Tinashe on Performing at WeHo Pride, Favorite Britney Spears Memory, New Music & More | Billboard News

Billboard News caught up with Tinashe before she hit the stage at WeHo Pride on June 2. She opened up about Stars on Mars, working with Britney Spears, her connection to the LGBTQ+ community and more.

Tetris Kelly:
Hanging out with the Tinashe at WeHo Pride. How are you feeling, baby?

Tinashe:
I’m good. I’m excited to hit the stage.

Tetris Kelly:
I love that we got her before she hits the stage. So we’re, like, prepping for the performance.

Tinashe:
Well, I can’t come after — I’ll be all sweaty!

Tetris Kelly:
No, we don’t want that! I’m excited for you because you’re performing at this Pride. You’re heading to Miami to perform at Pride. So tell me what is special about, like, a Pride show versus your own shows?

Tinashe:
Yeah, I mean, the audience is already ready to party. Everyone’s here with great energy, great excitement. So I think it’s gonna be a good time.

Tetris Kelly:
And what do you think it is about your music? Because we all know, I mean, you connect with the family, so what is it about your music that you think touches the LGBTQ+ community so much?

Tinashe:
I think it’s just like a sense of unapologetic-ness and confidence. And you know that bad b—h sexy, unapologetic energy. Like, who doesn’t like that?

Watch the full video above to see what Tinashe says about her favorite Britney Spears memory, new music and more!

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Dua Lipa Declares Polka-Dot Bikini Her ‘Summer Outfit Until Further Notice’

Dua Lipa has discovered her go-to 2023 “summer outfit until further notice”: the black-and-white polka-dot bikini with butterfly and ladybug print from her La Vacanza collection with Versace.

“My summer outfit until further notice,” Lipa captioned two photos of herself wearing the string bikini on Instagram, along with a butterfly emoji. “The cutest @versace polka dots bikini from my #VersaceLaVacanza collection with @donatella_versace.”

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Donatella Versace responded to the post, commenting, “An absolute BEAUTY!! This summer is ALL about La Vacanza.”

The duo announced the collection on May 4 along with the Butterfly Medusa Ring (covered in butterflies and ladybugs, just like the swimsuit) before debuting the full line during a May 23 runway show in Cannes, France. “Feeling overwhelmed with happiness and still taking in last night!” Lipa wrote after La Vacanza’s debut show. “Creating this collection with my dear dear friend @donatella_versace has been the most incredible insightful and inspiring process that I feel so lucky I got to experience. I want to thank the whole @versace team for holding my hand through this!! … I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.”

In addition to La Vacanza, Lipa has also been busy promoting “Dance the Night,” the lead single from the soundtrack to Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Barbie movie. She released the song — which she co-wrote alongside soundtrack executive producer Mark Ronson, as well as Andrew Wyatt and Caroline Ailin — and a Barbie-pink music video to match on May 25. The song has so far peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100.

See Lipa’s La Vacanza bikini pictures below:

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Bluegrass Titan Earl Scruggs’ Song Catalog Sells to Peermusic

Building on an association that has spanned more than 75 years, peermusic has acquired the rights to the catalog of legendary bluegrass and country pioneer Earl Scruggs. 

As part of Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys, Scruggs introduced some of bluegrass’s most enduring, iconic songs, including “Earl’s Breakdown” and “Foggy Mountain Breakdown,” which Scruggs wrote and recorded in 1949 and then gained a new life following its prominent placement in the 1967 film Bonnie And Clyde.

Scruggs, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and a multiple Grammy Award winner, and peermusic founder Ralph S. Peer were close friends for decades until their deaths, with peermusic serving as the publisher of Scruggs’ music from the start of his career. 

Peermusic has also purchased the majority of the song catalog of Scruggs’ eldest son, Gary. The purchase price for both deals was not disclosed. Combined, the deal includes 348 copyrights from the father and son. The acquisition is a mix of U.S. and worldwide rights with peermusic also now serving as the global administration for compositions covered by both purchase agreements. Earl Scruggs died in 2012, while Gary Scruggs died in 2021.

“It’s a rare opportunity to acquire these incredible catalogs of songs in this competitive music rights landscape, but what makes this most meaningful to us is the decades-long relationship that peermusic has enjoyed with Earl Scruggs and Gary Scruggs,” said Kathy Spanberger, president and COO of peermusic’s Anglo American Region, in a statement. “This deal really exemplifies everything a relationship between a songwriter and a publisher should be. Earl and peermusic worked together successfully for decades to share his music with the world, and peermusic continues that tradition with the songs of Gary Scruggs.”

peermusic
Kara Blankinship, Director, Clearance & Catalog Management, peermusic; Patrick Smith, Manager, Legal and Business Affairs; Jesse Scruggs; Jaime Scruggs (Earl’s grandsons), Kathy Spanberger, President & Chief Operating Officer, peermusic; and Michael Knox, President, peermusic Nashville.

“The Scruggs are multi-generational music royalty who have worked with the Peers, a multi-generational family of music publishers since Day One. The history here is incredible,” added Michael Knox, president of peermusic Nashville. “There are few artists that have defined an entire genre the way that Earl Scruggs and Gary Scruggs have with bluegrass or that so popularized a single instrument across genres as Earl did with the banjo. We’re delighted to continue our work with the Scruggs family and to represent their interest in some of country music’s most beloved songs.”

Earl Scruggs began his career in 1945, playing banjo with Bill Monroe. It was there that he met Lester Flatt with the two forming their own group a few years later. As Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys, the act became one of the preeminent bluegrass bands in the country, playing Carnegie Hall and Newport Folk Festival, and sharing stages with Joan Baez, Johnny Cash and Maybelle Carter. 

Earl Scruggs launched his solo career in 1969, enlisting Gary and his other son, Randy, to join him in the Earl Scruggs Review. The Scruggs played a crucial role in the creation of the seminal Nitty Gritty Dirt Band project, 1972’s Will the Circle Be Unbroken, which featured titans of bluegrass and country. 

Gary Scruggs, who worked with a number of artists including Waylon Jennings, Bob Dylan, Vince Gill and Rosanne Cash, wrote a number of compositions for the Earl Scruggs Review, including “Bound in Jail All Night Long,” “I Just Can’t Seem to Care,” and “Wooden Nickels,” as well as a number of songs he and Randy Scruggs performed as The Scruggs Brothers. 

“We are now the third generation of the Scruggs family to be working alongside the team at peermusic. Our grandfather trusted peermusic as his music publisher from the beginning of his career and the team at peermusic has been like a family to us throughout these many years,” said Gary’s sons, Jesse and Jaime Scruggs, in a joint statement. “Keeping these song catalogs with peermusic is an easy decision for us because we know how much they have done to support The Scruggs family—and they know these song catalogs inside and out. We’re thrilled to have these songs looked after by Kathy, Knox and the peermusic team.”

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Quando Rondo Jailed on Drug, Gang Charges in Georgia

The rapper Quando Rondo has been jailed after being indicted on drug and gang charges in his hometown of Savannah.

The 24-year-old rapper, whose given name is Tyquian Terrel Bowman, was behind bars in the Chatham County jail Tuesday. According to court records, he has a bond hearing scheduled Friday.

Bowman and 18 others were indicted by a grand jury Wednesday. The indictment charged Bowman with four counts, including being a manager of an illegal street gang known as “Rollin’ 60′s.” Other charges say Bowman conspired with others to distribute marijuana and to buy pills of the opioid hydrocodone.

Bowman’s attorney, Joshua Pine, declined to make an immediate comment when reached by phone Tuesday.

As Quando Rondo, the rapper’s singles “I Remember” and “ABG” led to a deal with Atlantic Records, which released his debut album, “QPac,” in 2020. His follow-up album, “Recovery,” came out in March.

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Toosii on ‘Favorite Song’ Reaching Hot 100 Top 5, Working With Future on the Remix & More | Billboard News

Toosii talks about his hit song ‘Favorite Song’ getting onto the Hot 100, the difference between working with Future and Khalid on the remixes, his love and how he’s been influenced by pop and country music, and more.

Toosii:
So I like to call myself Arnold Palmer. I’m like a mix of sweet tea and lemonade. Yeah.

Rania Aniftos:
A little bit of lemonade, a little bit of sweet tea.

Toosii:
Yo, what’s going on? It’s Toosii and you’re watching Billboard News.

Rania Aniftos:
Hi everybody. Its Rania Aniftos with Billboard News and we’re here with the hottest rapper of 2023, Toosii.

Rania Aniftos:
We have to talk about, of course, the hot 100. And you broke into the top five for the first time. How does it feel?

Toosii:
It’s a good feeling. It’s a blessing. It’s something that I’ve prayed for something that I’ve been working for. So just to be here, it’s crazy.

Rania Aniftos:
It must be crazy to see how ‘Favorite Song’ took off in general it has what 280 million global streams

Toosii:
Just to see the overall interaction you just from everyone and the support you know it’s been crazy. So you know, I appreciate everybody

Rania Aniftos:
When you wrote that song. Did you have that feeling? You knew you knew it was gonna be the one

Toosii:
It’s kind of hard to like sit here and be like, Nah, I didn’t know I just put it out there. Now those was like it was like one of those ones where like I knew.

Watch the full video above!

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Niall Horan Earns Third No. 1 on Top Album Sales Chart With ‘The Show’

Niall Horan earns his third straight No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated June 24) – the entirety of his solo studio releases – as The Show debuts atop the tally. The set bows with just over 68,000 copies sold in the United States in the week ending June 15, according to Luminate.

Horan’s first two albums, Heartbreak Weather (in 2020) and Flicker (in 2018) both debuted at No. 1.

The Show was released on June 9 via Neon Haze/Capitol Records.

Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Noah Kahan, P1Harmony, Janelle Monae and Extreme all make waves with their latest releases.

Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. The new June 24, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on June 21, one day later than usual, owed to the Juneteenth holiday in the United States on June 19.  For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of The Show’s 68,000 copies sold in its first week, physical sales comprise 62,000 (33,700 on vinyl; 22,900 on CD and 500 on cassette) and digital album sales comprise 6,000. That nearly-34,000 sum on vinyl represents Horan’s biggest week on wax, and the largest sales week for any vinyl album released by Capitol Records in the modern era (since Luminate began tracking data in 1991). Unsurprisingly, The Show debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Vinyl Albums chart – Horan’s first No. 1 on the list.

The Show’s sturdy sales start was bolstered by an array of available physical editions: eight deluxe boxed sets containing a CD and branded merch, a signed CD sold through Horan’s webstore, a Target-exclusive CD with an alternative cover and a poster packaged inside, a zine CD package sold through his webstore, six vinyl variants (including color variants for Target, Spotify, Urban Outfitters and his webstore) and a cassette.

Notably, Horan equals the No. 1 count of his One Direction bandmate Harry Styles, who also saw his first three solo studio efforts all debut at No. 1 on Top Album Sales (his self-titled release in 2017, Fine Line in 2019 and Harry’s House in 2022). One further member of One Direction has topped the tally: Zayn, with his debut set Mind of Mine in 2016. (One Direction itself notched four No. 1s on Top Album Sales.)

Stray Kids’ 5-STAR falls to No. 2 in its second week on Top Album Sales, with 46,000 copies sold (down 81%).

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit’s latest release, Weathervanes, bows at No. 3 on Top Album Sales with 28,000 sold. It’s the sixth top 10-charting title for Isbell on the tally.

Noah Kahan’s Stick Season re-enters Top Album Sales at No. 3 following its deluxe reissue with seven bonus tracks, and its first pressing on vinyl, on June 9. The set sold 23,000 copies in the week ending June 15 – up 3,080%. The album originally debuted and peaked at No. 57 on the list dated Oct. 29, 2022. Vinyl comprises most of Stick Season’s sales for the week – 20,500. It bows at No. 2 on the Vinyl Albums chart. It had a relatively slim vinyl release – just three vinyl variants were issued for the set.

Korean pop group P1Harmony makes its debut on Top Album Sales with Harmony: All In, 6th Mini Album, bowing at No. 5 with 20,500 sold. Effectively all of that figure is CD album sales, thanks to the six-track set’s availability across 21 different collectible versions of the album, including some that were signed by the act. All of the iterations contain a standard set of branded merchandise items, along with randomized merch (photo cards and post cards).

ENHYPEN’s Dark Blood falls 2-6 on Top Album Sales in its second week on the list, selling 19,000 (down 78%).

Janelle Monae returns to the top 10 of Top Album Sales for the first time in over five years, as her new studio release The Age of Pleasure premieres at No. 7. The album sold 19,000 copies. She last debuted on the chart in May of 2018 with Dirty Computer, which bowed and peaked at No. 3. In total, Pleasure is her third top 10-charting set on Top Album Sales.

Taylor Swift’s chart-topping Midnights dips 6-8 on Top Album Sales with 17,000 sold (down 29%) while Foo Fighters’ But Here We Are falls 4-9 in its second week with 13,000 (down 77%).

Closing out the top 10 on Top Album Sales is a band that’s been absent from the top 10 for over 30 years – Extreme. The rock group’s new album Six bows at No. 10 with 12,500 copies sold. The set marks the band’s first studio album since 2008. The act was last in the top 10 with III Sides to Every Story, which debuted and peaked at No. 10 on the Oct. 10, 1992-dated chart.  

In the week ending June 15, there were 1.924 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 8.5% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.587 million (down 8.4%) and digital albums comprised 337,000 (down 8.9%).

There were 711,000 CD albums sold in the week ending June 15 (down 25.9% week-over-week) and 865,000 vinyl albums sold (up 13.5%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 16.192 million (up 4.5% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 21.963 million (up 24.5%).

Overall year-to-date album sales total 46.956 million (up 9.2% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 38.403 million (up 15.1%) and digital album sales total 8.553 million (down 11.1%).

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