Music News
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The show must go on. Weezer has not canceled its plans to perform at Coachella this Saturday (April 12) after the wife of Weezer bassist Scott Shriner sustained non-life-threatening injuries during a bizarre run-in with Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers that ended in a dramatic shootout. A source linked to the festival tells Billboard […]
Ariana Grande left a glowing review of Halle Bailey‘s new cover of “Hampstead,” one of six new tracks on the former’s Billboard 200-topping Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Days Ahead.
On a video posted to Instagram of the Little Mermaid actress singing the emotional ballad in a recording studio and accompanying herself on guitar, the pop star wrote Thursday (April 10), “so beautiful” along with three hearts and a teary-eyed emoji. Grande also re-shared the cover on her Story.
In the clip, Bailey expertly strums along while expressively singing Grande’s reflective lyrics, her voice sounding crystal clear as she adds her own custom riffs to the original melody. “I left my heart at a pub in Hampstead/ And I misplaced my mind in a good way/ Threw away my reputation, but saved us more heartache/ Yes, I know it seems f–ked up, and you’re right,” she croons. “But quite frankly, you’re still wrong about everything/ So far off, your seat’s nowhere near the table/ But I find something sweet in your peculiar behavior/ ‘Cause I think to be so dumb must be nice.”
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In her caption, the “Angel” singer wrote, “hampstead is my fav song off ariana’s deluxe :)”
Debuting this week at No. 59 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Hampstead” appears on the March 28 expanded reissue of Eternal Sunshine alongside new tracks “Intro (End of the World) – Extended,” “Twilight Zone,” “Warm,” “Dandelion” and “Past Life.” Sharing a name with the residential district in London where Grande reportedly lived while filming Wicked in 2023, the track is widely believed to be written about the Oscar nominee’s split from ex-husband Dalton Gomez.
Bailey’s cover comes a couple months after she and DDG — with whom she shares a young son, Halo — announced that they were splitting after more than two years together. “After much reflection and heartfelt conversations, Halle and I have decided to go our separate ways,” the “Moonwalking in Calabasas” rapper wrote on Instagram at the time. “This decision was not easy, but we believe it’s the best path forward for both of us. I cherish the time we’ve spent together and the love we’ve shared.”
On a song released last month, DDG seemingly vented about not being able to visit Halo. “Don’t take my son because he’s all I got/ I’m just having fun, I don’t love these thots … Tryna make me pay to see my son, that’s gonna make me hot,” he spits on “Don’t Take My Son.”
Bailey has also released new music this year, dropping “Back and Forth” on Valentine’s Day. Before that came singles “Because I Love You” and “Angel” in August.
Watch Bailey’s “Hampstead” cover — and look for Grande’s comment — below.
Tyla has bars. In her recent Nylon cover story, the South African singer revealed that she’s made “full-on rap songs” and plans to share one with fans someday. When asked if she had a specific pop star she wanted to emulate as a kid, Tyla answered that while she didn’t idolize one specific person, she […]
Jelly Roll is on a roll when it comes to his health and fitness journey. The country superstar joined Pat McAfee onstage at the latter’s Big Night Ah live show on Wednesday, night (April 9), where he revealed that he lost nearly 200 pounds over the course of his recent weight loss journey. “I started at […]
Kai Cenat and Ray J‘s recent #sleepovergate has taken a dark turn.
During a recent stream, Ray J hit up the popular streamer and asked if he can be invited to one of the sleepovers Cenat has done in the past with comedians such as Druski and Kevin Hart. However, the way he asked made it seem like he wanted to sleep with Kai, which made him uncomfortable.
“Y’all have sleepovers before right,” Ray asked Kai over the phone. “I didn’t mean it like anything. I meant it how y’all meant it. I want to sleep over, too. I want to sleep with y’all n—as too. That’s how I meant it; pause, I know. That was a lot.”
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He then brought up when Kai streams himself in the shower while wearing swimming trunks. “But that’s what I meant,” he continued. “Is like if y’all was in the shower then y’all was in the shower, y’all took a shower together. I’m like, s—t, I’ll take a shower with them n—as like on a stream, of course, with clothes on, bro. You know what I mean?”
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Adding, “The next sleepover — if I’m not invited, it’s cool, I’ll just be hurt about it. But I was hurt about the first one. And I’m like, ‘Damn, man, these n—as in the city, they over there sleeping in the bed like I wanna sleep in the bed too! I don’t mean with you, I mean I want my own bunk. Kevin Hart gotta bunk, Druski gotta bunk. N—a, this a big night! This one of the biggest nights. I wanna sleep too, my n—a.”
This led to Ray J’s sister Brandy appearing to send him a YouTube clip of his convo with Kai and said, “Come on Ray? What’s going on with you? You’re so much better than this!!”
He shared a screenshot of a message from someone named “Rocket” in his phone, and attached a lengthy rant about his family and kids on his Instagram Stories Wednesday (April 9). “My sister hates who I am!” he wrote. “And all I’m doing is being myself! I don’t know how to be better than who I am. I tried. But I get depressed trying to change when I don’t have a wife anymore and I have no stability!! I’m sorry to my sister for who I am. And my mom. I don’t give a f about nobody else’s feelings but when it’s my family it makes me feel alone.”
“So I turn up more!!” he continued. “Stay tuned — to my kids who might see this later when they are older – just know I work hard for you and only you!! – if it wasn’t for you Melody and Epik I would’ve been locked up or dead!! — I’m crashing out tonight.”
Billboard has reached out to Brandy’s rep for comment.
Over the years, Jon Bon Jovi has become known for his philanthropic work with the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, which addresses homelessness, poverty and food insecurity. He and his wife, Dorothea, also gave back by opening the JBJ Soul Kitchen, a non-profit community restaurant with four locations in the rocker’s home state of New […]
A Los Angeles jury held Soulja Boy liable Thursday (April 10) in a civil lawsuit filed by a former personal assistant who says he raped her, awarding the unnamed woman $4 million in damages.
As first reported by Courthouse News, jurors held the “Crank That” rapper (DeAndre Cortez Way) liable for assault, sexual battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The jury cleared him of claims of false imprisonment or hostile work environment.
Following the month-long trial, the jury awarded the Jane Doe accuser $4 million in so-called compensatory damages. And they could award more in so-called punitive damages in future proceedings.
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The accuser, who says she was hired as Soulja Boy’s assistant in 2018, sued the star in 2021, claiming he had repeatedly beaten and raped her over a two-year, sometimes consensual relationship. In one alleged assault, her lawyers claimed that “Way attacked plaintiff so hard that she thought she was going to die.” The rapper has “vehemently and unequivocally” denied the woman’s allegations.
During closing arguments Monday (April 7), as reported by Rolling Stone, attorneys for the Jane Doe portrayed Soulja Boy as a vicious boss and told jurors that “he raped her, he punched her, he kicked her, he cut her.” The rapper’s lawyers, meanwhile, painted the accuser as a bitter former love “motivated by jealousy, revenge and financial gain”: “She wanted to be paid. That’s what this case is all about. It’s not about the truth, it’s just not,” they said.
“We’re happy our client was vindicated and the jury believed her claims,” said Ron Zambrano, the accuser’s lead attorney. “We’re looking forward to moving on to the punitive damages phase of the case.”
An attorney for Soulja Boy did not immediately return a request for comment.
This isn’t the first time Soulja Boy has faced such accusations. Back in 2023, he was ordered to pay ex-girlfriend Kayla Myers $471,900 stemming from an assault and kidnapping lawsuit she filed against the rapper in 2020.
The Elton John AIDS Foundation is making sure that the world knows what a recent action from Russia means for the those living with HIV and AIDS in the country.
In a statement released April 3, the prosecutor general’s office of the Russian federation banned both the British and U.S-registered foundations of the EJAF from offering its services in Russia, designating the non-profit as an “undesirable” organization — a classification that would allow the state to prosecute and potentially jail individuals affiliated with the charity if they continue working in Russia.
In response to the government’s ban, the EJAF shared a statement with Billboard, saying that it were “devastated” to learn of its new label under Russian law. “This decision by the Russian Federation will undoubtedly endanger lives and disrupt critical HIV prevention efforts for ordinary Russian citizens,” the statement reads. “At a time when we have the tools and knowledge to defeat HIV, it is heartbreaking to be unable to support them.”
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The organization pointed out in its statement that, according to the Russian government’s own reporting, more than 1.2 million people were living with HIV in the country as recently in 2024, with nearly half a million of those individuals not receiving proper treatment. “For more than two decades, we have worked in collaboration with federal and non-governmental partners in Russia to provide hundreds of thousands of people with vital HIV services, including testing, treatment and care,” the EJAF tells Billboard. “Despite this setback, we will continue our work across Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where the Foundation is the largest philanthropic HIV/AIDS funder.”
The prosecutor general’s office of Russia cited the EJAF’s support of LGBTQ+ rights, including “non-traditional sexual relationships, Western family models, and gender reassignment,” as well as the organization’s “negative attitudes” toward countries promoting “traditional spiritual and moral values,” as primary factors in its decision to deem the group “undesirable.”
“When a musician plays along with those trying to sow the seeds of democracy, it is propaganda,” the statement (translated from Russian) read. “And when it’s Elton John calling the tune, then it’s more than just anti-Russian propaganda, too.”
This is far from the first time that John has expressed his concern regarding Russia’s treatment of the LGBTQ+ community. In 2019, he penned an open letter to Russian president Vladimir Putin criticizing the leader’s “hypocrisy” in saying he cared for LGBTQ+ people while also promoting anti-LGBTQ+ policies.
“I find duplicity in your comment that you want LGBT people to ‘be happy’ and that ‘we have no problem in that.’ Yet Russian distributors chose to heavily censor my film Rocketman by removing all references to my finding true happiness through my 25 year relationship with David and the raising of my two beautiful sons,” he wrote at the time. “I am proud to live in a part of the world where our governments have evolved to recognise the universal human right to love whoever we want.”
Read the EJAF’s full statement to Billboard about Russia’s ban below:
Thirty years ago, HIV began by affecting a community that no one wanted to support. We failed that group then, and as a result, HIV continued its destructive path across the globe, eventually infecting more than 80 million people worldwide. What began as a disease outbreak grew into a global pandemic.
As one of the leading HIV/AIDS organizations in the world, we recognize that the compassionate and effective way to fight HIV is by acknowledging our common humanity and providing funding where it is needed, regardless of gender, race, sexuality, or faith. This is why the Foundation’s mission is to leave no one behind.
We are devastated by the decision of the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation, which will prevent the Foundation from providing lifesaving care to people living with HIV in Russia.
For more than two decades, we have worked in collaboration with federal and non-governmental partners in Russia to provide hundreds of thousands of people with vital HIV services, including testing, treatment and care. This work is urgent: In 2024, there were over 1.2 million people living with HIV in Russia, with over 430,000 not receiving treatment.
This decision by the Russian Federation will undoubtedly endanger lives and disrupt critical HIV prevention efforts for ordinary Russian citizens. At a time when we have the tools and knowledge to defeat HIV, it is heartbreaking to be unable to support them.
Despite this setback, we will continue our work across Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where the Foundation is the largest philanthropic HIV/AIDS funder.
Buju Banton, Jagged Edge, The Roots and Lil Kim are among the first wave of artists announced as performers for its BET Experience 2025 concert series. The BET Media Group’s multiday celebration, which also includes the free BETX FanFest, will take place on June 5-8 in Los Angeles followed by this year’s BET Awards (June […]
Record Store Day usually falls around the 20th of April each year, normally without fail. But in 2025, Easter takes over that weekend, leading organizers of RSD to move it up to Saturday the 12th, which is right around the corner. This year’s festivities are nonetheless highly anticipated, with more than 300 titles available for […]