This is Beirut

Charli XCX Shines at 'We Love Green', But Francophone Talents Steal the Show

This is Beirut, 04/06 18:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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While pop phenomenon Charli XCX headlines Paris’ We Love Green festival this weekend, a new generation of francophone artists is proving prolific, bold, and ready to shake things up — from Camille Yembe to Zamdane. The festival, held in the heart of the Bois de Vincennes, boasts a major draw: British pop rebel Charli XCX. Known as the ...

Sting Brings 'The Last Ship' Musical to Paris in 2026

This is Beirut, 03/06 12:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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British singer Sting, a rock icon and frontman of The Police, announced he will perform in Paris in February 2026 with his musical The Last Ship, as reported by Le Parisien on Monday. The show is set to run at La Seine Musicale, just outside the French capital, starting February 18. Originally released in 2013 as a concept album, The Last Ship ...

Taylor Swift Finally Reclaims Full Rights to Her Music

This is Beirut, 03/06 10:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Pop sensation Taylor Swift, who was locked in a feud with record executives since 2019 over ownership of her music, has bought back the rights to her entire back catalog, she said Friday. "All of the music I've ever made ... now belongs ... to me," she wrote on her website, after years of disputes over her first six albums, a number of which she ...

Strauss’s ‘Blue Danube’ Waltz to Beamed Beyond Stars

This is Beirut, 01/06 10:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Austrian composer Johann Strauss II's The Blue Danube has, for many people, been synonymous with space travel since it was used in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 sci-fi film classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. But the world-famous waltz will truly travel among the stars on Saturday, when the European Space Agency's (ESA) antenna will broadcast a live ...

Taylor Swift Buys Back Rights to Her Old Music

This is Beirut, 30/05 19:50 - Reading : less than a minute

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Pop icon Taylor Swift, who has been publicly feuding with record executives since 2019 over the rights to her early music, now owns her entire catalogue, she said on her website Friday. "All of the music I've ever made ... now belongs ... to me," she wrote, after years of dispute over her first six albums, a number of which she has rerecorded to ...

Eurovision 2025: 166 Million Viewers, Record Audiences, and Viral Peaks

This is Beirut, 28/05 19:55 - Reading : less than a minute

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The Eurovision Song Contest confirmed its place as the world's biggest live televised music event, with 166 million viewers in 37 countries watching the 2025 edition, organizers said Wednesday. Three million more people watched this year's 69th edition in Basel, Switzerland, than last year's contest in Malmo, Sweden, said the European ...

AI Is Not a Threat, It's The Future of Music, Says Spotify CEO Daniel Ek

This is Beirut, 28/05 18:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Artificial intelligence will encourage more people to create music in the future and is not a threat to the industry, the co-founder and CEO of streaming giant Spotify said. Artists using machine-learning tools to produce music have given rise to concerns about whether AI-generated music - even entirely fake artists - could one day replace ...

Jim Morrison Bust Returns to Père Lachaise, 37 Years After Theft

This is Beirut, 19/05 16:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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French police have recovered by chance the long-lost bust of American singer Jim Morrison that once adorned the grave of the iconic frontman of The Doors, 37 years after it was stolen from a Paris cemetery. The sculpture, missing since 1988, was found during a search tied to a fraud case led by the Paris public prosecutor's office, a source ...

JJ, the Pop-Opera Angel Who Won Eurovision for Austria

This is Beirut, 18/05 09:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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With his falsetto voice and angelic smile, JJ has given Austria its first Eurovision victory since bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst won eleven years ago. With Wasted Love—a track that soars with soprano highs between soft ballad refrains and climaxes in a techno finale—Austria took a risky but ultimately rewarding gamble. The song earned 436 ...

From Power Ballads to Pyrotechnics: Europe Takes the Stage at Eurovision

This is Beirut, 17/05 12:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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In a blaze of laser lights, artists from 26 countries were preparing to rip the roof off at Saturday's Eurovision Song Contest final, the world's biggest live music television event. An estimated 160 million people across Europe and beyond are expected to tune in for the TV extravaganza, where kitsch, drama, pyrotechnics and histrionics take ...

Eurovision 2025: Will Celine Dion Return?

This is Beirut, 16/05 17:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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As excitement builds for Saturday's Eurovision final, one question looms large: could superstar Celine Dion, now in fragile health, make a show-stopping appearance, 37 years after winning the competition? Dion became a global music icon, selling albums by the millions and staging groundbreaking sell-out concerts around the world. But she has ...

Eurovision Returns to Switzerland: A Legacy of Song Evolution

This is Beirut, 16/05 15:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Switzerland is hosting Eurovision for the third time, with the extravaganza a world away from when it staged the inaugural competition in 1956—and also from 1989 when Celine Dion starred. The 2025 edition on May 17 in Basel will draw an expected TV audience of around 160 million, with viewers worldwide casting their votes. Here is a look back ...

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