With a week left until Wicked: For Good hits theaters, Cynthia Erivo is setting the record straight on why some think her performances are political statements.

Appearing on the cover of GQ‘s Men of the Year issue, Erivo said that her performances in Wicked, The Color Purple and every other project she works on are inherently political simply because she is a Black, queer woman, not necessarily because she chooses political roles.

“I think inevitably, because I’m in this body with this skin, in this time, everything I do will be political,” she says. “I’ve been told so many times that I pick controversial roles, and I’m like, ‘Why? Why are the roles I pick controversial?’ I just pick a thing that I feel like I want. If I was a different person, in a different body, in a different skin, it wouldn’t be controversial.”

The near-EGOT did point out, however, that she is interested in “f–king with the narrative” of audience expectations, especially when it comes to her sexuality and gender. “I’m fascinated with the interplay between masculinity and femininity, and where we place it and how we use it,” she said. “Because I truly believe we all have both in us — and I think it’s so sexy when we can access both.”

Erivo received a wave of backlash earlier this year when she was cast as Jesus Christ in a Hollywood Bowl production of Jesus Christ Superstar, with some on the religious right calling her casting “blasphemy.” In an interview with Billboard in June, Erivo laughed off the criticism, saying, “you can’t please everyone.”

Elsewhere in her new interview, Erivo got real when speaking about the anti-LGBTQ+ political environment of 2025, saying that “who I love and who you love” have “nothing to do with each other,” and she doesn’t understand why people feel a need to “be involved in people’s business.”

“It is about love. If people really, actually allow themselves to love, actually love, this wouldn’t be happening,” she explained. “We would want everyone to have it, wherever they could get it. Because you’d actually know what it feels like. And so when you know what it feels like, you’d want it for anyone else. Get it however you can get it, please.”

Sean “Diddy” Combs’ release date has been pushed back, a move that comes after media reports that he violated prison rules by drinking homemade alcohol.

After Diddy was convicted in July on federal prostitution charges and sentenced to four years in prison, the federal Bureau of Prisons inmate records initially projected his release date as May 8, 2028. But those same records, reviewed by Billboard, now say Diddy will go free on June 4, 2028.

It’s unclear why the expected date was updated; such listings are just estimates, reflecting the “inmate’s projected release date based on BOP calculations.” But it comes after Combs allegedly violated multiple prison rules within weeks of arriving at a New Jersey federal correctional facility.

As first reported by CBS News, Combs faced potential disciplinary action for an unauthorized three-way phone call, which is barred by prison rules. His representative denied any wrongdoing to CBS, saying there “was nothing improper” about the call.

According to a report last week by TMZ, Combs was also caught in prison with homemade alcohol made from Fanta soda, sugar and apples. Combs’ family strongly denied that report, saying on social media that it was “completely false.”

In a statement to Billboard, a BOP spokesperson declined to comment on why Diddy’s date had been changed: “For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss the conditions of confinement for any individual, including release plans, timing, or procedures, or whether a particular individual is the subject of allegations, investigations, or sanctions. However, we can tell you that Sean Combs has a projected release date of June 4, 2028.”

Reps for Combs did not immediately return requests for comment on the reasons for the changed release date.

Combs was arrested and charged in September 2024 with racketeering (RICO) and sex trafficking violations over claims that he ran a sprawling criminal operation aimed at facilitating “freak-offs” — elaborate events at which he allegedly forced ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and others to have sex with male escorts while he watched and masturbated.

Following a blockbuster trial this spring, jurors issued a verdict clearing Combs on the more serious charges that could have seen him sentenced to prison for life. But he was still convicted on two lesser counts for transporting Ventura and others across state lines for the purpose of prostitution. Last month, he was sentenced to 50 months in prison.

Combs is currently appealing both his convictions and sentence; if successful, he could get out much earlier than the BOP estimates. But the appeals process is often slow, and Combs will likely serve a sizeable chunk of his term before the case is even decided. The star is also seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump, but the White House has publicly denied that it is considering that move.

Independent artists have earned more than $5 billion through TuneCore. The distribution partner for self-releasing artists — owned by Paris-based Believe — announced the $5 billion milestone today, marking the first public achievement of its kind among distributors for self-releasing artists, according to the company.

“Crossing $5 billion earned by TuneCore artists is a defining milestone for independent music—it shows that creative freedom and financial success can go hand in hand,” said TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson in a release. “Reaching this milestone didn’t just happen; it’s the result of listening closely to what artists need today and evolving TuneCore to power their growth. By combining innovation with intention, we’ve built programs like TuneCore Accelerator to help artists reach new audiences, and publishing services that ensure they collect every cent their music generates. This milestone reflects the extraordinary talent and drive of our artists around the world, and we’re proud to be the partner helping to fuel their success.”

TuneCore was founded in 2006 with a mission to democratize music distribution for self-releasing artists and has evolved into a global company for independent artist development. Surpassing the $5 billion milestone reflects the cumulative earnings of all TuneCore artists since 2006 from bedroom producers to global stars alike—and comes just 17 months after surpassing the $4 billion mark.

“This achievement is a testament to TuneCore’s unwavering commitment to innovation for the independent artist community,” said YouTube’s global head of music Lyor Cohen in a statement. “For almost two decades, they’ve been committed to providing the infrastructure for artists to build durable careers and monetize their work. We share that mission—ensuring that YouTube is the global destination for their artists to build meaningful connections with their fans. We are proud to partner with TuneCore and celebrate this monumental success!”

TuneCore credits its nearly two decades of success to its parent company Believe which has direct relationships with digital service providers and streaming platforms worldwide. Another recent factor in the company’s success comes from the TuneCore Accelerator, the company’s flagship artist development platform. Accelerator provides artists with access to promotional and marketing opportunities designed to drive discovery, build audiences, and deepen fan engagement. In just the past year, artists in the program have generated over 21 billion new streams, sparked 2.5 billion artist discoveries, and seen their median royalties grow fivefold.

DSPs from Spotify to Apple Music are celebrating TuneCore’s milestone. With Spotify’s svp/global head of music Charlie Hellman stating, “We are proud to partner with TuneCore to uplift independent artists and enable countless songwriters, producers, and performers to turn their passion for music into a career. TuneCore paying $5B to artists is an inspiring milestone that reflects how far independent music has come in the streaming era.”

Apple Music and Beats vp Oliver Schusser added: “At Apple, we celebrate the creativity and value of creators across every stage of development, and we commend TuneCore for helping so many talented independent artists from around the world earn money and build careers on their own terms. Congrats!”

Globally, TuneCore’s reach continues to expand, with over 75% of new artists and labels joining TuneCore in the last year coming from outside the United States.

As he gears up to release his new EP Appaloosa on Friday (Nov. 14), country singer Orville Peck broke down the current phase of his career in the latest episode of Billboard‘s Takes Us Out.

Peck sat down with Billboard’s Tetris Kelly at Los Angeles’ Beachwood Café, where the pair chowed down on comfort food and took a look at the state of Peck’s career today. “[I’ve been] going back to my roots, in terms of just diving into the creativity and the artistry and the references that I grew up loving,” Peck says. “[Appaloosa]’s also got a very constant air through it in terms of lyrics, of just kind of being unconcerned with what things should sound like or look like. I’m really just making music for myself again.”

The singer, who spent the last few years rising through the ranks of country music and becoming a breakout star in his own right, says that his work with friends and former collaborators such as Noah Cyrus and Willie Nelson only further helped bolster his confidence about his own artistic output. But he points to one country superstar as his dream collaborator.

“I mean, I always say Dolly [Parton], I would love to work with Dolly,” he says. “I got Willie Nelson, he was really neck-and-neck with her, so she is the last one on my absolute bucket list that I would die to work with.”

As a disruptive force in the country space, and one who has often advocated for greater diversity and equity within the genre, Peck points out that he’s happy to see some progress finally being made for the genre he calls home. “I feel better about it. I think there’s a lot more people now feeling like they can make country music and not be within the sort of homogenized idea of what country ‘needs’ to be,” he says. “That’s amazing, not just for queer people, but for black people, for brown people, there’s a lot more artists who feel validated to be a part of that.”

But, he points out that country is “tricky” when it comes to progress, and says that the work is far from over. “There is some attachment to country with the culture of country,” he says. “In some ways we’re making a lot of progress, and then in some ways, that progress is making some people want to stand firm in their gatekeeping of country. It’s a constant conversation.”

He points to the recent rule change at the Recording Academy, dividing the previously existing best country album category into two separate lanes for “traditional” and “contemporary” country albums, as an example of his point.

“I actually think it makes sense, personally,” he says. “I think in the last 10-15 years, there has been more of a split between radio-pop country, which tends to be more about a certain type of culture than a sound. And then I think there’s the other side of country that is a more traditional, referenced type of country that’s more about the songwriting … that feels like it’s more open culturally to anyone who wants to express themselves in that.”

During the new interview, Peck also chats about his time playing the Emcee in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club on Broadway, his favorite song off of his new album and the “diet illegal” activities he and his friends got into growing up. Watch the full episode of Takes Us Out above.

At an otherwise joyful celebration of Wicked in Singapore for the second film’s Asian premiere on Thursday (Nov. 13), a scary moment took place when someone in the crowd charged at Ariana Grande and forced Cynthia Erivo to step in as her costar’s bodyguard.

In videos of the incident captured at the event, the two leading ladies walk the red carpet at the event alongside Michelle Yeoh, who also stars in the Wicked films, when a man suddenly jumps over the barricade and runs directly at Grande. After reaching the pop star, he forcefully puts his hands on her shoulders and wraps an unwanted arm around her neck, with Grande looking terrified.

Immediately, Erivo springs into action, rushing to tear the man away from Grande while Yeoh makes sure the R.E.M. Beauty founder is okay. Footage from the moments afterward shows three different security officials pinning the aggressor to the ground before hauling him away.

Billboard has reached out to Grande and Erivo’s reps for comment on the incident.

Upon further investigation, the culprit appears to be Johnson Wen — not that it takes much to identify him, given the fact that he’s since bragged about the incident on his Instagram page. Identifying himself as “Troll Most Hated,” the prankster has also posted videos of himself rushing on stage at various concerts, to the shock of artists such as The Weeknd and the Chainsmokers.

On his Story, Wen shared that he’d been arrested and subsequently released after charging at Grande. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s been apprehended for such startling behavior; just a few months ago, he was arrested for running on stage and putting hands on Katy Perry at her June concert in Singapore.

Despite the terrifying encounter, Grande and Erivo — oftentimes holding hands — appeared to enjoy the remainder of the event at Universal Studios Singapore. It followed similar recent premieres in São Paulo, Paris and London.

Wicked: For Good hits theaters worldwide on Nov. 21.