Music News

23 May 2024

Christina Aguilera Thanks Billie Eilish for Making Her Daughter’s ‘Whole World’ at Album Listening Party

Billie Eilish will never be a bad guy in Christina Aguilera‘s eyes. A few days after the “Beautiful” vocalist and her daughter attended the 22-year-old pop star’s Los Angeles listening party, Aguilera shared a sweet video of Eilish meeting 9-year-old Summer, and thanked her for being so gracious in a Wednesday (May 22) post. 

In the clip, the “Lunch” musician gives Summer a big hug before kneeling down to the floor to sign a poster. Afterward, the pair pose for photo together. 

“THANK YOU @billieeilish for making my daughter’s whole world at your LA listening party ?✨✨?” Xtina tweeted. “I appreciate your kindness, thanks for signing her poster…we are both huge fans ??” 

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The Burlesque star added of Eilish’s May 17-released Hit Me Hard and Soft, “Congrats on the new album!” 

Aguilera — who shares Summer with fiancé Matt Rutler and 15-year-old Max with ex-husband Jordan Bratman — also included footage of the two-time Oscar winner’s May 16 listening party, which took place at the Kia Forum one day after a similar event at New York City’s Barclays Center. Bathed in blue light and sheets of fog, Eilish danced along as she premiered the 10 tracks on her third studio LP before it was officially out. 

The “What Was I Made For?” singer is currently gearing up to go on tour in support of Hit Me Hard and Soft, with dates planned for the U.S., Canada, Australia and Europe kicking off in September. As her new album competes to top the Billboard 200 next week — namely against Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department — Eilish recently unveiled slowed-down and sped-up versions of the project, as well as one version that only contains her isolated vocals on the songs. 

See Aguilera’s post below. 

23 May 2024

Cassie Speaks Out After Diddy Assault Video Surfaces: ‘Domestic Violence Is THE Issue’

Cassie has issued a statement in response to the outpouring of support she’s received following the release of the video of her then-boyfriend Diddy physically assaulting her at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016.

The “Me & U” singer hadn’t spoken out since CNN posted the footage on May 17, with only her attorneys issuing statements. That changed on Thursday morning (May 23) when she addressed the situation and thanked those who have supported her.

“Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers and those have yet to meet. The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning. Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become. With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past,” she wrote on Instagram, making no mention of Diddy by name.

“Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to take this matter seriously. My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time. It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in.”

Cassie continued: “I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear. Reach out to your people, don’t cut them off. No one should carry this weight alone. This healing journey is never ending, but this support means everything to me. Thank you. Love Always, Cassie.”

Kelly Rowland, Chloe Bailey, Lala Anthony, Taraji P. Henson and more showered Cassie with love and commended her bravery in her IG comment section.

In the footage dated March 5, 2016, and released by CNN, Diddy is seen striking Cassie at an elevator bank of a Los Angeles hotel and dragging her through the hallway after kicking her.

“The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs,” said Ventura’s attorney, Douglas Wigdor, in a statement to Billboard at the time. “Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light.”

Diddy issued an apology on Sunday (May 17), saying his actions in the video were “inexcusable,” and added he was “disgusted” with his behavior.

“It’s so difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, but sometimes you got to do that,” Diddy said in the video posted to Instagram. “I was f–ked up. I mean, I hit rock bottom. But I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I’m disgusted. I was disgusted then when I did it, I’m disgusted now.”

Cassie and Diddy met in 2005 and dated on-and-off for a decade before splitting for good in 2018. Ventura filed a lawsuit against Diddy in Manhattan federal court in November 2023, alleging rape, sexual assault, physical abuse and more.

The two parties settled the dispute less than 24 hours later. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. “I have decided to resolve this matter amicably on terms that I have some level of control,” Ventura said in a statement issued by her attorney at the time. “I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support.”

With additional sexual assault lawsuits piling up, Combs has continued to deny all allegations made against him. “Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged,” he said in a statement on Dec. 6. “I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”

Read Cassie’s statement in full below.

23 May 2024

Dua Lipa, Chris Martin, Noel Gallagher Star in Trailer for Hulu Music Doc Series ‘Camden’: ‘So Much Legacy Here’

The trailer for the upcoming Hulu four-part music documentary series Camden features a number of A-listers singing the praises of the influence the London neighborhood has had on their music and careers. The 1:44 trailer for the show — executive produced by Dua Lipa — features the “Houdini” singer, as well as Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Noel Gallagher, the Libertines’ Pete Doherty and Nile Rodgers describing how inspiring the Camden scene was.

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“Camden, so full of life and music,” Martin says over images of graffiti, punks hanging out and sweaty rock clubs. “It’s got a heartbeat, it’s got a vibe, it’s got an energy to it,” adds former Oasis co-founder and High Flying Birds frontman Gallagher.

Dua shows up as well, walking into a record store and doing the time honored flipping-through-vinyl-in-a-bin bit as she says, “I don’t think you’ll find a single record store in Camden that doesn’t have an Amy [Winehouse] record.” The teaser also features Doherty describing spotting Noel Gallagher’s estranged brother, former Oasis singer Liam, in the city and wanting to play him some of his band’s music.

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“There’s so much legacy here,” Dua says in the trailer of the place she says has a vibe of “radical acceptance,” as the Roots drummer Questlove adds, “It’s the place where stars are born.” Martin also tells the story of his band’s first-ever gig as Coldplay in Camden on a bill where they opened for a headliner who took their drum kit away, forcing the band to play the stage as the bass drum.

“We were celebrating women’s lib, gay lib, Black power, through our music, it all happened in Camden,” Chic leader Rodgers says.

The series that premieres on Hulu on May 29 was directed by Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna) and also has contributions from Mark Ronson, Little Simz, Carl Cox, Madness, Boy George, the Roots’ Questlove, Yungblud, Black Eyed Peas, Public Enemy’s Chuck D and more.

In a post sharing the trailer cued to the Libertines’ “Don’t Look Back Into the Sun,” Dua wrote, “CAMDEN!! this is a big full circle moment for me and i’m so proud to be an executive producer and to have worked on a new original documentary series that celebrates the very place I started everything!!! Camden will always have a special place in my heart and I’m humbled to share that with some of my absolute musical heroes.”

Watch the Camden trailer below.

23 May 2024

Mariah Carey on Her Unprecedented Billboard Chart Success: ‘It’s a Little Hard to Wrap My Head Around’

Mariah Carey has notched the most Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s, 19, among soloists in the chart’s history. She has co-written 18 of those songs (her No. 1 haul rounded out by her 1992 MTV Unplugged cover of the Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There”) and shares insights into her songwriting process in the new Audible Original Portrait of a Portrait, released Thursday (May 23).

The recording marks the 40th in the storytelling platform’s Words + Music franchise, which originated in January 2020.

While encompassing Carey’s career, which launched with her first Hot 100 No. 1, “Vision of Love,” in 1990, the recording delves deep, per the title of the latest edition, into the song “Portrait” from her most recent studio LP, 2018’s Caution. It also premieres a house remix of the track, transforming the ballad into an extended club anthem.

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“It gave me the ability to talk about these lyrics, which I haven’t done,” Carey says at the close of the Audible Original. “So it’s been a cathartic experience for me.” (“And I hope it’s been … whatever experience you were looking for, hopefully you got it. And if you didn’t, I don’t know what to tell you,” she says with a laugh.)

Among Carey’s biggest chart honors, beyond her record sum of Hot 100 No. 1s among solo acts, her modern classic carol “All I Want for Christmas Is You” reigns as the top title in the history of Billboard’s Holiday 100 chart. She is also the only artist with three songs to top the Hot 100 for at least 14 weeks each: “One Sweet Day” with Boyz II Men (16 weeks, 1995-96), “We Belong Together” (14, 2005) and her yuletide standard, originally released in 1994 (14), while her 93 total weeks atop the Hot 100 mark the most among all acts.

Plus, Carey earned top honors in the Dec. 25, 1999, Billboard issue, in which she was ranked the No. 1 pop artist of the ‘90s and “One Sweet Day” reigned as the decade’s biggest Hot 100 hit. In the Dec. 19, 2009, issue, “We Belong Together” was crowned the leading Hot 100 entry of the ‘10s.

Additionally, Carey has sold 56.1 million albums in the U.S., according to Luminate, six of which have topped the Billboard 200. Her songs (as the sole billed lead artist) have drawn a colossal 85.4 billion in radio airplay audience and 9.4 billion official on-demand U.S. streams.

Mariah Carey

Audible

Upon the release of Portrait of a Portrait, Carey spoke with Billboard about the different sides of her songwriting, whether she’s been able to tell which of her songs would become her biggest hits, and her vaunted place in Billboard chart history.

Beyond your voice, and so many songs overall, what does it mean to you to have your songwriting, and lyrics, specifically, praised?

I think that’s amazing. Depending on who I’m writing with or just writing by myself, it’s something that I love to do so much. Sometimes I just don’t care [about credit], because I know what I do.

What do you get, personally, out of writing lyrics? What is the reason you write?

It’s hard to explain … and that’s the first line of the song I wrote called “Outside” [from Carey’s 1997’s album Butterfly]: “It’s hard to explain.” It’s really something that … I wouldn’t be happy with my life if I didn’t do. And I don’t just do it for the credit or anything else. I do it because I love to do it.

Some songwriters say that songs are channeled through them, as much as a writer actively creates them.

I agree with that. It is that. Even with a melody, you’re coming up with this melody … and it’s coming through you. Same with the lyrics that go with it.

How much of you, of who you are, do you think that you’ve revealed in your lyrics? You’ve shared everything from misery, as you joke about in the Audible recording, to merry …

I think … it’s a lot. [Chuckles] There can be songs that are merry and that show a specific side of me, and then there are songs that are, I joke, using this word “miserable” … me and my friend made this up when we were editing something. We were like, “Put the misery in!” But it’s true … it’s just a little element that you add to the song.

“Portrait” – there’s a line: “pushing past the parasites.” I put that in and I almost didn’t, [thinking] “Is that too much?” “Is that too intense?” But then I said, “That is exactly what I’m going through” at the time. “There are some people in my life that not good people, and that’s what’s happening.” So I just sometimes feel like it’s OK to be absolutely real.

In my song “Looking In” [from 1995’s Daydream], it’s, “You look at me and see the girl that lives inside the golden world, but don’t believe that’s all there is to see, you’ll never see the real me.” It starts out that way and then goes into, “She smiles through a thousand tears and harbors adolescent fears/ She dreams of all that she can never be/ She wades in insecurity and hides herself inside of me.” That’s not even the whole first verse … but that’s how I felt at the time. So I have to just be who I am. Sometimes it’s just the right course to take.

That seems to be what makes you, and any artist, relatable. We’ve seen that especially with social media. Maybe years ago, the idea of entertainment was of perfection, all the time. But people can take comfort in knowing that everyone goes through the same struggles. A psychology analysis you weren’t necessarily looking for …

I like it, I like it.

You note in the Audible Original that you’re aware that sometimes you’re attempting to write or co-write a hit. Other times, it’s more about what you want to write, such as more spiritual songs, potential album cuts, and not thinking so much about single releases and the business. About the first part of that: Do you know when you’ve written a hit?

Sometimes you’re like, “This feels like a hit,” but I don’t always say that. I don’t want to jinx it. [Laughs]

Certain times I’ve said, “Oh, this is definitely a hit.” Other times, like you said, certain songs, the spiritual songs, you don’t think, “This is going to be a hit,” but it might be your favorite, or a fan favorite.

A song can be a hit even to one person, and can mean so much.

Right.

Not to get you to brag, but can you think of any songs that you had a good idea would be big chart hits after writing them?

I didn’t always know what a big song was. Like, “This is going to be No. 1 for eight weeks!” I felt that “Fantasy” was going to be a big record, but who knows?

Looking at your transition of lead singles, from 1991’s “Emotions” to 1993’s “Dreamlover,” “Fantasy” in 1995, “Honey” in 1997 and more, it seems like you’ve always been on the pulse of where hit music is, watching trends and also setting them, moving sounds forward.

I think so. I think I would always be like, “I want to write a song like this,” and then take my time, do it and luckily have a moment that was very successful. Then again, I would have a song like “Butterfly” and it didn’t get released [as a commercially available single at the time] and it didn’t really do any kind of big numbers on the charts. But I loved it and I think a lot of my die-hard fans loved it and it really was meaningful.

Hopefully you might like a couple of geeky Billboard-related stats, as they also tie in so perfectly to your history: Nov. 1, that’s when the holiday season, of course, starts – not sure if you knew, but that’s Billboard’s birthday, as well, back in 1894.

No! I didn’t know that.

… and Aug. 4, when “Vision of Love” hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 in 1990, that’s the Hot 100’s birthday, in 1958.

I love that.

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” going to No. 1 on the Hot 100 each year since 2019 reflects how much people love that song and holiday music overall. It was obviously already beloved, but streaming helped push it to the top at last. Had the technology existed earlier, it might’ve been No. 1 many more years before.

That’s amazing, to think of it like that.

What does it mean to you to have 19 Hot 100 No. 1s, the most among soloists and just one below The Beatles’ record 20?

I don’t know what I think about that! [Laughs] I don’t know. I think it’s astonishing.

On one level it’s like, “[I] don’t really care.” But it’s not. To have 19 No. 1 singles and be one away from The Beatles … I don’t know how I can’t acknowledge that. One away from The Beatles … that’s a lot. I think it’s a little hard to wrap my head around.

23 May 2024

Jennifer Lopez Brushes Off Question About Her ‘Situation’ With Ben Affleck During ‘Atlas’ Press Event: ‘You Know Better Than That’

Jennifer Lopez is used to fielding questions about her relationship with husband Ben Affleck any time she steps in front of a mic. But in the midst of unsubstantiated tabloid speculation that the couple’s two-year-old marriage is going through a rough patch, JLo was not interested in talking about her private life during a promo stop in Mexico City on Wednesday (May 22) to talk up her new Netflix space drama, Atlas.

Lopez was fielding questions from the Mexican press alongside co-star Simu Liu when a reporter asked in Spanish, “Is your divorce with Ben Affleck real? These rumors?” People reported that the unidentified reporter’s off-topic question shocked the rest of the assembled press in the room, as the person added, “What is the truth? Para le press le Mexicana [for the Mexican press], what is the truth of the situation?”

In video of the exchange, Liu jumped in and said, “Okay, we’re not doing that. Thank you so much guys, we really appreciate it. Thank you.”

Trending on Billboard

After a brief pause, Lopez — wearing a glittery silver jumpsuit and matching silver platform heels — leaned forward in her seat and looked intently at the reporter and said, “you know better than that,” with a tight smile on her face. She then leaned back and Liu said, “C’mon, don’t come in here with that energy, please.”

People noted that Affleck did not attend the L.A. premiere of Atlas earlier on Monday or the Mexico City premiere on Tuesday. The couple’s relationship has been a staple of tabloid reporting since they first met on the set of their box office bomb Gigli in 2001, after which they got engaged before splitting in 2004. Both were married and divorced before they reconnected and married in Las Vegas in 2022.

At press time neither Affleck nor Lopez have made any statement about the reports of alleged marital strife.

Watch footage of the exchange below.

23 May 2024

Normani Straddles a Rocket, Gives Acrobatic Lap Dance, Is Here For Your ‘Wildest Desires’ in Seductive ‘Dopamine’ Trailer

Normani‘s fans have been waiting a long time for the former Fifth Harmony member’s debut album. And on Wednesday (May 22) the singer really gave them something to look forward to with the super sexed-up trailer for the project entitled “Dopamine (First Dose).”

The 1:52 clip kicks off with a set of massive doors opening up to reveal Normani sitting on a desk in a spare office. Wearing a second-skin leather catsuit as stock images of space 1960s space footage flashes by, she slips on a headset and purrs, “Hello, Hotline 159. Yes, here to satisfy your deepest, darkest, wildest desires. No rules, no restrictions, straight dopamine,” as a mysterious man in an old-school phone booth breathes heavily on the other side.

As the strains of her previously released collab with Gunna, “1:59,” bubbles up and she pops a red lollipop between her lips, the phone rings and footage from the pair’s video streams. Cut to ‘Mani giving an acrobatic lap dance in just a bra, underwear and tights, intercut with subtle shots of rockets taking off.

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The clip ends with the phone ringing again an a close-up of Normani’s face while the camera slowly pans out to reveals her entire naked body encased in silver paint as she teases another song from the collection, “Candy Paint.”

“Bank roll, thubmin’, baby you know how I’m comin’/ Booty on bubonic, and I move it how I want it/ Big girl s–t, baby I don’t do no runnin’/ I can make it boom-boom clap, like I’m drummin’,” she sings as the camera pans out to reveal her stride a provocatively shaped silver rocket, which she proceeds to twerk atop.

Normani’s debut album, Dopamine, is due out on June 14. Its release comes after the singer has dropped a series of singles since leaving 5H in 2018, including her Billboard Hot 100 No. 9-charting solo debut collab with Khalid, “Love Lies,” as well as the No. 7 2019 collab with Sam Smith, “Dancing With a Stranger.” That same year she unleashed the ear worm single “Motivation” and the Charlie’s Angels soundtrack song “Bad To You” with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj, followed by tracks with Megan Thee Stallion (2020’s “Diamonds”), Cardi B (2021’s “Wild Side”) and Calvin Harris (2022’s “New to You” with Tinashe and Offset).

Now, though, it is her time. As she recently told ELLE magazine about the LP that she thinks is the truest “representation of my resilience,” she promised myself, ‘If God gives me another opportunity to do things in my own way, I’m not going to take that for granted,’” she said of the collection that mixes uptempo dance songs with others that dig into her struggles during and after 5H’s split. “I think that there’s a false narrative that because of how long this process has taken, that means I don’t care, or that means I’m more interested in doing other things than putting this body of work out. Nobody wants this project to come out more than me. I think that at the end of the day, if I stand behind this wholeheartedly, it doesn’t matter what the world thinks.”

Watch the “Dopamine (First Dose)” teaser below.

22 May 2024

Kings of Leon Scores Sixth Top 10 on Album Sales Chart With ‘Can We Please Have Fun’

Kings of Leon scores its sixth top 10-charting effort on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, as the band’s latest studio release, Can We Please Have Fun, bows at No. 3 on the May 25-dated tally. The set also makes a splash on a number of other rankings, including top 10 debuts on Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums, Top Current Album Sales, Indie Store Album Sales and Vinyl Albums.

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Can We Please Have Fun sold 14,000 copies in the U.S. in the week ending May 16, according to Luminate.

Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department holds atop the list for a third nonconsecutive week, Knocked Loose scores its best sales week ever and highest charting album with the No. 2 debut of You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To, and Scotty McCreery’s Rise & Fall starts at No. 6 – marking his sixth top 10 set.

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Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Swift’s Poets captures a third nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on Top Album Sales (41,000; down 19%), while Knocked Loose logs its best sales week and highest charting effort yet, as You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To enters at No. 2 with 18,000 sold.

SEVENTEEN’s SEVENTEEN Best Album ‘17 Is Right Here’ slips 3-4 with 11,000 (down 78%), Swift’s chart-topping 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is a non-mover at No. 5 (8,000; up 9%), McCreery’s Rise & Fall bows at No. 6 (7,000), Swift’s former leader Lover is stationary at No. 7 (nearly 7,000; up 7%), Dua Lipa’s Radical Optimism falls 1-8 in its second week (6,000; down 89%) and Swift’s chart-topping Midnights motors 11-9 (just over 5,000; up 4%).

Rounding out the top 10 is Hozier’s Wasteland, Baby!, which jumps 16-10 with 5,000 (up 30%), following the recent release of a new Amazon-exclusive vinyl edition of the album.

22 May 2024

Top K-Pop of the Week: ENHYPEN, aespa, ZEROBASEONE, Ryu Su Jeong, Sorn & More – Vote!

From groups like aespa, ENHYPEN and ZEROBASEONE to solo stars like MARK, Sorn, Hongseok, Ryu Sujeong and Yein, which new song gets your vote?

aespa

aespa

SM Entertainment

Every week, the Korean music scene delivers outstanding songs across various genres and styles, and the past week was no exception, with a heavy-hitting selection of hits with global potential, satisfyingly nostalgic duets and some of 2024’s most promising new artists.

