Music News

26 Jul 2024

Billboard Explains: Singer-Songwriter Zach Bryan’s Journey to Leading a Musical ‘Revival’

Even before “Something in the Orange” propelled genre-fluid singer-songwriter Zach Bryan into wider public awareness, he has been a consistent force on multiple Billboard charts.

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With his latest album, The Great American Bar Scene, just released, Billboard dives into Bryan’s journey on the Billboard charts. Bryan was born in Okinawa, Japan, but was raised in Oklahoma. He began writing songs in his teens, and enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 17; he made music in his spare time while serving in the Navy, and finished serving at age 25. He started in music by uploading videos to YouTube in 2017.

Bryan’s first appearance on a Billboard chart was in 2020, when his second album, Elisabeth, landed on the Heatseekers Albums chart, while the set’s “Heading South” became his first entry on Billboard‘s Hot Rock and Alternative Songs chart, peaking at No. 27.

In May 2022, the success of Bryan’s songs “From Austin” and “Highway Boys” aided him in earning the No. 1 spot on Billboard‘s Emerging Artists chart. Another of his potent songs, “Something in the Orange,” became his first Billboard Hot 100 hit, peaking at No. 10 with 66 weeks on the chart. Since then, he’s amassed 42 Hot 100 entries, including a trio of top 10 hits on the chart, while his Kacey Musgraves collaboration “I Remember Everything” became both artists’ first Hot 100 chart-topper.

Bryan’s latest single, “Pink Skies,” peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100, while he’s earned 21 top 10 hits on the Hot Rock and Alternative Songs chart to date, including his collaboration with The War and Treaty, “Hey Driver,” and “Sarah’s Place” featuring Noah Kahan.

Bryan’s genre-fluid style has earned him hits in multiple genre charts, including a dozen top 10 hits on the Hot Country Songs chart, including “East Side of Sorrow” and “28.”

He’s released a string of albums and EPs over the past few years, and made his Billboard 200 debut in June 2022 with his album American Heartbreak. In 2023, his self-titled album debuted at No. 1. In July 2024, he released The Great American Bar Scene, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200, and took the top spot on the Top Country Albums chart, the Top Rock and Alternative Albums chart and the Folk/Americana Albums chart.

Given Bryan’s prolific nature thus far, it seems likely that he will soon add to these Billboard stats with more music.

Watch the Billboard Explains video about Zach Bryan above.

26 Jul 2024

Here Are All the Musicians at the 2024 Paris Olympics

The 2024 Paris Olympics are officially in full swing, and the French capital has been taken over by athletes, artists, fans and celebrities.

BTS’ Jin was tapped to be South Korea’s official representative in the ceremonial torch relay. He led a 200-meter portion of the run that went by the Louvre Museum, before handing the torch back over to Sandra Laoura, a former French national freestyle skier in front of the iconic Louvre Pyramid.“It was an honor to be part of such a meaningful moment. I was able to take on the honorable role of a torchbearer thanks to the support of ARMY (BTS’ official fandom),” Jin said in a statement after participating in the relay on July 14. “I am truly grateful. I was so nervous to the point of not knowing how the time passed, but I was able to do my best thanks to the many people on site who loudly cheered me on,” he continued of the thrill of taking part in the relay whose themes are “harmony” and “peace.”

Snoop Dogg joined NBC’s team to report on the games this summer, and will be onsite to deliver “regular reports” on the Olympic Primetime Show. Snoop was also a torchbearer, carrying the torch through the streets of Saint-Denis, the northern Paris suburb that houses the Stade de France Olympic Stadium.

Lady Gaga was the first star to take the stage during the Opening Ceremony, delivering a cabaret-style performance of the French-language “Mon Truc en Plume” (“My Thing With Feathers”) in a minutes-long, highly choreographed routine, at one point playing piano.

Additionally, stars like Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Rosalía, Mick Jagger and more were spotted in attendance of the Olympic festivities in Paris.

To celebrate all the musician attendees and contributors for the 2024 Paris Olympics, check out our photo gallery below.

26 Jul 2024

Soulja Boy Reacts to Drake’s ‘Super Soak’ Sub: ‘This Not Gon’ Be the Best Idea for You’

Soulja Boy responds to Drake‘s supposed “sneak diss” on his new song “Super Soak” with Lil Yachty.

The Atlanta rapper took Drake mentioning Soulja’s label Stacks on Deck (SODMG) as a response to him waking up and tweeting about how he disappointed he is in Drizzy the other day. “You disappointed me,” he wrote at the time. “Doing all them weak a– songs with them n—az look where It got u none of them n—az you collab with or took on tour had yo back.”

Then about a week later, Kai Cenat played “Super Soak” with Lil Yachty and Drake on his stream, where the Toronto rapper, said, “I’m watchin’ the moves, playin’ it close/ S.O.D., super soak.”

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Obviously, Big Draco felt the need to respond.

He hopped on Instagram Live and had a message for the OVO boss. “And Drake, you up here talkin’ about some S.O.D. super soak,” he said as he walk around his house. “Boy, stop playin’ wit’ me, boy. That better be a f—king shout out, n—a. If you in any way try to sneak diss me or play with me in any type of way, bruh, I’m tellin’ you, my n—a, Imma get on your a– … How the f—k you let Kendrick Lamar cook yo’ a– and then the first thing you respond is you tryna come at me.”

He later added: “Drake, you better keep that s—t light, my boy. This your first and only warning.” Soulja also suggested “this not gon’ be the best idea for you, family,” and then told Drake to “speak on how you feel” so they can “get to it.”

Billboard has reached out to Drake’s rep for comment.

It’s also relevant to point out, Soulja also has a song named “Super Soak” that he dropped in 2007.

26 Jul 2024

What’s Your Favorite New Music Release of the Week? Vote!

It’s an exciting week in music, with some of the top music artists from every genre dropping some hot new tracks, albums, collaborations and more.

Ice Spice unveiled her long-awaited debut album, Y2K!. The 10-song set features previously released singles “Phat Butt,” “Think U the S— (Fart)” and “Gimmie a Light.” “Think U the S— (Fart)” became Ice’s highest charting unaccompanied solo Billboard Hot 100 hit to date. Y2K! also features three collaborations with Travis Scott (“Oh Shhh…”), Gunna (“Bitch I’m Packin’”) and Central Cee (“Did It First”), the lattermost of which debuted at No. 62 on the Hot 100 dated July 27.

Meanwhile, Post Malone is continuing his F-1 Trillion roll-out by teaming up with two-time CMA entertainer of the year winner Luke Combs for a new collaboration, “Guy for That.” MGK also teamed up with Jelly Roll this week for “Lonely Road” and Calvin Harris reunited with Ellie Goulding for “Free.”

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Halsey brought the nostalgia with “Lucky,” which interpolates the chorus from Britney Spears’ 2000 hit of the same name. “When I was 5, it always felt like Britney was singing directly to me,” they wrote over the video rocking pink hair and a t-shirt that says “Lucky” across the front. “24 years later, these words hit different. love you forever.” 

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That’s just the tip of the iceberg. We want to know your favorite music drop of the week. Check out our Friday Music Guide here, and let us know by voting below.

26 Jul 2024

Ice Spice Transforms Into the Statue of Liberty for NYC-Themed ‘Oh Shhh…’ Video With Travis Scott

If New York City ever needs to replace the Statue of Liberty, Ice Spice is here to take the torch. The 24-year-old celebrates her Big Apple roots with the “Oh Shhh…” video featuring Travis Scott, which arrived on Friday (July 26).

Directed by George Buford, Ice Spice starts off the visual in a glass case as a roped-off exhibit inside a museum as elderly onlookers gawk at the the Bronx rapper. She takes over Ellis Island as the new Statue of Liberty, but puts her own baddie twist on the torch and crown with a green dress and a stack of cash.

