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03 Mar 2023

De La Soul’s 10 Best Songs

With clever wordplay, a quirky sense of humor and an imaginative way of utilizing samples, De La Soul have long been celebrated as one of the most creative, influential groups in hip-hop.

However, throughout the lifetime of digital music streaming, the first six albums created by Posdnuos, Trugoy the Dove and Maseo have been more-or-less unavailable thanks to sample clearance issues and various other industry hurdles.

Finally, in the summer of 2021, that began to change. Rights to the Long Island trio’s former label Tommy Boy were acquired by Reservoir Media – and after that, it was a matter of time before the group retrieved their masters.

Now, those first six albums are finally available for public consumption in the digital domain. Unfortunately, the long-overdue campaign transpires as De La Soul copes with the Feb. 12, 2023, death of Trugoy (born David Jude Jolicoeur) at 54. A cruel twist of fate, but the newfound availability of their catalog will no doubt only punctuate the importance he had on the hip-hop landscape.

The newly available sextet of albums consists of the trio’s classic 1989 debut 3 Feet High and Rising; its follow-up 1991 masterpiece De La Soul Is Dead; 1993’s jazzy Buhloone Mindstate; 1996’s rugged Stakes Is High, 2000’s Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump; and 2001’s AOI: Bionix.

These albums join the trio’s more recent albums – including 2004’s The Grind Date and 2016’s And The Anonymous Nobody… — on Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music and the like, giving a brand new generation of music fans the opportunity to discover the humor, intelligence and poignancy De La Soul brought to the table for decades.

But if you’re not already a De La diehard, where do you start in their catalog to best absorb the essence of the knowledge kicked by the Plugs? Most everyone somewhat familiar with the group knows their biggest hit, “Me Myself and I,” which peaked at No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in 1989 and reached the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. And while the tune is a perfect conduit into the heart of hip-hop’s Daisy Age, De La Soul have so many classic jams that it’s unfair for them to be defined strictly by their biggest hit.

For better acuity, Billboard has selected 10 additional De La Soul cuts that stand as the trio’s finest works on wax to wit. Rest in Peace, Dave.

03 Mar 2023

Samara Joy on Her Best New Artist Grammy Win and ‘Highlighting Jazz Artists’

The steady rise of Samara Joy reached a pinnacle on Grammy night 2023 when Olivia Rodrigo — last year’s best new artist winner — announced Joy’s name as the latest recipient of the Big 4 honor. Beating a stacked roster of popular artists, she further cemented herself as one of jazz’s rare mainstream breakouts. Even sweeter, it was the 23-year-old’s second Grammy: she won her first, for best jazz vocal album for sophomore effort Linger Awhile, earlier that night.

With silky vocals that provide refreshing interpretations of oft-recorded standards as well as effervescent originals, Joy’s seemingly overnight success traces its foundation to a Bronx childhood growing as part of a musical family (her grandparents founded the gospel group The Savettes). It wasn’t until she attended college that she got serious about jazz in particular, later inking a deal with Verve Records, a powerhouse label of the genre.

Now, Joy is basking in her burgeoning success, turning in a memorable appearance on The Tonight Show in the midst of what’s become an in-demand global tour. Billboard spoke to her about that triumphant night, her creative process and the fine art of interpretation.

Congratulations on your Grammy wins. Out of the two you won, which one meant the most to you?

I think they both mean a lot, but people have definitely been separating the album win from the big award: best new artist. They’re both incredible but winning the first one was definitely a moment. When I won, it seemed like the culmination of the past six months of touring and recording, and it really just hit me. I sobbed like a baby, which I don’t normally do. So the first one definitely meant a lot because it was related most closely to the music. It was a labor of love that I presented to the world. You hope when you release music that people listen to it and enjoy it and want to share it and come to your shows. But going into the weekend, it felt like I already won because I had so much support and encouragement from musicians and singers and audiences. Also, winning best jazz vocal album was definitely the most special because it was my first win.

When your name was called, it was surprising you won if only because jazz is rarely recognized in the best new artist category. With that in mind, what was that moment like for you?

