D.C. singer Kenny Iko has been wowing judges on NBC’s “The Voice” and its audience of millions around the nation with his smooth crooning.
This season of NBC’s “The Voice” has unearthed a new talent from D.C.
Singer Kenny Iko has been wowing the show’s judges and its audience of millions around the nation with his smooth crooning.
During the show’s blind auditions, judges Snoop Dogg and Niall Horan turned their chairs, indicating their desire to work with the D.C. native.
Iko spoke with WTOP’s Mark Lewis about his experience on the show and what it was like seeing his favorite judges turn around during his performance.
Listen to their conversation below.
WTOP’s Mark Lewis talks with singer Kenny Iko about his journey on ‘The Voice.’
The transcript below has been lightly edited for clarity.
Mark Lewis:
What was going through your mind when Snoop Dog’s chair turned around on The Voice?
Kenny Iko:
Honestly, I did not initially see that he turned his chair. So I was like, all in the crowd, just trying to do my thing. And then I looked back and saw that he turned and I lost it. I don’t know why it made me more nervous, but yeah, it was a moment.
Mark Lewis:
Is that a moment of relief? I mean, are you just trying to get through your number and do it the way you want to do it?
Kenny Iko:
Part of it was relief. The other part of it was like, “Oh, I made it” moment. Like, this is everything I’ve been working toward now, and just to see it coming to fruition, because I wanted two coaches to turn. It was Snoop and Niall, and for him to turn first, it was just like a blessing. I was like, yes.
Mark Lewis:
It had to have been a great feeling to have the judges battling over you at that moment that followed. What’s it been like working with Snoop?
Kenny Iko:
Snoop is just a great — everything you see about Snoop and hear about him as this uncle, he’s definitely that. He brings up a lot of things. He teaches us a lot of stuff. He definitely been investing in me and like giving me gems, and I know our relationship, even after the show, is gonna be crazy.
Mark Lewis:
Now tell us a little bit about your music. What drives you? What do you want people to know about the kind of music that you like and that you like to sing?
Kenny Iko:
I’m a singer-songwriter. I write all my music also, and I just love to create timeless music. Anything that I’m feeling at the time. Like this recent project, “Late CheckOut,” is about just the ups and downs of a relationship, and then the breakup, and then the fact that you may not be ready to end when the relationship ends. So you ask for this late checkout, in the sense of like a hotel.
Mark Lewis:
And you’ve got a video with that as well that was shot around here?
Kenny Iko:
Yes, I released the music video to it. It was shot over in the Great Falls area. One of the hottest video shoots ever, and a lot of bugs.
Mark Lewis:
So you’ve got a lot going on right now — EP out, you’re continuing on The Voice. Now you’re in the battle rounds right now, knockouts are next, right?
Kenny Iko:
Yes, I just won my battle round; that aired last week, and now we’re about to do the finals of the battle rounds, and then now you get to see me in the knockouts.
Mark Lewis:
Wow, that is fantastic, congratulations. I know you’re probably thinking, “This has been a long time coming.” You’ve been working at this for a while, but I tell you, success comes really fast. And you know, we’re so excited for you.
Kenny Iko:
I’m still processing it. Thank you man.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
Heard of the Masters? You know—that aggressively-saturated patch of green where men in pastel trousers hit a tiny ball so hard it needs its own flight tracker, all while wearing visors cute enough to qualify as emotional support animals? Yeah. That one.
Most of our “golf knowledge,” which is about as deep as a sand trap and just as chaotic when we fall into it, comes from the ever-trickstering Niall Horan. And now, country crooner Thomas Rhett’s brought him in for a collab called ‘Old Tricks’, originally recorded with his The Voice dad, Blake Shelton, for the deluxe edition of 2024’s About a Woman. Niall first heard the track during its recording stages while Rhett was working with one-half of The Showproducers Julian Bunetta, and apparently, it lodged itself into his psyche like a tee stuck in turf.
“I was at the Masters this year and went to hang out with Niall and Noah Kahan, and out of nowhere Niall goes, ‘I’m so mad you didn’t ask me to sing on “Old Tricks.”’ I said, ‘Man, you were the last person I would’ve thought would even like this one!’ He kept texting me about it after and he knew all the words,” Thomas Rhett says. “With how fired up he was and his connection with Blake, it felt like a full-circle moment and turned into something really fun. I’m pumped it’s finally out there and hope y’all love it as much as we loved making it.”
Thomas Rhett says in a press release
Where The Yeehaw Hits The Tee-Off
With a sly little lyric Niall insisted on slipping in (more on that soon), this collab doesn’t just sound like a boys-being-boys jam—it reads like a 19th-Hole Confession. In golf speak, that’s the confession you don’t make on the course… you make it to the bar afterward, whiskey in hand, plausible deniability left on the fairway.
So we’re leaning into the metaphor. Instead of a traditional review, we’re scoring ‘Old Tricks’ like a round of golf: front nine for performance, back nine for the barstool truth.
Now, if you’re not golf-coded, here’s your cheat sheet before we tee off:
Par = doing exactly what’s expected (no worse, no better)
Birdie= better than expected; a rare moment of honesty that actually lands
Bogey = slip-up territory (the trick backfires)
Double Bogey = yikes, he really thought that excuse still worked
Eagle = a clean emotional strike—the truth actually hits the green
Because out on the course, Niall’s “old tricks” might look polished. But at the 19th hole? Well… that’s where the scorecard stops lying.
⛳ Front Nine — The Performance Round
The equivalent of touching the grass pre-game, checking the wind, smoothing your shirt collar, and making sure the turf is pretty enough for the promo shots—saddle up, because we are wheels-up on the fairway with launch sequence fully engaged and blasting off the tee box at full-send.
Hole
Title
Score
Subtext
One
The Signature Niall Entrance
Par
Before we even tee off, we’re greeted by Classic Niall™—white shirt, guitar practically velcro’d to his ribcage, and that “aw shucks” grin that could sell sunshine to Arizona. He isn’t just excited about ‘Old Tricks,’ he’s practically auditioning to be its emotional support spokesperson. The energy is very “I found this song in the wild and decided to raise it like a rescue calf.” It’s textbook surface-level charm: polished, predictable, and exactly what you’d expect from pre-Barstool Niall.
Two
Country Costume Change
Birdie (for theatrics)
Nothing says commitment to the bit like the Irishman strutting onstage in Austin for The Show: Live on Tour dressed like he was born three yeehaws to the left of Nashville. Cowboy hat, boots, Guinness—the full starter kit. Fans didn’t melt from the Texas heat—they melted from the yeehaw soft launch. Then he double-downs by copy-pasting the look onto the single’s cover art. It’s cosplay, but professionally licensed. He’s not in the confession yet — he’s marketing his way toward it. Cute. Strategic. Still on the course.
Three
Tease the Tease
Par
In the age of soft launches and “accidental” leaks, nothing screams performance era like serving just enough of the verse to get everyone foaming at the timeline. TR drops a preview clip on his Instagram like a fisherman chumming the water—not the meal, just the scent. It’s a well-rehearsed move: create hype, manufacture longing, stand back as the comments combust. Everyone gets breadcrumbs, no admission. This is foreplay with a radio-safe runtime. Slick. Controlled. Entirely intentional.
Four
The Bro-Chat Scramble
Par
The boyband-to-bro band energy comes in hot with a DM three-way (the most heterosexual sentence ever written) video between TR, Blake, and Nialler—complete with wink-wink “look, dad, I replaced you” energy. It’s banter as branding: staged casualness, curated looseness, the PR version of throwing a football around so no one asks how you actually feel. Insert The Voice gif and cue the polite chuckle. Still fairway. Still mask-on.
Five
Truck Bed Harmony Hour
Bogey
Quick! Another video! This time with Noah Kahan and a suspiciously rustic production truck, like someone whispered, “make it look Americana so it feels authentic.” There’s a strategically placed beer bottle, a twilight glow, and the kind of ‘tipsy spontaneity’ that takes three cameras and a lighting rig to capture. Manufactured organic, with a side of yeehaw ambiance. Promo disguised as porch-jam.
Six
The Playlist Blessing
Par
The track drops. Spotify Hot Country and US iTunes Country Songs usher it onto the green like a friendly marshal waving you toward the fairway—it bumps up to #9, Niall’s first top 10 appearance in the category, not because anyone swung wild, but because the algorithm knows its manners. Nothing risky, nothing confessional: a clean placement. A very safe stroke.
Seven
Line Dancing = Free Marketing
Birdie(for efficiency, lol)
TikTok does what PR budgets dream of: instantaneous unpaid choreography. Fan Alice Eve posts her “golf swing line dance,” Niall taps a repost, and suddenly the internet is running 18 holes of free promo. It’s adorable, contagious, and still firmly surface-level—all sparkle, no subtext. This is where everyone’s tapping their boots, not their intuition.
Eight
Nostalgia as Glue
Bogey
Spotify’s visualizer tosses in a flashback reel of TR and Nialler doing ‘Slow Hands’ at C2C (Country to Country) Festival—the PR equivalent of a “see, this pairing has lore!” slideshow. A warm nod to history, a little soft-focus romance…but still very much performance-era Niall. Nice? Yes. Vulnerable? Absolutely not.
Nine
Soft-Launching The Genre Pivot
Birdie (but with an asterisk)
The subtext starts to hum here—casual listeners hear ‘country collab,’ but Niall fans hear a genre trial balloon. This hole is less promo stunt, more foreshadowing: NH4 is suddenly wearing metaphorical spurs. It’s still illusion-round energy, but the steering wheel is gently turning toward the bar. The cart is coasting… confession-ward.
We’re now one drink away from stealing the golf cart and doing a yeehaw victory lap past the driving range while everyone’s tipping their cowboy hats and pretending not to notice we’ve veered wildly off-course.
🥃 Back Nine — The Barstool Confessional
Because once you’ve wandered off the fairway and into the rodeo bar, the smile stops being a decoration and starts sounding like a stall—it’s no longer two-step line dancing but cry-dancing under flickering neon, tracing every lyric with a blade of hay and the kind of honesty that only shows up after last call. Somewhere in that crossfade, the promo polish slips, and the song stops performing for us and starts confessing to itself.
