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The 2024 Billboard Latin Music Week officially wrapped on Friday (Oct. 18) with a star-studded concert featuring Ana Mena, Belinda, Elvis Crespo, Floyymenor, Tito Double P and Young Miko.
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The evening was hosted by Venezuelan comedian George Harris, who entertained the packed Fillmore Miami Beach with relevant music jokes, and even had a salsa karaoke sesh with the crowd.
Shortly after, Spanish artist Ana Mena kicked off the Billboard Latin Music Week 35th Anniversary Celebration with her sugary pop-dance tunes that included her viral hit “Madrid City” — and yes, a handful of people were spotted doing the ponytail trend during her performance.
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Straight from Chile, Floyymenor then took center stage to perform three of his tracks that are creating all the buzz on social media: “Peligrosa,” “Apaga El Cel,” and “Gata Only.” The latter of the three — which spent 14 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Latin Songs chart — is a three-time finalist at the 2024 Billboard Latin Music Awards airing Sunday (Oct. 20) on Telemundo.
Belinda, who earlier in the week formed part of the women’s panel at Latin Music Week, arrived wearing a baby blue satin dress and white knee-high boots. And while she oozed pop princess, the Mexican artist flaunted her fierce bélica era on stage, performing “Cactus,” “300 Noches” (her collab with Natanael Cano), and “La Mala.”
With just an acoustic guitar, Tito Double P (who earlier in the week sat down with Peso Pluma for a panel on the new Mexican music movement) helmed an intimate stripped-down performance that left the crowd wanting more. During his set, the corridos breakthrough star sung a couple of his hits, including “Escápate,” part of his debut album, Incómodo, which bowed at No. 2 on the Top Latin Albums and Regional Mexican Albums charts, and No. 20 on the all-genre Billboard 200.
The evening continued with the highly-anticipated performance by Young Miko, who pumped up the crowd with bangers such as “offline,” “Classy 101” and “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 58.” The Puerto Rican rapper and artist formed part of a Superstar Q&A at Latin Music Week, where she discussed her rising success. “In reality, if you think about it, social media growth is so abrupt, fast, and global that it can definitely seem like an overnight thing, social media-wise. But indeed, we have been making music since 2018, 2019, and about three years ago is when Young Miko really started to gain a lot of momentum,” she said at the panel.
Closing off the 35th anniversary celebration was global merengue star Elvis Crespo, who, joined by a live band and group of dancers, had the entire venue of all ages on their feet. Crespo performed timeless tropical tunes such as “Luna Llena,” “Nuestra Cancion” and “Tu Sonrisa.”
“I want to thank Billboard because in February of 1998, the people at Sony presented me for the first time at this conference. I’m enjoying this moment to the max, 26 years later. It’s an incredible path where through my dream and my passion for music, I have managed to develop stories of many people I meet on the street,” Crespo said, also thanking Billboard’s Leila Cobo for all the support, before finalizing with the all-time party classic “Suavemente.”
Liam Payne‘s sister Ruth Gibbins is breaking her silence following the singer’s death.
On Saturday (Oct. 19), Gibbins shared a heartbreaking tribute to her brother three days after he passed away at the age of 31.
“I don’t believe this is happening. Many times I have poured my heart out publicly with pride about Liam but never much about life as his sister,” Gibbins began her lengthy statement on Instagram. “Liam is my best friend, [no one] could ever make me laugh as much as him, doing his impressions always had me creasing and he loved seeing how much of a laugh he could get.”
The grieving sister went on to explain that Payne “moved out when he was 17 to chase his dreams” and that she would visit him during his stint on The X Factor, the U.K. talent show he appeared on before hitting it big with One Direction.
“I would regularly drive to have tea with him after I finished work, just to sit around,” she wrote. “One month the hotel was right by a wagamamas and I swear he had it morning, noon and night!”
Gibbins added that “Liam loved 1D” and referred to the group’s Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan as his “brothers.” She also noted that Payne “knew he could call me anytime” and that she would often help her sibling work through his issues.
“Liam, My brain is struggling to catch up with what’s happening and I don’t understand where you’ve gone,” she continued, addressing her brother directly. “I just want to drive to your house and walk in to music blasting and find you sat there writing a song.”
Gibbins added that Liam possessed a great “kindness” and had the “ability to make me laugh.” She also noted “how proud I am to call you my brother and my best friend.”
“I don’t feel this world was good enough or kind enough to you, and quite often over the last few years, you’ve had to really try hard to overcome all that was being aimed at you,” she wrote. “You just wanted to be loved and to make people happy with your music. You never believed you were good enough, I hope you can now see this outpouring of love that you never received in your time.”
She concluded her post, “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. Love you, oh how my heart misses you, Ru xxx. One last thing I need to know, I’m here if you need anything, I’d drive to the end of the universe to bring you back.”
Gibbins’ emotional post was accompanied by numerous photos, including a snapshot of the brother and sister on her wedding day and other pics of the pair spending time together.
The former One Direction star died on Wednesday (Oct. 16) after suffering a fatal fall from the third floor of his hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Investigators believe that he was potentially under the influence of substances when he fell, but they are still waiting for further toxicology reports.
See Gibbins’ tribute to Payne on Instagram below.
Otis Williams had a confession.
Asked whether he was a baseball fan, the 82-year-old founder of The Temptations coughed and said in a low, sing-song voice: “Dodgers.”
Sixty years after its debut, The Temptations’ “My Girl” has become a hit at Citi Field since New York Mets star Francisco Lindor began using it as his walk-up song in late May. Fans continue singing the lyrics even after Lindor’s plate appearance is underway.
The Temptations detoured to New York on an off day from their tour to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “My Girl” before the Mets beat Los Angeles 12-6 on Friday night (Oct. 18) and closed to 3-2 in the NL Championship Series.
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“It’s the highest compliment you can get,” Williams said in a green room behind home plate.
Wearing blue tuxedos with orange pocket squares, the five singers stood on the warning track behind home plate and sang an a cappella version of the national anthem that highlighted their harmonic excellence as Lindor watched from the foul line behind first base and sang along.
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They then donned Mets jerseys and sang “My Girl” with music backing them on the sound system as Lindor warmed up with sprints on the outfield grass, smiling widely and bobbing his head. He reached the dugout by the end and exchanged his special pregame handshake with with teammate Pete Alonso.
“Most players, they pick a walk-up song just because that’s how they feel in the moment but they also want the fans to vibe to to the song,” Lindor said. “Whenever you see the whole crowd getting into it, I think it’s pretty cool.”
Released on Dec. 21, 1964, “My Girl” became the group’s first No. 1 hit the following March and has been streamed 1 billion times on Spotify. The song’s impact became clear to Williams during a 1965 concert at Harlem’s Apollo Theater.
“We went out on the stage and we did the show without ‘My Girl.’ They damned near called us every name except the child of God,” he said, “so we know we can never, ever take that the song out.”
Lindor picked the song because of his wife Katia and daughters Kalina and Amapola. He didn’t anticipate the reaction.
“Last year I changed the song every single day,” he said. “I changed it because it was the song I was vibing to at the moment and it took off. I don’t know if it’s because I started hitting or because we started winning or because the song is good.”
“My Girl” was written and produced by Smokey Robinson and Ronnie White.
“Smokey saw us perform in Detroit at a place called the 20 Grand and he said then, ‘I got a song for you guys’ and he pointed to Davey Ruffin,” Williams recalled, referring to a lead singer for the group in the 1960s.
“So we went in the studio and we put the vocals down and I said: ‘Smokey did another great song for us.’ But when Paul Riser edited the strings and horns, I said, ‘Oh, oh, this is a different kind of song.’ So I went in the control room. I said, ‘Smokey, I don’t know how big a record this is going to become, but this is going to be something big.’”
A few months after the release, Williams said he received congratulatory telegrams from the Supremes and the Beatles, proudly proclaiming: “I have that at the house.”
The Temptations were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 for a catalogue including “Just My Imagination,” “Get Ready” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone.” They’ve had 14 No. 1 hits and 42 in the top 10.
Sujata Murthy, Universal Music Enterprises’ executive vice president of media and artist relations, took notice of Lindor’s use of the song and contacted the Mets. The group was in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, for a concert last weekend and diverted to New York ahead of performances this weekend at North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Durham, North Carolina.
Williams, who turns 83 on Oct. 30, is the last original member of the group. He has no intention of retiring.
“I tell people I’m going to ride the hell out of the horse,” he said. “When I get off the horse, it’s going to be bald. That’s a lot of rides when you ride the horse bald.”
Williams grew up in Detroit, but the Motown baseball team did not get his allegiance.
“Tigers is flimflam,” he said. “But the Lions now, they got promise. They got hope. I love the Lions. I’m still a Detroiter at heart, even though I’m in LA.”
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From new outfits to new surprise songs, Billboard rounds up the eight best moments from the first of three sold-out nights at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium.
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Shawn Mendes paid tribute to Liam Payne at his show Friday night (Oct. 18) at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater. Speaking from the stage, an emotional Mendes told the crowd he had met Payne “a couple of times” and described his impressions of the late One Direction member, who died at age 31 after falling from […]
“That’s my best friend, that’s my best friend,” Young Thug repeats on his 2015 Slime Season standout “Best Friend.” Even while behind bars, Thugger has kept up with the feuds in hip-hop this year and he’s looking to restore the peace.
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Thug took to X from jail on Friday (Oct. 18) hoping to play peacemaker and end the feud between Drake against Future and Metro Boomin. Thugger believes rap music as a whole will suffer without them teaming up again.
“@Drake @1future @MetroBoomin we all bruddas. Music aint the same without us collabin,” he wrote to X.
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The reclusive Future didn’t offer up a response, but he did retweet Thug’s message, which fans took as an olive branch that Pluto’s open to ending the beef with the 6 God.
“Future retweet????? Nah they gotta give Thug the Nobel Peace Prize,” A Thugger fan account replied.
“Young Thug just brought back a legendary duo,” one fan said. Another chimed in: “All along Thug was keeping everyone together.” Others pointed out that Kendrick Lamar was noticeably missing from Thug’s initial tweet.
Young Thug remains in prison while fighting for his life on the YSL RICO trial. There still doesn’t appear to be any end in sight as the case has strung out to become the longest in Georgia’s history.
Thugger saw an opportunity to squash the feud between Drake, Future and Metro as a neutral party in the battle. Drizzy, Pluto and Thug have teamed up plenty of times in the past including when they joined forces for Certified Lover Boy‘s “Way 2 Sexy,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021.
Last week, Drake showed love to Young Thug when he posted to social media rocking Thugger’s Sp5der clothing brand and suggested he’s supporting Thug’s funds while fighting the case.
“I ain’t talking to talk man I really put up [bread emoji] on the [briefcase emoji] 3 Jeff,” Drake posted to his Instagram Story, per Complex.
Metro Boomin actually spoke on the Drake and Kendrick Lamar feud during an appearance at a Forbes Under 30 Summit in September.
“I feel like the competition is great for the game,” he said. “Hip-hop has always been a competitive genre. Even if just keeping it on music it’s not serious how everybody tries to make it,” he said. “Also with hip-hop, there’s a lot of ego involved. You’re supposed to feel like you’re the best.”
Metro continued: “When two of the top dogs in the game and you both feel like you’re the best, it’s like, ‘OK, now we gotta have a showdown.’ We saw it with Jay-Z and Nas before. I feel like more today it’s more stan culture makes it kind of weird. Back in the day, Jay-Z and Nas went at it, I was a fan of both of them. Most people were. It was like, ‘OK, it’s OK.’ It’s not like, ‘I had this side. I hate this side.’ The internet makes it a little too wild now.”
Cam’ron knows Ye (formally known as Kanye West) well.
The two go back to their Roc-A-Fella days in the early 2000s, when West was a producer on the come-up who was trying convince everybody that his raps were just as good as his beats, while Cam was on a maniacal run that put not only himself, but his crew The Diplomats at the top of the game with rap’s hottest record label co-owned by his childhood friend Dame Dash.
While discussing quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets with his co-hosts Mase and Treasure “Stat Baby” Wilson, Cam told an anecdote about meeting up with Ye at his office in Beverly Hills.
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“You know what’s crazy? I’ll give you an example,” Cam began. “This was probably three years ago. I went to see the n—a Kanye or whatever. His office in Beverly Hills at one time was a cave, it’s just fire in there and sh–,” he said as he couldn’t contain his laughter. “It’s just like four fires. It’s like a 10-15,000 square foot — it’s not an office, it’s a warehouse and it’s just fire going.”
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He then mentions that Marilyn Manson was there with some other people and references a photo that was taken of himself, Manson, Ye, actress Julia Fox and music producer Jack Donoghue before he says he tried to ask Ye about the weird vibes he was getting. “So, you know I know the n—a,” he tells his co-hosts. “I’m like, ‘What are you doing?’”
He added that the Chicago rapper started acting differently when he noticed his old friend. “He see me — you know how you can’t play these games with a n—a you know,” he said before bursting into laughter. “I’m lookin’ at the n—a like, ‘What the f— is going on in here, man?’”
Camron talks about the time he chilled with Kanye and Marilyn Manson during the DONDA era and said Kanye knows how to act a certain way with people 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/GmbnoiKd6a— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) October 17, 2024
During an appearance on the All the Smoke podcast hosted by former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson in December 2023, the Harlem rapper-turned-sports commentator said West plays “crazy when it’s convenient” and that Ye was “perfectly fine” whenever he ran into his former collaborator.
You can watch the full It Is What It Is episode below:
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