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Flo Rida to Headline Official 2023 Grammy Celebration
People attending the 65th Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, will have many options for post-show parties, but if they attend the Recording Academy’s official afterparty — dubbed the 2023 Grammy Celebration — they will see performances by headliner Flo Rida, as well as Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, who will perform in the Grammy Celebration Jazz Lounge.
The 2023 Grammy Celebration will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center, which is adjacent to Crypto.com Arena, where the Grammy telecast will be held. Michelle Pesce will return as the evening’s DJ.
Flo Rida is a five-time Grammy nominee. He was nominated for best rap song and best rap/sung collaboration for his breakthrough smash, “Low” featuring T-Pain; best rap album for R.O.O.T.S, album of the year as a featured artist on Lady Gaga‘s The Fame; and best rap/sung collaboration for “Wild Ones” with Sia.
O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra have won three Grammys for best Latin jazz album, and are nominated in that category again this year for Fandango at the Wall in New York. O’Farrill has won two additional Grammys for best instrumental composition.
The Recording Academy will produce the post-telecast Grammy Celebration, which is expected to draw more than 5,000 guests. “We’re excited to return to Los Angeles with a larger-than-life experience that truly captivates the last year in music,” Branden Chapman, COO & head of entertainment for the Recording Academy, said in a statement.
Following the event, the Recording Academy will once again partner with the charitable organization Musically Fed to repurpose leftover food to feed those in need in the local community. The Academy will also partner with that organization to repurpose leftover food from the MusiCares Persons of the Year event on Feb. 3 and the official telecast.
The 2023 Grammy Celebration is a private, ticketed event.
Nate Smith Earns His First Country Airplay No. 1: ‘My Dad Is Just Glad I Have a Job!’
Nate Smith banks his first No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (dated Feb. 4) with his freshman entry, “Whiskey on You.” The song increased by 10% to 31.2 million impressions in the week ending Jan. 26, according to Luminate.
Smith, from Paradise, Calif., co-authored “Whiskey” with Lindsay Rimes and Russell Sutton. Smith scored early success on social media prior to signing to Sony Music Nashville’s Arista roster in November 2021. He presently boasts 1.4 million TikTok followers.
“When I released ‘Whiskey,’ I wasn’t sure what would happen … I just knew I loved it,” Smith tells Billboard. “First, my fans were super encouraging on social media, and then country radio welcomed the song with open arms, and for that I couldn’t be more grateful. Meanwhile, my dad is just glad I have a job! A huge thank you to country radio, my fans, my team and everyone who has lifted this song up.”
“Whiskey” marks the second initial Country Airplay entry to reign already in 2023, after Jelly Roll’s “Son of a Sinner” (Jan. 14). In 2022, only Bailey Zimmerman reached the penthouse with a first charted title, when “Fall in Love” led in December.
On the streaming-, airplay- and sales-based Hot Country Songs list (dated Jan. 28), “Whiskey” ranks at No. 12, bolstered by 5.7 million U.S. streams.
Wilson Keeps on ‘Truck’-in’
Lainey Wilson notches her third straight career-opening Country Airplay top 10 as “Heart Like a Truck” rides 11-10 (19.6 million, up 11%). She co-penned the track with Trannie Anderson and Dallas Wilson.
Wilson’s debut hit, “Things a Man Oughta Know,” led Country Airplay for a week in September 2021, followed by “Never Say Never,” with Cole Swindell, a two-week No. 1 last April-May.
Concurrently, HARDY’s “Wait in the Truck,” featuring Wilson, rises 12-11 (19.6 million, up 10%).
YouTube’s Mai Sasaki Compares Japan & U.S. Work Cultures, Talks Japanese Music Scene: Billboard Japan Women in Music
Billboard Japan has been interviewing various women who have established themselves in the Japanese music industry for its Women in Music initiative since its inception last year. In the same spirit of Billboard’s annual Women in Music event that began in 2007, Billboard Japan also aims to celebrate women who continue to break new ground in the country’s music business through various contents including interviews, live performances, and panel discussions.
