Latest news with #Killah
USA Today
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Lady Gaga at Coachella: All the songs we hope make her setlist, no matter how outrageous
Lady Gaga at Coachella: All the songs we hope make her setlist, no matter how outrageous Show Caption Hide Caption Lady Gaga, Green Day and Post Malone headline Coachella 2025 Coachella has announced that Lady Gaga, Post Malone and Green Day will be the three weekend headliners for the festival in 2025. unbranded - Entertainment Lady Gaga vowed 'a massive night of chaos' for her Coachella headliner performance, an apt complement to her newest album christened 'Mayhem.' Her festival shows on April 11 and April 18 will give fans the first glimpses of what grandiose staging she might be preparing for the 45-date tour to support 'Mayhem,' which kicks off July 16 in Las Vegas. This will be Gaga's second time playing the iconic desert gathering in Indio, California (officially called Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival). In 2017 she stepped in at the 11th hour to replace a pregnant Beyoncé a few months after the release of her 'Joanne' album. But while festival performances are often a mere appetizer to a full production, we have some thoughts about which songs – and other musical callbacks – we'd relish hearing when this current Goth-i-cized iteration of Gaga hits the stage. With her chameleonic range and style, Gaga could easily shift her artsy approaches to reinvention from the slicked-blond hair iciness from her Chromatica Ball tour to the retro-Western air affiliated with 'Die with a Smile' to the inky-black bangs and avant garde steam-punk-meets-grunge palette hooked to 'Mayhem.' Let's hope we see all of the facets. As for the songs, it's inevitable that the staples that have defined her career – "Just Dance," 'Bad Romance,' 'Born This Way,' 'Poker Face' and 'The Edge of Glory' – will be represented. But here are other Lady Gaga songs we're wishing are on her Coachella setlist: More: Lady Gaga reveals how her fiancé changed her life, music 'Abracadabra' and 'Killah' Her thoroughly Gaga March performances on 'Saturday Night Live' were captivating in their weirdness and artistic audacity – especially commandeering most of Studio 8A to unwrap 'Killah.' As presented in video and on (small) stage, the 'Thriller'-esque dance moves and alien eyebrows employed by Gaga and her dancers – looking like Dr. Frankenstein's chic assistants – pair well with the soaring chorus of 'Abracadabra' and disjointed funk of 'Killah.' But given Gaga's unrepentant idolization of David Bowie and Prince – and their undeniable influence on these two tracks – it would be cool to hear a little 'Fashion' or 'Kiss' inserted into the songs, even if just a bass line. We're also hoping to still hear a reference to Queen's 'Radio Ga Ga," the origin of her stage name, woven into an instrumental during the inevitable act changes in the show. And will the stage floor be on fire during 'Abracadabra'? Yes, please. 'Die With a Smile' and 'Shallow' Although both ballads paired her with a male accomplice – Bruno Mars and Bradley Cooper, respectively – we know there is nothing Gaga can't accomplish with just her voice and a piano. She proved as much with her inclusion of 'Shallow' in the Chromatica Ball setlists and during her sweetly effective performance at January's FireAid benefit concert. Her Grammy-winning 'Die' might be a more complicated endeavor solo, but if it provides a reason for her to don that Dolly Parton-styled updo, we're sold. 'Stupid Love' and 'Rain on Me' Bold hair, metallic fashion and lyrics you can scream-shout? These 'Chromatica' songs were made for music festival glory. And as the closing songs on her Chromatica Ball tour – Gaga's first all-stadium outing – they're proven crowd pleasers. Of course we'd love it if Ariana Grande joined Gaga onstage for their best pop duo Grammy-winning 'Rain on Me,' but all we ask is for Gaga to show us a real good time. 'Steppin' Out With My Baby' and 'La Vie En Rose' OK, we concede that throwing in some big band or classic French vocals would present a jarring tonal shift. But consider: Gaga's dear friend and mentor, Tony Bennett, has died since her last tour and she continues to tout his influence. She also nodded to her jazz-swing period nurtured by Bennett with last fall's 'Harlequin' album, which, unfortunately, was too tied to her "Joker: Folie à Deux" film flop to receive its due. And if you caught her Jazz & Piano residency in Las Vegas, you are well aware that she can shake a fringed skirt through Irving Berlin's 'Steppin' Out With My Baby' – popularized by Bennett – as effortlessly as she can slip into the velvety belting required for 'La Vie En Rose,' as she showcased in 'A Star in Born' as well as in her Vegas shows. 'Telephone featuring Beyoncé' Look, we know the likelihood of Beyoncé showing up at Gaga's Coachella set to sing a 15-year-old song is about as high as a teenager knowing how to use a rotary phone. But we can dream, and seeing two inimitable musicians reprise their gloriously unhinged 2009 music video for 'Telephone' in any capacity is it.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Friday Dance Music Guide: The Week's Best New Tracks From Calvin Harris, Sub Focus & More
