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Chelsea Handler made a Wicked joke about Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater that didn’t quite land with the audience at the 2025 Critics Choice Awards. Grande and Slater were seated side-by-side and posed for photos together at the event Friday night (Feb. 7).
Handler, who hosted the awards ceremony for the third year in a row, directed her attention toward the couple during Friday’s speech at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif.
“It is so nice to see some of our beloved child stars all grown up and thriving. Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande are all nominated tonight,” Handler said, leading up to the joke.
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“And now, Ariana has even found love with a Munchkin,” she quipped, to a quiet response in comparison to the laughs she’d gotten elsewhere in her comedic speech. Grande’s been linked to Slater since 2023, when they met on the set of Wicked.
Handler attempted to quell the seemingly awkward reaction from the crowd, insisting, “That’s good news, everybody.”
Slater portrayed Boq, a character from Munchkinland, in the film.
The pop star and actor have mostly kept their relationship private. Grande was previously married to luxury realtor Dalton Gomez; the pair finalized their divorce in March 2024. Slater was previously married to therapist Lilly Jay, with whom he shares a young child; they settled their divorce in September 2024.
When it came time to mention Wicked star Cynthia Erivo in her speech, Handler heaped praise on her performance.
“My god,” the host said. “The most radical hero of any movie this year, or maybe even this decade. And not because you were green — because you were, and you are, epic, and it’s an honor to be in the same room as you.”
Then came a punchline involving Erivo and Grande: “I loved the Wicked press tour,” said Handler. “The two of them all over each other. I remember the first time I did molly.”
The Wicked team took home three honors at the 2025 Critics Choice Awards: Jon M. Chu won best director, Nathan Crowley and Lee Sandales won for best production design and Paul Tazewell won for best costume design. The film was nominated for a total of 11 awards, including for best picture, which Wicked lost to Anora. Best actress went to Demi Moore (The Substance) rather than Erivo, while best supporting actress went to Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez) rather than Grande.
See Handler’s bit about Grande and Slater in the clip from her Critics Choice Awards speech below.
Grupo Frontera is addressing the backlash following allegations of supporting Donald Trump.
On Friday (Feb. 7), the Mexican-American band shared a statement on their Instagram Story, clarifying that they do not align with any U.S. political party.
“We want to clarify that Grupo Frontera has NO affiliation not alliance with any political party that’s against immigrants and the Latino community,” Grupo Frontera wrote in Spanish. “Like many of you, our families and [group] members have fought and struggled for a better future, and we will always take our people’s side, defending our roots and values.”
The Texas-based Música Mexicana band added, “It’s important you know that the opinions of our friends and family don’t represent Grupo Frontera. We are immigrants, we are from the border, and Grupo Frontera will always be by and for the people.”
Grupo Frontera — which includes members Adelaido Solís III (“Payo”), Juan Javier Cantú, Julián Peña, Alberto Acosta, Carlos Guerrero and Brian Ortega — came under fire after a viral video showed the grandmother of a band member celebrating Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election, according to The Latin Times.
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As fans began to react to the viral clip, Grupo Frontera remained largely silent on social media.
The controversy coincided with Trump’s promise to begin large-scale deportations when re-elected, a move that would heavily impact Latinos.
“i will no longer support grupo frontera because, how are you voting for Trump while being latino? mind you I live in their surrounding era and it’s heavily latino populated too like???” one fan wrote on X.
According to the LT, other various social media responses included: “Make music in English now,” “Never come back to Mexico,” “Latinos are the ones who listen to your music, and you’ve let us down,” “This kind of betrayal comes at a high price” and “We should cancel them all.”
Artists such as Residente, Selena Gomez, Lupillo Rivera, Becky G, Chiquis and Ángela Aguilar have spoken out against the deportations.
Grupo Frontera will be performing at Billboard THE STAGE during SXSW in Austin on March 14.
Noah Cyrus is showing support for her dad, Billy Ray Cyrus, and his new music amid family drama.
On Friday (Feb. 7), the 25-year-old singer took to her Instagram Story to share a post about Billy Ray’s latest single, “Lost.”
“so proud of my Dads INCREDIBLE new single LOST with my good, old friend @samtinnesz and @tommeeprofitt,” she wrote, alongside a brief teaser of the track and a pair of red heart emojis.
Billy Ray’s “Lost,” featuring Tinnesz and Profitt, marks the 63-year-old country singer’s first new release since his rocky performance at the Liberty Ball during Donald Trump’s inauguration. His appearance on Jan. 20 was plagued by technical difficulties, leading him to perform “Achy Breaky Heart” a cappella for the crowd.
Following the controversial performance, Billy Ray’s son Trace Cyrus, older brother to Miley and Noah, shared an open letter on Instagram expressing concern for his father’s well-being.
“Me and the girls have been genuinely worried about you for years but you’ve pushed us all away,” he wrote. “Noah desperately has wanted you to be a part of her life and you haven’t even been there for her. That’s your baby girl. She deserves better. Somehow just like me she still idolizes you though.”
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On Jan. 25, Trace posted another Instagram letter, claiming Billy Ray had threatened him with legal action after the public plea for his father to “get help.”
Billy Ray, along with his ex-wife Tish, is the parent of Brandi, 37, and Trace, 35, both of whom Billy Ray adopted after marrying Tish. Together, they also share Miley, 32; Braison, 30; and Noah. He is also the father of 32-year-old Christopher, his son with ex-girlfriend Kristin Luckey.
In late January, Billy Ray announced an upcoming album, produced by Braison. The album is expected to be released sometime this summer.
“This is art imitating life, imitating art,” Billy Ray said of the album. “It starts and ends with art. Braison is very talented and ‘25 is his year. I’m glad to be a part of it. This record is gonna be special. I’m gearing up for what will be the journey of a lifetime.”
Ashanti is opening up following the death of Irv Gotti.
On Friday (Feb. 7), the R&B star shared a heartfelt tribute on social media to honor the Murder Inc. Records founder after his passing.
“I can’t believe things ended like this….and it makes me so sad,” Ashanti wrote on her Instagram Story, according to TMZ. “We weren’t on the best terms the past few years but as I’ve always said, through our ups and downs I will forever be grateful for everything that you’ve done for me. We made history and that will remain infinite..”
The “Foolish” singer continued, “I’ve always respected your musical genius and ability to push me to be my best.. All the greatness and positive things that came, far outweigh the dark and negative times. I have always prayed for you to find peace. Sending love and prayers to the entire family. Rest well. Rest in Peace Irv.”
Along with the post, Ashanti also reportedly shared a series of throwback photos from her Murder Inc. days, including an image from the release of her 2002 self-titled debut album.
Gotti, who co-founded the iconic Murder Inc. Records and helped launch the careers of Ja Rule and Ashanti in the early 2000s, passed away on Feb. 5 after suffering a stroke. He was 54 years old.
Alongside his brother Chris, Irv Gotti (born Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr.) launched Murder Inc. in 1998 as an imprint of Def Jam, following his success in helping bring DMX to the vaunted hip-hop label. Ja Rule became the flagship artist for Murder Inc., and the label’s first release was his 1999 debut album, Venni Vetti Vecci.
In addition to Ja Rule, Gotti also discovered Ashanti when she was a teenager. She went on to achieve fame with memorable hooks on rap hits and her own solo R&B success. Ashanti’s three biggest hits all came in 2002: Ja Rule’s “Always on Time,” featuring Ashanti, topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks; Fat Joe’s “What’s Luv?,” featuring Ashanti, peaked at No. 2; and her own “Foolish” spent 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.
Billboard recently named “Foolish” and “I’m Real” among the Top Hot 100 Songs of the 21st Century.
Gotti won a Grammy in 2003 for co-producing Ashanti’s eponymous debut album, which earned best contemporary R&B album. He was nominated again the following year for co-writing Ashanti’s “Rock Wit U (Awww Baby),” which was a finalist for best R&B song.
Primus has found a new drummer.
About four months after the abrupt departure of longtime percussionist Tim “Herb” Alexander, the veteran band revealed their new timekeeper following a global open call for auditions.
“Hoffington!!! Welcome aboard! @johnhoffmandrums,” Primus singer and bassist Les Claypool wrote on Instagram Friday (Feb. 7), alongside a photo featuring Claypool with new drummer Hoffman and guitarist Larry LaLonde.
Primus announced on Oct. 29 that Alexander had resigned suddenly on Oct. 17 via email, citing a “loss of passion for playing” — a reason that Claypool and LaLonde admitted “came as a complete shock.”
Following Alexander’s departure, Primus announced they would be holding auditions for a new drummer. “Taking submissions from all points in the universe for the position of Primus drummer/percussionist,” the band wrote, adding, “Flashy chops are wonderful, but groove, pocket, and the ability to listen, react, and contribute to the musical conversation is a must.”
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Primus took to social media again in late December to warn applicants of scammers who had begun contacting hopefuls ahead of in-person auditions.
Hoffman, a drummer from Shreveport, La., documented his preparation for the audition on YouTube.
“Luck is when preparation meets opportunity,” the drummer wrote on Instagram in late January. “I came and did my thing the way I do it. It went as well as I could have hoped. Maynard James Keenan was sitting directly in front of me and watched my entire audition. He gave me this towel. It’s been one of the most incredible days of my life. I love you all. We did this.”
Primus’ first show since Alexander’s final appearance in August took place as part of the band’s New Year’s Eve celebration at the Fox Theater in Oakland, Calif., on Dec. 30. The night began with sets from Claypool’s other projects, Holy Mackerel and Frog Brigade, and concluded with a six-song performance by Primus, featuring Bryan “Brain” Mantia on drums.
Check out Primus’ new drummer announcement on Instagram here.
2025 might not be so bad after all. Roc Marciano and DJ Premier surprised rap fans with a new single in “Armani Exchange” and have announced that they’ll be releasing a collaborative EP later this year. Ironically enough, this all came together by a chance meeting at Macy’s flagship Herald Square store in New York […]
Rick Ross and 50 Cent are at it again. This time the veteran rappers and businessmen have been going back and forth over a picture. Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory, who was recently released to a halfway house and has been visited by various celebrities including 50 Cent, linked up with Rick Ross — which has […]
Things are only looking up for Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, who are taking the former’s music career to new heights following the heartbreaking loss of their home in the Los Angeles wildfires — and one unexpected benefit of the situation, they tell Billboard in a new video special with the couple, has been finally breaking the “stigma” they felt followed them after The Hills.
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While spending the day with Billboard, Montag and Pratt touched on their reality show beginnings, from which the former says they’ve “been trying to move forward” for “a long time.” “We’re thankful for where we started,” she said, standing next to her husband by the beach. “It definitely has been a bittersweet experience for us. Obviously we had a different experience than a lot of the cast from it.”
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“For us to be able to feel people really come together and support us and our family, and to kind of burn off, literally, that shell and that stigma that we had for so many years, it’s nice that people can finally see through that and see that there was always a love story,” Montag continued of the support they’ve been seeing from fans online since announcing in January that their house had completely burned down in the Pacific Palisades blazes.
The couple’s Billboard special comes just a couple weeks after Montag dropped Superficial 2, a followup to her 2010 album Superficial that featured 12 new songs. The original album has been receiving a surge in streams as fans have rallied around the singer and her family after the fires, with Superficial debuting on the Billboard 200 in January thanks to the extra love.
“It’s been really refreshing to have this new generation listen to the music for the music, and not with the stigmas attached, and the hate and the negativity,” Montag, who shares two sons with Pratt, told Billboard later in the day while at a restaurant. “Just to have it be purely listened to has been a blessing.”
One particularly famous person who’s also come to their aid has been Pitbull, who jumped on a remix of Montag’s “I’ll Do It” that was released Thursday (Feb. 6). “We were in touch with Pitbull, and he got on the phone with me,” Montag gushed.
“That was one of the most heartfelt, sincere, kind moments of my life,” she added. “A superstar taking time out of his day to be like, ‘Mamacita, I got you.’”
Super Bowl LIX is just days away from taking over Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday (Feb. 9), and some of the biggest stars in music are coming along for the ride. The most highly anticipated performance, naturally, will be Kendrick Lamar’s Apple Music Halftime Show performance, executive produced by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation in […]
Twenty One Pilots lead Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart for the first time in three years, reigning on the Feb. 15-dated list via the 2-1 rise of “The Line.”
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The song marks the duo’s 11th No. 1 and first since “The Outside” ruled for three weeks beginning in January 2022.
Since then, the band had notched three chart entries, including two No. 2-peaking tracks in “Overcompensate” and “The Craving” in 2024.
With 11 rulers, Twenty One Pilots, who first led with “Stressed Out” in 2015, rank as the act with the sixth-most No. 1s since Alternative Airplay began in 1988.
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Most No. 1s, Alternative Airplay:15, Red Hot Chili Peppers13, Green Day13, Linkin Park12, Cage the Elephant12, Foo Fighters11, Twenty One Pilots8, U28, Weezer7, The Black Keys7, Imagine Dragons
Of the band’s 11 No. 1s, two have now come from soundtracks to TV or film. “The Line” is featured on the soundtrack to Netflix’s Arcane, which premiered its second and final season in November, while “Heathens” was heard in the 2016 movie Suicide Squad.
Concurrently, “The Line” ranks at No. 17 on the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart with 2.4 million audience impressions in the week ending Feb. 6, according to Luminate. It reached a No. 14 high in December.
The song appeared at No. 28 on the most recently published multimetric Hot Rock & Alternative Songs tally (dated Feb . 8, reflecting data accumulated Jan. 24-30); it hit No. 13 in December. In addition to its radio airplay, “The Line” earned 2 million official U.S. streams in that span.
The soundtrack to Arcane’s second season peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200 in December and has earned 220,000 equivalent album units to date.
All Billboard charts dated Feb. 15 will update Tuesday, Feb. 11, on Billboard.com.