‘It’s A Sin’ Star Olly Alexander to Represent U.K. at 2024 Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor From Hollywood strikes to the ascent of AI to sinking stock prices, 2023 was a topsy-turvy year for media and entertainment. Cynthia Littleton and Andrew Wallenstein, hosts of Variety podcast “Strictly Business,” discuss the highs and lows of the past year on the latest episode.

A.G. Cook has released a sputtering new single ‘Silver Thread Golden Needle’ – Check it out below.The English music producer and founder of the former label, PC Music, rang in the new year by sharing ‘Silver Thread Golden Needle’, a nearly 10-minute long track that features sputtering and buzzing sounds against a pop beat.Directed by Lena Weber and Aaron Chan, the song’s accompanying visuals see pixelated versions of objects such as chairs, vases, teapots, teacups and more trembling along to the beat of the track.

Miley Cyrus, which was released in January and went on to spend 10 weeks at the top of the singles charts. Other female acts who dominated the singles chart included Dua Lipa, Kenya Grace, Ellie Goulding, Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, RAYE and more.More impressively, 48.5 per cent of all songs to reach the Top 10 in 2023 were released by women – a milestone which meant it was female musicians’ highest annual share of Top 10 hits of the century. Check out the 10 best-selling singles of the year overall below.1. Miley Cyrus – ‘Flowers’2. Dave & Central Cee – ‘Sprinter’3. RAYE ft 070 Shake – ‘Escapism’4. Taylor Swift – ‘Anti-Hero’5. Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding – ‘Miracle’6. Rema ft Selena Gomez – ‘Calm Down’7. SZA – ‘Kill Bill’8. PinkPantheress ft Ice Spice – ‘Boy’s A Liar Pt. 2’9. Harry Styles – ‘As It Was’10. Libianca – ‘People’As for albums, The Guardian reported that the last 12 months marked the ninth year of growth for the British music industry, with sales and streams increasing by 10 per cent (equivalent to 182.8million albums) and streaming hitting a record high with 179.6billion over the year.

vinyl records in the UK have hit their highest level since 1990.The revived popularity of the physical format has resulted in the 16th consecutive year of rising sales, according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).The BPI added in a new report that the vinyl market has increased more than four times as fast with an 11.7 per cent rise to 5.9 million units in 2023.Taylor Swift‘s ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)‘ was the best-selling album of the year, followed by The Rolling Stones‘ ‘Hackney Diamonds‘.According to the BPI’s analysis, the “ever-rising demand for vinyl albums and other music releases on physical format” reflects a “thriving market for music on the high street”, citing the popularity of independent record stores and the success of shops like HMV, which reopened its flagship store on London’s Oxford Street this year.Additionally, seven of the 10 biggest vinyl LP sellers were records that came out in 2023, including Swift’s ‘Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)‘, Blur‘s ‘The Ballad Of Darren‘, Lana Del Rey‘s ‘Did You Know There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd‘, Lewis Capaldi‘s ‘Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent‘, and Kylie Minogue‘s ‘Tension‘.Analysis of @officialcharts data by the BPI reveals that vinyl LP purchases have risen for the 16th consecutive year in the UK in 2023 and are now growing at their fastest rate this decade.Read the full story: https://t.co/3115vH9NMo pic.twitter.com/PJFWGz5jGW— BPI (@bpi_music) December 28, 2023The report also found that British artists helped fuel vinyl growth, with more than 40 per cent of the 100 most-purchased vinyl LPs of 2023 released in the past two years including albums by UK artists.

Chicago Fire is coming back soon, One Chicago family!

Ncuti Gatwa will officially take the helm as the 15th Doctor in Doctor Who's Christmas Day episode. He joins the Whoniverse as the first Black actor and first openly queer actor to lead the series.

The new year is nearly upon us and it’s shaping up to be a hot one in TV land as more and more countries get in on the premium drama series act. Here, we round up 15 of the buzziest titles you’re set to hear much more about over the coming year, from Doctor Who to The Count of Monte Cristo to Netflix Italy’s pornography drama Supersex.

Wham! have secured the Christmas 2023 number one single with Last Christmas, having missed out on the title for 39 years. The pop duo, comprised of the late George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, landed the top UK chart spots for their first and second albums and also found success with a number of hits – including Last Christmas in December 1984.

Fans are anxiously awaiting the 2024 Oscars nominations, and the Academy has released the shortlist of potential nominees in several categories.

Olly Alexander has signed a pro-Palestine letter which calls Israel an “apartheid state” and accuses it of genocide.It was revealed at the weekend that the singer and actor would be representing the UK at Eurovision next year in Malmö, Sweden, the hometown of this year’s winner Loreen.Before he was confirmed as the UK’s Eurovision entrant, Alexander had signed an open letter from LGBTQ+ activist group Voices4London, which called for a ceasefire in Gaza and for Israel to allow aid into the area. The letter also condemned “Zionist propaganda” amid the war with Hamas.The letter says: “We are watching a genocide take place in real time.

The BBC has come under pressure to fire the UK’s Eurovision Song Contest entrant Olly Alexander after the Years & Years frontman signed a letter describing Israel as an “apartheid” state.

Thania Garcia Edgar Barrera is a Grammys rarity: The Mexican-American, Texas-born producer and songwriter is the only (and first) Latin act up for songwriter of the year at the 2024 awards. Less happily, he is also the only Latin act to appear in a Grammy category that isn’t Latin music-specific. Be that as it may, those feats speak to his towering achievements: He has become the go-to songwriter for top-charting acts looking to expand their musical range (he’s responsible for pairing Bad Bunny with the Tejano band Grupo Frontera) and shares songwriting credits with Madonna, Ariana Grande, Maluma, Karol G, Shakira and Peso Pluma, among numerous others.

