State Champ Radio Author: djfrosty
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CTS Eventim, Europe’s largest concert promoter and ticketing company, has appointed William Willms as chief financial officer, effective Jan. 1, 2026. Willms succeeds Holger Hohrein, who will depart at year-end. A seasoned executive with a doctorate in law, Willms brings over 20 years of global leadership experience, most recently as CFO at Lufthansa Technik AG, […]
Antonio Brown sparked outrage and shock after appearing in a recent livestream event and mentioning a controversial political figure in the process. While hanging out with Adin Ross and Tekashi 6ix9ine, Antonio Brown made a joke at Charlie Kirk’s expense, which angered the late speaker’s base.
Antonio Brown, 37, was with Adin Ross, 25, and Tekashi 6ix9ine, 29, at the rapper’s Florida home for one of Ross’ signature livestream events. As is the case with this type of airing, Ross and the crew were involved in several zany antics as they let viewers in on a slice of their lives.
While running routes outside in 6ix9ine’s yard, a vehicle drove up that was unfamiliar to the crew. As heard in the video clip that we’ll share below, Brown can be heard making the Kirk quip.
“No one’s gonna Charlie Kirk me, right?” Brown asked under his breath before someone asked him to repeat himself. Once the remark was heard by the crew, Ross groaned, placed his hand on Brown’s shoulder and uttered “Oh my god” before the video faded out.
Several people landed in hot water after making jokes and statements about Kirk’s assassination, including the firing of an MSNBC commentator who didn’t even make a joke but an observation about the controversial conservative mouthpiece. There were reactions from fans of Kirk online, and they were intense as one can imagine.
Check the Antonio Brown clip in question below.
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Trending on Billboard The Society of Composers & Lyricists (SCL) will present the 2025 SCL Lifetime Achievement Awards to composers Stephen Schwartz and Charles Fox and will posthumously induct legendary composer Ennio Morricone and iconic singer-songwriter Peggy Lee into its Hall of Fame. The SCL will also present its 2025 Ambassador Award to artist, songwriter, […]
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The filming of the two Wicked movies sounds like an exhausting, exhilarating and super-intense adventure. It’s been clear watching the cast stump for the just-released sequel, Wicked: For Good, that the actors and actresses in the film got super close and realized they were a part of something that was a cultural event, as well as a life-changing moment for all of them.
“We knew immediately that we were stepping into something that was quite special because it already has this beautiful legacy behind it,” Cynthia Erivo told Seth Meyers on his late night show on Thursday (Nov. 20). After begging off red carpet interviews earlier this week because of a hoarse throat — with co-star Ariana Grande also offering to stay mute in solidarity — Erivo said the cast and crew knew that the had to do the story “justice” given how beloved the original Broadway production, and the 1995 book it was based on, are to the many fans of the story around the world.
“And it seems like you all genuinely like each other,” Meyers observed. “We do, yeah… no we really like each other,” Erivo said with a wicked, eyes-narrowed look at the camera after Meyers suggested that it might just be good acting, or a combo of that and genuine affection.
Noting that earlier in the week another Wicked: For Good cast member, Jonathan Bailey, told him that he couldn’t stop crying while watching the movie with his niece, Meyers asked how Erivo reacted to seeing part two on the screen. “The first time I watched it… this happens every time — I watched the first movie and I couldn’t see anything. I was really overwhelmed,” Erivo said of last year’s blockbuster first part of the two-part epic movie musical.
“Then I watched it a second time and then I can finally take it in,” she said. “This time around again, I was lie, ‘This is great. I love this.’ But I knew I wasn’t taking it in properly. The second time I saw it, I wept. Like, fell to my knees and wept, couldn’t stop crying.”
