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Being an innovator can often mean traveling a lonely road. Singer/songwriter Laufey knows that better than most. The 25-year-old Berklee College of Music grad who has spent the past four-plus years plumbing the tricky confluence of jazz, classical and pop is lauded as a Gen Z innovator in TIME magazine’s Women of the Year feature.
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Taking her place on this year’s list alongside the indefatigable Nicole Kidman, trans-rights activist Raquel Willis, Emmy-winning Shogun star Anna Sawai and abortion rights activist Amanda Zurawski, among others, the Reykjavík-born performer is hailed as the “only singer in the world who has their jazz scat solos sung back to them note-for-note by arenas filled with adoring fans.”
With a wide range of inspirations stretching from Schubert’s series of eight solo piano Impromptus to Ella Fitzgerald’s signature scatting and Taylor Swift-like pop bridges, the piece notes that Laufey is as comfortable playing heady pieces alongside symphony orchestras as she is making one of her signature lighthearted TikTok videos.
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“I used to think that was such a scary thing: that nobody had walked that trail before me,” she told the magazine during a break from recording her third album in New York. “But I now realize that when you’re the one determining which steps to take next and which branches to pull to the side, that’s when you know you have something good on your hands.”
The songs on her romantic 2022 debut, Everything I Know About Love, and it’s 2023 follow-up, Bewitched, are comprised of mostly original lovesick ballads inspired by what she calls her “bible,” the Great American Songbook. “I want people to enjoy the music without feeling like they have to be super educated on its history,” said the singer who learned to play classical piano and cello as a child. “Like any other kind of music, it can be something that lifts you up or accompanies you on a sad day.”
And though she rose to prominence in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic by posting videos of herself singing some of those midcentury standards, Laufey decided to take a right turn from honing her chops on the jazz circuit performing already-established favorites in favor of writing original songs TIME described as “in the style of those old standards, but imbued with modern slang and conveying big, relatable feelings.”
That unique mix of beloved old reliables and TikTok videos in which she models outfits and lip synchs to Sabrina Carpenter songs — as well as having her dance moves ported into Fortnite — has led to fast friendships with fellow twentysomething pop starlets such as Olivia Rodrigo and Beabadoobee. “There are a lot of young women who connect with each other — and me — through this feeling of being the outcast,” she said.
The one-of-a-kind mash-up has already paid off in a major way, with Laufey taking home her first Grammy last year for best traditional pop vocal album for Bewitched. Not willing to be a media-appointed “savior of jazz,” though, Laufey said her upcoming as-yet-untitled album will be more “daring” and feature a more diverse mixing of genres.
“I want to see if I can keep the integrity of my music but also allow myself to try out a bit of what modern technology allows,” she said, seemingly unbothered by critics, and fans, who are sometimes eager to ding her for wanting to stray from her perceived lane. “The fact that the jazz and classical worlds seem to struggle with the idea of an artist being both commercially successful and musically interesting — it breaks my heart a little. Why can’t I be both?”
Kim Kardashian was in protective mother-lion mode after North West‘s performance in the Hollywood Bowl’s Lion King production received backlash.
On the latest episode of Hulu’s The Kardashians Thursday (Feb. 20), the reality star clapped back at critics of her eldest daughter’s stage presence and vocal chops, which North showcased as Simba in the May 2024 production. “She’s so proud of herself,” Kim said. “She did such a great job. And anyone that is hating on a kid is just a hater — she’s not there to be Mariah Carey.”
“And if anyone wants to hate on a child that is having the time of their lives, ‘F–k you,’” the Skims founder added.
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Clips of the 11-year-old — whom Kim shares with ex-husband Ye (formerly Kanye West), along with three other kids — singing “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” at the Bowl were quick to go viral last spring. Many critics theorized that North had snagged the role only because of her famous parents, while others went as far as accusing the former couple of “buying” the experience for North.
But on The Kardashians, Kim countered those claims. “North is the moment,” she told cameras. “They want to see North West on a TikTok, on a this, on an anything. Because she’s a personality, a performer.”
And while some people on social media weren’t so kind to North, the aspiring performer had plenty of support in the moment. As shown on the new episode, both Kim and Ye were in the audience to cheer on their firstborn, with the mogul and rapper — who finalized their divorced in 2022 — taking a moment to gush over North after the show.
“Man, she did so good,” Ye told Kim, who replied, “I was just crying from the side.”
North has also continued nurturing her artistic side, collaborating with FKA Twigs — and rapping in Japanese — on a song titled “Childlike Things” off the English singer-songwriter’s latest album Eusexua. And shortly before facing more backlash for his latest flurry of antisemitic hate speech, Ye revealed that he was personally “training” North in the art of music-making.
“This little girl made me love music again,” the rapper gushed on Instagram in January. “She asked me to make beats for her I got back on the ASR Chopped up beats for her album.”
Kendrick Lamar’s music has been inescapable on TikTok in recent days, a fact no better highlighted than the rapper taking the entire top four of the TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart dated Feb. 22, paced by his Drake diss track “Not Like Us” at No. 1.
The TikTok Billboard Top 50 is a weekly ranking of the most popular songs on TikTok in the United States based on creations, video views and user engagement. The latest chart reflects activity accumulated Feb. 10-16. Activity on TikTok is not included in Billboard charts except for the TikTok Billboard Top 50.
“Not Like Us” debuted on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 last May, ultimately spending nine straight weeks in the top 10 (capped by its No. 2 then-best on the June 1, 2024, list) and departing the survey that September. It returned, however, on the Feb. 15 chart at No. 17, spurred by uploads surrounding Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime Show performance that occurred on the last day of that tracking period, Feb. 9, as well as in the wake of the tune’s five Grammy Award wins on Feb. 2.
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Now with a full tracking week (Feb. 10-16) following the performance, “Not Like Us” soars to No. 1, becoming Lamar’s first ruler on the chart, which began in September 2023. Many of the top uploads reference Lamar’s performance of the song during his set or outright include clips from the rendition itself.
“Not Like Us” concurrently returns to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as previously reported. It’s also back atop Streaming Songs via 49 million official U.S. streams in the week ending Feb. 13, up 156%, according to Luminate.
Nos. 2 and 3 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 were also performed during Lamar’s Super Bowl appearance: “Luther,” his collaboration with SZA, slots into the runner-up position, while “Peekaboo,” featuring AzChike, rises to No. 3. All three songs are from Lamar’s 2024 album GNX. “Luther” also benefits from Super Bowl clips, with many top-performing videos being reactions to Lamar’s initial fake out of “Not Like Us” into “Luther.”
And while “Peekaboo” was also performed during the set, its top uploads are a continuation of a trend that largely proliferated in January, utilizing quick edits and poses set to Lamar’s “bing-bop-boom-boom-boom-bop-bam” lyric.
“Luther” rises 3-2 for a new peak on the Hot 100 dated Feb. 22, while “Peekaboo” leaps 81-28.
Lamar completes the four-peat in the TikTok Billboard Top 50’s top four via a SZA song, as her “30 for 30,” a duet with Lamar, rises 8-4. That’s a new peak for the song, which had previously risen as high as No. 5 earlier in February thanks to its trend highlighting Lamar’s “If it’s f–k me then f–k you/ And that’s the way I like it” lyric.
How historic, ultimately, is Lamar’s domination of this week’s chart? Prior to this week, no act had even possessed two songs in the top five at the same time, let alone four of the top five and the entire top four. In fact, before Lamar, no act had slotted more than two songs in the top 10 in a single week, either.
In all, Lamar boasts seven appearances on the Feb. 22 tally; “TV Off,” featuring Lefty Gunplay, jumps 48-16, while “All the Stars” (also with SZA) and “Love.” (featuring Zacari) debut at Nos. 33 and 38, respectively. That’s a tie for the most in a single week, alongside Taylor Swift, who had seven on the Sept. 23, 2023, ranking, the TikTok Billboard Top 50’s second week of existence.
It’s not all Lamar in the top 10, of course. Two songs also reach the region for the first time, led by the week’s top debut in Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” which bows at No. 7. Despite the general sentiment of the song (No. 1 for Fergie on the Hot 100 in 2007), its rise is nonetheless concurrent with the Feb. 14 Valentine’s Day holiday — but instead, it’s used to show pets covered in lipstick smudges, set to the “I’ll be your best friend and you’ll be my/ Valentine” lyric.
Bertha Tillman’s “Oh My Angel” also hits the TikTok Billboard Top 50’s top 10, leaping 16-10. Like “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” the song is buoyed by romance- and love-related content, whether it’s showing romantic partners, friends, family or pets.
BossMan Dlow’s “Shake Dat Ass (Twerk Song)” makes the top 10 for the first time since last July — and at a new peak, shooting 15-8. Its original run featured just BossMan Dlow’s vocals, while its return is spurred by a trend to the remix (released last December) featuring GloRilla.
See the full TikTok Billboard Top 50 here. You can also tune in each Friday to SiriusXM’s TikTok Radio (channel 4) to hear the premiere of the chart’s top 10 countdown at 3 p.m. ET, with reruns heard throughout the week.
Travis Scott continued his Cactus Jack Gardens initiative, and he’s honoring his grandmothers with their 11th garden planted.
La Flame — alongside Miss Sealie Flood (maternal grandmother), Bernice Webster (paternal grandmother) and Highland Heights Elementary School students — unveiled the Sealie Flood + Bernice Webster Corner garden on Wednesday (Feb. 19). The garden will provide food for food-insecure youth across the Houston area. Students also planted a tree to honor both of Scott’s grandmothers.
Travis Scott Grandmothers
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Travis has referenced his grandma on tracks in the past such as Rodeo hit “90210.” “My granny called, she said, ‘Travvy, you work too hard. I’m worried you forget about me’/ I’m fallin’ in and out of clouds/ Don’t worry, I’ma get it, Granny,” he raps on the 2015 track.
February’s been a month of giving back to Scott and Cactus Jack. The Cactus Jack Foundation partnered with the Fashion Scholarship Fund to launch the Cactus Jack Design Ethos 101 Program, which is an online program that will award students with $10,000 and mentorship.
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Scott also hosted his annual Cactus Jack HBCU Softball Classic at Daikin Park in Houston last week, which was a star-studded affair attended by Tyla, Swae Lee, Metro Boomin, Teyana Taylor, Mariah the Scientist, BIA and more.
On the music side, Scott notched his fifth No. 1 hit atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “4×4” to kick off February, and he’s headed to headline Coachella in April.
“When I was coming up, people always looked at me [strangely],” Scott told Billboard in his February cover story. “I don’t know. I’d always hear a little s–t of ‘Is it rap? Is it this? Is it just a vibe?’ I’m pushing hip-hop. It’s 50 years old, but still has time to stretch. I feel like, ‘OK, I’m leading the new charge of what the next 50 years of this s–t is going to be like.’”
Thirty-five years after Indigo Girls won a Grammy for best contemporary folk recording for their eponymous debut album, the duo received a lifetime achievement award at The International Folk Music Awards. The awards show took place at Montreal’s Queen Elizabeth Hotel on Feb. 19, the first night of the 37th annual Folk Alliance International (FAI) Conference. YouTube livestreamed the show, which could also be viewed via NPR Music, WMOT.org and Folk Alley.
Indigo Girls, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, received a second Grammy nod 35 years ago – best new artist. They lost to a flashier duo, Milli Vanilli, whose award was later revoked on the grounds that they didn’t perform on their album, a charge never leveled against Indigo Girls.
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“It’s truly awesome to be considered among some of the people who’ve already won this prestigious award,” said Saliers in accepting the award. “We need folk music now more than ever. This Folk Alliance is a group that honors diversity, equity, inclusion and access for all. Folk music is the music of truth-telling. Amy and I are, especially in this time, particularly honored to accept this award.”
Bandmate Ray added, “Please stand up with us and make your voice be heard in these times. Gather together with other people. Raise your voice. Stand up strong. Day by day, song by song, we can make this world a better place.
Lifetime achievement awards were also granted to Lesley Riddle, the Black musician who gathered songs for the Carter Family with patriarch A.P. Carter, and Songlines, the magazine that covers global roots music and is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
Crys Matthews won the 2024 artist of the year award, her second IFMA. Susan Werner won the 2024 album of the year award for Halfway to Houston. Song of the year went to “$20 Bill (for George Floyd),” written by Tom Prasada-Rao and performed by Dan Navarro and Janiva Magness.
In accepting the award, Navarro said, “Over 100 of us recorded a version of that song in 2020, but because of the impact and the challenges of the pandemic, it never really had a proper release and we decided we would do something about that.”
The Clearwater Award is presented to a festival that prioritizes environmental stewardship and demonstrates public leadership in sustainable event production. This year’s award went to the River Roads Festival in Easthampton, Mass.
The Spirit of Folk Awards are presented to people and organizations actively involved in the promotion and preservation of folk music. Spirit of Folk Awards were presented to:
* Tom Power, Canadian musician and broadcaster, best known as the host of Q on CBC Radio One and a member of the folk band, The Dardanelles.
* Alice Randall, a trailblazer in folk and country music, whose songs have been recorded by such artists as Johnny Cash, and founder of production company Midsummer Music.
* Longtime Folk Alliance region Midwest pillar Annie Capps.
* Quebec’s Innu Nikamu festival, which has been committed to the promotion and preservation of Indigenous culture for more than 30 years.
In accepting her award, Randall said, “In My Black Country, I tell the story of climbing out of the hell of being raped by holding on to the sound of John Prine singing ‘Angel From Montgomery.’ I write about discovering the Joan Baez Ballad Book, a double album set of English, Irish and Scottish folk songs that became my stepping stones to joy after trauma. I owe my sanity to folk music. For the past 40 years I worked writing folk songs that I hoped would help people get to joy after trauma.
“In 2024 Oh Boy Records, John Prine’s label, put out the My Black Country album featuring some of the greatest folk singers and pickers of our time including Rhiannon Giddens and Leyla McCalla,” she continued. “On the new album, country charting songs were stripped of pop productions that erased Black characters and muted political intent. My songs were restored to their folk roots. My book My Black Country is about the Black folk, including Black folk musicians, who made country country. I accept this award in honor of ‘Traditional’ and my father who long ago asked me a question I will now ask you, ‘What you bet ‘Traditional’ was a Colored Gal?’”
Fellow Spirit of Folk Award recipient Power said, “This means an awful lot to me … As someone who cares a lot about the traditions of Newfoundland and Labrador, I stand on the shoulders of the giants of the folks who preserved the music long before me … I am so unbelievably proud to work for the CBC. … At a time both in Canada and in the United States and all over the world that public broadcasting is being brought into question — questions about defunding, questions of whether or not we should exist — I could never be prouder to be part of an organization that aims to tell the stories of Canadians to other Canadians.”
The People’s Voice Award, which is presented to an individual who unabashedly embraces social and political commentary in their creative work and public careers, was awarded to Gina Chavez.
OKAN, the women-led, Afro-Cuban roots and jazz duo, were honored with The Rising Tide Award. The Rising Tide Award celebrates emergent artists of any age who inspire others by embodying the values and ideals of the folk community through their creative work, community role, and public voice.
FAI members submitted recordings in the best-of-the-year categories (song, album, and artist). New recordings released between Oct. 1, 2023 and Sept. 30, 2024 were eligible.
Here are the nominations in the three “Best of 2024” categories, with winners marked, followed by a list of this year’s special award honorees.
Artist of the Year
Flamy GrantSarah JaroszKaïa KaterNick LoweWINNER: Crys MatthewsAllison Russell
Album of the Year
Sierra Ferrell, Trail of Flowers (Rounder Records)The Heart Collectors, The Space Between (Spins the Gold Records)Kaïa Kater, Strange Medicine (Free Dirt Records)Aoife O’Donovan, All My Friends (Yep Roc Records)Ordinary Elephant – Ordinary Elephant (Berkalin Records)WINNER: Susan Werner, Halfway to Houston (self-released)
Song of the Year
“Tenzin Sings with Nightingales,” written by Tenzin Choegyal, performed by Tenzin Choegyal and Michael Askill“How I Long for Peace,” written by Peggy Seeger, performed by Rhiannon Giddens, Crys Matthews, and the Resistance Revival Chorus“Woman Who Pays,” written and performed Connie KaldorWINNER: “$20 Bill (for George Floyd),” written by Tom Prasada-Rao, performed by Dan Navarro & Janiva Magness“Ukrainian Now,” written and performed by Tom Paxton & John McCutcheon“Love Letters,” written by Julian Taylor, Tyler James Ellis, performed by Julian Taylor
Lifetime Achievement Award – Living: Indigo Girls
Lifetime Achievement Award – Legacy: Lesley Riddle
Lifetime Achievement Award – Business: Songlines Magazine
People’s Voice: Gina Chavez
Rising Tide: OKAN
Clearwater Award: River Roads Festival (Easthampton, Mass.)
Spirit of Folk: Tom Power, Alice Randall, Annie Capps, Innu Nikamu festival
Folk Radio DJ Hall of Fame Inductees: Archie Fisher (BBC Scotland), Mary Sue Twohy (SIRIUS XM), Taylor Caffery (WRKF-FM, Baton Rouge, La.), Matthew Finch (posthumous, KUNM-FM, Albuquerque, N.M.), Chuck Wentworth (posthumous, WRIU-FM, Rhode Island)
JISOO‘s acting career is going strong despite being busier than ever with upcoming BLACKPINK plans and solo music, with Netflix announcing a new Korean romantic-comedy series starring the performer Wednesday (Feb. 19).
Tentatively titled Boyfriend on Demand, the Kim Jung-sik-directed show will see JISOO as Mi-rae, an “exhausted webtoon producer” who starts a virtual dating program that introduces her to the “boyfriends of her dreams” as part of a monthly subscription service, according to the description. She’ll star opposite South Korean singer-actor Seo In-guk, who will play Park Kyeong-nam, a rival colleague of Mi-rae’s.
“Blending the relatable challenges of daily work life and a never-before-seen virtual reality dating subscription program, Boyfriend on Demand promises to revolutionize dating,” the release teases, adding that the series will “deliver heart-fluttering moments and laughter.”
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Boyfriend on Demand is just the latest onscreen project JISOO has taken on, with the K-pop star establishing herself as a leading lady in 2021’s Disney+ K-drama Snowdrop. Most recently, she played Kang Young-joo in Prime Video’s Zombie series Newtopia.
The announcement comes the same day BLACKPINK finally unveiled dates for its previously teased world tour, which kicks off July 5 in Seoul and will see JISOO and bandmates ROSÉ, LISA and JENNIE traveling through Los Angeles, New York City, Paris, Barcelona, London and more through mid-August. ROSÉ also recently confirmed that the quartet is coming out with new music soon.
BLACKPINK’s last album, Born Pink, dropped in 2022, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. After touring the LP through 2023, the four stars have spent the past year or so working on solo projects.
For JISOO, the break has included the release of her debut solo EP, AMORTAGE, which arrived on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14) with four new tracks: “Earthquake,” “Your Love,” “Tears” and “Hugs & Kisses.” In a recent interview with Billboard, she called working by herself “an amazing experience” — but she’s more than excited to get back into the band swing of things.
“Last year, as each member focused on individual activities, we all grew a lot,” she said in a video interview with Tetris Kelly. “Now, as we come together for this year, I feel like we’ll be able to return with an even bigger and more spectacular presence. Everyone’s excited about it, and we’ve been sharing ideas. We’ve already done a lot of preparations for this year.”
LE SSERAFIM are artists, but also, in the new trailer for their upcoming fifth mini album, HOT, they are also quite literally pieces of art. The intriguing two-minute teaser for the EP that is due out on March 14 dropped on Thursday (Feb. 20) and it finds a gallery full of art lovers perusing an exhibition entitled “HOT, We’re hot on our own, 2025,” in which the quintet are frozen in a variety of poses while seated or standing on metallic platforms.
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Singers KIM CHAEWON, SAKURA, HUH YUNJIN, KAZUHA, and HONG EUNCHAE manage to hold their icy postures as a somber violin plays in the background, until their statue-like reverie is unexpectedly broken by an adorable grey cat with tiny wings. The sound of the kitty’s meowing sets off a handclap beat and a dilation of the women’s eyes, sneezing them to life as they appear to melt into the ground while a temperature gauge rises from cold to warm.
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A ghostly track bubbles up and the members come to life, interacting with a Marcel Duchamp-like off-the-shelf kitchen faucet titled “Purity is the Hottest,” which, when turned on and allowed to flow onto the floor, electrocutes the feline, transforming the sterile space into a throbbing nightclub.
From crawling through fur-lined tunnels to walking on a giant hamster wheel, the women are awakened as a voiceover intones “a single flame was born” in Korean while they and the gallery patrons expertly catwalk their way through the space. “The flame engulfed the silence, splitting apart the dark” a voice reveals in English, further advancing the fiery narrative with the cryptic phrase: “Drawn to the wavering beauty, the flame believed that the reason for its existence was to burn ever brighter.”
With the temperature quickly rising to “hot,” the liquid from the sink turns into a fiery flame and the once-again-frozen women are blown away like dust by an unseen wind, only to rise again from the ashes like phoenixes.
HOT is the follow-up to the group’s 2024 fourth mini-album, CRAZY.
Watch the HOT trailer below.
Pioneering jazz pianist-singer Nat King Cole is best known for classics such as “Mona Lisa” and “The Christmas Song” as well as for hosting his own television show on NBC in 1956. However, it was a Black woman who initially broke that barrier in 1950 on the DuMont Television Network: jazz and classical pianist-singer Hazel Scott.
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That’s just one of the Black history lessons comprising the revelatory PBS documentary American Masters – The Disappearance of Miss Scott, which premieres Feb. 21 (9 p.m. ET, check local listings). Produced and directed by Nicole London, the documentary marks the first in-depth film about the early 20th century star whose fierce and fearless advocacy of civil rights during Jim Crow prompted the stipulation in her contracts that Scott wouldn’t play before segregated audiences. In fact, the documentary notes that Rev. Martin Luther King said the first desegregated audience he sat in was at one of Scott’s shows. And her film contracts stated that she would only perform as herself or as a patron — never a servant — in the movie roles she was offered. She even organized an actors strike during the production of a film because of unfair treatment.
Her impactful career in the aftermath of that strike, however, was further derailed in the U.S. when she was blacklisted during the ‘50s Red Scare by the House Un-American Committee. But that didn’t faze the intrepid Scott. Relocating to Paris in 1957, she added another successful chapter to her legacy before returning to the U.S. in 1967. As she’s quoted in the documentary: “They say I’m impossible. I won’t conform.”
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“That resilience during the era’s McCarthyism was the kind of element that I wanted to highlight,” says London, whose credits include the Emmy-winning American Masters film Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool. “I wanted people to know that Scott was a towering figure of her time — and to also understand the reasons why we don’t know her. At a time when there was so little available, she stood up against the odds and it cost her. But it shouldn’t cost us the pleasure and the gift of getting to know her story and learning from it, especially today.”
Born in Trinidad in 1920 and raised in Harlem, New York, Scott was a child prodigy. Taught by her classically trained pianist/saxophonist-music teacher mother Alma, Scott began playing piano at two years old, performed in public at three and by eight was a pupil at the Juilliard School of Music. A member of her mother’s all-female band at 14, Scott landed her first professional gig at 15 with the Count Basie Orchestra. By 19 she was headlining Café Society, the first integrated club in Manhattan. She would later marry and divorce Adam Clayton Powell Jr., a pioneer and civil rights activist in his own right as the first Black congressman from the state of New York.
An engrossing compilation of archival footage and stills, performance clips and animation illuminate Scott’s career journey, which included appearances in films (Something to Shout About, I Dood It, and Rhapsody in Blue), followed by the aforementioned nationally syndicated TV program The Hazel Scott Show, featuring herself and jazz legends Charles Mingus and Max Roach. Providing further context are excerpts from Scott’s unpublished autobiography voiced by Emmy-winning actress Sheryl Lee Ralph plus interviews with country artist Mickey Guyton, actresses Amanda Seales and Tracie Thoms and jazz musicians Camille Thurman and Jason Moran.
“I wanted people who weren’t necessarily obvious because [Scott] didn’t just influence jazz. Her reach and influence are so much bigger in terms of the possibilities for women in film, television and elsewhere. Here I am, a Black female director who wouldn’t be in this position if I hadn’t had these footsteps to follow. I also wanted to touch on the importance of friendship between women and women in support systems for each other, especially Black women.”
Influenced and mentored by jazz icons/family friends like Billie Holiday, Fats Waller and Art Tatum, Scott became known for the speed with which she could play and the top-notch improvisational skills she applied in “jazzing” up classic songs. Then there was her dexterous ability at playing two pianos at once. Alicia Keys paid tribute to Scott’s influence and inspiration while hosting the 2019 Grammy Awards during which she played two pianos.
His mother’s high level of musicianship, in addition to her personal crusade for what’s right, is one thing that Scott’s only child, Adam Clayton Powell III, wants viewers to witness. He shared with Billboard that Grammy-winning pianist Michelle Cann and other musicians have recreated his mother’s improvisations from her records for project that will be released in late summer. He adds that Cann told him the project was “like the Olympics, almost impossible to do physically. She said the musicians working on this were staring at the sheet music. But in looking at clips of my mother playing, she’s smiling at the audience — not even looking at the keyboard.”
As the documentary was being developed, Powell learned just how valuable dollar-wise his mother’s talent was after her biographer Karen Chilton (2010’s Hazel Scott: The Pioneering Journey of a Jazz Pianist, from Café Society to Hollywood to HUAC) found some of Scott’s old film contracts. “The idea that my mother was making, in today’s dollars, more than $2 million a year at MGM is like whoa,” he says. “And her hands were insured by Lloyds of London for $1 million in 1940s dollars, which is over $18 million today.”
In The Disappearance of Hazel Scott, viewers will learn as well about her insistence to appear before the House UnAmerican Committee, the end of her troubled marriage, a suicide attempt and the dream job that materialized after her return to the U.S. Throughout it all, Powell says his mother often quoted the French song “Non, je ne regrette rien,” covered by Edith Piaf. Its title translates to “No, I Regret Nothing.”
What were some of the most notable trends on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart during 2024? Hit Songs Deconstructed, which provides compositional analytics for top 10 Hot 100 hits, has released its year-end 2024 State of the Hot 100 Top 10 report.
Here are three takeaways from Hit Songs Deconstructed’s latest in-depth research.
Hip-Hop Topped Pop, Country
Hip-hop/rap reigned as the most common primary genre in the Hot 100’s top 10 throughout 2024, contributing to 38% of all top 10 hits, and bounding from a 23% take in 2023.
Pop placed second with a 29% share in 2024, the same total as 2023, when it finished first.
“Hip-hop/rap was the only primary genre that increased in prominence when compared to 2023,” Hit Songs Deconstructed notes. “This is largely due to the success of artists who appeared on three or more of the year’s hip-hop/rap top 10s: Kendrick Lamar (eight), Future and Metro Boomin (five each) and Tyler, the Creator (three).”
Hip-hop/rap and pop have traded annual titles as the leading primary genre in the Hot 100’s top 10 since the former led in both 2017 and 2018:
2024: Hip-hop/rap, 38% — Pop, 29%
2023: Pop, 29% — Hip-hop/rap, 23%
2022: Hip-hop/rap, 38% — Pop, 35%
2021: Pop, 39% — Hip-hop/rap, 34%
2020: Hip-hop/rap, 41% — Pop, 40%
2019: Pop, 47% — Hip-hop/rap, 34%
2018: Hip-hop/rap, 59% — Pop, 24%
2017: Hip-hop/rap, 32% — Pop, 31%
Country has been the third-biggest primary genre the past two years, with a 15% share of Hot 100 top 10s in both 2023 and 2024. From 2017 to 2022, R&B/soul placed third each year, ranging from 8% to 17% takes of the top 10.
Women Vocals Vaulted
The gap nearly closed between male- and female-sung Hot 100 top 10s in 2024.
“Male-led songs continued to be most common in 2024, but have been in decline,” Hit Songs Deconstructed reports. “Conversely, female-led songs have been on the rise and reached their highest level in over a decade. This was largely thanks to Taylor Swift and her 10 top 10s, along with Sabrina Carpenter and Beyoncé, each scoring three.”
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Meanwhile, Hot 100 top 10s with a solo lead vocalist claimed their highest share in a decade: 70%, up from wins of 66% in 2023 and 62% in 2022. (In 2021, multiple lead vocalists edged out soloists, 51% to 49%, thanks to collaborations by the likes of Coldplay and BTS, Elton John and Dua Lipa, and The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber.)
Drumming Up New Interest
Looking at (or, listening to) instruments in Hot 100 top 10s, acoustic drums continued to surge in 2024.
“The use of primarily acoustic drums/percussion nearly quintupled since 2022, rising to 37% of songs in 2024, its highest level since 2014,” Hit Songs Deconstructed finds. “Representatives spanned an array of genres,” including country (Post Malone’s “I Had Some Help,” featuring Morgan Wallen), hip-hop/rap (Tyler, the Creator’s “Noid”), pop (Sabrina Carpenter’s “Please Please Please”) and rock (Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things”).
Billboard
Plus, electric bass rose to 32% of Hot 100 top 10s in 2024, up from 17% in 2020, and electric piano rose to 18%, tying its highest level in over a decade, mostly via hip-hop/rap- and R&B/soul-influenced hits.
Conversely, and while still central in Hot 100 top 10s, synth usage dropped to a 71% share in 2024, its lowest since 2014. Similarly, electronic drums/percussion declined to a 42% take – down from 45% in 2023 and 64% in 2022 and likewise their lowest since 2014.
Janelle Monáe will explore the art of the con in the upcoming Universal Pictures adaptation of Tanya Smith’s 2024 memoir, Never Saw Me Coming: How I Outsmarted the FBI and the Entire Banking System – and Pocketed $40 Million. According to Variety, Monáe will star in the film and also produce through her Wonderland Pictures company.
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Smith — who saw herself a modern-day Robin Hood after figuring out how to wipe out her relatives’ debt by manipulating the banking system — will be an executive producer on the movie. The gripping story is described as a heist thriller that provides a “powerful examination of systemic prejudice and economic inequality,” following Smith’s journey from mischievous teenage hacker to a master manipulator of the U.S. financial system.
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The book’s publisher, Hachette Book Group calls the story a riveting tale of an “unsuspecting woman who creates an ingeniously clever white-collar scheme that manipulates the Federal banking system out of millions — who eventually loses everything that is most important to her.”
The story follows Smith as she begins her life of deception as a teenager with an interest in technology, figuring out how to acquire the phone numbers of stars including Michael Jackson and other celebs, before moving on to stealing and depositing $5,000 into her grandmother’s bank account, and, by 18, confiscating $40 million dollars in cash, gold, diamonds and commodities from banks using hacked wire transfers.
“The FBI is hot on her tail and hauls her in for an interview, demanding Smith let them know who she’s working for, ‘as these are not the kind of crimes Black people are smart enough to commit,’” reads the book synopsis. “Their words, indicating that intelligence was determined by race, severely offended Smith. Up for the challenge, she proves the FBI wrong and over time steals $40 million dollars, while securing diamonds, gold bars, and other commodities. Her lifestyle attracts the wrong kind of people, even those who set out to kill her.”
The investigators hot on her trail, Smith is tagged as “one of the single biggest threats to the entire U.S. banking system,” earning her the longest prison sentence ever (13 years) for white-collar crimes, only to be released after mounting her own “brilliant defense.” Along the way, Smith escaped from prison two years into her sentence by disguising herself as a lawyer and gave birth to two children while incarcerated.
Monáe latest starring role will follow up on her well-received roles in the films Moonlight, Hidden Figures, Harriet, Antebellum and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.