YouTube’s Mai Sasaki, who oversees Artist Relations in Japan at the video sharing giant, is the next featured guest in the interview series. Sasaki helps artists in Japan expand the scope of their musical activities by providing a platform and operational support, a major example being the official Fuji Rock Festival YouTube channel that began in 2018 featuring livestreams and archives from Japan’s pioneering summer music festival. Having been involved in the music business in her home country and abroad before assuming her current post, how does Sasaki view the Japanese music scene today?
You currently work in Artists Relations at YouTube. What specifically does this section do?
Our job is to make various proposals and provide operational support for artists to utilize YouTube as a platform. The things our music team can propose to our clients are increasing in multifaceted ways on a daily basis, such as how to actively operate official channels, or hosting livestreams.
I see, so it’s not just about opening up your platform. The pandemic has changed the way music is made available online, so it feels like more and more artists are utilizing YouTube now.
It goes without saying that the shock of the pandemic has been immense for the music industry, from not being able to hold in-person events like live concerts and music festivals to having to postpone releases because the recording and promotion process became harder to carry out. In the midst of all this, YouTube has been holding online seminars for artists, record companies, and other music professionals on how to make the most of our platform. This initiative was more about wanting to work together towards a common goal rather than trying to sell our services. As a result, our platform has been used as a place for artists and fans to connect — through livestreaming shows without in-person audiences, or streaming performances from the artists’ private spaces — and even now that movement restrictions have been lifted, such developments on the platform continue to expand.
Could you tell us a bit about your career before taking up your current position?
I’ve loved music for as long as I can remember, and after graduating college, I landed a job at a record company in Japan. After that, I moved to San Francisco. I didn’t have any connections; I did my own research, got connected to a company that I wanted to work for, set up an appointment for an interview, and got the job at a digital music distribution start-up.
Having experienced working in the music industry both in Japan and the U.S., have you felt any differences between the two?
After returning to Japan, I really noticed the large percentage of men in the industry as a whole. At the company I worked for in San Francisco, there were many women in key positions such as the heads of the production and marketing departments, so the fact that such key positions in Japan are usually filled by men in dark suits became glaringly apparent to me after coming back.
What do you think are some of the reasons that have led to this current situation?
This isn’t just about the music industry, but I feel that there’s still a strong sense of gender roles in Japan, that women are supposed to take care of children and do housework. Of course there are regional differences in other countries as well, but San Francisco is a very liberal-leaning city, so I think the difference I felt when I came back to Japan was significant.
What’s the current situation like at Google?
Google has a corporate philosophy that emphasizes diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. In fact, we have as many women as men. This is subjective, but my impression is that the right people are placed in the right places with more emphasis on individual careers and working styles than on gender. Working remotely was also allowed before the pandemic, and support is in place for women to continue their careers while going through childbirth and childcare. In order to promote women’s leadership, we also offer a training program called the “Women Will Leadership Program” for both management and individuals who aspire to become leaders, and it’s been very effective.
It’s encouraging to see a global company like Google leading the way in the advancement of women in society with an extensive support system. Moving on to the topic of artists, on Billboard Japan’s year-end Japan Hot 100 for 2022, only two female artists broke into the top 10 (Aimer and Ado). The result for the entire list was 58 male artists, 27 female artists, and 15 mixed acts. Men consistently outnumber women on the tally, even though there are many great female artists in Japan. Could you share your views on this result?
I’m not an artist, so I can’t speak for them, but as a listener, I sometimes feel that Japanese society isn’t ready to accept the views of female artists when they try to send out strong messages. Many female artists who are setting records globally, such as Taylor Swift, Beyonce, and Lizzo, send out strong messages to society. The fact that these women have loyal followings is proof that their messages are touching people. In Japan, that aspect still seems to be a hurdle to overcome.
In Japan, there has even been a controversy about whether or not to bring politics into music, and I get the impression that there are a certain number of people who can’t tolerate women having a voice.
That might not be the only reason, but we once received feedback from the global team that they couldn’t think of any artists in Japan with outstanding individuality or assertiveness among other global artists. They said that when considering the global music market as a whole, J-pop artists don’t stand out.
In reality, though, there are outstanding artists like Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, who presents Japan’s unique culture to the world and has successfully performed at major events including Coachella, and Haru Nemuri, whose reputation abroad is even greater than in Japan. Boosting these and other great domestic talents further toward global audiences is one of the challenges that a global platform like YouTube should address.
That’s rather shocking to hear. What kind of artists were you into in the past?
It’s not just because she’s a woman, but Madonna has left a big impact on me. I first heard “Erotica” on a local radio station, J-WAVE when I was in junior high school and was blown away. Not only her music, but her fashion and makeup were also so exciting, and she made me feel that I didn’t have to be too concerned about what people think of me, which still influences how I think today. Her speech at the 2016 Billboard Women in Music event was also fascinating.
More than 40 years have passed since Madonna’s sensational debut in 1982, and the circumstances surrounding women have changed. Do you personally feel any of these changes?
When I started out, it was a given that we (women) had to work harder than men if we wanted to make it in the music industry. But nowadays, the concept of men working hard without regard for their families is outdated and pushing yourself too hard while ignoring the physical differences between men and women isn’t a virtue, either. We should also be aware of the potential for harassment that stems from the authority gained from advancing in one’s career, regardless of gender. I believe that having room to breathe both mentally and physically will lead to better performances for both myself and team members.
Watch the exclusive playlist curated by Mai Sasaki below.
—This interview by Rio Hirai (SOW SOWEET PUBLISHING) first appeared on Billboard Japan
Rita Ora Confirms She’s Married to Taika Waititi, Lampoons Wedding in ‘You Only Love Me’ Music Video: Watch
Rita Ora and Taika Waititi are officially hitched! On Friday (Jan. 27) the singer revealed she and her longtime love secretly got married last summer.
“Yes. I am officially off the market, people,” she said in an interview with the U.K.’s Heart Breakfast Radio, per ET Canada. “I chose to keep it more private and keep it to myself…It was exactly, exactly how I wanted. It is nice to keep some things just to myself sometimes. It was nice and sweet. Sorry it’s not that interesting. One day I will throw a big party.”
Ora is, however, giving fans a taste at what her nuptials could’ve been in the music video for her new single “You Only Love Me.” In fact, the clip opens with video messages from her celeb pals like Chelsea Handler, Lindsay Lohan and Kristen Stewart wishing her well on her wedding day. But from there, disaster strikes at nearly every turn, and not even a surprise cameo from Sharon Stone or a voice memo from Waititi himself can save the nuptials.
“I can’t believe you look at me the way I look at you/ ‘Cause no one’s ever loved me back the way that you do do/ I’ve been messed up a thousand times, but you make it right/ And even on my darkest days, you show me the light,” she sings, as the rainbow-hued bridesmaids cause chaos, the wedding cake arrives as the size of a cupcake and the regal venue quite literally goes up in flames. (Hey, at least Ora looks fabulous in her vintage wedding dress by Yves Saint Laurent.)
Watch Ora’s hilariously doomed wedding fall apart in the “You Only Love Me” video above.
back number Talk New Album ‘Humor,’ Viral Hit ‘Suiheisen’ & More: Interview
J-pop band back number continue to enjoy lasting hits, with their 2016 album Encore still charting in the top 100 of Billboard Japan’s Hot Albums tally. The group’s recent hit song “Suiheisen” (“Horizon”) — created in the wake of the cancellation of the 2020 All Japan High School Sports Championships due to the pandemic — was released in August 2021 and finished at No. 9 on the 2022 year-end Billboard Japan Hot 100, becoming another signature song for the band that already has a long list of familiar hits under its belt.
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The trio’s latest studio album, Humor, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart dated Jan, 25. The set contains a total of 12 tracks including “Suiheisen,” songs featured as themes for TV drama series, plus brand-new numbers. In this latest interview, Shimizu shares the creative process that went into the production of this album that reflects the band’s current state, written and recorded alongside the band’s domestic tour last year.
What was 2022 like for you? You caught COVID during the band’s tour last year and some shows had to be postponed, but you all managed to successfully wrap of the trek in September.
Iyori Shimizu: I wanted to have fun during that tour instead of putting too much pressure on myself. Until recently, I used to put pressure on myself by setting up goals, like, “I want to be a certain way when the tour is over, so I have to make this kind of effort and…” But after coming down with COVID, it really hit home how important it is to pamper myself and make time for fun.
Then on the final day of the tour, it was like seeing a completely different view from before. We’d intended to enjoy ourselves and be satisfied with the tour, but in the end it was like we became aware of a kind of thirst. It was a strange feeling, that we could do more. I contemplated what that feeling was as we were putting the finishing touches on the album, and worked through the meaning of “humor” all over again.
What do you think was the nature of that “thirst”?
It was like a kind of earnestness that encompasses both fun and stoicism. Being really ambitious while also being really natural, the sense that the things that I thought could never be placed side by side are being mixed together. The three of us went into the studio and experimented in a lot of ways.
How do you think those things influenced your new album?
I realized that somewhere along the way, I’d lost the ability to “think normally.” I’d forgotten what I’d felt like when I first got started. But around the time I wrote “Velvet no Uta” during the tour, I began to feel the power of just being able to straightforwardly do what’s “good enough, normally speaking.” It felt like I’d returned to my very natural state, singing what I think the way I think it. If I hadn’t gotten COVID and finished the tour without any incident, it probably would have been a completely different album.
You shared “Suiheisen” on YouTube in August 2020, then released it on streaming platforms a year later. It started going viral on TikTok and other social networking sites around this time. Did that lead to any new discoveries about how to deliver your music?
I thought, “People sure do listen to a lot of music.” TikTok is a great playground. I’m pretty sure artists are all trying to figure out how to provide a plaything for it.
Also, I really appreciate the fact that the concept of B-sides has all but disappeared. I’ve never wanted to make a song that’s considered second best.
Streaming has made it much easier to access music on a song-by-song basis.
I think there was a bit more of a “this is popular, so let’s listen to it” vibe until fairly recently. Of course, that way of listening to music isn’t bad at all, and I’m sure we’ve benefited from it. But the joy is great when people choose to listen to our music. We’d like to keep on embodying our style of valuing each and every song, and we’re thinking of doing something new in our next phase.
How do you feel about the way your new album Humor turned out?
I already have an idea of what I want to do after this, so I think we managed to do what we can with this one. I can’t say for sure if it’s a good album until people hear it and we tour with it, but I’m confident enough to at least look forward to those things.
When we started making this album, I was thinking how I wanted to see “back number Level 99.” That we had to make an album that we could call our very best. But while we were making it, I realized that that way of thinking was really egotistical and that I was just being conceited. Like, if you keep working out all the time, your basic physical fitness will improve, but the environment around you is constantly changing. There’s no point in becoming a band that only pleases your core fans by being stubborn about how you think you should be and falling into complacency. That would just halt our growth and it would also mean turning our backs on our fans who love and support us. There is no upper limit.
Your journey continues even after Level 99, you mean.
It’s just a new beginning. I’m sure there are people out there who don’t listen to back number, so I want to hang on to that desire to turn those people around. The people who listen to us now and “One Room” (back number’s fan club) are really important to me, but I also don’t think it’s right to only care about them. I want us to be a band that those people can be proud of and say, “Isn’t our captain pretty amazing?”
