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A$AP Rocky has elected to reject a plea deal in his ongoing assault case in Los Angeles which would have seen him serve 180 days behind bars for accepting one of the felony counts. Now, a jury selection process is underway and A$AP Rocky could face up to 24 years in prison.
The Associated Press reports that A$AP Rocky, real name Rakim Mayers, declined to take the plea deal after initially pleading not guilty to two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm back in 2022. Rocky, 36, is accused of opening fire on childhood friend Terell “A$AP Relli” Ephron in Hollywood back in 2021.
The terms of the deal were for Rocky to plead guilty to one of the aforementioned felony counts, with Los Angeles County prosecutors suggesting a seven-year suspended sentence, three-year probation, and a six-month jail sentence.
According to Rocky’s attorney, the defense will call on witnesses to take the stand in the trial and deliver testimony that the gun Rocky fired was a starter pistol used as a security measure and not a full-on semiautomatic weapon as the charges state.
Rocky is the husband of singer and fashion powerhouse Rihanna and the pair are parents to two toddler boys. Rocky was also preparing the release of his fourth studio album, Don’t Be Dumb, via his ASAP Worldwide imprint alongside Polo Grounds/RCA.
The courts surveyed over 100 potential jurors in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom and as of Wednesday (Jan. 22), the full measure of 12 jurors have not been selected. Opening statements will be televised once the trial officially begins.
If found guilty, A$AP Rocky could face up to 24 years behind bars.
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Taylor Swift, Karol G and Benson Boone are the top names of 2024 in music in Spain, according to the most recent annual report from PROMUSICAE (short for Productores de Música de España).
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The report, based on an exhaustive analysis of data collected weekly throughout the year, reveals that Spanish-language music reaffirmed its dominance in the country with 94 of the 100 most popular songs performed in this language, and 46 of them belonging to Spanish artists. It takes into account figures from 90% of physical points of sale in Spain, data from digital stores and audio streaming platforms. Since 2022, it also considers views of music content on YouTube, reflecting a broader picture of current music consumption in the country.
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Karol G’s “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido” (Universal Music) led the Top 100 Canciones (songs) chart, followed by Feid and ATL Jacob’s “Luna” (Universal) and “La Bachata” by Manuel Turizo (Sony Music). Other top tracks included Myke Towers’ “La Falda” (One World Music) and “Santa” by Rvssian, Rauw Alejandro and Ayra Starr (Sony Music). In addition, for 27 weeks of 2024, Spanish artists topped the charts with albums such as El Último de la Fila’s Desbarajuste Piramidal (Warner Music Spain), Chanel’s ¡Agua! (Sony Music) and David Bisbal’s Todo es Posible en Navidad (Universal Music Spain), which closed the year.
Swift dominated the Spanish charts with her album The Tortured Poets Department (Universal Music), the bestselling album of 2024 and leader of the Top 100 Vinilos (vinyl) chart. The album spent 36 weeks on the Top 100 Álbumes (albums) chart and went Platinum. Meanwhile, Boone became the undisputed star of Spanish radio with his ballad “Beautiful Things” (Warner Music), being the most played song of the year on the radio.
The report also underscores the weight of Latin artists in the Top 100 Álbumes, with several names dominating the charts week after week. Karol G cemented her global impact with two albums in the top spots — Mañana Será Bonito reached No. 2 and Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season) reached No. 10 — highlighting her leadership in Latin music during 2024. Bad Bunny secured No. 5 with Un Verano Sin Ti and No. 6 with Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana. Quevedo ranked No. 3 with Donde Quiero Estar, followed by Saiko’s Sakura (Saikoneta) at No. 4.
Other artists who ranked No. 1 in individual weeks include Duki, Rauw Alejandro, Jhayco, Omar Courtz, Dei V and Eladio Carrion. Shakira closed the year with Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran at No. 14, while Dei V’s Quién Es Dei V? reached No. 16.
For the president of PROMUSICAE, Antonio Guisasola, these figures “confirm the robust health of recorded music and the public’s ongoing interest in it, supported by the increasing number of paid streaming subscriptions as well as the continued purchase of physical formats like vinyl, which shows the public’s commitment to engaging with their favorite artists’ work,” he said in a press release.
2024 was a record year for digital music consumption in Spain. Streaming platforms registered 98.5 billion plays, 13% more than the previous year. In addition, more than 1,180 artists surpassed 10 million listens, and 70 of them exceeded 100 million. For the first time, weeks 49 and 51 reached 2 billion streams in a single week, a historic achievement driven by the Christmas campaign.
Another noteworthy fact is that amid the digital boom, vinyl maintained its relevance with a 9% growth in sales during 2024. More than 50% of the records in Top 100 Vinilos were by Spanish artists. Among them, Arde Bogotá’s Cowboys de la A3 (Sony Music) reached No. 2 on the annual list, after spending five weeks in the top spot. Dani Martín’s El Último Día de Nuestras Vidas (Sony Music) took fourth position with just four weeks of sales, while Rosalía’s Motomami (Sony Music), a hit since 2022, closed the year in sixth place.
Gracie Abrams and Demi Lovato are calling out Instagram parent company Meta for seemingly hindering their efforts to unfollow President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance on the app after Inauguration Day.
Sharing a close-up selfie on her Story Tuesday (Jan. 21) — one day after the politicians were sworn into office — the “That’s So True” singer wrote that she “had to unfollow @vp and @potus three (3) separate times today because @meta kept automatically refollowing the accounts.”
“How curious!” she continued. “Had to block them in order to make sure I am nowhere near that. Sharing in case this is happening to your account as well.”
The Camp Rock alum also spoke out Tuesday. Posting a screenshot of Vance’s profile onto her own Story, Lovato wrote, “I have unfollowed this guy twice today.”
“Shady f–king business meta,” they added.
In a statement posted by Meta’s Andy Stone on Threads Wednesday and shared with Billboard, the company denied that anyone was “made to automatically follow any of the official Facebook or Instagram accounts for the President, Vice President or First Lady.”
“Those accounts are managed by the White House so with a new administration, the content on those Pages changes,” the communications director explained. “This is the same procedure we followed during the last presidential transition. It may take some time for follow and unfollow requests to go through as these accounts change hands.”
Trump and Vance’s administration assumed control over Instagram’s @potus and @vp handles following their swearing-in ceremony Monday (Jan. 20), which marked the start of the twice-impeached billionaire’s second White House term. For the past four years, the accounts were run by the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration, which Abrams and Lovato both openly supported.
The two singers had also endorsed Harris‘ 2024 presidential bid, with the former Eras Tour opener performing at one of the former prosecutor’s October rallies in Madison, Wis. After Harris lost the election to Trump on Nov. 5, Lovato shared a message of hope on X, writing, “This was OUR election and WE WON TOGETHER. There’s still a lot of work to be done, but today we will celebrate each other.”
Nearly two months later, Trump is about 48 hours into his second presidency – and he’s hit the ground running. Following a weekend of inauguration festivities – featuring technical-difficulty-ridden performances from Carrie Underwood and Billy Ray Cyrus – the politician has already signed multiple executive actions targeting immigration, delaying the national TikTok ban and pardoning people charged with crimes related to the Jan. 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol. He’s also reversed dozens of Biden-era orders protecting against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Trump – who was previously banned from Meta’s platforms for two years following the Jan. 6 insurrection – and his team have also been putting his reclaimed @potus account to use. He’s posted on Instagram eight times in the past two days and on Tuesday shared a video of himself signing orders in the Oval Office captioned, “Who’s ready for Day Two? The momentum is unstoppable!”
The American Music Tourism Act, Mitigating Automated Internet Networks (MAIN) for Event Ticketing Act, and Helping Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act have all been re-introduced to the Senate. Recently, the American Music Tourism Act was also re-introduced to Congress. Each year, bills that have not yet passed must be re-introduced to the House and the […]
Get ready to go back to the woods. Paramount+ and Showtime dropped the spooky trailer for the upcoming third season of acclaimed, Emmy-nominated series Yellowjackets on Wednesday morning (Jan. 22). The first peek at the nail-biting show about a group of talented high school soccer players who survive a plane crash in the wilderness will return for a two-episode premiere on Feb. 14 on streaming and on demand for Paramount+ subscribers with the Paramount+ with Showtime plan; the on-air debut will take place on Feb. 16 at 8 p.m. ET.
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The two-minute trailer is cued to hard rock band Drowning Pool’s signature 2001 hit, “Bodies,” as, like the show, it toggles between footage of the young women fighting for their survival in the deep woods and their still-shellshocked adult selves. “Once upon a time, a bunch of teenage girls go stranded in the wilderness,” says a voiceover, as another, ominous voice, whispers the chorus to the Drowning Pool song: “let the bodies hit the floor.”
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“And they hunted their friends… feasted on their flesh and they went completely nuts,” she says as the tempo ramps up and we see the girls howling, running through the woods in pelts while wielding sharp implements and shouting “buzz, buzz, buzz” as they jump around in unison.
With allusions to the cannibalistic behavior, the grown-up versions of the players worry that the desperate lengths they went to to survive will follow them for the rest of their lives as some mysterious force appears to be stalking them in the present.
The show is led by a strong ensemble cast featuring the young players portrayed by Liv Hewson, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Courtney Eaton, Sophie Thatcher and Samantha Hanratty, while the adult versions are played by Melanie Lynskey, Juliette Lewis, Christina Ricci, Tawny Cypress, Lauren Ambrose and Simone Kessell.
A description of the upcoming season promises that, “as summer arrives, the Yellowjackets face a fragile victory — the brutal winter that nearly claimed them is finally behind them, but distrust in leadership and tension within the team jeopardize their chances of being rescued. In the present, long-buried secrets from their pasts begin to surface. As the women fight to keep their lives from unraveling, they must confront a chilling question: who are they really, and what dark truths are they hiding from each other and themselves?”
Joining the cast this year will be Oscar-winner Hilary Swank and comedian/actor Joel McHale, with Elijah Wood returning in his recurring guest role.
The first two seasons of the show featured a driving title track and score composed by That Dog./Shudder to Think veterans Anna Waronker and Craig Wedren, which was later covered and released as a single by Alanis Morissette. The show also featured a barrage of classic 1980s-1990s alt rock songs, including classics from Morissette, Smashing Pumpkins, Liz Phair, Hole, Wilson Phillips, Portishead, Belly, Wreckx-N-Effect, Ace of Base, Enya, as well as Nirvana, the Cranberries, Pulp, Veruca Salt, Papa Roach, Elliott Smith, Garbage, Tori Amos, 4 Non Blondes, Madonna, N.W.A. and many more.
Watch the Yellowjackets season 3 trailer below.
With awards season off to a big start in 2025, LGBTQ+ non-profit GLAAD is unveiling its honorees for the 36th annual GLAAD Media Awards. On Wednesday (Jan. 22), GLAAD revealed the full list of honorees for the annual award show, including a swath of musical artists earning nominations for their work in 2025. In the […]
Roc Nation is expanding its music business portfolio with a trailblazing partnership. The Roc has teamed up with South Korean fintech company Musicow to launch what it describes as the first Music Equity Service Provider in the United States. Musicow aims to offer Americans the opportunity to invest in music royalties. This partnership allows music […]
Post Malone revealed his latest superstar collaboration on Wednesday (Jan. 22) – only it’s not with another artist. Instead, Posty has teamed up with Oreo for his own special and limited edition creation.
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“Who wouldn’t want to make their own Oreo cookie?” he says. “I’ve been a big fan of these cookies my whole life so when the opportunity came up I couldn’t believe it.”
Naturally, Post believes he dreamed up “the best Oreo ever,” which features a first for the cookie: a twisted creme center, combining salted caramel and shortbread flavors. The filling is sandwiched between a chocolate and golden cookie for, as Oreo says in a release, “a delicious duet of flavors in every bite.”
As Post tells Billboard, “I really wanted to create a flavor that shows off my different sides – that was important to me.”
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“We tried like 50 different combinations,” he continues. “I’ve been really into salted caramel lately, so I knew that had to be part of it. The shortbread balanced out the flavor and made the perfect twist. The twist is by far my favorite part. It’s the first time Oreo has ever done this. When I couldn’t decide between classic chocolate and the golden cookie, we said, ‘Why not do both?’ That was a fun day of work.”
Each cookie will feature a special embossment – out of nine options – that Posty picked himself, including everything from a sunflower (inspired by his hit of the same name with Swae Lee) to a pick up truck inspired by the album art for Austin and F-1 Trillion. Post says deciding on the embossments “took forever, but in the end we went with some of the most memorable imagery from the past 10 years. Every single detail was designed with the fans in mind.”
Inspired by Post, Oreo is now inviting fans to create their own twisted flavors with its Taste Twist Digital Experience, part of an ongoing sweepstakes that runs from early February through March 31. After entering favorite musical preferences, Oreo’s algorithm will reveal an individualized flavor combo. Those who participate could win a package of their own creation, a signed Post Malone poster and more.
Post’s limited edition Oreo will be available for presale on Jan. 27 and available to purchase on Feb. 3.
After more than a yearlong hiatus, season four of the Rock & Roll High School With Pete Ganbarg podcast launches Thursday (Jan. 23) with an interview with Chaka Khan.
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This season’s other guests include Tony Orlando, Squeeze’s Chris Difford, Randy Bachman, Al Stewart, Tears for Fears’ Curt Smith, Lovin’ Spoonful’s John Sebastian and America’s Gerry Beckley. New episodes will debut every other Thursday and are available on all major streaming outlets and the podcast’s website.
Pete Ganbarg started Rock & Roll High School, named after the beloved Ramones’ punk classic, several years ago as president of A&R at Atlantic Records when he realized that a number of the younger A&R staffers at Atlantic were unaware of the roots of popular music. At first it was an in-person lecture series, and he then began bringing in guests, including Vanilla Fudge drummer Carmine Appice and iconic record executives such as Clive Davis and Seymour Stein.
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When the pandemic hit and everything shut down, at the request of Warner Music Group, Ganbarg went virtual with the series and expanded attendance to anyone working at the company. Then in April 2021, the series launched as a full-fledged podcast available on all streaming platforms.
Chaka Khan
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Two-time Grammy winner Ganbarg left Atlantic last fall and now has 100% ownership of the podcast.
“We started this podcast a few years ago with the goal of having the history of contemporary music told first-hand — in their own words — by the people who helped create it,” Ganbarg said in a statement. “This new season is our biggest yet with close to 20 new episodes already recorded. We’re honored to be joined by an incredible, diverse array of singers, writers and producers — all of whom have helped to build the foundation of so many songs that have been the soundtrack of our lives and all of whom have fantastic stories to tell.”
Ganbarg patterned the podcast after James Lipton’s Inside the Actor’s Studio and Off the Record, a series of interviews the late Capitol Records president Joe Smith conducted with many music luminaries to create an oral history of popular music. Guests can come from any facet to the music world but must have played a role in creating music from 1955 on.
In addition to the podcast, Ganbarg, whose 35-year tenure in the music industry includes working with such artists as Santana, Twenty One Pilots, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Donna Summer and dozens more, is president of Pure Tone Music, whose signings include Forest Blakk and Joe Jordan. He also runs operates Songs With A Pure Tone and Margetts Road Music, joint ventures with Warner Chappell Music. He is nominated for two Grammys this year for his work on the cast albums for Suffs and The Notebook.
Music AI, a developer of artificial intelligence for music and audio, announced Wednesday it raised $40 million in a funding round led by Connect Ventures, a partnership between CAA and venture capital firm NEA, and Brazilian investor monashees, which also participated in Music AI’s seed around.
Other participants in the funding round include Kickstart, Samsung Next, Toba Capital, Valutia, Pelion and such music industry professionals as songwriter/producer Freddy Wexler, DJ/producer 3LAU and singer/songwriter Alexander23.
“Securing this Series A funding underscores the real-world impact our technologies have on the creative industry,” Geraldo Ramos, CEO of Music AI, said in a statement. “We’re ready to advance our mission of making music innovation accessible to all, and we’re eager to explore new possibilities with a focus on practical applications.” Founded by Ramos, Eddie Hsu, and Jardson Almeida, Music AI has a team of over 90 collaborators in the U.S., Brazil and Europe.
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Some AI companies have run into legal problems from music rights owners intent on preventing unauthorized use of their recordings and musical works to train generative AI models. Suno and Udio, for instance, were sued in the U.S. by the major labels for copyright infringement in June 2024, and Suno was sued on Monday by German performing rights organization GEMA in a Munich regional court. Music AI distances itself from those controversies, calling its products “ethical AI solutions” for the creative process such as stem separation, voice transfers, lyric transcription and mixing and mastering. The company’s technologies, including Music.ai and Moises.ai, have over 50 million users.
“We are deeply committed to partnering with ethically led AI companies that appropriately credit and compensate creators for usage of their work,” Michael Blank, managing partner at Connect Ventures, said in a statement. “Music AI’s talent-friendly approach and unparalleled technology is helping them become the trusted and premier AI platform of the music industry. Beyond empowering artists, Moises enhances the creative process for musicians, producers, and content creators worldwide for practice, creation, and collaboration.”
Samsung Next is interested in Music AI’s models’ ability “to run directly on hardware for faster performance, reduced latency and reduced cloud dependency,” said Carlos Castellanos, investor at Samsung Next. “Their proprietary models, third-party integrations, and on-device AI capabilities ensure reliability, security, and scalability across smartphones, smart TVs, and other connected devices—all while elevating the end-user experience with cutting-edge features.”