Hole
Title
Score
Subtext
10
The Spellcaster at the Board
Par → edging Birdie
Julian Bunetta’s production is the first place the mask slips—he doesn’t build beats; he builds truth-serums with choruses attached. With a résumé that spans ‘Espresso’ to ‘Night Changes,’ he’s basically the wizard of “oh this sounds fun until you notice you’re bleeding emotionally.” The more the track sparkles, the more it reveals its center of gravity: not swagger—vulnerability waiting for permission. The barstool is warming.
11
The First Crack in the Voice
Birdie
You think you know TR’s range until he lets out that first raw, angsty ramp-up—the one that sounds like the mic caught him remembering, not performing. It’s less “stage vocal” and more “confession said accidentally at 1:17 a.m.” It’s the moment you look up from your drink and realize, oh—this isn’t just a barn-stomper. Someone means this.
12
Bones and Barrelhouse
Bogey → borderline Double (the truth’s knocking…but they’re still pretending it’s just room service)
The instrumentation invites both crowds—the boot-scooting girlies and the bone-creaking uncles—but the fun is starting to rattle in its casing. The guitars don’t just sparkle now; they strain, like the song is holding its breath under a weight it can’t shimmy off anymore. This isn’t truth emerging—it’s the body betraying the performance first.
13
The Inflection That Gives It Away
Birdie
The last “old tricks” in the chorus is the sonic equivalent of eye contact held too long—pretty on paper, but personal in the delivery. Whether it’s a vocal crack or a studio autotune choice, that chanting, Thomas Rhett voice tilt is the first moment the rodeo energy turns human again. You don’t throw your head back and shout along because it’s catchy; you do it because it lands.
14
The ‘That’s-Not-About-Hangovers’ Verse
Double Bogey
“TR, you think that’s bad?” Niall grins—except, spiritually, he’s not talking about liquor recovery time. The parallel is too clean: worn-out bodies / worn-out excuses. Thomas is mourning Sundays; Niall is mourning spark. This is where the barstool squeaks—because this no longer sounds like country character voice. This sounds like someone’s real life leaking through the mic.
15
Intentional Song Selection Syndrome
Birdie
It becomes impossible to ignore that Niall could’ve hopped onto any Rhett track—there are jukeboxes’ worth of safer, flirtier, flashier choices—but he chose the verse about a love gone quietly numb. That’s not a coincidence—that’s proximity to truth. Musicians don’t “pick a song”—they reveal the one already haunting them.
16
The Lie That Won’t Fly Anymore
Eagle
The lyric swap—camping to golfing (“All the things I used to do, I can’t get away with / Like sayin’ golfin’ with the boys is a business trip”)—is played like a joke, but it reads like a tell. It’s not just a bad cover story; it’s him choosing distance disguised as downtime. The “boys weekend” excuse only works until someone stops believing it—and here, his partner already has. The charm’s calcified. The curtain’s down, the alibi’s tired, and the loneliness is echoing louder than the laughter. This is the quiet part of the rodeo bar, where the performance ends and the truth orders another drink. No one’s laughing now—they’re just listening.
17
Riff-as-Deflection
Par Save (a charming little cover-up swing)
The post-chorus guitar riff is delicious—swaggering, stompy, generous—but it’s also a dodge. A musical “look over here” so we don’t stare too long at the lyrical admission in the verses before it. It’s charming, but also transparent: they’d rather rip a solo than sit in silence with what they just said.
18
The Truth Slips Through the Twang
Birdie (barreling toward confession)
On paper, this is just a “we’re getting older” song—but that final, combined chorus hits like a mirror being turned around. “The cold, hard truth is getting harder to swallow” isn’t nostalgia; it’s self-recognition. The delivery’s too clean to be casual—that’s a man circling the thing he can’t quite admit yet. You can hear the resistance collapse mid-line, like his voice finally realizes what his mouth’s been avoiding. The trick doesn’t land anymore because the trick was never for us. It was for him—and he just ran out of the room to hide behind the hook.
🍻🏌️ Hole 19 — The Final Score
Now it’s less about how clean the swing is and more about what gets admitted when the boots come off and the barstool starts telling the truth. Until the rodeo mask finally slips, we’ll be over here two-stepping like it’s nobody’s business. Got your own line-dance confession brewing? Drop it on our socials—Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook—before their ‘Old Tricks’ officially expire and the 19th hole does what it always does best: reveals the score that was hiding under the swing.
Louis Tomlinson is opening up about the effect of former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne’s passing, a year after it first happened. The 31-year-old star fell from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. His passing sent ripples through the music industry, especially for his ex-team members of 1D, who finally reunited at his funeral. Now Louis Tomlinson has spoken up for the first time since the demise of his dear mate and shared how much of a ‘misunderstood’ person the singer was, and that he only sought validation in the form of love from his peers, fans, and everyone around him.
Louis Tomlinson addresses Liam Payne’s passing in new chat Speaking to Rolling Stone UK in a new interview, Louis Tomlinson opened up about the tough acceptance of losing a close friend, and how it changed him. Moreover, he spoke highly of his late bandmate, praising his nature. “Losing Liam [Payne] was incredibly hard for me — I’d never experienced losing a friend before.”
Recalling his friend and what kind of a person he was, the 33-year-old said, “He was a very misunderstood person, I think, from the public’s perspective. If people ever judged his temper or behavior… he was simply someone who wanted to be loved.” It is known that Liam Payne would struggle with substance usage and had faced the wrath of online haters, which affected his health. At the time of his passing, he was in a relationship with Kate Cassidy and shared parenting duties of his son, Bear Grey, with his ex-girlfriend, Cheryl.
Meanwhile, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik recently announced a joint project after burying the hatchet over their troubled friendship post the latter’s exit from the team. The two singers will be touring around the US for a three-part Netflix docu-series, talking about their relationship, time together in One Direction, the passing of their mate, fatherhood, and their complex musical careers. The untitled show will seemingly air sometime next year, albeit further details are to be announced as well. Fans are excited for their reunion following years-long public spats on social media. It is not known whether Harry Styles or Niall Horan will have any involvement in it, although the same seems unlikely.
Liam Payne’s voice is the first one heard in the culture-shifting boy band One Direction’s debut single: “What Makes You Beautiful” launches into a bouncy guitar riff, a cheeky and borderline gratuitous cowbell and then, Payne.
LIAM PAYNE The former One Direction singer died Wednesday at age 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina. What to know:
“You’re insecure, don’t know what for / You’re turning heads when you walk through the door,” he sings, in a few words assuring a cross-section of generations that he’s got your back, girl, and you should like yourself a little bit more.
Payne, who died Wednesday after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at just 31, was also the last solo voice on the band’s final single, “History” — effectively opening and closing the monolithic run of one of the biggest boy bands of all time.
While the exact circumstances of his death remain unclear — Buenos Aires police said in a statement that Payne “had jumped from the balcony of his room,” although they didn’t offer details on how they established that or whether it was intentional — in life, Payne was a critical part of the internet’s first boy band, one that secured an indelible place in the hearts of millennial and Gen Z fans.
How One Direction became the internet’s first boy band
Before One Direction became One Direction, its members auditioned for the U.K.’s “The X Factor” separately. The judges decided to put five promising, but not yet excellent, boys into a group. They were Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik and Payne, who together finished third in the 2010 competition.
As Rolling Stone contributing editor Rob Sheffield points out, it was an “unprecedented” way for a boy band to get their start.
A fan of former One Direction singer Liam places a photo of him on a tree outside the hotel where he was found dead after falling from a balcony the previous day in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
FILE – One Direction members, from left, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Liam Payne perform on NBC’s “Today” show, Nov. 13, 2012 in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
FILE – One Direction’s Niall Horan, from left, Harry Styles , Simon Cowell, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne present the Music Industry Trust Award to Simon Cowell at the Music Industry Trusts Award (MITS) in aid of charities Nordon Robbins and Brit Trust at the Grosvenor House Hotel, in London, Nov. 2, 2015. (Dominic Lipinski/PA via AP)
“They were sort of assigned to be together. And you don’t expect longevity out of that situation. Honestly, you don’t even expect one good pop record to come out of that situation,” he says. And yet, not only did it work, but One Direction essentially created “a new template for pop stardom, really.”
The show allowed Day 1 fans to follow their career before their official 2011 launch with “What Makes You Beautiful.” Nascent fans could use rising social media platforms like Twitter and Tumblr to find community, draw attention to the group and, in the earliest days, speak directly to the members.
“I honestly made a Twitter so that I could keep up with One Direction, and that’s how I made so many different friends,” says Gabrielle Kopera, 28, a fan from California who remembers the band hosting livestreams and chats. “Sometimes they would say something back and it was so much fun. I feel like that fan interaction doesn’t even happen anymore.”
That feeling of accessibility reinforced the group’s personality and relationship with fans, says Maura Johnston, a freelance music writer and Boston College adjunct instructor.
“The fact that they came up on this British TV show and they became this worldwide phenomenon, I don’t think that would have happened as acutely and as quickly and as immersive without social media, without Twitter or without people being able to mobilize around the globe,” she says.
One Direction and their fans
Millennial and Gen Z audiences practically grew up with One Direction, but the band was truly ubiquitous. That, Johnston says, is at least partially attributable to arriving in a very different media environment from today’s.
“It was a lot more focused,” she says of the early 2010s. “Algorithmic sorting of stuff hadn’t really taken hold. So, there was this broader, mass approach. … They were one of the last gasps of that mass phenomenon, that anyone of any age, even if they weren’t a fan, had to take notice to.”
But it takes more than omnipresence to cultivate a loyal fanbase. And there were myriad reasons why listeners were attracted to One Direction.
“They were five very different musical personalities, along with five very different personalities,” says Sheffield.
A girl reacts next to a makeshift althar for the deceased singer Liam Payne is pictured at Forum in Copenhagen, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
They broke the rules associated with traditional boy bands, too: “They co-wrote many of their songs. They didn’t do, you know, corny, choreographed steps on stage,” he said.
After the news of Payne’s death, Kopera says she “got so many messages from people I haven’t talked to in years reaching out because I think everyone kind of realized that it does feel like we just lost a family member.”
That sentiment was mirrored in the masses of fans who gathered Wednesday outside Buenos Aires’ Casa Sur Hotel, feeding a burgeoning makeshift memorial of flowers, candles and notes as police stood guard.
“I’ve always loved One Direction since I was little,” said Juana Relh, 18, outside Payne’s hotel. “To see that he died and that there will never be another reunion of the boys is unbelievable, it kills me.”
Liam Payne’s place in the band, and its legacy
Payne was a “brooding” older brother-type in One Direction, says Johnston. He also co-wrote many songs, especially in their later career — like the Fleetwood Mac-channeling “What A Feeling” and “Fireproof.”
“He was this grounding force in the band,” Johnston says.
In an Instagram tribute, Tomlinson called Payne “the most vital part of One Direction.”
“His experience from a young age, his perfect pitch, his stage presence, his gift for writing. The list goes on. Thank you for shaping us Liam,” he wrote.
“I always remember that he was the responsible and the sensible one of the group, and I feel like he wore his heart on his sleeve,” Kopera says.
Payne had recently been vocal about struggling with alcoholism, posting a YouTube video in July 2023 where he said he had been sober for six months after receiving treatment. Buenos Aires police said they found clonazepam — a central nervous system depressant — and other over-the-counter drugs in Payne’s hotel room, along with a whiskey bottle in the courtyard where he was found.
A memorial service for the deceased singer Liam Payne is pictured at Forum in Copenhagen, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
“Looking at what happened to Liam, it just makes you feel even more sad, that it just feels like he needed help,” Kopera says. “And it’s so scary to think about how the entertainment industry can just, like, eat up artists.”
After One Direction disbanded in 2016, Payne’s solo career — a single R&B-pop album in 2019, “LP1,” and a number of singles here and there — never took off the same way as some of his bandmates. He was “the least successful,” Sheffield says. “It’s safe to say that on the terms that he was going for, he didn’t really find what he wanted to do.”
“It’s hard, transitioning from being a boy bander to be a pop star,” Johnston says.
At Payne’s solo shows, Sheffield explains, “He would show a little montage of One Direction performing, which is the kind of thing you don’t do when you’re starting out as a solo artist. But fans took that in the spirit it was offered, which is a very generous statement that he’s like, ‘Yep, you’re here because of this history that we share, and I’m here because of that same history.’”
Despite Payne’s struggles and the tragedy of his death, Kopera is confident “his legacy is going to always point back to One Direction.”
For fans, the same is true.
“When I look back on One Direction, I’m like, that was my girlhood. One Direction was the soundtrack to growing up, and I’m so thankful for it,” she says. “They really were just a group of normal boys.”
____
AP journalist Brooke Lefferts contributed to this report.
Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Harry Styles of One Direction have spoken out in reaction to the passing of Liam Payne. Additionally, the group has shared a joint statement.
Zayn Malik & Louis Tomlinson Pay Tribute To Liam Payne
On Thursday, October 17, Malik took to Instagram to share a throwback photo of himself and Payne. In the photo, Malik is seen resting on Payne’s lap as Payne places a hand over him. The pair appeared to be sleeping.
Additionally, Malik’s posts included a follow-up slide that featured a lengthy message he penned in tribute to his bandmate.
“Liam, I have found myself talking out loud to you, hoping you can hear me, I can’t help but think selfishly that there was so many more conversations for us to have in our lives. I never got to thank you for supporting me through some of the most difficult times in my life,” Malik wrote. “…Even though you were younger than me you were always more sensible than me, you were headstrong, opinionated, and gave no f***s about telling people when they were wrong. Even though we butted heads because of this a few times… I always secretly respected you for it.”
Malik explained that he “lost a brother” with Payne’s passing.
“…can’t explain what I’d give to just hug you one last time and say goodbye to you properly and tell you that I loved and respected you dearly,” Malik wrote. “…there is no words to justify or explain how I feel right now other than beyond devastated…”
Read Zayn Malik’s full tribute to Liam Payne by swiping below.
Additionally, Louis Tomlinson took to Instagram around the same time to share his own tribute to Payne. Tomlinson’s post featured a photo of them standing alongside one another on stage.
“I am beyond devastated to be writing this but yesterday I lost a brother. Liam was somebody I looked up to everyday, such a positive, funny, and kind soul… Liam was an incredible song writer with a great sense of melody, we often spoke of getting back in the studio together to try and recreate the writing chemistry we had built up in the band. And for the record, Liam was in my opinion the most vital part of One Direction. His experience from a young age, his perfect pitch, his stage presence, his gift for writing. The list goes on. Thank you for shaping us Liam,” Tomlinson wrote.
Before concluding, Tomlinson shared a message for Payne.
“A message to you Liam if you’re listening,” he wrote. “I feel beyond lucky to have had you in my life but I’m really struggling with the idea of saying goodbye. I’m so grateful that we got even closer since the band, speaking on the phone for hours , reminiscing about all the thousands of amazing memories we had together is a luxury I thought I’d have with you for life. I would have loved to share the stage with you again but it wasn’t to be…”
Read Tomlinson’s full tribute by clicking on his post below.
One Direction Releases A Joint Statement Followed By Harry Styles
Furthermore, the official Instagram account of One Direction — which also includes bandmates Harry Styles and Niall Horan — released an additional statement in response to Payne’s passing.
“We’re completely devastated by the news of Liam’s passing. In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say,” the statement reads. “But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly.”
The statement concluded by asserting that the group would treasure their memories with Liam “forever.”
“For now, our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and the ones who loved him alongside us. We will miss him terribly,” the statement added. “We love you Liam…”
Lastly, the statement was signed, “Louis, Zayn, Niall and Harry.”
