Olivia Rodrigo Announces 2024 Arena World Tour with the Breeders, Chappell Roan, PinkPantheress 

American singer and actor Olivia Rodrigo poses on the red carpet during the MTV Video Music Awards at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
American singer and actor Olivia Rodrigo poses on the red carpet during the MTV Video Music Awards at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
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Olivia Rodrigo Announces 2024 Arena World Tour with the Breeders, Chappell Roan, PinkPantheress 

American singer and actor Olivia Rodrigo poses on the red carpet during the MTV Video Music Awards at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, 12 September 2023. (EPA)
American singer and actor Olivia Rodrigo poses on the red carpet during the MTV Video Music Awards at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, 12 September 2023. (EPA)

Olivia Rodrigo is going on tour, and she’s bringing the next generation of pop talent — as well as a beloved ‘90s alt-rock band — with her.

In 2024, Rodrigo will be joined by funk-and-soul up-and-comer Remi Wolf, dark pop princess Chappell Roan, song of the summer contender PinkPantheress and perhaps most surprisingly, the Breeders (fronted by the Pixies’ Kim Deal), across a 57-date run.

The tour announcement Wednesday follows the release last week of Rodrigo’s highly anticipated and critically celebrated sophomore album, “GUTS.” It also comes a day after she performed at the MTV Video Music Awards.

The GUTS World Tour, Rodrigo’s first-ever arena tour, kicks off on Feb. 23, in Palm Springs, California, at the Acrisure Arena. It will hit most major cities in North America and Europe before returning stateside and closing out with two nights at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles County that August.

The singer will also sell a limited number of $20 (or the local currency equivalent, plus taxes and applicable fees) Silver Star Tickets in an attempt to make attending her concert more affordable. Those must be purchased in pairs, with a limit of two per purchase, and will allot seats located next to one another.

According to a press release, standard tickets will range from $49.50-$199.50 (plus taxes and fees) in the US.



Spotify Down for Thousands of Users, Downdetector Shows

FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
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Spotify Down for Thousands of Users, Downdetector Shows

FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo

Music streaming platform Spotify was down for thousands of users on Monday, according to Downdetector.com.

There were more than 30,000 reports of issues with the platform in the US as of 09:22 a.m. ET, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources, Reuters reported.

Outages were reported in Canada with more than 2,900 reports at 9:22 a.m. ET; UK had more than 8,800 app issues as of 9:22 a.m. ET.

Spotify did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The actual number of affected users may differ from what's shown because these reports are user-submitted.


Netflix Says its Position on Deal with Warner Bros Discovery Unchanged

FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
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Netflix Says its Position on Deal with Warner Bros Discovery Unchanged

FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

Netflix's decision to acquire assets from Warner Bros Discovery has not changed and the hostile bid from Paramount Skydance was "entirely expected", its co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos said in a letter to employees on Monday, Reuters reported.

The streaming giant is committed to theatrical releases of Warner Bros' movies, saying it is "an important part of their business and legacy".

"We haven't prioritized theatrical in the past because that wasn't our business at Netflix. When this deal closes, we will be in that business," the letter stated.

Netflix said its deal is "solid" and it is confident that it is great for consumers and can pass regulatory hurdles.


35 Countries to Compete in Next Year’s Eurovision After 5 Countries Announce Boycott over Israel 

Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
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35 Countries to Compete in Next Year’s Eurovision After 5 Countries Announce Boycott over Israel 

Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)

Organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest on Monday announced a final list of 35 countries that will take part in the glitzy pop-music gala next year, after five countries said they would boycott due to discord over Israel’s participation.

Contest organizers announced the list for the 2026 finale, set to be held in Vienna in May, after five participants — Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain — earlier this month announced plans to sit it out.

A total of 37 countries took part this year, when Austria's JJ won. Three countries — Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania — will return, after skipping the event for artistic or financial reasons in recent years.

The walkout by some of the contest's most stalwart and high-profile participants — Ireland shared the record of wins with Sweden — put political discord on center stage and has overshadowed the joyful, feel-good nature of the event.

Last week, the 2024 winner — singer Nemo of Switzerland. who won with the pop-operatic ode “The Code.”— announced plans to return the winner’s trophy because Israel is being allowed to compete.

Organizers this month decided to allow Israel to compete, despite protests about its conduct of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and allegations that Israel manipulated the vote in favor of its contestants.

The European Broadcasting Union, a group of public broadcasters from 56 countries that runs the glitzy annual event, had sought to dispel concerns about vote-rigging, but the reforms announced weren't enough to satisfy the holdouts.

The musical extravaganza draws more than 100 million viewers every year — one of the world's most-watched programs — but has been roiled by the war in Gaza for the past two years, stirring protests outside the venues and forcing organizers to clamp down on political flag-waving.

Experts say the boycott ahead of the event's 70th anniversary amounts to one of the biggest crises the contest has faced, at a time when many public broadcasters face funding pressures and social media has lured away some eyeballs.

Israeli officials have hailed the decision by most EBU member broadcasters who supported its right to participate and warned of a threat to freedom of expression by embroiling musicians in a political issue.