Music News

David Harbour Reveals Taylor Swift Sent His ‘Speechless’ Stepdaughter a Handwritten Note at Eras Tour Concert

David Harbour is a superhero father on and off screen. In an interview with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that was posted Aug. 17, the Stranger Things star revealed he got some major Dad points by taking his stepdaughter to see Taylor Swift‘s Eras Tour in Minnesota, where the pop star went the extra mile by sending the pair a sweet handwritten note from backstage.

Harbour — who became stepdad to Lily Allen’s daughters Ethel and Marnie when he married the “Smile” singer in 2020 — was spotted enjoying the show from a VIP tent at Swift’s June concert at U.S. Bank Stadium. He got to talking about the show when Horowitz noted the actor must’ve pulled in some major “brownie points” by taking the kids to see an advanced screening of Marvel’s latest Guardians of the Galaxy installment in May, to which the actor replied, “Not as many brownie points as I got taking the stepdaughter to Taylor Swift, though. Talk about points!”

Revealing he “had to call in a lot of favors” in order to see the show, Harbour raved that Swift’s three-hour career-spanning production “was pretty extraordinary.” “We went to Minneapolis because it was the only weekend we could go see it and I love Minneapolis,” the Black Widow star continued. “It’s a real music town, too, like Prince. People are really there to see the concert as opposed to Instagram the concert, so it was like a perfect place to see it.”

“I did say as we went in, ‘If there is an opportunity to say hello …’ And they said, ‘She’s leaving on a plane right after the concert,” he added. “We sat there for about 30 minutes of the opener and then a woman came out with a letter. It was addressed to me and my stepdaughter, and it was a handwritten letter on a particular stationery. I’ve never seen my stepdaughter speechless.”

Harbour didn’t reveal specifics of what Swift’s letter said, but he did share that the “Anti-Hero” singer promised to send his stepdaughter a wave from the stage — a promise she made good on at the beginning of one of her songs. “She is a force of nature,” Harbour gushed.

“I didn’t really have any idea, it’s not really my … my thing was Madonna,” he went on. “I saw Madonna concerts, I saw Guns N’ Roses concerts. Seeing her perform for three-and-a-half hours, that’s like 45 songs. She barely leaves the stage, I don’t know when she pees. It’s ridiculous — she’s a force of nature.”

The interview, recorded prior to the ongoing WGA actors’ strike, comes just a few days ahead of Swift’s first Latin America concert in Mexico City, which will mark the Eras Tour’s first international show. A couple weeks prior, she wrapped up the trek’s first U.S. leg with six straight shows in Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium.

Watch David Harbour recall his Eras Tour experience above.

Kid Rock Spotted Drinking Bud Light 4 Months After Shooting Cans: Twitter Reacts

It was less than four months ago that Kid Rock got so worked up about Bud Light teaming with transgender TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney for its Bud Light Easy Carry Contest during the NCAA’s March Madness that the “Don’t Tell Me How To Live” singer tried to destroy 12-packs of Bud Light with a semi-automatic rifle as he yelled, “F–k Bud Light and f–k Anheuser-Busch.”

What a difference a few months make.

In July, CNN reported that despite his apparent animus for the world’s largest beer company, Rock, 52 — who didn’t specifically mention Mulvaney (or the word “trans”) in his video, or call for a boycott of products from Bud Light parent company AB Inbev — was still selling Bud Light at his Nashville restaurant; Newsweek additionally reported at the time that Rock’s restaurant/bar was selling Bud Light during the June 9-12 Country Music Association Festival and that a Twitter user told the magazine that a waitress at the bar said “they actually stopped selling it for a week right after [Rock’s video], then started selling it again.”

And over the weekend the rapper-turned-country rocker was pictured enjoying a tall cool Bud Light at Colt Ford show in Nashville according to TMZ, which caused a torrent of comments on Twitter (now X) about the apparent hypocrisy from the “Devil Without a Cause” star. “Damn, never thought I’d have to give Kid Rock the Bud Light treatment but here we are,” wrote one commenter. “Just shot up all my Kid Rock vinyl and CDs. I loved Kid Rock, but I hope Kid Woke goes broke.”

Another, Fred Guttenberg — father of murdered Parkland High School student Jaime Guttenberg and gun control advocate — had equally harsh words for Rock, writing, “It’s just hard to keep a good beer down and I LOVE BUD LIGHT!!! Apparently, so does @KidRock. To all of you hypocritical lunatics who actually started this bulls–t attack on my favorite beer, cheers to you.”

Billboard has not been able to confirm the veracity of the pictures of Rock drinking the Bud Light at press time and a spokesperson for the singer had not returned a request for comment.

At the time of CNN’s report, it was unclear if the band on Bud Light at Rock’s Music City establishment had been lifted, or if one had ever been put in place, but at the time of the Mulvaney controversy Rock appeared happy to jump on the bandwagon of ban-calling against Bud Light.

While country singer John Rich pledged at the time to pull Bud Light from his Nashville bar Redneck Riviera and Travis Tritt said he would remove the formerly best-selling brew in the nation from his tour rider in the midst of the transphobic backlash against the Mulvaney promotional stunt, Rock never specifically said he’d stop selling it at his Broadway district spot.

In the original Mulvaney clip from April, she revealed that the company helped her celebrate her “365th day of womanhood” with “possibly the best gift ever” — a commemorative can of Bud Light with Mulvaney’s face on the side that was not commercially available, but instead meant as a personalized one-off souvenir.

Check out some of the comments about Rock’s Bud Light moment.

Watch Ryan Gosling Make ‘Barbie’ Director Greta Gerwig Lose it in Behind-the-Scenes ‘I’m Just Ken’ Video

If you were losing it in the theater watching Ryan Gosling turn the Kenergy up to 11 in the Barbie movie during his showstopper power balled “I’m Just Ken,” just wait until you see how director Greta Gerwig felt while watching her star ham it up on the beach.

In a behind-the-scenes video chronicling the “Just Ken” shoot that dropped on Monday morning (Aug. 21), fans of the billion-dollar summer blockbuster not only get some bonus, unreleased footage from the film featuring the Barbie cast, but they also get a look at film soundtrack producer Mark Ronson in the studio, along with “Just Ken” co-writer/co-producer Andrew Wyatt and Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash.

The best part, however, is watching Gerwig watch Gosling and absolutely lose it.

The nearly four-minute clip opens with a shirtless Gosling crooning his doll parts lament, “It doesn’t seen to matter what I do/ I’m always No. 2/ No one knows how hard I try,” over a plaintive piano. A montage then moves to a scene of dancers limbering up for their big musical number, Gerwig giving Gosling some direction and a look at the build for the paddle board beach assault scene.

As Gosling croons about “blonde fragility,” Gerwig can’t help but laugh out loud, with the camera repeatedly cutting to the director — wearing a pair of pink headphones around he neck, naturally — losing it as her star prances across the green screen sand in his full length fur coat.

Along the way we also see Slash in the studio cutting his solo and the song’s co-producers/co-writers Wyatt and Ronson laying down keyboard and guitar parts for the power ballad that also features rhythm guitar from Wolfgang Van Halen and drums from new Foo Fighter’s timekeeper Josh Freese.

Plus, you get an exclusive look at the rehearsals for the big beach blowout dance battle between Ken and his arch rival Ken 2 (Simu Liu).

Gosling scored his first Billboard Hot 100 charting song with “Just Ken” two weeks ago when the song debuted at No. 87 on the tally. To date the movie has grossed more than $567 million in the U.S. and over $1.2 billion worldwide.

Watch the “I’m Just Ken” behind-the-scenes video below.


https://youtube.com/watch?v=a-MVeaFwT5M&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

Lana Del Rey Announces Limited Run of Fall 2023 U.S. Shows

After criss-crossing the nation this summer playing festival gigs, Lana Del Rey announced a run of fall amphitheater shows on Monday morning (Aug. 21). The 10 gigs are slated to kick off on Sept. 13 at the FirstBank Amphitheater in Franklin, TN before moving on to the Germania Insurance Amphitheater in Austin, TX.

The run will also include shows in Dallas, West Palm Beach, Tampa and Pittsburgh before winding down on Oct. 5 at the Charleston Coliseum in Charleston, WV. A general onsale for the shows will begin on Friday (Aug. 25) at 10 a.m. local time here.

Del Rey has been on the road supporting her ninth studio album, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd., which came out in March. Over the weekend, the singer was spotted at producer Jack Antonoff‘s wedding to actress Margaret Qualley in New Jersey. Del Rey joined a list of fellow A-listers at the ceremony, which was also attended by Channing Tatum, Zoë Kravitz, Cara Delevingne and the bride’s mother, Andie MacDowell, according to People.

Check out the dates for Del Rey’s fall tour below.

Sept. 14 – Franklin, TN @ FirstBank Amphitheater

Sept. 17 – Austin, TX @ Germania Insurance Amphitheater

Sept. 19 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion

Sept. 21 – Huntsville, AL @ Orion Amphitheater

Sept. 23 – West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre

Sept. 25 – Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre

Sept. 27 – Brandon, MS @ Brandon Amphitheater

Sept. 29 – Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion

Oct. 3 – Pittsburgh, PA @ The Pavilion at Star Lake 

Oct. 5 – Charleston, WV @ Charleston Coliseum

Queen’s ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ Missing From New ‘Greatest Hits’ Release

Fat bottomed girls might make the rockin’ world go round, but Queen‘s racy song is nowhere to be found on a new release of Greatest Hits.

Recognized as the U.K.’s all-time best-selling album, Queen’s early career compilation is now available on kids’ audio platform Yoto, where listeners can “rock out to” 16 classic tracks, reads a statement.

“Fat Bottomed Girls,” one of the Rock And Roll Hall of Famers’ naughtier songs, is missing from the published tracklist.

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The blurb accompanying the album points out that “the lyrics in some of these songs contain adult themes, including occasional references to violence and drugs.” The songs are the original and unedited recordings, and that “parental discretion is advised” when playing the songs around younger children.

Released in 1978, “Fat Bottomed Girls” was a double-a side with “Bicycle Race,” a relatively harmless song that includes a cheeky reference to those bike-riding “fat bottomed girls,” and appears in the Yoto version of Queen’s Greatest Hits.

The song doesn’t make the cut on Yoto, most likely due its lyrical content. On it, the late Freddie Mercury sings, “Left alone with big fat Fanny/ She was such a naughty nanny/ Big woman, you made a bad boy out of me.”

“Fat Bottomed Girls” has helped Queen‘s Greatest Hits to ride on for several major chart records.

Released in 1981, the set last year passed 1,000 weeks on the Official Albums Chart Top 100, becoming just the third album to do so, and the first by a British act or a rock band; and became the first album to shift seven million chart sales in the U.K. The hits compilation crossed the six million threshold back in 2014.

Ray Hildebrand, Singer and Songwriter With Paul & Paula, Dies at 82

Ray Hildebrand, the “Paul” in ‘60s pop duo Paul & Paula, died Friday (Aug. 18) in Kansas City, Missouri, at the age of 82.

Hildebrand passed away “peacefully,” and was surrounded by his family, according to a statement from his publicist.

Born December 21, 1940, in Joshua, Texas, Hildebrand met his singing partner Jill Jackson (Paula) while attending Howard Payne College (now called Howard Payne University) in Brownwood the Lone Star State.

Though never romantically involved, Paul & Paula landed a string of songs on Billboard’s charts, including “Young Lovers,” “First Quarrel,” “First Day Back at School,” and “Something Old, Something New,” and their best-known hit, the multi-million-seller from 1963 “Hey Paula,” which Hildebrand penned. The single logged three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

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Mercury Records chief Shelby Singleton signed the pair, and reissued “Hey Paula” on its Phillips subsidiary. It was also Singleton who renamed the pair as Paul & Paula, apparently concerned that an act named Ray and Jill singing about “hey, hey Paula” and “hey, hey Paul” was a bridge too far.

Paul & Paula released two albums and a Christmas-themed set, before disbanding in 1965, Hildebrand keen to complete his college education and pursue a different musical direction.

The pair would remain friends, and occasionally reunited for special gigs.

A devout Christian, Hildebrand’s post- Paul & Paula solo recordings were largely a reflection of his faith. “Say I Do” is said to be a trailblazing record of the contemporary Christian genre. Later, he would team up with Paul Land, performing Christian music under the name of Land & Hildebrand.

Hildebrand traveled the country sharing his music and faith, and worked with The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, reps say.

The late singer and songwriter is preceded in death by his wife, Judy Hendricks, and survived by his daughter, Heidi Sterling, and son Mike Hildebrand, both of Kansas City.

Jonas Brothers Dedicate ‘Little Bird’ to Valentina, a Fan’s Late Child, in Toronto

“Little Bird” was performed in honor of Valentina, one fan’s “angel in heaven,” at the Jonas Brothers‘ concert in Toronto Saturday night (Aug. 19).

The song is featured on the Jonas Brothers’ latest album, The Album, which reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in May.

Joe Jonas noticed a sign that read “Dedicate Little Bird for My Angel in Heaven” at the group’s Rogers Centre show. He brought the emotional mother holding the sign toward the stage to speak with her.

“I got choked up as I read the sign,” he told the fan, who said her name was Magda.

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“What is your little bird’s name?” Joe asked, to which Magda replied: “Valentina.”

Joe gave her a big hug and said, “This one’s for Valentina, OK? She’s here with us tonight, for sure.”

Kevin, Joe and Nick Jonas are all parents, and hearing Magda talk about her “Little Bird” Valentina particularly affected Kevin, who has a daughter named Valentina. In May, Kevin shared a sweet TikTok video of his own little Valentina saying that “Little Bird” is her favorite song from The Album “because it’s about us.”

See this weekend’s emotional concert moment below.

Fans Choose Anitta’s ‘Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story’ as This Week’s Favorite New Music

Anitta‘s Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story tops this week’s new music poll.

Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (Aug. 18) on Billboard, choosing the carioca funk trilogy as their favorite new music release of the past week.

Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story brought in more than half of the vote, coming in at 53%. It beat out new music from Hozier, Addison Rae, Quavo and more.

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On the three-track collection, released by Republic Records/Universal Music Latin Entertainment, the Brazilian superstar goes back to her foundations with “Funk Rave,” plus two fresh new songs, “Casi Casi” and “Used to Be.” It Anitta’s first project to be released by Republic since signing with the label in April.

Trailing behind Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story on the poll is Hozier’s Unreal Unearth and Addison Rae’s AR EP, both with 10% of the vote.

See the final results of this week’s poll below.

Concerts and Events Canceled Due to Tropical Storm Hilary

Concerts and other events in Southern California have been canceled due to Tropical Storm Hilary, which weakened from a hurricane before it made landfall Sunday (Aug. 20).

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Below, find all the concerts that have been canceled or rescheduled due to the impact of Hilary. The list will be updated with any additional announcements of cancelations and postponements.

My Morning Jacket and Fleet Foxes

My Morning Jacket and Fleet Foxes’ Aug. 20 concert “has been postponed due to the weather emergency caused by Hurricane Hilary,” the Hollywood Bowl announced. The show has been rescheduled for Aug. 28. “Your tickets — including parking, shuttle, and park and ride tickets — are valid for the new date with no action needed on your part. For other ticket options, including exchange, account credit, donation, or refund, please contact Audience Services at information@laphil.org. Please stay safe and take all necessary precautions,” the update said.

Michael Franti and Spearhead

Michael Franti and Spearhead’s Sunday concert at the Greek Theatre has been postponed until Sept. 15 “due to the weather emergency,” the venue said. Previously purchased tickets will be honored for the new date.

Chicago

Chicago’s Sunday concert at Costa Mesa’s Pacific Amphitheatre has been rescheduled for Sept. 5. Original tickets will be honored on the new date, or refunds will be available via point of purchase.

