Music
Page: 224
While Eminem has not yet commented on the death this week of his mother Debbie Nelson at 69 due to complications from advanced lung cancer, the rapper’s half-brother Nathan “Nate” Mathers issued a terse, five-word reaction to the loss.
“Hatred and mixed emotions today,” Nate Mathers wrote on his Instagram Stories on Tuesday (Dec. 3) in a curt message in keeping with the sometimes contentious Mathers family dynamic between mother and sons. Nelson died in St. Joseph, MO on Monday and at press time Marshall had not yet issued a public statement about the loss of the woman who was frequently a subject of disdain and ridicule in his songs before their more recent rapprochement.
Music producer Nate was Nelson’s youngest son, born to her and partner Fred Samra when Eminem was 13-years-old; she married the MC’s father, Marshall Mathers Jr., when she was 16 and gave birth to Eminem (born Marshall Mathers) two years later in 1972. Eminem became Nate’s legal guardian when his half-brother turned 16.
Trending on Billboard
Eminem was often at odds with his mother in his music, lashing out at her on such hits as 2002’s “Cleanin’ Out My Closet,” on which he rapped about his mother abusing prescription pills and said, “Wasn’t it the reason you made that CD for me, Ma?/ So you could try to justify the way you treated me, Ma?/ But guess what, you’re gettin’ older now, and it’s cold when you’re lonely/ And Nathan’s growin’ up so quick, he’s gonna know that you’re phony.”
He also took aim at her on his iconic 1999 Slim Shady LP track “My Name Is,” rapping, “99 percent of my life, I was lied to/ I just found out my mom does more dope than I do/ I told her I’d grow up to be a famous rapper/ Make a record about doin’ drugs and name it after her.”
Nelson sued Eminem for defamation in 1999, seeking $11 million in damages; the judge ruled in her favor, but she was only awarded $25,000 in a 2001 judgement. She later delved into their prickly relationship in her 2007 tell-all memoir My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem. Years later, on the 2013 Marshall Mathers LP 2 track “Headlights” he extended an olive branch when he apologized with the lyrics, “I went in headfirst, never thinkin’ about who, what I said hurt/ In what verse, my mom probably got it the worst/ The brunt of it, but as stubborn as we are, did I take it too far?/ ‘Cleanin’ Out My Closet’ and all them other songs/ But regardless, I don’t hate you ’cause, ma/ You’re still beautiful to me, ’cause you’re my ma.”
The thaw continued in 2022, when Nelson gave her son kudos for his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, saying in a video, “Marshall, I want to say, I could not let this day go by without congratulating you on your induction into the Hall of Fame. I love you very much. I knew you’d get there. It’s been a long ride. I’m very, very proud of you. And also I’m very proud of [granddaughter] Hailie Jade, my big girl. I want to tell you, Hailie, great job on your podcast and God bless you guys. I love you very much.”
ROSÉ of BLACKPINK is giving her apt. some holiday spruce.
While at BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge Tuesday (Dec. 3), the 27-year-old pop star covered Wham!’s 1984 classic “Last Christmas” as well as performed a solo rendition of her smash Bruno Mars duet “APT.” For the former, she channeled her inner George Michael, melancholy while sitting on a stool, reading the heartfelt lyrics off a music stand in front of her, and dancing along during the Billboard Hot 100 No. 4 hit’s musical high points.
“A face-on lover with a fire in his heart/ A man undercover, but you tore him apart,” she sang before letting her New Zealander side shine through with a spoken-word “Well, maybe next year, mate.”
“I’ll give it to someone, I’ll give it to someone special,” ROSÉ softly crooned to finish out the track, clapping her hands.
Trending on Billboard
For “APT.,” the K-pop phenom ramped up the energy, joining her backup singers and keyboardist in doing hand movements to pay homage to the Korean drinking game that inspired the song’s title. Without Mars on hand for the second verse, ROSÉ confidently rapped her duet partner’s parts while dancing along.
“It’s whatever, it’s whatever, it’s whatever you like,” she belted. “I’m talking drink, dance, smoke, freak, party all night.”
ROSÉ’s pair of performances arrive as “APT.” spends its sixth week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 chart. The musician’s debut solo album, rosie, is set to drop Dec. 6, featuring 12 tracks including November single “Number One Girl.”
In a recent interview with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe, the star opened up about feeling “pressure” to deliver a solid LP during her limited time away from full-band duties with BLACKPINK, which is currently on break until some time in 2025. “We got together and decided, ‘Let’s promise ourselves a good year to be inspired,’” she said of bandmates JENNIE, LISA and JISOO. “The first thing that happened was anxiety, because I was privileged to have this one year in my hands to do whatever I wanted with it, but I wanted it to be the right decision and it had to feel right … What if I don’t believe in my thing? And what if I’m in a place where I’m having to do things that I don’t feel like it’s me?”
Watch ROSÉ cover “Last Christmas” above, and check out her performance of “APT.” below.
Dead & Company are headed back to Las Vegas’ Sphere for their second run of shows at the mind-bending wrap-around venue. The group announced their 2025 Dead & Company: Dead Forever – Live at Sphere Las Vegas on Wednesday morning (Dec. 4), an 18-show residency that will celebrate the Grateful Dead offshoot band’s 10th anniversary. […]
If you thought that we were finished with major releases for the 2024 calendar as we approached Thanksgiving and the beginning of year-end season, Kendrick Lamar let you know real quick that the year ain’t done yet.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Two Friday afternoons ago (Nov. 22), Lamar snuck up on an unsuspecting public with the sneak-release of his previously announced new album GNX. The 12-track set builds on the momentum he established earlier this year with his Drake feud — which produced a pair of Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s in the Future and Metro Boomin collab “Like That” and his own “Not Like Us” — and produces a third Hot 100 No. 1 with “Squabble Up,” tops among the seven new songs the rapper launches into the top 10 this week, while also topping the Billboard 200 with 319,000 units moved.
Which is the most impressive of his current chart achievements? And how do we rate Kendrick Lamar’s 2024 at this point? Billboard staffers discuss these questions and more below.
Trending on Billboard
1. Kendrick Lamar’s GNX debuts atop the Billboard 200 with 319,000 first-week units — the biggest debut week for a rap album in 2024, despite no physical release and just 12 tracks’ worth of streaming totals — while also capturing seven of the top 10 spots on the Hot 100, including the entire top five. Which of the two achievements is more impressive to you?
Kyle Denis: I think the Hot 100 feat is a bit more impressive. The first-week units total for GNX is commendable, but the figure is squarely in Kendrick’s usual ballpark. Occupying the Hot 100’s entire top five – in the face of the fast-rising holiday songs and some of the most stable smashes of the year – is the kind of feat that moves Kendrick into a different column. Tons of acts have had albums debut with over 300,000 units, but only three other acts – The Beatles, Taylor Swift and Drake – have simultaneously held the top five spots on the Hot 100. That’s the kind of stat that helps get you to GOAT status.
Angel Diaz: I think both are equally as impressive. Selling that many units off pure streams and debuting No. 1 with no lead up or warning other than the GNX trailer he posted minutes before the album hit, is crazy when you look back on that fateful Friday afternoon here on the East Coast. But it’s also very cool to see “underground” West Coast rappers like Lefty Gunplay and Dody6 getting their first Hot 100 looks thanks to Kendrick. That’s unheard of in today’s landscape.
Jason Lipshutz: The latter, not just because it’s a chart achievement that only Taylor Swift, Drake and The Beatles have done before, but because flooding the top 5 of the Hot 100 demonstrates how much bigger GNX is than Kendrick Lamar’s other recent output. After all, 2022’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers debuted with two songs in the top 5 of the Hot 100 and three total in the top 10 — impressive for any artist, but literally half as impressive as what Lamar just accomplished with GNX. A new Kendrick Lamar album was always going to be in contention for the biggest rap debut of the year, but we’ve never this level of consumption of his songs on the Hot 100, and that chart feat showcases the album’s true enormity.
Michael Saponara: MUSTARDDDD. I’d have to go with occupying the entire top five of this week’s Hot 100 as, ironically enough, Drake was the only rapper to ever do that before him. Kendrick’s had a commercial resurgence that just wasn’t as potent earlier in the decade and there’s something to be said that the Compton rapper has notched more No. 1 hits in 2024 than the rest of his decorated career combined. He’s also the first rhymer to have three No. 1 debuts on the Hot 100 in the same calendar year.
Andrew Unterberger: Hot 100 for sure. He’s had Billboard 200-dominating albums before but he’s never blanketed the Hot 100 like this — to the point where he might even end up in the mix to have multiple No. 1s from the album before all is said and done. It’s crazy to see him so central to popular music right now, but obviously well-deserved.
2. GNX fell out of the sky on Friday at noon ET, with no advance warning. Do you think that promotional strategy ultimately helped, hurt or had no major effect on the album’s first-week performance?
Kyle Denis: I honestly think it may have hurt the album’s first-week performance. With his run of diss tracks this spring and summer and a general elevation of his celebrity, Kendrick had millions of consumers ready to eat up whatever project he put out. I think giving people some notice, even if it was just 24 hours, would have resulted in slightly better numbers than a full-on surprise drop. A bit of notice would have allowed fans to mobilize and create their own listening experiences and made for a seamless DSP uploading process — GNX reportedly took over an hour to appear on streaming platforms for some users. These are small things, but they’re the kinds of moves that could have at least helped the album get closer to the 350,000 range. Not to mention, a pre-announced release date would have also given Team Kendrick time to get physical copies of the album available upon release – but that would also depend on when K.Dot finished the album.
Angel Diaz: First of all, I’m sick of these surprise releases, man. I am begging for artists to chill out because they are making us lose our minds on a Friday and into the weekend. With that being said, as a fan, I love it and everyone I knew that’s not in this business were playing that album. You heard it at the barbershop over the weekend and out of car speakers, so yeah I definitely think that strategy had a major effect, especially for the casual fan seeing the chatter on social media and hitting play out of pure curiosity. The album being so good and having so much replay value also helped.
Jason Lipshutz: The surprise release has become a tactic generally reserved for superstars… and since Kendrick Lamar is one of our biggest, the out-of-nowhere drop absolutely helped him here. The shock of GNX — no leaks, no heads-up, just a brand new Kendrick album to stream on your Friday lunch break — defined the pop culture discourse of that day, and immediate reactions began to bubble up on social media to keep streams high through the weekend. Not every A-lister could pull off that type of unveiling, but Lamar did here, and scored one of the biggest debuts of his career in the process.
Michael Saponara: I don’t think there was much of a major impact with the surprise release. To be honest, I kind of expected something along those lines from the elusive K. Dot rather than a traditional rollout. He only lost 12 hours so that resulted in a minimal lagtime in spreading the word that rap’s boogeyman had returned. Between the Drake feud and the anticipation from fans for a new project, there really was no wrong way for Lamar to deliver his next album.
Andrew Unterberger: I don’t think it really matters for its commercial performance — he could have released this album any which way and it still would’ve probably done about this well. But for maintaining the overall excitement level of his 2024, this was probably the best way to go.
3. “Squabble Up” debuts atop the Hot 100 this week as the top-performing song from the new album, but it has already been passed on the daily streaming charts of both iTunes and Spotify by both “TV Off” and “Luther.” Which of the three songs do you think will ultimately be the biggest hit from the set?
Kyle Denis: Of the three songs, I think “TV Off” will have the biggest peak, but I also anticipate “Luther” following a similar trajectory to that of “Love,” Dot’s 2017 duet with Zacari. “Luther” might not ever reach the top of the Hot 100, but I expect it to have impressive longevity and stay on the charts longer than any other GNX track.
Angel Diaz: I love “Luther”, but I really hope the West Coast street anthems like “Squabble Up” and “TV Off” stand the test of time and continue to perform in the future. So, to answer the question, I’ll put money on “Squabble Up.”
Jason Lipshutz: “TV Off” and “Squabble Up” are the album’s two turn-the-volume-way-up anthems, and while “Squabble Up” likely benefited from being placed second on the track list and gaining listeners’ immediate attentions, “TV Off” is the more enduring battle cry, thanks to the stronger K. Dot flow, positively nasty beat switch and the instantly meme-able “MUSTAAAAAAARD” moment. Who knows? Maybe once the holiday music onslaught subsides, Kendrick can kick off 2025 with another Hot 100 chart-topper.
Michael Saponara: I’m gonna go with “TV Off” as the winner here. It’s topped the Apple Music charts and spurred a ton of chatter on social media with endless meme-ability thanks to Kendrick’s pair of “MUSTARDDD” shout-outs to the track’s producer. Lefty Gunplay’s ominous chorus has also been going viral. We’ll see what kind of staying power the trio has at the top of the Hot 100, especially with rumors of a deluxe falling out of the sky from K. Dot.
Andrew Unterberger: Yeah prepare for a lot of out-of-nowhere “MUSTAAAAAAAAARD” howls in casual conversation this holiday season.
4. Between his three No. 1 singles and now a No. 1 album as well, this is undoubtedly Kendrick Lamar’s biggest year on the Billboard charts. Do you think he ever would have had a year like this if not for the Drake feud that initially ignited it, or do you think he was due for such a legacy year at some point in his career regardless?
Kyle Denis: I think he was definitely due for a year like this – and the DAMN./Black Panther period would have sufficed if this year had never happened – but I’m not sure he gets it in 2024 specifically without the Drake feud.
Angel Diaz: I think he was due for a legacy year, but this is the way you do it in rap. This is the same thing Jay-Z did when he dissed Nas on “Takeover” the summer before he released his seminal album The Blueprint in 2001. However, Nas was nowhere near the level Drake was commercially, and Jay dissing him ironically resurrected his career while also placing Jigga on the throne. Rap really hasn’t had a power struggle for the crown since then. Did it benefit him? Sure. But he took the throne fair and square.
Jason Lipshutz: This type of year was always lurking within Kendrick Lamar, a singular superstar with a nearly unanimous approval rating, but 2022’s Mr. Morale suggested that he was turning away from commercial prospects in favor of idiosyncrasies and self-examination. Maybe a course-correction was coming, but the Drake feud — and before that, the talk of a “Big Three,” placing Kendrick on the same field as his peers when he believed he was playing a different sport — helped focus his superpowers, and provoke a year-long assault against his naysayers, October’s Very Own included. GNX is not about Drake, per se, but the album punctuates the assertion that Kendrick has spent 2024 making: there is no competition.
Michael Saponara: To this level, I can’t say I saw that coming. He hasn’t been that same kind of commercial titan since DAMN. and that’s over seven years ago at this point. There’s an argument Lamar was due for a “legacy year,” but I think the Drake feud added kerosene to the fire and gave him the lane to become rap’s undoubted MVP for 2024. It’s the biggest rap battle in decades between two of the greatest to do it, so of course it’s going to have a profound impact on the winner. But again, I’ll say I was wrong in that if there was a hit record to come out of the battle, I thought that was going to be Drake.
Andrew Unterberger: He might’ve been due for more of a commercial on cycle — since Kendrick has long sort of been on a one-for-them, one-for-me career path — but you have to imagine that he needed the Drake thing to take him to this. We’ve just never seen Kendrick Lamar get his blood up like this for an entire year before. It must have been something that was stewing in him for some time.
5. Is this the best year a rapper has had this decade?
Kyle Denis: I’m going to say yes. Shoutout to Megan Thee Stallion’s 2020 and Doja Cat’s 2021, though!
Angel Diaz: I think that’s fair to say, but going back a little further, we must remember Future’s 2015 run when he dropped Beast Mode, 56 Nights, DS2 and What a Time to Be Alive. Big Fewtch also had himself an impressive 2024 — with three Billboard 200 No. 1 albums — that was a bit overshadowed by Drake and Dot’s main event.
Jason Lipshutz: Yes, because Kendrick Lamar’s 2024 combines great music with a great narrative — enormous singles, blockbuster collaborations and a no-skips album coalescing around a battle that’s heated, personal and entertaining as hell. His year has transcended stats and honorifics, and become a cultural phenomenon. It’s one that hip-hop fans are never going to forget.
Michael Saponara: Yeah, I can’t see there being much debate about that. Not only the decade, but let’s open that up to the century. Then you’re talking Drake’s ‘18, Ye’s 2010-11, Wayne’s ‘07-’08 and 50 Cent’s 2003 off the top of my head, and Kendrick belongs in that discussion. Three No. 1 hits, one of which flipped the script against rap’s pop deity to defeat him in battle, and an acclaimed album that popped up as a late contender for album of the year honors. Oh, and it’s possible he’s sweeping at the Grammy Awards a month into 2025 before heading out on a stadium tour. This was one for the history books, Dot.
Andrew Unterberger: Hell yeah.
The cast of the new Wicked film has an explosive week on Billboard’s charts, thanks to the release of the film’s soundtrack on Nov. 22.
The set soars in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales, Soundtracks and Vinyl Albums charts (all dated Dec. 7, 2024), while also opening at No. 2 on the overall Billboard 200. It scores the highest Billboard 200 debut for a big-screen adaptation of a stage musical ever, dating to the list’s 1956 launch as a regularly published weekly chart.
Seven songs from the Wicked soundtrack concurrently debut on the Billboard Hot 100, led by “Defying Gravity,” by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, who play the film’s leads, Elphaba Thropp and Galinda Upland, respectively. Meanwhile, multiple members of the cast, including Erivo, earn their first career Hot 100 entries.
Here’s a recap of every song from the Wicked film on this week’s Hot 100.
Trending on Billboard
Rank, Title, Artist Billing
No. 44, “Defying Gravity,” Cynthia Erivo feat. Ariana Grande
No. 53, “Popular,” Ariana Grande
No. 68, “What Is This Feeling?,” Ariana Grande & Cynthia Erivo
No. 86, “No One Mourns the Wicked,” Ariana Grande feat. Andy Nyman, Courtney-May Briggs, Jeff Goldblum, Sharon D. Clarke & Jenna Boyd
No. 90, “Dancing Through Life,” Jonathan Bailey feat. Ariana Grande, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode & Cynthia Erivo
No. 93, “The Wizard and I,” Cynthia Erivo feat. Michelle Yeoh
No. 94, “I’m Not That Girl,” Cynthia Erivo
Erivo, Nyman, Briggs, Goldblum, Clarke, Boyd, Bailey, Slater, Bode and Yeoh all score their first Hot 100 entries. Grande, of course, is a veteran of Billboard’s charts, having now charted 90 total Hot 100 hits. She boasts eight No. 1s, including two this year: “Yes, And?” and “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)” from her latest solo album, Eternal Sunshine.
While Erivo and Goldblum appear on the Hot 100 for the first time, both have previously appeared on other Billboard charts. Erivo’s debut solo studio set, Ch. 1 Vs. 1, reached No. 44 on Billboard’s Top Current Album Sales chart and No. 77 on the overall Top Album Sales chart in October 2021. Plus, her song “Stand Up,” from the 2019 Harriet Tubman biopic Harriet, hit No. 31 on Digital Song Sales. Erivo played Tubman in the film, a portrayal that earned her a nomination for best actress at the 92nd Academy Awards in 2019. “Stand Up” also earned her a best original song nomination.
Erivo previously played the lead in the Broadway revival of the musical The Color Purple. She won several accolades for her performance as Celie, including the Tony for best leading actress in a musical at the 70th ceremony in 2016; a Grammy for best musical theater album (for The Color Purple soundtrack); and a Daytime Emmy for outstanding musical performance in a daytime program in 2017.
Goldblum, who plays the Wonderful Wizard of Oz in Wicked, reached Billboard’s charts for the first time in 2018 with his debut studio album, The Capitol Studios Sessions. The set, with the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra, hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Jazz Albums and Traditional Jazz Albums charts. It includes collaborations with comedian-actress Sarah Silverman, jazz trumpeter Till Brönner and singers Imelda May and Haley Reinhart. He returned to the charts in 2019 with his follow-up album, I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This, which reached No. 2 on both Jazz Albums and Traditional Jazz Albums.
Nyman, Briggs, Clarke, Boyd, Bailey, Slater, Bode and Yeoh are all brand new to Billboard’s charts. In Wicked, Nyman portrays Governor Thropp (Elphaba and Nessarose’s father), Biggs plays Mrs. Thropp (their mother), Clarke voices Dulcibear, Boyd voices Wolf Doctor, Bailey plays Fiyero Tigelaar, Slater plays Boq Woodsman, Bode plays Nessarose Thropp and Yeoh plays Madame Morrible.
Wicked has even generated a radio chart hit, as Grande’s “Popular” debuts at No. 40 on Pop Airplay, thanks to plays on stations including KMVQ San Francisco, WBLI Long Island, N.Y., and SiriusXM’s Hits 1.
As we look toward 2025, ’tis the season to look back at your 2024 music listening habits with Spotify Wrapped, the annual breakdown of how you’ve been individually listening to music throughout the year.
While Spotify Wrapped is available for anyone with an account, sometimes, it can be hard to find. Don’t worry, though, Billboard‘s got your back. As usual, the 2024 Spotify Wrapped will be Spotify mobile app, which you can download at Spotify.com/Wrapped. Make sure you have the latest version, which you’ll need to access Wrapped. Just like last year, the platform is making Wrapped available via desktop and mobile, also at Spotify.com/Wrapped.
Once you’ve logged in, your personalized look back at 2024 should appear at the top of your home screen. After watching and learning about your listening habits throughout the year, you’ll be able to share your Wrapped results to social media to show off to your friends.
Trending on Billboard
This year’s edition rolled out on Wednesday morning (Dec. 4) and, no surprise, Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter were among the artists who dominated on the streaming service in 2024. Swift closed out her huge year as 2024’s most-streamed artist, generating over 26.6 billion streams globally — marking two straight years of her topping the tally — with The Weeknd coming in second among artists, followed by Bad Bunny, Drake and Billie Eilish.
To celebrate Swift’s two-fer, Spotify rolled out a special Wrapped badge on her profile as well as custom animations corresponding to her music, including sparkles to match Fearless (Taylor’s Version), seagulls for 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and more. Swift also had Spotify’s top-streamed album of the year with her 15-week Billboard 200-topper The Tortured Poets Department.
Second place on the albums list was Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft, followed by Carpenter’s, Short n’ Sweet, Karol G’s MAÑANA SERÁ BONITO and Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine. All five of the app’s top albums spent time at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. In addition, Carpenter’s “Espresso” snagged the most listens globally in 2024, racking up more than 1.6 billion streams. Just behind was Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather,” FloyyMenor and Cris Mj’s “Gata Only” and Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control.”
If you weren’t able to make it out to the Brooklyn Public Library last year to check out the 40,000 square-foot “The Book of HOV” exhibit honoring the legacy of Jay-Z, high-end publisher Assouline has the perfect stocking stuffer for you. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news […]
It’s the end of the year, so that means it’s time to see what lists Taylor Swift is topping as we all reflect on 2024. And, no surprise, the singer who has dominated the charts, the box office, touring and our bookshelves over the past 12 months is at the pole position on yet another year-end tally.
According to the Associated Press, Yale University’s list of 2024’s most notable quotations is, of course, ruled by Swift’s quip endorsing failed Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. As you might recall, kitty lover Swift threw her fedora in the ring for Harris in an Instagram post in September that she signed “Taylor Swift Childless Cat Lady.”
The zinger was a response to a comment made by Vice President-elect JD Vance several years ago, when he described Democrats as being beholden to “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”
Trending on Billboard
Number two on the list was President Biden’s Dec. 1 announcement that he’s pardoning his son Hunter — “Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter” — followed by a false claim from President-elect Donald Trump during his only debate with Harris. “In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in. They’re eating the cats,” Trump said, boosting an untrue rumor spread by his campaign about Haitian immigrants in the small Ohio town that resulted in a number of bomb threats, harassment and the cancellation of school days for children in the city.
Trump was also at No. 5 on the list with his “Fight! Fight! Fight!” rallying cry after his ear was grazed by a bullet during a rally in Butler, PA. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris’ running mate, slipped into the No. 4 slot with his misstatement “I’ve become friends with school shooters,” after trying to refer to befriending school shooting survivors.
“Please note that the items on this list are not necessarily eloquent or admirable quotations, rather they have been picked because they are famous or important or particularly revealing of the spirit of our times,” said the annual list’s curator, Fred Shapiro, associate director at the Yale Law Library.
Right wing Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s October post falsely claiming “Yes they can control the weather,” in reference to her endorsement of a conspiracy theory claiming that the government used weather control technology to aim Hurricane Helene at Republican voters was at No. 6, followed by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harris Butker’s May 11, commencement address at Benedictine College in Kansas in which he told women that they “may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world.”
The vibrant, graffiti-washed streets of Shoreditch form the nexus of Nia Archives’ world. Teeming with a mix of giddy twentysomethings and bankers looking to dance and release pressure at kitschy nightclubs, the east London neighborhood has been pivotal to the 25-year-old’s rise since she first moved from Manchester to the capital three years ago.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Between hosting raves at pubs, rooftop dance parties and a local multi-arts space, Archives has immersed herself in every community hub or wild Shoreditch has offered her. Last year, her close affinity with the area was immortalised in mural, when an 80-square-meter image of Archives was created to celebrate the release of her third EP, Sunrise Bang Ur Head Against Tha Wall.
Eighteen months on, when the Bradford-born artist dials in for her Billboard UK interview, her apartment stretches out behind her on our Zoom call. Every inch of visible wall space has art on it, from a framed cover of Aphex Twin’s Windowlicker LP to a ‘Pour Yourself a Junglist’ print, in homage to the iconic Guinness Toucan advertising campaign.
Trending on Billboard
Like her winsome take on jungle, it is decorated with curiosities across varying aesthetics, but the space looks invitingly lived-in. Archives, born Dehaney Nia Lishahn Hunt, released her debut album, Silence Is Loud, via Island Records in April, which peaked at No. 16 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart before earning a nomination for the prestigious Mercury Prize. The 13-track collection documents her in a state of messy uncertainty. Themes including complex familial bonds and self-esteem are layered over elements of pop, indie and drum ‘n’ bass, broadening her sound without sacrificing brevity.
Archives debuted as a soft-spoken but animated producer with her first single “Sober Feels” in 2020. She has since gone on to have a tectonic impact on U.K. jungle, introducing a new generation of music fans to the genre while also being commissioned for remixes by stars including Fred again.., Jamie xx and Jorja Smith. On Nov. 8, she played a rapturous set at London’s O2 Academy Brixton, which saw her taking on more vocal duties than ever before, skipping around the stage with excitement as she rocked the mic.
Her ascent is built on deep foundations – leaving home at 16, parental estrangement, finding her voice as a songwriter. But by taking a zealously hands-on approach to everything she does, Archives’ followers have continued to turn to her emphatic, euphoric music in troubling times. Back in east London, Archives beams as she tells Billboard UK how she is “surrounded by love”; her closest friends live on the same street, and she is enjoying some downtime after recent tours across the U.K. and Europe.
Fittingly, Silence Is Loud trades in the dizziness and angst of Archives’ earlier music for soaring serenity. Though she still sings about forgiveness and her own resilience, it’s now with the remove of a successful musician that’s conquered an uphill climb to get to where they are today.
Having toured relentlessly in the past few months, how does it feel to finally adjust back to reality?
I do love being on the road, but when I’m away, I really miss my house and my friends. I’m really happy to be back to seeing people, going out and doing things – I’ve got to live life so that I have something to talk about. I’m very happy to be in that mode at the moment. In the past year, I’ve also tried to work out what I want my personal space to look like as being on tour all the time is so disruptive. When I come home, I want to feel calm.
I’m really enjoying life at the moment. I’ve been boozing and reconnecting with friends that I may have lost contact with. When you’re busy playing shows, you don’t always get to speak to everyone all the time so I’ve been trying to be more present in my loved ones’ lives.
What is the emotional exchange between you and the audience like now that you’re not chained to the decks so much in your live shows?
Because I have played so many festivals this year, during these headline shows, it’s been nice to play to rooms of people who really know my music. I do enjoy a festival crowd because I see it as a challenge to win over new listeners but I love seeing people really vibe with the tunes. The audience reactions have been quite mad; I’ll be DJing, then I’ll move away to start singing and feel really connected to people.
We have elevated the set visually too, and I’m really happy with how it has all turned out. I have spotted a lot of moshpits during my shows, which I never expected – it’s quite overstimulating doing what I do! Also, I’ve got really bad eyesight which means I can’t see that far into the crowd but I know that all the vibe controllers are down the front anyway. I love it.
Silence Is Loud introduced your music to more people than ever before. Do you feel like you’ve crossed a threshold, in that regard?
I don’t know. I really love my album, but I will say making an album in 2024 is so anti-climatic. You know, I’m proud of what I’ve done, but I recently saw Goldie say that when he made [1994’s] Inner City Life, people didn’t get it at the time and it only became what it was years later. I feel like that might ring true with my album as well, to be honest.
How do you think the reaction to the album differed to what you had anticipated?
I’m already doing quite a niche thing, which is jungle music. And then I have my own specific take on it, which is bringing in all these different sounds to the genre while I’m singing about my life as well. It’s quite fresh. I think people don’t always understand something new straight away, so I think it’s a bit of a grower. That happens quite a lot with dance music, where songs often become hits years after they are released.
Why do you feel so attracted to telling the story of your life in your music?
I had never really spoken about my life before, and I thought my debut album would be a good way to have a “planting my flag in the sand” moment. Like, my name is Nia Archives and I am making an archive of my life stories. If I have done anything in my life, I have made this album and it’s told the world about who I am, what my story is, and what I am interested in. Album one had to be really real to me: it had to represent who I am and where I come from, and I felt like I only had one chance to do that.
Honestly, I just wrote a lot of songs and tried to sing them as best I could. I don’t think I’m like the best vocalist in the world, but I don’t think I’m the worst. I’m not a f–king powerhouse, Adele-style singer, but I’ve got a lot of charm in what I do.
Did being so vulnerable in your songwriting present any new challenges during the album creation process?
There’s one song [“F.A.M.I.L.Y”] that I didn’t want to put on my album, but my label and manager really wanted that to be the lead single. And I was like, “I don’t want to do that, because that’s such an embarrassing song.” But I’m glad to put it on there because you know what, people that come up to me at shows and tell me they really relate to the song.
Your album has been attributed with bringing jungle sounds and aesthetics to a new audience, serving as a gateway for a lot of people. In what ways has your own relationship with the genre evolved?
My relationship with jungle has honestly grown so much. Hanging out with Goldie has been amazing, he’s become a proper presence in my life. I’ve needed it. He understands what I’m going through and what I’m doing with my music. Also, it has been nice just reconnecting with loads of people from the jungle scene. I’ve got really good relationships with everybody.
In the background, for 2025, I’m looking to put on and work with some new-gen junglists, people that are younger than me. I’m going to Bristol, I’m hanging out with people in Manchester – I want to help new artists coming through. I’m just quite excited, really, and I’m definitely feeling stronger in my love for jungle once again.
What do you see as the big changes in dance music as of late?
Dance music is definitely one of the biggest genres in the world right now. I’ve traveled all over the world and seen people of all ages and from all walks of life enjoying themselves to different DJs’ sets. That post-COVID party boom continues, I think: Charli XCX is huge and rave sounds are everywhere. I’m super happy to be part of it and to also see my friends doing so well.
On the flipside, you can tell who went out [clubbing] before the pandemic and who only started after, right? That’s not being disrespectful, but for the younger ones, the core years of their lives were taken away and they’re still figuring out how to experience live music. I’m not really into berating them or making them feel bad – I just want to encourage them to dance and to not worry about their phones.
How have you dealt with the way your life has changed this past year?
So much has happened these past few months that it still feels like a blur! Like, I still can’t believe that I was able to take my album to Japan and play it out there. It was so cool to see such an enthusiastic reaction to jungle music on the other side of the world – it makes me so excited to see the genre go global. There’s so much left on the bucket list, too. I feel like I’ve only just started and I have so many dreams that I hope to achieve with my second album.
Amy Adams has always liked and appreciated Taylor Swift‘s music. But then the Nightbitch star went to see the Eras Tour, she proudly became “a Swiftie at 50,” the star told Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday’s (Dec. 3) Tonight Show. “I’m a Swiftie at 50, so I’m like a shifty 50 Swiftie… and I’m like ‘isn’t that nifty?’ And now my daughter’s going, ‘Ooh, I hate this for you.’”
Adams said the Eras experience was so profound that she went from “normal” to “‘I’ll take all the friendship bracelets!’”
When Fallon asked if Adams had ever met the singer, the Golden Globe winner said they did cross paths years ago at an awards show afterparty, where they sang karaoke together. In fact, they did a duet on 4 Non Blondes’ signature 1993 hit “What’s Up,” during Adams committed the ultimate karaoke faux pas.
Trending on Billboard
“And I may have… uh… sang it a little loud,” Adams admitted. “And I’m sure everybody was like, ‘Amy, shut up! Like, we want to hear Taylor sing.’ I was just in it.”
“The one that goes ‘hey, yeah, yeah, yeah’? You went for it? That one?” Fallon asked.
“I did,” Adams said. “When someone does that at karaoke I let them go,” Fallon said.
“But I should have sat down and just let Taylor sing,” Adams realized. “I had a blast. Now, in reflection, if I were to do it now I’d be so different I would like to think… I did the right thing. I sang really loud over Taylor Swift… and probably not great, either.”
Fallon also mentioned that there’s a long-running internet campaign suggesting that the six-time Oscar nominee would be the perfect choice to play Swift’s publicist, Tree Paine, in a biopic. “Uh, that would be amazing,” said Adams, whose red hair is a shade darker than Paine’s signature flame mane. Fallon then help up a tweet that said “Amy Adams will win an Oscar for Tree Paine’s biopic.”
“That would be so fun,” said Adams, mother to a 14-year-old daughter who (see above) she noted is now not embarrassed by her mom, but more embarrassed for her mom. “If it got me closer to Taylor then that would be fun,” Adams said.
Adams’ Nightbitch opens in theaters on Friday (Dec. 6).
Watch Amy Adams describe shouting over Taylor Swift during karaoke below.