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Aliana Mawla is adding her words to a mountain of heartfelt Liam Payne tributes following the 31-year-old singer’s shocking death this week.
On Thursday (Oct. 17) — one day after the former One Direction star died after suffering a fatal fall from the third floor of his hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina — the 26-year-old model shared a photo of Payne at a concert and wrote, “I’m sorry this happened to you,” according to People.
“Will forever love & miss you,” she added.
Mawla also shared a photo of Payne’s hands — distinguishable thanks to his “L” and “P” tattoos — holding what appears to be her hand. “Rest in paradise,” the influencer wrote.
Payne is believed to have dated Mawla after his split from ex-fiancée Maya Henry in 2022. The “Strip That Down” singer went on to date girlfriend Kate Cassidy, who also shared a tribute to Payne on Friday (Oct. 18).
“I have been at a complete loss,” Cassidy wrote on her Instagram Story. “Nothing about the past few days have felt real .. Liam, my angel. You are everything. I want you to know I loved you unconditionally and completely. I will continue to love you for the rest of my life.”
Payne died around 5:07 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 16), according to the preliminary autopsy report, which also revealed that he appeared to have been alone at the time. Investigators also believe that the star was potentially under the influence of substances when he fell from the third-story balcony of his hotel room, but are still waiting for further toxicology reports.
His death has inspired an outpouring of heartfelt messages from fans, fellow musicians and loved ones over the past 48 hours, including both a joint statement and individual tributes from Payne’s former bandmates, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson. One Direction’s creator and former mentor Simon Cowell also wrote a testament to the singer Friday, as did Cheryl Cole, Payne’s ex-partner and the mother of his 7-year-old son, Bear.
“Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son,” Cole wrote, sharing a black-and-white photo of Payne cuddling with a newborn Bear in bed. “A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again.”
From Beyoncé’s Billboard 200-topping Cowboy Carter LP to Shaboozey’s Billboard Hot 100-topping “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” 2024 has been a watershed year for Black artists in the country music space – and BRELAND is looking to close out the year with a bold new agenda of his own.
Titled Project 2024, the six-song EP is rooted in the country star’s experience visiting Selma, Alabama, the historically significant city from which his mother’s side of the family hails. The duality of Selma’s impact on the Civil Rights Movement and its current state inspired BRELAND to put together a project that speaks to the unshakeable freedom of creativity. He infuses the set’s country foundation with notes of gospel and disco, while also finding time to collaborate with other Black country acts like the Grammy-nominated husband and wife duo The War and Treaty, who appear on the EP’s moving closer, “Same Work.”
“The music is not political and obviously it’s an eye-catching title,” BRELAND tells Billboard of the new EP, out today (Oct. 18) — whose title nods to The Heritage Foundation’s controversial Project 2025 political initiative. “But I think what I’ve really done in the songs here is create a body of work that is as inclusive as possible.”
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Already a Billboard chart-topping artist – he hit No. 1 on Country Airplay with Dierks Bentley’s “Beers on Me,” which also featured HARDY – BRELAND also boasts hits of his own like 2019’s “My Truck” and 2022’s Thomas Rhett-assisted “Praise the Lord,” which hit Nos. 24 and 21 on Hot Country Songs, respectively. He also sports a unique perspective as a Black country artist who broke through before 2024 flipped the genre on its head. It’s that perspective that grounds his sonic amalgamation of American history, his family’s lineage and his vision for country music’s boundless future.
Project 2024 serves as BRELAND’s first studio project since 2020’s Rage and Sorrow EP, which was written and recorded in response to the fallout of the murder of George Floyd. Last year, he won the inaugural Lift Every Voice Award from the Academy of Country Music (ACMs) for his role in elevating underrepresented voices in country music.
In a candid conversation with Billboard, BRELAND gets real about navigating country music as a Black artist, the making of Project 2024, his upcoming project with NBA star Jimmy Butler and not being featured on Cowboy Carter.
Project 2024 is obviously a very loaded title. Walk me through the thought process that brought you to that title.
Yeah, definitely a loaded title in some ways — but literally, this is a project that I am putting out in 2024. You don’t really have to look any further than that. This is a project that was largely inspired by a trip that I took down to Selma, Alabama, which is the land of my ancestors. I had never been, and seeing that rich history of what it means to be Black in America — seeing a lot of the issues that they were fighting for in the ‘60s back on the docket — I feel that this is a project that is really born out of creative freedom, in a world where we can’t always take certain freedoms for granted.
I wanted to put this out, not as a political agenda, but as a creative one — to say, “I’m going to continue to push the boundaries of what country music can mean.”
The EP ends with a really touching collaboration between you and The War and Treaty. Why were they the right choice to be the only feature on the project?
Since I’m only doing six songs, and I haven’t really put much music out this year at all, I wanted to make sure that I could actually tell some stories on my own. But this is one that felt like it really deserved an additional vocal and an additional storyteller. “Same Work” is based on a true story.
After one of my shows [at CMA Fest], an older gentleman, who was a veteran, came over and told me how much he appreciated what I do and told me a little bit about himself. He served for a number of years and has since been working as a freelance nurse, and he’s been giving free healthcare to veterans [who] need it in the Memphis area. And he was like, “Well, you and me do the same work.”
I [got] what he was trying to say, but let’s be clear: First responders are [very different] from musicians. He was like, “No, we do the same work. At the heart of my work is helping and serving people and to my knowledge, that’s what you do as well. If you keep that at your center, then we will always do the same work.” I just thought it was such a beautiful interaction and a reminder of why what I do is so special and why I’m so grateful to be able to do it — because I get to have interactions like that. [I can] impact people on that level, but then have people impact and influence me on that level [too.]
So, I ended up writing the song with Tenille Townes. We were doing this holiday train tour. I told her about the interaction, and we ended up writing the song right then and there. When I was gearing up for this project, it felt like one that fit the overall tone and would be a nice closer. I really didn’t want people to think that I was equating being a musician to serving in the military or being a healthcare professional. I wanted to make sure that I could have someone singing with me on this song that understood the message from a different perspective. Michael [Trotter Jr.] being a vet himself definitely understood it and I felt like him being able to help tell this story with me would alleviate some of those concerns that I was having.
You move through genres so freely and that’s always been a big part of your artistic ethos. What inspired the poppy, almost post-disco bent of “What You’ve Been Through”?
I come from a very matriarchal family, and it’s my mom’s side of the family that hails from Selma. [All the women in my family] have overcome a lot. I wanted to have a song that speaks to that resilience, but I didn’t want it to be this sad, melancholy type of record. I wanted to do it in the form of a celebration because I feel like these women need to be celebrated.
You might see a woman on the street and think, “Oh, wow, she’s got it all together.” But you don’t know exactly what it is that she’s been through. I have a lot of women in my life for whom that is true. We’re putting this project out in October, which is breast cancer awareness month and domestic violence awareness month. I have women in my family [who] have been affected by both. I felt it would be a fun approach to a concept that could be done in a very different way.
You say Project 2024 isn’t political. What do you say to people who might argue that invoking the concept of Project 2025 must come along with some kind of substantive commentary on it, given the gravity of the situation and how close we are to the election?
We are in very challenging times. We’re seeing a lot of families and friendships being broken along political and ideological boundaries. While my music has never been political, my existence in this space as an outspoken young Black country artist is. If you listen to this music and listen to the heart of the music, I care about people. I care about people being able to have rights, freedom of expression, freedom to love and freedom to live — and that’s something that I stand on. I want to remind people that there are certain freedoms that people can never take from us. To me, that’s where the music comes in.
Hopefully, [this project inspires] people to do their own research about some of the different issues that I touched on in this project — and some of the issues that I don’t touch on in this project, but may exist in the larger political landscape that we live in. When they think about things like Project 2025, I want people to be able to come to informed conclusions about their own opinions.
How important is it to you that you speak truth to power in your music as a Black artist in country music?
I don’t think that my race is at the forefront of the music that I’m making, but I do also recognize the ways in which representation in this space is ever important and why me being a Black artist in this space comes with an additional level of responsibility. I always want to make sure that I rise to the occasion.
These are songs that I hope Black people like, I hope white people like — I hope every culture and every community of people can relate to it because all of these songs are really about universal human experiences. That, to me, is more of the focus here. I think that representation in this space matters and trying to navigate how much I want to engage with that or even talk about that… these are things that a lot of my white peers don’t really ever have to consider. I also feel like I have to be additionally prepared to respond to certain types of questions or be able to guide conversations in a certain way. I think that I’m uniquely equipped and capable [of having] those conversations as they arise, and I’ve never really shied away from that in my art.
It can be a challenge at times to have to bear that burden, but at the same time, I also feel like it’s a blessing for me to be able to do that, and pressure is a privilege. I’m definitely grateful to be in a position where I can have conversations along the lines of racial discourse and contribute with my art in a meaningful way.
You mentioned earlier that your existence in country music has always been political. Was there a moment or a series of moments that truly crystallized that for you as an artist in this space?
I [remember I had] just put out my first ever EP, which was the Breland EP, and then literally a week and a half [later], you’ve got the George Floyd murder and subsequent protests. In country music, in particular, there was a lot of finger-pointing of, like, “Well, you didn’t post a black square and this person did.”
There was a lot of having to remind people that freedom and equality are not political. These are human rights and basic human liberties that we should have as human beings in general, and as citizens of America — which is a country that, in theory, should be able to help, support, maintain and establish that for its citizens. I don’t think that recognizing that racism still exists in America and trying to figure out ways to combat that is a political conversation. It has been politicized.
As a completely new artist, I ended up putting out Rage and Sorrow, a short little EP that talks about the rage of that situation — but also the deep and very real sorrow that I think a lot of people were experiencing, myself included.
I’ve also had situations like when I sang the National Anthem at the Daytona 500. When it was announced, it was met with a lot of criticism, and hate online from people who were like, “Here we go, they’re trying to make a political statement.” I’m like, “Hey, just so you know, I’m not kneeling when I do the anthem. I’m not putting up a Black Power fist. I’m not singing the third stanza of the National Anthem. I’m not making a political statement here. I’m singing the National Anthem just as adequately, and if not more competently, than some of your favorite white artists.” So, I sang it, did a great job and those same people were like, “Wow, that was actually very good.” And I’m like, “Why did we have to go through this in the first place?”
