Season 51 of revered live music show Austin City Limits is returning for it second half, with artists including Grammy nominees Jon Batiste, Leon Thomas and Reneé Rapp on the docket.

Though the season doesn’t officially pick back up until January, a special episode featuring Batiste premieres Saturday (Dec. 13). The triple Grammy nominee returns to ACL for the first time since 2021 and will highlight selections from his latest album, Big Money, backed by a 14-piece band. He is also joined by R&B artist Andra Day.  

Billboard exclusively premieres his performance of the title track below, which includes a tutorial on the “Big Money” dance.  The song is about “not selling your soul for silver and gold, ever,” Batiste says of the uplifting tune.

Big Money, released in August, is Batiste’s ninth studio album and, in addition to Day, features Randy Newman and No I.D. Season 51 premiered in October and the first half of the 13-episode season included appearances by FINNEAS, the Marías, Kelsea Ballerini and Samara Joy, among others.

Austin City Limits is produced by Austin PBS and has earned a Peabody Award, a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame designation and the National Medal of Arts—the only television series ever to receive the honor. 

Below is the line-up for the back half of season 51. Fans can watch live, stream online or download the PBS app.

Wicked composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz and KPop Demon Hunters songwriter Mark Sonnenblick are among those slated to appear at February’s ASCAP Experience conference, ASCAP announced Tuesday (Dec. 9).

Schwartz and Sonnenblick will appear on stage for a keynote conversation titled “We Create Music” at the conference, which is set for Feb. 12 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. Others slated to participate are songwriter/producer Darrell Brown (Keith Urban, LeAnn Rimes) and producer/songwriter Neff-U (Justin Bieber, Sia, Eminem), who will return to the conference with their “Get Heard: Live Song Feedback Session,” which sees creators receiving live, constructive feedback from music industry professionals. ASCAP will start accepting song submissions from conference registrants interested in participating in the “Get Heard” section on Thursday (Dec. 11).

Other talent announced in this current round include songwriter and singer Justin Tranter (Justin Bieber, Chappell Roan); Swedish music producer, songwriter and 2026 Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee Andreas Carlsson (Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC); Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and producer James Fauntleroy (Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars); and Grammy-winning songwriter-producer duo Nova Wav (Beyoncé, Rihanna).

Additional talent will be announced in the coming weeks.

In previous years, the nearly-20-year-old ASCAP Experience has hosted such bold-faced names as Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Katy Perry, Tom Petty, Timbaland and Hans Zimmer.

The single-day ASCAP Experience conference will feature networking opportunities, performances, and panel discussions around how creators can utilize new technologies and more. Early bird pricing is currently available for ASCAP members at $95 and non-members at $160.

For more information, visit www.ascapexperience.com.

Stuart Scott was cooler than the other side of the pillow. The late ESPN anchor’s suave, unique style and knowledge of culture and hip-hop allowed Scott to change the course of broadcasting history and leave a legacy at the Worldwide Leader.

The SportsCenter staple’s impact will once again be memorialized with ESPN’s Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott documentary on Wednesday night (Dec. 10).

Common and 9th Wonder, sports savants in their own rights, teamed up for an inspirational track “Vision,” which will appear in the doc’s final credits. Billboard premieres a first listen of the song, which embodies Scott’s strength and glowing spirit, on Tuesday (Dec. 9) ahead of the 30 for 30 arrival.

“Behold, a rebel with a cause without a pause/ One after another, yo, I battle for ours/ And push bars on TV screens/ Quoting rap gods, hip-hop kings and queens,” Common raps in an homage to the late SC anchor.

9th’s thumping drums, triumphant strings and a vocal lift from PJ and Bilal provide the soundtrack for a career highlight reel of Stuart Scott’s decorated tenure at ESPN, which began in 1993 over on ESPN2.

By the mid-to-late ’90s, he found a home on SportsCenter, where he transformed the program and became known for his flair and phrases such as the titular “Boo-Yah” or “He must be butter, ’cause he’s on a roll.”

Stuart Scott was diagnosed with cancer following an appendectomy in 2007. The cancer returned in 2011 and again in 2013, but he continued to fight.

Less than six months before his death, Scott left not a dry eye in the building with his memorable speech at the 2014 ESPY Awards, where he was honored with the Jimmy V Award. “When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer,” he told the audience. “You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live.”

Scott tragically died on Jan. 4, 2015, from appendiceal cancer at 49 years old. He’s survived by his pair of daughters, Taelor and Sydni.

Listen to “Vision” below. Watch 30 for 30’s Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott on ESPN on Wednesday night (Dec. 10) at 9 p.m. ET.

Ariana Grande made a rare statement about her late ex-boyfriend, rapper Mac Miller, during a live episode of The Hollywood Reporter‘s Awards Chatter podcast on Friday (Dec. 5). The singer credited Miller — who died of an accidental overdose in 2018 at age 26 — for helping her to zoom in on her signature R&B-influenced pop sound.

As seen in a TikTok from the event, while chatting at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., Grande, 32, said Miller encouraged her to mix R&B and pop and “do the brave thing” by taking a chance on her sound. “Yeah, I’ve never said that… it was a great influence and I’m very thanks for that.”

The moderator noted that the first single to spawn from their collaboration was the No. 9 Billboard Hot 100 hit “The Way” from her 2013 debut album, Yours Truly, which earned both singers their first-ever top-ten hit.

“That’s also a part of why I was so eager to ask him [Miller] to be a part of it,” Grande said. “Not only because he was perfect for the song, but I also felt like I had him to thank for finding my sound.” The couple dated from 2016-2018 and also collaborated on his 2016 single “My Favorite Part” and that year’s remix of her song “Into You.”

The pair made their relationship official in 2016, three years after the release of “The Way,” and broke up in April 2018, six months before Miller died of an accidental overdose of alcohol, cocaine and fentanyl. In 2023, on the 10th anniversary of the couple’s first collaboration, Grande reported a clip from the song and paid tribute to Miller in a sweet Instagram message, “the way (feat. mac miller)’ was released 10 YEARS AGO today !! 💘 can’t believe it’s been a whole DECADE (and more) in this road together 🫶 how are u guys celebrating today?”

In addition, to celebrate the 10th anniversary reissue of Billboard 200 chart-topper Yours Truly in 2023, she inserted a subtle tribute to Miller at the end of the YouTube video for the remaster of “The Way,” with a screen that fades to black with the words “Feat. Mac Miller” hanging around in white. In a TikTok Q&A celebrating the album’s anniversary, Grande revealed that the playful video for “The Way” featuring the singer, her dancers and Miller bopping around amid balloons on a bare soundstage, was made independently. “We had no budget, didn’t even tell the label we were gonna do it, made it ourselves,” she said of the clip in which the couple playfully hug and kiss as Grande mouths along to Miller’s verses.

Grande had a lot to celebrate on Monday (Dec. 8), when she scored her second Golden Globe nomination for her work in the Wicked series of movies, for the just-released Wicked: For Good. Grande was honored for her role as Glinda in the Wizard of Oz-inspired movie musical, notching a second straight best supporting actress nod, something she called “definitely just as exciting,” adding “You don’t expect something like this, let alone to happen twice for the same role,” and that the second one feels “kind of blindsiding.”

KATSEYE hit the bullseye on TikTok in 2025.

The short-form video platform today (Dec. 9) shares its year-in review, with KATSEYE crowned as TikTok’s Global Artist of the Year.

After debuting in 2024, the girl group “has become one of the biggest bands in the world,” says a rep for TikTok, during which time they captured over 30 billion views and 12 million creations using their music on the app.

All that viral activity has been converted into mainstream recognition, including two nominations for the Grammy Awards, including best new artist. Also, two KATSEYE singles impacted the Billboard Hot 100 this year, led by “Gabriela,” which peaked at No. 31.