Interstellar Music Festival

The Interstellar music festival canceled shows scheduled for this weekend at the Los Angeles Waterfront in San Pedro. “We are deeply sorry to share that the cosmic forces haven’t aligned in our favor for Interstellar this weekend,” festival organizers wrote in an update on the fest’s website. “In light of the approaching Hurricane Hilary, local authorities have made the tough call that the weather conditions pose a significant risk to our festival grounds.”

Gloria Molina Grand Park’s Sunday Sessions

The music event, scheduled for Sunday, was canceled “due to the predicted high winds and heavy rain stemming from Hurricane Hilary,” an update read. “While we’ll miss gathering with you all, we’re excited to announce that we’re working on something special to keep our community spirit alive!” Virtual offerings from Rich Medina, DJ Roxcizzle, Lacey IQ and Utopia will stream at twitch.tv/grandpark_la from 3-8 p.m. local time.

Young the Giant

San Diego State University postponed Sunday’s concert, which has been rescheduled for Sept. 5 at the Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre at SDSU. Tickets are valid for the new date, or refunds will be issued.

KCRW’s Summer Nights

KCRW’s Summer Nights concert on Sunday, set to take place at the LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, was postponed. The show will now be on Sept. 10.

Judy Collins and Sophie B. Hawkins

Judy Collins and Sophie B. Hawkins were scheduled to perform Sunday at the Libbey Bowl in Ojai. The concert will still go on, but it has been relocated to the indoor Oxnard Performing Arts Center in Oxnard.

Additional Events Affected by Hilary

The Hollywood Reporter reports other events in the Los Angeles area were also canceled, including Sunday’s Dodgers game against the Miami Marlins (which was pushed to Saturday afternoon) and the L.A. Galaxy’s match against Real Salt Lake (rescheduled for Oct. 14).

The HollyShorts Film Festival, which has been going on since Aug. 10, called off its finale for Sunday. A rep for the festival said a paired-down version of the awards was instead set for midnight Saturday, according to THR.

Disneyland Resort’s theme parks will close early on Sunday due to the storm, with a 9 p.m. PT closing scheduled for Disney California Adventure Park and a 10 p.m. PT closing for Disneyland Park.

Kelly Clarkson Duets With Daughter, Dances With Son at Las Vegas Residency Show

Kelly Clarkson was joined by two very special guests during her Las Vegas residency show over the weekend.

The 41-year-old pop star and television personality welcomed her son, Remington Alexander, 7, and daughter River Rose, 9, to the stage at Planet Hollywood’s Bakkt Theater on Friday night (Aug. 18).

During the Chemistry show, Clarkson performed a duet of 2015’s “Heartbeat Song” with River Rose and cut a rug alongside Remy as she belted out 2017’s “Whole Lotta Woman.” Watch the heart-warming cameos in fan-captured videos here and here.

Leading up to Friday’s concert, the American Idol alum shared an adorable of her smiling children on social media.

“Both of my kiddos backstage getting ready to join me on stage in Vegas nothing will ever be as cool and amazing as these two little humans that will always have my whole heart,” Clarkson captioned the sweet snapshot on Instagram.

Before their big onstage entrance, The Kelly Clarkson Show host told the crowd that her children asked if they could “dance or sing something” with their mother at her residency show, which launched on July 28. She then revealed that River Rose wanted to sing “Heartbeat Song” — which peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2015 — because it held a special place in her heart.

“She’s been jamming to this song since she was a baby,” Clarkson said. “She loves this song so much, so she was like, ‘Can I sing this song?’” After the lively duet, the proud mother excitedly congratulated her daughter. “You look gorgeous! You did amazing. I love you,” she said.

Earlier in the week, Clarkson announced a deluxe version of her 10th studio album, Chemistry, which is scheduled for release on Sept. 22 through Atlantic. The 22-song set will feature eight new songs and remixes, including the ballad “You Don’t Make Me Cry” featuring River Rose. Chemistry peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in July.

Clarkson shares Remy and River Rose with her ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock, a music manager, whom she divorced in 2020. The couple was married for about seven years and had also been raising Blackstock’s two children from a previous marriage, daughter Savannah, and son Seth.

See Clarkson’s post on Instagram below.