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Ye (formally knows as Kanye West) has another documentary in the works, but this time it’ll be directed by a newcomer with “a billion-dollar budget” and “armed with an iPhone” instead of a couple old friends from Chicago.
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Directed by 18-year-old Nico Ballesteros, and produced by Goodfellas and Utopia, the doc will be introduced at the upcoming American Film Market in Las Vegas with a promo reel this week with a hopeful release date some time in 2025.
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Via press release, the synopsis reads as follows: “With a billion-dollar budget and a commitment to truth, Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, invites 18-year-old Nicolas Ballesteros armed with an iPhone on a six-year journey revealing unfiltered aspects of celebrity life which confront the provocative opinions, grand visions and bold contrarianism that defined him as the world’s most controversial artist.
“The film follows Ye’s ascent to becoming the richest Black man in American history while uncovering why the superstar risked everything he had built in the name of freedom. Examining the culture that birthed the star, ‘In Whose Name?’ explores the overlapping influences of corporate exploitation, racial complexities and psychological struggles inherent in the American dream.”
Marie Zeniter, VP of Sales at Utopia had this to say in a statement: “We’re thrilled to present In Whose Name? This powerful documentary offers an unfiltered view without narration, it invites audiences to draw their own conclusions on themes of fame, religion, and power. We believe audiences globally deserve the chance to witness how one of the world’s most influential figures navigates the complexities and contradictions of celebrity.”
Ballesteros posted a picture from the doc and a text exchange with Ye on Instagram, along with the caption, Coming to Theaters Worldwide 2025.” In the text exchange, Ye apparently told the young filmmaker, “The doc was very deep. It was like being dead and looking back on my life,” to which Ballesteros answered, “This is the most profound text message I have ever received. I love you brother.”
Aside from the doc, Ye is also working on his 11th studio album entitled Bully.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER continue to solidify their place as one of K-pop’s greatest storytellers with The Star Chapter: SANCTUARY. This reflective yet hopeful mini-album captures the nuanced emotional spectrum of youth through some of their most subtle, vocally challenging songs to date. The six-track mini album release takes listeners on a journey that melds TXT’s […]
TOMORROW X TOGETHER dropped their seventh mini-album, The Star Chapter: SANCTUARY, and to celebrate, the group debuted the song “Over the Moon” live during the last show of their WORLD TOUR ENCORE IN SEOUL on November 3. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Introducing the new lead single […]
Tyler, The Creator earns new career milestones on Billboard’s charts, thanks to his latest album, Chromakopia.
The set debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (dated Nov. 9) with 299,500 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the Oct. 25-31 tracking week, according to Luminate – Tyler, The Creator’s biggest week ever in terms of units. Notably, the set was released on an off-cycle Monday (Oct. 28); thus, its first-week sum is from only four days of activity. (Most albums are released on Fridays, giving them a full seven days of activity in their opening chart weeks.)
The LP sold 66,000 on vinyl, the third-biggest debut week for a rap album on vinyl since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991.
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Further, all 14 songs from Chromakopia chart on the latest Billboard Hot 100, led by the set’s opening track, “St. Chroma,” featuring Daniel Caesar, at No. 7, and “Noid” (released ahead of the album on Oct. 21), which jumps 43-10. The tracks mark his first two career Hot 100 top 10s.
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Here’s a recap of every song from the album on the latest Hot 100 (all of which are debuts except “Noid”):
Rank, TitleNo. 7, “St. Chroma,” feat. Daniel CaesarNo. 10, “Noid” (up from No. 43)No. 14, “Sticky,” feat. GloRilla, Sexyy Red & Lil WayneNo. 15, “Darling, I,” feat. Teezo TouchdownNo. 16, “Rah Tah Tah”No. 32, “Thought I Was Dead,” feat. ScHoolboy Q & SantigoldNo. 33, “Hey Jane”No. 40, “Judge Judy”No. 42, “Take Your Mask Off,” feat. Daniel Caesar & LaToiya WilliamsNo. 45, “Like Him,” feat. Lola YoungNo. 46, “I Killed You”No. 53, “Tomorrow”No. 56, “Balloon,” feat. DoechiiNo. 65, “I Hope You Find Your Way Home”
Prior to this week, Tyler, The Creator had charted 33 Hot 100 hits, reaching as high as No. 13 with “Earfquake” in 2019. His new total of 46 career entries dates to September 2011, when he first charted as a featured act on The Game’s “Martians vs Goblins,” also featuring Lil Wayne. The song spent one week on the chart at No. 100. He returned in July 2017 with “Who Dat Boy” (No. 87 peak).
Thanks to their featured appearances on the songs listed above, Santigold, LaToiya Williams and Lola Young all earn their first career entries on the Hot 100.
Meanwhile, Lil Wayne tallies his 187th career Hot 100 hit, and first of 2024, thanks to his feature on “Sticky.” He has now charted at least one song on the Hot 100 in every year since 2004 – 21 consecutive years and counting, the longest active streak among all acts. The next-longest active runs are by Jason Aldean and Chris Brown (20 years each), Taylor Swift (19), Luke Bryan (18) and Mariah Carey (17) – all five acts have all charted in 2024, thus continuing their respective streaks.
Ariana Grande is paying homage to her younger self. In an interview with Australia’s Hit 104.7 Canberra, the “We Can’t Be Friends” singer was asked why she chose to use her “grown-up name,” a.k.a. her birth name Ariana Grande-Butera, in the credits of Wicked. “Technically, it’s my little girl name! It’s technically little Ari’s name,” […]
While Shygirl was crushing performances onstage as the supporting act for Charli XCX and Troye Sivan‘s recently wrapped Sweat tour, a lot more was happening behind the scenes and on the road. “We would get off the tour bus at every truck stop just to look at and buy every souvenir that caught our eye,” […]
Solange loves her some Sosa. Footage captured Chief Keef meeting Solange over the weekend and the heartwarming exchange found the Chicago drill pioneer in shock that the A Seat at the Table singer was a fan of his music.
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“That’s you on the keys?” she asked Sosa about a certain song of his. He replied stunned: “What the f–k is going on?” All Solange could do was laugh at the interaction.
Another clip found Chief Keef calling her his “bestie.” “Y’all heard Solange my bestie,” he said. “That’s my bestie.”
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A bystander chimed in: “That’s hard!”
Fans lent their stamp of approval to the unlikely meet-up in The Neighborhood Talk‘s IG comment section. “I love how celebrities get star struck as well cuz Sosa ain’t wrong this is a wholesome moment frfr,” one person wrote.
Another added: “He was lowkey happy she knew who he was I love that for her!”
Chief Keef is currently on the road for his A Lil Tour run, which was rescheduled from earlier this year to close out 2024 due to a medical emergency. He’ll be making North American stops in Denver, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Brooklyn, Detroit, Philly and more before wrapping up in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 24.
Solange and Sosa are yet to collaborate, but perhaps that could change in the future. Chief Keef delivered his delayed Almighty So 2 project in May, which debuted at No. 30 on the Billboard 200.
Solange has been laying low on the album front as her last LP arrived in 2019 with When I Get Home. Earlier this year, she teased writing music for the tuba. “I’ve started writing music for the tuba, and I am trying to talk myself into releasing it, but I can only imagine the eye rolls from people being like, this b—h hasn’t made an album,” she told Harper’s Bazaar.
Watch the clip below.
Worl Boss is finally free — and now the Jamaican musical and cultural icon is getting the podcast treatment.
Worl Boss: The Vybz Kartel Story, an eight-part podcast series from SALT, Big Wave More Fire and Gulfstream Studios, is set to debut on Dec. 16, 2024. Created by Tahir Garcia and Sam Griesemer and executive produced by Nick Panama and Max Musina, the audio series will explore the life, career and influence of the dancehall icon.
“There’s so many incredible stories that exist within dancehall and reggae music and the culture here in Jamaica, and so many of them don’t get shared with the public. The only time you hear these stories is if you’re lucky,” Garcia, who also narrates the series, tells Billboard. “We took a step back, two or three years ago, and decided that we wanted this space to be able to tell the story properly. Obviously, podcasting has become this huge thing. But one thing that’s missing, especially in Jamaican culture, is this concept of [podcasts] being scripted. There’s so much more that can be brought to it with sound design and actually sitting down and editing interviews to tell the narrative in a way that captures everything and really preserved the essence of [Vybz Kartel’s] story.”
The new podcast series is told entirely by Jamaican voices and will exclusively feature interviews with important figures within Kartel’s circle, including the first female member of Kartel’s Portmore Empire crew Lisa Hyper, Kartel’s former DJ Creep Chromatic and famed musician Wayne Marshall. These key players will also be joined by Winford Williams — host of On Stage TV, the longest-runnning dancehall interview series — as well as essayist Carolyn Cooper, author and professor Donna Hope, and Milk and Jay Will, two important collaborators on Teacha’s Pet, Kartel’s reality show.
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Earlier this summer (July 31), just over a week before Jamaica’s Independence Day (Aug. 6), Kartel regained his freedom after the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled that he and his co-accused — Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St. John — will not face a new trial for the 2011 murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. Although he was originally sentenced to 35 years in prison after a historic 64-day trial back in 2014, Kartel (and his co-accused) have always denied their involvement in Williams’ death.
“We have a lot of assets and we spoke to people at the source, including his camp, people in and around his orbit, fans and musicians. We did a pretty extensive job covering all the bases,” says Panama. “We have a lot of voices that are going to be represented and using that as a way to help breakthrough and create the world around the story is part of how we’ll successfully bring this to market. We’ve got some really great partners in the audio space that we’ll be announcing soon, and I think they’ll help amplify this project even more.”
Known for hits such as “Fever” and his Spice-assisted “Romping Shop,” Vybz Kartel’s raunchy music and slick wordplay have soundtracked multiple generations of dancehall listeners, and Garcia promises the new series will be for everyone: from first-time listeners to lifelong fans. “If this is your first introduction [to Vybz Kartel], it’s supposed to be just as impactful as it would be to someone who’s listened to him forever.”
In addition to his music and efforts to support Jamaica, Kartel’s legal woes have also become a major part of his legacy — one that Worl Boss does not shy away from. “Everything gets addressed and talked about. We just don’t dwell on that. It’s a part of the journey, but it doesn’t define the character,” explains Garcia, who also tells Billboard that, “the hardest part was getting people who are close to [Kartel] to speak freely — especially while he was still incarcerated — because nobody wanted to do anything that could potentially incriminate [him or themselves]. Everyone was very, very cautious about agreeing to do it, and what put them at ease was us not focusing on the mess.”
Although there are currently no additional details about the podcast’s distribution, Panama stresses that the podcast series is just one part of the story they hope to tell. “The second [part] is a documentary series and feature film that are in development with arguably one of the biggest Jamaican directors, and UTA’s representing the project,” he reveals. “That will probably be more of a late 2024 thing, but the reason we did those together is because the story is so dynamic. Dancehall is such a small genre from a small country that has an enormously outsized impact globally. To have a revered yet controversial figure at the heart of that with Vybz [Kartel] is such a fascinating character and cultural study.”
Since his release, Kartel has remained outside partying and enjoying his freedom ahead of a massive “Freedom Street” concert at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica, on Dec. 31 — his first performance in 13 years. Production and filming for Worl Boss began before Kartel regain his freedom, but now “there’s a third act to his story,” Panama muses. “He wasted no time walking out of prison and getting his entrepreneurial and music endeavors back up and running and continuing to build his mythology.”
From February’s box office-topping Bob Marley: One Love biopic to Worl Boss, Jamaica has remained at the forefront of global popular culture throughout 2024. For his part, Garcia hopes this new podcast series is the beginning of several projects chronicling and preserving Caribbean culture and music history. “That’s one of the things we spoke about very early on in this process, what does the next step within this space look like?” he says. “Once [Worl Boss] starts rolling out, hopefully it reshapes what people think is possible, and that’s going to be even more exciting.”
Musical powerhouse Quincy Jones died on Sunday (Nov. 3) at 91 years old. “Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” his family said in a statement. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived […]
In the techno hall of fame, Dubfire exists alongside the greats. The producer, who was born in Iran and moved to Washington D.C. as a child as his family fled the Iranian Revolution, has been a fixture in the global scene for more than 15 years, playing under both his techno moniker and as half of Deep Dish, his longstanding and beloved progressive house project with Sharam.
The artist born Ali Shirazinia has been putting in work on both projects as of late, releasing his two-track Redacted EP, a collaborative project with Argentinean artist Flug, in late October, shortly after he wrapped a week at ADE in Amsterdam. He played a whirlwind of showcases, including the annual Homeless Homies fundraiser, which donates 100% of ticket profits and a portion of drink sales to homeless shelter in Amsterdam and the home of techno, Detroit.
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Next month, Deep Dish will play their first shows in London in more than a decade, premiering a load of new music to intimate crowds at venue The Cause. Dubfire will also globetrot to Tulum, Mexico in January to play at Damian Lazarus’ annual Day Zero party.
Here, he reflects on ADE, the passing of Jackmaster, the state of techno and more.
1. Where are you in the world right now, and what’s the setting like?
I’m currently in Montreal, recovering from the marathon 12-hour set I played at Stereo with my Deep Dish co-pilot Sharam. That kind of DJing is a dying art so we aim to not just entertain our audience, but inspire the next generation to step up and keep it alive.
2. What is the first album or piece of music you bought for yourself, and what was the medium
Ultravox’s The Collection on cassette. I didn’t really buy much vinyl — I was purely a cassette tape guy.
3. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid, and what do or did they think of what you’ve done and do now?
We came to the U.S.A. initially not intending to stay, but the Islamic Revolution forced my parents to take up odd jobs to keep us afloat after we chose to stay. Though they had hoped I’d take up a reputable profession, they nevertheless helped launch the first Deep Dish release and watched in amazement as I began to tour the world over that decade and beyond. They have always been my biggest support.
4. What is the first non-gear thing you bought for yourself when you started making money as an artist?
It must have been a pager.
5. If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what would you give them?
Global Communication’s 76:14.
6. What’s the last song you listened to?
Blixa Bargeld and Teho Teardo’s “Starkregen.”
7. You just spent the week at ADE. What are your big takeaways from the experience?
Choose all the panels you want to see in advance and schedule your meetings around them. Do not go out to any parties until Friday, and never try to organize an event unless you work with a local promoter.
8. What were your best ADE moments?
Catching up with legendary dub producer Adrian Sherwood at Melkweg and meeting with Armada at their incredible offices. Deep Dish couldn’t have found a better home.
9. You participated in the Homeless Homies event, which raised money for homeless organizations. Tell us what that program is and why you were compelled to participate?
Donating my name and time by playing an intense afternoon techno set is the least I can do to help the homeless epidemic. It’s inspiring to watch how committed [event organizers] DJ Bone and Ahnne are to easing, and eventually eradicating, homelessness in Amsterdam and Detroit. I wish more DJs, myself included, gave themselves to worthy community service.
10. What’s going on in electronic music right now that you’re most excited about?
The new STEMS feature in Native Instruments’ latest update of Traktor Pro is a game-change moment for DJing and production. I’m also excited by the sheer quantity of dance music which defies categorization, sitting comfortably in between genres and sub-genres.
11. What’s going on in electronic music that you’re over?
Social media and poseur DJs.
12. You won a Grammy in 2002 with Deep Dish for your remix of Dido’s “Thank You.” Did winning that award change your career in any way?
I can’t say that it had any residual effect.
13. Were you at the awards ceremony when you won? If so, what are your strongest memories of the night?
I recall Coldplay getting an award for their first album and going through the backstage press maze together with them.
14. You posted a really lovely tribute to Jackmaster after his passing last month. Do you have any great Jackmaster memories you’d like to share?
It is still incredibly tragic to think about; his brother who I hadn’t met reached out to me after my post with a very sweet message which was touching. We all knew, and saw, how loved he was by the sheer number of posts which surfaced, and in some way I think that helped our dance music community cope with the loss. I do recall another time where we DJ’d the same event in Valencia, and he was dancing and singing to Danny Tenaglia’s “Be Yourself” in complete bliss when I dropped it at the end of my set. I would notice this often with Jack; he’d become completely immersed in this music as if he was in a trance. It was beautiful to witness that.
15. What’s your take on the current state of techno?
True techno music has honestly never been better; I am buried in quality tracks at the moment, and these are mainly from newer, younger artists. Though it seems to be getting sidelined by this new form of EDM that is cloaked in techno which I find incredibly cheesy and irritating.
16. What artists are you taking inspiration from lately?
Joy Orbison, Chlär, SNYL, Nick Cave, Einstürzende Neubauten to name just a random few…and believe it or not, I’m completely obsessed with Lykke Li at the moment; especially her ü&me EP which is achingly beautiful.
17. What cities around the world feel the most exciting to play in right now?
Buenos Aires, Barcelona and Miami.
18. What’s the best business decision you’ve ever made?
Quitting my day job, which allowed me to pursue my dreams full time.
19. who’s been your greatest mentor and what’s the best advice they ever gave you?
My mother who forced me to park my money in real estate.
20. What’s one piece of advice you’d give your younger self?
Buy a villa in Ibiza.
