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11 May 2023

Masterclass Is on Sale for Mother’s Day: Save Up to 35% on Select Courses

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Still haven’t found a last-minute Mother’s Day gift? Masterclass is currently offering a limited promo that saves you up to 35% off online courses.

Masterclass offers top-rated courses covering different genres such as science, tech, sports, gaming, wellness, business and leadership, design, style, photography, music, cooking, writing, acting, and more.

Kacey Musgraves

Mother’s Day Playlist: 20 Songs for Mom

The streaming platform features more than 180 video lessons taught by celebrities and other professionals. Masterclass recently launched a slew of new courses taught by Naomi Campbell, Melinda Gates, Madeline Albright and Condoleezza Rice, Kris Jenner, Richard Branson, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, celebrity stylist Karla Welch and other professionals in music, entertainment, tech, fashion, etc.

How much does Masterclass cost? The platform starts at $180, which breaks down to $15 per month, for unlimited access to all classes including new courses launched monthly.

Masterclass Subscription

$117 $180 35% off% OFF

Does your mom love music? Masterclass has sessions taught by Mariah Carey, John Legend, Christina Aguilera, Usher, Herbie Hancock, Reba McEntire, Alicia Keys, Carlos Santana, Metallica, Yo-Yo Ma, Ringo Star and other singers, songwriters, musicians and producers.

The membership unlocks access to the streamer’s mobile and TV apps, high-definition videos, and class workouts that mom can download and watch on a smartphone, computer and other devices such as Apple TV, Fire TV, and Roku devices. Masterclass also provides Audio Mode for certain courses, so that members can download classes and watch them offline from the plane and other modes of transportation.

From beginners to novices, Masterclass courses are designed to suit all skill levels. Every class includes around 20 videos that are approximately 10-minutes each, and a detailed workbook. The course instructor will walk students through the curriculum, which comes with a step-by-step instructions, but also encourages studnets to explore their own creativity by going “beyond the session content.”

For more on Masterclass, read our roundup of the best music courses to take.

11 May 2023

Killer Mike ft. El-P & thankugoodsir “Don’t Let The Devil,” Kevin Gates “Do It Again” & More | Daily Visuals 5.11.23

HipHopWired Featured Video

2023 Shaky Knees Festival

Source: Scott Legato / Getty

Killer Mike is arguably one of the game’s most underappreciated MC’s as the triple-OG ATLien has been dropping heat for decades now and with his next album, MICHAEL set to drop next month, Killer is out to create some buzz for his next project.

Coming through with some new visuals to “Don’t Let The Devil,” Killer Mike links up with El-P and thankyougoodsir to play some poker at a soulful house party where the lights is kinda dim but the vibe is lit and the bodies are grooving. Where’s our invite?!

Elsewhere Kevin Gates shows us how he shed all those pounds and for his clip to “Do It Again” goes through his workout routine before getting dipped and hitting the road in an exotic automobile with an exotic young lady.

Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from Flee Lord, Eto and Crisis, G Herbo, and more.

PART 1: KILLER MIKE FT. EL-P & THANKUGOODSIR – “DON’T LET THE DEVIL”



KEVIN GATES – “DO IT AGAIN”



FLEE LORD, ETO & CRISIS – “OUT THE JECKS”



G HERBO – “WE DON’T CARE”



RONDAY – “CUJO”



VANESSA BLING & D’YANI – “SOUL TIED”



DEE MULA FT. BIG30 – “SLANG THE WHIP”



REXX LIFE RAJ – “HANDS AND KNEES”



11 May 2023

Here Are All the 2023 ACM Awards Winners (Updating)

Who will win big? Follow along with Billboard all night to find out.

ACM awards

Courtesy Photo

The 2023 ACM Awards have arrived!

HARDY goes into the country awards show with a leading seven nominations, while Lainey Wilson has six nods, followed by Cole Swindell, Kane Brown, Luke Combs and Miranda Lambert with five nods each.

