Music

15 Jul 2023

Asake & Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Estate Announce ‘Work of Art’ Paint & Sip Event in L.A.

Nigerian superstar Asake, his label EMPIRE and Jean-Michel Basquiat’s estate announced on Friday (July 14) that they’re curating a special event filled with art, music and drinks in Los Angeles, Calif. next week.

The exhibition viewing of Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure, guided paint and sip session, and album listening party of Asake’s latest LP Work of Art will take place next Friday, July 21 from 5 to 9 p.m. at The Grand LA. There will be multiple guided paint and sips seated sessions, which are limited to the first 120 guests who register for each session upon arrival. Last entry is at 8 p.m., as gallery doors will close promptly at 8:30 p.m. The event is 21+.

The event celebrates the release of Asake’s sophomore album Work of Art album that he released last month via YBNL Nation/EMPIRE. Work of Art reached No. 4 on Billboard‘s World Albums chart and No. 66 on the Billboard 200. Highlight track “Basquiat” peaked at No. 9 on U.S. Afrobeats Songs.



Basquiat’s sisters Lisane Basquiat and Jeanine Heriveaux serve as the executive producers and curators of the Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure exhibition, in collaboration with Ileen Gallagher and ISG Productions Ltd. The exhibition consists of nearly 200 rarely seen paintings, drawings, ephemera and artifacts from the late, great artist as well as recreations of his NYC artist studio on Great Jones St., the Basquiat family home and the Michael Todd VIP Room of NYC’s iconic Palladium nightclub, for which Basquiat created two large-scale paintings.

Tickets go on sale tomorrow, July 15 at 9 a.m. local time here.

15 Jul 2023

J Balvin Shares Stage With Kids in Switzerland & More Uplifting Moments in Latin Music 

From career milestones and new music releases to major announcements and more, Billboard editors highlight the latest news buzz in Latin music every week. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week.

J Balvin gets emotional in Switzerland

While on tour in Europe, the Colombian star was joined by three kids onstage during his stop in Switzerland to sing “La Canción.” The sweet moment was captured on video, which Balvin shared on his social media captioning it with a sweet message: “I’ll never stop being amazed. To see a kid who is 10 years old that doesn’t speak Spanish … Better said, the video speaks for itself. Thank you Switzerland. Latino Gang,” he wrote.

See the video here.

Shakira to receive special award

The Colombian superstar is set to be honored with the “Agent of Change” recognition at the 20th anniversary of Premios Juventud, Univision announced. The “Monotonía” singer — who with her Fundación Pies Descalzos has helped underserved communities in Colombia — will receive the award during the ceremony that will air live on Univision from the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot on Thursday, July 20. Previous “Agent of Change” honorees include Maluma, Kany Garcia, The Jenni Rivera Foundation, Ricky Martin and Becky G, among others.

Peso Pluma is Billboard‘s latest cover

The “Bye” singer is the latest star to grace the cover of Billboard. Peso, Mexican music’s biggest star today, talks about leading the genre’s global takeover, his plans for the future and tells the story behind his now famous mullet-like haircut.

“I’m very happy to do what I love doing the most and to be able to share a message of perseverance with up-and-coming artists. Sometimes, as Mexicans, we put a lot of barriers on ourselves and we lack the confidence,” Peso said. “Today, I see that people are proud of our movement. Back then, they’d think that Mexicans couldn’t have a No. 1 song singing corridos and that regional Mexican music was only regional, not global. Today, all those barriers have been broken.”

Read all about “The Power of Peso” here.

Bichota season

Karol G‘s new single “S91,” which she dropped on July 13, is inspired by the Psalm 91 Bible verse. An emotional and ultra-personal release, produced by Ovy on the Drums, the Colombian artist sings about overcoming adversity over an EDM-meets-trap fusion.

The music video, directed by Pedro Artola and produced by WeOwnTheCity, is just as powerful as the lyrics, demonstrating Karol running away from a group of people backed by a pack of wolves trying to bring her down, but she’s protected by a lone panther. Karol also used the opportunity to announce that Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season) is coming soon.

Watch “S91” below:



Best Latin songs of 2023

The 23 best Latin songs of 2023, according to Billboard‘s Latin and español editors, have been unveiled. The list is an eclectic mix of songs spanning a wide array of genres. From música urbana to regional Mexican, the choices were guided by multiple factors including memorable lyrics and standout melodies. (Worth noting that chart position was also considered.) From Bad Bunny’s “Where She Goes” to Yahritza y Su Esencia and Grupo Frontera’s first collaborative effort in “Frágil,” here are the 23 best Latin songs of 2023.

14 Jul 2023

Lauren Spencer Smith Details Lessons Learned While Writing Debut Album ‘Mirror’ & Meaning Behind Title

Lauren Spencer Smith‘s debut album, Mirror, has finally arrived. The singer released the project on Friday (July 14), and leading up to its release spoke with Billboard News about the meaning behind the project’s interesting title, as well as the lessons she took away from writing the LP.

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“Initially when I first wanted to title the album, I wanted it to be something about reflecting because everything that’s on the album is a personal experience to me,” she explained to Billboard staff writer Rania Aniftos. “Then throughout realizing no one had been by my side other than the mirror seeing every cry sesh, happy sesh, came back from the first date with my boyfriend and feeling excited, it was the only thing that was a constant throughout the rollercoaster of emotions that I had to go through to write the album, but it felt so fitting calling it Mirror.”

Smith continued, “When I first started writing the album, I would never have imagined that I was going to end the album with that title. I definitely think it was something that I randomly started thinking of one day, like ‘Wow, I literally would not where I am today if everything didn’t happen to me.’ And as much as sometimes I still look back being very annoyed and sad that things like that happened to me, it just has made me who I am. It’s the reason I written all the songs. I remember thinking one day to myself, ‘I think I should thank the person that hurt me,’ because they kind gave me this trajectory of a career at this point.”

Mirror features breakthrough singles “Fingers Crossed” and “Flowers,” “Fantasy” with GAYLE and Em Beihold, “That Part” and more. The 20-year-old will embark on a tour in North America, U.K. and Europe starting on July 14 to support the album.

Reflecting on Mirror, Smith also shared that writing the LP has allowed her to feel more comfortable within her craft: “Throughout songwriting I just realized to say whatever I want, it doesn’t have to have a bad intention to it, it’s just something that I want to say in the song and allowing myself to be honest in all of my songs and really be true to myself.”

Watch Smith’s full interview with Billboard News in the video above.

14 Jul 2023

Beyoncé Supports Jay-Z’s ‘The Book of Hov’ Exhibit in Stunning New Selfies

Beyoncé was a proud wife this week, supporting Jay-Z as the Brooklyn Public Library unveiled an honorary exhibition for the billionaire superstar.

The “Break My Soul” singer took to Instagram on Friday (July 13) to share a series of snaps from the grand opening event, in which she was rocking a sunset red vinyl skirt and matching mesh top, complete with a sky-high ponytail and brown shades. Throughout the snaps, Bey is seen posing with Jay and the couple’s daughter Blue Ivy.

See the post here.

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“The Book of HOV” exhibition — based on the rapper’s lyric in DJ Khaled’s 2022 Grammy-nominated anthem “God Did” — features “archived objects, including original recording masters, never-before-seen photos, iconic stage wear, prestigious awards, and recognitions, as well as videos and artifacts from every facet of Jay-Z’s professional life.”

Billboard was on site at the opening event, and you can read the full recap here.

14 Jul 2023

Ryan Castro, Karol G, & More: What’s Your Favorite New Latin Music Release? Vote!

This week, our New Music Latin roundup — a compilation of the best new Latin songs, albums, and videos recommended by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors — is powered by new music from Residente, Ryan Castro, and Myriam Hernandez, to name a few.

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This week’s list includes Ryan Castro and Peso Pluma’s first collaborative effort called “QUEMA,” produced by SOG. The irresistible old-school perreo track is signature Castro, who has a knack for delivering hooky songs and finds the corridos singer returning to urbano following “La Bebe Remix,” his hit song with Yng Lvcas, which has now spent 16 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. “QUEMA” is part of Castro’s upcoming studio album, El Cantante del Ghetto. 

Speaking of forthcoming sets, Spanish singer and rapper Rels B also dropped a number from his future album, Afrolova, set for a July 21 release. The track, called “Un Rodeoooo” is a sensual Afrobeats cut with bachata undertones that accompany lyrics about meeting and falling for a beautiful girl at a party. “My producers are very connected with this culture, and we’ve traveled to Nigeria to work with producers there as well. It’s a project that I believe will mark a before-and-after for the Afrobeats genre,” the Spanish artist and rapper, a former Billboard Latin Artist on the Rise, previously said to Billboard of the overall production.

Meanwhile, Residente returned with a nearly 10-minute diss track called “Bajo y Batéria,” where with he testifies to his unmatched lyrical mastery, spitting verses like, “Ya nadie en el género urbano sonríe conmigo que sus dientes me los puse de collar,” this time challenging fellow Puerto Rican rapper Cosculluela.

Other new releases included in the weekly fan poll are: Karol G’s “S91;” Duki, Khea, and Bizarrap’s “Remember Me;” and Nathy Peluso’s “Salvaje,” to name a few. 

Last week, C. Tangana’s “Oliveira Dos Cen Años” won the reader poll with nearly 90 percent of the votes. Who should win this week? Vote below!

14 Jul 2023

Trippie Redd Announces New Album ‘A Love Letter to You 5’

Trippie Redd fans just keep on eating. The Billboard 200-topping rapper is set to release A Love Letter To You 5, his new studio album, on August 4. The new release marks the fifth entry in the rapper’s Love Letter series, and the first since 2019’s A Love Letter To You 4. Details regarding the new album are scarce, but Trippie shared the record’s official artwork on his Instagram and Twitter pages.

A Love Letter To You 5 is the second full-length release of the year for Trippie Redd. The Sky Morales-featuring “Took My Breath Away,” which Trippie released last month (June 16), is set to appear on the tracklist for the new record. In January, the rapper surprised fans with Mansion Musik, a sprawling 27-track mixtape. The project debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, his seventh consecutive top five debut, and featured collaborations with Travis Scott, Rylo Rodriguez, Future, Lil Baby, Ski Mask the Slump God, and more. Trippie later revealed that he was forced the rush-release the project because all of the tracks were being “held for ransom” by unidentified hackers.

Trippie Redd has landed nine titles on the Billboard 200, seven of which reached the top five dating back to 2018’s Life’s A Trip. He has also sent four projects to No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. On the Billboard Hot 100, the rapper has earned 35 entries, reaching as high as No. 11 with 2021’s “Miss the Rage” (with Playboi Carti). Recently, Spotify named Trippie Redd as one of the 50 most-streamed rappers in the platform’s history.

Check out the cover art for A Love Letter To You 5 here:

14 Jul 2023

Taylor Swift Was in Attendance at Questlove’s Massive UNO Game Night

Questlove hosted a star-studded game night this week, bringing together some huge celebrities for a good old game of UNO.

“I’m always having Movie Night, Food Salons, Jam Sessions, Karaoke Madness anything communal with my peers et al,” The Roots member wrote on Instagram alongside a series of photos from the bash, in which Taylor Swift is seen checking her cards at the table. Other superstars in attendance included Jason Sudeikis, Michael Che, Mike Birbiglia and more.

See Questlove’s post here. Sadly, the musician did not reveal the winner of the massive tournament.

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Swift’s appearance at the UNO game night comes amid her wildly successful The Eras tour, which kicks back up at Denver’s Empower field for two back-to-back shows on Friday (July 14) and Saturday (July 15).

In celebration of her arrival, Colorado Governor Jared Polis shared a letter to his official Instagram account, tying in dozens of Swift’s song lyrics and titles to welcome the Grammy winner. “I know your performances will be Gorgeous and have our heartbeats skipping down Colfax Avenue,” he wrote. “I’m confident 140,000+ concert goers will look back and say your concert was The Best Day, straight out of their Wildest Dreams.”

After the “Anti-Hero” singer — who recently released Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), the third of her six re-recorded albums — wraps up in Denver, she’ll head to just three more U.S. cities on the Eras Tour before she takes her bestselling trek global. Featuring support from Paramore and Sabrina Carpenter, the international tour dates have Swift set to begin in Latin America before making her way through Asia, Europe and Australia.

14 Jul 2023

Bunnie XO Introduces Jelly Roll’s 6-Year-Old Son to Fans in Sweet Video

Jelly Roll has previously introduced his fans to his daughter, Bailee Ann, even bringing her onstage during a concert in Houston last year to sing with him on the song “Tears Could Talk.” And his wife, Bunnie, has introduced fans to the country star’s 6-year-old son, Noah.

In the video clip, which Bunnie posted to TikTok, she invites Noah to sit with her.

“My name is Noah, and my favorite color is red,” he tells the camera before stating his full name and indicating his age by holding up six fingers.

“You’re going to be seven!” Bunnie says, as Noah states that he will indeed turn seven on Aug. 23.

Bunnie asks Noah what his favorite sport is and he first says, “Pokemon,” laughing and answering with “soccer.” He also talks about his love for animals and his older sister Bailee, and says he loves going to the beach to “play in the water and let the waves catch me.”

To date, Jelly Roll has primarily kept Noah out of the spotlight out of respect for Noah’s birth mother. In the video’s comments, one fan stated, “I remember when his [birth mom] didn’t want to bring Noah into the spotlight. I’m so happy for y’all!” and telling Bunnie, “You’re a great bonus mom!”

Bunnie responded by confirming, “We asked, and she said it was OK. Always mama-approved first.”

Jelly Roll, who was recently a Billboard cover star and released his latest album, Whitsitt Chapel, last month, just earned his first Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs No. 1 with “Need a Favor,” which also peaked atop the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart and is rising on the Country Airplay chart.

See Bunnie’s TikTok introducing Noah below:

14 Jul 2023

Friday Dance Music Guide: The Week’s Best New Tracks From Tycho, Shouse & More

This week in dance music: Disclosure announced a new album, out today (July 14), and a boatload of other new music also dropped alongside it. Let’s get into it.

Shouse feat. House Gospel Choir, “Your Love”

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The Label: Hell Beach

The Spiel: Yes, the Australia/New Zealand-born duo is indeed following up their massive hit 2017 “Love Tonight” — which was sent into ubiquity via David Guetta’s 2021 remix — and this year’s second Guetta collab “Live Without Love” with another ode to romance. Featuring the House Gospel Choir (who also figured in The Blessed Madonna’s recently released “Mercy”), the song takes a moody, sort of celestial house production and adds a sort auto-tuned alien voice and then a swarm of very human vocals, which are altogether likely to hit you in your similarly human feels.

The Vibe: What’s not to love?

Tycho, “Time To Run”

The Label: Mom + Pop

The Spiel: The venerable Tycho drops his first track of the year via the chipper, punchy “Time To Run.” Taking influence from the producer born Scott Hansen’s real life love of running — and coming with a sweet and simple running-centric video — the song layers a looped guitar riff and drums with effervescent and quintessentially Tycho electronic elements, building to a quick clip with a smart, bright mood.

The Artist Says: “Music has always served as a kind of meditation for me, long before I started creating it,” says Hansen. “As a competitive runner throughout my early life, I would play back loops of songs in my head to cope with the stress of races, focusing on rhythmic elements to help pace myself and stay calm. There is a unique form of clarity that I have found through the meditative practice of running, it is a fundamentally human experience, and when I feel the deepest connection between the mind, body, and nature. ‘Time to Run’ is my attempt to translate these ideas into music. My goal was to approach the composition from a new angle and let the rhythmic elements take the lead. I cast the melodic elements that have come to define the Tycho sound in a new light by juxtaposing them against a new foundation that takes cues from funk music.”

The Vibe: Runner’s high.

Joel Corry, Icona Pop & Rain Radio, “Desire”

The Label: Atlantic Records

The Spiel: The eternally productive Joel Corry links with Swedish favs Icona Pop and Rain Radio — the secret-ish duo from Fred again.. and his brother Benjy — for a compact (just two minutes and 39 seconds!) but nonetheless full throttle ’90s style house anthem, with a singalong bridge and an earworm melody that’s sure to get lodged in your head, but which is good enough that you won’t actually be annoyed about it.

The Artist Says: “I’m so excited to finally release ‘Desire’ with Icona Pop and Rain Radio”, Corry says in a statement. “It’s been the most requested track ID in my sets for months and always goes off wherever I play it across the globe.”

The Vibe: When the only thing you really desire is to just be dancing hard with your eyes closed in a dark club in the middle of the night.

Baauer feat. Betsy, “Nothing’s Ever Real”

The Label: LuckyMe

The Spiel: Baauer’s house era continues with the bright, piano-heavy “Nothing’s Ever Real.” The track features vocals from Welsh singer Betsy, who insists “’cause nothing’s ever real enough, takе what you want,” and comes with a video in which Baauer revives the sound recording guy character from the video for 2022’s “Let Me Love You” — extending both this persona and the facets of real world romance he captures.

The Vibe: Pretty real, actually.

Duke Dumont feat. Nathan Nicholson, “Losing Control”

The Label: Astralwerks

The Spiel: Duke Dumont never misses and certainly isn’t starting today — with the release of another slice of the dark, transportive, larger-than-life club club fare that is his calling card. Featuring interestingly paced vocals from Nathan Nicholson of The Boxer Rebellion, “Losing Control” is urgent, sophisticated immersive and in possession of a deeply satisfying wind up and release that will surely help any given listener let go at least a little bit.

The Artist Says: “I made this record alongside Nathan Nicholson with my live show experience in mind,” Dumont says in a statement. “Strobe lights, iconic visual, anthemic synth leads, and a vocal hook that conjures paranoia or liberation, depending how you interpret the song. At the festivals I’ve been paying it’s been a big moment for the set.”

The Vibe: Liberation, for sure.

14 Jul 2023

Demi Lovato Says a Collaboration With Kelly Clarkson Is a ‘High Possibility’: ‘We Just Have to Find the Right Song’

Demi Lovato has one major collaboration on her bucket list. In a Friday (July 14) interview with Andy Cohen for his SiriusXM show, the “29” singer revealed that Kelly Clarkson is on her dream list and noted that the pair have talked about working on a song together sometime in the future.

“I’ve never worked with Kelly Clarkson, and I love her so much and I grew up idolizing her,” the singer told Cohen. Lovato idolized the American Idol alumn so much that “my first email was littlekelly@yahoo.com with some numbers. I won’t tell you which ones.”

Lovato asserted that working with Clarkson is a “life goal” of theirs, but the song in question would have to be perfect. “We just have to find the right song. We’ve definitely talked about it in the past, so it’s like not in the works, but it’s a high possibility. It’s just like finding the right song that the both of us can belt on would be dope,” they said.

In the meantime, the former Disney Channel star will be releasing REVAMPED, collection of her previous hits reimagined as rock music. “Breathing new life into the songs that played such a huge role in my career has allowed me to feel so much closer to my music than ever before. I can’t wait for you to hear REVAMPED,” Lovato announced on Friday.

She continued, “With REVAMPED, I wanted to pay homage to the songs that resonated the most with fans and played a big role in my career by breathing an exciting new life into them. Creating this project has been incredibly fun and allowed me to express my passion for rock music in a new way, and I feel so much closer to my older music because of it. I can’t wait for everyone to hear more!”

REVAMPED — which will include “Sorry Not Sorry (Rock Version),” “Heart Attack (Rock Version)” and “Cool for the Summer (Rock Version)” — will arrive on Sept. 15. 

Watch Lovato talk about working with Clarkson in the video above.