New Music Friday September 25: U2, Madonna, Taylor Swift, Kenny Chesney, Cara Delevingne, Magnus Ferrell

Happy New Music Friday! The weekend is here, which means more streaming, new playlists and the best that music has to offer — and ET has you covered for everything in between.

The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards hosted by Snoop Dogg will air September 27 on CBS and MTV and stream on Paramount+. Kacey Musgraves will perform and pay tribute to Dolly Parton. RAYE, SOMBR and Teddy Swims will come together for a tribute performance to honor George Michael. Taylor Swift will receive the inaugural MTV VMA Artist Director Honors which is the first ever award to recognize artists whose directorial work has advanced the art of music video and storytelling. Madonna will open the awards and additional performers include GENER8ION, Gunna, LISA, RAYE, Shaboozey, SIENNA SPIRO, Yung Lean.

The VMAs will also show the world premiere of Taylor Swift’s music video for “Patient Zero.” It was directed by Taylor and stars Colin Farrell and Dakota Johnson. The song is featured on The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore.

The 2026 Global Citizen Festival will take place on Central Park’s Great Lawn on September 26. Hosted by Hugh Jackman, performers will include Ms. Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean, Lenny Kravitz, John Legend, Lainey Wilson, Shaboozey, TOMORROW X TOGETHER and appearances by Rachel Brosnahan and Gayle King. This year’s festival will help solve issues perpetuating cycles of extreme poverty across the world. Following a successful U.S. promotional run and the release of his second solo album this summer, YEONJUN from TOMORROW X TOGETHER will be performing a solo set.

U2 have announced a new studio album, Carnaval De Luz, the first album of new material from the band in nine years. The album is a collection of 12 songs exploring themes of spirituality, friendship, freedom and endurance in the face of dark, encroaching forces. The final track on the album is a duet between Bono and the late Dolly Parton, which turned out to be her last recorded vocal performance. Co-written by U2, Parton and Johnny McDaid, it is a tender country song detailing broken family ties that holds wider resonances. A new track “Silencio” is out now and the album will be out on November 13.

Hilary Duff took the stage at The GRAMMY MUSEUM’s Ray Charles Rooftop for a deep-dive conversation and performance alongside her album collaborators. During a Q&A, Hilary opened up about her creative process, her return to pop music and response to her record-breaking tour. Following the discussion, she delivered a stripped back performance of “Future Tripping,” “Mature,” “Adult Size Medium” and “Come Clean” featuring husband Matthew Koma, who performed alongside her for the first time ever. Earlier this week, Hilary announced she has extended her world tour, the lucky me tour with 32 new dates across Europe, Latin America and the U.S. The added leg will kick off May 7 in Madrid.

The Recording Academy / Rebecca Sapp, Getty Images

Usher and Chris Brown are continuing their sold out co-headlining The R&B Tour with two sold out shows at SoFi Stadium this weekend in Los Angeles. They have shows until they wrap in Tampa, FL in December.

Justin Ongeri

iHeartMedia announced the lineup for its annual Jingle Ball tour, kicking off on December 1 in Dallas. The tour will also hit Los Angeles, New York City, Boston, Detroit, Washington D.C., Nashville and will feature performances from Olivia Rodrigo, Jonas Brothers, Hilary Duff, SOMBR, RAYE, Alex Warren, Charlie Puth, Teddy Swims, Jason Derulo, Ludacris, OneRepublic, KATSEYE, Nickelback, TOMORROW X TOGETHER and more. ABC and Hulu will also air iHeartRadio Jingle Ball 2026 holiday special in late December.

Plus, new music from Madonna, Charli xcx, Kenny Chesney, Harry Connick, Jr., Tinashe, Cara Delevingne, Magnus Ferrell, Brandi Carlile, Ms. Rachel, Jackson Wang and more.

“Silencio” – U2