Music

25 May 2023

Metro Boomin Unveils First Set of Features for ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Soundtrack

After taking the reins as executive producer for the forthcoming Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Soundtrack, Metro Boomin’ left breadcrumbs on his Instagram about who fans can expect on the project. On Wednesday (May 24), Metro revealed the first three features: Future, Don Toliver and James Blake.

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Known for his creative punch, Metro cleverly unveiled the lineup by posting illustrations of each artist in Spider-Man costumes. The first reveal was Don Toliver, who is in a purple custom Spidey suit. “Don Toliver is confirmed for the @spiderversemovie soundtrack available everywhere June 2!! ?️,” wrote Metro. After disclosing Future and James Blake’s appearances in their respective illustrated costumes, the following posts shared similar captions. 

Across the Spider-Verse Soundtrack comes on the heels of Metro’s third Billboard 200 No. 1 album, Heroes and Villains. The project included features from The Weeknd, 21 Savage, Young Thug, Future and Travis Scott. “Creepin” headlined the 15-track collection, as it earned a top-five slot on the Billboard Hot 100. The Weeknd and 21 Savage-fueled song remains a top player this week, sitting at No. 7 on the charts after its initial release six months ago.  

“I can’t say this about a lot of songs because I just try to make stuff that I love and hope it resonates with other people, but it’s really a rare occasion to where even after we made [‘Creepin”]. It was like, ‘OK. I know this is gonna go up,’” Metro said in an interview with Billboard in January. “Not just because of me or because of The Weeknd, but also with it halfway being a cover of a song that I loved so much growing up, and just know how much it worked before [and] it getting a new spin for the next generation.”

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse arrives June 2. Check out Metro’s posts below. 

25 May 2023

Kali Dials Up Her First Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Top 10 With ‘Area Codes’

Rising rapper Kali races to her first top 10 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with her breakout hit “Area Codes,” which sprints 16-10 on the list dated May 27. The viral smash hit continues its impressive journey, having debuted at No. 48 just two weeks ago, and continues to swell in streams and sales.

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“Area Codes,” released on Trump Card/Atlantic Records, rang up 12.5 million official U.S. streams in the week ending May 18, according to Luminate, a 35% surge from the prior week. The improvement pushes the track 11-6 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs chart. Sales, too, are up by double-digit percentage gains: “Area Codes” sold 2,000 downloads in the same period, up 65% and prompting an 8-6 rise on R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales. Thanks to the sales boost, “Area Codes” nabs the week’s Sales Gainer honor for the biggest increase among the chart’s 50 titles.

Emphasizing the song’s viral appeal, “Area Codes” has reached the top 10 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with minimal airplay, the third metric – along with sales and streams – that factors into the chart’s rankings. The single registered 1.4 million in audience impressions, the 13th lowest among the chart’s 38 songs with airplay activity.

By reaching No. 10, Kali’s “Area Codes” also matches the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs peak rank of the song it interpolates, Ludacris’ song of the same name, featuring Nate Dogg, from August 2001.

TikTok has been a significant factor in the song’s growing profile, as a portion of it has soundtracked more than 400,000 clips on the platform to date. (While activity on TikTok does not contribute directly to Billboard’s charts, some of the most popular songs experience corresponding gains in digital sales and streaming on contributing services.)

Elsewhere, “Area Codes” dials up other advances on several charts, including an 8-5 jump on Hot Rap Songs and a 54-33 flight on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.

25 May 2023

YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s ‘Richest Opp’ Debuts at No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart

Just three weeks after YoungBoy Never Broke Again last ruled Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, the rapper is back in command as his newest album, Richest Opp, debuts at No. 1 on the list dated May 27. The set launches with 51,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending May 18, according to Luminate.

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Richest Opp gives YoungBoy Never Broke Again his ninth No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and comes just three weeks after his eighth, Don’t Try This at Home. The three-week window between new champs is the shortest gap for any artist since March 2017, when Future posted two new No. 1s – a self-titled album and HENDRXX – in consecutive weeks.

Notably, Richest Opp’s entrance gives YoungBoy Never Broke Again his 19th top 10 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and breaks him from a tie with Nas (18) for the second-most top 10s by a rapper in the list’s history. Only Jay-Z, with 21 top 10s, claims more.

As with all YoungBoy Never Broke Again releases, streaming powers nearly all the first-week, 51,000 units, with 50,000 of them from that consumption method. The unit figure equals 74.37 million official on-demand streams of the album’s 17 songs. Traditional album sales contribute 500 of the remaining balance, with a sliver of negligible units deriving from track-equivalent album units. (One unit equals the following levels of consumption: one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.)

With Richest Opp now part of the rapper’s collection, here’s a recap of all of YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s No. 1s on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Each of his leaders debuted at No. 1 and held the rank for one week.

Title, Date Reached No. 1

  • AI Youngboy 2, Oct. 26, 2019
  • Still Flexin, Still Steppin, March 7, 2020
  • 38 Baby 2, May 9, 2020
  • Top, Sept. 26, 2020
  • Sincerely, Kentrell, Oct. 9, 2021
  • Colors, Feb. 5, 2022
  • The Last Slimeto, Aug. 20, 2022
  • Don’t Try This at Home, May 6, 2023
  • Richest Opp, May 27, 2023

Elsewhere, Richest Opp opens at No. 1 on the Top Rap Albums chart and at No. 4 on the all-genre Billboard 200.

As Richest Opp arrives, eight of its tracks debut on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. “Bitch Let’s Do It” leads the pack, at No. 17, followed by “F–k the Industry, Pt. 2” (No. 28), “I Heard” (No. 31), “I Got That Shit” (No. 32), “Hurt My Heart” (No. 34), “Dirty Thug” (No. 35), “Free Meechy” (No. 43) and “Just Flow” (No. 50).

25 May 2023

Cher Describes Longtime Friendship With Tina Turner, Singer’s Final Months: ‘She Fought This Sickness for Such a Long Time’

Like so many fans, celebrities and fellow artists paying tribute to Queen of Rock N’ Roll Tina Turner, Cher thought her friend was simply the best. The singer paid tribute to Turner, who died on Wednesday (May 24) at age 83, during a call in to MSNBC’s The Beat with Ari Melber just hours after the news broke that the Grammy-winner and two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer had passed following a long illness.

“I started going to visit her because I thought, ‘I need to put this time into our friendship, so she knows we haven’t forgotten her,’” Cher told Melber. “So we all took turns going and spending time with her and it made her happy.” She noted that a friend said it was always a scene when they were together because they would crack each other up and laugh their “distinct” laughs.

Cher said the first time she went to visit Turner at her home in Switzerland the singer was laying on a chaise lounge she had positioned in front of a window overlooking a lake and warned that she didn’t have much time to hang out. “Then five hours later we were laughing like crazy and she wanted to get up and show everything that she’d bought in the house,” Cher said. “She was having a good time in spite of the fact that she was really sick and not wanting people to know about it.”

Though no cause of death was given, Cher said that Turner had “her dialysis machine in her house,” hinting that the “What’s Love Got to Do With It” star may have been employing the device typically used by people with kidney failure or end-stage renal disease. Turner was known to suffer from kidney issues and got a kidney transplant from her husband, Erwin Bach, in 2017.

“She fought this sickness for such a long time and she was so strong as you think she would be, but I know towards the end, she told me once, she said, ‘I’m really ready. I just don’t want to put up with this anymore,’” Cher said.

Cher called Turner “one of the great artists” in rock history, saying there was no one else like her. “As a woman, she gave you lots of strength and I’m sure she’s encouraged so many young people… she gave me lots of strength sometimes and I gave her lots of strength, too. I think we were perfect friends for each other truthfully.”

Calling her a “force,” Cher said Turner always approached life “head-on… She wasn’t about to stop. She might not have won every battle, but she fought every war. She was there fighting for all the things she believed in.”

Thinking about the last time they hung out, Cher — who first met Turner when she was in the midst of her abusive marriage to ex-husband Ike Turner — said Tina sent her home with a very memorable gift. “She gave me a pair of shoes the last time I saw her. What kind of shoes? Tina Turner shoes!” Cher laughed. “The big high heels that she just [walked] around in like they were nothing.”

Listen to Cher’s tribute to Turner below.

25 May 2023

Lil Durk & J. Cole’s ‘Life’ Launches at No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart

Lil Durk storms in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with “All My Life” featuring J. Cole, on the list dated May 27. The song opens as the genre’s most-streamed song and the third-best seller of the week.

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“All My Life,” released on May 12 via Alamo Records, begins with 30.9 million official U.S. streams earned in the week ending May 18, according to Luminate. The sum allows for a No. 1 entrance on the R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs chart, where it becomes Lil Durk’s third champ and J. Cole’s fourth leader. It also sold 3,000 downloads in the same period, yielding a No. 3 start on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart. On the radio side, “All My Life” registered 10.8 million in audience impressions in its debut week.

With “All My Life,” Lil Durk earns his third No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. He first visited the summit as a featured artist on Drake’s six-week champ, “Laugh Now Cry Later,” in 2020-21, and later conquered the list with his own “Broadway Girls” featuring Morgan Wallen for one week in 2022.

For J. Cole, “All My Life” is his second Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs No. 1, and nearly shares its title with his prior leader. “My Life,” with 21 Savage and Morray, ruled for one week in 2021.

Elsewhere, “All My Life” opens at No. 1 on the Hot Rap Songs chart, becoming the second No. 1 on the list for both artists. It begins at No. 2 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, tying both artists’ career bests. Lil Durk previously peaked in the runner-up slot with “Laugh Now Cry Later,” while J. Cole nabbed a prior silver with “My Life.”

“All My Life” previews Lil Durk’s Almost Healed album, scheduled for release on May 26. In addition to the J. Cole feature, the set will include guest spots from Future, 21 Savage, Kodak Black, Morgan Wallen, Juice WRLD and more.

25 May 2023

Ledisi’s ‘I Need to Know’ Hits No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart

Ledisi scores her second No. 1 on Billboard’s Adult R&B Airplay chart as “I Need to Know” leaps from No. 3 to lead the list dated May 27. The single ascends after an 8% gain in weekly plays that made it the most-played song on U.S. monitored adult R&B radio stations in the week ending May 18, according to Luminate.

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The new champ continues a recent rotation atop Adult R&B Airplay. “I Need to Know” is the fourth leader in the last four weeks, following, in order, Ambré’s “I’m Baby,” featuring Jvck James, Ravyn Lenae’s “Skin Tight,” featuring Steve Lacy and Tank’s “See Through Love,” featuring Chris Brown. The last month’s No. 1s marks the first time four different songs have led the Adult R&B Airplay chart in four consecutive weeks since June – July 2012, when Estelle’s “Thank You,” in its second nonconsecutive week at No. 1, Jill Scott’s “Blessed,” Usher’s “Climax” and John Legend’s “Tonight (Best You Ever Had),” featuring Ludacris, each passed the baton.

“I Need to Know” is Ledisi’s second Adult R&B Airplay chart-topper and follows the two-week reign of “Anything for You” in 2020. The maiden champ was a milestone achievement for the veteran performer on multiple fronts: In addition to securing her first Adult R&B Airplay champ with her 17th entry, the song also won Ledisi her first Grammy Award, for best traditional R&B performance, after 13 previous nominations.

Elsewhere, “I Need to Know” rises 22-20 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, which ranks songs by combined audience totals from adult R&B and mainstream R&B/hip-hop radio stations. There, the single added 12% in weekly audience to reach 6.8 million impressions. The move secures Ledisi’s fourth top 20 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, following “Pieces of Me” (No. 19 in 2011), “I Blame You” (No. 20, 2014) and “Anything for You” (No. 13, 2020).

25 May 2023

Muse Crosses $200 Million Milestone in Career Box Office Grosses

Post-pandemic anticipation helped accelerate a new class of arena headliners, but also cemented long-time road warriors on their ways to new peaks. More than 20 years into the band’s touring career, Muse is reaching new heights on the Will of the People World Tour. With reported data through April 12, the glam hard rockers break the $200 million barrier in career grosses, having earned $206.6 million, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore.

The Will of the People World Tour launched in October with theater-sized underplays in major markets, before playing a quartet of shows in Mexico in January. Muse then traveled north for a proper run of arena shows in the U.S. and Canada, playing 24 dates across two months. In all, the tour has reported grosses of $36.1 million and sold 402,000 tickets over 30 shows.

Broken out by region, it’s the biggest tour of the band’s career. In Mexico City, two shows at Foro Sol grossed $6.8 million and sold 107,000 tickets, eclipsing plays in the same city in 2019, 2013 and 2007, in terms of revenue and attendance. In Guadalajara, the Jan. 20 show grossed $1.2 million and sold 13,000 tickets, up 34% from an area play in 2013.

In arenas in the U.S. and Canada, Muse’s business averaged out to $1.1 million per show, marking the band’s first North American tour to crack the seven-figure line. Previously, The 2nd Law World Tour (2012-14), the Drones World Tour (2015-16) and the Simulation Theory World Tour (2019) each paced between $700,000-800,000, while the current run represents a 50% increase from what had seemed to become their standard business.

Muse’s star rose throughout the 2000s and 2010s, reaching increasingly higher until they amassed some of the biggest rock hits of all time (2009’s “Uprising” and 2012’s “Madness” are Nos. 1 and 4, respectively, on Billboard’s Greatest of All Time Alternative Songs chart) and then scored a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with 2015’s Drones. But years beyond those chart peaks, Muse hits a new high on tour, backed by last year’s Will of the People.

The Will of the People World Tour resumes this weekend in the U.K., continuing throughout Europe with a mix of headline tour dates and headline-festival gigs. Muse’s tour history indicates that the shows across the pond will earn about 20% more than the spring’s North American dates, pushing the tour gross toward the $50 million mark.

More than two decades as road warriors, Muse’s latest grosses push their career total to $206.6 million and 3.1 million tickets.

25 May 2023

Grammy Camp 2023 Expands From 5 to 7 Days

Grammy Camp, the Grammy Museum’s program for U.S. high school students interested in learning more about careers in the music industry, is expanding from five to seven days this year. The camp will be held from Sunday, July 16, to Saturday, July 22, at USC’s Ronald Tutor Campus Center.

The Grammy Museum announced Thursday (May 25) that 86 high school students have been selected as participants in the 19th annual Grammy Camp program. Gracie Abrams, Lizzy McAlpine, G Flip, Moore Kismet and Paul Klein from LANY will be this year’s guest artists. They will discuss their career paths and help students prepare for the music industry.

“Grammy Camp embodies the Grammy Museum’s mission and education initiatives,” Michael Sticka, president/CEO of the Grammy Museum, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled that with the support of the Hot Topic Foundation, Camp has extended to seven days this year, allowing high school students interested in a career in music more time and immersion to study with leading industry professionals and artists, resulting in a genuine learning experience about life in the music industry.”

Grammy Camp focuses on all aspects of commercial music and provides instruction by industry professionals in an immersive environment. The program features eight music career tracks – audio engineering, electronic music production, music business, music journalism, songwriting, vocal performance, video production, and instrumental performance. All tracks culminate in virtual media projects, recordings and/or performances.

Tuition for Grammy Camp is $1,800, though need-based financial aid is available. The Grammy Camp site notes “over the past few years over 70% of those who have applied for financial aid have received some form of assistance.” Lunch is included, but transportation and housing are not. All Grammy Campers must reside with a parent/guardian or an adult approved by the Grammy Museum.

Applications for Grammy Camp 2024 will be available online in September at the Grammy Camp site.

25 May 2023

Foo Fighters Launch First Tour With New Drummer Josh Freese, Play Four New Songs

The Foo Fighters launched their first tour with new drummer Josh Freese on Wednesday night (May 24) at the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion at Meadowbrook in Gilford, N.H. The bittersweet evening marked the band’s first tour in a quarter century without beloved late drummer Taylor Hawkins, who died last March while on tour with the group in South America at age 50.

In his stead was recently revealed new timekeeper studio and touring veteran Freese (NIN, Guns N’ Roses, A Perfect Circle), who made his official debut behind the kit on Sunday during the “Foo Fighters: Preparing Music for Concerts” livestream event.

According to Blabbermouth, the 21-song set included the live debuts of four songs that appear on the band’s upcoming 11th studio album, But Here We Are, including set-opener and first single “Rescued,” as well as new songs “Under You,” “Nothing at All” and the title track. Before the show, the band posted a two-minute video of their stage walk-on at the Gilford show with the message “Thank you so much for coming. We’ve missed you.”

During the gig, Grohl introduced Freese to the Foo family, telling the crowd, “And that’s why we hired him… everybody, would you please welcome the man behind the drums, Josh Freese,” as the drummer stood up and saluted while wearing a black t-shirt with the words “Employee of the Month” across the front in red letters. “We would not be here to night if it weren’t for Josh, so everybody give Josh a big f–king round of applause please.”

The Foos’ next show is Friday night (May 26) at the Boston Calling Festival. On Thursday morning (May 25), the band released the nature-themed video for the third single from But Here We Are, the meditative “Show Me How.”

Check out fan video of the show below, the group’s stage walk-on clip and the “Show Me How” video below.

25 May 2023

Sam Smith Exits Manchester Show After Four Songs Over Vocal Issues: ‘I Am Honestly Heartbroken’

Sam Smith wanted to put on a very special show for fans in Manchester, U.K. on Wednesday night (May 24), promising before the gig that “we’ve got a surprise for you this evening… ‘Unholy’ won’t be the last song.” Unfortunately, things did not go as planned and the singer had to cut the gig at Manchester’s AO Arena short after just four songs.

“Dearest sailors, I don’t know what to say honestly. I fought off a virus a few weeks ago and since then we have travelled across Europe and had such incredible shows,” Smith wrote in an Instagram Story reposted by the venue about the issues that have dogged them on the tour in support of their Gloria album. “Today in soundcheck I felt fine and was so excited to give Manchester an amazing show tonight, with a special surprise at the end.”

But, Smith said, during the third song, “I noticed something wrong with my voice. I prayed it was just my voice waking up for the show but into the fourth song I could feel something was really wrong. I came off stage and have tried everything to get my voice back in gear but it won’t. I am honestly heartbroken I couldn’t finish the show tonight for you all. I love you all. I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry x.”

A fan described the night in an essay for the Manchester Evening News, writing that they expected to see what they read was an elaborate production in three acts. The set opened with “Stay With Me,” followed by “I’m Not the Only One” and “Dancing With a Stranger.”

“Throughout the songs they did, Sam looked at ease, happy, and genuinely like they were loving life,” the fan wrote. “Their vibes were rubbing off on everyone else, and the whole room felt filled with love. Everything seemed to be going perfectly. That’s why it was such a shock when there was a sudden pause in the songs, with an overhead tannoy citing ‘technical difficulties.’”

She wrote that fans were not initially sure what was happening, but after 15 minutes they were told that the house lights would be coming on, as fans began making their way to the exits. “We sat for another ten minutes, hoping for good news, but the tannoy then notified us that due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’ the show was cancelled,” she wrote.

Smith’s European tour was slated to continue on Thursday night (May 25) with a show in Glasgow at the OVO Hydro. On Thursday morning the venue announced that the gig had been canceled, along with a show in Birmingham on Saturday (May 27), with refunds for all three shows available at point of purchase. “Sam is heartbroken to have had to cancel these shows but they have been told by doctors that if they keep singing, they will do permanent damage to their voice. If they take some rest, they will be able to perform again,” read the statement. The next scheduled show on the tour is in Tel Aviv, Israel on May 31.

The bad news came just as Smith teased a mystery collaboration with Madonna earlier in the day on Wednesday. At press time no additional information had been released about what the project is.

See Smith’s statement below.