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Trending on Billboard Maroon 5 has joined the star-studded lineup for next summer’s BST Hyde Park 2026. The Adam Levine-led band will headline the July 3, 2026 show along with their friends in OneRepublic. “London, we’re coming back!! We’re excited to announce we’ll be headlining BST Hyde Park on July 3, 2026 with special guests […]
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Hearing Judy Garland‘s 16-year-old voice singing the original “Over the Rainbow” a cappella — minus The Wizard of Oz orchestration — was not the intensely emotional experience you might predict for her daughter, Lorna Luft. As the singer and actress put it: “Well, I heard my mom sing it a lot.”
But this newly edited version of Garland’s signature song, which makes its debut on streaming services on Friday (Nov. 7), will blow most Oz fans’ minds. “It’s just so honest and so pure,” says Luft. “To be able to hear my mother’s vocal as if you’re in a room with her, and there is no piano, just her vocally — people have gotten so emotional when they hear this. It takes them back to where they were when they heard the song.”
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This stripped-down “Over the Rainbow” is part of a re-recorded The Wizard of Oz soundtrack that first aired only as part of The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, an immersive 4D version of the 1939 classic that opened at the Las Vegas venue in June. The uncluttered voice of Garland, who died in 1969, is the centerpiece of the new 42-track recording, which unites the original actors’ voices with a contemporary orchestra convened at the original MGM studio in Culver City, Calif. “You’re hearing things that you’ve never heard before — nuances and themes you didn’t catch onto — because you’re hearing it so clearly,” says Julianne Jordan, the production’s music supervisor.
To prepare Oz for its Sphere treatment, the production team separated the vocal stems from the music and the background noise from the original mono recordings. “I had an Oscar-winning friend, who will be unnamed at the moment, who did a test for me and took ‘Over the Rainbow’ and said, ‘I can help,’” says Ralph Winter, Sphere Studios’ head of production. “What he was able to do was separate out the music and the effects and the tracks and the noise and come up with just Dorothy’s vocals. It was so pure to hear what only maybe those studio executives and the director heard back in 1939.”
In August 2024, the Sphere team convened an 80-piece orchestra to re-record the tracks from the Oz score at the MGM scoring stage, now owned by Sony, in Culver City, Calif. Conducted by longtime film composer David Newman, the orchestra employed instruments used for Oz, like the ocarina, or hand flute, featured in the Scarecrow’s “If I Only Had a Brain.”
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To align the new orchestral recordings with the original vocals from Garland, Ray Bolger (who played the Scarecrow), Bert Lahr (the Cowardly Lion), Buddy Ebsen (the original Tin Man, who sang for the soundtrack but was replaced in the film) and the rest, Sphere Studios and Warner Bros. Post Production Creative Services teamed up to separate the tracks into stems. Thus, in spring 2024, Jordan was present when the Sphere team unveiled the a cappella “Over the Rainbow” on a Warner Bros. stage. “Not a dry eye,” she says. “Incredible. Really clean.”
The original “Over the Rainbow,” recorded in October 1938, was two Garland takes spliced together. “She got up [to] ‘somewhere over the rainbow, way up high’ — and she coughed, and she apologized, and they started again,” says John Fricke, a New York-based Oz historian who has written several books about Garland and the film. “They used the beginning of that take because they liked it more and married it with the almost-full take of the rest of the song.”
Luft shared the new a cappella version two weeks ago with Fricke, a longtime friend who first heard the original when he viewed The Wizard of Oz on TV in 1956. “My first reaction was, it’s amazing that this can get to me the way it does when I know every second of that track,” Fricke says. “The magic is that it’s still magical.”
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The original Oz score and soundtrack, created at the MGM studios in 1938, was created by a team of musicians that included songwriting duo Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg, who wrote classics like “Over the Rainbow” and the vaudeville-influenced “If I Only Had a Brain” and “Follow the Yellow Brick Road.” Meanwhile, the studio’s music director, Herbert Sothart, composed most of the score, including the ghostly strings and brass in “The Haunted Forest.” According to Luft, the Garland estate, which includes her half-sister Liza Minnelli, owns Garland’s name and likeness rights and quickly signed off on the new “Over the Rainbow” release after Sphere inquired.
“I just want people to understand how important this movie is, and this song, and now to be able to hear my mother’s vocal as if you’re in a room with her,” Luft says. “It’s a song about finding a better place. That doesn’t mean physical. It means in your mind. It means there is hope.”
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Corinne Bailey Rae will headline the second edition of Billboard U.K. Live, a new live music series celebrating artists who shape culture and define sound.
In partnership with Aviva, who joins as Presenting Partner, Billboard U.K. will bring fans, leaders and industry leaders together for a one-night-only experience that blends performance and storytelling.
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Taking place at Manchester’s Aviva Studios, home of Factory International, on Dec. 2, Grammy Award-winning artist Corinne Bailey Rae will perform an intimate set in The Hall, as well as partake in an exclusive Q&A session with Billboard U.K. editor Thomas Smith.
Tickets for the event are free and will be awarded via a ballot. Register here before Nov. 17, 9 a.m. GMT for the chance to win two tickets for you and a guest. Successful applicants will be contacted by Nov. 19. Attendees must be age 18 or over.
Throughout an illustrious career, Bailey Rae has established herself as a singular voice in British music. Her self-titled 2005 debut LP peaked at No. 1 on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart, spawning hits “Put Your Records On” and “Like a Star.” She collected a Grammy in 2012 for best R&B performance, and two of her albums, The Sea (2010) and Black Rainbows (2023), were nominated for the Mercury Prize.
The latter record saw the singer-songwriter pen a striking meditation on the history of Black experience she discovered at the Stony Island Arts Bank archive in Chicago. It landed her vast acclaim in the U.K., with critics praising Bailey Rae’s genre-spanning approach, blending influences across rock, electronica, jazz, hardcore punk and the African diaspora.
“We can’t wait to welcome audiences to Aviva Studios for an incredible night with Corinne Bailey Rae, brought to life through our exciting partnership with Billboard U.K.,” said Tom Whiteside, group head of sponsorship, Aviva. “This is all about celebrating music, creativity and the unique energy of this amazing venue.”
The show will follow the inaugural Billboard U.K. Live experience, which took place at The Great Escape festival in Brighton this past May. The event featured a wealth of emerging talent including Daffo, RIP Magic and Westside Cowboy, alongside headliners English Teacher, the winners of the 2024 Mercury Prize.
“Our collaboration with Aviva reflects a shared vision to create meaningful moments for artists and their fans across the U.K.,” said Elizabeth Crisante, chief commercial officer, Billboard U.K. “Hosting Corinne Bailey Rae at Aviva Studios brings that vision to life, with a globally acclaimed artist performing in one of the country’s most inspiring cultural spaces.”
Stay tuned to uk.billboard.com and @billboarduk on social media for further information on the event.
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Winners, as we know, are grinners. Ninajirachi had every reason to wear the brightest of smiles when she visited the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s studios on Friday morning, Nov. 7.
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The previous evening, the songwriter, producer, DJ and artist collected the coveted Australian Music Prize for I Love My Computer (via NLV Records), her debut album.
The AMP is essentially the Australian album of the year, and is selected by a music industry panel for its artistry, over commercial success. In addition to a trophy, the winner collects a A$50,000 check.
“I feel so awesome,” she said on the ABC’s News Breakfast. “Nothing like this has ever happened to me. It’s kind of crazy, but it’s really awesome.” Even to be shortlisted was “so flattering. But no, I didn’t expect this to happen.”
The AMP win is just the starting point for what should be a thrilling ride for the 26-year-old.
Later this month, Ninajirachi (real name: Nina Wilson) competes for two J Awards, including the triple j album of the year, and she’s in the hunt for a leading eight trophies at the annual ARIA Awards, where she’s nominated for album of the year, best solo artist, the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist, best independent release, best dance/electronic release and more.
From Nov. 28, she hits the road for an Australia tour, including one-off shows and festivals. The world awaits. First, New Zealand in early January, then a U.S. run starting Jan. 15 with a sold-out show at Holocene in Portland, OR, plus a spot on the Coachella bill, and “some other countries that haven’t been announced yet.”
Ninajirachi will tick off a bucket list next April, when she visits, and plays, the Empire Polo Club in Indio, CA for the very first time. “I’m so excited for Coachella,” she enthused. “I can’t wait.”
She’s buckled up and ready for what’s next. “I really just had a good time making an album. I hope I can keep making albums that feels as good as this one did,” she explained. “I’ve been making music for a long time and I could have never predicted what this year would look like. So it’s hard to say (what the future holds). I just hope it keeps feeling as fun as it has been recently.”
Trending on Billboard Kehlani isn’t ready to let a relationship go “Out the Window” on her new single that dropped on Friday (Nov. 7) via Atlantic Records. She resurrects that old school R&B feel even on the “Out the Window” cover art, which was shot by photographer Markus Klinko, who also did the cover of […]
Trending on Billboard Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska, first released in 1982, returns to Billboard’s charts following its expanded reissue. The set, which peaked at No. 3 on the overall Billboard 200 in its release year, re-enters that list (dated Nov. 8) at No. 26 for its first week on the chart since 1985 and its highest […]
Trending on Billboard Is this what dreams are made of? At long last, Hilary Duff is back with new music, dropping new song “Mature” after taking several years off to focus on acting. Arriving Friday (Nov. 7), the bright pop track finds the performer reckoning her past and present self. “‘Mature’ is a little conversation […]
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If you have questions about the unique spelling of sombr‘s stage name, this week’s Saturday Night Live promos are for you.
The pop singer/songwriter is joined by host Nikki Glaser and cast member Chloe Fineman in the new promos, in which Fineman says, “sombr — it’s such a cool name.” “It is!” Glaser agrees. “It’s like if i called myself ‘Glasr.’”
“What?” sombr replies. “You know, because it’s usually spelled S-O-M-B-E-R — you took the E out,” Glaser explains.
