Live Nation has reportedly reached a settlement with the Department of Justice to resolve federal antitrust accusations without selling Ticketmaster, but several state attorneys general are planning to move ahead with the case.

The settlement, first reported Monday by Politico, would require big concessions from Live Nation including opening Ticketmaster’s platform to rivals, limiting how it uses exclusive deals with venues, and selling several amphitheaters. Live Nation would also pay $200 million to 40 states involved in the case.

But crucially, it would not require the company to divest Ticketmaster, the giant ticketing platform Live Nation acquired in a 2010 merger that has sparked monopoly gripes ever since. When the DOJ filed its case in 2024, it said breaking up the two companies was the ultimate goal of the lawsuit.

In a statement Monday, New York Attorney General Letitia James said her office “cannot agree” to the settlement because it “fails to address the monopoly at the center of this case, and would benefit Live Nation at the expense of consumers.” James said that 26 other states, including California, Ohio and District of Columbia, would also continue pursuing the case.

The proposed settlement, which came a week after trial began, was announced in federal court on Monday morning, according to Reuters. But only 10 state AG’s have so far signed onto the agreement, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The sudden settlement was met with scolding for both sides inside the courtroom from Judge Arun Subramanian, Inner City Press reports, who questioned why he had not been given more information on the talks. State lawyers reportedly argued they needed a pause in the trial to move ahead without the DOJ’s team of lawyers, and might even request a mistrial.

Representatives for both DOJ and Live Nation did not immediately return requests for comment.

The feds and dozens of states sued Live Nation in 2024, claiming the concert giant, which merged with Ticketmaster in 2010, runs an illegal “flywheel” — reaping revenue from ticket buyers, using that money to sign artists, then leveraging that repertoire to lock venues into exclusive ticketing contracts that yield ever more revenue.

The case went to trial last week after a judge pared down the case but refused to dismiss it. He allowed the DOJ to pursue claims that Live Nation abused its vast portfolio of amphitheaters to force artists to use its promotion services, and that it forced venues into signing agreements to exclusively use Ticketmaster as their primary ticketing service.

In opening statements on Tuesday, the DOJ told jurors the concert industry is “broken” and “controlled by Live Nation.” Firing back, Live Nation said the feds had “cherry-picked” evidence to support such claims in an industry that’s “more competitive than ever before.”

The government’s first witness was John Abbamondi, former CEO of the owner of Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, who testified Wednesday that he believed Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino had threatened to withhold major artists if the venue switched from Ticketmaster to rival ticketer SeatGeek. His testimony saw the government play a tape recording of a heated phone call in which the two big wigs discussed the dispute.

Monday’s deal will require Ticketmaster to make key changes to its platform, including allowing third parties like SeatGeek to list tickets directly through its technology, according to Politico’s report. It will also limit the company’s use of exclusive Ticketmaster contracts, limiting those deals to only four years and allowing venues to allocate a portion of their tickets to rival ticketing services.

The deal will also address the amphitheater portion of the case, requiring Live Nation to divest 10 such venues to reduce its dominance in that space, the report says, and will require Live Nation to cap Ticketmaster’s service fees at its amphitheaters, limiting them to 15 percent of a ticket’s price.

In her statement, New York’s James said she and the other states “have a strong case against Live Nation” and would continue to litigate it: “We will keep fighting this case without the federal government so that we can secure justice for all those harmed by Live Nation’s monopoly.”

The other states continuing the case are Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Legendary songstress Dionne Warwick is recording the final album in her 65-year career, Billboard has learned exclusively. And the six-time Grammy winner is doing it in high style.

“Ocean in the Desert,” the first single from Warwick’s forthcoming DWuets album, arrives on March 20. The song marks the first collaboration between Warwick and Emmy-, Tony- and Grammy Award-winner Cynthia Erivo. Billboard has also learned that newly minted Grammy winner Kehlani will be joining Warwick on the album’s second single.

In addition, DWuets signals another first-time collaboration: that of Warwick teaming with Grammy-winning songwriter and 14-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren. Commemorating that occasion, the album borrows part of its title from the duo’s initials. Warren wrote all the songs on DWuets, while Warwick’s manager/son Damon Elliott produced all of the album’s duets. More details about the LP’s other high-profile duet partners, as well as the album’s release date, will be revealed at a later date.

Warwick and Erivo initially met when the latter performed “Alfie” while honoring Warwick at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2023. “Alfie,” a pop (No. 15) and R&B (No. 5) hit for Warwick in 1967, is one of three of the artist’s classics inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, along with “Walk on By” and “Don’t Make Me Over.” Warwick’s other accolades include a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Of working with Erivo, Warwick commented in the press announcement, “It was such a joy to be in the studio harmonizing with such a talented entertainer as Cynthia. We immediately bonded and had so much fun recording this beautiful song.”

“It was so warm being in the studio with Dionne; it was like a mother-daughter relationship,” added Erivo. “This experience was like the godmother of music coming in and saying to me ‘I knight you.’”

The pair’s “Ocean in the Desert” is being released through Elliott Entertainment in partnership with Vydia, a gamma. company. “The experience of watching all of these young legends working with a real living legend was a thrill to watch,” said Grammy-winning producer Elliott. “Mom picked the lock for them, and they paid respect to one of the greatest artists ever.”

Marcus Glenn, official artist for the 56th Grammy Awards, created the artwork for DWuets, including the album cover and individual single covers. These will also be physical art pieces that will be auctioned at a later date. 

It’s been nearly half a century since a group of childhood friends from the Orchard Park public housing projects in Roxbury, Boston got together to form a vocal group inspired by Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. Now, those lifelong friends are on the cusp of induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and it sounds like the joyous culmination of a long dream.

“It feels incredible,” charter New Edition member Bobby Brown told the Boston Globe in a recent interview after the 2026 RRHOF nomination class was announced last month. “Just knowing that our prayers are being answered and everything is going in the direction that we had hoped for, and we wished upon, and we worked hard for … it’s a great thing … we’re really happy to be a part of this.”

The recognition for New Edition — Brown, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe, Johnny Gill and Ralph Tresvant — came 43 years after the R&B vocal group released their 1983 teen pop album Candy Girl, which featured such sugary sweet confections as the title track, “Popcorn Love” and “Is This the End.” The Globe noted that it also came after the group was honored last summer with a “New Edition Day” in Boston, with member Bivins telling the paper that despite all their success they still had two major goals left to accomplish.

“We still don’t own a Grammy,” Bivins said at the time. “And we still have aspirations of being in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.”

The nomination news came as New Edition is gearing up to launch the New Edition Way tour on Friday (March 13) with guests Boyz II Men and Toni Braxton. They got wind of the nomination via a group text from their managers just days before a gig in Cleveland, Ohio, home of the Rock Hall. DeVoe told the Globe that a few of the members got a chance to ride by the museum to take photos and videos, unaware that within days they’d be nominees.

“It’s just ironic that we’re leaving Cleveland, and here comes this blessing that we have been waiting for, to a certain extent, all of our careers,” said DeVoe. “It was just fitting, like God just presents things in a way where it’s almost confirming.” He also noted that the group is aware that “there’s still work that has to be done,” since a nomination doesn’t guarantee entry and this year’s class is especially large and filled with heavy-hitters. “So those ‘New Edition for life’-ers and family members and everybody have to really begin to put in the real work, but we’re excited about all the possibilities,” he added.

New Edition are among 17 nominees for Rock Hall induction this year, a group that also includes: the Black Crowes, Jeff Buckley, Mariah Carey, Phil Collins, Melissa Etheridge, Lauryn Hill, Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order, INXS, Iron Maiden, Oasis, P!nk, Sade, Shakira, Luther Vandross and the Wu-Tang Clan.

Selena Gomez was feeling all the love on Sunday (March 8) as she celebrated husband Benny Blanco‘s 38th birthday with an Instagram photo dump that included two glamorous shots from the couple’s September 2025 wedding.

“Happy birthday my love,” Gomez, 33, wrote in the caption. “I love you with all my heart.”

The post opened with a black and white shot of the couple smiling and laughing while seated at what looks like a fancy dinner, followed by a glimpse of the happy newlyweds walking down the aisle at their wedding, with the guests behind them clapping and cheering them on after their vows. That was followed by another glam wedding pic, this one of the pair walking, with Blanco dressed in a classic tuxedo and Gomez wearing a white romantic silk lace off-the-shoulder Ralph Lauren gown.

Elsewhere we saw a snap of Blanco laying a kiss on Gomez’s cheek as he hugged her from behind in an outdoor candid, as well as the couple enjoying tacos and Blanco cooking up a tray of meatballs as Gomez leans on his back with a grin. There are also a few cute shots of them kissing, or about to kiss and one from their date night at this year’s Golden Globes.

The couple, who began dating in summer 2023, were in the news again last week when Gomez went on the producer’s new podcast, Friends Keep Secrets, and made headlines when she sweetly kissed his bare feet a week after he’d caused a scandal on the first episode of the pod by displaying his dirty soles.

While chatting with third host, rapper Dave “Lil Dicky” Burd’s wife Kristin Batalucco, about the pros and cons of putting toddlers on “leashes,” Gomez suddenly leaned over and gently smooched Blanco’s toes, which once again were exposed and propped up on Burd and Batalucco’s coffee table. Blanco couldn’t help but smile as he looked at Burd and asked, “you like that?”

Gomez wasn’t up for being a pawn in the men’s constant game of one-upmanship, though, counseling her husband, “Don’t make it a moment.”

ULTRA Worldwide has revealed the final lineup for ULTRA Beach Gold Coast 2026, with Swedish DJ-producer Alesso set to headline the electronic music festival on Australia’s Gold Coast.

The event will return to Broadwater Parklands in Queensland on April 12, marking the third edition of the beachside festival and its most ambitious installment yet. Organizers say the 2026 edition will expand beyond its previous single-stage format to feature two stages for the first time: the Main Stage and the UMF Radio Stage.

Alesso will top the bill with what organizers describe as an exclusive Australian performance during the upcoming touring cycle. The producer has remained a major presence in global dance music over the past decade with tracks including Billboard Hot 100-charting track “Heroes (We Could Be)” featuring Tove Lo, “Years,” and his remix of OneRepublic’s “If I Lose Myself,” which helped introduce him to a wider international audience.

The lineup also features a number of major electronic music names including The Chainsmokers, DJ Snake, Darren Styles, MaRLo, Nico Moreno and Oliver Heldens.

The Chainsmokers broke through with chart-topping hits like “Closer” featuring Halsey and “Something Just Like This” with Coldplay, while DJ Snake has scored global hits including “Lean On,” his collaboration with Major Lazer and MØ, and “Taki Taki.” Dutch DJ Oliver Heldens, meanwhile, has become a staple of the international house music circuit with releases like “Gecko (Overdrive)” and “Last All Night (Koala).”

Support on the lineup includes Dutch producer KAAZE, alongside a slate of emerging Australian artists scheduled to perform across the two stages. Local acts announced for the event include Ali James, Brooklyn, Fletcher Kirkman, Hektic and Jayrob, along with several back-to-back performances such as Brooklyn b2b Rory, Jayrob b2b Rymak and Justice b2b Sophie Bridges.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate praised the festival’s return in a statement, describing the event as a highlight of the city’s annual major events calendar.

“From Miami to the Gold Coast, this ULTRA Beach festival epitomises everything that’s great about our city,” Tate said.

ULTRA Beach Gold Coast forms part of the wider ULTRA Worldwide festival brand, which began with the Ultra Music Festival in Miami in 1999 and has since expanded into a global network of events across Europe, Asia, South America and Australia.

Tickets for ULTRA Beach Gold Coast 2026 are currently on sale via the festival’s website.