This week in dance music: Lady Gaga performed her electro romp 'Abracadabra' and new Gesaffelestein collab 'Killah' on Saturday Night Live, John Summit announced that he recently completed his 'first fully sober tour,' Barry Can't Swim released his first new single of the year with 'The Person You'd Like to Be' (and then later revealed that his second album, Loner, is coming in July), we caught up with the gentlemen of Justice to discuss the hyper success of their Hyperdrama album, Chicago's ARC Music festival announced a hefty 2025 lineup, Radiohead's Thom Yorke and electronic musician Mark Pritchard announced a forthcoming collaborative album, we got the first look of the newly designed Brooklyn Mirage and Everything But the Girl revealed that they'll perform their first live shows in 25 years next month in London. And on top of all that, we offer these, the best new dance tracks of the week. More from Billboard Playboi Carti Delays 'I AM MUSIC' Album Release by Three Hours Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco Reminisce on 'Sunset Blvd' in New Single: Stream It Now Chappell Roan Unveils Country-Leaning Track 'The Giver': Stream It Now Calvin Harris, 'Smoke the Pain Away' Calvin Harris walks down the dirt road into country music with 'Smoke the Pain Away,' an acoustic guitar and harmonica-heavy ode to trying to numb heartbreak with a hodgepodge of controlled substances. When the Scottish hitmaker teased the track earlier this month, it was unclear if or how any electronic elements would be incorporated, but while the song is still a departure for Harris, it does contain dance DNA with a flickery, high BPM beat that adds extra verve and bounce and helps the song ride the line between the two genres. Featuring Harris' own plaintive vocals, the song is another pretty undeniable earworm from one of dance's foremost hitmakers. It also comes days after the announcement that Harris will play the first ever double residency at Ushuaïa in Ibiza, where he'll perform on both Tuesdays and Fridays this summer. In keeping with the country theme. this mega-club is not too far from the sprawling farm Harris has on the island. ' Sub Focus & bbyclose, 'On & On' It's a big week for Sub Focus fans, the with U.K. heavyweight releasing his first new single of the year with 'On & On,' which extends his reputation as an essential master of drum and bass. The hypnotic song features a long mid-track bridge built largely around vocals from bbyclose, with the song altogether adding fuel to a run that's included Sub Focus' 2024 John Summit collab 'Go Back.' Following his sold out show at London's Alexandra Palace last week, he announced this week that he's bringing this same Circular Sound setup — which features him playing from the center of a halo of lights — to New York and Los Angeles this fall. Cassian, Script & Belladonna, 'Where I'm From' It's not a surprising that Cassian got not one but two slots opening for Anyma's Sphere residency, given that Australian producer and mixing engineer's sound sound falls squarely into the grandly-sized melodic techno style preferred by Anyma and many of the artists surrounding him. 'Where I'm From' is a prime specimen of the genre, with Cassian and his co-producers Script and Belladonna weaving together an urgent production, with stuttering vocals and ominous choral singing, into a straight-up banger that's right out of an action movie. Myd, 'The Wizard' French producer Myd returns with a pair of new tracks, 'Song for You' and 'The Wizard,' with the latter being a warm, propulsive and very soulful fusion of disco and tribal house that just feels good on the ears. Out via Ed Banger Records and Because Music, the singles follow Myd's slot DJ-ing the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris and also comes after a marathon week-long Twitch stream from the producer's house in that same city, a segment of which you can see here. DJ E-Clyps, 'Gitit' The always reliable DJ E-Clyps returns with his fifth single of the year, 'Gitit.' The track balances a cool, bouncy, nearly future house production with E-Clyps' own vocals, a ode to being in the club and appreciating the kind of woman with 'pretty super eyes and those super juicy thighs' — lyrics he delivers in a laid-back staccato. 