Kylie Minogue centre of UN ‘international diplomatic incident’

Global superstar Kylie Minogue was the subject of a “international diplomatic incident” at the United Nations, which garnered several laughs.

Kylie Minogue was the subject of an “international diplomatic incident” at the United Nations as her Tension album debuted at No.1 on the weekend.

Minogue was announced alongside celebrities including Naomi Campbell, Novak Djokovic, Michael Fassbender and Michelle Yeoh to star on billboards around the world for the UN’s Global Road Safety campaign.

But a UN spokesman listing the celebrities involved at a press briefing pronounced the Padam Padam superstar’s name as “Kylie Minogee.”

Averted an international diplomatic incident today…. @kylieminoguepic.twitter.com/02F6yYrMnG

— Michelle Nichols (@michellenichols) September 29, 2023

Reuters United Nations bureau chief Michelle Nichols, a Kylie fangirl and Australian journalist, jumped in to correct the hapless flack with the right pronunciation.

And pointed out Minogue is having a peak global fame moment right now.

“I have to correct you. When you were listing all the people who have worked on the road safety campaign, you mentioned an Australian icon. Her name is Kylie Minogue, not Kylie Minogee. She currently has a No.1 hit album in many countries around the world,” Nichols interjected to the giggles of her media peers.

The spokesman apologised on the record to Minogue with the qualifier: “But if she could see me dance to her tune, I think she’d understand.”

KYLIE’S HUGE MOMENT OF GLOBAL DOMINATION

Minogue is again the queen of the pop charts with her new record Tension debuting at No.1 in Australia and the UK.

She bolted ahead of the competition in the UK midweek, outselling the entire top 20 albums combined on the British charts with early sales of more than 40,000 albums.

She was a whopping 35,000 chart units ahead of closest competitor; the former No.1 album GUTS by Olivia Rodrigo.

Back home, it’s her fourth consecutive No.1 on the ARIA charts following Golden in 2018, Step Back In Time: The Definitive Collection in 2019 and Disco in 2020.

Kylie Minogue has scored four nominations for the 2023 ARIA Awards. Picture: Edward Cooke

Tension’s lead single Padam Padam last week won four nominations for the 2023 ARIA Awards - Best Solo Artist, Best Pop Release, Best Independent Release and Song of the Year.

The awards will be announced at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion on November 15.

“All hail the queen. On behalf of everyone at ARIA, and as a superfan, it is my absolute pleasure to congratulate Kylie for her fourth consecutive No.1 album debut,” ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd said in a statement.

“It’s a thrill to see an ARIA Hall of Fame artist continue to dominate, reinvent and represent Australian music on such a global scale. We can’t wait to celebrate her success at this year’s awards.” 

Minogue’s Tension has proven to be a stream dream. The record was at No.3 on Spotify’s Top Albums Debut UK Chart during the week, at No.5 on the Top Albums Debut USA and also at No.5 on the Global Top Albums Debut chart.

The record’s latest single Hold On To Now is also heading for success, coming in at No.10 on the Top Songs Debut UK Chart this week.

While her Australian fans wait patiently for news of a Tension tour here next year, Minogue will now start prepping for her much-anticipated residency at Voltaire, the new theatre at the Venetian in Las Vegas which kicks off in November.

It comes after Minogue’s ARIA nominations were her biggest haul since 2002, when Fever and its unforgettable smash Can’t Get You Out Of My Head swept the awards.

Kylie continues to stun the world with her upcoming Las Vegas residency. Picture: Edward Cooke

The ARIA voters also showed love for John Farnham as he continues his recovery from cancer with a nomination for Best Original Soundtrack or Musical Theatre Cast Album for the Finding the Voice compilation which peaked at No. 2 on the charts.

The most nominated artist for the 2023 ARIAS is Genesis Owusu, the genre-defying Ghanaian-Australian rapper and singer whose second record Struggler has been recognised with seven nods after its impressive top 4 debut last month.

Owusu also topped the awards in 2021 with his breakthrough debut Smiling With No Teeth which won four awards from seven nominations at a pandemic-restricted live-streamed ceremony.

Next on the 2023 leaderboard with six nominations each are electronic producer Dom Dolla, alt-rocker G Flip and pop prince Troye Sivan; all three artists have made their mark on the world stage this year with hit singles and albums.

Australian rock band DMA’s and soulful pop singer Budjerah, who won tens of thousands of fans when he opened for Ed Sheeran on his mathematics tour here earlier this year, each scored five nominations.

