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Kylie Minogue is finally sharing the Christmas song she has been holding onto for a decade. The pop icon has released her new single “XMAS,” a track she says dates back to the summer of 2015 and was originally inspired by the Village People’s “YMCA.”
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The song arrives as part of the 10th anniversary edition of Minogue’s holiday album, Kylie Christmas, which returns on Dec. 5 as Kylie Christmas (Fully Wrapped) with four brand-new tracks.
Speaking to The Sun, Minogue explained that the idea first came to her while she was in Berlin shortly after releasing her first holiday album, Kylie Christmas, that same year.
“The song comes from 2015. I was at Soho House in Berlin, it was summer on the terrace and we’d just done the first Christmas album,” she said. “We’d had a couple of glasses of wine … and it came to us like ‘YMCA’ but ‘XMAS.’ I’ve been sitting on the chorus for 10 years.”
The single arrives with a video that sees Minogue recreating the iconic flying lift from Dirty Dancing. Despite decades of stage experience, she admitted the move was a leap of faith.
“I was a bit scared as I’ve never done it before. It was a fantasy moment. I was told not to overthink it,” she said. “We did a couple of practices before we did the main one. The thing is, you just need to trust the other person. The first one I got up, but I overshot it. The second was fine. The third one was good. The bruises were worth it the next day.”
Minogue also addressed the idea of “XMAS” becoming a holiday chart-topper — something she’s not expecting but would happily welcome. “I’m not counting on it,” she said. “It would be crazy but that’s definitely parked to one side for me. I am just happy that ten years have passed since my last Christmas album and we are all here still going.”
The release caps what has been one of the busiest stretches of Minogue’s career. Over the past two years, she has released two albums, including 2023’s Tension, and completed a 66-date world tour behind the record. After nonstop work, she says she’s ready for a pause — sort of.
“It feels like I haven’t stopped. It’s been a gigantic year but I imagine I will be making music just for the love of it and maybe banking some things,” she said. “I could happily be in the studio most of my time. I love it. I find it just gets richer and more satisfying.”
Still, Minogue admitted that trying to record a holiday album during breaks on her Tension tour “was maybe not so wise,” but the creative impulse keeps her going. “I don’t know about releasing. I think I should just do the background work… maybe.”
Minogue’s “XMAS” is out now.
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Olivia Dean has secured partial refunds for fans after publicly criticizing Ticketmaster and AXS over inflated resale prices for her upcoming North American tour.
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The rising British singer-songwriter called out the platforms last week after fans discovered third-party listings priced at more than 14 times the original cost — in some cases surpassing $1,000.
In an open letter, Dean described the unchecked resale market as “disgusting,” “vile” and fundamentally “exploitative,” urging companies to “do better” to protect fans.
On Wednesday, Ticketmaster responded with a rare concession: a commitment to cap future resale rates for Dean’s tour and to begin refunding fans who paid above face value on its platform.
“We support artists’ ability to set the terms of how their tickets are sold and resold. @OliviaDeano, we will cap resale prices on our site at face value and hope other resale sites will follow,” Ticketmaster initially replied.
Michael Rapino, CEO of Live Nation Entertainment, later addressed the singer’s concerns, saying: “We share Olivia’s desire to keep live music accessible and ensure fans have the best access to affordable tickets. While we can’t require other marketplaces to honour artists’ resale preferences, we echo Olivia’s call to ‘do better’ and have taken steps to lead by example.”
Dean welcomed the move but made clear that her concerns extend beyond her own tour. Calling the secondary ticketing ecosystem “an exploitative and unregulated space,” she urged the wider music industry to adopt mandatory face-value resale caps for artists who request it.
“Tours steal from artists and they steal from fans,” she said. “They create inequality and hysteria. I am lucky to have had an education about the complexities and corruption of ticketing from @dicefm and will always choose to partner with them where we can. But know that you have power with other partners.
“Capping resale at face value is your right and we have a duty to encourage a fair resale market. We are often made to feel we don’t have a choice but there is always space to ask why and it is always your right to say no!”
Dean, who performed on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage last year and has become one of 2025’s biggest breakout stars, emphasised that live shows remain a deeply personal space for her.
“We are very serious about everything we do but live is a sacred space we have crafted over 10 years,” she wrote. “We lose money on nearly every show but feel passionately it is a worthy investment to create a moment for people to connect and lose themselves for an hour. We always do our best to make those spaces safe and accessible to everybody.
“Touts steal from artists and they steal from fans. They create inequality and hysteria. Capping resale at face value is your right and we have a duty to encourage a fair resale market,” she continued. “We are often made to feel we don’t have a choice but there is always space to ask why and it is always your right to say no!
“It’s not every day that you feel heard and understood,” she concluded, “so today is good day.”
Her comments arrive amid growing international scrutiny over ticketing practices. In the U.K., legislators recently confirmed plans to make it illegal to resell tickets for more than their original price following advocacy from major artists including Coldplay and Dua Lipa, who argued the change would “help democratise public access to the arts.”
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JoJo Siwa says she was hospitalized with sudden “excruciating” stomach pain just hours before her scheduled performance at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., on Friday (Nov. 28), revealing in a TikTok video that she suffered a ruptured ovarian cyst that caused internal bleeding.
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In the post, Siwa explained that she had been dealing with persistent discomfort for several days, which intensified any time she danced, walked or moved. “Every time that I’ve been dancing for the last couple of days or even just walking, my stomach would just really, really hurt,” she said. At first, she assumed the pain was related to menstrual cramps, adding that she tried to ease it with a warm bath. “That set it off 100 times worse,” she said.
After calling her mother for advice, Siwa said she was urged to phone an ambulance. At the hospital, doctors told her the cause: “One of my ovaries had a cyst on it that burst and was bleeding into my stomach,” she explained. She added that the blood in her abdomen triggered the intense pain. “Anytime that the blood in your stomach moves, that’s the bleeding in the stomach. It’s like brutal pain.”
Despite the medical emergency, Siwa still performed her Mall of America set later that day. She told fans she will undergo follow-up checks next week. “We’re going to keep it pushing,” she said, noting she has been instructed to return to the hospital immediately if she experiences vomiting or a recurrence of the severe pain.
The Minnesota stop followed the conclusion of her Infinity Heart U.K. and European tour, which wrapped earlier this month. Earlier in 2025, Siwa appeared on the U.K. edition of Celebrity Big Brother, where she was the subject of inappropriate comments and behavior from fellow contestant Mickey Rourke.
More recently, she released a cover of Kim Carnes’ “Bette Davis Eyes.” Carnes appeared to respond cryptically to the rendition in a TikTok, saying, “There is a difference between singing a song…and embodying it.”
Siwa has continued to tease new music and maintain a high profile across social media throughout the year. In her TikTok about the medical scare, she reassured fans that she expects to recover without further intervention, adding that doctors anticipate the situation will resolve on its own.
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As Aerosmith and YUNGBLUD’s collaborative album One More Time debuts at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 (dated Dec. 6), Aerosmith becomes the second group — and fifth act overall — with a newly-charting top 10 in each of the last six decades (1970s through 2020s).
One More Time also marks the first top 10 for YUNGBLUD (after four earlier charting titles) and the 10th top 10 for Aerosmith. The latter was last in the top 10 with its last full-length studio album, 2012’s Music From Another Dimension!, which debuted and peaked at No. 5.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Dec. 6, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Dec. 2. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Aerosmith notched its first top 10 on the Billboard 200 in 1976 (and only top 10 of the ‘70s) with Rocks (peaking at No. 3). The band then scored one top 10 in the ‘80s (1989’s No. 5-peaking Pump), three in the ‘90s (Get a Grip, No. 1; Big Ones, No. 6 and Nine Lives, No. 1), three in the 2000s (Just Push Play, No. 2; O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, No. 2 and Honkin’ On Bobo, No. 5), one in the ‘10s (Music From Another Dimension!, No. 5) and now one in the ’20s with One More Time.
Aerosmith is the second group, following The Rolling Stones, with at least one newly-charting top 10 in every decade from the 1970s through the 2020s. Among all acts, there are just five with a new top 10 in each decade in that span: Aerosmith, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and James Taylor.