I have [also] had some really amazing triumphs as a Black artist in this space, but I’ve also faced some pushback and resistance from specific people who maybe aren’t on the same page as me as far as those things are concerned. I recognize that simply being here, putting out music and being successful in this space helps change the conversation.
2024 has obviously been a banner historic year for Black country artists, both in terms of commercial success and the critical and cultural conversation around it. What’s your biggest takeaway from this year, especially as a Black artist who was able to have a breakthrough before this particular moment?
It feels like a long time coming. I think back on some of the artists that never really got their moment. I mean, obviously you have the Charley Prides of the world who experienced tremendous commercial success. But you also have artists like Linda Martell, who experienced some success, but probably would have experienced significantly more had certain doors not been closed to her. I think about artists like Rissi Palmer or Frankie Staton, or even Mickey Guyton, who were a bit ahead of their time, and really shouldn’t have been ahead of their time — because they’re talented artists who have stories to tell that are just as valid and creative and valuable as everyone else’s.
For me, being in this space and having been able to have some success, all of that is great. But until we are no longer having this conversation, none of it is going to be enough, so we continue to fight forward. I definitely think that this has been a landmark year, and I love seeing more and more Black people engaging with country music — not just as consumers but as creators, and seeing people [who] are coming over and wanting to engage with this because this is a genre that wouldn’t exist without the contributions and influences of Black people from day one. It’s really cool to see Black people driving around town listening to country music, pulling up to honky tonks and coming to concerts. I can visibly see a shift just since I’ve come out five years ago.
What do you think the country music industry, and Nashville in particular, can do to keep this energy going beyond moments like Cowboy Carter and “A Bar Song (Tipsy)?”
Country music is a genre that is really built on community in a way that other genres aren’t. I think it is going to require other artists in this space to continue to collaborate with Black artists and begin to bring Black artists out on the road as openers. Country radio stations also need to play more diverse artists, because if you’re not Kane Brown — or I guess now Shaboozey with this one song — Black artists don’t really get played on country radio at all. You can have these songs that make big splashes online, but [it doesn’t matter as much] if you don’t have the same push at country radio or the same push to get in front of people and play these shows and festivals. You need all of those things for this to be sustainable.
So, I’m hoping that “A Bar Song” and the Beyoncé album and the cultural conversation that we are now having changes things.
Were you asked to be a part of Cowboy Carter?
I was not asked to be a part of Cowboy Carter. It would have been great to be a part of that. There was a moment when the track listing first came out and I was getting tagged in a lot of things with people being like, “Why wasn’t BRELAND a part of this project?” And I definitely asked myself some of those questions as well. It’s challenging sometimes to feel like, “Okay, I have relationships with all of these artists, right? I’ve written with Shaboozey [and] Willie Jones, I’ve got music out with Tiera Kennedy and Brittney Spencer, and I’ve brought Tanner Adell and Reyna Roberts out to sing with me. Not being a part of it was kind of hard for me to wrap my head around.
At the same time, I also had to remember that, maybe with the exception of Brittney Spencer, all of these artists were independent or signed to independent labels. None of them had been played in any capacity at country radio. So, looking at what Beyoncé was trying to do — I think she was really trying to amplify the voices of people [who] maybe had not been as ingratiated or welcomed into the country music landscape the way that I had been. In a lot of ways, I think those artists really deserved that platform even more than I did. I was really happy for them all, and excited for their success. I listened to all of those records that all of them are featured on in particular, because I want to see them all win, and it’s bigger than just me.
You were part of another major country music moment this year with “Boots Don’t” from Twisters: The Album, which marks your second collab with Shania Twain. What was your experience landing a song on such a blockbuster soundtrack?
It was great! Shania was one of my favorite artists coming up. She’s one of the people [who] turned me on to country music with some of her hits from the 90s and early 2000s. When I got a chance to finally tour with her and to be a part of the deluxe [version] of her Queen of Me album, I thought that was already fantastic. But we did have this song in the tuck, and we were looking for an opportunity to put it out and the Twisters soundtrack came along, and it ended up being a good fit. Hopefully, we can get some sort of Grammy acknowledgment on that one.
Shania opened up a lot of doors for me when she really didn’t have to. For her, being a Canadian woman breaking into country music at the time that she came in is very similar to my experience as a New Jersey Black dude coming in back in 2019. She understands what it is that I’m trying to do. I appreciate her friendship and her mentorship, and anytime we get an opportunity to sing together or perform together, it’s one that I definitely take with a great deal of gratitude.
What’s up next for you?
I definitely want to get back out on the road, but that’s probably more of a top of [next] year. I’ve got a couple of potential collabs that are coming, so I will have some more music in the next few months between this project and whatever I end up doing next as a solo artist. I’m working on a project with Jimmy Butler right now, which will be a compilation album featuring a bunch of artists both inside and outside of country music. I think it’ll be a really great cultural moment, and we’ve been working on [that] most of this year.
