Music

17 May 2024

Stray Kids Share Process Behind ‘Lose My Breath,’ Preparing for ‘Authentic’ New Music & Tour

Only two months ago, Stray Kids told Billboard the band’s 2024 would be “very different from what we’ve done so far,” with the four-time Billboard 200 chart-toppers’ latest New York trip already proving that to be the truth.

Sitting inside a recording studio owned by their U.S. label, Republic Records, the K-pop sensations’ charisma, candidness and slight trepidation shone through in a laid-back, honest chat to recount their Met Gala debut, just-released collaboration with Charlie Puth, and the anticipation surrounding their upcoming projects.

Reflecting on their Met Gala experience, the members expressed how their initial worries eventually turned into pure excitement. “We didn’t know anything about Met Gala,” Stray Kids leader Bang Chan shares in his affable Australian accent, before adding, “It was a really good experience.” Felix shares that “it was an honor and pleasure for us to show what our team color is like” with their appearance, thanks to Tommy Hilfiger, marking a significant milestone in attending one of fashion’s most prestigious nights out, as they mingled with celebrities like Chris Hemsworth, Baz Luhrmann and Jennie from BLACKPINK.

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Shifting to their first original English single, their collaboration with Charlie Puth in “Lose My Breath” is highlighted as an experience for their team to learn but also share their years of experience in blending musical styles. “We had a lot of freedom to express our opinions,” notes Han, emphasizing the collaborative nature of the project that included Bang Chan, Changbin and himself writing and composing alongside Puth. For the pure-pop affair, Hyunjin says his aspiration is “to show that Stray Kids can do this kind of song” as a testament to their versatility and willingness to explore different musical landscapes.

While SKZ spoke with nervous excitement to Billboard just hours before the release of “Lose My Breath,” the band’s anticipation for their potential new future projects was also palpable.

While details remain under wraps, Bang Chan hinted at the exciting prospects: “If there was a new album, it’s definitely very new, very different yet very genuine and authentic.” The tour — that may or may not have been spoiled by Tommy Hilfiger himself — is also important, and when Lee Know mentions how “there are countries we haven’t been to yet,” he seems to hint toward a truly expansive global trek.

As Stray Kids continue to break barriers and captivate audiences worldwide, the Kids themselves remain grounded and committed to continually improving and leveling up artistry. Like “Lose My Breath,” their upcoming projects all show promise in showcasing an evolving and maturing sound to affirm their status as boundary-breakers in the global music scene. Read the full conversation from Billboard‘s chat with Stray Kids below.

Welcome back to New York, Stray Kids. It’s great to have you back, and we have to give you a big congratulations on your Met Gala debut. Overall, how was the experience?

Bang Chan: There was a lot happening, but I mean, it was a really good experience. We had fun.

Felix: It was such a huge honor because it was our first time as a team, and to go with Tommy Hilfiger to the Met Gala. Like what Chris [Bang Chan’s birth name] said, it’s such an honor but also a pleasure for us to show what our team color is like. It was incredible.

Bang Chan: Because we didn’t know anything about Met Gala! So, we went in, and then as soon as we got in, we walked up the stairs, and then there was Anna Wintour, Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez and Chris Hemsworth. So we said “Hi,” and then Chris was like, “Oh, I know you guys! You guys are two Australians — aww, come here, boys!” He took really great care of us. Baz was there too.

Felix: Baz Luhrmann was there as well. So, we had a nice chat with him. It was very nice, very nice.

Bang Chan: Ben Simmons, the basketball player, who is actually from and born in Australia, he was there. There were a lot.

It was amazing to see all eight of you there, but I’m curious how you got eight invitations for the Met Gala and how you coordinated on the red carpet with your reveal as eight?

Bang Chan: Big thanks to Tommy.

Felix: Yeah, big thanks to him.

Bang Chan: But at the Met, Tommy had a little bit of an idea. Because we have to unveil what was underneath, right? So, we kind of rehearsed how we should show what our outfits were. We did exactly what we had to do and were told to do; it was all right.

I think it was more important than you might realize. But let’s jump to the present with “Lose My Breath.” What’s the significance of this being Stray Kids’ first original English single?

Bang Chan: It is kind of exhilarating if you think about it. But one thing I wanted to point out is, I’m very, very thankful to the members because everyone recorded their parts on point and very good. The English has improved, I don’t know why, but yeah. [Laughs] So, I’m very very thankful to the members but we worked on the song here [in this New York studio], I think it was like the room across. But we had fun because, you know, Charlie Puth is very musically talented so we learnt a lot from him; it was a great experience.

You are so involved in your music, and Charlie Puth is also so involved in his music. How did you find the balance behind the scenes to collaborate?

Han: Since it’s a collaboration, the way we work might be different and there could have been clashes. But in the end, we were very open and Charlie was very open with ideas too. We had a lot of freedom to express our opinions and tried a lot of things So, we balanced it out from the get-go; it was very smooth. And with all these ideas we get from each other, we developed the parts that we wanted to show each other and the parts that we wanted to get closer aligned and eventually finished off the project.

Changbin: I was just really thrilled. There’s the Charlie that I know on social media, on videos or YouTube or whatever, and I think it was he even more than what I’ve seen on YouTube or social media so it was really cool. It was cool. He’s so musically talented, and it’s something that I, myself, want to learn from and want to have in being so versatile when you’re making music.

What are your goals or hopes for this song?

Hyunjin: Since it’s a pop genre-type of song that we haven’t done before, I want to show that Stray Kids can do this kind of song — I want to show the world, STAYs, everyone that we can do music like this. We also have a performance as well, and I want everyone out there to see what kind of performance we’ve prepared this time.

Since it might be a sound people don’t expect from Stray Kids, how do you think about or hope to introduce something new to fans?

Felix: This whole pop genre is very different to us, but like what Chris hyung said, we’re able to record the song and the lyrics perfectly through our own feelings and our emotions, which means we’re really able to express what the song is. And because we’re all experienced in making music and just showing fans what our style is, I think fans will really enjoy “Lose My Breath” as it is.

Bang Chan: It might not seem like a Stray Kids song, but in the end, it is our voices, we did write the lyrics, the melodies and everything as well. But I don’t know what people will think! I hope they can get a hint of Stray Kids in the whole platter.

I have a theory that “Lose My Breath” is the first taste or connection to the “special album” you teased at the top of the year...

Bang Chan: Um…I think of it as a side quest. “Lose My Breath” might just be a side quest…

I.N is smiling, though!

All: [Laugh]

Bang Chan: What I can say is: If there was a new album, um, it’s definitely, very new, very different yet very genuine and authentic. Because the messages that we want to say through music are all packed inside.

What’s the message you want to share when it comes to “Lose My Breath”?

Seungmin: We just want to appeal that we can, all of our members can sing the pop genre. From the moment we first began recording, everyone has been used to singing [in] like a really strong tone, but this time we try to, what the word in English? We tried to power down and compress — compressed into our natural voices. We tried to tone it down and record with a sound that naturally fit to the pop genre. I think that’s a big difference compared to the last album — I think that it will appeal to STAYs.

Bang Chan: It’s funny because I don’t usually get opportunities now to talk about what we did and everything, but definitely, with “Lose My Breath,” we did try a lot of different vocal techniques while we recorded the song. I hear that especially with Seungmin. Changbin as well. Everyone did their part so good.

Mr. Hilfger did share that you’re preparing a 40-date world tour. Can you share or confirm anything about the tour or preparations?

Bang Chan: He spoiled it on TV…and he spoiled it for us as well. [Laughs] I guess there would be a tour? But we’re still in the preparation process so we don’t know what’s what or don’t know how it’s gonna set out…

Seungmin: Lee Know wants to say something!

Lee Know: There are countries we haven’t been to yet and foods we want to eat while on the tour; touring means we can see a lot of STAYs. I think that’s what I’m looking forward to the most. It’s the chance to meet different STAYs in different parts of the world that is really important. But we haven’t started choreographing or developing the blueprints for the stage yet.

You’re in the moment with this single, but what’s coming up for Stray Kids in the immediate future? Or what message do you have for fans as you start this new chapter?

Bang Chan: [To their team member in the room] How much can we say?

Stray Kids team member: The less you talk, the better!

Stray Kids: [Laugh]

Bang Chan: Well, we don’t want to raise your expectations too much but when we head back [to Korea], it’s going to be late May. We’ve got some preparations for, well, let’s say, I guess a tour. If there’s an album, probably the album. Probably festivals. That’s is, you know, if. I don’t know if it’s true or not,

Han: There is nothing 100% real. We don’t know what’s happening.

Bang Chan: Lollapalooza is something that we’re really looking forward to. The one in Paris was amazing, there were a lot of people in the audience, and now we’re off to Chicago.

I.N: We want everyone to look forward to “Lose My Breath,” but there are a lot of things that are gonna come up and I hope you don’t get too surprised about the things that are going to come.

17 May 2024

Which Performance at the 2024 ACM Awards Was Your Favorite? Vote!

From the red carpet fashion to the emotional acceptance speeches, this year’s ACM Awards were full of memorable moments. But the highlight of the show was arguably the star-studded lineup of performances, from Dua Lipa‘s surprise cameo with Chris Stapleton to host Reba McEntire‘s blazing closing number.

Lainey Wilson opened the show — which was produced by Dick Clark Productions — with a cover of “God Blessed Texas,” a fitting tribute given the ceremony’s location in Frisco, Texas. Billboard‘s latest cover star went on to sing her new single “Hang Tight Honey,” just hours before she won entertainer of the year later in the night.

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The ceremony also featured knockout showcases from Jelly Roll — who went on to take home music event of the year for his “Save Me” collaboration with Wilson — as well as Jason Aldean, Kane Brown, Miranda Lambert and Thomas Rhett. Several notable duets also took place on the 2024 ACMs stage, with Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani appearing for a husband-wife duet of their song “Purple Irises” and Noah Kahan joining Kelsea Ballerini for a joint performance of “Stick Season” and “Mountain With a View.”

Plus, Stapleton took the entire world by surprise when Dua Lipa joined him onstage for a duet of his Higher track “Think I’m in Love With You.” Later, the country crooner told Billboard that the performance came together in just two days, while the “Levitating” singer revealed that “lots of zip-up hoodies and running in and out of the arena” were involved in keeping their rehearsals secret.

Which performance at the 2024 ACM Awards was your favorite? Vote for your top pick below!

DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldridge. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.

17 May 2024

Joshua Bassett Announces Debut Album ‘The Golden Years’: Here’s When It Arrives

Joshua Bassett is going for gold. After years in the music industry, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter has finally announced that his debut studio album The Golden Years is arriving this summer.

Sharing a teaser video for the project, Bassett simply wrote via Instagram on Friday (May 17), “THE ALBUM. THE GOLDEN YEARS. JULY 26.”

In the clip, the High School Musical: The Musical: The Series alum shoots the single artwork for The Golden Years‘ title track, which also dropped Friday. In jeans, a denim jacket and white tank top, Bassett frolics through a grassy meadow, lit by the sunset.

“If I would’ve known those were the golden years/ I would’ve held you longer that night when you kissed me goodbye through your tears,” he sings on the soft rock number, which plays in the background of the teaser. “If I would’ve known those were the golden years/ I would’ve never left you alone when you needed me most, my dear.”

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The new album will follow a string of singles from Bassett, including last year’s “Just Love” and 2022’s “Different” and “I’m Sorry.” In 2022, he released the EP Sad Songs in a Hotel Room.

The announcement comes about two weeks after the singer/actor teased “The Golden Years” in a viral TikTok, in which he sang along to a snippet of the track on the beach. At the time, many commenters speculated that the regret-filled lyrics were about either Olivia Rodrigo or Sabrina Carpenter, both of whom he’s been romantically linked to in the past.

See Bassett’s announcement — and stream “The Golden Years” — below.

17 May 2024

Gabby Barrett on Taking a Classic Emotional Approach in ‘Dance Like No One’s Watching’

With Mother’s Day in the rearview mirror, Gabby Barrett is learning to better appreciate the parent/child relationship the holiday represents.

In successful child-rearing, Mom and Dad essentially make themselves obsolete — after doting on the kids, sinking time and money into them, those children grow up, move away and create lives of their own. It makes things complicated, but there’s a sweet full-circle experience when the grown-up offspring come to understand the sacrifice that was involved in raising them as they, in turn, parent the next generation.

“I never understood that before I had kids,” Barrett says. “I’ve seen those relationships where it’s really difficult for parents to let their children go, you know, but they’re going to be adults longer than they’re going to be children, and having your mind set up that way will hopefully make it a little bit easier whenever that day comes.”

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Barrett isn’t the only person thinking about circle-of-life inevitability. So is Luke Combs, who had an idea in 2022 to write about how letting go plays out in a father/daughter relationship. Combs was trying to widen his creative relationships at the time, setting appointments with some of his frequent collaborators’ co-writers. And it was in that spirit that he proposed a writing appointment with regular co-writer James McNair (“Lovin’ On You,” “Glory Days”) and one of McNair’s professional partners, Emily Weisband (“Can’t Break Up Now,” “Looking for You”). When Combs extended the invitation, it fell during a week Weisband had intended to take off to prep for her wedding, but she couldn’t pass up the opportunity. 

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“I’m a huge fan of Luke,” she says. “And I’m a huge fan of the way that he does business and the way that he stays so connected and loyal to his friends.”

Combs, McNair and Weisband met on Sept. 26 at Sony Music Publishing’s Fire Hall, spending about an hour chatting before Combs mentioned “Dance Like No One’s Watching,” an idea he had about the sweep of a father/daughter relationship. The setup for the day was perfect because a song about a daughter needed to have a female involved in its creation.

“I think in his brain it was this big, iconic wedding song,” recalls Weisband. “He was like, ‘If you can write one of those, they’re huge.’ And so we took on the challenge.”

They fell into a waltz time — not because the hook involved dancing, Weisband says, but because it felt “big and dramatic.” That’s certainly the tone they gave the chorus first, fitting the title to a languid melody with long notes. 

“The big drawn-out melody, ‘Daaaance liiiike noooooo ooooone’s watching,’ it just felt like this is a singer’s song,” explains Weisband. “So [we] let the notes last a long time, let it just kind of flow out. It doesn’t have to be too wordy. It just has to be pure emotion. I definitely think we had to get that part right first.”

