Innholdsfortegnelse for May-03-14 i Billboard Magazine

Gwen Stefani is being wooed by multiple suitors. According to sources, the No Doubt frontwoman, 44, was close to signing on as a judge for ABC’s summer singing competition Rising Star before choosing NBC’s The Voice. Helping sway the singer’s vote? Mega manager Irving Azoff (Eagles, Van Halen, Chelsea Handler). He suggested Stefani replace another of his clients, Christina Aguilera, who will take a hiatus to have a baby. Although at press time the deal was not yet done, Stefani is expected to join Pharrell Williams, who takes Cee Lo Green’s chair, for season seven in the fall. “She’s a friend of the family,” Azoff tells Billboard of his relationship with Stefani. The singer and her band No Doubt recently parted ways with Jim Guerinot, their manager since 1998. Stefani’s…

1978 With the release of debut album For You, Prince begins his first relationship with Warner Bros., which yields some of his best work. 1982 The first reference to his band The Revolution appears in backward type on the cover of his breakthrough album, 1999. 1984 Releases his best-selling album, Purple Rain, and in a then-revolutionary bit of crosspromotion stars in the hit movie of the same name. 1996 Prince’s relationship with Warners ends acrimoniously because the label wanted him to release fewer albums and not saturate the market. 1994 Prince embraces the digital age by releasing Interactive, a CD-ROM that includes a video game, unreleased music and interviews. 1993 As his relationship with Warners deteriorates, Prince changes his name to a symbol with no official name. 1991 Diamonds and…

On a corner in Midtown Mahattan, Alejandro Manzano, 27, waits patiently for his time in front of the camera. It’s a familiar spot for Alejandro, who, with his brothers Daniel, 32, and Fabian, 29, sings covers of hits on the Billboard Hot 100, as well as originals, on YouTube under the name Boyce Avenue. They’ve achieved all the hallmarks of major pop stars: sold-out European tours, studio time with top hitmakers, morning TV bookings — and more than $4 million in revenue last year. Everything except mass face recognition. “What are you, in a band or something?” a passerby asks Alejandro. Well, yes. One soon to appear on Good Morning America to more than 5.4 million viewers, though Boyce Avenue performs for a larger audience on a weekly basis. The…

The View co-host Jenny McCarthy, 41, announced her engagement to singeractor Donnie Wahlberg, 44, on the April 16 episode. He popped the question with help from her 11-yearold son, Evan. This is the second marriage for both. Scoop Marketing publicist Erik Stein and his fiancee, Publicity Please owner Renee Harrison, announced their engagement on Feb. 13. The Los Angeles-based couple, both veterans of major labels, chose the date because Stein says it combined “the good luck of ‘13’ and neatly avoided Valentine’s Day.” Puerto Rican salsa legend Cheo Feliciano, who was a member of the Fania All Stars , died in a car accident on April 17 in Puerto Rico. He was 78. Country singersongwriter Raymond “Mundo” Earwood succumbed to pancreatic cancer on April 21. The artist, 61, was best-known…

PICTURE 300 TO 400 young women queued up inside a local mall. Some are crying; others are screaming. Many brandish gifts ranging from letters and handmade posters to cologne. One even totes a cake. That was the scene on April 16 during an August Alsina meet-and-greet at the Hall of Fame Music Store in Queens. It was one of several stops on the R&B newcomer’s releaseweek promo tour for his debut album Testimony (NNTME/Def Jam) that included a layover in his native New Orleans. “To see so many people come out and support me where I grew up and then in New York — you know how tough New York is — it feels good,” says Alsina. The 21-year-old’s good feelings will no doubt continue with the Billboard 200 dated…

“Thank you @coachella for giving me one of the best experiences of my life.” —@Pharrell 1 Cage the Elephant’s Matt Shultz took a break on a golf cart backstage at the Empire Polo Club at Coachella on April 19. 2 Lana Del Rey immersed herself in the throng while singing her new single, “West Coast,” on April 20. 3 Joe Jonas almost blended in with other festivalgoers as he walked through the crowd on April 19. 4 Solange performed songs from her True EP including “Losing You” and “Lovers in the Parking Lot” in the Gobi tent on April 19. 5 Jay Z surprised fans during Pharrell Williams’ set . 6 Montreal-based electronic duo Adventure Club’s Leighton James (left) and Christian Srigley (right) hung with singer-collaborator Yuna backstage on April…

Photographed byJONATHON KAMBOURIS LL Cool J Don’t call it a comeback — LL has been sporting the classic Kangol fuzzy version for years. Schoolboy Q The rapper is seldom seen sans bucket, favoring DJ-designer Aaron Lacrate’s Milkcrate brand. Miley Cyrus Cyrus disrupts the boys’ club with her pearl-embellished version (Chanel no less).…

1 HER MARRIAGE TO TOMMY MOTTOLA, 1993. Carey first wrote about her unhappy first marriage on 1995’s “Looking In,” and their 1997 divorce inspired the album Butterfly. Of her early years, she still speaks as if she was a prisoner, noting, “I wasn’t allowed to tour. I couldn’t do the arrangements the way I would have wanted to.” 2 “ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU,” 1994. Celebrating its 20th anniversary later this year, the Merry Christmas anthem has become the biggest-selling Christmas song of all time. Up next: a Christmas-themed movie, which Carey has hinted at for later this year. 3 HER MARRIAGE AND THE BIRTH OF HER TWINS, 2008/2011. Carey’s marriage to Nick Cannon and the birth of twins Moroccan and Monroe have given the self-confessed “studio rat”…

Stephen Popovich Jr. lives with his wife and two young sons in Murfreesboro, Tenn., a working-class suburb not far from Nashville. Their home is modest — “It’s not a mansion by any means,” he says — and there is nothing at all about Popovich’s lifestyle to suggest his late father had been the founder-owner of Cleveland International, a custom label distributed by Sony Music that is best-known for releasing one of the biggestselling albums of all time — Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell. Popovich Jr. inherited a good deal from his father, who died of heart failure in 2011: pride, stubbornness, a penchant for plain speaking and a reputation for honesty He did not, however, inherit a fortune. When Sony, in a breathtaking yet somehow classic display of plantation-system…

Sitting on a deceptively uncomfortable sofa in the inner sanctum of his West London studio, Damon Albarn is recounting the often torturous creative process that led to his long-awaited solo debut, the sublime Everyday Robots, due April 28 on Warner Music. “A lot of time I am rocking on the piano or guitar and just staring into the distance, feeling completely hopeless,” he says. “But I kind of like that. I like the masochistic, monklike flagellation I put myself through. I drive myself to the edge of insanity most days. But as yet, touch wood,” he continues, reaching to tap a bookcase and dispatching a sly grin, “I haven’t gone over the edge.” Scattered around the youthfullooking 46-year-old’s studio are numerous subtle reminders of just how productive his gift for…

Lykke Li has described her third album, I Never Learn, as the final installment in a trilogy, but the lonely woman at the center of the new set is almost unrecognizable compared with the honeydew-voiced pixie who arrived with 2008’s Youth Novels. Back then, the Swedish singersongwriter embodied the joy of possibility, both professionally and personally. Li sang about flirtation on songs like “Little Bit” and “Dance, Dance, Dance” in a charmingly timid voice, with sparse, twee indie-pop as her chosen medium, yet her quirky curiosity hinted that she could expand her sound (and audience) in several different directions. Li fulfilled some of this promise with her bigger, more confident 2011 sophomore album, Wounded Rhymes, which was primed to be her mainstream coronation, but it never truly caught hold. The…

The soundtrack to Disney’s Frozen, fueled by Easter shopping, earns its biggest sales week yet and 11th week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The album sold 259,000 copies in the week ending April 20, according to Nielsen SoundScan. (The Easter holiday was April 20.) That’s up 94 percent compared with the previous week, when the album shifted 133,000 at No. 1. This is also the fifth consecutive week that Frozen sold more than 100,000 copies. To date, the album has sold 2.3 million. As the weeks tick by, Frozen continues to rack up impressive chart feats. Since SoundScan’s point-of-sale data began powering the Billboard 200’s rankings on May 25, 1991, Frozen is just the ninth album — and third soundtrack — to spend at least 11 weeks at…

Wright Leads Rap Debuts Las Vegas native Dizzy Wright opens at No. 5 on Rap Albums with his State of Mind EP moving 7,000 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It’s his third appearance on the chart following his 2012 EP The First Agreement (No. 25 peak) and his 2013 mixtape The Golden Age (No. 23). State of Mind is a teaser for Wright’s as-yet-untitled sophomore album, expected this year on rapper Hopsin’s independent label Funk Volume. Wright’s fulllength debut, Smoke Out Conversations, opened at No. 42 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums with 2,000 copies exactly two years ago. Christian rapper Da T.R.U.T.H. returns to the top 10 of Rap Albums with his Heartbeat selling 4,000 copies to enter at No. 8. His 2013 release Love Hope War debuted at No. 10…

Cher Kills On The Road Cher (above) makes her first Boxscore chart appearance since kicking off the Dressed to Kill tour, currently on the road in North America through mid-July. Touring in support of the album Closer to the Truth, released in September, the entertainer will play arenas in 49 cities this year. National promoter Marshall Arts USA reported revenue totals from the first 13 sold-out shows, and seven of those performances land on the chart. With veteran rockers Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo onboard as openers during this first run of dates, the Dressed to Kill tour has been attended by 163,000 fans since the March 22 launch. Toronto’s Air Canada Centre claims the top gross and attendance counts, landing at No. 9 with $1.7 million in sales from…

1D’s Big ‘You’ Debut After a nine-week absence from the top 10 on the Social 50, One Direction (above) returns to the region, vaulting 14-8 after the debut of its video for “You & I” on April 18. The vacation from the region was the group’s longest time away since it first breached the top 10 on Jan. 28, 2012. One Direction’s 101 percent increase in weekly video plays (in the week ending April 20) comes primarily from Vevo, where the act scored 34 million views on its channel. The boost in online conversation surrounding the video release is evidenced by the 37 percent rise in reactions across Twitter and Facebook for the week, which helped lead to the 4 percent rise in weekly fan acquisition. Elsewhere on the chart,…

‘Wasteland’ Wins Needtobreathe (above) scores its second No. 1 on Top Rock Albums, as Rivers in the Wasteland starts with 49,000 sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The set marks the South Carolina band’s best sales week and highest debut and rank on the Billboard 200 (No. 3), besting its previous album and first Top Rock Albums leader, 2011’s The Reckoning (No. 6, with a narrowly smaller sales sum). The new album also yields the group’s second No. 1 on Christian Albums and first leader on Alternative Albums. Rivers is Needtobreathe’s fifth studio album dating to its 2006 debut. As Sevendust’s Time Travelers & Bonfires debuts at No. 4 on Top Rock Albums (15,000), tying the act’s best rank (with 2010’s Cold Day Memory), it becomes the group’s first No. 1…

The April 18 announcement that Prince had re-signed with his first label, Warner Bros. Records, where he had resided from 1978 to 1996 and produced some of his best-selling and most compelling work, came as a shock to the music industry and fans alike. For one thing, the artist’s fallout with Warners had been so acrimonious that in 1993, Prince bizarrely changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol to protest his label’s insistence that he release less music (and not flood the market). Even more surprising to industry insiders was the label’s announcement that it had given Prince ownership of the master tapes to all of his Warners albums. In addition to giving the artist the kind of control over his work that he has always sought, it was a…

“I’m doing something up here, motherf—er!” —NEIL PATRICK HARRIS The Hedwig and the Angry Inch star, stopping during his Broadway performance to respond to a fan who had yelled “I love you!” “His legacy lives on in the city of Chicago and on dancefloors across the globe.” —BARACK AND MICHELLE OBAMA The President and first lady of the United States, both Chicagoans, in a letter to the family and friends of the late house pioneer Frankie Knuckles. “People always talk about one-hit wonders, but so many bands are no-hit wonders.” —DANIEL WEISMAN The Roc Nation exec and Capital Cities manager, at Coachella. “I’m gonna put some meatballs in a blender.” —LADY GAGA The ARTPOP star, on how she planned to feed herself after getting her wisdom teeth pulled pre-tour. “…

