Gracie Abrams has secured her first-ever No. 1 album on the Official UK Albums Chart with her sophomore release, The Secret Of Us.

The Californian singer-songwriter’s second studio album follows her debut Good Riddance, which peaked at No. 3 in 2023.

Abrams celebrated her chart-topping success after a surprise appearance at Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour at London’s Wembley Stadium, where they performed “us.” from her new album.

“Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for somehow making my album The Secret Of Us No. 1 in the UK. I can’t wrap my head around that. This is the first time that anything I’ve ever done, ever, anywhere has gone No. 1.”

“Thank you for believing in the album, thank you for listening to it, and thank you for letting it into your lives. This means so much to me, and to the people I’m lucky enough to have made these songs with. I can’t wait until we’re all in the same place, to sing these songs together at a show and to dance. I’ll be crying! I love you, thank you so much,” Abrams told Official Charts.

The Secret Of Us also tops the Official Record Store Chart and the Official Vinyl Albums Chart, making it the best-selling record of the week on vinyl in the U.K.

Meanwhile, Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department drops to No. 2 after seven non-consecutive weeks at the top, bolstered by her U.K. tour dates. Six of Swift’s albums, including Lover (No. 7), 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (No. 9), Midnights (No. 12), reputation (No. 15), folklore (No. 16), and Red (Taylor’s Version) (No. 37), remain within the U.K. top 40.

Chappell Roan’s debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, reaches a new peak at No. 6. Alt-rock band The Mysterines secure their second Top 40 entry with Afraid Of Tomorrows, landing at No. 11.

Foo Fighters’ hits collection The Essential climbs to No. 13, driven by their ongoing U.K. stadium tour. Dua Lipa’s Radical Optimism rises to No. 27 ahead of her Glastonbury Pyramid Stage performance, while Benson Boone’s debut Fireworks & Rollerblades ascends to No. 28 following his support slot on Taylor Swift’s tour.

Green Day’s 2017 compilation Greatest Hits: God’s Favorite Band re-enters the U.K. top 40 at No. 29. Avril Lavigne’s Greatest Hits returns to the Top 40 at No. 33, ahead of her own Glastonbury set. Ed Sheeran’s X (Multiply) leaps 97 spots to No. 34 following its 10th anniversary reissue.

Pearl Jam has been forced to cancel two additional shows on their European tour as unspecified band members continue to recover from illness.

The group was slated to perform at Waldbühne in Berlin on July 2 and 3, but these dates have now been scrapped.

The announcement comes just a day after the band had to call off their June 29 show at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the same reason. The next opportunity for Pearl Jam to return to the stage will be on July 6 in Barcelona.

In a statement shared on their social media channels, the band expressed their disappointment and the difficulty of the decision.

“Despite everyone’s best efforts, the band has yet to make a full recovery,” Pearl Jam’s social media channels read.

“The impacts of this decision are not lost on us. We feel deeply that so many people spend their time, money and emotional energy to get tickets and then to come see the band, and it is heart-wrenching to have to disappoint you. We also appreciate the many people whose hard work goes into making these shows happen.”

“Please trust we never take these decisions lightly and try to do everything possible to show up for you all,” it continued.

“We wish a reschedule had been possible for this tour leg and hope to come back soon. Tickets will be refunded at the point of purchase. Thank you for your continued understanding and support. It means the world.”

Although the specific members affected have not been disclosed, frontman Eddie Vedder struggled with vocal issues during the band’s previous show in Manchester on June 25, just the second date of the tour leg.

Tickets for the canceled Berlin shows will be refunded at the point of purchase.

Addressing the audience, Vedder alluded to catching an illness after high-fiving fans at their Dublin show a few days prior.

Pearl Jam is currently on tour supporting their latest album, Dark Matter. Earlier this week, Vedder surprise-released a solo cover of the English Beat’s “Save It for Later” as part of the new season of the FX show The Bear.

On June 30, the band also marked the 24th anniversary of the tragic crowd surge that claimed the lives of nine fans during their performance at Denmark’s Roskilde Festival in 2000.

“We honor and remember the young men who tragically lost their lives on June 30, 2000 and hold their friends and families in our hearts,” they wrote on social media.

The band is set to launch a U.S. summer tour in August.

Usher accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2024 BET Awards Sunday night (June 30) at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, but the audio cut out for a good chunk of his speech for those watching from home.

“It is great to see him get the flowers while the garden is still growing, so keep growing them flowers,” said Terry Lewis at the beginning of the segments. While he and Jimmy Jam mentioned they produced one of Usher’s biggest records that was part of his tribute performance — “Bad Girl” from his 2004 magnum opus Confessions — they enlisted two other influential men in the R&B superstar’s life to present him with the prestigious honor: L.A. Reid and Babyface. And while the gentlemen honored Usher’s mother, Jonnetta Patton, for bringing him into this world and being the “original momager,” Babyface added that they “were part of your musical birth, and you are worthy of this prestigious award.”

Usher took the stage for his approximately 12-minute acceptance speech, but about four minutes of it were largely inaudible for those not in the theater with him. (Billboard has reached out to BET for comment about the audio during Usher’s speech.)

“Getting here has definitely not been easy, but it has been worth it. … I didn’t write anything because I wanted this moment to be exactly what it was: present. In this moment, how I am feeling and the appreciation that I have for each and every person that had anything to do with this moment tonight as well as the 30-plus-year career that I celebrate. … I don’t know, man, is it too early for me to receive it? Because I’m still running and gunning and I still love this s–t like I did when I was eight years old,” he began.

He later explained how he initially had a hard time making sense of his birth name, which Usher said was given to him by a man who didn’t stick around or love him. “Or at least, that was my perception of it, because I had to live long enough in order to understand you have to have a forgiving heart in order to understand the true pitfalls and hardships of a Black man in America,” said the eight-time Grammy winner. “And my father, he was a product of that. He made a lot of decisions, he made a lot of choices and the one that probably hurt and helped me at the same time was to stay away. But that’s part of the reason why I say this is the year of the father, where all the fathers gotta stand up for their sons and daughters and be the man that they need them to be for them.”

While praising Jam, Lewis, Reid and Babyface for how they helped shaped his successful career, Usher described them as “the men who motivated me, who speak to me, who have spoken to me, who have been solid no matter how f–ked up it may have been — sorry, I’m cursing to let you know how I really feelm” while “f–k” was censored but a subsequent “s–t” wasn’t. Almost four minutes into his speech, Usher’s speech starting cutting in and out for almost four minutes straight.

But according to a Billboard reporter inside the awards show, Usher said “f–k” and “motherf–ker” once, while barely swearing throughout his speech that didn’t contain any salacious subject matter.

When the sound was restored, Usher shouted out his eldest sons Usher “Cinco” Raymond V and Nayvid Ely Raymond, who were in the front row, as well as his son Sire Castrello Raymond and daughter Sovereign Bo Raymond, who were at home. “It is 100% all about my children and making certain that you understand that your dreams can come true if you truly committed, if you are committed to it, if you’re dedicated to something and you find passion and you stay committed to it, this could potentially be you. This could be your moment. Not on this stage, because I’m the only one that’s gonna have this one,” he joked.

Usher had a big night at the 2024 BET Awards, which were presented at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday (June 30). In addition to receiving a lifetime achievement award, Usher won best male R&B/pop artist for the fifth time.

Usher is second only to Chris Brown for most wins for best male R&B/pop artist. Brown has won the award seven times. Usher first won in the category 22 years ago, giving him the longest span of wins in any BET category.

Usher, 45, is the second-youngest recipient of the BET’s lifetime achievement award. Only Whitney Houston, the inaugural recipient in 2001, was younger – 37 at the time.

Tyla and Victoria Monét each won two awards. Tyla won best new artist and best international act. The South African singer is just the third winner for best new artist who was not born in the U.S. She follows Nicki Minaj, who was born in Trinidad, and Sam Smith, who was born in England. In January, Tyla’s breakthrough hit, “Water,” reached its No. 7 peak on the Billboard Hot 100. In February, that track won the inaugural Grammy Award for best African music performance.

Monét’s “On My Mama” won video of the year and the BET Her award, which honors motivational and empowering songs by women artists. She won both awards for “On My Mama,” which received Grammy nominations for record of the year and best R&B song. The video, directed by Child., also won in that category at the Soul Train Music Awards in November.

Killer Mike’s Michael won album of the year. The album won best rap album at the Grammys on Feb. 4. Killer Mike was arrested following the Grammys premiere ceremony that night following a dispute with what he characterized as an overzealous security guard. Killer Mike alluded to that arrest in his BET acceptance speech.

Michael peaked at No. 58 on the Billboard 200, lower than all but one of this year’s BET nominees in this category, which included three albums that reached No. 1 – Drake’s For All the Dogs, 21 Savage’s American Dream and Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday 2.

SZA won best female R&B/pop artist for the second year in a row. She’s the first artist to win back-to-back award in this category since Beyoncé won six years in a row from 2014-19.

Regina King won best actress for the third time, a total matched or equaled only by Taraji P. Henson, with six wins, and Halle Berry, also with three wins. King starred in Shirley, a biopic of Shirley Chisolm, who was the first Black woman to be elected to the U.S. Congress and who made a longshot bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1972. John Ridley wrote and directed the film, which had a brief theatrical run prior to its Netflix debut in March.  The film’s tagline: “Fearless. Fierce. First.”

Angel Reese, power forward for the Chicago Sky basketball team, won sportswoman of the year for the second year in a row. Jalen Brunson, point guard for the New York Knicks, won sportsman of the year.

This story will be updated after all of the winners are announced.

The Beyoncé Effect is real. Shaboozey followed fellow country star Tanner Adell with 2024 BET Awards’ second performance highlighting the genre on Sunday (June 30).

His set featured dancers in a saloon line dancing as he performed his hit song “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” — a flip of J-Kwon’s own 2004 hit “Tipsy.” Boozey’s version made history back in May when it hit No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart, replacing Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em,” marking the first time two Black artists topped the Country charts in back-to-back weeks since 1958. The song also peaked at No. 3 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 on the chart dated May 11.

The highlight of the performance, though, was when he brought out J-Kwon to perform “Tipsy,” which understandably got a good rise out of the crowd.

Billboard spoke to the St. Louis rapper in April about how he felt about Shaboozey’s homage. “It really ain’t even paying homage; I got a crazy percentage” he said at the time, noting that he was “proud” of the country singer.

Getting J-Kwon’s blessing and validation was important to the Virgina native. “Feeling like you did the song you’re flipping justice and then getting that co-sign, not everybody gets that,” he told Billboard in May.

After being featured on Beyoncé’s country-leaning, genre-bending Cowboy Carter album twice, Shaboozey has found himself in the spotlight, and he’s taken advantage. “We were pretty prepared for this moment,” he previously told Billboard. Someone from Beyoncé’s team stumbled upon a live performance of the then unreleased song and reached out to his team. Shaboozey then decided to drop “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” and the rest is history.

Watch Shaboozey’s performance with J-Kwon at the 2024 BET Awards below: