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19 Jul 2023

‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’: How to Watch the Documentary for Free

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Stephen Curry is giving fans an intimate look at his life on and off the court with his new documentary, Stephen Curry: Underrated. The release date for Curry’s coming-of-age doc is Friday (July 21) on Apple TV+, and will showcase his rise to superstardom within the NBA. Right now, you can get a seven-day free trial of Apple TV+, which means you can watch the Stephen Curry documentary for free.

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Starting Friday, fans will gain a deeper understanding as to why Curry was thought of as an underrated player. While being tall is considered an asset and practically a requirement within the professional basketball world, Curry has proven that skill and height don’t always equate to being the most successful. Standing at 6’3″, the NBA player has more than proven his worthiness going from an “undersized college player to a four-time NBA champion,” according to the documentary’s description.

The film will feature archive footage as well as intimate interviews with Curry and those close to him. Emmy-winning director Peter Nicks helms the documentary, and is known for his immersive camera work and vérité style, which means fans can expect to get up close and personal to Curry throughout the feature.

Keep reading to learn how to watch Stephen Curry: Underrated for free online.

How to Watch Stephen Curry: Underrated

The documentary is an Apple TV+ Original, which means subscribers to the streamer can watch it for free without an additional cost.

Not a subscriber? Whether you’re looking to cord cut or don’t want to pay hundreds of dollars to watch your favorite programs, Apple TV+ give a free seven-day trial, which means you can watch the documentary and more for free. After the trial ends, you’ll be charged $6.99/month.

‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’

$6.99/month after 7 days

Click here or the buy button above to start your free trial and watch Stephen Curry: Underrated when it’s released on Friday (July 21). Not only will a subscription give you access to the documentary, but you’ll be able to stream Apple TV+ Original movies, TV series and exclusive content such as Ted Lasso, Platonic, Silo, Foundation, The After Party, Ghosted, Still A Michael J. Fox Story, Shrinking, The Big Door Prize, Hijack, High Desert, The Crowded Room, The Last Thing He Told Me, Schmigadoon!, Loot, The Problem With Jon Stewart and more.

You can also add on MLS Season Pass for $12.99/month (regularly $14.99/month) for a limited time, which provides live matches and the ability to watch the entire MLS season, playoffs and Leagues Cups.

Watch the Stephen Curry: Underrated trailer below.

19 Jul 2023

‘Wicked’ Director Jon M. Chu Says Release Date Won’t ‘Be Affected’ by Strike

As the joint WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes continue to send shockwaves throughout Hollywood, many filmmakers are updating fans on the status of the slew of upcoming films set to be impacted by the breakdown in negotiations between writers, actors and AMPTP. Among them is Jon M. Chu, the director of the highly anticipated Wicked movie musicals.

In an Instagram Story and tweet on Wednesday (July 19), Chu confirmed to fans that filming is “paused until the strike is over.” “We were only a few days away from being done, so we were SO close,” he wrote. “It’s been very painful to put a halt to it all but we will be back! And we will finish properly strong when the time is right.”

“More to come, but in the meantime, I’m excited to excavate what we have shot for the past year here in Oz (release date shouldn’t be affected),” Chu continued. “It has been an extraordinary adventure… more to do.”

His clarification comes on the heels of fan speculation that filming was complete, as well as rumors that star Ariana Grande — who is playing Glinda the Good Witch — would be returning to the States soon. The majority of Wicked filming took place right outside London, the same city where the “Positions” singer was recently spotted without her wedding ring a day before reports surfaced that she and husband Dalton Gomez were headed for a divorce.

Wicked features a star-studded cast of some of the industry’s most acclaimed actors and singers including Academy Award nominee Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Olivier Award winner Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero and Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible. Jeff Goldblum, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang and Keala Settle round out the cast. Split into two films, the first Wicked movie is slated for a Nov. 27, 2024, release, with the second following on Nov. 26, 2025.

Chu concluded the Instagram Story with update with a note of solidarity, writing, “Much love to … our beloved SAG members who are fighting for a fair deal! We stand with you.”

Click here to read Jon M. Chu’s full statement on Instagram Stories, and see his tweet below.

19 Jul 2023

Taylor Swift Breaks Her Own Record on Streaming Songs Chart

Taylor Swift nets 22 songs on Billboard’s Streaming Songs chart dated July 22, breaking her own record in the process.

