Jason Kelce came to Travis Kelce’s defense in the middle of a crowd when he heard someone verbally attacking his brother Saturday (Nov. 2).

After a heckler made a derogatory remark about Travis for dating Taylor Swift — the person called Travis a homophobic slur — the retired Philadelphia Eagles player grabbed the person’s phone, slammed it to the ground, and yelled it back to him.

The incident was recorded in several cell phone videos filmed by bystanders from different angles and shared on social media, where “Kelce” trended Saturday. Billboard reached out to Jason’s representative for comment.

“Hey, Kelce! How does it feel your brother’s a f—– dating Taylor Swift?” a voice is heard yelling to Jason in one clip in which the former NFL player is seen walking quickly past a cluster of people trying to get his attention.

Jason is seen turning, grabbing the person’s phone and throwing it to the ground in another clip; the harasser had seemingly been trying to film his reaction.

A third video shows Jason facing the person and repeating the slur to him, saying, “Who’s the f—– now?”

Jason’s brother, Travis, has been linked to Swift since 2023. The pop star first appeared at a Chiefs game on Sept. 23 last year, after Travis said on the brothers’ New Heights podcast in July that he’d tried to give his number to Swift via a friendship bracelet at The Eras Tour’s Kansas City stop.

Swift welcomed Travis to her Eras stage in London this past summer during “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart,” and she gave him a shout-out in her video of the year acceptance speech at this year’s VMAs, which she and Post Malone won for “Fortnight”: “This video seems very sad when you watch it, but it was actually the most fun video to make,” she told the crowd at the awards show on Sept. 11. “I would always just hear someone cheering, like, ‘Whoo!’ from across the studio — that one person was my boyfriend, Travis. Everything this man touches turns to happiness and fun and magic, so I want to thank him for adding that to our shoot.”

Jason talked about his experience attending one of Swift’s Miami concerts in October, on a recent episode of New Heights.

“This Miami show was incredible,” he told Travis, who had a game that weekend. “It was on another level. I texted you halfway through it like, ‘Dude, this rain. Tay is killing it.’”

“When Reputation came on and she came out in the new outfit and the rain was coming down, the place could’ve f—ing erupted,” Jason continued. “I mean, it did. The amount of energy was insane.”

Cardi B shared her thoughts on Donald Trump during a Kamala Harris campaign rally near Milwaukee on Friday (Nov. 1).

Ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper delivered a passionate speech at the Wisconsin State Fair Exposition Center in West Allis, voicing her support for Harris and criticizing Trump’s views on women’s rights.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life,” Cardi told the crowd, reading from her cell phone. “I take seriously the call to show up, to speak out, and to share a message that’s been on my heart for a while now.”

She continued, “Like Kamala Harris, I’ve been the underdog, underestimated, and had my success belittled. Women have to work ten times harder and still face questions about how we achieved success. I can’t stand a bully, but just like Kamala, I always stand up to one.”

Cardi noted that she hadn’t backed either Trump or Joe Biden for the 2024 presidential election until Harris entered the race and “changed my mind completely.”

“I didn’t have faith in any candidates until she joined and spoke the words I wanted to hear about the future of this country,” she said. “I believe every word she says. She’s passionate, compassionate, empathetic, and most importantly, she’s realistic. Kamala recognizes that this country is at risk, and that we need to strengthen our economy and address the rising cost of living.”

Turning her focus to Trump, whom she referred to as “Donny Trump,” Cardi addressed the former president’s recent comment about protecting women whether they “like it or not.”

“Protection for women — especially regarding maternal and mental health care — is not about telling us what to do with our bodies. It’s about supporting us and providing the care we need for our choices,” the rapper explained. “People like Donald Trump don’t believe women deserve rights. When those rights are threatened, he disappears.”

She added, “If his definition of protection means restricting our choices and ensuring our daughters have fewer rights than our mothers, then I don’t want it!”

Cardi also labeled the former president a “hustler,” saying, “Hustling women out of their rights is disgraceful. Hustling Americans out of their hard-earned money by selling Trump watches, Trump sneakers, Trump Bibles… do we really trust this man with our economy? A man who only cares about getting rich and cutting taxes for his billionaire friends. I don’t even get a tax cut.”

Following the rally, Cardi continued her support for Harris and critique of Trump on X (formerly Twitter), writing, “Donald Trump talks about having plans, but the only plan he has is to hustle YOU.”

Watch Cardi B’s nearly 10-minute rally speech for Harris here.

‘Tis officially the season, and Jason and Travis Kelce are getting into the holiday spirit with their new Boyz II Men-assisted Christmas song, “It’s Christmastime (In Cleveland Heights),” which arrived on Friday (Nov. 1).

The track, which details the NFL duo returning to their hometown after some time away, gets an R&B spin thanks to Boyz II Men’s harmonies as they sing, “It feels so good to be back home again with all my family and friends/ Sharing gifts and memories/ We make under the Christmas tree.”

“I always have a blast when I get to join the guys on the Christmas album, but it was wild to be on a song with a group as iconic and timeless as Boyz II Men,” Travis said in a press statement. “My friends and I grew up on their music, and it’s still in the rotation today, so it was just an unreal experience.”

“It’s Christmastime (In Cleveland Heights)” marks the first single off A Philly Special Christmas Party, the third charitable album from The Philly Specials, a.k.a Jason Kelce, the Philadelphia Eagles’ offensive tackles Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata. Last year’s A Philly Special Christmas Special raised over $3 million and featured singles “This Christmas,” “All I Want for Christmas is You,” “Fairytale of Philadelphia” and “Pretty Paper.”

Additionally, to celebrate the single, Jason and Travis’ mother, Donna Kelce, will bring exclusive The Philly Specials-inspired holiday ornaments to QVC on Nov. 1 starting at 8 p.m. ET. They will be sold as a set of four and will come with ornaments of Jason, Jordan, Lane and a Christmas tree. Proceeds from the vinyl sales will go to support Children’s Crisis Treatment Center’s Holiday Toy Drive, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Snowflake Station and 87 and Running Foundation, plus a number of other Philadelphia based organizations.

A Philly Special Christmas Party is set for release on Nov. 22. Listen to “It’s Christmastime (In Cleveland Heights)” below.

Kevin Liles, the co-founder and CEO of 300 Entertainment, has issued a statement in the wake of news that Atlanta rapper Young Thug is to be released from prison following a guilty plea on Thursday (Oct. 31).

Liles, who co-founded 300 Entertainment in 2012 and signed Thug (real name Jeffery Williams) to the label in 2014, issued his statement late on Thursday following the completion of Georgia’s longest-running criminal trial.

“Words can’t express the incredible happiness and relief I feel to learn of Jeffery’s freedom,” Liles stated. “There will be a time to discuss the criminalization of hip-hop lyrics and the use of bond denial as a weapon against defendants, but in this moment everyone should feel nothing but joy that this amazing artist and even better man can hug his children, parents, siblings, and other loved ones tonight. 

“We must always remember artists aren’t fictional characters,” he concluded. “They’re human beings first. God bless Jeffery and his family.”

33-year-old Thug has spent the past two years in custody, following his arrest in May 2022 with 27 others from his YSL Records label as part of a 56-count indictment for violations of Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) law. The trial, which began in November 2023, was built around claims that YSL had committed murders, carjackings, drug dealing and many other crimes

Following days of closed-door negotiations with Fulton County prosecutors, Thug refused to take a plea deal that would have resulted in his immediate release, ultimately opting for a non-negotiated guilty plea. Late on Thursday, Judge Paige Reese Whitaker sentended to Thug to 15 years probation with no time to be served.

Ahead of his sentencing, Thug noted the power and influence he holds in his community, telling the court he takes “full responsibility for my crimes and for my charges”.

“I know what I bring to the table and I know what I am,” he added. “I know the heights I’ve reached and I know the impact I’ve got on people in the community.”

Independent music publisher Primary Wave Music has partnered with the estate of country/folk singer-songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker on Walker’s music publishing catalog, recording copyrights and artist royalties. The partnership provides the Walker estate access to Primary Wave’s marketing team and publishing infrastructure to work on new marketing, branding, digital, synch opportunities and film/TV projects. The deal also features an agreement for Walker’s recorded masters, in partnership with his label Tried & True Music, to be released and distributed through Sun Records; Sun Records will provide overall catalog marketing strategy, including streaming, social media marketing and physical releases. The deal includes some of Walker’s biggest hits, including “Mr. Bojangles,” “Railroad Lady” and “Sangria Wine.” – Jessica Nicholson

AI-powered social music app Hook partnered with Glassnote Records to add new tracks from artists including Tors, bby, Hayes Warner and Dylan Cartride to its library, with more acts to be added soon. Glassnote’s roster also includes Mumford & Sons, Childish Gambino and Phoenix. Hook allows users to remix existing songs by speeding them up, slowing them down, mashing them up with other songs and more to post on social platforms, effectively opening up another revenue stream for participating artists. In a statement, Glassnote founder/president Daniel Glass called Hook “a comprehensive solution to the use of remixed music across social platforms in a way that emphasizes artists’ control and compensation.”

Leading music licensing platform Slipstream acquired Anthem Entertainment‘s production music businesses, including U.S.-based Jingle Punks and 5 Alarm Music and U.K.-based Cavendish Music. The acquisition encompasses more than 650,000 tracks along with music production capabilities. The purchase was made possible by financing and expertise offered by Pollen Street Capital, while Moelis & Company served as the exclusive financial advisor to Anthem on the negotiation. The acquisition represents a full-circle moment for Slipstream co-founders Dan Demole and Jesse Korwin; Demole co-founded Jingle Punks and previously served as president of Anthem Music Group, while Korwin served as Jingle Punks’ MD. Anthem Entertainment will make an investment in Slipstream as part of the deal.

Reactional Music, which allows video game developers to create interactive music soundtracks in their gaming titles, struck a global licensing partnership with Naxos, a leading rights holder of classical and regional music. The two companies are also exploring a collaboration on the composition of interactive soundtracks that would allow gamers to personalize Naxos-owned music in real time while playing, without affecting the master recording. Reactional has previously struck licensing partnerships with companies including Beggars Group, Hopeless Records, Hipgnosis Music Group and production music groups like APM Music, Soundstripe and Alibi.

Global investment firm CVC has invested alongside KKR to support live entertainment group Superstruct Entertainment in its next phase of development. KKR acquired Superstruct, which owns and operates more than 80 music festivals across Europe and Australia, in June 2024. CVC’s previous investments include Stage Entertainment, Formula One, Women’s Tennis and LaLiga.

SoundExchange and the Societies’ Council for the Collective Management of Performers’ Rights (SCAPR) announced that SoundExchange has become the first non-member collective management organization (CMO) to be able to create and issue international performer numbers (IPNs) — unique universal identifiers associated with performers, created and administered by SCAPR, that are used to identify them in data exchanges with other CMOs globally. Through the deal, SoundExchange will create and assign SCAPR’s IPNs to further link performers to their recordings, thereby improving identification of their creative contributions. “IPNs represent another tool in our expanding arsenal helping to get the right people paid the royalties they deserve,” said SoundExchange president/CEO Michael Huppe in a statement.

Downtown-owned business to business distributor FUGA partnered with Manila, Philippines-based management and production company ASINTADA while announcing new hires across the APAC region, including Noorcahyo Istyabudi and Jaya Singh, who will lead business development in Indonesia and South Asia, respectively. FUGA will provide global distribution and bespoke marketing services to ASINTADA, which will also have access to FUGA’s trends and analytics platform. ASINTADA represents some of the biggest hip-hop artists in the region, including Filipino rapper Gloc-9 and rising OPM (original Pilipino music) talent including Shanti Dope, Flow G and Skusta Clee. FUGA also announced a partnership with the Jesuit Communications Foundation, the media arm of the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus; Crown Studios Inc., a full-service talent and management agency; and record label and production house 314 Studios.

Global children’s audio platform Yoto secured a $15 million funding package from HSBC UK‘s Growth Lending Fund to support its international growth. The funding will allow Yoto, which is based in the U.K. and currently operates in five countries, to extend its reach beyond those markets. Yoto additionally plans to expand the manufacture of its audio players and content cards to satisfy growing demand. The company says it expects to double its revenue with the funding.