—This interview by Takuto Ueda first appeared on Billboard Japan
Taylor Swift’s ‘Lavender Haze’ Video Co-Star Laith Ashley Thanks Her For ‘an Experience I Will Never Forget’
Upon dropping her new “Lavender Haze” music video, Taylor Swift raved about her costar Laith Ashley. And in a couple tweets following the video’s premiere, Ashley is returning the favor by gushing about his experience with the 33-year-old pop star.
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“Thank you so much @taylorswift13 for allowing me to play a small part in your story,” he tweeted early Friday morning (Jan. 27), 20 minutes after the “Lavender Haze” video premiered. “You are brilliant and this is an experience I will never forget.”
Then, a few hours afterward, the history-making transgender model tweeted: “Still at a loss for words. Trying to gather myself and my thoughts. I am so grateful. Thank you @taylorswift13.”
Ashley stars as Swift’s leading man in the “Lavender Haze” visual, self-directed by the 11-time Grammy winner in partnership with her All Too Well: The Short Film collaborator Rina Yang. Playing her romantic interest in the video, he lies next to Swift in bed, asleep as she traces galactic skies printed on his back, and cozies up to her at a house party.
After the project went live on Swift’s YouTube channel, she shared some photos from the video shoot — including one of her watching footage back on a handheld monitor with Ashley — and shouted out the Dominican-American singer by name on Instagram. “The Lavender Haze video is out now,” she wrote in her caption. “There is lots of lavender. There is lots of haze. There is my incredible costar @laith_ashley who I absolutely adored working with.”
“This was the first video I wrote out of the 3 that have been released, and this one really helped me conceptualize the world and mood of Midnights, like a sultry sleepless 70’s fever dream,” she added. “Hope you like it.”
See Laith Ashley and Taylor Swift’s posts about working together on “Lavender Haze” below.
Maneskin Recalls Meeting The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards & Getting His ‘Blessing’
Måneskin is in demand. The Italian rockers, who are fresh off the release of their third studio album, Rush!, revealed during their Thursday (Jan. 26) appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that The Rolling Stones‘ Mick Jagger is a fan, and shared a story about opening up a show for the legendary rock band. The “Beggin’” hitmakers also detailed the hilarious antics that ensued while meeting the “Gimme Shelter” singer and his bandmate Keith Richards for the first time.
“Mick Jagger chose you to open for The Rolling Stones in Las Vegas … what was it like when you got that call?” Fallon inquired of his guests.
“It was our first stadium so it was crazy. And also it was iconic because we got the chance to talk to [Jagger], and he was so nice and knew a lot of our music,” bassist Victoria De Angelis explained. “And then we met Keith Richards and he was like, ‘I don’t know who the f–k you are, but they told me you’re good.’ We were like ‘OK!’ We were blessed. We got the blessing.”
The rock group also discussed a 2023 Grammy nomination for best new artist. Lead singer Damiano David was the first to find out the news, and recounted the story to Fallon. “It streamed in the morning so I was the only one really awake in front of the television. They were all waking up and getting dressed, and when they said our name I started screaming,” he shared. “We were actually shooting a video for this because we wanted to share the reaction but we couldn’t because it was too vulgar, too aggressive.”
De Angelis confirmed that her bandmate’s reaction was so intense, she thought the rest of the band was in serious trouble: “I heard him starting banging on my door, and I was like, ‘What’s wrong? What have I done? I’m f–cked.’”
“They all thought we didn’t get the nom,” David added, to which De Angelis replied, “I thought you wanted to kill me or something.”
Closing out the band’s appearance on Fallon was a performance of Rush! single “GOSSIP.” Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello, who also features on the track, joined the quartet for the performance.
Watch Måneskin on Fallon below.
First Country: Zach Bryan, Luke Combs, Cole Swindell & More
First Country is a compilation of the best new country songs, videos & albums that dropped this week.
