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Was Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Drivers License’ About Adam Driver All Along? ‘SNL’ Promos Say ‘100%’

If you thought you knew the backstory behind Olivia Rodrigo‘s breakout 2021 hit “drivers license,” the new Saturday Night Live promos are here to set you straight.

The new promos — starring host Adam Driver, musical guest Rodrigo and SNL castmember Heidi Gardner — start by debating the inspiration behind Rodrigo’s debut smash single.

“OK, this is awkward: Olivia Rodrigo and the guy she wrote a song about,” Gardner says.

“What song?” Driver asks incredulously.

“Um, ‘drivers license’? Adam Driver?” Gardner responds.

“That song’s not about me!” he shoots back — to which Rodrigo replies: “It’s 100% about you.” (You can rest easy now, Joshua Bassett.)

In the next promo, Gardner says after the intros, “Wow, two teen heartthrobs on SNL!”

“I’m actually 20…” Rodrigo clarifies.

“I was talking about me and Adam,” Gardner says, with Driving chiming in: “Oh, you thought she was talking about you? Cringe.”

On this weekend’s episode, Driver will host for a fourth time and Rodrigo will perform for a second time, following her May 2021 debut, during which she performed “drivers license” and “good 4 u,” her pair of No. 1 hits from sour. That same season, SNL aired a buzzy sketch starring host Rege-Jean Page (Bridgerton) in which a group of men listen to “drivers license” on a bar jukebox and end up passionately singing along to the heartbreak hit by the end.

Watch the promos below, and tune in to the new episode Saturday at 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT on NBC.



Linkin Park, Olivia Rodrigo & The Doors Lead Record Store Day Black Friday 2023 Top-Sellers

Record Store Day’s Black Friday festivities on Nov. 24 yielded big gains for vinyl album sales in the U.S., thanks to hot-selling titles by the likes of Linkin Park, Olivia Rodrigo, The Doors, U2 and Post Malone – all released exclusively for the indie store holiday.

According to Luminate, in the tracking week ending Nov. 30, the top five-selling Record Store Day (RSD) Black Friday album release were Linkin Park’s Lost Demos (on translucent sea blue vinyl), Rodrigo’s four-song Guts: The Secret Tracks (on opaque deep purple vinyl), The Doors’ Live in Bakersfield, California, August 21, 1970 (on double vinyl), U2’s U2 Live: Under a Blood Red Sky (on red vinyl, naturally) and Post Malone’s The Diamond Collection (on clear double vinyl). (See lists below, which are ranked by album sales generated in the week ending Nov. 30.)

The Doors’ Live in Bakersfield set was released on both vinyl and as a two-CD set, and their combined sales across the two configurations make the album the RSD Black Friday top-seller overall for the week.

Typically, many unique and limited-edition titles – both albums and singles – are released for RSD Black Friday celebrations, exclusively sold through independent and small chain music stores. Record Store Day traditionally has its main indie store holiday in the springtime (2023’s edition was held on April 22), followed by a secondary shindig for Black Friday.

In the week ending Nov. 30, U.S. vinyl album sales industry-wide (across all sellers of music, not just indie stores and small chains) grew 67% to 1.748 million sold (up from 1.046 million sold the previous week). Independent store vinyl album sales for the week jumped 149% to 829,000 (up from 333,000 the previous week). 47.4% of all vinyl albums sold in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 30 were purchased at independent and small chain music stores (829,000 of 1.748 million).

With 1.748 million vinyl albums sold industry-wide, that marks the fifth-largest week for vinyl album sales in the U.S. in the modern era, since Luminate began electronically tracking music sales in 1991. (It’s also the second-largest week of 2023 for vinyl album sales, following the week ending April 27, which captured Record Store Day 2023, with 1.809 million sold). The biggest week since 1991 for vinyl album sales was the week ending Dec. 22, 2022, when 2.232 million vinyl albums were sold.

