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Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Kevin Rowland of Dexys Midnight Runners: 'There was a lot of anti-Irish racism'
A loss to the Catholic Church, but a great blessing for popular music. Kevin Rowland was turned down for seminary school, but his alternative path did lead him to Dexys Midnight Runners and an impressive output since they broke through in the late 1970s. You can hear a light Wolverhampton accent, but Rowland, stylish as ever, speaks with a gentle lilt, passed on from his Irish parents. An altar boy in his early days, his calling must have been every Catholic mother's dream? "Yes, I think it is. She was very pleased and took me to see the bishop,' says Rowland, 72 this month. 'I asked her about it in 2007; she passed in 2016. I told her I was surprised about not getting into priest college. It turned out my parents were surprised too because there was a desperate shortage then, as there is now. I can only presume it was about getting into trouble at school and that they went to the headmistress for a reference." His impressive new Bless Me Father has a cinematic quality. He describes how a fractious relationship with his disapproving father nudges him into teenage rebellion, with a rap sheet that included arson, stealing a scooter, and violence. But then music and style become his saviour. As frontman of Dexys Midnight Runners, he is asked to suppress his Irish-ness at the same time as being driven by it. The band's first single, released in 1979, Burn It Down, had its title changed at the insistence of management to Dance Stance. "When I left school in 1968 and even before the last phase of the conflict kicked off in 1969, there was a lot of anti-Irish racism," explains Rowland. "At school, there was a lot about 'thick Paddies', and it intensified with the Birmingham pub bombings in '74, which were horrific. The Irish jokes made me fucking angry, which is what Burn It Down was about. I was quoting people like Behan because if the Irish are so fucking stupid, then why have they produced so many great writers? The people making the jokes were as thick as two short planks. I was living in Smethwick, and they would tell me these jokes because I had an English accent. I would tell them the same joke back, but make it about someone from Smethwick. I got so angry one night, I went home and wrote that song." When the band appeared on Top of the Pops in January 1980, as Rowland points out, this was the first expression from a new generation writing about the Irish diaspora while defining pop culture in Britain. "Yes, there was Shane MacGowan, Johnny Rotten, Elvis Costello, and Chas Smash - who was quite a significant part of Madness — Siobhan Fahey in Bananarama, Boy George, The Smiths, and it goes right up to Oasis; all of them were second generation Irish. It's quite mad." A few months later, Rowland and co were invited back on Top of the Pops to perform Geno. This time their image was more developed and inspired by Brando's Terry Malloy and the New Jersey dockers from On The Waterfront (1954), as well as the small-time criminals in Scorsese's Mean Streets (1973). During the performance, they band looked like a gang, and the soulful horns, along with Rowland's 'crying' style vocal would help set the tone for the new decade. The tribute to R&B singer Geno Washington written by Rowland and Kevin Archer was a UK number one. For the release of their debut album, Searching For The Young Soul Rebels, they reinstated the original title of the single to Burn It Down. The cover image was of a 13-year-old Catholic boy being burned out of his home in 1971 during the Troubles. I suggest it was a brave move. "Yes, thank-you, it was and I felt it," he replies "It felt quite subversive because nobody wanted to hear anything about Irish culture. It was a no-no, but at the same time I was sneaking things in." Rowland felt a kindred spirit in Shane MacGowan, but the relationship would soon turn sour: "We were way before The Pogues, and I knew Shane; we talked about Behan. He had supported us with The Nips, and I thought 'great', but in his first interview, he slagged me off. The guy who interviewed him said it was mischief and that he loved Dexys, but I took it personally." There were comings and goings in the Dexys line-up, but the departure of Kevin Archer was keenly felt. The band moved on in a new direction, adopting the 'gentlemen of the road' look partly inspired by the Irish Travellers Rowland met during a nomadic time in his teens, and a more Celtic sound was embraced. Come On Eileen, released in the summer of 1982, would be a global sensation, hitting the number one spot in several countries. It remains a definitive song of the era. After the success of the band's second album Too-Rye-Ay, their third, Don't Stand Me Down, saw another shift in aesthetics with the reduced line-up appearing on the cover in suits. "There's a song on there, This is What She's Like, I think it's the best song I've ever written," says Rowland. While the album wasn't a commercial success, its influence has been cited by an eclectic selection of musicians including Taylor Swift's co-songwriter and producer Jack Antonoff, Belfast DJ and producer David Holmes and Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood. What followed was a time of despair and addiction after the band split in 1987: "It was really difficult, I'd been doing Dexys obsessively for seven years. It was weird, I was waking up to a bad dream every day. I'd been ripped off, it was horrible, I was wondering what the fuck happened to my life, all the money had gone through my hands and I'd not enjoyed it much, there were bills coming in from everywhere.' Bless Me Father, which has taken 20 years to write "to get to the truth", delivers rare honesty and self-reflection. It was a final moment of desperation during cocaine addiction when he turned to prayer that eventually led to counselling and recovery. There are many moving moments that deal with the death of his parents and brother Pat. He writes beautifully of a return to Mayo: "I love it where my family is from close to the mountain, and if it wasn't so cold, I would live there; it's the one place I feel at home." Rowland, as the only constant member, reformed the band in 2003. He shortened the name to Dexys in 2012 but says they will soon relaunch again as Dexys Midnight Runners. The mix of performance and spoken word elements which he hinted at on 1985 track This Is What She's Like, were eventually realised. "That song gets the biggest applause when we do it. We don't do revival shows. For the last tour of The Feminine Divine [2022 album], it was in theatres, and we played the whole album in sequence. It was a drama with an interval, and then we played the old stuff, but it was the first half of the show that got the standing ovations." 'I wouldn't do it if there wasn't a new album, you have to keep moving forward, but I'm grateful for the past. I still get money from the old stuff, but that was more than 40 years ago. Van Morrison has a great quote about that when he says: 'It's hard to be someone else's nostalgia'.'
Time Out
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Linkin Park at London's Wembley Stadium 2025: timings, set list, last-minute tickets and everything you need to know
Less than a year after the nu metal group last played London (which was at the O2 last September), Linkin Park are back in the capital this week at none other than Wembley Stadium. The band responsible for immortal noughties hits like 'Numb', 'In the End' and 'Burn It Down' will perform at London's biggest stadium on Saturday. The band's lineup features Mike Shinoda, Dave 'Phoenix' Farrell, Joe Hahn, Colin Brittain and still-somewhat-new vocalist Emily Armstrong. Linkin Park are touring in support of 2024 album From Zero. Heading to northwest London to see Linkin Park this weekend? Here's what you need to know about the show, from timings to remaining ticket availability. When are Linkin Park playing London's Wembley Stadium? The nu-metallers' show in London is on Saturday June 28 2025. What time will Linkin Park come on stage? Timings haven't yet been officially confirmed, but expect the band on stage at around 8.15pm-8.30pm. Doors are at 5pm, support acts will start at 6pm and Linkin Park will wrap things up by 10.30pm. Are there any tickets left? At time of writing, some tickets were left for Linkin Park at Wembley on Ticketmaster. How much do tickets cost? On Ticketmaster, tickets are available from around £79. Find those here. What's the full setlist? For an idea of what Linkin Park will play at Wembley, this was the band's recent setlist in Milan on the same tour (according to Somewhere I Belong Crawling Cut the Bridge Lying From You The Emptiness Machine The Catalyst Burn It Down Up From the Bottom Where'd You Go (Fort Minor cover) Waiting for the End Joe Hahn Solo When They Come for Me / Remember the Name Two Faced One Step Closer Break/Collapse Lost Stained What I've Done Kintsugi Overflow Numb In the End Faint Papercut A Place for My Head Heavy Is the Crown Bleed It Out Who will be supporting Linkin Park in London? Support comes from metal band Spiritbox and rapper JPEGMAFIA. Weather forecast Wembley is currently predicted to be pretty balmy on Saturday. The Met Office is predicting highs of 27C in the evening, with little chance of rain. Make sure you stay hydrated, and bring sun cream. Are there any banned items? Each ticketholder is to permitted to bring in one bag, and it must be smaller than A4 size. These items are banned: Wallet chains and jean chains Weapons of any sort Recording equipment (sound or video) Professional or semi-professional (4K/8K) cameras Bottles, cans or glass containers Fireworks Alcohol Laser pens and pointers Go Pro cameras, selfie sticks, iPads and tablets Drones Banners, posters and signs bigger A3 in size Metal bottles Find a full list of prohibited items at Wembley here. Those with standing tickets are not permitted to bring a bottle of any kind, though all other ticketholders can bring in empty plastic, crushable bottles under 500ml.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jason Aldean Reveals Gift From Tim McGraw That Meant 'More Than Anything'
Jason Aldean Reveals Gift From Tim McGraw That Meant 'More Than Anything' originally appeared on Parade. Country superstar Jason Aldean appeared on the Taste of Country podcast show Friday, May 30, and among other things, he talked about the fact that it's customary for a headliner on a tour to give their opening act a gift when the tour wraps. It's not something we knew about, and it's really cool. Aldean revealed some of the best gifts he has both given and received, including two incredible gifts from stars Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw. Aldean's tour with McGraw was actually one of his very first tours, way back in 2008 on McGraw's Live Your Voice tour, where Aldean and the duo Halfway to Hazard (comprised of David Tolliver and Chad Warrix) were McGraw's opening acts. At the time, McGraw said of Aldean in a press release announcing the tour, "I'm looking forward to having Jason and Chad and David out there this year. They are among the best live performers out there, and I think it's a great combination that the fans will enjoy."Now, Aldean revealed what McGraw gave him at the end of the tour and how at the time, it was the best gift. "McGraw gave me a nice watch and some cash, which was really cool at the time because I could use the cash more than anything back then," said Aldean with a laugh. It's probably very true for up-and-coming acts — material gifts are nice, but money is probably the most valuable thing at the time. Aldean later went on tour with Chesney in 2015 when Aldean's Burn It Down tour combined with Chesney's Big Revival tour. "Chesney gave me a Can-Am Spyder, like the tryke, and so I still have that thing, that one's pretty one was the coolest, that motorcycle that I still have," said Aldean, adding, "Kenny's awesome, man." When asked if someone ever gave him kind of a crummy gift at the end of a tour, or maybe no gift at all, Aldean played coy and said, "Probably, yeah. I don't know," but he deflected over to what he has given his opening acts over the years. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 "I'd say the best gift I ever gave somebody, when Luke [Combs] was out with me, it was kind of the year he blew up, probably 2012, I think it was, and I got him a bass boat at the end of the tour," said Aldean. "He had blown up, obviously, and it was such a fun tour. One of my best friends. We just had an amazing year out there. He had just bought some property, and I got him a bass boat. So that's my best gift I've ever given anybody." Aldean also revealed he got Kane Brown a four-wheeler, saying, "You get out there, get to know these guys, see what they're into, what they like, and then you figure it out." Jason Aldean Reveals Gift From Tim McGraw That Meant 'More Than Anything' first appeared on Parade on Jun 2, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Express Tribune
21-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Parker McCollum expands 2025 tour with 16 new dates and special guests
Rising country star Parker McCollum has announced an expansion of his What Kinda Man Tour, adding 16 new dates for fall 2025. The extended leg kicks off on September 4 in Lubbock, Texas, and includes stops in Baltimore, Charlotte, and Casper. Fans have eagerly anticipated new tour dates following McCollum's recent social media wipe, which initially sparked speculation about a new album. The fall tour will feature special guest performances from artists such as Hudson Westbrook, Ashley Cooke, Kameron Marlowe, Vincent Mason, Laci Kaye Booth, and Kassi Ashton. The Casper, Wyoming, show on October 16 will mark a milestone for McCollum, as he upgrades from smaller venues to a major arena performance at the Ford Wyoming Center. Tickets go on pre-sale for McCollum's fan club, Gold Chain Nation, on March 26 at 10 a.m. CT, with general sales starting March 28 at 10 a.m. CT via his official website and participating venues. McCollum, known for hits like Burn It Down, Pretty Heart, and To Be Loved By You, continues to gain recognition as a top country artist. His latest single, What Kinda Man, is climbing the charts, fueling excitement for a potential new album announcement. For more details, fans can visit the official Parker McCollum website or check local venues for ticket information.
