Music

01 Nov 2022

Takeoff of Migos Dead After Shooting in Houston

Migos rapper Takeoff, 28, was shot and killed early Tuesday morning (Nov. 1) in Houston, Texas. According to a spokesperson for the Houston Police Department, the rapper (born Kirshnik Khari Ball) — who was one third of the Migos trio alongside his uncle, Quavo, and cousin, Offset — was at a private party at a bowling alley in downtown Houston with Quavo around 2:35 a.m. when investigators say shots rang out during an afterparty attended by around 40 people.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

KHOU reported that police said someone started shooting, sparking guests to flee the area with one victim, Takeoff, shot in the head or neck. Two other unidentified victims were reportedly transported to a local hospital in private vehicles.

At press time a spokesperson for Offset had not returned requests for comment on the incident and a Houston PD spokesperson said there was no additional information on the injured and no suspects in custody.

According to TMZ, Takeoff and Quavo were at 810 Billiards & Bowling Houston playing dice at the afterparty when someone opened fire, with the site posting stills and video of Quavo and others gathered around Takeoff as Quavo yells for someone to help them; Quavo was not injured in the incident and at press time did not appear to have posted about the shooting.

The shocking killing came just hours after Quavo and Offset, under their side project duo name Unc & Phew, released a new Halloween-themed video for their song “Messy.” Billboard will update this story as more information is available.

01 Nov 2022

Cody Simpson Belts Out Australia’s National Anthem at Melbourne Cup 2022

Cody Simpson just might be Australia’s renaissance man. The 25-year-old Queenslander has enjoyed a pop career (with five appearances on the Billboard 200 chart), pivoted into the ranks of elite swimming, and he’s thrown what energies he has left into an eco-clothing business.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

On Tuesday (Nov. 1), Simpson brought his love of music and sport together when he performed the national anthem at the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse.

Wearing a pin-striped three-piece suit, Simpson delivered a mature rendition of “Advance Australia Fair,” with a packed crowd of 80,000 race-fans watching on.

He’s no stranger to performing the anthem for the big occasion. On Australia Day 2016, he delivered it during the Cleveland Cavs’ home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the first time “Advance Australia Fair” had rung out prior to an NBA contest.  

Speaking ahead of the so-called “race that stops the nation,” Simpson admitted he hasn’t considered hanging up the guitar and mic.

“Music’s still a massive part of my life and I train full time, but everybody needs something to help balance them out, and music for me is just that,” News.com.au quotes Simpson as saying.

“I still play guitar pretty much every single day to relax, and I certainly will be jumping around back to music once I’m done with the pool.”

A butterfly specialist, Simpson collected Commonwealth Games gold earlier in the year, as part of the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay, along with silver in the 4x100m medley. His efforts earned him selection to Australia’s squad for the 2022 Duel in the Pool against the U.S.

In August, the Gold Coast native unveiled Prince Neptune: The Label, and its range of eco-wear, from tees to hoodies, shirts, bandanas and more — all stamped with the freshwater god’s trident.

Simpson also found time in April to release a fourth album, via Coast House Collective, a self-titled studio set containing singles “Nice to Meet You” and “Let Go” as well as the Ben Harper collaboration “It’s a Dream.”

In 2019, he won the inaugural Australian edition of The Masked Singer.

01 Nov 2022

Mariah Carey Gets the Christmas Spirit Flowing In New Clip: ‘It’s Time’

Halloween is officially done, now it’s time for the Queen of Christmas to shine.

As the calendar flipped to Nov. 1, Mariah Carey let us know what time it is with a seasonal social post.

The clip opens in black and white with Carey on a stationary bike, dressed as a witch and surrounded by jack o’lanterns and CG bats.

Then, with a sucker punch of color, we’re thrust into Mariah’s winter wonderland. “It’s time,” she squeals. And, of course, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” rings out.

Carey is the undisputed Queen of Christmas, with her 1994 holiday original topping the Billboard Hot 100 multiple times over the last few years and ranking as the most popular song of all time on the Billboard Holiday 100.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Her gift of Christmas spirit continues to grow in the U.K., where “All I Want for Christmas Is You” finally hit No. 1 in December 2020 — 26 years after its release. That long journey to the summit set a new chart record. Several weeks later, the record was broken again, when Wham’s “Last Christmas” finally claimed the crown, 36 years after its original release.

In Australia, where Christmas is peak summer, and a time for hitting the beach, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” took 24 years to reach No. 1, finally doing so in December 2018.

Carey will get into the swing of things next month with a four-performance run celebrating her “repertoire of classic holiday songs.” Her “Merry Christmas to All” dates, presented by Live Nation, will take place in December with performances in New York and Toronto.

For the record, it’s not time yet. Christmas is 54 days away, but who’s counting.

01 Nov 2022

The Beatles Challenge Taylor Swift For U.K. Chart Crown

Taylor Swift has another titanic battle on her hands, as the U.K. albums chart race enters the final straight.

Last week, Swift’s Midnights (via EMI) saw off the challenge of Arctic Monkeys and their seventh studio album The Car (Domino Recordings). This time, it’s the Beatles with Revolver (EMI).

A special deluxe rerelease of the Fab Four’s 1966 album blasts to No. 2 on the midweek chart, behind Midnights.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Swift last week landed her ninth U.K. chart crown – and snapped several records — as Midnights surged to No. 1 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart with more than 200,000 chart sales, easily a career-best week for the U.S. pop superstar.

With that effort, Swift sailed past Kylie Minogue for outright second place in the list of female artists with the most U.K. No. 1 albums, with nine, all consecutive.  Madonna leads that particular ranking, with 12. And the leader among all acts? The Beatles, with 15 U.K. No. 1s, a tally that includes Revolver, which led the survey following its original release.  

Behind Swift and the Beatles on the midweek chart is Michael Ball and Alfie Boe’s Together In Vegas (Decca), which is set to become their fourth consecutive top 3 as a duo. It’s new at No. 3 on the Official Chart Update, while the top 5 is completed by DJ Fred Again’s Actual Life 3 (Atlantic), and Massive Wagons’ Triggered (Earache), respectively.

Also eyeing top 10 starts are Foo Fighters’ new hits retrospective The Essential (No. 6 via Sony Music CG), Tom Odell’s Best Day Of My Life (No. 7 via Urok Mtheory), Paul Weller’s triple-album Will Of The People (No. 8 via Universal Music Recordings) and Blue’s Heart & Soul (No. 10 via TAG8).

Over on the singles chart blast, Swift maintains her lead with “Anti-Hero.” If it holds its position, and its parent album does the same, Swift will make it a second chart double in as many weeks.

At the halfway point in the chart cycle, “Anti-Hero” leads Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy” (EMI) and Rihanna’s new release, “Lift Me Up” (Def Jam), respectively. Rihanna’s comeback track, which will appear in Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, had trailed just “Anti-Hero” earlier in the week.

All will be revealed when the U.K. singles and albums charts are published Friday (Nov. 4).

31 Oct 2022

Post Malone Helps Couple Have the Sweetest Gender Reveal at Concert

Post Malone is known for greeting his fans at concerts and signing autographs, but he took his fan interactions up a notch when he helped a couple reveal the gender of their baby on the way.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

In a clip shared to TikTok from the “Congratulations” star’s show in Tulsa, Okla., on Friday night (Oct. 28), Post is seen signing a poster that was handed to him by a couple, who begin asking him to open the envelope taped to the poster, and reveal the gender of the baby.

“You want me to just tell you?” Post asks them, before confirming, “You didn’t see it? Y’all didn’t see it?” He then opens the envelope, and immediately, his jaw drops. He excitedly holds up the piece of paper, which reads, “It’s a girl!”

“You’re going to be a girl dad!” the star sweetly tells the father-to-be.

Post Malone himself is also a girl dad, as he welcomed his first child — a daughter — with his longtime girlfriend earlier this year. In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe before the baby’s birth, Post said he’s “pumped beyond belief” to be a father, something he’s been dreaming about since he was a kid who walked around with a baby doll all the time. “I thought that was the coolest thing,” he said of his doll. “I would take him around everywhere. And I don’t know how long that lasted. But my mom still has it. And I guess, Zane, I’m so pumped up. I’m going to be a hot dad.”

Watch the adorable gender reveal below.

31 Oct 2022

K-Pop Star AleXa Holds Minute of Silence for Itaewon Crowd Crush Victims at Los Angeles Tour Stop

As the world and the Korean entertainment industry react to the crowd-crush tragedy in Seoul’s Itaewon neighborhood in South Korea, AleXa took a moment of her tour to remember those lost.

At her concert Sunday at Los Angeles’ Avalon Hollywood, the final date in AleXa’s First Meet & Live Tour in U.S. tour, the star asked for a minute of silence to pay respect to the victims.

“I’m saddened and quite devastated to hear what happened in Itaewon recently in Korea,” the 25-year-old told the audience. “Many bright, young stars, many young lives were lost in this tragedy that will forever go down in history as one of the worst things to happen in modern times in Korea. It’s forever going to change the lives of people they knew, friends, family, and loved ones. I kindly ask that we altogether observe a minute of silence here together out of respect for all the victims and all the lives lost in the tragedy.”

The stage then went dark, minus a video screen with the phrase “Pray for Itaewon” glowing throughout the moment.

AleXa’s Korean record label ZB Label also announced on Sunday that they would temporarily postpone the planned promotional schedule for the singer’s forthcoming Girls Gone Vogue EP. Earlier this month, Billboard revealed that the new EP, along with the new single “Back in Vogue,” would be released on Nov. 10 as the first new music since the Oklahoma-raised star won the inaugural season of NBC’s American Song Contest. There’s no clear indication if the release date will change at press time, but ZB Label shared that “detailed schedule changes will be announced through a separate notice.” The company added, “our deepest condolences to the victims, bereaved families, and those affected by the heartbreaking tragedy.”

AleXa joins the likes of PSY, ENHYPEN, Jessi and more K-pop stars who have shared their condolences with victims of the tragedy that’s left more than 150 dead and led to a weeklong national mourning period in South Korea. AleXa and ZB Label are also joining the dozens of artists and labels opting to hold or cancel promotional plans and new music in light of the tragedy.

31 Oct 2022

Nicki Minaj Dresses Up as Cheeky Cinderella for Halloween

She’s got a princess face, a killer body, samurai mind. Nicki Minaj showed off her Disney princess fantasy in a new social media post on Monday (Oct. 31).

For Halloween, the rapper decided to dress up as a high-fashion Cinderella… or Chunderella, according to her fairy tale rewrite of a caption. “And as she heard the whispers…Chunderella snickered,” she wrote. “The ugly/evil step sisters had EVERY RIGHT to bicker (through their blisters!) After all, deep down inside…they knew…they’d never fit the glass slippers… The END.”

In the slideshow, Minaj poses in a blond wig, tiara and an architectural take on Cinderella’s classic blue gown. However, the Harajuku Barbie proved once she turned around that her version of the princess is quite the “Super Freaky Girl,” complete with two rather NSFW cutouts carved out of the backside of the dress.

Earlier this month, Nicki linked up with NBA YoungBoy on their new collaboration “I Admit,” which is featured on the latter’s brand-new album Ma, I Got a Family.

Meanwhile, she’s also been bumping heads with the Recording Academy over “Super Freaky Girl” being moved from the rap category into the pop category for voting at the upcoming 2023 Grammy Awards — that is, when she hasn’t been busy feuding with Latto on Twitter over whether her own “Big Energy (Live)” should (or shouldn’t) be facing the same categorization at the awards show.

In other awards news, Minaj recently landed five nods at the MTV EMAs, including best artist, best song and best video (both for “Super Freaky Girl”), best hip-hop and biggest fans.

Get a look at Nicki as “Chunderella” below.

31 Oct 2022

Olivia Rodrigo Transforms Into Betty Boop for Halloween

Olivia Rodrigo went vintage for Halloween this year, opting to dress up as the iconic animated cartoon character, Betty Boop.

Stylists Chloe and Chenelle Delgadillo took to Instagram on Monday (Oct. 31) to share the “Good 4 U” singer’s fresh take on the classic costume. In the snap, Rodrigo is seen wearing a red mini dress with a red bow across the chest, complete with a red garter and black boots. Rodrigo’s hair and makeup, done by Clayton Hawkins and Lilly Keys, respectively, features a chic wavy black bob and long lashes, topped off with a sleek red lip, just like Betty Boop herself.

It’s been a big year in style and beauty for Rodrigo, who recently teamed up with Glossier to release her own gift set of her favorite products from the popular makeup brand. In April, she was announced as the company’s first celebrity ambassador.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Rodrigo is working with Glossier on product development, social content and ad campaigns, according to Adage. Glossier is also working with Rodrigo on upcoming new products. “It’s our first-ever celebrity partnership,” Glossier CEO Emily Weiss said in an interview at the time. “Olivia really inspired us to push that forward. It’s a pretty natural extension.”

31 Oct 2022

Dan + Shay’s Shay Mooney Says He’s ‘Literally Never Felt Better’ After 50-Pound Weight Loss

Dan + Shay‘s Shay Mooney recently revealed he’s lost nearly 50 pounds, thanks to a focus on exercise and healthy eating habits.

He said via Instagram Stories (as reported by People), “Thank you guys so much for all your kind words about me lookin’ healthy. Really means a lot. Been a little over 5 months I believe and I’m down almost 50 lbs.”

He said that clean eating, avoiding alcohol and walking nearly 7 miles per day, along with some weight training, contributed to his weight loss.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“I completely changed my lifestyle and I’ve literally never felt better physically, mentally and spiritually,” Mooney said via his Instagram Stories.

Fellow country artists including Morgan Wallen, Tyler Rich and Chris Lane shared their congratulations with the Dan + Shay singer. Lane simply left a fire emoji in the comments section, while Rich commented, “looking lean brother!” Meanwhile, Wallen wrote, “man done got skinny on em!!!”

Last year, Dan + Shay released their album Good Things and served as mentors on The Voice. Additionally, they earned a Grammy Award for best country duo/group performance for “10,000 Hours,” their collaboration with Justin Bieber.

To date, Dan + Shay have earned eight No. 1 hits on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart and 16 total entries on the chart, including the four-week Country Airplay No. 1 “Speechless” and the two-week No. 1 hits “Tequila” and “10,000 Hours.” They have also picked up three consecutive best country duo/group performance Grammy wins, for “10,000 Hours,” “Speechless” and “Tequila.” In August 2021, they recorded a collaboration with Carrie Underwood on the song “Only Us” from the film Dear Evan Hansen.

31 Oct 2022

What’s Your Favorite Taylor Swift Hot 100 No. 1? Vote!

For the first time in Billboard Hot 100 song chart’s 64-plus-year history, all spots in the chart’s top 10 belong to just one lead artist: Taylor Swift, thanks to the release of her 10th studio album, Midnights.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The top 10 is led by this week’s No. 1 Hot 100 hit, “Anti-Hero,” but its hardly the first time Swift has had a chart topper on the all-genre songs tally. Starting back with her Red hit, “We Are Never Getting Back Together,” the superstar has nine total No. 1s, with “Anti-Hero” and “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” hitting the summit most recently.

We want to know which of Swift’s Hot 100 No. 1s is your favorite. Let us know by voting below.