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12 Apr 2023

‘Twin Peaks’ Star Unmasked on ‘The Masked Singer’

Decades of experience on the small screen couldn’t stop two more celebrities from being sent home from The Masked Singer.

Wednesday night’s (April 12) season nine episode was “Masked Singer in Space Night,” with three contestants battling for one spot.

UFO performed Coldplay’s breakthrough hit “Yellow”; Dandelion tried out Muse’s “Starlight”; and Lamp hit “Venus,” Bananarama’s cover Shocking Blue’s 1969 song “Venus.”

Appropriately, UFO got through on “Space Night.”

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Underneath the Lamp helmet was actress Melissa Joan Hart (“Sabina, The Teenage Witch”), who revealed herself only after a clumsy unmasking moment in which she required assistance from the men in black.

“This is something I wanted to do for my kids, and for myself. I wanted to overcome something,” she explained of her decision to appear on the show. “I have never sung in front of people before. It’s terrifying to me. So this is like overcoming of fear. And, I did it guys!” Yes, she did.

Also, she remarked, “I didn’t fall, I didn’t vomit.” No, she didn’t.

Behind the fluffy Dandelion mask was actress, singer and songwriter Alicia Witt (TV’s Nashville, and David Lynch’s Dune film and Twin Peaks series), winner of last week’s episode.

Ken Jeong guessed right, and was particularly enthusiastic about his small victory.

“Nothing could prepare me for trying to play the piano and sing and catch my breath with all this on,” explained Witt. “But I’m really glad I tried. The thing I love the most is getting to connect with people with my music and this has been one of the best experiences of my whole life.”

Hart and Witt join a growing group of unmasked celebrities in this season nine of Fox’s wacky hit.

Others include George Wendt (Moose), Christine Quinn (Scorpio), Holly Robinson Peete (Fairy), Alexa Bliss (Axolotl) Malin Akerman (Squirrel), Lele Pons (Jackalope), Michael Bolton (Wolf), Grandmaster Flash (Polar Bear), Debbie Gibson (Night Owl), Howie Mandel (Rock Lobster), Sara Evans (Mustang) and Dick Van Dyke (Gnome).

12 Apr 2023

Tampa Superintendent Uses Taylor Swift Songs to Warn Students Not to Skip School for Concert

Taylor Swift‘s The Eras tour is taking over Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., on Thursday night (April 13), which happens to be a school night. That’s why Hillsborough County Superintendent Addison Davis sent out a letter of caution to students, in a language only Swifties can understand.

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The letter, which let students know that an absence to attend the concert will not be excused, was filled with references to various Swift songs. “I understand I am the ‘Anti-Hero’ here, and ‘Call It What You Want,’ but ‘You’re on Your Own Kid’ if you think being a Swiftie is a good excuse for missing important instruction,” the note posted to Reddit reads. “You know ‘All Too Well’ you ‘Should’ve Said No’ to attending a Thursday night concert. Especially one from an artist who is known for putting on a three-hour AMAZING show.”

Read the full letter here.

Davis had a similar idea to a Texas legal-service provider named Karen Vladeck, who wrote her own pun-filled letter for exactly what the superintendent was dreading: asking that her first-grader be excused from school to attend The Eras tour. According to Vladeck, the teacher simply responded in all caps, “THIS MADE MY ENTIRE DAY.”

Swift is currently a month into her Eras Tour shows, which she kicked off in Glendale, Arizona. Following sets in Las Vegas and Arlington, the “Anti-Hero” musician is headlining three shows in Tampa on April 13, 14 and 15.

12 Apr 2023

Hailey Bieber Launches Cooking Show

Hailey Bieber is heading from the bathroom to the kitchen. Following the success of her YouTube interview series Who’s In My Bathroom?, the Rhode founder launched on Wednesday (April 12) the first season of What’s In My Kitchen?

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The six-episode installment features the model sharing recipes for her favorite dishes, including chicken wings and an at-home version of her popular Erewhon Skin Smoothie. “What’s In My Kitchen? was a natural spinoff to Who’s In My Bathroom? because our audience was ready for us to stop eating in the bathroom!” Bieber said in a press statement, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I’ve loved cooking and sharing meals with friends on my social channels for years, and I can’t wait to bring this experience to the fans of our network with OBB and HexClad. Creating new formats and IP for my channel has been really empowering, as my team and I get to truly create everything from concept to screen, and I can’t wait for everybody to see what’s next.”  

