News

19 Jan 2023

Amazon Music Unlimited Prices to Increase for U.S. and U.K. Subscribers

Subscribers to Amazon Music Unlimited in the U.S. and U.K. will have to pay a higher price for the on-demand streaming service starting in February. According to Amazon’s customer service pages in both countries, subscribers to both individual and student plans will begin paying more starting Feb. 21.

In the U.S., Amazon Music Unlimited will increase from $9.99 to $10.99 for individual subscribers and climb from $4.99 to $5.99 for subscribers to the student plan. Likewise, U.K. prices will increase from 9.99 pounds to 10.99 pounds for individual subscribers and from 4.99 pounds to 5.99 pounds for student subscribers.

The e-commerce giant’s decision follows Apple’s move in October to charge higher prices for Apple Music as well as other cloud-based entertainment platforms and services. Apple Music also raised individual subscriptions from $9.99 to $10.99 per month in the U.S. It also increased the price of family plans, which offers up to six accounts under a single subscription, from $14.99 to $16.99 per month. Deezer, a small player in the U.S., raised the price of individual plans to $10.99 per month in 2022.

In May 2022, Amazon raised the price of Amazon Music Unlimited for Prime subscribers from $7.99 to $8.99 per month, and from $79 to $89 annually.

Spotify, the largest music subscription service, could soon follow suit. On the heels of Apple’s announcement, CEO Daniel Ek said during the company’s Oct. 25 earnings call that a U.S. price increase “is one of the things we would like to do.” Spotify has not raised its standard price from $9.99 since launching in the U.S. in 2011.

19 Jan 2023

SoundCloud Hires Emmy Lovell to Lead Global Music Strategy

Emmy Lovell was named global head of music at SoundCloud, the company announced Thursday (Jan. 19).

In the role, Lovell will lead SoundCloud’s global music strategy and oversee its artist and label relations as well as its commercial label partnerships teams. She joins SoundCloud from Napster, where she most recently led the Napster app relaunch as interim CEO; prior to that, she was the company’s chief strategy officer. Based in London, she’ll report to SoundCloud chief content and marketing officer Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood.

“Emmy is the consummate music executive,” said Wirtzer-Seawood in a statement. “Her passion for the business and deep expertise in partnering with artists at all stages of their careers is critical as we continue to pioneer the future of fandom and unlock the full potential of the artist and fan relationship on SoundCloud.”

Lovell’s hire comes amid a company revamp that has seen SoundCloud working to reinvent itself as a distribution and artist and label services operation. Last year, the company struck a joint venture with Quality Control’s Solid Foundation, launched SoundCloud for Artists and signed direct partnerships with artists including Lil Pump, Tekno and Kelow LaTesha while also beefing up its artist partnerships team with the hires of Jessica Rivera and Maurice Slade. But it also experienced setbacks; in August, the company announced it would be cutting 20% of its workforce, with a rep stating the layoffs were “due to a significant company transformation and the challenging economic and financial environment.”

Elsewhere, SoundCloud partnered with the music collaboration and data management tool Session, acquired music AI company Musiio and signed a global licensing deal with Warner Music Group that adopted the user-centric “fan powered royalties” model — a switch from the pro-rata model traditionally utilized by streamers.

In addition to Napster, Lovell previously served as executive vp of WEA, part of Warner Music Group’s artist and label services arm, and also had stints at EMI Music, Bauer Media and the BBC.

“SoundCloud’s influence in pop culture is felt globally and their fast-paced and progressive approach to challenging the status quo in the music industry is refreshing,” said Lovell. “I look forward to working with Lauren and the team to continue the brilliant and innovative work SoundCloud has already done to create connection between their vibrant artist and fan communities.”

19 Jan 2023

Dallas’ Legendary Longhorn Ballroom to Reopen

Texas promoter Edwin Cabaniss with Kessler Presents has announced plans to restore Dallas’ Longhorn Ballroom. The notorious nightclub was once owned by Chicago mob associate Jack Ruby, who famously shot and killed John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald as he left Dallas Police headquarters on Nov. 23, 1963.

The Longhorn opened in the 1950s as singer Bob Wills’ Ranch House. It was later operated by recording artist and record label boss Dewey Groom through the ’60s and ’70s, hosting concerts by Nat King Cole, Patsy Cline, T- Bone Walker and many more.

Cabaniss plans to incorporate the venue’s long history when it reopens this spring, in part with the original museum-style display cases built into the walls. The venue has traded hands a number of times in recent years and closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“These cases include everything from Tex Ritter’s suit to James Brown’s robe; an extraordinary collection of guitars from artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Waylon Jennings, Tammy Wynette, and BB King,” according to a press release announcing the reopening plans.

“As a 5th generation Texan, I know how important the return of the Longhorn Ballroom is to Texas in general and to Dallas specifically,” says Cabanis. “The lore is real. The floors have secrets and the walls have memories. And we’re excited to tell these stories with each show we present.”

Cabannis previously restored The Kessler Theater in Dallas and The Heights Theater in Houston.

In a statement, Dallas mayor Eric Johnson added that the venue is “a monument to our city’s rich music history,” calling the project “a wonderful opportunity to help preserve a piece of our past.”

For grand opening details and lineup announcements, visit longhornballroomdallas.com.

19 Jan 2023

David Crosby’s 10 Best Songs, With Crosby, Stills & Nash, The Byrds, Solo & Beyond

Some years ago, David Crosby lamented a lack of outlets for his songs.

“I’ve written so many things,” he explained while promoting in the early 2000s, when he felt he was experiencing a creative renaissance. “When you’re in a band they got tossed in with everybody else’s songs. And no record company wants to release as much music as I’m ready to. It’s a struggle, man — but I just keep writing and keep creating, and one day hopefully everything that I want to will come out.”

Despite that, we’ve heard plenty of songs over the years from Crosby, who died Thursday at 81.

Whether on his own or with The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash (& Young), CPR and, most recently, the Lighthouse Band, Crosby’s idiosyncratic touch with a melody and a lyric was showcased in abundance. Intimate and personal, confounding and meaningful, he was a craftsman guided by a wide array of muses, stylistically and topically. He channeled Woody Guthrie and John Coltrane, Pete Seeger and Ravi Shankar, Bach and The Beatles. He made memorable music from political and social commentary, romantic longing (and, occasionally, fulfillment) and from the well-chronicled struggles with substances that periodically derailed his life.

Taken in total, Crosby’s body of work offered a lot to take in, but was always worth the effort. And from that big stash, these are 10 of the best, in alphabetical order

19 Jan 2023

NEMS, Ghostface Killah & Scram Jones “Don’t Ever Disrespect Me,” Freddie Gibbs “Rabbit Vision” & More | Daily Visuals 1.19.23

HipHopWired Featured Video
Freddie Gibbs Performs In Perth

Source: Matt Jelonek / Getty

For a minute now NEMS has been carving out quite the niche for himself in the rap game and today he welcomes a Hip-Hop legend to his Coney Island neighborhood to lay it down for the streets and remind everyone they ain’t the ones to test.

Linking up for the new visuals to “Don’t Ever Disrespect Me,” NEMS and Ghostface Killah kick it in Coney but instead of taking to the boardwalk they two men take over a bodega to cause a ruckus before hanging in front of NEMS’ FYL store. All these decades later and Ghost still got that potent work. Props.

From the East to the South, Freddie Gibbs is looking to kick off 2023 the right way and in his vintage looking clip to “Rabbit Vision” uses a collage of videos from his time on tour and in the studio to showcase how much he’s been flourishing as of late regardless of a few bumps in the road in 2022.

Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from Mario, Masego, and more.

NEMS, GHOSTFACE KILLAH & SCRAM JONES – “DON’T EVER DISRESPECT ME”



FREDDIE GIBBS – “RABBIT VISION”



MARIO – “LIKE HER TOO”



ICEWEAR VEZZO – “GET A LOT OF MONEY”



MASEGO – “YOU NEVER VISIT ME”



K CAMP – “NEW SEASON MARNI”



LOUIE RAY – “PRESSURE”



ALLBLACK & CURREN$Y – “PELICANS”



19 Jan 2023

RBD Announces 2023 Soy Rebelde Tour: ‘We’re Closing a Cycle of Our Lives That Was Spectacular’

Not many artists or bands have moved masses like RBD did back in the early 2000s when they performed sold-out shows at stadiums and arenas across the globe. Twenty years later, they’re poised to do it all over again with a newly announced world tour slated to kick off later this year, which will mark their highly-anticipated reunion since disbanding in December 2008 after their last show in Madrid.  

The Mexican pop band — comprised of Anahí, Dulce María, Christian Chavez, Maite Perroni and Christopher von Uckermann (Alfonso Herrera will not join his bandmates) — is set to visit Mexico, Brazil and the U.S. In total, the 26-date stint will tour 10 stadiums and 16 arenas. The Live Nation-produced trek will kick off in El Paso, Texas, at the Sun Bowl Stadium on Aug. 25 and will make stops in key U.S. cities such as Chicago, New York, Miami and Los Angeles.  

“It’s a new era that makes us really excited and it’s a new opportunity to share the stage once again and feel a unique energy,” Perroni tells Billboard. “There’re cycles in life and each one of us had to focus on our careers as actors and musicians and that meant we had to give those projects time, energy and a lot of dedication. It also allowed each one of us to grow professionally and personally. Now, the time [for the reunion] is perfect because we’re now more conscious, more mature, we’ll enjoy it from a different perspective now as adults.”  

The comeback tour announcement comes a month after the band’s social media accounts shared a minute-plus video, captioned “Soy Rebelde,” which combines a scene from the telenovela Rebelde and recent footage of the current five group members at an intimate dinner.

Conversations for a live, in-person tour had been happening sporadically but nothing ever came to fruition because of conflicting schedules. It wasn’t until late last year that the conversations became serious after all members attended Perroni’s wedding in October. “When I was planning the wedding, the DJ asked me which songs not to play and I strictly said, ‘No RBD songs,’” Perroni remembers. “I explained that I didn’t want my bandmates, who were my guests, to feel pressured into having to sing.”  

Then, something unexpected happened: The day of the wedding, RBD members went to ask the DJ to play “Rebelde” and “Sálvame” and they all started singing in unison. “It was an incredible moment. A few days later we started a group chat, and all agreed it was time to have that reunion tour. We planned it all in a month and a half and here we are.”  

When RBD last toured, in total it grossed $72.5 million and sold over 1.5 million tickets, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore. On the Billboard charts, RBD had a total of seven entries on the Billboard 200 chart including Rebelde, Celestial and Nuestro Amor, and eight entries on Top Latin Albums with six hitting the top 10. Over on Hot Latin Songs, the band had 10 total entries and out of those, five hit top 10. 

“20 years later, we’re closing a cycle of our lives that was so important and so spectacular. Our intention this time around is to enjoy it to the fullest, to share, thank everyone and have some sort of closure that I don’t think we had last time around. We had a goodbye tour back then, but it didn’t feel like we really said goodbye.”  

This time around, Anahí, Dulce María and Perroni will be touring as mothers. Anahí has two kids, Dulce María one and Perroni recently announced she’s expecting her first child. “I’m preparing myself physically and mentally for this new stage in my life, which will be challenging but a great opportunity as well. My friends, Dulce and Anahí, who already have experience in motherhood will be there to guide me and give me tips. It will be a very special year for all of us.”  

Tickets for RBD’s Soy Rebelde Tour are set to go on sale Jan. 27 at 10 a.m. See the tour dates and details here.

—Additional reporting by Jessica Roiz

19 Jan 2023

Lewis Capaldi Pauses U.K. Concert After Fight Breaks Out in Crowd

Lewis Capaldi had to stop midway through his show at London’s O2 arena on Wednesday night after a scuffle erupted in the audience.

The Scottish crooner was reportedly partway through his 2019 single “Hold Me While You Wait” when two attendees in the pit started fighting. “They are scrapping in the crowd there. Erm, we are going to have to get them out. We can’t be fighting,” he said, according to NME, after signaling to the band to cut the music.

“What a weird song to fight to. Bizarre, bizarre,” Capaldi added once the audience members in question had been removed from the venue. At that point, he directed the action for the evening back to the stage by starting the song — which was a top five hit on the U.K. chart from his debut album Divinely Inspired to a Hellish Extent — over from the beginning.

Capaldi’s latest single, the deceptively romantic “Pointless,” is currently reigning over the U.K. Official Singles Chart (dated Jan. 13), where it eked out a narrow victory over former No. 1 “Escapism” by Raye and 070 Shake. (A margin of just 1,200 combined sales separated the top two tracks.)

Meanwhile, the track’s 2022 predecessor, “Forget Me,” was recently nominated for song of the year at the 2023 BRIT Awards, where it will face off in a crowded race that also includes Harry Styles’ “As It Was,” Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s “Merry Christmas,” Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy” and more.

Check out fan-captured footage from Capaldi’s show below.

19 Jan 2023

David Crosby’s Death Mourned by Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, Melissa Etheridge & More: ‘He Leaves Behind a Tremendous Void’

An outpouring of love and reverence hit social media when the news broke that The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash founder David Crosby had died at age 81.

Memories poured in from Crosby’s peers, including bandmates (and sometime adversaries) Graham Nash and Stephen Stills, with whom he formed CSN in 1968.

“It is with a deep and profound sadness that I learned that my friend David Crosby has passed,” Nash wrote on Facebook. “I know people tend to focus on how volatile our relationship has been at times, but what has always mattered to David and me more than anything was the pure joy of the music we created together, the sound we discovered with one another, and the deep friendship we shared over all these many long years. David was fearless in life and in music. He leaves behind a tremendous void as far as sheer personality and talent in this world. He spoke his mind, his heart, and his passion through his beautiful music and leaves an incredible legacy. These are the things that matter most. My heart is truly with his wife, Jan, his son, Django, and all of the people he has touched in this world.”