“It is? I’ve been spelling it wrong this whole time and NOBODY TOLD ME?” the pop star explodes, even letting out a primal scream off camera.
This has Glaser giving him a brand-new name: “More like ‘angr.’”
Elsewhere in the promos, Fineman asks, “I’ve always wanted to know: Where does the name sombr come from?” The artist born Shane Michael Boose then says, “Well, my initials are S.M.B.”
“Ohhh!” Glaser says, adding, “My initials are N.R.G. — like energy.” When she turns to Fineman to ask, “What are yours?,” the comedian simply responds, “Cherf” — her creative interpretation of C.R.F., for Chloe Rose Fineman.
Both Glaser and sombr are making their Saturday Night Live debuts this weekend – Glaser as host and sombr as musical guest.
sombr is having a breakout year, with his debut album, I Barely Know Her, arriving in August. The project spun off his first trio of Billboard Hot 100 appearances: the top 20 hits “Back to Friends” (No. 12) and “Undressed” (No. 16), as well as the No. 41-peaking “12 to 12.”
Glaser is set to return as the host of the Golden Globes when the awards show is presented on Jan. 11.
Saturday Night Live airs at 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT on NBC and streams on Peacock. (See all the options to watch SNL here.)
Trending on Billboard Leonardo DiCaprio starred in the One Battle After Another movie, but Katy Perry lived that title to the fullest in her “Bandaids” music video, which arrived on Thursday night (Nov. 6). “Bandaids” serves as Perry’s first solo single of 2025, as she displays emotional vulnerability while looking back on her journey in […]
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Tems‘ Leading Vibe Initiative and Native Instruments released a mini documentary on Thursday (Nov. 6) that follows three female producers in Lagos, Nigeria.
The 72 Hours in Lagos doc follows Saszy Afroshii, TinyBraz and Gbots around the “chaotic” city (as all three women, plus Tems, individually describe the hub) during the inaugural edition of the Leading Vibe Initiative, which “aims to support, connect and amplify the next generation of women in music,” according to the doc. Native Instruments contributes training, mentorship and industry-leading software and hardware. Tems is also on the Native Instruments artist board, a collective that also includes Alicia Keys, Noah “40” Shebib, Jacob Collier and Ludwig Goransson, among others.
Saszy Afroshii, who’s produced for Fave, Qing Madi and Tiwa Savage, says inspiration strikes anywhere in the midst of Lagos’ hustle and bustle, but opportunities aren’t always that easy to find. “I think it’s very important for females to support each other. This is an industry that is occupied by males and people think, ‘Ok, this is just a man’s world.’ When you walk into a session and they’re like, ‘So where’s the producer?’ And you’re like, ‘Hi! I’m here,’” she said. “It’s just trying to shift the mindset of people. Having to go the extra mile because sometimes they don’t give you as much opportunities. So it’s very, very good when you see a female doing something that people really thought, ‘Oh, maybe she can do it.’”
In her Billboard cover story earlier this year, Tems said she taught herself to produce and engineer her own music through YouTube tutorials while studying economics at IIE MSA in Johannesburg, South Africa. “Learning how to produce definitely made me solidify my sound because usually, you have a producer that gives you a beat and you have to go on the beat. But being a producer myself, it’s more authentic now. The music became more genuine and more true to me and more distinctive,” the Grammy-winning star said in the doc.
Tems launched the Leading Vibe Initiative this past August, which Billboard exclusively announced. She hosted a two-day seminar for approximately 20 women to gain hands-on training, access to world-class tools and connections to industry executives and creatives through a series of workshops, masterclasses and panel discussions. She also launched the Leading Vibe Initiative in Nairobi, Kenya in September.
Singer-songwriter TinyBraz (who’s also a DJ/producer known as Purple Halo) echoed Tems’ sentiments about authenticity, describing it as the core message behind the Leading Vibe Initiative. “That really cut deep to me because as an artist, you can tell I’m kind of androgynous. I’m in between being girly and being masculine. The label I was in really wanted me to be on that girly side. And to be honest, it wasn’t what I was feeling,” she explained. “I just wanted to find myself again because they were basically imposing their idea of what they think a female artist should be on me, and I didn’t want that. Hearing Tems say, ‘You have to double down on what you believe in’ made me realize that it was a good decision for me to say, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore with you guys. I want to go on my own. I want to be independent and find my way.’”
TinyBraz took the cameras from her current makeshift studio to her former apartment, which she called “Purple Island” “because it’s a creative space. It’s a space where I truly found the people that I was meant to align with,” such as dancers, graphic designers, engineers and artists, she explained.
Gbots, who’s worked with Olamide, CKay and P. Prime, described herself as “an outlier” because “I noticed I was one of the fewest female music producers. At that time, I even thought I was the only one making music.” In 2022, she founded the female music community, We Are ProducHERS. “Female music producers and artists and songwriters should just have a place and a safe space where they feel like because you can do it, I can do it,” she added.
Watch 72 Hours in Lagos below.
