World News
Ed Sheeran and Elton John Discuss Their Christmas Single, Plus Ed Tells Elton About Listening To Black Sabbath With His Daughter, His Fireboy DML Remix & More On Apple Music 1
Elton John welcomes Ed Sheeran to Rocket Hour on Apple Music 1 this weekend to discuss the release of the pair’s brand-new Christmas single, “Merry Christmas.” During the chat Ed and Elton reveal how they first decided to collaborate on a festive track, plus Ed discusses introducing his daughter to Black Sabbath over daily “vinyl breakfasts,” teases details of his new remix of Fireboy DML’s “Peru,” shares why Brandi Carlile’s song “Mother” means so much to him, and more.
Video highlight, key quotes and images from the episode are below. If you’re able to use, please credit to Elton John’s Rocket Hour on Apple Music 1.
Listen back on demand any time with an Apple Music subscription at apple.co/_
VIDEO | Ed Sheeran and Elton John on their duet “Merry Christmas”
Watch: https://music.apple.com/us/post/1599590074
Ed Sheeran And Elton John Discuss Their New Single ‘Merry Christmas’…
Elton John: I’m so excited about this. I rang you up last Christmas and said, “You should write a Christmas record.”
Ed Sheeran: I found the voice note from that day actually. Yeah, so Elton rung me Christmas Day and said “You should do a Christmas record.” And I was like, “I don’t really know”. And I said, “Would you do another one?” He said, “Well, if I did another one, it would have to be a duet, I’m not going to do another solo.” So I said, “Oh we should do it together.” But then when we were planning it, I remember, because “=” was coming out, I was maybe 20, 22, maybe, 23. And I, midway through the year, just realised, why the f*** would we postpone anything? We’re going to have a great Christmas together. We had such fun shooting the music video and it’s so good. I love it so much.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John About Having “Vinyl Breakfasts” With His Daughter…
Me and my daughter do vinyl breakfast every single day. Where over lockdown, I got super into vinyl, I know you are super into vinyl too. But I basically would get up with her in the morning, I’d make her breakfast, and then we’d sit down and eat together and listen to a vinyl. And this is her favourite. She just loves this album [Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’]. So, I think ‘War Pigs’ is such a great way to start a record.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John About His Remix Of ‘Peru’ By Fireboy DML…
So I got sent this a week ago, to remix it. Someone, a friend of mine, Jamal [Edwards] who runs SBTV sent it to me. He said, “Fireboy DML would love you on the remix of this song.” And I’ve just found it really intriguing. So I recorded a verse for it… and it’s a song that’s blowing up in Nigeria and Ghana at the moment and their club scene runs over Christmas. So you basically put a song to the club in the middle of December, which would seem a weird thing to do in England. But yeah, so I’ve done the remix for this song, but this is the original and it’s just, it’s an earworm, and it’s addictive, and I’m obsessed with it. I mean, Cherry will tell you, I’ve had this song on repeat constantly in the house for the last week.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John About Meeting Brandi Carlile & Why Her Song ‘The Mother’ Is Special To Him…
Ed Sheeran: Do you know? So I met Brandi with you. Yeah. And that night. So we have mutual friends, me and Brandi, which is Courtney Cox. And Courtney is dating Johnny [McDaid], who I made my record with. And there was this night in LA where Brandi and Elton both came round for dinner. And at the end of the night, do you want to say what happened at the end of the night? We all got round.
Elton John: We all got round, sang songs, Brandi played a couple songs. You played a couple songs on the guitar. And then she sang this song [‘The Mother’]. And I was watching you, as she was singing it, because it is the most beautiful song.
Ed Sheeran: But it is exactly how you feel as a new parent, exactly. And I think five years ago, I would’ve listened to this song and been like, that’s beautiful. But now I listen to this song, and I mean, the first line, ‘The first thing you took from me was selfishness and sleep.’ I mean, that is literally, I remember speaking to my dad about having a kid and he was like, “How are you finding it?” And I just said, “Well, you just get less selfish, don’t you? You just go, well, my decisions are no longer my own. I’m making them for my child.” And I just think it’s such an amazing reflection of parenthood. And there’s so many songs that are written about being a first time parent. And the knee-jerk reaction is obviously to pick up a guitar or get on a piano and write a song about it. But this is such a direct, perfect tune about being a parent, not just a mother, but just a parent. It’s so good.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John About Meeting Elvis Costello At The World Variety Show…
Ed Sheeran: So do you know what’s interesting that he said to me? Because he stopped me just as I was leaving and we had a long chat and it was about you because he said, “Elton is to you, as in to me, what he was to me in the late 70s.” He said, when he was first starting out, you were at your absolute peak, peak, peak, peak, peak. And he said, he’d had a couple of hits out and you won an award and you went on stage and you said, “I don’t deserve this award. This award deserves to go to Elvis Costello.” And he said it was from that point that people started really taking him at his-
Elton John: That’s nice
Ed Sheeran: Yeah. And you introduced him to his wife as well.
Elton John: Yes.
Ed Sheeran: Didn’t you officiate the wedding?
Elton John: They came to one of my concerts at the Royal Opera House and they got married at this house.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John He Immediately “Clicked” With Fred Again…
Fred is someone that I met in 2016 and I’m very particular with people that I work with. I’m very much like I’ve worked with people I know and like, and I’d worked a lot with Johnny McDaid, I’d worked a lot with Foy Vance, a little bit with Benny Blanco at that point, and I was going into “÷ ” and my A&R Ed Howard was like, “You have to meet this kid, Fred.” I think he was 21 at the time. “You have to meet him. He’s one of the most talented producers that we know.” And I remember going to the studio with him and instantly clicking, but not so much musically, but more like friendship wise. And we just started hanging out as mates. And then every now and then we’d meet up together and make tunes. … But he, in that time, became a solo artist and put out this record called “Actual Life”, which is my favourite album of this year. It’s absolutely incredible.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John He Cried Hearing Foy Vance’s Song ‘I Will Be’ For The First Time…
I’ve been a massive fan of him. And then I got to know him. I took him on tour. We’ve been writing songs together. And I remember staying up at his house in Aberfeldie in 2011 or 2012. And he had just got out of a divorce, quite heavy. And he sat down and played this song on the piano and it made me cry. And I remember just being like, that is one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever heard. And then when he signed to my record label, I just kept nudging him being like, where is it? The world needs to hear this song. And he did it as a live performance on this Live record. And it’s the one place in the world that this song exists. But I really feel like he needs to, he knows this anyway, I’ve been nudging him for.
Ed Sheeran Tells Elton John About ‘Small Bump’…
It’s a song that was written basically about a friend’s miscarriage. And I wrote it when I was probably 18. And it was one of these things, I mean, I found most of the album is basically me entering into the real world. I grew up in the middle of the countryside in Suffolk. Never really seen poverty, never really seen drug addiction. Never really seen it, I didn’t really experience anything, I was just living in the middle of the countryside. And then moving to London, suddenly all these real life things came out, and that’s where ‘The A Team’ comes from, where ‘The City’ comes from, where ‘Small Bump’ comes from. And basically, all of the songs were knee-jerk reactions to situations happening around me, basically.
Elton John Tells Apple Music About His First Encounter With One Of His Musical Heroes, Leon Russell…
Leon Russell at The Troubadour on the second night I played, I was in the middle of ‘Burn Down The Mission’ and I saw him and I went, “Oh”, because you can’t miss that long white hair. And I was mortified because I thought he’s going to time me out and tell me how to play the piano. But he came back and he gave me a recipe for my voice, because my voice was a little hoarse. He said, you must always have a spoonful of vinegar, a spoonful of honey and hot water and stir the hottest water you can bear to gargle with, and gargle with it for a minute or two minutes. And you’d be surprised what comes out of your throat. And I’ve always done that.
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Do LaB Announces Learning & Culture and Music Lineups for The Compass at 20th Anniversary of Lightning in a Bottle
Today, Do LaB have announced the Learning & Culture and music lineups for The Compass at the 20th anniversary of Lightning in a Bottle, taking place Memorial Day Weekend at Buena Vista Lake in Southern California this May 24-29, 2023. Each year, the Compass provides LIB attendees the opportunity to gain life-changing lessons to bring back to their day-to-day lives through a series of talks, workshops, and performances from world-renowned visionaries and thought leaders across many important verticals close to the event’s ethos.
In 2023, The Compass will welcome the return of renowned mycologist Paul Stamets as he explores How Psilocybin Mushrooms Can Help Save The World, an increasingly hot topic across the world that LIB has championed since Paul’s debut at the festival in 2017. Forward-thinking programming continues with a Psychedelic State of the Union from MAPS, a talk on Womb Care Love with holistic health practitioner and wellness coach Queen Afua, and Tejon Tribe speaking on the Ancestral Homelands of the Tejon.
Festival-goers can also hear from Compass Director Isis Indriya as she unpacks The Oracle Divination Board and listen to water researcher Veda Austin explore The Secret Intelligence of Water, along with talks from the Center for Integrative Bee Research, Life Enhancement Institute (LEI) founder Kumu Ramsay Taum, and Jai Dev Singh on Kundalini & Tantra.
The Compass musical highlights include The Polish Ambassador who will perform a very special Sunday Service, capping off a weekend filled with splendors that will include performances from Tooker, Little Wolf, Yaarrohs, Mr. Wu, Daniela Riojas, Sweet Anomaly, Calvin Arsenia, FR33SOL, LAVVA, and more.
The Beacon, known as the lighthouse of The Compass, will also host a series of downtempo ambient sessions from artists like Equanimous, Ruby Chase, and more.
The theme for The Compass this year is Yin Phoenix, bringing together elements related to the rise of the Phoenix and Yin Water while highlighting prosperity consciousness and attunement to the intelligence of water as the guide. The phoenix is an immortal bird that cyclically regenerates or is otherwise born again. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by rising from the ashes of its predecessor. These themes will be ever-present at The Compass as LIB celebrates its 20th anniversary.
The immersive Compass area offers a diverse array of educational opportunities to engage the senses, expand the mind, and inspire community action with topics that include indigenous cultures, psychedelic medicine, climate change, love & relationships, healthy eating, and more. Attendees can learn from the past and present in order to better integrate, collaborate, and thrive in our world’s future.
More information about The Compass can be found on LIB’s website. This includes details about the unique areas that make up the space including The Beacon, Crossroads, Learning Kitchen, Memory Palace, and more with each area adding to the overall experience and story behind the festival. Additional details about the programming at each location will be announced ahead of LIB.
For those looking for the joy of a camping festival with an elevated experience, LIB will return VIP offerings first introduced during the 2022 edition. VIP pass holders can find reprieve in backstage lounges at Lightning, Thunder, and Woogie, grab refreshments in these areas at exclusive bars, enjoy special pop-up interactive experiences, take advantage of access to the Atlaswyld Beach Club & Bar, and watch headlining performances at the elevated Lightning Stage or enclosed Thunder Stage viewing areas. For more info on VIP tickets, visit https://www.libfestival.org/
20 years ago, a lightning bolt struck and sparked something far greater than anyone could have ever anticipated. Do LaB have created a legacy from the ground up since – one with a loyal community of free spirits chasing the imaginative, boundary-breaking rush felt at its very first celebration. Now it’s time to come together to set the tone for the next 20 years.
Learning & Culture Programming
Tejon Tribe – Ancestral Homelands of the Tejon
Paul Stamets – How Psilocybin Mushrooms Can Help Save The World
Queen Afua – Womb Care Love: From Trauma to Transformation
Veda Austin – The Secret Intelligence of Water
Kumu Ramsay Taum – E Ola Pono Piha: Live Fully w Ho’oponopono
Center for Integrative Bee Research – Keepers of the Bees: Ancient Future Wisdom
SupaNova Slom – The Science of Holistic Living
Snow Raven – Sakha Shamanism
MAPS – Psychedelic State of the Union
Jai Dev Singh – Kundalini & Tantra: Unlocking the Ancient Science
Calvin Arsenia – Beauty For Ashes
Nat Kelley & Special Guests – Land Back: Repatriation on Turtle Island
Adam Apollo – The Ancient Secrets of our Human Origins
Unify – 1000 White Lions Roaring: Global Meditation
An Offering to Ma’at – Rites of Lightning Ritual Theater
Daniela Riojas – Indigenous Curanderismo: Connecting to the Wisdom of Mother Earth
Judah Isvaran – A New Paradigm: Servant Relationships
Izumi Hamagaki – Magical Plant Medicine Elixers
Zach + Kayla of Beloved’s Bread – Flatbreads & Vegan Caesar
Sunali Shanti Sikand – Food as Love: Edible Poetry
Talks & Discussions
The Oracle Divination Board
Our Role in the Soil Food Web
Panel on Ethics In Business
The Technology of Prayer and the Prayer of Technology
The Channeled Transmissions of 2020 Prophecies
Vedic Astrology
Workshops
The Codex of the Magician
Creating Healthy Interdependence
Fusion Bellydance
How to Say No to Cops
Human Design: The New Paradigm
Rose Alchemy: History & Distillation of Roses
Music Lineup
Sunday Service w The Polish Ambassador
Al Wadi
Andreas One
Black Sesame (Timo Granzotti x Little Dinosaur)
BOHEMIAN CRISTAL INSTRUMENT
Calvin Arsenia
D’rok THE menace
Daniela Riojas
DJ K Marie
DRĖĖĖMY
Elijah Badua
Elikenagi
FR33SOL
Free Creatures
Giselle World
Joey Greiner
LAVVA
Maria Tambien
Mr. Wu
Nii Tei
Raeya
Scarlett Dela Torre
Scott Nice
Sukira
Sweet Anomaly
Terrell Brooke
TOOKER (hybrid set)
Wild Choir
Yaarrohs
Yaima
Zeefellaz
Zuri Adia
Ambient Downtempo Sessions At The Beacon
2Melo
Rob Noble
Equanimous
Häana
Jason Baker
Little Wolf
Mr. Wu
Mahzetar
Ruby Chase
Tropo
World News
Iranian-British HipHop Act 021kid Delivers Gritty Bars As He Opens Season 3 Of The UK’s Biggest Freestyle Session ‘THE COLD ROOM’
The highly anticipated third season of ‘The Cold Room’ will premiere on Mixtape Madness’ YouTube channel at 7 pm GMT and will be hosted by founder, Tweeko. Performing the first episode for this season would be Iranian/British Hip-Hop artist 021kid. In his freestyle episode, 021kid ferociously attacks the beat and delivers gritty and hard-hitting bars as he gives a strong impression of why he is the “father of Persian Drill music”. The flow of the Tweeko-produced beat is complemented by the artist’s distinctive pen game on the 3-minute-long song.
As the first Iranian rapper to have tapped into the UK Drill scene with consistency 021kid says,
“I’ve always wanted to collaborate with big names, to build my demographic and widen my audience making my mother language within the Rap, Drill, and hip-hop scene globally.” He is continuously achieving this by collaborating with some of the most prominent names in the UK drill scene.
For the third instalment of the freestyle series, founder Tweeko, Mixtape Madness, project manager Frosty, and Fully Paid Clothing have collaborated to bring The Cold Room Season 3 to life, featuring new and previously unseen pieces from the Fully Paid Clothing catalogue. The sponsorship began in Season 2 and will return for the highly anticipated Cold Room Season 3. Keep an eye out for the new exclusive garments that each artist will be sporting in each episode.
Speaking about the upcoming season, the project manager, Frosty said, “The team is working really hard to deliver season 3, this year is going to be unlike any other season we have dropped. I am excited, watching this space season 3 will write history once again.”
Tweeko’s original idea in 2017, The Cold Room, launched independently in 2020 during the late pandemic, and in 2021 partnered with Mixtape Madness. It has gone on to quickly become a popular freestyle platform for some of the biggest Drill artists leaving its mark on the UK scene.
About Tweeko:
Aspiring Sound Engineer, Producer, DJ, and Artist. Born in Lewisham, Southeast London.
Tweeko has heavily influenced the urban UK, US, European, and Australian rap scenes. He first made his debut appearance in 2014 but has been Mixing records since the age of 11 years old borrowing his mum’s old laptop to practise his craft.
Tweeko is known for his Catchy tag “Tweeko mixed this, it sounds cold!” which features on thousands of tracks across the UK Drill scene including Yung Fi’s “100 Bags Freestyle”, BM’s “London View”, and Jay 1 and Loski’s “Tee”.
About 021kid:
Tony Mohraz (born 11 august 1997) professionally known as “021kid“ is an Iranian / British Hip-hop Artist, songwriter, producer, performer and the owner of the drill Farsi label. He is considered to be the Pioneer of the Persian drill music genre.
With an impressive 400,000 Instagram followers and over 70,000 monthly listeners on Spotify 021Kid is cementing his place in the UK Drill Scene. 021kid writes history making him the first Iranian rapper to feature on the very popular freestyle platform “Plugged in with Fumez the engineer” switching between rapping in his native language Farsi and English he has since racked up an impressive 1.6 million views in just 6 months on the YouTube Visuals.
About The Cold Room:
The Cold Room an original idea formed by Tweeko in 2017, Launched independently in 2020 during the late pandemic, in 2021 partnered with Mixtape Madness the freestyle platform has since collected a staggering 200 million+ Views across YouTube and 22 million+ Streams on Spotify alone and is quickly becoming a popular freestyle platform for some of the biggest Drill artists leaving their mark on the UK scene. The Cold Room is hosted on Mixtape Madness, a pioneering platform for the UK Music industry, with over 1.5 Million Subscribers on Youtube and having hosted various notable releases including Digga D, Savo, and Horrid1’s “Next Up (Part 1)” SL’s “Gentleman”, JBEE’s “Next Up (freestyle)”, and lots more.
About Frosty:
Frosty founded his Talent Management Company “Frosty Management” in May of 2022, the first artist on his roster was a friend of Frosty called K1, who sadly passed away in October of Last year from Cancer. Frosty currently has built a roster of a selection of talents from artists, producers, and engineers. Recently signing Tweeko to the Frosty Family, Frosty is now Project Manager of “The Cold Room” kicking it off with Season 3!
Connect with Tweeko: Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
Connect with 021kid: Instagram | Spotify
Connect with COLD ROOM: Instagram | Spotify
Connect with Frosty: Instagram
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