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10 Dec 2024

Elton John Says Changing His Name ‘Caught Up’ With Him Eventually: ‘I Was Just a Void’

Elton John certainly gained a lot after he adopted his rock-star persona — but according to the superstar born Reginald Dwight, some things got lost along the way.

In a new interview clip with Good Morning America posted Tuesday (Dec. 10), the 77-year-old icon opened up about the moment he realized his name change had “caught up” to him: right before his historic performance at Dodger Stadium in 1975. “Reginald is a really old-fashioned name,” Elton began. “It’s shortened to Reggie, which I hated.”

“I just didn’t like it, and as soon as I could, I changed my name,” he continued. “I was very clever, I thought, ‘No one’s really called Elton, so I’ll be Elton and I’ll be the only Elton.’ I wanted to leave my childhood and that persona behind, and that caught up with me. I realized I put everything into my work and my art, my recording, and there was nothing underneath there.”

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“I was just a void,” the “Tiny Dancer” musician added. “I left little Reggie behind, but little Reggie was still inside of me.”

The interview comes nearly a month after Elton’s documentary Elton John: Never Too Late premiered in select theaters in November, featuring an original song by the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Brandi Carlile. On Friday (Dec. 13), the film will become available for streaming on Disney+.

Elton is also fresh off the premiere of the Devil Wears Prada Broadway musical, for which he composed the soundtrack — a feat made more challenging by the musician losing his eyesight after suffering an eye infection over the summer. “I haven’t been able to come to many of the previews, because — as you know — I have lost my eyesight,” he told The Associated Press earlier this month after the show’s opening night in London. “So it’s hard for me to see it, but I love to hear it and, boy, it sounded good tonight.”

Watch Elton talk about his name change above.

10 Dec 2024

‘Holiday Road’ Is Top 10 on a Billboard Chart for the First Time, Thanks to Kesha Cover

“When I was a boy, just about every summer we’d take a vacation. And, you know, in 18 years, we never had fun.”

—

In 1983’s National Lampoon’s Vacation, Clark W. Griswold (Chevy Chase) ruminates about his childhood trips, as he takes his own family cross-country in their new metallic-pea Wagon Queen Family Truckster. (The blue Sports Wagon was much too small.)

Despite the Griswolds’ series of mishaps, the hit film introduced, upon its opening frames, a buoyant theme song: “Holiday Road,” written and performed by Lindsey Buckingham. The single spent five weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 82 in August 1983. It became the then-Fleetwood Mac member’s second of three career solo entries, in between “Trouble” (No. 9 peak, 1982) and “Go Insane” (No. 23, 1984).

Like the Griswolds finally witnessing Walley World, and Marty Moose (the moosiest moose we know), “Holiday Road” this week reaches the top 10 of a Billboard chart for the first time at last, as Kesha’s cover ascends 10 spots to No. 6 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs survey dated Dec. 14. It debuted on the list three weeks earlier, marking the first charted version of the song since Buckingham’s.

The update was released Oct. 15 as an exclusive on Spotify, along with four other holiday-themed songs.

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To date, Buckingham’s original “Holiday Road” has drawn 40.9 million official U.S. streams and 25.8 million in radio airplay audience and sold 133,000 downloads.

National Lampoon’s Vacation grossed a reported $60 million-plus in U.S. theaters. The film, directed by Harold Ramis, with its screenplay by John Hughes, is bookended by Buckingham’s music, closing with his likewise sprightly “Dancin’ Across the USA.” Along with Chase, its cast includes Beverly D’Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy and, in her first film role, Christie Brinkley.

Notably, Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl” – his ode to Brinkley, his then-future wife – debuted on the Hot 100 three weeks after Buckingham’s version departed, on its way to a No. 3 peak.

10 Dec 2024

Usher Opens Content Studio at Boys & Girls Club of Atlanta: ‘We’re Investing in Youth & I’m an Example’

Usher makes it a point to give back to the community and he’s investing in the youth once again with the launch of a Content Studio at the Whitehead Boys & Girls Club in Atlanta.

