Music News

Marshmello’s First Latin Album ‘Sugar Papi’ Scores Sweet Start on Latin, Dance/Electronic Charts

Marshmello scores his fourth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart as his new album, Sugar Papi, debuts atop the Nov. 18-dated ranking. The set, released Nov. 3 via Joytime Collective/Sony Music Latin, is his first Latin project, and concurrently earns the DJ/producer a first entry on any Latin albums chart, with a No. 9 launch on Top Latin Albums and a No. 5 bow on Latin Rhythm Albums. It also debuts at No. 97 on the all-genre Billboard 200.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The 11-track set features such Latin stars as Anuel AA, Farruko, Fuerza Regida, Nicky Jam and Manuel Turizo. Ten of the 11 tunes are collaborations with artists who record in Spanish, while one track is a team-up with Brazilian artist Luisa Sonza, who records in Portuguese.

Sugar Papi debuts on all four lists with 11,000 equivalent units earned in the U.S. during the Nov. 3-9 tracking week, according to Luminate.

Most of Sugar Papi’s opening unit sum is driven by streaming activity, which equals to 15.4 million official streams of the set’s songs, while the remainder balance stems from album sales and track-equivalent album units. One unit equals to one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.

Marshmello previously hit No. 1 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums with Joytime III (one week, 2019), Marshmello: Fortnite Extended Set (20 weeks, 2019; currently tied with Drake’s Honestly, Nevermind for the most weeks at No. 1 among solo male artists), and Joytime II (one week, 2018).

With a fourth No. 1, Marshmello ties Aphex Twin for the second-most leaders among male solo artists, behind Louie DeVito’s seven champs.

The set was preceded by two songs: “El Merengue,” with Manuel Turizo, which spent 13 weeks atop the Tropical Airplay chart – the second-longest-leading No. 1 on Tropical Airplay in 2023 (Chayanne’s “Bailando Bachata” remains at the lead in its 14th week), while “Esta Vida,” with Farruko, reached a No. 2 high on Latin Pop Airplay. The tracks peaked at Nos. 24 and 42, respectively, on the multi-metric Hot Latin Songs chart, while topping out at Nos. 5 and 10 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.

Further, one other song makes its debut on the multi-metric Hot Latin Songs chart: “Harley Quinn,” with Fuerza Regida, surges 13-2 as the Greatest Gainer/Sales & Streaming song of the week. The track logged 10.2 million streams in the U.S. during the same period, enough to also place it in the runner-up slot on Latin Streaming Songs.

Lady A Breaks Down How the ‘Playlist Era’ Helped Country Music Explode in 2023

After a blockbuster year for country music, the members of Lady A — Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood — are ready to break down why they think the genre is having such a moment.

In a new interview with Billboard News, the country trio explains that the mixing of genres through streaming consumption has allowed country music to shine like never before. “I think it’s just the blend of all the different influences,” Kelley says. “We grew up in the playlist era, where you’d make a mixtape, and so I grew up loving everything. I feel like when we started our band, it was like a little bit of the Eagles meets Fleetwood Mac meets The Chicks meets Rascal Flatts. It was everything coming together into this sound.”

Scott adds that, with fans more eager than ever to find artists that they can connect to emotionally, country music provides a place for them to learn all about a new artist. “Like Carly Pearce’s 29 — she was bearing it all with her story and what was going on with her life, and that really resonates with people,” she says. “When you are brave enough to be vulnerable in plain sight … that is where a real connection happens.”

The band also talks about their recently completed Request Line Tour, where they asked their fans to submit song requests via phone and built the setlist around the tracks audiences wanted to hear. “When we do the song, we find them in the audience and try to connect with them and have a moment,” Haywood says. “It’s so neat to connect with people when you actually get to see them in the moment.”

Watch our full interview with Lady A above.

Dua Lipa Has the Magic Touch (Again) On Her New Song ‘Houdini’

Dua Lipa reached new heights with her sophomore album Future Nostalgia back in 2020, scoring her first two top five Billboard Hot 100 hits (the No. 2-peaking “Levitating” and “Don’t Start Now”) and spending 188 weeks (and counting!) on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

She returned late last week to kick off her mysterious new era, unveiling the nu-disco lead single “Houdini” along with a mesmerizing music video. On the new Billboard Pop Shop Podcast, Katie & Keith are talking all about Dua’s latest song and what we’re expecting next.

Listen to the podcast below:

Also on the show, we’ve got chart news on how Taylor Swift continues to lead both the Billboard 200 and Hot 100, how Jung Kook and the late Jimmy Buffett debut in the top 10 on the Billboard 200, and how The Beatles score their 35th top 10 on the Hot 100 (and first in nearly 30 years) with their much-talked about new single “Now and Then.” Plus, we’re talking all about the Big Four categories of the 2024 Grammy nominations, which were announced late last week. And the Billboard Music Awards are this weekend! Listen to the podcast for a preview of Sunday’s big show.

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.)



Lil Uzi Vert Says He ‘Never’ Agreed to Headline Rolling Loud California

Lil Uzi Vert was announced as one of the headliners of Rolling Loud California 2024 early in the day on Tuesday (Nov. 14), but the rapper expressed confusion over the announcement.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The “Just Wanna Rock” star took to his Instagram Stories to share a photo of the festival‘s lineup, in which he’s labeled as the Sunday headliner. “I never said I was doing Rolling Loud,” he wrote over the photo. “Don’t understand why my name is on here @rollingloud.”

Billboard has reached out both to Rolling Loud and Uzi’s reps for more information.

Rolling Loud California 2024 will take over Hollywood Park Grounds in Inglewood, Calif., from March 15 to 17, 2024, and features Nicki Minaj and Post Malone as the other headliners.

Bryson TillerDon ToliverSki Mask the Slump GodChief KeefNLE ChoppaThat Mexican OT, 310babii, Chase Shakur, Sukihana, Ryan Trey, Cash Cobain, Wolfacejoeyy and Rich Amiri are all also set for Sunday (March 17), when Uzi was scheduled to hit the stage. See the full lineup here.

Presale for Rolling Loud California 2024 begins Thursday, Nov. 16, at 10 a.m. PT, and general onsale begins the following day on Friday, Nov. 17, at 10 a.m. PT. Fans can click here to RSVP for first access to tickets — and a chance to win free tickets before they go on sale — right now.

Jay-Z Recalls 6th-Grade Teacher & How Excited She Was That He Could Read at a 12th-Grade Level

As fans gear up for Jay-Z‘sCBS interview with Gayle King on Tuesday night (Nov. 14), the network delivered a new teaser ahead of their much-anticipated conversation.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

In the new clip, Jay speaks on his teachers’ influence and how one specifically played an integral role in his development. “Miss Loudon was my sixth-grade teacher. In the sixth grade, I was readin’ on a 12th-grade level,” recalled Hov. “That excited me. ‘Cause everyone was excited. And Miss Loudon, she was excited. It felt like me riding my bike at 4, the way people reacted to that.”

Jay’s interview with King will highlight his three-decade career at his Book of HOV exhibit at the Brooklyn Library. The Black Album MC’s music triumphs, business wins and philanthropic deeds are all spotlighted at the library, which will be available for fans to visit until next month.

“I think what matters most, today, is being a beacon and helping out … my culture,” Jay-Z revealed in a trailer last week for his upcoming interview. “People of color. I think I pull the most satisfaction from that. Like making music earlier was, like – my first love. I could sit there for hours. It consumed me. Just finding words and figuring out words and how to say this and different ways to say that and different pockets and melodies and how to write this song… That consumed me. That’s why my pace was so fast. I had so much material … And I think now, you know, the idea of, of taking that platform and, you know, reproducing it for others or doing something like Reform [Alliance, Jay’s nonprofit] … I think I derive the most joy from that.”

The “Jay-Z and Gayle King: Brooklyn’s Own” conversation airs Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET. Watch the latest clip for Jay’s interview below.

Jason & Travis Kelce Are Teaming Up for a Christmas Song

It’s a very Kelce Christmas!

Jason Kelce has recruited his brother, Travis Kelce, to take part in the Philadelphia Eagles‘ upcoming holiday album, A Philly Special Christmas Special, and the brotherly duet is set to arrive on Wednesday (Nov. 15).

The album’s official Instagram page posted a teaser clip of the song, “Fairytale of Philadelphia,” to Instagram on Tuesday (Nov. 14), along with the caption, “Philly, are we going to let a Chief steal the show? No way… But we are going to enjoy the newly reimagined single, Fairytale of Philadelphia by Jason & Travis Kelce.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

See the post, which features the duo singing as claymation-style puppets, here. “You are handsome,” Travis sings to his brother in the video, to which Jason replies, “You are pretty,” before Travis says, “You’re the king of South Philly.”

In a recent episode of the Kelce brothers’ New Heights podcast, Travis revealed that he lent his voice to the duet with Jason for the album, but he hasn’t listened to the final version yet. “Dude I do not want to hear myself sing like that. I’ve got more of the rock voice,” the Kansas City Chiefs tight end admitted.

The full album by Jason and his Eagles teammates Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson is out December 1, and also features a collaboration with Patti LaBelle. The trio previously released their rendition of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” earlier this month.

Olivia Rodrigo Says She’s ‘Running on the Treadmill & Singing’ to Prep for Tour: ‘I Want to Be Able to Jump Around’

Olivia Rodrigo is just months away from spilling her Guts on tour, and the Grammy-winning pop star shared some insight on how she’s prepping for her 57-date run.

“I’m getting it all together right now, brainstorming everything,” she told The Hollywood Reporter at the premiere of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes on Monday night (Nov. 13). “I’m running on the treadmill right now singing my songs, because I want to be able to jump up and down and sing the songs. I think it’s going to be really fun. I want the show to feel like a great place for people to scream and jump around and let loose.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

When asked what song she’s most excited to perform, Rodrigo gushed over her sophomore album’s opener. “I really love the song ‘All-American B—h’ and I think that’s going to be a really fun one to perform live,” she said. “That’s a big yeller, so I hope people let out all their frustrations on that one.”

The tour kicks off Feb. 23 at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, Calif., before she spans North America and then heads overseas, beginning her international dates on April 30 in Dublin, Ireland. The pop star returns to the United States with a July 19 show in Philadelphia, and wraps her world tour with two concerts at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on Aug. 13 and 14.

The Breeders, PinkPantheress, Chappell Roan and Remi Wolf are the tour’s openers on select dates, which you can check out in full here.

Watch THR‘s full interview with Rodrigo below.



Post Malone Secures His First Hit on Country Airplay Chart With ‘Pickup Man’

Post Malone scores his first hit on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (dated Nov. 18), as his duet with the late Joe Diffie on the latter’s 1990s classic “Pickup Man” debuts at No. 54.

The song, billed as Joe Diffie featuring Post Malone, and released Nov. 9 via Mercury/Republic/Big Loud Records, arrives with 826,000 country format audience impressions in the Nov. 3-9 tracking week, according to Luminate. It debuts after just one day of tracking.

Post Malone performed the song at the 57th annual CMA Awards on Nov. 8, alongside Morgan Wallen and HARDY. The latter two artists also covered Diffie’s “John Deere Green.” The trio performed in tribute to Diffie, who died in March 2020 after a battle with COVID-19. His original versions of “Pickup Man” and “John Deere Green” hit Nos. 1 and 5, respectively, on the Hot Country Songs chart in 1994.



Both updates (with Diffie’s vocals recorded in 2006) are set to appear on the third iteration of HARDY’s Hixtape series, Hixtape Volume 3: Difftape, due March 29, 2024. The first, Hixtape, Vol. 1, reached No. 35 on the Top Country Albums chart in 2019 and features songs by 17 country acts, including Wallen, Trace Adkins, Thomas Rhett, Cole Swindell and Keith Urban.

As Post Malone debuts on Country Airplay for the first time, he has now charted on 15 different Billboard radio surveys in his career: Pop Airplay, Adult Pop Airplay, Adult Contemporary, Rock & Alternative Airplay, Alternative Airplay, Adult Alternative Airplay, Mainstream Rock Airplay, R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Rhythmic Airplay, Rap Airplay, Latin Airplay, Dance/Mix Show Airplay, Country Airplay and the all-format Radio Songs chart.

Of those 15 rankings, he has hit No. 1 on 11: Pop Airplay, Adult Pop Airplay, Adult Contemporary, Alternative Airplay, Adult Alternative Airplay, R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Rhythmic Airplay, Rap Airplay, Dance/Mix Show Airplay and Radio Songs.

Billboard has 25 total radio charts. The only ones on which Post Malone hasn’t yet charted are Adult R&B Airplay, Christian Airplay, Christian AC Airplay, Gospel Airplay, Latin Pop Airplay, Latin Rhythm Airplay, Regional Mexican Airplay, Tropical Airplay, Smooth Jazz Airplay and Holiday Airplay.

Dating to when Luminate began tracking airplay data in 1990, Pharrell holds the record for reaching the most radio charts, with 18. Adele and Mariah Carey are next (17 each), followed by Beyoncé, Wyclef Jean, John Legend, Bruno Mars, Santana and Timbaland (16 each). The artists to chart on 15 radio charts each: Christina Aguilera, Akon, Justin Bieber (with a notable country crossover of his own this decade), Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Shaggy and Snoop Dogg.

Turn your passion for music into exclusive prizes. Start playing trivia now!

Billie Eilish Says She Lost Her Identity in Her Hair Transformations: ‘I Just Got Swallowed Up in It’

A major part of Billie Eilish’s visual aesthetic has always been her hair. From blue to blonde to neon green and everything in between, the “Bad Guy” singer has created personas surrounding her musical eras with the help of some hair dye.

However, in a new interview with LA Times published this week, the Grammy-winning superstar opened up about how her hair journey led to her losing a sense of identity. “2019, that period of my life when I dyed my hair green, I was completely unstoppable,” she recalled to the publication. “I felt like I was on the moon. And I remember at the time being like, I’m finally happy. I’d never been happy before, and I just wanted to stay happy. Then a couple years happened. COVID happened. Another album happened. I got older and fell back into being a human and not being happy all the time — having good moments and having bad moments. Last year got really bad. And I just kept being like, ‘God, I miss 2019 so much. When can my life feel like that again?’”

She added that her introspective contribution to the Barbie soundtrack, “What Was I Made For?” was inspired by that feeling, and that she’d been “basing all my happiness on all these things in the material world that you have no control over and that will inevitably change.”

Eilish said that with her blonde hair during the release of her 2021 album Happier Than Ever, she thought she’d be — as the album title suggests — happier, and while it was “fun” at first, “it did not go how I wanted it to go.” She continued that her hair turned into a costume for her, which led to her struggling with her sense of identity. “I completely had no idea who I was,” she says. “I came up with this whole aesthetic, and I just got swallowed up into it,” she shared.

The singer has since returned to her black hair, accented with red roots this time, and is up for five Grammys for “What Was I Made For?” at the 2024 ceremony, including record of the year, song of the year, best pop solo performance, best song written for visual media and best music video.

Taylor Swift Hangs Out With Gracie Abrams in New York City: See the Photos

Taylor Swift is back in New York City following her trio of Eras Tour shows in Argentina, and it looks like the pop star spent her first night home hanging out with her friend and frequent opening act, Gracie Abrams.

The two singers were spotted walking side by side in the Lower East Side, Swift was wearing a white dress and navy blazer and Abrams rocked a tan jacket and loafers. A video posted to Twitter of the pair’s stroll shows that one of their security guards loudly shouted “Move!” at a swarm of paparazzi, who were blocking the stars’ graffiti-lined path.

The duo’s night out comes just a few days after the Recording Academy announced nominations for the 2024 Grammys; both the “Anti-Hero” pop star and Abrams picked up nods. Swift is in the running for six awards including song, album and record of the year, while the “I Know It Won’t Work” singer is up for best new artist alongside Ice Spice, Noah Kahan, Jelly Roll and more breakout musicians.

On the same day Grammy nominations went live, Abrams revealed to Billboard that Swift was one of the first people she celebrated the bucket-list moment with. “I talked to Taylor and we were just screaming at each other over text like, lots of all-caps: Holy f–king s–t,” she said. “And obviously she just deserves all of it, all of it, all of it. In moments of career celebration or any personal crisis, I text her, so to be able to celebrate this one mutually felt so wild.”

In addition to Grammys nods, Swift is the top finalist for the 2023 Billboard Music Awards, with nods in 20 categories. The BBMAs are Nov. 19; it can be viewed via BBMAs.watch, and via the Billboard and BBMAs’ social media channels.

Swift and Abrams have grown closer over the course of the Eras Tour, which the latter artist joined for a slew of dates earlier this year as an opener. The two stars, who both call Aaron Dessner a close collaborator, even once performed Abrams’ “I Miss You, I’m Sorry” together during a surprise acoustic number in Cincinnati.

See photos of Swift and Abrams out together in NYC below:

Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams

Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams are seen on Nov. 13, 2023 in New York City.

Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams

Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams are seen in the Lower East Side on Nov. 13, 2023 in New York City.