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kenzie to Join Billboard at 2022 AMAs as Our Red Carpet Host
kenzie is taking over the red carpet at the American Music Awards this Sunday, joining the Billboard News team as our on-camera host to chat with today’s top artists.
The 18-year-old pop star and Dance Moms alum announced the news in a selfie video shared to hers and Billboard‘s socials.
“Hey, guys! It’s Kenzie Ziegler. I have super exciting news,” she says in the announcement video. “I’m going to be chatting with all of your favorite artists at the AMAs this Sunday with Billboard, November 20th, so make sure to tune in!”
You can catch kenzie’s AMAs red carpet coverage on Billboard.com, as well as Billboard‘s Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube pages.
The 2022 AMAs, hosted by Wayne Brady, and the pre-show red carpet will take place at the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles. Bad Bunny leads this year’s list of nominations with eight nods. Beyoncé, Drake and Taylor Swift follow closely with six nominations each. See the full list of nominations here. Lionel Richie will also take the stage to accept the Icon Award.
kenzie, meanwhile, has had a busy year. She released her steamy new single “100 Degrees” in October and is gearing up to drop her next song, “paper,” on Jan. 13. “I actually wrote this song about one of my friend’s breakups, not my personal one,” the star previously told Billboard News of “100 Degrees,” noting that her pal got broken up with on Christmas Eve. “I just wanted to shed light on how something can ruin everything for you during breakups. It’ll ruin seasons, restaurants you went to.”
“This is just an all-around new era for me,” she continued. “I’m so happy, I’m comfortable with my music and I’m trying new things.”
See her announcement below:
Solange to Curate 2023 Spring Music Series for Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music announced on Wednesday (Nov. 16) that Solange is set to curate the lineup for the venue’s 2023 Spring Music Series.
Through her multidisciplinary creative collective Saint Heron, the When I Get Home auteur will be responsible for hand-selecting a lineup of concerts, films, performance art, dance and other theater pieces for the stages of BAM’s multi-theater campus “honoring the intergenerational and genre-spanning impact” of innovative musicians and artists.
“We’re excited to work with Solange and her Saint Heron collective for this incredible music series of genre-crossing artists presented in unprecedented ways,” said David Binder, BAM’s artistic director, in a statement. “Her experimental, global, and authentic approach consistently pushes the boundary of what performance can be and charts new pathways for audiences to connect. We can’t wait to see how this transpires on our stages.”
The complete lineup curated by Solange is expected to be announced soon with performances slated to begin this coming winter. The singer last worked with BAM nearly a decade ago when she headlined the 2013 Crossing Brooklyn Ferry music festival.
Her creative partnership with Brooklyn Academy of Music will follow Solange’s recent foray into composition. She wrote the score for Play Time for the New York City Ballet, which premiered at the end of September as part of the celebrated dance troupe’s Fall Fashion Gala. The premiere earned raves from Beyoncé, who sweetly shouted out her younger sister on social media by saying, “Might I suggest you don’t f–k with my sis” — a lyric from Renaissance fan favorite track “COZY.”
Primary Wave Acquires Stake in Catalog of Whitney Houston Songwriters Boy Meets Girl
On the heels of their recent Billboard cover story, in which they detailed their acquisition of much of the Whitney Houston estate and catalog, Primary Wave Music has added to their collection of Whitney-related rights by acquiring an interest in much of the publishing catalog for Houston co-writers Boy Meets Girl. The duo, made up of Shannon Rubicam and George Merrill, played a hand in penning “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” and “How Will I Know,” both of which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Included in the deal are the writer’s share of royalties from the two Houston cuts, as well as the duo’s successful self-released songs, including “Oh Girl” and “Waiting for A Star to Fall.” Under the agreement, Merrill and Rubicam will have access to Primary Wave’s marketing and branding teams, along with the company’s publishing infrastructure that includes licensing and synch opportunities.
