Music

09 Dec 2022

Remembering La Diva de la Banda: Revisit Jenni Rivera’s Iconic Fashion Looks

Besides gifting fans with her powerhouse vocals in top Billboard hits such as “De Contrabando,” “Inolvidable,” and “Ya Lo Se,” the late Jenni Rivera had a passion for fashion. Whether it be on the stage or on a red carpet, La Diva de la Banda was hard to miss with her iconic looks.

When people think of Jenni, they automatically envision the prideful Mexican superstar in her long, colorful gowns with beautiful floral embroideries and matching shawls. Others picture the laid-back Long Beach native wearing a cozy jogger set and baseball cap. Oftentimes, she dressed sassy on stage with leather jackets, cowboy hats, and miniskirts.

Ten years after her sudden death in a plane crash in Mexico on Dec. 9, 2012, Rivera’s legacy continues to shine in her very own Jenni Rivera Fashion store that re-opened in November 2022 at the Brea Mall in Orange County, Calif. The store offers merch that includes T-shirts, memorabilia jackets, and more, running from size small to 2XL, and ranging from $19.99 to $99.99. The Rivera family hopes to expand to an online store for fans.

“She’s come a long way from the first store that was opened in 2013, and it is a very proud moment for us to be able to achieve this milestone to honor our mother’s legacy,”  Jacqie Rivera said in a press statement. “I bet she is smiling down remembering the days she used to sell CDs at the swap meets, and now she has a whole store in a prime location honoring her music career and legacy.”

Below, we celebrate Rivera’s legacy with some of her iconic outfits.

09 Dec 2022

Sam Asghari Pleads With Fans to Respect Britney Spears‘ Privacy: ’Social Media Can Be Traumatizing’

Britney Spears‘ husband, actor and model Sam Asghari, is reminding fans that there should be boundaries on social media.

In a recent message posted to his Instagram Story, Asghari asked his wife’s fans to ease up on their scrutiny of Spears’ own Instagram activity. “Social media can be traumatizing,” he wrote. “Sometimes it’s good to take a break. She has her voice and is a free woman.”

On Dec. 2, the “Toxic” singer confused many by posting praise of her younger sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, with whom Britney has been very publicly feuding since her conservatorship legal battle. Then, on Tuesday (Dec. 6), she deactivated her account before reactivating two days later, according to ET.

Asghari himself hasn’t been posting much of Spears on his account in recent months, something he also addressed in his story. “I have respect for her privacy and I protect it at all times,” he wrote. “Out of respect for her privacy, I don’t post her 247. I ask for permission if I ever do.”

“For my job I have to attend many events. It would be my honor if she joins. For her, those things are not fun. They’re [hectic] and full of stress,” he wrote. “Specially since she’s been doing these things since 8 years old. Plus she already slayed every single one she has been to.”

Spears and Asghari tied the knot in June this year after dating for five years, first meeting on the set of the 41-year-old pop star’s “Slumber Party” music video in 2016. Their marriage came about seven months after Brit’s conservatorship was legally terminated in November 2021 after a harrowing legal battle, after which the “Hold Me Closer” singer started posting from time to time about her newfound independence on social media.

Spears also recently posted about her two sons Jayden and Preston, writing that she “would give anything just to touch your face.” This follows a public back and forth between Spears, her kids and their father Kevin Federline regarding the singer’s separation from the boys.

Asghari, however, didn’t mention specific posts of Brit’s in his post, instead giving a general plea for privacy on her behalf. “I’ve always respected and supported her privacy with everything I’ve had,” he wrote. “I ask of you supportive and protective fans to do the same. Sometimes being over protective can cause more stress and damage.”

09 Dec 2022

Zac Brown Engaged to Model & Actress Kelly Yazdi

Zac Brown Band lead singer Zac Brown will soon be a married man again. He is engaged to actress-model-stuntwoman Kelly Yazdi, sources confirm to Billboard. People first reported the story, noting that Brown proposed to Yazdi in Hawaii.

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According to her IMDB page, Yazdi has worked on projects including the TV series Hawaii Five-0 and Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Ranch Challenge, as well as films including The Beautiful Ones and The Martial Arts Kid. She was raised in Minnesota and moved to Los Angeles while still a teenager. She studied advanced acting and performing arts at the University of California Santa Barbara.

This will mark the second marriage for Brown. He and his former wife Shelly divorced in 2018 after a decade of marriage, and share five children together.

“We have led a whirlwind life together growing into a beautiful family with five amazing children and while life will be rearranging a bit, our love and commitment to our family will always be there,” Brown and Shelly said via a statement to People at the time. “This was a difficult decision, but we’ve done plenty of tough things together and this is our next venture — love, mutual respect, and care for each other are what we are moving forward with.”

Zac Brown Band has also undergone musical shifts recently, welcoming singer-musician Caroline Jones as the first full-time female member of the group. Jones first opened shows for them in 2017 and has continued joining the band on their more recent tours.

The Zac Brown Band has earned 14 Billboard Country Airplay chart-toppers to date, including their latest hit, “Same Boat,” in 2021. Last year, they released the project The Comeback, and issued a deluxe version of the project in September. Next up, they will take part in New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash and have a string of shows overseas beginning in March, including stops in Ireland, the UK and Australia.

09 Dec 2022

Phoenix Earns Third Straight Adult Alternative Airplay No. 1 With ‘Tonight’

Phoenix links its third consecutive, and total, No. 1 on Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart, as “Tonight” climbs to the top of the Dec. 10-dated survey.

The song features Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, who leads in his first solo appearance on the list. Vampire Weekend as tallied two Adult Alternative Airplay No. 1s, both in 2019.

“Tonight” follows the two-week rules each for Phoenix’s “Alpha Zulu” in August and “Identical” in late 2020. The band first hit the top 10 with “1901” in 2010. It has also scored a top 10 with “J-Boy” in 2017.

Phoenix is the first act to earn three straight Adult Alternative Airplay No. 1s since Cage the Elephant, which snagged three in a row in 2019-20: “Ready to Let Go,” “Social Cues” and “Black Madonna.”

Concurrently, “Tonight” lifts 15-12 on Alternative Airplay, where it’s the band’s highest rank since “Trying to Be Cool” peaked at No. 10 in 2013. The band boasts a top 10 there via “1901” in 2010 and an additional top five with “Lisztomania” later that year.

On the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart, “Tonight” jumps 19-13 with 2.4 million audience impressions, up 38%, according to Luminate. The band last ranked that high in 2010, when “Lisztomania” hit No. 5 (its all-time best, “1901,” peaked at No. 3).

“Tonight” is the third single from Phoenix’s seventh album, Alpha Zulu, following “Identical” and the title track. The set was released in November and has earned 20,000 equivalent album units to date.

09 Dec 2022

Lana Del Rey, SZA, Paramore &More: What’s Your Favorite New Release of the Week? Vote!

We’re still two weeks away from Christmas but the gifts keep coming early for music fans with long-awaited albums and surprise singles arriving from their favorite stars. And as always, Billboard wants to know which new release you’re most grateful for this holiday season!

On Friday (Dec. 9), SZA‘s hotly anticipated sophomore album SOS finally arrived after a five-and-a-half year wait. Preceded by lead single “Shirt” and a tease of “Nobody Gets Me,” the studio set follows the recent Billboard cover star‘s smash 2017 debut album Ctrl, which spawned hits like “Drew Barrymore,” “Love Galore” and “The Weekend.”

Then there’s Lana Del Rey, who shocked her fans earlier this week with the surprise announcement of her upcoming ninth album, Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. The pop songstress even sweetened the reveal by unveiling the title track — a reflective, choir-backed ballad in the form of her early releases — in all its sweeping, wistful glory.

Polo G and Paramore also released new singles on Friday, with the rapper previewing his forthcoming project set for 2023 with “My All” and the pop-punk stalwarts unfurling “The News” ahead of their comeback LP This Is Why dropping on Feb. 10.

A Boogie wit da Hoodie, meanwhile, shared his combatively titled fourth studio album, Me vs. Myself, which includes collabs with the likes of H.E.R. (“Playa”), Roddy Ricch (“B.R.O. (Better Ride Out)”), Kodak Black (“Water (Drowning Pt. 2)”) G Herbo (“Last Time”) and more.

Vote for the new music you’re loving the most in BIllboard‘s weekly poll below.

09 Dec 2022

Lea Michele Recalls Pressure to Get a Nose Job: ‘I Wasn’t Pretty Enough For Film and Television’

Remember in Glee season two when Rachel Berry debates getting a nose job, sings an iconic mashup of “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story and TLC‘s “Unpretty” with Quinn Fabray, then decides to embrace her natural beauty when reminded of her resemblance to her hero Barbra Streisand? Turns out, that all has a striking parallel to Lea Michele‘s real life.

In a Thursday (Dec. 8) interview with Town & Country, the Glee alum opened up about the constant pressure she faced as a young actress to surgically alter her face in order to align more with Hollywood’s beauty standards. “People would tell me to get nose jobs, that I wasn’t pretty enough for film and television,” she recalled.

But who else is a powerhouse vocalist and musical theater sensation whose nose is a key part of her unconventional beauty? Michele’s idol, Barbra Streisand, who originated the role of Fanny Brice in Broadway’s Funny Girl — the same role Michele is now playing in the show’s ongoing revival.

“She was an icon for me in my life,” the Scream Queens actress said of Streisand, to whom she’s been compared to throughout her career.

A couple days prior to the interview, Michele revealed on Late Night with Seth Meyers that the Way We Were icon had actually written her a sweet note about her Fanny Brice portrayal. “It was so surreal and such a wonderful moment,” she gushed about the note to Town & Country, revealing that she called Glee creator Ryan Murphy and former costar Jonathan Groff upon receiving it. “The fact that she acknowledged my performance—I could cry.”

“It was a beautiful, hand-written note that I will cherish,” she added. “She was incredibly complimentary,” Michele says. “It exists. It happened, and now I feel like so many dreams can come true.”

09 Dec 2022

The Weeknd’s ‘Save Your Tears’ Video Surpasses 1 Billion Views on YouTube

The Weeknd‘s billion views streak continues. The singer’s music video for “Save Your Tears” has hit 1 billion views on YouTube and becomes his fifth video in his catalogue to do so.

“Save Your Tears” was formally released as the fourth single from The Weeknd’s critically acclaimed and record breaking fourth studio album, After Hours, on Aug. 9, 2020. The video for the track, however, did not arrive on the video-streaming platform until the following year on Jan. 5.

The provocative visual sees the pop star — face drastically changed by numerous (fake) plastic surgeries — performing for masked attendees at a dinner party and engaging in disruptive antics such as dancing on tables, purposefully spilling champagne and walking around with a gun, which he later points to his head and shoots. Confetti — instead of a bullet — comes out of the firearm, and the audience erupts into applause by the conclusion of the video.

“Save Your Tears” is the latest video in The Weeknd’s videography to reach the 1 billion view mark. “Starboy” currently has 2.1 billion views, “The Hills” is at 1.9 billion, “Can’t Feel My Face” boasts 1.2 billion, and “I Feel It Coming” (featuring Daft Punk) has 1.04 billion.

The success of “Save Your Tears” doesn’t just extend to the video, it’s also reflected in the track’s performance on the Billboard charts. Following the release of After Hours on March 29, 2020, the song debuted on the April 4-dated Billboard Hot 100. Its remix, featuring Ariana Grande and released in April 2021, peaked in the No. 1 on the May 8, 2021-dated chart.

Revisit the video for “Save Your Tears” above.

09 Dec 2022

Jet Black, Founding Drummer of The Stranglers, Dies at 84

Jet Black, one of the co-founders and the original drummer in beloved British new wave/punk band The Stranglers has died at 84. “It is with heavy hearts we announce the passing of our dear friend, colleague and band elder statesman Jet Black,” the band wrote in a statement on Thursday (Dec. 8). “Jet died peacefully at home surrounded by his family. Fond adieu, fly straight JB.”

In a lengthy tribute, the band said that Black (born Brian John Duffy on Aug. 26, 1938 in Essex, England) died on Tuesday (Dec. 6) of unspecified causes. “As the ‘elder statesmen’ of the group, Jet was already a successful businessman in the Guildford area when The Stranglers formed in 1974,” they wrote. “Jet owned a fleet of ice cream vans, one of which, as many fans will fondly remember, was used to tour the UK in the early years. Jet also owned an off licence, the upstairs apartment of which doubled as ‘Stranglers HQ’ in the early days.”

The group credited Black with keeping the beat on 23 top 40 singles in the UK, as well as 19 top 40 albums on the official UK charts thanks to his jazz-influenced style on such beloved hits as “Golden Brown,” “Patches” and “No More Heroes.” Just years after forming, the band became a vital part of the UK punk and new wave scenes, making their bones supporting American punks such as the Ramones and Patti Smith on their UK tours.

The Stranglers’ lone remaining original member, bassist/co-frontman JJ Burnel said, “The welcoming committee has doubled. After years of ill health Jet has finally been released. He was a force of nature. An inspiration. The Stranglers would not have been if it wasn’t for him. The most erudite of men. A rebel with many causes. Say hi to Dave for me.” The band’s former keyboardist/vocalist, Dave Greenfield, died in 2020.

Black retired from touring and performing live with the Stranglers in 2015 due to complications from respiratory issues that had dogged him since childhood and which had caused him to take a series of health-related pauses from touring in the early and mid-200s. “Despite difficulties in performing towards the end of his career, Jet’s charismatic charm resonated with fans who would endlessly chant his name as he took his place at the drums,” they wrote.

In addition to his steady-on drumming, Black also wrote two books about the band’s notorious 1980 arrest in Nice, France for allegedly inciting a riot, 1981’s Much Ado About Nothing and 2010’s Seven Days in Nice.

See the band’s tweet and other tributes below.

09 Dec 2022

Tia Lee (Lee Yu Fen) Releases Music Video for Her New Single “Goodbye Princess”

Tia Lee (Lee Yu Fen) is a global c-pop singer, actress, and fashion icon. Over the years and also very recently, Tia Lee has graced the covers of global fashion, beauty, and lifestyle magazines like Vogue, Rollacoaster Magazine, and Elle.

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The highly-anticipated music video for Tia Lee’s new song “Goodbye Princess” was released exclusively on YouTube and Weibo.

“Goodbye Princess” is an official farewell note written by Tia Lee to her old self, as she says goodbye to the past and reinvents herself to explore a new world. Themed around female empowerment, the song aims to encourage all women to build a more promising future for themselves.

This is the first Chinese song produced by Grammy Award-winning producer, Swizz Beatz, who has created hits for music legends including Beyonce, Justin Bieber, Jay-Z, and many others.

The music video for the song was produced by Actual Objects, an experimental multi-disciplinary studio based in Los Angeles that has worked on projects for international brands and artists such as Nike and Travis Scott. The video depicts Tia’s metamorphosis from a sheltered highly scrutinized icon into a brave persona, ready to take on the world.

Speaking about the hyperreal version of herself in the music video, Tia said, “the “me” in the video lives a life of luxury in a futuristic castle that is well-sheltered and protected, but this is not what the real me wants. This is why we have chosen a digital, virtual me in the video; she walks my journey to date, and she represents my farewell to the past as I embrace what the future holds.”

Before the official launch of the video, Tia’s “Goodbye Princess” pre-release campaign combining animation, music, and fashion videography set a new unprecedented c-pop pre-release record of more than 100 million views within a month.

Over the last month, Tia has released a stunning six-part animation series via her social media platforms. It was directed by acclaimed animation director Sunny Tang. The shorts explore Tia’s journey through the entertainment industry and the challenges that women face.

These shorts were further complemented by an exquisite collection of motion imagery and fashion videography, capturing Tia juxtaposed against iconic scenes from the animation series and conveying Tia’s resolve to break free from her past. The collection of stills and moving images was brought to life by the award-winning duo of creative director Tony C. Miller and producer Kate Wynborne, who lent their talent to pulling off an impeccable pre-release visual campaign.

Each episode showcases her passion for female empowerment and features imagery inspired by the adversity she’s faced on her journey through the entertainment industry. The underlying message of Tia’s new song “Goodbye Princess” is for women to unapologetically be themselves.

Check out Tia Lee’s new song “Goodbye Princess ”, and the record-breaking C-POP animation and motion imagery pre-release campaign on Tia Lee’s official social channels:IG,FB,YouTube.

09 Dec 2022

Mick Fleetwood’s Iconic Wooden Balls From ‘Rumors’ Album Cover Sell for $128,000

The rumors are true: Mick Fleetwood’s balls are worth a whole lot of money. On Dec. 3 and 4 in Beverly Hills, items from the Fleetwood Mac archives were auctioned off shortly after the death of Christine McVie, with the biggest sale price — $128,000, to be exact — going to the pair of wooden balls sported by the band’s namesake on the iconic Rumours album cover.

The balls were just one (or two, if you want to be precise) of nearly 900 items sold during the sale — which was announced before McVie’s death — hosted by Julien’s Auctions. Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie’s belongings specifically were up for grabs, with the collection spanning used instruments, band memorabilia and nostalgic pieces of clothing.

Fleetwood Mac,

Fleetwood Mac, “Rumours”

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A Thea Porter dress worn by McVie onstage in 1971 went for $31,250, and one of her Hammond organ speakers used on tour was sold for $37,500. The dress she wore on the back cover of Rumours brought in $56,250, while a crow top hat made by Stevie Nicks for Mick earned $16,000.

A portion of the auction’s proceeds were donated to MusiCares, according to the event’s webpage. The organization, run by the Recording Academy, provides health and human services to the music community.

The auction took place just a couple days after Christine passed away Nov. 30 at age 79 following “a short illness,” according to her family. Since her death, both the keyboardist’s former bandmates and artists from all over the world have put out statements mourning her, while Harry Styles performed perhaps her most recognizable song, “Songbird,” at a recent concert in her honor.

“A few hours ago I was told that my best friend in the whole world since the first day of 1975, had passed away,” wrote Nicks in an emotional message on Twitter. “See you on the other side, my love. Don’t forget me.”