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23 Aug 2024

Watch Sabrina Carpenter Write Dirty Lyrics & Reveal Her Broadway Ambitions on ‘Chicken Shop Date’

She’s working late, ’cause she’s a singer — and if all goes well, a Broadway actress, too. On a new episode of Chicken Shop Date posted Friday (Aug. 23), Sabrina Carpenter addressed whether she’d ever return to the stage and talked all things espresso, Valentine’s Day and NSFW lyrics.

After conversing with the “Feather” singer about British people’s texting habits and the financial benefits of going on dates, host Amelia Dimoldenberg asked her guest a question that’s been on the minds of many fans since Carpenter’s run as Cady Heron in the Mean Girls stage production was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020: “Would you do Broadway again if the right opportunity came?”

“I would,” Carpenter replied with a shrug, smiling.

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Four years prior, Carpenter starred alongside Reneé Rapp’s Regina George in the Broadway adaptation of the 2004 movie, but she only got to do a couple performances before it closed down due to the global pandemic. She never did get to reprise her role in the production, as it didn’t reopen at the August Wilson Theatre, nor did she appear in the 2024 movie version of the musical, which Rapp led.

Throughout the interview with Dimoldenberg, Carpenter also shared what she did on Valentine’s Day this year — “I was given chocolate, and I ate it … that was my day” — although she didn’t specify whether she spent the holiday with boyfriend Barry Keoghan. She did, however, explain that she doesn’t fall in love as quickly anymore as she did when she was younger. “Now I fall in love a little more — I don’t want this to sound sad, but I just maybe fall in love with some more knowledge,” she said.

At the end of the video, Carpenter helped Dimoldenberg write an NSFW rhyme to the line, “Went to London ’cause I had a hot date,” in the style of her famous “Nonsense” outros. “I would’ve done something really crazy,” she said, “but I don’t think I can say it on camera.”

Covering her mouth, the Work It actress then whispered her idea: “Later I’m going to get my p—y ate.”

The cheeky interview arrives on the same day as Carpenter’s sixth studio album, Short n’ Sweet, which features hit single “Espresso” and Billboard Hot 100-topper “Please Please Please.” The star also unveiled a gory music video costarring Jenna Ortega, in which they channel the 1992 film Death Becomes Her and bond over killing a man they were previously fighting to the death over.

Speaking of “Espresso,” Carpenter addressed on Chicken Shop Date whether she actually enjoys sipping on the concentrated caffeinated beverage in real life. “I do — I just have to brave through them when I drink them,” she told Dimoldenberg. “It’s not like I like them because of how they taste — I like them because of how they make me feel.”

Watch Carpenter on Chicken Shop Date above.

23 Aug 2024

Ed Sheeran Deserves More Credit for Being a One-of-a-Kind Songwriter: Critic’s Take

With the first quarter of the 21st century coming to an end, Billboard has been looking back on the 25 Greatest Pop Stars of the Past 25 Years. Below, we take a deeper look into the peak of our No. 24 pop star, Ed Sheeran, and how his writing style — while often critically derided — actually displays the efficiency, creativity and originality of a true songwriting savant.

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Despite being one of this century’s most successful musicians by pretty much any statistic you could conjure, Ed Sheeran’s music has inspired well over a decade’s worth of eye rolls and turned-up noses – not necessarily because it’s bad, in the eyes of critics, but because it’s boring.

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That’s not an oversimplification. In 2011, The Guardian’s Peter Robinson literally made the English singer-songwriter the face of “The New Boring,” calling his debut album + “a 12-bore s–tgun” and likening him to “a combination of every friend-of-a-friend’s band whose pub gig you have ever witnessed.” Six years later, Pitchfork’s Laura Snapes described Sheeran as “trite,” “bland” and “unimaginative,” all within the sub-headline of a review about his third album ÷ (it scored a 2.8). For the duration of his career, the musician has been especially critiqued for his approach to genre, cherry-picking features of hip-hop, R&B and rock and distilling them into compressed, radio-friendly pop earworms which inevitably become lodged for years at a time on the charts and on grocery store speakers — writer Rachel Aroesti recently described the end result as a “sludgy, vague, inoffensive post-genre sound that has served to homogenise music in general.”

