International
Johnny’s WEST Debuts at No. 1, Kaze Fujii Reaches New Heights at No. 2 on Japan Hot 100
The septet’s previous single sold slightly more than the current one (227,615 first-week copies), but many brick-and-mortar music stores in Japan have been closed due to the third COVID-19 state of emergency, so “Something New” can be said to have fared relatively well in spite of this setback. Debuting at No. 2 is Kaze Fujii’s “Kirari,” currently being featured in Honda commercials. The rising young singer-songwriter scored his first top 10 with his previous single called “Tabiji,” which debuted at No. 10 in March. “Kirari” is off to a better start, faring better in downloads (38,418 first-week units, “Tabiji” started off with 24,337) and streaming (5,071,563 streams, about double that of 2,494,342 for “Tabiji”), indicating his steadily growing reach. Meanwhile, Official HIGE DANdism retu...
Rag’n’Bone Man Blasts to No. 1 In U.K. With ‘Life By Misadventure’
It’s the second leader in a row for the multiple Brit Award-winning artists, following his debut 2017 effort Human, which has shifted more than over 1 million chart sales in this U.K. and returns the Top 40 at No. 35. Life By Misadventure enjoyed a lift following Rag’n’Bone Man’s appearance at the BRITs last Tuesday, to perform “Anywhere Away From Here” with Pink and the Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Choir. Life leads an all-new Top 5 on the current albums chart, ahead of Michael Ball’s We Are More Than One, Dodie’s Build A Problem, Squid’s Bright Green Field and Van Morrison’s Latest Record Project Volume 1, respectively. Also new to this week’s survey is Weezer’s rock-riff album Van Weezer at 30. It’s the U.S. rockers’ first Top 40 album in 13 years. Meanwhile New Order’s live album...
J. Cole Eyes Three Strong Starts on U.K. Singles Chart
J. Cole could make a big dent this week on the U.K. singles chart, with three tracks set for high entries. On the Official Chart Company’s First Look survey, which ranks the popularity of singles after the first weekend’s sales and streaming activity, Cole has the highest new entries with “9 5 . S O U T H” at No. 9, “M Y . L I F E” featuring 21 Savage & Morray at No. 10, and “A M A R I” at No. 11. The trio of tunes are all lifted from the North Carolinian hip-hop star’s latest album The Off-Season, which includes “I N T E R L U D E, the lead single which hit No. 25 on last week’s U.K. chart. 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 ma...
Russ Millions and Tion Wayne Bag Historic Chart Title In Australia With ‘Body’
Meanwhile, U.S. rapper J. Cole earns a Top 20 debut with “i n t e r l u d e” (Interscope/Universal), lifted from his sixth album, The Off-Season. It’s new at No. 20 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and is Cole’s first appearance on the survey since “Middle Child” peaked at No. 15 in February 2019. Also new to the chart this week is Pink’s “All I Know So Far” (RCA/Sony), which drops in at No. 25 for the U.S. pop star’s second chart entry for 2021, following “Cover Me In Sunshine” (No. 6 in March). “All I Know So Far” is the title track from her upcoming live documentary, due out May 21 on Amazon Prime. U.S. rapper Trippie Redd bags his first entry on the ARIA Chart with “Miss The Rage” (Universal), new at No. 31; while returning British rock outfit Coldplay make their first appearance...
Tomorrowland Gets New Life From Belgium’s Goal to Reopen by September
That could prove challenging for Tomorrowland, one of the biggest EDM events in the world, which typically draws about 400,000 attendees to Boom, Belgium. The 2019 edition ran six days over two weekends. After canceling last year, the festival scheduled its annual flagship event, normally held in July, to Aug. 27-29 and Sept. 3-5, because of ongoing COVID-19 flareups in Europe. It’s unclear whether the festival would need to adjust its planned dates or capacity to accommodate Belgium’s rules. Nevertheless, organizers sounded a hopeful note on Tuesday. “We are delighted and grateful to hear that the Belgian Government has given a realistic perspective for large festivals in Belgium towards the end of the summer,” Tomorrowland said in a statement. “We want to study the guidelines and paramet...
Coldplay Blasting to U.K. Top 10 With ‘Higher Power’
Expect “Higher Power” to enjoy a bump following Chris Martin and Co.’s performance of the song Sunday (May 9) on American Idol, and again at the top of the 2021 Brit Awards this Tuesday (May 11). At the summit of the chart blast is current No. 1 “Body,” by Tion Wayne & Russ Millions. Last Friday, the single lifted 4-1 to become the first drill track to lead the Official U.K. Singles Chart. It’s the most-streamed song of the weekend, the OCC reports. Following the release of his sophomore album Life By Misadventure, Rag’n’Bone Man is eyeing a new peak with “Anywhere Away From Here,” his collaboration with Pink. It’s up 31-11 on the First Look survey. The pair will perform the duet live at the BRITs, to be held at London’s O2 Arena. Finally, The Kid Laroi’s “Without You” ...
Taylor Swift Set to Receive Global Icon Award at 2021 Brit Awards
That 2015 win for international female solo artist is Swift’s only Brit Award to date, from six nominations. Swift has set many records on the U.K. charts, as she has in the U.S. and around the world. She is the only female artist in the 21st century to amass seven No. 1 studio albums on the Official U.K. Albums chart. The Official Charts Company also reports that Swift is the U.K.’s top-selling artist of 2021 to date, which is remarkable for an artist 15 years into her career. Swift has amassed 17 top 10 hits on the Official U.K. Singles chart, but, surprisingly, she has landed just one No. 1 single on that chart — “Look What You Made Me Do,” which spent two weeks on top in 2017. Swift is not expected to perform on The Brit Awards with Mastercard 2021 — as the show is official...
Royal Blood Splashes at No. 1 In U.K. With ‘Typhoons’
The Brighton pair lead a Top 10 crammed with new releases. Merseyside act The Coral snag a sixth Top 10 LP and highest-chart position in 18 years with Coral Island (Run On), new at No. 2. Mick Fleetwood & Friends’ live tribute Celebrating The Music of Peter Green (BMG) debuts at No. 3, just ahead of British singer Birdy, whose Young Heart (Atlantic) flies in at No. 4. Gojira, the French metal band, score their first Top 10 album with Fortitude (Roadrunner), new at No. 6, just ahead of Norwegian DIY singer-songwriter Girl in Red‘s debut effort If I Could Make It Go Quiet (No. 7 via Marie Ulven), and Pink Floyd’s Live at Knebworth 1990 (No. 8 via Rhino). Completing the Top 10 is DJ Khaled’s digital-only 12th studio set Khaled Khaled. It’s the most-streamed album of the we...
NCT 127 Hits the Stage With ‘Kick It’ for ‘Vax Live’ Concert
NCT 127 were thrilled to bring “Kick It” to Global Citizen’s streaming Vax Live: The Concert to Reunite the World. “Get ready for a new level of visual art with our powerful song, Kick It!! It was a thrill for us to perform this stage while having the AR do its thing and putting twist to the performance. Excited to finally let you guys see it!!” the group tweeted just before the show streamed on Saturday night (May 8). NCT 127 owned the stage with their smooth performance and slick choreography, all a part of the fundraising concert that was put together to address the widespread need for more equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines around the world. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating s...
Amy Shark, The Kid LAROI Rule Australia’s Charts
Also new to the albums chart this week is Gojira’s Fortitude (Roadrunner/Warner), new at No. 3. It’s the French metal band’s first appearance in the Top 10, and the followup to 2016’s Magma, which peaked at No 11. British alternative rock outfit Royal Blood make a splash with Typhoons (Warner), new at No. 5. It’s the followup to their sophomore album How Did We Get So Dark, which hit No. 4 back in June 2017. DJ Khaled’s latest all-star album Khaled Khaled (Epic/Sony) gives the U.S.-based producer his fourth Top 10 in Australia. It opens at No. 7 on the ARIA Chart. Meanwhile, Norwegian DIY artist Girl In Red (AWAL/Inertia) appears on the ARIA Charts for the very first time, as her debut LP If I Could Make It Go Quiet starts at No. 10. Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, The Kid LAROI shows some...
Warner Music Group Marketing Veteran Beth Appleton to Depart
Appleton has worked in the music industry for 25 years, starting with EMI in London and transferring to Australia for the first time in 2000. She returned to the U.K. to work for Richard Branson’s V2 label and Universal Music before joining Warner Music Australia in 2011, in the role as director of marketing. An honoree in Billboard’s Women In Music feature, Appleton returned to the U.K. in January 2014 to spearhead global marketing for WMG, based in London, and returned to Australia in January 2018 to assume her current role. In a separate message to staff, Appleton admits she’s ready to “pursue my next adventure.” At present, those plans have not yet been revealed. “As many of you know, I often ask the question ‘What is the right thing to do?,’” she continues. “Me moving on now is the ri...
BTS Label HYBE Turns a Modest First-Quarter Profit
These positive first-quarter results don’t, however, come close to the company’s impressive previous quarter, Q4 2020. Then, still without touring income, HYBE produced livestreamed concerts and had strong music sales — 159% greater than 2021’s first quarter — and closed 2020 with quarterly revenue of $278 million and a $23.7 million profit. HYBE didn’t provide guidance on concert revenue in 2021, saying “with pandemic conditions still in place, forecasts are still unclear on the possibility of in-person concerts in the second half of this year.” In the meantime, HYBE said it will offer more livestream concerts and “other diverse content.” Much of the earnings release focused on HYBE’s acquisition of Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings, which was announced April 2, noting it was th...