Eurovision Song Contest has been revealed – you can check it out below.The 68th Eurovision will take place in Malmö, Sweden, with the Grand Final of the competition due to be held on Saturday, May 11, 2024. This week, it was announced that Years & Years frontman Olly Alexander will represent the UK.Today (December 19), Fredrik Stormby from Sweden-based design studio Green Wall Designs has been confirmed as the Lighting and Screen Content Designer for the 2024 contest.The designer will join the senior production team along with production designer FlorianWieder to help create, design and deliver “a large-scale and spectacular show to a global audience of over 160million”.Green Wall Designs, which was co-founded by Stormby, is one of the world’s leading creative studios renowned for creating captivating visual experiences in music and live entertainment.The company specialises in video, lighting and scenic elements, and worked on Loreen’s winning performance at Eurovision 2023 back in May.

Chic legend Nile Rodgers and Merck Mercuriadis – former manager of acts including Elton John and Beyoncé – and was set to share its half-year results today (December 19).However, it has confirmed that it will be delaying the publication of the results due to concerns that music catalogues and songs are not being valued high enough amid a sale.As reported by The Independent, the UK firm decided to sell just under 30 music catalogues to the sister fund, backed by investment giant Blackstone in September this year.The deal valued the assets at about $418million (£360million), however, this number was down by nearly a quarter compared to the valuation it was given back in March.It came as the company revealed it did not receive any better offers as interested parties “could not justify” a higher price, and also sold 20,000 “non-core” songs for about $23million (£20 million) – nearly a 15 per cent discount on a September valuation.Amid the potential sale, Hipgnosis – which spent $1billion (£720m) acquiring artists’ back catalogues in 2021 – stated that the valuation received from an independent valuer is “materially higher than the valuation implied by proposed and recent transactions in the sector”.As confirmed by the outlet, a spokesperson for Hipgnosis has said that the company has sought advice from its investment adviser, Hipgnosis Songs Management, which gave the board “concerns as to the valuation of the company’s assets in its interim results”.It was also reported that the fund launched a strategic review two months ago, which could potentially lead to the replacement of founder and chief executive Mercuriadis.The half-year results are now expected to be published by December 31.

Olly Alexander has said he has “got a lot of music ready to go” following the news that he’ll be representing the UK at Eurovision 2024.Earlier this week, it was announced that the Years & Years singer is set to compete in the contest next year in Malmö, Sweden – the hometown of the 2023 winner Loreen. Alexander will succeed the UK’s previous contestant Mae Muller, who finished second to last.Speaking to Magic Breakfast yesterday (December 18), the artist explained (via Music News): “The song that I have for Eurovision I made with Danny L Harle, who’s a brilliant pop producer, and we made basically a whole album.“So I’ve got a lot of music ready to go so I’m so, so excited that it’s coming.”Alexander last released an album in the form of Years & Years’ third studio effort ‘Night Call’, which arrived in early 2022.

“I’ve been thinking, I can’t run this club forever,” Tom Hardy says in the new trailer for the acclaimed gang bike drama, “The Bikeriders.” “I built this from nothing; this is our family, you and me, kid.” So yes, it’s a biker gang drama, but at the heart of it is a story about family. Directed by Jeff Nichols, the acclaimed filmmaker behind “Loving,” “Mud,” and “Midnight Special,” “The Bikeriders” stars Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, Tom Hardy, and Norman Reedus from “The Walking Dead.” READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024 The film follows the rise of a midwestern motorcycle club, the Vandals.

Olly Alexander has said shares his hopes to “fly the flag for the country in the gayest way possible” when he performs as the UK’s entry at Eurovision 2024.The Years & Years singer will represent the country next year in Malmö, Sweden – the hometown of this year’s winner Loreen – as revealed during the Strictly Come Dancing final this weekend.He will succeed the UK’s previous contestant Mae Muller, who finished second to last in the 2023 competition.The artist previously shared on social media that it was “very difficult to keep quiet”, but that he has “wanted to do this for a long time.”In a statement released Saturday (December 16), the ‘King’ singer vowed to “fly the flag for the UK in the gayest way possible” and “put on an unforgettable performance”.While details about the song currently remain under wraps, Alexander has confirmed that it was co-written by Danny L Harle, who has produced Dua Lipa‘s new song ‘Houdini‘ alongside Tame Impala‘s Kevin Parker.“It’s gonna be electronic, something you can dance to,” Alexander told the BBC. “But I can’t say much more than that.“I just can’t wait to get out there and meet the fans and everyone else taking part,” he added.

It's official - Olly Alexander will be representing the UK at the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest.The Years & Years singer broke the news to the nation during an equally exciting night, as he announced the secret while chatting to Claudia Winkleman at the Strictly Come Dancing final. The 33 year old spoke to the host after the final three celebs, Ellie Leach - who went on to win the show - Layton Williams and Bobby Brazier danced for the last time with their respective partners ahead of the results.

Olly Alexander has been announced as the UK’s Eurovision entry for 2024.The Years & Years singer will represent the country next year in Malmö, Sweden, the hometown of this year’s winner Loreen. He will succeed the UK’s previous contestant Mae Muller, who finished second to last in the 2023 competition.On socials, Alexander said it was “very difficult to keep quiet”, but that he has “wanted to do this for a long time.”“It feels like the right moment to start releasing music under my own name”, he added.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 is months away, but several performers are already being announced as official contestants!