Music News

10 Dec 2024

Halsey to Write Dark Comedy Series ‘Bloodlust,’ With Ti West to Direct

Halsey is a songwriter, visual artist and makeup mogul — and now, the star has found a new medium for her artistry. According to Variety, the musician is set to write the script for a new dark comedy series Prime Video is developing called Bloodlust, with Ti West onboard to direct.

As revealed Tuesday (Dec. 10), the project has been in the works for “some time,” though no further details — other than its title — are known. Both Halsey and West will also serve as executive producers, with the pair reuniting after the filmmaker directed the “Bad at Love” singer in July’s MaXXXine.

Showrunner Mark Friedman is also attached as executive producer, as is Anthony Li, Halsey’s manager.

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The announcement comes about a month and a half after Halsey dropped their latest album, The Great Impersonator, debuting at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Featuring singles “Lucky,” “Ego” and “Lonely Is the Muse,” the LP found the About-Face Beauty founder opening up about life as a single mom undergoing treatment for lupus and a rare T-cell condition, diagnoses she first shared with the world in June.

“After 2 years, I’m feeling better and I’m more grateful than ever to have music to turn to,” the “Without Me” singer wrote on Instagram at the time. “I can’t wait to get back where I belong: With you all.”

Though Bloodlust will mark Halsey’s first official screenplay — not counting their self-written If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, a companion film to the star’s 2021 album of the same name — the musician has previously been involved in Hollywood in front of the camera. In addition to making a cameo in A Star Is Born, Halsey has also had roles in the films Americana, Sing 2 and Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, as well as the TV series Roadies and Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?

10 Dec 2024

Walker Hayes Shares His Duck Buck Co. Clothing Brand, Talks Turning ‘Fancy Like’ Into a Holiday Jam

It’s gift-shopping season, and Walker Hayes has the perfect products for the cozy or outdoorsy people in your life.

The country singer chatted with Billboard’s executive editor of West Coast and Nashville, Melinda Newman, on talkshoplive, an online livestream shopping platform, where he showed off products from his Duck Buck Co. brand. The line of activewear and loungewear features trucker hats, t-shirts, leggings, sweats and much more — all featuring the quirky half-duck, half-buck logo that Hayes drew himself.

“I’m a doodler, I wouldn’t call myself an artist but I’m constantly drawing,” he shared during the livestream. “It’s therapeutic to me. We had to draw a picture for each song back when NFTs were a thing. Each song needed an NFT following ‘Fancy Like,’ so for the song ‘Country Stuff,’ I drew this duck buck. And my team — nobody asked questions, they were like ‘That’s your logo.’”

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He added that the inspiration while designing clothing were items “that are comfy, that I know I’m going to look good in.”

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Since it’s the holiday season, Hayes discussed his fun, festive spin on his Billboard Hot 100 No. 3 hit “Fancy Like.” The track, “Fancy Like Christmas,” in which he switches up the lyrics to the chorus and sings, “Fancy like Christmas ’round a fake tree/ Nutcracker on the mantle and a candy cane candle/ Get your eggnog, with your fruit cake/ Go Jesus, it’s your birthday!”

“I honestly think the lyrics to the Christmas version are better,” Hayes admitted, adding with a laugh, “When we dropped ‘Fancy Like Christmas,’ the response was so amazing and continues to be, that I did start think, ‘I mean, do we need a Halloween version? Does this song need to take over holidays?’ Is it the next ‘Happy Birthday?’”

Watch the entire livestream and shop Walker Hayes’ Duck Buck Co. brand here.

10 Dec 2024

Sabrina Carpenter Reveals the ‘Conceited’ Reason She Can’t Share Her 2024 Spotify Wrapped

To close out 2024, Sabrina Carpenter was on countless people’s year-end Spotify Wrapped lists — including her own.

That’s exactly why the 25-year-old pop star didn’t join many of the streaming service’s users in sharing her listening-habit summary on social media this year, she told Vogue Arabia in a new interview published Tuesday (Dec. 10). “When I first saw mine, my initial reaction was, ‘Oh, damn, I can’t post that, because I’m on my own [list],’” she told the publication. “‘It’s a bit conceited.’”

“But then I was like, I guess it’s a good thing that I’m on my list and listening to my own music, because it means I f–k with what I do,” Carpenter added.

The Girl Meets World alum definitely isn’t the only one. In 2024, her smash hit “Espresso” was streamed more than 1.6 billion times on Spotify, making it the app’s most-streamed song of any other upload. Plus, her Billboard 200-topping sixth studio LP Short n’ Sweet was the platform’s third-most popular album, bested only by Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft.

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While on the topic of Spotify Wrapped, Carpenter did reveal which other four artists made her top 5: Dolly Parton, ABBA, Kacey Musgraves and the Bee Gees.

Carpenter is currently on a break from her first-ever arena trek, with the North American leg of the Short n’ Sweet Tour closing in November. The “Please Please Please” singer will get back on the road for a run of European dates in March.

In the meantime, fans can enjoy her new holiday special A Nonsense Christmas, which premiered Dec. 6 on Netflix. Of the project, Carpenter told Vogue Arabia, “It was kind of a s–t show — but in the best possible way. A Christmas s–t show, which is way better than normal ones, because everyone’s festive and dressed up,” she said, revealing that her crew filmed the special in just two days. “You can’t really be mad when everyone is dressed like Christmas. And I’m so lucky that my friends were a part of it, that just made it all the more fun.”

10 Dec 2024

Spike Lee Confirms A$AP Rocky Has the ‘Main Role’ in His ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ Film

Looks like A$AP Rocky will be returning to the silver screen. Spike Lee said the rapper will have the “main role” in his upcoming Highest 2 Lowest film in an interview with Deadline on Monday (Dec. 9).

“The main role … is A$AP Rocky,” he said during the interview at the 2024 Red Sea International Film Festival, declining to share any more details about the rapper’s involvement in the new project. “People will see when it comes out,” he added. “It’s dynamite.”

Rocky will also star alongside Ice Spice, who will be making her acting debut in the film, as well as Denzel Washington, Jeffrey Wright and Ilfenesh Hadera. The Harlem MC (real name Rakim Mayers) made his acting debut in 2015’s Dope and has since starred in a handful of films, such as 2016’s Zoolander 2 and 2018’s Monster.

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Highest 2 Lowest is “not a remake” but a “reinterpretation” of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 crime thriller, High and Low. “In Kurosawa’s film, Toshiro Mifune is a shoemaker. In our film, Denzel Washington is a music mogul with his own label and his reputation as the best ears in the business. So, this is the fifth film with the dynamic duo,” Lee said. This will be the fifth film Lee and Washington have worked on together, following 1990’s Mo’ Better Blues, 1992’s Malcolm X, 1998’s He Got Game and 2006’s Inside Man. 

Apple Original Films and A24 are partnering on Highest 2 Lowest, with A24 releasing the film theatrically before it streams globally on AppleTV+. 

10 Dec 2024

KSI’s ‘Thick of It’ Hits No. 1 on Second Top Gabb Music Songs Chart

The second iteration of the Top Gabb Music Songs chart features a new No. 1, as KSI‘s “Thick of It,” featuring Trippie Redd, rises to No. 1 as the most-played song on Gabb Wireless phones and tablets for November 2024.

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Billboard has partnered with Gabb Wireless, a phone company for kids and teens, to present a monthly chart tracking on-demand streams via its Gabb Music platform. Gabb Music offers a vast catalog of songs, all of which are selected by the Gabb team to include only kid- and teen-appropriate content. Gabb Music streams are not currently factored into any other Billboard charts.

“Thick of It,” released Oct. 3, bowed at No. 3 on the inaugural Top Gabb Music Songs list as the most recently released song in the tally’s top 10. It retains that distinction on the November 2024 survey as well (though it isn’t the newest song on the 25-position chart – more on that later).

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The song has peaked so far at No. 64 on the multimetric Billboard Hot 100, achieving the feat on the Oct. 26-dated ranking.

Released by rapper and YouTube star KSI, “Thick of It” leads a hip-hop-dominated Top Gabb Music Songs top 10, with half of the region from rappers. Drake’s “God’s Plan,” No. 1 on the Hot 100 for 11 weeks in 2018, enters the survey at No. 4, while Travis Scott’s “Butterfly Effect” at No. 6 (No. 50 on the Hot 100 in 2018) and Juice WRLD’s “Face 2 Face” at No. 8 (No. 92 on the Hot 100 in 2022) also debut. The fifth, NF’s “Let You Down,” remains in the top 10 for a second straight month, falling 5-7.

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” which reigned atop the first Top Gabb Music Songs list, dips to No. 2 on the November tally, but Boone still boasts a new distinction: he’s the first act with two songs in the top three, as “Slow It Down” zooms 9-3 in its second month. The former peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in March, while the latter reached No. 32 in September.

Olivia Rodrigo’s “Deja Vu” and Imagine Dragons’ “Bones” appear in the Top Gabb Music Songs chart’s top 10 for the first time; “Deja Vu” shoots 15-9, while “Bones” jumps 16-10. Three and two years old, respectively, the former reached No. 3 on the Hot 100 in 2021 and the latter peaked at No. 47 in 2022.

Top Gabb Music Songs’ top debut of the month by a song released in 2024 belongs to Maddox Batson, whose “X’s” starts at No. 14. It’s the second-highest-performing country song on the tally, following Luke Combs‘ “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” at No. 5. The 14-year-old Warner signee’s song was released in September.

Holiday music has officially come to Gabb as of November, as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” bows at No. 15. And the newest song to grace the survey, ROSE and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” (released Oct. 18), starts at No. 24.

See the full top 25 below.

Top Gabb Music Songs, November 2024

1. “Thick of It,” KSI feat. Trippie Redd (+2)
2. “Beautiful Things,” Benson Boone (-1)
3. “Slow It Down,” Benson Boone (+6)
4. “God’s Plan,” Drake (debut)
5. “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma,” Luke Combs (-3)
6. “Butterfly Effect,” Travis Scott (debut)
7. “Let You Down,” NF (-2)
8. “Face 2 Face,” Juice WRLD (debut)
9. “Deja Vu,” Olivia Rodrigo (+6)
10. “Bones,” Imagine Dragons (+6)
11. “Hope,” NF (-4)
12. “Please Please Please,” Sabrina Carpenter (-4)
13. “Motto,” NF (=)
14. “X’s,” Maddox Batson (debut)
15. “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey (debut)
16. “Mood,” 24KGoldn feat. Iann Dior (debut)
17. “Love Somebody,” Morgan Wallen (debut)
18. “Stargazing,” Myles Smith (-4)
19. “Ghost,” Justin Bieber (debut)
20. “Eyes Closed,” Imagine Dragons (-3)
21. “Enemy,” Imagine Dragons & JID (-1)
22. “Stressed Out,” Twenty One Pilots (-10)
23. “Too Sweet,” Hozier (-19)
24. “APT.,” ROSE & Bruno Mars (debut)
25. “Radioactive,” Imagine Dragons (-6)

DROPS FROM OCTOBER 2024: JVKE, “Golden Hour”; NF, “The Search”; Glass Animals, “Heat Waves”; Zach Bryan, “Pink Skies”; Imagine Dragons, “Demons”; Tate McRae, “She’s All I Wanna Be”; Ariana Grande, “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)”; Jelly Roll, “I Am Not Okay”; Nicky Youre & Dazy, “Sunroof”

10 Dec 2024

Latto Opens Up ‘Big Mama’s Mini Market’ With Some Help From Sha’Carri Richardson in New Ad: Watch

Drake and Latto connected for the 100 Gigs cut “Housekeeping Knows” earlier this year — now, the 6 God is tapping the Atlanta rapper to star in an ad for his Nike Nocta brand campaign.

With the Nocta Nike Air Force 1 set to arrive as part of a larger apparel collection, Latto appeared in the latest commercial for the brand, opening up her own one-stop shop called Big Mama’s Mini Market in the commercial, which Drake posted to his Instagram account on Monday (Dec. 9). “BIG MAMA GON GET YA RIGHT @nike @officialnocta,” Drizzy wrote.

Big Latto gave fans a tour of the pop-up convenience store that included grocery store items like Nocta branded snacks, deodorant, Nocta Loops cereal, Nocta Punch, Nocta Bubbles, mouthwash and even candy-painted car rims. Olympic gold medalist Sha’Carri Richardson even makes a cameo in support of Mama’s Salon opening up next door. Of course, Richardson knows a thing or two about bedazzled nail sets.

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Latto closes out the fun spot heading to the refrigerator to grab a few pairs of the upcoming Nocta Nike Air Force 1, which will be available in various colorways such as Citron Tint, Palest Purple and Big Mama’s favorite pink. Nocta was co-founded by Drake alongside Matte Babel.

The pop-up shop opened its doors over the weekend in Miami, where fans had the chance to munch on some Caribbean dishes, get their nails done and vibe to a rotation of DJs while having the first chance to purchase the Nocta Tech Fleece and shop the Air Force 1 Love You Forever collection.

One of the gems out of Drake’s 100 Gigs drop found Latto teaming up with Drake for her first collaboration alongside the 6 God with “Housekeeping Knows,” which hit No. 85 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August.

Watch the full commercial below.

10 Dec 2024

Blake Shelton to Co-Produce Documentary on Late Country Artist Keith Whitley

The late country artist and Country Music Hall of Fame member Keith Whitley will be the focus of an upcoming documentary film, thanks in part to his fellow country artist Blake Shelton. The Whitley-centered documentary will begin filming in January 2025.

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Shelton is co-producing the documentary with Lee Metzger of Lucky Horseshoe Productions. Also leading the project are Anomaly Content & Entertainment (ACE) partner and producer Evan Hayes (Free Solo), with ACE partner and CEO Justin Barocas serving as executive producer and Zach Heinzerling (Cutie and the Boxer, McCartney 3, 2, 1) serving as director.

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Whitley died in May 1989 at age 34, with only two full-length studio country albums having been released by the time of his passing (1985’s L.A. to Miami and 1988’s Don’t Close Your Eyes; his third album, 1989’s I Wonder Do You Think of Me, arrived three months after his death). However, the songwriting and vocal prowess displayed on those projects — and in his live shows — has been an indelible influence on generations of artists. Whitley’s “I’m No Stranger to the Rain” earned the CMA’s 1989 single of the year honor, while Whitley’s duet with wife Lorrie Morgan, “‘Til a Tear Becomes a Rose,” was named the CMA’s vocal event of the year in 1990.

The documentary will look at Whitley’s life and career, his struggles with addiction, his romance and marriage to fellow country artist Morgan, and his lasting impact on the music industry. The upcoming documentary will also feature archival footage from the Country Music Hall of Fame, as well as personal collections from Morgan. The film will also look at Whitley’s roots in Sandy Hook, Kentucky, and will highlight reflections from Morgan as she navigates her own career while honoring Whitley’s memory.

Shelton said in a statement, “Keith Whitley released only three albums during his life, but his music has influenced generations of country music artists and fans. Gwen [Stefani] and I love to watch music documentaries, and I looked for his doc one night and couldn’t believe that there wasn’t one. I’m proud and honored we get to bring his incredible story to film.”

“Thanks to Blake, we finally have the chance to uncover the truth behind the legend that is Keith Whitley: a layered and heartbreaking story of talent, hardship, and love that is long overdue,” Heinzerling added.
 
“It’s an honor to bring Keith’s story to a wide audience,” Metzger said. “He’s the kind of singer everyone knows the songs when they hear them but doesn’t know the story of the singer who performed them.” 

Hayes said, “What drew me to this project was the idea of tapping into a pop culture story that lies slightly beneath the surface. Here is this guy who is so important in the country music world — he inspired the modern Star Is Born, Morgan Wallen wrote a song about him and his music — and a lot of people don’t know his name. To be able to explore this character and this love story that had permeated pop culture country music in such an impactful way and to introduce it to mainstream audiences is exciting.”

In 2023, Shelton and Metzger founded Lucky Horseshoe Productions, which helmed the USA Network series Barmageddon, and is in pre-production on the upcoming singing competition series The Road.
 
 

 
 

10 Dec 2024

Billboard to Revamp Hot Dance/Electronic Songs Chart, Launch Hot Dance/Pop Songs Ranking

Billboard is revamping its dance charts offerings at the outset of the new year to better recognize the varied sounds of the genre.

While the metrics of Hot Dance/Electronic Songs will remain the same, the songs eligible to debut on the ranking will, as of the charts dated Jan. 18, 2025 (reflecting activity Jan. 3-9, the first full chart week of the year), be those primarily recorded by DJs or producers with an emphasis on electronic-based production.

Billboard’s weekly multimetric Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart currently ranks the top 50 songs based on U.S. streaming (official audio and official video) and sales data, according to Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, plus radio airplay audience impressions, as measured by Mediabase. The sales metric reflects purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers.

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Billboard launched the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart in January 2013. It became the publication’s first multimetric chart to rank the most popular dance and electronic songs.

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Concurrently with the charts dated Jan. 18, Billboard is also launching the 25-position Hot Dance/Pop Songs chart, utilizing the same multimetric methodology as Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, featuring titles with dance-centric vocals, melody and hooks by artists not considered rooted in the dance/electronic genre. Songs co-billed to both a DJ/producer and a singer who extends beyond the dance genre may be eligible for both Hot Dance/Electronic Songs and Hot Dance/Pop Songs.

With the start of Hot Dance/Pop Songs, Billboard will also introduce corresponding Dance/Pop Songwriters and Dance/Pop Producers charts, based on total points accrued by a songwriter and producer, respectively, for each attributed song that appears on each respective chart.

Further, Billboard is also renaming the Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart to Top Dance Albums to better represent the cross-reference of dance titles that appear on the ranking. The chart ranks the most popular dance albums of the week, based on multimetric consumption, blending traditional album sales, streaming-equivalent albums and track-equivalent albums, as compiled by Luminate.

10 Dec 2024

Caitlin Clark Says Taylor Swift Invited Her to Watch a Kansas City Chiefs Game

Catilin Clark is in her Swiftie era!

The basketball superstar was named Time’s Athlete of the Year this week, and in the corresponding cover story published on Tuesday (Dec. 10), the WNBA athlete recalled attending “back-to-back” Eras Tour performances during Taylor Swift’s run at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., back in early November. She added that during one of the shows, she met with Swift’s boyfriend and fellow athlete Travis Kelce, as well as his mom Donna Kelce.

Clark also recalled that her appearance at the Eras Tour caught the attention of Swift herself, and the “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” singer sent her “four bags” of Eras Tour merch, which she says came with a note. In the message, Swift reportedly praised Clark’s skyrocketing career, before inviting her to attend an upcoming Kansas City Chiefs game with her. Swift added that “Trav and I” are aiming to watch her play at an upcoming Indiana Fever game.

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Kelce previously opened up about meeting Clark during an episode of his “New Heights” podcast, which he co-hosts with his brother, Jason Kelce. “Saw Caitlin Clark there, got to meet Caitlin. She’s awesome, she loves being out there in Indianapolis, says it’s a fun city, and we’re both just true Midwesterners to the heart,” said Travis, who grew up in Ohio’s Cleveland Heights, and went to college at the University of Cincinnati. “Played high school ball, college ball, pro ball all out here in the Midwest, and it was cool catching up with her.”

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10 Dec 2024

Mustard Puts Boi-1da’s West Coast Shade on Blast & Posts Alleged Message From Producer Praising ‘Not Like Us’

The fallout from the Drake and Kendrick Lamar war continues. Mustard called out longtime OVO producer Boi-1da for allegedly trashing West Coast music, and the Cali native posted receipts of their alleged past conversations to his Instagram Story on Monday (Dec. 9).

“West Coast music is a–,” the Toronto producer allegedly wrote in a DM captured by Complex. “Nobody outside LA wanna hear that s–t.”

Mustard reposted the alleged messages while expressing his disappointment. “@boi1da say it ain’t so man. @boi1da tell me this ain’t real crodie. @boi1da I thought you was real one I ain’t know you felt this way.”

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Even going a step further, Mustard followed up by posting an alleged message from Boi-1da complimenting Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” after the Drake diss track went No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“Good s–t,” Boi-1da allegedly wrote. “Beat hard AF.”

Mustard added to his Boi-1da shade in the caption: “You said you liked ‘Not Like Us’ @boi1da. Welp there’s enough yellow tape to go around.”

While Boi-1da worked on Kendrick Lamar’s Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers 2022 album, he’s produced countless hits for Drake over the years including “God’s Plan,” and also was involved in the Drizzy-Dot feud with production credits on the 6 God’s “Push Ups.”

As for Mustard, he’s riding high after notching a pair of top-five hits on the Hot 100 thanks to his work on Kendrick Lamar’s GNX standouts “Hey Now” and “TV Off.”

Find the alleged messages in question below.