Happy Friday! This week was very generous in terms of new music releases, with Dua Lipa making her comeback, Ariana Grande and Chaka Khan (!) dropping a tune for the Charlie’s Angels soundtrack, and Earl Sweatshirt surprise dropping an album just because he can. And, of course, Sam Smith is making another gesture towards disco with a smooth cover of Donna Summer’s disco classic ‘I Feel Love.’ Listen to the cover in the video above and learn more about the other tunes below.
Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
Since releasing her eponymous debut record just two years ago, which was elevated by the international hit ‘New Rules,’ Dua Lipa has kept herself busy by appearing on songs by Diplo and Calvin Harris. But with ‘Don’t Start Now’ she returns as the star of the show (wearing Mugler, naturally) in a slinky disco-infused number.
Earl Sweatshirt — EAST
Earl Sweatshirt always stood out as one of the most talented members from the Tyler, the Creator-led hip-hop collective Odd Future. He is in top form in a new album, FEET OF CLAY, which he surprised release on Halloween night. A treat indeed.
La Roux — International Woman of Leisure
It’s been 5 years since La Roux’s last album and even longer since she enjoyed mainstream success with the infectious and defiant ‘Bulletproof.’ Fans of the electropop act can rest easy knowing that a new album is finally on the horizon (Supervision, out February 7, 2020) and a new ’80s-tinged single signals a joyful return.
Ariana Grande & Chaka Khan — Nobody
In a now-viral video, Chaka Khan revealed that she while she had indeed recorded a song with Grande, aka the current biggest pop act in the world, “It’s not gonna change the world, okay?” While the duet might not have the chart impact of either artist’s previous hits, it sure did make my walk to the gym a little better.
Multi-Grammy award winning singer and songwriter Sam Smith stars in the brand new Autumn/Winter 2015 campaign for BALENCIAGA. Photographed by Josh Olins with an accompanying full length video, the evocative black and white series isolates the British music artist in a dramatic cave-like environment, representing, as Creative Director Alexander Wang says, “the dualities of the BALENCIAGA man.” Smith comments in response, “I have been a devoted fan for a while now. I love how intimate it feels and how involved Alexander is with the brand. I never in my wildest dreams thought I’d be wearing these clothes let alone modeling them, so this is a dream come true.” Watch the full campaign video online now.
Giving his best Nick Jonas Marky Mark and her best Kate Moss, musician Justin Bieber and top model Lara Stone front the global Spring 2015 campaigns for both Calvin Klein Jeans and Calvin Klein Underwear in a steaming black and white series shot by acclaimed fashion photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
Image: Calvin Klein.
The images, a tension-filled homage to the American fashion brand’s famous editorial history also continues Calvin Klein‘s longstanding pursuit of bringing music and pop culture icons together with fashion, following collaborations—just the past year alone—with the likes of Drake, Sam Smith, Kanye West, Harry Styles, Ciara, Usher, and more.
“Calvin Klein is such an iconic brand and I am excited and honored to become a part of the brand legacy with this campaign. I have been a longtime fan of the brand and have worn their jeans and underwear for a while, so this is kind of a dream come true,” said Bieber in a statement. “This is the beginning of an exciting new year for me, personally and professionally, and being a part of this campaign has been a fantastic opportunity and experience.”
Image: Calvin Klein.
In addition to the five-part photo campaign, Bieber and Stone star in a short #mycalvins video online.
Every year about an hour outside of Nashville, Tennessee in the United States, a crowd of just under 100,000 people pack onto a 700-acre farm in the reliably-sweltering heat of the South for Bonnaroo Art And Music Festival. For four days these loyal fans congregate around stages—whose names range from the “What Stage,” to the “Which Stage,” the “This Tent,” and, of course, the “That Tent— to see high-profile music acts like Elton John, Kanye West, and Lauryn Hill perform live on a farm in the middle of nowhere. Years past have seen luminaries take the stage such as Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Pearl Jam, Beastie Boys, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, Jay-Z, and The Beach Boys.
Appearing at the 2014 edition of Bonnaroo this past weekend was a relative newcomer of just 22 named Sam Smith. The singer-songwritter performed a 12-song set at the “Other Tent,” just two hours into the second day of the festival that included his hit singles “Money on My Mind” and “Stay With Me.” With his album In the Lonely Hour now officiallyout this week in the US—fueled by the momentum of a guest appearance on Disclosure’s breakout hit “Latch” and a performance on SNL—Smith’s debut has him coming out the gate at a breakneck speed. Maestro Dobel Tequila, the world’s first crystal-clear aged tequila, set up an interactive piano/cocktail bar backstage where we snagged a bottle wrapped inside in a miniature guitar case and made our way over to Smith to chat and give him his first post-performance gift.
Essential Homme: Congratulations on today. How was your first Bonnaroo?
Sam Smith: An absolutely magical moment. It’s my first festival and I didn’t think anybody was going to be here. There was a real connection between me and the fans. I feel the love.
EH: You posted a picture this week on Instagram of the cover of The Alchemist. What made you crack that cover?
SS: As things are happening, I’m looking for some sort of explanation. I’m getting all deep at the moment about stuff, so I want to read something that’s a bit deep.
EH: How far into it are you?
SS: Three pages, [I] literally got it last night. There’s a story about a guy who kneels beside a lake to admire his reflection only to become so infatuated with his own beauty that he falls in and drowns. I thought it was beautiful.
EH: In this search for some kind of explanation, how do you rationalize the surge of acclaim for your work spreading throughout the world?
SS: It’s really hard. My senses are heightened. I’m a bit more paranoid than normal, and it’s just a lot to get used to. I like the idea that I don’t want to put on a brave face all of the time. I want to be real and honest and say that this is really weird. There’s a lot to get used to, but I’m enjoying it. I’m having some of the happiest moments of my life—and some really horrible moments, too, where I’m lonely and by myself—but I think that’s all part of it. When something mad happens to you, in any way in your life, it’s going to be a bit weird.
EH: What was it like having the album already out in the UK and seeing the reviews, hearing feedback, and then dropping the album in the States just this week?
SS: My whole experience with America has been very weird. I’m so used to watching UK artists come over and have to work very hard after their album is released. Whereas it’s gone better in America than anywhere else in the world for me since SNL. I love being here and I love the audiences more than anything.
EH: What’s one song from the album that you don’t anticipate ever leaving your set list?
SS: “Stay With Me.” If it didn’t do well it would have been a disaster [for] me, because it’s made for people to sing. I made and wrote it so it would be an anthemic song. People seem to be singing along and I’ll never be sick of that.
EH: How did you get out of the dark place that inspired so much of the conception and creation of the album?
SS: I forced myself to be happy. I’m not the type of person that dwells on being sad. My album was about that moment where I was dwelling on being sad, for quite a while, so I’ve had to get out of that. [Now] I have as much fun as I can and also try to meet people. During that period I would deliberately stay at home and not go on dates and stuff, so now I’m forcing myself to do that.
EH: Is dating hard now that you’ve become such an instantly recognizable face?
SS: I’ve never been in a relationship before, so I don’t know any different.
EH: Do you think you’d be able to have a normal relationship?
SS: I think I would be able to. I don’t think of myself as famous; I just think my music is well known. I’m a normal person and I hope to lead a normal love life.
EH: We heard that you’re quite immune to some of the horrible things that people say about you. How do you deal with it?
SS: I deal with it by saying in interviews that I’m okay. And I am okay. When it comes to name calling—I had that a bit as a kid—I really am immune to it. I can’t explain why. If someone says something about sexuality or appearance it doesn’t get to me. If someone says to me, “You’re not a very nice person,” that’s what really upsets me, because I try every day to be nice and I feel like I have a good heart. Two years ago I was working at a bar cleaning toilets and right now I’m in America and I’m doing this amazing interview so I should pull it together because life could be worse. Nobody prepares you for what to do when you get what you want in life. You want for it so bad and when you start to get it, it’s actually quite scary.
EH: If you were a tree, what kind would you be?
SS: A willow tree.
EH: Why?
SS: Because I believe I have a little bit of wisdom in me.
EH: We believe so as well.
Images courtesy of Filmmagic, Capital Records, and Dobel Tequila.
