SXSW Reveal Initial Keynote, Second Round of Featured Speakers for 2025 Event

South by Southwest has revealed its initial keynote and the second round of featured speakers for the 39th edition of its annual Conference, scheduled for March 7-15 in Austin, Texas.

Leading the charge is the Conference’s Keynote Speaker, IBM Chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna, who will lead From Sci-Fi to Society: The Next Era of AI and Quantum Computing as he looks past the “sci-fi hype” surrounding the titular subjects and instead focuses on their real-world advantages.

“Exploring the benefits of new advances in technology while addressing their potential challenges represents a core part of the SXSW experience we curate each year,” said Hugh Forrest, Co-President and Chief Programming Officer in a statement.

“We are excited to announce Arvind Krishna as our first Keynote Speaker of the 2025 season. His session on the convergence of AI and quantum computing will cover what this monumental shift in technology will bring to humanity.”

Krishna’s addition to SXSW coincides with the announcement of Featured Speakers, which include founder and Chief Trend Curator at The Non-Obvious Company Rohit Bhargava who will lead the 7 Non-Obvious Secrets Of Understanding People To Predict the Future session; founder and CEO of EMPIRE Ghazi; director and social media strategist Alex Haraus; author, Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy, and a Horn Distinguished Professor and Endowed Professor of Public Policy and Public Law at Texas Tech University Dr. Katharine Hayhoe.

The list of speakers also features CEO of Bumble Lidiane Jones; activist and astronaut Amanda Nguyen, WNBA Champion, WNBA Finals MVP, 2x WNBA MVP, 2x Gold Medalist, WNBA Rookie of the Year, and broadcaster Candace Parker; author and music attorney at Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown & Passman Donald Passman; and author, speaker, teacher, advisor, podcast host, and futurist Rishad Tobaccowala.

Many of these speakers will also be involved the featured sessions which have also been announced today, which include Spill the Tea: A Strategic Guide to Office Gossip with Contributing Editor at the Harvard Business Review Amy Gallo; Cleaning Up Our Atmosphere: Carbon Removal Prepares to Go Mainstream with Climeworks COO Douglas Chan and the aforementioned Dr. Hayhoe.

This new announcement of speakers complements SXSW’s previously-revealed first round in September, which included Dr. Peter Attia, Johanna Faries, Douglas Rushkoff, and more.

SXSW will take place from March 7-15 in Austin, Texas, with full details regarding their newly-announced speakers and sessions available via their website.

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Signed: Downtown to Distribute Música Mexicana Artist Netón Vega, Flavour Inks With Warner & Africori

Downtown Artist & Label Services struck an exclusive distribution deal with Josa Records in support of its emerging Música Mexicana artist Netón Vega. The agreement covers the global distribution of Vega’s catalog and his upcoming debut album set for release early next year, which will include collaborations with Peso Pluma, Luis R Conriquez, Tito Double P and others. Hits for Vega include “La Patrulla,” “LINDA,” “Presidente” and “Si No Quieres No,” his collaboration with fellow Downtown client Conriquez.

Nigerian artist Flavour signed a joint deal with Warner Music Africa and Africori, which will team up to distribute his future releases. The singer is known for fusing African rhythm, highlife and contemporary jazz and has garnered more than 1.1 billion views on YouTube and sold more than 5 million albums globally, according to a press release.

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Actor, rapper and DJ IDRIS (a.k.a. Idris Elba) signed with Dirtybird Records, which released his latest single, “No Long Talk,” on Friday (Dec. 6) along with an official remix by GAWP.

Gospel singer-songwriter Jonathan McReynolds signed to Motown Gospel/Christian Music Group for the release of his first Christmas-themed EP, Red & Green. He also signed with CAA ahead of his six-city Red & Green concert tour, which launched Dec. 1 in Chicago and is slated to wrap up Dec. 21 in Atlanta.

Metal band Shadows Fall signed with MNRK Heavy and released its first new music in more than a decade with the single “In the Grey.” The group is managed by Scott Lee at SL Managemeent.

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Girlpuppy, the musical project from Atlanta’s Becca Harvey, signed with Captured Tracks and released her new single “Champ” on the label.

Eighteen-year-old blues artist Muireann Bradley signed to Decca Records and its U.S. partner label Verve Forecast. The labels will release the Irish singer’s forthcoming debut album, I Kept These Old Blues, on Feb. 28.

Country-folk artist Sam Stoane signed to Wasserman Music in Nashville on the heels of her opening dates for The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Dylan Gossett and other acts. She’s slated to release her debut album next year.

Scarlet Rae of the indie folk band Rose Dorn signed with Bayonet Records and released the single “Bleu.”

Nashville-based The Band Light signed with Red Van Records and is set to release new music on the label early next year. The group, which is managed by Rachel Inglesino at Jonas Group Entertainment, also just signed a deal with Jonas Group Publishing.

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Grupo Frontera Scores Fifth Regional Mexican Airplay No. 1 of 2024 With ‘Heche Pa’ Mi’

It’s only taken four months for Grupo Frontera to regain its No. 1 slot on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Airplay chart thanks to “Hecha Pa’ Mi,” which jumps 2-1 to lead the Dec. 14-dated ranking. Before the song took the throne, the Mexican-Americans ruled with their Maluma collab, “Por Qué Será?” for one week in August.

“Hecha Pa’ Mi,” released on the group’s label (Grupo Frontera) Oct. 3, traces its gain to 7.8 million audience impressions earned in the U.S. during the Nov. 29-Dec. 5 tracking week, according to Luminate; that’s a 16% increase from the previous week. The song trades places with “Amor Bonito” by Luis Angel “El Flaco,” as the latter dips 1-2 with a 7% decline in audience for the week.

While Frontera bags its 11th No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay, the second-most in the 2020s decade (behind Calibre 50’s 12 rulers), with the new arrival, the group achieves its fifth champ in 2024 and extends its record for the most leaders in the calendar year. Let’s look at the artists with the most No. 1s on the radio tally in 2024:

5, Grupo Frontera
3, Alejandro Fernández
3, Eden Muñoz
3, Xavi

Thanks to its 16% surge in audience, “Hecha Pa’ Mi” takes home the Greatest Gainer trophy, awarded weekly to the song with the biggest increase in impressions on the 40-deep chart. Plus, it becomes the group’s first No. 1 song unaccompanied by any other collaborator among its collection of 11 leaders. Further, continued progress among regional Mexican stations pushes “Hecha Pa’ Mi” 5-3 on the overall Latin Airplay chart, for the song’s new peak there.

The song also advances 13-12 on the multi-metric Hot Latin Songs chart despite decreases in the two other metrics that inform the chart. It generated 2.5 million official U.S. streams, that’s a 15 dip in clicks during the tracking period, while declined 33% in digital sales.

“Hecha P’a Mi” went viral in October after the band crashed a wedding to perform the song, surprising the bride, groom and guests. “You won’t believe me,” leading singer Payo said on social media. “I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but that gig was more difficult than a concert. I swear, I was more nervous than in a concert.”

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YoungBoy Never Broke Again Sentenced to 23 Months in Prison

YoungBoy Never Broke Again (a.k.a. NBA YoungBoy) has been sentenced to 23 months in federal prison, according to new documents filed in federal court on Tuesday (Dec. 10), followed by 60 months’ probation following his release.

The sentence comes nearly four months after it was reported that the 25-year-old rapper, born Kentrell Gaulden, would plead guilty to a single count of possession of firearms by a convicted felon.

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YoungBoy was indicted by federal prosecutors in 2021 after he was allegedly found with two guns during a September 2020 incident that transpired during a music video shoot in Baton Rouge, La. He was charged with violating a federal law that bans convicted felons from possessing guns, as he had previously been convicted of aggravated assault with a firearm in 2017.

While awaiting trial, YoungBoy was confined to his Salt Lake City home for more than two years, a “long period of social isolation” that his attorneys later pleaded was harming his mental health. They asked the judge in the case to loosen restrictions, including by allowing him to travel to a studio to record new music, but the judge largely denied that request in November.

That same month, YoungBoy also pleaded guilty to several counts in a separate case out of Utah in which he was charged with operating a prescription drug ring out of his home. As part of a plea deal in that case, the rapper’s four felony charges were reduced to Class A Misdemeanors and he was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine, as reported by KTVX-TV (via Associated Press).

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Go Backstage at 2024 Jingle Ball Los Angeles With NCT Dream, Paris Hilton, Shaboozey, Flavor Flav & More

‘Tis Jingle Ball season! The 2024 iHeartRadio 102.7 KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball took over the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles on Dec. 1, with an impressive lineup of this year’s biggest hitmakers.

SZA, Tate McRae, Meghan Trainor, Kane Brown, Benson Boone, Madison Beer, Shaboozey, T-Pain, Paris Hilton and NCT Dream all took the stage during the event, where they performed a set list of their best songs.

In addition to the main event’s talent, there were also plenty of celebrity guests in attendance, including Flavor Flav, Kiss of Life, Addison Rae, McKenna Grace, as1one, Full Circle Boys and more.

In addition to L.A., the Jingle Ball Tour hits Dallas, Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and Miami. See the full lineup list here.

For those who were unable to catch the fun in person, the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour will be part of an exclusive network special on ABC, airing Dec. 18 and available for streaming the next day on Hulu.

In the meantime, check out the best onstage, backstage and red carpet photos from iHeartRadio 102.7 KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball below.

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SZA Teases Release of ‘Lana’ Project with New Album Trailer

SZA is giving fans something to look forward to with a teaser for her new SOS deluxe release.

Arriving on Monday, Dec. 9, two years to the day since the original release of SOS, SZA shared a video to social media accompanied by an as-yet-unnamed song which samples the Isley Brothers’ “Voyage to Atlantis”.

The clip itself shows SZA in the woods as she squats by a stream to pee. It closes with overlaid text which sees “Lana” appearing above the words “SOS Deluxe”. The video is captioned with the words, “Clock starts now. Happy anniversary.”

The mysterious nature of the clip has already sent fans of SZA into overdrive as they attempt to decipher a number of unanswered questions. Firstly, despite telling her followers that the “clock starts now”, it’s unclear when the countdown ends and the project ostensibly arrives.

Some fans have pointed out on Reddit that SZA’s shirt features the number five, while a dark section of dirt also appears to highlight the same number. Speculation has therefore seen a potential release date of Dec. 13 entering the conversation, though no official announcement has been made.

Secondly, confusion is also reigning in regards to whether SZA’s long-awaited Lana project is now arriving as the previously-announced deluxe edition of her SOS album. Previously, Lana had been confirmed as such before being detailed as an entirely separate project, including in a recent interview with British Vogue.

In the same interview, SZA explained that the music she had recorded for Lana was something of a “welcome shift”.

“I think I am making music from a more beautiful place. From a more possible place versus a more angsty place,” she explained. “I’m not identifying with my brokenness. It’s not my identity. It’s shit that happened to me. Yeah, I experienced cruelty. I have to put it down at some point. Piece by piece, my music is shifting because of that, the lighter I get.”

In late November, SZA appeared on Kai Cenat’s livestream where she claimed a “whole new project” was up her sleeve, admitting it “will be out before the year is over”.

More recently, SZA and Kendrick Lamar announced the co-headlining Grand National tour, which will see the pair performing 21 dates over two months.

The Grand National Tour is slated to kick off in Minnesota on April 19, and then rumbles through Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Philly, the New York area, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Detroit, Chicago and Toronto before wrapping up in Washington, D.C., on June 18.

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The Cure’s Robert Smith Teases Two New Albums Following ‘Songs of a Lost World’ Success

It’s been a very long time since The Cure were considered prolific, but frontman Robert Smith appears to be making up for lost time.

Fresh from the release of their first album in 16 years, Songs of a Lost World, The Cure followed up with the announcement of a new live album just last week. Fittingly titled Songs of a Live World, the record captures the release-day concert of their latest album, which saw the band performing the record in full alongside a career-spanning set.

Now in a teaser clip of Smith’s upcoming interview with Absolute Radio’s Danielle Perry, the veteran musician can be heard detailing upcoming records from The Cure.

“There is another album which is pretty much ready to go. It’s sort of its companion piece,” Smith began. “And then there’s a third one which is completely different. It’s really kind of random stuff, it’s like late-night studio stuff. But some of it is really, really good actually, it’s just very, very different.”

“This Songs of a Lost World album is a really emotional piece of work and the companion piece, it’s not quite as dark but it explores other subjects a little bit more. The third one is very odd, actually. I haven’t finished the words to that one because my headspace has been much more focused on performing these songs.

“I don’t really want it to end because it’s been so good,” he concluded. “The reaction to the new music has been so, so great. It’s been really lovely to feel people giving us all the love.”

The release of The Cure‘s Songs of a Lost World has been a massively successful undertaking for the band. In addition to giving the band their first U.K. No. 1 since 1992’s Wish, the record also made a return to the top of U.S. charts as well.

It became the band’s first No. 1 on the 33-year-old Top Album Sales chart and the act’s highest-charting effort on the Billboard 200 (No. 4) since 1992. It also managed to hit No. 1 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums, Top Alternative Albums, Vinyl Albums and Indie Store Album Sales.

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Jay-Z and Beyoncé Make Surprise Appearance at ‘Mufasa’ Premiere

Beyoncé and Jay-Z made a very rare red carpet appearance on Monday night at the Los Angeles premiere of Mufasa: The Lion King, posing for photos with daughter Blue Ivy Carter and Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles.

The 12-year-old plays a major part in the film, voicing lion Kiara, the daughter of Simba (voiced by Donald Glover) and Nala (Beyoncé) — who reprise the roles they played in 2019’s live-action The Lion King.

Blue Ivy and Beyoncé both appeared in gold dresses at the Hollywood Boulevard event, with the young star first taking solo shots before she was joined by her parents. Beyoncé famously avoids most red carpets, often doing her own photoshoots at events like the Grammys or the premiere of her concert film Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé.

None of the three family members were previously announced to the press as attending the event, despite their involvement.

The appearance comes just a day after Jay-Z was accused of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000 in a lawsuit that also alleges Sean “Diddy” Combs took part in the act, according to NBC News. The rapper responded with a forceful statement that the claims are “idiotic” and part of a “blackmail attempt.”

In the lawsuit, the accuser, identified only as “Jane Doe,” alleges Carter and Combs raped her at a house party after the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, which took place in New York. The lawsuit, which was first filed in October in the Southern District of New York, originally listed Combs as a defendant and was refiled Sunday to include Carter. Attorney Tony Buzbee, who filed the suit, has also filed numerous suits against Combs in the past several months.

Jay-Z responded via his company Roc Nation’s X (formerly Twitter) account on Sunday, saying that what the lawyer “had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!”

He also added, “My only heartbreak is for my family. My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people. I mourn yet another loss of innocence. Children should not have to endure such at their young age. It is unfair to have to try to understand inexplicable degrees of malice meant to destroy families and human spirit.”

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Bing Crosby Returns to Billboard 200 Top 10 for First Time in 64 Years With ‘Ultimate Christmas’ Album

The legendary Bing Crosby is back in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 albums chart for the first time in nearly 64 years, as his new holiday compilation Ultimate Christmas climbs 18-9 on the chart dated Dec. 14.

The entertainer, who died in 1977, was last in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 with his classic Merry Christmas album, which ranked at No. 9 on the Dec. 31, 1960-dated chart. It had previously spent a week at No. 1 on Jan. 6, 1958-dated chart.

Merry Christmas became the second holiday album to top the Billboard 200, following its launch as a regularly published weekly chart in March 1956. Elvis Presley’s Elvis’ Christmas Album was the first chart-topping holiday set, as it topped the chart for three weeks in December 1957, moved aside for Crosby for a week and then returned to No. 1 for one more week in January 1958.

Ultimate Christmas is available as 14-song standard album, an expanded 28-song edition, and a deluxe 58-song version. All versions of the album contain such classic Holiday 100-charting tunes from Crosby as “White Christmas” (featuring The Ken Darby Singers and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra), “It’s Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas,” “Do You Hear What I Hear?,” “Mele Kalikimaka” (with The Andrews Sisters) and “Silent Night” (featuring John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra and Max Terr’s Mixed Chorus).

In the tracking week ending Dec. 5, as reflected on the Dec. 14-dated Billboard 200 chart, Ultimate Christmas earned 50,000 equivalent album units in the week ending (up 59%). Of that sum, SEA units comprise 46,000 (up 62%; equaling 61.37 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks; it jumps 16-6 on Top Streaming Albums).

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Dec. 14, 2024-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard’s website on Tuesday, Dec. 10. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

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Dolly Parton Tells Bunnie XO the Secret to Her 6-Decade Marriage: ‘He’s Quiet & I’m Loud’

If ever there was someone whose marriage advice was considered invaluable, it’s Dolly Parton.

The country veteran and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee has been recording and releasing as a solo artist since 1967 – just one year after her marriage to the rarely-seen Carl Dean.

Together, the pair have been married for close to 60 years, though Dean has been known for his aversion to the spotlight. Having met in a laundromat on the day she moved to Nashville, only rarely do photographs of the pair emerge, and Parton has long said that Dean – a retired paver four years her senior – has only ever seen her perform live once.

In a new interview with Bunnie Xo’s Dumb Blonde podcast (itself a song title from Parton’s 1967 album Hello, I’m Dolly), the musical icon has offered up some of the secrets to their long-lasting relationship.

“He’s quiet and I’m loud, and we’re funny,” Parton explained. “Oh, he’s hilarious. And I think one of the things that’s made it last so long through the years is that we love each other [and] we respect each other, but we have a lot of fun.”

“Anytime [there’s] too much tension going on, either one of us can like, find a joke about it to really break the tension, where we don’t let it go so far,” Parton continued, touching on their shared sense of humor. “We never fought back and forth. And I’m glad now that we never did, because once you start that, that becomes a lifetime thing.

“I’ve seen it with so many people, and I thought, ‘I ain’t ever starting that.’ I couldn’t bear to think that he’d say something I couldn’t take… because I’m a very sensitive person toward other people and myself.”

Parton’s comments are consistent with her previous offerings on the key to her long-lasting marriage, telling ET Canada in 2022 why she feels the pair have worked so long for close to 60 years.

“I like it when people say, ‘How did it last so long?’ I say, ‘I stay going,’” she explained. “You know, there’s a lot to be said about that. So we’re not in each other’s face all the time. He’s not in the business, so we have different interests, but yet we have the things we love to do together. So it was meant to be, I think. He was the one I was supposed to have and vice versa.”

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