In a statement sent to Billboard, Stills shared: “I read a quote in this morning’s paper attributed to compose Gustav Mahler that stopoed me for a moment: ‘Death has, on placid cat’s paws, entered the room.’ I shoulda known something was up. David and I butted heads a lot over time, but they were mostly glancing blows, yet still left us numb skulls. I was happy to be at peace with him. He was without question a giant of a musician, and his harmonic sensibilities were nothing short of genius. The glue that held us together as our vocals soared, like Icarus, towards the sun. I am deeply saddened at his passing and shall miss him beyond measure.”

Crosby was also remembered by Melissa Etheridge, who asked the folk-rocker to be the biological father of her children in the ’90s. “I am grieving the loss of my friend [and] Beckett and Bailey’s biological father, David,” Etheridge wrote on Instagram. “He gave me the gift of family. I will forever be grateful to him, [son] Django, and [wife] Jan. His music and legacy will inspire many generations to come. A true treasure.”

Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, Jason Isbell, Rosanne Cash, Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan, Lalah Hathaway and more famous friends and fans pay tribute to Crosby below:

19 Jan 2023

Recording Academy & CBS Plan Immersive Pop-Up Experience for Grammy Week

In the lead-up to the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, the Recording Academy and CBS present “Grammy House: Where the Stars Align,” a pop-up experience for “music makers, culture creators and rising industry leaders.” The house will be open from Wednesday, Feb. 1, to Friday, Feb. 3. Programming includes an emerging artists showcase, a producer panel and the second annual #GrammysNextGen Party.

The destination features a dedicated space, Universe of Hip-Hop, an exhibit celebrating 50 years of hip-hop music and culture through the lenses of photographers who were there, including Janette Beckman, Michael Lavine, Danny Clinch, B+ (Brian Cross), Greg Noire and Gunner Stahl.

Designed and curated by artist Cey Adams — the founding creative director of Def Jam Recordings — the space will feature iconic imagery from dozens of artists, including Run-D.M.C., five-time Grammy host LL Cool J, The Notorious B.I.G., 2Pac, Kendrick Lamar and 21 Savage.

Grammy House Programming is curated in partnership with The Revels Group and Coup D’Etat Music.

Celestial Sessions

Emerging artists showcase featuring artists Stephen Sanchez, Oxlade, JELEEL!, Jenevieve, Lakeyah and TiaCorine, with guest host, social comedy star Desi Banks.

Date: Wed, Feb. 1

Time: 6-8 p.m.

#GrammysNextGen Power Brunch

Inaugural brunch for a new class of over 25 official #GrammysNextGen ambassadors and advisors.

Date: Thurs, Feb. 2

Time: Noon-2 p.m.

Starmaker Studio

Panel featuring prolific producers in hip-hop today, including Jozzy, Tommy Parker, Tommy Brown, Ojivolta and Murda Beatz.

Date: Thurs, Feb. 2

Time: 2-4 p.m.

#GrammysNextGen Party

Second annual #GrammysNextGen Party for leading young artists, tastemakers and the next generation of music executives.

Date: Fri, Feb. 3

Time: 4-7 p.m.

All events are invitation-only.

19 Jan 2023

Snoop Dogg & Pete Davidson Hitting the Field as 2023 NFL Pro Bowl Games Captains

After joining Dr. Dre’s Super Bowl halftime show last year, Snoop Dogg is returning to the gridiron this year for the NFL Pro Bowl Games.

The “Gin and Juice” rapper was announced as a captain for this year’s NFL Pro Bowl Games alongside former quarterback Peyton Manning on Thursday (Jan. 19). The rapper will represent the AFC with retired NFL star, while Pete Davidson — also a captain this year — will join Peyton’s fellow quarterback brother Eli Manning with the NFC.

The 2023 NFL Pro Bowl Games will take place one week before Super Bowl LVII, on Feb. 5 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The games — which have run under the names National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942) or Pro Bowl (1951–2022) — is an annual event held by the NFL that features several of its star players going head to head in a series of both football and non-football tests of athleticism.

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The Feb. 5 event will feature a series of four tests: Best Catch presented by Uber Eats (in which participants will show off their best pigskin reception skills), a Gridiron Gauntlet (side-by-side relay race), Move the Chain (weighted wall pull to test strength), and Kick Tac Toe. Fans can purchase tickets to the 2023 NFL Pro Bowl Games here.

As for the 2023 Super Bowl, the game will air Sunday, Feb. 15. Rihanna is scheduled to perform at the Apple Music Halftime Show (see our dream setlist for her performance here).