Music

01 Mar 2023

All the Women With No. 1 Hot Latin Songs Hits Since 2015: Shakira, Becky G, & More

Women’s History Month has arrived, and in celebration, Billboard has compiled a list of all the women who earned a No. 1 on the Hot Latin Songs chart since 2015. The chart ranks the most popular Latin songs of the week, blending airplay, streaming, and digital sales data.

But first, let’s trace back to 2012 when icons Gloria Estefan and Paulina Rubio reached No. 1 on the coveted chart. The former debuted and peaked at No. 1 with “Hotel Nacional,” and the latter with “Me Gustas Tanto.” For over three years, women’s representation was scarce at the top of the Latin charts until Maná’s “Mi Verdad,” where they were accompanied by Shakira. The following year, Shak’s “Chantaje” (in collaboration with Maluma) debuted and peaked at No. 1 on the chart dated Nov. 19, 2016, where it ruled for 11 weeks.

Like Estefan, Rubio, and Shak, other Latinas have made Billboard history.

Karol G and Nicki Minaj’s “Tusa” became the first song to debut at No. 1 in 2019, and the first title by two women in a lead role to open atop the chart since its inception in 1986. With “Telepatia,” Kali Uchis became the first female soloist without an accompanying act to reach No. 1 since 2012. Becky G and Karol G’s “Mamiii” hit No. 1 last year, and when it was followed on top by her solo smash “Provenza,” Karol became the first woman to replace herself at No. 1 on the chart.

Starting off 2023 strong, Shakira hit No. 1 with her Bizarrap-assisted “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53,” tying Bad Bunny for the fourth-most No. 1s overall on the listing, both with 12.

Below, revisit all the tracks by or featuring a Latina artist to have reached No. 1 since 2015:

01 Mar 2023

Ed Sheeran Reveals Wife Cherry Seaborn Had a Tumor During Pregnancy: ‘I Was Spiraling Through Fear’

According to Ed Sheeran, his newly announced next album, Subtract, was written top to bottom in a little over a week. But considering the amount of life-changing events he experienced within a matter of months — one of which involved a major health scare in his family — it makes sense that inspiration flowed through him as quickly as it did.

While unveiling the title and May 5 release date for Subtract, which is stylized in standard Sheeran fashion as “-,” the 32-year-old pop star revealed that his wife, Cherry Seaborn, was diagnosed with a tumor while pregnant with the couple’s second daughter last year. “Within the space of a month, my pregnant wife got told she had a tumour, with no route to treatment until after the birth,” he shared in his album announcement, posted across his social media accounts.

Sheeran and Seaborn first met while growing up in Sheffield, eventually reconnecting in 2015, and getting married in 2018. After first becoming parents in 2020 with the arrival of their daughter Lyra, the couple welcomed their second baby in May last year.

“Want to let you all know we’ve had another beautiful baby girl,” Sheeran wrote on Instagram at the time. “We are both so in love with her, and over the moon to be a family of 4.”

Seaborn’s mid-pregnancy health complication was one of several inspirations for Subtract, on which the “Shape of You” singer says he spilled his “deepest darkest thoughts.”

“At the start of 2022, a series of events changed my life, my mental health, and ultimately the way I viewed music and art,” he wrote in his Wednesday (March 1) album announcement. “My best friend Jamal, a brother to me, died suddenly, and I found myself standing in court defending my integrity and career as a songwriter. I was spiralling through fear, depression and anxiety. I felt like I was drowning, head below the surface, looking up but not being able to break through for air.”

Sheeran also revealed that he’d scrapped a decade’s worth of work on -, which follows 2011’s +, 2014’s x, 2017’s ÷ and 2021’s =, and replaced it with a tracklist of songs written “in just over a week.” “Writing songs is my therapy,” he shared. “It helps me make sense of my feelings. I wrote without thought of what the songs would be, I just wrote whatever tumbled out.”

See Ed Sheeran’s vulnerable album announcement below:

01 Mar 2023

Swizz Beatz on Being Back in His Music Bag With the New ‘Godfather of Harlem’ Season, The Grammys’ Hip-Hop Celebration & The Future of ‘Verzuz’

Swizz Beatz has nearly three decades worth of platinum plaques, corporate partnerships and inroads into the world of fine art under his belt, but he knows that hip-hop is the foundation for what he does — so he rides for the culture every chance he gets. He’s just as much of an hip-hop ambassador as he is an artist and producer, so he moves and speaks with purpose. And with the genre celebrating its 50th birthday this year, he’s doing all he can to make sure that it gets the respect it deserves. 

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He’s three seasons in as music producer for the television series Godfather of Harlem, enlisting veteran MCs (Jadakiss and Busta Rhymes) and young talent (Lord Afrixana and ADÉ) alike to help tell the story of 1960s crime boss Bumpy Johnson, as portrayed by Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker. He also took the stage with The LOX at the Grammys last month as part of Questlove’s blowout hip-hop tribute, a star-studded performance that included everyone from Method Man and Public Enemy to Lil Baby and GloRilla. Behind the scenes, he’s been working with Timbaland to retool their Verzuz series, which went quiet after a lawsuit against their partner Triller which was eventually settled out of court. And he hasn’t forgotten about his own music, either, partnering up with Lil Wayne on the newly-released track “Kant Nobody,” featuring his late friend DMX.

In a conversation with Billboard, Swizz shared how he dives into the mind of Bumpy Johnson, why how hip-hop needs to advocate for itself with the Grammys, and the status of Verzuz. 

You worked with Wayne on “Kant Nobody.” He was featured in the top 10 of the Billboard GOAT list. What were your thoughts overall on the list? 

It didn’t make me mad. But you know, the way I would have did it — which, you know, y’all can do how you want to do it — but I would’ve said, “in no particular order.” I know those are hard lists to do. It’s never gonna be the perfect list, you know?

But if it’s in no order, people won’t read it, man.

They’re gonna read it, bro. I’m telling you. It makes it go viral by doing the numbers, I understand that whole side about it. But I feel it would have still made the same impact, and people would start making their own assumptions of who was this number and who was that number. I’d rather the artists celebrate the list as well. Now the artist is quick to make a decision. But it’s cool, it’s fun, and it’s all hip-hop. Everybody on the list is blessed.

When was the last time that your top 10 rappers list changed?

It changes a lot, because I don’t base my top 10 off of too much old things. It’s an all-time [list], and it’s a current [list]. That current one changes all the time, depending on the performance of what they do.

Who’s the youngest artist in your top 10 list?

I’d say Durk. You know why? Because for me, it’s not just about bars. It’s about believing those bars. When we first started coming up with Ruff Ryders and The LOX, what they was rapping about, they was really doing. It was really about that. It wasn’t for views, it wasn’t for an app, it was to express their surroundings. That’s what Durk does. When you hear him rap, you know that he’s actually been through what he’s talking about — some fortunate situations, some unfortunate situations, but it’s almost like an autobiography in real time. That’s what Pac did, that’s what X did, that’s what B.I.G. did. The people we call the best of all time — not comparing them to him, but they used their experiences. A lot of artists do it, but I particularly like the way Durk does it. 

A lot of the music that you make is basically created to take over a space — whether that’s a club, the car, wherever. Is it a different creative process for Godfather of Harlem, where music is often made to work in the background of a scene, as opposed to dominating at the forefront?

I feel like in the beginning, I would make a track in the studio. But then I came up with making the music a character in the show. Technically, the music you’re hearing is what goes on in Bumpy’s mind. So once I made the music a reflection of what Bumpy and the characters are thinking, it just gave me a whole ‘nother way of looking at producing the music for the show, rather than just placing songs and things that look cool. I would have the mic in the studio, and I’ll record vocals while I’m watching the scenes so it matches the scene and it matches the energy. Once I started doing that, it just took like a different turn, a different twist. It just opened up another freedom box for me creatively and it’s been it’s been so amazing.

When you’re trying to capture the mindset of a character like Bumpy, how much do you think the script tells you directly — versus you trying to figure out something that the script may not necessarily tell you overtly?

Chris Brancato and Paul Eckstein are the ultimate writers. These guys did Narcos, and so many amazing movies and shows, that their writing [level] is an educational autobiography masterclass on Harlem. It’s been very easy to work, because the stories are so compelling that I don’t even need to know any more information — they painted the picture so vivid for you already. I’m not even wondering about things no more. I’m like, “OK, got it. This makes sense. Got it.”

What kind of guidance do you give the artists with these songs?

I give them a story on what we’re shooting, how we’re shooting it. Some of them, I’ll let them see the scenes that we’re thinking about. But everybody that’s on the soundtrack now. They’re fans of the show. Season three, the theme song is “Hustle, Repeat” by Jadakiss, because Bumpy’s gotta start all over. All the dope burned down in season two, so now he gotta start all over. He almost was running the whole thing – he almost got the Italians out of the way. So now in season three, he’s gotta get money, hustle, repeat. He’s gotta get back on his ‘za. So that’s why we chose the Jadakiss song for that. It fits perfectly. And now, you’re gonna see different parts of Malcolm vibing with Castro, the whole Cuban connection. You’re gonna see a lot of a lot of great things.

Are there any other TV shows or films whose music inspired you for this, or that you watched to prepare for the challenge?

No, I didn’t do that for the show. I just got all the way into it. What I did do was, I listened to all of the songs like “Pusherman” [by Curtis Mayfield, for the film Superfly], “T Plays It Cool” [Marvin Gaye, for Trouble Man], “Shaft” [Isaac Hayes]. I listened to all the songs that represented the bad guys, or the superheroes, or whatever at those times. All of these guys had theme songs and stuff like that. I did listen to those, to see what it’s like to make music for such a large character.

Has this given you any opportunities to work with artists who you haven’t worked with before, or any ideas that you have that wouldn’t fit anywhere else?

This has been fun, because I’ve been working with a lot of unknown and up-and-coming artists, as well as known artists. We don’t have the pressure on us to just go out and get who’s making the biggest hits now. That’s the one thing that I’m happy to have: the freedom to do as I feel… putting other artists in places where you might not have seen them, and giving them the opportunity.

And then, giving a person like Jadakiss the shine to set off the series. We know what he did on Verzuz, we know what he is as a member of The LOX, we know what he is as a lyricist. But artists like that don’t really get that much chances to be on the big screen, which is why I had them on that Grammy stage and had that Ruff Ryder flag in the air — because that was the first time I think they ever performed a song [on a stage like that] that was actually their song. They would be on those stages to do other people’s shows, when it’s kind of safe. But this was a great excuse and reason to be like, “Yo, we’re gonna do ‘We Gon’ Make It’ and I’m gonna hold the Ruff Ryder flag, and we’re just gonna let the world see what it is — even if it’s for eight bars — who cares, right? So that’s how it feels with the show as well.

Let’s get into that Grammy performance. With how crazy that setup is, how much do you actually get to watch and enjoy the tribute, as opposed to just focusing on your performance?

I have to go back and watch it, because you’re right, we’re in that moment. It’s so much preparation, even for the small period of time that we was allowed to be on there. It’s rehearsals, this, that — you can’t really watch the show. It’s a lot, so I actually have to go back and watch it.

I mean, I must give the props to Questlove, I must give the props to [Recording Academy CEO] Harvey Mason Jr. from the Grammys, I must give props to [Grammys executive producer] Jesse Collins, and Jazzy Jeff. I don’t know how the hell they pulled this off, because rap artists are serious – I know that from Verzuz. A couple of people couldn’t make it, a couple of people pulled up the last minute, but they still kept it tight. They still kept it strong. And I commend them for pulling that off, because you’re dealing with all different types of energies, but hip-hop looked very strong on that stage. It was amazing.

You just said that was the first time that The LOX performed their own joint on that stage. Do you think that they get enough credit?

I think they started to get more credit from the Verzuz, when people got to see them with Dipset. Their sales went up a lot, their show dates went up a lot, their streams went up 700%. It goes to show you that the talent just has to be in front of the audience. There’s no such thing as an old artist if that artist is still creative, if the artist is still delivering, if the artist is still putting out great music. I don’t think there’s an age limit on creativity.

Look at Marvin Gaye, look at Barry White, look at all of the artists that were allowed to age gracefully with their craft. I just don’t understand this age limit thing like, “Oh, this person is old, we’re not listening to that.” No, you listened to everything. I listen to the new artists, I listened to the older artists, I listen to the artists that’s not even on Earth no more. Music is timeless. There’s no age limit on great music, there’s no age limit on great art. That’s where I think that our culture needs to be realigned. And that’s why Verzuz was such a strong platform for that, and still is. 

What the Grammys did was another reigniting of that. They had Lil Uzi on there, they had Lil Baby on there, and they also had Salt-N-Pepa on there. That’s how it’s supposed to be, because we all fall under the genre of hip-hop. When they’re representing hip-hop’s 50th, they’re not just saying the old-school people, they’re saying everybody. So let’s keep that same energy moving forward. Hip-hop should not have an age limit on it. No genre of music has to have an age limit. Look at the country singers, they’re 80 years old busting out awards. We got to stop putting limits on our greatness, and stop putting limits on our people based on what’s now and current. Let’s embrace the current, but also let’s embrace what gave energy to the current, and that’s the people that came before us.

In terms of allowing hip-hop to grow up and for artists who have already been around to get their respect, where do you think we are like in that journey? It seems like we’re getting a little better at giving artists their props and embracing newer narratives. 

I feel that it is getting better — but the egos are the killers, right? The egos always play a big part in these different things. I think the artists that came before us need work to do, I feel that the artists that are coming today need work to do. We all need work to do with respecting each other and loving each other.

Hip-hop is a very competitive thing, and it’s very heavily ego-driven as well. Everybody feels they’re the king or the queen, everybody feels like I’m that guy or I’m that woman. That’s how hip-hop started. It was a rebellious act of expression. When you couldn’t express yourself, you went to hip-hop. It started like that, so I understand why it’s like that. But we as a genre need to know how to do like what we did on that stage, times a billion. We need to be throwing dinners for each other — not only when it’s Hip-Hop 50; we need to be representing each other on a Tuesday. We need to come together ourselves, not because the Grammys say so, but because hip-hop says so.

I gotta give props to LL and Rock the Bells, they’ve been great with preserving what may have been lost from his era. D-Nice has been great in the mix. Me and Tim with Verzuz. We need these things that are cultural movements that are gonna bring us together.

The Grammys and hip-hop have had a fraught relationship over the years; it always feels like the Grammys just don’t get hip-hop. Do you think that an attribute like this can make things more promising for the future?

Yeah, I honestly do — and I wasn’t a big fan. But I was there, in rare form. I went to every event on purpose. I watched everything this time around, because I heard about the different changes. But I wanted to see things myself. I seen how they was moving. I know a lot of people wasn’t happy with certain results, and different things like that. But the overall intentions, I feel it is moving in the right direction. 

But I also feel that us as artists need to be more vocal with the people that’s in charge. We can’t just expect to get all these different things, and we don’t even communicate with nobody from the Grammys, and we’re leaving it up to the labels and we leave it up to other people to speak on our behalf. Call up Harvey and get in touch with him and be like, “Yo, I would like to sit down with you and show you some stuff.” Don’t just show up to the Grammys and just think that it’s gonna all be gravy.

That goes with anything that you’re trying to excel in or be a part of; you got to be into it. Relationships go a long way. That’s why when you see the person that wins and we don’t know who that person is, it’s because their team lobbied, they got out there and set up the situation for their audience to vote. And you didn’t do that. Your people didn’t vote, your people didn’t do the right ballot things. It’s like, this is the biggest song but nobody submitted it. It’ll be things like that. We just gotta get educated on the system, if we care to learn. Some people don’t care about it, but the people that do care should learn more about it and get active in it. I think they’ll get better results they’re looking for. I just feel like you gotta go through things the proper way.

What’s the status of Verzuz right now?

Rebuild. Well, not really rebuild. What we’re doing right now is taking the first half of the year to reorganize. It became so big that we had to restructure how we were doing things, how we’re moving, how we want to relaunch. We feel that it’s so unique that when we come with what we’re getting ready to come with, people will understand me and Tim’s decision on how to move as entrepreneurs and as creatives. And hopefully, it will be a blueprint for people on how to do things.

Is the Diddy vs. Jermaine Dupri battle still happening?

We’re gonna show you better and better than I could tell you. I’m gonna leave it like that. That one is exciting. The people want that one, so why not?

01 Mar 2023

Did Harry Styles Spit on Chris Pine? Actor Reveals What Really Happened at the Venice Film Festival

Many months ago, the internet was in an uproar with questions regarding a convincing video taken at the Venice Film Festival that appeared to show Harry Styles spitting into the lap of his Don’t Worry Darling costar Chris Pine. And finally, we have some answers.

In a Wednesday (March 1) video interview with Esquire, Pine finally revealed what actually happened in that viral moment from Darling‘s world premiere. “Harry did not spit on me,” he began. “Harry’s a very, very kind guy.”

“I had no idea what happened,” he continued, recalling how his publicist woke him up in the middle of his flight home, insisting they needed to release a statement regarding the spit-cident. “She showed me the thing, and it does look, indeed, like Harry spitting on me. He didn’t spit on me.”

Pine had previously denied that the “As It Was” pop star spat on him, with his reps releasing a statement almost immediately after the video started going viral in September that it was simply an “odd online illusion.” This is the first time, however, that either costar has provided an explanation for what Styles really did in the clip, if not hocking a loogie on the Star Trek actor’s lap.

“He leaned down, and I think he said, ‘It’s just words, isn’t it?’” Pine revealed in the new interview. “‘Cause we had this little joke. We’re all jet-lagged, we’re all trying to answer these questions. Sometimes when you’re doing these press things, your brain gets befuddled and you start speaking gibberish. And we had a joke: ‘It’s just words, man.’”

The “Watermelon Sugar” singer has also previously addressed SpitGate, as it’s referred to by some corners of the Twitterverse, in his own way. At his first concert back from the film festival, Styles joked with his audience that he’d “just popped very quickly to Venice to spit on Chris Pine.”

Watch Pine explain what really went down with the Grammy-winning singer at the Venice Film Festival below:

01 Mar 2023

A Night With Key Glock, Rap’s Reclusive Star 

It’s a foggy night inside and outside of EMPIRE’s Times Square studios. After a tiring day of press running around the Big Apple and a multi-course dinner celebrating the forthcoming release of his Glockoma 2 album, a tipsy Key Glock already has his sights set on his next project. 

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“You’re going to hear something new every other month,” Glock said in his interview at the Billboard office hours earlier. “Just know you’re gonna hear more Glizzock.”

But don’t expect a third installment in the Glockoma series — as he shuts down the idea of a threequel there, and is also tight-lipped about the whereabouts of the completed Dum and Dummer 3 with his late mentor Young Dolph.

The 25-year-old nods along to what he feels like 100 beats from his frequent collaborator Bandplay and jokes about how he’s already rapped over every possibility in the producer’s beat extensive folder — two of which were laced with catchy, nostalgic samples like Earth, Wind and Fire’s “September” and Willie Hutch’s “I Choose You” (of UGK fame). 

Glock attributes his meticulous ear for production to his grandmother, who listened to a mix of blues and hip-hop while raising him in South Memphis. He recalls her playing an array of 2Pac, Three 6 Mafia and UGK, in addition to soul singers Johnny Taylor and Tyrone Davis. 

“The soul music, that’s more of the real life stuff, where hip-hop is more of the entertainment and street-life stuff,” he adds. “They both just had a toll on me coming up.”

Draped in Air Jordan “Mocha” 3’s, a plaid Amiri sweater and a matching beige Seattle Mariners cap to complete his fit, Key Glock finds a thumping trap beat from Bandplay’s folder to his liking and hits the booth with now less than 24 hours until Glockoma 2’s arrival. 

It’s after midnight on the East Coast, and members of Glock’s team have left. Paper Route CEO Daddy-O dozes in and out of sleepy consciousness behind his Cartier shades, while the Cutthroat rapper’s entourage keeps the party going, after three bottles of Don Julio 1942 Tequila arrive via DoorDash and Backwoods are being rolled up like an assembly line. 

Glizzock’s girlfriend, beauty influencer Karin Jinsui, is also present, but keeping to herself for most of the night — scrolling on her phone and comforting Glock when he steps out of the booth. 

It’s been over four years since the original Glockoma landed, but the second installment is finally here. Bandplay reveals that most of the album was recorded on the European leg of Glock’s tour last summer.

“We match our sound perfectly,” he says. “A lot of this project we recorded in Europe. Pretty much 75 percent of the project got recorded overseas while we were on tour. The whole ambiance of being overseas is all over the project. Their speakers [just] ain’t hitting like ours.”

Glizzock notched his first solo top 10 debut on the Billboard 200 with 2021’s Yellow Tape 2, and he’s in contention to earn another top 10 with Glockoma 2 next week – and that’s all without any features, which he boasts about on album closer “F–k a Feature.” 

“I tried to stay in the same lane and same style,” he states. “It’s just present Glock, is the only difference. Some songs are on there from two years ago and some are from two weeks ago.”

A testament to his consistency while building up his fan base, Key Glock refuses to engage in a lot of the social media antics his peers might lean into all of while remaining independent (He’s signed to EMPIRE for distribution). “You can’t worry about the next person and look at their success and their growth and wonder why you not doing the same,” Glock says. “Everybody get their time to shine, but it just depends on what you do when your time comes. Take advantage of that.”

He continues to do the heavy lifting for Paper Route Empire, with the Memphis label’s legacy now on his back following the loss of PRE patriarch Young Dolph. “Rest in peace Dolph, yeah he gave me the torch,” Glock raps on Glockoma 2 standout “Randy Orton.” 

Dolph’s chilling Nov. 2021 murder in his hometown sent shockwaves throughout hip-hop, and Glock didn’t take much time away from the grind. He last spoke to Billboard in his first interview following the tragedy (March 2022) where he referred to his Dum and Dummer collaborator as his “motivation,” and seemed to be zapped of any creative inspiration. 

“We the same person, we just different ages,” he says now, reflecting on Dolph. “We got the same mindset and we think alike and move the same way. Even way before we clicked and bonded together, we was already like twins. [He inspires me to] keep standing on business with the music, because I know he wouldn’t want me to stop.”

Glock is animated, bopping around the booth with his hands moving, while punching in bar after bar. Bandplay explains that it’s a rare occasion for the “Russian Cream” rapper to be recording following a few cocktails, but it’s been a special celebratory affair. 

Paper Route Empire hosted about 50 music industry professionals for dinner at the swanky Midtown Japanese restaurant Zuma earlier in the night, where the label surprised Glizzock with another platinum plaque to add to his growing collection, for the flute-tinged “Ambition for Cash.” 

Employees wheel in a rare bottle of Louis XIII – one of the most expensive cognac’s made sporting a four-figure price tag – and shots are extracted and poured using an oversized syringe, for a toast to Glock’s recent success. 

Momma Glock receives a FaceTime call shortly after, showing her she’d have another plaque on the way to add to her trophy room — where she proudly displays all of her son’s accolades. Key Glock has previously compared his tight-knit bond with his mother to that of Kanye West and the late Donda West. 

The clock strikes 2:00 a.m. ET and Glizzock emerges from the booth, ready for his team to hear the raw finished version of his latest work. With a more blunted yet steady flow, Glock glides over the menacing trap production, utilizing shrewd wordplay incorporating Drake and Migos in the midst of his braggadocious rhymes. 

“Song’s hard as f–k,” says one of Glock’s friends, who goes by “Drip,” lending his stamp of approval. KG agrees and has the record sent to his flooded email.

Everyone gets back to cracking jokes — a theme of the night — before Glock wins one more battle with his publicist, pushing his first obligations for the next day back a couple hours until after noon, putting the star at ease to enjoy what’s left of another late night.

01 Mar 2023

Simon Cowell Calls Weezer’s ‘America’s Got Talent’ Performance with Detroit Youth Choir ‘Magic’

Weezer has toured the globe, sold millions of albums and written some of the greatest pop-rock anthems of the modern rock era. But the one thing the Rivers Cuomo-led band has never done is get a thumbs-up from Simon Cowell. But on Tuesday night (Feb. 28) the band popped in for a guest slot on America’s Got Talent, where they ripped through two songs and got high praise from the notoriously cranky reality TV judge.

The mini-set kicked off with a run through the SZN: Autumn track “What Happens After You?,” with the group performing the charging track in front of a giant wall of TV monitors as the judges politely clapped along. Then, in a surprise shift, the iconic drumroll kick-off to the band’s 2005 hit “Beverly Hills” swelled up and the Detroit Youth Choir charged to the stage, clapping their hands and chanting, “gimme gimme, cuz we the next big thing!/ Can you feel me, I know you hear me/ DYC the next big thing.”

While Cuomo strummed and sang the song’s first verse the choir busted out some high-energy choreo and made the chorus swell with their gospel-y backing vocals as judge Howie Mandel said, “I love this song.” After the stage exploded in confetti streamers, Mandel, Cowell and Heidi Klum gave the combined group a standing ovation.

Cuomo told host Terry Crews that performing withe choir was “super fun,” calling their background vocals “beautiful.” Cowell could not have agreed more, dubbing the performance “absolutely brilliant,” while thanking the band for the “magic” they brought to the stage.

Watch Weezer on AGT below.

01 Mar 2023

Kelly Rowland & Sara Bareilles to Judge Audible’s ‘Breakthrough,’ The First Audio-Only Singing Contest

Audible is taking music contests and audio storytelling to a whole new level with Breakthrough, the first audio-only singing competition series developed and launched exclusively as a podcast.

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The company revealed exclusively to Billboard on Wednesday (March 1) that Grammy-winning superstars Kelly Rowland and Sara Bareilles have joined Breakthrough as judges. On the show, the duo will guide the contestants’ performances, as well as mentor the artistic development of five artists through a season of musical challenges. As expected with the “audio only” format, the physical appearance of the performers is concealed, so their music is the only thing to connect them to listeners (and the judges too).

Over the course of nine episodes, the artists will be challenged with covering tracks that mean the most to them, stretching to genres outside their comfort zones, and writing and recording hooks and full original songs — with one artist ultimately crowned the winner. Throughout the series, Daveed Diggs will guide listeners through the contestants’ journeys as the host.

“I am so thrilled to be joining this group of wildly talented people for Breakthrough,” Bareilles said in a press statement. “I love that the creative team are on the same journey as our audience – getting to know these artists without seeing them – developing a sense of their artistry through only their music and storytelling. These five incredible souls showed up to each challenge with courage and vulnerability that invited us all into a remarkably intimate space, and I learned so much from them. No matter where you are in your career it is always inspiring to witness someone reach for the deepest parts of themselves and be willing to share that tender space.”

Rowland added, “I am so happy to be a part of this series that highlights and gives a voice to emerging artists. Audible is an ideal space for this and Breakthrough is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to up-and-coming musicians. I’m rooting for them all!”

Breakthrough premieres June 1 on Audible. Before then, check out an exclusive audio teaser below.

01 Mar 2023

Spotify Launches ‘R&B First Nights’ Campaign, Featuring Live Shows by Victoria Monét & FLO

Spotify is launching a R&B First Nights program to support and amplify the genre’s rising stars and connect them to their fans, Billboard can exclusively announce Wednesday (March 1).

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As part of R&B First Nights, Spotify will support four R&B up-and-comers’ live shows in U.S. cities, and invite their superfans to attend. The streaming service’s latest initiative is supported by Spotify’s Creator Equity Fund, which also recently supported the company’s GLOW program for LGBTQ artists.

Singer-songwriter Victoria Monét will kick off Spotify’s R&B First Nights in Los Angeles on March 31, while U.K. trio FLO will perform in Atlanta on April 13.

“To this day I’ve still never headlined my own show and it’s been a huge dream of mine, which is why this upcoming show with Spotify is so special and important to me!” says Monét in a statement to Billboard. “It’s more than a concert: It’s a celebration and kickoff to a new era of my music. Thank you so much to Spotify for what will be an unforgettable night in L.A.! My first headline show of many.”

Tickets for Monét’s L.A. show at the El Rey Theatre go on sale Friday, March 3, at 10 a.m. PT here.

“As Spotify continues its support of R&B globally by providing resources, visibility, and vehicles for storytelling, this series kicking off with Victoria Monét is just the beginning,” says Alaysia Sierra, head of R&B at Spotify, in a statement to Billboard. “R&B First Nights is a quarterly series in partnership with artists on their first-ever headlining show in select markets. A special moment for the artists (as a first can only happen once), but also one of the most memorable moments for a fan — we’re so excited to be giving this opportunity to R&B artists and fans. Since this is likely the first time many will be seeing their favorite artist live, we’ve been so intentional about who and where.”

01 Mar 2023

‘Du Hast’ Do-Over: Lizzo Performs Full Band Version of Rammstein Classic in Berlin

Lizzo can’t get enough of Rammstein. A week after doing a playful a cappella run through the chorus of the German band’s 1997 single “Du Hast” at a show in Hamburg, Germany, the flute-loving rapper was at it again in Berlin at Mercedes-Benz Arena on Tuesday night (Feb. 28), where she did a beefed-up version of the industrial metal anthem.

Backed by her full band and dancers, Lizzo sang the song’s hypnotic refrain before warning the audience, “you better sing that s–t!” As she stalked the stage in a lime green unitard, she asked the crowd, “Y’all ready to go f–king crazy?”

Whether or not, here she came, jumping in time to the song’s aggro guitars, taking off her baseball hat for some hair-whip headbanging and throwing in a heavy metal twerk for good measure. She posted video of the moment, repeating the German phrase she uttered at the end of the cover: “Ich liebe dich Berlin,” which translates into “I love you Berlin.”

The second “Hast” came during a week in which Lizzo also re-created Ariana DeBose’s viral opening number from the 2023 BAFTA Awards, complete with the West Side Story breakout star’s shoulder shimmy and impassioned delivery of the infamous line “Angela Bassett did the thing!” The European leg of Lizzo’s The Special Tour will continue through the middle of March, with stops in Milan, Paris, Dublin and London before she heads back to the U.S. for a second North American leg beginning April 21 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn.

Check out Lizzo’s cover of “Du Hast” below.

01 Mar 2023

Kodak Black Ordered Into Rehab By Florida Judge

A Florida judge ordered rapper Kodak Black to drug rehab for 30 days on Tuesday (Feb. 28) after he allegedly tested positive for fentanyl while awaiting trial on a drug trafficking charge.

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Broward County Judge Barbara Duffy allowed the performer to remain free until March 7 so he could perform at the Rolling Loud concert near Los Angeles over the weekend, The Miami Herald reported.

Duffy had earlier issued a warrant for his arrest. The 25-year-old performer had missed a court-ordered drug test on Feb. 3 and then tested positive on Feb. 8. He is awaiting trial from a July arrest on a charge of trafficking oxycodone. He has pleaded not guilty.

“You better get it together,” Duffy told the 25-year-old performer, whose real name is Bill Kapri.

During the hour-long hearing, the singer’s lawyer, Bradford Cohen, suggested that a star-struck drug lab technician may have mixed up the sample or paperwork. The tech who took the sample admitted that is possible.

But when Duffy suggested the singer have his hair tested, the defense declined. A hair test could detect drug use back 90 days compared to the few days urine and blood tests typically capture.

In January 2020, then-President Donald Trump commuted a three-year federal prison sentence the rapper had for falsifying documents used to buy weapons. Black had served about half his sentence.

Black is nominated for the iHeartRadio Music Awards’ hip-hop artist of the year and has sold more than 30 million singles, with massive hits such as “Super Gremlin,” which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 last year.