Sometimes listening to your same favorite songs on a playlist can be repetitive and predictable. There are times you may opt to hear a discussion on a particular topic of interest, or a conversation between two or more hosts. Podcasts are a form of entertainment that serve as a great substitute for music. They are very similar to radio shows, however they are more interactive in the sense that the listener is almost engaged in a conversation, rather than listening to one. As many know, Spotify has been one of the top contenders for podcast distribution and have been looking to use this service to expand their company as a whole.

In this day and age, COVID-19 has simply become a part of our daily lives. It has impacted our social interactions, our ability to travel, and for some areas of the United States who have it significantly bad, our ability to do regular life activities such as eating in restaurants or going grocery shopping.

As many of us are well aware, COVID has had a huge negative effect on the live entertainment industry. With multiple concert venues closed or even shut down permanently, artists have turned to live streamed events as the best alternative to in-person performances. As audience members, it is easy to view these events at surface level. You may think “I’m basically watching this person perform on video and interact with me”. However for artists, the value of live streamed concerts is immense. It is the best way to receive real time feedback from their fans, and it helps them connect with their audience during a time where direct interaction is limited.

Last Sunday, February 7th, Canadian pop singer/songwriter The Weeknd touched down in Tampa, Florida for the biggest football game of the season. The Super Bowl LV between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended in a huge win for the city’s home team, and was not like any other Super Bowl prior. With the stadium at half capacity, empty seats were taken up by cardboard cutouts of fans, and masks were worn by nearly everyone in attendance. However, another thing that made this Super Bowl stand out was The Weeknd’s spectacular set during half time, as he performed a medley of all of his greatest hits.

Selena Gomez is taking a new approach to her music and we are here for it! On January 27th, the young singer announced on Twitter that her EP Revelación will drop on March 12th, 2021. Just like her latest two singles, this EP will be sung fully in Spanish, making this her first full Spanish language project ever. The announcement was accompanied by a picture of the 28-year-old artist donning a bright red gown against a bright matching backdrop.

As if the tea wasn’t already piping hot with Olivia Rodrigo’s heartbreak anthem ‘Driver’s License’, it is now the “blonde girl’s” turn to say her piece. Last Friday, Sabrina Carpenter released her latest single ‘Skin’, just two weeks after Rodrigo’s unprecedented hit debut song. Many listeners are taking varying stances on this feud between the two Disney singers. Some are in support of Olivia and feel as though Sabrina has stepped out of line. However, other fans are defending the 21-year-old artist by reading deeper into the lyrics and claiming that the song is meant to stop the spread of hate to all sides of the story. Either way, the music released by these two young women have caused quite a stir with their audience members.

BLACKPINK’s fans -affectionately referred to as BLINKS- have been well fed this past year with the release of the band’s first ever studio album this past October. The Korean pop girl group is known for their long hiatuses, however they seem to be breaking this streak with the announcement of new content that is on the way at the end of January and throughout February.

The highly anticipated solo debut of BLACKPINK’s lead vocalist Rosé Park was teased yesterday, as the singer herself posted the official teaser video on Instagram with the simple caption “Jan 31” with a rose emoji, indicating the release date. The official BLACKPINK Instagram and Twitter page also posted the video with the caption “ROSÉ - COMING SOON TEASER. Get a first preview of #ROSÉ’s solo project at 2021 #BLACKPINK: THE SHOW! Don’t forget to join membership and watch THE SHOW!” Fans have already had an ecstatic reaction to the official announcement of Rosé’s solo music, as it has been speculated for years since the release of the group’s main rapper Jennie Kim’s solo debut, which was also titled “SOLO”.

On January 9th, Dr. Fauci -the infectious disease expert tracking the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States- predicted that if “everything goes right” regarding the distribution of COVID vaccines, then concert venues and theaters can reopen as early as Fall 2021. He stated,”by the time we get to the early to mid-fall, you can have people feeling safe performing onstage as well as people in the audience”. These claims were made at a conference held by the Association of Performing Arts Professionals.

The live music industry has been devastated by the pandemic since it came to the United States in March of 2020, and both fans and artists are anxious to finally put their old concert tickets and tour plans to use. With many venues shutting their doors for almost a year, quite a few locations across the country have fallen victim to bankruptcy due to the lack of income and rising expenses, and were therefore forced to close permanently.

Singer, songwriter, dancer, activist and now makeup artist -what can’t Halsey do?! The ‘Without Me’ singer took to Twitter on Monday, January 4th to announce that she had been working on a brand new makeup line for about “two to three years” and her vision is finally coming to fruition.

The New Jersey native has been known to sport a variety of styles and bright colors at many events, both in her hair and in her makeup looks. Now, she has developed the brand “about-face” to share her love for makeup as an art and form of creative expression, and to break down the beauty standards that find colorful makeup too over-the-top and bold.

On January 20th, President Elect, Joe Biden and Vice President Elect, Kamala are definitely going to be dancing the night away to celebrate their inauguration. The lineup of performances for the night was just released on January 13th, and it includes many amazing talents such as pop king Justin Timberlake, the powerhouse vocalist Demi Lovato, and more acts.

These stars’ performances are a part of the live TV special “Celebrating America” which is hosted by renowned actor Tom Hanks, and features more stars that have yet to be announced. The prime-time special will be broadcasted at 8:30pm across the nation and marks the celebratory end to a very important day in the United States.

Olivia Rodrigo has come a long way from her pre-teen years on her Disney Channel show Bizaardvark, and is now showing off her musical talents on Disney Plus’ High School the Musical The Musical The Series (say that title five times fast!). She also proves to be an incredibly proficient songwriter and lyricist, as shown by her original “All I Want”, which was one of the featured tracks for her show’s soundtrack and has achieved official gold status in the United States with over 500k sales.

2021 is already looking bright for Harry Styles’ army of fans! On January 1st, 2021, the pop singing sensation released the latest addition to the series of music videos he created for the tracks on his Fine Line album, which released in early 2020. The newest video features the song Treat People with Kindness, and it sets the happy, carefree tone that we can hope to accomplish for this new year (especially after the mess that last year brought).

The Tik Tok community never fails to surprise us with their talents and capability to come together. Over recent months, their biggest project thus far has been creating an entire Broadway musical centered around the Ratatouille movie, a Disney-Pixar animated collaboration about a rat pursuing his dreams of cooking in one of Paris’ top restaurants.

What started out as a short catchy tune posted on the app for a meme, turned into a grand overture with other creators making full arrangements of chorus and instrumental parts. Suddenly, other creators such as @blakeyrouse and @sophiajamesmusic started creating more music to correspond with different scenes from the movie, such as “The Rat’s Way of Life”, an upbeat melody lead by the character Emile, and the jazzy brooding tune of Chef Skinner’s solo “I Knew I Smelled A Rat”.

It is pretty fair to say that 2020 has been a whirlwind of events. With the coronavirus pandemic putting the music industry to a halt, artists and labels have been forced to adapt to this new world of virtual performances, socially distant award shows, and tour cancellations.

However, with all of the changes surrounding COVID-19, one thing is certain: musicians and music lovers together have chosen not to give up. Instead, we have learned to be flexible by making extra efforts to connect with our audience, finding new ways to create and release content, and most importantly, keep the music alive. Throughout all of the negativity, the music industry has persevered because of the passion of the people in it, and the feeling of hope that we get from the songs we create.

Now that 2020 is coming to a close and we look ahead to the new year, the question stands: what is going to happen in 2021?