entertainment blog
Lido Pimienta Announces New Variety Show Lido TV
Lido Pimienta has announced a new program called Lido TV, set to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11. The first episode will then stream on YouTube on September 23. Check out the trailer for the show below. Pimienta is the creator, writer, producer, and host of Lido TV. “What started as an artistic project during the pandemic has grown into something so much more,” she said in a statement. “This is a love letter to a little girl sitting on the branch of a mango tree in Colombia, singing at the top of her lungs while other kids made fun of her for being weird. I’m so grateful to our cast and crew for bringing their talent to every scene, sketch and performance, and I can’t wait for the world to see what we’ve created.” Pimienta spent a good chunk of 2022 on t...
Prince Estate Beats Purple Rain Patent Case Against Bang Energy Drink
On August 23, a tribunal at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office sided with the Prince Estate by formally rejecting a company that tried to trademark “Purple Rain,” reports Billboard. The company, Bang Energy, hoped to apply the phrase to their energy drinks, dietary supplements, and sports beverages. When announcing their ruling, the judges stated that phrase “uniquely and unmistakably” belongs to the late musician. “Consumers encountering applicant’s mark, when used in connection with applicant’s goods, will presume a connection between ‘Purple Rain’ and Prince,” said one judge during the ruling. As evidence, the ruling cited a survey that asked participants what “comes to mind” when they saw the phrase “Purple Rain.” Roughly 63% responded with “Prince,” his album of the same name,...
Milli Vanilli Documentary Girl You Know It’s True Reveals Cast
A new Milli Vanilli documentary was announced earlier this year, and now the team behind it have shared more details about the film. Girl You Know It’s True will star Tijan Njie and Elan Ben Ali in the leading roles of Robert Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, the group’s two performers. The cast will also include Matthias Schweighöfer, Graham Rogers, Bella Dayne, and more. The film follows the rise and fall of Milli Vanilli from their breakthrough in the late 1980s through the scandalous lip-syncing incident that ultimately cost them their careers. Led by German music producer Frank Farian, the group earned multiple No. 1 hits including “Blame It On the Rain,” “Girl I’m Gonna Miss You,” and “Baby Don’t Forget My Number.” Girl You Know It’s True is written and directed by Simon Verhoeven and prod...
‘The Lord of the Rings’ Series: How to Watch ‘The Rings of Power’ for Free on Prime Video
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. Amazon Studios’ highly anticipated series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will premiere via Prime Video on Thursday (Sept. 1). Set thousands of years before the events in J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, the epic drama follows new and familiar characters battling a re-emergence of evil on Middle-earth. According to Amazon, the series takes viewers back to an era “in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest ...
Publishers, Streamers Reach Deal for Highest Streaming Royalty Rate Ever: Here’s How It Works
Songwriter and publisher U.S. mechanical streaming royalty rates are going up — slowly — to a headline rate of 15.35% of total revenue from 2023-2027. That’s the big news out of Wednesday’s (Aug. 31) joint announcement on the “Phonorecords IV” settlement from the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), the Nashville Songwriters Associations International and the Digital Media Association (DiMA). But how long will it take to get there and at what pace? What are the other conditions? Billboard now has more more key details about the deal. Under the new settlement agreement — which the NMPA touts will set the “highest royalty rate in the history of streaming anywhere” — the headline rate will escalate from 15.1% of revenue in 2023 to 15.2% in 2024 and then a half a percentage point inc...
Jessica Chastain, Margo Price & More Stars Mourn the Death of Luke Bell: ‘A Sad Night for Country Music’
More than a week after he was reported missing in Arizona, country singer Luke Bell was found dead in Tucson on Monday (August 29). He was 32 years old. While a cause of death has not been given at press time, the Tucson Police Department confirmed to Billboard that “the investigation is on-going at the moment,” with no further details disclosed. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The late singer’s close friend and fellow country singer Matt Kinman, who said he was with Bell recently and had been taking care of him for six years as he navigated a severe battle with bipolar disorder, reportedly told Saving Country Music — which first reported the news — that Bell went missing on August 20. Bell released his debut full-length album...
Yungblud On His Crazy Tour Shows, Being Dubbed the “Future of Rock”, Third Album ‘Yungblud’ & More | Billboard News
Yungblud talks about some of the crazy shows he’s doing for his tour, being dubbed the “future of rock” by Rolling Stones icon Mick Jagger, his upcoming third album ‘Yungblud’ and more. You can pre-order Yungblud’s third album ‘Yungblud’ here out Friday September 2nd. [flexi-common-toolbar] [flexi-form class=”flexi_form_style” title=”Submit to Flexi” name=”my_form” ajax=”true”][flexi-form-tag type=”post_title” class=”fl-input” title=”Title” value=”” required=”true”][flexi-form-tag type=”category” title=”Select category”][flexi-form-tag type=”tag” title=”Insert tag”][flexi-form-tag type=”article” class=”fl-textarea̶...
Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers’ Is First Hip-Hop Album of 2022 to Hit 1 Billion Spotify Streams
Kendrick Lamar’s latest album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, is officially the first hip-hop record of 2022 to surpass 1 billion streams on Spotify. The news was broken by Chart Data, which added that the project has already sold more than 500,000 units in the United States and is eligible for a gold plaque, but is yet to be certified by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Meanwhile, HITS Daily Double suggests that Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers could make its return to this week’s Billboard 200 top 10, thanks to its latest vinyl sales. The album briefly held the record for the biggest opening week of 2022, earning 258,500 in streaming equivalent album in its first week to give K-Dot his fourth No. 1. It also held the largest streaming week for an R...
Watch Eliminate Produce a Track With Samples Recorded From Australian Wildlife
For his latest music production masterclass, Eliminate turned to Australia’s vast nature and wildlife for inspiration. While out on tour, the EDM.com Class of 2021 star visited the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Australia to record sounds from a number of their animals. He then got to work in his Airbnb, sampling them to create an electro and breakbeat banger. The animal sounds Eliminate sampled include the calls of kookaburras, snoring of koalas, drinking of kangaroos and warbles of various birds. The track builds with some Virtual Riot drum loop samples before unleashing a ferocious drop that stomps harder than the kangaroos it samples. Eliminate then introduces a half-time trap section to bring the arrangement home. Give Eliminate&#...
Makasi Enlists Future Munk for R&B-Infused House Anthem, “Lucky”
Still buzzing from his performance at this year’s Tomorrowland, Makasi has unveiled his brand new single, “Lucky.” The Belgian DJ and producer is quickly rising this year off the back of a number of singles on Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike’s Smash The House imprint, as well as dozens of performances at some of the world’s most prestigious dance music festivals and events. Makasi’s new single displays his impressive skills from inside the studio, curating irresistible dance energy. While most of his recent releases and collaborations were perhaps crafted to cater to the festival stages he regularly performs at, “Lucky” is a mesmerizing combination of house and R&B. Featuring a strong vocal performance from Future Munk, “Lucky” finds Makasi juxtaposing playful chords and melodies with or...
Adventure Club Have an “Old School” Remix Brewing
Adventure Club are enticing fans with a new version of an old adventure. The duo, whose timeless dubstep remixes helped catapult them to the upper echelon of EDM in the early 2010s, recently took to Twitter to tease an “old school” remix in the works. “what would you do if we told you that we’ve got an old school AC remix brewing?” Adventure Club wrote. Adventure Club did not share which track they’ve remixed or when fans can expect a release. But after a fan asked for more information, they responded and said the upcoming song harkens back to their fan-favorite remixes of Metric’s “Collect Call” and Foxes’ “Youth,” which released in 2011 and 2012, respectively. Scroll to Continue Recommended Articles Adventure Club...
Jackson Water Crisis Was A Disaster Years In The Making: Report
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Brad Vest / Getty Here we go again, another water crisis in the “greatest country world” that will affect Black Americans primarily. NPR reports the Jackson water crisis directly results from years of neglect to fix the city’s aging water system. Before last week’s rain caused massive flooding making Mississippi’s capital city’s drinking water undrinkable for more than 150,000 residents, Jackson was already struggling to fix its deteriorating system. Per NPR: For years, residents of the majority-Black city have endured everything from service disruptions and recurring boil-water advisories to concerns over contaminants like lead and E. coli bacteria, thanks to failures to upgrade Jackson’s aging infrastructure. With the city now ...
