Month: September 2023

Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album, Guts, debuts atop the Billboard 200 chart (dated Sept. 23), scoring the singer-songwriter her second No. 1 set, following her 2021 debut Sour. The new album starts with 302,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 14, according to Luminate. That marks the fourth-largest week for any album in 2023 and Rodrigo’s best week yet.

With both Sour and Guts having debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, Rodrigo is the first female artist to start atop the chart with two first chart entries in nine years. Ariana Grande was the last woman to debut at No. 1 with two initial chart entries, with Yours Truly in 2013 and My Everything in 2014.

Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200, BTS’ V debuts at No. 2 with Layover, while Tyler Childers’ Rustin’ in the Wind launches at No. 10.

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 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Sept. 23, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Sept. 19. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of Guts’ 302,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Sept. 14, SEA units comprise 151,000 (equaling 199.59 million on-demand official streams of the set’s 12 songs — the sixth-largest debut streaming week of 2023), album sales comprise 150,000 (powered by 94,000 in vinyl sales — the seventh-largest week for a vinyl album since Luminate began electronically tracking sales in 1991) and TEA units comprise 1,000.

Guts was introduced by its first single “Vampire,” which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart (dated July 15), marking her third leader. (She previously topped the chart with Sour’s “Drivers License” and “Good 4 U.”) Before Guts’ arrival, it spun off another Hot 100 hit with “Bad Idea Right?,” which debuted and peaked (through the most recently published chart dated June 16) at No. 10 (Aug. 26 chart).

Rodrigo ushered in the album with major promotional appearances, including performances on NBC’s Today (Sept. 8, the day of the album’s release) and the MTV Video Music Awards (Sept. 12). She also did interviews with Today (Sept. 10) and with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1’s New Music Daily (Sept. 8), and made an appearance at the American Express and Spotify Guts Gallery pop-up activation in New York on Sept. 7. Further, her upcoming Guts World Tour was announced on Sept. 13, with the trek starting on Feb. 23 in Palm Springs, Calif.

Guts’ first-week sales were bolstered by its availability across 13 different vinyl variants (including a signed edition), two deluxe boxed sets containing a vinyl LP and branded merchandise, four CD editions (including a signed version), two deluxe boxed sets containing a CD and branded merchandise, and a cassette tape.

BTS’ V sees his first solo studio album, Layover, launch at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, earning 100,000 equivalent album units in its first week. Of that sum, album sales comprise 88,000, SEA units comprise 9,000 (equaling 12.95 million on-demand official streams of the set’s six tracks) and TEA units comprise 3,000. Layover’s debut was enhanced by its availability in 13 collectible CD iterations, all with randomized branded merch elements contained inside, with exclusive variants sold via Barnes & Noble, Target, Walmart and the Weverse store.

Zach Bryan’s self-titled album falls to No. 3 on the Billboard 200 (95,000 equivalent album units; down 18%) after spending its first two weeks at No. 1. Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping One Thing at a Time slips 2-4 (78,000; down 7%), Travis Scott’s former No. 1 Utopia drops 3-5 (56,000; down 22%), and SZA’s former leader SOS is a non-mover at No. 6 (45,000; up 1%).

Peso Pluma’s Génesis rises one spot to No. 7 (43,000 equivalent album units; up 4%), Taylor Swift’s former No. 1 Midnights falls 5-8 (42,000; down 7%), and Wallen’s first No. 1, Dangerous: The Double Album, ascends 10-9 (39,000; down 4%).

Childers rounds out the top 10, as his latest release, Rustin’ in the Rain, debuts at No. 10 with 38,000 equivalent album units earned — his best week yet by total units. It’s the second top 10-charting effort for the artist, following Can I Take My Hounds To Heaven (No. 8 in 2022). Of Rain’s 38,000 first-week units, album sales comprise 25,000 and SEA units comprise 13,000 (equaling 17.39 million on-demand official streams of the set’s seven songs), rounded out by a negligible amount of TEA units.

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.

Irish Grinstead, a member of R&B girl group 702, has died. She was 43.

Grinstead’s sister and fellow 702 member, LeMisha Grinstead, shared the sad news through Instagram on Saturday (Sept. 16).

“It is with great sadness that I have to let you know that my beautiful sister and friend has passed away this evening,” the artist wrote. “She has had a long battle and she is finally at peace. That girl was as bright as the stars! She was not only beautiful on the outside, but also within. Sharing the stage with her was a joy I will cherish for the rest of my life! We, the family ask for prayers and respect for our privacy as we grieve an outstanding loss to our family.”

A cause of death was not provided, but 702 announced in December 2022 that Irish Grinstead was taking a “medical leave of absence due to serious medical issues.”

The Las Vegas trio, which also included member Kameelah Williams, released their debut album, No Doubt, in 1996. The set featured a guest appearance by Missy Elliott on first single “Steelo.” Three years later, the group’s smash “Where My Girls At?” (co-written by Elliott) peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. 702’s eponymous sophomore set, also released in 1999, peaked at No. 7 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 34 on the Billboard 200.

702, named after the area code of their Las Vegas hometown, released their final album, Star, in 2003, and parted ways a few years later. The album featured production by the Neptunes and guest features by Clipse and Pharrell Williams.

Following the news of Grinstead’s death, Williams took to social media to share a heartwarming tribute.

“Devastated & heartbroken. I struggled with this post because to me this isn’t real,” she wrote on Instagram. “There’s a lot I want to say, but there’s no way to say what your heart hasn’t fully accepted. It’s hard to acknowledge this is even happening. I know you’re feeling better now and hugging your twin Orish which makes me smile cus I know how much you missed her. You & I have known each other since we were kids and we’ve laughed, cried, celebrated, and everything in between which is why I just don’t want to believe this.”

Elliott also remembered the singer in a touching post on X (formerly Twitter). “Irish May your beautiful soul Rest Peacefully in the arms of the Lord A Multitude of prayers for the entire Grinstead family,” she wrote.

Michael McGrath, a Broadway character actor who shined in zany, feel-good musicals and won a Tony Award for Nice Work If You Can Get It, has died. He was 65.

McGrath died Thursday (Sept. 14) at his home in Bloomfield, New Jersey, said his publicist, Lisa Goldberg. No other details were announced.

“Michael McGrath was as wonderful offstage as he was on,” wrote Michael Urie in tribute. “Adorable, mischievous, brilliant. His loss cuts deep, but I will continue to take everything he taught me wherever I go.”

McGrath was in over a dozen Broadway shows including Plaza Suite, She Loves Me, Tootsie and Spamalot as well as on television as the sidekick to Martin Short on The Martin Short Show.

“Very saddened to hear that Michael McGrath our first and most beloved Patsy in Spamalot, has passed away,” wrote Monty Python member Eric Idle. “Warm hugs to all the Spamalot family and very happy memories of a lovely man.”

In 2012, McGrath won the Tony for best actor in a featured musical role playing wise guy Cookie McGee in Nice Work If You Can Get It starring Matthew Broderick and Kelli O’Hara.

He also played a hard-boiled radio station owner in Memphis and showed fine vaudevillian chops in On the Twentieth Century singing “Five Zeros,” an ode to the joys of money.

In a 2007 review of Follies at City Center, The Associated Press said McGrath “exudes a pugnacious, good-time Charlie conviviality that also hides insecurities. The actor also moves with the confidence of a born hoofer, particularly in his ″’The God-Why-Don’t-You-Love-Me Blues.’″

He is survived by his wife of 30 years, actor Toni Di Buono and a daughter, actor Katie Claire McGrath.

Taylena alert! Selena Gomez showed off some sweet selfies with Taylor Swift on Saturday (Sept. 16).

Gomez posted a pair of pictures on Instagram, pointing out in the caption that Swift is perpetually at the top of her game.

“Thas my best frien -she a real bad,” Gomez wrote in a sweet Instagram update. The frame-worthy snapshots showed them enjoying time together by the sea, with smiles and kisses on cheeks. The photos were likely taken at Swift’s 4th of July party with her “neighborhood independent girlies,” including Gomez and Haim, since she’s wearing the same (now sold-out) Christy Dawn sundress in each set of pics.

The “Single Soon” singer was likely quoting a line from Saweetie‘s feel-good ‘Best Friend’ feat. Doja Cat, which reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021, spending 30 weeks total on the chart. “Best Friend” has the two complimenting one another’s self-reliance, wealth and beauty in its verses: “I’ma hype her every time, that my motherf—in’ friend.”

Gomez shared another picture with best friend Swift earlier in the week from the MTV VMAs, dryly commenting in an Instagram Story, “She looks stunning, I look constipated. Typical.”