The timing of the acquisition comes just ahead of the Dec. 21 release of the Houston biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody, a major part of Primary Wave’s campaign to revitalize the Houston catalog. The company purchased a 50% stake in the singer’s publishing, master recording revenue, name, likeness and brand for an estimated $14 million in May 2019 and has been working on efforts to introduce or remind the public of Houston’s venerable legacy ever since, including with two new photo books, Funko! Pop dolls, Whitney-themed Peloton classes, a perfume line, a MAC makeup collection and more.
Rubicam and Merrill have worked as musical partners since the mid-1980s when both were hired to perform at a wedding. They subsequently formed Boy Meets Girl and released their first album in 1985, featuring the song “Oh Girl.” Soon after, the duo kickstarted their songwriting career by penning two of Houston’s biggest hits, earning them Grammys for song of the year in the process. The duo continued to release their own music as well, achieving top 5 success on the Hot 100 with “Waiting for a Star to Fall” in 1988 (a song originally written for Houston). By the 1990s, however, the duo was more focused on writing for others than for themselves, working on songs for OTT and Girlthing, among others. Since then, they have returned to releasing their own work as Boy Meets Girl, including the albums Wonderground (2003) and Five (2021).
“We are so pleased to have placed our songs into the capable and creative hands of the team at Primary Wave. If ever there was a perfect home for our songs at this time, without a doubt this is it. We are excited and honored to be a part of the Primary Wave family and look forward to seeing what else we might cook up together,” says Merrill and Rubicam in a statement.
“When Shannon’s and George’s songs are played – anywhere around the world – people will sing along the minute they begin,” added Justin Shukat, president of publishing at Primary Wave Music. “It’s rare for songwriters to not only see that type of response, but to write #1 hits for both themselves and for other artists. That’s what makes the two of them true songwriting legends. Their catalog of songs fit right at home at Primary Wave, the home of legends.”
Lizzo Surprises Poet With Dress After Request for 2022 Emmys Gown on TikTok
Not many people can say pop star Lizzo gifted them a personal item from her wardrobe, but Aurielle Marie — writer of Gumbo Ya Ya, Georgia Author of the Year, Out 100 honoree and a major Lizzo fan — can.
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In an Oct. 27 TikTok posted to her account, Marie made a plea to Lizzo and asked to borrow her 2022 Emmys dress so she could have something wear to the Out 100 event, otherwise she would likely skip out on attending entirely.
“I know you know how it feels to be the biggest b—h in a room, and all of the scrutiny and hyper-visibility that comes along with that because I’ve watched you talk about it,” she said in the video, later adding, “I know you a girl for the girls, and I’m a girl and a girl, and I just need to know. I gotta ask. Can I please, please, please wear your dress from the 2022 Emmys?”
Though a few weeks went by without updates from Marie, a surprise showed up to her door on Tuesday (Nov. 15) — the author posted a video of her running downstairs to open a box from Lizzo. While the garment was not Lizzo’s 2022 Emmys dress, Marie promptly tried the gown from the box and burst into tears. (The dress Marie received was the stunning ruffled one Lizzo wore to the American Music Awards in 2019.)
“I might’ve gotten a few tears on your dress Lizzo, my bad babe. Words don’t suffice and thank you isn’t enough. But THANK YOU! I’m speechless,” Marie captioned the Nov. 15 video. “Ya’ll! A b—h is certified LIZZO-SIZED! And look at this gown! Out Magazine, here I come!”
Lizzo has yet to comment on Marie’s post, but she’s gearing up for an awards ceremony of her own — the singer was nominated for six awards at the 2023 Grammy Awards, including album of the year for Special and song and record of the year for “About Damn Time.”
Watch Marie’s TikTok videos below.
The Walkmen Reuniting For First Shows in a Decade
The Walkmen are reuniting for their first shows in nearly a decade. The beloved New York band whose initial 13-year run ended in 2013 will play a pair of hometown shows at New York’s Webster Hall on April 26 and 27.
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“Back in 2013, an unnamed Walkmen band member (bassist Peter Bauer) announced to the Washington Post that we were going on an ‘extreme hiatus.’ I assumed that meant there would be a lot of monster energy drinks and maybe that red-headed snowboarder guy would be hanging around a lot,” wrote singer Hamilton Leithauser in a statement announcing the get-back by the band that also features drummer Matt Barrick, guitarist Paul Maroon and multi-instrumentalist Walter Martin.
“But none of that actually happened,” he continued. “Instead, in the ensuing years we’ve all worked on a ton of different projects in a ton of different places. Recently, someone sent us a clip of us playing at Irving Plaza from 2003, and it just looked very exciting. So, we’ve decided we’d like to play together again.”
The official presale for the is open now through 10 p.m. ET on Thursday (Nov. 17); click here to register. The general on-sale will begin on Friday (Nov. 18) at 11 a.m. ET.
The garage rock-inspired band — whose members grew up in the Washington, D.C. area — formed in 2000 after the break-up of the groups Jonathan Fire*Eater and The Recoys. They released their full-length debut, Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me Is Gone, in 2002, followed by Bows + Arrows (2004), A Hundred Miles Off (2006), a 2006 covers collection, You & Me (2008) and Lisbon (2010) before dropping their final full-length, Heaven, in 2012.
Check out a trailer for the Webster Hall shows below.
Bette Midler Reacts to Trump’s 2024 Presidential Campaign Announcement: ‘May He Rot’
As expected, former president Donald Trump announced another bid for the presidency on Tuesday (Nov. 15), and Bette Midler had more than a few reactions to the news.
Watching the one-term president give his speech at Mar-A-Lago, the actress didn’t exactly mince words while live-tweeting her thoughts, starting with, “Ugh. Piggy is speaking.”
“That’s #Trumpto you. He’s giving the same speech he gave in 2016. After a two year pandemic, and a million American lives lost, the rest of us have moved on. He is ossified. May he rot,” the Hocus Pocus 2 star continued, adding minutes later, “Excuse me. I’m going to be sick.”
After Trump finished his hour-long announcement, Midler gave her assessment of the remarks, writing, “He just handed us two more years of his #delusions and #drivel. #unbearable.” She also poked fun at the twice-impeached president’s new campaign slogan “Make America Glorious and Great Again,” tweeting, “IT’S OFFICIAL! The new name for its campaign is #MAGAGA! Congratulations to whoever got there first, let’s take it all the way!! #MAGAGA.”
Midler has long been an outspoken liberal and critic of Trump, but even she found herself in hot water this summer over making what some perceived as anti-trans comments on Twitter in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. At the time, the controversy ignited a discussion around the importance of using inclusive language, and the Tony winner insisted there was “no intention of anything exclusionary or transphobic” in her sentiments.
Read Midler’s tweetstorm about Trump below.
Halle Bailey Says She ‘Doesn’t Feel Pressure Anymore’ Over Starring in ‘The Little Mermaid’
Assuming the role of Ariel in the live-action remake of Disney’s The Little Mermaid is Halle Bailey‘s biggest acting look to date. But despite the apprehension — and at times, backlash — that comes with portraying such an iconic character in the Disney franchise, the “Do It” singer insists she’s cool as a cucumber leading up to the film’s May 2023 release.
“I don’t feel any pressure anymore,” Bailey told E! News on Tuesday (Nov. 15) when asked about playing the titular character. “I think that before I started filming, I did feel some nerves naturally because the film is so important to so many people.” The 22-year-old added that leaning on her close friends and family, including big sister Chloe, helped her overcome any fears she had.
Perhaps the most “touching” part about getting to play Ariel, the actress revealed, was getting to see the reaction little girls had to her performance of “Part of Your World” when it was released in September.
“It just makes me cry,” she shared. “The fact that all these little Black and Brown babies are going to be able to feel like they’re being represented is really special to me. I know that if I had that when I was younger, it would have changed a whole lot for me and my perspective on who I am as an individual.”
In addition to feeling “super honored” to play a Disney princess, the star added, “I’m just really grateful to kind of be in this position and I just hope everybody really enjoys the film.”
