The Australian Independent Record Labels Association (AIR) has opened nominations for the 2026 Air Awards, introducing key changes to its dance and electronic categories as the event prepares to mark its 20th anniversary.

The ceremony will return to Adelaide Town Hall on July 30, with eligible releases spanning Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2025. Nominations close at 5 p.m. AEDT on March 13.

For 2026, AIR has split its dance and electronic recognition into more clearly defined lanes. A new Best Independent Dance/Club Single category will spotlight club-driven tracks — including house, techno, trance, drum & bass and garage — with eligibility requiring a DJ service component.

Best Independent Electronic Single will recognize electronic releases not designed primarily for club settings, separating festival-floor material from broader electronic artistry.

The former Best Independent Dance or Electronica Album or EP category has been renamed Best Independent Electronic Album or EP to align with the updated single framework.

The changes reflect the continued growth of Australia’s electronic export market, with independent dance artists increasingly building global touring profiles alongside streaming momentum. Electronic music remains one of the country’s most internationally scalable indie genres.

The 2026 awards will feature 22 categories, including Independent Album of the Year, Independent Song of the Year, Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year (presented by PPCA), Best Independent Label, Independent Producer of the Year and Independent Mix, Studio or Mastering Engineer of the Year.

Since launching in 2006, the Air Awards have presented more than 250 honors, with past nominees and winners including Amyl and the Sniffers, Genesis Owusu, Courtney Barnett, Flume, Sampa the Great, G Flip and Confidence Man.

AIR will again stage its Indie-Con Australia conference alongside A2IM’s Indie Week Australian Edition from July 29–31 at Mercury Cinema and Nexus Arts in Adelaide.

Now entering its third decade, the Air Awards arrives at a moment of recalibration for Australia’s independent sector — with electronic music positioned as both a cultural driver and an export growth engine within the indie ecosystem.

Ticketek Entertainment Group (TEG) has hired Brad Turcotte as senior vice president of country for the company’s global touring platform, TEG Live.

Turcotte — who most recently worked in artist management at Vector Management, and who’s held senior leadership roles at UMG Nashville and Big Machine — will be based at TEG’s just-opened office in Nashville, where he’ll lead TEG Live’s country strategy across North America as the Sydney, Australia-based live entertainment company launches a dedicated touring brand in the genre. With roots in Nashville, he’ll work closely with TEG’s Australia and New Zealand teams on artist pipelines, partnerships and longterm touring development.

In a statement announcing Turcotte’s new role on Sunday (Feb. 15), TEG global head of touring Tim McGregor said, “Brad’s appointment is a major milestone for TEG Live. Nashville sits at the centre of the global country music ecosystem, and by deepening our presence in Nashville, we’re strengthening the bridge between North America and our home markets. This creates more opportunities for artists to tour, for fans to connect, and for new talent to emerge.”

“I’ve always considered myself a global ambassador for country music, working to build bridges between Nashville and audiences around the world,” Turcotte said. “I’m incredibly excited to now focus my efforts on delivering country music to fans across the Asia-Pacific region — especially Australia, a dynamic but historically underserved international market. I’m grateful to join Tim and his team, and we plan to be bold and aggressive in expanding the reach and impact of this genre we love.”

Turcotte is set to lead alongside Alex Kelsey (head of touring, country music) and Clay Doughty (head of strategy, country music) in TEG Live’s country division, as well as Vanessa Picken (global director, music strategy), who just joined the team earlier this month.

TEG — made up of Ticketek, TEG Live, TEG Sport, TEG Experiences and Ovation — says country music is a key pillar of its growth strategy, and that its expansion into the genre extends across traditional country, alt-country, Americana, folk and contemporary crossover formats.

During Turcotte’s time at Universal Music Group Nashville, he led international strategy and global campaigns for country stars including Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, Luke Bryan and Keith Urban. At Big Machine Label Group, he oversaw international efforts for Taylor Swift’s 1989, Red and Speak Now albums.

Turcotte began his career in music as the founder of Compadre Records, which he sold to Mathew Knowles and Music World Entertainment in 2007.

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The 2026 NBA All-Star Game is here. After an exciting night of skill competitions like the three-point and dunk contest, basketball’s biggest superstars are hitting the court at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles for the first-ever USA vs. the world All-Star game.

The annual midseason event will include three teams competing in a new round-robin tournament. Starting off, there’s Team USA Stars, including all-stars Anthony Edwards, Scottie Barnes and Cade Cunningham. Secondly,Team USA Stripes, featuring O.G. stars LeBron James, Kevin Durant and New York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson. Finally, there’s Team World, which includes International stars Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Dončić, Nikola Jokić and Victor Wembanyama.

When Does the 2026 NBA All-Star Game Start?

The NBA All-Star game tips off at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT on Sunday on NBC and streaming live on Peacock. With the All-Star game broken out into a round-robin tournament format, here’s a full list and time for each game on Sunday.

Keep reading on to learn how to stream the game online for free.

Where to Watch 2026 NBA All-Star Game Online for Free

For cord-cutters, there are a few ways to watch NBA All-Star Game online, especially if you want to watch for free. DirecTV has a five-day free trial, while other streaming services, such as Hulu + Live TV, offer a free trial so you can watch NBC for free.

Keep reading for more details on how to watch online.

The simplest way to get instant access to NBCUniversal networks is through the channel’s official streaming platform, Peacock. While there is no free trial for new users, the platform offers cheap plans starting at just $10.99 per month, or you can get an annual plan for $109.99 per year (which gets you 12 months of streaming for the price of 10).

You can look forward to streaming live sports, such as NBA on NBC, Premiere League, MLB on NBC, 2026 World Cup and other sporting events.

It has TV shows, includes Poker Face, The Traitors, Couple to Throuple, The Best Man: The Final Chapters, Love Island, Yellowstone, Suits, The Office, Modern Family and Parks & Recreation. The streaming service is also the home to exclusive music programming, such as Girl You Know It’s True, Toby Keith: American Icon, When Metal Ruled the World, America’s Got Talent and others.

A subscription to DirecTV — which comes with NBC for NBA All-Star Saturday — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels, starting at $59.99 for the first two months of service ($69.99 per month) for the “MySports” package. The service even offers a five-day free trial to watch for free if you sign up now.

You can watch local networks such as FOX and ABC, while you can watch many of the best sports networks, including ESPN, FOX Sports, NFL Network, NBA TV, NHL Network, Big Ten Network, TNT Sports, The Golf Channel, USA Network and many others.

Sling TV offers the Blue package, which goes for $54.99 per month and comes with NBC, USA Network, CNBC, MS NOW, Bravo and others. Blue is one of the most affordable options and comes with more than 40 channels and can be streamed on up to three device at a time. Please note: Pricing and channel availability varies from market-to-market.

NBA All-Star Saturday on NBC is available to watch with Hulu + Live TV too. Prices for the cable alternative start at $89.99 per month, while each plan comes with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited at no additional cost.

Hulu + Live TV might be best for those who want all of these streaming services together in one bundle. It features many other networks, including ABC, Hallmark Channel, BET, CMT, Disney Channel, NBC, FOX Sports and more channels.

Who’s Playing in the 2026NBA All-Star Game?

USA Stars

USA Stripes

World

*unable to play because of injury

J. Cole claims his seventh No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 as his new studio album, The Fall-Off, opens atop the list dated Feb. 21. The set launches with 280,000 equivalent album units earned in the United States in the week ending Feb. 12, according to Luminate. That marks the largest week for any R&B or hip-hop album in nearly a year, since Playboi Carti’s MUSIC opened at No. 1 with 298,000 (March 29, 2025-dated chart). (R&B/hip-hop and R&B albums are defined as those that have hit or are eligible for Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top R&B Albums charts, respectively.)

J. Cole previously hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with The Off-Season (2021), KOD (2018), 4 Your Eyez Only (2016), 2014 Forest Hills Drive (2014), Born Sinner (2013) and Cole World: The Sideline Story (2011).

Also in the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200, two albums by Bad Bunny bound up the list following his Super Bowl LX halftime show (Feb. 8) — with 2025’s DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS posting its biggest week to date — while ATEEZ and Joji see their latest albums debut in the top five.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 2,500 ad-supported or 1,000 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Feb. 21, 2026-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Feb. 18 (one day later than usual, due to the President’s Day holiday on Feb. 16). For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X and Instagram.

Of The Fall-Off’s 280,000 equivalent album units earned in the latest tracking week SEA units comprise 166,500 (equaling 169.5 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks; it debuts at No. 2 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 113,000 (it debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise 500.

Sales of the album were enhanced by its availability on vinyl (in only one variant), marking the first time a J. Cole album has been issued on vinyl concurrent with its release across digital and streaming platforms. About 71% (or 80,000) of The Fall-Off’s first-week sales were vinyl purchases. That’s J. Cole’s biggest week ever on vinyl, and the largest sales week for any R&B/hip-hop album on vinyl in a year. The last larger sales week for an R&B/hip-hop vinyl album was when Kendrick Lamar’s GNX was issued on vinyl for the first time, selling 87,000 copies (chart dated Feb. 22, 2025).

Bad Bunny rides his Super Bowl LX halftime show (Feb. 8) to big gains in the top 10 of the Billboard 200, as his former No. 1, and most recently released album, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS holds at No. 2 with 250,000 equivalent album units — its best week ever, up 194% — while 2022’s chart-topping Un Verano Sin Ti jumps 16-6 with 81,000 (up 163%). It’s the first time Bad Bunny has placed two titles concurrently in the top 10.

DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS’gain was also assisted by a new vinyl pressing that become widely available during the tracking week, helping the album’s sales for the week jump 732% to 61,000. On the streaming side, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS earned 186,000 in SEA units (equaling 195.31 million on-demand official streams of its songs; it returns to No. 1 on Top Streaming Albums for a fifth nonconsecutive week, with a 2-1 rise).

ATEEZ earn their eighth top 10-charted album on the Billboard 200 as GOLDEN HOUR : Part.4 bows at No. 3 with 200,000 equivalent album units earned — marking the act’s best week ever by units. Of that sum, traditional album sales comprise 195,000 (it debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales, with the act’s best sales week yet), SEA units comprise 5,000 (equaling 5.58 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The album’s first-week sales got a boost from its availability across more than 25 physical variants (all containing collectible items such as photocards, posters and stickers, with some items randomized), including signed editions.

Don Toliver’s OCTANE falls 1-4 in its second week on the Billboard 200 with 97,000 equivalent album units earned (down 40%).

Joji captures his fourth top 10-charted project on the Billboard 200 as Piss In the Wind arrives at No. 5 with 86,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 45,000 (his best sales week; it debuts at No. 4 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 41,000 (equaling 42.17 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs, it debuts at No. 8 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The album’s first-week sales were bolstered by its availability in deluxe edition boxed sets (containing a piece of branded clothing and a CD) and more than 10 vinyl variants (including a signed edition).

Rounding out the rest of the top 10 on the latest Billboard 200 are Morgan Wallen’s former leader I’m the Problem (3-7 with 77,000, down less than 1%); Olivia Dean’s The Art of Loving (4-8 with 75,000, up 7%); Taylor Swift’s chart-topping The Life of a Showgirl (5-9 with 54,000, up 18%); and the former No. 1 KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack (6-10 with 42,000, down 2%).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

Cardi B took a minor spill on stage during her Little Miss Drama tour stop in Las Vegas.

While performing her song “Thotiana” at T-Mobile Arena on Friday (Feb. 13), the 33-year-old rapper fell off a chair mid-routine. The moment was captured by fans in attendance and quickly made its way to social media.

Dressed in a lacy red ensemble, Cardi was straddling a chair and leaning back to engage with the crowd when she appeared to lose her balance and tumble onto the stage. Like a pro, she quickly recovered and continued thrusting her hips from the floor alongside her shirtless male dancers.

After finishing the performance, she stood up to a cheering crowd and joked, “That was the government!” while pointing back to the chair.

The jokes didn’t stop there. After the mishap went viral on social media, Cardi reposted the video on X and wrote the caption, “Can someone put a community note on this? This video is clearly AI.”

The “WAP” hitmaker kicked off her Little Miss Drama Tour at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., on Wednesday (Feb. 11). During the show, she gave a Selena impression to hype up Latino fans in the crowd before addressing ICE.

“B—h! If ICE comes in here, we gon’ jump they a—es,” she said, drawing loud applause. “I’ve got some bear mace in the back! They ain’t taking my fans, b—h.”

The following day, the United States Department of Homeland Security responded to the Grammy-winner on X. “As long as she doesn’t drug and rob our agents, we’ll consider that an improvement over her past behavior,” the DHS wrote.