I’m just now starting to properly work on the sophomore full-length album. I think that Project 2024 is a really great way to get back into the marketplace and give people some new music.
Cheryl Cole, musician and ex-partner to Liam Payne, is speaking out about wanting to protect their 7-year-old son Bear from the “media exploitation” she’s seen following the 31-year-old singer’s death.
Two days after the former One Direction star died by falling from the third story of his hotel in Buenos Aires, Cole posted a message to Instagram Friday (Oct. 18) to “kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being.”
“Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son,” she wrote, sharing a black-and-white photo of Payne cuddling with a newborn Bear in bed. “A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again.”
“What is troubling my spirit the most is that one day Bear will have access to the abhorrent reports and media exploitation we have seen in the past two days,” the “Fight for This Love” singer continued. “It is breaking my heart further that I cannot protect him from that in his future.”
Cole and Payne dated for about two years before separating in 2018. In March 2017, they welcomed Bear.
In addition to countless messages of grief that have flooded social media from Payne’s loved ones, industry peers and fans alike over the past two days, his death has also inspired much discourse about his character. Also adding to the spectacle is the fact that TMZ, one of the first outlets to report that Payne had died, shared photos showing parts of his dead body. The pictures have since been removed, but not before multiple people online — including Alessia Cara — slammed the publication for including them in the first place.
“I am begging you to consider what use some of these reports are serving, other than to cause further harm to everyone left behind picking up the pieces,” Cole continued in her post. “Before you leave comments or make videos, ask yourself if you would like your own child or family to read them.”
“Please give Liam the little dignity he has left in the wake of his death to rest in some peace at last,” Cole concluded her message. “Thank you.”
Cole’s message comes within an hour of Payne’s girlfriend, influencer Kate Cassidy, paying tribute to the late singer. “I have been at a complete loss,” she wrote on Instagram Stories Friday. “Nothing about the past few days have felt real.”
“Liam, my angel. You are everything,” Cassidy continued. “I want you to know I loved you unconditionally and completely. I will continue to love you for the rest of my life.”
Payne died around 5:07 p.m. Wednesday and appeared to have been alone when he fell from his hotel room balcony, suffering multiple fatal traumas and hemorrhages, according to a preliminary autopsy report. Investigators also believe that he was potentially under the influence of substances when he died, but are still waiting for further toxicology reports.
Payne’s former One Direction bandmates — Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson — and Simon Cowell have since shared tributes to the performer, as have Ed Sheeran, Cher Lloyd, Camila Cabello and more musicians. “We are heartbroken,” reads a statement from Payne’s family. “Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
See Cole’s post here.
So, Tommy Richman is hip-hop now? The Virginia singer will be up for a couple rap Grammys this upcoming February, according to The Hollywood Reporter. His viral hit “Million Dollar Baby” was submitted for best rap song and best melodic rap performance, the publication reports. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest […]
This week in dance music: Fred again.. spoke with Nardwuar, and Rüfüs du Sol spoke with us. Charli XCX continued her winning streak by releasing a remix with Kesha and seeing Brat reach the apex of the U.K. album charts after last week’s release of Brat and It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat. The managing director of the Amsterdam Dance Event ran down his top event picks for the conference happening this week in the Dutch capital, SoundCloud announced that electronic music fans are the platform’s most engaged, organizers of Breakaway Music Festival said the touring dance festival is expanding to six new markets next year, we ran down the 40 most played tracks at Pacha Ibiza this season and also debuted exclusive CRSSD fall 2024 sets from Idris Elba, Tinlicker, Confidence Man and Kerala Dust.
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And in the realm of marquee album releases, Kelly Lee Owens dropped her fourth studio LP Dreamstate, The Blessed Madonna put her out her major label debut Godspeed and LP Giobbi delivered her shimmering second album, Dotr.
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To all that, we add even more. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.
Kaleena Zanders, Glorified
After releasing the EP’s other three songs over the last few months, Kaleena Zanders rounds out the project with the release of its title track, “Glorified.” A bright blend of disco and soul, the song — like much of Zanders’ work — features her power-lunged vocals as the sonic and spiritual centerpiece. The corresponding video also manages to be simultaneously sexy and adorable. The artist is on tour with DJ Susan through the end of the year, with upcoming shows in Austin, Brookly and Denver. Glorified is out via Helix Records.
Confidence Man, 3am (La La La)
The prevailing response to the Australian act’s third album has thus far been a general adoration for and excitement about the way its dozen tracks capture the bright sound and breezy spirit of the ’90s rave world. Indeed there’s a lot of candy raving warehouse vibes — a sonic and fashion aesthetic that’s been very on trend in the current dance scene and which Conidence Man does with moxie across the project. But things get particularly interesting on “Sicko,” which take a sharp turn from the Deee-Lite references and swerves into darker, druggier, more sexed-up influences of Depeche Mode and INXS, with the group’s Aidan Moore) eventually admitting “I”m such a sicko” as the song again shifts gears into ambient, after-hours territory. 3am (La La La) is out on Casablanca Records.
Mau P, “Merther”
The Dutch producer samples Ini Kamoze’s essential 1984 single “World a Reggae (Out in the Street They Call It Murder)”, and effectively whips it into a tech house song, chopping up Kamoze’s vocals into a stuttering beat and going fully on the nose by adding a few siren sounds. It works so well that Solomun and Michael Bibi have been rinsing it in their sets lately.
Mau P says that after testing the track out on the road for a long time, “it’s sick that I get to put this out with the legendary sample from Ini Kamoze’s ‘World A Music.’ I didn’t think this would be remotely possible a few years ago, but here we are. My fans have also been asking for this one nonstop, so I’m happy they don’t have to keep listening to ripped versions online and can finally get the full finished version.” The track marks Mau P’s first release on Defected Records.
Sebastian Ingrosso, “Flood”
Of Swedish House Mafia’s three members, Sebastian Ingrosso puts out the least solo work, so anything new from him will naturally pique curiosity. His just-out single “Flood” delivers, with the 4:32-long track — a luxuriously long song in the world of two-minute tracks made for TikTok — unfolding across three movements, building from slinky IDM to an theatrically leaning vocal isolation into a peaktime heater. “It’s been a very long time since I worked on something of my own that represents who I have become since then,” Ingrosso wrote on social media. “I am on a journey of traveling inwards, and this is one of the many stories I hope to tell.”
Polo & Pan, “Nenuphar”
Polo & Pan’s output has always conjured a mood of lounging poolside in a silk robe in St. Tropez with a cocktail in your hand and not a care in the world. And so it goes on the French duo’s latest, “Nenuphar.” The track was recorded in Mexico City, with accompaniment by the Mexico-based all-female multi-genre collective I.M YONI (Independent Musicians of Yoni, who add a silky vocals over the layers of percussion and strings. “Nenuphar” is out on Hamburger Records.
Honey Dijon, “Finding My Way”
Honey Dijon and Ben Westbeech come together for the new “Finding My Way,” which comes from the latest edition of !K7’s enduring DJ Kicks series. Melding gospel vocals about searching for peace with a slowly unrolling house production (and a flute solo) the track has all the warmth and cool that have made Honey a global star for ages. “I’m a huge fan of research,” she says of her DJ Kicks compilation, “So putting this compilation together was basically going into my dancefloor experience and finding gems I wanted to present to people that they may not have been familiar with or that they didn’t even know existed.”
Lil Wayne being overlooked for the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show for Kendrick Lamar became a lightning rod for conversation within hip-hop circles. Wayne himself admitted he was “hurt” by the NFL’s decision to not have him perform in his hometown and others such as Nicki Minaj, Master P, Cam’ron and more chimed in sticking up for the New Orleans rap deity.
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LL Cool J sat down with Fat Joe for an episode of Fat Joe Talks on Friday (Oct. 18), and among the multitude of topics discussed was Weezy being snubbed for the Super Bowl’s headlining spot for K. Dot.
The “Loungin” rapper gave Wayne his flowers, but is cool with Kendrick having his moment right now, with the numbers he put on the board this year. LL believes Wayne will eventually get his shot as well.
“[Lil Wayne’s] one of our great artists, he’s an unbelievable writer. He’ll have his day — let Kendrick get that,” he said. “Here’s the thing: Your time will come [and] you’ll have your day … You’ll have your time. You can’t let break you. The only reason it makes me laugh is because I know how blessed he is, how successful he is. So he don’t need to worry about that moment. It’s just a moment, bro. It’s just one moment.”
LL Cool J brought up how he wasn’t voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for many years on the docket before breaking through in 2021. With all of the success he and other artists of his ilk have enjoyed, he referred to these kind of roadblocks as “champagne problems.”
“These are champagne problems. There’s guys who can’t get their demo listened to. I think we get a little bit kind of, unintentionally, spoiled,” he admitted. “Wayne is crème de la crème.”
Kendrick was announced by the NFL and Roc Nation as the headliner for Super Bowl LIX in September, and a devastated Wayne took a few days to gather himself before speaking out.
“That hurt. It hurt a lot. You know what I’m talking about. It hurt a whole lot,” he said in a video posted to Instagram. “I blame myself for not being mentally prepared for a letdown. … But I thought that was nothing better than that spot and that stage and that platform in my city, so it hurt.”
Watch LL talk about Kendrick headlining the Super Bowl instead of Lil Wayne in the clip below.
On today’s (Oct. 18) episode of the Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century podcast, we reach No. 9 of our list with a teen TV star who showed up to pop music in the mid-2010s already a near-fully formed star — and just continued to get bigger and better, until she came to define […]
The last time Audrey Nuna released an album – 2021’s A Liquid Breakfast – the world was still largely in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, Olivia Rodrigo had just launched her Sour LP and Taylor Swift was the very beginning of her Taylor’s Versions campaign. Three years later, Nuna returns with a darker, grittier companion to A Liquid Breakfast titled Trench.
