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After dropping new song in “St. Chroma” last week and announcing that his seventh studio album, Chromakopia, is set to be released Monday, Oct. 28, in an effort to end the current industry standard of Friday midnight releases, Tyler, the Creator just gave fans the project’s second single and video, “Noid.” Explore Explore See latest […]
Between Megan Thee Stallion‘s “Hiss” and Future, Metro Boomin and Kendrick Lamar‘s “Like That,” hip-hop rang in 2024 with war. Now, as Halloween approaches, peace might be the new name of the game.
On Friday (Oct. 18), Young Thug wrote on X, “@Drake @1future @MetroBoomin we all bruddas. Music aint the same without us collabin.” The Billboard Hot 100-topping rapper — who has collaborated with all three of the rappers he mentioned — appeared on We Don’t Trust You, the Billboard 200-topping joint album between Future and Metro, which ignited the Lamar-Drake feud by way of “Like That.” Future did not respond to Thugger’s post, but he did share it on his own page, prompting fans to speculate about a truce that would bookmark one of the most shocking battles in modern hip-hop.
Lamar, for his part, did not acknwoledge the post — but he did sit with SZA for an interview in the latest issue of Harper’s Bazaar, in which he details what “Not Like Us” means to him. Megan, whose “Hiss” also took aim at Drizzy, announced the release of Megan: Act II, a deluxe reissue of her self-titled June LP, which topped R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Out Oct. 25, the revamped set will arrive just six days before her In Her Words documentary premieres on Prime Video on Halloween (Oct. 31).
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In legal news, Diddy was hit with yet another round of lawsuits on Sunday (Oct. 20), including one shocking allegation that he “drugged and raped a thirteen year-old girl at a house party” in the presence of unnamed celebrities (who also participated in the assault) following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards.
With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Dajah Dorn’s ode to the ’90s to Jordan Adetunji and Lil Baby’s new link-up. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.
Freshest Find: Dajah Dorn, “90s Fine”
The current era’s obsession with the ’90s is already insufferable, but if it gives us more records like Dajah Dorn’s “90s Fine,” then, by all means, let it continue. “They love my Southern demeanor/ Doing what I want, I’m a R&B diva, okay/ I’m just having my way/ Ain’t nothing bringing me down, I’m up now,” rap-sings over a laid-back drum-heavy hip-hop soul beat reminsicent of the subtle sensuality of ’90s Mary J. Blige. As the pre-chorus comes in and morphs into the hook, Dajah sharpens her delivery into straight singing, her honeyed tone and gentle vibrato complementing Buda and Grandz & Saint Cassius’ unfussy soundscape. It’s not often that a song inspired by the ’90s doesn’t sound like paint-by-numbers creation of a track from that era, but leave it to Dajah to truly deliver.
Nija, “Unruly”
In between penning Hot 100-topping hits for Ariana Grande (“Positions) and tracks for Beyoncé’s Grammy-winning Renaissance LP (“Cozy”), New Jersey multi-hyphenate Nija still finds time to write some bangers for herself. “Unruly,” her first solo offering since 2022’s “Love Like This,” extends her stay in the moody drill-meets-R&B lane she helped cultivate with 2022’s Don’t Say I Didn’t Warn You. “Rude, unruly/ They don’t come as bad as this, no/ One of one,” she proclaims over a skittering beat that nods more to sexy drill than its brasher forefather. With her lyrical embrace of raucous freedom when it comes to her love life — and life in genreal — Nija offers up a worthy female perspective to the still-raging slizzy era of New York drill.
Ari Lennox, “Smoke”
Back with her first solo singe of the year, Ari Lennox is throwing it back to Motown. Lennox has been open about both her struggle with social media and her sobriety journey, and she lets out all of her frustration on “Smoke.” “Talk shit now/ I might just slap a bitch in the face/ It could blow up/ You’re lucky I’m just lightin’ my sage,” she promises in the second verse of the doo-wop-infleceted, BongoByTheWay-helmed track. The driving force of “Smoke” is Ari’s impassioned vocal performance, her piercing timbre ringing across the track and nailing the sense of urgency that the hook is anchored by. “Save all your f—s for me/ I want all the smoke,” she proclaims — and she gives us no choice but to wholeheartedly believe her.
Lexa Gates & Zeelooperz, “Sweet.. Time”
Lexa Gates is here with her Elite Vessel debut album after spending the final 12 hours until the project’s arrival inside a glass box case in the middle of an NYC park. Brass woodwinds produce a jazzy backdrop for Gates to nestle her way through a timeless beat that could’ve arrived any of the last few decades. “Sweet.. Time” displays Gates’ full repertoire as a talented singer-rapper and she doesn’t waste a second packing a punch through listeners’ chests. “I love you so much I want to kill myself,” she pleads, before eventually handing the baton to Detroit’s Zeelooperz for a spicy assist.
Jordan Adetunji & Lil Baby, “Options”
If something’s not broken, don’t fix it. Jordan Adetunji builds off of the massive success of his Billboard Hot 100 hit “Kehlani” with “Options,” featuring an appearance from Lil Baby. JA continues experimenting with melodies, but installs a similar bass drum pattern that became looped in fans’ heads on “Kehlani.” Partners are only as faithful as their options and Adetunji has plenty of avenues to explore, but he prefers to hone in on a certain love interest. Lil Baby makes it two for two when connecting with singers recently following his 4batz collaboration last month.
Sofia Ly, “Needy”
Romance and an acoustic guitar have been a cathartic formula for R&B success throughout the genre’s existence. Sofia Ly returns with her second single “Needy” as the Cambodian-Canadian singer peels back the layers of a turbulent relationship while vulnerably sifting through her insecurities. “I wanted Needy to feel like having a conversation with myself,” she says about the poignant track. “It’s about battling that inner voice when you’re not sure if someone still cares, and how easy it is to second-guess everything when they start pulling away.” Essentially, love fades but the scars last forever. The 19-year-old recently inked a deal with LiveHelpLive/Pulse Records and is a name to keep an eye on going forward.
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The song becomes one of only six ever to lead for at least that long.
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Snoop Dogg wants to see more originality in rap these days. The Doggfather said in a new interview that he believes there are too many copycats running around hip-hop and there needs to be more artists looking to stand out rather than following the trends.
Snoop and Dr. Dre stopped by The Stephen A. Smith Show on Friday (Oct. 18), where the legendary West Coast duo spoke candidly while giving their thoughts on today’s landscape of rap.
“Be original,” Snoop said when asked what he would tell an aspiring artist. “Right now there’s so much copycatting, mimicking, sounding alike and imitation. Find your production, your sound — find your ear for who you are and be original even if it ain’t hitting. Stay you.”
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Dr. Dre chimed in about wanting to see artists find their sound with a specific collaborator, as he isn’t a fan of songs or albums with a multitude of producers involved in the creative process.
“Find your collaborator. I don’t like the fact there’s nine different producers on one album. I like the idea of one producer on one album,” Dre added. “The continuity is everything for me. I don’t know [when that started], but I don’t like it. If you’re a producer, you should be able to produce the entire album. That’s what I thought it was supposed to be. That’s what I was doing at the beginning.”
Snoop Dogg chalked it up to there being a plethora of beatmakers in rap rather than traditional producers. “I think the fundamentals was taken out of it,” Snoop said of the industry. “Now it’s just a phone that makes you an artist. Something stupid gets you five minutes of fame, and you take that and make a record and you got a two-and-a-half-minute song saying the same thing somebody else just said and now you considered hot.”
He continued: “It used to be about creativity and understanding the musicianship, harmony, melodies and that don’t even matter anymore.”
However, Dre feels there’s a shift in the market from “mumble rap,” and he thinks there’s the next Prince or Michael Jackson out there coming up to change the game.
“I feel like it’s a change happening now from all this mumble rap that’s happening now,” the legendary producer predicted. “There’s somebody in somebody’s garage that’s gonna be the next Snoop or Dre or the next Prince or the next Michael Jackson that’s coming up with something that’s change the game.
“It’s gotta happen right now and it’s wide open because everything that’s happening right now in the music game — especially hip-hop — is weird as f–k,” Dre declared. “It’s gonna get back to the musicianship. I’m seeing it happen.”
Snoop and Dre are reuniting for their first album in more than three decades since 1993’s Doggystyle with their Missionary follow-up, which is expected to arrive in November.
Original Iron Maiden singer Paul Di’Anno has died at 66 according to a statement from the late hard rock vocalist’s label, Conquest Music. “On behalf of his family, Conquest Music are sad to confirm the death of Paul Andrews, professionally known as Paul Di’Anno. Paul passed away at his home in Salisbury at the age of 66,” read Monday’s (Oct. 21) statement, which did not include the date or cause of death.
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Di’Anno was the lead singer for the legendary British metal group from 1978-1981, kicking off their 45-year run with his urgent, punk-inspired vocals on their self-titled 1980 debut, which featured the ripping lead-off track “Prowler” and the band’s turbo-charged eponymous anthem “Iron Maiden.”
He also sang on the band’s 1981 follow-up, Killers, which featured such knotty metal anthems as the opening instrumental “The Ides of March,” the pummeling “Wrathchild” and the blitzing barrage of “Purgatory,” which cemented the band’s pioneering mix of hard rock, punk and prog.
Iron Maiden issued a statement honoring Di’Anno on Monday featuring a picture of the singer with founding bassist — and reported chief antagonist while he was in Maiden — Steve Harris. “We are all deeply saddened to learn about the passing of Paul Di’Anno earlier today. Paul’s contribution to Iron Maiden was immense and helped set us on the path we have been travelling as a band for almost five decades. His pioneering presence as a frontman and vocalist, both on stage and on our first two albums, will be very fondly remembered not just by us, but by fans around the world,” read the statement.
“It’s just so sad he’s gone,” added Harris. “I was in touch with him only recently as we texted each other about West Ham and their ups and downs. At least he was still gigging until recently, it was something that kept him going, to be out there whenever he could. He will be missed by us all. Rest in peace mate.”
It concluded, “We were very grateful to have had the chance to catch up a couple of years ago and to spend time with him once more. On behalf of the band, Rod and Andy, and the whole Iron Maiden team, we extend our deepest sympathies to Paul’s family and close friends.”
Born in Chingford, East London on May 17, 1958, Di’Anno rose to prominence as the frontman of Iron Maiden, before splitting with the group before their 1982 commercial breakthrough with 1982’s The Number of the Beast, which introduced new vocalist Bruce Dickinson, who has held the gig ever since. After leaving Maiden, Di’Anno recorded a number of solo albums, as well as LPs with the bands Di’Anno’s Battlezone, Gogmagog, Killers, Praying Matins, Rockfellas and more.
The powerful singer continued to record and tour through 2016, when he was hospitalized for undisclosed medical reasons; at the time Blabbermouth reported that Di’Anno had been forced to perform from a wheelchair due to injuries from a number of motorcycle accidents. He also faced a number of other health challenges over the years, including a near-fatal battle with sepsis that landed him in the hospital for eight months in 2015.
“Despite being troubled by severe health issues in recent years that restricted him to performing in a wheelchair, Paul continued to entertain his fans around the world, racking up well over 100 shows since 2023,” read the statement from Conquest Music. Di’Anno first career retrospective album, The Book of the Beast, was released last month, featuring highlights of the songs he recorded post-Maiden.
According to an Oct. 10 post on Di’Anno’s FB page, he was slated to perform in Edinburgh on Dec. 30 of this year before that show was cancelled, though a string of UK dates later this month and in November were still slated to go on before his death.
Check out some of Di’Anno’s Maiden high points below.
He’s a “Lucky Man,” because the latest support act for Oasis’ upcoming reunion tour was announced Monday (Oct. 21). Richard Ashcroft of The Verve will join the Gallagher brothers on their upcoming U.K. and Ireland tour dates next summer. The band will play 19 sold-out shows beginning in Cardiff on July 4, with the trek including stops at stadiums in London, Edinburgh, Manchester and Dublin.
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“As a fan from day one I was buzzing for many reasons when the news of Oasis’s return was announced,” Ashcroft said in a statement. “I can say with no exaggeration that the songwriting talent of Noel and Liam’s pure spirit as a lead singer helped to inspire me to create some of my best work. It was the perfection of ‘Live Forever’ that forced me to try and write my own.”
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He added: “They dared to be great, made the dreams we had real and I will always remember those days with joy. Now it’s time to create more memories and I’m ready to bring it. See you next summer. Music is power.”
The Gallagher brothers first met Ashcroft in the when Oasis supported The Verve on tour back in 1993, prior to the release of Oasis’ debut single “Supersonic.”
In 1995, Noel Gallagher dedicated “Cast No Shadow” from their second album (What’s the Story Morning Glory?) to Ashcroft. The band then recruited Ashcroft to perform backing vocals on Be Here Now single “All Around the World” in 1997; Liam Gallagher returned the favor when he appeared on Ashcroft’s Acoustic Hymns Vol 1 rework album in 2021.
The Verve released four albums during its career, including Urban Hymns in 1997, which went to No. 1 on the U.K.’s Albums Charts and No. 23 on the Billboard 200. They also had success with singles such as “Bittersweet Symphony,” “The Drugs Don’t Work” and “Lucky Man.” Ashcroft boasts two further chart-topping albums in the Verve and in his solo career.
Additional names will be announced as support acts in due course for Oasis’ European shows. In North America, it has been announced that rock band Cage the Elephant will appear as a special guest for their sold-out run next August and September in Toronto, Chicago, New Jersey, Los Angeles and Mexico City.
The band also recently announced – and promptly sold out – a string of dates in Australia. Last week, Liam said that he and Noel would not be doing joint interviews as a result of their reunion to avoid “intrusive” questions.
Cruel World festival will return in 2025 with headliners New Order and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. Southern California promoter Goldenvoice (the folks behind Coachella) will head back to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Saturday, May 17, with additional performances from legendary acts Devo, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Death Cult, Garbage, […]
Liam Payne‘s older sister Nicola has publicly paid tribute to the 31-year-old singer following his death.
On Monday (Oct. 21), five days after the One Direction star died after falling from the third floor of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Nicola shared a carousel of photos of herself with Liam and other members of their family on Instagram, including snaps of him interacting with his niece, Ffion. “When I saw the news pop up on my phone that you had left us I went cold,” she wrote. “I wanted so much for this to be untrue.”
“I have spent days hoping that it was a mistake and somebody has got it wrong,” Nicola continued. “You were truly too good for this earth, you are an angel who just lived for making people smile and happy.”
Nicola went on to praise her “brilliant” baby brother and defend him against public misconceptions about his character, writing, “Unfortunately this cruel world is always [too] quick to judge someone from a few 5 second clips, they then think it entitles them to be able to speak like they know you.”
“We knew you and we loved you,” she added. “I hope you have finally found peace up there and that you’ll continue to look after us all as you have done in life. We will make sure Bear knows about his daddy and how much you loved him, we promise this.”
Liam died Oct. 16, and is survived by his 7-year-old son, Bear, whom he shares with ex-partner Cheryl Cole. In the days since his death, countless friends, fans and family members have posted messages of grief, including all four of the musician’s former bandmates: Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik.
The “Strip That Down” singer’s other older sister, Ruth Gibbins, also shared a statement two days before Nicola. “Liam, My brain is struggling to catch up with what’s happening and I don’t understand where you’ve gone,” Gibbins wrote Oct. 19. “I just want to drive to your house and walk in to music blasting and find you sat there writing a song.”
Jimmy Fallon has loaded up his sleigh with a gang of A-list stars for his first holiday album. On Monday morning (Oct. 21), the Tonight Show host revealed the track list for Holiday Seasoning, in his typically cheerful fashion in a brief video posted on Instagram in which he “unwraps” each feature on the collection […]
This week’s crop of new country tunes includes Benjamin Tod highlighting a range of country sounds on his new album Shooting Star. Elsewhere, Bailey Zimmerman and Max McNown both offer up songs about finding and offering hope when mental health struggles rage, while Scotty Hasting teams with Lee Brice and Dolly Parton for a new version of a song previously recorded by Trace Adkins.