But who will emerge the night’s big winner? Watch the full show on Prime Video, and find all the winners (updating live) below:

MAIN CATEGORIES

Entertainer of the year

  • Jason Aldean
  • Kane Brown
  • Luke Combs
  • Miranda Lambert
  • Chris Stapleton
  • Carrie Underwood
  • Morgan Wallen

Female artist of the year

  • Kelsea Ballerini
  • Miranda Lambert
  • Ashley McBryde
  • Carly Pearce
  • Lainey Wilson

Male artist of the year

  • Kane Brown
  • Luke Combs
  • Jordan Davis
  • Chris Stapleton
  • Morgan Wallen

Duo of the year

  • Brooks & Dunn 
  • Brothers Osborne 
  • Dan + Shay 
  • Maddie & Tae 
  • The War and Treaty

Group of the year

  • Lady A 
  • Little Big Town 
  • Midland 
  • Old Dominion 
  • Zac Brown Band

New female artist of the year

  • Priscilla Block 
  • Megan Moroney 
  • Caitlyn Smith 
  • Morgan Wade 
  • WINNER: Hailey Whitters 

New male artist of the year

  • WINNER: Zach Bryan
  • Jackson Dean
  • ERNEST 
  • Dylan Scott 
  • Nate Smith 
  • Bailey Zimmerman

Album of the year

Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Label(s)

  • Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville – Ashley McBryde; Producer: John Osborne; Label: Warner Music Nashville
  • Bell Bottom Country – Lainey Wilson; Producer: Jay Joyce; Label: Broken Bow Records
  • Growin’ Up – Luke Combs; Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton; Label: Columbia Records
  • Mr. Saturday Night – Jon Pardi; Producers: Jon Pardi, Bart Butler, Ryan Gore; Label: Capitol Records Nashville
  • Palomino – Miranda Lambert; Producers: Jon Randall, Luke Dick, Miranda Lambert, Mikey Reaves; Label: Vanner Records/RCA Records Nashville

Single of the year

 Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Label(s)

  • Heart Like a Truck – Lainey Wilson; Producer: Jay Joyce; Label: Broken Bow Records
  • Never Wanted to Be That Girl – Carly Pearce & Ashley McBryde; Producers: Josh Osborne, Shane McAnally; Label: Big Machine Records/Warner Music Nashville
  • She Had Me at Heads Carolina – Cole Swindell; Producer: Zach Crowell; Label: Warner Music Nashville
  • Thank God – Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown; Producer: Dann Huff; Label: RCA Nashville
  • ‘Til You Can’t – Cody Johnson; Producer: Trent Willmon; Label: Warner Music Nashville/CoJo Music

Song of the year

 Awarded to Songwriter(s)/Publisher(s)/Artist(s)

  • Sand In My Boots – Morgan Wallen; Songwriters: Ashley Gorley, Josh Osborne, Michael Hardy; Publishers: Relative Music Group; Sony/ATV Accent; Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing; Sony/ATV Tree Publishing
  • She Had Me at Heads Carolina – Cole Swindell; Songwriters: Ashley Gorley, Cole Swindell, Jesse Frasure, Mark D. Sanders, Thomas Rhett, Tim Nichols; Publishers: Ashley Gorley Publishing Designee; Be A Light Publishing; Colden Rainey Music; EMI Blackwood Music Inc; Songs Of Roc Nation Music; Sony Tree Publishing; Telemitry Rhythm House Music; Universal Music Corp; WC Music Corp; Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp
  • ‘Til You Can’t – Cody Johnson; Songwriters: Ben Stennis, Matt Rogers; Publishers: Anthem Canalco Publishing; Dead Aim Music; The Stennis Mightier Music
  • wait in the truck – HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson; Songwriters: Hunter Phelps, Jordan Schmidt, Michael Hardy, Renee Blair; Publishers: Humerus Publishing Global; Nontypical Music; Pile of Schmidt Songs; Rednecker Music; Relative Music Group; Round Hill Verses Publishing; Sony/ATV Accent; Sony/ATV Tree Publishing; The Money Tree Vibez; WC Music Corp; Who Wants to Buy My Publishing
  • You Should Probably Leave – Chris Stapleton; Songwriters: Ashley Gorley, Chris DuBois, Chris Stapleton; Publishers: One77 Songs; Sea Gayle Music; Songs of Southside Independent Music Publishing; Spirit Two Nashville; WC Music Corp

Visual media of the year

Awarded to Producer(s)/Director(s)/Artist(s)

  • HEARTFIRST – Kelsea Ballerini; Producers: Christen Pinkston & Wesley Stebbins-Perry; Director: P Tracy
  • She Had Me at Heads Carolina – Cole Swindell; Producer: Troy Jackson; Director: Spidey Smith
  • Thank God – Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown; Producer: Luke Arreguin; Director: Alex Alvga
  • ‘Til You Can’t – Cody Johnson; Producer: Maddy Hayes; Director: Dustin Haney
  • WINNER: wait in the truck – HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson; Producer: Inkwell Productions; Director: Justin Clough
  • What He Didn’t Do – Carly Pearce; Producer: Ryan Byrd; Director: Alexa Campbell

Songwriter of the year

  • Nicolle Galyon 
  • WINNER: Ashley Gorley 
  • Chase McGill 
  • Josh Osborne 
  • Hunter Phelps

Artist-songwriter of the year

  • Luke Combs 
  • ERNEST 
  • WINNER: HARDY 
  • Miranda Lambert 
  • Morgan Wallen

 Music event of the year

Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Label(s)

  • At the End of a Bar – Chris Young with Mitchell Tenpenny; Producers: Chris DeStefano, Chris Young; Label: RCA Nashville
  • She Had Me at Heads Carolina [Remix] – Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina; Producer: Zach Crowell; Label: Warner Music Nashville
  • Thank God – Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown; Producer: Dann Huff; Label: RCA Nashville
  • Thinking ‘Bout You – Dustin Lynch feat. MacKenzie Porter; Producer: Zach Crowell; Label: Broken Bow Records
  • wait in the truck – HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson; Producers: Derek Wells, HARDY, Joey Moi, Jordan Schmidt; Label: Big Loud Records

STUDIO RECORDING AWARDS

Bass player of the year

  • Mark Hill
  • Tony Lucido
  • Steve Mackey
  • Lex Price
  • Craig Young

Drummer of the year

  • Fred Eltringham
  • Miles McPherson
  • Jerry Roe
  • Aaron Sterling
  • Nir Z

Acoustic guitar player of the year

  • Tim Galloway
  • Todd Lombardo
  • Danny Rader
  • Bryan Sutton
  • Ilya Toshinskiy

Piano/keyboards player of the year

  • Jim “Moose” Brown
  • Dave Cohen
  • Charles Judge
  • Billy Justineau
  • Alex Wright

Specialty instrument player of the year

  • Dan Dugmore
  • Stuart Duncan
  • Jenee Fleenor
  • Josh Matheny
  • Justin Schipper

Electric guitar player of the year

  • Kris Donegan
  • Kenny Greenberg
  • Rob McNelley
  • Sol Philcox-Littlefield
  • Derek Wells

Audio engineer of the year

  • Drew Bollman
  • Josh Ditty
  • Gena Johnson
  • Justin Niebank
  • F. Reid Shippen

Producer of the year

  • Buddy Cannon
  • Luke Dick
  • Jay Joyce
  • Joey Moi
  • Jon Randall
  • Derek Wells

INDUSTRY AWARDS

Casino of the year – theater

  • Deadwood Mountain Grand – Deadwood, SD
  • Golden Nugget – Lake Charles, LA
  • Resorts World Theatre at Resorts World Las Vegas – Las Vegas, NV
  • Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Hollywood, FL
  • Soaring Eagle – Mount Pleasant, MI

Casino of the year – arena

  • Fallsview Casino Resort – Niagara Falls, ON
  • Harrah’s – Council Bluffs, IA
  • Harveys Lake Tahoe – Stateline, NV
  • Mystic Lake Casino Showroom – Prior Lake, MN
  • Northern Quest Resort & Casino – Airway Heights, WA
  • Turning Stone Resort Casino – Verona, NY

Festival of the year

  • C2C: Country to Country – UK 
  • Carolina Country Music Fest – Myrtle Beach, SC
  • Country Concert – Fort Loramie, OH
  • Country Fest – Cadott, WI
  • Country Thunder – Bristol, TN
  • Stagecoach Festival – Indio, CA
  • Tortuga Music Festival – Fort Lauderdale, FL

Fair/rodeo of the year

  • Auburn Rodeo – Opelika, AL
  • Cheyenne Frontier Days – Cheyenne, WY
  • Florida Strawberry Festival – Plant City, FL
  • Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo – Houston, TX
  • Iowa State Fair – Des Moines, IA

Club of the year

  • Billy Bob’s Texas – Fort Worth, TX 
  • Coyote Joe’s – Charlotte, NC
  • Grizzly Rose – Denver, CO
  • Gruene Hall – New Braunfels, TX 
  • Joe’s on Weed St. – Chicago, IL

Theater of the year

  • Crystal Grand Music Theatre – Wisconsin Dells, WI
  • Florida Theatre – Jacksonville, FL
  • Grand Ole Opry House – Nashville, TN
  • Orpheum Theater – Omaha, NE
  • Stiefel Theatre – Salina, KS

Outdoor venue of the year

  • Bank of NH Pavilion – Gilford, NH
  • FirstBank Amphitheater – Franklin, TN
  • Greek Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
  • Santa Barbara Bowl – Santa Barbara, CA
  • St. Augustine Amphitheatre – St. Augustine, FL
  • The Wharf Amphitheater – Orange Beach, AL

Arena of the year

  • Denny Sanford PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, SD
  • Dickies Arena – Fort Worth, TX
  • Hertz Arena – Estero, FL
  • Moody Center – Austin, TX
  • Simmons Bank Arena – Little Rock, AR
  • Thompson-Boling Arena – Knoxville, TN

Don Romeo talent buyer of the year

  • Ron Pateras
  • Pat Powelson
  • Michelle Romeo
  • Stacy Vee
  • Troy Vollhoffer

Promoter of the year

  • Patrick McDill
  • Aaron Spalding
  • Ed Warm
  • Adam Weiser
  • Jay Wilson

11 May 2023

2023 ACM Awards: Photos From the Red Carpet

The 2023 ACM Awards took over the Ford Center at the Star in Frisco, Texas on Thursday (May 11) evening, and some of the biggest stars in country music were present for the occasion.

Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, Kane Brown, Gabby Barrett, Chris Young, Jelly Roll, Chase Rice, Old Dominion, Tiera Kennedy, Ashley McBryde, Priscilla Block and more brought their fashion finery to the ACM Awards’ red carpet. Dolly Parton, who is co-hosting the Academy of Country Music Awards with Garth Brooks, naturally brought the glam when she hit the red carpet, too.

Jelly Roll also brought some sleek threads to the 2023 ACMs. In addition to performing at the ACMs, he’s set to perform at Billboard’s first-ever Billboard Country Live event, which takes place in Nashville on June 6-7. Jelly Roll will play at Marathon Music Works on June 6, with Garth Brooks sitting down for an intimate Q&A at the same venue on June 7. Carly Pearce, Bailey Zimmerman, Brian Kelley, Lauren Alaina, Megan Moroney and Lady A’s Hillary Scott will also be part of sessions discussing the hottest issues in country music.

The 2023 ACM Awards take place amidst a major Hollywood writers’ strike, which forced the MTV Movie & TV Awards to broadcast pre-taped and without a host on Sunday, May 7. The ACMs, however, seem set to broadcast live on Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Music channel on Twitch.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions. DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a Penske Media Corporation (PMC) subsidiary and joint venture between PMC and Eldridge. PMC is the parent company of Billboard.

11 May 2023

Jimmie Allen Dropped From CMA Fest Lineup After Sexual Assault Allegations

Jimmie Allen has been removed from the performer lineup for this year’s CMA Fest after sexual assault allegations in a new lawsuit, according to a statement from the Country Music Association obtained by Billboard.

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CMA Fest is slated for June 8-11 in downtown Nashville. Allen had been slated to perform during the festival’s closing evening, on Sunday, June 11, on the main stage at Nissan Stadium. Tim McGraw, Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley and Ashley McBryde are also on the June 11 lineup. Last year, CMA Fest welcomed an estimated 80,000 country music fans daily to downtown Nashville, and this year, will celebrate 50 years of connecting artist and fans.

The removal comes hours after a civil lawsuit was filed Thursday (May 11) against Allen, as an anonymous “Jane Doe” who previously served as a day-to-day manager for Allen claims to have been repeatedly sexually harassed and raped by Allen, and that Allen’s management company fired her when she complained.

The lawsuit, first reported by Variety and independently obtained by Billboard, was filed Thursday in Tennessee federal court. The anonymous “Jane Doe” accuser claims that Allen “manipulated and used his power” over her job as a day-to-day manager in order to “sexually harass and abuse her” over a period of 18 months from 2020 to 2022.

“Plaintiff expressed in words and actions that Jimmie Allen’s conduct was unwelcome, including pushing him away, sitting where he could not reach her, telling him she was uncomfortable and no, and crying uncontrollably,” the woman’s attorneys write in the complaint. “However, Allen made clear that plaintiff’s job was dependent on her staying silent about his conduct.”

In a statement to Billboard, Allen admitted to a sexual relationship with his accuser but denied all allegations of wrongdoing. Allen also said he is determined to defend himself against the lawsuit.

“It is deeply troubling and hurtful that someone I counted as one of my closest friends, colleagues and confidants would make allegations that have no truth to them whatsoever,” Allen says. “I acknowledge that we had a sexual relationship — one that lasted for nearly two years. During that time she never once accused me of any wrongdoing, and she spoke of our relationship and friendship as being something she wanted to continue indefinitely.

“Only after things ended between us, did she hire a lawyer to reach out and ask for money, which leads me to question her motives. The simple fact is, her accusations are not only false, but also extremely damaging. I’ve worked incredibly hard to build my career, and I intend to mount a vigorous defense to her claims and take all other legal action necessary to protect my reputation.”

Allen has also been suspended by his record label BBR Music Group (Allen records for the label’s Stoney Creek imprint), including the ceasing of of radio promotion for his current single “Be Alright.”

“In light of today’s allegations against Jimmie Allen, BBR Music Group has decided to suspend all activity with him, effective immediately,” a label representative said via a statement to Billboard.

Delaware native Allen had also previously been slated to deliver a commencement keynote address at his alma mater Delaware State University. In a release obtained by Billboard, it was noted that Allen is no longer delivering the commencement address and has been replaced by Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester. According to the release, Allen informed the university he would no longer be available to participate in the ceremony.

11 May 2023

Chrishell Stause & G Flip Reveal They Secretly Got Married

They’re hitched! Chrishell Stause and singer G Flip surprised fans Wednesday (May 10) with the news that they secretly tied the knot.

“Love doesn’t always go as planned… Sometimes it’s immeasurably better,” the Selling Sunset star captioned an Instagram Reel that shows a candid snap from their wedding ceremony at the very end. In the photo, Stause wore a simple white dress with her wavy locks half up, half down and G Flip donned a black suit and clean white sneakers.

The nonbinary Aussie singer — who just released their latest single “Be Your Man” — reacted to the post with a sweet tribute to their new wife in the comments section, writing, “My darling, I adore and love you with all my heart. These are the sweetest words and this is cutest little edit. You make me so happy…thank you x.”

Several of the couple’s friends sent their congratulations upon the public reveal. Rising lesbian pop star Peaches PRC commented, “IM SOBBINGGGG…love you both sm” while Stause’s Selling Sunset boss (and former boyfriend) Jason Oppenheim wrote, “I am SO excited for this!! You and G are the most inspiring couple and the affection between you both is so pure. I love you two tons and am so lucky to have you both in my life. congrats!”

Selling Sunset cast members Heather El Moussa, Emma Hernan, Chelsea Lazkani and Maya Vander were also among the famous faces who celebrated their co-star’s marriage, as well as Ariana Madix of Vanderpump Rules and former Bachelor Nation star JoJo Fletcher.

Watch Stause’s sweet Reel for the wedding reveal below.

11 May 2023

The Official ACM Awards Red Carpet Show

“The Official ACM Awards Red Carpet Show – hosted by Amber Anderson, Priscilla Block, BRELAND, Elaina Smith, and Kelly Sutton – is streaming live here on Thursday, May 11 at 7pm ET I 4pm PT. This year’s top ACM Awards nominees include HARDY, Lainey Wilson, Kane Brown, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert and Cole Swindell. The livestream will feature interviews with your favorite country stars and special performances from Dalton Dover, Tigirlily Gold, and Matt Stell.”

“Watch the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by global icons Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, streaming live TONIGHT at 8pm ET I 5pm PT on Prime Video. Prime membership is not required to watch live! Don’t miss the star-studded lineup of live performances from Dolly Parton, Keith Urban, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert and more – including special guest, Ed Sheeran.”

11 May 2023

What to Expect From ACM Awards, Beyoncé’s Renaissance Tour, Ice Spice Cover & More | Billboard News

TETRIS KELLY: Ice Spice is Billboard’s newest cover star! The ‘Princess of Rap’ opened up about some of the biggest collaborations in her career so far, making TikToks with Kim Kardashian’s daughter North West and more! Ed Sheeran discusses the ‘Thinking Out Loud’ copyright trial and reveals that it caused him to miss his grandmother’s funeral. We are breaking down what fans should expect from the Academy of Country Music Awards tonight. And more!

