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11 Dec 2023

‘Barbie,’ Taylor Swift’s ‘Eras’ Film Score in 2024 Golden Globe Nods: Full List of Nominations

Barbie led the film nominees for the 2024 Golden Globe Awards, which were announced on Monday (Dec. 11). The blockbuster received nine nominations, including three of the six nods for best original song, motion picture.

“Dance the Night,” “I’m Just Ken” and “What Was I Made For?” are all nominated in that category, along with three non-Barbie songs – Bruce Springsteen’s “Addicted to Romance” from She Came to Me, Lenny Kravitz’s “Road to Freedom” from Rustin and Jack Black’s “Peaches” from The Super Mario Bros. Movie (which he co-wrote with four other writers).

All three Barbie songs may be on the shortlist of 15 songs vying for the Academy Award for best original song, which will be released on Dec. 21, but no more than two of them can be nominated, per Oscar rules.

Barbie is also nominated in the Globes’ new category, cinematic and box office achievement, along with six other feature films and Taylor Swift‘s Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, which quickly became the highest grossing concert film in history. The other feature films nominated in this category are Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, John Wick: Chapter 4, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1, Oppenheimer, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

The late Robbie Robertson is nominated for best original score – motion picture for his work on Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. The other nominated scores in that category are Jerskin Fendrix’s Poor Things, Ludwig Göransson’s Oppenheimer, Joe Hisaishi’s The Boy and the Heron, Mica Levi’s The Zone of Interest and Daniel Pemberton’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

On the film side, Barbie was followed in overall nominations by Oppenheimer (eight), Killers of the Flower Moon and Poor Things (seven each), Past Lives (five), and Anatomy of a Fall, Maestro and May December (four each).

On the TV side, Succession was the leading nominee with nine nods. It was followed by The Bear and Only Murders in the Building (five each) and The Crown (four).

Cedric “The Entertainer” and Wilmer Valderrama announced the nominations in 27 categories.

The 81st annual Golden Globe Awards will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+ on Sunday, Jan. 7, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Emmy-winning producing duo Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner of White Cherry Entertainment will serve as executive-producing showrunners, with Weiss also set to direct. Produced and owned by Dick Clark Productions, the Golden Globe Awards is one of the few awards ceremonies to include both motion picture and television achievements.

Following is the complete list of nominees for the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards:

FILM

Best original song – motion picture

“Addicted to Romance” — She Came to Me; Music & Lyrics by: Bruce Springsteen

“Dance the Night” — Barbie; Music & Lyrics by: Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt, Dua Lipa, Caroline Ailin

“I’m Just Ken” — Barbie; Music & Lyrics by: Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt

“Peaches” — The Super Mario Bros. Movie; Music & Lyrics by: Jack Black, Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Eric Osmond, John Spiker

“Road to Freedom” — Rustin; Music & Lyrics by: Lenny Kravitz

“What Was I Made For?” — Barbie; Music & Lyrics by: Billie Eilish O’Connell, Finneas O’Connell

Best original score – motion picture

Jerskin Fendrix, Poor Things

Ludwig Göransson, Oppenheimer

Joe Hisaishi, The Boy and the Heron

Mica Levi, The Zone of Interest

Daniel Pemberton, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Robbie Robertson, Killers of the Flower Moon

Cinematic and box office achievement

Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

John Wick: Chapter 4 (Lionsgate)

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 (Paramount Pictures)

Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures Releasing)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Universal Pictures)

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (AMC Theatres Distribution)

Best motion picture – drama

Anatomy of a Fall (Neon)

Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)

Maestro (Netflix)

Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Past Lives (A24)

The Zone of Interest (A24)

Best motion picture – musical or comedy

Air (Amazon MGM Studios)

American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

The Holdovers (Focus Features)

May December (Netflix)

Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures)

Best performance by a female actor in a motion picture – drama

Annette Bening, Nyad

Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon

Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall

Greta Lee, Past Lives

Carey Mulligan, Maestro

Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla

Best performance by a male actor in a motion picture – drama

Bradley Cooper, Maestro

Leonardo DiCaprio, Killers of the Flower Moon

Colman Domingo, Rustin

Barry Keoghan, Saltburn

Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer

Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers

Best performance by a female actor in a motion picture – musical or comedy

Fantasia Barrino, The Color Purple

Jennifer Lawrence, No Hard Feelings

Natalie Portman, May December

Alma Pöysti, Fallen Leaves

Margot Robbie, Barbie

Emma Stone, Poor Things

Best performance by a male actor in a motion picture – musical or comedy

Nicolas Cage, Dream Scenario

Timothée Chalamet, Wonka

Matt Damon, Air

Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers

Joaquin Phoenix, Beau Is Afraid

Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction

Best performance by a female actor in a supporting role in any motion picture

Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer

Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple

Jodie Foster, Nyad

Julianne Moore, May December

Rosamund Pike, Saltburn

Da’vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers

Best performance by a male actor in a supporting role in any motion picture

Willem Dafoe, Poor Things

Robert De Niro, Killers of the Flower Moon

Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer

Ryan Gosling, Barbie

Charles Melton, May December

Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things

Best director – motion picture

Bradley Cooper, Maestro

Greta Gerwig, Barbie

Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things

Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer

Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon

Celine Song, Past Lives

Best screenplay – motion picture

Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, Barbie

Tony Mcnamara, Poor Things

Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer

Eric Roth, Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon

Celine Song, Past Lives

Justine Triet, Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall

Best motion picture – animated

The Boy and the Heron (GKids)

