Ezra Koenig

Ezra Koenig 

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Vampire Weekend Release New Music, Announce Forthcoming Album Details

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After teasing the follow-up to 2013's 'Modern Vampires Of The City,' the band unleashes two new songs
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Jan 24, 2019 - 12:10 pm

GRAMMY-winning indie rock band Vampire Weekend are done merely teasing new music after their mini hiatus; They've not only dropped two new songs, but have also revealed their forthcoming album, Father Of The Bride, will be out in the spring.

Days ago the band teased the follow-up to 2013's Modern Vampires Of The City with 120 minutes of the guitar riffs of one song, "Harmony Hall." Now fans can hear the full-length version of the song and another titled "2021."

The songs are two of the 18-tracks on the upcoming album, whose title was chosen by singer Ezra Koenig years ago, the band said in a statement.

While on break from releasing music with Vampire Weekend, Koenig co-wrote and produced "Hold Up" on Beyoncé's GRAMMY-winning Lemonade album and released a Netflix anime series Neo Yokio, while continuing to host his Beats1 show Time Crisis.

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Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend

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Vampire Weekend Announce 2020 Tour Dates

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As Ezra Koenig and company closed out a show at Madison Square Garden in NYC, they revealed new North American tour dates, beginning in spring 2020
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Sep 9, 2019 - 1:33 pm

This year has been a big one for Vampire Weekend, who, after months of double-single releases, dropped their long-awaited follow up to 2013's GRAMMY-winning Modern Vampires Of The City. The GRAMMY winners shared the epic 18-track Father of the Bride on May 3 and began part one of the supporting tour in June.

Now, this past Friday, Sept. 6, as Ezra Koenig and company closed out a show at Madison Square Garden in New York, they revealed new North American tour dates, beginning spring 2020, with tickets going on sale this week.

The alt-rock group will wrap up the second leg of the FOTB Tour and second decade of the century in Australia for the four dates of the multi-city Falls Festival. The trek will pick back up in North America on May 29, 2020 in Westbrook, Maine, with 19 more shows slated across the U.S. and Canada. The 2020 dates include many cities they will miss on their current run, including Ashville, N.C. on June 12, Detroit on Sept. 24 and New Orleans on Oct. 6.

More VW: Ezra Koenig Elaborates On Vampire Weekend's "Emotional And Personal" 'FOTB'

In addition to giving their fans more chances to see them live, the three-hour Garden show in Vampire Weekend's birthplace of New York City marked the first live performance of "Sunflower" that included collaborator Steve Lacy. You can check out a fan video of the performance below. As the upload reveals, they also performed a version of "Dark Red," from Steve Lacy's Demo, Lacy's 2017 solo EP, his first release outside of his music with The Internet.

Presales for the new dates begin this Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 10 a.m. local time, with general sales starting Sept. 13. Tickets are also still available for select previously announced dates. All tour info can be found on VampireWeekend.com

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Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend

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Ezra Koenig Elaborates On Vampire Weekend's "Emotional And Personal" 'FOTB'

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"I always wondered if people pictured us banging our heads against the wall for six years. In a way, given that it's a lot of songs, it came about more quickly than usual," the GRAMMY-winning frontman said in a new Stereogum profile
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
May 3, 2019 - 4:12 pm

Today, Vampire Weekend released their highly anticipated fourth studio album, Father of the Bride. It's been six years since the band released their last LP, the GRAMMY-winning Modern Vampires Of The City.

The indie stalwarts have been working up a buzz around FOTB for months, first when they revealed the album's title/eminent release and dropped the first double batch of singles, "Harmony Hall" and "2020" on Jan. 24, and then with a tour announcement, two more double-single releases and, finally, today's 18-track double album drop.

Now, in a deep-diving Stereogum profile, Ezra Koenig offers insight into the jubilant ease and complexity of the new release, how he and the group have grown, and how collaboration has helped the group expand its creativity and shine.

"I always wondered if people pictured us banging our heads against the wall for six years. In a way, given that it's a lot of songs, it came about more quickly than usual," Koenig told Stereogum.

Since Modern Vampire's release in 2013, a lot has happened for the group; Rostam Batmanglij departed, the other two remaining members, bassist Chris Baio and drummer Chris Tomson both released solo albums, and Koenig created an anime series on Netflix. In the interview, Koenig shares how he has, finally, fully embraced his role as the band's frontman.

"I never felt comfortable calling myself the leader because I felt like that was something that I had to earn. But I did start the band, so I had some degree of leadership. In the beginning, I made it clear that I was going to choose the songs. It wasn't important for me to write all of the songs, because I love writing songs with other people, but it was important for me to have that curatorial role."

And with Father Of The Bride, which Koenig first revealed they were working on and nearly 80 percent done with back in September 2017, both the collaboration and storyline are rich. It is the first time the group has brought in featured artists, with HAIM's Danielle Haim dueting on three songs, and The Internet's Steve Lacy making waves on two others.

Both Koenig and GRAMMY-winning producer Ariel Rechtshaid, who returned after co-producing Modern Vampires with the frontman, explain the collabs happened organically. As Rechtshaid put it, "The only people involved on the record were involved because it felt organic. It's an informal revolving door of the homies and the homegirls."

Koenig is evidently the type of artist always striving for growth and expansion, to always be covering new territory and pushing their group's creative boundaries. As a group with songs like the unabashedly nerdy "Oxford Comma," from their 2008 self-titled debut LP, their new material feels lighter and more lyrically accessible, but very much in the traditional Vampire Weekend vein of epic storytelling and upbeat sounds.

"Am I going to be throwing open the dictionary for every song? That doesn't feel exciting," Koenig said. He continued, "A lot of my favorite songs accomplish things I've never accomplished. What am I scared to say? What haven't I done? Part of it is emotional and personal, and part of it is the novelty of new artistic challenges."

He also explained how the duets he shared with Haim, one third of the GRAMMY-nominated sister trio of the same name, played a key role in this new artistic exploration. "A true duet is people in a shared situation with slightly different perspectives," he said. "That felt like the type of thing I hadn’t done before. It was hard. Lyrically, I think this is the most rigorous I've ever been."

Haim, meanwhile, emphasized the authentic nature of the collab. "I've known Ezra for a couple years now and have always been a fan. The first song he showed me was 'Hold You Now' and I loved it immediately. He asked if I would sing it with him and the rest kinda just happened naturally."

The album title, which Koenig shared had been "in the running three or four years ago," also ended up taking on a deeper meaning when Koenig recently became a father himself, with partner Rashida Jones.

"Why would a phrase like that be evocative to me? I think, naturally, you start looking at new themes as you get older. Father Of The Bride is meant to make you think of a wedding, a life cycle event, a moment of transition. I didn't know that I would be a father by the time this album came out… But it's not a crazy coincidence that a major life cycle event would happen to me in the years after I started thinking about what adulthood really was."

Father of the Bride is available wherever you get your music (digitally or at your local record store). You can also catch Vampire Weekend on tour, starting with Hangout Fest in Alabama this month.

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"WE ARE ALL WINNERS": 2020 GRAMMY Award Nominees React On Social Media

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From first-time nominees Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X to GRAMMY winners James Blake, H.E.R., Ariana Grande and The Chemical Brothers, current nominees are filling their social media with messages of gratitude and joy
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Nov 20, 2019 - 1:06 pm

With the full 62nd GRAMMY Award nominations dropping bright and early this morning, the music industry is now wide awake and celebrating on social media.

Read on to share in the excitement with some of the 2020 GRAMMY nominees: Lizzo, James Blake, Billie Eilish, H.E.R., Yola, Lil Nas X, Ariana Grande and more!

First-time nominee Lizzo is "feelin' good as hell" about her momentous eight nods, which include Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year and Best New Artist. She took to her Twitter bright and early, not long after the news went live to share the big mood. "THIS HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE YEAR FOR MUSIC AND IM JUST SO THANKFUL TO EVEN BE PART OF IT," she beamed in her second tweet, followed by "WE ARE ALL WINNERS." Congrats, queen!

Billie Eilish is another first-time nominee who's also up for Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year Best New Artist and more. The young anti-pop star, whose older brother FINNEAS produces her music, wrote "BETWEEN ME & MY BROTHER ITS 11 NOMINATIONS thank u grammyyys this is an honor." Talk about a sibling power duo!

Another first-time nominee and Best New Artist contender, Yola, is reveling in this big day. "I'm trying to find the right words for the @RecordingAcad nominations this morning, this is an absolute dream!!" the rising Queen of Country Soul first wrote on Twitter this morning.

Two hours later, the British songstress came up with a few more words to summarize her joy: "To be be nominated for four @RecordingAcad #GRAMMYs in the 10th month of my debut year is beyond a dream come true. Thank you to my incredible team and everyone who has supported and believed in me along the way. I'm truly honoured to be in the category with every artist nominated."

Country/trap king Lil Nas X also joined the first-time nominee rodeo with six nods, including for Best New Artist, Album Of The Year—for his debut EP, 7—and Record Of The Year for "Old Town Road."

"NO F***ING WAY" he wrote on Twitter. Yee-haw indeed, cowboy.

GRAMMY-winning alt-electro crooner James Blake, who was a Best New Artist nominee back at the 56th GRAMMY Awards, also took to social media to share the weight of this prestigious peer recognition. "Assume Form nominated for best alternative album! This one meant a huge amount to me. ahhhhhhhhh! LOVE YOU ALL," he wrote on Instagram.

Rising R&B powerhouse H.E.R., won her first two GRAMMYs at the 61st GRAMMY Awards, where she was a Best New Artist nominee. She is understandably thrilled about her five nominations this year, and gave her tweet the all-caps, multiple-exclamation-point treatment: "5 NOMINATIONS!!!! WHAAAAAT. THATS CRAZY!!!! AGAAAAAINNNNNN. AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. GOD IS GREAT."

Pop queen Ariana Grande may have won her first GRAMMY earlier this year, for Sweetener, but she was still blown away by today's news. She is up for five awards this year, including for Album Of The Year and Best Pop Vocal Album (the gramophone she snagged in 2019) for her 2019 follow-up, thank u, next.

In one of her excited tweets this morning she wrote, "thank u for acknowledging this music my beautiful best friends and i created in just a few weeks together. the acknowledgement is truly enough on its own for me and my heart."

GRAMMY-winning alt-rock stalwarts Cage The Elephant were stoked to earn another Best Rock Album nod, the category they won at the 59th GRAMMY Awards. The band wrote, "Such a blessing and honor to wake up this morning and see we're nominated for a GRAMMY!!! BIG LOVE!!!! @RecordingAcad #GRAMMYs2020 #GrammyNominations #GRAMMYs."

First-time nominees and Brit-rock experimenters The 1975 are celebrating their Best Rock Song nomination, sharing, "// B E S T R O C K S O N G - N O M I N A T I O N // @RecordingAcad L O V E #GRAMMYs," along with a picture featuring lyrics from the nominated song, "Give Yourself A Try."

Nigerian Afro-fusion artist Burna Boy also received his first GRAMMY nomination this year, as his major 2019 album, African Giant, is up for Best World Music Album. He joined in the conversation, retweeting a plethora of fan congrats, as well as his own post, which simply read, "African Giant #GRAMMYs @RecordingAcad!!"

Young rapper YBN Cordae officially joins the ranks of GRAMMY-nominated artists with his two first-ever nods (Best Rap Song and Best New Rap Album) for his 2019 debut LP, The Lost Boy. He shared his excitement with a tearful video of gratitude on his IG stories, as well as several tweets, one of which read, "Bro my DEBUT album got nominated for BEST RAP ALBUM..... this sh*t crazy."

He also tweeted a video of himself from just two years ago, prophesizing more was on the horizon ("This is just the beginning…give me two years"). "Don't let nobody tell you can't do whatever the f**k you put your mind too," this tweet read. Dayum, word.

While there are far too many nominees to share in this article, let's go out with pivotal U.K. electronic duo The Chemical Brothers, who are up for three GRAMMYs this year, including Best Dance/Electronic Album. They were first nominated (and won) back at the 40th GRAMMY Awards, for their classic 1997 track "Block Rockin' Beats."

"Joyful about today's 3 Grammy @RecordingAcad nominations for Best Dance/Electronic Album (No Geography), Best Dance Recording (Got To Keep On) & Best Music Video (We've Got To Try)! Love & gratitude to all that made it possible! #NoGeography #GRAMMYNoms #GRAMMYs #ChemicalBrothers," they shared.

Stay tuned to GRAMMY.com, our YouTube page, our social channels (follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) and our newsletter (sign up below) for the latest on all things 62nd GRAMMY Awards. And don't forget to tune in on Jan. 26, 2020 to catch the Biggest Night In Music to find out who takes home the golden gramophones!

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Questlove & Black Thought of The Roots 

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The Roots, Debbie Harry & More Team Up With GRAMMY Music Education Coalition For Auction

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The Auction To Make Music Matter is a three-week online auction on Charitybuzz that runs until Dec. 3 and features over 100 experiences and prizes
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Nov 13, 2019 - 1:58 pm

The GRAMMY Music Education Coalition has launched its inaugural auction to raise funds for music education in public schools and has teamed up with the Roots, Brandi Carlile, Debbie Harry, Sheryl Crow and more to support the cause.

The Auction To Make Music Matter is a three-week online auction on Charitybuzz ending on Dec. 3. It will have over 100 prizes and experiences available for bid. Experiences include attending the Voice U.K. with Meghan Trainor, a VIP tour of Ryman Auditorium with Brandi Carlile in Nashville, VIP tickets to Lady Gaga and Criss Angel's shows in Las Vegas, a music lesson with Jack Black, merchandise signed by Marc Maron and Maggie Rogers and more. 

Ringo Starr, Kelsea Ballerini, Steven Van Zandt and many other artists have also donated to the auction. 

“This auction will have a direct impact on public school students,” Coalition Executive Director Lee Whitmore said in a statement. “I’m overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from The Recording Academy, its members, the generous auction donors, our Coalition affiliates, and most importantly Morgan Stanley Global Sports & Entertainment, the auction underwriter. Anyone who bids on an auction item is giving to public school music programs for underserved young people. Together we will make a real difference.”

All proceeds of the auction will go to music education in underserved and underfunded public schools. Some funding will go specifically towards technology education, professional development mentoring, material and curriculum, among other things. 

According to the GRAMMY Music Education Coalition, "3.8M underserved Pre-K-12 students in the U.S. have no access to music education and the benefits it provides."

Check out the auction here.

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