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Music news from every genre: album releases, tours, charts, and the artists and industry deals defining the sound of right now.

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Madonna and Charli XCX Unite for New Song “Danceteria Afterhours”

Pitchfork

Ahead of Madonna’s VMAs opening performance this weekend

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B0YG1RL Announce Self-Titled Album

Pitchfork

The Miami-based duo’s fourth release of 2026 is out in October

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Sugababes Announce First Album as Original Trio in 26 Years

Pitchfork

After various lineup changes, the OG girl group have reunited for a self-titled record due out next year

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Morphine Unveil Lost Album Cocoon

Pitchfork

The album, led by the title track, was completed from recordings shelved soon before the death of frontman Mark Sandman

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U2 Announce First Album in Nine Years

Pitchfork

Carnaval De Luz cut “Torn” features Dolly Parton’s last-recorded vocal performance

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Michael Kiwanuka Serves Up New Album Fudge

Pitchfork

The self-produced LP was written “almost concurrently” with 2024’s Small Changes

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Macklemore Announces Free Palestine Tour

Pitchfork

“As you all know, my schedule freed up a bit”

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Boys Noize Announces First Album in Five Years and World Tour

Pitchfork

Listen to “1+1+1” from 7LLVSION, out November 6

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More Headlines

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’80s Rocker Gets New Honor After 54 Years in Music

Men's Journal

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SUU schedules grand opening events for its new music center

ABC4 Utah

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Dove Cameron marries Damiano David - Music-News.com

Google News

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Full Flower Moon Band Turn A Manic Episode Into ‘Endless Summer’

noise11.com

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GALLERY: Fall Art and Music Extravaganza 2026

ballstatedailynews.com

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Sneak peek at Taylor Swift's new music video, "Patient Zero"

wokv.com

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Lizzy McAlpine Takes Angel To Australia With 2027 Tour

noise11.com

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Australian Musician Celebrates 30 Years With Jason Rosewarne Photo Exhibition And Live Concert

noise11.com

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Dolly Parton posthumously duets with Bono on new U2 album - Music-News.com

Google News

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U2's new album ‘Carnaval De Luz,' out in November, will feature Dolly Parton on a song - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Google News

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No, Rosalía Is Not on U2’s New Album (But Did Inspire a Song)

Consequence of Sound

MUSIC

U2’s new album ‘Carnaval De Luz,’ out in November, will feature Dolly Parton on a song

myMotherLode.com

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ASIA Shares New Single “Arcadia”; Official Music Video

BraveWords

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U2 Announce ‘Carnaval De Luz’ Album: Hear the New Song ‘Silencio’

Ultimate Classic Rock

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U2 confirm new album, includes Dolly Parton's final recorded song

Far Out Magazine

MUSIC

Centricity Music signs Rachael Lampa; first single, 'Permission,' set for release

Niagara Frontier Publications

MUSIC

U2 to Mark 50 Years As a Band With New Album ‘Carnaval De Luz,’ Featuring Dolly Parton’s Final Vocals

Billboard

About Music

Two businesses sharing a beat

Music news covers recorded music and live performance, and the two make money in almost opposite ways. Recorded music earns small amounts an enormous number of times, mostly through streaming, and rewards catalog depth and longevity. Live performance earns large amounts a limited number of times, and is where most working musicians actually make a living. Touring economics turn on venue size, ticketing fees and costs that rise with the production, which is why a sold-out tour is not automatically a profitable one. Stories about ticketing platforms, venue ownership and festival cancellations belong to this beat as much as album releases do, and the consolidation of promoters, venues and ticketing under common ownership is one of its longest running arguments.

Who owns a song

Every recording involves at least two separate copyrights, and conflating them causes most of the confusion in music coverage. The composition is the song itself, the melody and lyrics, and it is handled by publishers. The master is the specific recorded performance, and it is usually owned by whoever financed the recording, which historically meant the label rather than the artist. An artist can own one and not the other. Catalog sales, re-recordings and disputes over who may license a song to an advertisement all come down to which of those two rights is in play.

What the charts actually measure

Charts are formulas, and the formula decides the outcome as much as listener behavior does. Streams are converted into notional sales at a ratio set by the chart compiler, with paid subscription streams counted more heavily than free ones. Bundling a download with merchandise or a concert ticket has at various points counted and then been disallowed. Genre classification is a further judgment call, made by committees whose decisions about which chart a record belongs on have repeatedly become news in their own right. A chart week is a fixed tracking window, so release day is chosen strategically, and a record arriving a day late competes in a different week against a different field.