It’s understandable why people might be so tempted to explain away Sheeran’s success. Homely, scruffy and pointedly underdressed, he soared into the general public’s consciousness as the total antithesis to the polished male pop stars who were big before him — Justins Timberlake and Bieber, One Direction, Bruno Mars – prompting confusion as to how exactly he was able to infiltrate their sleek ranks. But as the essays have piled up over the last 15 years dismissing his scrappy image and mass-appeal music as calculated ploys to maximize profit by appearing as relatable to consumers as possible, one salient quality of Sheeran’s superstardom seems to have fallen out of focus. His seamlessly packaging together the shiniest parts of different genres and presenting them in a way that’s almost universally palatable is a skill in and of itself, and one with which Sheeran is singularly gifted.

It takes an intriguing musical vocabulary, for instance, to infuse a romantic folk ballad such as “Lego House,” one of Sheeran’s earliest hits, with mile-a-minute rap bars — “And it’s dark in a cold December/ But I’ve got you to keep me warm…” in the pre-chorus, without interrupting its cozy pacing. The same can be said of his 2014 smash “Sing,” which somehow has all the body and elasticity of a FutureSex/LoveSounds banger – producer Pharell Williams once told Billboard the Timberlake album was a key inspiration — while staying simultaneously grounded in acoustic instruments and Sheeran’s rapid-fire rhyming. Other hits like 2014’s R&B-rap-pop-dance number “Don’t” and 2017’s tropical 12-week Billboard Hot 100-topper “Shape of You” show off his proclivity for complementing catchy sung melodic hooks with percussive rap-based verses, which he can confidently weave in and out of without ever disrupting the overall feel of a song.

Though he’s never been the most prosaic writer, the words he does choose instead serve to fit snugly in rhyme pockets or push the momentum of a section forward. While certainly cheesy and not particularly clever, the lyrical and melodic simplicity of “I’m in love with the shape of you/ We push and pull like a magnet do/ Every day discovering something brand new” enables it to wedge instantly into listeners’ memories. On the verses, he creates pleasing, percussive toplines that aren’t weighed down by needless syllables, but still manage to propel the narrative forward by quickly summarizing storylines (“One week in, we let the story begin/ We’re goin’ out on our first date”) or tapping into multiple layers of meaning (“We talk for hours and hours about the sweet and the sour…”)

There have been some clunkers in his catalog, for sure: references to Shrek and a—hole bleaching have provided certain songs with needless blemishes, yes. But through all his genre-hopping and unorthodox wordplay, at the very least he can say he’s forged a style that’s entirely his own. His mass appeal may make him “generic” by definition, but his sound is his: Even the successors to his guy-with-a-guitar pop-rock mantle – Shawn Mendes, Lewis Capaldi, Noah Kahan — haven’t once gone near the playful experimentation Sheeran cut his teeth on, instead favoring safer, more traditional songwriting structures.

It’s also notable that Sheeran has never been dishonest about where his scattered musical influences came from, nor has he ever lazily copied anyone else. He’s always stated his love for figures like Damien Rice, Eminem and Eric Clapton, and he worked exclusively with grime artists on the self-released 2011 EP No. 5 Collaborations Project. And at a time where any male artist with his tastes would’ve earned far more cool points by positioning himself as an aloof rock star in the vein of Oasis or Arctic Monkeys, he instead fully, authentically embraced the world of pop and its leaders, teaming up with Taylor Swift on “Everything Has Changed” in 2013 and penning hits for Biebs and 1D (2012’s “Little Things” and 2015’s “Love Yourself,” respectively.)

Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century Ed Sheeran

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All of this to say, maybe Sheeran’s songs aren’t just soulless composites of popular genres designed to be as widely played as possible, but the natural blended output of a guy with a genuine love and appreciation for all the styles he employs. He also happens to be very strategic when assembling those puzzle pieces in a song, preternaturally sensitive to which elements are most likely to make for a successful hit – a personal goal he’s long been transparent about chasing. (“I have a data sheet emailed to me every week,” he told GQ with a wink in 2017. “My benchmark for the second album was Coldplay. This album it’s Springsteen.”)

The spectrum of his sound runs parallel to how much he does or doesn’t tailor songs for commercial success. On one end there’s the smoke-blowing songs like 2011’s “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You” and 2017’s “New Man” where he fully indulges his love for loose, slightly silly rapping. Though they might become fan classics, they’re the least programmed to become global hits — he’s just having some fun. On the other end are his sweeping romantic ballads like “Thinking Out Loud,” “Photograph” and “Perfect,” which are maniacally constructed for decades of play at weddings and high school dances. But of these, ask yourself: if not Sheeran, who else is up to the task of pumping out this generation’s deck of timeless sappy slow-dance songs?

In the middle is everything else, the so-called homogenized, post-genre songs that have a little something for everybody. There are several different outcomes songwriters pursue when writing music, and consequently, there are just as many measures of that music’s quality. None are necessarily right or wrong. Swift’s goal is to tell personal stories through her songs. Pitbull wants people to dance. Adele aims to pack an emotional punch. And each of these objectives requires a great deal of craftsmanship when putting pen to paper. Even if Sheeran’s desire has been to write songs surgically stitched together for easy listening, does he really forfeit any recognition for being one of his generation’s most innovative songwriters just because his music is created with algorithmic precision?

When one of his songs ultimately gets stuck in your head for weeks, you might curse his formula as being that of an evil genius. But the key word here is still “genius.”

23 Aug 2024

Jelly Roll Drops Behind-The-Scenes Video of First Meeting With Eminem: ’15-Year-Old Jason DeFord Would Faint’

They say you should never meet your heroes. Well, they never told Jelly Roll that, because in a new behind-the-scenes video posted on Thursday (August 22) the “Save Me” country star details the out-of-body experienced he had in June when he flew to Detroit to meet his hip-hop top dog: Eminem.

The five-and-a-half minute clip opens with Jelly on the phone telling someone that he’s on his way to meet Slim Shady as he speeds down the highway with a police escort. In the clip, Jelly explains that his early morning road trip came after he played two shows at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry the night before, a whiplash of back-to-back career pinnacles that are truly hard to comprehend.

“I am fixin’ to meet Eminem. To some degree one could say we’re going from the Grand Ole Opry to meet Eminem,” he says while riding in the backseat of an SUV and stating the obvious, but also possibly talking himself off a ledge of disbelief at his good fortune. He explains that the trip was sparked by Marshall tapping him to sing in a Bob Seger tribute as part of the NBC Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central special that aired in June featuring Diana Ross, Jack White, Big Sean, Eminem and others celebrating the re-opening of the city’s restored train station.

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In the prime-time show, Jelly took the stage with event co-producer Eminem for a duet on Em’s 2002 song “Sing For the Moment.”

“Forty-year-old Jason DeFord is losing his mind,” Jelly says using his birth name. “Because I know for sure that 15-year-old Jason DeFord would faint! This is unreal, it’s really cool” he adds, staring out the window and contemplating this surreal moment. He then breaks down the mechanics of rappers expanding their local or regional fame to larger areas while recalling his attempt to break into the game more than a decade ago.

“Guys like Eminem were proud to be from Detroit, Michigan because superstars don’t come out of Detroit, Michigan,” he says, rehearsing an a cappella run of Aerosmith’s “Dream On,” which is interpolated in the Eminem song the duo performed. “We’re in the middle of some insanely historical s–t.”

Walking into the station and taking the stage for rehearsals, the big moment when the two men finally meet comes about half-way through the video. After a friendly greeting, Jelly admits to Marshall that he’s been “a little nervous” all day about their meet-up, wondering if the rap god even knows who he is. “Nah, I’ve been knowing you for a minute,” says a low-key Slim Shady.

Later, Jelly says that moment — standing next to Eminem and taking some promo shots — was on his Mount Rushmore of personal high points, along with meeting Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton. “Where I literally stood next to somebody and was like ‘this is f–king wild!,’” he says before picking out his wardrobe for the performance and having a chill hang with fellow performer Melissa Etheridge backstage.

The video ends with footage of the epic, orchestra-assisted performance and Jelly on his way out of town marveling at what just happened while re-watching the whole thing on his phone as he speeds to his next gig.

Watch Jelly Roll’s Eminem meet cute video below.

23 Aug 2024

Feid & Maisak Unleash ‘Se Me Olvida’ & More Best New Music Latin

New Music Latin is a compilation of the best new Latin songs and albums recommended by Billboard’s Latin and Billboard Español editors. Check out this week’s picks below.

