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08 Aug 2023

Why the ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’ Soundtrack Doesn’t Exactly Follow the Book

Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue – an LGBTQ romcom novel about the Prince of England and the U.S. president’s son falling in love despite a despising each other at first – was a smash hit when it came out in 2019, quickly becoming a New York Times bestseller and creating a devoted fanbase. Captivated by the international screwball romance, the book’s enthusiastic fanbase has created everything from artistic renderings of swoon-worthy moments between main characters Alex and Henry to playlists based on songs McQuiston wrote into the plot.

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But even for the most devoted readers, there will be a few surprises when the Red, White & Royal Blue film – starring Nicholas Galitzine, Taylor Zakhar Perez and Uma Thurman — comes out Aug. 11 on Amazon Prime Video.

“Casey was never insistent that I make Casey’s Book: The Film,” Matthew Lopez, the film’s director and co-writer, tells Billboard. “She always wanted me to make Matthew’s movie. She trusted that someone who loved the book was in charge of the film.”

The cinematic adaptation is Lopez’s directorial debut after conquering Broadway, earning a Tony for his acclaimed 2019 play The Inheritance and earning a second Tony nom this year for co-writing the book to Some Like It Hot, a musical based on the gender-bending 1959 film. He first encountered McQuiston’s book pre-pandemic and recalls that it “refused to be ignored – it absolutely stayed in my imagination.” After successfully lobbying for the director’s chair on the movie adaptation, Lopez began working with music supervisors Kristen Higuera and Maggie Phillips on the soundtrack.

While many of the songs mentioned in the book do feature in the film (Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now”; Lil Jon’s “Get Low”), Lopez followed his muse — and not the page — in certain instances.

In one key scene, the star-crossed lovers slow dance in London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, despite it being after hours (one of the many perks of being a prince). In the book, Elton John’s “Your Song” plays, but cinematically, that didn’t track for Lopez.

“I love Sir Elton — he’s been such a supporter of mine throughout my career — but the scene I envisioned, I couldn’t hear that song,” he tells Billboard. With the help of his music supervisors, the aching, lovelorn voice of Mike Hadreas found its way into the film via Perfume Genius’ 2016 cover of “Can’t Help Falling in Love.” It was originally supposed to be an on-set placeholder until Hadreas recorded a new, different cover, but after living with it for months, Lopez decided he couldn’t see or hear the scene any other way.

“I felt terrible calling Mike,” Lopez says. “[I told him] ‘I have good news and bad news. The bad news is I don’t need a cover from you. The good news is I already have one [from you].”

Another cover that prominently features in the film is a fresh reimagining of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel classic “If I Loved You” performed by Vagabon. “I knew her voice and her sound, married to that classical music theater, was going to be the right match,” says Lopez, who describes himself as “a huge musical theater nerd.” When he approached Vagabon (Laetitia Tamko) with the idea, she wasn’t familiar with the song, which made him doubly sure of the decision. “It was great, because she had no associations,” he reasons. “It’s a new way of looking at it.”

Having familiar songs with new voices was important to Lopez for this queer romcom. “This movie was always about, for me, new ways of doing old things — that was the ethos of the film, so I wanted to try and get a couple covers in there.”

Another example of putting a new twist on something familiar came via Oliver Sim. The filmmakers asked the solo artist and The xx member for an original composition, but after he watched an early cut of the film, he told Lopez, “I think I’ve already written the song for the movie.”

“It was his idea to take the song ‘Fruit’ from his most recent album and completely re-orchestrate it,” Lopez explains. “He said, ‘I made the acoustic version; now I want to make the cinematic version.’ He took something very delicate and blew it up to these epic proportions. It sounds so swoon-y and hopeful. That was a big win, for me, to get him to do that — I have my own bespoke version of an Oliver Sim song,” he adds with a smirk.

You can see what else made its way into the film when it begins streaming on Prime Video on Aug. 11.

08 Aug 2023

Mourners Gather in Ireland to Pay Respect to Sinead O’Connor

Fans lined the streets of Sinead O’Connor’s former hometown in Ireland on Tuesday (Aug. 8) to bid farewell to the elfin singer who left a big impression on her devoted followers and the music world.

Ruth O’Shea, who had come to the coastal town of Bray south of Dublin with her two daughters, became teary as she spoke of O’Connor’s significance, saying she had “meant the world to her.”

“She was so rebellious and empowering and inspiring, and my mother hated me listening to her music,” O’Shea said. “She was just brilliant. Brilliant — I loved her, and then the kids, I suppose by osmosis because I played her when they were both growing up, they’d go, ‘Oh God, mom’s listening to Sinead O’Connor, she’s obviously had a rough day.’ She just gave me hope. And I just loved her, I loved her.”

O’Connor, 56, was found unresponsive at her London home on July 26. Police have not shared a cause of death, though they said her death was not suspicious. O’Connor’s family invited the public to line the waterfront as her funeral procession passed by, following a private service.

“Sinead loved living in Bray and the people in it,” her family said in a statement. “With this procession, her family would like to acknowledge the outpouring of love for her from the people of Wicklow (county) and beyond, since she left … to go to another place.”

Fans tucked handwritten notes and flowers behind a chain wrapped around a granite post at the entrance to her former home, thanking her for sharing her voice and her music. One sign listed causes that the singer had expressed support for, including welcoming refugees.

“Thanks for your short special life,” one note read. “Gone too soon.”

O’Connor, a multi-octave mezzo soprano of extraordinary emotional range who was recognizable by her shaved head, began her career singing on the streets of Dublin and soon rose to international fame.

She became a sensation in 1990 with her cover of Prince’s ballad “Nothing Compares 2 U,” which topped charts from Europe to Australia.

She was a critic of the Roman Catholic Church well before allegations of sexual abuse were widely reported. She made headlines in October 1992 when she tore up a photo of Pope John Paul II while appearing on NBC’s Saturday Night Live and denounced the church as the enemy.

She was public about her struggles with mental illness. When her teenage son Shane died by suicide last year, O’Connor tweeted there was “no point living without him” and she was soon hospitalized. Her final tweet, sent July 17, read “For all mothers of Suicided children,” and linked to a Tibetan compassion mantra.

Since her death, celebrities including P!nk and Brandi Carlile have paid tribute to her, and ordinary people have shared acts of kindness she performed.

08 Aug 2023

DJ Casper, Creator of Party Dance Classic ‘Cha Cha Slide’ Dies at 58

DJ Casper, the Chicago artist best known for the creation of the party classic “Cha Cha Slide” has died at 58. According to ABC 7, Casper’s wife confirmed to the station that he died on Monday (Aug. 7) after a seven-year battle with cancer.

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As legend has it, Casper (born William Perry Jr.) created his most famous song for his nephew — a Bally fitness trainer — around 1998 as an aerobics exercise with the original title “Casper Slide Pt. 1.” The line dancing track however, with its instructions “To the left/ Take it back y’all/ One hop this time/ Right foot, let’s stomp/ Left foot, let’s stomp/ Cha cha real smooth,” blew up to become a global staple of bar/bat mitzvahs, proms, weddings and any party that needed starting.

In one of his last interviews in May, Casper — who got his DJ nickname thanks to his ubiquitous all-white stage outfits — told ABC 7 that he never imagined “Cha Cha Slide” would become an international smash performed by people all over the world. “When I first did it, I did it as an aerobic exercise for my nephew at Bally’s,” said Casper, who released the song under the name Mr. C the Slide Man. “From there, it just took off. Elroy Smith from WGCI grabbed ahold of it.”

The latter is a reference to the DJ at WGCI-FM in Chicago who picked up a new version, “Casper Slide Pt. 2,” in 2000 and began playing it. The track became a local hit in Chicago and in 2004 M.O.B. Records picked the song up, which later led to a deal with Universal Records and the track’s inclusion on the record, Cha-Cha Slide: The Original Slide Album.

“I have one of the biggest songs that played at all stadiums: hockey, basketball, football, baseball; they played it at the Olympics,” Casper told ABC. “It was something that everybody could do.”

In 2016, a GoFundMe was announced for Casper, revealing that he had been diagnosed with liver and kidney cancer and he told ABC that he’d been losing weight recently and despite shedding 60 pounds he was determined to fight on. “I used to weigh 236 pounds, and I think I’m about 60 pounds less,” Casper said in May. “If you know me, you know I’m not going to stop. I’m going to continue to go. I’m going to continue to go until I can’t go.”

In 2018, Casper made an unexpected cameo in Netflix’s women’s prison drama Orange Is the New Black, when Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren sees visions of everyone in the psych ward doing the “Cha Cha Slide,” including Casper, who is dressed as a prison orderly working the turntables. He was also an on-air personality on iHeart radio station V103 in Chicago and the creator of the streaming station Casper Classic Radio. In 2019, he announced that his cancer was in remission, but it later returned.

The DJ said his legacy was that “Cha Cha Slide” would always serve as a joyful reminder of the power of music to unify people with a positive message. “Anybody that’s going through cancer, know that you have cancer and cancer does not have you,” Casper said in May. “So, keep on doing the ‘Cha Cha Slide.’”

Watch the “Cha Cha Slide” video below.

08 Aug 2023

Ice Spice Named Hip-Hop’s Rookie Of The Year By ‘Billboard’

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Ice Spice is continuing to level up in 2023. The rapper has been named Billboard Magazine’s Hip-Hop Rookie of the Year.

As spotted on HipHopDX the South Bronx, New York native has just added another milestone to her career. Last week the music industry trade periodical published a story on the “Deli” rapper’s rise to fame. The media outlet detailed how she has captivated the current generation with her relaxed rapping style that infuses New York street culture. Additionally, the staff also noted that she has been putting up big numbers and the looks to back up the hype including high profile collaborations with Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift but claiming four Top 10 on the “Hot 100” chart.

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Ice Spice revealed that she was focused at a very early age. “I would always be on Google as a kid, looking up ‘how to be rich’ and ‘careers that pay the most.’ I was like, ‘OK, should I be a doctor? Or should I be a lawyer?’ I just wanted to make all the money,” she explained. “But I did always love music. I guess it just fell into place.” Ice Spice is set to receive her Rookie of the Year award on Tuesday, August 8.

You can read the entire feature on the “Bikini Bottom” MC here. 

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08 Aug 2023

Black Michigan Man Gets Sentence Axed After White Judge’s Insult

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A Black man in Michigan had his prison sentence cleared after a white judge showed bias in his pre-trial hearing.

Last Wednesday (August 3rd), Leron Liggins, who had been sentenced to 10 years in prison for two drug charges had his sentence vacated. This came after a three-judge panel, in line with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, ruled that a judge violated Liggins’ Fifth Amendment right to due process by commenting that Liggins “looks like a criminal” in a pretrial hearing back in 2020.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Murphy III, who is white, remarked as he presided over the hearing in January 2020. Murphy had been frustrated with delays in the case due to Liggins, who is Black, deciding to change his attorneys in the time since being indicted in February 2018. Expressing frustration with the delays, Judge Murphy stated that he was “tired of this case.” “What do you want me to do? This guy looks like a criminal to me,” Murphy said before continuing: “This is what criminals do. This isn’t what innocent people, who want a fair trial do.”

The comments compelled Liggins to file a motion to have Judge Murphy recused, which Murphy denied after the case resumed in October 2021. “I was mad, I was hostile, I was disapproving, and I regret it. I made a mistake by yelling like that, but I wasn’t upset or concluding that Mr. Liggins was—was guilty of an offense or hostile or partial toward him,” he said, apologizing in his remarks to Liggins’ attorney.

The panel of judges highlighted this moment in their opinion. “Even if one were to assume a lack of racial bias on the part of the district judge, the remark nevertheless raises the specter of such bias. … Beyond this remark, the district judge’s other remarks could be understood to demonstrate clear prejudgment of Liggins’ guilt,” it said. Federal prosecutors could still file for a new trial, as there was no ruling on evidentiary issues presented by Liggins’ defense team. 

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08 Aug 2023

Morgan Wallen’s ‘Last Night’ Leads Hot Country Songs Chart for 24th Week

Morgan Wallen’s crossover smash “Last Night” rebounds for its 24th week atop Billboard’s streaming-, airplay- and sales-based Hot Country Songs chart (dated Aug. 12).

The song ties Walker Hayes’ “Fancy Like” (2021-22) and Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” (2012-13) as the fourth-longest-ruling leaders since the survey became the genre’s main chart in 1958.

“Last Night” was authored by John Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome and Jacob Kasher Hindlin.

The track drew 67.2 million all-format radio airplay audience impressions (down 10%) and 26.7 million streams (down 8%) and sold 7,000 downloads (down 11%) in the July 28-Aug. 3 tracking week, according to Luminate.

Wallen’s ninth Country Airplay leader dominated that chart for eight weeks and crossed over to No. 5 peaks on both Pop Airplay and Adult Pop Airplay. It remains in the top five on the latest Country Airplay list, at No. 4.

Here’s a look at the 10 longest-leading No. 1s since Hot Country Songs became an all-encompassing genre survey in October 1958. Wallen is the only soloist with two titles on the list, while duo Florida Georgia Line is the only other act with two. (All songs but one below have reigned since the chart adopted the all-genre Billboard Hot 100’s multi-metric methodology in October 2012.)

Longest-Leading Hot Country Songs No. 1s (since 1958):

50 weeks, “Meant To Be,” Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line, beginning in December 2017

34, “Body Like a Back Road,” Sam Hunt, February 2017

27, “I Hope,” Gabby Barrett, July 2020

24, “Last Night,” Morgan Wallen, February 2023

24, “Fancy Like,” Walker Hayes, July 2021

24, “Cruise,” Florida Georgia Line, December 2012

21, “10,000 Hours,” Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber, October 2019

19, “You Proof,” Morgan Wallen, May 2022

19, “The Bones,” Maren Morris, March 2020

19, “Walk on By,” Leroy Van Dyke, September 1961

As previously reported, “Last Night” tops the Hot 100 for a 15th week, tying for the fourth-longest reign in the chart’s 65-year history, and the longest for a song by an act with no accompanying artists.

Childers’ First Top 10

Tyler Childers, from Paintsville, Ky., attains his first top 10 on Hot Country Songs, as his new single “In Your Love,” released July 27, blasts in at No. 7. In its first full week, it drew 11.4 million streams and sold 9,000. It leaps 16-4 on Country Digital Song Sales and debuts at No. 8 on Country Streaming Songs, marking his first top 10 on each chart.

“In Your Love,” co-written by the 32-year-old, is the first single from his album Rustin’ in the Rain, due Sept. 8. It’s Childers’ fifth Hot Country Songs entry and follows “Way of the Triune God,” which reached No. 37, his former best rank, in January.

Top Tier ‘Whiskey’  

In its 31st week on Hot Country Songs, Justin Moore and Priscilla Block’s “You, Me, & Whiskey” rises 11-8. It awards Moore his 11th top 10 and Block her first, in her third appearance.

The song attracted 5.8 million streams (up 38%) and sold 1,000 (up 11%) July 28-Aug. 3. On Country Airplay, it pushes 4-3 for a new best (29.8 million, up 13%).

For Moore, it follows “With a Woman You Love,” which rose to No. 12 last September and “We Didn’t Have Much,” which hit No. 7 in September 2021. Both songs led Country Airplay for a week each, upping his career total to 10 No. 1s.

Block’s debut hit “Just About Over You” reached No. 17 on Hot Country Songs in December 2021, as well as No. 14 on Country Airplay. Subsequent single “My Bar” climbed to No. 26 on Country Airplay last September.

08 Aug 2023

BTS’ V Announces Debut Solo Album, ‘Layover’

BTS‘ V is the latest member of the superstar K-pop group to announce a solo album. BIGHIT Music announced on Tuesday (Aug. 8) that V’s debut solo effort, Layover, will drop on Sept. 8. The collection will feature six tracks: “Rainy Days,” “Blue,” “Love Me Again,” “Slow Dancing,” For Us” and a bonus track piano version of “Slow Dancing.”

In a release announcing the collection, BIGHIT suggested that ARMY listen to the album’s tracks in order, from 1-5, noting that “Slow Dancing” is the focus track of the collection, describing it as a “1970s romantic soul style track [that] exudes a laid-back and free-spirited feeling.”

The announcement was accompanied by a 15-second visualizer in which a series of packages featuring the album float onto the balcony of an apartment building, ending with the album title in all-cap white letters — with the V rendered in purple — filling the screen.

“Love Me Again” is described as a “captivating R&B track that highlights V’s low pitch voice,” while “For Us,” is a “pop R&B track that serves as an epilogue, stirring up deep emotions with V’s vocals and unique lyrics.” All five album tracks will have official videos.

V worked with NewJeans creative director/ADOR president Hee Jin Min on the album, with BIGHIT revealing that Min oversaw the entire production of the collection, including music, choreography, design and promotion. V’s previous solo efforts include “Stigma,” “Singularity,” “Winter Bear” and “Inner Child”; his most recent original solo songs are 2021’s “Christmas Tree,” which was on the soundtrack of the Netflix K-drama Our Beloved Summer and last year’s version of the holiday classic “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.”

The announcement about V’s album comes just after BIGHIT confirmed that Suga has begun his military enlistment process, becoming the third member to enlist in South Korea’s mandatory military service, following Jin and J-Hope.

Check out the Layover teaser below.

08 Aug 2023

Skindred Holds Edge on Midweek U.K. Chart With ‘Smile’

Skindred has every reason to smile. After performing at Glastonbury Festival 2023, the Newport, Wales heavy metal act leads the U.K.’s chart blast with Smile (via Earache), the rockers’ eighth studio album.

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If Smile holds its spot, not only would it become their first leader, but it would be the band’s first title to impact the top 10.

Nothing is certain at this stage.

Yorkshire, England indie-rock act the Sherlocks (with People Like Me & You via Teddyboy) and Cian Ducrot (Victory via Polydor) complete the respective podium places on the Official Chart Update.

Currently, less than 500 chart units separate the top three, the Official Charts Company reports.

Completing an all-new top 5 at the midweek stage is Miles Kane’s fifth solo effort, One Man Band (Modern Sky), set to start at No. 4 for what would be his peak chart position, while London hip-hop outfit N-Dubz could snag No. 5 with Timeless (EMI), their first studio album in 13 years.

Anniversary reissues from Snow Patrol and ABC could make a splash when the national albums chart is published this Friday, Aug. 11.

Snow Patrol’s third album Final Straw is poised for a top 10 return, at No. 7. Released in 2003, through Polydor, the British-Irish alternative rock band’s major label debut, Final Straw peaked at No. 3. Its followup, Eyes Open from 2006, gave the group their first and only U.K. chart leader.

Also, ‘80s pop favorites ABC could stage their own return to the top 10 with The Lexicon of Love (Mercury), which this year celebrates its 40th anniversary. The LP, which initially led the chart following its release in 1982 and includes the hits “Poison Arrow,” “The Look of Love” and more, appears at No. 10 on the chart blast.

Finally, Mammoth WVH could bag its first U.K. charting album with Mammoth II (BMG). It’s new at No. 24 on the Official Chart Update. Mammoth WVH is fronted by Wolf Van Halen, son of the legendary late guitarist Eddie Van Halen, and bass player with the iconic U.S. rock act Van Halen.

08 Aug 2023

The 6 Best Moments From Night 4 of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour at LA’s SoFi Stadium

Monday’s surprise songs included an acoustic debut & a solo debut, with a particularly poignant “Exile” sing-along.

Taylor Swift performs during her Eras Tour at SoFi stadium in Inglewood, California, August 7, 2023.

Taylor Swift performs during her Eras Tour at SoFi stadium in Inglewood, California, August 7, 2023.

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Taylor Swift greeted a brand-new crowd of 70,000 eager fans on Monday night (Aug. 8) as The Eras Tour returned to the L.A.-area SoFi Stadium for Night 4 in Inglewood, California. And while the first leg of her North American tour is coming to a close Wednesday night (for a total of six sold-out nights at SoFi), Swift continues to keep things fresh — especially with the night’s brand-new surprise songs, which included one acoustic debut and one solo debut.

“Welcome to the acoustic set!” Swift said as she made her way to the center catwalk, where a guitar and piano awaited her for the most anticipated portion of her setlist. “When I was putting together this tour and I was thinking about the stuff that I wanted to do, I was thinking about the fact that I named it The Eras Tour and I kind of wanted to sort of assign the acoustic set as a place where I would challenge myself to play songs that I don’t normally play live or songs that I haven’t played live in a really long time or songs that I haven’t played live in an acoustic way. So it’s been equally exhilarating and terrifying, because it’s a different one every single night – it’s a different two every single night.”

She broke out some special ones for the Monday night crowd, with the acoustic debut of “Dress” and the solo debut of “Exile” (much more on those below).

But the surprise songs were hardly the only standout moments from the latest Eras Tour stop. Below, find our six favorite moments from Night 4 at SoFi Stadium.

08 Aug 2023

Dave & Central Cee’s ‘Sprinter’ Challenged by ‘Barbie’ Singles In U.K.

Dave and Central Cee’s “Sprinter” has another race on its hands.

The hit U.K. hip-hop single has the edge at the halfway stage in the chart week, though two singles from the Barbie soundtrack are trailing close behind.

If “Sprinter” (via Live Yours/Neighbourhood) does keep its momentum, it’ll secure a 10th consecutive week at No. 1, extending its lead as the longest-reigning homegrown hip-hop single ever in the U.K. and drawing level with Miley Cyrus’ run with “Flowers” for the market’s longest-ruling single this year.

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Dua Lipa or Billie Eilish could have a say in that.

Lipa’s Barbie cut “Dance The Night” (Warner Records) trailed “Sprinter” by about 1,000 combined units after the first 48 hour of the chart cycle, the Official Charts Company reports, and holds at No. 3 on the midweek chart.

Eilish’s “What Was Made I For?” (Interscope), also from Barbie The Album, and the best-seller on Australia’s latest ARIA Chart, is at No. 2 on the chart blast.

Meanwhile, Nathan Dawe, Joel Corry and Ella Henderson could return to the top 10 with “0800 Heaven” (Atlantic), up 11-8 on the Official Singles Chart Update, while Becky Hill and Chase & Status’s “Disconnect” (up 15-9 via Polydor) and Gunna’s “Fukumean” (up 13-10 via 300 Entertainment) are gaining on the chart blast.

Just outside the top 10 is Calvin Harris and Sam Smith’s latest collaboration “Desire” (Columbia), up 17-11 for what would be a new chart peak. If it heads further north, it would be Harris’ 30th top 10 single and Smith’s 13th.

Also looking up is Anne-Marie and Shania Twain’s “Unhealthy” (Atlantic/Asylum/EMI), which could bounce 22-17 for a new peak. “Unhealthy” is the title track to Anne-Marie’s third studio LP, which bowed at No. 2 on the national albums chart.

Finally, Doja Cat is looking to pounce on the chart with “Paint The Town Red” (Kemosabe/RCA). Doja’s latest tune, which is expected to appear on her as-yet untitled fourth studio album, is set to start at No. 20 in the U.K. for the week’s top debut.

All will be revealed when the Official Charts are published late Friday, Aug. 11.