'Gitit' is out on Blacklight Factory, the label E-Clyps founded in partnership with Empire Dance and launched last month. Catz 'n Dogz & Nala, 'Dance' The Polish duo return with the noisy, kind of giddily abrasive electro-punk track 'Dance' a call to arms for dancefloor self expression. 'We wanted to create a track that could be played when you're angry, or just if you need to release that pressure valve. Something with pure energy' says the duo's Greg Demiañczuk. This one is just that, with its strident vocals courtesy of Miami-based artist Nala, a regular Catz & Dogs collaborator who's also opening for John Summit tomorrow (March 15) at Billboard Presents THE STAGE at SXSW in Austin, Texas. 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
The Guardian
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Lady Gaga: Mayhem review – a wholesale rewind to core career values
Pop stars spend their careers impaled on the horns of a perennial dilemma: whether to reinvent themselves and show range, or stick to core value variations. With Mayhem, her sixth solo album, her 10th overall, Lady Gaga has dumped the former strategy, which was stuttering of late, for an emphatic reiteration of the latter. Mayhem marks a wholesale return to dancefloor freakiness, complete with self-quotes (Abracadabra) and a hard-edged electronic takedown of fame (Perfect Celebrity) that would not have been misplaced on her debut album, 2008's The Fame. Almost everything here has Little Monster claws. Goth Gaga brings with her zombies, beasts and disease, plus a handful of convincing funk diversions (Killah). But other spectres hover over this banquet: Madonna, most obviously, but also Charli xcx – who has been channelling authentic outsider club-pop for the decade Gaga has been pursuing jazz and acting – plus Chappell Roan, self-made convenor of the queer party people. Most unexpectedly of all, it's hard to tell whether the Taylor Swift-alike How Bad Do U Want Me is intended as homage or satire, but it sits a touch oddly on a record that purports to know who the real Gaga is.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Lady Gaga Performs 'Abracadabra' and 'Killah' on Saturday Night Live: Watch
Lady Gaga and Bowen Yang, March 2025 (Rosalind O'Connor/NBC via Getty Images) Lady Gaga served as both host and musical guest on last night's episode of Saturday Night Live. Hot on the heels of releasing her seventh studio album, MAYHEM, the pop star sang her single 'Abracadabra' in a light-up mirrored box, and performed the first half of new track 'Killah' in the back hallways of studio 8H before joining her neon-clad band onstage and pulling off an impressive costume change. Gaga also appeared as a funeral home director, sang a song about overusing the word 'slay,' and led a satanic ritual at a Friendly's birthday party in sketches throughout the evening. 'The last time I hosted was in 2013, and every aspect of my performance…aged amazingly,' Lady Gaga joked in her opening monologue. 'There's no need to google 'SNL 2013 Lady Gaga featuring R. Kelly.' We all won't, and I won't bring it up, cause that would be bad.' She also shouted out her Razzie-winning performance alongside Joaquin Phoenix in Joker: Folie à Deux and told the story of being set up with her fiancée by her mother. Watch Gaga's full speech and performances, plus her SNL promo video with cast member Bowen Yang, below. This is only Lady Gaga's second time hosting SNL, but her fifth appearing as its musical guest. Prior to the release of MAYHEM, she performed her Top Gun: Maverick original song 'Hold My Hand' at the 2025 Super Bowl and a cover of the Mamas & the Papas' 'California Dreamin'' with Bruno Mars at the 2025 Grammys, where she and Mars also won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their single 'Die With a Smile.' At SNL's 50th anniversary concert last month, Lady Gaga joined Andy Samberg onstage at New York's Radio City Music Hall to sing the Lonely Island's 'Dick in a Box.' The 50th season of Saturday Night Live premiered in September. Lady Gaga is the third artist to pull double duty this season, following Timothée Chalamet and Charli XCX . Last week's musical guest was Tate McRae. To celebrate its 50th anniversary, SNL aired the aforementioned concert special, as well as SNL50: The Anniversary Special, a three-hour live production that included musical performances courtesy of Paul Simon and Sabrina Carpenter, Lil Wayne, and Paul McCartney. Read '6 Takeaways From Lady Gaga's New Album MAYHEM,' and check out our track reviews for 'Abracadabra' and 'Garden of Eden.' Originally Appeared on Pitchfork
