State Champ Radio Music News
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Kendrick Lamar stamped his 2024 rap MVP campaign with a brand new album when GNX hit streaming services without any sort of warning on Friday (Nov. 22) around noon ET. Initially, a GNX teaser arrived on YouTube in the form of a one-minute snippet, and fans hoped it meant the start of a rollout. But […]
It isn’t easy being a number one girl — just ask ROSÉ.
In a candid interview with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe arriving Friday (Nov. 22), the BLACKPINK star got real about the inspiration behind her new solo single, “Number One Girl,” which dropped the same day: reading hate comments about herself. “We wrote that song the day after I went to this event,” ROSÉ explained. “I felt so grateful that I’m at these events, but I didn’t feel fulfilled. I felt like I was chasing after something that I’m like, ‘What am I chasing after?’”
“I felt so empty, and I remember feeling so miserable,” she continued. “And then that night, I ended up finding myself on social media, and then I end up looking for all these comments that are just going to obviously shatter me … I’m so disappointed in myself. Because I think I’ve grown up being like, ‘Be confident in yourself. When people say things to you, don’t let it get to you.’”
Noting that “Number One Girl” overall represents “toxic” relationships, the New Zealand native added, “I was so obsessed with these people who were not nice to me and who really didn’t know me.”
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The new track is just one of many things ROSÉ and the radio host broached during their conversation, which arrives just two weeks ahead of the K-pop star’s debut solo album, rosie. Of the 12-track LP, she opened up about feeling “pressure” to complete the project during her time off from BLACKPINK obligations — especially with the clock ticking down to a band reunion in 2025.
“And us as BLACKPINK, as mature as we are, we got together and decided, ‘Let’s promise ourselves a good year to be inspired,’” ROSÉ told Lowe of bandmates JENNIE, LISA and JISOO. “The first thing that happened was anxiety, because I was privileged to have this one year in my hands to do whatever I wanted with it, but I wanted it to be the right decision and it had to feel right … What if I don’t believe in my thing? And what if I’m in a place where I’m having to do things that I don’t feel like it’s me?”
ROSÉ also touched on a past relationship that inspired some of the other songs on rosie, including “Game Boy,” which she says was the last track she wrote for her album. “I’d never like the person to know about it, but I would talk about [them] so much,” she told Lowe. “I needed to get it off my chest.”
Cynthia Erivo had some gratitude to share on Friday morning (Nov. 22) as she and Wicked co-star Ariana Grande reached the end of an exhaustive, full-court-press media tour promoting the first part of the Broadway-to-big-screen musical.
“This journey has been long, and paved with bright, yellow brick. We have laughed and cried, held hands and walked side by side, our lives intertwined, and because of that, we were irrevocably changed for good,” the Emmy, Grammy and Tony-winning singer/actress wrote in an Instagram post about the yearslong process of bringing the beloved Broadway re-telling of The Wizard of Oz onto movie screens.
With the film finally opening on Friday, Erivo opened up about the transformative experience of slipping into Elphaba’s green makeup and round glasses, confiding that this was more than just a role for her. “We gained more than a movie. We gained a love letter to love, friendship, the celebration of the things that make us different, special, and beautiful, and the bravery it takes to change your mind,” she said before offering targeted shout-outs to the movie’s key players, including her own character.
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“Elphaba, Thank you for the gifts you have brought me,” she wrote before heaping praise on Grande’s Glinda. “Galinda/ Glinda/ Ariana Grande-Butera, I love you. You are the truest, kindest, human being. It has been an honor to share this experience of a lifetime with you,” she added; Grande is credited with what she’s called her “little girl name” in the movie’s credits, which is how she was referred to when she first saw the Wicked musical on Broadway as a 10-year-old.
She also thanked her “dear captain,” director Jon M. Chu, for “your trust and your belief, your heart and imagination. You lead us with love and it is all over that screen.” And, as for the many fans who’ve been waiting three long years for the movie — which has been in development with a variety of directors and actors attached to it for nearly 15 years — to open after several delays, including one caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Erivo wrote, “Wicked is now yours, from us with love. Your Elphie.”
The post included a number of photos from set, a time-lapse video of the intensive Elphaba makeup process, choreography rehearsals and moving behind-the-scenes snaps, including one of Erivo laying her head on Grande’s shoulder.
The second part of Wicked is slated to open on Nov. 21, 2025 and a Wicked sing-along is slated to his theaters this Christmas.
Check out Erivo’s post below.
Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
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This week, ROSÉ wants to hit “Number One,” Jack Harlow wants to make your heart swoon and Wicked wants you to sing along. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
ROSÉ, “Number One Girl”
While “APT.,” ROSÉ’s smash collaboration with Bruno Mars, became her first career top 10 hit and introduced the BLACKPINK’s star solo oeuvre to U.S. radio listeners, “Number One Girl” (which was created with Mars, in fact) effectively swerves in a different direction, a piano ballad that showcases her pleading voice and expands her story.
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Jack Harlow, “Hello Miss Johnson”
“I think it’s a song about courtship, first and foremost,” Jack Harlow recently told Apple Music about his latest single — and indeed, “Hello Miss Johnson” finds the rapper nodding toward OutKast’s “Ms. Jackson” over a lightly sashaying beat while spitting game to try and impress a lady.
Various Artists, Wicked: The Soundtrack
With Wicked hitting theaters this weekend and beguiling families ahead of Thanksgiving, the film’s official soundtrack captures the movie magic thanks to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo — co-stars, and vocal powerhouses — injecting new life into the musical’s beloved centerpieces. Read the full review.
Jelly Roll, “Run It”
Talk about prolific: on the same day that he dropped “Hurt,” a new collaboration with OneRepublic, and the same week that he announced a stadium tour slot in support of Post Malone, Jelly Roll also unveiled “Run It,” a snappy clap-along for the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 soundtrack that sounds primed to transcend the family film.
Wizkid, Morayo
While Wizkid’s latest full-length features a satisfying array of collaborations (with features from Jazmine Sullivan, Brent Faiyaz and Asake, among others), Morayo, which is dedicated to the Nigerian star’s late mother, hits close to home, with songwriting defined by memories and intimate revelations.
Lil Nas X, “Need Dat Boy”
Although his biggest hits are uptempo, chest-thumping anthems, Lil Nas X also sounds comfortable slowing down the BPM and turning insular — and “Need Dat Boy,” in which he works through his complex feelings of fame and loneliness over sparse production before the beat switches, deserves a big listenership as well.
Quevedo, Buenas Noches
Madrid native Quevedo has made a sizable mark on Latin urban music over the past three years — a line that can be traced back to his enormous Bizarrap session in 2022 — and Buenas Noches sounds like a new star being coronated, his deep voice and springy flow given ample room to dazzle.
Editor’s Pick: Miguel, “Always Time”
Since his last album, 2017’s War & Leisure, Miguel watched his song “Sure Thing” become a viral sensation a decade after its release; now, he’s demonstrating the gorgeous ache in his voice with “Always Time,” a somber new track that sounds like a check-in with new and old fans alike before a major 2025.
Charli XCX is extending Brat summer into Brat spring. The singer announced a run of five 2025 U.S. arena dates on Friday (Nov. 22). The Charli XCX – Brat 2025 – Arena tour is slated to kick off on April 22 with a gig at the Moody Center in Austin, TX , followed by a stop at the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN and an April 28 show at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL.
The quick-hit run — her first solo U.S. arena tour — will wind down with a two-fer at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on April 30 and May 1.
Fans can register for first access to tickets in the artist presale which is open how here; the artist presale will being on Tuesday (Nov. 26) at 10 a.m. local time with a general onsale beginning on Tuesday at 2 p.m. local time here. At press time no supporting acts had been announced.
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Fans got buzzing about a possible large-scale tour earlier this week when billboards featuring the album’s signature lo-fi font and lime green color scheme that read “Chicago,” “Minneapolis” and “Brooklyn” in those cities; Charli used a similar scheme in October to tease her Brat remix album, Brat and It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat.
Charli and Troy Sivan criss-crossed the North America on their joint 22-city Sweat tour in September and October, hitting venues from Detroit to Toronto, New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Nashville, Atlanta, Miami, Orlando, Dallas, Denver, Phoenix, L.A., San Diego, San Francisco and Portland before winding down in Seattle on Oct. 23.
After hosting and performing as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live last weekend the singer pulled off a surprise pop-up show in New York’s Times Square on Monday night.
The dates will come amidst a busy 2025 for the “365” singer, who is also co-executive producing the score for the A24 movie Mother Mary with Jack Antonoff, as well as producing original music for Benito Skinner’s Amazon Prime Video series Overcompensating. She is also slated to star in Daniel Goldhaber’s remake of the 1978 cult horror film Faces of Death and Greg Araki’s erotic thriller I Want Your Sex.
