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13 Jun 2023

Chris Hemsworth Proves He’s the Biggest Sheerio By Hitting 2023 Ed Sheeran Concert Trifecta: ‘I’m a Borderline Stalker’

There are Ed Sheeran fans, and then there’s Chris Hemsworth. The Thor star proved that he’s a gold-star Sheerio over the weekend when he attended his third show on Ed’s Mathematic Tour over the weekend at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

“Saw Ed Sheeran for the 3rd time this year. Some say I’m a super fan, others say I’m a borderline stalker… mostly Ed says that actually, but hey I’m just a really supportive mate,” Hemsworth tweeted alongside video from the show and backstage footage of the actor — and pal Matt Damon — chilling with Sheeran and then letting loose an excited primal scream at the end of “Galway Girl.”

“Congrats on breaking stadium records once again, champ!,” Hemsworth added, noting that Sheeran made history on Sunday when he played to his biggest U.S. audience to date, 89,000, setting an attendance record at the venue during the second of two sold-out shows. Charlamagne Tha God was also on hand for the historic moment, posting a pic on the Power 105 feed congratulating Sheeran on his feat along with a photo featuring the singer and Hemsworth flanking the DJ/talk show host.

Hemsworth and Sheeran have been friends for a while, with the actor posting footage in February of this year in which they swapped their tools of the trade backstage at Ed’s Brisbane concert, with Hemsworth handing over a prop Thor’s hammer and the singer giving up one of his guitars. “So basically I am really into like trading trade tools for trade tools,” Sheeran said at the time.

Sheeran’s tour rolls on, with the singer slated to perform at the 2,500-capacity History club in Toronto on Friday (June 16) and the city’s Rogers Centre the next night.

Check out Hemsworth and Charlamagne’s posts below.

13 Jun 2023

Paul McCartney Says He’s Using AI to Build the ‘Final’ Beatles Song

More than six decades after their formation, Paul McCartney says the final-ever Beatles song is on its way thanks to the miracle of modern technology. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today, Sir Paul said that he has been using artificial intelligence to “extricate” John Lennon’s voice from an old demo to complete the untitled track.

“We just finished it up and it’ll be released this year,” he said, of the untitled song that the BBC speculated could be a 1978 Lennon composition called “Now and Then.” The single was reportedly in the running to serve as a “reunion song” for the 1995 Anthology series, which included two new songs based on demos recorded by Lennon after the group split, 1995’s “Free As a Bird” and 1996’s “Real Love,” produced by ELO’s Jeff Lynne. Those tracks were the first “new” Beatles” releases in more than 25 years.

McCartney reportedly received the demo for the new track from Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, in 1994; the song was one of several on a cassette labelled “For Paul” that Lennon made shortly before his murder in 1980. The BBC reported that the tracks were “lo-fi and embryonic” and mostly recorded on a boombox by Lennon on a piano in his New York apartment.

The BBC reported that the living members of the band tried to record the “apologetic” love song “Now and Then” around the time of the Anthology release, but abandoned the sessions in short order. “It was one day — one afternoon, really — messing with it,” Lynne said. “The song had a chorus but is almost totally lacking in verses. We did the backing track, a rough go that we really didn’t finish.”

McCartney later said guitarist/singer George Harrison refused to work on “Now and Then,” saying the sound quality on Lennon’s vocals was “rubbish… George didn’t like it. The Beatles being a democracy, we didn’t do it.” The BBC reported that there were also reportedly technical issues with the original, due to some persistent “buzz” from the electrical circuits in Lennon’s apartment. The new version of the demo reportedly popped up on a bootleg CD in 2009, minus the background noise.

In a 2012 BBC documentary on Lynne, McCartney said, “that one’s still lingering around… so I’m going to nick in with Jeff and do it. Finish it, one of these days.” And while it is still unknown if that song is the one due out, the BBC reported that technical advances employed during the making of Peter Jackson’s Get Back Beatles documentary series — during which dialog editor Emile de la Rey trained computers to recognize the Beatles’ voices and separate them from background noise, including their own instruments — allowed the team to create “clean” audio. That same technology also allowed McCartney to sing a virtual duet with Lennon on his most recent tour.

“He [Jackson] was able to extricate John’s voice from a ropey little bit of cassette,” McCartney told Radio 4 in explaining how the tech used in the documentary helped him work on the “new” song. “We had John’s voice and a piano and he could separate them with AI. They tell the machine, ‘That’s the voice. This is a guitar. Lose the guitar.’ So when we came to make what will be the last Beatles’ record, it was a demo that John had [and] we were able to take John’s voice and get it pure through this AI. Then we can mix the record, as you would normally do. So it gives you some sort of leeway.”

At press time a release date for the Beatles track had not been announced.

13 Jun 2023

BTS’ 15 Top Songs on the Billboard Hot 100

Celebrating a milestone 10 years together as a group in July 2023, no one can deny BTS’ impact on not just K-pop, not just pop, but on music as a whole. With members of ARMY (the name of their loyal fanbase) stationed all over the world, RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook have reached Beatles-like levels of superstardom most musical acts can only dream of achieving.

The septet has come a long way since debuting in 2013 under a virtually unknown label. They made their first major move on the Billboard charts in 2017 when their album Love Yourself: Her emerged at No. 7 on the Billboard 200, becoming the highest ever debut for a K-pop act. The album’s lead single “DNA” was their first entrance on the Billboard Hot 100, but the chart moves don’t end there. Their first all-English-language single “Dynamite” became their first to debut at the summit in 2020. A number of their other tracks have made history on the charts since, including collaborations with Halsey, Nicki Minaj, Coldplay and more.

Continuing to release hit after hit, BTS has proven they’ve made their mark on the world (dare we say, universe). Take a look at the supergroup’s most massive hits on the Hot 100 below.

BTS’ Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits ranking is based on weekly performance on the Hot 100. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at lower spots earning the least. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted differently to account for chart turnover rates during various periods. Songs are ranked based on a formula blending performance, as outlined above.

13 Jun 2023

Warner Music Group Enters Games Publishing With ‘Invector: Rhythm Galaxy’

Warner Music Group is getting its game on.

The major music company joins forces with Hello There Games, the Sweden-based game studio for the release of Invector: Rhythm Galaxy, a rhythm game soundtracked by 40 chart hits from the likes of PinkPantheress, Duran Duran, Charli XCX and others.

Slated to drop July 14, initially on PC, Invector: Rhythm Galaxy marks WMG’s first leap into games publishing.

This venture into gaming “showcases our commitment to reimagining the boundaries of music and how it is defined by artists and fans alike within our evolving ecosystem,” comments Oana Ruxandra, WMG’s chief digital officer and executive VP, business development.

Invector: Rhythm Galaxy is said to intertwine “the power of music with the interaction of gaming to build active, immersive experiences for fans and new revenue streams for WMG’s artists.”

Gaming and music are generations-long buddies. During the presentation of the IFPI’s Global Music Report in March of this year, WMG’s Simon Robson, president, international, Recorded Music, noted the industry has “done a great job looking at opportunities in fitness and the games sectors.”

WMG has worked with Peloton and invested in Web3 companies, including Roblox, and sees the alliance with Hello There Games as one that also plays in the music discovery space for gamers.

Hello There Games co-developed the Avicii Invector with the late Swedish EDM star, a game that features the tunes “What Would I Change It To,” “Pure Grinding,” “You Be Love” and more, and was originally built for the PS4.

Adds Oskar Eklund, CEO and founder of Hello There Games, “our unwavering passion for music and gaming fuels our drive. Many of our team members are talented musicians themselves.” Eklund continues, “We are so excited to bring this game to the next level with Warner Music Group and their amazing artists. We can’t wait for everyone to experience the magic of Invector: Rhythm Galaxy firsthand.”

Watch the trailer below.

13 Jun 2023

Dave And Central Cee’s ‘Sprinter’ Takes the Lead In U.K. Chart Race

The race is on! Dave and Central Cee‘s “Sprinter” (via Live Yours/Neighbourhood) edges into the lead on the midweek U.K. singles chart, after JHus and Drake came out fast from the starting blocks with “Who Told You”.

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If “Sprinter” maintains its pace, it’ll land a second straight chart title. The track bowed at No. 1 last week, for Dave’s third leader and Central Cee’s first. And it set records in the process, by becoming the biggest-ever streaming week for a hip-hop single.

J Hus’ “Who Told You” (Black Butter/OVO/Republic) featuring Drake led the First Look chart, which gauges the most popular songs after the first 48 hours of the chart week. The track slows slightly, and is set to debut at No. 2 based on midweek sales and streaming data.

The Mercury Prize nominated rapper has 13 top 40 hits to his name, including three top 10s. If “Who Told You” shows a clean pair of heels in the days ahead, it’ll give the Stratford, England artist a first-ever U.K. No. 1, and Drake a seventh leader.

“Sprinter” is one of three tracks set to impact the top 20 from Dave and Central Cee’s surprise EP drop, Split Decision, as “Trojan Horse” rides to No. 10 and “UK Rap” appears at No. 14 on the chart blast.

Further down the midweek list, drum ‘n’ bass crew Rudimental’s “Dancing Is Healing” (Room Two) with  Charlotte Plank and Vibe Chemistry could lift 8-5.

Also on the way up is Scottish DJ Hannah Laing and singer RoRo’s “Good Love” (WUGD), which cracked the top 40 last Friday and is set to burst into the top 20, at No. 13.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Singles Chart is published Friday (June 16).