Ice and La Flame link up at NYC hotspot Sei Less, where they’re greeted with a feast featuring a full spread of the menu. Always one to promote his brands, Scott pours up a Cacti drink on a twerking Ice Spice.

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Trav gives a shout-out to Sei Less on his starry verse and sticks with the NYC theme when referencing how he wants to buy the New York Knicks from current majority owner James Dolan. “To smoke, we brought us some nics/ I told Dolan to sell us the Knicks/ Like the flow, Jalen Brunson won’t trip, man,” he raps on the RIOTUSA drill production.

Chaos breaks out to end the clip as the city’s burning down, and Scott is launching grapes into the camera at the fusion restaurant.

Scott and Ice Spice previewed their Y2K! collaboration during the Houston native’s Circus Maximus Tour stop in London. Spice made a surprise appearance for the live debut of “Oh Shhh…” at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on July 11.

Y2K! hit streaming services on Friday. Ice’s debut album boasts 10 tracks in total with additional assists from Central Cee and Gunna.

Watch the “Oh Shhh…” video below.

26 Jul 2024

Lady Gaga Stuns in 2024 Olympics Opening Ceremony Performance by Singing in French

After days of rumors that Lady Gaga would be performing at the 2024 Olympics, the pop superstar was the first artist to take the stage in Paris during the Opening Ceremony Friday (July 26).

The show-stopping display opened on a gold staircase with a slew of dancers clad in black, holding fluffy pink pom poms that concealed the headliner’s face. After teasing her presence by doing a saucy dance with only her legs visible, the poms cleared from her face to show that Gaga, indeed, had arrived.

The Grammy winner continued to belt out the French-language “Mon Truc en Plume” (“My Thing With Feathers”) in a minutes-long, highly choreographed routine, at one point playing piano. In honor of the Games’ host country this year, the star opted for a vintage, Parisian cabaret-style performance, hamming up her movements with every opportunity.

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Gaga’s appearance came partway through the procession of the Olympic athletes on the Seine, with each country’s team arriving to the ceremony on boats waving patriotic flags. Elsewhere in the ceremony, the Olympic cauldron will be symbolically lit following a months-long torch relay, in which Snoop Dogg, BTS’ Jin and Pharrell Williams participated.

The A Star Is Born actress was previously rumored to be performing a duet of “La Vie en Rose” with Celine Dion, who is also reportedly set to take the stage on the Seine Friday. In the days leading up to her performance, Gaga was spotted greeting fans in Paris outside of her hotel.

Her trip to France comes in the midst of the singer teasing that her upcoming seventh album is in the works. She recently shared photos from the studio and wrote, “Happy as ever making music … feel so grateful, heart is peaceful. It’s like meditation. I can’t wait for you to hear what I’m working on.”

The singer is also closing in on the release of Joker: Folie à Deux, in which she stars as Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role. A teaser trailer for the dark movie musical dropped earlier this year, promising an Oct. 4 theatrical release date.

26 Jul 2024

Shaboozey’s ‘A Bar Song (Tipsy)’ Tops Country Airplay, Marking Its First Radio Chart Crown

Shaboozey scores his first No. 1 in his first appearance on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart as “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” ascends to the top of the tally dated Aug. 3. It increased by 14% to 31.4 million audience impressions July 19-25, according to Luminate.

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The song by the Virginia native (born Collins Obinna Chibueze) interpolates J-Kwon’s 2004 hip-hop classic “Tipsy,” having helped it become the first song to go top 10 on the following charts: Country Airplay, Rhythmic Airplay, Pop Airplay and Adult Pop Airplay. Notably, the Country Airplay coronation for “A Bar Song” is its first on any airplay ranking. (It bullets at its Nos. 4, 5 and 6 highs on Rhythmic Airplay, Pop Airplay and Adult Pop Airplay, respectively.)

