Perhaps even more disloyally, he allows his producers to run her song “Don’t Let Go” through a pop blender that drains it of all its personal meaning and artistic integrity.

Alone in the big city, she takes refuge at the Queens apartment of college friend Stevie (Casey Whyland), formerly Steve in the movie, the comic sidekick role played by James Corden. Stevie, conveniently, is a sound engineer with an analog heart. She’s not only how Dan (an electric Patrick Heusinger), a washed-up music executive with a broken marriage and a drinking problem, discovers Gretta. But without Stevie’s technical ingeniousness, the prospect of recording an album in outdoor New York locations would never have been possible.

The professional meet-cute between Gretta and Dan happens at an open-mic night at a dive. Stevie calls a heartbroken Gretta to the stage to perform, and she reluctantly complies before giving up in embarrassment. She thinks she’s bombed, but Dan, who has “magic ears,” hears what the song could be.

Patrick Heusinger as Dan, left, and Adrienne Walker as Miriam with the cast of “Begin Again.”

(Jeff Lorch)

Just as Dan glimpses Gretta’s raw potential, she sees his lost purpose, and the two launch a mutual rescue mission. He brings Gretta to meet Saul (Nik Walker), who co-founded Distressed Records with him and just fired him for his erratic behavior. Saul doesn’t have Dan’s ability to spot future talent, but he agrees to give the singer a listen if they cut a demo. And so off Dan and Gretta go, with no budget, to make memorable music together.

Friends are their main resource — and that proves an inexhaustible boon. “Begin Again” really comes alive as Gretta, Dan and their expanding, can-do music network starts pooling its expertise.

You can hear the songs germinating from lonely inspiration to group transformation — and the sound is exhilarating. The process of songwriting, rather than being a solitary slog, is a collective joy, rapturously captured in the number “Write a Way.” And “Twilight Summer Sky,” the number performed on the rooftop of Stevie’s apartment building in Queens, represents perhaps the fruit of all the group’s effort.

“Begin Again” is a musical fantasy, not a work of realism. Gretta and Dan are seemingly brought together by fate to heal one another. As they separately go about their business in New York before they’re introduced, they continually pass like ships in the night in a New York that scenic designer Derek McLane summons in a shifting comic-strip landscape of high-rises that gives the city an industrial quaintness.

The action rewinds from Gretta and Dan’s initial meeting at the bar, and later fast–forwards to speed up some of the more boring bits of the album-writing process. The ensemble moves backward and forward with these narrative jump-cuts.

This literalness can seem overly cute. (I prefer the idiosyncratic yet fully integrated movement direction Steven Hoggett brought to John Tiffany’s Broadway production of “Once.”) But Latarro’s staging and Neumann’s choreography keep the storytelling moving at a pleasantly brisk clip. And Skylar Fox’s illusion design adds an element of visual sorcery.

The cast of “Begin Again.”

(Jeff Lorch)

It’s the actors, however, who elevate the material, supplying a depth of feeling where the writing offers something more general. Heusinger makes it possible to leave Ruffalo’s fine portrayal behind. This is a different and more dynamic Dan, at least in terms of the musical demands placed on the character. Paul’s Max is every bit a rock star, but Dan is convincing as both a burned-out music mogul with a self-sabotaging streak and a gifted artist in his own right who just needs someone to believe in his producing instincts again.

Adrienne Walker, who plays Miriam, Dan’s estranged wife, and Charlotte MacLeod, who plays Violet, Dan’s disaffected daughter, endow their characters with more lineaments than the book provides. Walker’s Saul doesn’t do what Yasiin Bey managed in the movie — make Distressed Records seem like a real New York record company — but his singing compensates for some of the clumsier aspects of his reduced role.

Whyland’s Stevie, serving as emcee when the occasion calls for one, combines genuine camaraderie with comic relief. The gender switch makes sense, and Whyland embodies the spirit of artistic cooperation that makes “Begin Again” such an invigorating experience.

I wish that the musical didn’t amplify Gretta’s artistic insecurities and distress over the breakup with Max. The character seems less self-assured and more wounded than she did in the movie, making her fervently held idealistic beliefs about creative independence seem borrowed from another character. But Busse brings an American innocence to the role, and her ardor about music and community seems genuine.

“Begin Again” transcends its limitations through the kinetic connection of the cast. When all the elements of the music come together, a triumphant feeling — call it uplift — charges the air.

TAYLOR Swift debuted Patient Zero music video at the MTV Video Music Awards after accepting a massive honor.

The Fate of Ophelia singer accepted the first-ever Artist Director Honor at the annual awards ceremony on Sunday.

Taylor’s good friend, Dakota Johnson, who also stars in the music video for her new single Patient Zero, presented her with the award.

The global pop star kept her acceptance speech short and sweet before introducing the world premiere of the highly anticipated music video.

She shared a teaser of the video, which also stars Colin Farrell, on Friday, before announcing that all will be revealed during Sunday’s ceremony.

Fans were taken aback by the video’s grim twist, as she portrayed Colin’s character’s deceased former partner, but it overall received rave reviews online.

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“Taylor really wanted to team up with MTV to do something to celebrate the release of Patient Zero,” a source told Page Six about Taylor’s VMAs appearance.

“They created this award just for her. It’s their first time handing out this award.

The insider also said that the “timing made sense,” given the release of Taylor’s latest single, alongside three other new tracks.

The four new songs are a part of The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, an extended deluxe edition of her 2025 album, The Life of a Showgirl.

“She really wanted to be there, and the network wanted to figure out a moment in the show that was special to her where she wasn’t just in the background, so MTV made this moment happen,” the source added about the collaboration.

Taylor, 36, was one of the last to arrive on the red carpet at Peacock Theater in Los Angeles in a stunning black and silver gown.

Her husband, NFL tight end Travis Kelce, 36, skipped the event to play with the Kansas City Chiefs in their game against the Miami Dolphins in Florida earlier in the day.

While Taylor has supported her man on the sidelines since the football season began, she couldn’t miss this night as she was the first recipient of the Artist Director Honor.

This marked the singer’s 31st Moon Man trophy, breaking her tie with Beyoncé for the most VMA wins.

The vocalist was also nominated for nine other awards – the second-most of the night behind Madonna, who had 11 nominations – and won the Video of the Year award.

Taylor has kept a lower profile since her and Travis’s extravagant July 4th wedding.

MOST AWARDED ARTISTS IN VMA HISTORY

Since the iconic MTV Video Music Awards first premiered to shake up pop culture in 1984, artists across all genres have tried their best to score the coveted Moonman trophy. Here are the top 10 musician’s who have taken home the most hardware:

• Taylor Swift – 31 wins: Taylor is now the most-awarded artist in VMA history. She has won Video of the Year five times, including for her hit All Too Well, and picked up a record nine awards in one night for Midnights in 2023.
• Beyoncé – 30 wins: Beyoncé’s haul includes six wins for Formation in 2016, plus Video of the Year for Single Ladies in 2009. Her total also includes two wins with Destiny’s Child.
• Lady Gaga – 22 wins: Gaga dominated the 2010 VMAs, taking home seven awards for Bad Romance. She has also won Artist of the Year twice.
• Madonna – 20 wins: The original VMA powerhouse has collected wins for Vogue, Ray of Light and Express Yourself, as well as the Video Vanguard Award.
• Eminem – 15 wins: The rapper is the most-awarded male artist in VMA history, with wins including Without Me, The Real Slim Shady, Not Afraid and Houdini.
• Ariana Grande – 13 wins: Ariana has collected 13 Moonmen, including Video of the Year and Best Pop for Brighter Days Ahead and three wins for Rain on Me with Lady Gaga.
• Peter Gabriel – 13 wins: Peter holds one of the biggest records in VMA history: 10 wins at the 1987 ceremony, including nine for Sledgehammer.
• R.E.M. – 12 wins: The rock band swept the 1991 VMAs with six wins for Losing My Religion and later added four for Everybody Hurts.
• Justin Timberlake – 11 wins: Justin’s haul includes Video of the Year for Mirrors, multiple wins for Cry Me a River and the Video Vanguard Award.
• Green Day – 11 wins: Boulevard of Broken Dreams powered Green Day’s VMA haul, winning six awards in 2005. 21 Guns added even more to their collection in 2009.

She showed her love for her husband last week while celebrating his touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts.

The Out of Style singer was caught on video screaming and clapping as Travis darted across the field to score.

She could also be heard yelling, “That’s my husband!” while pointing at her $1 million wedding ring.

Today marks the end of an era. Mark Swed — the last full-time classical music critic at a major American newspaper — has retired. On Thursday, members of The Times editorial staff gathered to celebrate Swed, but the mood was somewhat somber. Although we were glad for our beloved colleague, this was not a happy milestone for journalism — or classical music.

Swed is the rarest of writers: a critic with deep empathy and encyclopedic knowledge who can turn the sonic details of an orchestra playing Mahler’s Seventh Symphony into an epic journey for readers. At a time when orchestra leaders struggle to find new audiences for the art form, Swed’s writing did the job for them.

And in an era when everybody is an expert on TikTok, Swed’s informed criticism was a life raft in a sea of slop. He told us why the music mattered — in its historical context, as it related to the modern landscape, and what it meant to him personally. He made us better listeners, and most importantly, he made us curious. After reading his take, we wanted to run out to a concert, an opera or a new music festival.

That this particular kind of writing — and of seeing and explaining the world to readers — is going away with Swed, is truly a tragedy. Thankfully he is leaving of his own accord, and will hopefully continue to write a monthly column, but his loss still stings.

Like many, I watched with sorrow in February as the Washington Post slashed its staff, including its classical music critic, Michael Andor Brodeur. That blow came a little less than a year after the New York Times shook up its culture desk and reassigned its classical music critic, Zachary Woolfe, to serve as the obituaries editor. (The paper is now actively searching for a new classical music critic.)

A number of staffers spoke at Swed’s retirement lunch, and deputy A1 editor John Penner was among them. In his touching speech, Penner noted that Swed was the last of his kind, adding, “with no full-time critic writing anywhere in any newspaper about classical music, American journalism will be poorer, and its readers less informed, inspired and enlightened.”

Penner continued, saying what all of us gathered in that conference room knew to be true, “Mark’s 30 years at The Times coincided with this city’s Golden Age of classical music — the era of Salonen and Dudamel and Disney Hall. L.A. has been the most important and exciting music capital in the country, if not the world. (Why else would New York be stealing Gustavo from us now?) And central to that excitement and importance has been Mark’s writing and criticism. For my money, even when there were many music critics writing for many publications, Mark set the standard for classical music criticism, while opening our ears to new and under-appreciated music.”

Hear, hear.

I’m Arts editor Jessica Gelt wishing Swed a happy retirement and humbly asking him to come back to us now and again. This is your arts and culture news for the week.

The week ahead: A curated calendar

FRIDAY

Demand To Be Heard Festival
The Sunflower Project presents a celebration centering the voices of survivors of abuse beginning with a screening of the film “Break The Silence: The Gabby Petito Story,” followed by a panel discussion with the Gabby Petito Foundation. Saturday and Sunday is the Resident Artist Showcase, featuring the work of six survivor/artists. Also Saturday are three three arts workshops focusing on music, candle making and body movement, respectively.
Film screening, 6 p.m. Friday; 6:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Resident Artist Showcase. Wisteria Theater, 7061 Vineland Ave., North Hollywood. Arts workshops, 11:30 a.m., 1 and 2:30 p.m. Art Share L.A. 801 East 4th Place, downtown L.A. towardsthesun.org

Jonah Elijah: Ambiguously Free
The first U.S. museum solo exhibition by the L.A.-based contemporary painter and mixed-media artist features work that blends personal memories with broader mythologies, religion and history to explore Black culture.
On view through December 16. Xela Institute of Art, 2176 Pacific Avenue, Long Beach. xela.art

Joshua Redman Quartet: Words Fall Short
The saxophonist performs a new program of music with his ensemble — pianist Paul Cornish, bassist Philip Norris and drummer Nazir Ebo, plus special guest Skylar Tang, an up-and-coming Bay Area-born trumpeter and composer.
7:30 p.m. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org

Melrose Gallery Walk
Gallery spaces, including Hostler Burrows, Lawson-Fenning, Meg Turner, Object, Seventh House, The Window and 22RE, open their doors to celebrate the local design community. Free and open to the public.
5-8 p.m. Hostler Burrows, 6819 Melrose Ave. hostlerburrows.com

SATURDAY

Midterms: This Will Hurt Someone
Brightwork newmusic performs a program of contemporary works inspired by civic life and social change, including Ted Hearne’s “Bye Bye Huey,” Natalie Dietterich’s “Philosophy of Furniture,” Ian Dicke’s “Get Rich Quick” (with video), Matt Marks’ “This Will Hurt Someone,” Hesam Abedini’s “What Remains” and “Frederic Rzewsk’s “Coming Together” (with video).
8 p.m. Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. sierramadreplayhouse.org

Aperghis Trilogy
Long Beach Opera performs three works by experimental composer Georges Aperghis: “Le corps à corps”,” Les Sept Crimes de l’amour,” “Récitations.” Directed by James Darrah Black. Christopher Rountree conducts.
7:30 p.m. The Queen Mary, 1126 Queen’s Way, Long Beach. longbeachopera.org

The Horror Show
An immersive deep dive into the movie genre presented in six themed galleries: Gothic, Psychological, Science, Slasher, Religion and Ghosts, with behind-the-scenes looks at a range of titles that includes everything from Oscar winners to drive-in classics. But first, you must pass through “The Hallway,” bwahahaha.
10 a.m.–6 p.m. Wednesday–Monday, on view through July 25, 2027. Academy Museum, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. academymuseum.org

Senon Williams: here now, now gone, gone here
A solo exhibition of the artist’s work, in which he collects materials such as nails, slips of paper, fragments of language and industrial remnants, then uses assemblage to rearrange them and discover deeper meaning.
Noon-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, on view through Nov. 15. The Philosophical Research Society, 3910 Los Feliz Blvd. prs.org

Promised Lands: California’s Unratified Treaties and Native Resilience
Archival materials, contemporary objects, images and voices from local tribal communities relate the complex history of the state with its indigenous people.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Autry Museum of the American West, 4700 Western Heritage Way, Griffith Park. theautry.org

Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music Sing-A-Long
Actor and comedian Melissa Peterman hosts the annual screening of the 1965 Oscar winner for best picture complete with a costume contest and more than a few of your favorite songs.
7:30 p.m. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N Highland Ave. hollywoodbowl.com

Daymé Arocena’s Alkemi
The Grammy nominee and Juno Award–winner blends Afro-Cuban beats with neo-soul, jazz and contemporary Latin pop.
7:30 p.m. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org

San Pedro Festival of the Arts
The 20th annual event, presented by Los Angeles Choreographers & Dancers, features 20 dance companies demonstrating a variety of styles and cultural traditions.
1-4:30 p.m. Peck Park, Upper Green near the Community Center, 560 N. Western Ave. triartsp.com

Tokio Ueyama: The Hollows Between Mountains
The first museum exhibition in California of the Little Tokyo-based Japanese artist (1889–1954) features his drawings, prints, photographs and paintings as well as artists he was associated with, including Diego Rivera, Tōyō Miyatake, Edward Weston and Henrietta Shore.
11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday–Sunday, on view through Feb. 28, 2027. UC Irvine Langson Orange County Museum of Art, 3333 Avenue of the Arts, Costa Mesa. langson.uci.edu

SUNDAY

Grant Gershon conducts the Los Angeles Master Chorale at Walt Disney Hall, Nov. 16, 2025.

(David Butow/For the Times)

Brahms’ Requiem
The Los Angeles Master Chorale, led by Grant Gershon, opens its silver anniversary season with a program that also includes Bruckner’s “Te Deum.”
7:30 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. lamasterchorale.org

WEDNESDAY

Rubén Blades & Roberto Delgado Big Band: Fotografías Tour
The Panamanian salsa greats perform classic Afro-Cuban music flavored with rock, jazz and Latin American influences. Silvana Estrada opens.
8 p.m. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N Highland Ave. hollywoodbowl.com

Menopause The Musical: 25th Anniversary Tour
Four women at a lingerie sale share their experiences with “the change” through parody songs of pop hits.
7:30 p.m. Bank of America Performing Arts Center, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. bapacthousandoaks.com

The Broadway production of “The Outsiders.”

(Matthew Murphy)

The Outsiders
The Tony Award-winning musical adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s coming-of age-novel set in 1960s Tulsa arrives with Ponyboy Curtis and his fellow greasers facing off against the upper-class Socs.
Through Oct. 18. Hollywood Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. Oct. 20-Nov. 1. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. tour.outsidersmusical.com

THURSDAY

Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares
The Broadway star sings original songs and shares stories with her trademark wit in this one-woman show. Directed by Annie Tippe.
7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org

The Dance and the Railroad
Asian American theater collective Artists at Play and Latino Theater Company team up for a rare revival of an early David Henry Hwang play set during the 1867 Chinese railroad workers’ strike. Directed by Katherine Chou.
Previews, 8 p.m. Thursday and Oct. 2. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, through Nov. 1. Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring Street, downtown L.A. latinotheaterco.org

Mahler’s Symphony No. 2: Resurrection
Alexander Shelley conducts the Pacific Symphony with soprano Miah Persson, mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly and the Pacific Chorale.
8 p.m. Thursday-Oct. 2. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. pacificsymphony.org

The SoCal scene

Gov. Gavin Newsom mingles with guests at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opening party.

(Carlin Stiehl/For The Times)

I spent my Saturday night at the Lucas Museum opening party where I got to stand in the lobby by the nifty elevators watching Gov. Gavin Newsom talk to Kim Kardashian. Later, I went to Skywalker Grill and saw U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi sitting at a table next to Leonardo DiCaprio and his entourage. It would be an understatement to say that the night was both bizarre and memorable.

Times theater critic Charles McNulty (the paper’s only remaining arts critic) has kept exceptionally busy this fall season. Late last week he wrote a review of “The Ford/Hill Project” At REDCAT, which transforms Senate testimony from Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford into a docu-play that explores the details of two of history’s most consequential Supreme Court confirmation hearings. “The restraint imposed by the production adds to its power. There’s no need to editorialize. The proceedings skewer themselves,” McNulty writes.

Huguette Caland in Stone Doorway, France, 1970.

(Huguette Caland Estate)

McNulty also drove to San Diego to see the Old Globe’s world-premiere musical adaptation of John Carney’s “Begin Again,” which explores the stories of two music-industry vets who embark on a grassroots recording project. The show features a score by rocker Pat Monahan and Train. “‘Heartwarming’ is a cliche of theater reviewing that I have studiously tried to avoid, but I’m tempted to use the word in my review of ‘Begin Again’,” McNulty writes.

McNulty penned one of his harshest reviews since last year’s take down of “Hamlet” after he went to Atwater Village Theatre to see Echo Theater Company’s world premiere production of “The Peterson Show,” by Janine Nabers. “Unfortunately, the production is hamstrung by fundamental problems in the writing, directing and acting, all pointing to a failure of control. Control of the story, control of the tone and control of the cast,” McNulty wrote of the show, which is about the impact of disgraced Bill Cosby-like star on his TV family.

Meanwhile contributor Tara Anne Dalbow wrote a beautiful story about the late, great artist Huguette Caland in advance of the largest U.S. retrospective of her work, opening Sunday at the Hammer Museum.

Ernest “Ernie” Wolfe III, owner of an eponymous gallery on Sawtelle, is dying of a traumatic brain injury and his family is looking for homes for his 15,000 pieces of African Art. Contributor Jane Horowitz writes about Wolfe‘s legacy and the (sometimes controversial) origins of his collection.

I got the scoop that the Museum of Contemporary Art has appointed Jonathan Abbott as its new director and chief executive. Abbott replaces interim director Ann Goldstein, who stepped in last July after the unexpected departure of Johanna Burton. Abbott, who begins work immediately, joins the museum as its sixth director since 2008. He formerly served for 15 years as president and chief executive of the PBS-affiliated public broadcasting station GBH in Boston.

Mary Cassatt, “Summertime,” 1894-95

(Sotheby’s / Armand Hammer Collection)

As one chapter closes with Swed’s retirement, a new one begins as we welcome our new entertainment and arts reporter, Laura Zornosa, who hit the ground running by writing three great arts stories: The first is about the private art collection of Armand Hammer (including Mary Cassatt’s “Summertime,”) coming up for auction at Sotheby’s; the second, covering opening day at the Lucas Museum where Zornosa interviewed guests on their thoughts about the place; and the third is a fun news brief about how Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra commissioned fanfares from half a dozen film composers, including John Williams and Ludwig Göransson, curated by “none other than Seth MacFarlane (best known as the creator and star of “Family Guy”).”

Culture news

Coy Middlebrook has been named the new artistic director of the Wallis.

(Jeff Lorch / The Wallis)

The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts announced the appointment of longtime creative staffer Coy Middlebrook as its new artistic director. “Coy brings an extraordinary depth of knowledge about The Wallis and its audiences, along with deep relationships throughout the performing arts nationally and internationally. He understands both the artistic possibilities of this
institution and the importance of its relationship to our community. I am excited to work with him as we build a future that is artistically ambitious, deeply connected and open to everyone,” said Wallis Executive Director and Chief Executive, Jean Davidson, in a news release.

Meanwhile Theatre Commons LA (TCLA), the nonprofit organization created and launched a year ago as part of a concerted effort by some of the city’s most prominent theater leaders to unify the city’s sprawling theater scene, has announced its first Executive Director, David E. Shane. Shane previously served as director of program services at the Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York where, according to a news release, “he set the strategic vision and goals for a robust suite of programs serving over 450 of New York’s nonprofit theaters.” He is tasked with doing the same thing in L.A. and we wish him the best of luck.

— Jessica Gelt

And last but not least

The Getty Museum has acquired the recently rediscovered 17th-century painting “Portrait of the Count-Duke of Olivares” by Spanish artist Diego Velázquez (1599-1660). It will be displayed in the museum’s East Pavilion this fall. According to ArtNews, “The acquisition means a Velázquez painting will for the first time be represented in the collection of a West Coast museum.”

Perhaps no one genre of music screams “Mexican” more than mariachi music.

Yet a close second is probably the melodic sound of British rock band the Smiths.

Many have pondered why Mexicans and Mexican Americans have such an affinity for those blokes from across the pond. Maybe it’s that lead singer Morrissey’s outsider mentality and melancholic words resonate with the demographic — or there’s something acutely relatable about the melodramatic musings of a romantic yearner.

Decades ago, The Times’ own Gustavo Arellano explored the Smiths and Morrissey’s appeal to Latinos and Mexicans, specifically.

He noted that Morrissey’s malaise mirrors the sentiment of many ranchera songs, also citing that his effeminate onstage persona is a perfect subversion of Mexican machismo. These elements make the singer an anglophone mash-up of Pedro Infante and Juan Gabriel, Arellano added.

Both the Smiths and mariachi music can drive even the most macho Mexican man to tears with their poetic lyrics and layered instrumentals.

To celebrate the special choke hold these musical stylings have on Mexican Americans in Southern California, the L.A.-based group Mariachi Tierra Mia is putting on a “Mariachi Meets the Smiths” show at the Ford amphitheater on Sunday. The show will merge not only the cultural resonance of the two in Mexican American culture, but also unite the sounds.

The idea to incorporate elements of mariachi music into a cover of a Smiths tune happened by happenstance in December 2024.

Members of Mariachi Tierra Mia were performing at a Christmas party when an attendee requested that the group perform the 1984 Smiths track “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now.”

Members of rock band The Last Line of Defense who will perform at The Ford as part of “Mariachi Meets The Smiths.”

(Mariachi Tierra Mia)

The ensemble’s leader, Maira Solis, didn’t know the song — but her husband and fellow bandmate Ivan Peña signaled that he did. Later on in the night, he performed the song alongside two dancing, masked luchadors.

The video of Peña belting out the song while outfitted in his mariachi regalia struck a chord with audiences online after the group posted it on social media.

“The relationship between Mexicanos and the Smiths needs to be studied,” Peña told The Times. “[The video] seemed like a very innocuous thing, but days later, it had 3 million views. That was the first time that ever happened to us, and to me, personally.”

The overwhelmingly positive response to Peña’s rendition of the Morrissey-penned tune let him know that people had an appetite to see the Smiths and mariachi blended together.

Born in 1991, Peña was born years after the Smiths broke up, but was introduced to the group’s catalog at age 5, while his uncle drove him around in a lowrider. The first tracks he heard from the band were “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” and “Ask.”

“I don’t think the music has aged a wink. It’s just gotten better with time,” he said. “It’s clearly resonated across generations. Now you even see Gen Z getting in on it too and realizing music of the past is so substantial.”

But the fandom surrounding the Smiths, and more specifically Morrissey, has entered more complex territory in light of the Smiths frontman’s past political commentary.

In recent decades, the crooner has grown increasingly sympathetic toward far-right political stances, voicing anti-immigration and anti-Muslim sentiments, as well as his allegiance to white nationalist party For Britain in the U.K.

Despite this, many fans, like Peña, don’t see a problem with continuing to listen to the Smiths and Morrissey’s solo work.

“I get that he’s a polarizing guy. I know he’s notorious,” Peña said. “I [say], separate the art from the people behind it … because the piece itself is not at fault for the shortcomings or views of the people who made it.”

Sunday night’s concert will be split in two acts, with the first being a bilingual mariachi set by Mariachi Tierra Mia composed of genre standards and more modern covers. For the second act, Peña’s rock group the Last Line of Defense will perform songs by the Smiths and be joined by the mariachi group to merge the sounds.

Incorporating the mariachi to create straightforward covers of the Smiths’ material proved challenging as Peña did not want to put a spin on the songs’ composition — no added notes and no new harmonies were allowed.

“You could task a mariachi band with doing a one-for-one adaptation of the Smiths’ songs, [but] most of the tracks do not work on the mariachi setting,” he said. “Whereas the guitar is leading the charge in a rock band. The guitar and the vihuela are essentially the rhythm section, so you have to translate guitar riffs to the melody section of the mariachi, [which is the] trumpets and violins.”

According to the 34-year-old musician, very few of the English band’s song fit into that mold.

He knows that fans love the original material and he wants to respect the essence of the time-tested songs. Out of that reverence for the group’s music, Peña noted that all the Smiths covers will be performed only in English.

Peña’s final take on why Mexicans are so infatuated with the Smiths?

“Mexicans love catchy music,” he said. “It’s all of the feels. It’s the good, the bad, and a bit of longing. The lyrics aren’t lying to you. [We can all relate to] Morrissey’s angst, his rebellion, his malaise, and, on the other side of that, his optimism.”

In an otherwise empty compartment of a regional train on its way to a small town in Germany last month, a friendly passenger asked if I was headed to Halberstadt for “the note change.” He was an Australian law professor based in Hong Kong who was traveling with his Swiss mother for the irregular ritual every few years of a new note being sounded on a decommissioned old church’s diminutive modern pipe organ in what feels like the middle of nowhere.

He was hardly alone. The audience the next day in the packed late-Romanesque St. Burchardi “John Cage Organ” Church had come from seemingly everywhere, along with international media, to witness a barely distinguishable new note added to a sustained chord in Cage’s “Organ2/ASLSP.”

“ASLSP” stands for as “As Slow(ly) and Soft(ly) as Possible,” adapted from the opening line of the final paragraph in James Joyce’s “Finnegans Wake”: “Soft morning City! Lsp.” Cage had meant his organ piece to enjoy the indeterminacy of neither the performer nor the audience knowing how long the score, in eight parts, would last. In Halberstadt, they are stretching it out 639 years! The performance began in 2001 with the intent that each note change would be a great event.

Four years ago, Times columnist Nicolas Goldberg wrote an opinion piece about his fascination with what to him sounded like a profound project about the meaning of time. I tried to talk him out of what I believed to be a gimmicky violation of the being-in-the-moment spirit of Cage. But what mattered to Nick was the idea, not the intent, and he used me in his column as a foil. Still, Cage has been central to my practicing what some people (not me) call music criticism, and I contended wild horses couldn’t drag me to Halberstadt.

Nevertheless, early August’s “From 7 to 8,” as the note change was advertised, occurred almost exactly to the day, as when, 50 years earlier, I filed my first music review in the Los Angeles Herald Examiner. This was also to be my last summer and 121st season on staff of the Los Angeles Times. I step down as music critic Friday. (I still plan to contribute to The Times on an irregular basis.)

I happened to be visiting the Salzburg Festival in August and, in a spirit of endgame, hopped on a train to Halberstadt. On the seven-hour ride, my half-century Cage-suffused career passed through my mind.

I thought about how Cage had once told me that when he was a boy in Los Angeles, he loved Grieg with no need to know why. When he studied music, reason replaced love. It was only regaining the ability to hear music as music that he could compose.

Cage described this as an example of the celebrated Zen koan about reality: First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is.

When I accidentally stumbled into music criticism with an academic penchant for music analysis, my crutches for writing about music were technical and of little use in a newspaper. I had to find a way to simply listen. It gave me new ears, and I was hooked.

Cage solved my next problem by insisting that the way to discover new things is to overcome our dependence on our likes and dislikes, those supposed pillars of criticism. College taught me to investigate the “great” composers who mattered and disdain those of no value. Consequently, I had never paid attention to the likes of Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich but discovered that they moved listeners deeply. Again, for me, so-called criticism proved a pathway to opening the mind, and writing about discovery is an ancient pleasure. Cage put it this way: “It’s not what I don’t know that scares me, it’s what I do know.”

The great enticement to return to L.A. after spending nine years in New York (and periodically reporting on Cage from the East Coast and Europe for The Times) was the prospect of Walt Disney Concert Hall. Construction hadn’t yet begun and fundraising was iffy; the community was scared about what it didn’t know. I came armed with another Cage-ism: Every seat is the best seat in the house.

I tried to get the Music Center to make that the motto of the hall. After all, Cage was born at Good Samaritan Hospital about a mile from Disney. That didn’t fly. Still, thanks to Frank Gehry, every seat meant every view inside and out was the best. Every way of seeing also meant every way of hearing. Disney taught L.A. the joy of architecture in a way many of us had never known in this haphazardly built town. Once it was built, there was no choice but to embark on an ongoing love letter to L.A.

Such thoughts on the Cage train poorly suited arriving in the heart of the state of Saxony-Anhalt. One of the first things to catch my eye was a campaign billboard for a far-right Alternative for Germany candidate. A month later AfD would win a landslide victory, dividing Germany and alarming much of Europe.

The streets were mostly deserted. There wasn’t much open, giving the handsome and well-preserved Halberstadt a “Twilight Zone” aura.

In the St. Burchardi Church in Halberstadt, Germany, “The Cage Organ Project” is to be played for 639 years.

(Mark Swed/Los Angeles Times)

Dawn, though, attracted life. “The Cage Organ Project” proved marvelous, to use one of Cage’s favorite words. Whether they were 200-euro ticket holders who had journeyed long and far to be in the church for the note change or the hundreds on complimentary folding chairs outside on the lawn, unshaded in the hot sun watching on large video screens and listening with the assist of a fine amplification system, the aura was now calmness, grace and gratitude.

Nick had been right all along. Time became grounded. The note change is a marker, but the organ, in which air is electronically blown through the pipes day and night for all to hear, has become an endearing sound that connects you to your being. Here and now and hear and now are the same.

ASLSP, moreover, reflects the magical unhurriedness the world craves, be it the slowing down of AI or turning down the volume on social media and politicians’ bully pulpits. None of this may have been on Cage’s mind when “Organ2/ASLSP” had its premiere in Metz, France, in 1987, five years before Cage’s death. That performance lasted a half hour. But Cage is no longer with us, and “Organ2/ASLSP” now has a marvelous life of its own.

One of my most memorable interviews at The Times was with the Dalai Lama in 1999. He had never given one about music and appeared at first sorry he had agreed to. Every question about music got a negative response. The only need he expressed for it was as a fundraising tool for his Tibetan government in exile.

Noting my distress, he explained the problem with music is how easily we get attached to it, and at the heart of Buddhism is nonattachment. Then, breaking the tension with his trademark belly laugh, he admitted his problem was attachment to Buddhism.

At Halberstadt, I may have found my way of letting go. But I also leave The Times with the gratitude not only for the freedom it allowed me to champion causes but also to be part of a very long, quirky process that makes this newspaper unique.

Going back to 1925, there have only been four Times classical music critics in 101 years, and arriving here in 1996, I immediately discovered my roots in Isabel Morse Jones. A violinist who covered music from 1925 to 1947, she was a modernist with her finger on the pulse of the times and stood in refreshing contrast to the fussy East Coast male critics.

She was said to have provided an intellectual awakening of music on the West Coast. She put the Hollywood Bowl on the map. She championed new music and not just the stellar locals, Stravinsky and Schoenberg, but also the avant-garde and world music no one else gave the time of day. After leaving The Times, Jones founded the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara originally modeled after the Salzburg Festival.

She threw her lot in with the society page editor, who covered women’s clubs. Together they became a power duo who campaigned to build a home for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which three decades later led to the Music Center. That society editor — who chronicled and illuminated the social, political and artistic issues in L.A. in the 1930s from the women’s perspective — was Crete Cage. John Cage’s mother was a must-read for all women in L.A.

We cannot hold on to Cage, but we can’t escape him either. Times look bad. L.A. feels in the dumps. It was like that, as well, when I arrived at The Times in 1996. The city was still recovering from the 1992 riots — the beating of Rodney King had caused a profound social reckoning — and the 1994 earthquake. There was a recession. The L.A. Phil, now the model arts institution in the country if not the world, was millions of dollars in the hole.

Today, catastrophe is wherever you look. The Olympics, the environment, the damn developers, self-driving cars, LAX. The news business isn’t so hot either.

But let history — and John Cage — remind us that opening our ears can be the conduit to opening our minds. We have a wealth of new artistic leadership on the way at the L.A. Phil, L.A. Opera, L.A. Chamber orchestra and Pacific Symphony; new management at the L.A. Master Chorale and the Wallis and Long Beach Opera. And new ideas all around us.

Just as Disney Hall spread joy when we needed it most, one of Gehry’s final masterpieces is taking shape, the Colburn Center on 2nd Street a block from Disney. I took a hard-hat tour after returning home from Halberstadt and experienced the same combination of awe and promise. When it opens next year, it will be a game changer.

And even here, Cage the connector can’t keep out. At the press opening of Peter Zumthor’s new LACMA building, I buttonholed the architect, telling him I see John Cage all over the place. He looked startled for a moment and then with an uncharacteristic grin replied that he considered that a welcome compliment. Chance, he said, is very important.

Across town, one of MOCA’s most successful exhibitions was its 1993 Cage celebration, “Rolywholyover A Circus.” Cage asked for natural light, so that paintings would always look different whenever you saw them. He wanted the surprise of artwork hung in an unpredictable fashion. He wanted to let the outdoors in and the indoors out.

It is no coincidence that this describes aspects of the new LACMA. “Rolywholyover” traveled to the Guggenheim in New York’s SoHo district the next year, and the young curator in charge was Michael Govan, LACMA’s visionary head behind the Zumthor galleries.

Along with the new LACMA building we have a new Metro D Line stop nearby. Now a direct connector between LACMA and the Colburn Center passes almost directly under Good Samaritan Hospital.

Let me make my last suggestion as “music critic.” How about naming the new D Line connection between LACMA and the Colburn Center the John Cage Express?

Not everything has to be as slow as possible.

Oasis ticket sales kick off this weekend and that means the lucky ones who’ve snapped up their tickets will be making plans. But how much will a trip to see the Britpop band set you back?

Oasis tickets go on sale this weekend ahead of the Britpop band’s 2027 tour. Not only will the Manchester band be touring the UK and heading to Ireland, but they’ll also be doing dates in Europe and the USA, meaning fans from around the world will see them perform hits from Wonderwall to Live Forever.

Ticket sales have been carefully controlled to avoid scalpers turning a profit, and fans have needed to sign up to even get a chance to try to buy a ticket. If you’re not successful bagging a ticket for a UK show, then you may be thinking of heading over to see Oasis in Europe. However, this means booking transport and accommodation.

Here’s a rundown of the costs of seeing Oasis in various cities. Prices are likely to rise closer to the time, especially as hotel rooms near the stadiums are likely to be snapped up.

UK dates and costs

If you’re lucky enough to snag Oasis tickets in the UK, the dates and costs for their UK tour are:

Glasgow – Celtic Park

May, 21, 23, 25, 28 and 29

Seated tickets from £71.50 – standing from £170.50

The tour kicks off in Glasgow at the Celtic Park stadium, which is in the east of the city. It’s well connected by public transport, so you might want to opt to stay in the city centre. The Moxy Glasgow Merchant City has rooms from £337 based on two sharing and is about a mile and a half from the stadium.

Manchester – Ethiad Stadium

June 4, 6, 8, 11, 12, 15, 18, 19, 22, 25 and 26

Seats from £74.60 and standing from £173.60

Oasis will perform a string of dates in Manchester, and the city will have a huge influx of fans, so if you’re booking a hotel, you’ll need to do it as soon as possible. Hotel prices are already becoming dear. For example, on the June 2027 nights when Oasis are playing, the prices at Copthorne Hotel Manchester Salford Quays have hit £302 a night for two sharing, whereas visitors on nights without a gig pay as little as £92 for a room in this four-star property.

Knebworth – Knebworth House

September 11, 12, 18 and 19

General admission £170.50

Oasis’ return to Knebworth means this area of Hertfordshire will be very booked up. Your best bet is to get a coach bundle, as these will be available through Ticketmaster with routes across the UK. Knebworth House is a remote location, meaning staying in nearby towns with a bus connection may be wise. Hitchin has a Premier Inn, although at £349 on September 11, it’s a pricey option.

European tour dates and prices

Munich, Germany – Allianz Arena

July 2 and 3, 2027

Oasis will have two nights of shows in Munich next July, with seated tickets from €96.25 (£82.51) and standing from €165.25 (£141.68).

There are direct flights to Munich from London, Manchester, Glasgow, and several regional airports. Fly out on July 1 and come back July 4, and you’ll find flights on Lufthansa from London-Heathrow from £113 return.

The stadium is on the edge of Munich in an area called Fröttmaning. As you can imagine, hotel options are limited and already expensive for July dates. But it’s close to a Metro, so look for accommodation elsewhere in Munich that’s close to public transport, such as the ibis Hotel München Garching, which has rooms on July 2 from £218 a night and is just one stop away.

Barcelona, Spain – Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys

July 10 and 11

Tickets to see Oasis in Barcelona start at €85 for seats and €204 for standing (£72.89 and £174.93 respectively). The Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys stadium, where the show takes place, is on the Montjuïc hill overlooking the city, making it a memorable location for major shows. You can even take the Montjuïc Funicular to the top to get to the show, although you’ll need to take a bus back as it stops running at 10pm.

Barcelona is, of course, packed with places to stay and the metro makes it easy to get around, so you don’t necessarily need to book somewhere next to the stadium. Stay at the Radisson Blu 1882 Hotel, Barcelona Sagrada Familia , available from £332 a night for two sharing, and you’ll be close to the major tourist attractions, so you can enjoy a city break too. If you’d rather stay closer, Mambo Tango is about a 20-minute walk away and has double rooms from £284.

Barcelona is served by several regional airports, and weekend flights from London Luton start at £89 return with Wizz Air.

Amsterdam, Netherlands – Johan Cruijff Arena

July 16 and 17

The next stop on the tour is Amsterdam’s Johan Cruijff Arena, where tickets start at €84.15 for seats and €201.96 for standing (£72.15 and £173.16 respectively).

Again, the arena is on the outskirts of the city, and is found in the Zuidoost area. Just a short walk away is the Joy Hotel, which has budget double or twin rooms on the tour dates from £265 . However, the cheapest rooms don’t have a window, so don’t expect lovely views of Amsterdam.

There are lots of options for getting to the city and public transport is excellent. There are both a train and a metro station serving the arena. Eurostar offers London to Amsterdam tickets from £39 one-way, although they tend not to run at weekends, so you would need to travel down Friday and come back Monday. There are also lots of flight options from multiple airports, and even the London to Amsterdam overnight FlixBus, which starts at £44 in July. While nearly 12 hours on a coach is an endurance test, it does save you from needing to pay for a hotel that night.

Paris, France – Stade de France

July 23 and 24

Seated tickets for Oasis’ Paris shows start at €84.00 (£72), while standing options start at €199.50 (£171). However, these dates coincide with school summer holidays, so expect higher prices and demand not only from Oasis fans but also holidaying families.

The Paris leg of the tour will take place at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, in the north of the city, and a metro line runs to the area. You can either opt to stay centrally, such as the boutique Chouchou Hotel, which has rooms from £325 a night and explore the city, or simply stay near the stadium. The Ibis Styles Paris Saint Denis La Plaine is about half a mile away, and has basic rooms from £350 a night for these July dates.

Eurostar is an excellent way to get to Paris. It arrives at Paris Gare Du Nord, and tickets currently start at £49 each way. There are also lots of flights to the sprawling Aéroport de Paris-Charles de Gaulle, about 40-minutes from the stadium, from airports across the UK.

Rome, Italy – Stadio Olimpico

July 29 and 30

Rome is another great option for Oasis fans, and the band will be playing in late July. However, it’s worth remembering that these are school holiday dates again, so travel is likely to be expensive and book quickly.

Seated tickets will start at €92.29 (£79.21), while standing will start at a whopping €221.49 (£190.09). There are some cheap flights available, such as Wizz Air, which offer a return from London Luton to Rome for around £131 for late July dates.

Stadio Olimpico is in the north of the city, and it’s served by metro and tram, which is useful as hotel options in the area are thin on the ground and expensive. Sweet Home Parioli is just over a mile away and has rooms from £180 a night based on two sharing, and offers simple accommodation that’s perfect for post-gig sleeps.

Slane Castle – Ireland

September 4 and 5

Before heading to Knebworth, Oasis will play two huge shows at Slane Castle, which is about 45 minutes north of Dublin. There will be a variety of bus services available to take visitors from the city to this rural castle for the gigs.

General admission tickets will be priced at €181.25 (£155.58) – and if you’re coming from the UK, there are lots of inexpensive flights available to Dublin. For example, Ryanair flights from Newcastle to Dublin for those dates are showing for £70 return, although there are often sales where you can buy flights more cheaply.

There will be a few pick-up and drop-off points for coaches across the region, so you might want to stay centrally in Dublin and spend some time exploring the city too. Four-star Riu Plaza The Gresham Dublin has rooms from £350 a night for two sharing, or, for £61 each per night, you can opt for a bunk at the Gardiner House Hostel for a budget-friendly stay.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

Macklemore says ‘being apolitical during a genocide doesn’t work’, promises to donate proceeds to Palestinian causes.

Grammy Award-winning rapper Macklemore has announced a string of shows in support of Palestine after he was controversially dropped from Ed Sheeran’s United States tour after speaking out against Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

The 43-year-old American rapper, who has almost 40 million monthly listeners on Spotify, announced his Free Palestine Tour on Thursday, with shows set to take place in Dublin, Paris and London in late October.

Macklemore said he will be joined by other musicians and will announce their names soon. He added that US shows are currently being organised.

He said all proceeds raised from the tour will be donated to causes supporting the Palestinian people and the wider movement.

“If these last couple of weeks have shown us anything, it’s that something has shifted over the last three years,” Macklemore said in a statement.

“There has been a collective awakening around Palestinian liberation, the power of billionaires that try to censor that call, and what we expect from artists right now. It’s 2026. Being apolitical during a genocide doesn’t work anymore,” he continued.

“People are asking artists to show up, educate themselves and be in community. To use the stage for more than entertainment. To push back when the call for a Free Palestine is met with attempts to silence it.”

English punk rap duo Bob Vylan have expressed their support for the tour, responding to Macklemore’s Instagram post with a heart emoji. The British YouTuber and influencer known as Chunkz, who has more than four million followers on Instagram, also praised Macklemore.

Attempts to silence Macklemore

On September 4 at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, Macklemore, who was one of Sheeran’s opening acts, expressed support for Palestine.

“A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: ‘Free Palestine’ … My message is for peace; love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality,” Macklemore told the audience at the time.

Soon after, the rapper announced that he had been dropped from the Sheeran tour.

Venue owner Robert Kraft later confirmed that Macklemore was barred from performing at his Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Kraft denounced what he described as the rapper’s “broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery” and argued that such actions led him to decide that allowing Macklemore to perform at his venue “would cross that line”.

Kraft is a Jewish-American billionaire and has donated to several Israeli causes. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the subject of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity, said in 2019 that Israel did not have a “more loyal friend” than Kraft.

Macklemore claimed Sheeran and his team removed him from the tour following pressure from Kraft.

He alleged that Kraft rallied the owners of the remaining stadiums that the tour would include and persuaded them not to allow him to perform. The rapper said that Kraft then told Sheeran the tour would not go ahead unless he was dropped.

Neither Kraft nor Sheeran have commented on Macklemore’s allegations that stadium owners were contacted by Kraft.

Two years ago, the biggest record labels took artificial intelligence music generators to court for copyright infringement. Now several of them are licensing their catalogs to those same companies, and the deals are starting to turn into products.

The latest example came earlier this month, when Suno, an AI music company valued at $5.4 billion, released its first models built with licensed music from Warner Music Group, BMG and Believe. Rival Udio has licensing deals with Universal Music Group and Warner.

The companies are pitching AI as a new revenue stream for artists. But so far, none of them have disclosed what artists will be paid, how many artists have opted in, or how much input individual musicians have over whether their work is used. And some musicians and songwriters are fearful of how these AI deals might affect livelihoods.

“It’s sort of a creepy and ominous cloud,” said Matt Evans, a 35-year-old Pasadena resident who’s played brass instruments on shows like “The Late Late Show With James Corden” and Netflix’s “Dr. Seuss’s Red Fish, Blue Fish.” “The fact that I could do something once and then it could be reused, and if that’s not negotiated in a contract, then I never got to make a choice to receive additional compensation. It all comes down to the loss of money.”

The American Federation of Musicians sued Universal and Warner in June, alleging the labels licensed recordings its members played on to Suno and Udio without paying those musicians or telling the union which recordings were involved. The labels have moved to dismiss the case.

In 2024, Universal, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner sued Suno and Udio for copyright infringement, alleging the AI companies trained their models on copyrighted songs spanning many artists, genres and time periods. The settlements began the following year. Universal settled with Udio in October and became its partner, and Warner settled with both Udio and Suno in November, signing licensing deals with each.

“The reason why they would settle this is they think they’re going to profit more from licensing music to them rather than from the outcome of a lawsuit,” said Jane Davidson, an entertainment attorney at Nolan Heimann who specializes in copyright and trademark infringement.

More deals followed. Udio signed with Merlin, which licenses music on behalf of independent labels, and with independent publisher Kobalt. Suno signed with BMG in August and with Believe, owner of the DIY distribution platform TuneCore, this month. Spotify, which wasn’t part of the lawsuits, struck deals with Universal and Merlin.

Not everyone is settling. Sony filed a second lawsuit against Udio over more than 30,000 recordings, and it is still suing Suno alongside Universal, which is licensing its music to Udio and Spotify at the same time. Sony and Universal also filed a new lawsuit last week alleging that Suno’s latest model still infringes on their copyrighted works. In July, a Munich court ruled against Suno in a case brought by GEMA, which collects royalties for German songwriters and publishers.

The deals between labels and AI music platforms — on which consumers can create full songs from text prompts — share a basic promise. Artists signed to the participating labels can opt in and will be credited and paid.

But each company is building something different. Udio operates under a “walled garden” model favored by Universal, in which songs made on the platform can’t be downloaded or distributed elsewhere. Spotify’s tool, a planned paid add-on for Premium subscribers, has no launch date. Suno lets users download what they make and release it elsewhere, with download caps and watermarks meant to curb abuse; songs made with its new models can be distributed through Believe and TuneCore.

Whether an artist opts out depends on who owns the rights. Songs typically carry two copyrights — one for the composition, usually held by songwriters and their publishers, and one for the sound recording, usually owned by the label. Every contract is different, so it’s unclear how AI products will handle music where those rights are split.

Waveforms of audio files from various instruments are displayed on a computer screen during the making of an AI musical piece at Suno.

(Robert F. Bukaty / Associated Press)

“These companies are able to make deals on behalf of their artists, and their control over their music is pretty significant based on what major label contracts typically say,” Davidson said. “But I expect that we will have some artists that push back against this and say that they didn’t authorize the use of their music for this purpose.”

Warner’s agreement with Suno, for example, lets artists opt in to having their names, likenesses, voices and compositions used in AI-generated music. But Jack Brody, Suno’s chief product officer, acknowledged that labels “ultimately have their contracts in place that will have some say in what an artist can and can’t do.” It’s also not always clear whether opting out keeps an artist’s recordings out of AI training, or only out of fan-facing features.

Michelle Lewis, a songwriter and the co-founder and chief executive of the nonprofit Songwriters of North America, said the composition side of that copyright split is often the harder one to defend.

“With AI, it’s so much easier to tell if you’ve infringed on the sound recording. You know what Beyoncé and Drake’s voices sound like,” said Lewis, who wrote Cher’s “A Different Kind of Love Song,” Little Mix’s “Wings” and the music for the Disney Jr. show “Doc McStuffins.” “But songwriting is so much more nebulous, so much harder to sue.”

“From the creator side, nobody asked for this. We like our job,” added Lewis. “The job is the process and what makes it special, interesting and artful.”

Some musicians argue the deals can’t cover rights the labels don’t control. A proposed class action filed last month by Jason Isbell and other musicians alleges Suno lets users generate songs that evoke specific artists’ identities without their consent, a right-of-publicity claim the plaintiffs say belongs to performers no matter who owns their recordings. Suno disputes the claims.

Session musicians like Evans are pushing back through their union.

“By licensing our members’ performances to AI platforms like Suno and Udio without consent, credit, or compensation, companies like Universal, Warner Records, and Atlantic are bypassing the very human creators who made their catalogs valuable in the first place,” AFM International President Tino Gagliardi said in a statement.

The labels have disputed the claims and argue that these deals advance the interests of artists and songwriters.

Jonathan Wyner, head of artistic technology initiatives at Berklee College of Music’s Emerging Artistic Technology Lab, compared the AI deals to the arrival of streaming services. Wyner has advised Suno.

“It’s a good step, and I think it was an inevitable step, especially if you want to stay engaged with musicians and the creative community,” he said.

That comparison cuts both ways. Streaming grew the industry while fueling years of complaints about artist pay.

Damon Krukowski, a musician and the legislative director at United Musicians & Allied Workers, said the deals so far don’t seem to benefit working-class musicians and could be used to cut them out entirely.

“It’s a new technology, but it’s not a new corporate story,” Krukowski said. “But the tools are even more powerful. It seems within their possible reach to destroy the labor market. The major labels are just seeing dollar signs without any regard to the long-term health or sustainability of this industry, because they’re envisioning an industry without artists who can push back.”

Brody disputed that, saying Suno is building ways for independent and unsigned artists to benefit, such as its deal with Believe and TuneCore.

With terms under wraps, it’s too early to know whether any of this will pay off for artists. The tests are still ahead — whether Sony and Universal win or settle, and what the first payouts actually look like.

“A label making a deal and an individual artist having a choice are not necessarily the same thing,” said Drew Silverstein, the senior advisor for AI at music tech company BandLab Technologies. “Our music industry has a long history of new revenue streams coming into existence that benefit certain folks, and create great financial opportunities for rights holders.”

Duncan Sheik, who earned a Grammy nomination for his ubiquitous 1990s hit “Barely Breathing” and won a Tony Award for composing the music for “Spring Awakening,” died Thursday. He was 56.

“It is with profound sadness that we confirm the passing of Duncan Sheik,” a statement posted Friday on Sheik’s Instagram account read. “The world has a lost a singular talent, and deeply influential voice in music and theater…. Duncan’s artistry touched many and leaves an indelible mark on the cultural landscape.

“Duncan was a father, husband, son, brother, and friend. He will be remembered for his sensitivity, wit, inteligence, and depth of spirit he brought to those who knew and loved him.”

The statement added that “Duncan passed away last night surrounded by love.”

His mother, Suzanne Sheik, told the New York Times that her son died of organ failure. A statement posted to his Instagram account Thursday said that Sheik was “receiving medical care and remains in critical but stable condition.”

Sheik, a New Jersey native, went to Brown University, where he played in an early band with singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb. His 1996 self-titled debut LP was a hit on the strength of “Barely Breathing,” an exemplar of the upbeat coffeeshop rock that emerged in the wake of grunge on the pop charts. The single stayed on the Hot 100 for over a year, and the album went gold, earning earned him a Grammy nomination for male pop vocal performance.

Sheik’s followup, 1998’s “Humming,” featured rich orchestration, but he already had an eye on Broadway (his sister Kacie Sheik is a stage actor who has appeared in “Hair,” “American Idiot” and “Because of Winn-Dixie,” for which Duncan wrote the score).

He wrote his 2001 album “Phantom Moon” with poet and playwright Steven Sater, whom he’d again collaborate with on the score for the musical “Spring Awakening” — based on the play by German Expressionist Frank Wedekind, which won him a Tony Award — and “Alice by Heart.” His 2009 album “Whisper House” yielded a companion musical of the same name. He also composed the score for the 2004 film “A Home at the End of the World.”

While Sheik sought treatment for alcohol addiction after canceling a tour in 2011, his stage and studio career never slowed. Other major stage credits include hit productions of “American Psycho,” “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice,” the thriller “Noir” and “The Secret Life of Bees,” along with Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” and “The Taming of the Shrew.” His last album, “Claptrap,” came out in 2022.

PHILADELPHIA — Ed Sheeran opened a solo concert in Philadelphia on Saturday with comments about Gaza, saying what’s happening is “catastrophic and unjustifiable.”

“My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives, of children’s lives,” Sheeran said at his nighttime performance at Lincoln Financial Field.

Sheeran also said he wants his music and shows to be about unity and humanity, not politics.

He then addressed the controversy that unfolded since his supporting acts withdrew in solidarity with opener Macklemore, who was dropped from the tour after making pro-Palestinian comments onstage.

Sheeran has performed much of his Loop Tour concerts solo, but he had been joined for several songs at each stop by the Irish folk band Beoga. Macklemore, Sheeran’s original U.S. opener, had been replaced by Danish band Lukas Graham and Irish singer Aaron Rowe before they backed out.

Finneas, Billie Eilish’s brother and musical collaborator, was due to tour with Sheeran in South America later this year before he too dropped out earlier this week.

As of Saturday afternoon, tickets were still available for the show, and Sheeran’s website did not list any replacement acts.

Earlier a group of about 50 pro-Palestinian demonstrators congregated outside the stadium before the show. Hillary Steinberg, 34, of Philadelphia, said she got tickets a year ago but wound up getting a refund and attending the demonstration instead, disappointed that Sheeran had not taken a stand.

“I was, until this week, a big Ed Sheeran fan,” Steinberg said. “I think all art is political, and all music is political, and so this choice — even though he was saying that he wasn’t complicit — is a political choice.”

The show comes after a tumultuous week that opened with Macklemore being dropped in response to exclaiming “Free Palestine!” during a Sept. 5 show in New Jersey. Sheeran has said he was not responsible for the decision, which came at the urging of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. His company owns a stadium where Sheeran’s tour was scheduled to play Friday.

Within hours of Sheeran’s statement Tuesday, his supporting acts withdrew.

Diane Savitz, a 53-year-old concertgoer from Stroudsburg, Pa., got her tickets to the show months ago and is a big Sheeran fan. She said she does not think that he did anything wrong or that a concert is the place for politics.

“A concert should be for people enjoying the music. Music should bring people together,” Savitz said. “Everyone has their right to freedom of speech, but not every platform is the place for it.”

Macklemore said Wednesday he is donating $1 million to support Palestinian relief efforts and called on Kraft to match the gift; a spokesperson for Kraft has said the billionaire and Sheeran have each agreed to donate $2 million but have not specified where the money will be directed. Sheeran’s representatives have not responded to multiple requests for comment.

Sheeran’s Loop Tour was the highest-grossing in the world, with an average box office gross of over $7 million per city, Pollstar said in May. Through the end of 2025, Sheeran was the No. 3 top-earning concert act since 2021.

Sheeran has said the tour promoter was ultimately responsible for the decision to drop Macklemore.

The Grammy winner was adamant in his Tuesday statement that he wouldn’t be drawn into discussion of the war in Gaza, arguing that his fans don’t come to his shows to hear about these issues.

He also said he “spoke with the venues at length all week to try to build a bridge” before Macklemore was dropped. He insisted he would never willingly let down his fans or abandon the touring crew and others who rely on him to make a living.

While promoters and venues wield great power over concert tours, experts say an artist of Sheeran’s magnitude generally has the final say about what happens concerning the shows.

Sheeran told the crowd in Philadelphia that everyone is welcome at his concerts, and they can have opposing points of view while still singing his songs, which are about “love, hope, and unity.”

Vejpongsa writes for the Associated Press. AP journalist Jessica Hill in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

Moments after the final rapid-fire rhythm of Anthrax’s opening number “Caught in a Mosh” fades from the open air of the Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J., shaggy-headed vocalist Joey Belladonna addresses the audience. “I gotta ask everybody out there right now. Who’s never seen Anthrax before?” Around half of the 6,000-or-so crowd members who showed up by 6 p.m. for the three-band bill, headlined by heavy metal legends Iron Maiden, raise their hands. “Ah, yeah! We got a lot of new friends here today. Thank you for being here.”

Some bands with a four-decade career would be disappointed by the turnout, or by the realization that many fans not wearing Maiden shirts are dressed in Megadeth merch. But for Anthrax, preaching to the unconverted is an opportunity to expand their fan base beyond the somewhat insular community of thrash metal, a style of music that took the aggression of bands like Iron Maiden and turbocharged it with the speed and fury of hardcore punk. As much as Anthrax cherish being one of the “Big Four” — Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax — playing a 35-minute set well before dark is a great way to reach new listeners.

“We have a strong base of fans that are deeply into this band, but we know there are also people that have never listened to this type of music before,” says bald-headed, gray-bearded rhythm guitarist and lyricist Scott Ian from his home office outside of L.A. a week before the show. “They’ve heard band names, but maybe they haven’t dipped their toe in the water. So, it would be great to reach them and give them something they didn’t even know they wanted and then they’ll fall in love with it.”

A full 10 years have passed since Anthrax released their last studio album, “For All Kings,” which helps explain why they’re not as well-known as some metal veterans. Instead of rushing out an album after the pandemic, Anthrax took their time writing and fine-tuning new songs before entering Dave Grohl’s Studio 606 in L.A. in 2022. Then, they wrote more songs and massaged those for another two years before finishing the recording and sending the album to be mixed in 2025.

“I nitpicked over every detail of these songs before I even sent the demos to the other guys to put their two cents in,” says drummer and main songwriter Charlie Benante, clad in a black T-shirt and blue jean shorts, and sporting cropped black hair and a slanted mustache. “I wanted them to be as good as they could possibly be. Being good enough wasn’t OK.”

The 11 tracks on “Cursum Perficio” (Latin for “I complete my journey”) encapsulate the finessed brutality, incisive melodies and experimental flourishes from Anthrax’s years with Belladonna (from 1984-1992 and 2005 to the present), during which the band wrote its fastest, most aggressive songs. As much as Anthrax were driven this time by the desire to attract new fans, they were also motivated by many popular new metal albums — and not in a good way.

Anthrax’s meticulously crafted album was recorded at Studio 606, using Iron Maiden support slots to court new listeners beyond the thrash faithful.

(Travis Shinn)

“I hear bands with new records out, and they’re horrible,” Benante says, squinting his eyes and grimacing. “The genre has gotten stagnant to the point where you see a social media post by some band mentioning they have new music coming out, and you can tell exactly how it’s going to sound just by the way they look.”

While “Cursum Perficio” may be a bit heavy for some metal fans, it’s neither dull nor predictable. The album is loaded with Anthrax trademarks — serrated, crunchy riffs, soaring lead vocals, bludgeoning beats, and scorching guitar — but there are also galactic noise effects, angular song structures and atypical chord configurations. The most striking number, “The Edge of Perfection,” starts with chiming ethereal guitars and gently tapped cymbals, then detonates in a conflagration of feral blast beats, minor-key tremolo guitar picking (redolent of black metal), and chanted tribal vocals before climaxing in a slithering riff and ebullient chorus.

“After 30 years as a band, I can honestly say that’s the best song we’ve ever done,” says Ian, the most voluble member. “I feel like it’s genre-defying and can appeal to fans of atmospheric stuff and extreme metal, and anyone who likes aggressive music or even just guitar rock.”

For such a bruising cut, the lyrics of “The Edge of Perfection” are surprisingly optimistic. “It’s about striving for perfection, which, of course, is impossible. But that doesn’t mean you can’t reach for it,” says Ian. “To me, true perfection is happiness and health, and that comes from love, and it isn’t a given. I work hard at being an empathetic person and I only do things out of love and wanting to make everybody around me feel good as well.”

Lest Ian’s Zen-like proclamation color him a romantic, the guitarist stresses that much of the energy and anger of “Cursum Perficio” stems from the political, social and economic turmoil of the last decade. The problems, he stresses, are cutthroat capitalism, rampant partisanship and mankind’s seemingly innate instinct to destroy.

“Humans are really good at one thing and that’s murder, and we’ve excelled at it over the centuries,” Ian says, shattering the good vibes that flowed like a clean mountain spring just a minute ago. “Every year, we get better at treating each other terribly, which I can’t understand. I mean, there are people on this planet who, if they wanted to, could end world hunger. But I guess there’s no money in that. They would rather make the world a s— place by draining the resources. I swear to God, it’s just like [the 1971 Dr. Seuss book] ‘The Lorax.’”

While Ian purposely scrapped any early lyrics he wrote about politics in the age of Trump (“that would have been boring”), on “Everyone’s Got a Plan” he addresses the partisan strategy of “divide and conquer,” and in the first single, “It’s for the Kids,” he writes about the ubiquity of school shootings. Neither song has stopped naysayers from characterizing Anthrax as left-wing.

“I’m not a liberal,” he plainly states. “I’m a centrist. I like skeet shooting and I enjoy going to a range and shooting at targets.  But I believe in common sense. And no matter what your political leanings, I think everybody can agree that nobody wants to see an 8-year-old shot in the face, which happens all too often.”

“I love this country,” interjects Benante. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t have some problems with it…. The way we go about things in this country is just wrong, and it makes me frustrated to the point where I’m like, ‘F— it. I’ll just put my head down and write a song.’”

“Cursum Perficio” delivers classic Anthrax crunch with experimental flourishes, anchored by genre-defying centerpiece “The Edge of Perfection.”

(Travis Shinn)

Much of “Cursum Perficio” caters to neither the left nor the right. “NYC 93” is about the celebratory chaos of band life in the early ’90s, “The Long Goodbye” addresses the horrors of dementia, and the title track is about closure, whether positive or problematic. The Latin translation of the phrase, along with Benante’s past comments that he can’t imagine writing another full Anthrax album anytime soon, have led to speculation that the band is nearing the end of the line; the theory is seemingly supported by lines like, “The journey’s over/ The threads that hold it all together.” But while there are no plans now to write any new songs, and four of the members are in their 60s (lead guitarist Jonathan Donais is the baby at 47), growing too old to headbang isn’t even a notion.

“I truly believe that going out and playing shows keeps us young,” concludes Benante. “We get in a zone, and the music takes over and the energy going through our bodies is the same as it was when we were 20. Why would we ever want to give that up?”

Wiederhorn is the co-author of Scott Ian’s 2014 autobiography, “I’m the Man: The Story of That Guy From Anthrax.”

Public broadcaster RTE says the country’s participation cannot be justified amid ‘appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza’.

Ireland has become the second country, after the Netherlands, to announce a boycott of next year’s Eurovision Song Contest over Israel’s participation.

Irish public broadcaster RTE said in a statement on Thursday that the country’s participation could not be justified “given the appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza” and that the humanitarian crisis in the enclave “continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk”.

RTE, which manages Ireland’s selection and participation in Eurovision, added that it remained “deeply concerned by the continued denial of independent access [for] international journalists to the territory”.

The decision marks the second consecutive year that Ireland will neither participate in nor broadcast the competition, which is the world’s most popular television music show.

Earlier this month, Eurovision organisers said they were excluding any country involved in an armed conflict from hosting the competition.

However, the Dutch public broadcaster Avrotros said the exclusion of countries in conflict was not “sufficient”.

Avrotros announced last month that it was withdrawing from the 2027 competition.

It said Eurovision could “no longer be considered neutral” given Israel’s participation in “a large-scale military conflict” in Gaza.

Both Ireland and the Netherlands were among five countries that withdrew from Eurovision 2026 in Vienna earlier this year. Spain, Slovenia and Iceland also decided not to participate.

Eurovision Director Martin Green said on Thurday that organisers “fully respect” Ireland’s decision and that they “will be missed”.

“The Eurovision Song Contest is at its best when broadcasters and their artists from different countries come together to share music, celebrate creativity and create connections between audiences,” Green said.

“That power to bring people together is at the heart of what makes the Contest so special, and is even more important now in an increasingly difficult and divided world.”

The 2026 show, which Bulgaria won, attracted 132 million viewers, 34 million fewer than its 2025 edition.

Thousands of protesters gathered outside the venue in the Austrian capital during the final in mid-May to oppose Israel’s participation.

The European Broadcasting Union organises the annual music competition. It has faced accusations of applying a double standard for refusing to exclude Israel, despite banning Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.