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After a couple years of dating, Normani and DK Metcalf have wedding bells on the horizon. During a Thursday (March 13) press conference following his recent trade from the Seattle Seahawks to the Pittsburgh Stealers, the wide receiver adorably revealed that he and the Fifth Harmony alum are engaged. “Hold that rock up, baby,” he […]
While fans are savoring Playboi Carti’s long-awaited release, MUSIC, one artist isn’t necessarily too fond of the new album. On Friday morning (March 14), Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) shared his thoughts on Kendrick Lamar’s heavy involvement on Carti’s 30-track effort.
“I DON’T LIKE KENDRICK LAMARS MUSIC,” an exacerbated Ye posted on X. “HE RAPS VERY GOOD BUT I DIDNT NEED TO HEAR HIM ON CARTI ALBUM.”
Billboard reached out to Playboi Carti and Kendrick Lamar’s reps for comment.
Ye’s targeted post of Lamar comes a month after he said that the Compton rapper was the only one who could beat him in a rap battle. “If you rap against Kendrick, you will lose,” Ye said during his interview with Justin LaBoy on The Download. “This man does this. You know, in Street Fighter, you get Chun-Li, you get a certain kick, and no matter what, you can’t beat that thing?”
Continued Ye, who has faced ongoing backlash for his hate speech: “If you rap against Kendrick Lamar, like Joe Budden said, ‘Never rap against Kendrick Lamar.’ If you rap against Kendrick Lamar, it’s a difficult task, but perhaps it’s something … I’m a psycho genius, so you know, it could be.”
Carti’s colossal release includes three Lamar appearances. The newly formed tandem teamed up on “Good Credit,” “Mojo Jojo” and the Ye-produced song “Backdoor.” For Carti, MUSIC marks his return after a five-year layoff after his seminal 2020 album Whole Lotta Red debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with 100,000 equivalent album units, marking his first-ever chart-topper.
Aside from K. Dot’s trio of assists, MUSIC features a stacked lineup of hip-hop heavyweights including Future, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, Lil Uzi Vert and more. Fans experienced delays after a promised midnight release from the self-proclaimed King Vamp. After missing out on the initial 12 a.m. ET drop, Cardi vowed the album would come out at 3 a.m. ET, but it arrived closer to 4.
For Carti, MUSIC, is shaping up to be a well-timed release. He’ll quickly get the ball rolling with his headlining performance at Rolling Loud California this weekend. Shortly after, Carti will embark on a stadium tour with The Weeknd, where he’ll serve as his opener.
Gene Simmons can rock n’ roll all night and deliver the weather forecast the next day. On Thursday (March 13), the KISS frontman hilariously took over Los Angeles meteorologist Adam Krueger’s weekend report on Fox 11 — and it was truly chaotic from start to finish.
Wearing a denim shirt, sunglasses and a black cap, Simmons began by asserting he knows “quite a lot” about weather. He also landed a backhanded compliment toward Krueger — “You look much better in real life than you do on TV” — before pointing out regions on a map of Southern California and nonchalantly reading off the weather patterns crossing through.
At one point, Simmons pushed Krueger away so as not to block the graphics behind them before reading out the warm temperatures local viewers would experience over the next few days. Krueger then went in for a play on KISS’ Billboard Hot 100 hit “Rock and Roll All Nite,” saying, “This weekend, I’m thinking, it’s looking pretty good. If people want to rock and roll all night …?”
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“They should party every day,” Simmons finished.
Another hilarious moment came when Krueger tried to signify the end of the segment by giving the rock star a fist bump, prompting Simmons to ask, “Are you kicking me out?”
“You don’t have the thing in my ear where they’re saying wrap, so I gotta wrap,” Krueger responded, leading Simmons to start freestyling some bars.
“Rap? ‘You go to 7-Eleven/ Go to heaven …,” Simmons spit, doing a little dance.
After the broadcast, Krueger shared some behind the scenes photos with the rock legend on Instagram and wrote, “Do weather with @genesimmons” along with a checkmark emoji.
Krueger is known for creating viral weather moments by incorporating popular music into his presentations. Last year, he turned heads by using lyrics from Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” while delivering a Houston forecast, telling viewers, “If you wanna pass on this heat like John Stockton, you can go into the Northwest where there’s 60s and 70s for highs today.”
“So again, we got temperatures in the 90s, but it’s going to feel hotter for several days … Wop, wop, wop, wop!” he continued at the time. “This is not a major cold front. In fact, the general rule this time of year if it’s June and we’re talking about a cold front, it’s probably a minor.”
Krueger’s has also recently paid homage to Doechii, Tyler, the Creator and Travis Scott.
Simmons has also previously tried his hand at meteorology. In September, he joined KTLA 5 Morning News and hilariously pushed resident weatherman Henry DiCarlo aside to take over that week’s weather report.
Watch Simmons make his weather report above.
Grammy-winning MC Jay Rock was arrested in Watts, Los Angeles on Thursday night (March 13) for felony firearm possession and trespassing. According to NBC 4, the rapper born Johnny Reed McKinzie, 39, was taken into custody around 6 p.m. in Nickerson Gardens on charges of trespassing and drinking in public.
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At press time a spokesperson for the LAPD had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment on the arrest and it did not appear that Rock had commented on the arrest on his socials; a spokesperson for the rapper had not returned a request for comment at press time.
ABC 7 reported that after police stopped Rock for trespassing in Nickerson Gardens — the largest public housing complex in Los Angeles and the place where Rock grew up — he reportedly tried to flee his vehicle when the arresting officers would not tell him why he was being detained. Police then reportedly found a firearm in the car, which led to a booking on suspicion of felony weapons violation.
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Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department records confirm that Rock was arrested on Thursday, with no information available at press time about whether he had posted bond and was released from custody or when he is due in court on the charge.
Rock is longtime member of the Top Dawg Entertainment family and was a member of the now-defunct Black Hippy crew, which included Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q and Ab-Soul. He released his debut album, Follow Me Home, in 2011, followed by 90059 in 2015 and Redemption in 2018. One of the tracks from the latter, “King’s Dead,” featuring Lamar, Future and James Blake, was included on the Black Panther: The Album soundtrack collection and won a best rap performance award at the 2019 Grammys; the song peaked at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
The rapper appeared alongside fellow TDE family members SZA, ScHoolboy Q, Doechii, Isaiah Rashad, SiR, Ab-Soul and Ray Vaughn at December’s 11th annual Christmas concert, toy drive and community giveback.
Vive Latino celebrates its 25th edition March 15 and 16, cementing its status as “the father of all festivals in Mexico” and one of the capital city’s favorites. For the second year in a row, and thanks to an agreement with Amazon Music, the shows will be streamed for free on the digital platform in a nonstop broadcast lasting over 10 hours, the company announced on Thursday (March 13).
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With an eclectic lineup and multiple activities, Mexico’s longest running festival returns to its original venue, the Estadio GNP Seguros (formerly Foro Sol), after hosting its annual edition in 2024 at the Curva 4 of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez — which annually hosts the Formula 1 and festivals such as Corona Capital and Arre — due to renovations.
Since its inception in 1998, the Festival Iberoamericano de Cultura Musical, better known as Vive Latino, has maintained a rebellious personality that breaks stigmas: It was the first to include pop, reggaeton, cumbia and regional Mexican artists in its lineup; it once expanded to a four-day event; it incorporated Anglo bands while remaining the ultimate celebration of Spanish-language rock; and it became the first Latin American festival to launch an edition in Spain.
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“El Vive,” as its fans lovingly call it, debuted on Nov. 28-29, 1998, at the Foro Sol, located in eastern Mexico City. Since then, it has been held annually, except in 1999, 2002, and 2021 — the last due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, the festival will introduce a new offering called “Música para mandar a volar” (Music to let go), described as “an unprecedented act of heartbreak.” It will feature prominent figures from Mexican rock such as Saúl Hernández (Caifanes) and Leonardo de Lozane (Fobia), alongside pop stars from yesterday and today including Belinda, Yuri, Daniela Romo and Napoleón.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Vive Latino 2025, including who’s performing, where to get tickets and how to watch the festival remotely.
When and Where
In its 25th anniversary, the Vive Latino festival will take place on Saturday (March 15) and Sunday (March 16) at the GNP Seguros Stadium in Mexico City.
Who’s Performing
This year’s eclectic lineup is headlined by major acts including Caifanes, Scorpions, Aterciopelados, Keane, Molotov, Mon Laferte, Edén Muñoz, Los Ángeles Azules, Zoé and Duncan Dhu, among others. Below is the full list of artists and bands announced, sorted alphabetically, by day.
