Drake joins Backstreet Boys in Toronto for surprise performance

Washington [US], July 4: Canadian rapper and songwriter Drake joined the Backstreet Boys as their temporary "sixth member" during the band's recent show at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto.

According to Page Six, fans went wild after Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson introduced the rapper as their surprise special guest, before the group performed a rendition of their classic '90s hit 'I Want It That Way'.

Drake took to Instagram and posted a 10-second clip that showed him crooning the song's iconic "'Cause I want it that way" verse. "When she says she's over men in this generation and asks why I live alone...," he quipped in the caption.

Meanwhile, a longer video shared to the Backstreet Boys' official Twitter featured Dorough segueing from the 1999 track to belt out a couple of lines from the chorus of Drake's 2013 hit 'Hold On, We're Going Home'. "Toronto, I want you to make some noise and I want you to sing this song as loud as you possibly can. This is one of the greatest songs in music history. I'll be on stage for it, I'll try to sing along too," Drake said on stage.

The six-person performance, a number that, as some pointed out, happens to echo Drake frequently referring to Toronto as 'The 6' in his songs, marked the evening's closing act. However, the Backstreet Boys will be circling the globe for their DNA World Tour through November, as per Page Six.

#thecommunique #tc #tcn #drake #event #music #BackstreetBoys

BTS' new album 'Proof' tops the Japanese Oricon chart

Seoul [South Korea], June 28: Global K-pop group BTS' new album 'Proof' has topped the Japanese Oricon 'Weekly Album Ranking' chart.

Swati Bhat

According to the latest Oricon chart which was released on June 24, BTS' album 'Proof' has earned 546,373 points between June 13 and June 19, and topped the 'Weekly Album Ranking' chart, as per Global Economic.

Their agency Big Hit Music said, "BTS' 540,000 points were the highest points for the Oricon weekly album chart." BTS has topped the weekly album chart with a total of six albums, including their latest album 'Proof.' This is the largest number of albums ranked on the chart. 'Proof' is an anthology album containing BTS' 9-year history since their debut in 2013.

Since its release, it has topped Oricon Weekly Album Ranking chart by selling 514,000 copies in Japan. It also topped the Weekly Digital Album Ranking chart for two consecutive weeks. Meanwhile, the South Korean boy band BTS will hold a global concert to support the nation's bid to host the 2030 World Expo in Busan. HYBE's Chairman Bang Si-Hyuk and CEO Park Jiwon, and Mayor of Busan Metropolitan City Park Heong-joon signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) this morning at the Busan Metropolitan City Hall to promote Busan's bid for the World Expo 2030. As part of the agreement, BTS as ambassadors will hold the Global Busan Concert in efforts to bring the World Expo 2030 to Busan. The memorandum covers joint initiatives for Busan to succeed in its bid as the host. It includes BTS to "act as the ambassadors, hold global concert in Busan, organise activities to appeal to the members of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE); and personally introduce the proposed site for the BIE Enquiry Missions.

"They also have to "serve as the ambassadors at South Korea's presentation session, be present on the election day to support the bid, provide photos and videos for the city's digital campaigns, and spread promotional videos via official social media channels." The news comes days after BTS members announced they will be taking a break to focus on their solo projects. BTS consists of 7 members - RM, Jin, Suga, J. Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkok - with Rm as their leader.

The first artist announcement for a solo album after the group confirmed their disbandment, came from BTS band member J-Hope on Saturday, revealing that he will release the solo album called 'Jack in the Box' on July 15.

#thecommunique #tc #tcn #bts #music

Alicia Keys' song, 'Empire State of Mind' draws in criticism

Washington [US], June 07: American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys confused fans after giving a performance on her chartbuster song "Empire State of Mind" at the Queen's Platinum Jubilee concert. Many claimed that her choice of the song about New York didn't sit well with the British event.

Pritish Bagdi

According to Twitter users, they did not understand why Alicia chose to sing such a song which talked about a love letter written to New York while performing at a British celebration, reported Page Six. "Why is Alicia Keys singing about how amazing New York City is at an event to celebrate the Queen? Maybe choose another song?" wrote a Twitter user.

Besides Alicia's decision to perform an unfitting song, she also belted out her love for New York in front of such a large audience at the Buckingham Palace, which led to further disapproval from fans as well as from several Britishers, reported Page Six. "When I'm in London I feel like I'm home. It reminds me of New York," Alicia spoke before beginning her performance on the "Empire State of Mind" song. Naturally, Alicia's choice of words drew in a lot of criticism, reported Page Six. "How to win and lose your audience in 5 seconds," tweeted a user.

Around 22,000 guests were invited to attend the Platinum Party at the Palace concert on June 4, where notable artists like Hans Zimmer, and Queen gave an amazing performance. At the event, David Beckham, Dame Julie Andrews and Sir David Attenborough also made guest appearances, while Elton John entertained the audience with a specially recorded performance.

The Platinum Jubilee celebrates Queen Elizabeth's 70 years of reign in London.

#thecommunique #tc #tcn #alicia #music #event #queenelizabeth #london #platinumjubilee