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01 Dec 2022

A Full List of Current Las Vegas Residencies (Updating)

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Las Vegas entertainment is back in full swing, with some of today’s biggest stars — from Adele and Miranda Lambert to Katy Perry and Usher — taking the stage for their own residencies.

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However, because there are so many shows available, finding the perfect one can be a bit overwhelming. To make things easier, we’ve compiled a list of all the currently announced Las Vegas residencies, where they’ll be taking place and, of course, where to buy tickets.

See below.

December 2022:

Dec. 2 – 31: Adele at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

Dec. 2 – 10: Luke Bryan at Resorts World Theatre (Buy tickets here)

Dec. 2 – 11: Aerosmith at Park MGM (Buy tickets here or here)

Dec. 3 – 11: Miranda Lambert at Zappos Theater, Planet Hollywood (Buy tickets here or here)

Dec. 16 – 17: Ray Romano & David Spade at Terry Fator Theatre, Mirage (Buy tickets here or here)

January 2022:

Jan. 20 – 28: Adele at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

February 2022:

Feb. 3 – 25: Adele at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

March 2023:

March 3 – 25: Adele at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

March 24 – 30: Miranda Lambert at Zappos Theater, Planet Hollywood (Buy tickets here or here)

March 24 – 31: Maroon 5 at Dolby Live, Park MGM (Buy tickets here or here)

April 2023:

April 1 – 9: Miranda Lambert at Zappos Theater, Planet Hollywood (Buy tickets here or here)

April 1 – 8: Maroon 5 at Dolby Live, Park MGM (Buy tickets here or here)

May 2023:

May 18 – 28: Garth Brooks at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

June 2023:

June 1 – 23: Garth Brooks at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace (Buy tickets here or here)

July 2023:

July 28 – 29: Maroon 5 at Dolby Live, Park MGM (Buy tickets here or here)

August 2023:

August 2 – 12: Maroon 5 at Dolby Live, Park MGM (Buy tickets here or here)

01 Dec 2022

Fake Streams Aren’t Slowing Down

As streaming became the dominant mode of music consumption, fraud and “fake streams” have been regarded as a minor nuisance — generally acknowledged but seldom worried about. Most industry executives tend to see this activity as a way for aspiring acts to inflate their numbers, and thus their commercial potential, or as an avenue for grifters to steer money into their pockets by running up plays of white noise or rain sounds.  

At least since this summer, however, SoundCloud has detected evidence of fraudulent streams or manipulation on multiple releases from both notable independent acts and major-label artists, including hitmakers with track records of successful singles, according to two sources familiar with the company’s operations who spoke on the condition of anonymity. And this is not unique to SoundCloud. This summer, Deezer executive Ludovic Pouilly told the French investigative publication Les Jours that it has become more common to see “artists in the top 200 who have millions of real streams” have fake streams as well.  

Streaming services are increasing their effort to fight the fakes. In a statement, a spokesperson for SoundCloud said, “We take the issue of stream manipulation extremely seriously and make every effort towards identifying and mitigating inauthentic plays.” It’s not alone: Earlier this year, a Spotify spokesperson told Billboard, “Stream manipulation is an industry-wide issue that Spotify takes very seriously.” SoundCloud also works with a third-party company that “specialize[s] in bot detection” to fight stream manipulation, an executive said at a Music Biz panel in May. (The panel had a pointed title, “They’re Coming For Us: Fraudsters & How We Stop Them.”) 

Streaming executives say there are a handful of ways to fraudulently boost an artist’s numbers, including harnessing bot networks or fake or stolen user accounts, and that this activity is becoming “more intense,” as Pouilly put it. At Music Biz, Napster senior vp and general counsel Matthew Eccles noted that fraud on the platform “increased over COVID.” 

In fact, the current streaming business is rife with “very prevalent fraud and abuse,” according to SoundCloud vp of strategy Michael Pelczynski, who spoke at the same panel. This abuse has “cultural ramifications,” Pelczynski added: If fraudulent streams go “undetected and not policed, and [they] start influencing the way we measure the success of music, we are literally supporting inauthenticity.” 

The level of fake streams detected varies by service and region. At one point, bots on Pandora were generating “a large, large fraction of spins,” according to George White, senior vp of music licensing at SiriusXM, “nearly equaling” the amount coming from human accounts. Pouilly told Les Jours that “7% of the volume of daily streams [on Deezer] is now detected as fraudulent.”  

The Merlin Network, which handles digital licensing for many independent labels and distributors, used to send members a monthly report detailing the percentage of fraudulent streams from their releases on Spotify; this February, 2.5% of ad-supported streams and 1.2% of the plays from premium Spotify accounts were identified as fraudulent. (Asked about the issue, a spokesperson for the platform said that stream manipulation was “an industry-wide issue.”) The ad-supported number was nearly 10% at one point in 2020, according to one executive who received the report.  

As evidence of what Pelczynski dubbed “prevalent fraud” grows, music executives worry that artists who are playing by the rules will start to feel pressure to pad their numbers in order to keep up with rivals — especially in an increasingly crowded landscape where it feels harder than ever to stand out. Paying for fraudulent streams “will become a marketing expense that everyone needs to employ if it’s left unchecked,” White warned at Music Biz.  

Eccles from Napster worried that the music industry could enter a phase like professional cycling decades ago, when cyclists felt compelled “to dope” just to compete at a high level. It is “key,” Eccles stressed, “to avoid a situation where that happens in music.” 

01 Dec 2022

Miranda Lambert Extends Las Vegas Residency Through 2023

Miranda Lambert has extended her Miranda Lambert: Velvet Rodeo The Las Vegas Residency through the end of 2023, with the addition of 16 new shows that will take place in July, November and December 2023.

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The residency, held at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, highlights Lambert’s catalog of chart-topping songs as well as deep album cuts, bringing in music from her self-titled 2001 debut, through her current album Palomino, which is nominated for a Grammy for best country album (she has previously won the best country album Grammy for her projects Wildcard and Platinum).

Lambert previously told Billboard about taking inspiration from residencies from Brooks & Dunn, Shania Twain and George Strait.

“What I learned from those shows alone was that you’re in Vegas because you built a catalog, so play the songs that people know and love from you. That’s really what I’m sticking with. Sometimes on the road or with new record cycles, we get all wrapped up in our new songs, but there’s a certain amount of trust the fans put in this catalog.”

Tickets for the new slate of shows goes on sale Friday, Dec. 9 at 10 a.m. PT, while fan club members will have access to a presale beginning Monday, Dec. 5 at 10 a.m. PT.

See the additional 16 shows for the Miranda Lambert: Velvet Rodeo The Las Vegas Residency below:

July 2023: 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, 19, 21, 22

November 2023: 30

December 2023: 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 14, 16

01 Dec 2022

Elton John Wants His Foundation to ’Keep Up the Conversation’ Around HIV on World AIDS Day

After a whirlwind couple of weeks, Elton John is taking a moment to give thanks and get a conversation started.

In a new interview with E! News, the “Rocket Man” singer commemorated World AIDS Day (Dec. 1) by looking at the road ahead in HIV/AIDS research. “We need to keep up the energy, momentum and conversation around HIV so it doesn’t feel like something in the past,” he said. “At the Elton John AIDS Foundation, we’re committed to advocating with local partners and governments and big campaigns to draw attention and end AIDS by 2030.”

John founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992 as a means of funding medical research into eradicating HIV and AIDS. In the 30 years since, the organization has grown to become one of the largest independent AIDS charity organizations in the world.

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“It’s astounding to remember that the Foundation I started at my kitchen table in Atlanta 30 years ago is now an internationally recognized organization for HIV care and prevention,” Elton said. “To witness and be a part of the growth of the Foundation has been one of the greatest joys of my life.”

In honor of World AIDS Day, luxury fashion brand Saks Fifth Avenue announced their new partnership with John’s foundations. Along with producing live events and a merchandise collection for the new venture, Saks also donated $1 million to the Rocket Fund, one of the foundation’s campaigns to spread resources and awareness around the globe. “This campaign will expand and mobilize our mission for the rights and health of everyone, everywhere, and bring us closer to ending the AIDS epidemic and the stigma associated with it,” John said.

The news comes just weeks after John’s final U.S. show, which was streamed live on Disney+. During his “farewell” performance, John featured special guests like Brandi Carlile, Dua Lipa and Kiki Dee, before thanking his American fans for their constant support throughout his five-decade career. “I want to thank you because you made me,” he said. “Without America, I wouldn’t be here. So, thank you for all the years of love and generosity and loyalty.”

Check out John’s full interview with E! News here.

01 Dec 2022

Lil Nas X Trolls Elon Musk With Deepfake Video Promising a ‘Cute’ New Sheriff in Twitter Town

It’s hard to know what is going on at Twitter from minute-to-minute these days. New owner Elon Musk has been tweaking (and untweaking) so many features that even veteran users feel like they don’t know what to expect. So imagine Lil Nas X‘s surprise when he spotted a clearly deepfake video of the billionaire Chief Twit saying he’s going to hand the keys over after just one chaotic month.

“OMG is this real,” the “Industry Baby” MC wrote on Thursday night (Nov. 30) alongside a retweet of a superfan’s post of a doctored video in which Musk appears to say, “As of today at 6 EST I will be relieving myself of all duties and giving the CEO position of Twitter to Lil Nas X. Only users who agree that he’s cute, fun and petite will be allowed to keep their accounts effective immediately.”

And while the video is bunk, you might recall that back in July 2019 Lil Nas actually did become the social media company’s CEO, if only for a day when CEO Jack Dorsey handed over the title. Nas’ first order of business back then was firing Dorsey and trying to add some features that users had long demanded, such as an edit feature. It was all a goof, of course, but one that ended deliciously when the Atlanta native hit the Twitter cafeteria to serve up some paninis to the team, who presented him with a cake celebrating the Hot 100 record-setting run of his breakthrough single, “Old Town Road.”

The phony Musk video hilariously closed the loop on a joke Lil Nas made in early November shortly after the Space X/Tesla CEO took over, when he appointed himself Top Twit with a similar statement. “As of today at 5:30pm est. i will be relieving Mr. Musk of all duties and taking position as ceo of Twitter HQ,” Lil Nas tweeted in a clearly jokey post at a confusing time when some users had to say the joke out loud out of fear that they would get booted for employing parody to taunt Elon. “Only users who agree that i am cute, fun, and petite will be allowed to keep their accounts. effective immediately.”

Check out the Musk deepfake below.

01 Dec 2022

Drake’s 2022 Spotify Wrapped Top Artist Is Another Hip-Hop Star

Drake is just like music fans. After Spotify released its annual Wrapped campaign on Wednesday (Nov. 30), the Canadian MC is sharing who he’s been listening to this year.

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In an Instagram Story in the early morning hours of Dec. 1, Drake revealed that his top artist is another hip-hop star — and it was none other than the late Tupac Shakur. According to the “Jimmy Cooks” artist’s post, he listened to 2Pac for 246 minutes, putting him in the top 7 percent of Pac listeners in 2022.

That Shakur would be Drake’s most listened to artist this year isn’t a huge surprise. Drake has always sung the late artist’s praises in and out of the studio. “If there was anybody that I wish I could be a little more like, it’d probably be ‘Pac,” he said in a 2011 Boombox article.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Drake has previously sung Shakur praises in and out of the studio. “If there was anybody that I wish I could be a little more like, it’d probably be ‘Pac,” Drake told Boombox in 2011. “I think more than anything, aside from his music, which was absolutely incredible, I think he just drove people with who he was, the way he carried himself. He was somebody who was a free spirit and he did not care, he just did what he felt. I wish I could have a little more ‘Pac to my persona. I’m working on it.”

In 2017, the OVO Sound CEO referenced Pac again on the “Bring It Back” track with Trouble and Mike Will Made-It. “Do it for the six because we started there/ I got a girl that used to ride around with ‘Pac an’ them.”

Spotify’s annual Wrapped campaign, which launched in December 2016, allows the music streamer’s users to view data about their activity on the platform over the past year, and then share it on social media.

01 Dec 2022

Meet the 2023 Grammy Nominees for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical

Jack Antonoff, who won producer of the year, non-classical at the Grammy Awards in April, is back to defend his title. If he wins again at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 5, he’ll become the first person to win back-to-back awards in that category since Greg Kurstin in 2017-18.

He is competing with another past winner in the category, Dan Auerbach (who won in 2013), and three producers who are looking for their first wins in the category: Boi-1da, Dahi and D’Mile. Boi-1da has been nominated in this category before, but these are first nods in the category for Dahi and D’Mile.

Boi-1da has two nominations for album of the year (Beyoncé’s Renaissance and Kendrick Lamar’s Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers). Dahi is also nominated for album of the year for his work on Lamar’s album. D’Mile is nominated in that category for his work on the deluxe edition of Mary J. Blige’s Good Morning Gorgeous.

