Music News

02 Dec 2022

Charlie Puth Confirms New Relationship as He Rings in 31st Birthday: ‘Happy Birthday to Me’

Charlie Puth celebrated his 31st birthday on Friday (Dec. 2) by going public with his new relationship on social media.

The pop star shared a photo of himself adorably cuddled up with his girlfriend in a series of black-and-white photo-booth snaps. “Ohhhhh I’m NOT a loser…’cause I didn’t lose her!!! (Happy birthday to me.)” he captioned the post, referencing the lyrics to the fan-favorite song “Loser” from his latest album Charlie.

While Puth didn’t tag the woman in the photo, Instagram sleuths determined the singer’s lady love was Brooke Sansone. The stylish brunette, who runs the Instagram account @theeclosetnextdoor, shared the same photo in her Instagram Stories with the caption, “birthday boy @charlieputh” using a white-heart emoji.

Just before Thanksgiving, the “Left and Right” crooner performed a tribute to Lionel Richie with Stevie Wonder at the 2022 American Music Awards, complete with a superstar rendition of “We Are the World” featuring Ari Lennox, Melissa Etheridge, Yola, Muni Long, Smokey Robinson, Jimmie Allen and more.

On the red carpet for the awards show, Puth opened up exclusively to Billboard about finding success on TikTok, saying, “The yearn to collaborate” was what drew him to the social media platform in the first place.

“I remember being a 16-year-old kid on YouTube and just hoping and praying that I could one day collaborate with someone online and make music with them,” he added. “and the fact that, well everybody, kids of all ages are coming up to me, asking me to collaborate with them through the means of online communication, that’s pretty special and very full-circle.”

Check out Charlie’s birthday post with his girlfriend below.

02 Dec 2022

Rita Wilson Enlists Sebastian Yatra for ‘A Man Called Otto’ Song ‘Til You’re Home’: Listen

Actress and singer/songwriter Rita Wilson and Grammy-nominated Latin pop star Sebastián Yatra have teamed up to record the new track “Til You’re Home” for the upcoming film A Man Called Otto starring Wilson’s husband Tom Hanks.

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“I am extremely honored by Rita Wilson’s invitation to join her on ‘Til You’re Home’ for the A Man Called Otto soundtrack,” Yatra said in a statement. “The story behind the film is heartwarming and moving and I was inspired to convey that emotion in this song. Overall, this project has been very inspiring and I’m proud to be a part of it.”

“Til You’re Home” was co-written by Wilson and Grammy-nominated songwriter/producer David Hodges. Its co-producers include Wilson and Grammy winner Matt Rollings. The song, with its warm, inviting vocals over a piano, is already receiving recognition, as it was nominated for best song in a film (independent) at the 2022 Hollywood in Music Media Awards.

The collaboration is a first for Wilson and Yatra, which was sparked after the director of A Man Called Otto, Marc Forster, asked Wilson to write a song for the film.

“I was very humbled and grateful for the opportunity, but also made him promise to be honest with me if he didn’t want to use the song. As the producer of the film, my first allegiance is to the film and to the director’s vision,” Wilson said. “David Hodges and I had written together before and have always been like-minded musically and lyrically. A lot of the inspiration began with David Magee’s script. This is a movie about love, the depths of love and how love continues even after a person leaves this earth,” she continued.

“There are two LatinX characters in the film – I wanted to find a way to bring them into the song,” Wilson added. “I envisioned it as a duet… I have loved Sebastián Yatra’s voice since hearing him in Encanto, and he felt like the perfect person to do it. We were incredibly lucky he said ‘yes’ and all the planets aligned.”

A Man Called Otto — which hits theaters on Christmas Day — tells the story of Otto Anderson (Hanks), someone who no longer sees purpose in life after losing his wife. He plans to end it all, but his plan is derailed when a young family moves next door and he meets his match in the character Marisol, who challenges Anderson to see life through a different lens, leading to a friendship that changes his life for the better.

The A Man Called Otto soundtrack album, featuring composer Thomas Newman’s score and “Til You’re Home,” will be released Dec. 30 via Decca Records.

Watch the “Til You’re Home” video below.