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Check out all of these and more in Billboard’s roundup of the best country songs of the week below.
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Benjamin Tod, Shooting Star
Tod, known for his work as part of the Lost Dog Street Band, issues his fourth solo album with Shooting Star, a set that weaves through a sampling of sounds drawn from the spectrum of country music decades, with each song helmed by his raw, aching vocal. He articulates the honkytonk of “Tramp Like Me,” the string-laden countrypolitan in “Nothing More,” and the heaps of gospel-tinged, piano-laced sounds on his Sierra Ferrell collaboration “One Last Time.” His raw, aching vocal shines on “I Ain’t The Man.” Elsewhere, on the title track, this Nashville-area native delivers a stinging criticism of machinations of Nashville’s Music Row, singing, “I don’t kneel for you or anyone.” As with his previous output, Shooting Star evinces Tod’s masterful songwriting and offers a balm for lovers of traditional country sounds.
Midland feat. Kaitlin Butts, “Vegas”
Midland just released a deluxe version of their recent album Barely Blue, including a revised version of “Vegas,” their satiny, Strait-esque ode to Sin City. This time they welcome Red Dirt stalwart Kaitlin Butts, who earlier this year made waves with her theatrical album Roadrunner! The trio’s knack for preternatural harmonies remains front and center, further elevated by Butts’ self-assured twang, as the song bristles with a neo-traditional country sound.
Max McNown, “Hotel Bible”
The Oregon-born, Nashville-based McNown first broke through with “A Lot More Free,” which propelled him to the top of Billboard’s Emerging Artist chart this year. He follows with “Hotel Bible,” a raw, heartland-folk track shot through with textured guitar and a burst of joyous percussion. Here, he comes alongside a lover who “can’t shake that sinking feeling,” provides a heartening, hope-filled reassurances, reminiscing on times they “sipped on wine and swore we’d change the world.” Overall, “Hotel Bible” marks a solid follow-up to McNown’s breakthrough hit, one that positions him as a newcomer worth watching.
Bailey Zimmerman, “Holding On”
Zimmerman follows his “Holy Smokes” single with this pleading track written by Austin Shawn and Blake Whiten. “Holding On” finds Zimmerman delving into themes surrounding mental health on lyrics such as “There was a time when I had the fight/ And I could’ve made it through one more night, but I’m losing my mind.” Ultimately, however, he finds the strength and comfort he’s seeking in the commitment of a loved one, which helps him overcome darker moments. Sonically, this bruising track falls squarely within Zimmerman’s wheelhouse, a vessel for his grainy vocal — though it pares back slightly on the heavily rock-oriented instrumentation of some of his previous efforts, enough to let the song’s timely message shine through.
Kelsea Ballerini, “First Rodeo”
Ballerini offers a preview of her upcoming album Patterns with this languid track about taking risks and establishing new patterns in the wake of a breakup. “Take my heart but take it slow/ ‘Cause this ain’t my first rodeo,” she sings, infusing her vocal delivery with a tenderness as she examines a newfound relationship with hope and a bit of trepidation. Meanwhile, as she continues to deepen her emotionally-excavating style of songwriting, she melds it with her signature brand of hazy, glistening country-pop. Ballerini’s album Patterns releases Oct. 25.
Scotty Hasting, Lee Brice and Dolly Parton, “’Til The Last Shot’s Fired”
Hasting welcomes Brice and Parton for this remake of Trace Adkins’s somber 2009 tribute to fallen military personnel. Hazy guitar lays the soundscape, as U.S. Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient Hastings takes the first verse, sung from the perspective of a soldier killed during the Civil War, before Brice picks up the second verse depicting the story of a soldier who dies during World War II. Both plead for the end of life-taking battles and wars; toward the end, their weathered voices are balanced as Parton’s airy, shimmering soprano joins in, offering levity and infusing the song’s somber message with hope.