Phoebe Bridgers Turns Madison Square Garden Into Her Living Room — No Phones Allowed

Phoebe Bridgers Turns Madison Square Garden Into Her Living Room — No Phones Allowed

Phoebe Bridgers looked out at 18,000 people who had willingly handed over their phones and said, "It's weird not having a phone, isn't it?" That was the vibe all night at her special acoustic show at Madison Square Garden, where Yondr pouches swallowed every device, and reporters were barred from bringing pens, pencils, or paper. The rules were strict, the room was cavernous, and somehow it all held together — lines moved efficiently, and the concert started 30 minutes late to make sure most of the crowd was actually seated before things kicked off.

Gobble's Take: Bridgers handed 18,000 people a phone-free evening and they just… went with it. That might be the most impressive thing she's pulled off yet.

Source: Variety

Lizzo's Fifth Album Is Called Bitch and She Will Not Be Elaborating Further (Except She Will)

Lizzo's fifth studio album, Bitch, dropped Friday, June 5, and the title is exactly as intentional as it sounds. She called reclaiming the word an act of power — turning a label used to diminish women into "a declaration of confidence and unapologetic self-love." For anyone keeping track of the rollout chaos: yes, this is technically the same album as the previously announced Love In Real Life. As Lizzo put it, "[Bitch] is technically the same album… I just changed the name. The music is the same." Singles "Don't Make Me Love U" and the title track led the way in, with album cuts including "She Stole My Man," "Whose Hair Is This," and "Sexy Ladies" rounding things out.

Gobble's Take: Lizzo didn't just pick a provocative album title — she wrote a thesis statement and then made it the cover art.

Source: Billboard

Taylor Swift Goes Country Again — For Jessie, for Toy Story 5, for All of Us

Taylor Swift released "I Knew It, I Knew You" on June 5, a new Toy Story 5 song written with cowgirl Jessie in mind and framed explicitly as a return to her country roots. Swift described the experience as feeling "like a musical departure and coming home at the same time," thanked director Andrew Stanton, and tied the whole thing to a lifetime of Toy Story fandom. The track will appear on the franchise's fifth movie soundtrack, dropping June 19 — the same day Toy Story 5 hits theaters.

Gobble's Take: Swift wrote a country song for a cowgirl toy and somehow made it feel personally autobiographical. That's the trick, isn't it.

Source: Billboard

In Case You Missed It

Yesterday's top stories:

• Ariana Grande, Bad Bunny, The Weeknd, and a calendar that's running out of room
• Collider reminds everyone the fantasy debate was never actually settled
• Collider wants to know which fictional universe you actually belong in