Consisting of members Megan, Yoonchae, Sophia, Manon, Lara and Daniela, KATSEYE has already been saluted by the streaming giant, with the 2025 TikTok Award for breakthrough artist of the year.

KATSEYE tops a global podium that’s completed by Alan Arrieta and ENHYPEN, respectively, while the likes of Bad Bunny, Stray Kids, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga appear in the TikTok year-end top 10.

Also catching fire on TikTok this year was “Pretty Little Baby,” by the late U.S. singer Connie Francis. “Pretty Little Baby” is named as top global song of the year, and the top song in the United States, after the global TikTok community used the tune over 28.4 million as the soundtrack for videos featuring family, pets, and more.

As it did the rounds in the first half of the year, “Pretty Little Baby” averaged 600,000 daily creates on TikTok, including posts from the likes of Kim Kardashian and North West and Kylie Jenner.

Originally released in 1962, the song got extra juice with a remix by German electronic music duo Lizot, and the original version was made available for the first time in French (as “La Seul Qui T’aime”), German (“Alle Jungen Leute”), Italian (“Baby”), Japanese (“Kawaī Beibi”), Spanish (“Linda Muchachita”) and Swedish (“Sjunger På Svenska”), joining a previously-release version in the Japanese language.

Francis joined TikTok in June, and died the following month, July 17, at the age of 87.

Other TikTok title holders this year include Taylor Swift (global most-saved artist), sombr (global most-saved track for “back to friends”), Tate McRae (global most saved album for So Close To What), Doechii (music trend of the year) and EJAE (songwriter of the year).

Despite intense competition from YouTube and Meta, TikTok remains a powerful and influential force in music and entertainment. By 2024, a third of U.S. adults used TikTok, while almost six in 10 teens (57%) say they use the platform daily and 16% say they’re on it “almost constantly,” according to Pew Research. People use TikTok mostly for pop culture and entertainment but also viral music and dances, humor and comedy, personal stories, fashion advice, product recommendations, politics and, for 5% of U.S. adults, news.

TikTok Year in Music for 2025:

Top 20 Songs Globally
Pretty Little Baby – Connie Francis
Hold My Hand – Jess Glynne
Rock That Body – Black Eyed Peas
Azul – J Balvin
Dame Un Grrr – Fantomel x Kate Linn
APT. – ROSÉ & Bruno Mars
Te Quería Ver – Alemán & Neton Vega
Stecu Stecu – Faris Adam
Anxiety – Doechii
Sailor Song – Gigi Perez
Shake It To The Max (FLY) (Remix) – MOLIY, Silent Addy, Skillenbeng, Shenseea
ocean eyes – Billie Eilish
No One Noticed – The Marias
back to friends – sombr
Sparks – Coldplay
That’s So True – Gracie Abrams
Let Down – Radiohead
Suave – El Alfa
My Darling – Chella
We Hug Now – Sydney Rose

Top 10 Songs in US
Pretty Little Baby – Connie Francis
Hold My Hand – Jess Glynne
WHIM WHAMMIE – PLUTO & YKNIECE
Rock That Body – Black Eyed Peas
Doot Doot (6 7) – Skrilla
We Hug Now – Sydney Rose
No One Noticed – The Marias
Bunna Summa – BunnaB
Anxiety – Doechii
Love Me Not – Ravyn Lenae

Top 10 Artists Globally
KATSEYE
Alan Arrieta
ENHYPEN
Bad Bunny
Stray Kids
Taylor Swift
Lady Gaga
Fuerza Regida
Billie Eilish
Ariana Grande

Global Most-Saved Artist (using the Add to Music App feature on TikTok)
Taylor Swift

Global Most-Saved Track (using the Add to Music App feature on TikTok)
back to friends – sombr

Global Most Saved Album (using the Add to Music App feature on TikTok)
So Close To What – Tate McRae

Music Trend of the Year
Anxiety – Doechii

Songwriter of the Year
EJAE