Music News

10 Oct 2023

LE SSERAFIM Reflect on The Success of ‘UNFORGIVEN’ & First Tour: Interview

LE SSERAFIM is the latest artist in Billboard Japan’s monthly feature interview series which presents various artists and works that have caught its eye. Making its debut in May 2022,  they are  the first girl group produced by SOURCE MUSIC and HYBE, the label behind BTS and countless other global artists.

 In January of this year, LE SSERAFIM released their first Japanese single, “FEARLESS,” and held a showcase event to commemorate it. In May, the group released its 1st studio album, UNFORGIVEN. The album took the top position on Billboard Japan‘s “Hot Albums” overall album chart, the “Top Albums Sales” weekly album sales chart, and the “Download Albums” chart.

 A Japanese version of the album’s title track, “UNFORGIVEN,” was released in August as their second Japanese single. “UNFORGIVEN (feat. Nile Rodgers, Ado) -Japanese ver.-” features Ado, and a Japan-exclusive track, “Jewelry (Prod. imase)” was produced by imase, generating buzz in Japan. Billboard Japan spoke to LE SSERAFIM about what’s happened in the year since their debut, their well-received album and latest single, and their first solo tour. (Due to scheduling issues, HUH YUNJIN was not able to take part in the interview with the rest of the group and was interviewed on her own at a later date.)

It’s been roughly a year since your debut. Could you tell us where each of you thinks you’ve achieved the most personal growth over the course of this year?

KAZUHA: My greatest growth has been in how much my Korean has improved.

What about you, KIM CHAEWON?

KIM CHAEWON: Before our debut, and right after our debut, I wasn’t yet in the right frame of mind to enjoy myself while I was performing on stage. Now, though, I’ve become comfortable enough to have fun on stage. I think that’s an area where I’ve grown a lot.

Could you talk a bit about what makes LE SSERAFIM unique and what your strengths are?

SAKURA: A lot of our lyrics are based on our actual life experiences, so I think our songs can encourage and resonate with people who are going through similar experiences. I think our strength lies in the fact that we sing about our philosophy of how you can live your life.

What about your live performances?

KIM CHAEWON: When we get up on stage, we try to create a live show together with all of our fans, as a group effort. For example, we put in call & response sections so that the audience can respond.

In May, you released your first studio album, UNFORGIVEN. I’ve heard that you recorded several of the songs in Japan. Did you have any insights or discoveries during the recording process?

SAKURA: On this album, there were a lot of songs in genres that I didn’t have much experience with, for example, “Fire in the belly” which has a lot of Latin-influenced sounds. So when we were recording, I discovered new voices I didn’t know I had. Sometimes it was hard, but I think with UNFORGIVEN, listeners will be able to enjoy all kinds of genres through the entire album.

What did you do to prepare for recording?

KAZUHA: We began recording “UNFORGIVEN (feat. Nile Rodgers)” in Japan, and my approach was to sing the opening words “Unforgiven, I’m a villain, I’m a” in a kind of dark, cool way. But I got some advice to try singing it with a bit of a lighter tone, and when I tried it out, the producer was also like, “right there, that’s it.” That part sticks with you, and the producer said he wanted to make it an addictive hook, so I’m glad I was able to pull off that part so well. I think the recording of this album allowed me to experience the best possible recording process, despite the time limitations we were under.

KIM CHAEWON: We didn’t have that much time for recording, so I took a lot of care to make sure my voice was in its best condition.

HONG EUNCHAE: I sang a somewhat long part in “UNFORGIVEN (feat. Nile Rodgers).” It was my first time doing that, and I wanted to do really well, so I practiced to show the best version of myself.     

I feel like your first studio album, UNFORGIVEN, was made with this desire to pave your own way, without being held back by how other people see you or what they think. The album has gained support from a lot of fans and reached the top of the hit charts. What do you think that means for you and how do you feel about the response to the album?

KIM CHAEWON: Our goal wasn’t breaking into the charts when we were preparing for the recording. We just wanted to do what we could and to express ourselves through music. That’s what we were focused on when we made the album. We figured that people would see what we accomplished and recognition would follow.

SAKURA: UNFORGIVEN dropped the day before we celebrated our first anniversary, and you can see the hard work we put in over the course of that year. A lot of people discovered us through “ANTIFRAGILE,” and I think the expectations people had for us had a good impact on us. The real test will be where we go from here. I want us to continue making the kind of music that only we can.

HUH YUNJIN: I can feel the love that so many people have for our songs and performances, and I’m so happy that the message we’re trying to share is reaching people. I want us to be a team that has a positive influence on people who see us perform, helping them courageously join hands and keep pushing forward.

Could you talk a bit about your second Japanese single, “UNFORGIVEN?” One of the songs on the single is a Japan-exclusive produced by imase titled “Jewelry (Prod. imase)” What are the highlights of this song?

KIM CHAEWON: The lyrics are beautiful. A lot of LE SSERAFIM songs have a cool, sophisticated atmosphere, but “Jewelry (Prod. imase)” is a bright, cheery song.

SAKURA: I think it’s a real ear-pleaser, perfect for listening to on late-night drives. A lot of LE SSERAFIM songs are rap-oriented songs, but when we recorded this song we tried to make our voices really shine.

KAZUHA: Usually, during recording, I break things down very precisely, like, “in this part, I’ll do this, and in this part, I’ll do this.” With “Jewelry (Prod. imase),” though, I just felt the energy and had a blast singing.

HONG EUNCHAE: The word “sparkling” appears a few times in the lyrics, and when I sang the song I envisioned beautiful, sparkling scenes and vibed as I sang.

HUH YUNJIN: I love the city pop genre, and both the music and lyrics are wonderful.

The title song, “UNFORGIVEN (feat. Nile Rodgers, Ado) -Japanese ver.-” features the Japanese singer Ado. How did you feel when the decision was made to collaborate with her?

HONG EUNCHAE:  I knew that Ado was a very well-known artist, so I couldn’t believe it when I found out she’d be collaborating on one of our songs.

KAZUHA: Ado has a truly unique singing voice, so I was excited to hear how she’d sound on her collaboration with us.

HUH YUNJIN: It was so unexpected, I couldn’t believe it. I remember being impressed with what a wonderful artist Ado was the first time I heard her. I never expected to be able to work with her.

You started your first solo tour, 2023 LE SSERAFIM TOUR ‘FLAME RISES,’ with a performance in Seoul on August 12. In Japan, you played in Nagoya, Tokyo, and Osaka. Where did the “FLAME RISES” in the tour name come from?

SAKURA: It refers to us burning the path we walked behind us so there would be no going back, our only choice would be to keep going forward. It’s also because we wanted to put on a blazing hot show.

What has the response been like?

KIM CHAEWON: Even before we debuted, we had our eyes set on putting on concerts. I was so glad to be able to put on our first LE SSERAFIM tour. I’ve had a hard time even believing it. We’re making sure to take good care of our health, and hopefully we can bring the tour to a successful conclusion.

SAKURA: A lot of concerts end with a quiet, soulful song, but we’re ending our concerts with a really exciting song that gets the audience amped up. Like the image evoked by our tour name, “FLAME RISES,” we want to be on fire up on stage. At our shows, we’ve seen the audience enjoying the show with every fiber of their being, so it’s been a thrill for us, too.

HUH YUNJIN: It’s been so fun. I’m so grateful that people have taken time out of their busy schedules to come see us. I want us to keep enjoying ourselves in our shows, staying healthy and putting on impressive performances.

Do you have any final message for our readers or your fans?

KIM CHAEWON:   I hope you put our second Japanese single, “UNFORGIVEN,” on heavy rotation, and if you come to one of our shows, I hope you have the time of your life.

SAKURA:  I’m so glad to be able to experience first-hand the love people feel for our music. We’re going to keep putting on great shows for the rest of this tour, and then achieve even further growth in preparation for our next tour, so we look forward to your ongoing support.

10 Oct 2023

VTuber Tokoyami Towa Breaks Down ‘Aster’ Debut Album & How Inter-Agency Collabs Happened: Interview

Tokoyami Towa debuted in 2020 as one of hololive’s fourth-generation group of virtual YouTubers, and currently boasts more than 1.3 million subscribers on her channel. The VTuber whose main draw is gaming livestreams also releases videos of herself singing covers and original music, showing off her signature strong, husky voice and wide vocal range.

Tokoyami — her name is stylized in Japanese order, surname first — recently dropped her first album called Aster, a highly anticipated project that showcases her potential as a vocalist through tracks written by a team of distinctive creators. The Startend VTuber shared her thoughts on her 12-track debut set and its production process, including how the rare collaborations with other VTubers and streamers were made possible.

What motivated you to become a VTuber?

The reason I joined hololive was because I wanted to make friends. I enjoyed watching and playing first-person shooters from around that time and although hololive is a group of “idols,” I thought it’d be interesting to be an idol and a gamer at the same time. The nice thing about gaming livestreams is how you can watch the players improve. They exchange ideas and work hard with each other to compete. I want to convey through my activities that working hard isn’t something to be embarrassed about and that the accumulation of your efforts up to that point is more important than winning or losing.

In a sense, your debut album Aster embodies the accumulation of your career up to this point. Tell us about its concept.

I wanted it to express who Tokoyami Towa is. This album also has a hidden theme that I encourage everyone to speculate about. It took me a long time to decide on it. I looked back on things like what I was feeling at the time and the work I’ve done over the years.

The lead single “ANEMONE” was written by music producer Yuyoyuppe (Mamiya Takehiro). Why did you choose this song as the face of the album?

It was really hard to decide. I thought it’d be okay to not have a lead single at all since there are so many different genres of songs on the album. But I felt that “ANEMONE” was the one that showed Tokoyami Towa’s strengths that separate her from other VTubers, both from hololive and elsewhere, so that’s why I chose it.

Could you elaborate on what you mean by “Tokoyami Towa’s strengths”?

First, I have a good vocal range. I can keep my voice steady when I hit high notes, and that’s also one of my strengths. Blistering heavy metal numbers like “ANEMONE” aren’t common in the VTuber industry, so being able to sing such songs with a strong voice is Tokoyami Towa’s signature style.

What thoughts went into the lyrics?

Over the course of my career, people have said nice things to me, and also not-so-nice things as well. I get hung up on the negative stuff sometimes, but in the end I want to decide what I want to do and live my life as I am. When I told these feelings to Yuyoyuppe, he was like, “That’s really great, let’s incorporate it.” That’s how the phrase “I want to live as I am” came about as we worked on the lyrics.

So your usual livestreaming activities and musical ones like this project closely influence each other?

It’s like of like, “Let’s use music to express the stuff I usually can’t say.” For the song “Taidana Wonder” on the album, I wanted to convey feelings like “what a drag, I don’t wanna do anything, I feel lazy, I’m sleepy” in an endearing way. I didn’t think a solid rock band sound would fit the lyrics, so when I heard Botchiboromaru’s “Otose Thunder” on TikTok, I thought the light, fresh style would be a great fit, so I asked them to write it for me.

“Antares” features nine guest vocalists. The lineup isn’t limited to your colleagues from hololive, but also includes VTubers and streamers from other agencies.

I’m an outlier in hololive in that I have a lot of opportunities to collaborate with people from other organizations. My management has given me its blessing regarding this and I think it’s one of my selling points, so I wanted to do collaborations on this album as well, which is why I approached various people from other companies and also other hololive VTubers. “Antares” was written with the collaboration in mind. I wanted to do a singalong. I thought it’d be nice to sing it together with the audience at a live show.

Do you think these collaborations are connected to what you said about first becoming a VTuber, being motivated by wanting to make friends?

Yes. As a VTuber and streamer, I want to incorporate good influences as much as I can, and before anything, I want to do fun stuff. As I always tell my fans, I don’t want to do what I do out of obligation. I want to communicate how I’m having fun and get people to have fun watching me do that. So the way I see it, the companies my collaborators belong to don’t matter, as long as what we do together is enjoyable.

You collaborate with Nekota Tsuna, who belongs to VSPO! (Virtual eSports Project), on the last song on the album called “Nininsankyaku.” How did this one come about?

Singing and playing first-person shooters are Tokoyami Towa’s two mainstays. I often get to participate in FPS gaming competitions, and when I teamed up with Tsuna, we cried and laughed together and deepened our friendship. We share good memories together and she’s now one of my best friends. That’s why I wanted to sing a song with Tsuna and asked the management about making it happen. I think our fans probably know about our relationship, so I hope we can perform together on stage someday. I’ve been listening to the song at least once a day lately. It moves me every time I hear it while I’m doing something. [Laughs]

Did Tsuna have a say in the song’s creative process?

Before the song went into production, Tsuna and I wrote out these lengthy memos about what we thought about each other. Even cheesy stuff like, “I’m stronger now thanks to you.” [Laughs] We prepared these letters, I guess you could call them, and sent them to the songwriters, who then reflected them in the lyrics for us. I think the song really captures that spirit. There’s this part where we take turns singing, and we had a great time recording it while expressing our feelings to each other.

Your first solo concert called Break your xxx is set for Friday, Oct. 13. What will the show be like?

I’ll be performing with a live band, so it’ll be a wild, fun show. I’m working hard to prepare for it right now because I want to make sure my voice won’t be overshadowed by the band’s sound, and that my feelings will reach everyone, and that both the people who come and those who join the livestream will think, “That was awesome.” 

What’s the meaning behind the title of the show?

There were times I felt anxious and depressed over the course of my career, but thanks to my fans and the management, I’m able to do live shows like this now. The meaning behind “Break your xxx” is that I wanted to overcome my gloomy feelings and gain confidence, overcome myself. I’m sure everyone goes through times of pain and hardship, but I want to invite people to break those things together at my concert. What goes into the “xxx” is up to you. Everyone is building this concert together.

Tell us about your vision for the future beyond your debut album and first live performance.

I’d love to do a second concert, of course, and I’d love to stand on stages outside of Japan. My fans in other countries were also very supportive of me when I was faltering, so I want to go express my gratitude to them.

10 Oct 2023

What Is Your Favorite Song From Drake’s ‘For All the Dogs’ Album? Vote!