The five-track One More Time was preceded by its first single, “My Only Angel,” which debuted at No. 1 on Hot Hard Rock Songs in October and climbs 7-6 (a new peak) on the most recently published Mainstream Rock Airplay chart (dated Dec. 6). On the latter ranking, “My Only Angel” marked the 25th top 10 for Aerosmith and the first for YUNGBLUD. “My Only Angel” is the first top 10 for Aerosmith on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart since 2004’s “Baby, Please Don’t Go” reached No. 7, and the band’s highest-charting hit since “Jaded” spent five weeks at No. 1 in 2001.
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Stray Kids claim their eighth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart as DO IT debuts atop the ranking dated Dec. 6. The set earned 295,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending Nov. 27, according to Luminate. Of that sum, traditional album sales comprise 286,000.
All eight of the group’s Billboard 200 chart entries have debuted at No. 1, beginning with ODDINARY in 2022. In September of this year, when KARMA opened atop the list, Stray Kids became the first act to debut at No. 1 with their first eight entries in the 69-year history of the chart. With DO IT’s debut, they extend that record. The Billboard 200 began publishing on a regular, weekly basis in March 1956.
In addition, with an eighth No. 1, Stray Kids extend their record for the most No. 1s among groups this century (since 2000).
Also in the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200 chart, the Wicked: For Good soundtrack debuts at No. 2, Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl falls from No. 1 for the first time (dipping 1-3 in its eighth week), Tate McRae’s So Close to What surges 21-6 following a deluxe reissue with additional songs, the Hazbin Hotel: Season Two soundtrack jumps 70-8 after its first full week of chart activity and Aerosmith and YUNGBLUD’s collaborative set One More Time arrives at No. 9.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Dec. 6, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Dec. 2. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of DO IT’s 295,000 first-week equivalent album units, album sales comprise 286,000 (it debuts at No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart), SEA units comprise 9,000 (equaling 13.98 million on-demand official streams of the sets songs) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum.
DO IT nets the seventh-largest debut week for an album, by units earned, in 2025. The year’s seven biggest debut weeks are: The Life of a Showgirl (4.002 million), Morgan Wallen’s I’m the Problem (493,000), The Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow (490,000), Sabrina Carpenter’s Man’s Best Friend (366,000), KARMA (313,000), Playboi Carti’s MUSIC (298,000) and DO IT (295,000).
In traditional album sales, DO IT logs the fourth-largest week of 2025 (debut or otherwise). The four biggest sales weeks in 2025 are the opening frames of: The Life of a Showgirl (3.48 million), Hurry Up Tomorrow (359,000), KARMA (296,000) and DO IT (286,000).
DO IT’s album sales were aided by its availability across seven CD variants (all containing collectible items such as photocards, posters and stickers, with some items randomized), including a signed edition.
As DO IT is mostly in the Korean language, it is the 30th mostly non-English-language album to hit No. 1, and the third of 2025 (following Bad Bunny’s Spanish-language DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS and KARMA). Four mostly non-English titles topped the list in 2024, and all were mostly Korean-language efforts. Of the 30 mostly non-English-language albums to reach No. 1, 20 are mostly Korean, six mostly (or all) Spanish, one mostly Italian, one entirely French and two mostly a blend of Spanish, Italian and French.
The Wicked: For Good film soundtrack, led by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, debuts at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 (the highest debut for a soundtrack in 2025) with 122,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 85,000 (it debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales, aided by seven vinyl variants and four CD variants, including one signed by Erivo and Grande), SEA units comprise 36,000 (equaling 47.27 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it debuts at No. 6 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise 1,000.
Wicked: For Good premiered in movie theaters on Nov. 21 and has earned over $270 million at the U.S. and Canada box office. It follows the first Wicked film, which was released in 2024. The first Wicked soundtrack also debuted (and peaked) at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, launching with 139,000 equivalent album units.
