SYDNEY, Australia — APRA AMCOS CEO Dean Ormston will have a hand in shaping Australia’s new National Cultural Policy.

The Sydney-based executive will provide expert advice and industry perspectives as a member of the nine-strong Policy Advisory Group, formed by the federal government. Ormston is joined by Brenna Hobson, director of programming, Sydney Opera House; Adrian Collette, chief executive officer, Creative Australia; Wesley Enoch, chair, Australia Council board of Creative Australia; and others.

“Australia has an extraordinary cultural story to tell, and enormous potential still to realize, particularly as a music nation,” comments Ormston in a statement. “I look forward to working with the government and my fellow panel members from across the cultural ecosystem to help shape the next national cultural policy that truly unlocks that potential for songwriters, composers and creators, and for generations to come.”

Also, five expert panels have been established under each of our continuing pillars: First Nations First, Centrality of the Artist, A Place for Every Story, Strong Cultural Infrastructure, and Engaging the Audience.

Those panels will inform the minister for the arts and the Policy Advisory Group on key issues and themes raised through the public consultation process.

“Each member brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that will help lay the foundation where for the first time there will have been consecutive national cultural policies,” comments minister for the arts, Tony Burke, in a statement issued Wednesday, April 8. “Welcome to the new members, thank you for playing a role in delivering the next National Cultural Policy for all Australians.”

Australia’s prime minister Anthony Albanese presented the National Cultural Policy, Revive, in January 2023, a five-year action plan that spelled out strategic and policy investment, and included the creation of Music Australia, an organization that supports and invests in the development of Australian contemporary music.

“Our next National Cultural Policy must reflect the diversity and aspirations of the cultural sector itself,” remarks special envoy for the arts, Susan Templeman. “These panels bring together an extraordinary group of Australians who have distinguished themselves in their service to our cultural life. Their involvement and their insight will ensure that the voice of the sector rings clearly through the policy we introduce.”

Ormston is a busy man. Last May, he was elected as chair of CISAC, the international trade organization for copyright collecting societies. With that appointment, Ormston is only the second Australian to hold the title in CISAC’s 99-year history, with his APRA AMCOS predecessor Brett Cottle having previously served in the role from 2006 until 2010.

APRA AMCOS is celebrating its century with a year-long slate of activities and projects. Last month, the Australasian PRO hosted the board of directors of CISAC, which represents 228 societies across 111 countries, for what marked the first such assembly in Sydney for 25 years.

National Cultural Policy: Expert Panels

First Nations First

  • Mr Darren Dale – Producer and Managing Director, Blackfella Films
  • Mr Chad Creighton – Chief Executive Officer, Aboriginal Art Centre Hub of WA (AACHWA)
  • Ms Ping Flynn – Executive Director and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Ilbijerri Theatre Company

A Place for Every Story

  • Ms Tracey Corbin-Matchett OAM – Chief Executive Officer, Bus Stop films
  • Mr Bruce Gladwin – Artistic Director and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Back to Back Theatre
  • Ms Courtney Stewart – Artistic Director, La Boite Theatre

Centrality of the Artist

  • Ms Holly Greenwood – Visual Artist
  • Mr Rob Sitch – Chief Executive Officer, Working Dog Productions
  • Dr Sophie Payten BMed MD, MPH (AKA Gordi) – Musician, Gordi Music

Strong Cultural Infrastructure

  • Mr Bruce Meagher – Chair, Griffin Theatre Company. Head of Public Affairs, Tattarang Pty Limited
  • Ms Claire Spencer AM – Executive Director, Australian Ballet
  • Mr S. Shakthidharan – Director and Co-Founder, Kurinji

Engaging the Audience

  • Ms Astrid Jorgensen OAM – Founder and director, Pub Choir
  • Mr Jeff Khan – Creative Director Asia TOPA, Arts Centre Melbourne 
  • Mr John Foreman AM – Musical Director, Pianist and Composer

National Cultural Policy: Advisory Group:

  • Ms Rosheen GarnonDeputy Chair, Australia Council Board of Creative Australia
  • Dr Nell Greenwood – Chief Executive Officer, Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS)
  • Mr Adrian Collette AM – Chief Executive Officer, Creative Australia
  • Mr Dean Ormston – Chief Executive Officer, Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS)
  • Professor Sarah Holland-Batt FAHA FQA- Head of Creative Writing, University of Technology Sydney
  • Ms Brenna Hobson – Director of Programming, Sydney Opera House
  • Ms Deirdre Brennan – Chief Executive Officer, Screen Australia
  • Mr Simon Abrahams – Creative Director and Chief Executive Officer, Melbourne Fringe
  • Professor Wesley Enoch AM – Chair, Australia Council Board of Creative Australia

Courtney Barnett’s Creature of Habit tour is growing new limbs.

The award-winning singer and songwriter adds an Australia leg to her 2026 world tour, an east coast run that includes dates in Brisbane (​The Tivoli, Nov. 4), Sydney (Opera House, Nov. 6) and Melbourne (Palais Theatre, Nov. 7).

Produced by Frontier Touring, Barnett’s homecoming tour is her first in four years, and follows an extensive jaunt on both sides of the Atlantic.

“Courtney Barnett is a truly singular artist,” comments Sydney Opera House head of contemporary Music, Ben Marshall, “a songwriter whose wry, observant voice and magnetic stage presence have cemented her as one of Australia’s most distinctive artists of her generation. To welcome her back to the Concert Hall with such a poignant new body of work promises a performance that is both expansive and intimate – one that draws you in and holds you there.”

Before heading home, Barnett will work the crowds in the United Kingdom, Continental Europe and across North America, a stretch that expands with her first solo concert in Hawaii (June 12 at Blue Note in Honolulu) and a third San Francisco show (Aug. 28 at The Fillmore).

The acclaimed songwriter is supporting her fourth studio album, Creature of Habit, written after her relocation from Melbourne to Los Angeles and the closure of her long-running, award-winning indie label Milk! Records. Creature of Habit is the result of Barnett reaching that junction, processing it, and shaping music from all the confusion.

In her homeland, Barnett has collected six ARIA Awards, multiple AIR Awards, the J Award for best Australian album and collected the 11th annual Australian Music Prize (AMP) in 2016 for her debut album, Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, which crashed the top 20 in the United States and United Kingdom, and went to No. 4 in her homeland. That breakthrough earned Barnett a Grammy Award nomination for best new artist.

Her followup, Tell Me How You Really Feel from 2018, peaked at No. 2 in Australia, No. 9 in the U.K., and No. 30 in the U.S., and her third solo effort, Things Take Time, Take Time, cracked Australia’s top 10, and impacted the Official U.K. Albums Chart and the Billboard 200.

Courtney Barnett’s “Creatures of Habit” Australian Tour 2026:

Nov. 4 — ​The Tivoli, Brisbane

Nov. 6 — Sydney Opera House Concert Hall 

Nov. 7 — Palais Theatre, Melbourne

They were born to express themselves. And over the course of a yearslong feud with one another, Lady Gaga and Madonna did exactly that.

In 2011, a disagreement between two of pop’s biggest stars began when Gaga released her LGBTQ+ anthem “Born This Way.” Madonna fans were quick to point out the track’s melodic and lyrical similarities to Madonna’s 1989 classic “Express Yourself.” It didn’t take long for Madge herself to join in on the conversation, with the Queen of Pop going on public record the next year and calling “Born This Way” “reductive.”

And thus, years of public rivalry between the two was ignited.

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But everything is not what it seems — not even clear and publicly made digs lobbed at one another. In the years following the OG disagreement, Lady Gaga and Madonna have gone on to both throw a few verbal punches at one another and extend olive branches to their rival. Like most petty disagreements —especially ones clearly stoked by the drama-driven celebrity gossip machine — the feud between the two artists eventually calmed down. Seven years after it began, the drama was officially declared dead when the stars posed for a pic together at Madonna’s exclusive Oscars afterparty in 2018.

Now, 15 years after the initial dispute, Lady Gaga and Madonna are rumored to be collaborating on a new song for the Devil Wears Prada 2 soundtrack. While we don’t know the truth yet, we do know that Gaga (with Doechii) is featured on the soundtrack with the original song “Runway” and Madonna’s 1990 smash “Vogue” appeared in the original movie and has soundtracked much of the sequel’s pre-release promo.

As we impatiently await to see if a collaboration is real or just another rumor added to all the gossip surrounding these two pop legends, Billboard is taking a looking back at the timeline of Lady Gaga and Madonna’s relationship.

Chinese-American alt-pop singer-songwriter Emei signed with Atlantic Records in partnership with Ricky Reed‘s Nice Life Recording Company. The first release under the deal is the single “Night at the Opera,” the first offering from her upcoming Night at the Opera EP set for release on June 12.

“After the first time I saw Emei perform to a sold out, sweaty club in San Francisco, I went to introduce myself and her first words were, ‘Do you have any notes on the show?’ Now, a year later, her ambition to execute at the highest level continues,” said Reed, founder and CEO of Nice Life, in a statement. “That, paired with a deep vulnerability in her art, a scrappy DIY ethos, and a limitless love for her army of outsiders, is why we’re so excited to welcome her into the family that is Nice Life and Atlantic Records.”


CAA signed singer, songwriter and actor Sara Bareilles. According to the agency, Bareilles has sold more than 3 million albums and 15 million singles in the U.S., while her songs have been streamed more than 3.5 billion times globally. The multi-hyphenate also composed the music and lyrics for the Broadway musical Waitress, along with starring in the lead role on Broadway and the West End. She was nominated for a Tony for her performance as “The Baker’s Wife” in Into the Woods.

Sara Bareilles (Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez)

On screen, Bareilles starred in the Emmy-nominated musical comedy series GIRLS5EVA for three seasons. She additionally executive-produced and wrote original music for the J.J. Abrams-produced Apple musical drama series Little Voice.

Bareilles is managed by Izvor Zivkovic at Split Second and John Meneilly, Will Hubbard and Marissa Lesch at Left / Right. Her legal reps are Michael Guido at Carroll Guido & Groffman and Nancy Rose at Schreck Rose Dapello Adams Berlin & Dunham.

Read about more recent signings below.

Looks like Journey almost went their separate ways two years ago.

In a new statement posted to Facebook on Monday, Journey co-founder and lead guitarist Neal Schon seemingly replied to frontman Arnel Pineda‘s claims that he was prohibited from quitting the band twice.

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“There’s been some recent press and speculation that doesn’t reflect the full picture,” Schon writes.

Though he does not specify what recent press he’s referring to, his statement comes days after a March 31 Rolling Stone feature on his band that quotes Pineda sharing that he almost didn’t join Journey on their current farewell tour. Pineda claims that in 2024, he asked his bandmates to confer with him if they decide to do farewell shows and discuss the schedule with him. He cites age and “personal problems” as major factors in his decision to tour or not. He then alleges that the band went ahead and scheduled the 60-date tour without consulting him.

“It is what it is now…. But then, I was really not happy with how they scheduled this tour,” Pineda says in the article. He then claims that he sent an unhappy email to his bandmates to which they didn’t reply. In response to the silence, Pineda says he told the other Journey members not once but twice that he wanted to leave the group and retire. Again, they did not respond, Pineda alleges.

The article then shares that both Schon and Pineda recognized that quitting the band is not as simple as it seems. They both say that their contract with live entertainment giant AEG prohibits the band from touring without Pineda. It’s a sentiment that is also echoed in Schon’s Facebook statement.

“Touring at this level involves many moving parts, and decisions are made collectively with our team, including management, agents, and promoters,” Schon writes before acknowledging that with any band that’s been around for a long time, different members may feel different pressures in different ways. He then says that he personally did not prohibit anyone from leaving the band. “For clarity, no one was ever prevented by me from making their own personal decisions.”

Schon continues by citing the same AEG contract that was brought up in the Rolling Stone feature: “At the same time, we were all advised by our representatives that there are contractual obligations tied to touring that need to be honored.”

The guitarist concludes by saying his focus is on providing fans with “the best possible experience and keeping the music alive.”

Journey’s Final Frontier Tour is set to continue into August with dates across the U.S. and a stop in Vancouver.

While the British prime minister, PepsiCo and David Schwimmer, among others, are publicly denouncing the artist formerly known as Kanye West, Aubrey O’Day has other plans.

In a series of posts and replies to other users on X, the former Danity Kane member is defending her decision to attend both of Ye’s sold-out comeback shows at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, last week. O’Day was first called out for going to the shows after an X user reposted a video of the singer talking about seeing Ye for the second night in a row and asked why she didn’t talk about going to the concerts on X.

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“Now why wouldn’t you share with Twitter that you went to see Kanye 2 nights in a row??” the user posted, tagging O’Day. “All that hootin and hollerin about Diddy’s abuse, but you fail to keep that same energy with Kanye.”

O’Day has spoken out against Diddy for years. Danity Kane was formed on Diddy’s series Making the Band and signed to his label Bad Boy Records. O’Day was kicked out of the group in 2008, and in an appearance on Call Her Daddy, she alleged that the falling out happened because she refused to comply with non-musical requests from the rapper. In the years since, O’Day has continued to speak out against Diddy, including in the recent Netflix documentary Sean Combs: The Reckoning.

To X users, O’Day’s support of Ye stands in direct opposition to her outspokenness against Diddy. The original X post ended by calling the singer a “f—ing hypocrite.”

Rather than ignoring the post, O’Day replied with a defense of her decision to see Ye.

“I can hold two truths at once,” she starts before saying that she’s lived through and does not excuse abuse. She then says that she does not believe that “engaging with someone’s art” is the same as “[co-signing] every opinion or action they’ve ever had.” O’Day says that if this were the case, many people in the entertainment industry would not have careers and that there is more “nuance” to these situations. “If supporting art required endorsing every belief of the artist, none of us would have careers, or playlists.”

This explanation was not enough for people who do not agree with her stance, with another X user replying to her post by calling her a hypocrite and saying “by your logic we should ignore all of the things you said about Puffy because he makes good music.”

O’Day again took to the social platform to double down on her statement, explaining that a “blanket ‘cancel everything’ stance” is not realistic for her as an artist and that the user she is replying to is “not accounting for real-world complexity.”

“The idea that you have to erase art to prove morality, or perform constant outrage to stay ‘consistent,’ isn’t integrity..it’s a simplified version of ethics,” she continues. “I’m allowed to hold nuance.”

The singer then says that she has remained consistent on her position on Diddy for 20 years and had her life and career negatively impacted by doing so “in ways you’ll never fully understand.” She concludes by saying she will no longer be “outsourcing my values to a comment section anymore.”

In another response, she wrote: “You’re pushing a binary moral model-good people get total support, bad people get total rejection. Real life doesn’t work like that. Humans hold complexity all the time.. we love people who’ve hurt us, we consume work from imperfect creators. We live in nuance and still know exactly where our values stand.”

Although she claimed to be done interacting with comments, O’Day replied to a few more users who questioned her position. In these follow-up interactions, she continued to reference “nuance” and push her idea that engagement does not mean endorsement. In one reply, she brought up the Epstein Files, saying, “A lot of $ in the Epstein files funded a lot of sh– that you like.”

O’Day eventually concluded the conversation on X with a standalone post, not responding directly to anyone anymore.

“Most people want clean heroes & clean villains, because it’s easier. I’ve seen too much in my lifetime to simplify people in that manner,” she wrote. “I understand the complexity, and I choose every day how I engage with it consciously.”

O’Day’s X back-and-forth defense of Ye happened the same day the rapper’s appearance at London’s Wireless Festival was thwarted by the British government when the entity denied his entry into the country, citing his history of antisemitism. As a result, the festival — which previously lost four corporate sponsors when Ye’s headlining spot on the lineup was announced — was completely canceled.

50 Cent has become a film mogul by telling other people’s stories, but now it’s time to tell his own. According to Variety and Deadline, the “definitive” 50 Cent documentary is coming to Hulu and will be a three-part series.

The doc is slated to take fans through 50’s humble beginnings growing up in Queens to achieving global rap stardom and evolving into a business mogul and Hollywood titan with his G-Unit Film & Television division.

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A logline for the docuseries says 50’s story will be told “through an intimate and revealing lens. The series portrays a figure who has consistently transformed conflict and adversity into enduring cultural impact.”

While it currently remains without a title, Mandon Lovett is onboard to direct the series. Lovett previously directed The French Montana Story: For Khadija. Patrick Altem will executive produce the doc alongside 50.

50 still serves as an executive producer on his massive Power series on Starz and is set to star in the upcoming Street Fighter reboot in the role of Balrog, which saw him perform all of his own stunts. He is also promising to appear on the film’s soundtrack and has plans to bring Eminem with him.

“I’m gonna get @eminem on deck to make some music for this movie Street Fighter,” 50 wrote alongside a promo poster for the film in December. “New Music on the way!” Street Fighter is scheduled to hit theaters in the U.S. on Oct. 16.

50 Cent had a scorching run in 2000s as a central figure dominating hip-hop and remains a pop-culture fixture decades later. The Queens native boasts a pair of No. 1 albums atop the Billboard 200 and has four No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 (41 entries).

Following Pershing Square’s bid to acquire Universal Music Group (UMG) on Tuesday (April 7), the music giant has confirmed that its board of directors received the “unsolicited and non-binding proposal” in a brief press release in which it expressed “complete confidence in” the company’s strategy under chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge.

“The Board of Directors, together with its advisors, will review the proposal in accordance with its fiduciary duties and analyze its implications for shareholders, employees, artists, songwriters and other stakeholders,” the release reads.

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It adds, “The Board of Directors has complete confidence in UMG’s strategy and the leadership of Sir Lucian Grainge and the Company’s management team. UMG will have no further comment on the proposal until the Board of Directors completes its review.”

The offer from the Bill Ackman-founded investment firm values UMG at more than $60 billion. The proposed deal, which would entail a 9.4 billion euros ($10.85 billion) total cash or 5.05 euros per share ($5.82) offer to shareholders, would result in UMG merging with Pershing Square SPARC Holdings and would move the new entity’s headquarters from the Netherlands to Nevada, while its stock would move from the Euronext Amsterdam to the New York Stock Exchange.

“While business performance has been strong, UMG’s share price has languished,” Ackman wrote in a Tuesday letter to UMG’s board of directors that mentioned uncertainty over UMG investor Bolloré Group’s 18% stake in the company, its decision to delay a U.S. stock offering and the under-utilization of the music company’s balance sheet as reasons for the stock’s overall downward trajectory since its closing price on the first day of trading. “Notably, none of the above issues relate to the company’s execution of its music business, and importantly, all of the above issues can be addressed in a merger transaction.”

Ackman, who held a call to address analysts’ and shareholders’ questions about the proposed deal earlier on Tuesday, wrote that he expects the deal to close by the end of the year.


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Miles Gersh was promoted to executive vp of A&R at Warner Records, the label announced on Tuesday (April 7).

Gersh, who joined the company in 2019 and was most recently vp of A&R, introduced Zach Bryan to Warner Records Group CEO & co-chairman Aaron Bay-Schuck in 2020 based on the success of his independent releases. Bryan signed to Warner Records the following year and has since scored five top 10 albums on the Billboard 200, including two No. 1s: 2023’s self-titled set and this year’s With Heaven on Top. He’s also notched three top 10s on the Billboard Hot 100, including the No. 1 smash “I Remember Everything” featuring Kacey Musgraves.

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In addition to Bryan, Gersh has helped develop emerging talent including bunii, IShowSpeed, Maddox Batson, CJ and Veeze. Prior to Warner, Gersh worked at Doug Morris‘ 12Tone Music. He has been recognized on Billboard‘s 40 Under 40 and Country Power Players lists.

“Miles understands that true artist development starts with a deep respect for the creator’s voice,” said Bay-Schuck in a statement. “The partnership he’s built with Zach and his other outstanding artists reflects his commitment to authenticity and his drive to help our talent win on their own terms. Miles is a vital part of the future of Warner Records, and this promotion is a testament to the key role he’s played in elevating our music, our teams, and our culture.”

Gersh added, “I’m deeply grateful to Aaron and [Warner Records executive vp & head of A&R] Karen [Kwak] for their mentorship and for their belief in me as I take on this new role. They’ve championed a culture I’m proud to be a part of — one that consistently puts the artist first. We have a remarkable roster, backed by the incredible Warner team, and I’m excited to build on our momentum to help take our artists to the next level while bringing game-changing new talent into the fold.”


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Not every hitmaker stays in one lane. Pharrell Williams has taken on several across the Billboard Hot 100.

Across decades, he has crafted hits as a writer, producer and performer, starting as one-half of The Neptunes and later as a solo star. At a time when producers rarely received the spotlight, Pharrell’s signature often came not through a vocal tag, but through a now-familiar four-count intro, producing songs you can instantly recognize, including “Milkshake” by Kelis and “Tokyo Drift (Fast & Furious)” from the movie The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

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His first Hot 100 No. 1 came as a co-writer and producer on “Hot in Herre” by Nelly in 2002, marking an early breakthrough for The Neptunes’ minimalist, rhythm-forward sound. He soon stepped further into the spotlight as a performer, joining Snoop Dogg on “Drop It Like It’s Hot” in 2004, which topped the charts with Pharrell as a featured artist. By the 2010s, Williams was credited as a performer, writer and producer on “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke featuring T.I., which reigned atop the Hot 100 for 12 weeks in 2013. The song’s success helped usher in his biggest solo moment: “Happy,” originally featured in Despicable Me 2, became a 10-week No. 1 in 2014 and cemented Pharrell as a chart-topping artist in his own right.

Beyond his recordings, Williams has gone on to push himself creatively in other ways — from starring in the 2024 animated LEGO documentary Piece by Piece, which explores his beginning and career, to even being appointed men’s creative director for Louis Vuitton.

In honor of the man who can do it all, here’s a look at every Hot 100 No. 1 hit he’s helped create.