Music

11 Jan 2023

Watch Rachel Zegler Deliver a Passionate Cover of Taylor Swift’s ‘Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve’

Rachel Zegler delivered an acoustic take on Taylor Swift‘s “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” on social media on Monday (Jan. 9).

In the clip, the West Side Story actress strums her acoustic guitar as she runs through the Midnights bonus track’s devastating bridge and chorus, singing, “If clarity’s in death, then why won’t this die?/ Years of tearing down our banners, you and I/ Living for the thrill of hitting you where it hurts/ Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first/ And I damn sure never would’ve danced with the devil/ At 19/ And the God’s honest truth is that the pain was heaven.”

The heartrending ballad became an instant fan favorite when Swift released it as part of Midnights (3am Edition) just hours after dropping the standard version of the album back in October. The 20-track deluxe version also contained bonus tracks “The Great War,” “Bigger Than the Whole Sky,” “Paris,” “High Infidelity,” “Glitch” and “Dear Reader.”

Swift confirmed last week that she’s currently in the midst of rehearsals for her upcoming The Eras Tour, which is set to kick off March 17 and 18 in Glendale, Ariz.

Her announcement — tied to the 12-hour flash sale of exclusive digital copies of Midnights containing “behind the song” material on four different tracks — immediately had Swifties in their feelings. “Taylor saying the words tour rehearsal alone it’s all starting to feel real we literally see taylor in 2 and a half months,” one wrote, encapsulating the anticipation happening on Swiftie Twitter.

Watch Zegler’s acoustic cover of “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” below.

11 Jan 2023

2023 Golden Globes: Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jennifer Coolidge & More Stars at Billboard’s Afterparty

The 2023 Golden Globes took place on Tuesday (Jan. 10), and featured a host of musicians and actors stepping out to honor the past year’s achievements in film and television. Taking place at Los Angeles’ The Beverly Hilton, the industry’s biggest and brightest stars walked the red carpet and attended the show — and Billboard‘s star-studded afterparty — in style.

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky were among the guests to grace the Globes, appearing in matching black ensembles. The “Work” singer — whose song “Lift Me Up” from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was nominated in the best original song in a motion picture — wore a fitted black column gown with velvet panels and larger sleeves, while the “Fashion Killa” rapper was in a classic black-and-white suit with satin lapels.

Selena Gomez was also among the musicians to grace the Globes. The Rare beauty founder stepped out on the red carpet with her 9-year-old sister Gracie Elliott Teefey in tow. The 30-year-old, who was nominated for best actress in a TV series comedy or musical nomination for her portrayal of Mabel Mora in the hit Hulu comedy series Only Murders in the Building.

The fun didn’t stop there. Billboard‘s Golden Globes afterparty saw stars mingling with each other. Wednesday‘s Jenna Ortega and Percy Hynes White looked stunning in black ensembles; Abbot Elementary‘s Quinta Brunson posed for photos alongside Pose‘s Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, and Jennifer Coolidge lit up the room with Heidi Klum, who brought husband Tom Kaulitz (of Tokio Hotel) as her date.

See the stars at the 2023 Golden Globes afterparty powered by Billboard below.

11 Jan 2023

Nick Carter Releases Emotional Tribute Song to Late Brother Aaron Carter: Listen to ‘Hurts to Love You’

Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter released an emotional tribute to his late brother Aaron Carter, “Hurts to Love You,” on Wednesday (Jan. 11). The ballad was accompanied by a video featuring footage of the siblings as children, and a message from Nick on Instagram.

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“We all have someone in our lives that no matter what they do and how bad it hurts you still love them,” he wrote. “So I worked it out the best way I know how.”

Aaron, who struggled with substance and mental health issues, died unexpectedly in November at age 34.

“Feel like we’ve been through some wars together/ Nobody else could understand/ Way too many nightmares to remember,” Carter sings over a spare, heartbeat-like beat. “Always hoped your tomorrows/ Would be better than the days before/ I hoped you’d find your road to follow/ To a place you were happy in this world,” he adds before the heartbreaking chorus, “Cuz it hurts to love you, but I love you still/ Miss you with all my heart you know I always will.”

Singer and TV personality Aaron Carter was found dead on Nov. 5. While no cause of death has yet been revealed, a spokesperson for the LAPD said at the time that a “suspicious death” had taken place at the address of Carter’s residence.

Following his younger brother’s death, Nick shared a number of photos featuring Aaron from their childhood. “My heart is broken. Even though my brother and I have had a complicated relationship, my love for him has never ever faded,” he wrote at the time. “I have always held on to the hope that he would somehow, someday want to walk a healthy path and eventually find the help that he so desperately needed. Sometimes we want to blame someone or something for a loss, but the truth is that addiction and mental illness is the real villain here.”

Listen to “Hurts to Love You” and see Nick’s post below.

11 Jan 2023

Trending Up: New Year’s Bash Leads to Gains for Miley and Dolly, Gracie Abrams Gets a ‘Ginny & Georgia’ Bump & Tory Lanez Makes Chart Return

Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up column, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. 
 
This week: Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton reap streaming benefits from their much-watched New Year’s Eve special performance, Gracie Abrams eyes her first crossover hit after a valuable Netflix synch and the recently convicted Tory Lanez hits the Hot 100 for the first time in a couple years.

Miley & Dolly’s Classic Singles Rise After the Ball Drops

Miley Cyrus is about to kick off a new era with the release of “Flowers,” the lead single to her forthcoming album (and Columbia Records debut) Endless Summer Vacation. Two weeks before the scheduled debut of “Flowers,” however, Cyrus kicked off a new year alongside her godmother Dolly Parton, as the host of Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party on NBC, ringing in 2023 on network television with hits, covers and medleys of both.

Cyrus has been covering Parton’s “Jolene” in concert for years, so naturally it made sense to belt out the classic single (which is turning 50 this year!) alongside the legend who wrote and recorded it. “Jolene,” which Cyrus and Parton sang after warbling some of Patsy Cline’s “Walkin’ After Midnight” together on New Year’s Eve, received a bump on streaming services last week as a result, with a 29.6% increase in U.S. on-demand streams (up to 1.71 million), along with a 57% bump in digital sales, in the week ending Jan. 5, according to Luminate.

“Wrecking Ball,” which Cyrus and Parton sang together on the show before segueing into Parton’s “I Will Always Love You,” fared even better. Cyrus’ first career Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper (which is turning 10 this year!) scored a 44.5% rise in streams during the same week, up to 1.79 million for the week ending Jan. 5. “Wrecking Ball” also earned a digital sales increase of over 400% for that week.

Plus, Cyrus used Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party as the network TV platform to announce “Flowers,” dropping a pair of teasers in between hosting and performing duties as 2023 got underway. Widely announcing an upcoming single while also causing an older hit’s streaming revival — now that’s an enviable way to flip the calendar. – JASON LIPSHUTZ

Ginny & Georgia Doesn’t “Miss” With Gracie Abrams Synch

Interscope’s Gracie Abrams has steadily built a devoted fan base — and a reputation as your favorite singer-songwriter’s favorite singer-songwriter – over the past few years, but has yet to score the sort of crossover hit enjoyed by some of her more famous supporters. That may be changing with the recent streaming growth of her tear-jerking ballad “I miss you, I’m sorry,” a highlight from her 2020 debut EP, Mirror. The song got a big showcase moment in the finale of the Jan. 5-released second season to Netflix’s hit dramedy Ginny & Georgia, playing over a lovelorn montage of Ginny (Antonia Gentry) and her on/off romantic interest Marcus (Felix Mallard), both getting emotional while separately looking at old photos of the couple together. 