That chorus included her father’s encouragement to accept the risk of love if it appeared, unwittingly mirroring the encouragement in Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance.”

When the chorus was mostly finished, they started building the rest of the story. Verse one relied, in part, on Weisband’s memory of a father/daughter Valentine’s dance at elementary school, when her dad guided her through her insecurities about dancing in front of her classmates. Verse two zoomed ahead to Dad helping pack the trunk as the protagonist heads off for college — shades of The Chicks’ “Wide Open Spaces.” 

Weisband had mentioned as they wrote the chorus that she and her father had taken lessons for the first dance at her wedding — “Well, that’s the bridge,” Combs told her — and they reversed the emotions from the Valentine’s dance for that section, with the daughter coaching Dad during the wedding dance to stay cool: “Just don’t look at Mom.” Though they consider it a bridge, it’s literally a third verse, using the established verse melody.

“When I say ‘bridge,’ it was just that last thing that’s going to really put the dagger in the heart,” she notes.

Weisband played “Dance Like No One’s Watching” for her dad later that week, and he managed to hold it together. “I remember he went, ‘It’s good,’ and just turned away,” she says. “He had to wait till after my wedding to be like, ‘That song’s amazing.’ ”

Between her Oct. 1 wedding, the honeymoon and moving into a new home, it was weeks before she finished the demo. The day she sent it to Combs, he texted it to Barrett, whom he had always envisioned as the beneficiary of their work. Barrett was taking a leisurely bath when the phone pinged, and she held the cell tightly as “Dance” connected with her on an emotional level. “Fortunately, I did not drop it in the water,” she says.

“Dance” resonated with Barrett as a mom — she delivered her third baby, Ivy Josephine Foehner, on Feb. 17 — but it also spoke to her of her own transition into adulthood.

“The lyric ‘Girl, it’s a big world/ And it’s so easy to get lost in’ — that lyric hits me and just brings me back to the memories of really starting to do things all on my own,” she says.

She joined a band of session players at Nashville’s Blackbird Studios to record “Dance,” the first time she had been able to do that. Her first album’s vocals, recalls producer Ross Copperman (Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker), were either from her songwriting demos or done remotely during the pandemic. The band responded to her emotions, dressing her performance with a quiet fragility. 

Barrett returned to Blackbird at a later date to do the final vocal, delivering the parent/child storyline with all the right emotions, though she remained almost motionless in the process.

“She was so pregnant,” says Copperman. “She was sitting on a stool, and it just kind of flies out of her mouth. You’re like, ‘Wow, how did that just happen?’ ”

McNair orchestrated Combs’ participation on background vocals. Combs never steals the show — there are moments that it sounds like him, though he’s mostly tucked in behind Barrett, acting very much like a support singer. In the final seconds, though, he lines his harmonies up tightly with Barrett’s curly melodic ad-lib.

“This guy is such a good singer,” Copperman says. “I would not have followed that trill. I would have just kind of fallen off that note. But it’s cool, and it’s also cool just how intentional he was with singing the harmony. Most people wouldn’t have gone that deep on a harmony.”

Warner Music Nashville released “Dance Like No One’s Watching” to country radio via PlayMPE on March 8. The plot is timeless, but it should make a particular impact next month as the calendar reaches Father’s Day.

“It’s becoming a song to create new special memories like Daddy/daughter dances or at-school events or weddings,” says Barrett. “I’m receiving all these sweet clips of fans sharing that moment with me, and I’m seeing my fans make core memories. It’s just so amazing they think of me to share their forever moment.” 

17 May 2024

Reik Breaks Down 5 Essential Tracks on New ‘Panorama’ Album

Mexican group Reik returned to their pop roots with Panorama, a 13-track album that honors their past while exploring more avant-garde compositions. It’s their first LP since 2009’s Ahora, but that album was mainly comprised of past hits with only a few new tracks.

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Released on May 10 under Sony Music Mexico, Panorama includes the previously debuted singles “Baja California,” “Abril,” “Gracias por Nada,” and “El Correcto” featuring Carin León, in addition to “Roomies,” “Te Odio,” “Vámonos a Mi Casa” with LAGOS, the album’s focus track “No Molestar” and its title track.

“I would say that we haven’t made an album like this since Des/Amor [in 2016], so it was super special. We genuinely felt like we had lost the muscle memory of how to make albums and how to work on them and release them,” says Reik’s vocalist, Jesús Navarro, to Billboard Español. “The first few weeks have been super overwhelming because at least I didn’t remember how much work it takes to try to release an album, but also promote it, add the finishing touches, and at the same time plan the tour, the music videos, the release, the promo… and it’s something we’ve done a thousand times before, just not all of them together in about 10 years.”

