Rocker with 600k-subscriber YouTube channel latest Colosseum act confirmed
Rocker-turned 600k-subscriber YouTuber and podcaster, Justin Hawkins, will be coming to the iconic Rickmansworth Road venue on January 31 next year, with tickets on sale later this week.
While older readers may know him as lead singer of The Darkness - who reached second in the charts with 2003's I Believe in a Thing Called Love - the 50-year-old will be putting away the guitar to host a live episode of his podcast, Justin Hawkins Rides Again.
Justin Hawkins (Image: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire) Launched in 2021, it sees the Surrey-born star review rock music, answer fan questions and discuss the often-secretive nature of the industry.
A show description on the Colosseum's website reads: "If you like pontificating about music and culture, uncovering insights into how the music industry really works and witnessing a man chaotically conducting an evening of entertainment, then Justin Hawkins Rides Again… Again is for you."
The tour begins in Swindon on January 12, with the Watford date confirmed for January 31, as part of a month-long run that will conclude in London on February 7.
Tickets for the Watford show can be purchased from the Colosseum website on Friday morning (July 11).
The Colosseum will officially reopen on August 29, with Ocean Colour Scene confirmed as the first act.
Operator AEG has said that the 40,000 square-foot venue, which is being run on behalf of Watford Borough Council, 'will bring an unparalleled entertainment experience to the area with world class live music and entertainment'.It will have a seated capacity of 1,189, with 2,345 people accommodated for standing.
(Image: Simon Jacobs) Other acts confirmed include Jake Bugg, The Stranglers and Suzi Quatro.
AEG formally took over the venue last week as the grand reopening edges nearer.
The venue has been shut since December 2020, but is being revived with the help of £16m in government funding.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Chicago Tribune
9 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Editorial: Even an honored Kiss is better than UFC on the White House lawn
For an early look at the culture wars, we suggest listening (if you can find it) to the 2002 interview with Gene Simmons, the Israel-born bass guitarist of Kiss, conducted by Terry Gross, the dignified host of NPR's 'Fresh Air.' Things jumped the shark when the chat turned to the topic of the codpiece routinely worn on stage by Simmons, also notorious for his theatrically snaking tongue. 'It holds in my manhood,' Simmons said to Gross, 'otherwise it would be too much for you to take. You'd have to put the book down and confront life.' That's the printable part. Thereafter, Simmons appeared to crudely sexually proposition Gross who kept her dignity. 'I would like to think that the personality you've presented on our show today is a persona that you've affected as a member of Kiss,' she said at the end of one of the most bizarre interviews in public radio history, 'something you do on stage, before the microphone, but that you're not nearly as obnoxious in the privacy of your own home or when you're having dinner with friends.' We aren't so sure. Either way, Simmons did not deserve such generosity. But now look at where we are. NPR and WHYY-FM in Philadelphia are struggling to replace lost federal funding and Simmons is getting ready to strut across the stage of the Kennedy Center to receive one of the nation's highest cultural honors from the president of the United States. We suspect that if either Gross or Simmons had been told that future lay ahead, neither one of them would have believed it possible. The spectacle of Trump's Kennedy Center honors list is so absurd as to threaten to make us wordless. But we're not so easily cowered. We'll let others huff and puff, as indeed they have and just observe for the umpteenth time that certain things in America are not supposed to be entirely about the taste of the president. Ya know? What constitutes artistic excellence is not beyond political implication, of course. And Trump's list is not the first to reflect some presidential preference. We don't (outside of Simmons) even think it's that terrible: Gloria Gaynor, George Strait, Sylvester Stallone and Michael Crawford are all compelling creatives, although the last named has actually done very few shows in the U.S., despite being a beloved U.K. actor. But he did do the one that mattered, albeit decades ago: 'The Phantom of the Opera,' a musical that happens to be Trump's favorite and one of the few he has actually . Boom! Give the man an honor! (Although we were reliably informed that no one was more surprised to hear Trump's announcement than Crawford; the president knows the danger of people turning him down.) There's nothing wrong with populist honorees or conservative honorees and, yes, a case could be made that past slates were a tad stuffy and/or curated to the taste of the liberal elite. A separate case could also be made that they don't matter, like the Oscars or the Emmys or other such kudos. True, as compared with Trump's negotiations with Vladimir Putin, for sure. But for those who work in culture, they do reflect a lifetime of achievement, often at much personal cost. Whether or not one individual happened to walk through the door and tap his toe is incidental. There are those who follow these things and are available to advise presidents. We hope Trump might avail himself of one. And no, Mr. President, honoring yourself next year is not really something done. We wonder, though, what Gross, who is still at her microphone, might have to say if the rumors are true about a Ultimate Fighting Championship battle on the White House lawn coming up July Fourth. That level of debasement makes this year's Kennedy Center honors look as a benign as a celebration of 'The Sound of Music.' Fox News reported Friday that first daughter Ivanka Trump, apparently a UFC fan, is pushing for the event as part of the nation's 250th birthday celebrations. On a podcast, UFC President and CFO Dana White promised 'the baddest card of all time.' God Save America. Gross, we hope, has not been asked to do the color commentary.
Los Angeles Times
20 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Laguna Art Museum taps Ana Teresa Fernández to highlight Art and Nature
Laguna Art Museum has commissioned Ana Teresa Fernández to supply the headlining exhibit for its annual Art and Nature festivities this fall. Fernández, a Mexican-born, San Francisco-based artist, will produce a project to be titled 'SOS,' or, in this case, 'Save Our Seas.' The multi-phased activation will include a structural element called 'An Ocean in a Drop,' as well as a photography station, 'We Are Water,' to be displayed with the work. A collection of 800 circular mirrors will be incorporated into the featured exhibit. 'Selecting the commissioned artist for Art and Nature is always a meaningful challenge,' Laguna Art Museum Executive Director Julie Perlin Lee said in a statement accompanying the announcement. 'It is a moment to invite audiences to engage deeply with pressing global issues through the lens of creativity. 'Ana Teresa Fernández's work is bold, poetic and urgent. 'SOS' will create space for contemplation while reminding us that change begins with individual and collective action.' Art and Nature, which has coupled artistic expression with environmental awareness for a dozen years, returns to take over the museum from Nov. 1 through Nov. 10. The museum will continue to bring temporary art installations to the beach. On Sunday, Nov. 9, the museum is planning to have 800 volunteers participate in the use of Fernández's mirrored artwork to form shapes at Main Beach, which has become a trendy spot to bring art into public view. The beach served as a prime location to have hundreds take in 'Ocean Ions,' an interpretative dance collaboration between commissioned artist Christian Sampson and the Volta Collective. In 2023, Cristopher Cichocki brought 'Rising Inversion' to the sand along the hillside at Main Beach Park. The biomorphic light painting flashed a light across a phosphorescent surface, offering up a turquoise glow not unlike the phenomenon of bioluminescence. Museum officials have also decided to bring back the upcycled couture fashion show, which debuted last year. It will serve as a kick-off event to Art and Nature on Saturday, Nov. 1. There will also be a community block party the following day. After Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley secured a $50,000 grant for the museum, the local art institution will offer free admission for the entire month of November. Foley, who is the vice chair of the Board of Supervisors and represents the Fifth District, called artistic expression 'the name of the game' in Laguna Beach. 'The grant, in part, funds the museum's 13th annual Art and Nature program, … connecting more than 20,000 members of the public with thought-provoking art installations along Main Beach,' Foley said. 'I look forward to thousands of residents and visitors enjoying this one-of-a-kind — and free — visual experience.' The Art and Nature programming will continue into the new year with two indoor exhibitions. 'Silence and Solitude: Conrad Buff and the Landscapes of the American Southwest' will display the work of Buff, a modernist painter, from Sept. 20 through Jan. 20. 'Eternal Construction: Photographic Perspectives on Southern California's Built Environment' will bring together artwork from the museum's permanent collection that, in part, will foster conversations around development, land use and urbanization. Those pieces will be part of an exhibit that will be on view at the museum through Jan. 5.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
For Artists Like Sombr and Gigi Perez, Self-Producing Is ‘An Experiment and an Adventure'
Gigi Perez will never forget the first self-produced song that she wanted to share with the world. 'Please Be Rude,' which she finished last year, was far from her first bedroom demo, but the strummed, slightly lilting meditation on intimate relationship moments felt different to Perez — 'like I had cracked the code on my taste,' as she puts it. In just five short years, the New Jersey-born, Florida-raised singer-songwriter had already experienced the highs and lows of the music industry: A viral moment in early 2021, when the grief-stricken 'Celene,' about her older sister who had died the year before, landed Perez an Interscope Records deal. Yet her 2023 debut EP arrived to little fanfare, and Interscope released her from her deal later that year. When Perez sent 'Please Be Rude' to her friends for feedback in 2024, she knew they were worried about her: 'They hoped that I would be OK, and rightfully so,' the 25-year-old says. More from Billboard Addison Rae & Her Producers on the 'Different Energy' of Their 'Magic' All-Women Studio Sessions Taylor Swift's Debut on Travis Kelce's 'New Heights' Podcast Instantly Smashes Ratings Records 'The City Loves Him': Inside MGK's Emotional Homecoming, As Cleveland Celebrates MGK Day and His 'Lost Americana' Album While at Interscope, Perez worked with outside producers, but she felt disconnected from her songs during the studio sessions; newly independent, however, she decided to once again stay hands-on, setting up her roommate's TV as a makeshift monitor, learning production tips from YouTube and Reddit and ultimately reigniting her creative spark. 'It became my motivation every single day to get up and to get on Ableton,' she says. 'And I found this obsession that I hadn't felt since I started writing music.' Perez credits that experience with solidifying her sonic identity — and it yielded a commercial breakthrough. After self-releasing 'Please Be Rude' in May 2024, 'Sailor Song,' an ode to queer longing that Perez had teased on TikTok, followed in July and became a top 40 pop smash, peaking at No. 22 and spending 39 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. 'Sailor Song' landed Perez a new label deal with Island Records and appeared on her debut album, At the Beach, in Every Life, which Island released in April; Perez is a credited producer on all 12 tracks and produced three songs, including 'Please Be Rude,' by herself. At a time when organic TikTok hits remain a fast track to major-label clout, countless unknown artists with access to production software and how-to videos are now using Perez's blueprint. While plenty of pop acts discovered on TikTok are paired with professional producers once they join label rosters, others have stuck with the DIY approach that got them that far — and have scored crossover hits with self-made singles. Meanwhile, pop superstars from Taylor Swift to Gracie Abrams to Charli xcx have increasingly been credited as co-producers on their songs, scoring hits with their fingerprints on every part of their track. 'It's authentic, straight from me,' says sombr, the 20-year-old alt-pop dynamo whose self-produced singles 'Back to Friends' and 'Undressed' have been concurrent top 40 Hot 100 hits for multiple months this year. Born Shane Boose, sombr was introduced to GarageBand at the end of elementary school, and figuring out how to layer tracks and harmonies quickly dominated his free time. As he moved on to YouTube tutorials and Logic Pro X in middle school and started thinking about music as a professional path in high school, he says he never considered relying upon another producer for his work. 'My songs will never be chasing something or come from a 'hit-making factory,' ' sombr adds. 'It's just me in my room, making stuff that I want to hear and based off what I feel. And that's why it works in my mind.' For his upcoming Warner Records debut album, sombr says he will write and produce each song at home, finish '50 to 70%' of the track and then bring them to Sound City Studios in Los Angeles for 'finishing touches' with his co-producer, Tony Berg. For sombr, beginning a production in a bedroom and then taking it to a professional studio provides an expanded tool kit to accentuate his original idea. 'When I first got into a real studio, I suddenly had access to so many different instruments, microphones, pedals,' sombr says. 'I learned a lot about the more traditional way of recording music, and my whole world opened up.' For artists to understand how to use that wider palette, it helps to have the right professional support, as sombr does with Berg. During her Interscope days, Perez says she felt compelled to help produce her songs but didn't yet have the studio know-how to assist her collaborators. For At the Beach, in Every Life, however, she worked with two main co-producers, Noah Weinman (aka indie-rock artist Runnner) and Aidan Hobbs, as well as a mixer, Matt Emonson, who all encouraged her to ask questions in the studio and helped draw out her vision for the album. 'I'm really grateful that I have a team that's been able to teach me — that builds your confidence,' Perez says. 'I could be vulnerable enough to be like, 'I don't know what that is.' ' Of course, artificial intelligence is fast becoming a trusted studio collaborator, too. As modern music-making increasingly integrates AI, more artists will turn to tools that streamline their solo productions — from stem separators and vocal changers that can tweak existing tracks to sample creators and full-song generators that replicate the entire creative process. Perez says she's open to learning more about the assistive ways in which AI can be used, but she's skeptical that production or songwriting can be one of them. 'We already struggle with connection,' she says, 'and I think the deeper that technology inserts itself into a part of human existence, it's going to be harder and harder for us to connect to each other.' 'I know that I am considered to be a young person, but I think I am old-fashioned in the way I like to make music,' sombr says. 'I like real instruments, real voices and a song with a bridge. I agonize over lyrics. I really have no interest in AI and how it relates to music.' And even if shrugging off AI tools makes a production process more painstaking, Perez says the journey is just as important as the finished product. She looks back on her time between major labels and as a production novice as essential to her becoming the artist she is today. 'It was an experiment and an adventure,' she says. 'I feel grateful that I could commit to waking up every day and seeing it through.' This story appears in the Aug. 16, 2025, issue of Billboard. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart Solve the daily Crossword
