Music

April 25, 2019 4:05PM PT Confusing thoughtful criticism for personal attacks helps no one. When actor Olivia Munn tweeted a “short essay on…ugly behaviors” late Wednesday night, she insisted that a blog had been unfairly maligning her for years. She wrote that she wanted to confront the idea that baseless critiques, particularly those aimed at

Bruce Springsteen’s new single, “Hello Sunshine,” doesn’t officially arrive until midnight, but the Boss knows which side his bread is buttered on and has allowed SiriusXM’s E Street Radio to play the song earlier on Thursday — which it has, multiple times, although his voice is basically the only thing in the single that sounds

April 25, 2019 2:41PM PT Chvrches took to social media today to criticize collaborator Marshmello for working with Chris Brown and Tyga on his new single, “Light It Up.” “We are really upset, confused and disappointed by Marshmello’s choice to work with Tyga and Chris Brown,” the band tweeted. “We like and respect Mello as

On April 25, 2002, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes — one-third of the hip-hop-soul girl group TLC — died in a car accident in Honduras at the age of 30. West Coast rapper and actor Eastwood worked with Left Eye on her “Nina” solo project shortly before her death, and also worked with another icon who

Universal Music Group today announced that JJ Corsini and Chris Hovsepian (pictured above, right and left, respectively) each have been named Senior Vice President, Artist Development, effective Wed., May 1. They join from Apple Music, where they served as key members of the company’s Global Artist Relations team since the launch of the streaming service.

The organizers of the Woodstock 50 anniversary festival — scheduled for Aug. 16-18 in Upstate New York and headlined by Jay-Z, Dead & Company, Miley Cyrus and others — have issued a statement on the delay in the event’s ticket on-sale date, which was originally scheduled for Monday but was abruptly postponed over the weekend.

Bruce Springsteen’s long-promised solo album, “Western Stars,” will finally be released on Columbia Records on June 14. The first single and video from it, “Hello Sunshine,” will be released just after midnight ET tonight. According to the announcement, the album — Springsteen’s first new studio outing in five years — “takes his music to a

It’s a rare singer-songwriter who can just give away undeniable hits like “Nothing Compares 2 U,” “Manic Monday” and “The Glamorous Life” to other artists, but that’s exactly what Prince did throughout his 40-year career. And on his birthday, June 7, the late artist’s estate, in partnership with Warner Bros. Records and Tidal, will release

It’s no surprise that the elaborate “Madame X” concept surrounding Madonna’s forthcoming album of the same name is beginning to make more sense with the release of the video from the album’s first single. It elaborates on the album’s themes, which she previous aired in a series of Instagram clips (check them out for yourself

When Justin Bieber joined Ariana Grande on stage at the Coachella Festival Sunday night to perform his hit “Sorry,” there was little doubt in anyone’s mind about whether it was completely live, especially after both made a point of mentioning that he’d showed up with no intention of performing and there’d been no rehearsal. Fans

April 24, 2019 7:43AM PT Just weeks after Spotify launched in India without securing rights from Warner/Chappell Music Publishing, it is being sued by the country’s oldest record label, Saregama, and will remove that company’s 120,000-song catalog from its platform within 10 days, according to reports in Inc42 and Music Business Worldwide. The streaming giant

Def Jam Recordings has appointed industry veterans DJ Mormile and Jeff Burroughs (pictured above, right and left, respectively) to senior executive roles in its Los Angeles and New York offices, respectively. The announcement was made today by label Chairman & CEO Paul Rosenberg. Mormile — the L.A.-based manager who counts producer Mike Will Made It and

Sony/ATV Music Publishing has signed Grammy-winning songwriter, artist and producer Mustard to a worldwide deal. The Los Angeles-based hitmaker has worked with artists including YG, Rihanna, 2 Chainz, Drake, Migos, Chris Brown, Nipsey Hussle, Big Sean and many others, and won Best R&B Song at this year’s Grammy Awards for co-writing Ella Mai’s smash single

While the Tribeca Film Festival usually has strong music entries, this year has such a bounty that narrowing our top picks down to 10 was a challenge. This year’s offerings range from documentaries on the legendary Apollo Theater, the Wu-Tang Clan and Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman to music-adjacent films like Danny Boyle’s “Yesterday” (about

Just two nights out from Taylor Swift D-day spring 2019 — i.e., Thursday’s release of a new single — Swift made an appearance Tuesday at the Time 100 event in New York, where she did not let loose with any spoiler performances of new music but did sing a few fan favorites, including “Style,” “Delicate,” and

April 23, 2019 7:28PM PT Britney Spears took to Instagram Tuesday to reassure her fans that “all is well” after some expressed fears for her well-being. “Hi guys, just checking in with all of you that are concerned about me,” she said in a video. “All is well, my family has been going through a

The new Broadway adaptation of “Tootsie” is old-fashioned and proud of it — and it’s a surefire crowd-pleaser, in this musical spin on the 1982 film comedy with Santino Fontana in the Dustin Hoffman role. Robert Horn (book) and Tony-winner David Yazbek (score) have a high old time poking fun at theatrical rituals — the

April 23, 2019 2:39PM PT Michael Franti has signed a worldwide publishing deal with Position Music to maximize opportunities for his new music in film, television, advertising and gaming outlets. The singer and songwriter, best known for the 2010 hit “The Sound of Sunshine,” also moonlights as a poet and filmmaker and is known to

April 23, 2019 11:55AM PT Billie Eilish, Chance the Rapper, Post Malone and the Black Keys are a few of the more than 70 artists set to perform at the seventh annual Life Is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, which takes place from Sept. 20-22. Following sold-out shows for the last two years, the rapidly growing

It’s a legitimate question. Following the surprise appearance of *NSYNC members Lance Bass, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick with Ariana Grande at the Coachella music festival on April 15, could the group stage a comeback play without Justin Timberlake? The foursome took to the stage deep into Grande’s song “Break Up With Your

April 23, 2019 10:25AM PT Linda Perry, who was nominated at the most recent Grammy Awards as producer of the year, isn’t finished with her 2019 Grammy-related honors. She’ll be the subject of a tribute concert as part of a Grammy Museum benefit gala being held in her honor in downtown Los Angeles June 29.

The two brothers who allegedly participated in a staged hate attack on Jussie Smollett have filed a defamation suit against Smollett’s lawyers, accusing the attorneys of smearing their reputations in a bid to salvage Smollett’s image. Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo filed suit in federal court in Illinois on Tuesday. The suit alleges that Smollett’s attorneys

April 23, 2019 9:00AM PT Steve Lassiter, a 20-year veteran of talent agency APA, has been promoted to co-head of worldwide music, president and CEO Jim Gosnell announced today. Lassiter joins fellow co-heads of worldwide music Bruce Solar and Steve Martin. He most recently served as head of concerts at APA Nashville, where his roster

Malevolent toddler voice? Check. Boozy, foul-mouthed teddy bear voice? Got it. Silky-smooth singing baritone that can croon a saloon song all the way down to the bottom of the whiskey glass? Seth MacFarlane can do that, too. When he’s not minding his expanding multimedia empire, MacFarlane’s personal passion project is singing and recording classic tunes

Sony Music Entertainment today announced the promotion of Sylvia Rhone to Chairman and CEO of Epic Records. According to the announcement, in this role, Rhone will report to Rob Stringer, CEO, Sony Music Entertainment. She will lead the overall creative direction and management of Epic Records, overseeing a roster of chart-topping artists including Camila Cabello,

The last time Mars Wrigley’s Extra gum debuted an original ad campaign with original music, 2015’s “The Story of Sarah & Juan,” the spot achieved a rare made-for-synch trajectory for its custom cover of “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by former “American Idol” contestant Haley Reinhart. [embedded content] Reinhart’s romantic, vocals-and-piano version of the Elvis

On Tayla Parx’s debut album, “We Need to Talk,” released April 5th, fans finally got a glimpse of the preternaturally seasoned songwriter that they’d never seen — or, rather, heard — before. “It’s my perspective without any filter,” says Parx of her solo songs. “I’m an artist that pushes the boundaries of both genre and

As exclusively revealed by Variety last week, Beyonce’s ‘Lemonade’ album — which had been exclusively available for streaming on Tidal — is now available across all major streaming services, including Spotify and Apple Music. Upon its release in 2016, sources close to the singer said that the album would be a Tidal exclusive “in perpetuity,”

April 22, 2019 4:47PM PT A group of protesters gathered outside City Hall in West Hollywood on Monday afternoon (April 22) to demand the release of pop star Britney Spears from a psychiatric facility. Carrying “Free Britney” signs and chanting “Hands off, Britney” and “Justice for Britney” about a dozen fans took to the corner

April 22, 2019 2:35PM PT Danny Cooper has been named senior vice president of promotion at Arista Records, it was announced today by John Boulos, the label’s executive VP of promotion. In this role, Cooper will work closely with Boulos in all areas of promotion across genres, and oversee Arista’s promotion staff throughout the U.S.