Dance
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The tenth edition of Art of the Wild is happening this fall at the Wynn Las Vegas. The lineup for the biannual event, which focuses largely on house and techno and this year expands from three to four days, features a team of genre stars including Swedish pioneer Eric Prydz, English legend Fatboy Slim, house […]
Brat Summer is a state of mind, but in actuality, the season will come to an end in about a month. Before it does, though, Charli XCX is teasing that one more surprise is on its way — and it just might involve another guest artist putting a new spin on one of her critically acclaimed album’s tracks.
In a TikTok posted Wednesday (Aug. 14), the 32-year-old pop star walks outside while singing along to a fan-made mash-up of her single “360” and Fleetwood Mac’s iconic hit “Dreams.” “I’m in Poland.. there’s a whiff of autumn in the breeze..,” she wrote in white text over the video. “Something is shifting.”
“maybe one more remix and then ?” she added in the caption.
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If the video’s audio is any hint as to what song will be reimagined next, “360” could be getting a second remix following the previously released version featuring Robyn and Yung Lean. Or, Charli could be planning to expand upon any of her other Brat tracks, something fans took to the comments to speculate on.
One person, for instance, suggested that “Apple” — which has inspired one of the summer’s trendiest TikTok dances — should get a Midwest Princess twist. “apple featuring chappell roan i plead,” they wrote.
“sympathy is a knife ft taylor,” another person predicted, likely alluding to rumors that the English singer-songwriter penned the track about Taylor Swift.
The latter isn’t totally out of the realm of possibility, given the story behind the “Girl, So Confusing” remix featuring Lorde. After writing the song about her tense relationship with the “Supercut” musician, Charli recruited her to transform it into a duet, restoring their friendship to solidly good terms in the process.
Other previous Brat remixes include “Von Dutch” featuring Addison Rae and, most recently, “Guess” featuring Billie Eilish, which debuted at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Watch Charli’s TikTok below.
More than 30 artists are set to play Day Zero 2025, once again happening in Tulum, Mexico, this Jan. 11. Leading the house and techno-focused lineup is Turkish-Italian phenom Carlita, South African twins Major League DJz, global club legend DJ Harvey, U.K. favorite Fatboy Slim and a crew of other acts including Lee Burridge, Francesca […]
Charli XCX’s “Guess,” featuring Billie Eilish, soars to No. 1, from No. 16, on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart (dated Aug. 17).
The song surged by 758% to 20.4 million official streams and 515% to 5,000 downloads sold in the United States Aug. 2-8, according to Luminate. It also drew 182,000 in radio audience.
“Guess” gains following the Aug. 1 arrival of its remix with Eilish, which accounted for the bulk of the song’s overall consumption in the tracking week. The cut was first released by Charli XCX solo on June 10 on her Brat and It’s the Same but There’s Three More Songs So It’s Not deluxe version of her Atlantic Records album Brat, which was originally released on June 7.
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Charli notches her second No. 1 since Hot Dance/Electronic Songs began in January 2013, after Icona Pop’s “I Love It,” on which she’s featured, led for two weeks that May. Eilish reigns with her first entry on the chart.
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“Guess” concurrently debuts at No. 3 on the Billboard Global 200 and No. 5 on Billboard Global Excl. U.S. On the U.S.-based, all-genre multimetric Billboard Hot 100, it opens at No. 12, marking Charli XCX’s highest rank (and first top 40 placement) since she arrived with three consecutive top 10s in 2013-14: “I Love It” (No. 7 peak, May 2013); Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” (No. 1 for seven weeks, beginning in June 2014); and “Boom Clap” (No. 8, October 2014).
Meanwhile, Charli’s presence on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs extends beyond “Guess,” as she boasts six songs in the top 10. Only Drake and Rihanna have each logged as many or more top 10s simultaneously, led by Drake’s eight on the July 2, 2022, chart, when his LP Honestly, Nevermind launched its 20-week run at No. 1 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums.
Brat rules Top Dance/Electronic Albums for a ninth week, having led in each week on the survey since its debut. It earned 56,000 equivalent album units, up 39%, and wins the list’s Greatest Gainer award for a third consecutive week.
Eight tracks from Brat have hit the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs top 10 to date. Here’s a recap, ranked by their peak positions:
No. 1 (one week to date), “Guess,” feat. Billie Eilish
No. 2, “360”
No. 3, “Girl, So Confusing,” with Lorde
No. 4, “Apple”
No. 5, “Talk Talk”
No. 7, “Von Dutch”
No. 8, “365”
No. 10, “Sympathy Is a Knife”
Also notably, Charli has claimed at least one of the Greatest Gainer ribbons on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs in nine of the last 10 weeks, spread among five tracks from Brat:
Aug. 17: “Guess,” streaming & sales; “360,” airplay
Aug. 10: “Guess,” streaming & sales; “360,” airplay
Aug. 3: “Apple,” streaming & sales
July 27: “Apple,” streaming
July 13: “360,” airplay
July 6: “Girl, So Confusing,” streaming & sales
June 29: “Guess,” streaming
June 22: “360,” streaming; “Von Dutch,” sales
June 15: “360,” streaming & sales
As “Guess” takes the week’s top headlines among Brat songs, “360” continues its climb as the set’s promoted radio single. It bounds 35-27 in its second week on the Pop Airplay chart. Charli has tallied two No. 1s on the ranking: “Fancy” and “Boom Clap” led for three weeks each in 2014.
Matt McBriar of U.K. electronic duo Bicep announced Tuesday (Aug. 13) that he underwent surgery for a benign brain tumor last week.
In a statement posted to the duo’s Instagram, McBriar wrote that doctors discovered a large tumor on his pituitary gland after a series of tests. This tumor was caught in the early stages, with McBriar writing that had the tumor been found later, “I might’ve lost some eyesight and a load of other problems due to the size and position of the tumour pressing on my optic nerves.”
McBriar continues that he continued playing shows while undergoing testing as it was “personally important to keep my mind busy!” He adds that the other half of Bicep, Andy Ferguson, will continue playing shows solo “until further notice” as he heals. Read the complete statement below.
Bicep’s upcoming dates include Creamfields in the U.K., Philadelphia’s Making Time Festival, The Brooklyn Mirage, Portola in San Francisco and San Diego’s Crssd festival, with all of these performances featuring the duo’s much-lauded AV show, Chroma.
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McBriar’s full statement:
Towards the end of 2023, I got some intense localised headaches matched with a weird fatigue that felt new. I got several blood tests in spring 2024 which came back indicating that something was wrong, so my GP arranged an MRI followed by a CT scan.
Unfortunately, they told me they had discovered a large, and pretty rare Craniopharyngioma tumour on my pituitary gland (in my brain). The good news is firstly, it’s almost certainly not cancerous and secondly, I’ve caught it in the earlier stages of damage. I’d been very lucky to get those initial blood tests followed by an MRI. Had it been much longer I might’ve lost some eyesight and a load of other problems due to the size and position of the tumour pressing on my optic nerves.
I’ve been through many many rounds of hospital appointments and tests since and finally had surgery on 9th of August.
I decided to carry on living life and playing shows as normal and it was personally important to keep my mind busy! The operation went well and I’m currently recovering in hospital. Recovery will be at least 6-8 weeks and a long road of aftercare but I’m feeling incredibly grateful and lucky.
I’d like to say a huge thank you to all the amazing consultants, surgeons, doctors and nurses at the NHS who have looked after me and been so amazing, kind and empathetic.
The support I’ve received has been incredible, I can’t say this enough. Appointments were arranged with sometimes only hours’ notice and communication incredibly fast and direct. Our healthcare system is very precious and worth fighting for!
Whilst I am in recovery Andy will be performing upcoming shows as Bicep solo until further notice. Thanks for understanding.
Finally, a heartfelt thanks to my family, friends and work colleagues who have been my absolute rock through this behind the scenes.
Trance fans rejoice, and prepare to open your wallets. On Monday (Aug. 12), 12-inch vinyl editions of more than 50 classic trance tracks and albums are going up for auction via Amplyfied, the online auction platforms that specializes in music collections and experiences and has previously hosted auctions for artists like Danny Tenaglia and events […]
Following a flurry of noise complaints about HARD Summer 2024, Inglewood, Calif., Mayor James T. Butts Jr. has released a statement about the issues experienced at the electronic music festival that took place last Saturday and Sunday (Aug. 3-4) at the city’s Hollywood Park Complex at SoFi Stadium.
“We were perplexed at the sound propagation experienced in the South Bay, because there have been multiple outdoor concerts on the SoFi campus without this issue,” Butts wrote in a statement released by the Mayor’s Office Friday (Aug. 9) and provided to Billboard. “After meeting with representatives from the event promoter and the venue, we conducted a thorough review of the modifications and changes made between Saturday and Sunday of HARD Summer, specifically in response to noise complaints from neighboring communities.”
This is the first time HARD Summer, which has been happening at locations around Southern California since 2008, has been held at Hollywood Park.
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Butts’ statement continues, “It is important to clarify that the sound and vibration issues experienced over the weekend were related to certain bass frequencies,” adding that such frequencies can be affected by stage position, reflection off of buildings and weather factors like the wind.
Butts notes that bass vibrations were first reported in nearby El Segundo on Saturday afternoon, not long after the two-day festival began, although online commenters first reported experiencing the noise issues on Friday (Aug. 2) while the festival was doing sound checks. Local paper The Daily Breeze reported that “the El Segundo Police Department received so many complaints on the festival’s first night that the law enforcement agency posted a notice on the social media platform X asking residents to stop calling 911.”
HARD Summer is produced by Insomniac Events, which puts on many major global electronic music festivals including EDC Las Vegas. The HARD Summer 2024 lineup featured electronic artists including Disclosure, Major Lazer, deadmau5, Sub Focus, Chase & Status, Sofi Tukker and many more. The 300-acre Hollywood Park Complex adjacent to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood featured four stages during the festival, with one of them located in the Stadium’s American Airlines Plaza and the other three located around the Complex’s sprawling parking lot.
Butts’ statement notes that the stage in the American Airlines Plaza was “a major contributor to the issue” given that the area is elevated. He adds that no stages will be permitted in this area for future events and that “we will require even greater sound engineering with a more comprehensive plan when it comes to addressing sound and bass frequency management.”
Following the noise complaints, Butts writes that “city authorities engaged the event promoter and the venue and implemented several critical adjustments to each stage and established enhanced monitoring plans for overall sound and bass levels. Additional sound engineers were strategically positioned in areas of concern from Saturday afternoon through Sunday and were promptly dispatched to make necessary adjustments in real time. As a result, a significant decrease in call volume was observed on Sunday in the initially impacted areas.”
He continues that despite these changes, some in the area continued to experience the effects of the bass vibrations — including rattling windows and doors — adding that “with the lessons learned this past weekend, we are prepared to better monitor and supervise future event organizers to minimize the sound and vibration impact on the community outside the venue.”
Two other festivals are currently scheduled to take place at the Hollywood Park Complex: Fool In Love on Aug. 31 featuring Lionel Richie and Diana Ross and, in March 2025, Rolling Loud. The lineup for the latter event has yet to be announced.
“Over the past 10 years Inglewood has re-emerged as a premier hub for sports and entertainment,” Butts’ statement concludes. “That title comes with significant responsibility and we are committed to maintaining the highest standards.”
This week in dance music: Empire of the Sun touched down in the Billboard News studio to talk about their new album, Ask That God; we announced that a refurbished Los Angeles grocery store will soon host sets by artists including Floating Points and Orbital, we spoke with Fred again..’s team at Wasserman Music about the artist’s “hugely risky” and wildly successful touring strategy, we reported from this year’s edition of Electric Forest and passed details on how to watch the debut of breakdancing at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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And, of course, it all comes back to the music. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.