Internationally adored groups like aespa and ENHYPEN both dropped new singles to tide their ravenous fanbases over while they await their next full-length projects. Meanwhile, K-pop fans were treated to duets with special meanings as Lovelyz members Ryu Sujeong and Yein teamed up for a collaboration (co-produced and written by Hot 100 artist XYLØ, nonetheless) while Sorn and Hongseok also duetted for a new track showing an ongoing bond even after both departed their former label, Cube Entertainment. Alongside newcomers like DXMON and Yungin, embracing a range of unique genres and concepts to connect with audiences, there’s also K-pop sensations ZEROBASEONE and their new single “Feel the POP” that pairs perfectly with the warming weather.

As the K-pop industry moves at a rapid pace, it’s important to pause and appreciate the innovation and diversity it offers across its different acts. Last week, Billboard readers chose Stray Kids’ “Lose My Breath” as their top K-pop pick of the week but fans of Lim Young Woong, Yook Sungjae, BM and D.O all came through with major support.

Take a moment to explore these nine new gems that embody the spirit of the scene and deserve a permanent spot on your playlist. Then cast your vote in our poll for the top of K-pop for the past week.

22 May 2024

Goldfish Not Returning to Music, But Loved Swimming to ‘Masked Singer’ Win: ‘I Will Always Have It in My Back Pocket’

Spoiler alert: This story contains the identity of the winner and runner-up unmasked on Wednesday night’s (May 22) season finale of The Masked Singer.

It was a fierce scramble for the golden mask on Wednesday’s (May 22) season 11 Masked Singer finale in an action-packed battle that pitted powerhouse male vocalist Gumball against season-long favorite Goldfish.

When the confetti fell at the end of the night, though, it was veteran singer/actress Vanessa Hudgens who triumphed over her former Bandslam co-star Scott Porter (aka Friday Night Lights‘ Jason Street). 

To recap, former High School Musical movie star Hudgens got her perfect run off to a killer start early on in the season with a fierce take on fellow High School Musical universe alum Olivia Rodrigo’s “Vampire,” throwing down the gauntlet that this was a performer with killer pipes and casually cool stage moves. The singer, who released two albums on Hollywood Records early in her career, showed off her performance chops throughout by expertly ruling the stage in the peach-colored costume with a towering mohawk and diaphanous gills.

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She continued to swim upstream all season with a smooth-as-butter cover of Player’s 1977 AM radio classic “Baby Come Back” and further proved her arena-ready bona fides with a Broadway-worthy take on Queen’s “The Show Must Go On.”

The flawless march kept going with a showstopping run through Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable” — which again showed off her impressive range — as well as last week’s fierce rumble through Alanis Morissette’s “You Oughta Know” that had Robin Thicke jumping on the judges’ table for a standing ovation.

On Wednesday, before her reveal, Hudgens, 27, confessed that she was never good at expressing herself as a young girl, but has lately been on a “journey of self-discovery” that allowed her to express herself “so freely” on the show. And while she said music has taken a “back seat” as she’s focused on film for the past 15-plus years — appearing in Second Act, Bad Boys for Life and Tick, Tick… Boom!, as well as the upcoming Bad Boys: Ride or Die — her victory-sealing covers of Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” and Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” proved her pipes are as strong as ever.

The judges were close in their guesses but didn’t quite nail it, with Rita Ora suggesting former Glee star Lea Michele or Vampire Diaries star Nina Dobrev; Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg guessing Selena Gomez, Vampire Academy star Sarah Hyland or Julianne Hough; and Thicke going with Hilary Duff. Always-wrong Ken Jeong missed it by a mile once again, tossing out such wildly disparate suggestions as Carly Rae Jepsen, Kristen Stewart and former panelist Nicole Scherzinger.

Billboard spoke to Hudgens before her elimination about why this was the right time to dip back into singing, how she managed to move like such a pro in her costume, and why her “witch” powers were the key to giving the expectant first-time mom something special to share with her baby. Check out her answers below.

You’ve been a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance and RuPaul’s Drag Race, but never really a contestant on a singing show. Why now?

This opportunity came up at a really interesting time when we [actors] were on strike and this was a category I could actually work in and my fans had been asking for more music, more singing, anything of that sort. I was like, “This would be a really fun and interesting opportunity to give my fans what they want and see who the real ones are.”

People complain about the size and sweatiness of the costumes, but you seemed to be able to move with no problems. What was your secret?

Reckless abandonment? [Laughs] It definitely had its own challenges because I couldn’t see straight ahead because the eyeholes were so far apart. If I wanted to see straight ahead, I had to turn my head one way or another and I was really using a live mic and holding it up to the little opening in my mask. So I had to split my vision and look sideways out of one eye and then look down with the other in the mic hole to see the ground. I just went for it and left it all out there. They would be like, “You’re kind of here and then walk over there and if you want to maybe do a verse there and move over here.” I just really let it fly and they gave me the freedom to play, and play I did.

Which performance meant the most to you and why?

I feel so lucky in that I got to work really closely with my producer and pick songs that meant something to me, from the cheeky nod to High School Musical singing “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo to “Baby Come Back,” which I sang at 16 as a cover song for my first single [2006’s “Come Back to Me”]. “The Show Must Go On” for a vulnerable, special performance to “Unforgettable,” which I’d wanted to sing from jump because I just want to sing jazz all the time, to a female empowerment moment with Alanis Morissette.

Did singing “Vampire” make you long for the good old days?

I just think [Rodrigo]’s really great and I really vibe with her. It’s always great to support a fellow Filipina, and it was just a cute, cheeky nod to how things always end up being connected.

It looked like you came to play from jump. How badly did you want to win the golden mask?

You know, it wasn’t really about winning, honestly. I am my own worst critic and I will always be my hardest critic in the room at all times. I just wanted to have fun, and it was a really freeing experience for me to be anonymous and have nothing to do with my name or fame or celebrity. It was a really special experience.

You said your run surprised you and allowed people to really see you for who you are and what you do. Might you go back to music after this?

No. I always say life is about priorities, and that is not a priority right now. I feel like it’s something I will always have in my back pocket.

You said winning would be the “ultimate pat on the back” and really mean a lot to you because you always thought of yourself as an actor first and singer second. Did you give people the “music moment” you hope for?

I think I got to give myself the music moment I was hoping for and in turn my supportive fans got to enjoy it as well. I got to show up every day and put my best foot forward, and I was so uplifted and supported by such an amazing team over there and I got to work on my voice every day with someone who helped me expand my horizons.

On tonight’s show, you said you couldn’t wait to have kids so you could tell them, “Look at mommy go!” Did you know when you taped the show that you were expecting? [Hudgens revealed in March on the Oscars red carpet that she’s expecting her first child.]

No! I’m just a witch! [Laughs] I’ve always worked in a way that kept people guessing and gave me something to show my kids at every stage of my life. That’s always been important to me.

22 May 2024

Disturbed’s ‘The Sound of Silence’ Video Hits 1 Billion YouTube Views

The video for Disturbed’s take on Simon & Garfunkel’s classic, “The Sound of Silence,” has surpassed one billon YouTube views, the video platform revealed on Wednesday (May 22). The milestone marks the metal band’s first entry into the Billion Views Club.

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The 2015 cover, which was featured on Disturbed’s album Immortalized, hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hard Rock Digital Songs and Mainstream Rock charts.

After the band performed the song on Conan in 2016, Paul Simon reached out to give the track a stamp of approval. Frontman David Draiman revealed via the band’s Facebook page that Simon had reached out over email. “It’s not every day that one of the most prolific songwriters of all time sends you an email message. Allow me to share with you the brief exchange I had with Mr. Paul Simon himself!!!! Somebody pinch me … P.S., and no, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke,” he wrote.

Simon wrote to the group, “Really powerful performance on Conan the other day. First time I’d seen you do it live. Nice. Thanks.” Draiman then responded, “Mr. Simon, I am honored beyond words. We only hoped to pay homage and honor to the brilliance of one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Your compliment means the world to me/ us and we are eternally grateful.”

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Watch Disturbed’s “The Sound of Silence” music video below.