Born in South Africa of Sri Lankan heritage, the genre-bending independent artist is now very much at home in Melbourne, Australia. American audiences got a closer look when Vandal made her debut at Coachella. Here’s a talent who effortlessly fuses rock with hip-hop, punk, jazz, electronic and pretty much anything she wants, a performer with more raw energy than an arena on grand final day.
On Wednesday night, May 20, another debut as Vandal made her first appearance on U.S. TV with a powerful performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Sporting blue-toned hair and leading a tight backing tandem of electric guitar and drums, Vandal ripped through “Cruising to Self Soothe,” lifted from her forthcoming studio album LOOKING FOR PEOPLE TO UNFOLLOW, due out Friday, May 22 via Loma Vista Recordings.
The collection was recorded and produced by Richie Buxton and Vandal in Buxton’s childhood bedroom in bayside Melbourne. “We cut out everything that didn’t serve us, the timelines, the metrics, the pressure to ‘stay visible’ online. We tuned out of the feed and turned inwards,” she has said of the project.
In Richie’s room, they built a tiny home studio. “Four walls that became a universe,” she recounts. “The Internet was painfully slow, so we were truly disconnected from the online game.”
Far away from their inner-city friends, and distractions, that little room “became our whole world for nearly two years. It held all our chaos and all our clarity, a little ‘playpen’ where we could live, play and experiment like teenagers again. We started making things with our hands again, tangible, imperfect, and real,” Vandal enthuses. “We wanted to celebrate long-form, the idea of an album as a whole body of work, while the world was chasing 15-second snippets and algorithm friendly noise.”
The Ecca Vandal experience has been lived on stage, with spots at Camp Flog Gnaw and support slots with the likes of Limp Bizkit, Queens of the Stone Age, IDLES, The Prodigy, and, most recently, Deftones. The 2026 U.K. and Continental Europe summer festival circuit beckons.
Check out dates below and watch Ecca Vandal’s performance on Kimmel.
Ecca Vandal’s 2026 U.K. and Europe tour dates June 3 — Impact Festival at Tauron Arena, Krakow, PL June 5 — Rock im Park Festival, Nürnberg, DE June 6 — Rock am Ring Festival, Nurburgring, DE June 10 — Rock For People, Hradec Kralove, CZ June 15 — Release Festival, Athens, GR June 19 — Pinkpop Festival, Landgraaf, NE June 20 — Southside Festival, Neuhausen ob Eck, DE June 21 — Hurricane Festival, Scheeßel, DE June 23 — Sparkassen Park, Mönchengladbach, DE^ June 28 — Outbreak Festival, Manchester, UK July 2 — Roskilde Festival, Roskilde, DK July 4 — Rock Werchter Festival, Werchter BE July 5 — Les Eurockeennes, Belforte, FR Aug. 18 — Parkbuhne Wuhlheide, Berlin, DE Aug. 20 — Open Air Gampel, Gampel, CH Aug. 23 — All Points East x Outbreak Fest, London, UK Aug. 25 — IMMA, Dublin, IE Aug. 27 — Edinburgh Summer Sessions, Edinburgh, UK
There were two bosses on The Late Show, as Bruce Springsteen stopped by on Wednesday night (May 20) and paid tribute to outgoing host Stephen Colbert.
Springsteen always seems to show up at the precisely the right time. And so it was, again, as the legendary rocker gave a rousing pro-democracy speech and performed “Streets of Minneapolis” on what was Colbert’s second-to-last show.
“I am here tonight to support Stephen, because you’re the first guy in America who lost his show because we’ve got a president who can’t take a joke,” he remarked, while at the mic. “And because Larry and David Ellison feel the need to kiss his ass to get what they want.”
That second jab was aimed at the Ellison family, led by billionaire Larry Ellison and his son David, who now own and controls Paramount Global following their $8 billion merger with Skydance Media. That arrangement gave them ownership of CBS, the broadcaster for Colbert’s left-leaning program, which regularly punishes Trump’s administration and his MAGA movement with razor-sharp comedy footwork that would make Muhammad Ali proud.
“Stephen, these are small-minded people,” Springsteen added. “They’ve got no idea what the freedoms of this beautiful country are supposed to be about.”
And with that Springsteen dedicated “Streets of Minneapolis” to Colbert. The Boss’s choice of song was a poignant one. He wrote and recorded the anti-ICE (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement) song following the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in January amid Operation Metro Surge, during which undocumented immigrants were targeted and apprehended by ICE.
Then, he premiered the song live in Minneapolis during the Tom Morello-helmed Defend Minnesota benefit concert on Jan. 30. “Streets of Minneapolis” went on to be the highest-selling song in the United States, debuting at No. 1 on Billboard’s Digital Song Sales chart dated Feb. 7, even though it was available for just two days of the tracking period. Springsteen has vowed to donate all proceeds from the recording to the Good and Pretti families, in perpetuity.
Colbert’s final episode of The Late Show will air on Thursday, May 21, drawing curtains on an 11-year run. CBS announced the cancelation in July 2025, citing financial losses. Many observers, however, aren’t buying it, with figures like Senator Elizabeth Warren claiming the axing was political censorship, coming just days after Colbert publicly criticized CBS’s parent company, Paramount, over its $16 million legal settlement with Trump.
Watch Springsteen’s speech and performance here and below.
Postie will deliver his biggest-ever headline shows in Australia and New Zealand when his BIG ASS World Tour swings down under this October.
Produced by Live Nation, Post Malone’s four-date stadium jaunt gets underway Oct. 9 at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium, then stops at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium (Oct. 12), Sydney’s ENGIE Stadium (Oct. 15), and wraps up at Auckland’s Go Media Stadium on Oct. 21. Don Toliver will be joining Post Malone as “special guest” on those dates.
The U.S. singer and rapper’s fans in the regions won’t miss out. Malone’s lap of Australia will include spots on the Strummingbird Festival bill in Ballarat (Oct. 10), Newcastle (Oct. 17) and Queensland’s Sunshine Coast (Oct. 18).
The “Rockstar” artist is familiar with the biggest venues in these parts. He opened for Red Hot Chili Peppers’ on the rockers’ six-date Australasian stadium run in early 2023, and later that year headlined headline Spilt Milk festival, which visited Canberra, Ballarat and Perth. On that festival run, he enamored himself even further with locals when he performed a “shoey” by drinking beer out of fans’ boots while on stage.
Post Malone gets it done on the Australia charts, too. His seven albums have all impacted the ARIA top 10, including No. 1s for Beerbongs & Bentleys in 2018, Hollywood’s Bleeding in 2019. His most recent collection, the 2024 country album from F-1 Trillion, flew to No. 2.
Spreading over two years, and two legs, the Big Ass world tour marks a continuation of Malone’s recent pivot toward country and roots-influenced sounds, a direction that has broadened his audience in recent years.
As previously reported, Postie pushed back the opening of his U.S. run earlier this year with Jelly Roll, as he got down to work on completing his forthcoming album, reportedly titled The Eternal Buzz. A release date hasn’t been announced.
Tickets for Postie’s Australasian shows will be available starting with an artist presale beginning Tuesday, May 26. The general onsale then starts on Thursday, May 28.
The “Big Ass World Tour” Australia & New Zealand 2026 Dates: Oct. 9 – Marvel Stadium, Melbourne, AUS Oct. 10 – Strummingbird Festival, Ballarat, AUS Oct. 12 – Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, AUS Oct. 15 – ENGIE Stadium, Sydney, AUS Oct. 17 – Strummingbird Festival, Newcastle, AUS Oct. 18 – Strummingbird Festival, Sunshine Coast, AUS Oct. 21 – Go Media Stadium, Auckland, NZ
Not for the first time, Moby is swinging out with frustration at Donald Trump’s administration.
“The U.S. is being run into the ground by a staggeringly incompetent and corrupt administration,” the veteran electronic music artist writes in a social post. “Unbelievably dark dark times.”
Moby expands further with a video, in which he reminds the world outside of the United States that he and many others are as confused as they are.
“So a lot of my friends who live outside the United States keep asking me, ‘what the hell is going on in the United States? And the truth is, we don’t know,” he explains. “The United States is being run by the most corrupt, evil, incompetent administration. And nobody knows what’s going on. It’s dark dark times in the U.S.”
Moby’s voice is part of a growing chorus of artists who’ve used their platforms to criticize Trump and MAGA, a list that includes Bruce Springsteen, Jack White, Eminem and Billie Eilish.
Earlier this year, Moby posted a statement to social media offering advice on how people can respond following the killing of Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis. “The question is not whether we should be outraged and horrified at what’s happening in the United States,” Moby says in the clip, posted Jan. 26, “but rather what are we going to do about it.”
The artist activist also outlined a solution, telling people to protest as it’s a “constitutionally established right and it’s a right that Trump and his administration are trying to take away from us.”
Ultimately, he insisted, get out and vote, “not just in the upcoming midterms, although that’s very important, but in all of the special elections that happen throughout the year.” He also advises to “stop supporting the scumbag corporations who support Trump and ICE. We all know who they are. Boycott them.”
His latest comments come as the U.S. justice department announces an almost $1.8bn fund to compensate allies of Trump who allege they were unfairly investigated, and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, forcing up gas prices worldwide, after the U.S. and Israel launched military campaigns against Iran in late February, without U.S. Congressional approval.
A career independent recording artist, Moby has landed 10 titles on the Billboard 200, plus two Billboard Hot 100 hits, and countless syncs. Not bad. On the other side of the Atlantic, however, he’s recognized as one of the leaders of his generation. In the United Kingdom, he boasts two No. 1 albums (1999’s Play and 2002’s 18), and 18 top 40 appearances on the national singles chart, and he has twice been nominated for best international male act at the BRIT Awards.
SYDNEY, Australia — There’s a changing of the guard at TEG, as Brad Banducci announces his departure a year to the month since he was unveiled as the new chief executive of the Australia-based live entertainment, ticketing and tech giant.
