Gloria Estefan is about to release her first Spanish album in 18 years, ‘Raíces’. She sits down to talk about how the album was created with her husband, Emilio, dedicating a song to her grandson, her opinions on the new Pope, her thoughts on immigration issues in the U.S., and more. Are you excited for […]

Gloria Estefan is ready to introduce the world to Raíces, her first Spanish-language album in 18 years and the 30th in her 50-year career. It is, in the words of the superstar, “like a modern Mi Tierra” — a sort of sequel to her iconic first LP in her native language, but freer. “When we had the concept for the [1993] album Mi Tierra, we wanted to highlight a rich era of Cuban music that had been celebrated worldwide B.C. — before Castro,” the Cuban-American artist tells Billboard Español. “Back then, we were very careful to use the language that would have been used in the 1940s in the songs — the arrangements, the instrumentation, we kept it very much of that era. Here, we felt free to explore, always keeping family in mind and the music that gave us so much richness, and which helped us create these fusions, but coming from a very organic and real place.” Set to release on Friday (May 30) under Sony Music Latin, Raíces consists of 13 tracks mostly written by musician and producer Emilio Estefan Jr., Gloria’s inseparable partner in life and career for over four decades. Salsa, bolero, and tropical rhythms resonate in songs ranging from previously released singles like “Raíces” and “La Vecina (No Sé Na’)” to deeply romantic tracks such as “Tan Iguales y Tan Diferentes,” “Te Juro,” “Agua Dulce,” and “Tú y Yo.” Among the few songs penned by Gloria is the sweet “Mi Niño Bello (Para Sasha),” dedicated to her only grandson, with the English version “My Beautiful Boy (For Sasha).” “Since he was born, we’ve had a very beautiful and close relationship,” she proudly shares, adding that in Spanish she wanted to create something “with the flavor of ‘Drume Negrita,’ something very classic, a Cuban lullaby.” A second song on the album, “Cuando el Tiempo Nos Castiga” (co-written by Emilio and Gian Marco and originally recorded by Jon Secada in 2001), also has a new English version courtesy of Gloria, titled “How Will You Be Remembered.” “I never translate exactly. I think about the feeling, the emotion, what one wants to express about the theme, and I approach it in the new language. In English, I was thinking more about legacy — you want to feel happy with what you left behind,” she explains about the discrepancy in the titles, with the one in Spanish meaning “When time punished us.” Estefan — who in 2023 became the first Latina inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and in 2024 received the Legend Award at the Billboard Latin Women in Music ceremony — usually writes more for her albums, but this time she was focused on creating songs for the upcoming Broadway musical BASURA alongside her daughter Emily when Emilio presented her with the idea for the song “Raíces” a couple of years ago. “Emilio didn’t even realize it was my 50th [career anniversary],” recalls Estefan, who wanted to do something special to celebrate the milestone. “I told him, ‘Babe, I can’t change my mindset for this, but I would like, if I do an album again, for it to be tropical, for it to be in Spanish.’ He says, ‘Do you trust me?’ I go, ‘Who else am I gonna trust than you?’” Raíces is Gloria Estefan’s first Spanish-language album since 90 Millas, which debuted and spent three weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart in October 2007. Mi Tierra, meanwhile, spent a whooping 58 weeks at the top of the chart. Estefan also spoke about the new Pope Leo XIV, immigration, and more. Watch the interview in the video above. Gloria Estefan, ‘RAICES’ Courtesy Photo

Wet Leg has shared the second taste of its upcoming album Moisturizer with the LP’s opening track, “CPR.” The song was released on Tuesday evening (May 27) and follows its live debut at a recent run of live shows. The group – led by singer Rhian Teasdale and guitarist Hester Chambers – headlined two nights […]

As anticipation builds for surprise appearances at Glastonbury 2025, Sir Rod Stewart has confirmed that Ronnie Wood will join him for a Faces reunion during his Legends set. In a new interview on That Peter Crouch Podcast, Stewart explained that he was still in regular contact with the Rolling Stones guitarist. The pair were previously bandmates in the late ’60s/early ’70s blues rock band, alongside drummer Kenney Jones. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “Woody, I do [speak to] a lot,” the 79-year-old said. “Just recently, ’cause we’re gonna do Glastonbury together.” You can listen to the podcast in full here. Trending on Billboard Faces hinted at a comeback last month, with Jones revealing in an interview with The Telegraph that the band had recorded “about 11 tracks” at RAK Studios in London for a new album – which would be their first full-length effort in over 50 years.“I can’t see it coming out this year. But I can see it coming out next year,” he continued. “Everyone’s doing different things. We do little snippets [of recording] here and there. Then all of a sudden, The Stones are out [on tour] again, Rod’s out again…” First formed in 1969 through a merger between members of Small Faces and the Jeff Beck Group, Faces existed for six years before guitarist Wood left to join the Rolling Stones, and Stewart continued his burgeoning solo career. The group have released four albums, with 1971’s A Nod Is As Good As a Wink… to a Blind Horse hitting No. 6 on the Billboard 200. Glastonbury will take place at Worthy Farm, Somerset next month (June 25-29) with headliners The 1975, Neil Young, and Olivia Rodrigo. Stewart last performed at the festival in 2002, topping the bill alongside Coldplay and Stereophonics that year. The “Maggie May” singer will take to the Pyramid Stage on Sunday afternoon for the Legends slot – one of the most coveted in the festival’s history. Previous bookings have included Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Lionel Richie, Kylie Minogue and Diana Ross, with Shania Twain performing in the Legends slot in 2024. Shortly after he was announced for this year’s event, Stewart said he was “proud, ready and more than able to pleasure and titillate my friends at Glastonbury.” He was the first name to be confirmed for Glastonbury 2025, which sold out in under an hour last autumn following the introduction of a new online queuing system. 2025’s edition will mark the final event to take place at Worthy Farm before the traditional fallow year in 2026, which sees the landowner Michael Eavis and his family allow the grounds to recover every four years. The festival will return again in 2027.

Reneé Rapp is leaning into her identity, her artistry, and the name she says was designed for the spotlight. During a new episode of the Good Hang podcast with Amy Poehler, the singer and actor opened up about her early path to pop stardom, revealing that her mother, Denise Rapp, deliberately gave her an alliterative name to help her succeed in entertainment. “My mom chose my first and last name to be—well, okay, arguably chose my first and last name to both have R’s,” Rapp said. “She was like, ‘Alliteration, just in case she wants to be a pop star.’ Like before I was born.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “She gave you a pop star name just in case, because Reneé Rapp is a huge pop star name,” Poehler responded. Rapp agreed: “It’s a really good one.” Trending on Billboard The conversation also touched on Rapp’s experience publicly coming out as a lesbian while appearing on Saturday Night Live in January. She recalled asking the writers to revise a line in a sketch that referred to her as a “little bisexual intern.” “At that time I was very publicly bisexual,” Rapp said. “In private, I was talking with my girlfriend and a lot of my friends for the last maybe eight months before that of being like, ‘I actually don’t really feel very bi at the moment. I feel very much like a lesbian and it feels so nice and that word feels amazing.’” “Labeling yourself publicly is really, really, really empowering,” she added. “And also, I think, can be kind of intimidating.” She described the moment as “pretty c—y” and said it felt “so f—ing good.” Earlier this week, Rapp debuted a new single titled “Leave Me Alone” during her live performance at the 2025 American Music Awards. The fiery, guitar-heavy track addresses her frustrations with fame and references her exit from the now-cancelled HBO Max series The Sex Lives of College Girls. “Signed a hundred NDAs but I still say something / Leave me alone, b—h, I wanna have fun / Took my sex life with me, now the show ain’t f—in’,” she sings on the chorus. “Leave Me Alone” marks the first release from Rapp’s upcoming sophomore album Bite Me, which is set for release on Aug. 1 via Interscope. The album follows 2023’s Snow Angel, which debuted at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at No. 2 on the Heatseekers Albums chart. The title track also reached No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot Trending Songs chart. Bite Me is out Aug. 1.