Music News

17 Jan 2023

Leslie Jones Makes ‘Daily Show’ Host Debut With Her Thoughts on Accidentally NSFW MLK Jr. Statue

Leslie Jones took over The Daily Show as guest host on Tuesday night (Jan. 17), and she took some time to share her characteristically hilarious thoughts on the new Martin Luther King Jr. statue in Boston.

The statue, which was inspired by a photo of the legendary civil rights leader hugging his wife after he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, features the couple’s arms embracing without their heads — which sparked criticism as some believe that it accidentally ended up looking quite erotic.

Jones wasted no time getting right to the point. “Has anyone in here ever been eaten out?” she asked the audience, who promptly broke out into cheers and laughter. “I’m serious! Has anyone in here ever participated in the munchy, munch, munch, munch? Because they are celebrating you in Boston right now.”

The comedian then turned to the camera with a message for the white viewers at home. “White people, you don’t need to be saying sh– about this statue. Do you understand? Black hands only. You need to sit your a– in the back of the bus for this one. You need to honor this statue. This is our civil rights icon going down on his wife.”

After more roaring cheers, Jones continued, “OK, black people. What the f— are we going to do? We got to talk about this, because you know it’s messed up when black people and the Proud Boys hate the same statue.”

To conclude, Jones compared the statue to other famous ones, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, noting that people probably didn’t love them at first. “Maybe it’s a matter of time,” she joked about the newly unveiled MLK statue. “In time, we will see the statue for what it truly is. Martin Luther King going down on his wife. I can’t unsee it!”

Jones will guest-host three episodes of The Daily Show this week, followed by fellow comedians Wanda Sykes, D.L. Hughley, Chelsea Handler and Sarah Silverman with weekly stints through Feb. 16. Following the exit of host Trevor Noah, the show will keep up this guest-hosting rotation until the fall.

Watch the full clip below.

17 Jan 2023

Did Frank Ocean Hint at a New Album on His Merch Posters?

Frank Ocean fans have been waiting for a new album since 2016’s Blonde, and the star seems to be giving fans the smallest glimmer of hope that their longtime wishes may be coming true.

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On the back of posters mailed out in a new Blonded merch sale, as shared by fans on Twitter, there’s a cryptic message written on them explaining what happened in 2019, when Ocean released a series of singles without an album at the end of the road. “The Recording Artist has since changed his mind about the singles model, and is again more interested in durational bodies of work,” he wrote, which is not a confirmation of an album by any means, but enough to get fans buzzing.

Ocean is also set to take the stage at Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival alongside fellow headliners Bad Bunny and BLACKPINK. The 2023 edition is slated to run on two consecutive weekends, from April 14 to 16 and then again from April 21 to 23.

The 35-year-old artist was originally booked to perform at the 2020 pandemic-canceled edition of the festival; he made his Coachella debut on a side stage in 2012.

His 2016 album, Blonde, topped the Billboard 200 albums chart dated September 10, 2016 and spent an impressive 295 weeks total on the chart. Six years later, Blonde is currently on the Billboard 200 dated January 14, 2023 at No. 115. Ocean last released two singles in March 2020, “Dear April” and “Cayendo.”

Ocean has also released two other albums, 2011’s Nostalgia, Ultra and 2012’s Channel Orange.

17 Jan 2023

Skrillex Reflects on ‘Toughest Year of My Life’ as He Rings in 35th Birthday

Skrillex marked his 35th birthday on Monday by posting a vulnerable series of tweets about the difficulties he’s faced in the past few years.

“Had the toughest year of my life in ’22, as did so many others. I literally found myself with no drive and purpose for the first time in my life,” he began. “My mother passed away a few years back, 2nd day of Lollapalooza tour in [South America]. I never ever coped with it … I drank the pain away and kept going.”

The electronic star continued: “People ask why ‘I’ve been gone’ or ‘fell off,’ rightfully so. Like I said, ’22 was sort of my tipping point, I had to put everything on ice especially my projects/ career. The truth is I didn’t cancel sunset and movement festival because of my albums. It was because I was working on myself.”

However, the artist born Sonny Moore stated that all the personal and internal work he did has paid off, writing, “For the first time in 4-5 years I’ve found a new sense of peace. It took so much work and sacrifice to get here. There’s my bday tweet to you all.. Turing 35 for me was realizing there are certain f—s you should not give, you’ll be more free for that. Here’s to 35 laps around the sun and to the f—s I will no longer give.”

He concluded with two final thoughts, tweeting, “Lastly, the support you’ve all shown over the years does mean the world and I’ll continue to work on myself and not get into a situation where I have to cancel shows / go into hiding. To quote the wise [woman] @BibiBourelly, ‘yeah it’s deep, but sh– ain’t that deep.’”

Skrillex entered into the new year earlier this month by releasing the ominous “Rumble,” his new collab with Fred Again.. and Flowdan. He then played a surprise b2b2b set with Fred Again.. and Four Tet at London’s Electric Ballroom, and thus far, the single has debuted on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart at No. 15 (dated Jan. 14) before becoming his sixth top 10 hit on the tally the following week.

Read Skrillex’s birthday thoughts below.

17 Jan 2023

SZA Celebrates Taylor Swift’s New Hot 100 Record: ‘Phenomenal as Always’

Women supporting women! SZA used her Instagram Stories on Tuesday (Jan. 17) to celebrate Taylor Swift‘s record-extending run at No. 1 with “Anti-Hero.”

Earlier in the day, Swift had reacted to the news that her latest single was spending an eighth week at the top of the Hot 100 — and becoming her longest leading chart-topper in the process — by writing, “What on earth I love you guys…PS – been listening to SZA’s album nonstop. Absolutely adore her music. So much love and respect for her!!!”

Seeing the thoughtful shout-out, the R&B singer reposted the message with a note of her own. “Congratulations to tay tay!” she wrote. “And thank you so much your album and writing is phenomenal ..as ALWAYS.”

The back-and-forth comes as SZA’s own “Kill Bill” has been giving Swift’s smash a run for its self-loathing money on the chart, settling in at No. 2 just behind the Midnights anthem. (Meanwhile, SZA’s long-awaited sophomore album SOS eked out its fifth consecutive week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, where Midnights sits at No. 2 on the chart dated Jan. 21.) as

SZA’s friendly response isn’t the first time she’s heaped praise on the pop star’s latest studio set, either. She shut down any narrative of competition between herself and her fellow superstar earlier this month, writing, “Uhh I feel silly that I even have to say this but i see supporters arguing and I hate that. I don’t have beef w ANYONE especially not Taylor lmao I genuinely loved her album and the writing!”

Check out SZA’s sweet note to Swift before it expires here.

17 Jan 2023

Kelly Clarkson Invites Fans to ‘Come Out & Play’ in Latest Kellyoke Cover

You can take the girl out of rock music, but you can’t take rock music out of the girl. Kelly Clarkson proved that the saying is indeed true, as evidence by an energetic cover of The Offspring‘s “Come Out And Play (Keep Em’ Separated)” for the Tuesday (Jan. 17) installment of Kellyoke for her namesake talk show.

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Accompanied by her band Y’all, the “Since U Been Gone” singer lets her full vocal range shine through, letting her full bodied tone dominate the track’s chorus, which she punctuated with a soaring high note for good measure.

“Hey, man, you disrespecting me?/ Take him out (you gotta keep ’em separated)/ Hey, they don’t pay no mind/ If you’re under 18 you won’t be doing any time/ Hey, come out and play,” she sang, the band’s urgent guitar and drum instrumentals carrying the beat.

“Come Out and Play (Keep Em’ Separated)” was released as the second single from The Offspring’s third album, Smash. Widely regarded as the band’s mainstream breakthrough, the track hit No. 10 on Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, where it spent a total of 26 weeks. Upon its 1994 release, Smash reached the top 5 of the all genre Billboard 200, peaking at No. 4 and spending 101 weeks on the chart.

“Come Out and Play (Keep Em’ Separated)” is the latest rock song Clarkson has given a spin for Kellyoke in recent weeks — she gave Blink-182’s “All the Small Things” a shot on the Jan. 12 episode, and performed Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World” for the Jan. 6 episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show.

Watch Clarkson’s cover for “Come Out and Play (Keep Em’ Separated)” in the video below.

17 Jan 2023

‘Lovers & Friends’ Music Festival Unveils Its Y2K-Centric 2023 Lineup: Missy Elliott, Mariah Carey, Chris Brown & More

Despite the fact that it actually happened last year, some fans still think Lovers & Friends Fest is too good to be true. But rest assured–the festival lineup, presented by Usher himself, was unveiled today on social media.

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The one-day only festival taking place on May 6 at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds will prove to be a star-studded smörgåsbord of nostalgia for Y2K natives and newcomers alike. The festival also recruited some 2010s and 2020s favorites for their 45-act festival. Featured artists and groups will include Usher, Missy Elliott, Mariah Carey, Chris Brown, Nelly, Busta Rhymes, Flo Rida, Master P and No Limit Soldiers, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Beenie Man, Chris Brown, Ginuwine, Remy Ma, JoJo, En Vogue , Blackstreet, Jagged Edge, Next, Wayne Wonder, Kevin Lyttle, 702 , Lumidee and many, many more.

The festival is perfectly positioned amidst the ongoing early 2000s obsession in popular culture, with TikTokers promoting over-the-ear headphones, low rise jeans, rhinestones and paper-thin brows–in other words, the Y2K starter pack.

While last year’s Lovers & Friends fest was a flurry of confusion, with acts like Twista, Mase and Lil Kim initially backing out of their performances, Lil Kim even calling the festival “fake” on her Instagram account. The then-Goldenvoice promoted festival was soon after postponed and subsequently cancelled all together due to COVID-related setbacks. The show did (eventually) go on, with the inaugural event taking place in May 2022 and featuring acts like Lauryn Hill, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Usher, Jodeci, Snoop Dogg, Fabolous, Ja Rule and Ashanti. In the end, even Lil Kim, Twista and Mase showed up.

Despite a few hiccups like a false gun scare leading to three injuries and common festival woes like inadequate shade and long lines, the festival went relatively well. But most importantly, it happened, despite the skepticism.

This year’s Lovers & Friends is to be promoted by C3 (Austin City Limits Music Festival and Lollapalooza), with general ticket sales beginning on Friday, Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. PST on loversandfriendsfest.com. Pre-sale tickets arrive the same day, at 10 a.m. PST, with individual ticket prices ranging from $250 to $585.

See the full lineup below.

17 Jan 2023

Lightning In a Bottle Drops Lineup for 20th Anniversary Festival: See Who’s Playing

For two decades, Lightning In a Bottle has delivered delightfully kooky, kinda heady and always hyphy fun for festivalgoers from the West Coast and well beyond.

The revelry continues today (Jan. 17), as the beloved California event has announced the lineup for its 20-year anniversary show, happening this May 24-29 in Bakersfield, CA.

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Leading the lineup are REZZ, SOFI TUKKER and Zhu, who will all headline LiB’s Lightning stage along with Phantogram, Tobe Nwigwe, 070 Shake, Caribou, DRAMA and many more.

The Thunder stage will host its own headliners Liquid Stranger, LSDream, Tokimonsta and The Glitch Mob, along with LTJ Bukem with Armanna, Meute, Deathpact and more.

On the house and techno oriented Woogie Stage will host Tale Of Us, Diplo, Ben Böhmer, Purple Disco Machine, LP Giobbi, Blond:ish and a crew of other artists. Longstanding LiB artists including David Starfire, Dimond Saints, William Close & The Earth Harp and El Papachango will also be returning in 2023. See the complete lineup below.

Along with the music, the five-day camping fest will host vibey experiences including Interactive yoga and movement classes, talks and workshops, games, races, an 80s prom and other special events. Tickets for the fest are on sale now.

Ahead of LiB, event producers The Do Lab will return to Coachella to host their annual stage at the fest. The lineup for this stage — known for offering a loose, playful and musically impeccable vibe to Coachella — will be released in the coming months.

“What I do know is that for most people, music is a safe space, a place of comfort, a place of joy, a place of release,” Do Lab  Assistant Music Director Tadia Taylor told Billboard in 2022 of curating the lineups for LiB and Coachella. “Being in a position to expand all of those emotions and expand the palette and the expand the people and share it all, I could never dream of anything more.”

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17 Jan 2023

Indulge in Your ‘Champagne Problems’ at a Taylor Swift-Themed Breakup Bar

Calling all Swifties: There’s officially a bar entirely themed around your favorite pop star. Starting on Jan. 27, Chicago will be the home to Bad Blood: a Taylor Swift-Themed Break Up Bar, in which fans can imbibe on cocktails inspired by the “Anti-Hero” singer and place their hearts on their sleeves, right in time for Valentine’s Day.

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Events company Bucket Listers are putting on the event for its proclaimed “(Anti) Valentine’s Season,” which will take place between Jan. 27 and Feb. 26. Admission for the pop-up is $20 per person and comes with a special welcome drink for all its attendees.

“Whether you want to sing about your lover, those who were never yours, those you’re never getting back together with, or those who still have your scarf, this is the perfect place for you,” the event’s description reads.

As for the activities that will take place at the Swift-themed bar, fans can “get bejeweled for photo opportunities and ready to engage in some champagne problems.” Fans can also get a tarot-card reading to see a glimpse into their future and can “spin the Shake It Off Wheel of Cocktails for your drink of choice.”

Though the bar will be decked out in Swift regalia, fans will need to note that the pop star will not be in attendance at the event space. The bar, located at the Electric Garden: 324 S Racine Ave, will additionally be limited to people 21 and over.

17 Jan 2023

Watch Romeo Santos & Longtime Girlfriend Announce Her Pregnancy in Sultry ‘Solo Conmigo’ Music Video

Romeo Santos stirred the internet when a week ago he teased fans with what would be his first single of the year called “Solo Conmigo.” In the NSFW preview, the bachata crooner is seen in between a lady’s legs, performing part of the song. “Of Santos (saint), I only have the last name,” he chants. 

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On Tuesday (Jan. 17), Santos unleashed his new single and its official music video, surprising his loyal Romeistas with even more exciting news: He and his longtime girlfriend are expecting a baby, Billboard confirms. This also marks the first time that Santos — who’s always been secretive about his personal life — shows his girlfriend in one of his music videos.

“Solo Conmigo” (“Only With Me”), part of his Formula, Vol. 3 album, is a heartfelt bachata in which the Dominican artist pens an open letter to his partner. He describes a pure love with zero judgment about the past. 

“You looked for many princes looking for love/ You wasted so many feelings, nobody understood you/ So many footprints on your bed but I was the one who sealed your heart/ You have failed in 100 relationships without knowing why/ You have loved strongly but not at this level/ And the pillow tells me it’s witnessed a lot of sex on your mattress, but you’ve only made love with me,” he sings in the chorus. 

In the sultry yet elegant music video, helmed by director Fernando Lugo, we see Santos and his girlfriend have a steamy lovemaking fest before unveiling her baby bump. This will be the couple’s third child together, and Santos’ fourth, following his sons Alex Damian, Valentino, and Solano. 

Watch the music video for “Solo Conmigo” below:

17 Jan 2023

Jack Antonoff Says He & Taylor Swift ‘Never’ Expected ‘Anti-Hero’ to Hit No. 1 on Hot 100

Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” holds at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart this week, logging an eighth total week on top. The achievement also marks the superstar’s longest Hot 100 reign, surpassing “Blank Space,” which stayed at the summit for seven weeks in 2014-15.

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To celebrate, Swift’s co-writer and producer Jack Antonoff took to his Instagram Stories on Tuesday (Jan. 17) to share a film-style photo of the two pouring drinks. “Remembering right before anti hero came out Taylor saying it’s her favorite song lyrically and that’s why it’s [the] first single,” he wrote under the picture. “But it’s a strange and personal one and we shouldn’t expect it to ever go number 1…. anti hero 8th week at 1 .. insane ..”

Antonoff is credited with co-writing 11 of the 13 songs on the original version of Swift’s most recent studio album, Midnights, and even recorded a remix of “Anti-Hero,” featuring Antonoff’s solo project Bleachers.

In an Instagram post, Swift elaborated on the duo working on the project. “We’d been toying with ideas and had written a few things we loved, but Midnights actually really coalesced and flowed out of us when our partners (both actors) did a film together in Panama,” she wrote. “Jack and I found ourselves back in New York, alone, recording every night, staying up late and exploring old memories and midnights past.”

See below Antonoff’s celebration of eight weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 thanks to “Anti-Hero.”