Number one, the diversity in the category to begin with definitely felt like a step in the right direction as far as highlighting different pockets of the world as far as the genres are concerned. Music is not just pop and hip-hop — it’s diverse. So I thought they did a great job with all of the nominees. But to kind of be an ambassador of the underdog genre in the category, it’s an honor and a step in the right direction for live music and highlighting jazz artists who maybe go unnoticed or under the radar. I hope that it opens people’s ears and eyes. We’ve always been here; it’s not like jazz is being reborn or brought back. But hopefully I can be the voice that illuminates all of the other voices who have been shouting out for so long.

What was your weekend like in general?

Well, I got there four days before the actual Grammys and immediately went into work mode, singing at events and meeting people like Stevie Wonder, John Legend and Brandi Carlile. It was pretty wild because while I guess I’m connected to a few of them through social media, to be connected in person with everybody, to be in the same space, I was like, “I can’t believe all of this is happening.” It was amazing.

I want to talk about your voice. It’s very unique and brings to mind artists like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. How did you perfect your vocal style and when did you realize that you have vocals that stand out?

Well, I definitely have a cassette tape somewhere of my dad recording me singing an Usher song when I was four years old [laughs]. So there’s that, but I started singing in musical theater and chorale concerts when I was in middle and high school. I always knew that I loved it. I think that my voice is still a work-in-progress, but I guess I had my own voice before I came to jazz, like the tone. I developed it in church; I sang there all the time and also listened and imitated many gospel, soul and Motown singers. I came to jazz with a certain style and a certain way of singing. I’m still learning how to perfect my voice so right now I’m listening to classical music, learning about healthy vocal projection and having a strong voice, so that all of those styles can come to the forefront whenever I sing.

Can you talk about your art of interpretation? You make songs seem singular and that’s a difficult thing to pull off.

The art of interpretation is definitely a sensitive one. I think about this quote from the great trumpet player Clark Terry, which I believe is: “Imitation, assimilation and then innovation.” I learn the melody of the song first and foremost as it’s written just for the sake of the integrity of the composer. I don’t want to make it something that it isn’t because of my own creative tendencies; I want to have a good foundation of the song and its bare bones. Then, I’ll listen to other versions of the song. Different singers and instrumentalists phrase things in a different way, so I’ll take ideas away from that: what words to emphasize, what harmonic ideas as far as maybe straying away from the melodies. Maybe going higher or lower on certain notes, for example. Then it comes down to what comes out when I sing it once I understand the song, words and the arc of the melody.

How did you go about choosing what to record for Linger Awhile? A song like “Someone To Watch Over Me” is a popular song, but “Guess Who I Saw Today” is more of an obscure cut.

The process really came about over the course of a couple months as I was looking for new material to add to my live shows. I had these gigs on the books and said I wanted to switch up the set so we’re not doing the same thing every night. I was looking for new songs to add into the set and keep things fresh musically and coming up with different arrangements. When it came time to do the second album, I already had songs I was trying out, and chose the ones that would be good to document in the studio with the band I was playing with at the time. It was a simple process, but that’s what I liked about it.

How do you get into the headspace of singing a sad or love song? Or do you just go in there and let it rip?

For Linger Awhile, I got in there and knocked it out. We recorded it in two days. I think we did seven songs the first day, the rest of them the second day and then narrowed them down.

You’re signed to the legendary Verve Records. How did that come together?

I made my first recording and licensed it to an independent label in the U.K. But when it came time to record Linger Awhile, my team and I decided to move onto a major label. I had established my name a little bit. When I pitched my first album, everyone said no, because of the pandemic and there were just no resources to break a new artist at the moment. So for this second album, I paid for it and presented it to different labels; all of the ones you could possibly think of. We met with Verve and I realized that in addition to the rich history of having jazz singers and artists released on Verve, they had a great team being under the umbrella of Universal Music Group. They were all passionate about music and great teams of distribution, and promotion. At first we had to meet over Zoom, which wasn’t as fun, but I’m really glad I partnered up with them.

Let’s talk about your childhood in the Bronx and your father Antonio McLendon’s influence, as I know he is a bassist. What were you listening to at the time and how did your father influence you?