The Little Mermaid live action remake will be released on May 26, 2023. Revisit the trailer — in which Bailey sings “Part of Your World” — below.
K-Pop Soloist Wonho Confirms Military Enlistment to Fans: ‘We’ve Made So Many Memories Together’
Wonho is officially bound to enlist in the South Korean military next month, but that doesn’t mean you’ve heard the last of him. In Wednesday (Nov. 16) statements from his agency and the K-Pop soloist himself, it was confirmed that he’ll be carrying out his mandatory eighteen months minimum as a public service worker starting Dec. 5 — but not before he prepares a few projects for his fans to enjoy while he’s away.
“Wonho will enlist as a public service worker on December 5th 2022 to fulfill his duty as a Korean citizen,” read the statement from Wonho’s reps at Highline Entertainment, posted to his Daum Café page. “We ask for your warm love and support until the day he finished his service and returns in good health.”
The 29-year-old performer posted a letter of his own on the website, addressed to his fanbase WENEE.
“Each and every day that I’ve spent together with WENEE up until now, we’ve made so many memories together that if I just spent one day thinking back on each one of those days, it would already be time for us to meet again,” it reads, translated from Korean to English, according to Soompi.
Wonho first found stardom as a member of the boy band Monsta X, with whom he released several albums and EPs before departing the group in late 2019. Since then, he’s released four EPs as a solo artist and dropped a two-song project titled Bittersweet just over a month ago.
“I’ll prepare lots of things so that WENEE won’t get bored,” his letter continues. “And I hope WENEE will spend that time happily, freely catching up on the things that you haven’t been able to do up until now while waiting for the day that we’ll meet again!”
Adele & Beyonce Are Headed for a Grammy Rematch: Here Are Other Artists Who Faced Off for Album of the Year Multiple Times
Adele and Beyoncé are headed for a rematch. At the 59th Annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 12, 2017, the two singers went head-to-head in four categories, including the Big Three (album, record and song of the year). Adele won all four of these contests.
In the nominations for the 65th annual Grammy Awards, which were announced on Tuesday (Nov. 15), Bey and Adele are again competing in each of the Big Three categories. Adele’s 30 is vying with Bey’s Renaissance for album of the year. Adele’s “Easy on Me” is competing with Bey’s “Break My Soul” for both record and song of the year.
This isn’t the first time two artists have competed multiple times for album of the year as lead artists. Two pairs of all-time greats went head-to-head for album of the year three times.
With the number of album of the year nominees having jumped from five to eight in 2018 and then from eight to 10 in 2021, we’ll likely see more such recurring matchups. But it will be hard to top the rivalry between Adele and Beyoncé, who are both world-class artists as well as, by all accounts, friends and mutual admirers.
In her 2017 acceptance speech for the final award of the night, album of the year, a highly emotional Adele all but handed the Grammy to Beyoncé, who was standing in the front row with her husband, Jay-Z, as the audience rose to its feet to celebrate Adele’s win. Adele’s speech stands as one of the most selfless and gracious in awards show history.
After some introductory thanks, Adele addressed the issue of competing with a friend and an artist she greatly admires. “I can’t possibly accept this award and I’m very humbled and I’m very grateful and gracious, but my artist of my life is Beyoncé and this album to me – the Lemonade album – was so monumental.”
Addressing the singer directly, she continued: “Beyoncé, it was just so monumental and so well thought-out and so beautiful and soul-baring and we all got to see another side to you that you don’t always let us see, and we appreciate that. And all us artists here, we fu—ing adore you. You are our light. And the way that you make me and my friends feel – the way you make my Black friends feel – is empowering. And you make them stand up for themselves and I love you. I always have and I always will.”
Beyoncé didn’t go home empty-handed that night. She won two Grammys – best urban contemporary album for Lemonade and best music video for “Formation.” And she has won seven more Grammys since that night.
Take a look at all artists who have, as lead artists, competed against each other for album of the year two or more times. We start with the pairs who competed three times, followed by the pairs who vied twice.
