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09 Oct 2023

Madonna Condemns Hamas’ Deadly Assault on Israel: ‘This Tragic Attack Will Only Cause More Suffering For Everyone’

The global community continued to reel on Monday (Oct. 9) from the unprecedented, multi-pronged attack launched by militant group Hamas on Israel early Saturday morning that has so far resulted in the deaths of more than 700 Israelis, including 260 who were slaughtered at a desert rave.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared the assault an act of war and the country’s minister of defense has ordered a “complete siege” of the Gaza Strip, cutting off water, food, electricity and food to the territory from which the invasion was launched.

Social media feeds were flooded with messages of support for the families of the Israeli dead — in addition to the more than 2,400 wounded and dozens believed to have been taken hostage — with many condemning the loss of lives and devastation of families as a result of the surprise invasion.

“What is Happening in Israel is Devastating.. Watching all of these families and especially children being herded, assaulted and murdered in the streets is Heartbreaking.
Imagine if this was happening to you??” Madonna wrote on Sunday alongside a video chronicling the early morning blitz that saw Hamas gunmen killing women, children and civilians as they invaded Israel from the land, sea and air.

“It’s Un-fathomable. Conflicts can never be resolved with violence. Unfortunately Humanity does not understand this Universal truth. Has Never Understood it. We live in a World Ravaged by Hate,” added the singer. “My heart goes out to Israel. To Families and Homes that have been destroyed. To children who are lost. To Innocent Victims who have Been Killed.”

Madonna also appeared to extend a hand to all the victims of the violence, which has so far also included more than 560 dead and 2,700 wounded Palestinians in Gaza. “To All who are Suffering or who will suffer from this conflict. Im Praying For you,” she said. “I am aware that this is the work of Hamas and there are many innocent people in Palestine who do not support this terrorist organization. This Tragic attack will only cause more suffering for everyone
Let us all Pray. For Israel. ??????For Peace. ♥️ For The World.”

The violence also resulted in Bruno Mars cancelling a planned concert in Tel Aviv on Saturday.

Check out Madonna’s post below.

Trigger warning: The video below contains images of war and violence.

09 Oct 2023

The Top 50 Greatest Hip-Hop Album Covers Of All Time

HipHopWired Featured Video

Top 50 Hip-Hop Album Covers

Source: Various / Various

For most music lovers, the cover art is the visual gateway to their sonic sojourn. Before the first beat drops or word is uttered, that first impression is often the packaging for the album or cassette. Album art in itself often tells a story and sets the tone for the auditory journey. While the cover art’s impact has been diminished a tad in the digital times, in the analog era of tapes and vinyl, music fans would spend as much time dissecting the cover as they did the music. And in Hip-Hop in particular, crate diggers have elevated cover art to near mythic status.

So, in celebration of HipHop’s 50th Anniversary, HipHopDX and HipHopWired have collaborated to present the 50 Greatest Hip Hop Album Covers Of All Time, spanning all five decades. There are some surefire fan favorites on the list, as well as some more recent installments they may stir some convo, but it’s all for the love of genre we hold dear and to recognize the efforts of art directors, photographers, artists and the musicians who inspire them.

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

J. Cole, KOD

Cover art: Kamau Haroon

Whether you go with “Kids On Drugs,” “King Overdosed” or “Kill our Demons” as the meaning behind J.Cole’s KOD title, there is no debate that artist Kamau Haroon nailed all three interpretations with his vibrant yet haunting portrait. 

Known artistically as Sixmau, the artist was in the studio with J. Cole watching the NBA All-Star game when he created the cover. Evidently, the on-screen spectacle did little to distract him as the theme captured Cole’s vision: a monarch in the midst of a narcotic-induced daze shepherding equally dazed youth under his royalty capes.

“It was definitely a collaboration,” Kamau said of the creation. “It was a marriage of art and music. He told me what direction he was going in and then he gave me freedom to portray it how I wanted.”—Jerry Barrow

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Tyler, The Creator, Flower Boy

Designer/Photographer: Eric Wright

Tyler, The Creator is always hands on so his Flower Boy album cover was no different. After peeping artist’s work in one of his books, the rapper commissioned Eric Wright to create the cover brought him his own sketches with ideas of what he wanted. “I was really impressed with his drawings and especially with his use of color. I think he has a much better innate capacity for working with color than I do,” White, who happened to be an Odd Future fan, told Complex in 2017. The final work is a jarring mix of color and weirdness, so it’s perfectly aligned with the Tyler, The Creator ethos. —Alvin aqua Blanco

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp A Butterfly

Photo: Denis Rouvre

Art Direction: Kendrick Lamar, Dave Free, Vlad Sepetov

Kendrick Lamar’s cover art for his third studio album encapsulates the inherent rebelliousness of simply surviving in America. Even with the achievement of having an actual Black man in the White House, K.dot and his people posted up at the gate relegating the President’s residence to a backdrop, taking the directive to “paint the white house black” a defiant remix.

“It’s me and my homeboys in front of the White House,” Kendrick explains. “It’s really taking people from around my neighborhood and taking them around the world to see things I’ve experienced. [the baby he’s holding] is one of the homey’s kids, people I grew up with since elementary school all the way up to now. A lot of the individuals I talk about on Good Kid, Mad City is on this cover. It all spins around full circle.”

As for the judge laying on the ground with his eyes crossed out: “The one person that represents their lives negatively is a judge. Only God can judge these individuals.”—Jerry Barrow

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Lil’ Kim, Hardcore

Designer/Photographer: Michael Lavine

The cover for Lil’ Kim’s debut Hardcore album went viral before doing so was ever a thing. “When I did the Hard Core photo shoot, I was just posing to do them. It wasn’t like I’m just going to pose and squat and show my kitty cat; that was not on my mind at all. For me, it was just being a model and posing in a cute, sexy way,” the Queen Bee told XXL in 2016. The album is considered a proper classic and its art kept it a keepsake for fans; male, female or wherever on the spectrum you may land. That promo photos may have gotten more run than the actual music, though.—Alvin aqua Blanco

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Outkast, Stankonia

Art direction and design by Mike Rush. 

Photograph by Michael Lavine. 

After adorning their previous offerings, Atliens and Aquemini with illustrious illustrations, the two dope boys took a more direct approach for their fourth album, posing in a white tee and black leather pants against an ebony and ivory symbiote of the American Flag.

“The flag cover, that came to me when I was on an airplane,” Andre 3000 tells veteran journalist Craig Seymour in an 2000 interview. “I was thinking of a fly way to use the flag…make it a black and white flag. No color. More than anything. Like America is a no color state and we bring splashes of color.” Andre composed a drawing as an alternate cover to be a collectors item, but considers this image the “official” Stankonia cover. 

Art Director Mike Rush was hired by L.A. Reid to head the urban music art squad and calls the monochromatic flag with its stars titled drunkenly in an almost demonic salute as “one of the most iconic album images in hip hop history.”—Jerry Barrow

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Notorious B.I.G., Ready To Die

Designer: Cey Adams

Photographer: Butch Belair

Before you even think it, Raekwon and Ghostface have admitted they went too far with their infamous “Shark Niggas (Biters)” skit where they accused the Notorious B.I.G. of “biting off of Nas sh*t!” Also, the baby with the afro was not a seed of Sean “Diddy” Combs or Christopher Wallace as an infant but actually Keithroy Yearwood, who is now about 30 years old. Apparently, the kid was found during a casting call, and his mother caught a cool $150 for two hours of the child’s cuteness to be forever imprinted on Hip-Hop.—Alvin aqua Blanco

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Lauryn Hill, The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill

Album package photographer: Eric Johnson 

Art Director, Sony Music: Erwin Gorostiza 

Sampling and remixing is at Hip-Hop’s core, so it only makes sense that the debut album from one of the genre’s most revered artists, Ms. Lauryn Hill, would take inspiration from several places. The soulful center of The Fugees had her own visage carved into a desk because she knew she was about to school an entire industry. 

“She already had some great ideas that were inspired by the album title. I don’t think I ever had an artist so involved with their imagery before this point. I insisted that the art direction credit be given to her along with myself,”Art Director Erwin Gorostiza, told Okayplayer.com. 

A photograph of Ms Hill taken by Eric Johnson at her alma mater, Columbia High School in South Orange, New Jersey, was “carved” into the desk by retoucher Will Kennedy.

“In 1998, Photoshop was not anywhere near as powerful. Retouchers made up for it with all their skills and talent. Will had a knack for getting the art to look just right.”—Jerry Barrow

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

Nas, Illmatic

Designer/Photographer: Aimée Macauley

Illmatic’s cover was designed Aimée Macauley and a features a well-worn photograph of a 7-year-old Nas that was taken by his father, Jazz musician Olu Dara. The city photo young Nasty Nas’ face is superimposed over was taken by Danny Clinch. The legend goes that Nas originally intended for the album cover to be a picture of him holding Jesus Christ in a headlock. While the nod to his Live at the BBQ verse where rapped “When I was 12, I went to hell for snuffing Jesus” would have been welcomed by Hip-Hop diehards, the chosen cover option was for the best.—Alvin aqua Blanco

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

ODB, Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version

Art Direction: Alli True 

Photography: Danny Clinch

ODB draped himself in truth like a North Face Denali Fleece. “I came out my momma pussy, I’m on welfare. Twenty-six years old–still on welfare,” he growls on the quixotic confessional “Raw Hide” from his 1995 debut. So it’s no surprise that Dirty would use his own food stamp card to adorn said release, creating the most iconic Hip Hop album cover of all time.

“That album cover was completely his idea…he literally came to my office with his welfare card,” A&R Dante Ross confirms in an interview.  Thanks to a color Xerox machine (an expensive favor in the pre-scanner days), the head of the art department, a Wu-Tang fan, was able to mock up a 10×12 cover long before the album was even finished. “He was like ‘I’m the realest…I grew up in poverty and I’m not ashamed of who I am’…he was making a conscious decision to be the polar opposite of the shiny suits and to do it in a way that was funny.”—Jerry Barrow

HHW+HHDX Top 50 covers2

A Tribe Called Quest, The Low End Theory

Designer/Photographer: Nick Gamma, Jean Kelly & Dave Skillken aka ZombArt

The legend goes that Q-Tip wanted a painted woman, akin to something you would find on an Ohio Players album cover [https://rockthebells.com/articles/low-end-theory-midnight-marauders-a-tribe-called-quest/] The live photos, taken by Joe Grant, were just a start and the proper artwork was created by Jean Kelly aka ZombArt JK while Nick Gamma aka ZombArt NG handled the lettering. Along with Dave Skillken they all worked in the art department of Tribe’s record label Jive’s parent company Zomba Recordings. Since Jive was on 4080-mode when it came to getting credit, they were known as the Zombart collective as a compromise. While the music spoke for itself, the classic cover with its afrocentric pallet of colors made the cipher complete.—Alvin aqua Blanco 

Check out the full list of the Top 50 Hip-Hop Album Covers of all time over at HipHopDX.

09 Oct 2023

Drake and Lil Yachty Dance With Wolves in an Enchanted Forest in ‘Another Late Night’ Video

Drake goes on a trippy late night ghostride in the new video for his For All the Dogs song “Another Late Night.” The Cole Bennett-directed clip that dropped to coincide with the rapper’s latest studio album features Lil Yachty living it up in a forest illuminated by Christmas lights and, for some reason, frequented by a pack of wolves and a luminous owl.

Some of the action takes place in a Xmas light-covered sports car driven by an cosplay vixen Pisceus doing burnouts in a parking lot as Drizzy raps, “just another late night with my b–ch.” According to a note on the Lyrical Lemonade YouTube page, the clip was shot “in 2 hours in Maple Ridge Canada,” with most of the action consisting of the two rappers doing their thing in a parking lot — including Yachty appearing to get a new neck tat on set.

For All the Dogs has already amped up scrutiny over lyrics that some fans have speculated include disses of Rihanna and her partner, A$AP Rocky, as well as what British dance pop duo the Pet Shop Boys say is an unlicensed interpolation of their 1986 hit “West End Girls.”

Drake, 36, also appears to hit back at “weirdo” haters who criticized his close friendship with Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown, who he said in 2018 that he texted with frequently when the British actress was just 14 years old; at the time Brown said Drake was a “great role model.”

On “Another Late Night,” Drizzy raps, “My bank account is magnolia, Milly rockin’, ay/ Weirdos in my comments talkin’ about some Millie Bobby, look/ Bring them jokes up to the gang, we get to really flockin’,” in what then appears to be another set of shots at Rocky.

Check out Drake’s “Another Late Night” video below.

09 Oct 2023

Will Ferrell Kicked It Old School During His Wild DJ Set at a USC Frat Party

It’s every college freshman’s worst nightmare: their thinks-he’s-cool dad shows up for family weekend seemingly hell-bent on just, you know, hanging and partying with the guys! Now imagine that dad is frequently shirtless comic genius Will Ferrell, and that he’s returning to his alma mater to man the DJ booth at a frat party.

His son’s frat party!

That was the scene on Saturday when Ferrell, 56, was back on campus at the University of Southern California, where he helped the men of Sigma Alpha Mu get turned up before what would be a super-thrilling triple-overtime 43-41 win over the University of Arizona. In videos of the set on TikTok, Ferrell can be seen manning the decks while rocking a pair of headphones and dark shades and a backwards USC baseball cap while surrounded by students partying to his eclectic playlist, which included the Survivor’s classic Rocky III 1982 pump-up anthem “Eye of the Tiger,” Jay-Z and Ye’s 2001 Watch the Throne jam “Ni–as in Paris” and the Killers’ 2004 signature hit “Mr. Brightside.”

Elsewhere, Ferrell channeled his hard-partying Old School character Frank the Tank while hitting the massive crowd at the party with clouds of fog from a hand-held blaster.

The Barbie star graduated from the university in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in sports information and returned in 2017 to give a commencement speech; he and wife Paulin Ferrell’s eldest son, Magnus, 19, is reportedly a student at USC.

Check out some of Ferrell’s DJ set below.

09 Oct 2023

Shania Twain Checks off Major ‘Bucket List’ Item With Surprise ‘Best of You’ Foo Fighters Collab at Austin City Limits

Shania Twain may be an indisputable country queen, but what she really wants to do is rock. The “Giddy Up!” singer lived out her ultimate rock and roll fantasy on Saturday (Oct. 7) when she hopped up on stage with the Foo Fighters at the Austin City Limits Festival to help the band rip through the 2005 In Your Honor classic ” Best of You.”

“This was one off the bucket list for me! Firstly thank you to @foofighters for inviting me on stage – you are all so generous and ridiculously cool,” Twain wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “I am a huge rock fan.” She also noted in another comment that despite her day job, head-banging is in her blood.

“My first band was a rock band, my first big producer was one of the worlds renowned rock producers, me and my son like to rock out [crying laughing emoji],” Twain wrote alongside a picture of her posing backstage with the Foos, in reference to her early ’80s rock band Longshot and her former husband/producer, Robert John “Mutt” Lange. “Totally worth the adrenaline fuelled run from my stage to yours Dave Grohl – you are a true friend and talent.”

Twain had played her own headlining set at ACL earlier in the day and after Grohl howled his way into the first verse of “Best of You,” Twain — rocking flaming red hair, a sleeveless silver top and rhinestone-studded white jean shorts with matching cowboy boots — came out on stage and hugged Grohl from behind before lending a hand on the song’s chorus; watch fan video of the performance here.

Last week, the Foos announced the dates for a 2024 run of U.S. stadiums, which will kick off with the first of two shows at New York’s Citi Field on July 17. The 12-date run of major league stadiums will also hit Fenway Park in Boston (July 21), before moving to Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, PA (July 23), Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati (July 25) and Minneapolis’ Target Field (July 28); the tour is scheduled to wind down on August 18 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

Check out the Foos’ and Shania’s posts below.

09 Oct 2023

5 Takeaways From Music Matters 2023: AI, Glocalisation and More

The AI genie is out of the bottle. It’s not going back, so buckle in and get on board.

Artificial intelligence was a hot button topic as music professionals gathered in Singapore last month for the All That Matters conference to learn, meet, greet and get business done.

Music Matters is one of seven streams under the All That Matters banner. Singapore, the dynamic, constantly-evolving city state, once again hosted the event, its music component recognized as the most important of its kind in Asia.

At 18 years of age, ATM is all grown up. This time, almost 2,000 attendees gathered from across the music, sports, gaming, media and entertainment industries, its conclusion the starting point for the Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Guest speakers at the Sept. 11-13 confab included Jonathan Dworkin, Universal Music Group’s executive VP, digital business development & strategy; Troy Carter, CEO and founder Venice Music; Hazel Savage, VP music intelligence, SoundCloud; Meng Ru Kuok, CEO & co-founder of BandLab; Denis Ladegaillerie, founder & CEO of Believe; Spotify’s Kossy Ng (head of music, Asia) and Joe Hadley (global head of artists and audience partnerships); and Pieter van Rijn, president Downtown Music.

Billboard selected five notable takeaways from this year’s program:

Glocalisation is the way forward

Glocalisation is more than a buzzword. It’s a growing, measurable business as more local language music gains traction on DSPs. Building a business to support that doesn’t happen by accident. “At some point you have a certain ambition,” explained Pieter van Rijn, president Downtown Music, during a day one presentation. “It’s very important for us to be close to our clients,” noted the New York-based Dutchman, whose company has label services staff across the region, including South Korea, Philippines and Japan and elsewhere. Glocalisation is “to think local but act global, the success that we’re seeing there is a trend of local artist having local success and not just English language content driving the charts. You can see that in many countries, it’s another great symptom of how the industry has evolved itself.”

Luminate’s Music 360 research reinforces it, with data showing that 40% of U.S. listeners were found to tune-into music in a non-English language in the second quarter of 2023. At the same time, the share of English-language content is down.

Peter van Rijn photographed on October 19, 2022 at Downtown Music in New York City.

Peter van Rijn photographed on October 19, 2022 at Downtown Music in New York City.

Wesley Mann

Moving forward with AI, and a plan

Believe this year celebrates its 10th anniversary in APAC, a business that started in Indonesia, was built from the ground up, and now represents over 10,000 labels and artist. Some €700 million has been generated in revenue to labels and artists in that decade. Believe is a big believer on Glocalisation, and its future includes the adoption of AI.

“It’s going to come very quickly,” explained Believe CEO Denis Ladegaillerie, during a day-three morning session which also included Sylvain Delange, Believe managing director for APAC. “We expect some products to come into the market very soon, in the next three to six months.” The response needs to be a responsible one. That includes Believe’s own set of principles, drawn up with YouTube, around the four pillars of consent, control, compensation and transparency. A new survey by Believe and TuneCore of 1,558 found that 50% of musicians are willing to make their music available for machine learning while also believing in a responsible approach.

Denis Ladegaillerie

Believe founder and CEO Denis Ladegaillerie

Anis Martin

Streaming fraud is a $500 million problem. At least

For artists, cutting through the noise in the streaming world is a major challenge, and it’s not getting any easier. In the U.S., streams have grown 400% over the last four years, UMG’s Dworkin explained during his keynote presentation, while at the same time, on-platform new music discovery has fallen by 45% (with on-platform music discovery representing just 15% of how fans discover music). If you think that’s bad, streaming fraud takes the cake. Fraud, at the low end of estimations, is a $500 million problem.

“And it could be triple that,” he says. “Security should be a basic matter of hygiene for platforms and for distributors.” Music and artists that connect with consumers should be rewarded in the streaming game. “If a piece of content is riding along on a platform and not connecting with consumers, it will simply be downgraded,” he says, citing Deezer’s novel formulation. “We at Universal are ready for everyone to be held to the same standard. Including us. Let us all compete on the basis of the value created for fans. And not by counting streams as they sleep.“ It’s time to “change the model so the business can be more resilient for the next stage of growth.” He concludes, “there’s a lot more work to do, and the solutions are going to continue to evolve.”

Robbie Williams is coming to entertain you

Thanks to Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody, rockumentaries have been a box office boom in recent years. Robbie Williams sings when he’s winning, and he might be singing a lot in the near future with his very own projects.

Before Williams’ headline performance at the F1 Grand Prix, the Brit’s manager Stephen O’Reilly, managing director at ie: ventures and a director of ie: music, sat for a chat about Robbie’s busy schedule.

The former Take That star is the subject of a four-part documentary series, set to air from early November on Netflix.  Robbie Williams is a project of Ridley Scott Associates and director Joe Pearlman (Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now) and executive produced by Asif Kapadia (Amy). Also, filming is completed on the previously-announced Better Man, which should arrive at cinemas next year.

The context was to “go out of our comfort zones to do things we’ve never done before,” say O’Reilly of Better Man, which has been described as a satirical musical based on the singer’s own life. It’s helmed by Australian filmmaker Michael Gracy whose debut film The Greatest Showman grossed more than $425 million worldwide. New Zealand’s Weta Digital is creating the visual effects for what O’Reilly describes as a “groundbreaking” film, which opens up a new “world of immersive entertainment, with great music and great story.” Robbie’s solo career is now 25 years deep, and has taken him to the very top of the tree in the U.K. (where he has 14 solo No. 1 albums), Europe and Australia. The U.S., however, has stubbornly resisted his cheeky-chappy charms. Will the new projects change that? Wait and see.

Robbie Williams

Robbie Williams performs at Hits Radio Live 2019 at Manchester Arena on Nov. 17, 2019 in Manchester, England. 

Carla Speight/Getty Images for Bauer Media

Russell Simmons talks Hip-Hop, Drugs and Donald Trump

Russell Simmons had the last word at All That Matters, with a free-flowing final session which covered all the topics you’d hoped for, and some you didn’t expect. The Def Jam co-founder regaled with tales on Will Smith, the 50-year history of hip-hop, the epicenter of art that was, and still is, New York City, Run-DMC, drugs and Donald Trump. Simmons and Trump used to hang in the 1990s and they traveled the world together. “I don’t dislike Donald,” he remarked. “We had a lot in common, a lot we didn’t have in common. We laughed about a lot of s—.” Becoming the POTUS, well that’s another thing. “When he became president,” he remarked, “it was obviously not a good thing for America.”

Earlier this year, the Singapore subsidiary of Nodwin acquired a 51% stake in Branded, bringing the confab and showcase event into the Nodwin Gaming family.

09 Oct 2023

BTS’s Jung Kook Makes U.K. Chart History

BTS star Jung Kook bags the top debut on the U.K. singles chart, and with it, a piece of history.

Jung Kook’s “3D” (via BigHit Entertainment) with Jack Harlow bows at No. 5 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, published Friday, Oct. 6, behind the weeks-long leader,  Doja Cat‘s “Paint The Town Red” (Ministry of Sound).

With that strong start for “3D,” Jung Kook becomes the first Korean solo act to score two top 5 singles in the U.K.; his debut solo single, “Seven,” featuring Latto, debuted at No. 3 earlier this year, setting a chart record.

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Both tracks will appear on the K-pop artist’s first solo album GOLDEN, due out Nov. 3.

As a group, BTS has landed four singles in the U.K. top 10, including three No. 3s — for 2020’s “Dynamite,” “Butter” and Coldplay collaboration “My Universe” (both from 2021). All seven members of the K-pop phenomenon – Jin, Jimin, Suga, Jung Kook, RM, V and J-Hope – have shared solo material, with Jimin setting the bar with a first top 10 for “Like Crazy” (peaking at No. 8) in March; he separately secured a top 40 appearance with “Set Me Free Pt. 2,” hitting No. 30.

J-Hope was the first member of BTS to bag a U.K. top 40 single, thanks to his J. Cole collaboration “On The Street” peaking at No. 37.

Historically, the only other Korean solo artist to have bagged two U.K. top 10 singles is PSY, with 2012’s “Gangnam Style” (No. 1) and 2013’s “Gentleman” (No. 10).

Meanwhile, Doja Cat checks in for a fifth straight week at No. 1 with “Paint The Town Red,” which holds off a feisty challenge from Kenya Grace’s “Strangers” (FFRR), unchanged at No. 2, and Tate McCrae’s “Greedy” (Ministry of Sound), up 5-3 for a new peak position.

South African singer Tyla enjoys her first U.K. top 10 as “Water” (RCA) rises 16-10, while Nigeria-born Afrobeats star Burna Boy is moving on up with “City Boys” (Atlantic), his 13th top 40. “City Boy” improves 17-14.

U.S. singer and songwriter Mitski is close behind and climbing fast with “My Love Mine All Mine” (Dead Oceans), rocketing 34-15 for a new peak.

Finally, Ed Sheeran has his 62nd U.K. top 40 hit with “American Town” (Gingerbread Man), new at No. 27. It’s lifted from his seventh and latest studio album Autumn Variations, the current U.K. No. 1 LP.

08 Oct 2023

Ed Sheeran Scores Seventh U.K. No. 1 With ‘Autumn Variations’

Ed Sheeran extends his perfect U.K. albums chart record as Autumn Variations (via Gingerbread Man) debuts at No. 1.

Produced with the National’s Aaron Dessner, Autumn Variations bows at the summit of the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published Friday, Oct. 6, for the Brit’s seventh straight leader.

The leader at the halfway stage, when it dominated its nearest competitor by more than two-combined-sales-to-one, Autumn Variations is Sheeran’s second leader this year. It finishes the U.K. chart week as the best-seller on wax, and follows national No. 1s with his 2011 debut + (plus), 2014’s x (multiply), 2017’s ÷ (divide), 2019’s No. 6 Collaborations Project, 2021’s = (equals) and 2023’s – (subtract).

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Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore LP Guts (Geffen) holds at No. 2 for a third consecutive week, while Jorja Smith enjoys a podium finish with her second studio album Falling Or Flying (FAMM), new at No. 3. Smith, the 2018 BRITs Critics Choice award winner, has now landed three titles in the U.K. top 10, a tally that includes her 2018 debut Lost & Found (No. 3) and 2021 EP Be Right Back (No. 9).

Also new to the top tier is The Harmony Codex (SW Records), the third solo album from Porcupine Tree‘s Steven Wilson. It’s new at No. 4 on the U.K. chart, matching the peak of his previous effort, 2021’s The Future Bites (2017’s To the Bone reached No. 3).

Meanwhile, U.S. rock act Black Stone Cherry nabs a fourth U.K. top 10 album with Screamin’ at the Sky (Mascot), new at No. 6.

Further down the list, British synth-wave outfit Gunship rides to a new career peak position with Unicorn (Horsie In The Hedge), bowing at No. 26; U.K. Eurovision 2023 rep Mae Muller scores her first U.K. top 40 album with Sorry I’m Late (Capitol), arriving at No. 33, and British soul veteran Beverley Knight nabs an eighth with The Fifth Chapter (Tag8), starting at No. 39.

08 Oct 2023

Artist Manager Describes Israeli Rave Massacre: ‘It Turned Into a Nightmare’

An artist manager who had several acts scheduled to play the Paralello Universo festival in Re’im, Israel, near the Gaza Strip, and who was there during the attack on the festival, describes a scene of chaos and terror.

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Raz Gaster had multiple artists playing the electronic music festival, where at least 260 people were killed and others were abducted amid an attack by Hamas operatives Saturday (Oct. 7).

Gaster arrived on site at the festival event at approximately 5:30 a.m. on Saturday, with the party — which had started the night prior — meant to go until approximately 5 p.m. Saturday evening. An offshoot of the Paralello Universo festival brand started in Brazil nearly 20 years ago; the Israel event was called Supernova Sukkot Gathering after the Jewish holiday and was hosting several thousand attendees in a rural location near the Gaza Strip, with a lineup focused on the electronic psytrance genre.

Everything changed, though, when rockets and missiles launched from the Gaza Strip by Hamas starting landing on the site an hour later, part of a widespread attack on Israel.  

“Around 6:30 in the morning we started hearing explosions,” Gaster says. “We went out of the backstage and we saw a full bombardment everywhere. It was hundreds of rockets and mortars flying from everywhere and explosions all around us.”  

Gaster says that at this point, festival security advised everyone to get down on the floor and put their hands above their heads for protection. But after 5-10 minutes, Gaster says, “the policemen shouted in the microphones, ‘Okay, get in your cars and go.’” 

“The moment the policemen said ‘go now,’ I ran,” Gaster recalls. “I didn’t wait, because we know it’s a rocket attack. You need to act quick.”  

Because his car was parked near the stage very close to where he was standing, Gaster and three other men — including Universo Paralello co-founder Juarez Petrillo — were able to immediately get in Gaster’s car and drive out minutes later, after Gaster made sure the artists he works with were also in vehicles fleeing the site.

Gaster says he was “driving super fast, not stopping for anything, even when missiles are coming down. My instinct told me don’t stop for shelter, just drive… We drove so fast we didn’t even know what was happening.” 

By the time Gaster and the others made it to a villa rented by the production team, located approximately 30 kilometers away from the festival, they had started getting texts and phone calls telling them that minutes after they drove away from the site, Hamas fighters had arrived “with machine guns, with RPGs, with grenades, and just slaughtered whoever they could.”

He says that these attackers arrived by motorcycles, quads and trucks approximately 20 minutes after missiles started landing. 

Gaster and those he was with turned the villa into a command center, contacting IDF, other Israeli security services and “all of our friends that we know personally that have firearms that have connections that can go there.”  

During this time he and the others were receiving messages from friends and colleagues still on site, who reported that the attackers were shooting attendees in their cars as they attempted to drive away. A friend of Gaster’s messaged to say that the driver of her car had been shot and that she and another friend were pretending to be dead to avoid being killed. He says these women ultimately played dead for five hours before being rescued. As of Sunday (Oct. 8), Israeli rescue service Zaka has reported at least 260 bodies at the site.

“People were hiding in ditches, hiding in bushes, hiding in the woods, hiding wherever you can think of,” says Gaster. “We were getting horrible messages from friends saying, ‘Please help us, they are shooting people next to us.’” 

Gaster says it took IDF and special forces a few hours to arrive on site, with those who were there attempting to defend themselves in the meantime.  

“At the party there was already a police force, like any licensed party,” Gaster says, “and they were the first ones to try to give assistance by fighting… We are Israelites, so most of us have military experience, and a few from the production managed to kill some terrorists with their bare hands and their weapons.”  

Gaster says that the owner of the production company behind the festival, Nova Tribe, killed two of the attackers after taking their guns. Gaster says he and the team at the production villa were being sent on-site locations from various attendees and then sending these locations to the owner, who then went to help these attendees.  

“It was 24 hours of working to find as many people as we could and get as many signs of life as we could,” says Gaster.  

Universo Paralello was not origintally intended to take place at the Re’im site, with organizers moving it to this location only two days before it started, when another site in southern Israel fell through. The new site at Re’im featured a pair of stages, with the Israeli producer Artifex playing the mainstage when the attack started. Gaster was told that the attackers closed the road into the festival from both sides so attendees could not escape.  

Other festival attendees have been abducted by Hamas. As a group of between 15-20 people gathered at the production villa, they, says Gaster, “started seeing videos on social media of hostages and people we know that are kidnapped and bodies we could recognize [as] our friends. Many friends are still missing, and we still don’t know where they are.” 

He approximates that there are still 600-700 people missing from the party. All but one artist on the festival lineup has left Israel, with Gaster and others putting artists on any available flight into Europe as airlines canceled flights amid the attacks.

While Gaster had just arrived to his home in the north of Israel when Billboard spoke with him at around 1 a.m. local Israeli time (he says the IDF controls most of the area between where he was and where he lives, so he felt safe to drive home), he says that amid the chaos they are all “still trying to find any signs of life.”

“We are a peaceful community, we are a musical community, we do it for the creation of fun,” says Gaster. “We only wanted to dance and have a good time and enjoy music together, and it turned into a nightmare.”

08 Oct 2023

Fans Choose Jennie’s ‘You & Me’ as This Week’s Favorite New Music

Jennie‘s “You & Me” tops this week’s new music poll.

Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (Oct. 6) on Billboard, choosing Jennie’s solo song as their favorite new music release of the past week.

The BLACKPINK member’s “You & Me” brought in more than 83% of the vote, beating out new music from NewJeans, Drake and more. Blinks really showed up for Jennie this week, pulling in a landslide victory for the K-pop star’s new solo track on Billboard‘s weekly poll.

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“You & Me” is Jennie’s second solo release, following 2018’s “Solo.” She performs “You & Me” during the solo section of BLACKPINK’s Born Pink World Tour, and the song was officially released on Friday.

“I love you and me dancing in the moonlight/ Nobody can see, it’s just you and me tonight/ I love you and me, dancing in the moonlight/ Nobody can see, it’s just you and me tonight,” she sings on the chorus.

Trailing behind “You & Me” on the poll is NewJeans’ “GODS,” with 13% of the vote, and Drake’s For All the Dogs, with 1% of the vote.

See the final results of this week’s poll below.