Flume on “nervous” stint working with Damon Albarn and how SOPHIE helped him make new album

The CW has finalized its summer plans. The broadcast network today set August premiere dates for the new Australian dramedy Bump and historical drama Leonardo, along with returning competition series Killer Camp and sophomore drama Devils.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentMK2 Films has locked major territory deals on Leonor Serraille’s drama “Mother and Son” which world premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival and garnered strong reviews. “Mother and Son” charts the lives of a young African woman, Rose, and two of her four children, Jean and Ernest, who come to France from the Ivory Coast in the 1980s with high ideals.

Mura Masa has released a brand new track, ‘blessing me’, featuring Pa Salieu and Skilliben – check it out below.The song comes alongside news of the musician/producer’s third album, ‘demon time’, which is set to be released on September 16 via Polydor Records and follows 2020’s ‘R.Y.C.’. The LP will also feature previously released tracks ‘2gether’ and ‘bbycakes’ (with Lil Uzi Vert, PinkPantheress and Shygirl).Originally titled ‘Fun’, ‘demon time’ signals a deeper period of reflection for Masa (real name Alexander Crossan), who penned the album during lockdown, after his European tour was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.Identifying the pain and anguish caused by the pandemic, the musician predicted people would need “vicarious, escapist music now.

Lorde has praised Kendrick Lamar‘s new album ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’, particularly noting the record’s emotional maturity and attempt to process difficult subjects through creative expression.“I’m loving Kendrick,” the singer-songwriter said in the latest instalment of her fan newsletter.

Justin Bieber has announced the final international dates for his record-setting Justice World Tour, including a new UK date. Having sold in excess of 1.3 million tickets so far, the Justice World tour will travel to over 30 countries.

Premiere Digital has acquired global distribution rights, including the U.S., for “The Girl on the Bridge,” a mental health documentary directed by New Zealand filmmaker Leanne Pooley.“The Girl on the Bridge” tells the story of 22-year old Jazz Thornton, who survived multiple suicide attempts and now works as a filmmaker and activist for young people’s mental health. The film sees her juggle the personal cost and pressures of advocacy work as she leads her own charity.Previously only seen in New Zealand and Australia, “The Girl on the Bridge” is now available on digital platforms.

It has been reported that Kate Moss will testify at Johnny Depp's defamation trial against ex wife Amber Heard.The model, 48, whose daughter Lila was recently pictured wearing an insulin monitor in a stunning fashion campaign, will reportedly take the stand on Wednesday. It is thought she will be appearing via video link rather than attending the courtroom in Fairfax County, Virginia.The Pirates of the Caribbean actor is suing his ex wife after she wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post about experiencing domestic abuse. While she didn't name names, Depp launched a $50million libel lawsuit against her.

Shirley Ju The Kid Laroi’s “Stay,” his monster hit with Justin Bieber, is creeping up on 1 billion on-demand streams, per data from Luminate, with its official music video racking 546 million views on YouTube and counting. To say that Laroi has officially arrived would be an understatement.At only 18 years old, the Australian singer-songwriter has accomplished what many musicians aspire to inin a lifetime: signed to Columbia Records, whose roster includes Adele, Bruce Springsteen and Harry Styles, he’s been nominated for a Grammy, performed on “Saturday Night Live” (alongside Miley Cyrus for his breakout hit, “Without You”) and collaborated with his idol, the late Juice WRLD.Laroi’s most recent release, “Thousand Miles,” written about his current girlfriend before they started dating, made another big splash when it debuted in April, thanks in large part to a TikTok promoting the record, which featured images of Laroi’s former manager Scooter Braun, implying that Braun was a “mistake.” (Braun was in on the hoax, he later revealed; and Laroi has since parted with his most recent representative, Adam Leber.) Variety spoke with Laroi in Culver City, Calif., where he was performing virtually for Kid Cudi’s Encore app.

EXCLUSIVE: Basil Iwanyk’s Thunder Road Films is developing a film based on the book The Confidence Men, by award-winning former New York Times journalist Margalit Fox—which is billed as the story of the most remarkable P.O.W. escape in history. Fox will adapt the book, in her screenwriting debut, with Iwanyk and Erica Lee producing the film for Thunder Road, and Esther Hornstein serving as exec producer.

