John Lydon Nixes Idea of Reunion With ‘Woke’ Sex Pistols: ‘I Am the Pistols, and They’re Not’

Fans of English punk icons the Sex Pistols should temper their expectations when it comes to dreams of a reunion with vocalist Johnny Rotten, the singer says.

News of a tour from the Sex Pistols emerged in 2024 when it was first announced that the band – featuring original members Steve Jones, Paul Cook, and Glen Matlock – were to reunite for a two-night affair to benefit West London’s Bush Hall. 

Instead of Rotten (whose real name is John Lydon) taking on the role of frontman, the group was to feature Frank Carter, who has previously performed as the singer of acts such as Gallows, Pure Love and Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes. As a result, the current version of the band is officially being billed as the ‘Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter.’

Lydon has not been shy in regard to his opinions of the current lineup, however. Previously, he labelled the reunion tantamount to “karaoke,” while being far more straightforward with his opinions in other interviews. 

“When I first heard that the Sex Pistols were touring this year without me it pissed me off,” he told British publication The i Paper. “It annoyed me. I just thought, ‘they’re absolutely going to kill all that was good with the Pistols by eliminating the point and the purpose of it all.’”

Now, Lydon addressed the notion as to whether a reunion with him behind the microphone would be a possibility at some point. However, he told PA (via The Independent) that after his legal disagreements with his bandmates over the usage of songs in the 2022 FX/Disney+ series Pistol, such a dream will remain unrealized for fans.

“Never, not after what I consider their dirty deeds, let them wallow in Walt Disney woke expectations,” he explained. “They’ve killed the content, or done their best to, and turned the whole thing into a rubbish, childishness, and that’s unacceptable.

“Sorry, I’m not going to give a helping hand to this any longer, as far as I am concerned, I am the Pistols, and they’re not.”

In a recent interview, Jones explained that Lydon wasn’t involved in any discussions about the nascent version of the band, conceding there would be no point in attempting to get him to join the band given their recent disagreements.

“I literally haven’t spoken to John since that last tour in 2008,” Jones explained. “I want to be clear, I’ve got nothing bad to say about John. I think he’s great; I love him. We had a great past and I’m just moving on from that. That’s all. It was just no fun anymore.”

The current iteration of the band recently announced a run of North American tour dates, which will launch in Dallas, TX on Sept. 16 and wrap in Los Angeles, CA one month later on Oct. 16.

Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter – North American Tour 2025

Sept. 16 – Longhorn Ballroom, Dallas, TX
Sept. 23 – 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
Sept. 26 – Fillmore, Philadelphia, PA
Sept. 27 – TBD, Brooklyn, NY
Sept. 30 – Mtelus, Montreal, QC
Oct. 1 – History, Toronto, ON
Oct. 3 – Agora Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Oct. 4 – Fillmore, Detroit, MI
Oct. 7 – Fillmore, Minneapolis, MN
Oct. 10 – Mission Ballroom, Denver, CO
Oct. 13 – Showbox SoDo, Seattle, WA
Oct. 15 – Warfield, San Francisco, CA
Oct. 16 – Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA

/by

NMPA CEO Talks Spotify Podcast Takedowns and AI Strategy, Warns Against Government-Led PRO Reform

National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) president/CEO David Israelite joined the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) to give his annual State of Music Publishing address on Wednesday (April 2) at Lawry’s in Beverly Hills. In his speech, Israelite discussed hot button issues for publishers, including Spotify bundling (“we are still at war”), AI concerns, PRO reform and more.

Israelite started by sharing the NMPA’s data on the revenue sources for songwriters and publishers. It found that songwriters and publishers earn 45% of revenue from streaming services, 11% from general licensing and live, 9% from traditional synchronization licensing, 8% from mass synch (licenses for UGC video platforms like YouTube), 8% from radio, 7% from TV, 4% from labels, 2% from social media, 1% from sheet music, and 1% from lyrics. The NMPA says that 75% of its income is regulated by either a compulsory license or a consent decree, while the remaining 25% is handled via free-market negotiation.

Related

In this image released on December 12, 2024, Shaboozey at the 2024 Billboard Music Awards.

Publishers Quarterly: Warner Chappell Wins Triple Crown of Charts for First Time

On the AI front, Israelite explained that the NMPA is actively watching and supporting pending legal action.

“We have not filed our own lawsuit yet, but I can promise you that if there is a path forward with a productive lawsuit, we will be filing it,” he said. As far as trying to regulate AI through policy, Israelite added, “We’re doing everything that can be done.” The NMPA is participating in both a White House initiative and a Copyright Office initiative, but he added, “If you are waiting for the government to protect your rights and AI models, I think that is a very bad strategy.”

Instead, Israelite said that the “most emphasis” should be placed on forming business relationships with AI companies. “When that date comes [that AI companies are willing to come to the table to license music], I believe the most important principle is that the song is just as valuable, if not more, than the sound recording in the AI model,” he continued.

During the speech, Israelite said he had a recent conversation with “the CEO of one of the major AI companies” who told him that “by far, the song [as opposed to the sound recording] is the most important input into these models. I tell you this because I am fearful that as these models develop, if we do not protect our rights, we will find ourselves in a situation where we are not getting as much or more than the sound recording when it comes to revenue…that is a responsibility of this entire community to fight for that.”

Related

United States Copyright Office

Copyright Office Opens Inquiry Into U.S. PROs

Israelite added that his “number one problem when it comes to revenue is how we are treated with these bundled plans,” pointing to publishers’ ongoing issues with Spotify. Last year, Spotify added audiobooks into its premium tier offerings and began claiming those tiers as “bundles,” a term referring to a type of subscription that qualifies for a discounted rate for music. Spotify claimed that it now had to pay to license both books and music from the same subscription price and subsequently started paying songwriters and publishers about 40% less for music, according to the NMPA. At the time, Billboard estimated that this would lead to a $150 million reduction in payments to publishers in the next year, compared to what publishers would have been paid if the tiers had never been reclassified.

In January, news broke that Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify had forged a direct deal that gave UMG’s publishing arm improved terms, effectively minimizing the harm caused by the previous year’s bundling change. Shortly after, Warner Music Group (WMG) followed suit with its own direct deal with Spotify for improved publishing remuneration. “I know in this room in particular, there is a great concern about what those market deals mean for the whole industry,” Israelite says. “I want to be very clear about this. I believe those market deals are a good thing, but until everybody benefits from the same protections about how bundles are treated, we are still at war. Nothing has changed.”

Israelite added later that UMG and WMG’s direct deals could be cited as “evidence” to support the publishers’ position during the next Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) fight, which will determine the U.S. mechanical royalty rates for publishers in the future. The CRB proceedings begin again in 10 months, and Israelite estimates his organization will spend $36 million in the next trial to fight for the publishers’ position. While he often noted that “we shouldn’t be in this system in the first place” during his address, Israelite conceded that despite his calls for a legislative proposal that would give publishers and writers the right to pull out of the 100-year-old system of government-regulated price setting for royalties, the “brilliant idea” is “next to impossible to accomplish.”

Israelite went on to detail all the ways the NMPA and others are still fighting back against Spotify over the bundling debacle. He noted that the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) “is doing a fantastic job of continuing the fight” against Spotify, adding that its lawsuit, which was dismissed earlier this year by a judge who called the federal royalty rules “unambiguous,” has “been revived.” He added, “[It’s] our best chance of getting back what we lost.”

Related

In this photo illustration a mobile phone screen displaying Spotify logo with a headset in front of it, in Ankara, Turkiye on May 01, 2024.

NMPA Issues 2,500 Podcast Takedown Actions Against Spotify, Claiming Infringement of Songs

Elsewhere in his speech, Israelite told the crowd of independent publishers that the NMPA has now sent three rounds of takedown notices to Spotify for various podcast episodes, citing copyright infringement of its members’ songs, and that “over 11,000 podcasts have been removed from Spotify” as a consequence.

The recent calls for performing rights organization (PRO) reform are also top of mind for publishers in 2025. Last year, the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to the Register of Copyrights, Shira Perlmutter, requesting an examination of PROs, citing two areas of concern: the “proliferation” of new PROs and the lack of transparency about the distribution of general licensing revenue. This spurred the Copyright Office to take action, opening a notice of inquiry that allows industry stakeholders to submit comments, sharing their point of view about what, if anything, should be reformed at American PROs. However, some fear that the notice of inquiry could lead to increased regulation at the PROs, further constraining publishing income.

Israelite addressed this by giving publishers a preview of the NMPA’s forthcoming comments. “I will tell you today exactly what our comments are going to say,” he said. “It is very simple. Music publishers and songwriters are already over-regulated by the federal government. Congress should be focused on decreasing regulation of our industry, not increasing regulation of our industry, and to the extent that any of these issues are substantive issues. This should be dealt with between the PROs and their members. It has nothing to do with the Copyright Office. It has nothing to do with Congress. It has nothing to do with the federal government.”

/by

These Common Projects Dupes Get You the Look of the Musician-Loved Sneakers for One-Third the Price

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.

It’s hard to believe it’s been almost 20 years since fashion designer Prathan Poopat and his consultant friend Flavio Girolami started Common Projects as an independent footwear brand in New York City. Launched in 2004, the brand’s line of minimalist sneakers quickly gained a following among the fashion set, not to mention celebrities and musicians like Frank Ocean, Nick Jonas and Jay-Z, among others.

Common Projects is now ubiquitous on the soles of everyone from students to entrepreneurs to athletes (Tom Brady has been seen in Common Projects sneakers on multiple occasions).

Though it’s still based in New York, Common Projects manufactures the majority of its shoes in Italy, all handcrafted from genuine leather and other premium finishes. And of course, that signature stamp of numbers remains the only visible branding on the shoes.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

ORIGINAL MODEL

Common Projects Black Original Achilles Low Sneakers

$480

Buy Now AT SSENSE

But Common Projects sneakers don’t run cheap. In fact, its bestselling Original Achilles Low silhouette will still run you close to $500 on sites like SSENSE above.

Fortunately, there are a few good Common Projects alternatives that you can find online, including similar-looking pairs starting at just $129. From sustainable picks to luxe finds, here are five top-reviewed Common Projects dupes to buy right now.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

TOP PICK

Cariuma OCA Low All Black Pebbled Leather

$159

Buy Now AT CARIUMA

Cariuma is known for its sustainably-sourced and produced footwear collection, and one of their best new styles is this pair of black pebbled leather shoes, which offers a slightly-more casual take on the Common Projects Achilles. The Cariuma kicks feature a grippy rubber sole, organic cotton canvas lining, organic cotton laces and a biodegradable, plant-derived insole for comfort and breathability. At just $159, the OCA Low deliver the same great looks for one-third of the price of Common Projects.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

MUSICIAN APPROVED

Koio Capri Triple White Sneakers

$245

Buy Now AT KOIO

Musicians like Joe Jonas love Italian footwear brand Koio, which makes a great Common Projects alternative called the “Capri.” The stark white sneakers are handmade in Tuscany from genuine leather, then set on a minimalist white rubber sole. A super versatile pair of shoes, the look can be preppy or formal depending on how you style them. They’re not cheap at $245, but still less expensive than Common Projects, with the same amount of craftsmanship and same streamlined aesthetic.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

FAN FAVORITE

Thursday Premier Low Top

$129.00

Buy Now On Amazon

Footwear brand Thursday may be best known for their boots, but they also make a great Common Projects dupe with their Premier Low Top sneaker. Made from a smooth and buttery Italian nappa leather, the shoes feature the same low profile and tonal stitching of Common Projects, but at a wallet-friendly $129 price point. They’re easy to order and get delivered on Amazon too.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

EDITOR’S CHOICE

Steve Madden Bondd Sneakers

$79.99 $119.99 33% off

Buy Now AT STEVE MADDEN

The first time I tried on these Steve Madden sneakers at a menswear trade show in Las Vegas, I knew I had to have them in my closet. Unlike some Steve Madden sneakers, which can scream TRENDY, these ones are clean and timeless, with a surprisingly elegant aesthetic (especially in this gray suede finish). Also available in white and black, the Bondd sneakers are one of the best Common Project alternatives you can buy online, though they more than stand on their own as a pair of must-have kicks too.

5 Best Common Projects Sneaker Dupes: Shop Affordable Alternatives

ALSO CONSIDER

Clae Bradley Sneaker

$170

Buy Now AT NORDSTROM

From artists and models to musicians, all of our “in the know” friends own a pair of Clae Bradley sneakers. They’re some of the most comfortable shoes you’ll put on, with a cushioned insole and padded footbed that keeps things plush and light for all-day wear. Clae makes these leather sneakers sustainably too, with the LA and Paris-based company pledging to use at least 50% leather “sourced from a tannery that has achieved a Leather Working Group rating for energy use, waste production and water treatment,” per a product description.

For more product recommendations, check out ShopBillboard’s roundup of musician sneaker collabs and the best things to buy from Snoop Dogg’s Skechers collection.

/by

The Weeknd’s ‘Call Out My Name’ Video Reaches 1 Billion YouTube Views

The Weeknd added yet another music video to YouTube’s Billion Views Club, as the “Call Out My Name” visual surpassed the milestone. The achievement marks the star’s sixth music video to surpass one billion views.

In the 2018 clip, The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) wanders an empty road at dusk, before bats explode from his head at the chorus. “So call out my name/ Call out my name when I kiss you so gently/ I want you to stay,” he sings in the hook.

He then appears on a stage against a blank screen and walking among a fire-filled landscape with its animal inhabitants frozen. He then catches the attention of a creepy woodland creature, who also appears at the end of the clip, staring into the camera from an apartment balcony.

Upon its release, “Call Out My Name,” peaked at No. 4 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 songs chart and No. 3 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It also reached No. 14 on the US Rhythmic chart and was certified three-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

The track appears on The Weeknd’s 2018 EP, My Dear Melancholy, which topped both the all-genre Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts.

To celebrate The Weeknd’s latest accomplishment, watch the “Call Out My Name” music video below.

/by

Amazon Puts In Last-Minute TikTok Bid as U.S. Ban Looms

WASHINGTON (AP) — Amazon has put in a bid to purchase TikTok, a Trump administration official said Wednesday, in an eleventh-hour pitch as a U.S. ban on the platform is set to go into effect Saturday.

The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the Amazon offer was made in a letter to Vice President JD Vance and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Related

TikTok

TikTok Returns to Apple and Google App Stores After Trump Delays Ban Enforcement

The New York Times first reported on the bid.

President Donald Trump on Inauguration Day gave the platform a reprieve, barreling past a law that had been upheld unanimously by the Supreme Court, which said the ban was necessary for national security.

Under the law, TikTok’s Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance is required to sell the platform to an approved buyer or take it offline in the United States. Trump has suggested he could further extend the pause on the ban, but he has also said he expects a deal to be forged by Saturday.

Amazon declined to comment. TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The existence of an Amazon bid surfaced as Trump was scheduled on Wednesday to meet with senior officials to discuss the coming deadline for a TikTok sale.

Although it’s unclear if ByteDance plans to sell TikTok, several possible bidders have come forward in the past few months. Among the possible investors are the software company Oracle and the investment firm Blackstone. Oracle announced in 2020 that it had a 12.5% stake in TikTok Global after securing its business as the app’s cloud technology provider.

Related

Market, TikTok Ban

As TikTok Ban Looms Again, Record Labels ‘Need to Be Prepared’

In January, the artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI presented ByteDance with a merger proposal that would combine Perplexity’s business with TikTok’s U.S. operation. Last month, the company outlined its approach to rebuilding TikTok in a blog post, arguing that it is “singularly positioned to rebuild the TikTok algorithm without creating a monopoly.”

“Any acquisition by a consortium of investors could in effect keep ByteDance in control of the algorithm, while any acquisition by a competitor would likely create a monopoly in the short form video and information space,” Perplexity said in its post.

The company said it would remake the TikTok algorithm and ensure that infrastructure would be developed and maintained in “American data centers with American oversight, ensuring alignment with domestic privacy standards and regulations.”

Other potential bidders include a consortium organized by billionaire businessman Frank McCourt, which recently recruited Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian as a strategic adviser. Investors in the consortium say they’ve offered ByteDance $20 billion in cash for TikTok’s U.S. platform. Jesse Tinsley, the founder of the payroll firm Employer.com, says he too has organized a consortium and is offering ByteDance more than $30 billion for the platform. Wyoming small business owner Reid Rasner has also announced that he offered ByteDance roughly $47.5 billion.

Related

TikTok logo.

TikTok Banned From Operating In Canada

Both the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that ByteDance could share user data — such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers — with China’s authoritarian government. TikTok said it has never done that and would not do so if asked. The U.S. government has not provided evidence of that happening.

Trump has millions of followers on TikTok and has credited the trendsetting platform with helping him gain traction among young voters.

During his first term, he took a more skeptical view of TikTok and issued executive orders banning dealings with ByteDance as well as the owners of the Chinese messaging app WeChat.

This story was originally published by The Associated Press.

/by

Bruce Springsteen Pays Tribute to Joe DePugh, the Inspiration Behind ‘Glory Days’

Bruce Springsteen has paid tribute to Joe DePugh, the New Jersey pitcher who inspired his hit song “Glory Days,” following news of DePugh’s death this week at the age of 75.

“Just a moment to mark the passing of Freehold native and ballplayer Joe DePugh,” Springsteen wrote in an Instagram post on March 30. “He was a good friend when I needed one. ‘He could throw that speedball by you, make you look like a fool’ …. Glory Days my friend.”

DePugh and Springsteen grew up together in Freehold, N.J., and played baseball in the same youth league. Their now-legendary chance encounter at a bar in 1973 served as the real-life basis for one of the most iconic verses on Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A. album.

DePugh later confirmed the moment in interviews, recalling how the two reconnected outside the Headliner in Neptune, then spent hours catching up inside.

“Whenever we’re together, it’s the same dynamic: I’m the star and he’s the guy at the end of the bench,’ said DePugh to the Palm Beach Post in 2011. “That’s who he has always been to me, my right fielder.”

Springsteen never mentioned DePugh by name in the song, which reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985. But the mystery of the man behind the lyrics was finally solved in 2011, when Freehold historian Kevin Coyne revealed DePugh’s identity in a New York Times article, with confirmation from Springsteen himself.

“He was not a person who was living in those days. He had had those days, he had thrived in them and he had loved them, and then he had a nice life,” Coyne said of DePugh.

A standout pitcher and basketball player, DePugh once tried out for the Los Angeles Dodgers and played college basketball at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He became the legal guardian of his younger brothers after the early death of his parents, later working as a contractor and splitting his time between Florida and Vermont.

DePugh and Springsteen remained friends throughout their lives, occasionally crossing paths in Palm Beach County, where Springsteen owns a home and DePugh lived in Lake Worth.

“He said to me, ‘Always remember I love you,’” DePugh recalled of one of their final meetings. “He kissed me on both cheeks, and then he was out the door.”

DePugh died after a battle with cancer. He is remembered fondly by friends, including longtime Freehold teacher and coach Rich Kane, who said: “All he wanted to do was raise his brothers, play baseball, play basketball and just hang in Freehold Borough. This one hurt. Joe and I were very close.”

/by

Fred Durst Joins Ecca Vandal Onstage During ‘Loserville’ Tour

Ecca Vandal just had her “pinch me” moment on tour with Limp Bizkit. While opening for the nu-metal icons on their Loserville European tour, the Melbourne-raised punk-pop force was joined on stage by none other than Fred Durst himself.

The moment went down in Frankfurt on March 31, as Vandal performed her latest single, “Cruising to Self Soothe.” Mid-set, Durst made a surprise entrance to sing alongside her, to the roar of the crowd.

“Make some noise for Fred Durst,” she shouted, adding, “What a f—ing honor!” Later, she posted a clip of the performance on Instagram with the caption: “Cruising with Fred Durst.” The Limp Bizkit frontman responded with a smiling emoji and fire emojis.

Durst has long been a fan of the genre-defying South African-born artist, previously calling her new single “legendary.” “Cruising to Self Soothe,” released in late February, is Vandal’s first new music of 2025 and follows her support slot for IDLES earlier this year. The gritty, empowering track explores personal strength and liberation in the face of isolation.

“This song is about cultivating your inner strength when navigating life on your own, even when it feels a bit isolating,” she explained. “It’s about that pivotal moment when you recognise that you’re stronger without the people who were weighing you down.”

Vandal continued: “Even when others are waiting for you to fall, you’re still rising — stronger than ever.”

The Loserville tour, featuring support acts Karen Díó, Bones, N8NOFACE, and Riff Raff, wraps up tonight at the Accor Arena in Paris. Vandal has been a standout opener throughout the run, bringing her explosive stage presence to a whole new audience.

After four years without solo releases, Vandal returned in 2024 and 2025 with new music and continued collaborations with acts like Birdz, Illy, DZ Deathrays and Void of Vision. Her self-titled debut album dropped in 2017.

/by

The Hives Plot World Tour to Accompany New Album, ‘The Hives Forever Forever The Hives’

Incendiary Swedish rockers The Hives are readying themselves for a big year, with a new album announced alongside a global run of tour dates.

The veteran quintet – who celebrated their 30th anniversary in 2023 – shared the news of their seventh album in a press release on Tuesday (April 1), with the announcement taking the form of an open letter formally addressed to “whom it may concern,” but clarified to mean “everyone.”

“This message is to inform you that International Rock Sensation The Hives, the best live band on the planet and still your new favourite band, lauded on all continents for their masterful skill and reckless abandon in the rock music field, have once again, sooner than you expected, created a new body of work the likes of which have never been heard or indeed probably will again,” the message began.

“A new record so full of energy, joy, anger and life that you will be questioning reality as you have known it,” it continued. “They finally did it. Every single song a single, every single single a hit, every hit a direct hit in the face of the man.”

The record in question is titled The Hives Forever Forever The Hives and will be released via Play It Again Sam on Aug. 29. According to the press release, the 13-track album was “crafted with commitment, abandon and skill in Sweden in cohorts with the esteemed producers Pelle Gunnerfeldt and Mike D of Beastie Boys.”

The group have also unveiled “Enough Is Enough” as the album’s lead single, with a video directed by filmmaker Eik Kockum capturing the group in Bucharest, Romania.

“Who in their right mind would start a song like this? No one but The Hives,” the group explained. “They are here again sooner than you expected and they have had enough of everyone at this point. Hence the title. Dig? Dig.”

The Hives will celebrate the release of their forthcoming album with a world tour which launches in Australia in July, before visiting North America, Europe, and the U.K. throughout the rest of the year.

The Hives Forever Forever The Hives arrives as the band’s seventh album, and follows on from the release of 2023’s The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons – ending an eleven-year gap between releases for the band. 

The group initially formed in 1993, though largely avoided widespread recognition until the release of the 2001 compilation Your New Favourite Band. The compilation resulted in the re-release of their single “Hate to Say I Told You So,” which peaked at No. 86 on the Hot 100, and saw their following album – 2004’s Tyrannosaurus Hives – reach a career high of No. 33 on the Billboard 200.

The Hives – World Tour 2025

July 17  – Metropolis Freo, Perth, AU
July 19  – Forum, Melbourne, AU
July 23  – Enmore Theatre, Sydney, AU
July 24  – Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, AU
Sept. 8  – Stubb’s Waller Creek Ampitheater, Austin, TX
Sept. 9  – House of Blues, Houston, TX
Sept. 10  – House of Blues, Dallas, TX
Sept. 12  – Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO
Sept. 13  – The Union Event Center, Salt Lake City, UT
Sept. 15  – Showbox SoDo, Seattle, WA
Sept. 16  – The Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC
Sept. 17  – Revolution Hall, Portland, OR
Sept. 19  – Ace of Spades, Sacramento, CA
Sept. 20  – The Warfield, San Francisco, CA
Sept. 22  – The Sound, Del Mar, CA
Sept. 25  – Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 17  – Sentrume Scene, Oslo, NO
Oct. 18  – KB Hall, Copenhagen, DK
Oct. 21  – Colombia Halle, Berlin, DE
Oct. 24  – Zenith, Munich, DE
Oct. 25  – Haus Auensee, Leipzig, DE
Oct. 26  – Gasometer, Wien, AT
Oct. 28  – Xtra, Zurich, CH
Oct. 29  – Alcatraz, Milan, IT
Nov. 1  – Sant Jordi Club, Barcelona, ES
Nov. 2  – Wizink, Madrid, ES
Nov. 4  – Sagres Campo Pequeno, Lisbon, PT
Nov. 19  – Forest National, Brussels, BE
Nov. 20  – Le Zenith, Paris, FR
Nov. 22  – AFAS, Amsterdam, NL
Nov. 24  – Utilitia Arena, Cardiff, UK
Nov. 26  – Ovo Hydro, Glasgow, UK
Nov. 28  – Aviva Studios, Manchester, UK
Nov. 29  – Alexandra Palace, London, UK
Dec. 1  – Palladium, Cologne, DE
Dec. 2  – Jahrhunderthalle, Frankfurt, DE
Dec. 3  – Sporthalle, Hamburg, DE
Dec. 6  – Avicii Arena, Stockholm, SE

/by

Morgan Wallen Launches ‘Get Me to God’s Country’ Merch Following ‘SNL’ Walk-Off

Fresh off the back of his early exit from Saturday Night Live over the weekend, Morgan Wallen has launched a new line of “Get Me to God’s Country” merchandise.

Launched on Tuesday (April 1), the new merch options are rather simple, consisting of a white shirt and a hat, with the latter available in two different color variants. All the items feature the same design, however, with the Coors logo worked into a design which bears the words “Get Me to God’s Country.”

Despite the timing of the merch drop, the Club Wallen Instagram account has assured fans it’s not part of an April Fools’ Day joke.

The nascent run of merch comes just days after the phrase rose to prominence following Wallen’s early walk-off from Saturday Night Live. After performing a pair of songs from his forthcoming album, I’m the Problem, Wallen briefly joined the SNL cast at the end of the show, as is customary on the long-running sketch comedy series. He then whispered something into host Mikey Madison’s ear, gave her a hug and abruptly walked off the stage at Studio 8H.

Shortly after the incident, Wallen shared a photo on his Instagram Stories from his private plane, with the caption “Get me to God’s country” written over an image of the runway.

Given the somewhat mysterious nature of the phrase and the swift launch of the merchandise line, it’s currently unclear whether the slogan is part of Wallen’s new album, or something else entirely. The forthcoming record,  I’m the Problem, is scheduled to be released on May 16 and features a total of 37 tracks, though only a handful of their titles have been released to date.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly following Wallen’s walk-off, longtime cast member Kenan Thompson said the incident was “definitely a spike in the norm.”

“We’re so used to everybody just turning around and high-fiving us, everybody’s saying, ‘Good job, good job, good job.’ So when there’s a departure from that, it’s like, hmm, I wonder what that’s about?” Thompson added, noting that Prince had previously done the same thing during his appearance on the show.

“I’m not saying Morgan Wallen is Prince, but we weren’t surprised because Prince was notoriously kind of standoffish. It’s just how he was. So we just thought like, ‘Okay, now he’s gone back into fantasyland.’”

Wallen is yet to publicly comment on the incident or provide information as to the meaning behind the phrase.

/by

Selena Gomez & benny blanco’s ‘I Said I Love You First’ Debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales Chart

Selena Gomez and benny blanco’s first collaborative album, I Said I Love You First, debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated April 5). It’s the fourth leader for Gomez and first for blanco. The set sold 71,000 copies in the U.S. in the week ending March 27, according to Luminate. It’s the best sales week for Gomez since 2015 and blanco’s best sales week ever.

Of the 71,000 sold, vinyl purchases comprise 21,000 – the biggest week on vinyl for either artist. The title – the first album pairing from the real-life couple – also enters at No. 1 on the Vinyl Albums chart.

In total, I Said I Love You First is Gomez’s eighth top 10 on Top Album Sales, and the first for blanco.

Also debuting in the top 10 on the latest Top Album Sales chart: Japanese Breakfast’s For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women) and My Morning Jacket’s is.

Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album (TEA) units and streaming equivalent album (SEA) units.

Of the 71,000 copies sold of I Said I Love You First, physical sales comprise 38,000 (21,000 on vinyl and 17,000 on CD) and digital download sales comprise 33,000.

The opening-week sales of I Said I Love You First were bolstered by its availability across seven vinyl variants (different color editions, some with alternate covers; including a signed version), three CD versions (a standard CD, a signed edition, and a zine/CD version with expanded packaging), a deluxe box set containing branded merch and a CD, and 10 different digital download iterations.

Of the download editions, firstly, there was a widely available standard set at digital retail. Then, through the album’s opening week, nine additional download variants were issued, all initially exclusively available through Gomez’s webstore, and each sold for $5. All of the variants included the standard album’s 14 songs, plus bonus material. Five of the variants each had one bonus track (“Stained,” “Talk,” “That’s What I’ll Care [Seven Heavens Version],” “Scared of Loving You [Live From Vevo]” and “How Does It Feel To Be Forgotten [Live From Vevo],” respectively) and one contained two bonus cuts (an acoustic version and extended version of the album single “Call Me When You Break Up”). There was also an Explained: Narrated by Selena Gomez edition (with 14 bonus tracks with Gomez providing commentary on each of the set’s 14 songs), a Slowed & Reverbed edition (with 14 bonus slowed and reverbed versions of the album’s songs) and an Instrumentals edition (with 14 bonus instrumental versions of the tracklist).

All nine of the variants became available in the iTunes Store on Wednesday (March 26). The variants were only sold in the iTunes Store through March 27, the final day they were also sold in Gomez’s store.

Lady Gaga’s chart-topping MAYHEM is a non-mover at No. 2 on Top Album Sales with a little over 13,000 sold (down 44%).

Japanese Breakfast lands its best sales week ever and highest charting title on Top Album Sales as For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women) debuts at No. 3 with 13,000 sold. (It’s the second top 10 for the act.) The album’s sales were aided by its availability across eight vinyl variants (including a signed version), along with a standard download, CD and cassette edition. Vinyl sales tallied up to just over 10,000 – the act’s best week on vinyl, and it yields at No. 2 debut on the Vinyl Albums chart.

Kendrick Lamar’s former No. 1 GNX is steady at No. 4 on Top Album Sales (a little more than 11,000; down 9%) while The Weeknd’s chart-topping Hurry Up Tomorrow jumps 15-5 (11,000; up 92% following the release of a deluxe CD boxed set edition of the album sold in the artist’s webstore).

My Morning Jacket’s latest studio album, titled is, debuts at No. 6 on Top Album Sales with nearly 10,000 sold – with 7,000 of that sum on vinyl. It’s the fifth top 10-charting effort for the act. It also launches at No. 4 on the Vinyl Albums chart. The set was available across five vinyl variants, along with a standard CD and download edition.

Rounding out the rest of the top 10 on Top Album Sales: Sabrina Carpenter’s former leader Short n’ Sweet slips 6-7 (nearly 10,000; down 5%), LE SSERAFIM’s HOT falls 1-8 in its second week (8,000; down 80%), Playboi Carti’s MUSIC drops 3-9 (just over 7,000; down 51%) and Chappell Roan’s chart-topping The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess dips 9-10 (7,000; down 13%).

/by