Zach Bryan and Maggie Rogers, “Dawns”
This slow-burn, angst-filled song finds Bryan and pop stalwart Rogers fighting through anger, sadness and loss, desperate to turn back time and reclaim happier moments. The ache simmering below the lyrical tension is palpable, particularly on lines recalling the passing of a parent, as their illustrious harmonies intertwine on “I lost her last July in a heart attack/ I need one small victory/ Give me my dawns back.”
Cole Swindell, “Drinkaby”
Swindell follows up his four-week No. 1 Country Airplay hit “She Had Me at Heads Carolina” with his latest, an uptempo, rock-tinged and radio-ready track about drinking away a broken heart. Swindell will release his new project Stereotype Broken on April 28.
Luke Combs, “Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old”
Reigning CMA entertainer of the Year Combs is gearing up to release the followup to his 2022 album, Growin’ Up, on March 24 when he drops his new album, Gettin’ Old. Bridging the two projects is his new song, “Growing Up and Gettin’ Old,” which acknowledges getting older but still knowing how to let loose.
“I spend most of my happy hours here at home … but I can still raise hell all night with the boys when I want to,” he sings, his electrifying-yet-earthy voice soundtracking this time in his life as a husband, father and entertainer at the top of his game.
Struggle Jennings feat. Jelly Roll, “Hard to Hate”
Country-rap artist Jennings is the grandson of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter, while Jelly Roll just notched his first No. 1 Country Airplay hit with “Son of a Sinner.” These two have a long history of collaborations, previously releasing four Waylon & Willie projects. Their latest, a slow-burn, bluesy-rock hybrid, revels in leaving things that no longer serve you in the past and making the most of the days that are ahead.
Jordyn Shellhart, “Who Are You Mad At”
Shellhart is already known for her role writing songs like Little Big Town’s “Sugar Coat” and Cody Johnson’s “I Always Wanted To.” Now, in this song she co-penned with Marc Beeson and Allen Shamblin, she continues her evolution as an artist, with this stellar track showcasing Shellhart as an introspective, mature writer and a skilled vocalist.
Her clear-eyed lyricism chronicles stormy arguments with a hot-headed lover, but she fearlessly delves below the surface — refusing to accept the arrows he’s throwing and drawing out pain she knows is actually aimed at his ex-lover.
Jake Owen, “My Boots Miss Yours”
He’s got a toe-tappin’ way of attempting to convince a lover that one night of spinning around a dancefloor under neon lights together was far from enough. “What ya say we get ’em back together?
Make a little trail of clothes and leather,” he sings, his warm, mellow vocal delivery a good foil for the understated flirtatiousness the song demands.
On the Outside, “Go Broke”
With a sunny sound and pop-country hooks aplenty to further elevate R&B-shaded, stacked harmonies, this five-part group seems poised to pick up Rascal Flatts’ mantle. “Go Broke” has the driving rhythm and glistening instrumentation of Keith Urban’s early work, while the explosive chorus feels like a solid throwback to early 2000s country-pop. Currently working with Jimmy Robbins and Mike Shimshack, the group inked a publishing deal last year with Warner Chappell Music and Mailbox Money Music.
Nickel Creek, “Strangers”
Lauded group Nickel Creek will return with their first album in nine years, when Celebrants drops on March 24. More than two decades after Nickel Creek first broke through with their 2000 self-titled album–and garnered two Grammy nominations in the process, followed by a Grammy win later for their album This Side–the group’s latest song highlights their unfettered harmonies and years-forged, tight-knit playing. The trio’s Chris Thile and siblings Sean and Sara Watkins recorded the album at Nashville’s RCA Studio A.
The video for the track is straightforward, putting the emphasis on the trio’s urgent performance — which conveys the simmering anxieties, wonder and hopes for sustained mutual esteem that come with reuniting with an old friend after a prolonged absence.