Flume is set to return to his native Australia this coming November in support of his forthcoming third studio album, ‘Palaces’, which arrives this Friday (May 20).The tour, announced today (May 18), is largely slated for arenas and outdoor venues in most capital cities. The shows are also set to feature a rotating list of both local and international support acts – including collaborators Caroline Polachek and Toro Y Moi.

Ron Howard’s first animated feature, The Shrinking Of Treehorn, has been acquired by Netflix, Deadline can confirm.

Manori Ravindran International EditorIn one of the first major deals of the Cannes market, Sony Pictures Classics has swooped on Un Certain Regard title “All The People I’ll Never Be.” The distributor has picked up rights in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand.The film, which is written and directed by Davy Chou (“Diamond Island”), will be re-titled as “Return to Seoul.” It premieres in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday.The pic centers on 25-year-old Freddie, who impulsively returns to South Korea for the first time, where she was born before being adopted and raised in France. The headstrong young woman starts looking for her biological parents in a country she knows so little about, taking her life in new and unexpected directions.

Matt Helders has spoken about Arctic Monkeys’ upcoming new album, saying that musically it “picks up where ‘Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino’ left off”.The Sheffield four-piece have yet to officially announce the follow-up to their May 2018 album, but new music from the band is expected to arrive this year given that the Monkeys are heading out on tour in August.AM drummer Helders has now given fans an indication about what to expect from their next record. Speaking to Mike Dolbear for this year’s DrumathonLIVE 2022, Helders said that the Monkeys’ next album will be in a similar vein to 2018’s ‘Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino’.“It kinda like picks up where the other one [‘Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino’] left off musically,” Helders said (you can watch his interview in the below post at the 45-minute mark).A post shared by Mikedolbear.com (@mikedolbearcom)“I mean, it’s never gonna be like [2012 ‘AM’ single] ‘R U Mine?’ and all that stuff again, you know, the heavy riffs and stuff.“But there are riffs in there and [it’s] a bit more up-tempo, even though it’s not loud,” he added.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefStudiocanal will launch rights sales at Cannes on “Kangaroo,” the first Australia-New Zealand production from the local arm of the French film and TV group Canal Plus. The film is inspired by the real-life story of The Kangaroo Sanctuary founder Chris ‘Brolga’ Barns, who has been saving and raising baby kangaroos in Central Australia since 2005.The narrative is shaped as a heart-warming family comedy about a down-on-his-luck pro surfer who becomes stranded in an Outback town after a car accident.

Nick Cave.The song begins with waves of distorted guitar chords and Kirsty Tickle’s heavily manipulated vocals, before giving way to Jonathan Boulet’s propulsive drumming and wailing saxophone from Tickle.Marking the first time another artist has featured on a Party Dozen track, Cave joins in the song’s last minute, delivering its repeated refrain – “I got a mutt, I got a mutt, I got a mutt / Got a mutt, got a mutt called Macca” – with his distinctive vocals.Listen to ‘Macca The Mutt’ below:Party Dozen announced third album ‘The Real Work’ back in March alongside the song ‘The Iron Boot’, having released lead single ‘The Worker’ back in January of 2021.The forthcoming album – which follows on from 2020’s ‘Pray For Party Dozen’ and 2017 debut ‘The Living Man’ – was recorded and produced by Boulet in the duo’s Sydney studio space. It’s scheduled to arrive on July 8 via New York label Temporary Residence outside of Australia and New Zealand, where it will be released by Boulet’s own label, Grupo.Party Dozen have also announced a trio of album launch shows for ‘The Real Work’, playing shows in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne in July.

Zac Efron really understood the impact of High School Musical‘s mass appeal when he was camping in Papua New Guinea.

Dua Lipa has shared more details about her upcoming third album, saying the record is “about understanding what I want”.The singer’s follow-up to her 2020 smash ‘Future Nostalgia’ was first teased back in January, when Lipa said she had “done a big chunk of writing” for the new record.In March, she then revealed that the album was “50 per cent done” and is “starting to take shape”.Reiterating that the album is half-way finished in a new interview with Vogue, Lipa also discussed more of the inspirations and ideas behind her third album.“I’ve definitely grown up. Overall, whether it’s sonically or in terms of the themes, I’ve matured,” she said.“It’s like I’m coming into my power and not afraid to talk about things,” she added of the third album.