News

13 Feb 2025

Tyla Taps Sean Paul for ‘Push 2 Start’ Remix: Stream It Now

Tyla tapped Sean Paul for the “Push 2 Start” remix that dropped Friday (Feb. 14).

“Everyone loves Sean Paul, there’s so many songs of his that I absolutely loved growing up,” she tells Billboard while singing the hook from his 2003 hit “I’m Still in Love With You.” “All those songs are so nostalgic and special and vibey. I really wanted that feeling on the song. And he’s been speaking to me about wanting to do something, so I felt like this would be the perfect thing.”

This wouldn’t be the first time the South African singer collaborated with a Jamaican artist. She recorded “Jump” with dancehall star Skillibeng and Gunna on the original version of Tyla.

“Push 2 Start” was originally released in October as one of three new tracks on the deluxe edition of Tyla’s self-titled debut album. It became her second entry on the Billboard Hot 100 following her top 10 smash “Water,” peaking at No. 88, and spent eight weeks atop U.S. Afrobeats Songs.

Trending on Billboard

The 23-year-old artist performed “Push 2 Start” for the first time at the 2024 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show as well as the MTV Europe Music Awards, where she won best Afrobeats, best R&B and best African act, and the Billboard Music Awards, where she won top Afrobeats act and top Afrobeats song.

Tyla will receive the Impact award at Billboard‘s annual Women in Music event, which will take place Saturday, March 29, at YouTube Theater at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif.

Listen to the “Push 2 Start” remix below.

13 Feb 2025

Sabrina Carpenter Drops Expanded ‘Short n’ Sweet’ Album Featuring Dolly Parton Collab & More: Stream It Now

Sabrina Carpenter‘s Short n’ Sweet era just got even sweeter. The 25-year-old pop star unveiled the deluxe edition of her Billboard 200 chart-topping album on Friday (Feb. 14) as the ultimate Valentine’s Day gift to her fans.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

She announced the expanded version of the project earlier this month, just two days after winning her first-ever Grammys. Short n’ Sweet deluxe features a new version of “Please Please Please” featuring Dolly Parton, plus bonus tracks like “15 Minutes,” “Couldn’t Make It Any Harder,” “Busy Woman” and “Bad Reviews.”

“Yes that does say featuring Miss Dolly Parton…. ???she wouldn’t want me to swear but holy s–t!!!!!” Carpenter wrote alongside the social media announcement. Her original LP arrived in August and spent two weeks atop the Billboard 200, marking Carpenter’s first-ever No. 1 album.

Trending on Billboard

“Please Please Please” became Carpenter’s first chart-topper on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart and earned the star a Grammy nod for song of the year at the 2025 awards, though she ultimately lost to Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” However, she didn’t go home empty handed. Of her six nominations at this year’s ceremony, her Short n’ Sweet lead single “Espresso” won best pop solo performance, while the album won best pop vocal album.

Carpenter wrapped the North American leg of her Short n’ Sweet tour in the fall, and is gearing up to take the trek to the United Kingdom and Europe, kicking off on March 3 in Dublin, Ireland.

Listen to Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet deluxe version in full below.

13 Feb 2025

Blue Note Jazz Club’s London Expansion at Risk Over Fears of Rising Crime

Plans for New York City’s iconic Blue Note Jazz Club to expand to the U.K. could be at risk, with London’s Metropolitan Police Service expressing fears of a potential “uptick in crime”.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

According to The Standard, plans are in place for a 350-seat venue to be established in the basement of the St Martins Lane hotel in Covent Garden. If the application is approved, the venue would be open until 1am, seven days a week.

However, a Licensing Sub-Committee Report from the City of Westminster has outlined a number of objections from the local police enforcement, who have objected to the venue’s construction on the grounds it would undermine the licensing objective of “prevention of crime and disorder”.

Trending on Billboard

Airing their fears at a hearing with the Council on Thursday (Feb. 13), officers claimed that granting the application for the venue would “expose more people to crime and disorder in the immediate area and further afield”. The report issued by the City of Westminster also included diagrams outlining antisocial behavior, robbery, theft, and violence in the immediate area, with the Metropolitan Police Service stating their belief that the addition of the new venue “could add to crime, disorder and public nuisance within the immediate area”.

“Police are concerned that if the LSC grant this application within the CIZ [the West End Cumulative Impact Zone], there would be an increase in demand on an already overstretched police service and other emergency services,” the report added, noting that despite their objections, police have however met with the applicant to discuss matters.

The report and hearing also included statements from unnamed local residents who shared their concerns and suggestions for the potential venue. These included recommendations that the venue’s operating hours be limited to 11pm in order to limit the “potential for crime and exploitation of vulnerable jazz lovers“

“It is suggested that it is extremely likely that some of the dispersing jazz lovers may be inebriated to a greater [or] lesser extent [or] perhaps slightly disorientated by their emergence in to the cool night air,” one resident wrote. “They will be immediately vulnerable to the gangs of criminals who already prey on similar groups of people in the Soho area. The 1:00 am exit could become a crime hot spot.”

The applicant has however responded to these concerns in the report, noting that a 1am closing time is “integral to the music scheduling in the basement and the viability of the cultural use” of the venue.

If the application for the venue is approved, it would become the latest iteration of the Blue Note Jazz Club to open around the world, and the first in the U.K.. Founded in New York City in 1981, the club has since expanded to other locations throughout the U.S. (including venues in California and Hawaii), and internationally (including Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Milan, Beijing, and Shanghai).

13 Feb 2025

Offset Rings in Valentine’s Day With ‘Ten’ Single: Stream It Now

Offset is spending his Valentine’s Day loving his deep pockets on his new single “Ten,” which he dropped on Friday (Feb. 14) via Motown Records.

“I don’t need you, I got money/ I don’t miss you, I got money/ Love you, but not like money,” he raps with a mischievous, sing-song cadence.

“Ten” arrives two months after his last solo single “Swing My Way,” and model Anok Yai starred in the accompanying music video that was directed by Kid Art. Last year, Set collaborated with the late Juice WRLD (“Celebrate”) from his third posthumous, fifth and final studio album The Party Never Ends, Gunna (“Style Rare” and “Prada Dem”), Blxst (“Risk Taker”) and Killer Mike (“EXIT 9,” also with Blxst). He released his sophomore studio album Set It Off in October 2023, and the set peaked at No. 2 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and No. 5 on the Billboard 200.

The single comes just after Cardi B filed for divorce from the Migos rapper in August, one month before they welcomed their third baby. “Slowly but surely, everybody gotta go their separate ways,” she said in October. “My kids gotta get used to that, ‘No, you’re not going to come home every single day and your dad is gonna be here.’ Slowly, but surely.”

Last month, Cardi appeared to accuse Offset and his mother, Latabia Woodward, of robbing her during a rant on X Spaces. “I ain’t listen after you and your momma robbed me,” she claimed. “Yeah, you and your mom robbed me cold, wiped my nose. Told you stop f—ing playing with me.”

Stream “Ten” below.

Trending on Billboard

13 Feb 2025

Dexta Daps Celebrates Valentine’s Day With New ‘Lockdown’ Single: Stream It Now

After winning performer of the year (dancehall) at last year’s Caribbean Music Awards, Jamaican reggae sensation Dexta Daps is set on securing the next Valentine’s Day anthem with his new “Lockdown” single.

Over waltz-evoking guitars, Dexta forgoes the fete to spend some intimate one-on-one time with his special lady singing, “I’ve been staying home lately because outside has been too much for me/ Spending quality time with my baby/ I could be somewhere out there in the club, but I’m here with you making love/ There is beauty inside when two lovers lockdown.” Though it’s nearly impossible for the phrase “lockdown” not to invoke memories of the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dexta’s smoldering vocal delivery — which blends the intricate rhyme schemes of dancehall with sultry R&B riffs and instrumentation — prevents that era from completely cannibalizing the song.

“Lockdown” — which hit DSPs on Friday (Feb. 14) — is Dexta’s second release of the year. Last month (Jan. 10), he released “X-Gal,” a Dretegs-produced track whose official video has amassed over two million views in just one month. Since the release of “X-Gal,” Dexta has dedicated his official Instagram feed to teasing behind-the-scenes footage of the “Lockdown” music video. “[One] ting, if you work with Dexta Daps, you gonna laugh,” he quipped in one caption. “Well, except the [camera] man!”

Trending on Billboard

Known for hits such as “Shabba Madda Pot” and “Breaking News,” Dexa Daps earned his first entry on Top Reggae Albums with 2020’s Vent (No. 10). Three years later, he notched his first entry on the U.S. Afrobeats Song Chart with “Bop” (No. 22), a Davido collaboration from the Nigerian star’s 2023 Timeless LP.

Listen to “Lockdown” below:

13 Feb 2025

Drake & PartyNextDoor Return With ‘$ome $exy $ongs 4 U’ Album: Stream It Now

The long-awaited joint album from Drake and PartyNextDoor is finally here. The years-in-the-making project, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U hit streaming services on Friday (Feb. 14) to spice up Valentine’s Day for the lovers and hopeless romantics out there.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

$ome $exy $ongs 4 U is loaded with 21 tracks and 74 minutes of runtime. The effort is Drake’s first full-length project since 2023’s For All The Dogs (outside of the 100 Gigs EP drop) and PartyNextDoor’s P4, which dropped in 2024.

Drake brought out PND earlier this week during a concert in Melbourne as his OVO signee surprised the Australian crowd on his Anita Max Wynn Tour.

Trending on Billboard

“I got an album coming out on Feb. 14 with my brother PartyNextDoor. It’s called $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, but it’s some turned-up songs for you on there, too, and there’s some personal feelings on there for you,” Drake told the crowd during a show. “Hopefully, whoever you’re with on Valentine’s Day, hopefully y’all can share that experience together.”

The 6 God will have plenty of new music to perform when he hits the stage this weekend in Sydney where he’ll hit the stage for a handful of shows before heading to Brisbane.

Drake also revealed the cover art for $$$4U earlier this week, which finds Drizzy and PND rocking fur coats in front of the Marilyn Monroe Towers in Canada.

The duo has shown off their potent chemistry in the past on tracks such as “Come and See Me,” “Recognize,” “Members Only,” “Loyal,” “Preach, “Since Way Back” and more.

Stream $$$4U below.

13 Feb 2025

JISOO’s Debut Solo Mini-Album ‘AMORTAGE’ Is Here: Stream It Now

It’s JISOO’s time to shine. The star, who recently celebrated her 30th birthday, unveiled her highly anticipated debut solo mini-album, AMORTAGE, fittingly on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14).

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The four-song mini-album includes the tracks “Earthquake,” “Your Love,” “Tears” and “Hugs & Kisses.” Blissoo and The Wavys produced all the songs, while JISOO co-wrote all four tracks alongside Jordan Roman and a series of collaborators. The K-pop superstar previously revealed that the project’s unique title is a mash-up representing “a montage of love.”

JISOO made her solo debut in 2023 with the singles “FLOWER” and “All Eyes on Me,” but AMORTAGE will represent her first full project outside of BLACKPINK, following on the heels of solo efforts from members LISA, JENNIE and ROSÉ. As part of BLACKPINK, she’s notched nine songs on the Billboard Hot 100 and became the third South Korean act ever to top the Billboard 200 with sophomore album, Born Pink. In 2023, the group made history as the first Korean act to headline Coachella.

Trending on Billboard

AMORTAGE also marks JISOO’s first project since she signed a global label deal with Warner Records for her solo output in January. “I’m excited about this new era and the continuation of my musical journey,” she said at the time of the announcement. “I feel like I’m just getting started and I’d like to thank the BLINKs for all of their love and support. This is just the beginning and I’m thrilled to kick off this seismic moment with Warner Records.”

Listen to JISOO’s AMORTAGE in full below.

13 Feb 2025

Live Nation Urban Announces Investment Partnership With Breakr, Which Aims To Empower Creators

HipHopWired Featured Video

Business And Economy In Washington D.C.

Source: NurPhoto / Getty

Live Nation Urban, helmed by its president Shawn Gee, announced on Thursday (Feb. 13) an investment partnership in the Breakr platform, which aids creators in marketing their wares. Breakr, founded by a pair of brothers, aims to empower recording labels, online content creators, and related creatives in their marketing endeavors.

Breakr, founded in 2020 by siblings Anthony and Ameer Brown, frames its company as one that “operates at the intersection of music, creators, and technology, empowering music labels, creative agencies, owned media properties, and brands to discover, select, pay, and contract with independent online content creators for promoting songs, products, and services.”

With the backing of Live Nation Urban, Breakr introduced its BreakrPay™️ system, which puts its focus on making paying creatives a seamless process and cutting down on payment delays. In short, BreakrPay™️ is designed to make sure that content creators and influencers, all of whom truly push brands to the forefront, are paid equitably and on time while doing away with the outdated net 30-90 payout structure.

Breakr has broken deals in the past with Sony Music, Interscope, and BMG among other partners in order to push through innovative musicians in the TikTok and Instagram spheres to break their records and reach larger audiences. Breakr has also worked with brands such as Celsius, Samsung, Billboard, and more.

“The creator economy has changed the way we all connect with audiences, driving innovation and economic activity at an unprecedented scale. Breakr is a tech platform that was a core part of Live Nation Urban’s marketing mix for the better part of a year. After meeting the founders and understanding their vision, it was an easy decision for us to invest in Tony and Ameer and their trail-blazing platform,” said Shawn Gee, Founder and President of Live Nation Urban in a statement. “Our investment reflects our belief in the founders and in the transformative power of creators and the technology that empowers them to thrive.”

Anthony Brown, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Breakr added in. the statement, “From Breakr’s founding, projects like our #RoadtoRollingLoud competition with Rolling Loud to our extensive work with indie labels as well as the ‘Big 3,’ we’re committed to creating opportunities, discovering talent, and financially empowering creators and change-makers worldwide. Our partnership with Live Nation Urban and Shawn is the exciting beginning of a new chapter where we can expand our vision further than ever before, particularly with brands.”

“Breakr’s proprietary technology is revolutionizing the way brands and agencies connect with creators, offering seamless campaign management, real-time analytics, and instant payments—all within a single ecosystem. Our white-label infrastructure empowers partners to scale their operations effortlessly while maintaining full control over their campaigns and finances. This partnership with Live Nation Urban will allow us to expand our reach and continue developing industry-leading solutions that drive measurable impact in the creator economy,” shared Ameer Brown, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, of Breakr.

The Live Nation Urban investment will be under a new venture fund known as the Black Lily Capital Fund and has involvement from the larger Live Nation outfit. This fund will grant support to  Black founders who work within or are connected to the realm of live music with a special dedication given towards newer businesses.

Learn more about Breakr here.

Live Nation Urban X Breakr

Source: Live Nation Urban / Breakr

—

Photo: Breakr/Live Urban Nation/Getty

13 Feb 2025

Porter Robinson Covers Fontaines D.C.’s ‘Favourite’ for ‘Like a Version’

Porter Robinson has delivered a little bit of romance, just in time for Valentine’s Day.

The U.S. producer has shared his energetic, pop-influenced take on Irish outfit Fontaines D.C.’s 2024 single “Favourite” as part of his recent appearance on Like a Version, the long-running covers segment from Australian radio station triple j.

Recorded during Robinson’s Australia tour earlier this month but aired on the morning of Friday, Feb. 14 (Australian time), the cover was well-timed to coincide with Valentine’s Day, with the original track even closing out Fontaines D.C.’s Romance album last year.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The cover is emblematic of Robinson’s recent stylistic shift, with 2024’s Smile! ? seeing him move away from his electronic roots and introducing sounds more aligned with the pop-punk and hyperpop genres. The change in sonic focus was a bold move for Robinson, and though the album became his first not to chart on the Billboard 200, it did peak at No. 10 on the Dance/Electronic Albums chart.

Fontaines D.C., meanwhile, also experienced something of a change in sound for their album Romance. While their previous efforts were more post-punk influenced, their fourth LP was somewhat more polished and aligned with the alternative rock genre.

Trending on Billboard

It was a commercially-successful change, however. It became the band’s first album to reach the Billboard 200 (hitting No. 97), and it earned them two Grammy nominations, including Best Rock Album and Best Alternative Music performance for lead single “Starburster”.

“’Favourite’ was, no pun intended, one of my favorite songs of the last year,” Robinson said in a post-performance interview with triple j. “It was the song that made me a fan of Fontaines D.C. I just love it. I love major-key music. I love music that’s extremely catchy and extremely hooky. And I love the way that this song feels like it’s constantly tumbling forward.”

Robinson’s Like a Version session also featured an original rendition of “Cheerleader”, and adds to a long history of memorable performances on the program. 

Having first launched in 2004, the series has gone from being a near-impromptu acoustic affair to featuring larger studio productions. Numerous artists have taken part over the past two decades, with the likes of Billie Eilish, Childish Gambino, Arctic Monkeys, and more reinventing classic tracks in the process. As Robinson explains, the history and impact of the segment was not lost on him.

“I was so nervous to do this [performance], because I really, really do consider it an institution,” he explained. “Like a Version is a musical institution, and I wanted to make sure I put my best foot forward on it, respected the format and gave something that was listenable.

“This isn’t just like a video that lives online, this gets heard and this gets played,” he added. “So I just wanted to respect the listener to be like, ‘Let’s make this as good as it can be’.”

13 Feb 2025

Mark Pritchard and Thom Yorke Unite for New Single, ‘Back in the Game’

Mark Pritchard and Thom Yorke are “Back in the Game”, with the pair joining forces once again for a new single.

Pritchard, who has spent more than 30 years as an electronic musician and producer, first teamed up with the Radiohead and The Smile frontman back in 2016, with Yorke providing guest vocals on “Beautiful People” for Pritchard’s Under the Sun record. Five years earlier, Pritchard had also shared a pair of remixes of Radiohead’s “Bloom”, with both versions (one of which was released under his Harmonic 313 alias) appearing on the TKOL RMX 1234567 album.

Much like their previous collaboration, “Back in the Game” sees Yorke’s vocals digitally distorted by Pritchard, this time by way of the H910 Harmonizer, the world’s first commercially-available digital audio effects device.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

The track has also been a staple of Yorke’s recent live sets, with the musician having debuted the song in Christchurch, New Zealand in October as part of his Everything solo tour and playing it at every show since.

Trending on Billboard

“Back in the Game” comes accompanied by a surreal, kaleidoscopic Jonathan Zawada-directed visual which combines both analog and digital techniques. In a statement, Zawada explained that an early demo of the track saw him envision a cocky, strutting John Travolta in the final scene of Staying Alive, albeit with a more sinister approach.

“Slowly a version of that visual arose around a character wearing a kind of giant parade head with a fixed expression of mania stuck on their face, such that you couldn’t tell if their endless march was one of aggression or celebration,” Zawada explained. “The more I paid attention to the lyrics the more details began to fill themselves out and the overall concept began to form [a] parade of many characters marching past a building from within which everything was being thrown out of a window and into a giant bonfire.

“Ultimately the film for ‘Back in the Game’ ended up depicting a sort of blind celebration taking place as civilization slowly deteriorates around it, a kind of progression through regression. Overlaid onto this is an exploration of how and where we choose to place value in our collective cultural expression and how we collectively confront major cultural shifts in the 21st century.”