Music News

16 Mar 2023

John Summit & Hayla Hit Hot Dance/Electronic Songs Top 10 With ‘Where You Are’

DJ/producer John Summit and singer Hayla jump onto Billboard‘s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart (dated March 18) at No. 9 with “Where You Are.” The first top 10 for both acts, “Where” starts with 1.9 million streams and 1,000 in download sales in the United States March 3-9, according to Luminate.

The collab amounts to Summit’s eighth total appearance, a run that began with “Deep End” (No. 26 peak, December 2020). Until now, that song and “Human,” featuring Echoes (March 2022), were tied as Summit’s highest-peaking tracks.

“Where” brings the second appearance for Hayla, the featured vocalist on Kx5’s “Escape” (No. 11, last June).

Concurrently, “Where” enters at No. 4 on the Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart, matching the high of “Escape” last year. Summit scores his second and top-charting top 10, following “La Danza” (No. 10, March 2022).

On Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, “Where” debuts between two other newly-arriving collabs: Marshmello and Manuel Turizo‘s “El Merengue” (No. 6) and Oliver Tree and David Guetta‘s “Here We Go Again” (No. 10). The former, as previously reported, marks Marshmello’s first entry on a Billboard Latin chart.

“Here” is Oliver Tree’s second top 10, following “Miss You,” with Robin Schulz (No. 4, November). “Here” is Guetta’s landmark 20th top 10, the fourth-most among all acts since the chart premiered in January 2013; Kygo leads with 24, followed by The Chainsmokers (22) and Calvin Harris (21).

The track also extends Guetta’s record for the most Hot Dance/Electronic Songs hits overall to 75 (ahead of Kygo, with 61). “Here” bows with 1.8 million U.S. streams.

Further on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, a fourth notable team-up, Martin Garrix and JVKE‘s “Hero,” leaps 33-17. The track earns top Streaming Gainer honors with 872,000 streams, up 48%, in the wake of the March 3 release of new remixes by DubVision and Space Ducks. The rank is the closest that “Hero” has been to its No. 13 best in two months.

16 Mar 2023

Demi Lovato Is Directing a Documentary About Child Stardom

Demi Lovato has officially begun directing her very first feature film, Hulu shared on Thursday (March 16).

Along with Nicola Marsh, the pop star will co-direct Child Star, a Hulu Original documentary film that promises to “deconstruct the highs and lows of growing up in the spotlight through the lens of some of the world’s most famous former child stars,” according to a release.

“There is no better film or topic for my directorial debut than this story, which is close to home,” the Disney Channel alum said in a statement. “Our project sheds light on important messages about growing up in the public eye, learning to protect our boundaries, and becoming active advocates of our own destinies. I’m humbled to be able to learn from the individuals who have lived the unique experience of child stardom and share their stories in our film.”

The doc is currently scheduled to stream on Hulu sometime in 2024 and will also follow the paths of several other child stars in addition to Lovato reflecting on her childhood stardom in shows like Barney & Friends, As the Bell Rings, Sonny With a Chance and more.

Most recently, Lovato contributed “Still Alive” to the soundtrack for Scream VI. The track serves as the first follow-up to the nonbinary artist’s rock-heavy 2022 album Holy Fvck, which charted at No. 1 on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums tallies upon its release last August and spawned the singles “Skin of My Teeth,” “Substance” and “29.”

16 Mar 2023

Moneybagg Yo Talks New Album ‘Hard to Love,’ His TikTok Influencer Era & More

Moneybagg Yo caught up with Billboard R&B/hip-hop reporter Neena Rouhani ahead of the arrival of his upcoming 22-track album, Hard to Love. The Memphis rapper says that his project title is personal, considering he finds himself hard to love.

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“At the end of the day to love me, you have to understand me,” he says.

The artist and entrepreneur, who has had his fair share of Billboard Hot 100 moments, also dished on his social media influencer era, supported by girlfriend Ari Fletcher. On TikTok, Moneybagg Yo boasts more than one million followers, with nearly 10 million views on a single vlog video. Other videos show his push-up form and stretch routine, with a fan commenting, “you betta eat love pray!”

“I’m a creative person,” he says. “I tapped into [TikTok] because they don’t know enough about me, but I also don’t want to give them all of me.” The 31-year-old even walked the Billboard team through his push-up form at the studio, although he pointed out that the practice push-ups didn’t count toward his daily goal.

