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After performing at Viña del Mar, Bacilos sits down to talk about how they feel about their performance, being huge Carín León fans, how their career has changed since they first started, releasing Pequeños Romances as independent artists and more!
Ingrid Fagardo:Hi, friends at Billboard, we’re here at Viña del Mar, finally. Today, we’re here with Bacilos. How are you?
Bacilos:Really good, thank you. What a great invitation, and it’s great to be considered for Viña, thank you.
Ingrid Fagardo:We’ve really enjoyed this week in different forms. We’ve seen you guys as judges. How do you feel about Bacilos:this week being a judge and being a fan?
Bacilos:Because we’ve also had the opportunity to see artists that we admire on the stage, and obviously we admire the guys to have the courage to come here, to this novelty of a stage, and to be able to come to this monster. It requires a lot, it inspires a lot, and there’s a lot of respect.
Ingrid Fagardo:It’s the first time you’re judging right?
Bacilos:Yes, the first time.
Ingrid Fagardo:I know that the night when you guys were performing, you guys made us dance. It was a really, I don’t know, it was a night full of partying. It didn’t matter how cold it was, the time didn’t matter, it was literally a Bacilos party.
Bacilos:Yes, it was beautiful. The people were great. After Marc performed … Well to sing and perform after Marc felt like a responsibility, a challenge almost, but the people stayed. They stayed outside on a cold night.
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The sun is sticking around a bit longer, the temperatures are rising bit by bit — it looks like spring really is on the way! It’s been a relatively quiet March so far after a particularly jam-packed February, but if anyone is keeping up that momentum, it’s Doechii.
On Monday (March 10), Billboard named the Grammy-winning Tampa MC its 2025 Woman of the Year, making her the first female rapper to earn the honor since Cardi B in 2020. Over the weekend (March 8) — after getting stamps of approval from fashion giants Anna Wintour and Thom Browne during Paris Fashion Week — Doechii collected an incomparable co-sign. Ms. Lauryn Hill brought the “Denial Is A River” rapper to the stage for a joint performance of her 1998 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit, “Doo Wop (That Thing)” during her her headlining set at the Jazz in the Gardens Festival.
With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Madison McFerrin’s house-soul banger to GELO’s GloRilla-assisted “Tweaker” follow-up. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.
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Freshest Find: Madison McFerrin, “Ain’t It Nice”
SanFran multihyphenate and daughter of jazz legend Bobby McFerrin, Madison McFerrin is ready to begin a new era. “Ain’t It Nice,” a sleek house-infused soul track that explores the allure of new infatuation across a swirling mixture of groovy drum loops and twinkling synths, finds McFerrin flaunting her intimate understanding of vocal dynamics and pacing. Instead of immediately firing off the chesty belts that house often evokes, McFerrin opts for soft coos and lush background harmonies — like the ones in the bridge — that eventually help her sneak into the rafters of her range by the song’s close. — KYLE DENIS
GELO & GloRilla, “Can You Please”
GELO recruited his “Memphis twin” GloRilla for his “Tweaker” follow-up with “Can You Please,” who continues to shred every track she lends a guest verse to. The middle Ball brother is now 2/2 with a meteoric start to his rap career. “Tweaker” set the bar high with his top 40 debut hit and GELO continues his 2000s New Orleans rap pastiche run. It remains to be seen if “Can You Please” will match the virality that “Tweaker” hand to earn GELO the first rap hit of 2025. Next up, he’ll be taking his talents to the festival stage with his Rolling Loud performance debut in California next weekend. — MICHAEL SAPONARA
Aaron Page, “Pretty Girls Like R&B”
Houston-based R&B singer Aaron Page channels smooth nostalgia and modern romance on his latest track, “Pretty Girls Like R&B.” The song thrives on a mix of passion, devotion, and material flexing, with Page weaving through memories of late-night connections and heartfelt gestures. “Wanna vibe with you like Jodeci love,” he croons, setting the tone with a nod to the ‘90s R&B icons known for their raw, sensual love songs.
