News
Page: 94
Tate McRae’s third studio album, ‘So Close to What,’ just released today and the pop singer opens up about the inspiration behind her album. From her multitude of looks in the “Sports Car” music video, to her raw honesty in “Purple Lace Bra,” to a deep conversation with her dad leading to “Nostalgia,” Tate McRae […]
Billboard Canada Power Players is returning in 2025, and it’s moving to Toronto’s NXNE.
The authoritative ranking of the music business’s most powerful executives — an official extension of Billboard’s Power 100 list — expanded to Canada in 2024. The event brought a who’s-who of industry leaders to a packed celebration at Toronto’s tallest building, the CN Tower. This year, the event will grow even bigger at its new home at NXNE, the beloved music festival celebrating its 30th anniversary amidst a new strategic partnership with Billboard Canada.
Nominations officially opened this week and will close on March 7, 2025.
“We’re thrilled to bring Power Players to the country’s most vibrant music conference and festival,” says Mo Ghoneim, president of Billboard Canada. “Power Players is a crucial spotlight of the executives leading the charge in Canada on a global scale, and we can’t wait to bring it to new heights in 2025.”
Trending on Billboard
Canada is home to some of the most impactful people in music, both at home and internationally. In 2024, Billboard Canada celebrated Arthur Fogel, Live Nation’s CEO of global touring, at No. 1. The Canadian industry icon who shaped the modern global touring market attended the event and spoke about the impact Canada’s live music scene had on his career.
As Canada’s market for stadium concerts and festivals continues to expand and Canadian Content regulations continue to be debated, there are many factors and stories that could play a role in this year’s Power Players list.
Billboard Canada Power Players celebrates people across the industry, including record labels, publishing, legal, streaming and radio, creative media, and more. The extremely competitive honour reflects market share, industry impact, achievements and other metrics.
The Power Players list is peer-nominated and selected by the Billboard Canada team.
Find the submissions form here. It’s also available in French here. – Richard Trapunski
≈
Canadian Independent Music Association Pulls Out of SXSW Amidst ‘Instability’ In the United States
One of the top showcase opportunities for Canadian musicians at SXSW will not take place this year.
The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) has canceled its Canada House event at the upcoming Austin music festival amidst rising political and economic tensions between Canada and the United States.
Andrew Cash, CIMA’s president and CEO, describes the decision as a confluence of various factors, mostly related to the relationship between the two countries since Donald Trump began his second term as U.S. President.
That includes the 25% tariffs placed on goods from Canada set to kick in on March 12, which falls during the dates of this year’s SXSW (which runs from March 7-15), as well as Trump’s repeated threats to annex the country.
“The growing instability of everything in the United States right now, plus the high cost [of putting on events in the United States] and the low [Canadian] dollar — all of these things combined made it so we couldn’t feel confident or good about what we were getting ourselves into at this particular moment,” Cash tells Billboard Canada.
“The timing is not great,” he continues. “We would be going down there just after the 30-day tariff pause has expired. We’re going to have a new Prime Minister [in Canada, following the resignation of Justin Trudeau]. I just didn’t feel comfortable putting CIMA out there in that context of instability.”
For more than a decade, Canada House has been a pivotal exporting opportunity for Canadian bands and artists at the influential American music festival. Taking over the Swan Dive music venue, it offers opportunities for Canadian musicians and entrepreneurs to network and showcase at an event well-attended by members of the local and international music industry. CIMA had planned to host a one-day daytime music showcase on March 12.
CIMA made the decision to pull out of SXSW on Feb. 13, sending emails to partners and invited artists informing them that they would not be producing the event this year.
Applications opened last fall, and four Canadian and Indigenous acts had been sent offers to play CIMA’s Canada House showcase. They learned of the cancellation last week.
“We don’t know what the climate is going to be,” Cash says. “It felt potentially dissonant to be going down to Texas and hosting an event called Canada House while the President of that country is essentially stating his intent to annex our country…We made the decision based on what we could control, because there’s so much about this situation that we can’t.”
CIMA is still offering Canadian bands spots at networking events with other international music offices and export partners from Australia, England, New Zealand and other markets. And though the Canada House showcase is on pause for 2025, they could still bring it back in future years depending on the geopolitical situation.
In the meantime, Cash says CIMA will focus its resources and investments on other international markets and opportunities within Canada. This will not affect the organization’s other Canada House activations at the German festival Reeperbahn, British festival The Great Escape or SXSW Australia.
Cash says he hopes the situation in the U.S. is resolved soon, as the country is Canada’s biggest export market — not just for music but many sectors of the economy.
“I think everyone understands that we’re in unprecedented times,” says Cash. “And I think everyone is unsure exactly how to react.”
For more on the cancellation, and how it affected artists who were invited to play, head here. – Richard Trapunski
≈
Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ Hits No. 1 In Canada for The First Time After Super Bowl Performance
Kendrick Lamar‘s “Not Like Us” is the No. 1 song in Canada this week — for the first time.
The diss track never managed to claim the top spot on the charts in Drake‘s home country like it did in the U.S. last year during the height of the stars’ heated rap beef. But after a Super Bowl halftime performance that saw record viewership, Canadians have pushed the controversial single to a new peak on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 for the chart dated Feb. 22, 2025.
Going into the Super Bowl, it wasn’t clear if Lamar was even legally allowed to perform the track, as Drake is suing Universal Music Group, the label that released it. But after teasing it throughout the night, Lamar not only played the song, he included the lines that name-drop Drake and accuse him of predatory behaviour. Serena Williams, Drake’s ex, danced alongside Lamar on the field.
Following the success of “Not Like Us” last year, Lamar dropped a surprise album, GNX, which is at No. 2 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart this week. Lamar is also all over the Canadian Hot 100, with 11 of his tracks charting there.
He performed his SZA collab from that album, “Luther,” at the halftime show as well, with the R&B star joining for the duet. That track also got a post-show boost, rising 18-2 on the Canadian Hot 100, as did SZA’s 2017 album Ctrl, which re-enters the Canadian Albums chart at No. 91. SZA’s SOS, meanwhile, drops from 2-3 behind GNX.
The two will perform together on the Grand National tour this summer, which stops in Toronto on June 12 and 13. – Rosie Long Decter
Strong earnings releases from Live Nation, CTS Eventim and Cloud Music clashed with a downturn in the market this week. The most notable release of the week came from Live Nation, which reported record revenue of $23.1 billion in 2024 and forecast a healthy stadium business in 2025.
Still, Live Nation shares fell 1.9% on Friday (Feb. 21) after Thursday’s earnings release and finished the week down 2.8% to $148.48. The stock had gained 19.7% in the first seven weeks of the year, however, and expectations for a strong quarterly report and 2025 outlook were likely priced into the shares. More telling is Live Nation’s 56.8% increase over the previous 52 weeks, suggesting that investors are convinced the company has a winning combination of concerts, ticketing, and sponsorships and advertisements.
A bevy of analysts upped their Live Nation price targets following the company’s earnings release on Thursday (Feb. 20), including Evercore ISI (to $180 from $160), JP Morgan (to $170 from $150), Jefferies (to $180 from $150) and Rosenblatt (to $174 from $146). Ahead of the company’s earnings report, Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $170 from $150 and Seaport Global Securities raised Live Nation shares to $170 from $157. A dissenting voice came from CFRA, which has a “sell” rating on Live Nation shares and this week increased its price target to $135 from $115.
Trending on Billboard
The 20-company Billboard Global Music Index (BGMI) fell 2.9% to 2,674.34, marking its first decline in seven weeks and only its second weekly loss of 2025. Only six of the 20 stocks gained ground while 14 finished the week in negative territory. Even so, music stocks are performing well this year. Only four of the 20 stocks have lost value in 2025 and the BGMI has gained 25.9% year to date.
U.S. stocks cratered on Friday amidst a drop in consumer sentiment, an uptick in inflation expectations and worries the economy may be slowing. The Dow dropped 1.7%, the S&P 500 also fell 1.7% and the Nasdaq composite sank 2.2%. Summing up the market’s tenuous mood, Steve Cohen, CEO of hedge fund Point72, told the FII Priority Summit on Friday that tariffs, sharp cuts in government spending and slowing immigration will have negative consequences. “It may only last a year or so, but it’s definitely a period where I think the best gains have been had and wouldn’t surprise me to see a significant correction,” he said.
The best-performing music stock of the week was Chinese music streaming company Cloud Music, which jumped 18.1% on Friday and ended the week up 20% after the company’s 2024 earnings release on Thursday showed a 22% jump in music subscription revenue. At 170.70 HKD ($21.97), Cloud Music is up 52.1% year to date. Another Chinese music streamer, Tencent Music Entertainment, rose 5.6% to $14.40.
CTS Eventim shares rose 4.7% to 104.00 euros ($108.83) after the company announced record results for 2024 on Tuesday (Feb. 18). Consolidated revenue increased 19.1% to 2.81 billion euros ($2.94 billion) and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), a common measure of profitability, jumped 21.9% to 444.8 million euros ($465 million). Live entertainment revenue rose 17.6% to 1.97 billion euros ($2.06 billion) while ticketing revenue climbed 22.7% to 879.9 million euros ($921 million).
Spotify fell 4.8% to $607.36 while Warner Music Group dropped 2.9% to $35.26 and Universal Music Group was down 3.0% to 28.02 euros ($29.32). Sphere Entertainment Co., which will announce quarterly earnings on Feb. 28, lost 2.8% and sister company MSG Entertainment fell 5.0%.
Most K-pop stocks rose this week as South Korea’s KOSPI composite index gained 2.5%. YG Entertainment rose 12.0% to 57,900 ($40.30) following the announcement on Wednesday (Feb. 19) of BLACKPINK’s 10-city 2025 world tour that commences in July and stops in Seoul, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Toronto, Paris, London, Milan, Barcelona and Tokyo. SM Entertainment shares rose 7.8% to 99,500 KRW ($69.25), bringing its year-to-date gain to 37.1%. JYP Entertainment rose 1.6% and HYBE fell 1.0%.
Lady Gaga loves Billie Eilish as much as the “Bad Guy” singer loves her! Gaga took to TikTok this week to post a hilarious video in which she lip syncs to a sound taken from Eilish’s annual Vanity Fair interview, in which she answers the same questions a year apart. In the clip, Eilish reveals that […]
When Fher Olvera, lead singer of iconic Mexican rock band Maná, was a little kid in Guadalajara, he’d rock to the sounds of bands like The Eagles, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
“At 11 years old, I’d sit in front of those speakers and fly. It was sheer ecstasy,” he told Billboard. “Obviously, I didn’t understand English, but you kind of figured out a way to make sense of what you liked.”
Now, Olvera is in a very different position in front of those speakers, after Maná became the first ever Spanish-language rock band to be nominated for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inclusion.
“It’s a historic moment,” says Olvera. “I truly felt the spirit of the Latin American language. I say it seriously but also with humility. It’s a moment where people open their ears as we did when we were kids and listened to the Rolling Stones and the Eagles. This is an opportunity for people to learn Spanish, and an opportunity for those of us here to extend to the planet our way of feeling the world.”
Trending on Billboard
Maná , made up of Olvera, drummer Alex González, guitarist Sergio Vallín and bassist Juan Calleros–is objectively the most successful Latin rock band in the world, with eight No. 1s on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart, and the most entries on Hot Latin Songs and Latin Airplay (33 and 36, respectively) for a Latin rock group.
Now, their new historic moment goes beyond language and very much into culture and the vision of rock and roll as a universal language that transcends borders.
Should they be elected by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame membership (elections close April 21), the Mexican band would become only the fourth Latin artist (the other three are Santana, Ritchie Valens and Linda Ronstadt) to be inducted into the Rock Hall since its first edition in 1986. They are also the first Latin band, in any language, to be nominated since Los Lobos nearly 10 years ago.
The importance of the moment isn’t lost on drummer Alex Gonzalez. “Being nominated was a shock and a welcome shock to a Latin American community that sings in Spanish regardless of genres. It means eyes and ears are beginning to look in other directions,” says González.
Since they formed over 30 years ago in Guadalajara, Maná have remained faithful to a rock ‘n roll base with Caribbean influences and beats and highly melodic and narrative material that distinguish them from other bands.
“We’re a pop/rock band and our direction, attitude and the way we feel is rooted in rock ‘n roll,” says Olvera. “We’ve done ballads, songs mixed with Latin American music. In the end, it’s a versatile rock/pop band infused with different ways of understanding music.”
Although Maná is close to many rock icons, they have recorded only in Spanish, a decision that’s more artistic than commercial.
“We feel comfortable with our culture, and it feels more authentic to narrate those stories in Spanish,” says Olvera, noting that in several points in their career, they were offered major advances to record in English. “We have a global company [the group is signed to Warner] and a global manager and we never wanted to do it. It wasn’t about being more famous, but rather, about feeling good about what we were doing and being able to narrate a reality with which we authentically identify.”
Being inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, says González, would not only place them Maná next to the idols it grew up listening to, but will also serve as a nod to Latin music overall.
“All this band has done is work and work and work and make songs and music that connect with people, in Latin America, in Spain and in the U.S. which has such a big Latin community,” he says. “Maná became a band for Latins, not just for Mexicans.”
Maná’s competition to get into the Hall of Fame this year includes many of the acts González and Olvera love.
“Love Soundgarden. White Stripes. I was so surprised to see Chubby Checkers still hasn’t been inducted,” says González. “Oasis, great band. And Cindy Lauper. Who didn’t love Cindy Lauper?”
Being part of that group, he says, is a nod to a nominating committee that was willing to “look in other directions.”
“If we win? I’ll let you know how we’ll celebrate when we get the news,” says Olvera. “But, I could walk on water. It would be one of the most beautiful moments we’ve lived.”
Carín León has been making big strides with his regional Mexican music, and we’re highlighting the Latin star’s musical impact. Do you love Carín’s music? Let us know what your favorite song of his is in the comments! Tetris Kelly: Carín León has everybody talking. And as we take this month to highlight Black and […]
We finally know what led to Reason and TDE going their separate ways.
While sitting down with Bootleg Kev, the Carson, California, rapper talked about the fan reaction to his unceremonious split from Top Dog Entertainment and explained the strategy he used to get out of his deal.
“Honestly, the fans have been consistent all the way throughout,” he began about the vitriol he was experiencing. “The fans that didn’t like me before are consistent and still don’t like me. Because when you sign with TDE, there’s gonna be TDE fans that don’t f— with you, it’s just how it works. The only fans I really lost were fans that I shot myself in the foot [with], but I had to do that to get out of the label deal.”
He added that Kendrick Lamar — the flagship artist signed to TDE from 2005 to 2022 — played a role in his exit strategy. “When the Dot [Lamar] and Drake beef started, I felt like Top and them were kinda dragging their feet a little bit,” he said of label co-founder Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith. “I don’t think purposely, I think they just had a lot of sh– going on. And I knew that if I sparked a fire a little bit, that they’d be like, ‘We gotta separate from this.’ So I started tweeting sh– on the side of Drake purposely. … So there’s fans that hate me for that and rightfully so.”
Trending on Billboard
The X post in question was a positive review of the first diss record Drake dropped as the battle was kicking off.
“It was right after ‘Push Ups‘ dropped,” he said. “And I tweeted: ‘Y’all hatin’, this beat switch up is fire’ and then I let it sit for 10 minutes and deleted it. It went crazy, and I still had the ‘Reason TDE’ [in my handle], so it looked insane.”
He then talked about how deciding to drop his On the Radar freestyle over Drake‘s “8am in Charlotte” beat added fuel to the fire.
“So [On the Radar] hit me, they were like, ‘Yo, we was about to drop it but we don’t wanna damage your situation. Should we hold it?’” he recalled. “‘Run it, run it, let’s do it.’ … I just knew it was sensitive times and I knew business-wise, it would make the most sense for them to separate from me at that point. That sh– worked. A month later, I was gone.”
Reason is gearing up to drop a new project in I Love You Again on Feb. 28.
You can watch the full conversation below.
Tyga is paying tribute to his mother, Pasionaye Nguye, who died on Jan. 18 at the age of 53. The rapper revealed the tragic loss with a heartfelt Instagram post on Friday (Feb. 21).
The “Rack City” rapper was close with his mother, whom he championed as the “best and most supportive” person in his life.
“I been trying to understand and process why God takes the most meaningful and most beautifulest people away from us,” he wrote. “But I know I’ll never get an answer that will fill the emptiness in my heart. Can’t imagine life without you by my side. You were the best and most supportive person in my life, you always made things better when I felt at my lowest and worst.”
Tyga continued by writing, “I would trade anything just to be able to be with you again I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. and I can’t wait for the day until we’re together again I’ll see you soon and save me a spot right next to you in paradise.”
Trending on Billboard
He concluded: “I Love you forever mom and I’ll do my best to celebrate you with every moment that I have left. Pasionaye Nicole Nguyen 9/11/71- 1/18/25 You took one of your best angels back GOD. I hope you know that.”
The sincere post to social media included a slideshow of photos featuring Tyga with his mother throughout his life, and one that appears to show her hand in a hospital bed.
Condolences and uplifting messages poured into his comment section from the music community, including notes from 2 Chainz, Pusha T, Sabrina Claudio, Big Sean, Jhené Aiko, Fat Joe, DDG, Casey Veggies and many more.
Amid the heartbreaking loss, Tyga released his first studio album since 2019 earlier in February with NSFW. The 17-track project featured assists from Lil Wayne, Shenseea, Big Sean, Flo Milli, Lil Tjay, Ty Dolla $ign and more.
Find Tyga’s post about his late mother below.
Spring break is just around the corner — and for the first time in years, so is Spring Breakers. On Friday (Feb. 21), A24 announced that its subversive film starring Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson, Vanessa Hudgens and Rachel Korine is coming to IMAX theaters for one night only. Widely known as the project that helped […]
Almost a year later, there are still plenty of debates about the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle that shook up the rap landscape in 2024.
Adin Ross joined the Full Send Podcast earlier this week, and when the Drake-Kendrick Lamar feud was brought up, the popular streamer sided with the 6 God, as he believes the OVO boss won the battle.
Ross, who had Drake on his stream earlier this year, slammed Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show and gave Drizzy the win in their feud.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
“In my opinion, I think Drake won the rap battle because, obviously Kendrick made the hit song ‘Not Like Us,’ but it’s all lies. He said [Drake] had a daughter, which was debunked,” Ross said. “It wasn’t even real, but people don’t bring that up.”
Trending on Billboard
Ross continued to argue that “Drake put Kendrick” on in his career. “In 2011, I was 11 years old. It was called Would You Like a Tour? I believe,” he said. “It was when [Drake] first dropped Take Care, he took Kendrick, J. Cole, A$AP Rocky, The Weeknd — he took all these guys on tour. Gave them all a feature. French Montana, Meek Mill, all of them. He helped put them on and you’re doing him like this.”
The streamer thinks with Drake on top of the rap game for so long, other artists were eager to knock him off the throne.
“It’s all built up,” he added. “He’s been No. 1 for so long they just tried to knock him out. You can’t knock him out, though. He’s in Australia selling out crazy shows. … This guy just dropped an album, it’s amazing. No disrespect to Kendrick, he has classics, he has hits, [and] he is a legend, technically. But his last album before GNX, Mr. Morale, horrible. Drake revived Kendrick’s career.”
Many considered Lamar’s “Not Like Us” the kill shot in the battle against Drake, which debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 in May. Kendrick picked up another five Grammys and performed at the Super Bowl halftime show earlier this month. He’ll head out on the Grand National Tour with SZA starting in April.
As for Drake, he’s currently in Australia on the Anita Max Win Tour. He unleashed his $ome $exy $ongs 4 U joint project with PartyNextDoor on Valentine’s Day.
Watch the full interview below. Talk about Drake and Kendrick begins around the 10-minute mark.