The R&B legend made the initiative official with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Usher Raymond IV Spark Lap at the Boys & Girls Club of ATL on Monday (Dec. 9). Usher launched an Entertainment Industry Club (officially starting in 2025) and state-of-the-art Content Studio arming emerging creatives with the tools and resources necessary to thrive.

“Returning to the Boys & Girls Clubs, where I discovered my passion, and launching this program in Atlanta is a full-circle moment for me,” Usher said. “The Spark Lab and Entertainment Industry Club is about providing our youth with the tools, confidence, and opportunities they need to turn their dreams into reality. It’s an honor to help inspire the next generation of leaders and innovators through After School programs.”

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While Usher’s been on the road performing, he made time to launch the Social Impact Tour in collaboration with his New Look foundation. Usher’s been able to help 4,800 kids along the trek across North America including stops in Brooklyn, Philly, Detroit, Oakland, Houston and more.

“We are invested in our future. We’re invested in youth and I’m an example. I represent an amazing alumni,” Usher continued during a presser on Monday regarding his experience at the Boys & Girls Club.

Kids with the Boys & Girls Club are excited about Usher’s involvement. “Usher’s a great guy, man. He’s giving a lot of these youth chances to help their community,” one member told Atlanta Now.

Usher is getting ready to wrap up the North American leg of his Past Present Future tour with a handful of U.S. dates left this month with shows on tap for Atlanta and Miami before heading out to the U.K. in March.

10 Dec 2024

Halsey to Write Dark Comedy Series ‘Bloodlust,’ With Ti West to Direct

Halsey is a songwriter, visual artist and makeup mogul — and now, the star has found a new medium for her artistry. According to Variety, the musician is set to write the script for a new dark comedy series Prime Video is developing called Bloodlust, with Ti West onboard to direct.

As revealed Tuesday (Dec. 10), the project has been in the works for “some time,” though no further details — other than its title — are known. Both Halsey and West will also serve as executive producers, with the pair reuniting after the filmmaker directed the “Bad at Love” singer in July’s MaXXXine.

Showrunner Mark Friedman is also attached as executive producer, as is Anthony Li, Halsey’s manager.

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The announcement comes about a month and a half after Halsey dropped their latest album, The Great Impersonator, debuting at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Featuring singles “Lucky,” “Ego” and “Lonely Is the Muse,” the LP found the About-Face Beauty founder opening up about life as a single mom undergoing treatment for lupus and a rare T-cell condition, diagnoses she first shared with the world in June.

“After 2 years, I’m feeling better and I’m more grateful than ever to have music to turn to,” the “Without Me” singer wrote on Instagram at the time. “I can’t wait to get back where I belong: With you all.”

Though Bloodlust will mark Halsey’s first official screenplay — not counting their self-written If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, a companion film to the star’s 2021 album of the same name — the musician has previously been involved in Hollywood in front of the camera. In addition to making a cameo in A Star Is Born, Halsey has also had roles in the films Americana, Sing 2 and Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, as well as the TV series Roadies and Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?

10 Dec 2024

Walker Hayes Shares His Duck Buck Co. Clothing Brand, Talks Turning ‘Fancy Like’ Into a Holiday Jam

It’s gift-shopping season, and Walker Hayes has the perfect products for the cozy or outdoorsy people in your life.

The country singer chatted with Billboard’s executive editor of West Coast and Nashville, Melinda Newman, on talkshoplive, an online livestream shopping platform, where he showed off products from his Duck Buck Co. brand. The line of activewear and loungewear features trucker hats, t-shirts, leggings, sweats and much more — all featuring the quirky half-duck, half-buck logo that Hayes drew himself.

“I’m a doodler, I wouldn’t call myself an artist but I’m constantly drawing,” he shared during the livestream. “It’s therapeutic to me. We had to draw a picture for each song back when NFTs were a thing. Each song needed an NFT following ‘Fancy Like,’ so for the song ‘Country Stuff,’ I drew this duck buck. And my team — nobody asked questions, they were like ‘That’s your logo.’”

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He added that the inspiration while designing clothing were items “that are comfy, that I know I’m going to look good in.”

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Since it’s the holiday season, Hayes discussed his fun, festive spin on his Billboard Hot 100 No. 3 hit “Fancy Like.” The track, “Fancy Like Christmas,” in which he switches up the lyrics to the chorus and sings, “Fancy like Christmas ’round a fake tree/ Nutcracker on the mantle and a candy cane candle/ Get your eggnog, with your fruit cake/ Go Jesus, it’s your birthday!”

“I honestly think the lyrics to the Christmas version are better,” Hayes admitted, adding with a laugh, “When we dropped ‘Fancy Like Christmas,’ the response was so amazing and continues to be, that I did start think, ‘I mean, do we need a Halloween version? Does this song need to take over holidays?’ Is it the next ‘Happy Birthday?’”

Watch the entire livestream and shop Walker Hayes’ Duck Buck Co. brand here.

10 Dec 2024

Fat Joe on ‘Paradise’ With Anitta, DJ Khaled Friendship & More | Behind the Photo

Fat Joe shares how he filmed the “Paradise” music video with Anitta and DJ Khaled, how LL Cool J inspired him to rap and more in Behind the Photo.

Fat Joe:
Hey, what’s up, y’all? This is Fat Joe. We are on Billboard, and this is called Behind the Photo.

My big day, I promised my mother I would graduate one day. I didn’t know that somehow God would give me a doctorate. Shout out to Lehman High School in the Bronx. This is a very big day for me, and it was such an honor for me to get it. I flew right back to Miami the next day just to give my mother the diploma and tell her that I promised I would give it to her. So you don’t know how things are gonna come. You know, God blessed me in this way. I need that.

You know for being such a superstar, being so lit right now, she’s so humble in real time, and we shot the video to “Paradise” behind Khaled. We jumped out in Washington Heights with no permits everywhere. She never complained once. She did the video. Beautiful person. I need that Brazil. This guy is crazy. It’s my brother, Khaled, this is, uh, football Sunday, I believe, early in the morning in Orlando. This is just before he crowd surfed in the crowd. I was so terrified for him, because he really jumped out there and had the students carrying him, throwing them up in the air. But you already know that’s my brother. We the best, yes.

It’s me and my idol, LL Cool J. I would never rap if it wasn’t for LL Cool J, he inspired my whole life. He’s always mentored me and given me knowledge to go to the next level. So shout out, LL Cool J, James Todd Smith, my brother, I love you.

10 Dec 2024

Sabrina Carpenter Reveals the ‘Conceited’ Reason She Can’t Share Her 2024 Spotify Wrapped

To close out 2024, Sabrina Carpenter was on countless people’s year-end Spotify Wrapped lists — including her own.

That’s exactly why the 25-year-old pop star didn’t join many of the streaming service’s users in sharing her listening-habit summary on social media this year, she told Vogue Arabia in a new interview published Tuesday (Dec. 10). “When I first saw mine, my initial reaction was, ‘Oh, damn, I can’t post that, because I’m on my own [list],’” she told the publication. “‘It’s a bit conceited.’”

“But then I was like, I guess it’s a good thing that I’m on my list and listening to my own music, because it means I f–k with what I do,” Carpenter added.

The Girl Meets World alum definitely isn’t the only one. In 2024, her smash hit “Espresso” was streamed more than 1.6 billion times on Spotify, making it the app’s most-streamed song of any other upload. Plus, her Billboard 200-topping sixth studio LP Short n’ Sweet was the platform’s third-most popular album, bested only by Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft.

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While on the topic of Spotify Wrapped, Carpenter did reveal which other four artists made her top 5: Dolly Parton, ABBA, Kacey Musgraves and the Bee Gees.

Carpenter is currently on a break from her first-ever arena trek, with the North American leg of the Short n’ Sweet Tour closing in November. The “Please Please Please” singer will get back on the road for a run of European dates in March.

In the meantime, fans can enjoy her new holiday special A Nonsense Christmas, which premiered Dec. 6 on Netflix. Of the project, Carpenter told Vogue Arabia, “It was kind of a s–t show — but in the best possible way. A Christmas s–t show, which is way better than normal ones, because everyone’s festive and dressed up,” she said, revealing that her crew filmed the special in just two days. “You can’t really be mad when everyone is dressed like Christmas. And I’m so lucky that my friends were a part of it, that just made it all the more fun.”

10 Dec 2024

Spike Lee Confirms A$AP Rocky Has the ‘Main Role’ in His ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ Film

Looks like A$AP Rocky will be returning to the silver screen. Spike Lee said the rapper will have the “main role” in his upcoming Highest 2 Lowest film in an interview with Deadline on Monday (Dec. 9).

“The main role … is A$AP Rocky,” he said during the interview at the 2024 Red Sea International Film Festival, declining to share any more details about the rapper’s involvement in the new project. “People will see when it comes out,” he added. “It’s dynamite.”

Rocky will also star alongside Ice Spice, who will be making her acting debut in the film, as well as Denzel Washington, Jeffrey Wright and Ilfenesh Hadera. The Harlem MC (real name Rakim Mayers) made his acting debut in 2015’s Dope and has since starred in a handful of films, such as 2016’s Zoolander 2 and 2018’s Monster.

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Highest 2 Lowest is “not a remake” but a “reinterpretation” of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 crime thriller, High and Low. “In Kurosawa’s film, Toshiro Mifune is a shoemaker. In our film, Denzel Washington is a music mogul with his own label and his reputation as the best ears in the business. So, this is the fifth film with the dynamic duo,” Lee said. This will be the fifth film Lee and Washington have worked on together, following 1990’s Mo’ Better Blues, 1992’s Malcolm X, 1998’s He Got Game and 2006’s Inside Man. 

Apple Original Films and A24 are partnering on Highest 2 Lowest, with A24 releasing the film theatrically before it streams globally on AppleTV+. 

10 Dec 2024

Tupac Dance Challenge Has All The Baddies Activating Their Hips

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The late great, Tupac has gone viral on Tik Tok recently. Classic hit, ‘How Do You Want It’ featuring K-Ci and JoJo has become a trending sound on Tik Tok. The young Gen Xs have created a Tupac dance challenge to the song. There’s a specific moment that sparked a trend when Tupac said “I love the way you activate ya hips and push ya a*s out. Got a n-**a wantin it so bad I’m bad I’m ‘bout to pass out.” The catchy rhythm and Tupac’s laid-back vibe make it a perfect soundtrack for the challenge, which has sparked a lot of fun energy online.

However, not everyone is feeling the challenge. Some fans of Pac believe he wouldn’t be a fan of what’s happening with his music today, especially when it comes to how his songs are being used for viral trends. Tupac was known for his deep messages, social activism, and serious themes in his music. Some people feel like he’d be disappointed to see his legacy reduced to a dance trend, with little connection to the powerful messages he pushed in his lyrics.

In the same breath, real Tupac fans know he was a dancer at heart. Starting his career as a background dancer for the group Digital Underground in the 1980s and early 1990s. Check out some of the best Tik Tok’s to Tupac’s viral dance challenge below.

10 Dec 2024

KSI’s ‘Thick of It’ Hits No. 1 on Second Top Gabb Music Songs Chart

The second iteration of the Top Gabb Music Songs chart features a new No. 1, as KSI‘s “Thick of It,” featuring Trippie Redd, rises to No. 1 as the most-played song on Gabb Wireless phones and tablets for November 2024.

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Billboard has partnered with Gabb Wireless, a phone company for kids and teens, to present a monthly chart tracking on-demand streams via its Gabb Music platform. Gabb Music offers a vast catalog of songs, all of which are selected by the Gabb team to include only kid- and teen-appropriate content. Gabb Music streams are not currently factored into any other Billboard charts.

