Music News
CMA Teams With Discovery Education for Series Highlighting STEAM Careers in Country Music
The Country Music Association (CMA) has teamed with Discovery Education to help students explore various STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) career paths within the country music industry. The program, titled Working in Harmony: Every Voice Is Instrumental, targets students in grades 3-12 and offers several free resources to help students learn about STEAM-based careers in the country music industry. The CMA marks the first music organization to partner with Discovery Education, with the Working in Harmony content being accessible online to 30 million students and 1.3 million educators across the country. “We have been looking at how to engage the next generation of fans with what we are doing in education,” CMA CEO Sarah Trahern tells Billboard. “This program seemed pe...
Britney Spears Says Her Mom ‘Slapped Me So Hard’ After Night of Partying With Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan
Britney Spears wonders what it would be like to slap someone in the face, since she says she’s never done that before. But in an Instagram post on Tuesday (Oct. 12), the “Hold Me Closer” singer revealed that she’s definitely been on the other end of a slap. Cued to the infamous slap-off between Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda in 2005’s Monster-in-Law, the post centered on the first time Brit says she was slapped after a night of going hard with two of Hollywood’s then-finest partiers. “I swear I’ve never slapped anyone my whole life !!! I WOULD GIVE ANYTHING TO SEE WHAT THAT FEELS LIKE … JUST SAYING!!!,” Britney wrote. “The first time I ever got slapped was the one night Paris and Lindsay dropped me off at my beach house with my babies!!!,” she continued. “Kevin [Federline] left me at that p...
How Super Bowl Halftime Shows Lead to Super Sales, From Michael Jackson to Dr. Dre
Ever since Michael Jackson ushered in the blockbuster era of the Super Bowl halftime show when he headlined in 1993, nearly every performer who has graced the stage on sports’ (and TV’s) biggest night has enjoyed sizable boosts in sales and streams. Looking to continue this tradition is Rihanna, who is set to hit the midfield stage early next year when she headlines Super Bowl LVII. With few exceptions, Super Bowl halftime headliners have seen a sizable commercial uptick over the last 30 years. In 2002, U2 saw sales for three of the band’s key albums (All That You Can’t Leave Behind, The Joshua Tree and Best of 1980-1990) more than double in the week following the performance. In 2004, Janet Jackson — in spite of, or perhaps because of, the singer’s infamous “Nipplegate” contro...
Charlie Puth Talks Making ‘Charlie’ Album ‘By Myself’ But Also on Social Media: ‘It Felt Like I Was in the Room With Millions of People’
“I went completely rogue,” Charlie Puth says of how he made his new 12-song album Charlie. “I was by myself when I made the album, but I involved the Internet into the creation of it, so it felt like I was in the room with millions of people.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Puth is speaking about his flourishing social media presence, where millions of followers (including nearly 20 million on TikTok and 17 million on Instagram) have delighted in short videos of the self-confessed “audio dork” joyfully sharing how he makes music at home on his computer. There a clip of him recording a literal light-switch sound and placing it into Charlie’s lead single “Light Switch.” And there’s the snippet of him chatting with an unseen executive who...
Cyndi Lauper Enters Fight For Reproductive Justice With New Fund
Cyndi Lauper launches the Girls Just Want To Have Fundamental Rights Fund, with a mission to support organizations “fighting for the right to abortion and reproductive healthcare.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The veteran singer, songwriter and activist announced the initiative on Oct. 11, the International Day of the Girl and in response to the Supreme Court’s controversial overturning of Roe v. Wade. In addition, Lauper will release limited-edition “Girls Just Want To Have Fundamental Rights” t-shirts, with net proceeds generated from each sale also going toward the fund. Its ambition, reads a statement on Lauper’s official website, is to “support efforts that advance the fundamental rights and health of all women and girls.” The p...
HARDY Photographer Tanner Gallagher Details ‘Terrifying’ Bus Crash: ‘It Was a Miracle That We Survived’
Tanner Gallagher, photographer and videographer with country act HARDY, has shared photos and memories of the “terrifying” bus crash that forced the band off the road and into hospital. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Gallagher was on the tour bus that was involved in a crash early Sunday, Oct. 2 following the band’s appearance at Country Thunder Bristol in Tennessee. No one died in the accident, though Gallagher documents the painful ordeal that left him with broken bones in his foot, a punctured lung, four broken ribs, and a fractured vertebrae in his neck. “It seems like this happened so fast but I feel the need to talk about it officially,” Gallagher writes. “Last week we had one of the most terrifying accidents happen to us. For th...
Which of Angela Lansbury’s Iconic Roles Is Your Favorite? Vote
Angela Lansbury, the three-time Oscar nominee and five-time Tony Award winner died at 96 years old on Tuesday (Oct. 11), just days shy of her 97th birthday on October 16. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The beloved actress was known for a number of legendary roles throughout her decades-long career, including Jessica Fletcher on CBS’ Murder, She Wrote, Eglentine Price in Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), the teapot Mrs. Potts in the animated Beauty and the Beast and many, many more. We want to know which of Lansbury’s many roles is your favorite. Let us know by voting in our poll below. [flexi-common-toolbar] [flexi-form class=”flexi_form_style” title=”Submit to Flexi” name=...
Kelly Clarkson & Sam Smith’s Kellyoke Duet Is a ‘Breakaway’ Smash: Watch
It’s a common occurrence for Kelly Clarkson to have guests on her eponymous talk show, but it’s certainly rare for another guest to join her for the show’s opening Kellyoke bit. Viewers of Tuesday’s (Oct. 11) episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show were treated to the former Voice coach performing a duet of her Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit “Breakaway” with fellow pop hitmaker Sam Smith. Clarkson was first up to the plate for the new version of the track, tackling the emotive opening verse before Smith colored the track with their signature, rich tone. “Trying hard to reach out/ But when I tried to speak out/ Felt like no one could hear me/ Wanted to belong here/ But something felt so wrong here/ So I prayed (I would pray)/ I could break away,” they sang before joining Clarkson for the chorus, t...
Blink-182 Reuniting Classic Lineup With Tom DeLonge For 2023 World Tour, New Single
Blink-182 are getting the band back together. On Tuesday (Oct. 11) the pop-punk trio announced a reunion with former singer/guitarist Tom DeLonge for a 2023 global tour and upcoming single. After twice leaving the band — in 2005 and then again in 2014 — DeLonge is back in the fold alongside singer/bassist Mark Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker for an upcoming Live Nation-promoted tour touted as their biggest international trek ever. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The tour is slated to kick off on March 11 in Tijuana, Mexico at the Imperial GNP festival and keep the band on the road in South America and Mexico through April 12 before shifting to North America on May 4 with a show at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota; those dates will...
Reunited Blink-182, Drake, Billie Eilish to Headline 2023 Lollapalooza Festivals in Chile, Brasil, Argentina
The reunited Blink-182 are among the superstar acts slated to take the stage at the 2023 editions of Lollapalooza in Chile, Argentina and Brazil. Travis, Tom and Mark will be in good company at the top of the bills alongside Drake, Billie Eilish, Lil Nas X, Tame Impala and Rosalía, according to a press release on Tuesday morning (Oct. 11) announcing next year’s lineups. The shows will also boast sets from Jane’s Addiction, The 1975, Jamie XX, Kali Uchis, Alison Wonderland, Omar Apollo and many more. Tickets are on sale now for the South American events, which will take place on March 17-19 (Chile (Parque Bicentenario de Cerrillos), Argentina (Hippodromo de San Isidro) and March 24-26 (Brazil (Autódromo de Interlagos). The Chile edition will also feature performances by Armin Van Buuren, Fr...
Nicki Minaj, Lil Baby, Kane Brown & More ‘Sqaud Up’ for ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II’ Trailer: Watch
Are you ready to squad up? Some of your favorite rappers and pop stars are. On Sunday, Call of Duty released a trailer for the newest installment of its video game series, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, and enlisted a few music industry heavyweights to get fans inspired to play. The trailer kicks off in an airplane hangar, with Lil Baby as a drill sergeant, corralling troops with a cry of “left, left, left, right, left.” His troops — on motorcycles with their engines ready to roar — head out as he shouts “Squad up!” into the hangar. From the interior of a monster truck, Lil Baby sings, “It don’t matter where you’ve been/ Modern Warfare is back again.” Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Kane Brown then swoops in for the assist, from a vastly diff...
Rex Orange County Charged With 6 Counts of Sexual Assault in the U.K.
British singer-songwriter Rex Orange County has been charged with six counts of sexual assault in his native U.K., Billboard has confirmed. The charges stem from an accusation that the artist (born Alexander O’Connor) twice assaulted a woman in the West End on June 1. That was allegedly followed by four additional assaults against the same woman the following day: once in a taxi and three more times at his home in London’s Notting Hill district. On Monday (Oct. 10), O’Connor denied all counts during an appearance at Southwark Crown Court in London. He has been set free on unconditional bail ahead of a provisional trial date on Jan. 3. The news was first reported by The Sun. “Alex is shocked by the allegations which he denies and looks forward to clearing his name in court,” said a represen...