Elemental (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures Releasing)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Universal Pictures)

Suzume (Crunchyroll / Sony Pictures Entertainment)

Wish (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Best motion picture – non-English language

Anatomy of a Fall (Neon) – France

Fallen Leaves (Mubi) – Finland

Io Capitano (Pathe Distribution) – Italy

Past Lives (A24) – USA

Society of the Snow (Netflix) – Spain

The Zone of Interest (A24) – United Kingdom / USA

TELEVISION

Best television series – drama

1923 (Paramount+)

The Crown (Netflix)

The Diplomat (Netflix)

The Last of Us (HBO | Max)

The Morning Show (Apple TV+)

Succession (HBO | Max)

Best television series – musical or comedy

Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Barry (HBO | Max)

The Bear (FX)

Jury Duty (Amazon Freevee)

Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)

Ted Lasso (Apple TV+)

Best television limited series, anthology series or motion picture made for television

All The Light We Cannot See (Netflix)

Beef (Netflix)

Daisy Jones & The Six (Prime Video)

Fargo (FX)

Fellow Travelers (Showtime)

Lessons in Chemistry (Apple TV+)

Best performance by a female actor in a television series – drama

Helen Mirren, 1923

Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us

Keri Russell, The Diplomat

Sarah Snook, Succession

Imelda Staunton, The Crown

Emma Stone, The Curse

Best performance by a male actor in a television series – drama

Brian Cox, Succession

Kieran Culkin, Succession

Gary Oldman, Slow Horses

Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us

Jeremy Strong, Succession

Dominic West, The Crown

Best performance by a female actor in a television series – musical or comedy

Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary

Ayo Edebiri, The Bear

Elle Fanning, The Great

Selena Gomez, Only Murders in the Building

Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face

Best performance by a male actor in a television series – musical or comedy

Bill Hader, Barry

Steve Martin, Only Murders in the Building

Jason Segel, Shrinking

Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building

Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso

Jeremy Allen White, The Bear

Best performance by a female actor in a limited series, anthology series, or a motion picture made for television

Riley Keough, Daisy Jones & The Six

Brie Larson, Lessons in Chemistry

Elizabeth Olsen, Love & Death

Juno Temple, Fargo

Rachel Weisz, Dead Ringers

Ali Wong, Beef

Best performance by a male actor in a limited series, anthology series, or a motion picture made for television

Matt Bomer, Fellow Travelers

Sam Claflin, Daisy Jones & The Six

Jon Hamm, Fargo

Woody Harrelson, White House Plumbers

David Oyelowo, Lawmen: Bass Reeves

Steven Yeun, Beef

Best performance by a female actor in a supporting role on television

Elizabeth Debicki, The Crown

Abby Elliott, The Bear

Christina Ricci, Yellowjackets

J. Smith-Cameron, Succession

Meryl Streep, Only Murders in the Building

Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso

Best performance by a male actor in a supporting role on television

Billy Crudup, The Morning Show

Matthew MacFadyen, Succession

James Marsden, Jury Duty

Ebon Moss–Bachrach, The Bear

Alan Ruck, Succession

Alexander Skarsgård, Succession

Best performance in stand-up comedy on television

Ricky Gervais, Ricky Gervais: Armageddon

Trevor Noah, Trevor Noah: Where Was I

Chris Rock, Chris Rock: Selective Outrage

Amy Schumer, Amy Schumer: Emergency Contact

Sarah Silverman, Sarah Silverman: Someone You Love

Wanda Sykes, Wanda Sykes: I’m an Entertainer

DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldrige. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.)

11 Dec 2023

What ‘Ella Baila Sola’ Taught Us About The Future Of Latin Music

The sound that dominated popular Spanish-language music in 2023 wasn’t represented at all on the Billboard Hot 100 until two years ago, when Gera MX and Christian Nodal’s country-tinged “Botella Tras Botella” debuted at No. 60 and made history as the first regional Mexican song on the chart. Since then, the genre’s presence on the ranking has exploded as a new crop of stars has evolved the music’s sound and look, borrowing from hip-hop, trap and rap to build on its traditional instruments of guitar, accordion and more. As a result, these artists have nurtured a new generation of fans for a genre with foundations that date back over a century.

This year, more than 35 regional Mexican tracks have entered the Hot 100, highlighted by Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s blockbuster smash, “Ella Baila Sola,” which also made history when it reached the chart’s top five. This record year for regional Mexican music, or música Mexicana, has been powered by not only superstar collaborations — like Grupo Frontera’s team-up with Bad Bunny and Fuerza Regida pairing with Marshmello — but also support from major labels eager to partner with the independents that have long dominated the genre. In the first half of 2023 alone, overall consumption of regional Mexican music jumped 42.1%, topping all other genres but K-pop, according to Luminate.

“For decades, Mexican music has played a significant role in Latin music, leaving a profound impact on the global musical landscape,” says Manny Prado, vp of marketing and A&R at Interscope Records. “Finally, it has gained the acknowledgment it deserves.” This year in particular, international collaborations have propelled the sound into uncharted territories, and no other Latin genre has gained the traction of regional Mexican.