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After spending several years experimenting with Latin urban sounds, Reik, which also includes guitarists Julio Ramírez and Bibi Marín, teamed up with the MiSHNRZ, a duo of producers made up of Ismael Cano Jr. and Matthew Rey. “We put a lot of heart and also a lot of thought into it. We didn’t want to settle,” Ramírez says. “We really wanted to make this a very unique album.”

“I think it was very automatic,” adds Marín about their reunion to create a whole new album. “I think when it’s time to do something, you just do it… The gears of the machine were always well adjusted. Right now, we are very excited that everything is going, that we are in this new stage and we are happy.”

Reik spoke with Billboard Español on Thursday (May 16) from Houston, where they gave a concert as part of their Panorama 2024 U.S. Tour. Presented by Loud and Live, the 25-date tour began on May 11 in Orlando, Florida, and ends on June 10 in Seattle. (For more details, click here).

Below, Reik breaks down five essential songs from their album Panorama.

REIK

REIK

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“No Molestar”

Julio Ramírez: Now that I think about it, that was the easiest, oddly enough. It was super cool when this song was made, because the truth is that the album was mostly formed — I think we already had about nine songs or 10 — and we always wanted to keep everything in line with pop, to reclaim our sound… but change it a little so that it doesn’t seem like it’s the same from tracks 1 to 13.

And when “No Molestar” starts, wow! It happened that I was on the computer trying out sounds from the MiSHNRZ’s producer Ish (Ismael), and suddenly I said “That’s it!” They were the chords of the chorus, I remember. “TA ta ta.” So we immediately started humming the chorus and then we were like, “You know what? Let’s make a verse!” And we went to the first chords and we all got excited. For us it was a bit of a Bruno Mars vibe in the studio. We finished the lyrics and there is a video of everyone dancing, jumping, having an incredible time.

That feeling made us go like, “Wow, we got something special.” We always get emotional in the studio, but that song made us very emotional. And I love that we dared to include a super out-of-nowhere, French-ish arrangement at the end of the song; The Beatles’ “Michelle” was the inspiration. It was a treat for us, too.

“Panorama”

Bibi Marín: “Panorama” was, according to me, the first song that came out of this new stage, of these new experiments that we were doing. And when I say experiments, I mean that it was a very consciously decisive moment, where we started looking for the new pop sound for Reik. It was already very clear to us that we didn’t want to continue experimenting with urban… so we said, “OK, pop, but how?” Because we don’t want to sound like we’re going to release an album that could well have come out in 2004 or 2005.

So it was the first time we got together with the MiSHNRZ, who wrote almost the entire album, produced almost the entire album, in short. We got together and the first experiment that came out was “Panorama” — so for everyone, it was very refreshing and very inspiring. It was a new, fresh sound, it was somewhat challenging, but at the same time it made us feel that we were going in a very good direction. Even though it was a somewhat “rare” song for Reik, it was still a very pop sound. So much so that it even gave the album its title, and it marked a little bit the direction in which we began to move musically.

“Ojos Papel” (feat. Leo Rizzi)

Jesús Navarro: “Ojos papel” is a super special song to me. I believe Leo is one of the most special singers that we’ve heard in the new music scene in Spanish, and we are very aware of his existence. We had already made a track together on one of his albums — but it was a little strange because we were just out of the pandemic, and it was still difficult to travel, so we made this track and released it without having ever met in person. We just met at the [2023] Latin Grammys in Seville and we gave each other a very long hug, with a lot of emotion.

Only recently, when he was in Mexico City a few months ago, we got together to write with him, and this wonderful song came out. I think Julio hit the mark at the beginning of the session when he spoke with the entire team and they sort of agreed to let Leo take the lead in the session a little, so that we could get a song that was ours, but at the same time not characteristic, not what you would expect. I think the goal was achieved.

“Roomies”

Bibi Marín: I’m going to say “Roomies,” because apart from the fact that it’s a song that I love, I think it’s the song that pays the most tribute and reference to our origins in two senses: One, musically, in terms that it is a super light, good-vibe pop song; [and two] like literally at the end of the song, the outro is the introduction of “Qué Vida la Mía” [from 2005]. The idea not only of the song, but of the entire album and of this stage, is yes, to make the statement that we are returning to our roots — to a super-pop pop — and what better way than using a little piece of one of our first songs. I think this song covers a lot of space there.

“Baja California”

Julio Ramírez: “Baja California” is a spectacular song to me. It became so important that we opened the album with that song, and we also open the Panorama Tour show with that song. We find the video spectacular. It was really nice to go back to where we grew up, to make the video with Ry [Shorosky], who is a really impressive director from Utah. It turned out beautiful, the vibe is incredible. And I think it was super cool to make this track — I’m going to talk about it on an author’s level — trying to make a pop that’s much cooler, much more daring.

