Daddy G of Massive Attack

Daddy G of Massive Attack

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Massive Attack To Celebrate 21 Years Of 'Mezzanine' With 2019 Anniversary Tour

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The British electronic group will revisit their classic 1998 album with a special tour in Europe and North America in 2019
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Oct 31, 2018 - 2:07 pm

British electronic trip-hop group Massive Attack released their third album, Mezzanine, in 1998. The album, especially its single "Teardrop," made waves in the U.K. and U.S., and was a seminal recording for late-'90s electronic music, with its dark and brooding beats and haunting vocals. On Oct. 30, 20 years after its release, the group has announced that they will be taking the classic album on the road with a special anniversary tour in Europe and North America in 2019.

According the group, Mezzanine XX1 will give attendees a new taste of the classic album 21 years later, using "custom audio reconstructed from the original samples and influences." They have recruited Elizabeth Fraser to tour with them, the vocalist on "Teardrop," "Group Four" and "Black Milk." Fraser, who was part of Scottish rock group Cocteau Twins, hasn't toured since the last time Massive Attack brought her on tour in 2006.

The show will also include new audio/visual elements and sounds, making the experience a very special way for fans to revisit the album and see the group perform its songs live for the first time in years. As the group's Robert "3D" Del Naja said, "It's going to be a one off piece of work; our own personalised nostalgia nightmare head trip."

Mezzanine, which was originally released on April 20, 1998, will be available as a special remastered reissue with previously unreleased Mad Professor remixes. The reissue will be available on streaming and special edition CD on Nov. 16 and as a vinyl boxset on Dec. 7.

Earlier this year, on the 20th anniversary, the group had the album's audio files encoded into synthetic DNA, making it the second largest file to date stored in DNA. On Oct. 19, the group got extra creative and announced that the album's DNA would be available to purchase in the form of can of spray paint, each of which contains about one million copies of the album.

The tour begins in Glasgow, Scotland on Jan. 28 with dates across Europe until March 1 in Bristol, England, after which the North American leg of the tour will begin. Specific dates and venues will be announced Nov. 2, but, according to Pitchfork, will include stops in Washington, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Detroit, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, St. Paul, Minn. and Toronto. Presale tickets for select European shows go on sale today, Oct. 31. More info can be found on Massive Attack's website.

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The Cure

The Cure

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Robert Smith Teases New Cure Album, Confirms Tour Dates

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The Cure frontman revealed that fans can expect the band's first new album in over a decade in early 2019
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 14, 2018 - 2:18 pm

Yesterday, on Dec. 13, the iconic GRAMMY-nominated group the Cure was announced as one of the 2019 inductees into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Following the exciting news, frontman Robert Smith shared in an interview that it's only a matter of weeks before the group finishes up work on their first studio album since 2008.

Smith's interview with SiriusXM Volume may have only been 23 seconds long, but it gave enough information to show that the legendary group who put out such '80s and '90s classics like 1987's "Just Like Heaven" and 1992's "Friday I'm In Love" definitely still have some musical gems up their sleeves.

"Primarily because of the Meltdown [music festival] thing and seeing all these new bands, I've listened to so many new bands and met so many of them, it's kind of inspired me to do something new," Smith shared. "We're going in about six weeks' time to finish off what will be our first album in more than a decade. It's very exciting times for us all around."

Meltdown, according to the organizers, is the "U.K.'s longest-running artist-curated music festival." Smith led the charge for their 25th anniversary in June 2018, which included artists like GRAMMY winners Nine Inch Nails, GRAMMY nominees Death Cab For Cutie and post-rock group Mogwai on the impressive lineup. Smith himself closed out the festival on a high note, with the Cure performing a 28-song, two-part set, for one of the group's only shows in 2018.

Shortly after Meltdown, on Sept. 21, Smith shared an excited update via Twitter: "WE WILL BE HEADLINING AROUND 20 FESTIVALS NEXT SUMMER - MOSTLY IN EUROPE - DETAILS WILL BE POSTED ON thecure.com AND facebook.com/thecure/ WHEN WE GET THEM."

Smith should probably just take over for Santa Claus this year, because indeed the Cure's site currently lists 18 European summer music festivals, including Mad Cool Fest in Madrid, plus two spring shows in South Africa, giving fans exactly 20 festivals, mostly in Europe, where you can catch the group performing.