After seven straight weeks at No. 1, Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl falls from the top, dipping 1-3 in its eighth week on the list (86,000 equivalent album units earned, down 5%). Two former No. 1s trail Swift, as I’m the Problem descends 3-4 (75,000, down less than 1%) and the KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack is stationary at No. 5 (67,000, down 2%).
Tate McRae’s chart-topping So Close to What surges 21-6 with 64,000 equivalent album units earned (up 202%) following its deluxe reissue on Nov. 21 with five additional tracks added to the set’s digital download and streaming editions. Among the new cuts: “Tit for Tat,” which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 (dated Oct. 11).
Olivia Dean’s The Art of Loving is a non-mover in the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200, holding at No. 7 (49,000 equivalent album units earned, down 2%).
The Hazbin Hotel: Season Two soundtrack flies 70-8 on the Billboard 200 after its first full week of chart activity, marking the first top 10 from the popular Prime Video animated series. The set zooms up the list with nearly 46,000 equivalent album units earned (up 250% from its debut at No. 70 with 13,000 units from only two days of activity). The soundtrack was released on Wednesday, Nov. 19; most albums are released on Friday. The tracking week for the Billboard 200 runs Friday through Thursday each week.
In the tracking week ending Nov. 27, the Hazbin Hotel: Season Two album tallied 32,000 SEA units (equaling 46.58 million on-demand official streams for its tracks; it debuts at No. 8 on Top Streaming Albums), 13,500 in traditional album sales (it jumps 32-8 on Top Album Sales) and 500 TEA units.
The Season Two soundtrack surpasses the No. 13 debut and peak of the Hazbin Hotel: Season One soundtrack in February 2024.
With Wicked: For Good, KPop Demon Hunters and Hazbin Hotel: Season Two at Nos. 2, 5 and 8, respectively, there are three soundtracks in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 for the first time in more than six years. It last happened on the April 6, 2019-dated chart, when Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born, Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody and Mötley Crüe’s The Dirt were at Nos. 6, 9 and 10.
Aerosmith and YUNGBLUD team up for a No. 9 debut with their collaborative project One More Time. It’s the 10th top 10 for Aerosmith and first for YUNGBLUD. The set earned 39,000 equivalent album units. Album sales comprise 37,000 (it debuts at No. 3 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 2,000 (equaling 2.32 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The album’s first-week sales were aided by its availability across six vinyl variants (including one signed by YUNGBLUD), four CD iterations (two signed by YUNGBLUD and one where Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler spray painted across the CD booklets en masse and then those were collated into their packaging) and a cassette tape.
While YUNGBLUD visits the top 10 for the first time (after four earlier charting titles), Aerosmith clocks its first top 10 since 2012’s Music From Another Dimension! debuted and peaked at No. 5 that year. Further, Aerosmith is the second group, and fifth act overall, to have earned new top 10s in the 1970s, ‘80s, ‘90s, 2000s, ‘10s and ‘20s. Aerosmith notched its first top 10 in 1976 (and only top 10 of the ‘70s) with Rocks (peaking at No. 3). The band then scored one top 10 in the ‘80s (1989’s No. 5-peaking Pump), three in the ‘90s (Get a Grip, No. 1; Big Ones, No. 6 and Nine Lives, No. 1), three in the 2000s (Just Push Play, No. 2; O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, No. 2 and Honkin’ On Bobo, No. 5), one in the ‘10s (Music From Another Dimension!, No. 5) and now one in the ’20s with One More Time.
Aerosmith is the second group, following The Rolling Stones, with at least one newly-charting top 10 in every decade from the 1970s through the 2020s. Among all acts, there are just five with a new top 10 in each decade in that span: Aerosmith, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and James Taylor.
The five-track One More Time was preceded by its first single, “My Only Angel,” which debuted at No. 1 on Hot Hard Rock Songs in October and climbs 7-6 (a new peak) on the most recently published Mainstream Rock Airplay chart (dated Dec. 6). On the latter ranking, “My Only Angel” marked the 25th top 10 for Aerosmith and the first for YUNGBLUD. “My Only Angel” is the first top 10 on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart for Aerosmith since 2004’s “Baby, Please Don’t Go” reached No. 7, and the band’s highest-charting hit since “Jaded” spent five weeks at No. 1 in 2001.
