Music

30 Oct 2023

BTS’ Jung Kook Drops 2 New Remixes Featuring David Guetta & MK: Stream Them Now

Jung Kook is kicking off the week with two big surprises for fans: a remix of “Seven” feat. Latto mastered by David Guetta, as well as a revamped version of “3D” feat. Jack Harlow, remixed by MK.

Both tracks — which each find their respective DJs amping up the electro dance feel of the originals — dropped Monday (Oct. 30), just four days ahead of the K-Pop superstar’s upcoming debut solo album, Golden. “Seven,” which crowned the Billboard Hot 100 upon its release in July, and “3D,” which bowed at No. 5 earlier this month, are both featured on the album’s 11-song tracklist — as is a clean version of the BTS star’s duet with Latto.

The “Still With You” singer has an exciting week planned leading up to the release of Golden. On Tuesday (Oct. 31), he’ll preview snippets of all 11 of the album’s tracks; then, on Thursday (Nov. 2), he’ll release a teaser for his “Standing Next to You” music video. Two days after the album drops, he was slated to take the stage at the 2023 MTV EMAs, though the event was canceled due to the ongoing war between Israel and and Palestinian terror group Hamas.

Jung Kook is also fresh off of making U.K. chart history with another one of his recent collaborations, “Too Much” with Central Cee and The Kid LAROI. Though not a part of the Golden tracklist, the song entered the Official U.K. Singles chart this week at No. 10, making him the first South Korean soloist to land three songs in the top 10.

Listen to Jung Kook’s new remixes below:

30 Oct 2023

How to Watch the 2024 Grammy Nominations Announcement Livestream

Thirteen past Grammy winners, ranging from Amy Grant to Kim Petras, will help announce the 66th Annual Grammy Award nominees in a livestream event on Nov. 10. The announcement will be accessible on live.Grammy.com and YouTube.

Other Grammy winners on board for the event include: Arooj Aftab, Vince Gill, Jimmy Jam, Jon Bon Jovi, Samara Joy, Muni Long, Cheryl Pawelski, Judith Sherman, St. Vincent, Jeff Tweedy and “Weird Al” Yankovic. They will be joined by CBS Mornings co-hosts Gayle King, Nate Burleson and Tony Dokoupil and Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr.

Joy was the surprise winner for best new artist last year. Jon Bon Jovi will be the 2024 MusiCares Person of the Year honoree.

The nominations event will kick off with a special presentation announcing the nominees in the general field and select other categories. There will be two changes in general field categories this year. There will be just eight nominations, down from 10 the last two years, for album, record and song of the year, plus best new artist, which have always comprised the general field. Also, two additional categories are being bumped up to the general field for the first time – producer of the year, non-classical and songwriter of the year, non-classical.

Video announcements of the nominees in the remaining categories will also be published on live.Grammy.com and YouTube while the event is underway. The full list of nominees will be published on Grammy.com immediately following the presentation.

Here’s the timeline for when these events will occur on Nov. 10. All times are approximate and subject to change.

10:45 a.m. ET / 7:45 a.m. PT: Grammy nominations pre-show

11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT: Nominations livestream event

11:25 a.m. ET / 8:25 a.m. PT: Nominations livestream event ends: Full nominations list posted on Grammy.com

11:25 a.m. ET / 8:25 a.m. PT: Grammy nominations wrap-up show

30 Oct 2023

Drake, Jennifer Lopez Sign Artists4Ceasefire Letter Urging a Pause in Israel/Palestinian Conflict

Drake, Jennifer Lopez and Adam Lambert have joined the increasingly lengthy list of performers who’ve signed an open letter asking President Joe Biden and the U.S. Congress to push for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and the militant terror group Hamas. Last week the Artists4Ceasefire letter was sent to Biden and Congress urging them to get the parties to agree to a cessation in fighting in the three-week war.

“We urge your administration, and all world leaders, to honor all of the lives in the Holy Land and call for and facilitate a ceasefire without delay – an end to the bombing of Gaza, and the safe release of hostages,” reads the letter originally signed by Dua Lipa, Michael Stipe, Caroline Polachek, Killer Mike, Vic Mensa, Miguel, Kaytranada, Macklemore, Cate Blanchett, Joaquin Phoenix, John Cusack, Lena Waithe and others.

“More than 5,000 people have been killed in the last week and a half – a number any person of conscience knows is catastrophic. We believe all life is sacred, no matter faith or ethnicity and we condemn the killing of Palestinian and Israeli civilians,” the letter continued, before adding, “Half of Gaza’s two million residents are children, and more than two thirds are refugees and their descendants being forced to flee their homes. Humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach them.”

The latest conflict between Israel and Hamas began on Oct. 7 when thousands of Hamas soldiers poured over the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip, killing more than 1,400 Israeli women, children and other civilians while taking more than 200 hostages, whose fates are still unknown. Israel has launched hundreds of retaliatory strikes since, pounding Gaza with an endless barrage of bombs and on-the-ground incursions that have reportedly killed more than 8,000 Palestinians as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced over the weekend that a ground-focused “second stage” of the war was beginning.

See the full open letter here.

30 Oct 2023

SZA Spends Record-Extending 50th Week at No. 1 on R&B Songwriters Chart

SZA adds a record-furthering 50th week at No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B Songwriters chart (dated Oct. 28), thanks to her song “Snooze” and Drake’s “Slime You Out,” on which she’s featured.

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The tracks rank at Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, on the latest Hot R&B Songs chart. SZA co-wrote “Snooze” with Babyface, BLK Beats, Leon G. Thomas III and Khristopher van Riddick-Tynes. She’s also a co-writer on “Slime You Out,” with Drake, 40, BNYX, Noel Cadastre, Grant Lapointe, Chris Powell and Dalton Tennant.

A week earlier, SZA broke the record for the most weeks notched at No. 1 on R&B Songwriters, as her 49th frame at the summit lifted her past The Weeknd, with 48. Along the way over her record run, her smash “Kill Bill” spent 30 weeks at No. 1 on Hot R&B Songs.

Across Billboard’s 13 weekly songwriter charts, SZA joins a select number of talents who have reached the milestone of 50-or-more weeks at No. 1. Here’s a recap.

Weeks Spent at No. 1, Chart Name, Artist:
121, Gospel Songwriters, Kirk Franklin
96, Latin Songwriters, Bad Bunny
62, Dance/Electronic Songwriters, f a l l e n
62, Dance/Electronic Songwriters, SAINt JHN
57, Alternative Songwriters, Dave Bayley
56, Rock & Alternative Songwriters, Zach Bryan
56, Rock Songwriters, Zach Bryan
53, Dance/Electronic Songwriters, Elton John
53, Dance/Electronic Songwriters, Bernie Taupin
50, Rock & Alternative Songwriters, Dave Bayley
50, R&B Songwriters, SZA

In March, Kirk Franklin became the first and, to date, only creative to have led a songwriters survey for 100 weeks.

Spending 50 weeks atop one of Billboard’s 13 producers charts is even more rare. Only five producers have achieved the feat: Joey Moi, with 122 weeks spent at No. 1 on Country Producers; Tainy (119, Latin Producers); Jonathan Lindsey Smith (84, Christian Producers); Kanye West (59, Gospel Producers); and Jeff Pardo (54, Christian Producers).

Billboard launched the Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts, as well as genre-specific rankings for country, rock & alternative, R&B/hip-hop, R&B, rap, Latin, Christian, gospel and dance/electronic, in June 2019, while alternative and hard rock joined in 2020, along with seasonal holiday rankings in 2022. The charts are based on total points accrued by a songwriter and producer, respectively, for each attributed song that appears on the Billboard Hot 100. The genre-based songwriter and producer charts follow the same methodology based on corresponding “Hot”-named genre charts. As with Billboard’s yearly recaps, multiple writers or producers split points for each song equally (and the dividing of points will lead to occasional ties on rankings).

The full Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts and full genre rankings can be found on Billboard.com.

30 Oct 2023

Cher’s ‘Christmas’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Holiday Albums Chart

Billboard’s Top Holiday Albums chart returns for the 2023 holiday season, with Cher’s Christmas album debuting atop the tally (dated Nov. 4). It’s the pop superstar’s first holiday collection. The 13-song set has a blend of classic tunes and newly written tracks, and boasts a starry lineup of guests in Michael Bublé, Cyndi Lauper, Darlene Love, Tyga and Stevie Wonder.

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The new Nov. 4-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Oct. 31.

The Top Holiday Albums chart will continue to be published on a weekly basis through early January of 2024, when it will dash away until the next holiday season. (The chart generally returns to Billboard’s weekly chart menu every October.)

The Top Holiday Albums chart ranks the 50 most popular seasonal albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each units equals one album sales, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Cher’s Christmas earned 21,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 26, according to Luminate. Of that sum, album sales comprised 20,000, SEA units comprised a little under 1,000 and TEA units comprised the remaining negligible sum. The album was available to purchase as a digital download album and in four different CD variants (each with alternative cover art). A vinyl LP, on ruby red-colored vinyl, is scheduled for release on Nov. 17.

Cher also makes waves on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart, where Christmas bows at No. 32, marking her 14th solo top 40-charting album on the tally. Further, she becomes only the second woman, and third soloist, with a new top 40-charting albums in the 1960s, ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s, 2000s, ’10s and ‘20s. The only other acts to have achieved this feat are Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand and The Rolling Stones.

The top 10 of the Nov. 4-dated Top Holiday Albums chart is dotted with familiar favorites, as the soundtrack to the Halloween-meets-Christmas film Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas is No. 2, Pentatonix’s new The Greatest Christmas Hits debuts at No. 3, Bublé’s Christmas is No. 4 and Vince Guaraldi Trio’s TV soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas is No. 5. The top 10 is rounded out by *NSYNC’s Home for Christmas (No. 6), Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas (No. 7), Frank Sinatra’s Ultimate Christmas (No. 8), Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song (No. 9) and Bing Crosby’s Christmas Classics (No. 10).

Among the artists that have new holiday albums dropping later this holiday season (or have recently released a new holiday set in the past month or so): Michael Bolton, Brandy, Jim Brickman, Ally Brooke, Bing Crosby, Jessie James Decker, Seth MacFarlane and Liz Gillies, Samara Joy, Johnny Mathis, My Morning Jacket, Oak Ridge Boys, Jon Pardi, Gregory Porter, Matt Rogers, Michael W. Smith, Straight No Chaser and The Tenors.

30 Oct 2023

Creed Announces 2024 Reunion Tour: See the Dates

After plotting a 2024 reunion with their Summer of ’99 cruise, Creed has announced a 40-city North American tour, which will mark their first time hitting the road together in over a decade.

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The 2024 Summer of ’99 tour, produced by Live Nation, kicks off on July 17, 2024, and will run through Sept. 28. While 3 Doors Down will open the majority of the tour, Daughtry, Switchfoot, Tonic and Big Wreck will join Creed on select dates, and Finger Eleven will open all dates on the reunion run.

“I feel like I’m as strong as I’ve ever been vocally, and looking forward to sharing the stage with the guys again,” says frontman Scott Stapp in a statement. “The fans have clearly let us know they feel it’s long overdue. I want to give them what they deserve. I’m ready to bring it.”

In the middle of the tour, Creed will head to San Bernardino, Calif. to top the bill of the inaugural Summer of ’99 and Beyond Festival, which will corral the openers on various legs of the tour and welcome a few other special guests. 3 Doors Down, Daughtry, Finger Eleven, Fuel, Vertical Horizon, The Verve Pipe will join Creed on Aug. 31 at San Bernadino’s Glen Helen Amphitheatre.

“Summer of ‘99 and Beyond Festival in San Bernardino is going to be so special for all of us,” says guitarist Mark Tremonti. “It is giving us a chance to bring performances from the cruises and tour together in one location. That show is going to be a highlight for us next year.”

In July, Creed announced their first shows together in 12 years as headliners of the Summer of ’99 cruise, setting sail from April 18-22, 2024. The band added a second cruise the following weekend, and both trips are sold out.

Stapp, Tremonti, Brian Marshall and Scott Phillips stopped touring together in 2012, after scoring smashes like “One,” “Higher,” “With Arms Wide Open” and “My Sacrifice”; their 1999 sophomore album, Human Clay, has sold 11.7 million copies to date, according to Luminate. In addition to the Creed reunion, Tremonti recently released a holiday album, Christmas Classics New & Old, and Stapp’s fourth solo album, Higher Power, will be released in March 2024.

Check out Creed’s North American tour dates below:

Supporting Acts: + 3 Doors Down | ^ Daughtry | * Switchfoot | x Tonic | # Big Wreck | = Finger Eleven

Wednesday, July 17 | Green Bay, WI | Resch Center * =
Friday, July 19 | Monticello, IA | Great Jones County Fair * = (Not A Live Nation Date)
Saturday, July 20 | Walker, MN | Moondance Jam * = (Not A Live Nation Date)
Tuesday, July 23 | Simpsonville, SC | CCNB Amphitheatre at Heritage Park * =
Wednesday, July 24 | Charlotte, NC | PNC Music Pavilion + =
Friday, July 26 | Bristow, VA | Jiffy Lube Live + =
Saturday, July 27 | Virginia Beach, VA | Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach + =
Tuesday, July 30 | Toronto, ON | Budweiser Stage # =
Wednesday, July 31 | Clarkston, MI | Pine Knob Music Theatre + =
Friday, August 2 | Cincinnati, OH | Riverbend Music Center + =
Saturday, August 3 | Burgettstown, PA | The Pavilion at Star Lake + =
Tuesday, August 6 | Bridgeport, CT | Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater x =
Wednesday, August 7| Holmdel, NJ | PNC Bank Arts Center + =
Friday, August 9 | St. Louis, MO | Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre – St. Louis, MO + =
Saturday, August 10 | Indianapolis, IN | Ruoff Music Center + =
Tuesday, August 13 | Nashville, TN | Ascend Amphitheater x =
Wednesday, August 14 | Pelham, AL | Oak Mountain Amphitheatre + =
Saturday, August 16 | Tinley Park, IL | Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre + =
Saturday, August 17 | Welch, MN | Treasure Island Amphitheater + = (Not A Live Nation Date)
Tuesday, August 20 | Gilford, NH | BankNH Pavilion x =
Wednesday, August 21 | Boston, MA | Xfinity Center + =
Friday, August 23 | Hershey, PA | Hersheypark Stadium + =
Saturday, August 24 | Saratoga Springs, NY | Broadview Stage at SPAC + =
Saturday, August 31 | San Bernardino, CA | Glen Helen Amphitheatre (Summer of ’99 And Beyond Festival with 3 Doors Down, Daughtry, Finger Eleven, Fuel, Vertical Horizon, The Verve Pipe)
Sunday, September 1 | Wheatland, CA | Toyota Amphitheatre + =
Wednesday, September 4 | Phoenix, AZ | Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre + =
Friday, September 6 | Salt Lake City, UT | USANA Amphitheatre + =
Saturday, September 7 | Denver, CO | Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre + = (Not A Live Nation Date)
Tuesday, September 10 | Rogers, AR | Walmart AMP ^ =
Wednesday, September 11 | Dallas, TX | Dos Equis Pavilion + =
Friday, September 13 | San Antonio, TX | Frost Bank Center + =
Saturday, September 14 | Houston, TX | The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion presented by Huntsman + =
Monday, September 16 | Brandon, MS | Brandon Amphitheater ^ =
Wednesday, September 18| Raleigh, NC | Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek + =
Friday, September 20 | Tampa, FL | MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre at the FL State Fairgrounds + =
Saturday, September 21 | West Palm Beach, FL | iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre + =
Tuesday, September 24 | Jacksonville, FL | Daily’s Place x =
Wednesday, September 25 | Alpharetta, GA | Ameris Bank Amphitheatre + =
Friday, September 27 | Darien Lake, NY | Darien Lake Amphitheater + =
Saturday, September 28 | Atlantic City, NJ | Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena + =

30 Oct 2023

Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav Sang the National Anthem Before Hawks-Bucks Game and Nailed It

Flavor Flav is known for a lot of things: wearing that giant clock for the past 38 years, serving as Public Enemy rapper Chuck D’s colorful on-stage foil and an unencumbered enthusiasm that helped propel the group into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But on Sunday (Oct. 29), the Milwaukee Bucks gave Flav a job he said was on his all-time bucket list: performing the National Anthem before the home team’s game against the Atlanta Hawks. “The anthem was a long time bucket list item,,, that was fun!,” Flav wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter). “I can’t live my life worried about what people might say about me. I won’t let that stop me from trying new things and doing things I wanna do. Some people might not like that. But a sure failure is if you stop trying.”

Wearing a green No. 59 jersey (in honor of the year he was born), sideways white baseball hat, white shades and, of course, his signature big clock, Flav, 64, came out of the gate a bit shaky, but soon overcame his nerves and crooned the notoriously difficult-to-sing anthem in his own inimitable fashion. He wasn’t always near pitch, but Flav stretched out some notes in his nasal croon to the delight of the home crowd and smiling players. And by the time he hit the “home of the brave” line — which he repeated three times — the arena burst out into loud cheers for a job well done.

Check out Flav’s statement and his “Star-Spangled” performance below.

30 Oct 2023

Adele Stopped Her Vegas Show When She Spotted Her OB-GYN In The Crowd: ‘That Man Delivered My Baby!’

Adele has had a number of special guests come through her Las Vegas residency show, but over the weekend someone stopped by who literally stopped the singer in her tracks. In fan-shot video of the moment during Saturday night’s show, Adele was crooning her hit 2015 single “When We Were Young” while wearing her Morticia Addams Halloween costume when she spotted a very, very special VIP in the crowd.

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Adele was walking through the audience when she spotted a familiar face. “Shut up!” she said, breaking the smooth flow of the ballad as she ran over to give the man a hug. “Oh my God! Colin! This is my doctor that gave birth to my baby. I haven’t seen you for years,” she said while bursting into tears as the room broke out in “awwww”s.

Her band kept playing, but Adele gave up on continuing the song as she chatted with the MD, eventually returning to the performance and asking the audience, “Will you sing it for me? That man delivered my baby!” she said of the OB-GYN who delivered her son, Angelo, born in 2012 to the singer and her ex-husband, Simon Konecki.

Adele’s Las Vegas residency has been filled with memorable moments, from the time she stopped it to help a couple with their baby gender reveal to revealing her sciatica diagnosis and calling herself boyfriend Rich Paul’s “wife” at a show last month. She also took a moment on Saturday night to pay tribute to late Friends star Matthew Perry, who died earlier in the day at age 54 of undisclosed causes when he was found floating in his Los Angeles hot tub.

“It is always so shocking, especially someone that made you laugh and who brought so much joy to your life that you don’t know,” she told the crowd at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. “This is what I find so strange, I never met him in my life. There is something, you feel so sad about it especially because you don’t necessarily know what was going on.”

Check out the video of the special moment below.

30 Oct 2023

Charlie Puth Pays Tribute to Matthew Perry With ‘Friends’ Theme Song at Melbourne Show

Charlie Puth was among the many stars and super fans who paid tribute to beloved sitcom actor Matthew Perry over the weekend after the Friends star was found dead on Saturday at age 54 at his home in Los Angeles.

During his show at the Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne, Australia on Sunday night, Puth got the audience to join him for a piano version of the Rembrandts’ iconic Friends theme song, “I’ll Be there For You.”

“I dedicate this song to another song, so if it makes you think of a person that’s who it’s dedicated to,” Puth told the crowd in fan video of the moment. Puth then began tinkling out the NBC show’s bouncy intro music as the audience joined him in singing the tune’s wistful lyrics, “So no one told you life was gonna be this way/ Your job’s a joke, you’re broke, your love life’s DOA,” he began as his fans took over the “I’ll be there for you” chorus.

Puth then subtly transitioned into his 2015 smash hit single “See You Again” from the Furious 7 soundtrack, the Wiz Khalifa collab that served as a tribute to late Fast & Furious star Paul Walker; the song was both mens’ biggest hit to date, spending 12 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

A number of artists paid tribute to Perry over the weekend after the sitcom star was reportedly found dead in his hot tub; at press time no cause of death has been announced. Adele honored Perry during one of her Las Vegas residency shows this weekend, telling the crowd, “I’ll remember that character for the rest of my life,” Adele said of Perry’s Friends character Chandler Bing. “He’s probably the best comedic character of all time.”

Watch fan video of Puth’s Perry tribute below.

30 Oct 2023

Taylor Swift Eyes Trifecta On U.K. Singles Chart

The Taylor Swift takeover is in full swing on the U.K. chart blast.

Based on sales and streaming data for the first 48 hours in the U.K. chart week, Swift is on track to nab the top three spots with songs from 1989 (Taylor’s Version): “Slut,” “Style” and “Is It Over Now,” respectively.

According to the Official Charts Company, just over 200 chart units separate the three songs at this early stage in the chart cycle.

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Swift couldn’t possibly do any better. Unlike Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, the OCC‘s chart rules dictate that a maximum of three tracks by the same artist can impact the top 100 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart.

“Slut,” written by Taylor, Jack Antonoff and Patrik Berger, and “Is It Over Now,” written by Taylor and Antonoff, are two of the album’s five “Vault” tracks, works that were written during the original 1989 sessions, but never made it to the finished version (for the record: 1989 logged one week at the U.K. chart summit in 2014).

The original cut of “Style,” written by Taylor, Max Martin, Shellback and Ali Payami, was released as the third single from first version of 1989, and peaked at No. 21 in the U.K.

The fresh album (via EMI in the U.K.) features newly recorded editions of all 13 original songs, plus three bonus tracks (“Wonderland,” “New Romantics” and “You Are In Love”) and the “Vault” tracks (“Is It Over Now?,” “Now That We Don’t Talk,” “Say Don’t Go,” “Suburban Legends” and “Slut”).

Swift already has 23 top 10 singles in the U.K., including two No. 1s: “Look What You Made Me Do” (from 2017) and “Anti-Hero” (2022). The extend to which she expands on that tally will be revealed late Friday, Nov. 3, when the Official U.K. Singles Chart is published in full.

Thanks to the Taylor Swift effect, Kenya Grace’s three-week reign with “Strangers” (FFRR) looks set to come to a halt. It’s down 1-5 on the First Look chart, just behind Casso, Raye and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound), set to dip 2-4.