The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is making a comeback, and it’s bringing one of music’s biggest living legends along for the ride. As announced Tuesday (Sept. 17), Cher will headline the brand’s first big runway showcase in six years — and she’ll be leading a lineup of all-women artists for the first time ever.

The iconic fashion house shared the news on Instagram with a video of the 78-year-old superstar singing her 1998 Billboard Hot 100-topping hit “Believe,” giving fans a taste of what she’ll bring to the VS runway this fall. “It’s a woman’s world, so it’s understood that you can’t have a fashion show without the mother of fashion herself—@Cher!” the caption reads.

“But she won’t be alone…stay tuned, more announcements are coming to round out our first-ever, all-women lineup,” the message continues.

Scheduled for Oct. 15 in Brooklyn, New York, the 2024 fashion show marks a major comeback for Victoria’s Secret. The event used to be an annual prime-time TV spectacular featuring the world’s most recognizable models — Heidi Klum, Karlie Kloss and Gisele Bündchen, to name a few of the show’s “Angels” — walking the runway in lingerie and avant-garde angel wings.

Major musicians were also frequently tapped to provide a live soundtrack for the fashion show, performing on stage as the models walked. Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, Lady Gaga, Selena Gomez and more have all taken the gig at different points.

The last show of this kind, however, was in 2018, after which Victoria’s Secret canceled the program amid growing backlash to the brand’s lack of inclusivity and perpetuation of unrealistic beauty standards. In 2019, parent company L Brands stated its desire to “evolve the marketing of Victoria’s Secret” in the show’s absence.

Four years later, it made a mini-return of sorts with VS testing out a new approach: The Tour, a Prime Video special compiling footage of A-listers Adriana Lima, Gigi Hadid, Emily Ratajkowski and Hailey Bieber modeling the company’s apparel in cities all over the world. It also featured a performance from Doja Cat, then fresh off the release of her album Scarlet.

This year, Hadid will once again walk for VS alongside another seasoned Angel, Tyra Banks. And yes, the wings will also be making a grand return.

“We’ve read the comments and heard you,” the company wrote on Instagram in May. “The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is ✨ BACK ✨ and will reflect who we are today, plus everything you know and love—the glamour, runway, wings, musical entertainment, and more!”

See Victoria’s Secret’s announcement below.

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday (Sept. 17) unsealed a criminal indictment of Sean “Diddy” Combs over sweeping allegations of sexual abuse, accusing the once-powerful rapper of running a racketeering conspiracy that included sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson and bribery.

Less than a day after the rapper was arrested Monday in New York City, Manhattan federal prosecutors unveiled the substance of their case against Combs – accusing him of operating a criminal enterprise centered on his “pervasive pattern of abuse toward women,” according to the documents obtained by Billboard.

“For decades, Sean Combs … abused, threatened and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct,” the indictment reads. “To do so, Combs relied on the employees, resources and the influence of his multi-faceted business empire that he led and controlled.”

Combs, 54, is expected to be arraigned later on Tuesday at a Manhattan federal courthouse.

The charges against Combs come after a flood of civil lawsuits in which at least eight victims have sued him over allegations of sexual abuse, starting with a high-profile case filed last year by his longtime girlfriend Cassie Ventura. That case quickly settled, but it was later corroborated by a widely shared video of Combs assaulting her at a hotel.

Criminal charges against Combs were not unexpected. Federal agents carried out raids in March on his homes in Los Angeles and Miami, and multiple news outlets had reported that he was facing an ongoing investigation that included potential allegations of sex trafficking.

In a statement on Monday, Combs’ attorney Marc Agnifilo said: “We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the Black community.”

In Tuesday’s unsealed indictment, prosecutors allege that Combs violated the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act – a law known as RICO that’s often used to target mobsters and drug cartels. Over 14 pages of details, the government claims Combs operated a similar criminal racket, but one centered “fulfilling the personal desires of Combs, particularly those related to sexual gratification.”

“Combs … used the Combs business, including certain employees, to carry out, facilitate, and cover up his abuse and commercial sex,” prosecutors write.

Many of the allegations center on so-called “freak offs,” which prosecutors describe as “elaborate and produced sex performances” between victims and male sex workers during which Combs would masturbate. They allege Combs and his associates “wielded the power and prestige” of his fame to “intimidate, threaten and lure female victims” into his orbit, then used “force, threats of force, and coercion” to get them to participate.

During the freak offs, prosecutors claim Combs and others kept victims “obedient and compliant” by providing them with drugs, then subjected them to “physical, emotional and verbal abuse,” including hitting and kicking them, threatening career repercussions, and blackmailing them with footage.

“Victims believed they could not refuse Combs demands without risking their financial or job security,” prosecutors write. “Combs also used the sensitive, embarrassing, and incriminating recordings that he made during Freak offs as collateral to ensure the continued obedience and silence of victims.”

In addition to the RICO allegations, the indictment also accuses Combs of federal sex-trafficking laws and a federal statute barring the transportation of sex workers.

Miley Cyrus has been hit with a lawsuit that claims her chart-topping “Flowers” infringed the copyright to the Bruno Mars hit “When I Was Your Man,” setting the stage for a legal battle over two tracks that many fans already saw as connected.

Filed Monday in Los Angeles federal court, the case claims that Cyrus’ track – which spent eight weeks atop the Hot 100 after it was released in January 2023 – “duplicates numerous melodic, harmonic, and lyrical elements” of the earlier track.

The complaint was filed not by Mars himself but by an entity called Tempo Music Investments that bought a share of the copyright to his song from one of its co-writers. In it, lawyers for that group claim the two songs have “striking similarities.”

“Any fan of Bruno Mars’ ‘When I Was Your Man’ knows that Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ did not achieve all of that success on its own,” lawyers for Tempo Music write. “It is undeniable based on the combination and number of similarities between the two recordings that ‘Flowers’ would not exist without ‘When I Was Your Man.’”

A spokesperson for Cyrus did not immediately return a request for comment on the allegations.

Tempo is hardly the first to note connections between the two songs. When “Flowers” was first released, many fans saw it as an “answer song” to Mars’ earlier track — with Cyrus directly responding to the song’s regrets. Where Mars laments that “I should’ve bought you flowers… take you to every party, ’cause all you wanted to dance,” Cyrus protests on “Flowers,” that “I can buy myself flowers… I can take myself dancing.”

The reason for the references? According to internet speculation, Mars’ song was a favorite of Cyrus’ ex-husband Liam Hemsworth and her allusions were a reference to their split.

At the time, legal experts told Billboard that Cyrus was likely not violating copyrights simply by using similar lyrics to fire back at the earlier song – a time-honored music industry tradition utilized by songs ranging from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” to countless rap diss records.

“This is great fodder for fan theories, but lawyers should have nothing to do with it,” Joseph Fishman, a professor at Vanderbilt Law School in Nashville, said at the time. “Using one song to issue a retort to an earlier song is not, by itself, infringement.”

But in Monday’s complaint, attorneys for Tempo argue that the similarities in Cyrus’ song extend well beyond the clap-back lyrics, including “melodic and harmonic material,” “pitch ending pattern,” and “bass-line structure.”

“Immediately upon the release of ‘Flowers,’ the public recognized the striking similarities between the song and ‘When I Was Your Man,’” Tempo’s lawyers write. “The combination of elements – both musical and lyrical – confirm that ‘Flowers’ copies extensively from ‘When I Was Your Man.’”

Following the filing the lawsuit, some copyright experts remain skeptical. On social media, Fishman said the merits of Tempo’s case were “weak” and that the musical similarities were rooted in commonplace song elements that also exist in other tracks like Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” or Ace of Base’s “It’s a Beautiful Life.” He also questioned why Mars himself was not involved.

Aaron Moss, a veteran copyright litigator at the law firm Greenberg Glusker, cited numerous other songs that “reply to other songs,” including “Love Will Tear Us Apart” by Joy Division and “Love Will Keep Us Together” by Captain & Tennille: “It’s not copyright infringement folks,” Moss said.

An attorney for Tempo did not immediately return a request for comment.

Tito Jackson, 70, one of the five founding members of the beloved Motown group the Jackson 5, died on Sunday (Sept. 15) of a suspected heart attack in Gallup, NM. Billboard contributor Fred Bronson interviewed Tito over three days in 2016 for his book, The Jacksons Legacy. Check out a few excerpts from their many hours together, including Tito talking about his brothers, signing to Motown, his missed chance to pursue a career in baseball and what he believed his legacy would be.

Before there was a Jackson 5, it was just you, Jackie and Jermaine. Did you play ang gigs as a trio?

No, we weren’t doing any gigs. It was just us singing around the house, Jackie, Jermaine and me. Then we heard Michael sing at a school function, an elementary school play, and that’s when we put him in the band. Marlon said, “me too!” Both of them has been asking. We had been telling them they were too young. It was for big boys.

Did any of your sisters ask to be a part of your group?

No, the girls hung out with each other. They were around mama all the time. The five of us  worked out our harmonies, and with Michael singing songs, it started sounding even better. Father would tell us to be quiet, and our mother told him, “Joe, you need to listen to them. I think they really can sing. I think they have talent.” He would say, “Those boys don’t have any talent. Those boys can’t sing.” [She said] “No, Joe, I really think you should listen to them. They sound pretty good.” So one day, we sang for him and he was blown away. The next day when he got his paycheck, he bought all kinds of equipment. He rehearsed us every day. After school, we’d drop our books. He had the mics already set up, the amps on standby. The guitars were out already.

What do you remember about being signed to Motown?

We had heard that Motown wasn’t going to sign us because Stevie Wonder was on the label and there were a lot of laws about minors working. You could only work so long and then you had to take a break. If you are there longer than six hours, your day is over. You’ve got to go to school for an hour now. Producers hate it. With Stevie they only had one minor. There were five of us. 

But that didn’t stop from Motown signing you.

We did the audition for Berry, and he was there. Suzanne de Passe was there. [Motown artist] Bobby Taylor was there and Berry was in the corner, checking it out and listening, trying to not like it. But he really enjoyed it. He wanted us to sing at Diana Ross’s party that he was giving. He told us our first four or five records were going to go to No. 1. 

That party for Diana Ross was at Berry’s home in Detroit. I understand he offered you a hundred dollars to make a hole-in-one in his back yard.

He gave us the wrong iron. Some putter or something. We tore the yard up trying to do that.

Is that the first time you met Diana Ross?

Yes. That was the first time we met any of the stars. Marvin Gaye was there and Tammi Terrell. Some of the Four Tops and some of the Temptations. It was like a family. The Motown staff was very kind to us. They treated us like children. That’s what we were. Everybody was our father and mother. They were just very nice to us. We did our performance, singing their songs to them and watching their reactions, and they seemed to really like it. They told us, “You guys are great, but remember, don’t get a big head.” They would give us little tips like that, and we looked up to them, of course. I remember going back to Indiana, bragging to all of our friends that we signed to Motown and our friends were very supportive. 

Tell me about your relationships with your brothers.

Our relationships were always good because we did everything together. We hung out together. We stayed together. When we went on the road, we shared rooms. If we were going to the movies, we all went to the movies together. We made our own fun and had our little basketball team, the five of us. We also played a lot of baseball and softball.

Were you good at baseball?

That was my whole thing. I enjoyed playing the game, and I played about two years in Little League before the music took off. I could’ve done something with it if I had kept playing, but I stopped playing at a young age. I guess the music looked better to our father. Jackie was really good at baseball. But I learned when I got older that I was probably just as good, if not better. Especially if I had kept playing, because I was always trying to keep up with my oldest brother. 

After three bubblegum pop songs – “I Want You Back,” “ABC” and “The Love You Save,” your fourth single was very different. Tell me about “I’ll Be There.”

I think it was a good move to show the versatility in the group, that we weren’t just about up-tempo young songs. We could deliver love songs and “I’ll Be There” was perfect. It was an adult lyric, but it sounded good for the young voice of Michael with us doing the backgrounds. We didn’t know it was going to be a single. We just recorded the songs that they gave us and we would finish an album and the company chose the songs that it felt strongly about.

What does it mean to you to have been a part of the Jackson 5?

A person comes into this world and it’s what you leave behind, I don’t know if I left enough behind, because what I have left behind is music and if you can bring happiness to some people, that’s more than most people have brought. So I look at it in that context, but it’s not everything that I can leave behind. I’m always trying to do something that’s going to help myself or help society and make myself a better person. But to be a part of the Jacksons, to have that and bring smiles to people’s faces who enjoy the music, who enjoy the image or to name a kid after one of our family members is a good feeling. It means a lot. It means that you’ve done something with your life, other than just lived a life. At the end of the day, when we get called, it’s all about what we did with our time. I still have a lot to give as do the brothers, because the music just flows through our family. I think I was put here to do music.