A classical music performance and a separate candlelight vigil are planned for Sunday evening to honor victims of the Surfside disaster. The Wilton Manors-based South Florida Symphony Orchestra will perform … Click to Continue »
Democratic mayoral nominee Eric Adams indicated on Sunday that he would weigh stricter measures to contain COVID in New York City if the numbers keep going in the wrong direction. … Click to Continue »
Normani’s mother, who is battling breast cancer, motivated the singer to release “Wild Side” into the world.
Normani got personal in a recent interview with Los Angeles’ Power 106, in which she talked about all things “Wild Side,” embracing her sexuality, feeling lucky to get to know Cardi B and admitting that delving into the new music “really saved” her while her mom was going through chemotherapy and radiation.
“This past year, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer,” Normani said in the interview with host Bryhana. “For me, this work that I was able to put out into the world, like, this really saved me, to be completely honest. Even just being on FaceTime with her as she’s going through her chemo and her radiation, and just wanting me to update her on how this video is going, and how the music is coming, it really got her through that. It got my family through the darkest time of our lives.”
She continued, “This was the second time that she had to go through cancer. The first time I was four. So for it to happen all over again, in such a pivotal and heightened moment for my career… there’s so many moments I was like, ‘I need to be at home’ and I felt guilty for not being able to be physically there with her.”
But her mother pushed her forward, she says.
“I literally remember being in the doctor’s office with her,” recalled Normani, who tweeted about her mom’s diagnosis last fall. “Right after she had her surgery. This was in October. She’s like, ‘Baby, I’m gonna be fine. What I need you to do is focus. I need you to be Normani. I need you to be the best version of yourself. I need you to continue to work hard. We gotta get this music out. We have the world to impact.’ She was just like, ‘I’m gonna be fine.’ Anything that my mom says, to be completely honest, I believe.”
“Her strength throughout her experience has been the strength that I’ve needed to even be able to allow this [song] to even be a thought,” added Normani.
Normani also took a moment to praise Cardi, who’s featured on the single and in its sensual music video — all while pregnant with her second child.
“I just wish that the world could experience her the way I have,” said Normani. “I feel lucky to have been able to experience such a genuine person, and a kindhearted person. For me, that goes a long way because like I said, she didn’t have to go out [of] the way, you know. The fact that she even made the video — she’s pregnant! I know for her, I know that probably took a level of trust in me.”
She gave a little behind-the-scenes glimpse at the making of the scene the two artists share in the visual: “We actually had a bra and a panty on. She was pregnant. She was full. Obviously not as full as she is now, but she was showing. And she looked bomb.”
“For me, the main goal was really just embrace my sexuality,” Normani said of releasing “Wild Side” this summer. “I’m a grown woman, I’m 25. I’ve evolved so much over the course of the last two years, so visually I felt like that had to be in alignment with that.”
Normani told her fans who have been patiently waiting for her album to “trust me. Part of it was me overthinking, yes, but also I’ve been making the best music that I feel like I’ve personally ever created. In order to get to that place, I needed time.”
Watch the full interview below.
BLACKPINK’s Lisa is releasing solo music for the first time this summer, and this weekend, she offered a small glimpse into the making of what’s to come.
Lisa posted a couple photos that appeared to be from the studio on her Instagram Stories on Sunday (July 25).
In one picture, two people are seen huddled in front of a screen.
In another, a closeup of a screen is shown, with soundwaves and the caption “What’s my name?” — perhaps a hint at the singer’s upcoming release.
Next month, Lisa and her groupmates Jisoo, Jennie and Rosé are also releasing a new film titled BLACKPINK The Movie, which is set to feature a brand-new concert and behind-the-scenes footage. The trailer can be seen here, and tickets are available at blackpinkthemovie.com.
See the new studio snapshots on Lisa’s Instagram (and saved in a fan tweet below).
“Industry Baby” made its way to the big stage for the first time this weekend — without Lil Nas X.
Jack Harlow, who’s featured on Lil Nas X’s new track, performed it live for the crowd during his set at Rolling Loud in Miami.
“this mfer beat me to the first performance of the song,” Lil Nas X wrote on Twitter after spotting a video from the festival Sunday night (July 25).
“crowd is a– tho,” he commented in another tweet.
“Industry Baby,” produced by Take a Daytrip and Kanye West, was just released on July 23 and is slated to be on Lil Nas X’s forthcoming debut studio album, Montero. “saying this in advance so y’all won’t blame me. THE INDUSTRY BABY VIDEO IS NOT FOR YOUR KIDS,” he wrote ahead of the music video being unveiled.
Watch Harlow perform his “Industry Baby” verse live at Rolling Loud, and see Lil Nas X’s commentary, below.
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Normani celebrated National Tequila Day on Saturday (July 24) in a big way.
The star dropped by Don Julio Tequila’s Casa Primavera launch event in Malibu, California, where she delivered her sultry Cardi B collaboration, “Wild Side,” for the very first time.
Dressed in a sleek velvet suit dress and garter tights, the star nailed the vocals for her new hit, before revealing to the crowd that the performance was her first in two years due to the pandemic.
The crowd cheered in excitement for her return to the stage, before Normani finished off her performance with a rendition of her Sam Smith duet, “Dancing With a Stranger.”
The Don Julio event, which offered specialty cocktails and a stunning view of the Pacific Ocean, was in celebration of the tequila brand’s new limited edition variant, Casa Primavera. “This deliciously smooth expression takes Tequila Don Julio’s traditional Reposado and finishes it in orange wine casks for a sophisticated, silky taste,” the Don Julio website reads.
Pre-order a bottle of Casa Primavera on Reserve Bar here.
Olivia Rodrigo says she’ll never forget her recent visit to the White House, where she helped deliver an important message to the youth about getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
The “Drivers License” singer, who encouraged young Americans to get vaccinated while she was at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. meeting with President Joe Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci on July 14, fortunately had her visit documented on video.
On Sunday afternoon (July 25), President Biden’s official Instagram account shared the behind-the-scenes look at Rodrigo’s time at the White House.
“Olivia Rodrigo and I agree on a lot of things, from Dr. Fauci’s status as an ‘absolute legend,’ to the need for young people to get vaccinated. Take a look behind the scenes at Olivia’s day here at the White House,” @potus captioned the clip.
The video begins with Rodrigo’s exciting first hello with President Biden and her enthusiastic walk through the White House. Viewers can see her being shown where the Oval Office is, and get a glimpse at what it was like to be brought in for her briefing with White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
“I was so nervous, but I think it went well,” Rodrigo comments on the press briefing.
Later, following her sit-down with Dr. Fauci, Rodrigo says: “I just got to meet Dr. Fauci, and I think he’s incredible and an absolute legend, so it was so cool to get to shake his hand and pick his brain.”
“It’s so important to get vaccinated, even if you’re young and healthy and not at risk,” she adds. “Vaccines help everyone. Just because you’re not particularly at risk doesn’t mean that people close to you aren’t. It’s really the compassionate thing to do.”
“I’m definitely going to be remembering this for my whole life,” says Rodrigo of her visit to the White House.
To date, as of July 25, in the U.S. 163 million people have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 188 million have received at least one dose, according to the CDC. Looking specifically at numbers for the youth, 57.4% of the population at least 12 years of age is fully vaccinated, while 60% of the population at least 18 years of age is fully vaccinated.
Go behind the scenes of Rodrigo’s visit to the White house with the video below.
Liz Phair has announced that she will not be going on tour with Alanis Morissette and Garbage this summer.
Phair shared the news with fans less than three weeks before the shows are set to begin.
“Sadly, due to unforeseen circumstances, I won’t be able to join Alanis & Garbage on tour this summer,” she wrote in a statement on Twitter on Friday night (July 23). “I’m incredibly disappointed as I was looking forward to seeing all of your beautiful faces. Shoutout to Alanis, Garbage, and Cat Power, who I know will put on an incredible show. Hope to see you all soon!”
As Phair shared, Cat Power is joining the lineup for the U.S. leg of the trek, which kicks off on Aug. 12 in Austin and runs through early October.
Morissette is celebrating the delayed 25th anniversary of 1995’s Jagged Little Pill. The tour was originally scheduled for summer 2020 but postponed due to the pandemic.
“When she asked me [to do this tour], it was at a difficult point for me, where I was trying to come back as an artist, and the industry powers that be are like, ‘You’ve already done your thing, we’re focusing on younger artists we can build and then reap the rewards for a long time,’” Phair, who released the album Soberish this year, told Billboard in May. “I found it really hard, harder than I expected, to break back in, and for s—– reasons — the same gross reasons the music industry was always gross. When she came in with this offer, I was like, ‘What a f—ing supportive awesome gesture,’ again. She’s great.”
See Phair’s tweet about the tour below. Tour dates and ticket information are available on Morissette’s website.
UPDATE (July 24): After planning a performance Sunday at Rolling Loud Miami, Kanye West has decided not to hit the stage at the festival after all, Billboard has learned. West’s decision not to perform follows a social media report that he has pushed back the release of his 10th studio album, Donda, to August after the project didn’t materialize on Friday as planned.
Previously: This Sunday, Kanye West will take center stage at Rolling Loud Miami, a source close to the situation tells Billboard.
On Tuesday, long-term collaborator Consequence went on social media and posted a sketch of Kanye’s possible stage design for his performance at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami this weekend. “DONDA Experience Rolling Loud Miami, FL 07.25.21 Via KW Summer ’21,” read the now-deleted caption from Cons.
The drawing featured a pyramid design, which could allude to West’s stage setup. Sunday’s concert will also mark West’s first festival appearance since 2019’s Sunday Service at Coachella.
West’s 10th studio album DONDA was officially announced Tuesday during Game 6 of the NBA Finals. He previewed a snippet of his new song “No Child Left Behind” through a Beats by Dre commercial that he scored and edited himself and starred American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson.
On Thursday, West will have his album listening at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium ahead of Donda’s Friday release. Last weekend, West previewed his project in Las Vegas after attending a Big3 basketball game. Tickets for Atlanta’s listening session is currently available on Ticketmaster.
Billboard reached out to the reps of Rolling Loud for comment. Check out Consequence’s deleted post below and in any case, buy Rolling Loud tickets here.
Kanye West will perform his new album “Donda” this weekend at Rolling Loud. pic.twitter.com/ilvj1XZ2Nx
— Rap Alert (@rapalert4) July 20, 2021
Bennifer 2.0 has officially been confirmed with a kiss shared on Jennifer Lopez’s own Instagram account.
“5 2 … what it do,” Lopez captioned a series of new photos shared on social media on Saturday (July 24), her 52nd birthday. The first three photos, which show the “Cambia el Paso” singer rocking a fierce look in a bikini on a boat, are captivating enough, but the final photo is the one that will get people talking this weekend.
In the last picture, J. Lo and Affleck passionately lock lips, with Affleck’s arms around Lopez.
The couple were recently spotted together on Leah Remini’s birthday slideshow on Instagram, which appeared to confirm their rumored relationship. But the PDA posted on Lopez’s own Instagram account seems to seals the deal.
The “Bennifer 2.0″ romance speculation started back in April, just weeks after Lopez and Alex Rodriguez called off their engagement. Lopez and Affleck, who were engaged in 2002 and split in 2004, have since been spotted together in various locations.
Swipe through the photos on J. Lo’s latest Instagram post to see the steamy kiss she had with Affleck while celebrating her birthday. Plus, watch a newly posted video clip of what 52 looks like on Lopez.
