Emeli Sande Page 4

Wireless Festival, Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z – a match made in heaven as far as festival organizers, reporters, fans – all those involved really – are concerned. The pair are splitting up the headlining duties on the three nights of the festival between the two of them, with Justin having performed last night and bringing in Jay for an encore. Tonight it’ll be Hova who takes center stage, as Timberlake only comes on for a couple of tracks. On Sunday, they will share the main stage at the festival for an entire set.

Timberlake's performance was nothing short of spectacular.

Check out the rest of our gallery from the first night of Wireless.

Continue reading: At Wireless Festival, Justin Timberlake And Jay-Z Will Stop At Nothing Short Of Total Domination

Emeli Sande, Jessie J and Ed Sheeran are all set to play a special memorial service for Stephen Lawrence, who was murdered two decades ago in a racially motivated attack. His death galvanised a nation, furthering the cause of equality in the U.K, and heralded the start of the Lawrence Charitable Trust, founded by his mother, Doreen.

Amongst the other star-studded performers set to commemorate Lawrence’s tragic death are Labrinth, Plan B, Tinie Tempah, Rudimental, Rizzle Kicks and Jamie Cullum. The concert will take place at London’s O2 Arena on September 29th. “I would like Stephen to be remembered as a young man who had a future,” explained Doreen. “He was well loved, and had he been given the chance to survive maybe he would have been the one to bridge the gap between black and white because he didn’t distinguish between black or white. He saw people as people.”

She added: “Our aim is to build hope for the future. Justice for Stephen is about all of us, every one of us, in society having justice. I want young people to feel inspired, be confident and have hope in their own future.” Proceeds from the concert will go towards the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust.

Continue reading: Emeli Sande, Jessie J And Ed Sheeran All Confirmed For Stephen Lawrence Memorial Gig

"I come to the Ivor Novellos because One Direction aren't invited," said Noel Gallagher at this years Ivor Novello Awards, as the mouthy Mancunian commended the awards show for it's exclusivity and celebration of more obscure artists.

Among these often overlooked artists being recognised at Thursday's (May 16) event were three-time BRIT winning singer Emeli Sandé, who won two awards, Mercury Award winning act Alt-J, the multi-Oscar winning/nominated Randy Newman, and the multi-VMA and Grammy award winning Calvin Harris. Noel also picked up an award too, taking home the Outstanding Song Collection gong.

Speaking to NME on the red carpet just prior to the show, the former Oasis singer/guitarist said the reason he came to the awards show was "Because clowns like One Direction aren't invited, so it must be a good one" (and maybe the promise of an award would have enticed him in).

Continue reading: Noel Gallagher Slags Off One Direction At Ivor Novello Awards, (Takes Home A Gong)

Ok Emeli Sande’s marketing team; enough, we all know who she is now. We’ve all got her album. You can stop arranging for her to appear once roughly every two minutes somewhere on our TV screens, laptops or column inches. The Scottish singer’s debut album Our Version Of Events has just beaten a chart record set by The Beatles back in the 1960’s, by being the longest running debut album in the UK top 10.

Sande’s relentless march began back in February of last year when the album entered the charts and went on to become the biggest selling LP of 2012. However nearly five months after the end of 2012 it’s still not done yet, and is still nestling in the top 10 63 weeks after it first entered. Crikes. That’s now one week better than The Beatles Please, Please Me which lasted for 62 weeks in the top 10 between 1963 and 1964.

Some more stats for those of you brainwashed by the all-conquering power of the Sande: the record has sold 1.82 million copies in the UK, and has managed to go over 100,000 copies sold in a week on three separate occasions. Makes us almost miss the chart dominance Adele had back in 2011. Almost.

Continue reading: Emeli Sande's Our Version Of Events Goes 63 Weeks In UK Albums Top 10

Emeli Sande may be adding to her growing list of accolades as she is newly nominated for two different awards at the 58th Ivor Novello awards.