I mean, in my eyes, the approach was how we would sound with a kind of The Weeknd or Harry Styles vibe, but with our own handwriting — and “Baja California” came out. I don’t know, I love that song, I love that we’re mentioning Baja, we’re mentioning Rosarito, but putting it in the context of a love story. I think it’s super cool. I hope people like it. It sets the mood for the whole album.

17 May 2024

How to Watch EDC Las Vegas 2024 Livestream

Tonight, one of the world’s major destinations for dance music, EDC Las Vegas, begins at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The three-day festival, produced by Insomniac Events, famously begins each day at sunset and then goes until dawn, with performances from several hundred DJs filling the nocturnal hours in between.

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If you can’t get to Vegas to get your rave on, fret not. EDC Las Vegas 2024 is streaming online for free all weekend via the Insomniac YouTube page and the Insomniac website.

Starting at 6:30 p.m. PT Friday, four separate livestreams will be available from four of the festival’s biggest stages: the house and techno-oriented NeonGarden, the bass-focused BassPod, the genre-spanning CircuitGrounds and its always larger-than-life main stage KineticField.

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The livestream will feature by performances by DJs including John Summit, Mau P, Kayzo, Jessica Audiffred, Benny Benassi and many more. Sets can also be heard on the Insomniac app or via the Insomniac Radio website.

A representative for Insomniac Events tells Billboard that more than a million unique viewers from around the world tuned in to the 2023 EDC Vegas livestream. The festival itself expects roughly 175,000 attendees per day on site at the Speedway. Many of the world’s biggest DJs are playing the festival, with Four Tet, Peggy Gou and hard techno star Sara Landry all making their EDC Las Vegas debuts this weekend.

The festival hosts artists across nine stages total, a few of which will be moved this year in order to create larger dancefloors and better crowd flow.

17 May 2024

Cassie Ventura’s Husband Speaks Out After Diddy Hotel Video Surfaces: ‘Men Who Hit Women Aren’t Men’

Cassie Ventura‘s husband, model Alex Fine, has spoken out after a video of Sean “Diddy” Combs appearing to physically assault Ventura — whom the hip-hop mogul dated on and off for 11 years — surfaced online Friday (May 17).

Shortly after CNN posted the 2016 security surveillance clip — in which Combs appears to shove Ventura to the ground, kick her several times and drag her down a hallway during a hotel stay — Fine shared a Notes app screenshot of a self-written statement beginning with, “Men who hit women aren’t men.”

“Men who enable it and protect those people aren’t men,” the message continued. “As men violence against women shouldn’t be inevitable, check your brothers, your friends, and your family … To all the women and children, I’m sorry you live in a world where you’re not protected, and you don’t feel equal.”

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Fine added: “To the abusers, you’re done, you’re not safe anymore.”

“Wrote this awhile back but the words ring true not just today but everyday,” the fitness entrepreneur captioned his post. “I want my kids and every kid to live in a world that’s safe for women and girls, protects them and treats them as equals. To the women and children, you’re not alone, and you are heard. if you need help call the domestic violence hotline at (800) 799-7233.”

Fine and Ventura married in 2019, and have since welcomed two children. The contents of the video mirror an assault allegation the “Me & U” singer made in a now-settled lawsuit she filed against Diddy in November, in which she also alleged one instance of rape and another instance of Combs forcing her to have sex with male sex workers while he masturbated.

“The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs,” said Ventura’s attorney, Douglas Wigdor, in a statement sent to Billboard shortly after the clip went public. “Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light.”

Since Ventura filed her lawsuit late last year, Combs has been hit with four additional sexual misconduct lawsuits. In November, the mogul stepped down as chairman of his digital media company Revolt before reportedly selling his stake in the company in March. Also in March, federal agents conducted raids of Combs’ L.A. and Miami homes “in connection” with a federal sex trafficking investigation, according to CNN.

Combs has strongly denied all allegations of sexual assault made against him. “Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged,” he said in a statement posted to social media on Dec. 6. “I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”

See Fine’s post below.

17 May 2024

Dan + Shay Give Justin Bieber Fatherhood Advice at 2024 ACM Awards: ‘You Gotta Learn As You Go’

As a dad of three, Shay Mooney has had well over 10,000 hours of practice at fatherhood. And in an interview with Billboard on the Winner’s Walk carpet at the 2024 ACM Awards Thursday (May 16), the Dan + Shay band member passed on a little bit of sage advice to one of the duo’s past collaborators: Justin Bieber, who recently announced that he and Hailey Bieber are expecting their first child.

“You gotta learn as you go, you obviously pick things up as you go,” said Mooney, who shares sons Asher, Ames and Abram with wife Hannah Billingsley. “Justin, if you’re watching this, you’re gonna do just fine. You’re a good man.”

