Jennifer Lopez and Scarlett Johansson are set to host episodes of “Saturday Night Live” in December. Lopez, who will headline the 2020 Super Bowl Halftime Show with Shakira and whose performance in the movie “Hustlers” is generating Oscar buzz, will host the Dec. 7 episode with DaBaby making his first appearance on the show as
Music
The slate of awards hopefuls is new each year, but there is always a sense of continuity, of new contenders’ connections to the past. For example, Alexandre Desplat, a strong Golden Globes and Oscar possibility this year for his score to Sony’s “Little Women,” can trace the influence of his predecessors on his work. Growing
For years, the Grammys fielded all-too-familiar accusations over some of the more head-scratching choices. Critics charged them with being out of touch with modern music. Exhibit A, for album of the year: They often turned that contest into a de facto lifetime achievement award, recognizing releases by acts who were in the sunset of their
November 20, 2019 7:30AM PT Aziz Ansari’s “Right Now” has been nominated for the Grammy Award for best comedy album. He is nominated alongside Dave Chappelle’s “Sticks & Stones,” Jim Gaffigan’s “Quality Time,” Ellen DeGeneres’ “Relatable” and Trevor Noah’s “Son of Patricia.” “Right Now” was directed by Spike Jonze and was released on Netflix in
Rapper Lil Nas X shared some choice words to celebrate his first Grammy nomination. “No f—ing way,” he tweeted Wednesday morning after nominees were revealed. Lil Nas X, whose earworm “Old Town Road” with Billy Ray Cyrus dominated music charts all summer, scored six nods, including record of the year, album of the year and
With five Grammy nominations revealed this morning, including nods in marquee categories album of the year (for “Thank You, Next”) and record of the year (for “7 Rings”), Ariana Grande is having one sweet (revenge) day. The showing comes a year after a well-publicized dispute between Grande and longtime Grammys producer Ken Ehrlich — whose
Who imagined they’d wake up to a Grammy morning in 2019 where Tanya Tucker has more nominations than Taylor Swift? Where Bruce Springsteen’s most acclaimed album since “The Rising” gets zero nominations, but a far less publicized release by Bon Iver is up for both album and record of the year? Where the Jonas Brothers,
While Lizzo can rightfully be proud of being the 2020 Grammy Awards top nominee with eight nods, in a certain sense, Billie Eilish’s family — the 17-year-old singer and her brother and musical collaborator Finneas O’Connell — are the actual leaders with 11. The pair wrote nearly every song she’s released together, and Finneas (who
There’s a new class in town at the Grammys, as three newcomers — Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X — are the top nominees for the 2020 awards, with eight, six and six nods, respectively. Ariana Grande, H.E.R. and Eilish’s brother and musical collaborator Finneas O’Connell are next with five (making 11 total noms
In one fell swoop, Wilco have released a new video for “Before Us,” a song from their recent album “Ode to Joy,” and a brace of North American tour dates for the spring of next year. is pleased to announce their 2020 spring North American Tour. The video was directed and filmed by Zoran Orlic at The Loft in Chicago during recording
During an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music’s Beat 1, Danielle Haim of the band Haim revealed that she was so starstruck when meeting Justin Timberlake that she messed up the title of “FutureSex/LoveSounds” and cried in a bathroom afterward. “We met him maybe a couple of years ago, and first of all I
November 19, 2019 10:16AM PT Singer-songwriter-actor Mandy Moore has announced dates for a 2020 North American tour — her first concert tour in more than a decade. The trek kicks off on March 20 in Pittsburgh and wraps in Denver early in May (full dates appear below). Singer-songwriter Bedouine supports on all dates. “It’s been over
Going into the nominations for the 2020 Grammy Awards, which will be announced Wednesday morning, there are some big question marks: Will Lil Nas X take the old town road to Staples Center, or be told to hit the highway? Might Taylor Swift, nearly shut out of nominations on her last album, have her awards
November 19, 2019 7:20AM PT With the help of 15-time Grammy Award winner Alicia Keys, the 2020 Grammy Awards nominees will be announced Nov. 20 at approximately 8:20 a.m. ET. Done in conjunction with with “CBS This Morning,” Recording Academy president/CEO Deborah Dugan and chair of the board of trustees Harvey Mason Jr. will announce
Billie Eilish has been named Variety‘s Hitmaker of the Year, capping off a whirlwind 2019 for the 17-year-old singer and songwriter. The Darkroom/Interscope Records artist will be feted at the third annual Hitmakers Brunch, sponsored by Citi, to be held on Dec. 7 in Los Angeles. Eilish will also grace the cover of Variety’s all-music
November 19, 2019 6:27AM PT Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees The Doobie Brothers today announced a 30-city North American tour to celebrate the 50 th anniversary of the band’s founding — one that will include singer/keyboardist Michael McDonald. While the group has been treading the boards consistently for many years, this is the
Country Radio Seminar has nominated nine young artists as the genre’s top freshmen of 2019, with voting now open to radio pros to whittle the list down to five for the New Faces showcases that’s set to cap the annual gathering in Nashville Feb. 21. The nine nominees for New Faces status at Country Radio
A pair of Atlanta concerts featuring Keith Urban, Blake Shelton and Eric Church over the weekend brought more than 90,000 fans to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium and raised more than $200,00 for military support organizations. Friday’s show featured Urban, Shelton, Sam Hunt, Sugarland, Judah & the Lion and Cale Dodds rounded; Sunday’s lineup was Church, Luke
As expected, rumored and denied multiple times in recent weeks, Motley Crue today announced that its “cessation of touring” agreement is now “off the table,” clearing the way for the band to tour again. While the announcement stops short of declaring that the group will tour in 2020, as rumored, clearly that is the endgame.
