Pop

03 Nov 2023

Every Time BTS Has Appeared on Late-Night Shows

BTS are no strangers to late-night talk shows, whether its putting on a jaw-dropping performance or showing off their personalities in interviews. Now, the group is joining the late-night scene one at a time, with Jung Kook set to make his solo Tonight Show debut on Monday, Nov. 6, as a guest and performer.

Jung Kook’s appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon comes just three days after the release of his debut solo studio album, Golden, which arrived first thing Friday (Nov. 3). The new record houses a pair of Billboard Hot 100 top five hits: the Latto-assisted “Seven” (No. 1) and Jack Harlow collaboration “3D” (No. 5). On Monday, Spotify confirmed that “Seven” became the fastest song to reach 1 billion streams in the platform’s history — doing so in just 108 days.

And while it’s Jung Kook’s first time on the late-night stage solo, he’s a veteran to shows like the Tonight Show, The Late Late Show With James Corden, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. Since 2017, BTS have been regulars on late-night shows, giving their fanbase, affectionately called the ARMY, plenty of content to enjoy.

To celebrate Jung Kook’s debut solo Tonight Show performance, we at Billboard have compiled every single U.S. late-show appearance from BTS and its solo members. See them below in chronological order.

03 Nov 2023

Jung Kook, The Beatles, Olivia Rodrigo & More: Which Is Your Favorite Music Release of the Week?

The first new music Friday of November sees a K-pop star stepping firmly into the spotlight, one of the biggest rock bands of all time using tech to make something old new again, and a recent Billboard chart-topper lending her chops to a blockbuster movie series, with new releases from Jung Kook, The Beatles and Olivia Rodrigo.

Jung Kook’s solo album, Golden, arrived on Friday, making him the final member of BTS to release his own LP. The project is well worth the wait, as the vocalist’s range shines through in his use of poppy hooks and infectious melodies, as seen on lead singles “Seven” and “3D,” but the deeper cuts is where Jung Kook shows his ability to create more intimate moments, like the declarations and breaths on “Closer to You” (created with Major Lazer) and the clear yearning on “Somebody.” With 1 billion Spotify streams for “Seven” already, the BTS star is firmly stepping into solo stardom outside the group.

When news of a “new” song by The Beatles surfaced — featuring all four members and being revived through use of modern technology — fans young and old were tuned in, and it’s no surprise as to why. “Now and Then” reminds listeners of the Fab Four’s innate ability to tug at one’s heartstrings through delicate guitar playing and sentimental lyricism.

Olivia Rodrigo is following in the footsteps of her musical heroes, contributing to The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes original motion picture soundtrack. “Can’t Catch Me Now” taps into the pop star’s acoustic capabilities, telling the story of the film while managing to tie a thread between the stylings of her sophomore album, GUTS.

Megan Thee Stallion and Marshmello also released new material this week, but which release was your favorite? Vote in our poll below.

03 Nov 2023

Here’s How Travis Kelce Reacted When Asked if He’s ‘In Love’ With Taylor Swift

Travis Kelce is respecting his relationship with Taylor Swift by keeping matters private.

The Kansas City Chiefs tight end was out in Germany this week and spoke to the media to preview the Chiefs’ Sunday international game against the Miami Dolphins. When he was asked for an update on his relationship with the “Blank Space” singer, Kelce replied, “The latest status is I got to see her last week. That’s the latest status right there.”

The reporter then asked if the NFL star is “in love,” to which Kelce replied, “I’m going to keep my personal relationship personal.”

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While Swift and Kelce have not publicly confirmed the official status of their budding romance, the “Anti-Hero” singer and the athlete were seen interlocking fingers once again as they left Chiefs vs. Chargers game two weeks ago. Earlier in the day, Kelce assisted the Chiefs in defeating Los Angeles 31-17 at Arrowhead Stadium, which Swift watched from a private box suite with Brittany Mahomes, wife of KC quarterback Patrick Mahomes, all while wearing a No. 87 friendship bracelet. The game marked the fourth Chiefs match attended by the 12-time Grammy winner this season.

Swift was also spotted giving Kelce a kiss on the cheek in an Instagram photo posted by wide receiver Mecole Hardman’s girlfriend Chiarah Gordon on Monday (Oct. 23), adding fuel to the fire of relationship rumors between the two superstars.

