Music
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The guys of Big Time Rush are bringing their Nickelodeon show on the road, with Kendall Schmidt, James Maslow, Logan Henderson and Carlos PenaVega unveiling plans to perform every song from every episode of their 2010s TV series on a world tour announced Thursday (Feb. 20).
Four years after reuniting in 2021, the In Real Life World Tour will kick off July 9 in Birmingham, Alabama, and see BTR traveling throughout the United States — stopping in Florida, New York, Texas, California and more — through the end of August. In November, the quartet will then take the trek overseas for a month in Europe, setting up shop in Germany, Italy, Spain, France and more before closing out Dec. 14 in Athens.
Also joining the guys as support are Katelyn Tarver and Stephen Kramer Glickman, who played Jo and Gustavo on Big Time Rush during the show’s run from 2009 to 2013. More international dates will be announced at a later date.
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“We truly have the best fans in the world, and when we sat down to plot this tour we wanted to give them everything they have always asked us for and dreamed of,” Big Time Rush said of the trek in a joint statement. “That’s the reason we are so excited to be going on the road all over the world to play every song from every episode of the TV show. We know how many of our fans hold these songs close to their hearts having first heard so many of them watching our show.”
“We couldn’t be more excited to also be bringing our dear friends from the TV show, Katelyn Tarver and Stephen Kramer Glickman, who we have never gotten the chance to tour with before,” the group added. “We have so many surprises in store for our Rushers for the In Real Life Worldwide tour and can’t wait to see everyone on the road very soon!”
And when Schmidt, Maslow, Henderson and PenaVega say every song from the series, they truly mean every song from the show’s four seasons. That includes deep cuts in addition to Billboard Hot 100 hits such as “Boyfriend” and “Halfway There.” During Big Time Rush‘s run, the foursome dropped three albums: BTR, Elevate and 24/7, all of which charted on the Billboard 200.
Shortly after the show ended, Big Time Rush went on hiatus before coming back together in 2021, taking over the band’s name from Nickelodeon and releasing music of their own. Most recently, the group dropped single “Only One” last summer.
See Big Time Rush’s announcement below.

Ye (formerly Kanye West) is feeling the love, even after his controversial X spree earlier this month. The Chicago rapper shared a screenshot of an X post highlighting Tyler, The Creator supposedly liking a picture of A$AP Rocky on his Instagram page, and added a caption saying that the West Coast rapper is North West’s […]

Lady Gaga and her dancers bring the magic on camera and off! Fans were blown away by the dance-heavy “Abracadabra” music video the pop superstar released earlier this month, and a new rehearsal video for the track shows just how hard the team worked on the choreography. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news […]
Six years after Leaving Neverland gave Wade Robson and James Safechuck a platform to share shocking accounts of Michael Jackson‘s alleged sexual abuse of them as children, the two men are once again taking to the documentary format to talk about their experiences. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts […]
Coco Jones announced Thursday (Feb. 20) that she’ll be dropping her debut album Why Not More on April 25 via Def Jam Recordings. “It’s FINALLY here,” she wrote on X with a crying emoji. “My DEBUT album ‘Why Not More’ is dropping 4/25 and will be available for pre-order tonight 9pm PST.” Jones released a […]
Tiny Desk Concerts have become a rite of passage for artists, and Leon Thomas checked off another box in his ascension on Thursday (Feb. 20) as the R&B star made his debut on the NPR office stage. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Rocking a Satoshi Nakamoto […]

Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
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This week: Drake’s new album with PartyNextDoor has a mid-week breakout hit, Charli XCX has a pre-Brat viral bump, Riley Green’s song (and video) for the lovers sees seasonal gains, and more.
Drake’s “Nokia” Is Buzzing, Aaron Hall Embraced on Streaming After “Gimme a Hug” Sample
In its first couple days of release, the early leader on streaming from PartyNextDoor & Drake’s new R&B collaborative album $ome $exy $ongs 4 U was Drake’s more rap-driven solo number “Gimme a Hug,” with the song topping the Apple Music real-time chart and reaching the top 10 on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA listing. But over the week, another song from even deeper in the 21-track album has taken over as its top performer: the pop hook-driven, two-part banger “Nokia.”
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With backing vocals and a beat helmed by U.K. producer Elkan, “Nokia” – also credited solely to Drake – had the usual big streaming drop following its first day of release, but has been climbing throughout the week. On Tuesday, it posted 2.9 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to initial data provided by Luminate – its best streaming performance since that Friday of release, and its first time passing “Hug” as the set’s most-streamed song. Meanwhile, the song has also been one of the week’s best sellers, topping the iTunes real-time chart and moving a combined 13,000 copies over its first five days of availability.
Meanwhile, “Hug” continues to offer warmth on streaming to its original sample source. Aaron Hall’s “I Miss You,” which Drake heavily lifts from towards the end of his $exy $ongs ¢enterpiece, garnered over 700,000 streams during the first five days of this tracking week (Feb. 14-18), after combining for under 100,000 streams the equivalent period the prior week, a gain of 694% for the 1993 Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hit. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
‘How I’m Feeling Now’ Winter? An Old Charli XCX Track Is Going Viral
Charli XCX’s enormous 2024 — which included the critical and commercial success of her Brat album and its accompanying Sweat tour alongside Troye Sivan — has already pushed into 2025, thanks to a fruitful Grammys night and more arena headlining dates. Now, a song that’s years older than her comeback album is going viral: the tender, ethereal “Party 4 U,” from her 2020 lockdown album How I’m Feeling Now, has been exploding on TikTok in recent weeks, with a series of lip synch performances from longtime Charli fans ready to prove their pre-Brat bona fides.
A month ago, “Party 4 U” was earning 278,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (for the chart week ending Jan. 23), according to Luminate; that number more than doubled to 573,000 streams for the week ending Feb. 13, and will once again surpass that high-water mark after earning 830,000 streams from Feb. 14-18, according to initial Luminate reports. Charli herself acknowledged the viral explosion on Wednesday (Feb. 19): “it’s p crazy that this song is suddenly getting love in this kinda way,” she wrote. “I know this song means so much to so many angels. she’s a cutie

Dolly Parton has stepped into the Wiggles‘ world for the children’s group’s upcoming country album, Wiggle Up, Giddy Up. Album track “Friends!” — penned by Parton, and featuring the country icon on lead vocals — was released on Thursday (Feb. 20), as well as “Counting 1 to 5,” which has the Wiggles reimagining a Parton classic.
“Friends! Everybody shout it/ Friends! No doubt about it/ Friends! Make the world go round/ We can depend on friends! / Someone to lean on, friends!/ Everybody needs one/ Be my friend!” Parton jubilantly sings on the feel-good chorus.
The Wiggles reference Parton’s “9 to 5” on “Counting 1 to 5,” interpolating the melody of the country star’s hit that was originally released in 1980, and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981: “Counting 1 to 5/ Yes, today that’s what you’re learning,” the Wiggles sing to the familiar tune.
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Music videos for both “Friends!” and “Counting 1 to 5” were also released on Thursday, with the double single made available on streaming services including Spotify and Apple Music.
“We Will Always Be Friends,” another single with (and written by) Parton, will be released on March 7 with the full Wiggle Up, Giddy Up collection, which can be pre-saved here. The Wiggles also recorded a cover of Parton’s “Love Is Like a Butterfly” for the album.
“Well, I just wiggled my way out into the Wiggles’ world! I had so much fun being a part of this project, and I hope you enjoy it as much as we have,” says Parton in a press release statement.
The collab is particularly meaningful for Red Wiggle (Caterina Mete), who has a tattoo inspired by Parton and even named one of her twin daughters Dolly. She shares, “Getting to work with my absolute musical hero is beyond surreal. Dolly has inspired me in so many ways, and I know these songs will bring so much happiness to families everywhere.”
“Dolly’s music is pure magic,” Blue Wiggle (Anthony Field) chimes in. “Getting to work with her on these songs is a dream come true. We can’t wait for families everywhere to sing along and share in the joy.”
Lainey Wilson, Orville Peck, Dasha, Morgan Evans, Jackson Dean, Kaylee Bell, MacKenzie Porter, Troy Cassar-Daley, The Wolfe Brothers, Travis Collins, Lucky Oceans and Slim Dusty are all featured on the Wiggles’ Wiggle Up, Giddy Up.
The Wiggles will be touring the U.S. and Canada in June. Dates and ticket information for the group’s Bouncing Balls Tour are available here.
Check out the joyous “Friends!” video, and the educational “Counting 1 to 5” video — which not only teaches little ones about counting, but also features a fun country line dance — with your kids below.
Several actors from music-connected films and TV shows will present on the 2025 Screen Actors Guild Awards, which will air live on Netflix on Sunday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles. The ranks of presenters include Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo and […]
LISA may have delivered some serious drama for her “Born Again” music video featuring RAYE and Doja Cat, but a new behind-the-scenes clip released on Thursday (Feb. 19) shows a fun and smile-filled day of filming. In the two-minute clip, the 27-year-old K-pop superstar is glowing as she gets glam for the music video, visibly […]