entertainment blog
SZA’s ‘Ctrl’ Returns to No. 1 on Top R&B Albums Chart After Five Years
SZA‘s Ctrl is back at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top R&B Albums chart for the first time in almost five years. The 2017 record jumped from No. 4 and follows the release of Ctrl (Deluxe). SZA’s debut record earned a total of 32,000 equivalent albums in the week ending June 16, including 30,000 in streaming (39.4 million on-demand streams of the songs), under 2,000 in album sales and the remaining from track equivalent album units. In addition to its return to the top, the previously-unreleased cuts that arrived with the deluxe album also debuted on the Hot R&B Songs chart: No. 9, “Tread Carefully”No. 10, “2 AM”No. 16, “Percolator”No. 17, “Awkward”No. 18, “Miles”No. 19, “Jodie” Earlier this year, the TDE staple confirmed that her new album will be dropping this summer. “My album is finally...
Get “Lost” In Papa Khan’s Emotive New EP
Papa Khan‘s debut Monstercat EP is his most emotive to date. The Class of 2021 star has finally dropped Lost, a five-track EP from one of the most influential figures in the color bass genre. The record features a trio of previously released tracks: “Get to U,” “The Tide” and the pop-punk-inspired Valentine’s Day anthem “Never Cared.” New additions to Khan’s arsenal are “So Far Away” and “Beg for U.” The former features intimate lyrics about love and love lost, soundtracked by yet another instant-classic bassline from the genre-bending Indonesian producer. The latter of the new singles begins with softly-spoken lyricism before cutting into a twinkly bass drop filled with frenetic synths for a chaotic ye...
Watch Kendrick Lamar Perform at Louis Vuitton’s Paris Fashion Week Showcase
Kendrick Lamar performed a suite of Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers tracks today during a Louis Vuitton showcase at Paris Fashion Week. His appearance was the crux of a short film the luxury fashion brand released as part of its Spring-Summer 2023 launch. Check that out below; he shows up around the 13-minute mark. During the grand production, Lamar, who performed while seated among the crowd in a crown of thorns, paid tribute to Louis Vuitton’s late creative director Virgil Abloh, riffing on a “Long Live Virgil” mantra around the 25-minute mark. Lamar, who recently visited Accra, Ghana, that was captured in a mini-documentary, will headline Glastonbury on Sunday, June 26. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers had the biggest No. 1 debut of 2022. Content This content can also be viewed on th...
Kacey Musgraves, Nilüfer Yanya, More Announced for Adele’s Hyde Park Show
Kacey Musgraves and Nilüfer Yanya have been announced among the openers for Adele’s forthcoming two-night stand at London’s Hyde Park. Gabrielle, Mahalia, Self Esteem, and Chrissi will take the stage, along with Tiana Major9, Bonnie Kemplay, Ruti, and Tamzene. The shows are set to happen on July 1 and 2. Adele announced the Hyde Park shows—her first since 2017—a few weeks before she released her fourth album, 30, in November 2021. She was supposed to start a Las Vegas residency in late January, but she postponed it indefinitely one day before the shows were set to begin. Earlier this year, Adele performed 30’s “I Drink Wine” at the BRIT Awards, where she also won the evening’s trophies for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year (“Easy on Me”). In May, Time named her to...
One of Music’s Biggest Wholesalers Is Going Public
Alliance Entertainment, the giant music, video and gaming wholesaler, will be going public and trade on the New York Stock exchange, the company announced Thursday (June 23). The public listing will be done through a reverse merger with Adara Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The deal is subject to the approval of the shareholders of Adara Acquisition Corp., which trades on NYSE under the symbol ADARA. If the deal closes — as expected in the fall — Alliance Entertainment will trade under the symbol AENT. The deal has assigned Alliance Entertainment a pre-deal valuation of $480 million. Alliance Entertainment serves as a one-stop for all titles to brick-and-mortar and online retailers. In the first nine-months of its fiscal year ended March 31, the compan...
Shakira Earns First No. 1 on Billboard Argentina Hot 100 Alongside Rauw Alejandro With ‘Te Felicito’
Shakira scores her first No. 1 on the Billboard Argentina Hot 100 chart as “Te Felicito,” with Rauw Alejandro, lifts 2-1 on the June 18-dated ranking. The track trades places with TINI’s “La Triple T,” through a 1-2 dip, after its fifth consecutive week at the lead. It’s the first win for Shakira, dating back to her maiden visit to the tally with the top 20 “Clandestino,” with Maluma, in 2018. The “Te Felicito” climb, meanwhile, marks Rauw Alejandro’s third No. 1 among a collection of 33 entries: “Tattoo,” with Camilo (July 2020), “Todo de Ti” (June 2021), both one-week champs, and now “Te Felicito.” The Argentina Hot 100 ranks the most popular songs within Argentina. The ranking is based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-...
Tems’ ‘Free Mind’ Hits No. 1 on U.S. Afrobeats Songs Chart
Tems secures a piece of history as the first woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart as “Free Mind” rises from No. 3 to crown the list dated June 25. The track becomes the chart’s third overall leader since it launched this April. The Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart ranks the 50 most popular Afrobeats songs in the country based on a weighted formula incorporating official streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of leading audio and video music services, plus download sales from top music retailers. [embedded content] In the latest tracking week, which ended June 16, “Free Mind” registered 4.3 million official U.S. streams, down 1% compared to the previous week, according to Luminate. Though the song first appeared on Tems’ 2020 album, For Broken Ea...
Here’s Why Dua Lipa Can Be Sued for Posting Photos of Herself
For the second time in a year, Dua Lipa is facing a lawsuit over posting a paparazzi picture of herself to her Instagram account. In a suit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in California, New York-based photographer Robert Barbera claims that the singer committed copyright infringement by posting pics he took of her to the platform in July 2018. On the surface, it might seem odd that a celebrity can be sued for posting a picture of themselves on social media. But in these cases, the law is fairly clear on what rights stars have when it comes to this corner of the intellectual property world. “Generally, under U.S. copyright law, the person who ‘authored’ a work is the copyright owner,” reads an explainer article posted by the business/entertainment Romano Law firm on the subject in N...
Normani’s Appearance In Chris Brown’s New Video Is Not Receiving A Warm Embrace On Twitter
HipHopWired Featured Video CLOSE Source: Frazer Harrison / Getty Chris Brown is gearing up to drop his next album, “BREEZY,” and his new single “WE (Warm Embrace)” features a new visual starring Normani, and she is receiving a lot of flack for being in it. Chris Brown Can’t Escape His Past Brown’s past accusations of being a colorist and his physical abuse of ex-love interests Rihanna and Karrueche continue to haunt him. At the same time, it’s also shining a spotlight on Black women who continue to work with him despite his well-documented issues. Former Fifth Harmony member, now bubbling solo artist Normani is receiving a lot of criticism for her appearance in Brown’s latest video that features them performing a sensual dance number. In a post sharing the clip from the video, Normani wrot...
Andrew Gillum Charged With Conspiracy, Wire Fraud & False Statements
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Joe Raedle / Getty Andrew Gillum, the former mayor of Tallahassee, Fla., was well on his way to becoming a true superstar of the Democratic Party. After running into some legal issues that heavily impacted his rise in politics, Gillum is now facing a series of charges, including conspiracy, wire fraud, and false statements. On Wednesday (June 22), the Justice Department issued a statement by way of the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Florida laying out the charges that Gillum, 42, and his associate, Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, 53, currently face. The charges state that between a period of time between 2016 and 2019, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks, both of Tallahassee, allegedly gave false promises to a variety of individuals and entities that...
Ms. Lauryn Hill, Lil Baby, Gucci Mane & More To Rock ONE Musicfest
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: ONE Musicfest / ONE Musicfest ONE Musicfest makes its return this coming October in the heart of Atlanta, featuring some of the city’s top acts alongside stars from other regions. Ms. Lauryn Hill, Lil. Baby, Gucci Mane, Rick Ross, Jeezy, and more are among the top headliners for this year’s festival. Taking place in Atlanta’s Central Park, the festival will be a two-day affair featuring top Hip-Hop, R&B, and Dancehall acts on the stacked bill. Along with the aforementioned acts, Beenie Man, Tems, Ashanti & Ja Rule, Victoria Monet, Lupe Fiasco, and Saucy Santana are also slated to perform. Along with the acts, two special showcases will take place in the DJ Kash Carribeean Experience and The Big Facts Mixtape session. Related Stories “We are super ...
Robin S Thanks Beyoncé For Sampling “Show Me Love” On “Break My Soul”
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Gilbert Carrasquillo / Getty The 1993 house music classic, “Show Me Love,” by Robin S is getting a rebirth thanks to the new single “Break My Soul” by Beyoncé off her forthcoming seventh studio album, Renaissance. In an interview on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, the house music legend took the time to thank the iconic singer for sampling her song. “This is Robin S, and this message goes out to the Queen Bey herself, Beyoncé, to Jay-Z, to the entire team,” she said during her interview. “Thank you so much for giving me my flowers while I’m still alive. I am honored, and I’m excited to see what else can happen.” Related Stories According to Variety, Robin found out about the song’s usage from her son who told her that she was trending after the release ...
