Music

BTS’s Jung Kook Makes U.K. Chart History With ‘Too Much’

As a member of BTS, Jung Kook sets records for fun. The K-pop star is doing it solo, too.

With “Too Much” (via Columbia) entering the Official U.K. Singles Chart at No. 10, Jung Kook becomes the first South Korean solo artist to land three U.K. top 10 singles.

Until now, PSY had the record with two top 10s — “Gangnam Style” (peaking at No. 1 in 2012) and “Gentleman” (No. 10 in 2013).

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“Too Much,” recorded with Australian rapper and singer The Kid LAROI and British rapper Central Cee, is the highest entry on the latest singles survey, published Friday, Oct. 27.

It’s Jung Kook’s third top tier effort, after “Seven” featuring Latto (peaking at No. 3) and Jack Harlow collab “3D” (peaking at No. 5), both from 2023.

Released ahead of Jung Kook’s debut solo album Golden, due out Nov. 3, “Too Much” is LAROI’s third and Central Cee’s seventh U.K. top 10, including his 10-week reign with “Sprinter.”

As a member of BTS, Jung Kook has secured four top 10 singles: “Life Goes On” (peaking at No. 10); and “Dynamite,” “Butter” and Coldplay team-up “My Universe,” all peaking at No. 3. On the national albums survey, BTS has collected five top 10s, including two No. 1s (Map of the Soul – Persona and Map of the Soul – 7).

At the top of the pile is Kenya Grace’s “Strangers” (via FFRR), which wins a tight race for its third week at No. 1.

“Strangers” narrowly led by midweek chart, ahead of Cassö, RAYE and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound). And that’s how the chart week ended, with the bouncy dance track “Prada” unchanged at No. 2.

The top three is closed out by a resurgent “Cruel Summer” (EMI) by Taylor Swift, up 14-3 in its 20th week on the chart. “Cruel Summer” heats up thanks to a new live cut, released to coincide with box-office blockbuster The Eras Tour Film.

Finally, Troye Sivan has another reason to smile as ”One of Your Girls” (Polydor) lifts 17-11. Lifted from his third and latest album, Something to Give Each Other, ”One of Your Girls” becomes the Australian pop artist’s highest-peaking U.K. single as a solo artist.

Rolling Stones Shine at No. 1 In U.K. With ‘Hackney Diamonds’

The unstoppable force that is the Rolling Stones reigns over the latest U.K. chart, with Hackney Diamonds (via Polydor).

Mick Jagger and Co. debut at the summit of the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published Friday, Oct. 27, with Hackney Diamonds, which clocks 72,200 chart units in its first week, the Official Charts Company reports.

That’s the third biggest week of sales for an album of 2023 so far, according to the OCC, behind only Lewis Capaldi’s Broken by Desire to be Heavenly Sent, and Ed Sheeran’s – (subtract).

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The outright leader at the midweek stage, Hackney Diamonds outsells the rest of the top 5 combined to snag the Stones’ 14th U.K. No. 1.

With 11 different studio collections reaching the chart summit, the Rolling Stones are now part of the club of acts with the most studio albums to reach No. 1, joining the Beatles, Robbie Williams, and Bruce Springsteen.

Including greatest hits albums, reissues and live albums, the Stones are now equal with Williams on 14 No. 1 albums, a list that’s led by the Beatles with 16.

Hackney Diamonds is also the best-seller on wax to lead this week’s Official Vinyl Albums Chart.

Featuring collaborations with Lady Gaga, Elton John Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney, and contributions from former bass player Bill Wyman and the group’s late drummer Charlie Watts, Hackney Diamonds is the Stones’ first album of original material in 18 years– since A Bigger Bang, which peaked to No. 2 in 2005

Meanwhile, Blink-182 enjoys a No. 2 debut with One More Time…(Columbia) the reunited pop-punk band’s ninth studio album. One More Time…, which sees original guitarist and singer Tom DeLonge return to the fold, with singer/bassist Mark Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker, becomes their career peak in the U.K. for the classic lineup, improving on the No. 4 for 2001’s Take Off Your Pants and Jacket. The trio did lead the Official U.K. Albums Chart in 2016 with California, which featured Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba as the replacement for DeLonge.

Completing an all-new top three is Bombay Bicycle Club’s My Big Day (AWAL/MMM), new at No. 3. My Big Day is the British indie band’s fifth top 10 appearance on the albums tally, a list that includes a leader with 2014’s So Long, See You Tomorrow.

Further down the list, new releases from Barry Can’t Swim (When Will We Land? at No. 12 via Ninja Tune), Richard Hawley (Now Then: The Very Best of Richard Hawley at No. 15 via BMG), Sampha (Lahai at No. 21 via Young) and NSG (AREA BOYZ at No. 28 via NSG Entertainment) land top 40 debuts.

Fans Choose Taylor Swift’s ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’ as This Week’s Favorite New Music

Taylor Swift‘s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) tops this week’s new music poll.

Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (Oct. 28) on Billboard, choosing the pop icon’s re-recorded album as their favorite new music release of the past week.

1989 (Taylor’s Version) coincidentally brought in 89% of the vote, beating out new music from Brent Faiyaz, David Guetta and more.

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Swift, who’s reclaiming her music catalog, released the highly anticipated 2023 re-recording of her hit 1989 album, which originally arrived in 2014. Besides fresh versions of the original track list, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) features five new-to-fans “From the Vault” tracks: “Slut!,” “Say Don’t Go,” “Now That We Don’t Talk,” “Suburban Legends” and “Is It Over Now?” See if you agree with Billboard‘s ranking of those new “From the Vault” songs here.

1989 (Taylor’s Version) sold over 250,000 copies in the U.S. on its first day of release, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. After just one day, the album had the third-largest sales week of 2023. Album sales will increase in the coming days; the current tracking week ends on Thursday, Nov. 2. 

Trailing behind 1989 (Taylor’s Version) on the poll is Brent Faiyaz’s new album Larger Than Life, with 5% of the vote.

See the final results of this week’s new music poll below.

Taylor Swift Sends Diane Warren Flowers in Honor of ‘Say Don’t Go’: See Her Note

Taylor Swift sent a sweet note of appreciation to songwriter Diane Warren, who co-wrote the 1989 (Taylor’s Version) vault track “Say Don’t Go” with her.

“Diane, It was a dream come true to write with you. I hope you love ‘Say Don’t Go’ as much as I do!! Sending the biggest hug to you! Love, Taylor,” Swift penned. Warren shared a snapshot of the letter, and a glimpse at the flowers that came along with it, on Instagram Sunday (Oct. 29).

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“Just got this from @taylorswift. Not the cat, I already had that. If U want to know why she is the biggest artist on the planet, this kind of kind gesture is one more reason why,” wrote Warren.

“Say Don’t Go” was written at the end of 2013, and a demo with Swift playing acoustic guitar was recorded on New Year’s Day 2014, but the ballad didn’t make it onto the original track list of 2014’s original release of 1989.

After fans heard it for the first time thanks to its inclusion as one of five “From the Vault” tracks on Swift’s re-recorded 1989 (Taylor’s Version), Warren told Rolling Stone that the song has the same lyrics she remembers from their co-writing sessions nearly a decade ago. “It still stands,” she says. “It’s timeless.”

“Everything has its time, you know? It took a while to see the light of day, but I’m glad it finally did,” Warren said. “It was worth the wait.”

“She was very particular about how she said certain things,” she added, describing what it was like to co-write with Swift. “It was a really interesting experience. She gets her audience. She’s deeply aware of how her fans want to hear something. I can’t explain it, but that’s probably why she’s the biggest f—ing star in the world.”

Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) sold over 250,000 copies in the U.S. on just its first day of release, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. After just one day, the album had the third-largest sales week of 2023. Sales of the album will continue to increase in the coming days, with the current tracking week ending on Thursday, Nov. 2. 

See the flowers and note Swift sent Warren below. (And get a peek at Warren’s cute cat.)

Ed Sheeran Brings Out Brandon Flowers for Surprise ‘Mr. Brightside’ Performance: ‘My Country’s National Anthem’

The crowd at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium was in for a surprise Saturday night (Oct. 28). They paid to see Ed Sheeran‘s Mathematics Tour and got a bonus: an unannounced appearance by The KillersBrandon Flowers.

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Sheeran and Flowers performed a Killers classic, “Mr. Brightside,” which was a top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2005.

Introducing The Killers frontman to the stage, Sheeran joked, “We’re gonna sing the song that is essentially like my country’s national anthem.”

Sheeran, who was dressed in a Chucky costume for Halloween weekend, played guitar on “Mr. Brightside” and harmonized on the chorus while Flowers led a massive crowd sing-along.

The two artists then sang together on Sheeran’s “Castle on the Hill,” with Flowers joining on the chorus and getting a turn on the second verse and the bridge. The concert was the last North American date on Sheeran’s Mathematics Tour, which picks back up in Japan on in January.

“Mr. Brightside,” a song that’s stood the test of time on the U.K. charts, appeared on the Las Vegas band’s debut album, Hot Fuss, which peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and featured additional singles “Somebody Told Me,” “All These Things That I’ve Done” and “Smile Like You Mean It.”

Watch Sheeran and Flowers’ performance of “Mr. Brightside” and “Castle on the Hill” below. Sheeran also popped in at Vegas nightclub performance by The Chainsmokers this weekend, treating the everyone to some unanticipated “Dancing Queen” karaoke. See a clip from The Chainsmokers’ Instagram.


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Boygenius Set as ‘SNL’ Musical Guest, Timothée Chalamet to Return as Host

Timothée Chalamet will host Saturday Night Live for a second time while the women of boygenius make their SNL debut as a group on Nov. 11.

Boygenius — the supergroup helmed by Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker — will appear as musical guest, just weeks after the release of new four-track EP The Rest. Bridgers previously served as musical guest for her solo work, in April 2021, and memorably destroyed her guitar on stage in Studio 8H.

Boygenius’ reaction to the SNL news Sunday (Oct. 29) on Instagram said a lot, with no words: “!!!”

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The group’s debut studio album, The Record, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart in April.

“We were told, if we were lucky, maybe we were going to break top 10. And then it was, actually, maybe we could break top five. And the fact that it’s [No. 4] is cool,” Dacus told Billboard, explaining that Bridgers was the one to tell them the news during band practice. “We celebrated by playing the songs.”

Chalamet is no stranger to SNL, having hosted the Dec. 12, 2020 episode. When he starred as host on the late-night sketch show, he played Harry Styles in a hilarious bit about the pop star being interviewed by Ego Nwodim’s Dionne Warwick.

The actor takes on the title role in the upcoming musical Wonka, which is scheduled to arrive Dec. 15.

See the latest SNL lineup announcement below.

Foo Fighters’ Dress as ‘Wizard of Oz’ Characters, Dave Grohl Makes Hilarious Cameos on ‘SNL’: Watch

Foo Fighters brought a little taste of Halloween to Studio 8H.

In a brief promo shot leading up to their first Saturday Night Live musical performance on Oct. 28, the Dave Grohl-led rock outfit dressed up as the main characters from the classic 1939 film.

The Foos also shared a brief video of their fantastic Wizard of Oz costumes on the band’s Instagram page, with Grohl as Dorothy Gale, Chris Shiflett as Tin Man, Nate Mendel as the Cowardly Lion, Pat Smear as the Wizard of Oz, Josh Freese as Scarecrow, and Rami Jaffee as Glinda.

“Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!” the band captioned the clip on Instagram.

During Nate Bargatze-hosted episode of SNL, the Foo Fighters opened with the hard rocking “Rescued,” followed by the emotional track “The Glass,” with help from H.E.R. on vocals and guitar. Both tracks are from the act’s 11th album, But Here We Are. Unfortunately, the group didn’t rock their Wizard of Oz costumes while on stage.

Grohl did, however, lend his comedy skills to a couple of sketches, appearing as a pretend doctor in a skit about a woman on the verge of giving birth while on a plane, and portraying a corn hole champ in a pre-recorded musical sketch featuring a country trio singing about their favorite “lake beach.”

See Foo Fighters’ Wizard of Oz costumes and watch Grohl’s SNL cameos in the videos below. Check out more celebs’ Halloween costumes from 2023 here.




https://youtube.com/watch?v=POwQHfpv6HE&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

Taylor Swift Shows Appreciation to ‘Precious Young Son’ Jack Antonoff in ‘Sweeter Than Fiction’ Post

Taylor Swift is honoring her longtime friend and musical collaborator Jack Antonoff.

On Sunday (Oct. 29), the pop superstar shared a heartwarming message on social media in appreciation of the Grammy-winning producer, whom she’s partnered with on numerous popular songs over the years, including 2013 track “Sweeter Than Fiction.”

“There you’ll stand ten feet tall, I will say ‘I knew it all along,’” Swift captioned photos on Instagram of herself embracing Antonoff. “This song has always made me think of my friend Jack. It was the first song we made together and watching him challenge himself and make beautiful art over the years has been the thrill of a lifetime. How can he be 6 years older than me and also somehow still be my precocious young son? We may never know.”

Swift concluded her post by alerting Swifties that “Sweeter Than Fiction (My Version)” is available exclusively at Target on Tangerine vinyl.

“Sweeter Than Fiction,” which was co-written with Antonoff, reached No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2013. The peppy rock-tinged song appeared on the soundtrack for British film One Chance.

Antonoff recently opened up about his journey with the superstar in a new interview with Today‘s Willie Geist.

“I could quantify our relationship in very reductive ways about the things we agree on, the sounds we like. But the truth is, we’ve just grown together. She put an amazing amount of belief in me. And it’s powerful,” he said.

Antonoff also shared his thoughts on working with Swift to Billboard. “When I work with Taylor, there’s still just this person who has these life experiences and this remarkable gift of writing about them,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is already off to a big start after its first day of release on Friday (Oct. 27). The singer’s fourth re-recorded album sold more than 250,000 copies in the U.S. on in the first 24 hours of release, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. Further news of initial sales, streaming and track-equivalent activity for the album will be reported in the coming days.

See Swift’s “Sweeter Than Fiction” post on Instagram below.

Blink-182 Reunion Album ‘One More Time’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200

Blink-182’s One More Time bows atop the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Nov. 4), securing the rock trio its third chart-topping set. The new full-length studio album begins with 125,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 26, according to Luminate, largely powered by traditional album sales.

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One More Time is Blink-182’s first album with the group’s longtime lineup of drummer Travis Barker, vocalist/bassist Mark Hoppus and guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge since DeLonge departed the group in 2015 for seven years, and the first studio effort from that trio since 2012’s Dogs Eating Dogs EP. (Barker, Hoppus and DeLonge comprised Blink-182 during the band’s mainstream breakthrough in 1999 through 2014.)

Blink-182 previously hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 2016’s California (with the lineup of Barker, Hoppus and guitarist/vocalist Matt Skiba) and 2001’s Take Off Your Pants and Jacket.

One More Time was led by a pair of No. 1s on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart: “Edging” (No. 1 for 13 consecutive weeks in 2022-23, the band’s longest run at No. 1 with any of its five leaders) and the title track (No. 1 for two weeks, thus far, including on the most recently published chart, dated Oct. 28). “Edging” marked the first No. 1 for Blink-182 on the Alternative Airplay chart since 2016’s “Bored to Death,” and One More Time is the first Blink-182 album to generate at least two No. 1s on the survey. Both “Edging” and “One More Time” also reached the all-genre, multi-metric Billboard Hot 100, hitting Nos. 61 and 62, respectively – the band’s highest-charting Hot 100 entries since 2004’s “I Miss You” reached No. 42.

Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200, The Rolling Stones extend their record for the most top 10-charting albums in the history of the list, as Hackney Diamonds debuts at No. 3, marking the group’s 38th top 10 effort. It’s the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s first studio album of all-original material since 2005’s A Bigger Bang.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, 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. The new Nov. 4, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Tuesday (Oct. 31). For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of One More Time’s 125,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Oct. 26, album sales comprise 101,000 (making it the top-selling album of the week), SEA units comprise 23,000 (equaling 30.19 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise 1,000.

Sales of One More Time were bolstered by its availability across 11 vinyl variants (which combined to sell 49,000 copies — the largest sales week for a rock album on vinyl in 2023), a standard CD, a cassette, and a deluxe boxed set with a branded shirt and a CD contained inside. The trio also released a late-in-the-week deluxe digital edition of the album, exclusively sold on the band’s webstore beginning on Oct. 25, which boasts two new bonus songs.

Drake’s chart-topping For All the Dogs is a non-mover at No. 2 with 120,000 equivalent album units earned (down 27%). It also scores its first frame at No. 1 on the recently launched Top Streaming Albums chart.

The Rolling Stones’ new studio album Hackney Diamonds debuts at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with 101,000 equivalent album units earned. It’s the band’s first effort of all-original material since 2005’s A Bigger Bang, which debuted and peaked at No. 3. Hackney Diamonds marks the Stones’ 38th top 10-charting album, extending the group’s record for the most top 10 albums on the chart (since the list began publishing on a regular, weekly basis in 1956). Hackney Diamonds boasts special guests Lady Gaga, Elton John, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder. The set was led by the singles “Angry” and “Sweet Sounds of Heaven” with Gaga. Both reached the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, while “Angry” has also reached the top 10 of the Adult Alternative Airplay tally.   

Of Hackney Diamonds’ first-week units, album sales comprise 94,000, SEA units comprise 6,000 (equaling 8.41 million on-demand official streams of the album’s songs) and TEA units comprise 1,000. The album’s sales were enhanced by its availability across more than 30 vinyl variants (totaling 36,000 sold), two deluxe boxed sets (with either a branded shirt or a hat, plus a CD), a digipack CD, a CD/blu-ray box set and a standard CD and download album.

Bad Bunny’s Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana falls 1-4 in its second week on the Billboard 200 with 97,000 equivalent album units earned (down 47%).

The rest of the top 10 on the new Billboard 200 consists of former No. 1s, as Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time climbs 6-5 (69,000; up less than 1%); Taylor Swift’s Midnights rises 9-6 (52,000; up 3%); Swift’s Lover ascends 8-7 (52,000; down less than 1%); Zach Bryan’s self-titled album falls 4-8 (just over 51,000; down 29%); Rod Wave’s Nostalgia dips 7-9 (51,000; down 4%); and Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts is a non-mover at No. 10 (45,000; down 9%).

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.

Lizzo Pays Tribute to Tina Turner With Dazzling Halloween Costume

Lizzo is honoring Tina Turner this Halloween.

The pop-rap star took to social media over the weekend to share a pair of photos of herself dressed as the late rock n’ roll icon, who died earlier this year at the age of 83.

“Honoring Tina Turner,” Lizzo captioned the images on Instagram, adding a red heart emoji.

In the snapshots, the “About Damn Time” singer is seen donning a Turner-inspired blonde colored wig and sporting sparkly black mini dress. Last year, she donned a hilarious costume of beloved Simpsons character Marge Simpson.

Following news of Turner’s death in late May, Lizzo carved out time in her concert that evening to commemorate the legendary musician’s impact and perform “Proud Mary” in her honor.

“Today we lost an icon,” a visibly emotional Lizzo told her crowd at Phoenix’s Footprint Center on May 24. “I haven’t allowed myself to be sad, I haven’t allowed myself to cry. I don’t want to right now, because I’d much rather celebrate.”

She continued, “As a Black girl with a rock band, I wouldn’t exist if there was not the queen of rock n’ roll.” She then passionately reminded everyone, “There would be no rock n’ roll without Tina Turner!”

Wearing a sparkly Turner-esque leotard and skirt, the Yitty founder then launched a performance of “Proud Mary” just like the late legend used to. “We gonna take it nice and easy right now,” Lizzo said, her band starting to play the 1970 smash’s iconic intro.

See Lizzo’s Tina Turner costume on Instagram below. Check out more celebs’ Halloween costumes from 2023 here