Innholdsfortegnelse for January 6, 2018 i Billboard Magazine

For the third straight year, the U.S. music business is not only growing, it’s growing faster, as overall consumption hit 636.7 million equivalent album units in 2017, up 12.5 percent from 566.1 million in 2016. And once again, streaming is driving that growth: Overall on-demand streams reached 618 billion, up 43 percent, equating to 412 million streaminge-quivalent album units, up from 288.2 million SEA the year prior. Audio on-demand streams grew 58.7 percent to 400.4 billion, up from 252.3 billion in 2016, while video on demand grew to 217.7 billion streams, a 20.9 percent increase over the prior year total of 180 billion. With that, the U.S. industry produced its first 1 billion-stream song in a single year, as Louis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” (featuring Justin Bieber) hit 1.3…

WASHINGTON, D.C., DEC. 2 HOSTED BY STEPHEN COLBERT FOR THE FOURTH TIME, THE 40TH EDITION OF the Kennedy Center Honors (which aired Dec. 26 on CBS) honored artists Gloria Estefan, LL Cool J and Lionel Richie, writer-producer Norman Lear and dancer-choreographer Carmen de Lavallade. The lively celebration marked only the fourth time in four decades that the sitting president didn’t attend — Donald Trump last August opted to skip the event amid a swirl of suggested boycotts. After an opening statement from Caroline Kennedy, the performance-heavy evening began. Becky G and Chaka Khan honored Estefan with stunning renditions of “Mi Tierra” and “Coming Out of the Dark,” respectively; Stevie Wonder, Luke Bryan and Leona Lewis each paid tribute to Richie; and LL Cool J, the youngest-ever and first hip-hop honoree,…

In 2015, CupcakKe burst on the scene with the viral hit “Vagina,” inspired largely by Khia’s 2002 sexually explicit single, “My Neck, My Back.” Since then, the Chicago native has made a hilariously cartoonish approach to her sexual prowess one of her lyrical touchstones, both on her 2016 debut mixtape, Cum Cake, and its full-length follow-up, Audacious. “I’m not going to hold my tongue because society wouldn’t want me to say something,” says the 20-year-old rapper (born Elizabeth Harris). “I have an ‘I don’t give a fuck’ attitude.” But with her new project, Ephorize, out Jan. 5, the independent artist is offering a surprising dose of selfobservation. The album, which follows 2017 LP Queen Elizabitch, finds a balance between the sex-positive bangers CupcakKe is known for and more contemplative and…

In late November 2017, Def Jam cofounder and lifestyle mogul Russell Simmons stepped down from his companies after the screenwriter Jenny Lumet accused him of sexually assaulting her in 1991. By mid-December, more women had come forward with allegations of rape or harassment, including a former Def Jam executive, a singer and a music journalist. (Simmons denied the allegations.) The breadth of these women’s positions underscores the fact that sexual misconduct affects all tiers of the industry, and after decades of neglect, consequences are finally beginning to hit home. Last May, Antonio “L.A.” Reid, who counted TLC, OutKast and Mariah Carey’s 2005 reinvention among his successes, resigned as CEO of Epic Records following a former assistant’s harassment accusation. Yet with months to go before the sea change sparked by Harvey…

“The world is becoming increasingly chaotic and conflict-ridden; I think there will be a lot of artists taking risks, being bold, experimenting out loud, as people won’t have as much time or patience for lukewarm music.” —MITSKI “If one thing is certain in 2018, it is a continuing swing in the balance of power toward artists as a result of reversions and shorter terms. Do not expect artists in the age of streaming to want to sign up to old-style deals.” —HARTWIG MASUCH (CEO, BMG) “2018 is all about grassroots movements in politics, in social change and in music. Anybody who’s authentically creating their own environment is going to win. Bands like [electronic duo] Jadu Heart have millions of streams with no press or radio.” —MURA MASA “The next…

