State Champ Radio Music News
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A new lawsuit claims Drake’s ”What Did I Miss?” music video ripped off the work of an Italian photographer — and, in a strange twist, that the rapper was intentionally trying to connect his feud with Kendrick Lamar to a controversial Balenciaga campaign.
The copyright infringement complaint, filed against Drake (Aubrey Graham) on Wednesday (Nov. 12) in federal court, alleges a key sequence in the “What Did I Miss?” video lifts from a photograph in Gabriele Galimberti’s 2020 book The Ameriguns. Both Galimberti’s photo and the scene in question show men standing outside houses, surrounded by firearms laid out in parallel around swimming pools.
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Galimberti is a photographer with National Geographic, though he is perhaps best known for shooting a notorious 2022 Balenciaga campaign that portrayed children with sexually explicit objects. The campaign drew a huge backlash, with consumers accusing the fashion house and Galimberti of glorifying pedophilia.
Wednesday’s lawsuit draws a direct line between the Balenciaga controversy and “What Did I Miss?,” in which Drake addressed the aftermath of his rap battle with Lamar. That feud ended with Lamar calling Drake a “certified pedophile” on the chart-topping diss track “Not Like Us,” leading Drake to sue Universal Music Group (UMG) for defamation.
“Plaintiff was ultimately publicly vindicated in a defamation lawsuit abroad related to the false accusations arising from the Balenciaga advertisement,” writes Galimberti’s attorney. “Given Kendrick Lamar’s lyrics…calling defendant Graham a pedophile and defendant Graham’s now dismissed defamation lawsuit, on information and belief, defendant Graham sought to imply that he, like plaintiff, would be publicly exonerated.”
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Drake’s defamation lawsuit was dismissed last month, with a federal judge ruling that lyrics in rap battles are hyperbole and not meant to imply facts. Drake is now appealing to revive the case against UMG, which owns both Lamar’s label Interscope Records and his label, Republic Records.
Republic and UMG are both defendants in Galimberti’s lawsuit as well, along with Drake and his company OVO Sounds. Galimberti is seeking financial damages for what he describes as “both an egregious violation of federal law and an affront to plaintiff, his livelihood, his legacy and to photographers everywhere.”
“Plaintiff is a serious professional, addressing serious themes,” reads the complaint. “His work hangs in galleries, museums, graces serious print literature, and his career depends upon the respect and admiration of dealers, collectors and critics of contemporary and documentary art. By the forced and unauthorized association of his work with the infringing video, the integrity of his work and his reputation as a photographer has been damaged.”
Reps for Drake and UMG did not immediately return requests for comment on the lawsuit.
“What Did I Miss?” debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July, and hit No. 1 on both Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Rhythmic Airplay, extending multiple Billboard chart records for the rapper.
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Ultra Music Festival today (Nov. 12) added more than 70 news acts for the 2025 edition with the announcement of its phase two lineup.
Joining the bill are Martin Garrix and Alesso, who will play b2b in a headlining slot, the first ever headlining performance from Argy b2b Mind Against and Ray Volpe b2b Sullivan King. DJ Snake will perform the U.S. debut of his Outlaw alias in a b2b with TYRM and Joris Voorn and Kololova will also perform b2b for the first time in the States.
Additionally, Ultra will host stage takeovers from legendary Ibiza club Amnesia, The Martinez Brothers’ Cuttin’ Headz, Armin van Buuren’s A State of Trance, Steve Aoki’s 30 years of Dim Mak, Coone’s Dirty Workz, Sara Landry’s Hekate and Germany’s Live From Earth collective.
These additions expands the previously announced phase one lineup that includes Afrojack, Amelie Lens b2b Sara Landry, Armin van Buuren, DJ Snake, Eric Prydz, Illenium, John Summit, Hardwell, Major Lazer, Steve Aoki, Sebastian Ingrosso b2b Steve Angello, Miss Monique, Excision, ISOxo, Boys Noize, OF the Trees, Madeon and many more. See the complete lineup below.
Ultra Music Festival 2026 happens March 27-29 at its longtime home at Miami’s Bayfront Park.
The festival annually closed out Miami Music Week a week-long run of parties, showcases, meetings, mixers and more that draws many in the global electronic music industry to the city. Winter Music Conference returned to Miami Music Week in 2025 after a hiatus, with organizers announcing earlier this week that it will be back in 2026 and happen in a new location at the Kimpton EPIC Hotel in Downtown Miami from March 24–26.
2026 will mark the 36th year of the conference. The next edition is set to feature a programming track tailored for dance industry professionals and a second track for DJs, producers and content creators.
Ultra Music Festival 2025
Alive Coverage
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D’Angelo’s son, Swayvo Twain (born Michael Eugene Archer Jr.), spoke out for the first time since his music icon father’s funeral in a heartfelt post to Instagram on Wednesday (Nov. 12), which featured parts of his emotional eulogy at the neo-soul legend’s memorial service last month.
“My dad, he came down to Atlanta. He spent three weeks with me. Anything we ever missed, any questions I ever had, anything I wanted to ask him about — anything — we just had every conversation,” Twain recalled. “Every laugh and every moment, man. It really just cleared my spirit, man. That’s the time I needed him the most ever. He stood right there.”
Twain explained how he gained a ton of clarity following his father’s funeral. “My mom [Angie Stone] passed and it left me with a lot of questions,” the 28-year-old added. “After [D’Angelo’s] funeral, I gained a lot of answers to things.”
Twain, a rapper and singer in his own right, is the eldest child of D’Angelo, who has two younger siblings: 26-year-old Imani and 15-year-old Morocco.
D’Angelo died at 51 years old following a battle with cancer on Oct. 14. “The shining star of our family has dimmed his light for us in this life,” his family said in a statement to Billboard. “After a prolonged and courageous battle with cancer, we are heartbroken to announce that Michael D’Angelo Archer, known to his fans around the world as D’Angelo, has been called home, departing this life today, Oct. 14, 2025.”
“We are saddened that he can only leave dear memories with his family, but we are eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind,” the statement continued. “We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time but invite you all join us in mourning his passing while also celebrating the gift of song that he has left for the world.”
There was an outpouring of tributes from the music community, including heartfelt messages from Doja Cat, Tyler, the Creator, Jill Scott, The Alchemist and DJ Premier.
Find Swayvo Twain’s post about his late father below.
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Four of the U.K.’s leading artists are among those coming together to call on the British Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, to honour a pledge to protect fans from online ticket scalpers, also known as touts.
Coldplay, Dua Lipa, Radiohead and Sam Fender are all signatories to a joint statement published Thursday (Nov. 13), in which artists, managers and fan groups are asking Starmer to commit to resale price cap legislation in the U.K.
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In its manifesto for the 2024 general election, the Labour Party proposed policies for new consumer protections on ticket resales. This evolved into an industry consultation in January, which invited views from venues, promoters, fans and other parties on a resale price cap, considering options from face value to a 30% uplift.
On Oct. 5, seven months after the consultation closed, the U.K.’s culture minister, Ian Murray, confirmed that the current Labour government would press ahead with plans for a price cap on resale tickets — but the specifics of these plans have yet to be revealed.
Now, dozens of industry figures are calling for the Prime Minister to make the commitment to price cap legislation in the next King’s Speech, which is set to take place next spring.
In the statement, the coalition says new protections are needed to “help fix elements of the extortionate and pernicious secondary ticketing market that serve the interests of touts, whose exploitative practices are preventing genuine fans from accessing the music, theatre and sports they love.”
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It adds: “For too long certain resale platforms have allowed touts to bulk buy and then resell tickets at inflated prices, forcing fans to either pay above the odds or miss out entirely. This erodes trust in the live events sector and undermines the efforts of artists and organisers to make shows accessible and affordable. Introducing a cap will restore faith in the ticketing system, help democratise public access to the arts in line with the Government’s agenda and make it easier for fans to spot illegal behaviour, such as ticketing fraud.”
Alongside the aforementioned names, the list of signatories includes The Cure’s Robert Smith, New Order, Mark Knopfler, Iron Maiden, PJ Harvey, alt-J, Aluna Francis, Bastille, Ben Howard, Brix Smith, Mogwai, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and Nubiyan Twist. (View the full list below.)
With the statement on Thursday, the group of signatories joins consumer choice organisation Which?, the FanFair Alliance, O2 and the Football Supporters’ Association, along with organisations representing the music and theatre industries, venues, managers and ticket retailers, among others.
The statement arrives alongside a new investigation from Which?, which outlines the global touting operations targeting the U.K.’s ticketing industry. The group identified prolific scalpers in locations including Brazil, Dubai, Singapore, Spain and the United States, all of whom were bulk-buying tickets for live music and sporting events in the U.K. before relisting them at inflated prices on platforms such as StubHub and Viagogo.
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Examples of this practice included tickets for Oasis’ Wembley Stadium shows, which were listed for prices as high as £3,498.85 ($4,594.04) on StubHub and £4,442 ($5832.41) on Viagogo. Another finding showed that a seat for the recent Minnesota Vikings vs. Cleveland Browns NFL clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was listed for £3,568.39 ($4685.35) on StubHub.
Elsewhere, Which? also found multiple cases of speculative selling, which is when tickets are listed on secondary sites for double the price — even though the seller has not bought them yet.
In a press release, Lisa Webb, a consumer law expert at Which?, said: “Today’s joint statement makes clear that artists, fan organisations and consumers reject the broken ticketing market that has allowed touts to thrive for too long. The Prime Minister pledged to protect fans and a price cap on resold tickets will be a critical step towards fixing this industry, but he must commit to this legislation by including it in the next King’s Speech.”
Webb concluded: “Further reforms are also needed to ensure sellers actually own the tickets they advertise before listing them, that resale platforms ensure the identities of sellers and key information about a ticket are verified and that the new rules are effectively enforced.”
Artist signatories: Alfa Mist, alt-J, Aluna Francis, Amy Macdonald, Andro, Bastille, Ben Howard, Brix Smith, Charlotte OC, Coldplay, Dana Margolin (Porridge Radio), Dua Lipa, Graeme Park, Howard Jones, Idlewild, Iron Maiden, Johnny Marr, Keane, Kelli-Leigh, Low Island, Mark Knopfler, Mogwai, New Order, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Nick Mason, Nubiyan Twist, Orlando Higginbottom, PJ Harvey, Quantic, Radiohead, Revenge of Calculon, Robert Mitchell, Robert Smith (The Cure), Sam Fender, SNAYX, Sweetie Irie, The New Eves, Travis.
Organisations: Fan Fair Alliance, Featured Artists Coalition, Football Supporters Association, LIVE, Music Managers’ Forum, Music Venue Trust, Musicians’ Union, O2, Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre, Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR), UK Music, Which?.
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In the wake of Calvin Harris’ bombshell fraud claims against business manager Thomas St. John, fellow star DJ Eric Prydz has brought a lawsuit alleging the financial adviser stole $269,000 from his accounts.
St. John, the head of beleaguered entertainment industry accounting firm Thomas St. John Group, was accused in arbitration this summer of secretly funneling $22 million from Harris’ accounts into a real estate side venture. St. John denies the claims, maintaining that the Scottish DJ was an informed and willing investor in the project.
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Now, Prydz — another titan of the EDM industry — says St. John exploited his account access to steal money. The Swedish DJ, who has been a client of St. John’s since 2012, claims in an Oct. 28 breach of contract and fraud lawsuit that St. John paid himself $269,000 in commissions for services Prydz says he never asked for or authorized.
“Thomas St. John is a professional financial advisor who is supposed to be trustworthy and reliable, and who should be acting in the best interests of his client,” wrote Prydz’s attorney, Carla Wirtschafter of Reed Smith. “TSJ, however, proved to be none of those things. Instead, he is a fraud who not only abuses the trust of his clients, he takes money from them without their knowledge or authorization for his personal use and benefit.”
The lawsuit claims Prydz decided to fire St. John in September after discovering that the manager had taken $219,000 in unearned commissions on top of his regular 5% fee. St. John allegedly agreed to stay on through the end of October to finish a tax return for Prydz, though this process quickly turned contentious.
Prydz claims St. John tried to “extort” an additional $150,000 out of him and refused to complete the tax return otherwise, which Prydz says he refused. But according to the lawsuit, St. John unilaterally took another $50,000 out of Prydz’s accounts to cover part of this improper fee.
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The legal complaint alleges that after all this, St. John never filed the tax return as promised — and that he’s now refusing to turn over the necessary documentation to Prydz’s new financial advisers.
“As a direct result of TSJ’s malicious conduct to hold Prydz’s financial documents hostage, Prydz has been unable to complete and file the now past due tax forms,” the lawsuit reads.
Prydz is seeking a court order for St. John to release his financial records and return the allegedly stolen commissions. The DJ also wants additional monetary damages recouping St. John’s 5% fee, claiming the adviser did “little or no work” to earn those payments.
Reps for St. John did not immediately return a request for comment on Wednesday (Nov. 12).
Prydz’s lawsuit is just the latest legal woe for St. John, whose U.S. business arm has been in bankruptcy since March. The manager’s real estate project, a Hollywood development called CMNTY Culture Campus, is the subject of claims from both Harris and songwriter Philip Lawrence.
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A deep dive by Billboard last month reported that CMNTY Culture — originally envisioned as a recording studio and creative office complex — was born out of the St. John-advised, $90 million sale in 2020 of Lawrence’s catalog of Bruno Mars writing credits.
Following that deal, Lawrence opted to park some of the proceeds in a real estate venture to lessen his taxes on the sale and brought on St. John as a partner. But Lawrence’s finances soon dried up, and St. John ended up buying out the songwriter and helming the project himself.
It was at this point that St. John took on outside investors, including Harris. But while St. John claims Harris wanted in on CMNTY Culture, Harris alleges in his arbitration that the manager fooled him into signing investment documents without knowing what they were.
Harris now claims that his money has disappeared and that CMNTY Culture is a “complete boondoggle.” Indeed, St. John is no longer developing a recording studio and has yet to break ground on any construction, though he maintains that the project is still on track for success under reworked plans for a residential apartment complex.
The Harris action is still pending before a private arbitrator. Meanwhile, Lawrence has declared bankruptcy, while his estate trustee recently accused St. John in court papers of violating their fiduciary relationship during the CMNTY Culture partnership.
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Damian Lazarus’ longstanding Day Zero party will debut in Bali in 2026. The Indonesian island’s first edition of the event is set to happy April 17, with the lineup to be announced in the coming months.
The expansion makes an already major year for Day Zero even bigger, as in June Lazarus announced that Day Zero’s first Brazil edition will also happen on Jan. 3 in São Miguel dos Milagres, Brazil, located on the country’s northern coast in the state of Alagoas. Day Zero also returns to its original location in Tulum, Mexico on Jan. 10, 2026 with a lineup featuring Mau P, Seth Troxler, Nicola Cruz, Lazarus himself and many others. The event has happened annually in this location since 2012, taking off in 2018 and 2021.
“There was never a concrete plan for Day Zero beyond our spiritual home in Tulum,” Lazarus tells Billboard of Day Zero’s new editions. “Over the years, however, my team and I have traveled to many far-flung places, exploring new opportunities—often at the invitation of established event producers and promoters. We’ve been deliberate in our expansion, never wanting to rush into anything that didn’t feel completely right for all of us.”
Day Zero Bali will be produced in partnership with the Savaya Group, a production team that puts on dance-focused events in Bali, Jakarta and beyond, and with whom Lazarus crossed paths with during his travels to the island.
“Some years ago, I also began exploring Bali as a potential destination to weave our magic,” he continues. “As I spent more time there, immersing myself in its rich culture, traditions, and cosmic energy, I fell deeply in love with the island. That connection led me to begin a dialogue with the Savaya Group, whom I immediately recognized as the perfect partners to help bring to life the vision I had been nurturing—a spectacular festival set in a truly extraordinary place I discovered.
Lazarus continues that the reason for the two new editions of Day Zero in 2026 is that it “just feels like the correct time to expand, in my soul. The Day Zero team comprises of incredibly talented people who connect in a very special way once a year in Mexico to create an other-worldly experience. We discussed the idea of bringing our love and honorable intentions to other special places and agreed that we were capable of building on what we have created so far; we all heard the call to make this kind of magic in a handful of other places.”
He adds that each site helps inspire the artist he books to play the event, saying that “every location speaks to me in different ways. I have to look at the location and try to imagine what would and would not work in each. I try to create a list of artists whilst walking the site, imagining how we will transform the site and what kind of sound and which kind of artist and personality will shine there.”
He also advises that these will be the only three editions of Day Zero to happen in 2026, given the demands of producing these shows. “We never want to water down our ethics, our care and attention to detail, our sustainability activations, or our performance led, heartfelt connections to mystical indigenous people and traditions.”
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When Hurricane Melissa made history as the strongest storm ever to make landfall in Jamaica, the island nation’s biggest stars immediately sprang into action to help provide relief to their home’s most devastated areas. Now, led by Sean Paul, Shaggy and Kes, several of the Caribbean’s brightest stars have teamed up for a massive benefit concert to further support relief efforts.
Announced Wednesday (Nov. 12), the Jamaica Strong benefit concert will take place Dec. 12 at UBS Arena in Belmont Park, New York. At press time, additional confirmed performers include Chronic Law, T.O.K, Tessane Chin, Aidonia, Inner Circle, Ky-Mani Marley, Teejay, Richie Stephens, Gramps Morgan, and Mikey Spice, with more artists yet to be announced. Pre-sale begins on Thursday (Nov. 13) at 10 a.m. E.T., while general on-sale kicks off on Friday (Nov. 14).
“This is more than a concert — it’s a movement,” Jammins Events organizer George Crooks said in a statement.
With a death toll of over 75 across the Caribbean, Hurricane Melissa significantly impacted the region, particularly Jamaica, Cuba and parts of Haiti. Jamaican superstars like Shenseea, Beenie Man, Sean Paul and Spice have all documented their respective relief efforts via their social media channels.
Earlier this month, Shaggy spoke with Billboard about the destruction he witnessed in the days immediately following Melissa’s landfall. “We got [to Jamaica] early enough to reach the people, because it took me around six hours to get from Kingston to St. Elizabeth in Black River, which is normally a two-and-a-half-hour drive at most,” the reggae icon said. “We had to chop [tree] limbs down, move things out the way, and drive through high puddles of [runoff], so we got there in the middle of the night. At that point, all we could do was pass water out, so we had to regroup and drive six hours back to Kingston. The next day, we went to the Junction side of St. Elizabeth, which took us four hours. The square itself was shut down. It was ground zero because it wasn’t livable anymore. Nobody could stay there.”
UBS Arena is a worthy venue for the benefit concert, given its connection to New York’s Caribbean diaspora. This spring, Billboard reported that, in under a year, New York’s UBS Arena hosted five $1 million-grossing Caribbean-headlined shows across four different genres. From Buju Banton and Carimi to Machel Montano and Beres Hammond, the rhythms of reggae, dancehall, konpa, and soca ricocheted across the arena in 2025.
As Jamaica continues to rebuild, its people can find a moment of solace in the 2026 Grammy nominations. At the upcoming ceremony, all five nominees for best reggae album — Vybz Kartel, Lila Iké, Mortimer, Jesse Royal and Keznamdi — hail from Jamrock.
Check out the official Jamaica Strong benefit concert announcement below.
Trending on Billboard Shakira is set to return as pop star Gazelle for Disney’s Zootopia 2, and the colorful music video for “Zoo,” her original song in the film, premiered on Wednesday (Nov. 12). In the three-minute clip, the Colombian hitmaker channels her character appearing in multiple Gazelle-inspired looks, and she shares a number of […]
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KATSEYE is learning that some parts of fame can be really gnarly — and not in a good way.
In a conversation with BBC News posted Wednesday (Nov. 12), the girl group opened up about the high volume of hate — and sometimes death threats — they’ve received since debuting in 2024. “I think as time goes on and on, the stakes just get higher and higher, and the pressure from 360 all sides becomes more heavy and intense,” said member Lara Raj. “I’m like, ‘It doesn’t matter, and what people say doesn’t matter,’ but we’re humans.”
“And if 1,000 people are, like, sending you death threats, it’s jarring,” Lara continued. “Even if it’s not gonna happen, and it doesn’t mean anything, it’s heavy, and it’s jarring.”
When interviewer Mark Savage responded with surprise that the ladies had already faced such intense negativity so early on in their careers, member Sophia Laforteza confirmed that even their families and friends have had to put up with online hate and attacks. “We’ve gotten a lot of things already said to us, about us, to our families,” she said.
“It’s something that we know we signed up for, being so public and just being out there for people to … they know so much about [us], and it’s a part of our job,” Sophia added as bandmates Daniela, Manon, Megan and Yoonchae nodded. “We know it’s a part of fame. But it doesn’t change the fact that we are human.”
Fortunately, the group members agreed that it’s nice to have each other to lean on when things get tough, as they all already know everyone in the band knows how it feels.
The interview comes as KATSEYE’s fame is exploding in 2025, with the sextet recently nabbing a best new artist Grammy nomination ahead of next year’s awards. In an interview with Billboard about the honors, Megan said, “With any award or nomination, it means so much to us because we work so, so hard … So, it’s like all of the hard work, those long hours and all the dedication are really paying off.”
The nomination comes less than two years after KATSEYE released its debut single, “Debut,” in 2024 after forming the year prior on the competition series Dream Academy. The band scored its first-ever Billboard Hot 100 hit in May when “Gnarly” made its entrance on the chart, and this fall, the ladies reached the top 40 with “Gabriela,” which also scored a Grammy nod for best pop duo/group performance.
Watch KATSEYE’s full sit-down with BBC News above.
Trending on Billboard Ye’s (formerly Kanye West) concert slated for Nov. 29 in São Paulo is in jeopardy. According to Metropoles, the São Paulo State Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPSP) has reportedly ordered that West be arrested if he makes any pro-Nazi remarks during the show or performs his controversial song “Heil Hitler.” “No one who […]