With 22 appearances, Swift sets a new mark for the most songs on the survey at once by a woman since its 2013 inception, surpassing the 20 she achieved on the Nov. 5, 2022, ranking upon the release of her album Midnights.

This time, it’s her LP Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) that makes up the bulk of the songs, with 20 of the 22 from the new release. Leading the way is “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault),” which bows at No. 2 with 24.7 million official U.S. streams in the week ending July 13, according to Luminate.

The other two Swift tunes on Streaming Songs are Lover’s “Cruel Summer” (No. 10, 15.4 million streams) and Midnights’ “Anti-Hero” (No. 44, 10 million streams).

In all, Swift occupies six of the chart’s top 10. The next largest after “I Can See You,” “Mine (Taylor’s Version),” appears at No. 6 with 16.2 million streams. (Swift is one of two acts to hold down the entire top 10, having done so on the aforementioned Nov. 5, 2022, list. Drake has accomplished the feat twice: Nov. 19, 2022, and Sept. 18, 2021.)

Those five new top 10s (as “Cruel Summer” had previously reached the top 10) breaks Swift out of a tie with Lil Baby for the second-most top 10s in the chart’s history, now boasting 39. Drake leads all acts with 85 top 10s.

Most Top 10s, Streaming Songs

  • 85, Drake
  • 39, Taylor Swift
  • 34, Lil Baby
  • 29, The Weeknd
  • 26, 21 Savage
  • 25, Future
  • 24, Kanye West
  • 23, J. Cole
  • 23, Justin Bieber
  • 23, Post Malone

Only three times has an artist netted more than 22 songs on Streaming Songs at once. Morgan Wallen holds the all-time record, set earlier this year, with 30 (March 18), followed by Drake (28; July 14, 2018) and Bad Bunny (23; May 21, 2022).

Concurrently, as previously reported, “I Can See You” leads the crop of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) songs on the multimetric Billboard Hot 100, bowing at No. 5. And on the Billboard 200, the album starts at No. 1 with 716,000 equivalent album units earned.

19 Jul 2023

Two Moms United by a Heart Transplant Wow ‘AGT’ Judges With Touching ‘Wicked’ Track: Watch

Auditions for America’s Got Talent continued on Tuesday (July 18), and saw mothers Kim and Holly touch judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara with a unique story of how they were brought together.

“Back in 2007, my son unfortunately passed away and he became an organ donor and his heart went to Kim’s son,” Holly explained to the panel. Kim continued, “My son was 16 days old at the time. He got the heart. We lived thousands of miles apart and had no idea who each other was.”

“The last song I sang to Jake to say goodbye to him was ‘For Good’ from the musical Wicked,” to which Kim added, “And when Beckham was finished with his heart transplant surgery, I wasn’t allowed to hold him, I had to stroke his head. And the first thing I did when I stroked his head, I sang that song for him from Wicked.”

Kim and Holly’s meeting was a long time in the making, the pair revealed. “Several years later, Kim wrote a letter to us and we kept in touch, and then we had the opportunity to meet each other for the first time, and gave me a big hug and it was one of the best moments of my life,” Holly said. Kim summed up the meaning of their audition in a few words: “We would love to spread the word about organ donation — if we could change the heart of one person, it’s worth it.”

Shortly after, the pair launched into Wicked‘s Glinda and Elphaba duet “For Good,” the track that united them across several hundred miles. “Like a comet pulled from orbit/ As it passes a sun/ Like a stream that meets a boulder/ Halfway through the wood/ Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?/ But because I knew you/ I have been changed for good,” the pair harmonized on the chorus.

After they received a standing ovation from all four of the judges and the audience, Mandel asked where Kim’s son was, and Beckham joined the women on stage. “I have never responded well to musical theater. They overdramatize singing,” Mandel then began. “That is the first time in my life that I felt a connection to this kind of music. This was probably the most magical moment I have ever experienced on America’s Got Talent.”

The women received four yeses and advanced to the next round.

Watch Kim and Holly’s touching audition in the video above.

19 Jul 2023

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’: Every Lip Sync From All Stars 8, Ranked

Backflips! Splits! Slices of lunch meat thrown like frisbees! The lip syncs of All Stars 8 truly had everything.

Kahanna Montrese and Aja

Kahanna Montrese and Aja

Paramount+

While it can often feel like RuPaul’s Drag Race never truly ends, thanks to the increasing number of spin-offs being released each year, All Stars 8 is finally drawing to a close.

On Friday, July 21, the world will know which of the season’s top two queens — season 13 runner-up Kandy Muse or Canada’s Drag Race star Jimbo — will take home the crown and the $200,000 cash prize. We don’t know exactly how that decision will be made (this season has prided itself on its series of strange twists), or which of the eliminated queens will win the much-discussed fan vote of the Fame Games, but what we do know is that the queens will be capping off one of the most wild seasons of the franchise.

Along with all the backstage bickering, self-eliminations and a dramatic intervention staged by RuPaul herself mid-season, one of the main things that made All Stars 8 great was, of course, the lip syncs. Returning to the excellent “lip sync assassin” format of previous All Stars season, the top queen of each week got the opportunity to face off against a legendary Drag Race alum, proving why they should win a $10,000 tip for their artistry.

But, as any Drag Race viewer worth their salt knows, not all lip syncs are created equal. Amidst a season of stars, which queens managed to shine the brightest with their exemplary lip sync skills? Below, Billboard takes a look at all 11 lip syncs from RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 8 and ranks them from worst to best.

19 Jul 2023

Can Taylor Swift’s ‘Speak Now’ Hold Off Morgan Wallen a Second Week?

The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week (for the upcoming charts dated July 29), the two best-performing artists of 2023 battle again for the top spot, while new sets from a late rapper and a hip-hop star recovering from a near-death experience could make big bows.  

Taylor Swift, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (Republic): Taylor Swift is in the midst of a Billboard 200 week for the history books. Not only does her Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) debut at No. 1 with a 2023-best 716,000 units – the highest first-week number since her own Midnights last November – but it’s one of four Swift albums in the chart’s top 10 this week, along with Midnights (No. 5), Lover (No. 7) and Folklore (No. 10). The last living artist who had that many albums in the top 10 at the same time was Herb Alpert, way back in 1966.  

Now, Swift will try to do something she’s yet to do with one of her Taylor’s Version re-recordings: hold at No. 1 for a second straight week. Though both her Fearless and Red redos debuted atop the chart with massive first-week numbers, both were deposed in the next frame: Fearless by YSL’s label showcase Slime Language 2 and Red by Adele’s much-anticipated 30. (Fearless did return for a second week on top months later, following its release on vinyl and signed CD.)  

Swift’s primary competition will be – of course – Morgan Wallen, still at No. 2 with his 15-week chart-topper One Thing at a Time. The album continues to post weekly units in the six digits, and will likely have the streaming advantage over Swift with its 36 tracks (including the long-reigning Streaming Songs No. 1, “Last Night.”), as Swift’s massive first-week sales numbers take the usual second-week drop. However, Swift is following her biggest Taylor’s Version debut yet, and a second week even 15% as strong as her first week would still have been enough to get past Wallen’s most recent One Thing total.  

IN THE MIX 

King Von, Grandson (Only the Family/Empire): Chicago rapper King Von only released one album during his lifetime, 2020’s No. 5-peaking Welcome to O’Block, but he was well on his way to hip-hop stardom when he was shot to death that November. He’s already released one posthumous album with 2022’s No. 2-debuting What It Means to Be King, and he may hit the top 10 a third time with last Friday’s (July 14) Grandson, featuring guest appearances from hitmakers like Polo G, Lil Durk and Moneybagg Yo. 

Lil Tjay, 222 (Columbia): New York rapper Lil Tjay’s promising career was derailed in June 2022 when he was shot multiple times during an attempted robbery. He survived the shooting, and on Friday released his first album since getting out of the hospital, 222. The album includes features from Summer Walker, The Kid LAROI, YoungBoy Never Broke Again and more, plus the first-person narrative “June 22,” named after the day of his ‘22 shooting.  

Lauren Spencer-Smith, Mirror (Republic): The early-2022 viral breakout of teenage singer-songwriter (and former American Idol contestant) Lauren Spencer-Smith‘s heartbreak ballad “Fingers Crossed” earned her Olivia Rodrigo comparisons, and a deal with Republic Records. Subsequent singles haven’t fared as well, but Smith hopes to make good on that early promise with debut album Mirror – which she released on Friday as a “Fan Pack” (with vinyl and a shirt), as a boxed set (CD and shirt) and as a signed CD. 

19 Jul 2023

Kelsea Ballerini to Screen & Discuss ‘Rolling Up the Welcome Mat’ Short Film (Exclusive)

On Feb. 14, Kelsea Ballerini released a salve for the brokenhearted via her surprise EP and short film release, Rolling Up the Welcome Mat, which chronicled the complex emotions circling the dissolution of her previous marriage and the intense public scrutiny that surrounded it. Music fans fell hard for the project’s unvarnished vulnerability and cathartic songs, singing them back boldly to Ballerini during every subsequent concert she performed.

Rolling Up the Welcome Mat followed swiftly on the heels of Ballerini’s previous project, Subject to Change, which fueled her current Billboard Country Airplay chart hit “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too).” But according to Ballerini in a press release, “There’s never been a moment to stop and talk about what the response to Welcome Mat has meant to me. Everything moved so fast after the release, and I never really got to just be in the moment with this film, these songs – but I heard you all loud and clear every night onstage, I promise! So, while Subject to Change was out there doing everything it’s supposed to do, you supported me with this project that I needed to make for me in that moment. I can’t thank you enough.”

Ballerini will soon open up about the short film and project directly with fans, when she hosts three intimate conversations and screenings for her short film Rolling Up the Welcome Mat in August.

The trio of events launches Aug. 1 at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, where she will screen the short film that she wrote and directed. Ballerini will take fans behind the scenes, through her vision and process of crafting the film. She will also discuss the writing and recording process for her Rolling Up the Welcome Mat EP, from the incisive opening track “Mountain With a View” to the clean-slated denouement “Leave Me Again.”

From there, Ballerini will host another screening/discussion at Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame on Aug. 8, followed by a final screening/conversation at New York City’s Whitby Theater on Aug. 10.

The events will lead up to Ballerini’s Today show Citi Concert Series performance on Aug. 11 at Rockefeller Center, where she will sing her current country radio single, “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too),” as well as select songs from Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.

“Sometimes I write songs to figure out where I am, how I feel,” Ballerini, who just closed a sold-out headlining run as well as being the sole support on Kenny Chesney’s 2023 tour, continued in her statement. “I write to honor my feelings and get them out because that’s the purest way I know how. The purpose of this EP and short film was to release those very naked, honest feelings in hopes anyone feeling similar highs and lows would have a few songs to feel not alone to. Every step of this Rolling Up the Welcome Mat chapter has been a new experience, which you helped make feel not scary by being alongside me every step. Now, I need to move on now – and maybe you do, too – but before we do, these three events are all about being in one space, together, sharing all of it. I want to bring you deeper into how it all came to be and why you’re such an important piece of all of this. I want to say ‘thank you’ so, if you’re in Los Angeles, New York or Nashville, please come join me.”

Tickets will be available beginning July 20 on her website.

19 Jul 2023

Watch Harry Styles Join the Circus & Dress In Bird Cosplay for ‘Daylight’ Music Video

The sun is shining on Harry Styles fans. At high noon ET Wednesday (July 19), the Grammy winner dropped the music video for his latest Harry’s House single, “Daylight.”

In the Tanu Muino-directed video, Styles walks through circus grounds, interacting with acrobats, stilt-walkers and clowns in between demonstrations of his impressive weight-lifting, horseback-riding and tightrope-walking skills. At one point, he takes the form of a magnificent yellow bird, flying through the sky in a feathered leotard after being shot out of a giant cannon.

If this news is causing a bit of déjà vu, don’t be alarmed: Styles did in fact already make a music video for “Daylight,” although the most recent take is probably a bigger budget project than the first. Last year, the pop star teamed up with James Corden to make a “Daylight” video in three hours with just $300, using a random apartment of unsuspecting fans as the set.

“I can’t stress this enough: This was all James’ idea,” the Dunkirk actor joked behind the scenes of the May 2022 Corden-directed project. “I was in a Christopher Nolan movie. Should we just scrap it? Is it too late to just do a ‘Carpool Karaoke?’”

The new and improved version of “Daylight” follows music videos for “As It Was,” “Late Night Talking,” “Music for a Sushi Restaurant” and, most recently, “Satellite.” All five of the tracks hail from Styles’ third studio album, Harry’s House, which arrived in May 2022 and debuted atop the Billboard 200.

Styles is currently on the cusp of finishing his Love on Tour trek following a near two-year run starting in September 2021. He has just one show left on the schedule: Saturday (July 22) in Reggio Emilia, Italy.

Watch the “Daylight” music video above.

19 Jul 2023

Lizzo Rocks Radiohead’s ‘Creep’ at Karaoke After Special Tour Concert

As Lizzo nears the end of her globe-trotting Special Tour, the “About Damn Time” singer is offering glimpses of how she unwinds after a night of entertaining an arena packed with thousands of screaming fans.

In an Instagram post on Tuesday (July 16), Lizzo posted a lighthearted photoset with the caption, “What does Lizzo do after her shows…” The answer? More singing, of course! In the second slide of the carousel, the “Truth Hurts” singer shared a clip of her singing Radiohead’s “Creep” at a karaoke bar. Packed with her trademark soulful belts and emotive vocal inflections, Lizzo’s rendition of the beloved track drew affirmations and applause from the room of onlookers. “Creep” is Radiohead’s highest charting entry on the Billboard Hot 100 (No. 34).

This isn’t the first time that Lizzo has expressed her love for Radiohead. In a Vanity Fair interview in October, Lizzo revealed that while in school, she kept her love for Radiohead’s OK Computer hidden because all of her friends were “listening to what was on the radio” and she “didn’t want to be made fun of.”

The Special Tour is in support of Special, Lizzo’s 2022 LP that spawned hits including “2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)” and the Grammy-winning “About Damn Time,” which peaked at No. 1 on the Hot 100. Special opened at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with 69,000 units, becoming Lizzo’s highest charting and fastest selling album to date.

By the end of its run, the Special Tour will have visited North America, Europe, Asia and Australia across 80 shows. Support acts for the tour included “Put It On Da Floor Again” rapper Latto and “Material Girl” rapper Saucy Santana.

19 Jul 2023

Kierra Sheard & Pastor Mike Jr. Top Gospel Airplay Chart With ‘Miracles’

Kierra Sheard’s “Miracles” featuring Pastor Mike Jr. rises to No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel Airplay chart (dated July 22). In the July 7-13 tracking week, the song increased by 16% in plays, according to Luminate.

“Miracles” marks the fifth Gospel Airplay No. 1 for both Sheard and Pastor Mike Jr. (real name Mike McClure Jr.).

Sheard wrote the song with her brother J. Drew Sheard II and Marcus Johnson. It’s the first single from her LP due later this year. Its content relates to a series of miscarriages that Sheard endured. She is currently pregnant, expecting her first child with husband Jordan Kelly.

“I’m a walking miracle, and I’m sure we all have some kind of miraculous story of God moving in our lives,” Sheard tells Billboard. “It’s only right for these lyrics to be our anthem and I’m grateful that so many are listening.”

“Miracles is more than a song,” adds Pastor Mike Jr. “Kierra and I really wanted to inject the world with hope, and we’re seeing so many lives changed with this positive message.”

With “Miracles,” Pastor Mike Jr. adds his record-extending fifth consecutive career-opening No. 1 on Gospel Airplay. It follows “Impossible” featuring James Fortune (a two-week leader in April); “Amazing,” (two weeks, May 2022); “I Got It” (four weeks, beginning in March 2021); and “Big Rock City” (10 weeks, beginning in February 2020).

Pastor Mike Jr. also ties for the longest streak of Gospel Airplay No. 1s overall, regardless of career-launching runs, with Todd Dulaney and Jonathan McReynolds. All three acts’ streaks are active, with Dulaney currently charting a potential sixth leader in a row, as “It’s Working,” with Bishop Hezekiah Walker, climbs 22-21 for a new high.

Sheard, the daughter of Karen Clark Sheard of The Clark Sisters, tops Gospel Airplay for the first time since “Something Has To Break,” featuring her mother, led for two weeks in October 2021.

Before that, Kierra Sheard’s solo song “It Keeps Happening” dominated for a week in September 2020. In April 2017, GEI’s “Hang On,” on which she’s featured, dominated for a week, after Mary Mary’s “God in Me,” featuring Sheard, ruled for seven weeks beginning in August 2009.

Sheard has an additional song on the latest Gospel Airplay survey, as “God Is Good,” with her mother, Stanley Brown and Hezekiah Walker, ranks at No. 27 (up 2% in plays).