IT has been 16 years since Kylie Minogue last got us fans up on our feet at The Brit Awards.
And now I’m thrilled to let you know the Australian pop legend is being lined up to perform again.
Insiders tell me a plan is in motion to get Kylie back on stage at London’s O2 Arena when the ceremony returns in March.
A source said: “Kylie fans should have their gold hotpants at the ready for the Brits.
“She is being lined up for a huge performance at the show. It would be a huge coup for the organisers to have Kylie back on stage where she belongs, and they know her fans will go mad for it.
“It’s likely Kylie would perform a bit of a mashup of some of her biggest hits, including Padam Padam, which was huge for her last year.
“The offer is in and the negotiations are happening right now. Watch this space.”
I didn’t think anything could top Lizzo’s amazing performance at last year’s Brits, but if Kylie takes to the stage, I’ll definitely be down the front doing the Loco-Motion.
The shortlist of nominations for this year’s ceremony are due to be released imminently and it’s a big moment for the Brits.
After last year’s Artist of the Year shortlist revealed that no female singers had made the cut, with Harry Styles picking up the gong, Brits bosses told me they were increasing the category to include ten contenders, rather than the usual five.
The show will also include a new R&B category, with the Brits extending its eligibility to a 24-month period, rather than the regular 12, so artists who could have been in with a shout last year are eligible for nomination this time round.
The changes will, I’m sure, make it a fairer playing field and increase diversity, which is all the Brits lot wanted all along.
And, ultimately, all that any of us music fans want is for our favourite artists to get the recognition they deserve, regardless of their gender.
Let’s get the focus back on the music — and Queen Kylie.
AITCH, Keane and Sleaford Mods are among acts performing intimate shows for Brits Week 2024 in aid of War Child.
An 11-act line-up has been put together ahead of the March 2 ceremony, playing at small venues in London.
There will also be shows outside the capital, with You Me At Six performing in Brighton and Brits Rising Star winners The Last Dinner Party playing in Hebden Bridge, West Yorks.
Venbee, CMAT, Pendulum, Ash, Baby Queen and Cian Ducrot complete the line-up.
You could win tickets through the Brits Week website.
A limited number will go on sale on Friday to those who subscribe before 3pm today through the website for War Child, which supports kids affected by conflict.
LOOKS like Ellie Goulding is back in the saddle as she kicks off her year with a gig in Mexico wearing this cowboy-style hat.
The Love Me Like You Do singer sported a tiny black jacket and bra top for the show in South America, ahead of performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall in April.
I’m expecting to see Ellie on bills at festivals this summer too, after she said in 2020 that she knows how to get the crowd going.
On the prospect of headlining Glastonbury some day, she said: “I’m convinced I’ve got a lot more in me, so maybe in another ten years. I would always put on a good show. I always do my very best and my performances are renowned for being pretty energetic. I think I could hold the crowd.”
Getting her on the bill at Worthy Farm this summer would be a very good get indeed.
A LEOPARD never changes its spots, but Paloma Faith does.
She wore this ladybird-style polkadot dress – along with a whole load of other high-fashion looks – in a shoot for Numero mag, where she opened up about how she wants to show the public a different side of her.
Paloma, who previously told how she hates being labelled “kooky”, got divorced from her partner of a decade, artist Leyman Lahcine, in 2022 and will reveal her vulnerable side by singing about it on her new album.
The Bad Woman singer, whose record The Glorification Of Sadness is due out on February 16, explained: “When I first emerged, I was very ‘entertainery’ in a people-pleasing way.
“I really wanted people to find me funny, joyful and captivating. And although I still do, sometimes it’s freeing to show another side, a more vulnerable side, a realness.
“I’m naturally a bit of a p**staker, but I’ve had some hard knocks in my life that I have really tried to keep out of the public eye.
“And, slowly, I’m starting to think it’s okay to be open about things I may have kept hidden.
“Maintaining a clown-like existence can be exhausting.”
It’s a good thing she’s on the Big Top 40 then, rather than the big top at the circus.
HE has five Top Ten albums but Tom Odell reckons it’s a miracle he’s made it this far.
The Another Love singer said: “The music industry . . . I can’t believe I’ve managed to survive it for ten or 11 years.
“All the horror stories are true. It’s mad. It’s full of reprobates and people trying to rip other people off. It’s a nightmare.”
Tom was signed to Sony for his first four albums before going independent in 2022.
Recalling how he felt toward the end of his time with Sony, he said: “I was getting physical panic attacks three times a day. They kept me in a state of, ‘You are unsuccessful’. That was the base level vibe.
“My time there at the start was really good, the second half of it was very unpleasant. I felt very lost in my career.”
But on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place podcast, ahead of the release next week of his album Black Friday, he said of Sony: “I managed to get out, and love every member of the team I work with.”
Pleased to hear it. Sadly, not all singers are as lucky.
DUA LIPA has hit out at people who joke she is always on holiday, after she jetted off on a series of getaways last year.
The singer, who has already taken trips to India, Denmark and the States this year, told Rolling Stone mag: “Of course, I was going to f***ing holiday and chill (during) the year.
“I was going in the studio and had some time off.
“As long as I’m doing my job, hitting my deadlines and getting my s**t done, then I will find a way to relax, too.
“It’s really work hard and play hard. Why not?”
I FELT bad for KSI after watching him lose his fight to Tommy Fury last October.
But now my violin is firmly back in its case after I was told he made £14,900 a day last year.
The rapper launched his insanely lucrative side hustle, Prime Drink, in 2022 and it’s made KSI richer than he could ever have imagined.
Recent paperwork has revealed that assets in his firm have risen to £14.5million, with KSI paying himself a chunky £937,286 dividend.
I’m sure that will have cushioned the blow after losing the boxing match.
I TOLD you in November how Danny Dyer had started work on his new film Marching Powder, which was inspired by his cult 2004 screen hit The Football Factory.
And my exclusive photographs show the West Ham superfan on the set in London for the first time.
Danny plays middle-aged, cocaine-loving football hooligan Jack, who is given six weeks to turn his life around or get a lengthy holiday at His Majesty’s pleasure.
Danny and director Nick Love haven’t strayed too far from their Football Factory roots, with film insiders telling me the script has bags of nostalgia for the original.
Talking about the film last month, Danny said: “There’s going to be more crime, more drugs, some serious ultra-violence and you’re going to love it. Merry f***ing Christmas.”
I can’t f***ing wait.
Danny will be working alongside a whole bunch of upcoming Brit actors in his latest movie, with insiders telling me he is now the only original Football Factory actor back for a second pop at drug-fuelled fighting.
Tamer Hassan, who played Chelsea hooligan Fred, has confirmed he will not be making a comeback, leaving Danny to go it alone.
Then again, I couldn’t think of anyone more perfect than Danny to play an out-of-shape wannabe hardman with a taste for toot.
And it’s just started to snow. How fitting.
