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The clocks have been pushed forward an hour, giving us more daylight as we head into the warmer months — and a slew of music stars are heating up the season with fresh releases.
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Kicking things off is Chappell Roan, who stepped into her Missouri roots with her country leaning track, “The Giver.” The Grammy-winning superstar announced the single earlier this month via Instagram, sharing a photo of herself dressed up in construction gear. “I have such a special place in my heart for country music,” she wrote. “I grew up listening to it every morning and afternoon on my school bus and had it swirling around me at bon fires, grocery stores and karaoke bars.” The song marks Roan’s first release since her hit, “Good Luck, Babe!,” which she dropped in April last year.
Haim also made their grand return with their breezy, summer-ready single “Relationships.” Haim’s last studio album, Women in Music Pt. III, was released in 2020. It reached No. 13 on the Billboard 200 and received a Grammy nomination for album of the year.
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Also in the pop world, Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco dropped the sultry “Sunset Blvd,” inspired by the iconic Hollywood street where they had their first date. The couple’s joint album, I Said I Love You First, is set to arrive on March 21.
Over in hip-hop, Playboi Carti dropped his long-awaited third studio album, MUSIC. The project arrives five years after his last LP, Whole Lotta Red, which topped the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.
That’s just the beginning. More star-studded music releases this week include Sleep Token’s “Emergence,” Lil Nas X’s “HOTBOX,” LE SSERAFIM’s Hot, Lizzo’s “Still Bad,” Peso Pluma’s “RARI” and Charley Crockett’s Lonesome Drifter. Now, we want to know your favorite music release of the week. Check out our Friday Music guide here, and let us know by voting here or below.
Blake Shelton is set to release his new album, For Recreational Use Only, on May 9. The project will mark Shelton’s first album under BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville.
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The dozen-song album spotlights songs from several top-shelf country songwriters, including Sarah Buxton, Zach Crowell, Greylan James, Shane McAnally, Pat McLaughlin and Bobby Pinson. The project also features Shelton in collaboration with fellow artists including wife Gwen Stefani, John Anderson and Craig Morgan.
“It’s been a long time since we had a new album out, and I want to thank the songwriters and musicians who helped bring this record to life,” Shelton said in a statement. “[Producer] Scott [Hendricks] and I have been working on this music for years, and I’m beyond excited to finally share it with the fans.”
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Gearing up for the album, Shelton follows his current Billboard Country Airplay top 15 hit “Texas” with the new song release, “Let Him In Anyway,” which offers the spiritual-minded tale of someone pleading for divine forgiveness for a friend who never fully went all-in on redemption.
“‘Let Him In Anyway’ is one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever had the chance to record,” Shelton said in a statement. “Hardy is a co-writer and a friend, and I’ve never heard a song like this before. When I first listened to it, I knew it was something special. It’s an honor to bring it to life, and I’m incredibly proud of the record we made.”
Shelton is currently leading his sold-out Friends & Heroes Tour, with the country star joined by artists including Morgan, Deana Carter, Trace Adkins and Emily Ann Roberts.
See the tracklist for For Recreational Use Only below:
“Stay Country or Die Tryin’” (Drew Parker, Graham Barham, Sam Ellis, Beau Bailey)
“Texas” (Johnny Clawson, Kyle Sturrock, Josh Dorr, Lalo Guzman)
“Hangin’ On” (feat. Gwen Stefani) (Sam Ellis, Charles Kelley, Greylan James)
“Strangers” (Michael Hardy, Zach Crowell, Jameson Rodgers)
“Let Him In Anyway” (Michael Hardy, Zach Abend, Kyle Clark, Carson Wallace)
“Heaven Sweet Home” (feat. Craig Morgan) (Chris Tompkins, Sarah Buxton, Jake Rose)
“Life’s Been Comin’ Too Fast” (Craig Wiseman, David Lee Murphy, Lindsay Rimes)
“Don’t Mississippi” (Shane McAnally, Ross Copperman, Ben Hayslip, Josh Osborne)
“All of My Love” (Colton Swon, Zach Swon)
“Cold Can” (Bobby Pinson, Josh Osborne, Andrew DeRoberts)
“The Keys” (Jay Brunswick, Brock Berryhill, Bobby Pinson)
“Years” (feat. John Anderson) (Pat McLaughlin, John Anderson, David Ferguson, Daniel Auerbach)
Jelly Roll’s “Liar” rules Billboard’s Country Airplay chart for a fifth consecutive week, becoming his sole longest-leading hit.
The song tops the list dated March 22 with 31 million audience impressions (down 5%) March 7-13, according to Luminate. The Nashville native co-authored it with Ashley Gorley, Ben Johnson and Taylor Phillips. It was produced by Zach Crowell. The track is from his studio set Beautifully Broken, which arrived as his first No. 1 on both Top Country Albums and the all-genre Billboard 200 last October.
“Liar” breaks out of a tie with “Need a Favor,” which led for four weeks starting in August 2023, for Jelly Roll’s longest Country Airplay command. “I Am Not Okay” is next, having logged three frames on top beginning last November. All seven of his entries have hit No. 1, with four tallying double-digit dominations; additionally, “Save Me,” with Lainey Wilson, led for two frames in December 2023.
“This is truly incredible. I want to thank everyone on my promotion team, the label, and to everyone who has listened to ‘Liar’ and this entire Beautifully Broken record,” Jelly Roll tells Billboard. “Y’all have changed my life. Ben, Ashley and Taylor, y’all are all incredible — thank you for writing this one with me. Five weeks? This is just unreal.”
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Meanwhile, Jelly Roll is tied with Kane Brown for the longest active run of Country Airplay No. 1s. Most recently for Brown, “Miles On It,” with Marshmello, led for a week in November. He’s looking to up his streak to eight, as his latest single, “Backseat Driver,” holds at its No. 18 high (10 million, up 1%).
Plus, Jelly Roll’s run of Country Airplay No. 1s — which began with “Son of a Sinner,” his introductory hit at the format in January 2023 — is the second longest out-of-the-gate streak in the chart’s 36-year history. The longest belongs to Luke Combs, who snapped off 14 from the start in 2017-22.
All charts dated March 22 will update Tuesday, March 18, on Billboard.com.
This week in dance music: Lady Gaga performed her electro romp “Abracadabra” and new Gesaffelestein collab “Killah” on Saturday Night Live, John Summit announced that he recently completed his “first fully sober tour,” Barry Can’t Swim released his first new single of the year with “The Person You’d Like to Be,” we caught up with the gentlemen of Justice to discuss the hyper success of their Hyperdrama album, Chicago’s ARC Music festival announced a hefty 2025 lineup, Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and electronic musician Mark Pritchard announced a forthcoming collaborative album, we got the first look of the newly designed Brooklyn Mirage and Everything But the Girl revealed that they’ll perform their first live shows in 25 years next month in London.
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And on top of all that, we offer these, the best new dance tracks of the week.
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Calvin Harris, “Smoke the Pain Away”
Calvin Harris walks down the dirt road into country music with “Smoke the Pain Away,” an acoustic guitar and harmonica-heavy ode to trying to numb heartbreak with a hodgepodge of controlled substances. When the Scottish hitmaker teased the track earlier this month, it was unclear if or how any electronic elements would be incorporated, but while the song is still a departure for Harris, it does contain dance DNA with a flickery, high BPM beat that adds extra verve and bounce and helps the song ride the line between the two genres.
Featuring Harris’ own plaintive vocals, the song is another pretty undeniable earworm from one of dance’s foremost hitmakers. It also comes days after the announcement that Harris will play the first ever double residency at Ushuaïa in Ibiza, where he’ll perform on both Tuesdays and Fridays this summer. In keeping with the country theme. this mega-club is not too far from the sprawling farm Harris has on the island. “
Sub Focus & bbyclose, “On & On”
It’s a big week for Sub Focus fans, the with U.K. heavyweight releasing his first new single of the year with “On & On,” which extends his reputation as an essential master of drum and bass. The hypnotic song features a long mid-track bridge built largely around vocals from bbyclose, with the song altogether adding fuel to a run that’s included Sub Focus’ 2024 John Summit collab “Go Back.” Following his sold out show at London’s Alexandra Palace last week, he announced this week that he’s bringing this same Circular Sound setup — which features him playing from the center of a halo of lights — to New York and Los Angeles this fall.
Cassian, Script & Belladonna, “Where I’m From”
It’s not a surprising that Cassian got not one but two slots opening for Anyma’s Sphere residency, given that Australian producer and mixing engineer’s sound sound falls squarely into the grandly-sized melodic techno style preferred by Anyma and many of the artists surrounding him. “Where I’m From” is a prime specimen of the genre, with Cassian and his co-producers Script and Belladonna weaving together an urgent production, with stuttering vocals and ominous choral singing, into a straight-up banger that’s right out of an action movie.
Myd, “The Wizard”
French producer Myd returns with a pair of new tracks, “Song for You” and “The Wizard,” with the latter being a warm, propulsive and very soulful fusion of disco and tribal house that just feels good on the ears. Out via Ed Banger Records and Because Music, the singles follow Myd’s slot DJ-ing the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris and also comes after a marathon week-long Twitch stream from the producer’s house in that same city, a segment of which you can see here.
DJ E-Clyps, “Gitit”
The always reliable DJ E-Clyps returns with his fifth single of the year, “Gitit.” The track balances a cool, bouncy, nearly future house production with E-Clyps’ own vocals, a ode to being in the club and appreciating the kind of woman with “pretty super eyes and those super juicy thighs” — lyrics he delivers in a laid-back staccato. “Gitit” is out on Blacklight Factory, the label E-Clyps founded in partnership with Empire Dance and launched last month.
Catz ‘n Dogz & Nala, “Dance”
The Polish duo return with the noisy, kind of giddily abrasive electro-punk track “Dance” a call to arms for dancefloor self expression. “We wanted to create a track that could be played when you’re angry, or just if you need to release that pressure valve. Something with pure energy” says the duo’s Greg Demiañczuk. This one is just that, with its strident vocals courtesy of Miami-based artist Nala, a regular Catz & Dogs collaborator who’s also opening for John Summit tomorrow (March 15) at Billboard Presents THE STAGE at SXSW in Austin, Texas.
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Democratic Senator Charles Schumer declared that he would vote with Republicans to avoid a federal shutdown, drawing anger from the public.
As the federal government is on the brink of a shutdown, Senate Minority Leader Charles “Chuck” Schumer is facing serious backlash from the public and fellow Democrats for declaring he’d vote for a GOP spending bill to keep the government open. In an op-ed for The New York Times, the New York senator explained that his decision didn’t come lightly as he sees a shutdown as a way for President Donald Trump and his ally, tech billionaire Elon Musk to use DOGE to effectively get more control.
“For sure, the Republican bill is a terrible option,” Schumer wrote. “It is deeply partisan. It doesn’t address this country’s needs. But even if the White House says differently, Mr. Trump and Elon Musk want a shutdown. We should not give them one. The risk of allowing the president to take even more power via a government shutdown is a much worse path.” The spending bill to avert a federal shutdown needs 60 votes. The Republicans currently have the majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, but all Democrats except one – Representative Jared Golden of Maine – voted against the bill. Presently, Schumer and Pennslyvania Senator John Fetterman have openly declared their support for the continuing resolution, while several other Democrats have declared their opposition. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told the press that she was mobilizing other members to push Schumer to change his vote. Other Democrats have also begun to push her to primary Schumer, to which she offered no comment. Nancy Pelosi spoke out against Schumer without naming him in a statement, saying “Democratic senators should listen to the women.”
Schumer’s choice has incurred ire from many on social media who are calling for him to step down from his post as Senate Minority Leader. Columnist Max Kennerly wrote online, They’re not ‘taking one for the team,’ they’re giving up leverage against Republicans so they can give Republicans a blank check to continue doing everything they’ve been doing — including wrecking the country illegally shutting down every part of the federal gov’t they don’t like.”
Veteran booking agent Wayne Forte with Entourage Talent and Paladin Artists is auctioning off a private meeting to raise money for the National Independent Talent Organization (NITO). Forte is a widely respected talent agent whose clients include Duane Betts, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Joe Satriani and more. The native New Yorker has been booking artist in […]
Jason Moran plans to blend genres in one of his performances as the Detroit Jazz Festival’s artist-in-residence this year.
“I’m thinking that I have to figure out a way to represent for Detroit’s techno music,” the pianist, bandleader, composer and educator tells Billboard. Moran was named to the prestigious position on Thursday (March 13) following drummer Brian Blade in 2024.
Techno, Moran adds, “has long been a thing I’ve listened to and practiced with sometimes at home. So why not, when you’re in Detroit, really represent it? Maybe myself and another artist can churn away for an hour. It’s the idea of, in an industrial city, drum machine meeting piano — which I think is one of the great machines — and what happens when those two meet in their simplest forms? With volume,” he adds with a laugh.
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Moran says the piece would be an entirely new composition to be premiered at the Labor Day weekend event (Aug. 29-Sept. 1) and then turned into a traveling piece.
Now in its 46th year, the DJF — held mostly outdoors in the city’s downtown — is the world’s largest free-admission jazz festival. Last year’s edition drew more than 300,000 in-person attendees, according to organizers, and a worldwide audience of more than two million via the festival’s free livestream on its website and social media platforms.
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“I think that what makes this (festival) unique is the importance of Detroit as a historic music city for the world,” says Moran, who’s performed at the festival several times, as recently as 2023. “That’s what makes it exciting for me, to be presenting sets of music in a city that’s responsible for a lot of change and possibilities in music.”
In addition to the techno-jazz mashup, Moran — who’s been on the faculty at the New England Conservatory of Music since 2010 — is planning a celebration of Duke Ellington’s 125th birthday, using a big band of younger musicians. “That’s a big one for me,” he says, “just because I get to meet who’s on the ground and get that experience to work with them and push the music the way Ellington did.” He’s also planning a set by the Bandwagon, a trio he co-founded during 2000, along with special guests.
The Houston-born Moran studied at the Manhattan School of Music and began his recording career as part of saxophonist Greg Osby’s band. He released his first solo album, Soundtrack to Human Motion, in 1999 and has released 17 more since. Moran has also scored soundtracks for films such as Selma, Traveling While Black and Aggie, and he’s recorded with Cassandra Wilson, Christian McBride, Ron Miles and others. He was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Scientists in 2022, and in 2023 he received the German Jazz Prize for pianist of the year.
“Jason Moran is a trailblazer in the use of diverse multimedia and theatrical installations to present jazz to audiences in a way that has never been done before,” festival artistic director and CEO Chris Collins said in a statement. “We look forward to his singular craftsmanship and his creative and evolutionary artistry to lead this year’s festival.”
The lineup for the 2025 DJF is expected to be announced April 15 during a special preview event in Detroit, where Moran will perform.
The festival has also put out a call for new works that “bring new perspectives to blending jazz and other musical styles” with an application deadline of April 11. Artist performance submissions are also open, with a deadline of June 1. Applications, as well as festival updates, can be found via detroitjazzfest.org.
Long-time indie music distributor Sam Wesley Phillips passed away in Jackson, Miss., on Feb. 28 after facing multiple health issues over the last few years. He was 74.
Better known to long-time Billboard readers by his nickname, Skip, Phillips worked his entire life, beginning at age 9, for his family company, Select-O-Hits, the 65-year-old independent music distributor based in Memphis. He was the third son of Lucile and Tom Phillips, who, together with Tom’s brother Sam Phillips — the Sun Records founder — started Select-O-Hits in 1960. Tom eventually bought out Sam’s uncle, the elder Sam Phillips, in the early 1970s.
Sam Wesley Phillips began working at Select-O-Hits first as a janitor/stockboy, then a salesman, followed by a role as studio engineer/producer. Sometime in the 1980s, he and his brother Johnny bought out their father, upon which Sam became the president of the company, which is still going strong as a music distributor today.
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Phillips’ family provided the below remembrance to Billboard.
Sam was born February 20, 1951, in Mobile, Alabama, to Lucile and Tom Phillips…Sam always had that mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Whether it was at school or working at the Record Shop on Chelsea, he found ways to enjoy life his way, but no one worked harder during those sixty-five years than he did.
Sam met his high school sweetheart and love of his life, Debby, at Frayser High School in 1967. Debby and Sam were married in 1969 and were the loving parents to five children, Tiffany (Tommy) Couch of Jackson, MS, Lesle (Matthew) Heinz of Memphis, Ashlee Phillips (Will Brewer) of Memphis, Courtney (Stephen) Smith of Frisco, TX and Wes (Lauren) Phillips of Memphis.
Sam lived his life with humor, kindness, strength, honesty, a passionate love for music and even more passionate love for his family. He was most happy in a home filled with his family laughing and loving loudly; his children and grandchildren were his greatest treasures.
Sam was preceded in death by his wife Debby, his son Wes, his parents and brother Tom. Left to cherish his memory in addition to his daughters are his siblings Johnny (Sandra) Phillips, Melinda Snipes, Irene Barg, Kathy (Harry) Gordon; Jennifer (Brad) Cullison; grandchildren John Thomas (Jordan) and Peyton Couch; Carter (Meghan) and Sam Heinz; Coby and Presley Bennett; Ethan and Aidan Phillips; Addison, Graham and Sadie Smith and Liam and Eden Cullison, his great granddaughter Vivian, loving cousins, nieces, nephews, sister-in-law, brother-in-law and too many friends to count.
We will miss his laugh and his kind, funny, strong spirit every single day but are thankful knowing that he’s now at peace, with no more pain and with his one true love, Debby, and their son, Wes.
The family requests that memorials in his honor be made to Wounded Warrior Project.
Karol G and Universal Music Group (UMG) are facing a copyright infringement lawsuit over a track from the Colombian superstar’s chart-topping album Mañana Será Bonito. In a case filed in Miami federal court, producers Ocean Vibes (Jack Hernandez) and Alfr3d Beats (Dick Alfredo Caballero Rodriguez) say the singer and her co-writers stole key elements of […]
Singer-songwriter YU-KA traveled to Sweden to work with local creators and co-write the songs on her newly released five-song EP, Wild Nights. With songs like “Feel Like This,” the ending theme to part 1 of the Netflix series Beastars‘ final season, the EP has a mellow electronic sound evocative of northern Europe, and YU-KA’s delicate singing voice and expressiveness are in full bloom. She talked with Billboard Japan at length about how her time in Sweden stimulated and inspired her, and how she put those feelings into her music.
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Your new EP, Wild Nights, came out six months after your previous EP, Sunshade. Were the songs on the albums written around the same time?
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I didn’t write the lyrics or put the finishing touches on the songs until after Sunshade‘s release, but I made the actual demos for all of the songs in Sweden last summer. I was there for a little under a week, and while there I wrote a lot of different songs with different writers. The songs on Wild Nights come from the songs I wrote there. The speed with which the Swedish writers worked, and their way of thinking, was a little different than Japanese artists. Even the way they chose sounds was totally different, so it was an extremely stimulating experience.
Actually having gone to Sweden, did you find that it had a unique atmosphere of its own?
In Japan, everything gets lumped together as “Western music,” but the music in Sweden has a different feel than American or British music. Also, even though Sweden and Japan are very far away geographically, the character of the Swedish people is a good fit in many ways for that of the Japanese people. I felt a strange link between the countries. The artists I co-wrote with have also written songs for other Japanese artists, so they had connections with J-pop. I felt an unexpected affinity throughout the songwriting process.
What is the concept behind Wild Nights?
When writing the lyrics afterward, I wanted to make the theme for the EP “night.” Ever since my debut, I’ve been writing and releasing music, so I decided to stop for a second and think about my own artistry and my own strengths. I realized that, in the duality of light and dark, I tended toward the dark side. Other musicians and my vocal coaches often describe my voice as having a “shadowy” feel. Also, a lot of the songs I wrote a long time ago, on my own, were dark songs. So that’s why I decided to make the theme of the EP “night.” The title Wild Nights comes from a poem by Emily Dickinson. I found out about her in university, where I was majoring in English literature. When I was struggling with the decision of whether or not to become a singer, I was inspired by her poetry, and I decided to give music my all. “Wild nights” refers to stormy nights, and I thought that fit perfectly with the EP’s image, so I chose it as the title.
The image of your previous EP, Sunshade, was that of being out in the sun, so the new EP’s title stands in contrast.
The theme of Sunshade was “J-pop.” The songs I wrote in Sweden had a sound that was more like Western music, so before releasing them, I wanted to make an album that embodied my J-pop side. That was Sunshade. That’s also why the lyrics are relatively straightforward, while the lyrics on Wild Nights are a bit more aggressive and wild. In that sense, too, I think the two EPs present a contrast.
“Feel Like This” is the ending theme of part 1 of the Netflix series Beastars final season. Since it’s a tie-up, you’d expect it to go in a J-pop direction, but instead you took a bold approach, going with all-English lyrics.
The anime’s production team asked me to use English lyrics, and I thought it was a good idea. It’s evidence of the fact that anime is watched around the world. I was really happy that they picked me to write the ending theme. When I wrote the song, in Sweden, my vision was to pair it with English lyrics, so I think it was easier to write the lyrics in English than if I’d tried to write them in Japanese. I like lyrics that tie into the work the song is being used for, so I had fun writing them.
Beastars is set in a school, and it’s a love story, but it’s also enjoyable because of its takes on social issues like discrimination and its exploration of identity. What did you focus on when you wrote the lyrics?
The main character, a wolf, is in love with a rabbit, who’s a herbivore. In the natural world, their relationship would be predator and prey, but there’s a romance element, which is one of the key features of the anime. I think that contrast between reason and instinct is really important. The whole anime is a metaphorical depiction of problems in human society, and I think there are themes that apply to everyone. For example, think of what you want to do as being “instinct” and what you have to do as being “reason.” There are a lot of people who sacrifice what they want to do for what they have to do. It’s important not to let your instinct run rampant, but if you go overboard in ignoring your own desires, you’ll eventually come apart at the seams. I’ve felt that in my own life, so I based the lyrics on that idea. The lyrics use the contrast between certain expressions in English, and there’s a sense of playfulness that runs throughout.
I wrote the song “1-2-3” [also on the album] with David (Fremberg), who also worked on “Feel Like This.” Originally, we were just working on “Feel Like This,” but then we realized that if we kept focusing on this one song alone, we wouldn’t be able to come up with anything good. Instead, we figured we should play around with something else for a while and then come back to “Feel Like This.” And that’s how “1-2-3” came to be. We wrote “Feel Like This” and “1-2-3” in a single day.
The new EP has a good balance of English and Japanese lyrics. The last song, “Silent Parade,” is in Japanese, so the message and intent come through really strong.
There’s been a lot going on in the world recently, and perhaps because of that, the sight of people taking a position and asserting themselves has stuck with me. Asserting yourself is an impressive feat, you know. But if you think about it, being a singer-songwriter is similar, in a way. Singer-songwriters start out on their own, but they’re able to keep on making music thanks to the relationships they develop with all kinds of other people, like listeners or staff members. As they go on, that line of people becomes even longer. The question is whether, when you start out as in this silent parade, all by yourself, you can imagine all the people that will one day join in. Whether you can trust that to happen. That’s why it’s “Silent” and not “Alone.” I wanted to encourage people who step forward. They may feel like they’re alone, but when people have their sights set on the future and they keep pushing forward, they’re walking at the front of a long line of the people who will one day join them. When I started out, I thought I was all on my own, but now, as YU-KA, I’m surrounded by staff members and people who support me. Writing the song, I was struck once again by just how precious their presence is, and it made me want to make the YU-KA parade an even bigger one.
This interview by Hiroko Goto first appeared on Billboard Japan.