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Taylor Swift will stare directly at the sun, but never in the mirror — so let’s just hope she uses protective glasses. The “Anti-Hero” singer aptly shared a what appears to be an eclipse-themed lyric from her upcoming new album The Tortured Poets Department on Monday (April 8), the same day the moon fully obscured […]
Looking for some motivation to help power you through the start of another work week? We feel you, and with some stellar new pop tunes, we’ve got you covered. These tracks from artists including Conan Gray, Glass Animals, Chappell Roan and more will get you energized to take on the week. Pop any of these gems […]
Azealia Banks is never one to mince words, and she’s revived a decade-old feud with Lily Allen as she came to Beyoncé’s defense.
The “212” rapper took to her Instagram Stories over the weekend to call out the British pop star for her criticism of Bey’s Cowboy Carter album, and she recalled a play-by-play of an alleged phone call between herself and Allen that took place a “few years ago.”
“Okay @lilyallen you’re going to stop right there and sit this one out,” Banks wrote over an accompanying Billboard story regarding Allen framing Bey’s country pivot as “quite calculated.” Banks also brought up an alleged phone conversation between the two.
“Shall we discuss that phone call to me – a few years ago – obviously off your face – crying and sobbing asking me to forgive you for randomly being racist?” she wrote in part.
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Billboard has reached out to Allen for comment.
Allen name-dropped Banks on the April 4 episode of her Miss Me? podcast while dissecting Beyoncé’s Dolla Parton “Jolene” cover.
“I read a comment from Azealia Banks where she was like, ‘Stop talking about Jay-Z as if anyone wants to f–k him,” Allen said, laughing. “Literally, no one’s even looked at him for about 10 years, relax.”
Co-host Miquita Oliver then asked Allen if she found the Brooklyn rap mogul attractive, and she replied, “I mean, I’m attracted to power, so yes? But maybe not physically,” said the singer, who is married to Stranger Things star David Harbour. “I don’t want my current husband to get upset, but it’s not really the physical I go for.”
Allen continued to dig into Beyoncé’s decision to explore a country album with Cowboy Carter.
“It’s very weird that you’d cover the most successful songs in that genre,” Allen mused. “I just feel like it’s quite an interesting thing to do when you’re like trying to tackle a new genre and you just choose the biggest song in that genre to cover. I mean, you do you, Beyoncé, and she literally is doing her. Or is she doing Dolly?”
Allen continued: “The front cover is her in a cowboy hat, riding on a horse. She was wearing a blonde wig and a cowboy hat [at the Grammys]. It’s a bit about challenging these institutions that have thus far rejected Beyoncé as the icon and institution she is herself.”
Azealia Banks’ and Lily Allen’s history runs deep, as they previously feuded in 2013 while engaging in a Twitter beef that ended with Banks dissing Allen’s ex-husband Sam Cooper and saying he looked like a “thumb.”
Regardless of any critique, Beyoncé galloped to the No. 1 album in the country — her eighth in her discography — with Cowboy Carter topping the Billboard 200 with 407,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending April 4, according to Luminate.
Billie Eilish‘s fans are happier than ever after the 22-year-old pop star announced Monday (April 8) that her third album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, will arrive later this spring. The singer shared the news on Instagram alongside the project’s cover art, a portrait of her sinking underwater, seemingly seconds after being dropped from the […]
Ariana Grande has confirmed that fans can expect sunny skies for the indefinite future. Exactly one month after dropping her seventh studio album Eternal Sunshine, the 30-year-old pop star shared a behind-the-scenes video of her in the studio and revealed that she’s definitely not done promoting the project — in fact, she’s only just getting […]
Billie Eilish is getting ready to make a splash with her third studio album, which the 22-year-old pop star finally announced is coming this spring in a post on social media Monday (April 8).
Sharing the cover art — which finds the singer sinking underwater, seemingly seconds after being dropped from the other side of a door that’s visible at the top of the frame — Eilish confirmed that the album, titled Hit Me Hard and Soft, arrives May 17.
“MY THIRD ALBUMMMMMMMMMMMMM COMES OUT MAY 17THHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH AHHHHHHHHHH🥹🥹🥹,” she excitedly captioned the post. “so crazy to be writing this right now i’m nervyyyyy & exciteddd 🫣”
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The nine-time Grammy winner also confirmed that, just like her first two albums, 2019’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? and 2021’s Happier Than Ever, her brother Finneas produced the new LP. She also warned fans that she won’t be releasing any singles ahead of the project’s release, noting, “i wanna give it to you all at once.”
“finneas and i truly could not be more proud of this album and we absolutely can’t wait for you to hear it,” she added. “love you love you love you.”
The announcement comes hours after Eilish shared an eerie video teasing the album, in which she descends deeper and deeper into an abyss of dark blue waves, her hands reaching in vain toward the surface. Just as it seemed that she was about to sink into oblivion, another hand came into the frame and grabs her arm.
Meanwhile, a piece of music with a video game-like beat – over which Eilish gently riffed – played.
“READY?” the “What Was I Made For?” artist captioned the video.
A few hours before she posted the teaser, Eilish had written on Instagram Stories, “I’M TELLING YOU SOMETHING TOMORROW.”
Leading up to her big announcement, the Oscar winner teased her next era via mysterious billboards in Los Angeles and New York City, advertising what appeared to be new lyrics. One of them read, “She’s the headlights I’m the deer,” while others displayed the messages, “I try to live in black and white” and “Did I cross the line?”
Eilish also recently added all 100-million-plus of her Instagram followers to her “Close Friends” Story, a move that earned her 7 million new followers in just two days. There, she’s been posting blue-hued artwork and cryptic messages alluding to a pending announcement.
Watch Eilish’s announcement and teaser video below.
Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter gallops in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated April 13), debuting with 407,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending April 4, according to Luminate. It’s the superstar’s eighth No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200.
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With 407,000 units earned, Cowboy Carter claims the biggest week of 2024 and the largest since Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) bowed with 1.653 million units on the Nov. 11, 2023-dated list. Cowboy Carter’s launch is also Beyoncé’s biggest week, by units, since her Lemonade album debuted at No. 1 with 653,000 units (mostly from traditional album sales) on the May 14, 2016, chart. The new effort also lands Beyoncé her biggest streaming week ever.
Cowboy Carter also launches at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums, Americana/Folk Albums and Top Album Sales charts. She’s the first Black woman ever to have led the Top Country Albums list, dating to its January 1964 inception. Cowboy Carter also claims the biggest week for a country album, by units earned, since last July, when Taylor Swift’s Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), opened at No. 1 on the July 22, 2023 chart with 716,000 units.
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Cowboy Carter was introduced by the singles “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” which were released during the Super Bowl festivities on Feb. 11. The tracks debuted and have peaked (through the charts dated April 6) at Nos. 1 and 9, respectively, on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, marking Beyoncé’s first entries on the tally. They have also reached Nos. 1, for two weeks, and 38 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 songs chart.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new April 13, 2024-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on April 9. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Of Cowboy Carter’s first-week unit sum of 407,000, SEA units comprise 232,000 (equaling 300.41 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs), traditional album sales comprise 168,000 and TEA units comprise 7,000. With 300.41 million on-demand official streams, Cowboy Carter earns Beyoncé her biggest streaming week ever and the fourth-largest for a country album.
Cowboy Carter marks Beyoncé’s eighth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. She previously led the list with Renaissance (in 2022), Lemonade (2016), her self-titled album (2013), 4 (2011), I Am… Sasha Fierce (2008), B’Day (2006) and Dangerously In Love (2003). Beyoncé breaks out of a tie with Janet Jackson for the fourth-most No. 1s among women. Swift has the most, with 13, followed by Barbra Streisand (11), Madonna (nine), Beyoncé (eight) and Jackson (seven).
Cowboy Carter’s sales were supported by the album’s availability across a number of configurations, released on March 29. It was issued as standard 19-track edition on vinyl (across four variants, each pressed on different color vinyl [black, red, white and blue] with alternate back cover artwork), a CD with an additional song (“Flamenco”) and a digital download and streaming edition (both in clean and explicit versions, with three bonus songs “Flamenco,” “Spaghetti” and “Ya Ya,” plus two interludes). The CD edition was issued in four variants (each with different back cover art). Two of the variants were sold as stand-alone items, while two of the CDs were only available inside two deluxe boxed sets (each with a different branded T-shirt contained inside a branded box). All physical configurations of the album were sold exclusively through Beyoncé’s official webstore, while the digital download and streaming editions were widely available.
The vinyl edition of Cowboy Carter sold 62,000 copies (across its four variants combined), marking Beyoncé’s biggest week on vinyl and the largest week for any vinyl album in 2024.
