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English progressive rock icons Yes have announced a new fall tour which will see them play their 1971 album Fragile in full.
Officially dubbed The Fragile Tour 2025, The Album Series, the newly-announced run of shows will launch on Oct. 1 and sees the band performing a total of 31 dates until Nov. 16. Per a press release, the tour setlist will include Fragile full along with a number of other “classic cuts.”
Released in November 1971, Fragile was the fourth album from the group, and their third to be released in a 16-month span. It also became their most successful release up to that point. Expanding upon the initial chart success that The Yes Album brought earlier in the year (reaching No. 40 on the Billboard 200), Fragile would peak at No. 4, only being bested by one position thanks to Close to the Edge the following year.
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The album’s lone single, “Roundabout,” would be issued in January 1972 and would reach No. 13 on the Hot 100. It remained their highest-charting single until “Owner of a Lonely Heart” hit No. 1 in 1983.
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Fragile would also be supported by a 115-date album tour, with the group returning to the U.S. in November 1971 – mere months after wrapping up their debut visit to the country. As a press release for the new run of dates explains, the record’s initial tour was a vital part of the band’s history, and marked the moment when Yes “became a headline act in the US.”
“All the band’s albums had a unique feel and approach,” explained guitarist Steve Howe. “After The Yes Album, so many things came together, with [co-producer] Eddie Offord steering the proceedings.
“While the band focused on only four main songs with full arrangements, each of us wrote and designed a solo piece, which was Bill [Bruford]’s great idea. It’s fairly ‘odd-ball,’ but we were at the height of our creativity, determined for success.
“It gave us confidence, further than our own in-stock belief, we’d crafted this unusual but noticeable musical twist to rock and what later became prog,” he added.
Of the original lineup which recorded Fragile in 1971, only Howe remains an active member. Drummer Bill Bruford would depart the group in 1992, while both vocalist Jon Anderson and keyboardist Rick Wakeman would depart in 2004. Bassist Chris Squire would remain with the band through all iterations until his passing in 2015.
Yes – The Fragile Tour 2025, The Album Series
Oct. 1 – Toyota Oakdale Theatre, Wallingford, CTOct. 2 – Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown, NJOct. 4 – Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena, Atlantic City, NJOct. 5 – The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NYOct. 7 – The Paramount, Huntington, NYOct. 8 – Keswick Theatre, Glenside, PAOct. 9 – Keswick Theatre, Glenside, PAOct. 11 – Appell Center for the Performing Arts, York, PAOct. 12 – Penn’s Peak, Jim Thorpe, PAOct. 14 – Warner Theatre, Washington, D.C.Oct. 16 – Carolina Theatre, Durham, NCOct. 18 – Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, FLOct. 19 – Broward Center, Au-Rene Theater, Ft Lauderdale, FLOct. 21 – Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center, The Villages, FLOct. 22 – Charleston Music Hall, Charleston, SCOct. 24 – Coca-Cola Roxy, Atlanta, GAOct. 25 – Graceland Soundstage, Memphis, TNOct. 27 – The Louisville Palace, Louisville, KYOct. 28 – Taft Theatre, Cincinnati, OHOct. 30 – Murat Theatre at Old National Centre, Indianapolis, INOct. 31 – Des Plaines Theatre, Des Plaines, ILNov. 1 – The Arcada Theatre, St. Charles, ILNov. 3 – The Orpheum Theater, Madison, WINov. 4 – The Riverside Theater, Milwaukee, WINov. 6 – Stifel Theatre, St. Louis, MONov. 7 – Steelhouse Omaha, Omaha, NENov. 9 – Paramount Theatre, Denver, CONov. 11 – Mesa Arts Center, Mesa, AZNov. 13 – YouTube Theater, Inglewood, CANov. 14 – Viejas Casino, Alpine, CANov. 16 – Grand Theatre at The Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV
Benjamin Hightower has channeled Chappell Roan for his America’s Got Talent audition, going from Tennessee to Los Angeles to receive a standing ovation from judges for his performance of “Pink Pony Club.”
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Appearing on Tuesday (June 10) night’s episode of America’s Got Talent, Hightower told judges how he ended seven years of active duty in the Air Force to pursue his dreams of stardom. “I made the really scary choice to get out of the military and take a chance on myself because I believe in my ability to be a performer,” he explained.
Dressed in a white shirt and ripped jeans, the unassuming musician sat behind a keyboard as he launched into a triumphant rendition of Roan’s “Pink Pony Club.” Originally released in 2020, the single gained renewed attention following Roan’s 2025 Grammy Awards performance, and hit No. 4 on the Hot 100, tying with “Good Luck, Babe!” as her highest-charting single to date.
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Receiving a rapturous reception from the audience (which included his own mother), Hightower explained that it was a more than fitting track given his roots in Tennessee. Though Roan grew up in Missouri, the lyrics to “Pink Pony Club” describe the singer’s desire to leave Tennessee in hopes of acceptance on the west coast.
“That song is great, but I think that also could be a hit; your rendition of her song,” enthused judge Howie Mandel. “It was beautiful, it was great.”
“The perfect audition, this is what you’re supposed to be doing,” added Sofia Vergara. “I think America’s going to love you.”
The biggest response, however, came from Simon Cowell, who expressed his certainty that Hightower’s performance could become a viral hit. “I really like you. I really do,” he told the singer.
“When I saw the keyboard I thought, ‘Oh God, it’s going to be something like “Stand By Me,” or something we’ve heard a billion times.’ And it wasn’t,” he added. “When you do somebody else’s song and you make it your version, that’s smart. I love that song, I love your version, and I don’t know, there’s something about you I really like.”
Hightower’s overwhelmingly positive reception was echoed in his own response to the acclaim, with the visibly emotional performer telling host Terry Crews that the moment has been a long time coming.
“If the little kid who grew up in Tennessee could see me now, he would be so proud,” he explained.
Watch Hightower’s full performance below:
It’s a Young Money reunion and the remix, baby. After Nicki Minaj was noticeably absent from Tha Carter VI, the Queen reunited with Lil Wayne for the “Banned From NO (Remix)” on Wednesday (June 11).
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Fans were disappointed after a rumored C6 collaboration didn’t come to fruition, but the latest chapter in the Nicki-Wayne lyrical marriage arrived less than a week later, while Minaj emptied the clip with a fiery verse on “Banned From NO (Remix).”
Nicki crafts a delectable chorus with short-stopping bars, using NBA teams as double entendres for the Indiana Pacers, New York Knicks, and Los Angeles Lakers.
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The Queens icon then dives head-first into her bristling verse, which finds her sniping at NFL player-turned-podcast host Shannon Sharpe, who has been critical of Minaj in the past.
“If I send a pic of Shannon you ain’t that Sharpe/ Cause you still can’t spell Prague and that’s horrible,” she raps.
Minaj then salutes a classic Wayne bar from the Pharrell-produced “Yes.” “Weezy F Baby and the F is for Phenomenal,” she mimics.
Before leaving the burning booth, Nicki wasn’t done and she sent a shot at the NFL about their choices for the Super Bowl Halftime Show, which overlooked Wayne in his hometown earlier this year. “NFL, fire some n—s and then call us,” she spews in defense of the Young Money boss.
Tha Carter VI arrived on Friday (June 6) filled with 19 tracks and features from Kodak Black, MGK, Bono, BigXthaPlug, Jelly Roll and Big Sean. The “Banned From NO (Remix)” marks the first Weezy-Minaj collaboration since 2023’s “RNB” from Pink Friday 2.
Listen to the “Banned From NO (Remix)” below.
Kendrick Lamar will be making his grand return to Australia this year, with the rapper announcing new dates for his ongoing Grand National Tour.
Lamar announced on Wednesday (June 11) that he will be performing two headline dates while in Australia this December, with stadium shows set for Melbourne’s AAMI Park on Dec. 3 and Sydney’s Allianz Stadium on Dec. 10.
The newly-announced headline shows follow on from Lamar’s inclusion on the Spilt Milk Festival lineup which arrived in early May. Also featuring Doechii, Sara Landry, Dominic Fike and Schoolboy Q as headliners, the festival will take place across Ballarat, Perth, Canberra and the Gold Coast between December 6-14.
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The forthcoming shows will be Lamar’s first visit to Australia since The Big Steppers Tour in 2022, though unlike his current run of North American dates, they will feature Lamar in solo mode as opposed to his co-headlining status with SZA.
Lamar’s nascent tour dates also arrive in the wake of his latest batch of honors, this time coming from the BET Awards on Monday (June 9).
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Having been nominated for a total of ten awards across six categories, Lamar ended the evening as the most awarded artist, with the ceremony at Los Angeles’ Peacock Theater resulting in five trophies going his way, including album of the year, video of the year, best collaboration (with SZA), best male hip hop artist, and video director of the year (with Dave Free).
Additionally, in February 2025, in the wake of Lamar’s Grammy Awards success, his 2024 single “Not Like Us” re-entered the Australian ARIA charts and gave the rapper his first No. 1 single in the country.
Kendrick Lamar – 2025 Australian Tour Dates
Dec. 3 – AAMI Park, Melbourne, VIC, AustraliaDec. 6 – Spilt Milk Festival, Ballarat, VIC, AustraliaDec. 7 – Spilt Milk Festival, Perth, WA, AustraliaDec. 10 – Allianz Stadium, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaDec. 13 – Spilt Milk Festival, Canberra, ACT, AustraliaDec. 14 – Spilt Milk Festival, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia
YEONCHEON, South Korea — Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS were officially discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service on Wednesday (June 11), marking a major step forward in the group’s long-awaited reunion.
With their discharge, six of the seven BTS members have now completed their service obligations, with only SUGA currently fulfilling his alternative service as a social worker. His discharge is expected later this month.
On Tuesday morning, fans and media began gathering near Yeoncheon Public Stadium in Gyeonggi Province to welcome the two stars. Jimin and Jung Kook appeared with bright smiles, offering brief greetings and expressing their sincere gratitude to supporters who had waited for their return.
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“Thank you to the fans and reporters who came to see us,” Jimin said. “It’s been a long time, from the pandemic to military service. Now that we’re back, we’ll work hard to show you what we’ve prepared.”
“There were a lot of unforgettable moments,” Jung Kook added. “Thanks to everyone who served with us and supported us along the way.” Jimin also hinted at what’s to come: “Now that I’m discharged, I think it’s time we continue drawing the picture we had in mind. We’ll prepare well and share it with you soon.” He concluded: “Military life wasn’t easy, but I’m grateful for the memories. If you see a soldier on the street, a warm gesture can mean a lot.”
Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS appear in Yeoncheon, South Korea, after being discharged from mandatory military service on June 11, 2025.
Billboard Korea
The two enlisted together in late 2023, completing basic training at the same boot camp before being assigned to separate units. Jimin served with the military band under the 5th Infantry Division, while Jung Kook completed his service with the Baekma Division.
During their time in uniform, both BTS members continued to make waves in the music world. Jimin made history as the first Korean solo artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 with his single “Like Crazy” from the album FACE, while Jung Kook’s solo debut GOLDEN peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and earned international acclaim across global charts.
BTS has been on hiatus from group activities since 2023 as members fulfilled their enlistment obligations but with Jin and j-hope, as well as RM and V as of Tuesday and now Jimin and Jung Kook discharged, the group’s full return is right around the corner, only awaiting SUGA’s return.
Their highly anticipated first public reunion is set at the upcoming 2025 BTS FESTA, taking place June 13-14 at KINTEX in Goyang, South Korea. The event promises to be a powerful homecoming celebration for fans worldwide and the start of BTS’ next chapter.
Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS appear in Yeoncheon, South Korea, after being discharged from mandatory military service on June 11, 2025.
Billboard Korea
Thanks to a decadeslong love of Frank Sinatra and a relationship with his family that started when Frank Sinatra Jr. guest-starred on Family Guy, Seth MacFarlane was entrusted with a gold mine of never-released material arranged for the late crooner that has become his just-released ninth studio album, Lush Life: The Lost Sinatra Arrangements.
“If you’re an aficionado of this kind of music, it’s like being a Lennon-McCartney fan and finding something that was written in like 1969 that was just never played,” MacFarlane tells Billboard‘s Pop Shop Podcast of Frank’s daughter, Tina Sinatra, approaching him with the opportunity to dig into 1,200 archival boxes of unrecorded sheet music arranged specifically for her dad. “And you hear it, and it’s like, ‘My God.’
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“You know, the songs that we have are the songs that we have from his discography; obviously he’s gone, the arrangers are gone, so there’s nothing new. And then all of a sudden, it’s like, ‘Oh, you know what? There’s one more cookie at the bottom of the bag.’”
Listen to MacFarlane’s full interview in the new Pop Shop Podcast episode below:
Below, find highlights from our conversation with MacFarlane, and listen to the full chat in the podcast above.
Did Seth know these songs before digging in?
In many cases, no one has ever heard of them, because they just didn’t exist. There’s a song called “Who’s in Your Arms Tonight” — you could travel to the ends of the earth before we did this, and you would not find a single person who knows that song, because it just was never recorded, and everyone involved with this writing is long gone. … We asked the oldest guys in the band — I mean, our bassist played for Frank Sinatra for years in the last part of his life, and he had no idea what this was. So about a third of the songs on the album are songs in which both the song and the arrangement are just completely unknown.
What stood out in these unreleased arrangements?
Particularly in the case of [Sinatra arranger] Nelson Riddle, you could instantly hear his signature trademarks, like those flutes. And that was what was so interesting. There was no question who wrote this, but it was new. It was familiar stylistically, but it was new, in the same way you watch a Wes Anderson movie that’s brand-new, you’re instantly going to know it’s him. You’re going to see his visual touchstones, but the movie’s brand-new. That’s kind of how it was. It was so clearly Nelson Riddle, but we were hearing the first new Nelson Riddle chart that anyone has heard in decades. So it was a pretty profound moment.
Is there a duet opportunity for frequent collaborator Liz Gillies or Carpool Karaoke partner Ariana Grande?
It would have been nice if we had found some, you know, Rosemary Clooney or Peggy Lee duet. I mean, Liz would have been my first call. For this kind of music, there’s just no one better on the planet, but so far, we have not found any duets. We haven’t dug through these boxes in such detail that there couldn’t be one — there may be. There are 1,200 boxes. We couldn’t play everything on that day because an orchestra is expensive. … But there’s so much in that archive that it is possible, and, yeah, if we find something, then we’ll give Liz a call.
How long could Seth be mining this material?
There are a couple [songs] that we recorded that we cut from this album, just because we had, I don’t know, some edict to get it down to 12 songs or less. All I know is we were told initially, I think they wanted it to be like six songs. I’m, like, “Guys, that’s not an album.” I don’t know, there’s all this, like, marketing data that they go by, and really, nobody knows sh–, because if they did, everything would be a monster hit. [Laughs] So I do remember us pushing back and saying, “Let’s do an album’s worth of songs for this thing.” So it’s a dozen songs, which, for a Sinatra album, was in the ballpark. And there were a couple songs that we did record that were not included that would be on the next one. … There are probably two albums’ worth of real, honest-to-God songs that can be released.
Is three days a residency? [Laughs] I once spent a week in Vegas, and I was like, “I’m forgetting who I am. I’m an insane person. The walls are moving.” That’s a lot of Vegas.
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Also on this week’s Billboard Pop Shop Podcast, Taylor Swift’s former No. 1 album reputation, released in 2017, jumps from No. 78 to No. 5 on the Billboard 200 following an outpouring of fan support of the project after Swift announced she had acquired her Big Machine Records-era music catalog. Plus, SEVENTEEN and Miley Cyrus’ latest releases debut in the top five, while the top slots on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Hot 100 are static, with Morgan Wallen’s “I’m the Problem” and Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” staying put.
We also hit the biggest pop headlines of the week, including Sabrina Carpenter’s new “Manchild” single and video, Darren Criss and Nicole Scherzinger winning at the Tony Awards, David Byrne joining Olivia Rodrigo onstage at Governors Ball, and Mariah Carey returning with her new Eric B. & Rakim-sampling single “Type Dangerous.”
The Billboard Pop Shop Podcast is your one-stop shop for all things pop on Billboard‘s weekly charts. You can always count on a lively discussion about the latest pop news, fun chart stats and stories, new music, and guest interviews with music stars and folks from the world of pop. Casual pop fans and chart junkies can hear Billboard‘s executive digital director, West Coast, Katie Atkinson and Billboard’s managing director, charts and data operations, Keith Caulfield every week on the podcast, which can be streamed on Billboard.com or downloaded in Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast provider. (Click here to listen to the previous edition of the show on Billboard.com.)
RAYE has a pair of collaborations coming out with Mark Ronson, and the British singer nearly shied away from working with the esteemed producer due to his connection to the late Amy Winehouse, whom RAYE has drawn comparisons to.
The first collab is titled “Suzanne” and is slated to arrive on Friday. People caught up with RAYE backstage at Governors Ball in NYC over the weekend, where she opened up about her initial hesitancy to team up with Ronson, who predominantly produced Winehouse’s final album, Back to Black, alongside Salaam Remi in 2006.
“Honestly, I’m not gonna lie, I actually was quite nervous and scared to work with him,” she admitted. “I just do want to say that I know I can never, ever, ever, ever, ever attempt to replace or imitate Amy. I’m in awe of her. We all are, and we miss her.”
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RAYE continued: “It’s quite a tough thing to even allow myself to create so freely with him,” she says. “But I really just wanted to be like, ‘Do you know what? I just need to forget what anyone else is gonna say about this.’ I absolutely love this producer. I’ve always wanted to work with this producer since I was a little girl.”
Their second collaboration is set to be released later in June, with “Grandma Calls the Boy Bad News” slated to land on the F1 soundtrack.
“We’ve made music together that I’m so proud of, and I love,” she gushed. “I play it, and it makes me happy and joyful, so I’m proud.”
The “Escapism” singer’s next album is starting to take shape, but she’s stuck without a title for the project, which follows her acclaimed 2023 LP, My 21st Century Blues.
“I don’t have an album title,” RAYE said. “I’m like, ‘What is it gonna be called?’ It’s stressing me out right now, I can’t lie, because I’ve got the music starting to really come there. I just don’t know what this album’s gonna be called. In my humble opinion, My 21st Century Blues is such a fire album title, and I can’t hand in an album title that’s less good than that.”
Does Kai Cenat not know who Wale is? During Monday night’s 2025 BET Awards, the two crossed paths in what looked like a parking garage while Cenat was doing a livestream of his night. They greeted each other as Wale was playing Nintendo Switch, and when he told the popular streamer that he was playing […]
Turnstile is hitting the road this fall in support of their new album Never Enough, launching Sept. 15 in Nashville. The tour includes support acts SPEED and Jane Remover and special appearances by guests Amyl & The Sniffers, Blood Orange and Mannequin Pussy. Last week, the band released their new record and companion film Turnstile: […]
As protests continue in Los Angeles following sweeping ICE raids, electronic producer Cloonee has postponed a pair of shows meant to happen in the city this weekend.
“For the past four years now, I have called this city my home,” the British artist wrote Tuesday (June 10) in a statement posted to social media. “Like the city, my fans are diverse and it breaks my heart to see what the Latino community is going through right now.
“I have therefore decided that the right, responsible and only decision is to postpone this weekend’s events,” he continues. “Our time together is meant to be one of celebration, and now is not the time for celebrating.” Read the complete statement below.
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These shows were scheduled to happen June 13-14 at City Market in downtown Los Angeles, an area of town that’s seen myriad raids by ICE amid federal immigration efforts. Cloonee’s shows are now scheduled to happen July 11-12, with all tickets valid for the corresponding new dates, with refunds also available for the next seven days.
According to the L.A. Times, an immigrants-rights leader in the city reported that “about 300 people have been detained by federal authorities in California since sweeps began last week.” The situation has been inflamed after the Trump administration deployed the National Guard and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles amid protests over ICE raids.
Cloonee is one of many artists who’s spoken out on the ICE raids and their aftermath, with Doechii using her speech at the BET Awards in Los Angeles on Monday (June 9) to say that “I do wanna address what’s happening right now outside of the building. There are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order. Trump is using military force to stop a protest. And I want y’all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic right to protest, the military is deployed against us. What type of government is that?”
Read Cloonee’s complete statement: “For the past four years now, I have called this city my home. Like the city, my fans are diverse and it breaks my heart to see what the Latino community is going through right now.I have therefore decided that the right, responsible and only decision is to postpone this weekend’s events. Our time together is meant to be one of celebration, and now is not the time for celebrating.We are moving this weekend’s shows to the new dates of Friday, July 11th and Saturday, July 12th. All tickets will remain valid for the new corresponding date. If you are unable to join us at that time, you may cancel your tickets for a full refund in the next 7 days. All ticket buyers will receive an email to the address used to purchase the tickets with a refund link, or reach out to our team at insom.co/help.I understand this may upset a large number of ticket holders who, like myself, have waited months for these shows, and I do not take this decision lightly.I see you, I hear you and I simply will not throw a party whilst the Latino people who have supported me in this city are hurting so deeply.Please take care of yourselves, prioritize your safety and your community above all else. I will make this up to you in a months time.Dave.”
