Guitar Center, the nation’s largest retailer of musical instruments, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the company announced Saturday.

The bankruptcy filing came just one week after the Guitar Center, which had been struggling to compete with online retailers even before the pandemic, announced it had reached a debt-reduction deal with its key stakeholders.

The approved restructuring support agreement (RSA) intends to reduce Guitar Center’s reported $1.3 billion debt by nearly $800 million, including $375 million in Debtor-In-Possession financing from some existing note holders and lenders. It also intends to raise $335 million in new senior secured notes.

The agreement additionally includes $165 million in new equity investments from a fund managed by the private equity group of Guitar Center’s controlling owner Ares Management Corporation (which acquired a majority stake in the company in 2014), new investor Brigade Capital Management, a fund managed by The Carlyle Group and other lenders.

The company says its business operations will continue uninterrupted during the debt restructuring process and that it will continue to pay its vendors, suppliers and employees; operate its stores, websites, call centers and social media pages; and receive goods and ship orders. It will additionally honor all merchandise credits, prepaid lessons, rentals, gift cards, deposits, orders, financing and warranties.

“This is an important and positive step in our process to significantly reduce our debt and enhance our ability to reinvest in our business to support long-term growth,” said Guitar Center CEO Ron Japinga in a release. “Throughout this process, we will continue to serve our customers and deliver on our mission of putting more music in the world.”

Japinga added that the company expects to emerge from bankruptcy by the end of this year.

Guitar Center currently has 300 stores as well as 200 Music & Arts stores, which sell band and orchestral instruments, in the U.S. A majority of those locations were forced to close temporarily early in the pandemic, only adding to the company’s woes.

Saturday’s bankruptcy filing ironically comes as guitar sales surge in the U.S., driven by consumers wanting to pick up new hobbies during the pandemic shutdown. Guitar maker Fender tells CNBC that the company’s sales will top $700 million this year, a nearly 17% increase from 2019, while competitors including Gibson and Taylor have noted similar surges. Guitar Center itself reports that sales of Fender and other top guitar brands have seen triple-digit growth on its website since the pandemic began, though it’s unclear what percentage of those online sales came from new customers versus existing customers who would ordinarily shop at one of the retailer’s physical locations.

The rise of online competitors such as e-tail giant Sweetwater, along with an overall decline in sales of its namesake product, coincided with Guitar Center’s 2007 leveraged buyout by private equity firm Bain Capital, which left the company with over $1 billion in debt that it has since struggled to pay off.

Hayley Williams knows how to make your home smell like her “sanctuary” with a blend of black peppercorn, lemon zest and birch wafting from her new candle. 

The former Paramore lead singer is releasing her Sanctuary candle with the luxury home fragrance brand Apothekeco, which contains undertones of guiacwood, crushed basil and dark patchouli. In an Instagram post that shows the candle’s sleek and sacred mold, Williams said it is “quite literally what my home smells like,” which is delicately described in songs from her album Petals for Armor. Her solo set went to No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart earlier this year. 

“For me, home is sacred ground to learn my lesson, sip my tea, sing songs… I decide what is and isn’t worth letting in. This is a whole new way of sanctuary for me,” Williams wrote for the product description on Apothekeco’s website. “It’s an unusual offering but I’m certain it will keep you good company. Let it remind you that anywhere you are is a sacred place.”

The 8-ounce, hand-poured Sanctuary candle is currently available for pre-order here for $28 before it starts shipping out Dec. 10, just in time for the holidays.

Check out Williams’ official unboxing video here.

Billie Eilish gave the premiere performance of her latest song “Therefore I Am” at the 2020 American Music Awards on Sunday (Nov. 22).

Dressed in the same look from the mall-themed music video, Eilish appeared onstage amid flashing red, orange and yellow lights. Her brother Finneas accompanied her on guitar as she slinked down a series of narrow hallways, chanting the song’s playful lyrics: “Interviews, interviews, interviews/ When they say your name, I just act confused.”

To cap off the debut performance of the single, Eilish treated viewers to a surprising stunt. The moment came when she climbed a staircase, then suddenly fell backwards, vanishing from sight. Moments later, she reappeared in another spot on stage. Magic!

The American Music Awards are produced by dick clark productions, which is owned by MRC Entertainment, the parent company of Billboard.

On Sunday night (Nov. 22), Nelly delivered a rousing medley at the 2020 American Music Awards in Los Angeles.

Tipping his hat off to his 2000 hip-hop opus Country Grammar, Nelly dished out various singles alongside his St. Lunatic compatriot City Spud. First, he gave fans a healthy helping of “Country Grammar” before dipping into “E.I.” and his singsong anthem “Ride With Me.”

This year marks the 20th anniversary of his debut album Country Grammar. The diamond-selling album spawned a bevy of Billboard Hot 100 hits and propelled Nelly into rap superstardom. In an interview with Billboard last month, Nelly explained why he must maintain his hip-hop lifestyle despite collaborating in other genres.

“I live a hip-hop life. When you get certain artists that don’t live the hip-hop life and all of a sudden they wanna do a hip-hop album, I look at that like a little bit of a, ‘Nah, c’mon, ya’ll,’” he shared. “You can be hip-hop influenced, your song can be hip-hop influenced, your album can be hip-hop influenced, but you’re not a hip-hop artist. And I’m not a country artist, so I don’t want to disrespect all those that work hard that live the country life.”

The American Music Awards are produced by dick clark productions, which is owned by MRC Entertainment, the parent company of Billboard.

R&B greats Bell Biv Devoe commemorated the 30th anniversary of their classic Poison album at the 2020 American Music Awards this Sunday (Nov. 22) with performances of the album’s two biggest hits.

After an enthusiastic lead-in from host Taraji P. Henson (who jokingly tried to take credit for the group’s success via her Empire character Cookie) and a short intro, the New Jack Swing trio launched into a scorching rendition of “Do Me!” There was only way for them to follow that up, of course — with an even higher-octane rendition of the group’s signature smash “Poison,” as crowd-pleasing a jam as ever three decades later.

Both “Do Me!” and “Poison” peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 upon their initial release in 1990, while parent album Poison reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The group took home the AMA for favorite soul/R&B band/duo/group back in 1992.