NEWS
Prince Royce Is Recuperating from COVID-19, Warns Others to Take Precautions
Latin star Prince Royce has divulged that he has COVID-19 and called for others to be aware of the very real dangers of contracting the disease. “It’s so frustrating to me to see people at supermarkets without a mask. It’s so frustrating to me to see that people are being irresponsible and not protecting others,” Royce said in an interview with the Associated Press. That false sense of security, he said, is what led him to speak out. “Just because you’re young doesn’t mean that you’re not gonna get it,” said Royce, who is 31 years old. “I’m hoping that my story can educate the youth, the people that are trying to go out this weekend because of the holiday.” In the AP article, Royce says he doesn’t know how or when he got infected, but thinks it happened while dining out after restaurants a...
First Stream Latin: New Music by Greeicy, Georgel and More
“First Stream Latin” is a compilation of the best new Latin songs, albums and videos recommended by the Billboard Latin editors. Check out this week’s picks below. Greeicy, “Los Consejos” (Universal Music Latin) Hunkered down in Colombia because of the coronavirus quarantine, Greeicy continues creating music with accompanying heartfelt videos. Following “Los Besos,” released in the midst of lockdown, the Colombian pop artist presents “Los Consejos.” The romantic ballad-turned-pop with hints of vallenato and reggaeton is about life lessons and the importance of following advice from your loved ones. “Mama told me to be careful because you can lose what you neglect, and she was right,” Greeicy chants. “It hurts to love you and you’re so far/ I had faith that we would grow o...
Kanye West, Ellie Goulding, Pop Smoke and More: What’s Your Favorite New Music Release? Vote!
This week’s new music releases brought fans a variety of new tunes from some of today’s hottest rappers, rock legends, pop songstresses and country stars. Pop Smoke returned with a posthumous album featuring a star-studded track list, Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello brought a politically righteous tune, and Kanye West teamed with Travis Scott for a fiery examination of injustice, and Ty Dolla $ign recruited the best and brightest for his new track. Elsewhere, Ellie Goulding delivered an emotionally intelligent track with the help of Lauv, Chris Young reflected upon the wonder of the commonplace, and Sufjan Stevens prodded at America’s problems in a 12-minute epic. So, with so much to choose from, Billboard wants to know which new music release is your favorit...
Jason Isbell Shares Demo of ‘Maybe, It’s Time’ From A Star Is Born
When it was released in 2018, folks raved about the music in the latest incarnation of A Star Is Born. The songs were the centerpiece (obviously) and with a strong group of songwriters, some even topped of the charts. One of the more emotional points of the movie is when Bradley Cooper’s Jackson Maine sings “Maybe, It’s Time,” an acoustic tune that he sings in a drag bar as Lady Gaga’s Ally looks on. The song sets the tone for the rest of the story. The song debuted at no. 93 on the Billboard 100 and ended up climbing to the sixth spot in the Digital Songs chart. Now, as part of Bandcamp’s “Fee-Free Fridays,” Jason Isbell has shared the demo he cut of “Maybe, It’s Time.” The song was recorded by Dave Cobb in Nashville’s famed RCA Studio A. Isbell also shared “Alabama Sk...
Evanescence Share Kaleidoscopic Video for ‘The Game Is Over’
A few days after sharing the audio, Evanescence has released the video for “The Game Is Over,” the second single to arrive from The Bitter Truth, which is the group’s first studio album of originals in nine years. The video, which was shot by the band on their respective iPhones and directed by P.R. Brown, is a stark look at the chaos that the past few months have wrought on folks’ mental health (which is a theme that the song tackles). Here’s what Lee had to say about the song: This song is about being sick of the facade. The disguises we wear for others to make them feel comfortable, the inside feelings being so different than what we show on the outside to fit within the boundaries of what’s socially acceptable, or what’s not going to make you unpleasant or too ‘weird’ to be around...
Duffy Writes Open Letter to Netflix to Remove 365 Days
Earlier this year, British singer Duffy reemerged after a lengthy, mysterious absence. We found out in a lengthy essay that the singer had been kidnapped and raped, but now, she’s using her platform to help victims. In an open letter, Duffy is asking Netflix CEO Reed Hastings to remove the Polish film 365 Days, a film she says “glamorizes the brutal reality of sex trafficking, kidnapping and rape,” from the platform. The film was released earlier this year in Poland. Duffy wants Netflix to produce content pertaining to the global problem of kidnapping and sex trafficking. “Today, I really don’t know what to think, say, or do, other than to reach out and explain to you in this letter how irresponsible it was of Netflix to broadcast the film 365 Days,” she wrote. “I don’t want...