Plus, “A Bar Song” marks the first Country Airplay No. 1 for an artist with an initial entry on the chart since Warren Zeiders’ “Pretty Little Poison” led in March.

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On lists dated July 27, “A Bar Song” spent its sixth week at No. 1 on the multimetric Hot Country Songs chart and a second frame atop the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.

‘Chevrolet’ Pulls Into Top 10

Dustin Lynch’s “Chevrolet,” featuring Jelly Roll, rides into the Country Airplay top 10 (11-10; 19 million, up 5%).

With the song, which updates Dobie Gray’s iconic hit “Drift Away,” Lynch adds his 12th top 10 on the survey and first since “Stars Like Confetti” hit No. 2 last November. He earned his eighth and most recent leader when “Thinking ‘Bout You,” featuring MacKenzie Porter, began a six-week domination in December 2021.

Jelly Roll nets his fifth career-opening Country Airplay top 10, following four consecutive No. 1s; “Halfway to Hell” became his latest leader in June. He has an additional track on ranking, as his newest solo single, “I Am Not Okay,” rises 18-17 (10 million, up 13%).

26 Jul 2024

Kai Cenat Tries to Do a Push-Up With Ice Spice on His Back During Livestream in U-Haul Truck: Watch

Ahead of Ice Spice’s Y2K! debut arrival, The Bronx princess joined Kai Cenat for a livestream in NYC from the back of a U-Haul truck on Thursday night (July 25).

Cenat traded the penthouse for a large vehicle, but still got the job done. Ice Spice and her producer RIOTUSA joined the stream for about an hour.

The “Deli” rapper previously streamed with Kai Cenat in August 2023 and they ran it back in celebration of Y2K! on Thursday night. Spice pulled up in her glistening butterfly chain and a gray Chanel tracksuit.

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The 24-year-old said she’s feeling “very confident” in her debut album, and to not be surprised to see Cenat pop up for a cameo in an upcoming visual.

One of the viral moments came when Ice Spice challenged Kai to do push-ups, and then she hopped on his back for one, which caused him to collapse on the floor. “Goddamn, Ice, that a–! Oh s–t. Oh f–k,” Cenat said in agony.

Ice Spice wasn’t having any of it. “Get the f–k up,” she demanded. “Why did I thought you was strong enough to do it?”

There was another point when Kai Cenat threw on a beat for Ice to freestyle over, but instead, she just twerked to the beat. “Y’all liked my freestyle. That was my freestyle,” she joked. “I told y’all, Kai stays supporting me.”

Y2K! hit streaming services on Friday (July 26). The LP features 10 tracks with assists from Travis Scott, Gunna and Central Cee.

Watch the full stream between Kai Cenat and Ice Spice below.



26 Jul 2024

Foo Fighters Guitarist Chris Shiflett Pays Sly Tribute to Reds Icon Pete Rose During Cincinnati Stadium Show: ‘Cincinnati Invented Hustle’

The Foo Fighters came to play on a picture-perfect Thursday night (July 25) in Cincinnati on the latest date of their Everything or Nothing At All summer stadium tour. After rocking warm-ups from Wolfgang Van Halen’s WVH and Akron, OH-native Chrissie Hynde’s Pretenders, the veteran band charged onto the stage at Great American Ball Park and got right to work with the one-two punch of “All My Life” and “No Son of Mine,” with the latter meandering through digressions into Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid” and Metallica’s “Enter Sandman.”

The hit-packed set touched on all the classics that fans — lead singer/guitarist Dave Grohl kept shouting out the group’s “OG” day ones throughout the night — were there for, including “The Pretender,” “Breakout,” and “My Hero,” in addition to an extended band introduction bit that included various members flashing their style on covers of songs by the Beastie Boys, Ramones and Nine Inch Nails.

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But the moment that likely swelled the hearts of the crossover areas in the rock and roll/baseball Venn diagram was when lead guitarist Chris Shiflett came out for the encore wearing a red “Cincinnati Invented Hustle” t-shirt that he’d picked up that day to show his support for the city’s disgraced hit king.

The choice was even more apt considering that HBO dropped its new four-part documentary series about baseball’s all-time hits leader this week, Charlie Hustle & The Matter of Pete Rose, which touches on Rose’s illustrious career, as well as the betting scandal that resulted in the former Cincinnati Reds player and manager’s lifetime ban from the game and the Baseball Hall of Fame; Rose’s nickname as a player was Charlie Hustle in reference to his tenacious style of play.

Shiflett made sure the fans who filled the Reds’ home stadium got a glimpse at his homage to their beloved, tarnished local legend, swinging his guitar to the side a few times during the emotional, roiling encore tribute to Grohl’s late educator mother, Virginia, “The Teacher” to make sure they got the wink-wink reference; check out fan footage of the song, and the shirt, here. The show also featured the band’s nightly tribute to late drummer Taylor Hawkins, “Aurora,” with Grohl noting that it was Taylor’s favorite Foo Fighters song.

The Rose shout-out was just one of a handful of nods to the band’s ties to the Buckeye state during the raucous show that ran for nearly three hours and found the band veering from near speed metal tempos to a touching solo acoustic segment in which Grohl strummed an acoustic guitar for a hushed “Under You.” Earlier in the show, Grohl noted that he’d grown up in Warren, OH before moving to Virginia, and also referenced the fact that bassist Nate Mendel’s wife is from the Queen City. “He married a Cincinnati girl,” Grohl said. “Fellas, if you want to find a good girl, you come to Cincinnati.”

26 Jul 2024

Kesha Slams Trump Running Mate J.D Vance After ‘Childless Cat Lady’ Comments: ‘F–k That Man’

Kesha definitely isn’t a fan of Sen. JD Vance, much less his recently resurfaced comments about the country being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies.”

On her way inside LAX Thursday (July 25), a photographer asked the 37-year-old pop star for her thoughts on former president Donald Trump’s 2024 running mate — and she didn’t mince words. “Booooo! F–k that man,” she said, according to the video obtained by TMZ. “That’s all I have to say. F–k them all.”

Vance has been under fire this week thanks to an interview he gave Tucker Carlson in 2021, during which he said the U.S. is being run by “childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made, and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”

“It’s just a basic fact — you look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] — the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children,” the Ohio politician added at the time. “And how does it make any sense that we’ve turned our country over to people who don’t really have a direct stake in it?”

As for whether the Democratic party is actually full of child-free cat parents, Kesha quipped, “It is, b—h! And this is what it looks like, honey.”

The “Joyride” artist also agreed that Vance’s assessment is sexist before endorsing Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign on her way into the airport. “Absolutely!” she said when asked whether she was supporting the sitting VP. “We ride.”

Kesha isn’t the only public figure who’s spoken out against the senator’s comments, which have been thrust back into public discourse after Trump appointed Vance his VP pick earlier this month. Jennifer Aniston recently criticized the rhetoric on Instagram Stories, writing, “Mr. Vance, I pray that your daughter is fortunate enough to bear children of her own one day … I hope she will not need to turn to IVF as a second option. Because you are trying to take that away from her, too.”

Pete Buttigieg, one of the Democrats Vance name-checked in his comments on Carlson’s show, fired back on CNN this week. “The really sad thing is he said that after [my husband] Chasten and I had been through a fairly heartbreaking setback in our adoption journey,” said the secretary of transportation, who is now Dad to two adopted kids. “He couldn’t have known that, but maybe that’s why you shouldn’t be talking about other people’s children.”

Vance, however, doubled down on his point in an interview with Megyn Kelly Friday (July 26). “The simple point that I made is that having children … I really do think it changes your perspective in a pretty profound way,” he said. “It’s not a criticism of people who don’t have children. This is about criticizing the Democratic party for becoming anti-family and anti-child.”