Pop
How Britney Spears’ ‘I’m A Slave 4 U’ Shifted Her Career and Pop’s Direction
Spears continued to raise her own bar sonically and stylistically, and her first three albums, released in back-to-back-to-back years, couldn’t have been a better character arc. If 1999’s…Baby One More Time showcased her girl next door likability with a schoolgirl uniform and pigtails, and Oops!… I Did It Again (2000) found her slowly chipping away at her perceived purity with videos featuring chair-straddling dance solos, then Britney (2001) was the culmination of those bubblegum-wrapped eras bursting once and for all, as she proved she really was “not that innocent.” Britney’s lead single “I’m A Slave 4 U” (originally intended for Janet herself) carries a thematic double-entendre. During MTV’s 2001 “Making The Video” episode for the song, Spears said it’s about being “enraptu...
Five Burning Questions: Lil Nas X’s ‘Montero’ Debuts Atop the Hot 100
1. “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” is now Lil Nas X’s second career No. 1 single after debuting atop the Hot 100. On a scale of 1-10, how surprised are you that “Montero” was the song to return Nas to the chart penthouse? Andrew Unterberger: If you had asked me two Fridays ago when I heard the song for the first time, I would’ve said a 9 at least — it didn’t sound like an obvious hit to me, and obviously Lil Nas X’s chart track record since “Old Town Road” has been respectable, but not automatic-number-one respectable. But after a couple days of Internet-wide back-and-forth over the song and its video, that number would’ve dropped to a 4 or 5, and then by mid-last week, I would’ve been surprised if it didn’t go to No. 1. Lil Nas X...
Mariah Carey Posts Throwback Video of High-Heeled Treadmill Workout
Snoop Dogg plays the voice of her dog in the MTV promo clip. Whatever your pandemic workout regime has been, old school Mariah Carey has you beat. The singer posted a throwback clip early Tuesday morning (April 6) from the Music Box era in 1993 in which she teaches us all a lesson or two about proper exercise technique. In the MTV promo video, Carey is walking on a treadmill in a black tank top and shorts, accented by matching high heels, of course, next to her adorable dog, who is strolling on a matching machine while rocking a red sweater. As she works her arms back and forth, Carey snaps a heel and exclaims, “S–t! I can’t even believe this. Nine hundred dollars [and] you can’t even frickin’ go on the treadmill in them!” Exasperated, Carey tosses the s...
Lil Nas X’s ‘Montero (Call Me by Your Name)’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100
“Montero,” released March 26 on Columbia Records, is the 1,120th No. 1 in the Hot 100’s 62-year history. It’s the 51st single to debut at No. 1, and Lil Nas X’s first. “Montero” drew 46.9 million U.S. streams and sold 21,000 downloads in the week ending April 1, according to MRC Data. It also attracted 1.1 million radio airplay audience impressions in the week ending April 4. The track opens at No. 1 on the Streaming Songs chart, where it’s Lil Nas X’s second leader, after “Old Town Road” ruled for a record 20 weeks, and No. 2 on Digital Song Sales. It was available in three versions in its first week: its original version; its “Satan’s Extended Version”; and its “But Lil Nas X Is Silent the Entire Ti...
The Isley Brothers vs. Earth, Wind & Fire in Funk Legends ‘Verzuz’ Battle: See Billboard’s Scorecard For the Event
Hosted (with a somewhat heavy touch) by star comedian Steve Harvey, and with music courtesy of veteran DJ and quarantine-era sensation D-Nice, the event was clearly going to be a special one even before the two groups began spinning. D Nice span ’80s classics from Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan, before Harvey introduced himself, offered a prayer for “down bad” Verzuz veteran DMX, and raved about the formative importance of the two groups in his own life: “These groups made me. This music shaped me.” See Billboard‘s round-by-round scorecard for the epic showdown below — a supersized 25-round match, in accordance with the bands’ stunningly expansive catalogues — with our final winner tallied up and declared at the bottom. Round 1: The ...
Justin Bieber Surprise Releases ‘Freedom’ EP
Freedom‘s track list includes six songs: title track “Freedom” with Beam, “All She Wrote” (feat. Brandon Love and Chandler Moore), “We’re in This Together,” “Where You Go I Follow” (feat. Pink Sweats, Chandler Moore and Judah Smith), “Where Do I Fit In” (feat. Tori Kelly, Chandler Moore and Judah Smith) and “Afraid to Say” (feat. Lauren Walters). The Freedom EP follows the release of Bieber’s sixth album, Justice, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The 16-track set, released through Raymond Braun/Def Jam on March 18, follows his 2020 album, Changes. Justice was previewed by a quartet of top 40-charting hits on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart: “Holy” featuring Chance the Rapper...
Mariah Carey’s COVID-19 Vaccine Has Her Hitting a High Note
Mariah Carey brought her fans with her to get the COVID-19 vaccine — virtually, of course. The singer filmed herself getting her first dose of the vaccine, and her reaction to the shot turned out to be quite the musical moment. “Vaccine side effect: G6,” she quipped in a caption for Saturday night’s (April 3) social media clip, which shows her talking to the camera as she waits, “excited and nervous a little,” for the COVID-19 vaccine to be administered. As the needle goes in, a Mariah high note comes out. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing ph...
Taylor Swift Reveals ‘Fearless (Taylor’s Version)’ Collabs With Keith Urban: See the Full Track List
She added, “I’m counting down the minutes til we can all jump into this brave world together, filled with equal parts nostalgia and brand newness. Head first, Fearless.” Urban might be one of the biggest Swifties out there, calling the “Lover” title track from her 2019 album “so exquisitely written” and “so gorgeously crafted.” He later told Billboard at the 2020 Grammy Awards that he considers Swift to be “one of the greatest songwriters period.” Swift’s forthcoming album includes re-recordings of the original Fearless songs, along with six never-before-released “From the Vault” songs, including “Mr. Perfectly Fine,” “Don’t You” and “Bye Bye Baby.” In late Marc...
Song of the Week: Indianapolis Hip-Hop Trio 81355 Bury the Past in Hope of a Better Future on “Capstone”
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, hip-hop trio 81355 return with the second single off their upcoming, full-length debut. If there’s any initial impression to be gathered from hip-hop trio 81355, comprised of three staples of the Indianapolis music scene (Sirius Blvck, Oreo Jones, and Sedcairn Archives), it’s that great music can come from anywhere. It’s commonplace to see artists emerging from the expected staples — Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Nashville — and, so often, it’s harder to find gems like 81355. This collaborative effort has alre...
Demi Lovato Rises Again on Dancing with the Devil…The Art of Starting Over: Review
The Lowdown: With a voice as big as the sky, it’s hard to figure out where to go first — but that’s not going to stop Demi Lovato from trying. It never has. Dancing with the Devil…The Art of Starting Over is the seventh full-length album from the child actress turned teen phenomenon turned pop star and arrives almost four years after 2017’s often sultry, R&B-infused Tell Me You Love Me. Her discography has effectively captured many parts of the rollercoaster she has endured: even in her earliest efforts, Don’t Forget and Here We Go Again, her vocal prowess is undeniable. (Demi Lovato could still put out a great pop-punk album if she were to so choose.) She is a remarkably gifted natural vocalist. Lovato has also had a lion’s share of trials and tribulations, almost all of which have un...
From Demi Lovato to Adam Lambert, Here Are 7 of the Best ‘Mad World’ Covers
Even though Tears for Fears’ original version never charted, “Mad World” has lived on for nearly 40 years thanks to various covers. Below, Billboard rounds up some of the best interpretations of “Mad World,” starting with the most recent. Demi Lovato (2021) Lovato included her cover of “Mad World” in her seventh studio album Dancing With the Devil… The Art of Starting Over after rediscovering it during a Big Bear, Calif. trip. “I saw this song in Donnie Darko when I was 14 and have listened to it over and over,” she said in the album’s editor notes on Apple Music. Her subdued cover feels like the perfect B-side to her 2008 song “La La Land,” which speaks to working in the Hollywood “...
Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande & J Balvin to Reap Millions in HYBE Deal to Buy Ithaca Holdings
This isn’t the first time artists have received shares from HYBE. When the company went public last October on the Korean stock exchange, the seven members of BTS each got shares valued at $8 million. But sources say the equity being awarded to Ithaca’s artists is coming out of Braun’s stake. HYBE, the company behind powerhouse K-pop group BTS, said Friday (April 2) that it would pay $1.05 billion in cash and shares to acquire Ithaca Holdings, in a move designed to help the Korean company establish a strong U.S. presence in music and entertainment while also heightening its profile for American financial investors. According to terms of the deal, which is expected to close in about a month, ...