Topping it off with new music on the way, we're currently singing "it's Friday, I'm in love."

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Lil Wayne

Lil Wayne

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Lil Wayne Reveals Four December Tour Dates

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The GRAMMY-winning rapper initially broke news of the mini-tour on Dec. 3, asking fans to vote on where to hold the shows
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 12, 2018 - 4:40 pm

On Dec. 11, GRAMMY-winning rapper Lil Wayne announced the four cities he would visit on the I Ain't Sh*t Without You tour: Houston, Washington D.C., Atlanta and Chicago. These are the first major shows the rapper has planned since his long-delayed and hotly anticipated Tha Carter V was finally released on Sept. 28.

Wayne initially broke news of the mini-tour on Dec. 3, asking fans to vote on where to hold the shows. In an announcement video, he stressed the intimate and exclusive vibe all four shows would have: "It's gonna be a real intimate setting, some different sh*t. You might get to hear some sh*t you've never heard or some sh*t some people may never hear, things like that."

Now that the votes are in and the cities have been chosen—although the venues are still undisclosed—fans can RSVP for tickets, which are free for Tidal members. Non-subscribers can sign up for a free trial in order to join in.

To get a taste, watch below to see Wayne performing "Uproar" from Tha Carter V, along with collaborator (and fellow GRAMMY winner) Swizz Beatz, on Saturday Night Live.

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Vince Staples

Vince Staples

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Vince Staples To Tour North America In 2019

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The West Coast rapper will embark on a headlining tour starting Feb. 1, shortly after closing out dates in support of Childish Gambino
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 11, 2018 - 1:47 pm

Rapper Vince Staples announced today, Dec. 11, he will be kicking off the "Smile, You're On Camera" tour across North America in Feb. 2019. Before starting off his 37-show headline trek, he is set to finish up several shows this month as support for GRAMMY winner Childish Gambino, whose final tour (under that moniker) got pushed back due to a foot injury.

Staples' headlining tour begins in Tucson, Ariz. on Feb. 1 with dates eastbound across the U.S., showing Florida some love with three shows around Valentine's Day, stopping in New York City on Feb. 21, followed by a few more East Coast dates, including Washington, D.C. on Feb. 22.

He also has several concerts planned for our neighbors up north, including a Montreal show on Feb. 28 and a Toronto Show on Mar. 5. The Southern California rapper eventually makes his way back to the West Coast, including a show in Los Angeles on Mar. 30, and closing it all out on April 3 with a show in Pomona, Calif.

All show dates can be found in Staples' Tweet. Fellow SoCal rappers Buddy and JPEGMAFIA will be offering opening support. The tour follows the release of Staples' latest (surprise) release, his third studio album, FM!

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Select dates go on sale tomorrow, Dec. 13—visit Ticketmaster for more info.

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Lucy Dacus

Lucy Dacus

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Lucy Dacus Announces Historian Tour Round Two

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The indie singer/songwriter, who also performs in boygenius with Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker, will be embarking on a U.S. headlining solo tour in February
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 10, 2018 - 1:29 pm

Today, on Dec. 10, indie-rock darling Lucy Dacus announced that she would be heading out on a second tour in support of her latest solo album, Historian, released March 2018. Her 2019 dates feature headline shows across the U.S. in February and March, plus two festival appearances in May.

Her headlining tour will begin on Feb. 1 in Durham, N.C., stopping by Savannah Stopover Festival in Savannah, Ga. Mar. 7 and closing out in Washington D.C. on Mar. 22, followed by Shaky Knees Festival in Atlanta and Primavera Sound in Barcelona, at the beginning and end of May, respectively. Her Feb. 15 show in Chicago will feature special guest Sharon Van Etten, with Illuminati Hotties, Mal Blum and Fenne Lily opening on other select dates.

The singer/songwriter recently closed out a month-long joint tour in November with her newly formed group boygenius, the same month the released their self-titled debut EP. Boygenius is made up of fellow female indie-rockers Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers; the group received plenty of buzz for their collaboration, with Pitchfork aptly naming them the "egoless supergroup of your indie-rock dreams."

Dacus expressed her appreciation for sharing the spotlight with her groupmates: "I felt so much relief having the focus off me. Having about a third of the attention was wonderful," she told Rolling Stone.

The complete tour lineup plus ticket info is available on Dacus' website. U.S. tickets go on sale Dec. 14.

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