03 Nov 2023

Taylor Swift Declared Buenos Aires Guest of Honor Ahead of Eras Tour Stop

The grand welcoming of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour has gone international. The superstar is set to perform at Buenos Aires’ River Plate Stadium on November 9, 10 and 11, and the Argentinian city has joined in on the tradition of going all out for Swift’s arrival.

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The “Anti-Hero” singer was declared a guest of honor by local legislatives following an approved declaration bill filed by legislator Roy Cortina, according to Buenos Aires Herald. In his bill, Cortina cited Swift as a positive influence on the Argentine audience and noted the economic benefits of her Eras tour entering the city. With 220,000 tickets sold, the bill noted that the sold-out shows “will have an impact on jobs and tourism all over Buenos Aires City.”

Swift’s Latin American leg of her wildly popular Eras Tour kicked off back in August with four shows in Mexico City. Following her stint in Buenos Aires, Swift will head over to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Nov. 18 and 19 before wrapping up in São Paulo, Brazil, on Nov. 24, 25 and 26.

Sabrina Carpenter is the opener for the Latin American tour dates, and recently told Billboard that she was speechless after finding out that she’d be touring with Swift, “That is one of my main inspirations ever since I was a little girl, and now to just be able to watch that show every night is going to be so special,” she shared.

Carpenter continued, “It’s so funny, I’ve been growing up with her advice in her songs because it’s very much a how-to book on how to survive as a young woman, which is really special. Watching her in and of itself is how you learn. I admire her work ethic and her talent and she’s just so amazing.”

03 Nov 2023

Viola Davis Busts a Move to Beyoncé’s ‘Break My Soul’ on ‘Hunger Games’ Set in Full Costume: Watch

After attending Beyoncé’s historic Renaissance World Tour earlier this year, is it any surprise that Viola Davis was jamming along to the music icon’s Billboard 200-topping dance record while filming The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes?

In a Thursday (Nov. 2) behind-the-scenes TikTok posted to the official Lionsgate account, the Academy Award winner releases her wiggle while listening to Queen Bey’s “Break My Soul” in full costume and makeup.

As wardrobe team members are adjusting her hair and makeup, the How to Get Away With Murder Actress wiggles her shoulders in time to the pre-chorus and chorus of Beyoncé’s Grammy-winning hit, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the first of two Hot 100 top 10 hits from Renaissance. In the clip, Davis is in full glam as Dr. Volumnia Gaul, the head gamemaker of the 10th Hunger Games in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.

Davis has frequently expressed her love for Beyoncé, and at the top of this year, both entertainers made history with their respective Grammy victories. With four wins for her Renaissance album, Beyoncé officially became the most-awarded act in Grammy history. As for Davis, her best spoken word album victory helped her become just the third Black woman in history to achieve EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) status.

The new Hunger Games prequel is set to hit theaters on Nov. 17, just under two weeks before the earliest public screenings of Beyoncé’s highly anticipated Renaissance documentary concert film (Nov. 30). Just as the initial four Hunger Games filmed gifted audiences memorable musical moments such as Taylor Swit & The Civil Wars‘ “Safe & Sound” and Lorde’s “Yellow Flicker Beat,” The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes will arrive with a Rachel Zegler-led soundtrack.

Zegler’s Lucy Gray Baird is the film’s female lead, and she will sing eight songs on the soundtrack — including her haunting cover of Jennifer Lawrence’s “The Hanging Tree” — with additional contributions from Sierra Ferrell, Molly Tuttle and Olivia Rodrigo. “Can’t Catch Me Now,” Rodrigo’s new original song for the film, arrived on streaming platforms on Friday (Nov. 3).

Check out Viola Davis getting her groove on below:

03 Nov 2023

Behati Prinsloo Reveals 3rd Child With Adam Levine Is a Boy, Says Singer Was ‘So Nervous’ Cutting the Umbilical

Nearly a year after Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine and wife Behati Prinsloo welcomed their third child, the Victoria’s Secret model has finally revealed some details about the newest addition to their family. In a chat with actresses Teresa Palmer and Sarah Wright Olsen on The Mother Daze podcast, Prinsloo said that daughters Dusty Rose, 7 and Gio Grace,5, now have a little brother to play with, marking the first time the couple has revealed the sex of their newborn.

Prinsloo said the baby (whom she referred to as “he”), was born in January and arrived 10 days past her due date and that after skipping an epidural or water birth, the experience was exhausting, but also joyful. “I was in this state of bliss but also insane pain and bliss and pain and bliss, and I was fighting this… rollercoaster of feelings and pain…levels,” she said.

She also detailed how Levine, 44, who was present for the birth of the couple’s daughters, was also by her side “every step of the [way]” through their son’s birth and that he still can’t stop talking about the experience. “It was his favorite thing to watch and to be there and to help me through it … and people telling him what to do to help me too,” Prinsloo said.

Prinsloo added that she felt “so connected” to her husband of 10 years, especially when he cut their son’s umbilical cord, which was tricky because he’s left-handed. “He’s a leftie, so… the scissors, it’s always a mess,” she said of Levine’s participation, which she noted made him “so nervous.”

The couple have mostly kept baby No. 3 out of the public eye, giving a teasing glimpse of the unnamed boy in a June Instagram Story in which they posted a pic of the singer lifting their bundle of joy high in the air, with the child’s face obscured out of frame.

Listen to Prinsloo on The Mother Daze podcast here.

03 Nov 2023

Friday Music Guide: New Music From Jung Kook, The Beatles, Olivia Rodrigo and More

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

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This week, Jung Kook makes an extended statement, The Beatles give one last farewell, and Olivia Rodrigo remains impossible to pin down. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Jung Kook, Golden 



Jung Kook has spent his entire career on an upward trajectory — first within BTS, scoring global hits and conquering stadiums, and more recently as a solo artist, notching billions of streams (literally) with a sleek brand of pop and smart collaborations. Golden, his debut solo album, takes some time to reflect on those dizzying highs, but also wants to keep the good times rolling: “Closer to You” (created with Major Lazer) allows Jung Kook to hop between forceful declarations and intimate breaths, while songs like the yearning dance track “Somebody” and the opulent surefire hit “Standing Next to You” demonstrate why Jung Kook deserves to be considered a superstar on his own.

The Beatles, “Now and Then”



Positioning a piece of music as “the final Beatles song” naturally provides it with weighty expectations that are impossible to match — so consider “Now and Then,” a demo recorded in the ‘70s that was revived with modern technology and features all four members, a surprise treat hiding in their hallowed discography instead. Along with a new music video directed by Peter Jackson, the wistful, understated “Now and Then” serves as a subtle reminder of the band’s continued power, now more than a half-century removed from their original studio album.

Olivia Rodrigo, “Can’t Catch Me Now” 



Although some of the lyrics to Olivia Rodrigo’s new single “Can’t Catch Me Now,” which comes from the soundtrack to The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, seem to document an action sequence from the upcoming prequel film (“But I’m in the trees, I’m in the breeze / My footsteps on the ground,” Rodrigo sings), the pop superstar provides a gentle touch to the lilting acoustic track reminiscent of the softer moments from recent sophomore album GUTS. Instead of aiming at flash for the end credits, Rodrigo has unveiled a heartfelt new edition to both the Hunger Games musical canon and her own catalog.

Megan Thee Stallion, “Cobra” 



Megan Thee Stallion’s “Cobra” opens with a two-note electric guitar chug that serves as a snarl — and while Meg has flaunted plenty of braggadocio over the course of her career, her new single warns against getting too close because of how wounded she’s feeling. “Ayy, damn, I got problems / Never thought a bitch like me would ever hit rock bottom,” she spits, locating an impressive balance between emotional vulnerability and head-knocking hooks on “Cobra.”

Marshmello, Sugar Papi 



Marshmello has founded a sprawling, globe-trotting career on deferential collaboration, bending his aesthetic towards various artists in the worlds of pop, rock, R&B, country and everything in between. Sugar Papi, a full-length journey into Latin music, unsurprisingly features a star-studded guest list that includes Young Miko, Nicky Jam, Farruko, Anuel AA, Manuel Turizo and Fuerza Regida, among many others — yet the project sounds authentic and hard-earned, with Marshmello augmenting his featured artists without ever overpowering them, a skill that he’s developed throughout his run.

Editor’s Pick: Spiritual Cramp, Spiritual Cramp



The members of San Francisco punk group Spiritual Cramp have been kicking around for years, both releasing EPs together and operating separately in other projects — but their self-titled debut carries the kinetic energy of a brash young band barging onto the rock scene with intentions of shaking things up. The hooks here are stylish and relentless, each sugary melody cloaking the band’s anger at the state of the world; like plenty of great punk groups, Spiritual Cramp want you to hum along and question authority in equal measure.

