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This week in dance music: Anyma added two more shows to his upcoming run at Sphere in Las Vegas, bringing the total number of shows to eight; Barry Can’t Swim picked up three 2024 AIM Awards nominations; Ultra 2025 released its phase one lineup, which will feature the debut “retro5pective set from dedmau5, a new psytrance stage and much more; we previewed the trailer for a forthcoming documentary about the ’90s rave scene in San Francisco; we recapped the best moments of Portola 2024; an auction of Avicii’s personal items including clothing and instruments raised $750,000 for the Tim Bergling Foundation; Black Coffee, Fisher and Chase & Status were among the winners at the 2024 DJ Awards in Ibiza; Beatport announced that it’s again awarding $150,000 in grants to groups supporting diversity and equality in dance music; and to round out it all out, these are the best new dance projects of the week.
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Caribou, Honey
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For 13 years, Dan Snaith has masterfully juggled two music aliases: the folksy-electronica live band Caribou, and the club-minded Daphni. While Caribou’s albums post-Andorra have inched closer to the dance floor, his latest, Honey, sounds like an equal meeting of the two projects. Singles like the sparkling “Volume” and bass-wobbling “Honey” deliver the heft demanded of festival main stages, while other tracks like “Do Without You” and “Campfire” are heavy in their pensive moods, lower-to-the-ground production and vocals. “Climbing” is the album’s standout, all disco and sunshine in its squiggling synth crescendos and buoyant melody. It’s a light-hearted tune for closing a set, and somehow, a bittersweet cap on our own summer. The party’s not over just yet, however, as Snaith tours Honey across North America starting next month. — KRYSTAL RODRIGUEZ
2hollis, “gold”
The Los Angeles savant further establishes his hot new thing status with the punchy “gold,” an arrangement of crunchy staccato, skittering percussion and eventual climax of gunfire gabber. These elements are balanced with a woozy, almost sweet melody sung by the producer, who also directed the accompanying music video, which features 2hollis and a group of dancers moshing under a strobe light and rain coming down inside a warehouse, continuing the release’s hard/soft aesthetic. 2hollis just got off tour supporting rapper Ken Carson and is launching his own nine-date North American tour later this month. — KATIE BAIN
yunè pinku, “Reckless Sensation”
UK artist yunè pinku describes her new song “Reckless Sensation” as the “ecstasy of embodying love rather than looking for it.” The serpentine trip-hop track lives somewhere in the haze between haunting and euphoric, with a warmth and sensuality that permeate the spectral space beneath pinku’s soft, siren-like voice. Altogether approaching a transcendence evocative of Massive Attack’s 1998 classic “Teardrop,” the track is from pinku’s new Scarlet Lamb EP, on which she decorates her sonic universe with gothic imagery, citing Jane Eyre, Dracula and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as lyrical touchpoints After that, find pinku onstage starting next month when she joins Caribou on his North American tour. — K.R.
Confidence Man, “Real Move Touch”
Confidence Man are coming out of an eventful summer, which entailed performing to a massive crowd at Glastonbury and adding their fabric Presents compilation to the clubbing institution’s mix series. But they’ve got something even bigger waiting on the horizon: their third studio album, 3AM (LA LA LA), which lands on Oct. 18. The Australian band are dropping another preview in the form of a double-single, “Control/Real Move Touch.” Here, they serve up house music two ways: the A-side is a technicolor track bubbling with acid synths and ravey stabs that feel both infectiously joyous and nostalgic, while “Real Move Touch” calls back to the old-school, too, but with glossy ‘90s house that’s both luxurious and lively, as a mash-up of Crystal Waters-esque diva house and sound-system culture with vocals from reggae legend Sweetie Irie.
“I remember him coming into our tiny little studio,” Confidence Man’s Janet Planet says of Irie, “and then he’s like, ‘Do you mind if I blaze up in here?’ And we said, ‘Hell yeah!’ And he was like, ‘Great, I was just checking you guys were real rock stars.’” — K.R.
Ben Hemsley Feat. Rose Gray, “Tidal”
An unstable relationship drifts out into the deep seas on Ben Hemsley’s new single “Tidal,” featuring vocalist Rose Gray. After previewing the track in his sets at Creamfields, A State of Trance, and his Ibiza residency, the British producer has released the track in its entire 10-minute glory. A brisk BPM and sighing vocal loops give “Tidal” a sense of urgency that circles Gray’s distressed vocals, while extended, sweeping builds create a looming wall of sound akin to its namesake and subsequent drop, a euphoric crashing of melodies and textures.
“‘Tidal’ allowed me to really explore what trance means to me on a deeper level,” Hemsley says. “The extended length gave me the space to play with melodies and atmospheres, taking inspiration from ’90s records that I love. Trance was my first love and it’s the direction you’ll see me going in moving forwards. — K.R.
East Forest, Music For Mushrooms
Ahead of the Oct. 10 release of his documentary of the same name, producer, multi-instrumentalist and wellness practitioner East Forest releases his album, Music For Mushrooms. The 10-track project is composed of music played by the artist during guided psychedelic ceremonies, hence its name. (The project firmly sits in the world of music made specifically for psychedelic spaces.) You won’t find ravey beats over the album’s 59 sublime minutes, with the project instead made of gentle piano, violin, flute and a host of other instruments that altogether build a glimmering, soul-stirring world unto itself. To that end, tracks are named for each place the ceremony it was recorded at took place, capturing the sounds of Big Sur, Calif., Vancouver, Canada and the literal and figurative great beyond. — K.B.
New Music Latin is a compilation of the best new Latin songs and albums recommended by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors. Check out this week’s picks below.
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Francisca Valenzuela ft. Daniela Spalla, “Quiéreme o Ándate” (Frantastic Records)
Chilean singer-songwriter Francisca Valenzuela is closing her Adentro era with the Daniela Spalla-assisted “Quiéreme o Ándate,” an ultra nostalgic song that perfectly captures the emotional toll that comes from not being able to get closure after a goodbye. Powered by ethereal melodies and splashes of Latin rhythms that build the intensity, the song allows Valenzuela and Spalla’s dreamy vocals to take center stage. “Decide, amor, love me or leave. Stay with me or let me forget you once and for all,” they sing with pathos. The intimate track comes on the heels of Valenzuela’s best pop/rock album Latin Grammy nom for her set Adentro. — GRISELDA FLORES
Manuel Turizo & Kapo, “Qué Pecao” (La Industria Inc./Sony Music Latin)
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Two years after topping the Billboard Tropical Airplay charts for 14 weeks with “La Bachata,” Manuel Turizo taps once again into the Dominican genre with Colombian newcomer Kapo. Produced by Sky Rompiendo, “Qué Pecao,” which translates to “what a sin,” starts off with a heartbeat that smoothly transitions into bachata rhythms laced with colorful pop beats. Lyrically, the two artists sing about a beautiful woman who’s playing hard to get and doesn’t want to give love an opportunity. “What a sin/for you to sleep alone in your bed, what a sin/knowing I can be by your side/erasing your past/not all men are bad, he was just the wrong one,” goes the chorus, where Turizo and Kapo interweave their smooth, raspy vocal tones. — JESSICA ROIZ
Ela Taubert, “¿Por Qué Soy Así?” (Universal Music Latino/Art House)
Ela Taubert continues her story of overcoming heartbreak with “¿Por Qué Soy Así?,“ which follows the previous singles “¿Cómo Pasó?” and “¿Para Qué?” This time, the Colombian pop singer-songwriter — who scored a best new artist Latin Grammy nom — addresses topics such as self-love, self-discovery and the courage to get out of a relationship that is not worth holding on to. “I’m tired of waiting for you, I’m not going to beg/ If you didn’t know how to take care of me, I’m going to let you go/ And I loved how you wanted to ignore me/ I hope you like how I’m going to forget you,” she sings in the lively chorus. The song is driven by a nostalgic guitar and omnipresent drums, with Taubert’s ever-honest voice as protagonist. — SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS
Natanael Cano, “Amor Eterno” (WEA Latina)
Natanael Cano reimagines Juan Gabriel’s beloved “Amor Eterno” in his unique corridos tumbados style, complete with the haunting requinto twangs and soft brass undertones. This version merges personal reflections with a tribute to cultural heritage. Released ahead of Día de Muertos, this resonant, nearly 5-minute interpretation serves as an homage to cherished memories and the departed. “This is one of those songs that stays in your memory forever,” the Mexican artist says in a press release, showcasing his deep ties to his musical roots and cultural traditions. “It brings back so many childhood memories for me.” — ISABELA RAYGOZA
Greeicy & Jay Wheeler, “¿Qué Te Pasó?” (UMG Recordings)
It’s a simple question that carries many emotions within its words, and the lyrics of this song express a language of pain and the nostalgia of a breakup. “Tell me what happened to you/ That overnight, I don’t feel you here/ I don’t go out during the day anymore; the night feels cold/ It hurts me to know that I lost you,” Greeicy and Jay Wheeler both sing in the chorus, creating an enchanting synergy. — INGRID FAJARDO
Listen to more editors’ Latin recommendations in the playlist below:
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, Coldplay shoots for the moon, LISA nods to the ’90s and Rich Homie Quan is honored the right way. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Coldplay, Moon Music
For a stadium rock act, Coldplay takes more far-out chances than they’re given credit for: new album Moon Music features both an Afrobeats-tinged collaboration with Little Simz, Burna Boy, Elyanna and TINI, as well as a six-minute instrumental with spoken-word Maya Angelou snippets, but the British quartet also tucks in plenty of alt-rock radio fare, like the lovely lead single “feelslikeimfallinginlove.”
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LISA, “Moonlit Floor”
As she forges ahead with her solo career, BLACKPINK star LISA has revived an indelible ‘90s hit, Sixpence None the Richer’s “Kiss Me,” for “Moonlit Floor,” which functions more like a modern pop jam than an alternative foray in spite of its interpolation.
Rich Homie Quan, Forever Goin In
At 100 minutes, Forever Goin In, the first posthumous Rich Homie Quan release following the rapper’s tragic passing last month, is knowingly uncut, offering fans an extended toast at his brilliant delivery and linguistic skills; across 35 songs, however, the project rarely feels overstuffed, a nod to his greatness.
Finneas, For Cryin’ Out Loud!
Although Finneas’ younger sister Billie Eilish has enjoyed record-setting success since her first album — he’s opening on her latest arena tour, after all — the songwriter and producer has also carved out a niche of his own, continuing the promise of 2021’s Optimist with more pop dynamism and a greater emphasis on live-band arrangements with this sophomore LP.
Various Artists, Joker: Folie à Deux Soundtrack
Can’t get enough Joker: Folie à Deux? One week after co-star Lady Gaga unveiled Harlequin as a project inspired by the blockbuster film, the official soundtrack boasts plenty of the spark between Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix that will be featured on the big screen.
Toosii, Jaded
Toosii continues morphing into one of hip-hop and R&B’s most promising rapper-crooners on Jaded, a breezy project on which he often shines on his own but is best showcased alongside other stars, like the head-knocking Gunna team-up “Champs Élysées” or the soulful Muni Long collaboration “I Do.”
Tucker Wetmore, Waves on a Sunset
Rising country star Tucker Wetmore has a warm, honest twang that trembles at the end of every line, and new EP Waves on a Sunset does a nice illustrating how he can someday join the genre’s elite, on songs like the hit “Wind Up Missin’ You” and the charming “When I Ain’t Lookin’.”
A$AP Ferg feat. Future & Mike WiLL Made-It, “Allure”
As Future once again tops the Billboard 200 chart, this time with his Mixtape Pluto project, A$AP Ferg has been on something of a hot streak himself, which he continues over a thunderous Mike WiLL Made-It beat on “Allure,” which begs to be blasted out of a car stereo at nighttime.