DJ Akademiks Suspended From Complex For Slandering Chrissy Teigen, Freddie Gibbs Approves
Source: Earl Gibson III / Getty DJ Akademiks took an L, but Freddie Gibbs wasn’t involved just yet—but he does approve. The divisive, to say the least, “blogger” and host has been suspended from Complex News after calling Chrissy Teigen out of her name. On Tuesday (June 30), Akademiks jumped out the window when he came for John Legend’s wife while he was streaming on Twitch. Her crime was allegedly sneak dissing him. “It’s bewildering to me. His bitch be talking mad sh*t online,” said Akademiks, referring to Teigen. “What’s… I dislike this b*tch so much, I can’t even lie to you. One time she sneak-dissed me so f*ck that hoe. Straight up and John Legend could hear that. Don’t have your b*tch dissing me because I don’t give two f*cks about none of y’all n*ggas.” That was only the beginning a...
The NBA Season Might Be A Wash Due To COVID-19 Says Commissioner Adam Silver
Source: Harry How / Getty One of America’s favorite pastimes might not have a run in 2020. Coronavirus is making the National Basketball League resuming its 2020 season very doubtful. In the recent weeks several professional ballers have contracted COVID-19. While the confirmations are alarming the timing of these cases is also putting an spotlight of uncertainty on basketball as a whole. So much so that the season might be scrapped. As spotted on TMZ NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is expressing some concern about commencing with the 2020-2021 schedule. On a recent appearance on TIME 100 Talks he revealed that he has some serious concerns about the current climate. “Certainly if we had a lot of cases, we are going to stop. You cannot run from this virus” he explained. “We and our p...
Sufjan Stevens Releases 12-Minute Protest Song ‘America’
Earlier in the week, Sufjan Stevens announced that he’d be releasing his first solo studio album in five years. Now, we have the first single from The Ascension. Album closer “America,” is a long one, 12-and-a-half minutes to be precise. But the song — just like the album — Stevens says is an indictment of a world that’s falling apart around us and against the slickness that encompasses us. “I was dumbfounded by the song when I first wrote it,” Stevens said in a statement. “Because it felt vaguely mean-spirited and miles away from everything else on Carrie & Lowell. So I shelved it. But when I dug up the demo a few years later I was shocked by its prescience. I could no longer dismiss it as angry and glib. The song was clearly articulating something prophetic and true, e...
Nick Cave’s ‘Idiot Prayer’ Virtual Concert Will Feature ‘Rare Tracks’
Nick Cave, like the rest of us, is stuck in lockdown and waiting for the (coronavirus) cloud to lift. He’s not been sat idle. Just last month, the veteran Australian singer, songwriter and bandleader shot Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at London’s Alexandra Palace, footage from which will stream in full on July 23. The ARIA Hall of Fame-inducted artist performed songs from his back catalogue, including early Bad Seeds and Grinderman, through to the most recent Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds album, Ghosteen, and “rare tracks that most fans will be hearing for the first time,” reads a statement. Idiot Prayer was filmed by the acclaimed cinematographer Robbie Ryan (The Favourite, Marriage Story, American Honey) in Ally Pally’s cavernous West Hall, a venue he filled out 15 years ago, well before...
Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour Shares First Solo Song in Five Years, ‘Yes, I Have Ghosts’: Listen
Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour returns with “Yes, I Have Ghosts,” his first new song in five years. It’s a gentle, acoustic number with flourishes of strings. On it, Gilmour sings, “Yes, I have ghosts, not all of them dead/ Making dust of my dreams, spinning round and around, around in my head.” “Ghosts” isn’t so much a solo tune as a Gilmour family effort. The song accompanies the release of his wife Holly Samson’s audiobook for her coming-of-age novel A Theatre for Dreamers, and features daughter Romany on vocals. The audiobook format “has so much untapped potential,” comments Gilmour in a statement, “and I am surprised more musicians have not creatively collaborated with authors, narrators and audiobook producers in this way before. The two worlds seem to sea...
Guy Sebastian’s Former Manager Titus Day Arrested For Allegedly Defrauding Singer
Chart-topping Australian pop singer Guy Sebastian says he’s “absolutely devastated” by allegations his former manager Titus Day had ripped him off to the tune of more than A$1 million ($690,000). Day was arrested Wednesday night (July 1) at his home in Bondi, Sydney and was charged with multiple fraud offences. New South Wales police allege Day defrauded Sebastian of A$1.15 million ($800,000) over a seven-years period, from December 2013. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Day is facing 61 counts of dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception. On Thursday, he was granted bail at Waverley Court, under the condition that he surrenders his passport, puts up a A$10,000 surety and he is not to contact Sebastian. The court heard that Day, who worked w...
