International
Ed Sheeran and Dave Battle For U.K. Singles Chart Crown
The competition is Dave, who makes an almighty splash on the chart blast with three entries inside the Top 5. The London rapper’s collaboration with Stormzy, “Clash,” lifts 8-2 and is on track for a new peak. Close behind is “Verdansk” at No. 3, and “In The Fire” starts at No. 4, potentially taking the homegrown hip-hop artist’s career total of Top 10 songs into double figures (10). The Dave takeover follows the release of his new album, We’re All Alone In This Together. Also shaping for a Top 20 debut is Anne-Marie and Little Mix’s new collaboration, “Kiss My (Uh Oh).” Lifted from Anne-Marie’s latest album Therapy, “Kiss My (Uh Oh)” is at No. 14 on the First Look survey. Finally, Lil Nas X and fellow U.S. rapper Jack Harlow’s new release “Industry Baby” opens at No. 16 on the chart ...
KSI, Ed Sheeran Rule U.K. Charts
All Over The Place goes one better than KSI’s 2020 debut Dissimulation, which peaked at No. 2. Also arriving in the Top 10 this week is Pop Smoke latest posthumous album Faith (Republic Records), new at No. 3. The late rapper has the highest new entry on this singles chart this week with Faith track “Deameanor” featuring Dua Lipa, new at No. 14. Meanwhile, John Mayer’s eighth studio record Sob Rock (Columbia)arrives at No. 4. It’s Mayer’s third U.K. Top 10. Foo Fighters’ have a 14th Top 40 album with Hail Satin (Columbia), their Record Store Day release recorded under their disco alter-ego, Dee Gees. It’s new at No. 17. Over on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, Ed Sheeran enters a fourth week at No. 1 “Bad Habits” (Asylum). Sheeran’s latest hit puts up another impressive ta...
Rita Marley Celebrates 75th Birthday With a Scholarship & Livestream Event
Besides the tribute concert, the broadcast will showcase a digital tour of the new, permanently installed Rita Marley exhibit at the Bob Marley Museum and will announce the 2021 Rita Marley scholarship. Specifically catered to young women and single mothers, the scholarship will be offered to one student enrolled at the Women Centre of Jamaica and two students from the University of Technology Nursing. The application form is due on Aug. 9 and is available on the Rita Marley Foundation website. In a statement to Billboard, Sharon Marley – Rita Marley’s oldest daughter – shares how fostering the next generation of women is one of her mother’s big priorities. “Providing scholarships for young women needing assi...
Tones And I Flies to No. 1 In Australia With ‘Welcome To The Madhouse’
Welcome To The Madhouse features the previously released songs “Fly Away” and “Cloudy Day,” which this week lifts to a new peak, up 44-31. “Dance Monkey” appeared on Tones’ debut 2019 EP, The Kids Are Coming, which peaked at No. 3 on the national survey. “Wow wow wow! Thank you so much Australia for your ongoing love and support, I am blown away,” comments Tones on her latest chart feat. “I can’t bloody believe it, I will not be quitting any time soon. Haha.” In a busy week for new releases, John Mayer’s Sob Rock (Columbia/Sony) starts at No. 3, for the U.S. blues-rocker’s seventh ARIA Top Ten, while Pop Smoke’s second posthumous album Faith (Universal) opens at No. 4. Faith is the followup to Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon, which shot to No. 1 in July 2020. Also making an impact on...
Keith Urban, Amy Shark, The Saints & More: Get to Know Music From Brisbane, 2032 Olympic City
The music community in the Sunshine State has also kicked countless goals, from Mallrat to Thelma Plum, Ball Park Music, Busby Marou, Katie Noonan, The Chats, Lobby Loyde, The Jungle Giants, Confidence Man, tyDi, Kate Miller-Heidke, Kev Carmody and many more. Billboard highlights ten global acts with deep roots in Brisbane, the future Olympic city. Bee GeesThough born in Britain, the brothers Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb relocated to Redcliffe, north of Brisbane, in 1952. The trio would change the music world as the Bee Gees, and it all began in south east Qld. As legend has it, Barry and his mother signed the group’s music contract with speedway promoter Bill Goode and radio announcer Bill Gates – the BGs in the Bee Gees — on the family’s kitchen table in Redcliffe. A walkway in Redcliff...
How Splendour’s Team Created a Pandemic-Proof Festival
The pandemic crushed the best-laid plans for Splendour in the Grass last year, and, with more than half Australia’s population currently under lockdown, a late July 2021 show was a non-starter. So organizers hatched a bold plan. Splendour XR’s architecture was drawn up at the dawn of the health crisis. Since then, Splendour co-founder Jessica Ducrou and her teammates have regularly worked 12-plus hours each day, building an immersive, pandemic-proof space. “It has been a huge project,” she tells Billboard. “In many ways, it’s been more challenging than a real-life festival. I haven’t worked as hard ever on a project.” The hard work shows. On July 24 and 25, more than 50 international and local acts perform across stages in seven precincts, including headliners Khalid and ...
Stormzy, Jorja Smith & More Nominated for 2021 GRM Daily Rated Awards
Last year’s virtual ceremony was hosted by comedian Mo Gilligan and radio host Julie Adenuga. Among last year’s winners were J Hus’ Big Conspiracy for album of the year, Dutchavelli for breakthrough of the year, and D-Block Europe for male artist of the year. Other highlights from last year’s show include performances by George the Poet, Dizzee Rascal and Kano. Fans can vote for their favorite artists here until Aug. 17. Performances for this year’s show will be announced in the coming weeks. See below for the list of nominees. Album of the year:AJ Tracey, Flu GameBugzy Malone, The ResurrectionD Block Europe, The Blueprint- Us Vs. ThemFredo, Money Can’t Bu...
KSI’s ‘All Over The Place’ Races to U.K. Chart Lead
KSI will hope to go one better than the performance of his debut album Dissimulation, which peaked at No. 2 in 2020. Also new to the chart blast is John Mayer with Sob Rock (Columbia), his eighth studio album. It’s at No. 3 on the midweek chart, and should give Mayer his third U.K. Top 10. Just one place behind is Pop Smoke’s second posthumous LP, Faith (Republic Records), new at No. 4 midweek. Meanwhile, Hail Satin (Columbia), the Record Store Day release from Foo Fighters, as the disco alter-ego Dee Gees, is tracking for a No. 7 bow. If it holds it momentum, it’ll mark the Foos’ 12th Top 10 album. Over on the Official Singles Chart Update, Ed Sheeran stays on track for a fourth week at No. 1 with “Bad Habits” (Asylum), ahead of the fast-rising “Heartbreak Anthem” by Galantis, ...
Rapper Kris Wu Accused of Sex Abuse
Wu publicly denied the accusations and said he was filing a defamation suit. Wu came to fame in Asia as a member of the popular K-pop boy band Exo, but he returned to China in 2014 to explore a solo career as a model, singer and actor. He has become one of China’s most bankable stars — a TV variety show staple, the face of dozens of major fashion campaigns in the country, a reasonably popular actor and a successful solo artist. He has appeared in several major Chinese box office hits, such as Mr. Six (2015) and Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back (2017), as well as a few Hollywood films — which were aiming to court the China market — like Vin Diesel’s xXx: Return of Xander Cage and Luc Besson’s mega-budget misfire Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Chinese tabloid Global ...
Songs From Isao Tomita’s Last Five Years Set for Release on Streaming Platforms
During the last five years of his life, Tomita devoted himself to the DENON: Isao Tomita Project, in an effort to completely remake his masterpieces from the 1970s in a form that he’d envisioned at the time but couldn’t realize, as well as add new creations to them. Rising Planet – Tomita’s Greatest Works of Space Music is a collection of 11 selected tracks from the seven albums he released as part of this major undertaking. The main melody of “Rising of the Planet 9,” which was the last melody Tomita left behind, was first heard on the track “Itokawa and Hayabusa” in Planet Ultimate Edition, the first release of the DENON: Isao Tomita Project. This melody also appeared in important parts on subsequent albums, so it could be said to be the trademark phrase of the innovati...
Tencent Music Shares Fell 9.2% This Week, Down 63.2% Since March All-Time High
Tencent Music sits in a web of relationships and ownership stakes with the world’s largest music companies. It has a joint venture with Universal Music Group and an agreement to form a joint record label with Warner Music Group. It also has licensing deals with UMG, WMG, Sony Music and independent label rights group Merlin. What’s more, Tencent Holdings, which owns a majority of Tencent Music, is part of a consortium of investors that owns 20% of Universal Music Group and about 2% of WMG. There is no indication Chinese authorities view Tencent Holdings’ ownership stakes as problematic. Tencent Music owns three of China’s top music streaming apps — QQ, Kuguo and Kuwo — and accounted for 7...
The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber’s ‘Stay’ Bows at No. 1 In Australia
It’s the fifth leader for Bieber, after “What Do You Mean?” and “Love Yourself” (both in 2015), “I Don’t Care” with Ed Sheeran (2019) and “Peaches” (2021). “Stay” will appear on Laroi’s forthcoming mixtape F**k Love 3 EP, due out next Friday (July 23). Further down the list, BTS bag a fourth Top 10 singles in Australia as “Permission to Dance” (Big Hit/Orchard) bows at No. 6, while the K-pop phenom’s previous release “Butter” lifts 37-26. Billie Eilish has another Top 20 to her name as “NDA” (Interscope/Universal) opens at No. 16. The California star’s latest release is lifted from her forthcoming sophomore album Happier Than Ever, due out July 30. “NDA” is the fifth track from the album to impact the ARIA Singles Chart, including Top 10s “My Future,” “Therefore I Am” and “Your Power.” Mea...