As more viewers connected with the finale’s sentimental moment, the song has climbed steadily in streams – from 54,000 daily on-demand official U.S. streams on Jan. 5 to 81,000 by Jan. 8, according to Luminate, a gain of 50%. That number looks to still be growing in the days since, as fans of both Abrams and Ginny & Georgia have begun to spread it on TikTok and other social platforms. The increased exposure should be coming right on time for Abrams, who is set to release her long-anticipated debut full-length, Good Riddance, via Interscope on Feb. 24. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER

Tory Lanez Returns to Hot 100 Following Trial Guilty Verdict

While Tory Lanez awaits sentencing after being found guilty on three felony counts in the 2020 shooting of star rapper Megan Thee Stallion, he returns to the Hot 100 with his first new entry on the chart since the year of the assault. 

“The Color Violet,” a Weeknd-reminiscent pop&B track from his 2021 One Umbrella release Alone at Prom, slowly developed into a prolific streaming hit over the course of 2022, and climbs 22.2% to 5.5 million in weekly official on-demand U.S. streams for the week ending Jan. 5, according to Luminate. While the song does not yet have a radio presence of any kind, as programming directors are likely reluctant to publicly support the disgraced singer-rapper at this point, streaming audiences have not been so dissuaded – and their embrace of “Violet” earns it a No. 87 bow on the Hot 100 this week. — AU

11 Jan 2023

The Contenders: YoungBoy Makes His ‘Case’ for the Top Spot, BTS Arrives on Vinyl 

Welcome to The Contenders, a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week (for the upcoming Billboard 200 albums chart dated Jan. 14): SZA’s SOS continues to dominate, while YoungBoy Never Broke Again makes a quick return after a busy 2022 and a half-decade-old BTS album debuts on vinyl.  

YoungBoy Never Broke Again, I Rest My Case (Motown/Never Broke Again): After an absurdly prolific 2022 that included seven full-length releases – two collaborative albums, four mixtapes and one official album – star rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again returns, just two weeks into 2023, with his fifth solo studio album, I Rest My Case. The 19-track set is his first release on his new Motown label, after completing his deal with Atlantic in 2022.  

From the early returns, YoungBoy’s previous productivity may be working against him, since the album’s tracks have not taken over the daily DSP charts like past YoungBoy solo albums, the last three of which hit the Billboard 200’s top two. Case will also not be helped by any big-name guests, since the album has no features on its 11 tracks. It will have its work cut out for it getting YoungBoy back to the chart’s top five, let alone threatening the four-week reign of SZA’s SOS blockbuster, which shows little sign of slowing down in its fifth week.  

BTS, Love Yourself: Her (Big Hit/Universal): The Love Yourself: Her EP release marked a big U.S. breakthrough for K-Pop superstars BTS back in 2017, reaching the Billboard 200’s top 10 and spawning their first two Billboard Hot 100 hits in “DNA” and “Mic Drop.” The EP is likely to return to the chart’s top tier after making its physical debut on vinyl — the septet’s first-ever release on the format — along with a package that includes seven photo cards (one for each member), two posters, a sticker and a bookmark.

French Montana & DJ Drama, Coke Boys 6 (Coke Boys): Outside of YoungBoy, few hip-hop artists were as prolific on the 2022 charts as DJ Drama, who notched hit albums alongside Jeezy, Snoop Dogg and several other big-name rappers. He’s back this week with veteran New York hitmaker French Montana, for the latest installment in the latter’s signature Coke Boys series. CB6 boasts 20 tracks and a wide variety of big-name guests, including fellow rap stars Kodak Black, Nav and A$AP Rocky, and the set already has its own Money Heist Edition deluxe reissue, adding an extra nine tracks to the total.  

11 Jan 2023

‘Adios Amor,’ ‘Aqui Abajo,’ & More of Christian Nodal’s Biggest Hits: Vote For Your Favorite Track

Christian Nodal — who’s celebrating his 24th birthday on Wednesday (Jan. 11) — has been soundtracking heartbreaks since he unleashed “Adiós Amor” in 2017. The track scored the Mexican singer-songwriter his first No. 1 on Billboard‘s Regional Mexican Airplay chart, where it ruled for seven weeks.

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Since, the mariacheño artist has collected a number of chart-toppers, including his now-anthems “Me Dejé Llevar,” “No Te Contaron Mal” and “De Los Besos Que Te Di,” which also topped the tally for seven weeks on the Aug. 24, 2019 chart.

In total, he’s scored 19 entries on the Regional Mexican Airplay chart, notching his 14th No. 1 with “Vivo en el 6” on July 30, 2022, ensuring his unbroken record of rulers among solo acts on Regional Mexican Airplay. Gerardo Ortiz, with 12, has the second-most No. 1s, and among all acts, Calibre 50 continues to lead with 22 champs.

In celebration of his birthday, Billboard compiled a playlist with all of Nodal’s No. 1 hits on the Regional Mexican Airplay chart starting with “Adiós Amor,” which peaked at No. 1 on the April 8, 2017 chart and ultimately put a then 18-year-old Nodal and his powerful vocals on the map.

The playlist navigates through other tracks of love and heartbreak including five key collaborations such as “Probablemente” with David Bisbal, “Dime Como Quieres” with Ángela Aguilar, “Duele” with Alejandro Fernández, “2 Veces” with Los Plebes del Rancho de Ariel Camacho, and “La Sinverguenza” with Banda MS.

Below, revisit his 14 No. 1 bangers and vote for your favorite one in the poll.

11 Jan 2023

Jenna Ortega Brainstorms Possible Lady Gaga Character on ‘Wednesday’: ‘They Would Understand Each Other’

Teen psychics, werewolves, vampires and gorgons make up the student body at Nevermore Academy in Netflix’s Wednesday — so who better to make a cameo than the queen of little monsters herself? While hitting the Golden Globes red carpet Tuesday night (Jan. 10), leading lady Jenna Ortega discussed what a character played by Lady Gaga on the mysterious and spooky hit series would entail.

“I’m sure Netflix would love that,” Ortega said at the awards show, where she was nominated for best actress – television series musical or comedy, which ultimately went to Abbott Elementary‘s Quinta Brunson. “If Lady Gaga were to be a part, [she and Wednesday] would have to be two monsters that understand each other,” she added.

Gaga has been linked to Wednesday ever since a mega-viral trend spontaneously emerged on TikTok following the show’s November release, wherein creators would recreate Ortega’s equally viral season one, episode four dance scene using the 13-time Grammy winner’s Bad Romance album deep cut “Bloody Mary.” Despite never actually being featured in the first season, the song became so synonymous with Wednesday that Netflix went on to use it in a recent teaser video for the show’s second season.

The “Bad Romance” singer herself has even commented on the Wednesday hype in the past, which just recently catapulted “Bloody Mary” into the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time ever (it’s currently No. 68 on the chart dated Jan. 14). In December, she tweeted, “Slay Wednesday! You’re welcome at Haus of Gaga anytime (and bring Thing with you, we love paws around here)” in response to the TikTok trend and later created her own Wednesday-inspired TikTok.

See Jenna Ortega brainstorm Wednesday character ideas for Lady Gaga below.

11 Jan 2023

Judy Collins, Shelly Peiken & Noelle Scaggs to be Honored at 2023 She Rocks Awards

Judy Collins, Shelly Peiken and Noelle Scaggs will be honored at the upcoming 2023 She Rocks Awards, presented by the Women’s International Music Network (the WiMN). Recognizing women who stand out as innovators and role models in the music industry, the 11th annual live awards event will take place on Thursday, April 13 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ranch in Anaheim, Calif. during the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Show.

“I am always astounded by the passionate and meaningful accomplishments of the ground-breaking women in music that we honor,” Laura B. Whitmore, founder of the WiMN and co-producer of the She Rocks Awards, said in a statement. “This year we’ll turn it up to 11 for our 11th anniversary! I am excited to shine a spotlight on these fantastic role models…with more to come!”

More 2023 She Rocks Awards honorees will be announced soon.

Past honorees of the She Rocks Awards include The Go-Go’s, Dionne Warwick, Nancy Wilson, Lzzy Hale, Gloria Gaynor, Linda Perry, Melissa Etheridge, Pat Benatar, The B-52s, Colbie Caillat, Sheila E, Chaka Khan, Ronnie Spector, Orianthi and The Bangles.

This event is open to the public; a NAMM Show badge is not required to attend the She Rocks Awards. A portion of the proceeds from this year’s awards will benefit the NAMM Foundation and Diversify the Stage. Find out more and purchase tickets at sherocksawards.com.

Founded in 2012, the Women’s International Music Network unites women who work within all facets of the music and audio industries. With theWiMN.com as its hub, the WiMN provides a community for women within the industry. For more information, visit www.TheWiMN.com

Here’s a closer look at this year’s honorees:

11 Jan 2023

Cordae Is Expecting a Baby With Naomi Osaka

Cordae and Naomi Osaka are going to be parents. In a surprise Wednesday (Jan. 11) announcement on social media, the 25-year-old pro tennis player revealed that she is expecting a baby with the 25-year-old rapper, whom she’s been dating since 2019.

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“The past few years have been interesting to say the least, but I find that it’s the most challenging times in life that may be the most fun,” Osaka wrote in a note posted to Twitter, also sharing a photo of an ultrasound. “These few months away from the sport has really given me a new love and appreciation for the game I’ve dedicated my life to.”

“I realize that life is so short and I don’t take any moments for granted, every day is a new blessing and adventure,” she continued. “I know that I have so much to look forward to in the future, one thing I’m looking forward to is for my kid to watch one of my matches and tell someone, ‘that’s my mom,’ haha.”

The athlete did not mention Cordae in her post. However, the “RNP” musician’s rep confirmed to Billboard that he is indeed the father.

Osaka concluded her note — of which she also shared a Japanese-language version — by writing that even though she doesn’t think there’s a “perfectly correct path to take in life,” she feels that “if you move forward with good intentions you’ll find your way eventually.”

See Naomi Osaka’s pregnancy announcement below:

11 Jan 2023

Marco Carola, Camelphat, Francesca Lombardo & Gordo Lead Lineup for Saint Martin’s SXM Festival 2023

As festival season — or at least the season of festival lineups dropping — moves into high gear, the Caribbean destination fest SXM Festival has announced its 2023 artist roster.

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Touching down on the island of Saint Martin/Sint Maarten this March 8-12 will be a high-caliber posse of house and techno stars including Marco Carola, DJ Tennis and Carlita performing together as Astra Club, a set from Francesca Lombardo, Dubfire Yokoo, Camelphat Mochaak and Gordo, the artist formerly known as Carnage. (The latter three were also included on Tuesday’s 2023 Coachella lineup.)

Since launching in 2016, SXM has drawn fans from more than 35 countries. The five-day festival happens at locations throughout the island, a territory of both France and The Netherlands, in venues including a private jungle and beach area, a villa and a beach club. Additionally, limited capacity “satellite” events will take place on the peak of Sint Maarten’s highest mountain at sunset, along with a boat party cruising through the Caribbean’s largest lagoon and a catamaran cruise.

In 2017, after the island was devastated by Hurricane Irma — which left an estimated 95% of the French side of the island destroyed — SXM organizers collected more than $38,000 for the relief effort. The event was one of the few festivals to happen in 2020 before the pandemic shut down the live events space, and after a postponed 2021 event also due to the pandemic, returned to Saint Martin/Sint Maarten in 2022.

The love for its island home continue through SXM’s focus on leaving a smaller footprint and helping replenish the area’s natural environments via initiatives that include going paperless, saving energy with LED and solar lights, and eliminating plastic waste throughout the festival.

Tickets for SXM Festival 2023 are on sale now.

SXM Festival