Pride
Janelle Monáe Transforms Into a 3D Avatar for VR ‘Lovecraft Country’ Performance
For a show as wonderfully weird as HBO’s Lovecraft Country, the celebration around the finale needed to be similarly eccentric. Luckily, Janelle Monáe delivered a performance that won’t soon be forgotten. On Monday (Oct. 19), HBO hosted their final Lovecraft Country: Sanctum event to coincide with the show’s season one finale that took place on Sunday night (Oct. 18). The VR experience offered exclusive access via online application VR Chat to a world inspired by the show, where fans could interact with one another while experiencing a digital world for themselves. Guests at Monday night’s event were treated to a very special performance from Monáe titled “Music of the Cosmos,” in which the actress/singer appeared as a towering, 3D av...
5 Uplifting Moments in Latin Music This Week (October 17)
Rockabye Baby has released a lullabies album titled Lullaby Renditions of Pitbull on Oct. 16. The club hits-turned-lullabies set includes “Time of Our Lives,” “Give Me Everything,” “Hotel Room Service” and “Timber,” among others. You can now stream all 13 lullabies here. Gloria Estefan on Being Supportive of Her Daughter Emily In the latest Red Table Talk: The Estefans, Gloria Estefan opened up about coming to terms with her daughter Emily’s sexuality. The Latin icon confesses she “had no clue” that her daughter was gay but was “suspicious” at times. “I remember being in my bedroom and telling you, ‘Mama, are you gay?'” she says in the clip below. “‘Do you want to carry th...
Budweiser Crowns Halsey as Its ‘King’ For Latest Campaign
Being a king is all about chasing after a dream and making a name for yourself, whether it’s rearranging the letters in your name to make a moniker that matches a subway station in the next state over, or it’s leaving your home country in pursuit of making the best beer in the world, like Budweiser founder Adolphus Busch set out to do in 1876. “Budweiser views being a king as a mindset, and I was honored that they choose me to break down the gender association of the word ‘King’ and allow me to tell my story,” the Hopeless Fountain Kingdom singer tells Billboard. “I think being a king is about finding self-confidence, embracing your power and celebrating all of the little things that have made you who you are. Nothing is ‘...
Revelry To Host QueerX Live! Drive-In With Jennifer Lopez, Joe Biden, Shea Diamond & More
Tomorrow night (Sunday, Oct. 11), Revelry’s annual celebration of LGBTQ+ music, film and culture returns as a new award show special, QueerX Live! Hosted as a drive-in at a secret location in a downtown Los Angeles parking lot, this year will feature originally-produced performances, speeches and more from Jennifer Lopez, Shea Diamond, Vicint and Democratic nominee Joe Biden. 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. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Yungblud Reveals Release Date for Sophomore Album ‘Weird!’: ‘Embrace the Strange’
The set from the rising U.K. star is slated to arrive Nov. 13 via Interscope Records. Yungblud announced his forthcoming sophomore album, Weird!, on Thursday morning (Sept. 17) via social media. “WEIRD! the album will be released on friday 13th of november,” the rising star wrote on Instagram. “I cannot wait for you to fall into this world with me. together let’s re define what it means to be ‘different’. embrace the strange. never settle for being anything less than 100% who you are, even if that’s 15 different people all at the same time.” The slideshow posted by the U.K. singer-songwriter reveals the album cover art, which features Yungblud inhabiting seven distinct, gender-bending characters leaning against a bright blue wall of corrugated metal, as ...
Janelle Monae Shares Powerful ‘Turntables’ Video for ‘All In: The Fight for Democracy’ Film
Janelle Monae knows “the table ’bout to turn.” That’s the message in her empowering new music video for “Turntables,” in tandem with Amazon Studios’ #AllInForVoting bipartisan campaign to inspire viewership for their Stacey Abrams-backed film, All In: The Fight for Democracy. The video shows the devastating footage of racial oppression and police brutality in protests for justice, before it transforms into an emotional display of Black strength, excellence and achievement. “We kicking out the old regime / Liberation, elevation, education / I said ‘America, yousa lie’ / But the whole world ’bout to testify,” Janelle proclaims in the heartfelt lyrics. [embedded content] The song, featured in the film, is part o...
Michael Passons Says His Sexuality Was the Real Reason for Leaving Avalon
When Avalon singer and founding member Michael Passons parted ways with contemporary Christian music group Avalon in 2003, the official story was that he was pursuing a solo career. But in a candid podcast interview that posted Thursday (Sept. 10), Passons shares what he says is the real reason behind his departure from Avalon – and it’s not quite as amicable as the 17-year-old story would have it. In an interview with Josh Skinner on his Jonah and the Whale podcast, Passons says his same sex attraction ultimately lead to his being ousted from the group. “Avalon showed up at my house and told me I was no longer in the group,” he says of June 30, 2003. “And it was all because of who I am.” “I am out now,” Passons shares, noting that he only official...
Here Are All the Livestreams & Virtual Concerts to Watch During the Coronavirus Crisis: Week of September 8
Labor Day Weekend has come and gone, but the livestream concerts show no signs of slowing down. Most live events and large gatherings remain in hold throughout the country due to the coronavirus crisis, leading artists to continue the trend of livestreaming shows to connect with fans. With music venues still shut down from coast to coast, here’s your guide to the best live-streamed music content right now, for the week of Sept. 8. As additional events are announced for the week, we’ll add them to this list. Check out the list of shows and musical events to stream from the comfort of your home this week below. September 8: Pop singer Shura will have a live chat with fellow musician Austra, with both taking questions from fans, on Twitch at 5:00 p.m. ET. September 11:&n...
Halsey to Star Alongside Sydney Sweeney in New TV Series
The project marks a reunion for the duo following the singer’s ‘Graveyard’ music video. Halsey and Sydney Sweeney are getting back together. Halsey has been tapped to make her acting debut and star alongside Euphoria‘s Sweeney in TV series The Player’s Table, based on author Jessica Goodman’s novel They Wish They Were Us. Halsey will also produce the series, which does not yet have a network. From Jean-Marc Vallee and Nathan Ross’ Crazyrose, Endeavor Content and Sweeney’s newly launched Fifty-Fifty Films banner, the drama is set at an exclusive Long Island prep school and revolves around high school senior Jill Newman (Sweeney) who works to uncover the truth about her best friend’s death three years ago and the role ...
First Out: New Music From Bright Light Bright Light, Fletcher, Flavia & More
If you’re in need of some queer additions to your Labor Day weekend playlists, look no further; Billboard Pride is here to help with First Out, our weekly roundup of some of the best new weekly music releases from LGBTQ artists. From a colorful new video courtesy of Bright Light Bright Light and Caveboy to Fletcher’s new single, check out some of our favorite new releases from this week below. Bright Light Bright Light & Caveboy, “It’s Alright, It’s OK” With their brand new music video for their track “It’s Alright, It’s OK,” pop singer Bright Light Bright Light and indie star Caveboy shifted the focus away from themselves. Instead, the entirety of the new clip focuses on New York drag performer and activist Glo...
Niecy Nash Comes Out By Introducing the World to Her New Wife: ‘Love Wins’
Actress and comedian Niecy Nash is officially coming out — and she wants the world to know her beautiful new wife. In a series of social media posts on Monday (August 31), Nash, the 50-year-old star revealed photos of her walking down the aisle with “rock and soul” singer Jessica Betts. She wrote in the caption that the two were now officially married. “Ms. Carol Denise Betts” she wrote in the caption of her Instagram, followed up immediately by a hashtag reading “#LoveWins.” Nash announced her divorce from ex-husband Jay Walker back in October 2019, and she publicly elaborated on the process of getting divorced when accepting the Vanguard Award at the 2020 Essence Black Women in Hollywood Awards Luncheon. “Trust that it is so much easier to w...
Sheldon Riley Reimagines Kylie Minogue’s ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head’ on ‘AGT’: Watch
Sheldon Riley hides his face behind a mask, but there’s nothing shy about his performances. As the quarter-finals continued Tuesday night on America’s Got Talent, the mysterious Australian singer chose a particularly dramatic crystal mask for the occasion, and delivered a powerhouse cover of “Can’t Get You Out of My Head.” Riley totally reimagined Kylie Minogue’s pop classic as an epic heartbreaker. The son of an Aussie mother and a Filipino father, Riley (real name Sheldon Hernandez) amassed a following during his run on The Voice Australia in 2018, earning a spot in the final four. He returned to the series last year as an All-Star and competed for a chance to represent Australia at the 64th Eurovision Song Contest. Watch his latest AGT performance below. [embedded content] You Deserve t...