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Lady Gaga Brought the Absurd to SNL
Lady Gaga made her name bringing a touch of strangeness to whatever she does, and on Saturday Night Live last night, where she played the host and musical guest, she delivered with over-the-top costumes and theatrical choreography in performances of songs off her new album, Mayhem. For the two musical interludes, Gaga was at her most exacting and confrontational. During the dark pop-dance track 'Abracadabra,' she lorded over a horde of stone-faced dancers like a priestess of terror, wearing a sparkly red, full-body jumpsuit and wielding a cane—hunching over when she wasn't executing the thrashing dance. For a performance of 'Killah,' she donned an oversize purple suit with ballooning shoulders. She seemed to channel both David Byrne and Prince as she pranced through the studio's halls, occasionally writhing on the floor. These acts were mesmerizing displays of Gaga committing to the eccentric. But the artist's talent for the absurd translated to this week's comedy too. Nearly all of the sketches in which she appeared were the kind of comedy that you either find hilarious or don't get. The premises were a little complicated and surreal, using Gaga's oddball energy to their advantage. [Read: The Lady Gaga album that previewed a decade of culture wars] Take, for instance, the first sketch after the monologue, titled 'A Long Goodbye.' Gaga, in a demure polka-dotted dress and bangs that recalled Zooey Deschanel, at first appeared to be playing something of a normie. The music insinuated a sentimental scene: Her character was sad to be leaving her boyfriend (Marcello Hernandez) to go to study cooking in Paris; Hernandez, holding a real black pug, wouldn't join her in France, saying he would drag her down. Quickly, though, the setup veered toward the preposterous. To go to the airport, Gaga hopped on 'rideable luggage'—a suitcase that doubled as a scooter. She took it on the highway, where she met a biker gang that also used rideable luggage. But the flaws of the choice revealed themselves, cutting off the maudlin romantic tones that each character evoked: The suitcases were slow, leading to a recurring bit where each character broke from their tenderness to scream for honking cars to 'go around.' Eventually, her man set out in pursuit of her, using the same impractical form of transit. Another ludicrous reality became clear—the battery on the scooter ran out, which turned out to be fine, because his dog had followed him on its own rideable suitcase. The whole sketch blended melodrama with inanity to great effect. The same could be said for other sketches that followed. In 'Pip,' a prerecorded short from the writer Dan Bulla, Gaga serenaded a mouse named Pip who was mocked for not being able to compete in his high-school weightlifting competition. Wait: A mouse goes to a human school? That's the kind of silliness you had to buy into for 'Pip,' which took a dark turn in its final moments as the mouse enacted revenge on his merciless bully. Gaga embraced the weirdness by earnestly supporting the mouse, singing him a ballad and standing up to defend him. Elsewhere she played a Satanic Friendly's employee, as well as a funeral director who really wanted to throw a Roaring '20s–themed funeral. But perhaps her greatest role of the night was opposite Bowen Yang in 'Wonderful Tonight,' about a couple on a first date in a fancy restaurant with 1980s vibes. Yang as Gianfranco, in a soul patch and a bolo tie, asked Gaga as Janelle to dance when she announced that she loved the song being played—the corny classic 'Wonderful Tonight' by Eric Clapton. Initially, they performed the lyrics as written while swaying together. Then they went off book. Yang wistfully belted, 'It's later that evening, and we're wasted in Times Square,' to which Gaga responded, 'So I eat a full Big Mac and I shave off my body hair.' As they continued, the song grew odder and odder, involving lines about nipple play and how 'Italians aren't white.' The punch line: These two freaky people were perfect for each other. Gaga, who wore a form-fitting red dress, didn't look as ridiculous as Yang did, but she made up for that in her deadpan line deliveries and almost-too-good harmonies. 'Wonderful Tonight' again felt like an acquired taste of a sketch, at times off-putting in its goofiness and random in its references. It worked, though, because of Gaga's dedication to getting as bizarre as possible while still using her famous pipes to their full potential. That's the Gaga specialty, which SNL understood: She knows art can be more intriguing when it's a little outlandish. It may be a tad inexplicable, but it's entracing all the same. Article originally published at The Atlantic
