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Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber Speak Out After ‘Stuck With U’ Hits No. 1
Following the announcement that Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s collab “Stuck With U” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving Grande her third Hot 100 topper and Bieber his sixth, Grande wrote a lengthy Instagram note addressed to fans and even some skeptics about the success of the charitable single, which will benefit the First Responders Children’s Foundation. “Thank u to everybody who supported this song, this cause and made this happen. we love uuuuu so much,” Grande wrote Monday (May 18) afternoon. “There’s so much to celebrate today. However, i would like to say a few things. anyone who knows me or has followed me for a while knows that numbers aren’t the driving force in anything i do. i’m grateful to sing. grateful to have peop...
DaBaby Eyes Another Week Atop U.K. Chart With ‘Rockstar’
DaBaby’s “Rockstar” (Interscope) featuring Roddy Ricch is on track for a second week atop the U.K.’s singles chart, while Sleaford Mods have the early edge on the national albums survey. Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn, the Nottingham electronic duo who record and perform as Sleaford Mods, lead the Official Charts Update with the career retrospective All That Glue (Rough Trade), ahead of Lewis Capaldi’s Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent (EMI). Capaldi’s hit debut LP is surging a year to the week since it first led the chart and it’s the most-streamed album at the midweek stage. It’s tight at the top. According to the Official Charts Company, just 1,100 chart sales separate the top 5. Also new to the midweek albums chart is Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit who are looki...
Why High-Profile Hacks Could Increase Amid Pandemic-Prompted Remote Work
Employees in non-office settings create cybersecurity vulnerabilities, experts say, and without intervention more entertainment companies could fall victim to hacks like the one that hit Grubman Shire. Hackers are threatening to release a treasure trove of private data stolen from one of Hollywood’s top talent law firms if it doesn’t pay a $42 million ransom — and experts say companies are increasingly vulnerable to attacks like this because their employees are working remotely during the novel coronavirus pandemic. Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks earlier this month was hit by a ransomware attack — with a group called REvil taking responsibility for the hack and posting online part of a Live Nation employment contract for Madonna‘s recent world tour as proo...
Disney’s Kevin Mayer to Become TikTok CEO
Disney veteran Rebecca Campbell will succeed him as chairman of director-to-consumer and international. Kevin Mayer, the Disney executive who oversaw the launch of the streaming service Disney+, is leaving his post at the entertainment giant to become CEO of the fast-growing social media app TikTok. Disney veteran Rebecca Campbell will succeed him as chairman of director-to-consumer and international. “I am very proud of what our extraordinarily talented direct-to-consumer and international team has accomplished in creating and delivering a world-class portfolio of streaming services, particularly Disney+,” Mayer said Monday in a statement. Mayer joins TikTok at a pivotal moment for the app, which is owned by Chinese conglomerate ByteDance. Less than three years old, it has bee...
The 8 Best Moments From ‘A Night of Covenant House Stars’
Jon Bon Jovi, Dolly Parton, Meryl Streep and more stars united over livestream on Monday (May 18) for “A Night Of Covenant House Stars,” a concert benefiting the Covenant House charity. Actors like Streep and Diane Keaton read written letters from kids about their experiences with homelessness, while musicians and Broadway talent performed together (remotely). Hosted by Broadway veteran Audra McDonald and 60 Minutes anchor John Dickerson, “A Night Of Covenant House Stars” was part of the initial slate of programming for the new streaming service Broadway On Demand. Covenant House provides “housing, food and healthcare to children and youth facing homelessness and the heroism of front-line staff working around the clock to keep them safe during the COVID-19 crisis.” Below, ...
How We Work Now: Duck Club Presents/Treefort Music Festival Co-Founder Eric Gilbert
In a new series amid the coronavirus pandemic, Billboard is asking individuals from all sectors of the music business to share stories of how they work now, with much of the world quarantined at home and unable to take in-person meetings, attend conferences or even go into the office. Submissions for the series can be sent to HowWeWorkNow@Billboard.com. Read the full series here. This installment is with Eric Gilbert, co-founder of Duck Club Presents and Boise, Idaho’s Treefort Music Festival. Eric Gilbert: Treefort was scheduled for March 25-29 and we [initially] postponed it two weeks. At that point, the state nor the city hadn’t really done anything. We made the decision in consultation with them, but we had to take the lead on that. Two weeks after we postponed, the state fully s...
Drake Retains Australian Chart Crown, Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s ‘Stuck With U’ Starts High
Drake’s Dark Lane Demo Tapes (Republic/Universal) enters a second week at No. 1 on Australia’s albums chart, while SAINt JHN’s “Roses” (Sony) scores a sixth week atop the national singles survey and “Stuck With U” (Universal), the Ariana Grande–Justin Bieber collaboration, is the week’s highest debut. “Stuck With U” opens at No. 3 on the ARIA Singles Chart, just behind The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” (Republic/Universal), to give Grande her first Australian chart entry for 2020 and Bieber his fourth. Proceeds from the single will benefit the First Responders Children’s Foundation, which funds scholarships for kids of frontline workers who’ve been affected by the health crisis. Over the past two weeks, DaBaby’s “Rockstar” (Interscope/Universal) has risen 14-9–4 and no...
NAV’s ‘Good Intentions’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart
Plus: Kehlani scores highest charting album yet, Lil Durk debuts in top five, and Bad Bunny’s surprise album starts in top 10. NAV nabs his second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart, as Good Intentions starts atop the tally. The album was released on May 8 via XO/Republic Records, and earned 135,000 equivalent album units in the week ending May 14, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. Of its total starting unit sum, album sales comprise over half of that figure — 73,000, with nearly all of the sales driven by merchandise/album bundles sold via NAV’s official webstore. Also making news in the top 10: Kehlani tallies her highest charting and best week ever in units earned, as It Was Good Until It Wasn’t starts at No. 2 (83,000 units), Lil Durk’s Just Cause Y’all Waited 2 debuts at ...
Ludacris Debuts New Lil Wayne Collaboration ‘Silence of the Lambs’ During Nelly ‘Verzuz’ Battle
The Atlanta rap legend also played part of a Chance The Rapper team-up and hinted at a full project with Timbaland. During a momentary pause in the Verzuz battle between Ludacris and Nelly on Saturday night (May 16) due to the latter’s Internet issues, Luda debuted part of “Silence of the Lambs,” a new track featuring Lil Wayne that was produced by Timbaland and included references to Bill Cosby, R. Kelly and Roseanne Barr. “I love R. Kelly, but around my daughters I’m not comfortable,” Luda raps in the opening verse, after dropping a lyrical reference to “Bill Huxtable” and before declaring that racists are still drinking “from Roseanne’s bar.” Weezy comes in to warble through the second verse, and on the hook Ludacris makes his intent clear: “Rap brought me back to restore a little bit o...
Nelly vs. Ludacris in ‘Verzuz’ Battle of ’00s Rap Hitmakers: See Billboard’s Scorecard and Winner For the Showdown
Nelly and Ludacris were two of the defining hip-hop artists of the early 2000s, expanding the genre’s sound while representing St. Louis and Atlanta, respectively. Their personalities were undeniable; they each collected more hits than most mainstream pop heroes of the time. On Saturday night (May 16), the two chart-topping greats went head-to-head on Instagram Live, in arguably the most high-profile battle in the Timbaland- and Swizz Beatz-curated Verzuz series to date. “It’s gon’ be a historic night!” Ludacris, rocking a giant chain and an Dominique Wilkins Atlanta Hawks throwback jersey, declared prior to the showdown while combing his afro with a pick. “I feel the energy from around the world!” After Nelly initially signed on, Luda also mentioned that this year marks the 20th anniversa...
Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light: 10 Standout Moments
For the first time in Eurovision history, a global crisis has forced the competition to forgo crowning a winner for the year. With competitors self-quarantining to prevent the spread of COVID-19, there was no proper Eurovision Song Contest 2020, but in its place, there was Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light on Saturday, May 16. A global virtual event featuring contemporary and past competitors, the broadcast featured messages of encouragement from artists, clips from songs that would have competed for this year’s win and remote performances aplenty. From one past winner’s walk down deserted city streets to a surprise appearance from an ABBA legend, here are 10 standout moments from Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light. At the close, it was also revealed that the song contest will ret...
Astrid Kirchherr, Photographer of The Beatles, Dead at 81
Astrid Kirchherr, the German photographer who shot some of the earliest and most striking images of The Beatles and helped shape their trend-setting visual style, has died at age 81. She died Tuesday in her native Hamburg, days before her 82nd birthday, her friend Kai-Uwe Franz told The Associated Press. Her death was first announced by Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn, who tweeted Friday that Kirchherr made an “immeasurable” contribution to the group and was “intelligent, inspirational, innovative, daring, artistic, awake, aware, beautiful, smart, loving and uplifting.” According to the German publication Die Zeit, she died of a “short, serious illness.” “God bless Astrid a beautiful human being,” Ringo Starr tweeted. George Harrison’s widow, Olivia Harrison, tweeted that Kirchherr was “so...