At the same time, Cameron Hoy, chief operating officer and head of global ticketing, rises into the vacant, top position.
“When I joined the group just over a year ago, I came in to do a specific role — to set the group up for the next horizon of growth,” Banducci comments in a statement. “I felt the time was right to transition leadership of the group.”
Hoy is appointed as group CEO, with effect from June 1. “Cam has been part of the live entertainment and ticketing industry for more than 20 years,” Banducci adds, “through growth, change and every version of this industry and it feels appropriate to pass on the baton to someone who has made such a major contribution to building the group we have today and who is committed to the next chapter of delivering as the partner of choice for venues across the live events spectrum.”
South Africa-born Banducci joined TEG with upwards of 30 years’ leadership experience in the retail and consumer spaces, most recently as CEO of Woolworths Group, the market leading Australia supermarket chain, serving in the top role from 2015 to 2024. Earlier, he was managing director of Woolworths Liquor (Endeavour Group), CEO of Cellarmasters Group, and CFO of Tyro Payments, and spent 15 years with The Boston Consulting Group, specializing in retail and corporate development.
Banducci’s appointment to TEG signaled a switch-up at the helm with long-standing CEO Geoff Jones transitioning into the chairmanship.
Hoy has been climbing the ladder at TEG since he joined the company in January 2019. In 2023, he was elevated from managing director at Ticketek to his most recent group-wide role as COO and head of global touring at TEG.
“TEG exists to partner with the world’s best venues, promoters and rightsholders to connect fans to the moments that matter most and I am honored to lead such an entrepreneurial business and team,” Hoy said on his promotion to group CEO.
TEG (or Ticketek Entertainment Group) is owned by Silver Lake, the U.S.-based private equity company which specializes in technology investing, through a deal struck in 2019 worth more than A$1.3 billion.
Based in Sydney, TEG’s empire collects the ticketing powerhouse Ticketek, TEG Dainty, TEG Van Egmond, plus TEG Live, TEG Sport, TEG Experiences, Ovation and other businesses.
Founded in 1979, Ticketek’s Australian presence sells over 23 million tickets to more than 20,000 events each year, according to a statement on its official website, including concerts at ANZ Stadium, Qudos Bank Arena, Rod Laver Arena, Hisense Arena, Suncorp Stadium, and Brisbane Entertainment Centre. Today, the ticketing specialist operates seven country offices, including the United Kingdom, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.
The Museum of Broadcast Communications has announced the selection of eight new inductees into the Radio Hall of Fame for 2026. They will be honored at the in-person 2026 Radio Hall of Fame Induction ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 8 at the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago.
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The 2026 Radio Hall of Fame inductees are:
Boomer Esiason, WFAN-AM/FM, New York City
Dennis Green, COO Sun & Fun Media/Key Networks (and co-chairman of the Radio Hall of Fame)
Shotgun Tom Kelly, 60’s on 6 – Sirius XM
Helen Little, WLTW-FM, New York City
Bob Pittman, former CEO of MTV Networks, current chairman and CEO, iHeartMedia, Inc.
Rickey Smiley, Urban One/Reach Media
Charlie Van Dyke, former DJ at major-market Top 40 radio stations
Fred Winston, major player in Chicago Top 40 radio, including “The Big 89” WLS
Six of the eight inductees – Esiason, Kelly, Little, Smiley, Van Dyke and Winston – were chosen from a list of 24 nominees by a voting participant panel comprised of more than 950 industry professionals. The other two inductees – Green and Pittman – were voted on by the Radio Hall of Fame 2026 nominating committee.
The confidential ballot was conducted by Votem.com and overseen by Miller Kaplan’s Andrew Rosen.
“Our congratulations to each of our 2026 Inductees on this well-deserved recognition,” Kraig Kitchin, co-chair of the Radio Hall of Fame (alongside Green), said in a statement. “Each of these inductees has performed at the highest levels for a sustained period of time to make our industry that much more impactful to listeners and advertisers as a result. I’m thrilled to see them properly recognized by this announcement and the forthcoming Induction ceremony this October. Thank you to our 2026 Nominating Committee and to the hundreds of voting panel participants for confirming our 2026 Class of Inductees.”
Kitchin was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2024. In addition to his duties at the Radio Hall of Fame, Kitchin has had a 45-year career in the radio industry. He has managed radio businesses and/or the careers of top radio personalities.
Fans and industry professionals can find more information, including photos of the inductees, at the Radio Hall of Fame site.
Tickets for the induction ceremony are on sale now at that same site. A portion of ticket purchases is a tax-deductible charitable donation to the Museum of Broadcast Communications, home to the Radio Hall of Fame.
Tribute book ads for the 2026 Radio Hall of Fame induction ceremony are available for purchase now. Contact Linde Thurman at: Linde@radiohalloffame.com for more information.
The Radio Hall of Fame was founded by the Emerson Radio Corporation in 1988. The Museum of Broadcast Communications took over operations of the Hall in 1991.
For the record, here’s the complete list of the 2026 nominees that were not inducted this year:
