Music

11 Nov 2022

Rihanna Drops ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Single ‘Born Again’

Rihanna unveiled “Born Again,” her second single from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, on Friday (Nov. 11).

On the track, the superstar takes us back into ballad territory. It’s a mid-tempo, stripped-down number that places RiRi’s vocals over piano and strings, and provides some dramatic flourishes.

“Born Again” marks RiRi’s second song to be featured in the Marvel sequel after “Lift Me Up,” the emotional ballad that heralded the singer’s long-awaited return to music more than six years after her last studio album, 2016’s Anti. The superhero film is now in theaters nationwide. “Lift Me Up” debuts at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week (chart dated Nov. 12) behind only Taylor’s Swift’s “Anti-Hero.”

The official Wakanda Forever soundtrack also features offerings from Tems (“No Woman, No Cry”), Stormzy (“Interlude”), Fireboy DML (“Coming Back for You”), CKay and PinkPantheress (“Anya Mmiri”), Burna Boy (“Alone”) and more.

In other news, Rihanna also just held the fourth iteration of herSavage X Fenty lingerie fashion show with the likes of Sheryl Lee Ralph, Taraji P. Henson, Johnny Depp and Simu Liu among the models, while Anitta, Maxwell, Don Toliver and Burna Boy provided musical performances throughout the evening. The entire show can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video now.

Stream “Born Again” below.

11 Nov 2022

Bob Dylan’s Teenage Love Letters Going Under the Hammer

A deeply personal collection of love letters in which a teenage Bob Dylan tells his high-school sweetheart that he envisions changing his name and selling a million records is going up for sale in Boston.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The Hibbing, Minnesota, boy — still known then as Bob Zimmerman — wrote the 42 letters totaling 150 pages to Barbara Ann Hewitt between 1957 and 1959. The missives, to be auctioned by RR Auction, have never before been made public and shed light on a period in the folk-rock icon’s life for which not much firsthand information is known.

“This archive is one of the most culturally important of the 20th century we have ever offered,” said RR Auction Executive Vice President Bobby Livingston, a big Dylan fan.

The collection, including a lavish Valentine’s card, is a “first-person account of Dylan’s formative years,” he said.

Hewitt’s daughter found the letters after her mother died in 2020. They, along with the original envelopes addressed in Dylan’s handwriting, are being offered as a single lot with a starting bid of $250,000. Bidding closes on Nov. 17.

RR Auction is not releasing the exact content of the letters ahead of time, but they deal with timeless and universal teenage concerns: clothes, cars, and musical tastes, the auction house said.

Dylan, now 81, also included snippets of poetry and professed his love for Hewitt. Perhaps most impressively, he also imagined his future success.

In one letter, he asks Hewitt for feedback about changing his name (Little Willie and Elston are mentioned in the letters), and writes about selling a million records (he’s actually sold about 125 million) and appearing on “American Bandstand” in front of throngs of screaming girls.

“They really give an insight into how he’s going to present himself,” Livingston said. “It shows that Dylan dreamed all this up, and it all came true — he foresaw it.”

Alas, like most teenage romances, it came to an end. In one of the last letters, the future Nobel laureate asks Hewitt to return the photographs he sent her.

But it seems likely Dylan did not forget her. Hewitt’s daughter told RR Auction that Dylan called her mother sometime in the late 1960s after he’d hit the big time and asked her to come to California. She turned him down.

Hewitt was a redhead, and Livingston speculates that Dylan’s references to redheaded or auburn-haired women in some songs were inspired by Hewitt, including “Tangled Up in Blue” where in one line he wonders “if her hair was still red.”

Hewitt moved on, apparently. She married another Hibbing man, but divorced in the late 1970s after seven years and never remarried, her daughter told the auction house.

This article originally appeared in AP.

11 Nov 2022

Aaron Carter’s Managers Slam Planned Music & Book Releases as ‘Heartless Money Grabs’

In the first statement released since his death Saturday at age 34, Aaron Carter‘s management team is decrying “obscenely disrespectful and unauthorized releases” planned from the late star, including an album, single and book.

