Music News

11 Jul 2023

Anitta Reveals NSFW Item Thrown at Her Onstage & Talks Hottest Man in Music on ‘WWHL’

Several musicians’ concerts have made news after fans threw items at them, with cell phones and the ashes of a loved one being some of the objects. But when it comes to Anitta, the one of the oddest items thrown at her also happens to be NSFW.

The Brazilian star appeared on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen on Monday (July 10), where the television personality asked her a series of probing questions that got her occasionally squirming in the hot seat.

“People throw things at people all the time on stage. What’s the wildest item that’s been thrown at you?” Cohen inquired, to which Anitta replied, “I think a toy or lube.”

Cohen also probed about male artists who the “Envolver” singer finds attractive, which made her play coy. “Anitta, who to you is the hottest male pop star in the game right now?” he asked.

“Let me try to pick someone single so maybe in the future something happens. Just ask the people to throw some single names,” she responded. After Cohen suggested John Mayer, Anitta was in agreement, “Oh, that’s amazing. That’s a good name.”

Elsewhere during her appearance, Anitta was asked who the most famous person in her cell phone is (one of the defining pop stars of the ’80s), if she has ever engaged in threesomes (multiple) and whether she had ever singled out attractive concertgoers of hers to bring backstage (yes, often with the assistance of her friends).

Watch a clip from Anitta’s appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen above.

11 Jul 2023

U.S. Government Debuts ‘Speak Now (FBI’s Version)’ Encouraging Taylor Swift Fans to Report Crimes

The FBI — yes, that FBI — just called on Swifties specifically to report federal crimes. And honestly? Resorting to a fanbase of millions who are well accustomed to decoding easter eggs and compiling evidence about their favorite singer’s next move isn’t the worst idea if you’re trying to sniff out bad guys.

In a Monday (July 10) Taylor Swift-themed post on Twitter, the FBI’s Washington, D.C., Field branch issued a mock Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album cover encouraging people to submit tips regarding possible criminal activity. In place of a real tracklist, Speak Now (FBI’s Version) includes nine song titles detailing what sort of offenses they’re looking for: terrorism, cybercrime, counterintelligence, civil rights, public corruption, weapons of mass destruction, organized crime, violent crime and white-collar crime.

“Justice is better than revenge,” reads the tweet, referencing actual songs — “Better Than Revenge,” “Speak Now” and the title track — from Swift’s latest re-recorded LP, which dropped July 7. “You may not be Superman, but you can help the #FBI protect the country. If you have information about a federal crime, speak now. Call 1-800-225-5324 or visit http://tips.fbi.gov to submit a tip.”

Although there’s no evidence to show that Swift herself had any involvement in the tongue-in-cheek post, lyrics from her most recent fully original album, Midnights, suggest that she would probably support cooperation with the FBI. On “Vigilante Shit,” she fantasizes about doing exactly that: “While he was doing lines and crossing all of mine/ Someone told his white-collar crimes to the FBI.”

See the FBI’s post below:

11 Jul 2023

Taylor Swift Extends Record Run Atop Artist 100 Chart to 72 Weeks

Taylor Swift spends a record-extending 72nd week at No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 chart (dated July 15), thanks to 10 albums on the latest Billboard 200 and three songs on the Billboard Hot 100.

On the Billboard 200, Swift’s 2022 LP Midnights ranks at No. 4 with 54,000 equivalent album units earned June 30-July 6, according to Luminate, after it spent six weeks at No. 1. Her 2006 debut self-titled studio album re-enters at No. 186 (8,000, up 6%), returning to the chart for the first time since May 20. Before that week, the album last appeared on the chart in 2014.

This marks the fourth time in Swift’s career that she’s charted 10 titles on the Billboard 200, after achieving the feat on the charts dated March 4, May 6 and May 20 this year. She becomes the first act — since the survey became a combined stereo and mono listing in August 1963 — to land at least 10 albums on the chart simultaneously four separate times, surpassing The Beatles and Prince (three each). David Bowie and Whitney Houston have each earned the honor once. Prince, notably, holds the record for the most albums on the Billboard 200 in a single week: 19, on May 14, 2016 (the first tracking week after his death).

Here’s a recap of Swift’s current Billboard 200-charting titles.

Rank, Title:

  • No. 4, Midnights
  • No. 9, Lover
  • No. 13, Folklore
  • No. 19, 1989
  • No. 22, Reputation
  • No. 25, Speak Now
  • No. 26, Red (Taylor’s Version)
  • No. 36, Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
  • No. 43, Evermore
  • No. 186, Taylor Swift

Swift is slated to make a splash on next week’s chart listings after releasing Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) on July 7.

On the Hot 100, Swift’s “Cruel Summer” jumps 13-7, becoming her 41st career top 10, extending her record for the most among women; “Karma” featuring Ice Spice dips 8-9 after reaching No. 2; and “Anti-Hero” drops 16-18 following eight weeks at No. 2.

Among other Artist 100 chart moves, Lil Uzi Vert vaults 86-2 on the strength of their new LP Pink Tape. The set debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (167,000 units), becoming their third leader and the first No. 1 rap album of 2023. They also debut 18 songs on the Hot 100, led by “Flooded the Face” at No. 11.

Aespa re-enters the Artist 100 at No. 5 thanks to the group’s new mini album MY WORLD, which debuts at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, becoming the act’s second top 10.

Plus, Olivia Rodrigo re-enters the Artist 100 at No. 8 thanks to her new single “Vampire.” The song launches at No. 1 on the Hot 100, marking her third leader, after “Drivers License” and Good 4 U,” both in 2021. The new track is the lead single from her forthcoming second LP, Guts, due Sept. 8.

The Artist 100 measures artist activity across key metrics of music consumption, blending album and track sales, radio airplay and streaming to provide a weekly multi-dimensional ranking of artist popularity.

11 Jul 2023

Rihanna Shows Off Baby Bump in Sizzling Savage X Fenty Lingerie: See the Photos

Rihanna has never paid any regard to traditional maternity fashion, and that goes for lingerie, too.

In a series of photos shared to social media Monday (July 10), the 35-year-old musician-turned-mogul showed off her third-trimester baby bump while premiering a coral Savage X Fenty bra and panties set. Ri was smoldering for the camera in pink stilettos, and her tattoos were on full display from top to … ahem … bottom.

“new fav’s ….sheer x group dropping rn!” the “Umbrella” singer, who’s expecting her second child with A$AP Rocky, captioned the post. “head over to savageX.com.”

Based on the new products listed on the Savage website, Rihanna is sporting the Sheer X Demi Spacer Bra in the shade red pink in her new photos. The bra comes in three colors and features a small “X” charm in the center.

This is far from the first time Ri has modeled her own clothes, and certainly isn’t the first time she’s done so pregnant. In May, she celebrated the five-year anniversary of her clothing company with a bump-bearing shoot in Savage X Fenty underwear, and in June, she debuted a jokey T-shirt emblazoned with the phrase “Use a Condom.”

And while Rihanna is clearly still very much involved with the brand, she stepped down from her role as CEO of Savage in June. Former Anthropologie CEO Hillary Super took over as the company’s leader, while Ri transitioned into an executive chairman position.

See photos from Rihanna’s latest Savage X Fenty shoot below:

11 Jul 2023

Porno For Pyros Announce First Tour in 25 Years, ‘Horns, Thorns En Halos’

Perry Farrell is cranking up the Porno For Pyros machine. The Jane’s Addiction singer and Lollapalooza co-founder announced on Tuesday (July 11) that his long-dormant other band will regroup for their first tour in 25 years for an outing they’re calling Horns, Thorns En Halos.

The 21-date outing — which will also celebrate PFP’s 30th anniversary as a band — is slated to kick off on October 8 at the Hard Rock Live Sacramento in Wheatland, CA and wind down at Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater in Austin, TX on Nov. 20. The Live Nation-produced tour is the follow-up to last year’s series of get-back shows, which included a July gig at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles that reunited Farrell on stage with Jane’s drummer Stephen Perkins, guitarist Peter DiStefano and bassist Martyn LeNoble.

The band went on to play at Florida’s Welcome to Rockville and Lollapalooza festivals last year, as well as at Chicago’s beloved Metro club. According to a release announcing the dates, the band has also been working on new material in the studio with a possible release due out before year’s end.

PFP originally formed in 1992 following the dissolution of Jane’s, releasing two studio albums, their 1993 self-titled debut and 1996’s Good God’s Urge, which featured the band’s signature psychedelic pop hits, “Pets” and “Tahitian Moon,” respectively. The band went dark in 1998 and briefly reunited in 2009 for Farrell’s 50th birthday and then again in 2020 for that year’s Lollapalooza YouTube show in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tickets for the reunion tour will be available during a presale beginning on Wednesday (July 12), with additional presales throughout the week until the general on-sale on Friday (July 14) at 10 a.m. local time here.

Check out the Porno For Pyros reunion tour dates below.

Oct. 8 – Wheatland, CA @ Hard Rock Live Sacramento

Oct. 10 – San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic

Oct. 13 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern

Oct. 15 – Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues Las Vegas

Oct. 17 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union*

Oct. 19 – Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium

Oct. 21 – Omaha, NE @ Steelhouse Omaha

Oct. 23 – Madison, WI @ The Sylvee

Oct. 24 – Chicago, IL @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom

Oct. 27 – Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore Detroit

Oct. 29 – Port Chester, NY @ The Capitol Theatre

Oct. 30 – Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway

Nov. 1 – New York, NY @ Manhattan Center Hammerstein Ballroom

Nov. 3 – Bensalem, PA @ Parx Casino and Racing*

Nov. 5 – Silver Spring, MD @ The Fillmore Silver Spring

Nov. 7 – Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte

Nov. 8 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle

Nov. 15 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium

Nov. 17 – New Orleans, LA @ Fillmore New Orleans

Nov. 19 – Dallas, TX @ House of Blues Dallas

Nov. 20 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater

*Not a Live Nation Date

11 Jul 2023

Lil Nas X Stopped by Oslo Police After Riding Through Tunnel on E-Scooter

Lil Nas X was reportedly among four Americans stopped by Norwegian police after they rode through an Oslo tunnel on electric scooters. Authorities briefly closed the Festning (Fortress) Tunnel but none of the scooter riders were detained or charged.

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The tourists had followed a GPS route into the 1.1 mile tunnel late on Monday evening (July 11), police said. The four “used large parts of the roadway” so a road traffic centre had to shut down some lanes, police added.

“They apologized. We have escorted them out,” the police department said on Twitter of the incident in which the four appeared to get lost in the tunnel. At press time a spokesperson for Lil Nas could not be reached for comment on the alleged incident.

Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet reported that Lil Nas X, 24, whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill, was one of the four tourists. The paper posted what it said was an image from Lil Nas’ Instagram Story in which the MC posed with two Norwegian cops in front of their car, with the rapper kneeling on the ground between the smiling officers.

Lil Nas’ story also reportedly featured a snap of the “Industry Baby” star standing inside the tunnel with the caption, “on the way to being imprisoned in Norway.” Police did not confirm that Lil Nas was among those stopped — they only reported that they stopped four Americans for getting lost in the tunnel — but the posts from Nas appeared to confirm the report.

The musician is in Oslo to perform at the outdoor Slottsffell festival on Wednesday (July 11).

It is not the first time that a foreign tourist rode through part of a vast and busy tunnel system in the centre of the Norwegian capital on an electric scooter. In 2019, a man who said he followed a route given by Google Maps entered the nearly 10-mile long Opera Tunnel complex. He was not charged or detained.

11 Jul 2023

Red Hot Chili Peppers, Megan Thee Stallion, Ms. Lauryn Hill to Headline 2023 Global Citizen Festival

The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ms. Lauryn Hill will headline the 2023 Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central park on Sept. 23. The lineup of this year’s event on the Great Lawn will also feature Megan Thee Stallion, Conan Gray and Stray Kids.

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The free, ticketed event will focus on the organization’s drive to end extreme poverty now, with interested fans encouraged to earn passes by joining the movement and taking action on the Global Citizen app (or here) to help the organization’s work to level the playing field for women and adolescent girls around the world, combat climate change and continue the fight against the global food and malnutrition crisis.

According to a statement announcing this year’s lineup, for the first time in a generation, the number of people living in extreme poverty is on the rise. “The 2023 Global Citizen Festival campaign takes aim at the major issues perpetuating extreme poverty, including the impacts of climate change on the Global South, the inequities affecting women and girls around the world, and the global hunger crisis, and will call on governments to protect and defend advocates everywhere,” read the statement. “The campaign will unite millions of voices, amplified by the world’s biggest artists, to demand urgent action from world leaders gathering in New York City for the United Nations General Assembly in September.”

After this year’s COP27, G7, World Bank spring meetings and Paris climate finance summit failed to deliver any tangible results or disrupt the world’s “unjust systems,” Global Citizen CEO/co-founder Hugh Evans said in the statement that, “complacency can’t win. If we want to see breakthroughs on development and climate change, we need the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and all G7 nations to meet the urgency of the hour. Every single citizen has a vital role to play, and together, we must be laser-focused on driving results and impact in September.”  

Global Citizen began holding concerts around the globe beginning in 2012 with a goal of ending global poverty. It has long attracted a variety of A-list acts, including last year’s lineup featuring Metallica, Charlie Puth, Jonas Brothers, Måneksin, Mariah Carey, Mickey Guyton and Rosalía performing in Central Park and Usher, SZA, Stormzy and Tems are among the headliners for a sister event in Ghana’s capital, Accra.

See the lineup announcement below.

11 Jul 2023

Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp to Headline 2023 Farm Aid in Indianapolis

The co-founders of Farm Aid are bringing the annual benefit for the country’s family farms back to the midwest this fall. Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Willie Nelson announced on Monday that the 2023 Farm Aid will return to the Indianapolis, IN area on Sept. 23 for the third time in the event’s 38-year history.

The show at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville will mark Young’s first in-person attendance since 2019 after the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer took several years off from appearing live due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the principles, other performers this year include: Farm Aid board member Margo Price, fellow board member Dave Matthews with Tim Reynolds, the Grateful Dead’s Bobby Weir & the Wolf Bros. featuring the Wolfpack, Lukas Nelson, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, Allison Russell, The String Cheese Incident, Particle Kid and more acts to be announced later.

Young did not attend in in 2021 or 2022 due to the pandemic; the 2020 event was presented online.

“We are honored and excited to bring the Farm Aid experience back to Indiana,” said Seymour, IN native Mellencamp in a statement about the first Farm Aid in the state in more than 20 years. “My home state holds deep meaning for me and for the generations of family farmers who have dedicated their lives to caring for the Earth and bringing us good food.”

Since launching in 1985, Farm Aid has raised more than $64 million to support programs that help family farmers.

Farm Aid first IV took place in 1990 at Indianapolis’ Hoosier Dome, with Elton John, Iggy Pop, Bonnie Raitt and Guns N’ Roses joining the three principles and returned in 2001 — shortly after the Sept. 11 terror attacks — with a lineup featuring then-new board member Matthews, as well as Martina McBride, the Doobie Brothers, Susan Tedeschi, Arlo Guthrie and more. Last years’ event in Raleigh, N.C. featured Chris Stapleton, Sheryl Crow, Rateliff, Russell, Charley Crockett, Brittney Spencer and others.

A limited number of pre-sale 2023 tickets will be available beginning at 10 a.m. ET on Wednesday (July 12); the pre-sale ends at 5 p.m. on Thursday (July 13), or when pre-sale tickets are sold out. General admission tickets will go on sale on Saturday (July 15) at 10 a.m. ET. here.

“Family farmers have the solutions to some of our toughest challenges,” Nelson added in a statement. “As we face a changing climate, farmers in Indiana, across the Midwest and all over the country are farming in ways that create more resilient farms to build healthy soils and protect our water.”

According to a release, this year’s event will honor Indiana family farmers and others who are taking on climate change using regenerative, organic and sustainable farming practices.

11 Jul 2023

Tina Turner’s ‘Nutbush’ Dance Record Set at Australian Bush Fest

Australians love Tina Turner. And they proved it en masse, when almost 6,000 fans showed up at an outback party to dance the “Nutbush,” setting a new record in the process.

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The Big Red Bash in Birdsville, a remote Queensland town 1,000 miles west of the state capital, Brisbane, has raised the record in years past.

But on this occasion, just weeks after Turner’s death, on the 10th anniversary of the festival, and the 50th anniversary of “Nutbush City Limits,” the old mark was squashed.

According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 5,838 dancers did their thing — many wearing colorful outfits for the occasion. That figure easily eclipses the old mark of 4,084 people, set at the same site in 2022, and the 1,719 people recorded by Guinness World Records in 2018.

“It’s a military operation trying to get them lined up in rows and dancing for five minutes,” says Greg Donovan, founder of the Big Red Bash, held July 4-6.

Helen Taylor, co-founder of the Australian Book of Records, caught all the action.

“Everyone was in the spirit of things today. It was the best I’ve ever seen,” she recounts. “We had people on crutches dancing, there was a girl dancing the Nutbush and hula hooping at the same time.”

The record-setting effort also raised more than A$100,000 for charitable causes.

Australia has a deep, lasting connection with Turner. Her extraordinary solo comeback in 1984 was engineered by Roger Davies, the great Australian artist manager who has guided the careers of Pink, Olivia Newton-John, Janet Jackson, Cher and many others.

The rock icon also starred as Auntie Entity in 1985’s Beyond Thunderdome, the third in George Miller’s Mad Max action movie franchise, and from 1989 to 1995, Turner was the face of the National Rugby League (then the New South Wales Rugby League or NSWRL). Followers of the sport remember Turner as “The Queen of Rugby League.”

Turner died May 24, at the age of 83.

10 Jul 2023

88rising and Cube Entertainment Partnership Begins With (G)I-DLE’s English Single ‘I DO’: Exclusive

With a refreshingly fearless attitude in their self-crafted smash singles, one of which was the No. 1 K-pop song of last year as chosen by Billboard critics, (G)I-DLE has become creative leaders in the latest generation of South Korean–pop acts. Now, the girl group takes another big step to stay ahead of the pack.

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Billboard can exclusively reveal a new partnership between Asian-focused music and media company 88rising and K-pop mega-label and management agency Cube Entertainment that officially begins via a new single from the latter’s chart-topping girl group.

Releasing this week, “I DO” comes as the K-Pop Stars to Watch‘s first-ever original English single. The heartfelt mid-tempo strikes a noticeably different chord than the group’s recent string of brash and bold bangers like “Queencard,” “Nxde” and “Tomboy” and shines via a sweet, emotional and easy-to-sing-along-to vocal performance from members Soyeon, Minnie, Miyeon, Yuqi and Shuhua. Cube and 88rising confirm that “I DO” is the first track off HEAT, the name of (G)I-DLE’s upcoming EP co-executive produced by 88rising via the collaboration.

“We’re very excited about the release of HEAT, which will be our first EP fully in English,” says Woohyung Ahn, CEO of Cube Entertainment, to note the company’s first original English-language project in its nearly 17-year history. “HEAT is all about being confident and bringing the spirit of an endless summer with you wherever you go. We hope that the release of HEAT will allow us to bring the message and mission of (G)I-DLE to the whole world.”

“We’ve been a fan of (G)-IDLE for a long time because, creatively, they are so in tune and involved with the music and stuff they put out,” adds 88rising CEO and founder Sean Miyashrio. “That was something to me that was refreshing about the group that I always felt. I was just like, ‘Wow, they really know what they want to do which is really important—it makes the process so much more meaningful when there is such a firm belief and point of view the artists have and I felt really honored that they would be open to collaborate with us.”

88rising executive vice president John Yang shares, “When we met (G)I-DLE members, they were just so full of excitement and positivity; their energy is contagious—it’s something I haven’t experienced before and, naturally, we just got really excited about what we could do together.”

Cube noted 88rising’s “in-depth knowledge about the music industry” and strength in “A&R and creative infrastructure” throughout the collaboration process, while Yang specifically highlighted (G)I-DLE’s 24-year-old leader and primary songwriter and producer. “Soyeon knows what she wants and thinks of every member in so much detail for every song from the delivery of the vocal to the tone and the overall cadence of the song—she truly is a genius.”

While 88rising has bulked up its roster with signings from the K-pop space like LØREN, Jackson Wang, BIBI, Chung Ha and Seori in recent years, Miyashrio notes this EP has been in the works for a year after their initial introduction.

“Just like I need to have a real connection with the artists and projects we work on…we just got to work, simple as that,” the 88rising CEO and founder says. “(G)I-DLE are super confident and have a great understanding of who they are and what they want to do. At the end of the day, we just want to support what already is such a force however we can; that’s what makes all of this fulfilling.”

“I DO” drops on Thursday, July 13, at 8 p.m. ET (Friday, July 14 at 9 a.m. KST) alongside an official music video. Meanwhile, HEAT releases globally on Thursday, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m ET. Pre-order for the record will go live alongside the release of “I DO.”