Music

Selena Gomez Shares Sweet Photos From Benny Blanco’s Cookbook Party: ‘So Proud’

Selena Gomez is a proud girlfriend. In honor of Benny Blanco‘s new cookbook Open Wide hitting shelves Tuesday (April 30), the singer-actress shared a trio of adorable photos from the producer’s launch party on Instagram.

In the first snap, the Rare Beauty founder kneels down to take a bite directly out of a realistic cake made to look like Blanco’s new book, featuring the newly minted author on the cover. In the second photo, she and her beau sit together while admiring the confection, while the third picture finds the couple posing sweetly for the camera, Blanco’s arms wrapped around Gomez.

“So proud of @itsbennyblanco – Open Wide is out now!!” the Only Murders in the Building star captioned the post.

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“life is better when i’m w u,” Blanco wrote in the comments.

The cookbook release is an extra special occasion for the pair — who started dating in June — as Blanco has been open about the fact that he and his superstar girlfriend bonded over their love of food. You could even say that cooking is their love language — earlier this week, the “Eastside” musician took followers through the process of cooking Gomez a romantic dinner, which he left at her bedside with a note reading, “I love you! Sleep well! I made you steak.”

He also said in a recent Wall Street Journal interview that he and Gomez enjoy making lavish dinners for their families. Blanco went on to tell the publication that he was “the last one to know” he had feelings for the Wizards of Waverly Place star, adding, “It’s crazy how your partner could just be sitting there the whole time, right in front of your eyes, and you don’t even notice, and then you have that Clueless moment where you’re like, ‘Wait, I’m in love.’”

Shenseea Looks Back on Career-Shifting Ye Collab: ‘It Has Led Me to a Lot of Open Doors’

Summer is quickly approaching, and dancehall princess Shenseea is here to deliver the soundtrack to the warmest months of 2024. Ahead of the release of her sophomore studio album, Never Gets Late Here (out May 24), Shenseea stopped by Billboard News to reflect on how she’s approached collaborating with other artists throughout her career.

“It helps me to get over my nerves,” she muses. “I feel like artists [are] easily intimidated by others’ success. Not to be badminded, not like that vibe, more of like, ‘Whoa, this is the pressure to have when somebody who’s this successful in the industry [is here.] What do I bring to the table?’”

Alpha, Shenseea’s debut studio LP, boasted collaborations with a slew of chart-topping artists, including 21 Savage, Beenie Man, Megan Thee Stallion, Offset, Sean Paul and Tyga. That set peaked at No. 2 on Top Reggae Albums and at No. 3 on Heatseekers Albums. Prior to Alpha, the Jamaican powerhouse began her crossover endeavors by throwing assists to American artists such as Masego, Christina Aguilera and Kanye “Ye” West.

“You will never know until you do it,” she says. “Doing it over time and taking on the challenge over and over and just trying to be myself, it helps that there’s nothing I can’t take on.”

Later in her conversation with Billboard News — which also traced the creation of her new LP, how she learned to harmonize and some of her earliest musical memories — Shenseea expounded on her career shifting link-up with Ye. The two artists joined forces alongside Roddy Ricch on “Pure Souls,” a track from the “All of the Lights” rapper’s Billboard 200-topping Donda album, which earned all three artists nominations for album of the year at the 2022 Grammys.

“One of the moments I knew things changed was when I did the collaboration with Kanye,” Shenseea gushes. “I felt like that opened a whole different type of doors — fashion, hip-hop, different artists just reaching out. I think that Kanye is cool, as much as how he’s artistic, he’s a cool person to look at. Always entertaining. I feel like me being associated with him, it has led me to a lot of open doors.”

Ahead of its full release later this month, Shenseea has delivered a few tastes of Never Gets Late Here. On Tuesday (April 30), she unveiled the LP’s full tracklist, revealing forthcoming collaborations with Coi Leray, Anitta and Wizkid. The set’s lead single, “Hit & Run” (with Masicka and Di Genius), has amassed nearly 40 million views on YouTube for its official music video.

Watch Shenseea’s full Billboard News interview above.

Ramin Djawadi to Be Named BMI Icon at 2024 BMI Film, TV and Visual Media Awards

Composer Ramin Djawadi is set to receive the BMI Icon Award at the 40th annual BMI Film, TV and Visual Media Awards on June 5 in Beverly Hills, Calif. The Emmy-winning composer will receive the accolade for his body of work across film, television and video games. The ceremony will also salute the composers of the previous year’s top-grossing films, top-rated primetime network television series, and highest-ranking cable and streamed media programs.

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The event will be hosted by BMI president and CEO Mike O’Neill and BMI vice president of creative, film, TV & visual media, Tracy McKnight.

Previous BMI Icon Award recipients include Terence Blanchard, Mychael Danna, Alexandre Desplat, Harry Gregson-Williams, James Newton Howard, Christopher Lennertz, Thomas Newman, Rachel Portman (PRS), Mike Post, Alan Silvestri, Brian Tyler and John Williams.

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Djawadi has received 15 BMI Awards for outstanding scores for films, cable TV programs and streamed media. He won back-to-back Primetime Emmy Awards in 2018-19 for outstanding music composition for a series (original dramatic score) for Game of Thrones. He has received five other Primetime Emmy nods for Game of Thrones, Prison Break, FlashForward and Westworld. In addition, Djawadi has received three Grammy nods.

“We’re excited to honor Ramin Djawadi and celebrate his outstanding musical achievements,” McKnight in a statement. “Ramin’s innovative compositions for films, TV shows, and video games have captivated audiences worldwide, exemplifying his remarkable range and talent.”

Djawadi collaborated with Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy on Amazon Prime’s Fallout and partnered with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss on the Netflix series 3 Body Problem.

Djawadi, 49, got his start by collaborating with Hans Zimmer on such films as Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Batman Begins. (Both composers were born in what was then known as West Germany.) Djawadi went on to score such films as Iron Man, Eternals, A Wrinkle in Time, Clash of the Titans, Pacific Rim and Blade:Trinity.

In addition, Djawadi, has composed music for several video games including “Medal of Honor,” “Gears of War 4” and “Gears 5.”

Ed Sheeran Celebrating 10th Anniversary of ‘X’ Album With Intimate Barclays Show, Bonus Tracks

Ed Sheeran is going all-out for the 10th anniversary celebration of his sophomore album, x. Ten years to the day of the LP’s original release, Sheeran will drop x (10th Anniversary Edition) on June 21, an expanded version of the 12-song original featuring nine bonus tracks, none of which have ever been available on vinyl before.

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In addition, Sheeran will play a special, one-off show at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on May 22 with a setlist reflecting his 24-track 2015 x (Wembley Edition) release. According to a release, he’s also partnered with Seated for an exclusive fan on-sale to assure that tickets get into the hands of fans, with registration open now through Thursday (May 2) at 11:59 p.m. ET; click here for more details on the pre-sale. Expecting demand to be overwhelming, the pre-sale will be limited to a select number of randomly selected fans, with only one registration allowed per person. Registered fans will be notified via email or text before noon ET on Sunday (May 5) with a unique, one-time code that will allow them to buy up to two tickets via Ticketmaster.

Getting a code does not guarantee the ability to buy tickets, which will be available on a first-come, first-served basis when they go on sale to the general public on Monday (May 6) at 10 a.m. ET. For context, Sheeran’s team noted that his most recent New York shows were in front of 173,390 fans across two shows at MetLife Stadium, with only 12,000 tickets available for the Barclays gig.

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Sheeran’s second album helped turn him into a global superstar, with 22 million worldwide sales thanks to such hits as “Don’t,” “Sing,” “Photograph” and “Thinking Out Loud.” The bonus tracks include: “Take It Back,” “Shirtsleeves,” “Even My Dad Does Sometimes,” “I See Fire” (from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug), “All of the Stars” (from The Fault in Our Stars), “English Rose,” “Touch and Go,” “New York” and “Make It Rain.”

Cher Reveals The Very Practical Reason She Dates Younger Men: ‘Men My Age… They’re All Dead’

Cher totally gets that it’s a fun parlor game to make jokes about her dating much younger men. But the joke is on you, because the 77-year-old ageless pop wonder has the very best reason for romancing men half her age.

“I’m really shy when I’m not working and kind of shy around men,” she told Jennifer Hudson on Wednesday (May 1) on the singer’s daytime talk show. But here’s the real kicker: “And the reason I go out with young men is because men my age or older — well, now they’re all dead — but before they just never, they were always terrified to approach me and younger men were the only ones that…”

“They’re bold,” Hudson helped her out, with mother of two Cher laughing, “Yeah! Raised by women like me!” The topic came up because the “Believe” singer has recently been linked with 38-year-old music exec Alexander “A.E.” Edwards. Cher went Insta official with Edwards in Nov. 2022 with a pic of them holding hands. When asked if he was her “new man,” she posted a smiling emoji, shutting down haters comments on their 40-year age gap by saying “love doesn’t know math” then doubling-down on that emotion in January after posting another snuggly shot captioned “Love is Love.”

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She also confirmed that she’d once turned down a date with Elvis Presley, also for good reason. “It was because I was nervous and I knew of the people around him and it wasn’t that they were bad people, it’s just that I was kind of nervous of his reputation,” she explained.

Cher also talked about how she still has it so together at her age, giving her mom credit for good genes, saying “I stole my mom’s voice and used it to become Cher.” She also revealed that Tupac Shakur is now one of her favorite artists. “I was so taken aback by the depth of the words,” she said of the late rapper she was introduced to by Edwards.

