Manchester, we might have a collaboration between two of the biggest British acts around right now as local lads The 1975 and pop sensation Charli XCX look to have just teased something big right here in the city centre.
It’s fair to say that if 2023 was the biggest year of The 1975‘s career to date then 2024 has very much been Charli XCX’s. In fact, we’d say it’s been a pretty great 12 months or so for pop music in general, which it feels like we don’t get to say that often.
That being said, despite the Cambridge-born singer having only just released her smash-hit BRAT back in June, is already ramping up for more new music to be dropped.
A massive new poster has appeared near Piccadilly and not only is it the bright lime green and plain black font now synonymous with her album but the words also read “the 1975” backwards.
It looks like this could finally be The 1975 x Charli XCX collab so many fans have been waiting for and there’s plenty of reason to believe it could be coming very soon.
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For starters, rumours of the two working together have been running ever since the 32-year-old became partners with the band’s drummer, producer and co-songwriter, George Daniel, who has regularly appeared with her on stage at the likes of Boiler Room, not to mention sharing mixes of her songs.
She also came out as a surprise guest during their second-to-last visit to Manchester and the AO Arena back in January 2023 – much to the delight of the crowd.
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Furthermore, Charli recently announced her next project rather straightforwardly called Brat and it’s completely different but still also brat.
While there are no other discernible clues to take from the rather large billboard, the title alone, George Daniel’s involvement and her own penchant for DJing of late quickly led people to piece together that she is planning to release a reworked version of her sixth studio album.
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Moreover, Charli (real name Charlotte Emma Aitchison) has already revealed a number of feature artists on the remixed version of BRAT, including Addison Rae, Robyn, Billie Eilish and Yung Lean, as well as Troye Sivan and Lorde, who both joined her on stage recently for the ‘Sweat Tour’.
As already confirmed, whatever this new project ends up sounding like, it’s coming out next Friday, 11 October and if the collabs we already know about are anything to go by, then it’s a pretty safe bet that The 1975 will be also a appear on a tune or two. Who knows, maybe it could be something even bigger?
‘Bratty Healy’ is born, whether you like it or not.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Press Image (supplied)
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A brand new grunge and hard rock festival is kicking off in Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester grungers, hardcore heads, and fans of all things rock, pay attention because there is a brand new festival coming to the city centre – and it has possibly the best name for a live music event we’ve heard in some time.
Ahem… let us introduce you to Broken Knees Fest.
Yes, donning a name that feels increasingly more relatable the closer we get to the wrong side of 30, Broken Knees Festival 2025 marks the inaugural edition of Manchester’s newest series of rock and grunge gigs, helping spotlight rising artists across the genres from within two crucial grassroots venues.
Very loud music inside tightly-packed, small-capacity rooms? It’s a winning formula that never fails. It’s about time we broke a sweat – here’s hoping the knees just about hold out.
Hosted in the heart of the Northern Quarter, which continues to thrive as a creative hub for new music and art of all forms, the festival will be debuting at small-cap favourites Gullivers and Castle Hotel just across the road.
As you can see, the lineup is full of up-and-coming talent within the guitar-driven space, but you can bank on more than a few bringing their die-hard fans to fill the place out to the rafters.
It doesn’t matter if you prefer punk, hardcore, grunge or another specific sub-genre found somewhere in between the ever-sprawling rock spectrum, there’s something to suit all alternative tastes at this one.
With the likes of Bohmen, Mavis, One Dimensional Creatures and Smother headlining the first-ever iteration of the festival across four stages, you can expect plenty of energy and even more noise.
Set up by the events group of the same name, Broken Knees Promotions, who help platform rock and alt acts across Greater Manchester and beyond year-round, this is more than just a festival: it’s a grassroots celebration through and through.
Best of all, if you’re interested, you don’t have to wait long because it’s kicking off next month.
Gigs go off in here. If you know, you know… (Credit: Audio North)
Broken Knees Fest 2025 is happening on the weekend of 21-22 June, and you’ll be glad to hear that, as a brand new event, prices have been kept nice and low.
The early bird window had prices starting from just £12, and although this tier has now sold out, day tickets are still only £15 while a full weekend pass will set you back £25.
Until then, why not dive into another load of new Manchester music? We round up artists from all genres each month; we’ll also confess to leaning slightly more towards the heavier stuff from time to time.
Olly Murs cancels Manchester gig after walking off stage six songs into huge arena show
Daisy Jackson
Olly Murs has now officially cancelled his show in Manchester tonight, a day after walking off stage just six songs into a huge arena gig.
The Heart Skips a Beat star had been performing in Glasgow last night when he abruptly stopped the show, apologised to fans, and left the stage.
The gig was cancelled around 30 minutes into his show, which is part of a huge UK arena tour that was meant to be heading to Manchester tonight.
A tearful Olly said that he was seeing a doctor last night and would update fans of the rest of his shows ‘as soon as I know anything’.
It’s now been confirmed that his gig at the AO Arena will not be going ahead.
Olly Murs said in a statement: “30 minutes into my set in Glasgow I lost my voice & unfortunately had to leave the stage midway through the show. This has never happened before and not something I take lightly.
“I’m sorry to all the fans who came out to the show last night and am forever grateful for your support.
“To everyone in Manchester and Birmingham I’m deeply sorry, but am unfortunately going to have to cancel my shows this weekend. I have contracted a respiratory infection and have been instructed to go on a strict 48 hour voice rest by the doctor to ensure no further damage to my vocal cords.
“I have been enjoying this tour so much, and am so sorry to let down my fans – but have to put my health first. I’m hoping to be fighting fit in a few days to finish this amazing 15 year celebratory tour with a bang.”
In a video he shared to Instagram last night, Olly Murs said: “Firstly I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry I had to walk off after six songs and cancel the show. I’ve never done this in 15 years.
“Most of the time as singers you can kind of get through it if your voice isn’t 100% – I walked out tonight thinking my voice was great, I maybe felt a little bit run down but I didn’t think I couldn’t do the show. I wouldn’t have come out there otherwise.
“So to walk off after six songs, as I said, I’m so sorry. As you can probably hear from my voice, I just sounded rubbish and it’s unfair for you guys that spent all that money to come and see me. You deserve the best show and me being at my best, and I’m so sorry from the bottom of my heart.
“Hopefully I can recover from this.
“I’m actually going to see a doctor tonight which is great, so I’ll give you guys an update as soon as I know anything. Obviously I wanna try my absolute best to make these shows possible at the weekend.
“So yeah, so sorry for everyone tonight, apologies from the bottom of my heart. Gutted.”
Danny Jones -
3rd October 2024 