The show will also give back, as Bieber will source her cooking ingredients from Village Market Place from Community Services Unlimited, which works to “address the inequalities and systemic barriers that make sustainable communities and self-reliant life-styles unattainable,” according to their website. Hexclad will also make a donation to the Accion Opportunity Fund, which allows female-owned and POC-owned small businesses in the food industry to leverage $100,000 in microloans.

Watch the first episode of What’s In My Kitchen? below.

12 Apr 2023

Troy Ave “Money Dance 123,” Ab-Soul “Herbert” & More | Daily Visuals 4.12.23

HipHopWired Featured Video

Rolling Loud Los Angeles 2018

Source: Scott Dudelson / Getty

Ever since getting into a social media back-and-forth with Maino, China Mac, and others, Troy Ave has been dropping off new work on damn near a daily basis and though he doesn’t call anyone out by name on his cuts, he does include their names next to the song titles to get people to listen.

Continuing his trend with his latest visuals to “Money Dance 123 / Maino Chaino China Mac Taxstone Mysonne Joe Budden DJ Vlad Diss,” Troy Ave takes a trip out to the barrio in LA where he links up with some of his Latino hermanos and shows off his Salsa dance moves which were actually pretty impressive. And no, he didn’t actually call out any of the people named in the title.

Keeping the scene on the West Coast, Ab-Soul keeping that TDE flame burning and in his clip to “HERBERT,” Soul gets artistic with the visual as he sits in a room and opens a portal to his being and takes viewers on a trippy ride down memory lane using CGI and animation to capture various moments and feelings that bubble inside of him. It was pretty dope.

Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from NLE Choppa featuring Sexxyred, Calboy, and more.

TROY AVE – “MONEY DANCE 123”


https://youtube.com/watch?v=o1Zsnc1dPsw&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

AB-SOUL – “HERBERT”



NLE CHOPPA FT. SEXXYRED – “SL*T ME OUT”



REUBEN VINCENT FT. REASON & STACY BARTHE – “BOTTLE SERVICE”



CALBOY – “STARGAZE”



HOTBOY WES FT. BIGWALKDOG – “B&R”



KAYTRAMINE FT. PHARRELL WILLIAMS – “4EVA”



KOTA THE FRIEND – “MAYBE SO”



12 Apr 2023

A$AP Rocky, Jonas Brothers, Arcade Fire & More Added to Something in the Water Lineup

Something in the Water festival is returning to Virginia Beach at the end of this month, and on Wednesday (April 12), Pharrell Williams unveiled a wave of special guests and performers added to the lineup.

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A$AP Rocky, Busta Rhymes, De La Soul and M.I.A. have all been added to Pharrell’s Phriends set at the festival, which will take place in Virginia Beach, Va., between April 28 and April 30.

The festival has also announced additional performers including Third Eye Blind, Jonas Brothers and Arcade Fire, which comes less than a year after sexual misconduct allegations against Arcade Fire’s frontman Win Butler. 

Last year, the festival took place in Washington, D.C., after the Grammy-winning artist and producer voiced his disappointment in his hometown’s handling of his cousin’s death the year before. Sponsored by AirBnB and Walmart, this year’s star-studded lineup features Kid Cudi, Lil Wayne, The Clipse, Summer Walker, Grace Jones, Lil Uzi Vert and Kehlani, among others.

Pharrell’s team-up with Walmart also aims to impact communities in Virginia. “Strengthening local communities is core to Walmart’s DNA,” said Cedric Clark, executive vice president of store operations for Walmart U.S., in a press release. “By investing in our associates and in the communities we serve, we help build a foundation where people can live their full potential every day. We’re excited to team up with Something in the Water, returning to a special place to Walmart, Virginia’s Hampton Roads, to help celebrate and empower this community we’re so proud to be a part of.”

Three day passes to Something in the Water are still available for purchase here. Can’t make it to the festival? YouTube will be livestreaming the event all weekend on Pharrell’s YouTube channel.

12 Apr 2023

The National & Phoebe Bridgers Drop ‘Your Mind Is Not Your Friend’ Video

The National unveiled a music video for “Your Mind Is Not Your Friend,” their new single with Phoebe Bridgers, on Wednesday (April 12).

