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Lady Gaga is the latest star to take on First We Feast’s Hot Ones challenge, and the superstar deals with an uncomfortable wardrobe choice in a teaser for the upcoming episode. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In the one-minute clip, Gaga rocks a dress with a […]
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Streamers like Kai Cenat are known for their bold reactions, but his take on Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime performance raised some eyebrows. While reacting to Kendrick’s performance, Kai made a claim that caught many off guard. He suggested that the NFL added crowd noise behind Lamar’s performance to make the crowd’s reaction sound louder and more intense than it actually was.
Lamar’s halftime show was widely praised for its depth, artistry, and the way it brought hip-hop to the biggest stage. Fans saw it as a celebration of culture, and many argue it was one of the best Super Bowl performances ever. However, Kai’s comment, implying that the NFL enhanced the sound, caused an immediate uproar. He was quickly met with backlash from Kendrick Lamar fans who vehemently denied any fake crowd noise.
They argued that the raw emotion and energy of Kendrick’s performance was enough to elicit a powerful crowd reaction without any artificial help. Despite the controversy, Kai stood by his point, claiming that it was something he noticed while watching the show.
Despite the controversy, Kai stood by his point, claiming that it was something he noticed while watching the show. His statement led to heated discussions across social media platforms, with fans debating whether the NFL might have enhanced the sound for dramatic effect. While the debate rages on, it’s clear that Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl performance is still a defining moment in halftime show history.
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Google isn’t done kissing Donald Trump’s ring. Not only did they adopt the stupid Gulf of America name change, but they have also removed Black History Month from the calendar.
Spotted on NewsOne, Google is getting in line with Donald Trump and his administration’s continued assault on DEI and “woke” initiatives as part of his mission to make America white again; oops, we mean “great again,” the Alphabet-owned company has removed several cultural observances from Google Calendar, including Pride Month, Black History Month, and Holocaust Remembrance Day.
In an email, the company explained its reasoning for its head-scratching move in an email sent to Newsweek that the previous system it had in place to update the calendar was “unsustainable” and that from now on, Google would only display public holidays and national observances.
Google Calendar users quickly noticed that events like Black History Month (February), Pride Month (June), Women’s History Month (March), and Indigenous Peoples Month (November) were no longer on the calendar after being there in previous years.
As expected, the decision sparked outrage on x, formerly Twitter.
“Hey @Google yall do realize your president declared February Black History Month, even though it was already Black History Month so I think you need to put that back. I don’t fuck with that man, but he is your president and you do need to listen to him,” one user wrote.
Another user added, “Disgusting @Google. Even Trump recognized Black History Month. You are trying to outdo him? Disgusting. The excuse is worse. You are using are global calendar that doesn’t have federally recognized honorifics on it. Wow. Your own search engine recognizes Black History Month.”
https://x.com/hawkgrrrl/status/1889488355311886829
In response to the pushback, Google spokesperson Madison Cushman Veld noted that the company received feedback about the missing events, noting that manually adding hundreds of cultural observances was not sustainable.
Maybe they should use AI to do it. Just saying.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
Sam Asghari’s relationship with Britney Spears was never going to be normal, given the fact that Spears is one of the most famous women on the planet. But on top of all of that, the singer was famously under a conservatorship for about 13 years — something Asghari says was “strange” for him before their split in 2023.
On the latest episode of The Viall Files posted Wednesday (Feb. 12), Asghari opened up about his relationship with Spears — whom he started dating in 2016 after co-starring in her “Slumber Party” music video — as well as the way her legal predicament affected him as her partner. “She was under the conservatorship, and that was very strange for me to deal with,” he told host Nick Viall. “I got hit with that at the beginning.”
“[Britney] didn’t explain,” Asghari continued, sharing how he learned about the conservatorship through an unnamed third party. “Somebody called me and said, ‘Oh, just so you know, this is this. Make sure you’re obeying by our rules.”
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Wanting to be as supportive as possible, the actor added that he “didn’t go look up what’s happening on the news” and instead tried to understand on a personal level why the conservatorship was “ever in place to begin with.” “You don’t get much to say, especially if you’re just a boyfriend or someone that’s just there,” Asghari noted. “Maybe I was afraid they were going to make me not see her. So you have to be gentle and provide as much support as you can.”
The pop star was first put under a conservatorship in 2008, when a judge gave her father, Jamie Spears, legal control over her life and career. Following a yearslong, fan-led “#FreeBritney” movement, the musician was finally able to get the conservatorship officially dismissed in November 2021, a few months before which Brit and Asghari got engaged after about five years together.
On Viall Files, Asghari recalled that the proposal was “overdue.” “We wanted to get married way before, and because of everything and the situation, we had to wait,” he added. “I was holding her hand when she was speaking to the judge and talking about, she wanted the conservatorship to be done with. The second that happened, that’s when it was the right time to propose.”
The couple eventually got married in a star-studded ceremony in Los Angeles in June 2022. And though the relationship would come to an end the following year, with Asghari filing for divorce that August, the model/actor only has fond memories of the superstar. “I always say, even though it’s over now, I’m never sad it’s over,” he said. “I’m grateful it even happened.”
As for the headline-making video Spears posted of herself dancing with knives shortly after the split — the one that led to the police performing a welfare check on the star, after which she assured fans the cutlery had been fake all along — Asghari shared that he wasn’t fazed. “I’m not someone that’s [like], ‘Let me take your phone from you and not allow you to do anything and restrict you from posting your own content,’” he said of the clip.
“She’s a genius artist,” he added. “What’s in her head is gold, and it’s what made her who she is.”
Listen to Asghari’s full interview on The Viall Files below.
Ty Dolla $ign has released a statement condemning all forms of hate speech. The California artist took to his Instagram Story on Tuesday preaching a message of unity and love. “I do not condone ANY form of hate speech against ANYONE,” he wrote alongside different skin tones of emojis. Dolla $ign didn’t name-drop Ye — […]
Halle Bailey is ready for her next musical era. The Little Mermaid star took to Instagram on Tuesday (Feb. 11) to announce that her upcoming single, “Back and Forth,” will be arriving on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14). The corresponding cover art fits the romantic theme, featuring the 24-year-old singer lounging on a pink platform, dressed […]
Colombia is known for its very rich and diverse culture, including its array of musical styles from vallenato to salsa to champeta to música popular, and beyond.
Among its numerous international artists that include Shakira, Feid, Carlos Vives, Karol G, Juanes, and more, are key Afro-Colombian artists that have also shaped the country’s music industry: salsa giants Grupo Niche and the Latin Grammy-winning ChocQuibTown, for example.
The former, co-founded by the late Jairo Varela and Alexis Lozano, is named “Niche” after a name that is used to refer to dark-skinned people. Last year, Grupo Niche celebrated 40 years of its timeless hit “Cali Pachanguero,” dedicated to the city of Cali, Colombia — with its bustling carnivals, lively atmosphere and beautiful people — narrated by someone who’s far away and yearns to go back home.
“This song was already born big,” the group previously told Billboard of the song’s impact. “Just by the success it had at the fair in 1984, it began to move masses. In fact, at the beginning of those years, the song was only played in Cali because it was from that city. But today, the song has to be played everywhere. It’s a must-play song [at our concert]. Everywhere [in the world], people assume it as their own.”
Other Afro-Colombians that have led the charge include Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Totó La Momposina; Mr. Black, credited with helping steer the champeta movement; and Mauro Castillo, known for his lead role on “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” in Disney’s blockbuster Encanto.
Now, in honor of Black History Month, Billboard Latin highlights a wave of emerging Afro-Colombian artists that we have discovered, and should be on your radar. Check them out in alphabetical order below:
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Anthony Mackie shared that Kendrick Lamar has recorded the title track for Marvel’s new film, Captain America: Brave New World. Keep watching to see what he said and how his previous title track, “All the Stars,” received various accolades. Are you excited for Kendrick’s track? Let us know in the comments! Tetris Kelly:Actor Anthony Mackie has […]
Chappell Roan used her speech at the 2025 Grammys to call on powerful figures within the music industry to better support up-and-coming artists’ need for health coverage. Now, her labelmate Sabrina Carpenter is heeding the call.
According to public donation records from We Got You, the new fundraising partnership between Roan and industry non-profit group Backline, the “Espresso” singer matched a donation from her fellow Island Records artist, giving $25,000 to the initiative’s efforts to “supporting accessibility of health care for artists,” and to “create a safer and more supported industry for artists to thrive.” Backline confirmed to Billboard the receipt of Carpenter’s donation.
Billboard has reached out to representatives for Carpenter for comment.
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The Short n’ Sweet star’s donation also matches those of fellow pop stars Charli XCX and Noah Kahan, both of whom publicly supported Roan’s call for industry-wide health support by contributing $25,000. “I’m inspired by you. Happy to help get the ball rolling. Money where mouth is,” Kahan wrote on his Instagram Stories, prompting Charli to follow suit by adding in her own post: “your speech at the grammys was inspiring and thoughtful and from a genuine place of care. happy to help get the ball rolling too.”
Roan started her partnership with Backline shortly after former A&R executive Jeff Rabhan criticized the singer’s Grammys speech in an op-ed for The Hollywood Reporter, saying that Roan was both “too green and too uninformed to be the agent of change she aspires to be today.” In response, Roan publicly invited Rabhan to match her $25,000 donation to support artists in need of health insurance. “I love how in the article you said ‘put your money where your mouth is,’” she wrote at the time. “Genius !!! Let’s link and build together and see if you can do the same.” (Rabhan’s name is not listed amongst the public donors to the We Got You campaign).
In a follow-up post, Roan made it clear that she never intended for her Grammys speech to bring about a “crowdfunded bandaid” to the issue, but rather for it to serve as a “call to action” for industry executives to change labels’ current policy of not providing healthcare to their signed artists.
“My mind will not be changed about artists deserving more than what’s standard in the industry,” she said in the statement. “Random dudes are allowed to criticize my Grammy speech, but they best put their money where their mouth is, otherwise MOVE out the way.”
The singer also told her fans in the statement that she did not expect them to “donate a damn penny” to the We Got You campaign — she instead highlighted the fundraiser as “one of many opportunities for the industry powers to show up for artists.” Despite her statement, a number of the singer’s fans have publicly contributed to the campaign, with one writing in their donation “I know she said not to but I’m gonna donate anyway.”
Dua is mourning Duo. Language learning app Duolingo announced the devastating news on Tuesday (Feb. 11) that its mascot, the green bird known as the Duolingo Owl, has died. “Authorities are currently investigating his cause of death and we are cooperating fully. Tbh, he probably died waiting for you to do your lesson, but what […]