From Taylor Swift dominating the Video Music Awards and Maren Morris putting country music in the rearview, here’s what happened in the music and culture world this past week.
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Taylor Swift Takes Home Video of the Year for “Anti-Hero” at the VMAs
On September 12, the MTV VMAs gave us four hours of performances and awards acceptances live from Newark, New Jersey. One of the biggest stories was Taylor Swift racking up nine Moon Person trophies in total, out of her 11 nominations leading into the show. She picked up the night’s top honor, Video of the Year, for “Anti-Hero.” And that wasn’t all that happened with her at the VMAs.
*NSYNC Take You Behind the Scenes of Recording Their First Song in 20 Years
At the VMAs ceremony, *NSYNC appeared reunited onstage to present Swift with the award for Best Pop. The celebration didn’t end there — on September 13, they announced “Better Place,” their first new single in over 20 years. It will be part of the new Trolls Band Together film, and it’s due to be released on September 29. A new video takes fans inside the making of the song.
Maren Morris Declares Departure from Country Music
In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Maren Morris said she’s walking away from country music. “I thought I’d like to burn it to the ground and start over, but it’s burning itself down without my help,” she said. This change is clear in two evocative new videos she released: “The Tree” and “Get the Hell Out of Here,” which both feature imagery of small towns being shuttered and, eventually, land being literally scorched in her exit.
George Strait, Others Write Tributes to the Late Charlie Robison
After Texas country singer Charlie Robison died on September 10 at age 59 of “cardiac arrest and other complications,” tributes began rolling in online. One of them came from George Strait, who tweeted that Robison “brought so much great music to the great state and others.” Other memorials came from Parker McCollum and Kolby Cooper as well as Robison’s sister, fellow singer-songwriter Robyn Ludwick.
Olivia Rodrigo Adds 18 More Dates for Upcoming Guts World Tour
Since dropping new new album GUTS on September 8, Olivia Rodrigo has been busy. She brought some of those songs to the VMAs stage, announced a sprawling world 2024, added even more dates to said tour, and called Rage Against the Machine her “favorite band right now” — earning a wink from Tom Morello himself. What will she do this week?
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