Pop
Britney Spears Called 911 to Report Conservatorship Abuse on Eve of Public Testimony
The New Yorker has published an extensive new investigation into Britney Spears‘ ongoing conservatorship battle. Written by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ronan Farrow and Jia Tolentino, the piece sheds new light on the circumstances leading to the court-appointed conservatorship, Britney’s medical treatment and state of mind, and the pop star’s multi-year quest to end it. Notably, on the eve of last month’s hearing, Farrow and Tolentino report that Britney called 911 to report herself as a victim of conservatorship abuse. After learning of the call, members of Britney’s team reportedly began “texting one another frantically… worried about what Spears might say the next day, and they discussed how to prepare in the event that she went rogue.” The next day Britney did in fact go “ro...
Taylor Swift Shows Off ‘Renegade’ Photo by Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds’ Daughter James
In Reynolds’ snapshot, Swift stands amid a bright blue sky while wearing a white patterned dress and holding a small colorful cloth. The collage also features a publicity photo of Big Red Machine, along with images of water droplets and red roses. Lyrics from “Renegade” — “I tapped on the window on your darkest night” and “The shape of you” — also appear in the artwork. This isn’t the first time the trio has teamed up. Dessner co-wrote and co-produced the bulk of Swift’s blockbuster 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore, and Vernon was featured on and co-wrote Folklore‘s “Exile” and Evermore‘s title track. This time around, Swift is playing in the duo’s sandbox, joining Big Red Machine for one of th...
Cop Plays Taylor Swift While Confronting Protestors So Video of Conflict Will Get Pulled for Copyright Infringement
During a July 1st protest at the Alameda County Courthouse, a cop played a Taylor Swift song on his phone so that footage of the conflict would get pulled from YouTube for copyright infringement. Via Gizmodo, Sheriff’s deputy David Shelby had been arguing with James Burch, the policy director for the Anti-Police Terror Project. Amid a disagreement about whether a banner constituted a “tripping hazard,” Shelby suddenly pulled out his phone and began playing Swift’s 2014 single “Blank Space.” “I don’t know why — are we having a dance party now?” Burch asked. Shelby said, “You can record all you want. I just know it can’t be posted on YouTube.” Related Video Shelby was relying on YouTube’s Content ID system, which scans videos against a database of copyrighted materials in orde...
Grimes Next Album Will Be a “Space Opera” About a Lesbian Romance Between Two AIs
Forget lions and tigers and bears, Grimes is offering lesbians and space and love, AI! The enigmatic pop star has shared an update about her next album, and she says it’s a “space opera” about two artificial intelligences that “fall into a lesbian romance.” Via AV Club, details about the follow-up to her 2020 album Miss Anthropocene come from a surprisingly lengthy comment on an Instagram post. After one person asked about the “vibez” on her next project, Grimes did not hold back. She wrote, “It’s a space opera about CLAIRE DE LUNE—an artificial courtesan who was implanted in a simulation that is a memory of the A.I. creation story on Earth from the brain of the engineer who invented A.I. because he wants to relive his life but see if his perfect dream girl could team him to...
A Timeline of Britney Spears’ Conservatorship
Spears’ voice was finally heard in a rare court appearance in June 2021 when Britney explicitly addressed her desire to end her “abusive” conservatorship and went into painstaking detail about how much control she’s been under. Billboard compiled a timeline of the major markers in Britney Spears’ conservatorship over the last decade-plus. Jan. 3 and 31, 2008: Britney Goes to the Hospital on a 5150 Hold Twice Britney is taken to UCLA Medical Center and placed on a psychiatric hold for mental evaluation, otherwise known as a 5150 hold, after refusing to relinquish custody of her children to her ex-husband and the father of her sons, Kevin Federline. Weeks later, Britney returns to the hospital under the same 5150 psychiatric hold. Feb. 1, 2008: Britney Is ...
Song of the Week: Big Red Machine and Taylor Swift Debut a Stirring Summer Collab With “Renegade”
Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, a tender new track from Big Red Machine and Taylor Swift is a welcome summer listen. For someone in a seemingly vibrant and loving relationship, Taylor Swift still knows exactly how to write about heartbreak. “Renegade” reunites Swift with folklore and evermore collaborators Aaron Dessner (of The National) and Justin Vernon (of Bon Iver), who have recently joined forces to create Big Red Machine. Swift has been honing her craft for more than a decade, exploring different production styles and avenues of storytelling, but she...
María Isabel Signs To Warner Records, Releases ‘No Soy Para Ti’ Single: Exclusive
The Queens native released her first track, “The 1,” in 2020, after spending multiple years developing her songwriting technique. Her debut EP, Stuck in the Sky, demonstrated a poetic flair within both Spanish and English lyrics, and was followed by the two-track release of “Buy Your Own Flowers” and “Love song” earlier this year. “Beyond her sheer talent, there is a unique passion, vulnerability and intelligence present in María’s music and lyrics that immediately draws you in,” says Dominique Maldonado, Warner Records’ senior director of A&R. “María shows up unabashedly as herself in everything that she does, and I know she’s going to continue to inspire as the world gets to know her.” In the “No Soy Para Ti” music video, which was directed by Alfred Marroquin, Isabel returns h...
Justin Bieber, Tori Kelly, Jaden Smith to Headline ‘Freedom Experience’ at SoFi Stadium
“1DayLA and The Freedom Experience live concert event showcase the power and beauty of a city coming together,” said Dominic Russo of 1DayLA in a statement. “In the wake of a sustained season of crisis and isolation, people desperately need authentic expressions of hope, help, and love. This will be an unforgettable opportunity to celebrate and dynamically impact communities across Los Angeles.” According to the statement, Bieber was inspired to join the 1DayLA movement “because of his strong and long-held belief that giving of ourselves in service to others is one of the most important things we can do. Bieber is committed to the powerful idea that a movement for change can start with individuals helping one another and their community.” The release announcing the event said t...
Bobby Brown vs. Keith Sweat in Essence Verzuz Battle of R&B Icons: Billboard’s Scorecard & Winner For the Showdown
“This is truly a celebration of two giants of the culture…” DJ Cassidy enthused later in the evening and he couldn’t be more on target. Bobby Brown’s career soared in the mid-‘80s as part of the omnipresent R&B boy band New Edition — and while he ventured out on his own in 1987 with a built-in fanbase, Keith Sweat was finding his place on the Billboard 100 for the first time with hits like “Make It Last Forever” and “I Want Her” from his debut album. As the lights brightened in the venue, the two sat across from each other, backs straightened against ornate thrones, ready to prove why they’ve long been crowned kings. Here’s how Billboard scored their showdown. Round 1: Keith Sweat’s “Something Just Ain’t Right” vs. Bobby Brown’s “Don’t Be Cruel” Sweat...
BTS Perform “Butter” and “Dynamite” for SiriusXM: Watch
BTS were guests on the SiriusXM show HITS 1 on 1 on Thursday, sitting down for an interview and a spectacular two-part performance of “Dynamite” and “Butter”. After a brief remote chat with SiriusXM hosts Tony Fly and Symon in which they hyped up their upcoming single “Permission to Dance”, BTS put on an award ceremony-worthy performance. Look, at this point it’s not really shocking that the Bangtan Boys can put more production into a single TV appearance than most artists do in a music video, but it’s still pretty amazing to see every time. Things kicked off simply enough, with BTS sitting in a loft set on some midcentury modern couches. They had as much fun playing off each other during “Dynamite” as they would on a helipad, getting up to dance through the final chorus. As the song ...
Iggy Azalea Claims Britney Spears’ Dad Made Her Sign an NDA Before a Performance
“During the time we worked together in 2015, I personally witnessed the same behavior Britney detailed in regards to her father last week and I just want to back her up & tell the world that: She is not exaggerating or lying,” Azalea wrote. “I saw her restricted from even the most bizarre & trivial things: like how many sodas she was allowed to drink. Why is that even necessary. “Her father conveniently waited until literally moments before our [Billboard Music Awards] performance when I was backstage in the dressing room & told me if I did not sign an NDA he would not allow me on stage,” the rapper claimed. “The way he went about getting me to sign a contract, sounded similar to the tactics Britney spoke about last week in reg...
Bessemer Trust Requests to Withdraw as Co-Conservator of Britney Spears’ Estate
Bessemer Trust has officially requested to discontinue its role as co-conservator over Britney Spears’ estate amidst the pop star’s ongoing fight to end the conservatorship that has governed her life for the last 13 years. The wealth management company, which was appointed to serve alongside the icon’s father Jamie Spears in the fall of 2020, filed the motion on July 1st citing “changed circumstances” surrounding the conservatorship, according to The New York Times. “As a result of the conservatee’s testimony at the June 23 hearing, however, the Petitioner has become aware that the Conservatee objects to the continuance of her Conservatorship and desires to terminate the conservatorship,” the company wrote in its filing. “Petitioner has heard the Conservatee and respects her wishes.” ...
