Nicki Minaj hasn’t been shy about her support for Donald Trump and the Make America Great Again movement in the last year, but it took a lot for her to come out publicly and back the president, as she was initially afraid of the backlash from her peers in the music industry.

Minaj, who has branded herself as the president’s “No. 1 fan,” went deep about her Trump support and political activism in an interview with TIME published on Wednesday (May 13).

“I felt that way already about him, just that I didn’t dare act like that publicly,” she said. “It’s been ingrained in everyone’s brain in the music business that we are supposed to be a Democratic family. I just knew they would not like me supporting Trump.”

Minaj continued: “Many celebrities feel the way I do, but they don’t say it. Sometimes you just need one brave person to get the brunt of the impact. I think I am the catalyst for that change. Hopefully, when they see me and hear me speak and feel my energy.”

For the “Super Bass” rapper, she felt compelled to speak up about her MAGA pivot after she was allegedly “completely ignored” by California Governor Gavin Newsom, following repeated swatting calls to her California home.

That’s when Republican U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna stepped in to have her touch base with law enforcement and a private security firm to put an end to the swatting.

“I was shocked. I’d never seen anyone in politics treat me that way,” she told TIME. “That’s what made me say that I don’t care to keep this a secret anymore.”

Minaj is open to continuing to delve further into politics and doing “whatever it is” to support Trump in the upcoming midterms. The Queens, New York, native even compared him to Marilyn Monroe. “It’s the same way Marilyn Monroe represents a vibe — Donald Trump is his own vibe,” she stated.

Continuing her war with rival Jay-Z, Minaj didn’t miss a chance to take a swipe at Hov, even while talking about Barack Obama. “Lots of rappers don’t like Jay-Z and were afraid to say it,” she claimed.

She even looked back on her disproven 2021 claim that the COVID-19 vaccine was causing impotence and swollen testicles in Trinidad. “I guess they had examined everyone’s testicles in Trinidad and came back to tell me that I was lying,” Minaj quipped.

After months of public support, she met Donald Trump for the first time at a Trump Accounts Summit in January, where the president revealed that Minaj invested “hundreds of thousands of dollars in Trump Accounts.”

Last year, Minaj commended the Trump administration during an interview with Erika Kirk at a Turning Point USA event. She also complimented the president for threatening to take military action in Nigeria over the alleged persecution of Christians in the country.

As Janet Jackson celebrates her birthday (May 16), Billboard takes a look at the superstar’s history on the Billboard Hot 100.

Born as the youngest of 10 children to Joseph and Katherine Jackson, Janet was almost pre-destined to enter the music industry with her brothers and sisters. By her fifth birthday, five of her brothers — as The Jackson 5 — had already scored four Hot 100 No. 1 hits. Following in her family’s musical footsteps, Janet made her Hot 100 debut in 1982 with “Young Love,” at 16 years old. Though that single and her second career entry, 1984’s “Come Give Your Love to Me,” both peaked outside the top 50, Jackson found her hit-making stride with 1986’s Control. Among its many hits, she landed her first of 10 No. 1s on the chart with “When I Think of You,” which reigned for two weeks.

Through the next 15 years, Jackson remained a Hot 100 force: Her next four albums — Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814, janet., The Velvet Rope and All for You — each all generated at least one Hot 100 champ. Thanks to her decades of hits, Jackson is one of the most influential female artists to cross through the pop, R&B and dance genres, with 19 and 15 No. 1s on the Dance Club Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts, respectively. She’s also scored seven No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, between 1986 and 2015.

Jackson (who first broke through with TV roles on sitcoms Good Times and Diff’rent Strokes) has won five Grammy Awards and has been nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award. She was honored as the first-ever MTV Icon Award recipient in 2001 and received the MTV Video Vanguard Award in 1990.

Here’s a look at Jackson’s top-performing hits on the Hot 100.

Janet Jackson’s Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits:

Janet Jackson’s Biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits chart is based on actual performance on the weekly Hot 100, through the May 16, 2026, ranking. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted to account for different chart turnover rates over various periods.

Billy Idol will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November, but he won’t have to wait that long for a major plaudit: He is set to receive a lifetime achievement award at the 52nd American Music Awards on Monday, May 25. The punk icon and survivor will be the third recipient of the award, following Diana Ross (2017) and Rod Stewart (2025).

Idol will deliver a hit medley, marking his first time on the AMAs stage since presenting in 2004 and his first AMAs performance ever.

“Billy Idol is a true rock legend whose influence has transcended generations and genres,” executive producers Barry Adelman, EVP, Television, and Alexi Mazareas, senior VP, programming & development, Dick Clark Productions, said in a joint statement. “From his groundbreaking music to his electrifying stage presence, Billy has left an indelible mark on popular culture and the music industry.”

The release early this year of Billy Idol Should Be Dead, a documentary about his life and career, directed by Jonas Åkerlund, has focused attention on the veteran rocker.

Between 1984 and 1990, Idol landed four top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and three top 10 albums on the Billboard 200. His highest-charting singles were a live version of Tommy James & The Shondells’ “Mony Mony,” which made No. 1 in 1987, and “Cradle of Love” from the Andrew Dice Clay-starring film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, which reached No. 2 in 1990.

Idol is the second performer announced for the AMAs who will receive a special award. Colombian singer-songwriter Karol G will receive the International Artist Award of Excellence. Other performers set for the show are Hootie & the Blowfish, KATSEYE, Keith Urban, Maluma, Riley Green, SOMBR, Teddy Swims, Teyana Taylor and Twenty One Pilots, with more to be announced.

The 52nd American Music Awards will kick off summer with host Queen Latifah live from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. The show will air live coast-to-coast on CBS and stream on Paramount+ at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT.

The ACM Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.

Pete Townshend, the legendary guitarist and co-founder of The Who, is partnering-up with Primary Wave Music on a range of creative rights.

Announced Thursday, May 14, the new relationship will Primary Wave sees the independent music company closely involved in the exploitation of Townshend’s name, image, and likeness and the development and exploitation of future creative projects.

Townshend, now 80, gave the world his trademark windmill guitar strum, and wrote and performed on some of rock’s most enduring anthems, including “My Generation,” “Baba O’Riley,” “Behind Blue Eyes,” “Pinball Wizard,” “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” and “Let My Love Open the Door.” But his creative output isn’t limited to contemporary music.

Over time, he has worked on rock operas, stage musicals, ballets, and in 2007 launched the interactive online project “Lifehouse Method,” projects that make for “an ideal collaboration,” a statement reads.

With Primary Wave’s hands-on approach to marketing music and Townshend’s deep catalog and vision, “the potential for branding and content opportunities is boundless,” the statement continues. Also, Townshend will have access to the company’s digital department to establish a footprint across social media channels. The veteran British artist has already begun building a presence amongst the business’ licensing and sync unit, which is said to be actively working with Townshend and the copyright owners of his catalog to place his songs across film and television.

Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

“Moving forward with my creative and performative work with Primary Wave, at this time of my life when most creatives might be slowing down, is a joy for me. Their entire team exhibit an energy that is truly stimulating. Challenging too. I need that,” Townshend comments.

As for The Who, who knows if new music will come to pass. The band has primarily operated as the duo of frontman Roger Daltrey and Townshend, since the death of two key members, drummer Keith Moon (who passed in 1978, aged 32) and bass player John Entwistle (2002, aged 57), and turned off the amps in 2025 with the completion of a final run of shows in North America as part of a farewell tour. Never say never. “We are always trying to come up with SOMETHING special,” Townshend continues, “and God Willing will continue to do that, hoping one day we can astound you the way we used to.”

Townshend, Daltrey and Entwistle first performed live together as The Detours in 1962, and officially became The Who in 1964, with Moon completing the classic lineup in May of that year. Since then, Townshend has sold over 100 million albums worldwide as a solo artist and as a member of The Who, which was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. Additionally, Townshend has been recognized for his work with the Brit Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1983, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement award in 2001, induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005, and in 2008 he was saluted with Kennedy Center Honors.

“Pete Townshend is one of the greatest and most influential rock icons in music history,” comments Primary Wave’s CEO and founder Larry Mestel. “We are honored that he has chosen Primary Wave as a partner and collaborator and look forward to creating new opportunities together.”

Adds Adam Lowenberg, Primary Wave’s chief marketing officer: “There is no rock music without the genius of Pete Townshend. An artist, innovator and songwriter who stands alone in his own category of icon and legend. We are extremely honored to partner with Pete on his future endeavors.”

Primary Wave already holds stakes in catalogs for Prince, Whitney Houston, Notorious B.I.G., Bob Marley and Britney Spears, among many others.

After sharing the news on Mother’s Day that he and girlfriend Susana Gómez are expecting baby number two, Maluma revealed its gender exclusively to Billboard.

“It’s a boy,” he says to Billboard’s Leila Cobo. “We’re still thinking about the name, but we have many options.” 

The Colombian artist shared the exciting baby news on Sunday (May 10) via an Instagram photo featuring his girlfriend’s baby bump and their two-year-old daughter, Paris Londoño Gómez, planting a kiss on the belly. 

He kept the secret under wraps for five months, expressing to Cobo: “First and foremost, for the sake of health at home. It felt lovely to enjoy a large part of my [partner’s] pregnancy without having to think about other things — simply being with my family.” 

Ahead of the release of his seventh studio album Loco X Volver on Thursday (May 14), Maluma couldn’t hold back the excitement of his second child on the way, following the birth of his baby girl in 2024. 

“With this baby — and especially knowing that it’s a boy — I am filled with a happiness and joy that is very different from my first pregnancy,” he admits. 

Furthermore, the 32-year-old artist born Juan Luis Londoño Arias elaborates on the importance of having a son.

“This is a very old-school way of thinking, but my grandfather and dad are absolutely thrilled because the family name is going to live on,” he expresses. “For my grandfather, that is incredibly important…for me, family is very important, and if Grandpa is happy, that makes everything in the family circle work.”

Watch the exclusive clip below: