Metal Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Ozzy Osbourne has shared that he would “jump at the chance” to play a final Black Sabbath show with co-founding drummer Bill Ward.Originally, Ward was part of the November 2011 Black Sabbath reunion but pulled out in early 2012, attributing an “‘unreasonable contract” as his reason for departure. Drummer Tommy Clufetos stepped in and performed live on the Black Sabbath Reunion Tour and the swansong The End Tour.Appearing on the most recent episode of The Madhouse Chronicles, Ozzy opened up about his career in Black Sabbath with his close friend Billy Morrison.

AC/DC kicked off their huge European stadium tour in Germany last night (May 17), marking their return to touring for the first time in 8 years.The tour, in support of their 2020 comeback record ‘Power Up’, began at the 62,000-capacity Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen and was the first featuring new bassist Chris Chaney, who is best known for his tenure in Jane’s Addiction. He replaced Cliff Williams after he retired from touring.Their setlist was almost identical to the one in their comeback gig at Power Trip Festival in October, albeit with the order of some of the songs changed.

Skindred have announced new UK tour dates set to take place this Autumn – see the full list of dates below.Earlier this week, the Welsh band took to social media to announce a new slate of tour dates across the UK, marking the second trek in the region in support of their 2023 album ‘Smile’.Dubbed the ‘Smile (Again)’ tour, Skindred will begin their run of shows in Hull on October 18, and will conclude the tour at the O2 Academy in Oxford on November 2. Other shows include Liverpool’s Olympia, Glasgow’s Barrowland and Leicester’s O2 Academy among others.Tickets to all shows – excluding Leicester and Oxford – are on sale now.

Slipknot have confirmed a new track called ‘Long May You Die’ is on the way – marking their first new material with Eloy Casagrande.The US metal icons took to Instagram to share the news of a new song in a brief, but very exciting post.In the update, which was shared last night (May 15), the band shared an image of the line-up and addressed the speculation from fans in the caption.“Slipknot fans are talking amongst themselves about ‘Long May You Die’ being a new song written during the recent recording sessions,” they wrote, before simply adding: “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”A post shared by Slipknot (@slipknot)At the time of writing, further details about the forthcoming track remain limited, and the band haven’t yet shared an official release date with fans.However, it is confirmed that the song will mark their first new material with Eloy Casagrande as the drummer.

Forbes has released its annual 30 Under 30 list for 2024 in Asia, which features the likes of Voice Of Baceprot, IVE and more.Released today (May 16), the annual Forbes 30 Under 30 list shines a light on individuals aged below 30 who have made a significant impact in their respective fields, including entertainment and sports, science and activism, entrepreneurship and more.This year’s entertainment and sports portion of the list is headlined by Indonesian metallers and stars of NME’s The Cover, Voice Of Baceprot. Trailing behind them are K-pop outfit IVE, Japanese pop-rock group Atarashii Gakko!, Filipino rapper Ez Mil, Indian rapper Arpan Kumar Chandel (aka King), Japanese singer Aina The End and Indonesia’s Mahalini Raharja.The list also includes Chinese-New Zealand actress Jess Hong, Thai singer-actor Vachirawit Chivaaree, also known as Bright, and Indian singer-songwriter Pavithra Chari.This year’s North American 30 Under 30 list featured the likes of Boygenius, Ethel Cain, Dominic Fike, Gracie Abrams, Latto, Reneé Rapp, Ice Spice, Peso Pluma, Trippie Redd, Kali Uchis and more.This year’s European 30 Under 30 list features PinkPantheress, Nia Archives, Cat Burns, FLO, Holly Humberstone and more.Last year’s Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list included K-pop girl groups NewJeans and Le Sserafim, Cambodian rapper VannDa, Singaporean singer Shye, South Korean singer LØREN, Indian singer-rapper Ambika Nayak – known professionally as Kayan – and Hong Kong singer Michael “MC” Cheung Tin-fu.The entertainment and sports category of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list was judged by ONE Championship co-founder and Group President Hua Fung Teh and Caldecott Music Group CEO and founder Kuok Meng Ru.

Static Dress are back with the dynamic new single, ‘Crying’.

Serj Tankian has revealed that System Of A Down began looking for a new singer in 2018 after he offered to quit the band.In an except of his new memoir Down With the System: A Memoir (Of Sorts) shared with Rolling Stone, Tankian reflected on his disdain for touring, leading to his decision to tell his bandmates in System Of A Down to carry on without him so they could continue living their dream.Tankian detailed in the memoir: “Toward the end of 2017, we had a band meeting at [the band’s manager] Beno’s office. When I arrived, I told everyone that I had an item I wanted to add to the agenda.

Slipknot guitarist Jim Root has revealed how Eloy Casagrande came to be the band’s new drummer.In late April, Eloy Casagrande was confirmed as Slipknot’s new drummer, taking over Jay Weinberg, who was let go late last year. Since then, Casagrande has opened up about the “complicated” choice he had to make in leaving Brazilian metal legends Sepultura to join Slipknot.Now, Jim Root has revealed the band’s auditioning process with Casagrande and how he was confirmed into the band. In a new interview with Tone-Talk, Root shared how the band first connected with Casagrande, and new material with their newest member.Root started by saying that the band had recently played two shows to “introduce our new drummer to the world”, before going on to briefly mention their secret show in Pioneertown and their headlining slot at Sick New World.

Sepultura to fill the vacant drummer position in Slipknot.In February Casagrande left the Brazilian metal band, who will be splitting up after a farewell tour starting this year. This led to heavy speculation that he would be joining Slipknot following the firing of Jay Weinberg late last year.Casagrande recently gave an interview to Brazil’s Veja Sao Paulo which was translated from his native Portuguese by fans on Reddit.He revealed that he asked about playing in both bands but had to leave Sepultura after being told he would have to be exclusive to Slipknot.“They asked me to record and send them some videos from right here in Brazil,” he said.

Ministry performed a setlist of songs that haven’t been played live since the 1980s at Cruel World Festival this weekend.The US industrial metal pioneers performed at Brookside at The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California on Saturday (May 11), where the likes of Duran Duran, Interpol, Blondie and Simple Minds were headlining.Ministry were billed on the line-up poster as performing songs from their first two albums – 1983’s ‘With Sympathy’ and 1986’s ‘Twitch’ – which meant fans were treated to a host of songs that haven’t been performed in decades.‘Work For Love’, ‘I’m Falling’ and ‘Effigy (I’m Not An)’ were all performed live for the first time since 1984, while ‘All Day’, ‘Over the Shoulder’ and ‘Just Like You’ were brought back for the first time since 1987.Also in the set was ‘We Believe’ for the first time since 2003, and ‘(Everyday Is) Halloween’, which was last played for a crowd back in 2019.Check out fan-shot footage of the show below.‘Work For Love’‘All Day’‘Over The Shoulder’‘Just Like You’‘We Believe’‘I’m Falling’‘Effigy (I’m Not An)’‘Revenge’‘(Everyday Is) Halloween’In an interview with Rolling Stone ahead of the performance, Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen explained how he came round to the idea of performing their debut live again.“The guys in the band know I don’t like this record,” he shared. “They came up with all these new versions of all the old songs and then sprung them on me one night on the bus while I was on ‘shrooms.

Anthrax’s Scott Ian has hit out at Kerry King over the upcoming Slayer reunion, thanking him for “making me look like a liar”.In February, the metal icons announced they were reuniting for a series of three shows in the autumn, their first shows since their retirement and farewell tour in 2019.The news came as a major surprise to many, not least the Anthrax frontman, who was asked about the announcement in a new interview with Classic Rock.“I wrote to Kerry and said, ‘Thanks for making me look like a liar’,” Ian said. “We were on Slayer’s goodbye tour for over a hundred shows.

KoRn has teamed up with Adidas Originals for a second clothing collaboration.Last year, the nu-metal legends collaborated with the athletic apparel brand last year and released two pairs of sneakers – the Campus 00s and the Supermodified – along with seven pieces of apparel.Now, the two are collaborating again on a second drop with the sportswear brand which is set to arrive online and in select stores on May 15.The apparel will feature a green sequin tracksuit with co-branded details, exclusive to the Korn web-store. A long sleeve graphic tee with Adidas’ Three Stripes on the sleeves, three pairs of socks, and a cap which bears the KoRn logo and Three Stripes detailing will also be available for purchase.A new pair of sneakers will be available in the Campus 2 silhouette as well as the Supermodified sneaker.

Serj Tankian has opened up about the “creative differences” in System Of A Down, saying he’s “not thrilled about doing long tours”.Tankian sat down with actor Rainn Wilson in a new interview for the LiveSigning YouTube channel. The musician opened up about his collaboration process with his bandmate, guitarist/vocalist Daron Malakian.“Originally when we started System Of A Down, I was primarily a lyricist and he was primarily the musical songwriter.

Eurovision entry Bambie Thug has shared an eerie cover of The Cranberries’ ‘Zombie’ and spoken out in support of Palestine ahead of this weekend’s finale.The non-binary singer will be representing Ireland at the final of the song contest in Malmö, Sweden, and has become Ireland’s first finalist since 2018. They won their place in Saturday’s final (May 11) with a performance of ‘Doomsday Blue’ at Tuesday’s (May 7) semi-finals.They have been listed as in the top 10 favourites to win the competition this year, and told NME that they are hoping to “give the best performance I can and try to connect in those three minutes to those millions of viewers”.That being said, there has been pressure on contestants, including Thug and UK representative Olly Alexander, to boycott the event in solidarity with Palestine.

Slash has opened up about which metal bands he would consider to be his favourites.As you can tell from his style of playing, the guitar icon and Guns N’ Roses star is most famously a fan of blues and classic rock. In fact, he has a blues album on the way, ‘Orgy Of The Damned’, which will include a number of blues covers.However, in a new interview ahead of the release, the guitarist has opened up about other artists he is vibing with at the moment – in particular, those from the metal scene.Speaking on the YouTube channel Coffee With Ola, he was asked about what he has been listening to lately, to which he revealed he is mainly listening to older bands who have been sharing new material.“AC/DC had a new record that was really good, Queens of the Stone Age have got a new record,” he said, referring to the 2020 album ‘Power Up’ and last year’s ‘In Times New Roman…’ respectively.Going on, he went on to name some heavier artists, including the eco-conscious French metal band Gojira, and thrash veterans, Metallica, as some of his current favourites.“I love Gojira, it’s great, and the new Metallica record [‘72 Seasons’] is fucking amazing,” he explained.

Eurovision entry Bambie Thug has been forced to change their pro-Palestine message by the competition’s organisers.The non-binary contestant has become Ireland’s first finalist in the Eurovision Song Contest since 2018, winning a place in Saturday’s final (May 11) with a performance of their track ‘Doomsday Blue’ at yesterday’s (May 7) semi-finals.However, the artist, whose real name is Bambie Ray Robinson, has criticised the competition’s organisers after being forced to change their pro-Palestine message ahead of the final. Originally, they wore body paint in Ogham script – an early Medieval alphabet – which translated to ceasefire and freedom.

Judas Priest bassist Ian Hill has claimed that people have been “trying to kill heavy metal” for about 40 years.The metal musician made the comments in a recent interview with music YouTube channel Metal Oda ahead of their concert in Istanbul, Turkey this July.Asked what advice he would give himself if he could go back to the beginning of the band’s career more than 50 years ago, the bassist spoke about the importance of “patience and persistence” (per Blabbermouth).Elaborating on the title of the new album ‘Invincible Shield’, Hill continued: “We’ve had a lot of stuff thrown at us over the years. I mean, people have been trying to kill heavy metal now for about 35, 40 years, so it’s always been a bit of a struggle against the establishment, if you know what I mean.”The artist concluded that the band had “managed to survive and come through it”.Hill’s comments come after Judas Priest’s own Rob Halford reflected on being labelled ‘Metal God’ by fans.Speaking to NME as part of a recent In Conversation video interview, he shared that the nickname “kind of got a life of its own and then I started to take it too seriously”, adding: “So much so that I’ve actually got a trademark on ‘Metal God’ because I cherish it so much – not just not for me, but for the band and the fans as well”.The vocalist said he always has “fun” with it, sharing: “I always say: ‘There was only one Elvis, and there’s only one Metal God.’ And I mean that, you know, with my tongue in my cheek.”Halford also expressed his relief that the band were aligned in their outlooks on fame and music.

Slipknot‘s brand-new drummer.The band confirmed the identity of their new drummer on Tuesday April 30 on their social media pages. Slipknot posted a new promo photo of its nine members in their classic red jumpsuits and masks, resembling an iconic photo taken in 1999. In the photo, the band tagged eight of its nine members – one of whom has been revealed to be Casagrande.Now, the former drummer of Brazilian metal icons Sepultura has shared his first statement after confirming his position in the band.

Ozzy Osbourne has revealed the one accolade he still wants to win.On the latest episode of Ozzy’s SiriusXM program Ozzy Speaks, the former Black Sabbath frontman was asked about what he has yet to achieve in his long and illustrious career. Now that he’s soon to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a solo act, there’s just one thing left that Ozzy has yet to win: an Oscar.“You’ve got to fucking be in a movie to win an Oscar,” co-host Billy Morrison replied while laughing.

Slipknot have announced their ‘Here Comes The Pain’ 25th anniversary US tour with Knocked Loose and more.The legendary heavy metal band are set to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their 1999 self-titled debut album. The North American leg of their ‘Here Comes The Pain’ tour will see the masked members make stops in major cities such as Baltimore, New York City, Toronto, Ridgefield, Inglewood, Austin, Dallas and more before wrapping up in their hometown of Des Moines, Iowa for Knotfest.Knocked Loose, Orbit Culture and Vended will all serve as opening support on select dates.