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Carin León, Carlos Vives & Chimbala, “La Chancleta” (Socios Music/Virgin Music/Island Records)

The unexpected fusion of Mexican, Colombian, and Dominican musical elements in “La Chancleta” is a delightful surprise, where Carín León collaborates with Carlos Vives and Chimbala. The upbeat song laces Vives’ tropical vallenato rhythms from the Colombian coast with Chimbala’s rapid and infectious Dembow melodies, all while León’s husky vocals bid farewell to a bad love. “No guardaste el pan para Mayo,” says part of the playful lyrics, which translates to “you did not save the bread for May” — a popular Spanish phrase that stresses the importance of saving for the future to avoid problems. — INGRID FAJARDO

Jesse & Joy and Banda MS, “Te Perdí” (Warner Music Latina)

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Finding the middle ground between their characteristic pop sound and banda sinaloense, Jesse & Joy venture to experiment with regional Mexican music with Banda MS on the song “Te Perdí.” The sweet female vocals that have conquered different generations merges perfectly with that of Alan Ramírez, one of the singers of the group that is characterized by its success with romantic songs. “And although it sounds silly, I know deep down I lost you/ If your heart is gone, then what is left for me to fight,” goes part of the lyrics to this pleasant-to-the-ear and easy-to-remember song. — TERE AGUILERA

Feid & Maisak, “Se Me Olvida” (Universal Music Latino)

Despite being one of the biggest names in the reggaetón space today, Feid never holds back from supporting the new generation of urbano acts. “Se Me Olvida” attests to that, where the Colombian superstar teams up with promising newcomer Maisak, hailing from Santa Marta, Colombia. Produced by Fenix the Producer and co-penned by the two artists, “Se Me Olvida” is a romantic reggaetón ballad, where the heartfelt lyrics shine on its own. “I keep forgetting that I’m your ex, that I lost you/ And now the love of my life is with the love of her life,” goes the catchy chorus, which first went viral on Maisak’s TikTok — and as a result, Feid jumped on the track. — JESSICA ROIZ

Joaquina, “no llames lo mío nuestro” (Universal Music Latino/Arthouse)

In her latest single “No Llames Lo Mío Nuestro” (Don’t Call What’s Mine Ours), Joaquina captures the strength of a young woman reluctant to make the same mistakes of the past. In this emotional pop track, the Venezuelan singer-songwriter sings to an ex who is looking to get back with her that she has closed that chapter and overcome their toxic relationship. “I can no longer be here for you whenever you want, don’t try to cover the sun with a finger/ You can no longer take the parts of me that you want, don’t come back because I’m no longer waiting for you/ Don’t call what’s mine ours,” goes the chorus. Driven by a guitar sound that’s perhaps more poppy than her previous work, the single is a new evolutionary step in the brilliant career of the youngest Latin Grammy best new artist winner, both musically and lyrically. — SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS

Cimafunk, Pa’ Tu Cuerpa (Terapia Productions/Thirty Tigers)

Erik Alejandro Iglesias Rodríguez, known as Cimafunk and originally from Pinar del Río, Cuba, redefines funk with his new album Pa’ tu Cuerpa. The set is a sonic mosaic that fuses Afro-Cuban rhythms with the contagious groove of R&B and the harmonic sensuality of soul, evoking giants like Earth, Wind & Fire, but with a Latin flavor. The album stands out for its originality, creating an exciting, danceable bridge between African American and Latin music. In addition, the musical arrangements are complex and dynamic, while Cimafunk’s performance is pure energy, charisma and mischief in each song.

Among the gems of the album, the single “Cuchi Cuchi” stands out for its magnetism, while “Catalina”, together with Monsieur Periné, shines for its fusion of styles and contagious joy. “Pretty” adds a note of sensuality and flavor, and closer “A tu merced” — a collaboration with Camila Guevara, Pancho Céspedes and Gonzalo Rubalcaba — ends the set with a more introspective cadence. With Pa’ tu Cuerpa, Cimafunk not only delivers “what your body needs,” but solidifies his place as one of the most innovative and captivating artists in contemporary music. — LUISA CALLE

Listen to more editors’ Latin recommendations in the playlist below:

23 Aug 2024

Tate McRae Premieres New Song, Duets With Boyfriend The Kid Laroi at Madison Square Garden

Tate McRae had two big surprises in store for the fans at her Madison Square Garden concert in New York City Thursday (Aug. 22): duetting with her boyfriend, fellow pop star The Kid Laroi, and premiering a new song.

When Laroi first joined his girlfriend on stage, he wrapped her in a big hug and prompted cheers from the audience by pulling her in for a kiss. The couple then sang an acoustic, stripped-back version of the Australian rapper-singer’s 2021 hit “Without You,” with McRae telling the crowd it was their “first time singing together,” according to People.

“You cut out a piece of me, and now I bleed internally/ Left here without you,” they sang, sitting next to each other on a set of steps. “And it hurts for me to think about what life could possibly be like/ Without you, without you.”

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At another point in the show — which comes midway through McRae’s Think Later World Tour — the Canadian singer-songwriter debuted a brand new track, a clip of which she posted on TikTok. “Premiered a new song at my headline sold out MSG show,” she wrote in text over the video, which finds her dancing along to the song’s outro as white confetti rains down on the stage floor.

She also shared a snippet of an unreleased song on TikTok, dancing along to its fierce lyrics with a group of friends. “It’s okay, I’m okay, I don’t really gotta say, it’s okay,” she sings on the dance tune. “You can have him anyway.”

“so good,” commented McRae’s pal Olivia Rodrigo.

The teaser comes nearly nine months after the “Greedy” artist dropped her album Think Later, which debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. She has several months left to go on her global trek in support of the record, with shows scheduled through November.

Watch clips from McRae’s surprise-filled Madison Square Garden concert below.

23 Aug 2024

Method Man Says He’s “Never Gotten A Streaming Check”

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Method Man Cassius Hip-Hop 50 Cover

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Method Man claimed in an interview that he’s not received any streaming revenue for his music, where he also shared his thoughts on artificial intelligence.

Streaming hasn’t provided any cash to the iconic rapper and actor Method Man, which he revealed in a recent interview. The interview was for the Beyond The Mic series, a collaboration between HOT97 and UBS, and was held at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York before he took the stage for the radio station’s Summer Jam event.

The issue of streaming came up about five minutes into the conversation, where UBS Head of Sports & Entertainment Wale Ogunleye asked Method Man what grade he’d give the music industry. “The industry gets an F,” the Wu-Tang Clan member replied. “It took them too long to adjust to streaming to where they’re drowning, and trying to tread water now.”

“I think it goes way deeper than that, especially when it comes to IPs [Intellectual Properties] for artists that came from my era because honestly, I’ve never received a streaming check for my music,” Method Man stated. He didn’t elaborate further on the claim, but continued: “I’m still trying to figure it all out, because there may be someone who can make a perfect mix of the two where — I’m not saying to accept it, but at least make art out of it, and that’s what I’m always for, the creative part.”

The Tical rapper also spoke about the increasing use of artificial intelligence, or A.I., in Hip-Hop. “I’m still trying to figure out A.I., but I have seen some things that have made me raise an eyebrow,” he said, “The Drake diss with the 2Pac and Snoop [Dogg], the fake Kendrick [Lamar].. It’s a lot to it.” Snoop Dogg has been very vocal about the failures of streaming platforms within the past year, revealing that despite getting a billion streams on Spotify with his music, he hasn’t received much from his publishing. More artists such as Metro Boomin have also spoken up about the lack of revenue they’re suffering from with streaming music services.

23 Aug 2024

Nigo Unveils His Nike Air Force 3 Collaboration

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Kenzo: Runway - Paris Fashion Week - Menswear Spring/Summer 2025

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Earlier this summer sneakerheads got a sneak peak of Nigo’s upcoming Air Force 3 collaboration and though he hadn’t officially revealed any details about it, Nigo is now officially revealing his new iteration to the OG Nike shoe is happening and these might actually fly off shelves.

According to Highsnobiety, Nigo finally took to Instagram to showoff his crafty work on the classic sneaker and though he didn’t say when or even if they’ll see a release, hype beasts are already scheming on how to snatch a pair of the colorful remixed silhouette. Still, there are a few color ways to the AF3 that Nigo’s been spotted in, so if the sneaker were to drop which one would the general public be getting?

Per Highsnobiety:

There’s the light tan pair NIGO was spotted wearing at the end of last year, the white pair with various bright-colored overlays that was teased alongside an Air Force 1 collaboration, and, most recently, the resale page Horhead Sales has got its hand on a multi-colored patent leather pair — there’s no indication which of the Air Force sneakers will make it to shop floors.

Plus, there’s the NIGO x Nike sweatshirt the designer teased during KENZO’s Fall/Winter 2024 show, which is presumably also part of the collection. 

There are still a lot of open questions about the collaboration but NIGO has given us a small peek at what’s to come and some insight into the inspirations behind the collection.

We’re not gonna front, Nigo might’ve just resurrected a overlooked Nike silhouette with these color ways. We might have to copp a pair or two.

Check out pics of Nigo’s Air Force 3’s below and let us know if you’d be interested in copping any of them in the comments section.

23 Aug 2024

Embarrassment of Riches: ‘Million Dollar Baby’ by Tommy Richman Hits No. 1 on Another Chart

Tommy Richman deposits his first No. 1 on Billboard’s Pop Airplay chart as “Million Dollar Baby” rises a spot to the top the ranking dated Aug. 31.

The song also marks the first leader at the format for the ISO Supremacy, PULSE Records and Concord labels.

The coronation marks the latest for Richman’s breakthrough hit, which ruled the TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart for 10 weeks in May-July, the most for any title since the survey began last September.

The track has also led the Hot R&B Songs chart — for 16 weeks and counting — through the Aug. 24-dated tally; Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (three, May-June); the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart (three, May-June); the Billboard Global 200 (two, June); and Streaming Songs (one week, May).

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In terms of radio, prior to its Pop Airplay takeover, “Million Dollar Baby” led the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and Rhythmic Airplay charts for two weeks each in July. (It’s the third song to lead all three lists in 2024, following Doja Cat’s “Agora Hills” and Jack Harlow’s “Lovin On Me.”)


https://youtube.com/watch?v=SSXNKrredEk&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

On the all-genre, multimetric Billboard Hot 100, “Million Dollar Baby” hit No. 2 in May. It has totaled 773 million in radio audience, 559 million official on-demand U.S. streams and 77,000 sold from its release through Aug. 15, according to Luminate.

“This is a big record, but this doesn’t define me,” the Woodbridge, Va., native told Billboard for June’s Chartbreaker spotlight. “I’m using this as, ‘We’re here. We arrived.’ Not as, ‘We made it!’ This is the start of a run.”

All Billboard charts dated Aug. 31 will update Tuesday, Aug. 27, on Billboard.com.

23 Aug 2024

Mixxy Mayor Eric Adams Awards Fat Joe Key To New York City

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Rise Up NYC Concert With Fat Joe

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Fat Joe’s birthday month keeps getting better and better. Mayor Eric Adams awarded him the key to New York City.

As spotted on TMZ the South Bronx, New York native was given an honor that will live with him forever. On Tuesday, August 20 the city’s chief gave him the award at Orchard Beach prior to his performance hosted by Rise Up NYC. In attendance were not only Joe’s family and friends but also the likes of Funkmaster Flex, Chubb Rock, Doug E. Fresh, Wayne Wonder and others. “Fat Joe who’s getting the Key to the City of New York. All his legendary — his music, a real brother, authentic — we want to give you this key,” Mayor Adams said.

The “Lean Back” MC then took the microphone and briefly spoke on the honor. “Shout-out my wife, my daughter, shout-out my favorite aunt in the world. I gotta thank the pioneers. From Melle Mel, Mr. Ness to KRS-One — my whole life I been trying to be KRS-One — LL Cool J, Heavy D and the list goes on,” Fat Joe said. “I want to shout out everybody here because we in the Bronx and I know I know all of you. Every last one of you, I know you — I love you.”

Earlier this year Fat Joe received his honorary doctorate degree from Lehman College. You can see him receiving the key to New York City below.

23 Aug 2024

‘Lady in the Lake’ Composer Marcus Norris Unpacks Hit Apple TV Series & Working on Beyoncé’s 2023 Dubai Performance 

Whether he’s working with Oscar winners like Natalie Portman on hit streaming series or teaming up with pop icons like Beyoncé for bombastic comeback performances, composer and songwriter Marcus Norris enters every space with his entire self. And his understanding of himself is intrinsically tied to the vast expanse of Blackness. 

Hailing from Jackson, MI — just outside Detroit – and having spent some years in both Chicago and Los Angeles, Norris honed his musical ear and compositional style in three key hubs of Black American music history. Hip-hop is his foundation, with FruityLoops providing him his first entry point into music production. The spirit of the genre courses through all of his projects, from the funky grit of his Southside Symphony to the ominous swagger of his work on Apple TV’s latest hit drama, Lady in the Lake. 

Starring Portman, Emmy nominee Moses Ingram, Noah Jupe, Y’lan Noel, Wood Harris and David Corenswet, Lady in the Lake follows an investigative journalist (Portman) who leaves her abusive husband to solve the mystery of two separate murders that cause her to cross paths with a young woman working to advance Baltimore’s Black community (Ingram). Set in the 1960s, earthy jazz chords and echoes of the blues reverberate across his score, adding both gravity and levity to the series’ plot whenever necessary. 

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Television is a new medium for Norris, but he approaches Lady in the Lake with the same consideration and verve that he brings to live concert orchestrations, like his work with WACO Theater’s annual Wearable Art Gala and Beyoncé’s 2023 Dubai performance. Often his work must balance joy with pain and pride with solemn self-reflection, and it’s a feat that he enjoys pulling off time and time again. 

“Complex emotions and music aren’t difficult, because that’s how people work,” Norris says. “You’re never just one emotion. That’s just the way the human experience is. It’s never hard to translate that through music because that’s how our brains work.” 

Billboard caught up with Norris to break down his Lady in the Lake score, his favorite rap beats and producers of the year, and how he helped Beyoncé’s stunning Dubai performance come to life.

You started out producing rap beats on pirated software. What was the software you were using? Were you simply trying to recreate beats that you loved or were you already creating original pieces? 

It was called FruityLoops at the time, [but] they rebranded to FL Studio. I was doing both original [beats] and trying to recreate things. It was kind of like a diary for me. I was just making beats and I wasn’t even showing anybody for a year or two. It was my way of processing things.  

If I liked something, I would try to recreate it in FruityLoops to try to figure out how they made those sounds. How did how did Dr. Dre get his drums to sound like that? How did Lil Jon get his sounds to sound like that? I tell all the young producers, “We didn’t have YouTube tutorials back then, you had to just mess with things until you figured it out.” 

What were you listening to when you were growing up? 

My mom is a huge Mary J. Blige fan. I loved Dr. Dre, Tupac, West Coast G-funk. I lived in the South for a year, so UGK too. 

Do you return to any of those touchpoints when you’re crafting new compositions? 

100%. One of my mentors once told me that you are a synthesis of everything that you listen to. I absorb everything and then it kind of comes out as hopefully one cohesive language. 

How did you transition into concert composition? 

I grew up low income, so I had to piece together all of my early starts to music that we were talking about. I didn’t plan to go to college, but after high school, they gave us a two-year free scholarship to a community college. I scoured the Internet and found one that had anything related to music recording. While I was there, I went to Schoolcraft College in Livonia, MI, outside of Detroit.  

While I was there, they made me take music theory and music history. I was exposed to whole styles of music that I had never really been exposed to before. I was bit by the bug I started, [and] studying every piece of music theory I could find, learning more about history and how to write and listen to music. When I was moving to Chicago, I was originally going to go for audio production, but at the last minute, I decided to go for composition, and I just kept doing it ever since. 

Did you have any film or TV compositions that have stuck over the years? 

When I was a kid, I would say the old Alice in Wonderland. There’s just constant music. I think it has the most musical numbers in any Disney film. And also The Nightmare Before Christmas with Danny Elfman. I would just watch those back-to-back. I know my mom was sick of it. [Laughs.] 

What made you say yes to Lady in the Lake? 

[Director] Alma [Ha’rel] and how specific her vision was. I always say I’m interested in the interesting and it’s such an interesting project. Sometimes in modern TV, music has to be very, very background. I joke that music has to be like wallpaper on some things where you don’t quite notice it, but Alma didn’t want that from the jump. She wanted something that was going to be interesting, and she kept using [the word] “iconic.” I’m attracted to these musical puzzles where there are very specific considerations that you have to balance. 

The show is set in 1960s Baltimore. What artists and records did you use as reference points for that era? 

A lot of Nina Simone. I think Cab Calloway is the best performer of all time. I model what I do with Southside Symphony a lot after Cab Calloway. Alma came to me with Nina Simone and talked about her a lot, so I knew that was a touchpoint for it.  

When it comes to creating that eerie ambiance, are there any musical hallmarks you shy away from because they might be too cliché? 

I just go on a case-by-case basis. Sometimes you can do a familiar thing in an unfamiliar context and that kind of helps. I think when you’re doing the same thing in the same way, that’s when it [becomes] an issue.  

For this score specifically, we did try some weird things. We took a trumpet and put it underwater and that was cool. A lot of the sounds that people hear are actually familiar, like breathing or whistling. Usually, you might whistle a happy tune or something, but here it’s kind of creepy. 

Ms. Tina Knowles selected you to music direct the 2022 Wearable Art Gala. What was that experience like, especially working with artists like Chloe x Halle and Andra Day? 

It was amazing. Ms. Tina is another visionary. It was inspiring to help her bring that vision to life, and I’ve been working with the WACO theater family for some years. I was honored to have the chance to do this on the biggest thing that they had done at [the] time. Working with Chloe x Halle was amazing, [likewise with] Andra Day and Adrienne Warren. 