Saturday, March 15:
Alto Grado
Arde Bogotá
Caifanes
Ckovi
Caloncho
Clubz
Daniel Me Estás Matando
Dillom
Drims
Duncan Dhu
El Gran Silencio
Él Mató a Un Policía Motorizado
Foster The People
Ginebras
Happy-Fi
Iseo & Dodosound
Jesse Baez
León Benavente
Little Jesus
Los Ángeles Azules
Lospetitfellas
Macario Martínez
Molotov
Meme Del Real
Nortec: Bostich + Fussible
Pressive
Royal Republic
The Guapos
Robot95
Scorpions
Usted Señálemelo
Sunday, March 16:
Astropical
Aterciopelados
Cuarteto De Nos
División Minúscula
Draco Rosa
Easykid
Edén Muñoz
Efecto Pasillo
El Haragán y Cia
El Kuelgue
Jay de la Cueva
Kany García
Los K’comxtles
Kikuo
Keane
La Delio Valdez
La Lupita
La Santísima Voladora
Los Concorde
Los Esquizitos
Los Planetas
Motel
Midnight Generation
Mon Laferte
Mikel Izal
Porter
Rüfüs Du Sol
Sepultura
Vilma Palma e Vampiros
Víctimas del Dr. Cerebro
Zoé
Where to Buy Tickets
Tickets for the Vive Latino 2025 are still available, starting at 2,950 Mexican pesos (around $150) per day. You can purchase them via Ticketmaster.
How to Watch Online
Can’t attend the Vive Latino festival in person? This year, audiences worldwide can stream the performances on the AmazonMusicEnVivo channel on Twitch and Prime Video exclusively — and without a subscription. The broadcast starts at 2 p.m. local time, 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT in the U.S.
Chappell Roan gets the job done, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t scary sometimes. In a new post celebrating the release of her new single, “The Giver,” the singer-songwriter gave an honest look at her feelings toward pivoting to a country sound on the track and revealed she feels nervous about taking the leap.
Sharing photos of the various alternate cover photos for the single — as well as a throwback picture of herself as a tween wearing cowboy boots — Roan told fans on Instagram Thursday night (March 13) that she’s “so excited” for the song to “come to life.” “I love this song so much,” she wrote. “It’s been such a fun rollout to see the bus benches and billboards and posters and tear-offs wow.”
The Missouri native went on to say she feels like it’s “def a bold and scary move to release a full ass country song after only releasing one song last year and it having such a success in the pop genre.”
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“Like I am very scared as I type this lol,” she added in parentheses. “But I think that’s the entire point of chappell roan. Be bold and scary and have fun. be popstar girl then pop an edible +watch YouTube vibes. The whole point of this is to be silly !!!”
Roan released “Good Luck, Babe!” in April 2024, kickstarting her meteoric rise to pop superstardom over the course of last summer. The track — which marked her first release since 2023 debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess — reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking her highest peak on the chart so far.
Up until Friday’s “The Giver” drop, Roan hadn’t released a new song since “Good Luck, Babe!” And while the latter leaned retro dance pop, the new song is distinctly country, with the Grammy winner boasting through a twangy drawl, “‘Cause you ain’t got to tell me it’s just in my nature/ So take it like a taker,’cause, baby, I’m a giver.”
Roan previously opened up about embracing a different sound in an Instagram post earlier this month, explaining that the new style didn’t necessarily mean she was making a “country album.” “Right now I’m just making songs that make me feel happy and fun and The Giver is my take on c–try xoxo may the classic country divas lead their genre, I am just here to twirl and do a little gay yodel for yall,” she wrote at the time.
In Friday’s post, Roan elaborated on her love for the genre. “Country music is fire,” she wrote. “It’s the campiest of camp. some of you may be new to the country scene and not quite sure what to make of me having a fiddle and banjo in my song. Understandable boo … it is something different and sometimes different can feel bad because it’s unfamiliar, but I encourage you to give her another shot ;)”
She added, “Thank you to all the country divas who came before me.”
On March 14, 2020, Maren Morris’ “The Bones” rose a spot to No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, becoming her first leader on the list.
The song, which Morris co-wrote with Laura Veltz and Jimmy Robbins, and Greg Kurstin produced, reached the Hot Country Songs penthouse in its 53rd chart week, beginning a 19-week domination. It also led Country Airplay for two frames in February 2020, becoming her fourth leader, and proceeded to be a crossover hit, dominating Adult Pop Airplay for a week that April and Adult Contemporary for a week in September. It also reached the top 20 on Pop Airplay and, boosted by a remix with Hozier, Adult Alternative Airplay.
“The fans have spoken on this one,” Morris told Billboard upon “The Bones” crowning Country Airplay. “It’s a real, gritty love song. I couldn’t be more proud that it’s become one of the biggest songs of my career to date.”
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Morris, from Arlington, Texas, sent her debut single, “My Church,” which pays homage to the Grand Ole Opry, to No. 5 on Hot Country Songs in March 2016, marking her first of nine top 10s.
In 2016, Morris won the best new artist trophy at the Country Music Association Awards. In both 2020 and 2021, she earned female vocalist of the year honors, while “The Bones” won for song of the year in 2021.
Morris, who has been an outspoken advocate for fellow female artists in country music, as well as the LGBTQ+ community, announced in 2023 that she was shifting to pop. In August 2024, she made that segue with the five-song set Intermission.
Now 34, Morris tours next on July 12 in Quebec, with more dates scheduled through September.
Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
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This week, Chappell Roan gets the job done, Playboi Carti finally drops the album, and Haim kick off the spring. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Chappell Roan, “The Giver”
2020s pop, meet 1990s country: “The Giver,” Chappell Roan’s long-awaited new single that was debuted on Saturday Night Live last November and has been teased for weeks, has arrived as a swirling, fiddle-filled gay anthem as well as an homage to the boot-stomping mainstream smashes of artists like The Chicks and Shania Twain, aware of the past but full of singular energy from a new superstar.
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Playboi Carti, Music
At long last, we have the follow-up to Playboi Carti’s towering 2020 album Whole Lotta Red: at 30 songs and 76 minutes, Music is a gargantuan undertaking that hides its A-list guests throughout the track list (Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, Travis Scott and Future are among the attendees), but the project stands as a coronation of a relentless, rabble-rousing superstar, who iterates on his past flows and rage sound while also reveling in his improbable rise. Haim, “Relationships”
Him returning a few days after we push the clocks forward, and receive more sunlight on a daily basis, couldn’t be more perfect — “Relationships” sounds like an overdue embrace from an old friend, the cozy stylings of the trio typified by a buoyant bass line, rhetorical questions about relationship statuses and a breakdown that opens the song and then happily swings back around.
Sleep Token, “Emergence”
“Go ahead and wrap your arms around me,” goes the refrain of “Emergence,” the dazzling return of the mysterious British rock group Sleep Token: a six-minute epic that combines metalcore, hip-hop, electronic and pop, the lead single to Even in Arcadia is designed to command attention but pulls off its elaborate concept, and sets up Sleep Token for a huge year.
Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco, “Sunset Blvd”
We’ve gotten a few different shades of Selena Gomez and Benny Blanca’s collaborative album before its arrival next week, and “Sunset Blvd” is by far the dreamiest: over a warm bed of synths and unobtrusive drums, Gomez reflects on her first date with her fiancé, tossing out a few sexual innuendoes and big-hearted declarations.
Lil Nas X, “HOTBOX”
Concluding a full week of new singles from Lil Nas X, “HOTBOX” offers sing-rap opulence over a sample of Pharrell Williams’ “Frontin’,” with Nas calling everybody to the dance floor while the beat wordlessly does the same thing; the other new tracks were worthy, but he saved the best for last.
LE SSERAFIM, HOT
The fifth mini-album from the K-pop quintet finds LE SSERAFIM sharpening their aesthetic over five tracks, and while the title track to HOT is the group’s latest single, “Come Over,” which plays out like an extended flirtation over a Bossa nova-esque riff, is the easy standout here, and one of the strongest songs the group has ever made.
Lizzo, “Still Bad”
If “Love in Real Life,” Lizzo’s first new music in three years, arrived two weeks ago as the opening credits to her return, “Still Bad” sounds like the main event, as an unapologetic showcase of the Grammy winner’s vocals, sense of humor and party-ready rhythmic pop flair.
Peso Pluma, “RARI”
The latest single from Peso Pluma comes back to a successful blueprint for the superstar, but “RARI” might be the most instantly catchy track he’s released in years, with a vocal hook that is woven throughout every line and emphasizes the rougher textures in his delivery.
Editor’s Pick: Charley Crockett, Lonesome Drifter
On first blush, Charley Crockett’s new album Lonesome Drifter is a traditional country project, full of hard-scrabble storytelling, strummed hooks and the singer-songwriter’s rumbling twang — but multiple listens reveal an impressive synthesis of classic and modern styles from an emerging star, as Crockett folds well-worn country tropes into charming explorations of R&B, blues and modern rock.
Right on the heels of Trinidad Carnival — where she mounted the sixth iteration of her own Sokah Origins concert — Caribbean Music Award-winning soca superstar Nailah Blackman is ready to launch her next era.
Billboard can exclusively reveal that Born A Diamond (B.A.D.), Nailah’s sophomore studio album, will arrive via Big Money Records in the second half of 2025. The new record is the follow-up to 2022’s Teknique, her debut full-length album, and promises to uphold Nailah’s commitment to deepening and broadening the scope of her soca foundation. Featuring collaborations with Grammy-nominated pop-dancehall princess Shenseea, rising genre-bending Canadian star Sadboi and Latin Grammy-winner Nicky Jam, Born A Diamond finds Nailah with her eyes set on global domination.
“I feel like Iike I’ve always known who I was from the beginning, but for whatever reason, I got lost in the woods, and I’m trying to head back home,” she muses. “But every thought process made me feel like I was already there. Precious gems — or people who are supposed to do big things — I don’t think that they are made. I think they’re born, and they will always have their purpose even if they don’t know it yet. I believe I was born a diamond, not just made one.”
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In a way, she’s correct. Nailah is the granddaughter of Garfiled Blackman, better known as Lord Shorty, the inventor of soca music, which soundtracks Carnival celebrations across the Caribbean. Fans can expect an abundance of soca on Born A Diamond, specifically some splashes of bouyon soca from Dominica. The new record will also feature dashes of R&B, Afrobeats and dancehall, further cementing Nailah as one of the most limitless and versatile artists of her class.
“I think with the music that I do and how I do it, it’s inevitable for me to cross over because I’ve been a crossover artist from the beginning of my career,” she stresses. “My sound has never been completely defined, but it has redefined the sound of soca. Being the granddaughter of the creator of the genre, I know the sound that is dynamic and ever-evolving. I’ve never necessarily followed the rules, and I believe the purpose of soca is to bring nations and people together, and that’s what I want to do.”
On Friday (March 14), Nailah released the lead single from Born A Diamond, “Feels Like Love.” With an assist from OVO Sound’s Roy Woods, the new single infuses its Jakey Krumm and Hunter Tomeo-helmed pop&B soundscape with a healthy dose of Jamaican dancehall. With Trinidad and Guyana both represented on the steamy new track, “Feels Like Love” proves everything’s better when the Caribbean joins forces.
“I went to Toronto for Caribana last year, and we did the song in a writing camp,” says Nailah. “I’ve never done a dancehall fusion like that before, and I knew I wanted somebody to bring a Caribbean element but still keep that hip-hop influence. I’ve always loved Roy Woods’ music, so when I heard about the possibility [of collaborating] with him, I was super excited. We met the same night I flew into Toronto, and we did another studio session. We shot the video the next day at my show with 15,000 people, which was incredible.”
Born A Diamond will also serve as Nailah’s first project since signing with Philadelphia-based label Big Money Records in 2024. “When I saw her stage presence and music and everything she’s doing in the Caribbean, I knew I wanted to be a part of this to help soca crossover to the U.S.,” says CEO Jamelia “Whoa” Ho-sang. While she’s still finalizing tour plans, Nailah is prepping for an intense global promotional run, including a performance at D.C. Carnival and her historic appearance as the first soca act to grace Roots Picnic (May 31-June 1). Last winter, she brought soca to On the Radar, a rare foray into Caribbean music for the live performance platform.
Watch the official “Feels Like Love” music video below.
The wait is finally over: Playboi Carti has released his long-awaited third studio album, I Am Music on Friday (March 14) via AWGE and Interscope Records. Spotify has been assisting with the album rollout over the last month by putting up billboards around major cities such as Los Angeles, New York City and Miami that […]
