Nas wants to bring a state-of-the-art casino to his home borough of Queens.

On Thursday (Feb. 29), the rap legend was on hand to unveil the $5 billion vision for Resorts World’s Aqueduct Park in Southeast Queens as the company hopes to win a license from New York State to break ground on the project. If granted, the casino is expected to be one of the largest in the world at 350,000 square feet.

“This is an ambitious project that will give new opportunities to the hard-working families who call Queens home, attract top-tier talent, and build up the next generation of leaders,” said Nas, who has partnered with Resorts World to help promote the project, in a statement. “Clearly, with this project, the world is ours.”

The “Queens Get the Money” rapper reportedly added at the unveiling: “It’s an honor to be here, to be a part of this with Resorts World, realizing the future, seeing what this can be and what it will be.”

Since Resorts World gained access to the land and infrastructure in 2010, it has been preparing to one day build a multi-functional casino. There are plans for a 7,000-seat capacity entertainment venue to host events and concerts as well.

Park space, housing, hotels, restaurants and renovated transit options to JFK Airport and Manhattan are also part of the grand vision, which could create 5,000 union jobs.

Two-time NBA champion and current TNT basketball analyst Kenny “The Jet” Smith also endorsed the project; the plan includes building a sports academy with facilities named after the former Houston Rocket player.

“Resorts World came to me with a clear goal of fostering tomorrow’s athletes, student athletes and leaders both on and off the court,” said Smith in a statement. “Their investment in this Academy will help us teach the next generation the nuances of the game on and off the court, as well as the social, economic, and cultural impact of sports. I’m thrilled to partner with them to improve the borough that raised me and take it to the next level.”

Per The New York Times, Resorts World as well as Yonkers’ Empire City are expected to receive two out of the three licenses granted by New York State. That would not bode well for JAY-Z’s Times Square casino bid in Manhattan.

Watch an ad starring Nas for the Queens Resorts World Casino proposal below.

Happy birthday, Justin Bieber! The “Love Yourself” superstar turned the big 3-0 on Friday (March 1), and his wife Hailey Bieber took to Instagram to share sweet moments from the duo’s relationship.

“30!!!!!!!????!!????!!!!,” the Rhode founder wrote on Instagram alongside various photos and videos of the duo kissing, smiling and cuddling up to each other. “That was fast. words could never truly describe the beauty of who you are. Happy Birthday to you… love of my life, for life.”

The couple officially wed in September 2018 at a New York City courthouse. A year later, they flew down to the Montage Palmetto Bluff hotel in South Carolina with their friends and family for a more traditional wedding ceremony and star-studded party.

Justin celebrated the duo’s fifth wedding anniversary in September 2023 with a sweet Instagram post in which he sang the model’s praises as one half of his heart. “To the most precious, my beloved. 5 years. You have captivated my heart. I know from the depths of my soul down to my bones that this journey with you will only exceed our wildest expectations,” wrote the singer next to a snap of the couple kissing, along with several more happy pics of them holding hands and cheesing for the camera.

See Hailey’s birthday post for Justin below.

Universal Music Group (UMG) shares rose 4.9% on Thursday (Feb. 29), the day after its fourth-quarter earnings revealed record revenue of 11.1 billion euros ($12 billion) in 2023 and strong subscription-related growth in the fourth quarter. The music giant’s stock finished the week up 2.3% to 27.87 euros ($30.25), bringing its year-to-date gain to 6.8%.

Investors also received details about the financial impacts of UMG’s company-wide layoffs. A reduction in global headcount is expected to save 75 million euros ($81.3 million) in 2024, 125 million euros ($135.5 million) in 2025 and 250 million euros ($271 million) annually by 2026. UMG has not specified the number of employees being laid off, but Billboard had identified nearly 50 across the company by Friday afternoon (Mar. 1). A second phase of layoffs and “other operational efficiencies” is scheduled to begin in 2025 and run through 2026, according to UMG’s latest investor presentation. 

In reducing its headcount and eliminating some positions, UMG is “redesigning our organization to enhance our capabilities in the areas most critical to our future growth and success,” CFO Boyd Muir said during the earnings call Wednesday (Feb. 28). “These changes will strengthen our leadership team, foster innovation and create significant efficiencies across our business.”

Also enjoying gains this week were some of the other largest companies in the 20-member Billboard Global Music Index. Spotify rose 3.0% to $263.75, Warner Music Group improved 3.2% to $35.48 and Live Nation increased 1.9% to $97.15. The index itself rose 1.9% to a record 1,715.81, with 11 stocks in positive territory.

Stocks had another strong week in the United States overall. On Friday, the Nasdaq composite surpassed its previous high from 2021 and finished the week up 1.7% to 16,274.94. Chipmaker Nvidia rose another 4.4% to $822.79 this week after gaining 8.5% the previous week. Meta shares were up 3.8% to $502.30 following its announcement on Thursday that it will “deprecate” (i.e. remove) its Facebook News tab in the United States and Australia. The S&P 500 gained 0.9% to 5,137.08 — its first close over 5,100. 

In the United Kingdom, the FTSE 100 fell 0.3% to 7,682.50. South Korea’s KOSPI Composite index fell 0.9% to 2,642.36, mirroring the declines of K-pop companies HYBE (down 7.6%), SM Entertainment (down 2.5%), JYP Entertainment (down 3.4%) and YG Entertainment (down 3.9%). China’s Shangai Composite Index gained 0.7% to 3,027.02.

Sphere Entertainment Co. was music’s greatest gainer of the week after its share price rose 8.4% to $44.29. The price jumped 6.2% on Thursday after an SEC filing revealed chairman/CEO James Dolan acquired an additional 59,000 shares, ranging from $40.48 to $41.46 per share. Less impactful to the share price was TMZ‘s news that the Eagles are in talks for a fall residency at the $2.3 billion Sphere in Las Vegas. After U2’s residency ends this weekend, Sphere will host Phish for four dates in April and Dead & Company for 24 dates spanning from May 16 to July 13. Sphere shares have gained 30.3% year to date.

French music streamer Deezer was the next-best performer of the week after gaining 5.1% to 2.25 euros ($2.44). The company reported fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday that showed improvements in subscriber court and average revenue per user. Revenue of 130.7 million euros ($141 million) was up 12.1% from the prior-year period. The same day, Deezer also announced the departure of CEO Jeronimo Folgueira. “Deezer is back on a growth trajectory and can now build from a solid foundation,” said chairwoman Iris Knobloch. 

Believe shares rose 4.2% to 15.50 euros ($16.82) after the French music company announced that it received interest from a third party; a consortium consisting of founder Denis Ladegaillerie and two major shareholders launched a bid in February to take the company private at 15.00 euros per share. On Friday, Believe revealed it received “a confidential exploratory non-binding approach” from another party that valued the company at “at least” 17.00 euros ($18.45) per share. Believe was careful to note the third party’s approach did not constitute an obligation to make an offer. Still, the appearance of another possible bidder was enough to push Believe’s share price above the consortium’s earlier 15.00 euros-per-share bid.

Shares of Chinese music streamer Cloud Music dropped 0.5% to 90.45 HKD ($11.55). The company announced Thursday that music subscribers grew 8.7% to 205.9 million in the fourth quarter, with subscription growth helping revenue from online music services increase 17.6% to 4.4 billion RMB ($611 million) — although total revenue fell 12.5% to 7.78 billion RMB ($1.09 billion). Gross profit improved 63% to 2.1 billion RMB ($292 million) and net profit improved to 818.5 million RMB ($114 million) from a net loss of 114.6 million RMB ($16 million) in 2022.

iHeartMedia shares fell 2.6% to $2.26 after a seesaw week for the country’s leading radio broadcaster. The stock rose 22.0% to $2.77 on Thursday after the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report suggested the fog might be lifting from an advertising slowdown that has hurt broadcast radio revenues. After fourth-quarter revenue fell about 5%, iHeartMedia’s first-quarter revenue is expected to be down 2% to flat. Podcasts were a bright spot, growing 16.6% in the fourth quarter and 13.8% for the full year. Nearly all of Thursday’s gain was erased on Friday, however, when iHeartMedia shares fell 18.4%.  

Cumulus Media suffered the largest loss amongst music stocks after falling 20.4% to $3.74. On Tuesday (Feb. 27), the radio broadcaster said its 2023 revenues fell 11.4% to $844.5 million and announced a debt exchange offer that would allow lenders to swap 6.750% notes due 2026 for 8.750% notes due 2029. The company is also offering to exchange term loans under a 2019 credit facility for new term loans.

Federal prosecutors are accusing NBA YoungBoy (a.k.a. YoungBoy Never Broke Again) of violating the terms of his house arrest by using unspecified drugs — and of telling his supervising officers that he has “no intentions” of stopping.

In a filing Thursday (Feb. 29), prosecutors asked a Louisiana federal judge to set a hearing to deal with the rapper’s “noncompliant behavior” while he awaits a July trial on federal gun charges. They say he violated a rule forbidding him to “use or unlawfully possess a narcotic drug or other controlled substance” while under house arrest.

“The undersigned has learned that the defendant has violated [this rule] and has informed his supervising officer that he has no intentions to discontinue using the substance that resulted in the violation,” U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. wrote in the filing.

The filing did not specify what drug YoungBoy is accused of using. The rapper’s attorneys did not return a request for comment; they will likely file a formal response to the allegation in the days ahead.

YoungBoy was indicted by Louisiana federal prosecutors in March 2021 on charges of “felon in possession of a firearm” after he was allegedly found with two guns during a September 2020 incident in Baton Rouge, La. Possessing guns would be illegal for YoungBoy since the rapper was previously convicted in 2017 of aggravated assault with a firearm.

When he was arrested in Los Angeles on those charges, another gun was found in his car, leading to a similar case brought by California federal prosecutors. YoungBoy was acquitted on those charges following a July 2022 trial, but he’s still facing a looming trial in Louisiana over the original indictment.

While awaiting trial, YoungBoy has been confined to his Salt Lake City mansion — a house arrest that has now lasted more than two full years. In October, his attorneys pleaded that the “long period of social isolation” was harming his mental health. They asked that the judge loosen restrictions, including allowing him to travel to a recording studio to create new music. But that request was largely denied in November.

YoungBoy’s trial is scheduled to kick off on Jul. 15 and is expected to run for two weeks.

Just days after the Universal Music Group’s publishing catalog began coming down from TikTok, Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) released a new statement stressing its concerns about artificial intelligence and online safety on the short-form video app. The company stated these are “equally” important issues to TikTok’s lack of “fair compensation” to songwriters.

UMPG also acknowledged in its new statement that “the disruption is difficult for some of [its songwriters]” but says leaving the TikTok app is “critical for the sustained future value, safety and health of the entire music ecosystem.”

At the end of January, UMG announced in a letter to its artists and songwriters that it would be allowing its license with TikTok to expire, saying that TikTok refused to pay the “fair value” of music and no deal could be reached. (Tiktok fired back with its own statement, hours later, saying UMG’s decision was motivated by “greed.”) Within days, UMG tracks were removed from Tiktok en masse, including the catalogs of superstars Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, Drake, BTS and more who are signed to UMG record labels. In the letter, the company noted that these takedowns would also include its publishing arm, UMPG, but the publishing-related removals did not begin until Tuesday, Feb. 26.

Now, any song, even if it was released by a non-UMG record label, is subject to takedown on TikTok if even one UMPG-signed songwriter was involved in its creation. Because UMPG is the second largest publisher in the world, these publishing takedowns were wide reaching, impacting almost every record label in one way or another.

In response to the publishing takedowns, TikTok said in a statement on Wednesday: “We are in the process of carrying out Universal Music Group’s requirement to remove all songs that have been written (or co-written) by a songwriter signed to Universal Music Publishing Group, based on information they have provided. Their actions not only affect the songwriters and artists that they represent, but now also impact many artists and songwriters not signed to Universal. We remain committed to reaching an equitable agreement with Universal Music Group. In the meantime, music lovers can continue to enjoy, discover and share millions of tracks from artists, songwriters and labels on TikTok, and we will continue to connect all artists – including those whose music is not currently available on our platform – with their fans.”

Read UMPG’s new statement to its songwriters below in full:

TikTok is removing UMPG songs because there is no license in place. As you may have heard, to-date, they have not agreed to recognize the fair value of your songs, which so many other digital partners around the world have done.

As we previously addressed in our open letter, in addition to fair compensation for your songs, the negotiations have also focused on two other critical and equally important issues: protecting you, human artists and songwriters, from the harmful effects of AI; and online safety for TikTok’s users, including your fans which include young children.

TikTok’s intentions with respect to AI are increasingly apparent. While refusing to respond to our concerns about AI depriving songwriters from fair compensation, or provide assurances that they will not train their AI models on your songs, recent media reports reveal “TikTok and ByteDance leaders have long wanted to move the app beyond music.” Reflecting on our open letter, other commentators have noted where this distancing from the music industry could lead, fueled by AI: “TikTok has an incentive to push the use of these AI recordings rather than the copyrighted and licensed recordings.”

Every indication is that they simply do not value your music.

We understand the disruption is difficult for some of you and your careers, and we are sensitive to how this may affect you around the world. We recognize that this might be uncomfortable at the moment. But it is critical for the sustained future value, safety and health of the entire music ecosystem, including all music fans.

As always, UMPG will only support partners that value songwriters, artists and your songs.  We have a long history of successfully fighting for our songwriters and will continue to do so. You should expect nothing less from us.