Lil Xan’s Big Leap Redlands, Calif.-based rapper Lil Xan (above) jumps 10-5 for a new peak on the Emerging Artists chart. The move is powered by his debut single, “Betrayed,” which enters Rap Digital Song Sales at No. 25, up 278 percent to 11,000 downloads sold in the week ending Dec. 28, 2017, while boasting 8.7 million U.S. streams, according to Nielsen Music. Meanwhile, controversial YouTube star Logan Paul re-enters Emerging Artists at a new peak of No. 14, driven entirely by gains in digital song sales, led by “Santa Diss Track” (9,000; up 191 percent). On Dec. 31, Paul posted a video to his YouTube channel of himself in Japan’s Aokigahara forest, showing the body of a person who had committed suicide. He deleted the clip on Jan. 1…

Rihanna’s Lipstick-Fueled Leap A boost in Instagram activity, including 25.3 million reactions, helps Rihanna (below) rise 5-2 on the Social 50. The singer added 283,000 new followers on the service in the week ending Dec. 31, 2017 (up 146 percent). On Dec. 26, she announced the release of Mattemoiselle, her new lipstick line with Sephora, with an Instagram video showing multiple women — herself included — applying the makeup. Later that day, she posted a solemn photo toasting her cousin, Tavon Alleyne, who was shot and killed in Barbados the day after she had spent Christmas with him. She added the hashtag #endgunviolence to the post and, in the caption accompanying a video of Alleyne the next day, added, “Be grateful for life, man.” Blackpink re-enters the Social 50 at…

‘Thunder’-ous Applause After Imagine Dragons and Khalid (above) performed a medley of their respective hits “Thunder” and “Young Dumb & Broke” at the 2017 American Music Awards on Nov. 19, the studio version, released Dec. 19, debuts at No. 4 on Hot Rock Songs. The track bows with 46,000 downloads sold, good for a No. 2 start on Rock Digital Song Sales, along with 2 million U.S. streams, according to Nielsen Music. The medley’s release also spurs a 124 percent surge to 75,000 sold for the original “Thunder,” its second-best weekly sum, as it crowns Rock Digital Song Sales for a 15th week. Meanwhile, with “Believer” at No. 3, Imagine Dragons are the first group to control the top three spots on Rock Digital Song Sales (which began in 2010).…

Williams’ ‘Choir’ Ties Record “Old Church Choir” by Zach Williams (above) matches the mark for the most weeks at No. 1 on the Christian Airplay chart for a song by a solo artist, as it rebounds 6-1 for its 19th week atop the tally. The track, which Williams co-wrote, soars by 184 percent to 8.3 million audience impressions in the tracking week ending Dec. 31, 2017, according to Nielsen Music (as Christian radio stations reverted from holiday-heavy playlists to regular programming after Christmas). “Choir” (at No. 3 on Hot Christian Songs after topping the Nov. 25 chart) matches the 19-week Christian Airplay reign of Brandon Heath’s “Give Me Your Eyes” in 2008 and 2009 for the record among soloists. Overall, only MercyMe’s “Word of God Speak” has led longer: 23…

“Monte is the best executive I’ve ever worked for, and Avery is one of the most analytical minds I’ve ever met,” says Roppo, photographed Dec. 13, 2017, at Republic Records in New York, of the Lipman brothers. “And Charlie [Walk]’s passion, creativity and fearlessness are inspiring, like anything’s possible.” I T WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A BANNER week in fall 2009 for then-Island Def Jam (IDJ) marketing executive Jim Roppo: Bon Jovi had just scored its fourth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with The Circle, and the debut EP from a promising young upstart, Justin Bieber, had just been released. Instead, on the night of Nov. 20, with his wife home pregnant, Roppo found himself in a Nassau County, N.Y., jail for failing to send a tweet from Bieber’s…

THE PULSE OF MUSIC RIGHT NOW WE BELIEVE IN A BEGINNING, MIDDLE AND ending,” says Fred Armisen. He’s explaining the decision to pull the plug on Portlandia, the critically acclaimed sketch-comedy series he created with Sleater-Kinney guitarist Carrie Brownstein and Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! alum Jonathan Krisel, after its upcoming eighth season. (The first of the final 10 episodes airs on IFC on Jan. 19.) “We’re such music fans,” he continues, glancing at Brownstein, who’s sitting beside him in a West Los Angeles bar. “When bands say, ‘This is our last album,’ there’s a sense of control. The show didn’t get away from us.” Brownstein nods toward her friend. “We wanted to go out while we still appreciated it,” she adds. Portlandia debuted in 2011, six years…

What inspired this doc? We were going to make a documentary about Fremont Street in Las Vegas, [where] I grew up. But [director] Don Argott wouldn’t let me do it without diving into my life. He was living in my home, documenting me and my family, and that opened up old wounds. My dad’s brother is gay and Mormon — he was shamed in his community. Teaching that being gay is a sin is so damaging; it sparked me to take action. Your parents declined to be in the film. Does anyone close to you appear in it? The singer from Neon Trees, Tyler Glenn. He kept [his sexuality] a secret for years. He came out recently and released a solo album about how he felt rejected by Mormonism. A…

KANYE WEST Widely considered the muse for West’s 2013 Yeezus album, Scott says he and Kanye “just learn from each other.” PLAYBOI CARTI Scott’s catchy adlibs have inspired artists like Carti to embrace frantic, unconventional rhyme patterns. JAY-Z One month post-Yeezus, Hov nabbed Scott’s hook-crafting talents for the Magna Carta Holy Grail track “Crown.” LIL UZI VERT Uzi’s mosh-pit-storming antics mirror Scott’s notoriously raucous, stage-diving ways.…

Vitals SOUNDS LIKE Bold, non-onsense lyrics and unforgettable hooks INFLUENCES She cites The Notorious B.I.G., Bob Marley and Quentin Tarantino as touchstones for her eclectic sound. WHERE YOU’LL HEAR HER Her debut LP is due in 2018. Jessie Reyez was reeling from a bad breakup when she attended a songwriting camp in Sweden two years ago. “I remember going to a session with swollen eyes,” says the 26-yearold Colombian-Canadian singer-songwriter. “Looking like a mess, but happy not to be home.” While there, she met producers Priest and the Beast (Pitbull) and Shy Carter (Charlie Puth), who worked with her on an emotional ballad called “Figures.” “Tell me, boy,” she sings in a soulful, raspy voice. “How in the fuck would you feel if you couldn’t get me back?” Her broken…

“I love that hip-hop has so many evolving parts. With some of these dance-trap records, I think that Atlanta bass-influenced music could come back with a mix of trap beats.” —KEVIN “COACH K” LEE (COO, QUALITY CONTROL MUSIC) “I believe a number of festivals will disappear due to overexpansion in the last five years. We will also see artists getting smarter about recording cycles. Instead of taking extended breaks to record full albums, they will continue to release music without staying away for too long.” —DANIEL GLASS (FOUNDER, GLASSNOTE RECORDS) “I am so excited to see what our generation’s protest music will sound like. I believe it will be much more self-aware, feminist and inclusive of America’s many cultures. We need anthems, and I can’t wait to sing along.”…

Showman Surges The soundtrack to the musical drama film The Greatest Showman vaults from No. 63 to No. 5 on the Billboard 200 — marking the highest-ranking soundtrack in over six months. The set jumps with 77,000 units (up 418 percent) earned in the week ending Dec. 28, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 61,000 were traditional album sales (up 436 percent). The album gets a big boost following the movie’s release in over 3,000 U.S. theaters on Dec. 20. The soundtrack features music from Showman stars Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya. The Greatest Showman is the highest-ranking soundtrack on the Billboard 200 since Prince & The Revolution’s Purple Rain re-entered the list at No. 4 on July 15, 2017, following the album’s deluxe reissue. The last soundtrack…

AIRPLAY DATA COMPILED BY nielsen MUSIC RADIO SONGS: The week’s most popular songs, ranked by radio airplay audience impressions as measured by Nielsen Music. Stations are electronically monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. DIGITAL SONG SALES: The week’s top-downloaded songs, ranked by sales data as compiled by Nielsen Music. POP/RHYTHMIC/ADULT: The week’s most popular current songs at mainstream top 40, rhythmic, adult contemporary and adult top 40 formats, respectively, ranked by radio airplay detections, as measured by Nielsen Music. Songs are defined as current if they are relatively recently-released titles, or songs receiving widespread airplay and/or sales activity for the first time. Stations are electronically monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. See Charts Legend on billboard.com/biz for complete rules and explanations. All charts ©…

Huncho Jack Is Head Honcho Huncho Jack — the duo of Travis Scott and Quavo — debuts at No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top Rap Albums with Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho. The set starts with 90,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Dec. 28, 2017, according to Nielsen Music. As Huncho Jack arrives, seven of the collaborative set’s tracks debut on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs: “Eye 2 Eye,” featuring Takeoff (No. 27); “Modern Slavery” (No. 29); “Black & Chinese” (No. 31); “Dubai Sh*t,” featuring Offset (No. 35); “Huncho Jack” (No. 38); “Motorcycle Patches” (No. 39); and “Saint” (No. 40). Notably, Quavo appears on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs in three separate capacities: billed as a soloist (on the No. 34 “Ice Tray” with Lil Yachty), as one-half of Huncho…

‘X’ Marks The No. 1 Spot Australian producer Tom Budin and London-based vocalist Luciana (above) lunge 2-1 on Dance Club Songs with “X With U.” Supermini & Frankie Romano and Exodus & Shawn White, among others, remixed the seventh leader for Luciana and the first for Budin. Luciana recently told Billboard, “I wrote ‘X’ after I’d heard a girl at a club say to her friend in the toilet that she should have spent the night with a guy she had met earlier; she should have gone with her instincts and just hung out with him so that they could’ve enjoyed each other. It’s so much better to regret the things you have done rather than the things you didn’t.” Also in the Dance Club Songs’ top 10, Toni Braxton…

As the Jan. 12 voting deadline for Academy Award nominations approaches, expect songs from socially conscious-oriented films and entries from past winners to dominate the best original song category. This year, 70 tunes are in consideration, down from 91 in 2017. To be eligible, the work must be written specifically for the film and used within the movie or as the first end-title song. Billboard spoke with two Oscar voters, identified as Voter One and Voter Two, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about what voters may be looking for when marking their ballots. “Since Common and John Legend won for [2014’s] Selma, there’s an expectation that there’s a slot for a song about civil rights or a political song,” says Voter One. “It doesn’t hurt to have a…

“Catnap,” season two (2012) Kristen Wiig, who spent seven years with Armisen on Saturday Night Live, plays a crazed fan named Gathy who doesn’t want her favorite band, Catnap, getting too popular. Brownstein says of Wiig’s creation, “Gathy was complete improv.” “Getting Away,” season four (2014) The cast escapes to New Beavertown, and k.d. lang sings the spiritual hymn “Down to the River to Pray” as they walk back to Portland. “For me, this serves as the very last sketch of the whole series,” says Armisen. “Run the Jewels Album Drop,” season seven (2016) Hip-hop duo Run the Jewels revealed a Portlandia origin story, with A&R execs played by Armisen and Brownstein. “They were able to make fun of themselves,” says Brownstein, “which is such an important trait in our…

Writing her fourth album, I can feel you creep into my private life, out Jan. 19, Tune-Yards leader Merrill Garbus sought spiritual growth. “I feel very humbled by how little I know,” says the acclaimed indie artist after months of wide-ranging research. Joined on the album by longtime collaborator Nate Brenner, the 38-yearold shares what influenced Tune-Yards’ most confrontational work to date. 1 SHE DJ’D WEEKLY AT A BAR IN OAKLAND, CALIF. “[DJ’ing at The Hatch] opened the dance music door for me. My favorite story in [Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton’s 1999 book] Last Night a DJ Saved My Life was of early house DJs who would play until people got it. That’s what we do, we introduce audiences to new sounds and rhythms — push the envelope. Even…

New Year’s resolutions are often body-focused, and for touring crews, staying in shape is easier said than done. Celebrity fitness trainer and nutrition specialist Harley Pasternak, whose client roster has included Kanye West and Katy Perry, explains how touring artists can continue to eat, drink and be merry without piling on the pounds. KEEP YOUR BODY ON TIME “Whatever time zone you’re in, keep that time on your watch. You want to try to keep your sleep and meal patterns attached to the time zone that you’re in. It’s important so you don’t feel disoriented. If we take a red-eye and land in Singapore at 8 a.m., we’re not going to bed. Force yourself to stay awake, have breakfast, power through the day.” EAT IN MODERATION “I…

At last, the music industry’s long, cold winter is over. After nearly 20 years of decline, the U.S. recorded-music business generated $4 billion in revenue in the first half of 2017, a 17 percent gain over the same period in 2016. Even more stunning, Billboard estimates that the final tally for 2017 could reach $9 billion (based on the current growth rate and historic patterns) — a level the industry hasn’t seen since before the 2008 recession. Optimism abounds, but as one insider puts it: “The pressure’s on.” Pricier Talent “Competitiveness on the signing front has gotten very intense,” says RCA executive vp John Fleckenstein. “And with competition, the cost of acquiring talent goes through the roof, which makes doing what we’ve always done more expensive.” Labels are reinvesting in…

POP-ROCK GROUP WALK the Moon may soon have reason to celebrate every time a flash mob posts a routine set to “Shut Up and Dance” on Facebook: The social media giant will finally start paying for music. On Dec. 21, 2017, the company announced a multiyear licensing deal with Universal Music Group, allowing users to upload and share videos on Facebook and its subsidiaries Instagram and Oculus that, for the first time, contain licensed music. Sources say Facebook has been nearing similar pacts with Warner Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment, deals that combined could bring the music industry over $1 billion in the next two years — and give YouTube serious competition in the free-music space. “This is use that right now we’re not getting paid anything for,” says…

Vinyl Still Vital In 2017 Once again, yearly vinyl album sales have hit a Nielsen-era record high, as the configuration sold 14.3 million copies in the tracking period of Dec. 30, 2016, through Dec. 28, 2017 (up 9 percent compared with 2016). That increases from the previous one-year high, registered in 2016 with 13.1 million. 2017 marks the 12th straight year of growth in vinyl album sales. The format represented 8.5 percent of all album sales in 2017 — up from 6.5 percent for the configuration’s share in 2016. LP sales were 14 percent of all physical album sales in 2017 — up from 11 percent in 2016. An array of titles drove vinyl album sales, not just a handful of hot sellers. In total, 77 different titles each sold…

Old Dominion’s New Top 10 Old Dominion (above) notches its fifth — and fastest-rising — Country Airplay top 10 as “Written in the Sand” pushes 11-10, up 9 percent to 21.8 million audience impressions in the tracking week ending Dec. 31, 2017, according to Nielsen Music. The ballad was co-written by the group’s Brad Tursi, Trevor Rosen and Matthew Ramsey along with Shane McAnally. (Old Dominion also includes Geoff Sprung and Whit Sellers.) It’s the second single from the band’s sophomore full-length studio album, Happy Endings, and it reaches the top 10 in its 16th chart week, besting the 17-week ascent of the act’s second top 10, “Snapback,” in 2016. Old Dominion’s three other top 10s all ruled the tally: “Break Up With Him” (Nov. 14 and 21, 2015), “Song…

English-Language Stars Rule Ozuna (above) notches his third Hot Latin Songs top five hit as his new single, “La Modelo,” featuring Cardi B (released Dec. 22, 2017), debuts at No. 3. The song is powered mostly by streams (11.7 million on-demand streams in the week ending Dec. 28, 2017, according to Nielsen Music) and downloads (18,000). The dancehall-infused, reggaetón-styled song, co-written by Ozuna, Cardi B and Max Kennedy, is the first collaboration from Ozuna and Cardi B. It follows Ozuna’s 2017 singles “Escapate Conmigo” (Wisin featuring Ozuna, peaking at No. 3) and “Criminal” (Natti Natasha with Ozuna, reaching No. 5). This is Cardi B’s first appearance on the chart. Notably, thanks to the arrival of Cardi B at No. 3, all top five titles on Hot Latin Songs — for…

GNR, Gaga Tours Rule Guns N’ Roses and Lady Gaga (above) dominate the top of the latest Boxscore chart with box-office counts reported from fall runs on both of their world tours. Neither trek has wrapped, however, as both acts are set to hit the road again in 2018. GNR’s Not in This Lifetime... Tour scores 10 slots on the chart with revenue from the final 10 venues on its 2017 schedule. The top grosser at No. 1, a two-show run at The Forum in the Los Angeles market, racked up $3.1 million in sales from 22,215 tickets sold on Nov. 25 and 29, 2017. With sales topping $475 million since its April 2016 launch, the reunion of bandmembers Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan already ranks among the highest-grossing…