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Darius Rucker & Wife Beth Split After 20 Years: ‘We Have Made the Decision to Consciously Uncouple’
Darius Rucker and his wife of almost 20 years, Beth, have announced that they are separating. The country singer and Hootie & the Blowfish frontman revealed the news on social media on Saturday (July 11), noting that the split is amicable. “Beth and I would like to share that after much reflection we have made the decision to consciously uncouple,” Rucker wrote. “We remain close friends and parenting partners and continue to be each other’s biggest cheerleaders.” His statement continued: “Our priority will always be our beautiful family. We have so much love in our hearts for each other and will continue to encourage growth and expansion in one other. Please be kind as we take on this journey, and we thank you for your love and support always.” The c...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (July 11)
From career milestones and new music releases to major announcements and more, Billboard editors highlight the latest news buzz in Latin music every week. Here’s what happened in the Latin music world this week: “Michael X” Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, the Puerto Rican rapper turns his feelings into song rapping about racism and police brutality. In his new song “Michael X,” Myke Towers raps about slavery and having dealt with discrimination himself. Towers kicks off the track with words from Malcolm X’s famous 1962 speech: “We are oppressed. We are exploited. We are downtrodden.” He then goes on saying he needs to speak out against racism and can no longer hide how he’s feeling. The song drops amid natio...
Kanye West Shares Artist Roster for Possible Yeezy Sound Streaming Service
Kanye West could be one step closer to launching his own music streaming service. The 43-year-old rapper and fashion mogul, who recently announced his plans to run for president in 2020, took to Twitter on Friday night (July 10) to share the “roster proposal” for Yeezy Sound, a company he filed trademark papers for in 2017. “YEEZY SOUND ROSTER PROPOSAL,” West captioned a handwritten note featuring a list of artists, including hip-hop duo Abstract Mindstate, G.O.O.D. Music’s CyHi The Prynce, himself, jazz drummer Tony Williams and Clipse. The mysterious list also included the name “KC” — possibly a reference to Jodeci singer K-Ci — and Kanye’s 7-year-old daughter, North West. As previously reported, West’s trademark for ̶...
Darius Rucker Announces ‘Darius & Friends’ Livestream Concert to Benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Darius Rucker is heading to the Grand Ole Opry stage with Clint Black and Tracy Lawrence for a virtual edition of his 11th annual “Darius & Friends” concert. The event, which raises money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, will air as a pay-per-view live stream event available on LiveXLive.com/Darius and on LiveXLive’s app. “Even though we can’t all get together for a normal concert right now, it’s important that we continue to support St. Jude and the amazing work that they do,” said Rucker in a statement. “I hope we can bring a fun night of music to everyone watching from home while also raising money for this important cause.” Tickets to the event start at $15 with VIP options offering limited-edition and signed posters priced at $50 and...
Yeasayer Drop Copyright Lawsuit Against The Weeknd & Kendrick Lamar for ‘Black Panther’ Hit ‘Pray For Me’
Yeasayer voluntarily dismissed the copyright lawsuit against The Weeknd and Kendrick Lamar over their Black Panther: The Album highlight “Pray For Me.” In this dismissal obtained by Billboard today (July 10), the indie rock band and its record label We Are Free “confirmed to their satisfaction that no copyright infringement occurred” by the defendants The Weeknd (real name Abel Makkonen Tesfaye), Lamar (Kendrick Lamar Duckworth), Canadian producers Doc McKinney (Martin “Doc” McKinney) and Frank Dukes (Adam King Feeney), and labels Universal Music Group, Interscope, Aftermath and Top Dawg Entertainment. In February 2018, “Pray For Me” propelled both The Weeknd and Lamar into another echelon of superstardom when it...
First Spin: The Week’s Best New Dance Tracks From Tiga & Hudson Mohawke, Hayden James, DJDS & More
New Music Friday is intense. Hundreds of songs drop from artists around the world, and you’re supposed to somehow find the best ones. It’s fun work, but it’s time-consuming — so we at Billboard Dance want to give you a hand. Each week, we sift through the streams and dig in the digital crates to present the absolute must-hears from the wide breadth of jams. Once again demonstrating the endless variety of the dance scene, this week we got an excellent new album from the always excellent French producer CloZee, the debut solo LP from psybient legend Simon Posford of Shpongle, an equine-centric new video from Diplo and Noah Cyrus, an incisive conversation about diversity and the creative process from Coco & Breezy, DJ Sliink and Aluna plus the launch of a new ...
Vampire Weekend Drops ‘Live in Florida’ EP: Stream It Now
Vampire Weekend dropped a new live EP today (July 10) titled Live in Florida because the indie rock band misses the Sunshine State as much as fans miss concerts. Live in Florida features six songs from their two tour stops last year at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre and Miami’s James L. Knight Center because Vampire Weekend wanted to “revisit some of our favorite shows from last year and put together a little something based around two beautiful nights in the Sunshine State,” according to the Instagram announcement yesterday (July 9). The EP includes “A-Punk” from its eponymous 2008 debut album, “White Sky” from the 2010 album Contra, and “Sunflower,” “2021” and “How Long?” from the most recen...
Rave Family Blockfest Announces Second Postponement: ‘It’s Not Fair to Deliver a Subpar Experience’
With a lineup featuring more than 950 artists, the livestream festival Rave Family Blockfest seemed too massive to be true, and as it’s turning out it just might be. At least for now. Today (July 10), organizers of the event, which was set to take place July 9-12 inside the video game Minecraft announced that it will be postponing after a chaotic first two days. The event went live yesterday, with attendees who paid between $10-$15 for entry finding major functionality issues. “Again, unless you’re a seasoned Minecraft player or gamer in general, movement in Minecraft, let alone from one massive area to another, is confusing at best and impossible at worst,” reported YourEDM. “Users are left stumbling around the virtual world or just succumbing to the location where...
Dixie D’Amelio Goofs Off With Sister Charli in ‘Be Happy’ Behind-The-Scenes Video
Rising artist and social media star Dixie D’Amelio might’ve sung about her bad days in her debut single “Be Happy,” but the behind-the-scenes clip of the music video shows how her family puts her in high spirits. The 10-minute exclusive BTS clip, which D’Amelio premiered on YouTube Wednesday (July 8), features the entire D’Amelio clan clowning around on set. The TikTok star confessed to using a pore vacuum the night before the shoot that ended up bruising her face. “Hopefully, my parents don’t see it,” she wished before the follow-up text slide read, “My mom saw the bruise” and documented her mother criticizing her decision. Her 16-year-old sister and fellow TikTok topliner Charli D’Amelio make...
Action Bronson Lost 80 Pounds in Quarantine, Shares His Workout Routine
Action Bronson is flaunting his new fitness routine. The rapper took to Instagram on Friday (July 10) to reveal that he lost 80 pounds. “IM GETTIN ALL THE MONEY THATS OWED TO ME OVER ALL THESE YEARS,” he wrote alongside a video of his weights workout. “I DESERVE TO HAVE A HOT BOD,” he continued. “IM 283 DOWN 80 POUNDS FROM A WHOPPING 363 AND STILL GOING STRONG. GIVE YOURSELF THE FLOWERS. TERMINATOR IN THE MAKING.” The F— That’s Delicious host shouted out his trainer Dave Paladino before concluding, “TIME FOR BIGGER WEIGHTS.” Bronson recently shared in a May Instagram Live interview with TMZ that he has been focusing a lot on fitness while in quarantine. “I’ve been working out crazy,” he explained. ...
First Out: New Music From Kim Petras, Donna Missal, Tayla Parx & More
Another week, another set of LGBTQ new music releases to jam out to. Billboard Pride is here to help with First Out, our weekly roundup of some of the best new weekly music releases from LGBTQ artists. From Kim Petras and Kygo’s stunning new music video to Donna Missal’s long-awaited sophomore album, check out some of our favorite new releases this week. Kim Petras & Kygo, “Broken Glass” (video) With their new music video, Kygo and Kim Petras are ready to let their icy music freeze your heart over. In the new visual, Petras is seen amidst a snowy car wreckage, reminiscing on the end of an ill-fated relationship. Throughout the dark, frozen void, the pop singer’s look continues to evolve, until she is a Mad Max-meets-Elsa from Froze...
First Beat: New Music By Summer Walker, Snoh Aalegra, StaySolidRocky & More
Though Juice WRLD and Kid Cudi came out swinging with their new releases, for today’s edition of First Beat (July 10), R&B makes a resounding effort with the return of Summer Walker, Snoh Aalegra and more. Check it out below. Summer Walker, Life on Earth EP After a dazzling performance at the BET Awards last month, Walker looks to keep her momentum intact with her latest collection of music. Melding together a quick five-track EP, Life on Earth is a masterclass in love and heartbreak from the R&B star. Swimming against the guitar strums on “Let It Go,” Walker waves goodbye to a troubling beau while exuding her amorous side on the PARTYNEXTDOOR-assisted “My Affection.” Though the project only clocks in at 16 minutes, Walker’s offer...