03 Nov 2023

Beatles Digitally Reunited in Wistful ‘Now And Then’ Video Directed by Peter Jackson

With a full day to absorb the melancholy strains of the final Beatles song, “Now and Then,” fans had ample time to prepare for the accompanying video directed by Oscar-winner Peter Jackson.

So when the official high-tech sentimental journey dropped on Friday morning (Nov. 3), you could almost hear the nostalgic global sigh at Jackson’s contribution to the final chapter in rock’s most epic tale. The four-and-a-half minute video opens with some guitar tuning and footage of a cassette being pushed into a tape machine as drummer Ringo Starr takes his place behind the kit and bassist/singer Paul McCartney readies his pick.

Once an unseen hand presses play, viewers are magically transported back to the final Beatles recording session in 1995, where McCartney, Starr and guitarist/singer George Harrison began the process of rediscovering a decades-old song demo’d by late bandmate John Lennon. As Lennon’s keening vocals rise up, Jackson juxtaposes a profile shot of Lennon staring out at the sunset with a floating image of the young Beatles goofing around in their prime.

In a release describing the video prior to release, Jackson promised that it would take fans on a “poignant and humorous” journey that invited viewers to celebrate the band’s timeless and enduring love for one another.

Conjuring an image Beatles fans could only dream of, Jackson does that that by sliding a shot of a current-day McCartney in the studio laying down his backing vocals into frame, as he appears to stare across the universe at the ghostly Lennon shadow. The video then cycles through a series of then-and-now pictures and videos of the band in their salad days and a sure-to-be-talked-about sequence in which archival shots of Lennon and Harrison are spliced in aside present-day McCartney and Starr in a recording session.

“Now and Then” is the final song written by Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr, and it was finished by living members McCartney and Starr more than 40 years after the group began work on it.

A master of studio tech, the Lord of the Rings director aims to recapture the energy, love and spirit of the group by placing a young Macca next to the now-octogenarian rock icon watching a string section lay down their parts, as a young Harrison goofs around over his left shoulder. Starr plays drums alongside his youthful self and a number of shots find Lennon doing silly dances in a variety of scenarios amid a cascade of previously unseen photos and videos of the band members as children and at the peak of their global pop powers.

In his statement before the video’s release, Jackson described worrying that there was no footage of Lennon’s original late 1970’s home recording of the song’s demon with just voice and piano (and a TV blaring the the background) and none of living members finishing the song last year. Jackson said he was ready to walk away before McCartney and Starr sent him footage of their sessions, with the Beatles’ Apple Corps then stepping in to provide more than 14 hours of long-forgotten film shot during a 1995 session featuring the pair, and late guitarist/singer Harrison in the studio working on the song; Lennon was killed by a deranged fan in 1980 outside his New York apartment building — where the song was demo’d — and Harrison died in 2001.

Jackson also got help from Lennon’s son, singer Sean Ono Lennon, and Harrison’s widow, Olivia, and son, Dhani, who found some unseen home video to add to the project. The band’s original drummer, Pete Best, also offered up some of the earliest film of the band performing in their leather suits that had never been seen before.

With that footage in hand, Jackson — who was also behind the acclaimed 2021 The Beatles: Get Back miniseries — set out to make a project that would “bring a few tears to the eye. The video is complimented by a 12-minute Now and Then — The Last Beatles Song documentary written by Oliver Murray that dropped on Wednesday.

Watch Jackson’s “Now and Then” video below.

03 Nov 2023

Mariah Carey Pulls Midnight Santa Prank On Jimmy Kimmel, Talks ‘Super Sweet’ Mention in Britney Spears Memoir

Mariah Carey is the Queen of Christmas… pranks. The singer has now officially joined the list of A-list singers (Rihanna, Britney Spears, Dua Lipa) who’ve participated in the time-honored tradition of scaring the bejeezus out of Jimmy Kimmel in the middle of the night for our amusement.

On Thursday night’s (Nov. 2) Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Carey and her Christmas minions — including accomplices dressed as elves and Santa — snuck into Kimmel’s house in the middle of the night and gently roused the late night host. “Jimmy, I didn’t mean to wake you up, but it’s time!” Carey whispered sweetly as a confused Kimmel was woken from a deep sleep.

“What time is it?” he gurgled. “Hit it!” Carey replied as her holiday staple “All I Want For Christmas Is You” blasted out and the tinsel intruders began throwing fake snow and ringing sleigh bells as lights flashed and Kimmel’s wife Molly danced in glee at her husband’s annoyance. The bit ended with a barefoot Kimmel — wearing Molly’s robe and still rocking his mouth guard — accepted a piece of Carey’s new “It’s Time!” Christmas merch before groggily going off to bed, again.

Carey was in the studio for some couch time as well, laughing about her love of prank calls as a child and revealing that the police got involved one time after the then-11-year-old MC relentlessly called a girl who bullied her as a child. They also, of course, talked about how “All I Want” has become a perennial holiday No. 1, a development that Carey said is “bananas” because it was the first-ever Christmas song she ever wrote.

“I just wanted it to sound like a classic because that’s the kind of Christmas song I want… I just wanted it to be timeless,” she said. The singer said she “hopes” her 12-year-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan, like her signature song, but either way the kids will be along for the sleigh ride when Carey embarks on her 13-date Merry Christmas One and All! tour, which begins on Nov. 15 in Highland, CA.

“I’m putting them on my tour, which is coming up soon,” she said. “They’re gonna do various moments of music-making and merriment.” She also pushed back on Kimmel’s questions about whether it really is “time” to start thinking about the holidays when we still have Thanksgiving to get through, a push-back against the Christmas creep that Carey helped pioneer with her “It’s Time!” stunts.

“It’s the season, darling,” she assured Kimmel, but adding, “We have to have Thanksgiving. It’s the holidays, is it not?” Frankly, MC said, she doesn’t disagree with Jimmy that Thanksgiving has become a bit of a “speed bump” on the way to Santa season. “But I had to just go with the flow because everybody was rushing the holiday season and they started playing my song, so I kept being like, ‘not yet, don’t play it yet, why are we playing Christmas songs?’”

So, what was a joke at first became a lean-in with her funny “it’s time” videos over the past two seasons.

The singer also talked about making a cameo in Britney Spears’ best-selling tell-all memoir, The Woman in Me. “I heard something about it,” she said of her mentions in the book, as Kimmel noted that Britney said she loves Mariah, with Carey saying she loves her right back. He then read an excerpt in which Britney wrote about being at an awards show and knocking on Mariah’s dressing room door and being confronted with a “beautiful, otherworldly light,” 20 years before ring lights were a thing.

“Of course I had a ring light [in 2003],” the always perfectly-lit singer said. “By the way, that was super sweet what Britney said about me.”

Watch Carey on Kimmel below.



02 Nov 2023

Watch Reneé Rapp Duet With Kesha to ‘Your Love Is My Drug’ at Energetic Brooklyn Show

It’s been a busy week in New York for Reneé Rapp. Between singing “For Good” for the 20th anniversary of Wicked with fellow singer-songwriter Lizzy McAlpine on Monday (Oct. 30), or serenading Lola Tung with “One Less Lonely Girl” while dressed as Justin Bieber on Tuesday (Oct. 31), the rising star has made the most of her time in the Big Apple.

But during her sold-out performance at the Avant Gardner in Brooklyn on Thursday night (Nov. 2), Rapp brought out her biggest guest yet — pop superstar Kesha. The pair performed a vamped-up, rocked-out version the latter’s 2010 hit “Your Love Is My Drug.”

A little more than halfway through her headlining set, Rapp spoke to her rapt audience about the influential artists who inspired her throughout her life. “I want to talk about the people who, musically, personally, and professionally, I look up to and regard so highly,” she said. “They shaped who I was as a kid, and made me want to be sexy, and funny, and exciting, and outrageous, and loud and, most of all, really f–king sexy. So what better way to honor one of those women, [than] by doing one of their songs?”

Rapp proceeded to perform a sped-up rock version of the pop single, much to the crowd’s delight. But as she reached the song’s second verse, she called Kesha out onto the stage — dressed in all black with a pair of tinted sunglasses and a leather jacket, Kesha acoompanied a visibly stunned Rapp onstage for a rousing performance of the song. “I f–king love you, Reneé,” Kesha declared as they reached the song’s bridge.

Once the song was over, Rapp couldn’t contain her excitement any longer. “Getting to sing with one of your idols, who is unapologetically perfect is so insane,” Rapp said giddily to the crowd. “We just sang a song, like, ‘lovesick crackhead,’ and I’m gonna cry. Oh f–k that was so cool!”

Check out two clips of Reneé Rapp and Kesha duetting to “Your Love Is My Drug” below: