Music
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YG is spinning the block a third time as he returns with his anticipated Just Re’d Up 3 album on Friday (Aug. 16) before summer expires. The Compton rapper delivers his first solo effort since 2022’s I Got Issues. Just Re’d Up 3 boasts a double-disc of 19 tracks featuring a few friends like Ty […]
Taylor Swift is supporting Travis Kelce as he launches a new entertainment gig!
The pop superstar visited her Kansas City Chiefs tight end boyfriend on the set of Prime Video’s new game show, Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?, which Kelce is hosting.
“She did come on set,” Garcelle Beauvais, one of the celebrity panel guests of the show, told Entertainment Tonight of Swift. “Not the day that I was there, but she came. I think it’s really sweet.”
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The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star added, “He was fantastic. Like, game show host? I wasn’t sure, but he didn’t overdo it, he didn’t under-sell it, he was himself, he had fun and it was great.”
She noted that the on-set crew was smitten by the NFL champion. “My glam team was like, ‘Oh my God, he’s fine.’ Everyone on set was like, ‘He’s so fine,’” Beauvais recalled. “I don’t want the Swifties coming for me, though!”
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Other star panelists include Nikki Glaser, Lala Kent, Chad Ochocinco and Sophia Stallone.
Prime Video confirmed earlier this year that Kelce is slated to host its upcoming game show Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?, a spin-off of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? The series will feature contestants using celebrities to help with 11 elementary-school-level questions as they compete to win $100,000.
“I grew up loving game shows, and I’m excited to be following in the footsteps of so many TV icons by hosting my very first one with Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” Kelce said in a press statement at the time. “The original show is a great success, so to be bringing a new format with everyone’s favorite celebrities to the screen will definitely be entertaining. I’m just happy to be on the hosting side of the equation here and excited to see how these famous faces keep up.”
Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity? premieres with three episodes on Prime Video on Oct. 16, followed by weekly episode releases.
Big Sean originally teased a clip of this song and video on social media last month, and it’s finally here: Sean and The Alchemist released “Together Forever” on Friday (Aug. 16). Fans were especially excited to hear the Detroit rapper over Alchemist production and were stoked to see the legendary producer supporting Sean in the […]
The National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame has announced its 2024 class of inductees: Jeffrey Osborne, Kenny Lattimore, Candi Staton, Ginuwine, Regina Belle, Buddy Miles, William Bell, Terry Stewart, Rose Marie McCoy, Ken Hawkins, and the influential Boddie Recording Company.
Five of the 10 artists have topped Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart (or its predecessors). Belle topped it twice, with “Baby Come to Me” (1989) and “Make It Like It Was” (1990). Ginuwine also topped it twice, with “Pony” (1996) and “Differences” (2001). Three other artists each topped it once: Staton with “Young Hearts Run Free” (1976), Bell with “Tryin’ to Love Two” (1977) and Osborne with “She’s on the Left” (1988).
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Belle also topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1993 with “A Whole New World (Aladdin’s Theme),” a collab with Peabo Bryson.
Additionally, special honors will be bestowed upon Leo’s Casino alumni, including Aretha Franklin, Gene Chandler, Chuck Conway, Sr., Martha Reeves, Fred Wheatt, Freddie Arrington, The Temptations, and The O’Jays.
These individuals and groups will be honored at the 13th annual National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Oct. 6. The event will take place at the Marriott Cleveland East in Warrensville Heights, Ohio.
“This year’s remarkable group of inductees exemplifies the rich diversity and influence of R&B music,” LaMont Robinson, founder of the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame Foundation, said in a statement. “We are excited to return the ceremony to Metro Cleveland and celebrate the enduring legacy of Leo’s Casino, a vital part of the city’s music history from the 1960s.”
More than 300 R&B artists inducted since its National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame’s inception in 2013. The roster includes legends such as James Brown, Prince, B.B. King, New Edition, The O’Jays, The Temptations, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, Jackie Wilson, and Whitney Houston.
Tickets for the event are $35 and $50. For ticket information and to learn more about the ceremony, visit WWW.RBHOF.COM.
Music lovers have a busy weekend ahead, thanks to all the great new single and album releases throughout the week. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars dropped their new song “Die With a Smile.” The musicians barely gave fans a heads up before unveiling the new project, the existence of which they only confirmed less than 12 hours ahead of its […]
Gag City, it’s time reload. Nicki Minaj is preparing to paint the world another coat of pink as she gears up to head out on a second North American leg of the Pink Friday 2 World Tour in September.
