Music
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It may only be October, but the first Monday in May is already on the mind. Vogue announced on Wednesday (Oct. 9) that the theme for the 2025 Met Gala is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” which draws inspiration from Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book, Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity. […]
JO1’s “WHERE DO WE GO” hits No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, dated Oct. 9, tallying the week ending Oct. 6.
The title track of JO1’s ninth single debuted at No. 31 on the chart dated Sept. 18 after being released digitally on Sept. 9. It remained in the Japan Hot 100 since then and soared 73-1 powered by sales with the release of the CD on Oct. 2. The track rules sales this week while coming in at No. 4 for downloads, No. 36 for streaming, No. 2 for radio airplay, and No. 29 for video views. The CD sold 732,009 copies, coming in second to the group’s previous single “HITCHHIKER” (738,776 copies), currently the record-holder for highest first-week sales for the band.
SKE48’s “Kokuhaku Shinpakusu” debuts at No. 2. The group’s 33rd single launched with 319,722 copies to come in at No. 2 for sales, while hitting No. 64 for radio.
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Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s “Lilac” slips a notch to No. 3. The former No. 1 hit continues to rule streaming for the 16th straight week, though showing a slight decrease (94%) from the week before. The track comes in at No. 3 for video, No. 15 for downloads, and No. 5 for karaoke.
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ATEEZ’s “Birthday” bows at No. 4. The title track off the K-pop boy band’s fourth single in Japan sold 154,296 copies in its first week to debut at No. 3 for sales. The track also comes in at No. 93 for downloads and No. 65 for radio. No. 4 on the Japan Hot 100 is tied for the group’s best position so far, previously achieved by “NOT OKAY.”
King & Prince’s “WOW” enters at No. 5. The track off the duo’s sixth album Re:ERA dropped digitally on Sept. 30 and rules downloads and radio, while also coming in at No. 25 for video. This is the second time King & Prince topped downloads, following “halfmoon.”
Official HIGE DANdism’s “Same Blue” debuts at No. 7. The opener for the anime series Blue Box comes in at No. 2 for downloads (11,375 units), No. 4 for radio, No. 20 for video, and No. 27 for streaming.
The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.
See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, tallying the week from Sept. 30 to Oct. 6, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English X account.
HARU NEMURI dropped her collaborative EP with Frost Children called Soul Kiss on Oct. 4, and also shared the new music video accompanying “Burn,” a track off the project. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Frost Children is a duo based in New York, consisting of siblings […]
By the mid-2000s, Swedish songwriter and producer ILYA — who was then in his late teens — was “grinding, grinding, grinding” without gaining much momentum. It wasn’t until years later, thanks to a fortuitous meeting, that his career finally took off.
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ILYA, now 38, recalls how meeting producer Shellback changed his life, as the latter introduced him to the acclaimed and mysterious Max Martin. Soon after, ILYA scored his first smash hit co-producing and co-writing on Ariana Grande and Iggy Azalea’s 2014 collaboration “Problem,” which hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. His working relationship with Martin — and Grande — has continued, most recently on the pop star’s sixth No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, Eternal Sunshine.
The album produced two Hot 100 No. 1s: lead single “Yes, And?” and “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love),” both of which credit ILYA. But those are from far the only hits he’s had a hand in this year; ILYA’s 2024 credits also include Conan Gray, Coldplay and Tate McRae, the latter of whom ILYA helped score her highest Hot 100 debut to date with “It’s ok I’m ok.”
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“It wasn’t that long after [McRae’s 2023 second album] Think Later that we were in the studio again,” says ILYA, who reveals that they ideated her current smash before Think Later even arrived. “It was just an idea that just popped back into our life and we were like, ‘Actually, let’s finish this thing.’ It’s just been continuous since that.”
You’ve worked with Tate before. What is your metric of, “I want to keep this relationship going?”
Nowadays, it’s just good vibes. I don’t want to be stressed at work because I’ve been doing it for such a long time now. So my main thing is just like, can we just have fun in the studio?
When did sessions start after her 2023 album, Think Later?
It was a little continuous because she loves writing and being in the studio. “It’s ok I’m ok” is one of those records where it was like, “Let’s just have fun; let’s make something weird.” I think it shows a brand-new side to her. The more I’ve worked with her, the more I feel like she knows herself as an artist. This one was [started] before Think Later — she knew that it wasn’t right for that moment, but she picked it back up and we really worked to make it into her vision of what she was seeing the song as. That, to me, is really amazing to see.
Tell me more about how the song came together.
The chorus started as a joke. We were in Sweden writing, and when she’s in the studio and so focused, she doesn’t want to eat or drink anything. She’s just like, “I need to finish this song now.” Me being the way I am, I’m always like, “Do you want something to drink? Do you want something to eat?” And she would be like, “It’s OK, I’m OK,” [always] in the same note. And I was just like, “Wait, that’s actually kind of catchy.” And now it’s a song. I like it because it came from her — that’s how she says it.
Do you have a favorite part of this song?
It’s harder for me to listen in that sense, because I’m a part of the song. But I do love when people pinpoint little details that you’ve put there on purpose. I love that.
You have to let go of analyzing. Once the song is out, depending on how people [react] to it, I’m also affected on how I’m listening. If a song comes out and it doesn’t work or it’s not a big thing, then I’m trying to analyze why it wasn’t instead of just enjoying the song. But nowadays I’m a little bit better at that.
Your credits in 2024 include other notable projects such as Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine. With the Grammys approaching, what are your hopes?
I think next year’s Grammys [ceremony on Feb. 2] is going to be insane. I’m hoping we’re going to get nominated, but it’s going to be such a competitive year. It might be the best Grammys in a long time in the sense of who’s going to be nominated and what potential performances there might be. There was so much good music this year.
This article originally appeared in the Oct. 5 issue of Billboard.
Tyler, the Creator appears to have had a change of heart when it comes to his sentiments regarding tech and business tycoon Elon Musk. The Grammy-winning rapper took the stage to close out weekend one of 2024 Austin City Limits Festival as Sunday’s (Oct. 6) headliner, when he tweaked lyrics to Flower Boy‘s “911/Mr. Lonely” […]
Sheryl Crow, Keith Urban and Bailey Zimmerman have joined the lineup for Concert for Carolina, a benefit show dedicated to Hurricane Helene relief. They join previously announced performers Luke Combs, Eric Church, Billy Strings and James Taylor. Concert for Carolina will take place at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, on October 26. All proceeds from the […]
BMI announced this week that Alabama frontman Randy Owen will be celebrated as a BMI Icon during the 72nd annual BMI Country Awards on Nov. 19 at the BMI office in Nashville. The award has previously been bestowed on such country greats as Matraca Berg, Toby Keith, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Kris Kristofferson, Dean Dillon and Hank Williams Jr.
Owen wrote such signature Alabama hits as “Tennessee River,” “Feels So Right,” “Mountain Music” and “Lady Down on Love.” He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2013.
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Alabama, of course, is one of the most successful country groups in history. They had 33 No. 1 hits on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, stretching from “Tennessee River” in August 1980 to “Old Alabama,” a collab with Brad Paisley, in June 2011.
Alabama was the first act to win entertainer of the year three times at the CMA Awards. They won in that category five times at the ACM Awards. They were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005, becoming just the third group (defined as more than two people) to be so honored, following The Carter Family, Sons of the Pioneers and The Jordanaires.
Remarkably, Alabama hit No. 1 on Hot Country Songs with 21 consecutive singles, discounting a holiday song (“Christmas in Dixie) and another artist’s single on which they were featured (Lionel Richie’s “Deep River Woman”). Their longest-running No. 1, “Jukebox in My Mind,” remained on top for four weeks in September 1990.
One of Alabama’s No. 1 country hits, “Touch Me When We’re Dancing,” had been a No. 1 hit on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart in 1981 for the Carpenters. Another, “Face to Face,” featured an uncredited guest vocal by K.T. Oslin.
Now it’s your turn to weigh in: Which is your favorite of Alabama’s No. 1 hits on Hot Country Songs? Vote here!
Retired KISS bassist/singer Gene Simmons is known for unapologetically wagging his legendarily long tongue and for his self-described reputation as a lusty Lothario. But during a guest judging stint on Tuesday night’s (Oct. 8) “Hair Metal Night” on Dancing With the Stars some commenters thought he went too far by focusing on pulchritude instead of Paso doble.
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First, Simmons reportedly got a loud round of boos on air after he gave a bewigged Reginald VelJohnson (Family Matters, Die Hard) a lowly score of 5 for his stiff cha cha to Twisted Sister’s “I Wanna Rock.” According to EW, the studio audience did not take kindly to fellow permanent judges Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli posting the same score — Carrie Ann Inaba gave them a more magnanimous 6 — but when Simmons followed suit, the boos reportedly got significantly louder.
The low score came after Simmons had previously been generous to the fellow septuagenarian, saying before the dance, “Hey Reggie, you’ve got a beautiful woman right beside you who can twist it and turn it and knows how to move it and all that. But I want to tell you, as a guy that’s been on the stage for half a century around the world, I’m kind of a big deal, Reggie. It’s all in the attitude. And you’ve got something in that beautiful face. They love you.”
VelJohnson — who was eliminated on Tuesday night — had had consistently low scores so far this season, but EW said Inaba noted that he’d been a season 33 fan favorite as he hoofed alongside such fellow stars as previous eliminees con artist Anna Delvey, actors Eric Roberts and Tori Spelling, as well as still-active contestants Olympic gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik, NFL player Danny Amendola, NBA center Dwight Howard, Olympic rugby star Ilona Maher, model Brooks Nader and Bachelorette star Jenn Tran, among others.
Simmons was repeatedly called out by viewers in comments on X for what they dubbed his “creepy” remarks, which some said treated the female dancers as if they were in a beauty pageant. The pointed to Simmons saying he couldn’t decide which one was more “hot hot hot” among Amendola and pro dancer Witney Carson and telling 24-year-old actress Chandler Kinney (Pretty Little Liars) that she “fogged up my glasses” and that she “moved me — not just with your gyrations, but with your beautiful face.”
“ABC needs to issue an apology after having Gene Simmons on there and subjecting their cast to that . Why didn’t a producer tell him to knock it off,” wrote one X user, while another joked, “Gene Simmons comments about the ladies are giving the energy of the gross uncle who corners you at the reunion.” A similar comment read, “it’s only the first dance and i’m already over gene simmons being a creep,” as one added, “Gene Simmons is seriously sucking all the energy out of the ballroom with his creepy comments about the female dancers.”
Well known for speaking his mind on all manner of subjects, Forbes noted that Simmons has been called out before for his thoughts on the opposite sex, including over a passage in his 2017 book, On Power: My Journey Through the Corridors of Power and How You Can Get More Power, in which he wrote that leveraging sexuality is still the fastest route to the top for women.
“Women have a choice,” he said in an interview with the New York Post while promoting the book in 2017. “They can dress in potato sacks, [but] as soon as they pretty themselves up with lipstick, lift and separate them and point them in our general direction, they’re gonna get a response. Guys are jackasses — we will buy them mansions and houses . . . all because of sex.” In that same interview, Simmons told women to “get over” their biological urges, opining, “It’s natural to want to have kids, but, sorry, you can’t have it both ways. You have to commit to either career or family. It’s very difficult to have both.”
KISS said that after five decades on tour their End of the Road Tour — which wrapped in December — would be their last go-round. The group then sold its name, image and likeness rights and announced a virtual Las Vegas performance set to launch in 2027.
Watch VelJohnson’s routine and see some of the comments about Simmons below.
If Gene doesn’t think the woman is hot, she gets a low score. Get this man off my screen. No reason he tried to give Brooks a ten and THE Phaedra Parks a five? #DWTS— Shelby🌻 (@shelbykvosburg) October 9, 2024
Dear @officialdwts ,Shame on Gene Simmons for treating this like a beauty pageant. Never have him on the show again. EVER. He ruined it. #gross #DWTSWith love, Everyone— StarSamantha21 (@StarrSamantha21) October 9, 2024
underscoring the asian and black female contestants relative to the other judge’s scores after inflating scores all night??? gene simmons you may just be a racist #dwts pic.twitter.com/8MuuMVLeu2— lau (@kodylavenders) October 9, 2024
The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week, for the Billboard 200 dated Oct. 19, we look at the latest from 21st century rock greats Coldplay, whose unusual approach to physical releases may help them get back atop the albums chart.
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Coldplay, Moon Music (Parlophone/Atlantic): Few rock bands this century are as familiar with the top spot of the Billboard 200 as Coldplay, which has reached No. 1 four times already – although not since 2014, when they last topped the chart with Ghost Stories. In the decade since, the band’s crossover success in the U.S. has been a little more modest, with their only top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 coming along with then-superpowers The Chainsmokers (“Something Just Like This,” 2017) and BTS (“My Universe,” 2021). And even with “My Universe” on its tracklist, the group’s most recent album (2021’s Music of the Spheres) tapped out at No. 4 on the Billboard 200.
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For its new album, Friday’s (Oct. 4) Moon Music, Coldplay is really giving it the old college try. The group has already made a number of promotional appearances, including playing two new songs from the set on last weekend’s Saturday Night Live (while frontman Chris Martin showed up on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon a couple days earlier to perform “We Pray” in the style of various rock legends). The band also played an underplay show at Music Hall of Williamsburg in New York City on Monday, and earlier that day, released a Full Moon deluxe edition of the 10-song set, expanding it to 20 tracks for DSPs and digital retailers.
The album does not yet have a true breakout hit, and is not expected to stream in extraordinary numbers. However, it should sell well, having been released in a variety of physical variants – with all releases designed with an eye towards environmental consciousness, as sustainability has been a major priority for the band in recent years. Each of the album’s LP releases will contain some nine recycled PET-plastic bottles recovered from post-consumer waste, and the CD version is claimed to be the “world’s first” to be released on EcoCD, which is created from 90% recycled polycarbonate, also sourced from post-consumer waste.
We will see this week just how much environmental sustainability excites Coldplay’s fanbase into buying one of the available versions of the band’s new album – which includes yellow, red, pink (with a signed art card) and “Spotify Fans First” green vinyl variants, and a “Notebook Edition” exclusive to their webstore, which also features a 12” hardback replica of Martin’s studio notebook with 28 pages of notes and personal illustrations, a bonus CD of voicenote recordings, and even a pair of moongoggles. But the Notebook Edition is sold out on the webstore, and Moon Music is off to one of the best starts of the decade for a U.K. act in the lads’ home country, so perhaps that bodes well for their U.S. fortunes.
Sabrina Carpenter, Short n’ Sweet (Island): To be The Man, Moon Music will have to beat The Man – and “The Man” in this case is of course Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet, which after briefly ceding the title to Travis Scott’s Days Before Rodeo is back atop the Billboard 200 for a fourth week this frame. Short n’ Sweet is still pulling six-digit consumption weeks – though just barely, as last week it notched exactly 100,000 units – and was actually up 1% in its performance from the week before, with added interest from the beginning of the accompanying Short n’ Sweet Tour no doubt helping there. That interest may be due to recede slightly this week, but Moon Music’s first-week units will still likely need to land in the 100,000s for the band to comfortably clear the pint-sized superstar with its new release.
IN THE MIX
Megan Moroney, Am I Okay? (Sony Music/Columbia): Megan Moroney has proven herself one of the most reliable streaming performers in modern country music with her set Am I Okay?, which debuted in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 a couple months ago and has continued to hang around the top 100 in the weeks since (landing at No. 77 this week). The set should make a big jump next week following the digital release of its (I’ll Be Fine) deluxe edition, which tacks another three cuts onto the 14-track original, including the heartbroken “Break It Right Back,” which is already off to a strong start on streaming.
Finneas, For Cryin’ Out Loud! (OYOY/Interscope): While sister and collaborator Billie Eilish continues to storm the Billboard Hot 100 – her “Birds of a Feather” is up to a new peak of No. 2 – writer/producer and recording artist Finneas also sets his sights on the charts this week with his own solo LP, For Cryin’ Out Loud! The solo artist has also gone the Coldplay route with his new set’s physical release, as the album is available on his webstore on orange, gold and pink biovinyl (a sustainable product made from polyvinyl chloride) as well as on a signed CD and a as part of a fan pack with a CD and logo T-shirt.
Aphex Twin, Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Warp): How often do we get to talk about 30-year-old ambient albums on The Contenders? It’s a rarity for sure, but Aphex Twin’s 1994 classic double-album Selected Ambient Works Vol. 2 – widely considered one of the great electronic releases of the ‘90s — should make a chart impact this week, as the set was re-released as a 4x LP box set, collecting all the tracks available on different previous permutations of the album and even featuring two unreleased tracks being included on the physical version for the first time. Any Billboard 200 entrance this week would instantly mark the set’s peak; it failed to chart upon its original release three decades ago.
Things are looking up for Jennifer Lopez, who says she’s happy to be single again following her split from Ben Affleck.
While speaking to Nikki Glaser in an Interview conversation published Wednesday (Oct. 9), the “I’m Real” singer opened up about her positive post-divorce mindset less than two months after she filed to legally end her two-year marriage to the Gone Girl actor. “I was thinking about this time in my life, and I’m like, ‘That’s not what I thought it was going to turn out like,’” Lopez told the comedian. “And then I thought, ‘No, this is exactly where I needed to be, to lead me to where I want to go.’”
The Bronx native also added that she regrets “not one second” of the pain she felt as her marriage to Affleck came to a close, even if it did “almost take [her] out for good.” “Now, on the other side of it, I think to myself, ‘F–k, that is exactly what I needed,’” she continued. “Thank you, God. I’m sorry it took me so long. I’m sorry that you had to do this to me so many times. I should have learned it two or three times ago. I get it.”
The lesson learned is that Lopez doesn’t need a partner to get through life’s challenges, the Marry Me star explained. “I finally got it!” she said. “Now I’m excited, when you say you’re just going to be on your own. Yes, I’m not looking for anybody, because everything that I’ve done over the past 25, 30 years, being in these different challenging situations, what can I f–king do when it’s just me flying on my own … What if I’m just free?”
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Lopez filed to divorce Affleck Aug. 20, exactly two years after the pair tied the knot in Georgia. Their date of separation, however, was listed as four months prior on April 26, 2024.
The motion closed out Lopez and Affleck’s second attempt at romance, with the “On the Floor” artist and Good Will Hunting star first getting together in 2002 after meeting on the set of Gigli. They soon got engaged, but called off their wedding in 2004, nearly two decades after which the pair would rekindle their relationship in 2021.
Lopez — who was previously married to Ojani Noa, Cris Judd and Marc Anthony — heavily documented her and Affleck’s love story in her film The Greatest Love Story Never Told, as well as on her album This Is Me … Now. “I never thought that he and I would get back together,” she told Billboard in February of Affleck, who was previously married to Jennifer Garner, ahead of the premiere of the documentary. “I just just couldn’t give up on idea that there was something amazing out there for me, even when it got really bad — and it did at times. I always believed deep, deep down to not give up completely.”
see J. Lo’s Interview cover below: