After earning the distinction of the top-grossing Billboard Boxscore comedian for the first half of 2025 Sebastian Maniscalco has more than earned some rest and relaxation.

The Los Angeles-based standup superstar and actor’s It Ain’t Right arena tour grossed $35.5 million and sold 361,000 tickets over 30 shows in the first six months of the year — and that does not include the record-breaking five consecutive nights he performed at Madison Square Garden last September.

Informed of the milestone, which ranked him No. 25 among all genres of live performers — just below Dua Lipa — Maniscalco responded with his usual offstage reserve, a 180-degree departure from the outsized physicality and mannerisms of his performances.

“That’s nice to hear. There’s a lot of competition out there, so I didn’t think that I would have been the No. 1 guy,” he says. “But I’m not going to lie. It’s nice to be on top.”

Before heading off to Italy — he’s taking his mother to the Amalfi Coast — Maniscalco spoke to Billboard via Zoom, and talked about the podcast he recorded about the inventor of the Ponzi scheme, his upcoming Hulu special and taking some downtime before resuming touring.

Last year, you set a record for the most consecutive nights a comic has played Madison Square Garden — five — which means you performed to upwards of 85,000 people. Why do you think your comedy appeals to such a wide range of people?

Well, the observation material that I do hits a lot of different notes for people. I’m not talking about one specific thing, although I am an Italian American and I think a lot of my comedy resonated with the Italian American community at first.

That was never really my intention. I’ve always done material like hey, “I went to Chipotle,” or “Ever notice when your doorbell rings?” These are very broad topics that everybody could enjoy. Then I honed in on my Italian upbringing and my Italian father, which resonated not only with people with Italian immigrant backgrounds, but Spanish, Greek or wherever you come from.

And you know what? I feel like there’s more. When I look into the audience, I feel like I haven’t tapped into a mainstream vibe. I would like to look into the audience and see more Chinese people, more Black people, more Indian people — because I feel like the comedy speaks to a lot of different people and I haven’t felt like I’ve tapped into just yet. I feel like there’s more out there for me.

Are you consciously adjusting your set to tap into that?

I do whatever is funny. It’s not like I’m going, “All right, listen, I need a Chinese bit because I’m going to get the Chinese people.” I just do whatever is happening in my life at the time and if people seem to gravitate towards that, that’s fine. I don’t pander to those I want to come to my show.

How much longer will the It Ain’t Right tour continue?

The arena phase of the tour is over, although I do have one or two arena shows in Connecticut. Basically, what’s left is a lot of casinos between now and the end of the year. And then we’ll put this to bed. It’s been a great run. We did, I think, 86 shows over the course of eight months. It was the best time I’ve ever had on a tour. I brought two of my good friends, Pat McGann and Pete Coreale, who are opening the shows. They’re headliners in their own regard, and I have my best friend John Petrelli, who is my security, come with us, and we’ve really enjoyed every city. In the past, I would do the show, sleep, go to the next venue. This time, I enjoyed going out to different restaurants, golf, or what have you.

In your memoir, Stay Hungry, you compare the moment when the audience taps into your performance to music. Can you elaborate on that?

I feel like there is a music element to standup in the sense that it has a rhythm, pacing and cadence — whether you go higher with your voice or go lower to bring the audience in. With my act there also is the physicality that is infused into the material. I’m not just standing there behind a microphone telling jokes. That movement I compare to dance. It’s almost like you’re dancing to your words.

Nowadays, you’ve basically got to light yourself on fire up there for people to pay attention, and I’ve always been of the mind that you’ve got to give [the audience] a show, a performance. I mean people fought traffic, parking and had to get a babysitter to see me, so I take it very seriously.

I want them to leave my show talking about what they saw. Not only the performance but the production value of it. You’re charging a high ticket price, and you don’t want to have somebody walk in and see you performing on the stage that the arena gave you. I designed the stage for the It Ain’t Right tour as a triangle because when it was in the round, I felt like I was walking in circles. With the triangle I have three points to go to.

You are very involved in the production of your shows.

I like to get involved with the nuts and bolts of the production, of the lighting. The steps to the stage light up when I step on them. I came out on a Vespa. I did a preshow video that correlated to the Vespa. I was in a Vespa on the screen and the next thing you know I come onstage on a Vespa. They’re going to leave hopefully talking about how much they laughed and not about how beautiful the lighting rig was, but that enhances the experience.

You’ve got a Hulu special on deck for this year. When will it debut?

It hasn’t been announced yet. We did it at the United Center in Chicago in the middle of the tour. Originally it was scheduled to be at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey at the end of the tour because I wasn’t sure how a special in an arena would play. But then as I started to go through the tour, I felt like man, I’ve got another six months of this. By the time I’m ready to shoot the special, I’m going to be tired and bored with the material. Then I felt like, “Why am I doing it in a theater when all the beats are already plotted for an arena?” So, we moved it up. We did it in my hometown of Chicago at the United Center.

I’m really excited about it. I tried to do something a little different with the last special I did in Las Vegas. I had asked the audience to dress up like it was 1960. I did it in a tuxedo even though I generally never perform in a suit because it’s more restrictive, and I can’t do a lot of the movements. Also, I was dealing with sciatica during that special, so I wasn’t able to be as physical as I was in the past. I was a little disappointed with how it turned out, although I thought the material was good. I just thought it could have been better. With the new special, there’s no more suit, and it’s in my hometown of Chicago. I couldn’t have asked for a better audience.

You’re voice of Charles Ponzi in a podcast called Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story. How did that come about?

I’ve always been fascinated by Ponzi schemes. Somebody’s always cheating somebody out of money with elaborate schemes. I didn’t know the Ponzi scheme was actually named after a real guy.  

Will Malnati, who is also from Chicago, had done the Wild Things podcast about Siegfried & Roy, which I love, said, “I’m going to do one on Charles Ponzi.” He was an immigrant trying to make it in America and he got wrapped up in a thing that I don’t think he ever thought that was going to be as big as it was. He ultimately scammed people out of $800 million over nine months. I’ve done animation where you’re acting in a sound booth but I’d never voiced a character through the podcast vehicle. It’s also a love story between him and this beautiful woman Rose. So, I liked all the elements of love and thievery.

You also do a podcast with Pete Coreale.

We’ve been doing it for 12 years: The Pete and Sebastian Show. We started it out of the sheer enjoyment of calling one another on the phone and laughing. I said, “You know what? We should record these phone conversations because if we’re cracking up I’m sure other people would crack up.

He’s more of a beer-and-peanuts neanderthal, and I’m more of a wine-and-cheese guy who likes the finer things in life. At first, we were just doing audio. He would be in a car outside of a Starbucks ripping Wi-Fi off the Starbucks, and I would be in a hotel room in Denver. It’s not guest driven. We’ve had maybe 12 or 13 guests on our show over the course of the last 12 years. It was just two guys talking. We’re not making a dime but it has always been a passion project for us.

I loved Bookie. Your acting was very understated compared to your stand-up style. Did you take acting classes for that show?

I’ve been taking acting classes periodically since 1998, depending on what projects I’m doing. However, the reason I think it was funny is because, going into this, Chuck Lorre and Nick Bakay, told me, “Don’t play the joke. It’s a conversation. In conversations, funny things happen, so we’re not looking to make people laugh.” I also think the relationship I had with Omar Dorsey who plays Ray — right from the get-go we had a really nice chemistry.

Acting isn’t really something that I’m like, “Oh, I can’t wait to get on set.” Because I compare everything to standup and you’re not going to find anything that gives you the pleasure you get from that immediate reaction of making people laugh over an hour and 20-minute set. You do a TV show, and sometimes you’re questioning, “Is is this funny?” because you’re not getting any laughter from anybody.

In Stay Hungry you wrote that for a lot of comics, comedy is tragedy plus time, but for you, it’s agony plus time. Can you explain that a little bit?

Yeah, I just have an angst. It’s funny when I go out sometimes whether it be a kid’s birthday party or someone’s behavior. I wish I didn’t have such a sensitivity to it and it’s a challenge sometimes when to turn it on and when to turn it off. It’s always there. I compare it to if you’re allergic to peanuts you’re going to get a rash. Sometimes I’m allergic to bad behavior and people doing odd things, and sometimes it consumes me in a way where it’s great for humor but sometimes it gets in the way of life.

I understand that you hate the word “foodie,” but you’re a real aficionado of restaurants and wine.

I wouldn’t say I’m one of these guys, who’s like, “Oh, there’s a 1969 Bordeaux that you’ve got to have, or this wine has notes of cedar.” I just know what I like when I drink it. My wife and I got married in Napa, and I was introduced to wine about 15 years ago through my father-in-law, who is a big wine guy.

Then when it comes to food, I like to cook. I’m not doing any gastronomy over here. I like to make steak. I like to make chicken. We do a taco night for our kids, and I’m always trying to perfect the taco meat. My daughter, who is eight years old, I made burgers for her last night, and she said, “Daddy, I like it, but it’s got a little too much oil on it.” I put a little oil on the bun and then put them down on the grill to toast them a little bit. I over-oiled it, which I knew, but then she picked it out. I was like, “Jesus, eight years old.” At eight years old I didn’t care what the hell I was eating. But apparently my daughter is Bobby Flay.

We just enjoy eating great food. It doesn’t have to be fancy. It doesn’t have to be a tasting menu. We love going to a nice taco shop, burger place, but we also like eating at Providence here in Los Angeles which is Michael Cimarusti’s restaurant. It’s all seafood and I love seafood. Now that I have a family – a son and a daughter – I like to introduce them to new foods as my grandfather did when he was alive, and I was eating squid at eight years old.

Do you have a go-to wine?

Right now, it’s just a basic pinot noir by Flowers that we like. Cabernets seem to be a little heavy on a Tuesday night when you’re just relaxing. We adjusted our taste to pinots now. What else do I like? Ann Colgin – Colgin Cellars has a beautiful red wine that they do, but I don’t get to have it often. It’s a very expensive wine.

You’re also an Italian beef fan. Have you watched The Bear?

I just started about a month ago. I’m not too far into it, but it definitely brought back memories of Chicago and Johnnie’s Beef, Portillo’s makes a good beef. Who else? Mr. Beef. A lot of beef in Chicago.

What music do you listen to, and have your kids influenced your musical tastes?

I grew up on Al Jarreau, Miles Davis, Grover Washington Jr. My father had a lot of jazz in the house. Growing up, there was mainstream music like Michael Jackson, Prince, Bon Jovi and all that. I’m listening to Teddy Swims right now, who I think is a really great singer. I took my kids to the Beyoncé concert. Talk about performance and show business. That’s a huge, huge show, and she’s a great performer. I like The Weeknd. So, I’m all over the map with my tastes.

Have you ever gone back to Sicily to see your family’s origins?

I took my father about 12 years ago. My father and I always wanted to go back to his hometown. He never took us when we were kids, and then later in life, I said, “We’ve got to make a trip.” Then he goes down with quadruple bypass surgery. He comes out of that, and I go, “Listen, we’re going to Sicily before you die. This has got to happen.” So, shortly after he had the surgery, me and him took a journey to Sicily, to the Amalfi coast and to Rome. I got to see where he grew up.

Where was that?

It’s a small fishing village called Cefalù. It’s about an hour east of Palermo. Ever since we went, he’s been back every year. It reignited his passion to go back to his hometown and reconnect with old friends. It’s nice to see that he’s fallen in love with where he came from, because he was so worried about work. My father came to this country and that’s all it was. Work. He had this whole mentality if he left for too long, people were going to forget him.

Which I have, too, a little bit, in comedy. Nowadays, you feel like you’ve constantly got to be out there touring or on Instagram. Then I talked to Chris Rock, and he’s like, “You can’t make an entrance if you never leave the room.” I took that to heart. I think I’ve established a fanbase where if I did take some time off and wasn’t constantly out there, I would keep them when I came back. So, I’m trying to take Chris’ advice.

During this downtime are you looking forward to anything in particular?

I’m going to get back into golf. I just went golfing this weekend. We did it in Las Vegas while I was performing there. I want to do some golfing and then I’m taking my mother to Italy for her 80th birthday. She always wanted to go to the Amalfi coast, so we’re taking her there.

Then, I definitely want to start cooking again because it’s very relaxing for me. I’ve got so many recipes that I’ve saved on Instagram that I want to try out. I like going into the kitchen and homing in on a dish. I haven’t gotten good enough in cooking where I start improvising, like, “Oh, what is this going to taste like?” I like following a recipe to a T and having it come out right.

Do you have a favorite dish you like to make?

Everybody likes when I make steak. People go, “Well, how hard is it to make steak? You just cook it.” But I put it in the oven for 45 minutes at 275. I let it rest for 15 minutes. I do a sear two minutes on each side. Just a good helping of pepper and salt on it. No sauce, no nothing. I just started making mashed potatoes, which turned out fantastic when I added a little garlic which wasn’t in the recipe. Nothing where it would be like, “Oh, I do this thing that it takes eight hours to prepare.” I’ll do a pasta dish with oil and some garlic and a little parsley on top, cheese. Maybe a little branzino, salt, pepper, stick it in the oven. Squeeze a little lemon or oil on it. Simple.

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

LISA of BLACKPINK broke the internet back in April by posting a picture of her bag to Instagram.

The bag in question, a Louis Vuitton x Murakami Speedy Bandoulière 25 bag, was absolutely decked out in a series of charms, including the Crybaby Crying For Love Series Vinyl Plush Hanging Card in Love You Cherry Much, hailing from PopMart. The “Money” singer isn’t the only musician to accessorize her bag with charms. Dua Lipa, Madonna and Lily Allen have all been spotted decking out their designer bags in charms galore.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by LISA (@lalalalisa_m)

The key to success with accessorizing your own handbag is maximalism; don’t be afraid to deck out your bags with charms of all kinds. You’ll also want to choose your bag wisely; the bags artists like LISA choose are bulky in nature and often neutral, creating a blank canvas for your charms to shine.

The originator of this trend, Jane Birkin, did it best; Birkin’s sense of style ultimately led Hermes to name their Birkin bag after her. The bags that Birkin owned were speckled with various trinkets and bobs. The style of adornment was aptly dubbed “Birkin-ifying.” With all this in mind, we’re showing you how to get the look with help from Coach Outlet and Urban Outfitters.

Playing on the popular cottagecore trend, this charm from Coach Outlet is comprised of a central charm of a bright red heart made of resin with a gold metal keyring and dog leash clip attached. The heart’s center is fixed with crystal and glass pearls. Above the heart sits a dainty little pink bow. We think this charm would add a nice pop of color and shine to any bag.

This bag charm is cute and functional. Retailing for $4.99, 58% off its original price, the charm comes with a silver heart-shaped hinge clip alongside a coquettish gingsham blue and white bow and a heart-shaped strawberry charm. In the center of it all is a miniature lime green face roller that you can use to de-puff on the go. This would make a great gift for the skincare junkies in your life.

This bag charm triggers our cuteness aggression. When you see something so cute, you just want to squish it. Retailing for $18.50, this Fluffy Animal Plushie Keychain is Labubu-esque in that it’s super cute and texturally fluffy. The charm consists of a fluffy bunny-like animal adorned with bows alongside a faux pearl necklace adorned with a dangling silver heart charm. The metal hinge clip allows you to situate the charm on whatever your heart desires, from bags to keys.

Monchhichi was first conceived in Japan in 1974. The doll isn’t currently the top of the blind box food chain, especially not compared to Labubus, but it’s a great one in our books. While the doll is usually a monkey, this one from Urban Outfitters is a bear, and a fuzzy one at that. The bear is dressed in a little gingham bib. You’ll want to hop on these little trendy guys while you can.

Retailing for $95, this cherry charm from Coach Outlet is ultra sweet. The central charm is a realistic cherry with gold hardware attached to a keyring and a dog leash clip that allows you to clip it to whatever you please. This is another charm that works visually, adding a sparkling element to any bag. Unlike your cutesie bag charms, this cherry charm is a little more sophisticated, if that’s your thing.

The glacier was singing.

Northern Irish duo Bicep were on a trip to Greenland, and when the pair’s Andy Ferguson visited the country’s famous Russell Glacier, he says he found it to be “like an orchestra of noise. The squeals and crashes that the ice makes were truly otherworldly.”

While many of us will never get the chance to hear these sounds in person, this glacier and other voices of the Arctic, human and otherwise, are incorporated into the lauded electronic duo’s new collaborative project Takkuuk.

Taking its name from the Inuktitut word meaning to look closely, Takkuuk is an audiovisual installation from Bicep (Ferguson and Matt McBriar) visual artist Zak Norman and filmmaker Charlie Miller that delves into the lives, communities and challenges facing artists Indigenous to the Arctic region. After debuting in London earlier this month, the installation will travel to Australia, Europe, Greenland, the Middle East and South American into 2026. Fusing electronic music ranging from uptempo to ambient with elements of the natural world, the ten-track Takkuuk soundtrack is out Friday (July 25) via Ninja Tune.

The project started in 2023 when Bicep was invited on an exploratory trip to Greenland by non-profit In Place of War, which works to use art to bring attention to places impacted by war and climate change. In the Arctic, Bicep spent the two week trip meeting with locals, having conversations and touring communities to better understand how their habitats and lives are being affected by climate change, as warming temperatures accelerate the melting of ice sheets across the Arctic. The film also looks at the displacement and marginalization of communities in these regions.

“The very obvious and initial impression of Greenland was of a landscape that was truly beautiful, but visibly under threat from climate change,” says Ferguson. While issues related to climate change can feel broad, faraway and existential, Takkuuk puts names, faces, stories and sounds to them.

“Climate change is a human crisis that affects all of us,” Ferguson continues. “Whilst we need to see headlines, at the same time we need to understand the impact on a more human level, and how climate change creates a chain reaction that has a real life impact on local communities and culture.”

While in Greenland, Bicep also met with local artists while attending Greenland’s Arctic Sounds festival, which features artists from the region. The initial idea was to collaborate on original music with artists they met at the festival and potentially do a collaborative gig at the following year’s event.

But when everyone got on a call to talk about the project, says McBriar, “it became clear that the artists being able to tell their individual stories was incredibly important.”

And so the idea expanded to become an audiovisual project, in which Indigenous artists from across the Arctic would be filmed telling their stories in their respective homes. Ultimately, this group came to include ten Indigenous musicians including Greenlandic rapper Tarrak, who also delivered his own animal sound field recordings to the project, Greenlandic indie rock band Nuija and Sweden’s Katarina Barruk, who sings in the Ume Sámi language that’s currently spoken by only a handful native speakers. Filmed in Greenland, Sweden, Norway and Canada, Takkuuk features everything from metal to traditional throat singing.

Along with the music and individual stories, the film also captivates via sweeping, Planet Earth-style views of the remote Arctic, showing viewers the glory of this ecosystem and the human lives, communities and traditions at stake in its changing climate. The idea is for the project to inspire action, with the film’s online hub containing information on everything from how to switch banking and pension institutions to more climate-minded entities, how to switch to better energy suppliers, traveling more sustainably and inspiring youth.

In an genre that can be mind-numbingly focused on hedonistic escapism, this project by the beloved duo demonstrates electronic music’s power to direct attention to issues that matter.

“Art can help give a voice and also a different perspective that makes visualizing the problems more impactful,” says Ferguson. “This can also help to share the stories of those on the frontline of climate change and reach more people who can ultimately help make change happen.”

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

For more than 25 years, WWE Friday Night SmackDown has been a weekend essential for pro wrestling fans around the world. While the TV show highlights the best and brightest in the WWE, it’s very likely there’s going to be a tribute to Hulk Hogan, who passed away on Thursday, July 24.

Born Terry Bollea, Hulk Hogan put the WWE (formerly WWF) on the map throughout the ’80s and early ’90s, as its premiere superstar. The WWE wouldn’t be what it is today without the Hulkster.

Want to watch WWE Friday Night SmackDown online? The WWE TV event airs live on Fridays on USA Network with a start time of 8 p.m. ET/PT, and there are plenty of streaming options that’ll allow you to catch all the action.

The legendary Hulk Hogan ❤️💛 pic.twitter.com/3daG7IDznf

— WWE (@WWE) July 24, 2025

Keep reading to learn how to watch WWE Friday Night SmackDown.

How to Watch WWE Friday Night SmackDown Online

For those with cable, you can watch the showdown for free on Fridays on USA Network starting at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Just make sure to check your provider’s channel guide to find what channel USA Network is on.

Don’t have cable? You might be able to watch the championship through an HD antenna, such as one of these from Amazon. If you don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on cable, there are some free and affordable streaming options, DirecTV, which you can join now and take advantage of their promo. Right now, you can sign up for a 5-day free trial and get the first month of service for $59.99 ($89.99 per month afterwards).

Looking for more streaming options? Fubo and Hulu + Live TV offer free trials, which means you can watch the Friday night fight for free. You can subscribe to Sling Blue to get for up to half off for the first month of service.

Watching from outside the country? Make sure to use ExpressVPN and PureVPN to catch every moment live.

In the meantime, listen to Hulk Hogan’s entrance song, “Real American” by Rick Derringer and Bernard Kenny, below:

Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox deals, studio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.