Pop
Whitney Houston’s Legacy of Breaking Down Barriers in the Entertainment Industry
Subscribe now to our ongoing Whitney Houston season of The Opus. You can also prep for the experience by listening to Whitney Houston via all major streaming services or enter to win a copy of Vinyl Me, Please’s 35th anniversary Whitney Houston box set. Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Follow on Facebook | Podchaser “After the second album [Whitney], I started thinking, ‘Maybe I’ll do a movie someday,’” Whitney Houston told MTV in 1992 when asked how she had first caught the acting bug. It had taken nearly five years after that initial notion for the R&B and pop superstar to take on the big screen in The Bodyguard alongside Hollywood everyman Kevin Costner. In that time, she was rumored to have turned down working with Robert De ...
The 20 Songs of the Summer of the 21st Century, Ranked: Critic’s Picks
Every year, one song crowns Billboard’s Song of the Summer chart… but over the past 20 years, which Song of the Summer has been the most season-defining? The Song of the Summer is a concept that still captures the public’s imagination — the idea of one ubiquitous single that is intrinsically tied to the days of beach parties, cookouts and warm nights outside. Every year, Billboard launches the Song of the Summer chart to track the most dominant songs on the Hot 100 from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and every year, different sounds, voices and ideas rule pop radio (and, now, streaming services) to vie for the crown. There’s no formula to becoming Song of the Summer — looking back at the history of the chart, there have been dance hits and slow jams, rock singles and rap anth...
Harry Styles Reschedules Tour with Jenny Lewis for 2021
Like everyone in the music industry, Harry Styles was forced to postpone all of his 2020 concert dates due to the coronavirus pandemic. As the world begins to rollout its reopening phases, the pop star has announced his rescheduled tour plans for 2021. Featuring special guest Jenny Lewis, the North American leg of the former One Directioner’s “Love on Tour” trek launches August 14th, 2021 in Tacoma, Washington. Running all the way through October, stops include Vancouver, San Diego, Detroit, Philadelphia, Nashville, Raleigh, and Cleveland. There are also multiple shows set for Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto, New York, and Atlanta. It all comes in support of his latest album, Fine Line. Styles has also pushed back his “Harryween Fancy Dress Party” shows with Orville Peck and Madison Cun...
Katy Perry Sends Off Graduates With ‘Daises’ and ‘Firework’ on ‘Dear Class of 2020′
Katy Perry gave the class of 2020 a big send-off to wrap up the Dear Class of 2020 YouTube ceremony on Sunday (June 7). The singer appeared on screen following former president Barack Obama’s inspiring speech to help graduates toss their caps. “Lets turn those tassels and make it kind of official — whether you’ve got a real cap and a tassel or an iPhone taped to a pizza box,” she told viewers. “This is the moment for everyone around the globe to graduate at once. No matter where you are, remember: The tassel goes from right to left.” After the countdown, Perry — who is expecting her first child with Orlando Bloom — launched into her new single “Daises” from her upcoming album due Aug. 14. As she sang, the singer — evok...
Shawn Mendes Shouts Out Grads, Students Perform His Hit ‘There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back’ at ‘Dear Class of 2020′ Commencement
There’s nothing holding the graduates of 2020 back! During the ‘Dear Class of 2020’ YouTube special on Sunday (June 7), Shawn Mendes‘ hit song “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back” was performed by the AMDA College of Performing Arts Choir and the Diamond Bar High School marching band. During the pretaped performance, the musicians wore blue caps and gowns with yellow tassels while marching out onto a football field to perform the song. The video then cut to the hallways of a high school, where students — socially distanced, of course — danced while wearing face masks, a nod to the coronavirus pandemic that has led to the shutdown of schools. After the uplifting song, Mendes himself appeared in a video to thank the two groups of perfo...
Janelle Monae, Kelly Rowland & More Recite Maya Angelou Poem For YouTube’s Dear Class of 2020 Celebration
Tracee Ellis Ross, Kelly Rowland, Shonda Rhimes, Yara Shahidi, Janelle Monae and more recited Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise” poem during YouTube’s virtual “Dear Class of 2020″ commencement celebration on Sunday (June 7). Each woman took turns reading lines from the poem such as, “Does my sexiness upset you?/ Does it come as a surprise/ That I dance like I’ve got diamonds/ At the meeting of my thighs?” The montage also featured clips of Angelou herself, as well as Misty Copeland dancing alone in a ballet studio. Watch the clip below. [embedded content] 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. Ear...
