Along with the exciting news of an entire new album, the British rock band also announced their latest single, Prisoners. In an interview from NME with the band’s frontman, Jimi Goodwin, the truth behind the single has been revealed. The band believe that mental health should never be seen as a taboo topic and are open in expressing how they feel through the lyrics of their songs.

Goodwin says, “Prisoners is about that yearning that Doves have always had. Just over the horizon, there’s always something better. Sometimes we get trapped by our own behaviour. You can be a prisoner of your own thoughts. They can take you to some pretty dark and unexpected places if you let them.”

Check out the video for the track here:

Prisoners is set to feature on the tracklist of the upcoming album, along with another recent single, Carousels (released 18th June). The band posted the album’s artwork to Facebook along with a link for fans to pre-order the album in a range of formats, from signed CDs to vinyls and even limited edition box sets.

After a nine-year break, the band reunited in 2019 to perform a charity show at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The sold out show was in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust and proved to be a huge success for the band as they performed hits from each of their 4 albums released between 2000-2010.

Since then, Doves have been working hard on their album and haven’t allowed the current pandemic to stop them from doing what they love. Luckily enough, the album is set to be released in just a couple of months time and it’s no doubt that the countdown has begun for hardcore fans of the rock band.

To pre-order The Universal Want, head over to their official website now.

The British singer took to Twitter to launch the latest news to his 33.1 million followers. He said ‘I’ve been working on this for a while now and I’m so excited to announce Act 1 of ‘The LP Show’, broadcasting in real time on Friday 17th July. It’s a new approach to a live-streamed show like you’ve never seen before, exclusively on @Veeps. General sale Friday! #TheLPShow.’ 

I’ve been working on this for a while now and I’m so excited to announce Act 1 of ‘The LP Show’, broadcasting in real time on Friday 17th July

It’s a new approach to a live-streamed show like you’ve never seen before, exclusively on @Veeps. General sale Friday! #TheLPShow pic.twitter.com/mBMzJFtd9p

— Liam (@LiamPayne) July 8, 2020

Tickets to see Payne performing from your laptop screen go on general sale at 8pm BST on 10th July and are available to worldwide viewers. Ticket prices start from just £10 but are available on a ‘pay what you want’ basis. A selected amount of the ticket proceeds will go towards The Trussell Trust, a charity which works with over 1200 food banks across the UK in order to help reduce hunger and poverty.

The ex-boyband star is doing his bit to help during the current COVID-19 pandemic as he is teaming up with musicians, sound and lighting engineers, and out-of-use venues, which have all been out of work due to the situation, to help bring the show together. This will be a huge help as the music industry has unfortunately been negatively affected by the pandemic until only recent times.

The livestream concert will be sure to feature some of Payne’s biggest hits from his successful solo career, including tracks such as Get Low, Familiar and Strip That Down. Other tracks from his most recent album LP1, which was released back in December 2019, are also likely to be performed by the singer.

To find more information of the livestream and to purchase tickets, visit Veeps.

The extravagant pop punk artist took to Twitter and left hints to fans that something exciting was to come on the 7th July. This left many to guess what the singer had up his sleeve, whether this may have been a new single or even a brand new album.

Yungblud, aka Dominic Harrison, continued to keep fans guessing until last evening (7th July) at 7:53pm when he eventually announced the news of his latest single. The announcement took place on the artist’s Twitter page with the caption ‘strawberry lipstick. out july 16th. it all fookin begins. are you ready?’ He then concluded the caption with two black hearts, a lipstick and a strawberry emoji, which some fans may recognise from a previous teaser tweet earlier that week.

strawberry lipstick. out july 16th. it all fookin begins. are you ready?
https://t.co/9LIOmxL8FX pic.twitter.com/G3aAv17lnV

— YUNGBLUD (@yungblud) July 7, 2020

The 22-year-old British singer has quickly risen to fame since his debut EP, Yungblud, was released in January 2018, followed by his debut album 21st Century Liability, released half a year later in July 2018. His second EP, The Underrated Youth, followed on a year later in October 2019 which took to the UK charts, reaching a peak position of no.6.

While spending lockdown in Los Angeles with his manager, guitarist and photographer, it has given the artist the perfect opportunity to record and produce new music. One of his latest singles, Weird, is very fitting to the current situation the world is living in. Speaking about the track on The Yungblud Show, he says ‘This song is about a really really weird time in my life where I couldn’t understand the world and I thought to myself that this could not be more of a right time to put it out.’ The single was released on 22nd April, amidst the centre of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While many have been affected by the current situation, fans can be hopeful of more new music to be released by the current rock artist from Doncaster, with just over one week to go before listening to Strawberry Lipstick.

The tour is set to begin in April 2021 across the country from Glasgow to London with confirmation of the band performing tracks from albums Casually Dressed & Deep In Conversation (2003), Hours (2005) and Tales Don’t Tell Themselves (2007). The band had plans to perform at this year’s Download Festival, although unfortunately due to COVID-19 it was forced to cancel.

The band took to Instagram last Friday (3rd July) and teased fans with an image and caption which said ‘Monday 10am GB’. The picture is a compilation of their first 3 album covers, leaving clues for fans to guess what their next announcement was going to be.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Funeral for a Friend (@funeralforafriend) on Jul 3, 2020 at 2:04am PDT

After Funeral For A Friend reunited in 2019 for a few charity gigs, the upcoming 2021 tour will be the first since the band officially broke up in 2016. The charity shows were in aid of one of the band’s biggest supporters, Stuart Brothers, who was told he only had a few weeks to live. All proceeds from the gigs went to his family.

Another Instagram post soon followed after a weekend of anticipation on Monday morning (6th July) with the tour dates and venues for April next year.

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A post shared by Funeral for a Friend (@funeralforafriend) on Jul 6, 2020 at 2:07am PDT

The upcoming tour will be sure to bring back memories for fans who have followed the band from the beginning.

Check out the tour dates below:

17/04/2021 – Great Hall – Cardiff
18/04 – O2 Institue – Birmingham
19/04 – University – Newcastle
20/04 – SWG3 Galvanizers – Glasgow
22/04 – O2 Academy – Sheffield
23/04 – O2 Ritz – Manchester
24/04 – Electric Brixton – London

Found on Wireless’ Facebook and YouTube channels and on the MelodyVR app, people were given the opportunity to watch the festival from the comfort of their own home. To make things more interesting and to give viewers the most realistic experience as possible, all performances were broadcasted in 360° virtual reality. This proved to be much more exciting than the standard YouTube video.

The online festival featured recorded performances from artists such as Stefflon Don, Saweetie and Ray BLK. Other artists like Skepta, who was supposed to headline Wireless Festival 2020 at Finsbury Park, showcased Wireless Connect with sets from previous years at the festival.

The MelodyVR app proved to be an absolute hit with viewers who longed to be at the festival this year and was the perfect alternative to the 3-day fest. People took to Twitter to share their thoughts on this.

The MelodyVR app is SICKKKK!! On another level#WirelessConnect

— Princess Julie (@julieeelx) July 3, 2020

@ZubyMusic Mate have you checked out the @melodyvirtual app showing #WirelessConnect ? It’s unreal! https://t.co/XsbDLhi8oz

— Pablo “El Loco” Bielsabub (@Pablo_Lassoggy) July 3, 2020

Viewers were lucky enough to catch headliner Stefflon Don perform her biggest tracks at Alexandra Palace, including ‘Boasty’ and ’16’, before ending her set with the big hit ‘Hurtin’ Me’. She also teased fans with a snippet of her latest tune, ‘Miss Me’. While other big names such as Saweetie performed in the LA studio who performed a few new tracks, including ‘Pretty Bitch Freestyle’.

Throughout the past few days, Wireless’ YouTube channel has compiled some of the best highlights from Friday to Sunday to showcase the best performances in 3 short clips. Watch the video below for Friday’s best bits.

For viewers who may have missed the live online fest, click here to watch highlights from Saturday and Sunday’s performances.

The campaign evolved due to a lack of indication from the government regarding music gigs and festivals taking place any time soon which has caused a huge concern for musicians across the country. Despite other countries announcing gigs going ahead, such as Malta’s Escape 2 the Island which is set to take place at the end of August, the UK have been kept in the dark. The unknown is a cause for concern as many in the industry are afraid they may lose their jobs.

Moving forward, UK Music has asked the government for 3 key things:
‘1. A clear conditional timeline for reopening venues without social distancing
2. An immediate comprehensive business and employment support package and access to finance.
3. Full VAT exemption on ticket sales.’

Big names across the country have signed an open letter as an urgent call for support to protect the 200,000 jobs which are in danger of a potential loss. Artists such as Paul McCartney, Little Mix and Kasabian took to Twitter in order to spread the #letthemusicplay campaign to their millions of followers.

In a plea to the government, Kasabian tweeted ‘The UK’s music industry contributes over £5bn to the economy and live music is its heart and soul, we’re calling on the Government to help our industry and protect jobs and the live music scene #letthemusicplay.’

The UK’s music industry contributes over £5bn to the economy and live music is its heart and soul, we’re calling on the Government to help our industry and protect jobs and the live music scene #letthemusicplay: @neilbedford pic.twitter.com/uZGxP56cqS

— KasabianHQ (@KasabianHQ) July 2, 2020

Other big names in the industry also took to the platform, such as former One Direction member, Niall Horan, who created a short Twitter thread to educate his fans on the situation.

Live gigs and festivals can’t happen without incredible hardworking teams behind the scenes, but without gigs all of those people are out of jobs and the live music industry is at risk. Today, we call on the UK government to offer their support. #LetTheMusicPlay pic.twitter.com/4v2gdMSlBj

— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) July 2, 2020

Although, it isn’t only artists who have taken to social media to spread the word as the campaign has encouraged everyone to share an image or video of the final concert they attended with #letthemusicplay on Twitter. As the campaign continues to grow, music fans across the country are patiently waiting in hope of some support from the government.

The talented artist appeared on ITV’s This Morning on a live video call from LA to share the cover. She spoke to one of the UK’s favourite television duos, Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, on why she decided to share her version of the song. She said, ‘I wanted to record a tribute because I’ve been seeing all the amazing work the healthcare workers are doing. Seeing their dedication and seeing how much they’re putting on the line for us really just moved me to record a cover version of this song.’

After a short chat between the three, the programme showed the full video recorded by Lewis as she sings the extremely moving and emotional Angels. The track is accompanied with a video of herself singing from her home studio and is at first surrounded by clips of the band who have helped Lewis perform the cover. As the video goes on, images of healthcare workers wearing masks are shown as a montage in order to share just a handful of the faces who have worked endlessly to help save the lives of thousands across the UK.

Since airing the cover, fans have taken to social media to share their thoughts. Many have been asking if the cover is available to purchase as it just sounds so beautiful, while others are completely overwhelmed and feel emotional listening to it.

#ThisMorning @ITV
Watching Leona Lewis sing Robbie Williams Angel’s and it made me cry, so, so beautiful

— LouBeLou (@lynnych) July 1, 2020

Lewis’ angelic voice has not been a stranger to our television screens as she first appeared on the X Factor in 2006. She won the show with her powerful cover of Kelly Clarkson’s A Moment Like This, which became the Christmas number one for that year. She has since released a number of heartfelt and sensational singles, including Bleeding Love, Run, You Are The Reason and even another catchy Christmas song, One More Sleep.

Click the video below to watch the full mesmerising cover of Angels and tribute to all healthcare workers performed by Leona Lewis.

The SAY Award have announced the news of going online this year due to the current COVID-19 pandemic as it is in their best interest to keep artists and audiences safety a priority. Although, it isn’t all bad news for Scottish artists as this year’s ceremony will feature judges from four different nations, allowing Scottish music to expand its links even further. This can only mean more success for the artists.

At a time like this it vital for the music industry to thrive even more and to showcase new talent. Music officer for Creative Scotland, Jamie Houston, says ‘The SAY Award provides a important spotlight for that talent, and in a year when so much is changing, there has never been more important time to celebrate and support the depth and breadth of music-making here. I’d encourage everyone to buy albums, discover great new music and vote for your favourites from indie, hip-hop, jazz, classical, trad and everything in-between.’

Beginning in 2012, the SAY Award has become one of Scotland’s most popular music ceremonies. It has seen the likes of Auntie Flo, Young Fathers and Sacred Paws take the winning prizes of £20,000, with each of the 9 runners up receiving £1000. This is certainly an exciting time of year for artists in the Scottish music industry.

From 8am this morning, submissions were open for fans to submit their favourite albums from 1st April 2019 to the 31st May 2020. Nominations can be submitted on sayaward.com and are open until the 31st July. Due to the current situation, fans from all over are able to follow the SAY Award from now until the day of the event, 29th October 2020.

The awards celebrate music of all genres, from indie to folk, rock to classical, hip-hop to traditional and much much more and is without a doubt one of the greatest moments for Scottish artists to showcase their talent and to grow even further.

The band posted the single’s artwork to Instagram just after midnight last night along with a lengthy caption explaining the meaning behind the track. They say that ‘it’s about realising you can’t make everyone happy. and realising it’s ok to be defeated by something.’ The caption then continues by saying how they have previously experienced negative comments from press, especially lead singer David Bayley, ‘there was a review in a big publication we got early on that said i was ‘too effeminate’ because of the way I sang and that that was weak and gross. its 2020. there’s no space for that sh*t anymore.’

View this post on Instagram

HEAT WAVES IS OUT NOW. it’s about realising you can’t make everyone happy. and realising it’s ok to be defeated by something. we are often expected to ‘be strong’ and to swallow our sadness. failing to do that is seen as weakness. so we try to cover up our feelings and hide inside of TV shows or video games or drink or drugs. but being vulnerable should be a positive thing. there was a review in a big publication we got early on that said i was ‘too effeminate’ because of the way I sang and that that was weak and gross. its 2020. there’s no space for that sh*t anymore. the music video is out too. it’s meant to reference the sentiments in the song…about being defeated and unable to save something…but tweaked the context a little. I’ll do another post about it tomorrow explaining more. i hope you like the song, its a special one to me. Love, Dave ps link in bio.

A post shared by Glass Animals (@glassanimals) on Jun 29, 2020 at 11:42am PDT

The single proves to be a form of backlash against those trying to bring others down and is a personal piece to the band themselves. The track is supposed to appear on their forthcoming album, Dreamland, which was set to be released on July 7. Although, this was recently pushed back by a month due to the Black Lives Matter movement.

The band feel very passionate about some of the events that have taken place and were heartbroken about the deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. They believe that releasing new music just didn’t feel right amongst everything that has happened. The band posted a long message to their fans via Instagram explaining this further.

View this post on Instagram

love x

A post shared by Glass Animals (@glassanimals) on Jun 27, 2020 at 11:00am PDT

However, along with their latest single Heat Waves, they have also released the music video for the track. Directed by Colin Read, the video follows David Bayley walking through the backstreets of London.

According to NME, Bayley said the music video is ‘a love letter to live music and the culture and togetherness surrounding it. It was filmed at the peak of the lockdown in my neighbourhood in East London by the lovely people who live around me, just using their phones.’ 

The music video seems to be a great success and will definitely be one to remember for the band. Watch it below:

The most popular Pride parade was set to take place on the 27th June 2020 and would have no doubt seen some familiar faces in the crowds. Sam Smith is known for their mesmerising voice on stage, but more recently people recognise the singer as being a strong advocate for the LGBTQ community. In March 2019, Smith openly came out as identifying as non-binary, meaning the artist sees themselves as neither male nor female.

Over the weekend, the singer took to Instagram to share their thoughts on Pride which also coincided with the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Happy Pride month family and friends. Let’s not lose our focus this pride. This month and every pride in the future, we must include, celebrate and fight for queer people of colour. It was black trans women who fought for our rights and rioted for our freedom. Let’s protect our fellow humans, of which we are so unconditionally proud

A post shared by Sam Smith (@samsmith) on Jun 27, 2020 at 3:33am PDT

The singer wishes their family and friends a happy Pride month and urges people to celebrate and fight for the rights of queer people of colour.

Other British artists also took to social media to celebrate Pride. Anne-Marie shared a quote from Morgan Freeman, which states ‘I hate the word homophobia. It’s not a phobia. You’re not scared. You’re an asshole.’

HAPPY PRIDE #HappyPride BE PROUD AND NEVER APOLOGISE. pic.twitter.com/WLLwqflBKb — ANNE-MARIE (@AnneMarie) June 28, 2020

The 29-year-old from Essex has always been open about her sexuality and says that she has never felt the need to tell people that she is bisexual. In an interview with The Line of Best Fit, she says “I’ve never ever just been attracted to men. I’ve never just been attracted to women. I just feel like I’m attracted to who I like. I honestly feel like everyone is like that.” 

Pop princess, Rita Ora, also took to social media to spread love and awareness for the community. She created a section dedicated to BLM and LGBTQ rights to her Instagram highlights which allows fans to view at any point. Within this, Ora has shared a link to LGBTQ Freedom Fund which helps pay towards bail for people who have been wrongfully accused of a crime due to their sexuality. The site offers many ways for people to donate and support the cause.

It is safe to say that despite of the cancelled celebrations in London, artists have managed to use their social media platforms to spread positivity and also share awareness of any issues that the LGBTQ community are still facing today.