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All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Springtime is about balance and renewal! Warmer temperatures and longer days means that you’ll get more sunlight than you would during the winter, and with added moisture in the air, now’s the time to re-up on skincare products.

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What are the best beauty deals for spring? It all depends on where you shop. Luckily, beauty lovers can score discounts at lots of retailers including major leaguers like Sephora, Amazon, Walmart, Target, Nordstrom and Ulta Beauty.

Ulta launched its 21 Days of Beauty event earlier this month. The sale event is coming to an end soon, but there are still plenty of beauty products that you can score at a discount like Tula’s 24-7 Moisture Hydrating Day & Night Cream, which is currently 50% at Ulta.com. The popular eye cream went on sale for one-day only on Friday (March 31).

Ulta’s 21 Days of Beaty sale is available online and in stores, although certain deals are only online and individual sales last for a single day. The 21 Days of Beaty sale ends on April 1.

Tula’s whipped face cream is designed to hydrate and nourish leaving the skin revived with improved firmness and locked in moisture to promote skin balance. A 1.5-ounce container of Tula face cream usually retails for $54 but you can buy it for just $27 at Ulta, if you act fast.

Tula’s 24/7 Day & Night Cream
$27 (on 3/31) $54 -50513% off% OFF

And if you’re interested in a free gift, Ulta shoppers will also receive a free Hydrating Day & Night Cream deluxe sample with the purchase of at least $35 worth of Tula products at Ulta (offer valid until April 1 or while supplies last).

Tula’s Day & Night Cream is packed with probiotics and prebiotics, including hydrating ingredients such as apple and watermelon to moisturize and help smooth fine lines. Additional ingredients include rice protein, turmeric root extract, blueberry, chicory root extract, camelina sativa seed oil and milk protein.

The face cream pairs with the brand’s Cult Classic Purifying Cleanser ($35), a purifying gel-based cleanser that gently exfoliates and refreshes skin. Tula’s Cult Classic cleanser also contains chicory root and probiotic extracts to balance the skin alongside natural ingredients such as turmeric, white tea and blueberry.

What else is on sale at Ulta Beauty? Shoppers can save 50% off Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched ($29) and IT Cosmetics Superhero No-Tug Longwear Eyeshadow Stick ($12), shop Morphe Cosmetics brush sets starting at $30 and enjoy exclusive beauty deals on the Ulta Beauty app.

Ulta’s 21 Days of Beaty includes discounts on Tarte Cosmetics, Kylie Cosmetics, Lancome, Clinique and other beloved brands.

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Nestled between the pale sands of South Beach and the hustle and bustle of Collins Avenue sits the vibrant W Hotel South Beach. The seemingly hidden gem located steps from the Atlantic Ocean is one of several W Hotels where tourists and locals convene to enjoy live music.

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“Music has been such a big part of our DNA,” Carly Van Sickle, senior director, global brand marketing at W Hotels, told Billboard during a visit to the South Beach location last week. “We’ve always supported up-and-coming musicians and artists. More recently, working with Leah ‘LP Giobbi’ Chisholm [global director of music at W Hotel], our team has really been focusing on the electronic and dance scene, but also making sure that [the experiences are] still varied and connected to local culture.”

With electronic and dance music surging in popularity, and megastars like Beyoncé and Drake exploring the space, the hotel is digging even deeper into the genre by way of W Presents, an “innovative live electronic showcase” featuring artists handpicked by Chisholm, including opening acts from her organization, FEMME House, which creates “equitable opportunities” for women and gender-expansive individuals in the music industry.   

The live music series, announced Wednesday (March 28), will take place in the W’s lobby/lounge area called Living Rooms. Rapper and producer Channel Tres will kick off the series with a performance at the new W Hotel Toronto on April 6.

The live music series comes on the heels of the W South Beach’s Miami Music Week celebration. The hotel hosted a series of events attended by influencers and tastemakers in the EDM scene, including Diplo and Frances Mercier.

Fans from all over the world flocked to Miami for the 10-year anniversary of Miami Music Week. The annual celebration, which was held from March 21-26, coincided with this year’s Ultra Music Festival.

W South Beach invited Billboard to attend its Miami Music Week events and installations, the first of which was an invite-only dinner at Irma’s W South Beach on March 22. The hotel teamed with Senza Fine to present a fine-dining experience co-hosted by Chisholm and Senza Fine co-founder Carlita and sponsored by Volcan De Mi Tierra Tequila.

Attendees at the W Hotels x Senza Fine Dinner in Miami Beach, FL on March 23, 2023.

Diana Zapata/BFA.com

Attendees included EDM titans and VIPs such as Diplo, Pete Tong, Damien Lazarus, Bedouin, Thomas & Julien de Bie (a.k.a. the “Parallells”), Ape Drums of Major Lazer, Anfisa Letyago, Mercier, Joplyn, Arielle Free, Spotify head of electronic dance development Ronny Ho, WME head of electronic music Stephanie LaFera, and Nü Androids founder Nayef Issa.

The menu, courtesy of DJ Tennis, featured small bites served on tennis rackets and seafood dishes such as blue crab with polenta, wild-caught swordfish, ragu paccheri pasta and fish cigars.

Day 2 kicked off with a yoga session on the beach, led by Ahana Yoga, followed by a breakfast mixer with sounds provided by a guest DJ. New York City wellness company WTHN provided cupping and custom ear seeds, while guests enjoyed fresh fruits, breakfast bites and sips of cacao.

“We want to make sure that W is showing up during cultural music moments, but showing up in a way that isn’t just always a party,” explained Van Sickle. “That’s why we had the dinner and wellness event. We know that it’s super important to take care of artists and people in the industry at large and to take care of mental health and wellness.”

For night 2, the W partnered with Mercier’s Deep Root record label for “Deep Root Tribe,” an Afro-House music event at W South Beach’s WET Deck, sponsored by El Cristiano 1761 Tequila. The event, which was held March 23 and open to the public, featured intimate sets from EDM stars including Major League DJz, &Friends, Bontan, HoneyLuv, Nico De Andrea, Ninetoes, samblacky, D’WITCHES, Gianni Petrarca, Sam Haze and a special performance from Mercier and Diplo.

Diplo and Francis Mercier perform at W Hotels x Deep Root Showcase in Miami Beach, FL on March 23, 2023.

William Perez/BFA.com

“Our Wet Decks and pools are a really good platform for music too,” Van Sickle noted. “In Barcelona, for example, they do what they call their Wet Deck summer series. Every summer [there’s] a different lineup, again, free to the public. We want the locals to come in. We want people traveling to know that if they’re looking for music experiences, they can go to W Hotel. We’re popping up in a lot of different ways. Just making sure we’re always activating around that passion point of music.”

W South Beach’s Miami Music Week event series commenced with a panel presented by FEMME House and a cocktail industry mixer at W South Beach’s Living Room. The panel was hosted by FEMME House co-founders Chisholm and HERMIXALOT and discussed creating opportunities for marginalized communities, providing safe spaces for diversity and building “authentic community” in music.

Apart from special events, exquisite rooms and sprawling views, the W Hotel further caters to music fans and creators by offering private recording studios and writer’s rooms. The Sound Suites are available at a few locations, including the W Hollywood, W Seattle and W Bali.

“Ultimately, our goal obviously is to have people stay with us, but we want to make sure that our experiences are open to others too,” said Van Sickle. “We don’t want [these experiences] to be exclusive. We’re inclusive. We want everyone to come, be themselves, have fun and experience the music.

“So it’s both sides of the artist community,” she continued. “It’s a creative space for the community, kind of like a mix of both: fans, but also for artists as well.”

Tapping into the local community is a large part of creating live music experiences at W Hotels around the world. “Local culture is a really big thing for us that we want to tap into,” added Van Sickle.

“I think that post-COVID, we want to make sure we’re bringing these experiences back in a really accessible way, but a fun, innovative, culturally relevant way too.”

Despite what some lawmakers may be attempting throughout the U.S. right now, transgender and non-binary people are not going anywhere anytime soon — and they’re more than ready to make their voices heard.

Friday (March 31) marks International Transgender Day of Visibility, an annual commemoration since 2010 that has been honored around the world as “a day to celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces,” according to GLAAD.

This year, the world certainly needs a reminder of what exactly trans and gender diverse community is up against — despite being only three months into the calendar year, 2023 has already broken the record for the most anti-trans legislation introduced across the U.S., with states like West Virginia, Iowa and Kentucky all banning gender-affirming care for minors.

In a 2022 interview with Billboard, Human Rights Campaign deputy director of communications Laurel Powell put it simply: “There is a very well-funded, well-organized movement to try and drive a wedge between people and their LGBTQ+ friends, neighbors and family,” she said. “This is being driven by extremist legislators.”

International Transgender Day of Visibility provides allies another opportunity to not just contribute to the many organizations across the U.S. that are fighting to stop this wave of anti-trans hatred, but also to celebrate the myriad contributions trans and gender diverse people have made to society.

Below, Billboard takes a look at 15 artists who are redefining what it means to be openly transgender and non-binary in the music industry today:

Shea Diamond

Image Credit: Courtesy Photo

Shea Diamond, both an activist and a singer-songwriter, belts out the bold anthem “I Am Her” with soul and strength. “There’s an outcast in everybody’s life / And I am her,” she sings. According to Diamond, the song began as a statement to a world which said she shouldn’t exist and now stands as an anthem “for all those that felt shunned for simply being who they were.”

Find Shea Diamond on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Anohni

Anohni is not afraid of tackling topics often considered controversial. In “Drone Bomb Me,” Anohni sings of a nine-year-old Afghan girl whose family has been killed by a drone bomb. Her latest album, Hopelessness, covers issues from climate change to Guantanamo Bay. “I wanted to do something that was gonna go down fighting,” Anohni told Pitchfork.

Find Anohni on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

SOPHIE

There are few artists who have directly impacted the current sound of pop music more than the late SOPHIE. A pioneer in both the dance and pop fields, the producer pushed the boundaries of her respective genres to their breaking points, eventually giving way to glorious soundscapes that were fueled by the aesthetics of bubblegum pop and the experimentation of the avant-garde dance scene being led by the collective at PC Music. But it was on their magnum opus project Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides where SOPHIE finally took a moment to allow herself to stand in the spotlight, coming out publicly as transgender and fully taking ownership of her trailblazing work in the music industry.

Find SOPHIE on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Peppermint

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Along with being the season 9 runner-up of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Peppermint is also a talented musical artist in her own right. While she flexes her many talents on everything from original ballads to pop diva tributes, it’s on her 2017 anthem “Civil War” where Peppermint gets real about the reality of life as a transgender woman in this day and age. “I’m an army of one, marching alone/ Fighting for my life,” she sings, stirring up emotions.

Find Peppermint on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Skylar Kergil

Skylar Kergil, an American activist, singer-songwriter and YouTube personality, has a folk sound that sends a statement. “Strangers stare and they want to be the first to/ Ask for my life in one word/ But it’s not that simple,” Kergil sings in “Tell Me A Story.”

Find Skylar Kergil on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Left at London

While many people know Left at London for their hilarious Vine and TikTok content, they really ought to know her for her music first. The singer’s eclectic offerings can range from funk-driven, sexy anthems to folksy kiss-offs aimed at transphobes, all while infusing her charismatic persona and expert songwriting into instantly memorable tracks that you’ll find yourself going back for again and again.

Find Left at London on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Ryan Cassata

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Ryan Cassata has been representing the transgender community in the music industry for over a decade. Whether they’re preaching the importance of community on songs like “We’re the Cool Kids” — which Cassata said is about coming together, battling ignorance “and hopefully beating it” — or getting real about heartbreak on more recent tracks like “If You Ever Leave Long Island,” Cassata always manages to uplift and celebrate his community through song.

