Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s “lulu.” debuts atop the Billboard Japan Hot 100, on the chart dated Jan. 21. 

The song serves as the opening theme for the anime Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Season 2. After its digital release on Jan. 12, the track tops both downloads and streaming, comes in at No. 2 for video and No. 8 for radio airplay to secure the summit on the all-genre song chart. Mrs. GREEN APPLE earns its sixth No. 1 song on the list and its 13th week at No. 1 overall.

Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s Japan Hot 100 No. 1 Hits to Date

“breakfast”
“Tengoku”
“KUSUSHIKI” (two weeks at No. 1)
“Lilac” (seven weeks at No. 1)
“Bitter Vacances”
“lulu.”

Kenshi Yonezu’s “IRIS OUT” follows at No. 2. While streaming dips to 90%, downloads to 72%, radio to 67% and karaoke to 97% of the prior frame, video climbs to 115%.

At No. 3 is King Gnu’s “AIZO.” The opening theme for TV anime Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 (Culling Game arc, Part 1) was released digitally on Jan. 9, leaving it with a shorter tracking window last week. This frame, streaming surges to 194% and radio to 904%, lifting the track three notches this week.

Ryosuke Yamada’s “Blue Noise” bows at No. 4. The song appears on his first CD single released under the Hey! Say! JUMP member’s solo moniker and serves as the opening theme for season two of the anime Blue Miburo (Serizawa Assassination Arc). The song launches with 101,964 copies to top sales and comes in at No. 40 for downloads. Holding at No. 5 is M!LK’s “Suki Sugite Metsu!” While most metrics edge down slightly, karaoke rises to 108%.

In other chart activity, Bruno Mars’ “I Just Might” makes its Japan chart debut at No. 26. The lead single from his first new album in roughly a decade — The Romantic, due Feb. 27 — the song also marks his first-ever debut at No. 1 on the U.S. Hot 100.

The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.

See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, tallying the week from Jan. 12 to 18, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English X account.

A mere 67 years after they first made the Billboard Hot 100 with the classic “Shout – Part 1,” The Isley Brothers will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The group’s star ceremony is set for Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 11:30 a.m. PT at 7051 Hollywood Blvd. Jon Platt, chairman and CEO of Sony Music Publishing, and Grammy-winning producer and songwriter Terry Lewis are set to speak at the ceremony. Melvin Robert, entertainment anchor at L.A. station KTLA, is set to emcee.

The event will be streamed live exclusively at WalkOfFame.com.

The Isley Brothers’ biggest hits include “It’s Your Thing,” “That Lady (Part 1)” and “Fight the Power Part 1,” all of which made the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. They have also landed two No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 – The Heat Is On in 1975 and Body Kiss (credited to the Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley) in 2003.

The Isley Brothers were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy in 2014 and were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2022. They are also widely regarded as the most sampled group of all time, with their songs sampled by such artists as Drake, Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G. and Megan Thee Stallion.

Ronald Isley (age 84)  and Ernie Isley (age 73) continue touring, creating bonds with new generations of fans.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce administers the Walk of Fame for the City of Los Angeles and has hosted star ceremonies for decades. Millions of people have visited the cultural landmark since 1960.

Blake Lively’s personal text messages with Taylor Swift have now been made public, the latest in the ongoing litigation connected to the movie It Ends With Us.

As previously reported, a judge determined that the friends’ conversations about the working environment on set are relevant to Lively’s sexual harassment and retaliation claims against co-star and director Justin Baldoni.

Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, prevailed in court last June on the issue of Swift’s text messages, which have taken center stage in Lively’s lawsuit.

This week, several batches of back-and-forths have been released in which Baldoni is allegedly labelled a “doofus director,” a “clown” and a “bitch” who runs with a “gaggle of supervillains.”

In one exchange from December 2024, labelled “Exhibit 89” and seen by Billboard, Swift apparently references a favorable published story on Baldoni, quipping: “I think this bitch knows something is coming because he’s gotten out his tiny violin.”

Swift also likens the broader situation with Baldoni and others to “a horror film no one knows is taking place.”

In an earlier message, Lively apparently apologizes for soaking up so much of Swift’s time and energy on various matters. “No, you’re not wrong, but it’s also not a big deal,” Swift responds. “I think I’m just exhausted in every avenue of my life and in recent months had been feeling a little bit of a shift in the way you talk to me.”

And with it, a reset. And an injection of humor. “This f—ing guy and what he did to me gave me an identify crisis. Legitimately,” Lively writes, before adding, “F— that guy and his whole gaggle of supervillains.”

Baldoni first tried to get the texts directly from Swift herself, but then dropped his subpoena on the pop superstar, opting instead to seek the messages from Lively in the normal discovery process.  The filmmaker had tried to bring a countersuit accusing Lively and her inner circle of defamation, but Judge Liman threw out those claims as legally invalid mid-2025.

At the same time, Lively served a subpoena of her own on music mogul Scooter Braun, a longtime public opponent of Swift’s, and who is name-checked in the now-public texts. Lively sought information from Braun about the alleged public relations takedown orchestrated by The Agency Group PR, a controlling stake of which is reportedly owned by Braun’s company, HYBE America.

Ruel is the winner of the 2025 Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition, snagging the lucrative contest for his release “The Suburbs.”

Written by the Australian singer and songwriter (full name: Ruel Vincent Van Dijk) alongside Mark Landon (M-Phazes), Elias Danielson, Chelsea Lena and Fran Hall, and produced by M-Phazes and Danielson, “The Suburbs” was recognized for its “emotional clarity, melodic strength and contemporary songwriting craft,” reads a statement from the award organizers.

With the victory spoils, Ruel collects A$50,000 courtesy of APRA AMCOS, Alberts and Sony Music Publishing.

Ruel broke through in 2018 when he won the ARIA Award for breakthrough artist of the year (now the Michael Gudinski breakthrough artist) with “Dazed & Confused.” He was just 16 at the time, making him the youngest artist to win an ARIA.

The following year, he cracked the history books again as the youngest artist to sell out the Sydney Opera House’s Concert Hall, twice. He has gone on to amass over three billion streams, sold out multiple tours and regularly attends fashion shows at the invitation of luxury haute couture such as Louis Vuitton and Hermès. ​ ​ ​ 

Ninajirachi (real name: Nina Wilson) adds to her heaving collection of awards by taking out second prize for “iPod Touch,” co-written and co-produced with Darcy Baylis.

With her Vanda & Young honor, Ninajirachi earns A$10,000 thanks to Banki Haddock Fiora. The rising EDM star had a year to remember in 2025, during which she collected multiple ARIA Awards, J Awards, the Australian Music Prize and the NSW Music Prize for breakthrough artist, all off the back of her debut album, I Love My Computer.

Third prize goes to Louis Schoorl for “Zombie,” performed and co-written by Lewis Fitzgerald and co-written and co-produced by Danny Shah. “Zombie” is recognized for its songwriting structure, emotional weight and clean production, a statement reads. The A$5,000 winner’s check is presented by Volume Foundation.

The emerging Australasian songwriter category was awarded to Jude York for “Almost Me, Almost You,” co-written with Sarah Aarons and produced by Giorgio Tuinfort. York receives A$5,000, courtesy of the Australasian Music Publishers’ Association Limited (AMPAL) for a song that will be released in the coming weeks via Spinnin’ Records.

Named after the iconic songwriters and founding members of The Easybeats, Harry Vanda and the late George Young, the contest recognizes outstanding songwriting talent from around the world and this year awards a total prize pool of A$80,000 across 14 songs.

The comp is a fundraiser for Noro Music Therapy, with entry fees raising over A$2.5 million since 2009 to fund life-changing music therapy services. This year’s competition received upwards of 4,000 entries from 52 countries, organizers say.

Also, 10 additional songwriters were feted with emerging global songwriter awards, including Oliver Cronin, Carla Wehbe and Bri Clark. Each artist receives A$1,000, courtesy of Merrick Property Group, Complete Law Pty Ltd, GLOW Music and anonymous donors.

The 2025 judging panel featured artists, producers, media and music industry professionals including reps from Live Nation, AEG Presents, Spotify, ARIA, YouTube, Universal Music and Billboard. Read more here.

SYDNEY, Australia — Tributes are flowing for Rob Hirst, co-founder, co-songwriter and drummer for Midnight Oil, who died Wednesday (Jan. 20) following a years-long battle with cancer. He was 70.

Hirst wasn’t just a timekeeper for the Oils, as they’ve lovingly known in these parts. He was their power station, one of the most formidable and accomplished drummers to emerge from these parts. His drum solo in “Power And the Passion,” from 1982, is both powerful, passionate, and one of the most memorable pieces of percussion in Aussie rock music’s impressive history.  

“After fighting heroically for almost three years, Rob is now free of pain – ‘a glimmer of tiny light in the wilderness,’” reads a statement posted to Midnight Oil’s social pages. “He died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones.”

A separate message signed by the surviving bandmates — Peter Garrett (vocals), Jim Moginie (guitar, keys), and Martin Rotsey (guitar) — reads: “We are shattered and grieving the loss of our brother Rob. For now there are no words but there will always be songs.”

Born in Camden, on the outskirts of Sydney, Hirst co-founded the band in early 1970s, initially as Farm. The call for a frontman went out, a lanky young law student by the name of Peter Garrett answered, and by 1976, Midnight Oil was ready to take on the world. The group did so, tackling tough subjects in their lyrics, from corporate greed and corruption, to civil rights and more. No one did it better than the Oils.

Their 1987 single “Beds Are Burning” is recognized as a benchmark in Australian music, with its message of Indigenous land rights also resonating internationally and peaking at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, one of the band’s three entries on the chart. Its parent, Diesel and Dust, hit No. 21 on the Billboard 200, and the followup, 1990’s Blue Sky Mining, went one better at No. 20. All told, seven Oils albums impacted the U.S. all-genres chart.

By the time the rockers called it a day in 2022, they’d logged six ARIA No. 1 albums, including Resist, their first full-length studio album in two decades, and their last as a unit.

There could’ve been more hits, and awards (they collected 11 ARIAs), had Garrett not marched into federal politics for a decade from the mid-2000s.

Hirst reunited with his bandmates for induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2006, and, after reuniting for a world tour, the group was tapped in 2018 for the Ted Albert Award for Outstanding Services to Australian Music, presented at the APRA Music Awards.

Hirst was a serial creator. He played, sung and wrote songs with The Ghostwriters, Backsliders, Hirst & Greene, Rob Hirst + Sean Sennett, The Angry Tradesmen and The Break, an instrumental lineup which features two of his fellow members of Midnight Oil (Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey) as well as bass player Brian Ritchie from the Violent Femmes, and in 2020 released a collaborative album with his daughter Jay O’Shea. As recently as last November, he released the deeply personal EP, A Hundred Years or More.

And it was Hirst who provided the explosive opening piece for the early ‘80s Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s weekly youth program Beatbox.

The music community is remembering Hirst as one of the greats.

“Rob was an incredible drummer and songwriter — and a good friend to all of us in Cold Chisel. Vale Rob,” reads a message from the fellow ARIA Hall of Famers.

“Beyond the awards,” reads a message from ARIA, “Rob stood for integrity, activism and collaboration, using music as a force for change and connection. His influence continues to echo through generations of Australian artists.”

Writes Ian Haug, guitarist with Powderfinger and the Church: “R.I.P. Rob Hirst. What an absolute beast of a drummer…songwriter…and character. Such a lovely and inspiring man.”

Hirst’s family asks that anyone wanting to honor the late artist do so by donating to Pankind (Pancreatic Cancer Australia) or music industry charity Support Act.

His passing follows the death of Oils bass player Bones Hillman, who died in November 2020 following his own battle with cancer, at the age of 62. Bones died just a few hours after the band received confirmation that The Makarrata Project hit No. 1 on the Australian chart.