You also got a chance to work with Beyoncé herself for her 2023 Dubai performance. If there were any challenges, what were the biggest ones with bringing that particular set to life? 

Just the timing and how quick the turnaround is, but I’ve noticed that that’s all of the music industry. That’s the film and TV industry too, that’s just what being a professional is. It was a very quick turnaround.  

Funnily enough, I didn’t actually get to go to Dubai! I did some work for them before they went over there, but the reason I couldn’t go to Dubai was because we were recording the Southside Symphony live mixtape at the same at Ms. Tina’s theater, and she had set it up for us. If it was any other thing in the world, I would have quit and [gone] to Dubai. But it’s like… her mom’s totally gonna know! 

What specific orchestrations did you contribute to? 

One that was really inspiring for me and kind of a full-circle moment was the arrangement I did for Schubert’s “Ave Maria.” In the [late] 2000s, she did a remix of “Ave Maria,” but she actually did Schubert’s “Ave Maria” in Dubai. I remember thinking, “What an amazing artist.” She’s doing this just to show you she can do it. She doesn’t have to do this, [she’s] already Beyoncé and could take her victory lap. But she’s still pushing it further.  

As somebody who draws from so many influences, being able to orchestrate Schubert’s “Ave Maria” for Beyoncé just felt like I was in the right place at the right time. It was a Slumdog Millionaire moment for me. 

When did you start working on the Dubai set? 

I think [I started] in January of 2023. I was back in the Midwest for the holidays and at the same time, I’m finishing my PhD. I still had to do my defense, so I’m not even done with school. I was getting ready for the live mixtape recording and another film, and Ms. Tina called me directly and said, “Marcus, what are you up to these days?” Knowing all these things that I have going on, I just flat out lied like, “Nothing!” She’s like, “Beyoncé is working on this project and I told her I just really think she needs you on that.” She asked me if I would be interested, and I was like, “Of course!” 

My part was very short. I got to sprinkle some things on top and I was just so honored to be a part of such an exciting and inspiring experience. 

When did you first start working with Ms. Tina on the Wearable Art Gala? 

I’ve been scoring plays at the WACO theater in North Hollywood since 2018. I remember the first time I talked with Miss Tina, we did the very first Southside Symphony concert there in 2020.  

The first time I spoke with her more directly was about a little play [the theater] did. I loved working on it, we worked on the music for weeks and weeks. She came up to me afterward – this was when she didn’t direct, she just did the costumes or something for it – and she was like, “I just want you to know they did this play a few years ago, and it wasn’t as good without you.” I just remember thinking, “Ms. Tina, do you know who your children are?” [Laughs]. You can’t say that to people, it’s going to go to my head! At this point, the whole WACO theater is really like family. 

What was the biggest challenge for you in composing a TV series versus a concert? What’s one upside that you weren’t anticipating? 

I think the biggest challenge on a brand new TV series is that you’re still figuring out what the thing is. The composer’s job is to balance all of these different viewpoints and find a way to make them singular. There are studios, the director, writers, producers, and my musicians and engineers, and all of these different elements. I have to hear all of those and then put them into one singular idea versus the concert I just say, “Hey, this is going to sound great.” Bam, thumbs up. 

Every composer who makes it to this point is really good at making music, that’s the easy part. It’s more about how you navigate all of these different personalities. And that’s also the upside, working in that collaborative way. Hopefully, when it goes well, it’s bigger than the sum of its parts. I definitely feel like I got a good workout on that muscle, and I’m excited to do more. 

Who are your favorite rap producers or your favorite beats you’ve heard this year? Who are your favorite composers across mediums from this year? 

I think Tay Keith has never made a bad beat. I really like Tricky Stewart, even though he’s R&B. I’m a big fan of him and The-Dream, those are some of my dream collaborators. I  think they make timeless music. Bryan-Michael Cox is another R&B one. I love the “Euphoria” beat from Kendrick [Lamar]. It goes on these different journeys. My dream is to play “Euphoria” with Southside Symphony just for L.A. 

For composers across the board, John Williams is our God. I really like Bernard Herrmann, I feel like I’m very influenced by him as far as my scores go. [Maurice] Ravel is probably one of my favorite orchestrators, I think he’s just a master. I kind of go through these phases where I’m obsessed with a composer or a genre, and I spend a lot of time with it. Right now I’m in a Rimsky-Korsakov phase. I said that Cab Calloway is my favorite performer of all time, a very close second is James Brown. I’ve been listening to Soul on Top right now, those horns are just magic.