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The nominees have been announced for the Country Music Association’s CMA Touring Awards, which honor behind-the-scenes industry members within country music’s touring industry in categories including crew of the year, coach/truck driver of the year, manager of the year, touring musician of the year, and many more.
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The CMA Touring Awards ceremony will be held Monday, March 3, in Nashville, with final-round voting opening Monday, Jan. 6, and closing Thursday, Jan. 16. All balloting is tabulated by the professional services organization Deloitte.
Keith Urban will return for a third year as host of the ceremony. Longtime country music concert promoter Ben Farrell will be posthumously celebrated with the CMA touring lifetime achievement award, which is given to an individual who has positively impacted and contributed to the growth of touring throughout the years.
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“Taking the time to honor the outstanding work of our touring community is one of our most proud nights of the year,” Sarah Trahern, CMA chief executive officer, said in a statement. “Our road warriors are the ones who take the soul of Nashville on the road and share it with the rest of the world in creative and exciting ways. Country music’s growth simply would not be possible without each and every one of our nominees and we are so excited to celebrate them this coming March.”
The CMA Touring Awards were originally known as the SRO (Standing Room Only) Awards and were launched by the CMA’s board of directors in 1990 to honor professional achievement within the touring industry. The first awards were presented at a black-tie gala hosted by K.T. Oslin and Roger Miller during CMA’s Entertainment Expo, also known as the Talent Buyers Entertainment Marketplace. Ten awards were presented at the first gala, and the number has grown over the years to its current 20 categories. The SRO Awards were renamed the CMA Touring Awards in 2016.
See the full list of nominees below:
Crew of the year
The Beautifully Broken Tour Crew – Jelly RollCountry’s Cool Again Tour Crew – Lainey WilsonGravel & Gold Tour Crew – Dierks BentleyGrowin’ Up And Gettin’ Old Tour Crew – Luke CombsNo Bad Vibes Tour Crew – Old DominionOne Night At a Time Tour Crew – Morgan WallenQuit!! Tour Crew – HardySun Goes Down Tour Crew – Kenny Chesney
Backline technician of the yearDerek Benitez – Chris StapletonDalton Brown – Lainey WilsonWilliam Coats – Eric ChurchAllen Cothran – Jason AldeanTerry Fox – Kenny ChesneyDave Graef – Tim McGrawHunter Lamb – HardyBrian Love – Luke Combs
Business manager of the year
Stephanie Alderman – Farris, Self & Moore, LLCRenee Allen – Arnie Barn, Inc.Julie Boos – Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy, Inc.Kris Wiatr – Wiatr & Associates, LLCDwight Wiles – Wiles + Taylor & Co., PC
Coach/truck driver of the year
Chad Allison – HardyJosh Easter – Morgan WallenToby Eaton – Old DominionRhett Evens – Thomas RhettTerry Ford – Kenny ChesneyCaleb Garrett – Luke BryanWendy Holt – Lainey WilsonChris Sims – Jelly Roll
FOH (front of house) engineer of the year
Ryan Dell – Lainey WilsonRon Gardner – Jelly RollTodd Lewis – Luke CombsDavid Loy – Kane BrownEvan Owen – HardyJeff Parsons – Blake SheltonRobert Scovill – Kenny ChesneyIan Zorbaugh – Old Dominion
Lighting director of the year
Zac Coren – Morgan WallenTrevor Drawdy – HardyPhilip Ealy – Kenny ChesneyAndy Knighton – Jason AldeanMitch Mueller – Lainey WilsonKevin Northrup – Luke CombsChris Reade – Dierks BentleyAlec Takahashi – Thomas Rhett
Manager of the year
Elisabeth Ashley – Borman EntertainmentEnzo DeVincenzo – 377 ManagementMartha Earls – Neon CoastKerri Edwards – KP EntertainmentClint Higham – Morris Higham ManagementTroy “Tracker” Johnson – Big Loud Mountain ManagementChris Kappy – Make Wake Artists
Monitor engineer of the year
Beau Alexander – Morgan WallenBrad Baisley – Blake SheltonCory Benson – Tyler ChildersSamuel Ferry – HardyLogan Hanna – Brothers OsborneJimmy Nicholson – Thomas RhettDean Studebaker – Old DominionMichael Zuehsow – Luke Combs
Production manager of the year
Chris Alderman – Blake SheltonJeff Greeninger – Jon PardiChad Guy – Morgan WallenMeesha Koscioleck – Eric ChurchEarl Neal – Jason AldeanJerry Slone – Luke CombsEmily Waller – Lainey WilsonEd Wannebo – Kenny Chesney
Publicist of the year
Janet Buck – Essential Broadcast MediaCarla Sacks – Sacks & Co.Jessie Schmidt – Schmidt RelationsJensen Sussman – Sweet Talk PublicityWes Vause – Press On PublicityJennifer Vessio – 1220 Entertainment Publicity
Stage manager of the year
Sam “Sambo” Coats – Eric ChurchDonnie Floyd – Morgan WallenMatt Hornbeck – Luke CombsJosh “Dude” Marcus – Jason AldeanTom Nisun – Kenny ChesneyAllison Noah – Carly PearceRichard Rossey – Old DominionFred Yanda – Dan + Shay
Support services company of the year
Bandit LitesDega CateringMaster Tour By EventricMoo TVPioneer CoachRichards & SouthernRising Star TravelSpectrum Sound
Talent agent of the year
Mike Betterton – Wasserman MusicRod Essig – CAABecky Gardenhire – WMEMeredith Jones – CAAAustin Neal – The Neal AgencyBraeden Rountree – WMEAdi Sharma – The Neal AgencyElisa Vazzana – UTA
Talent buyer/promoter of the year
Todd Boltin – Variety AttractionsBrad Garrett – Police ProductionsBradley Jordan – Peachtree EntertainmentBrian O’Connell – Live Nation NashvilleAaron Spalding – Live Nation NashvilleEd Warm – Joe’s BarAdam Weiser – AEG Presents
Tour manager of the yearMatt Anderson – Old DominionDavid Farmer – Kenny ChesneyJeff Gossett – Morgan WallenJason Hecht – Chris StapletonMike McGrath – Tim McGrawEthan Strunk – Luke CombsTaylor Watson – Hardy
Touring musician of the year
Kurt Allison (Guitar) – Jason AldeanNick Buda (Drums) – Kenny ChesneyJerry Flowers (Bass Guitar) – Keith UrbanAslan Freeman (Guitar) – Lainey WilsonKurt Ozan (Guitar) – Luke CombsMickey Raphael (Harmonica) – Chris StapletonTyler Tomlinson (Guitar) – Morgan WallenCharlie Worsham (Guitar) – Dierks Bentley
Tour videographer/photographer of the year
Mason Allen – Old DominionAlex Alvga – Kane BrownAndy Barron – Chris StapletonBecky Fluke – Little Big TownTanner Gallagher – HardyJeff Johnson – Carrie UnderwoodDavid Lehr – Morgan WallenJill Trunnell – Kenny Chesney
Tour video director of the year
Josh Clark – Miranda LambertJay Cooper – Kenny ChesneyHouston Creswell – Dierks BentleyRon Etters – Chris StapletonTyler Hutcheson – Luke CombsJordan Karow – HardyMike Tinsley – Tim McGrawJake Zobrist – Cody Johnson
Venue of the year
Ascend Amphitheater – NashvilleBankNH Pavilion – Gilford, N.H.Billy Bob’s Texas – Fort Worth, TexasBridgestone Arena – NashvilleGrand Ole Opry House – NashvilleJoe’s on Weed St. – ChicagoRyman Auditorium – Nashville
Unsung hero of the year
Holly Atherton – Chris StapletonKayla Carter Greear – Luke BryanMindy Grabowski – Live Nation EntertainmentJeff “Bean” Griffin – HardyLolo Kinser – Tim McGrawRobin Majors – Kenny ChesneyMel Murphy – Live Nation NashvilleKatie Wilkinson – Chris Stapleton
The Weeknd will perform at Spotify’s first-ever Billions Club Live concert in Los Angeles to celebrate having the most songs hit one billion streams on the platform. The concert will be held exclusively for his top fans on Spotify Tuesday, Dec. 17, and his set list will include selections from his 24 total songs in […]
Detroit’s annual house and techno festival Movement announced the phase one lineup for its May event on Wednesday (Dec. 11). Leading the bill are John Summit, who will be playing a festival closing set on Monday, May 26, English favorite Jamie xx, techno titan Anfisa Letyago, techno pillar Carl Cox playing one of his hybrid […]
50 Cent has been one of the rare vocal supporters of Drake during his feud with Kendrick Lamar. The G-Unit boss stopped by Big Boy’s Neighborhood on Monday (Dec. 9), where he broke down the 6 God’s current position in the industry with what feels like the world against him.