Drake‘s latest album, For All the Dogs, is finally here. The set, released on Friday (Oct. 6), saw the return of the rapper with a few special guests, including SZA, 21 Savage, J. Cole, Chief Keef, Sexyy Red, Snoop Dogg and more.

Prior to the release of For All the Dogs, Drake released the SZA assisted single, “Slime You Out.” The track quickly gained traction for being the first collaboration the pair has worked on, and amid their romantic past. The song additionally made waves on the Billboard charts, peaking at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 following its release.

Listeners also had more than enough to talk about on social media with “Fear of Heights,” due to some perceiving it as a diss to former love interest Rihanna and her current boyfriend, A$AP Rocky. In the intro of the track, the rapper repeated the word “Anti” more than a few times, which is also the title of Rihanna’s 2016 album. Drake then states that people “make it sound like [he’s] still hung up on” Ri and appears to diss Rocky, saying, “That man, he still with you, he can’t leave you/ Y’all go on vacation, I bet it’s Antilles.” The “Work” singer’s home country and frequent vacation spot, Barbados, is located in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean. Fans additionally speculated he made digs at Rihanna and A$AP on “Virginia Beach” and “Another Late Night.”

The other tracks on the album include a highly anticipated Bad Bunny collaboration (“Gently”), a dual team up with Sexyy and SZA (“Rich Baby Daddy”), a Chief Keef sample (“7969 Santa”) and more.

While fans will have to wait and see where the set and its respective 23 songs land on the Billboard 200 and Hot 100 charts next week, which song from For All the Dogs is your favorite? Vote in our poll below.

10 Oct 2023

‘It Was a Death Trap’: Israeli Rave Massacre Survivors Detail Their Escape as Scores Remain Missing

As the Palestinian group Hamas continues to attack Israel and the country retaliates by bombing Gaza, survivors of the terrorist attack at the Paralello Universo Supernova Sukkot Gathering electronic music festival near the Gaza border are continuing what has become a grim search for hundreds of people who are still missing.  

So far, the Israeli search and rescue organization Zaka has reported that it found 260 dead bodies at the festival site in Re’im, Israel. An unknown number of attendees have been abducted by Hamas terrorists. At least 150 Israelis were abducted on Saturday (Oct. 7), according to the New York Times, and some of them were taken from the rave.  

On Tuesday morning (Oct. 10), President Biden referenced the massacre during remarks on the Israel-Hamas conflict, naming “young people massacred while attending a music festival to celebrate peace” among the violent incidents of the last few days.

As of Sunday evening, 600-700 festival goers were believed to be missing in the immediate aftermath of the attack, according to artist manager Raz Gaster, who was at the event and represents several acts on the lineup. The exact number of the remaining still missing has not been verified, although two sources in Israel put this number at approximately 150, accounting for bodies that have since been recovered and identified as well as survivors who have been identified; though another source on the ground there says it’s still hard to tell how many remain missing.

Gaster, an artist manager who was at the event and represents several acts on the lineup, told Billboard Tuesday (Oct. 10) that he and members of the festival production team are working to locate survivors and gather information about festival attendees who remain missing.

“At the end of the day, it’s our responsibility as human beings to [provide] the families of these missing people whatever information we can get,” Gaster says. “We will keep working until we get information about each and every one of them.”  

The Israeli offshoot of the longstanding Brazilian festival brand Paralelllo Universo, Supernova Sukkot Gathering was named in honor of the Jewish Sukkot holiday, and hosted approximately 3,000 attendees on a rural site with two stages.

Those who escaped the festival describe the terror on the ground when at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday rockets began flying from Gaza, with some landing near Re’im. Within 20 minutes, terrorists armed with guns and RPGs arrived in ATVs, pickup trucks and motorcycles, as well as by paraglider, and immediately began shooting attendees.  

Shelly Barel, who sells jewelry and clothing at music festivals throughout Israel, had been on the site since Thursday, Oct. 5. At that time, the outdoor space was hosting another psytrance festival, Unity, with Supernova Sukkot Gathering starting on Friday. Supernova Sukkot was only moved to the Re’im site two days prior, after another site in southern Israel fell through.  

“The festival was so much fun,” Barel says of Supernova Sukkot through a translator. “Amazing people, it was really full of joy.”

Everything changed when rockets started falling early Saturday morning. Barel and her husband hit the ground and lay there for at least five minutes, until festival security made an announcement telling attendees to run to their cars and leave the site. Barel and her husband spent 10 minutes packing their belongings, then loaded them into their vehicle and drove away, with Barel’s husband behind the wheel. At the time, they assumed they were being asked to evacuate because of a rocket attack, a relatively regular occurrence in Israel.  

They soon hit a bottleneck of cars trying to exit the festival. Without realizing that armed attackers had arrived, they took a hard right turn and drove across the dirt field adjacent to the site instead of waiting in the exit line. That decision, made as much out of impatience and an instinct to escape as anything else, might have saved their lives.  

“In hindsight,” Barel says, “I understood that the terrorists shot the [people in the] first cars, so those cars couldn’t move, and the rest got stuck behind them. They formed a traffic jam for everyone coming after that. It was a death trap.”  

When Barel and her husband drove off the field and back onto the road, they came upon two stopped vehicles, both of which had all their doors open. Then they saw the occupants of those vehicles lying dead on the ground.  

Barel’s husband made a U-turn and minutes later received a text from someone in his army reserve group saying there were attackers in the area. “When we realized we had to fear the terrorists,” Barel says, “the missiles seemed like the smallest problem.”

He kept driving, following signs to the nearest city. “We decided to go as fast as we could, full gas, only slowing during turns,” she says. “The rockets were falling around us and at this point I thought it was the moment to say ‘I love you’ to each other and say goodbye.”

They didn’t get hit. Eventually, they made their way back to their home in central Israel. There, they found out that some of their friends from the festival had been killed, while others had been abducted. Many remain missing.  

Nitay, a 26-year-old security professional from Tel Aviv who also attended Supernova Sukkot said that he was helping an artist pack up some gear when gunmen appeared and started shooting at the festivalgoers. As shots rang out, “my friend called me when I was running away from the attack and asked me to try and find his sister,” says Nitay, who did not wish to give his last name. “I really wanted to help him, but I had to flee and hide. I felt like I was constantly surrounded by gunfire.”  

Nitay ran for several miles and eventually hid for 10 hours in an olive grove. At one point he thought the group he had taken shelter with had been discovered by armed men speaking in Arabic — they were about 20 yards away, close enough that he could see the men’s legs through the olive tree branches.  

“I prayed to my father, who passed away several years ago and begged him to help me,” Nitay recalls. As he hid, the men began shouting and Nitay says he braced himself for an attack. The shouting went on for about a half-hour, then the armed men began backing away from the area in which he was hiding with several others, including two tourists from Argentina. They stayed there for several more hours until Israeli finally arrived and led them to a nearby police station. Nitay says he never found his friend’s sister.

In the days since Barel and her husband escaped, they, too, have been searching for information on their missing friends, but they haven’t found much, even as obituaries have started to appear. The trauma is so fresh in her mind that she says she became “hysterical” when the elevator door in her apartment building opened and a man she didn’t know was inside.  

For decades, Israel’s dance music scene has been thriving. Psytrance, the electronic subgenre featured on the Supernova Sukkot lineup, became big in Israel in the late ’80s and ’90s, and it has been the country’s biggest electronic sound since, although house and techno have also grown in popularity in recent years.

On any given weekend, especially between March and October, there are several big parties like Supernova Sukkot throughout Israel, with crowd sizes ranging between 50 and 10,000, according to Amotz Tokatly, who’s been involved in the country’s electronic scene for more than 20 years as a promoter, manager, consultant and writer. “If you go to a psytrance party or a house or techno club, you see people from the age of 18 to 60 or even 70,” says Tokatly. “It’s a basic activity in Israel. We love to dance. We love to go out.”

It’s hard to tell what will happen to this scene in the aftermath of the attack, not to mention the war that is expected to follow.  

“What happened here is a disaster. It’s unbearable,” says Tokatly. “The most important thing for us is to [show] the world that this is a crime against innocent people. They don’t belong to any political side. These were just kids going to a party.”

Additional reporting by Tal Rimon.

10 Oct 2023

Toby Keith Tops Country Digital Song Sales Chart With ‘Don’t Let the Old Man In’

Toby Keith’s 2018 track “Don’t Let the Old Man In” flies from No. 11 to No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Digital Song Sales chart (dated Oct. 14). In the Sept. 29-Oct. 5 tracking week, it sold 13,000 downloads in the United States, up 482%, according to Luminate.

Keith performed the ballad, which was initially released in 2018, on the inaugural People’s Choice Country Awards (Sept. 28 on NBC) after receiving the country icon trophy. He boasts 20 No. 1s on the Hot Country Songs chart, among 42 top 10s, dating to his 1993 debut.

The song, which Keith solely authored, becomes his second No. 1, among six top 10s, on Country Digital Song Sales. “Red Solo Cup” dominated for 14 frames starting in November 2011.

On the all-genre Digital Song Sales survey, the track jumps 19-3, giving Keith his highest rank, among three top 10s. “Happy Birthday America” hit No. 5 in 2021 and “Red Solo Cup” reached No. 8 in 2011.

Keith, 62, has been fighting stomach cancer since 2021, a diagnosis that he revealed publicly in June 2022.

The singer-songwriter told Billboard in 2018 that “Don’t Let the Old Man In” was inspired by Clint Eastwood, director and star of The Mule, the movie in which the song premiered. Struck by Eastwood’s relentless energy when the film legend was then 88 years young, Keith asked how he kept going. “He said, ‘I just get up every morning and go out. And I don’t let the old man in,’ ” Keith recounted. “And I thought, I’m writing that.”

‘Save Me’ Rolls to Top 10

Jelly Roll’s “Save Me” with Lainey Wilson reaches the Hot Country Songs top 10, climbing 13-10.

The collaboration gives Jelly Roll his third top 10 and Wilson her sixth (in as many chart visits). It surged by 30% to 12.2 million audience impressions in the tracking week and pushes 18-16 for a new best on Country Airplay. It also drew 8.6 million official streams and sold 4,000.

Jelly Roll co-penned “Save Me” with David Ray. It follows his “Need a Favor,” which hit No. 3 on Hot Country Songs in July. The latter also led Country Airplay for four weeks beginning in August, becoming his second leader, following “Son of a Sinner,” his first entry which reigned for a week in January.

Wilson adds her sixth Hot Country Songs top 10. “Save Me” follows “Watermelon Moonshine,” which rises 10-7 for a new high. It leads Country Airplay for a second week, up 12% to 30.4 million impressions, having become her third leader a week earlier.

10 Oct 2023

Chris Young Taps David Bowie’s ‘Rebel’ Spirit For ‘Young Love & Saturday Nights’

It shouldn’t work: David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel,” with its androgynous storyline and garage-band sound, is from the height of the British glam-rock era, when sexual freedom and defying authority were key tenets in youth culture. Chris Young, a mainstream Southern guy whose persona is not built on rebellion, interpolated the song in his own “Young Love & Saturday Nights” — and somehow, Bowie’s edgy rock riff works within the centrist country sound.

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“Young Love & Saturday Nights” arrives nearly 50 years after “Rebel Rebel” was introduced on Bowie’s 1974 album Diamond Dogs, and at nearly every concert, Young sees fans perk up when they hear Bowie’s familiar lick, the same way that his senses were twisted when a publisher played it for him without warning during a song meeting. “I didn’t have any idea,” Young says, “and within like the first six seconds, I’m like, ‘That’s David Bowie. Why are you playing a David Bowie song?’”

By the time it was over, Young was obsessed. It would, he knew, provide a guitar lick for his concerts that felt like he was doing a cover song for anyone who knew “Rebel Rebel.” But it was still different enough from the original to stand on its own for anyone who didn’t identify its origin.

“Most people get the feeling when that song starts — they go, ‘Why is this familiar?’” says Young, interpreting the facial responses he has witnessed at his shows. “Then the minute that [signature riff arrives], you know immediately what it is, and then it smacks you right in the face at the top of the verse with, ‘No, this is something new.’”

Turning familiar music into something new was the general idea when songwriter Jesse Frasure (“She Had Me at Heads Carolina,” “If I Was a Cowboy”) started sifting through the Bowie catalog for titles that could be ripe for a country re-imagining. The idea might sound like rock’n’roll heresy, but Bowie’s estate practically commissioned the work, conveying interest to Warner Chappell in seeing his music reinterpreted for country. Frasure drew the assignment, and initially had “Heroes” in his crosshairs, before shifting to “Rebel Rebel.”

“One thing was for sure: I didn’t want a David Bowie interpolation to end up hokey,” Frasure recalls. “I felt like ‘Heroes’ could be a little bit sappy and hokey if we did it in a country setting, so I felt like this one at least would have a little bit more edge to it and may be just a little cooler.”

The iconic riff was, of course, the main attraction, in part because Bowie never sang that line as a melody. That meant that a can’t-miss hook was available for the chorus, and Frasure fashioned a basic track to work from, then sent it off to two collaborators, Ashley Gorley (“Last Night,” “Truck Bed”) and Josh Thompson (“Stars Like Confetti,” “I’ll Name the Dogs”), for a Zoom writing session. While they kept the riff, they dropped the “Rebel Rebel” lyrical theme, in which Bowie calls his mysteriously gendered date a “hot tramp.”

“We just tried to find something country to kind of balance it out,” Gorley says. “I have no idea who came up with the title. I think we were just kind of spitballing stuff and thinking of different ideas, and then that kind of spit out there at the end somewhere.”

They purposely avoided using the word “rebel” in the text, though they were determined to find a blue-collar version. Frasure referenced the guy working the docks in Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ On a Prayer” as the template. They settled on a local club musician with a rundown Chevy Silverado and a star-struck girlfriend whose father disapproves of her bad-boy choice.

“That scenario is pretty timeless,” says Gorley. “It can happen tonight, and 40 years ago, you know — 50 years ago, whatever that was — the same kind of things were going on. They’re still playing in their bands, driving things that barely run, falling in love with somebody. It’s still happening.”

Even before they knew what the song would be, Frasure had envisioned the word “Alabama” fitting in the middle of the chorus, and that translated into the couple listening to “’89 Alabama.” And in the second verse, they kept the cultural references going by name-checking Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and James Dean.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the fact that history repeats itself,” Frasure says. “To me, it’s so cliché: You pick up guitars, you get the girls, and it’s been repeating itself. And probably the last person you want your daughter to date, that’s the one that they’re going crazy for. So to me, that was a tribute to all those things that we love — you know, drugs, sex and rock’n’roll — and package it in a country-friendly way.”

Once they finished the Zoom write, Frasure completed work on a programmed demo, then had Thompson record a vocal. They pitched it around town a bit with no takers, until Young flipped over it, and texted the writers often enough that they knew he would follow through and record it.

Young invited Frasure and Gorley to attend the tracking session with co-producer Corey Crowder (Chase Rice, Florida Georgia Line) in November 2022 at the Sony Tree Studios, a demo facility that had been recently upgraded. Crowder wanted the master to have a live sort of energy, matching both the raw tone of Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel” and the bar-band plot of “Young Love & Saturday Nights,” and Sony Tree was an ideal setting.

“It’s a cool room,” says Crowder. “I think it actually helped that specific song, just because they’re all in the room together like they’re up onstage or something.”

Drummer Chris McHugh re-created the power of the original “Rebel Rebel” backbeat, and Crowder spent extra time with guitarist Sol Philcox-Littlefield, emulating the sound of the Bowie riff.

“We hunted on that for a minute,” Crowder remembers. “There was several takes where we had to like, ‘Let’s get it a little thinner,’ that kind of thing. That tone was so perfect, you know, you just don’t want to ditch that. So that was a big priority for me.”

Young did the lead vocals later with co-producer Chris DeStefano (Chase Rice, Morgan Evans), making certain to get plenty of sleep the night prior. “Living up to the fact that you’re constantly going to be compared with someone who’s a legend, I definitely did not leave that vocal booth until I was done,” says Young.

“Young Love & Saturday Nights” got significant media attention when Bowie’s country interpolation debuted on streaming services on July 21. RCA Nashville released it to country radio on Sept. 11 via PlayMPE, and it entered Country Airplay quickly, rising to No. 49 on the chart dated Oct. 14.

“I’ve now probably said the word ‘interpolation’ more than I ever have in my entire life in the past two months talking about this, but it’s really exciting for me because I love the song,” Young says. “And it’s cool to see other people getting pumped about it.”

10 Oct 2023

Steely Dan Drops Off Tour Dates With Eagles Due to Illness

Steely Dan has reportedly dropped out of a few of their tour dates with the Eagles due to illness.

According to Indianapolis’ Indy Star, Don Henley told the crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse that Steely Dan frontman Donald Fagen had been hospitalized, before thanking fellow rocker Steve Miller for filling in at the last minute. “The show must go on,” Henley reportedly said.

Sheryl Crow filled in for Steely Dan at the Eagles’ Denver shows last week, before Miller took over in Indianapolis and the upcoming Detroit show on Oct. 13. Vince Gill will open the Pittsburgh concert on Oct. 15, and Steely Dan are currently listed to return to the stage on Oct. 17.

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There has yet to be an official statement from the rockers specifying Fagen’s illness or recovery time.

The Eagles announced their final The Long Goodbye tour earlier this year. “The Eagles have had a miraculous 52-year odyssey, performing for people all over the globe; keeping the music alive in the face of tragic losses, upheavals and setbacks of many kinds,” read a statement from the group. “Credit and thanks go to our longtime management team, our dedicated road crew, and our exceptional backup musicians for providing skilled and steadfast support, throughout these many years. We know how fortunate we are, and we are truly grateful.”

The tour will wrap on January 6 in Inglewood, Calif. See the full list of dates here.

10 Oct 2023

2023 BET Hip Hop Awards Red Carpet: GloRilla, Sexxy Redd & More

The ceremony took place at Atlanta’s Cobb Energy Center Oct. 3, and is set to air on Oct. 10.

GloRilla, BET Hip Hop Awards

GloRilla arrives at the BET Hip Hop Awards at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center on October 03, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images

The annual BET Hip Hop Awards is back! The ceremony took place on Oct. 3 at Atlanta’s Cobb Energy Center, and featured the biggest and brightest stars of the genre coming together for a night that celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop.

GloRilla — who is nominated for hip-hop artist of the year, hip-hop album of the year (Anyway, Life’s Great) and best hip-hop video (“Tomorrow 2” with Cardi B) — hit the red carpet in a strappy black cropped top, fur skirt and bantu knots in an homage to TLC’s Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez.

Sexyy Red — who is nominated for best breakthrough hip-hop artist and is set to take the stage for a performance once the ceremony airs — lived up to her namesake and walked the carpet in a slinky red set and Chanel bag to match. The rapper further accessorized her look with a large wad of cash, which she carried in her hand while posing for photos.

