Music

04 Mar 2024

Elle King Returns to the Stage for First Performances Following Dolly Parton Tribute Backlash

Elle King has returned to the spotlight, as the singer-songwriter performed at two events over the weekend. On Friday (March 1), the “Ex’s and Oh’s” singer took the stage during the Extra Innings Festival in Tempe, Ariz., and on Saturday (March 2), opened a show on Chris Stapleton’s All-American Road Show Tour in San Diego, Calif.

King’s sets marked her first performances since her controversial Grand Ole Opry set in honor of Dolly Parton‘s 78th birthday in late January, where King, seemingly inebriated, forgot the lyrics as she attempted to sing the country icon’s 2001 song “Marry Me.”

“I don’t know the lyrics to this thing in this f–king town. Don’t tell Dolly ’cause it’s her birthday,” King had said during the Opry performance.

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It appears that King didn’t comment on the Opry show during her Extra Innings set. Wearing a long-sleeve, red shirt and a snakeskin skirt, King delivered songs including “Love Go By” and a cover of the Charlie Daniels Band’s “Long Haired Country Boy,” according to footage from the set on social media. Social media footage also showed her drinking from a bottle of water throughout the show.

During a recent interview with Extra, Parton offered up her thoughts on King’s Opry performance, offering grace and encouragement. “Elle is a really great artist. She’s a great girl,” the country star said. “She’s been going through a lot of hard things lately, and she just had a little too much to drink.”

Parton went on to advise, “So let’s just forgive that and forget it and move on, ’cause she felt worse than anybody ever could.”

Next up for King is a series of overseas shows, with performances as part of the Country 2 Country festival in Europe. In addition to her pop hits, King has earned two Billboard Country Airplay hits: “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)” with Miranda Lambert, and “Different For Girls” with Dierks Bentley.

04 Mar 2024

Joe Budden Thinks Cardi B Is ‘Scared’ to Drop New Album, Predicts ‘Girl Rapper Wave Is Over’

Joe Budden lambasted female rappers during the Sunday (March 3) episode of The Joe Budden Podcast, most notably, Cardi B. The famed podcaster didn’t hold back any punches, detailing why he believes the “girl rapper wave” is over. 

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“Y’all ain’t gonna want to hear it from me, but the girl rapper wave is over. Just telling you what it is,” Budden said. “All of that ‘Go find a girl, send her to Columbia, get it done, put her in the studio with f–king [Mike WiLL Made-It] or any one of them n—-s.’ All that planting the girl in the scene, getting the record and it taking off, that wave is over.”

Though he hailed Latto, Flo Milli and Rapsody for their skills, Budden stayed on the attack, explaining his take on how he believes labels feel the pressure to push a female artist.

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“I think labels are looking at it like, ‘Very few of y’all are selling records, it’s too much work to get your coin back,’” he said. “‘We gotta do brand deals all over the world with y’all. Y’all are expensive, some of y’all are annoying, and none of these records are working.’”

Budden’s searing take came on the heels of Cardi B’s “Like What” freestyle, which arrived on Friday (March 1). During his podcast, he suggested that The Bronx MC is “scared” to release her sophomore album because she fears the potential backlash awaiting her. 

“Cardi B is afraid and I’m tired of just nobody saying it,” said Budden. “Cardi B is scared to come out, it don’t take this long to come out.”

Billboard has reached out to Cardi B’s reps for comment.

Cardi’s blockbuster debut, Invasion of Privacy, dropped in 2018 and featured Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers “Bodak Yellow” and “I Like It.” The following year, the project scored a Grammy for best rap album, beating out Nipsey Hussle’s Victory Lap, Travis Scott’s Astroworld, Mac Miller’s Swimming and Pusha T’s Daytona. 

Check out Budden’s thoughts below. 

04 Mar 2024

BLACKPINK’s Lisa Meets Up With Taylor Swift at Singapore Eras Tour Show: ‘Had Such a Blast’

Taylor Swift linked up with one of her most famous fans at her Sunday (March 3) concert in Singapore — BLACKPINK‘s Lisa, the second member of the girl group to make it out to see the Eras Tour.

The 26-year-old K-pop star shared photos from Singapore National Stadium on Instagram, showing off her many friendship bracelets with Swift’s stage in the background. Lisa also got to meet up with the “Anti-Hero” singer backstage, and the two stars posed for pictures together — one with just the two of them, and another with some of the “How You Like That” singer’s friends.

In one snap, the “Anti-Hero” musician — sporting a mint green “New York” sweatshirt and cut-off jean shorts — wraps an arm around Lisa’s shoulders. “Had such a blast at The Eras Tour! Amazing performance? @taylorswift,” the Thai singer-dancer captioned her post.

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The meet-up comes a few weeks after Lisa’s bandmate Rosé attended one of Swift’s Eras dates at the Tokyo Dome, where she passionately belted along to the 14-time Grammy winner’s 10-minute performance of “All Too Well.” “Best 10 minutes in tokyo,” she captioned the Feb. 7 clip.

Swift finishes out her six-night stay in Singapore Saturday (March 9), after which she’ll take a two-month pause from touring. In April, she’ll release her new album The Tortured Poets Department.

Aside from “The Girls,” a single specially made for the band’s mobile game, BLACKPINK hasn’t released music since its 2022 sophomore LP Born Pink. The album debuted atop the Billboard 200 that October.

The “Karma” artist has long been a fan of BLACKPINK. At the 2022 VMAs, cameras captured her singing and dancing along to Lisa, Rosé, Jisoo and Jennie’s performance of “Pink Venom,” paying special attention to the song’s “look what you made us do” line — a possible reference to Swift’s own single “Look What You Made Me Do.”

See Lisa’s post below:

04 Mar 2024

Gina Banfi de Abello, Shakira’s Former Vocal Coach, Dies at 92

Gina Banfi de Abello, a distinguished figure in vocal coaching, died on Saturday (March 2) at the age of 92. Known for her work in choir and vocal training, Banfi mentored notable artists including Shakira and Colombian singer and composer Nicolás Tovar.

Her son Jaime Abello Banfi confirmed the news on social media on the day of her passing with an image of his mother. “Gina Banfi de Abello, November 26, 1931 – March 2, 2024,” reads the announcement. “Jaime, Mauricio, Beatriz, Maribel and Hugo Abello Banfi, her sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren and great-grandchildren invite you to attend the funeral, Sunday, March 3, 2024.”

In response to the flood of comments he received on his social media channels, Jamie expressed his gratitude in another Instagram post. “I sincerely appreciate hundreds of messages of solidarity and affection received at times when my family and I tried to accept the sad reality of the physical death of my mother Gina Banfi de Abello, who made her transition with lucidity, serenity and full of love and gratitude,” he wrote alongside a photo of his mother. “We are comforted by these messages, as well as the media coverage of her departure, which highlights her contribution as an artist and music educator.”

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According to a 2011 interview with Argentinian newspaper La Gaceta, Banfi coached Shakira in 1992, when the then rising star was preparing to sing at Chile’s Viña del Mar International Song Festival at 15 years old.

“She was out of the ordinary. She was something different. When she was very young, she was a belly dancer. She has a gifted talent,” Banfi told La Gaceta. “She has always had that same powerful voice. I taught her some breathing techniques and I prepared her when she went to Viña del Mar and it was a pleasure for me. Since she was a little girl, she expressed herself as she does today. It was an admirable thing for such a young girl.”

Banfi’s journey into music began in her early years, as she turned to studying piano after her endeavors in painting did not pan out. Her home environment was rich with music and art, fostering her passion for the arts from a young age. Over the years, the Barranquilla, Colombia, artist became an integral part of various musical groups, including the Coro Santa Cecilia and Coro Madrigal, showcasing her talent and dedication to choral music.