Cowboy Carter boasts an eclectic lineup of billed guest artists, including Tanner Adell, Beyoncé’s daughter Rumi Carter, Miley Cyrus, Willie Jones, Tiera Kennedy, Linda Martell, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Post Malone, Reyna Roberts, Shaboozey, and Brittney Spencer. Among the many additional players on the album: 070 Shake, Jon Batiste, Ryan Beatty, Gary Clark Jr., The-Dream, Rhiannon Giddens, Paul McCartney, Pharrell, Robert Randolph, Nile Rodgers, Raphael Saadiq, Sara Watkins and Stevie Wonder.
Future and Metro Boomin’s We Don’t Trust You falls to No. 2 on the latest Billboard 200 after debuting atop the list a week ago. The set earned 131,000 equivalent album units in its second week (down 48%). Morgan Wallen’s former leader One Thing at a Time rises 4-3 with 69,000 (up 2%) and Ariana Grande’s chart-topping Eternal Sunshine dips 3-4 with 58,000 (down 19%).
J-Hope’s Hope On the Street, Vol. 1 debuts at No. 5 with 50,000 equivalent album units earned. It’s J-Hope’s second top 10-charting effort, and highest-charting set, following Jack In the Box, which peaked at No. 6 on the Sept. 2, 2023-dated list. Of Hope On the Street’s 50,000 units earned, album sales comprise 44,000, SEA units comprise 4,000 (equaling 5.7 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise 2,000. The album’s sales were supported by eight collectible CD editions (including exclusive variants for Target, Walmart and the Weverse store), all containing branded paper merchandise.
Olivia Rodrigo’s former No. 1 Guts falls 2-6 on the new Billboard 200, with 49,000 equivalent album units earned (down 32%), Noah Kahan’s Stick Season descends 5-7 with 44,000 units (down 2%) and Taylor Swift’s chart-topping Lover falls 7-8 with 40,000 units (down 1%). Rounding out the top 10 are two former leaders: SZA’s SOS (6-9 with 39,000; down 3%) and Zach Bryan’s self-titled album (8-10 with nearly 39,000; down 1%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
RAYE made her Saturday Night Live debut, performing songs from her Brith Award-winning debut album. During the Kristen Wiig-hosted episode on April 6, the London-born singer-songwriter passionately delivered “Escapism” and “Worth It,” which appear on her 2023 studio release, My 21st Century Blues. RAYE opened her SNL musical guest debut with a stirring performance of […]
Taylor Swift is counting down the days until the release of her new album. On Saturday (April 6), the 34-year-old pop superstar used her lucky number to remind Swifties that there are only 13 days left until the arrival of her highly anticipated album, The Tortured Poets Department. The “Cruel Summer” singer took to her […]
Kelly Clarkson paid homage to a classic during The Kelly Clarkson Show.
For the episode’s Kellyoke segment on Friday (April 5), the 41-year-old pop star and TV personality performed an awe-inspiring rendition of Judy Garland‘s “Over the Rainbow.”
Donning a long-sleeved black dress, Clarkson captivated her audience with a passionate delivery of The Wizard of the Oz ballad, originally performed by Garland in the 1939 film.
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“Away above the chimney tops/ That’s where you’ll find me,” the Grammy winner belted out while backed on guitar by Jaco Caraco.
The beautiful performance ended with a flash of rainbow-colored lights in the background as the crowd cheered approvingly.
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“Please put this on the next Kellyoke album so I can dance to it at my wedding,” one fan wrote in the comments section on YouTube.
Another added, “HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!!! Ok, Judy Garland is the Standard and no one will ever beat her, but (for me) this is the BEST VERSION of the many, many, many, many, many covers we all have heard!!! OF COURSE IT HAD TO BE KC!!!!”
“I think Judy would be proud of this. Knowing her legacy still lives on in this rendition made me smile,” a third user wrote.
“Over the Rainbow” holds special meaning for Clarkson. During an appearance on Today in 2017, she revealed that she often sings the 20th-century standard to her children, River Rose, 9, and Remington “Remy” Alexander, 7. The singer shares the kids with her ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock.
“She’ll always cut me off and go, ‘Birds, mommy, birds.’ She always wants me to get to the bird part,” Clarkson said during the interview.
Watch Clarkson cover “Over the Rainbow” below.
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