“Thick of It,” released Oct. 3, bowed at No. 3 on the inaugural Top Gabb Music Songs list as the most recently released song in the tally’s top 10. It retains that distinction on the November 2024 survey as well (though it isn’t the newest song on the 25-position chart – more on that later).

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The song has peaked so far at No. 64 on the multimetric Billboard Hot 100, achieving the feat on the Oct. 26-dated ranking.

Released by rapper and YouTube star KSI, “Thick of It” leads a hip-hop-dominated Top Gabb Music Songs top 10, with half of the region from rappers. Drake’s “God’s Plan,” No. 1 on the Hot 100 for 11 weeks in 2018, enters the survey at No. 4, while Travis Scott’s “Butterfly Effect” at No. 6 (No. 50 on the Hot 100 in 2018) and Juice WRLD’s “Face 2 Face” at No. 8 (No. 92 on the Hot 100 in 2022) also debut. The fifth, NF’s “Let You Down,” remains in the top 10 for a second straight month, falling 5-7.

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” which reigned atop the first Top Gabb Music Songs list, dips to No. 2 on the November tally, but Boone still boasts a new distinction: he’s the first act with two songs in the top three, as “Slow It Down” zooms 9-3 in its second month. The former peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in March, while the latter reached No. 32 in September.

Olivia Rodrigo’s “Deja Vu” and Imagine Dragons’ “Bones” appear in the Top Gabb Music Songs chart’s top 10 for the first time; “Deja Vu” shoots 15-9, while “Bones” jumps 16-10. Three and two years old, respectively, the former reached No. 3 on the Hot 100 in 2021 and the latter peaked at No. 47 in 2022.

Top Gabb Music Songs’ top debut of the month by a song released in 2024 belongs to Maddox Batson, whose “X’s” starts at No. 14. It’s the second-highest-performing country song on the tally, following Luke Combs‘ “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” at No. 5. The 14-year-old Warner signee’s song was released in September.

Holiday music has officially come to Gabb as of November, as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” bows at No. 15. And the newest song to grace the survey, ROSE and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” (released Oct. 18), starts at No. 24.

See the full top 25 below.

Top Gabb Music Songs, November 2024

1. “Thick of It,” KSI feat. Trippie Redd (+2)
2. “Beautiful Things,” Benson Boone (-1)
3. “Slow It Down,” Benson Boone (+6)
4. “God’s Plan,” Drake (debut)
5. “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma,” Luke Combs (-3)
6. “Butterfly Effect,” Travis Scott (debut)
7. “Let You Down,” NF (-2)
8. “Face 2 Face,” Juice WRLD (debut)
9. “Deja Vu,” Olivia Rodrigo (+6)
10. “Bones,” Imagine Dragons (+6)
11. “Hope,” NF (-4)
12. “Please Please Please,” Sabrina Carpenter (-4)
13. “Motto,” NF (=)
14. “X’s,” Maddox Batson (debut)
15. “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey (debut)
16. “Mood,” 24KGoldn feat. Iann Dior (debut)
17. “Love Somebody,” Morgan Wallen (debut)
18. “Stargazing,” Myles Smith (-4)
19. “Ghost,” Justin Bieber (debut)
20. “Eyes Closed,” Imagine Dragons (-3)
21. “Enemy,” Imagine Dragons & JID (-1)
22. “Stressed Out,” Twenty One Pilots (-10)
23. “Too Sweet,” Hozier (-19)
24. “APT.,” ROSE & Bruno Mars (debut)
25. “Radioactive,” Imagine Dragons (-6)

DROPS FROM OCTOBER 2024: JVKE, “Golden Hour”; NF, “The Search”; Glass Animals, “Heat Waves”; Zach Bryan, “Pink Skies”; Imagine Dragons, “Demons”; Tate McRae, “She’s All I Wanna Be”; Ariana Grande, “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)”; Jelly Roll, “I Am Not Okay”; Nicky Youre & Dazy, “Sunroof”