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05 Mar 2023

Karol G Reacts to ‘Mañana Será Bonito’ Debuting at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart

Karol G’s historic No. 1 debut on the Billboard 200 albums chart with Mañana Será Bonito feels “enormous,” the Colombian star says.

Not only is the album in the top spot of the all-genre albums chart, but it’s Karol G’s first album to reach No. 1 on the chart and the first all-Spanish-language album by a female artist to land at No. 1.

“I feel so very special. More than happiness I feel special,” Karol G tells Billboard, who spoke with her as the news was reported.

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“My last album did so well and had all those big hits, like ‘Bichota,’ so the bar was high. But I didn’t want to make music because I felt pressure. I wanted to make the music I wanted to make, and the fact that I’ve hit No. 1 with an album that is so personal is enormous,” she says.

Mañana Será Bonito is also the first Latin album by a woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since 1995. That year, Selena’s posthumously-released, partially-Spanish-language album Dreaming of You topped the chart for one week.

Karol G — who considers Selena one of her idols — reacted with excitement, noting, “I’m sharing something with Selena! That’s amazing. Imagine my year: I met Rihanna, I recorded with Shakira and now I have a No. 1 on the chart like Selena did.”

Karol G and Shakira joined forces for the first time with new single and Mañana album track “TQG,” which dropped on Feb. 24.

“And how cool is it that on International Women’s Month I get to No. 1 and the artist before me at No. 1 was SZA,” Karol G added. “And that ‘TQG’ is No. 1 [on Spotify] and all these songs by women are in the top slots. We’re living such a strong moment. Now, we’re going for more.”

— Reporting by Leila Cobo.

05 Mar 2023

Karol G Achieves Historic First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With ‘Mañana Será Bonito’

Karol G’s Mañana Será Bonito makes an unprecedented splash on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated March 11), as the set debuts atop the tally. It’s both the first No. 1 for the artist and the chart’s first No. 1 all-Spanish-language album by a female artist.

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Previously, only two all-Spanish albums led the list, both by Bad Bunny (Un Verano Sin Ti in 2022 and El Ultimo Tour del Mundo in 2020).

(Mañana is effectively an all-Spanish-language effort, save for a handful of English lyrics by guest artist Sean Paul on one track.)

Mañana earned 94,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending March 2, according to Luminate. Its starting sum was largely powered by streaming activity.

Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200, Gorillaz collect their sixth top 10-charting set with the No. 3 debut of Cracker Island, Yeat achieves his third top 10 with the No. 4 bow of AfterLyfe and Don Toliver nabs his third top 10, as well, with the No. 8 arrival of Love Sick. Plus, The Weeknd’s former No. 1 Starboy returns to the top 10 for the first time since 2017 (climbing 14-9), following the release of a new remix for the set’s resurgent “Die for You.”

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new March 11, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on March 7. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of Mañana’s 94,000 equivalent album units earned, SEA units comprise 83,000 (equaling 118.73 million on-demand official streams of the set’s 17 tracks), album sales comprise 10,000 and TEA units comprise 1,000. The album’s sales were largely powered by its digital download album (8,500), though there was a CD available in limited quantities, selling about 1,500 copies. The digital album was also offered in two alternative cover variants on Karol G’s official webstore.

Mañana logs the largest week, by equivalent album units earned, for a Latin album by a woman since the chart began measuring by units in December of 2014. (Latin albums are defined as those that have hit or are eligible for Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart.) Further, as Mañana generated 118.73 million official on-demand streams for its songs, the set registers the biggest streaming week ever for a Latin album by a woman.

Mañana is also the first Latin album by a woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since 1995, when Selena’s posthumously-released, mostly-Spanish effort Dreaming of You topped the list for one week. (The 13-song Dreaming album has six tracks in Spanish, five in English and two duets that blend English and Spanish.)

Only three mostly-non-English-language albums by women have reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 – the all-Spanish Mañana, Dreaming of You and The Singing Nun’s all-French-language self-titled album in 1963.

