State Champ Radio Music
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Ryan Reynolds is his pal Taylor Swift’s biggest fan! The Deadpool actor took to Instagram on Thursday (Oct. 31) to share a series of photos and videos from one of Swift’s shows at New Orleans’ Caesars Superdome, which he attended with his wife Blake Lively and Rufus Wainwright. “When I’m 95 yrs old and my […]
From virtual music experiences headlined by The Weeknd to exclusive skins inspired by Ariana Grande, pop music and gaming have enjoyed a symbiotic relationship via Fortnite Battle Royale.
Now, with the announcement of its new season on Friday (Nov. 1), Fortnite is looking to infuse hip-hop into its gaming universe. Arriving on Saturday (Nov. 2), Fortnite Battle Royale‘s Chapter 2 Remix will feature iconic music and looks from hip-hop stars Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Ice Spice and Juice WRLD. In the new season, players can engage with each artist through themed gameplay locations launching each week of November — a first for the game. Fortnite‘s millions of players can also don individual Fortnite Shop outfits inspired by each of the four artists.
On Friday evening, Snoop Dogg and Ice Spice surprised New Yorkers in Times Square with a surprise performance, taking over nearly every billboard in the center of the Big Apple. Ice Spice kicked things off in her trademark ginger inches and a hot pink ensemble, delivering renditions of “In Ha Mood” and “Princess Diana.” Donning a fly black leather jacket and pants combo, Snoop repped the West Coast with a lively, Fortnite name-checking medley of “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” “The Next Episode,” “Gorgeous” and “What’s My Name?” To close out the show, the two emcees joined each other onstage to debut the flashy new trailer for Chapter 2 Remix, which features sneak peeks at the worlds the different rappers will preside over in the game.
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Snoop Dogg — who recently announced his forthcoming Dr. Dre-helmed Missionary LP (due Dec. 13) — will kick off the first week as the official icon for season 6 of Fortnite. Snoop will assume a boss role and have his own mythic weapon and different points of interest on the map, as will Ice Spice, Eminem and Juice WRLD in subsequent weeks. “My son Cordell’s a big Fortnite player with me, so when we had the opportunity we jumped on it as a new way to connect with my sound and style,” the Long Beach rap icon said in a press release. “Anyone can be Snoop in Fortnite.”
Juice WRLD — a new-gen rap star who tragically passed on Dec. 8, 2019 — will make his Fortnite debut beginning Nov. 21, when the “Lucid Dreams” rapper will lead week four of the new season. On Nov. 30 at 2:00 p.m. ET, Fortnite will launch a Remix: The Finale live event in celebration of Juice’s legacy and his love for Fortnite. All players who log in between 1:00 a.m. ET on Nov. 30 and 1 a.m. ET on Dec. 1 will receive the cel-shaded Slayer Juice WRLD Outfit. The Party Never Ends, Juice WRLD’s latest posthumous album, is due Nov. 22 via Grade A Productions and Interscope Records.
“You will see some really interesting ways of integrating music,” Emily Levy, director of strategic partnerships, exclusively tells Billboard. “And we are debuting music at different points of the season in interesting places.”
Ice Spice will bookend her 2024 by leading week three (beginning Nov. 14), during which she’ll bring fans “into her experience as the Princess of New York,” according to the release. This year, the Bronx rapper dropped her debut studio album — Y2K! — which reached No. 18 on the Billboard 200 and spawned “Think U the S–t (Fart)” her highest-peaking unaccompanied Billboard Hot 100 entry at No. 40.
Eminem has already had a massive 2024 with the release of his The Death of Slim Shady LP, and he’s set to close out the year by bringing some of that success to Fortnite as the key artist for the second week of the season, beginning Nov. 7. The 15-time Grammy winner originally debuted in Fortnite in December 2023, which spawned the release of his Fortnite Radio compilation featuring classics like “The Monster” and “Not Afraid.” The set reached No. 19 on Top Album Sales and debuted at No. 8 on Top Vinyl Albums on the charts dated March 30, 2024.
Sneaker culture is also a close relative to hip-hop, and Fortnite hasn’t forgotten about the sneakerheads. Chapter 2 Remix will also introduce Kicks, a new type of cosmetic included as part of the Remix Pass that will drop in the Fortnite Shop on Nov. 12. The initial lineup of Kicks will feature Nike and Jordan brands alongside Fortnite originals.
Fortnite‘s new season continues a year that has already featured in-game concerts and festival performances from superstars such as Karol G, Billie Eilish and Metallica.
As one of 2024’s most promising K-pop rookies, BABYMONSTER is closing out a stellar year with the girl group’s long-awaited full-length album DRIP that’s packed with globally appealing pop hits. The LP further positions the septet as a force in K-pop’s expanding international influence, blending genres and languages to create a universal pop experience.
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Led by the two singles “CLICK CLAK” and “DRIP,” the tracks make BABYMONSTER’s intentions of world domination clear with the multilayered linguistic and genre approach: “CLICK CLAK” is an English rap cut, where even the group’s powerhouse vocalists prove they can spit, while “DRIP” is a powerhouse K-pop jam incorporating dance music, hip-hop, EDM and powerhouse pop. G-Dragon (who also recently made his comeback to the K-pop scene) co-producing the latter and adding another level of sophistication and excitement, marking a significant co-sign from one of K-pop’s most iconic figures.
Both singles were accompanied by music videos that dropped this week with “CLIK CLACK” boasting more than 24 million views since its release on Wednesday (Oct. 30), while “DRIP” currently has a whopping 14 million views since its premiere less than 24 hours ago. Watch below:
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Another prominent K-pop figure, Mino of WINNER, also contributed to the album, co-writing the throwback hip-hop/pop hybrid “Really Like You.” At the same time, BABYMONSTER also showcased their own creativity as members Asa and Ruka wrote on several tracks, including the special duo song “Woke Up in Tokyo,” which weaves Japanese lyrics into the mix.
Deeper into DRIP, listeners will also be treated to the acoustic cut “Love, Maybe” and the 2000s-tinged “BILLIONAIRE” (both sung entirely in English), and a standout in the emotional dance anthem “Love in My Heart.”
With the physical release of DRIP in the U.S. coinciding with the album’s global drop, BABYMONSTER has a strong chance of making a splash on the Billboard 200 chart later this month — a feat few K-pop rookies can achieve on first try. But until the charts feel BAEMON’s impact, fans can enjoy streaming DRIP, and check out the “CLIK CLAK” video below:
Young Thug‘s father isn’t too happy about the conditions of his son’s release from jail.
Jeffrey Williams Sr. spoke with local Atlanta news outlet 11Alive outside of the courthouse last night and admitted, while being grateful that his son is finally out, he was “startled” by his son’s decision to enter a non-negotiated guilty plea because he wanted Thug to keep fighting.
“Well, I was kinda startled behind it,” he told reporters before saying he agreed with his son’s lawyers to keep trying to fight instead of entering a guilty plea. “Let’s keep fighting, you know, let’s make them continue to embarrass themselves, but at the same token, I never tried to interfere with his decisions and I support him.”
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He added, “I feel great that he’s going home, but at the same token, I still want him to fight, but that’s his decision. I raised him to be the man that he is. You know, I’ve always been in his life, from a pup to now. And I’m gonna continue to be in his life. As an adult, he has to make his own decisions.”
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Thugger Sr. was then asked about some of the conditions of his son’s release, one of which included not being allowed to visit the Metro Atlanta area for 10 years. “I’m totally against that, because this is where he’s from. To have a district attorney take that away from him — she’s from another state — To see her take a man away from where he’s from, to have to go live somewhere else, that’s offensive to me. I’m really offended by that.”
He was wearing a hat featuring the name of DA Fani Willis’ opponent, Courtney Kramer, in November’s upcoming election. “In order for us to get back to our normal life, we gonna have to put in some more work. But the work that we need to do foremost for the city of Atlanta, Fulton County? We need to get rid of the poison that’s in our system, and that’s the district attorney’s office, so vote Courtney Kramer.”
Williams Sr. has been vocal about supporting his son and Gunna while they both were embroiled in this ordeal. He came to Gunna’s defense multiple times when the YSL member was accused of being a snitch by some peers and fans after he took an Alford plea
You can watch the full interview below:
Mariah the Scientist can’t believe her boyfriend Young Thug is coming home. The Atlanta rapper was finally released from Georgia’s Fulton County Jail last night after spending the last two and half years fighting a RICO charge that could’ve put him behind bars for decades. Mariah was in Brooklyn, opening up for Latto during her […]
In the “The Stars Behind the Star” franchise, the editors of Billboard Latin and Billboard Español share stories that have not yet been told about those who are not usually in the spotlight. Think “everything you don’t see on camera” or “everything that happens behind the scenes.” These unsung heroes are essential to an artist’s team and their foundation. Today, we highlight celebrity photographer Jose “Chepe” DeVillegas.
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Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and proudly raised by his Puerto Rican Mother and his half-Cuban and half-Puerto Rican father, he feels himself very Puerto Rican.
Jose “Chepe” DeVillegas, commonly known as “Chepe” in the entertainment industry, has gained the love and trust of many within the field. He has photographed well-known artists such as Ivy Queen, Don Omar, Julián Gil and Natti Natasha. Chepe has also covered all the Latin music red carpets and conducted special photoshoots for various media outlets including Univision, Telemundo and Billboard, as well as numerous concerts over the years.
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In October, he was part of this year’s Billboard Latin Music Week, creating a behind the scenes visual experience with Billboard’s Chief Content Officer for Latin and Español, Leila Cobo.
Photoshoot “Chepe” for Ivy Queen
Jose “Chepe” DeVillegas
“I think it’s fascinating to be with Leila and see how she connects from a Young Miko to Alejandro Sanz, to Pepe Aguilar. And I don’t see that all the time. I think it It is very unique and special, her footprint in the Latin music industry. And I think that she has a lot of respect from generations of artists, from the new ones to the icons,” DeVillegas adds about this experience.
In the live music performances and entertainment industry, many elements come together, and numerous details are meticulously managed behind each concert, tour and festival. In an interview with Billboard, Jose “Chepe” shared his insights into the behind-the-scenes process of creating captivating experiences and memorable moments.
Photoshoot “Chepe” for Julián Gil
Jose “Chepe” DeVillegas
Who was the first celebrity you photographed?
I always tell people my godfather in this is Julián Gil. I didn’ t know much about his career because the last soap opera I saw was “Marimar.” So, I know that he did several soap operas, but I never saw any of them. But during the very high political time in Puerto Rico in 2019, I was always seeing him all the time, you know, on social media, on YouTube. Then I heard that they were having a play in Orlando and I told the promoters because at that time I was already taking the market in Orlando and I told them, look, when you see this figure, I want to be the photographer because I know they are very strong.
So, they gave me access to everything and every time they wanted to see the camera, they paused and I said, “Ah, this one does like the camera.” Then he approached me because he suddenly looked at me like, I didn’ t approach him or anything. This is a strategy that I’ ve always had. Kind of like mirroring the client. If they talk to you, you talk to them.
So, Julián approached me and said: “I want to see the photos.” And I showed him the pictures on my camera. It was a play that he did. So, after the play, he came up to me and asked me. So, I showed him, and he said, ‘ Wow, so good.’ Send it. I said, ‘ Okay, great.’ So, I sent it to him. Right away, he started following me. And he posted the pictures right away and tagged me. And after that he took me to every station in Orlando, every TV station, introduced me to everybody as his friend and photographer.
Jose “Chepe” DeVillegas
How difficult is it to gain trust in the industry?
I know there are many, many better than me. But I know I’m only one, you know? I’ m my own, there’ s nobody else like me. And I like connecting with people to the, depending, you know, on how far that can, they allow or the connection that we have together. I’ m interested in showing people what they want to show the people. And I want to protect their image. And I think when the artist realizes that, that you don’ t want to harm them, they lower their guards.
So, I try to make them feel good and I see how they flow and I, you know, I can adapt. And I respect them and I, you know, and I make sure I get respect.
Who have been your biggest inspirations?
A lot of photographers that maybe were getting the jobs that I wanted hmm and two of them that I kept coming up a lot was Alex Tamargo and his dad and his brother; they all work in the industry. So, I would see, if you know, see a great photo, it would say ‘Photo by Alex Tamargo’ all the time. And I tried to follow him. And I remember I would write him stories and say, oh, man. Okay, I’ m going to work with you. Your photos are great. He was really kind. And then the same was with Omar Cruz. Let’ s say, people in Español magazine or like Charitin will post a throwback photo that was iconic. It will always say Omar Cruz.
November is here, and with 2024 coming to a close soon, music stars are hardly slowing down with their new releases. The Weeknd and Anitta finally delivered their “São Paulo” collaboration from his upcoming album Hurry Up Tomorrow. The two debuted “São Paulo” in the titular city’s Estádio MorumBIS on Sept. 7 during a special one-night-only show that was livestreamed. “We knew it was […]
Incredibly, it’s been twenty years since JC Chasez released his debut solo album, Schizophrenic — his first and only solo foray following his time in *NSYNC. But after all that time — during which Chasez has explored various creative outlets, from judging America’s Best Dance Crew to, more recently, reuniting on two songs with his former bandmates — Chasez is back with an unexpected release.
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Playing With Fire is the concept album for a musical based on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, which Chasez co-wrote with longtime collaborator Jimmy Harry — and the singer stopped by Billboard News to discuss the project and how it pushed him creatively.
“We knew we wanted to write a musical, we just didn’t know what about,” says Chasez of the seeds of the project. “[Jimmy and I] come from pop music — we write different styles of pop music, but essentially our strengths are in pop music. [But] we’re more mature, we have more ideas than just the typical pop song, and this gave us the opportunity to express those ideas — to do something that’s bigger than three minutes and is a bit more focused but allows us to dream in different ways.”
Chasez is a deep theater fan who admits, “I could go to a show every night if I was lucky enough,” and he says Jesus Christ Superstar was their biggest inspiration for Playing With Fire. “They started with a concept album, and that’s kind of what inspired us to release it as an album first. If someone as smart and talented as Andrew Lloyd Webber thinks [it’s a good idea] is to release the music for a show first, why don’t we give it a shot?”
He also opens up about reuniting with *NSYNC for both “Better Place” (from Trolls Band Together) and “Paradise” from Justin Timberlake’s Everything I Thought I Was. “We’re all great friends, and we’re always talking,” says Chasez. “The conversation has been a little more open — right now I’m focusing on Playing with Fire, Justin’s on tour, Joey’s about to do & Juliet [on Broadway], but we’re always talking and anything’s possible in the future. It’s always gotta be for the right reasons.”
And speaking of potential reunions, he speaks about celebrating the 25th anniversary of fellow former Mouseketeer Christina Aguilera’s debut album with her — and the potential for them to do a duet someday: “If it was the right thing and organic, I’d be happy to sing with her anytime,” he says with enthusiasm.
Watch the full interview — including the story behind “Better Place,” how *NSYNC’s performance with Timberlake earlier this year in Los Angeles came together, and how Playing With Fire pushed Chasez vocally — above.
A new documentary series chronicling the rise and fall of Ace of Base, one of the biggest Swedish pop band exports of all time, following in the tradition of fellow Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers ABBA and Roxette, is coming this winter.
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Featuring unseen home movie footage and new interviews with members of the band, their business team, music executives, artists and cultural critics, Ace of Base: All That She Wants debuts in full Dec. 5 on Viaplay, a streaming service that hosts Nordic and European TV series and films.
The Swedish quartet — Ulf Ekberg and the siblings Jonas, Jenny and Malin Berggren — first saw success in America with “All That She Wants,” a No. 2 Hot 100 hit and Pop Airplay No. 1, but follow-up single “The Sign” rocketed them to the top of the Hot 100. It was a ubiquitous, era-defining, reggae-flavored dance-pop smash in the mid ‘90s, and remains the longest-leading No. 1 ever on the Pop Airplay chart (it dominated for 14 weeks in 1994).
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Ace of Base scored seven top 40 Hot 100 hits throughout the decade, including “Don’t Turn Around” (another Pop Airplay topper) from their U.S. debut album, The Sign, a repackaging of their European debut Happy Nation that topped the Billboard 200 when released by Arista. Naturally, Arista founder and industry legend Clive Davis is one of the interviewees in this docu-series, which also features sit-downs with Wyclef Jean, Nigerian-Swedish singer Dr. Alban (“It’s My Life”), the group’s manager, lawyer, A&R, bodyguard and one of their backup dancers to provide the full picture of their “warts-and-all” story. Ace of Base: All That She Wants also includes an interview with Billboard executive digital director Joe Lynch, i.e., the person writing this article.
In addition to their own hits, Ace of Base helped crack open the door for Swedish artists such as Robyn and The Cardigans to make inroads in the States — not to mention pop producers Denniz Pop and Max Martin, who would permanently shift the direction of commercial pop in America via their work with Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC.
You can check out the trailer below and the full three-part documentary on Dec. 5.
The intergalactic rap star is back with the sequel to 2020’s Eternal Atake. Read Billboard’s preliminary review and track ranking.