The upfront season — when media companies secure some $20 billion in early advertising buys with TV, cable and radio networks and online content companies — is underway, and increasingly, music-industry giants Live Nation, Clear Channel and SFX are gunning for a slice of that ad-dollar pie. Online music-video outlets such as Vevo and YouTube took a seat at the table several years ago by joining the Digital Content NewFronts, alongside such major digital players as Microsoft and Yahoo. These presentations to advertisers take place in early May, before the broadcast networks take their turn. This year, Vevo, YouTube and Vice will be competing for upfront ad dollars with Live Nation, Clear Channel and SFX, which are privately touting multimillion-dollar, multiplatform packages — TV, radio, Internet and live performance —…

LABELS Longtime country music producer Scott Hendricks (far right) was promoted to executive vp A&R for Warner Music Nashville by president/CEO John Esposito. Hendricks produced Blake Shelton’s 2013 Country Music Association album of the year Based on a True Story... Hendricks joined the label in 2007, working with such artists as Shelton and Hunter Hayes, among others. Hendricks has produced hits for acts like Brooks & Dunn, John Michael Montgomery and Alan Jackson. He earned an Emmy for his production of Hank Williams Jr.’s Monday Night Football theme. Before joining Warner Music, Hendricks worked as an independent producer. Prior to that he ran Virgin Records Nashville and Capitol Records Nashville in the 1990s. “He is responsible for some of the greatest modern country music and continues to demonstrate his ability…

Ingrid Michaelson’s new album Lights Out bows at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 dated May 3, with 37,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Here’s how she did it. 14 MONTHS AGO Michaelson began work on her sixth album, released on her own Cabin 24 and Mom + Pop through RED, in February 2013. First single “Girls Chase Boys” came together by accident during a session with Trent Dabbs and Barry Dean in Nashville. “We were just being silly and beat-boxing, and then we looped it and wrote it in an hour,” says Michaelson, 34. “You don’t know how people are going to respond to your songs. Unless you’re Dr. Luke, it’s hard to say, ‘I’m going to write a hit.’ ” 3 MONTHS AGO “Girls Chase Boys” made…

1 Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz supported their pal Nas at the screening of Time Is Illmatic, a documentary about Nas’ 1994 album Illmatic, on opening night. 2 Pete Rock made an appearance at the premiere of Time Is Illmatic, where Nas also gave a special performance. 3 From left: Producer Jamie Patricof, screenwriter Erik Parker, director One9 and David Karp celebrated at the Time Is Illmatic afterparty at Providence. 4 Earl Slick (left) and Alice Cooper curbed their hunger with White Castle at the afterparty for the premiere of Super Duper Alice Cooper at Lit Lounge on April 17. 5 Wale shared a little attitude on the red carpet before the Time Is Illmatic premiere. 6 Raekwon struck a pose at the Nas screening. 7 Tribeca Film Festival cofounder…

Nothing comes between rock stars and their leather. And the truism seems even more so today than ever. Why? “Leather is just badass,” says Jonny Cota, the designer of Skingraft, a 7-year-old, Bali-based clothing line known for its custom leather pieces made for the likes of Marilyn Manson, Britney Spears, Missy Elliott and Usher. Besides, Cota points out, there’s a rich history to the pairing, citing old photos of The Ramones and Madonna in biker jackets. “There’s magic between leather and music.” This era’s taste for skin stretches far beyond the motorcycle jacket — though there are still plenty of variations on the punk classic available, from inky Saint Laurent zippered styles to Perfecto classics from BLK DNM to cherryred Balmain versions that recall Michael Jackson’s Thriller. On recent runways,…

They lurk in the jukebox at the bar near his East Village apartment, and howl on the radio at home in Omaha, Neb. At just 34, the shapeshifting singer-songwriter has been recording music for nearly 20 years, which means there are lots of phantom Obersts out there. One Oberst, 15 and adopting the name of Bright Eyes, hisses bitterly into a tape machine in his bedroom and wins the hearts of moody young misanthropes. Another Oberst, 25, is heralded as his generation’s Bob Dylan, and is photographed kissing Winona Ryder. Legs crossed on a blush-red sofa in a handsomely appointed Greenwich Village hotel, the present-day Oberst is as slight and gaunt as ever, with shoe-polish-black locks and a boyish smile that creases the soft bags under his eyes. He looks…

Dixie Chicks vs. Sony Music Calling the major-label accounting process “systematic thievery,” the country act filed suit in 2001, demanding its contract be renegotiated and citing $4 million in withheld royalties from its first two albums. Sony then countersued for breach of contract, claiming a potential loss of $100 million if the act didn’t deliver five more albums. A year of battles ended with the act signing a new contract complete with a $20 million bonus and a higher royalty rate of 20 percent. Winner Draw. The act had to reimburse Sony for $15 million in marketing costs. The Temptations vs. Universal Music The pioneering male vocal group sued the music giant in 2012, alleging that it had been cheated out of revenue from digital downloads and ringtones and citing…

With two No. 1 singles in the United Kingdom in the last three months alone, Jess Glynne has quickly become one of her home country’s biggest breakouts of 2014. Her soulful guest vocals fly high on Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be” and Route 94’s “My Love,” both reminiscent of classic 1990s dance music. But Glynne has attained her chart-topping status relatively anonymously, making only a brief cameo in the video for “Rather Be” and not appearing in the “My Love” clip at all. Even in Britain, many fans still don’t know that the smoky voice from the year’s biggest vocal house tracks is actually a copper-haired 24-year-old from North London. “I quite like the enigma — I wanted to save the imagery for my stuff,” says Glynne on the phone from…

The best instrumentalists don’t just play — they speak. Instruments can move freely without language or diction hampering them, but that also makes it more challenging to deliver a message or establish an identity. Yet the sound of Carlos Santana’s guitar is unmistakable: angular melodies with a signature piercing tone, easy to distinguish no matter the genre, from rock to Latin to jazz. No wonder that Corazó, billed as Santana’s first Latin album, is all about that guitar, despite boasting star vocal collaborators from around the world. The instrument’s leading role lets Corazó be much more than what would typically qualify as Latin (music sung in Spanish), as the guitar’s universal language turns the album into a global mixtape: You never know what you’re going to get, or from where.…

LEGEND Bullets indicate titles with greatest weekly gains. Album Charts Recording Industry Assn. of America (RIAA) certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 500,000 albums (Gold). RIAA certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 1 million units (Platinum). Numeral noted with Platinum symbol indicates album’s multi-platinum level. RIAA certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 10 million units (Diamond). Numeral noted with Diamond symbol indicates album’s multi-platinum level.) Latin albums certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 50,000 units (Oro). Latin albums certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 100,000 units (Platino). Numeral noted with Platinum symbol indicates album’s multi-platinum level. Digital Songs Charts RIAA certification for 500,000 paid downloads (Gold). RIAA certification for 1 million paid downloads (Platinum). Numeral noted with platinum symbol indicates…

Tropical Titans On Tropical Airplay, Sergio George Presents Salsa Giants hops 3-1 with “Bajo La Tormenta,” climbing to 604 spins this week (up 12 percent), according to Nielsen BDS. It also ascends 23-16 on Tropical Digital Songs, selling 1,000 downloads in the week ending April 20, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The tropical collective features such salsa heavyweights as Tito Nieves, Luis Enrique and the late Cheo Feliciano (above). A handful of Feliciano’s hits enter Tropical Digital Songs following his April 17 death in a car accident. “Amada Mia” debuts at No. 6, and “Anacaona” comes in at No. 17. Both sold 1,000 downloads. The Puerto Rican composersinger logged three top 10s on Tropical Albums and peaked at No. 2 as a featured act on Nieves’ “La Salsa Vive,” which also…

Karaoke Party! While the Frozen soundtrack rules for an 11th week atop the Billboard 200, the film’s new karaoke album makes waves a bit farther down the chart. Disney Karaoke Series: Frozen debuts at No. 17 with 15,000 sold — the largest sales week for a karaoke album in more than six years. The karaoke album also opens atop Kid Albums, powered by mass merchants, who accounted for 58 percent of the title’s first-week sales. The last time a karaoke title sold more was in the week ending Dec. 23, 2007, when the companion karaoke albums to Hannah Montana and High School Musical 2 sold 22,000 and 16,000, respectively. Generally speaking, karaoke titles don’t sell in great quantities, and only rack up notable figures around Christmastime. One can assume that…

Pharrell Sets Record; Legend Leads Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” becomes the first song to crown as many as six singular-format Nielsen BDS-based Billboard airplay charts, achieving the feat by rising 3-1 on Adult Contemporary. It rules Adult Top 40 and Adult R&B for a fifth week each after topping Mainstream Top 40 for four weeks, Rhythmic for two and Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop for one. Four prior smashes each led five distinct-format airplay charts: Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” (featuring Williams and T.I.) in 2013, Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” (featuring Kimbra) in 2012 and 2013, Green Day’s “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” in 2004 and 2005, and Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love to You” in 1994 and 1995. Meanwhile, John Legend (above) lands his first No. 1 on Mainstream Top 40…

While the music world spent much of April anticipating, criticizing and praising Outkast’s reunion at Coachella, much less attention was directed at what the rap duo was onstage to celebrate: the 20th anniversary of its seminal debut , Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, released April 26, 1994 on LaFace/Arista. The set bowed at No. 3 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Albums chart dated May 15, 1994. It went on to sell 1.5 million copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan, propelled by the single “Player’s Ball,” which spent six weeks atop the Hot Rap Songs list. The album’s impact went far beyond the charts. At the time, the hip-hop meccas were New York and Los Angeles, but Atlanta’s Outkast proved that Southern rap could not only sell, but that it’s “got something to say,” as Andre 3000…

What is the 1976 Copyright Act, and why is it important today? The 1976 Copyright Act, which actually took effect in 1978, allows an artist to reclaim master tapes created in 1978 and onward once the initial 35-year term on those copyrights expire. The beginning of 2013 marked the first wave of expirations, prompting dozens of artists including Fleetwood Mac, Joni Mitchell and Billy Joel to file termination notices that are pending with the U.S. Copyright Office. Artists who created master recordings before 1978 can reclaim their copyrights, but different timelines apply. What is the process for terminating a grant of copyright? Recording artists can file a termination notice as early as 10 years before and no later than two years after a copyright expires. During that period, the record…

While sales of CDs and downloads keep declining, the growth of vinyl shows no signs of slowing. The seventh annual Record Store Day — held April 19 and organized by the Department of Record Stores, the Coalition of Independent Music Stores and the Alliance of Independent Media Stores — wasn’t just the biggest in the event’s history, it produced a week-over-week 11.2 percent gain in album sales from 2013 for independent record stores. Vinyl accounts for 3.2 percent, or 2.5 million units, of the 76.2 million units in overall album sales so far in 2014. 19.4% The share of total national volume of all physical album sales for indie stores during the week of Record Store Day — likely the sector’s highest share since Nielsen SoundScan started tracking sales in…

Lenny Kravitz’s Roxie Records has entered into a worldwide agreement with Kobalt Label Services to release, market and promote the artist’s upcoming studio album, Strut, in September. The fourtime Grammy Award winner’s last album, Black and White America, was released through Roadrunner/Atlantic in 2011 and has sold 61,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Before that, Kravitz recorded for the Virgin Records label — his first — for more than 20 years, where he sold more than 38 million records worldwide. Since his last album Kravitz has been busy with a number of movie projects including roles in The Hunger Games and Lee Daniels’The Butler. Since launching in 2013, Kobalt has aggressively pursued its label services strategy, inking deals with a number of heritage acts including Pet…

JUST ONE YEAR AGO, British pop singer Katy Tiz was an upstart signed to Lava/Republic working the radio-promo circuit hard for her debut singles, “Famous” and “Red Cup.” A few stations took a chance on the latter, but Tiz soon met the fate of many young acts before her — she was dropped by the fall. But now her new single, “The Big Bang,” is moving 39-36 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart dated May 3, blaring across Clear Channel stations nationwide despite having no label support until days ago. “I didn’t believe for a minute that I was going to have a second chance,” says Tiz . “Things didn’t work out in my first situation. You have the dream of being able to do it again, but you also…

“TALK ABOUT GIRL POWER. The fifth annual Elle Women in Music celebration at Los Angeles’ historic Avalon Hollywood, moderated by the magazine’s editor-inchief Robbie Myers, played host to a number of private performances for the invite-only crowd. Betty Who high-kicked her way through a lively set, Angel Haze performed a mix of rap and acoustic covers, and Sarah McLachlan captivated the audience with songs from her new album, Shine On, as well as such favorites as “Adia” and “Ice Cream.” The bash, which treated guests to a Dior makeup station and gourmet eats of fried risotto and beef sliders, also drew AlunaGeorge’s Aluna Francis; Sophia Bush in a Camilla and Marc skirt; and Rumer Willis, who rocked a black cut-out Franziska Fox dress and hit the turntables after the performances.…

When the carousing dies down at the Fair Grounds Race Course, site of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (April 25-May 4), the majority of revelers will swarm the French Quarter. But those craving the Big Easy’s more serene and quirky charms know to head straight to nearby but less-trafficked neighborhoods located just to the east. Faubourg Marigny, where jazz-filled Frenchmen Street is the main drag, and the colorful and edgier Bywater, are both where a slew of live music, offbeat art and compelling food and drink await. 1. The Claiborne Mansion, 2111 Dauphine St. The circa-1850s historic inn oozes old-world grace. Spacious rooms are elegantly appointed with canopy beds and marble fireplaces and baths. Bonus: The grounds include a shady gazebo, a surrounding pool and a fresh citrus…

MARIAH CAREY IS HAVING A CASE OF THE MONDAYS. It’s the day after Easter, and she’s nursing a kick to the face from her nearly 3-year-old son Moroccan after a long day of egg hunting. “We were sort of winding down the day, removing his shoes, and he was having his own moment of not wanting the night to end and he ended up getting me square in the nose while the shoe was still on,” says Carey, 44, on the phone from her apartment in New York. Though her nose has a “tiny bump” that Carey has been treating with ice and milk, the incident has still apparently swollen her face enough that she has had to cancel a planned photo shoot and in-person sitdown with Billboard. “I think…

NORMAN BAILER Period 1994-1995 Albums 0 Sales n/a An early incarnation of indie band The Faint. 1. COMMANDER VENUS Period 1994-1998 Albums 2 Sales* 4,000 copies sold of The Uneventful Vacation Emo band with Saddle Creek Records cofounder Robb Nansel and members of The Faint. *according to Nielsen SoundScan 2. BRIGHT EYES Period 1995-Present Albums 9 albums, 5 EPs Sales 1.9 million His primary occupation for over a decade, Bright Eyes became synonymous with Oberst. PARK AVE. Period 1996 Albums 1 Sales n/a A twee pop experiment named after a street in Omaha. Two members went on to form Tilly & The Wall. THE MAGNETAS Period 1996 Albums 0 Sales n/a Saddle Creek band released only 1 song: “Annex Annex.” DESAPARECIDOS Period 2001-present Album 1 Sales 74,000 A politically conscious…

Hit Men: Power Brokers and Fast Money Inside the Music Business, by Fredric Dannen, tells the story of the rise of the modern music industry, with a focus on CBS Records (later Sony Music) and three of its colorful leaders — Goddard Lieberson, Clive Davis and Walter Yetnikoff. It also portrays an industry nearly brought down by its own greed. In the 1980s, the major labels put the fix on radio by employing the “Network,” a handful of independent promoters, some with ties to organized crime, who had an uncanny ability to influence which records received — and did not receive — radio airplay. The smaller record companies were knocked off the airwaves, but the majors soon found themselves vying to outbid one another for the promoters’ services. Before long,…

THE MEMBERS OF NEON TREES have become intimately familiar with the lobby lounge at Los Angeles’ Universal City Hilton. “We fired two managers on that couch over there,” says Tyler Glenn, frontman of the Provo, Utah-based neo-new wave alt-rockers, standing among the Bermuda-shorts-clad tourists in his purple tartan plaid trousers and matching metallic Doc Martens as he sips a club soda. “Was that four years ago?” he asks Elaine Bradley, Neon Trees’ drummer, sitting nearby on a plushy white couch. “Yeah,” Bradley affirms. “They’re still in our lives — suing us,” Glenn responds. Ah, it’s hard being popular. Neon Trees have camped out at the Hilton to complete the latest promo blitz for its third album, Pop Psychology, released April 22 on Island, in hopes of eclipsing the band’s past…

“You got the music in you, don’t you?” asks Lana Del Rey on her new single “West Coast” (Interscope/Polydor U.K.) from the upcoming Ultraviolence. Her first collaboration with producer Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys certainly does: While the track gracefully weaves the trademark noir-pop web that fueled Del Rey’s rise, Auerbach tinkers with that template by adding psych-rock textures and surprise tempo changes. The verses stew in a cloud of guitar reverb, but the inevitable climax never arrives. Instead, the chorus dissipates into a hazy “ooh baby” singalong, tailor-made for a Twin Peaks remake. The mood swings never find a release, but that tension is what makes “West Coast” so intoxicating. ONEREPUBLIC “Love Runs Out” Mosley/Interscope Hitmaker Ryan Tedder tackles the daunting task of following up One Republic’s biggest…

‘Fancy’ Tops Rap Songs Coinciding with the April 22 release of her debut full-length The New Classic, Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” (featuring Charli XCX) jumps 4-1 on Hot Rap Songs to end the reign of Pitbull’ “Timber” (featuring Kesha) at 15 weeks. The last time a female with lead billing led the list was in 2011 when Nicki Minaj’s “Moment 4 Life” (featuring Drake) ruled for nine weeks. Overall, Azalea is the 14th woman to hit No. 1 as a lead act. On Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, “Fancy” jumps 11-6 with Airplay Gainer honors thanks to a 27 percent rise to 28.6 million listener impressions in the April 16-22 Nielsen BDS tracking week. Correspondingly, the Invisible Men and Arcade-produced track also jumps 12-9 on Rhythmic, with a 24 percent gain, and 12-10…

Breathe Carolina Leads Debut Parade Breathe Carolina heads up five top 10 debuts on Dance/Electronic Albums, landing its first No. 1 in four tries as Savages starts with 14,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band posts its best sales week, a figure previously held by its sophomore effort, Hello Fascination (11,000; Sept. 5, 2009), one of its two No. 2-peaking sets. Albums by Chet Faker (No. 6), Swedish House Mafia (No. 7) and Duck Sauce (No. 10), plus the various-artists release The Space Project (No. 9), round out the onslaught of top 10 bows. Only once before had as many as five albums debuted in the top 10: Titles by The Chemical Brothers, Erasure, The Riddler & Vic Latino, M83 and Lemon Jelly did so (at Nos. 1,…

‘Happy’ Finally Hits No. 1 After a nine-week run in the top 10, “Happy” by Pharrell Williams (below) finally reaches No. 1 on Streaming Songs (up 28 percent in activity in the week ending April 20, according to Nielsen BDS). It’s the first No. 1 for Williams on the chart — his guest turns on Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” both peaked at No. 2. It took “Happy” becoming a global phenomenon for it to reach 9.1 million U.S. streams in its 13th week on Streaming Songs. Its increase during the past few weeks is due to people from around the world — from Slovakia to Taiwan — uploading their own “Happy” dance sequences to YouTube. Williams broke down in tears over the song’s success on…

Decker Debuts Singer-songwriter and reality TV star Jessie James Decker makes her first appearance on Top Country Albums with Comin’ Home, a six-song EP that earns the Hot Shot Debut at No. 5 with 11,000 sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The set starts with just three days of sales, as it was released Friday, April 18. Decker and her husband, New York Jets wide receiver Eric Decker, are currently starring in the second season of E!’s Eric & Jessie: Game On, in which the couple became parents for the first time (to daughter Vivianne Rose on March 18). The newborn’s mother previously scored pop hits with “Wanted” (2009) and “I Look So Good (Without You)” (2010), and most recently appeared on Hot Country Songs with “I Do,” which peaked at…