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Jordyn Woods independently released her debut single “Be With You” on all digital streaming platforms Thursday (Oct. 31).
She first teased the R&B love song in May when she used it to soundtrack her heartwarming Instagram Reel for her boyfriend and New York Knicks player Karl-Anthony Towns to commemorate their four-year anniversary. “I’ll be everything you need/ You know that I’m on your team/ Glad heaven sent you to me/ ‘Cause all I wanna do is/ Be with you/ Be with you/ Be with you/ ‘Cause all I wanna do is/ Be with you/ Be with you/ Be with you, baby,” she sings in the chorus.
Vince Staples commented “Drop the album” under the video, which has currently amassed nearly four million views on Instagram – and Woods exclusively tells Billboard that’s the ultimate “goal. Maybe an EP, an album, who knows? The possibilities are endless, and I think with the positive response, why not keep putting out music? I already have a bunch of songs recorded.”
There’s a bunch of rap songs that reference Woods, from Rick Ross’ “NumbNumb Juice (Freestyle)” (“Got the shooters with me when I be in foreign hoods/ Got a new two seater just for Jordyn Woods”) to Buddy’s “Shameless” (“Jon & Vinny’s on a lunch date/ I need Jordyn Woods on my dinner plate”). But she revealed her singing voice for the first time when she competed on season three of Fox’sThe Masked Singer in 2020. “Someone I knew worked at The Masked Singer. And he’s like, ‘You need to be on the show. They need to hear your voice.’ And I’m like, ‘No, I’ll never do it,’” she recalls. “One day, they reached out. And I was just like, ‘You know what, should I just take this chance?’ This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance, let me just take it and try it.’”
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During her 11-week tenure on the singing competition series, Woods performed “No Air” by Jordin Sparks after the judges previously guessed she was actually that Jordin and delivered stirring performances of Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” and Rihanna’s “Diamonds” – all while under disguised as “Kangaroo.” She previously told Billboard following her elimination that Robin Thicke even compared her to India.Arie, whom she grew up listening to along with Sade, Luther Vandross and Anita Baker.
“I really broke out of my shell when I did The Masked Singer. You’re really performing, and not only that, you’re wearing a huge, heavy, hot costume!” she reflects. “In a way, it made it easier that it wasn’t me center stage, but then it also showed me that if I can do this in this huge costume, I can do this without the costume. It definitely helped boost my confidence, but it still took years for me to even put anything out.”
Four years later, she’s mustered up the courage to put out her first official single, and it’s not surprising that her boyfriend Towns was the inspiration behind it. “He’s one of the biggest people to motivate me to get in the studio to make music because he knows that I can and that I’m just scared. He himself has actually recorded some songs, too,” she adds. “The first song I actually recorded, we went to the studio together. And we’re both very competitive. I was getting really scared to get in the booth, and he was like, ‘Oh, well, I bet I can go in the other studio and record a song.’ And I’m like, ‘OK, bet! It’s a competition: Let’s see who finishes their song first.’ I ended up finishing my song and that was my motivation to just say ‘f—k it’ and get in the booth.”
Woods kept going back to the studio and recording more songs like “Be With You,” which was produced by Grammy-nominated producer MyGuyMars, who’s worked with Chris Brown, Nipsey Hussle, Kehlani, Mýa and more, and written by him and Woods. She says a mutual friend who knew she was interested in pursuing music connected the two, and they got to work at his recording studio in Van Nuys, California.
“I forced myself to put out ‘Be With You’ because if I didn’t, then it might just sit in the vault,” she explains, adding that her biggest priority was “finding what my sound is as an artist. What makes sense for me? Just being experimental, trying some pop, trying some R&B.”
One person commented underneath her Reel suggesting Ty Dolla $ign as a featured artist on “Be With You.” “Oh my gosh, I would love that! Ty Dolla $ign is amazing,” says Woods. “There’s so many times I’ve been in the studio with friends, I’m like a mini A&R. I have an ear for music and a way where I can hear so many different people on different songs. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.” Woods’ artist friends are equally supportive of her. “One of my biggest motivators is Jaden [Smith]. He’s like, ‘Jordyn, I don’t know what the hell you’re waiting for. I’ve been waiting for you to do this for years,’” she adds.
