The BRIT Awards has finalized its performer lineup for the 2025 ceremony with two new additions. Sam Fender and Lola Young will both play live during the broadcast on March 1 at The O2 Arena in London. They join a stacked bill of performers including Sabrina Carpenter, Shaboozey, Teddy Swims, JADE, The Last Dinner Party and Myles Smith on the night.

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The performances will be well-timed for both Fender and Young. The former is due to release his highly-anticipated new LP People Watching this Friday (Feb. 21) ahead of his huge outdoor shows throughout the U.K. this summer, including at the London Stadium and St. James’ Park in Newcastle.

Young currently sits at No. 1 for the fourth week on the U.K. Singles Chart with her song “Messy.” The song, which featured on her second album This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway, capitalised on a viral moment to vault up the charts both in the U.K. and on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at No. 14. Young’s month-long reign on the U.K. charts is the longest by a British female since Adele’s seven-week run at the top with “Easy on Me” in 2021.

Both Fender and Young are nominated on the night; the former is up for best rock/alternative act, while the latter is competing in the best pop act field. Genre categories are fan-voted with the general fields decided by the BRITs Voting Academy.

Speaking on the news, Young said: “I am super excited and grateful to be performing at The BRIT Awards this year. It’s a dream come true and an absolute honour to share this moment alongside so many incredible artists. To be nominated is a huge achievement for me and I’m so thankful for all the support I’ve received.”

Charli XCX leads all nominees at this year’s BRITs with five nominations in a plethora of categories, including album of the year and artist of the year. The Last Dinner Party, Ezra Collective and Dua Lipa close behind with four each. The ceremony will be broadcast on ITV and streaming service ITV X, and will be hosted by comedian Jack Whitehall for a fifth time.

Lil Wayne has joined the eclectic roster of musical guests to share a career-spanning singles medley on Sunday night’s (Feb. 16) SNL50: The Anniversary Special.

Wayne was joined by The Roots and DJ T. Lewis for his performance, which opened with 2018 single Uproar, and saw Weezy run through other tunes from his Tha Carter series of albums, including his lone Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper as a solo artist “Lollipop”, followed by “6 Foot 7 Foot” and “Mrs. Officer”.

The lion’s share of the set was devoted to closer “A Milli”, which currently serves as Wayne’s standard set-closer, almost 17 years since it was first released. His non-musical contributions to the SNL50 appearance were limited, with the musician closing out his set with a simple, “Thank you, happy 50th”.

This performance also marks Wayne’s fourth time appearing on a Saturday Night Live broadcast as a musical guest, having first made his debut back in 2008 as part of season 34 opening episode. Featuring Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps on hosting duties, Wayne performed “Got Money” and “Lollipop” during that initial appearance.

Two years later, he appeared with Eminem and also shared a solo performance of “6 Foot 7 Foot”, in an episode which saw Jeff Bridges as host. Wayne would return again in 2018 to appear in a Liev Schreiber-hosted episode where he performed “Can’t Be Broken” with Halsey and “Uproar” with Swizz Beatz.

Earlier this month, Lil Wayne confirmed that he would be releasing his highly-anticipated Tha Carter VI album on June 6, announcing the news as part of an ad for Cetaphil. The third, fourth and fifth installments of Tha Carter each topped the Billboard 200 and the Drake-assisted “She Will” has had a second life vaulting the 2011 track to top the TikTok Billboard Top 50 on the Feb. 8-dated tally.

SNL50: The Anniversary Special is airing Sunday night, following Friday’s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert on Friday night.

It was a Bay Area showcase at the NBA All-Star Game. DJ Cassidy’s Pass The Mic Live! delivered a tribute to the Bay with a West Coast-themed 2025 NBA All-Star Game Halftime Show on Sunday night (Feb. 16) inside San Francisco’s Chase Center.

Repping The Town, DJ Cassidy served as the orchestrator when inviting E-40 to kick things off with his “Tell Me When to Go.” The Warriors superfan tagged in his Bay Area partner Too Short to take the party to another level with his “Blow the Whistle” anthem.

Saweetie drew the biggest pop of the night from the crowd as she dazzled alongside the Golden Warriors dancers for a seamless transition into her top 20 Billboard Hot 100 smash “Tap In.”

Draped in a sparking Warriors-themed tracksuit, she performed “Best Friend” sans Doja Cat, but made sure to flip some lyrics to fit The Bay Area theme. “Is that my bestie in The Bay,” Saweetie cheekily raps.

Oakland’s own En Vogue saved the best for last as they stormed out of the tunnel like a starting lineup to perform their “My Lovin’” hit. The Warriors dance team showed off their suave choreography while The Bay Area ensemble reunited at midcourt to bring the celebratory set to a close.

Kevin Hart served as the first-ever official All-Star emcee and Raphael Saadiq welcomed the players to the court with a soulful introduction performance to set the tone for the night alongside a classical 14-piece live band.

The NBA innovated its All-Star Game format with three All-Star teams facing off in a bracket-style tournament with the Rising Stars winners.

Inside The NBA hosts Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny “The Jet” Smith and Charles Barkley each helmed a team as Shaq’s OGs — led by hometown hero and Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry — throttled Chuck’s Global Stars in the final match-up of the 74th NBA All-Star Game by a score of 41-25 to take home the title. The OGs were paced by Jayson Tatum’s 15 points while Curry poured in 12 points including a half-court shot.

Find more highlights of the Halftime Show below.

If you need someone to put the perfect words into song, just call Adam Sandler.

The movie star, who got his start as a Saturday Night Live castmember from 1991 to 1995, returned to his 30 Rock stomping grounds on Sunday night (Feb. 16) for SNL50: The Anniversary Special, pulling out his trusty acoustic guitar for an original song about the last 50 years of the classic sketch comedy show.

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Sandler started things out with a joke, singing, “Everyone in this room has something in common, all of our lives were changed by this show/ Everyone in this room has something else in common, we weren’t allowed to use the little bathroom in Lorne’s office.” The song — titled “50 Years” — toggled between sincerity and quips, including the line: “50 years of castmembers saying ‘I think out cast is the greatest of all time,’ but we all know the first cast is the best.”

He wrapped things up by running through a string of classic castmembers, including late comics like Chris Farley, Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks.

You can watch Sandler’s full “50 Years” song below:

Through his time on SNL, Sandler became best known for his jangly original songs on Weekend Update, including “The Chanukah Song,” “Red Hooded Sweatshirt” and “The Grandma Song.”

Elsewhere on Sunday’s SNL50 special, Miley Cyrus was joined by Brittany Howard for a cover of Sinéad O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon teamed up for “Howeward Bound” to open the show, and Carpenter popped up for the latest “Domingo” sketch, also featuring a Bad Bunny cameo.

SNL50: The Anniversary Special is airing Sunday night, following Friday’s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert on Friday night.

Fans hoping for a full-scale Black Sabbath reunion at Ozzy Osbourne’s farewell show may need to temper their expectations, with the heavy metal pioneer revealing he won’t be playing a full set with the band.

Osbourne made the announcement on his Ozzy Speaks program on SiriusXM channel Ozzy’s Boneyard, where he provided an update as to his plans for the recently-announced “Back to the Beginning” concert.

Described as “the final show” on the poster artwork, the lineup features both Black Sabbath and Osbourne alongside other big names such as Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax. Other high-profile artists, such as Pantera, Lamb Of God, Mastodon, Alice In Chains, Halestorm and recent Grammy Award-winners Gojira are also included.

“I’m not planning on doing a set with Black Sabbath but I am doing little bits and pieces with them,” Osbourne explained. “I am doing what I can, where I feel comfortable.”

Osbourne hasn’t performed a full set since Dec. 31, 2018 on the final date of his No More Tours tour. Just two months later, the metal pioneer was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and any plans for further large-scale performances have been affected by numerous cancellations and health issues

“I am trying to get back on my feet,” Osbourne added. “When you get up in the morning, you just jump out of bed. I have to balance myself, but I’m not dead. I’m still actively doing things.”

These comments track with a previous update from Osbourne earlier this month, where he told listeners that he’s still soldiering on despite his myriad health issues.

“I have made it to 2025. I can’t walk, but you know what I was thinking over the holidays? For all my complaining, I’m still alive,” he said. “I may be moaning that I can’t walk, but I look down the road, and there’s people that didn’t do half as much as me and didn’t make it.”

Speaking to the BBC following the announcement of the July concert, Osbourne’s wife and manager Sharon explained that the show was a chance for Osbourne to end a career which has been affected in recent years by numerous cancellations and health issues.

“He’s doing great. He’s doing really great,” she said. “He’s so excited about this, about being with the guys again and all his friends. It’s exciting for everyone.”

“Ozzy didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to his friends, to his fans, and he feels there’s no been no full stop. This is his full stop.”

Lizzo might have teased her new era during a recent Twitch stream, but she also gave fans a preview of a SZA-featuring supergroup that could have been.

The “About Damn Time” singer revealed this bit of her musical past during her Valentine’s Day Twitch stream. Alongside technical difficulties, fan interaction, and the promise of new music at the end of the month, Lizzo also focused on the song “F2F’, which she co-wrote with SZA before it appeared on the latter’s chart-topping 2022 album SOS. While “F2F” was never issued as a single, it became one of the 20 songs from the album to hit the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately peaking at No. 55. 

During her stream, Lizzo turned her attention to the song, noting how it had come about after almost a decade of friendship with SZA, and how it almost aligned with an unrealized rock trio the pair were a part of.

“We’ve just always been friends, and it’s a sacred space for me in this industry,” Lizzo recalled. “We got this little period of time where we were just linking up in the studio, and eating pasta and drinking.

“This one particular night, mind you, we were gonna start a rock band, called Pussy Lasers. Oh my gosh, she’s not gonna get mad if I say this,” she added. “We were going to start a rock band called Pussy Lasers with an incredible other artist who I don’t know if she even wants to be mentioned, so I’m not going to mention her.”

As Lizzo continued, she explained that while “F2F” wasn’t necessarily set to be a part of the Pussy Lasers project, it was “jokingly” considered so due to the track’s “‘90s grunge kind of rock feel”.

“I was like, ‘This shit is hard, though’, so I was in the studio and I was like, ‘Man, pull that Pussy Lasers shit up,’” she continued. “And let me tell you something: I sat and watched this girl freestyle the whole fucking song, everything except for the chorus.” 

Finalizing the song together in a later session, Lizzo also noted that she recorded a “mumble verse” which never made it into the track, though some of her harmonized vocals did make it into the finished product. “After that, I thought about that song all the time,” she added. “I was just like, ‘I hope, I hope she puts it on the album. And then one day out of the blue she just texted me the finished version and I was just like, ‘And this is why you’re the GOAT’.”

“She writes the craziest, most insane shit that you’re thinking and feeling, but she just finds a way to say it, and she sings it so beautifully out the gate, out of her mouth the first time.”

Currently, it’s been almost three years since the release of Lizzo’s last studio album, with fourth album Special becoming her second released via a major label, and second to hit the top ten of the Billboard 200 – peaking at No. 2. Earlier in her Twitch stream, Lizzo confirmed that Feb. 28 will see her waving farewell to her Special era at long last.

“I’ve been working on music for the last two years, and took my time and I did it right. The new era begins today,” she told fans. “I truly am coming to gag throats.”

Sabrina Carpenter not only opened SNL50, but was a guest star in the newest SNL sketch to feature Domingo, a recurring character that cast member Marcello Hernandez has become known for on the comedy show.

After singing “Homeward Bound” beautifully in a duet with Paul Simon at the start of Sunday night’s (Feb. 16) special, Carpenter sang … not as beautifully at her friend Kelsey’s (Chloe Fineman) less-than-one-year vow renewal celebration with Matt (Andrew Dismukes).

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Martin Short and Molly Shannon started the bit with a speech from the bride’s parents, welcoming all to their $70,000 party with an open bar at the Best Western.

“Kelsey and Matt, may you have a marriage as loving and passionate as Daddy and me,” Shannon drunkenly said before making out with Short.

Carpenter, whose “Espresso” was actually featured in the very first sketch that introduced Domingo (on the Oct. 12, 2024 episode) then cut in: “For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Sophie, the bride’s childhood bestie. I couldn’t make it to the wedding because I was unfortunately in prison.”

Then she invited up the rest of the bride’s squad to sing, instead of doing a speech, as these ladies do.

Apparently Kelsey and her friends went to New York, got blackout drunk and saw Wicked, so of course their first song was to the tune of “Defying Gravity,” just with replacement lyrics about finally learning to try monogamy.

The next parody to make their set was to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me,” except with lyrics all about the beloved Domingo, who suddenly showed up and joined in.

“What she’s looking for/ Is the hung Latin guy,” he sang, even getting a shoutout from Kelsey’s mom and dad.

Matt’s groomsmen took the floor next, and bringing the tune of Carpenter’s “Espresso” back to the sketch series, they sang about a local staycation in Scottsdale and a secret new flame in Matt’s life: Ronaldo (Pedro Pascal), who turns out to be Domingo’s brother. And Bad Bunny is also their brother — the “hot” one, Santiago!

The three-hour SNL anniversary special aired live from New York City on NBC and Peacock beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Sunday. Watch the latest Domingo sketch below.

Miley Cyrus teamed up with Brittany Howard to cover “Nothing Compares 2 U,” the Prince-written hit made famous by Sinéad O’Connor, on Sunday night’s (Feb. 16) SNL50: The Anniversary Special.

Cyrus and Howard belted the song, with the Alabama Shakes frontwoman offering some extra soulfulness on the guitar for the powerful cover. O’Connor famously brought her tender-but-strong vocal to the breakup ballad, and Cyrus added some rasp to the well-known melody.

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While O’Connor was a two-time musical guest on SNL, the late Irish singer never performed her biggest hit on the sketch comedy show; “Nothing Compares 2 U” spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990. O’Connor performed on SNL in 1992, when she covered Bob Marley’s song “War” a cappella and held up a photo of then-Pope John Paul II at the end and tore it in half after singing altered lyrics about child abuse. She announced, “Fight the real enemy!,” as she tore the picture. The performance faced backlash in the moment, and O’Connor never performed on the show again before her death in 2023.

Cyrus and Howard’s choice of song was likely a nod to O’Connor’s notorious-but-since-vindicated performance on the 50-year-old show.

Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon opened the SNL50 special Sunday night with a duet of “Homeward Bound.” That song reached No. 5 on the Hot 100 in 1966, when it was originally recorded by Simon & Garfunkel and released on the duo’s Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme album — and Simon also once sang it with George Harrison on an episode of SNL.

SNL50: The Anniversary Special is airing Sunday night, following Friday’s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert on Friday night.

Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon performed a duet of “Homeward Bound” to kick off SNL50: The Anniversary Special on Sunday night (Feb. 16). The song reached No. 5 on the Hot 100 in 1966, when it was originally recorded by Simon & Garfunkel and released on the duo’s Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme album — but Simon once sang it with George Harrison on an episode of Saturday Night Live.

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“Ladies and gentlemen, this is Sabrina,” Simon said, introducing the Short n’ Sweet pop star to the live audience in Studio 8H.

“This is the one and only Paul Simon,” Carpenter said.

“I sang this song with George Harrison on Saturday night live in 1976,” recalled Simon.

“I was not born then, and neither were my parents,” Carpenter, who would later appear in a sketch, quipped. (The 25-year-old singer was born in May 1999.)

Simon started the song, with Carpenter coming in at the end of verse one, harmonizing at the lyric “My suitcase and guitar in hand/ And every stop is neatly planned/ For a poet and a one-man band.” They continued to sing together through the chorus. Carpenter took lead on verse two, but swapped the line “cigarettes and magazines” for a rewrite: “airport lounges and magazines.”

Steve Martin, following their performance with a short opening monologue that Martin Short popped in to join, joked that SNL50 had front-loaded the show — featuring cast members past and present, a long list of famous past hosts and unannounced cameos — with all the night’s big talent.

The three-hour special with SNL alumni celebrating 50 years of sketch comedy aired live from New York City on NBC and Peacock beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

Ahead of the SNL50 television program was Friday night’s SNL50: The Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall, hosted by Jimmy Fallon. Cher, Lady Gaga, Bad Bunny, Miley Cyrus, Robyn, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Jack White, Backstreet Boys, Jelly Roll, Bonnie Raitt and more were on the lineup, with Questlove and The Roots backing up multiple acts.

Watch a clip of the “Simon & Carpenter” version of “Homeward Bound” below, courtesy of SNL’s Instagram.

Este Haim has an especially gleeful photo up on Instagram that hints at an engagement to reported beau Jonathan Levin, tech entrepreneur and CEO of Chainalysis.

Este, one third of sister band Haim with Danielle and Alana, posted a selfie that flashed what looks to be a diamond on her left finger on Thursday (Feb. 13). In the picture, she’s wearing a baby blue “I’M TAKEN” T-shirt and grinning with her eyes closed. While she didn’t caption the photo update, she replied to a comment that said, “Oh she’s TAKEN taken” with “TAKEN IS RIGHT,” and said “thank you” when congratulated. More congratulations messages poured in on the post.

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Billboard reached out to a representative for Haim for comment on Saturday, but did not immediately receive a response.

Since posting the ring picture, Este’s followed up with a post featuring a picture of herself and one with her sisters, and a video clip of TikToker Harry Daniels crooning “No Body, No Crime” to the trio — an impromptu moment that had them grooving along and chiming in with the lyric “She was with me, dude.” (Haim is featured on the country-crime track from Taylor Swift’s Evermore album; Este is named in its verses.)

People reports that Este uploaded an Instagram Story on Valentine’s Day of a FaceTime screenshot with Levin. “happy valentine’s day i love you j” was typewritten on the picture.

While she hasn’t publicly spoken about their relationship, the couple have been photographed together at events including Kansas City Chiefs games and the U.S. Open, which they attended with Swift, and celebrating Swift’s birthday in 2023.