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In one of the most important cases of the social media age, free speech and national security collide at the Supreme Court on Friday in arguments over the fate of TikTok, a wildly popular digital platform that roughly half the people in the United States use for entertainment and information.
TikTok says it plans to shut down the social media site in the U.S. by Jan. 19 unless the Supreme Court strikes down or otherwise delays the effective date of a law aimed at forcing TikTok’s sale by its Chinese parent company.
Working on a tight deadline, the justices also have before them a plea from President-elect Donald Trump, who has dropped his earlier support for a ban, to give him and his new administration time to reach a “political resolution” and avoid deciding the case. It’s unclear if the court will take the Republican president-elect’s views — a highly unusual attempt to influence a case — into account.
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TikTok and China-based ByteDance, as well as content creators and users, argue the law is a dramatic violation of the Constitution’s free speech guarantee.
“Rarely if ever has the court confronted a free-speech case that matters to so many people,” lawyers for the users and content creators wrote. Content creators are anxiously awaiting a decision that could upend their livelihoods and are eyeing other platforms.
The case represents another example of the court being asked to rule about a medium with which the justices have acknowledged they have little familiarity or expertise, though they often weigh in on meaty issues involving restrictions on speech.
The Biden administration, defending the law that President Joe Biden signed in April after it was approved by wide bipartisan majorities in Congress, contends that “no one can seriously dispute that (China’s) control of TikTok through ByteDance represents a grave threat to national security.”
Officials say Chinese authorities can compel ByteDance to hand over information on TikTok’s U.S. patrons or use the platform to spread or suppress information.
But the government “concedes that it has no evidence China has ever attempted to do so,” TikTok told the justices, adding that limits on speech should not be sustained when they stem from fears that are predicated on future risks.
In December, a panel of three appellate judges, two appointed by Republicans and one by a Democrat, unanimously upheld the law and rejected the First Amendment speech claims.
Adding to the tension, the court is hearing arguments just nine days before the law is supposed to take effect and 10 days before a new administration takes office.
In language typically seen in a campaign ad rather than a legal brief, lawyers for Trump have called on the court to temporarily prevent the TikTok ban from going into effect but refrain from a definitive resolution.
“President Trump alone possesses the consummate dealmaking expertise, the electoral mandate, and the political will to negotiate a resolution to save the platform while addressing the national security concerns expressed by the Government — concerns which President Trump himself has acknowledged,” D. John Sauer, Trump’s choice to be his administration’s top Supreme Court lawyer, wrote in a legal brief filed with the court.
Trump took no position on the underlying merits of the case, Sauer wrote. Trump’s campaign team used TikTok to connect with younger voters, especially male voters, and Trump met with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, in December. He has 14.7 million followers on TikTok.
The justices have set aside two hours for arguments, and the session likely will extend well beyond that. Three highly experienced Supreme Court lawyers will be making arguments. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar will present the Biden administration’s defense of the law, while Trump’s solicitor general in his first administration, Noel Francisco, will argue on behalf of TikTok and ByteDance. Stanford Law professor Jeffrey Fisher, representing content creators and users, will be making his 50th high court argument.
If the law takes effect, Trump’s Justice Department will be charged with enforcing it. Lawyers for TikTok and ByteDance have argued that the new administration could seek to mitigate the law’s most severe consequences.
But they also said that a shutdown of just a month would cause TikTok to lose about one-third of its daily users in the U.S. and significant advertising revenue.
As it weighs the case, the court will have to decide what level of review it applies to the law. Under the most searching review, strict scrutiny, laws almost always fail. But two judges on the appellate court that upheld the law said it would be the rare exception that could withstand strict scrutiny.
TikTok, the app’s users and many briefs supporting them urge the court to apply strict scrutiny to strike down the law.
But the Democratic administration and some of its supporters cite restrictions on foreign ownership of radio stations and other sectors of the economy to justify the effort to counter Chinese influence in the TikTok ban.
A decision could come within days.
This story was originally published by The Associated Press.
Songwriters Jessi Alexander, Amy Allen, Jessie Jo Dillon and RAYE will not be attending or performing at Spotify’s Songwriter of the Year Grammy party slated for Jan. 28, with Allen and Dillon citing Spotify’s treatment of songwriters as the reason for their absence. As a result, four out of five nominees in the Songwriter of the Year category at this year’s Grammys will be opting out of the event. (A representative for the fifth, Edgar Barrera, has not responded to Billboard‘s request for comment.)
Representatives for Allen (“Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter, “Adore You” by Harry Styles and “greedy” by Tate McRae) and Dillon (“10,000 Hours” by Dan + Shay, “Lies Lies Lies” by Morgan Wallen and “Am I Okay?” by Megan Moroney) confirmed to Billboard that they both made the decision not to attend due to Spotify cutting royalty rates on premium streams for songwriters and publishers in April of last year, which Billboard estimated will lead to a $150 million decrease in royalties over 12 months compared to how much they would have made had the royalty rate not been reconfigured.
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Spotify believes it qualifies for a lower mechanical royalty rate for songwriters and publishers because it has added audiobooks to its premium subscription tiers and reclassified those services as “bundles,” with multiple services included in one price. Now, the royalty originally intended for songwriters and publishers alone is split between paying for music and audiobooks.
“After some thought, I couldn’t in good conscience support this initiative given their approach to bundling royalties,” said Dillon in a statement to Billboard. “It is very nice to be individually honored, but it is better for me and my entire songwriter community to be paid fairly for our art. There are no songs without songwriters.”
A representative for RAYE (“Escapism.” by RAYE, “Dancing With a Stranger” by Sam Smith & Normani, “Secrets” by One Republic) says the singer/songwriter never committed to attending or performing at this event, so “there’s nothing for her to back out of at present,” but adds that RAYE has been “an outspoken advocate on behalf of songwriters’ rights igniting an industry-wide dialogue on the topic.” A representative for Alexander (“Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” by Luke Combs, “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus, “You, Me and Whiskey” by Justin Moore & Priscilla Block) confirmed to Billboard that she will not be attending the event but did not provide a reason for dropping out.
A representative for Spotify declined Billboard’s request for comment.
Spotify started its Songwriter of the Year Grammy event to celebrate the nominees for the prestigious writing award, which the Recording Academy established in 2023. Each Songwriter of the Year nominee has been invited to take the stage at Spotify party and sing the songs they wrote for other artists in a room full of their peers.
Other songwriters have taken to social media to express their dismay about Spotify’s upcoming event after receiving Save the Dates from the streamer. Songwriter Ross Golan said, via an Instagram Story, “If you are a songwriter, you cannot go to this. Do not let Spotify f— you on bundling and then give you free booze.” A 2023 Grammy Songwriter of the Year nominee Laura Veltz said in her own Instagram Story, “Spotify is robbing you. Songwriters: do not fall for this horse s—.”
In April 2024, Spotify officially added audiobooks as an offering to its premium tiers (which include premium, family and duo plans). By adding audiobooks, the streaming service claimed it now qualifies to pay a discounted so-called “bundle” rate to songwriters for premium, duo and family tier streams.
At the time, a Spotify representative said that “changes in our product portfolio mean that we are paying out in different ways based on terms agreed to by both streaming services and publishers” and called its decision to reclassify premium tiers as bundles as “consistent” with “multiple [other] DSPs.” Other competitors like Apple Music and Amazon Music do have bundled offerings — including Amazon bundling Prime and Amazon Music and Apple bundling Apple Music and Apple News — but Spotify’s move to make its popular premium tiers into bundles has a much larger impact than its competitors, given that Spotify is the most popular streaming service in the U.S. and the premium tiers are a widely used offering.
“Spotify is on track to pay publishers and societies more in 2024 than in 2023,” the Spotify representative added at the time, citing the company’s Loud and Clear report that says the streamer has paid nearly $4 billion to publishers, PROs and collection societies in the last two years.
The National Music Publishers Association (NMPA), The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), and various songwriters did not take the news lightly. The MLC filed a lawsuit against Spotify in May, claiming the streamer “improperly” classified its premium tiers as bundles. The NMPA’s CEO/president David Israelite said Spotify had “declare[d] war” on songwriters and launched a multi-faceted attack that included sending a cease-and-desist for unlicensed lyrics, video and podcast content; unveiling a legislative proposal; and filing complaints with the FTC and nine other consumer trade groups.
Israelite has also voiced his disapproval over Spotify’s Songwriter of the Year party, saying in an Instagram post: “Is this a joke? Spotify declares war on songwriters. Is attempting to gut what they pay them. Is being sued by the MLC. And they think they can throw a party honoring songwriters? I’m at a loss for words. Actually, I’m not. Hubris. Audacity. Crassness. Hypocritical. Cynical. Forward this and add your own word.”
Universal has revealed the impressive sales on Jon M. Chu’s Wicked premium video-on-demand release. The movie-musical earned more than $70 million in the U.S. and Canada in its first week available to watch at home, per The Hollywood Reporter. The film, which stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Glinda, respectively, generated more […]
Jelly Roll, Shaboozey, Chris Stapleton and Tucker Wetmore will lead a night meshing music and sports, when they spearhead EA Sports Presents Madden Bowl at the Orpheum Theater on Friday, Feb. 7, with the concert happening just two days prior to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans. The show will also feature an appearance by Trombone Shorty with the New Breed Brass Band.
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Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” reigned supreme this year, logging 19 non-consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, while Jelly Roll also reached new chart heights this year, notching his first all-genre Billboard 200 debut with his album Beautifully Broken. Stapleton continued to cement his status as a reliable hitmaker and award winner, earning CMA Awards accolades and seeing his song “White Horse” reach No. 2 on the Country Airplay chart. Newcomer Wetmore’s “Wind Up Missin’ You” has risen to No. 2 on the Country Airplay chart, and follows his breakthrough hit “Wine into Whiskey.”
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“EA SPORTS is a cornerstone of Super Bowl Week, and on Friday at Super Bowl LIX we’re bringing together fans, music, athletes, esports, and Madden in an unforgettable celebration of football,” John Reseburg, VP, Marketing, Partnerships, and Communications for EA SPORTS, said in a statement. “New Orleans is one of the greatest and most passionate sports cities in the world, and with a line-up including Chris Stapleton, Jelly Roll, Shaboozey, and more, this is going to be an absolutely electric night at EA SPORTS Presents Madden Bowl.”
“2024 was an unforgettable year for me with a lot of highs, including performing at a NFL halftime show on Thanksgiving,” Shaboozey said in a statement. “Now I can’t wait to keep the party going with EA SPORTS and football fans from all over at Madden Bowl.”
Last year’s Madden Bowl, which was held in Las Vegas, featured artists and bands including Big Boi and Killer Mike, Breland, and Green Day.
Super Bowl LIX will be held at New Orleans’ Caesars Superdome on Feb. 9.
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Rod Wave’s been a proud representative of Florida’s gulf coast ever since coming into the game and while he may love the comforts and settings of his Sunshine state, the man seems to enjoy taking trips out West as he pays homage to the Left Coast with his latest offering.
Dropping off some new visuals to “Westside Connection,” Rod Wave hops on a private Jet to California where he gets ready to perform at the Toyota Center and shows how his interaction with his adoring fans be as he sings for them up close and personal before the big show.
Back on the East Coast, some OG’s make their own connection as Termanology, Tek (of Smif-N-Wessun) and Ea$y Money drop that gutter ish and in their clip to “Money Deposits” the three amigos take it back to the era of Timbs, hoodies and sunglasses in a dimly lit studio. You gotta love it.
Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from Fredo Bang, Ray Vaughn, and more.
ROD WAVE – “WESTSIDE CONNECTION”
TERMANOLOGY FT. TEK & EA$Y MONEY – “MONEY DEPOSITS”
FREDO BANG – “MADE OF GOLD”
RAY VAUGHN – “CRASHOUT HERITAGE”
JUNO – “LOVE LIFE”
LADY LESHURR – “SET UP CHICKS”
RAE KHALIL FT. FREDDIE GIBBS – “CARPINTERIA”
ZERIMAR & DJ BIG SKIPP – “LOYALTY”
Chappell Roan has come first in the BBC Radio 1 Sound of 2025 list, an annual poll that recognizes rising artists with “the best chance of mainstream success.”
The pop sensation, born Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, was chosen as the winner by a panel of more than 180 music industry figures and artists, including global superstars Dua Lipa and Elton John. Further details of the panel and how the list was compiled are available via BBC Radio 1’s Sound of 2025 website.
Roan (Island Records) beat out jazz group Ezra Collective (Partisan Records), who came second, and Barry Can’t Swim (Ninja Tune), Myles Smith (RCA) and Mercury Prize winners English Teacher (Island). The achievement follows a breakthrough year for the 26-year-old, whose single “Good Luck, Babe!” peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September, five months on from its initial release.
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In the past 12 months, Roan has scooped the top new artist prize at the Billboard Music Awards; netted six Grammy nominations, including nods in each of the Big Four categories; toured the world over and drawn record-breaking crowds at festivals. Her 2023 debut LP, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, meanwhile, enjoyed a second wind and climbed to No. 2 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in August.
Roan will headline Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Spain, June 5-7 alongside Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter. She will also top the bill at Reading & Leeds Festival, England, Aug. 21-24 as part of a co-headline booking next to Hozier. Other festivals she is set to play through the summer include Oslo’s Øya Festival (Aug. 6), Budapest’s Sziget (Aug. 11) and Rock In Seine in Paris (Aug. 20).
