Music
Page: 63
Ethel Cain‘s posts about the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson have sparked outrage from a panel of Fox News hosts, who likened her words to “terrorism” and are calling on fans to “boycott” the singer.
On a recent episode of the network’s The Big Weekend Show, panelists Jason Chaffetz, Jackie DeAngelis, Anita Vogel and Guy Benson opened a segment about the “American Teenager” singer’s comments by summarizing what she wrote on Instagram Stories Jan. 10. In addition to using the hashtag “#KillMoreCEOs,” Cain had said that peaceful protesting is no longer enough to solve corporate greed in the United States and posited, “It’s simple, you make them fear for their lives and hit them in the only place they hurt or nothing will ever get done.”
But the 26-year-old musician’s words were several steps too far for the Fox commentators, with Benson calling her message “sick” and “depraved.” “The message there is violence is the answer,” he continued. “You know who used that exact same mentality, that type of language? Terrorists. That is actual terrorism, what she’s talking about here … This should be a very clear black-and-white moral issue, and it is scary to see how much support that type of sentiment has gotten.”
“It’s absurd, it’s gross,” agreed Vogel, who then brought up how Meta previously banned Donald Trump from its platforms following the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. “Are they going to remove this woman for calling for murder?”
“People need to boycott her,” added DeAngelis, with Chaffetz saying, “I hope people call her out for this.”
Billboard has reached out to Cain’s reps for comment.
The “Crush” artist’s posts — and Fox News’ response — are part of a broader discussion that’s played out since Thompson was shot and killed on a New York City street. Suspect Luigi Mangione was taken into custody shortly afterward and is now facing state murder and terror charges, to which he’s pleaded not guilty. He’s also facing federal murder and stalking charges; if convicted on the murder charge, he could face a death sentence.
In addition to her incendiary hashtag Jan. 10, Cain had also shared a post quoting former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich’s assessment that institutions such as the NRA, Big Oil and insurance companies contribute to corruption in Congress. In Reich’s words: “Money in politics is the root of our dysfunction.”
“I genuinely mean what I say. Corporations giggle at protesting,” Cain had added at the time. “Why would anyone ever willingly come down off their throne that they’ve spent years building off the suffering of their fellow man? … It seems quite straightforward to me. ‘Violence is never the answer’ wrong. Sometimes it is.”
Two days prior, Cain released her highly anticipated album Perverts. It followed 2022’s Preacher’s Daughter.
01/17/2025
Some artists amass a lot of nods in just a few years and are rarely nominated again. They aren’t on this list. These are the people who were in the game year after year.
01/17/2025
Skrillex is joining the lineup for Ultra Music Festival 2025. The festival confirmed the news Friday (Jan. 17) by adding the artist’s name to the festival lineup poster on its website.
This news follows Skrillex and Ultra teasing the appearance on X this past Wednesday (Jan. 15), when the producer responded to a tweet from the festival’s account reading “Happy birthday Skrillex, we miss [hands raised emoji]” with a message on the platform of his own reading, “See you in March.”
The performance will mark the first time the artist, who turned 37 on Jan. 15, has played the festival as a solo act since 2015. He last appeared at Ultra Music Festival Miami in 2019 as part of Dog Blood, for which he plays alongside Boys Noize. Skrillex also played Ultra’s debut festival in Abu Dhabi in March of 2023.
Trending on Billboard
Ultra Music Festival is happening at Miami’s Bayfront Park March 28-30. The previously announced lineup includes Four Tet, Gesaffelstein, Armin van Buuren, Carl Cox, Afrojck, Tiësto, Martin Garrix and Hardwell, along with pairings including John Summit and Dom Dolla playing as Everything Always, Anyma b2b Solomun and Knife Party playing both solo and b2b with Deadmau5, with the latter artist also performing his first ever career-spanning “retro5pective” set, which will see the producer playing his classic hits.
On Jan. 15, Skrillex also posted a note to his social accounts reading, “If you like my music leave me your email at Skrillex.com/FUS and I’ll send you some things.” The note was signed with the producer’s real name, Sonny Moore. An email submission to this address on Jan. 15 has not yet yielded a response.
Skrillex first teased new music last fall, writing on X in November that “I’ve never felt more inspired and in lockstep with my intentions as an artist. As I’m nearing completion of my next work and my final project for Atlantic Records I can’t help but feel very existential about it all… I’m thrilled to get this out and focus on more release[s] in 25 as an ‘independent’ artist. But ‘independent’ is such a strange term because I still depend on my team as well as all the other creatives and executives to do what I do.
“But now I’m able to rethink/relook at how the structures are designed,” his posts continued. “I want to find ways to simplify [disseminating] music and art.” The producer’s last albums, Quest for Fire and Don’t Get Too Close, came out within days of each other in February of 2023.
The artist, who’s originally from Los Angeles, also recently used X to respond to the ongoing fires in L.A., writing on on Jan. 10: “We’ve been devastated here in Los Angeles. My phone has been unmanageable so to all my friends, I’m safe and bless you for checking in. So many close ones have lost their homes so being there for each other has never been this critical.”
The Black Music Action Coalition, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis are announcing their third annual BMAC x Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis Music Maker Grants. Presented in association with ASCAP and Wasserman Foundation, the grants will be awarded at a ReStore and ReBuild L.A. fundraiser on Jan. 29. Proceeds from the Los Angeles-held event will […]
Celine Dion is paying tribute to her late husband, René Angélil, again this week, remembering her love on what would have been his 83rd birthday. On Thursday (Jan. 16), the singer posted a black-and-white picture of Angélil — who died of throat cancer in 2016 at 73 — and a loving message in a tribute […]
Coldplay‘s never-ending Music of the Spheres tour has already set records as the best-selling and highest-grossing rock tour ever thanks to 10 million tickets sold and grosses over $1 billion to date during its three-year run. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news But next week, the “feelslikeimfallinginlove” […]
Taylor Swift and Kenny Chesney have long had a very sweet mutual admiration society. But when the “Take Her Home” country star appeared on The Tonight Show on Thursday night (Jan. 16), he revealed that the early stages of their friendship famously got off to a rocky start.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Chesney recalled the oft-repeated story about how when Swift was 17 she was booked to open a tour for him that was sponsored by a beer company. “They came to us right before the tour started and said, ‘We can’t have a minor on the tour,’” Chesney recalled. “Which made sense. But I had to call Taylor personally and tell her she couldn’t go on tour with me, which now seems absurd, right?”
Chesney said he made the difficult call and told Swift he felt terrible about the bait-and-switch because he knew she was going to lose money from the scotched gig. “I gave her a specific amount of money… it was quite a bit of money, because I wanted to make it up to her,” said Chesney.
Trending on Billboard
Later, both singers were nominated for CMAs entertainer of the year. “Well, she won,” explained Chesney, a four-time winner of the award, of Swift’s first of two CMA top honors in 2009. “So, backstage, I went up to her and gave her a big hug. I said ‘congratulations, but gimme my money back.’”
The question came after Fallon mentioned that Swift gave Chesney a shout-out in her TIME magazine Person of the Year essay in 2023, noting that she got kicked off his tour when she was 17, at a time when she thought the outing was “going to change my career… I was so excited.”
She confirmed then that the generous country star sent her a card and a check for her 18th birthday, “for more money that I’d ever seen in my life. I was able to pay my band bonuses. I was able to pay for my tour buses. I was able to fuel my dreams.” Chesney was one of the first to congratulate Swift her her Person of the Year honor, writing on Instagram at the time, “Taylor, I knew looking in your eyes that first time on stage with us, you had ‘it.’ It’s been awesome watching you shine!”
During the chat, Chesney also shared a funny pic from his summer tour with Megan Moroney, when the “Am I Okay?” singer surprised the headliner by going to his tour bus and put on one of his signature tank tops and whit cowboy hats before taking the stage dressed as him. “It just goes to show you that not only is Megan a great songwriter, she’s got a really good personality,” he said.
Chesney also talked about his long friendship with Jimmy Buffett, his tribute to the “Cheeseburger in Paradise” singer at last year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony alongside James Taylor and and longtime Coral Reefer Band member Mac McAnally. “That was a tough night. It really was,” Chesney said. “Jimmy taught a lot of us how to paint pictures with words. For that reason I’ve always looked up to Jimmy Buffett.”
The singer who just announced an upcoming residency gig at the immersive Sphere in Las Vegas, told Fallon that he signed up for the run despite never seeing a show at the eye-popping, state-of-the-art venue. But when he went to check it out, he said, “it’s like we’re all just… the band, the audience, is all in a completely different state of consciousness. And I looked at my crew and my team and I went, ‘There’s no way we’re not not doing this!’”
The only downside he said, is that because all the mind-bending visuals are shot in super hi-def 36K, all the visuals and footage Chesney has used over the years during his stadium shows were not gonna cut it. “Which is good, because it just makes it really new and fresh,” he promised of the show that he’s already in rehearsals for.
Chesney’s Sphere residency will kick off on May 24.
Watch Chesney on The Tonight Show below..
Inhaler have shared a new single titled “A Question Of You,” ahead of their forthcoming album, Open Wide (due Feb. 7 via Polydor).
Following recent tracks “Your House” and “Open Wide,” it marks the third preview to be lifted from the Irish band’s third record. The 13-track collection was recorded in London’s iconic RAK Studios with producer Kid Harpoon, who scooped a bevy of Grammy and BRIT awards in 2023 for his work on Harry Styles‘ blockbuster 2022 LP Harry’s House.
“This is love song territory for me,” said frontman Elijah Hewson, describing “A Question Of You” in a press release. “It’s about how in order to be honest with someone else you’ve got to be honest with yourself, like, ‘I’ve gotta sort my own s–t out so I can be around other people’. The choir really changed everything on this [song].”
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The release of Open Wide will coincide with Inhaler’s biggest headline tour to date. Through next month, the four-piece will perform at sold-out venues across the U.K, including two nights at the capital’s Brixton Academy. In May, they’ll perform a huge, 20,000-capacity hometown show at Dublin’s St. Anne’s Park alongside Stockport indie group Blossoms.
Trending on Billboard
Inhaler’s debut album It Won’t Always Be Like This soared to the summit of the Official U.K. Albums Chart in July 2021. They ended their release week with 18,000 chart sales, according to the Official Charts Company, with 92% of that sum generated by physical sales. The achievement also made Inhaler the first Irish act to top the chart with their debut in 13 years.
Its follow-up, Cuts & Bruises, which arrived two years later, landed at No. 2. Speaking to Billboard upon release, drummer Ryan MacMahon described Inhaler’s sophomore effort as “an album of love songs, about loving your friends,” adding that its songs were made to sound “a lot more loose and like a live band – which is what we wanted to achieve with the record.”
In recent years, the band have gone on to open for Arctic Monkeys, as well as tour the U.K. and European festival circuit extensively with shows at Reading & Leeds and Glasgow’s TRNSMT. Their 2025 live plans include a return to the latter, plus a slot at Warrington’s Neighbourhood Weekender in May.
Watch the “A Question of You” lyric video below.
Timothée Chalamet caused a stir during the red carpet premiere of A Complete Unknown in Paris when he signed a fan’s photo of Australian pop sensation Troye Sivan—as Troye Sivan.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
In a clip shared to social media, the actor, who stars as legendary folk singer Bob Dylan in the film directed by James Mangold, signed a fan’s album of Sivan’s latest album, Something to Give Each Other. The words “Troye Sivan” are then seen scrawled across the cover—prompting laughter and delight among fans on the red carpet.
Sivan wasted no time joining in on the fun, reposting the red carpet moment to his Instagram story, complete with the autographed vinyl in question.
Trending on Billboard
It’s not the first time the star has signed off as Sivan. In a video taken at the Dec. 13 premiere of Wonka, a fan handed Chalamet the album and requested his autograph, as the actor quipped, “That’s not me, though,” to which the fan replied, “That’s basically you.”
With a grin, Chalamet obliged and added, “In some universe…” The red carpet gag comes after Chalamet’s standout portrayal of Sivan in a Saturday Night Live sketch titled “Troye Sivan Sleep Demon,” aired in Nov. 2023.
In the skit, Chalamet donned Sivan’s signature look from the “Get Me Started” music video, complete with blue pants, a white tank top, and red underwear, hilariously describing himself as “an Australian YouTube twink turned indie pop star and model turned HBO actor…being played by an American actor who can’t do an Australian accent.”
The segment became an instant hit, with the Australian pop star taking to social media following the Nov. 11 episode of the NBC comedy series, during which the Wonka star hilariously portrayed Sivan as cast member Sarah Sherman’s sleep paralysis demon.
“WHY IS LIFE SO WEIRDDDDD RN LMAO IM DEAD,” Sivan captioned a snippet of the Saturday Night Live. skit on Instagram.
Meanwhile, Chalamet himself recently became the subject of satire on Saturday Night Live. During a Dec. 2024 episode hosted by Paul Mescal, a sketch lampooned Chalamet’s appearance on the red carpet for A Complete Unknown.
In a sketch during the Dec. 7 episode, hosted by Paul Mescal, SNL cast member Heidi Gardner plays a fictional BuzzFeed reporter on the red carpet for the debut of the Bob Dylan biopic, which stars Chalamet as the legendary folk musician. The sketch opens with Chalamet (played by Chloe Fineman) admitting he had a “Brat summer,” a reference to the Charli XCX-inspired trend.
“Oh, man, it was crazy. Nuts,” Fineman’s Chalamet says.
As the two continue their conversation, Dylan (portrayed by SNL’s James Austin Johnson) strolls up and is asked if he too had a Brat summer. “What?” the iconic musician replies. “A Brat summer,” Gardner’s reporter repeats. “Did you have a Brat summer?” Dylan, clearly thinking about food, mistakes the question, thinking he’s being asked about bratwurst.
A Complete Unknown, which hit theaters on Christmas Day, also stars Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro and Edward Norton. The biographical drama is inspired by Elijah Wald’s 2015 book Dylan Goes Electric, and focuses on Dylan’s early career in the 1960s, culminating in his controversial performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festiva.
Director James Mangold revealed that Dylan himself gave feedback on the script, while Chalamet performed all the songs live during filming, rather than using pre-recorded tracks. This decision was made after Mangold was impressed by the actor’s live performance of “Song to Woody” early in the production. In total, Chalamet sang about 40 songs for the film.
Fans first spotted Chalamet filming in New York earlier this year. Mangold confirmed that Chalamet will do his own singing in the film, and to prepare, the actor sifted through 12 hours of unreleased Dylan tracks sent to him by the musician’s longtime manager and producer Jeff Rosen.
This week’s ARIA Charts are brimming with milestones, with Sabrina Carpenter and Rosé breaking records while global superstar Bad Bunny makes a splash on the Albums Chart.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Sabrina Carpenter’s Short N’ Sweet is proving to be a sugar rush for fans, holding strong at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart for 10 non-consecutive weeks. The pop star’s addictive blend of catchy tracks has turned the album into a chart staple since its release in late August.
With 11 of its 12 songs cracking the top 40—including No. 1 hits like “Espresso,” “Please Please Please,” and “Taste”—Sabrina’s got the secret ingredient for success. Even “Bed Chem,” the album’s fourth single, hit No. 10, proving she can keep the hits coming. Short N’ Sweet is truly the gift that keeps on giving.
Trending on Billboard
Over on the Singles Chart, Rosé and Bruno Mars are holding court with their duet, “APT.” The infectious track secured its 10th non-consecutive week at No. 1, firmly establishing itself as the song of the summer Down Under.
The success of “APT.” extends beyond just the Australian charts. Globally, the track has been a powerhouse, topping the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts for an 11th week each. In November, the song debuted as the stars’ second leader on each list.
For Rosé, it’s her first solo chart-topper, adding to her success with BLACKPINK’s 2022 No. 1, “Pink Venom.” Bruno Mars, meanwhile, continues to rack up accolades, with “APT.” marking his fourth No. 1 single in Australia and his longest-running yet.
Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny is also making noise on the ARIA Albums Chart with his seventh studio album, Debi Tirar Más Fotos.
The record skyrocketed from No. 99 to No. 16, marking Bunny’s first appearance in the ARIA Top 50. A three-time GRAMMY winner and Spotify’s most-streamed artist from 2020 to 2022, Bad Bunny’s influence knows no bounds. His latest album has already made a mark on the Billboard Charts, debuting at No. 2 on the US Billboard 200, marking Bad Bunny’s seventh top-ten entry.