Lorde Sets June Release Date For New LP, ‘Virgin'
Lorde has confirmed a June 27 release date for her next Republic album, Virgin, which was preceded last week by the single 'What Was That.' That track was co-produced by Lorde in tandem with in-demand hitmakers Jim-E Stack and Daniel Nigro and is augmented with a video filmed in New York's Washington Square Park.
No other information has been revealed about Virgin, although Lorde is known to have recorded some of the music at New York's Flux Studio. See the album cover below and click here to pre-order.
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Viirgin is the follow-up to 2021's Solar Power, which topped the Billboard Alternative chart and debuted at No. 5 on the overall Billboard 200.
To see our running list of the top 100 greatest rock stars of all time, click here.
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Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Levi Strauss Buying Beyond Yoga
Levi Strauss & Co. is going beyond denim. The jeans giant is buying Beyond Yoga, jumping into the premium athleisure market with a quickly growing brand based on body inclusivity. More from WWD Authentic Brands Group Is Buying Dockers for $311 Million Beyoncé and Levi's Reimagine the Brand's Classic Logo for 'Cowboy Carter'-inspired Shirts Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Levi's Are Back With Chapter Three of Their Collaboration 'This is a really big day for us,' Chip Bergh, chief executive officer, told WWD, unpacking the company's first acquisition of an outside brand during his 10 years at the helm. The Los Angeles-based Beyond Yoga — which was founded in 2005 and makes athleisure wear in sizes from XXS to 4X — brings a new aesthetic and approach to Levi's, but fits squarely into the company's casual sweet spot. 'One of our key strategies is to diversify the business and this casualization trend has definitely been accelerated because of the pandemic — and not just here in the U.S., on a global basis,' Bergh said. 'This further positions us as a company, with a new brand in a new space.' While athleisure is a trend that has been championed and developed by a number of larger brands, especially Lululemon and Athleta, Bergh described the space as 'where the puck is headed' in fashion. The deal, he said, 'puts us into the activewear segment in a really credible way, much faster than if we were going to try to do it on our own from scratch.' Levi's has talked about bringing in an outside brand in a low-key kind of way for years and Bergh described an 'extremely disciplined' approach that demanded a deal that would have a strong strategic rationale, a compelling business case and a good cultural fit. 'Beyond Yoga ticks all the boxes,' he said. The cash deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. While the price wasn't disclosed, Levi's did pull back the curtain on Beyond Yoga's financials a little. The brand is expected to add more than $100 million in sales to Levi's next year and be 'immediately accretive to gross margins.' Beyond Yoga more than doubled its revenues over the past three years while also boosting its profitability. Seventy-seven percent of the brand's sales are done through the web — the company's own site and through wholesale partners — and it has no stores. Retail is an opportunity Levi's can help Beyond Yoga jump into with both feet. Cofounder Michelle Wahler, who will continue to lead Beyond Yoga as CEO and report to Bergh, is looking forward to a Levi's boost. 'We know they're going to be able to help us,' Wahler said. 'They have intellectual capital. They'll have capital. They'll have the ability to help us expand into different markets. They're going to help us with the expansion [into] men's.' Athleisure might be a crowded market, but clearly Beyond Yoga is going to be a brand to watch even more closely. 'It's a competitive space, but we have always been very heads down and focused and we're authentic and values-led and I think that really resonates with the customer,' Wahler said. Jodi Guber Brufsky, founder and chief creative officer, added in a statement: 'I have always had one goal: to make women feel good in their bodies. Beyond Yoga was created with this mission in mind, and it has served as the touchstone of the company. It was important to me that when the time came, the company would move into the hands of someone whose values matched ours. We are so excited about this partnership and look forward to a successful future.' Harmit Singh, Levi's chief financial officer, said Beyond Yoga was going to operate as an independent division, a setup the company is going to use for its Dockers brand as well. 'They're empowered to run this the way they've run [it],' Singh said. 'I think that sets up a great business model for us as a company.' Having Beyond Yoga onboard will also bring some additional outside energy into Levi's. As Singh said, 'innovation and entrepreneurship — bring it.' The top fashion companies have generally sought to make an opportunity out of the pandemic's many disruptions, trimming and reworking operations, selling off side businesses and doubling down on digital capabilities. At Levi's, Bergh's efforts to power through — and eventually out — of the pandemic with a stronger company seem to be driving results. The denim maker's second-quarter profits of $65 million showed a massive bounce back from the lockdown losses of $364 million a year earlier. Sales increased 156 percent to $1.3 billion. The rebound is helped by a consumer recovery and market trends that the CEO sees as meshing well with the company's casual comfort zone. With Thursday's surprise deal, Levi's is joining a growing number of companies that are taking their pandemic evolution a step further by bringing in a new business. VF Corp. kicked the buying spree off last year, acquiring streetwear leader Supreme in a $2.1 billion-plus deal. But the trend has been heating up lately. Just this week, Wolverine World Wide agreed to buy Sweaty Betty for $410 million and Foot Locker Inc. cut two deals, agreeing to spend $1.1 billion to buy sneakerhead mainstay Atmos in Japan and the WSS chain targeting the Latine market in the U.S. The flurry of acquisitions accompanies a rush of initial public offerings on Wall Street — including the pending introductions of Authentic Brands Group, Rent the Runway, Warby Parker and more. Set that against the spate of bankruptcies last year that saw J.C. Penney Co. Inc., J. Crew Inc., Neiman Marcus Group, Brooks Brothers and others succumb to their creditors, and it's clear the fashion industry is in the midst of a major reinvention. And that is its own kind of disruption — another opportunity that Bergh and Levi's are going for, with the help of Beyond Yoga. More from WWD: Ralph Lauren Going on the Offensive Vans and Supreme Power VF Corp. Gains in Quarter Revolve Rallies Through Pandemic With 122 Percent Profit Gain Best of WWD Harvey Nichols Sees Sales Dip, Losses Widen in Year Marred by Closures Nike Logs $1.3 Billion Profit, But Supply Chain Issues Persist Zegna Shares Start Trading on New York Stock Exchange
Hamilton Spectator
11 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Broadway has found its Gen Z audience - by telling Gen Z stories
NEW YORK (AP) — Kimberly Belflower knew 'John Proctor is the Villain' needed its final cathartic scene to work — and, for that, it needed Lorde's 'Green Light.' 'I literally told my agent, 'I would rather the play just not get done if it can't use that song,'' the playwright laughed. She wrote Lorde a letter, explaining what the song meant, and got her green light. Starring Sadie Sink , the staggering play about high schoolers studying 'The Crucible' as the #MeToo movement arrives in their small Georgia town, earned seven Tony nominations , including best new play — the most of any this season. It's among a group of Broadway shows that have centered the stories of young people and attracted audiences to match. Sam Gold's Brooklyn-rave take on 'Romeo + Juliet,' nominated for best revival of a play and led by Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler with music from Jack Antonoff , drew the youngest ticket-buying audience recorded on Broadway, producers reported, with 14% of ticket purchasers aged 18-24, compared to the industry average of 3%. The shows share some DNA: pop music (specifically the stylings of Antonoff, who also produced 'Green Light'), Hollywood stars with established fanbases and stories that reflect the complexity of young adulthood. 'It was very clear that young people found our show because it was doing what theater's supposed to do,' Gold said. 'Be a mirror.' Embracing the poetry of teenage language The themes 'John Proctor' investigates aren't danced around (until they literally are). The girls are quick to discuss #MeToo's impact, intersectional feminism and sexual autonomy. Their conversations, true to teenage girlhood, are laced with comedy and pop culture references — Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, 'Twilight,' and, of course, Lorde. Fina Strazza, 19, portrays Beth, a leader who is whip-smart and well-intentioned — but whose friendships and belief system are shaken by the play's revelations. 'You have so much empathy and are so invested in her, but she still has these mishaps and slip-ups that young people often have,' said Strazza, nominated for best featured actor in a play. Some audience members have given her letters detailing how Beth helped them forgive themselves for how they handled similar experiences. The script is written in prose, with frequent line breaks and infrequent capital letters. Director Danya Taymor, nominated for best direction of a play a year after winning a Tony for another teenage canon classic, 'The Outsiders, ' was drawn to that rhythm — and how Belflower's depiction of adolescence captured its intensity, just as S.E. Hinton had. 'There's something about the teenage years that is so raw,' Taymor said. 'None of us can escape it.' Classic themes, made modern During his Tony-winning production of 'An Enemy of the People,' Gold found himself having conversations with young actors and theatergoers about climate change, politics and how 'theater was something that people their age and younger really need in a different way, as the world is becoming so addicted to technology,' he said. That conjured 'Romeo and Juliet.' The original text 'has it all in terms of what it means to inherit the future that people older than you have created,' Gold said. Building the world of this show, with an ensemble under 30, was not unlike building 'An Enemy of the People,' set in 19th century Norway, Gold said: 'I think the difference is that the world that I made for this show is something that a very hungry audience had not gotten to see.' Fans, Gold correctly predicted, were ravenous. Demand ahead of the first preview prompted a preemptive extension. Word (and bootleg video) of Connor doing a pullup to kiss Zegler made the rounds. 