The interview also touched on which of her songs are her favorite — yes “Believe” is on the list — and what she would be if she hadn’t become who she is. “I can’t think of any other profession that I would have been good at,” she said as Hudson suggested stylist or model; Cher noted that she modeled for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar at the beginning of her career, which late husband Sonny Bono didn’t like because he was “really, really jealous.”

Watch Cher on the Jennifer Hudson Show below.





Stray Kids, Olivia Rodrigo, Jung Kook, Charli XCX & More Among Gold House’s A100 List of Asian Pacific Leaders

Gold House revealed its annual A100 list on Wednesday (May 1), honoring the 100 Asian Pacific leaders who have most significantly impacted American culture and society in the last year, and some of today’s biggest music stars have made the list.

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Stray Kids, Charli XCX, Steve Aoki, Jung Kook, Keanu Reeves, Hayao Mayazaki, Dev Patel, Bella Poarch and many more are all honored this year under the list’s Entertainment and Media category. Olivia Rodrigo and Jason Momoa are among the entertainers in this year’s A100 Hall of Fame inductees, while HYBE Chairman Bang Si-Hyuk will be honored as a Gold Legend. Up-and-coming New Gold honorees include ATEEZ, Laufey and more.

The third annual Gold Gala event will take place at the Music Center in downtown Los Angeles on May 11 and, as previously announced, the night will feature a performance from 2023 A100 honoree Saweetie, who will receive the first-ever Billboard Gold Music Honor at the event, recognizing her boundary-pushing musical accomplishments. In addition, the cast and creators of Emmy-winning Beef will receive the Gold Icon Honor for their groundbreaking representation of the Asian American experience, while Wicked star Cynthia Erivo will be given the Gold Ally Honor for her work to advance inclusive representation in front of and behind the camera. HYBE founder Bang Si-Hyuk will be bestowed with the lifetime achievement Gold Legend Honor and Hello Kitty’s 50th anniversary will be celebrated with the Gold Generation Award.

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“This year was special: Asian Pacific leaders had a record number of records broken while building a more inclusive tomorrow for all, particularly in new avenues like AI. Gold House is honored to celebrate so many new and established leaders who are committed to both equity and excellence,” said Bing Chen and Jeremy Tran, CEO and COO of Gold House.

The Gold Gala will be followed by the inaugural Billboard x Gold House Founders Party, which will feature a headlining set from producer/DJ Steve Aoki, as well as a performance from RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16 winner Nymphia Wind, a karaoke room presented by Rakuten Viki and an additional set from DJ Hu Dat.

The full A100 list and the Selection Committee can be found here.

Marc Anthony Launches ‘Muevense Radio’ Channel That Will Explore More Than 3 Decades of His Music

Marc Anthony is the latest music star to launch his own channel on SiriusXM.

On Wednesday (May 1), the salsa icon launched Muevense Radio, which will air for a limited time through Thursday, May 31, on the SiriusXM app. Additionally, it will be available to subscribers on SiriusXM channel 107 now through May 14.

According to SiriusXM, Muevense Radio — taking its name from Marc Anthony’s latest album, which he released April 26 — will feature stories shared by the hitmaker and give “insight” on his expansive career. The channel will explore more than three decades of Marc Anthony’s music, from his timeless classics to his new album, and will also feature music from “his influences and favorite artists,” a press release states.

Muevense Radio’s launch will be marked by a SiriusXM Town Hall special that will feature a chat between Marc Anthony and songwriter-producer Julio Reyes Copello. The episode will be hosted by producer Sergio George, one of Marc Anthony’s longtime collaborators, at the SiriusXM Miami studios. The Town Hall special will air Friday (May 3) at 2 p.m. ET on Muevense Radio, with rebroadcasts throughout the weekend.

The SiriusXM channel comes on the heels of Marc Anthony’s new album, which is a testament to the singer’s knack for crafting salsa anthemic hits. In all tracks, except for “Ojalá Te Duela,” a ranchera with Pepe Aguilar, Marc shines solo putting centerstage the festive rhythms that have defined his career.

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“A new Marc Anthony album is always cause for celebration, and it speaks to the timelessness and consistency of his voice and his musical collaborators that at any moment you can turn on any radio station and within the same commercial-free music block, hear a song he recorded last year next to a song he recorded 30 years ago,” Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote in an essay about Marc Anthony’s new album. “He is our Sinatra, and when we hear him, we also hear the echoes of all the unforgettable moments in our own lives.”

The McClymonts’ Samantha McClymont Is Battling Breast Cancer

Samantha McClymont, a founding member of Australian country act the McClymonts, is battling a rare type of breast cancer.

The 38-year-old artist shared the troubling news on her social media page.

“Last October, I found a lump,” she writes. “After initially being misdiagnosed,” she continues, her “life completely turned upside” down four months later when she was diagnosed with Triple Negative Breast Cancer. According to Cancer Research U.K., about 15% of breast cancers are of this type.

“It has become my full-time job having treatment,” she continues. “It has begun with chemotherapy/ immunotherapy, which in total will be 5 months, followed by surgery and then radiation.”

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Friends and family “have been incredibly supportive as Ben, the boys, and I navigate our new routine,” she writes in a post that’s accompanied with a picture of the singer getting hugs from her sons.

McClymont has wiped clean her work slate for the rest of the year, as she recovers from her illness. “I know I will come out the other side of this,” adds McClymont, “but it’s one step at a time.”

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The sibling trio – Sam, Brooke, and Mollie – has released six studio LPs, the most recent, Mayhem To Madness (Island Records Australia / Universal Music Australia), dropping in 2020 and opening at No. 3 on the ARIA Albums Chart. Mayhem To Madness was shortlisted for country album of the year at the ARIA Awards.

“Their harmonies are tight, and their songwriting is nothing short of first rate,” wrote Billboard’s late country writer Chuck Dauphin for a 615 Spotlight on the group, published in 2011. “For every Keith Urban that has been able to transcend nationalities with their sound in the genre, there are at least two that have not been able to. The McClymonts are making that jump – and making it successfully.”

Over time, the group has collected 13 Golden Guitar Awards, two ARIA Awards and an APRA Award.

Kelly Clarkson’s Talent Is ‘Chemical’ With This Post Malone Cover

Kelly Clarkson has proved once again that she can truly sing anything.

The superstar opened her eponymous talk show on Tuesday (April 30) with a cover of Post Malone’s “Chemical.” Dressed in a band tee, a red maxi skirt and a sleek ponytail, Clarkson effortlessly hit the chorus’ high notes, backed by her instrumentalists, whom she affectionately calls My Band Y’All.

“Outside of the party, smokin’ in the car with you/ Seven Nation Army, fightin’ at the bar with you/ Tell you that I’m sorry, tell me what I gotta do/ ‘Cause I can’t let go, it’s chemical,” she sings on the track, which was featured on Post’s 2023 self-titled album, Austin.

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Post Malone took the stage with Morgan Wallen when the latter headlined Stagecoach on Sunday night (April 28), and the duo performed a new song called “I Had Some Help.” Post previously teased the uptempo track on social media, highlighting lyrics such as “I had some help/ It ain’t like I can make this kind of mess all by myself/ Don’t act like you ain’t help me pull that bottle off the shelf … they say teamwork makes the dream work.”

Wallen and Malone have yet to reveal a release date for the collaboration. In the meantime, watch Kelly Clarkson perform Post Malone’s “Chemical” below.

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https://youtube.com/watch?v=BAvK-uXsKfM&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

‘American Idol’ Singer Emmy Russell Honors Grandma Loretta Lynn With ‘Coal Miner’s Daughter’

American Idol contestant Emmy Russell is a coal miner’s great-granddaughter, and she paid homage to her grandmother, the late Country Music Hall of Famer Loretta Lynn,on Monday’s (April 29) episode of the talent competition.

Seated at a piano, Russell performed Loretta Lynn’s signature song: the 1970 hit “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” The song focuses on Lynn’s Kentucky childhood, watching as her father worked hard in the coal mines to provide money for basic food and clothing for his family. As Russell performed the song, large screens showed Russell’s mother, Patsy Lynn, as she watched in the audience.

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On Monday night, Russell advanced to the top seven on the show. For her Idol audition, Russell performed her own original song called “Skinny.” Throughout her time on the show so far, she’s also performed covers of Blink-182’s “All the Small Things” and Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.”

Russell previously told People of a special moment just prior to her Idol performance of “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” “I think just closing my eyes and telling her, ‘I’m proud of you.’ I did that in rehearsal. I was like, ‘I’m proud of you.’ I want people to feel proud of their story, where they’ve come from, and I hope that that song made them feel like, ‘Oh, I can be proud of where I come from.’ I’m just really grateful.”

Loretta Lynn died at age 90 on Oct. 4, 2022. Lynn earned 16 chart-toppers on what is now the Hot Country Songs chart and was the first woman to win entertainer of the year at the CMA Awards. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988. Lynn’s 1976 autobiography Coal Miner’s Daughter was later adapted for the big screen, with Sissy Spacek in the lead role as Lynn in the 1980 movie. Spacek won an Academy Award for her role as Lynn. In 2021, Lynn issued her 46th solo studio album, Still Woman Enough.

Russell is following in the family tradition, as her mother Patsy has also been involved in music. Patsy teamed with her sister Peggy to form the duo The Lynns in the 1990s and earned CMA Awards nominations for vocal duo of the year in 1998 and 1999.

See Russell’s performance below: