djfrosty

14 Apr 2023

Travis Scott And A$AP Rocky To Headline Rolling Loud Miami 2023

HipHopWired Featured Video

Travis Scott - Astroworld Festival 2019

Source: Kevin Rawls / Radio One Digital

One of the most popular concerts is back in a big way. Travis Scott And A$AP Rocky will be headlining Rolling Loud Miami 2023.

This week the entertainment entity unveiled the line up for this year’s edition. Taking place at the Hard Rock Stadium the festival will be scheduled throughout three days this summer. Slotted to close each night are Playboi Cart (Friday, July 21), Travis Scott (Saturday, July 22) and A$AP Rocky (Sunday, July 23). Concert goers can also expect performance from other top talents including Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, Kodak Black, Lil Yachty, Trippie Redd, City Girls, Don Toliver, Ice Spice, Coi Leray, Central Cee, GloRilla, Rae Sremmurd and Freddie Gibbs, and promising prospects like Destroy Lonely, Lola Brooke, Babytron, redveil, Luh Tyler, Bktherula, and many more.

Related Stories

This installment has a noticeable point of difference as this is the first year that the concert series will feature talent outside of the Hip-Hop genre. Among these artists are UK phenom PinkPantheress, R&B superstar Bryson Tiller, hardcore punk heavy-hitters Turnstile, genre-bending songstress Foushée, and Spanish language rapper YOVNGCHIMI.

Tickets for Rolling Loud Miami 2023 go on sale Friday, April 14 at 10AM EST. You can shop passes here. 

Photo: Kevin Rawls

14 Apr 2023

Nicki Minaj To Star In 50 Cent-Produced Animated Series

HipHopWired Featured Video

2022 MTV Video Music Awards - Show

Source: Arturo Holmes / Getty

Nicki Minaj is teaming up with 50 Cent as the star and executive producer of a new animated series that he’s producing for Amazon.

According to reports, the “Anaconda” rapper will be the main star in Lady Danger, a new animated series that will make its debut on Amazon’s Freevee network. The series is based on the Dark Horse comic book series by Alex de Campi. The series will be executive produced by 50 Cent through his G-Unit Film & TV company, as well as Minaj. He announced the news through his Instagram account on Wednesday (April 12th), writing: “What you doing today, we working @nickiminaj South Side you already know what it is…I don’t miss.” The news was also shared by Nicki Minaj through her social media accounts as well.

Related Stories

The series, set in the year 2075, follows a government field agent who stumbles upon a dangerous secret and winds up being left for dead by her team. She’s then resurrected as “an afro futuristic ass-kicking Agent of B.O.O.T.I (Bureau of Organized Terrorism Intervention)” known as Lady Danger. She goes on to fight multiple villains endangering the Earth and its population while keeping her true identity a secret.

Starburns Industries is in charge of the animation, and the series will be written by Carlton Jordan and Crystle Roberson who are also executive producers. The others in that role in the series are Brian Sher, and Paul Young & Mike Griffin of Make Good Content.  There are no other details released about the project as of yet.

This series is another in the realm of animation for Nicki Minaj, who previously voiced the character Suglite on Cartoon Network’s acclaimed series Steven Universe. She also had a role in The Angry Birds Movie 2 and Ice Age: Continental Drift in addition to a guest spot on The Cleveland Show. As for 50 Cent, the news makes it another media project under his belt. In addition to his Power series which he developed at Starz under a previous deal as well as the BMF series, he’s also reportedly working on a new original series with Paramount Plus and Lionsgate Television entitled Vice City. 

14 Apr 2023

Karol G and Ana De Armas’ All-Spanish ‘SNL’ Promo Has Bowen Yang Proclaiming ‘Yo Soy La Playa’

Bowen Yang just wants to fit in during the promo for this weekend’s Saturday Night Live. Standing next to host Cuban/Spanish actress Ana de Armas (Blonde), Colombian musical guest Karol G and Cuban-Dominican SNL castmate Marcello Hernandez, Yang is the odd man out in the first all-Spanish language preview for the show.

The host does the usual intro, saying her name and welcoming Karol as the musical guest in Spanish, while Hernandez tells the singer that it’s going to be a “tremendous night” as he gushes about how much he loves her musical. After Karol says she’s delighted to be there, Yang, desperate to prove his funky bilingual bona fides, casually drops all the Spanish he learned in high school, adding, “yo soy la playa.”

“You are the beach?” Hernandez wonders. “Yes, I am the beach,” Yang concurs confidently, as de Armas confirms, “Bowen is the beach.”

One of the other bits setting up this weekend’s show finds Yang telling de Armas that he loved her as Marilyn Monroe in Blonde, as Karol G says she also loved the actress in Bond, — as in 2021’s No Time To Die — while Hernandez keeps the rhyme time going by saying he is “fond” of her work in the movie Ghosted. This time, however, Marcello is the one on the outside looking in, as he apologizes for his clumsy attempt to keep the rhyme going.

The Spanish-heavy promo was fitting as Karol G’s Mañana Será Bonito made her the first artist to land an all-Spanish language album by a female artist to debut atop the Billboard 200 album chart last month; it was also Karol’s first No. 1 album on the chart.

Saturday Night Live airs at 11:30 p.m. ET on Saturday (April 15) and then streams on Peacock after.

Check out this week’s SNL promos below.

14 Apr 2023

Future Unveils New Cannabis Line ‘Evol’: Exclusive

Future’s empire looks to grow stronger as he expands into the cannabis business.

Today (April 14), Billboard exclusively reports that the “Wait For U” rapper will partner with global branding and licensing company Carma HoldCo to launch “Evol” — his upcoming line of THC, CBD, and Delta 8/9 products. It will be available next month in California. 

“As an artist, I strive to enlighten the world with different perspectives and experiences, whether through my lyrics, live performances, or other creative endeavors,” Future tells Billboard. “With Carma HoldCo, I can apply that creativity to build a new cannabis lifestyle brand that resonates within my community and delivers a high-quality product to my fans and a much wider audience.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“Future is one of this generation’s most prolific, influential artists,” says Carma HoldCo chairman Chad Bronstein. “His drive, creativity, and vision, in partnership with Carma HoldCo, will create experiences that will inspire consumers and further establish us as the new global leader in branding and licensing.”

Along with being behind Future’s “Evol,” Carma is behind Mike Tyson’s “TYSON 2.0” and Ric Flair’s “Ric Flair Drip.” Carma HoldCo’s products span 75,000 retailers across 40 states and 17 countries. 

Future recently concluded his One Big Party Tour, which featured Don Toliver, G Herbo, Mariah The Scientist, and Dess Dior. Ahead of the Minnesota tour stop, Future canceled the tour’s final two stops for undisclosed reasons. “It breaks my heart that I will no longer be connecting with my fans in Kansas City and Minneapolis. I look forward to reconnecting with each of you at another time. Thank you for all your love and support through the years,” he said in a statement to Billboard. 

14 Apr 2023

Drake Bell Posts First Message After Reported Disappearance

Drake Bell was reported safe on Thursday afternoon (April 13), just hours after police in Daytona Beach issued a missing person’s alert for the 36-year-old former Nickelodeon star. And while police have not released any information to date about where Bell (born Jared Bell) was before he was found or what caused them to issue a “missing and endangered” alert, the former Drake & Josh star broke his silence on Thursday evening with a jokey tweet about the incident.

“You leave your phone in the car and don’t answer for the night and this?,” he wrote along with a crying laughing emoji. At press time Bell had not further explained where he was or why the alert was issued and a spokesperson for the Tampa Bay Police Department had not returned Billboard‘s request for additional information on the search for the actor.

On Thursday morning, TBPD wrote on Facebook that, “He [Bell] should be traveling in a 2022 grey BMW and his last known location is potentially the area of Mainland High School… He is considered missing and endangered.” Hours later they sent out an update that read, “we can confirm law enforcement officials are in contact and Mr. Bell is safe.”

According to People magazine, Bell’s last public appearance before his brief disappearance was on April 11 when he was seen with his two-year-old son at SeaWorld in Orlando; Bell shares custody of the child with estranged wife Janet Von Schmeling, who the magazine reported in January had split with the actor/singer as he sought outpatient treatment for substance use issues.

See Bell’s tweet below.

14 Apr 2023

5 Seconds of Summer Rock Out With ‘Feeling Of Falling Upwards’ Live LP: Stream It Now

A glance at the chart history for 5 Seconds of Summer is like peering into the record books for a champion athlete, at their very prime.

The Sydney-formed pop-rock outfit landed three consecutive No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 chart – with their self-titled debut LP from 2014, Sounds Good Feels Good in 2016 and Youngblood from 2018. It’s a feat that made 5SOS the first Australian act to bag three crowns on the Billboard 200, and it extended their record as the only band to top the Billboard 200 with their first three studio albums.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The streak ended when CALM went to No. 2 in the U.S. in 2020, though it debuted at No. 1 in the U.K., for 5SOS’s second leader there. Then, 5SOS dropped in 2022, giving the band a third U.K. crown, a No. 2 peak in the U.S. and the lads’ fifth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales. On Australia’s ARIA Chart, they’ve gone a perfect five-for-five.

If you’re the type to keep score, that’s a lot of action.

Luke Hemmings, Calum Hood, Michael Clifford and Ashton Irwin will hope to add another notch on the charts with The Feeling of Falling Upwards – Live from The Royal Albert Hall, which rolled out at midnight.

Clocking in at nearly 70 minutes, and 17 tracks, 5SOS’s latest collection was recorded at the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London, a venue the chaps busked outside of when they first moved to the U.K., with the ambition to write their debut album. How things have changed.

The live performance captures reimagined versions of songs from across their catalog, accompanied by a 12-piece string orchestra and a 12-strong gospel choir.

The Royal Hall set is the band’s second live LP in a decade, following 2014’s LiveSOS.

The 5SOS live experience doesn’t end there. South America dates on the 2023 trek The 5 Seconds of Summer Show kick off July 20 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with North America set to follow from early August.

Stream 5SOS’s The Feeling of Falling Upwards – Live from The Royal Albert Hall below.

14 Apr 2023

Morgan Wallen Unseats Miley Cyrus on Australia’s Singles Chart

Morgan Wallen is the new king of Australia’s singles survey.

The U.S. country star bags his first leader on the ARIA Singles Chart with “Last Night” (Republic Records/Universal), which lifts 2-1, emulating its parent album One Thing At A Time, which hit the summit last month and currently lifts 4-3.

Prior to “Last Night,” Wallen’s chart best in these parts was a No. 20 peak for “You Proof” in 2022; “You Proof” dips 23-27 on the current tally.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

With Wallen at the throne, Miley Cyrus’ unbroken reign with “Flowers” (Columbia/Sony) comes to an end at 12 weeks. That’s impressive, but still some way off the 24-week non-consecutive reign of Tones And I’s 2019 hit “Dance Monkey,” the all-time leader.

“Flowers” dips 1-2 on the latest chart, published April 14, while PinkPantheress’ “Boy’s a liar” (Parlophone/Warner) holds at No. 3.

The highest new entry belongs to Drake, as “Search & Rescue” (Republic/Universal) bows at No. 8. Just one other cut debuts in the top 50 on the latest frame, NLE Choppa’s “S**t Me Out” (Warner), rising 105-48.

Over on the ARIA Albums Chart, homegrown queer pop band Cub Sport pounces to No. 1 with Jesus At The Gay Bar (Believe).

It’s the first No. 1 and second ARIA top 10 album for the Brisbane outfit. “We’ve been a band for over a decade and to achieve our first #1 record with our fifth album is incredible,” reads a statement from the four-piece. “So proud of the four of us for the years of hard work and for building to this moment as a self-managed and independent band. Above all, we’re so grateful to our beautiful fans – thank you so much for making this dream come true!”

Adds ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd: “Cub Sport are an incredible home-grown act who absolutely deserve to be celebrated. Congratulations to the band and their team for an incredible triumph, particularly as an independent band. All of us at ARIA are thrilled to be welcoming another Australian album to the top of the charts.”

Jesus At The Gay Bar shimmies past Hope (Capitol/Universal), the fifth studio album from Michigan-born, singer, songwriter and producer NF. It’s new at No. 2. That’s a career best for NF (real name: Nathan John Feuerstein), bettering the No. 3 peak for The Search in 2019, and the No. 5 for his mixtape Clouds in 2021.

Further down the tally, the Linkin Park’s sophomore album Meteora (Warner) impacts the top 10, at No. 8, thanks to a 20th anniversary reissue, which features previously-unreleased works including vocals from the late frontman Chester Bennington. Meteora originally peaked at No. 2 in 2003 and has been certified four-times platinum, ARIA reports.

Finally, Aussie punk rock outfit Frenzal Rhomb just miss out on a top 10 berth with The Cup Of Pestilence (Virgin/Universal), their 10th studio effort. It’s new at No. 1 on the all-genres albums chart, and it’s the best-seller on wax this cycle.

14 Apr 2023

Metallica Let Rip With ’72 Seasons’: Stream It Now

Metallica aren’t just heavy, they’re durable. A muscular band that simply won’t rust with the passing of time — more than 40 years of it.

With the release of 72 Seasons, the Bay Area rockers unleash their 12th studio album. Six of them have gone to No. 1 on Billboard 200, led by 1991’s The Black Album, which checked in for a full month at the chart penthouse and is recognized as one of the best-selling heavy albums in recorded music history.

Produced by Greg Fidelman with frontman James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, 72 Seasons spans 12 tracks, including the previously released “If Darkness Had a Son” and “Lux Æterna,” which the band performed on late-night TV earlier in the week, the first of a week-long residency on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The new collection clocks in 77 minutes, all of them meaty, and it’s the followup to 2016’s Hardwired…To Self-Destruct, which led the Billboard 200 for a single week.

Speaking on the meaning behind the album and its title, Hetfield remarked, “72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves. The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are.”

Much of our adult experience is “reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry,” he continues.

It’s fair to say, these Rock And Roll Hall of Famers have figured out who and what they are.

Live action is coming soon, with Metallica kicking off their M72 World Tour on April 27 at Amsterdam’s Johan Cruijff Arena.

The fresh set dropped at the stroke of midnight, via Metallica’s own Blackened Recordings.

Stream 72 Seasons below.

13 Apr 2023

Kelly Clarkson Unfurls Powerful Double Single ‘Mine / Me’: Stream the Songs Now

Kelly Clarkson kicked off her long-awaited new musical era on Friday (April 14) with not one but two new singles in the form of “Mine / Me.”

“Mine” starts out as a spare, emotive ballad with The Voice coach reflecting back on heartbreak while rebuilding her life post-divorce as she admits, “And now I second-guess my thoughts, every step I take/ I’m losing hope in love and I’ve lost all in faith/ Yeah, for a dream that I just close my eyes and it’s all blank/ I have you to thank.”

Meanwhile, “Me” — which was co-written by GAYLE — ratchets up the emotion as a gospel choir joins the singer while she lays bare the reasons for her split from ex-husband Brandon Blackstock in unflinching detail. Case in point: “I told you I wanted you/ But you needed me to need you/ Your insecurity was the death of you and me/ Too many times you questioned, what were my intentions?/ I never gave you reasons, you’re the one with secrets,” she wails from the other side of the burnt bridge of her relationship.

The dual songs give fans their first taste of what to expect from Clarkson’s upcoming tenth studio album Chemistry, which is out June 23 via Atlantic Records. “We decided to release ‘mine’ and ‘me’ at the same time because I didn’t want to release just one song to represent an entire album, or relationship. There are many stages of grief and loss on this album. Each song is a different stage and emotional state,” the original American Idol winner said in a statement about the release.

Chemistry will also contain songs titled “Skip This Part,” “High Road,” “Rock Hudson” and “Red Flag Collector” across its 14-song tracklist, as well as unexpected collaborations with Steve Martin (“I Hate Love”) and Sheila E. (closer “That’s Right”).

Stream “Mine” and “Me” below.

13 Apr 2023

Post Malone Switches Things Up With New Pop Single ‘Chemical’: Stream It Now

Just in time to soundtrack Coachella and almost a year after his chart-topping fourth studio album Twelve Carat Tooth, Post Malone returns with a pop-centric, summer-ready single, “Chemical.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The chorus is bright and catchy, a contrast from much of the 27-year-old artist’s more moody and somber offerings. He initially teased the song on Wednesday (April 12), sharing a 15 second clip with fans on Twitter in a tweet that read, “Chemical out Friday.”

While the track’s production boast a happy vibe, the lyrics tell a more on-brand story for the Utah-based artist. “Fresh out of the party / Smoking in the car with you / Seven nation army / Fighting in the bar with you,” he sings in the chorus.

On Thursday (April 13), Post Malone shared a photo of himself on Instagram smoking in a car (likely a play on the chorus), writing, “A big cheers to all my big special gamers out there Please listen to my new song tonight at midnight. I love you.”

In his 2022 cover story, Post Malone told Billboard that he was “trying to rebuild” himself amidst label pressures surrounding his art. “Trying to shove 20 to 25 songs, it doesn’t work. Talking to the label [it’s like], ‘Oh, if you have less songs, you’re not going to stream as much,’ but the whole thing is that you don’t want to compromise your art and your gut vibe on anything,” he said. “I’ve made a lot of compromises, especially musically, but now I don’t feel like I want to anymore. I don’t need a No. 1; that doesn’t matter to me no more, and at a point, it did.”

Listen to “Chemical” below.