Find Ryan Cassata on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Ah-Mer-Ah-Su

Star Amerasu, a self-professed “poptronic princess,” chronicles her complicated encounters with anti-anxiety medicines known as benzodiazepines (or benzos) in the song “Klonopin.” The light lullaby peeks into the taboo topic of prescription pill use and abuse. “I got problems, you got problems, they got problems, we all got problems / Why don’t we just run away, come again another day,” Amerasu sings.

Find Ah-Mer-Ah-Su on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Against Me!

In “Transgender Dysphoria Blues,” Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! tells the tale of gender dysphoria. “You want them to see you / Like they see every other girl,” Grace sings. “They just see a faggot / They’ll hold their breath not to catch the sick.” The punk rock track seeps the pain and frustration that many transgender people feel. Since coming out publicly in 2012, Grace has talked often and openly of her identity. Recently, Grace told SF Weekly that she feels free — a sensation she never had in the first part of the band’s life.

Find Against Me! on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Ethel Cain

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Since her debut in 2019, Ethel Cain — the haunting, righteous persona inhabited by singer-songwriter Hayden Anhedönia — has been crafting her own dark world to mirror the reality we all live in. That universe came into full fruition on 2022’s Preacher’s Daughter, a moving alternative album tracking a story about trying to live up to the impossible expectations of the American Dream, especially as a transgender woman struggling to find acceptance. It’s just one testament to Cain’s staying power as a musical auteur that she can craft a story that simultaneously disquiets your mind, while also never letting your attention stray from her phenomenal music.

Find Ethel Cain on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

The Cliks

Lucas Silveria, known as the front man of The Cliks, was one of the first transgender men to be signed to a major label recording contract. The Cliks released Snakehouse with Warner Music Canada in 2006. After transitioning, Silveria admitted that he needed to take on a new sound. The Motown swing of “Savanna” is something to be swayed by.

Find The Cliks on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Dua Saleh

Non-binary artist Dua Saleh is here to give you honesty. The rising rap-meets-R&B-meets-pop phenomenon out of of Minnesota writes what they feel on the regular, whether it’s pain (“Cat Scratch”), pleasure (“Day to Day”) or anything in between. With a voice you won’t be able to get out of your head and a tendency towards enthralling production, Saleh is an artist more than worthy of listening to ASAP.

Find Dua Saleh on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Cavetown

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For indie artist Robin Skinner, a.k.a. Cavetown, the name of the game is community. Along with crafting instantly-catchy indie-rock tracks, Skinner spent much of his career building their core fanbase through direct interaction — whether that’s on video sharing sites like YouTube or through streaming platforms like Twitch. Using their platform to give back when the opportunity arises, as well as dedicating some of their songs to their community, Cavetown has proven the power of platform time and time again.

Find Cavetown on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

KC Ortiz

“When I was 17 or 18, I wanted to be the next Lil’ Kim,” Chicago-based rapper KC Ortiz told Billboard in an conversation with LCD Soundsystem’s Gavin Rayna Russom about President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender military members. The former Air Force personnel released her second album Church Tapes this July.

Find KC Ortiz on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Nakhane

South African star wants to show you a good time. The pop singer-songwriter spent much of their career blazing their own trail as an openly non-binary African star. It was with their 2018 masterwork You Will Not Die that they captured the attention of veritable stars like Elton John and Madonna. Nakhane’s versatile musical voice lends itself toward change more often than not, meaning you never know what to expect when you press play on their latest work — making it all the more fun to find out what they have in store for you.

Find Nakhane on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

Reba McEntire prefers to stay out of politics, but when it comes to the recent anti-drag laws passed in Tennessee, she’s making her opinion clear.

In an interview with the L.A. Times published Friday (March 31), the 68-year-old country queen opened up about feeling “disappointed,” but not surprised, by the actions of the state’s Gov. Bill Lee. Earlier this month, the politician signed widely controversial laws banning minors from receiving gender-affirming care and blocking drag queens from performing in many public spaces.

“I wish they would spend that much time and energy and money on feeding the homeless children in those two counties,” she countered.

The “Survivor” singer reasserted her policy of staying out of politics — “My job is to entertain … I’m not there to influence people one way or another how to vote” — but said she thinks the anti-drag bill missed the mark so clearly, she sees no issue in speaking out about it. “I mean, we’ve got a real problem in this country, and to be worrying about men wanting to dress up as women?” McEntire continued.

“God bless ’em to wear those high heels — I feel for ’em,” added the three-time Grammy winner. “But let’s center our attention on something that really needs attention.”

McEntire is currently gearing up to headline the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles for the first time Saturday (April 1) in addition to coaching contestants on this season of The Voice as a guest mentor, for which she’ll work alongside former daughter-in-law Kelly Clarkson. In 2015, the Reba star divorced Narvel Blackstock, whose son Brandon Blackstock split from Clarkson after seven years of marriage in 2020.

McEntire’s comments about the Tennessee bills come on Transgender Day of Visibility. She joins dozens of other musicians in speaking out against the recent surge of anti-LGBTQ laws, including Paramore’s Hayley Williams, Lizzo, Jason Isbell and more.

Teyana Taylor already looks like she could be Dionne Warwick‘s daughter, with her high cheekbones and bright smile, but the “Bare Wit Me” singer confirmed she’s taking on the role of the beloved icon in an upcoming biopic.

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“We’re already working on it,” Taylor told Tamron Hall in a clip from their interview shared exclusively with Billboard. “We’re in the building process right now. I always wanted to make sure I could lock in with any person that I would be playing.”

Taylor went on to note that she was inspired by Angela Bassett’s portrayal of Tina Turner in 1993’s What’s Love Got to Do With It and Jamie Foxx’s capturing of Ray Charles in 2004’s Ray. “I miss when movies were like that, when you got to really get to know them and tap in,” she added.

Hall shared that given her passion to get to know Warwick, she’ll soon be eating at the “That’s What Friends Are For” star’s favorite Italian restaurant in New Jersey. “We talk almost every day,” Taylor replied excitedly. “That’s my girl.”

Taylor concluded, “I’ve always been a firm believer and stood on safety. She’s had a wonderful career, and I think right now is about making her feel as safe as possible to tell her story because a lot of these stories get misconstrued or dramatized to an extent. That’s not really where we want to go.”

Watch the clip below, and catch the full interview on Tamron Hall Monday (April 3) on ABC.

Lil Yachty has some very bad news for Saturday Night Live cast member Sarah Sherman in one of the promos for this weekend’s show. “Oh my God!,” a nervous Sherman yelps after this week’s host, Abbott Elementary star/producer/writer Quinta Brunson, introduces herself.
“What?” a surprised Brunson asks.

“I just realized, I haven’t paid my taxes,” Sherman frets about not filling out her forms before tax day descends in two weeks. “Oh, that’s okay. You still have a couple weeks,” Brunson assures the sketch player.

“No, I just realized I haven’t paid my taxes… ever,” Sherman squeaks.

After standing silently through two bits, a shades-wearing Yachty laughs and says, “Damn, you are going to jail.”

Sherman is equally sweaty in the first promo, where Brunson tries to talk the comedian off her hyperventilating edge by revealing that it’s Sarah’s first promo shoot and asking her if she’s okay. “Yeah, sorry, I’ve never done this before,” Sherman sheepishly apologizes as Brunson says she can tell.

“Hi, I’m Quinta Brunson and I will be hosting…,” Sherman stammers with eyes wide open. “Oh, no, see that’s my line,” Quinta explains as she and Yachty comfort the clearly shook SNLer. The third bit, of course, leans into a school/detention joke.

Earlier this week it was revealed that SNL will roar back this month with hree back-to-back shows, including an April 8 episode with SNL three-timers the Jonas Brothers performing alongside former cast member Molly Shannon (A Good Person) in her second hosting gig.

On April 15, Karol G will take the 8H stage for the first time with Oscar nominee Ana de Armas (Ghosted), who will also make her SNL debut that night. Saturday Night Live airs live on NBC at 11:30 p.m. ET and streams live on Peacock at the same time.

Check out this week’s SNL promo below.

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Looking to start a music vlog? Sony has unveiled the “ultimate vlog camera” for content creators in need of a gear upgrade.

