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The choice of São Paulo, Brazil, to kick off The Weeknd‘s new tour was no coincidence. The Canadian singer — cover star of the 10th edition of Billboard Brazil — was in the city last October, performing at two sold-out nights at Allianz Parque with the show After Hours Til Dawn. At the time, American […]

The 2024 edition of the Oscars won outstanding variety special (live) on night one of the Creative Arts Emmys. It’s the first time the Oscars have won the top program Emmy in variety since 1991, when it won in a predecessor category, outstanding variety, music or comedy program. Before that, the Oscars won the top program award in 1979 and 1988.
In winning outstanding variety special (live), The Oscars prevailed over The Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show Starring Usher, The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady and the latest editions of the Grammys and the Tonys.

Raj Kapoor, Molly McNearney and Katy Mullan served as executive producers of the Oscars. Jimmy Kimmel hosted for the fourth time.

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The Creative Arts Emmys are being presented over two consecutive nights at the Peacock Theater at LA Live in in downtown Los Angeles. The first ceremony on Saturday (Sept. 7) focused on unscripted and documentary programs. Sunday’s ceremony will focus on scripted programs.

Rickey Minor won outstanding music direction for his work on the Oscars. It’s his third win in the category, following wins for Taking the Stage: African American Music and Stories That Changed America (2017) and the Kennedy Center Honors (2020).This year’s win was a particular achievement because Minor was competing with himself. He was also nominated for his work on The 46th Kennedy Center Honors.

The Oscars won two other Creative Arts Emmys – outstanding direction for Hamish Hamilton and outstanding production design for a variety special. These four awards bring the total number of Emmy Awards won by the Oscars to 63. (The show was known as the Academy Awards through 2012, when the show formally changed the name to the more fan-friendly Oscars.)

Saturday Night Live was the big winner on night one of the Creative Arts Emmys with six wins. This brings the show’s tally of Primetime Emmy wins to 97, the record for a series. The show is set to launch its 50th season this fall.

The show’s wins were all in technical craft categories – directing; lighting design/lighting direction; technical direction and camerawork; production design; hairstyling; and makeup.

Blue Eye Samurai, Jim Henson Idea Man and The Oscars each won four awards on Saturday. Billy Joel – The 100th Live at Madison Square Garden and Welcome to Wrexham each won three. Girls State and Love on the Spectrum each won two.

The Billy Joel special won three technical awards – sound mixing; lighting design/lighting direction; and technical direction and camerawork. But it lost the top award in its field, outstanding variety special (pre-recorded) to Dick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic. This is the second year in a row that award went to a show celebrating a TV legend in his or her 90s. Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love won last year.

As the executive producer/performer of the MSG special, Joel would have won his first Primetime Emmy if the program had won. He has won five Grammys and a Tony.

Jim Henson: Idea Man, a Disney + program about the genius creator of the Muppets, won outstanding documentary or non-fiction special, where it beat The Greatest Night in Pop, about the recording session that produced “We Are the World,” as well as separate docs about comedians Steve Martin and Albert Brooks and the Girl’s State event.

David Fleming won outstanding music composition for a documentary series or special (original dramatic score) for his work on Jim Henson Idea Man. It’s his first Primetime Emmy. The show’s other awards were outstanding sound editing for a non-fiction or reality program and outstanding picture editing for a nonfiction program.

Henson, who died in 1990 at age 53, won five Grammys and three Primetime Emmys. In addition, he was inducted into the TV Academy Hall of Fame in 1987.

The Beach Boys on Disney + won for outstanding sound mixing for a nonfiction program.

The Voice won outstanding picture editing for a structured reality or competition program.

Maya Rudolph won outstanding character voice-over performance for her role as Connie the Hormone Monstress on Netflix’s Big Mouth. This is her sixth Primetime Emmy; her fourth in this category. Rudolph’s mother, the late Minnie Riperton, topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1975 with “Lovin’ You” and received two Grammy nominations.

