Music News

13 May 2024

Taylor Swift Wears Kansas City Chiefs Colors at Paris Eras Show With Travis Kelce in the Audience

Taylor Swift had the perfect outfit for her final Eras Tour show in Paris, considering who was in the audience. The pop star appeared in Kansas City Chiefs colors for the 1989 set of her performance Sunday (May 12), and tight end Travis Kelce adorably jammed out to his superstar girlfriend’s show from the crowd at La Defense Arena.  

The tribute to Chiefs Kingdom came midway through the Eras setlist, with Swift taking the stage in a sparkly gold crop top and red skirt to sing “Style,” “Blank Space” and more hits from her fifth studio album. On her left foot, she wore a yellow bootie, and on the right, an orange bootie. 

It’s not the first time the “Anti-Hero” singer has sported the team’s official colors, with Swift wearing a number of red and gold outfits to games at Arrowhead Stadium throughout the 2023-24 season, all the way up to the Super Bowl in February, which saw Kelce and the Chiefs take home their second Lombardi Trophy in a row. This time, it was the New Heights podcaster’s turn to support Swift from the stands at La Defense, where he enjoyed the show alongside Gigi Hadid, Bradley Cooper and Lenny Kravitz. 

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Following the 1989 set, Swift performed a series of songs from The Tortured Poets Department for just the fourth time so far. Fan videos captured Kelce smiling and dancing along to “So High School,” which many think the singer wrote about the athlete. During the number, she and her dancers swag surf as part of the choreography, a sweet tribute to Chiefs Kingdom. 

Later, Swift sang another Tortured Poets track believed to be about Kelce as a surprise song — “The Alchemy” — which she mashed up with Red‘s “Treacherous.” While she strummed on the guitar, the Ohio native swayed and held up a cute hand heart at the 14-time Grammy winner. 

Swift will next perform in Stockholm for three nights at Friends Arena starting May 17, after which she’ll spend the summer traveling through Spain, Scotland, Ireland and more cities in Europe before returning to the U.S. in October. In an Instagram post Sunday (May 12), the musician confirmed that she’ll be including the Tortured Poets set in the show throughout the rest of the Eras trek, writing, “I’m SO fired up to play this for every crowd on the tour.” 

See a photo of Swift’s Chiefs-themed outfit, plus videos of Kelce enjoying the show, below. 

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift performs onstage during night four of “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at La Defense on May 12, 2024 in Paris, France.

Kevin Mazur/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management

13 May 2024

aespa Flash Fangs, Lift Cars, Show Off Superpowers in Futuristic ‘Supernova’ Video

K-pop girl group aespa prove they are stronger — and fiercer — than the rest in the stunning visual for their “Supernova” single. The first track from the four-woman act’s upcoming debut full-length studio album, Armageddon (due out May 27) is a high-energy bop on which members KARINA, WINTER, GISELLE and NINGNING sing about being “so hot hot hot” while ripping the side mirrors off parked cars, floating in the air, flashing their vampire fangs and lifting up vehicles with one hand.

The dance floor-ready track that fuses hip-hop beats, EDM rhythms and smooth pop vocals seamlessly mashes up English and Korean as the women travel through a series of perilous situations while also busting out some classic choreo on a green screen stage in a black void.

Armageddon is the follow-up to 2023’s Drama – The 4th Mini Album, which debuted at No. 33 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The group was most recently featured on the Rebel Moon – Songs of the Rebellion EP, which also contained original songs by Jessie Reyez, Tainy, Tokischa, TOKiMONSTA, Black Coffee and Kordhell inspired by Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon movie series. aespa will kick off a run of SYNK: Parallel Lines tour dates on June 29-30 with two nights in their native Seoul, South Korea.

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The group’s label, SM Entertainment, revealed last month that WINTER, 23, underwent preventive surgery to treat a collapsed lung. In a statement, SM said that the procedure was intended to treat a pneumorthorax, a condition in which air accumulates in the chest, applying pressure on the lungs and possibly leading to collapse. “Winter is recovering from recent pneumothorax surgery. As the disease is prone to recurrence, the decision was made as a preemptive measure based on the opinions of the medical staff after sufficient discussion,” read a statement from the label.

The statement noted that WINTER’s recovery is a priority and that “future schedules will be made with Winter’s recovery status as the top priority.” At press time it was not known how, or if, the surgery will impact WINTER’s ability to join the group on promotional rounds.

Watch the “Supernova” video below.

13 May 2024

Christian Nodal Announces 2024 Pal Cora Tour: See the Dates

Christian Nodal, one of the most sought-after artists worldwide within the booming regional Mexican music scene, has announced his Pal Cora Tour 2024 in the United States.

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The mariacheño superstar will kick off his 25-date arena tour in Seattle on Sept. 11, which will see him making stops in major cities such as Los Angeles, Denver, Salt Lake City, Chicago, Newark, Brooklyn, Miami and Atlanta. He will wrap up in Baltimore on Nov. 10 at the CFG Bank Arena.

“I’m very excited that we will meet again very soon. I’m working very hard to make Pal Cora Tour even more surprising than the previous one,” Nodal said in a press release. “Get your Don Julio tequila ready so we can toast together. Wait for me, I’ll be there. I love you all.”

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Recently, Nodal partnered with Tequila Don Julio for the launch of A Summer of Mexicana to “celebrate and spotlight inspiring Mexican creatives who live Por Amor,” read a press release.

The 25-year-old musician has won six Latin Grammys, eight Latin Billboard Music Awards, and 11 Latin American Music Awards. His songs “Botella Tras Botella” with Gera MX and “La Intención” with Peso Pluma have reached the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 60 and 92, respectively, among other chart achievements.

Pre-sale of tickets for Pal Cora Tour begins on May 15, and the official on sale begins on the following day, May 16, at www.cmnevents.com.

See the tour dates below:

  • Sept. 11 — WAMU Theater @ Seattle, Wash.
  • Sept. 12 — Toyota Center @ Kennewick, Wash.
  • Sept. 20 — SAP Center @ San José, Calif.
  • Sept. 26 — Toyota Arena @ Ontario, Calif
  • Sept. 27 — Honda Center @ Anaheim, Calif.
  • Sept. 28 — Kia Forum @ Los Angeles, Calif.
  • Sept. 29 — Desert Diamond Arena @ Glendale, Ariz.
  • Oct. 4 — Ball Arena @ Denver, Colo.
  • Oct. 6 — Delta Center @ Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Oct. 10 — Payne Arena @ Hidalgo, Texas
  • Oct. 11 — Dickies Arena @ Fort Worth, Texas
  • Oct. 12 — Moody Center @ Austin, Texas
  • Oct. 13 — Smart Financial Centre @ Sugar Land, Texas
  • Oct. 18 — Allstate Arena @ Chicago, Ill.
  • Oct. 20 — Prudential Center @ Newark, N.J.
  • Oct. 23 — Place Bell @ Montreal, CAN
  • Oct. 24 — Coca Cola Coliseum @ Toronto, Canada
  • Oct. 26 — Barclays Center @ Brooklyn, N.Y.
  • Oct. 27 — Agganis Arena @ Boston, Mass.
  • Nov. 1 — Kia Center @ Orlando, Fla.
  • Nov. 2 — Kaseya Center @ Miami, Fla.
  • Nov. 3 — Hertz Arena @ Ft. Myers, Fla.
  • Nov. 8 — Gas South Arena @ Atlanta, Ga.
  • Nov. 9 — Greensboro Coliseum @ Greensboro, N.C.
  • Nov. 10 — CFG Bank Arena @ Baltimore, Md.

13 May 2024

Childish Gambino Announces The New World Tour Global Trek: Here Are the Dates

Childish Gambino is hitting the road. Following the release of his Atavista (3.15.20 reimagined versions) project on Monday (May 13), Donald Glover announced plans for his global The New World Tour.

The “This Is America” rapper is set to tour the world starting this summer with Willow and Amaarae serving as openers. Glover’s first trek since 2018 will kick off in Oklahoma City, Okla., on Aug. 11.

The New World Tour’s “Artist Presale begins this Wednesday 5/15, [and Amex card members] *UK begins Tuesday *AUS begins Thursday,” he captioned the tour flyer on Instagram. “General onsale begins Friday 5/17 *Signup @ theneworldtour.com NOW for access to the Artist presale codes.”

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The trek will run through North America, Australia and a handful of European dates. After OKC, Gambino is slated to hit U.S. markets such as Detroit, Philly, Boston, Brooklyn, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Denver, Portland and Los Angeles before wrapping up Stateside with a show in Chicago on Oct. 3.

Gambino then heads across the pond for performances in Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, France, Germany, the U.K. and more.

The Atlanta creator’s Atavista serves as an 11-track updated collection of the unfinished 3.15.20 project he released as the world was gearing up to shut down for the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

Atavista still boasts collaborations with Ariana Grande (“Time”), 21 Savage (“Psilocybae”), Summer Walker (“Sweet Thang”) and Young Nudy (“Little Foot Big Foot”) — albeit with different song titles. Gambino also released a Hiro Murai-directed black-and-white video for “Little Foot Big Foot” alongside the project, starring an appearance from Abbott Elementary‘s Quinta Brunson.

The 40-year-old isn’t done yet for the year either, as he’s preparing to unleash a second album this summer. The album is the accompanying soundtrack to his forthcoming movie, Bando Stone & The New World.

“My fans are great and have been so patient and are starving — this album is for you guys,” he said during a Gilga Radio stream in April.

Find all of The New World Tour dates below:

13 May 2024

Drake Asks News Helicopters to Stop Flying Over His Toronto Mansion: ‘I Won’t Lie I’m Trying to Sleep’

While it looks like the furious back-and-forth between Drake and Kendrick Lamar has settled back down to a simmer, that doesn’t mean the 6 God can totally relax. After a week in which Drizzy’s Bridle Path Toronto mansion was the site of two alleged incidents of trespassing and a shooting incident involving one of the rapper’s security guards, the “Rich Flex” MC begged for some peace and quite in an Instagram Story on Saturday.

According to ET, Drake specifically shouted out Toronto news outlet CP24 in the message, where he wrote, “@cp24breaking news can we discuss the chopper flight times over the house cause I won’t lie I’m trying to sleep anytime after 3 pm works great for me.”

A spokesperson for Drake had not returned Billboard‘s request for additional comment at press time.

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The increased attention on Drake’s palatial estate comes after the wind-down of a heated diss track battle with K-Dot, which the Canadian chart-topper seemed to put a capper on on Thursday when he posted a contemplative scene from the Netflix drama A Man in Full.

Before that, though, things were a bit hectic on the home front. Toronto’s CityNews reported a break-in attempt on May 8, which was followed a day later by a report of a shooting outside the MC’s enormous private residence. According to reports, the shooting involved one of Drake’s security guards, who was critically injured by unknown assailants who fled the scene. The Bridal Path property — already well-known from Drake’s “Toosie Slide” video – was in the spotlight again recently when Lamar used an image of it as the cover art of his Drake takedown track “Not Like Us.”

13 May 2024

Taylor Swift Says She’s ‘SO Fired Up’ to Play New ‘Tortured Poets’ Set for the Rest of the Eras Tour

Any fans not in Paris for Taylor Swift‘s four Eras Tour shows at La Defense Arena are probably feeling a little down bad after missing the pop star’s first-ever performances of several The Tortured Poets Department songs. But luckily, she’s just as excited to bring the updated show to all of the remaining cities on the global trek. 

In an Instagram post Sunday (May 12), the “Anti-Hero” singer shared photos of some of the new costumes and visual effects she premiered May 9-12 in France, including her faux alien abduction for “Down Bad” and the levitation illusion used for “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” Both songs are featured on the Billboard 200-topping Tortured Poets, which Swift dropped during a two-month touring break in April — meaning the Paris shows were her first Eras concerts back since the album’s release. 

“This post is dedicated to the new Tortured Poets section of the Eras Tour (aka Female Rage The Musical!) and everyone who made these memories so magical,” she wrote in her caption. “To my crew, fellow performers, and band who worked tirelessly in their break to concoct this surprise for you – but mostly for the fans in Paris.”  

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“I’m so thankful that it was you we got to show this to for the first time because you gave us so much excitement, passion, and love,” Swift continued. “I’m SO fired up to play this for every crowd on the tour. See you very soon, Stockholm!” 

The 14-time Grammy winner also debuted “But Daddy I Love Him,” “So High School,” “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” and “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” — as well as her Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 “Fortnight” — at the Paris Eras shows, which marked the trek’s European leg kickoff. Among the surprise songs were “Paris,” fittingly, along with “LOML,” “Begin Again,” and a mashup of TTPD‘s “The Alchemy” and Red‘s “Treacherous.” 

As Swift mentioned, she’ll next perform in Stockholm for three nights at Friends Arena. She’ll spend the summer traveling through Spain, Scotland, Ireland and more cities in Europe before returning to the U.S. in October. 

13 May 2024

2024 ACM Awards: Check Out the List of Performers and Presenters For This Year’s Show

The line-up of performers and presenters for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards is just about set, and the key word is collaboration.  Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan will team up for a performance, as will Blake Shelton and wife Gwen Stefani and also Nate Smith featuring Avril Lavigne. In addition, Post Malone is booked for the show. He is expected to perform “I Had Some Help,” his new single featuring Morgan Wallen, though that has not yet been announced.

Presenters include Alabama (most awarded group in Academy history with 22 ACM Awards), Carin León (two-time Latin Grammy Award winner), Dion Pride (son of country legend Charley Pride), Rozene Pride (Pride’s widow), Richard Sherman (Super Bowl XLVIII Champion & Thursday Night Football analyst), Charissa Thompson (host, Thursday Night Football) and Randy Travis (11-time ACM Award-winning artist).

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Hosted by 16-time ACM Award-winner Reba McEntire, the ACM Awards will stream live for a global audience on Prime Video from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas on Thursday (May 16) at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. A Prime membership will not be required to watch live. The full rebroadcast will be available directly following the stream on Prime Video and available the next day for free on Amazon Freevee and the Amazon Music app.

The ACM Awards will kick off with the Official ACM Awards Red Carpet Show hosted by Amber Anderson and Kelly Sutton (co-hosts, Country Heat Weekly podcast), Makho Ndlovu (host, Amazon Live), and Elaina D. Smith (host, Nights With Elaina), with Katie Neal (host, Katie & Company) serving as a correspondent from the carpet. Presented by Prime Video and Amazon Music, the Red Carpet Show will also feature a performance by Megan Moroney (this year’s most nominated female artist with six nods), and air on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch starting at 7 p.m. ET.

Plus, Bobby Bones, five-time ACM Awards winner for national on-air personality of the year, will be featured throughout the night. His segment, “Backstage with Bobby Bones,” will showcase intimate artist interviews and special moments of the show.

Fans can also experience a week of pre-ACM livestream celebrations hosted by Kelly Sutton and Amber Anderson courtesy of Amazon Music. Broadcasting live on the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch, the festivities will kick off on Tuesday (May 14) at 9 p.m. ET with Live from the ACM Awards: ACM New Artist Winners Celebration from Tostitos Championship Plaza at The Star, which will feature musical performances and special guests, as well as the presentation of the ACM new male artist, new female artist, and new duo or group of the year.

On Wednesday (May 15) at 9 p.m. ET, fans will be able to stream Live from the ACM Awards: Backstage with Kelly & Amber. Amber and Kelly will also release three ACM-themed Country Heat Weekly podcasts on Thursdays, starting on May 9 with the duo’s interview with McEntire.

Fans can also stream the Official ACM Awards playlist available now on Amazon Music in celebration of this year’s nominees. Fans can listen to Country Music’s biggest stars directly on the Amazon Music app.

The 59th Academy of Country Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions. Raj Kapoor is executive producer and showrunner, with Patrick Menton as co-executive producer. Damon Whiteside serves as executive producer for the Academy of Country Music, and Barry Adelman serves as executive producer for DCP. John Saade continues to serve as consulting producer for Amazon MGM Studios.

Here are the performers and presenters for the 2024 ACM Awards. Any additional performers will be added to the list as they are announced.

Performers

Jason Aldean

Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan

Kane Brown

Jelly Roll

Cody Johnson

Miranda Lambert

Post Malone

Parker McCollum

Reba McEntire

Thomas Rhett

Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani

Nate Smith featuring Avril Lavigne

Chris Stapleton

Lainey Wilson

Presenters

Alabama

BRELAND

Tyler Cameron

Jordan Davis

Sara Evans

Carin León

Little Big Town

Ashley McBryde

Dion and Rozene Pride

Noah Reid

Richard Sherman

Charissa Thompson

Randy Travis

Clay Walker

13 May 2024

Danny Ocean Announces 2024 ‘Reflexa’ North American Tour

Venezuelan singer and songwriter Danny Ocean will launch his first wide U.S. tour on September 13. Ocean’s Reflexa Tour, produced by Live Nation, kicks off  at the Moore Theatre in Seattle, and will play theaters or similar venues in 24 other U.S. cities, including Denver, Los Angeles and Boston, before winding down at Miami’s FPL Solar Amphitheatre on Nov. 2.

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This is Ocean’s biggest U.S. tour by far since he catapulted to fame in 2016 with the surprise hit single “Me Rehuso.” Tickets will be available starting with an artist presale beginning on Tuesday (May 14) at 10 a.m. local time, and general onsale launching on Friday (May 17) at 10 a.m. local time at LiveNation.com.

The Reflexa tour takes its name from the album Reflexa, released earlier this year on Atlantic/Warner, a collection of dance/pop tracks with some urban beats and Ocean’s distinctive, chill vibes.

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Find all the dates for Ocean’s 2024 North American tour below:

Sept. 13 — Seattle, WA @ Moore Theatre

Sept. 14 — Vancouver, BC @ The Centre

Sept. 15 — Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater

Sept. 18 — Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium

Sept. 20 — Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues

Sept. 21 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium

Sept. 22 — San Francisco, CA @ Masonic

Sept. 27 — San Diego, CA @ Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre

Sept. 28 — Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues

Sept. 29 — Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Financial Theatre

Oct. 3 — San Antonio, TX @ Majestic Theatre

Oct. 4 — Hidalgo, TX @ Payne Arena

Oct. 5 — Houston, TX @ Bayou Music Center

Oct. 6 — Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom

Oct. 10 — Chicago, IL @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom

Oct. 12 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount

Oct. 18 — Toronto, ON @ Rebel

Oct. 20 — Boston, MA @ House of Blues

Oct. 24 — Wallingford, CT @ Toyota Oakdale Theatre

Oct. 25 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore Philadelphia

Oct. 26 — Washington DC @ The Theater at MGM National Harbor

Oct. 27 — Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte

Oct. 31 — Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy

Nov. 1 — Orlando, FL @ Hard Rock Live

Nov. 2 — Miami, FL @ FPL Solar Amphitheatre

13 May 2024

Jelly Roll Joined Limp Bizkit For a Surprise Cover of Who Classic at Welcome to Rockville Fest

Limp Bizkit have been playing their unique version of the Who’s “Behind Blue Eyes” during live shows since including the 1971 Who’s Next classic on their 2003 Results May Vary album. On Friday night at the Welcome to Rockville Festival at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Fred Durst and company roped in some help to tackle the cover during their headlining set.

After orange bucket hat-wearing singer/rapper Durst crooned the opening verses of “Eyes” along with the crowd, he asked them, “you feel me?” and then pleaded with the audience to help him find “an angel” to save them. “I need you guys to help me pray right now. Pray for an angel. I need an angel. I need an angel to come out here and save me,” Durst said. “I mean anything. Drop something from the sky. I don’t care what it is, just come out here please sweet angel. Come out here and save your brother Freddy D!”

After a few more pleas to “save me,” Jelly Roll appeared on stage, waving his cowboy hat at the stunned crowd as the “Save Me” singer drawled out a verse of the song over the spare acoustic guitar arrangement. Durst interjected, “ladies and gentlemen, the angel has came!,” before the two men then sang the final “behind blue eyes” refrain together and hugged it out center stage.

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Bizkit’s version of “Behind Blue Eyes” peaked at No. 71 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 2004.

In a video posted over the weekend, Jelly was seen hanging out with Durst backstage, with the Bizkit boss saying, “Every once in a while you get blessed and you run into an angel,” as the camera pivoted to Jelly, who added, “an oversized one, baby, in a black ball cap like Johnny Cash!”

Check out video of Durst and Jelly backstage and onstage.

13 May 2024

Foo Fighters Rock Roll Audience at Festival With Van Halen ‘Eruption’ Solo Fake-Out

Dave Grohl is a showman. The Foo Fighters frontman loves to surprise and delight his band’s fans by giving them a bit of the unexpected amid the sweat and rumble of a typically high-energy Foos show.

On Saturday, during the Foos’ headlining slot at the Welcome to Rockville Festival at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Grohl did it again with an assist from a famous rock scion. According to fan video of the moment, during the Foos’ mid-show medley, singer/guitarist Grohl cut off drummer Josh Freese to complain that while everyone else was getting their moment to shine, “I never get to f–king solo!”

Then, accomplished shredder Grohl busted into the notoriously tricky Eddie Van Halen guitar line from Van Halen’s instrumental classic “Eruption” off the group’s self-titled 1978 debut album, surprising the crowd by finishing the instrumental with his fingers off the guitar neck entirely. But the jig was instantly up as the cameras panned to Eddie’s son, WVH band leader Wolfgang Van Halen, ripping off the solo on the side of the stage.

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“Dude, I told you to keep that cool Wolfie, what the f–k you doing right now?” Grohl jokingly chided Van Halen. “Everybody, give it up for f–ing Wolfgang Van Halen.” Wolfie then played a bit of the the equally killer “Hot for Teacher” solo as the Foos got back to business with “My Hero.”

“Since Wolfie took all that f–king time to pull off that joke with us, I’m gonna dedicate this one to him,” Grohl said. “Let’s sing this one for him, and let’s sing this one for his f–king dad too.” Last week Grohl dedicated a version of “My Hero” to late producer/engineer Steve Albini, who was behind the boards for Nirvana’s final studio album, In Utero, as well as the Foos’ Sonic Highways.

Watch video of the Wolfgang Van Halen cameo below.