Touted as the “world’s smallest” and “lightest” full-frame lens camera, Sony’s ZV-E1 Mirrorless Camera is equipped with a whopping 12 megapixels and serves up cinema-grade video content in up to 4K UHD.

The ZV-E1 Mirrorless Camera, which became available for pre-order on Thursday (March 30), retails for nearly $2,200 by itself and $2,499.99 for the camera and 28-60mm zoom lenses. The camera will hit shelves in May.

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Smaller than Sony’s a7S III Mirrorless Camera and EV-10 Mirrorless Vlog Camera, the ZV-E1 features a full-frame Exmor R CMOS image sensor along with the latest Sony BIONZ XR high-speed processor with up to eight times more processing power to support 4K 60p, 120p upgradable recording.

Additional features include an intuitive AI processing unit to stabilize frames and auto framing, 5-axis image stabilization for stable recording, up to 10x slow motion with full HD resolution, an Intelligent 3 Capsule Microphone that captures clear audio and LED touch screen operation to adjust shooting mode, Cinematic Vlog Setting and other capabilities.

According to Sony, the camera has improved gradation rendering to better capture skin tones, Soft Skin Effects to smooth out wrinkles and blemishes and enhance clarity around the eyes and mouth, and a Bokeh Switch to emphasize the main shooting subject and create “impressive full-frame bokeh in the background.”

The ZV-E1 camera is available in black and white colorways and can record 10-bit 4:2:2 video with direct pixel readout. The dust and moisture-resistant camera is compatible with all Sony E-mount lenses and has a high-capacity Z battery. The camera connects to your computer through USB and offers seamless image transfer to your phone via the Creators’ App.

Pre-order the Sony ZV-E1 Mirrorless Camera below.

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Sony SV-E1 Mirrorless Camera
$2,198

News broke Thursday (March 30) that Megan Thee Stallion is in talks to join the cast of Josh and Benny Safdie’s new Netflix movie.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the rapper — whose legal name is Megan Pete — will appear opposite headlining star Adam Sandler, who last teamed with the Safdies for the acclaimed 2019 crime drama Uncut Gems.

Should Meg nail down a role in the yet-untitled film, it will follow her upcoming big-screen debut in F—ing Identical Twins. Based on the stage production of the same name and directed by Larry Charles, the musical romp from A24 will also star Aaron Jackson, Josh Sharp, Nathan Lane, Megan Mullally and Bowen Yang. Megan previously made a one-off cameo on an episode of Marvel’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, appeared as her alter ego Tina Snow in season 2 of the Starz drama P-Valley, and spent two seasons judging HBO’s ballroom voguing competition series Legendary.

A further pivot into acting adds yet another layer to the Grammy winner’s ever-dynamic career. At the Vanity Fair Oscar party earlier this month, she teased that she’s started working on new music as a follow-up to her sophomore album Traumazine. The 2022 release featured the singles “Sweetest Pie” with Dua Lipa, “Plan B,” “Pressurelicious” featuring Future, “Her” and the Key Glock-assisted “Ungrateful.”

Meanwhile, Tory Lanez has attempted to reignite the legal drama between himself and the female rapper by requesting a new trial after being found guilty last year of shooting her in 2020.

As legislative attacks against the LGBTQ community sharply increase around the United States, indie supergroup Boygenius is offering a fat middle finger to the lawmakers responsible.

In a new interview with Them, the group — Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus — spoke about the rising tide of anti-LGBTQ legislation, and how they’ve seen it affecting their day-to-day lives. The group acknowledged their own privilege as successful musicians, with Dacus poetically saying that they “get to navigate this with an ease that was afforded us by so much pain.”

But Bridgers added that they still feel the impact of these attacks. “The government being actually actively trying to kill the coolest people is something I think about every day,” she said. “It’s so overwhelming how different the world would be if the AIDS epidemic had never happened. It’s so overwhelming to me, to my exact world, everything that I value.”

Speaking about queer rights activists of the ’80s and ’90s, the trio said that the pain and suffering being caused by these new laws directly insults the legacy of those who worked tirelessly to make the world better. “If all of the David Wojnarowiczes and Leslie Feinbergs of the world did all of that suffering for me not to live in a world where I can be so f–king gay on a big stage and have a whole bunch of other gay people here for me and it’d be joy, then it was in vain,” Bridgers said. Baker agreed, adding, “The joy is the living amends that you do for your community as a performer.”

In discussing the future for the LGBTQ community, Dacus said that she wanted to see queer people get to a place of mundanity, like everyone else. “I want every gay and trans person to have the opportunity to be inarticulate, stupid and unexceptional,” she said. “I want to see more cool art by trans people and non-white people, and also poor people”

The trio’s new album, The Record, comes out Friday (March 31).

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
The 2023 CMT Music Awards are coming up this weekend, with the best and brightest in country music heading to Austin for the big night.

Slash, Wynonna Judd & More Set for Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute During CMT Music Awards

03/30/2023

The CMT Music Awards are an entirely fan-voted awards show, and the three-hour ceremony will feature epic performances. Voting for video of the year is still open at vote.cmt.com.
When are the CMT Music Awards?

Hosted Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown, the 2023 CMT Music Awards air live from Austin’s Moody Center on Sunday (April 2) at 8 p.m. ET/PT until 11 p.m. ET/PT on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.
How can I watch the 2023 CMT Music Awards?

Catch the show on CBS or stream live and on-demand on Paramount+.

Can I watch the CMT Music Awards online free?

You can stream the 2023 CMT Music Awards with a free trial from Paramount+. Plans start at $4.99/month for Paramount+ and $9.99/month for Paramount+ Premium, which includes ad-free streaming and live access to your local CBS channel to stream the CMT Awards.

Paramount+ Premium
$9.99/month after 7-day free trial

From movies to award shows and original series, Paramount+ has a little bit of everything. Binge exclusive series like Rabbit Hole, 1923, 1883, School Spirits, Challenge World Championship, The Good Fight, Mayor of Kingstown, Seal Team, Star Trek Discovery, Picard, RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, Why Women Kill, iCarly and Rugrats in addition to sports, news and other programming. (If you’re an Amazon Prime member, click here to subscribe to Paramount+ on Prime Video.)

Want more streaming options? Stream CBS on fuboTV and DirectTV Stream, both of which offer a free trial for up to a week. CBS is also available on SlingTV and Hulu + Live TV.

Viewers from outside of the U.S. can stream CBS and Paramount+ on ExpressVPN.
Who are the 2023 CMT Music Awards nominees?

Lainey Wilson is the leading nominee for this year’s CMT Music Awards. Wilson nabbed four nods including video of the year, female video of the year, collaborative video of the year and CMT performance of the year.

Cody Johnson, Brown and Jelly Roll scored three nominations each. Other nominees include Morgan Wallen, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Ashley McBryde, Elle King, Ballerini, Jimmy Allen, Maren Morris, HARDY, Luke Combs, Darius Rucker, Chris Stapleton and Keith Urban.
Who is performing at the 2023 CMT Music Awards?

Alanis Morissette, Gwen Stefani and Shania Twain will take the stage on Sunday along with previously announced performers including Rucker and The Black Crowes, Jelly Roll, Tyler Hubbard, Wynonna Judd and McBryde, Shelton, Urban, Carly Pearce, Underwood, Kane and Katelyn Brown, Ballerini, Wilson, Avery Anna, Chapel Hart, Jackson Dean, Lily Rose, Megan Moroney and Nate Smith. 

In addition to performing, Twain will be honored with the CMT Equal Play Award. The award recognizes artists who have advocated for diversity and amplifying underrepresented voices in country music.

Slash, Warren Haynes Paul Rogers, Billy Gibbons and Johnson will lead a tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd celebrating the 50th anniversary of the band’s self-titled debut album. LeAnn Rimes and Judd will join in as The Honkettes.

Fans can catch an extended edition of the 2023 CMT Music Awards next week. CMT Music Awards Extended Cut, featuring 30 minutes of new performances and bonus footage, premieres on CMT on April 6 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.