Music

Katy Perry Shares Update on Sobriety Pact With Orlando Bloom

Katy Perry shared in March that she and fiancé Orlando Bloom were taking a three-month break from drinking alcohol, but with that period now over, is she still abstaining? The pop star gave an update on Wednesday (June 21) and revealed that she’s going strong — most of the time.

The “Teenage Dream” singer told People that she is “not really drinking” on weeknights, “but on the weekend I’ll indulge a little bit.” The pact was initially a way to support Bloom, noted the singer, who shares a daughter named Daisy with the actor.

“We did this because he’s shooting a movie in London right now that’s taking every ounce of his focus, and so I wanted that opportunity to be supportive,” Perry said. “It’s really hard to do anything — whether that’s doing a cleanse or a reset — unless your partner’s doing it. So, doing it together makes it so much easier.”

“For me, it was an opportunity to reset,” the 38-year-old shared. “We reset after President’s Day, and it was a great opportunity to just let my body bounce back a little bit … I’ve had a pretty good relationship with just finding balance.”

At the end of March, Perry revealed the pact during a cocktail event attended by fellow American Idol judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan. “I’ve been sober for five weeks today … I’ve been doing a pact with my partner and I want to quit,” she shared at the time. “I can’t cave. I made a promise. Three months.”

Drinking less alcohol might be slightly easier for Perry, as she has her own line of non-alcoholic aperitifs called De Soi. The pop star also told People that she doesn’t “really identify with any labels as far as sober or whatever,” but “I love to have my reset moments, especially being 38, balancing the intensity of my career and having a toddler who loves to run.”

Kelly Clarkson Sings Karaoke With Stunned Fans at Album Release Event: See the Videos

It’s never surprising to hear one of Kelly Clarkson‘s many hits sung at any given karaoke party — but it is rather rare that Kelly Clarkson herself joins you onstage to sing them.

Dozens of unsuspecting fans’ wildest dreams came true Thursday night (June 22) at Sid Gold’s Request Room in New York City, where the 41-year-old pop star made a surprise karaoke night appearance just ahead of the midnight release of her new album, Chemistry. In one video captured from the event, Clarkson enters the bar as two partygoers belt out the Grammy winner’s early career hit “Behind These Hazel Eyes” and starts singing along from the crowd, causing heads around her to turn in shock.

In another video posted on Instagram by Clarkson, she cheerfully assists a pair of fans in performing her 2004 smash “Since U Been Gone” with a drink in one hand and a microphone in the other. “Karaoke night!!” she simply wrote in her caption.

The talk-show host ended up singing with fans for more than an hour, a rep for Clarkson told Billboard. The fans at the party were invited to celebrate Chemistry‘s release, and though Clarkson wasn’t originally scheduled to attend, she found time in her album promotion schedule to stop in and surprise the group.

Preceded by singles “Me,” “Mine,” “Favorite Kind of High” and more, Chemistry arrived Friday (June 23). “the wait is finally over!” Clarkson wrote on Instagram after the record’s midnight release. “i hope y’all enjoy it! ??☀️”

The project marks Clarkson’s first album since her high-profile divorce from ex-husband Brandon Blackstock, which the singer has been open about inspiring of the songs on Chemistry. “This album is definitely the arc of an entire relationship,” the musician said in March, when she first announced the project. “That whole relationship shouldn’t be brought down to one thing. There’s the good, the bad and the ugly kind of thing going on.”

See videos from Kelly Clarkson’s surprise karaoke event below:

Camilo Explains How the Voices of ‘La Tribu’ Inspired ‘De Adentro Pa’ Afuera’ Deluxe Album

If there’s one thing that has transformed Camilo’s life—besides fatherhood—it’s touring. 

While on the road last year with his De Adentro Pa’ Afuera Tour, the Colombian singer-songwriter experienced a life-changing show that took place in Spain’s Puerta de Alcalá and ultimately led him to release the deluxe edition of his De Adentro Pa’ Afuera album. 

“When we did the concert in Spain, we were so focused on the event as such that we weren’t thinking about it being a deluxe part of the album,” Camilo tells Billboard. “It was when we later saw the results with the cameras and the drones that we said, ‘This has to be kept forever, immortalized’. Now that I listen to it [the album], I realize that it would have been very strange if it hadn’t been like that.” 

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The deluxe album includes six singles that were recorded live at the free street concert in Spain in October of 2022: “KESI”; “Por Primera Vez” with his wife, singer and actress Evaluna; “5:24”; “De Adentro Pa Afuera”; “Tutu”; and “Vida De Rico.” The recordings also feature videos of the “surreal” and “magical” encounter that Camilo had with the nearly 100,000 fans in attendance. 