Karol G made her Billboard chart debut in 2016 and has been a force on Billboard’s Latin genre charts ever since, notching 17 top 10 hits on the Hot Latin Songs chart – including five No. 1s (through the most recently published chart, dated March 4). On the Top Latin Albums list, she’s previously logged a trio of top two-charting sets, including one No. 1, her previous release, KG0516, in 2021.

Mañana is the fourth charting album for Karol G on the all-genre Billboard 200, but first to reach the top 10. She previously visited the list with KG0516 (No. 20 in 2021), Ocean (No. 54 in 2019) and Unstoppable (No. 192 in 2017). Preceding the release of the new album, Karol had logged five top 40-charting hit songs on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, but with three of them coming in 2022: “Mamiii,” with Becky G (No. 15), “Provenza” (No. 25) and “Gatubela,” with Maldy (No. 37). Both “Mamiii” and “Provenza” became Karol’s first top 10-charting hits on the all-genre Streaming Songs chart, reaching Nos. 5 and 10, respectively. (Both “Provenza” and “Gatubela” are included on Mañana.)

SZA’s SOS falls to No. 2 after 10 nonconsecutive weeks atop the Billboard 200, earning nearly 87,000 equivalent album units (down less than 1%).

With Karol G’s Mañana replacing SZA’s SOS at No. 1, it’s the first time a woman has replaced another woman atop the list in over a year. It last happened when a trio of leading ladies traded off the top spot from Nov. 20, 2021-Dec. 4, 2021. Summer Walker’s Still Over It debuted at No. 1 on the on Nov. 20 chart, Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version) then opened atop the list on Nov. 27, and Adele’s 30 bowed at No. 1 on the Dec. 4 chart.

Gorillaz score their sixth top 10-charting effort on the Billboard 200 as Cracker Island arrives at No. 3 with 64,500 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 48,500 (the top-selling album of the week, debuting at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 15,500 (equaling 20.39 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks) and TEA units comprise 500. The star-studded Cracker Island features guest turns from Bad Bunny, Beck, Bootie Brown, Stevie Nicks, Tame Impala and Thundercat, among others. The album was initially released on Feb. 24 as a 10-track standard edition across physical and streaming formats, along with an 11-track digital retail and streaming edition. On Feb. 27, a 15-track digital and streaming deluxe version was released, including bonus tunes with De La Soul and Del the Funky Homosapien.

Cracker Island was preceded by a pair of top 20-charting hits on the Alternative Airplay chart – the title track, featuring Thundercat (No. 2), and “New Gold,” featuring Tame Impala and Bootie Brown (with the latter rising to a new high of No. 16 on the most recently published chart, dated March 11).

Rapper Yeat logs his third top 10 on the Billboard 200 as AfterLyfe debuts at No. 4 with nearly 55,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise the vast majority – about 54,500 (equaling 78.42 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks).

Swift’s former No. 1 Midnights falls 3-5 with just over 48,000 equivalent album units (down 10%), Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping Dangerous: The Double Album dips 5-6 with nearly 46,000 units (up 5%) and Metro Boomin’s former leader Heroes & Villains falls 4-7 with 42,000 units (down 10%).

Don Toliver notches his third top 10 on the Billboard 200 as Love Sick starts at No. 8 with 40,500 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 39,500 (equaling 51.23 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise nearly 1,000 and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The album was initially released as a 16-track standard set on Feb. 24. On Feb. 28, a deluxe edition of the album with four additional tracks (including one featuring Travis Scott) was released.

The Weeknd’s former No. 1 Starboy climbs back to the top 10 for the first time since 2017 (its release year), as the set steps 14-9 with just over 40,000 equivalent album units earned (up 73%). The album’s rise comes following the Feb. 24 release of a new Ariana Grande-assisted remix of the set’s revived hit single “Die for You.”

Bad Bunny’s chart-topping Un Verano Sin Ti rounds out the new top 10, falling 6-10 with 38,000 equivalent album units earned (down 5%).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

05 Mar 2023

Fans Choose J-Hope & J. Cole’s ‘On the Street’ as This Week’s Favorite New Music

J-Hope and J. Cole‘s collaboration “On the Street” has topped this week’s new music poll.

Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (March 3) on Billboard, choosing the BTS member’s meaningful team-up with the rap star as their favorite new music release of the past week.

“On the Street” brought in 80% of the vote, beating out new music from Nicki Minaj (“Red Ruby Da Sleeze”), Morgan Wallen (One Thing at a Time), Kali Uchis (Red Moon in Venus), Marshmello and Manuel Turizo (“El Merengue”), and others.

The pair’s hip-hop collab follow J-Hope’s many accomplishments as a solo artist in 2022, including his bold Jack in the Box project and his prominent Lollapalooza set. The BTS member uses the new single to express his gratitude toward the fans who helped make it all happen. Cole effortlessly slides on the beat, charismatic and confident alongside the K-pop star as he speaks of his own unique come-up story.

“On the Street” is particularly meaningful to J-Hope. While BTS has long shared their admiration for the North Carolina-raised rapper –revealing in 2013 their reinterpreted take on J. Cole’s “Born Sinner” with “Born Singer,” which was only officially released last year on Proof — J-Hope has always shared how Cole is one of his ultimate favorite singers.

“On the Street” is J-Hope’s first new solo song since hopping on “Rush Hour” with Korean R&B singer “Crush.” J. Cole dropped a surprise song in mid-January with “Procrastination (Broke),” acting as a thank you to producer Bvtman and “every producer out there cooking up and sharing their work with the world.”

Trailing behind Hope and Cole’s track on the fan-voted poll was Minaj’s latest track “Red Ruby Da Sleeze,” with nearly 12% of the vote. The new single follows her hit single “Super Freaky Girl,” which earned the Queen of Rap her first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 2022.

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

05 Mar 2023

BLACKPINK’s Jisoo Teases First Solo Music Release With Mysterious ‘Coming Soon’ Poster

BLACKPINK‘S Jisoo is gearing up for her long-awaited debut solo music project.

The K-pop star announced through social media on Sunday (March 4) that her first solo music release will arrive on March 31. The teaser included a mysterious “Coming Soon” poster featuring a bright red piece of cloth in the middle a beautiful green field.

“See you soon,” Jisoo captioned the image on Instagram. The teaser poster was also shared through BLACKPINK’s official Instagram account.

At the start of the year, reports surfaced that Jisoo’s much-anticipated solo debut was finally in the works, making her the fourth and final member of the group to branch out with her own music. Jennie‘s “SOLO” arrived in 2018, and both Rosé’s -R- and Lisa’s Lalisa dropped in 2021.

In late February, Korean entertainment label YG Entertainment confirmed that Jisoo was preparing to release solo music in 2023.

“BLACKPINK’s Jisoo is currently working hard on recording her solo album,” YG said in a statement at the time, according to Smoopi. “While carrying out a busy world tour schedule since last year, she finished the album jacket photo shoot and worked on music production whenever she got the time in order to keep the promise with fans. She will greet [fans] soon with good news.”

Jisoo touched on going solo during an interview in May 2022. “I’m not sure how much I want to go solo yet,” she told Rolling Stone at the time. “The music I listen to, the music I can do, and the music I want to do — what should I choose? I love songs with lots of instruments. I love different bands and rock music. What do people want from me? There’s a chaos of conflicting questions. So I’m still tilting my head in confusion. I’m not sure what will happen with my solo plans this year.”

BLACKPINK’s second full-length studio album, Born Pink, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in October 2022. The girl group previously debuted and peaked at No. 2 in October 2020 with its debut release, The Album.

BLACKPINK announced earlier last month that the Born Pink World tour will head to Australia and Mexico. The four-piece will make its epic return to headline this year’s Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, four years after making its debut at the festival in 2019.

Check out Jisoo’s solo music announcement on Twitter below.

05 Mar 2023

Chris Rock Slams Will Smith & Jada During Netflix Live Show, Twitter Critiques The Slander

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You knew it was going to happen. During his Netflix life show on Saturday night (March 4), Chris Rock: Selective Outrage, in Baltimore, Chris Rock pretty much eviscerated Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith with all the pent-up slander he could muster, but it’s not being universally applauded.

By now you know the story, after a flippant joke Rock told about his wife during the 2022 Oscars ceremony, Smith proceeded to walk onto the stage and smack fire out of the comedian. There were apologies, suspensions, debates, more apologies, but Rock never really went in depth about the incident.

Until last night.

Rock had a whole set with some potent, and a-ight, jokes (we predict coming for Meghan Markle ain’t gonna fly), but you knew most people were waiting to here what he had to say about that. And he didn’t disappoint.

“I got smacked at the f*cking Oscars by this motherf*cker. And people like, did it hurt? It still hurts,” said Rock said. “I got ‘Summertime’ ringing in my ears.”

But Rock saved the most fiery stuff for Jada, who he said “started this sh*t.”

“Everybody in here has been cheated on,” said Rock, referencing the Smith’s infamous Red Table Talk where they discussed Jada’s entanglement with August Alsina. “None of us have ever been interviewed by the person that cheated on us on television.” After mentioning how everyone was calling Smith a b*tch after that moment, Rock added, “Everybody, and who’s he hit? Me. A ni**a he knows he could beat. That is some bitch ass sh*t.”

However, although he got his full roast on, there are people who don’t think he did much to help the situation and are quite critical of his performance. For instance, he still called Pinkett-Smith out of her name and plenty of people are taking note of potential misogynoir.

Another recurring criticism is Rock telling people to be careful of what they say in front of white people, but he sure had know problem going in on Black people in front of them himself.

See more reactions in the gallery. Tell us what you think in the comments.

05 Mar 2023

Kelsea Ballerini Performs Post-Divorce Songs ‘Blindsided’ & ‘Penthouse’ in Emotional ‘SNL’ Debut: Watch

Kelsea Ballerini made her Saturday Night Live debut on March 4, delivering a pair of heartbreaking songs from her new EP, Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.

For her first musical performance of the evening, the 29-year-old country singer confidently stepped onto the Studio 8H stage for an emotional delivery of “Blindsided,” a new track inspired by her recent divorce from singer-songwriter Morgan Evans.

Backed by a full band and donning a zebra patterned black jumpsuit, the three-time Grammy nominee stood amid a large white screen that featured a silhouetted dancer who appeared trapped. At the end of the song, Ballerini added a new verse that some speculate is a response her ex-husband’s post-divorce cut “Over For You.”

“Now you’re singin’ it loud on the radio like you’re the only heart that breaks/ You would’ve searched the whole world over? Yeah, sure, OK,” she sings.

Later in the show, Ballerini returned for a stunning performance of “Penthouse.” This time around, she wore a beautiful silky white gown and delivered the slow ballad in front of a large white piano.

“We played the part five nights, but we were never there on the weekends, baby,” she belted out.

Saturday’s SNL episode was hosted by Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who also made his debut on the iconic NBC sketch comedy show.

Ballerini, who announced her divorce from Evans in August 2022, addressed her marriage’s dissolution on her recent six-song EP, Rolling Up the Welcome Mat, which was released on Valentine’s Day. The project’s handful of songs are littered with details of the couple’s crumbling marriage and the emotional wreckage left in its wake. The EP was accompanied by a 20-minute short film.

Rolling Up the Welcome Mat also follows Ballerini’s 2022 album, Subject to Change, which reflects on her personal growth over the past few years.

Watch Ballerini’s SNL performances below. For those without cable, the broadcast streams on Peacock, which you can sign up for at the link here. Having a Peacock account also gives fans access to previous SNL episodes as well.

05 Mar 2023

8 Best Moments from the 2023 Kids’ Choice Awards: Snubs! Surprises! Slime!

The Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards know their audience. They know that their fans love nothing more than to see their favorite stars get slimed. And they know that kids don’t have long attention spans, so they brought the show in at a taut 90 minutes.