Beyond the allure of attraction, Page reflects on moments of intimacy like holding her hair when she was sick and proving his loyalty through lavish gestures (“Brought the Maybach out to Kamp for you”). His reference to Drake’s Take Care signals an openness to emotional depth, evoking the vulnerability that made Drizzy’s 2011 album a staple for lovers and heartbreakers alike. “Pretty Girls Like R&B” taps into the kind of love story that resonates with those who cherish both old-school romance and modern-day ambition. — CHRISTOPHER CLAXTON
Curren$y & Harry Fraud feat. Wiz Khalifa, “Airport Industries”
What year is it? Did we wake up and go back in time to the Blog Era? While Curren$y has stayed consistent when it comes to dropping music and posting miniature diecast car content on his hobby page, Wiz has been on a freestyle run of the likes we haven’t seen in a while. This generation’s rap Cheech & Chong link up with one of the game’s most potent horticulturalists in Harry Fraud for a smokey number that sounds better when it’s a sunny day and you have one lit and one rolled already. — ANGEL DIAZ
Icewear Vezzo feat. Big Sean & Skilla Baby, “Worth Something”
Undefeated, Icewear Vezzo’s latest EP — which dropped last Friday (March 7) — is another thrilling collection of Detroit-set street tales. On “Worth Something,” he recruits Big Sean and Skilla Baby, two of his city’s biggest rap stars, for some A1 trap storytelling. “In the Nap with Milly ‘nem, just popped a Tesla, now I’m geeked/ Turned a dream into reality, that’s why I’m laughin’ in my sleep/ Cooked the Vezzo in the lab and now my hands, it smell like bleach/ Rather go to trial than cop no plea, we just cop bags and Louis V,” he spits in his opening verse, opting for a reflective tone that pairs well with Hawkey’s skittering snares. — K.D.
Turbo & Gunna, “Classy Girl”
Turbo and Gunna have been one of the best rapper-producer duos in hip-hop, and it’s been that way for some time now. They reunited on an anthem for the ladies just in time for International Women’s Day with “Classy Girl.” Gunna’s life of luxury allows him to bless the women in life with opulent experiences that most can only dream of. “Pеnthouse suite, we been livin’ on the road/ I’m in Bottega matchin’ slippers to your robe/ And I been runnin’ through a bankroll,” he raps over the bouncy production. It’s almost time for another project from the pairing. — M.S.
Dylan Sinclair, “Lemon Trees” (Motherland Sessions)”
Toronto’s own Dylan Sinclair brings a new depth to his For the Boy in Me album with Motherland Sessions, a live EP paying tribute to his Filipino heritage. Stripping back the production, Sinclair leans into a more intimate, organic sound — especially on “Lemon Trees,” a soulful reflection on love, ambition, and timing. Sinclair’s smooth vocals glide over the laid-back beat as he wrestles with the push and pull of commitment. “I’ll hold you down,” he promises in the chorus, offering devotion while grappling with his own hesitations. He paints his love interest as his “queen” and the “girl of my dreams” and contrasts that adoration with the realities of personal ambition and the fear of settling down too soon; Sinclair lets the tension linger, never forcing an easy resolution. “Lemon Trees” is a tender, honest take on romance. — C.C.
Skepta & PlaqueBoyMax, “Less Is More”
Streamer PlaqueBoyMax’s series “In the Booth With” is one of the more unique online series, helping bring fans into the recording booth with their favorite rappers. Max had U.K. rap legend Sketpa come through recently to lay down a track, and of course, it’s a banger. Big Smoke lays some game down to start off his verse, rapping, “London City is dark and cold/ Don’t take picks with the members screaming that gang if you aren’t involved/Wanna be a ‘G’ better be fully active, gotta do the road with your heart and soul/They wanna know if the street life worth, I told them the answer’s no,” as PlaqueBoyMax delivers a smooth sample flip of the Judy Bailey Quartet’s “Colours Of My Dreams.” — A.D.
Larrenwong, “Out the Frame”
Former NFL player Warren Long has been operating as rising R&B star Larrenwong for some time now, and his new 4th & Long EP is another winning entry in his growing catalog. Standout cut “Out the Frame” finds him moving from the field to the bedroom, crooning “I know that it’s been fun and games/ But you better hold tightly/ Because I go crazy when I’m inside.” At one point, he even nods to Usher, spelling out his name just like the Grammy-winner did on 1997’s “Nice & Slow.” — K.D.
Dende, “Need U Like”
Fresh off signing with Def Jam, rising R&B talent Dende keeps the momentum going with his latest single, “Need U Like.” Through vivid metaphors, Dende paints a picture of unwavering devotion, comparing his connection to his partner to classic, inseparable duos. The verses push that passion even further, with bold declarations of loyalty — he’d spend his last dollar, defy the impossible and rewrite history just to prove his love. Yet, underneath the grand gestures, there’s an emotional core: a promise to heal the wounds of past heartbreak and ensure his partner never feels unappreciated again. With its smooth production and raw lyricism, “Need U Like” is Dende at his best — vulnerable, confident, and completely lost in love. — C.C.
Lady London, “Is You Krazy?”
Walk around the streets of NYC for an hour, and you’re likely to hear one version of someone yelling, “Is you crazy?” Lady London is back with her first single of 2025, and she’s disgusted with the nerve and audacity of these men from around the way. “Cop me the Rollie, cop me the Wraith, and when you see me, you copy and paste,” she raps over Hitmaka’s thumping production. Next up, the Howard University alum is heading out on the road to open for Coco Jones on the North American leg of her Why Not More Tour. — M.S.
03/10/2025
Here’s all the songs we wanna hear from these two superstars.
03/10/2025
This is partner content. “Brilla Conmigo” is a short-form video series featuring Latin artists Elena Rose, Mariangela and Joaquina, showcasing how beauty, health and wellness fuel their creativity. Through candid conversations, they discuss how self-care, cultural pride and personal empowerment nurture confidence, which plays a key role in their artistry. Partnering with Invisalign to enhance […]
Mase is planning a comeback. During the March 7 episode of his sports talk show It Is What It Is, the Harlem rapper-turned-sports pundit kicked things off by revealing that not only is he going to drop his first album since 2004’s Welcome Back, but Cam’ron helped curate the tracklist. “Mo, what’s good? Can y’all […]
LISA lets her Swiftie flag fly whenever she does karaoke, with the BLACKPINK star revealing in a new video that her go-to song for the occasion is one of Taylor Swift‘s early hits.
While recounting some of her “firsts” with White Lotus costar Tayme Thapthimthong in a recent Teen Vogue video, LISA had an immediate answer to a question asking which song she’s first to queue up during karaoke. “For me, I’ll go for Taylor Swift,” she said. “‘You Belong With Me.’”
Even so, LISA recently told Jimmy Kimmel that she preferred to watch from the sidelines during the cast’s frequent karaoke sessions on set. “I’m just sitting in the corner of the room cheering them, hyping them up,” she said March 4 on the comedian’s late-night show, noting that she didn’t ever partake in singing while filming and instead preferred to dance. “I feel weird for me to grab the mic and sing karaoke. [There’s] a lot of pressure.”
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The Thai rapper has long been a fan of the “Karma” artist. In March 2024, she attended one of Swift’s Eras Tour shows in Singapore and posed with the 14-time Grammy winner backstage. “Had such a blast at The Eras Tour! Amazing performance💘 @taylorswift,” LISA wrote on Instagram at the time, sharing photos of her friendship bracelets.
A few months later, LISA raved again about the show. “She’s incredible!” the K-pop star told Elle of Swift in August. “Singing alone on a stage for three and a half hours is crazy … I maybe could do it with a lot of practice.”
The “Rockstar” singer makes her acting debut in the third season of HBO Max’s The White Lotus, which premiered in February. While LISA plays Mook, an employee at the titular fictional hotel chain’s Thailand location, Thapthimthong portrays Gaitok.
While speaking to Teen Vogue with the English actor, LISA also revealed what she bought with her first-ever paycheck — “I think it was a pair of sneakers or something” — as well as recounted the first time she was ever recognized in public. “After I debuted with BLACKPINK, we all went to Thailand for a trip or something,” she said. “We had like a fan waiting for us at the airport. I was like, ‘Oh wow. They love us!’”
Plus, the performer shared the first K-pop idol she ever looked up to and admitted to being a little bit “shy to answer.” “I love BIGBANG,” she said, covering her face. “I can’t pick one because I love them all.”
Watch LISA reveal her “firsts” with Tayme above.
ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” rules the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart for a record-extending 17th week. The collaboration first led the list in November.
Meanwhile, Lady Gaga and Mars’ “Die With a Smile” posts an 11th week atop the Billboard Global 200 chart, dating to its first frame at No. 1 last September.
The Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the United States.
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Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.
“APT.” holds atop Global Excl. U.S. with 84.2 million streams (down 5% week-over-week) and 7,000 sold (down 9%) outside the U.S. Feb. 28-March 6.
“Die With a Smile” is steady at No. 2 after 10 weeks atop Global Excl. U.S. beginning last September; Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” keeps at its No. 3 best; Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather” ascends 5-4, after three weeks on top in August; and Lamar and SZA’s “Luther” dips to No. 5 from its No. 4 high.
“Die With a Smile” continues atop the Global 200 with 112.4 million streams (down 6%) and 8,000 (down 3%) worldwide. The song ties for the fifth-longest No. 1 run since the chart began, matching The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber’s “Stay.” The only hits to lead longer: Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (19 weeks), Harry Styles’ “As It Was” (15), Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” (13) and ROSÉ and Mars’ “APT.” (12, beginning in October).
The Global 200’s top five is static, with “APT.” at No. 2; “Luther” at its No. 3 high; “Not Like Us” at No. 4, following four weeks at No. 1 beginning last May; and “Birds of a Feather” at No. 5, after three weeks at No. 1 last August.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated March 15, 2025) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow, March 11. For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
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.
After a difficult 2024 in which a number of major festivals closed their doors for good, Coachella sales were down and Burning Man didn’t sell out, WME global head of festivals Josh Kurfirst says, “Protecting the health of the festival business has become central to everything we do.”
“It’s no longer an incoming call business,” says Kurfirst, the son of Gary Kurfirst, former manager of Talking Heads, the Ramones, Blondie, The B-52s, Jane’s Addiction and Garbage. Early on, the job of most festival agents, Kurfirst explains, was to field offers from festival talent buyers for artists on the WME roster, negotiate where the artist’s name would appear on the festival poster and review daily ticket sales drops. But as the market matured and evolved, he instructed his staff to get more aggressive about pitching WME acts to prospective buyers and finding opportunities for them to bookend tours and live shows around festival appearances.
“Everything is strategic,” he says. “It’s not, ‘Let’s just throw 300 bands on this festival because it’s easy.’ We don’t do things easy.”
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Despite the cancellations of such once-popular festival brands as Faster Horses, Sick New World, Something in the Water and Alter Ego, Kurfirst and his team have plenty of success stories to tell. This year, his team helped land Zach Bryan his first headliner date atop the Stagecoach festival, secure newcomer Benson Boone a top slot on the Coachella lineup, book The Killers as headliners for Lollapalooza and secure headliner slots for Luke Combs, Olivia Rodrigo, Hozier and Queens of the Stone Age at Bonnaroo.
2024 was a tough year for festival sales. What happened?
First, it’s important to acknowledge that the festival market has significantly increased in size in the last decade. When I first started, there was a smaller group of giant festivals that had most of the market share. Since then, we’ve seen the emergence of a middle tier, a lower tier, a genre-specific tier and a lifestyle branch of festivals. And those have taken some market share away from the crossover contemporaries — the Coachellas, the Lollapaloozas and the Bonnaroos of the world. There’s really something out there for everyone now as long as you’re willing to travel. Look at Morgan Wallen’s new Sand in My Boots festival on the same site as the old Hangout Festival, which had been a steady market for years. Some years it sold out. Some years, it came close, but it never blew out on the on-sale. All of a sudden, Wallen comes in and launches his own festival on the site and it sells out instantly.
Atop a bowl of all-access festival and tour laminates, Kurfirst displays a copy of photographer Lynn Goldsmith’s Music in the ’80s book, open to a shot of the Talking Heads, whom his father, Gary, managed.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
What did Wallen do differently from Hangout Festival?
Instead of trying to create an event that appealed to as many people as possible, Wallen created an event that overdelivered to his fan base. He rebranded the festival under his own name and booked more than a dozen similar artists that he believes will connect with his fans. [This year’s lineup includes Bailey Zimmerman, Post Malone, Wiz Khalifa and The War on Drugs.] If you’re a fan of Morgan Wallen, then you won’t want to miss out on the Sand in My Boots festival. And, by the way, if you live in the Southeast, it might be your only chance to see him play this year.
How are overall festival sales so far, compared with 2024?
Last year was interesting. It wasn’t just straight down. It was choppy water. This year is still early. Most of the festivals just announced their lineups, and from what I’m hearing, it’s been positive. The overall market feels like a bounce-back year, and a lot of that has to do with the headliners. We’ve had a solid crop emerge — Olivia Rodrigo and Hozier, for instance. To a young artist like Olivia, these festivals mean something. It’s a notch on her belt and a way to do something in her career that she hadn’t done before.
Kurfirst’s mother, Phyllis, created this framed collage that, in addition to ticket stubs from concerts that Gary promoted, depicts (clockwise from top) Phyllis and her pet huskies; Gary and Phyllis at his parents’ house; and at their alma mater, Forest Hills High School.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
How do you judge success at WME?
It’s not based on quantity or how many festival slots WME artists are on. We’re very selective. We’re building careers. And we want to make sure when it’s our clients, they’re in the right cycle in terms of their music cycle. Typically, that means the artist has new music ready for the fans to discover and plans for either touring or other dates that they want to build momentum behind. They’re going to play the right slot, they’re going to get the right billing, they’re going to get the right money. That’s the time to play the festival. If any of those things are off, we’ll just do our own thing — meaning, we’ll work with a promoter, headline our own tour and continue building their hard-ticket business, which is incredibly important for all our artists.
Are festivals still a healthy launching pad for an artist’s career?
They are a good developing mechanism for new artists, but again, it has to be the right moment. I don’t know that it would make sense to just throw a new artist that doesn’t have any music out on a festival [stage] at 12:30 p.m. when the doors open. That’s a wasted booking. It would be better for that artist to be in cycle, have music out, have some press, garner some reviews ahead of time, so people actually have the ability to do their research and [want to] show up in front of their stage.
Pillows commemorating Madison Square Garden shows by artist clients whom Kurfirst represents in addition to overseeing WME’s festival division.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
The festival market has had an uptick in cancellations in recent years. In that environment, how does WME maintain a positive relationship with promoters?
We look at the promoters as our partners. They’re not on the other side of the table; they’re on the same side of the table. We want them to succeed, and we have their backs. In return, they have our backs, too.
What does it mean to have each other’s backs?
With festivals, artists sometimes have to cancel. Sometimes they get sick, they break a leg, the album gets pushed. Sometimes it’s our clients. Sometimes it’s clients from other agencies. What we do in those situations is we don’t bury our heads in the sand. If it’s a Saturday at 3 p.m. or 7 p.m. or 7 a.m., we’re there for our buyers to fill that slot that suddenly becomes open. And because we book things through one point of contact, the buyer only has to contact one person at WME. That’s his partner, his festival agent, and that festival agent then canvasses the entire roster and can come back with real-time avails within hours.
Kurfirst with his four kids, from left: Landon, 17; Ariela, 11; Eden, 11; and Lucas, 21.
Courtesy of Josh Kurfirst
Are you bullish on the long-term prospects of the festival business?
It’s a very Darwinian environment out there and the strong will survive. There are times where we have to have tough conversations with our promoter partners and come to a fair settlement where our clients feel good, but where we don’t put the promoter out of business. Because that doesn’t help anyone. Make no mistake: When we do a deal, our clients are entitled to 100% of the money if a festival cancels due to poor sales. There are some reasons why a promoter can cancel, like a pandemic. But in most cases, if a festival is canceled, it’s due to poor sales or some sort of promoter breach, and our clients are entitled to 100% of the money. It’s our job to come up with a fair settlement where the client feels good and the promoter is able to get back up on their feet.
What’s one of the most important lessons your father taught you?
He taught me that loving what you do is the single most important decision we make as adults. If you don’t, you can’t bring passion to the job every day. He also taught me about not trying to be someone else. Don’t just go with the trend. He equated that in how he chose the artists he wanted to work with, whether it be the Talking Heads, the Ramones, The B-52s, the Eurythmics, Jane’s Addiction and Mountain. These bands weren’t genre-defining — they invented their genres.
This story appears in the March 8, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Two of the core members of sprawling K-pop boy band SEVENTEEN, vocal unit leader and producer/singer WOOZI and performance unit leader and dancer/rapper HOSHI, have teamed up to release their first single album, Beam. The three-track EP from the group’s “mastermind duo” dubbed HOSHI X WOOZI dropped on Monday (March 10) as the logical follow-up to “Bring It,” a B-side from SEVENTEEN’S second studio album, 2017’s Teen, Age.
The collection kicks off with the slinky “PINOCCHIO,” a Billie Eilish-like whispery ballad that features additional vocals from SE SO NEON’s SO!YoON!, which slides into the banging lead single, “96ers.” With a mix of boy band pop and hip-hop bounce, the song is accompanied by a video in which the men dance and pose like art pieces in a swank gallery as they relish being on display, singing about first meeting as “runny-nosed kids” in middle school, then graduating from newbies to OGs.
“WOOZI and I have always been inseparable since we were young,” HOSHI said in a statement. “We’ve long dreamed of working as a unit, and now that we can finally present BEAM to the world, I’m beyond excited. This album truly reflects the kind of music we want to create, so we’re planning to fully enjoy ourselves on stage.”
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WOOZI added, “It’s an incredible experience to release a new album with my closest friend in life. We had an absolute blast working on it, and I believe that energy is what makes this album so honest and true to us.”
The EP wraps up with another high-energy, dance floor-ready house track, “Stupid Idiot.”
This year marks the 10th anniversary for the SEVENTEEN — which also features S.COUPS, JEONGHAN, JOSHUA, JUN, WONWOO, THE 8, MINGYU, DK, SEUNGKWAN, VERNON and DINO — who earlier this year released “Bad Influence,” their collab with Pharrell Williams that soundtracked the producer’s Louis Vuitton 2025 Paris menswear show. Last year, SEVENTEEN released their 21-track greatest hits collection, 17 Is Right Here, followed by the Spill the Feels EP in November.
Listen to Beam and watch the “96ers” video below.
On Thursday, March 6, Hamilton Leithauser kicked off his annual residency at Cafe Carlyle, the intimate posh supper club known primarily for its Marcel Vertès murals, martinis and cabaret and jazz performances by Peter Cincotti, Jeff Goldblum, Sandra Bernhard and others. The residency, which The Walkmen frontman began as an against-the-grain lark — he skipped 2020 because of the pandemic — has grown into a hot ticket. This time around, Leithauser will perform 15 dates through March 29 (his most ever), and unveil some surprises along the way.
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Opening night took place on eve of the release of Leithauser’s new album, This Side of the Island, a hook-heavy pop-rock record that he co-produced with his wife Anna Stumpf (who also plays keyboards in the band), and an assist from his friend, The National’s Aaron Dessner. This Side of the Island is a more concise and conceptual effort, compared to his last full-length, 2020’s The Loves of Your Life, which is a masterpiece of musical storytelling. And initial chart results for the single, “Knockin’ Heart,” indicate the new music is resonating: The song is currently No. 16 on Adult Alternative Airplay chart for a second week — Leithauser’s highest peak yet on the chart. “Knockin’ Heart’ also debuted at No. 42 on Rock & Alternative Airplay, Leithauser’s first time on that chart.
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If the crowd’s response to Leithauser’s opening-night performance is any indication, “Knockin’ Heart” won’t be the only song from This Side of the Island to chart. Here were some of the evening’s highlights.
More New Songs (And They Didn’t Come Easy)
Leithauser previewed three new tunes on This Side of the Island at last year’s residency: “Fistful of Flowers,” “What Do I Think?” and “Ocean Roar,” an ode to his late friend, the singer-songwriter and producer Richard Swift. This time, the audience got to hear all nine of the album’s songs, along with music from his past albums, such as “In A Blackout,” “A 1,000 Times” and “The Garbage Men.”
Leithauser says the album’s title was sparked when his two daughters read Jean Craighead George’s young adult novel, My Side of the Mountain — about a boy who runs away from his parents home in New York City and learns to survive in the Catskill Mountains. “It’s another way of saying, ‘From my perspective,’” he explains, adding he was “very isolated” when he was writing and recording This Side of the Island at his studio, the Struggle Hut. It’s an appropriate name given the length of time he wrestled with the music. “I literally recorded the piano and guitar “Fist of Flowers” when Barack Obama was president. This was at my old apartment, which I sold in 2017.”
Leithauser has no explanation for his delays. “If I knew, I would be so happy to know how to avoid it next time,” he says. “I had been working by myself for so many years, and I didn’t know what I had. When you’re really trying to finish something and you can’t it’s so frustrating. It gets kind of scary because your livelihood depends on it. You’re like, ‘What am I doing with myself? I’m wasting my life here.’
“I fought through it,” he continues, “and at the very end went upstate to work for one and a half days with my friend Aaron Dessner. He was the only outside person I had ever played anything for — even my wife. It could have been one of those moments where he could be like, ‘Dude, this ain’t happening. Just go to law school.’”
Instead, Dessner “was so complimentary, excited about it, and he wanted to play on some of it,” Leithauser says. “I was like, ‘Please, anything to change my perception, change my idea of what it is.’ He started putting little things on it and added a modern sound.” Leithauser left Dessner’s studio confident that This Side of the Island was ready to be released. “I was like, ‘Man, I want people to hear this.’”
Leithauser Goes Electric
An electric guitar has always featured in Leithauser’s Carlyle shows, but it’s usually played by one of his band members — most recently by master of subtlety Larry Oliver – while the man himself strummed an acoustic six-string. On this run, Leithauser’s breaking out his black 1961 Fender Jazzmaster and 1960 mapleglo natural Rickenbacker Capri 360 to reproduce the bright rock sound of This Side of the Island. Although he told the crowd that ear plugs were available, the volume was suited to the room, and it was a gas to see the packed crowd rocking out in sportcoats and evening wear as they sipped their martinis and goblets of wine.
A Rockin’ Wedding Standard?
“Knockin’ Heart”‘s lyrics and Leithauser’s full-throttle performance of it on the record makes it sound like fervent pledge of unconditional love: “From the courtship to the chapel, from the branches to the apple, to the elegy in the bone yard — you’ll be knockin’ in my heart.” Told that the song could be a wedding-reception staple, given the right band or DJ, Leithauser laughs. “I’d love to go to that wedding,” he says, adding that while the song’s message is, “I’ll love you through time. Actually, the person in the song can’t get through to the person they’re looking for. The idea is there’s a guy driving home from the party. He’s stoned and drunk and wishing he can say this to the person. But the person is not there.”
A (Psycho) Killer Cover
Leithauser’s Carlyle sets always include at least one cover, and on March 6, he chose the Talking Heads classic “Heaven” — which, he says, is one of his all-time favorite songs. (He also said elsewhere that he listened to Fear of Music, which includes that song, a lot while making This Side of the Island.) The choice was all the more appropriate, because former Heads frontman David Byrne has recruited Leithauser for his latest project. “It’s crazy,” Leithauser says. “When he contacted me, I thought I was being punked.”
Surprise Guests
Opening night belonged solely to Leithauser — as an ad-hoc record-release show should be — but he says that “a lot of well-known musicians are going to be coming out over the course or the four weeks” to join in on the fun. He’s keeping the names under wraps, “Because I want them to be surprising.”
Leithauser is the Kevin Bacon of indie rock, with a deep network of friendships with other musicians, so the surprises should be genuinely surprising. At his March 8 show, J Mascis was Leithauser’s special guest, and imagining the Dinosaur Jr. frontman at a strait-laced place like Cafe Carlye is mind-blowing on its own.