Music
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Singer/songwriter HARDY, songwriter Ben Johnson and film/TV writer and producer David Alan Johnson are teaming up to give viewers an in-depth look at the industry that works to bring country music to the masses, highlighting songwriters and producers behind some of today’s most impactful country hits. They will executive produce the upcoming docuseries Music Row, […]
Everything has changed for fans at night 1 of Taylor Swift‘s latest run of Wembley Eras Tour shows: The pop star just treated the crowd to a surprise duet with longtime friend and collaborator Ed Sheeran. As captured by fan video in London, the “Anti-Hero” singer brought out her fellow pop superstar during the surprise […]
With the Summer Olympics wrapping Snoop Dogg’s epic run in Paris and the arrival of Latto’s Sugar Honey Iced Tea album, hip-hop continued to make waves.
Billboard Unfiltered returns with another brand-new episode on Thursday (Aug. 15), with co-hosts Carl Lamarre, Damien Scott and Trevor Anderson breaking down Snoop stealing the Olympic show, Latto’s new album and a possible feud brewing between Travis Scott and Killer Mike.
Sugar Honey Iced Tea arrived last Friday, packed with 17 tracks and a myriad of features from Megan Thee Stallion, Young Nudy, Mariah The Scientist and more. Billboard‘s deputy director, editorial Damien Scott believes this is the strongest album from a female rapper released in 2024, dethroning Megan Thee Stallion’s Megan project.
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“I think it’s great,” he said. “Kyle [Denis] in a previous episode said that he thought when he went to go listen to it that it was the strongest female rap album of the year so far. After listening to it, I tend to agree. I think it’s strong. It’s so cohesive. Everything sounds like it all fits together.
“It’s amazing she was able to work with Grizz and land on this sound that sounds like Atlanta but also sounds very modern. These songs could ring off anywhere in the country.”
Being the resident OVO owl on set, deputy director R&B/hip-hop Carl Lamarre felt that Drake’s imprint could be heard throughout Sugar Honey Iced Tea.
“The reason I like it a lot it’s very Drake-coded,” he stated. “You listen to ‘Georgia Peach,’ it gave me ‘Laugh Now, Cry Later’ vibes. You listen to ‘Big Mama,’ there’s a beat switch in the middle and she does the singing first. A little Drake-esque. Then the outro, ‘S/O to Me’ where she threw some darts at Ice Spice, it gave me more the introspective lyrical Drake vibe that we’re used to getting like ‘Middle of the Ocean,’ ’30 for 30′ type vibes. She annihilated the intro and the outro tracks.”
There was no better hire for NBC than Snoop Dogg, who was completing side missions left and right as a correspondent at the 2024 Olympics. From swimming with Michael Phelps to watching equestrian events with his buddy Martha Stewart, Snoop did it all in Paris.
“We thought he was going to jail for murder and now he’s walking with the Olympic torch. [He’s] definitely the most beloved living rapper,” Scott declared.
Senior charts & data analyst Trevor Anderson mentioned LL Cool J as a possible pushback against Snoop as the most beloved rapper, but saluted the Doggfather for what he’s been able to accomplish in so many different industries.
“The thing about Snoop is I think they’re all genuine. None ever feel like this crazy play,” he added. “To think that Snoop Dogg goes from one of the quintessential faces of Death Row and labeled by mainstream media as the face of gangsta rap and everything you don’t want to be. And now your grandma would have him over for dinner. They would kick it and have a good time and she would teach him how to Crip walk.”
Killer Mike seemingly dissed Travis Scott on his Michael & the Midnight Revival album on the heels of winning the best rap album trophy at the Grammy Awards earlier this year. While Scott didn’t respond, there’s been a simmering feud and back-and-forth on social media from both the rappers’ managers.
