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Eric Church looked back on his unexpected involvement in the lawsuit over Taylor Swift‘s hit single “Shake It Off” in a new interview.
Back in 2017, the superstar got hit with allegations of copyright infringement by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, the songwriters behind 3LW’s 2001 single “Playas Gon’ Play.”
“In her deposition, when [talking about the line] ‘players gonna play, haters gonna hate,’ she says, ‘The first time I heard that phrase was in Eric Church’s song ‘The Outsiders,’” the country singer explained in a sit-down with Rolling Stone published Friday (June 6). “She was saying she never heard it on [the 3LW song], which is what they were suing her for. And two weeks later, I got served by the people that were suing her!”
According to Church, getting slapped with his own legal papers prompted him to reach out to Swift via text. “I was like, ‘Hey, thanks. Next time, let’s just skip that part?’” he said. “And she sent me a text: ‘I’m sorry. It’s the truth, though. That’s when I heard that phrase.’”
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“It’s since been settled,” Church added of his own involvement. However, the “Hands of Time” singer concluded in the interview that the whole experience still had him wondering, “‘How did this even happen?’”
Since an agreement to drop the “Shake It Off” lawsuit was reached between Swift, Hall and Butler in late 2022, Church has released his eighth studio album, 2025’s Evangeline vs. the Machine, which he’ll be promoting this fall with his upcoming Free the Machine Tour.
More recently, Church also collaborated with Morgan Wallen on I’m the Problem album cut “Number 3 and Number 7,” and in the same Rolling Stone interview, defended Bruce Springsteen after the namesake of his hit 2011 single “Springsteen” criticized President Trump and his administration during a concert.
This week in dance music: deadmau5 and Rezz graced the cover of Billboard Canada, talking about their longstanding collaboratove project, Rezzmau5. In the story deadmau5 also spoke about selling his catalog to Create Music Group earlier this year, saying that “it was time to just let it go.” Elsewhere, Italian techno producer Deborah de Luca […]
This week, Jon Bellion returned to center stage after years of remaining behind the scenes: the veteran songwriter-producer released Father Figure, his first album in seven years and a poignant reflection on fatherhood, including his relationship with his own father and his experiences as a dad of three. A deeply personal project that includes a picture of his parents on the album cover and a voicemail from his uncle on the track list, Father Figure also demonstrates Bellion’s status as a gifted collaborator, with Luke Combs, Pharrell Williams and Jon Batiste lending their voices to his story.
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Bellion — who has contributed to hits by Justin Bieber, Maroon 5 and Miley Cyrus, and recently co-helmed “Friend of Mine,” Rihanna’s first new single in three years — says that he’s not playing a “numbers game” with the album, and that the metric of success he’d like to reach with Father Figure is more abstract. “If my album can give you one more day, then I’m cool with that — that’s the goal,” he tells Billboard. “To give a listener another day of inspiration? I could live with that.”
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Yet along with its emotional power, Father Figure also offers a fresh industry blueprint, as the rare project in which its credited co-writers will receive a percentage of master royalties, or “points,” on the album. Bellion worked alongside the artists that comprise Beautiful Mind Projects — his management, publishing and label company — including studio whizzes Pete Nappi, Tenroc and Elkan, all of whom also contributed to Rihanna’s “Friend of Mine.”
Bellion says that the decision to provide points to his fellow songwriters was the result of his own “frustrations of being a songwriter and being paid dirt — morally paid dirt — for 10 years. I don’t want to hear people talking about, ‘Oh, he’s made money and he’s successful, so he can’t talk about how songwriters get paid dirt.’ … If you write an entire song with a group of people, and there’s $10 and they only pay you 25 cents, there’s moral injustice there.
“If it’s $10 million and they only pay you $250,000, there’s moral injustice there,” he continues. “It doesn’t matter the way you microscopically change that — it’s an insane thing to say. I’ve always been vocal about that, and I don’t care what people’s perception of that is, because songwriters get paid f—king dirt.”
After self-funding Father Figure, Bellion admits that he does have “a new perspective and a new appreciation for what the label is doing,” but still believes that there’s a way for record labels to allocate less money toward promotional efforts and more towards creative collaborators. To that end, Bellion says that he decided to focus his promotional campaign less on short-form content, and more on proper music videos for four songs from the album — including the title track, which received a moving visual on Friday (June 6).
Bellion says that the album rollout has been an invaluable learning process. “You’ve got to start somewhere,” he says. “I’m understanding the workings of the label, and stumbling through it. And even if I come out losing money — which I think I will on this album — but still getting the writers paid at least a point or two, and giving them the courage to go into the next meeting to say ‘Well, John did it!’ … Someone has to be the guy to be like, ‘I don’t really know how to make my money back while giving out a ton of points if I’m funding the thing myself, but I’m gonna have to jump into the world to put my money where my mouth is.’ I don’t know if this is gonna work out, but at least I tried to do the thing.”
As Bellion gears up to promote Father Figure from the stage — he’ll perform a sold-out intimate show at SOB’s in New York, and headline Forest Hills Stadium on Aug. 23 — he hopes that his unique standing in the industry will turn his gambit with the album into a successful model.
“I’ve been on both sides of the spectrum,” he says. “I’ve been on the label side, I’ve been on the publisher side, I’ve been on the writer side, and I’ve been on the artist side. So there’s more of a holistic angle, and I can try to bring everything in closer, to get to a better place, possibly.
“I’m not trailblazing,” Bellion continues. “I’m gonna go to Capitol Hill and dedicate my life to — I’m not saying that. But putting my money where my mouth is, where it actually counts? It’s a good place to start.”
This week, Billboard’s New Music Latin roundup and playlist — curated by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors — features fresh new music, including a handful of new albums by Belinda (Indómita), Elvis Crespo (Poeta Herío) and Óscar Maydon (Rico o Muerto, Vol. 1). Mexican star Belinda further expands her música mexicana foray with a full-length album, her first música mexicana project […]
The Weeknd unveiled the eerie music video for Hurry Up Tomorrow album cut “Baptized in Fear” on Friday (June 6). In the cinematic clip, the R&B crooner sits alone in a desolate row of church pews as he sings, “I fell asleep in the tub, I was met with paralysis/ My foot hit the faucet, […]
In an alternate universe, Miley Cyrus‘ iconic Bangerz era would’ve been made complete with a wild music video starring Madonna, Nelly and more superstars popping wheelies and wrestling in the mud. Unfortunately, we do not live in that universe.
In an interview on the Every Single Album podcast posted Thursday (June 5), the “Flowers” singer revealed that she had been dead set on rounding up a star-studded group of friends to shoot a raucous visual for “4×4,” a song on her smash-hit 2013 album that ultimately never became a single. “I had everyone already lined up,” Cyrus said. “Nelly … Madonna was down to do the video, Miranda Cosgrove.”
“This was before Taylor [Swift] had a lot of famous people in her crew,” she continued, laughing. “I was friends with famous people first. I wanted to do that. I had a f–king squad, and my squad was very, very cool.”
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Cyrus claimed the idea was eventually shut down by RCA, her label at the time, whom she quipped didn’t want her “talking about a pit bull [and] piss” in a song they’d be promoting. “Madonna was down to mud wrestle with Miranda Kerr,” the Grammy winner reminisced wistfully. “I was like, ‘I’m gonna get all these girls, all these supermodels, all these Victoria’s Secret models and all of these pop icons to come to my dad’s farm, get in the back of 4x4s, and we’re gonna mud wrestle, and we’re gonna go out and do doughnuts.”
Despite the lack of a “4×4” visual, Bangerz remains one of Cyrus’ most successful albums to date. The LP debuted atop the Billboard 200 and spawned her first-ever No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100, “Wrecking Ball,” which was followed closely by “We Can’t Stop” at No. 2.
The “Party in the U.S.A.” artist was signed to RCA for a three-album run, later dropping Younger Now in 2017 and Plastic Hearts in 2020 under the Sony Music imprint. In 2021, she inked a new deal with Columbia Records, through which she just released new album Something Beautiful on May 30.
Later in the podcast episode, Cyrus recalled another time where she and her former label weren’t quite on the same page. According to her, she never would’ve put a certain fellow pop star on “Prisoner,” one of the singles on Plastic Hearts. “No shade to Dua Lipa, it just isn’t cohesive with the album,” Cyrus said frankly.
“She would’ve been much better on something like [2023 LP] Endless Summer Vacation,” the singer continued of Dua Lipa. “She would’ve been great on ‘Wildcard,’ she would’ve been great on any of them — ‘River,’ can you imagine?”
Cyrus added that she thought her team at RCA wasn’t entirely confident in how Plastic Hearts would perform, so they brought in some “medicinal Dua” to give the LP some commercial oomph. “They basically were like, ‘Oh, great, here’s this piece of s–t album she gave us, let’s spray a little Dua Lipa on there,’” Cyrus said, laughing.
Listen to Cyrus’ full interview on Every Single Album below.
New Music Latin is a compilation of the best new Latin songs and albums recommended by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors. Check out this week’s picks below.
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Belinda, Indómita (Warner Music México)
When Belinda received the Evolution Award at the 2025 Billboard Latin Women in Music gala, she made it clear that “Belinda isn’t a musical genre.” During a career that spans 25 years, she’s navigated through pop, rock, electronic, cumbia, and most recently, música mexicana. “My career is versatile…it’s the perfect word to define my style,” she previously told Billboard. Best representing her fruitful and experimental growth in the industry, the Spain-born, Mexican-raised star dropped Indómita, her sixth studio album and debut set under Warner Music.
The 17-track album starts off with nine “corridos coquettes,” where her alter ego “Beli Bélica” shines in collaborations with genre hitmakers Natanael Cano (“300 Noches”), Tito Double P (“La Cuadrada”), and Xavi (“Mírame Feliz”). Across the next eight songs, she dabbles in trap music (“Death Note” and “Silvana”); teams up with Netón Vega and Tokischa for two hard-hitting perreos (“+ Perra, + Bitch” and “Wet Dreams”); and goes full dance in the Kenia OS-assisted “Jackpot.” Other collaborators on the set include Alemán, Mala Rodriguez and Thirty Second to Mars.
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“The [album’s] title is very specific to a movement for women,” she explained of Indómita, which means “untamed.” “She’s a warrior, independent, a woman who’s out of the box, completely irreverent but at the same time strong, sexy, fun… all the things I like and that I am, and I’d like to convey that to people.” — JESSICA ROIZ
Óscar Maydon, Rico o Muerto, Vol. 1 (Rancho Humilde)
Excess, irreverence and romance collide in Óscar Maydon’s Rico o Muerto, Vol. 1, a whirlwind of sierreño swagger that feels like a tequila-soaked fever dream. Across 12 tracks, the Mexicali artist channels the debauchery and drama of late-night escapades, weaving tales of fleeting romances (“Mr. Vallarta”), dismissal (“Para Ti”) and indulgence (“ZAZA,” the only trap song).
The party kicks off on “Baja Beach,” a sun-drenched anthem named after the infamous Mexican festival, with Junior H and Fuerza Regida joining the revelry. “Desvelada” turns up the nocturnal chaos alongside Peso Pluma and Netón Vega, while the focus track “Asquerosamente Rico” with Peso takes playful opulence to new heights. On “2030,” Maydon rides solo, mixing carnivalesque accordion riffs with a pulsing electric bassline to deliver a debauched, dystopian glimpse into the future. The album is the right amount of star-studded that Luis R Conríquez and Gabito Ballesteros also join him on “Fina Con Los Valentinos.”
With pre-released hits “Tu boda” and “Amigos? No.” rounding out the collection, Rico o Muerto, Vol. 1 reaffirms Maydon’s devil-may-care and romantic style. But more than a party album, it’s a work where the unbridled fun and excitement feel as real as the early mornings it invokes. — ISABELA RAYGOZA
Elvis Crespo, Poeta Herío (Puntería Records)
Merengue star Elvis Crespo delivers Poeta Herío, a term from Puerto Rican slang that translates to “hurt poet.” The 13-track set showcases the vibrant essence of merengue, featuring lively rhythms and heartfelt lyrics encapsulating the joys and struggles of life through his music. The LP is a vibrant tapestry of tropical sounds, featuring an impressive roster of both legendary icons and rising stars. With Elvis Crespo at the helm, the project immerses listeners in his signature genres of spirited merengue, lively mambo and infectious bachata. This new chapter in Crespo’s musical journey is fueled by collaborations with a diverse array of artists such as Ivy Queen, Jerry Rivera, Toño Rosario, Tony Tun Tun and Víctor Manuelle.
Standout tracks include “Cora Roto,” an emotionally charged song where Crespo unveils a gripping narrative of betrayal, where hidden truths come to light, revealing a harsh and unforgiving reality. This is followed by several heartfelt goodbye letters and concludes the album with a revamped version of his classic “Nuestra Canción,” featuring Jerry Rivera. — INGRID FAJARDO
Ozuna, “Sirenita” (Nibiru International)
Ozuna hasn’t released an album in two years, so he could be setting the tone for a potential LP with the two singles he’s released so far this year. His latest, “Sirenita,” is a vibrant fusion of Afrobeats and the Puerto Rican hitmaker’s signature rhythmic-leaning urban production, which serves as the perfect canvas for his sweet and delicate vocals. The lyrics to “Sirenita” — which tell the story of a girl who’s stolen Ozuna’s heart — are a testament to Ozuna’s knack for writing sensitive, romantic songs. “Sirenita” serves as the lead-up to Ozuna’s summer tour in Europe that will kick off on June 20 in Milan and span over ten cities across the continent. — GRISELDA FLORES
Elena Rose, Sistek & Mazzarri, “SINTIGO” (Warner Music Latina)
Accompanied by producers Sistek and Mazzarri, Elena Rose releases “SINTIGO,” an evocative track with an electronic vibe that explores the emotional contradiction of wanting someone to stay but also wanting them to leave. “How do I tell you? My life without you makes no sense,” the artist sings over a subtle fusion of house with Afrobeats, resulting in a delicate yet euphoric soundtrack for summer. “SINTIGO” – a Spanish play of the words “Sin ti” (without you) and “Contigo” (with you) – is the first preview of the Venezuelan singer-songwriter’s highly anticipated debut LP, following her 2024 EP En Las Nubes – Con Mis Panas. “This is the first of everything,” Elena wrote on Instagram. “A summer without drama is coming … full of beautiful things.” – SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS
Adriel Favela, Eddy, “KbrN InfeLiZ” (Fono)
Adriel Favela’s “KbrN InfeLiZ,” the first single from his upcoming album Elysium, is a sad sierreño song powered by raw lyrics about a man who realizes that his lifestyle and emotional failings make him incapable of loving someone back the way he is loved. The sierreño-style guitars add an even more dramatic and profound touch to the track, in which the regional Mexican star is accompanied by Eddy, an emerging música mexicana artist who has previously collaborated with Gabito Ballesteros, Calle 24 and Ed Maverick. “KbrN InfeLiZ” has the makings of an anthem for today’s generation. – TERE AGUILERA
Kapo, “Korazong” (Sony Music Latin/La Industria)
Kapo’s “Korazong” is a romantic declaration of love powered by a hypnotic Afrobeats sound. Written by the Colombian singer and produced by Gangsta, the song is distinguished by its poetic and sincere lyrics in which Kapo, with his unmistakable raspy voice, sings to that woman who came to heal his heart and transform it with love. Although it is still early to know if it will be his next hit, what is clear is that Kapo reaffirms his knack for authentic songs that touch the heartstrings and appeal to all types of listeners. — LUISA CALLE
Check out more Latin recommendations this week below:
This May, 88rising unveiled its latest girl group: no na. The Indonesian quartet — made up of members Christy, Baila, Esther and Shaz — debuted with the soaring single “Shoot,” illustrating the group’s knack for vocal harmonies and love of R&B.
Its second single, “Superstitious,” leaned more into pop, and the group says that sweet spot between the two genres is where no na will thrive. The foursome made its live debut this month as 88rising’s annual Head In the Clouds: L.A., their adoptive home after relocating from Indonesia last year to focus on music full time.
Foundation
In December 2022, 88rising brought its celebrated Head in the Clouds festival to Jakarta, Indonesia — marking the event’s first time in Asia and also becoming the unwitting origin story of the label’s newest girl group, no na. Members Baila, Shaz and Christy all met at the festival — and exchanged quick, tepid handshakes, they joke today. While Shaz and Christy come from dance backgrounds, Baila was pursuing music as a solo act at the time, having competed on Indonesian Idol Junior. Six months later, Esther, a singer who had competed on season 10 of Indonesian Idol, completed the quartet, and they started training together in Jakarta with joint dance and vocal lessons. “That’s when we started spending every single day together,” Esther says. Baila adds: “Indonesians are pretty easygoing, and it was so easy for us to get along. We didn’t have to try to like each other.”
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Discovery
The four members of no na were all stealthily scouted by 88rising, an effort helmed by founder and CEO Sean Miyashiro. But when one particular project manager reached out, “We didn’t know that she was from 88,” Esther recalls with a laugh. “They just mentioned, ‘Would you like to be part of a global girl group?’ That kind of scared us at first.” But Shaz jokes, “We stalked her,” and found out that they had a legitimate offer to not only form a global girl group but also move halfway across the world to Los Angeles. (The four members moved there in 2024, sharing an apartment.) While they were immediately aligned on their influences — “pop, reggae, jazz; we all love R&B,” Esther says, shouting out Victoria Monét and FLO as well as “the classics” like Janet Jackson and Diana Ross — they struggled to agree on a group name. After combing through more than 200 options, they agreed on “no na” — a riff on nona, which means “miss” in Indonesian.
Future
Spotlighting its native country is a priority for no na — from the group’s visuals, like filming the stunning music video for debut song “Shoot” back home, to its lyrics, which will incorporate Indonesian phrases. “We want to represent our country to the world, where not a lot of people are familiar with everything about Indonesia,” Shaz says. The act has started to spread the word worldwide: In May, it made its live debut at Head in the Clouds: L.A., which was a full-circle moment. As Esther says: “A dream came true for us.”
This story appears in the June 7, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Russ discovered TuneCore by accident: Nearly 15 years ago, he watched his close friend, the rapper Bugus, Google “How do I get my song on iTunes,” and it led him to the New York-based distribution, publishing and music licensing service. Today, Russ is the face of TuneCore — and a blueprint for independent artists looking to play in the big leagues.
“I was getting 20 cents a month [from my music] in 2011,” he recalls while sitting outside his Atlanta home. “TuneCore was a lifesaver… As streaming started to take over and my music started to gain more traction, TuneCore was paying the bills. It was how I was able to take care of my family when s–t went left.”
These days, the 32-year-old rapper is cashing six-figure checks every week from TuneCore — and he isn’t afraid to show off the impressive receipts on social media. “This is what it looks like when you own your music and you have an extensive catalog and you’re distributing it independently,” he boasts.
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While rap’s mainstream has never embraced Russ or bestowed him glossy awards and accolades, he has still managed to build a successful and lucrative career with a rabid fan base. And his numbers can’t be denied: According to the RIAA, the New Jersey-born rhymer passed 35 million units sold earlier this year. In 2022, he became the first solo rapper to perform at the pyramids of Giza.
“I think it’s a testament to having an extensive catalog and having a loyal audience, [and] the music being timeless,” he says. “I try to tell artists you don’t have to try to get a song that immediately takes off. I have damn near 500 songs out and I think three of them have.”
Russ, whose next project, W!LD, will drop June 27 (an accompanying headlining tour with Big Sean opening is planned), has bucked plenty of music industry conventions on his way to stardom. He believes in flooding the market and has often spent monthslong stretches releasing singles rather than stockpiling them for albums and their corresponding cycles.
“The reason I’m not a big believer in the traditional way of putting out music is because it puts too much pressure on you,” he explains of his singles-based strategy, even if he admits “the album is still God.”
“When you’re putting out a song a month, you move on pretty quickly,” he continues. “It’s good spiritually. Just put the s–t out and give yourself a chance to be discovered.”
When you think about your journey to selling 35 million units, what runs through your head?
Just build a catalog that your fans can live with over the course of time. I think that’s what my catalog has done. It’s songs about my life, and fans have incorporated them into their lives. Maybe it didn’t go platinum in the first year, but over time, people keep listening to the s–t.
What advice do you have for indie artists today?
Stay in the studio and perfect your craft. Stock up on as many great songs as possible, put them out consistently and detach from the results. The traditional way of putting out music puts too much pressure on you. If you do the whole “I take two years off and I come back with a 13-song album,” that shit better be it. You take two years off and you come back with 13 songs and it doesn’t even resonate, it’s like, “Now what?”
It’s crazy that 2017’s There’s Really a Wolf, the first of three albums you released while you were signed to Columbia, is the first platinum album to be completely written, mixed, mastered, recorded and arranged by one person. What does that represent for you?
It’s a constant reminder that I’m enough. No matter what, I know I can do all this s–t when it comes to the music-making process and reach the mountaintop. A platinum album is still the pinnacle of success, as far as a metric in the music business. Knowing I can sit in the studio, make all the beats, mix it, master it, write everything, put it out and it goes platinum is a big confidence boost. I know that the reason I have the fans I do is because of me and my taste. It’s a reminder that people f–k with me for me.
What can you tell us about your new album, W!LD?
It’s my favorite offering of music. It has my favorite elements of all my albums: the depth and introspection of Santiago, the sonic freedom and versatility of There’s Really a Wolf, the grit that Zoo has and the bars that Chomp has. It’s me at my best.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I think in 10 years, I’m going to be primarily acting. I got a movie coming out [Don’t Move will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September]. I really love acting … it’s a different level of community I don’t get from music. [I don’t think I’ll be] touring nearly as much [but] still putting out music. It’s probably going to go to that traditional place where it’s like you don’t hear from me musically for two years and then I drop an album. Knowing me, I’ll just be putting out songs randomly and it will lead to an album.
This story appears in the June 7, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Ed Sheeran’s +–=÷× (Tour Collection) is back at No. 1 on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart on Friday (June 6) as excitement builds for his new LP, Play.
The collection is made up of Sheeran’s hits from his Mathematical series of records: 2011’s + (Plus), 2014’s × (Multiply), 2017’s ÷ (Divide), 2021’s = (Equals), and 2023’s – (Subtract). A number of songs from 2019’s standalone No.6 Collaboration Project, including songs with Justin Bieber (“I Don’t Care”) and Rudimental (“Lay It On Me”), also feature on the tracklist.
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The LP was released in September 2024 and first hit the top spot back in January, remaining in the top 10 ever since. On Sept. 12, Sheeran will share his new studio album, Play, his eighth, and on Thursday (June 5), he shared the latest taster of the record with “Sapphire,” following previous singles “Azizam” and “Old Phone.”
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As she shares the Jack Antonoff-produced single “Manchild” and headlines Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain, Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet holds steady at No. 2 and earns a 41st week on the chart.
Miley Cyrus’ ninth LP, Something Beautiful, is the week’s highest new entry at No. 3; she has hit the top spot only twice in her career with 2013’s Bangerz and 2023’s Endless Summer Vacation. Greatest hits collections by Fleetwood Mac (50 Years – Don’t Stop, No. 4) and The Weeknd (The Highlights, No. 5) complete the top five.
Following news of her reacquisition of her masters, Taylor Swift’s Reputation (2017) enjoys a 63-position leap up to No. 7, experiencing a 146% week-on-week uplift. Reputation and her self-titled debut are the only LPs from her Big Machine era not to be re-recorded by Swift, and fans are uncertain whether Reputation will get the Taylor’s Version treatment. (Taylor Swift has already been “completely re-recorded,” according to the superstar.) Albums from Garbage (Let All That We Imagine Be the Light, No. 24) and The National frontman Matt Berninger (Get Sunk, No. 27) also make top 40 debuts.
