ABBA Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

ABBA‘s Voyage virtual concert experience could be making its way around the world.Universal Music Group chairman Lucian Grainge revealed in a company earnings call per Variety on Thursday (March 2): “Plans are now in development to take ‘ABBA Voyage’ around the world”. No other information – including targetted cities, venues and dates – has been announced.ABBA’s Voyage experience debuted at the ABBA Arena in London in May 2022.

Avicii have announced that they have sold 75 per cent of the late musician’s recording and publishing rights to the Swedish company Pophouse.Avicii, real name Tim Bergling, died by suicide in 2018. Subsequently, his parents Klas Bergling and Anki Lidén have overseen his estate as well as a charitable foundation set up in his name.Klas Bergling said in a statement today (September 28): “My wife and I feel that as we are getting older, we do not have the right energy level or required skills to fully keep ahead of the new streaming and digital developments vital for such a big, international artist as Tim.”“Through this deal, we are also securing the Tim Bergling Foundation’s long-term finances, creating opportunity to act decisively on the foundation’s commitments to supporting such important issues as mental health and well-being of young people.”He went on to argue that the deal would bring Avicii’s music “to the widest possible audience” and “take care” of his international fanbase.“Since Tim took his life, as a family, we have not had sufficient time for his fans that they so deserve, and have lacked the ability to follow up on their correspondence and other contact with us.”“We leave neither Tim nor his contribution to the world.

ABBA‘s Anni-Frid Lyngstad made a surprise appearance at last night’s ABBA Voyage show in east London.The “revolutionary” concert series began in May at the purpose-built ABBA Arena in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. It sees digital versions of the Swedish pop icons perform a hits-filled set, backed by a 10-piece live band.Following the finale of yesterday’s edition (September 15), an announcer made an unexpected revelation over the PA.

vinyl collecting capital of the UK, according to a new study.Up to 32 per cent of the UK’s vinyl collectors live in the Scottish city, The Royal Mint found via DJ Mag.The study also discovered that Glasgow was followed closely by the North East of England in boasting the most record collectors in the nation, with 25 per cent of vinyl collectors living there.It comes after vinyl record sales in 2021 were at the highest they’ve been in 30 years, despite widely publicised issues with backlogs and delays.According to figures from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), more than five million vinyl records were sold last year, an 8 per cent increase on 2020. It marked the 14th year in a row that the format has increased sales, with vinyl records making up 23 per cent of all albums sold.The biggest-selling vinyl album of 2021 was ABBA‘s comeback record ‘Voyage’, while Adele‘s huge ’30’ and Sam Fender‘s ‘Seventeen Going Under’ – NME’s Album Of The Year – also sold big on wax.Campaigns such as LoveRecordStores, Record Store Day and National Album Day also helped rally sales for independent record shops and specialist chains.Earlier this year, it was also reported that vinyl sales in the UK look set to overtake CDs.Vinyl albums brought in £135.6million in 2021 (up 23.2 per cent year-on-year) compared to £150.1million in CD sales (down 3.9 per cent year-on-year).

ABBA have paid tribute to Olivia Newton-John who died yesterday (August 8) aged 73.The Australian singer and Grease actor passed away peacefully at her Ranch in Southern California, as confirmed by her husband John Easterling in a statement.“Olivia has been a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years sharing her journey with breast cancer,” the message read.Today (August 9), ABBA’s Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad (aka Frida) both paid their respects to Newton-John in a post on the Swedish group’s official social media pages.The pair crossed paths with the late star in 1974 when both she and ABBA competed in that year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton.Newton-John, who was representing the United Kingdom, came in fourth place with her track ‘Long Live Love’. ABBA were crowned overall winners that evening with their hit ‘Waterloo’.Alongside a photo of ABBA and Newton-John on-stage together, Frida wrote: “What do you feel, what do you say when the nice, kindest and most loving woman leaves us to travel somewhere else.“The heart aches to know Olivia’s brave fight against an, in her case, invincible enemy.

ABBA have announced a new 30th anniversary version of their greatest hits collection ‘ABBA Gold’.The collection is one of the most successful releases in recorded music history, with more than 32 million sales worldwide.It’s the second highest selling album of all time in the UK, spending more than 1,055 weeks on the Official UK Albums Chart, making it the longest running album in the Official Albums Chart Top 100 ever.Released on September 21, 1992, ‘ABBA Gold’ contains some of the Swedish pop legends’ biggest hits including ‘Dancing Queen’, ‘Knowing Me, Knowing You’, ‘Take A Chance On Me’, ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘The Winner Takes It All’.To mark 30 years since it was released, a version in new formats is being released on September 23 [available to pre-order here].The formats are as follows: new 2LP Picture Disc in heavyweight vinyl, housed in die-cut gatefold sleeve; new gold cassette – also available in black; and gold 2LP – gold 2 x 180g vinyl. Brand new limited edition ABBA merch will also be available to pre-order soon.It follows the recent news that ABBA’s Benny Anderson and Elton John worked together on a new song mash-up for TikTok – watch it here.The pair remotely performed a live rendition of each of their songs before they were blended in the TikTok audio app.

ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus has shared a message of support for the English women’s football team (aka the Lionesses) after they celebrated a 4-0 win over Sweden earlier this week.The Lionesses dominated Sweden, where ABBA hail from, in the semi-final match of the 2022 UEFA Women’s Euro Championship. The game took place at Milton Keyes’ Stadium MK on Wednesday (July 27) and is to be followed by the final match this Sunday (August 31).There, the Lionesses – who are currently eighth in the FIFA Women’s World Rankings – will face off against Germany at London’s Wembley Stadium.As reported by the Evening Standard, the Lionesses celebrated their semi-final victory with a singalong to ABBA, who feature prominently in the team’s dressing room playlist.When asked what she and her team listened to after scoring the final goal, forward Alessia Russo told journalists: “It was a little bit of ABBA – there’s always ABBA – but also Proud, West Virginia, a couple of old songs.”Leaning into the irony that the Lionesses marked their win over Sweden by singing along to Swedish music, Björn took to Instagram with a message of congratulations the team, which he delivered wearing the jersey of Sweden’s own football team.In the message, he said: “I understand that you celebrated your well-earned victory the other day with ABBA music, and I have to say, that makes the defeat a little easier to bear.

Hugh Jackman well after the actor tested positive for COVID-19, with a montage of their friendship soundtracked by ABBA.On Monday (June 13), Jackman announced on Twitter he had tested positive for a second time. The news came a day after his performance at the Tony Awards.

ABBA Voyage digital concerts have spoken to NME about the experience of recreating the magic of the pop legends, and how long they expect to be playing for. Watch our video interview with some of the band above.Premiering earlier this week at the purpose-built ABBA Arena in Stratford, East London, to a delighted response from fans, the ambitious production sees a “digital” version of ABBA (or ‘ABBAtars’) performing alongside a 10-piece live band (put together with the help of Klaxons’ James Righton).Speaking to NME on the red carpet ahead of the performance, guitarist Dom John said that they were “buzzing, locked in and ready.”John recalled the first time he met ABBA in rehearsals – when he looked up to find Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson watching him play. “We played one of their songs, and I was playing both guitar parts and then looked up and realised that Benny and Bjorn were standing right in front of me!” he said.

ABBA Voyage live experience have spoken to NME about how it was made, as well as what could be next for both the show and the band. Watch our video interview above.Premiering earlier this week at the purpose-built ABBA Arena in Stratford, East London, to a delighted response from fans, the ambitious production sees a “digital” version of ABBA (or ‘ABBAtars’) performing alongside a 10-piece live band (put together with the help of Klaxons’ James Righton).Working on the show with ABBA were Svana Gisla (who produced Jay-Z and Beyoncé‘s On the Run Tour), choreographer Wayne McGregor, Johan Renck (who directed David Bowie‘s videos for ‘Blackstar’ and ‘Lazarus’), Baillie Walsh (who has directed for Massive Attack and Bruce Springsteen) and producer Ludvig Andersson (son of ABBA’s Benny Andersson and producer of And Then We Danced, Yung Lean‘s ‘In My Head’ and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again).“We did an awful lot of research and development on this, as you can imagine,” Gisla told NME from the red carpet.

Zara Larsson has covered ABBA‘s ‘Lay All Your Love On Me’, as well as telling NME what the band mean to her and revealing that work is progressing well on a “dark” and “vulnerable” new album. Watch our interview with Larsson above.Today sees Larsson release her cover of the Swedish pop giants’ 1981 track for the Spotify Singles series, just after the premiere of the band’s ambitious new ABBA Voyage show in London.Speaking to NME on the red carpet of the event, Larsson admitted being a little starstruck to have pop royalty nearby.“They were like, ‘Oh, can you believe the Swedish Royal Family is here?’ and I was like, ‘I know, ABBA are right there’,” she said.

ABBA premiered their highly-anticipated digital concert tour, ‘Voyage’ today (May 26). View official photos from the event below.The concert, which took place today (May 26) at ABBA Arena in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Stratford, marked the first time in 36 years Benny Andersson, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Björn Ulvaeus were seen as a group together in public.Speaking to NME on the red carpet during the opening night of their ‘Voyage’ residency, Lyngstad told NME “It feels fantastic” to be at the premiere. “Really looking forward to seeing the show again.

NME on the red carpet during the opening night of their ‘Voyage’ concert residency, ABBA told us what fans can expect after their digital tour. Watch our full video interview with the Swedish pop band above.The event, which took place today (May 26) at ABBA Arena in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Stratford, marked the first time in 36 years Benny Andersson, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Björn Ulvaeus were seen as a group together in public.“It feels fantastic,” Lyngstad told NME when asked what it was like to be at the premiere.

ABBA‘s upcoming ‘Voyage’ digital tour have been shared.Fashion house designers, including Dolce & Gabbana, have worked on making outfits for the shows that will see avatar versions of ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Benny Andersson perform to fans as part of the “revolutionary” concerts.The tour opens at London’s brand new ABBA Arena on May 27, with the world premiere taking place the previous day (May 26).‘Voyage’ costume designer B. Åkerlund, who is best known for her work with the likes of Madonna, Lady Gaga and Beyoncé, collaborated with leading designers and studios from the worlds of fashion and entertainment including Manish Arora, Erevos Aether and Michael Schmidt to create looks for the band.Concert producers Svana Gisla and Ludvig Andersson said in a statement: “Rather than recreating a ‘nostalgic’ 1970s look for ABBA Voyage, our vision, along with director Baillie Walsh, was to dress the band as the contemporary pop stars they are.

ABBA have previewed their upcoming ‘Voyage’ shows by sharing a series of official images – check them out below.The Swedish pop icons returned with their first album in 40 years, ‘Voyage’, last November and are due to host a string of “revolutionary” concerts at London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from May 27.After sharing a dazzling first trailer for the production late last year, ABBA have now revealed four new photos – one for each “digital” member of the band: Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.You can see the impressively lifelike avatars here:Last September, the ‘Voyage’ show producers spoke to NME about what to expect from what they described as a “magical space circus”.“It’s a concert on steroids, basically,” explained Ludwig Andersson. “However technically advanced these avatars are, this can never only be about technology.

ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus has said that he thinks the legendary group’s comeback is an “immense risk”.The Swedish pop icons returned with their first album in 40 years, ‘Voyage’, last November and are due to present a string of “revolutionary” concerts at London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from May 27.‘Voyage’ went Platinum within just the first month of its release, while ABBA also received their first-ever Grammy nomination; their single ‘I Still Have Faith In You’ was up for this year’s ‘Record Of The Year’ prize.Additionally, the long-awaited album reached Number One in the UK and became the fastest-selling vinyl of the century.Despite this success, Ulvaeus explained in a new interview with The Sunday Times that he does have some concerns about the group making a comeback after such a long absence from music.“It’s an immense risk and most people I talk to don’t appreciate that,” he said “They say, ‘Oh, it’ll be fine.’ Sometimes I wake up at four in the morning and think, ‘What the hell have we done?'”The upcoming ‘Voyage’ concerts will see a “digital” version of ABBA performing alongside a 10-piece live band (put together with the help of Klaxons’ James Righton and featuring Little Boots) at the new purpose-built 3,000-capacity venue called ABBA Arena.Last September, the event’s producers spoke to NME about what to expect from the “magical space circus” before the release of a dazzling official trailer.Ulvaeus told The Sunday Times that he expected other musicians to be watching closely. “Lots of artists are going to be studying us, definitely, he said.

Klaxons member James Righton has shared a new collaboration with ABBA‘s Benny Andersson – listen to ‘Empty Rooms’ below.The track is the latest preview of Righton’s new solo album, ‘Jim, I’m Still Here’, which was announced this month and will land on July 8 via Soulwax‘s label DEEWEE and made in collaboration with David and Stephen Dewaele.Righton met Andersson when putting together the live band for ABBA’s forthcoming Voyage live residency in London, which begins next month.“He’s never done anything like this before,” Righton said of Andersson’s contribution to the track. “I nervously sent him the track and a couple of days later he sent back this keyboard line which was perfect“’Empty Rooms’ is about silent conflicts,” he added.

ABBA have announced details of a new career-spanning box set which will celebrate their nine studio albums.The Swedish pop group returned in November with their ninth studio album ‘Voyage’, marking their first LP since 1981’s ‘The Visitors’.ABBA have now shared details of ‘The ABBA Album Box Set’, which will celebrate their nine studio albums to date and be completed by ‘ABBA Tracks’ – a special record featuring non-album singles such as ‘Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)’ and ‘Fernando’.The collection, which is set for release on May 27 via POLAR/Universal Music, will be available in both 10xLP or 10xCD formats. Pre-order is available from here.A post shared by ABBA (@abba)The albums in the 10xLP box set will be pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl, while the 10xCD collection will be accompanied by a 40-page booklet featuring album information and classic photographs from throughout the group’s career.They’re are also set to release ‘ABBA’s Studio Album Picture Discs’, a strictly limited pair of LP bundles.The 8xLP collection features the the group’s original run of albums (from 1973-1981), while the 9xLP bundle includes 2021’s ‘Voyage’ in the collection.Pre-order is available here ahead of release on June 10.

Swedish House Mafia have sold their master recordings and publishing rights to Pophouse Entertainment.The Swedish trio have struck a deal with the Stockholm-based entertainment company, which was co-founded in 2014 by ABBA‘s Björn Ulvaeus, over the rights to their back catalogue for an undisclosed fee.The deal also includes a full acquisition of the masters and publishing of Axwell & Ingrosso, the duo formed by SHM’s Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso.SHM and Pophouse will now form “a joint venture… to develop and amplify the Swedish House Mafia brand worldwide”.”Swedish House Mafia is a ground-breaking trio that brought club music to stadiums around the world, and they continue to pave the way in contemporary electronic and dance music,” Pophouse said in a statement. “We are so excited to be partnering with them to tell that story for generations to come.“While our landmark agreement with them involves the acquisition of the recordings and publishing of their back catalogue, it is our first-of-its-kind joint venture with the band’s members that exemplifies the types of partnerships we are pursuing in our targeted expansion.”SHM added in a statement: “It feels great for us to partner up with a company like Pophouse that will do much more than simply acquire our creative work.

ABBA have settled their lawsuit against the UK tribute act ABBA MANIA, who they’d initially targeted last month for trademark infringement.In a suit filed on December 3, the Swedish icons described the cover band’s behaviour as “parasitic and bad-faith”, claiming that ABBA MANIA were intentionally misleading fans into believing they’re endorsed by the real group. It was said in the lawsuit that ABBA gave ABBA MANIA an opportunity to change their name, but ABBA MANIA refused.As reported by Billboard, the two groups have now reached a formal settlement.

ABBA’s new album, ‘Voyage’, has already gone Platinum.The album, which debuted at number one on album charts in 18 countries – including the UK – broke multiple chart records and sold over one million copies during its first week.

ABBA have sued the UK tribute act ABBA MANIA for trademark infringement.In a suit filed on Friday (December 3), the Swedish icons described the cover band’s behaviour as “parasitic and bad-faith”.

ABBA have released the video for their first-ever Christmas song, ‘Little Things’ – watch it below.Taken from the group’s new album, ‘Voyage’, the festive single is described as “a gentle reflection on the joy of Christmas morning and family time around this special time of year.”Speaking about the new track, all the proceeds of which are going to Unicef’s Global Child Protection Fund, ABBA said: “We think it is impossible to eradicate poverty without the empowerment of women.

ABBA have previewed the official video for their recent Christmas single, ‘Little Things’ – check out the post below.The festive track, which appears on the Swedish icons’ new album ‘Voyage’, will be available on a special CD from tomorrow (December 3). You can buy your copy from here.Taking to social media this morning (December 2), the group teased that “something special is coming” to mark the physical release.

Ian McKellen and ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus have collaborated for a bizarre Christmas video.Shared on the McKellen’s Instagram page on Sunday (November 21), the video shows the pair knitting ABBA-branded Christmas jumpers surrounded by sewing material.As the camera pans out, the duo are shown to be sat under a massive ABBA banner, before the closing text reads: “Merry Christmas from ABBA and Ian McKellen.”McKellen captioned the clip: “The most exciting (mostly) silent clip you’ll see this season.”A

ABBA have announced that their first Christmas single, ‘Little Things’, will arrive as a special CD release next month.The festive track, which appears on the Swedish icons’ new album ‘Voyage’, will be available physically from December 3.

ABBA have landed the Number One album in the UK with ‘Voyage’, and earned the fastest-selling vinyl of the century in the process.Shifting over 204,000 chart sales in the seven days since it’s release, the band’s first album in 40 years is the fastest-selling of 2021 and their tenth charting LP.‘Voyage’ has also broken the record for biggest opening week, a title previously held by Ed Sheeran’s ‘Divide’ which was released in March 2017.Speaking to the Official Charts, ABBA said: “We are so happy

ABBA‘s Anni-Frid Lyngstad has spoken on the possibility of more new music from the group.The Swedish icons returned last week with ‘Voyage’, their first studio album in 40 years. They’ll showcase the record with a string of “revolutionary” concerts at London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in 2022.Last month, the band’s Benny Andersson explained that ABBA would retire after releasing the record and completing its accompanying live events.

ABBA are currently outselling the rest of the UK Top 40 combined in the midweek charts, with their new album ‘Voyage‘ set to clinch this week’s top spot.‘Voyage’ saw 118,000 chart sales over the weekend and is already scooping the fastest-selling physical release and biggest first-week pure sales (physical and digital) of 2021 so far.

the Swedish pop group’s first original tracks since they split up nearly 40 years ago, and was immediately awed: The music sounds just like their classic hits. How can this possibly be? Did they make a deal with the Norse goddess of the underworld?Instantly “Voyage” transported me to a St-Tropez discotheque in 1979. It was unbelievable and discombobulating.