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Looks like another Executive Turntable, Billboard’s weekly compendium of promotions, hirings, exits and firings — and all things in between — across the music business. First and foremost, our thoughts are with the family of Sound Talent Group (STG) owner Dave Shapiro, who was among those killed in a plane crash in San Diego early on Thursday (May 22). Two other STG employees were also killed, Billboard has learned, though they were not named in order to notify their families. More on this tragedy here.
Earlier this week, we revealed our annual list of executives driving success for artists outside the United States. With that…
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Big Loud Records elevated Tyler Waugh to senior vice president of radio promotion, effective immediately. A key player at the label for nearly a decade, Waugh has contributed to 30 No. 1 singles and helped deliver a historic add day with Post Malone and Morgan Wallen’s “I Had Some Help,” which earned support from all reporting country radio stations. Based in Nashville, Waugh was honored with the CRS Award for Director of National Promotion in 2023, and his team secured Country Aircheck’s Label of the Year for 2023 and 2024, as well as Billboard’s top Country Airplay Label. Before joining Big Loud in 2016, he held radio promotion roles at Blaster, Streamsound and Arista Nashville. EVP Stacy Blythe praised Waugh’s leadership and strategic vision in announcing the promotion. “The deep respect that he earns from the team speaks volumes,” said Blythe.
Warner Music Nashville made two moves within its radio promo teams. Paige Elliott has been hired as national director for the WEA Radio Promotion Team, bringing nearly two decades of experience, including her most recent role as Columbia director of promotion at Sony Music Nashville. She also held regional promotion roles at Capitol Records Nashville and Capitol Music Group. Elliott steps into the position previously held by Stephanie Hagerty. Additionally, Kayla Burnett has been promoted to manager of radio for the WMN Team. Since joining WMN as a coordinator in 2020, Burnett has played a vital role in crafting radio strategies at the label. The announcement was made by Kristen Williams, svp of radio and commercial partnerships. They can be reached at Paige.Elliott@wmg.com and Kayla.Burnett@wmg.com.
Audio Chateau Records, a division of Audio Up Media, appointed Grammy-nominated producer Poo Bear to its advisory board. Reuniting with Audio Up CEO Jared Gutstadt, Poo Bear will co-write and produce the debut album for Randy Savvy, frontman of the Compton Cowboys. Known for his work with Justin Bieber, DJ Khaled and Nicky Jam, Poo Bear has a longstanding creative partnership with Gutstadt, including projects like Bear and a Banjo, featuring Bob Dylan. Also joining the board is Nathan Miller, CEO of Miller Ink, to enhance brand and media strategy. Randy Savvy and the Compton Cowboys will debut their album — which they’re dubbing as “street country” — on June 6 at CMA Fest’s “Been Country: Black Roots in Rhythm,” celebrating Black country music and cowboy heritage. “Poo Bear is a generational talent, and his involvement will add fuel to Audio Chateau’s creative engine, elevating our label and roster of artists to a new level,” said Gutstadt. “We’re ready to debut a bold new sound with Randy and the Compton Cowboys’ album—one that will redefine the crossroads of country and hip-hop.”
Molly DeMellier is ready to shine as chief operating officer Sundaze PR, teaming up with founder and CEO Sarah Jackson to scale the agency’s operations across the US and UK. With a background at Acast, where she was marketing and PR director in the US, the NYC-based exec brings deep experience in audio and creator tech to support Sundaze’s mission of providing strategic communications for B2B companies in the creator economy. Sundaze, known for its story-driven PR approach, already serves clients like Adelicious, Slipstream and Wondercraft. DeMellier will focus on helping creator-tech brands craft purposeful communications strategies that elevate their impact in content and community. “This next chapter is about doubling down on what we do best,” says Jackson, who founded Sundaze after leaving her role as global head of PR at Acast. “There’s a huge gap in quality PR for this space, and we’re building an agency designed to fill it.”
NASHVILLE NOTES: BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville promoted Allan Geiger to senior director and Haley Wirthele to manager within the company’s content and creative department, both reporting to vp of global content creative Jen Morgan … Prescriptions Songs promoted Kelly White to A&R coordinator from assistant … Business management firm Harris, Huelsman, Barnes & Company made three staff moves, including the promotion of Amanda Goff to client manager from assistant. It also hired client manager Amanda Remo, who previously held the same role at Farris, Self & Moore, and junior business manager Ryan Spradlin, formerly of the Mechanical Licensing Collective … Nashville Public Radio named longtime public media executive Holly Kernan — ex-chief content officer at KQED/San Francisco — as its new president and CEO, succeeding Steve Swenson, and she will now oversee 90.3 WPLN News, WNXP 91.1 and Nashville Classical Radio.
Recognition Music Group, the Blackstone-owned catalog company formerly called Hipgnosis, launched a senior advisory group chaired by Matt Spetzler, former co-head of Europe for boutique investment bank Francisco Partners and now head of his own investment firm Jamen Capital. Top copyright and music assets lawyer Lisa Alter of Alter, Kendrick & Baron, and David Johnson, former Warner Chappell and EMI executive and Sony Music and Warner Music’s former general counsel, will also sit on the advisory committee. “We very much look forward to working with Matt, Lisa and David,” Recognition CEO Ben Katovsky said in a statement. “Their combined expertise and insight will be a powerful support as we continue to enhance and protect the legacy and value of the incredible songs in our portfolio.”
Berklee appointed Jonathan Mahoney as the new dean of its Pre-College, Online and Professional Programs (POPP) division, effective May 28. He brings nearly two decades of experience in EdTech, most recently serving as vp of online learning at the Recording Academy, where he launched GRAMMY GO — the organization’s first creator-to-creator learning platform. Before that, he spent over a decade at 2U, the technology and services provider behind edX. “Jonathan’s learner-first mindset and track record of scaling innovative programs align seamlessly with our mission,” said Debbie Cavalier, Berklee Online cofounder and CEO.
ICYMI:
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Due to a prolonged delay in the reopening of Brooklyn Mirage, Josh Wyatt is stepping down as CEO of its parent company, Avant Gardner. In the interim, day-to-day operations will be overseen by Gary Richards, Avant Gardner’s non-executive chairman of the board … Live Nation elected Trump devotee Richard Grenell to its board of directors. Grenell was recently appointed to run the Kennedy Center following a shakeup. Live Nation, currently navigating an antitrust lawsuit brought by the DOJ, donated $500k towards Trump’s inauguration. [Keep Reading]
Last Week’s Turntable: Former BMG Exec Joins Armin van Buuren’s Armada
Bono is tired of the broken bottles under children’s feet and bodies strewn across the dead-end street, so he called for the Israel-Hamas war to stop during U2‘s induction into the Ivor’s Fellowship Academy at the Ivor Novello Awards ceremony in London on Thursday (May 22).
The singer-songwriter’s message came as he introduced the band’s acoustic performance of its 1983 hit “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” about the January 1972 massacre that saw British soldiers fire upon protesters in Derry, Northern Ireland, killing 14 unarmed people.
“I used to introduce this next song by saying it wasn’t a rebel song,” Bono began. “Believing in the possibilities of peace was then and is now a rebellious act — and some would say a ridiculous one. To believe peace was attainable between your country and ours, between our country and itself, was a ridiculous idea because peace creates possibilities in the most intractable situations, and lord knows theres a few of them out there right now.”
“Hamas, release the hostages, stop the war,” the Irish rocker continued. “Israel, be released from Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right fundamentalists that twist your sacred texts. All of you protect our aid workers, they are the best of us!”
Hamas launched an attack on Israel Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 others as captives, with the Associated Press reporting that 58 are still being held. More than 53,000 people — mostly children and women — have been killed across Gaza in Israel’s retaliatory attacks. On Friday, Gaza’s health ministry said that at least another 60 have been killed in Israeli strikes in the past 24 hours.
The band has been outspoken in its stances. In February, U2 shared a message of support for Ukraine, which has been fighting against an invasion by Russia launched thee years earlier. “All who believe in freedom and sense the jeopardy we Europeans now find ourselves in are not sleeping easily on this, the third anniversary of the invasion,” Bono captioned the Instagram post, which included a reading of Taras Shevchenko’s “My Friendly Epistle” accompanied by piano.
In January, President Joe Biden honored Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, highlighting the rocker’s work as a “pioneering activist against AIDS and poverty.”
Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi took the stand this week at the sex trafficking and racketeering trial for Sean “Diddy” Combs, detailing his side of the ordeal and alleging that the mogul attempted to harm him. Kid Cudi testified that he confronted Diddy after an incident involving his car, referring to him as a “Marvel supervillain.”
Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi was in New York at the Manhattan federal court on Thursday (May 22), where Sean “Diddy” Combs has endured brutal testimony from the likes of ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and former recording artist Dawn Richard.
As spotted in Newsweek, Mescudi shared his side of things in the wake of Ventura’s testimony. Ventura shared that she and Mescudi had a brief romantic encounter that was strained by the alleged actions of Combs to keep them apart. According to Mescudi, he was unaware that Combs and Ventura were still an item after he began dating the singer in 2011.
In 2012, Mescudi’s car was set on fire while away from his home, stating from the stand that he later confronted Combs at Soho House in Los Angeles. Combs claimed that he didn’t know anything about the car bombing, according to Mescudi. When asked what his reactions were regarding the car explosion, Mescudi replied on the stand, “Umm, what the f* ck?”
In addition to the exploding car, Mescudi claims that Combs entered his residence in a bid to intimidate the rapper and actor, whilst attempting to sever the connection with Ventura.
Mescudi said he broke things off with Ventura due to what he referred to as “drama” and added that Ventura “played” both him and Combs. He also added that Combs approached him and apologized for all of the alleged actions that took place during the ordeal with Ventura.
On X, reactions to Kid Cudi’s testimony are all over the map. We’ve got the best reactions below.
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Photo: TIMOTHY A. CLARY / Getty
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In an age of elusive algorithms and viral fame, Rob49 has had an uncharacteristically steady rise for a young rapper. After an uneventful stint in the National Guard and two semesters at Southern University, Rob49 picked up the mic for fun during the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost immediately, he garnered co-signs from industry vets like French Montana, and inked a record deal before the year was out. From there, Rob’s uptick in popularity hasn’t ceased — much to the surprise of everyone, even him.
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“I ain’t never wanna be no rapper. I used to really be looking at rappers like they were lying,” Rob told Billboard of his early days. “Like, ‘Ain’t no way you doin’ what I’m doin and made it out this s—t.’ Now, I feel like all rappers gotta be doing what they’re talking about — because ain’t no way your hood let you [fake] that, let you say what you say and get away with it.”
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Rob49’s latest album, Let Me Fly, is a testament to that relentless hustle, and to the acceptance that clearly he was built to be a rap star. The lighthearted nature behind his inescapable hit “WTHelly” shows that making hit songs, even if the origin of it is rather silly, comes as easily to Rob as breathing.
“I don’t be looking for a catchy record,” Rob says. “I really just be doing what I want.”
Below, Billboard talks with Rob49 about “WTHelly,” linking with Justin Bieber, and the key to making good music.
Let’s set the record straight: Who was the first person to say “what the helly?”
I don’t know who the first person was, but a lot of people are trying to take credit for it in my city. It’s New Orleans slang right now.
How are you feeling about the reception to “WTHelly” so far? Were you expecting it to be a hit from the jump?
I knew it was gonna be good, but I was kinda scared. A lot of the other releases I had, I was kinda thinkin’, ‘Oh this is gonna be it!’ and it was not what it was supposed to be. I was scared [“WTHelly”] was gonna be one of them ones. I’m grateful for it [catching on].
It must be nice to see it starting to get the traction the song is getting.
Did you see it?
Did I see what?
Did you see “WTHelly” on your socials?
I had to search it, it didn’t just pop up for me.
Ah, see that’s why I asked you that. We ain’t go hard enough then.
What’s your favorite “WTHelly” flip?
What the helly-Bron James. I came up with that one, and my friends came up with the rest.
How are you feeling about the reception to the remix? Justin Bieber’s verse seemed to really divide people, and I can’t help but notice you haven’t dropped it.
I was gonna drop the [remix] with [G Herbo] first and add it to the album, but we wound up doing it too late. So it might come out the next day on the album, then we’re just gonna go from there with it.
Do you plan to drop the Justin Bieber remix as well?
I talked to Justin a couple of days ago and he was telling me he wanted to do some more songs. So I don’t know.
How is he feeling about the reception to his verse? It was pretty divisive when it dropped.
It’s funny — when he first did it, he was like, “What you think? You think I can go harder?” I told him like, “Man I love it, bro — if you feel comfortable about it, if you like it, then I love it.” You know?
Were you surprised by people’s negative reaction to Bieber’s verse?
No, not really. I knew it was a possibility, because — it was the same way when he asked me, “Do you think I can go harder?”
What do you think people misunderstood about it?
Probably the singing part. You just never know what it’s gonna be — and fans don’t understand that all the time, that you don’t know what a hit is. Like, it just kinda happens. Some people might’ve been, like, “Oh my god he sung!” and if it would have been a hit it would have been a crazy banger. That be the difference between songs.
Tell me about the work you did with Birdman on this album. What did you learn from working and talking with him?
Just go hard, cause you get a lot of motivation from him like that and I just be accepting it. We don’t really be talking about too much. Don’t let up, don’t take it for granted, stuff like that.
You mentioned New Orleans — what’s your relationship like with your hometown right now?
I love my city, but when I go back there now it just feels like dry energy. There’s nothing really there, in terms of anything. I saw so much stuff traveling the world, it just doesn’t feel like enough for me — and that’s scary. I ain’t never wanted it to be like that because I like going home.
I noticed Skilla Baby’s not on Let Me Fly — is that collab album still coming?
I’m gonna call him and talk to him about that. Right now, I’m working on a collab album with me and G Herbo. I don’t know what we’re gonna name it — one of my close friends be saying, “Ghetto Poet” or something like that. I think I wanna name it that. I was gonna ask [G Herbo] how he feel about that. “Ghetto Poet” sounds great for an album, right?
Absolutely. I’m curious about how you approach dropping music. For a lot of young guys the blueprint has been too flood the streets with as much music as possible, but you’ve been very intentional with the singles you’ve dropped since 4 God II.
I just didn’t wanna drop no bulls—t. But at this point in my life I don’t care. I know if it’s hard, it’s better than yours. They got a lot of people out here dropping stuff that’s not better than mine.
Do you ever worry about losing momentum?
I definitely feel nervous about it. I was nervous this time, but I wasn’t nervous for myself, I was nervous cause everyone around me was getting nervous. I keep tellin’ em we good, but then they keep getting nervous! But you gotta be a strong-minded person, and not let people around you dictate your movements.
How did you creatively approach Let Me Fly differently than 4 God II?
I just wanted to be myself for real. 4 God II, it did good, but I felt like I was listening to the people a lot about the songs I was picking and stuff. This time, no one has say so but me.
Do you feel pressure with this record to take it to the next level?
I don’t feel no pressure, I just feel like we gotta go hard. Right now, we don’t have to come out with a fake roll out. The songs are going up for real — it’s not a game. Right now, I feel like I gotta show you [who I am], because a lot of people hold they nuts. You not gonna be able to hold your nuts this year.
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On the last day of March, Sen. Cory Booker made history by delivering the longest speech in the history of the U.S. Senate, beating out Sen. Strom Thurmond’s filibuster intended to prevent the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. It was a great moment for Booker, who received widespread praise for using his time to call out President Donald Trump and his Constitution-defying, orgiarch-friendly, civil rights eroding administration.
Well, it took Booker less than two months to piss away all of that political fanfare by being the only Democrat vote to confirm ex-con Charles Kushner, father of Ivanka Trump’s husband, Jared Kushner, as ambassador to France.
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For those who aren’t familiar, in 2005, Charles Kushner was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to 16 counts of tax fraud, witness retaliation, and making false statements to the Federal Election Commission.
Since the MAGA-fied GOP had no issue pledging their undying loyalty to a 34-time felon and backing him for the presidency, it’s no surprise that 50 Republican senators voted to confirm Kushner. It’s also not surprising that 45 Democrats voted “no” on the appointment. What has surprised many people, however, is that Booker was not one of those Democrats.
Now his constituents want an explanation.
Unfortunately, there might just be an explanation, just not one that will satisfy anyone who doesn’t like to watch elected officials scratch each other’s backs for political favors. You see, before Booker became the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, in 2006, he ran for the position unsuccessfully in 2002, and, according to The New Jersey Globe, Kushner was a major donor to his campaign.
“Charles Kushner was convicted of making false statements to the FEC and pleaded guilty to tax evasion & witness tampering,” Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) said in a statement explaining her (hell) “no” vote. “And Trump pardoned him. Of course, I voted NO to advance Kushner’s nomination as AMBASSADOR TO FRANCE. We don’t need any more Kushners in government.”
Meanwhile, Booker has been all over X blasting the forthcoming GOP tax bill, which is all well and good, but he seems to be completely ignoring the onslaught of social media users who are dragging him up and down these internet streets, either demanding that he offer up an explanation for his Kushner vote, or just condemning him for doing so.
Check out some of the reactions below.
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Target just found out that diversity matters. Their sales took a noticeable decline after dropping their DEI programming.
As spotted on Daily KOS the national retailer experienced a noticeable drop of 3.8% in sales, both in store and online, compared to the year prior. Additionally, Target also saw their average transaction value decline as well as the number of shopper visits at their brick and mortar locations. On a recent earnings call Target CEO Brian Cornell attributed the loss to “ongoing pressure in our discretionary business, plus five consecutive months of declining consumer confidence, tariff uncertainty and the reaction to the updates we shared on belonging in January.”
While Cornell did not go into more specifics it is widely assumed the “updates” from January refer to Target dropping their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives. Four days after President Trump was inaugurated the company sent their employees a memo announcing they would be rolling back their DEI efforts which also included a program that highlighted products from minority owned business. “Many years of data, insights, listening and learning have been shaping this next chapter in our strategy,” Kiera Fernandez, chief community impact and equity officer at Target said in the memo. “And as a retailer that serves millions of consumers every day, we understand the importance of staying in step with the evolving external landscape, now and in the future – all in service of driving Target’s growth and winning together.”
Target faced immediate backlash after canceling their DEI with several high profile community leaders asking people of color to boycott the mass-market retain chain.
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The WNBA’s 2025 season has gotten underway, and the league’s top pick is primed to step out in style thanks to the legendary fashion designer Dapper Dan. He shared his experience designing a tracksuit for Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers, who the team picked first in their draft in Aprilwith her input.
Bueckers’ stylish new tracksuit was unveiled on Wednesday (May 21) through her Instagram account before the Wings took on the Minnesota Lynx at the Target Center in Minneapolis, her hometown. The zippered top bears a striking scripted “DD” logo, instantly harkening back to the visual sensibilities which made the Harlem, New York-born designer a cultural icon thanks to his previous clothing items such as his work with Gucci and his collection with The Gap. The tracksuit’s colors are rust orange and Radiant Lilac, inspired by the paint company Sherwin-Williams who created Radiant Lilac SW 0074, dubbing it its “Loneliest Color.”
“When designing Paige’s outfit, I was drawn to her confidence and elegance,” Dapper Dan said in an interview. “I knew I had to create something that captured how special she is — as a voice in a new generation of women’s sports, elevating the game and embodying the kind of self-expression I’ve always stood for. When it be menswear or womenswear, it’s all about the person behind it and the story they want to tell the world.” The designer was tabbed by Sherwin-Williams to create the color last year as a creative director, leading to the collaboration with Bueckers a.ka. “Paige Buckets” to create the tracksuit combining subtle Western influences and streetwear.“When it comes to how I choose to express myself, I always stay true to me. I love The Loneliest Color,” shared Bueckers in a statement. “Through my partnership with Sherwin-Williams, I want people to feel inspired and empowered to find what sparks that confidence for them—be it through fashion, sports, or the paint on your walls.”“Paige has already begun breaking barriers in women’s sports, and it’s important to me to celebrate the next generation of trailblazers,” Dapper Dan added. “The look we collaborated on for her debut hometown tunnel walk has so much meaning and as I always say, everyone should be proud of who they are—embrace it and express it unapologetically.”
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On Wednesday (May 21), a federal judge formally dismissed charges against Newark Mayor Ras Baraka brought against him by interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba’s office after he was arrested outside of the Delaney Hall immigration center earlier this month. U.S Magistrate Judge André Espinosa made the ruling in an afternoon hearing, blasting the federal government’s “embarassing” action in filing, then retracting the charges.“An arrest of a public figure is not a preliminary investigative tool. It is a severe action,” Espinosa said while delivering the dismissal. “Federal prosecutors serve a single paramount client: justice itself,” he added., continuing: “Your role is not to secure convictions at all costs, nor to satisfy public clamor, nor to advance political agendas. Your allegiance is to the impartial application of the law, to the pursuit of truth, and to the upholding of due process for all.”Mayor Baraka was at Delaney Hall with New Jersey congressional Democrats Rob Menendez, Bonnie Watson Coleman, and LaMonica McIver protesting the administration’s detaining and deportation policies along with the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. He was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor by Habba’s office. According to The Washington Post, Habba listened in to the hearing but opted not to speak. Espinosa also called out Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Demanovich, who was present in the courtroom, for hearing of the government’s request to drop the charges through news reports rather than it being brought to him directly.Espinosa wasn’t done chastizing the federal government. “The apparent rush in this case, culminating today in the embarrassing retraction of charges, suggests a failure to adequately investigate,” he said. “Your office must operate with a higher standard than that.” Afterward,Mayor Baraka declined to speak to the press, letting his attorneys talk on his behalf. “If this matter had proceeded to trial, we feel confident that Mayor Baraka would be vindicated,” said Rahul Agarwal, one of his laywers. “We have believed from the outset that these charges did not and would not survive scrutiny.”Habba’s office filed charges against Representative McIver on Tuesday on two counts of assaulting, resisting and impeding an officer. If convicted, she faces eight years in prison for each charge. McIver has denounced the charges as “purely political.” She was present for a hearing earlier on Wednesday, with another preliminary hearing set for June 11.
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Life is loaded with contradictions, not the least of which is the “tough guy” veneer. Everyone has weaknesses in their personality, and showing strength is one way that people hide their insecurities.
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In reality, it takes an enormous amount of fortitude to admit a vulnerability, and the greatest artists are frequently those who are able to help listeners explore -— and even embrace — their own fragility.
New artist Preston Cooper does that right out of the gate with his debut single, “Weak,” which flips the switch on those soft spots, bringing them into the open with a fierceness that turns them into a source of power. Life experience has made him comfortable with that dichotomy; his girlfriend of six years, Liz, helped him weather a rocky stretch in the earliest parts of their relationship.
“I went through a hard time there a little bit after I met Liz and we started dating,” he remembers. “It was just a mental period where I was very lost, and she helped me through that. And Jesus obviously did, too.”
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Both Liz and Jesus show up in “Weak,” though neither was necessarily the inspiration. Instead, it came from a melody he concocted at work. Cooper delivered mail in rural Fredericktown, Ohio, and he used music so much on his route that he was known locally as “The Singing Mailman.” Near the end of 2022, he invented a musical passage built around a long note that would eventually trail off as he imagined bluesy chords underneath. He recorded that melodic idea on his smartphone with the drawn-out word “weak” and another line or two behind it.
“The music drives you to certain words, you know; the emotion of it, the musical part alone,” he says. “It feels like it’s ‘weak,’ [but] it’s this strong relationship. When the intro to that song comes in, I feel that already.”
As fate would have it, Skotynsky Financial Group hired Cooper as an opening act for a corporate event on April 21, 2023, at the Hilton Garden Inn in Perrysburg, Ohio. Mike Severson’s Songwriter City had booked Brett and Brad Warren (“Red Solo Cup,” “Highway Don’t Care”), plus JT Harding (“Sangria,” “Beers and Sunshine”) to headline that night, and when the Warrens heard Cooper, they invited him to visit Nashville and try his hand at writing.
A few weeks later, on May 8, Cooper and Liz drove six hours to Nashville and headed straight to the Orbison Building, where songwriter Lance Miller (“I Called Mama,” “Beer With Jesus”) kept an office. Liz busied herself in another room while Miller and the Warrens worked with Cooper. Asked if he had any ideas, Cooper launched into the unfinished half-chorus of “Weak.”
“When he started belting out that chorus, we were like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is like driving a musical Maserati,’” Brad remembers.
They finished the chorus first, recognizing resilience, but crediting Liz and faith for the ability to overcome the hard times: “Just you and Jesus/Get me where I need to be.” The last line returned to that one word — “weak” —threaded through a conclusive run of descending melodic trills.
The opening verse was more conversational, exploring a handful of strong elements: an El Paso, Texas, wind; an oak tree; and bourbon. It set up the dramatic chorus, and as that stanza ended on the drawn-out, emotional “ee-e-e-e-ak,” Miller started verse two with a one-word line: “Strong.”
“Willie Nelson said simple is complex,” Miller reasons. “That song,” he adds, “came out fairly easily. I don’t remember this being a laboring process.”
Nelson and “Whiskey River” were counted among the verse-two strengths, and before it was all over, they came up with a bridge about tension and comfort — “Crazy like a train, amazing like grace” — that referenced Ozzy Osbourne and Jesus side by side. “We’re not comparing him to Jesus,” Brett notes.
Once they had finished a second song, the Warrens surprised Cooper with a same-day demo session four blocks away at Curb Studios. The A-list musicians were surprised to find they were playing a blues-inspired number and thoroughly impressed once Cooper locked in at the mic.
“The second he opened his mouth in the studio, all the session players stopped and turned around,” Brett recalls. “They were like, ‘Hey, we got a real singer in the room.’ ”
The band developed a slow, spacious groove, the sound thickened by Jeff Roach’s soulful Hammond B-3. Guitarist Justin Ostrander laid down a chill solo live on the first pass, and drummer Evan Hutchings added some shimmer with his cymbal work. “It must have been right,” Brad muses, “because Brett hates cymbals.”
Cooper continued working on his newfound career, his voice deepening and his confidence growing. After a year, Brett had him return to the studio to redo the vocals, and he nailed them on the first take. Outside of hiring Greg Barnhill to overdub background vocals, Brett didn’t change much about the production — the session that was supposed to be a demo became a master recording.
“Brett was smart enough not to put too much makeup on the mannequin,” Miller says. “Basically what we did at Curb that day was the foundation of that song.”
“Weak” recognizes that admitting emotional struggle provides an opportunity for strength to arise. While it’s written around a relationship, listeners can easily apply the concept to other life facets.
“I’m a recovering alcoholic,” Brett says. “I remember the first time I raised my hand in a meeting and said, ‘My name’s Brett and I’m an alcoholic.’ Oh, my Lord, I was so scared to say it, but the moment I admitted that I struggled with alcohol, in that weakest moment in my life — boom! — 60% of this weight just came off me. It’s really fascinating. So on the lyrical side of it, I think that that side of ‘Weak’ is really true.”
“Weak” was the first song Cooper performed in an audition for Big Machine Label Group; by the third tune, president/CEO Scott Borchetta was ready to sign him. “Weak” got a standing ovation at the label’s lunchtime showcase during Country Radio Seminar in February, and it cinched BMLG’s decision to make it his first single. Subsidiary Valory released it to country radio via PlayMPE on April 23 with a May 19 add date.
“Ever since we wrote the song — like the day of — we always thought this was going to be a first single,” Cooper says. “It was so much excitement in making the song and the vibe of it. It just felt right.”
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Papoose hit IG live to respond after Remy Ma said she planned to “reveal it all” once their divorce is final.
But Pap wasn’t having it, especially after she brought up his kids.
The NY spitter speaks on his ex, “Normally I wouldn’t even entertain this, but the fact that you mentioned my children, I’m not letting that ride,” Papoose said. “Since this whole situation happened, everybody know I never said nothing. The only time I said something was the last time when she tried to clout chase with the whole fake thing she tried to put on Instagram before. But ever since this transpired, I never opened my mouth, never said nothing because that’s not my style. And also, I would never wanna disrespect her, you know what I mean, actions speak way louder than words.”
Pap then dropped a major bomb (allegedly): “Initially, when it transpired, which was 2022, when she started dealing with the lame, but that wasn’t the first time I caught her cheating. I’ve caught her cheating numerous times since she’s been home.”
He also said Remy’s been keeping him from seeing his daughter: “Since I left, she has not allowed me to see my daughter. She’s been straight miserable.” Their love started back in 2004 and survived prison time, but now it’s clear, this split is far from peaceful.
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