13 Jun 2023

Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme Talks Cancer Diagnosis: ‘I’ll Get Through This’

After a very public divorce and custody fight, Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme has quietly gone through a cancer battle.

Speaking with Revolver, the American rocker confirmed he underwent surgery following a cancer diagnosis last year. He’s said to be recovering from the operation.

“I never say it can’t get any worse. I never say that, and I wouldn’t advise it. But I do say it can get better,” he comments, without sharing further details on his illness.

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“Cancer is just the cherry on top of an interesting time period, you know? I’m extremely thankful that I’ll get through this, and I’ll look back at this as something that’s fucked up — but will have made me better. I’m cool with that. There’s a lot of stuff I want to do. And there’s a lot of people I want to do that with.”

That “interesting time period” he refers to is a dry assessment of his breakup from the Distillers’ singer Brody Dalle in 2019, which has seen both sides file domestic violence restraining orders, and an ongoing custody battle which, due to their profiles, attracts global media attention. And prior to that, he caught flak when video emerged of him kicking a photographer at a KROQ Acoustic Christmas show, an incident he repeatedly apologized for.

Those dramas fed into the creative process for QOTSA’s forthcoming new album In Times New Roman. “I think this is the first time I didn’t want to make a record, but I was dealing with a lot of stuff in my personal life,” Homme adds. “We recorded a lot of stuff. I think I was doing it because when I’m in trouble, this is what I do. This is where I go to get right.”

The band’s eighth and latest full-length studio album is due out June 16 via Matador Records, and features the newly-released cut “Carnavoyeur” (stream below). In Times New Roman was recorded by the lineup of Homme, Troy Van Leeuwen, Dean Fertita, Michael Shuman and Jon Theodore, and will be supported by a major tour dubbed, The End is Nero, slated to kick off Aug. 3. It’s the followup to 2017’s Villains, which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.

13 Jun 2023

Idina Menzel Shares How She ‘Wouldn’t Be Where I Am Today’ Without the LGBTQ+ Community

Idina Menzel took the stage at WeHo Pride over the weekend, and she sat down with Billboard‘s Tetris Kelly to discuss her new music and the impact the LGBTQIA+ community has had on her career.

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Of her dance-heavy new single “Move,” Menzel revealed, “I think it might have been something people didn’t expect from me, but once they hear it, I think they’ll it’s a pretty organic transition. Big voices, big disco grooves.”

She continued that she understands why the song connects to the LGBTQIA+ community, as “it’s about having to find my self-esteem and empower myself to get up every day and be who I am authentically, which is honestly what I’ve learned from all my friends in this community. I probably wouldn’t be who I am today if I hadn’t learned to be myself in this world and if it wasn’t for [the LGBTQIA+] community.”

Of course, the Frozen actress reveals that Pride celebrations are a lot different than her comfort zone on Broadway — in a good way. “Here you don’t have to behave so much. You can stand, you can dance, you can sing. It feels really good,” she said with a laugh.

She also weighed in on drag queens covering “Let It Go” at shows. “When I go, I’m always so flattered, especially when someone is doing one of my characters,” she explained. “I’m just so inspired by the creativity, the artistry. I’m really sad and angry about everything that’s going on and all the legislation.”

Watch Billboard‘s full interview with Idina Menzel above.

12 Jun 2023

Steven Yeun’s Full Cover of Incubus’ ‘Drive’ for ‘BEEF’ Released Along With Bonus EP: Exclusive

Netflix’s BEEF captivated audiences not only with its dark, action-packed storyline, but also with its nostalgic ’90s and early 2000s soundtrack featuring hits from Hoobastank, The Offspring, Tori Amos, Incubus, Bjork and more.

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Now, BEEF has unveiled a new EP of bonus tracks from the limited series, which is out via A24 Music. BEEF: The Bonus Tracks EP features unreleased title cues from the popular show, along with the fan-favorite cover of Incubus’ “Drive” performed by actor Steven Yeun as his character Danny Cho.

The critically acclaimed series from creator and showrunner Lee Sung Jin (Sonny Lee) follows the aftermath of a road-rage incident between two strangers, played by Yeun and comedian Ali Wong. In the show, the now-viral Incubus cover came when Danny attempted to reconnect with his former church by performing a emotionally charged rendition of “Drive” with the church band.

Throughout Incubus’ career, the alt-rockers have notched six top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and 14 top 10 tracks on the Alternative Airplay chart, four of which went to No. 1 — including 1999’s “Drive.”

Listen to Yeun’s full-length cover of Incubus’ “Drive” and the full BEEF: The Bonus Tracks EP below.

Steven Yeun

Steven Yeun

A24

12 Jun 2023

Niall Horan’s ‘The Show’ Set For U.K. No. 1

Niall Horan welcomed fans to The Show (via Capitol). Now he’s set to be rewarded with the U.K. chart title.

The Irish pop singer’s third solo album leads the midweek U.K. chart race, piloting an all-new top 5 featuring new releases from McFly, James, Christine & The Queens and Extreme.

If it holds its course, The Show will give the former One Direction star his sixth leader overall and second solo No. 1, following 2020’s Heartbreak Weather. Horan’s debut solo effort Flicker peaked at No. 3 in 2017.

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As a member of 1D, Horan landed four U.K. No. 1 albums and as many leaders on the national singles survey.

Arriving at No. 2 on the Official Chart Update is McFly’s Power to Play (BMG), which is set to become the pop-punk band’s seventh top 10 release.

The podium at the midweek stage is completed by Britpop-era Manchester band James, with Be Open to the Wonderful (Nothing But Love Music). James has ten U.K. top 10 albums, including a No. 1 for 1998’s The Best Of.

French alternative pop outfit Christine & The Queens could net a third U.K. top 10 with Paranoia, Angels, True Love (Because Music). The three-part LP is new at No. 4 on the midweek chart.

Close behind at No. 5 is veteran U.S. rock band Extreme with Six (Ear Music), which set to become the “More Than Words” act’s first U.K.-charting album since 1995’s Waiting for the Punchline (No. 10 peak). Six could be Extreme’s third top 10 release.

Further down the midweek tally is Tears For Fears’ 40th anniversary reissue of their debut album The Hurting (Mercury), which originally led the chart in 1983. The Hurting is poised to return at No. 7.

And finally, English singer, producer and rapper King Krule could bag his first top 10 LP with Space Heavy (XL Recordings), new at No. 8 on the chart blast.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published Friday (June 16).

12 Jun 2023

Cardi B Accuser Agrees to Repay $350K She Spent on Lawyers In His Failed Lawsuit Over Tattoo Image

A man who unsuccessfully sued Cardi B after his giant back tattoo was unwittingly photoshopped into one of her album covers has agreed to repay a whopping $350,000 in legal bills that the superstar spent defeating his lawsuit.

Months after a jury rejected Kevin Brophy’s case against Cardi, his lawyers told a federal judge Monday (June 12) that he would not only reimburse the money that the rapper had dropped on her attorneys but also voluntarily end his efforts to revive the case and waive any chance at a future appeal.

Why would he do all that? Possibly because Cardi’s lawyers were gearing up to formally demand that he repay her attorneys’ fees — a prize to which she was potentially eligible after beating his accusations in court. Under that process, Cardi and her pricey team of lawyers could have won even more than $350,000.

“The parties now have reached an agreement avoiding the necessity of defendants’ motion for attorney’s fees and application to tax costs,” the two sides wrote in Monday’s filing, hinting at the looming threat of such a fee motion from Cardi’s team.

Attorneys for both sides declined to comment on the agreement when reached by Billboard on Monday.

Brophy sued Cardi in 2017 for millions in damages, claiming he was “devastated, humiliated and embarrassed” by the cover of Cardi’s Gangsta Bitch. The image featured the then-rising star taking a swig of a large beer, staring directly into the camera with her legs spread wide and holding a man’s head while he appears to perform oral sex on her.

The actual man in the image was a model who had consented to the shoot, but a giant tattoo on the man’s back belonged to Brophy. Unbeknownst to Cardi, a freelance graphic designer had typed “back tattoos” into Google Image Search, found one that fit (Brophy’s) and superimposed it onto the model’s body.

Brophy’s lawsuit claimed Cardi and others involved in the cover had used his likeness without his consent and also violated his right to privacy by casting him in a “false light” that was “highly offensive.” Cardi’s lawyers called the allegations “sheer fantasy” and “vastly overblown,” arguing that nobody would have recognized a relatively unknown man based merely on his back.

During a four-day trial in October, Cardi took the stand to defend herself. When examined by Brophy’s attorney, A. Barry Cappello, things repeatedly got heated between the two — so much so that at one point the judge cleared the jury, told Cappello he had “totally crossed the line” and threatened to declare a mistrial.

At the end of the trial, the jury agreed with the superstar’s defenses, clearing Cardi of all Brophy’s claims. Brophy later asked the judge to throw out the verdict for a lack of evidence, but the judge denied that motion in December. Brophy then filed a motion in January seeking a new trial, arguing that the star “engaged in theatrics” on the witness stand and deprived him of a fair trial.

Under Monday’s agreement, that motion will be withdrawn, and Brophy will “waive and irrevocably relinquish” any chance to challenge the verdict on appeal. In return, Cardi’s attorneys will similarly waive their right to file a motion formally seeking an award of attorneys’ fees.