State Champ Radio Author: djfrosty
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Universal Pictures’ two-part Wicked gamble continues to defy gravity at the box office. Just a year after part one brought droves of audiences to movie theaters around the country, even more people bought opening weekend tickets to see the epic conclusion, Wicked: For Good. According to studio estimates on Sunday, Wicked: For Good earned $150 million from North American theaters in its first days in theaters and $226 million globally.
Not only is it the biggest opening ever for a Broadway musical adaptation, unseating the record set by the first film’s $112 million launch, it’s also the second biggest debut of the year behind A Minecraft Movie’s $162 million.
“The results are just fantastic,” said Jim Orr, who heads domestic distribution for Universal. “Some films can deliver a false positive when tickets go on sale early but these results speak for themselves.”
Universal began rolling out Wicked: For Good in theaters earlier this week, with previews on Monday ($6.1 million from 1,050 theaters) and Wednesday ($6.5 million from 2,300 theaters). By Friday it was playing in 4,115 North American locations and had raked in $68.6 million. IMAX showings accounted for $15.5 million, or 11%, of its domestic haul — a November record for the company.
IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond said in a statement that the strong market share shows “our momentum carries into demos and genres beyond our traditional core, including families.”As with the first film, women powered opening weekend, making up around 71% of ticket buyers according to PostTrak exit polls. Critics were somewhat mixed on the final chapter, but audiences weren’t: An overwhelming 83% of audiences said it was one they would “definitely recommend” to friends. As far as foot traffic is concerned, the box office tracker EntTelligence estimates that about 2 million more people came out for Wicked: For Good’s first weekend than for Wicked’s.
Jon M. Chu directed both Wicked films, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. The first film made over $758.7 million worldwide and received 10 Oscar nominations (winning two, for costume and production design). The question is how high Wicked: For Good can soar. Combined, the two films cost around $300 million to produce, not including marketing and promotion costs.
“The first film paved the way,” Orr said. “It’s really become a cultural event I think audiences are going to be flocking to theaters for quite some time to come.”
Two other films also opened in wide release this weekend, but further down on the charts behind a buffet of holdovers. Searchlight Pictures opened its Brendan Fraser film Rental Family in 1,925 theaters where it earned $3.3 million. The Finnish action film Sisu: Road to Revenge, a Sony release, also played in 2,222 theaters. It earned an estimated $2.6 million.
Second place went to Now You See Me: Now You Don’t with $9.1 million in its second weekend, followed by Predator: Badlands with $6.3 million in weekend three. The Running Man followed in fourth place with $5.8 million, down 65% from its debut last weekend.
Although this weekend the box office was more of a winner takes all scenario, Wicked: For Good’s success is vitally important for the exhibition industry as a whole as it enters the final weeks of the year.
“It sets up a very strong final homestretch of the year,” said Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore’s head of marketplace trends.
After the slow fall season, the Thanksgiving blockbusters could not arrive soon enough. Early next week, Zootopia 2 enters the mix and is also expected to drive big crowds to the cineplex over the holiday break.
Thanksgiving is often one of the biggest moviegoing frames of the year, Dergarabedian said, and both Wicked 2 and Zootopia 2 will benefit. Last year Wicked, Moana 2 and Gladiator II helped power a record five-day frame.
The running domestic box office is currently hovering around $7.5 billion, according to Comscore. Before the pandemic, the annual box office would regularly hit $11 billion, but the post-pandemic goal has lessened to $9 billion. The big question now is whether titles like Wicked: For Good, Zootopia 2 and Avatar: Fire and Ash can push the industry over that threshold.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. Wicked: For Good, $150 million2. Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, $9.1 million3. Predator: Badlands, $6.3 million4. The Running Man, $5.8 million5. Rental Family, $3.3 million6. Sisu: Road to Revenge, $2.6 million7. Regretting You, $1.5 million8. Nuremberg, $1.2 million9. Black Phone 2, $1 million10. Sarah’s Oil, $711,542
Trending on Billboard Taylor Swift has held onto the top spot of the U.K. Singles Chart for a fifth non-consecutive week with “The Fate of Ophelia” (Nov. 21). The single first shot to No. 1 on the U.K. charts dated Oct. 10, and held the spot for three consecutive weeks. Following a back-and-forth tussle with […]
Trending on Billboard 5 Seconds of Summer is No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart for the fourth time in their career. On the charts dated Nov. 21, the Australian group’s EVERYONE’S A STAR knocks Taylor Swift‘s The Life of a Showgirl from the top spot. The group, composed of Calum Hood, Ashton Irwin, Luke […]
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Bad Bunny surprised his fans in the Dominican Republic on Saturday night (Nov. 22) by inviting the biggest star in bachata to the stage. On the second day of his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour at the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez in Santo Domingo, Romeo Santos appeared near the end of the show, eliciting deafening screams from the crowd.
Together, they delivered a thrilling performance of “BOKeTE” — in bachata style. Originally a slow song with an ethereal and shoegaze essence, the track is included on Benito’s critically acclaimed album Debí Tirar Más Fotos, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and recently won the Latin Grammy for album of the year.
This is not the first time these artists have joined forces. Four years ago, in 2021, Bad Bunny and Aventura — the mega-successful group with which Santos rose to stardom — collaborated on “Volví,” a track that blended reggaetón and bachata.
Saturday’s reunion comes weeks after Bad Bunny and Santos topped Billboard‘s Top Latin Artists of the 21st Century ranking, with the two taking the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively. The list is based on the artists’ performances on the Top Latin Albums and Hot Latin Songs charts from January 2000 to December 2024.
The Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour, which began with two shows at the Olympic Stadium in Santo Domingo, follows Bad Bunny’s historic No Me Quiero Ir De Aquí residency at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan. The trek will continue through much of 2026, visiting Latin America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. For all tour dates, click here.
In the U.S., Bad Bunny will headline the 2026 Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show on Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. Days later, he will compete for album of the year at the 2026 Grammy Awards. Meanwhile, Romeo Santos recently announced a new album set to release on Nov. 28.
Watch both artists perform “BOKeTE” at the Estadio Olímpico in Santo Domingo in a fan-filmed clip shared on X here.
Trending on Billboard Beyoncé made an unexpected on-track appearance at the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix on Sun., Nov. 23, drawing widespread attention as she and Jay-Z arrived at the paddock ahead of the race. Explore See latest videos, charts and news The Houston-born singer looked race-ready as she was first photographed in a […]
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Lenny Kravitz says an enthusiastic fan accidentally pulled four of his dreadlocks out during his show in Brisbane on Fri., Nov. 21.
The rock icon is currently touring Australia in support of his 2024 album Blue Electric Light. In a video posted to Instagram shortly after his performance at Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Kravitz told fans the incident happened while he moved through the crowd during “Let Love Rule.”
“Brisbane, that was wild,” he said in a video shared on his Instagram Stories. “A very excited young lady pulled four dreadlocks out of the back of my head. You know how hard you’ve got to pull to rip those out of my head? Damn, baby.”
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Kravitz clarified that the moment won’t change his commitment to interacting with audiences during the track, which traditionally sees him step off the stage and into the crowd.
“I’m not going to stop coming out there for ‘Let Love Rule’ because that’s our moment together,” he added. “Brisbane, you’re wild. I love you.”
Kravitz is midway through his Australian run, which continues Tues., Nov. 25 at Melbourne’s John Cain Arena before heading to Mildura on Nov. 28 and Adelaide on Nov. 29.
The singer’s current Australian dates mark his first shows in the country since 2012. That visit was itself many years in the making, with his only other visits to the country taking place in 1993 and 1994.
“Coming to New Zealand for the first time and returning to Australia after so many years is giving my soul the most beautiful energy,” Kravitz wrote in an Instagram post on Nov. 21.
“You all are amazing. Thank you for sharing this with me. Let’s keep going!” he added.
Since his last visit, Kravitz has released three further albums, including 2014’s Strut, 2018’s Raise Vibration, and 2024’s Blue Electric Light. Additionally, in 2024, he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and also received his first nomination for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, though he was not inducted.
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Billy Corgan debuted the long-anticipated operatic adaptation of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness on Fri., Nov. 21, with the Smashing Pumpkins leader performing on opening night at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
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The new production presents a symphonic and operatic reimagining of the band’s 1995 double album, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and marked a defining moment in the group’s commercial peak. Across the evening, selections including “Tonight, Tonight,” “1979,” and “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” were transformed for a full operatic cast and orchestra.
Corgan appeared as a featured vocalist throughout the performance, joined by soprano Sydney Mancasola, mezzo-soprano Zoie Reams, tenor Dominick Valdés Chenes and baritone Edward Parks. The Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus performed under conductor James Lowe, who has been one of Corgan’s key collaborators in reworking the score for the stage.
In a previous statement, Corgan said the process allowed him to reconsider the album nearly 30 years on. “It is thrilling to collaborate with Lyric head John Mangum, my musical partner James Lowe, and all of the artists at Lyric in reimagining this very special and historic album, and to discover how Lyric’s full operatic treatment is helping me experience my own compositions in powerful new ways,” he said.
“Opera and rock both tell stories of heightened emotions, and I am excited for both fans of my music and traditional opera fans to hear some truly inspired work; for the balance here is to honor both traditions in a magisterial way.”
Originally released in Oct. 1995, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness earned seven Grammy nominations, including album of the year. It produced two of the band’s most enduring singles with “1979” (which peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100) and “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” the latter winning the group a Grammy for best hard rock performance. The album remains one of the Smashing Pumpkins’ most critically and commercially significant projects, certified diamond by the RIAA.
The Lyric Opera production continues its limited run in Chicago through the coming week.
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Jellybean Johnson, the Minneapolis musician and producer who was the drummer for the Prince-affiliated funk-rock group The Time, has died. He was 69.
His cause of death is unknown. TMZ first reported Johnson’s passing, noting that he died Friday night (Nov. 21) according to a statement obtained by his family.
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Prince recruited Johnson (real name Garry George Johnson), who was self-taught on drums and guitar, in 1981 for The Time, an act born out of the city’s Flyte Tyme. They’d known each other since their high school years in Minneapolis.
“The drums are physical and violent for me while the guitar is spiritual and emotional,” Johnson said in a 2018 interview with Australian Musician. He also quipped to the publication, “When you live here in the cold, you stay in [in] the winter time and you learn how to play.”
As a member of The Time — and later, Prince’s The Family — Johnson helped establish the funk-rock, new wave and synth-pop hybrid that became known as the Minneapolis Sound. He appeared as a fictionalized version of himself in 1984’s Academy Award-winning Purple Rain and as himself in 1990’s Graffiti Bridge.
The Time had five top 10 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in the ’80s and early ’90s (when the chart was called Hot Black Singles), including “777-9311,” “Jungle Love” and “Jerk-Out,” which reached No. 1 in 1990.
Johnson is also known for his work as a producer, with Janet Jackson‘s 1990 Hot 100 No. 1 “Black Cat” among his credits — and he was an in-demand session musician.
Sheila E., a longtime friend and a frequent collaborator with Prince, remembered Johnson in an emotional post on Facebook Saturday morning, which she shared “with a heavy heart.”
“My dear friend Jellybean passed away a couple of hours ago,” Sheila E. wrote. “We are devastated by this news. I’m praying for his family and all the kids. He was a kind human being, extremely talented and funny. He had a great sense of humor and [was] an awesome guitar player.”
Directing her words toward her late friend, she added, “Yesterday was your birthday, I forgot to call you and I’m so sorry. I love u bean. Rest in peace and power.”
“I’m absolutely heartbroken!” The Family vocalist Susannah Melvoin wrote on Instagram. “My beautiful brother Jellybean Johnson has passed. This band was and is the kind of Family that believed we all rightfully belonged together in love, music and kindness. Jellybean was the master of loving you like no brother could! My big brother, who watched over me and anyone who he loved!”Melvoin’s note continued: “I met him when I was 19 years old and he was already a seasoned musical savant at 28. He’d been in the Time and was masterfully put into a band that became what we lovingly and rightfully call the family. He went from being behind the drums to playing guitar in this band because he was a guitar player first and drummer second. Oxygen for him was the inhale and exhale of playing his guitar. I can barely get this out….his children and family members need our support and love. Please send it their way.”“May you rest in all that is light and graceful,” she said to Johnson.
Johnson performed with The Time and Rihanna at the Grammy Awards in 2008, a performance that had him playing the drums to a click track. After being a career musician with his “own click track for 30, 40 years,” Johnson said it was difficult to pivot — “If you go back and watch that performance, it came off flawless, but, man, that week of practice was hell,” he said with a laugh, in a 2024 interview with Dancing to the Drum Machine author Dan Leroy.
“The guys in The Time always trusted me, as far as tempos and all that kind of stuff,” explained Johnson. “But there were a few times, like when I played the Grammys … I remember one time back in ’08, man, I played the Grammys, and Rihanna was on there with [The Time]. And she was just getting huge, and she had that ‘Umbrella’ song … And she had dancers, and she was doing this thing with us, and it was gonna be part Minneapolis, part her. She’s gonna be integrated with us — which means with me being the only drummer, I had to play to a click track. I struggled. I’m not gonna lie. I called every hotshot drummer, young drummers that I know, all my top drum friends. I mean, how do y’all do this? Because some guys, especially studio guys, they learn how to do that. Just deal with click tracks and all that kind of stuff. And I didn’t. I never had to really do that.”
He returned to the Grammys stage in 2017 and 2020 as part of tributes to Prince.
Johnson co-founded the non-profit Minneapolis Sound Museum in 2021, with the goal of preserving the history, culture and legacy of the Minneapolis Sound.
In 2022, he was awarded a Soul Train Lifetime Achievement Award with The Time.
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It’s race day!
The Las Vegas Grand Prix 2025 is only hours away. The best of the best Formula 1 racers are gearing up to race across the Las Vegas Strip Circuit this Saturday (Nov. 22), which will begin at 11 p.m. ET. Yes, this is very late for East Coast viewers, but this gives international fans, especially folks in Europe a chance to watch.
Las Vegas Grand Prix 2025, at a Glance:
If you can’t make it out to Sin City for the Grand Prix, we’ve put together a guide for fans to watch the race right at home and online without cable. If you don’t want to miss out on McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri continue their head-to-head battle for first place, keep scrolling to see how you can watch Las Vegas Grand Prix 2025 on ESPN for free.
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For music fans, there’s also plenty of great musical performances happening all weekend in Vegas, including T-Pain, mgk and Zedd who is headlining the T-Mobile Zone at Sphere Stage.
How to Watch ESPN Online Without Cable
ESPN Unlimited is the official streaming platform for ESPN, and a subscription includes instant access to games and more exclusive content for $29.99 per month. You can save almost 17% off by purchasing an annual subscription for $299.99 per year. There is no free ESPN Unlimited trial, but it does include exclusive on-demand videos and access to content from what was formerly known as ESPN Insider.
In addition to live sports, ESPN Unlimited has original shows to stream on-demand, plus game recaps and analysis, a shorter version of NFL Primetime and full replays of historic NFL matchups.
To expand your savings and content offerings, currently, you can bundle ESPN Unlimited with Hulu and Disney+ for a single monthly price of just $29.99 per month for all three services for 12 months of streaming.
How to Watch ESPN Online Free
While ESPN Unlimited doesn’t currently offer a free trial, there are other streamers that offer ESPN online free. If you want access to ESPN and additional channels, you can take advantage of DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV and Fubo, which are all offering free trials or promos right now. Some of them can give you free access to ESPN for up to a week.
Here are all the ways to watch ESPN online, including ways to stream ESPN online for free.
DirecTV
DirecTV is offering a five-day free trial, which will let you watch ESPN and more for free. The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network is included in all of the streaming packages. In addition to unlimited DVR storage, you’ll get access to local channels and the ability to stream on as many devices as you want.
Sling TV
With prices starting at just $4.99 for a day pass, Sling TV includes ESPN with it Sling Orange and Sling Orange + Blue packages — which features dozens of channels that can be streamed on up to three devices at the same time. Sling Orange + Blue features FS1 and the NFL Network too
Please note: Sling TV’s pricing and channel availability depends on your local TV market.
Fubo
Fubo is another great option you can take advantage of to watch ESPN online. The streamer offers a seven-day free trial that’ll give you access to ESPN free and more than 240 live TV channels. The service offers a promo that’ll get you up to $30 off the first month, which can get you access to ESPN and more for as low as $54.99 (reg. $84.99 per month).
Hulu + Live TV
For the most content options, Hulu + Live TV gives you access to the entire Hulu library in addition to more than 95 live TV channels — including ESPN for just $82.99 per month.
And, unlike the rest of the options, you can also expand your content library by bundling Hulu + Live TV with Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited. You’ll not only have all of the Hulu library to watch, but also exclusive and original programming available exclusively on ESPN Unlimited.
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Alicia Keys had a busy Friday (Nov. 21). Not only did the 17-time Grammy winner release a new holiday song and guest on a single from an Italian vocal legend, but she made a special appearance alongside the cast of her semi-autobiographical Broadway musical, Hell’s Kitchen, at the Shubert Theatre. Keys was in the house to deliver a mini-set as part of an “encore sessions” performance, but she was also there salute to the Broadway debut of Grammy-winning gospel singer Yolanda Adams, who just joined the cast as Miss Liza Jane.
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After belting the “Empire State of Mind” finale with the cast, Keys and Adams took the stage together. “First of all, I’m grateful,” said Adams, hugging Keys. “All that dancing made me feel younger, but my feet say no. I have to thank Alicia for saying, ‘Hey, what do you think about…?’ And I’d already thought about it, and I tried it, and I love it.” When Adams left the stage, Keys was in her element, blissfully relaxed at an upright piano while crooning her cover of Prince’s “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?”, duetting with cast member Durrell “Tank” Babbs on a gorgeous cover of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and singing “Underdog” before sending the ecstatic audience out into the streets of Manhattan (incidentally, not far from Hell’s Kitchen).
Just hours before dazzling Broadway, Keys spoke to Billboard about “Hell’s Kitchen’s a Merry Little Christmas,” which hit DSPs on Friday. She says the idea of a holiday song for her Broadway musical Hell’s Kitchen was broached a year ago. “For different reasons it didn’t come together,” she tells Billboard. “This year we knew we wanted to do it, so we put it together now.”
“Hell’s Kitchen’s a Merry Little Christmas” mashes up the standard “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” with the musical’s opening number, Keys’ “The Gospel.” The recording features Adams along with principal performers including Amanda Reid, Phillip Johnson Richardson and Jessica Vosk.
“I love it so much,” Keys continues. “It’s such a beautiful version. Of course, the holidays are such a beautiful time to celebrate that warm, festive feeling. We wanted to bring some Hell’s Kitchen energy.”
The recording was produced by Adam Blackstone, Keys’ longtime collaborator who also serves as music supervisor and co-orchestrator for the musical. “Our process of bringing the music to life for Hell’s Kitchen has been so thrilling and exciting,” Keys says. “We had no idea that someone as phenomenal as Yolanda Adams would be joining the cast. The life of Hell’s Kitchen has just been such an incredible experience.”
With a book by Kristoffer Diaz, Hell’s Kitchen premiered at the Public Theater in late 2023, moving to the Shubert Theatre in March 2024. It was nominated for 13 Tonys, with Kecia Lewis, who played Miss Liza Jane, wining for best featured actress in a musical and Maleah Joi Moon, as Ali, taking home best actress in a musical at the 2024 Tony Awards. The original Broadway cast recording, featuring the three brand-new songs Keys penned for the musical, came out in 2024 and hit No. 1 on Billboard‘s Cast Albums chart.
The first North American tour, meanwhile, kicked off during October in Cleveland, with 30 cities on the schedule for its first year.
“That’s such a huge accomplishment,” Keys says. “And I’m so excited the country will get to experience it — even if you can’t come to New York — in a city near you. And this cast is unreal. I just can’t believe how good they are.”
The holiday song isn’t Keys’ only new music to drop on Friday. It coincides with the release of her feature on “L’aurora,” a new single by Italian vocalist Eros Ramazzotti. “It’s my first time singing in Italian,” she says. “It’s such a beautiful process to continue to learn and try things that are new and different, so I’m really excited about that.” Keys is also working on new material as she works toward a follow-up to her last studio album, 2021’s Keys, and 2022’s holiday effort Santa Baby.
“I’m writing right now, creating new music,” she says. “It is very, very special. I just feel like I’m getting better and better, so that’s all happening. There’s a lot of phenomenal things bubbling, but I just take my time — just like Hell’s Kitchen, just take my time putting it all together. It’s just a beautiful time of no limits. That’s how I look at everything.”