Top-Selling Record Store Day Black Friday 2023 Exclusive Albums at Independent Record Stores in U.S. (By Configuration)
Rank, Artist, Title
1. Linkin Park, Lost Demos (translucent sea blue vinyl)
2. Olivia Rodrigo, Guts: The Secret Tracks (opaque deep purple vinyl)
3. The Doors, Live in Bakersfield, California, August 21, 1970 (double vinyl)
4. U2, U2 Live: Under a Blood Red Sky (red vinyl)
5. Post Malone, The Diamond Collection (clear double vinyl)
6. Rilo Kiley, Under the Blacklight (translucent “blacklight” purple vinyl)
7. Noah Kahan, Cape Elizabeth (color marbled vinyl)
8. Grateful Dead, Filmore West 1969, March 2nd (five vinyl LP box set)
9. Coheed and Cambria, Live at the Starland Ballroom (solar flare colored double vinyl)
10. Gram Parsons and The Fallen Angels, The Last Roundup: Live From the Bijou Café in Philadelphia, 3/16/73 (double vinyl)
11. Jerry Garcia & John Kahn, Pure Jerry: Marin Veterans Memorial Auditorium San Rafael, California – February, 28, 1986 (double vinyl)
12. Joni Mitchell, Court and Spark: Demos (vinyl)
13. CZARFACE, CZARtificial Intelligence (translucent Czarbury orange vinyl)
14. The Beach Boys, The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album (green vinyl)
15. My Morning Jacket, Happy Holiday! (clear vinyl with “white snow splatters”)
16. Faces, Had Me a Real Good Time: Live at the BBC, In Session & In Concert 1971-1973 (vinyl)
17. Nas, I Am… The Autobiography (double vinyl)
18. The English Beat, I Just Can’t Stop It (double vinyl)
19. Willie Nelson, Shotgun Willie (double vinyl)
20. Bill Evans / Chuck Israels / Larry Bunker, Tales: Live in Copenhagen (1964) (vinyl)
21. Various Artists, Jazz Dispensary: At the Movies (purple marble vinyl)
22. Kim Petras, Problematique (apple red vinyl)
23. Jonas Brothers, The Family Business (clear double vinyl)
24. Soundtrack, Asteroid City (orange double vinyl)
25. The Flaming Lips, Live at the Paradise Lounge (pink vinyl)

Top-Selling Record Store Day Black Friday 2023 Exclusive Singles at Independent Record Stores in U.S.
Rank, Artist, Title
1. Prince and The N.P.G, Gett Off (12-inch vinyl)
2. Billy Strings featuring Willie Nelson, California Sober (green 12-inch vinyl)
3. Turnstile x BADBADNOTGOOD, Mystery / Alien Love Call, featuring Blood Orange / Underwater Boi (12-inch vinyl)
4. Motley Crue, Too Young to Fall In Love (Remix) / Knock em’ Dead Kid / Too Fast for Love (orange/black 12-inch vinyl)
5. Cypress Hill, Insane In the Brain (2023 Remix) / Hits From the Bong (2023 Remix) (12-inch vinyl)
6. Phoenix, Winter Solstice / Winter Solstice (Braxe+Falcon Remix) (7-inch vinyl)
7. Aimee Mann, Dead Eyes / Dead Eyes (demo) (7-inch vinyl)
8. Jeff Beck, Midnight Walker Lament, featuring Imelda May / Elegy for Dunkirk (Live), featuring Olivia Safe / Goin’ Down (Live) (12-inch vinyl)
9. The Hold Steady, The Death of the Punchline / Radar & Leda (random color 12-inch)
10. Waterboys, This Is the Sea (Fast) / The Passenger (10-inch vinyl)

Source: Luminate, for the week ending Nov. 30, 2023.

Selena Gomez Comments on Benny Blanco Dating Rumors: ‘He Is My Absolute Everything in My Heart’

You might have seen some rumors floating around online Thursday (Dec. 7) that Selena Gomez is dating producer Benny Blanco — well, Gomez saw the rumors too. The pop star/actress went on an Instagram commenting spree Thursday, responding to social media reaction to the rumored pairing.

“He is my absolute everything in my heart,” she commented on this post, before replying to other comments on the account. “I don’t understand. If you actually care about me. This is my happiest,” she said to one commenter. “If you don’t, feel free to say whatever you want. But I will never allow your words to guide my life. Ever. I’m done. If you can’t accept me at my happiest then don’t be in [my] life at all.”

One commenter fired back: “If you can’t handle the hate then stop posting pictures of your boyfriend lol – it should be special between you two only. Don’t be mad at your fans. They love you.” Gomez countered by offering up a timeline of the new relationship, saying that they’ve actually kept things private for half a year. “Not mad. It’s been 6 months bb. I will always defend my friends family and fans till the day I die.”

Billboard has reached out to a rep for Gomez to confirm the validity of the comments.

Following the comments, Gomez took to her own Instagram Stories and shared a photo that appeared to be of her and Blanco. In a separate Story, she wrote: “Just a reminder of how much I appreciate and love each and everyone of you.”

Blanco co-produced Gomez’s most recent song “Single Soon,” which arrived in August and was a top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. They also collaborated on Blanco’s “I Can’t Get Enough,” alongside Tainy and J Balvin, in 2019.

Aside from addressing Blanco rumors, she also responded to a fan who asked the status of her third solo album. “When is sg3 coming sel?” the comment read, to which Gomez responded: “in 2 months.”

‘Barbie,’ Taylor Swift’s ‘Eras Tour’ Film Nominated for The Hollywood Creative Alliance’s 2024 Astra Awards

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie led the Astra Awards nominations with 15 nods, while Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer was a beat behind with 14. The films each received nominations for best picture, director and cast ensemble.

Barbie also took three of the six nominations for best original song for “Dance the Night,” “I’m Just Ken” and “What Was I Made For?”

The late Robbie Robertson is nominated for best original score for his work on Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. He is competing with Ludwig Göransson’s score for Oppenheimer, among others.

Taylor Swift’s Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, which made history as the top-grossing concert film of all time, is vying for best documentary feature with two other music docs (American Symphony, about Jon Batiste, and Little Richard: I Am Everything, about the flamboyant rock legend) and three non-music docs.

Killers of the Flower Moon and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and each received 10 nominations in the awards, which are presented by the Hollywood Creative Alliance. The Holdover and Poor Things are tied with nine nominations each. The Color Purple had eight, including best actress for Fantasia Barrino.

Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, about legendary conductor Leonard Bernstein, received seven nods including best actor and best director for Cooper and best actress for Carey Mulligan.

Winners of the 2024 Astra Film Awards will be revealed on Saturday, Jan. 6, during a live-streamed event from the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, beginning at 6:30 pm PT/9:30 pm ET. Comedian Jimmy O. Yang will serve as host.

The Astra Creative Arts Awards winners will be revealed on Monday, Feb. 26 at City Market Social House in Los Angeles.

Here are nominees for the 2024 Astra Film and Creative Arts Awards in 14 selected categories:

Best Original Song

“Camp Isn’t Home” from Theater Camp, Written by Ben Platt, Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, and Mark Sonnenblick – Performed by Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Noah Galvin, Alexander Bello, Bailee Bonick, Donovan Colan, Jack Sobolewski, Kyndra Sanchez, Luke Islam, Madisen Lora and Quinn Titcomb (Searchlight Pictures)

“Dance the Night” from Barbie, Written by Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt, Dua Lipa, and Caroline Ailin – Performed by Dua Lipa (Warner Bros. Pictures)

“I’m Just Ken” from Barbie, Written by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt – Performed by Ryan Gosling (Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Peaches” from The Super Mario Bros Movie, Written by Jack Black, Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Eric Osmond, and John Spiker – Performed by Jack Black (Universal Pictures)

“This Wish” from Wish, ​​Written by Julia Michaels, Benjamin Rice, and JP Saxe – Performed by Ariana DeBose (Walt Disney Pictures)

“What Was I Made For?” from Barbie, Written By Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell – Performed by Billie Eilish (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Best Score

Elemental, Thomas Newman (Disney/Pixar)

Killers of the Flower Moon, Robbie Robertson (Apple Original Films)

Oppenheimer, Ludwig Göransson (Universal Pictures)

Poor Things, Jerskin Fendrix (Searchlight Pictures)

Saltburn, Anthony Willis (Amazon MGM Studios)

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Daniel Pemberton (Sony Pictures)

Best Documentary Feature

20 Days in Mariupol (PBS Distribution)

American Symphony (Netflix)

Beyond Utopia (Roadside Attractions)

Little Richard: I Am Everything (Magnolia Pictures)

Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie (Apple Original Films)

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (AMC Theatres Distribution)

Best Animated Feature

The Boy and The Heron (GKids)

Elemental (Disney/Pixar)

Nimona (Netflix)

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

Suzume (Sony Pictures/Crunchyroll)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Paramount Pictures)

Best Voice-Over Performance

Ariana DeBose – Wish (Walt Disney Studios)

Bradley Cooper – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Disney/Marvel)

Daniel Kaluuya – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)

Hailee Steinfeld – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)

Jack Black – The Super Mario Bros Movie (Universal Pictures)

Shameik Moore – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures)

Best Cast Ensemble

Air (Amazon MGM Studios)

Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)

Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)

The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Best Supporting Actress

America Ferrera – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Julianne Moore – May December (Netflix)

Rachel McAdams – Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate)

Viola Davis – Air (Amazon MGM Studios)

Best Supporting Actor

Charles Melton – May December (Netflix)

Colman Domingo – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Dominic Sessa – The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Glenn Howerton – BlackBerry (IFC Films)

Robert Downey Jr. – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Ryan Gosling – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Best Actress

Carey Mulligan – Maestro (Netflix)

Emma Stone – Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures)

Fantasia Barrino – The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Greta Lee – Past Lives (A24)

Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)

Margot Robbie – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Best Actor

Barry Keoghan – Saltburn  (Amazon MGM Studios)

Bradley Cooper – Maestro (Netflix)

Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Colman Domingo – Rustin (Netflix)

Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Best Original Screenplay

Air, Written by Alex Convery (Amazon MGM Studios)

Anatomy of a Fall, Written by Justine Triet & Arthur Harari (NEON)

Barbie, Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Past Lives, Written by Celine Song (A24)

Saltburn, Written by Emerald Fennell (Amazon/MGM Studios)

The Holdovers, Written by David Hemingson (Focus Features)

Best Adapted Screenplay

American Fiction, Screenplay by Cord Jefferson (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Screenplay by Kelly Fremon Craig (Lionsgate)

Killers of the Flower Moon, Screenplay by Eric Roth & Martin Scorsese (Apple Original Films)

Oppenheimer,  Screenplay by Christopher Nolan (Universal Pictures)

Poor Things, Screenplay by Tony McNamara (Searchlight Pictures)

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Screenplay by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Dave Callaham (Sony Pictures)

Best Director

Alexander Payne – The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Ben Affleck – Air (Amazon MGM Studios)

Bradley Cooper – Maestro (Netflix)

Celine Song – Past Lives (A24)

Christopher Nolan – Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Cord Jefferson – American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Emerald Fennell – Saltburn (Amazon MGM Studios)

Greta Gerwig – Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Martin Scorsese – Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)

Yorgos Lanthimos – Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures)

Best Picture

Air (Amazon MGM Studios)

American Fiction (Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios)

Barbie (Warner Bros. Pictures)

The Color Purple (Warner Bros. Pictures)

The Holdovers (Focus Features)

Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple Original Films)

Maestro (Netflix)

Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures)

Past Lives (A24)

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

Music Docs About Jon Batiste, Joan Baez, Little Richard & More Eligible for 2024 Best Documentary Feature Film Oscar

At least 15 music docs are among 167 features that are eligible for consideration in the documentary feature film category at the 2024 Oscars. These include films that tell the stories of such varied musicians as Jon Batiste, Carlos Santana, Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd, Joan Baez, Little Richard, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Thelonious Monk and Blood, Sweat & Tears.

Members of the documentary branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences will vote to determine the shortlist and, later, the nominees in this category. The shortlist of 15 films will be announced on Thursday, Dec. 21.

The Academy notes that some of the eligible films in this category have not yet had their required qualifying release and must fulfill that requirement and comply with all the category’s other qualifying rules to advance in the voting process.

Films submitted in the documentary feature film category may also qualify for Academy Awards in other categories, including best picture. Documentary features that have been submitted in the international feature film category as their country’s official selection are also eligible in this category. 

The Academy also released lists of eligible films in two other categories on Thursday (Dec. 7). A total of 33 features are eligible in the animated feature film category. Eighty-eight countries or regions have submitted films that are eligible in the international feature film category. (A shortlist of 15 films will also be announced in that category on Dec. 21.)

Nominations for the 96th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, Jan. 23. The 96th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 10, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide. Jimmy Kimmel is hosting.

Here are 15 notable music docs that are vying for a spot on the shortlist in the documentary feature film category. They are listed in alphabetical order.

Adele Meets ‘Fellow Londoner’ Dua Lipa & Shows Off Her ‘Gift of Gab’ at The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment

We all know Adele has a way with words — both in song and in interviews — but in her cheeky speech Thursday morning (Dec. 7) at The Hollywood Reporter‘s Women in Entertainment breakfast, she warned the crowd that she’s “not really a motivational words kinda gal.”

“I’m just gonna be upfront about it straightaway,” she said as she accepted the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award. “I’m also not really a speeches kind of gal. They’re really not my f—ing forte. I can’t. When I’m nervous, I swear. Forgive me. I’m British, what can I say?”

It might be hard to convince the room of Hollywood power players gathered at the Beverly Hills Hotel that Adele is not a “speeches kind of gal” after she gave an equal-parts heartfelt and riotous one on Thursday, poking fun at the early call time (“It’s an absolute honor to be here today in full f—ing glam at 8 a.m.”) while paying tribute to the industry’s trailblazing women who preceded her (“It’s because of them that I have every right to be the boss at work and the boss at home”).

The event also brought together two music powerhouses who one might assume had crossed paths before. “I finally got to meet Dua Lipa!” Adele said in her speech. “A bit starstruck. Absolutely love her. Fellow Londoner.” She also joked about the height of the microphone onstage and invoked her fellow pop star’s name. “It’s hard with this microphone, isn’t it, Dua?” she said. “We’re very, very tall — like supermodels. Well you are, I’m not — but anyway!”

Previous Sherry Lansing Award recipient Helen Mirren presented Adele with the honor, recalling the first time she heard the song “Hometown Glory” from Adele’s 2008 debut album 19 and “a shiver went down my back. That chill that comes just a few times in your life, when you realize you are listening to a brilliant and game-changing new artist. And I thought, ‘Wow, a goddess walks amongst us.’”

Kerry Washington was also honored at the event, receiving the Equity in Entertainment Award from Ariana DeBose. And the most touching aspect of the program was when Dua Lipa, Camila Cabello and others helped present more than $1 million in scholarships to high school seniors who are part of THR’s Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program. “The scholarships had me in floods of tears,” Adele said to start her speech.

Watch Adele’s full speech and see Dua Lipa’s photos from the event below:



Dolly Parton’s Dollywood Company Acquires Downtown Nashville Office & Retail Property

Dolly Parton has long poured her time and talents into Nashville, and now she’s doing it again.

The Dollywood Company, a joint venture between Parton and Herschend Enterprises, has acquired a downtown office and retail building located at 211 Commerce Street in Nashville, the company has confirmed to Billboard.

“Since the pandemic, commercial real estate is becoming an opportunity,” Parton said in a statement. “I strongly believe in the future of Nashville and feel this is a great investment.”

Terms of the sale were not disclosed. Though The Dollywood Company declined to state its plans for the building, the Nashville Business Journal, which first reported the news, says “multiple sources” told the outlet the building would become a hotel.

According to a property listing, the 11-story, Class A building comprises approximately 233,300 square feet and a 400-plus space parking garage. The building was constructed in 2000 and renovated last year. Black Tap Craft Burgers and Beer is currently at this location. At one time, the building housed the Nashville-area Chamber of Commerce.

The property will join other celebrity-affiliated properties that have opened in Music City over the past decade involving such bold-faced names as Alan Jackson, Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley and Kid Rock. Garth Brooks‘ Friends in Low Places Bar & Honky-Tonk recently launched a soft opening, while both Luke Combs and Eric Church have music venues and/or restaurants in the works in the city.

Live Nation Invests in Youth Music Education Center & Workforce Training Program in L.A.

Live Nation has expanded its partnership with SoLa Impact’s SoLa Foundation, funding a major investment in SoLa’s second state-of-the-art youth center in L.A. and a program that will provide fully subsidized educational and workforce training opportunities in music and technology.

The touring giant has agreed to finance the completion of the new campus, which will be named SoLa Tech and Entertainment Center Powered by Live Nation. Opening in early 2025, the new 8,500-square-foot technology and entertainment center will be located on the ground floor of the “Crenshaw Lofts,” SoLa Impact’s new 195-unit workforce and affordable housing development located near Crenshaw and Leimert Blvds.

The center will host the 18-week Live Nation Next Gen Program, which offers paid apprenticeships for historically excluded youth (ages 16-21) from South L.A. The program helps students explore entertainment and production careers and learn directly from Live Nation staff and executives about various aspects of live entertainment — from booking to marketing to operations and more. The program, which will work in partnership with Live Nation’s School of Live, will culminate with the group promoting, ticketing and producing a community concert.

“We are incredibly inspired and encouraged by Live Nation’s continued partnership and their commitment to diversity and inclusion in the live music industry and beyond,” said Sherri Francois, SoLa Impact’s chief impact officer and executive director of the SoLa Foundation. “This is another amazing example of the power of mission-aligned corporate and nonprofit partners working together with focus and determination to solve seemingly intractable challenges.”

The new SoLa Tech and Entertainment Center Powered by Live Nation will service more than 1,000 students annually, with a long-term goal to close the socio-economic access gap for careers in the entertainment, science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) fields. Within the music sector, students will also be trained in the business and technology of the live entertainment industry, audio engineering and recording, coding, 3D modeling and animation, graphic design, digital content creation, entrepreneurship, and practical life and career skills. The center will also be a space for cultural, economic and civic events for the wider community.

“Live music isn’t a standard part of most schools and colleges, even though it continues to be a growing industry,” added Michael Rapino, president/CEO of Live Nation Entertainment. “By partnering together with SoLa, kids learn the business of music and we help them get first-hand experience, which unlocks a whole new world of careers, which has been incredible to be part of.”

Live Nation, Entertainment Center, SoLa Tech

SoLa Tech and Entertainment Center Powered by Live Nation, set to open in early 2025 in South LA.

Courtesy Live Nation

The MLC Partners With 5 Data Matching Companies to Increase Royalties Match Rate

The Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC) has announced its new Supplemental Matching Network, which consists of five companies that specialize in data matching. This is aimed to help The MLC continue to up its match rate, which is currently at 90%. (According to The MLC, the match rate is defined as the percentage of total royalties processed that were able to match to a registered work in its database.)

The first five companies included in the Supplemental Matching Network are Blokur, Jaxsta, Pex, Salt and SX Works (a SoundExchange company). The list of companies that are part of the network may grow in the future to continue to bolster The MLC’s matching process. The MLC conducted qualitative evaluations of these vendors before choosing to partner with them, including testing the products through pilot programs as well as a “Request for Information.” This is the same process that The MLC has used for other strategic vendors.

While these five vendors will all provide key data to The MLC, the companies do not specifically address the most difficult songs to match: those created by DIY, unsigned songwriters, many of whom are still unaware of The MLC.

“We conducted an extensive due diligence process to select the initial set of vendors for our Supplemental Matching Network,” says Andrew Mitchell, head of analytics & automation at The MLC. “These vendors bring complementary technologies and capabilities that can be effectively leveraged to serve our members. This network reflects our ongoing commitment to evolve in innovative ways to best achieve The MLC’s mission.”

The MLC is a non-profit organization based in Nashville. It was formed as part of the Music Modernization Act (MMA), a landmark law that created a new blanket license for musical work mechanical royalties that greatly simplified the music licensing process for digital services like Spotify, Apple Music and more. It passed in 2018.

Previously, the industry operated on a piecemeal licensing system that was complicated for the services and also the music business, leading to a pool of over $400 million in unallocated streaming royalties because the compositions’ owners couldn’t be found. (This is colloquially known in the business as “black box” money, although The MLC uses the term “historical unmatched royalties.”) The MLC was tasked to implement and administer this new blanket license and distribute the money in this stagnant royalty pool. It officially opened its doors on Jan. 1, 2021.

Learn more about the five new vendors below:

Blokur

A music data and licensing platform that works with music rights owners and online platforms to connect music and companies providing online experiences. It is built on data matching and rights identification technology to ensure accurate payment.

Jaxsta

Jaxsta is a database for music credits, sourced from the official owners of that data. This includes record labels, distributors, publishers and industry associations. It provides recording matching services for PROs, MROs, CMOs and publishers, helping identify recordings to their underlying musical works. They assist in collecting payment for mechanical, performance and synch royalties.

Pex

Pex specializes in content identification and UGC data powering copyright compliance. Pex’s music recognition technology (MRT) is designed to identify works at scale, including modified audio, live versions and cover versions, so rightsholders can capitalize on all of the content they own.

Salt

Salt is a digital royalty collection platform that helps music societies streamline their disjointed music rights and royalty systems into one global network. Salt processes usage, matches ownership and calculates distributions, providing societies with matching and royalty–processing infrastructure

SX Works Global Publisher Services

SX Works Global Publisher Services, a SoundExchange company, provides administration solutions to music publishers, self-published songwriters and organizations who own, represent and/or engage with music to manage their repertoire across the music ecosystem. SX Works’ team and technology provides partners with access to metadata designed to ensure that musical works can be accurately licensed, identified and paid for their usage.

Ice Spice & Doja Cat Open Up in New Podcast Episode, Karol G Billboard Cover & More | Billboard News

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

Ice Spice and Doja Cat discuss a wide variety of topics in a new episode of Instagram’s podcast ‘Close Friends Only,’ Billboard reveals their latest cover star, Colombian superstar Karol G, the Billboard Español and Latin staffs rank the best Latin pop songs of the 21st century, Playboi Carti once again tops the TikTok Billboard top 50 with “Sky,” Angela Simmons shows off her vegan Angela Cakes and Jordin Sparks shares her favorite holiday gifts from Walmart and more!

Tetris Kelly
Karol G graces the cover of Billboard. We break down the top Latin pop songs of the 21st century. Doja Cat and Ice Spice launch a podcast, we’ve seen who’s dominating our TikTok Billboard Top 50 and our TalkShopLive week continues with Jordin Sparks. Welcome back to Billboard News, I’m Tetris Kelly, and it’s Thursday, December 7th. I can’t wait to get to our latest cover start but first, let’s get into Doja Cat and Ice Spice’s new podcasts.

Ice Spice
What do you consider as flirting on IG? Hyping up in comments, liking your story

Doja Cat
leaving a comment on every single photo

Ice Spice
Oh my god, not me flirting with you. I comment on everything.

Tetris Kelly
Doja Cat and Ice Spice are giving us everything we need over on IG and we’re breaking down some of their best moments. Instagram has treated us to a special edition podcast called ‘Close Friends Only’ and it features our queens Doja Cat and Ice Spice in their first ever sit down. They talked memes, fashion, beauty trends and yes, one day we could have the chance to be on Ice Spice’s close friends.
Doja Cat
How would someone make the cut for your close friends list? What’s the checklist?

Ice Spice
The checklist would have to be we’ve met in person at least once. Okay, yeah, that’s about it.