It’s happening! The 2020 MTV Video Music Awards are a go. Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York made the announcement during his Monday (June 29) press briefing, telling viewers that the annual ceremony would be held in Brooklyn.

As the governor announced that New York City would be entering Phase III of reopening on July 6, he shared the unexpected news. “The Video Music Awards are going to be held Sunday, Aug. 30, at Barclays Center,” he said.

The slide displayed at the time also noted that “the event will follow all safety guidance, including limited or no audience.”
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Today, Live Nation announced their first ever U.S. drive-in concert series — LIVE FROM THE DRIVE-IN — will bring fans a live music tailgating experience unlike any other, kicking off July 10-12 in Indianapolis, IN, Nashville, TN, and St. Louis, MO. Brad Paisley will headline performances in all three cities, marking the start of a much anticipated return to in person live events. Darius Rucker and Jon Pardi will also headline the series in Nashville and Nelly along with hometown legends El Monstero will headline in St. Louis, while Jon Pardi and local favorites Yacht Rock Revue will headline in Indianapolis.

Live Nation is reimagining the live music experience during a time of social distancing by allowing fans to enjoy concerts in a one-of-a-kind drive-in setting from their own private tailgating zones next to their cars. Guests are allowed to bring chairs, food and drinks to party in their zone to personalize their experience. More details including event guidelines can be found at LiveNation.com/DriveIn.

Live From The Drive-In will start off with events at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, TN and at Live Nation venues Ruoff Music Center in Indianapolis, IN and Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in St. Louis, MO. Fans can expect contactless ticket scanning through their window when they pull into the venue and then will be shown to their designated tailgate area where they can park and enjoy the show from their own marked-off space. There will be dedicated buffer space around each vehicle to ensure social distancing measures. All artists will be performing full live sets on stages set up in the parking lots of each of the venues. The events will also feature full LED screens and speakers throughout so fans can enjoy a truly live concert experience.
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Saturday night’s “One World: Together at Home” special will mark one of the few times in history that three top U.S. broadcast networks have joined together to air the same charity-focused entertainment special — and the first there’ve also been so many ancillary digital platforms on board, too, from Apple Music to Twitter to YouTube. The coronavirus-related cause looms large, of course.

But it’s also not such a hard sell to bring huge blocks of cable networks and streaming services on board for a simulcast when the talent lineup includes Lady Gaga (who gets a “curated in collaboration with” credit), Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, Lizzo, Billie Eilish, Elton John and dozens more.

Variety caught up again with Hugh Evans, the Australian-bred philanthropist who is the co-founder and CEO of Global Citizen, an organization that is campaigning in support of the WHO’s efforts to combat COVID-19.

When we last spoke, it was about Global Citizen’s daily music live-streams, which have produced moments both modest and newsworthy (as when Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello turned up for their first extended joint performance on the spur of the moment — something fans are likely to get more of in Saturday’s more formal telecast).

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It was a star-studded social distancing night on Sunday, thanks to “The iHeart Living Room Concert for America,” presented by Fox.

Elton John hosted the fundraising concert to help aid in the fight against the coronavirus featuring at-home performances by Billie Eilish, Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, the Backstreet Boys, Tim McGraw, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Camila Cabello, H.E.R., Sam Smith and more stars.

The donations raised benefited Feeding America, a non-profit organization that feeds more than 46 million people through its network of more than 200 food banks, and First Responders Children’s Foundation, which provides support to the families of first responders struggling financially during the coronavirus crisis.

Throughout the hour-long special, fans were treated with performances from their favorite artists straight from their personal homes, and the stay-at-home fashion was filled with cozy and comfortable looks rather than their typical stage outfits.

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The Weeknd has announced his new headline world tour, The After Hours Tour, starting June 11th on the heels of his upcoming album, After Hours. American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets in select markets before the general public beginning Tuesday, February 25 at 10am local time (9am local time for UK/EU) through Thursday, February 27 at 10pm local time. During all US dates, Verizon Up ticket holders will get access to an exclusive stage side experience within the Verizon Up Members section. Regular ticket on-sale begins Friday, February 28 at 10am local time for North America and 9am local time for UK and EU.

The After Hours Tour will showcase state of the art production and one of the most innovative stage designs to date, containing the most LED lights and video for an arena show. Produced by Live Nation, the 57-date tour will hit cities across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and France with support from Sabrina Claudio and Don Toliver in the US, and 88GLAM and Sabrina Claudio in Europe.

After Hours album merch bundles became available with the announce of the title track and album pre-order yesterday, available at shop.theweeknd.com. For all North American dates, each ticket purchased online comes with one CD of The Weeknd’s new album AFTER HOURS. All purchases of the album or album bundles via the UK webstore also give priority access to pre-sale tickets for the upcoming UK and EU tour dates (Note: pre-sale code applies to UK and EU dates only). Pre-sale (powered by Ticketmaster) begins at 9am GMT on Wednesday, February 26th.

On March 7th The Weeknd will perform on Saturday Night Live ahead of his new album, After Hours, dropping March 20th. Listen to the title track and get tickets at the links below.

Nashville-based singer, songwriter, actress, and multi-instrumentalist, Lennon Stella releases her new single “Golf on TV” featuring JP Saxe today. The song was written by Lennon, Ruslan Odnoralov, JP Saxe and Simon Wilcox and produced by Ruslan. Click here to listen.

In conjunction with her new single, Lennon also announces her North American headlining tour, as well as the title of her debut album, Three. Two. One. The tour will hit 28 cities across North America and see the singer play venues such as RBC Echo Beach in Toronto, Canada on May 26th, Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, NY on June 1st, Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, CA on June 23rd, and Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN on July 12th. In addition, she will also play at Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival this summer. Please see full routing below and click HERE for more info.

Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Friday, February 21st at 10AM local time. Official pre-sales will start on Tuesday, February 18th at 10AM local time with Lennon’s Artist pre-sale. The artist pre-sale code is available to any fan now who signs up for the code for their show on Lennon’s tour dates website: https://www.lennonstella.com/tour/

Additional pre-sales will be offered from Spotify, Ticketmaster, Citi, Live Nation, and Local Promoters.

Included with every purchase of a show ticket in the US will be a CD copy of Lennon’s upcoming debut album. VIP meet & greet packages will be available in all markets for purchase during this entire period.

Lennon’s new single “Golf on TV” featuring JP Saxe is the follow up to her most recent track “Kissing Other People.” Click HERE to view the music video!

Lennon Stella first rose to popularity when she was just 12 years old as part of the duo Lennon & Maisy, alongside her younger sister. The pair gained national attention with a cover of Robyn’s “Call Your Girlfriend”. Lennon went on to star in the ABC/CMT smash Nashville as Maddie Conrad for six years. Kickstarting her solo recording career, Lennon debuted with her 2018 Love, me EP which bowed in the Top 5 of the Billboard “Heatseekers Albums” chart, that included the single “La Di Da,” amassing more than 96 million Spotify streams and counting. Lennon is named among Refinery29’s “Young Celebrities to Watch in 2019”, Teen Vogue’s “16 Musicians You Need to Be Listening to in 2019” and most recently Amazon Music’s Artist to Watch for 2020.

The ninth-annual Watershed Music and Camping Festival announced today that country superstars Dierks Bentley, Thomas Rhett and Keith Urban will headline the bucket list worthy three-day, two stage camping festival at George, WA’s breathtaking Gorge Amphitheatre, overlooking the Columbia River Gorge on July 31-Aug. 2. Other acts also revealed today as part of the festival’s consistently stacked main stage lineup include Kelsea Ballerini, Billy Currington, Travis Denning, Russell Dickerson, Lindsay Ell, Gone West Ft. Colbie Caillat, HARDY, Randy Houser, and Jon Pardi. Passes go on sale Friday, Feb. 21 at 10am PT at WatershedFest.com.

“Watershed, to me, is all about the annual anticipation of a great weekend with 26,000 friends, in one of the most beautiful settings on Earth,” said Brian O’Connell, President of Live Nation Country Touring. “I feel like it is a privilege to not only get to go, but to share it with so many ‘Shedders that have been there since day one. These artists, that setting, and the ‘Shedders make Watershed more than just a festival, it’s a true rite of passage for country music fans, and I am so proud to host this event every year. Here is to year nine being the best Watershed Festival yet!”

“Routinely one of the most-anticipated events of country festival season” (Rolling Stone) and a “country music megaparty that yee-haws the Gorge Amphitheatre to sold-out crowds every summer,”(The Seattle Times) Watershed is built with the fans, self-proclaimed as “’Shedders,” in mind. With tickets often selling out in minutes, the festival offers the biggest acts in country music along with a serene ambience.
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