Its newfound popularity is rooted in many things, but particularly in its indie support, followed by multinational distribution partnerships with major labels. In June, Fuerza Regida frontman Jesús Ortiz Paz signed a worldwide deal with Cinq Music to distribute his own label, Street Mob Records, which he launched in 2018. The move followed a deal that Fuerza Regida signed with Sony Music Latin last year through a partnership with its indie label, Rancho Humilde. The strategy also worked for Washington state-based sibling trio Yahritza y Su Esencia, which signed to Columbia Records in partnership with Sony Music Latin and its indie Lumbre Music (which had discovered and signed the act eight months prior).

While indies have historically dominated the genre — and continue to do so — such partnerships indicate that alliances will be key to the music’s continued growth in 2024.

“We saw Mexican music grow because artists started to collaborate, and it’s the same thing when companies start joining forces,” says Maria Inés Sánchez, Sony Music Latin’s new vp of West Coast operations. “Major labels like Sony can reach a broader spectrum of the business in general. We have eyes where indies perhaps don’t with offices internationally.”

At the center of the regional Mexican revolution is Peso Pluma, whose raw and raspy vocals and signature sound of punctuated trombones and charchetas — along with a quirky haircut — made him the unwitting face of the genre. After a few collaborations with fellow corrido artists at the beginning of the year, he struck gold when he teamed with Eslabon Armado for “Ella Baila Sola.” Arguably this year’s biggest Latin hit, with 617.3 million on-demand official streams in the United States, it proves how a powerful song can propel a local genre to global recognition, as well as the importance of catering to a broader audience. The two indie artists are stylistically opposites; Peso Pluma is known for his swaggy, attitude-heavy corridos and Eslabon Armado for its romantic sierreño ballads. “Ella Baila Sola” became the first regional Mexican song to dominate the Billboard Global 200 (holding the top slot for six weeks) and is No. 1 on the year-end Hot Latin Songs chart.

Another head-turning team-up arrived in April, when Bad Bunny joined Tejano act Grupo Frontera for “un x100to,” a cumbia/norteña song that scored a top 10 debut on the Hot 100. It was perhaps a catalyst for other unorthodox collaborations that followed, including Peso Pluma and El Alfa, Grupo Frontera and Manuel Turizo, and Banda MS and Ice Cube.

“The [Mexican] movement is now taking advantage just as reggaetón did” in the early 2000s, says Sergio Lizárraga, founder of indie label Lizos Music and manager of Banda MS. “But in the end, the root is the same, the themes they address are the same — just sung differently.”

Uriel Waizel, the editorial lead for Mexico at Spotify, compares this wave of success to another genre entirely: Afrobeats. “The biggest lesson regional Mexican music has taught is that the ‘traditional’ format had to make concessions to impact the U.S. and global charts,” Waizel says. “Which is what we saw happen with Rema and Selena Gomez [with “Calm Down”]. It’s a great example of music that becomes more digestible for global audiences.”

He cites recent Latin hits like “Qlona” by Karol G and Peso Pluma and “Harley Quinn” by Fuerza Regida and Marshmello as further proof. “After several iterations that have been happening evolutionarily over the past five years,” he says, “música Mexicana has finally found its way into the global market.” 

This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.

11 Dec 2023

What Rema And Selena Gomez’s Top 10 Team-Up Taught Us About The Future Of African Music African Music

Tega Oghenejobo could see it coming — but didn’t realize just how big it would be.

In March 2022, Nigerian record label Mavin Records and its subsidiary Jonzing World released Rave & Roses, the debut album by budding Nigerian star Rema, who had already achieved success in his home country and was steadily making inroads internationally. The album was well-received, but it was its second single, the bouncy earworm “Calm Down,” that was really making noise. “Its initial growth in Europe, particularly in France, where it dominated the radio charts for months, hinted at its potential,” says Oghenejobo, Mavin’s COO. “Then breaking records in regions like India and the Middle East, becoming the first No. 1 song on the MENA [Middle East and North Africa] charts showcased its global appeal even before it hit the U.S.”

The song began picking up traction on TikTok and across social media, followed by marketing support from Mavin and distributor Virgin Music, all while Rema toured Europe and Africa to help “Calm Down” gain steam. Then, in August 2022, Mavin and Interscope Records released a remix with Selena Gomez, and the song began to catch on stateside, both on streaming services and at radio. It would take another 10 months, but “Calm Down” would ultimately reach No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the all-genre Radio Songs chart, both history-making feats for a song by an African lead artist.

“The success of ‘Calm Down’ highlighted several crucial lessons: Solid partnerships, a competent team and an artist aligned with the vision are indispensable for global success, while the ability to adapt and capitalize on every opportunity, as well as maintaining momentum, emerged as key strategies,” Oghenejobo says. “And collaborations, exemplified by Rema and Selena Gomez, underscore the potential for unexpected pairings to achieve remarkable results.”

The coronation of “Calm Down” across the charts — it also reached No. 1 on the Global Excl. U.S., Pop Airplay and U.S. Afrobeats charts, ultimately spending 58 weeks atop the lattermost list — didn’t happen in a vacuum. For the past seven years — since Wizkid became the first Nigerian act to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100, as a featured artist on Drake’s 2016 smash “One Dance” — African artists and African music, for which “Afrobeats” serves as a sort of catchall term, have been steadily making headway on the U.S. charts, radio station playlists and arena headlining slots. Wizkid, Burna Boy and Davido have been at the forefront leading the charge, but the past two years have also heralded breakthroughs for a number of younger artists, such as Rema, Tems, Libianca, Asake and Tyla. The Grammys acknowledged that growth by introducing the best African music performance category; the award will be given out for the first time next year.

“For the past 30 to 40 years, American culture influenced the world,” says Tunde Balogun, president of LVRN, which co-manages Davido and Nigerian DJ-producer Spinall. “Now, through Africa and Latin in particular, we’re seeing the world influence American music. We’re seeing the industry’s institutions change, and we’re seeing it on the top 40 radio charts as well as the Hot 100. It’s a really exciting time.”

Some of that is due to the success of collaborators like Rema and Gomez. For example, “Essence,” Wizkid’s breezy breakout hit with Tems, took off in 2021, then exploded after Justin Bieber hopped on the remix, while Tems herself won a Grammy for a guest feature on Future’s “Wait for U.” And this year, Becky G remixed Libianca’s “People” to reach a broader audience. But it’s also a reflection of a growing appetite for music from beyond the borders of the United States — and labels are following consumer tastes.

“Most labels right now are essentially looking at the world’s music population — they’re no longer just looking at what’s happening in Ohio or Portland or wherever, they’re looking at what is actually being consumed in the world,” says RCA COO John Fleckenstein, whose roster includes Wizkid, Davido, Tems and Libianca. “That, to me, shows that we’re starting to recognize that the whole world is full of fans and artists and those borders are coming down, the economic ones and the political ones. It’s just about fans and artists. Perhaps most excitingly, the stage is already set for a true global superstar to emerge in the genre.”

And that superstar might already be here. For all the excitement around the music itself, there is more groundwork to do for the artists and the business — work that is already well underway. “The numerous wins, valuable lessons learned and opportunities for growth have been incredibly rewarding, and the validation through successful tours, enthusiastic audiences, awards and accolades motivates us to aim higher and work harder,” Oghenejobo says. “With determination and respect for the craft, there’s limitless potential for what African music can accomplish. The future looks incredibly promising.”

This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.

11 Dec 2023

What The Year Of ‘I’m The Problem, It’s Me’ Taught Us About The Future Of Pop

Ironically, this year in pop was defined by a pair of 2022 blockbusters: Taylor Swift’s Midnights and SZA’s SOS. Although the two Billboard 200-topping albums are starkly different in sound and tone, there is a lyrical through line of unflinching self-examination and sarcastic self-deprecation that courses through each. “Anti-Hero,” the lead single from Midnights that ruled the Billboard Hot 100, became one of Swift’s biggest chart hits thanks, in part, to its cheeky refrain: “It’s me, hi/I’m the problem, it’s me.” Likewise, SZA dominated the Hot 100 with her Grammy-nominated “Kill Bill,” in which she sings, “I’m so mature, I’m so mature/I’m so mature, I got me a therapist to tell me there’s other men.”

Olivia Rodrigo, a pop powerhouse who this year scored a Hot 100 No. 1 with “Vampire” and another top 10 with “Bad Idea, Right?,” built the entirety of her Grammy-nominated GUTS album around this concept. In “ballad of a homeschooled girl,” she croons, “Everything I do is tragic/Every guy I like is gay/The morning after, I panic/Oh, God, what did I say?!” Delivered with a tone that carefully swells from apathy to mania, Rodrigo’s lyrics are biting — but she’s the subject of her own takedown. Through revealing the social and romantic cues that still confuse her in spite of her superstar status, Rodrigo goes from inaccessible celebrity brand to virtual friend and confidante in just a few bars.

This sort of tongue-in-cheek accountability — which struck a particularly resonant chord in the context of the evolution of Swift’s public persona and perception ­— harks back to a pivotal album released a decade earlier. Lorde’s 2013 debut, Pure Heroine, was defined by its pointed pop songwriting, with couplets that bemoan the singer’s own shortcomings just as much as they deride and analyze the world around her. Ten years later, pop music in 2023 has proved that not only is this style of songwriting here to stay, but it has also become increasingly reflective of diversity and representation in popular media.

SZA’s brand of self-deprecation speaks more directly to Black women. When she sings, “I used to be special/But you made me hate me/Regret that I changed me/I hate that you made me/Just like you,” in “Special,” she’s speaking from a place that’s uncomfortable, embarrassing and valid — especially to Black women who must fight various compounding forms of misogynoir in their quest for love. She’s making emotional space that holds just as much weight as more positive anthems like Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl.”

For as many pseudo-protest songs as summer 2020 produced, that period also intensified the already-brewing ramifications of a pandemic on the human psyche. “I think between people being on lockdown and dealing with all the hardships of the last few years, [they] have had much more time to turn inward and sometimes face their own demons,” says “Special” co-writer Rob Bisel. “I think having music that’s self-deprecating helps make that process of turning inward much less difficult and makes people feel less alone during these turbulent times.”

Bisel also worked on Reneé Rapp’s standout debut, Snow Angel, which features several sarcasm-drenched pop tunes including “I Hate Boston” and “Poison Poison.” The former is a cheeky rebuttal of Beantown due to a no-good ex, while the latter is a fiery rumination on a friendship with a woman that went up in flames. As an out bisexual woman in pop, Rapp writes lyrics that capture the minds and attitudes of an audience rarely targeted — but often objectified — by top 40 radio. Troye Sivan’s Hot 100 hit “One of Your Girls” — which details the minefield that is being a gay man messing with romantic interests who have not previously been with other men — functions in a similar way for gay men. Even Barbie (by way of Ryan Gosling’s worldview-shattering viral hit, “I’m Just Ken”) and Paramore (with the sassy “Running Out of Time”) employed this trend of sardonic, intimately self-aware songwriting this year.

According to Alexander 23, who co-wrote “Poison Poison,” this style of songwriting is “here to stay because we just see too much of people now via social media to believe something too positive.” He adds, “I think people are hearing things that feel more conversational, more like the artist is someone [who] they actually know and [is] their friend.” Of course, this hasn’t completely pushed aside flashy, confidence-boosting pop jams — take Tate McRae’s “Greedy” and aliyahsinterlude’s “IT GIRL,” for example — but there’s no mistaking its dominance.

Both Bisel (Beck, Green Day) and Alexander (LCD Soundsystem) point to past generations of pop artists as evidence of this songwriting style’s legacy. “One of the most powerful things you can do as a songwriter is to share the feelings that everyone experiences but are too afraid to say out loud,” Bisel says. “A self-deprecating song in some ways is a vehicle for listeners to share their own burdens and to feel seen.”

With self-critical records from Lana Del Rey (“A&W”) and boygenius (“Not Strong Enough”) scoring key Grammy nods and tongue-in-cheek tracks from Swift and SZA dominating commercially, pop is staunchly in its sarcastic era. “I’m a big believer that trends in music are cyclical and constantly come back around,” Bisel says. “At the same time, honest music will never go out of style.”

This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.

11 Dec 2023

7 Must-Hear New Country Songs: Chase Wright, Meg McRee, Michael Ray and More

In this week’s collection of new country music, Chase Wright and Michael Ray offer up somber, reflective numbers, while bluegrass-rockers The Dead South bring a rollicking new track.

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This week’s crop of songs also showcases the top-shelf musical talents of several female artists. Meg McRee teams with award-winning songwriters Lori McKenna and Hillary Lindsey for a heartbreaking ballad. Additionally, Mae Estes and Laci Kaye Booth offer up intensely vulnerable tracks.

Chase Wright, “Who I Want to Be”

Wright follows his breakthrough song “Why Should We” with this redemptive ballad, which Wright crafted with Josh Jenkins, Chris Lacorte and Andy Albert, with production from Ned Cameron. This pensive pop-country track, filled with understated piano and guitar, finds Wright reflective and regretful, ruminating over past transgressions while vowing to change his ways. “I’m tasting my own medicine, I’m swallowing my pride/ Thе moments I was weakest ain’t how I’ll bе defined,” he offers, delivering one of his strongest vocals to date.

Meg McRee feat. Lori McKenna and Hillary Lindsey, “The Moon”

Newcomer McRee teams with Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member (and current Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee) Lindsey as well as three-time Grammy winner McKenna for this superb song about a “love” relationship with a web of strings attached. “For unconditional love, yours sure did come with a lot of conditions,” McRee deadpans here, as this trio of singer-songwriters trade harmonies over rippling, tender acoustic guitar. This understated ballad brings plenty of vulnerability and bite.

Mae Estes, “Town Left Me” (Acoustic)

Singer-songwriter Estes deftly captures the disconnected, disappointing feeling of returning to a childhood hometown only to find that, like herself, that rural space has grown and shifted in the intervening years — as gravel lots become coffee shops, high school hangouts are paved over and once-close relationships fade into vague acquaintances. This acoustic version further accentuates Estes’ evocative vocal.

Michael Ray, “We Should Get a Drink Sometime”

This time of year is rife with reflections and the urge for relational restoration. This older ballad, written by Thomas Rhett, Rhett Akins, Josh Kerr and Mike Busbee, centers on a chance encounter between two old flames, which kindles his desire to reconnect. Though he casually tosses off the request to get together “like old friends do,” it’s clear his feelings run closer to hoping for a revived romance than a simple platonic meetup. As always, Ray’s smoothly understated, country vocal delivers the song’s sentiments with ease.

Laci Kaye Booth, “Cigarettes”

This Texas native is a clear-eyed truth purveyor, and she doesn’t hold back from chronicling the lessons she’s learned from years of heartbreak, both personally and professionally. The images of smoke and cigarettes become metaphors for moments of letdown, particularly as she details being touted as the “next big thing” in a fickle music industry that can be filled with smoke and mirrors. She later etches a heartbreaking scene of being released from her record label deal with the succinct line: “And the same champagne that they bought me/ I popped it when they dropped me.” A stunning song from a towering talent.

Colin Stough, “Sleep Tonight (Acoustic)”

This former American Idol contestant offers up a pared back version of his song “Sleep Tonight,” which ponders the fear of death and leaving behind his loved ones too soon. “What if I leave here without a warning?/ Start dancing in the sky,” he muses. This version places the spotlight on Stough’s smooth-yet-textured vocal and further highlights country music’s current moment of turning from the “girl-truck-alcohol” paint-by-numbers songs of the past decade, toward more songs torn from personal revelation.

Written by Stough with Sean Thomas Rogers and Brian Congdon, the original version appeared on Stough’s six-track EP Promiseland.

The Dead South, “A Little Devil”

This quartet’s fleet-fingered picking on cello, mandolin, banjo and acoustic guitar infuse heavy metal intensity into their unique bluegrass sound, led by singer/guitarist Nate Hilt’s warm, gritty voice. This group’s high-powered harmonies further escalate this tale of deception and wanting. “A Little Devil” will be included on the group’s upcoming album Chains & Stakes, out Feb. 9, 2024.

11 Dec 2023

Cardi B Confirms Break Up With Offset: ‘I’ve Been Single For a Minute Now’

According to Cardi B, she’s a single woman. Early Monday morning (Dec. 11), Cardi went on Instagram Live to tell fans that she and Offset are no longer together after rumors of them breaking up last week circulated on social media.

“I’ve been single for a minute now but I have been afraid to like — not afraid, I just don’t know how to tell the world,” she said in the clip. “But I feel like today has been a sign. The last time I got on Live, I kind of wanted to tell you guys, but I didn’t know how to tell you, so I changed my mind. But it has been like this for a minute now. I just took it as a sign.”

“I wanna start 2024, like, fresh, open,” she added. “I don’t know. I’m curious for a new life, for a new beginning. And yeah, I’m excited.”

The sign Cardi was referring to was Blueface’s claim in a now-deleted tweet that his ex-girlfriend and mother of his son, Chrisean, was intimate with Offset.

He later went into specifics, claiming that Chrisean hooked up with the Migos rapper at Offset and Cardi’s L.A. home in November.

Chrisean appeared to deny the accusations on X, replying in part that Blueface was “making up s–t.”

Offset also refuted those claims on X with a tweet of his own. “I ain’t never talk or touch that lady,” he said in his rebuttal. “Real Talk man you need some help!”

Billboard reached out to Offset’s reps for comment.

Last week, Cardi B and Offset unfollowed each other on Instagram, fueling speculation of a possible breakup. She also shared cryptic posts about outgrowing relationships. “You know when you just out grow relationships,” read the first, followed by, “I’m tired of protecting peoples feelings…I GOTTA PUT MYSELF FIRST!”

In 2020, Cardi filed for divorce, but months later, she called it off. Two years prior, Offset was at the center of a cheating scandal, which led him to deliver a public apology to Cardi.

In an interview with the Call Me Daddy podcast in October, Offset spoke on how the two worked amicably to re-establish trust in their relationship.

“We’re both public figures, we’re both in the eyes of people. Stop being selfish,” he said. “You’re married to this woman, be dedicated to this woman. And also, just like being more communicative about s–t. Like, we just talk more and, because, you know, work was getting in the way, sometimes and it was like, [phew] and we would talk all the time but communication is key. If you don’t like some s–t, tell me, and if I don’t like some s–t, I’ll tell you. We talk and communication is key. Not communicating f–ks s–t up.”

Watch Cardi’s video below.

11 Dec 2023

The Weeknd Fans Celebrate Fortnite Festival Launch With Times Square Flash Mob

If you happen to be waltzing through Times Square over the weekend and you got a glimpse of The Weeknd, or 300 Weeknds, then you weren’t seeing things. The eye-popping downtown New York scene on Saturday night (Dec. 9) came courtesy of a 300-person flash mob assembled on the TKTS staircase in the heart of Times Square to celebrate the new Fortnite Festival game.

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The dancers were all dressed in a variety of After Hours-era Weeknd looks — which are available as skins in the game — to celebrate the singer’s (who now goes by his given name, Abel Tesfaye) debut as the headliner for the game in which players can jam out with friends. The outfits modeled by the dancers included the red jacket and black pants outfit the Weeknd wore throughout the After Hours era, as well as the white mask and white shirt and white mask and black outfit as they all danced to “Blinding Lights” for a reported crowd of 15,000.

Fortnite Festival launched on Saturday and it allows players to perform their favorite songs solo or with their friends by tapping out notes, with Tesfaye serving as the game’s first headliner. On the Main Stage, users can choose songs for their setlist and used their preferred control method to rip it up on guitar, bass, keytar, drums or vocals; up to four players can be on the Main Stage at once.

The Weeknd is the latest artist to team up with Fortnite for a music event, following virtual concerts by Eminem, Ariana Grande, Travis Scott, Marshmello and Kid Cudi. In April, Coachella teamed up with Fortnite for a game called Coachella Island, which featured a virtual world inside the Fortnite universe with mini-games, Coachella-themed merch, art installations and virtual versions of the fest’s iconic ferris wheel and Spectra building.

Check out footage of the flash mob below.

