challenges: Last News

Lorde is the latest artist to go public about the challenges facing the live music sector at the moment, explaining how for an increasing number of artists the economics of touring currently don’t add up.Surging costs and increased competition caused by the COVID shutdowns of 2020 and 2021 have had a big impact on the live music industry this year, hitting the grassroots and middle-level shows the hardest, because they already operated on pretty tight profit margins.Ticket prices need to increase on those kinds of shows to make things viable again, but everyone is nervous about price rises given the current cost of living crisis.Santigold and Animal Collective are among the artists who have previously spoken about the challenges of touring at the moment, confirming that the economics just don’t add up for an increasing number of shows. Lorde says that she is lucky to be operating at the level where shows are still generally financially viable, but even at that level there is increased risk which results in increased stress.Outlining the challenges faced by the wider artist community in her latest bulletin to fans, she writes: “For artists, promoters and crews, things are at an almost unprecedented level of difficulty.

Rhys McCabe has told his Airdrie side to go on a consistent run after bagging back-to-back league wins for only the second time this season.

Independent films in the theatrical marketplace are weathering a particularly fierce storm in the post-pandemic world with theatre closures and the struggle to get older audiences back into the cinema but Roadside Attraction’s Howard Cohen says that it will take one indie hit to drive numbers back up. 

John Legend is being completely honest about the highs and lows in his relationship with Chrissy Teigen. The «All of Me» singer is a guest on the latest episode of the podcast where he got candid about his evolving relationship with his wife.  Legend, 43, and Teigen, 36, tied the knot in 2013, and the GRAMMY-winning superstar shared that at the start of their relationship, he wasn’t ready to be the man that she needed him to be.

EXCLUSIVE: Children’s TV bosses from all over the world met at Mip Junior last night to discuss major challenges and seek co-production alliances, as the BBC’s Patricia Hidalgo tells Deadline a commercial strategy is the best way to safeguard kids programing.

Pacquiao, 43, was beaten by unanimous decision by pound-for-pound king Mayweather in 2015 in one of the biggest boxing matches of all time.The Filipino fought regularly before quitting boxing last year while Mayweather has only been in the ring twice competitively after that win, beating Andre Berto and Conor McGregor.Asked about a potential rematch with Mayweather next year, Pacquiao said: "I don't think that will happen because he is scared to death to face me in the ring.READ MORE: Jake Paul adamant Conor McGregor bout would be biggest fight over Mayweather or Tyson"He already felt like he was intimidated to me and scared to face me in the ring.

Helen Skelton, 39, shared how much of a “privilege” it was to visit her local charity, the Sunbeams Music Trust, after meeting one of the young people who they supported a few years ago.Sharing her admiration for the charity, Helen videoed herself on her Instagram stories, getting visibly emotional as she spoke about Yasmin, an “incredible” young person who the Strictly Come Dancing 2022 star had a close relationship with.With classical music playing over the top of the video, which saw Helen wearing a beige coloured jumper, hooped earrings and her blonde hair resting on her shoulders, the Countryfile presenter said: “In my job you meet lots of interesting and amazing people over the years.“And sometimes those people come full circle.”Starting the video off quite chirpy, it wasn’t long before Helen visibly got choked up, having to pause while she composed herself.She began: “Many years ago I met an incredible young woman called Yasmin…” before pausing.Taking a deep breath and trying not to cry, Helen looked directly into the camera, before starting again.She continued: “Who had lots of life challenges, and she was helped by the fantastic charity called Sunbeams.“They are a music charity who were building a new centre at the time.”Panning the camera to show her surroundings, it is clear that Helen was visiting the now completed music centre which she had heard was being built a number of years ago.“It’s amazing,” she added, before explaining that she was excited to get to do some of her work from the new building.“They help all kinds of people in all kinds of wonderful ways and it is a total privilege to say that actually, I get to do some of my work from here because I can work remotely!“So, thank you technology, thank

Emmerdale's 50th Anniversary.The special one-hour episode, which will air on Sunday 16, promises viewers an array of jaw-dropping stunts and an avalanche of chaos.But before the drama all kicks off, Judy has explained how certain aspects of her role was made challenging as she worked closely with the director to deliver an epic visual experience.READ MORE: Emmerdale's Nate harrowing fate 'sealed' as Naomi romance sparks concernShe said: "The hardest element is not the shots but the extremely tight timescale. For last year’s super soap week we created completely different environments to the locations where we were filming."This year is about being invisible and manipulating what is filmed on camera."Discussing her role on set, Judy added: "Being on set is a huge part of the job."This is when you make sure you have all the elements so that you can complete the shot.

Kevin De Bruyne registered his 11th assist of the season for Manchester City as they eased to a 4-0 win over Southampton, but Pep Guardiola was still critical of the Belgian's performance.

Near the beginning of Sean Egan’s recently-published piece in the U.K. publication The Critic, are the following assertions: “new Scorsese films are routinely an hour too long…his directorial talent has never been as great as occasional masterpieces like Goodfellas (1990) tricked us into believing it was.”

Naman Ramachandran A heavyweight producers panel discussed the modalities of producing independent films in Southeast Asia at a mylab panel on the sidelines of the Busan International Film Festival on Thursday. Panelists included: Liza Diño, former chair of Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) who had greenlit several films during her tenure; Indonesia’s Yulia Evina Bhara, producer of Venice-winner “Autobiography” that’s also playing at Busan; Thailand’s Donsaron Kovitvanitcha, producer of Locarno and Busan title “Arnold is a Model Student,”; and Malaysia’s Haris Sulong, producer of “Beautiful Mind.” The discussion was moderated by Variety Asia editor Patrick Frater.

Ethan Shanfeld For nearly three decades, Spoon has been quietly building one of modern rock’s most robust discographies. Over the years the Austin outfit, founded by frontman Britt Daniel and drummer Jim Eno, has put out multiple alternative hits, including “Inside Out,” “Sister Jack,” “The Underdog” and “Do You,” and scored a handful of Top 5 albums on the Billboard rock charts. Released in February, the band’s first studio album in five years, “Lucifer on the Sofa,” seems a solid Grammy contender in the alternative and rock categories. Coming off a North American tour and ahead of the release of companion remix album “Lucifer on the Moon” (featuring “Sofa” songs reworked by Adrian Sherwood), Daniel spoke with Variety about the state of rock in 2022, the problems with touring during COVID and why he mourns the golden age of radio.

JK Rowling has challenged transgender charity Mermaids to sue her in another public spat.The author as been at the centre of several Twitter storms in recent years, angering many people in the LGBTQ+ community specifically. Most recently, she blasted celebrities for backing Mermaids – a charity that supports transgender young people and their families – with the likes of Harry Potter star Emma Watson previously showing their support for the organisation.The writer’s latest comments come after it became public knowledge that a trustee from Mermaids quit their role over revelations he spoke at an ‘academic’ conference hosted by B4U-ACT, an organisation that promotes support for paedophiles.It was revealed by the Times that Dr Jacob Breslow attended the conference in 2011 as a PhD student.

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen have weathered many ups and downs over the course of their 15-year relationship. However, the union between the 45-year-old NFL star and the 42-year-old appears to have hit its rockiest patch yet, as reports emerged on Tuesday that the two have hired divorce lawyers amid their recent marital woes. Though the couple have persevered through difficult times before, even the beginning of their love story was not without its challenges.  Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen have weathered many ups and downs over the course of their 15-year relationship.

boxing icon could be next up for darts ace James Wade.The Daily Star Sport columnist last weekend completed a 501-mile rally in a Ford Focus which cost £501 to raise money and awareness for Bipolar UK. During his tour of the country, Wade stopped off at tyre fitters and took on staff and customers in legs of darts. One of his opponents was British wrestler Trent Seven, who fought on the WWE’s NXT brand.

BBC's latest reality show Unbreakable sees new couples go head to head with long married ones to see whose relationship is the strongest. Host and comedian Rob Beckett puts the six celebrities and their partners through mental and physical challenges as they play to win the first Unbreakable couple title.

Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), the industry platform of Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), is making a return as a fully-fledged in-person event this year, after being mostly held online for two years during the pandemic.

The Co-op has warned it will continue to face challenges in the future after revealed its profits were cut by £37m during the first half of its financial year.

Lea Michele is reflecting a bit on her major Glee controversy. And she’s moving the focus from her responsibility to her… pregnancy.

Emily Longeretta The world of “Chicago P.D.” will look a bit different midway through Season 10 as Jesse Lee Soffer will say goodbye. While viewers are disappointed about the actor, who has portrayed Jay Halstead since the series’ debut, leaving the show, showrunner Gwen Sigan is focused on writing the big shift. “We’re all very sad about it. Jesse’s meant so much to this show, and you couldn’t ask for more professional and kind person to work with. So we’re all going to be so devastated,” she told Variety ahead of Wednesday’s premiere. “I think it just what he brings to the show just as a person and then his character on top of it — you’re looking at a character that has meant a lot to Voight and is married to Hailey. There’s so many things that, story wise, are going to be very interesting to write into. So it’s been emotional for sure.”

EXCLUSIVE: The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has been celebrating the 75th anniversary of The Actors Studio with special screenings and in-person conversations on Sunday nights in August and September. Of course, the studio is the thespian mecca and home to so many in the profession looking to hone their craft and work out their approach to their art. The guru teacher most associated with it was the great Lee Strasberg, and it even had its own long-running TV series Inside The Actors Studio in which so many stars came back to share secrets of success that had to much to do with the teaching of Method acting, or at least that was how it was labeled.