Pink Floyd members reunite to record song for Ukraine

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Pink Floyd is releasing its first new music in almost three decades to raise money for the people of Ukraine, the band announced Thursday.

“Hey Hey Rise Up” features Pink Floyd members David Gilmour and Nick Mason, with vocals from Ukrainian singer Andriy Khlyvnyuk of the band BoomBox. Roger Waters, who left the band in the 1980s, is not involved.

The track features Khlyvnyuk singing a patriotic Ukrainian song from a clip he recorded in front of Kyiv’s St. Sophia Cathedral and posted on social media.

Gilmour, who performed with BoomBox in London in 2015, said the video was “a powerful moment that made me want to put it to music.”

After Russia’s invasion, Khlyvnyuk cut short a tour of the U.S. to return to Ukraine and join a territorial defense unit.

Gilmour said he spoke to Khlyvnyuk, who was recovering in a hospital from a mortar shrapnel injury, while he was writing the song. He said: “I played him a little bit of the song down the phone line and he gave me his blessing. We both hope to do something together in person in the future.”

The song is being released Friday and the band says proceeds will go to the Ukraine Humanitarian Relief Fund.

“We want to express our support for Ukraine, and in that way show that most of the world thinks that it is totally wrong for a superpower to invade the independent democratic country that Ukraine has become," Gilmour said.

Pink Floyd was founded in London in the mid-1960s and helped forge the U.K. psychedelic scene before releasing influential 1970s albums including “The Dark Side of the Moon,” “Wish You Were Here” and “The Wall.”

Original member Waters quit in 1985, and the remaining members of Pink Floyd last recorded together for the 1994 album “The Division Bell." After keyboard player Richard Wright died in 2008, Gilmour said he doubted Pink Floyd would perform together again.

“Hey Hey Rise Up” also features Guy Pratt on bass and Nitin Sawhney on keyboards.

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Drake Leads BET Award Nominations: Full List Of Nominees Revealed

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While Drake just seems to have lost the biggest rap battle since Jay-Z and Nas, he's got some good news to distract himself with this month. Moreover, with seven nominations, he leads the 2024 BET Awards nominees, with Young Money partner Nicki Minaj right behind him with six nominations. J. Cole, Victoria Monét, Sexyy Red, and SZA have five each, whereas Usher, Beyoncé, 21 Savage, Doja Cat, Tyla, and Megan Thee Stallion have four each. This year's ceremony will air live on Sunday, June 30 at 8PM EST from Los Angeles on the BET network. With these stars and more in mind, this should make for a pretty stellar event.

Moreover, BET also confirmed the first wave of performers for the 2024 awards show: GloRilla, Shaboozey, Muni Long, Latto, Sexyy Red, and Victoria Monét. In addition, "Album Of The Year" contenders this year will provide an interesting race. These are Usher's Coming Home, 21 Savage's American Dream, Drake's For All The Dogs deluxe, Victoria Monét's Jaguar II, Gunna's A Gift & A Curse, Chris Brown's 11:11, Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday 2, and Killer Mike's MICHAEL.

Drake Performing At Lollapalooza Chile 2023

Lollapalooza Chile 2023 - Day 2Lollapalooza Chile 2023 - Day 2

SANTIAGO, CHILE - MARCH 18: Drake performs during day two of Lollapalooza Chile 2023 on March 18, 2023 in Santiago, Chile. (Photo by Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images)
 

As far as the Viewer's Choice portion of the BET Awards, there are a lot of hits in contention. Jack Harlow's "Lovin On Me," Beyoncé's "Texas Hold 'Em," Tyla's "Water," Drake's "Rich Baby Daddy" with SZA and Sexyy Red, Victoria Monét's "On My Mama," Doja Cat's "Agora Hills," Lil Durk and J. Cole's "All My Life," Gunna's "Fukumean," Chris Brown's "Sensational" with Davido and Lojay, and Muni Long's "Made For Me." On another note, Drake, Burna Boy, and Doja Cat are nominated in their respective gendered categories for both best R&B/pop artist and best hip-hop artist.

Meanwhile, for those unaware, the BET Voting Academy determined these nominations, which is a collective of entertainment figures across the many fields that these awards summarize. Voting begins on June 6 and ends the day of the ceremony. If you want to see the full list of nominations, including best group, best new artist, and video of the year, check it out with the "Via" link down below. With this year's nominations leader in mind, might they have a category for "Best Post-Beef Instagram Story" next year?

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