This year’s installment of the Kids’ Choice Awards that dates back to 1987 (Madonna and Phil Collins were the inaugural winners of favorite female and male artist, respectively) was held on Saturday (March 4) at 7 p.m. (ET/PT), live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Hosted by Nate Burleson and Charli D’Amelio, the show featured performances by Bebe Rexha, Lil Baby and Young Dylan, the star of Nickelodeon’s Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan.

Special honors were given to “King of Comedy” Adam Sandler and Transformers’ Optimus Prime. The latter award was presented by Pete Davidson, Dominique Fishback and Anthony Ramos, cast members from the upcoming Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.

A few artists turned their appearances into family affairs. Lil Baby’s kids joined him for a performance of his hit “California Breeze.” And hosts Burleson and D’Amelio were joined by their families on stage for a grand finale sliming.

Lil Uzi Vert also upped the kid appeal of his appearance by engaging in a drum-off with 8-year-old drumming prodigy, Justin Wilson II.

Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards 2023 will encore on Sunday (March 5) at 6 p.m. on Nickelodeon; Monday (March 6) at 7 p.m. on TeenNick; and Tuesday (March 7) at 8 p.m. on Nicktoons. The show will also be available on Nickelodeon on Demand beginning Sunday (March 5).

Here are the eight best moments from the 2023 Kids’ Choice Awards.

05 Mar 2023

Chris Rock Slams Will Smith in Live Comedy Special for Netflix: ‘I’m Not a Victim, Baby’

It was the moment many had been waiting nearly a year for — a chance to hear just how Chris Rock would finally address Will Smith’s Oscar night smackdown of the comedian on the Academy stage with a slap that will live in infamy.

Perhaps because Rock knew much of the audience who tuned in were waiting for just that moment, he saved it toward near the end of his set Saturday night (March 4) during Netflix’s much hyped first live special Chris Rock: Selective Outrage!

But when the moment finally came, Rock didn’t hold back — taking down Smith, dragging his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and targeting the couple’s marital issues (in which Pinkett Smith acknowledged a relationship with singer August Alsina as the couple addressed their marriage on an episode of Red Table Talk).

“Will Smith practices selective outrage,” Rock told the audience. “Outrage because everybody knows what the f— happened. Everybody that really knows, knows that I have nothing to do with that s—. I didn’t have any entanglements.”

He continued, “His wife was f—ing her son’s friend. OK, now, I normally would not talk about this s—, but for some reason, these n—-s put that s— on the internet. I have no idea why two talented people would do something that lowdown. What the f—? And we’ve all been cheated on. Everybody in here has been cheated on. None of us have ever been interviewed by the person that cheated on us on television.”

“She hurt him way more than he hurt me. Everybody in the world called him a b—-. I tried to call the motherf—er, I tried to call that man and give him my condolences, he didn’t pick up for me.” He continued by listing all the people who called Smith a “b—-” after that interview on Red Table Talk, including Charlamagne Tha God and The View. “Everybody called him a b—-, and who did he hit? Me — a n—a he knows he could beat. That is some b—- ass shit.”

While this is not the first time Rock addressed Smith’s slap — much of Saturday’s material was present in his shows as he toured the country over the past year — they were the first comments before a wide audience as Rock headlined Netflix’s first foray into live programming, a global event that featured a pre-show and post show with guests that included Arsenio Hall, Amy Schumer, J.B. Smoove, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dana Carvey and others.

“I’m gonna try to do a show tonight without offending nobody,” Rock said, kicking off his stand-up special from Baltimore. “I’m gonna try my best because you never know who’s going to get triggered.”

He added he didn’t mind “wokeness” but isn’t a fan of the “selective outrage,” the kind of people who will listen to Michael Jackson but not R. Kelly: “same crime — one of them just got better songs.”

Among the topics Rock covered included the Capitol Riots: “White men trying to overthrow the government that they run?” Rock said. “They’re like, ‘Damn, we gotta get them out of office.’ Who? Us?”

Later, he touched on the idea that white men felt they were being edged out of power, and joked whether commercials featuring interracial couples were part of their ire.

“There’s no Black couples either,” he said. “Every commercial has a mixed-race couple,” adding that he saw a commercial the other day where a Japanese woman was married to a caterpillar.

“By the way, speaking of commercials, when did Snoop Dogg become Morgan Freeman?” Rock joked. “I saw a commercial the other day where Snoop was selling reverse mortgages.” But he made it a purpose to note that he loves Snoop Dogg. “I’m not dissing Snoop. The last thing I need is another mad rapper,” he added, to cheers from the crowd.

But of course, the rapper who was the main target of the night was Smith, though a good deal of his ire was directed toward Pinkett Smith. Rock recalled when Pinkett Smith had called for Blacks to boycott the Oscars amid the #OscarsSoWhite controversy in 2016; Rock went on to host that year’s show.

“She started this s—. She said that me, a f—ing grown ass man, should quit his job because ‘My husband didn’t get nominated for Concussion,‘ and then this n—a gives me a f—ing concussion.”

Toward the end of the special, Rock changed his tone a bit, saying, “I loved Will Smith. My whole life, I loved Will Smith. I saw him open up for Run-D.M.C. … He makes great movies. I have rooted for Will Smith my whole life,” Rock said. “And now I watch Emancipation just to see him get whooped.”

Rock used the last minute of Selective Outrage to answer the question he’s gotten a lot since the Slap: Why didn’t you do anything back? “‘Cause I got parents,” Rock said. “‘Cause I was raised. And you know what my parents taught me? Don’t fight in front of white people.”

The pre-show featured appearances from fellow comics and Rock’s friends, including Schumer and Jerry Seinfeld. The Daily Show‘s Ronny Chieng hosted the special, with Hall, Deon Cole and Leslie Jones also appearing.

Chieng kicked off the night live at Los Angeles’ Comedy Store.

“I cannot emphasize how live things are today,” The Daily Show correspondent said. “We are live from two different locations simultaneously, Los Angeles and Baltimore. Why? For absolutely no reason. This is extremely expensive and difficult and irritating.”

The comedian also poked fun at how they’re doing a live comedy show on a Saturday night, a concept that has existed for decades, aka Saturday Night Live.

Chieng then introduced Hall, who shared how Rock got him back into stand-up. Toward the end of his brief set at the Comedy Store, Hall said that he hopes everyone enjoys the night “because I know somewhere Will Smith will not.”

“Trust me. We won’t know this, but I bet you Will Smith slaps the f— out of a TV tonight,” he joked. “He gon’ knock that motherf—er off the wall.”

Matthew McConaughey, Ali Wong, Woody Harrelson, Paul McCartney, Rosie Perez, Jimmy Fallon, Kevin Hart, Sarah Silverman, Ice-T, Adam Sandler and many others wished Rock luck ahead of his live event.

This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.

04 Mar 2023

Michael Rhodes, Esteemed Bassist and Nashville Session Musician, Dies at 69

Bassist and session musician Michael Rhodes, who was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2019, has died. He was 69.

A representative for Rhodes confirmed his death to Billboard. Rhodes passed away at his home in Nashville, Tennessee, Saturday morning (March 4). No cause of death was given at press time.

Rhodes was born in Monroe, Louisiana, in 1953. At age 11 he taught himself to play guitar, which he began playing professionally, before taking up bass.

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After stints living in Austin and Memphis, he wound up in Nashville in 1977, where he joined local rock band Nerve and Tree Publishing’s house demo band. It was there that he got what he called “a great crash course in the art of playing a song, and what was needed for a song,” he told Nashville Arts.

He went on to have a prolific career in session work, playing on award-winning songs including Shawn Colvin’s “Sunny Came Home” (1996) and Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance” (2000), and even had the honor of playing on both LeAnn Rimes’ and Trisha Yearwood’s 1997 versions of Diane Warren’s “How Do I Live.”

His incredibly long list of credits includes recordings for Willie Nelson, Etta James, Mark Knopfler, Alan Jackson, Stevie Nicks, Brian Wilson, Joss Stone, Dolly Parton, the (Dixie) Chicks, J.J. Cale, Wynonna, Merle Haggard, Randall Bramblett, Amy Grant, Hank Williams Jr, the Highwaymen, John Oates, George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Bob Seger, Dave Stewart, Keith Whitley, Joan Baez, Lionel Richie, Burt Bacharach, Aaron Neville, Johnny Cash, Lonnie Mack, India.Arie, Buddy Guy, Grace Potter, Billy Joe Shaver, Ruthie Collins, Michael McDonald, Dan Penn, Jennifer Holiday, John Fogerty, Elton John and Joan Osborne.

In recent years, he played often in Joe Bonamassa’s band.

Rhodes is survived by wife Lindsay Fairbanks Rhodes, son Jason Rhodes and daughter Melody Wind Rhodes, and Lindsay’s sons, Van and Weston Hayes, as well as grandchildren Cayman Rhodes, Cora Rhodes, Wylder Rhodes, Kingsley Rhodes, Jenna Nicole Hillman and Ryley Bruce Hillman.

Memorial arrangements will be provided at a future time.

In lieu of flowers, and in Rhodes’ spirit, his family requests that donations be made to the Music Health Alliance, which provides aid to musicians in need of healthcare and support. Checks may be sent to Music Health Alliance, 2737 Larmon Dr, Nashville, TN, 37204 or through their website, musichealthalliance.com. Rhodes’ family also encourages listening to a piece of music that matters to you; Rhodes listened to John Coltrane before he passed. “He really loved jazz and John Coltrane, all those guys,” Rhodes’ wife says. “It fed him, always.”

04 Mar 2023

Morgan Wallen’s ‘One Thing at a Time’ Blasts to Over 100 Million U.S. Streams on First Day

Morgan Wallen’s new album One Thing at a Time is off to a robust start in the United States. The country set’s 36 songs generated 101 million on-demand official audio streams in the U.S. on the album’s release day of March 3, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate, whose information powers Billboard’s weekly charts.

For context, the largest U.S. streaming week for a country album is the first week of Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version), which collected 303.23 million on-demand audio and video official streams for its 30 tracks (in its first week, ending Nov. 18, 2021). The second-largest streaming week for a country set is the debut frame of Wallen’s last album, Dangerous: The Double Album, which logged 240.18 million clicks for its 30 songs in its debut week, ending Jan. 14, 2021.

In addition, One Thing at a Time sold over 60,000 copies on its first day, mostly through digital album purchases. The set was issued only in three retail-available editions: a digital album (both clean and explicit) and a double-CD (explicit only). One Thing at a Time has yet to be released on vinyl, unlike Dangerous in its first week, when it sold 6,000 copies.

News of further initial sales and streaming-and-track-equivalent activity for One Thing at a Time, as provided by Luminate, will be reported in the coming days.

One Thing at a Time was preceded by the release of nine songs from the album, going back as far as April of 2022. Four of those tunes topped Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart: “Don’t Think Jesus,” “Thought You Should Know,” “You Proof” and “Last Night,” the lattermost of which has reigned for three weeks running (through the most recently published March 4-dated ranking).

One Thing at a Time is Wallen’s first album since Dangerous: The Double Album, which debuted atop both the Top Country Albums chart and the all-genre Billboard 200. On the former, it has spent a record-breaking 96 weeks at No. 1, while on the latter, it racked up 10 weeks (all consecutive) on top. It also has notched 108 nonconsecutive weeks in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 (through the most recently published list, dated March 4) – the most weeks in the region among any album by a single artist in the chart’s history.

Dangerous closed 2021 as the year-end No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, and the most popular album of the year in the U.S., as measured by equivalent album units by Luminate.

Luminate’s current tracking week ends at the close of business on Thursday, March 9. One Thing at a Time’s final first-week numbers are expected to be announced on Sunday, March 12, along with its debut position on the multimetric Billboard 200 albums chart (dated March 18). If One Thing at a Time debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, it will mark Wallen’s second chart-topping set, following Dangerous.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.