NEWS
Adele
CBSSpotify users listening to Adele’s 30 will hear the album as the singer intended after the streaming service promised to remove the default shuffle feature from the LP, as per Adele’s request.
“This was the only request I had in our ever changing industry! We don’t create albums with so much care and thought into our track listing for no reason,” Adele tweeted Saturday night.
“Our art tells a story and our stories should be listened to as we intended. Thank you Spotify for listening.”
Spotify tweeted back, “Anything for you.” The streaming service, controversially, long allowed for shuffling to be the default playback option for albums, as opposed to the artists’ own curated track order.
(As of writing, the shuffle function — two intersecting arrows — still appeared, albeit much smaller, on the 30 page on Spotify, allowing users to randomize the track list. However, some users on social media reported that the shuffle option had been eliminated for them on the album page.)
In a statement Sunday, Spotify confirmed the change. “As Adele mentioned, we are excited to share that we have begun rolling out a new Premium feature that has long been requested by both users and artists to make play the default button on all albums,” the streaming service said. “For those users still wishing to shuffle an album, they can go to the Now Playing View and select the shuffle toggle. As always, we will continue to iterate our products and features to create the best experiences for both artists and their fans.”
30, Adele’s “best album yet,” arrived on Friday. In addition to streaming, the LP is available in a variety of formats and exclusive editions.
Adele also appears on the cover of current issue of Rolling Stone, and revealed she has a secret TikTok account and dreams of singing the hook on a hip-hop track.
NEWS
Lola Young has joined forces with Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) to release a new T shirt for the charity’s Lifelines collection.
The shirt supports CALM’s suicide prevention work, with proceeds helping to fund vital resources such as its helpline and CALMzone mental health app.
CALM introduced the Lifelines range last year, with Fontaines D.C., Blossoms and Inhaler also contributing their own designs to the collection.
Young’s design includes the words, “There’s a flicker of light. There’s always morning after the night”, taken from her track ‘Flicker Of Light’.
“I wrote this song about realising there is hope. I have often felt like there isn’t, but there is always a reason to keep going,” Young said. “That’s even when you don’t want to get out of bed, you do, and that is amazing, and you’re still here, and you’re still alive, and if anything, that’s something to be proud of.”
CALM CEO Simon Gunning also shared his appreciation for the collaboration, saying: “We couldn’t be more grateful to Lola for supporting ‘Lifelines’ and showing just how powerful music can be as a force for good.”
Priced at £30, the T shirts come in both standard and boxy fits and are available to purchase here.
Young has regularly spoken about her experiences with mental health. She returned to performing earlier this year after calling off her 2025 tour because of exhaustion. The decision followed her collapse during a performance in New York City. During her time away, she later discussed receiving support for addiction and attending AA meetings as part of her recovery.
In an interview with NME in May, Young explained that she believes “all healing journeys are never ending”, although she is now “definitely in a much better place”. She also said she feels “excited and ready to perform and to release music”.
Reflecting on the encouragement she received after publicly discussing those challenges, Young said: “My fans inspire me in the same way I hope to inspire them. I feel like I’ve never tried to be especially honest… it just comes very naturally to me.”
“I don’t really have any other choice but to be honest, so if people connect to that, and that’s amazing.”
Several musicians have also applauded the ‘Messy’ singer for honestly addressing the pressure placed on touring performers. Lily Allen said she was “in awe” of the BRIT and Grammy winner, while Victoria Canal credited Young with bringing greater attention to the damaging impact demanding tour schedules can have on artists’ mental wellbeing.
When NME asked whether musicians were beginning to establish firmer boundaries around their health, Young replied: “I never intended it to start a movement, but I hope that it does in some way.”