This is the fourth consecutive year that Antonoff has been in the running in this category. He’s the first producer or producing team to receive four consecutive nods in this category since Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis landed six straight nods (2000-05).

Thom Bell, one of the architects of the Philadelphia soul sound, was the first winner in this category, in 1975. Babyface is the only four-time winner in the category’s history. He won once with his partner L.A. Reid and three times on his own. David Foster, Quincy Jones and Pharrell Williams are three-time category champs.

Let’s take a closer look at this year’s nominees for producer of the year, non-classical.

01 Dec 2022

Harry Styles & Bad Bunny Lead the Charge: The Year in Global Charts 2022

For the second consecutive year, a British artist leads the year-end Billboard Global 200 songs chart. Dua Lipa passes the torch to Harry Styles, who leads the list with “As It Was.” A year ago, Lipa’s “Levitating” was tops. (“As It Was” also leads the 2022 year-end Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart.)

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Meanwhile, Bad Bunny finishes 2022 at No. 1 on both the Billboard Global 200 Artists and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. Artists roundup.

Explore All of Billboard’s 2022 Year-End Charts

Styles’ year-end triumph on the Billboard Global 200 is especially impressive considering “As It Was” missed the first 22 weeks of the tracking period, debuting atop the April 16-dated chart. During that span, six different songs topped the survey, including Glass Animals’ evergreen “Heat Waves,” which reigned from March 5 until April 9.

But “As It Was” arrived, fully formed, at No. 1 where it began a record-setting 15-week run on top. Further, the song spent its first 20 weeks at Nos. 1 or 2, first 24 weeks in the top three, and first 29 weeks inside the top five. Despite missing the first five months of the 2022 chart year, the track’s hyper-focus in the upper reaches of the survey during the eligibility period combined to make it the chart’s strongest song performer of the year.

“As It Was” repeats at No. 1 on the year-end ranking for Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, becoming the first song to top both lists’ year-end tallies – though the year-end rankings only began in 2021. (The Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. chart launched in September 2020, but their first year-end recaps were produced in 2021.)

Beyond Styles’ repeat at No. 1, both global year-end charts share the same top 10 songs, though in slightly different orders. Glass Animals follows at No. 2 on both charts with “Heat Wave,” while crowning the year-end Billboard Hot 100 Songs list. On all three weekly surveys, it set a record for the longest trip to No. 1.

The rest of the Billboard Global 200 top 10 includes Ed Sheeran (twice), GAYLE, and Adele, plus collaborations from Elton John and Dua Lipa, The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber, Imagine Dragons and JID, and The Weeknd and Ariana Grande. Two of those duets – “Stay” by The Kid LAROI and Bieber and “Save Your Tears” by The Weeknd and Grande — also placed in the top 10 on both year-end lists in 2021.

Bad Bunny is the No. 1 artist on both charts’ year-end recaps. Though already omnipresent on the two Global charts with material from his pair of 2020 releases, 2022’s Un Verano Sin Ti secured his No. 1 spot. All 23 songs from the album debuted on the May 21-dated rankings and logged a combined 81 weeks in the Billboard Global 200’s top 10 between then and the end of the 2022 tracking period.

Bad Bunny scores 12 songs on the year-end Billboard Global 200 chart and 10 on the corresponding Global Excl. U.S. list, taking up more than 10% of the year-end global rankings.

He is followed by Latin artists Rauw Alejandro, Karol G, Farruko and Chencho Corleone in the top 30 both of artist rankings. Elsewhere, South Korea’s BTS and BLACKPINK represent for non-English-language acts.

Billboard’s year-end music recaps represent aggregated metrics for each artist, title, label and music contributor on the weekly charts dated Nov. 20, 2021 through Nov. 12, 2022. The rankings for Luminate-based recaps reflect equivalent album units, airplay, sales or streaming during the weeks that the titles appeared on a respective chart during the tracking year. Any activity registered before or after a title’s chart run isn’t considered in these rankings. That methodology details, and the November-November time period, account for some of the difference between these lists and the calendar-year recaps that are independently compiled by Luminate.

01 Dec 2022

Katy Nichole, Kanye West & for King & Country Dominate: The Year in Christian Charts 2022

Christian music in 2022 showed off its welcoming aspect to diversity with multiple women leading the charts and offering many collaborations between Christian and gospel artists.

The Top Christian Artist of 2022 is Kanye West, who concurrently reigns as the top male artist of the year. It marks two years straight that West leads both categories. His Donda album is No. 1 on the year-end Top Christian Albums tally for a second year in a row.

The hip-hop superstar is also the Top Gospel Artist of 2022. West wins the day on the strength and longevity of his second faith-based album, Donda, which is No. 1 on the Top Gospel Albums recap for a second year running.

Billboard’s year-end music recaps represent aggregated metrics for each artist, title, label and music contributor on the weekly charts dated Nov. 20, 2021 through Nov. 12, 2022. The rankings for Luminate-based recaps reflect equivalent album units, airplay, sales or streaming during the weeks that the titles appeared on a respective chart during the tracking year. Any activity registered before or after a title’s chart run isn’t considered in these rankings. That methodology details, and the November-November time period, account for some of the difference between these lists and the calendar-year recaps that are independently compiled by Luminate.

Explore All of Billboard’s 2022 Year-End Charts

Let Us Recap: On the Billboard charts in September 2021 Donda debuted atop the all-genre Billboard 200 with 309,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. according to Luminate. It marked West’s 10th Billboard 200 leader. It simultaneously hit No. 1 on the Top Christian Albums and Top Gospel Albums charts.

Donda followed West’s first spiritual LP, 2019’s Jesus Is King, which was his ninth No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

Donda has spent all of 2022 at Nos. 1 or 2 on Top Christian Albums.

Plus, the year’s rundown of the top tracks on the streaming-, airplay and sales based Hot Christian Songs ranking includes two songs by West inside the top 5.

“Praise God,” which dominated the survey for seven weeks starting last December is at No. 2 and “Hurricane,” which ruled for 12 weeks beginning in September 2021 is the No. 4 title on the year-end list.

West was not absent from the weekly Christian charts in 2022. His featured role on DJ Khaled’s “Use This Gospel (Remix),” which also featured Eminem, arrived at the Hot Christian Songs apex in September, awarding West with his fifth leader and the first for Khaled and Eminem.

The top female Christian artist for 2022 is Katy Nichole, who records for the Franklin, Tenn.-based Centricity Music. Nichole is also Billboard’s Top New Christian artist.

The 22-year-old singer-songwriter from Mesa, Ariz. owns the No. 1 Hot Christian Songs title of the year with her launch single “In Jesus Name (God of Possible).” The song concurrently leads the Christian Airplay Songs year-end ranking. Nichole co-wrote “Name,” with Ethan Hulse, David Spencer and Jeff Pardo, the latter of whom also produced it solo.

“I’m blown away and so incredibly honored,” Nichole tells Billboard. “It is such a gift to be able to use music to bring the love of Jesus to so many. I’m beyond grateful for everything that God has done in this past year and for the impact of the songs and stories I’ve shared.”

Plus, Nichole is one of the first successful Christian artists to come from social media. She currently boasts over 450,000 TikTok followers and before she was signed to Centricity she first gained traction by posting videos on TikTok as well as Instagram.

“Name” led the weekly Hot Christian Songs chart for 20 weeks and Christian Airplay for nine frames. Her sophomore hit “God is In This Story” reigned the lists for three and two weeks respectively.

A full studio album from Nichole is expected in early 2023.

Meanwhile, for King & Country is crowned as Billboard’s top Christian duo/group of 2022. The sibling duo comprised of Luke and Joel Smallbone ranks second among all Christian acts.

“For God Is With Us,” which became the pair’s second of two No. 1s on Hot Christian Songs, is the No. 5 top song of the year. It led for one week on the Aug. 6 dated chart and for three frames on Christian Airplay beginning in July.

The pair’s first Hot Country Songs leader, “Relate” which dominated Hot Christian Songs for three weeks in February finishes as No. 11 on the year-end tally.

“Relate” also led Christian Airplay for three frames starting February 12.

In July “For God Is With Us” topped the survey for its first of three frames and gave the duo its 11th No. 1.

The act also extended its record streak to eight consecutive Christian Airplay leaders (encompassing songs in lead roles promoted as proper, non-holiday radio singles, unless seasonal songs contribute to that run).

The duo began its run of eight straight No. 1s on the Aug. 18 dated tally when “joy.” commenced a four-week domination.