BBC Radio 1 DJ Jack Saunders said: “No one deserves this accolade more than Chappell Roan. She was the most exciting artist of the last 12 months and is now set to be THE artist of the next 12 months. The success is all her own doing: standing tall in the face of the doubters and keeping her community close to fuel the energy of her shows and musical movements. Congratulations Chappell, 2025 is your year!”
Last year’s BBC Radio 1 Sound of poll was won by baroque-pop band The Last Dinner Party, with runners-up including Olivia Dean, Peggy Gou and Tyla. Notable previous winners include Adele (2008), Florence + The Machine (2009), Sam Smith (2013) and Sam Fender (2019).
The 2025 longlist, which was unveiled in November, was comprised of 11 acts, including Kneecap, Mk.gee, Doechii, Confidence Man, Pozer and Good Neighbours.
Megan Thee Stallion won a restraining order against Tory Lanez on Thursday (Jan. 9) after tearfully testifying before a Los Angeles judge that she’s scared he’ll “shoot me again” when released from prison and “maybe this time I won’t make it.”
A month after the star’s lawyers warned that Lanez has continued to “terrorize her” with a “campaign of harassment” even as he sits behind bars, Judge Richard Bloom granted her a civil restraining order that will bar Lanez from any harassing conduct for the next five years.
The ruling came after emotional testimony from Megan herself, who fought back tears as she told Bloom that she hasn’t “been at peace since I was shot” and is “just tired of being harassed.”
“It just seems like I have to relive it every day. The person who shot me won’t let me forget it,” Megan told the judge via livestream video conference. “I’m scared that when he gets out of jail he’s going to still be upset with me … I feel like maybe he’ll shoot me again and maybe this time I won’t make it.”
Judge Bloom issued the order from the bench, saying that Megan had shown a “credible threat of violence” and other potential wrongdoing that “seriously harasses the petitioner and serves no lawful purpose.” The order bars a wide range of conduct, including any contact or harassment through any means.
After Bloom issued the order, the star briefly unmuted her microphone: “Thank you, judge.”
Lanez was convicted in 2022 on three felony counts over the violent 2020 incident, in which a drunken argument in the Hollywood Hills escalated into a shooting. After Lanez allegedly yelled “Dance, bitch!,” he proceeded to shoot at Megan’s feet with a handgun, striking her multiple times. In 2023, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison; he has filed an appeal, which remains pending.
In recent months, Megan’s attorneys have fought what they call an unlawful campaign by Lanez to spread misinformation about the case on the internet — like a viral story that circulated on X in October falsely claiming an appeals court had declared him “innocent.”
In October, Megan’s lawyers filed a federal lawsuit against YouTuber and social media personality Milagro Gramz, who she claims has served as a “mouthpiece and puppet” for the convicted singer. In later filings, they alleged that discovery in the case had revealed prison phone calls in which Lanez coordinated payments to Gramz.
And last month, Megan’s attorneys demanded the civil harassment restraining order in Los Angeles court, arguing Lanez had conspired with people outside the prison to “harass, bully, and antagonize” her. They said they had only recently learned that the criminal restraining order from the shooting case was no longer in place and that it could not now be reimposed.
“Mr. Peterson’s attempts to retraumatize and revictimize Ms. Pete recognize no limits — indeed, they continue even while he is behind bars,” Megan’s lawyers wrote at the time. “While Mr. Peterson distorts and recklessly disregards the truth in his desperate attempt to appeal his conviction, his false assertions have reignited a slew of negative, harmful, and defamatory comments directed to Ms. Pete.”
Attorneys for Lanez responded late last month, calling the petition a “frivolous request” and accusing Megan of trying to “weaponize the justice system” because she “disagrees with free speech” and couldn’t handle criticism: “Rather than rebut the commentary or debate the issues … Plaintiff has succumbed to the current trend of using the legal system in an attempt to cancel those opinions she disagrees with.”
At Thursday’s hearing, Lanez’s attorney Michael Hayden reiterated those arguments, saying his client was “not threatening the petitioner in any way.” Instead, he argued that Megan was simply upset about criticism from internet bloggers with “their own independent minds” who Lanez cannot control — and he warned that such a restraining order would violate the First Amendment.
“This is about an attempt to chill free speech based on prior restraint,” the attorney told the judge.
At one point, Megan herself returned to the virtual witness stand to rebut that point, saying she was “not trying to take anyone’s free speech away” but rather to stop Lanez from continuing to drive harmful harassment from behind the scenes.
“I understand that being a public figure comes with hearing a lot of people from all over the world talk about you,” she told the judge. “The problem that I have is that the man that shot me is orchestrating other people and paying people … to put out lies and smear campaigns against me.”