See the announcement of her passing below:

04 Mar 2024

Benson Boone’s ‘Beautiful Things’ No. 1 on Billboard Global Charts for Third Week Each

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” is the biggest song in the world, as it rebounds for a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 chart and adds a third week atop the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. survey.

Meanwhile, SZA’s “Saturn” launches at No. 5 on the Global 200, and two songs are new to the Global Excl. U.S. top 10: LE SSERAFIM’s “Easy” (47-6) and YG Marley’s “Praise Jah in the Moonlight” (11-10).

The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the United States.

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Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.

Boone Tops Global 200, ‘Saturn’ Rockets In

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” released on Night Street/Warner Records, rebounds 2-1 for a third week atop the Billboard Global 200, with 71 million streams (up 12%) and 30,000 sold (up 148%, aided by the Feb. 23 release of new a cappella, acoustic, instrumental, piano instrumental, slowed down and sped-up mixes) worldwide Feb. 23-29.

Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” dips to No. 2 after a week atop the Global 200; Ye (the artist formerly known as Kanye West) and Ty Dolla $ign’s “Carnival,” featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, holds at No. 3, after reaching No. 2; and Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” repeats at its No. 4 high.

SZA’s “Saturn” blasts onto the Global 200 at No. 5, with 43.3 million streams and 2,000 sold worldwide in its first week, following its Feb. 23 release (after she teased the track in a Mastercard commercial that aired during CBS’ broadcast of the Grammy Awards Feb. 4). SZA scores her sixth top 10 on the tally.

‘Beautiful Things’ Leads Global Excl. U.S., 2 New Top 10s

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” also logs a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, with 48.6 million streams (up 13%) and 5,000 sold (up 3%) outside the U.S. Feb. 23-29.

Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” is steady at its No. 2 Global Excl. U.S. best; Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” leaps 8-3 for its first week in the top five; Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” lifts 5-4, after hitting No. 3; and Creepy Nuts’ “Bling-Bang-Bang-Born” falls 3-5 after hitting No. 2.

LE SSERAFIM’s “Easy” soars 47-6 on Global Excl. U.S., with 33.1 million streams (up 104%) and 2,000 sold (up 26%) outside the U.S., as the South Korean group’s new collection of the same name debuts at No. 8 on the U.S.-based Billboard 200. The act notches its second total and consecutive Global Excl. U.S. top 10, after “Perfect Night” hit No. 8 in January.

Plus, YG Marley’s “Praise Jah in the Moonlight” rises 11-10 on Global Excl. U.S., with 27.2 million streams (essentially even week-over-week) and 1,000 sold (up 11%) outside the U.S. Born in Beverly Hills, Calif., Marley is extending the chart legacy of his famous family, as he is the son of Lauryn Hill and grandson of late reggae legend Bob Marley.

The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated March 9, 2024) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow, March 5. For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

04 Mar 2024

R&B/Hip-Hop Fresh Picks of the Week: 4batz, Samara Joy, ScHoolboy Q & More

From Cardi B‘s Missy Elliott-nodding “Like What” freestyle to RAYE‘s Brit Awards sweep and the kickoff of Nicki Minaj‘s highly anticipated Pink Friday 2: Gag City World Tour, it was a very eventful week for hip-hop and R&B. As usual, New Music Friday (Mar. 1), unleashed a tidal wave of new music, including a terrific new LP from ScHoolboy Q, a feisty new single from Chlöe Bailey and blistering EP from Meek Mill, which landed at the tail end of a social media spiral following the latest lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs.

With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from 4batz‘s latest low-key anthem to Samara Joy’s impressive entry into the 2025 Oscar race. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.

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4batz, “act iii: on god? (she like)”

Any baseball player would tell you hitting a home run in each of their first three at-bats is nearly an impossible feat, but 4batz has accomplished the musical version of that. With “Act III: on god? (she like),” the atmospheric R&b singer-songwriter delivers more sweet vocals that rain from the clouds and aerate through his Black Shiesty ski mask. The Texas native heavenly croons about a toxic love, creating a paradox with the menacing visual featuring 4batz mobbing in the streets with his homies, only adding to the artist’s mystique. To quote the great hip-hop life coach Fat Joe, yesterday’s price is not today’s price, as record labels continue to wave lucrative checks looking to entice the rising talent to sign on the dotted line.

ScHoolboy Q feat. Rico Nasty, “Pop”

It hasn’t even been a week but Blue Lips is already a career highlight for ScHoolboy Q — quite possibly a career-best effort. On “Pop,” a shape-shifting, rock-infused collaboration with Rico Nasty, Q plays straight offense, using the grimy boom-bap beat to soundtrack his and Rico’s snarling declarations of dominance over everyone in their way, inside and outside of the rap game. “Put fifty in that, n—a, a hunnid in this, I never could miss/ N—a, we jump out that b—h, yeah, check off the list/ You rappin’ this, n—a, we really do this,” he ruthlessly spits.

That Mexican OT & Moneybagg Yo, “Twisting Fingers”

Texas Technician, the new album from That Mexican OT, is a loving tribute to his hometown and Southern hip-hop at large, and the Moneybagg Yo-assisted “Twisting Fingers” is an instant standout. The Bay City, TX & Memphis, TN link-up takes place across a laid-back beat — crafted by Bankroll Got It, Ben10k & Danes Blood — that’s reminiscent of old-school Texas rap. That Mexican OT and Moneybagg trade bars about staying true to their gangbanging roots, regardless of how famous they might become. “This s–t get gangster, ain’t no prankin’, outstandin’ member, high rankin’ / If you’re standin’ on what you rep, then twist your fingers like sign language,” Moneybagg closes his verse. Equal parts menacing and funny, “Twisting Fingers” is a stellar balancing act.

Skepta & Portable, “Tony Montana”

The intersection of grime and Afrobeats has long been a fruitful one, and “Tony Montana” is another strong addition to that legacy. The latest single from Skepta’s forthcoming Knife and Fork LP, “Tony Montana” finds the Brits-nominated rapper joining forces with rising Nigerian rapper Portable for an anthem celebrating their respective impact and influence. With a title that directly alludes to the iconic Scarface character, the relatively jaunty production — courtesy of Jae5 — makes for a welcome sonic contrast that also provides a multilayered soundscape that pairs well with both Skepta’s cocksure flow and Portable’s slinky hook.

Samara Joy, “Why I’m Here”

An original song for Netflix’s forthcoming Shirley — a biopic of Shirley Chisholm (the first Black woman to be elected to Congress) starring Oscar-winner Regina King in the titular role — “Why I’m Here” continues Samara Joy’s flawless streak of truly spellbinding vocal performances. Produced and co-written by Grammy-winner PJ Morton, the new song finds the jazz star taking a break from her home genre and briefly transitioning into a sweeping, cinematic sound that seamlessly carries her soulful pipes into a more straightforward pop realm. “An easy road was never promised/ And so much has been from taken from us/ But I won’t stop no matter how much I have to go through/ I won’t shed one tear, I know why I’m here,” she croons.

Asha Imuno, “Oozin…”

22-year-old Moreno Valley, CA native Asha Imuno is on the rise, and “Oozin…” — a cut from his sophomore effort, Pins & Needles — is proof of why. In the contemporary R&B space, the word “oozin” has a sexual connotation more often than not. Here, however, Asha flips the phrase to refer to the anxiety and depression that pour out of him in moments of silence and aloneness. “Oozing/ The anxiety subsides in the moment the dream becomes lucid / & Bruises/ That I can’t hide in this light/ Quantify all the times I felt useless,” he coos in the heartbreaking chorus.

04 Mar 2024

St. Vincent Says She Paid Tribute to the ‘Beautiful, Poetic’ Producer Sophie With Forthcoming Song

With a title like All Born Screaming, you’d be forgiven for assuming St. Vincent’s upcoming new album might be a dark affair. But according to the artist, one song in particular pays loving tribute to a late icon.

Speaking to The Guardian in an interview published on Saturday (March 2), the singer — otherwise known as Annie Clark — said that a song called “Sweetest Fruit” off her new album serves as an ode to late electronic music pioneer Sophie, who died in 2021 after a fatal fall. Speaking about the song, Clark said that she felt compelled to write something that properly reflected the unusual circumstances of the influential artist’s death.

“The internet twists things, and I don’t want it to be seen like I’m trying to capitalize on somebody’s death. I was an admirer from afar; we never met, but I read about the way that she fell because she was trying to get a better look at the moon, which was just the most beautiful, poetic thing I’ve ever heard,” she told the paper, adding that the song is about “people trying for transcendence.”

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St. Vincent would be far from the first artist to pay tribute to Sophie. In the aftermath of her death, Sophie was eulogized by a wide range of fellow artists, including Rihanna, Nile Rodgers, Christine and the Queens, Rina Sawayama and Sam Smith. “The world has lost an angel,” Smith wrote in an X post at the time. “A true visionary and icon of our generation. Your light will continue to inspire so many for generations to come.”

The interview comes just after St. Vincent announced her self-produced new album with the release of her latest single “Broken Man” on Friday (March 1). In a press release accompanying the announcement, Clark shared that the album was all about reevaluating difficult feelings. “There are some places, emotionally, that you can only get to by taking the long walk into the woods alone — to find out what your heart is really saying,” she wrote in a statement. “It sounds real because it is real.”

Listen to St. Vincent’s new song below:

04 Mar 2024

‘Texas Hold ‘Em’ Deals Beyoncé Winning Hand Atop Hot 100 for Second Week

A second week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 is in the cards for Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em.” A week earlier, the song ascended to the summit, becoming her ninth leader on the chart.

Plus, SZA’s “Saturn” rockets onto the Hot 100 at No. 6. The song starts as her 10th career top 10.

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data, the lattermost metric reflecting purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers; digital singles sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites are excluded from chart calculations. All charts (dated March 9, 2024) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow, March 5. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

“Texas Hold ‘Em,” on Parkwood/Columbia Records/Columbia Nashville, drew 27.6 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 72%) and 25.5 million streams (down 12%) and sold 22,000 downloads (down 24%) in the Feb. 23-29 tracking week, according to Luminate.

The single dips to No. 2 on the Digital Song Sales chart, after two weeks at No. 1, and to No. 3 after a week atop Streaming Songs, while bounding 43-23 on Radio Songs, as the song claims top Airplay Gainer honors on the Hot 100 for a second week.

Being promoted to multiple radio formats, “Texas Hold ‘Em” leaps 28-16 on Adult Pop Airplay, 25-17 on Pop Airplay, 36-23 on Rhythmic Airplay – as the Greatest Gainer on each chart – 28-24 on Adult R&B Airplay, 36-32 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and 40-32 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay. It also debuts on Adult Alternative Airplay at No. 36, while slipping 34-38 on Country Airplay; thanks to its placement on the two tallies, where Beyoncé had not previously logged any entries, she has tied Pharrell Williams for the most airplay charts – 18 – on which any artist has appeared.

“Texas Hold ‘Em” is one of two songs that Beyoncé released Feb. 11 (with instrumental and clean and explicit a cappella versions of the song released Feb. 14), along with “16 Carriages.” Their arrival was announced via a Verizon commercial that aired during CBS’ broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII Feb. 11, ahead of the March 29 release of her new album, which follows her 2022 Renaissance LP.

“Texas Hold ‘Em” concurrently adds a third week at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart, which uses the same multimetric methodology as the Hot 100. The banjo-inflected single became her historic first No. 1 on the ranking; prior to its coronation, no Black woman, or female known to be biracial, had previously led the list.

Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and Ty Dolla $ign’s “Carnival,” featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, rebounds to a new No. 2 Hot 100 high, from No. 4. It also rises 2-1 for a second week atop Streaming Songs (32.2 million, up 31%), as it wins the Hot 100’s top Streaming Gainer nod. The track also scores its first week atop both the multimetric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts. On the former, Ye notches his ninth No. 1; Ty Dolla $ign, his second; and Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, their first each. On the latter, the acts’ career No. 1 counts now stand at 11, three, one and one, respectively.

Jack Harlow’s “Lovin on Me” descends 2-3 on the Hot 100, following six nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1, as it posts a seventh week atop Radio Songs (79.4 million, essentially even week-over-week).

Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” bumps 5-4 on the Hot 100, after hitting No. 3, as the chart’s top Sales Gainer, as it becomes his first leader on Digital Song Sales (3-1; 25,000, up 249%, aided by the Feb. 23 release of new a cappella, acoustic, instrumental, piano instrumental, slowed down and sped-up mixes).

Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” retreats 3-5 on the Hot 100, after reaching No. 2.

SZA’s “Saturn” starts at No. 6 on the Hot 100, with 25 million streams, 960,000 in airplay audience and 2,000 sold in its first week, following its Feb. 23 release (after SZA teased the track in a Mastercard commercial that aired during CBS’ broadcast of the Grammy Awards Feb. 4).

“Saturn” launches as SZA’s 10th Hot 100 top 10, and joins her No. 2-peaking “Snooze” (6-9) in the region. “Saturn” simultaneously dethrones “Snooze” atop the multimetric Hot R&B Songs chart, debuting as her sixth No. 1. (“Snooze” topped Hot R&B Songs for 30 weeks, tying SZA’s own “Kill Bill” for the longest command by a woman dating to the chart’s 2012 inception.)

Meanwhile, “Saturn” joins a small system of Hot 100 top 10s with names of planets in their titles. The identified such objects that have flown to the top 10:

  • “Venus,” Frankie Avalon (No. 1 for five weeks, 1959)
  • “Venus,” The Shocking Blue (No. 1, one week, 1970)
  • “It’s Too Late”/“I Feel the Earth Move,” Carole King (No. 1, five weeks, 1971)
  • “Give Me Love – (Give Me Peace on Earth),” George Harrison (No. 1, one week, 1973)
  • “Venus,” Bananarama (No. 1, one week, 1986; a remake of The Shocking Blue’s leader, above)
  • “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” Belinda Carlisle (No. 1, one week, 1987)
  • “Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me),” Train (No. 5, 2001)
  • “Saturn,” SZA (No. 6 peak, to date, 2024)
  • “Venus in Blue Jeans,” Jimmy Clanton (No. 7, 1962)

Notably, Saturn becomes the fourth planet in the title of a Hot 100 top 10 (with six of the nine songs above having hit No. 1). Honorable mentions to: Bruno Mars (18 career top 10s), Earth, Wind & Fire (seven), Rare Earth (three) and Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (one); The Neptunes, who have produced 16 top 10s; “Baby Pluto” by Lil Uzi Vert (No. 6, 2020; Pluto was downgraded to “dwarf planet” status in 2006); and all top 10s released on Mercury Records, from the Big Bopper’s “Chantilly Lace” in 1959 through Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” (on Mercury/Republic Records) last month.

(Puts telescope away …)

Zach Bryan’s “I Remember Everything,” featuring Kacey Musgraves, climbs 9-7 on the Hot 100, after it led for a week upon its debut last September. It tops the multimetric Hot Rock & Alternative Songs and Hot Rock Songs charts for a 27th week each.

Rounding out the Hot 100’s top 10, Tate McRae’s “Greedy” pushes 9-8, after reaching No. 3, and, below SZA’s “Snooze,” Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” falls 7-10, following four nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 beginning in October.

Again, for all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on Billboard’s social accounts, and all charts (dated March 9), including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh on Billboard.com tomorrow (March 5).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

04 Mar 2024

TOMORROW X TOGETHER Announces 6th Mini Album: Here’s When ‘TOMORROW’ Arrives

TOMORROW X TOGETHER is looking to the future. The K-pop quintet announced Sunday (March 3) that its sixth mini album, minisode 3: TOMORROW, is coming up fast on the horizon, marking the band’s first release of 2024.

Bandmates Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and HueningKai broke the news to fans on the second day of their live TXT FANLIVE PRESENT X TOGETHER event in Seoul, which celebrated the fifth anniversary of their 2019 debut as a group. Premiering the EP’s animated logo for the crowd, TXT confirmed that the project will arrive April 1.

The “Sugar Rush Ride” singers went on to share three differently colored variants of TOMORROW‘s cover art on Instagram. Each one features the band’s signature “X” logo adorned with drawings of angel wings, stars and roses.

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The boys also appear in individual concept videos teasing the new mini album on Instagram, with Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and HueningKai each wearing color-changing crowns and posing for the camera as wind blows through their hair. All five of the clips feature a snippet of angelic-sounding music composed of harp and string instruments.

Minisode 3: TOMORROW will serve as TXT’s first release since October’s 10-track album The Name Chapter: FREEFALL, which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Based on the title, TOMORROW will become the band’s third installment in its “minisode” series, following 2020’s minisode 1: Blue Hour and 2022’s minisode 2: Thursday’s Child — both of which included five songs.

See examples of the covers and concept videos for minisode 3: TOMORROW, arriving April 1, below.

04 Mar 2024

Watch Travis Scott Go Out of His Way to Say Hi to This TV Commercial Personality

It’s rare for Travis Scott to be in Iowa, but women’s basketball phenom Caitlin Clark tends to bring the stars out. With Clark breaking the all-time NCAA scoring record for men and women on Sunday (March 3), La Flame had to be in the building to see the historic moment himself from a courtside view.

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In videos shared online, Scott and his entourage are making their way to their seats at Carver-Hawkeye Arena for the Hawkeyes vs Buckeyes game when the Cactus Jack CEO notices another star courtside. That’s when he makes a point to stop and tap Jake From State Farm — whose real name is Kevin Miles — on the shoulder. The State Farm star, who was seated and didn’t see La Flame walking in, quickly turns around to say hello.

The TV commercial personality has seen his profile grow over the last year or two thanks to his repeated appearances with celebrities in State Farm commercials. Rocking a customized Caitlin Clark puffer vest, Jake’s courtside appearance at the Iowa-Ohio State game wasn’t too random, as he recently starred in a State Farm commercial alongside the women’s college basketball star.

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Fans expressed their surprise when they saw the clip of Scott greeting Jake From State Farm at the Iowa game.

“you won’t believe who he daps up,” a viral fan wrote in response to the footage on X.

Scott appeared to have a blast watching Clark break Pete “Pistol Pete” Maravich’s all-time scoring record for the NCAA on Iowa’s way to a 93-83 victory over rival Ohio State.

“We’re out to see C.C. handle business tonight,” Travis told NBC Sports in a courtside interview. “You know Caitlin Clark — she’s one of the greatest humans of all time. So we’re out here to see some good Iowa basketball … I’ve been in a lot of buildings, but this Iowa energy is like no other. I think they need to bottle this energy and bring it around the world.”

Scott seemingly had the time of his life out in Iowa as he posed for photos with Clark as well as the entire team. He jammed out with the marching band and was spotted hyping up the crowd on the jumbotron during his All-American hoops Sunday.

Find some of the highlights of Scott at the game below.