State Champ Radio Music
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Sabrina Carpenter hit an appropriately cheeky milestone on Saturday during her fifth of six nights at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena: Her 69th concert of the Short n’ Sweet Tour.
“My friends wanted me to inform you: This is our 69th show,” Carpenter announced while sitting on her heart-shaped stage, sending the crowd into wild cheers over the spicy stat.
It’s a fitting marker for the trek: Since its September 2024 kick-off, the Short n’ Sweet Tour has been known for its little suggestive moments, like Carpenter’s nightly “Juno” sex positions (“have you tried this one before?”), the voyeuristic “Bed Chem” video camera (“I bet the thermostat’s set at six-nine”), and the elevator that ticks up the floors until “SC” comes just after the 68th.
“We knew we’d get there eventually, and tonight’s the night,” Carpenter said of the 69th show. “And it’s Saturday, and we’re just like, we’re living!”
In one more nod to Night 69, Carpenter emerged for the final song, last year’s top five Billboard Hot 100 smash “Espresso,” in sparkly blue go-go boots and an oversize Los Angeles Dodgers jersey, with her last name emblazoned on the back and the jersey number of — you guessed it! — 69.
Another tongue-in-cheek nightly tradition is Carpenter arresting someone in the crowd for the crime of being “too hot,” and Saturday night’s offender was actress and Saturday Night Live legend Maya Rudolph, who Carpenter asked: “Whoa, whoa, whoa — what’s your name, gorgeous?” After Rudolph mouthed back “Maya,” Carpenter responded, “Maya, you’re stunning. Where are you from?” She mouthed “Los Angeles” and made her best attempt at throwing up an “L.A.” hand sign, but Carpenter didn’t think the crowd had a big enough reaction. “Scream louder — that’s here!”
Then she got down to business: “Maya, I don’t know the situation you’re in currently romantically, but I was sort of hoping that I could lock you down tonight, if possible.” (Let’s hope Rudolph’s partner of almost 25 years and the father of her four children, acclaimed filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, isn’t feeling threatened.) She then tossed some fuzzy pink handcuffs out into the crowd to officially lock Rudolph down.
Previous L.A. arrestees included SZA on Thursday night and actress sisters Dakota and Elle Fanning on Monday.
Carpenter returns to Crypto.com Arena on Sunday (Nov. 23) to play her sixth night in L.A. and the final night of her 70-date Short n’ Sweet Tour. Find the full setlist for Los Angeles Night 5, including the special “spin-the-bottle” surprise song and the newly added Man’s Best Friend additions, below.
“Taste”
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Carlos Vives brought all his energy and the joyful vallenato to the 2025 Coca-Cola Flow Fest in Mexico City on Saturday (Nov. 22), surprising his fans with a tribute to the legendary ranchera singer-songwriter José Alfredo Jiménez.
“It’s a joy to see you, and I want to tell you something that goes like this,” said the Colombian icon from the Sessions Stage before performing an a cappella version of “Para Morir Iguales” by Jiménez, prompting an ovation at the festival — which on its first day gathered 79,000 people at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, according to figures from promoter Ocesa. (Watch Vives’ a capella performance in a video captured from the show that was shared on X here.)
“Long live José Alfredo Jiménez! Thank you, Mexico!” he added, after making the crowd dance to a handful of songs that included “La Bicicleta,” his 2016 hit with Shakira that topped Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart for six weeks.
The 64-year-old artist had not been included in the festival’s original lineup, but on Thursday (Nov. 20), organizers announced that the alternative Sessions Stage would feature surprise musical acts, including Vives and Colombian band Bacilos.
“This is a cumbia, Mexico. What unites Colombians and Mexicans, what we have in our blood, is a race,” Vives added before performing “Para Robarte Un Beso.”
Later that evening, the Santa Marta native reappeared during Wisin’s set on the main stage to join his voice with the Puerto Rican star’s on “Nota de Amor,” a celebrated fusion of vallenato and reggaeton included on Wisin’s album Los Vaqueros: La Trilogía (2015), which originally also featured Daddy Yankee.
Considered the largest Latin urban music festival, the Coca-Cola Flow Fest brought some of the biggest stars of the genre to its five stages at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez on its first day. Don Omar, Myke Towers, Nicky Jam, Álvaro Díaz, Santa Fe Klan, De La Rose, El Alfa and Jowell & Randy were among the acts that shone in a celebration that extended into the wee hours.
The festival continues Sunday with performances by J Balvin, Young Miko, De La Ghetto, Farruko, Bellakath and Mau y Ricky, as well as a special performance by corridos tumbados superstar Natanael Cano, among others.
Trending on Billboard Donald Glover is opening up about a recent health scare that forced him to cancel his tour last year. At the time he described it as an “ailment,” but Glover said Saturday night (Nov. 22) at a performance that a doctor told him he’d had a stroke. Glover, who performs under the moniker Childish […]
Trending on Billboard Taylor Swift has held onto the top spot of the U.K. Singles Chart for a fifth non-consecutive week with “The Fate of Ophelia” (Nov. 21). The single first shot to No. 1 on the U.K. charts dated Oct. 10, and held the spot for three consecutive weeks. Following a back-and-forth tussle with […]
Trending on Billboard 5 Seconds of Summer is No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart for the fourth time in their career. On the charts dated Nov. 21, the Australian group’s EVERYONE’S A STAR knocks Taylor Swift‘s The Life of a Showgirl from the top spot. The group, composed of Calum Hood, Ashton Irwin, Luke […]
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Bad Bunny surprised his fans in the Dominican Republic on Saturday night (Nov. 22) by inviting the biggest star in bachata to the stage. On the second day of his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour at the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez in Santo Domingo, Romeo Santos appeared near the end of the show, eliciting deafening screams from the crowd.
Together, they delivered a thrilling performance of “BOKeTE” — in bachata style. Originally a slow song with an ethereal and shoegaze essence, the track is included on Benito’s critically acclaimed album Debí Tirar Más Fotos, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and recently won the Latin Grammy for album of the year.
This is not the first time these artists have joined forces. Four years ago, in 2021, Bad Bunny and Aventura — the mega-successful group with which Santos rose to stardom — collaborated on “Volví,” a track that blended reggaetón and bachata.
Saturday’s reunion comes weeks after Bad Bunny and Santos topped Billboard‘s Top Latin Artists of the 21st Century ranking, with the two taking the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively. The list is based on the artists’ performances on the Top Latin Albums and Hot Latin Songs charts from January 2000 to December 2024.
The Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour, which began with two shows at the Olympic Stadium in Santo Domingo, follows Bad Bunny’s historic No Me Quiero Ir De Aquí residency at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan. The trek will continue through much of 2026, visiting Latin America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. For all tour dates, click here.
In the U.S., Bad Bunny will headline the 2026 Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show on Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. Days later, he will compete for album of the year at the 2026 Grammy Awards. Meanwhile, Romeo Santos recently announced a new album set to release on Nov. 28.
Watch both artists perform “BOKeTE” at the Estadio Olímpico in Santo Domingo in a fan-filmed clip shared on X here.
Trending on Billboard Beyoncé made an unexpected on-track appearance at the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix on Sun., Nov. 23, drawing widespread attention as she and Jay-Z arrived at the paddock ahead of the race. Explore See latest videos, charts and news The Houston-born singer looked race-ready as she was first photographed in a […]
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Lenny Kravitz says an enthusiastic fan accidentally pulled four of his dreadlocks out during his show in Brisbane on Fri., Nov. 21.
The rock icon is currently touring Australia in support of his 2024 album Blue Electric Light. In a video posted to Instagram shortly after his performance at Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Kravitz told fans the incident happened while he moved through the crowd during “Let Love Rule.”
“Brisbane, that was wild,” he said in a video shared on his Instagram Stories. “A very excited young lady pulled four dreadlocks out of the back of my head. You know how hard you’ve got to pull to rip those out of my head? Damn, baby.”
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Kravitz clarified that the moment won’t change his commitment to interacting with audiences during the track, which traditionally sees him step off the stage and into the crowd.
“I’m not going to stop coming out there for ‘Let Love Rule’ because that’s our moment together,” he added. “Brisbane, you’re wild. I love you.”
Kravitz is midway through his Australian run, which continues Tues., Nov. 25 at Melbourne’s John Cain Arena before heading to Mildura on Nov. 28 and Adelaide on Nov. 29.
The singer’s current Australian dates mark his first shows in the country since 2012. That visit was itself many years in the making, with his only other visits to the country taking place in 1993 and 1994.
“Coming to New Zealand for the first time and returning to Australia after so many years is giving my soul the most beautiful energy,” Kravitz wrote in an Instagram post on Nov. 21.
“You all are amazing. Thank you for sharing this with me. Let’s keep going!” he added.
Since his last visit, Kravitz has released three further albums, including 2014’s Strut, 2018’s Raise Vibration, and 2024’s Blue Electric Light. Additionally, in 2024, he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and also received his first nomination for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, though he was not inducted.
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Billy Corgan debuted the long-anticipated operatic adaptation of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness on Fri., Nov. 21, with the Smashing Pumpkins leader performing on opening night at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
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The new production presents a symphonic and operatic reimagining of the band’s 1995 double album, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and marked a defining moment in the group’s commercial peak. Across the evening, selections including “Tonight, Tonight,” “1979,” and “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” were transformed for a full operatic cast and orchestra.
Corgan appeared as a featured vocalist throughout the performance, joined by soprano Sydney Mancasola, mezzo-soprano Zoie Reams, tenor Dominick Valdés Chenes and baritone Edward Parks. The Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus performed under conductor James Lowe, who has been one of Corgan’s key collaborators in reworking the score for the stage.
In a previous statement, Corgan said the process allowed him to reconsider the album nearly 30 years on. “It is thrilling to collaborate with Lyric head John Mangum, my musical partner James Lowe, and all of the artists at Lyric in reimagining this very special and historic album, and to discover how Lyric’s full operatic treatment is helping me experience my own compositions in powerful new ways,” he said.
“Opera and rock both tell stories of heightened emotions, and I am excited for both fans of my music and traditional opera fans to hear some truly inspired work; for the balance here is to honor both traditions in a magisterial way.”
Originally released in Oct. 1995, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness earned seven Grammy nominations, including album of the year. It produced two of the band’s most enduring singles with “1979” (which peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100) and “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” the latter winning the group a Grammy for best hard rock performance. The album remains one of the Smashing Pumpkins’ most critically and commercially significant projects, certified diamond by the RIAA.
The Lyric Opera production continues its limited run in Chicago through the coming week.
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Jellybean Johnson, the Minneapolis musician and producer who was the drummer for the Prince-affiliated funk-rock group The Time, has died. He was 69.
His cause of death is unknown. TMZ first reported Johnson’s passing, noting that he died Friday night (Nov. 21) according to a statement obtained by his family.
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Prince recruited Johnson (real name Garry George Johnson), who was self-taught on drums and guitar, in 1981 for The Time, an act born out of the city’s Flyte Tyme. They’d known each other since their high school years in Minneapolis.
“The drums are physical and violent for me while the guitar is spiritual and emotional,” Johnson said in a 2018 interview with Australian Musician. He also quipped to the publication, “When you live here in the cold, you stay in [in] the winter time and you learn how to play.”
As a member of The Time — and later, Prince’s The Family — Johnson helped establish the funk-rock, new wave and synth-pop hybrid that became known as the Minneapolis Sound. He appeared as a fictionalized version of himself in 1984’s Academy Award-winning Purple Rain and as himself in 1990’s Graffiti Bridge.
The Time had five top 10 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in the ’80s and early ’90s (when the chart was called Hot Black Singles), including “777-9311,” “Jungle Love” and “Jerk-Out,” which reached No. 1 in 1990.
Johnson is also known for his work as a producer, with Janet Jackson‘s 1990 Hot 100 No. 1 “Black Cat” among his credits — and he was an in-demand session musician.
Sheila E., a longtime friend and a frequent collaborator with Prince, remembered Johnson in an emotional post on Facebook Saturday morning, which she shared “with a heavy heart.”
“My dear friend Jellybean passed away a couple of hours ago,” Sheila E. wrote. “We are devastated by this news. I’m praying for his family and all the kids. He was a kind human being, extremely talented and funny. He had a great sense of humor and [was] an awesome guitar player.”
Directing her words toward her late friend, she added, “Yesterday was your birthday, I forgot to call you and I’m so sorry. I love u bean. Rest in peace and power.”
“I’m absolutely heartbroken!” The Family vocalist Susannah Melvoin wrote on Instagram. “My beautiful brother Jellybean Johnson has passed. This band was and is the kind of Family that believed we all rightfully belonged together in love, music and kindness. Jellybean was the master of loving you like no brother could! My big brother, who watched over me and anyone who he loved!”Melvoin’s note continued: “I met him when I was 19 years old and he was already a seasoned musical savant at 28. He’d been in the Time and was masterfully put into a band that became what we lovingly and rightfully call the family. He went from being behind the drums to playing guitar in this band because he was a guitar player first and drummer second. Oxygen for him was the inhale and exhale of playing his guitar. I can barely get this out….his children and family members need our support and love. Please send it their way.”“May you rest in all that is light and graceful,” she said to Johnson.
Johnson performed with The Time and Rihanna at the Grammy Awards in 2008, a performance that had him playing the drums to a click track. After being a career musician with his “own click track for 30, 40 years,” Johnson said it was difficult to pivot — “If you go back and watch that performance, it came off flawless, but, man, that week of practice was hell,” he said with a laugh, in a 2024 interview with Dancing to the Drum Machine author Dan Leroy.
“The guys in The Time always trusted me, as far as tempos and all that kind of stuff,” explained Johnson. “But there were a few times, like when I played the Grammys … I remember one time back in ’08, man, I played the Grammys, and Rihanna was on there with [The Time]. And she was just getting huge, and she had that ‘Umbrella’ song … And she had dancers, and she was doing this thing with us, and it was gonna be part Minneapolis, part her. She’s gonna be integrated with us — which means with me being the only drummer, I had to play to a click track. I struggled. I’m not gonna lie. I called every hotshot drummer, young drummers that I know, all my top drum friends. I mean, how do y’all do this? Because some guys, especially studio guys, they learn how to do that. Just deal with click tracks and all that kind of stuff. And I didn’t. I never had to really do that.”
He returned to the Grammys stage in 2017 and 2020 as part of tributes to Prince.
Johnson co-founded the non-profit Minneapolis Sound Museum in 2021, with the goal of preserving the history, culture and legacy of the Minneapolis Sound.
In 2022, he was awarded a Soul Train Lifetime Achievement Award with The Time.