Family was also present on the red carpet, with Fat Joe attending the ceremony with wife Lorena Cartagena and their daughter Azariah, while DaBrat attended the show with wife Jesseca Dupart just a few months after welcoming their son, True Legend.

The BET Hip Hop Awards will broadcast on Tuesday (Oct. 10) at 9 p.m. ET/PT (8 p.m. CT), and will simulcast on VH1 and MTV2. Find out how to watch for free here.

See the photos from the 2023 BET Hip Hop Awards red carpet below.

10 Oct 2023

Marcus Mumford & Carey Mulligan Welcome Third Child Together

Congratulations are in order for Marcus Mumford and Carey Mulligan, who welcomed their third child together this year.

The Promising Young Woman actress confirmed the news in her recent Vogue cover story, as the interview was conducted when Mulligan was six weeks postpartum. According to the publication, the star entered “a London coffee shop with a bemused gesture at the yellow diaper-leak stain streaked across her blouse.”

Mulligan then reportedly said to her baby, “I’m going to change you, and then we’re going to find Mum another shirt.” The cover story did not note the name or sex of the new bundle of joy.

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Mumford and Mulligan, who have been married since 2012, are also parents to their seven-year-old daughter Evelyn Grace and five-year-old son Wilfred.

Back in 2015, Mulligan opened up a bit about her marriage to the Mumford & Sons rocker in another Vogue interview. Like anyone, you try and split your time evenly,” she said. “Marcus is the only thing that’s mine that I can keep away, so I try to.”

The couple’s friend Sienna Miller elaborated in the same story, sharing, “They both come from very solid families and have a real sense of the life they want to live. Their normalcy. They have chickens and a dog, and roasts and friends, jams by campfires. It’s sort of idyllic. Marcus can headline Glastonbury and Carey can be nominated for however many Oscars, and then they come back to their farm, and they’re in big woolly jumpers and funny hats, raising piglets. It’s an amazing balance they’ve managed to strike.”

10 Oct 2023

Paul Russell Hits No. 1 on Emerging Artists Chart, Thanks to ‘Lil Boo Thang’

Paul Russell ascends to No. 1 on Billboard’s Emerging Artists chart (dated Oct. 14), becoming the top up-and-coming act in the U.S. for the first time, thanks to the continued success of his viral breakthrough song, “Lil Boo Thang.”

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The single, released Aug. 18 on Arista Records, jumps 74-51 in its third week on the Billboard Hot 100 with 17.9 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 31%), 5.1 million official streams (up 16%) and 5,000 downloads sold (up 12%) in the United States in the Sept. 29-Oct. 5 tracking week, according to Luminate.

The track holds at its No. 5 high on Digital Song Sales and climbs 48-39 on the all-format Radio Songs chart. The feel-good song continues rising at multiple radio formats: It’s up 22-18 on Pop Airplay and 25-22 on Adult Pop Airplay, debuts at No. 25 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and holds at its No. 27 high on Rhythmic Airplay.

Emerging Artists is the second chart that Russell has topped, after “Lil Boo Thang” led the Rap Digital Song Sales chart dated Sept. 2.

“Lil Boo Thang” interpolates the Emotions’ classic “Best of My Love,” which was written by Maurice White and Al McKay of Earth, Wind & Fire. The song spent five weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in 1977 and finished as Billboard’s No. 3 year-end Hot 100 song that year. White and McKay are both credited as writers on Russell’s single.

Russell, from Texas and now based in Los Angeles, first teased a snippet of “Lil Boo Thang” in a June 28 TikTok that has since garnered over 10 million views and launched over 300,000 creations from fans who’ve paired it with other clips. (Activity on TikTok is not included in Billboard charts except for the newly-launched TikTok Billboard Top 50.) He later repurposed the post on Instagram Reels, where it has generated another 10 million views and sparked over a million creations. That virality helped Russell land a deal with Arista.

“First and foremost, ‘Lil Boo Thang’ is meant to be a good time,” Russell told Billboard ahead of the full track’s release. “When I wrote it, I was stressed out on a Thursday afternoon, so I just turned on some of the music that makes me happy and imagined that I was celebrating something. I think what makes the song special is the fact that so many of us are ready to just forget about whatever is happening around us and enjoy the good things in life – not just thinking back to good times in the past but creating new ones in the present day.”

The Emerging Artists chart ranks the most popular developing artists of the week, using the same formula as the all-encompassing Billboard Artist 100, which measures artist activity across multiple Billboard charts, including the Hot 100 and Billboard 200. (The Artist 100 lists the most popular acts, overall, each week.) However, the Emerging Artists chart excludes acts that have notched a top 25 entry on either the Hot 100 or Billboard 200, as well as artists that have achieved two or more top 10s on Billboard’s “Hot” song genre charts and/or consumption-based “Top” album genre rankings.