Tune Talk: Weekly Music News

## New Album Releases (June 30 – July 6, 2025)

- **Kesha – Period**
Released independently via Kesha Records on July 4, 2025, Period (stylized as “.”) is Kesha’s sixth studio album and her first project since departing RCA and Kemosabe Records in December 2023. The 11-track record features previously released singles “Joyride,” “Delusional,” “Yippee-Ki-Yay” (with T-Pain), “Boy Crazy” and “The One.” In support of the album, Kesha will embark on her TITS OUT Tour beginning July 1 in Hawaii. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Period_%28Kesha_album%29?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [grammy.com](https://www.grammy.com/news/new-albums-july-2025-kesha-burna-boy-backstreet-boys?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

- **Dropkick Murphys – For the People**
The Celtic punk veterans’ thirteenth studio album, For the People, arrived July 4, 2025 (streaming) via Dummy Luck Music. Produced by Ted Hutt and featuring the return of longtime singer Al Barr (on one track), the 13-song collection also includes guest appearances from Billy Bragg, The Scratch and The Mary Wallopers. CD and vinyl editions, due October 10, will contain five bonus tracks not available on streaming. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_the_People_%28Dropkick_Murphys_album%29?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

## Industry News

- **BTS Promises New Album and World Tour**
On July 1, K-pop supergroup BTS announced on a Weverse livestream (7.3 million concurrent viewers) that they will begin work in the U.S. on their first full-length album since 2020 and launch a world tour in early 2026, marking their return as a seven-member act after completing South Korea’s mandatory military service. ([reuters.com](https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/k-pop-supergroup-bts-promises-new-album-world-tour-next-year-2025-07-01/?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

- **Warner Music Group Plans Further Cost Cuts with Bain JV**
On July 1, WMG CEO Robert Kyncl unveiled a $1.2 billion joint-venture fund with Bain Capital to acquire music catalogs, alongside a memo outlining $170 million in “headcount rightsizing” and an additional $130 million in administrative and real-estate savings to achieve $300 million in annualized cost reductions by end-2026. This follows WMG’s earlier layoffs of 750 employees in 2024. ([musically.com](https://musically.com/2025/07/02/wmg-preps-more-catalogue-acquisitions-but-also-more-layoffs/?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [musicbusinessworldwide.com](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/warner-music-group-to-reduce-annual-cost-by-another-300m-with-170m-saved-via-headcount-rightsizing/?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

## Artist News & Notable Developments

- **Five Finger Death Punch to Re-record Classics, Taylor’s Version-Style**
Celebrating their 20th anniversary, Five Finger Death Punch announced July 1 that Best Of – Volume 1 (“20 Years of …”) will feature 14 re-recorded hits (including “Wrong Side of Heaven,” “Bad Company,” “Jekyll and Hyde”) plus three live tracks, released July 18 via Better Noise Music. The move, inspired by Taylor Swift’s rerecording strategy, follows the undisclosed sale of their original masters. ([blabbermouth.net](https://blabbermouth.net/news/five-finger-death-punch-announces-best-of-volume-1-collection-of-re-recorded-versions-of-bands-biggest-songs?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [exclaim.ca](https://exclaim.ca/music/article/five-finger-death-punch-best-of-album?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

- **Visuals & Reissues: Epica and ZZ Top**
• Symphonic metallers Epica premiered the official lyric video for “Fight to Survive” (from their April album Aspiral) on July 4, inviting fans to learn the song ahead of upcoming live shows. ([therocktologist.com](https://www.therocktologist.com/news-july-2025.html), [thefrontrowreport.com](https://www.thefrontrowreport.com/epica-release-aspiral-video-for-fight-to-survive/?utm_source=chatgpt.com))
• On July 4, ZZ Top released From The Top (1979–1990), a 5-LP Rhino High Fidelity box set (limited to 3,000 copies), featuring AAA-cut, 180-gram vinyl of five of their most successful albums—Degüello, El Loco, Eliminator, Afterburner and Recycler—housed in a faux-leather slipcase. ([therocktologist.com](https://www.therocktologist.com/news-july-2025.html), [americansongwriter.com](https://americansongwriter.com/new-zz-top-box-set-from-the-top-1979-1990-features-high-quality-vinyl-editions-of-five-of-the-bands-most-popular-albums/?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

## Tours & Live Updates

- **Oasis Reunion Tour Launches**
On July 4, Oasis kicked off their Live ’25 Tour—their first live dates since reforming—at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, launching a global trek across five continents through November 23, with support from Ball Park Music, Cage the Elephant and Richard Ashcroft. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oasis_Live_%2725_Tour?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

- **Willie Nelson’s Outlaw Music Festival Weather Disruption**
Severe storms on June 29 led to the cancellation of Nelson’s July 1 Outlaw Music Festival date in El Reno, Oklahoma after equipment damage and an off-site fatality. Organizers offered refunds, and Nelson confirmed via Instagram that his guitar “Trigger” was safe, with shows resuming at his July 4 Picnic in Austin. ([chron.com](https://www.chron.com/culture/article/willie-nelson-weather-canceled-show-20403330.php?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [people.com](https://people.com/willie-nelson-cancels-concert-after-extreme-weather-ruins-his-gear-11764121?utm_source=chatgpt.com))

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*Compiled for the week of June 30 – July 6, 2025*