“It was surreal. It was so magical and so cinematic that it couldn’t be something from reality,” he recalls. “It was like impossible, improbable, to achieve a concert like that. Even for a Spanish artist to achieve that is very difficult, so it is privileged, it is immense and impossible to forget.” 

But the main reason the dreamlike concert was stapled into an album is because of the Grammy-winning and Latin Grammy-winning artist’s beloved fanbase “La Tribu” (the tribe). 

“The voices of the tribu changed and impacted me,” he notes. “It was necessary to listen to these songs with their voices there, hearing people scream with me. I can’t believe how loud they are. It’s incredible how they sing the songs and how their voices sound harder than the speakers outside. Love is very loud and very beautiful.”

De Adentro Pa’ Afuera (Sony Music Latin/Hecho A Mano) navigates from urban pop to banda and cumbia villera, and includes powerful collaborations such as Alejandro Sanz, Camila Cabello, Grupo Firme and Nicki Nicole, to name a few. The set debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart in September 2022. 

Listen to the deluxe edition below.

The Weeknd, JENNIE & Lily-Rose Depp Share ‘One of Your Girls,’ A Sex Song About Choking

HBO’s new series The Idol might not be a favorite with the critics (which is a kind understatement), but Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye can take comfort in the fact that selections from its soundtrack have become mini events each new music Friday.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Less than a month after “Popular” dropped, the Weeknd’s surprise collab with Queen of Pop Madonna and rage rap pioneer Playboi Carti, we’re getting a new Weeknd collab; this one is with BLACKPINK’s Jennie and actress Lily-Rose Depp, both of whom join Tesfaye on the fame-skewering series.

“One of the Girls” is a down-tempo, emotionally harrowing song about control, fame, desire and Stockholm syndrome (“F–k me up and throw away the key) that will appear on the full soundtrack to the series, which drops June 30. The song directly tips to the show’s plot, which features Tesfaye as a cult leader and Depp as the pop star he has his sights set on. “Hands on my neck while you push it up,” she sings, a tie-in to the shows numerous choking-related sex scenes. “Force me and choke me ‘til I pass out,” the Weeknd adds

“There’s nothing sexy about it,” Tesfaye previously told GQ of the sex-filled show. “With this show, we love to play with the emotions. We’re puppet-mastering your feelings through the show.”

“One of the Girls” marks JENNIE’s first official solo release since 2018, when the BLACKPINK singer released the aptly titled “Solo” (2022 also saw her appear in Grimes’ “Shinigami Eyes” video). Depp, who plays the pop star lead in The Idol, naturally sings throughout the series; so far we’ve heard her on “World Class Sinner” and “Fill the Void” with the Weeknd and Ramsey.

Doja Cat Announces The Scarlet Tour: See Dates

Doja Cat will embark on her first North American arena tour this fall with The Scarlet Tour, Live Nation announced Friday (June 23).

The 24-date tour will kick off on Halloween, Oct. 31, at San Francisco’s Chase Center and hit major U.S. cities before wrapping Dec. 13 at Chicago’s United Center. Special guests Ice Spice and Doechii will also join select dates.

The Scarlet Tour will utilize advance registration to make sure more tickets get into the hands of fans directly by filtering out bots and scalpers from the ticket purchase process. Fans can register now through Sunday, June 25, at 10 p.m. PT here. Once registration closes, they’ll be randomly selected to receive a code that gives them access to the pre-sales that start Wednesday, June 28. A limited number of tickets will be available during general on-sale that starts next Friday, June 30, at 10 a.m. local time at Ticketmaster.com while supplies last.

The “Attention” singer’s tour will also offer a variety of VIP packages and experiences for fans. Packages vary but may include premium tickets, a photo opportunity with one’s party in front of the stage, pre-show VIP Lounge access, specially designed VIP gift items and more. For more information, visit vipnation.com.

See The Scarlet Tour’s dates below.

Oct. 31 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center *
Nov. 2 — Los Angeles, CA @ Crypto.com Arena *
Nov. 3 — Las Vegas, NV @ T-Mobile Arena *
Nov. 5 — San Diego, CA @ Viejas Arena *
Nov. 6 — Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center *
Nov. 8 — Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center *
Nov. 10 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena *
Nov. 13 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center *
Nov. 15 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center *
Nov. 16 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center *
Nov. 19 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena *
Nov. 21 — Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center #
Nov. 24 — Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena *
Nov. 26 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center #
Nov. 27 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena #
Nov. 29 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center #
Nov. 30 — Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center #
Dec. 2 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden #
Dec. 4 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena #
Dec. 7 — Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center #
Dec. 8 — Omaha, NE @ CHI Health Center #
Dec. 10 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena #
Dec. 11 — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena #
Dec. 13 — Chicago, IL @ United Center #

* with Doechii
# with Ice Spice

Young Thug Drops New Album ‘Business Is Business’: Stream It Now

Young Thug isn’t slowing things down despite being in jail as he returns with his first album in two years. Titled Business Is Business includes features from Drake, Future, and more.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Business Is Business will be Thug’s first album since 2021’s Punk. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and earned 90,000 equivalent album units. The 20-track set included a star-studded guest list, including A$AP Rocky, J. Cole, Doja Cat, Drake, Future, Gunna, Juice WRLD, Post Malone, Mac Miller, Nate Ruess, and Travis Scott. Business Is Business will also serve as Thug’s first body of work since being indicted in May as part of a sweeping gang case against dozens of members from his YSL crew.

After pleading guilty to a single racketeering conspiracy charge last December, Gunna was released from jail while Thug remains incarcerated over charges that include allegations of murder, carjacking, armed robbery, drug dealing and illegal firearm possession over the past decade. 

“While I have agreed to always be truthful, I want to make it perfectly clear that I have NOT made any statements, have NOT been interviewed, have NOT cooperated, have NOT agreed to testify or be a witness for or against any party in the case and have absolutely NO intention of being involved in the trial process in any way,” the rapper wrote in a statement after his release last December.

Last week, Gunna dropped his new album A Gift & A Curse, headlined by the project’s debut single “Bread & Butter.” 

Stream Business Is Business below. 

Nicki Minaj & Ice Spice Welcome Us To ‘Barbie World’: Stream It Now

It took a little over a decade, but Nicki Minaj, the Queen of the Barbz herself, is finally rapping over AQUA’s iconic “Barbie Girl.” At long last, “Barbie World,” the new collaboration between Minaj and Ice Spice, has arrived.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The latest single from the Mark Ronson-produced Barbie soundtrack marks the reunion of Minaj, Ice Spice, and RiotUSA. The trio first linked up on the remix of Ice Spice’s “Princess Diana,” which debuted and peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Combining elements of drill and Jersey club, the new track is a sleek fusion of hip-hop’s most popular sounds and the individual styles of Minaj and Ice Spice. The track also features a prominent sample of AQUA’s “Barbie Girl,” a welcome treat for fans after initial reports seemed to indicate that the song would not appear in the Greta Gerwig-helmed film. “Barbie Girl” peaked at No. 7 on the Hot 100 back in 1997, AQUA’s sole top ten hit.

Minaj first announced the song on June 10 with a Tweet reading, “It’s Barbie, b—h, if you still in doubt.” The iconic doll has long been a part of Minaj’s artistry and image; she even posed as one on the cover for her 2010 Billboard 200-topping debut album Pink Friday. In a recent episode of her Queen Radio Amp show, Minaj opened up about why she decided to accept Ice Spice’s invitation and join her on “Barbie World.” “This is the first time that someone had put this sample in a way that didn’t make me uncomfortable or gimmicky,” the “Super Freaky Girl” rapper said. “I figured out that it needed to be a beat that would still give Barbie & Nicki.”

Barbie: The Album will be available on all streaming and digital download platforms on July 21. The soundtrack is set to feature contributions from Khalid, Gayle, Kali, Fifty Fifty, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, PinkPantheress, Lizzo, and more.

Stream “Barbie World” below:

Kelly Clarkson Breaks Down What Her Song ‘Rock Hudson’ Is About… And What It Isn’t

On Kelly Clarkson’s just-released 10th studio album Chemistry, the song “Rock Hudson” tells the tale of a silver-screen love story that turned out to be all Hollywood smoke and mirrors. The first line of the song: “You were my Rock Hudson/ It was real but it wasn’t.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“I thought I found my Rock Hudson,” Clarkson tells Billboard‘s Pop Shop Podcast about her eight-year marriage to Brandon Blackstock that ended in a 2021 divorce. (Clarkson’s full podcast interview will air on Tuesday’s Pop Shop episode next week.) “I never thought that even existed, if I’m being honest with you. I thought that was total bullsh–. So I didn’t even think that was real.”

Clarkson says Hudson — an Academy Award-nominated actor who was one of the most popular leading men of the late ’50s — became her “movie guy” after watching him opposite Doris Day in the 1959 romantic comedy Pillow Talk when she was a kid. “I fell in love with him.”

As she re-examined her ill-fated marriage for the new album, Clarkson realized that the early days “kind of played out like a movie. Like how we met, how we ended up together, things we had in common — like childhood things. We grew up in the same town and didn’t know each other … it just felt like a movie. And it felt too good to be true — which, OK, it was, but that was the reference.”

What she wasn’t expecting after co-writing “Rock Hudson” with producer Jesse Shatkin was that the song could be interpreted another way: While Hudson portrayed a dashing ladies’ man onscreen, the actor was privately a gay man who kept his sexuality under wraps to maintain his Hollywood career, even marrying his agent’s secretary in the ’50s to keep up the illusion. He died of AIDS in 1985 at age 59.

Clarkson says that piece of Hudson’s identity didn’t inspire the song.

“That can be misleading,” Clarkson tells Billboard. “It’s not referencing Rock’s life, like his personal life and what he was, unfortunately, having to hide from the public. … My producer [Shatkin] didn’t have a clue about [Hudson’s] story at all, and I wasn’t even thinking about that. And it was funny, because somebody at the label [Atlantic Records], I think, is the first person who was like, ‘So, Kelly…’ I was like, ‘Oh no!’ It’s just about having that movie life that people think that you have that’s so perfect, and it’s not [perfect] behind closed doors.”

Elsewhere on “Rock Hudson,” Clarkson references her 2016 Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit “Piece by Piece,” an emotional song she wrote in tribute to her then-husband Blackstock. “By the way, piece by piece, I found out my hero’s me,” Clarkson confidently sings on the new song.

Listen to “Rock Hudson” below, and hear Clarkson’s full interview with Billboard‘s Pop Shop Podcast on Tuesday, June 27.

–Additional reporting by Keith Caulfield

Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Chemistry’ Is Here: Stream It Now

Following her divorce from Brandon Blackstock in 2020 after seven years of marriage, Kelly Clarkson channeled her heartbreak into an emotional new album, Chemistry, which arrived on Friday (June 23).

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“I’ve been working on this project for close to three years now. I wasn’t sure I was going to release it, but I am. The album is called Chemistry,” Clarkson said in a video on Instagram back in March announcing her 10th studio effort. “I was trying to find a word, it might be one of the songs on the album, but I was trying to find a word that really described the whole thing. I didn’t want everybody to think I was just coming out with some ‘I’m angry,’ ‘I’m sad’ — just one or two emotions. This album is definitely the arc of an entire relationship.”

She continued, “That whole relationship shouldn’t be brought down to one thing. There’s the good, the bad and the ugly kind of thing going on. Chemistry can be a really amazing, sexy, cool, fun thing, but it can also be very bad for you. So that’s why I named it Chemistry, I thought it was the perfect title to describe the entire album.”

Chemistry features previously released track “Favorite Kind of High” as well as double singles “Mine” and “Me.”

The album also includes a track called “I Hate Love,” which features none other than Steve Martin on banjo thanks to the lyric: “I hate love, and The Notebook lied / It’s Complicated is more like what happens, so you can keep Gosling and I’ll take Steve Martin.”

Listen to Chemistry in full below.

Kevin Jonas’ Daughters Star in Adorable Back-to-School Campaign

Summer may have just started, but the Jonas Brothers are ready to welcome Kevin Jonas’ two daughters back to school with an adorable new The Children’s Place campaign.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

In the ad released on Thursday (June 22), Kevin Jonas is seen FaceTiming his wife Danielle and the couple’s two daughters, nine-year-old Alena and six-year-old Valentina. “I just want to wish you an amazing first day of school,” Kevin tells his girls before Joe Jonas steps into the shot.

“Hey, Alena, you’re going to have a great day,” Joe assures, before Nick Jonas adds, “Don’t forget to dream big.”

A fantasy sequence then starts to the tune of the Jonas BrothersThe Album track, “Celebrate!” Alena and Valentina are seen decked out in their best The Children’s Place outfits, as the sisters go on to have the best first day of school, complete with winning a talent show, eating pizza and cupcakes for lunch, and Kevin Jonas appearing for Career Day before taking the students over to the gym for a Jonas Brothers concert.

In addition to the adorable advertisement, the JoBros and The Children’s Place are teaming up for a contest in which one school will be gifted a $100,000 grant and also have the opportunity to attend a private Jonas Brothers concert at a secret location in New Jersey. Parents with children in grades K-8 who are enrolled in a non-tuition-based school for the 2023-2024 school year can nominate their child’s school through The Children’s Place mobile app until the contest wraps on July 30.

Watch the new advertisement starring Alena and Valentina below.