Month: December 2022

We’re still two weeks away from Christmas but the gifts keep coming early for music fans with long-awaited albums and surprise singles arriving from their favorite stars. And as always, Billboard wants to know which new release you’re most grateful for this holiday season!

On Friday (Dec. 9), SZA‘s hotly anticipated sophomore album SOS finally arrived after a five-and-a-half year wait. Preceded by lead single “Shirt” and a tease of “Nobody Gets Me,” the studio set follows the recent Billboard cover star‘s smash 2017 debut album Ctrl, which spawned hits like “Drew Barrymore,” “Love Galore” and “The Weekend.”

Then there’s Lana Del Rey, who shocked her fans earlier this week with the surprise announcement of her upcoming ninth album, Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. The pop songstress even sweetened the reveal by unveiling the title track — a reflective, choir-backed ballad in the form of her early releases — in all its sweeping, wistful glory.

Polo G and Paramore also released new singles on Friday, with the rapper previewing his forthcoming project set for 2023 with “My All” and the pop-punk stalwarts unfurling “The News” ahead of their comeback LP This Is Why dropping on Feb. 10.

A Boogie wit da Hoodie, meanwhile, shared his combatively titled fourth studio album, Me vs. Myself, which includes collabs with the likes of H.E.R. (“Playa”), Roddy Ricch (“B.R.O. (Better Ride Out)”), Kodak Black (“Water (Drowning Pt. 2)”) G Herbo (“Last Time”) and more.

Vote for the new music you’re loving the most in BIllboard‘s weekly poll below.

Remember in Glee season two when Rachel Berry debates getting a nose job, sings an iconic mashup of “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story and TLC‘s “Unpretty” with Quinn Fabray, then decides to embrace her natural beauty when reminded of her resemblance to her hero Barbra Streisand? Turns out, that all has a striking parallel to Lea Michele‘s real life.

In a Thursday (Dec. 8) interview with Town & Country, the Glee alum opened up about the constant pressure she faced as a young actress to surgically alter her face in order to align more with Hollywood’s beauty standards. “People would tell me to get nose jobs, that I wasn’t pretty enough for film and television,” she recalled.

But who else is a powerhouse vocalist and musical theater sensation whose nose is a key part of her unconventional beauty? Michele’s idol, Barbra Streisand, who originated the role of Fanny Brice in Broadway’s Funny Girl — the same role Michele is now playing in the show’s ongoing revival.

“She was an icon for me in my life,” the Scream Queens actress said of Streisand, to whom she’s been compared to throughout her career.

A couple days prior to the interview, Michele revealed on Late Night with Seth Meyers that the Way We Were icon had actually written her a sweet note about her Fanny Brice portrayal. “It was so surreal and such a wonderful moment,” she gushed about the note to Town & Country, revealing that she called Glee creator Ryan Murphy and former costar Jonathan Groff upon receiving it. “The fact that she acknowledged my performance—I could cry.”

“It was a beautiful, hand-written note that I will cherish,” she added. “She was incredibly complimentary,” Michele says. “It exists. It happened, and now I feel like so many dreams can come true.”

The Weeknd‘s billion views streak continues. The singer’s music video for “Save Your Tears” has hit 1 billion views on YouTube and becomes his fifth video in his catalogue to do so.

“Save Your Tears” was formally released as the fourth single from The Weeknd’s critically acclaimed and record breaking fourth studio album, After Hours, on Aug. 9, 2020. The video for the track, however, did not arrive on the video-streaming platform until the following year on Jan. 5.

The provocative visual sees the pop star — face drastically changed by numerous (fake) plastic surgeries — performing for masked attendees at a dinner party and engaging in disruptive antics such as dancing on tables, purposefully spilling champagne and walking around with a gun, which he later points to his head and shoots. Confetti — instead of a bullet — comes out of the firearm, and the audience erupts into applause by the conclusion of the video.

“Save Your Tears” is the latest video in The Weeknd’s videography to reach the 1 billion view mark. “Starboy” currently has 2.1 billion views, “The Hills” is at 1.9 billion, “Can’t Feel My Face” boasts 1.2 billion, and “I Feel It Coming” (featuring Daft Punk) has 1.04 billion.

The success of “Save Your Tears” doesn’t just extend to the video, it’s also reflected in the track’s performance on the Billboard charts. Following the release of After Hours on March 29, 2020, the song debuted on the April 4-dated Billboard Hot 100. Its remix, featuring Ariana Grande and released in April 2021, peaked in the No. 1 on the May 8, 2021-dated chart.

Revisit the video for “Save Your Tears” above.

The rumors are true: Mick Fleetwood’s balls are worth a whole lot of money. On Dec. 3 and 4 in Beverly Hills, items from the Fleetwood Mac archives were auctioned off shortly after the death of Christine McVie, with the biggest sale price — $128,000, to be exact — going to the pair of wooden balls sported by the band’s namesake on the iconic Rumours album cover.

The balls were just one (or two, if you want to be precise) of nearly 900 items sold during the sale — which was announced before McVie’s death — hosted by Julien’s Auctions. Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie’s belongings specifically were up for grabs, with the collection spanning used instruments, band memorabilia and nostalgic pieces of clothing.

A Thea Porter dress worn by McVie onstage in 1971 went for $31,250, and one of her Hammond organ speakers used on tour was sold for $37,500. The dress she wore on the back cover of Rumours brought in $56,250, while a crow top hat made by Stevie Nicks for Mick earned $16,000.

A portion of the auction’s proceeds were donated to MusiCares, according to the event’s webpage. The organization, run by the Recording Academy, provides health and human services to the music community.

The auction took place just a couple days after Christine passed away Nov. 30 at age 79 following “a short illness,” according to her family. Since her death, both the keyboardist’s former bandmates and artists from all over the world have put out statements mourning her, while Harry Styles performed perhaps her most recognizable song, “Songbird,” at a recent concert in her honor.

“A few hours ago I was told that my best friend in the whole world since the first day of 1975, had passed away,” wrote Nicks in an emotional message on Twitter. “See you on the other side, my love. Don’t forget me.”

You might have to wait a bit longer to get your early morning Snoop fix. Four months after Snoop Dogg announced that he was headed for the breakfast aisle with his “Snoop Loopz” cereal brand, the legendary MC claimed he’s being blocked by big cereal box.

“So they don’t want us to use Snoop Loopz on our cereal box even though that’s that’s my name. We’ve built a national brand and disrupted the cereal industry, we did it with hard work and integrity,” Snoop wrote in a message posted alongside a video in which he and partner Master P hold up boxes of the gluten-free Loopz that they promised would have “more corn, more flavor and more marshmallows” than other store brands.

“We’ve built a national brand and disrupted the cereal industry, we did it with hard work and integrity. I know they’re uncomfortable and scared. But our mission is to build diversity and economic empowerment. Times have changed. There’s enough room for all of us to be successful,” continued Snoop, who was offering the Loopz product through his Broadus Foods brand shingle.

“This is bigger than us, we are fighting for the next generation of entrepreneurs. We’re no longer just being consumers, we’re educating the culture building our own brands, and passing down generational wealth. Broadus Foods is all about helping the community. It’s official we’re taking over the breakfast foods industry. They can’t stop us.  It’s David versus Goliath. @masterp and I got the slingshot. This is a minor setback for a major comeback. #GodsPlan What do YOU think we should name our new cereal?”

The statement was accompanied by a video in which Master P said the more boxes of Loopz they sell the more they’re helping out their local communities through charitable efforts. “Snoop, you know when you’re doing something good,” P said, “the devil gotta show up,” Snoop replied. “We did this for the people, we did this for the family. We did this to make sure people got something to eat.”

Snoop praised P for distributing the cereal to those in need, with both men explaining — without naming names — that they are trying to make the breakfast aisle “diverse” for the current moment. “Cuz a lot of those cereals are based off past… this is based on the future,” Snoop said, shaking a colorful box of his brand. “We make people products.” When they announced Loopz in August, the pair said each purchase would be accompanied by a charitable donation.

While the rap legends did not name the company that is seemingly blocking their path, Billboard reached out to Froot Loops parent company Kellogg’s for comment; the company had not responded by press time. In the meantime, Snoop and P asked fans for their suggestions for a new name for their product.

Check out Snoop’s Loopz video below.