Coming off of his last album, A Gangsta’s Pain, which spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and 88 weeks total on the chart, Moneybagg Yo is feeling prepared for the next chapter. Although it was his ninth solo project, he says that many look at A Gangsta’s Pain as his first, since it was home to so many of his breakout hits, including “Wockesha,” “Time Today” and “Scorpio.”

“I just wanted to put something out there feeding the fans and it went somewhere else,” he says. “It’s bigger than life.”

Moneybagg Yo attributes the successes to his honesty and finger on the pulse of the culture. “I keep up with the culture and I ain’t afraid to say certain things,” he shared. When asked if Fletcher is OK with the things he raps about, Moneybagg Yo plainly noted, “She has to be — that’s what makes the money.”

In January, the CMG rapper released a joint track with labelmate GloRilla titled, “On Wat U On.” The track is a theatrical take on toxic relationships, and was initially supposed to be done with another female artist, but Moneybagg Yo later opted for GloRilla.

“Once Glo’s success started coming in and she was a part of the team, it made sense,” he explains. “We’re both from Memphis and our chemistry is there anyway.”

His advice to rising rappers is simple: “Force it on them, put it in they face, but at the perfect timing.”

Watch Billboard‘s interview with Moneybagg Yo above.

16 Mar 2023

Jim Gordon, Co-Writer of Eric Clapton’s ‘Layla’ & Convicted Murderer, Dies at 77

Jim Gordon, drummer and co-writer for Eric Clapton‘s 1971 hit “Layla,” has died at age 77.

The drummer died Monday, March 13, from natural causes at the California Medical Facility in Vacavillle, Calif., according to his rep. Gordon has spent decades in prison after being convicted of killing his mother in 1983 and repeated failures to show up for his hearings. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

The drummer is best known for his work in Derek and the Dominos, alongside Eric Clapton. The pair co-wrote “Layla,” which appeared as the 13th track from the group’s 1970 album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs. The song was famously written about Clapton’s forbidden love for Pattie Boyd, the wife of his friend and Beatles member George Harrison.

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“Layla” peaked at No. 51 on the Billboard Hot 100, while Clapton’s MTV Unplugged version of the track went to No. 12 on the Hot 100 in 1992.

In addition to being a member of Derek and the Dominos, Gordon was also a member of the session musician group Wrecking Crew, in which he was able to earn spots playing the drums on tracks like Incredible Bongo Band’s “Apache,” Steely Dan’s “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain” and John Lennon’s “Power to the People,” as well as The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass, Tom Waits’ The Heart of Saturday Night and other tracks by Cher, Alice Cooper, Joan Baez and more.

16 Mar 2023

Chlöe Bailey Unveils ‘In Pieces’ Album Cover, Shares Powerful Inspiration Behind the Project

Chlöe Bailey is just weeks away from reintroducing herself with her debut solo album, In Pieces, and on Thursday (March 16), the singer revealed the stunning album cover.

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In the photo shared the Twitter, Chlöe is seen with red hair, dressed in a Victorian-style blue dress, holding her heart in her right hand. In another post, the 24-year-old star opened up about what inspired the cover art and the rest of her upcoming album.

“I saw a photo of a porcelain doll 3 years ago, holding her heart just like this and from then, I said this will be my album cover… that same day I also wrote heart on my sleeve,” she recalled. “The beginning of a scary and exciting journey for me. This cover represents so much for me, down to the color of my hair. When I had red hair 1.5 years ago, it was one of the darkest times in my life. That’s why I never wore it again.”

Chlöe added that after healing and working on herself, she has learned to find “beauty in the pain” that encompassed her. “I find the beauty in my flaws and how in actuality, that’s what makes me perfect,” she shared. “I find beauty in all of the cracks that show people I’ve been broken down before, because I’ve gotten up every time. I wear my heart as my armor.”

She concluded by sharing how she hopes In Pieces will connect with her fans. “In Pieces is for the ones who behind closed doors are breaking and don’t know how much more they can take,” she wrote. “In Pieces is for the ones who hold the people up around them while barely holding themselves. In Pieces is for the people who continue to get stabbed in the back, heart broken by the ones they thought they could trust, but STILL that doesn’t change their heart and how they love. In Pieces is for the ones like me, who wear their outer shell so well that you’d have no idea what they’re going through.”

The singer continued, “I hope this project brings healing to those who listen, as it’s been completely therapeutic for me and I can’t wait to share my heart with you, literally.”

In Pieces is set to arrive on March 31 via Parkwood Entertainment/Columbia Records. Chlöe has already released two songs from the album, including “Pray It Away” and her Chris Brown collaboration “How Does It Feel.”

See the album cover and inspiration below.

16 Mar 2023

Ariana Grande Is Loving That Clip of Bad Bunny Singing ‘Break Free’

As if Bad Bunny wasn’t charming enough, he had fans swooning with his adorable Carpool Karaoke segment on The Late Late Show With James Corden.

The Puerto Rican superstar and the talk show host drove around Los Angeles singing along with a number of his own hits including “Dakiti,” “Tití Me Pregunto” and “I Like It.” Bunny also jammed along to two covers: Harry Styles‘ “As It Was” and Ariana Grande‘s Zedd collaboration, “Break Free.”

When the 2014 My Everything song began to play, Bad Bunny gets visibly excited, and begins passionately singing along. “This is the English song that I most know the lyrics,” the 29-year-old explained. “I listen to English music, I like it but I never –” he says before hilariously cutting himself off to belt the chorus as loud as he can.

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Grande herself saw the clip on Thursday (March 16) and even reposted it to her Instagram Stories, along with a series of crying face emojis. See her post before it disappears here.

Elsewhere in the 15-minute video, the hip-hopper also discussed his love of drawing and wrestling. He demonstrated it, at one point enticing Corden into the ring with WWE wrestler Rey Mysterio.

Watch the full Carpool Karaoke segment with Bad Bunny below.

16 Mar 2023

Lewis Capaldi Shines in Trailer for Netflix Documentary ‘How I’m Feeling Now’

Netflix unveiled the trailer for its new Lewis Capaldi documentary, Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now, on Thursday (March 16).

The film promises a behind-the-scenes look at the Divinely Inspired to a Hellish Extent singer’s meteoric rise to fame with his No. 1 hit “Someone You Loved,” as well as the impact the success as taken on his mental health.

“I think I’ve never been more insecure in my life than I am now,” he admits in the supercut. “And I think that’s got worse the more successful I’ve got.”

Later, the singer confesses he felt a remarkable amount of “tension all the time” to deliver a worthy follow-up to his 2019 breakout album. (“You get your whole life to write your first album, and a year or six months to write your second … The clock’s ticking,” he points out.)

The rest of the trailer follows Capaldi on the journey to improve his mental health, all as he feels the weight of everyone depending on him to continue his career. “You can only be the next best thing for, like, a year,” he says. “Of course there’s pressure … I’ll probably f–k up, but we’ll have a good time while we do it.”

Earlier this month, the Scottish crooner was forced to postpone a pair of shows in Zurich and Milan due to a doctor’s orders that he take at least three days rest to recover from a case of bronchitis.

Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now is slated to premiere on Netflix on April 5. Watch the full trailer below.

16 Mar 2023

Taylor Swift Reveals She’s Dropping 4 Previously Unreleased Songs Ahead of The Eras Tour

Taylor Swift announced on Thursday (March 16) that she’s giving Swifties a major surprise in the form of four new songs ahead of her tour kickoff.

“In celebration of The Eras Tour I’m releasing 4 previously unreleased songs tonight at midnight,” she revealed on her Instagram Stories. The four tracks include re-recordings of Swift’s dual contributions to the 2012 soundtrack to The Hunger Games — “Eyes Open” and “Safe & Sound” featuring Joy Williams and John Paul White — as well as “If This Was a Movie (Taylor’s Version)” and never-before-heard song “All of the Girls You Loved Before.”

Remarkably, the superstar’s re-recording of her Hunger Games collab with The Civil Wars marks the first time Williams and White have appeared on record together since the duo’s contentious 2014 breakup.

“If This Was a Movie” was originally released as a bonus track on the deluxe version of Speak Now, perhaps lending credence to the rampant fan theories that the 2010 album will be the next re-recording Swift plans to drop following both Fearless (Taylor’s Version) and Red (Taylor’s Version) in 2021.

The Eras Tour is set to begin on Friday (March 17) with back-to-back shows in Glendale, Ariz., which has temporarily been renamed Swift City in honor of Swift’s imminent arrival.

Ahead of Tay’s wildly anticipated trek, Billboard staffers ranked her 100 best songs for the very first time in Billboard history — from “Look What You Made Me Do” (No. 100) and “Death by a Thousand Cuts” (No. 74) to “White Horse” (No. 34), “The Last Great American Dynasty” (No. 17) and beyond.

16 Mar 2023

Charlie Puth Kisses Sabrina Carpenter in Teaser for Their Upcoming Collab

Charlie Puth and Sabrina Carpenter shocked fans on Wednesday (March 15) by locking lips in the TikTok teaser for what appears to be a new collab.

In the clip posted to the “Charlie Be Quiet!” singer’s TikTok account, the two pop stars get flirty as she attempts to feed him a candy heart while they’re surrounded by candles. “I always knew you had a tiny, tiny heart,” Puth banters before piano notes play over the scene and they lean in for the kiss.

The TikTok sensation cryptically captioned the video “3.31” and tagged both Carpenter and Dan + Shay, but fans weren’t quite sure what to make of the whole thing. “IM SORRY DID I JUST WITNESS SABRINA CARPENTER AND CHARLIE PUTH KISS?!?” one follower asked in all caps in the comments, while a second wrote, “I DON’T KNOW IF I WANT TO BE SABRINA OR IF I WANT TO BE CHARLIE.”

Other fans expressed concern over Puth’s relationship with girlfriend Brooke Sansone, which he confirmed back in December on his 31st birthday. “EXCUSE YOU WHAT ABOUT BROOKE,” one demanded. Another joked, “SHAWN MENDEZ [sic] PUNCHING THE AIR RIGHT NOW” in reference to the recent online chatter that Carpenter could possibly be dating Shawn Mendes.

The Charlie artist didn’t hint at a song title or any other details regarding his collaboration with the “Nonsense” singer, but the latter is already dropping the deluxe edition of her 2022 album Emails I Can’t Send this Friday (March 17) containing four new bonus tracks. Meanwhile, Puth most recently announced he’ll be hitting the road this spring for The Charlie Live Experience.

Watch Puth and Carpenter canoodle over a candy heart while you brace yourself for what’s coming at the end of the month below.

16 Mar 2023

Ben Affleck Gushes About Jennifer Lopez’s Support: ‘She’s Looking Out For Me’

Ben Affleck is filled with appreciation for his wife, Jennifer Lopez. The actor sat down for an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, published on Thursday (March 16), and gushed about the guidance that the “Let’s Get Loud” singer has been able to provide him with after a few difficult years in the public eye.

When asked about his absence from social media — and why he chooses to stay offline — Affleck remarked, “My wife’s a genius at that. I don’t know if there’s anybody who understands Instagram better than her.”

The two-time Oscar winner added that Lopez came to a few conclusions regarding why he keeps his life out of the public eye. “She thinks that because of experiences that I’ve had, I’ve become very guarded. And she’s right. I view these things as landmines, where if you say one wrong thing, your career might be over,” Affleck mused. “I had a really painful experience where I did an interview where I was really vulnerable, and the entire pickup was something that was not only not right, it was actually the opposite of what I meant.”

The painful experience in question is regarding Affleck’s 2021 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, in which he linked his drinking to his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner. The actor clarified his comments later that year during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, stating that articles were spun around for “clickbait” and twisted his words into him blaming his wife for his drinking.

“To be clear, my behavior is my responsibility entirely. The point that I was trying to make was a sad one,” the 50-year-old said in the new Hollywood Reporter interview. “I was trying to say, ‘Hey, look, I was drinking too much, and the less happy you become, whether it’s your job, your marriage, it’s just that as your life becomes more difficult, if you’re doing things to fill a hole that aren’t healthy, you’re going to start doing more of those things.’”

Lopez, however, supports him despite the recent events. Affleck continued, “[She] tells me today, ‘Relax, be yourself. Have fun. You’re actually a fun guy who is real and genuine and you just seem so serious.’ Do I seem serious? But as in many things, she’s really right. And she loves me. She’s looking out for me. She’s trying to help me. So it’s like, maybe I ought to f–king listen to her.”

Up next for Affleck is the release of his new, self-directed drama, Air. The film — which follows sports executive Sonny Vaccaro and Nike in their attempts to pursue basketball rookie Michael Jordan for one of fashion’s most lucrative partnerships — is scheduled to premiere at SXSW on March 18, and hit theaters on April 5.