Meyers also asked Erivo what it feels like to suddenly be a reliable Halloween meme, posting a series of pics of young girls and women dressed as her green-skinned character Elphaba. He then busted out a much-shared snap of the ultimate tribute: a fan dressed as one of Erivo’s signature long, bedazzled fingernails. Asked if she’d seen the photo, Erivo said it’s been shown to her “100 million times,” and praised the “wonderful person” in the towering costume for their unrelenting commitment to the bit. “I was elated,” she said of her initial reaction to the outfit she said totally nailed it.
Wicked: For Good is in theaters now.
Watch Erivo on Late Night below.
Pras Michel was sentenced to 14 years behind bars in his illegal campaign donation case, where he reportedly worked on behalf of a foreign government to influence the 2012 presidential election. Pras Michel’s sentencing was originally reported as being delayed to October so that the rapper and businessman could complete surgery.
As reported by NPR, Pras Michel, 52, appeared in a federal court in Washington, D.C. to hear the sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. According to accounts from the outlet, the Fugees rapper remained stoic as the sentence was read.
Michel was reportedly embroiled in a scheme involving Malaysian billionaire Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, who allegedly gave Michel over $120 million. Michel was charged with using those funds to funnel donations to President Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign bid through straw donations. Michel also tried to use his influence to stop a Justice Department investigation of Low and was slapped with charges of witness tampering and perjury.
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The trial also saw testimony from Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who saw his film The Wolf of Wall Street partially bankrolled by Low.
Michel’s attorneys claim that Low gave their client the money for reasons far less nefarious than tampering with an election.
“Low’s motivation for giving Mr. Michel money to donate was not so that he could achieve some policy objective. Instead, Low simply wanted to obtain a photograph with himself and then-President Obama,” Michel’s attorneys wrote in a statement.
Defense attorney Peter Zeidenberg says he plans to appeal the conviction on behalf of Pras Michel.
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Photo: Getty
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On the same day in which he accused six Democratic lawmakers of “seditious behavior” that he said was “punishable by death” and shared someone else’s post that called for the Congress members’ hanging, Donald Trump once again lashed out at his late night nemesis Jimmy Kimmel.
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It started with Trump’s Truth Social post on Thursday (Nov. 20) in which he asked why “ABC Fake News” keeps Kimmel, “a man with NO TALENT and VERY POOR TELEVISION RATINGS, on the air?,” claiming the network’s (or Kimmel’s?) coverage of him is “totally biased.” He ended by demanding, “Get the bum of the air!!!”
The president, ensnared in particularly bruising media cycle whipped up by the back-and-forth over the release of the files related to convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein — in which Trump is named more than 1,500 times, more than anyone else — appeared to be spun up again about Kimmel’s relentless jokes about the two men’s close ties.
So, on Thursday night’s show Kimmel doubled-down once again, sloughing off the latest attack from the leader of the free world on his late night comedy show. Kimmel opened his monologue by admitting that he’s “lost count” at this point of how many times Trump has called for him to be pulled off the air, revealing that he woke up that morning to his wife telling him that he was on Trump’s mind again.
“She’s got her phone. She goes, ‘Um, Trump tweeted you should be fired again,’” Kimmel said she told him. “I was like, ‘Oh.’ And then I went downstairs and made bagels for the kids… Talk about a snowflake, this guy. Every five weeks, he flips out and wants me fired. If you got this many threats from a neighbor, you’d have no problem getting a restraining order. The judge would be like, ‘Yeah, sounds like the guy’s nuts.’”
Kimmel read the president’s post to boos from the audience, noting that the late night missive went up at 12:49 a.m., just 11 minutes after his show ended on the East Coast. “Which is nice, he watches us live. Hi, Mr. President! How are you? Thanks for watching us on TV instead of on YouTube, we appreciate that. And I’ll tell you, it’s viewers like you who keep us on the air, ironically,” he joked.
And then Kimmel likely heaped more fuel to Trump’s fire by saying, “It’s also sweet that, even in the middle of the biggest sex scandal in the history of the American presidency, he takes precious time on the toilet to post about our show. Keeps saying we have bad ratings. And you should listen to him, because if anyone knows about bad ratings, it’s that guy,” he added, before rolling out a montage of clips with reports about Trump’s plunging polling numbers.
Trump’s latest broadside against Kimmel comes after ABC’s decision in September to pull Kimmel off the air for a few days after Trump’s FCC chairman, Brendan Carr, issued a warning to stations carrying the show following criticism about Kimmel’s comments about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Back on the air the next week, Kimmel continued tweaking the president in his nightly monologues and it appears to have again incensed Trump, who has also called for other late night hosts to be fired in seeming pique over their jabs at his administration.
Kimmel pulled not punches again on Thursday, laying down the gauntlet, saying, “Mr. President, I admire your tenacity. If you’re watching tonight, which I presume you are, how about this: I’ll go when you go, OK?,” before adding another teasingly disparaging nickname to his endless pile of alternate titles for the commander in chief. “We’ll be a team. Let’s ride off into the sunset together like Butch Cassidy and the Suntan Kid. And until then, if I may borrow a phrase from you: Quiet, piggy.”
The latter was a pointed reference to the insult Trump hurled at a reporter on Air Force One after she asked him a question about Epstein, with Trump snapping at Bloomberg News journalist Catherine Lucey, “Quiet! Quiet, piggy!“
After swift passage in the House and Senate, Trump signed legislation on Wednesday ordering the Justice Department to release documents related to Epstein. That came after multiple attempts by Trump to kill the legislation before changing course following the defection of several Republican House members urging their release, including such typically MAGA faithful stalwarts as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert.
The Justice Department now has 30 days to release the files, which Kimmel suggested could make for a “very merry Christmas indeed. I have a prediction for the next 30 days: I think we’re going to see Trump do some of the craziest s–t ever.”
Watch Kimmel’s monologue below.
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Billboard’s Friday Music Guide 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: Getting Closer to the full picture with Tate McRae, flying high again with the Wicked: For Good soundtrack and hearing Stray Kids Do It to ’em one more time.
Tate McRae, So Close to What??? (Deluxe Edition)
“Don’t know what country I’m in, but I know how I’m feeling,” testifies Tate McRae to kick off “Trying on Shoes,” the first track on her newly reissued So Close to What??? — yes, now with three question marks — deluxe edition. It feels like a snapshot release for the still-rising superstar, with some of the most detailed writing and specifically pitched performances of her career. Likely adding inspiration: Her recent split with fellow pop hitmaker The Kid LAROI, who of course is thought to be the subject of her top five Billboard Hot 100 hit “Tit for Tat,” and who appears to make his presence felt here a couple additional times, particularly on the spiteful “Anything But Love” (“My dad hates you, my dog hates you, my brother hates you, and I do too…”)
Wicked Movie Cast, Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande, Wicked: For Good — The Soundtrack
Happy Wicked: For Good release day, everyone! The much-anticipated second half to the John M. Chu-helmed film adaptation of the legendary musical — whose first half was greeted with robust box office and major acclaim, particularly for stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande — is out now, along with the 11-track soundtrack. Of particular note for fans in this back half is the introduction of two brand-new songs to the musical’s world, penned by original composer Steven Schwartz: the bitter-but-resilient Erivo solo “No Place Like Home,” and the soaring Grande showcase “The Girl in the Bubble.”
Stray Kids, DO IT
It’s only been three months since Stray Kids released fourth Korean-language studio album Karma, but the octet is back this week with new release DO IT. The five-track release is being officially branded as a mixtape — the group’s first since last year’s Billboard 200-topping HOP — and features two versions of its explosive title track. The big question for chartwatchers with DO IT: Will this be the release that knocks Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl, currently in the midst of a six-week run atop the Billboard 200, from its No. 1 perch? History would certainly say not to bet against the group, who in seven charting releases has never missed the top spot.
Tainy & Karol G, “Ünica”
After dropping her Tropicoqueta album in June, Latin pop superstar Karol G is checking in at leat one more time before the end of the year, with “Ünica,” her new collaboration with A-list producer Tainy. The song, whose title of course means “Unique” in Spanish, Karol recalls a night of passion that still burns singularly in her memory, casting any past or future lovers in its shadow. The song’s gentle reggaetón shuffle is augmented by some lovely harp plucking, and backing vocals that seem to be sighing in agreement.
BigXthaPlug, I Hope You’re Happy (Deluxe)
A couple days after making his CMA Awards debut, rapper BigXthaPlug is back with the deluxe edition to his first full-length country release, I Hope You’re Happy. The set adds three new songs: the hard-hearted “Cold” with fellow recent country convert Post Malone (which feels like it could be “All the Way” Pt. 2), the acoustic, fame-ruing “Holy Ground” alongside top 40 regular Jessie Murph, and the set’s first totally solo track, triumphant closer “From the Bottom” — which drops most of the Nashville, but ends by reminding: “I just made me some millions off country.”
The Kid LAROI, “A Perfect World”
What timing: Right as Tate McRae releases her So Close to What??? deluxe — with multiple Earth-salting tracks firmly turning her back on her past relationship — here comes The Kid LAROI, perhaps dreaming about a reconciliation: “In a perfect world/ We’d have it all figured out, baby, you would be my girl.” It’s not exactly a take-me-back song, but it’s definitely an I’ll-stick-around-just-in-case ballad, as LAROI reminds his ex, “Coz I’m still here, for what it’s worth, baby.” Hopefully he’s not checking out Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist this week.
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5 Seconds of Summer enjoys the hottest possible start on the ARIA Albums Chart as Everyone’s A Star! (Universal) debuts at No. 1 — and gifts the pop-rock band a chart record.
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With their latest chart crown, confirmed last Friday, Nov. 21, the Sydney four-piece becomes the first act in the history of the ARIA Charts to hit No. 1 with their first six studio albums.
That record dates back to 5 Seconds of Summer (in 2014), and includes Sounds Good Feels Good (2015), Youngblood (2018), Calm (2020) and 5SOS5 (2022). For the record, 5SOS’s live album, LiveSOS, cracked the top 10, peaking at No. 7 in 2014.
It’s the sixth homegrown title to lead the chart in 2025, including 5OS’s Calum Hood, whose solo effort Order Chaos Order led for one cycle in June.
5SOS returned to Australia last month for a brief promo trip, including a fan-led press conference in Melbourne and their induction to the Australian Walk of Fame in Sydney.
It’s an all-Australian 1-2 on the albums survey, as the 40th anniversary edition of Jimmy Barnes’ For The Working Class Man (Mushroom Music) digs in at No. 2. The Scotland-born Australian rock legend boasts more No. 1 albums in Australia than any other artist. A two-time ARIA Hall of Fame inductee, Barnes has 16 chart leaders as a solo act, and another six with Cold Chisel.
Thanks to 5SOS and Barnesy, as he’s affectionately known in these parts, Taylor Swift’s Life of a Showgirl (Republic/Universal) is finally bumped from the throne, down 1-3, ending six consecutive weeks at the top.
Soulful Sydney newcomer Don West opens his account at No. 25 with his debut album Give Me All Your Love, while Byron Bay punk rock quartet Mini Skirt starts at No. 36 with their sophomore effort, All That We Know (Orchard). It’s their first appearance on the chart.
The 2025 ARIA Awards were presented on Wednesday night in Sydney, but the impact is still being felt on the national charts.
Following her performance of “Man I Need” (Universal), rising English singer Olivia Dean scores her first No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart, as the song lifts 2-1. Dean followed up her ARIAs performance with an outdoor set at Fleet Steps, and she’ll be back next year for a tour proper.
After winning two ARIAs, Kevin Parker’s Tame Impala bites into the ARIA top 30 with “Dracula” (Columbia/Sony). It’s up 34-28, a new peak position, and is the only homegrown cut in the top 50.
You Am I was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame, and had the final word on the evening with a two-song performance of “Heavy Heart” and “Berlin Chair,” both of which appear on The Dollop & The Wallop: The Best Of (Sony). The career retrospective is new at No. 15 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Finally, RÜFÜS DU SOL collected four nominations at the ARIAs and are currently on the road, in support of their fifth studio album, Inhale/Exhale (Rose Avenue Records/Warner). The tour is breathing new life into the album, lifting 47-39.
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The Kids are alright. Stray Kids, however, are going gangbusters. In late August, the boyband landed their seventh No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with KARMA, notching the biggest entry for the year to-date.
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All seven of the pop outfit’s entries on the national albums tally have debuted at No. 1, beginning with ODDINARY in 2022. Last year, when HOP debuted atop the list, Stray Kids became the first act to debut atop the Billboard 200 with their first six entries in the 69-year history of the chart. With KARMA, their most recent release, they extended that record.
And with a seventh No. 1, Stray Kids surpassed BTS, Linkin Park and Dave Matthews Band for the most leaders among groups on the all-genre Billboard 200 this century. Among K-pop bands, BTS is in second place, with six No. 1 titles. ATEEZ is a distant third with two No. 1s on the weekly chart.
In Korea, Karma became the first K-pop album of the year to surpass 3 million copies in first-week sales.
That was August. Fast forward a couple months and the release today (Nov. 21) of Stray Kids’ new EP (or “special album”), DO IT, via JYP Entertainment.
DO IT is the first part of the SKZ IT TAPE series, a musical command to “act boldly with confidence right now,” while also exploring the story of the group as they seize the day and create their own “IT”.
On the live front, Stray Kids have also been bagging bar-setting numbers. The band played the final show of the Dominate World Tour at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico on July 30, completing a 2025 run that visited Latin America, Europe and North America, setting Boxscore records for revenue and attendance in each region.
That’s after whipping up frenzies through Asia (Seoul, Tokyo, Bangkok and more) and Australia (Melbourne and Sydney) in 2024.
With the five-track DO IT, Stray Kids can, well, do it again on the Billboard 200. Stream it in full below.
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The hangovers have cleared. The cleanup, complete. And the 2025 ARIA Awards are in the books.
The Australian recorded music industry’s annual night is the curtain call on the year in music, a fancy party in Sydney as the baking hot summer makes its predictable entrance.
It’s a good — no, great — time of year. AC/DC is currently in the market, playing stadiums. Oasis and Metallica have been, and rocked. Lady Gaga and Ed Sheeran are coming. The festivals circuit will swing in the weeks ahead.
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The ARIAs, presented at the historic Hordern Pavilion, which last year celebrated its 100th anniversary, was a goal-scoring celebration for Amyl and The Sniffers. The punk rock outfit converted four of their six nominations, including the coveted album of the year, for Cartoon Darkness. This was the year Amy Taylor ruled at Glastonbury, and scored nominations at the Grammys and Brit Awards. In years to come, they’ll remember 2025 as the year their respective lives changed.
Ninajirachi entered the ARIAs race with a leading eight nominations, and she didn’t go home disappointed, by collecting three trophies, including the Michael Gudinski newcomer award.
Fellow production masterminds Kevin Parker and Dom Dolla collected two pointy awards each.
Not every artist got what they’d hoped, or deserved. And some got the surprise of a lifetime. Billboard remembers the surprises and the snubs from the 2025 ARIA Awards.
Surprise: BARKAA
If a hero had to be selected from the 2025 ARIA Awards, it was BARKAA. The Indigenous artist won for best hip hop/rap release with Big Tidda (Big Apples Music / Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia), beating out a stacked field that included Hilltop Hoods, Miss Kaninna, ONEFOUR and the Kid LAROI. The roar of approval from the audience was immense, and BARKAA’s acceptance speech was honest and real. “Still can’t believe I can now say I’m an ARIA award winning rapper, the first Aboriginal woman to ever win this award,” she writes on social media. “Hip-hop raised me and hip-hop saved me and this is BIGGER THAN ME! My purpose was to come out here and put on for BLACK WOMEN, to be that representation like my sisters who have paved the way before me, to be able to do what I’m doing.” She’s nominated in the First Nations category for the NSW Music Prize, to be unveiled next week.
Snub: Hilltop Hoods
The Hilltop Hoods aren’t just a hip-hop group. They’re Aussie rap royalty. Hailing from Adelaide, the Hoods are on a wild winning streak. Suffa, Pressure and DJ Debris debuted at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart in August with Fall From The Light (Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia), their sixth consecutive leader, and seventh overall. With this feat, the Hoods established an ARIA record for chart leaders by an Australian group, ahead of AC/DC, Powderfinger, Cold Chisel, Silverchair, and the rest. They couldn’t however, extend on their tally of 10 career ARIA Awards on Wednesday night, despite reeling in five nominations.
Surprise: Amyl and The Sniffers
Amyl and The Sniffers cleaning up with four ARIA Award wins wasn’t a surprise, not to the industry. But it was to them. The much-loved punk rock outfit always keeps it real, Amy Taylor always speaks her mind, and with best group and best album honors, for Cartoon Darkness (Amyl and The Sniffers / Virgin Music Group), Amyl and The Sniffers were the dominant force at this year’s ceremony. Bass player Gus Romer was both a surprise and a snub; he failed to take the stage when his band won for album of the year. “Looks like we lost the bass player,” Taylor joked. “It happens a lot, he’s replaceable, don’t worry about it.” It’s official: Amyl and The Sniffers are national treasures.
Snub: Royel Otis
After dominating the 2024 ARIA Awards with four wins, Royel Otis might’ve expected the good times to roll on. The Sydney duo of Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic collected four nominations this time, off the back of their sophomore album Hickey (Ourness / Capitol Records), which cracked the ARIA top 10, emulating the chart success of their debut, Pratts & Pain. Royel Otis had the top-ranked homegrown recording on triple j’s Hottest 100 countdown in January, with a cover of Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor” coming in at No. 2, and Hickey single “Moody” topped Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay Chart in July of this year. On Wednesday night, those four ARIA Award nominations came to nought.
Surprise: Ninajirachi
With eight nods, the night was all set up for Ninajirachi. As the house lights went up, the EDM artist (real name: Nina Wilson) had her hands full with three heavy ARIA trophies. That’s quite a haul, and it comes after she collected the Australian Music Prize and triple j’s J Award for I Love My Computer (NLV Records). Ninajirachi could see the irony in winning the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist award; the Central Coast-raised creative released her first record eight years ago, as a teen. Good things do come to those who wait, and Ninajirachi can now claim to be an overnight success, a decade in the making. She’s nominated in two categories for the NSW Music Prize, to be announced next week.
Snub: RÜFÜS DU SOL
Electronic music was pumping at the ARIA Awards, as Ninajirachi and Dom Dolla scored five awards between them. RÜFÜS DU SOL bagged four nominations for 2024’s Inhale / Exhale (Rose Avenue Records / Warner Music Australasia), their fifth studio album. The collection opened its account at No. 3 on the ARIA Chart, continuing a podium finish for all their recordings: Atlas (2013), Bloom (2016) and Surrender (2021) went to No. 1 in 2013 and Solace peaked at No. 2 in 2018. RDS have won four career ARIA Awards, they have a Grammy Award in their safekeeping (and they can add another, for best dance/electronic album next February), and they’re currently touring the country. The 2025 ARIA Awards just wasn’t their night.