James Bay, Changes All the Time
It’s been 10 years since James Bay broke through with the still-potent hit “Let it Go,” and on Changes All the Time, the veteran singer-songwriter places his most earnest impulses front and center, scooping on positivity amidst sunny hooks and delicate guitar strums following the rousing opener “Up All Night,” featuring The Lumineers and Noah Kahan.
Editor’s Pick: Allie X, “Bon Voyage”
Setting aside the apt description “dark Fleetwood Mac” offered in the press release for Allie X’s new single “Bon Voyage,” the veteran pop auteur’s latest is a spellbinding collection of melodies and lingering space, leaning into the restlessness of Allie’s voice and captivating by refusing to find resolution.
James Bay’s “Up All Night,” a collaboration with The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, jumps two spots to No. 1 on Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart dated Oct. 12. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The song marks Bay’s first No. 1 on the survey, as well as his […]
This year, acclaimed producer Jack Antonoff has had a direct hand in abetting artistic evolution at different levels of stardom — helping a longtime collaborator, Taylor Swift, shape-shift while staying on top of the pop world, as well as a rising artist, Sabrina Carpenter, secure her place on the A-list. For the latter, Antonoff produced […]
“People call it Brat Summer — it should be called ‘artist development summer,’ ” Jack Antonoff jokes on a mid-September afternoon, sitting on the rooftop of New York’s Electric Lady Studios and reflecting on the past few months in pop music. Charli XCX, whose brat album helped define the season, is an old friend of Antonoff’s — they co-headlined a 2015 tour called Charli and Jack Do America — and he points out that her 2024 success speaks to a larger movement of artists creating their own mainstream niches instead of latching on to trends.
“Sabrina [Carpenter], Charli and Chappell Roan — the three of them have had this shared experience of artists who have been crystallizing, and that’s where you get gems,” Antonoff says of a trio of pop talents who have dominated recent cultural discourse. “And that’s the story of being an artist. That’s true artist development. And it doesn’t matter where we are in tech or streaming or anything — the only way to win is to create your own language.”
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This year, Antonoff has had a direct hand in abetting artistic evolution at different levels of stardom — helping a longtime collaborator, Taylor Swift, shape-shift while staying on top of the pop world, as well as a rising artist, Carpenter, secure her place on the A-list. For the latter, Antonoff produced and co-wrote four songs on Carpenter’s new album, Short n’ Sweet — including her first Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper, “Please Please Please” — allowing the pop singer’s sardonic tics to shine on her way to arena-headliner status.
“No one deserves it more,” Antonoff says of the former Disney Channel star, who has released six albums by the age of 25. “Sabrina’s been quietly growing, and her albums have been getting more awesome, and she’s been honing her sound and performances. It’s not like she just popped onto the scene — this has been a decade of grinding toward it.”
During the week that Short n’ Sweet was released in August, Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department — on which Antonoff contributed to 16 songs across both of its volumes — spent its 15th week atop the Billboard 200, the longest run at No. 1 of any Swift project. Swift announced The Tortured Poets Department on the night of the 2024 Grammys, where previous full-length Midnights was awarded album of the year and she set the record for the most career wins in the category.
Amy Lombard
This year, Antonoff’s work with Swift and Carpenter — along with the self-titled fourth album from his long-running band, Bleachers, which arrived in March — could help him notch his sixth consecutive Grammy nomination for a producer of the year, non-classical, a category that he has won the past three years. If Antonoff takes home the trophy at the 2025 ceremony, he would set a record as the only four-peat in the 50-year history of the award.
“It would be a really [nice] resolve to a really special period,” says Antonoff’s manager, Jamie Oborne. “If it’s based on the work alone and the broad spectrum of work, I can’t imagine anyone else winning.”
Instead of functioning as a victory lap for Swift, The Tortured Poets Department was emotionally unguarded and knowingly messy, dividing critics and inspiring immediate fan devotion on its way to the biggest first-week debut of her career. “The best bodies of work are when people drill into the most personal, the most if-you-know-you-know kind of stuff,” Antonoff says. “I think the depth of [Tortured Poets Department] was surprising to people because I think people are constantly surprised when artists continue to be artists. You see so many people take the wrong turn and pander and become terrified of what they could lose. That’s the recipe for all the worst music, and I can only relate to people who don’t give a f–k. That next body of work — it doesn’t matter how big your audience is, it either comes from the depths of you or it doesn’t. And I love that album so much because the whole thing is so remarkably vulnerable.”
That ethos helps explain why, in the midst of a record-setting run as a pop studio whiz, Antonoff keeps pushing his creativity into unfamiliar areas. After producing the April soundtrack to the Apple TV+ fashion drama The New Look, which included Antonoff pals like Lana Del Rey and The 1975 covering early-20th-century songs, he also signed on to provide original music for a Broadway revival of Romeo + Juliet, which began previews in late September. More recently, he unveiled early plans for his Public Studios initiative, which, with the help of The Ally Coalition, will build studios in LGBTQ+ youth shelters and create a network of engineers to help train those interested in production — free of charge.
Jack Antonoff photographed September 10, 2024 at Electric Lady Studios in New York.
Amy Lombard
Antonoff also deconstructed the first Bleachers album, 2014’s Strange Desire, for a 10th-anniversary rework dubbed A Stranger Desired, released in September. And amid all of the projects, he foremost describes 2024 as “a touring year,” having led Bleachers on a global trek that will culminate with a headlining gig at Madison Square Garden in New York on Oct. 4.
He admits that he gets asked about his schedule by the people around him — friends curious about his balancing act and why he hasn’t zeroed in on the more successful pieces of his artistry. “My hunger to make things hasn’t changed since I was like 14,” Antonoff says with a chuckle, “but the context for people has changed.” When asked about the idea of winning four consecutive Grammys for producer of the year, Antonoff returns to the idea of artist development — that even when he’s receiving what he describes as “a huge honor,” his priority remains “protecting that zone” that allows him to grow as an artist and person.
“I really don’t let anything get in the way of that,” Antonoff says. “I keep my head down and I go back to work.”
This story appears in the Oct. 5, 2024, issue of Billboard.
Even with all the pop greats and breakout stars likely to be involved in the Grammys in February 2025, one icon seems certain to garner outsize attention: Beyoncé, who is both the winningest artist in the show’s history and a perennial cause célèbre for having never received the marquee Grammy, album of the year.
Bey’s presence on Music’s Biggest Night will be particularly fascinating, since her acclaimed country-Americana pivot set, Cowboy Carter, is at the center of a number of questions about genre — namely, who gets to decide what does and doesn’t constitute country music. Whether Cowboy Carter, its singles and its collaborators are recognized within the country categories will be a major subplot of the awards — one that got even thicker when Beyoncé was shut out entirely from the recently announced nominations for the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards.
But of course, the biggest Grammys question with Beyoncé remains: Will this finally be the year that she wins album of the year? The Recording Academy is under more pressure than ever over the answer, particularly after Jay-Z took the Grammys to task in a speech at the 2024 awards for having never bestowed its most prestigious honor upon his wife.
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Here, four Billboard staffers discuss the most pressing questions concerning Cowboy Carter and the Grammys it hopes to lasso in February.
Will there be a “Beyoncé effect” at the Grammys — recognition for the Black country artists she spotlights on Cowboy Carter?
Paul Grein (Awards Editor): “Blackbiird,” featuring Brittney Spencer, Reyna Roberts, Tanner Adell and Tiera Kennedy, and/or “Spaghettii,” featuring Linda Martell and Shaboozey, could be nominated for best country duo/group performance. The latter would give a nod to Martell, who in 1969 became the first Black woman to play the Grand Ole Opry. And Shaboozey is very likely to be nominated for best new artist and record of the year; “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” has done so phenomenally well, it stands on its own.
Gail Mitchell (Executive Director, R&B/Hip-Hop): With Shaboozey — who guests on two Cowboy Carter tracks — recently notching his 12th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” we’re already seeing the Beyoncé effect. It’s no surprise that he’s poised to score a nomination or two in the country categories and perhaps a best new artist or song and/or record of the year nod. I’m not sure the effect will extend to Grammy recognition for Cowboy Carter’s other featured Black country artists. However, there’s no discounting the heightened visibility that comes with a Beyoncé co-sign: Featured artists Martell, Spencer, Adell, Roberts, Kennedy and Willie Jones all gained significant catalog boosts after the album’s March release.
Melinda Newman (Executive Editor, West Coast/Nashville): Is this like the butterfly effect, where the ripples caused by Cowboy Carter may reverberate and cause seismic shifts down the line? The only artist likely to see any recognition is Shaboozey — and he probably would have gotten it without his Cowboy Carter appearance, given the massive success of “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” though Beyoncé’s seal of approval certainly doesn’t hurt. Besides Spencer, whose January album didn’t get the attention it deserved, most of the wonderfully talented Black women on “Blackbiird” didn’t release anything that popped during this year’s Grammy eligibility period.
Andrew Unterberger (Deputy Editor): I think somewhat unquestionably we will see major recognition for Shaboozey, who was introduced to much of mainstream America through his pair of Cowboy Carter guest appearances — but who also went on to have a bigger solo hit than anything on Cowboy Carter this year with his double-digit-week Hot 100 No. 1, “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” The other guest artists on the album will likely not be major contenders in the same way — best new artist nominations for Spencer and Adell are certainly both possible, but it’s a crowded field there this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see both shut out.
At the last Grammys ceremony, Beyoncé’s husband, Jay-Z, accepted the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award with a speech in which he noted that she “has more Grammys than anyone and never won album of the year,” adding that “even by [the Recording Academy’s] own metrics… that doesn’t work.” Is it likely that academy members will remember his words when they vote — and will that help or hurt her chances?
Grein: Jay calling out the Grammys, right there on the Grammy stage, was a moment of high drama. It’ll be remembered — and I believe it will help her cause. Some context that Jay didn’t provide: Several other artists with large numbers of Grammys have never won album of the year, including Jay himself, with 24; Ye, also 24; Vince Gill, 22; and Bruce Springsteen, 20. And four other artists have equaled Bey’s 0-4 record as lead artists in album of the year — Ye; Kendrick Lamar; Lady Gaga, counting her second Tony Bennett collab; and Sting, counting one album with The Police. Also worth noting: The Grammys have gone out of their way to trumpet Bey’s record-setting accomplishments on the Grammy telecast, more than they have for any other artist. Bey is clearly due, even overdue, for an album of the year win. Jay’s comments put considerable pressure on voters to give her the award. Voters should be able to make these never-easy decisions without that kind of outside pressure, but here we are.
Mitchell: It’s been nearly a year since Jay-Z’s impactful comments, so I don’t think it’s likely they’ll be top of mind for most academy voters when they fill out their ballots. Voters are going to choose based on their perceptions of the project overall and its songs. Additionally, Cowboy Carter will be vying against a strong slate of contenders that will likely include Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift.
Newman: While some folks probably didn’t like being chastised that they weren’t voting “correctly,” a lot of voters likely weren’t even aware that Beyoncé had never won album of the year. Country voters are unlikely to nominate her over a core country artist, given how hard it is for country artists to get any recognition in the Big Four categories other than best new artist. If she does get nominated for album of the year, it will be because noncountry voters nominate her.
Unterberger: It did put the squeeze on them a little bit. While pop fans — and the Beyhive in particular — are more than familiar with the narratives around Beyoncé and her history of AOTY snubbery, members of the Recording Academy are more likely to get the message when one of the biggest recording artists in history publicly calls them out over it. But I don’t know if it’ll be enough to get Cowboy Carter over the top.
Beyoncé
Mason Poole
Some of the discourse surrounding Cowboy Carter upon its release had to do with whether this really was Beyoncé’s “country album” in the first place. How is the album likely to be treated categorywise, and should we expect the Nashville/country community to show its support on the ballot?
Grein: When the album was released, Beyoncé said, “This ain’t a Country album. This is a ‘Beyoncé’ album.” There probably will be discussion in the screening committee room about which genre album category it should compete in — best country album or best pop vocal album. There was discussion about whether her last album, Renaissance, should be slotted in best pop vocal album or best dance/electronic album. It was classified as dance/electronic and won. I suspect the academy will again follow Beyoncé’s wishes — whatever they may be — in making that call.
It’s not a good sign that the CMA passed over Cowboy Carter in its recently announced nominations, but it’s not necessarily fatal, either. The Chicks’ Taking the Long Way and its single “Not Ready To Make Nice” were passed over for CMA nods in 2006, but went on to win Grammys for album, record and song of the year, as well as two country-specific awards. And even if the Nashville/country community is mixed on Bey’s album, she can garner enough support from other sectors of the academy to win album of the year.
Mitchell: Can Beyoncé earn her fifth album of the year nomination as well as a ninth record of the year nod — a category she’s also never won — and fifth song of the year nomination? Yes, given that these are among the six general-field categories in which all eligible members can vote. But if that comes to pass, can she finally win the coveted album of the year? The optimist in me hopes so, considering Cowboy Carter’s commercial success — it was Beyoncé’s eighth Billboard 200 No. 1 — and the chart inroads it made — she’s the first Black woman to lead Top Country Albums. But what are supposed to truly count are Beyoncé’s artistic and cultural accomplishments — and that’s when the cynical realist in me says, “Hold on.” The album scored zero nominations for the upcoming CMA Awards. And there’s also past history: The academy’s country committee rejected Bey’s “Daddy Lessons” in 2016. It’s not a slam dunk that she will earn nods in the country categories. Bey’s team might even be considering submissions in the Americana categories. Despite concerted efforts in Nashville to level the country playing field, it remains an uphill push for women artists, especially women of color.
Newman: Beyoncé receiving no CMA Award nominations in some ways gives the country community permission to continue to ignore her work in country categories. Plus, given that voters are only allowed to vote in three fields, most noncountry voters aren’t going to spend a vote for her in the country categories. However, plenty of country voters are upset she was not nominated for any CMAs and very well may put her forward. Beyoncé herself said this was not a country album — but whether it’s nominated for best country album feels like it could go either way. Still, Cowboy Carter tracks like “Texas Hold ’Em” or her remake of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” have better shots at getting country nominations than the album itself.
Unterberger: If the CMA Awards are any indication, Bey might be in a little bit of trouble there. She didn’t receive a single nomination for this year’s awards, while Post Malone, another pop star interloper doing country this year — but one who promoted the set heavily in Nashville and recorded it with many of its biggest stars — secured four, which sent a pretty loud message about the embrace, or lack thereof, of Cowboy Carter in Music Row. I don’t necessarily see that message as racially motivated, but I think the country community has always been very insular and self-celebratory, and when an outsider comes along insistent on doing country their own way, without specifically enlisting the community’s active participation and support, they are quickly othered and often ultimately ignored. I wouldn’t be surprised if Zach Bryan gets shut out in the country categories this year, despite his consistent genre success, for similar reasons.
Cowboy Carter’s commercial performance and critical reception weren’t entirely parallel. How could both affect its nomination chances?
Grein: It did well enough both critically and commercially to be nominated. The album topped the Billboard 200 for two weeks and spawned three top 10 hits on the Hot 100 — the most from any of her albums since I Am… Sasha Fierce, which spawned four. If Cowboy Carter isn’t nominated, it won’t be because it didn’t do well enough.
Mitchell: Commercial performance isn’t supposed to be the main criteria for the peer-voted Grammys. And neither is critical reception, even though both undoubtedly factor somewhat in voter decisions. Cowboy Carter outpaced Renaissance commercially, 407,000 vs. 332,000 equivalent album units, according to Luminate, during their respective biggest streaming weeks. But those doing the streaming aren’t necessarily doing the voting. While some country die-hards didn’t heartily welcome her stepping across the aisle, Cowboy Carter garnered praise like Renaissance and Lemonade before it. Those albums won Grammys in the dance and R&B fields, but none of their general-field nominations — including album of the year. Perhaps the tides will shift perceptibly this year in the wake of the academy recently inviting more than 3,000 music professionals — many of them young, women and/or people of color — to become voting members.
Newman: In recent years, Grammy voters have leaned into commercial albums more than they used to, even though these are awards for artistic merit, not commercial success. That may hurt Cowboy Carter, which got off to a strong commercial start — topping the Billboard 200, as well as Billboard’s Top Country Albums and Americana/Folk Albums charts — before dropping off quickly. Still, Cowboy Carter is seen as a culturally significant album and one that is an important, yet very palatable, lesson about the essential role of Black artists in country music’s history — which may carry some weight among voters.
Unterberger: They might not have been exactly parallel, but I think they were close enough. Cowboy Carter debuted at No. 1 with the year’s biggest non-Taylor Swift first week, and it generated a legitimate No. 1 hit in the culture-capturing “Texas Hold ’Em.” Neither had quite the commercial longevity her fans and supporters might’ve hoped for — “Texas Hold ’Em” fell off the Hot 100 after 20 weeks, and Cowboy Carter failed to generate a real second hit and is currently ranking in the lower half of the Billboard 200 — but both were successful enough that I don’t think any voter could look at Cowboy Carter and go, “Yeah, sure, it got good reviews, but did anyone actually listen to it?” It’s still one of the year’s major pop releases by any measure.
Cowboy Carter isn’t the only foray into country by an ostensibly “noncountry” artist eligible for big Grammy wins this year — there’s also Post Malone’s F-1 Trillion. Are Post and Bey likely to get the kind of Big Four attention that has eluded core country artists in recent years — and who are the artists who could get the same kind of consideration this year?
Grein: I’d be shocked if Beyoncé wasn’t up for album of the year. Post also has a very good chance at a nod. He’s been nominated three times in the category, and F-1 Trillion was a very successful departure for him. The country community appreciated that he put in the time to get to know them and their ways. The academy has been aggressive in recent years about expanding and diversifying its membership, but it hasn’t put that same energy into expanding its Nashville membership. That reflects in the voting. The last country album to be nominated for album of the year was Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour six years ago, which won. As it happens, Musgraves is vying for an album of the year nod again with this year’s Deeper Well. Chris Stapleton, who was nominated in 2015 for Traveller, could also be nominated this year with Higher. Lainey Wilson — the reigning Grammy winner for best country album, for her Bell Bottom Country — is another possibility, for Whirlwind. But that would make five country albums in the mix. We’ve never had more than one country album nominated in any one year. They’re not all going to make it.
Mitchell: It will be interesting to see how Post — a fellow country outlier who partnered with Beyoncé on Cowboy Carter’s “Levii’s Jeans” — fares in the Grammy derby. Judging by the reception and success he’s lassoed with several F-1 Trillion singles, including “I Had Some Help” with country superstar Morgan Wallen, Post has made a smooth transition into this new genre. So it’s not far-fetched that he’ll be competing against Beyoncé and Swift, with whom he partnered on her hit “Fortnight,” in the album, song and record of the year categories that have eluded core country artists. And Wallen could possibly earn another nod and his first Grammy win with “I Had Some Help.” As the genre continues to enjoy its mainstream renaissance, perhaps Wilson, Stapleton and other country stars will find themselves breaking out of the genre-specific corral and charging into the big show.
Newman: F-1 Trillion is a lock for a best country album contender, as is Stapleton’s Higher, and both could land in the final eight for the all-genre album of the year category, even though mainstream voters tend to ignore country. Cowboy Carter’s fate feels a bit fuzzy only because Bey, who has been nominated in this category four times before, faces such strong competition from the likes of Carpenter, Swift, Eilish, Roan and Grande.
Unterberger: I would expect to see both Beyoncé and Post scattered across the major categories — though Post may be hurt a little by his set’s signature hit, “I Had Some Help,” being a collaboration with Morgan Wallen, whose recent history of being ignored by the Grammys indicates his presence still makes the Recording Academy a little squeamish. Aside from them, Zach Bryan’s new The Great American Bar Scene didn’t quite get the attention last year’s self-titled set did, but its “Pink Skies” single has done very well and could be a fringe song of the year contender. If the academy is still willing to treat Megan Moroney as a new artist, she could certainly be a nominee for best new artist. And while he might be a long shot, I’m holding out hope that Luke Combs can parlay the Grammy attention he got last year for his “Fast Car” performance — alongside original artist Tracy Chapman — into a song of the year nod for the thunderous “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma” from the highly successful Twisters: The Album.
This story appears in the Oct. 5, 2024, issue of Billboard.
A collaboration between Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga was always going to have lofty expectations, but when the two wrote and recorded “Die With a Smile” at the latter’s Los Angeles studio earlier this year, there was no talk of topping the charts. They only wanted to follow where the song was naturally taking them, remembers hit-making songwriter-producer Andrew Watt, who previously worked with Gaga on The Rolling Stones’ 2023 Hackey Diamonds track “Sweet Sounds of Heaven.”
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“This was a pure, organic thing that both these artists who respect each other so much wanted to do together,” says Watt, who helped with the hit alongside D’Mile and James Fauntleroy. “This was about the love of making great music.”
That desire led to a sweeping, cinematic duet that has spent multiple weeks atop the Billboard Global 200 and racked up 625 million on-demand official streams worldwide since its Aug. 16 release (through Sept. 26), according to Luminate.
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“Seeing people reacting positively to it and it hitting them in their soul… it’s special,” Watt says. “This is a ballad with all-live instruments made to the human heartbeat. It’s not a formulaic song.”
He adds that Gaga and Mars were in the studio together within 24 hours of agreeing to collaborate, with Mars bringing in the initial idea for the song’s haunting vibe. Gaga fleshed it out on piano with Mars on guitar — exactly as they appear in the song’s retro Western music video (minus the costumes) — and stayed overnight until it was perfect.
And while Watt says the session was a blur, he recalls a key component to that night: finding a melodic structure that let Mars and Gaga sound like co-lead vocalists rather than one person harmonizing with the other. “When Gaga put her voice on top of Bruno’s, that’s the moment I remember… hearing their two voices together, you get lost in it.”
It had the same effect on Mars’ concert crowd at L.A.’s Intuit Dome the night the song dropped in August. As Gaga stepped onstage for the duet’s live debut, Watt recalls watching the moment unfold: “It was this wow factor of ‘Holy crap, [they’re] like the Avengers of music.’ “
This story appears in the Oct. 5, 2024, issue of Billboard.
For any fashion-friendly Swiftie, there’s only one place to go immediately after the pop star releases a music video, attends an award show, is snapped out and about, or supporting Travis Kelce at a Kansas City Chiefs Game: Taylor Swift Style, the fashion blog and popular Instagram account of writer Sarah Chapelle.
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On TSS, Chapelle documents with astonishing detail (and speed) the source and pricing of Swift’s ensembles (down to each ring on her fingers), but also provides insightful, in-depth critical analysis, illuminating how Swift’s fashion choices are often as revealing — and intentional — as her lyrics. “We’re very familiar with these confessional, emotional songs that she gives us about her life, but I always felt that her style is the other half of that story,” Chapelle tells Billboard. “It’s the visual half that icon-ifies her eras, and it creates these memorable moments that stick out in your brain. I think she’s always, in some form, used fashion as a way of carving out identity and saying something about herself.”
Sarah Chapelle
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On Oct. 8, Chapelle’s already devoted audience (over 300,000 strong on her @taylorswiftstyled Insta) will likely get even bigger when she releases Taylor Swift Style: Fashion Through the Eras (St. Martin’s Griffin), a book encompassing Swift’s career to date as viewed through Chapelle’s “critically-kind” and highly personal perspective. With essays along with commentary on over 200 photographs capturing Swift’s evolution in the public eye, Taylor Swift Style will certainly be catnip for fans – but it also proves to be a fascinating, often surprising lens into this additional layer of Swift’s creativity for anyone watching the artist’s continuing evolution.
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Chapelle spoke to Billboard ahead of her book’s publication about Swift’s style eras, fashion Easter eggs, and why she should always wear more green. When you were starting what would become Taylor Swift Style, how, if at all, was the fashion press treating Taylor? So I have been a fan of Taylor since around 2006, and I’ve been documenting her fashion since 2011. At that time, the social media landscape was certainly not what it is right now, and the celebrity fashion landscape and press coverage of it was also not as hyper-focused, and certainly not on Taylor, as it is now. When I created the blog, I was studying in university to become a journalist, and I was trying to figure out my own identity and navigate, you know, how do I express myself and figure out who I am? And one way that a lot of us would do that is through our clothes. The blog just kind of became an intersection of all of my interests — like a niche within a niche of the fandom — to offer a resource for all of her fashion to other fans who I hoped might feel the same way and have this highly specific interest that I did. I talk about it in the book, and Taylor has talked about it as well, how there was a certain period when her art just wasn’t really taken very seriously or was sort of brushed off as like a teenage girl thing. And now I think we take her art and her power and her business through her artistry, and also, by extension, through her fashion, so, so, so seriously. It’s been an amazing evolution and journey to witness and also document. As you note in the book, at the start of her career, Taylor’s stylist was her label head, Scott Borchetta’s wife. Her current stylist, Joseph Cassell, has now been working with her for many years. Do you see a parallel between how Taylor’s ownership over her creativity and over how she presents herself have evolved? One thing that has always resonated with me about how Taylor seems to approach her business is that it’s, in a sense, always seemed kind of personal — she retains staff and people around her for very long periods of time, obviously a reflection of the mutual understanding she has with the people around her and the level of trust she has in them to help execute her vision and bring her ideas to life. I think one kind of fascinating example of her taking an incredible amount of creative control over her image was in the folklore and evermore era when, due to the circumstances of the pandemic, she self-styled because she didn’t want to inconvenience or endanger her team. So the folklore and evermore eras’ [imagery is] a very undiluted look into her creative process of translating what was going on in her mind into the physical, into the visual of how she wanted that era to look and to feel. And I think that’s especially resonant when you consider how the folklore photo shoot feels like its music — you’re kind of traipsing through this imaginary, wooded place as she’s trying to escape the realities of life. It felt right for that era, for that time, for that music. How did your “critically-kind” ethos come about? I can’t remember exactly when it started, but I didn’t always write commentary. I used to feel that, oh, people don’t want to hear from you, they just want the information — they just want to know where the clothes are from and where they can get it, and you should kind of be like this invisible admin force, like “don’t look behind the curtain!” type of energy. And a few years in, people would just start being like, “You should write more. You should write longer captions.” It almost felt like taking a page out of Taylor’s book, of when you choose to be vulnerable and a little bit more open people resonate with that humanity, and that resonance is the entire reason why there’s a book in the first place. It’s very easy to fall into the internet pit of defaulting to [saying] unkind or cruel things, and that just never felt like the tone that I wanted to hit or the ethos that I wanted to drive conversation with. I think that there are a lot of people who crave the original intention of the internet, which is to connect with other people — and when you carve out an intentional space for those kinds of conversations to happen in a way that’s thoughtful and nuanced and kind, people will come. You are well known for your love of Taylor wearing green. Please explain! When people ask me this I feel like I’m almost disappointing with like, a very boring and underwhelming answer — which is, I just think she looks really pretty! (Laughs) I just think that she looks great in that color, and every time I see it, it makes my heart really happy. Luckily for me, she’s had quite a number of amazing moments in green; there’s like an entire sidebar dedicated to some of my favorite Taylor in green moments in the book. The most relevant from this year was the peridot green Gucci gown from the Golden Globes, which was fantastic.
Taylor Swift at the 81st Golden Globe Awards held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Jan. 7, 2024 in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Gilbert Flores/Golden Globes 2024
I was very into that long-sleeved crushed velvet green dress she wore out that everyone was very sure was Rep-coded… The Little Lies dress from January, yeah. Here’s the thing: I strongly believe that that outfit was an Easter egg, but it was an intentional misdirect, because — stay with me — [as part of] the Tortured Poets rollout, there was coding in the backend of her website that [when unscrambled] said “red herring.” She’s now comfortable enough playing with fashion, not only as a tool to reflect what’s coming next or her state of mind or her emotions or a vibe about a project, but also to intentionally mislead, because she’s aware that people will pick up on things.
And I believe that she had intentionally been using Reputation (Taylor’s Version) as a red herring, so that nobody would suspect that the bait-and-switch would be a new album, The Tortured Poets Department. Because how much more obvious can you get, wearing a green velvet dress and pairing it with Giuseppe Zanotti boots that have snakes on them? For once, I didn’t think that was a leap — I was like, “I think we are correctly interpreting what we are seeing with our eyes!” (Laughs) She just wanted us to be wrong, which is her right! It’s interesting to see how your readers react to different looks of hers. I noticed that there were very divided reactions to her wearing obvious logos on the recent weekend in New York when she and Travis were photographed together a lot. Why do you think that was? A logo-covered item [a Gucci shift dress Swift wore out] stuck out to my eye, because it’s not typical of her to go for something so ostentatiously branded, so I think it was just surprising to see her, you know, fully Gucci-fied for that particular outing. Especially because one signature of Taylor’s fashion is the high-low — she loves pairing like, a Reformation dress with, say, Louis Vuitton or Christian Louboutin heels, creating this balanced mix of aspirational and attainable, while still looking overall very relatable. So to wear something so obviously luxury-branded stuck out to a lot of people’s eyes. Are there particular eras when you think Taylor’s music and fashion aesthetics have matched especially well – and, conversely, when they’ve felt more incongruous with each other? I think that debut made perfect sense. Folklore and evermore make perfect sense to me. It’s hard for 1989; I look at it and I’m like, yeah, that makes perfect sense — it was her major breakthrough into pop music and so she had this, like, pop girl uniform of crop top and skirt — but also she briefly kind of introduced 1989 as, like, this ’80s album, which it’s not…. so debut and folklore feel more cohesive to me. I really loved how the Reputation fashion captured the duality of the album: I talk about it in the book, but obviously she kind of beats you over the head up front with a lot of leather and snakeskin and camo and combat boots, it’s very clearly a bombastic, quote-unquote revenge album, but then she accompanies it with softer sequins and rainbows and sparkles, kind of the signature Taylor Swift soft feminine aesthetic, which is appropriate for Reputation too, because underneath all of that, it is a falling in love album. For a lot of people, the most incongruous is probably Midnights — a lot of people were confused by this ‘70s aesthetic, like this smoky, hazy, wood scratched floors and vinyl and patchouli scented air…..and then this huge kind of return to shiny pop. Though I think I’ve come around to making sense of it I really like the Midnights album photo shoot visuals quite a lot. A big part of seeing Taylor publicly these days is seeing her with Travis — someone who’s intentional about dressing in maybe a very different way — and of course seeing their individual styles juxtaposed. Do you feel they’re complementary, or even rubbing off on each other in interesting ways? So that’s interesting…do you think that Travis dresses intentionally, or do you think that Travis just thinks fashion is fun?
Taylor Swift arrives at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium prior to a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 15, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri.
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Hmm, interesting question. I guess there’s a difference. I do think he finds it fun… I think that there’s a clear difference between somebody who thinks that fashion is a fun thing to play with and to experiment with, and somebody who’s intentionally using fashion as an extension of their artistry and messaging and communication. And I think Travis falls into the fashion is fun [camp]. Having somebody around who obviously injects what she said about him at the VMAs — like, magic and happiness and rainbows and puppies — having that sense of lightness in her life is obviously fun to see, as a fan. But I think watching her show up to Chiefs games has been a fascinating extension of her style, in that it’s the first time that I am analyzing her fashion and her choices not through the lens of “what does this say about her” but in her playing entirely a supporting role. And that’s her choosing Kansas City based businesses, women-owned businesses, choosing vintage — all of those careful, thoughtful, intentional choices kind of create this foundation of “I’m here as a supporting person. I am here to ‘Woooo!’” And I love how she’s made that clear. To me it’s a very clear delineation in her style that still feels very Taylor — like, cute little plaid skirt, little vintage Chiefs sweatshirt? That feels like a very Taylor outfit! It’s very clearly a “I am not the main character” outfit, but the core of the outfit is very recognizably Taylor. She still retains this semblance of recognizability, and I think that that’s one thing that she does incredibly well in all aspects of her branding and her fashion: even as she evolves as an artist, as a person, you can still see her as a human.
In a year when famously battling brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher defied the odds and announced they were burying the hatchet and reuniting after a decade-and-a-half of incessant public sniping, Pink Floyd‘s David Gilmour made it crystal clear that he is never, ever getting back together with the band’s former bassist/singer Roger Waters.
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Asked by a fan in a Guardian reader interview if he’d ever perform again on stage with Waters, Gilmour said “absolutely not.” Then, in a pointed attack seemingly aimed at some of Waters’ more controversial comments in recent years about the war in Ukraine and his seeming support of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and authoritarian Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, Gilmour took fire at the Floyd co-founder.
“I tend to steer clear of people who actively support genocidal and autocratic dictators like Putin and Maduro [president of Venezuela],” Gilmour said. “Nothing would make me share a stage with someone who thinks such treatment of women and the LGBT community is OK.”
Waters has frequently stirred controversy with his political views about Israel and the war in Ukraine. His comments about the government of Israel led to his record company, BMG, dropping the Floyd co-founder and solo performer earlier this year after Berlin police opened an investigation into the imagery in a May 2023 Waters show in that city. Officials said the probe was launched over “suspicion of incitement to public hatred” related to costumes that appeared to replicate Nazi uniforms and claims that Waters’ show desecrated the memory of Holocaust victim Anne Frank.
Water denied the claims, writing on X, “My recent performance in Berlin has attracted bad faith attacks from those who want to smear and silence me because they disagree with my political views and moral principles. The elements of my performance that have been questioned are quite clearly a statement in opposition to fascism, injustice, and bigotry in all its forms. Attempts to portray those elements as something else are disingenuous and politically motivated.”
During the show, Waters wore a costume resembling the Nazi SS soldier uniform — a long black coat with a red armband — while pointing a fake rifle at the crowd, with the singer saying later that the “depiction of an unhinged fascist demagogue” has been featured in his past live performances since the release of the 1980 Pink Floyd film The Wall. In May 2023, a number of Jewish groups and politicians rallied against Waters’ concert in Frankfurt, Germany, accusing the singer of antisemitism after unsuccessfully pushing to have the show cancelled. It took place in the city’s Festhalle, where more than 3,000 Jews were rounded up, beaten and abused by Nazis before being sent to concentration camps in 1938.
Waters, who has frequently drawn the ire of the pro-Israel community for his vehement support of the BDS movement, which calls for boycotts and sanctions against the state of Israel, again rejected the claims of antisemitism.
A month later, the Biden administration’s State Department weighed in on what it called Waters’ “long track record of using antisemitic tropes” and the German show it said “contained imagery that is deeply offensive to Jewish people and minimized the Holocaust.”
Gilmour and Waters have been at odds since the bassist split with the group in 1984, trading barbs in the press as Waters continues to tour and perform Floyd music alongside his solo material, while the Gilmour-led Floyd ceased touring in 1994.
Pink Floyd’s musical assets — not including their publishing — were recently bought by Sony for around $400 million.