How to Watch YouTube Originals’ ‘Dear Class of 2020′ All-Star Commencement
YouTube Originals’ “Dear Class of 2020” commencement ceremony, featuring Barack and Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, BTS, Lady Gaga, Maluma and more, will officially commence Sunday, June 7 at 3:00 p.m. ET. The four-hour virtual graduation, which was pushed back a day to honor George Floyd’s memorial service, will open with Lizzo and the New York Philharmonic performing “Pomp and Circumstance” and remarks from Alicia Keys. At the end of the celebration, Katy Perry will lead the graduates in the monumental tassel turn. Check out Sunday’s full line-up of commencement speakers, performers, featured celebrity guests and YouTube creators here. Viewers can attend the virtual ceremony by watching the livestream on the YouTube Originals channel and the L...
Cam, Honne & More Set For Billboard Live At-Home Performances
A new week brings a new round of Billboard Live At-Home performances, as artists continue to partner with various organizations to raise much-needed funds for coronavirus relief. Country singer-songwriter Cam will kick the week off on Tuesday (June 9) at 1:00 p.m. EST/10:00 a.m. PST via Billboard‘s Facebook page. Other acts slated for the coming week include British electronic duo Honne, Mexican-American rapper Snow Tha Product and drag star Trixie Mattel. Back in March, the Billboard Live At-Home series launched with live-streamed performances by the likes of JoJo, Josh Groban and Russell Dickerson. During their sets, each artist selected a nonprofit to fundraise for, with a focus on aiding communities most at-risk amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the series has ...
The Legacy of Whitney Houston in 10 Duets
Subscribe now to our ongoing Whitney Houston season of The Opus. You can also prep for the experience by listening to Whitney Houston via all major streaming services or enter to win a copy of Vinyl Me, Please’s 35th anniversary Whitney Houston box set. Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Follow on Facebook | Podchaser The term “diva” was not coined or derived for Whitney Houston. That being said, nobody’s ever been more worthy than her to don that honorific. Our best memories of Houston recall a performer with grace, humor, and a voice that could leave a crowd speechless with both its power and range. However, the images of Houston burned in our mind — in true diva fashion — don’t see her often sharing a stage. The hits that’ll go on long af...
Lady Gaga’s Chromatica Dances Through the Pain and Trauma: Review
The Lowdown: It feels strange listening to dance music at a time when dance clubs themselves, nights out with friends, and, for many, friends in general are impossible to access in person. Like so many of the joys people have managed to find in quarantine, kitchen-floor dance parties and celebrations shared via Zoom and FaceTime — while necessary reliefs and real, genuine joys — can also sometimes feel tinged with a hint of delirium. But Chromatica feels like an appropriate answer to the vacancy created by this dissonance — as a lot of Lady Gaga’s work has done in the past, it offers up some honest-to-God bangers side by side with some honest-to-oneself reckonings with trauma, pain, addiction, and the very idea of what it means to be flawed and how this idea shifts depending on who’s defin...
Halsey Calls Out Police Violence Against Protestors at L.A. Demonstrations: ‘This Is War on Americans’
The singer was on the scene, providing first aid assistance to injured protestors. On Monday (June 1), Halsey shared a number of powerful images of her experience on the ground at Black Lives Matter protests in Los Angeles. “It’s become very clear to me that some of you need to see what I’ve seen,” she captioned a slideshow of videos and photos featuring peaceful protestors being tear-gassed and shot at by police. “It’s easy from the comfort of your home to watch looting and rioting on television and condone the violent measures being taken by forces. But what you don’t see is innocent peaceful protestors being shot at and tear gassed and physically assaulted relentlessly. “You think it’s not happening, it’s only the ‘thugs’ and the ‘riots,’ ...
Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande’s ‘Rain on Me’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100
The song sparks Hot 100 history for both superstars. Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande‘s new duet “Rain on Me” storms onto the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart at No. 1. Gaga achieves her fifth Hot 100 leader and Grande earns her fourth, among other honors for each star. The duet was released to digital service providers for streaming and purchase at midnight EST Friday, May 22, while its official video premiered that afternoon. The song is the second single from Gaga’s album Chromatica, which arrived Friday, May 29; first single “Stupid Love” debuted and peaked at No. 5 on the Hot 100 in March. Here is a rundown of the top 10 of the newest Hot 100, which blends all-genre U.S. streaming, radio airplay and sales data. [embedded content] “Rain” is the 1...
