Music

18 Aug 2023

Warren Zeiders Translates Viral Hits Into Debut Album ‘Pretty Little Poison’: ‘I Have Always Loved Connecting With People’

On Friday (Aug. 18), singer-songwriter Warren Zeiders, who first broke through with his 2021 hit “Ride the Lightning,” issues Pretty Little Poison — his debut, full-length major label project on Warner Records. But a scant four years ago, Zeiders had his sights set on a sports career, not music.

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Growing up in Pennsylvania, Zeiders’ childhood was focused on lacrosse games, tournaments and practices. Outside of the occasional tinkering with a guitar he picked up in sixth grade, there were none of the childhood musical outlets that singer-songwriters typically espouse, such as church choirs or high school bands. He continued playing lacrosse while studying at Frostburg State University, until a series of sports concussions ultimately sidelined his sports ambitions in 2019, swiftly followed by the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which forced him to find a new outlet.

“I had an identity crisis when I had to give up lacrosse,” Zeiders tells Billboard, calling from a tour stop in Montana. “I was a collegiate athlete; that’s what me and my family had worked for — the money invested, the travel, the tournaments and leagues. They were always at sporting events, traveling with me, meeting with colleges and all that. So going through seven concussions, I went through a bit of depression, because concussions are not easy to go through. I had a really severe one my freshman year of college. I was confined to a black room for a while, missing classes, missing exams. I could barely watch TV, because of how jacked up I was.”

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, he began posting acoustic cover songs on TikTok, reengaging with his love for music. The videos’ views began soaring, and soon, listeners were asking for original material.

Zeiders grew up in a business-oriented household; his parents were entrepreneurs; his mother was a CFO, with an accounting background. Meanwhile, his father sold insurance and investments. So when fans began asking Zeiders to post his own original songs, he says, “I had that business mindset of, ‘If they want this from me, maybe I should start marketing myself,’ because I was starting to build traction.”

In December 2020, Zeiders released his original track “On the Run.” Soon after, Underscore Works’ Charly Salvatore signed Zeiders as one of his flagship management clients at the company. Zeiders came to Nashville for a series of co-writing sessions, resulting in “Ride the Lightning,” which he wrote with Rob Crosby and Eric Paslay.

“Ride the Lightning” surged on TikTok, while Zeiders issued an acoustic covers project and The 717 Tapes EP. By the time Zeiders revealed he had signed with Warner Records in January 2022, he was also celebrating an RIAA Gold certification for “Ride the Lightning.”

The song proved a showcase for his grainy, full-throated voice, something he says he painstakingly worked on throughout his upcoming project, produced by Ross Copperman, Bart Butler and Ryan Gore.

“There was a heartache with doing this, because I’m such a perfectionist, and I think most artists are in our own ways,” Zeiders says. “I must have sang ‘Pretty Little Poison’ a thousand times in the studio. I wanted the instrumentation to be perfect, to fit the vibe of what this song is saying. Each individual song has its own life and its own story to tell. I believe it needs its own character for each song, and you can sing a song a million different ways. I wanted to be in the mindset of that character to convey each story with absolute truth.”

He wrote the album’s title track last summer, with Jared Keim and Ryan Beaver; the song has now cracked the top 40 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.

“I remember when we got [to the writing session], I said, ‘I want to write a love song, in Warren Zeiders’s terms.’” Zeiders recalls. “It was minor keys, and a dark twist on a love song, because the lyrics are really about someone’s who you know isn’t great to be in a relationship with, but you keep going back to them. Ryan had the concept a possible title called ‘Pretty Poison.’ I added the word ‘Little’ to it, and once we had that concept and title, we were off to the races. We wrote the song in just over an hour, maybe two hours and I was like, ‘I need that demo as soon as possible.’ They got it to me the next day, I sent it to my manager and it went to A&R, the label. Everyone felt it was going to touch a lot of lives.”

Elsewhere on the album, homage to his Pennsylvania roots in “Pittsburgh Steel” and leans on his faith in “God Only Knows.” He reunited with his “Pretty Little Poison” co-writers to craft the album’s closer, “Cowboy Rides Away.”

Zeiders is a co-writer on nearly every song on Pretty Little Poison, with the lone exception being “What Goes on Inside Your Head,” written by Chris Stapleton and Lee Thomas Miller.

“I remember meeting Lee at our listening party a couple of months ago, after the record was recorded,” Zeiders recalls. “Lee thanked me for recording the song and was like, ‘You have no idea how many years this song has been passed around town and how many ‘Nos’ we’ve gotten.’ I was like, ‘How would no one want to cut this song? It’s beautiful.’ And he was like, ‘You’d be surprised. Some people can get scared to cut it after they listen to a Chris Stapleton demo.’ But I loved the song and I wasn’t trying to do Chris Stapleton’s version — I wanted to do my own version. I loved recording it and I was like, ‘This is one I will sure as hell sing the crap out of.’”

With the hit songs have come a surge of performances; in May, Zeiders played his first stadium show — ironically, opening up for Stapleton and Little Big Town during George Strait’s show at Ohio Stadium. In June, he joined Jelly Roll onstage during the Tailgates and Tallboys festival, for a rendition of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man.” Jelly Roll also recently gave Zeiders a shoutout on social media. This fall, Zeiders will return for the second half of his own headlining Pretty Little Poison tour.

Zeiders’ strong familial bonds continue now in his music career — his mother has taken on the role of his business manager, while his father will be joining him on the road this fall.

“He just wants to help out any way he can, so he might be selling merch or whatnot,” Zeiders says. “He just likes seeing the shows and meeting the fans. They are actually moving to Nashville as we speak, packing everything up in Pennsylvania, which is crazy to think I won’t be back home to say goodbye to my old house.”

Zeiders may not have spent his entire life performing onstage, but says his extroverted personality and the discipline he learned on the sports field have been assets.

“I’ve always had a big personality; I was always the talker in my family and had a marketing and sales background. I sold cars for two years. I just have always loved connecting with people. After I played my first show, it just felt like this is what I was made to do. I try to keep myself in a good position, physically and mentally, because people who come to shows are giving their time, their money, getting babysitters for the night, doing what they have to do to be at shows. My job is to be the best version of myself to put on a show, so I can welcome them into what I’m building and hopefully keep them as fans.”

18 Aug 2023

Britney Spears’ Estranged Husband Sam Asghari Denies Threats to ‘Exploit’ Singer Amid Divorce

Representatives for Britney Spears’ estranged husband, Sam Asghari, are denying reports that the fitness instructor/actor has threatening to challenge the couple’s pre-nuptial agreement and release damaging information about the singer in the midst of their divorce proceedings.

Asghari, 29, filed for divorce from the pop icon on Wednesday (Aug. 16) in Los Angeles Superior Court, per documents obtained by Billboard. The filing noted that the couple separated on July 28, with Asghari citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for divorce their divorce. He is seeking spousal support from Spears, 41, who regained control over her personal and business affairs in Nov. 2021 after 13 years.

“There are many claims that Sam is challenging the prenup and threatening to exploit his ex-wife with videos. However, all these claims are false, as no negative intention has ever been directed towards her and never will be. Sam has always and will always support her,” Asghari’s manager, Brandon Cohen, told NBC. The statement came after several tabloid reports claimed that Asghari was prepared to released embarrassing information; at press time spokespeople for Spears and Asghari had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment on the reports.

A day after filing for divorce from Spears, Asghari — who an unnamed source reportedly told NBC has moved out of the couple’s home — posted a statement on his Instagram Stories on Thursday in which he wrote, “After six years of love and commitment to each other, my wife and I have decided to end our journey together. We will hold onto the love and respect we have for each other and I wish her the best always. S— happens. Asking for privacy seems ridiculous so I will just ask for everyone including media to be kind and thoughtful.”

Spears and Asghari began dating in 2016 after they met on the set of her “Slumber Party” music video and after dating for five years they got engaged in September 2021 and married in a star-studded Los Angeles wedding in June 2022.

18 Aug 2023

Pink Changes ‘Don’t Let Me Get Me’ Lyric About Britney Spears Amid Sam Asghari Divorce

It looks like Pink is showing support for Britney Spears amid the latter pop star’s divorce from Sam Asghari.

At her Wednesday night (Aug. 16) concert at Detroit’s Comerica Park, the “So What” singer subtly changed a lyric in her 2001 song “Don’t Let Me Get Me,” sneaking in a compliment to Spears. “Tired of being compared to sweet Britney Spears,” Pink sang, instead of the original line, “Tired of being compared to d–n Britney Spears.”

“She’s so pretty,” Pink continued with the original lyrics, singing with nothing but an acoustic guitar accompanying her. “That just ain’t me.”

The gesture came on the heels of reports that Spears and her husband, dancer Sam Asghari, are splitting. Asghari filed for divorce in Los Angeles Wednesday, and shared a statement on Instagram Thursday (Aug. 17) about the two ending their marriage. “After six years of love and commitment to each other, my wife and I have decided to end our journey together,” he wrote. “We will hold onto the love and respect we have for each other and I wish her the best always. S–t happens. Asking for privacy seems rediculous [sic] so I will just ask for everyone including media to be kind and thoughtful.”

The split comes a little over a year after the couple married in June 2022, tying the knot with a star-studded ceremony in L.A. They’d gotten engaged in 2021, about five years after first meeting on set of Spears’ “Slumber Party” music video.

Earlier this year, Pink — who’s currently in the middle of Summer Carnival tour — clarified her intentions behind the Spears name-check in “Don’t Let Me Get Me,” revealing she’s “always felt like a big sister” to the “Toxic” musician. “I’m very protective of her, and she’s the sweetest person in the world,” Pink told People in February, though later added she’s not currently in touch with the Princess of Pop. “I wish her well. I cover her in light all day long.”

See Pink’s lyric change below:

18 Aug 2023

Friday Music Guide: New Music From Quavo, Hozier, Doechii, Addison Rae and More

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

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This week, Quavo pays homage while moving forward, Hozier takes us to church (and the Inferno), and Doechii wants you to dance at all costs. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Quavo, Rocket Power 

Quavo’s nephew and Migos co-leader, Takeoff, was nicknamed “The Rocket” — and less than a year after the rapper was killed at the age of 28, his family member and group mate is drawing upon his thoughts and instincts as inspiration for his new solo album. Parts of Rocket Power are racked with grief, including the soulful highlight “Hold Me” and the memory-flooded title track, although Quavo also makes ample room in the sprawling full-length to celebrate life, as on the Future-assisted hit “Turn Yo Clic Up” and the crackling “Stain” with BabyDrill; ultimately, the album depicts a long-running rap star in a more complex light, and immediately makes the case as Quavo’s best solo project.

Hozier, Unreal Unearth 

When Hozier revealed that his third studio album — which follows 2019’s Wasteland, Baby!, the first No. 1 album of his career — would be inspired by Dante’s Inferno and include passages sung in Irish Gaelic, fears that the “Take Me To Church” singer-songwriter was turning inscrutable were only natural. Yet Unreal Unearth not only showcases the strength of Hozier’s voice and songwriting, but also remains accessible to hardcore fans and casual alt-rock listeners, from the snappy single “Eat Your Young” to the gargantuan Brandi Carlile duet “Damage Gets Done” to the restrained grace of closer “First Light.”

Doechii, “Booty Drop” 

“Shawty, what it is? / Bring that ass to the club,” Doechii commands on “Booty Drop,” a late bid for the summer’s most kinetic dance song. The Tampa native has shown promise as a recording artist and performer over the past year — signing with TDE, scoring an opening spot on Doja Cat and Ice Spice’s upcoming tour, and mesmerizing audiences whenever she hits the stage — but her latest single, a gleefully explicit take on the Jersey club style that never stops moving, might be the moment where her appeal spills over into the mainstream once and for all.

Addison Rae, AR EP 

Although Addison Rae’s newly released EP rescues a handful of tracks intended for the influencer’s never-released debut album, AR does not sound like a collection of odds and ends: instead, the five songs engross the listener with fresh melodies and bursts of personality, showcasing the 22-year-old as a quick study within this brand of pop. “2 Die 4” with Charli XCX is the highlight — marvel at the mini-hooks jam-packed into that chorus! — but the whole project is worth bookmarking as the potential start of something big.

Anitta, Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story 

When Anitta released her single “Funk Rave” in June, the Latin music star hinted that a deeper dive into Brazilian funk music would be both a way to honor her roots and a rewarding sonic exploration; with Funk Generation: A Favela Love Story, a three-song project that follows up “Funk Rave” with two new heaters, Anitta has more or less confirmed her suggestions. “Casi Casi” and “Used to Be” adopt different approaches — the former a chattering sashay, the latter a slow-building reflection — but Anitta excels at both tempos, and has us hoping for even more to come.

Editor’s Pick: FIFTY FIFTY feat. Sabrina Carpenter, “Cupid Twin Ver.” 

Think of FIFTY FIFTY’s new version “Cupid,” featuring Sabrina Carpenter on the remix, as a well-earned victory lap for both artists: the K-pop group crashed the upper reaches of the Hot 100 chart with the undeniable sing-along, while Carpenter is a little over a year removed from Emails I Can’t Send, one of the strongest pop albums of 2022, and its viral hit “Nonsense.” Together, FIFTY FIFTY and Carpenter reinvent a rock-solid hit ever so slightly, as Carpenter slides into the second verse and handles that sugary “I gave a second chance to Cupiiiiiid!” hook with aplomb.

18 Aug 2023

In 1978, Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty Were the ‘Woman’ & ‘Man’ at No. 1: Chart Rewind

On Aug. 18, 1978, Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty’s “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man” topped Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.

A story of long-distance love with the Mississippi River in between, the hit was authored by Becki Bluefield and Jim Owen. It was released as the lead single from Lynn and Twitty’s same-named album, their first of four No. 1 sets as a twosome on the Top Country Albums chart.

The hit became Lynn’s 10th of 16 Hot Country Songs leaders and Twitty’s 12th of 40 No. 1s. It marked their third of five leaders as a duo, following “After the Fire Is Gone” and “Lead Me On,” both in 1971, and ahead of “As Soon as I Hang Up the Phone” (1974) and “Feelins’ ” (1975).

The stars shared 11 Hot Country Songs top 10s overall, from “After the Fire Is Gone” through “I Still Believe in Waltzes” in 1981.

Among their many accolades, Lynn and Twitty won the Country Music Association (CMA) Award for duo of the year four straight years (1972-75).

Lynn, who was born in Butcher Holler, Ky., on April 14, 1932, became the first woman to win the CMA’s entertainer of the year trophy (1972) and was inducted to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988. She passed away at age 90 last October at her home in Hurricane Mills, Tenn.

Born Harold Jenkins on Sept. 1, 1933, in Friars Point, Miss., Twitty died from a stomach aneurysm in June 1993 at age 59. He joined the Country Music Hall of Fame posthumously in 1999.

18 Aug 2023

Wagakki Band Talks New ‘I vs I’ Album, Including ‘Baki Hanma’ Season 2 Theme: Interview

Wagakki Band recently released I vs I, its first album of original compositions in roughly three years. The album’s theme is battle, and it’s studded with songs that show the band’s distinctive style, fusing traditional Japanese music and rock. Songs range from tie-ups such as music created for the Baki Hanma Pickle Wars Saga, the full season of which is currently streaming on Netflix, and the TV anime MARS RED, whose story depicts the conflict between vampires and humans, to songs that focus on the aftermath of battle.

Wagakki Band’s previous album was TOKYO SINGING, released in August 2020. In the years since, the band has undergone several changes, but it’s never stopped playing live. We talked to Yuko Suzuhana (vocals), Kurona (wadaiko), Beni Ninagawa (Tsugaru-jamisen) and Machiya (guitar & vocals) about the spirit of this new album. 

The intro to “The Beast,” the first track of the album and the opening theme to the Baki Hanma Pickle Wars Saga, has a startlingly fresh feel to it. Machiya, I hear you’re a huge fan of the Baki series. I’m sure that this must have been a particular pleasure for you. You must have put a lot of thought into it.

Machiya: That’s right. I’d already read the comics that the new season is based on, so a concept immediately sprang to mind. The series’ main character is Pickle, so in writing the lyrics I focused on him. We used kecak, folk music from Bali, Indonesia, to give the song a more exotic Asian feel. The rough demo version had a fresh, raw feel, so we kept the track that we recorded for the demo.

Yuko Suzuhana: The song was written to be the anime’s opening theme, so we actually recorded it two years ago. The anime just exudes masculinity, so I consulted with Machiya about how to express the feel of the anime in the song. We arrived at the idea that we should use a pitch range that feels like it’s supporting the music from below, serving as its foundation, so I sang in a key that was really low for me. In singing, I tried to reflect what Machida was trying to express through the lyrics and the music, which he wrote. The English parts of the chorus, the nuances of the lyrics, and the power of the music made a really strong impression on me.

Beni Ninagawa: The new album has songs with the classic Wagakki Band sound but also songs that go in new directions, like “Starlight,” which has a more digital sound. The second half of the album has songs without any anime tie-ins, and I think they also have the distinctive Wagakki Band sound. In last year’s release, Vocalo Zanmai 2, we played covers of Vocaloid songs using traditional Japanese instruments, and there were parts in registers where I couldn’t really shred, making them hard to play. “The Beast” didn’t have any parts that presented as much difficulty. Instead, there are a lot of phrases that were very natural to play on a shamisen (a traditional Japanese stringed instrument)– that were possible precisely because they were played on shamisen — and I think you can really hear the instrument’s qualities in the song.

Kurona: One of what makes Wagakki Band special is our use of traditional Japanese instruments in rock music, and I think “The Beast” makes really good use of that. One of the highlights of this heavy song is the way the power of the wadaiko (traditional Japanese drums) synchronizes with and boosts the rock drums. My older brother is on the team that makes the incidental music for the Baki anime, so actually when you hear wadaiko in the show itself, that’s my brother. So since Wagakki Band was going to be creating the theme song, I was like “no way I’m going to let my brother beat me.” This is the first time my brother and I have ever crossed paths in our work, so it was a deeply emotional experience, but it also spurred a sense of competitiveness and a strong desire to make something cool.

I’d like to ask you a bit about “Flower of Dusk” which you wrote, Suzuhana.

Yuko Suzuhana: This album has a lot of battle songs, so I wanted to write a kind of energetic song with a feeling of ephemerality. I also wanted to make the main focus of the song about one’s inside world. Last year, I took a bit of a break, and I wrote the song when I was struggling internally, taking a long, hard look at myself. I wanted to express the borderland between dream and reality, between the world of pitched competition and Mother Earth. The song is about putting one’s life on the line and fighting, but it also conveys a sense of motherly love.

That feeling of ephemerality is also expressed in the album’s ninth song, “Road to Utopia” It and the 10th song, “Ark of Time” depict the aftermath of defeat in battle.

Yuko Suzuhana: These songs share a sense of unity with the rest of the album in depicting what comes after defeat. That time, when one finds oneself drowning in sorrow, is also a time of healing. I wanted to write a song that resonated with the feelings of modern listeners — a song that would encourage them. My father died when I was quite young, and my own view of life in death is that, while I can’t see him, he’s out there. I want to live my life to the fullest while I’m alive, and then when we meet again I’ll tell him all about it. That’s how I pick myself up again when I experience failure, and I often reflect that view of life in my lyrics.

Machiya: From the very start, I wanted “Ark of Time” to be a sparsely instrumented song, without a rhythm section — no drums, wadaiko, or bass. I wanted to include natural, ambient sounds, like looking over the world after a battle had drawn to a close. “Road to Utopia” is also a slow song, but it goes in a totally different direction, and I think it flows smoothly into “BRAVE.”

The first half of the album contains all the battle songs, and then the second half looks to the future with a feeling of optimism and hope. We wanted to end the album on a beautiful note, so pretty early on we decided that “BRAVE” would be the closing song.

The last number, “BRAVE,” is a live show anthem, right? Your last album, TOKYO SINGING, ended with “Singin’ for…” and you can feel how much you’ve changed over the past three years.

Beni Ninagawa: When we first played “Singin’ for…” live, all the audience could do was put their hands in the air. The ability for the audience to make some noise at shows is a big part of the live music experience, and we’re making “BRAVE” into a song that everyone can sing along with together. We all recorded the chorus together. It was like “We’ll finally be able to do this at our shows!”

What kind of stage show are you putting on in your current I vs I tour? 

Kurona: The audience finally doesn’t have to be silent anymore, and from the very start, one of the things that makes our shows great is the sense of unity, so it feels like the pieces are finally coming together — like we can finally put on our ideal show.

Yuko Suzuhana: Personally, I want to fully live up to everybody’s expectations. We’re singing about battle, so I want to be swinging around a sword.

The pandemic is finally winding down, and the number of overseas tourists is on the rise. When you think you’re ready, there will also probably be opportunities to play overseas, right?

Beni Ninagawa: I feel like now is the time for Wagakki Band to show what it’s truly capable of. We have a lot of fans in Taiwan and Indonesia, so I’d love to do an Asian tour. And in addition to doing shows for our fans outside Japan, I’d also like for us to express ourselves in lots of other ways, too.

After the pandemic hit, Wagakki Band was the first band in Japan to play an arena show with an audience, with restrictions, in August 2020. You’ve been putting on live shows ever since, without stopping, right?

Yuko Suzuhana: Even now, three years later, every time someone thanks us for putting on that first show I think about how putting on an arena show when we did created an unforgettable experience for me as an artist and as a person.

Beni Ninagawa: That’s just one of the ways that we’ve been keeping up the fight.

—This interview by Mariko Ikitake first appeared on Billboard Japan

18 Aug 2023

DannyLux on Being ‘Limitless’ With New Album ‘DLux’: ‘I Want to Show the World the Real Danny’


After hitting No. 1 Billboard‘s Latin Songwriters chart early on in his career, releasing back-to-back EPs and making his Coachella debut in April, DannyLux has built a confidence that’s allowed him to be limitless for his debut album. In a span of nine months, the música mexicana artist wrote DLux, an eclectic 17-track set that thrives on a collection of styles including bachata, EDM, pop and his signature guitar-driven sad sierreño sound.

The 19-year-old from Palm Springs winds through love and loss, singing ultra-melancholic songs with a glimmer of hope puncturing through. “I was going through a lot of things in relationships when I was writing this album,” he explains. “That’s why some of the songs are really sad and some are happy.” The heartbreak theme is what makes DLux so relatable, but it’s the sound — inspired by an array of genres — that DannyLux (real name Daniel Balderrama) hopes will strike a chord with his fans.

“I didn’t really put any limits on myself,” he explains. “I’ve always approached my music that way but I used to be kind of scared. Now, I want to show the world that I’m finding my style and the real Danny. That is why I called this album DLux because when you order a meal if you get the deluxe it usually means the better version. DLux is the better version of me. I started realizing the people just want to hear you and who you are authentically.”

And he didn’t shy away from featuring new collaborators. While he taps Eslabon Armado for their fourth collab together, “Me Cambiaste,” DannyLux also recruits emerging acts such as Argentine singer-songwriter Yami Safdie and Dominican-American Melvin War. There’s also Pablo Hurtado from the Mexican trio Camila (“Zafiro”) and indie star Cuco (“Decir Adiós: Oye Narrador),” two artists DannyLux has long admired.

“I put so many emotions into this album,” DannyLux says. “I hope fans will enjoy it. I love how they’ve always supported me even when I try out new styles or genres.” He’s already working on the deluxe version of DLux, which he teases will include five new songs.

In the meantime, DannyLux breaks down five tracks from DLux, out today (Aug. 18), in his own words:

“Decir Adios: Oye Narrador” (with Cuco)

We literally made that song the first time we met. It was two years ago when I had a session with Cuco and I was, like, peeing myself, because I’ve always looked up to him. He truly changed the Latin indie scene. He was one of those pioneers. I remember I showed up that day to the session, we were getting to know each other and we randomly started writing this song. We recorded the whole demo, we stayed in touch. He then told me he wanted to use a part I sing in the demo for his album.

That song on his project is called “Decir Adiós” — and in my head, I was like “D–n, I still really like that original idea of the one we recorded before, the demo.” So that’s why in my album, it’s that demo, but we made a few changes to it. Mine is called “Decir Adiós: Oye Narrador”, because it’s mostly talking like a narrator. It’s like in a movie, when an actor starts talking directly at a camera or to the audience. It’s basically like that but in a song.

“Ferxxo100”

I’ve always admired Feid and the way he writes. This song is so good, and then it turns into a reggaetón — I was like, “D–n.” I started thinking about it, and thought if I try to slow it down using the same lyrics and melodies but just slower, it might sound sick. I learned how to play it on the guitar, and I remember one day we were in Texas for a show and I was in the hotel room alone and I started playing it on the guitar — it sounded so cool. My engineer and producer was in the same hotel and I called him saying, “Bro, come to my room right now and bring your mics and your computer.”

We recorded the first demo just to see how it would sound, and it was sick. Later, when we were back home, we re-recorded it and put some final touches on it — like an electric guitar and literally the drums you hear in there, I recorded that part. I didn’t even know I knew how to play the drums. I actually just looked on YouTube quickly how to play a certain drums style, and that’s how that song came to be. I really admire how Feid writes. I hope he likes my version.

“Mi Hogar” with Maye

It’s crazy, because when I started making my own music, I’d listen to her songs, and I was such a huge fan, I still am. When we were in the studio together for a songwriting session, it was unreal. I felt the same way I did when I met Cuco. I love her voice, and I thought, “If she sings this part, it would be awesome.” She was so nice and so down to be part of it. It wasn’t even a bachata at first — it was kind of like a pop song — but I wanted to add more bachata to the album so it became a very tropical song.

When we were writing the lyrics we were kind of stuck at first, we didn’t know what to write. You know when your laptop kinda goes into your screensaver after not using it for a while? The engineer had his computer and it went to his screensaver, which was a bunch of houses on the beach. So, the opener became “una casa frente al mar (a house in front of the beach).” I’ve become a fan of bachata recently. I love that genre. So much goes into that style, and it just makes you want to dance.

“La Lluvia” (with Jordyn Shellheart)

I had a writing session with Jordyn in Tennessee — and, to be honest, I didn’t know what to expect, because it was country artists. I’m always open to anything, and I thought, what if a sick song comes out of this? I’ll just try my best. I met her and she’s such a nice person. I started with chords for that song, and I thought it would be a good interlude in the album — because it’s so soft and calm, just so people could take a break and relax after listening to the other songs. When I first heard her sing “La Lluvia,” it was a crazy thing. Her voice is sick. We finished it that same day and that song is probably one of my favorites on the album.

“House of Lux“

I’ve always listened to EDM and house music and I’ve always made random beats with that style. When I was making an album I was like low key I want an outro for it, instead of having an intro. And so I started making that beat and I thought I should add my vocals here and there. I just wanted to make a song that I would hear at a club, and I want this one to be played at a club with people singing and dancing to it. That’s my dream for this song.

18 Aug 2023

Guns N’ Roses Released Florid Piano Rocker ‘Perhaps’ a Week After it Leaked to Digital Jukeboxes

It’s been 15 years since Guns N’ Roses dropped their last album, so at this point the band’s fans are psyched to hear any new music from the hard-touring Rock and Roll Hall of Famers. And in typical Guns fashion, their new single, “Perhaps,” is actually pretty old, and it’s journey to our ears was circuitous, at best.

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The good news is that “Perhaps” has all the elements you want from a GNR song: it opens with a piano-pounding riff and singer Axl Rose’s signature howl and features a menacing, bluesy guitar underpinning a twisty, turgid ballad bisected by one of Slash’s classic hurricane solos.

It’s the first new song we’ve heard since Rose — who had been touring with an expansive cast of side players as GNR for years after the band’s slow-motion implosion in 1996 when Slash quit — reunited with Slash and bassist Duff McKagan in 2016. And, in a pointed about-face from the often pugnacious, no-apologies lyrical attack of the band’s classic catalog, the now-61-year-old Rose sounds downright contrite and apologetic at points in the song.

“Perhaps I was wrong/ When I didn’t see you/ Perhaps I was wrong/ When I didn’t believe you,” he sings in the opening lines. “Hey, my sense of rejection/ Hey, hey, is no excuse for my behavior/ You pulled the gun/ That shot and crucified my savior,” he continues on the track that reportedly was first recorded during the sessions for the band’s most recent album, 2008’s Chinese Democracy.

The latter was the first new music from GNR since the 1993 covers album The Spaghetti Incident? Democracy album took nearly 14 years to complete and featured more than a dozen contributors, with keyboardist Dizzy Reed representing the only link to the band’s classic lineup.

After poor-quality bootlegs of “Perhaps” began circulating when the band played it during soundcheck before a June 2023 Tel Aviv show — an unfinished demo version had been floating around the internet for years — Guns fans were surprised last week when “Perhaps” reportedly leaked via TouchTunes digital jukeboxes according to Blabbermouth.

Though there have been whispers of the revamped GNR recording new music, to date “Perhaps” falls in line with two other “new” songs the band has released recently, two other leftovers that dropped in 2021, “Absurd (aka Silkworms),” and “Hard Skool,” which are also both reportedly from the Chinese Democracy era.

The band also released an official video for the song that features footage of the three iconic members on stage playing to packed stadiums all around the world. Check it out below.

18 Aug 2023

Commemorative Jay-Z Library Cards Have Seriously Boosted Brooklyn Public Library Accounts

Jay-Z has told us before that he’s a business, man. And if you ask the folks at the Brooklyn Public Library business is good these days. According to CNN, since Jay’s career-spanning “The Book of Hov” exhibit opened on July 17 at the Library, a spokesperson tells the news outlet that it has resulted in 14,000 new library accounts.

“The community’s enthusiastic response to this exhibition is a testament to Jay-Z’s immense impact,” Linda E. Johnson, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Public Library, told CNN of the reaction to the 40,000-square foot career retrospective. As part of the yearlong celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Jay’s Roc Nation and the Brooklyn Public Library released 13 limited-edition library cards featuring artwork from different Jigga albums as part of the exhibit that takes viewers on a deep-dive into Jay’s career via videos, rare photos, artifacts and original recordings.

The library cards — which will be available through the end of this month — were offered for free for New York State residents; only one can be activated at the library to check out resources. As you might expect, a library employee said some people have been trying to sell the limited-edition cards online, though they said that represented a small fraction of the thousands who’ve signed up for a new card so far.

Due to the overwhelming response, the “Book of Hov” was recently extended through October. If you can’t make it there in person, the interactive “Book” website has a chapter-by-chapter recap of the items in the exhibit, with New York radio legend Angie Martinez providing the narration for the collection whose name was inspired by a lyric from DJ Khaled’s 2022 Grammy-nominated anthem “God Did.”

Check out images of the cards below.

18 Aug 2023

Herb Alpert on Making His Grand Ole Opry Debut, Country Artists He Admires & Taylor Swift Tying His Six-Decade Record

At 88, Herb Alpert has had one of the most illustrious and celebrated careers in American popular music. As leader of Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass and as a solo trumpeter, he has won 9 Grammys and sold more than 72 million albums. He co-founded A&M Records with the late Jerry Moss, bringing the work of Janet Jackson, the Carpenters, The Police, Peter Frampton, Cat Stevens and many more artists to the public. 

Until July when Taylor Swift tied his record, Alpert had been the most recent artist to have four albums in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 albums chart simultaneously, and on Sept. 15, he’ll release his 49th studio album, Wish Upon a Star. The album’s first single is “East Bound and Down,” an instrumental remake of the Jerry Reed hit that Reed took to No. 2 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart in 1977 and then revived for the 1980 film Smokey and the Bandit. 

It would seem that Alpert has done it all, but there are still some firsts ahead of him. He’ll check off a big one tonight (Aug. 18), when he plays the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville for the first time. Also on the bill is Carrie Underwood. 

He may be making his Opry debut, but Alpert has some long relevant ties to Nashville and the country community that he shared with Billboard. He also admits that it took him some time to come around to Willie Nelson, and makes clear that he has nothing but kind words for Swift. The conversation, condensed and edited for space and clarity, took place Aug. 15, one day before Moss died. 

So here you are at 88, doing something that you have never done before by playing the Opry. Has this been on your checklist? 

I never thought about it. It just never crossed my mind. I did this tune from [1980 movie] Smokey and the Bandit that was written by Jerry Reed, who was in the movie as well, but I never got that tune out of my brain. I saw [the movie] maybe 20 years ago. And I always remember that melody, and I tried to see if I could play that melody in my style and make some sense out of it. And it seemed like the I had a favorable reaction.

So one thing led to another and I was asked to perform and they seem to be very excited. I’m going to not only do [“Eastbound”] with the Opry band, but I’m bringing my band and we’re going to do a Tijuana Brass medley. I don’t know what to expect, but I hear great things about being there. 

Have you ever been to the Grand Ole Opry? 

Not inside. I’ve been to Nashville many times. I had a show in the museum with my artwork. And we’ve played on various venues in Nashville.

All the artists are mingling and hanging out in the hallway instead of staying in their dressing rooms. It’s an incredibly friendly atmosphere. 

I have heard exactly what you just stated. I’m excited. You know, it’s not that easy for me because I’m an introvert, so I’ve got to lose my feeling of being uncomfortable around new people. I’m gonna be there.

In John Scheinfeld’s excellent 2020 documentary on you, the film talks about your picking up the trumpet when you were eight years old because you were so introverted. The trumpet is the way you communicate.

“That’s the way I communicate” is exactly right.

Since you’re headed to Nashville, let’s talk about some of your connections to country music. One of A&M’s first signings was Waylon Jennings in 1964, long before he became a country legend and in the early years of A&M.

We signed Waylon, and I used to go down to Arizona to record him. I did this one record called “Four Strong Winds.” [RCA label head and musician] Chet Atkins heard the record and he made some overtures to Waylon about, when he gets out of the contract with A&M he’d like to talk to him — which he shouldn’t have done, because Waylon was under contract to us. It seemed like he was jumping over our bones a bit. But I loved Chet. He was certainly a brilliant musician, as well as administrator.

Waylon really wanted to be a country artist. Waylon’s voice was really unusual, because he could sing just about anything and it sounded darn good — he had something in his voice that just resonated right into the heart. I wanted to take him a little more pop, and he really wanted to be a country artist. He told me confidentially about Chet Atkins wanting to see him. So my partner Jerry Moss and I decided to let Waylon out of his contract so he could go with Chad and RCA.

Waylon couldn’t believe that we were willing to do that. But I remember the day that Jerry and I signed his release. I looked at Jerry and I said, “Man, this guy’s going to be big star.” And Jerry said, “I know it.” I got goosebumps thinking that, “Man, if we could be that honest with people with our artists, we’re gonna be a big success.” It was really a pivotal moment for me and my feelings about A&M Records and what we were doing. 

What memories do you have of playing with the Tijuana Brass in Nashville? 

When I played in Nashville with the Brass in 1967, Johnny Cash came backstage and I had a nice conversation with him after, and he seemed to really love the music that I was making.

Any other memories from other times that you’ve played Nashville where country artists came to your shows?

I met Marty Stuart when I was exhibiting at the art museum. I don’t remember the year. The museum gave me 7,000 square feet, and I was putting up sculptures and paintings [one of Alpert’s sculptures is permanently installed at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville]. Marty was a friend of David Conrad, who was running our publishing company Almo Irving. I like his artistry and just him in general.

A&M also signed the Flying Burrito Brothers, who were absolutely pivotal in the evolution of country rock. You released their 1969 album, The Gilded Palace of Sin. What did you see in them? 

Jerry signed up. When I heard them, I thought they were going to be much larger than what actually happened. They had something special, I felt, but nobody knows what a hit record sounds like or what the public is going to take to in a big way. 

In 1964, you and the Tijuana Brass has a hit album called South of the Border, which took its name and the title track from the Gene Autry country movie classic of the same name. How did that song influence you? 

Before A&M records, I was earning a living playing on weekends with various bands, and I had a little backlog of songs that I could just play out of the blue because I had the gift of if I hear a song on the radio, I can just about play it back. So “South of the Border” was probably one of those songs that I had in my stockpile. I tried to do songs when they’re known to others in a way they haven’t been done before. That’s one of my goals.

I’ve never tried to make a hit record. I always tried to make records that felt good. And the honest truth of it is, at 88 years old, I make records for myself. I make records that make me feel good. I’m not trying to make a record that’s going to trump somebody else. I feel like if they can touch me, and it can make me feel good, possibly. I worked with Sam Cooke. [Alpert co-wrote Cooke’s hit and now classic, “Wonderful World”.] He came out of the gospel field and just was so authentic as an artist, and as a person. Loved the guy. He taught me a lot. There was something about him that just gave me the feeling of “Man, you gotta be real. You can’t fake it. You can’t pretend you’re one thing and do another.” I always tried to make records that just really reflected who I was as an artist and I’ve been darn lucky.

In the ‘70s, there was a very successful act called Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass, which was a country version of the Tijuana Brass. They won the Grammy for best country instrumental performance in 1970 and snagged several CMA Awards. Did you hear them? 

I didn’t get it. I mean, that’s just that’s like trying to take advantage of what I did.

Were there country artists that you had admired?

Like everyone else, I love Dolly [Parton]. I love her as a person. I love her as an artist. I think Kris Kristofferson had a big mark, big effect, on country music. He was writing songs that really had provocative meaning and I think he took it to a different level. He was just really special.

Willie Nelson was also an influence on me. When I first heard Willie, it was probably 1959-1960. He was recording for Liberty Records. A friend of mine was working at Liberty and would send me his records. I was listening to him and thinking, like, “Wow, I don’t get why this guy is popular. I don’t get that voice of his.” And all of a sudden, through the years, I transitioned with him and I ended up really loving him. I think he’s a major artist. I think he’s like a jazz artist. He’s very spontaneous. He’s of the moment. And I’m so used to that voice now that it’s part of me. I really love what he does.

We most recently wrote about you last month when you posted a very sweet TikTok to Taylor Swift, congratulating her on tying your record for four albums in the top 10 of the Billboard 200. Did she respond to you?

Somebody that worked for her did, but that’s okay. I didn’t need a response [from her]. I mean, she’s good. I think she’s real good. She’s the real thing.