Alan Cumming, host of The Traitors, won outstanding host for a reality/competition program, beating Ru Paul Charles, host of RuPaul’s Drag Race, who had won the last eight years running. Cumming won a Tony for best actor in a musical in 1998 for his role as the Emcee in a reboot of Cabaret. He picked up a second Tony in 2022 as one of platoon of producers of A Strange Loop.

Jeopardy! won outstanding game show for the second year in a row, but Ken Jennings, the show’s host (and contestant with the longest winning streak), lost outstanding game show host to Pat Sajak, who recently concluded a 40-year run as the host of that show.

Shark Tank won outstanding structured reality show for the fifth total time. It beat Queer Eye, which had won the last six years in a row. These two shows are the top winners in the history of the category.

An edited presentation of the awards from both nights of the Creative Arts Emmys will air Saturday, Sept. 14, at 8:00 p.m. PT on FXX. Subsequently, the program will be available for streaming on Hulu from Sunday, Sept. 15 through Wednesday, Oct. 9.

The 76th Emmy Awards will be broadcast live from the Peacock Theatre on Sunday, Sept. 15, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET/5 p.m. to 8 p.m. PT on ABC. The broadcast will be available for streaming the next day on Hulu.

“How come it’s not tomorrow?” The Weeknd closed with a song about heaven featuring that lyric Saturday night in São Paulo, Brazil, leaving fans awaiting new album Hurry Up Tomorrow asking the same. (How come they can’t get Hurry Up Tomorrow … tomorrow? Especially that one song about “dancing in the flames”?)
The one-night-only concert on Sept. 7, livestreamed on YouTube, featured several tidbits of new music from Abel Tesfaye. Concertgoers and viewers at home got to hear tracks never before played live mixed in with chart toppers; the collective chatter had “Abel” trending on social media throughout the evening.

The Hurry Up Tomorrow tracklist has yet to be unveiled, and Tesfaye didn’t introduce songs by name at Saturday night’s event at Estádio MorumBIS.

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Based on what was teased during the show, though, a few presumed new titles include “Dancing in the Flames,” “Run Away” and “In Heaven.”

Highlight “Dancing in the Flames” — heard in part by some in São Paulo during soundcheck earlier in the day, and making its wide debut about 30 minutes into the concert — has the hallmarks of a hit from first listen.

Tesfaye’s voice soars over an indelible synth line, singing of an odyssey where “We’re dancing in the flames/ It’s indescribable.” (Press play on the video below to stream the concert starting at the “Dancing in the Flames” timestamp.)

A special appearance from Brazilian superstar Anitta had the São Paulo crowd going wild.

Playboi Carti also appeared on The Weeknd’s stage at Estádio MorumBIS, treating the audience to a performance of Travis Scott’s “FE!N,” plus an unreleased track that’s possibly called “Timeless.”

Hits like “Blinding Lights” and “Save Your Tears” sparked massive crowd sing-alongs toward the end of the set. “I want you to scream so loud they can hear you in Rio,” Tesfaye encouraged.

The Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow album cover was revealed just hours before the show, as well as a preorder link for the set, which is the third part of a trilogy preceded by After Hours and Dawn FM. Although vinyl and CD orders can be put in now, Hurry Up Tomorrow‘s release date hasn’t been announced.

Watch a replay of Saturday’s entire concert here, courtesy of The Weeknd’s YouTube channel.

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The Weeknd unveiled the striking album cover for Hurry Up Tomorrow, the final part of a trilogy that began with 2020’s After Hours and 2022’s Dawn FM, over the weekend.
“ALBUM COVER,” he captioned the art, which he revealed on social media Saturday (Sept. 7) along with a Hurry Up Tomorrow preorder link.

The Hurry Up Tomorrow album cover is a headshot of Abel Tesfaye, stunning in its simplicity. The viewer’s eye focuses on his — they’re fixed in a harrowing stare and skillfully lit. He looks like he’s holding back tears. Wearing a classic black tank with only the straps visible in the frame, he’s perched in front of darkness and leaning forward. It’s an evocative portrait.

Billboard reached out to a rep for Tesfaye to inquire about the photographer behind the cover shot, but as of press time didn’t get a response.

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The preorder for Hurry Up Tomorrow launched on Saturday via The Weeknd’s webstore, with a first pressing vinyl available for $33 and a first pressing CD for $12 (limit four per customer for each).

The album’s release date has not yet been confirmed.

Hurry Up Tomorrow was announced on Sept. 4, with a visual teaser and a press release statement explaining its place in The Weeknd’s trilogy as “the creative apex of the project, serving as the third and final chapter crafted with existential and self-referential themes as seen with the latest visionary teasers that have set fans ablaze with anticipation for this concluding installment.”

The album cover followed on Sept. 7, the date of The Weeknd’s anticipated livestream from São Paulo, where he’s performing a special one-night-only concert at Estádio MorumBIS.

Tesfaye composed the central song of his upcoming album in São Paulo just under a year ago, when his After Hours Til Dawn Tour brought him to the city in October for a two-night stint at Allianz Parque, Billboard Brazil first reported.

Of what’s to come — the new show and Hurry Up Tomorrow — he told Billboard Brazil, “There is always pressure to surpass my last project. Growth is important. Sometimes it may not be what people want to hear from me at the moment, but when the body of work is complete, I hope they can appreciate what I have been trying to achieve. I have been working on this discography for a long time. It was all planned.”

“I always try to achieve something that I haven’t done before musically,” he added. “Sometimes it may not be clear on the first listen [to the album], but fans seem to figure it out over time.”

Here’s The Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow album cover. Stream his concert special, live from São Paulo, courtesy of his YouTube channel (video embedded below) starting at 8 p.m. ET tonight (Sept. 7).

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It’s a busy week in the Billboard zeitgeist. After hosting the 2024 Billboard R&B Hip-Hop Power Players event, the Billboard Hip-Hop Live concert went down in Brooklyn at the Xanadu roller rink on Friday night (Sept. 6).
Amazon Music’s Breakthrough Artist BigXthaPlug hit the stage first, around 9:40 p.m. ET, to set the tone for the night as hundreds of fans got settled in to the new Bushwick venue.

BigX emerged following a cross-country trip from the West Coast with his Texas-sized swagger in a white soccer jersey, but quickly ditched it for his signature shirtless look.

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The Dallas native ran through cuts like “Big Stepper” and his latest hard-hitting single, the aptly-titled “The Largest.” He had some fun with the audience when betting his DJ that the left side of the crowd would be louder than the right, and BigX’s pockets ended up leaving a little heavier than expected after winning the $2,000 wager.

The 26-year-old hit his two-step onstage and continued to perform the Dazz Band-sampling “Whip It,” “Level” and “Mmhmm” in his heavy, bellowing Southern drawl. The latter served as BigX’s first Billboard Hot 100 entry earlier this year when it peaked at No. 63. He closed things out with his breakout anthem, “Texas,” while over 1,500 miles from home.

Next up, the scorching Bossman Dlow hit the stage around 10:10 p.m. ET. Big Za rocked snow white jeans and a matching letterman jacket with his signature ski goggles off to the side like he was ready to hit the slopes.

“Mr. Pot Scraper” gave fans a taste of the motivational anthems that were to come before heating up while jumping around from “Piss Me Off” to the braggadocios “Talk My Shit.” The Florida rapper clearly has the streets on lock as the crowd was in the palm of his hand.

“Finesse” sans GloRilla set the table for “Get in With Me,” which drew the loudest ovation of any track from the audience in the building as the temperature was turned up several notches.

Dlow’s inspirational raps went a cappella for the first go around as fans belted the “Yep” part of his “Juggs fiendin’/ Phone ringing/ N—s hating” verse right back at him. He spun the block to perform his top 50 Hot 100 banger a second time with the booming DxnteMadeIt instrumental to give the people what they came for.

Just shy of 11 p.m. ET meant it was time for the night’s headliner, the eccentric Teezo Touchdown, who painted a more romanticized aesthetic while blending the worlds of rap, rock and R&B.

Rocking a red tank top and a matching furry cherry bucket hat that LL Cool J would be jealous of, which went along with his rose bouquet microphone, Teezo served as a palate cleanser that took fans in another direction with his shrewd creativity.

It was a night of reflection for Teezo Touchdown — in the most positive way. Coming off of winning Billboard‘s 2024Rookie of the Year honors and celebrating the one-year anniversary of his How Do You Sleep At Night? debut this weekend, Teezo took a moment to look back and realize how far he’s come as an artist in this labor of love.

“Last night I was awarded the Billboard Hip-Hop R&B Rookie of the Year award. What a year it’s been, right,” he said. “I went on my first sold-out headlining Spend the Night Tour, and on Sunday (Sept. 8) it will be the one-year anniversary of my How Do You Sleep At Night debut album.”

Teezo fired away with cuts from his critically acclaimed debut while delivering live performances of “Impossible,” “Too Easy” and “Out of Respect.” He broke the set up with Travis Scott’s forgotten Utopia dance-leaning “Modern Jam.” Teezo had everyone throw their twos in the sky while returning to his debut to bring the show across the finish line with “Familiarity,” “Third Coast” and the trippy “Stranger.”

Oasis‘ Liam Gallagher is teasing the possibility of new music from the recently reunited Britpop band.
On Friday (Sept. 6), an Oasis fan asked on X (formerly Twitter) if rumors were true that Liam and his brother Noel were planning to release a new album following their announcement that the U.K. group is reuniting for a string of concerts in 2025.

“Yep it’s already finished,” Noel replied. When another fan inquired if a new album was “in the air,” the 51-year-old singer-songwriter wrote, “It’s in the bag mate f— the air.” And one word to describe the supposed album? “TURDOS,” he added.

This isn’t the first time Liam has hinted at the possibility of a new Oasis album. Earlier this year, the musician suggested on X that a new Oasis project would arrive in November. His tweet arrived around the same time that Noel announced he was scrapping a solo acoustic album in favor of a more “defiant rock album.”

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Oasis’ seventh and final album, Dig Out Your Soul, peaked at No 5 on the Billboard 200 chart in October 2008.

On Aug. 27, Oasis officially announced that the reunited band will hit the road in 2025 for multiple dates across the British Isles, including Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, for what will be their “only shows in Europe next year.”

The Gallagher brothers have also promised an extended international run in the near future. “Plans are underway for OASIS LIVE ’25 to go to other continents outside of Europe later next year,” a statement read.

Oasis split in 2009 after years of massive chart success and tabloid headlines in the U.K. tied to the Gallagher siblings’ fierce rivalry, with main songwriter older brother Noel quitting the band after a backstage fight with Liam at a show near Paris that year. The brothers haven’t performed live since then, though they often play Oasis songs during their solo gigs and with their side bands and, until the reunion announcement, continued to snipe at each other online and in the press.

Will Jennings, the Oscar- and Grammy-winning co-writer of Titanic‘s “My Heart Will Go On” and other hit songs by Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood and Whitney Houston, has died. He was 80.
The superstar lyricist passed away Friday (Sept. 6) at his home in Tyler, Texas, his caregiver Martha Sherrod confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. A cause of death was not provided, but Jennings had been experiencing health issues in recent years.

“A sad time, the passing of Will Jennings, a maestro, brilliant mind and a gentle spirit. It was an enormous honor to have worked with such a musical genius,” former J. Geils Band singer Peter Wolf, who collaborated with Jennings, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) Saturday.

During his career, the Songwriters Hall inductee co-wrote six songs that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: Barry Manilow’s “Looks Like We Made It” (1977); Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes’ “Up Where We Belong” (1982); Winwood’s “Higher Love” (1986); Houston’s “Didn’t We Almost Have It All” (1987); Winwood’s “Roll With It” (1988); and Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” (1998).

Jennings also collaborated with Clapton on “Tears in Heaven,” which hit No. 2 on the Hot 100 and topped Billboard‘s Adult Contemporary chart for three weeks in 1992. The tribute to Clapton’s late son also earned the pair a song of the year trophy at the 35th annual Grammy Awards.

Jennings won best original song at the Academy Awards in 1983 for co-writing An Officer and a Gentleman‘s “Up Where We Belong” alongside Jack Nitzsche and Buffy Sainte-Marie. He took home the same honor in 1998 for the Titanic classic “My Heart Will Go On,” which he wrote-wrote with composer James Horner. The Dion-sung ballad also won a Grammy for song of the year.

Jennings was born in Kilgore, Texas, in 1944. Before hitting it big in songwriting, he was a professor at Tyler Junior College and later Austin State University, before teaching at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. His résumé also includes musical collaborations with superstars like B.B. King, Mariah Carey, Jimmy Buffett and Roy Orbison.

Jennings is survived by his wife, Carole, and his sisters, Joyce and Gloria.

Linkin Park‘s new singer Emily Armstrong is responding to backlash over claims that she supported convicted rapist Danny Masterson during his sexual assault trial.
The Dead Sara co-founder took to social media Friday (Sept. 6) to address past comments by the Mars Volta‘s Cedric Bixler-Zavala that she showed support for Masterson during preliminary hearings ahead of the actor’s 2020 trial. Bixler-Zavala’s wife, Chrissie Carnell-Bixler, was among several women to accuse the That ’70s Show star of sexual assault.

“Hi, I’m Emily. I’m new to so many of you, and I wanted to clear the air about something that happened a while back,” Armstrong wrote in her Instagram Story. “Several years ago, I was asked to support someone I considered a friend at a court appearance, and went to one early hearing as an observer. Soon after, I realized I shouldn’t have. I always try to see the good in people, and I misjudged him. I have never spoken with him since. Unimaginable details emerged and he was later found guilty.”

She concluded, “To say it as clearly as possible: I do not condone abuse or violence against women, and I empathize with the victims of these crimes.”

Linkin Park announced its grand return on Sept. 5, with Armstrong on board as Mike Shinoda’s new co-vocalist and Colin Brittain signing on as drummer and co-producer. Shortly after the livestream reveal, Bixler-Zavala posted screen grabs on Instagram of his past comments about Armstrong’s former support for Masterson and her ties to the Church of Scientology, Rolling Stone reports.

“Do your fans know about your friend Danny Masterson? Your rapist friend,” Bixler-Zavala wrote last year in a comment on Dead Sara’s Instagram page. “Remember how your fellow scientologist goon squad surrounded one of the Jane Doe’s when she was trying to leave the elevators? The court sheriffs had to escort her away from your awful cult…”

In another Instagram post on Friday, Chrissie Carnell-Bixler reportedly accused Armstrong of being a “hardcore Scientologist who supported convicted serial rapist both in and out of court.” She added, “Emily Armstrong is a true believer of the Scientology cult/criminal organization that engages in human and child trafficking, child and elder abuse, the coverups of countless [sexual assaults] on children and adults.”

Last September, Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women during the early 2000s. The Ranch actor was not convicted on charges tied to Chrissie Carnell-Bixler’s accusations, but she is part of a civil suit against him.

It was not a drill Friday night (Sept. 6) in Brooklyn. Usher-mania had arrived. After having serenaded the nation for two-and-a-half-years with the hottest Las Vegas residency in the land, and readjusting his crown at the Super Bowl XLVIII halftime show, the R&B icon brought his Ursher-issance to the Barclays Center with a show-stopping blitz that proves he’s operating at a new prime.

For the thousands of fans who packed out the first of four sold-out shows as part of his Past Present Future tour, the night was special for several reasons. For some, it was a chance to scratch one larger-than-life concert off their bucket list (“I never got to see Michael Jackson live, but I’ve seen Beyoncé and now Usher,” said one concert-goer). For others, it was the opportunity to relive the headline-making My Way the Vegas Residency experience (“We saw him in Vegas, too,” gushed another excited fan). But the number one objective for everyone on this night (including this writer) was simple: “Gonna boogie, tonight…”

The aptly titled tour, which launched in August with two sold-out performances in Washington, D.C., lived up its namesake as the king of R&B left the borough known to keep it thorough in a warm blanket of nostalgic and euphoric bliss. Much of the two-hour show felt less like a concert and more of a celebration of the man whose music has soundtracked lives, redefined a genre, and shifted the pop-culture landscape over the last 30 years. But age is furthest from the mind when watching the singer, especially as his liquid movements evokes the same “how’s he still performing at this level” wonderment that stalks LeBron James. Whether pop-locking, leaping, or standing next to a video of his younger self, the timelessness of Ursher did indeed writ large over the course of the night.

At around 9:30 p.m., the singer popped up on stage, commanding court with the kind of spellbinding aura that Michael Jackson exemplified during his fan-faint-outs era, and opened with “Coming Home,” the title track from his latest chart-topping outing. He followed that up with “Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home),” which quickly summoned ecstatic gasps from the audience mid “I just wanna get your attention…” Like that, the sold-out audience went down memory lane.

After “1993” appeared on the screen, along with a digitally-rendered teenage version of the singer, he danced along to a medley of his earlier records — “Call Me a Mack,” which originally appeared on the 1993 Poetic Justice soundtrack, “Think of You” and “Can U Get With It.” Soon after, the “You Make Me Wanna” singer time-shifted through the decades, as the capacity-crowd, decked in their flyest and finest, played the role of back-up singers — and, judging by the swaying bodies in the aisles and rows, back-up dancers, too. Spreading love is the Brooklyn way, after all. The Grammy award-winning showman floated on that cloud of love through the night, cascading through a plethora of his genre-defying hits that kept those aisles and rows rocking in a rhythmic trance. He traveled to 1997, performing “My Way” and “You Make Me Wanna” to resounding shrieks before loading up tunes from the 2000s with “U Remind Me” and “U Don’t Have To Call.”

By the time he got to his diamond-certified magnum opus, Confessions — an album that celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, after spawning four No. 1s on the Billboard Hot 100 chart — it was sheer pandemonium. There was “Caught Up,” followed by some of “Yeah!” before the song was abruptly interrupted by a “system malfunction” alert on the screen. But ever the consummate performer, Usher kept the show rolling by flipping the chronological script, hitting shuffle, and pulling out the roller skates for “Don’t Waste My Time” and “Love in this Club.”

As concupiscent shrills showered him through “Nice & Slow,” he operated with the eros of the moment — stripping down to a white tank top, jeans and his signature “U” diamond pendant — and saucily mime-humped the mic stand after having already turned up the heat with “Lovers and Friends.” If that wasn’t enough, the rapt audience melted at the knees once his sterling silver vocals belted out that well-known falsetto to “Superstar.”

And there were a number of other superstars in the house, as well. After prowling through the audience while singing “There Goes My Baby,” he spotted and serenaded celebrities Taraji P. Henson (“You starting the celebration of your birthday early,” he beamed), Victoria Monet, who danced along with the singer to “On My Mama,” and rapper Yung Miami. Not long after, he brought out Fat Joe and Ja Rule, who also won the crowd over with their string of classics, including “What’s Luv” and “Put it On Me.”

As the night wound down, with energy levels depleted following run-throughs of “OMG” “There Goes My Baby,” and “DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love” among others, Ursh, now wearing a glittering blue leather Vanson motorcycle jacket, sent the capacity-sized arena into a tizzy when he finally unleashed “Yeah!” without interruption. “I was able to turn Barclays into the house of Usher,” he said. A fitting way to close out a hit-filled spectacle that stamped an emphatic “Watch this” for those still wondering “how’s he still performing at this level?”

But that’s not all, here are the seven best moments from night one of Usher’s four-night rendezvous in Brooklyn.

Unmatched Performer

From career milestones to new music releases to major announcements and those little important moments, Billboard editors highlight uplifting moments in Latin music. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week.
Tiago PZK’s VMAs debut

Argentine urban act Tiago PZK will make his VMAs debut at this year’s award ceremony. Tiago will join Brazilian star Anitta to perform their Brazilian funk collab “Alegría.” The 2024 VMAs will be broadcast live from New York’s UBS Arena on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. ET via MTV and Univision. Other artists confirmed to perform include Karol G, Camila Cabello and Rauw Alejandro, among others. Megan Thee Stallion will host the show, and Katy Perry will receive the Video Vanguard Award.

Latin Grammys Best New Artist Showcase in Argentina

The Latin Recording Academy hosted the Best New Artist Showcase featuring previous Latin Grammy winner in the best new artist category, Joaquina, and Nicki Nicole, who was also nominated in the same category in 2020. For the first time, the event took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at Michelangelo Legend.

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“Bringing our Best New Artist Showcase to Argentina for the first time, together with Joaquina and Nicki Nicole, is a unique opportunity to continue celebrating Latin music and its creators during the 25th anniversary of the Latin Grammys,” said Manuel Abud, CEO, The Latin Recording Academy. “Since we launched the series two years ago, this initiative has become an excellent vehicle to bring our mission to life and reaffirm our commitment to fostering spaces that supports new music in an environment that respects cultural diversity and inclusion.”

Joaquina opened the showcase and sang “Pesimista”, “Quise Quererte,” “No Llames Lo Mío Nuestro” and “El Alquimista.” Meanwhile, Argentine hitmaker Nicki Nicole performed “Dispara”, “Qué Le Pasa Conmigo”, “8AM”, “Plegarias” and “Llámame.”

Joaquina and Nicki Nicole greet thepublic after performing during the The Latin Recording Academy® Best New Artist Showcase on September 05, 2024 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Lalo Yasky/Getty Images for The Latin Recording Academy

Carnegie Hall to kick off Nuestros Sonidos

Carnegie Hall is set to kick off Nuestros Sonidos — a season-long festival that aims to spotlight Latin culture in the U.S. with a free concert series with events across all five boroughs of New York City. The lineup includes performances by Daymé Arocena on Sept. 20. Subsequently, three performances by Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic from Oct. 8-10 will take place. On the final performance of the orchestra’s series on Oct. 10, Mexican singer-songwriter Natalia Lafourcade will join him as special guest.

More info on Nuestros Sonidos here.

Codiciado honored in Chula Vista, Calif.

On Wednesday (Sept. 4), regional Mexican artist Codiciado was honored with a special proclamation by the Mayor of Chula Vista in San Diego, Calif. The recognition “celebrates Codiciado’s outstanding career and invaluable artistic contributions to the San Diego community and beyond,” according to a press release. The ceremony took place at City Hall in Chula Vista. The singer-songwriter is set to perform at Rumbazo 2024 in Las Vegas on Sept. 13 in celebration of Mexican Independence Day Weekend. For more information, visit rumbazofest.com or follow the event on social media at @rumbazofestival.

Sebastián Yatra On Broadway

“Opportunities come when they come in life and if you don’t dare to take them, you don’t know if they will come again,” Yatra told Billboard Español about making his Broadway debut in Chicago. Set to play the role of Billy Flynn, Chicago is the longest running American musical on Broadway that is a satire set in the 1920s about show business. Chicago is presented at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.) For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.ChicagoTheMusical.com.

Read Yatra’s interview about making his highly-anticipated Broadway debut here.