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Chase & Status Feat. Stormzy, “Backbone”
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Still riding high on the career-renaissance whipped up by their 2023 Flowdan collab “Baddadan,” d’n’b legends Chase & Status return with what’s essentially a companion piece. Featuring U.K. grime royalty Stormzy, “Backbone” is basically a diss track directed at “p—y MCs” lacking in the titular department, with the rapper’s lyrical bullets matched by a crisp, walloping, characteristically booming production from the duo. The release comes nearly four months after Chase & Status brought Stormzy out during their Coachella performance for “Backbone”s debut.
Loud Luxury feat. Bobby Shmurda, “Cool Like That”
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There’s a dance music love story embedded into the beats of this collab from Loud Luxury and Bobby Shmurda, with the rapper reaching out to the duo after getting into dance music while serving time, as he wasn’t able to listen to music with explicit lyrics while incarcerated. Drawn to the positivity and euphoric tendencies of dance, Shmurda subsequently linked with Canadian producers in the studio for “Cool Like That,” a driving tech house-meets-big room track with layers of tough percussion that are built around Shmurda’s commanding, rapidfire flow. The trio recently stopped by the Billboard News studio to tell us the backstory behind the single, which they also performed last weekend at Lollapalooza last weekend, and which is out now on Armada.
Jayda G, “Feeling Alive”
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The feel of the song is right there in its name, with this sublime house track from Jayda G giving that feeling of joy and aliveness that so much of dance music specializes in. Out via Ninja Tune, the song comes amid a big summer for the UK producer, who’s coming hot off big performances at Tomorrowland, Glastonbury and Pacha Ibiza, and who’s also doing it all while pregnant. “’Guy’ was really me exploring and, you know, pushing my sound to the next level,” the artist says of her 2023 album. “‘Feeling Alive’ is me kind of taking that into a real pure dance music form. Knowing that my album was largely about loss and grief and death, this is me focussing on the joyful celebratory part of my life, because I know I have a lot of things to be happy for!” Turn this one up, because we assure it’s going to make you pretty happy, too.
Kelly Lee Owens, “Sunshine”
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Welsh producer Kelly Lee Owens delivers textural IDM as warm as its title suggests. That’s not to say that “Sunshine” doesn’t also hit hard, however — with the track ramping up to a lush, danceable swirl on which Owens’ own spare vocals add an extra flourish. The song comes in tandem with the announcement that she’s going on tour in Europe and the U.K. this fall.
Laidback Luke feat. Marlonbeats, “One On One”
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For “One On One,” Laidback Luke links with the producer marlonbeats, with the duo’s respective techniques likely syncing so well because they’re father and son. This undeniably effective house track marks Luke’s return to Dim Mak after a seven year absence, with the Dutch pioneer calling the song “my birthday gift to my son Marlonbeats for his 21st Birthday.”
He goes on to say his son is “what you would call a ‘Daddy’s Boy,’ but because of my intense career and abundant traveling, he has missed me most of his childhood. I’ve always tried to balance being a good dad with my DJ career, and it’s always been a juggling act. Interestingly, he started producing a few years ago and while figuring this out by himself, he soon realized his dad is a real producer. Furthermore, he also started to DJ recently and is only grasping now why I was always gone.”
Christoph x Sandy Rivera feat. Hayze, “Changes”
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U.K. producer Christoph links with the house legend Sandy Rivera (whose work you may also know from his Kings of Tomorrow project) as part of Defected Records’ Together project, which pairs newer artists with scene veterans as part of the label’s 25 year anniversary celebrations. The outcome here is the hypnotic, moody “Changes,” a track made for that moment when the dancefloor transitions from peaktime to cool down while still maintaining muscle.
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While breaking (or breakdancing) started in The Bronx in New York City during the early ’80s, it’s now part of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The new event is set to make its debut on Friday, Aug. 9.
Breaking takes place at the Place de la Concorde. Check out a complete schedule of the event here.
When Do the Breakdancing Events Start?
Breaking starts on Friday, Aug. 9, at 8:30 a.m. ET/5:30 a.m. PT. It ends on Saturday, Aug. 10, at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT, or during NBC’s Primetime in Paris coverage at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
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Men’s and women’s breaking are available to watch live and stream on-demand. The events broadcast across E! and NBC, as well as streaming on Peacock.
How to Watch Summer Olympics: Breaking on Peacock
Can you stream breaking on Peacock? Yes, Peacock goes for $7.99 per month for the Premium plan and $13.99 per month for the Premium Plus plan — both plans include coverage of all Olympic sports.
Unfortunately, Peacock isn’t offering any deals at the moment, but you can get a discount, if you subscribe to the annual plan starting at $79.99 per year (12 months for the price of 10). The streaming service also has discounts for students and teachers with prices starting at $1.99 per month.
Where to Watch the Olympic Breakdancing Events for Free
If you’re a cord-cutter, then there are a number of ways to watch breaking without cable — especially if you want to watch for free. DirecTV Stream has a five-day free trial, while others such as Fubo and Hulu + Live TV offer free trials too. This is a good way to watch E! and NBC without spending money up front.
Keep reading for more details on how to watch Summer Olympics: Breaking on E! and NBC with DirecTV Stream, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV and others.
How to Watch Summer Olympics: Breaking on DirecTV Stream
A subscription to DirecTV Stream gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels, starting at $79.99 per month. The service even offers a five-day free trial to watch for free, if you sign up now.
You can watch local networks such as NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox and PBS, while you can also watch cable networks, including E!, FX, AMC, A&E, Bravo, Cartoon Network, ESPN, FS1, VH1, Fuse, CNN, Food Network, Lifetime, CNBC, BET, MTV, Paramount Network and many others.
How to Watch Summer Olympics: Breaking on Fubo
Fubo starts at $79.99 per month with nearly 200 channels — including local and cable — that are streamable on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and on web browsers. And with a seven-day free trial, you can watch for free, if you act fast and sign up now.
The services gets you live access to local broadcast networks including NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox, while it also has dozens of cable networks, such as E!, FX, Bravo, TLC, ESPN, FS1, MTV, CMT, ID, Ion, OWN, Paramount Network, TV Land, VH1 and much more.
How to Watch Summer Olympics: Breaking on Hulu + Live TV
The networks E! and NBC are available to watch with Hulu + Live TV too. Prices for the cable alternative start at $76.99 per month, while each plan comes with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ at no additional cost.
Hulu + Live TV might be best for those who want all of these streaming services together in one package. It also features many other networks, like CBS, ABC, Fox, BET, CMT, Disney Channel, ESPN, Hallmark Channel and more.
More Ways to Watch
Viewers who want to stream the Olympics internationally can use ExpressVPN, NordVPN and PureVPN to access several streaming platforms.
Meanwhile, if you’re an Xfinity subscriber, you can also save on Peacock. Subscribers to Xfinity’s StreamSaver and Internet plan and watch Peacock, Netflix and Apple TV+ bundled together for $35 per month. In addition, Xfinity Diamond and Platinum rewards members can get Peacock free of charge via rewards points.
Summer Olympics: Breaking broadcasts on E! and NBC starting on Friday, Aug. 9, at 8:30 a.m. ET/5:30 a.m. PT. Peacock and DirecTV Stream are the best ways to watch the event.
Nike Jam
Speaking of debuts, Nike just released the Nike Jam sneakers. These are the first pair of shoes from the sports apparel company that were specifically designed for breaking. Nike partnered with New York City-based artist Futura on a new sneaker and streetwear collaboration.
Nike
“The outcome is amazing,” Futura said in a press release. “The Jam is a beautiful, brand-new model that’s been created from the ground up for what the dancers themselves want to perform and feel comfortable in.”
The Nike Jam come in unisex sizes and in black, gum light brown, gum medium brown and metallic silver (pictured above) and dark driftwood, hemp, sail and black colorways. A pair retails for $120 at Nike.com.
Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox deals, studio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.
Samantha liked that attending Electric Forest took some planning – that it wasn’t one of those festivals that a person just attended on a whim.
“You can’t just buy tickets the night before and decide you’re going the next day – it’s more complicated than that. There’s camping, there’s travel, there’s making sure all of the LED lights on your outfit have the right batteries and are still working from last year,” she said, laughing.
In the 12-month span between Electric Forest 2023 and 2024, which ran June 20-23, Samantha (not her real name) left a “toxic” relationship and was involved in a serious car accident that required intensive physical therapy making it very difficult to walk or stand for long periods of time.
“Knowing that I had to heal my body in order to attend my tenth Electric Forest is what got me through my physical therapy,” she told Billboard. “After the year I had, there was no f***ing way I was going to miss the festival.”
Samantha was one of more than 50,000 fans who attended this year’s sold-out Electric Forest festival in Rothbury, Mich. Produced by AEG and Insomniac on the grounds of the Double JJ Ranch, the 13-year-old event has remained the largest camping festival in the jam and electronic music scene, an impressive feat in a market saturated with smaller, low-cost options targeted at casual fans.
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“Our success begins and ends with the community of fans and supports that make Electric Forest a regular part of their lives,” says Alicia Karlin, vp of global touring and talent at AEG Presents, who serves as the talent buyer for the festival.
That’s impressive considering how much the festival has moved away from the Electric Forest model. A decade ago, festivals like Coachella and Bonnaroo were compelled to offer camping because attendees needed a place to stay for three days. But the shift toward urban centers, and the increasing costs of providing tens of thousands of fans with bathrooms, showers, trash collection and access to medical care has made camping costs prohibitive for many event organizers.
Electric Forest, on the other hand, is 99 percent camping and located in a fairly remote part of the state – the city of Rothbury, which hosts the festival, has a population of less than 450 residents. Attendees bring everything they need for the festival – from camping gear to food and luggage, undergoing rigorous security checks and driving as much as 500 miles in each direction.
Electric Forest 2024
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And while most festivals rely on their headlining artists to move tickets, this year’s festival featured Pretty Lights, Subtronics, Excision, The Disco Biscuits, Umphrey’s McGee and two sets from String Cheese Incident. Moreover, Electric Forest sells out the bulk of its annual tickets before the lineup is announced.
“We have 10 stages and a huge creative team and cast,” Karlin tells Billboard. “The agents and managers we work with trust us to put their artists in the best light and we’ve gotten to a point where many artists black out the entire weekend to play the festival and then attend the show the rest of the week.”
Two of Electric Forest’s biggest draws are the Sherwood Forest and Dream Emporium, each enhanced with actors and volunteers and hundreds of set pieces and custom art displays that change from year to year.
Much of the art pieces featured at Electric Forest are commissioned by the festival, explains Brad Lyman, Electric Forest production manager and creative director, who said the event receives more than 60 commission requests per year and accepts about 5 new pieces including a new Ocular organ delivered for 2024.
The Sherwood Forest separates the festivals main stages and camping areas with dozens of different areas and hidden pockets waiting to be discovered, from a field filled with hammocks to a small chapel where weddings are performed and walkways decorated by hundreds of Thai parasols.
The festival’s complex lightning and laser design is handled by Felix Lighting of Los Angeles while the festival’s walk-through experience – the Dream Emporium, is managed onsite by a team of creative professionals led by Suzanne Down.
“It’s kind of a choose your own adventure,” explains Down, who welcomes visitors to the Dream Emporium into a small lounge set up for UFO karaoke into a mirrored infinity tunnel designed to look like a 1970s car wash. Visitors wander the maze-like complex and stumble upon a skating rink wither roller skates available for rental, an indoor lake with a yacht and a punk dive bar that doubles as a wrestling ring.
Many artists get their start at Electric Forest playing one of the outdoor activations, Karlin explained, or even playing one of the late-night parties within the campground that often draw thousands of fans.
“There is always something to discover wherever you go, and fans tell us they really enjoy and appreciate the opportunity to discover something new each year,” Karlin explains. “That’s what motivates us as well. There’s a tremendous amount of time and resources that goes into Electric Forest but hearing these positive stories from fans year after year really puts it all into perspective.”