Featuring a collaboration with Teezo Touchdown and an interpolation of Brandy and Monica’s timeless “The Boy Is Mine,” Trench showcases the marvelous sonic evolution Nuna has undergone since first signing to Arista half a decade ago. Foreboding synths anchor apocalyptic anthems like “Dance Dance Dance,” while forlorn acoustic guitar serves as the backbone for quieter, more jaded moments like the evocative “Joke’s on Me.” In the years between her debut and sophomore albums, Nuna moved to Los Angeles and experienced an unmistakable darkness rooted in the city’s synthetic nature around the same time her frontal lobe started to fully develop.
Trench is born out of the tumult of those years, and throughout the record’s double-disc journey, Nuna comes out on the other side with a greater understanding of how to streamline her idiosyncrasies into a concise project. She raps and sings across the record’s moody, glitchy trap and R&B-informed soundscape, while still leaving room to incorporate notes of rock, folk and dance-pop. All of those styles were on full display at her electric album release show at Brooklyn’s Sultan Room on Oct. 15, which was packed wall to wall with adoring fans who perfectly matched Nuna’s thrilling stage show.
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“I would say the tagline for this project is ‘soft skin, hard feelings,’” Nuna tells Billboard. “I think that really encapsulates the duality my whole shit is based on… this idea of blending things that don’t normally go together. I love beautiful chords and R&B, but I also love harsh sounds and really raw synths. The whole sound is a blend of our tastes – me and [my producer] Anwar [Sawyer,] and that whole first project really helped me carve out the sound naturally.”
A Jersey kid and Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music dropout turned rising cross-genre star, Audrey Nuna is ready to enter the next phase of her career with Trench. In a heartfelt conversation with Billboard, Nuna details the making of Trench, how she understands herself as a Korean-American navigating hip-hop and R&B and how the ‘90s informed much of her approach to her art.
You signed to Arista in 2019. How do you feel that your relationship with them has evolved over time — especially going into this new project?
I think it’s like any relationship where we’ve been building a lot of trust. They signed me when I was pretty young, and it’s been five years. When they signed me, they were all super excited — and we have an unusual, unique artist-label relationship where we’re building it all together from the ground up. I’m grateful for the freedom to do what I want to do. I’m pretty blessed in the fact that I’ve never felt like I had to do things. I’ve always been able to maintain a sense of independence, which is a f—king blessing.
Why is the album called Trench? How did you land on that title?
I really love words. I just love that word, [“trench.”] First and foremost, I love that it’s double consonants in the back and front. I love that it sounds kind of harsh, but there’s also a bit of balance to it. There’s also this analogy of war and defense mechanisms and the hard, brutal reality of that. I think it’s really interesting that when you zero in on something so harsh, you will always see this warm flesh underneath. It’s that concept: we’re all human, but we go through all these hard things that kind of push us against our nature, which is warm. It was just really ironic to me, and that duality was something I wanted to present throughout the album.
Why did you choose to present Trench as a double-disc album?
I just felt it would be a great way to showcase the two sides of this character in this world. At the end of the day, while I was organizing the tracklist, I realized that they’re very much one and the same, but almost inverses of each other. I think that this idea of showcasing those. They’re inverse, but they’re also parallel.
Talk to me about “Mine,” in which you interpolate Brandy and Monica’s “The Boy Is Mine.” How did that one come together?
I had the idea for that song because I love the romance of ‘90s R&B. The producer I worked with, Myles William, had the idea to reference such an iconic song, and I loved the idea because it was still so current sonically with the Jersey club in there. I think combining those two things was very fascinating to me. Even flipping the original meaning of the song where two characters are fighting over one guy into me making the guy cry instead – it’s more of that harshness that Trench is about.
Being that you’re a Jersey kid, did you hear Jersey club a lot growing up?
Actually, yeah! It’s so funny because in high school, and even before then, Jersey club was always circulating. Not as much on the radio or anything like that, but more on people’s phones on YouTube or if you were in the car with your friends. It was so specific in what it was that to now see it be such a big part of the mainstream is really mindblowing.
You teamed up with Teezo Touchdown on “Starving.” How did that come together?
I had that song starting with the demo. We were thinking about a feature that was. In the beginning, we were thinking of Steve Lacy or Fousheé. I think my A&R suggested Teezo because he’s been working with him, and it just made sense. “Starving” is also a very pop record, and kind of out of my comfort zone — which is interesting, because for most people a track like that is very left-field. I think having an artist [who] understands what it’s like to stay in a pocket of the most pop song on your record actually feeling like the B-side is really cool.
It was just really cool to see him do his thing on there because he just brought a fresh energy that you wouldn’t normally expect someone to rap or sing with. He almost reminds me of André 3000, because of the way he makes anything sound good by how he wears his energy. Same with his fashion — the way he wears the clothes is what makes it work.
What was on the mood board while you were creating Trench?
The movie Akira. When I made “Nothing Feels the Same,” Akira was definitely in my head as this villain coming into herself – in the movie’s case, himself. It just felt like a soundtrack for a darker transformation for me. On the other side of that, I was also weirdly inspired by more bubblegum-esque aesthetics, and combing those two things. You can hear it on a song like “Sucking Up.” I’m really inspired by the ‘90s, like KRS-One, but also PinkPantheress and jazz influences like Chick Corea or Hudson Mohawke on the dance side and even Korean 90’s alternative artists. There’s a lot of different stuff.
What was the entry point to hip-hop?
I grew up pretty musically sheltered. My parents are immigrants, so they put me on to some Korean older folk music. Knowing popular music came very late. I specifically remember listening to [Ye’s] Yeezus sophomore year of high school for the first time. At that point in my household, cursing was bad. To hear something so vulgar and raw and different from anything I’ve ever heard before, that was a bit of an entry point for me. [I found a] space and form of expression where you can truly say what’s in your heart and not necessarily care about the world. I think that was very enticing to me.
Meeting Anwar and listening to everything he put me onto and obsessing over Sade together [was also formative.] Sometimes, I feel like when you don’t know what your lineage is because of immigration and you don’t see a lot of people doing what you’re trying to do, you have more freedom because it’s a blank canvas.
How do you navigate conversations where your race is emphasized in relation to the kind of music you make? How do you understand yourself as a Korean-American operating in traditionally Black spaces like hip-hop and R&B?
Being boxed into “Korean-American” is definitely a thing. In my case, I learned to acknowledge that I am who I am, and being an American is part of my identity, but it’s not necessarily the only thing that you want to be attached to your identity. At the end of the day, we’re human. Yes, I grew up eating kimchi jjigae, my parents spoke Korean to me, I was exposed to all of these other Korean things – that’s gonna bleed into everything I do, whether I want it to or not.
At the beginning of my career, seeing the hyper-emphasis on [my race] was very interesting because growing up I never felt Korean-American, I never felt Korean enough. And now it’s like you have to be “very” Korean. It’s very extreme. At this point, I’m all about paying respect to where the genre comes from and understanding that I am a visitor and a guest. It’s about respecting the craft and studying it and not viewing it as anything other than what it is – something that is worthy of all of the respect in the world. Also keeping the conversation going and asking questions, I’m not gonna understand every last reference.
I honestly feel it’s been an evolution. All these cultures are merging, and I think that’s a beautiful thing. Ultimately, I pray that that would give us more empathy and understanding as a human race. My biggest thing is encouraging people to educate me constantly and keeping the conversation open. On both sides, you can get boxed into a narrative, but at the same time, it’s all very gray. Generally, just do what inspires you in a conscientious way. Just do shit.
You’re trying to break through in the wake of the Stateside K-pop boom. Has that phenomenon impacted the ways the market sees you and your music at all?
The sentiment towards Asian culture in general has changed in the past three years. Growing up, it wasn’t “cool” to be Asian. But it’s like this hot commodity now, Korean culture especially is at the forefront right now. Sometimes, you do get boxed into this “everything Korean is K-pop” [mentality.] I’ve been listed in random articles as one of “10 K-Pop acts to know.” Even labels that approached me earlier in my career were like, “Well, we have all these K-Pop acts, so you would be very welcome here.” At the same time, my music is worlds away from K-Pop.
It’s gray and it’s nuanced, but at the end of the day, I’m really proud to be Korean and proud that Koreans are being recognized for their excellence in music and visuals and fashion. When I see people who genuinely love the culture push and try to understand it outside of just the aesthetic, that brings me a lot of joy.
What was your time in Fort Lee like?
Fort Lee is like the K-Town of Jersey. It was kind of like a retreat. After I went to school for a year and then I dropped out and moved to Fort Lee. I stayed by all these Korean families, almost in the suburbs — but it was right outside the city, so there was a little bit more going on. That place is so warm and nostalgic in my heart because it’s the place where I really found my sound. It’s the most romantic place in my heart because all I did all day was make music. That was before I had a career; it was when I was doing it, not knowing if I was going to be able to do it.
There’s something so special about that; I realized you really never get it back once that period is over. You can spend your whole life emulating that, but it will never be as pure. I always look up to my 19-year-old self and the fearlessness that came out of true naïveté.
How do you view Trench in relation to A Liquid Breakfast? Is there a symbiotic relationship between the two records?
I think they’re very symbiotic, and I love that word. They follow the same character, [she’s] just gone through a bit more shit. The first project is Fort Lee; it’s romantic, it’s curious, it’s pink and blue and springtime. In between [A Liquid Breakfast and Trench,] I moved to LA and as sunny as that city is, there’s a level of syntheticness and darkness that I experienced. [By Trench,] this character went underground for two years and didn’t see sunlight for a long time.
And who knows, maybe this is a “part two” and there’s one more part that ends this story. I definitely think [Trench] is the darker counterpart, sonically, lyrically and conceptually. It’s a bit more complex and experimental. At its core, it follows the same character as the last album. Since the last project, so much has changed and so much has stayed the same.
I see a lot of the ‘90s in your approach to music videos. How did you develop your visual language, and did that intersect with and or influence your stage show at all?
I’m very ‘90s-inspired for sure. One of the first videos I remember being very inspired by was the Jamiroquai video, “Virtual Insanity.” And then obviously Missy Elliott, and anything directed by Hype Williams. I don’t know what was going on. I just think it was a golden age of music videos. People put so much value into music videos, but they were also so new to the point where people were just trying anything. I think that balance of having the resources and also having an innocence, in a way, towards the craft was so special.
And Thank God for the internet. I saw the shit that I had never seen before just browsing YouTube; seeing Spike Jonze’s work and the Beastie Boys’ “Intergalactic.” Finding all of those different things and combining them kind of exploded my DNA. Also, my dad used to own a clothing factory in the Garment District. I was mostly around fashion, and I think that was very formative for me.
Are you planning to tour behind Trench?
Yes, next year. I’m still figuring out certain things, but I think that it’s essential for me to do this album live. I came up during the COVID era, and I haven’t had an opportunity to just perform for people as a headliner. I’m just very spiritually ready to present an album in that space.
What song from the album are you most excited to perform live for the first time?
I’d say, “Baby OG.” I just love it; it never gets old. I sampled my 19-year-old self on that song. There’s a demo from 2019 called “Need You,” and that never got put out. But we just sampled it one day and it ended up becoming “Baby OG.” The meanings of the songs were so parallel. I didn’t realize that until after I finished the song. It’s kind of a meeting of past and future self.
Do you plan to return to Clive at any point or are you full steam ahead with your career?
I can’t afford it. [Laughs.] I can’t afford that s–t! I think if I were to go back to school, I would not go to school for music. I’d want to study history or fashion design.
In a past interview, you named Chihiro from Spirited Away as the fictional character you relate to the most. Is that still true, and have you heard the Billie Eilish song inspired by that character?
I think that will always be true. I love Miyazaki’s protagonists because most of the time, they’re kids who are just so courageous and wise. I think that was super empowering to see as a kid. That was one of my earliest memories of digital cinema and animation. I have heard “Chihiro” from the new Billie album. She’s so sick. It’s so awesome to see her sonic progression.
Liam Payne‘s girlfriend, influencer Kate Cassidy, has spoken out for the first time following the 31-year-old singer’s death.
On Friday (Oct. 18), two days after Payne suffered a fatal fall from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Cassidy thank supporters via Instagram Stories for “all the kind words and love” sent her way in the past 48 hours. “I have been at a complete loss,” she wrote. “Nothing about the past few days have felt real.”
“I ask and pray that you’ll give me the grace and space to navigate this in private,” Cassidy continued before addressing Payne directly. “Liam, my angel. You are everything. I want you to know I loved you unconditionally and completely.”
“I will continue to love you for the rest of my life,” the social media star added. “I love you Liam.”
Cassidy and Payne had been dating for about two years prior to the former One Direction star’s death on Oct. 16. The former would often post videos with her boyfriend on TikTok, and in September, she shared with followers on the app how she and the singer first met while she was working as his server at a bar in Charleston, S.C.
Cassidy was with Payne in Argentina prior to his death, according to videos on her TikTok, as well as Snapchats posted by the musician. The couple had attended Niall Horan’s concert together while in the country.
A few days prior to Payne’s death, Cassidy posted that she was leaving Argentina solo.
Payne died Wednesday around 5:07 p.m., according to the preliminary autopsy report, which also revealed that he appeared to have been alone when he fell. Investigators also believe that the star was potentially under the influence of substances when he died, but are still waiting for further toxicology reports.
Cassidy’s words are the latest message of grief posted by someone close to Payne in the days since his passing. His former One Direction bandmates Horan, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson each shared individual tributes in addition to a joint statement on Thursday (Oct 17), while Simon Cowell posted a memorial Friday. Social media has also seen an outpouring of condolences from musicians such as Ed Sheeran, Rita Ora, J Balvin, Cher Lloyd and more, in addition to countless anguished posts from fans.
In a statement to the BBC the day after Payne’s death, the singer’s family also spoke out. “We are heartbroken,” they said. “Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
On Oct. 19, 2019, Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber’s “10,000 Hours” began a 21-week command on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.
The duo of Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney landed the most recent of its three Hot Country Songs No. 1s, following “Speechless” (for nine weeks in 2018-19) and “Tequila” (four, 2019).
Pop superstar Bieber reigned with his only Hot Country Songs entry to date.
In its first full week of tracking, “10,000 Hours” totaled 33.3 million official U.S. streams, 19.6 million in all-format airplay audience and 53,000 sold, according to Luminate.
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The song was written by Smyers, Mooney, Bieber, Jason “Poo Bear” Boyd, Jessie Jo Dillon and Jordan Reynolds, and Smyers produced it.
After learning that “10,000 Hours” had hit No. 1, Smyers told Billboard, “We wrote this song about our wives, and we’re glad that it means as much to our fans as it does to us. The reaction has been incredible.”
“10,000 Hours” also topped the Country Airplay chart, where Dan + Shay boast 11 No. 1s, between 2015 and 2021. Plus, the song hit No. 4 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top 10 on Pop Airplay, Adult Pop Airplay and Adult Contemporary.
On Hot Country Songs, which became an all-encompassing genre ranking in 1958, “10,000 Hours” is the seventh-longest-leading No. 1. Another country/pop crossover hit holds the record: Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line’s “Meant to Be” dominated for 50 weeks starting in December 2017.
Dan + Shay’s latest single, “Bigger Houses,” ranks at its No. 16 high on the Oct. 26-dated Country Airplay chart.