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When Maren Morris sang that “the more that you come closer, want you to push me over,” she really wasn’t kidding.
In a new video interview with Cosmopolitan, in which Morris has to decide whether to answer a question or take a shot of alcohol, Morris revealed which celebrity she would like to “push over” (aka hook up with). After taking a moment to think about it and saying that she didn’t want to “put her on the spot,” the singer revealed her celebrity crush.
“Phoebe Bridgers,” she said, bashfully. “I feel like most people would say that. So, that’s not even controversial. She’s just beloved and very hot and amazingly talented. Also, we’ve only met once. So sorry, Phoebe.”
The reference to being pushed over comes from Morris’ bisexual anthem “Push Me Over,” which she recently told Billboard was inspired by figuring out the dynamics of queer dating. “I remember I had been on a date with this girl, and the date went amazing, but I had so many questions for [co-writers] MUNA the next day,” she said. “I truly felt like a student and I was with, like, the Professors of Gay.”
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Elsewhere in the clip, Morris revealed that as she’s gotten back into the dating scene, she had one encounter with an unnamed celebrity on Raya that did not go particularly well.
“I don’t want to name the person because, they weren’t an a–hole, but they were like, really love-bomby,” she said. “I went on two dates with them, and it was just not fun. I [felt] like I’m talking to, like, my mother or something, like, ‘Why don’t you text me back?’ I was like, ‘Because I’ve been on two dates with you, and I’m on tour. I’m working.’”
Check out Morris’ full interview above.
Maren Morris won’t be taking back her viral comments about Brittany Aldean any time soon. In a new interview on Cosmopolitan‘s series Cheap Shots, the singer-songwriter doubled down on her choice to dub the former NBA dancer “Insurrection Barbie” in a social media dispute over trans rights and gender-affirming healthcare in 2022 — even though the opposing party recently called Morris out for coming after her.
During the game-style interview, Morris had to avoid taking shots of cheap liquor by honestly answering questions, one of which inquired whether she regrets any of her past posts. “I don’t really have any tweets that I’ve regretted,” she said. “I will say I didn’t think my ‘Insurrection Barbie’ tweet to a certain someone would have picked up so much momentum, but I stand by it.”
By “a certain someone,” the “The Middle” singer means Brittany, who is married to country star Jason Aldean. Two years ago, the lifestyle influencer thanked her parents on Instagram for letting her enjoy her “tomboy” phase without “changing [her] gender,” after which she proceeded to spread misinformation about what she called “the genital mutilation of children” in reference to gender-affirming healthcare. Meanwhile, Morris tweeted in response to her claims, saying, “It’s so easy to, like, not be a scumbag human? Sell your clip-ins and zip it, Insurrection Barbie.”
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For the record, experts — some of whom spoke on the matter with Billboard at the time — agree that parents having the sex of their underage children changed through reassignment surgery is exceedingly rare. Most kids who receive gender-affirming care are treated with impermanent courses of action such as speech therapy, puberty blockers or hormone treatments.
Even so, Brittany recently doubled down on her stance during a July episode of the Try That in a Small Town podcast with her husband. She also slammed Morris, saying, “She’s got a group of friends here in Nashville that, they just have it out for me for whatever reason … to be so pro-woman and all the bulls–t … you’re not, because I’ve never said a word to you and you come for me.”
“She started to make fun of my business, which at the time was hair extensions,” Brittany continued at the time. “But to me it’s, like, once again, going back to the feminist movement. Aren’t you supposed to be all peace, love and all inclusivity and all the things? Why are you coming for me like that about my business?”
Watch Morris on Cheap Shots below.
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Since releasing her hit album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess back in September, Chappell Roan has seen a lot of rise and almost no fall. Now, she’s ready to talk about everything that comes with that.
For Interview Magazine‘s new cover story, Roan sat down with Saturday Night Live star Bowen Yang to get real about her rapid ascent in the modern pop space — one that has seen seven of her songs chart on the Billboard Hot 100 while her album recently hit No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
While Roan maintains that she’s glad to see people finally recognizing the hard work she puts in, she can’t help but feel confounded by what’s happened. “This is really weird and really hard,” she explained to Yang. “In the past, honestly, eight weeks, my entire life has changed.”
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With the charts reflecting a lot of Roan’s success, the singer took a moment during the interview to explain her complicated feelings about how that chart success has translated into her career. “I’ve never given a f–k about the charts or being on the radio, but it’s so crazy how industry people are taking me more seriously than before. I’m like, ‘I’ve been doing this the whole time, b—h,’” she said. “My career doesn’t mean anything more now that I have a charting album and song. If anything, I’m just like, ‘F–k you guys for not seeing what actually matters.’ A chart is so fleeting. Everyone leaves the charts.”
Part of what’s made the transition so difficult, she explained, has been watching the conversation around her music become “automatically political because I’m gay.” Looking back at her Governors Ball performance — where Roan spoke out about trans rights and why she declined an invitation from the White House to perform during Pride — Roan said she was inherently nervous to speak so openly about queer issues.
“Gov Ball was really hard. It was hard to be like, ‘I’m going to say something that a lot of my family is going to be like, ‘Wow, you crossed the line,’” she explained. “It’s emotional because I believe what I said, and what’s sad is that me believing in who I am, and what I stand for, rubs against a lot of my home.”
But Roan also knows that reaching the level of success she has means she now has a significant amount of creative control over the work she does. “I’m just very lucky that I have the leverage to say no and yes,” she told Yang. “I mean, it’s awesome knowing that I have a job … I’ve never been guaranteed money before. That’s the difference. I’ve always been a writer, but I didn’t start making money to pay my rent until last year.”
That leverage means that Roan gets to have a significant hand in how she decides to release her music. With fans wondering when she’ll release new songs — such as her unreleased track “Subway” that she debuted live at Gov Ball — Roan says she knows what release strategy will work best for her career.
“My career has worked because I’ve done it my way, and I’ve not compromised morals and time,” she said. “I have not succumbed to the pressure. Like, ‘B—h! I’m not doing a brand deal if it doesn’t feel right. I don’t care how much you’re paying me.’ That’s why I can sleep at night.”
In need of some new songs from your favorite queer artists? You’re in luck — Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.
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From Tinashe’s brash new album to Halsey’s rock-tinged new track, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:
Tinashe, Quantum Baby
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For the last few months, Tinashe has been loudly asking if somebody would please match her freak. Now, the pop star is ready to match her own freak with her brand new album Quantum Baby. Throughout her brief, 8-song album that serves as a follow-up to the viral success of lead single “Nasty,” Tinashe flexes her artistic dexterity, flowing effortlessly between moving R&B ballads (like on early album standout “Red Flags”) or gassed-up anthems (the ebullient “No Broke Boys” in particular). Don’t let the scientific title fool you — there’s nothing small about Quantum Baby.
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Halsey, “Lonely Is the Muse”
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For fans who were hoping to hear more of Halsey’s If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power rock sound, “Lonely Is the Muse” is for you. On this heartbreaking new goth rock track, Halsey rages against the cycle of inspiration-becomes-commodity that she’s experienced throughout her career, wondering at what point in this process she’s meant to find meaning or joy. Her accolades, myriad though they may be, don’t make up for the empty feeling she finds herself translating to this punchy rock song, as she boldly declares that she’s tired of being “reduced to just a body here in someone else’s bed.”
The Blessed Madonna feat. Kylie Minogue, “Edge of Saturday Night”
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Why let a good party end when you could just keep it going? That’s the vibe that suffuses The Blessed Madonna’s delectable new dance cut “Edge of Saturday Night,” featuring guest vocals from none other than pop superstar Kylie Minogue. Over a set of Madonna’s crunchy house pianos and a blistering beat, Minogue narrates the story of a party gone right, as the pair dive deeper into the evening with this excellent new single.
Pale Waves, “Gravity”
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Where Chappell Roan left off with “Good Luck, Babe,” Pale Waves is ready to grab the baton and run with it. On the band’s dream-rock-inspired new song “Gravity” tells the story of a girl frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie met who “chose Jesus over me,” as she explains in a statement. Despite her best attempts to not let this girl pull her in, Baron-Gracie can’t quite resist, as she belts about being pulled back to into her would-be lover’s orbit. And much like the lyrics state, you can try to resist the orbital draw of this song’s glimmering melodies, but we have a feeling you’ll find its pull too irresistible.
Hope Tala, “Thank Goodness”
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Hope Tala used to feel bad about her breakup — instead, she’s saying “phew.” On “Thank Goodness,” Tala’s excellent new track, sees the singer employing her honed neo-soul sound to let her former lover know that she’s doing way better without them. Over a light bass line and some kinetic drums, Tala celebrates dodging the bullet that would be a continued relationship with her ex. As she puts it, “Thought I’d go back, but I didn’t do it/ Thank goodness.”
Peach PRC, “Time of My Life”
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In a time when many pop artists are choosing to do less, Australian up-and-comer Peach PRC is swinging in the exact opposite direction. With her latest song “Time of My Life,” Peach offers a masterclass in pop maximalism as she reminisces on some complicated memories through her own, unique brand of rose-colored glasses. Add in the high camp music video — which sees the singer combining her fairy princess aesthetic in an all-women’s prison — and you’ve got a deliriously fun pop track on your hands.
Check out all of our picks below on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist:
Unlike the other subjects interviewed in Demi Lovato‘s upcoming Child Star documentary, JoJo Siwa recalls her early start in the limelight as being mostly positive. One exception, however, would be the aftermath of her coming out as part of the LGBTQ community in 2021. In the film, Siwa alleges her coming out led to her partnership with Nickelodeon changing.
According to a new article published by The Hollywood Reporter Wednesday (Aug. 14), the Dance Moms alum claims in the doc — which arrives on Hulu Sept. 17 — that her relationship with the entertainment company was never the same after she posted a video on social media confirming her queer identity. “I basically got blackballed from the company,” she says.
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Siwa also allegedly claims that the president of Nickelodeon called her after she posted her coming out video. “What are we going to tell the kids?” she recalls him asking, to which she says she replied, “That I’m happy?”
He then allegedly told a 17-year-old Siwa to “have a call with every retailer” selling her merch and assure them that she wasn’t “going crazy.” The “Karma” artist, who’s now 21, says she proceeded to get on the phone with Target, Walmart and Claire’s.
A spokesperson for Nickelodeon, however, denied Siwa’s claims in a statement to THR. “We are unaware of the incident JoJo is referencing and she was certainly not blackballed by Nickelodeon,” they said. “We have valued and supported JoJo throughout our incredibly successful partnership, which included a JoJo-themed Pride collection at a major national retailer, among our many collaborations together. We continue to cheer her on and wish her nothing but the best.”
Siwa first signed with Nickelodeon in 2017 when she was just 13, after which she starred in a number of projects for the network including JoJo Siwa: My World, JoJo’s Follow Your D.R.E.A.M., JoJo’s Dream Birthday and The JoJo and BowBow Show Show. A few months after coming out in 2021, Siwa claimed that Nickelodeon was preventing her from singing songs from her musical film The J Team, which the company produced, on her D.R.E.A.M. Tour.
“There has been a [response], but it’s not on me to share,” she said at the time. “I love my brand, but I think it’s forgotten that I’m a human sometimes and that hurts.”
The following year, Siwa told followers that she hadn’t been invited to the 2022 Kids’ Choice Awards and implied that it was because of her queer identity. “The only year that @itsjojosiwa didn’t get invited to the kids choice awards is when she comes out and cuts her hair?????? Sus @Nickelodeon,” wrote one fan on X, who was then retweeted by Siwa.
At press time, a number of JoJo Siwa Pride items are available for purchase from Paramount, which owns the Nickelodeon brand.
The last few weeks of political news has felt like a decade — so, Randy Rainbow is summing it all up in one convenient, five-minute video.
For his latest parody, Rainbow took on Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic musical Oklahoma! with his own rendition of Act II opener “The Farmer and the Cowman.” In order to frame up the current state of political affairs, Rainbow decided to change the title to reflect the contenders in the 2024 election, calling it “The Lawyer and the Conman.”
Kicking off the track in full cowboy regalia, Rainbow welcomes the audience by pointing out the constant deluge of political news in recent days. “I reckon the last few weeks alone have been enough to fill 10 chapters in the history books, and frankly I can’t keep up!” he offers with a Southern twang. “I’ve had to re-write this damn song six times … we need a Rodgers and Hammerstein B-side just to keep things straight.”
Starting the song back in early July, when Democrats expressed unease over President Joe Biden’s slipping poll numbers against former president Donald Trump, Rainbow sings the story of “the conman” (Trump) and “the old guy” (Biden) vying for the highest office in the land. Quickly covering the assassination attempt on Trump and Biden’s disastrous debate performance, Rainbow explained their respective issues as candidates early on in his song: “One was crooked and unfit/ The other couldn’t run for s–t/ But just the same they damn sure ran for prez.”
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But once Biden announced his decision to drop out of the 2024 race, Rainbow re-framed the presumptive Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris as “the lawyer” coming after Trump’s “conman” on the campaign trail. “One’s a felon and a crock/ The other’s ’bout to clean his clock/ And now it’s up to us who will be prez,” he sang.
What ensued was Rainbow’s classic brand of roasting-via-musical-number, where he described Trump and his campaign as wanting to “block our rights,” claiming that he has his “head up Putin’s a–” and very simply describing him as a “whiny little putz.”
But right near the end of the song, Rainbow slowed things down to deliver a full-throated endorsement of Harris, and asking his viewers to keep paying attention until the election in November. “I know we’ll choose the light and this all will turn out right,” he sang. “Or maybe not, girl what the f–k do I know?”
Watch Rainbow’s full parody video of “The Lawyer and the Conman” above.
Kehlani is embracing herself wholeheartedly. The superstar — who uses she/they pronouns — appears on the latest Stylecaster digital cover rocking a tailored, pinstripe suit and full glam makeup, complete with a mustache. The “Honey” singer has been a longtime open book about their sexuality, but in the publication’s interview, she says she would have […]
Sam Smith is officially not the only one on their song “I’m Not the Only One.” On Tuesday (Aug. 6), Smith dropped the official music video for their duet version of “I’m Not the Only One” featuring Alicia Keys. Showing clips from a live recording at Keys’ Jungle City Studios in New York City, the […]
Finneas is coming to his little sister’s defense after a commenter labeled Billie Eilish‘s verse on the Charli XCX “Guess” remix “predatory.”
The takedown occurred in the comment section of a TikTok posted Friday (Aug. 2), in which a user wrote that the 22-year-old singer’s lyrics on the Brat deluxe track were “highkey predatory,” accusing her of “queerbaiting” and “reducing girls to mere objects, all in an effort to convince the masses that she’s actually into them.” The remark appears to be in response to the part of “Guess” where Eilish sings, “Charli likes boys, but she knows I’d hit it/ Charli, call me if you’re with it.”
The producer, however, was having none of it. “What a take you little clown,” he wrote. “I got to watch the entire internet slam my sister for queer-baiting for an entire year when in reality, you were all forcing her to label and out herself.”
It’s unclear whether the user who posted the criticism was coming from a genuine place or simply trying to stir the pot, but Finneas’ point still stands. Eilish has been open about how challenging it’s been for her to speak about her sexuality on her own terms while growing up in the public eye, especially as she’s faced backlash for supposedly queerbaiting — or disingenuously pandering to LGBTQ audiences for commercial gain — since 2019’s “Wish U Were Gay.”
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The two-time Oscar winner was met with similar allegations in 2021 for dancing sensuously with women in her “Lost Cause” music video. At the time, Eilish didn’t publicly identify as part of the LGBTQ community; in November 2023, however, she revealed to Variety that she’s “physically attracted” to women, soon after which she accused the outlet of “outing” her on a subsequent red carpet.
“i like boys and girls leave me alone about it please literally who cares,” she added on Instagram Stories at the time.
Eilish has since grown more comfortable speaking — and singing — about her sexuality. Before “Guess,” she mused about lusting after a female love interest on her Billboard Hot 100 hit “Lunch,” and in her April Rolling Stone cover story, she said, “I’ve been in love with girls for my whole life, but I just didn’t understand — until, last year, I realized I wanted my face in a vagina.”
“Who f—ing cares? The whole world suddenly decided who I was, and I didn’t get to say anything or control any of it,” she continued in the article. “Nobody should be pressured into being one thing or the other, and I think that there’s a lot of wanting labels all over the place. Dude, I’ve known people that don’t know their sexuality, or feel comfortable with it, until they’re in their forties, fifties, sixties. It takes a while to find yourself, and I think it’s really unfair, the way that the internet bullies you into talking about who you are and what you are.”
A number of RuPaul’s Drag Race queens are coming for Missouri politician Valentina Gomez after a homophobic tirade about the Olympics she posted to social media. “These f—-ts should get their own f—-t category, because, before, if a man hit a woman, it used to land him in jail. Now, it gets you a gold […]