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Playboi Carti’s MUSIC returns to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated April 19), rising one spot, with 64,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending April 10, according to Luminate. Of that sum, 96% was driven by streaming activity.
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With MUSIC earning 64,000 units in the latest tracking week, that marks the smallest weekly sum for a No. 1 album in over a year, since the Jan. 20, 2024-dated chart, when Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time was tops with 61,000 units.
Also in the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200 chart, Elton John and Brandi Carlile’s first collaborative album, Who Believes in Angels?, debuts at No. 9, while Ethel Cain’s 2022 set Preacher’s Daughter debuts at No. 10 following its vinyl release.
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The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new April 19, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on April 15. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of the 64,000 equivalent album units earned by MUSIC in the week ending April 10, SEA units comprise 61,500 (down 27%; equaling 84.61 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it’s No. 1 for a fourth week on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 2,500 (down 59%; it falls 11-33 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum (down 44%).
The next seven titles on the Billboard 200 are all former No. 1s. Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine falls to No. 2 (56,500 equivalent album units; down 59%); PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s $ome $exy $ongs 4 U rises 5-3 (56,000; down 3%); SZA’s SOS steps 6-4 (54,000; down 4%); Kendrick Lamar’s GNX dips 4-5 (53,000; down 9%); Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet rises 7-6 (49,000; down 2%); Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time climbs 10-7 (44,500; down less than 1%); and Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos is a non-mover at No. 8 (42,500; down 5%).
Elton John and Brandi Carlile’s first collaborative album, Who Believes in Angels?, debuts at No. 9 on the Billboard 200, marking the 22nd top 10 set for John and the fourth for Carlile. The set earned 40,000 equivalent album units in its opening week. Of that sum, album sales comprise 36,500 (it debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 2,500 (equaling 3.54 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise 500.
John and Carlile ushered in the release of the album with a flurry of media appearances, including CBS News Sunday Morning (CBS, March 30), The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (April 3), Saturday Night Live (NBC, April 5) and the concert special An Evening With Elton John and Brandi Carlile (CBS and Paramount+, April 6), along with interviews with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, NPR and SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show, among other outlets.
John earned his first Billboard 200 top 10 a little over 54 years ago, when his self-titled album climbed 11-7 on the Jan. 30, 1971-dated chart; it peaked at No. 4 a week later (Feb. 6, 1971). Breaking down John’s 22 top 10s by decade: 13 in the 1970s, two in the 1990s, one in the 2000s, four in the 2010s and two in the 2020s. Who Believes in Angels? is John’s second album with shared artist billing to reach the top 10, following The Union, with Leon Russell, which reached No. 3 in 2010.
John continues to be among elite company of acts with at least 20 top 10-charting albums on the Billboard 200, from March 24, 1956, when the list began publishing on a regular, weekly basis, through the new, April 19, 2025-dated chart. Here’s an updated leaderboard:
Most Billboard 200 Top 10s:38, The Rolling Stones34, Barbra Streisand33, Frank Sinatra32, The Beatles27, Elvis Presley23, Bob Dylan23, Madonna22, Elton John22, Bruce Springsteen21, Paul McCartney/Wings21, George Strait20, Prince
Notably, the Kidz Bop Kids music brand has collected 24 top 10s, in 2005-16, with its series of kid-friendly covers of hit singles. The franchise’s early albums were performed mostly by anonymous studio singers, although later releases focused on branding named talent.
Rounding out the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200 is a debut at No. 10 for singer-songwriter Ethel Cain’s 2022 album Preacher’s Daughter. The set jumps onto the list with 39,000 equivalent album units earned (its best week yet), with 37,000 of that sum driven by album sales (it debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales). SEA units comprise 2,000 of the set’s total for the week (equaling 2.77 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs), while TEA units comprise a negligible sum.
The album was released on vinyl for the first time on April 4, marking its first release on any physical format. It had previously only been available to purchase as a digital download, and via streaming services. Vinyl sales comprise essentially all of the set’s 37,000 copies sold in the latest tracking week – the sixth-largest sales week for a vinyl album in 2025.
Since its release in May 2022, the album’s songs have collected 229.73 million on-demand official streams in the U.S. The No. 10 debut of Preacher’s Daughter marks Cain’s second appearance on any Billboard chart, following a one-week appearance on the now-defunct TikTok Billboard Top 50 in January with the album’s “Strangers.”
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
Ariana Grande’s 2024 album Eternal Sunshine returns to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart for its third total week atop the list, flying 87-1 on the April 12-dated chart, following the set’s deluxe reissue, dubbed Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Days Ahead. Bolstered with six previously unreleased songs, the expanded effort — available at streamers, and to purchase as a download, CD and vinyl LP — earned 137,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending April 3 (up 968%), according to Luminate.
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All versions of the album, old and new, are combined for tracking and charting purposes and continue to chart under the title Eternal Sunshine.
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Eternal Sunshine premiered atop the Billboard 200 dated March 23, 2024, and spent its first two weeks at No. 1. The set contains a pair of chart-toppers on the Billboard Hot 100 in the songs “Yes, And?” and “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love).” The project also returns to the top 40 on the Billboard 200 for the first time since the Oct. 19, 2024-dated list, when it ranked at No. 34.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new April 12, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on April 8. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
With Eternal Sunshine’s return to No. 1 after a year and two weeks, it’s the second title in the last six months to jump back to the top after more than a year away. On the Jan. 4, 2025-dated chart, SZA’s SOS shot back to the top after a 22-month vacation from No. 1. It returned to lead the list after its SOS Deluxe: LANA reissue.
Further, Eternal Sunshine has the largest positional jump to No. 1 (bolting 87-1) since last September, when Travis Scott’s Days Before Rodeo vaulted 106-1 on the Sept. 28, 2024-dated list, after the album’s vinyl edition was shipped to customers.
Of Eternal Sunshine’s 137,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending April 3, SEA units comprise 75,000 (up 541%, equaling 98.45 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it reenters at No. 2 on Top Streaming Albums), traditional album sales comprise 61,000 (up 5,338%, it reenters at No. 1 on Top Album Sales for a second total week atop the list) and TEA units comprise 1,000 (up 4,115%).
Sales of Eternal Sunshine were bolstered by its availability in a variety of permutations released for the Brighter Days Ahead launch. The original Eternal Sunshine album had 13 tracks, and the core Brighter Days Ahead album added six cuts: one extended version of the album-opening “Inro (End of the World)” and five new songs.
Grande’s webstore sold three exclusive variants of the download edition of the album: the 19-track edition, a version with the 19 tracks plus instrumentals of the same cuts, and another version with the 19 tracks and a cappella versions of each cut (all with alternative cover artwork). Grande also released two vinyl variants and six CD editions of the reissue (some signed by the artist), containing the 19 tracks plus the three bonus tracks originally found on the album’s “slightly deluxe” reissues last year.
Playboi Carti’s MUSIC falls to No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart after two weeks on top, with 91,000 equivalent album units earned (down 31%). It holds at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart for a third week.
Lil Durk collects his seventh top 10-charting effort on the Billboard 200 as Deep Thoughts debuts at No. 3 with 64,000 equivalent album units earned. The set arrives largely from streaming activity, as it was only available to purchase as a standard widely available digital download album. Of its first-week units, SEA units comprise 63,000 (equaling 85.92 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it debuts at No. 1 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 1,000 and TEA units comprise a negligible sum.
The rest of the top 10 on the Billboard 200 comprises former No. 1s. Kendrick Lamar’s GNX falls 3-4 (58,000 units; down 10%); PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s $ome $exy $ongs 4 U is down 4-5 (nearly 58,000; down 6%); SZA’s SOS slips 5-6 (56,000; down 7%); Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet dips 6-7 (51,000; down 7%); Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos is a non-mover at No. 8 (45,000; down 8%); Lady Gaga’s MAYHEM falls 7-9 (nearly 45,000; down 15%); and Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time is stationary at No. 10 (almost 45,000; down 2%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
Playboi Carti’s MUSIC spends a second week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated April 5), after debuting atop the list a week earlier with the year’s biggest week for a rap title.
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In its second week (ending March 27), the effort earned 131,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. (down 56%), according to Luminate. It opened with 298,000 first-week units. It’s Carti’s second No. 1, and first to spend more than week atop the list. He previously logged one week in the lead with his previous release, Whole Lotta Red, in January 2021.
Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200, Selena Gomez and benny blanco’s first collaborative set, I Said I Love You First, debuts at No. 2. It marks the seventh top 10 for Gomez and first for blanco.
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The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new April 5, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on April 1. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of the 131,000 equivalent album units earned by MUSIC in the week ending March 27, SEA units comprise 124,000 (down 56%; equaling 171.02 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it’s No. 1 for a second week on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 7,000 (down 51%; it falls 3-9 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum (down 60%).
MUSIC’s second week profited from the sales and streaming activity generated by the release of a deluxe edition of the project that added four additional cuts to the set’s original 30-song runtime. Dubbed MUSIC – Sorry 4 Da Wait, it was released on Tuesday (March 25) on Playboi Carti’s official webstore and widely via streamers and digital retail. The four bonus songs on the deluxe (“Different Day,” “2024,” “Backr00ms” and “FOMDJ”) were initially released as cuts exclusively available on three different artist webstore-exclusive download variants of the album in its first week. As the four songs became available to stream via the MUSIC album on March 25, the album earned SEA for those four tracks on the final three days of the tracking week.
Selena Gomez and benny blanco’s collaborative project I Said I Love You First debuts at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, scoring the superstar multi-hyphenate Gomez her seventh top 10-charting effort and hitmaking producer/writer blanco his first. The project earned 120,000 equivalent album units in its first week — the largest week by units for both artists. (The Billboard 200 began ranking by equivalent album units in December 2014.)
Of the album’s 120,000 first-week units, album sales comprise 71,000 (it debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 48,000 (equaling 64.04 million on-demand official streams of the streaming edition of the album’s songs; it debuts at No. 6 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise 1,000.
I Said I Love You First is the first album pairing from the real-life couple, who announced their engagement in December. While this is the first full-length set from the duo, they’ve teamed up for Billboard Hot 100-charting hit songs before this project. Blanco was a producer and writer on Gomez’s “Same Old Love” (No. 5 peak in 2016), “Kill Em With Kindness” (No. 39, 2016) and “Single Soon” (No. 19, 2023). Gomez and Blanco shared artist billing, with Tainy and J Balvin, on “I Can’t Get Enough” (No. 66, 2019), which blanco also co-produced and co-wrote.
The new album was preceded by the Hot 100-charting tune “Call Me When You Break Up,” billed to Gomez, blanco and Gracie Abrams. It debuted and peaked at No. 58 in March, and climbs into the top 20 on the Pop Airplay chart (dated April 5), rising 21-19. It’s the 25th top 20-charting cut for Gomez on Pop Airplay.
The opening-week sales of I Said I Love You First were bolstered by its availability across seven vinyl variants (different color editions, some with alternate covers; including a signed version), three CD versions (a standard CD, a signed edition, and a zine/CD version with expanded packaging), a deluxe box set containing branded merch and a CD. (The album’s vinyl sales totaled 21,000 for the week — the best sales week on vinyl for either Gomez or blanco.)
Further, the album was available in 10 different digital variations. First, there was a widely available standard album at streamers and digital retail. Then, through the set’s opening week, nine additional download variants were issued, all initially exclusively available through Gomez’s webstore, and each sold for $5. All of the variants included the standard album’s 14 songs, plus bonus material. Five of the variants each had one bonus track (“Stained,” “Talk,” “That’s What I’ll Care [Seven Heavens Version],” “Scared of Loving You [Live From Vevo]” and “How Does It Feel To Be Forgotten [Live From Vevo],” respectively) and one contained two bonus cuts (an acoustic version and extended version of the album single “Call Me When You Break Up”). There was also an Explained: Narrated by Selena Gomez edition (with 14 bonus tracks with Gomez providing commentary on each of the set’s 14 songs), a Slowed & Reverbed edition (with 14 bonus slowed and reverbed versions of the album’s songs) and an Instrumentals edition (with 14 bonus instrumental versions of the tracklist).
All nine of the variants became available in the iTunes Store on Wednesday (March 26). The variants were only sold in the iTunes Store through March 27, the final day they were also sold in Gomez’s store.
The rest of the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200 comprises former No. 1s. Nos. 3-5 are all non-movers, led by Kendrick Lamar’s GNX at No. 3 (65,000 equivalent album units; down 8%) and followed by PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s $ome $exy $ongs 4 U at No. 4 (61,000; down 7%), and SZA’s SOS at No. 5 (60,000; down 4%).
Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet is steady at No. 6 (54,000 equivalent album units; down 4%); Lady Gaga’s MAYHEM falls 2-7 (52,000; down 29%); Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos is stationary at No. 8 (49,000; down 2%); Tate McRae’s So Close To What falls 7-9 (47,000; down 10%); and Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time holds at No. 10 (45,000; up 9%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
Young Scooter died Friday night (March 28) on the rapper’s 39th birthday, according to a report in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and details from Atlanta Police.
Atlanta Police Lt. Andrew Smith led a news conference late Friday night to share details about what reportedly led to the death of Young Scooter (real name: Kenneth Edward Bailey). According to Smith, police responded to a call about a dispute with a weapon at a home and then set up a perimeter outside the house after a man shut the door on officers. Two men fled from the rear of the house, Smith said, with one returning to the home and the other jumping two fences as he was fleeing.
According to the AJC story, Young Scooter was the man who jumped the fences, and Smith said, “When officers located him on the other side of the fence, he appeared to have suffered an injury to his leg.”
Atlanta Police say the man was taken to Grady Marcus Trauma Center and died there.
During the news conference, Smith denied widespread reports spreading on social media that Scooter had been fatally shot by Atlanta PD officers. “Just to be very clear, the injury that was sustained was not via the officers on scene. It was when the male was fleeing.”
Young Scooter’s peers mourned the late rapper on social media, with Playboi Carti sharing the news on Instagram Stories with the caption “SMFH.” Quavo took to X with broken-heart and prayer-hands emojis, writing, “ion understand,” alongside a video of Scooter performing. The late rapper’s Instagram Stories shared dozens of posts wishing him a happy birthday throughout Friday.
While Scooter was born in South Carolina, his family moved to Atlanta when he was just 9 years old, and his music career has been based in the rap mecca ever since. He broke out locally with the song “Colombia” in 2012 before joining forces with hip-hop heavyweights Future, Juicy J and Young Thug for “DI$Function” in 2014. He hit the Billboard charts as a featured artist on Young Thug’s “Guwop,” also featuring Quavo & Offset of Migos, in 2016 (peaking at No. 45 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart) and on Future & Juice WRLD’s “Jet Lag” in 2018 (his only Billboard Hot 100 appearance, peaking at No. 72).
Billboard has reached out to the Atlanta Police and a rep for Young Scooter for further information.
Find Quavo’s X post about Scooter below:
Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” was named song of the year at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Monday night (March 17). It marked the first time a male artist has won in that top category since The Weeknd took the prize in 2021 for “Blinding Lights.”
Boone winning iHeart’s top prize for his broadly appealing pop/rock smash made up for his quieter showing at last month’s 2025 Grammy Awards, where he was nominated in just one category – best new artist. (Though he did make a big splash with one of the most-talked-about performances of the night.)
Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft was named album of the year. It was nominated for a 2025 Grammy in that same category but lost to Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter.
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Gracie Abrams won breakthrough artist of the year. In her acceptance speech, she gave thanks to four artists who have shared their stages with her: Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Noah Kahan and The National. Abrams was a Grammy finalist for best new artist a year ago.
SZA won R&B artist of the year for the third year in a row, which sets a new record for most wins in the category. SZA surpasses H.E.R., who won twice in 2020-21. Jelly Roll won country artist of the year, one year after winning for new country artist of the year. GloRilla won hip-hop artist of the year, two years after she tied with Latto for new hip-hop artist of the year. Sabrina Carpenter won pop artist of the year for the first time. Green Day won alternative artist of the year for the first time.
Three powerhouse women won honorary awards. Lady Gaga received the 2025 iHeartRadio Innovator Award, Mariah Carey received the 2025 iHeartRadio Icon Award, and Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Eras Tour was named Tour of the Century (despite the fact that we’re only one-quarter of the way through the century). In addition, Nelly received the iHeartRadio Landmark Award, to mark the 25th anniversary of his debut studio album, Country Grammar.
The 12th annual iHeartRadio Music Awards celebrated the most-played artists and songs on iHeartRadio stations and the iHeartRadio app throughout 2024. The show aired live from Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Monday, March 17 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET live / PT tape-delayed) on FOX. The event was also heard on iHeartRadio stations nationwide and on the iHeartRadio app. The show’s executive producers were Joel Gallen, for Tenth Planet; and John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Bart Peters, for iHeartMedia.
Fan voting determined this year’s favorite soundtrack, favorite Broadway debut, favorite K-pop dance challenge, favorite surprise guest and favorite tour tradition (all of which are new categories this year), plus these five returning categories: best lyrics, best music video, favorite tour style, favorite tour photographer and favorite on screen. (For a full list of categories, visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.)
Here’s the full list of nominations for the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards, with winners marked. All categories will be marked as more winners become known.
Artist of the Year
Billie Eilish
Doja Cat
Jelly Roll
Kendrick Lamar
Morgan Wallen
Post Malone
Sabrina Carpenter
SZA
Taylor Swift
Teddy Swims
Song of the Year
“A Bar Song (Tipsy)”- Shaboozey
“Agora Hills”- Doja Cat
WINNER: “Beautiful Things”- Benson Boone
“Espresso” – Sabrina Carpenter
“Greedy”- Tate McRae
“I Had Some Help” – Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
“Lose Control” – Teddy Swims
“Lovin on Me” – Jack Harlow
“Not Like Us”- Kendrick Lamar
“Too Sweet” – Hozier
Best Collaboration
“Die With a Smile”- Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars
“Fortnight”- Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone
“I Had Some Help”- Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
“Like That” – Future, Metro Boomin and Kendrick Lamar
“Miles on It”- Kane Brown and Marshmello
Producer of the Year
Julian Bunetta
Jack Antonoff
Evan Blair
Mustard
Dan Nigro
Songwriter of the Year
Josh Coleman
ERNEST
Ashley Gorley
Amy Allen
Justin Tranter
Pop Song of the Year
“Agora Hills”- Doja Cat
“Beautiful Things”- Benson Boone
“Espresso”- Sabrina Carpenter
“Greedy”- Tate McRae
“Too Sweet”- Hozier
Pop Artist of the Year
Billie Eilish
Chappell Roan
WINNER: Sabrina Carpenter
Tate McRae
Taylor Swift
Best New Artist (Pop)
Benson Boone
Chappell Roan
Gracie Abrams
Shaboozey
WINNER: Teddy Swims
Country Song of the Year
“A Bar Song (Tipsy)”- Shaboozey
“Cowgirls” – Morgan Wallen featuring ERNEST
“I Am Not Okay”- Jelly Roll
WINNER: “I Had Some Help”- Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
“World on Fire”- Nate Smith
Country Artist of the Year
WINNER: Jelly Roll
Kane Brown
Lainey Wilson
Luke Combs
Morgan Wallen
Best New Artist (Country)
Ashley Cooke
Dasha
George Birge
WINNER: Shaboozey
Tucker Wetmore
Hip-Hop Song of the Year
“Like That”- Future, Metro Boomin and Kendrick Lamar
“Lovin on Me”- Jack Harlow
“Not Like Us”- Kendrick Lamar
“Rich Baby Daddy”- Drake featuring Sexyy Red and SZA
“TGIF” – GloRilla
Hip-Hop Artist of the Year
Drake
Future
WINNER: GloRilla
Kendrick Lamar
Travis Scott
Best New Artist (Hip-Hop)
310babii
BigXthaPlug
BossMan Dlow
Cash Cobain
Jordan Adetunji
R&B Song of the Year
“ICU” – Coco Jones
“Made for Me”- Muni Long
“Sensational” – Chris Brown featuring Davido and Lojay
“Water” – Tyla
“WY@”- Brent Faiyaz
R&B Artist of the Year
Chris Brown
Muni Long
WINNER: SZA
Usher
Victoria Monét
Best New Artist (R&B)
4Batz
Ambré
Inayah
Josh X
Maeta
Alternative Song of the Year
“Dilemma” – Green Day
“Landmines” – Sum 41
“Neon Pill”- Cage The Elephant
“The Emptiness Machine” – Linkin Park
WINNER: “Too Sweet”- Hozier
Alternative Artist of the Year
Cage The Elephant
WINNER: Green Day
Linkin Park
Sum 41
twenty one pilots
Best New Artist (Alt and Rock)
Djo
WINNER: Fontaines D.C.
Good Neighbours
Myles Smith
The Last Dinner Party
Rock Song of the Year
“A Symptom of Being Human” – Shinedown
“All My Life” – Falling In Reverse and Jelly Roll
“Dark Matter” – Pearl Jam
“Screaming Suicide” – Metallica
“The Emptiness Machine” – Linkin Park
Rock Artist of the Year
Green Day
Linkin Park
Metallica
Pearl Jam
Shinedown
Dance Song of the Year
“360” – Charli xcx
“Chase It (Mmm Da Da Da)” – Bebe Rexha
“I Don’t Wanna Wait”- David Guetta and OneRepublic
“Make You Mine”- Madison Beer
“Water” – Tyla X Marshmello
Dance Artist of the Year
Calvin Harris
David Guetta
Dua Lipa
Kylie Minogue
Tiësto
Latin Pop / Urban Song of the Year
“Brickell” – FEID X Yandel
“LA FALDA” – Myke Towers
WINNER: “Perro Negro”- Bad Bunny featuring FEID
“Qlona” – Karol G featuring Peso Pluma
“Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido”- Karol G
Latin Pop / Urban Artist of the Year
Bad Bunny
FEID
Karol G
Myke Towers
Shakira
Best New Artist (Latin Pop / Urban)
Christian Alicea
Cris MJ
Ela Taubert
FloyyMenor
Kapo
Regional Mexican Song of the Year
“Alch Si” – Grupo Frontera and Carin León
“El Beneficio De La Duda” – Grupo Firme
“FIRST LOVE” – Oscar Ortiz and Edgardo Nuñez
“La Diabla”- Xavi
“Tu Perfume” – Banda MS de Sergio Lizárraga
Regional Mexican Artist of the Year
Grupo Frontera
Intocable
Los Ángeles Azules
Peso Pluma
Xavi
Best New Artist (Regional Mexican)
Chino Pacas
Iván Cornejo
Luis R. Conriquez
Tito Double P
Xavi
K-pop Artist of the Year
aespa
ATEEZ
ENHYPEN
Jimin
Lisa
K-pop Song of the Year
“Chk Chk Boom” – Stray Kids
“Magnetic”- ILLIT
“Supernova” – aespa
“Who”- Jimin
“XO (Only If You Say Yes)”- ENHYPEN
Best New Artist (K-pop)
BABYMONSTER
BADVILLAIN
ILLIT
NCT WISH
TWS
World Artist of the Year
Burna Boy
Central Cee
Tems
Tyla
YG Marley
Favorite Soundtrack
Back to Black
Bad Boys: Ride or Die
Bob Marley: One Love
Challengers
Deadpool & Wolverine
Descendants: The Rise of Red
Emilia Pérez
The Book of Clarence
Twisters
Wicked
Favorite Broadway Debut
Adam Lambert – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
Ariana Madix – Chicago
Barbie Ferreira – Cult of Love
Charli D’Amelio – & Juliet
Grant Gustin – Water for Elephants
Kit Connor – Romeo + Juliet
Lola Tung – Hadestown
Nicole Scherzinger – Sunset Blvd
Rachel Zegler – Romeo + Juliet
Robert Downey Jr. – McNeal
Sebastián Yatra – Chicago
Shailene Woodley – Cult of Love
Favorite K-pop Dance Challenge
“GGUM”- Yeonjun (TXT)
“MAESTRO” – Seventeen
“Magnetic”- ILLIT
“Smart”- LE SSERAFIM
“Sticky”- Kiss of Life
“Supernova” – aespa
“Touch” – KATSEYE
“UP”- Karina (aespa)
“WORK”- ATEEZ
“XO (Only If You Say Yes)”- ENHYPEN
Favorite Surprise Guest
Charli xcx bringing out Lorde
Coldplay bringing out Selena Gomez
Future & Metro Boomin bringing out Travis Scott
GloRilla & Megan Thee Stallion bringing out Cardi B
Jennifer Hudson bringing out Cher
Kendrick Lamar bringing out Ken & Friends
Luke Combs bringing out the “Twisters” Cast
Morgan Wallen bringing out Travis Kelce & Patrick Mahomes
Niall Horan bringing out Shawn Mendes
Olivia Rodrigo bringing out Chappell Roan
Peso Pluma bringing out Becky G
Taylor Swift bringing out Travis Kelce
Favorite Tour Tradition
Benson Boone- Backflips
Chappell Roan – Teaching “HOT TO GO” dance
Charli xcx + Troye Sivan – “Apple” Girl (dance)
Morgan Wallen – Walk out song
Niall Horan – Heaven pose
Nicki Minaj – Fans sing
Olivia Rodrigo- Encore tank
Sabrina Carpenter- “Juno” position
Tate McRae – Soundcheck covers
Taylor Swift- “22” Hat
Taylor Swift – Surprise songs
Usher – Feeding cherries
Best Lyrics
“Beautiful Things” – Benson Boone
“BIRDS OF A FEATHER” – Billie Eilish
“Espresso”- Sabrina Carpenter
“Exes” – Tate McRae
“Fortnight” – Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone
“Good Luck, Babe!”- Chappell Roan
“I Had Some Help”- Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
“I Love You, I’m Sorry” – Gracie Abrams
“Not Like Us” – Kendrick Lamar
“Saturn” – SZA
“we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” – Ariana Grande
“Who”- Jimin
Best Music Video
“APT.” – ROSÉ and Bruno Mars
“Beautiful Things” – Benson Boone
“Die With A Smile” – Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars
“Espresso”- Sabrina Carpenter
“Fortnight”- Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone
“Houdini” – Dua Lipa
“Houdini” -Eminem
“I Had Some Help” – Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
“LUNA” – ATL Jacob X FEID
“Not Like Us” – Kendrick Lamar
“Please Please Please” – Sabrina Carpenter
“Rockstar”- Lisa
Favorite Tour Style
Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft
Chappell Roan – The Midwest Princess
Charli xcx and Troye Sivan – Sweat
GloRilla and Megan Thee Stallion – Hot Girl Summer Tour
Nicki Minaj – Pink Friday 2 Tour
Olivia Rodrigo – GUTS
Sabrina Carpenter – Short n’ Sweet
Tate McRae – Think Later
Taylor Swift – The Eras Tour
Usher – Usher: Past Present Future
Favorite Tour Photographer
Adam Degross – Post Malone
Alfredo Flores – Sabrina Carpenter
Baeth – Tate McRae
Christian Tierney – Niall Horan
David Bergman – Luke Combs
Henry Hwu – Billie Eilish
Lucienne Nghiem – Chappell Roan
Miles Leavitt – Olivia Rodrigo
Pooneh Ghana – Noah Kahan
RAYSCORRUPTEDMIND – Travis Scott
Sanjay Parikh – Shinedown
Yasi – Kacey Musgraves
Favorite On Screen
Are You Sure?! (Jimin and Jungkook)
Child Star (Demi Lovato)
Elton John: Never Too Late (Elton John)
Gaga Chromatica Ball (Lady Gaga)
I Am: Céline Dion (Céline Dion)
Lainey Wilson: Bell Bottom Country (Lainey Wilson)
Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words (Megan Thee Stallion)
Olivia Rodrigo: GUTS World Tour (Olivia Rodrigo)
Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE (KATSEYE)
Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Bruce Springsteen)
Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) (Taylor Swift)
Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story (Bon Jovi)
Lady Gaga’s MAYHEM moves in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, as the set debuts atop the tally dated March 22. It’s the seventh leader for the superstar. The set — her seventh studio album — launches with 219,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending March 13, according to Luminate — the biggest week of the year for an album by a woman. It also scores Gaga her largest streaming week ever.
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Gaga previously led the Billboard 200 with Chromatica (2020), the soundtrack to A Star Is Born (with Bradley Cooper, 2018), Joanne (2016), Cheek to Cheek (with Tony Bennett), ARTPOP (2013) and Born This Way (2011). In total, MAYHEM is Gaga’s 11th top 10-charting effort, stretching back to her debut project, The Fame, which reached No. 2 in 2010, after bowing on the list in 2008.
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Also in the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200, JENNIE’s debut solo album, Ruby, bows at No. 7 on the Billboard 200. She’s the third member of the chart-topping quartet BLACKPINK to notch a solo top 10 – and all three have come in the last three months.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new March 22, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on March 18. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of MAYHEM’s 219,000 first-week equivalent album units, album sales comprise 136,000 (it’s the top-selling album of the week and debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 80,500 (equaling 108.05 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; Gaga’s biggest streaming week ever, and it debuts at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart) and TEA units comprise 2,500.
With MAYHEM’s bow of 219,000 equivalent album units, the set earns the biggest week for a woman in 2025, and the largest debut by a woman in over six months. The last larger bow by a woman was Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet, which started with 362,000 atop the Sept. 7, 2024-dated list.
MAYHEM was officially announced on Jan. 27 and went up for pre-order that same day. The set was released on March 7 and was preceded by a trio of top 40-charting titles on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart: “Disease” (reaching No. 27 in November 2024), “Die With a Smile” (No. 1 for five weeks beginning in January; a duet with Bruno Mars), and “Abracadabra” (No. 13 in February).
Gaga ushered in the album’s release with an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe (March 5), participated in a livestreamed Little Monsters Press Conference presented by Spotify (March 6), and did double duty as the host and musical guest on NBC’s Saturday Night Live (March 8, performing “Abracadabra” and the new album’s “Killah”). Gaga also popped up and/or performed on numerous other programs in the lead up to the album’s release, including the livestreamed FireAid benefit concert (Jan. 30), CBS’ broadcast of the Grammy Awards (Feb. 2), First We Feast’s Hot Ones (Feb. 13), NBC and Peacock’s Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Homecoming Concert (Feb. 16), and Vanity Fair’s lie detector test series (Feb. 19).
MAYHEM’s first-week sales were bolstered by its availability across a gaggle of editions: 14 vinyl variants (some signed, and some include the bonus track “Can’t Stop the High,” while Target’s exclusive vinyl has the extra track “Kill for Love”), four CD editions (one signed, Target’s exclusive CD adds “Kill” while Gaga’s webstore carried a CD with the bonus track “Can’t Stop the High”), a cassette tape, a deluxe CD box set with a branded T-shirt and poster, and two widely available download albums (the standard 14-song album, and then a deluxe version exclusive to iTunes with the three music videos for “Disease,” “Die With a Smile” and “Abracadabra”).
Of MAYHEM’s opening-week sales, vinyl purchases comprise 74,000 — Gaga’s biggest week on vinyl ever.
Gaga will soon hit the road for a series of major concerts, beginning with her headlining turn at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (April 11 and 18), two shows in Mexico City (April 26-27), a free show on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro (May 3) and four shows in Singapore (May 18, 19, 21 and 24).
Kendrick Lamar’s GNX falls to No. 2 on the latest Billboard 200 with a little more than 81,000 equivalent album units earned (down 10%), while five more former leaders round out the top six. PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s $ome $exy $ongs 4 U dips 2-3 (79,000; down 13%), SZA’s SOS is steady at No. 4 (69,000; down 7%), Tate McRae’s So Close To What descends 3-5 (63,000; down 27%), and Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet falls 5-6 (61,000; down 5%).
JENNIE’s first solo studio album, Ruby, arrives at No. 7 on the new Billboard 200, marking the BLACKPINK member’s first chart entry. The set launches with 56,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 29,000 (equaling 39.93 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it debuts at No. 13 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 26,500 (it debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise 500.
Ruby was preceded by three charting titles on the Hot 100 songs chart: “Mantra,” “Love Hangover” (with Dominic Fike) and “ExtraL” (with Doechii).
Ruby was available in its first week as a nine-track widely available digital download album, and then an expanded 15-song physical set and a 15-track download and streaming edition. While the standard and physical albums have only one guest star (FKJ, on “JANE”), the 15-track download and streaming edition adds further special guests on a few tracks, including Doechii, Dua Lipa, Dominic Fike, Childish Gambino and Kali Uchis.
Ruby’s first-week sales were aided by its availability across four CD variants (all containing collectible paper ephemera, some randomized), five deluxe CD boxed set editions (each containing a piece of branded clothing, a signed insert and a copy of the album) and two download editions (a widely available standard version with nine tracks and an expanded 15-song edition).
JENNIE is a member of the Billboard 200-topping quartet BLACKPINK, who saw its last album, BORN PINK, debut atop the chart dated Oct. 1, 2022, after the act’s The Album became its first top 10 (No. 2, 2020). JENNIE is the third member of the group to notch a top 10-charting solo effort on the Billboard 200, following LISA, whose Alter Ego debuted at No. 7 a week ago (March 15 chart), and ROSÉ, whose rosie debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Dec. 21, 2024, chart.
Rounding out the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200, Bad Bunny’s chart-topping Debí Tirar Más Fotos falls 6-8 (52,000 equivalent album units; down 8%), Morgan Wallen’s former leader One Thing at a Time is a non-mover at No. 9 (43,000; up 3%), and Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess dips 8-10 (42,000; down 1%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
When we say j-hope is comfortable on the stage, we mean from his head all the way down to his fuzzy feet. On Monday night’s (March 10) episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the BTS star will make his solo debut performance on the late-night show, joined by R&B singer Miguel for their […]
Kendrick Lamar’s GNX returns to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for a third nonconsecutive week on top. The set climbs 3-1 (on the March 15-dated chart) with 90,500 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending March 6 (down 15%), according to Luminate. GNX debuted atop the chart dated Dec. 7, 2024, and returned to the top on the Feb. 22-dated chart in the wake of its physical release and Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX halftime show (Feb. 9).
Meanwhile, the lone debut in the top 10 is LISA, whose first full-length studio album, Alter Ego, enters at No. 7. She becomes the second member of the chart-topping group BLACKPINK to notch a solo top 10 effort, following ROSÉ.
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The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new March 15, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on March 11. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of GNX’s 90,500 equivalent album units earned in the latest tracking week, SEA units comprise 73,000 (down 15%, equaling 103.14 million on-demand official streams; it holds at No. 3 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 16,500 (down 13%; it’s a non-mover at No. 2 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise 1,000 (down 18%).
PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s chart-topping $ome $exy $ongs 4 U holds at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with 90,000 equivalent album units earned (down 24%; while it holds at No. 1 on Top Streaming Albums for a third week).
Tate McRae’s So Close To What falls to No. 3 with 87,000 equialent album units (down 51%) after debuting atop the chart a week ago.
Nos. 4-6 on the latest Billboard 200 are all former chart-toppers, and non-movers, as SZA’s SOS is No. 4 (74,000 equivalent album units; down 10%), Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet is No. 5 (64,000; down 16%) and Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos is No. 6 (56,000; down 11%).
LISA has the top debut of the week as her first full-length studio effort, Alter Ego, enters at No. 7 with 45,500 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 28,000 (it debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 16,500 (equaling 23.12 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it debuts at No. 31 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise 1,000.
During the album’s release week, LISA performed on the Academy Awards (March 2), taking part in a tribute to the music of the James Bond film series, where she performed Wings’ “Live and Let Die.” She recently made her acting debut in the third season of HBO’s The White Lotus (which premiered on Feb. 16).
Alter Ego was preceded by a trio of charting songs from the album on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: “Rockstar” (No. 70 peak in July 2024), “New Woman” (featuring Rosalía; No. 97 in August) and “Born Again” (featuring Doja Cat and RAYE; No. 68 in February).
Alter Ego was issued as a standard 12-song album (on streamers, and to purchase as a digital download, CD and vinyl), a 15-song set (with three bonus tracks, on streamers and as digital download) and a 19-track set (with three additional remixes and a voice note from the artist, sold as a digital download exclusively on LISA’s official webstore). The set was issued across nine CD variants (including a signed edition; with all containing collectible paper ephemera such as randomized photocards), six deluxe CD boxed sets (each containing a copy of the album on CD and a branded piece of clothing) and two vinyl variants (including one signed edition).
LISA is a member of the Billboard 200-topping quartet BLACKPINK, who saw its last album, BORN PINK, debut atop the chart dated Oct. 1, 2022, after the act’s The Album became its first top 10 (No. 2, 2020). LISA is the second member of the group to notch a top 10-charting solo effort on the Billboard 200, following ROSÉ, whose rosie debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Dec. 21, 2024-dated chart.
Rounding out the rest of the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200: Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess is a non-mover at No. 8 (43,000 equivalent album units earned; down 8%), Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping One Thing at a Time is steady at No. 9 (42,000; up 2%) and The Weeknd’s former leader Hurry Up Tomorrow falls 7-10 (40,000; down 19%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
Rimas Entertainment, home to Bad Bunny and the No. 1 label on Billboard‘s 2024 year-end Top Independent Labels chart, has acquired a “significant” stake in Dale Play Records, the maverick Argentine label that’s home to DJ Bizarrap, Rels B and rapper Duki, Billboard can reveal.
The partnership includes Sony Music Latin Iberia, which continues to own a stake in the label. Helping bring the deal to fruition were Rob Stringer, Sony Music Group chairman and Sony Music Entertainment CEO; Afo Verde, chairman/CEO of Sony Music Latin America, Spain and Portugal; and Brad Navin and Jason Pascal of The Orchard.
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Fede Lauria, the Argentine executive who founded Dale Play out of Argentina and grew the label to its current stature, will retain a smaller percentage of the company and continue as CEO. The Orchard will also continue to distribute Dale Play as it has for years. The company’s other business verticals, which include booking and management — including the management of Duki, Nicki Nicole and Bizarrap — are not part of the deal and will remain solely under Lauria.
The partnership brings together two indie companies that have redefined the way Latin music is made and promoted on a global scale, with both developing and capitalizing on a new wave of urban music in Spanish — one centered in Puerto Rico (Rimas) and the other in Argentina (Dale Play) — with international ambitions. Rimas has already expanded its roster beyond Puerto Rico, signing Spain’s Quevedo and Mexico’s Latin Mafia.
“From day one, our mission has been to support and develop artists with authenticity and respect for their identity,” said Rimas Entertainment CEO Noah Assad in a statement. “With Federico and Dale Play, we’ve built a relationship founded on trust and mutual admiration. This alliance will allow us to break new boundaries and create opportunities for our artists and teams.”
In an earlier conversation with Billboard, Assad noted that this is Rimas’ first major acquisition and that it follows a longstanding friendship and years of business dealings between him and Lauria.
“We’re working hand in hand and all we’re doing is adding more value to each other, him to me and me to him,” he said. “The collaboration already existed. We’re formalizing something that was already happening.”
Lauria was already an established concert promoter in Argentina with the company Dale Play (which currently sells over 1 million tickets per year, mostly in Argentina) when he created the label portion of his business, Dale Play Records, in 2017, focusing on a previously untapped rap and trap music scene bubbling out of Argentina. Sony Music came in as a partner in 2020.
“Afo and I have had a long-standing friendship for many years, united by a mission to elevate Latin music to the highest level,” said Lauria in a statement. The new partnership with Rimas, he told Billboard earlier, “reflects a journey we have been on for many years with Noah, Jomy and the RIMAS team. We share the same vision and values. Our companies are 360 companies with similar philosophies and origins. They’re rare in the global market. We do management, booking, label, publishing. The potential that these two ecosystems have together and the mutual collaboration that our artists and businesses can have is huge.”
Fede Lauria, Noah Assad and Afo Verde.
Afo Verde/Sony Music Latin Iberia
Added Verde in a statement: “I have great admiration for the achievements of both Fede and Noah. They epitomize the new generation of executives and label leaders, characterized by their independent spirit and innovative approach. It is a privilege to continue our partnership with them, and I love that they wanted to work together.”
Assad and Lauria’s working relationship dates back to Bad Bunny’s early days as an artist playing small venues in Buenos Aires, which Lauria booked. Today, he still promotes Bunny’s Argentina stadium and arena dates. The two have since worked together on multiple artist collaborations and started discussing a possible partnership three years ago, with conversations solidifying last year.
“This alliance is key to expanding our global reach and connecting with talent wherever it may be,” said Jonathan “Jomy” Miranda, president of Rimas Entertainment, in a statement. “We have always been at the forefront of discovering new artists, and now, through this partnership, we will have ears in more corners of the world to support and develop the next generation of stars.”
“Rimas is still Rimas and Dale Play is still Dale Play,” said Lauria during his conversation with Billboard, when asked about the future management of the respective labels. But, he adds, both labels have been “an essential part of the development of a cultural movement, and we’re in the process of shaping artists in Spain and Mexico that aren’t Argentine or Puerto Rican. Being together gives us huge power.”
Everything aligned to make the partnership come together now, said Assad. “We want a partner that has a clear vision, knows what they want and knows their destination,” he adds. “Culturally speaking, we share a lot of the same culture, and that’s why we’re doing this strategic alliance.”
Create Music Group has acquired the deadmau5 catalog in addition to the catalog of the electronic producer’s longstanding label, mau5trap.
The deal is valued at $55 million and includes the master recordings and publishing of more than 4,000 songs. The partnership also includes the formation of a joint venture to release future recordings from deadmau5 and mau5trap.
“I have worked closely with Jonathan, Alex and Create for nearly two decades now, building my own career as well as the artists on mau5trap,” said Deadmau5 (born Joel Zimmerman) in a statement. “We didn’t need to look far when we were considering a partner to help get it all to the next level. With Create, I feel the music is going to reach more.”
As part of the partnership, Create Music Group will remaster and re-release key catalog pieces, launch exclusive new content and work to introduce “the mau5trap legacy” to new generations of fans, according to a press release. The collaboration will also explore licensing opportunities and brand partnerships and continue to focus on media such as gaming, virtual reality and live-streaming to drive additional revenue streams.
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Founded in 2015, Create Music Group functions as a record label, distribution company and entertainment network. Eric Nguyen, senior vp of global corporate development and M&A at Create Music Group, played a key role in the deal. Paul Hastings LLP served as legal advisors to Create Music Group while LaPolt Law P.C. served as legal advisors to deadmau5 and mau5trap.
“From the earliest days of Create Music Group, [co-founder and COO] Alexandre Williams and I had the privilege of working alongside Joel and his business partner Dean Wilson, witnessing firsthand the evolution of an icon,” added Jonathan Strauss, co-founder/CEO of Create Music Group. “Now, as the stewards of deadmau5 and mau5trap’s legendary catalog, we inherit a legacy that changed music forever. Joel’s influence reaches far beyond sound — his mastery bridges music, gaming, and technology, inspiring a new generation to think bigger. This is more than an acquisition; it’s a responsibility.”
“Over the last 20 years, fueled by Joel’s creative and entrepreneurial ambitions, we have built one of the strongest brand names in electronic music,” adds Wilson, deadmau5’s longtime manager. “To have partnered with Create, who have worked so closely with us over the years on our journey, ensures that the next two decades will be every bit as exciting for Joel and everyone on the mau5trap team as we work to expand our legacy even further.”