I’m Tetris and let’s get into today’s top story. Beyoncé kicked off her Renaissance World Tour in Sweden last night and we’ve got to talk about it. Beyonce performed a three-hour set and her first show in Stockholm comprised of 40 songs. Noticeably missing from the setlist: ‘Single Ladies’, ‘If I Were a Boy’, and ‘Halo,’ but she did sample my girl Britney with a little ‘Toxic’. I won’t spoil too much of the show. You can see all the videos online for that but Bey did post the highlight reel showing the high tech extravaganza. I mean, she brought out a giant mirrorball covered horse. Oh yeah, and she flew across the crowd on a horse a la Donna Summer. See you in September, Bey!

From a Queen to a Princess. Let’s check out our new cover star, Ice Spice. “I did manifest being successful. I would always be on Google as a kid and looking up how to be rich. And like careers that pay the most. So like growing up, I was like, okay, should I be a doctor? Or should I be a lawyer? You know what I’m saying? I just wanted to make a lot of money, but I just love music. So I guess that’s how it just fell into place.

ICE SPICE: “I love the Princess label. I feel like I let the fans pick that one. Because I didn’t like claim her until I saw like all my supporters being like ‘she’s the People’s Princess. She’s Princess Diana.’ At first I was confused. I was like, Oh, Princess Diana, like out everybody? But I was like she’s iconic. So yeah, Princess Diana it is.

“I’ve been a fan of Nicki my whole life. I feel like I was always manifesting like working with her and meeting her one day and stuff like that. So, I mean, I guess it’s just perfect timing.”

TETRIS: I feel like I need to meet Ice Spice. But I also need to hang out with Ed Sheeran, because he can teach me some things about music.

ED SHEERAN: “This is my, like, livelihood. And this is a thing that I’ve worked my entire life to do, and to have someone like disbelieve it and diminish it and just say that you’ve stolen it. I really felt like I had to take a stand and go to it.”

TETRIS: Ed Sheeran spoke out, saying he felt he had to take the stand during his copyright trial when he stopped by the ‘Howard Stern Show’ on Wednesday. The singer songwriter showed the radio host the mix of songs he played for the jury all using similar chord progressions.

Ed said there was 101 songs they found with similar chord sequences going back as far as the 1700s. He ultimately won his case and doubled down saying if he lost, he would have quit music

Now let’s talk to one of Billboard’s best about what’s going down in country. Country stars descend on Dallas tonight for the Academy of Country Music Awards. Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton take the stage together to host one of country music’s biggest nights, and Billboard’s Executive Editor for Nashville, Melinda Newman, fills us in on what to expect.

MELINDA NEWMAN: One of the biggest things people are looking forward to for tonight at the Academy of Country Music Awards is Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks are co-hosting. Dolly has hosted before but Garth has never hosted an awards show. So, you have arguably two of the biggest stars in the world hosting this event together and they’re longtime friends so it should be very fun to see how they interact with each other.

TETRIS: Morgan Wallen had to pull out of performing due to vocal issues. But who are some of the big performers we’re expecting to see tonight?

MELINDA: The good news is the show was so packed full with performances that they’re not even scrambling to replace him. Earlier, today they announced that Ed Sheeran will be performing so it will be Ed’s first performance since he won his landmark court case. And then there are also a number of performances that people are looking forward to including some collaborations like Carly Pearce and Trisha Yearwood. Ashley McBryde has got a whole bunch of people performing with her. Luke Combs is performing. You have artists who aren’t nominated showing up and performing just because it’s going to be a great evening.

TETRIS: Entertainer of the Year is ACM biggest award. Is there a clear front runner in that category?

MELINDA: This year, the ACM has expanded it from five nominees to seven but it’s a really tough slate. Even with the expansion, it’s hard to figure out who’s going to go home. But Jessica Nicholson, my colleague at Billboard, predicted Luke Combs will win.

TETRIS: Thanks, Melinda and good luck to all the nominees.

Now. I’m always down to learn some new slang and today I’m getting it from Evaluna.

EVALUNA: Hi, my name is Evaluna. And my favorite Venezuelan slang is ‘Cayendo y corriendo como la iguana.’ I don’t know why I love it. It means like, ‘we’re doing this fast.’ Like we got to, you know, to get there and we do our thing. When we leave. I just I love it. My mom always says like, “Okay, let’s go. Cayendo y corriendo.” Another word that I love is cónchale, which in Argentina might be a little weird, but I just say for everything. It’s like, “cónchale, man!” Like, “dang it!” And that was my favorite Venezuelan slang.

TETRIS: That’s the show. Come back tomorrow for our Tour Stop with ENHYPEN. plus all your new music. This is Billboard News.

11 May 2023

Elon Musk Says He’s Found a Woman to Lead Twitter as New CEO

Elon Musk said Thursday he has found a new CEO for Twitter, or X Corp. as it’s now called — and it’s a woman. He did not name her but said she will be starting in about six weeks.

Musk, who bought Twitter last fall and has been running it since, has long insisted he is not the company’s permanent CEO. The Tesla billionaire said in a tweet Thursday that his role will transition to being Twitter’s executive chairman and chief technology officer.

In mid-November, just a few weeks after buying the social media platform for $44 billion, he told a Delaware court that he does not want to be the CEO of any company.

While testifying, Musk said “I expect to reduce my time at Twitter and find somebody else to run Twitter over time.”

More than a month later, he tweeted in December: “I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job.” The pledge came after millions of Twitter users asked him to step down in a Twitter poll the billionaire himself created and promised to abide by.

In February, he told a conference he anticipated finding a CEO for San Francisco-based Twitter “probably toward the end of this year.”

Shares of Tesla rose about 2% Thursday after Musk made the announcement. Shareholders of the electric car company have been concerned about how much of his attention is being spent on Twitter.

Last November, he was questioned in court about how he splits his time among Tesla and his other companies, including SpaceX and Twitter. Musk had to testify in the trial in Delaware’s Court of Chancery over a shareholder’s challenge to his potentially $55 billion compensation plan as CEO of the electric car company.

Musk said he never intended to be CEO of Tesla, and that he didn’t want to be chief executive of any other companies either, preferring to see himself as an engineer. Musk also said at the time that he expected an organizational restructuring of Twitter to be completed in the next week or so. It’s been nearly six months since he said that.

Musk’s tenure at Twitter’s helm has been chaotic, and he’s made various promises and proclamations he’s backtracked or never followed up on. He began his first day firing the company’s top executives, followed by roughly 80% of its staff. He’s upended the platform’s verification system and has scaled back content moderation and safeguards against the spread of misinformation.

Bantering with Twitter followers late last year, Musk expressed pessimism about the prospects for a new CEO, saying that person “must like pain a lot” to run a company that “has been in the fast lane to bankruptcy.”

“No one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive. There is no successor,” Musk tweeted at the time.

11 May 2023

Priyanka Chopra Reveals Nick Jonas Watched Her Win Miss World Pageant… When He Was 7

Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas‘ relationship is a fateful one. During a Thursday (May 11) appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, the Love Again actress revealed one of the first times the Jonas Brothers singer set eyes on her was 23 years ago, when she was crowned Miss World — when he was only 7 years old.

“When I was 18, I won the Miss World pageant. This was in London — I had just turned 18 in July, complete child, I had no idea what I was doing or what this world entailed, didn’t have a lot of practice — but apparently, my mother-in-law said, ‘I remember watching you when you won,’” she told Hudson.

She continued, “I was in London, it was 2000. They were in Texas, and I was like ‘There’s no way.’ She was like, ‘I remember it so clearly because it was November, Nick was on some Broadway show at 7 years old, his brother was on some Broadway show at 8 or 9, and she said, ‘I remember this clearly because Kevin Sr.’ — my father-in-law — ‘loves watching pageants, and he, I remember, was watching it and Nick came and sat down and watched you win,’ which is unfathomable. That was 22 years ago. He was 7, I was 17.”

While fate appears to be on the couple’s side, when it was finally time to meet each other, Chopra revealed she initially “didn’t give it much of a chance.” In a separate interview with Today, she explained, “I was like, ‘He’s 25 years old, he’s a rock star. I want to get married, I want to settle down, I want to have a baby’ … I was 35 at the time. I wanted stability, and I didn’t give Nick enough credit until I went out with him on our first date. We spent the whole evening together, and I realized my husband is just like an old soul. He’s stability in human form.”

The rest, as they say, is history: Chopra and Jonas have been married for four years now, have a young daughter, and are now co-stars in their new movie Love Again.

Watch Chopra talk about Jonas watching her on television when he was still a child in the video above.