02 Dec 2022

Ryan Castro, MAR & More: What’s Your Favorite New Latin Music Release? Vote!

Of all the Latin music released this week, which is your favorite? Let’s take a look at the options…

Before the year comes to an end, Ryan Castro is gifting fans with new music. The Colombian up-and-comer has unleashed Los Piratas, his second EP of the year (following Reggeatonea). The nine-track set sticks to Castro’s signature urbano beats with back-to-back reggaeton bops. (Tip: listen to “El Pan de Estefania,” a merenguito for a little pick-me-up.)

Other releases include Pedro Capó‘s highly anticipated album La Neta. The 10-track set finds him navigating emotions of honesty and vulnerability with the magic of its lyrics loaded with everyday emotions. He started working on it in 2019, which led him to create a studio at home due to the pandemic. On this new album, Capó kicks off the album with “Hoy Me Siento Cabrón” where his powerful vocals rap over an urban rhythm. The song also thrives thanks to killer transitions between alternative rock and hard-hitting perreo beats, which are laced with his sensual, raspy vocal.

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Another Puerto Rican act dropping gems this week is Tommy Torres. The singer-songwriter experiments with bachata, dropping “Mi Secreto.” While the sound may be different, the track is a quintessential Torres song, with mature and poetic lyrics that narrate a love story. “Love me here and now, don’t ask about the past,” he croons.

Other new releases this week include MAR’s new take on her father Marco Antonio Solís‘ anthem “Más Que Tu Amigo,” Junior H’s Contingente album and Arcangel’s new set Sr. Santos. Which release is your favorite? Cast your vote — or enter in your favorite selection — in the poll below.

02 Dec 2022

Jack White Asks Elon Musk How ‘That Free Speech Thing‘ Is Working Out After Kanye West Twitter Suspension

Jack White used social media to confront Elon Musk on Friday (Dec. 2) over Kanye West‘s latest pro-Nazi tweet and the billionaire’s seemingly selective views on free speech.

“So Elon, how’s that ‘free speech’ thing working out?” the rocker wrote on Instagram in a scathing open letter to the controversial new owner of Twitter. “Oh, I see, so you have to CHOOSE who gets free speech and who doesn’t then? What kind of crybaby liberal suspends someone’s free speech?
Hmm….”

While Ye’s account has once again been suspended, Musk has been a supporter of allowing the rapper to spread his opinions — including antisemitic views — on the platform under the guise of freedom of speech ever since he took over in October.

White further compared West’s reinstatement on Twitter to Musk’s refusal to allow Alex Jones back on the platform, writing, “Conspiracy liar alex jones doesn’t get ‘free speech’ either? I see. So you’re learning that these folks incite violence and hatred but trump…DOESN’T? Hmmm. Or is it that liar jones, and anti-Semite egomaniac kanye can’t provide tax breaks for billionaires the way the former president could? Or that maybe the controller of this ‘free speech’ is insulted personally? Or that just maybe, there needs to be, oh I don’t know, RULES and REGULATIONS or else you breed chaos?

“It’s nice to watch in real time as you learn that all things need to be regulated, whether that be guns, drugs, alcohol, assembly, or speech because of the danger of someone or something being hurt or destroyed,” he continued. “They’re sometimes called ‘laws.’ And perhaps you’re learning how harmful it can be when you let dangerous, hateful people say whatever they want on your stage.”

The White Stripes alum went on to explain his decision to turn the comments off on his post, saying, “This isn’t a debate forum. This is me talking on my front porch, not debating in town square. I regulate the platforms i control too.”

He then ended the post by urging Musk to “do the right thing…and don’t provide other hate mongers a stage, let them go talk in town square,” before reminding readers, “(And no, twitter isn’t town square owned by the govt., it’s a private company owned by Elon Musk.)”

For his part, White was one of numerous musicians and celebs to leave Twitter in the wake of Musk’s $44 billion takeover, particularly following the businessman’s decision to let former President Donald Trump back onto the social-networking site via a public poll.

Read White’s full statement to Musk below.

02 Dec 2022

This Studio Is Removing Kanye West Tattoos for Free

Have some Kanye West ink you’ve been regretting in recent months? Fear not, because a tattoo-removal studio in England is helping you out by removing any Ye-inspired body art for free.

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Naama Studios made the announcement last month, amid Ye’s slew of antisemitic remarks. “Yeezy come, yeezy go,” the London-based company cleverly captioned a photo that reads, “We’ll remove your Kanye tattoos for free.”

The studio followed up with another video actually removing a tattoo of West, captioning the clip, “When you have a tattoo inspired by someone you admire and they end up making headlines for all the wrong reasons… at NAAMA we offer an empowering, empathetic, high-tech tattoo clearing experience. If you want a change, we’re here to help.”

Ye’s latest controversy surrounded an appearance on alt-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ InfoWars talk show on Thursday (Dec. 1), where the rapper praised Adolf Hitler and Nazis. “Every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler,” he said. “How about that one?”

The Yeezy designer doubled down on his thoughts later, when Jones noted that he didn’t like Nazis. When the camera started panning away to a commercial break, Ye is heard saying into the microphone, “I like Hitler.”

Jones then told Ye that he has a “bit of a Hitler fetish going on,” to which the rapper replied, “It’s not a fetish. I just like information.”

“I don’t like the word ‘evil’ next to Nazis,” Ye later said, undeterred by Jones’ discomfort. “I love Jewish people, but I also love Nazis.” Later in the interview, Ye reiterated that it’s “time to promote love” by declaring, “I do love Hitler. I do love the Zionists.”

02 Dec 2022

Kanye West’s Reddit Page Taken Over by Taylor Swift & Educational Holocaust Posts After Hitler Comments

Kanye West fans are putting their feet down after his incendiary Hitler comments.

Following Ye’s interview on Alex Jones’ InfoWars talk show on Thursday, fans have been flooding his dedicated Reddit page r/Kanye with posts showing their appreciation for the rapper’s adversary Taylor Swift instead, in addition to educational content about the Holocaust.

In a post to Ye’s subreddit, one of the users in the community shared a photo of Swift titled “This is now a Taylor Swift Subreddit. We had a good run fellas.” The post quickly went viral, amassing several awards on the social media platform and over 36,000 upvotes and nearly 1,000 comments, some of which referenced lines from the pop star’s hit singles “Bad Blood” and “Anti-Hero.” Others attempted to rewrite history by saying Swift wrote the rapper’s album Graduation and petitioned to “change the subreddit name to Kanye (Taylor’s Version).”

While there were Swift jokes aplenty in the subreddit, the now-former fans of the rapper made serious posts to clear up Ye’s misinformation and shared graphic details and imagery to highlight how awful Hitler’s actions were against Jewish people.

In Ye’s interview with Jones, he boldly claimed that he sees “good things about Hitler also. I love everyone, and Jewish people are not going to tell me, ‘You can love us and you can love what we’re doing to you with the contracts, and you can love what we’re pushing with the pornography.’ But this guy that invented highways and invented the very microphone I use as a musician, you can’t say out loud that this person ever did anything good and I’m done with that. I’m done with the classifications.”

Despite Jones’ visible discomfort at the comments throughout the interview, Ye doubled down, adding, “I don’t like the word ‘evil’ next to Nazis … I love Jewish people, but I also love Nazis.” The rapper reiterated that it’s “time to promote love” by declaring, “I do love Hitler. I do love the Zionists.”

In light of Ye’s comments, several celebrities have denounced the rapper via social media. His account was additionally suspended on Twitter after he shared a Star of David modified with a swastika to be the symbol for his 2024 presidential campaign.

02 Dec 2022

Mariah Carey Will Take the Virtual Stage on Roblox With ‘Winter Wonderland’

The Queen of Christmas, better known as Mariah Carey, is bringing more holiday cheer this month to Roblox via the platform’s Livetopia.

The “Mariah Carey’s Winter Wonderland” experience on the gaming platform will feature virtual performances from the five-time Grammy winner, a holiday-themed treasure hunt created with her 11-year-old twins Monroe and Moroccan (whom she shares with ex-husband Nick Cannon), item drops and more.

Carey will perform a both old and new hits, including her classic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” as the grand finale. The first four consecutive nights of the virtual show starts at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday (Dec. 21), with additional showings from the 22nd to the 24th, starting at the same time.

“Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year! This year, I wanted to do something different to ring in the holiday season,” Carey said in a statement. “My kids and I live for Roblox, and we couldn’t be more excited to be creating this festive metaverse experience for everyone!”

Also this holiday season, the Elusive Chanteuse is set to perform four Merry Christmas to All concerts — two in New York City and two in Toronto. The Dec. 13 and 20 Madison Square Garden shows will be filmed for a two-hour special called Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All, which will air Dec. 20 on CBS and Paramount+.

02 Dec 2022

Rod Stewart Mourns Death of Second Brother in Two Months: ‘I’ve Lost Two of My Best Mates’

Earlier this week, Rod Stewart shared the sad news that his second brother had died, just two months after he lost another brother.

“It’s with great sadness that I announce the loss of my brother Bob last night, who joins my brother Don on the great football pitch in the sky,” the singer wrote on Instagram next to a candlelit photo with the words “Rest in Peace.” “I’ve lost two of my best mates in the space of two months. RIP Don and Bob ‘irreplaceable buddies’… Sir Rod Stewart.”

Stewart’s oldest brother, Don, died in September, followed by Bob’s death on Tuesday.

Last week, Sir Rod took over the O2 arena in London for a pair of sold-out shows as part of his ongoing tour of the United Kingdom. Currently, he’s in Scotland, where he’s making stops at Glasgow’s The OVO Hydro and PB&J Live in Aberdeen before heading to arenas in Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester.

Stewart is also slated to make tour stops in North America, Australia and New Zealand in 2023, while also taking over the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for a seven-date Las Vegas run in May.

Read Stewart’s tribute to his brothers below.

02 Dec 2022

Kelly Clarkson & Jimmy Fallon Are the 2022 Sonny & Cher With ‘I Got You Babe’ Duet

Kelly Clarkson is at home recovering from COVID-19 this week, but that didn’t stop the superstar from delivering one of her top Kellyoke segments of the year on Friday (Dec. 2), introducing a previously recorded duet she performed with Jimmy Fallon.

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The duo took on Sonny & Cher‘s 1965 rendition of “I Got You Babe,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for three weeks starting on August 14, 1965. Clarkson and Fallon traded verses, harmonizing effortlessly while backed by the OG American Idol winner’s full band.

Other recent Kellyoke picks by Clarkson for her daytime show have included Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle,” Alec Benjamin’s “Let Me Down Slowly” Monica’s “Angel of Mine,” Faith Hill’s “Breathe,” Solomon Burke’s “Cry to Me,” Joni Mitchell’s Christmastime classic “River,” John Legend’s “In My Mind,” “Heartbreak Anthem” by David Guetta, Galantis and Little Mix and more.

Check out Kelly Clarkson and Jimmy Fallon’s cover of Sonny & Cher’s “I Got You Babe” below.

02 Dec 2022

Suspect Arrested & Charged for Takeoff Murder

Houston Police Department Chief Troy Finner announced during a news conference on Friday (Dec. 2) that a man has been arrested and charged with murder in connection to the Nov. 1 killing of Migos rapper Takeoff.

33-year-old Patrick Xavier Clark was arrested on the east side of Houston, Texas, on Thursday (Nov. 1), and charged with murder, while another man, 22-year-old Cameron Joshua, was arrested and charged with the unlawful carrying of a weapon.

Takeoff (born Kirshnik Khari Ball) was just 28 years old when he was shot and killed Nov. 1 during a private party at 810 Billiards & Bowling in downtown Houston with his uncle, Quavo. The musician was killed by “penetrating gunshot wounds of head and torso into arm,” according to a report from the Harris County coroner’s office. 

Houston PD’s Sgt. Michael Burrow said during the news conference that Takeoff was an “innocent bystander” of the argument at the party that led to the shooting. “The event was a private party, there was a lucrative dice game that went on at the event, there was an argument that happened afterwards outside the bowling alley which led to the shooting,” he explained.

Burrow continued, “I can tell you that Takeoff was not involved in playing the dice game, he was not involved in the argument that happened outside, he was not armed. He was an innocent bystander.”

Watch the full news conference below.