While it isn’t exactly the Mean Girls Burn Book, at one point during the interview, 50 — who is known for his trolling — held up a sheet of paper featuring a list of all of Drake’s alleged opps, including names such as TDE affiliates such as Ab-Soul to Kendrick Lamar, Ye and even hoopers such as LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan. According to Vibe, the list is a printout of a 2023 post made by a Drake fan account.
“This is the opp page,” 50 said. “He was just winning consistently more than everybody else in the culture and then these people start to turn into people that feel like they’re opps. All over the page because they keep watching him win. Then you going, ‘I want this thing forever, man.’ I’m not sure you can have it forever.”
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50 Cent explained this further during an interview with Billboard in October, during which he went into detail about how the rap game only wants to see you win for so long.
“I didn’t see where what [Drake] did was wack at any point,” he stated. “They giving [Drake] the, ‘Oh you wack, you finished.’ I’m like, ‘Nah, come on.’ That’s the system trying to make some sort of resistance and it’s from the consistency. When you win consecutively, that part of the hip-hop demographic wants you out of there. I started to feel the resistance for the Curtis album.”
50 also told Big Boy that he knows Drake had more material ready to go, but held back after Lamar didn’t respond to “The Heart Part 6” and “Not Like Us” began to form the tidal wave that would crash the entire rap game.
“They was loaded again. Drake was loaded ready to go again,” he continued. “I know they had new material ready to go again. There’s no way you stop and you losing? Nah, I gotta fix it.”
The Queens icon isn’t one to mince his words, so in addition to the Drake-Kendrick feud, he also talked about Drizzy’s legal action against Universal Music Group and plenty more. Watch the full interview below.
South by Southwest will be returning to Austin, Texas, in the spring, and the event announced its next lineup of showcasing artists on Wednesday (Dec. 11).
Big Freedia, Tamanaramen, Heal, Jasmine.4.t, Steve Wynn, Aiko, Freak Slug, Steam Down, Master Peace, Sweet Spine and Total F—ing Darkness will all be performing at SXSW.
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“The SXSW Music Festival lineup provides a unique opportunity to discover artists from around the world,” said James Minor, VP of Music Festival. “The magic comes from a diverse and carefully-curated program that’s designed to help you find your next favorite act. For our second reveal, we continue down that path with an abundance of inspiring musicians who will be heading to Austin next March.”
The second round of acts hail from countries including Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Czechia, Denmark, Ecuador, England, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, Paraguay, Scotland, Spain, Ukraine, and Wales.
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Founded in 1987 in Austin, SXSW has grown to encompass tech, film and TV, music, education and culture. The entirety of the 2025 conference and festival will run from March 10-15.
Linkin Park is set to perform on Thursday’s 2024 Billboard Music Awards.
They’ll join an eclectic roster of performers on the show, which is set to air Thursday (Dec. 12) at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FOX. Previously announced performers include fellow rock band Coldplay; country stars Jelly Roll, Megan Moroney and Shaboozey; K-pop stars SEVENTEEN and Stray Kids; blue-eyed soul singer Teddy Swims, South African singer Tyla, and regional Mexican band Fuerza Regida.
Linkin Park has amassed six No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, including Collision Course, the band’s 2004 collab with Jay-Z that was influential in breaking down walls between genres. The band has had three top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 – “In the End” (No. 2 in 2002), “What I’ve Done” (No. 7 in 2007) and “New Divide” (No. 6 in 2009).
The band released its eighth studio album, From Zero, in November. It was the band’s first album with vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain following the death of vocalist Chester Bennington in 2017 and the departure of drummer Rob Bourdon the following year. The album debuted and peaked at No. 2.
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A tour in support of the album, the “From Zero World Tour,” began in September and is set to conclude in November 2025. A book about the band, IT STARTS WITH ONE: The Legend and Legacy of Linkin Park, by Jason Lipshutz, Billboard‘s executive director of music, was published by Hachette Books on Oct. 1.
Hosted by actress and comedian Michelle Buteau, the 2024 BBMAs presented by Marriott Bonvoy is set to air on Thursday, Dec. 12, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FOX and Fire TV Channels, and on-demand on Paramount+, with performances also rolling out across Billboard.com and via @BBMAs and @Billboard social channels.
As previously announced, Zach Bryan, Taylor Swift, Morgan Wallen and Sabrina Carpenter are the leading finalists for the 2024 Billboard Music Awards.
This marks the show’s return to FOX, which carried the show from its 1990 inaugural broadcast through 2006. In addition, Paramount+ will provide on-demand streaming of the show, while the free Fire TV Channels app will provide one-click access to fans using Amazon devices (Fire TV smart TVs and streaming media players and Fire Tablets).
The BBMAs will celebrate music’s greatest achievements with exclusive original performances, artist interviews, and award celebrations taking place from global locations and in the midst of sold-out tours.
The BBMAs honors the year’s biggest artists, albums, songs, producers and songwriters across multiple genres, as determined by year-end performance metrics on the Billboard charts. The eligibility dates for this year’s awards are aligned with Billboard’s Year-End Charts tracking period, which measures music consumption from the charts dated Oct. 28, 2023 through Oct. 19, 2024.
The Billboard Music Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Corporation. PMC is also the parent company of Billboard.
The show is presented by Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International’s travel program and portfolio of more than 30 hotel brands. For more information, visit MarriottBonvoy.com
Ariana Grande and Selena Gomez are in each other’s corners. While at the Academy Women’s Luncheon Tuesday (Dec. 10) in Los Angeles — where the Rare Beauty founder sat next to the “Yes, And?” singer — Gomez revealed to Variety that Grande was one of the first people to message her after they both received Golden Globes nominations in the best supporting actress category the day prior.
“Ariana texted me and it was the sweetest note and it was about six in the morning,” the Only Murders in the Building star said, noting that boyfriend Benny Blanco also sent congratulations around the same time. “We sent each other voice messages. It was very exciting.”
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Grande also told the publication that she’s “always adored” Gomez. “I respect her so much,” said the R.E.M. Beauty mogul. “I was really happy for her to see us on that list together. It was very special.”
“I really love watching this moment happen for Selena,” Grande added. “I know how hard she’s worked and how long she’s waited. I recognize that because it resonates with me, so I know that feeling. So when you can reach out to your friends in the industry and say, ‘Great work, congratulations,’ why not do it? I don’t know Selena as well as I wish I did, so I’m excited to sit next to her today.”
While sitting next to each other at the luncheon, which celebrated women in Hollywood, Gomez also shared a photo on Instagram Stories of their hands — recognizable from their respective tattoos — and called Grande an “angel on earth.” The Wizards of Waverly Place alum is nominated for best supporting actress at the 2025 Globes for her performance in Emilia Pérez, while the “We Can’t Be Friends” artist is up for the award for Wicked. The two women share the category with Gomez’s costar Zoe Saldana, The Brutalist‘s Felicity Jones, The Substance‘s Margaret Qualley and Conclave‘s Isabella Rossellini.
It’s an exciting moment all around, especially as Gomez has long been a fan of Grande’s. In January, the former was one of the first stars to react to the latter’s new-music tease: “FINALLY,” the Only Murders in the Building star excitedly commented on pictures of Grande in the studio. And earlier this year, while serving as a guest DJ on SiriusXM Hits 1, Selena queued up “7 Rings” and gushed, “I cannot do anything fun without listening to Ariana.”
“I feel so empowered, and I think she is incredible, and I just have so much fun,” she added at the time. “I’m the girl that’s playing Ariana all the time, and I think people kind of notice that, but I love it! I think she’s amazing.”
You can tell everybody … that Sir Elton John was named Time magazine’s Icon of the Year in 2024.
In a new cover story for the publication — which will reveal its pick for Person of the Year on Thursday (Dec. 12) — John sat for an interview in which he looked back over his career, and considered his own legacy. “If people remember that we tried to change the world a little bit, we were kind, we tried to help people … And then, apart from that, there was the music,” he said.
Writer Belinda Luscombe makes a compelling argument for John earning the title. “The candle that is Elton John has been inextinguishable, no matter how strong the wind. His 57 U.S. top 40 hits were mostly released during his wild-child youth, but he found a second act in writing songs for animated Disney movies, for which he won two Oscars, and a third in writing songs for Broadway musicals, for which he won a Tony,” she writes. “There’s a whiff of fourth act about him as he moves into the mash-up phase of his career, lending his melodies — and some vocals — to a new generation of performers.”
Throughout his wide-ranging interview, John talked about myriad aspects of his life, including his faith, sobriety and relationship with his late mother. He also reflected on aspects of his job in the industry, including his distaste for performing in music videos. “Music videos should be made by good-looking people like Harry Styles. I’m not very good at looking at myself,” he explained “I don’t think you ever lose that body consciousness. I just think it stays with you forever.”
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The star also spoke about the recent news that Tammy Faye, the Broadway musical he wrote music for, closed less than a month after its Broadway debut. “It’s a shame for everyone who put so much work in it. But that’s what happens when you take a chance,” he said. “It’s a fairly political piece of work. And with that you have to press somebody’s buttons. The buttons we pressed … with the critics weren’t the right ones.”
Among the many people to speak on John’s behalf in the story were a number of modern pop performers whom John personally championed. Dua Lipa, who collaborated with John on his hit song “Cold Heart,” said that it never felt like John was courting her for a collaboration due to her star power. “It was because of our friendship,” she said. “Singing alongside one of my musical heroes was a no-brainer. His music has been able to soundtrack my life from the very beginning.”
Meanwhile, pop phenomenon Chappell Roan also shared her own anecdotes about meeting John, and she revealed the piece of advice he gave that changed her perspective. “The advice he gave me was that the songs will come,” she said. “He thought that he wouldn’t have the ideas, but they were absolutely there. He just had to let them come to him. So that’s a good reminder.”
See Time‘s cover featuring Icon of the Year Elton John below:
Elton John
TIME
12/11/2024
See which is the No. 1 LP of the year, according to Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors.
12/11/2024
With Taylor Swift‘s Eras Tour finally coming to a close over the weekend, Travis Kelce is one of countless people celebrating his girlfriend’s massive feat — but there’s one place he says he definitely won’t take her for a date night now that they have more free time.
On the latest episode of New Heights posted Wednesday (Dec. 11), the 35-year-old Kansas City Chiefs tight end commemorated the Dec. 8 finale of the 34-year-old pop star’s two-year global trek in Vancouver, B.C., by saying, “Shout out to Tay.”
“The unbelievable Eras Tour has come to an end,” he continued as his brother, retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, nodded. “Shout out to everybody that was a part of that show. Obviously, it’s her music, her tour and everything, but that was a full production, man. That thing was the best tour in the world because of a lot of people, but mostly because of Taylor.”
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When Jason asked how many shows Swift had in the books following the summation of her $2 billion tour — which kicked off in March 2023 — Travis replied, “149 or 152. I forget which one it was. Somewhere in there. A f–k ton is how I sum it up.”
The athlete’s first instinct was correct — Swift performed a total of 149 shows over the course of the Eras Tour‘s run. Throughout the multi-continent stretch, the “Anti-Hero” singer released two new “Taylor’s Version” re-records — Speak Now and 1989 — and dropped her 15-week Billboard 200-topper The Tortured Poets Department. At one point on the trek, Travis joined the superstar on stage for a surprise cameo, playing a small part in the “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” sequence.
The tour also brought the pop star closer to millions of fans, who came out in droves with friendship bracelets and homemade costumes — two of which the Kelce brothers reacted to on New Heights. While watching a video of two Vancouver concertgoers dressed up as them — complete with football jerseys and faux facial hair — Jason and Travis couldn’t help but crack up.
“I wonder if Tay saw them in the stands,” the latter said, laughing. “You can’t keep it together if you see that. There’s no way you’re in the middle of a song and you see them walking around …”
Elsewhere in the episode, the co-hosts answered questions from callers, one of whom asked them to name a first-date spot that would guarantee there’s “no way in hell you’re getting a second date.”
“Maybe don’t take her to the strip club,” the Grotesquerie actor replied. “Although some strip clubs do have really good wings I have heard. Don’t know anything about it.”
Watch New Heights below.