“Travis Scott is a young popping rapper in the prime of his career,” Scott chimed in about the unlikely foes. “Killer Mike is like 50-plus and has been rapping since I was maybe in high school and made an album that very few people would do what it did. And this is a nice to have for him, so it’s weird that they’re comparing this with Travis’ big comeback album.”
Watch the full episode below.
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Christina Aguilera is celebrating 25 years of her 1999 self-titled debut album, and its enduring hit “Genie in a Bottle.” While she revealed in her newest Glamour cover story that she’s “grateful” for everything that the album provided for her, it was the start of navigating her journey as an artist that wouldn’t be defined […]
08/15/2024
Of the 10 double honorees, seven are women, two are men and just one is a group.
08/15/2024
How deep is your K-pop fandom? Are you a fan of BTS, BLACKPINK, Stray Kids, aespa or any other K-pop groups or artists? Billboard wants to know all about it. Whether you’re a mild fan, a hardcore fan or anything in between, your input matters. We know that K-pop fans are a different breed. You’re […]
Greg Kihn, the beloved pop and rock musician known for his hit “Jeopardy,” died on Tuesday (Aug. 13) after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 75 years old.
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The star, born on July 10, 1949, in Baltimore, Md., moved to San Francisco in the mid 1970s, where he became one of the first artists signed to Matthew King Kaufman’s Beserkley Records. He formed the Greg Kihn Band, featuring guitarist Robbie Dunbar, bassist Steve Wright, and drummer Larry Lynch, and the group released a self-titled album in 1976. Through the 1970s, Kihn released an album each year.
However, it wasn’t until 1981 when Kihn got his first major Billboard hit with “The Breakup Song (They Don’t Write ‘Em),” from the Rockihnroll album. The track hit No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart.
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Just two years later, he unveiled the dance-ready hit, “Jeopardy,” which climbed to No. 2 on the Hot 100. In 1984, Kihn gave “Weird Al” Yankovic permission to parody his song into “I Lost on Jeopardy,” and even made a cameo at the end of the music video as the driver of a convertible. In 1985, Kihn signed with EMI.
Beyond his success as a musician, Kihn was also an accomplished author. He wrote four horror fiction novels, including 1996’s Horror Show and 1998’s Shade of Pale. 1998’s Big Rock Beat and 1999’s Mojo Hand were written as sequels to Horror Show. He also wrote Carved in Rock: Short Stories by Musicians, which compiled stories from him and other rock musicians including Pete Townshend, Joan Jett and more. His 2013 novel, Rubber Soul, was a Beatles-themed murder mystery story.
Kihn is survived by Jay Arafiles-Kihn, his wife; his son, Ryan Kihn, and daughter, Alexis Harrington-Kihn; as well as his grandchildren.
Meek Mill wants to sit down with Vice President Kamala Harris and ask her three questions. The Philly rapper took to X on Wednesday (Aug. 14) and had questions about the Democratic presidential nominee’s past as San Francisco’s district attorney. “I wanna ask Kamala Harris questions about her past as a da, even if she […]
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame has revealed its slate of inductees for the Class of 2024, including Al Anderson, David Bellamy, Dan Penn, Liz Rose and Victoria Shaw.
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This year’s inductees in the contemporary songwriters category are Al Anderson and Liz Rose, while Dan Penn and Victoria Shaw are feted in the veteran songwriters category, and Bellamy is honored in the veteran songwriter-artist category.
During a press conference held the Columbia A Studio in Nashville, Nashville Songwriters Board of Directors chair Rich Hallworth opened the announcement event, while Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame executive director Mark Ford announced this year’s inductees. Ford also revealed that singer-songwriter Brad Paisley is the winner of this year’s contemporary artist/songwriter category, but will be inducted as part of next year’s class, due to a scheduling conflict.
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“This is surreal, absolutely surreal,” Shaw said in reaction to the news. “I love this business. I love the art of songwriting. I’m still stunned and deeply grateful.”
Penn took the stage and said, “It’s a privilege to be inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame alongside so many of my friends.” He added, “I’ve had the blessing of writing with so many talented people here over the years…I’m grateful to be here and proud to be included in such fine company.”
Anderson could not be there in person, but accepted via video. “To be accepted into this group is such a privilege,” Anderson said.
Rose was not in attendance, but said via video, “Wow, I’m really blown away. Thank you so much to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. This is really sinking in right now and I’m so sad that I’m not there. I’m out of town writing songs. I’m really excited to be in this amazing group of the best songwriters in the world.”
Bellamy, known for his songwriting craft and for his work with his brother Howard as part of The Bellamy Brothers, took the stage, saying, “I’m still in shock. Thank you so much. I have to thank Howard because he was probably the best sounding board for a songwriter. He’ll tell you if he doesn’t like something. He’s always been critical of my work and it’s made it better.” Bellamy wrote many of the songs he recorded with his brother, including their signature 1979 track “If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body (Would You Hold It Against Me).”
Among Anderson’s writer credits are Tim McGraw’s “The Cowboy in Me,” Carlene Carter’s “Every Little Thing,” Trisha Yearwood’s “Powerful Thing” and “Trip Around the Sun,” recorded by Jimmy Buffett & Martina McBride. Shaw’s credits include “The River,” recorded by Garth Brooks, the Ricky Martin/Christina Aguilera collab “Nobody Wants to Be Lonely,” and John Michael Montgomery’s “I Love The Way You Love Me.” Rose earned her first hit in 2004 with Gary Allan’s “Songs About Rain” and then worked with then-newcomer Taylor Swift to craft songs including “Tim McGraw,” “Teardrops on My Guitar” and “White Horse,” with Rose’s credits also including Carrie Underwood’s “Cry Pretty” and Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush.” Penn’s credits include “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man” and “The Dark End of the Street,” among others.
Since its founding in 1970, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame has honored many of Music City’s top-shelf songcrafters, including Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Loretta Lynn, Don and Phil Everly and plenty more.
The new group of inductees will be honored during the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala, slated for Nov. 6 at Nashville’s Music City Center, with additional honorees to be announced.
Australian artist Angie McMahon has shared new single “Untangling” ahead of the release of new EP Light Sides. Due out on Sept. 13 via AWAL, the new project is a collection of five tracks that were written at the same time as her sophomore album Light, Dark, Light Again, which was released last October.
McMahon explains in a release that “Untangling” was a difficult track to complete. The song remained unfinished on her phone since the beginning stages of creating Light, Dark, Light Again. “It was written about someone who is deeply entwined in my life,” McMahon said, “so I never felt like either the song or the untangling itself was entirely finished.”
The deeply personal song features McMahon struggling with the prospect that she hurt someone because she was too “slow at healing.” But facing those feelings, McMahon sings over a sturdy bassline and gritty guitar that she is “untangling” them from her center and calling the situation “a joint misadventure.”
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The song was recorded at longtime collaborator Alex O’Gorman’s studio in suburban Melbourne, Australia between stops on her recent Making It Through tour — and is the only song on Light Sides that was finished with her much-loved live band: Lachlan O’Kane (drums/percussion), Jess Ellwood (guitar), Stella Farnan (keys/synth) and O’Gorman (bass).
“I was surrounded by trees and my friends and I’m so grateful to them for their musical powers,” McMahon added.
“Untangling” follows the release of another track from the EP, “Just Like North.” Light Sides’ tracklist will include the two released songs alongside originals “Beginner,” “Interstate” and “Take Up Space.”
McMahon has just returned to the United States for a string of full-band Midwest and East Coast tour dates, recently making stops in Chicago and Detroit. She arrives on the heels of a packed performance at Glastonbury, multiple sold-out shows at Melbourne’s Forum Theatre and the Sydney Opera House, and an appearance with long-time supporter Fred Again.. on stage in front of 15,000 fans in Australia.
Watch the video for “Untangling” below.
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