Music News

Post Malone Teases New Song ‘Chemical,’ Reveals Release Date

A new Post Malone musical era is upon us, and the 27-year-old star took to social media on Wednesday (April 12) to tease his forthcoming single “Chemical,” which will be arriving on Friday (April 14).

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In the 15-second clip, Posty is seen jamming out to the upbeat, pop-tinged track in the studio. “Fresh out of the party / Smoking in the car with you / Seven nation army / Fighting in the bar with you,” he sings in the chorus.

“Chemical” follows Post Malone’s fourth studio album, Twelve Carat Toothache, which featured hits like “One Right Now” and “Cooped Up.”

“It’s so hard,” Post previously told Billboard of his musical journey in his February 2022 cover story. “You lose a lot of the artist nowadays because a lot of people have so many genius ideas, but you lose a lot of that through everything that might happen with the business side — and you lose a little bit of yourself. Every time you change your art and your way of thinking for someone else’s, that takes a little piece of yourself off every time. I feel like I’m trying to rebuild.”

“Trying to shove 20 to 25 songs, it doesn’t work. Talking to the label [it’s like], ‘Oh, if you have less songs, you’re not going to stream as much,’ but the whole thing is that you don’t want to compromise your art and your gut vibe on anything,” he continued. “I’ve made a lot of compromises, especially musically, but now I don’t feel like I want to anymore. I don’t need a No. 1; that doesn’t matter to me no more, and at a point, it did.”

Kelly Clarkson Washes Herself ‘Clean’ for Kellyoke With a Taylor Swift Fan Favorite

Kelly Clarkson dug into Taylor Swift‘s storied songbook by covering “Clean” on her eponymous talk show Wednesday (April 12).

Glammed out in a black dress and chunky studded belt with her hair up in a rare ponytail, the original American Idol winner did the beloved 1989 closer justice as she sang, “Hung my head as I lost the war/ And the sky turned black like a perfect storm/ Rain came pourin’ down/ When I was drownin’/ That’s when I could finally breathe/ And by morning/ Gone was any trace of you/ I think I am finally clean/ I think I am finally clean.”

The song choice felt particularly profound considering Clarkson’s on the verge of rolling out Chemistry, her long-awaited album following her divorce from music manager Brandon Blackstock, starting with lead single “Mine / Me” this Friday (April 14). In fact, she’s already teased a few snippets of the breakup ballad on social media with defiant lyrics such as “‘Cause I don’t need somebody to scold me/ Don’t need somebody that hurts me/ Don’t need somebody who feels weak/ Standing next to me.”

Meanwhile, Swift surprised the sold-out crowd in Arlington, Texas, by performing a piano version of “Clean” on the second night of her Eras Tour stop at AT&T Stadium on April 1. During the show, she paired the fan-favorite ballad with the equally loved “Death By a Thousand Cuts” off 2019’s Lover, leading some Swifties to wonder in hindsight if she was quietly dropping clues about her recent reported breakup with Joe Alwyn before the news became public.

Watch Clarkson power through Swift’s “Clean” below.

Charli XCX Celebrates 10th Anniversary of ‘True Romance’: ‘This Album Was the Beginning of Everything’

Charli XCX‘s debut album, True Romance, has hit a milestone. On Wednesday (April 12), the pop star celebrated the LP’s 10th anniversary and thanked the producers behind the scenes and fans for their support.

“Wow. 10 years of true romance. This album – that initially not many people heard but quite a few people grew to adore – was the beginning of everything for me,” Charli’s message on her social media accounts began. “The beginning of discovering myself as a person – my voice, my confidence, how big I could make my hair, how I moved on stage…and the beginning of compiling all of those elements into myself as an artist. I was just a myspace kid inspired by teen movies, party photos and what felt like a very far away and impenetrable club scene.”

The 30-year-old singer then revealed that once she was able to move out to Los Angeles, the set finally began to take shape. She then thanked produced and songwriters Ariel Rechtshaid, Justin Raisen and Patrik Berger with their help on the record. In the list of thank yous, Charli also extended one to BloodPop for not suing her for using a beat of his on album deep cut “Grins,” which she described as “one of my favorite songs I’ve ever made.”