About 30 minutes later, Harry Styles took to Instagram to share his own tribute to Payne. Furthermore, Styles shared a photo of Payne sitting on stage along with a lengthy message.
“I am truly devastated by Liam’s passing,” Styles wrote. “His greatest joy was making people happy, and it was an honour to be alongside him as he did it… He was warm, supportive, and incredibly loving. The years we spent together will forever remain among the most cherished years of my life…”
Read Style’s full tribute by swiping below.
More Details On The Passing Of Liam Payne
As The Shade Room previously reported, Liam Payne passed away on Wednesday, October 16. The 31-year-old reportedly fell from the third-floor balcony of CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Argentina.
On Thursday, October 17, authorities in Argentina released preliminary details about Payne’s passing, per The Shade Room. According to AP News, Pablo Policicchio, the communications director for the Buenos Aires Security Ministry, stated that Payne allegedly “jumped” from his balcony. However, a subsequent report published by US Weekly asserts that authorities have yet to determine whether his death was intentional or accidental.
Furthermore, the singer’s preliminary autopsy reportedly asserted he passed away from “internal and external hemorrhage.”
With the holiday season in full fa-la-la-la-flow, it’s time to reflect. When the year winds down, we feel a bit of burn out — you stare blankly at screens without motivation, you don’t want to work, and you’ve just spent all your money on gift giving.
The year ends in two weeks, which means all of your social media accounts are wrapping up the past 365 days and holding a mirror up to who you truly are. For Snapchat users, you get a montage of photos and videos from those embarrassing nights out and the time you took a selfie crying.
At Popdust, we’ve always loved music. It’s why I have a weekly segment rounding up popular new music and it’s why we report on so many of your most favorite artists. We’re constantly searching for the next big thing in music. And 2023 was massive for changing the soundscapes we know and love.
For instance, country folk was the breakout genre of the year thanks to artists like Zach Bryan and Noah Kahan. Popular DJ’s like John Summit and Dom Dolla have driven a surge in popularity of house music. We’ve seen Taylor Swift take over the world, alongside rapidly rising stars like Ice Spice and SZA.
With the recent announcement of the GRAMMY Award nominees, it’s never too early to hold our own award ceremony to celebrate all of the awesome music released this year. The Popdust Music Awards are for all of those 2024 hitmakers who gave us viral moments, graced our speakers, and made us sing along.
That includes celebrating Taylor Swift, our Artist Of The Year, whose Eras Tour is the highest-grossing tour of all time at $1 billion to date! Her album, Midnights, alongside re-releases like 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) were chart-toppers in their own right. Consistently breaking records like dominating the Billboard Top 10, Swift deserves her flowers.
And speaking of flowers, Miley Cyrus is having a huge year with her new album, Endless Summer Vacation. “Flowers” is our Viral Song of the Year, only taking 112 days to reach Spotify’s Billions Club, the quickest in the app’s history.
There are plenty of artists to celebrate in 2023, which means 2024’s gonna be a truly thrilling year coming up. Here are some of Popdust’s favorite artists and albums from 2023!
Artist Of The Year: Taylor Swift
Best Album: Midnights – Taylor Swift
Best Deluxe Album: Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever)– Noah Kahan
Best EDM: Another Friday Night– Joel Corry
Best Pop: Something To Give Each Other– Troye Sivan
Best R&B: SOS– SZA
Best Rock: But Here We Are– The Foo Fighters
Best Alternative: Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Boulevard– Lana Del Rey
Best Rap: Like…?- Ice Spice
Best Country: Zach Bryan– Zach Bryan
Best Collaboration: Most Viral Song: “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus
Popstar Watch: Tate McRae
Honorable Mentions: The Record- boygenius, Heroes & Villains (Villains Version)- Metro Boomin’, The Show- Niall Horan
Reba McEntire could not help but break down in tears during the first live show of season 24 of “The Voice” on Monday night when a contestant performed one of her own songs.
Entertainment Tonight reported that Ruby Leigh, 16, to perform her coach McEntire’s 1990 single “You Lie.” During rehearsals, McEntire went so far as to say that Leigh performed the song better than she ever did.
Leigh knocked it out of the park with her live performance, bringing both McEntire and coach Gwen Stefani to tears.
“You blew it out of the water,” McEntire said as she wiped away tears. “Gwen and I are bawling!”
“There hasn’t been a time that you performed on this show that I haven’t gotten goosebumps,” coach Niall Horan said in agreement. “You are insane!”
Check out the performance for yourself in the video below.
McEntire And Other Coaches Sound Off
On the red carpet of the live show, McEntire talked about how exciting this season of “The Voice” is, saying, “I really couldn’t tell you [who might win].”
Her fellow coach John Legend agreed with her.
“The depth of the talent this season is better than I’ve ever seen it on this show since I’ve been here,” he said. “This is my eighth season and I’ve never seen just this level of quality across the board. I’m so impressed with our artists this year.”
“I have some amazing singers, and I think it’s just gonna come down to at this point people start to fall in love with not just the voice, but the person as well,” Gwen Stefani added. “It’s ridiculous this season. I know we say that every season and it always feels like that, but this one has a particularly tall order.”
I hope Reba McEntire see this Reba that was absolutely beautiful tribute to your Momma you look so much like your Momma. Every time I hear this song I think of my best friend Connie I miss her so much 💔. Thank you for your beautiful song sharing your story in song !! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/FwZU8RkVJX
This is McEntire’s first season serving as a main coach on “The Voice,” as she took the place of Blake Shelton after he left at the end of the 23rd season of the show earlier this year.
“It’s a lot of pressure, because nobody can replace Blake Shelton. He’s a huge personality and a wonderful person. So I’m just getting in there trying to have fun and represent country music as best I can,” McEntire told Newsweekback in September.
“It’s a well-oiled machine, so getting in at this time is marvelous,” she continued. “Everybody knows the game plan, from the crew, the producers. Everybody on the show is so nice, so sweet, and have been so helpful. I’m loving it.”
Stefani, who is married to Shelton, praised McEntire before the live show for how well she’s doing on the program.
“I think it is hard the first time you come here, ’cause its like, there’s just so much,” she said, according to WUSA9. “It’s also so amazing here — you get so inspired. I’m happy for her because I know that for someone that’s done everything in her life a million times over, to be able to kind of mentor people and to be able to watch the growth, it’s so inspiring.”
“Honestly she is so kind and so humble — I almost want to be like, ‘You’re Reba, like, stop!’” she continued with a laugh. “I think she’s just having such a blast and she’s gotten so good at the show really quick.”
McEntire chimed in to say that she’s learned some tricks since taking the coaching seat.
“The main thing that I have learned is to take it one minute at a time,” she said. “It is a lot to take in for the first time being a coach.”
Are you rooting for McEntire and her team on “The Voice?” Let us know in the comments section.
Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust. The Political Insider ranks #3 on Feedspot’s “100 Best Political Blogs and Websites.”
Reba McEntire is joining “The Voice” for the series’ 24th season, and the country music superstar is making a dramatic entrance in a new promo.
In the video, coach Niall Horan is seen cutting a large cake with the show’s logo in icing, when returning coaches John Legend and Gwen Sefani arrive, with Legend congratulating Horan on winning his first season.
“It’s good to be king,” Horan declares, prompting a warning from Stefani. “Don’t get used to it, buddy, it’s a whole new ball game,” she tells him.
“And I know that we all miss the cowboy, especially you,” Legend tells Stefani, referencing her husband Blake Shelton, who exited the show after Season 23. “But now that he’s gone, we might have a shot at the best country singer.”
“Nothing could ruin this,” muses Horan with a dream-like expression on his face, with his reverie interrupted by music blaring from speakers as the walls open up to reveal McEntire onstage, with pyrotechnics erupting as she stands in in front of a giant glittering sign reading “TEAM REBA.”
“Well hey there,” she says, “it’s just so good to be here!”
Photo by: NBCUniversal
As the other coaches look worried, host Carson Daly appears, eating a piece of that cake. “This is gonna be good,” he says.
What I love about Fridays isn’t that I get to log off work early (well, maybe a little) or that I have an excuse to attend happy hour…it’s that I’m guaranteed new music. And now that we are fully in June, artists are churning out albums and singles to get us through the summer months. This week, especially, is a hot spot for new bangers for your playlists.
We have releases like “TUYA” by ROSALÍA, “Who Told You (feat. Drake)” by J His, “VULGAR (with Madonna)” by Sam Smith and Madonna, and “WHAT THE HELL ARE WE DYING FOR?” by Shawn Mendes, who wrote the track in 24 hours after New York City was covered in smoke from the Canadian wildfires. But that’s not all, not even close.
EDM extraordinaire Chris Lake came out with his remix of “In The Yuma (feat. AATIG) (Four Tet Remix)”, which is sure to be a club banger. City Girls released “Piñata”, and Youngboy Never Broke Again dropped the first single from his new album, “Realize (feat. Lil Dump, Rojay MLP, NBA Big B)”.
Since this week was filled with new music, here are a few of my picks to put on your weekend playlist:
1. Noah Kahan – Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever)
Rapidly rising indie folk artist Noah Kahan has been stealing the hearts of listeners. It’s not hard to love his music, which feels like the perfect blend of The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons, and Hozier. His new album, Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever), contains 21 songs that are purely Noah. The Vermont-born singer has a raw way of storytelling, with country-inspired backing from symphonies of banjos and string instruments. It’s worth the listen from top to bottom.
2. Niall Horan – The Show
In his first album since 2020, Niall Horan releases The Show…and wow, does this feel like the moment Horan skyrockets into superstardom alongside former band member, Harry Styles. Dare I say it’s his best? Throughout 10 songs, Niall takes you through a journey of love and positivity, it’s an album that you can already imagine bringing fans of all walks of life together. It’s a body of work that Horan has been working on for years, and it’s a special album that should be rewarded.
3. Carter Rubin – “last time”
Carter Rubin may only be 17, but his voice already has a timeless quality that is beautifully exhibited in his new single, “last time.” It’s an honest track that captures how it feels to fall in love at such a young age, and perfectly shows off Carter’s strong vocal abilities that will make him a star. With qualities of a go-to summer anthem, “last time” is Carter Rubin’s submission for your Song Of The Summer.
4. Will Linley – “Tough (The Girls Song)”
Fans love Will Linley because he can create a track that fully encompasses what it’s like to as a member of Gen Z, perfectly summing up how we’re all feeling constantly. The musical embodiment of “I do my own stunts,” Linley is a singer, songwriter, and can play multiple instruments…fully showcasing his impeccable talent at all times. With “Tough (The Girls Song)”, we are given an 80’s vibe that never gets old and a fun single about a long-distance relationship ending.
5. Arctic Lake – “My Weakness”
Arctic Lake, the duo compiled of Emma Foster and Paul Holliman, are gearing up to release their new EP, How Do You Make It Look So Easy, with their new single, “My Weakness.” It’s traditional Arctic Lake, an open-hearted single about how, when you’re in love, it can be your greatest strength and weakness. Alongside the single, the duo dropped a video racing us down a neon-lit highway jamming along to the song.
6. Baby Queen – “Dream Girl”
Proclaimed London’s biggest “anti-pop” star, Baby Queen is here with “Dream Girl”…a pop-punk fusion talking about these two polar opposite sides of her meeting as one. It’s a song about how Baby Queen fell in love with a woman who was already in a relationship with a man, and wanting something you can’t have. It’s punchy, fun, and exciting, which is the perfect ending to this New Music Friday roundup!
I’ve been carefully curating my skincare routine for over a year now. Par for the course, skincare related TikToks have been flooding my FYP, selling me every trendy product on the block. Whether or not they work is a different question. I’ve fallen for gimmicks, traps, and cute packaging, but I’ve also found a solid 6-step routine.
I advertise skincare to everyone I meet, because who doesn’t want to stay as effervescent and youthful looking as possible? Not only can you get rid of the texture, redness, and acne we all deal with…but you literally can delay the aging process. If I only do one thing daily to take care of myself, it’s going to be my skincare routine.
My toughest crowd, however, has been men. While we all have skin, which needs care just like the inside of our bodies do, I have yet to meet many men who have figured out a skincare routine for themselves.
Maybe it’s because of masculinity. The patriarchy, at it again! Since the beauty industry is catered towards women, it’s an impossible task to break through and convince men that these pots of fragranced creams and tubes of scented gels are worth smearing on your face twice a day. But I’m here to change all that.
I’m of the firm belief that everyone can benefit from makeup and skincare – not just women. We all wake up, look in the mirror, and think we look a little tired…or see a new pimple on the horizon and want to eliminate it immediately from our faces. So what’s the harm with dabbing a bit of makeup to make us look – and feel – immensely better about our appearance? Nothing.
Your favorite male celebrities wear makeup daily. That’s right, even Tom Cruise is sporting concealer while doing all those stunts. And maybe even a layer of blush. Brad Pitt and Pharrell even have skincare brands of their own.
Niall Horan, judge on this season of The Voice and former member of One Direction, recently went on Vogue’s Beauty Secrets to share his 22-step beauty routine…and while I’m not saying every man needs a 22 step routine, his recommendations are a great foundation for any man.
He says it himself: “Look fab, feel fab.”
While walking us through his luxurious routine, Horan muses why more men don’t have a routine. “I think with men…we’re getting better at it! Everyone’s always kind of against the skincare thing and I don’t really know why. It’s like, do we give up some of our masculinity if we admit to using moisturizer?”
So if you’re looking to start a routine…or you’re looking to inspire your boyfriend, brother, friend, or family member…take it from Niall. Here are my favorite steps from his routine that anyone can follow!
Of course Niall enjoys nothing but the best for his skin…and this Sarah Chapman Cleanser is no exception. With peptides and Vitamin A for anti-aging properties and Vitamin C for brightening, this cleanser gets deep in your pores to purify while removing makeup and impurities.
Exfoliation helps get dead skin cells off your face, giving you a moisturized, glowing surface. Niall recommends doing this a few times a week at least, crediting the Make Beauty Face Mask as his savior. A mask is easy to use, low maintenance, and not necessary for everyday…perfect for the male skincare routine.
Jaxon Lane makes skincare targeted towards men, and these Bro Mask Eye Gels make a routine feel easy. Bring these bad boys anywhere, wear them in the car on the way to work or put them on before you go out. They’ll de-puff and brighten up those tired under eyes.
If you’re someone who doesn’t have the time for a routine, a mist will be your BFF. The Allies of Skin Mist is Niall’s favorite, and contains Niacinamide and Amino Acids to wake up your skin and restore its youthful bounce. It soothes redness and helps your hydration levels without you having to work hard at it.
Osea is known for their hydrating products, and this oil will be your best friend. With jojoba and macadamia oils, Osea has created the ultimate moisturizing oil that will reduce the appearance of fine lines while maintaining your skin’s elasticity. If you have one serum, make it this.
What I love about the Ilia Eye Cream is that it can be applied directly onto your face. You don’t have to dip your finger into a pot, and the metal applicator feels cooling on your under eyes. The retinol will aid with wrinkles, puffiness, dark circles, and more over time.
Sunscreen may not seem important year round…but Niall Horan knows his Irish skin is sensitive even when you don’t necessarily see the sun. If you experience redness or irritation seemingly out of nowhere, chances are it’s the sun’s fault. Using sunscreen in the morning will help prevent damage and slows down the aging process. A necessity if I’ve ever heard one.