In issuing his ruling, Judge Bloom seemed to avoid the issue of online smears and instead focus on the potential for violence, citing the 2020 shooting that lay at the heart of the case.
“We have a shooting that took place … and with a violent act like that there’s a ripple effect that continues on,” the judge said. “In some cases, it may be small ripples that go away with time, and in other cases, it could be ripples that grow with time. Ms. Pete’s testimony here seems to make clear that the ripple effect here has been significant.”
Frances Tiafoe still can’t believe he’s famous enough to be in the same rooms as people like Taylor Swift, much less taking shots with the pop star.
But on the Jan. 7 episode of The Pivot Podcast, the tennis pro revealed that he and Swift did exactly that when their paths crossed recently. While recalling moments where he’s felt amazed by his own celebrity status, Tiafoe reflected, “I’ve said it in real time, whoever I’m with, like, ‘Yo, I’m out here taking shots with Taylor Swift.’”
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“Granted, I gotta keep it a buck, we’re here on The Pivot — I’m a Beyoncé guy,” the athlete continued. “But at the moment I’m like, ‘Man, this is crazy. She’s the biggest star out here.’”
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The podcast comes about two months after Tiafoe hung out with Swift and her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, following the football team’s victory against the Denver Broncos in November. At the time, the tennis player’s girlfriend, fellow athlete Ayan Broomfield, shared a selfie featuring both couples on Instagram, showing Kelce grinning wide as the “Anti-Hero” singer made a kissy face.
“Then Travis and [Patrick] Mahomes, they were like, ‘Yo, we gotta have you in [Kansas City],’” Tiafoe added of meeting the Chiefs players on The Pivot. “Them saying that is wild to me, that they would roll out the red carpet for me. It’s crazy because playing tennis and being able to reach that many people, and people want to meet me and hang out and actually do stuff … it’s why you do what you do.”
Swift and the New Heights podcaster have previously proven themselves to be tennis fans, attending the 2024 U.S. Open in September alongside Patrick and Brittany Mahomes. The outing sparked one viral moment for the 14-time Grammy winner and Kelce as the couple goofed off together singing along to “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” by The Darkness as it came on the stadium speakers in Queens.
Watch Tiafoe recall partying with Swift and meeting Kelce below.
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Source: Xbox / Xbox Developer_Direct
Xbox is back with its first Developer_Direct presentation for the new year!
On Thursday, January 9, Xbox announced that a Developer_Direct is coming. Gamers can expect updates and an inside look at several games launching on the Xbox Series X and Series S this year.
Like the last Developer_Direct, Xbox will take us inside the studios for Compulsion Games in Montreal, Canada, to get more insight on South of Midnight, then jump to Montpellier, France, to visit Sandfall Interactive for a look at Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, then the iconic id Studios in Richardson, Texas to see how far DOOM: The Dark Ages, has come along.
But that’s not all. Like the last Developer_Direct, Xbox has a surprise, teasing a brand new game from a mystery studio, which will also be revealed during the presentation.
Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft’s VP of Games Marketing, tweeted that the mystery title is a “surprise unannounced game.”
A surprise unannounced game we hope you will enjoy along with the rest of the show! 💚
— Aaron Greenberg (@aarongreenberg) January 9, 2025
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The Developer_Direct can be viewed on all Xbox channels at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. UK time.
Here is a breakdown from Xbox about each title, except for the mystery game below.
DOOM: The Dark Ages:
Developed by id Software, DOOM: The Dark Ages is the prequel to the critically acclaimed DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal that tells the epic cinematic origin story of the Doom Slayer’s rage. In this third installment of the modern DOOM series, players will step into the blood-stained boots of the Doom Slayer in this never-before-seen dark and sinister medieval war against Hell. Learn more during the full game reveal at Developer_Direct.
South of Midnight:
Compulsion Games, the creators of Contrast and We Happy Few, will share a deep dive on South of Midnight, a third person action-adventure game set in the American Deep South. As Hazel, you will explore the mythos and confront mysterious creatures inspired by Southern Folklore to unravel her family’s hidden past in this dark, modern folktale.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33:
Sandfall Interactive will take us behind-the-scenes at their studio to shed some light on the development of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, this debut studio’s incredible new RPG. The team will share more about the game’s creation and how they plan to deliver an incredible story in a gorgeous fantasy world.
Sounds lit. We can’t wait to see what the mystery game is.
Just days after dropping his new album Debí Tirar Más Fotos, Bad Bunny (real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) released a music video for “Baile Inolvidable,” the third song on the LP. The sweet six-minute clip begins with Puerto Rican filmmaker Jacobo Morales, the protagonist on Benito’s Debí short film, who joins a salsa dance […]