Music

13 Oct 2022

The Killers Score Multi-Format Airplay No. 1 With ‘Boy’

The Killers reach No. 1 on Billboard‘s Adult Alternative Airplay chart (dated Oct. 15) with “Boy,” their third leader on the list.

The song is the Brandon Flowers-fronted act’s first No. 1 on the survey since “The Man,” which ruled for a week in 2017. The group first led with “Read My Mind” for six weeks in 2007.

In between “The Man” and “Boy,” The Killers appeared on Adult Alternative Airplay five times, paced by the No. 2-peaking “Caution” in 2020.

“Boy” has ruled three Billboard airplay charts, including two individual-format tallies. The song tops Adult Alternative Airplay as it begins descending Alternative Airplay, where it falls to No. 3 after six weeks at No. 1. “Boy” is The Killers’ first song to lead both Alternative Airplay and Adult Alternative Airplay; the band also boasts three rulers on the former, with “Boy” preceded by “Caution” in 2020 and “When You Were Young” in 2006.

On the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart, “Boy” led for five weeks and currently ranks at No. 3 with 3.6 million audience impressions, according to Luminate.

Elsewhere, “Boy” places at No. 23 on the multi-metric Hot Alternative Songs chart and No. 38 on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs, after reaching Nos. 12 and 17, respectively, upon its August debut. In addition to its radio airplay, the song earned 594,000 official U.S. streams in the tracking week ending Oct. 6.

“Boy” has also crossed over to Adult Pop Airplay, where it bullets at No. 33, after reaching No. 32 the week before. It’s the band’s eighth entry on the chart.

The song is currently a standalone single, having been recorded during the sessions for The Killers’ previous album, 2021’s Pressure Machine. The band is currently working on its eighth studio set.

13 Oct 2022

GARNiDELiA Talk New Single ‘Gen’ai Yuugi,’ NFT Project & More: Interview 

GARNiDELiA are a J-pop duo who launched their career on the Japanese video-sharing platform Nico Nico Douga and have since produced numerous songs tailored for animated works.

The male-female pair released their latest digital single called “Gen’ai Yuugi” on Sept. 30, created as the opener for the Japanese TV anime series My Master Has No Tail. The track, inspired by vintage Japanese pop and anime songs, breaks new ground for the unit that has produced signature tracks infused with traditional Japanese music-flavored melodies.

In a recent interview with Billboard Japan, MARiA and toku of GARNiDELiA spoke about the production of their latest single and shared their thoughts on the music that accompany animated works.

You recently launched an NFT art project using numerous stage costumes as motifs called the GARNiDELiA 3.0 Project. You always seem to be challenging yourselves to try new things. Could you tell us your thoughts on releasing this new NFT project based on your stage outfits at this point in time?

MARiA: We have many fans based outside of Japan so we’re often asked to take on new challenges on a global scale. We’re experimenting and challenging ourselves as we go along. We participated in its launch, but we’re also looking forward to seeing how the project will expand from here. I think there will be unexpected developments in the future that will make us go, “Oh, I didn’t expect this to go in that direction.” We think there are various ways to do this, so we’re still exploring and hope to make this something we can enjoy with all of our fans.

You also restarted your J-pop cover project, GARNiDELiA Cover Collection, in March.

MARiA: This project originally got started on YouTube due to the pandemic. It’s become something of a hobby of ours, so we enjoy doing it just for fun.

toku: The songs we cover are well-known, so I thought people would enjoy the difference after we infused them with some GARNiDELiA flair and presented them with MARiA’s vocals. The series allows us to see people’s reactions right away, like when we used to upload our songs to Nico Nico Douga and get a reaction immediately upon release.

MARiA: It’s really like those vocaloid cover challenges on video sharing platforms (that originated from Nico Nico Douga). We’re originally from that niche pop culture, so I guess it’s just that the focus has shifted from vocaloid numbers to J-pop songs. The boundary between vocaloid culture and mainstream J-pop is blurring now, and songs written by producers of vocaloid music are now leading the current mainstream J-pop scene. So a strange phenomenon where whenever I cover a hit J-pop song, I still end up singing vocaloid music (like in the old days) is happening. [Laughs] I think this mix of cultures is what makes the current J-pop scene so interesting.

“Kaikaikitan” Cover by GARNiDELiA from the GARNiDELiA Cover Collection

Let’s talk about your new song “Gen’ai Yuugi.” It contains elements of vintage and current J-pop while maintaining the feel of a standard anime number. The song is signature GARNiDELiA in the way various essences are condensed into it. This song was created as the opener for the TV anime My Master Has No Tail. How did the collaboration begin? 

toku: The producers of the anime series said they wanted “a dance track with a traditional Japanese-style melody, and also add horns to make it flashy.”

MARiA: Our previous song, “Otome no kokoroe,” was the opener for another anime series from last year called Taisho Otome Fairy Tale that was set in Japan’s Taisho period (1912-1926), so that was the same (as My Master Has No Tail). What’s more, the request for horns for a big band feel was the same as our previous track, so we had to find a way to differentiate the two. So after some discussion, we came to the conclusion that we wanted “Gen’ai Yuugi” to have a glaring edge to the flamboyance.

What do you mean by “glaring edge”?

MARiA: My Master Has No Tail is a story about mastering an artistic skill, and although the visuals of the anime is pop, the characters say some edgy things about the world they live in. The story starts out with the idea that you have to be out of your mind to want to live in the arts, and I thought that applied to us (GARNiDELiA) too. [Laughs] As someone who has been in the arts for a long time, I felt a strong connection with (the anime), so in the end we were able to differentiate the new song from the previous one.

toku: My Master Has No Tail is about rakugo [traditional comic storytelling], so I thought it’d be good to pack words into it, with more notes in the chorus than our usual numbers. That way it’d sound more flamboyant when the horns were added in-between. That’s what I focused on.

Combined with the vision depicted in the lyrics, it makes for a thrilling track, while also tapping into the genres of vintage J-pop and oldies-but-goodies anime music. All that while maintaining your signature sound. So it’s really a perfect balance.

MARiA: We’re not sure how we’re giving off that GARNiDELiA vibe anymore, actually. [Laughs] We’ve worked on such a wide variety of genres at this point that everything we create together just ends up like, “Well, that sure sounds like us, doesn’t it?”

toku: Anime music itself is a mixture of various genres and it’s where lots of music that will become the cutting edge of contemporary J-pop is born.

MARiA:  It has rock and EDM and even vintage J-pop styles, too.

toku: Anything is possible, and it can be taken as cute or cool depending on the listener, so I guess anything goes so long as it’s effectively linked to the anime work. I feel that people who listen to a variety of anime songs are really in tune with things. That’s one of the things that makes us nervous every time we write a song.

And you’re already set to drop your next digital single called “Oukaranman” on Oct. 19. This is the latest song from your Odocchattemita dance challenge series featuring GARNiDELiA tracks, and it’s different from “Gen’ai Yuugi” in that it’s a pretty straightforward GARNiDELiA number that mixes modern EDM tracks with traditional Japanese music.

MARiA: Miume, the dancer we were working with on the Odocchattemita series, is retiring from the stage at the end of October. This will be the last piece the three of us will work on together, so we started out by discussing what kind of piece it should be. We wanted the song to be a culmination of what we’d built together.

toku: I included a little bit of the melodies and arrangements that give a glimpse of parts of each song in the dance challenge series so far, so it’d be great if listeners take it as a summary of the series.

It’s an irresistible tune for those who enjoyed the series. You really did come up with two completely different songs.

MARiA: It’s interesting, isn’t it? We have so much fun. Both titles are inspired by Japanese four-character idioms, and from the time we wrote the song “Kyoukiranbu,” we thought we’d run out of songs flavored with traditionally Japanese sounds that have four-character idiom-like titles. But we still managed to make a few. [Laughs] Since we’re fortunate that our fans, not only from Japan but from around the world, ask for more, we can’t just say we’ve run out and have to come up with what they want.

toku: I was thrilled when the song that’s an extension of the Odocchatta series was chosen as the opener for My Master Has No Tail.

MARiA: That is how big an impact the Odocchattemita series had on us. It’s a project that changed our lives. It helped us meet lots of people and gave us opportunities. I think it was reason why we were able to create the song “Oukaranman.”

GARNiDELiA’s catalog can be heard here.

—This interview by Tomokazu Nishibiro first appeared on Billboard Japan

13 Oct 2022

Takanori Iwata Discusses His Views on Life, Reflected in His ‘Chocolate Box’ Debut Album

Takanori Iwata — a performer in EXILE and J SOUL BROTHERS Ⅲ, an actor, an artist, and a creative director — is a versatile and busy creator. Roughly a year after his debut as a solo singer with the single “korekara,” he launched his first album, The Chocolate Box, on Oct. 12. According to Iwata, “COVID made me reflect on my own purpose and the basics of my work. It was a huge turning point in my singing career.”

Billboard Japan talked with him about the album — his expectations for it and the spirit he poured into it — and about him as a person.

Why did you name the album The Chocolate Box?

Iwata: Looking back on the finished album, I felt that it delved deeply into the topics of love, in a broad sense, my life experiences, and my beliefs. So at first I was considering keywords like “LOVE” or “LIFE,” but choosing a grandiose title like that for my first album would be a little embarrassing for me. [Laughs] Then I recalled a line from one of my favorite movies, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”

Like the single that preceded it, you also drew the illustration used on the album cover, right?

Iwata: I couldn’t pass up the chance for self-expression presented by the album and other artwork. A lot of people leave things like that up to the creative director, but I really like to draw. As a creator, it brings me a lot of joy to express my worldview through one of my creations, and that encompasses both music and artwork. For packed products, especially, the artwork is the “face” of the product. Being able to represent my album the way I want is nothing but upsides for me.

The illustration shows a couple embracing. Should we see this as the “love” you were referring to earlier?

Iwata: Yes. There are a lot of different types of love, though, and trying to express them all in a single image would just result in a very abstract cover. That’s why I tried to create artwork that you could associate with all kinds of things, while also adding a personal touch and doing what I wanted to do. I also paid close attention to the color palette and tested out various palettes. The pastel colors are striking, and I chose them to represent skin tones. When I finished the album, I felt that it had a warm, human feel, so I expressed that through the pastel colors.

The artwork isn’t the only great thing about the album; every single one of the songs is wonderful. I’ve heard that the theme of the first streaming single, “Ready?,” is a night drive.

Iwata: I wrote the lyrics to match the tracks, but at the same time I also created the jacket (for the streaming release). I wanted to try my hand at creating an image that expressed the world-view of the song, so I just listened to the track and drew. That became the artwork for the album, and the music video was also an embodiment of that art. I used some of what came to mind during the drawing process in the lyrics. When we met to discuss the filming of the music video, and when we scouted for locations, what I had drawn connected to ideas like “the magic hour” and “going for a drive.” As for my performance, I had a clear vision of presenting an image of an artist who can both sing and dance.

“Ready?” Music Video

So the drawing was the start of everything. “Ready?” is in the same genre as the track that came before it, “korekara,” but it feels like it has a different groove. You also worked on the lyrics to “korekara,” right?

Iwata: When I first heard the track, I felt like the strange addictive quality of the main vocal melody of the intro and chorus was key. The intro is catchy, so it stays in your head. When writing the lyrics, I tried to really take advantage of that. There was also a sense of speed, which is why I went with the straightforward concept of going on a drive. On some other songs, I sang about what I wanted to communicate, about the messages I wanted to share with the world, about love. With “Ready?,” I avoided abstruse lyrics and instead sang about an everyday scene from daily life. When you hear that the concept is “going on a drive,” you might imagine music that you’d listen to while driving, but for me the concept was like taking the steering wheel of life itself. I’d like for the listeners to think of the road they’re driving down as their own life. It’s a message of being positive and carefree, living life the way you want. From the hook in the second half of the song, “Turn up the base line,” it feels like a jazz club. This song is all about the vibe. [Laughs] You don’t need to understand it, just feel it and enjoy it.

Where there any songs that were easy to write, or any songs you struggled with?

Iwata: Things went really smoothly on the third song, “Keep It Up.” This song is a song of personal encouragement. The lyrics contain a lot of things I’ve said in interviews and the like. It’s the kind of song that my fans would hear and say “That sounds like Iwata.” I don’t try to rush through life, but I do often say “the time we have is limited.” I tell myself that, as well, and I try to stay active, because you can’t turn back time. That’s the spirit of this song. I also tried using a rap-like flow. I’d chop it up, taking care to make it sound good, and then fine tune it. I repeated that process a few times, and the whole writing process went smoothly. One of the lyrics is “like the shimmering summer heat” (“kagero” in Japanese). Last summer, I was looking at a mayfly (also “kagero” in Japanese) and thinking about what a sad sight it was. Mayflies only live for a few days after they hatch. It reminded me of how short life is and how our time is limited. I didn’t put the expression in there as a seasonal expression to give the song a stylish, poetic feel, but because it was a specific experience of mine.

What songs did you struggle with?

Iwata: One song that it took me a long time to develop the concept for was “Can’t Get Enough.” When I heard the melody, at first I thought making it into a love song wouldn’t be a bad approach, but I decided to try out two different directions. I wrote down a lot of different words. During this process, I started thinking that I wanted to make it a powerful, passionate song, so for the chorus I wrote strong, straightforward lyrics. Then, based on that, I built up the verses and the bridge. It ended up being a really fiery fight song. [Laughs] Once I decided I wanted to make it a motivational song that would give you that extra push, the words just started flowing out, but it took a long time to decide on that concept in the first place.

You’ve written lyrics for songs with diverse concepts in all kinds of genres, so your lyrics use a wide range of words. Where do they come from?

Iwata: Whenever a word jumps out at me in day-to-day life, I write it down on my phone. Words that strike me when I’m reading a book, words that catch my attention when I’m watching the news, things that people say that make me nod my head. I write all kinds of things down, even really little things, and sometimes I use them. When I decide on the concepts of songs, sometimes the inspiration wells up inside me and the words just flow. I also get ideas from movies. The song “Monday,” for example, was somewhat inspired by the risqué American love comedies that were so popular in the early 2000s. I wanted to write a love song that’s light, mature, and a bit erotic — kind of like a hangover.

It’s been a year since you started your solo music activities. How do you feel you’ve changed during this time?

Iwata: When I started last year, it created quite a stir, but it hasn’t really hit me yet. However, I have announced a tour, so I expect that things will look very different to me once this year’s schedule is all finished. I’m looking forward to it. For now, I just want to make the tour a success.

Looking not only at your work as a soloist, but also as a member of a group, as an actor, and as a creator, you’re truly versatile.

Iwata: People say that a lot, but I don’t think of myself as being all that versatile. It’s not something I really feel. People say it, but it doesn’t quite click. I always like to stay moving. I also work in a lot of different fields, so if I get all stressed out with one kind of work, then when I do other work it allows me to unwind. I’m kind of a career-minded person, so I’m just doing what I want to do. Fans often ask me what it is that I’m working towards, but I don’t have my sights set on anything in particular. [Laughs] I’m not aiming to achieve specific goals, I’m just doing what I like. To be honest, I’d like to ask myself what I’m working towards. [Laughs] If you set goals, then you start seeing the end approach.

I think that your versatility is what enables you to succeed in so many different fields.

Iwata: In my case, I can do it because I started out as a member of a group. I think it all ties back to group-work. So the question is what I’ll do one day in the future, as I get older, if I’m no longer working as a member of a group. Another thing I constantly struggle with is the quality of my work. All I can do is make incremental changes to improve the quality, but I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so sometimes I feel a little down.

You’ve taken a really multi-faceted approach in your work on The Chocolate Box and in your other activities. What stimulates you?

Iwata: I’m inspired a lot by music and film. Recently, I watched Green Mile again, for the first time in a long time. I don’t just watch Hollywood films, though, I also enjoy European films. Even just gazing at the scenery is a joy. When I write lyrics, I picture vistas in my head, and I transform what I’ve seen and heard in my own personal way. That’s why I listen to music and watch movies from all genres. I constantly keep up to date with new hip-hop tracks and trends.

How would you define “stimulation”?

Iwata: Hmm…I guess it’s when something moves me. Of course, that includes music and movies, but also the words I jot down on my phone — they’re words that move me, so they’re stimulating, too. Also, no two days are alike in this line of work, so I’m never at a lack for stimulation. However, when I’m pushed to my limit, sometimes I want the thrill of just kicking back and drinking to my heart’s content. That’s “stimulation” in the same sense as splashing some cold water on your face when you think your mind is just going to explode. It’s a kind of stimulation that’s vital to maintaining your own mental balance. Ultimately, it all ties into the process of creation. In that sense, I might not need to take a trip overseas to seek out new stimulation. My everyday life might just be stimulating enough on its own.

This interview by Azusa Takahashi first appeared on Billboard Japan.

By: Billboard JAPAN / Photo: Yuma Totsuka

https://www.billboard-japan.com/special/detail/3694

13 Oct 2022

BTS’ Collaboration With ‘Cookie Run: Kingdom’ Is Here

BTS ARMY, it’s finally here! BTS’ “Braver Together” collaboration with Cookie Run: Kingdom arrived in game on Thursday (Oct. 13), and as expected, it offers a variety of sweet goodies, events and missions for fans to sink their teeth into.

Some of the offerings included in BTS’ Cookie Run collaboration are 21 new costumes — in addition to special cookies for Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook — with game versions of the septet’s outfits from the “Butter,” “MIC Drop” and “Permission to Dance” music videos, easter eggs and photocard decor, and a special BTS trailer, in which gamers can upgrade their BTS cookies and house costume and decor items.

ARMY also has a ton of new events to look forward to in the game. The BTS cookies can participate in a rhythm stage, which consists of two modes. In the run mode, players dodge obstacles and collect ARMY BOMBs, while in performance mode, players tap notes and work with other Kingdom Cookies to stop NPCs from ruining BTS’ concert. And after players complete missions, they earn ARMY BOMBs that can be used in the special BTS gacha.

Cookie Run: Kingdom will also host a stamp event that will give players a special purple stage for the BTS Cookies to perform on after collecting all of the available stamps.

The collaboration arrived with a trailer that teases snippets of the BTS Cookies interacting with the update’s BTS-themed elements. Watch the new teaser video below.

13 Oct 2022

Taylor Swift’s Music to Be Featured in Apple Fitness Workout Programs: ‘Get Ready to Sweat, Swifties’

There’s never been a better time for a Swifties to start their fitness journeys. In a Thursday (Oct. 13) Instagram post, Apple Fitness+ announced that its newest set of exercise programs will be designed around the music of Taylor Swift, featuring songs specially curated for yoga, treadmill and HIIT workouts.

In the post, Apple unveiled its three new workout programs by recreating the cover of Midnights, Swift’s tenth studio record due out Oct. 21, along with two of the album’s special edition covers. Each version of the pop star’s album features a different photo on the cover; in one of them, she leans backward on a piano bench, her right knee bent.

In Apple’s version, titled “Yoga with Jonelle,” the cover instead features an instructor in almost the same position, lying on a yoga mat with her right knee held to her chest in a stretch. And in place of the Midnights tracklist, Apple’s take on the Midnights cover includes a “workout playlist.”

“Get ready to sweat, Swifties,” reads Apple’s caption, which does not reveal when the Tay-themed workouts will be released. “In our next Artist Spotlight, you will be able to work out to the tunes of @taylorswift, including tracks from her monumental new album Midnights. It’s time to #CloseYourRings and pre-add #TSMidnights on @applemusic now.”

Swift songs new and old are featured on the playlists for Apple’s workouts — which also include “Treadmill with Scott” and “Hiit with Anja” — from her Fearless (Taylor’s Version) deep cut “Breathe” with Colbie Caillat to her Evermore fan favorite, “Right Where You Left Me.” There are several Midnights tracks scattered across the three workout playlists, but the exact titles aren’t yet revealed; instead Apple simply wrote “TS Midnights Track” in spots where songs from the upcoming album will go.

The 11-time Grammy winner’s partnership with the brand marks the latest of Apple Fitness’ Artist Spotlight series, which dedicates full workout playlists to a single artist. Previous workouts have featured music from Mary J. Blige, The Rolling Stones, Elton John, Katy Perry, BTS and more.

See how Apple Fitness+ recreated the covers of Taylor Swift’s Midnights for the platform’s new Taylor Swift-themed workouts below:

13 Oct 2022

Tina Turner Gets the Barbie Treatment: Where to Buy the Music Icon’s Collectible Doll

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Tina Turner is the latest music icon to have a Barbie doll made in her likeness. Mattel released the Tina Turner Barbie doll on Thursday (Oct. 13) as the latest edition to the brand’s Barbie Signature Music Series.

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“I am honored to welcome my Barbie into the group of trailblazing women already represented and introduce more kids to my journey,” Turner said in a statement.

The Tina Turner Barbie Doll ($55) was released in honor of the music legend’s smash hit, “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” which is nearing its 40th anniversary. Recreating her iconic outfit from the music video, the Tina Turner Barbie Doll rocks out in a black mini dress, cropped denim jacket, fishnet stockings and black heels. The doll captures Turner’s signature, spiky blonde updo and other details, like the pearl drop earrings and silver necklace that she wears in the music video.

The collectible Barbie doll is available at Amazon, Walmart, Target and MattelCreations.com.

Released in 1984, “What’s Love Got to Do with It” gave Turner her first and only solo No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100, and became the biggest track from her fifth solo studio album, Private Dancer. At the time, 44-year-old Turner was the oldest female solo artist to secure a No. 1 single.

The song topped the Hot 100 for three weeks and won three Grammys, including record of the year, song of the year and best female pop vocal performance. “What’s Love Got to Do With It” was also entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Although Turner has long since retired from the music business and spends the majority of her time overseas, her legacy continues to be celebrated stateside. The Tony Award winning Tina: The Tina Turner Musical has been going strong since 2018, and last year, Turner opened up about her life in the HBO documentary, Tina.

The Tina Turner Barbie joins Gloria Estefan, David Bowie and Elvis Presley in the Barbie Signature Music Series. Shop Turner’s Barbie doll below.

Tina Turner doll

Mattel’s new Barbie Tina Turner doll

Courtesy of Mattel

Barbie Signature Tina Turner Barbie Doll in ‘90s Fashion and Accessories with Microphone Accessory, Gift for Collectors

$55.00

13 Oct 2022

These Are the Latin Artists Nominated at the 2022 AMAs

Bad Bunny‘s unstoppable success and impact — in the Billboard charts and otherwise — can be felt across the world. As such, the Puerto Rican superstar has earned the most nominations at the 2022 American Music Awards, eight, in categories that include artist of the year.

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Benito also competes in the general categories favorite touring artist, favorite music video, favorite male pop artist and favorite pop album — for his ubiquitous Un Verano Sin Ti — in addition to his nods in the Latin music categories.

But he’s not the only Latin artist that received multiple nominations to the AMAs on Thursday (Oct. 13) — Rauw Alejandro and Karol G each got three: him for favorite Latin male artist, favorite Latin album (Vise Versa), and favorite Latin song (“Todo de Ti”); her for favorite female Latin artist and twice for favorite Latin song (for “Provenza”, and for “MAMIII” with Becky G).

The two “Gs” will go toe-to-toe for the favorite Latin female artist award, which Becky has won the past two years. Also competing in this category is Brazilian singer Anitta, who received her first nomination, in addition to Rosalía and Kali Uchis.

In addition to Becky G and Rosalía (the only woman competing for favorite Latin album with Motomami), J Balvin and Farruko are also up for two nomination, both in Favorite Male Latin Artist and Favorite Latin Album.

Like last year, the favorite Latin duo or group category is dominated by purveyors of regional Mexican music, with Banda MS de Sergio Lizárraga, Calibre 50, Eslabón Armad, Grupo Firme, and Yahritza y Su Esencia nominated. It is a remarkable fact considering that it is a category for all genres (pop, rock, tropical, urbano, etc).

Beyond the Latin music sections, other nods worth mentioning are those received by the Encanto soundtrack and its mega-hit “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (collaboration of the year and favorite pop song), which topped the charts for weeks after its release in 2021. “Dos Oruguitas,” the Oscar-nominated song performed by Sebastián Yatra, was nominated to favorite Latin song.

The American Music Awards are set to air live from Microsoft Theater at L.A. Live in Los Angeles on Sunday, Nov. 20, at 8 p.m. ET, and via tape delay at 8 p.m. PT, on ABC.

Here are the nominees for the 2022 American Music Awards in the Latin music categories. Click here to learn how to vote for your favorite.

Favorite male Latin artist
Bad Bunny
Farruko
J Balvin
Jhayco
Rauw Alejandro

Favorite female Latin artist
Anitta
Becky G
Kali Uchis
Karol G
Rosalía

Favorite Latin duo or group
Banda MS de Sergio Lizárraga
Calibre 50
Eslabon Armado
Grupo Firme
Yahritza Y Su Esencia

Favorite Latin album
Bad Bunny, Un Verano Sin Ti
Farruko, La 167
J Balvin, Jose
Rauw Alejandro, Vice Versa
Rosalía, Motomami

Favorite Latin song
Bad Bunny ft. Chencho Corleone, “Me Porto Bonito”
Becky G x Karol G, “MAMIII”
Karol G, “Provenza”
Rauw Alejandro, “Todo de Ti”
Sebastián Yatra, “Dos Oruguitas”

13 Oct 2022

Burna Boy’s ‘Last Last’ Hits No. 1 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay

Burna Boy lands his first No. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart as “Last Last” captures first place on the chart dated Oct. 15. The single climbs from the runner-up spot after a 9% increase in weekly plays made it the most-played song on U.S. monitored R&B/hip-hop stations in the week ending Oct. 9, according to Luminate.

“Last Last” gives Burna Boy his first Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart-topper with his second career entry. He previously reached a No. 26 best with “Ye” in 2019. With its ascent, “Last” also halts the record-breaking stay of Future’s “Wait for U,” featuring Drake and Tems, which logged an unprecedented 14th week at No. 1 on the chart last week.

Plus, the new champ brings a former R&B hit to the summit via a sample. “Last” prominently samples Toni Braxton’s “He Wasn’t Man Enough,” which reached No. 6 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay in 2001.

The new champ adds to the Afrobeats genre’s mounting presence on R&B/hip-hop radio. It’s the genre’s third No. 1 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay in the past year, after the 10-week reign of Wizkid’s “Essence,” featuring Tems, beginning last November and a one-week visit for CKay’s “Love Nwantiti” in February. “Last Last” also retains its status as one of the top Afrobeats songs in the U.S., ranking at No. 2 on the latest Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart. The track previously clocked eight weeks at No. 1 from July to September.

Elsewhere, “Last” repeats at its No. 3 peak thus far on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, which ranks songs by combined audience at adult and mainstream R&B/hip-hop radio stations. There, the single adds 8% in weekly audience to reach 14.6 million in the week ending Oct. 9. Similarly, “Last” holds at its current No. 8 peak on Rhythmic Airplay, with a 9% improvement in weekly plays.

Thanks to its strength at R&B/hip-hop and rhythmic radio, “Last” advances 29-24 on the all-genre Radio Songs chart. There, it surges 18% to 22.3 million in total radio audience. Radio airplay, in turn, helps the track lift 49-44 on the Billboard Hot 100, which combines radio airplay with sales and streams to arrive at its rankings.

13 Oct 2022

Quavo & Takeoff Talk Going Back to Their Roots for ‘Only Built for Infinity Links’ Album: ‘It Feel Like We Starting All Over Again’

It’s a new era for Quavo and Takeoff. With the Migos chapter at least temporarily closed, Unc & Phew went forward by returning to their grimy roots, in order to recapture the essence of what made them two-thirds of the ATL trio that shifted the sound of hip-hop in the mid-2010s.

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“A lot of artists might get caught up in that space, but you got to go back to what you started from and what you know,” Takeoff says over Zoom. “It’s okay to try different things, but you just got to bring it back to what got you to where you at now.”

Quavo and Takeoff pressed reset, headed to the bat cave, and started with a diverse mood board featuring their favorite duos, like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, and didn’t come back up for air until they finished “that Picasso.” 

For the first time in a long time, Huncho and Take were free of distractions, and it wasn’t about the ice they were rocking or the luxury car in the driveway, but making “bando music.” If you let Quavo tell it, it was like he was right back home at the 530 house on Atlanta’s Northside. 

“It feel like we starting all over again,” Huncho gushes while walking around his mansion. “It feel like something new, and you know you [going] in the right direction.” 

The finished product, Only Built For Infinity Links, arrived last week (Oct. 7) — with Raekwon’s blessing, given the title reference — and the joint album is looking at a top 10 debut on the Billboard 200. 

Get into the rest of our interview below with Quavo and Takeoff as the fellas sum up the Culture series’ legacy, share Kobe stories, and explain why Huncho wants Jack Harlow as his next joint project teammate. 

What was the mindset for you guys coming into recording Only Built For Infinity Links?

Quavo: We just broke it down and wanted to be very aggressive. I think starting with taking it back to the essence [and how we] came up with the title. We had a mood board and put a lot of pictures together. We put a lot of dynamic duos up. We didn’t want to come out there on some regular collab s–t. We wanted to make this look like a movie. 

Takeoff: We been had records. We were supposed to drop the project a minute ago. Me and Quavo was gonna drop a duo project, but we pushed it back for Culture III. We stayed cooking up.

How was it getting Raekwon’s blessing? Was there talks of him getting on a record?

Quavo: I wasn’t thinking about a record, but we was thinking like a skit or something like that. It’s fun. We came up with the album title and then ran into him in the club. We was looking for him, and I think Take reached out to him and we saw him on ground in Atlanta. 

You guys said, “It runs in the blood.” What does that mean as far as this album?

Quavo: Blood thicker than friendship. Me and Takeoff — Unc and Phew — this my nephew. When I say run in the blood, it’s deeper than rap.

What were the advantages of recording as a duo rather than a trio? Quavo, did you pull anything from the Huncho, Jack sessions that applied to this?

Quavo: Nah, I feel like this was going back to the roots of what I do. Doing other songs with other people, I feel like that’s taking the sauce somewhere else. I feel like when it gets down to me and Take, it’s an automatic link that automatically syncs like a Bluetooth phone. We can go win championships elsewhere, but when we come back and get together, it’s like six, seven, eight rings. 

It’s like when LeBron came back to Cleveland. Do you guys feel more proud of this album than your others?

Takeoff: Personally, I feel like it, because we had to work hard. We went back in that bat cave. Dirty, grimy, no cut and scruffy — just ain’t even worried about nothing. Just in that basement cooking up, going in, editing and coming back like, “We got it right here.” Then come back a day later like, “Yo, nah, we need to bounce this off of this.” Those changes made the album. You think you got it and then you keep painting that picture until you come up with that Picasso. 

A lot of the album rollout saw you guys comparing yourselves to Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant as a duo. Those are some big shoes to fill.

Quavo: No it ain’t, I got big shoes too! Them our OGs, so anything less than would be like, “What the f–k are you doing?” We get it from them. 

Takeoff: I got Mamba Mentality too. Anything less than would be disrespectful. 

Did you guys ever link up with Kobe?

Quavo: Absolutely. I seen Kobe at an Atlanta Hawks-Lakers game, and I think a month later he passed away. I think that was one of the last times he was in that building. I met him and he was straight authentic. I feel like my life was straight complete when I met him. 

One of my partners had tears in his eyes. Like we said, them our OGs, and coming from a spot with no father figure or no real dad in the hood, we look up to those athletes, those Kobe Bryants, those Michael Jordans, those LeBron Jameses, to get some type of motivation. Outside looking in, even though you watching on a TV screen. It’s the mentality, the way he work, the way he put in work and go at people about work is all something that I really take pride in, using his methods. It’s a blessing to have met the man. 

Takeoff: Kobe was in that gym when nobody was in that gym. You wasn’t in that gym with me, and you wasn’t in that basement with me, and we stayed cooking up that whole time, perfecting our craft and sharpening our tools. We in that basement 24/7, and we actually got a studio in our house. We wake up and go right downstairs. 

Quavo: We had just bought a factory. A place so high it’s on the moon. 

“Bars Into Captions” does justice by the Outkast sample. Speak to using the “So Fresh, So Clean” beat and turning it into your own.

Quavo: I just wanted to give these folks a “Welcome to Atlanta,” and another feel-good Atlanta record. Lately, everyone been spinning off these old samples and making it into drill and kill zone music and shoot an opp. I just wanted to make a great party song, and let these folks know we grateful for our city. 

The best way to do it is on an Outkast beat. That’s somebody who laid down bricks in the city and we just walking on it. We laid our own bricks, and we marrying these two worlds. We been here for 10 years, and they been here for way longer than 10. We just trying to put that hip-hop pocket back onto the music scene. Put the gun down. 

Takeoff, how was meeting Lil Wayne and getting to work with him? I know that’s one of your guys. 

Takeoff: That’s my brother. I talk to him and have personal conversations, and I can call him. That’s a bucket list as one of my favorite rappers. You don’t think you’ll get the chance to be close to him, and now I did a song with him and have a relationship with him. That’s who I learned the game from. Just learning how to record music — he don’t even write. Just looking at him go off the top of the head, the jewelry — he the GOAT. He gives me good advice. 

On “Nothing’s Changed,” Takeoff, you rap, “The money, the car, the chains, the fame, I’d give up everything to see my grandma.” Expand on those few bars.

Takeoff: All this is just material. I could give everything up for my grandma. That was the backbone of the family. I love her. She everything. The love you got for your grandma. That’s my grandma, she made me gentle. Just to care for ya. 

How about just seeing Offset and Quavo in high-profile relationships, is that something you shy away from?

Takeoff: I just do what I do. I just chill and stay out the way. I’m enjoying life. I’m blessed, so I’m not really tripping. I don’t like to be in the light of this s–t too much. I’m a laid-back type of person, and keep my life a mystery — like the old days when you didn’t know everything. Now you got the internet, where you know a whole bunch of bulls–t. I just keep my little personal to myself. You know, everything’s on the motherf–king internet. 

I saw you guys posing in Kanye’s YZY SHDZ, have you spoken to him recently?

Quavo: Yeah, I talked to Ye. Anything I talk about with somebody that’s Kanye, I keep it private. 

Takeoff: Shout-out to Ye. You hear me, y’all stop f–king with my boy.  

Has Travis Scott given you guys a call for the UTOPIA sessions? We need that. 

Quavo: Yeah, that’s Jack. Whenever Jack call, Huncho in the bat cave watching everything. 

Takeoff: Come on, man. You know that. 

If the Culture series is really over, how do you feel about its legacy in hip-hop? 

Quavo: Most definitely a great, great series. One, two, and three. It’s history — you can’t repeat it, you can’t duplicate it and you can’t beat it. We’re proud of ourselves for that, and we want to see what the new Infinity Links bring. I feel like we laid down the groundwork to let y’all know that we was here to stay.  

Takeoff: It’s legendary. We’ve been here a long time. People don’t even get to do it that long, and we’re blessed to keep doing it. We’re gonna feed y’all with more hot music, and we feel like we owe the fans to go back in and take it back to that feeling when we didn’t have the money. We’re taking it back to the hungry vibe. It’s that grime and hunger again. 

Jim Jones said rappers have the most dangerous job in the world right now. Following the murders of rappers and most recently PnB Rock, does that change how you guys move in other cities? Quavo, I know you said you have a stalker out there too. 

Quavo: It’s hard for us all. RIP to PnB Rock. It’s tough, bruh. It’s either go out with security, or go out with none. It’s either give it all up, or give it all up without a gun. You just gotta protect yourself and get yourself out of situations the best way you can. You can’t run from situations, and you can’t hide. It’s life, bro. I can’t speak on nobody situations because it can happen to anybody. If it do happen, just hope that you make it out that motherf–ker. 

Takeoff: Just do what it takes to make it home. You gotta make it to the crib, since you got a family to feed. Something go down, it’s ,”Oh, you had security.” Something go down then it’s, “You dumb for not having security.” So at this point which one is it? 

What else is left on the bucket list?

Quavo: Collab albums with everybody. I want to sauce this s–t up. When I took that picture with Jack Harlow, it would be fire if we do Huncho, Jack 2 with Jack Harlow. 

Takeoff: Shout out that boy, Jack. Yeah, just taking over. Getting verse of the year, and just ain’t letting up. I ain’t really worried about awards, but [that’s] the cherry on top.

Quavo: He’s right. Takeoff is the best rapper out here, period. It’s been like that for a long time and people need to give him his flowers. 

13 Oct 2022

20 Questions With Kerri Chandler: How An Obsession With the Club World’s Best Sound Systems Forged the Icon’s Latest Album

Kerri Chandler is an innovator. The legendary DJ and producer, who is looking at 30 years of house music in his rearview, is an out-of-the-box thinker who doesn’t see limitations, just new frontiers.

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Case in point, his latest album, the 24-song Spaces and Places — his first since 2008’s Computer Games. Space and Places was not created in Chandler’s elaborate home studio in New Jersey — which is on par with any commercial studio, and leaves quite a few of those marquee locations in its dust. Instead, over the course of two years, Chandler traveled around the globe, recording the songs for Space and Places at clubs in various cities.

Printworks and Ministry of Sound in London, The Warehouse Project in Manchester, Rex in Paris, Plano B in Porto, Sub Club in Glasgow, Halcyon in San Francisco, Output in Brooklyn — it’s all just a smattering of the clubs that Chandler took over for Spaces and Places. The producer, 53, set up a mobile studio in the middle of each of these clubs when they were empty, tuning each song to the actual venue. The result is a wholly unique collection of house music that gives an aural snapshot of the iconic clubs.

Zooming in with Billboard from a hotel room in Paris on one of his endless DJ dates, the always affable Chandler delves deep into his past to uncover his present.

1. Where are you at the moment?

Where I am mentally or where I am actually today? Both? I’m in Paris. I play Badaboum tomorrow, one of my favorite places. It’s sold out, so I’m happy. I just left Lisbon. Same thing, sold out. I guess people want to get out after the pandemic, and I’m happy they want to see me. That’s a blessing.

Where I am mentally is I have this album out and it’s all been zooming by so fast. The vinyl is coming October 14, but the digital releases is out. It came out on my birthday, September 28. I gave that to myself as a birthday present.

2. What’s the first album or piece of music you bought for yourself and what was the medium?

I have to really think about this. It was probably when my dad first took me to a record store. I don’t remember what it was, but there were a lot of 45s, a couple of dollars here, a couple of dollars there — run home and put the little spindle on.

I think one of my first ones — and this is probably why I love this record so much, is John Coltrane My Favorite Things. That’s my benchmark. And when I could get another record, my Bob James one. That has got to be my first record that I really fell in love with and I had to have it, and I still have it. I had Bob James’ Sign of the Times, so that was a blessing.

3. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid and what do they think of what you do for a living now? With your father being a DJ, your situation is a little different from most DJs.

My dad was a DJ. My mom was a stay-at-home mom. My mom wanted me to stay far away from DJing. She didn’t like the whole lifestyle, the party scene, any of that stuff. My dad was like the Ibiza DJ before there was an Ibiza DJ. If my mother could have it her way, she wanted me to be a conductor. She got the next best thing, I’m a producer. But she’s proud.

My father passed away. He got hit by a truck back in 2017. He went to the grocery store to grab a few things, some milk and some popsicles. He just wanted to have a little walk, and that’s what happened. He crossed the street, and a truck came running around the corner and hit him. It literally ran him over. He was alive for a couple of days, but he would have never been the same after that. His quality of life wouldn’t have been great.

4. Did you have a job before you started doing music in a professional capacity? When were you able to leave the job and focus on music full time?

I don’t tell too many people this, but I used to be a welder. I was way underage to get hired, but they hired me and taught me, and I had a wonderful time. I had friends and the boss just took me in like family. My friends who were doing the pressing machines had no fingers. I thought I had to look the part, so I had a lumberjack shirt on and my welding glasses. My friend runs up to me and starts slapping my shirt. I pulled my goggles up and my shirt was actually on fire. I didn’t realize my lumberjack shirt was mixed in with polyester. I love welding. I still weld every once in a while as a hobby.

After that, I was a travel agent and I did odd jobs on the weekend. I was an engineer really early and DJed on the weekends as well. 15, 16 is when everything started getting serious, and I stopped the other stuff and I started just doing music.

5. What’s the first non-gear thing you bought for yourself when you started making money as an artist?

I’ve always been fascinated with Porsches. That’s the first thing I did when I got my hands on some money. I bought a Porsche. I just turned 18. I just got my license. I always thought that car was like Batman or something. The first week I got this thing. I was driving, wasn’t going fast or anything, I was turning this corner and I flipped the car over. I got out the car and everything was fine. I’m looking at this thing, black with red interior and thinking, “This is a sign I shouldn’t have this car.” I gave it to my uncle. It was the dumbest thing I’ve ever bought.

6. If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what would you give them?

The one for me is Larry Heard’s Fingers Inc., Another Side. That, to me, has just had so much incredible stuff on it. Classics, the whole album.

7. What was the last song you listened to?

Can I include my own? The last song I listened to was the one I did with my cousin Aaron Braxton Jr., “Back to Earth (Find Your Peace) [The Knockdown Center].” It’s on my album. I was watching the video, Dolby just put up a feature of it. It was just really heartfelt for me, because my uncle passed away not too long ago, and I told my cousin to write about it.

8. What’s the first electronic show that really blew your mind?

Kraftwerk in 2009 at Flow Festival Helsinki. When I saw that, that blew my mind. The robots and the way they did the things they did, I was just sitting there with my mouth open half the time. I was so happy to be a part of any of it.

9. What is the best setting to listen to and experience dance music?

Definitely in the club on the right system. That’s my favorite thing.

10. What was the scene like in New Jersey and New York when you first got started making music and DJing?

It was everywhere. You could hear it on the radio. You could hear it on the streets. You could hear it in cars going by. You woke up to it. You went to sleep to it. You could turn on a radio station, and you’d have a wonderful friend and mentor of mine, Merlin Bobb, and his cousin, Tony Humphries, was on the other station. D Train was on mainstream radio. Everything from [the record label] Prelude was being played. We had Chic. That’s what we were hearing all day on the radio, Black radio. You’d go to the record store and pick it up. There were DJs everywhere playing house music or house parties and roller-skating rinks. It was so commonplace that it was the soundtrack to everyone’s life.

11. How did the idea for Spaces and Places come about?

I’ve always been a proponent of: If you’re making house music, you should hear it on a dance system. It all started for me back when we were doing Shelter [in New York.] [Producer] Merlin Bobb asked me to do a theme song for the club. I wanted to make sure that this song was tailored to the system so it sounds better than anything you could play in here — especially if it’s going to be the theme song for the club.

I went in with some gear, and I EQed the room the way it would be if you were DJing. I listened really carefully and I tuned everything on that song to the sound system in the room. It just sounded incredible. Everything matched. Everything made sense. I had so much fun doing it, I made up my mind that anywhere I go, I need to make sure that the system is right, and I do soundchecks.

12. So it’s fair to say that you’re pretty obsessive with this stuff?

It got to the point where I’m so spoiled with sound, because my dad and my cousins and uncles do sound systems and lighting. It’s a family business, and I want it as best as I can get it. To this day, I’ll either repair the sound systems or I’ll re-EQ a room. I’ll bring more gear in and leave it at the clubs. I take sound very, very seriously. Even in my house and the studios I’ve had, have always had club systems. When I went to Ministry of Sound, I fell in love with the place so much that I built that system in my studio.

13. How did that turn into you making the entirety of Space and Places in clubs?

Since I was on the road so long and touring, by the time I got home, I was exhausted. I’m in these clubs all the time. I have relationships with these clubs. I had so much fun doing songs in the clubs. The first one I asked was Plano B in Porto, Portugal. I took a bench seat, right in the middle of a room, sat there, and I made this track called “Sun of Sound.” I called my friend up, said, “I need some lyrics with it, can you send me some stuff?” He did lyrics really quick. Now I’m putting them to the song in the club. I’m having fun, and it’s our own little party this place. I’m playing on the weekend, but there’s nobody there. It’s just us going for it. I was like, “This is so much fun, I wonder how many other clubs I could do this with?”

A couple of my other friends have clubs that I have relationships with. And they were all like, “Hell yeah! What do you want us to do?” I came a couple days early, and every single club bent over backwards to let me have the space to do the album. It took me a couple of years to have it all together. Every single club had their own personality. Even going back to Ministry of Sound, the first club I played abroad. I saw all these emotions come back to me for each place.

14. What are some specific characteristics from the clubs that ended up in the songs?

Some of these places had singers that come from the area that I’ve known for a long time. They all have their unique thing. I’ve taken tones from each of these places to build the music around.

One of my favorites was Sub Club. There are two things that are integral to that place. One is, there’s a bingo hall outside of the club. When you’re waiting in line, you can hear them calling the numbers. If you go downstairs, there’s a train terminal behind the building. So sometimes, in the middle of the night, you feel the train rumbling through and it just shakes the whole damn building. I took all of these elements and I put them into the song.

15. Were the songs completed in the club, or did you work on them more in your home studio?

Most of these things didn’t take me more than a day and a half to do. I had all this inspiration and the tones from the club. When I went into each of these clubs, I did a convolution, which is a recording of the sonic character of a room. I run a filter sweep, a white noise and a pink noise signal, and it gives me pretty much the data program of the room. I usually do that for every club. I do it at soundcheck, even the ones that aren’t on the album, just so I have a reference of what I just did. I can go home and my system at home will mimic each one of the clubs if I ask it to. I can put Ministry of Sound on my computer at home, and it’ll turn my sound system into it sounding just like Ministry of Sound. If I want DC10, it’ll go on DC10.

16. You are one of the first people to represent Dolby Atmos in a club setting, and Spaces and Places was mixed in Dolby Atmos. What are your thoughts about the broad adoption of immersive audio?

It’s kind of an easy game changer because you don’t have to get anything. You already have it. You have an iPhone. You have Tidal. You have Apple Music. You pull it up on your phone, you put your earbuds in, it’s done. That’s what sold me on it in the end. I don’t know anybody who even has a 5.1 system, the simple surround sound. Maybe they have one of these sound bars. When they told me you can now do it with headphones, I was like, “Okay, that’ll work.” It is so simple now. And this is where it’s all going.

But if you hear the album on an actual Atmos system, it’ll blow your mind. It really is incredible.

17. What is one thing about dance music now that is far better than it was at the start of your music career and what is one thing that is far worse?

They’re both the same answer. The convenience of bringing music to a club is way better. I can have my whole collection on a memory stick if I wanted to. But at the same time, it made everyone a DJ. It made it much better, and it made it much worse.

18. What’s the best business decision you ever made?

The best business decision I’ve ever made was to make sure to learn business. Learn how taxes work, learn how to set up your business properly, not to put anything under your own name, make sure that you know how to keep the money that you make. Taxes are very important, even international taxes. Get a good accountant, that’s the best thing I can tell you. Don’t count the money before it’s there. That’s another thing: Don’t live beyond your means. I’ve never done any of those things, but I’ve seen people thinking it’s never going to be a rainy day, and they end up crashing, burning and destitute.

19. Who was your greatest mentor and what was the best advice they gave you?

My grandfather, more so than my dad. But also my dad, even though he’s given terrible advice at times. One thing in particular, and we would always joke about it: “The squeaky wheel gets the oil.” If you’re not going to say anything, no one’s going to notice you. That’s one thing I live by. You have to speak up. Because if you don’t try something, if you don’t do something, you’ll get passed by. It’s not just going to come to you. You have to be a little aggressive in what you do with yourself. What I got from my grandfather was: “Become the best person you can be, and stay humble.”

20. What is the best piece of advice you’d give your younger self?

Be careful who you trust.