On the track, Matt Berninger and the Punisher singer harmonize as they intone, “Don’t you understand?/ Your mind is not your friend again/ It takes you by the hand/ And leaves you nowhere/ You are like a child/ You’re gonna flip your lid again/ Don’t you understand?/ Your mind is not your friend” on the wistful chorus.

In an interview with Hanuman Welch on Apple Music 1, the frontman explained how the collab came together, saying, “This one came later in the phase when I was kind of climbing out of a long phase of writer’s block and depression and just kind of self-disgust. I didn’t even want to write or think about myself for a long time, and my wife was repeating to me over the course of that long period, telling me that ‘This is just a phase. This is not really you.’”

Berninger also praised Bridgers’ contribution to the final product, adding, “I kind of felt like it needed that presence of another voice or another person, and Phoebe jumped in. She was just perfect for that. And because her voice is just such a tender just warm hug, and so it added that sort of dimension to it, which was crucial for it to work.”

“Your Mind Is Not Your Friend” follows “Tropic Morning News,” “New Order T-Shirt” and “Eucalyptus” as the fourth single from The National’s latest album First Two Pages of Frankenstein. Bridgers, meanwhile, just released Boygenius’ The Record with pals and bandmates Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus and will join Taylor Swift next month as an opener on The Eras Tour.

Watch the music video for “Your Mind Is Not Your Friend” below.

12 Apr 2023

Yandel & Feid’s ‘Yandel 150’ Reaches No. 1 on Latin Airplay & Latin Rhythm Airplay Charts

Yandel once again rules a Latin airplay chart as “Yandel 150,” his collaboration with Feid, ascends to No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Airplay and Latin Rhythm Airplay charts (dated April 15), lifting 2-1 on both rankings.

“Yandel 150” leads with a 28% increase in audience impressions, to 12.5 million, earned in the U.S. March 31 to April 6, according to Luminate.

The new champ gives Yandel his 15th No. 1 among 34 chart appearances on the all-genre Latin Airplay chart. He returns to the summit following the one-week lead of “Déjà Vu,” with Tainy, in 2021. His longest-leading champ was “Encantadora,” which held atop the chart for three weeks.

Feid, meanwhile, claims his third No. 1 just a month after his featured turn in Ozuna’s “Hey Mor” ruled the March 4-dated list.

The collaboration ousts another pairing, Myke Towers and Daddy Yankee, after one week in charge for “Ulala.”

“Yandel 150” is the fourth single from Yandel’s Resistencia, his seventh studio album as a soloist, released Jan. 13 via Sony Music Latin. The 17-track set, jam-packed with reggaetón vets and newcomers alike, including his longtime collaborator Wisin, earned the Puerto Rican an eighth straight top 10 on Latin Rhythm Albums (March 23-dated list).

Further, “Yandel 150” leads in its ninth week on Latin Airplay, tying with “Hey Mor” as the third song to rise to the summit in nine weeks or fewer among Yandel’s 15 champs. Only two other tracks climbed faster: “Como Antes,” featuring Wisin, led in its second week, while “Se Acabó El Amor,” with Abraham Mateo and Jennifer Lopez, conquered in its sixth week.

Elsewhere, Yandel also takes his 15th No. 1 on Latin Rhythm Airplay, while Feid picks up his fourth champ.

12 Apr 2023

Granger Smith Reveals He’s Leaving Country Music to Pursue a Career in Ministry

Singer-songwriter Granger Smith‘s upcoming summer tour will be his last. Smith recently took to social media to announce that following the tour, he will be leaving his country music career behind to pursue a career in ministry.

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“I have felt a strong desire to pursue ministry,” he told fans via social media on Tuesday. “This doesn’t mean I’m going to start a church or a crusade, or a revival. It means me and my family are going to serve our local church. We’re going to pour into that church as members, and have my pastors and elders pour into me and disciple me and teach me, as I sit under their wise teaching. Hopefully one day they can affirm me into the next steps of what that might look like, to glorify God best from my platform.”

Smith added that he has been pursuing a master’s degree at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. “This is a time of growing and learning for me…that may explain to some of you why I may have seemed distant, especially to music, lately,” he said.

In the caption for the video, Smith wrote, “I am so encouraged and hopeful and excited and joyful about the next chapter, but to a large extent, I have no idea what it will look like. I just want to glorify God the best way that I can.”

Smith earned a No. 1 hit on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart in 2016 with “Backroad Song” and a top 10 hit on the same chart in 2017 with “If the Boot Fits.” “Backroad Song” was also honored with a BMI Award in 2016.

On Aug. 1, Smith will release the book Like a River: Finding the Faith and Strength to Move Forward After Loss and Heartache, which offers a look into how Smith and his family relied on their faith as they navigated grief and healing after the death of his 3-year-old son River, who drowned in a swimming pool accident in 2019. Granger and his wife, Amber, are also parents to daughter London and sons Lincoln and Maverick.

Smith’s farewell Like a River Tour will launch April 13 in Wisconsin and will run through Aug. 26 in Texas.

12 Apr 2023

Melanie Martinez & Boygenius Rule Billboard Rock Album Charts

Melanie Martinez and boygenius snag the top debuts on Billboard’s rock and alternative album charts dated April 15.

Martinez’s Portals opens at No. 1 on both Top Rock & Alternative Albums and Top Alternative Albums thanks to 142,000 equivalent album units earned, according to Luminate. Of that sum, 99,000 units are via album sales, while 42,000 come from streaming units, with the remaining 1,000 from track equivalent albums.

The sales and streaming counts are the best for any album on Top Rock & Alternative Albums in 2023.

Martinez notches her first No. 1 on the chart since it shifted to a model allowing for alternative-leaning albums not necessarily within the rock genre. On Top Alternative Albums, Portals becomes her third ruler, following K-12 in 2019 and Cry Baby in 2015.

On the all-genre Billboard 200, Portals starts at No. 2, Martinez’s best rank, surpassing the No. 3 debut and peak of K-12. She also earns her first leader on Top Album Sales.

Meanwhile, boygenius – the rock group consisting of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus – starts at No. 1 on Top Rock Albums with its debut full-length The Record. It snagged 67,000 units, with 53,000 from album sales and 14,000 from streaming units.

The Record is boygenius’ first Top Rock Albums leader as well as the first No. 1 visit for any of the individual band members on the list. Baker boasted the previous best, with 2021’s Little Oblivions having debuted and peaked at No. 4.

The trio’s LP also starts at No. 2 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums and Top Alternative Albums, behind Martinez, as well as No. 1 on Americana/Folk Albums. Baker previous led the lattermost list with Little Oblivions.

On Vinyl Albums, The Record launches at No. 1 with 45,000 vinyl copies sold.

Both albums spur multiple appearances on the multi-metric Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, paced by Martinez’s “Void,” which vaults 40-5 in its second week on the tally. In the March 31-April 6 tracking week, “Void” earned 8.7 million official U.S. streams and 100,000 radio audience impressions and sold 1,000 downloads. The former count gets Martinez onto the all-format Streaming Songs list for the first time, at No. 42.

In all, 13 Martinez songs reach Hot Rock & Alternative Songs, with the top debut of the group being “The Contortionist” at No. 10 (5.4 million streams).

Boygenius, meanwhile, sports four appearances on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs, led by “Not Strong Enough” at No. 33 (2.1 million streams, 952,000 audience impressions, 1,000 sold). “Strong” also rises into the top 10 of Adult Alternative Airplay at No. 10, marking the threesome’s first top 10, and 40-36 on Alternative Airplay.

12 Apr 2023

Demi Lovato Says ‘This Generation Is Hungry’ for the Emo Music She Grew Up With

Demi Lovato‘s latest album Holy Fvck feels like a rebirth for the pop star — and for good reason. Speaking with CBS Mornings, the Disney Channel alum revealed that making the LP put her more in line with the emo music she loved as a teen.

“I grew up listening to this music and so I wanted to go back to my roots,” she said of the genre in an interview during the segment, aired on Wednesday (April 12). “Whether you’re going through depression of having fun with your friends, there’s so many emotions in this music. I think this generation is hungry for it.”

Lovato continued, “Whether its angst, whether it’s falling in love, sadness…I’ve always just made music to be an inspiration to other people while also doing what I love. I’m definitely in a really good place. I don’t know what I’m going to write about on my next album because I’m so happy. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Released on Aug. 19, Holy Fvck debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200. Elsewhere, the album topped the Top Rock, Top Alternative and Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts.

Watch Lovato talk about making emo music in the video above.