Check out Charli’s announcement below.
In honor of Wicked finally arriving in theaters, Ariana Grande is thanking the millions of people who have truly changed her for good.
In a heartfelt message on her Instagram Story Friday (Nov. 22) — the same day Part 1 of Wicked premiered worldwide following months of buildup — the 31-year-old pop star expressed her gratitude for her “sweet, sweet fans.” “you have held my hand and helped mend my heart time and time again over the past ten years, and i would never be here without you,” she wrote. “i mean that in every way you can interpret it.”
“thank you for your patience with me,” Grande continued. “i know i disappeared into this project for a long, long time (i believe you all called it ‘the drought’!) and i know that was hard for you all. i want to thank you for your fierce protection, your passion, and your ability to see me and love me as i evolve alongside all of you.”
“til i am old lady Peaches, i will love you this same way,” added the Grammy winner, referencing the alter ego she created amid her Eternal Sunshine album era earlier this year. “thank you for growing with me. it’s one of the greatest joys and gifts of my life.”
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Grande also commemorated the occasion by sharing a collection of behind-the-scenes snaps from the set of Wicked. In one photo, co-leading lady Cynthia Erivo leans her head on the “Yes, And?” singer’s shoulder between takes of the Ozdust ballroom sequence; in another, Grande cuddles up next to costar Jonathan Bailey while filming a classroom scene.
The Victorious alum shared a separate post that included a video of her learning the “What Is This Feeling?” choreography as well, plus a clip of herself — pre-blonde hair — and the Pinocchio actress cracking up during a rehearsal. “like a handprint on my heart,” Grande wrote. “happy Wicked day to all.”
Also starring Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Michelle Yeoh and Marissa Bode, Wicked arrived in theaters Friday after more than three years in the making. From the moment Grande’s casting was announced in 2021 to the film’s two-year production in London and the monthslong promotional campaign that has unfolded this year, the “We Can’t Be Friends” musician has been open about how much the opportunity has meant to her.
“It just feels like this experience was such a homecoming for me,” she said in a recent radio interview with Australia’s Hit 104.7 Canberra. “I feel like I came home to myself in a lot of ways, through what I learned from Glinda and Elphaba.”
But just because Wicked is finally out — one year ahead of Part 2’s release in 2025 — doesn’t mean Grande is done gushing about it. “this will be Ozian photo dump one out of one million,” she added on her Story. “i apologize in advance. i am nowhere near done oversharing.”
Jelly Roll has had a stellar year, seeing his album Beautifully Broken debut at No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200, notching No. 1 Country Airplay hits such as “I Am Not Okay” and “Halfway to Hell” and embarking on his first headlining arena trek, The Beautifully Broken Tour. Plus, he turned in a pair of top-shelf performances at this week’s CMA Awards, including a moving version of “Believe” with Brooks & Dunn.
However, though he had multiple nominations leading into this year’s CMAs, his name wasn’t among this year’s winners. Jelly Roll was nominated for entertainer of the year (which ultimately went to Morgan Wallen, marking his first win in the category), male vocalist of the year (which saw Chris Stapleton pick up his eighth win in that category) and album of the year (Jelly Roll’s Whitsitt Chapel was nominated, but Cody Johnson’s Leather was declared the victor in the category). Notably, Jelly Roll is featured on Leather, collaborating with Johnson on the song “Whiskey Bent.”
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Jelly Roll may not have walked away from this year’s CMAs with any new hardware in his arsenal — he won the CMA new artist of the year accolade in 2023 — but he’s not letting that get him down. Instead, he’s determined to work even harder ahead of next year’s CMA Awards, and he had plenty of praise for this year’s winners.
In a social media post, Jelly said he was grateful for his performance alongside Brooks & Dunn, showered praise on Wallen, Johnson and Stapleton, thanked his family, and revealed a moment of inspiration he took from watching Taylor Swift.
“Standing next to the two people that matter the most to me, we walked into the Bridgestone Arena for my second CMA ever as a nominated artist,” he wrote. “On the biggest night in country music on the biggest stage in Nashville I had the opportunity to stand next to a couple of living legends and praise Jesus in front of the world. Thank you Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, y’all could’ve picked any artist in the world bigger than me, I’ll never be able to thank y’all enough for giving me an opportunity to shamelessly stand on my faith in front of the world.”
He added of this year’s CMA Awards winners, “I know I don’t have to say this but, just so we are clear – Chris Stapleton was and always will be the Male Vocalist of the year as long as he is alive and I think we all agree about that. MORGAN WALLEN MY EAST TENNESSEE BROTHER finally got the flowers he deserves, no one has done more for country music in the last quarter of a century than Morgan has. And Cody, my brother and one of my best friends Cody Johnson, your album Leather is truly one of my favorite albums recorded in the last decade, any win for you is a win for me, you deserved this one, and now I can brag that I’m one of the only features on the CMA album of the year. To my wife and daughter, thank you both. You both stood by me when I wasn’t worth standing by I’m glad we are enjoying this rocket ride together.”
He ended his post by recalling inspiration he has taken from Taylor Swift, when Swift was in a similar situation, after her 2017 album Reputation did not receive a Grammy nomination in the album of the year category — though Reputation did pick up a nomination for best pop vocal album.
Jelly Roll wrote, “Lastly I seeen [sic] a clip the other day of Taylor Swift when she found out her album Reputation was not nominated for album of the year at the Grammys and her first response was “it’s ok, I just have to make a better record” – man that lit a fire under me in a way I’ve never had lit,” he said. “That was ultimate accountability in action in the real moment and that’s why Taylor is the legend she is. That was all said to say, I’m going to write a better album, I’m going to work harder and I’ll be back baby, I will be back. PS REPUTATION was one of the greatest albums ever written.”
See Jelly Roll’s post below:
Erykah Badu is returning to a screen near you.
The singer has deeply immersed herself in the upcoming film The Piano Lesson, taking part in producing the score as well as joining the cast as bandleader Lucille at the Pittsburgh Hill District’s famed jazz club the Crawford Grill. In a clip shared exclusively with Billboard, the superstar curates a high-energy jazz performance, with patrons flooding the dance floor to groove along to the melody.
Badu has previously acted in films and TV series, including What Men Want, The Land, Hand of God and more.
The Malcolm Washington-directed film, adapted from August Wilson’s 1987 Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name, stars Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, Ray Fisher, Michael Potts, Skylar Aleece Smith, Danielle Deadwyler and Corey Hawkins, in addition to Badu. The story, set in 1936 following the Great Depression, follows the Charles family as they clash over an heirloom, the family piano, which is decorated with designs carved by an enslaved ancestor. As a result, they find “haunting truths about how the past is perceived and who defines a family legacy,” per the film’s logline.
Denzel Washington and Todd Black are The Piano Lesson‘s producers, while the music score was created by Alexandre Desplat.
In addition to her portrayal of Lucille, Badu also wrote an essay for The Piano Lesson‘s accompanying Assouline book that features exclusive artwork celebrating the making of the film. “Ain’t no such thing as a wrong note. That’s the first thing you gotta understand,” she begins, sharing her personal journey with her own musical family heirloom, a piano from her grandmother. “Every time I pressed down [on the keys], even when the sound wasn’t ‘right’ by some textbook standard, I felt the vibrations of truth. Those so-called wrong notes? They were the universe whispering secrets, showing me paths that nobody else could see.”
The book will be available to order here starting Friday (Nov. 22), the same day The Piano Lesson hits Netflix. Watch the exclusive clip from the film above, and read Badu’s full essay via Billboard below.
Ain’t no such thing as a wrong note. That’s the first thing you gotta understand. When my grandmama gave us a used upright piano, made of wood with gold accents and keys yellowed and slightly out of tune, she wasn’t just giving us a musical instrument. She was passing on a portal to another dimension, a way to speak with the ancestors.
I was just a little girl of seven, with tiny hands stretching to reach those ivory bones. Every time I pressed down, even when the sound wasn’t ‘right’ by some textbook standard, I felt the vibrations of truth. Those so-called wrong notes? They were the universe whispering secrets, showing me paths that nobody else could see.
Fast-forward to the set of Malcolm Washington’s adaptation of The Piano Lesson. Initially, I’m there to produce music for the score, but next thing you know, I’m acting in the club scene, feeling August Wilson’s words pulse through me like they did back in my days as a theater major at Grambling State. And there’s this scene that was really heavy. Berniece is faced with this haunted piano, a sort of family heirloom with its carved figures, carrying generations of joy and pain. She’s scared and refuses to touch it, like it might burn her fingers with all that history.