11 Dec 2023

Hipgnosis Songs Fund Sells 20,000 Songs at a Discount Rate

Hipgnosis Songs Fund has found a buyer for a batch of “non-core songs” that have been up for sale since earlier this fall. In a filing Monday with the London Stock Exchange, where it is listed, HSF announced the sale of 20,000 tracks for $23.1 million, which it said reflects a 14.2% discount on the songs’ valuation as of late September.

The company said the sale of the songs, acquired in 2020 from Kobalt, is expected to net $22.6 million, which will be used to pay down a revolving credit facility and provide “greater headroom under its future covenant compliance reporting.” The buyer or buyers were not disclosed. The sale price represents a multiple of 9.6x net publisher share, according to a statement, and makes up approximately 1% of HSF’s investment portfolio value.

The specifics of these “non-core” songs have also not been disclosed. When the proposed sale was announced in September, the company’s board said the songs “require ongoing accounting and reporting obligations that take up significant bandwidth which can be better focused on active song management.”

Hipgnosis is comprised of three companies: Hipgnosis Song Management, Hipgnosis Songs Capital and Hipgnosis Songs Fund. The latter of the three has been mired in controversy in recent months after it was announced that the London-listed trust would not pay its investors a dividend because of new, lower projections for revenue.

On Oct. 26, investors of the fund overwhelmingly demanded structural changes to the music rights company, with more than 80% of Hipgnosis investors voting in favor of the board drawing up “proposals for the reconstruction, reorganization or winding-up of the company to shareholders for their approval within six months.”

Last month the company announced that the fund will not declare dividends before the new fiscal year, which begins next April, in order to ensure it has enough on its balance sheet to pay contractually-mandated catalog bonuses.

In its latest filing announcing the sale of unspecified songs, HSF also said it had appointed Singer Capital Markets as sole corporate broker and financial adviser, and Shot Tower Capital as lead adviser of the company’s strategic review.

11 Dec 2023

Barry Manilow Talks ‘A Very Barry Christmas’ TV Special and Changing His Mind About the Term ‘Fanilow’

Barry Manilow turned 80 this year, but don’t think for a second that he’s slowing down. He’s too booked to even consider it. Tonight (Dec. 11) at 10 p.m. ET/PT, NBC will air Barry Manilow’s A Very Barry Christmas.

The show was filmed about five weeks ago at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino where he performs his long-running show, Manilow: Las Vegas – The Hits Come Home! The special consists of half holiday songs (“Jingle Bells,” “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “Feliz Navidad” and “White Christmas”) and half Manilow hits (his three Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits – “Mandy,” “I Write the Songs” and “Looks Like We Made It” – and what is probably his most famous song “Copacabana”). The special was directed by Matt Askew, who directed Weekends With Adele.

A Very Barry Christmas is Manilow’s third Christmas-themed TV special. He has also released three Christmas albums and was planning to record another one this year, but didn’t get it done. “I started to lay out all the songs that I was going to do, and then this year happened,” Manilow told Billboard. “This year was like the craziest year ever.”

Manilow was honored by the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall in May. He played five consecutive nights (there are no nights off for this trouper) at Radio City Music Hall in May and June – and he’s already booked for five more shows at the legendary venue in April 2024. He was a presenter on the Tony Awards in June. Harmony, the stage musical he wrote with longtime collaborator Bruce Sussman, which had spent decades in development hell, finally opened on Broadway in November.

Manilow has probably done more TV – and used it more effectively – than just about any other pop music performer. He won a Primetime Emmy in 1977 for his first special, The Barry Manilow Special. The show, which featured Laverne & Shirley star Penny Marshall, was seen by 34 million viewers. He won his second in 2006, for the PBS show Manilow: Music and Passion.

He won that first Emmy, at least in part, because he was hot as a pistol in 1977, with a No. 1 single on the Hot 100 (“Looks Like We Made It”) and a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 (Barry Manilow/Live). He won his second, at least in part, because his fellow professionals respected the way he had survived the ups and downs of a long career. He had “made it through the rain,” to borrow the title of one of his best songs – one that a longtime Fanilow (that would be me) ranked No. 6 on this list of his 25 top 40 hits on the Hot 100 that we posted in June to coincide with his reaching the big 8-0.

Manilow talked to Billboard on the eve of tonight’s special. This conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

How did this new special for NBC come about?

NBC executives came to see my regular [non-holiday] show at the Westgate and we were talking afterwards, and they were saying they were looking for Christmas product because everybody was on strike. And I said, “I have a Christmas show. We’ve been doing it for the last four years, and everybody seems to love it.” We sent them a video of it and they loved it. Before we knew it, we were taping the show.

You’ve taken this Christmas show on the road too.

It’s always received really well. I figured out a way of not only doing Christmas songs but my hits. It goes back and forth. It still always feels like a Christmas show, even when I’m singing “Copacabana.”

Christmas songs are right in your wheelhouse because so many of them are filled with yearning and emotion.

Even the [up-tempo] ones feel emotional because we’ve heard them all of our lives. That’s the only way I write, arrange or perform. If it doesn’t make me feel something, and if it doesn’t make the audience feel something, whether it’s sad or happy, then I’ve missed; then I haven’t done it right.

When did you tape the special?

About four or five weeks ago. We did two tapings. When I did my first batch of specials back in the ’70s and ’80s, there were about five cameras. [On this one,] they brought in 12 cameras. They had every angle they possibly could. It’s a beautiful-looking special. It looks otherworldly.

