Music

Bieber wants to stay friends, and Beyoncé gets academic

Track of the week is Justin Bieber's 'Friends' - an attempt to get back in his ex's good books.

Justin Bieber

Ailbhe Malone
Fri Sep 8 2017 - 08:00

TRACK OF THE WEEK

Justin Bieber with Bloodpop - Friends You know what they say. Never trust Greeks bearing gifts, and never trust an ex who calls up to ask how your mum is doing. They always want to be more than friends, no matter how much interest Justin is showing when he sings "did she get the job she wanted?" So then, Friends is a counterpoint to Sorry, where it's six months later and it's time to try and pick up the pieces. Bloodpop keeps their eyes on the prize (he's worked with Grimes, Haim, Gaga and Beyoncé fyi), dropping layerd synths into the mix, and we're already waiting for the YouTube acoustic cover versions.

Hero of the week is Sam Smith, who posted a cryptic message to his Instagram promising fans new music shortly. "To all my beautiful fans, first of all I want to say thank you. Thank you for being so patient and for letting me have the past year to really escape into my mind & write music so freely. I feel so rejuvenated and have so many stories I can't wait to tell you."

Meanwhile, students in Copenhagen University can take a course called "Beyoncé, Gender and Race". Course leader Prof Erik Steinskog told Danish TV channel TV2: "Beyonce is important in understanding the world we live in. [She] is one of the biggest pop artists today, which makes her important in an analysis of contemporary times." He went on, "she's a controversial feminist, which is crucial. She makes us consider what it means to be a feminist, or what it can mean, but her feminism is addressed to a non-academic audience. It is hard not to be impressed. She is extremely good at what she does. Life is too short to work with music I don't like."

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Zero of the week is the we'll-believe-it-when-we-see-it news that Adele is eyeing up a role in Oliver! the musical. The Sun reports a source saying: "It would be a major part for her and she's seriously considering it . . . It would be a new challenge for her but one that she would definitely be up for."

NOW CLICK HERE: To listen to an acoustic version of Charli XCX's Boys

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