The statement, sent from Taylor Helgeson of Big Umbrella Management, thanked Carter’s ex-girlfriend Hilary Duff for speaking out against a posthumous book release, titled Aaron Carter: An Incomplete Story of an Incomplete Life. An excerpt from the memoir published by Page Six claims that the stars lost their virginity to each other, and Duff is taking issue with the lack of fact checking for the project. “It’s really sad that within a week of Aaron’s death, there’s a publisher that seems to be recklessly pushing a book out to capitalize on this tragedy without taking appropriate time or care to fact check the validity of his work,” Duff said in a statement provided to Billboard.

In the statement from Carter’s management team, they thank Duff for her response to the book, which they say is “unauthorized,” along with a single and album release.

“In the few short days following our dear friend’s passing we have been trying to grieve and process while simultaneously having to deal with obscenely disrespectful and unauthorized releases including an album, a single and now it seems a book,” the statement reads. “This is a time for mourning and reflection not heartless money grabs and attention seeking. We would ask the parties responsible to remove the aforementioned content and that no further content be released without approval from his family, friends, and associates.”

Billboard has reached out to Ballast Books, the publisher behind the planned memoir release, for response to the managers’ claims.

As for music, an independent album called Blacklisted was released on Sunday, the day after Carter’s death, by producers Morgan Matthews and John Wyatt Johnson. “We decided to release Blacklisted tomorrow to honor him and share his exceptional artistry with his fans around the world as we all mourn his loss,” the producers said in a statement on the day of Carter’s death.

Carter was found dead Saturday at age 34. No cause of death has been announced for the pop star, TV personality and brother of Backstreet Boys’ Nick Carter.

Also in their statement, the Big Umbrella team thanks fans for their “overwhelming support and kind words during this difficult time,” adding: “We love you Aaron, you are so deeply missed.”

Read the full statement from Carter’s management below:

We as Aaron’s Management are grieving deeply for the loss of our dear friend and colleague Aaron, the silence is deafening and our world is different without you here. We would like to thank everyone for their overwhelming support and kind words During this difficult time. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and beautiful son Prince. We love you Aaron, you are so deeply missed. 

We would also like to thank Hillary Duff for her statement regarding the Book that is set to be released. In the few short days following our dear friends passing we have been trying to grieve and process while simultaneously having to deal with obscenely disrespectful and unauthorized releases including an album, a single and now it seems a book. 

This is a time for mourning and reflection not heartless money grabs and attention seeking. We would ask the parties responsible to remove the aforementioned content and that no further content be released without approval from his family, friends, and associates.

11 Nov 2022

HYBE Previews Upcoming Albums, World Tours, New Groups & More: Here’s Everything Scheduled

After Big Hit Entertainment rebranded into HYBE in 2021, the entertainment-lifestyle giant has shared annual updates with the public to share the company’s upcoming path and more into the philosophies guiding them for the next 12 months.

At the 2022 HYBE Briefing With the Community, several top music executives across the company and label partners including founder Bang Si-Hyuk, HYBE CEO Jiwon Park, SB Projects founder Scooter Braun, Big Machine Label Group President & CEO Scott Borchetta, HYBE Labels America VP Daniel Kwon, Interscope Geffen A&M VP of A&R Marketing Charlie Christie and more spoke to where the company was heading. Various HYBE employees, creatives and artists like also shared their experiences in the past year with an emphasis on “coevolution” and learning from one another’s businesses.

“HYBE has to continue creating the best content for fans who are waiting for new releases from their artists,” Bang shared of HYBE’s “ground rule” in quality content before sending a special message to BTS and their fans that “BTS was our starting and driving force and ARMY made all of this possible.”

From BTS to a slew of new artists on their way, HYBE artists are all housed across different labels at the corporation currently consisting of BIGHIT Music, BELIFT LAB, Source Music, PLEDIS Entertainment, KOZ Entertainment, ADOR, HYBE Labels Japan, and HYBE America. With new albums, world tours and debuts on the way, we’ve broken down the big moments on the calendar and what you can expect for the forthcoming months from HYBE.

11 Nov 2022

Louis Tomlinson Announces 2023 ‘Faith in the Future’ World Tour: See Dates

Louis Tomlinson announced the launch of his world tour in 2023. The announcement coincides with the release of his latest album Faith in the Future, which arrives first thing Friday. 

The One Direction alum also dropped the single “Silver Tongues” ahead of the album’s release this week. The single, which includes pop-punk elements, is the third track from the album and the one Tomlinson is most proud of creating, he said in a press release.

In an interview with SiriusXM, Tomlinson described Faith in the Future as a much more dynamic record. His tour comes shortly after the completion of his Walls Tour months ago.  “It’s really important to me in the live show, but also in how the tracks are produced as well,” Tomlinson said. “Me and the producers were a little braver on this record. It was marginally one-dimensional on the first record where I was just thinking about guitar sounds and guitar-driven songs.”

The tour will span American, Canadian and European dates, beginning in Connecticut before wrapping up at Forest Hills Stadium in New York City.

Faith in the Future will be Tomlinson’s second studio album. His first studio album, Walls, debuted Jan. 31, 2020, at No. 9 on the Billboard 200.

U.S. & Canada tour dates
5.26.2023 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Arena
5.27.2023 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
5.29.2023 – Laval, QC – Place Bell
5.30.2023 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage
6.1.2023 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
6.2.2023 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre
6.3.2023 – Cincinnati, OH – The ICON Festival Stage
6.6.2023 – Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live! Outdoor
6.7.2023 – Indianapolis, IN – TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park
6.9.2023 – St. Louis, MO – Saint Louis Music Park
6.10.2023 – Kansas City, MO – Starlight Theatre
6.13.2023- Milwaukee, WI – BMO Pavilion
6.15.2023 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion
6.16.2023 – Minneapolis, MN – The Armory
6.17.2023 – Council Bluffs, IA – Harrah’s Stir Cove
6.19.2023 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Stanford Premier Center
6.21.2023 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
6.24.2023 – Seattle, WA – WAMU Theater
6.26.2023 – Vancouver, BC – Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
6.27.2023 – Troutdale, OR – McMenamins Edgefield Concerts
6.29.2023 – Berkeley, CA – The Greek Theatre
6.30.2023 – Los Angeles, CA – The Hollywood Bowl
7.1.2023 – Las Vegas, NV – The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan
7.3.2023 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Financial Theatre
7.6.2023 – Dallas, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
7.7.2023 – Austin, TX – Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park
7.8.2023 – Woodlands, TX – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
7.11.2023 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre
7.13.2023 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood
7.14.2023 – Tampa, FL – Yuengling Center
7.15.2023 – Atlanta, GA – Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
7.18.2023 – Nashville, TN – Ascend Amphitheater
7.19.2023 – Charlotte, NC – Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre
7.21.2023 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater
7.22.2023- Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
7.24.2023 – Boston, MA – MGM Music Hall at Fenway
7.27.2023 – Philadelphia, PA – TD Pavilion at The Mann
7.28.2023 – Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony Summer Stage
7.29.2023 – New York, NY – Forest Hills Stadium

U.K. & Europe tour dates
8.29.2023 – Hamburg, Germany – Barclays Arena
8.31.2023 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Royal Arena
9.1.2023 – Oslo, Norway – Spektrum
9.2.2023 – Stockholm, Sweden – Hovet
9.4.2023 – Helsinki, Finland – Ice Hall
9.5.2023 – Tallinn, Estonia – Saku Arena
9.7.2023 – Riga, Latvia – Arena Riga
9.8.2023 – Kaunas, Lithuania – Zalgiris Arena
9.10.2023 – Krakow, Poland – Tauron Arena
9.11.2023 – Lodsz, Poland – Atlas Arena
9.13.2023 – Vienna, Austria – Wiener Stadthalle
9.14.2023 – Ljubljana, Slovenia – Stozice Arena
9.15.2023 – Budapest, Hungary – Budapest Arena
9.17.2023 – Bucharest, Romania – Arenele Romane
9.18.2023 – Sofia, Bulgaria – Arena Armeec
9.20.2023 – Athens, Greece – Petras Theater
10.1.2023 – Bilbao, Spain – Bilbao Arena Miribilla
10.3.2023 – Lisbon, Portugal – Altice Arena
10.5.2023 – Madrid, Spain – WiZink Center
10.6.2023 – Barcelona, Spain – Palau Sant Jordi
10.8.2023 – Turin, Italy – Palau Alpitour
10.9.2023 – Bologna, Italy – Unipol Arena
10.11.2023 – Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg – Rockhal
10.12.2023 – Antwerp, Belgium – Sportpaleis
10.14.2023 – Paris, France – Accor Arena
10.15.2023 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Ziggo Dome
10.17.2023 – Cologne, Germany – Lanxess Arena
10.19.2023 – Prague, Czech Republic – O2 Arena
10.20.2023 – Berlin, Germany – Mercedes-Benz Arena
10.22.2023 – Munich, Germany – Olympiahalle
10.23.2023 – Zurich, Switzerland – Hallenstadion
11.08.2023 – Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena
11.10.2023 – Sheffield, United Kingdom – Utilita Arena
11.11.2023 – Manchester, United Kingdom – AO Arena
11.12.2023 – Glasgow, United Kingdom – OVO Hydro
11.14.2023 – Brighton, United Kingdom – Brighton Centre
11.15.2023 – Cardiff, United Kingdom – International Arena
11.17.2023 – London, United Kingdom – The O2
11.18.2023 – Birmingham, United Kingdom – Resorts World Arena

10 Nov 2022

Christina Aguilera Documentary on the Way From TIME Studios & Jay-Z’s Roc Nation

TIME Studios and Jay-Z’s Roc Nation are teaming up to produce a feature documentary on Christina Aguilera. The project is set to be directed by Ting Poo, who earned acclaim for the documentary Val about the life of actor Val Kilmer.

“Christina Aguilera is one of the most iconic artists of our time, whose music has inspired millions of people around the world,” Poo said in a statement. “I am truly honored to tell the story of the person behind the music because I know it will equally inspire.”

The Aguilera documentary will give fans access to the five-time Grammy-winning artist’s life, from her early days as a pre-teen Disney star to her present status as a music icon. There will be exclusive footage showing the 41-year-old as a mother as she reflects on her career fighting for creative and gender equality in the music business.

Aguilera, who has five No. 1 hits on the Billboard’s Hot 100, has had production following her for the past 18 months, a press release revealed.

“We are beyond excited to extend our creative partnership with Roc Nation through this film,” said TIME Studios Co-Head of Documentary Loren Hammonds. “Christina has been such an enduring talent and inimitable entertainer throughout the years. Hers is truly one of the great voices of our time, and this is the perfect moment for her story to be told. We are incredibly honored that she has chosen to work with TIME Studios and Roc Nation to finally share her truth with the world.”

“Christina is a true icon, a beacon of never-ending authenticity,” said Roc Nation’s EVP of TV and Film Lori York. “As a young artist, she broke rules and blazed paths for future voices. We’re proud to work with Christina and TIME Studios, bringing to life such an intimate project.”

This isn’t the first time TIME Studios and Roc Nation have teamed up: The companies previously announced a multi-part documentary series on Grammy-winning artist Megan Thee Stallion.

10 Nov 2022

2022 Soul Train Awards Airdate Moved Up a Day

A little more than two weeks before its scheduled airdate, BET announced a new airdate for the 2022 Soul Train Awards. The show, originally scheduled to premiere Sunday, Nov. 27, will instead premiere on Saturday, Nov. 26, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on BET, BET HER, Logo, MTV2 and VH1.

The show is pre-taped, so no performers, presenters or honorees had to adjust their schedules. The show tapes Sunday, Nov. 13, at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

Comedian and actor Deon Cole will host the show. J. Valentine joins previously announced Ari Lennox, Chanté Moore, Muni Long, SiR, Tank and BET Amplified stage artists Coco Jones and Q as performers. Presenters include JB Smoove, Lucky Daye, Queen Naija and actors Mark Tallman & Michelle Mitchenor.

Long is also set to blend harmonies for this year’s Soul Cypher with Alex Vaughn, Durand Bernarr and Tasha Cobbs Leonard. Long is regarded as a likely Grammy nominee for best new artist. The 65th annual Grammy nominations will be announced Tuesday Nov. 15.

The Soul Train Awards Red Carpet Special pre-show will air at 7 p.m. ET/PT with hosts Tank, Letoya Luckett and Novi Brown (Tyler Perry’s Sistas).

As previously announced, funk band Morris Day & The Time will receive the Legend award. All-female group Xscape will receive the Lady of Soul honor.  DJ and music producer D-Nice will take command of the turntables.

Connie Orlando, evp, specials, music programming & music strategy will oversee the annual show and executive produce for BET with Jamal Noisette, vp, specials & music programming. Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment, will also serve as executive producer, along with Jesse Collins Entertainment’s Jeannae Rouzan–Clay and Dionne Harmon.

10 Nov 2022

Lorde Details the Harsh Reality of Touring in 2022: ‘Things Are at an Almost Unprecedented Level of Difficulty’

Lorde is dishing about the reality of touring in 2022.

On Wednesday (Nov. 9), the “Solar Power” singer sent a newsletter to fans that included a “spiel” on the difficulties artists are facing on the road, highlighting “a storm of factors” that have led to this moment.

“Basically, for artists, promoters and crews, things are at an almost unprecedented level of difficulty,” she wrote. “Let’s start with three years’ worth of shows happening in one. Add global economic downturn, and then add the totally understandable wariness for concertgoers around health risks.”

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Lorde went on to cite crew shortages, overbooked trucks and tour buses and venues, the inflated prices of flights and hotel rooms and COVID-related costs, among other issues. She added that freight costs are “truly mindboggling,” with prices three times higher than they were pre-pandemic.

While Lorde counts herself lucky in the current touring market, she explained to her fans that this is not the case for most artists, stating, “for pretty much every artist selling less tickets than I am, touring has become a demented struggle to break even or face debt.”

“Ticket prices would have to increase to start accommodating even a little of this, but absolutely no one wants to charge their harried and extremely-compassionate-and-flexible audience any more f—ing money,” she wrote. “Nearly every tour has been besieged with cancellations and postponements and promises and letdowns, and audiences have shown such understanding and such faith, that between that and the post-COVID wariness about getting out there at all, scaring people away by charging the true cost ain’t an option. All we want to do is play for you.”

For some artists, Lorde continued, touring is financially unfeasible even if they sell out the entire run of dates, given the price of production and how much they’re willing to charge their fans. She cited this dilemma as a likely cause for the spate of recent tour cancellations due to mental health concerns.

“Understandably, all of this takes a toll — on crews, on promoters, and on artists,” she added. “You’ll notice a ton of artists cancelling shows citing mental health concerns in the past year, and I really think the stress of this stuff is a factor — we’re a collection of the world’s most sensitive flowers who also spent the last two years inside, and maybe the task of creating a space where people’s pain and grief and jubilation can be held night after night with a razor thin profit margin and dozens of people to pay is feeling like a teeny bit much.”

In 2022, acts like GAYLE, Shawn Mendes, Justin Bieber and Anuel AA have canceled tours to focus on their mental health. In addition, artists including Animal Collective and Santigold have called off their runs due to various economic issues, including those cited by Lorde.

The last year of touring has proven a difficult time for many artists, most prominently mid-tier and emerging acts — some of whom have gone public with their struggles. According to many independent promoters in the concert business, the live music industry is no longer enjoying the post-lockdown boon thanks to oversaturation in the market, high ticket prices and budget-conscious consumers. Among other myriad issues, tours are struggling to get tour buses, while many experienced drivers have left the touring sector during the pandemic. Items that used to be easy to come by — such as cymbals, in-ear monitors and lighting fixtures — have also been a struggle to procure for even major acts like Coldplay and Jack White.

Even with her rescheduled Solar Power tour selling well, Lorde wrote that she still feels the immense pressure and was even forced to cancel her March 3 show at Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth, New Zealand due to low ticket sales.

“I’m not immune to the stress — just a month ago I was looking at a show that was pretty undersold and panicking, only for it to sell the remaining 2000 tickets in ten days. Wild stuff,” she wrote. “I wanted to put all of this in your minds to illustrate that nothing’s simple when it comes to touring at the moment, and if your faves are confusing you with their erratic moves, some of this could be playing a part.”

10 Nov 2022

Zach Bryan Says He ‘Never’ Wants to Be Considered at CMA Awards: ‘Establishments Will Always Be Weird’

Wednesday night’s CMA Awards were filled with memorable moments, from a Chris Stapleton/Patty Loveless collaboration to newcomer Lainey Wilson taking home female vocalist and new artist accolades, as well as Texas native Cody Johnson picking up single and music video of the year for “‘Til You Can’t” and Luke Combs extending his reign as entertainer of the year, in addition to earning album of the year for Growin’ Up.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

However, there was one big name absent during the ceremony: Warner Records artist Zach Bryan, whose song “Something in the Orange” rose to No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and is at No. 3 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart. Bryan’s album American Heartbreak debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Country Albums chart in June.

On Thursday (Nov. 10), after many in Bryan’s fanbase noted that he had not been nominated at nor performed on the show, Bryan said via Twitter, “Guys I don’t and will never want to be considered at the CMA’s. My pride is fine and I appreciate all the love and support and I say it with every ounce of respect to other country artists. Establishments will always be weird.”

He added in a second tweet: “In five years all of these strange outdated systems will claim it was right in front of them the entire time. Truly more fun to laugh at than be butt hurt over. If these shows and companies wanted to be honest they would have gotten into songwriting and not award giving…any man or woman doing a task -solely- to be awarded for it shouldn’t be doing the task at all.”

When asked whether he felt that CMA-winning artists are working only for an award, Bryan was quick to dispel the notion, saying, “No I do not think this. I think there are so many talented artists that deserve [to be] awarded and will be awarded, and some just don’t care enough about a silly tv program to need an award in the first place.”

A Twitter user commented that Bryan should hold a concert outside the CMA Awards next year, and Bryan responded, “If I don’t have a show, you have my word on this.”

A concert outside the CMA Awards venue would feel reminiscent of Sturgill Simpson at the 2017 CMA Awards, when Simpson mocked the Country Music Association by busking on the streets outside of Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena as the CMA Awards took place inside. Simpson was not among the CMA Awards final nominees that year, but in his guitar case was the Grammy he had won earlier in the year for best country album, for his project A Sailor’s Guide to Earth.

Later, Bryan clarified his earlier statements, adding, “To be clear, I’m not trying to insult the validity of a CMA, I respect any artist who receives one and the existence of them; I’m just saying on a personal level it is not one of my priorities to have awards on a shelf in my home. There’s room for more important things there.”

Bryan is set to headline the Pepsi Rock the South festival in July 2023, alongside reigning CMA male vocalist of the year Chris Stapleton, reigning CMA single of the year and music video of the year winner Cody Johnson and Riley Green.

The CMA did not respond to Billboard‘s request for comment about Bryan’s tweets.

10 Nov 2022

CMA Awards Enjoy Healthy Ratings Boost Over 2021

The CMA Awards grew their audience Wednesday, leading ABC to a ratings win Wednesday (Nov. 9).

Co-hosted by Luke Bryan and football star Peyton Manning, the 2022 awards brought in 7.57 million viewers, up from 6.83 million (an all-time low) in 2021 — an 11 percent gain. Wednesday’s telecast, which saw Luke Combs take home entertainer of the year and album of the year honors, was also up over the 2020 show’s 7.08 million viewers. Other big winners at the ceremony included Chris Stapleton (male vocalist of the year) and Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde (musical event of the year for “Never Wanted to Be That Girl”).

The CMAs slipped a little in the key ad demographic of adults 18-49, scoring a 1.05 rating (equivalent to about 1.37 million viewers in that age group) vs. 1.12 a year ago. The awards haven’t recovered much of their pre-pandemic draw yet — in 2019, ABC’s broadcast averaged more than 11 million viewers and a 2.0 rating in the 18-49 demo.

The CMA Awards also appeared to push down the audience for some of its competition on Wednesday. Fox’s The Masked Singer (3.16 million viewers, 0.55 in adults 18-49) and NBC’s Chicago Med (6.03 million, 0.58), Fire (6.19 million, 0.63) and PD (4.74 million, 0.53) all were below their same-day averages for the season so far. CBS’ Survivor (4.73 million, 0.72) and The Amazing Race (2.88 million, 0.39), on the other hand, edged up week to week.

A post-election edition of Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News was the most-watched show on cable Wednesday, drawing 4.43 million viewers.

This story was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.