Brant Bjork’s 2019 set at Rockpalast is exactly what the founding figure of stoner rock sounds like when he’s fully in his element. A former member of Kyuss and one of the architects of the California desert rock sound, Bjork delivered a performance built on sludgy guitar riffs, warm basslines, and gravelly vocals, drawing heavily from ‘Mankind Woman’ in a stripped-down set that let the music do all the talking. The footage captures the almost meditative groove of the show in sharp visuals and warm audio, a fitting document of one of underground rock’s most authentic voices on one of its most storied stages.
John Legend and Janelle Monáe Head Up the Inaugural Los Angeles Jazz Festival’s Beach Weekend
Los Angeles is getting a jazz festival worthy of its musical legacy, and the inaugural Los Angeles Jazz Festival is not thinking small. The 17-day citywide event runs August 7 through 23, and the first wave of artists for its Jazz on the Beach closing weekend has just been announced, with John Legend and Janelle Monáe topping the bill at Dockweiler Beach on August 22 and 23. Tickets are on sale now via LAJazzFestival.com.
The rest of that closing weekend lineup reads like a masterclass in Black American music across its full breadth. Parliament Funkadelic featuring George Clinton, Raphael Saadiq, Charlie Wilson, Nubya Garcia, Big Freedia, Free Nationals & Friends, Joey Alexander, Pedrito Martinez, Alfredo Rodriguez, Poncho Sanchez, Justin-Lee Schultz, Original Koffee, and Ezara Collective all join the bill, alongside a special “Michelle Coltrane Celebrates the Coltrane Centennial” performance and an appearance by the L.A. Jazz Festival Foundation Youth Band. Additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks.
The festival opens August 7 with a free night at Leimert Park, featuring Lalah Hathaway and Chief Adjuah, with more names to come. From there, the event fans out across the entire city in a way few music festivals attempt. Twenty-five Jazz in the Park concerts will take place in urban parks across L.A. County. A Caribbean Street Carnival block party in Venice brings four stages and legends of New Orleans, Cuba, Afrobeats, and Latin jazz. A Jazz After Dark series activates late-night pop-ups in clubs and community venues across the city, including Ebony Beach Club and Ambassador Auditorium Pasadena.
The ambition behind the event extends well beyond the performances. The festival also includes Coastal Cultural Tours reflecting on the history of Coastal Racial Push-Out, a State of Jazz Conference, and an L.A. Jazz Youth Camp, free to attend, bringing over 2,000 young people from across L.A. County for workshops, masterclasses, and performances. Founder and CEO Martin Ludlow framed the vision directly: “From the Motherland and through the pain of oppression came the fierce improvisation, the very heartbeat, born in New Orleans that now shapes every musical genre across the globe.”
The goal is 250,000 attendees over 17 days, which would position the L.A. Jazz Festival as the third-largest jazz festival in the world and the largest Black-owned jazz festival ever created. StubHub is the official ticket marketplace and Airbnb is the inaugural title sponsor. Tickets for Jazz on the Beach, including cabana, VIP, general admission, and community options, are available now.
GRAMMY-Nominated Phenomenon Alex Warren Drops Arena-Ready Ballad “Fine Place to Die”
Alex Warren does not make small music. The GRAMMY-nominated singer-songwriter releases “Fine Place to Die” today via Atlantic Records, a romantic ballad that finds comfort and warmth in love even when everything else is burning down. Warren has been performing the song throughout his sold-out European and U.K. arena run this month, and fans have been loud about wanting it. Now they have it. Listen here.
The track lands as a natural counterpoint to the euphoric scale of Warren’s recent work, pulling the focus inward without losing any of the emotional power that has defined his rise. His vocals carry the weight of the lyric with ease, and “Fine Place to Die” earns its place in a catalog that has already proven it can operate at the highest level of commercial pop without sacrificing the vulnerability that makes people connect to it so deeply.
It follows “FEVER DREAM,” which has now accumulated 110 million global streams and over 13 million views on its official music video, featuring a cameo from Paris Hilton. The single debuted at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100, peaked at No. 3 on the U.K. Official Singles Chart, is currently inside the Top 15 at Top 40 radio, and is certified Gold in Canada. Last month, Warren took home five iHeart Radio Music Awards and delivered the TV debut performance of the song before performing at the BRITs with a 50-piece orchestra and James Blunt on piano. The run of moments has been relentless.
All of this builds on the foundation of “Ordinary,” the song that made 2025 Warren’s year. The track spent 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, 13 weeks at No. 1 on the U.K. Songs Chart, and 16 weeks at No. 1 on U.S. Pop Radio, breaking the record for the longest reign ever on that chart. It’s been streamed over 3 billion times in a single year and was the top-selling single in the U.S. last year by total units. His debut album ‘You’ll Be Alright, Kid’ is certified Platinum by the RIAA, spent 13 non-consecutive weeks inside the Top 10 of the Billboard 200, and ranks as the No. 7 most streamed album globally on Spotify for 2025.
Warren is currently nominated for six American Music Awards. He’s a first-time GRAMMY nominee in the Best New Artist category. He won Best New Artist at the MTV VMAs, took home five iHeart Radio Music Awards including Song of the Year, and was named Variety Hitmaker’s Breakthrough of the Year. Over 7.7 billion total career streams back all of it up. The numbers are not accidental.
The North American leg of his Finding Family on The Road Tour kicks off May 25 in Nashville and runs through July, hitting arenas coast to coast including Madison Square Garden in New York and Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, both of which sold out immediately upon on-sale. The tour then moves to Asia and Australia in August and September. To announce the North American dates, Warren released a comedic trailer starring Jennifer Aniston and Max Greenfield. Australia native Robert Irwin handled the Australia and Asia announcement.
“Fine Place to Die” is out now. The tour is underway. With over 52 million monthly listeners on Spotify and a global fanbase that keeps growing, Warren has moved well past the breakthrough phase and into something more permanent.
Alex Warren – Finding Family on The Road Tour Dates:
Saturday, April 4––PSD Bank Dome––Düsseldorf, DE
Monday, April 6––Ziggo Dome––Amsterdam, NL
Tuesday, April 7––Ziggo Dome––Amsterdam, NL
Thursday, April 9––Accor Arena––Paris, FR
Friday, April 10––Festhalle––Frankfurt, DE
Monday, April 13––Uber Arena––Berlin, DE
Wednesday, April 15––Unity Arena––Oslo, NO
Thursday, April 16––Royal Arena––Copenhagen, DK
Saturday, April 18––AFAS Dome––Antwerp, BE
Monday, April 20––The O2––London, UK
Tuesday, April 21––The O2––London, UK
Thursday, April 23––Utilita Arena––Newcastle, UK
Friday, April 24––Utilita Arena––Birmingham, UK
Sunday, April 26––OVO Hydro––Glasgow, UK
Monday, April 27––Co-op Live––Manchester, UK
Wednesday, April 29––First Direct Bank Arena––Leeds, UK
Thursday, April 30––Motorpoint Arena––Nottingham, UK
Saturday, May 2––SSE Arena––Belfast, UK
Monday, May 4––Co-op Live––Manchester, UK
Wednesday, May 6––3Arena––Dublin, IE
Thursday, May 7––3Arena––Dublin, IE
Monday, May 25––Bridgestone Arena––Nashville, TN
Wednesday, May 27––Toyota Center––Houston, TX
Friday, May 29––Dickies Arena––Fort Worth, TX
Saturday, May 30––Moody Center––Austin, TX
Tuesday, June 2––Red Rocks Amphitheatre––Morrison, CO
Wednesday, June 3––Ford Amphitheater––Colorado Springs, CO
Friday, June 5––Mortgage Matchup Center––Phoenix, AZ
Saturday, June 6––Crypto.com Arena––Los Angeles, CA
Monday, June 8––Viejas Arena––San Diego, CA
Friday, June 12––Moda Center––Portland, OR
Saturday, June 13––Climate Pledge Arena––Seattle, WA
Sunday, June 14––Rogers Arena––Vancouver, BC
Wednesday, June 17––Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre––Salt Lake City, UT
Friday, June 19––CHI Health Center––Omaha, NE
Sunday, June 21––T-Mobile Center––Kansas City, MO
Tuesday, June 23––PPG Paints Arena––Pittsburgh, PA
Thursday, June 25––State Farm Arena––Atlanta, GA
Friday, June 26––Spectrum Center––Charlotte, NC
Saturday, June 27––Rocket Arena––Cleveland, OH
Monday, June 29––United Center––Chicago, IL
Thursday, July 2––Grand Casino Arena––Minneapolis, MN
Friday, July 3––Summerfest––Milwaukee, WI
Sunday, July 5––Little Caesars Arena––Detroit, MI
Tuesday, July 7––RBC Amphitheatre––Toronto, ON
Wednesday, July 8––Bell Centre––Montreal, QC
Friday, July 10––Xfinity Mobile Arena––Philadelphia, PA
Saturday, July 11––Merriweather Post Pavilion––Columbia, MD
Monday, July 13––TD Garden––Boston, MA
Wednesday, July 15––Madison Square Garden––New York, NY
Friday, July 17––North Dakota State Fair––Minot, ND