Ghost have shared details of a debut feature film, titled RITE HERE RITE NOW.Set to arrive in cinemas worldwide next month, the film is the first of its kind from the metal group, and will combine footage of their September 2023 shows at The Forum in Los Angeles with a narrative that picks up plot threads from the band’s long-running webisode series.It has been directed by the masked Swedish collective’s frontman Tobias Forge, alongside American filmmaker and actor Alex Ross Perry, and is set to arrive in cinemas globally on June 20 and 22 only.A full trailer is set to launch next Thursday (May 9), and tickets for screenings will be available then too.

Cradle Of Faith have announced a UK and Ireland tour for later this year, conveniently taking place around Halloween.The 11-date ‘By Order Of The Dragon’ run will lick off on October 27 at Bristol’s O2 Academy and they will be stopping by London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town on All Hallows Eve itself. The tour also includes a show at Manchester’s Damnation Festival and a few shows later, the metal band will later sign off on November 8 at Newcastle’s NX.They will be supported by Butcher Babies and High Parasite.You can see the full list of dates below and buy your tickets here.OCTOBER27 – Bristol, O2 Academy28 – Bournemouth, O2 Academy29 – Birmingham, O2 Institute31 – London, O2 Forum Kentish TownNOVEMBER1 – Swansea, Patti Pavilion2 – Manchester, Damnation Festival3 – Nottingham, Rock City5 – Belfast, Limelight6 – Dublin, Academy7 – Glasgow, SWG38 – Newcastle, NXEarlier this year, Cradle Of Faith gave fans an update on when to expect the release of their long-awaited collaboration with Ed Sheeran.The collaboration was first revealed in 2021, when the band’s frontman Dani Filth revealed that he had been in touch with the pop star and that Sheeran had invited him “up to his place”.Work on the track was progressing in 2022 according to Filth, with work then halted due to Sheeran becoming a father.

Iron Maiden‘s Bruce Dickinson recently called out fans for smoking at a gig after a vape exploded during the show.During Dickinson’s gig on Saturday (April 27) at the Opera Hall in Brasília, Brazil, the singer addressed the crowd and called out a group of fans who were smoking cigarettes and vaping during his set. The smoke and fumes were irritating the singer’s voice and affecting the rest of his band and touring party.In a now-deleted video clip shared by the Instagram account Iron Maiden Brasil, Dickinson told the crowd: “I can’t fucking breathe.

Alien Ant Farm have announced a joint headline tour with CKY, which will come with a £1 ticket levy to help support grassroots venues. Find ticket details below.The announcement of the upcoming 2024 shows comes on the heels of California nu-metal band sharing ‘~mAntras~’ last week – marking their first new album in nearly a decade.Set to kick off towards the beginning of November, the shows will see frontman Dryden Mitchell and co.

System Of A Down frontman Serj Tankian has announced a new solo EP, ‘Foundations’ – find out more below.Yesterday (April 29), Tankian took to social media to announce the EP, which is due for release sometime in the fall via Gibson Records, though a firm release date has yet to be announced. However, the track’s first single, ‘A.F. Day’, is due much sooner on May 17 alongside an accompanying music video.Tankian also shared a snippet of ‘A.F.

Slipknot have confirmed the identity of their new drummer after he made his debut with the masked metal band last week.Today (April 30), the band took to social media to post a new promo photo of its nine members in their classic red jumpsuits and masks, resembling an iconic photo taken in 1999. In the photo, the band tagged eight of its nine members – one of whom has been revealed to be Eloy Casagrande.A post shared by Slipknot (@slipknot)Eloy Casagrande – the former drummer of Brazilian metal icons Sepultura – has now been confirmed as Slipknot’s new drummer.

Slipknot have announced the line-up of homecoming Knotfest Iowa 2024 with Rammstein‘s Till Lindemann, Knocked Loose and more.The band’s annual homecoming music festival is set to take place on September 21 for one night only as a special 25th Anniversary Event at Water Works Park in Des Moines, IA. Along with Slipknot, Till Lindemann and Knocked Loose, the likes of Hatebreed, Poison The Well, GWAR, Vended, Dying Wish, Zulu, Twin Temple, Holy Wars, Swollen Teeth, Spine, and Dose are also set to perform.A ticket pre-sale for Knotfest will commence on Tuesday April 30 at 10am CT (4pm BST).

Knocked Loose have brought out Poppy to perform ‘Suffocate’ at Sick New World – watch fan-shot footage of the performance below.Last week, Knocked Loose released a new song, ‘Suffocate’ featuring Poppy. The track marks the third single from the hardcore band’s upcoming third album ‘You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To’, which is due for release on May 10 via Pure Noise.This marks the first time that ‘Suffocate’ has been performed live, as Poppy joined the band onstage in Las Vegas halfway through the track.

Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes joined BABYMETAL during their set at Sick New World 2024 on Saturday – check out footage below. The Japanese band were playing the Las Vegas festival yesterday (April 27), when they were joined by Sykes on a version of their collaborative track.

Slipknot co-headlined Sick New World Festival in Las Vegas last night (April 27) with a career-spanning setlist for which they donned their classic original masks and red boiler suits.Appropriately for their attire, and for their celebrations of the 25th anniversary of their self-titled 1999 debut album, their setlist leaned on material from their first three records, the others being 2001’s ‘Iowa’ and 2004’s ‘Vol.

Mötley Crüe have shared ‘Dogs Of War’ – their first new single since 2019 and first official music with new guitarist John 5. Check it out below, along with our interview with Nikki Sixx and John 5.The glam metal veterans first shared news of new music earlier this week, when they confirmed that Friday (April 26) would see them drop ‘Dogs Of War’.

Slipknot fans believe that they have figured out who the band’s new drummer is following their most recent intimate performance.The Nine played an intimate club show last night (April 25) at the Pappy + Harriet’s barbecue bar in Pioneertown, California. They were dressed in their self-titled era masks and distinctive red boiler suits.

Slipknot have performed their first live show with their mysterious new drummer – check out fan-shot footage of the gig below.Yesterday, the nine-piece Iowan nu-metal outfit announced a last-minute intimate show at the Pappy + Harriet’s barbecue bar in Pioneertown, California set to take place on April 25 PDT. Now, fan-shot footage of the show has emerged shortly after the band took to the stage.The intimate gig marks Slipknot’s first concert with their new drummer – who is still unnamed – following the shocking firing of Jay Weinberg late last year.

Fever 333 have announced that they have formed a new band together.Aric Improta and Stephen “Stevis” Harrison both made their departure away from the group in October 2022 – surprising fans by sharing their own respective statements confirming that they had left the line-up.Now, the two have confirmed that they have got a new band together called House Of Protection, and revealed that they will be releasing the first taster of their sound soon.They shared the news with a joint Instagram post, which blends together a series of pretty intense visuals, along with a voice-over that says “Welcome to the House of Protection”.No music is featured on the video although, based on the clips, it appears that Harrison is taking on the role of frontman, and will be delivering some intense and chaotic vocals not too dissimilar from that of their former group.At the end of the video, it is confirmed that House Of Protection’s music will be arriving via Red Bull Records – the same label which has long been home to Beartooth.A post shared by House of Protection (@house_of_protection)While there is not yet any previews available of what the band will sound like exactly, the two have worked with enough bands in the past to presume that the final result will be pretty intense.As highlighted by Loudwire, aside from their time in Fever 333, Harrison has taken on the role of bassist for metalcore group The Chariot, while Improta is still contributing to the releases by post-hardcore act Night Verses.House Of Protection’s first song is set to arrive next week (April 30).After their departure last October, frontman Jason Aalon Butler was left as the sole remaining member, and Harrison alleged that “things were pretty bad internally” between the

Evanescence‘s lead singer Amy Lee has shut down rumours that she will be Linkin Park‘s new singer.Earlier this month, Orgy frontman Jay Gordon sparked rumours of Linkin Park’s impeding return with a new female vocalist. When pressed during an interview about what he had let slip, Gordon continued by saying: “Don’t quote me on that. I’m not sure who the singer is going to be, but I heard it was gonna be female.

Peter Frampton has shared his thoughts about his upcoming induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, likening Ozzy Osbourne to Betty White in the process.Following yesterday’s news that Frampton and Osbourne will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame later this year, Frampton spoke to Rolling Stone about the honour.When asked about Ozzy’s induction, Frampton compared the Prince of Darkness to Betty White, who was unanimously conceived as a likeable figure: “The man is the Betty White of rock & roll.” He also said it would be “fantastic” if he could perform ‘Crazy Train’ with Osbourne.Elsewhere during the chat, Frampton told the publication that he was astonished when he learned of his induction: “It’s something I never expected. Because I was eligible so long ago, I kind of put it into the back of my mind. It’s like before I got my first Grammy for my instrumental record where I didn’t sing a note.