ARIA nominees Forest Claudette, KYE and Brad Cox Picture: Jeremy Piper

And psychedelic rockers King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and blues heroes The Teskey Brother joined Minogue with four nods.

Other multiple nominees included Amy Shark, country star Brad Cox, alternative pop group Cub Sport, singer songwriters Matt Corby and Dan Sultan and fresh pop princess Peach PRC.

There are a whopping 34 first-time nominees year compared to 25 in 2022.

The arrival of new, and mostly independent artists on the ARIA nominations list reflects the commitment of the 1200 music industry voters to emerging talent.

“This is my first nomination as a solo artist and is such a career highlight. This is such a proud moment for myself and everyone who was involved in this EP,” rising R & B singer Kye said.

The nomination list also underscores the seemingly insurmountable challenge of Australian singles and albums to connect with a bigger fanbase both at home and overseas due to the lack of presence on the most popular streaming or commercial radio playlists.

Troye Sivan has also been nominated for an award.

Only a few of the nominated artists have truly global audiences who generate hundreds of millions of plays for their songs in the streaming ecosystem, including previous ARIA winners the Kid Laroi (who has two nominations this year), Sivan and Dean Lewis (one nomination).

ARIA was forced to change the criteria for eligibility for nomination this year because so few Australian artists make it onto the top 100 singles and albums now due to the dominance of streaming in chart calculations.

Awards organisers shifted eligibility to include making it into the Australian-only artist singles and album charts and in some genre categories, having a song “surveyed” for the chart which simply means it was released.

One of the refreshing results delivered by the voting academy this year is the roll call of nominees in the Best Solo Artist category, which replaced the Best Female and Male Artist awards in 2021 to promote diversity and equality.

Pop singer Budjerah.

When hosting the ARIAS last year, G Flip flagged how important the shift was to them.

“This category … allows non-binary and gender diverse humans to be seen and be included when nominated,” they said.

The nominations of non-binary artists G Flip and Jen Cloher this year underline why ARIA had to remove the gender-specific categories.

The awards producers now face the herculean task of getting Australian viewers excited about the music night of nights which hit a new ratings low last year attracting only 243,000 metro viewers.

The 2023 ARIA Awards will be announced at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney on November 15 and broadcast on Stan and Nine.

2023 ARIA AWARDS NOMINATIONS

Album of the Year

DMA’S, How Many Dreams?

G Flip, Drummer

Genesis Owusu, Struggler

Matt Corby, Everything’s Fine

The Teskey Brothers, The Winding Way

Best Solo Artist

Budjerah

Dan Sultan

Dom Dolla

G Flip

Genesis Owusu

Jen Cloher

Kylie Minogue

Meg Mac

The Kid LAROI

Troye Sivan

Best Group

Cub Sport

DMA’S

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

Parkway Drive

The Teskey Brothers

Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Award

Charley

Grentperez

Pacific Avenue

Royel Otis

Teenage Dads

Best Pop Release

Amy Shark, Can I Shower At Yours?

Budjerah, Therapy

Kylie Minogue, Padam Padam

Peach PRC, Perfect For You

Troye Sivan, Rush

Best Dance / Electronic Release

FISHER & Aatig, Take It Off

Golden Features, Sisyphus

Lastlings, Perfect

MK & Dom Dolla, Rhyme Dust

PNAU & Troye Sivan, You Know What I Need

Best Hip Hop / Rap Release

Genesis Owusu, Struggler

Kahukx, Nothing To Something

Kerser, A Gift & A Kers

OneFour Feat. CG, Comma’s

Tkay Maidza & Flume, Silent Assassin

Best Soul / R & B Release

Chanel Loren, Rollin’

Forest Claudette, Mess Around (feat. EarthGang)

Jada Weazel, Skin

Kye, Ribena

Pania, P Stands 4 Playa

Best Independent Release

Cub Sport, Jesus At The Gay Bar

Dan Sultan, Dan Sultan

G Flip, Drummer

Genesis Owusu, Struggler

Kylie Minogue, Padam Padam

Best Rock Album

Bad//Dreems, Hoo Ha!

DMA’S, How Many Dreams?

G Flip, Drummer

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushroom And Lava

Pacific Avenue, Flower

Best Adult Contemporary Album

Alex Lahey, The Answer Is Always Yes

Dan Sultan, Dan Sultan

Kate Ceberano, My Life Is A Symphony

Mo’Ju, Oro, Plata, Mata

Tina Arena, Love Saves

Best Country Album

Brad Cox, Acres

Brooke McClymont & Adam Eckersley, Up, Down & Sideways

Fanny Lumsden, Hey Dawn

Henry Wagons, South Of Everywhere

The Wolfe Brothers, Livin’ The Dream

Best Hard Rock / Heavy Metal Album

DZ Deathrays, R.I.F.F

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet

Parkway Drive, Darker Still

The Amity Affliction, Not Without My Ghosts

These New South Whales, TNSW

Best Blues & Roots Album

Cash Savage and the Last Drinks, So This Is Love

Katie Wighton, The End

The Bamboos, Live at Hamer Hall With The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra

The Teskey Brothers, The Winding Way

Ziggy Alberts, Dancing In The Dark

Best Children’s Album

Emma Memma, Emma Memma

Peter Combe, Planet Earth

Play School, Very Jazzy Street Party

The Wiggles, Ready, Steady, Wiggle!

Whistle & Trick, Bananas and Other Delicious Things

PUBLIC VOTED AWARDS

Best Video

Can I Shower At Yours? Amy Shark

Everybody’s Saying Thursday’s The Weekend, DMA’S

Gila Monster, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

You Love, Jessica Mauboy (feat. Jason Derulo)

Good Enough, G Flip

Lola, MAY-A

Lookin’ Out, King Stingray

Manic Dream Pixie, Peach PRC

Stay Blessed, Genesis Owusu

Therapy, Budjerah

Best Australian Live Act

Baker Boy

Brad Cox

Budjerah

DMA’S

Dom Dolla

G Flip

Julia Jacklin

King Stingray

RÜFÜS DU SOL

Tame Impala

Song of the Year

Budjerah, Therapy

Day1 Feat. Kahukx, MBAPPÉ

Dean Lewis, How Do I Say Goodbye

Joji, Die For You

Kylie Minogue, Padam Padam

Luude & Mattafix, Big City Life

MK & Dom Dolla, Rhyme Dust

R3hab & Amy Shark, Sway My Way

The Kid LAROI, Love Again

Troye Sivan, Rush

Most Popular International Artist

Beyonce

Drake & 21 Savage

Ed Sheeran

Luke Combs

Metro Boomin

Morgan Wallen

Nicki Minaj

P! nk

SZA

Taylor Swift

Artisan Award

Best Cover Art

Acres, Brad Cox

370HSSV 0773H, Private Function

Everything Was Green, Forest Claudette

Manic Dream Pixie, Peach PRC

Jesus At The Gay Bar, Cub Sport

Everything’s Fine, Matt Corby

Best Engineered Release

Dann Hume, Chris Collins, Matt Corby – Everything’s Fine, Matt Corby

Dom Dolla, Eat Your Man, Dom Dolla

Eric J Dubowsky, Sam Teskey, Wayne Connolly – The Winding Way, The Teskey Brothers

Simon Cohen, Dave Hammer – Struggler, Genesis Owusu

Styalz Fuego – Rush, Troye Sivan

Best Produced Release

Andrew Klippel, Dave Hammer – Struggler, Genesis Owusu

Dom Dolla – Eat Your Man, Dom Dolla

Matt Corby, Chris Collins, Nat Dunn, Alex Henriksson – Everything’s Fine, Matt Corby

M-Phazes – 4th Wall, Ruel

Styalz Fuego – Rush, Troye Sivan

Fine Arts Awards

Best Classical Album

Australian Chamber Orchestra / Richard Tognetti, Indies & Idols

Ensemble Offspring, To Listen, To Sing – Ngarra-Burria: First Peoples Composers

Neil Gaiman & FourPlay String Quartet, Signs Of Life

Roger Benedict & Simon Tedeschi, Debussy – Ravel

Various Artists, Genevieve Lacey: Breathing Space

Best Jazz Album

Lance Gurisik, Cull Portal

Mike Nock, Hearing

Sinj Clarke, The Height Of Love

Surprise Chef, Education & Recreation

The Vampires featuring Chris Abrahams, Nightjar

Best Original Soundtrack or Musical Theatre Cast Album

Brett Aplin and Burkhard Dallwitz, Splice Here: A Projected Odyssey

Helena Czajka, Unseen Skies

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra / Benjamin Northey, Blueback

Sophie Payten (GORDI) / Jason Fernandez, RIDE

John Farnham: Finding the Voice

Best World Music Album

Byron Mark, Odyssey

East of West, Moving Home

Joseph Tawadros, To Those Who Came Before Us

Mick Dick, Id of RA

Songs of Disappearance, Australian Frog Calls

Originally published as Kylie Minogue centre of UN ‘international diplomatic incident’