UPDATED: In a confusing series of conflicting statements on Monday, Big Machine Records claimed that it had reached an agreement with Dick Clark Productions that would allow Taylor Swift to perform songs from her stint with the label on the American Music Awards this weekend — which was a key point in last week’s public
“Jingle” Jared Gutstadt has added another title to his already extensive resume. The co-founder of music marketing agency Jingle Punks and co-creator of iHeartRadio’s “Bear and a Banjo” podcast has joined the Institute of Emerging Media at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in the role of Chief Collaborator-in-Residence. In this position, Gutstadt will spearhead
November 18, 2019 7:48AM PT In line with his recent spate of Christian-themed “Sunday Service” performances and his “Jesus Is King” album, Kanye West will present an opera titled “Nebuchadnezzar” at the Hollywood Bowl on Sunday, Nov. 24, he and the venue announced on social media yesterday. West shared a photo of a gold-plated invitation to
Even though Motley Crue signed a legal document confirming that their lucrative 2014-15 “Final Tour” would be their last, the group is plotting a trek in 2020, sources tell Variety. Rolling Stone reported today that Def Leppard and Poison will be joining the group for the tour, which it says will include stadiums; reps for
November 18, 2019 6:34AM PT Three cheers for a sweet reunion! Eyeliner sales are poised to skyrocket, because My Chemical Romance posted their first photo together since announcing that they are reforming for at least one comeback show — their first gig together in seven years. The black and white picture shows Gerard Way, Mikey
Republic Records has named Mel Carter as senior vice president of A&R, executive VP Rob Stevenson announced today. In his new role, Carter will scout, sign, and foster new talent for the Republic roster. Additionally, he will continue to oversee the current roster on his imprint, Hikari Ultra, under its joint venture with Republic. In 2018, Carter began consulting for the company and eventually
More than two decades since INXS frontman Michael Hutchence died, beloved ballad “Never Tear Us Apart” is still being heard in venues throughout Australia and as recently as Saturday night (Nov. 16), when Matchbox Twenty singer Rob Thomas brought out INXS’ Andrew Farriss to the stage. The two led a poignant 9,000-person singalong at Bimbadgen
Pop maestro Max Martin is not a fan of giving interviews, but opened up in a new interview with the UK Telegraph, revealing a few secrets to his success. While the 48-year-old hit maker is credited with more than 70 US Top 10 hits and 22 No. 1s —including “Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears,
November 17, 2019 9:26AM PT The past couple of seasons of “Saturday Night Live” have seen some impressive hosting/musical performer double-duty stints, including Childish Gambino, Halsey and Chance the Rapper — and last night Harry Styles was more than up to the challenge. The singer appeared in nearly every skit — including turns as a
November 17, 2019 8:59AM PT Bruce Springsteen stunned attendees at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey Saturday night with a surprise two-hour performance at a private event benefiting Boston College. The lucky 400 attendees for the invite-only event got a 22-song set that included hits from his albums “Born in the USA,” “Born
When it comes to the exact drop away mechanics of how Reba McEntire pulled off multiple costume changes on camera at this year’s CMA Awards, only her dresser knows for sure. But longtime executive producer Robert Deaton can at least tell us approximately how many dozen rehearsals went into that performance of “Fancy.” And when