Her UK number 2 hit 'Next To Me' is nominated for Best Song Musically and Lyrically as well as the Most Performed Work award. Competing in the former category is 'Laura' by Bat For Lashes and 'Two Fingers' by Jake Bugg while the latter category also sees nominations from Olly Murs' 'Dance With Me Tonight' and Coldplay's Paradise. Sande has previously received two Urban Music Awards, three BRIT, three MOBO awards and an ECHO Music Award among several others and she's definitely up for a chance in the Ivor Novellos as her nominated track was apparently the third most listened to track of 2012 - a pretty impressive achievement in itself, though not as impressive as the reception her number one debut album 'Our Version of Events' received!

Other artists nominated in two separate categories are Plan B with 'Ill Manors', which is up for Best Contemporary Song and Best Original Film Score, and Alt-J with 'Fitzpleasure' for Best Contemporary Song and 'An Awesome Wave' for Best Album. The awards ceremony will make its way to the Grosvenor House hotel in London later this Spring on May 16th 2013.

Emeli Sande is definitely on the rise this year. The singer/songwriter has been nominated for two Ivor Novello awards, one of the highest honors for a musical artist. The singer, who rose to prominence with her debut album Our Version of Events in 2011, has had a string of high profile performances lately, most notably during the summer Olympics last year. The prestigious songwriting awards would be just the latest addition to her already impressive record. Sande’s song Next To Me is in the running for best song musically, as well as lyrically, along with "Laura" by Bat For Lashes and Jake Bugg's "Two Fingers".

The annual award ceremony, now in its 58th year, has long been heralded as one of the industry’s most prestigious events, largely because the voting is done by composers, songwriters and industry professionals. They will be handed out at a ceremony at the Grosvenor House hotel in central London on Thursday 16 May. The list on nominees also includes Mercury Prize laureates Alt-J with “Fitzpleasure” up for best contemporary song along with Plan B's “Ill Manors” and “Pelican” by the Maccabees. Some of the other awards to be given out on the night include best original film score, songwriter of the year and international achievement.

Sande performing at Hammersmith Apollo in London

Where do you find Kendrick Lamar? Just near something good, that’s where. The 25-year-old rapper can’t a put a foot wrong lately, and now he’s dropped his new video for Poetic Justice feat. Drake – the single from his critically acclaimed album Good Kid M.A.A.D. City. Where else can you find him? Next to Emeli Sande (also good). He collaborated with the Brit Award-winning singer in a remix of her hit, Next to Me. See? Good, it’s always good.

Kendrick Lamar performs in Gasgow, Scotland

Continue reading: New Kendrick Lamar Video For Poetic Justice + Emeli Sande Next To Me Remix (Watch & Listen)

This will come as no extraordinary surprise but it seems that two of Emeli Sande’s biggest fans are her mum and dad. Sande’s parents were there at the Brits on Wedensday night, watching her take home two of the evening’s biggest awards, as well as closing the night’s entertainment with two performances. Diane and Joel were delighted by their daughter’s success and told the Scottish Daily Record that Emeli deserves all of her success.

“Emeli worked so hard at this and she deserves it. She never gave up and it has paid off,” Joel told the paper, shortly after Emeli landed her two awards. “Perhaps if she had got this last year it would have been far too early, so it might not have worked out so well for her. We are both so happy for her and are keen to party on the record label’s boat after the show.” Mum Diane was equally keem to party, though a little worried that they might be cramping her daughter’s style. “That’s if they let us old ones on,” she added.

Emeli’s parents weren’t the only ones welling with pride though. Back at her old school (Emeli is from Alford, Aberdeenshire), headteacher Moira Milne said “We are all so proud of her. Everyone is speaking about her performance – she looked and sounded fabulous. There is a great buzz about the school. “I know a few tears – happy tears – were shed by staff last night and pupils have said to me, ‘Wow, she is such an inspiration to us’… She is a very talented lady and it is a privilege for us to have such close links with her. We all pass on our congratulations to Emeli.” 

Continue reading: Proud Parents: Emeli Sande Deserved Brits Win, Say Mum And Dad

Awards ceremonies are supposed to make you laugh. They’re supposed to make you cry. They’re supposed to make you angry. They’re supposed to shock the living daylights out of you. They are supposed to provide some serious ‘water cooler’ moments for you to talk about at work the next day. Did The Brits do any of these things? Did they heck. The most animated we got last night was when we managed to muster up the energy to actually yawn.

Ben Howard at the Brits 2013, possibly the blandest year ever?

Continue reading: Brit Awards 2013 - Why They Were The Blandest Brits, And Who Should Have Won...

The Little Mix girls were the talk of the town on Wednesday evening (February 20, 2013) though perhaps not for all the right reasons. The 'Wings' four-piece stepped out at the Brit Awards 2013 in a selection of the most bizarre outfits you're likely to see on the red-carpet all year. We don't know who styles the group, but they really should be relived of all duties, immediately.

Little Mix's Brit Awards 2013 Outfits Were A Little, Err, Strange?

Anyway, the girls were quizzed on who they were most excited about seeing at the annual awards' bash. "What am I thinking? Excited to see Justin Timberlake, hello!" Jesy Nelson told Capital FM's Max on the red carpet, while Leigh-Anne Pinnock added, "I just want to see Emeli Sande perform as well, I can't wait, she's amazing!" The reporter had a couple of different questions for Perrie Edwards, who is of course dating One Direction singer Zayn Malik (whom Emeli Sande revealed as her favourite member of the boy-band later in the evening). Edwards took the opportunity to clean up recent rumors about Zayn's beauty regime, saying, "No he doesn't do none of that! He wouldn't pluck his eyebrows! Girls have it so hard, boys just have it easy, sorry, but they do!" Well that's that rumour out of the window then, isn't it?

Continue reading: Little Mix's Perrie Edwards Dishes On Zayn Malik's Beauty Regime

It has been said over and over, but 2013 truly is the year of the comeback. Justin Timberlake has been going all out on his return to music and having unveiled the first track of his new album, The 20/20 Experience, 'Suit and Tie' with Jay Z, his musical resurrection was nothing short of a revelation. Continuing to keep up the momentum JT will be headlining London's Wireless Festival in the Queen's Olympic Park this summer, along with Jay. 

As the Guardian reports, the prior venue for the urban festival - Hyde Park - had suffered with noise complaints. At the Queen's Olympic Park (where the Olympics were held), there's few more appropriately grand locales for the festival. If you were excited about the headliners, the rest of the acts will delight you too; Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar, Emeli Sandé. Snoop Dogg, John Legend, Calvin Harris, Dj Fresh and Rita Ora, are just the tip of the iceberg.  

With such great acts, there's a price to go with it. For two days you'll be paying £110, or £57.50 for just either the Friday or the Saturday. Solo tours for many of the performers could reach £50 easily, so it's excellent value for money. They go on sale on Friday morning so snap them up while you can.

Continue reading: Wireless Festival Moves To The Queen's Olympic Park With Justin Timberlake And Jay-Z To Headline

This week heralds the long awaited return of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Of course, we have seen plenty of Nick Cave over the last few years, with 2010’s Grinderman 2 album and his soundtrack work on Metamorphosis and Lawless (both 2012 releases) but Cave’s fans have been waiting since 2008’s Dig, Lazarus Dig! for new output from the Bad Seeds.

As with many of Nick Cave’s album releases, Push the Sky away has been rapturously received (can this guy do no wrong, we wonder?), with a 4/5 review in The Guardian, a similarly effusive 9/10 from NME and a generous 8.0 from Pitchfork. There’s no huge departure in sound here; Push the Sky is very much what you will have come to expect from a Nick Cave album. Luckily, what we have largely come to expect from a Nick Cave album is sublime song structuring, insightful lyricism and quality musicianship – all of which are delivered on Push the Sky Away.

Continue reading: Out Now - UK Albums Releases - Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Return, Triumphant, Emeli Sande Epidemic Spreads With Live Album Release, Danish Punks Iceage Split Opinion With Controversy

Damien Hirst's infamous polka dot design has been applied to The Brit Award statue ahead of the announcement of 2013's shortlists. Hirst follows in the footprints of Vivienne Westwood and Sir Peter Blake in redesigning the iconic statuette.

Hirst said he is "honoured" to have been asked to contribute the design.

"It has become such an iconic award, I love the Brits," he said. "Damien is truly one of the most important British artists and his reimagining of the statue will make winning a 2013 Brit an even more special proposition," said Brits chairman David Joseph.

Continue reading: The Brit Awards Statue To Leave In A Hirst

Given her ubiquity there last summer, we’re not sure that Emeli Sande hadn’t already moved into the Olympic Stadium in London. She must have moved out though, because promoters Live Nation are in talks about hosting concerts at the stadium – which will probably see Sande appear back there at some point. That’ll explain the spare toothbrush she left behind.

The Guardian reports that the promoting giants have been looking for a new venue to host some of their biggest shows, after a turbulent summer at Hyde Park saw them veto it as a workable space. Increasingly strict curfews and sound restriction controls ensured a torrid time for Live Nation last summer, with shows from Madonna and Bruce Springsteen, among others, drawing the ire of ticket holders. Subsequently, Live Nation pulled out of negotiations to continue to host shows there between 2013 and 2017 and have since been assessing their options. It’s not clear if they’re discussing an exclusive deal with the Olympic Stadium.

If they do manage to get a deal, it might be galling news for football team West Ham United, who have been in a lengthy legal battle with rivals Tottenham Hotspur over whether either of them should be allowed to use the venue to host their home matches. It was given three months to improve the terms of its deal last month, though many would like to see the venue used for multiple-sports, providing as it would then a true lasting legacy of the Olympic Games that London so successfully held.

The up-and-coming British songwriter Tom Odell has been named as the winner of the Brits Critics’ Choice Award. He got his break in the music industry when a friend of Lily Allen’s took her to see him play and she was instantly drawn to the singer’s talents. Odell recently released his debut EP ‘Songs From Another Love’ and has expressed his surprise at learning that he’s been awarded the accolade of Critics’ Choice – becoming the first ever male artist to do so.

“I genuinely can’t believe it. Thank you so much. Looking at the list of amazing female artists who have won the Award already, I just hope I don’t let the boys down!" said Odell. Lily Allen – now known as Lily Rose Cooper – had already tipped Tom for success in NME, revealing “I went to see him play and signed him to my label straight away. His voice is fragile yet powerful and he sings mainly love songs. I'm not usually a massive fan of singer-songwriter stuff, but when I saw him live his energy onstage reminded me of David Bowie. It's not soppy and moany at all, it's energetic and insightful. And he's totally gorgeous as well! Blond hair and blue eyes, and simply just lovely.”

The Critics’ Choice award is chosen by a panel of industry insiders every year and is awarded to an artist who is yet to have released a debut album. Previous winners have included Emeli Sande, Jessie J and Ellie Goulding.

A delighted Emeli Sande makes an emotional homecoming to her native Glasgow (November 6, 2012)

Whilst the rest of the world were tuned into goings on in the United States, a few thousand people in Glasgow, Scotland, couldn't have cared less what was going on in the presidential battle between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney - Emeli Sande was back in town. The Glaswegian native has had quite the few months, appearing prominently in the Olympic Games opening and closing ceremony, thus opening herself up to a global audience, and then following that with a tour in North America, although chart success has so far eluded her there. 

Continue reading: PICTURES: Triumphant Homecoming For Glaswegian Emeli Sande

For most, it is only this year than any of us have heard of Emeli Sande, but she has steadily been beavering away behind the scenes for years, forming the foundations of what is proving to be an immense musical career in the spotlight. 

Before launching her solo album in February this year, she had already appeared on tracks with Wiley, Professor Green, Devlin and Chipmunk, as well as having written songs for Leona Lewis, Cheryl Cole, Susan Boyle, Leona Lewis and Cher Lloyd, according to Digital Spy. Plus, back in 2011, Simon Cowell referred to her as one of his favourite song writers. This year has also seen Sandé sing at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics, get two number one singles, plus a third alongside Lanbrinth as well as getting married to her long term partner, Adam Gouraguine, in September- all in all, a pretty successful year.

Now, all her hard work has been more than worth it, receiving international recognition, as well as 3 MOBO Awards this weekend (3rd Nov. 2012), which will undoubtedly be the first few accolades of many to come. "I really didn't expect to get three." She said, "I feel fantastic, I feel like all the hard work pays off when you get acknowledgement like this, so I'm very happy." As reported by the BBC this really is just the beginning for her, speaking about the future she said: "Maybe an EP before the album but I'm just excited because I've got so many ideas and I've been writing a lot." Regarding future collaborations she said she'd love to work with Labrinth again, plus Calvin Harris and Kanye West. "I've got opportunities to write for people I've been inspired by for so long, it's hard to say no. I just have to shut the door and get on with it."

Emily Blunt at the Bazaar Women Of The Year Awards

There was an Olympic feel on the red carpet of the Harper's Bazaar Women Of The Year Awards (not to be confused with the Bizarre Women Of The Year Awards, which we imagine would be quite a different ceremony) but one actress managed to fend them all off in the glamour stakes, with Emily Blunt looking delightful in an Alexander McQueen orange gown with sparkly neckline. It was a wonderful outfit for the actress to wear as she scooped the British actor of the year award at the event held at Claridge's Hotel in London.

Continue reading: Emily Blunt The Star Of The 2012 Bazaar Women Of The Year Awards

Psychedelic Pill is the 35^th studio album from Neil Young and was written and recorded in collaboration with his sometime band, Crazy Horse, marking their first album of original material since Greendale in 2003. As with many of Young’s latter-day releases, the quality is less than consistent. Reviews from The Guardian and the Independent suggest that Psychedelic Pill contains “moments of majesty,” (The Independent) as well as some less impressive tracks. It’s unlikely that any of this week’s releases are going to shake Taylor Swift from her throne at the top of the UK album chart but with reassuring reviews in the mainstream press, Psychedelic Pill should prove popular amongst Young’s considerable fanbase.

Also released today is the interestingly-titled Oui Oui Si Si Ja Ja Da Da, by veteran ska-pop band Madness. It’s the tenth studio album from Madness and contains 14 new tracks, as well as cover art from the ever popular pop-art legend Peter Blake (he designed the cover for The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band). The Guardian gave the album an impressive 3 stars out of 5 but can Madness really recapture the youthful exuberance of their glory days, with this latest album? It seems unlikely that they’ll continue to enjoy the success that they experienced in years gone by. 

Continue reading: On The Shelves: UK Album Release Round-Up, October 29, 2012: Neil Young, Madness, Kylie Minogue, Calvin Harris, Skyfall OST

Plan B and Emeli Sande have both received 5 nominations for the 2012 Mobo awards, making them the joint leading nominees, reports The Telegraph.

Having already been nominated for the 2012 Mercury Prize for Ill Manors, Plan B’s hugely successful album, which shares its name with the film in which he starred and directed, is making waves on the MOBO scene. Nominations include Best Male, Best Hip-hop/Grime act, Best Video, Best Song and Best Album: a successful haul for Ben Drew, who has enjoyed a successful renaissance of sorts, since he reinvented his style from U.K grime to retro-chic. Sande, who performed at both the opening and closing ceremonies for the Olympics, is nominated for Best R&B/Soul Act, Best Video for My Kind Of Love, Best Song for Next To Me, and Best Album for her debut Our Version of Events – which was snubbed by the Mercury Prize judging panel.

Elsewhere, Rita Ora and Labrinth are both nominated for four awards each, while Mercury Prize nominees Jessie Ware, Lianne La Havas and Michael Kiwanuka are also all nominated. Last year Jessie J dominated the event, which will take place at the Echo Arena in Liverpool on November 3. She won four MOBO awards, while US R&B act Boyz II Men were recognised with a special award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.