Music

19 Dec 2022

Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ Continues Atop Billboard Global Charts

Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” holds at No. 1 on both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts. The carol adds an 11th total week at No. 1 on the former and a sixth week atop the latter, dating to the charts’ inceptions two years ago.

Pls, SZA‘s “Kill Bill,” from her new album, SOS, blasts onto the Global 200 at No. 5, while holiday hits by Brenda Lee, Bobby Helms, Andy Williams and Michael Bublé, among others, make further worldwide gains.

The two global charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Billboard Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the U.S.

Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.

‘Christmas’ Tops Global 200, ‘Kill Bill’ Debuts

Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” keeps at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 with 93.6 million streams (up 10%) and 16,000 sold (up 50%) worldwide in the Dec. 9-15 tracking week. The modern holiday classic, released in 1994, adds an 11th week at the summit, and third this holiday season, after it led for four weeks each over the 2020 and 2021 holidays.

Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” originally released in 1958, hits a new Global 200 high, making a 4-2 party hop with 67.3 million streams (up 18%) and 6,000 sold (up 5%). It reached a previous No. 3 best in each of the past two holiday seasons.

Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” from 1984, dips to No. 3 from its No. 2 Global 200 high and the late Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock,” from 1957, rises 6-4, returning to its best rank reached over both the 2020 and 2021 holidays.

SZA’s “Kill Bill” soars onto the Global 200 at No. 5 with 57.9 million streams and 1,000 sold worldwide. The song, from her album, SOS – new at No. 1 on the U.S.-based Billboard 200 chart – marks her third top 10 since the Global 200 began, and highest-charting with lead billing, following her featured turn on Doja Cat’s “Kiss Me More” (No. 3, May 2021) and her own “Good Days” (No. 7, February 2021).

Elsewhere in the Global 200’s top 10, the late Andy Williams’ 1963 chestnut “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” pushes 14-9 (43.5 million streams, up 16%; 2,000 sold, up 8%, worldwide); it hit a No. 7 high in the 2020 holiday season.

Carey Crowns Global Excl. U.S.; Lee, Bublé Bound

Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” continues atop the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, with 57.1 million streams (up 7%) and 5,000 downloads sold (up 8%) in territories outside the U.S. Dec. 9-15. The song adds a sixth total week at No. 1, and second this Yuletide season, after it ruled for a week during the 2020 holidays and for three frames over last year’s holiday season.

Wham!’s “Last Christmas” holds at its No. 2 Global Excl. U.S. high; Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy” is steady at No. 3 after eight nonconsecutive weeks on top, beginning in October; Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” repeats at its No. 4 best; and Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” dashes 9-5 (32.3 million streams, up 16%; 1,000 sold, up 9%, outside the U.S.), hitting the top five for the first time.

Also in the Global Excl. U.S. top 10, Michael Bublé’s “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” released in 2011, jumps 11-6 (28.7 million streams, up 8%; 2,000 sold, up 5%, outside the U.S.), revisiting its high reached over last year’s holidays, and Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” reaches the region for the first time, as it goes gliding 18-10 (27.2 million streams, up 15%; 1,000 sold, up 19%, outside the U.S.).

The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated Dec. 24, 2022) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Dec. 20). For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard‘s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

19 Dec 2022

Dionne Warwick Wants to Meet Twitter CEO Elon Musk: ‘What Is Your True Intent?’

While a number of musicians have stepped away from Twitter since Musk’s takeover, Dionne Warwick wants to have a conversation with the CEO to get an understanding of his intentions for the social media platform.

“I have to meet him,” Warwick, a beloved figure on Twitter who just celebrated her 82nd birthday, told People. “I know a lot of people have walked away from Twitter. That’s prior to knowing exactly what he’s going to do. He’s new to the game.”

She continued, “His attitude is freedom of speech, which is mine as well. However, there’s a way to do it.”

“That’s one of the conversations I’m going to have with him,” said Warwick, whose documentary Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over is heading to television on New Year’s Day, on CNN (and will be available on HBO Max after that). “What is your true intent? I understand your freedom of speech attitude but how are you going to contain it, so it does not get out of hand?”

On Sunday (Dec. 18), Musk tweeted a poll, asking users to decide if he should step down as head of Twitter. “I will abide by the results of this poll,” he wrote. The results: More than half (57.5%) of the 17.5 million people to respond voted that he should step down.

In a back-and-forth with followers on Sunday, Musk commented that any prospective new CEO “must like pain a lot” to run Twitter, which “has been in the fast lane to bankruptcy.”

“No one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive. There is no successor,” he tweeted.

Snoop Dogg also polled Twitter on Sunday night, musing whether he should be the one to take over the job of CEO. Although the poll is still live at press time, the majority of the more than 3 million votes cast were in favor of the rapper taking the position.

19 Dec 2022

The Longest-Leading Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s

Beginning with Debby Boone‘s 1977 smash “You Light Up My Life,” a relatively select few smashes have led the Billboard Hot 100 chart for at least 10 weeks. How few? Just a mere 4% of all Hot 100 No. 1s dating to the chart’s launch on Aug. 4, 1958, have earned the achievement.

In honor of the singles to claim the Hot 100’s top spot the longest, here’s a look at the elite leaders to rule for double-digit weeks, an exclusive club led by Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” featuring Billy Cyrus, a 19-week No. 1 smash in 2019.

THE LONGEST-LEADING HOT 100 No. 1s
Weeks at No. 1, Title, Artist, Date Reached No. 1



19, “Old Town Road,” Lil Nas X feat. Billy Ray Cyrus, April 13, 2019

16, “Despacito,” Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber, May 27, 2017
16, “One Sweet Day,” Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men, Dec. 2, 1995

15, “As It Was,” Harry Styles, April 16, 2022

14, “Uptown Funk!,” Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars, Jan. 17, 2015
14, “I Gotta Feeling,” The Black Eyed Peas, July 11, 2009
14, “We Belong Together,” Mariah Carey, June 4, 2005
14, “Candle in the Wind 1997″/”Something About the Way You Look Tonight,” Elton John, Oct. 11, 1997
14, “Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix),” Los Del Rio, Aug. 3, 1996
14, “I’ll Make Love to You,” Boyz II Men, Aug. 27, 1994
14, “I Will Always Love You,” Whitney Houston, Nov. 28, 1992

13, “The Boy Is Mine,” Brandy & Monica, June 6, 1998
13, “End of the Road,” Boyz II Men, Aug. 15, 1992

12, “Shape of You,” Ed Sheeran, Jan. 28, 2017
12, “Closer,” The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey, Sept. 3, 2016
12, “See You Again,” Wiz Khalifa feat. Charlie Puth, April 25, 2015
12, “Blurred Lines,” Robin Thicke feat. T.I. + Pharrell, June 22, 2013
12, “Boom Boom Pow,” The Black Eyed Peas, April 18, 2009
12, “Yeah!,” Usher featuring Lil Jon & Ludacris, Feb. 28, 2004
12, “Lose Yourself,” Eminem, Nov. 9, 2002
12, “Smooth,” Santana feat. Rob Thomas, Oct. 23, 1999

11, “The Box,” Roddy Ricch, Jan. 18, 2020
11, “God’s Plan,” Drake, Feb. 3, 2018
11, “Independent Women Part I,” Destiny’s Child, Nov. 18, 2000
11, “I’ll Be Missing You,” Puff Daddy & Faith Evans feat. 112, June 14, 1997
11, “Un-Break My Heart,” Toni Braxton, Dec. 7, 1996
11, “I Swear,” All-4-One, May 21, 1994

10 (to-date), “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey, Dec. 21, 2019
10, “Easy on Me,” Adele, Oct. 30, 2021
10, “Butter,” BTS, June 5, 2021
10, “In My Feelings,” Drake, July 21, 2018
10, “One Dance,” Drake feat. WizKid & Kyla, April 23, 2016
10, “Hello,” Adele, Nov. 14, 2015
10, “Happy,” Pharrell Williams, March 8, 2014
10, “We Found Love,” Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris, Nov. 12, 2011
10, “Low,” Flo Rida feat. T-Pain, Jan. 5, 2008
10, “Irreplaceable,” Beyoncé, Dec. 16, 2006
10, “Gold Digger,” Kanye West feat. Jamie Foxx, Sept. 17, 2005
10, “Dilemma,” Nelly feat. Kelly Rowland, Aug. 17, 2002
10, “Foolish,” Ashanti, April 20, 2002
10, “Maria Maria,” Santana feat. The Product G&B, April 8, 2000
10, “Physical,” Olivia Newton-John, Nov. 21, 1981
10, “You Light Up My Life,” Debby Boone, Oct. 15, 1977

19 Dec 2022

From Snoop Dogg to Lizzo, Which Musician Should Be in Charge of Twitter? Vote!

“Those who want power are the least who deserve it.” Such goes the techno-proverb tweeted by Elon Musk on Sunday in the wake of the Twitter CEO taking a poll asking users whether he should step down as head of the social platform.

While opinion on the matter was fairly split, 57.5 percent of the 17.5 million voters ultimately decided that Musk should officially end his controversy-laden reign as Twitter overlord. And while it remains to be seen whether Musk will cede his power to the wish of the masses, Snoop Dogg couldn’t help jumping into the fray by releasing his own poll.

“Should I run Twitter?” the rapper asked his more than 20 million followers hours after Musk’s tweet went viral. So far, 81 percent of the 3 million votes have skewed toward a resounding “Yes.” But Snoop’s poll has us thinking: What famous musician would you really want running Twitter?

The “Gin & Juice” rapper is an obvious front-runner in our completely hypothetical election, but there are plenty of other stars who could be up to the job.

After her awe-inspiring and empowering speech at the People’s Choice Awards, would you trust Lizzo to turn Twitter from a dumpster fire into something more positive? Should Mariah Carey take the reins during the Christmas season?

Maybe John Legend would be a trustworthy, measured choice for Twitter CEO with an assist from his wife Chrissy “Queen of Twitter” Teigen. Or would The 1975’s Matty Healy, who recently set his fanbase buzzing by tweeting a snap of himself kissing Phoebe Bridgers, inject a more whimsical brand of chaos into our hearts and feeds?

Meanwhile, Justin Bieber and Katy Perry remain the most-followed male and female musicians on the platform, and there’s no doubt Beyoncé could get the whole of Twitter in formation, and quickly.

Vote for which musician you think should take charge of Twitter in Billboard‘s poll below.

19 Dec 2022

Drake Shrugs Off ‘Rich Flex’ Memes: ‘It Just Comes With the Territory’

When it comes to social media fodder, Drake’s pride is made of Teflon. After a meme from his collaborative song “Rich Flex” with 21 Savage went viral, Drizzy offered his take on becoming an Instagram punchline during an interview with online casino company Stake.

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In the clip, Drake explained a recent club encounter with a fan who asked about his feelings toward the latest viral joke, which implies that Drizzy is flirting with his collaborator when he says the line “21, can you do somethin’ for me?” Rather than take offense, Drake offered a mature response, noting he understands his prowess in pop culture and that taking jabs is all part of the game.

“I was just like, you know what? I understand after all these years that I feel like I have a polarizing presence,” he said. “I’m almost a character in people’s movies, and therefore, there’s a running dialogue. There’s jokes. You’re either the villain to some people or hero to some people. It is what it is. It just comes with the territory.”

Earlier in the conversation, Drake highlighted his ability to shrug off outside commentary and how his newfound confidence allows him to filter out the rubbish. “I feel like I finally found this comfort point where I’m able to genuinely disconnect from all the noise of the world and be able to live my own life,” he says. “I’m able to enjoy my life simultaneously while being at the forefront of pop culture.”

Drake has all the reasons to be confident after securing two more Billboard 200 No. 1 albums this year with his dance-centric effort Honestly, Nevermind and his joint album Her Loss with 21 Savage. 

You can watch the entire interview with Stake below, as Drake also talks about his appreciation for Baby Drill and SZA’s new SOS project. 

19 Dec 2022

Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ Scores Milestone 10th Week at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100

Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a 10th week. With its latest frame at No. 1, Carey becomes the third artist – and first woman – with three songs that have reigned for double-digit weeks. Carey crowned the chart for 16 weeks with “One Sweet Day,” with Boyz II Men, in 1995-96, and for 14 weeks with “We Belong Together” in 2005. Boyz II Men and Drake are the only other acts to have achieved such a triumphant triple.

Plus, SZA launches two songs in the Hot 100’s top 10 – “Kill Bill,” at No. 3, and “Nobody Gets Me,” at No. 10 – both from her new album, SOS, which launches as her first No. 1 on the Billboard 200. She ups her count to seven career Hot 100 top 10s and, with the former arrival, ties her highest rank, establishes a new top placement as a lead act and makes her highest debut.

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data. All charts (dated Dec. 24) will update on Billboard.com Tuesday (Dec. 20). For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

“Christmas,” on Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings, was first released on Carey’s album Merry Christmas in 1994 and, as streaming has grown and holiday music has become more prominent on streaming services’ playlists, it first reached the Hot 100’s top 10 in December 2017 and first hit the top five in the 2018 holiday season, before reigning over the holidays in 2019 (for three weeks), 2020 (two), 2021 (three) and now 2022 (two to-date).

Streams, airplay & sales: “Christmas” drew 41.4 million streams (up 14%) and 33.1 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 11%) and sold 11,000 downloads (up 86%) in the U.S. in the Dec. 9-15 tracking week, according to Luminate.

The song adds a third week at No. 1, up from No. 3, on the Digital Song Sales chart, following frames on top in 2005 and 2019; dips to No. 2 after 17 total weeks atop Streaming Songs; and rises 17-14 on Radio Songs, where it hit a No. 12 high over the 1994 holidays and has returned to the top 15 in each of the last four holiday seasons.

Third No. 1 of at 10 weeks or more: Carey becomes the third artist, and first woman, with three songs that have ruled the Hot 100 for 10 or more weeks. Here’s a recap of the elite three acts to have earned the honor – with Carey and Boyz II Men having teamed for one song below. Boyz II Men initiated the club in 1996 and Drake became its second member in 2018.

Mariah Carey:

  • 16 weeks, “One Sweet Day,” with Boyz II Men, 1995-96
  • 14 weeks, “We Belong Together,” 2005
  • 10 weeks (to-date), “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” 2019-22

Drake:

  • 10 weeks, “One Dance,” featuring WizKid & Kyla, 2016
  • 11 weeks, “God’s Plan,” 2018
  • 10 weeks, “In My Feelings,” 2018

Boyz II Men:

  • 13 weeks, “End of the Road,” 1992
  • 14 weeks, “I’ll Make Love to You,” 1994
  • 16 weeks, “One Sweet Day,” with Carey, 1995-96

“Christmas” is the 43rd song to command the Hot 100 for 10 or more weeks, a feat that under just 4% of all 1,144 No. 1s have achieved. (Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” solely held the record for the chart’s longest reign for over 21 years, until Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito,” featuring Justin Bieber, matched it with 16 weeks on top in 2017. The songs now share the second-longest No. 1 stay, after Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus, dominated for 19 weeks in 2019.)

No. 1 on both ‘Christmas’ Eve and Day: Among its 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100, Carey’s “Christmas” has led lists dated Dec. 24 (this year) and Dec. 25 (2021). It, fittingly, becomes the only song to have topped Hot 100 charts dated both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Longest span atop the Hot 100: Carey’s “Christmas” extends the longest span from a song’s first week at No. 1 on the Hot 100 to its latest, to just over three years (Dec. 21, 2019-Dec. 24, 2022).

Plus, the latest week atop the Hot 100 for “Christmas” extends Carey’s record for the longest span of an artist ranking at No. 1 on the chart: 32 years and nearly five months, dating to her first week at No. 1 on the list dated Aug. 4, 1990, with her debut single “Vision of Love.”

Most weeks at No. 1 for a holiday hit: Carey’s “Christmas” expands its record for the most time atop the Hot 100 for a holiday song. The only other seasonal single to lead, “The Chipmunk Song,” by David Seville & the Chipmunks, spent four weeks at No. 1. (“‘The Chipmunk Song’ is one of the fastest breaking and fastest selling records of 1958,” Billboard reported when the song first reigned, in the Dec. 22, 1958, issue, adding that it had become the “biggest seller since ‘Hound Dog’,” first made a hit by Big Mama Thornton and then Elvis Presley. “Sales city by city [for “Chipmunk”] have been astounding and it has been blaring out of radios, juke boxes and loudspeaker systems from New York to Los Angeles every day for weeks.”)

Carey’s record 89th week atop Hot 100: With “Christmas,” Carey adds her record-extending 89th week at No. 1 on the Hot 100, dating to the chart’s Aug. 4, 1958, inception.

Most Weeks at No. 1 on Hot 100:

  • 89, Mariah Carey
  • 60, Rihanna
  • 59, The Beatles
  • 54, Drake
  • 50, Boyz II Men
  • 47, Usher
  • 43, Beyoncé
  • 37, Michael Jackson
  • 34, Adele
  • 34, Elton John
  • 34, Bruno Mars

“Christmas” became Carey’s 19th Hot 100 No. 1, the most among soloists and one away from The Beatles’ overall record 20. It also made Carey the first artist to have ranked at No. 1 on the chart in four distinct decades, dating to her first week at the summit with “Vision of Love.” The song is additionally the only title to have led in four separate runs on the survey.

No. 1 on Holiday 100: “Christmas” concurrently crowns the multi-metric Holiday 100 chart for a 55th week, of the chart’s 60 total weeks since the list originated in 2011. It has topped the tally for 40 consecutive weeks, dating to the start of the 2015-16 holiday season, and rules as the top title on the Greatest of All Time Holiday 100 Songs chart.

Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” originally released in 1958, keeps at its No. 2 Hot 100 high, with 40.9 million streams (up 19%), 26.7 million in radio airplay audience (up 2%) and 5,000 sold (up 4%).

SZA scores two debuts in the Hot 100’s top 10 – “Kill Bill,” at No. 3, and “Nobody Gets Me,” at No. 10 – both from her new album, SOS. Streaming drive the bulk of both tracks, which begin with 36.9 million and 25.1 million streams, respectively.

“Kill Bill” debuts at No. 1 on Streaming Songs, where it’s SZA’s first leader, and “Nobody Gets Me,” at No. 6. (While the former’s sum of raw streams is the week’s fourth-highest, the song tops the chart due to the application of weighting to all titles’ paid/subscription and ad-supported on-demand streams and programmed/radio streams.)

SZA ups her career total to seven Hot 100 top 10s and, with the entrance of “Kill Bill,” ties her highest rank, establishes a new highest placement as a lead act and makes her strongest debut. Her previous top 10s: as featured on Maroon 5’s “What Lovers Do” (No. 9, November 2017); with “All the Stars,” with Kendrick Lamar (No. 7, March 2018), and “Good Days” (No. 9, February 2021); as featured on Doja Cat’s “Kiss Me More” (No. 3, July 2021); and with “I Hate U” (No. 7, December 2021). (SZA previously debuted at a No. 7 best with both “Kiss Me More” and “I Hate U.”)

Concurrently, “Kill Bill” begins at No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot R&B Songs, which use the same methodology as the Hot 100. SZA earns her third leader on the latter list, following “I Hate U” and “The Weekend” (in 2018), and her second No. 1 on the former, after “I Hate U.”

The late Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock,” from 1957, drops 3-4 on the Hot 100 and the late Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” from 1964, backtracks 4-5, each slipping a spot from their respective highs reached in each of the last four holiday seasons.

Wham!’s “Last Christmas” hits a new best Hot 100 rank, jingling 9-6, after the 1984 release first reached the top 10 during the 2020 holidays and hit a prior No. 7 high last holiday season. It ascends with 28.9 million streams (up 15%), 23 million in radio reach (up 2%) and 3,000 sold (up 7%).

Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” retreats 6-7 after spending its first six weeks on the Hot 100 at No. 1 starting in November. It concurrently ascends to the top of the Pop Airplay chart, where it’s Swift’s 10th leader and first since “Delicate” in 2018. “Anti-Hero” leads Adult Pop Airplay, where it’s her ninth No. 1, for a fourth week. On Radio Songs, it holds at its No. 2 high (77 million, up 3%).

Andy Williams’ 1963 carol “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” rebounds 11-8 on the Hot 100; it hit a No. 5 high in the 2020 holiday season. The song’s latest week in the top 10 extends the late crooner’s record for the longest span of an act appearing in the tier to 63 years, two months and two weeks, dating to his first week in the top 10 with “Lonely Street,” on the chart dated Oct. 12, 1959.

Elsewhere in the Hot 100’s top 10, Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy” slides 7-9, after it topped the Oct. 29-dated chart, as it rules Radio Songs for a fifth week (78.3 million, essentially even week-over-week).

Again, for all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram and all charts (dated Dec. 24), including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh on Billboard.com tomorrow (Dec. 20).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

19 Dec 2022

Lil Wayne Wishes 150 New Orleans Kids ‘A Very Weezy Christmas’ With Gift of Sports Equipment

Lil Wayne is in the mood to spread Christmas cheer.

On Sunday, the “A Milli” rapper teamed up with Young Money Entertainment president Mack Maine and invited 150 children from their New Orleans hometown for some fun at Dave & Buster’s for “A Very Weezy Christmas,” which included a special visit from Santa and gifts from Wilson Sporting Goods for the lucky children in attendance.

The rapper shared a series of photos to Instagram from the wholesome outing, which features several of the kids happily posing alongside Santa and showing off their gifts. “This Christmas @mackmaine4president & I wanted to give some future hall of famers the gift of game w/ the help of @Wilson,” Wayne wrote. “Making sure they received the necessary resources so they could enjoy all the benefits of being a top tier athlete was very important to us! #HappyHolidays #WeezyChristmas.”

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“Whether it’s learning about sportsmanship, teamwork, or just using the field as a way to escape everyday stresses, we wanted to make sure these kids get to experience impactful moments,” Wayne added in a press release.

Holidays aside, Lil Wayne achieved a major achievement just before the end of the year: His 2008 hit “Lollipop,” which appeared on Tha Carter III and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks, just achieved diamond status. The hip-hop hitmaker shared a video of him opening up his special plaque to commemorate the milestone and told his fand and followers via instagram that he “appreciate[s] every single one of you.”

See photos from Lil Wayne’s Christmas surprise here.

19 Dec 2022

Shaggy’s Reggae Spin on the Sinatra Songbook Lands a 2023 Grammy Nod

Shaggy’s Com Fly Wid Mi, which consists of 11 songs made famous by Frank Sinatra, is competing for a Grammy in the best reggae album category. The album’s title, of course, is a reggafied twist on Sinatra’s jet-age classic “Come Fly With Me.”

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Two previous Sinatra tribute albums won Grammys for best traditional pop vocal album – Tony Bennett’s Perfectly Frank (1992) and Willie Nelson’s My Way (2018). Seven others were nominated in that category — Barry Manilow’s Manilow Sings Sinatra (1999), Keely Smith’s  Keely Sings Sinatra (2001), Michael Feinstein’s The Sinatra Project (2008), Bob Dylan’s Shadows in the Night (2015), Fallen Angels (2016) and Triplicate (2017) and Nelson’s That’s Life (2021).

The Recording Academy says Shaggy’s album was submitted in the best reggae album category and was accepted by the reggae screening committee. It was never considered in the traditional pop category. 

Copy on the front cover of the album describes the project this way: “The Sinatra songbook inna reggae style. Sung by Shaggy. Produced by Sting.” Sting also sings on two of the tracks, “You Make Me Feel So Young” and “Witchcraft.” A collaborative album by Sting and Shaggy, 44/876, won a Grammy for best reggae album four years ago.

The other tracks on Com Fly Wid Mi are “That’s Life,” “Come Fly with Me,” “That Old Black Magic,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Luck Be a Lady,” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” [shown here as “Under My Skin”], “Saturday Night Is the Loneliest Night of the Week” [shown here as “Saturday Night”), “Angel Eyes” and “Witchcraft” [a guitar and vocal “bonus track”].

This is Shaggy’s eighth nomination for best reggae album. He has won twice in the category for Boombastic (1995) and the aforementioned 44/876. Shaggy’s only nomination outside of this category was for “It Wasn’t Me,” a collab with Ricardo “RikRok” Ducent, which was nominated for best pop collaboration with vocals. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in February 2001.

Sinatra’s “Come Fly With Me” was one of his most iconic hits. His album of the same name topped the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks in February and March 1958 and received Grammy nominations for album of the year and best vocal performance, male in the first year of the Grammys. The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004.

Sinatra, widely regarded as one of the finest vocalists of the 20th Century, won nine Grammy Awards, from 1958 (best album cover for his design work on Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely) to 1995 (best traditional pop vocal album for Duets II).

Sinatra was the first artist to win album of the year twice, and also the first artist to win it three times. In all the years since, just three other artists have won album of the year three times as a lead artist – Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon (counting a Simon & Garfunkel album) and Taylor Swift. Adele would join their ranks if she wins at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 5.

Sinatra received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1966, a trustees award in 1979 and a Grammy legend award in 1994. Bono presented the latter award after delivering an exquisitely written speech. A clearly moved Sinatra, who was 78 at that point, started to ramble in his acceptance remarks. Unfortunately, the Grammy production team cut him off mid-speech and cut to a commercial. The explanation was they didn’t want the great star to embarrass himself on live TV. That may well be, but it could have been handled with more foresight and grace. This was Sinatra’s final appearance on the Grammy telecast. He died in 1998 at age 82.

This year’s other nominees for best reggae album are Kabaka Pyramid’s The Kalling, Koffee’s Gifted, Sean Paul’s Scorcha and Protoje’s Third Time’s the Charm.

The Grammy rules for best traditional pop vocal album say this about what the category is intended to honor: “This category is for performances of a type and style of song that cannot properly be intermingled with present forms of pop music. This includes older forms of traditional pop such as the Great American Songbook, created by the Broadway, Hollywood and Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the period between the 1920s and the end of World War II, as well as cabaret/musical theater-style songs and previous forms of contemporary pop. This would also include contemporary pop songs performed in traditional pop style — the term ‘traditional’ being a reference, equally, to the style of the composition, vocal styling and the instrumental arrangement, without regard to the age of the material.”

19 Dec 2022

SZA Earns First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 With ‘SOS’

SZA earns her first No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart (dated Dec. 24) as SOS starts atop the list with one of the biggest debuts of 2022. The set launches with 318,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Dec. 15, according to Luminate – largely driven by streaming activity. That start marks the fifth-largest debut of the year and SZA’s biggest week ever.

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SOS also garners the biggest streaming week ever for an R&B album, and the third-largest of 2022 among all albums.

Also in the top 10, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie captures his fourth top 10-charting effort, as Me vs. Myself debuts at No. 6.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Dec. 24, 2022-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Dec. 20. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of SOS’ 318,000 equivalent album units earned, SEA units comprise 309,500 (equaling 404.58 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise 7,500 and TEA units comprise 1,000.

With a total start of 318,000 equivalent album units, SOS logs the fifth-biggest debut of 2022, following the opening weeks of Taylor Swift’s Midnights (1.578 million), Harry Styles’ Harry’s House (521,000), Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss (404,000) and Beyoncé’s Renaissance (332,000).

Further, as SOS generated 404.58 million official on-demand streams for its 23 songs, the set registers the biggest streaming week ever for an R&B album, the second-largest streaming week ever for an album by a female artist, and the third-largest streaming week of 2022 for any album. (R&B albums are defined as those that have hit Billboard’s Top R&B Albums chart.)

Among all R&B sets, SOS passes the streaming debut of Drake’s Honestly, Nevermind (250.23 million) for the top weekly total ever. The only larger streaming week ever registered by a woman was notched by Swift’s Midnights (549.26 million). And, the only bigger streaming weeks overall in 2022 were tallied by the debuts of Midnights and Her Loss (513.56 million).

SOS is SZA’s second studio album and comes more than five years after the June 2017 release of her smash Ctrl project. It debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, has earned 3.9 million equivalent album units and has yet to leave the weekly Billboard 200 after 288 consecutive weeks (it climbs 35-28 on the new chart). Ctrl contains a trio of Billboard Hot 100-charting hits in “Love Galore,” “The Weekend” and “Broken Clocks.” Before SOS’ release, Ctrl had amassed 5.1 billion official on-demand streams for its songs in the U.S.

Though fans waited a long time between albums from SZA, she kept very busy releasing hit singles and collaborative tracks. Since Ctrl’s release (but before SOS’ bow) SZA charted 15 further songs on the Hot 100, including five top 10s: “What Lovers Do,” billed to Maroon 5 featuring SZA; “All the Stars,” a co-lead collaboration with Kendrick Lamar; “Good Days;” “Kiss Me More,” billed to Doja Cat featuring SZA; and “I Hate U.”

SOS, which contains 23 songs, includes three tracks that were released prior to the album’s arrival: “Good Days” (released in late 2020), “I Hate U” (released in late 2021) and “Shirt” (released in October of 2022). Those three tracks collectively garnered 980 million official on-demand streams in the U.S. before SOS’ release.

SOS was released on Dec. 9 via Top Dawg/RCA Records. It gives RCA its first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since Tool’s Fear Inoculum (released via Tool Dissectional/Volcano/RCA) debuted at No. 1 on the Sept. 14, 2019-dated chart. SOS is the seventh No. 1 for Top Dawg, following four leaders from Kendrick Lamar (Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers in 2022, DAMN. in 2017, untitled unmastered. in 2016 and To Pimp a Butterfly in 2015; all were released via Top Dawg/Aftermath/Interscope Records, except Mr. Morale (pgLang/Top Dawg/Aftermath/Interscope), Black Panther: The Album in 2018 (Top Dawg/Aftermath/Interscope), and ScHoolboy Q’s Oxymoron in 2014 (Top Dawg/Interscope).

Four former No. 1s follow SOS on the latest Billboard 200, as Midnights is a non-mover at No. 2 (139,000 equivalent album units; down 3%), Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains falls 1-3 in its second week after debuting atop the list (102,000; down 45%), Her Loss dips 3-4 (67,000; down 15%) and Michael Bublé’s Christmas is steady at No. 5 (62,000; up 14%).

A Boogie Wit da Hoodie captures his fourth top 10-charting album on the Billboard 200 as Me vs. Myself debuts at No. 6 with 53,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 50,000 (equaling 66.92 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs), album sales comprise 3,000 and TEA units comprise a negligible. The rapper previously visited the top 10 with Artist 2.0 (No. 2 in 2020), Hoodie SZN (No. 1, 2019) and The Bigger Artist (No. 4, 2017).

Bad Bunny’s former No. 1 Un Verano Sin Ti falls 4-7 on the Billboard 200 with 51,000 equivalent album units earned (down 7%), Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song climbs 9-8 with just over 47,000 (up 17%), Vince Guaraldi Trio’s A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack rises 12-9 nearly 47,000 (up 19%) and Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping Dangerous: The Double Album falls 7-10 with 45,000 (down 3%).

Dangerous: The Double Album has now accumulated 100 nonconsecutive weeks in the top 10 on the Billboard 200. It continues to have the fifth-most weeks in the top 10 among all albums since the chart began publishing on a regular, weekly basis in March of 1956 – and the most for an album by a single artist.. The all-time top 10 record-holder is the original cast recording of My Fair Lady, with 173 weeks in the top 10 between 1956-60. See list, beow.

Albums With Most Weeks in Top 10 on Billboard 200 Chart (March 24, 1956-onwards)
Weeks in Top 10, Artist, Title, Year First Reached Top 10
173, Original Cast, My Fair Lady, 1956
109, Soundtrack, The Sound of Music, 1965
106, Soundtrack, West Side Story, 1962
105, Original Cast, The Sound of Music, 1960
100, Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album, 2021
90, Soundtrack, South Pacific, 1958
87, Original Cast, Camelot, 1961
87, Soundtrack, Oklahoma!, 1956
85, Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter Paul and Mary, 1962
84, Adele, 21, 2011
84, Bruce Springsteen, Born in the U.S.A., 1984
(through the Dec. 24, 2022-dated chart)

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

19 Dec 2022

Jung Kook, Maluma, Ozuna & More Musicians at FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar: Photos

The 2022 FIFA World Cup officially concluded Sunday (Dec. 18) when Argentina and France faced off for the esteemed soccer title. Lionel Messi led Argentina to victory in the game, which came to a close after the team beat France 4-2 following a penalty kick shootout. The World Cup also resulted in a series of thrilling performances from some of the world’s biggest musicians, which continued throughout the monthlong tournament.

The opening ceremony of the 2022 World Cup took place Nov. 20 at the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, Qatar, and sent BTS ARMY into a tizzy, as Jung Kook appeared on the stage — notably without the rest of the K-pop septet to accompany him — to perform “Dreamers,” one of the many official songs that appear in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Official Soundtrack. During the performance of “Dreamers,” the BTS singer was joined by Fahad Al Kubaisi.

Latin music stars were also in attendance at the World Cup, notably Maluma and Ozuna. Maluma took the stage with Lebanese singer Mryiam Fare for their song “Tukoh Taka,” which also features Nicki Minaj and serves as one of the official FIFA Fan Festival songs. Ozuna took the stage alongside French-Congolese rapper Gims (in a mash-up performance including Davido and Aisha) to perform a live rendition of their track “Arbho” at the games’ closing ceremony.

See photos from all the musicians featured in this year’s FIFA World Cup below.