Hey friends. 👋
Mixtapes are SO back. Being thoughtful and taking the time to curate a well-thought-out playlist for someone? I think that’s something we can all collectively agree is a cool thing to bring back.
What’s better than someone saying, “This song reminds me of you” (and it being a killer song, of course)? Or someone saying, “You just HAVE to hear this song!” because they want to share a little bit of their world with you.
Growing up, I wanted to be a music supervisor so badly. I always knew how important music was for feeling certain things, bringing up emotions, or, in other instances, making you forget a feeling. Funny enough, yesterday I met the music supervisor from some of my favorite music shows: Daisy Jones & The Six, The Summer I Turned Pretty, and Nashville (rest in sweet peace, Hayden). It struck me that the music she picked for certain scenes in those shows will always take me back to the emotion of that scene, or even where I was when I first heard the song. Music is powerful and can create a mood, change a circumstance, or send a message.
Historically, mixtapes started taking off in the 1970s, when DJs recorded live turntable mixes and party sets onto blank cassette tapes. That eventually turned into everyday listeners using home cassette decks to record their own custom song compilations from vinyl or the radio. Today’s version of a mixtape is essentially a very personal, curated playlist.
Psychologically, there are a few big reasons we love sharing music: social bonding, personal identity, and emotional expression. Basically, music helps us connect. Group listening can release bonding chemicals like oxytocin and dopamine and can even make us feel more in sync with the people around us. We use songs to show people pieces of our personality, tell parts of our life story through lyrics, pass down cultural traditions, say things we can’t always say out loud, and, yes, sometimes subtly flirt or build a relationship.
So, this is basically me saying I want to bond with you all.
Send me your favorite song at the moment, and I’ll compile them into a playlist to share in next week’s DoTell.
The song I’ll share right now is one I’ve been obsessing over ever since I first heard it live over the summer: Something to Lose. Enjoy!
THIS WEEK IN MUSIC NEWS & TOURS 🎤
Phoebe Bridgers spent her birthday somewhere decidedly less festive than planned: the hospital, after being diagnosed with appendicitis. The singer postponed her U.K. shows for the week but promised ticket holders she’d make it up to them- a rough plot twist just days after releasing Lost Weekend.
Benny Blanco is leaning all the way into Latin music with Hermoso, a new eight-track album featuring Selena Gomez, Becky G, Myke Towers, Mora, The Marías, Bb trickz, Neton Vega and Ovy On The Drums. The project bounces between cumbia, reggaeton, pop and electronic sounds, giving one of pop’s busiest producers a very different kind of spotlight.
Remi Wolf announced her third album, Mud, arriving October 9 via Island Records. The 11-song set includes the previously released “Twiggy,” with another new single, “Bottle,” due August 20 (and yes, the album cover fully commits to the mud concept).
Oasis are reliving the reunion on the big screen with a new trailer for Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger, the documentary chronicling their blockbuster 2025 comeback. The film arrives in U.S. theaters September 11, with IMAX early-access screenings two days earlier, because apparently the Gallagher brothers’ reconciliation needed to be experienced at maximum volume.
Ellie Goulding has sued her former managers, alleging they failed to disclose business ties to Live Nation that created a conflict of interest while representing her. Goulding claims the relationship affected deals involving touring, merchandise and a documentary; her former managers and Live Nation had not commented on the allegations when the story broke.
Nashville star Hayden Panettiere is being remembered with an outpouring of love from former co-stars, friends and fellow performers following her death at 36. Tributes have celebrated her warmth, talent and the impact she made both on screen and through her music, with many sharing personal memories of the actress who brought Juliette Barnes to life on Nashville.
The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards nominations are officially here, with Madonna leading the field at 11 nods and Taylor Swift close behind with nine. Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter scored seven apiece, while this year’s ceremony is set for September 27 in Los Angeles — start preparing your group-chat arguments now.
KATSEYE unleashed their third EP, WILD, featuring “PINKY UP,” “Animal” and new tracks including “Bel Air” and “Hootie Frutti.” As a bonus dose of global-pop world domination, their documentary KATSEYE: WILD HEARTS also hit cinemas.
Troye Sivan is back with “She’s The Best,” opening the door on his next musical chapter. The new track marks his first taste of a forthcoming fourth studio album with Nicole Kidman starring in his video.
Tinashe kept the dance floor awake with “Melatonin,” a decidedly non-sleepy preview of her upcoming album Popstar. The kinetic single arrived with a video directed by 91 Rules and follows earlier teasers “Too Easy” and “Crash Out.”
Recent Tour Announcements:
Bad Bunny - Bad Bunny is bringing his blockbuster Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour back home for two final Puerto Rico shows, closing a globe-spanning run that has already sold more than 3.1 million tickets. It’s a fitting homecoming for a production built around Puerto Rican culture, history, and identity.
Kanye “Ye” West - Ye’s “Ye Live Tour” is headed to Russia for two sold-out stadium shows in Saint Petersburg, part of a turbulent international run that has seen several European dates canceled while others moved forward. The tour is currently scheduled to conclude in Jakarta later this fall.
Chris Brown & Usher - Chris Brown and Usher are making their massive “The R&B Tour” even bigger, adding eight dates and stretching the blockbuster stadium run to 59 shows. The tour has been a major box-office force, with the first 20 reported shows already grossing more than $153 million.
Luke Combs - Luke Combs is extending his hugely successful “My Kinda Saturday Night Tour” into 2027 with another round of North American stadium shows. The new leg follows a record-setting run that included three sold-out nights at Wembley Stadium and more than 1.3 million tickets sold across 22 shows.
Jonas Brothers - Jonas Brothers are taking “The Burning Up Tour All Over Again” nationwide with a 45-city North American run celebrating the music and memories of their original “Burning Up Tour.” Magnus Ferrell, Franklin Jonas and All Time Low are set to join the brothers on select dates.
Dave Matthews Band - Dave Matthews Band will keep one of live music’s most enduring road stories going with a new fall U.S. tour, capped by a two-night Madison Square Garden stand. Pollstar notes that the band has sold more than 25 million concert tickets since its 1991 debut, placing it among the millennium’s biggest touring acts.
John Summit - Fresh off a hometown Lollapalooza headline set, John Summit is leveling up again with the biggest headline show of his career at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The stadium date joins his “CTRL ESCAPE” tour, which promises an immersive, high-impact production built for his next creative era.
Sugarland - Sugarland are celebrating 20 years of Enjoy the Ride with “The Ride or Die Tour,” a 26-city U.S. run built around the album that helped cement Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush as country mainstays. The anniversary gives the Grammy-winning duo a chance to revisit a catalog packed with fan favorites from a defining period in their career.
TDE - Top Dawg Entertainment is taking its roster and resources to HBCU campuses with “TDE University,” combining live performances with student showcases, mentorship, scholarships and civic engagement. The tour is designed as more than a concert series, blending festival-style campus takeovers with opportunities aimed directly at the next generation.
Eric Prydz - Eric Prydz will make his Club Darc debut on Halloween as part of his fall North American tour, bringing his progressive-house catalog to the first show of the club’s new season. Tiga and a Kelly Lee Owens DJ set will support the San Francisco date.
Dylan Gossett - Dylan Gossett is carrying his fast-rising country momentum overseas with the “Ramblin’ EU/UK Tour 2027.” The run follows news of his sophomore album Ramblin’ and comes as the singer-songwriter’s career approaches 1.5 billion streams, powered by his breakout hit “Coal.”
Pedro Fernández - Mexican music veteran Pedro Fernández is returning to U.S. and Mexican stages with the “Ave Fénix Two’r,” a reimagined follow-up to his successful 2025 run. The new production celebrates a career spanning more than four decades and a songbook that has connected with generations of música Mexicana fans.
Big Ocean - Big Ocean, the pioneering K-pop trio whose members are hard of hearing, are heading back across the U.S. this fall with a run of concerts and festival appearances. Their performances incorporate Korean, American and International Sign Language, making accessibility part of the group’s identity onstage as well as off.
THIS WEEK IN RANDOM, BUT AWESOME, EVENTS ✨
Air Guitar World Championships — Oulu, Finland
Somewhere in Finland, people are currently preparing to become the best in the world at playing an instrument that does not exist.
The Air Guitar World Championships return to Oulu August 26–29, bringing together competitors from around the world for a very serious battle involving zero actual guitars and an irresponsible amount of rock-star energy. The championships have been happening there since 1996, and somehow the whole thing gets even better when you learn its mission is genuinely wholesome: promoting world peace under the slogan “Make Air, Not War.”
Competitors take the stage, shred imaginary solos, throw themselves around like they’re headlining an arena, and compete for the extremely real title of Air Guitar World Champion.
No strings. No amps. Just confidence, commitment, and the belief that for a few minutes, you are absolutely destroying that guitar solo.
MEMBER’S ONLY 🔥
I want to hear your best DoStuff story.
Maybe you discovered your local DoStuff page after moving to a new city, and it helped you find your people. Maybe you met a best friend at an event we hosted, scored DoMORE tickets to an unforgettable show, or discovered an artist you now can’t stop listening to.
Whatever it is, I want the story behind the night out.
When has DoStuff helped something memorable happen in your life? Reply to this email and tell me everything (sweet, random, life-changing, all of it). I may share a few favorites in an upcoming DoTell. 👀
That’s it for this week.
And don’t forget to send me your favorite song at the moment or your best DoStuff story!
Jess ✨