'Man of the House,' an Antonoff-produced ballad sung by Zegler mid-show, was released as a single. With the show premiering just before the U.S. presidential election, Voters of Tomorrow even registered new voters in the lobby. Audiences proved willing to pay: Average ticket prices hovered around $150. Cheaper rush and lottery tickets drew lines hours before the box office opened. Every week but one sold out. 'The show was initially really well sold because we had a cast that appealed to a really specific audience,' said producer Greg Nobile of Seaview Productions. 'We continued to see the houses sell out because these audiences came, and they were all over online talking about the ways in which they actually felt seen.' Building a Gen Z theater experience with Gen Z Thomas Laub, 28, and Alyah Chanelle Scott, 27, started Runyonland Productions for that very reason. 'We both felt a lot of frustration with the industry, and the ways that we were boxed out of it as students in Michigan who were able to come to New York sparingly,' Laub said. Runyonland was launched in 2018 with the premise that highlighting new, bold voices would bring change. This spring, Scott, known for playing Whitney in HBO's 'Sex Lives of College Girls,' acted off-Broadway in Natalie Margolin's 'All Nighter.' 'I was standing onstage and looking out and seeing the college kids that I was playing,' Scott said. 'I was like, 'I respect you so much. I want to do you proud. I want to show you a story that represents you in a way that doesn't belittle or demean you, but uplifts you.'' Co-producing 'John Proctor,' Scott said, gave Runyonland the opportunity to target that audience on a Broadway scale. Belflower developed the show with students as part of a The Farm College Collaboration Project. It's been licensed over 100 times for high school and college productions. The Broadway production's social and influencer marketing is run by 20-somethings, too. Previews attracted fans with a $29 ticket lottery. While average prices jumped to over $100 last week (still below the Broadway-wide average), $40 rush, lottery and standing room tickets have sold out most nights, pushing capacity over 100%. The success is validating Runyonland's mission, Laub said. 'Alyah doesn't believe me that I cry every time at the end,' Laub said. Scott laughs. 'I just want to assure you, on the record, that I do indeed cry every time.' Harnessing a cultural catharsis The final scene of 'John Proctor' is a reclamation fueled by rage and 'Green Light.' Capturing that electricity has been key to the show's marketing. 'The pullup (in 'Romeo + Juliet') is so impactful because it's so real. It's like so exactly what a teenage boy would do,' Taymor said. 'I think when you see the girls in 'John Proctor' screaming ... it hits you in a visceral way.' That screaming made the Playbill cover. 'In my opinion, the look and feel of that campaign feels different from a traditional theatrical campaign, and it feels a lot closer to a film campaign,' Laub said. The show's team indeed considered the zeitgeist-infiltrating work of their sister industries, specifically studios like Neon and A24. In May, 'John Proctor is the Villain' finished its second 'spirit week' with a school spirit day. Earlier events included an ice cream social — actors served Van Leeuwen — a silent disco and a banned book giveaway. For those not in their own school's colors, the merch stand offered T-shirts, including one printed with the Walt Whitman-channeling line said by Sink's Shelby: 'I contain frickin' multitudes.' Julia Lawrence, 26, designed the shirt after the show's team saw her TikTok video reimagining their traditional merch into something more like a concert tee. 'It's just so incredible to bring Gen Z into the theater that way, especially at a time when theater has never been more important,' Lawrence said. 'In a world that's overpowered by screens, live art can be such a powerful way to find understanding.' ___ For more coverage of the 2025 Tony Awards, visit .
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
Improvised comedy troupe bring 'unpredictable' show to Norfolk theatre
A night of unpredictable comedy is heading to the stage and promises laughter from start to finish. Improvised comedy group Insert Laughter Here will perform their long-form show Spin-a-Play at Westacre Theatre near Swaffham on June 20, starting at 7.30pm. The East Anglia-based troupe, known for their high-energy, unscripted performances, will kick off the evening with short-form improv games. These include audience favourites like the Alphabet Game, World's Worst, and Party Quirks, reminiscent of Whose Line Is It Anyway? and Mock The Week. Improvised comedy group Insert Laughter Here at Westacre (Image: Will Green) The second half of the show features Spin-a-Play, in which the audience suggests genres for a "brand new" play, chosen at random and performed on the spot. Aaron Weight, the group's creator, director, and producer, said: "I am so pleased we've returned to the Spin-a-Play format this year. "We are all very excited to bring the show to King's Lynn next." Insert Laughter Here has performed publicly for nearly six years and recently welcomed new members. Most of the team is based in Norfolk and Suffolk. Tickets are available from
