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Foo Fighters to Headline Intimate Power to the Patients Show in D.C.

The Foo Fighters will scale down from stadiums and arenas to perform an intimate, one-night-only private gig in Washington, D.C. in support of Power to the Patients on March 5. The show will be hosted by the non-profit that is fighting for a more affordable, accessible and equitable healthcare system via price transparency.

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“When we were asked by Power to the Patients to help raise awareness of the need for transparency in healthcare pricing, we immediately said yes,” the band said in a statement about the show for congressional leaders and government officials. “People suffering from illness and injury shouldn’t have to worry about being bankrupted by surprise charges for their treatment.”

The show will also feature appearances from Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Fat Joe, both of whom have spoken out in support of the group that has advocated for upfront pricing in the healthcare system. “With more than 100 million Americans suffering from medical debt due to surprise bills and lack of accountability, it’s time for all elected officials to come together and turn the page on our nation’s broken and opaque healthcare system,” the organization said in a release announcing the show.

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The Foos are the latest musicians to travel to the nation’s capital in support of Power to the Patients, joining a list that includes Jelly Roll, Wyclef Jean, French Montana, Rick Ross, Busta Rhymes, Fat Joe, Chuck D., Method Man, Lainey Wilson, Valerie June, Everclear and artist Shepard Fairey. Fat Joe has previously visited Capitol Hill to sit with members of Congress in an effort to urge them to pass legislation codifying and expanding healthcare price transparency.

Jelly Roll, Wilson and June appeared in a Super Bowl LVIII commercial for Power to the Patients, just weeks after Jelly joined Fat Joe and Wyclef at a Power to the Patients event in D.C. to advocate for fair billing to a group of 500 government officials and members of Congress.

Billie Eilish & Finneas Could Win Their Second Songwriting Oscar in 3 Years: Who Else Has Done That?

That’s a fast turnaround, but one songwriting team and one individual songwriter did even better, winning back-to-back Oscars.

Billie Eilish and Finneas could be headed for their second Oscar for best original song in three years. The siblings won in that category in 2022 for “No Time to Die” from the James Bond film of the same name. They are nominated this year with “What Was I Made For?” from Barbie.

If they win when the 96th annual Academy Awards are presented on March 10 – as is widely expected – they’ll become the first songwriter or songwriting team to win twice in the space of three years since Tim Rice won in 1993, 1995 and 1997. Rice co-wrote those songs with three different collaborators.

Eilish and Finneas would be the first songwriting team to win twice in the space of three years since Alan Menken & Howard Ashman, who won in 1990 for “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid and in 1992 with the title song from Beauty and the Beast.

“What Was I Made For?” is competing with another song from Barbie, “I’m Just Ken (co-written by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt). This year’s other nominees for best original song are “The Fire Inside” from Flamin’ Hot (Diane Warren), “It Never Went Away” from American Symphony (Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson) and “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” from Killers of the Flower Moon (Scott George).

Here are all of the songwriting teams, or individual songwriters, who have won two Oscars for best original song in the space of three years. As you’ll see, one songwriting team and one individual songwriter won back-to-back awards in this category. (Bonus points if you can name them without scrolling ahead.) The years shown are the years of the Oscar ceremonies.

Olivia Rodrigo Celebrates Her Last Day of (Hypothetical) Underage Drinking at Early 21st Birthday Party: See Pics

While today (Feb. 20) is officially Olivia Rodrigo‘s 21st birthday, the singer jokingly celebrated her milestone bday a day earlier with friends in an Instagram post on Monday in which she joked, “Today is my last day of being able to under age drink (hypothetically) !!!!”

The series of snaps included Rodrigo rocking a plunging neckline black dress and blowing out the candles on a funfetti cake during a party with a number of friends, including Tate McRae, The Kid LAROI, actress Iris Apatow and Conan Gray.

Last month, Rodrigo was already gearing up for her big 2-1, telling ET on the red carpet at the 14th annual Governors Awards that she was planning something special. :It is a big birthday,” she said. “I think I’m gonna have a party with my friends and pop some champagne, you know? It’s the 21st!”

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The night before her birthday blowout, at the 2024 People’s Choice Awards on Sunday night, Rodrigo took home two awards for song (“Vampire”) and album (Guts) of the year. The singer is also one of the leading nominees for the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards, set to air live from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on April 1 on Fox. While Taylor Swift leads all nominees with nine nods, Rodrigo is just behind with seven noms.

Rodrigo is gearing up to launch her GUTS World Tour, which kicks off on Friday (Feb. 23) with a gig at the Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, CA and is currently slated to keep her on the road through a four-show run at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on August 13, 14, 16 and 17.

Check out the snaps from Rodrigo’s party below.

Usher Takes Fans Behind-The-Scenes of 2024 Super Bowl Halftime Show in Apple Music Mini-Doc

Usher pulls back the curtain on the intense prep he did for his 2024 Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII halftime show in a new mini-doc that dropped over the weekend. The nearly 11-minute black and white film was shot entirely on an iPhone 15 Pro by director Mike Carson.

“I think everybody is blessed with a talent and a time,” Usher says at the top of the film amid images of the intense dance rehearsals for the 13-minute run through the singer’s legendary catalog. “If you put in the work, people will respect what you do.” What follows is black and white footage of Ush perfecting his dance moves while subtly tweaking the vocals on some of his biggest hits to make sure fans get the ultimate experience.

Viewers also get a glimpse of the “Caught Up” performance from the rehearsal studio to the world’s biggest TV stage, as the singer, his band and crew of dancers dial in the high-flying stunts and intense choreography. The 45-year-old star says the physically demanding prep hits differently two decades into his career. Hence, we see Usher getting a cupping treatment and doing a variety of physical and mental challenges to keep his mind and body in game day shape.

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There’s also footage of Usher drilling down into every detail of the performance, offering his team notes on the flow, the camera angles and the sense of intimacy he was hoping to tap into in the performance that aired during the broadcast that broke viewership records. Elsewhere, we see Lil Jon dropping in for a rehearsal of “Yeah!” and Alicia Keys practicing her show-stopping cameo during “My Boo,” in which the old friends work out their playful choreo.

Of course you also get to see Usher putting it on wheels and working out his jaw-dropping rollerskating dance for “OMG.”

“As I put together the songs, like a puzzle piece to represent this type of soulful music, R&B and mixture of this pop that is my own, I think God really blessed me with the right people to help build the artist that I am,” Usher says in the video of the tough task of assembling the super-tight 13-song set list that also included cameos from Will.i.am, Jermaine Dupri and Ludacris. “I’m happy that I’m able to share this moment with them.”

After footage from the performance unspools, a contemplative Usher describes the feeling he had on that massive stage, saying, “You’ll see me from time-to-time look up at the top row. I’m thinking about the little 11-year-old kid that dreamed some day I could play on that big stage.”

Watch Usher’s Super Bowl LVIII halftime show mini-doc below.


https://youtube.com/watch?v=j0X8sOdv3bg&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

Lil Wayne, André 3000, Nas, Jill Scott to Headline 2024 Roots Picnic

Nas, Jill Scott and Lil Wayne will headline the 2024 Roots Picnic. The June 1-2 annual throw down in The Mann in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia will feature Weezy celebrating the music of his hometown of New Orleans with Trombone Shorty and PJ Morton, as well as other superstar collaborations, including the Roots’ Black Thought jamming with Method Man and Redman on a J. Period live mixtape, the Adam Blackstone legacy experience with Fantasia and Muni Long and the Go-Go Backyard Band with Scarface and Amerie.

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Other acts slated to hit the stage include: Sexyy Red, Babyface, Wallo & Gillie, Wale, Robert Glasper and Yebba, Tyla, Cam’ron, Smino, Tasha Cobbs Leonard , Marsha Ambrosius, October London, Funk Flex, Leon Thomas, Kenya Vaun, Julian King, BLK Odyssy and André 3000 performing selections from his rap-free solo flute album New Blue Sun.

This year’s event will also feature the Parkside Stage (previously known as the Podcast Stage) hosting curated experiential media, live podcasts and DJ sets from Million Dollaz Worth of Game, R&B Only & U+ME+RNB to Tonight’s Conversation, Juan Epstein Podcast, World Series of Spades and They Have the Range.

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Tickets for this year’s event will go on presale beginning Tuesday (Feb. 20) at 10 a.m. ET here — with access code ALUMN124 — followed by a general onsale kicking off on Friday (Feb. 23) at 10 a.m. ET here.

Last year’s Picnic included sets from Usher & the Roots, Ms. Lauryn Hill — with a surprise Fugees reunion — as well as comedian Dave Chappelle, Lil Uzi Vert and more.

See the full lineup below.

Royel Otis Soak up the Reception to Debut LP ‘Pratts & Pain’: ‘We Are Over the Moon’

Royel Otis is one on those runs where you best get on-board, or move clear out the way.

The psychedelic indie act from Sydney has been, in the Australian vernacular, smashing it of late.

It’s been a ride. A debut headline tour of the U.K. and Europe, a national tour with DMA’S, and now a headline trek of their own; a nomination for the 2023 ARIA Awards in the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist category; and a viral cover of Sophie-Ellis Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor,” for triple j’s Like a Version spot which entered the ARIA top 40; and a slew of cosmic-chill tunes were elements of the set-up for Pratts & Pain, Royel Otis’ debut album release.



Pratts & Pain takes its name from the pub in Streatham, south London, the local for Dan Carey (Wet Leg, Fontaines DC), who produced the new album at his home studio.

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Dropping last Friday, Feb. 16 through Andrew Klippel’s Ourness, Pratts & Pain has caught the attention of tastemakers around the globe, including the NME, which celebrates the current cover stars as “Australia’s next breakout indie heroes.”

Their special “blend of propulsive rhythms and laid-back cool” has the Grammys lauding the Aussies as one of 25 Artists To Watch In 2024.

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“Royel Otis is a testament to the art of songwriting and being unique shining through,” explains Klippel, who discovered, signed and guided the career of multiple award-winning Aussie funkster Genesis Owusu. “We’re thrilled to see the global engagement.”

Royel Otis is led by childhood friends Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic. Forming in 2019, the group immediately located its sound; a dreamy tug of nostalgia, catchy choruses, wrapped in jangly guitar and up-front harmonies that remind of peak MGMT — minus the synths.

The lads quickly hit their strides, releasing Campus in 2021, Bar & Grill in 2022 and Sofa Kings in 2023 – that’s three EPs is as many years. Along the way, Going Kokomo single “Kool Aid,” “Oysters In My Pocket” and others enjoyed support from BBC Radio 6 Music, triple j and the national youth broadcaster’s army of listeners.

Triple j’s listeners spoke, and voted, as Pratts & Pain single “Sofa King” landed at No. 76 on the Hottest 100 countdown last month, and made its way into a Billboard chart, debuting at No. 36 on Alternative Airplay. Album track “Velvet” has enjoyed U.K. spots with BBC R1 (Jack Saunders), BBC 6 Music (New Music Fix Daily), Apple Music 1 Matt Wilkinson + Playlist, and Radio X (John Kennedy).

In support of the album, Royel Otis is currently playing metro and regional Australian cities, for a tour presented by Frontier Touring and triple j.

“We are over the moon to have our first album out and further more beside ourselves from all the love we’ve received around the world on the release,” reads a message from the group to Billboard. “Bless ya all and thank ya even more.”

Then, from April, an extensive tour of North America, Europe and the U.K., including festival spots and recently added shows in Los Angeles and Oklahoma City.

Stream Pratts & Pain below.

Idles’ ‘Tangk’ Rolls to No. 1 on Midweek U.K. Chart

Idles leads an all-new top three on the midweek U.K. chart with Tangk (Partisan), the British rock outfit’s fifth studio album.

Based on midweek sales and streaming data published by the Official Charts Company, Tangk is predicted to snag the crown, and give the Bristol, England five-piece a fourth U.K. top 10, including the 2020 chart topper, Ultra Mono. Idles scored two nominations for the 2024 Grammy Awards (best rock album for Crawler and best rock performance for “Crawl!”).

Chart victory is not assured.

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Paloma Faith has a chance of scoring the title with her sixth album The Glorification of Sadness, new at No. 2 on the chart update. The Glorification of Sadness (RCA) should give the British pop singer a sixth consecutive U.K. top 10, a tally that includes her first No. 1 in 2017 with The Architect.

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Completing the podium on the Official Chart Update is Liverpool rock act Crawlers, with The Mess We Seem To Make (Polydor), their debut album. It’s new at No. 3, for what should give the four-piece its first U.K. top 10 appearance.

After one week at the chart summit, Noah Kahan’s Stick Season (Republic Records) looks likely to tumble, down 1-4. Kahan nabbed his first chart double last week, when Stick Season and its title track led the respective Official Charts.

Meanwhile, Derby, England pair Pet Needs (brothers Johnny and George Marriott) eye a top 10 berth with their third collection Intermittent Fast Living (Xtra Mile). It’s set to debut at No. 7, for their first impression on the chart.

Finally, veteran indie-rock act Cast is on track for a first top 10 spot in 25 years, and fourth overall with Love is the Call (Cast Recordings), new at No. 8 on the chart blast, while former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett could bag his first top 10 album in 44 years with his latest solo effort The Circus and the Nightwhale (Inside Out), new at No. 9 on the chart update. Hackett last cracked the top 10 back in 1980 with Defector.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published late Friday, Feb. 23.

Beyoncé’s ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’ Leads Midweek U.K. Chart

Beyoncé strides ahead in the U.K. chart race with “Texas Hold ‘Em,” the first cut from her forthcoming project Renaissance Act II (via Columbia/Parkwood Ent).

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Based on midweek sales and streaming data published by the Official Charts Company, “Texas Hold ‘Em” has an advantage of fewer than 1,500 combined sales over the second-ranked single, Dua Lipa’s “Training Season” (Warner Records).

If “Texas Hold ‘Em” plays its cards right, Bey will bag a sixth U.K. No. 1 single.

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Teased during a Verizon Super Bowl LVIII advertisement, “Texas Hold ‘Em” opened at No. 9 on the Official Chart last week, for the top debut of the cycle and Bey’s 22nd solo U.K. top 10 hit.

The Houston, TX-raised artist chalked up another 12 top 10 singles as a member of Destiny’s Child, including two leaders (“Independent Women, Pt. 1” from 2000 and “Survivor” from 2001).

As Bey bounces up the midweek tally, Dua Lipa’s “Training Ground” gives good fight. It’s at No. 2 on the Official Chart Update, and should earn Lipa her 15th U.K. top 10 single. One of those is “Houdini,” which peaked at No. 2 and is currently sat at No. 12.

As it stands, Washington-born singer and songwriter Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” (Warner Records) appears likely to hold at No. 3, its peak position.

Noah Kahan‘s reign with “Stick Season” (Republic Records) appears set to come to an end. Following a seven-week stay at No. 1, the folky hit is predicted to dip to No. 5.

After “Training Ground,” the next best new entry should belong to “Lovers In A Past Life” (Columbia), the latest collaborative track by Scottish EDM hitmaker Calvin Harris and deep-voiced English singer Rag’n’Bone Man. It’s new at No. 19 on the chart update. Rag’n’Bone Man has a perfect two-from-two No. 1 albums in the U.K., and five top 40 singles. Harris has also notched two chart-leading albums, and a whopping 42 solo U.K. top 40 singles. The pair teamed up on 2019’s “Giant,” which peaked at No. 2.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Singles Chart is published Friday, Feb. 23.

Beyoncé Reveals Chopping Off Her Hair for a Pixie Cut in 2013 Was an Act of Rebellion

Beyoncé was ready for her renaissance back in 2013 when she chopped off her long locks for a stylish pixie cut, and now, she’s explaining why she made the major hair transformation at the time.

“I remember the day I decided to just cut all my hair off. I didn’t have a particular style in mind. It wasn’t an aesthetic choice, but it was a very big emotional transformation and metamorphosis that I was going through,” she told Essence magazine in an interview promoting her new hair-care line Cécred, which launches Tuesday (Feb. 20) on Cecred.com. “So much of my identity as a performer has been connected to flowing hair. Cutting my hair off was me rebelling against being this woman that society thinks I’m supposed to be.”

“Something about the liberation of becoming a mother made me want to just shed all of that,” continued the star, who welcomed her and Jay-Z’s first child, daughter Blue Ivy, in January 2012. “It was a physical representation of me shedding the expectations put upon me. I just wanted it off.”

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The superstar went on to say that at the time, her hair was luscious and long, and that her longtime friend and hairstylist wasn’t exactly excited about her decision. So naturally, she took matters — and her hair — into her own hands. “I just got the scissors and chopped it off. It was very intentional. And it was what I needed to do,” Bey revealed. “And after that, I became super brave. It was the first step to many more audacious decisions I made in my life and my career that have led to who I am now.”

That was one of several hair memories that the 32-time Grammy winner, who has more gramophones than than any artist ever, shared with the magazine. The “Texas Hold ‘Em” singer revealed that she also struggles with psoriasis on her scalp.  “The relationship we have with our hair is such a deeply personal journey,” she said. “From spending my childhood in my mother’s salon to my father applying oil on my scalp to treat my psoriasis — these moments have been sacred to me.”

She later added in the interview: “Hair is our lineage — it’s our family story.”

See Beyoncé’s Essence cover below:

Usher Reflects on Slapping Nicki Minaj’s Butt at 2014 MTV VMAs: ‘I Shouldn’t Have Smacked Her’

Usher may have taken some heat from spectators for getting cozy with Alicia Keys during his 2024 Super Bowl Halftime Show on Feb. 11, but while he has no apologies for that moment, he does want to walk back something else he did on stage a decade earlier.

While chatting with Charlamagne Tha God and Jess Hilarious on a previously recorded interview that aired during The Breakfast Club on Monday (Feb. 19), the eight-time Grammy winner reflected on a moment from his 2014 MTV Video Music Awards performance alongside Nicki Minaj, during which he got a little handsy at one point. “Have you seen some of your old moments, like when you were on stage with Nicki Minaj and you were headbuttin’ her a–? Why was you so unhinged?” host Charlamagne asked him of the performance, which also included Usher slapping the “Super Freaky Girl” rapper’s bottom.

At first, the “Burn” crooner tried to explain and laugh it off a little. “Absolutely! That was Jamaican culture! So you gotta go to Jamaica. That was just a moment that was fun,” Usher — who just released his ninth studio album, Coming Home, days before the Super Bowl — said of the island nation’s dance culture. “By the way, it was me playing my bass, so I probably would’ve bumped my shoulder or my hand, but I had my bass in my hand and I was playing, so I kind of bopped off her body a little bit. If you go back and look at the video, you’ll understand because I did it there for the first time.”

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During the pair’s performance of their 2014 collab “She Came to Give It to You,” the crooner is down on one knee playing his guitar as he bumps his shoulder and his head against Minaj’s backside to the beat before getting up and spanking her behind.

“Oh no it was on beat and everything!” Charlamagne marveled as he reflected on the performance. “It was on beat, and I was like, ‘D–n!’”

“I think I was reaching a bit when I smacked her, though,” Usher admitted. “I shouldn’t have smacked her. I shouldn’t have did that.”

Jess then chimed in, throwing it back to how Usher had earlier in the interview talked about supporting fellow Black artists, “See, you gotta lift her up!”

Replied the crooner, “I was lifting!”

Watch Usher discuss his 2014 VMAs performance on The Breakfast Club below: