Music News

23 Jan 2023

Stevie Nicks Extends 2023 North American Tour With Solo Dates: ‘Surprise!’

Stevie Nicks has some big plans for 2023. The Fleetwood Mac singer first announced tour plans — a small series of co-headlining shows alongside Billy Joel — back in November, and she received so much enthusiasm from fans, she revealed Monday (Jan. 23) that she’s chosen to extend the run of previously announced dates.

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“Surprise!” Nicks wrote on Instagram, sharing the official tour poster — a photo of her in a black top hat and matching sheer veil, the tour dates below her — to her Instagram. “Tickets for my 2023 tour go on sale Friday at 10am local time. Which show will we see you at?”

After a March 10 co-headlining show with Joel in Los Angeles, Nicks’ solo trek will officially begin March 15 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena. The White Witch will make stops in Las Vegas, San Francisco, New Orleans, Toronto, Chicago and more before concluding at Louisville’s KFC Yum! Center on June 27.

As for the Grammy winner’s co-headlining dates with the Piano Man, she’ll do nine dates separate from her own solo trek, which are further detailed in her Instagram post.

See Nicks’ new 2023 North American tour dates below.

STEVIE NICKS 2023 TOUR DATES

  • Wed Mar 15 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
  • Sat Mar 18 – Las Vegas, NV – T-Mobile Arena
  • Thu Mar 23 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center
  • Sun Mar 26 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center
  • Thu Mar 30 – Oklahoma City, OK – Paycom Center
  • Sun Apr 02 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Center
  • Wed Apr 05 – Birmingham, AL – The Legacy Arena at BJCC
  • Fri May 12 – Raleigh, NC – PNC Arena
  • Tue May 16 – Knoxville, TN – Thompson-Boling Arena
  • Mon May 22 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
  • Thu May 25 – Orlando, FL – Amway Center
  • Tue Jun 20 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena
  • Fri Jun 23 – Chicago, IL – United Center
  • Tue Jun 27 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center

23 Jan 2023

JoJo Siwa Celebrates 2-Year Anniversary of Her Coming Out: ‘I’m So Proud of 17-Year-Old JoJo’

Time flies when you’re having fun — and for the last two years, JoJo Siwa has been having the time of her life.

On Sunday, Siwa posted on Instagram to celebrate the two-year anniversary of her public coming out announcement back in 2021. Sharing the same photo she shared two years ago, Siwa wrote a short-but-sweet caption to commemorate the moment.

“2 years ago today,” she said next to a series of rainbow-colored heart emojis. “now looking back on everything…. I’m SO proud of 17 year old JoJo.”

Siwa officially came out on Jan. 22, 2021, when she posted a photo of herself with the caption, “My cousin got me a new shirt.” The picture shows Siwa smiling and looking down at the tee, which said in blue block letters, “Best. Gay. Cousin. Ever.”

In the time since then, Siwa has used her platform to try and elevate LGBTQ voices and stand up for her community. Most recently, the former Nickelodeon star called out Fuller House star Candace Cameron Bure for saying that she would not feature same-sex couples in movies she produces at the Great American Family Network.

Speaking to People, Siwa explained why she called Bure out for her “rude and hurtful” comments. “You not liking gay marriage, do your thing girl. You being religious, do your thing girl. Of course, I would want everybody to do what they want to do,” she said. “But to purposely exclude someone because of who they love, that’s sh–ty.”

Check out Siwa’s anniversary post on Instagram below:

23 Jan 2023

Drake Pauses Apollo Theater Concert After Man Falls From Balcony

Drake‘s Sunday night show at the Apollo Theater was momentarily put on pause after a man fell from the lower mezzanine balcony into the audience.

“Just gotta make sure somebody’s OK,” the OVO rapper said after a crew member ran onstage to inform him of the fall.

The incident occurred about 90 minutes into the show, just as 21 Savage walked out to perform “Rich Flex” and a slew of other Her Loss hits alongside Drake. The pause lasted about 15 minutes as venue staff treated the injured man.

“Unfortunately, last evening an incident occurred with an audience member who landed in the orchestra from the lower mezzanine,” the venue said in a statement posted to Instagram on Monday (Jan. 23). “Drake, Apollo and SiriusXM halted the show immediately when learning of a potential fan injury and standard protocols were taken. They were seen immediately by EMS on site. The fan and other audience members reported that they were OK. No major injuries have been reported. The Apollo is investigating the situation further.”

In partnership with SiriusXM, Drake announced the concert as a one-night only event last fall. It was originally meant to take place Nov. 11 but was moved to early December to mourn Takeoff, whose shooting death occurred a little over a week prior. The show was then delayed again to January due to production issues, and a second show was added.

The two-night event attracted an A-list crowd, including Justin and Hailey Bieber, Kevin Durant, Odell Beckham Jr., Aaron Judge, A$AP Ferg and more, as Drake performed a mix of his biggest hits and deep cuts spanning his catalog. The Toronto native also brought out Dipset and Lil Uzi Vert as special guests, and hinted at a possible tour with 21 this summer.

23 Jan 2023

NYPD Responds to Viral Video of Police Filming Fans Leaving Drake Apollo Concert

Some audience members leaving a concert by Drake at the Apollo Theater in Harlem came outside to see a New York Police Department officer filming those filing out, raising concerns from privacy advocates over what would be done with the footage.

The NYPD said Monday (Jan. 23) the video would only be used for a social media post, but there were still calls for the material to be deleted.

Music writer Jon Caramanica of The New York Times tweeted on Saturday night that the NYPD was filming those leaving the show at the Apollo Theater, putting up a video showing an officer seemingly recording those coming out.

In a statement, the department said the officer was part of the social media team for the local precinct and was getting video for a social media post about local events.

“The video will not be utilized for any other reason,” the department said.

But the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, a New York City-based group that focuses on privacy and civil rights, called the videotaping “highly concerning” and that attendees were being surveilled without their consent. It demanded the video be destroyed.

See Caramanica’s video below:

23 Jan 2023

Chrissy Teigen Calls Her Jealousy Over Beyoncé Dubai Concert ‘Incomprehensible’

Chrissy Teigen couldn’t be at Beyoncé‘s private Dubai concert on Saturday, but that didn’t stop her from raving about the show on social media.

“The live Beyonce in Dubai key change into drunk in love was in my ketamine therapy session,” the Cravings author tweeted upon seeing fan-captured videos of the set. “It was so beautiful it never leaves my mind. My jealousy of anyone being at that show is incomprehensible.”

Later, Teigen — who just gave birth to newest daughter Esti with husband John Legend — added more thoughts on Instagram, writing, “Omw to bandage together both my wound and 3.8 second clips of Beyonce performing in Dubai until I get a full HBO special,” alongside a photo of herself covered up in a hat, slip dress and long cardigan.

At the invite-only event at the Atlantis Royal in the United Arab Emirates, which marked her first public performance in four years, Queen Bey brought out Blue Ivy to duet on “Brown Skin Girl” and covered Etta James’ “At Last.” Though she didn’t treat the star-studded crowd to any songs from last year’s Renaissance, the rest of the 75-minute showcase contained a litany of her past hits, including “Crazy in Love,” “Countdown,” “XO,” “Halo,” “I Care” and more.

A day after the concert, Beyoncé offered a preview of Park Trail, her newest Adidas x Ivy Park collaboration, with an exclusive showing at Nobu by the Beach — one of eight new celebrity restaurants at the Atlantis Royal. The line of nature-inspired performance wear is slated to hit Adidas stores on Feb. 9.

Check out Teigen’s enthusiastic reactions to Beyoncé’s Dubai set below.

23 Jan 2023

Fans React to Selena Gomez Holding Hands With Drew Taggart After Saying She’s Single: ‘I’m Shocked’

Selena Gomez was spotted holding hands with Drew Taggart over the weekend, and fans flocked to social media to express their collective dismay — particularly considering the pop star had shot down rumors just days earlier that she was dating one-half of The Chainsmokers.

“She said I’m single, I’m shocked” one follower commented on the news using a distressed face emoji, while another tweeted, “Whaaaat friends ?? They holding hands.” A third had a theory about the viral paparazzi pic, writing, “Is she doing this to get people talking because she’s about to drop music?”

Some aren’t convinced the two are actually dating. “They are FRIENDS,” on Twitter user insisted.

Either way, many Selenators didn’t seem all that pleased with the prospective pairing. One fan tweeted, “Girl nobody knew him that well until this photo … “

Whether or not Gomez and Taggart are officially an item, the “Lose You to Love Me” singer reportedly squashed speculation via a briefly posted Instagram Story last week. “I LIKE BEING ALONE TOO MUCH #iamsingle,” she wrote before quickly deleting the statement.

Selena and the DJ first made headlines earlier this month when the duo went bowling together at The Gutter in New York City. The outing just so happened to come fresh on the heels of Taggart and his bandmate Alex Pall revealing they’ve had multiple threesomes together with fans during a TMI-filled appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast.

Check out more reactions to Gomez hand-in-hand with Taggart below.

23 Jan 2023

The Kid LAROI’s ‘Wild Dreams’ Fortnite Experience Will Feature His New Single ‘Love Again’

Less than one week after releasing the first single from his upcoming debut studio album, The First Time, The Kid LAROI is already preparing to release a follow-up track, and is using his partnership with Epic Games to do it.

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On Friday, Jan. 27, The Kid LAROI is inviting fans of his to a very special Fortnite experience titled “Wild Dreams.” It will feature new music of his, including his new single “Love Again,” which will also be released this coming Friday. The partnership marks the first time in Fortnite that multiple new songs will narrate a game experience. “Wild Dreams” will become available on Friday starting at 6 p.m. ET, and will be available to fans in Fortnite for three months.

“MY FORTNITE ISLAND EXPERIENCE IS LAUNCHING WITH THE NEW SINGLE ‘LOVE AGAIN’ and some other surprises.. CHECK IT OUT THIS FRIDAY! #EpicPartner,” the 19-year-old shared via Instagram, as well as some interesting in-game footage and a preview of the new track.

The “Wild Dreams” quest through “Laroitown” will let players earn not only XP, but also special LAROI items and attend the in-game concert. After that show, players can join the musician for what Fortnite calls the Afterparty, where the “Wild Dreams” mix will play on a loop, while offering a look at the musician’s life, including his time on the road.

On Jan. 19, fans got the first taste of LAROI’s forthcoming LP with previously released single “I Can’t Go Back to the Way It Was (Intro).” The track sees Laroi sharing intimate details about his life, such as his relationship with his mother and father, and the difficulties that life often holds. The 19-year-old also struggles to keep up with the fast pace of his existence, and feels bad for the bridges he’s burned in the process.

Listen to a preview of “Love Again” in the “Wild Dreams” teaser posted to The Kid LAROI’s Instagram:

23 Jan 2023

Doja Cat Wears 30,000 Swarovski Crystals to 2023 Paris Fashion Week Show

Doja Cat turned heads when she arrived at the Schiaparelli Haute Couture Spring Summer 2023 show for Paris Fashion Week on Monday (Jan. 23) covered head to toe in red jewels and makeup.

“Doja Cat Couture @dojacat in 30 000 @swarovski crystals applied by hand at the @schiaparelli Haute Couture SS23 show held at Petit Palais in Paris,” the fashion house shared in an Instagram post, detailing that the rapper’s stunning ensemble was also comprised of a “red silk faille bustier,” “hand-knit skirt of lacquered wooden beads” and “Trompe l’œil toe boots.”

Makeup artist Pat McGrath offered an even closer look at Doja’s glittering visage, which she revealed took four hours and 58 minutes to create. “The final product was a magical, mesmerising masterpiece of sparkling brilliance,” McGrath wrote, thanking the Grammy winner for her “sublime patience” during the process.

The fashion show featured the likes of Naomi Campbell, Shalom Harlow and Irina Shayk strutting down the runway in haute couture gowns embroidered with giant animal heads in a nod to Dante’s Inferno. Kylie Jenner was also seated front row during the presentation with a giant lion’s head attached to her black dress. (All of Schiaparelli’s posts ensured “NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN MAKING” any of the looks.)

Recently, Doja nabbed five nominations at the upcoming 2023 Grammy Awards — including record of the year for “Woman” — as well as five more for this year’s iHeartRadio Awards. Interestingly, should her song beat out the crowded field for record of the year, it would become the shortest track to take home the trophy in more than half a century.

Get a closer look at Doja’s jaw-dropping Schiaparelli look and all the work that went into creating it below.

23 Jan 2023

SZA’s ‘SOS’ Is No. 1 on Billboard 200 for Sixth Week

SZA’s SOS is No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Jan. 28) for a sixth consecutive week – the entirety of its chart run. The last album by a woman with six weeks atop the list was Adele’s 30 a little over a year ago, which also spent its first six weeks on the chart at No. 1 (Dec. 4, 2021-Jan. 8, 2022-dated charts).

SOS earned 119,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 19 (down 4%), according to Luminate.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multimetric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Jan. 28, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Jan. 25 – one day later than usual due to data processing delays. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of SOS’ 119,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Jan. 19, SEA units comprise 118,000 (down 3%, equaling 160.1 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise a little over 500 (down 77%) and TEA units comprise 500 units (up 18%).

SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 among R&B/hip-hop albums since Drake’s Views notched 13 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in 2016, and the most weeks at No. 1 for an R&B album since Usher’s Confessions was tops for nine nonconsecutive weeks in 2004.

SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 among R&B/hip-hop or R&B albums by women since Mariah Carey’s Daydream, which notched six nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in late 1995 and early 1996.

And, the last R&B/hip-hop or R&B album by a woman to spend its first six weeks at No. 1 was Janet Jackson’s janet., which led the list for its first six weeks (June 5-July 10, 1993). Further, SOS is the first R&B album, from any act, to spend its first six weeks at No. 1 since janet. (R&B/hip-hop and R&B albums are defined as those that have hit or are eligible for Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top R&B Albums charts, respectively.)

Incredibly, in the last decade-plus, the only albums by women with six or more weeks at No. 1 have been those by Adele, Taylor Swift and SZA. The last album by a woman not named Adele, Swift or SZA to spend at least six weeks at No. 1 was Susan Boyle, who saw her debut effort I Dreamed a Dream top the list for six total weeks (Dec. 12, 2009-Jan. 16, 2010).

Since I Dreamed a Dream, eight albums by women have spent at least six weeks at No. 1, and seven of them are by Adele and Swift. They are Swift’s Speak Now (six weeks, 2010-11), Adele’s 21 (24, 2011-12), Swift’s Red (seven, 2012-13), Swift’s 1989 (11, 2014-15), Adele’s 25 (10, 2015-16), Swift’s Folklore (eight, 2020), Adele’s 30 (six, 2021-22) and SZA’s SOS (six thus far, 2022-23).

Back on the new Billboard 200, the entire top four titles are all former No. 1s and are non-movers as compared to their ranks a week ago. Swift’s Midnights is No. 2 (73,000 equivalent album units; down 10%), followed by Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains (56,000; down 2%) and Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss (47,000; down 7%).

The Weeknd’s compilation album The Highlights jumps back to the top 10, climbing 36-5 with 44,000 equivalent album units earned (up 185%). The best-of effort contains such hits as “Blinding Lights” and the resurgent “Die for You” (from The Weeknd’s studio albums After Hours and Starboy, respectively). On the new chart, the TEA and SEA units for those songs contribute to The Highlights, as a song’s activity is assigned to the artist’s album with the most traditional album sales in a week. (The Highlights sold nearly 1,000 copies in the latest tracking week, while After Hours and Starboy each sold under 1,000.) A week ago, the TEA and SEA for the songs were directed to After Hours and Starboy, respectively, as they outsold The Highlights that week.

Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti falls 5-6 (43,000 equivalent album units; down 5%) and Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album dips 6-7 (41,000; down 4%).

Closing out the new Billboard 200’s top 10 are Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak (falling 7-8 with 32,000 equivalent album units earned, down 5%), Lil Baby’s chart-topping It’s Only Me (8-9 with 29,000 units; down 7%) and Harry Styles’ former leader Harry’s House (holding at No. 10 with 24,000 units; down 7%).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

23 Jan 2023

Cyndi Lauper Worried ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun’ Really Meant ‘Girls Just Want to Have Sex,’ So She Gave It ‘New Life’

Cyndi Lauper is joining PBS’ Finding Your Roots on Tuesday, and in a new sneak-peek clip shared exclusively with Billboard, the iconic pop star opens up about the story behind one of her biggest hits.

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She revealed that when she was first pitched the idea of covering Robert Hazard’s 1979 single “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” she was unsure.

“What am I supposed to do? Have a lobotomy, walk around and can-can?” she joked. “What it was about was the guy’s version of – what do you think? ‘Girls just want to have fun. Ain’t we lucky? Nudge, nudge.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, girls just want to have sex — is that what the hell this is? Because I’m not doing this.’”

Lauper went on to make some changes to the track to turn it into the classic she released in 1983.

“So I began to cut this out, cut that out, this needs a melody here, make this change, bring this together. Say, ‘Oh mama dear, we’re not the fortunate ones/ ‘Cause girls want to have fun’ — and we can’t,” she recalled. “All of a sudden, it had this new life.”

As the Grammy-nominated track ran all the way up to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, the Edd Griles-directed video was in heavy rotation on MTV. The Grammy-, Tony- and Emmy-winning singer, who has sold more than 50 million records worldwide, was the first woman in history to have four top five Hot 100 singles from a debut album (with “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” followed by “Time After Time,” “She Bop” and “All Through the Night” all from 1983’s She’s So Unusual).

Lauper’s episode of Finding Your Roots With Henry Louis Gates Jr., also featuring actors Danny Trejo and Jamie Chung, airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on PBS.

Watch the Finding Your Roots clip with Lauper below.