Closing out the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200 is Summer Walker’s Finally Over It, which falls 2-10 in its second week (37,000 equivalent album units earned, down 52%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
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A$AP Rocky and Margaret Qualley star as a couple embarking on a new chapter together in Chanel’s latest short film.
Released Sunday (Nov. 30), the surreal three-minute clip, directed by French filmmaker Michel Gondry, opens with the rapper, 37, and actress, 31, waking up together in bed before Qualley rushes off to a New York City subway.
Rocky sneaks after her, sprinting through Manhattan streets and even swimming across a river — all in red silk pajamas — to reach her and propose in a romantically cinematic gesture. The silent visuals are set to music by Le Motel.
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The mesmerizing short serves as a teaser for Chanel’s Métiers d’Art 2026 show, set to debut Tuesday (Dec. 2) at 8 p.m. ET, with the full video releasing the same day.
A$AP Rocky, recently named Chanel’s newest ambassador, reflected on collaborating with Gondry, who is perhaps best known for directing Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which earned him an Oscar for best original screenplay in 2005.
“All of my music videos that I direct derived some inspiration from one of his films. I plan on directing my own feature. I look up to people like him,” Rocky told Vanity Fair.
After posting a teaser of the short film on Instagram, fans flooded the comments with humorous reactions, many referencing the rapper’s partner Rihanna, with whom he shares three children.
“It takes a brave woman to get in bed with Rihanna’s husband,” one wrote. Another added, “Boutta send this to RiRi.”
Qualley, meanwhile, is married to music producer and Bleachers frontman Jack Antonoff. The couple tied the knot in August 2023 in a star-studded ceremony attended by Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Channing Tatum, Zoë Kravitz and Cara Delevingne.
Watch Chanel’s short film, starring A$AP Rocky and Margaret Qualley, on Instagram below.
Limp Bizkit is honoring their late co-founder and bassist Sam Rivers.
During their first concert since Rivers’ passing in mid-October, the Fred Durst–fronted rap-rock band paid tribute to the musician with an emotional video at Mexico City’s Estadio Fray Nano on Saturday (Nov. 29).
The brief clip featured an image of Rivers accompanied by the messages “Sam Rivers, our brother forever” and “Sam Rivers, we love you forever.” As the video ended, the members of Limp Bizkit embraced one another while the crowd chanted the late bassist’s name.
Earlier in the day, drummer John Otto reflected on the loss of his close friend and bandmate in a heartfelt Instagram post.
“Today is going to be tough,” Otto wrote. “A first I never wanted to experience. Especially not now. You’ve been there for so many major firsts in my life. Some of my earliest memories were made with you. We grew up together. Laughed together. Realized our dreams together. And traveled the world together.”
He continued, “You’ve always been there. The godfather to my girls, my best friend – my brother. There will never be another you. We’re going to honor the life you lived and the love you spread with every show we play. You’ll always be with us.”
The drummer closed his message with gratitude for the band’s supporters. “Thank you to our fans for all the messages of support and tributes to Sam. It means the world to us. This one’s for you Sammy,” he wrote.
The Mexico City show featured bassist Richie Buxton (aka Kid Not), who also performs with Ecca Vandal, the group supporting Limp Bizkit on their upcoming South American dates.
Rivers passed away on Oct. 18 at age 48. An official cause of death had not been revealed at press time. The musician had been diagnosed with liver disease in 2011 after years of heavy drinking and underwent a liver transplant in 2017, following a temporary departure from the band in 2015. He rejoined Limp Bizkit in 2018.
After Rivers’ death, Durst shared an emotional tribute, calling it “so tragic he’s not here now” and writing that he’d shed “gallons and gallons of tears since yesterday,” adding, “My God, Sam’s a legend. He did it. He lived it.”
The band — also featuring guitarist Wes Borland, DJ Lethal and Otto — issued a joint statement honoring their beloved bandmate as well.
“Sam Rivers wasn’t just our bass player — he was pure magic,” they wrote. “The pulse beneath every song, the calm in the chaos, the soul in the sound. From the first note we ever played together, Sam brought a light and a rhythm that could never be replaced. His talent was effortless, his presence unforgettable, his heart enormous.”
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Hayley Williams is drawing a firm boundary ahead of her 2026 solo tour. The Paramore frontwoman, who recently announced an expanded run of dates due to high demand, said she intends her shows to be explicitly inclusive spaces — and made clear that anyone who holds discriminatory views should not expect to feel comfortable attending.
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In a new interview with Clash, Williams said she wants the tour to be a place where every fan can “feel welcome to the party,” but added that this commitment also requires her to take a public stance about who she does not want in the room.
“I don’t want racists around, and I don’t want sexist people around, and I don’t want people there who think that trans people are a burden,” she said. “I think that’s a hard line for me now.”
Williams explained that she hopes anyone holding those beliefs will “walk in the door and realise that the gang’s all here, all banded together around something positive,” adding: “All are welcome if you believe all should be welcome… If you don’t believe that, you’re not welcome.”
Her upcoming tour — which supports her latest solo album, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party — The North American leg kicks off on March 28 in Atlanta and willl include stops in Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, Nashville, Austin, Oakland, Los Angeles, and more, before she hits the UK and Europe in June next year.
Williams has long used her platform to advocate for equality, particularly in her home state of Tennessee. Last year, after declining an official state honor, she criticised the actions of the state’s Republican leadership, calling out what she described as “blatant racism” and encouraging young people to vote with equality in mind.
The singer has also spoken openly about the sexism she has faced throughout her career. In 2022, she said she avoided playing guitar on stage because of the likelihood of derisive comments, and in 2023 she addressed online backlash after postponing Paramore shows due to illness, calling out “internet bros” and clarifying that most rock bands would not co-sign that behaviour.
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Iggy Azalea is officially closing the door on her rap career.
The Australian-born artist, who has shifted her focus to entrepreneurial and digital ventures in recent years, reaffirmed that she does not plan to return to the music industry. The update came via Instagram on Friday (Nov. 28), when the “Fancy” rapper shared a selfie that prompted a fan to ask whether she had recently signed a new record deal.
“F*** no,” Azalea replied in the comments. “But I did consider signing, for weeks. I’m very sure I don’t want to come back to the music industry.”
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Her comment follows years of gradual distance from major releases. Azalea’s last studio album, The End of an Era, arrived in 2021 and marked a personal milestone, intended as a closing chapter before a pivot to new creative paths. Her 2014 debut, The New Classic, made a global impact with the Billboard No. 1 single “Fancy” and established her as one of the most commercially successful Australian rappers of the decade.
Earlier this year, Azalea publicly alleged on X (formerly Twitter) that Universal Music Group owed her what she described as “millions of dollars in back pay” from international royalties. She claimed the amount in question was in the “eight-figure range” and said the corporation “technically stole” earnings during her early career. UMG did not comment at the time, and Azalea has continued to discuss the issue while advocating for artist rights and royalty transparency online.
In August, she appeared on ABC News and spoke candidly about the pressures she experienced at the height of her fame. She recalled being labeled an “industry plant” early on and described the rap industry as a “battlefield.” “I was stepping on landmines left and right, and I just couldn’t survive it. It’s not survivable,” she said. She added that while she made mistakes along the way, the emotional toll of navigating the spotlight ultimately reshaped her relationship with music.
“There are some things I walked into and deserve, or things I could have done better,” she said. “But I can’t sit here all day long feeling sorry about that. It’s just part of life.”
Azalea has since focused on business ventures — including cryptocurrency projects and online creative work — and has not hinted at reconsidering her decision. Her latest comments suggest her retirement from music is firm, with no plans for a comeback on the horizon.
Trending on Billboard Vanessa Hudgens and husband Cole Tucker have welcomed their second child together. The High School Musical alum — and singer behind pop songs including 2008’s “Sneakernight” and 2006’s “Come Back to Me” — announced her newborn’s birth on Saturday (Nov. 29) with a photo of herself hooked up to monitors in a hospital bed. […]