But eventually, she relents. In order to exorcise the ghost, she bands on those keys repeatedly, wailing, ‘Help me, ancestors, help me!’ That’s when the magic happens. It ain’t pretty. It ain’t polished. But it’s real. It’s raw. And in those ‘wrong’ notes, in that discord of sound and emotion, both Berniece and the trapped spirit find release.
Miley Cyrus has six new pieces of hardware in her collection, one for each of her biggest hits. And in a new episode of Spotify‘s Billions Club: The Series, the 31-year-old pop star opened up about each of her tracks that have crossed into 10-digit territory on the streaming service, including 2009’s “Party in the U.S.A.” — which she lovingly referred to as the “ultimate grocery aisle music” — 2013’s “We Can’t Stop,” 2018’s “Nothing Breaks Like a Heart” with Mark Ronson and 2020’s “Angels Like You.”
The celebration of her milestones comes as her first-ever Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single, “Wrecking Ball,” becomes her sixth track to reach a billion listens.
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While discussing the pop-rock heartbreak anthem with sister Brandi Cyrus, Miley revealed the straightforward inspiration behind “Wrecking Ball”: “My man wasn’t acting right.”
Released in 2013, the song is widely believed to be about the star’s ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth — as is “Flowers,” her second-ever Hot 100 chart-topper and the fastest of her tracks to reach a billion streams. It was also Spotify’s most-streamed song of 2023 and earned Miley her first and second Grammy Awards (record of the year and best pop solo performance) earlier this year.
Of the speculation into the subject matter of “Flowers,” Miley quipped, “The only rumor I can confirm to be true is that the gold dress I am wearing is museum-quality from Yves Saint Laurent that is in an exhibition in Paris right now.”
In another clip from the shoot shared exclusively with Billboard on Thursday (Nov. 21), the Hannah Montana alum reflected on how she’s inspired younger stars such as Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter and Olivia Rodrigo. “You never think about in the future, someone replicating what you do,” she said in the snippet. “You’re just doing it because it’s honest in the moment … It’s really important they do it their own way, because that’s what my career has represented above all else.”
Miley’s Billions Club episode makes her just the latest artist to be honored by the series, with past installments focusing on Ariana Grande, Cardi B, Billie Eilish, Ed Sheeran and more.
Watch Miley’s Billions Club episode above.
Jason Kelce stopped by Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday night (Nov. 21) to talk about his new ESPN talk show, though the conversation naturally ended up pivoting to his younger brother Travis and Trav’s girlfriend, Taylor Swift.
After some perfunctory talk about the former Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl-winning center’s salad days with the team and how he keeps himself busy now that he’s retired, the pair got down to the really important stuff: what gifts is Jason getting Travis and Taylor for Christmas?
“At Christmastime will you buy individual gifts for Travis and Taylor, or will you buy them a couple’s gift?” Kimmel wondered. “And what do you get them?”
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“It’s tough to shop for people that can have anything that they want,” Jason admitted. “So you gotta go to handmade gifts, something sentimental maybe that is near and dear to them?” When Kimmel asked if Jason was crafty enough to make his own hand-made gifts, the former baller said he never has, but that it might work “really well” this holiday season.
“I’ve got something up my sleeve year… a macaroni necklace would be [a good gift]. It works on me with my kids,” said Kelce. “It would be funny if you make Taylor a macaroni necklace and then all of a sudden millions of girls are wearing macaroni necklaces,” Kimmel joked as Kelce coined the sure-to-be-viral-soon phrase “friendship macaroni necklaces.”
Jason Kelce will debut his new ESPN talk show, They Call it Late Night, on Jan. 3, with the post-season series slated to air every Friday during the playoffs. “I’ve always loved [late night shows]. I remember sleepovers watching Conan O’Brien with my friends,” he told Kimmel. “For me, the biggest thing players say they miss when they leave the sport is being around the guys, the locker room, the banter.” Which is why the new show will feature a rotating cast of legends, friends, celebrities, former teammates and a live band, all in Philadelphia, of course.
When Kimmel asked if Travis might be on the show, Jason said the Kansas City Chiefs tight end will “probably” be busy — the Chiefs are 9-1 and are on track to cruise to the playoffs again this year — but “hopefully” he can’t make it because he’s tied up trying to win an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl.
“If he says he can’t make it on a Friday and then we see him at one of girlfriend’s concerts on a Friday, we’re gonna have a problem probably,” Kimmel joked about Travis’ frequent trips around the world to catch Swift on her soon-to-conclude Eras Tour. “We all know who the priority is,” Jason said.
Watch Jason Kelce on Kimmel below.
