Music News

Music notes: Doja Cat, Dua Lipa and more

Posted yesterday at 4:30pm

Doja Cat prepared for the "Sleeping Beauties" Met Gala theme a bit early. On Sunday, May 5, Doja was spotted wearing what appeared to be a dress designed to look like bed linens. Wrapped in the white sheet, Doja made a trip to a Cartier store with fashion designer Guram Gvasalia. She posted about the outing on Instagram.

Amazon Music is giving Dua Lipa fans a brand-new way to listen to her newest album, Radical Optimism. A track-by-track playlist experience infused with commentary from Dua is now available to stream on the platform. With the new playlist, which includes excerpts from Dua's interview with Zach Sang, fans can go behind the scenes of Dua's songwriting process and learn the meaning behind the track "Maria."

Two major pop queens met up over the weekend. Janet Jackson stopped by Kylie Minogue's Las Vegas residency show on Saturday, May 4. Janet posted pictures with Kylie to her Instagram. "So glad I got the chance to see my friend @kylieminogue perform tonite," she captioned her post.

Jennifer Lopez on touring with kids, Met Gala gown: "It's not about comfort"

Posted yesterday at 3:49pm

Jennifer Lopez will walk the red carpet at the 2024 Met Gala on May 6, and while she's focused on that, she's also making plans for the summer. Specifically, she wants to convince her twins, Max and Emme, to join her on her upcoming tour.

"I feel like this is the last time that I'll get to do something like this with them," J-Lo told GMA. "They're 16, and next time they're gonna be like, 'No, Mom.'"

She said she's still "negotiating" with her kids about when they'll join her on the road, but she's hoping it'll be for the month of July. Her tour runs from June through August in support of her latest album, This Is Me... Now.

"I'm gonna use the last little bit of force I have on them to be like, 'You have to come at least for a little while,'" she added. "Hopefully they'll acquiesce to that."

As for the Met Gala, Jennifer — who's one of the star-studded event's co-chairs — wouldn't dish on her dress, except to say that she's "barely" able to walk in it. "The Met Gala looks ... it's not about comfort," she laughed.

Jennifer also talked about her upcoming movie, Atlas, in which she stars as a data analyst who must overcome her distrust for artificial intelligence, and other people, to survive. She said reading the script made her "sob at the end."

"My character is disconnected ... hasn't let anybody in. Doesn't trust AI, doesn't trust people, feels they always disappoint. And little by little, this AI kind of chips away at her, chips away at her soul," she said. "Together, they kind of become more human."

Atlas begins streaming on Netflix on May 24.

Britney Spears denies "breakdown" reports: "I wish my life was as wild as it has been portrayed!!!"

Posted yesterday at 3:15pm

Britney Spears took to Instagram on May 6 to state once and for all that she did not have a "breakdown" at the Chateau Marmont, as has been reported.

"I honestly wish my life was as wild as it has been portrayed !!! Either way, some s*** actually has happened to my foot and I might have to get surgery ... fingers crossed, hopefully not," she wrote. On May 3, she'd posted footage of her swollen foot, which she explained she'd sprained at the hotel on May 2.

Explaining why she was photographed clutching a pillow, barefoot and half dressed outside the hotel, Britney said, "But I feel that I was harassed and gaslit and tricked to go on the street when my car was supposed to be there !!! I was in my pajamas and yes, I had been crying because I hurt my foot !!! No breakdown !!! I’m a grown a** woman who is actually very naive in most situations !!! I am simply embarrassed they got me in my damn pajamas !!!"

"I don’t feel loved … I feel mistreated !!!" she concluded, adding that she was going to "treat myself this week!!!" Despite her injured foot, she posted footage of herself going horseback riding.

Taylor Swift has now been #1 for a "Fortnight," but her 14-spot Hot 100 domination shrinks to three

Posted yesterday at 3:00pm

"Fortnight" means two weeks, and that's officially now long Taylor Swift's song of the same name has been the #1 track in the country.

The first single from The Tortured Poets Department has held onto the top spot of the Hot 100 for a second week, though she wasn't able to maintain her total chart domination. On April 29, as previously reported, the entire top 14 was made up of songs from Taylor's new album. As of May 6, she's "only" got three songs in the top 10: "Fortnight," plus "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" at #9 and "Down Bad" at #10.

In fact, the top five is now made up of three artists who've never been there before: Sabrina Carpenter's "Espresso" is #4; Tommy Richman's "Million Dollar Baby" is #2; Shaboozey's "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" is #3. Shaboozey is also featured on Beyoncé's album Cowboy Carter.

Plus, Benson Boone's "Beautiful Things" and Teddy Swims' "Lose Control," which peaked at #2 and #1 earlier this year, respectively, are both back in the top 10. Hozier's "Too Sweet," which topped the chart two weeks ago, is at #7.

Ed Sheeran explains why he gave a #1 hit to Justin Bieber

Posted yesterday at 2:23pm

In 2015, Justin Bieber topped the chart with "Love Yourself," which was co-written by Ed Sheeran. But when his pals asked Ed why he gave away a hit song, he had to remind them they thought it was lame.

According to Page Six, during a concert in Florida on May 3, Ed performed "Love Yourself" and spoke about the song's backstory. “I was writing a lot of songs about a lot of different things, and I wrote this song and honestly, I played it to people and they went, ‘Meh,'" Ed told the crowd.

He revealed that when he played it for Justin Bieber, Justin said he wanted it. "I went 'Cool, have it,' and then it got very big," Ed laughed. And when his friends asked him why he gave Justin the song, Ed said he replied, "You told me it wasn’t good!"

While in Florida, Ed attended the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix and posted footage on his Instagram of Formula 1 driver George Russell driving him around the track at top speed, which totally freaked him out.

Camila Cabello reveals release date of new album

Posted yesterday at 12:42pm

We finally know when Camila Cabello's new album will arrive.

She announced the news on Instagram on April 6: The project titled C, XOXO will be out June 28. The cover shows Camila licking a blue lollipop, which has turned her tongue blue. There's also an explicit content warning sticker on the cover.

So far, the only song we've heard from C, XOXO is the single "I LUV IT." It's available for preorder now.

Speaking to Paper magazine, Camila said of the album, "This is the most confident I've been. I've learned from all of those times where I've been like, 'Okay, maybe I listened to that person and I wavered a little bit.' I tried to see what didn't feel good. And I didn't do it again.”

Camila also told Apple Music's Zane Lowe that she's playing a character on the album that her new aesthetic — blonde hair and what she calls "the baby pink color, the lip gloss" — has helped her create. She said, "[It's] my villain arc. My hyper-femme villain arc."

C, XOXO is the follow-up to Camila's 2022's Familia.

Billie Eilish to hold 'HIT ME HARD AND SOFT' listening parties in NYC and LA

Posted yesterday at 12:09pm

Billie Eilish is taking her new album, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT, to arenas before her tour even launches.

The Oscar-winning star has scheduled two album listening parties: one in New York City and one in LA. The New York one will take place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on May 15; the LA event is set for the Kia Forum on May 16. The album comes out May 17.

Fans can request up to two tickets for the event via Ticketmaster through May 7 at 9 a.m. PT. Confirmations will be sent out on May 10. Billie encourages fans to take public transportation to the parties to reduce greenhouse gas pollution.

Billie's actual tour starts in September and will run through 2025.

Meghan Trainor says younger son almost made her change her mind about having more kids

Posted yesterday at 11:12am

Meghan Trainor is a mom of two who has told everyone who will listen that she wants to have more kids; she wants four kids in total. But while appearing on The Jennifer Hudson Show on May 6, Meghan admitted that her younger son has tempted her to put the kibosh on that plan.

Meghan explained that her son Riley, 3, was an easy baby, while Barry, nine months, is ...not so much. "He cries more," said Meghan.

"Riley was like our trick baby, he was so easy," Meghan told J-Hud. "I was like, 'Let's have six! This is a joke!' And then after two, I was like 'We're doing more????'"

"I still want four, four is my dream ... but baby number two, he's testing me!" she laughed.

Meghan also discussed how she and her husband, Daryl Sabara, make time for themselves with two kids. "Our date night is every single night," she explained, noting that at 7:30 p.m. when the kids go to bed, "We go, 'Date Night!' and we run to bed and we watch our TV shows, and we consider that our date night."

Meghan prefers that over going out to a fancy restaurant — or any restaurant, for that matter. That's probably why you don't see paparazzi pics of Meghan out at Hollywood hot spots.

"I don't love going out to restaurants. I get freaked out," she explained. "What am I gonna order? Am I gonna like it? Is the restaurant dark? I can't eat in the dark -- it's a whole thing for me."

ICYMI: Watch Dua Lipa's surprise May 5 show in New York's Times Square now

Posted yesterday at 10:02am

On the afternoon of May 5, Dua Lipa sent word to fans on her mailing list that she was going to perform live in New York City that evening — and then had a pop-up performance at 8:30 p.m.

Thousands of fans packed into Times Square in the rain, and Dua pulled up in a truck decorated with the artwork of her new album, Radical Optimism. She performed four songs from the project: "Training Season," "Houdini," "Happy for You" and "Illusion," the last two of which were also performed on Saturday Night Live on May 4.

For fans who couldn't make the performance live, it was streamed on YouTube, where you can watch it now.

The performance capped off a whirlwind week in New York for Dua. On Instagram, she wrote about her Saturday Night Live appearance, "What an unbelievable week to have been a part of and to have witnessed the magic behind [the show]!!! An experience unlike any other. So grateful for all the trust to have me host and perform."

"Thank you Lorne [Michaels] for making my dreams come true," she continued. "Thank you to the incredible cast and all the writers. I've had the most incredible time getting to work with you this week and just laugh my head off non stop."

Dua's parents and best friends flew in to watch her host and perform on SNL, where she appeared in every sketch except Weekend Update and the cold open.

Taylor Swift's still #1 as Charlie Puth seemingly takes her shout-out as "sign" to release new music

Posted yesterday at 8:30am

After a massive debut, Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department spends a second week at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart.

As previously reported, the album debuted with 2.61 million units a week ago. In its second week, it sold 439,000 units. Billboard says that's the biggest second week sales for any album since Adele's 25 sold 1.162 million units after its record-setting 3.482 million-selling first week.

Meanwhile, Charlie Puth has announced that he's releasing a new song, seemingly inspired by Taylor mentioning him on the title track of her album. On TikTok, he posted a video of himself singing a new song and wrote, “These last couple weeks have been really crazy for obvious reasons, but I wanted to share something with you."

“This is a song I wrote about my friend called ‘Hero.’ Sometimes I get a little nervous being overly honest in my music which is why this was sitting on my hard drive for awhile,” he explained. "But I think someone out there was giving me a sign that I needed to release it.”

“So…. I declare ‘Hero’ will be out everywhere on May 24th as the first single of my new album," he added. "Thank you for your support…you know who you are.”

Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift & more featured in 'People''s Beautiful Issue

Posted yesterday at 5:00am

Ariana Grande has been named one of People's Beauties of the Year in its annual Beautiful Issue, which is out now.

The magazine has chosen 20 "awesome women who inspired us this year" for its list, and Ariana is one of them, for releasing her album eternal sunshine. Also on the list are Reneé Rapp, Oscar winners Emma Stone and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Emmy-winning The Bear star Ayo Edebiri, basketball star Caitlin Clark, Emily Blunt, Julianne Moore, Lily Gladstone, Sydney Sweeney, Lindsay Lohan and Jodie Foster.

Taylor Swift is featured in a section called Meet the Beautiful WAGs of the Year! WAGs stands for "wives and girlfriends" of sports stars. Taylor's #1 on the list for her frequent appearances at games cheering for her man, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Her pal Brittany Mahomes, wife of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, is #2. Kylie Kelce, who's married to Travis' brother, Jason, is #4.

In the magazine's Beauty at Every Age section, Hailey Bieber, 27, and Dua Lipa, 28, are featured as stars in their 20s. Jelly Roll's "Save Me" duet partner Lainey Wilson, 31, is in the 30s section, while Priyanka Chopra Jonas, 41, and Beyoncé, 42, are in the 40s section.

Finally, Gwen Stefani, Alicia Keys and Celine Dion are featured in a section called Cuties to Beauties, comparing photos of them as little kids with how they look now.

In Brazil, Madonna sets record for largest stand-alone concert in history

Posted Sunday morning

Madonna capped her Celebration Tour with a free show at the iconic Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro on May 4, and set a record while doing it.

According to Madonna's team, the Queen of Pop's show drew 1.6 million fans, setting a new record for the largest audience ever for a stand-alone concert by any artist in history. The previous record of 1.5 million fans had been set by the Rolling Stones in 2006.

You can see footage of Madonna's performance of "Music" on her Instagram; it was the only time she performed the song during the tour. During the performance, she was joined by Pabllo Vittar, a Brazilian drag queen and singer.

"Blame it on Rio Thank you Brazil!!!" she wrote. It was her first time performing in the country since 2012.

Other than "Music," Madonna's set list hewed closely to the one she's been performing since the tour kicked off in October of 2023. During "Vogue," the segment of the show where Madonna is usually joined by a special guest star, she welcomed Brazilian superstar Anitta onstage.

The U.K. paper The Guardian reports that city officials wanted to avoid a replay of what happened when Taylor Swift played in the country last year: a young fan died of heat exhaustion. Firefighters were ordered to spray water on the crowd to keep them cool, and free drinking water was distributed.

Dua Lipa gives us "everything" as host and musical guest on 'Saturday Night Live'

Posted Sunday morning

Dua Lipa pulled double duty on Saturday Night Live on May 4, and she announced that she was determined to make us forget that "Go girl, give us nothing" meme that's dogged her career for years. "Tonight, I promise, I'm gonna give you everything!" she declared -- and proceeded to pretty much do it.

In addition to performing two songs from her new album Radical Optimism -- "Illusion" and "Happy for You" -- Dua also appeared in every single sketch and prerecorded piece, skipping only the cold open and Weekend Update. She also showed off a variety of accents, including Southern and New York. Here are a few of them:

A return of the character from the Ana de Armas episode: Young Spicy, a producer who wants voiceover artists to record sexy intros for his tracks. Dua and Ego Nwodim play the women, who sing increasingly insulting things about him.

A Challengers-inspired sketch where Dua plays a woman who collects Sonny Angel figurines, and pits one of them -- hilariously played by Bowen Yang -- against an actual guy she has a date with.

A prerecorded piece inspired by The Elephant Man: Dua plays a woman in London in 1897 who falls in love with a hideously disfigured playwright, only to find out he's secretly sexting a bunch of other women with multiple secret phones.

A sketch about a Southern TV morning show, where Dua plays a hilariously clueless "culture critic" who attempts to explain the Drake/Kendrick Lamar feud.

A return of the jingle-singing duo from the Jenna Ortega-hosted episode: Dua is the tough-talking head of a flooring company, who hires them to create a song based around the company's impossible-to-remember phone number.

Of note: Dua's "Illusion" performance was introduced by Troye Sivan, for whom Dua opened back in 2016.

Music notes: Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift and more

Posted Friday afternoon

It looks like the U.K. preferred that me espresso over tea this week: Sabrina Carpenter's "Espresso" took the #1 spot on the Official Singles Chart. This marks Sabrina's first U.K. #1, where she beat Taylor Swift in a photo finish — less than 500 chart units separated "Espresso" from "Fortnight" feat. Post Malone.

Speaking of Sabrina, she's the musical guest on Saturday Night Live the same night Jake Gyllenhaal hosts, so naturally Swift fans have been all too unwell about the pairing. For the uninitiated, Sabrina and Taylor are friends, and Jake inspired the seminal Taylor breakup album Red and its standout track, "All Too Well." "Whoever chose Jake Gyllenhaal and Sabrina Carpenter to do Saturday Night Live together really chose violence in a hilarious way," one fan tweeted, while another wrote, "would actually pay millions to see the text chain between taylor swift and sabrina carpenter about this one."

Not even a roller coaster can stop Mariah Carey from looking glam. Midway through riding the Harry Potter-themed coaster Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure at Universal Islands of Adventure theme park in Orlando, Florida, Mariah was pictured having her hair brushed by a companion who rode next to her.

Ed Sheeran's album x is now 10 years old and the singer admits he didn't really like the record at first, specifically his song "Photograph." "That was the song that I didn’t really like at first because we spent so much time doing it and it ruined it. Now, I can look back and enjoy the process," Ed told Billboard.

New Music Friday: Meghan Trainor, Sia and more

Posted Friday afternoon

This week's New Music Friday features new singles from big names and notable album releases from up-and-coming pop stars.

Meghan Trainor is back with a new single, "To The Moon." It's the first single off her upcoming sixth album, Timeless, which arrives June 7. The 16-track album will be supported by a tour across the U.S. this fall. She'll be joined by Natasha Bedingfield and Paul Russell as tour openers.

Sia's first album since 2016 has arrived. Her new record, Reasonable Woman, is available now. Among the 15 tracks are songs like "Fame Won't Love You" feat. Paris Hilton, "Dance Alone" feat. Kylie Minogue and "Incredible" feat. Labrinth.

Lukas Graham, the Danish singer behind the hit track "7 Years," has dropped his first new release in a year, called "Cheat Code." The hitmaker said the song is about the struggles of keeping both love and life happy while in a romantic relationship. "The underlying message is for everyone to unlock each other’s undiscovered levels to explore new sides of shared love,” Graham said in a statement.

Marshmello and Kane Brown have reunited for a new collaboration, "Miles On It." The upbeat song arrives just in time for summer. The duo's previous collab, "One Right Thing," was a pop hit in 2019 and marked Brown's first top-10 single on the Top 40 format.

Jax is celebrating spooky season before summer even starts this year. Her new single "Zombieland," off of her upcoming debut full-length album, Dear Joe, is available now. HARDY is featured on the track, which finds the duo getting vengeance on the exes and enemies who have wronged them.

"Run" and "Lemon" singer SMITH has released her new track, "Lobby." SMITH says the song is "a vessel towards forgiving myself."

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