Innholdsfortegnelse for Oct-17-14 i Billboard Magazine

LED BY “ALL ABOUT THAT Bass”by Meghan Trainor, women rewrite Billboard Hot 100 history by locking men out of the top five for a fifth consecutive week. Trainor, Taylor Swift, Iggy Azalea, Rita Ora, Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj combine for the achievement, topping the previous record from 1999, when Monica, Britney Spears, Deborah Cox, Cher, Brandy, Whitney Houston, Faith Evans, Kelly Price and Sarah McLachlan barred boys from the top five for four consecutive frames. Not that men don’t forge their own feats. Maroon 5’ “Animals” flies 33-8 after the Sept. 29 premiere of its controversial video, in which blood-soaked frontman Adam Levine stars with his wife, Behati Prinsloo. The band also performed “Animals” on NBC’s Saturday Night Live on Oct. 4. The track soars 21-5 on…

Live Nation is spending $125 million to acquire a 51 percent stake in thriving indie promoter C3. The Austin-based company, which counts Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits Music Festival among its stable of events, was founded in 2007 by partners Charles Attal, regarded as one of the savviest talent buyers in the biz; branding whiz Charlie Jones; and Charlie Walker, who formerly steered Live Nation’s North American concerts division. Out of the gate, C3 built a reputation as one of the most formidable, synergistic teams in live music, and is well-positioned for continued growth. So why sell now? Neither side is commenting, but for Live Nation, which produces some 60 festivals worldwide but is trailing in North America, C3 offers an easy in, a la Live Nation’s 51 percent stake…

WHILE GARTH BROOKS HAS HIS sights set on U2’s touring record (see story, page 11), the Irish rockers have revealed the final stats of an even bigger milestone. Eddy Cue, Apple senior vp Internet software and services, tells Billboard that U2’s Songs of Innocence has racked up a staggering 26 million complete downloads since its Sept. 9 release as a free exclusive to Apple’s 500 million global iTunes customers. In total, Cue adds, more than 81 million Apple customers “experienced” songs from the album (including song plays on iTunes, iTunes Radio and Beats Music). “To help put it into perspective,” he says, “prior to this, 14 million customers had purchased music from U2 since the opening of the iTunes Store in 2003.” A physical edition of Songs of Innocence (with…

RICK RUBIN, RUSSELL SIMMONS, Lyor Cohen, Jay Z, L.A. Reid ... Def Jam has seen a succession of iconic leaders during its 30 years, and on April 1, Steve Bartels found himself next in line. And while his sleek corner office in the Midtown Manhattan building of Universal Music Group (UMG) is worlds away (if only 50-odd blocks) from the New York University dorm where Rubin famously founded the label in 1984, Bartels brings his own bona fides to the job. Born in Ohio but raised in Spring Valley, N.Y., he entered the music business as a DJ around the time Def Jam was born. A job in dance promotion at A&M Records, where he was hired by the late legendary executive Charlie Minor, led to a decade each at…

Gary Numan has gone from “Cars” to trains, scoring John Bergin’From Inside film about a young pregnant woman traveling through a post-apocalyptic landscape by rail. The 2012 movie was originally screened at film festivals but a new deluxe edition DVD (out Oct. 21) offered a chance to take another direction musically. “I decided to go grander,” says Numan, 56. “More orchestral with some grooves.” The new wave icon got a taste of the film business by scoring a B movie 23 years ago in London, but made a concerted effort to get into scoring after moving to Los Angeles. He took a fair number of meetings with film companies upon his arrival, and Lakeshore Entertainment was the first to call with an offer. Working with his producer Ade Fenton as…

1 Tweedy’s Jeff Tweedy (left) and his son Spencer at Golden Gate Park. 2 Emmylou Harris (left) with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. 3 Accordionist Stanley Dural Jr. performed with Buckwheat Zydeco. 4 Conor Oberst. AUSTIN CITY LIMITS: 1: NICK SIMONITE. 2: GARY MILLER/FILMMAGIC. 3: ERIKA GOLDRING/FILMMAGIC. 4: ERIKA GOLDRING/FILMMAGIC. 5, 7: CAMBRIA HARKEY. 6: TIM MOSENFELDER/GETTY IMAGES. 8, POLAROID: RICK KERN/GETTY IMAGES FOR SAMSUNG. HARDLY BLUEGRASS: 1, 2: JAY BLAKESBERG. 3: SCOTT DUDELSON/FILMMAGIC. 4: C FLANIGAN/GETTY IMAGES…

OLIVIA BENSON (TAYLOR SWIFT) Claim to fame: Modeling for Keds; venturing onto NY streets. Swift on Benson: “She’s a stage-five clinger.” JELLI (IGGY AZALEA) Claim to fame: Surviving an L.A. coyote attack; her “little sister,” Space Jam. Azalea on Jelli: “My smushy Jelli monster, smelly Jelli, Jelli baby ...” GRAHAM (ED SHEERAN) Claim to fame: Posing for selfies on his Twitter account, @GrahamShizza. Sheeran says: “ This one month old kitten was gonna get put down so I adopted him.” FAWKES (ARIANA GRANDE) Claim to fame: Having red fur; looking sweet in a dinosaur suit. Grande says: “She is an angel! And a bad-ass bitch.” PENNY (JOHN LEGEND & CHRISSY TEIGEN) Claim to fame: Three-leggedness. Teigen says: “ She has 3 legs WHICH IS MORE THAN YOU OKAY.” —ADRIENNE GAFFNEY…

AGE 26, FROM PHILADELPHIA The video for “Lemme Freak,” a desperate rap-sung plea for sex, has racked up 2.1 million worldwide YouTube views since Sept. 17. “Competitive, irreverent, real, hard, relevant, dope — that’s going to be my new rap name!” Kevin Durant (left), DJ Drama, Benny Blanco and “some dude who lives in China.” “Keep at it, keep grinding, and eventually you’ll get broken off a lil’ somethin’ somethin’.” Voted class clown. “I don’t think my classmates would be like, ‘Oh my f—ing God, what the f— happened?’ They’d be surprised that I rap, but not surprised Completing his ongoing Professional Rapper tour; a spot on BET’s Backroom Freestyle. “My plan is to get famous as a rapper and use that as leverage to skip all the steps to…

The endless glut of music videos on YouTube, whether by superstars or bedroom talents with big hopes, can make the prospect of uncovering the next Justin Bieber seem like an increasingly rare feat. But music fans craving something new can turn to Rormix, a discovery engine for videos from unsigned acts. The app, available for iOS and Android , offers curated lists of high-quality clips by emerging artists to explore. And it’s easy to use: You can browse by genre, check out what other users are loving (see sidebar) or enter the name of your favorite commercial act for suggestions of similar sounds. To download or learn more, go to rormix.com. Rormix’s Hot List Videos from unsigned artists trending on the app at press time Overwind, “Giant Leap” The Morning…

When the Saint Records owner and fashion maven moved from Brooklyn to NOLA in 2013, she infused her vibrant style into the neighborhood’s chicest new shop THE VINYL COPIES OF SOLANGE KNOWLES’Saint Heron compilation album, which sit near neon-accented sneakers and luxe candles, aren’t the only mark the songstress has left on Exodus Goods, a contemporary lifestyle boutique nestled on Conti Street in New Orleans’ French Quarter. When sisters Darlene and Lizzy Okpo, expats of New York’s fashion scene, and co-owner Armina Mussa needed a conceptual mastermind to breathe life into their newest retail venture, they enlisted Knowles — a member of their “sisterhood” — as creative director. “There is so much overlooked talent,” says Lizzy Okpo of wanting to promote the work of independent designers at Exodus Goods, which…

WO YEARS AGO, J BALVIN SHOULD have been on top of the world. A steady stream of tracks that mixed tropical lightness with the heavy beat of reggaeton had made him a star at home in Colombia. Girls climbed the walls of his house in Medellin to get a picture with him. The stars of the Colombian national soccer team hung out there. He was in constant demand, playing one-hour gigs one after another. At his peak he did nine in a night, starting at 7 in the evening and finishing at 7 the following morning. And all this wasn’t just happening in Colombia. He was beginning to get radio play in the United States, and had signed with EMI, which put together a compilation of his independent singles. When…

“They stopped staying at the Ritz-Carltons and now stay at the Hyatts and Marriotts.” —BERT HOLMAN, LONGTIME MANAGER OF THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND Ages: Gregg Allman, 66; Butch Trucks, 67; Jaimoe, 70 Touring since: 1969-1982, 1989-2014 THEN In 1973, when the Allmans hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with Brothers and Sisters, they requested two cases of Mateus Rosé nightly, which was promptly placed on a truck. “At the end of the year, they’d unload the truck and have wines for parties for weeks and weeks,” says Bert Holman, 63, the band’s manager/tour manager since it reunited 25 years ago. “At their initial height, they chartered the plane Led Zeppelin used for touring. They’d only do weekends — all their friends and wives and hangers-on…

ALUNAGEORGE “SUPERNATURAL” VAGRANT/ISLAND London duo Aluna Francis and George Reid tease their upcoming sophomore release with “Supernatural,” a dance. floor-ready jam that reels their future-soul sound back to the 1980s. Francis coos over synths that seem mined from the Heathers score: “Is this dead or is it alive?” With this kind of energy, it’s safe to say the latter. —STEVEN J. HOROWITZ DIERKS BENTLEY “SAY YOU DO” CAPITOL NASHVILLE After being “Drunk on a Plane,” Dierks Bentley sobers up and goes heavy with “Say You Do.” Longing for his girl to return, he softly pleads, “Don’t worry about the damage done/Just let those words roll off your tongue/Even if you’re lying.” Bentley sounds best during the song’s quiet moments, which crescendo into reverb-soaked guitars. —JILL MENZE JOEY BADASS “CHRIST CONSCIOUS”…

CALLING NEW ZEALAND HOME, MAKING darkly swirling alternative music and recording exclusively with producer Joel Little (who helmed the entirety of Lorde’s debut, Pure Heroine) has understandably earned Broods a slew of comparisons to a certain 17-yearold pop phenom. Like Lorde, the brother-sister duo of Caleb and Georgia Nott brought a spectacular first single, “Bridges,” to U.S. shores, but the chilly electro-pop opus has not invaded America’s top 40 stations the way “Royals” did in 2013. Although Broods’ debut album, Evergreen, arrives stateside without a tsunami of hype, the pleasures of these 11 songs sneak up on the listener, the sparse arrangements going down easy while hinting at the heights this young act could eventually achieve. Although Little’s boom-bap drum programming, syrupy bass and dreamy synthesizers are carried over from…

“DEF JAM FOREVER,” LL COOL J declared while hosting the 56th annual Grammy Awards in January, reminding the audience that 2014 marked the 30th anniversary of Def Jam Recordings. It was fitting that the hip-hop icon kicked off the seminal label’s anniversary campaign. One of the first two singles to sport a Def Jam catalog number in 1984 was “I Need a Beat” by 16-year-old James Todd Smith, better-known by the acronym of his stage name, Ladies Love Cool James. The second single — and equally significant game-changer — was “Rock Hard” by rap trio the Beastie Boys. “No matter what else I ever do,” LL said at the Grammys, “I will always be proud to have stood with [Def Jam founders] Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin and together started…

The field of best new artist nominees at the Latin Grammy Awards has traditionally shown great geographic diversity. This year is no exception, with artists hailing from throughout the Latin world. Here are the nominees listed by the country where their careers began. Argentina/Peru Miami-based Periko & Jessi Leon — he’s from Peru, she grew up in Argentina and the United States — are getting attention for their debut, Fuerza Mayor, produced by Andres Castro. Daniela Spalla, from Argentina, worked with producer of the year nominee Rafa Arcaute on her catchy “Ahora Vienen por Nosotros.” Colombia Miranda, who performs with pop and blues influences, was the winner of the first edition of TV talent show La Voz Colombia. Juan Pablo Vega plays alt-pop that boasts big arrangements and commercial flair.…

ADELE’S 21 CONTINUES TO MAKE HISTORY. The diva’s mega-selling second studio album, released in 2011, has now surpassed the 11 million sales mark in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The XL/Columbia Records release is only the 12th album to sell at least that many copies since SoundScan started tracking sales in 1991. 21 sold another 4,000 in the week ending Oct. 5, bringing its cumulative sum to a little more than 11 million in its 189th week of release. (It has sold 157,000 in 2014 alone.) The album has yet to exit the Billboard 200, where it has spent all but 11 of its chart weeks in the top 100. This issue, it climbs 113-95. It’s the first to reach 11 million since March 2012, when Bob Marley…

AS ALTERNATIVE ROCK became mainstream in the early to mid-1990s, (thanks to grunge acts like Nirvana), R.E.M. rode the wave with its more jangly, pop- leaning variation of the genre. On the Billboard 200 dated Oct. 15, 1994, the Athens, Ga., band — singer Michael Stipe, bassist Mike Mills, guitarist Peter Buck and drummer Bill Berry — notched its second No. 1, and only No. 1 debut, as its ninth album Monster soared to the summit. Befitting its title, the record sold 344,000 firstweek copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. This success continued a hot streak that began with 1991’s Out of Time, R.E.M.’s first No. 1 album, and its follow-up, 1992’s Automatic for the People, which reached No. 2. Those three records have sold a total 10.9 million copies and…

When vinyl sales are the bright spot in Nielsen SoundScan’s third-quarter numbers, you know it’s been a tough year. The two highest-selling albums of 2014 — Disney’s Frozen soundtrack, with 3.1 million units sold, and Beyoncé’s self-titled album for Columbia, with 776,000 — were released in 2013, a troubling reality for an industry grappling with accelerating declines. In fact, digital configurations may soon resemble the 15 percent-to-20 percent drop the CD has suffered for most of the last decade. And the problems are not limited to albums. So far this year, only 60 digital songs have sold more than 1 million units, compared with 83 in 2013. The biggest movers: Pharrell Williams’ “Happy,” with 6.2 million, and John Legend’s “All of Me” (4.4 million), both on Columbia. Overall, track sales…

ROCK’N’ROLL’S MOST FAMOUS STREET IS receiving a major overhaul as a wave of new luxury hotels, residences and restaurants prepare to set up shop on West Hollywood’s Sunset Strip while other landmarks bid adieu. But what role will music play when the makeover is complete? That’s the debate currently picking up steam as it crisscrosses the 1.5-mile stretch of storied pavement that has served as the nerve center for the biz’s best-known acts. Everyone from The Doors and Led Zeppelin to Janis Joplin and Guns N’ Roses have played at staples like the Whisky A Go Go, Roxy or Viper Room, with more recent bands gracing the House of Blues stage. But not for long. HOB, an anchor on the Strip since 1994, will be demolished to make way for…

AS GOES SFX, SO GOES EDM? A YEAR after the company’s initial public offering (IPO), SFX Entertainment has fallen out of favor with investors. Shares of the EDM promoter have plunged from $12 at the beginning of the year to $4.34 on Oct. 8 — a 63.8 percent decline — and have lost 38.7 percent of their value in the last 27 trading days. It’s a sobering sign for any company betting on EDM, because SFX is the closest thing to a mainstream barometer of the culture that exists. The company adopted Live Nation’s business model — concerts, ticketing and brand sponsors — and applies it only to EDM. The situation is complicated. “The reality of the stock price and the reality of the company are dislocated right now,” says…

Ever since Facebook acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion, messenger apps have led the tech conversation. In helming One Direction’s Midnight Memories release in partnership with Kik (95 million users) and Ariana Grande’s My Everything album promotion through Line (480 million users), Block Party founder Eytan Oren, 36, was among the first to realize such revenue potential. “With these platforms, you can build a huge audience for way less money than a Facebook ad campaign.” How did you get into this area? For years my job was to help brands understand how the tech space can be useful for marketing campaigns, and I thought, “No one’s done this yet with music.” I met with some messenger app companies and said, “You have so many teenagers on your platform — are they…

“THERE ARE LOTS OF BAD MOVIES LEFT TO MAKE,” quipped Robert De Niro while accepting the Friars Club Icon Award for Entertainment at a gala held in the Waldorf Astoria’s Grand Ballroom. And with prior recipients including only Douglas Fairbanks, Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Tom Cruise, the event marked De Niro’s entrance into a very exclusive entourage. Shortly after cocktails were served, the crowd of 1,300 including Tony Bennett, Christopher Walken, Frankie Valli, Sharon Stone, Edward Norton and Orlando Bloom were treated to a series of starry performances. Bloom introduced Sting, who sang “Every Breath You Take.”Aretha Franklin also took the stage, but not without first apologizing: “Forgive me,” she said. “I was out shopping last evening, pounding the pavement over on Fifth Avenue. I caught a bit of…

AGING GRACEFULLY IN HIP-HOP isn’t easy. Year after year, old rappers, old sounds, old styles are swept under the rug in favor of the new and youthful. Which is partly what makes the longevity of Nas and his 1994 debut LP, Illmatic — considered by many critics and fans to be the greatest hip-hop album ever — so remarkable: It’s fair to say that no rap record has ever been so celebrated so many years after its release. Following its premiere at New York’s Tribeca Film Festival in April, a documentary about the album, Nas: Time Is Illmatic (Tribeca Film), by first-time director One9, hit theaters in select markets on Oct. 1, before an on-demand release two days later. It’s part of a yearlong celebration of the record’s 20th anniversary,…

JESSIE J IS TRYING SOMETHING new: not oversharing. On the phone from Hong Kong, where she recently wrapped a series of shows, the singer is expressing regrets about comments she made earlier this year to The Mirror about her bisexuality. (“It was a phase,” she said then.) “I’m a talker; I wear my heart on my sleeve. But sometimes I just have to know when to shut up,” she says now, declining to talk further about her sexuality. The sentiment is in line with two songs on the 26-year-old Brit’s new album, Sweet Talker (due Oct. 13 on Republic), “Said Too Much” and “Personal,” which criticize her past tendencies toward TMI. She says the LP helped her cope with a recent, unspecified breakup; she had been linked to rapper Tinie…

After a run as a TV teen queen and a brush with pop fame, Leighton Meester is giving fans something new to gossip about: her debut album. Fresh off her role in Of Mice and Men on Broadway, which wrapped in July, the 28-year-old is releasing Heartstrings on Oct. 28, on her own Hotly Wanting label. Previously signed to Republic, Meester is no stranger to music — her guest spot on Cobra Starship’s 2009 hit, “Good Girls Go Bad,” peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. But her new dream-rock sound is a stark departure from her past dalliances in pop. You originally signed a contract with Republic. How was that experience? It was fun at the time: I had a record deal and I thought that was…

1 TOMMY HILFIGER baseball jacket, $369; 212-223-1824. 2 UMIT BENAN elegant baseball shirt, $503; thecorner.com. 3 UMIT BENAN reversible baseball bomber, $1,160; thecorner.com. 4 BAND OF OUTSIDERS cargo sweatpants, $575; mrporter.com. The rapper interpreted the trend in his Los Angeles hometown wearing a crisp piped jersey (and Dodgers cap). New York’s favorite fashion plate hit the Jeremy Scott show wearing a chambray Supreme jersey.…

BEFORE SCOTT LIPPS BECAME PRESIDENT OF ONE MANAGEMENT — A modeling and branding agency where he oversees the careers of super models including Helena Christensen, Bar Refaeli and Claudia Schiffer — he drummed for 1990s sleaze-rock band Black Cherry. “Drumming is something you either take to or don’t,” says Lipps. “I don’t think my family thought it would turn into a career.” Although the 45-year-old isn’t gigging out on the Sunset Strip anymore, he has kept music at the forefront of his company’s agenda. Eight years ago, Lipps launched a division that links editorial opportunities to clients such as ASAP Rocky, Cassie, Tiesto, Courtney Love and Nicki Minaj. “We’ve been behind things like ASAP’s L’Uomo Vogue cover and Courtney Love’s YSL campaign,” says Lipps, whose 2013 book, Poplipps, gives readers…

In May 2013, Republic Records started working Ariana Grande’s “The Way” on U.S. Latin stations in an attempt to reach multicultural listeners — an increasingly common marketing tactic with uptempo, mainstream hits. At the same time, Universal Music Latino was trying to break its rising urban artist J Balvin. So why not, the sister label proposed, have Balvin do a Spanglish version of “My Way” “We both benefited,” says Universal Music Latino GM Luis Estrada. “ ‘The Way’ got into more stations, and Balvin’s name [recognition] multiplied.” Bilingual remixes are nothing new. In 2004, Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” blazed up the Billboard Hot 100, aided by a Lil Jon and Pitbull remix. Today, Enrique Iglesias’ “Bailando” boasts a version featuring Sean Paul. Balvin has reversed this approach, remixing Englishlanguage tracks like…

PEOPLE IN JASON ALDEAN’S CAMP have been hinting for months that he’s a new man, after a highly publicized divorce and his relationship with former American Idol contestant Brittany Kerr (who he was photographed kiss ing while still married). Aldean recently told Billboard it’s time to let go of that story, but it’s a sure bet fans will see all sorts of messages in Old Boots, New Dirt, the first album he has recorded since the changes in his personal life. And he gives them plenty to work with in the project, which leans heavily on broken relationships and new starts while ignoring one of the tent-pole positions of his public persona: a voice for the heartland’s working class. After all, Aldean’s acerbic, surly character perfectly fits that role. Thanks…

WIREIMAGE. PINK: ELIOT LEE HAZEL. ONE CHANCE: LIAM DANIEL Alecia Moore began 2014 at an all-time high. As Pink, her 2012 album The Truth About Love had just been certified double-platinum, its accompanying tour grossing more than $150 million. But rather than go even bigger for her next act, Moore, 35, took a left turn by tapping her friend, 34-year-old singerguitarist Dallas Green (aka City and Colour, formerly of hardcore band Alexisonfire), for a country-tinged folk side project. After holing up in a Venice, Calif., studio for a week, the duo produced nine originals (and one memorable cover of Sade’s “No Ordinary Love”) as You+Me, whose debut Rose Ave. is due Oct. 14 on RCA. The pair spoke about their unique dynamic and the joys of putting Pink on pause.…

PRODUCERS Clemens Rehbein, Philipp Daush LABEL Lichtdicht/Republic RELEASE DATE Oct. 14 German duo Milky Chance doesn’t feel like a band as much as it does a hybridization of aesthetics that have recently experienced minor pop success — the craggy vocals of Aloe Blacc, the globally minded guitar filigrees and spare arrangements of Nico & Vinz’s “Am I Wrong,” the reggae-lite bounce propelling Magic’s “Rude” and the noodle-casserole cohesion of Alt-J. It’s of little surprise that its winding, hand clap-assisted track “Stolen Dance” hit No. 56 on the Billboard Hot 100: It’s one of Milky Chance’s more cohesive songs, with a rolling guitar line and easy amble that would flow naturally into a playlist that included Avicii’s countrified Blacc collabo “Wake Me Up!” and Of Monsters and Men’s rollicking “Little Talks.”…

When planning began in 2013 for the 30th anniversary of Def Jam Records, it was only natural that Universal Music executive vp Michele Anthony and Def Jam president Steve Bartels discussed reaching out to the two men who started it all, label co-founders Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons. “Having those guys [participate] just reaffirmed the legacy of the brand and the significance of the label,” says Chris Atlas, senior vp marketing at Def Jam. “Having those guys [participate] just reaffirmed the legacy of the brand and the signi. cance of the label,” says Chris Atlas, senior vp marketing at Def Jam. for interviews posted in September for interviews posted in September But the party actually started at the Grammy Awards in January, when Def Jam was saluted by LL Cool…

Rafa Arcaute The 10-time Latin Grammy winner was nominated this year for his work with newcomer Daniela Spalla, alt stalwarts Illya Kuryaki & The Valderramas and singer-songwriter Noel Schajris. A producer, says Arcaute, serves as “the link between inspiration and the execution of an idea.” Eduardo Cabra Calle 13’s Cabra was nominated for helming the duo’s Multi_ Viral and a Jorge Drexler track. Cabra says Multi_Viral “required a lot of studio work,” but benefited from an assortment of outside influences. “We pick up a lot of information from our trips,” he notes, “things that affect art in a positive and negative way.” Andres Castro The much-honored producer-songwriter was nominated again this year for his diverse work, ranging from the tropical fusion of Carlos Vives to the pop tunes of Venezuela’s…

THE POWER OF ‘PRAYER’ French duo Lilly Wood and German DJ Robin Schulz’s hypnotic “Prayer in C” (RRP) begins its U.S. rise after topping charts in 15 countries, including the U.K. singles list for two weeks in September. Released by the former in 2010, the song’s global growth is spurred by Schulz’s remix. The track enters its first domestic airplay chart, starting on Dance/Mix Show Airplay at No. 25. ‘DRIVING’ F O RCE Def Jam’s Logic launches at No. 16 on Rap Digital Songs with “Driving Ms. Daisy,” featuring Childish Gambino (13,000 sold in its opening week, according to Nielsen SoundScan). Logic, 24, is prepping his major-label debut, Under Pressure (executive-produced by No I.D.), due Oct. 21. The LP follows four mixtapes that built a thriving online fandom, including 465,000…

GARTH BROOKS HAS LONG BEEN the biggest-selling act of the Nielsen SoundScan era, with 69.6 million albums sold in the United States alone since 1991. And insiders say that for the recently launched tour in support of his new album, Man Against Machine (due Nov. 11), he has got an even bigger goal: to overtake the marks set by U2 on its record-shattering 360° Tour of 2009 to 2011. “He has been thinking about this for years,” says one well-known Nashville touring executive. “I think this is a calculated, well-thought-out plan about how he would become the biggest touring act of all time.” It’s a steep hill to climb: The attendance record of U2’s 360° is 7.3 million and its highest-gross mark a whopping $736 million. But based on the…

ON SEPT. 30, GROOVESHARK SEEMED all but sunk when a Manhattan court ruled in favor of Universal Music Group (UMG), which first sued the music streaming service for copyright infringement in 2011. With damning evidence including emails from Grooveshark executives ordering their employees to illegally upload songs (lest they end up on a “shit list”), the judge stated in his opinion of Grooveshark’s parent company Escape Media Group, “Escape engaged in purposeful conduct with a manifest intent to foster copyright infringement.” Indeed, the Gainesville, Fla.-based Grooveshark — which is loaded with both legal and bootlegged material — has been sued at least once by every major label group, sometimes multiple times. And while some sources say UMG and other majors are holding out a shred of hope that the remarkably…

Google Play has joined with Samsung in a bold move to convert other services’ loyal customers in the rapidly growing Latin American streaming market. Via a promotion launched in September, anyone who buys a new Samsung device (Galaxy S4, S5 and Galaxy Tab) in any of 17 countries gets a free six-month subscription to the service — and beginning Nov. 1, all owners of a Samsung smartphone, tablet or Level product get a three-month free subscription. In terms of sheer numbers and potential market reach, the partnership is huge: There are 41 million smartphone users in Brazil alone — the biggest Latin market and 90 percent of those run on the Google-developed Android system, according to Kantar Worldpanel. Latin America’s digital music revenue grew 27.6 percent in 2013, and marked…

THREE OF THE ARCHITECTS of the reissue business, with skills honed from decades spent at Rhino Records, are diving deep into another realm of nostalgia: cult TV shows and films. Shout Factory, which CEO Richard Foos, COO Bob Emmer and president Garson Foos founded in 2003 as a DVD distribution company focused on music releases, recently acquired the 400-plus-movie library Westchester Films, adding such titles as Alfred Hitchcock’Foreign Correspondent, John Ford’s Stagecoach, Merchant-Ivory’s A Room With a View and The Marx Brothers’A Night in Casablanca to its library. Key to the deal is Shout’s ability to sell the films for broadcast, plus strike new deals for DVD packages when licenses with other companies expire. “We’ve morphed our business to be a visual content business,” says Garson Foos, who figures there…

“THE LAST TIME I PLAYED HERE WAS ABOUT 20 YEARS AGO,” said Beck, who kicked off this year’s Austin City Limits Music Festival at the annual pre-party held at Stubb’s Bar-B-Q on Oct. 3. But after launching into songs including “Black Tambourine” and “Loser,” the crowd’s reaction made it clear that the singer’s return to Texas was a welcome one. Thanks to the influx of EDM acts like Major Lazer, Zedd, Calvin Harris and Skrillex — whose beams of light jutted through the night sky opposite the stage where Eminem and Pearl Jam performed — the first of ACL’s two weekend-long runs in Zilker Park garnered larger crowds and more bass drops than years past. Slow-burning sets from Sam Smith and Lana Del Rey provided a refreshing contrast to the…

EVERYTHING ABOUT BETTY WHO IS OUTSIZED. STANDING 6-FOOT-1 with a tuft of platinum blonde hair, the 22-year-old Australian freshman’s bold look is matched by her glittery synth-pop anthems. The singer, born Jessica Newham and now based in New York, broke out when her single “Somebody Loves You” soundtracked a viral YouTube clip of a dance-heavy marriage proposal, leading to an RCA deal and, in April, the top of Billboard’s Hot Dance Club Songs chart. She followed that early promise with her excellent debut LP, Take Me When You Go, released Oct. 7. Katy Perry is a fan, recruiting Who to open the upcoming Australian leg of her Prism Tour, and there are lots of reasons you should be too. 1 She’s the life of the party: “I’m the first person…

Sam-ta Claus A partridge in a pear tree tells Billboard that British singersongwriter Sam Smith will perform on top of the Capitol Records building in Los Angeles in December as part of a Christmas-themed TV special. Ne-Yo & Juicy J’s New Video Extols The Pole There are arena anthems, garage anthems and, if Ne-Yo and Juicy J have their way, a new stripper anthem. The duo worked with a casting crew to audition more than 50 pole dancers for the just-released video for their track “She Knows.” “Ne-Yo and Juicy J want to create an anthem for strip clubs. They both really admire pole dancers and consider it an art form,” says a source close to the project. “They want to pay homage to women.” Winners of the audition include…

“I’m picking this one based on looks. Trevor Knight, do you hear me? Call me.” —KATY PERRY The pop star on ESPN’s College GameDay, predicting that the quarterback’s Oklahoma Sooners would beat the TCU Horned Frogs. (The Sooners lost 37-33.) “I have not called Katy Perry yet.” —TREVOR KNIGHT The quarterback responding to the singer’s request after the game, adding that not having Perry’s phone number is “definitely the first issue.” “Feed the poor. Fight the power. Rock the f— out.” —TOM MORELLO The guitarist explaining his “mantra throughout this entire life of music and activism” to The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s a work of art. It’s something that will go down in history.” —P. DIDDY The rapper-mogul commenting on ex-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez’s butt while watching her “Booty” video on Access…

The Okpo sisters (left) outside Exodus Goods wearing Nanushka dresses ($265). Clockwise, from top left: handmade bag from Zambia ($80), Brother Vellies shoes ($235) and a rack of Nanushka clothes ($220-$265). TORY BURCH: DESIGNER, AUTHOR AND MUSIC FANATIC You might not peg preppy lifestyle designer Tory Burch as a Tupac Shakur fan — but her first book, Tory Burch: In Color ($25, Abrams), reveals that the Upper East Sider’s taste in music is as bold as her print-splashed womenswear line. Hitting shelves Oct. 14, the tome gives readers the scoop on Burch’s favorite things from cocktails to artists and includes playlists curated by such friends as ex-boyfriend/music executive Lyor Cohen. “Music is an inspiration in everything I do,” says Burch, who counts The Cure and Van Morrison, who she saw…

THE BANJO PLAYER HAS MAGENTA highlights in his hair. The drummer is wearing sunglasses and a Motley Crue T-shirt. In the first song, there’s a bass drop: The sound briefly stops, and when it storms back in, a meter at the sound board spikes to 120 decibels. Welcome to the 2014 version of country music. “Motherf—in’ bucket list,” Tyler Hubbard, 27, of Florida Georgia Line shouts a few minutes earlier, raising a shot of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky backstage as the band gets ready to play its second night at Red Rocks Amphitheatre outside Denver, one of the world’s most beautiful venues. There’s a cake and candles for his fiancee, Hayley Stommel, on her 27th birthday. Tonight, FGL’s second full-length album, Anything Goes, is still four weeks away from its release…

FARRUKO, 23 The featured act (and co-writer) on Balvin’s hit “6 AM,” this Puerto Rican reggaetonero is already in high demand to perform shows here and in Europe as his single “Passion Whine” (featuring Sean Paul) sits at No. 5 on the Latin Rhythm Airplay chart after spending three weeks at No. in August. KEVIN ORTIZ, 18 The younger brother of singer-songwriter Gerardo Ortiz, this regional Mexican star sings norteño banda — but he sings directly to the girls, complete with pop choreography. In 2013, the Pasadena, Calif.-born teen’s debut, Con la Misma Sangre (Bad Sin), reached No. 1 on the Regional Mexican Albums chart. LUIS CORONEL , 18 This Arizona-born performer, who sings traditional regional Mexican banda music, debuts at No. 1 on the Oct. 18 Top Latin Albums…

RAISE ’EM ON RHYTHM AND BLUES,” sings Hozier on “Jackie and Wilson,” named after the pioneering soul singer. Throughout his eponymous debut LP, the Irish singer-songwriter knits those two musical touchstones back together in his Americana-rock blend, with oily guitar riffs, crashing high-hats, angelic choruses and sung-spoken verses about lit cigarettes and possible future lovers. About half of Hozier has already seen the light of day in one way or another: His biggest hit, the politically charged title track to 2013’s Take Me to Church EP, opens the record; 2014 follow-up EP From Eden lends its own title track and “Work Song.” Though the new songs in between have stiff competition, Hozier proves himself a consistent songwriter that unites his influences as much as he explores them. The 24-year-old (real…

THE TRUE STORY OF BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT winner Paul Potts’ rise from a cellphone-selling ugly duckling to an aria-singing swan puts Hollywood’s best screenwriters to shame. So, it’s no surprise someone would try to capture Potts’ magic in movie form. Fortunately, One Chance fell into the capable hands of director David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada), whose polish mutes the script’s occasional false note, although he does color strictly within the lines. One Chance eagerly follows in the tradition of feel-good British working-class films like Billy Elliot and Brassed Off as it chronicles its portly young opera devotee’s struggles in the inhospitable cultural climes of Welsh coal country. But the story diverges briefly into postcard territory when Potts, played by James Corden, travels to opera school in Venice, Italy, only…

LABEL Warner Bross. RELEASE DATE Oct. 14 Would you be wrong for thinking that Nico & Vinz could be something for real? Yup. The Norwegian duo may have boasted one of the songs of the summer in “Am I Wrong,” but on its debut album, Nico Sereba and Vincent Dery prove the chorus of doubters right. The LP trumpets its empowering, pan-global ambitions: The title nods to the pair’s family roots in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, combining the nicknames of each country’s national soccer team. But the music is much tamer. Lyrics like “You don’t have to be big and tall/To stand up and hold your own” (from “Miracles”) play like inspirational memes. Still, their hearts are in such the right place that it’s hard to totally root against…

THE LATIN GRAMMY IS AN AWARD THAT prides itself on rewarding artistic merit over commercial success. It’s an approach that has long lent itself to nominations that run the gamut from groundbreaking to controversial. And this year is no exception. When the Latin Recording Academy announced its nominations on Sept. 24, Puerto Rican political rap duo Calle 13 received nine nods on the strength of Multi_Viral, an edgy album that has sold just 12,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Meanwhile, 2014’s top Latin seller to date, American singer-songwriter Romeo Santos’ slickly produced Formula, Vol. 2, was left in the lurch. Although it has sold 219,000 copies stateside and connected across all Latin regions, it didn’t receive a single nomination. In the middle of this broad spectrum,…

NUMBERS : JIMMY FALLON’S ‘EW!’IGNITES Jimmy Fallon has conquered late-night TV, and now the Tonight Show host has his sights set on the Billboard Hot 100. His new novelty single, “Ew!,” featuring Will.i.am , premiered Oct. 6 on the program, with Fallon encouraging fans to help the song crack the Hot 100. 4.5 The music video for “Ew!” — performed by Fallon in character as Sara with her bestie Mir.i.am played by Will.i.am — logged 4.5 million global views on YouTube in its first two days of release. The cut was produced by Will.i.am and released through Interscope Records. 25 Fallon earned more than 25,000 mentions on Twitter between Oct. 6 and 7 after “Ew!” arrived, a 128 percent increase over the previous two days, according to Next Big Sound.…

Blake, Carrie Boost Country Blake Shelton blasts to his first week atop the Billboard Artist 100, rocketing 19-1 as his album Bringing Back the Sunshine debuts atop the Billboard 200 with 101,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Shelton becomes the first country act to top the tally since it launched in July. (That’s excluding Taylor Swift, given her declaration of an outright segue to pop with the release of her latest hit, “Shake It Off.” She tallied 19 top 10s on Hot Country Songs between 2006 and 2013.) Shelton soars by 167 percent in Artist 100 chart points, with album sales accounting for 80 percent of his total. Radio airplay (9 percent) and digital song sales (8 percent) follow, as the new set’s lead single, “Neon Light,” lifts 6-4…