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“It’s gonna be awesome, I’m excited for them,” the singer added of his and bandmate Dan Smyers’ “10,000 Hours” duet partner. “It’s a new journey, and they have a lot of great people around them. I’m proud of him.”

The awards show — where Dan + Shay won the prize for duo of the year — comes just over a week after the Biebers revealed that they’re expanding their family. Hailey debuted her baby bump with the “Peaches” singer in photos taken at what appeared to be a vow renewal ceremony, posted by the Rhode founder on Instagram May 9.

Since then, the model has shared more photos of her bump and revealed her biggest pregnancy craving so far: pickles topped with egg salad and hot sauce. “No, you’re not allowed to judge!!” she wrote on Instagram Stories earlier this week, sharing a photo of the concoction.

Mooney and Smyers are currently closing out their first season on The Voice. They pair make up the first-ever coaching duo on the show, where they serve on the panel alongside Reba McEntire, John Legend and Chance the Rapper.

“I’ve enjoyed genuinely getting to work with the artists, really digging in,” Smyers told Billboard of their time on the series. “There’s so much thought that goes into the songs. Trying to give those artists their best shot, ’cause that’s an amazing moment for them.”

17 May 2024

Bacilos Drops ‘Pequeños Romances’ Album & More New Music Latin

New Music Latin is a compilation of the best new Latin songs and albums recommended by Billboard’s Latin and Billboard Español editors. Check out this week’s picks below.

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Bacilos, Pequeños Romances (Kooperativa/Bacilos LLC)

Bacilos has gifted their fans with their new album, Pequeños Romances, an 11-track musical journey that includes previously released singles “Anoche” and “Facho.” With its distinct tropi-pop sounds, the former really set the tone for what fans could expect on the album. Pequeños Romances, meaning “small romances,” dropped with focus single “Enredadera,” a bohemian tune backed by el cajón and enchanting violin chords, which tells the story of an eternal love. Notably, the song captures the band’s essence through a sample of two of their biggest hits: “Tabaco y Channel” and “Mi Primer Millón.”

During an IG live with Billboard, Jorge Villamizar and André Lopes explained how the album carries the unique sound of Miami — the place that has influenced and accompanied them throughout their career. Villamizar further emphasized that this album focused him on where his voice was headed, serving as an essential starting point for the album’s creation. — INGRID FAJARDO

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Luis Fonsi, El Viaje (Universal Music Latino)

Luis Fonsi’s El Viaje is a trip in the literal and symbolic sense, taking the Puerto Rican artist on a journey where each song is titled after a different city in the world, from Colombia’s “Santa Marta,” a collab with Carlos Vives, to Italy’s “Roma,” a collab with Laura Pausini. Each song is completely different — “Santa Marta” is acoustic tropi pop while “Roma” is a sophisticated pop ballad, for example — but each underscores Fonsi’s penchant for fine, melodic songwriting that showcases vocals first and foremost. The album, produced by longtime collaborators Andrés Torres and Mauricio Rengifo, coincides with Fonsi’s 25th anniversary as a recording artist, and reminds us that pop can survive and thrive through the decades. — LEILA COBO

LAGOS, Alta Fidelidad (Warner Music México)

Three years after their debut album, LAGOS does not disappoint with their second studio album Alta Fidelidad. With their distinctive enveloping electro-pop sound, the Venezuelan duo, formed by musicians and producers Luis Jiménez and Agustín Zubillaga, explores love in all its stages, from the sweetness of romance to the end of a relationship. The project of 11 songs and a 20-second intro, also includes singles released in advance such as the collaborations “No se Acaba Hasta que Acabe” with REIK, “Blanco y Negro” with Elena Rose as well as the catchy “Tengamos Pasado” and its counterpart “Tuvimos Futuro.” They also join Greeicy on the emotional “Si Supiéramos Esta Noche.” The focus track, “Dime Quién,” stands out for its mischievous play with the names of several women, some mentioned in their songs.

“We had to rewrite [the album] twice practically. We realized that we were perhaps thinking more about the results than how the songs made us feel in that first attempt,” Jimenez said in a release statement. “This second album embodies a refined essence that reflects our growth,” they add. In addition, they shared that they were inspired by the pop sound of the ’80s, using Roland Juno 106 synthesizers and the LinnDrum drum machine, instruments that defined the pop and rock of the time, to produce all the songs. With Alta Fidelidad, LAGOS manages to link the past with the present with a contemporary sound that captivates from beginning to end, while solidifying its essence and bringing a breath of fresh air to the current music scene. LAGOS will be touring several cities in Mexico, the United States, Europe and Latin America. — LUISA CALLE

Alejo, En Esta Nos Fuimos Lejos (Jungl/ONErpm)

Alejo has no plans of slowing down, and his sophomore studio set, En Esta Nos Fuimos Lejos (“We went far with this one”), is proof of that. Sonically, the 14-track production finds the Puerto Rican artist navigating futuristic reggaetón, trap, and R&B fusions. Lyrically, it showcases his growth and maturity. In the opening track, “Cosmo,” for example, Alejo belts a heartfelt track about believing in himself, hustling hard, and manifests he will become a legend in the music realm. “Cosmo” is so personal it was even named after his beloved cat that passed away. Backing up his nickname, “El Favorito de las Nenas” (every girl’s favorite one), Alejo also delivers some sensual tracks as heard in focus single “Casa de Campo” and “Del Avión Pa’ Tu Apa,” which means “from the airplane to your apartment.” In En Esta Nos Fuimos Lejos, Alejo reels in collaborators ROBI for “La Crush”; Kris Floyd for “Los Lobos”; Jowell for “Wiki Wiki”; and Raul Clyde & Polima Westcoast for “Bien” — mainly giving a spotlight to the new generation of urban acts that is growing with him. — JESSICA ROIZ

Xavi & Tony Aguirre, “Ya Te Superé” (Interscope Records)

About five months ago, amidst the viral success of Xavi’s hit “La Diabla,” which scorched the Hot Latin Songs chart, an unexpected track leaked throughout TikTok and SoundCloud. That song was “Ya Te Superé,” the corridos kiss-off banger, which officially sees Xavi and Tony Aguirre joining forces again — following their October collab “Modo DND” — where they continue to display their ability to dominate the regional Mexican music scene with undeniable grit.

On the song’s journey to release, Xavi shared with Billboard Español: “‘Ya Te Superé’ is a song that Tony and I have been waiting to release for a while. Honestly, it’s one of my favorite projects that we got to work on together. I’m thrilled, because today is finally the day it premieres, after it had been leaked… you can imagine.” In the music video, the two stars trade their construction site for visions of wild parties, vividly capturing the essence of their fierce and celebratory sound.  — ISABELA RAYGOZA

Nora González, Mariachi Bebecín (CHR Records)

“La Charra Millenial” Nora González presents six acoustic folk versions of her rancheras and a new song in this seven-track EP, produced by Fabian Rincón, Rogelio Villaseñor and Pablo Vamer (who also collaborates on all the tracks), solely over trumpet and piano. With new versions of “Con Tu Memoria,” “Secreto a Voces” and the cheerful “Soy de Parral,” among others, Mariachi Bebecín opens with the new heartbreak song “Ese Tren Ya Se Fue,” written by El David Águilar and Loli Molina, about a woman who doesn’t let herself be trampled. “I don’t understand my love, why do you ask this bird to forget its dream of singing/ When all the mornings are beautiful, why kill the roses when you can always love,” go part of the lyrics.

“Mariachi Bebecín is a way for me to explore another genre, always being faithful to my mariachi roots,” González tells Billboard Español. “Listening to songs that were full mariachi in this ‘naked’ way, gives me a new feeling, as if they were other songs.” Throughout the EP, the artist displays that sublime and powerful voice that earned her a Latin Grammy nomination for best ranchero/mariachi album in 2021 for #Charramillennial – Lady, and a prominent place on Billboard’s On The Radar Latin the following year. — SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS

Listen to more editors’ Latin recommendations in the playlist below:

17 May 2024

Lupe Fiasco Announces New Album, Debuts New Video for ‘Samurai’

Lupe Fiasco is set to drop his follow up to 2022’s Drill Music In Zion as he links up once again with longtime producer Soundtrakk for a full project.

Samurai has a release date of Friday, June 28 and features only eight tracks; a rarity in the age of music streaming. Today he released the lead single “Samurai” and its accompanying video. Soundtrakk’s production is refreshing as Lupe posts up in Chicago’s Ping Tom Memorial Park to give us some elite “battle raps.”

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Lupe explained the album title in a press release, saying “The word ‘samurai’ means to serve. My relationship to that word has always meant that you need to be at the service of other people, either in the overall community, or in this instance, the rap community at large that I’ve been a part of for years.”

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If you’ve followed Lupe, you’d know he practiced various forms of martial arts and sometimes posts video of himself practicing kata and sword techniques.

Lupe has also been teaching the course ‘Rap Studies’ at MIT in Cambridge, MA since 2022, and has also since been made a fellow at Yale, sharing his unique perspective on the industry at large. This album is also the first project since 2007’s The Cool that Lupe and his mentor/business partner Charles “Chill” Patton have worked on together. Chill was serving a prison sentence since 2007 and was finally released in 2023 after 16 years.

“It felt great to be back in the studio again as a family,” the rapper noted. 

Check out the album artwork and tracklist below:

Lupe Fiasco 'Samurai'

Lupe Fiasco ‘Samurai’

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  1. “Samurai”
  2. “Mumble Rap”
  3. “Cake”
  4. “Palaces”
  5. “No. 1 Headband”
  6. “Bigfoot”
  7. “Outside”
  8. “Til Eternity”