Any guests?

No, but we have Santa, little children, loads of Christmas trees — and it snows on the audience.

Why do you think TV works so well for you?

I try to be as genuine and as honest with every word and everything I say as I possibly can. If I’m right, that works to the camera, just like it works to an audience. If I can’t feel that I am being truthful in every lyric that I sing, then I shouldn’t be on the stage.

Last night I watched your 2019 interview for the Television Academy’s The Interviews series. You talked about how that first special in March 1977 took you to another level of fame and recognition – which is saying something, because you had had two No. 1 hits by that point.

The next morning [after the special aired], I went to the airport and everybody was yelling at me, “Barry! Barry! Barry!” The day before that, nobody paid any attention, but after that, it changed.

Did ABC ever offer you a summer replacement TV show, like a lot of music stars did back did back then?

They did, but I turned it down. I didn’t think it was the right thing to do — but I told them I would love to do one special a year, and they were OK with that. I didn’t think summer replacement [series] were helping the artist, and I didn’t want to be the guy that introduced people and did comedy sketches. That’s really not what I do. I would be terrible at that.

I didn’t realize the term “Fanilow” came from your 2003 appearance on Will & Grace.

One of the characters [played by guest star Sara Gilbert] was waiting [in line with Will, played by Eric McCormack] for tickets to a show of mine and said she was a Fanilow. It was a joke. It was clever and people picked up on it.

That phrase was a gift to you, because it’s catchy and affectionate.

I didn’t like it in the beginning. I thought it was kind of a put-down. But people would come up to me and say, ‘I’m a Fanilow,’ and they’d be so proud that I began to like it. And now I do like it.

I’m impressed that, 50 years into your career, you played five nights at Radio City.

For a New York guy like me, just to do [one night at] Radio City would have been enough — but to sell out five nights, that was really a thrill.

I’m also impressed that you played five consecutive nights. Artists half your age take nights off.

Oh please. I don’t even worry about that. I never get tired. I don’t sleep and I don’t eat. That’s my secret.

Harmony finally opened on Broadway this year. When did you and Bruce first write it?

We got the idea in 1997. It took awhile for us to put it together. And then the producer couldn’t get [it to Broadway] so we’d put it back in the drawer. Then there was another producer waiting to try it. Most of the time, we signed with a production company for three years. Every time we had to wait [until the previous deal was up]. Most of the time they just couldn’t get it to New York.

Dionne Warwick [whose 1979 comeback album Manilow produced] got the Kennedy Center Honors last week. The ceremony will air on TV later this month. It seems to me that if they base their selections on artists who have risen to the top in many different fields of entertainment, you should have gotten it by now. You went to the top in recordings, TV and live performances. If you ever do get that call, what would it mean to you?

Well, it’s quite an honor. No, they’ve never called and asked, and I don’t think they ever will. Maybe I just don’t do the kind of thing they want their honorees to do. I don’t understand why. If they did, would it be the top of the line? It would be pretty close to the top of the line to get an honor like that.

11 Dec 2023

Iron Mountain Entertainment Services to Sponsor Scholarships for 1500 Sound Academy Students

Physical and digital media archiving service Iron Mountain Entertainment Services has agreed to fund full-ride scholarships for four students at Inglewood, Calif.-based music education institution 1500 Sound Academy, the organizations tell Billboard.

1500 Sound Academy offers instruction in current and emerging business practices in the music industry via a team that includes Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Fauntleroy, Grammy-winning producer Larrance “Rance” Dopson and entrepreneur and executive Twila True. The scholarships will be available to prospective students who wish to enroll in one of three 1500 Sound Academy programs: music & industry fundamentals, DJ fundamentals and vocal performance & production fundamentals. Those awarded the scholarships will take part in in-person lectures and labs focused on music production, engineering, songwriting, mixing, music business, DJ fundamentals, vocal performance, vocal production and more.

Students who receive the scholarships will also be instructed in the basics of archiving and restoration through Iron Mountain’s “Smart Vault” digital media preservation solution as well as on-the-ground training at Iron Mountain’s digital studio and vaults.

To be eligible for the scholarships, applicants must meet the enrollment requirements and not have previously attended any course or program at 1500 Sound Academy. 

“We look forward to our partnership with Iron Mountain Entertainment Services by offering four fortunate students the opportunity to learn the fundamentals in this industry through one of our programs,” said Fauntleroy in a statement. “With IMES’ global resources in the film, music, broadcast, and sports industries, we’re encouraging new talent to emerge in the field and seeking to help a new generation of music professionals obtain a launching pad into the industry.”

“The 1500 Sound Academy is leading the way for the next wave of leaders in the business of music,” added Lance Podell, senior vp/GM of Iron Mountain Entertainment Services. “We are honored to partner with them and fund student scholarships, as well as provide our Smart Vault solution to all of the students and faculty. Too often we hear about lost lyrics, songs or assets. Our support will provide the solution and training to help a new generation of creators in the discipline of archival preservation, which is a critical but often overlooked aspect of building a music career.”

The application process for the scholarships opens on Tuesday (Dec. 12). Winners will be announced on Dec. 29 or Jan. 5. More details on the submission and application process can be found here.