The “Good Ones” singer also shared a bit of history in the celebratory post, stating that she had originally planned to include her and Icona Pop’s 2012 hit “I Love It” on the album. “It’s funny to think that ‘I Love it’ almost went on this album, at one point as my own song, with me as the solo artist…perhaps if it had loads more people would have know about TR – and about me,” she added. “Perhaps literally everything would have been different. I think about that sometimes…but I’m happy it played out like this because I needed time to evolve and learn and hone.”

Charli concluded her message with a “thank you to everyone who’s been here from the beginning,” and simultaneously announced the arrival of an “original angel” reissue of True Romance — originally released on April 12, 2013 — now available alongside a commemorative shirt and prayer-style candle in her webstore.

Check out Charli XCX’s anniversary post in full below.

Taylor Swift Shows Support for Millie Bobby Brown’s ‘Lover’ Themed Engagement Post

Millie Bobby Brown is engaged to her longtime boyfriend Jake Bongiovi, and the Stranger Things star made it Instagram official with an adorable black-and-white post featuring a Taylor Swift lyric. Now, the Grammy-winning superstar is showing her support.

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Swift hit like on the Instagram post, which features lyrics from the title track of the singer’s 2019 album, Lover. “I’ve loved you three summers now, honey, I want ’em all,” Brown wrote alongside the snap of the happy couple, with the actress wearing a sparkling ring on *that* finger.

Brown and Bongiovi were first romantically linked after they posted a selfie together in June 2021, making things official later in the year with a November post in which they were snapped kissing on the London Eye.

The happy news came just days after reports that Swift and actor Joe Alwyn had broken up after six years together. “The relationship had just run its course. It’s why [Alwyn] hasn’t been spotted at any shows,” a source reportedly told ETBillboard has since reached out to representatives for Swift and Alwyn, but had not received a response.

Swift began dating the actor, who has appeared in a number of films including 2018’s The Favourite and 2022’s Conversations With Friends, in 2016. The couple has yet to publicly reveal the current status of their relationship.

Xikers Debut at No. 1 on Emerging Artists Chart Thanks to ‘House of Tricky: Doorbell Ringing’ EP

Xikers debut at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Emerging Artists chart (dated April 15), marking the South Korean 10-piece pop group’s first appearance on a Billboard survey, thanks to the act’s new EP, House of Tricky: Doorbell Ringing.

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The collection, released March 30 via KQ Entertainment, starts at No. 4 on World Albums and No. 75 on the Billboard 200 with 13,000 equivalent album units in its opening week (March 31-April 6), according to Luminate. Of that sum, 12,000 are from album sales, sparking the set’s No. 7 start on Top Album Sales.

Xikers is comprised of members Hunter, Hyunwoo, Jinsik, Junghoon, Junmin, Minjae, Seeun, Sumin, Yechan and Yujun.

South Korean singer Jisoo debuts at No. 2 on Emerging Artists, thanks to the BLACKPINK member’s first two solo songs: “Flower” and “All Eyes on Me.” “Flower” debuts at No. 2 on World Digital Song Sales and No. 10 on the all-genre Digital Song Sales chart with 6,000 downloads sold, while “All Eyes on Me” opens at No. 4 on World Digital and No. 19 on Digital Song Sales (3,000 sold).

The debuts mark Jisoo’s first solo entries on Billboard’s charts. BLACKPINK, with her as a member, has charted nine songs on the Billboard Hot 100, five of which have reached the top 40, and 22 on World Digital Song Sales, including nine No. 1s. The group has also notched a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, Born Pink, last October.

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, Billboard 200 and the Social 50. (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.

For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

The Weeknd Offers ‘Just a Taste’ of ‘The Idol’ Soundtrack

The Weeknd is giving a fans “just a taste” of what’s to come on his forthcoming HBO series The Idol.

On Wednesday (April 12), the superstar posted a 17-second video of himself and super-producer Mike Dean in the studio overseeing an orchestra playing a hauntingly beautiful arrangement. “THE IDOL VOL. 1,” he captioned the clip with a CD emoji, “coming soon (double fantasy & jealous guy just a taste).”

While The Idol‘s premiere date has yet to be announced, the “Die for You” singer (who plays Tedros, a leader of a modern-day cult and the love interest of Jocelyn, played by Lily-Rose Depp) has been steadily teasing his highly anticipated TV project. Dean is also starring in The Idol, alongside BLACKPINK‘s Jennie, Troye Sivan, Moses Sumney, Dan Levy, Hari Nef and many more.

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The Weeknd and Dean have been working on a lot of new music together lately. The former went on Instagram Live Monday night (April 10) to tease what they’ve been cooking up in the studio, and fans heard an unexpected, but all-too-familiar voice in one of the songs: Future. The “Wait for U” MC can be heard rapping over a slinky, synth-powered track that The Weeknd effortlessly glides on at the end of this screen-recorded clip, and viewers were freaking out in the comments section.

And that’s not the only thing they’ve been teasing from the studio. Earlier this week, The Weeknd also posted a blurry picture of Dean playing synths in the back on Instagram Story with a desert emoji followed by a question mark. Fans presume the superstar will make an appearance at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (which starts this weekend) after his and Swedish House Mafia‘s co-headlining set last year. “You guys said, ‘See you at the desert’ on Live. Exposed! I got exposed!” he joked.

Check out The Weeknd’s tease below:

Jay-Z to Honor Andy Warhol & Jean-Michel Basquiat With One-Time Concert in Paris

After a rare sighting at the 2023 Grammy Awards, where he teamed up with DJ Khaled for a performance of “God Did,” Jay-Z is returning to the stage — at least for a one-time performance. This Friday (April 14), the Grammy-winning MC will hold a “celebratory concert” in honor of the Basquiat x Warhol. Painting Four Hands exhibition.

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According to the Louis Vuitton Foundation’s website, Jay-Z’s performance will be at the Foundation’s Auditorium. “To coincide with the Basquiat x Warhol. Painting Four Hands exhibition, JAY-Z will give a celebratory concert to pay tribute to Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, on Friday, 14 April, 2023, at 9 p.m., in the Fondation’s Auditorium,” the website reads. Tiffany and Co. will be sponsoring the event. Tickets are available now. 

Following his performance at the 2023 Grammy Awards, Jay-Z spoke to TIDAL about his need to perform on music’s biggest stage after a multiyear hiatus. “I thought about it, I was in my head and I just broke down and said, ‘You know, it’s a four-minute verse.’ Again, for the culture, for hip-hop, we got to do that,” he said. “This ain’t your traditional song. … It’s not your traditional structure of what you think a song that would be nominated for Song of the Year would sound like. It’s not what you expect. And for the culture and for hip-hop, we got to do that.”

Despite not releasing a new album in six years, Jay-Z remains the centerpiece of rap after Billboard named him the Greatest Rapper of All-Time. You can look at the entire list here

Lady Gaga’s ‘Just Dance’ Certified Diamond by the RIAA

Lady Gaga‘s debut single “Just Dance” was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on Wednesday (April 12).

The milestone — signifying 10,000,000 units sold — comes just days after the 2008 smash featuring Colby O’Donis celebrated its 15th anniversary. With her third Diamond record — following “Bad Romance” and “Poker Face” — Mother Monster also becomes the very first woman to receive the RIAA’s Digital Diamond Award.

Released as the lead single off Gaga’s debut album The Fame, “Just Dance” rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the winter of 2009, spending three weeks atop the chart and becoming the first of the pop supernova’s five No. 1 hits, which include “Poker Face,” “Born This Way,” “Shallow” with Bradley Cooper and “Rain on Me” with Ariana Grande.

To mark the anniversary of the song, Gaga has re-released limited-edition merch from every single of her past album eras including 2009’s The Fame Monster, 2011’s Born This Way, 2013’s Artpop, 2016’s Joanne and 2020’s Chromatica, as well as select pieces dedicated to Love for Sale, her 2021 collaborative LP with Tony Bennett, and her contribution to the Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack. All the merch is available for purchase now on the singer’s official website.

Meanwhile, Gaga recently wrapped filming on the upcoming film Joker: Folie à Deux. Directed by Todd Phillips, the crime caper will serve as a sequel to 2019’s Joker, and finds Gaga stepping into the deranged shoes of Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix as Gotham City’s most notorious baddie.

Check out the RIAA’s celebration of “Just Dance” being certified Diamond below.

Post Malone & Ty Dolla $ign’s ‘Psycho’ Joins YouTube’s Billion Views Club

Yet another one of Post Malone‘s music videos has reached a notable milestone. YouTube announced on Wednesday (April 12) that the rapper’s video for his 2018 track “Psycho,” featuring Ty Dolla $ign, has hit a one billion views.

The visual for the song features Malone in a post-apocalyptic space, driving in an army-sized tank through an arid climate before reaching a location piled high with garbage, decay and wild animals. In the short, Malone happens upon a lost child with blonde hair and blue eyes, who later disappears into the environment without a trace.

The climate then changes to a snowy landscape and Ty Dolla $ign appears in the video to deliver his verse alongside Malone, the two dressed in furs amidst plane wreckage. The child ultimately ends up being safe and sound, and is fiercely protected by a feral dog at the end of the visual.

“Psycho” marks Malone’s fifth video to hit one billion views on YouTube. “Sunflower” currently sits at two billion views, while “Congratulations,” “White Iverson” and “I Like You (A Happier Song)” are the others that have crossed the one billion threshold.

Released as the second single off of the rapper’s 2018 album Beerbongs & Bentleys, “Psycho” additionally marked Malone’s second No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The track charted for a total of 39 weeks on the all-genre tally. Beerbongs & Bentleys spent three of its 258 charting weeks on the Billboard 200 in the No. 1 spot on the chart.

Revisit “Psycho” in the video above.

John Summit, Diplo & Tiësto Lead Groove Cruise Miami 2024 Lineup

All aboard, baby. Groove Cruise announced the lineup for its January 2024 voyage from Miami to The Bahamas on Wednesday (April 12).

Billboard can exclusively announce that Diplo, Tiësto and John Summit captain the lineup, with a strong crew of artists including Disco Lines, Gabriel & Dresden, Joel Corry, LP Giobbi, So Tuff So Cute, VNSSA rounding out the bill.

Additionally, the party will feature hosted stages by brands including LP Giobbi’s Femme House, Diplo’s Higher Ground and Summit’s Off The Grid. The boat will also host artist hosted games and activities like blackjack, bingo, volunteer opportunities, mentorship sessions and mental health workshops.

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The festival is largely sold out, although a few premium packages remain. The event will take place on the Norwegian Encore. Able to host 4,000 guests, this is the biggest ship Groove Cruise has employed to date.

The festival at sea departs from Miami on January 24, sailing to The Bahamas for a beach part on Great Stirrup Cay and returning to U.S shores on January 28. The event, produced by Whet Travel, marks the Groove Cruise’s 20th anniversary.

“I can’t believe it’s been 20 years,” Groove Cruise founder Jason Beukema tells Billboard. “When I first had the idea of Groove Cruise as a 25-year-old kid from Michigan with no money, not a single DJ contact, and not knowing anyone in the cruise industry, I never thought that two decades later I would be booking international superstars like Tiësto on a near billion dollar cruise ship.”

“Our first sailing,” he continues, “was a 125 person cruise in 2004, and it’s been incredible to witness lifelong friendships flourish out of that initial cruise and to hear how it changed people’s lives. It’s been humbling to watch the community and experience it evolve into the world class event it is today.”

While Groove Cruise helped innovate the festival cruise model two decades ago, they’ve since become a hugely popular format for live music consumption. In the dance world, HARD has hosted Holy Ship since 2021, while earlier this year Insomniac Events announced the maiden voyage of their EDSea cruise happening in November.

See the full lineup below

Groove Cruise Miami

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