Nicki took to social media on Friday (Aug. 16) to inform the Barbz that while the bar for greatness will remain the same on the second trek, she’s got plenty of surprises in store when it comes to set changes, different wardrobe choices and possibly even new music to perform.
Minaj has also recruited her Young Money brother Tyga as well as “Whole Lotta Money” collaborator BIA and Skillibeng as tour openers.
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“Let’s just say you won’t wanna miss it,” she began. “Y’all know I’m an honest pink lady. #GagCityReloaded will be a beautiful, magical dream come true. Better than the 1st half & that wasn’t easy to do.”
Nicki continued: “New looks, set list changes, other secrets, ummmm new music? Lemme think about it. Thank you to the team doing this with me again. They’re simply the best. To the guest artists who will come out in their cities, thank you in advance; and to these 3 TALENTS (who I have so much love & respect for) for taking the G6 to #GAGCITY just for the Barbz & me. @tyga@bia@skillibeng. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!”
The Pink Friday 2 World Tour has already made history with Minaj holding the title of the highest grossing rap tour ever by a woman. It’s also in the top 10 for highest grossing rap tours of all-time. According to sums reported to Billboard Boxscore, the Pink Friday 2 World Tour grossed $67 million and sold 439,000 tickets for the first North American leg.
Minaj concluded: “Barbz, we’ve already made history prior to LEG 2. TOP 10 in HIPHOP TOURS OF ALL TIME already. To everyone who came out on the first leg to support: GOD BLESS YOU. I LOVE YOU. I DO. Come back. Love always, Harajuku Barbie
The Pink Friday 2 World Tour will start up leg two in Philadelphia on Sept. 4. There are also shows on deck for NYC’s Madison Square Garden, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Kansas City, Jacksonville, Miami and wrapping up with a hometown show on Oct. 11 at Long Island’s UBS Arena, which borders Queens.
Find Nicki’s full post below.
This week in dance music: A load of classic (and signed!) vinyl trance classics are being auctioned off for charity, we spoke to Phoenix about their performance during the 2024 Olympics Closing Ceremony in Paris, an electronic-infused show that generated a streaming surge for Kavinsky’s 2010 classic “Nightcall.” Bicep’s Matt McBriar revealed that he’s recovering from surgery for a non-cancerous brain tumor, the lineup was announced for Damian Lazarus’ annual Day Zero party in Tulum, as was the lineup for the four-day Art of the Wild happening this fall at the Wynn Las Vegas. Charli XCX revealed that one more Brat remix will be released before Brat summer becomes Brat fall, and we chatted about the chart success of her Billie Eilish-featuring edit of “Guess.”
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And of course, we’ve got the goods. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.
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The Blessed Madonna & Kylie Minogue, “Edge of Saturday Night”
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The Blessed Madonna ramps up ahead of the release of her debut album, Godspeed, with its latest single, a banger of a singalong party anthem featuring the queen herself, Kylie Minogue. Having demonstrated her dexterity in fusing the pop world and dance realms of her Club Future Nostalgia megamix of Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia, the artist born Marea Stamper again demonstrates the seamless crossover between the two world’s with a piano-laced, shimmeringly synthy party anthem that maintains a lot of muscle in its bassline. An official video for the track, filmed at Ibiza’s classic club Pikes, is forthcoming, with Godspeed itself out on October 11 via Warner Records.
Bonobo, “Xpander”
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Who else but the master Bonobo could so deftly arrange spare beats, an ethereal acapella and what sounds like flute into a kinetic, hard-hitting electronic track that’s long been a weapon in his sets. After playing it out all summer the England-born, Los Angeles based producer had officially dropped fan favorite “Xpander” through Ninja Tune and will surely play it in upcoming performances that include his Outlier shows happening at Red Rocks in Colorado in September and throughout Europe into the fall and a Los Angeles Boiler Room event on September 21.
Peggy Gou, “Find the Way”
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Ahead of her biggest ever headlining show tomorrow (Aug. 17) in London, Peggy Gou has released a one-off single, “Find the Way.” Featuring her own vocals, the track very much extends the cool, dreamy vibe of her June album, I Hear You, and particularly its hit single “It Goes Like (Nanana),” ultimately taking a slightly darker and subtly more psychedelic turn in its final third. “Find the Way” is out through Gou’s own Gudu Records and comes ahead of her show tomorrow in London’s Gunnersbury Park that will also feature Mochakk, LSDXOXO, Sally C and Hiver.
What So Not & Habstrakt feat. Maiah Manser “Realise”
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The Australian producer releases his full Motions EP today, adding two more tracks to the project’s already out and genuinely excellent two singles “Lights Go Out” and “Slow Motion.” Produced alongside French artist Habstrakt and featuring vocals from L.A.-based singer Maiah Manser, “Realise” folds elements of garage and progressive house into a glowing, cerebral anthem for the afterhours. The EP follows What So Not’s Dance Dance Revival Tour, which hit 11 venues around Australia with the goal of platforming rising Australian artists who’ve had a hard time breaking through due to pandemic-related shutdowns, inflation and fewer opportunities, given how far the country is from so many other places, with the run ending with a sweet, raucous finale. Motions is out via Create Music Group.
Radio Slave, “The Lunatics” (Solomun Edit)
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The master Solomun puts his unmistakable touch on Radio Slaves’ “The Lunatics,” from that artist’s May album, Venti. The Bosnian-German producer transforms the original into tough, 80s-influenced and darkly hypnotic anthem in the grand tradition of New Order, and just in time for these sweaty late days of summer.
Duke Dumont feat. Clementine Douglas, “Ain’t Giving Up”
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The English producer returns in fine form with “Ain’t Giving Up,” on which he demonstrates his signature synth forward take on house music, with the power-lunged Clementine Douglas adding chest-pumping vocals about refusing to give up on someone you love over the bewitching production. Dumont’s upcoming shows include Las Vegas’ Zouk this weekend, two nights at the Brooklyn Mirage later this month and two major sold out shows in London and Dublin this fall.
Post Malone has spent months in Nashville, writing and collaborating with Music City’s top country artists and songwriters in crafting his debut country album, F-1 Trillion. So it should come as no surprise that though he’s just released F-1 Trillion on Friday (Aug. 16), he’s still got plenty of songs in the tank. Malone surprised […]
In the 90 years that the Oscars have had a best original song category, just one songwriter has been nominated in that category eight years running. The late lyricist Sammy Cahn was nominated every year from 1954 through 1961, winning three times during that streak, for “Three Coins in the Fountain,” “All the Way” and “High Hopes,” all recorded by Frank Sinatra.
Diane Warren has a chance to tie Cahn’s record on Jan. 17, 2025, when the nominations for the 97th annual Academy Award are announced. Warren is pinning her hopes on the song “The Journey” from Tyler Perry’s upcoming World War II drama, The Six Triple Eight. Netflix is set to release the film later this year.
This would be Warren’s 16th career nomination in the category, a total reached by only three songwriters in history. Cahn leads with 26 nods, followed by Johnny Mercer with 18 and Paul Francis Webster with 16. If she is nominated, Warren would pull ahead of Alan & Marilyn Bergman, who had 15 nominations in this category, making Warren the woman with the most nods in this category. (Unlike all of these other songwriters, Warren has yet to win in the category.)
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In an interesting plot twist, “The Journey” was recorded for the film’s soundtrack by H.E.R., who beat Warren for the Oscar in early 2021. “Fight for You” from Judas and the Black Messiah, which H.E.R. cowrote with Dernst Emile II (D’Mile) and Tiara Thomas, beat “Io Sì (Seen)” from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se), which Warren co-wrote with Laura Pausini. Warren’s song had earlier won the Golden Globe.
The Six Triple Eight showcases the contributions of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-Black and all-woman battalion, in World War II. Perry wrote, directed and co-produced the film, which is based on historian Kevin M. Hymel’s article “WAC Corporal Lena Derriecott and the 6888th Central Postal Battalion,” which was published in the February 2019 issue of WWII History magazine.
The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion contributed to the war effort by sorting through a huge backlog of undelivered mail and delivering it to American soldiers. “The Journey” is described as “a tribute to those who face seemingly insurmountable barriers yet persevere and ultimately triumph” — a familiar theme in Warren’s film songs.
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H.E.R. recorded and released “The Journey” in 2023. It was featured in various in-game ESPN production elements throughout the channel’s NBA Playoffs coverage, starting April 15, 2023. Three months later, on July 12, she sang it live on the 2023 EPSY Awards.
So how can the song be eligible for best original song for a yet-to-be-released 2024 film and potentially compete for awards to be presented in 2025? Because Warren wrote the song for the film.
It was announced in December 2022 that Tyler Perry would be writing and directing the film at Netflix. In January 2023, the cast, including Kerry Washington, Sam Waterston, Susan Sarandon and Oprah Winfrey, was announced, with Washington also joining as an executive producer. Filming began on Jan. 17, 2023, in Atlanta.
Variety’s Clayton Thomas reports that there is precedent for songs with similar trajectories being nominated by the music branch, such as “In the Deep” from Crash (2005) and the Oscar-winning “Falling Slowly” from Once (2007).
In 2023, Warren became the first songwriter to receive an Honorary Oscar. The award was inscribed: “To Diane Warren, for her genius, generosity and passionate commitment to the power of song in film.”
In addition, she has won a Primetime Emmy, a Grammy and two Golden Globes – all for film songs. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001 and received that organization’s top honor, the Johnny Mercer Award, in June.
Bess Kargman’s Diane Warren: Relentless documentary about Warren’s life premiered at SXSW in March.
Sammy Cahn’s Consecutive Oscar Nods
Here’s Cahn’s eight-year streak of best original song nominees. He wrote the lyrics to all of these songs. The composer is shown and the songs that won are flagged.
1954: “Three Coins in the Fountain” from Three Coins in the Fountain [Music by Jule Styne] [winner]
1955: (2 nods) “I’ll Never Stop Loving You” from Love Me or Leave Me [Music by Nicholas Brodszky] and “(Love Is) The Tender Trap” from The Tender Trap [Music by James Van Heusen]
1956: “Written on the Wind” from Written on the Wind [Music by Victor Young]
1957: “All the Way” from The Joker Is Wild [Music by James Van Heusen] [winner]
1958: “To Love and Be Loved” from Some Came Running [Music by James Van Heusen]
1959 (2 nods) “The Best of Everything” from The Best of Everything [Music by Alfred Newman] and “High Hopes” from A Hole in the Head [Music by James Van Heusen] [winner]
1960: “The Second Time Around” from High Time [Music by James Van Heusen]
1961: “Pocketful of Miracles” from Pocketful of Miracles [Music by James Van Heusen]
Diane Warren’s Consecutive Oscar Nods
And here’s Warren’s seven-year streak of best original song nominees. She wrote both music and lyrics by herself, except as shown.
2017: “Stand Up for Something” from Marshall [Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Lonnie R. Lynn and Diane Warren]
2018: “I’ll Fight” from RBG
2019: “I’m Standing With You” from Breakthrough
2020: “Io Sì (Seen)” from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se) [Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini]
2021: “Somehow You Do” from Four Good Days
2022: “Applause” from Tell It like a Woman
2023: “The Fire Inside” from Flamin’ Hot
When it’s hot, Jay-Z gets on his money spot, but he’s also apparently willing to pay up when it’s time. Retired boxer Oscar De La Hoya recently recalled the time Jay allegedly lost a six-figure bet to him on a fight, and quickly cleared his debt.
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De La Hoya joined Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay earlier this week where they rehashed the Miguel Cotto and Canelo Alvarez fight in November 2015, which saw Canelo come out the victor and reminded him of the bet he made with Hov.
“So we’re promoting Canelo at the time, Golden Boy, and [Jay-Z’s] promoting Cotto,” he said. “So I said, ‘You know what? Why don’t place a bet here of $250,000? But it goes to charity.”
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The 51-year-old De La Hoya said Jay paid up on the spot and there were no issues with the money transfer following his loss with a portion going to charity.
“So Canelo wins, my charity wins the two-fifths, and sure enough he paid it on the spot,” De La Hoya continued. “I think the next day the cheque was in the bank. Jay-Z loves boxing, he knows his boxing. But he’s a guy who pays his bets.”
Now, there’s a discrepancy on the amount of the six-figure wager. De La Hoya remembers it as a quarter-million payout while TMZ reported in 2015 that it was just a $100,000 bet.
“Thanks to Jay-Z, thousands of patients at White Memorial Medical Center will also be winners,” Oscar said at the time. “I don’t imagine [Jay’s] excited about losing $100,000, but he can take some comfort in knowing that it’s going to a good cause.”
Canelo Alvarez walked away the unanimous winner after the 12-round bout came to close. The official judges’ scorecards gave Canelo the edge 119–109, 118–110 and 117–111.
Watch the clip below.
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