Billboard Cover
Billboard cover star & the ‘Future of Latin’ singer Xavi is making his mark. The young singer is sacrificing his youth to put in the work to take over the Latin music, and he shares how he first started getting into music, how he created “La Diabla,” why he’s putting love and passion into his music and more!
Xavi:
Yes, sir. We speaking English today. Hey Phoenix, Arizona, is where we at. Billboard! I grew up listening to Vicente Fernandez, Selena, you know, the typical music where like, that’s what my mom would wake me up to, you know, like she would be cleaning and she would put on Selena, Vicente. You know, I feel like I just grew up with all that music and then going to the U.S., there was a whole different world, you know. And I got to, like, hear Justin Bieber, Daniel Caesar and a lot of other ones, you know. I was, like, I was a little kid, so I would, like, dress up, yeah, I don’t know. I just really liked his music and like style. Instead of, like, expressing my emotions, I expressed it through music.
Lyndsey Havens:
Do you remember the first time that you actually started writing out lyrics for your own music?
Oh my gosh, it was a long time ago, but yeah, I do remember. I was 12, and I remember I would just like freestyle songs and stuff, and so, like, I got to a point where I was like, Wait, why am I not writing this, you know? So I started writing it, and I didn’t have the best handwriting, you know, but we made it work, and we wrote a little song, but it’s an old, old, old song. I don’t even remember it, but yeah, I was told when I wrote my first song.
Keep watching for more!
Billboard cover star and the ‘Future of Country’ rep Zach Top is bringing ’90s country music back. The crooner explains why he thinks his “I Never Lie” became successful, the accidental start of a band with his siblings, how he’s developed his style and more! Zach Top: I wanted to be a cowboy really bad. […]
Billboard Cover Star and being named as the ‘Future of Hip-Hop,’ BigXthaPlug, is taking over. The rapper has risen with his Texas flare music, and he shares his journey of becoming a footballer to a rapper, his next move with country music, and more! BigXthaPlug: I feel like, for the first time in a long […]
Billboard cover star and global sensation, JENNIE, takes us behind the scenes of her shoot and into her world. The star shares her favorite place to be in Seoul, when she decided that she wanted to release a solo album and more! JENNIE: Hi, I’m JENNIE. I’m here in Seoul shooting for the cover for […]
In July, Jamaica’s most influential living artist walked out of a Kingston prison after 13 years, drove straight to his mother’s house for a tearful reunion over steamed fish and okra — and dove immediately into preparations for Freedom Street: his first performance since his release, and the biggest concert the country would see in […]
After being released from prison after 13 years, Vybz Kartel, the king of Dancehall, is ready to reclaim his throne. The Billboard cover star takes us through a day in his life in Kingston, Jamaica, where he shares his experience of creating “Fever” in jail, how he intends to get his music cleared for streaming, his personal evolution, his thoughts on newer artists in the genre, and more!
Keep watching to see how he plans on dominating the music industry again!
Vybz Kartel:
You can’t even feel sorry for yourself like I didn’t have time to do that. I had kids to feed. I had family to take care of. I had my health issues. I was sitting in this position, you know, with the legs crossed in my cell. I was listening to the radio. He was like, “Yo, I think this is it.” This is Vybz Kartel. I’m here with Billboard. Come spend the day with me.
Kyle Denis:
Do you feel like the scene kind of stalled when you went away?
Yes, but it also opened up a portal for the new artists. I mean, it took a minute because Vybz Kartel’s presence is so powerful, maybe like 20 between 2016 then new artists started coming out one by one, and then the floodgates opened, like around 2020, but yeah, it took a while. So yes.
I heard you, you know, recorded one of your biggest songs in the past decade while you were away, “Fever.”
I’ve been recording, but initially I figured out how to record using an iPod, the little, small, flat ones. You know, the original rectangular ones. But a lot of time the sound was metallic because the cell didn’t have the padding like what a studio has to kill the sound, so it bounced all over the place. Then I figured out that I could use my mattress as a sponge over my head. That’s when the music started getting clearer.
Keep watching for more!
Never one to follow the status quo, Billboard cover star Tyler, the Creator sits down and shares the most honest version of himself that went into his Billboard chart-topping album, ‘Chromakopia.’ The hit-making artist looks back on his 13-year career and how Camp Flog Gnaw has grown with him throughout the years. He also shares […]
Billboard cover star and global pop star LISA welcomes you inside her world. She shares her passions in life, riveting stories about meeting Sabrina Carpenter and Rosalía, her journey to stardom, sneak peeks into upcoming projects and so much more! LISA: Oh, I would love to say Grammy. Hi. I’m LISA, and this is behind […]
Lisa looks stumped. She raises her eyebrows slightly and purses her lips, staring out from underneath her immaculate, walnut-brown bangs. She is trying to answer a question that for most people qualifies as Small Talk 101, but for her is a Sphinx-level riddle: “Where do you live?” “I can’t really tell where I’m based,” she […]
At most huge pop tours, there’s a moment when shrieking fans reach a true fever pitch — when the lights dim right before the show begins, or when the intro to the artist’s biggest hit kicks in, or during the break before the encore. All of those happened at Olivia Rodrigo’s first arena tour — […]