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With Clint Bentley’s new film focusing on the life of a railroad worker laboring at the heart of the United States’ industrial revolution, the director needed a composer who understood the complexity of Americana — so he tapped Bryce Dessner.
The National guitarist is, at this point, an expert in soundtracking the American experience throughout historical periods, with his résumé including The Revenant and Manhunt. That’s why he was the perfect person to craft the score for Bentley’s Train Dreams, which — after earning rave reviews at Sundance and the Toronto International Film Festival — is headed to Netflix on Nov. 7.
And, following the release of the film’s Nick Cave-assisted title track in August, Billboard can exclusively share the first piece of music on the Train Dreams soundtrack. Dropping Thursday (Oct. 23), “Passageways I: Ahead, Trembling” gives fans a taste of the swelling strings and analog techniques — including the use of ribbon microphones from the 1930s and 40s — that Dessner employed while creating the musical world of the project.
Speaking to Billboard about the track, Dessner explains, “‘Passageways’ is one of the main themes of the film and comes back four or five times throughout the film in different moments and iterations.”
“The emotion in this music is lyrical but halting, like an aria that never really fully reaches completion,” he continues. “This idea is mirrored in the minimalism of the film, which is beautifully restrained.”
Featuring performances from members of the Oregon Symphony, “Passageways” is just one piece of the broader sonic landscape that Dessner created with main character Robert Grainger (who is played by Joel Edgerton) in mind. The full soundtrack will drop on the same day as the film
“I wanted to find music that was emotional but not overtly sentimental, like [Robert],” Dessner says of the film’s rugged protagonist.
He also took inspiration from Denis Johnson’s original Train Dreams novella, on which Bentley’s film was based. “There’s also a feeling of light and dark in the film which I tried to access in the music, balancing the heavier more intense moments with moments of levity and lighter sounds,” the two-time Grammy winner adds. “The music for the score exists between American folk music and more orchestral writing.”
Other credits on Dessner’s film scoring résumé include The Two Popes, We Live in Time and Cyrano. In addition to his work as a composer, he is a member of one of indie rock’s most beloved groups, as well as a producer and frequent contributor to twin brother Aaron’s projects (such as Taylor Swift’s Folklore and Evermore, to name a couple of Billboard 200 chart-toppers).
But despite his full plate, Dessner has a passion for scoring for which he has continued to make room — and Americana-focused pieces have a particularly special place in his priority list. “I find the subject matter really inspiring for creating music,” he tells Billboard.
The interview with Dessner comes two weeks after Bentley and company dropped the trailer for Train Dreams, immediately sparking Oscar buzz. The film’s soundtrack will arrive Nov. 7, the same day the movie comes to Netflix.
Along with Edgerton, the project also stars Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon and William H. Macy.
Listen to “Passageways I: Ahead, Trembling” below.
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Selena Y Los Dinos is Netflix’s upcoming documentary on the legacy of the Tejano star, but it’s also the band — fronted by the icon Selena — that revolutionized Latin music and one of the first global acts. At Latin Music Week 2025, fans and conference attendees not only got to see exclusive clips from the film, slated to premiere Nov. 17, but heard directly from Suzette Quintanilla and the documentary’s director Isabel Castro.
Moderated by Billboard‘s Jessica Roiz, the Selena Y Los Dinos panel on Wednesday (Oct. 22) broke down the significance of this new documentary, the band’s legacy and the family values that fueled the global act.
The new Netflix documentary first premiered in the Sundance Film Festival, capturing Selena Y Los Dinos’ rise to stardom. Throughout Selena’s music career, seven of her studio albums hit No. 1 on Top Latin Albums, including Amor Prohibido (1994), which reigned for 20 weeks, and Dreaming of You (released posthumously in 1995), which topped the chart for 44 weeks. The latter set also made history as the first bilingual album to debut at No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200. In 1993, Selena won a Grammy for the best Mexican American album for Selena Live!, becoming the first female Tejano artist to win that award.
Below, five takeaways from the Selena Y Los Dinos panel at Latin Music Week:
Approaching Isabel Castro for the Project
Suzette Quintanilla: “Four or five years ago, I wanted to create this documentary to tell our family story, directly from our family to the world, and find somebody that could do this. I did a Zoom with Isabel and I instantly knew she was going to be the person to be able to tell the story for us. She’s an amazing person, she’s Latina and I’m glad she’s leading this for us.”
Why Castro Said Yes to Directing
Isabel Castro: “I’m Mexican, I came to the U.S. and to me, Selena was really the person that taught me to be proud about having a bicultural community. I found solace in her and the family’s music. It made me understand myself. When they reached out I was like, ‘Everyone stop everything, hold the phones.’ It was obvious this was important to me. It’s been an honor of a lifetime.”
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The Process
Castro: “The family has a vault and when I opened that door and the light came through. It’s like a medium-sized storage unit, packed from floor to ceiling of bookcases with thousands of VHS tapes, flash drives. The beginning of that process was interesting because we were so honored but it felt like a huge sense of responsibility. We reviewed it all and once we digitized it, then came the editing process and it was important that the archive told the story. All of the footage is valuable, but the material that moved me the most was the material that was shot behind the scenes that was mostly shot by Suzette. What’s in the film is as much as we could include.”
How This Will Be Different From Other Selena Films
Castro: “We had conversations about this, both I and Suzette, and the family wanted this to feel like the most authentic version of [the family’s] story and wanted it to be told by the them. We also wanted it to be told through the archive.”
Quintanilla: “The [1997] movie was sprinkled with Hollywood glitter, but this documentary is the opposite of that. This is our family, Chris, my mom, my father, A.B., myself, bandmates, telling the world our story: We started from that and created this. A lot of people want to separate Selena from our band, but other elements that made her were our band and family.”
What Fans Will Take Away From Selena Y Los Dinos
Quintanilla: “I want them to feel the energy and what we were all about. People have a perception, and they’re entitled to their opinion, and how my father was. We are a normal family that started a band and became global. Selena is not here, but we are celebrating what we did and created so many years ago. And this documentary reflects the power of who we are as Latinos, this is a global launch in 190 countries and 32 plus languages. I’m very proud of that.”
Spanning more than 30 years, Latin Music Week is the single-most important and largest gathering of Latin artists and industry executives in the world. This year’s event once again hosts panels, marquee conversations, roundtables, networking and activations, in addition to its celebrated Billboard En Vivo showcases.
This year’s star-studded lineup includes Aitana, Alofoke, Anuel AA, Bebeshito, Carlos Vives, Carín León, Danny Ocean, DJ Khaled, Daddy Yankee (DY), Emilia Mernes, Ivy Queen, Gloria Estefan, Grupo 5, Kapo, Laura Pausini, Luck Ra, Netón Vega, Olga Tañón, Óscar Maydon, Ozuna, Pablo Alborán, Rawayana, Suzette Quintanilla, Tokischa, Xavi and Yailin La Más Viral, to name a few.
Latin Music Week also coincides with the 2025 Billboard Latin Music Awards, set to air Thursday, Oct. 23, on Telemundo and Peacock, where Bad Bunny will be honored as Top Latin Artist of the 21st Century.
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This holiday season is about to be particularly golden. As announced Wednesday (Oct. 22), the singing voices behind KPop Demon Hunters girl group HUNTR/X will reunite on stage for iHeartMedia’s Jingle Ball 2025.
Though the trio consisting of EJAE, AUDREY NUNA and REI AMI has previously performed together on stage, their showcase at the annual 102.7 KIIS FM event will mark their first-ever live concert appearance. They join a bill that also features Alex Warren, Audrey Hobert, Conan Gray, Feid, Jackson Wang, Jessie Murph, The Kid LAROI, Leon Thomas, Renee Rapp and Zara Larsson.
This year’s Jingle Ball will ring in Christmastime at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. Fans can purchase tickets to the event now on Ticketmaster.
The festive news comes as the momentum behind KPop Demon Hunters continues to ramp up. The group’s signature song, “Golden,” has spent a total of eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 so far, marking the first time an all-woman K-pop group has reached the chart’s summit. The Netflix film’s full soundtrack also reached the top of the Billboard 200.
In the movie, EJAE, AUDREY NUNA and REI AMI respectively sang for characters Rumi, Mira and Zoey, who form a fictional band called HUNTR/X that slays demons on the side. In the months since KPop Demon Hunters premiered in June, appetite for the three ladies’ music has only grown, leading to them making their real-life performance debut on The Tonight Show on Oct. 7.
Still, the question remains: Will there be a sequel?
“The sequel has not been confirmed,” REI AMI told Billboard in a recent interview. “We are, you know, looking forward, and we will know once we get that email.”
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If Charlie Puth is nervous about becoming a dad, he’s not showing it.
The pop artist was the musical guest Tuesday night on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where he performed his new song “Changes” and sat for a chat with the late-night show’s host.
At the top, Puth confirmed what many of his fans already. “I’m gonna be a dad,” he told Fallon.
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We’re aware of the good news because Puth used the music video for “Changes” as the platform for his big reveal. Around the 2:30 mark in the Charlotte Rutherford-directed clip, Puth and his wife Brooke Sansone both place their hands on her belly, a sign that changes are coming.
“I didn’t leave much up to the imagination there,” he admitted to Fallon. “But yeah, we’re expecting a baby in March.”
He’s not giving away the gender just yet, but it’s safe to say the bub will be immersed in music. Puth plans to revisit what him mom did for him, by placing headphones on Sansone’s pregnant tummy.
“I hope baby likes music, because it’s the only thing I’m good at,” he quipped. “I think I listened to James Taylor and Luther Vandross, I got a wide array of music. So I’ll do the same thing, whether Brooke likes it or not.”
This will be the first child for the Puth and Sansone, who began dating in 2022 and were married in September 2024.
Puth stuck around the NBC studios for a performance of “Changes,” lifted from his forthcoming fourth studio album Whatever’s Clever!, also due out next March, for what will be a busy month for the growing family.
Whatever’s Clever!, will be Puth’s fourth album and a follow-up to 2022’s Charlie, which yielded the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 singles “Light Switch” and “Left and Right” (with BTS’ Jung Kook).
Watch Puth’s performance of “Changes” and his goofy Hundred Percent sketch with Fallon.
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Robert Irwin tangles with snakes during the day, nails dolphin dives at night. And based on his latest performance on Dancing With The Stars, the Australian wildlife conservationist should go far in the competition.
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On Tuesday night (Oct. 21), the DWTS celebrities celebrated the forthcoming sequel to Jon M. Chu’s Wicked with routines set to songs from the popular musical-turned-film. Chu even stopped by to join regular judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
Irwin gave it his best shot with a jazz performance of “Dancing Through Life”. The 21-year-old and his professional partner Witney Carson completed an energetic, free-flowing performance with smiles glued to their faces. Irwin gave viewers a little more than they bargained with a perfect dolphin dive early in their routine, and pulled off a floor slide that’d make Bruce Springsteen proud.
When the votes were counted, 39 out of a possible 40 points went to the pairings of Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa, and Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas, while Irwin and Carson nabbed nines from all four of the judges, for 36/40.
Irwin, the son of the late “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin, will be hoping to emulate the success of his older sister Bindi, who won the 21st season of DWTS, in 2015.
The remaining contestants in this 34th season of Dancing With the Star includes TV personality Dylan Efron and influencer Jen Affleck. However, Pentatonix’s Scott Hoying and Rylee Arnold are no longer competing for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy, following their elimination on Tuesday evening.
Dancing with the Stars airs live Tuesdays on ABC and Disney+, and streams the next day on Hulu. The finale will be on Nov. 25.
See the full list of scores from “Wicked Night” (week six) of DWTS season 34 below.
Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy: 35/40
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson: 36/40
Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas: 39/40
Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach: 32/40
Andy Richter and Emma Slater: 27/40
Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten: 36/40
Jen Affleck and Jan Ravnik: 32/40
Danielle Fishel and Pasha Pashkov: 36/40
Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa: 39/40
Scott Hoying and Rylee Arnold: 28/40 (ELIMINATED)
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Country fans are getting an early look at Lainey Wilson‘s role in the upcoming film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s Reminders of Him courtesy of a trailer released Tuesday (Oct. 21).
The movie — due in theaters March 13 — follows protagonist Kenna Rowan (played by Maika Monroe), who makes a mistake that sends her to prison. After seven years, she returns to her hometown in Wyoming, seeking to reunite with her young daughter Diem. After Diem’s custodial grandparents deny Kenna the opportunity to reconnect with Diem, Kenna forms a connection with a local bar own named Ledger Ward (played by Tyriq Withers).
Wilson, who is one of the leading nominees at November’s CMA Awards, portrays the role of Kenna’s friend and coworker, Amy. In the trailer, Wilson’s character is seen speaking with Kenna.
“What’s your trauma?” Wilson’s character Amy says during a brief scene.
Kenna replies that she just got out of prison and is struggling to find work.
“Sh–, you win,” Wilson replies.
The film is an adaptation of Hoover’s 2022 book Reminders of Him, which sold more than 6 million copies in the United States; Colleen Hoover also wrote the bestselling book It Ends With Us, which was turned into a movie starring Blake Lively last year. The Reminders of Him cast also includes Lauren Graham and Bradley Whitford as Diem’s grandparents Grace and Patrick, while Rudy Pankow portrays Diem’s father Scotty. The supporting cast includes Jennifer Robertson playing Kenna’s landlord Ruth, while Zoe Kosovic portrays Kenna’s daughter.
The role in Reminders of Him will mark Wilson’s feature film debut, though she has previously had a recurring role on the television show Yellowstone.
Wilson just released a new EP, titled Peace, Love & Cowboys (Holiday Edition), on Oct. 17. After co-hosting last year’s CMA Awards with Peyton Manning and Luke Bryan, Wilson will solo host this year’s show for the first time. She is also on her headlining Whirlwind World Tour, which has included sold-out shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden and Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
See the trailer for Reminders of Him below:
A hot new bombshell has entered the villa Thursday night (June 19): Megan Thee Stallion guest starred on the latest episode of Love Island USA. She teased her appearance with a clip of her strutting into the villa while wearing a gold cut-out bikini as her song “Her” was playing in the background. “HOTTIES A […]
There’s no question that Broadway‘s Hamilton was (and still is) one of the most engrossing musicals on the Great White Way, but according to an original cast member, Madonna herself had other things to focus on. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news During his Thursday (June 19) appearance […]
Ed Sheeran‘s “Drive” has arrived ahead of the opening of F1: The Movie.
The F1: The Album song, produced by John Mayer and Blake Slatkin, is available on music streaming services now.
Mayer backs Sheeran on guitar on the anthemic new rock track, which also has Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl on drums, Pino Palladino on bass, Rami Jaffee on keyboards, and Slatkin on additional keyboards and drum programming to round out a notable ensemble of musicians.
Sheeran previously shared that “Drive” came together quickly in the studio with Mayer and Slatkin, recalling that “the song fell out of us” after he’d seen some of F1. Mayer “just whacked an octave pedal on and went wild” to come up with the song’s riff, he said.
“Movies are my hobby and probably the only thing other than sport that I get, like, starstruck to be part of. Not just directors or actors or whatever, but being a part of the journey of a movie is so exciting for me,” added Sheeran, who’s set to release his next studio album, Play, in September.
The full F1: The Album will be officially released by Atlantic Records on June 27, when F1: The Movie theaters.
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Besides Sheeran, the F1 soundtrack, led by Don Toliver feat. Doja Cat’s “Lose My Mind,” also boasts a lineup that includes Rosé, Chris Stapleton, Roddy Rich, Myke Towers, Tate McRae, Burna Boy, RAYE and more. Kevin Weaver, Atlantic’s president of the West Coast and a two-time Grammy winner (most recently for Barbie: The Album), oversaw and produced F1: The Album with Atlantic executive vp/co-head of pop/rock A&R Brandon Davis and senior vp of A&R and marketing Joseph Khoury.
Listen to Sheeran’s new song “Drive” below.
Bruce Springsteen is opening up about his upcoming biopic Deliver Me From Nowhere.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the 75-year-old rock icon shared his thoughts on director Scott Cooper’s upcoming film, which is set to hit theaters on Oct. 24.
Though Springsteen’s touring schedule limited his time on set, he said The Bear actor Jeremy Allen White and the crew were gracious during his visits.
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“Jeremy Allen White was very, very tolerant of me the days that I would appear on the set,” Springsteen told the publication. “I said to him, ‘Look, anytime I’m in the way, just give me the look and I’m on my way home.’ So the days that I got out there, he was wonderfully tolerant with me being there. And it was just fun. It was enjoyable.”
Still, The Boss admitted that he avoided being present for certain emotionally intense moments during filming.
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“I mean, there’s some unusualness to it because the movie involves, in some ways, some of the most painful days of my life,” he said. “If there was a scene coming up that was sometimes really deeply personal, I wanted the actors to feel completely free, and I didn’t want to get in the way, and so I would just stay at home.”
Deliver Me From Nowhere is based on Warren Zanes’ book of the same name and chronicles the making of Springsteen’s 1982 acoustic album, Nebraska. Check out a recap of the film’s first trailer here.
The film features Allen as Springsteen, Jeremy Strong as longtime manager Jon Landau, Stephen Graham as the musician’s father, Odessa Young as his girlfriend, Gaby Hoffmann as his mother, Marc Maron as producer Chuck Plotkin, and David Krumholtz as a Columbia Records executive.
Earlier this year, Springsteen told SiriusXM’s E Street Radio that seeing White play him on screen took some getting used to.
“A little bit at first, but you get over that pretty quick and Jeremy is such a terrific actor that you just fall right into it,” he said. “He’s got an interpretation of me that I think the fans will deeply recognize and he’s just done a great job, so I’ve had a lot of fun. I’ve had a lot of fun being on the set when I can get there.”
For his part, White has said he spent hours studying video footage and worked closely with a vocal coach to capture Springsteen’s unique voice and cadence.