Both VMA winners served meme-worthy moments and reactions caught on camera during the awards ceremony — one of MTV’s audience cams seemed stuck on Swift with a drink in hand throughout — though Gomez might not have been that amused by the chatter concerning her expressions. “I will never be a meme again,” she wrote in an Instagram Story after the show. “I’d rather sit still than be dragged for being myself. Much love.”

See their sunshiny summer selfies together below.

Sean “Diddy” Combs got the key to New York City on Friday (Sept. 15), the same day that he released his first studio album in 17 years.

“The bad boy of entertainment is getting the key to the city from the bad boy of politics!” Mayor Eric Adams said as he presented a giant key to Combs in Times Square.

The entertainer thanked Adams and shouted, “Diddy finally has the key to the city!”

Combs, 53, was born in New York City and raised in nearby Mount Vernon.

His new album The Love Album – Off the Grid is his first solo studio project since 2006.

It features nearly 30 guest artists including Mary J. Blige, Justin Bieber, H.E.R., Babyface, John Legend and Busta Rhymes.

Diddy took the 2023 MTV VMAs stage in New Jersey on Sunday night to perform a career-spanning medley of hits and accept this year’s MTV Global Icon award.

Accepting the moonperson, the Billboard cover star thanked the crowd and called the award “a dream come true for me — I grew up watching MTV like, ‘Man, I wish one day I could be up there,’” before starting the audience on a “Baaaad Boyyyyy” chant.

Three British news organizations reported Saturday (Sept. 16) that comedian and social influencer Russell Brand has been accused of rape, sexual assault and abuse based on allegations from four women who knew him over a seven-year period at the height of his fame.

Brand denied the allegations and said that all of his relationships have been consensual.

The Sunday Times, The Times of London and Channel 4’s “Dispatches” said that one woman alleged she had been raped, while three others accused him of sexual assault. One of the women also said he had been physically and emotionally abusive.

The women said that they only felt ready to tell their stories after being approached by reporters, with some citing Brand’s newfound prominence as an online wellness influencer as a factor in their decision to speak.

Before the stories were published, Brand posted a video online denying the allegations, which had been outlined in two “extremely disturbing letters” from a “mainstream media” television company and a newspaper. He didn’t identify the news organizations by name.

“Amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute,” he said. “These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies and, as I have written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous.”

“Now during that time of promiscuity the relationships I had were absolutely, always consensual,” he added. “I was always transparent about that then, almost too transparent, and I am being transparent about it now as well.”

Brand also suggested that the reports were part of a coordinated attack designed to discredit him because of his views. Brand has been criticized for expressing skepticism about COVID-19 vaccines and interviewing contentious podcasters like Joe Rogan.

“To see that transparency metastasized into something criminal, that I absolutely deny, makes me question is there another agenda at play,” Brand said.

Brand rose to fame as a stand-up comic in Britain in the early 2000s, which led to starring roles on Channel 4 and later BBC Radio, where he capitalized on a reputation for outrageous behavior and risque banter.

He later made the jump to Hollywood, appearing in films such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall in 2008 and the remake of Arthur in 2011. Brand was married to U.S. pop star Katy Perry from 2010-2012.

In recent years, he transformed himself into a political commentator and influencer posting YouTube videos on subjects such as personal freedom and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shakira is set to release a new song in collaboration with Fuerza Regida.

The Colombian superstar took to social media on Friday (Sept. 15) to announce “El Jefe,” which is set to drop Wednesday (Sept. 20). When talking about her upcoming new track during an interview with ET, Shakira didn’t reveal much and only teased, “I”m not the boss in this song, but wait and see.”

Then, she posted a snippet of “El Jefe,” Shakira’s first venture into música mexicana, that’s about someone who has the mentality of a millionaire but doesn’t actually have money. “You’re dreaming of leaving the barrio, you have everything it takes to be a millionaire, expensive taste, the mentality, you’re just missing a salary,” she sings over a fast-paced beat.

Shakira’s collab with Fuerza Regida is a reflection of Mexican music’s dominance and influence on Latin music today. With acts like Fuerza at the forefront, the genre is having a record year growing in popularity in the United States and beyond. In May, Billboard reported that regional Mexican music consumption in the U.S. jumped 42.1% year to date through May 25, outpacing gains in the Latin genre overall, as well as country, dance/electronic, rock and pop, according to Luminate.

The new song announcement arrives just days after Shakira’s show-stopping performance at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 12, where she sang a medley of her hits, including “She Wolf,” “Hips Don’t Lie,” “Objection” and newer ones such as “Te Felicito” and “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53.”

The singer-songwriter also made history at the VMAs, becoming the first South American artist to receive the Video Vanguard Award. She is the second Latin artist to receive the award; Jennifer Lopez, the first performer of Latin descent, received the honor in 2018.

Check out a teaser of “El Jefe” below:

Fans will have to wait a little longer for Drake‘s new album.

The superstar rapper announced through social media on Friday night (Sept. 15) that the release of his his upcoming album, For All the Dogs, has been postponed to Oct. 6 so that he can complete his It’s All a Blue tour. The set was previously scheduled to drop on Sept. 22.

“Okay my dilemma I am faced with is either cancel shows to finish the album or I complete the mission and drop the album before the last show,” Drake wrote on his Instagram Story. “I owe you all these memories we are building and anywhere we have missed to date we will be spinning back for sure.”

He concluded the post, writing, “For All the Dogs October 6th. It’s only right…”

Drizzy’s It’s All a Blur tour is currently scheduled to finish on Oct. 9 in Columbus, Ohio, with two additional U.S. dates in the works. An Oct. 6 release of For All the Dogs would fall on the rapper’s back-to-back concerts in his hometown of Toronto.

The postponement announcement follows the release of Drake’s new song “Slime You Out,” featuring SZA.

For All The Dogs marks the 6 God’s eighth studio album and his first solo album since his dance-heavy Honestly, Nevermind project that he released in June 2022. Five months later, he teamed up with 21 Savage on their joint album, Her Loss. Both releases debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. 

Exactly one year ago, on Sept. 15, 2022, we launched Billboard Español. Our first cover artist was Colombian star Camilo, who, when we interviewed him, was in the midst of finalizing the top-selling tour in Spain that year, a milestone for a Latin act.

We literally began from zero. We launched a brand new website that didn’t exist. By the end of September 2022, we had more than 70,000 page views and nearly 30,000 unique users.

Today, 12 months later, Billboard Español has nearly 900,000 unique monthly users and in August alone, we had more than 14 million page views. We went from zero to 14 million in a year.

This is a story of total success, and in our eyes, a story of inescapable success. We saw and we understood what it’s taken others years to comprehend: Music in Spanish is consumed everywhere in the world.

Billboard Español started as a personal dream. For the past two decades — with passion, dedication and consistency — we built Billboard as the essential destination for Latin music.

There wasn’t, and there still isn’t, any other global brand where music in Spanish is covered, celebrated and promoted to such a degree. No media brand in English covered, or covers music in Spanish daily as we do in Billboard. Our growth was slow, constant, and always at the forefront. We never flagged, not even in the worst moments for our music. We always understood that there was a present and a brilliant future for Latin music that others would eventually comprehend.

And that’s what happened. In 2021, when we proposed Billboard Español, music in Spanish was already consumed universally. Even though Billboard is a U.S. brand that works predominantly in English, leadership understood the importance of music in Spanish and gave us the necessary resources to launch a brand entirely in our language, with content made for Spanish speaking fans.

Before launch, we hired the best possible editorial team. Renowned Venezuelan journalist Sigal Ratner-Arias came on as deputy editor of Billboard Español, bringing with her two decades of extraordinary and highly respected trajectory as the entertainment editor of AP in Spanish. She’s a brilliant leader.  

Mexican-American Isabela Raygoza came on as associate editor. Together with our existing Billboard Latin editors — Griselda Flores, Jessica Roiz and Ingrid Fajard — and Luisa Calle as our SEO specialist, we have a formidable team.  

We like to say we’re small but mighty. Our commitment to the music, the artists and the industry is unwavering and it’s taken us to extraordinary heights. In addition to covering music daily — via interviews, exclusives, news, social media and video — we also launched a suite of new and extraordinary properties.

In May, we celebrated our first edition of Latin Women In Music, where, in addition to recognizing the accomplishments of 50 female executives in Latin music, we honored Thalia, Evaluna Montaner, María Becerra, Ana Gabriel, Goyo and Shakira as Woman of the Year. The gala aired on Telemundo, our broadcasting partner.

We had cover stories with Bad Bunny, Fuerza Regida, Lele Pons and Guaynaa and RBD, in their first interview as a group in 15 years. We launched new franchises: On The Radar, The Stars Behind the Stars and of course, our very read and commented lists.

We are a team of women committed to excellence and success. And above all, committed to music. We invite you to continue walking alongside us in this successful path. Our future, and the future of our music, is bright.