I was listening to everything from Disney Channel soundtracks like The Cheetah Girls to Stevie Wonder, Jill Scott, Lalah Hathaway, Motown and Michael Jackson. I really enjoyed a lot of good music split between my mom and my dad. There was also a family album my dad had a chance to produce along with my uncle-in-law who worked with Donna Summer and Michael Bolton; he was a famous producer back in the day. The family album never got released, but that was my Holy Grail growing up and it still is: just hearing my family sing and hearing their original contemporary gospel compositions. All of that was playing around the house. I’d always watch my dad sing in church and at home where he has a studio, so even now when I’m singing there are certain things that I do that I realize I got from him without even realizing it. He’s definitely been a huge impact on me as far as listening to music, as well as looking out for the electric bass in every song I hear and being open-minded about it all.

You’ve said in the past that when you attended college and started studying jazz, you felt lost. I find that interesting because there are other people who felt the same way early in their creative process, but sometimes feeling like an outsider gives you a different, fresh perspective on things.

I agree wholeheartedly. It wasn’t like starting from zero musically, but in that area as far as music theory and the style of singing jazz. I just did not have any experience with it. But it allowed me to be a sponge and made me really, really take it seriously and immerse myself as opposed to having some preconceived notions as to what it sounded like.

03 Mar 2023

How Disneyland Recruited Tank & The Bangas and a Tony Winner to Soundtrack New Fireworks Show

As moonlight illuminates Disneyland Park’s Main Street, U.S.A., toddlers are gleefully hoisted onto shoulders, young couples nestle under Mickey Mouse blankets and groups of teenagers buzz with excitement. The mix of generations represented here have at least one thing in common: A real love for Disney’s creations.

The crowd is awaiting “Wondrous Journeys,” the park’s new nighttime event celebrating 100 years of Disney magic. In the span of a 15-minute, firework-filled spectacular, every milestone of the storytelling giant’s century-long history is projected onto the exterior of Main Street U.S.A. and the Sleeping Beauty Castle – from the first sketch of Mickey Mouse in 1927 to Disney’s upcoming 2023 film, Wish.

The display features nods to every Walt Disney Animation Studios film, coupled with lighting effects, fireworks and even Baymax from Big Hero 6, who at one point soars above the castle. It’s all set to a star-studded soundtrack arranged by Grammy Award-winning composer Christopher Lennertz, which features re-imaginings of Disney classics like “When You Wish Upon a Star” fused seamlessly with songs from modern-day films including “Almost There” from Princess and the Frog and “Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto.

“When the team sat down, we realized that the core theme that binds everyone together when it comes to emotion, is music,” says Walt Disney Imagineering’s global head of music Tricia Holloway.

The first step in developing the show’s music component was putting together an acoustic blueprint for what would become the “Wondrous Journeys” soundtrack. “I really approached this project like a combination of a stage musical and animated feature,” says Lennertz. “I wanted the music to be precisely clear about telling our story, with motivated singing and lyrics, but also be joyous, vivid, and colorful, like the great animated art that we were paying tribute to.”

Once the 18-song piano and vocal demo was thoroughly reviewed by Disney’s team, including show director and creative music producer Jordan Peterson, it came time to decide who would perform each track. “We started brainstorming [and] put together a list of vocalists that we thought would help inspire the show and take it to another level,” says Holloway. “As we were looking to cast the vocalists, we were looking to people who perform in front of a live audience so that they could bring that energy and storytelling to the delivery of their vocals.”

In addition to more musical theater-centric acts suggested by her colleagues, Holloway threw a number of recording artists into the mix — reflective of her 20 years as a music supervisor in film and television at companies like Lionsgate and Nickelodeon. Through a combination of outreach to managers, agents and contractors, the soundtrack became a perfect blend of vocalists across musical disciplines, including Tarriona “Tank” Ball from Tank and the Bangas, Tony Award winner Lena Hall, jazz and soul singer Shoshana Bean, Ty Taylor from Los Angeles soul-rock band Vintage Trouble and pop duo Clyde and Gracie Lawrence.

“Being a part of Disney’s Wondrous Journeys was a dream come true,” says Ball, who, along with Taylor, jokingly referred to herself as “Disney royalty” after watching the show for the first time.

Hall, who performed “Immortal” from Big Hero 6, says she was “thrilled” when asked to be a part of the project. “I’m no Disney princess, so I thought it was cool they wanted to bring some real rock vocals to the show,” she says.

The “Wondrous Journeys” score was recorded over the course of a year across California, Nashville, New York City, London and Orlando, with an 80-piece orchestra, 16 lead vocalists and a 33-member choir. One of the elements Holloway is most excited about is the spectacular’s original opening song, “It’s Wondrous.”

When the Disney team received the track — originally a demo from songwriters Alex Ganga and Danny Brown — they loved the rendition so much that they opted to keep the demo vocalists for the final song. “It’s a folk-pop approach, bringing a different style than you typically would hear in the parks, something that you’d want to hear outside of the parks on its own,” says Holloway of the song.

Now, fans can hear “It’s Wondrous” whenever they want, as the track arrived on streaming platforms Friday (March 3).

“I think ‘It’s Wondrous’ is going to become part of the DNA of the Disney catalog,” Holloway says. “It isn’t from an actual film or character, but it captures the feeling and beauty that you find within all the animation films.”

03 Mar 2023

Travis Scott Tossed A Man’s Phone Too, Allegedly

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Don Toliver In Concert - New York, NY

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Travis Scott‘s recent trip to New York City is becoming memorable for all the wrong reasons. After being accused of putting hands on a soundman at a New York City club, the rapper is also being accused of tossing another man’s phone just before the aforementioned incident.

As previously reported, Scott allegedly assaulted a sound engineer at Club Nebula and is also being accused of causing $12,000 in damages. Reportedly, Scott has been working with police as they investigate what actually happened.

But the latest revelation is that just prior to putting hands on the soundman, Scott chucked a man’s phone who committed the faus pax of filming him.

Reports TMZ Hip Hop:

In video obtained by TMZ, you can see Travis behind the DJ booth at Nebula in NYC as he performed a surprise DJ set. Already agitated, it appears Travis doesn’t appreciate a man with a cell phone filming while he spins.

That’s when Travis snatches the phone — the video is murky at that point, but the phone’s owner tells us Travis tossed it — striking him in the head and cracking his screen.

The man tells us reps for Nebula offered his table a free bottle of booze for his troubles, but he turned it down. However, he tells us he’s lawyered up — with plans to file both a police report and civil lawsuit.

The NYPD is investigating the incident with the sound engineer as possible assault and criminal mischief while the rapper’s lawyer released a statement saying, “While this is clearly a misunderstanding being blown out of proportion by clickbait and misinformation, we are actively working with the venue and law enforcement to resolve and set the record straight. We are confident our client will be cleared of any wrongdoing.”

We’re going to bet that Scott will be settling both of these cases, if he can. And it won’t come cheap.

03 Mar 2023

First Stream: New Music From Nicki Minaj, Morgan Wallen, J-Hope & J. Cole and More

Billboard’s First Stream serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

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This week, Nicki Minaj revives a Lumidee smash, Morgan Wallen tries to take everything One Thing at a Time, and J-Hope links up with J. Cole for an ode to fans. Check out all of this week’s First Stream picks below:

Nicki Minaj, “Red Ruby Da Sleaze” 

After scoring her first solo Hot 100 No. 1 last year with “Super Freaky Girl,” a pop-rap smash that reanimated Rick James’ timeless 1981 hit “Super Freak,” Nicki Minaj jumps ahead to 2003 for her inspiration, and turns Lumidee’s “Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)” into the backbone of new single “Red Ruby Da Sleaze.” Unlike “Super Freaky Girl,” however, the focus of Minaj’s latest swerves away from its sample on numerous occasions — the chorus here functions as a percussive breakdown, with only the faintest “Uh oooooh’s” in the background — and morphs that familiar hook into something new and modern, all while Minaj talks her game with (somehow) name-checks for her Christopher Reeve and Karl Malone.

Morgan Wallen, One Thing at a Time 

“I was a bad reputation, with an attitude to match,” Morgan Wallen sings on “Dying Man,” the closing track of his new 36-song album. “Hell, man, I’m goin’ nowhere / And gettin’ there lightnin’ fast.” The song is about romantic redemption — one of the primary themes of One Thing at a Time — but also provides a glimpse into Wallen’s mindset, as he grappled with being a magnetic vocalist and the biggest new country star of the past half-decade while also making personal missteps and being mired in endless controversy. Two years after Dangerous: The Double Album plowed to No. 1 — and a public fallout made its success taste bitter — Wallen’s epic new full-length prods at his frustrations and attempts at self-improvement while delivering some of the most agreeable country tunes you’ll hear this year; his reputation is still debated, but Wallen is no longer stuck in neutral.

J-Hope & J. Cole, “On the Street” 

J-Hope accomplished a ton as a solo artist in 2022, from his bold Jack in the Box project to his prominent performance at Lollapalooza, and the BTS member uses new single “On the Street” to express his gratitude toward the fans who helped make it all happen. Meanwhile, J. Cole’s effortless flow sounds natural when placed next to J-Hope’s delivery: both artists understand how to pack heady thoughts into tight spaces, and operate above a whistle melody with confidence and charisma. Both artists are hungry, and bonus points to Cole for expressing as much: “You see a top 10 list, I see a Golden Corral.”

Kali Uchis, Red Moon in Venus 

Kali Uchis continuously beguiles new fans by constantly pushing boundaries: the 28-year-old Colombian-American has spent her career dissatisfied with the parameters placed between Latin pop and R&B, then redrawing them in ways that she sees fit, whether that include sinking into dreamy hooks like on breakout hit “Telepatía” or exploring synth fantasias like on recent single “I Wish You Roses.” Red Moon in Venus, Uchis’ third album, maintains a singular approach but offers the most satisfying songwriting of her career — a love album that ranges from floating slow jams (“Worth the Wait,” with Omar Apollo) to pop come-ons (“Endlessly”), the full-length sounds like nothing else, and like Uchis’ mainstream arrival.

Marshmello & Manuel Turizo, “El Merengue” 

“El Merengue,” the new team-up from dance superstar Marshmello and reggaeton sensation Manuel Turizo, begins with some subtle synths off in the distance, as if the song is being transmitted from another planet — and when the track fully kicks in, it charms and provokes movement without ever overpowering the listener. One of Marshmello’s strongest production traits is his ability to allow his collaborator ample room without getting outmuscled by a beat, and Turizo is more than game to play his foil on “El Merengue,” shimmying across the verses and crooning when needed on the chorus.

Portugal. The Man, “Dummy” 

Portugal. The Man were more than a decade into their run as a successful, festival-ready alt-rock band when their single “Feel It Still” crashed the top 10 of the Hot 100, became inescapable on pop playlists and turned the band into Grammy winners; the group enjoyed a well-earned victory lap with the smash, then took a few years off to plot their next move. “Dummy,” which previews the Jeff Bhasker-produced new album Chris Black Changed My Life, serves as an apocalyptic jingle that’s ripe for alternative radio: lines like “Everyone I know / Is running from the afterlife” exist inside undeniable grooves, and Portugal. The Man nod to both longtime fans and casual listeners seeking another catchy-as-hell hit.

03 Mar 2023

Def Jam Joins Forces With Philadelphia’s Stack or Starve Records

Def Jam Recordings announced on Friday (March 3) a joint venture with Philadelphia-based entertainment company Stack or Starve Records. The full service label will help develop the careers of their growing roster and newest signees D Sturdy, the Philly Goats and Saadi Four.

“Def Jam is one of the greats, I want Stack or Starve to be recognized in the same vein one day. With this partnership, I want to help our artists build wealth, understand financial literacy and most importantly, I want them to be able to help others and pay it forward,” said Curtis “Boonah” Brinkley, CEO of Stack or Starve. “We aim to do this by connecting them with financial advisors and wealth coaches, building real estate portfolios and helping them diversify their assets. The strategic moves that will be put in place for our artists and team will put them in a position that began with music but elevated them in all realms of life. Personally, I want them to be able to take care of their kids and families.”

The primary focus of the venture will be empowering, teaching and expanding Stack or Starve’s roster by leveraging Def Jam’s robust resources including A&R, marketing, PR, distribution, creative, touring, management, promo and more.

Stack or Starve Records was founded by Philly natives Brinkley and Shana Sherman, Def Jam’s director of A&R. Sherman has a history of working with major labels such as RCA and BMG alongside executives like L.A. Reid and Tunji Balogun. She has also aided in breaking and developing viral artists such as Armani White and Raveena and has worked with Maxwell, K. Michelle, India.Arie, Ledisi, and more.

The company was founded with the belief of improving the lives of young people in Philadelphia and its surrounding neighborhoods. With that goal in mind, the label strives to become a global name as it seeks to grow and empower artists around the world.

“We want to change the culture of music from this era of trending and virality to a movement that’s being spurred right out of Philly,” said Sherman. “The kids on our roster have created sounds and cultural moments that cannot be duplicated; we’re working with kids who have started their own waves, built their own organic followings, and we’re helping them achieve their goals and accomplish their vision, seeing this come to life puts the fun back into my job and the joy back in music.”

Coinciding with today’s news is the announcement of D Sturdy and the Philly Goats signing with Def Jam via the Stack or Starve partnership, joining label mate Saadi Four. In 2018, D Sturdy and the Philly Goats got their start as a Philadelphia dance and music collective comprised of D Sturdy, Sou and Spence.

“We, as a team, always speak of ownership, so the joint venture was something that we all wanted from day one. In doing that, Def Jam recognized and gave us a great opportunity to come together,” said Brinkley.” “I have a great partner, Shana Sherman, and we have a team of young and dedicated individuals working extremely hard. We invested a lot of time and resources into finding and developing several hot young artists and providing them with the platform to be recognized. We are definitely building something special here, and it’s all based on the grind, hard work and great talent.”

03 Mar 2023

How Atlantic Landed the ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ Soundtrack

Atlantic Records was so eager to land the soundtrack to Amazon Prime Video’s new series, Daisy Jones & The Six that West Coast president Kevin Weaver went to extraordinary measures. 

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The 10-part series, whose first three episodes debut today, brings to life Taylor Jenkins Reid’s best-selling 2019 novel about an imaginary rock band from the ‘70s who release their magnum opus, Aurora, before they breakup, riven by the complicated, tortured relationship between singer/songwriter Jones (Riley Keough) and band co-founder Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin). The series is told from the viewpoint of the band members 20 years after the split through flashbacks.

With several labels competing to release Aurora, Weaver pressed up fake vinyl copies of the album, complete with the Ellemar Records label (the made-up record company the band is signed to in the book) and sent them to the series producers Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and Amazon Studios.

“The opportunity here felt massive, and it just felt incredibly important to Atlantic with our story, heritage and the label’s rich history in rock and roll and this type of music over decades and decades that we were the partner here,” Weaver says.

While the band may be fake (and owes a major debt to Fleetwood Mac’s fractured dynamics and glorious melodies), the music on Aurora — which comes out today (March 3) on vinyl and to digital service providers — is very real, and was created by some of music’s heaviest hitters. Grammy Award-winning producer Blake Mills, who co-wrote and produced the album and supplemental songs heard in the series, collaborated with friends Phoebe Bridgers, Marcus Mumford, Jackson Browne, Dawes’ Taylor Goldsmith and others to create the 11 songs on Aurora, plus another 10 non-album originals that are peppered throughout the series.

When Atlantic president of A&R Pete Ganbarg heard of Mills’ involvement, he was totally sold. “Not only is he a great record producer, but he understands time and place,” he says. “[Over] a nearly four-year process, he really became the creative voice, the visionary of what this Daisy Jones music was going to sound like.”

The process in the writing room included  10 songwriters composing for around five months, says veteran producer/A&R executive Tony Berg, who handled additional production on the album and serves as the series’ chief music consultant. “We had a pretty comprehensive dialogue about what it is to be in a band and what it was to be in a band 50 years ago,” Berg says. “The songs were done with real ambition and never that kind of corny simulation of a song from a time and place, but instead ‘Are these great songs? Would a band 50 years ago or a band today perform these songs?’ That constituted our criteria for whether it was good enough.”

As to how Mills and Berg attracted such top-notch songwriters, they simply opened their phone books. They’ve worked with most  of the big names involved: Mills produced Mumford’s recent solo album and Berg produced two of Bridgers’ albums, as well as her forthcoming set as part of supertrio Boygenius.

Berg has nothing but praise for the producers from Amazon Studios and Hello Sunshine for trusting Mills, who was recommended by CAA’s Brian Loucks, to make the songs sound as authentic as possible. “That they entrusted this whole project to Blake is remarkable because historically television treats music moronically,” Berg says. “And it was a concerted effort by everyone involved for that not to happen.”

After the songs were completed, Berg and Mills began rehearsing the cast and got an unexpected benefit from COVID. The actors in the band, which also include Suki Waterhouse, underwent a few months of planned vocal training, but when the pandemic hit and shooting was delayed, that training extended to 18 months. “We went into what Frankie Pine, our music supervisor, calls band camp and they rehearsed as if they were a band for months so they could stand up and perform the songs and do a really good job,” Berg says. The actors even played a gig at SIR Studios in Los Angeles before an audience. All band members contributed vocals but did not play the instruments on the album and series.

That authenticity in both the songwriting and the actors singing their own vocals “has tremendous importance” in giving the project credibility, Weaver says. “These are some of the most credible, important songwriters of our generation, and so to have significant contributions from them in this music is more valuable than anything.”

Mills recorded the music for the album and the series at iconic Sound City Studios, which he and Berg run. The studio, the subject of a 2013 documentary by Dave Grohl, plays a recurring role in the show. “They shot for three or four months at Studio City,” Berg says. “All the studio footage was done here. We remade the rooms to look much as they did back in the day.”

Lead single “Regret Me” has received 1.2 million streams, according to Luminate, while new single “Look At Me Now (Honeycomb)” is at 207,000 steams and has been serviced to radio. “We’re looking to grow that and with the streaming story and the momentum off of the show release this week, the hope is that we can really drive that to be a meaningful record at multiple radio formats,” Weaver says.

Additionally, each week after the episodes air, Atlantic will drop EPs with the featured music on DSPs. Weaver and Ganbarg add that there will be additional surprise releases coming during the duration of the series. 

In an era where the pop charts are dominated by solo acts — the only rock group in the top 20 of the current Billboard 200 albums chart is Paramore — Berg hopes the series and soundtrack reignites interest in bands.  

“I grew up in an era where bands were everything and the idea of a band with two and three lead vocalists was quite normal — The Beatles, The Band, The Byrds, The Buffalo Springfield, Eagles — they all have [multiple] singers. Today, I can’t name a single band like that. I want people to understand that camaraderie, that competition, but, ultimately, the beauty of a band relationship.”

03 Mar 2023

Ten Songs From Morgan Wallen’s ‘One Thing at a Time’ You Need to Hear

Morgan Wallen has lots to say on his third album, One Thing at a Time, and it’s almost all fermented in alcohol. If albums came with an alcohol content warning, the 36-track One Thing would easily register 180 proof. Though that’s no surprise, given the undeniable success Wallen has experienced referenced drinking in his previous two albums, when listening to One Thing in one take, the constant liquor references start to blur into each other, aided by the plethora of similar-sounding mid-tempo tracks. How many ways can Wallen try to dull the pain of heartache with alcohol? It turns out the answer is infinite.

Speaking of proofs, the Joey Moi-produced One Thing at a Time has already entered the record books via its lead single, “You Proof,” which became the first 10-week No. 1 in the history of Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. With Wallen’s previous set, Dangerous: The Double Album, still sitting in the top 5 of the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart in its 111th week of release, his fans show no sign of fatigue. 

When Wallen announced the new set, out on Big Loud/Mercury/Republic today (March 3), he said the songs represent the last few years of his life and drew upon the three musical genres that have influenced him the most — country, alternative and hip-hop. While there are traces of the latter two on the album (including “180 (Lifestyle),” which interpolates Rich Gang’s 2014 rap smash, “Lifestyle”), most of the set falls squarely in the contemporary country pocket that has made Wallen the genre’s biggest star of the past five years. 

Wallen co-wrote 14 of the tracks, but makes even the 22 compositions he didn’t write his own. Vocally, he sounds more assured than ever before, letting his twangy voice slip and slide over the melodies. For devout Wallen fans, too much of a good thing can just be wonderful. For the rest, best to take the album in smaller bites.

Below are our recommendations for the best 10 tracks on One Thing, listed in order of their appearance on the album. 

03 Mar 2023

Bluesfest, Soul Rebels Tour at Loggerheads Over Terminated Contract

BRISBANE, Australia — A brouhaha between Bluesfest and a touring party that includes the Soul Rebels and Big Freedia is entering legal territory after the groups — which also includes Talib Kweli and GZA — has jointly claimed they were canceled by the Australian event “in bad faith and in breach of contract.”

All of those acts were initially slated to perform at the festival this Easter in Byron Bay, in addition to several theater shows on Australia’s east coast promoted by Bluesfest Touring.

And then, they weren’t.

When the second artist announcement for Bluesfest dropped in October 2022, the growing lineup included The Soul Rebels & Friends with special guests Talib Kweli, GZA and Big Freedia.

The bill as it stands for Bluesfest 2023 no longer features the four acts.

A strongly worded statement from the tour’s reps, seen by Billboard, lays all the blame at Bluesfest and its director Peter Noble.

“The artists had fully executed signed contracts with Peter Noble and had already booked travel to Australia and were looking forward to returning to the country to perform for their fans,” the statement reads.

“Peter Noble removed the artists and the tour without further communication or reason from Bluesfest other than him stating his decision to not want to pay the artists.”

Furthermore, it continues, “these are all black artists, and Big Freedia is an LGBTQ icon.”

Bluesfest

Bluesfest

Courtesy Bluesfest

The statement then points to the controversial Australian rock group Sticky Fingers, which, after a weeks-long backlash, has been removed from the lineup.

“It appears the tour may have been replaced by other artists including Sticky Fingers,” reads the statement, which was originally distributed to a handful of media outlets in late February, including the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s Double J network. “We are uncertain about who else on Bluesfest may have also been cancelled.”

Noble’s “cancellation of the tour of the aforementioned artists and on Bluesfest has resulted in significant financial loss to the artist,” the statement continues. “Peter’s egregious treatment and disregard of his contractual and moral obligations and disrespect can be completely supported by his actions and written communications.”

Speaking with Billboard on Friday (March 3), Noble read from a prepared statement from Bluesfest’s lawyers.

“The termination of the Soul Rebels contract by Bluesfest has nothing to do with the announcement of Sticky Fingers playing at Bluesfest 2023,” the statement reads. “The Soul Rebels contract was terminated because they did not comply with the contractual terms. By that, we mean, Soul Rebels, Big Freedia, GZA and Talib Kweli.”

Noble declined to go off script.

The impresario and his long-running festival have rolled with many punches these past few years, from the pandemic to floods, to the border closures and public health orders which saw the 2021 edition nixed just hours before showtime.

In the new year, a new problem.

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Sampa The Great recently bailed from the bill, a boycott to the booking of Sticky Fingers, whose frontman has a well-publicized and controversial past.

On Thursday of this week, after a weeks-long backlash on social media, Noble and Bluesfest announced that Sticky Fingers “is to step off the Bluesfest 2023 line-up.”

The 2023 edition of Bluesfest is set for April 6-10 at Byron Events Farm, with headliners including Gang of Youths, Paolo Nutini, Tash Sultana, Bonnie Raitt, the Doobie Brothers and more. Last year’s event reported more than 100,000 attendees.

03 Mar 2023

Judge Orders Kodak Black To Enter Drug Rehabilitation

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It seems Kodak Black might have been indulging in some toxic substances. A judge has ordered the rapper to enter a drug rehabilitation program.

As per Vibe Magazine, the Pompano Beach, Florida native was served with some bad news this week. On Tuesday, Feb. 28 Kodak Black appeared at Broward County courthouse wearing a yellow and pink block suit with matching buttons. The Miami Herald reports that the “Super Gremlin” rapper apparently tested positive for fentanyl via his most recent urine sample. But his high powered attorney claims that this was really a false positive.

Bradford Cohen, the same legal eagle who successfully negotiated his pardon from prison, says that his client has never tested positive for fentanyl and has sought out treatment for the drugs he has abused in the past. He also theorized that his urine sample might have been jeopardized by a star-struck lab technician who might have mixed up the sample, the paperwork or both. The lab employee testified that an error might have been made during collection.

Judge Barbara Duffy ordered that Black give a hair sample to which he refused, in turn the magistrate ordered him to drug rehabilitation for 30 days. “You better get it together,” the judge told the Sniper Gang talent. Kodak then thanked her for her time and politely asked if he can have a Jolly Rancher from the bowl at her bench before making an exit.

You can see footage from this very colorful hearing below.



Photo: Johnny Louis/FilmMagic