Even though she released “Be With You” six months after she first posted a snippet of the song on Instagram, Woods could be dropping more new music before 2024 is over. “You might get an album this year, or you might get five singles,” she teases. While she’s long considered music to be “therapy,” she realized things were getting serious when labels started reaching out following the “Be With You” teaser. “I’m friends with a lot of people at labels, so it feels pretty organic, it doesn’t feel forceful. But I’m definitely more of an independent artist type of person where I don’t want anyone to force me or ruin it for me. I want to have full leverage and creativity on exactly what I want to do,” she says. “As of right now, I’m just doing me.”
Watch the Roger McKenna-directed music video for “Be With You” below.
Queer pop icons Scissor Sisters have announced a 2025 reunion tour slated to hit the U.K. and Ireland. The concerts will be their first since they went on hiatus in 2012 and will celebrate the 20th anniversary of their self-titled debut album, which went to No.1 in the U.K. upon release.
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After teasing a comeback by projecting their iconic logo onto arenas across the U.K. in recent days, the band have shared the full run of dates they’ll be performing next year. The tour will begin on May 16 with a show in Nottingham and continue on to Glasgow, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Manchester, London, Leeds, Birmingham, Belfast before concluding in Dublin on May 28. See the full run of dates below. Tickets will go on sale on Nov. 8 from the band’s official website.
The group – composed of Jake Shears (vocals), Babydaddy (bass) and Del Marquis (guitar) – also confirmed that former bandmate Ana Matronic will not be a part of the reunion. A statement to accompany the announcement says that vocalist Matronic “has decided not to join the tour as she has other projects she is focusing on right now.”
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“We’ve spent a lot of time collectively thinking about what we can add to our show that isn’t a ‘replacement’ for Ana in any way,” Marquis adds. “She’s part of the spirit of this band and we want to honour that.”
Matronic has responded to the news on her social media profile: “People familiar with my story and career arc will know that in the heart of this Showgirl lies a giant Nerd. In the past decade my Nerd self has taken the wheel and is now driving my career. I am currently finishing production on the first season of my history podcast Good Time Sallies which has grown into several long-term research & writing projects.”
She added: “With contracts signed and schedules agreed on these commitments, the timing of a Scissor reunion does not allow me to join my former bandmates on this tour. I wish the band and our fans all the best – I will be there in spirit to kiki with you!”
The group are planning to perform their 2004 debut Scissor Sisters in full alongside a selection of tracks from their three other studio efforts, 2006’s Ta-Dah, 2010’s Night Work and 2012’s Magic Hour. Scissor Sisters was the U.K.’s best-selling album in 2004 and has racked up more than three million in sales globally.
Speaking to The Independent, the band explained further why they decided to bring the anniversary celebrations and reunion to the U.K and Ireland. “The U.K. has always been a place where you don’t really have to fit into something that already exists,” said Marquis. “They appreciate idiosyncrasy, and appreciate a character, a personality. If anything can be said about our band, it’s that it’s not really like any other band. We didn’t make sense anywhere else, and it’s just like we clicked here.”
2025 Scissor Sisters Tour Dates
May 16 – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena
May 17 – Glasgow, OVO Hydro
May 19 – Bournemouth, International Centre
May 20 – Cardiff, Utilita Arena
May 21 – Manchester, Co-Op Live
May 23 – London, The O2
May 24 – Leeds, First Direct Arena
May 25 – Birmingham, Utilita Arena
May 27 – Belfast, SSE Arena
May 28 – Dublin, 3Arena
Halsey is speaking out about a disturbing incident from earlier in their career, where a “powerful” music executive invaded their privacy by going through nude photos on their phone without consent.
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The singer-songwriter, who uses they/them pronouns, shared the story on the Call Her Daddy podcast, revealing that the incident left them feeling “demoralized” and deeply unsettled.
The “Lucky” singer explained that it happened several years ago while they were with the executive and two of their male managers.
“I mean, I guess it was quite a long time ago, but I was out and I was with this executive, like this really powerful executive who works in music in some capacity. It was very just celebratory, and there was a lot of industry talk,” Halsey said. “I didn’t feel weird about it at all. I never felt unsafe or anything.”
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The evening took a dark turn, however, when the unnamed executive asked Halsey to send a photo of them together to his niece. Halsey took the picture, then handed over their phone, telling him, “Text it to yourself. I have to pee.”
But when Halsey returned, they immediately sensed something was off.