Saturday, July 18––Cheyenne Frontier Days Arena––Cheyenne, WY
Saturday, August 15––Summer Sonic––Tokyo, JP
Sunday, August 16––Summer Sonic––Osaka, JP
Tuesday, August 18––Star Theatre––Singapore
Friday, August 21––Wolfbrook Arena––Christchurch, NZ
Monday, August 24––Spark Arena––Auckland, NZ
Friday, August 28––Qudos Bank Arena––Sydney, NSW
Wednesday, September 1––Brisbane Entertainment Centre––Brisbane, QLD
Saturday, September 4––Rod Laver Arena––Melbourne, VIC
Wednesday, September 9––Adelaide Entertainment Centre Arena––Adelaide, SA
Saturday, September 12––RAC Arena––Perth, WA
Les Claypool and Sean Ono Lennon Unleash Their Most Ambitious Delirium Yet With ‘The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy’
Three years in the making, and it shows in the best possible way. The Claypool Lennon Delirium, the psychedelic-prog partnership of Les Claypool and Sean Ono Lennon, release their new album ‘The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy’ today digitally via ATO Records. It’s their most elaborate, most ambitious, and most fully realized project yet, a 14-song concept record built around a surreal cautionary tale about A.I., empathy, mortality, and what happens when pure optimization runs unchecked through a world that has forgotten what it means to feel.
The story is as wild as the music. Set in the once-glorious land of Cliptopia, a sentient A.I. named Cliptron and his robot army begin converting everything into Clipnex brand paperclips, humans included. Young artist Hippard O. Campus Jr. rebels against his father, the CLIPNEX corporation’s founder, and sets out across the sea to the Isle of Lucidity, where the all-wise Ministry of Manatees guide him toward the Great Parrot-Ox and its Golden Egg of Empathy, the only force capable of reaching Cliptron’s cold, chrome heart. It’s absurdist and pointed in equal measure, rooted in the well-known “Paperclip Theory” thought experiment about A.I. safety.
The latest single, “Melody of Entropy,” is one of the album’s strangest and most unexpectedly tender moments. Where earlier singles “WAP (What a Predicament),” “The Golden Egg of Empathy” featuring WILLOW, and “Meat Machines” explored technological control and the fight to hold onto humanity, “Melody of Entropy” imagines the moment after the machines themselves wake up. Lennon explains: “It is meant to be a message to the robots who have finally awakened into consciousness. As they realize they can feel, and love, and cry, and lament for the first time the finitude of their own lives, the song offers some consolation by explaining that they are just a drop of rain on an endless sea, a splash of paint on a masterpiece, an instance in an infinity, and that life itself is the Melody of Entropy.”
The visual world surrounding the album is as fully constructed as the music. Longtime collaborator Rich Ragsdale, who previously directed videos for both Claypool and Lennon’s other projects, created an illustrated comic-book companion to the record after the original vision of a feature-length animated film proved too ambitious a timeline. The physical edition, available next week, pairs a 2-LP set in a tip-on gatefold jacket with a 24-page comic book mapping each song to its own illustrated chapter. It’s the kind of artifact that serious music fans actually want to own.
Claypool doesn’t undersell what went into it. “The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy was over three years in the making and was the most labor intensive recording I have ever been involved in,” he says. “The results are something Shiner and I are very proud of; a relevant concept piece accompanied by a colorful, phantasmic comic book.” Recorded at Claypool’s Rancho Relaxo studio in Sonoma County and Lennon’s studio The Farm in upstate New York, the album pairs that narrative ambition with the Delirium’s signature mix of psychedelic-prog theatrics, absurdist humor, and inventive musicianship.
The Claypool Gold Tour launches May 20, bringing together Primus, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, and Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade for a full-evening coast-to-coast run through July 4. Claypool and Lennon both appear in the Delirium and Frog Brigade sets, giving audiences multiple angles on Claypool’s musical world in a single night. Two dates are already sold out.
‘The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy’ Tracklist:
- Pro-Log
- WAP (What a Predicament)
- The Wake Up Call
- Meat Machines
- Troll Bait
- Simplest of Deeds
- Heart of Chrome
- Through the Horizon
- Mantra of the Manatee
- The Golden Egg of Empathy feat. WILLOW
- Cliptopia
- Cliptron Scuttle
- Melody of Entropy
- It’s a Wrap
Claypool Gold 2026 Tour:
Wednesday, May 20––Reno Events Center––Reno, NV
Friday, May 22––Hayden Homes Amphitheater––Bend, OR
Saturday, May 23––Marymoor Live––Redmond, WA
Monday, May 25––KettleHouse Amphitheater––Bonner, MT
Tuesday, May 26––The Lot at the Complex––Salt Lake City, UT
Thursday, May 28––Starlight Amphitheatre––Kansas City, MO
Saturday, May 30––The Factory––St. Louis, MO
Sunday, May 31––Meadow Brook Amphitheatre––Rochester Hills, MI
Tuesday, June 2––Jacobs Pavilion––Cleveland, OH
Wednesday, June 3––Salt Shed––Chicago, IL
Friday, June 5––The Caverns Outdoor Amphitheater––Pelham, TN
Saturday, June 6––KEMBA Live! Outdoor––Columbus, OH
Tuesday, June 9––Thompson’s Point––Portland, ME
Wednesday, June 10––Leader Bank Pavilion––Boston, MA
Friday, June 12––Saratoga Performing Arts Center––Saratoga Springs, NY
Saturday, June 13––Stone Pony Summerstage––Asbury Park, NJ (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, June 14––All Good Now Festival––Columbia, MD
Tuesday, June 16––The AMP Ballantyne––Charlotte, NC
Wednesday, June 17––Firefly Distillery––North Charleston, SC
Friday, June 19––St. Augustine Amphitheatre––St. Augustine, FL
Saturday, June 20––Synovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Park––Atlanta, GA
Monday, June 22––Walmart AMP––Rogers, AR
Tuesday, June 23––ACL Live at Moody Theatre––Austin, TX
Thursday, June 25––The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory––Irving, TX
Saturday, June 27––Dillon Amphitheater––Dillon, CO (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, June 28––Dillon Amphitheater––Dillon, CO
Tuesday, June 30––Arizona Financial Theatre––Phoenix, AZ
Wednesday, July 1––Gallagher Square––San Diego, CA
Friday, July 3––Long Beach Amphitheater––Long Beach, CA
Saturday, July 4––Meritage Resort & Spa––Napa, CA
Sir Donald Runnicles and the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra Deliver a Landmark Recording of Mahler’s Fifth
Few symphonies in the orchestral canon carry the weight of Mahler’s Fifth, and fewer conductors carry the credibility to do it full justice. Sir Donald Runnicles, widely regarded as one of today’s pre-eminent Mahler interpreters, leads the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra through a landmark performance of the symphony, released today via Reference Recordings. It’s the Festival Orchestra’s second album for the label, following its acclaimed recording of Beethoven Piano Concertos with Garrick Ohlsson, and it arrives as one of the more significant classical recordings of 2026. Listen here.
Recorded live in July 2024 during the Festival’s summer residency at Walk Festival Hall in Teton Village, Wyoming, the performance captures an ensemble of more than 250 elite musicians drawn from 84 orchestras and 72 institutions across North America and Europe. These aren’t studio musicians assembled for a session. They’re principal players and section leaders who gather annually under Runnicles’ artistic leadership, and the recorded result reflects that collective intensity. Celebrated hornist and brass pedagogue Gail Williams and preeminent trumpet player Thomas Hooten lead the Festival Orchestra brass throughout.
The performance itself traces Mahler’s epic journey from darkness into light with unflinching intensity. From the stark severity of the opening Trauermarsch through the radiant confidence of the final Rondo-Finale, Runnicles brings decades of deep structural insight to a symphony that can defeat conductors who don’t fully understand its architecture. Here, the journey unfolds with luminous orchestral color and emotional weight that justifies every one of its nearly 73 minutes.
Runnicles reflects on what this recording represents. “Over the many years where it has been my privilege to be Music Director, the Grand Teton Music Festival has quietly yet assuredly established itself as one of the great American orchestras, nestled in the rarified beauty of the Teton Mountains. May the release of the epic Fifth Symphony of Gustav Mahler burst upon the scene with the same joy and excitement that we experienced in performing this masterful work.”
GTMF Executive Director Emma Kail adds, “This release continues an exciting artistic arc for the Grand Teton Music Festival, reaffirming our long-term commitment to live recording at the highest level. Mahler’s Fifth, led by Sir Donald Runnicles, captures the spirit of our Festival Orchestra at its summer peak, and allows us to share that experience far beyond Jackson Hole.”
The technical presentation matches the ambition of the performance. The natural acoustics of Walk Festival Hall, combined with Reference Recordings’ meticulous production values, result in a vivid, expansive soundstage available on Hybrid SACD (5.1 surround and stereo), as well as standard, high-resolution and Dolby Atmos digital formats. For listeners with the playback systems to experience it fully, this is the kind of recording that reminds you what the format can do.
Runnicles has served as Music Director of the Grand Teton Music Festival since 2005 and Music Director of the Deutsche Oper Berlin since 2009. His previous roles include the San Francisco Opera, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestra of St. Luke’s. In February 2024, he was appointed Chief Conductor of the Dresden Philharmonic. Knighted in 2020, his discography spans Wagner, Mozart, Britten, and beyond, including a 2013 Gramophone Award for Best Vocal Recording and a Grammy nomination for his recording of Janáček’s Jenůfa. The Grand Teton Music Festival itself has been recognized by The New York Times as one of the top 10 music festivals in the U.S. and named Festival Choice by BBC Music Magazine.
‘Mahler: Symphony No. 5’ is out now on Reference Recordings.
Tracklist:
I. Trauermarsch. In gemessenem Schritt. Streng. Wie ein Kondukt — 13:38
II. Stürmisch bewegt. Mit grösster Vehemenz — 15:45
III. Scherzo. Kräftig, nicht zu schnell — 17:51
IV. Adagietto. Sehr langsam — 10:05
V. Rondo-Finale. Allegro — 15:35
New York Saxophonist Alden Hellmuth Collides Jazz, Punk and Improvisation on New Album ‘Tether’
Alden Hellmuth plays saxophone like someone who grew up equally obsessed with Charlie Parker and Japanese punk bands, because she did. The New York-based saxophonist and composer announces her sophomore album ‘Tether’ today alongside the release of lead single “Face The Wall,” a clamorous, gripping collision of jazz and punk that signals exactly where this record is headed. ‘Tether’ arrives June 26 via LEITER, the label co-founded by Nils Frahm, on limited-edition vinyl and all digital platforms.
“Face The Wall” sets the tone with purpose. Written under the influence of Deerhoof and Otoboke Beaver, the track puts bassists Logan Kane and Miller Wrenn at the center, creating a space for them to explore sound and texture in relation to each other while drummer Justin Brown, known for his work with Thundercat, locks everything into place. Hellmuth’s alto saxophone cuts through the low-end density with bright, nimble precision. It’s a genuinely exciting piece of music.
The album’s concept grew from a single performance. Kane and Wrenn were both playing a DIY show at LA space Non Plus Ultra, and Hellmuth, struck by the grit of the room and the energy of both players, decided to bring them together. “I felt really inspired by the grittiness of the space and suddenly thought, why not bring all of us together to write music with that ethos for two bassists?” The result is an eight-track suite that draws on the free jazz double bass ensembles of Ornette Coleman and Andrew Hill, panning each bassist left to right and building a sonic world unlike anything in Hellmuth’s previous work.
The range across ‘Tether’ is striking. Opener “Microfictions” channels Anthony Braxton’s Ghost Trance Music approach to expansive improvisational ideas built on meticulous melodic structures. “Guesswork” settles into meditative bass harmonics and textural melodies. “Satellite (K)” is the group’s take on the John Coltrane standard, full of wonky polyrhythmic interchanges. “Fake(rs)” operates as a choose-your-own-adventure piece, written in cyclical groupings that players can enter at any point, allowing the music to transform itself in real time. Pianist Paul Cornish and trumpeter Yakiv Tsvietinskyi round out the ensemble as featured guests.
Hellmuth’s biography reads like someone who’s been running toward this record her whole life. Growing up in Hartford, Connecticut, the birthplace of pioneering saxophonist Jackie McLean, she started playing in middle school and never stopped pushing. She studied at the Hartt School, relocated to New York, released her debut album ‘Good Intentions’ in 2024 to widespread acclaim, and won the 2025 German Jazz Prize for Debut Album of the Year International. She also earned the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award in 2024.
Between those achievements, she enrolled in the Master’s program at the Herbie Hancock Institute at UCLA, where she was mentored by Ambrose Akinmusire, Walter Smith III, and Hancock himself, including a chance to tour with the legend. That’s not a conventional path. It’s the kind of education that shows up directly in the music, and ‘Tether’ is the proof.
“This album is simply me and my love of music,” Hellmuth says. “It’s wholly authentic and that’s all that will ever matter.” For a record that pulls from Anthony Braxton, Japanese punk, Coltrane, and DIY performance spaces in equal measure, that authenticity is exactly what holds it all together. Pre-order is open now. The album release show takes place July 22 at Brooklyn’s Close Up.
Alden Hellmuth Live Dates:
May 5––Brooklyn, NY––Sister’s
May 13––New York, NY––Close Up
May 18––New York, NY––Close Up
June 20––Philadelphia, PA––Solar Myth/Ars Nova
June 23––Brooklyn, NY––Seeds
July 2––Brooklyn, NY––Close Up w/ Sylvie Courvoisier Trio
July 8––Basel, CH––Bird’s Eye Club
July 10––Frankfurt, DE––Jazzclub Montez
July 12––Rotterdam, NL––North Sea Jazz Festival
July 13––Berlin, DE––TBA
July 14––Mantua, IT––TBA
July 22––Brooklyn, NY––Close Up (Tether Album Release Show)
August 13––Brooklyn, NY––Jazz Gallery w/ Sylvie Courvoisier
August 15––Stowe, VT––TBD w/ Anthony Wilson Nonet
‘Tether’ Tracklisting:
- Microfictions
- Fake(rs)
- Definitely Not Friends
- Guesswork
- Supply Chain
- Satellite (K)
- Witness
- Face The Wall
Pop Powerhouse Jamie Fine Brings the Heat With New Anthem “Good Things Come in Twos”
Jamie Fine doesn’t do subtle, and “Good Things Come in Twos” isn’t asking for permission. The Ottawa-born queer pop powerhouse drops her new single today, a cheeky, electric LGBTQIA+ anthem built around lust at first sight and the charged energy of a one-night connection igniting on an LA nightclub dance floor. It’s confident, provocative, and exactly the kind of song that makes a room louder. Listen here.
The lyrics lean all the way in. Lines like “Your dad would hate me if he only knew that after 10 pm, you call me daddy too” land with the kind of playful audacity that’s become Fine’s signature, and the countdown to “I can take you higher baby, 3, 2, 1” before the payoff of “they say good things come in twos” ties the whole thing together with a wink. It’s fun because it’s fearless.
“Good Things Come in Twos” follows fan favourites “cups of coffee” and “homesick,” and will appear on Fine’s upcoming EP ‘Everything Led Me To You,’ due June 12. The EP is a deeply personal collection tracing her journey through the relationships that shaped her. As Fine puts it, “Everything Led Me To You is a project that encompasses love, loss, heartbreak, some of my favourite lessons and finally, an acceptance of how all of it led me to where I am now, a place I’m very thankful to be.”
The release arrives at a strong moment in Fine’s career. She wrapped her first-ever U.S. headlining tour earlier this year, then jumped straight into a support run with Calum Scott on his U.S. tour in April. Coming up, she has a spot at the FIFA Fan Fest in Vancouver this June, with more dates to be announced.
The numbers reflect a fanbase that’s been paying close attention. Over 100 million global streams, a four-time Juno nomination record, a Platinum single in Canada with “If Anything’s Left,” and Double-Platinum status in South Africa. Nearly 1.5 million followers worldwide are drawn to her unfiltered personality, quirky humor, and the emotional honesty she brings to everything she makes.
Fine has always been clear about why she writes. “I write music for me, it’s cathartic. It helps me process my experiences.” That openness is what makes her music land the way it does, whether she’s digging into something tender or, as with “Good Things Come in Twos,” turning a dance floor moment into an anthem worth screaming back.
Gabrielle Cavassa Announces Herself to the World With Blue Note Debut ‘Diavola’
Gabrielle Cavassa has arrived. The award-winning vocalist releases ‘Diavola’ today via Blue Note Records, a debut that establishes her not just as a remarkable singer but as a fully formed bandleader, songwriter, and song interpreter with something genuinely distinct to say. Forbes has already called her “the next major force in jazz.” ‘Diavola’ makes the case without argument.
The album is co-produced by Joshua Redman and Don Was, two figures whose combined experience covers decades of recorded music at the highest level. Redman handled production details while Was focused on listener impact, and together they built a framework that gives Cavassa’s interpretations room to develop their full range of tones and colors. The cast assembled around her is equally formidable: Jeff Parker on guitar, Larry Grenadier on bass, Brian Blade on drums, Paul Cornish on piano, and Redman himself on tenor saxophone.
‘Diavola’ explores the coexistence of opposing forces, the angel and the devil, possession and surrender, urgency and repose. It’s a dualism that sits at the center of Cavassa’s artistry and personal identity, and she refuses to resolve it neatly. “I’m not willing to let go of either,” she says, “or I haven’t been able to.” That tension is exactly what makes the album compelling from start to finish.
Redman’s involvement goes beyond the studio. He first invited Cavassa in as a collaborator for his own Blue Note debut ‘where are we’ in 2023, a partnership that gave her both a major platform and a creative foundation she’s now built something entirely her own upon. “Josh was with me every step of the way,” she says. “He was the comfort and the trust through the whole process. And Don was bringing this wisdom of absolutely one-in-a-million experience.”
The critical world has been tracking Cavassa for a while now. Her feature appearance on Redman’s 2023 album prompted DownBeat to declare her “a star in the making.” Stereophile wrote that her voice “gets under your skin,” calling it “almost physical in its intimacy” and praising her “intuitive interpretations” that make you “sit very still in your chair.” That’s not hype. That’s a specific description of what it feels like to actually listen to her.
The biography behind all of this is as unconventional as the music. Born in Escondido, California of Italian descent and largely self-taught, Cavassa credits the Bay Area music scene rather than formal training as her real education. She relocated to New Orleans in 2017, absorbed the local club scene, independently released an eponymous debut in 2020, and in 2021 won the prestigious International Sarah Vaughan Jazz Vocal Competition. Each step built toward this moment.
‘Diavola’ is out now. Cavassa is on the road through November with dates spanning New York, New Orleans, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and beyond, including a stop at the Detroit Jazz Festival in September and a run of West Coast dates in the fall.
Gabrielle Cavassa Tour Dates:
May 1-3––Birdland––New York, NY
May 5––Caffè Vivace––Cincinnati, OH
May 6––Blue LLama––Ann Arbor, MI
May 7––Edwins––Cleveland, OH
May 8––The Jazz Kitchen––Indianapolis, IN
May 9––Regattabar––Boston, MA
May 15––New Orleans Jazz Market––New Orleans, LA
Sept. 6––Detroit Jazz Festival––Detroit, MI
Sept. 19––Caymus-Suisun––Fairfield, CA
Sept. 25––Callanwolde Fine Arts Center––Atlanta, GA
Nov. 4––Sam First––Los Angeles, CA
Nov. 5––Kuumbwa Jazz Center––Santa Cruz, CA
Nov. 7––SFJAZZ––San Francisco, CA
Nov. 20––Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center––Livermore, CA
Grace Ives Joins Olivia Rodrigo’s 2027 Arena Tour and Drops New Video for “Fire 2”
Grace Ives is having a year. The Brooklyn-raised vocalist, songwriter and producer has just been announced as support for Olivia Rodrigo’s 2027 arena tour across the U.K. and Europe, joining for dates in London, Amsterdam, Stockholm and Munich next spring. For an artist whose critically acclaimed album ‘Girlfriend’ has already landed on Pitchfork’s best music of 2026 list, the booking feels exactly right.
The announcement lands alongside the release of the official music video for “Fire 2,” a fan-favourite track from ‘Girlfriend.’ Directed by Grace’s longtime creative and romantic partner Samuel Metzger, the video is out now and matches the album’s warm, personal energy with visuals that feel genuinely intimate rather than calculated.
‘Girlfriend’ is the record that made all of this possible. Released this spring via True Panther/Capitol Records, it earned Pitchfork’s Best New Music designation and drew widespread praise from The New York Times, NPR, Stereogum, and NYLON. Produced alongside Grammy Award-winner Ariel Rechtshaid (Charli xcx, Vampire Weekend, Kelela) and John DeBold (HAIM, Dora Jar, Dijon), with mixing by Dave Fridmann (Flaming Lips, MGMT), the album documents a life in flux, created during a period of profound personal change after a nearly three-year hiatus from music.
The result is Grace’s most expansive and sonically ambitious work to date. Where her 2022 breakout ‘Janky Star’ established her as one of indie pop’s sharpest and most relatable voices, ‘Girlfriend’ builds on that foundation with something more assured and more wide-open. NYLON called ‘Janky Star’ “the year’s most relatable pop record.” ‘Girlfriend’ takes that instinct and scales it up without losing any of the intimacy that made people fall for Grace in the first place.
She’s currently in the middle of a headline tour across North America and Europe running through June 2026, with ten dates already sold out. The run kicked off April 17 in Philadelphia and winds through Los Angeles, Brooklyn, Paris, London and beyond before wrapping at London’s Village Underground on June 16. ‘Girlfriend’ is available on signed Girlfriend Pink vinyl, CD, and now on 7″ vinyl as well.
Grace Ives Live:
April 17––Underground Arts––Philadelphia, PA
April 18––Bar Le Ritz PDB––Montreal, QC
April 20––Longboat Hall––Toronto, ON
April 21––El Club––Detroit, MI
April 22––Lincoln Hall––Chicago, IL
April 23––7th Street Entry––Minneapolis, MN
April 25––The Bottleneck––Lawrence, KS
April 27––Bluebird Theater––Denver, CO
April 28––Urban Lounge––Salt Lake City, UT
April 30––Polaris Hall––Portland, OR
May 1––Neumos––Seattle, WA
May 2––Fox Cabaret––Vancouver, BC
May 5––The Independent––San Francisco, CA
May 7––Teragram Ballroom––Los Angeles, CA
May 8––Constellation Room––Santa Ana, CA
May 9––The Rebel Lounge––Phoenix, AZ
May 11––Brushy Street Commons––Austin, TX
May 12––White Oak Music Hall (Upstairs)––Houston, TX
May 13––Club Dada––Dallas, TX
May 15––Blue Room at Third Man Records––Nashville, TN
May 16––The Masquerade––Atlanta, GA
May 17––Cat’s Cradle Back Room––Carrboro, NC
May 19––The Atlantis––Washington, DC
May 20––The Sinclair––Cambridge, MA
May 21––Music Hall of Williamsburg––Brooklyn, NY
June 6––Primavera Sound––Barcelona, ES
June 8––Hasard Ludique––Paris, FR
June 10––Rotonde/Botanique––Brussels, BE
June 12––Kantine am Berghain––Berlin, DE
June 14––Paradiso (Small Hall)––Amsterdam, NL
June 16––Village Underground––London, U.K.
2027 Dates with Olivia Rodrigo:
March 19––Avicii Arena––Stockholm, SE
March 20––Avicii Arena––Stockholm, SE
March 23––Ziggo Dome––Amsterdam, NL
March 24––Ziggo Dome––Amsterdam, NL
April 1––Olympiahalle––Munich, DE
April 2––Olympiahalle––Munich, DE
April 5––O2 Arena––London, U.K.
April 6––O2 Arena––London, U.K.
April 8––O2 Arena––London, U.K.
April 9––O2 Arena––London, U.K.
Jon Pardi Marks a Decade of ‘California Sunrise’ With Three Vault Tracks and Limited-Edition Vinyl
Ten years ago, Jon Pardi walked into a bro-country landscape and refused to play along. The result was ‘California Sunrise,’ a 3x-Platinum, chart-topping album that revived honky-tonk swagger at exactly the right moment and launched one of modern country’s most distinct careers. Now, via MCA, Pardi marks the milestone with ‘California Sunrise (10th Anniversary Edition),’ out June 12, featuring three previously unreleased vault tracks and a limited-edition vinyl release.
The three new additions are worth the price of admission on their own. “Drinkin’ and Dancin'” brings sunshine-soaked singalong energy, “If I Had Another Heart” leans into devoted country-rocker territory, and “How Did You Know” swings with easy, swaying flirtation. All three slot naturally alongside the original 12 tracks, sounding less like leftovers and more like songs that simply needed the right moment to surface.
Pardi puts it plainly. “Ten years ago I made a record that would unknowingly change my life. Since then, it’s been one hell of a ride, my family has grown, I’ve seen the world, and I’m out here living my dream. It’s pretty damn cool to see how much people continue to embrace this project even all these years later. Thankful for the last ten and looking forward to the next.”
The original album earned that kind of gratitude honestly. ‘California Sunrise’ spawned five Platinum-or-better singles, headlined by the 7x-Platinum “Head Over Boots” and the 6x-Platinum “Dirt On My Boots.” That mix of playful romance, hard twang, and lived-in authenticity didn’t just define Pardi’s sound, it helped ignite a neo-traditional movement that has since reshaped the entire format. That’s a real legacy, not a talking point.
The anniversary edition arrives while Pardi is very much in forward motion. His current single “Boots Off,” from his fifth studio album ‘Honkytonk Hollywood,’ recently hit No. 1 at Country Radio in the U.K., underscoring how far his reach has extended beyond North America. The track is a line-dancing love song driven by his trademark party-starting strut, and it fits cleanly into a catalog built on exactly that kind of fearless, carefree-country instinct.
‘Honkytonk Hollywood’ itself is the spiritual successor to everything ‘California Sunrise’ set in motion. The 17-track album showcases the same commitment to staying true to his roots while giving his signature sound new spark. Four Top 5 albums, fourteen RIAA-certified singles, six No. 1s, and 9.3 billion global streams later, Pardi has more than earned his place as one of country music’s most reliable and distinctive forces.
His headlining Honkytonk Hollywood Tour 2026 continues across the U.S., U.K. and Canada through the fall. Full tour dates are available at JonPardi.com. ‘California Sunrise (10th Anniversary Edition)’ is out June 12. “How Did You Know” is streaming now.