“I saw he was going through my nudes on my phone,” they recalled. Halsey admitted that the moment left them in shock.
“I was just frozen…I didn’t even know what to do. I was like, ‘Did I just imagine that? Was that an accident?’” They continued, “I was thinking, ‘Did the phone scroll up? What the heck just happened?’”
The thought that the executive might have even sent the photos to himself lingered heavily with Halsey. “I was like, ‘Did he text them to himself and then delete the messages? I don’t even know where these are now,’” they added, describing the disorientation and helplessness that washed over them in that instant.
The entire experience was so invasive that Halsey found themselves questioning their self-worth. “I went from being like, ‘Yeah, I’m like f—ing hot s— and I’m one of the big players.’ And then I sat down.”
“And when that happened, in that moment, I was like, ‘You’re nothing. You’re nothing. You’ll always be nothing. You’re still just that f—ing girl who’s getting taken advantage of, or like men are talking about you behind your back, or you’re some sort of like, collateral,’” she continued. “I was like, ‘You’re nothing.’ It was so demoralizing.”
Halsey shared that, although they’ve faced “worse” incidents in their career, this one stands out. “It was so demoralizing,” they emphasized. “So many worse things have happened to me than that, but that one stuck out for some reason because it was so nonchalant.”
Reflecting on the dark side of power dynamics in the industry, Halsey noted, “I’m in this exclusive space, thinking I’ve reached the ranks where I am protected…and then this invasive thing just happens on a whim.” They explained that the incident made them feel as though they had “regressed.”
Halsey recently released their latest album, The Great Impersonator, on Oct. 25.
In addition to previously released singles “The End,” “Lucky,” “Lonely Is the Muse” and “Ego,” the LP also features songs such as “Only Girl Living in LA,” “Dog Years,” “Panic Attack,” “I Believe in Magic,” “Hometown,” “I Never Loved You,” “Darwinism,” “Arsonist,” “Life of the Spider (DRAFT)” and “Hurt Feelings.” The Great Impersonator marks Halsey’s fifth studio album. It follows 2021’s If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
When Gracie Abrams took the stage at a Kamala Harris rally at Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin, on Wednesday night (Oct. 30), the 25-year-old singer/songwriter urged young voters to support the Harris/Walz campaign so there’s still a democracy left to “fix it when it is our turn.”
“I know everybody who has been onstage tonight and will be onstage tonight wouldn’t be anywhere else for anyone else except … for the next president of the United States: the amazing, compassionate and brilliant Kamala Harris,” Abrams said. “For many of us here onstage and in this crowd tonight, this is either the first or second time that we’ve had the privilege of voting in a presidential election. As we know, we’ve inherited a world that is struggling and it’s easy to feel disconnected and disillusioned. Between the advent of social media in our childhoods and COVID and relentlessly targeted disinformation, we’ve been through some things. It’s easy to be discouraged, but we know better. We know that unless we vote and keep our democracy intact, there is nothing we will be able to do to fix it when it is our turn.”
Abrams wrapped her speech by declaring of Harris: “She is the right leader at a very tricky time and we could not be luckier.”
.@gracieabrams: It’s easy to be discouraged, but we know better. We know that unless we vote for Kamala Harris and keep our democracy intact, there is nothing we will be able to do to fix it when it is our turn💙 pic.twitter.com/9YH77IhX1D— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 31, 2024
In addition to her speech, Abrams and her band — who are currently opening up for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour on its final North American leg — also performed “I Love You, I’m Sorry” (which just peaked in the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 this month) and “Free Now”; both are from her most recent album, The Secret of Us, which debuted at No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart over the summer.
Mumford & Sons also performed at the rally, playing “Little Lion Man,” “Awake My Soul” and “I Will Wait” — their highest-charting hit, peaking at No. 12 on the Hot 100 in 2013. In 2021, the group’s guitarist-banjo player Winston Marshall left the band after a controversial social media post calling right-wing provocateur Andy Ngo a “brave man” for his book Unmasked: Inside Antifa’s Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy.
Remi Wolf hit the stage too, performing “Cinderella” and saying in a speech that America should feel like “a place where we feel safe, accepted and free. That is why I’m here today to support our future president, Kamala Harris, in her efforts to create this safe space for us again. She understands that the right to make decisions about our own bodies is fundamental. She’s committed to tackling big issues like climate change and, like me, she’s a girl from the Bay Area who loves to laugh and have fun.”
Also at the music-heavy rally, Aaron Dessner and Matt Berninger from The National dedicated their song “I Need a Girl” to Harris.
It looks like The Queen of Soul is a Kamala Harris supporter. In a new campaign ad, the Democratic presidential candidate talks about the “full-on attack on hard-fought freedoms,” as Aretha Franklin’s 1968 classic “Think” plays in the background. As Harris reminds voters of freedoms achieved over the decades over historic footage, including the right to vote for Black Americans and women, as well as a woman’s right to “make decisions about her own body,” the song’s “Freedom” refrain plays.
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Billboard has learned that Franklin’s estate reached out to the Harris campaign, making her music available, and specifically suggested “Think” as a good option. The campaign fully embraced the idea for the get-out-the-vote ad, which is running on YouTube and other online outlets, as well as connected TV/premium streaming services. Billboard will update as soon as it learns more.
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Franklin has supported Democrats for decades, including performing the national anthem at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. She sang a majestic version of “My Country, Tis of Thee” at Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration in 2009. She also sang at a farewell event for Obama’s attorney general, Eric Holder, in 2015.
When Franklin died in 2018, Obama released a statement that read in part, “Aretha’s work reflected the very best of our American story – in all of its hope and heart, its boldness and its unmistakable beauty.”
While the Harris ad uses “Think,” which Franklin and her ex-husband, Ted White, co-wrote, her signature song, “Respect,” also played a vital role in the civil rights movement in the ‘60s. In her autobiography she wrote of the song that it spoke to “the need of the average man and woman in the street, the businessman, the mother, the fireman, the teacher — everyone wanted respect…It was also one of the battle cries of the civil rights movement. The song took on monumental significance.”
This is Halloween! This is Halloween — and today’s biggest stars weren’t afraid to go all out for their costumes this spooky season. Couples costumes were strong this year, with Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco kicking things off in whimsical Alice in Wonderland-inspired costumes. The Rare Beauty founder rocked a blonde wig and light blue dress […]
The Weeknd and Anitta finally delivered their “São Paulo” collaboration on Wednesday (Oct. 30). The song came along with a new music video, which — as teased in cryptic previews for the collab — featured Anitta with an exaggerated baby bump. In the clip, Anitta’s pregnant belly sings The Weeknd’s parts, with lips emerging where her […]
With Halloween coming up quickly, some are getting a head start on spooky season this week. Tyla, Coi Leray and Halle Bailey all coincidentally dressed up as different characters Halle Berry played in movies throughout her acclaimed career. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Halle Berry woke up […]
Stevie Nicks has been using her platform to encourage political activism in her fans, but she explained that she wasn’t always an active voter.
In a new interview with MSNBC, the 76-year-old “Edge of Seventeen” icon opened up about not voting util six years ago. “I never voted until I was 70, but I regret that. I’ve told everybody that onstage for the last two years,” she said. “I regret that and I don’t have very many regrets. There’s so many reasons. You can say, ‘Oh, I didn’t have time. I was this and that.’ In the long run, you didn’t have an hour? You didn’t have an hour of your time that you could have gone and voted.”
She also discussed the inspiration behind her recently released track, “The Lighthouse,” a song inspired by the fight for abortion access following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. “We have to find a way to bring back Roe vs. Wade,” she explained, noting that musicians should speak out more about causes in their music. “In the end of the 50s and 60s and into the 70s, everyone was writing protest songs. Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Stephen Stills — it was lots and lots and lots. I would say to all my musical poets that write songs to write some songs about what’s happening like I did.”
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Nicks added, “Whoever wins, the lighthouse needs to keep shining its light and keep those ships from crashing into the rocks. That’s my idea of the lighthouse being a protector, protecting all those boats and ships that are coming in.”
Watch the full interview here.
In September, the Fleetwood Mac singer followed in Taylor Swift’s footsteps to endorse Kamala Harris for the presidential election. “As my friend @taylorswift so eloquently stated, now is the time to research and choose the candidate that speaks to you and your beliefs,” Nicks wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of herself with her tiny canine.
“Only 54 days left until the election,” she continued. “Make sure you are registered to vote! Your vote in this election may be one of the most important things you ever do.”
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. Music isn’t the only creative outlet for musicians. Some artists have also picked up photography as a side hobby. Trends of […]
