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"This is the biggest thing I've I've ever done in my whole career," the Dutch producer says of his rework of Brown's 1971 classic.

In October of 1971, Godfather of Soul James Brown clocked another entry in his generational run on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with “Super Bad Part 1 & 2” — a confidence anthem commonly known simply as “Super Bad,” which hit No. 1 on the chart and ultimately became one of the many defining anthems of Brown’s immeasurably influential catalog. It was obviously a song you could dance to, but it wasn’t technically a dance song — until now. Via a collaboration with James Brown’s grandson Jason Brown, Brown estate stakeholders Universal Music and Primary Wave and Dutch legend Laidback Luke, “Super Bad” has gotten an official rework called “I Got Soul (Super Bad)”. Out today (Aug. 28) via Dim Mak Records, the project finds Luke ramping up the song’s BPM and urgency, outfitting his electro production with Brown’s declarations to, among other things, “watch me!” Done in a style bloghouse fans will know and appreciate, the song bumps along deliciously, although as the producer tells it, putting it together was initially quite daunting. “When I got those stems and opened them up, I was scared,” Luke tells Billboard. “It’s sacred material; I didn’t want to touch it.” This intimidation factor lead Luke to circle back with Jason, who “just gave me complete freedom that made me feel like I could just run with this.” Jason Brown, who is himself a Los Angeles-based DJ/producer who’s remixed many of his grandfather’s hits and cites a mission to “revamp my gramps music to the next generation,” initially reached out to Luke via DM earlier this year to gauge his interest in being part of the project. He’d seen Luke play many times back in the day while he was a student at SCAD, a creative college in Washington D.C. and loved his classic Dirty Dutch sound. Luke read the DM and was, at first, incredulous. “It was a little bit creepy,” says Luke, “because I didn’t know who he was and he just started talking about his granddaddy and that he had all the stems and rights to the music. I was like, ‘Wait James Brown is his granddaddy? Like, is this guy for real?” He was for real, and after the pair had a conversation, Luke received the “Super Bad” stems from Jason and Universal Music, which owns Brown’s recorded masters. “They just saw the vision,” Jason says of the label. The project — which is being framed as an official collaboration rather than a remix — is also a product of Primary Wave, which acquired a stake in Brown’s publishing, master royalty income, name and likeness rights in a 2021 deal valued at approximately $90 million. “It’s a bit of a melting pot and a real estate situation when it comes down to the business of it,” Jason Brown says of the project’s multiple stakeholders. “But that’s how you get it all across the board, you put everybody at the table. You get everybody on the email. And then you’ve got to know what sounds good, and the result has got to be good, and the names attached have to be somebody. It’s literally all about relevance.” Luke says the song has been hitting hard during recent sets, with audience going a bit wilder when they realize who the song features. Having previously done official remixes for artists including Madonna, Depeche Mode, Daft Punk and Donna Summer, Luke still cites this project as “the biggest thing I’ve I’ve ever done in my whole career… Like, the only [bigger you can go] is Elvis or Michael Jackson.” Knowing how much this project means to his career and how much James Brown means to countless people around the world, Luke was a little shy about playing Jason his finished track. “I actually ghosted him for a little bit because I didn’t know if I wanted him to hear it, because I really did my own thing with it,” Luke says. But the inevitable listening session eventually took place in person in the Dam Mak office in Los Angeles, where Luke and Jason met for the first time and Luke recognized that “Jason is very much the real deal. He’s one of those American kids of huge legends who are just roaming around and have access to this legacy.” Luke played Jason the track, and Jason says he while he was surprised by Luke taking an electro approach rather than going Dirty Dutch, the final product achieves what he’d hoped it might. “It kind of puts [my grandfather] into the future,” he says. “And that’s the goal. This supersedes the goal.”

In this week’s The Contenders, 'KPop Demon Hunters’ experiences a post-theatrical debut surge — but may still get stuck behind Stray Kids’ latest. 

The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week, for the upcoming Billboard 200 dated Sept. 7, we look at the still-rising KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack possibly getting lapped by a BB200 superpower. Stray Kids, Karma (JYP/Republic): Despite being fairly prolific over the past two years — especially on the Billboard charts — K-pop superstars Stray Kids hadn’t actually released an official Korean-language studio album since 2023, having instead been on a run of EPs with one Japanese-language album (2024’s Giant) and one mixtape (2024’s Hop) thrown in. The latest set Karma, released last Friday (Aug. 22), is actually just the octet’s fourth such album total, with 2023’s 5-Star being the only one of the first three to reach the Billboard 200. That set topped the Billboard 200, and so have the other five Stray Kids projects to reach the chart: 2022’s Stray Kids Mini Album: Oddinary (EP) and Maxident, 2023’s ROCK-STAR and 2024’s ATE (EP) and Hop. It stands to reason, then, that a long-awaited official album like Karma would also have a pretty good shot at reaching the chart’s top as well — and the set’s sales will be boosted by 14 available physical variants: 11 CD variants (all inclusive of randomized collectible paper ephemera) and 3 vinyl variants. KPop Demon Hunters Soundtrack (Visva/Republic): If you were wondering whether this was going to be the week that the KPop Demon Hunters rocketship finally started to slow, you probably got your answer when the Netflix movie topped the weekend box office after finally arriving in theaters nationwide for the first time (after a one-week release in just three theaters in June). Fans new and old couldn’t resist coming out to the local multiplex to sing along to now-minted Demon Hunters smashes like “Golden,” “Your Idol,” “Soda Pop” and “How It’s Done,” which collectively make history on the Billboard Hot 100 this week by making the soundtrack the first to claim four simultaneous top 10 Hot 100 hits. The songs have gotten a solid streaming boost from the movie’s theatrical run — possibly enough to finally push the soundtrack past Morgan Wallen’s 12-week No. 1 I’m the Problem, which has held it at No. 2 for five non-consecutive weeks at this point. But securing the Billboard 200 No. 1 might have to wait at least one more week for the summer’s most unexpected blockbuster: With CDs not slated for a wide release until Sept. 5, it likely cannot compete with the sparkling sales numbers put up by Stray Kids — whose 5-Star album posted 235,000 in pure album sales in its debut week two years ago, a number likely to be bested by Karma next week. IN THE MIX Laufey, A Matter of Time (AWAL): Two years after 2023’s Bewitched and its (somehow still viral) breakout hit “From the Start” made traditional pop vocalist Laufey an unlikely Gen Z darling, she returns with the new set A Matter of Time. The album has gotten off to a strong start on streaming, with new single “Lover Girl” still ranking in the top half of Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA 200, and will undoubtedly be boosted by a wide variety of available variants — including eight vinyl and three CD options (each with one signed edition) and even a cassette. Deftones, Private Music (Reprise/Warner): Another act you can expect to sell well this week is veteran alt-metalers the Deftones, who have reached the Billboard 200’s top 10 with six of their last seven albums (2012’s No. 11-peaking Koi No Yokan the lone holdout) over a now-25-year span. It should be seven of eight following last Friday’s release of Private Music, another strong streaming performer with a ton of purchase options: seven vinyl variants, three CDs, a cassette and a box set with a branded piece of a clothing and a vinyl LP inside. Tyler, the Creator, Cherry Bomb (Odd Future): Third official album Cherry Bomb holds a curious place in Tyler, the Creator’s catalog, marking perhaps the most lukewarmly received and least-remembered project in his otherwise unanimously acclaimed discography. But the set’s 10th anniversary (celebrated in April) is as good a time as any to revisit and re-evaluate the set — and as of Friday, fans have the ability to do so via three new vinyl variants and three new deluxe boxed sets containing branded merch and a CD, all likely to send the set hurtling back towards the Billboard 200’s top 10 this week (perhaps just short of its original No. 4 peak).

The radio staple hosted the first hip-hop show at the station in 1992.

They say all good things come to an end. After hosting the first hip-hop show ever at Hot 97 in 1992, Funkmaster Flex announced Thursday (Aug. 28) that he’ll be unplugging his turntables for good at the station next week. Funk Flex will be dropping his signature bombs and hitting the airwaves at 7 p.m. on Labor Day (Sept. 1), which will be his final show with Hot 97. “THIS MONDAY LABOR DAY SEPTEMBER 1ST WITH BE MY LAST SHOW ON HOT97 AT 7PM,” he wrote to X. “ALL THINGS COME TO AN END! END OF AN ERA THAT I ENJOYED VERY MUCH!” Flex continued: “I SUPER ENJOYED IT ALL! I WILL MAKE THE LAST SHOW A GREAT ONE! APPRECIATE EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED ME OVER THE YEARS!” THIS MONDAY LABOR DAY SEPTEMBER 1ST WITH BE MY LAST SHOW ON HOT97 AT 7PM! ALL THINGS COME TO AN END! END OF AN ERA THAT I ENJOYED VERY MUCH! I SUPER ENJOYED IT ALL! I WILL MAKE THE LAST SHOW A GREAT ONE! APPRECIATE EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED ME OVER THE YEARS! — Funk Flex !!!!! (@funkflex) August 28, 2025 Fans of the station were stunned about Funk Flex’s departure announcement, wondering what his next move would be. “END OF AN ERA INDEED! We gonna need another classic moment before you go out with a BANG, Flex,” one person wrote. Another added: “We living in the end of times the mayans were talking about wtf!” After starting at Hot 97 over three decades ago, the Bronx native is responsible for plenty of classic NYC radio moments, including his premiere of Jay-Z and Ye’s “Otis” in 2011, which he restarted roughly 25 times and dropped 63 bombs on over the course of 22 minutes. Earlier in August, Flex was presented with a Key to the City by New York City Mayor Eric Adams for “his role in shaping the global reach of NYC’s hip hop scene through his iconic platform.” “I’m humbled and honored to receive the Key to the City I’ve always called home,” Flex said. “New York made me. Hot 97 gave me the mic and hip-hop gave me a voice. This moment means everything.”

Billboard's Makin' Tracks looks at the writing and recording of Old Dominion's "Making Good Time."

There’s a period in life – usually in the 30s or 40s – where people make big decisions about their identity. The world is changing around them, and they control their reaction: Do they resist those changes and hang on to the past? Or do they accept society’s evolutions and try to adapt along with it? The former world view leads in its most extreme version to the stereotypically angry old person. The path for the latter viewpoint skews toward the wise, resilient soul that most would likely aspire to be in their senior years. Both kinds of people are shaped by their past experiences, like the protagonist in the new Old Dominion single: “Making Good Time,” released by Columbia Nashville to country radio via PlayMPE on July 14. The protagonist flashes back to a teenage relationship full of rebellion, joy and excitement, lived out with the newfound freedom that comes from a car and a first driver’s license. The couple had been in the early years of their respective life journeys, and the supporting music takes a parallel trip, reflecting on the past with an upbeat attitude while changing with each section of the song. It’s written as if the singer is at ease with his evolution, but appreciates the history that brought him here. “Change is just inevitable,” band member Trevor Rosen says. “That’s growth, so I think looking back positively is a healthy thing.” Rosen developed the first sound of “Making Good Time” while watching TV. Noodling on his daughter’s compact Baby Taylor guitar, he broke into an easy-going, fluttery pattern and recorded it on his phone. When he and two of his Old Dominion band mates – guitarist Brad Tursi and frontman Matthew Ramsey – had a writing appointment at SMACKSongs on Music Row, Rosen brought up that guitar part on the way to the meeting and sent the file to SMACK writer Ross Copperman (“Dancin’ in the Country,” “Living”). By the time Rosen arrived, Copperman had put a beat behind the guitar lick, and the rest of the day’s writing crew – including artist-writer Ross Ellis – was already toying with it. As conversation around it progressed, Rosen threw out a title that was also sitting on his phone, “Making Good Time.” It seemed to fit. It easily applied to both loving and driving, but instead of shaping it with a current storyline, they worked through the prism of nostalgia, paying homage to “Nowhere Fast,” a song from their first album that also mixes romance and automobiles, and nearly became a single. They wrote “Making Good Time” chronologically from the first line, picking out specific images from the past relationship – a concert, a Chevrolet, the girl’s braids – while providing zero clues about the current setting. The former lovers could have bumped into each other, he could be carrying on a conversation in his head, they could even still be a couple – there’s a mystery about who these people are now. “Sometimes being a little more vague helps people be able to bring it into their own lives,” Rosen reasons. It’s the opposite tack from the Dan Fogelberg classic “Auld Lang Syne,” which etches out the details of a chance meeting between two exes, never giving any specifics about the time they were together. That Fogelberg piece is a guiding light for Ramsey. “I think about that song obsessively,” he says. “It’s the simple vignettes like, ‘We bought a six-pack at the liquor store / And we drank it in her car.’ Those are just real intimate moments that are just like, ‘Holy shit. How do you get that granular?’ And we try to do that a lot.” “Making Good Time” unfolded by moving from the serene reflection of the fluttery acoustic riff and the opening stanza into a pleading pre-chorus: “We were 17, we were making moves / Burning gasoline, I was on fire for you.” After those few lines, it broke into an anthemic chorus. Copperman shifted the sound beneath that pre-chorus into a techno-like bass part that telegraphs a new stage in the song’s journey. “It’s like a pulsing synth,” Rosen says. “It’s like, ‘Okay, let’s create some tension here.’ How do we do that? Sometimes the best way is to drop the beat and have less going on. You know, set them up for the drop.” The chorus recaptured their youthful energy, brimming with enthusiasm all the way to the final “making good time” hook over a spiky rhythm guitar. Verse two offered more specifics from the past – matching tattoos, love in a clover field – but filtered through the sands of time. Instead of a bridge, Tursi chipped in a guitar segment that would become a new theme for the back half of the song. Old Dominion took “Making Good Time” into its first session for the new Barbara album, released Aug. 22. That initial tracking date with producer Shane McAnally (Sam Hunt, Carly Pearce) didn’t quite go as planned. “That was a difficult session for me personally,” Ramsey notes. “I wasn’t sure about any of the songs, except for ‘Making Good Time.’ We had maybe four or five songs that we wanted to knock out, and we honestly missed on two of them. We just abandoned them. And for whatever reason, it didn’t feel great, except that song might have been one of the last ones of the of the session, and we finally kind of fell into a groove.” They had originally tried to cut “Making Good Time” without referencing Copperman’s demo, but it didn’t quite jell. That changed when they used pieces of that demo to seed the performance and found a new energy on top of it. Keyboard player Dave Cohen beefed up the synth bass part in the pre-chorus, with bassist Geoff Sprung layering additional sound. Tursi further developed the guitar section with a skippy, carefree vibe while dialing up a new wave-era tone and reverb, with drummer Whit Sellers continuing a relentless backbeat. McAnally encouraged Tursi to cut out some of the quiet spaces in that guitar part, creating more melody. Ramsey was challenged again when he cut the final vocals, reaching to his upper register on the pre-chorus and battling a crowded chorus lyric. “There’s at least one song every record that I’m going ‘Why do we put so many damn words in the song?’” he says with a laugh. As confident as they were about “Making Good Time” going into the sessions, it wasn’t a slam-dunk for a single. Ultimately, it drew a strong reaction from the public when it went to digital streaming providers, and that made the difference. It’s at No. 55 on Country Airplay as it begins its journey into the future. “People love this song,” Rosen says. “We love this song. It has the classic elements of Old Dominion, you know. It sounds fresh, but it has that ‘Snapback’ throwback pop chorus. And people love it. When people are telling you they want to hear a song, don’t ignore the obvious.”

The duo sat down for a lengthy conversation on the state of rap, their chemistry, and they even addressed some rumors. Check out our interview.

Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist are playing the long game. Five years after they dropped their Grammy-nominated collab album Alfredo, the midwest rapper and the west coast producer decided to go bigger with the sequel by heading to Japan to give fans a short film centered around the Yakuza underworld where they run a ramen shop that launders money for organized crime figures. They had so much making and shooting Alfredo: The Movie that Freddie doesn’t want to release an album again without attaching a short film to it. Gangsta Gibbs and Uncle Al stopped by Billboard’s New York office earlier this week with a big bag of food, so that we could break bread and talk about everything from the chemistry they’ve built by working together to their love of independence to the both of them addressing rumors that range from the upcoming Grand Theft Auto game to Freddie’s alleged powwow with former collaborator Benny the Butcher to whether or not Al sent a beat pack to Future. In short, we covered a ton of topics. The conversation picks up as we were having a conversation over some Sophie’s cuban cuisine about the type of rap music they make. Check out our lengthy, yet entertaining conversation below. Freddie Gibbs: To be honest, man, it just speaks to the longevity of what we do. This ain’t no throwback s—t. I never wanted to make this no throwback s—t. It just shows you that this type of s—t will never die if you do it correctly. I was watching your Idea Generation interview with Noah, when you were talking about how you had that success, and then the game started changing, because I feel like you’re synonymous with that East Coast sound, and for a while that sound was like dying out. Can you talk about why that sound was able to have a resurgence? The Alchemist: It did feel for a minute, not like she was dying, but like the commerce behind the whole s—t was dying. At that time, if you were doing the type of s—t we were doing — and you gotta give a lot of credit to Sean Price, he was one of the first dudes to kind of bridge this gap to where we’re at if you were doing the type of music we’re doing — people used to be like, “What’s going on down there? Y’all making any money?” There wasn’t a direct-to-consumer ecosystem that we all collectively have created in the last 10-plus years with merch, vinyl, concerts. Basically us and a couple of other people, I think in necessity being the mother of invention, and being like, “Well, this is what we doing now, f—k these labels. Let’s start doing it ourselves the way we want to do it, no pressure.” And we built a world that became profitable. We all started showing our houses, cars, and people started seeing that tripping out because it was like, “Let me hear their music. They selling drugs? What’s going on?” We created a legit ecosystem that was working, that came from us selling product directly to our fans, not compromising the sound, not doing something for radio, we built a world. And then, once we started making money, it was like people started paying attention. Money does some s—t. They heard the music the whole time, but once it started becoming successful, and they started seeing us with all the things that these other rappers got…we have real fans because we started from the ground up, so our show tickets actually sell. some of these bigger artists now, you look at their streaming numbers, you can’t book a show based on that, because those aren’t real fans, you gonna have an empty arena. Our s—t is real. When you argue about the best rappers and some people bring up sales, it’s like, who gives a f—k? Jay or somebody might bring it up on a record, but at the end of the day, it’s about the quality. It’s a factor, but it doesn’t hold as much weight as some might think. A.: That never mattered, but people respect success. Like, back in the day, they wouldn’t play wack s—t in the hood. They wouldn’t play MC Hammer. As the years changed, I remember when Nelly came out, he was dope, but he was more commercial, and they the streets playing it. They respect the money and success. And I feel like that’s one thing we had to prove with our music to get respect, they see what we doing and that it’s adding up. If y’all was working with a label, they would’ve made you put an R&B song on the album. You had to play that game. F.G.: Oh, they would’ve made us do a whole album of radio songs and we made one with out trying with the A.P. track [“Ensalada.”] A.: It’s a gift and a curse, and I thought about this recently — because we all built this world that I just described in the last 10 years by doing it our own way. F—k radio, f—k everybody. Now our tours are amazing, our s—t is flourishing, but I kind of miss the pressure. This is the flip side. In the earlier days, my biggest records come from the era when we had to push to find a way to get in the Tunnel, to get on Flex. There was a little bit of pressure we had back then, and I don’t think we ever made no bulls—t to appeal to it, but thinking now, I was talking to Roc too like damn, we built this world in our comfort zone on our own, and now I want to push us. I wanna do what the A&R’s do to ourselves because I feel like we’re on a major scale with me and Freddie just did numbers. We playing with the big boys now. I mean, you guys were nominated for a Grammy, man. A.: I wanna push us now because we did it our our own, let’s put that pressure on us. I’m stubborn and he is too, I don’t want nobody telling me what to do. Let’s tell ourselves. Let’s be conscious of where we are now and stop acting like we’re in the underground. We’re making an effect on the whole rap game, like humbly, along with a lot of other people, but I’m just saying I know our value. F.G.: You wasn’t seeing underground motherf—kers fly like a Roc Marciano. You weren’t seeing that s—t before. Now you’re seeing the f—king spoils of this s—t, they respecting it, and they can’t stop it. because we never conformed. We always made what we wanted to make. You guys were able to go to Japan and make a short film. A.: And even more so with the whole lead by example thing. I want this sh—t we’re doing to inspire the next motherf—kers. I realized that’s our job. I came up listening to Premier and I could name a bunch of other people who were like idols to me, and I’m like, damn, there’s some kids looking at us now like that. So, s—t, while we’re in the driver’s seat, we got to put that s—t out, and it helps inspire the next generation. Has that been why you’ve been so adamant about working with the younger guys like ScHoolyboy, Earl, Action, Mac Miller, Curren$y? A.: During that phase, I had already done a lot with like Mobb Deep, Dilated Peoples, and a string of others, right? And I felt like I could ride out and just have this, but I also started meeting guys like ScHoolboy. When I met Q for the first time, he was like, “1st Infantry,” like, “What you mean?” He was like, “I used to play your s—t like crazy.” That’s how we connected. The same s—t with Mac and some of these younger guys like Action. They were coming to me. They wanted me to do what I was doing. I was like, “This is dope.” They wanted that sound. A.: Coming up, I had to cater a little. Now they’re like, just do you and I got to tap in with this whole new batch of talent, which gave me a second run and enabled me to get to the point where me and Freddie could do Alfredo. There were stages of me to get to the point where even Freddie was like, “I’m ready to share a record with you,” because you got to think, when I did Return to Mac and Covert Coup, my name wasn’t attached to them like it is now. I had to earn my position for rappers to approach me about doing collaborative projects together. So, was it you that first reached out to Al like to work? F.G.: It just happened organically. We were working early 2000s people didn’t even know. We got records nobody never heard, we were tied in already. F.G.: It was just me just hanging out and being like, “Hey, let’s do this.” Al, what I was getting earlier was did you tap in with the younger generation because you thought about how Muggs and Lethal kinda put you under their wings and you felt like you had to kind of pay it forward? A.: Not yet. Looking back now that I’m older, yeah, sure. It was more just happening with the next generation who were dope to me, but they also was f—kin’ with me. You put me onto Boldy with My 1st Chemistry Set. I’m was like, “Who’s this cat?” And it was your name that made me listen to it and now him and Marci are probably my favorite rappers of the last 10 years or so. I was also gonna bring up something that you had tweeted recently where you said, “This tweet should be in a museum.” A.: Oh, about Roc? Somebody found it first. The tweet of you hitting Busta Rhymes trying to get in touch with Roc was right around the time Marcberg was about to drop. Do you remember if you had heard some of it already? A.: I had met him a while back and I forget who was putting me on him at the time, but I was hearing his sh—t, and I was like I gotta link with him that’s why I hit Busta. From there we started working. Word, because that was that album for me when it comes to this era. There was before Marcberg and after Marcberg. A.: Absolutely, that was a big step. There were a lot of pieces to the puzzle. You go from there and I can name a bunch of projects. I remember that time when the snap era was ending and the blog era was happening, and the east coast didn’t really have a definitive sound. A.: It started to get a little burnt out. I got cool with some skaters in college and they put me onto this flourishing underground scene with DOOM and Madlib and all of them was doing. It was kind of like you, Freddie. I’m from the hood, so I wasn’t really aware of them like that. I had already knew about the Liks and all that, and who Madlib was to an extent, but… A.: You didn’t know how deep it went. Word, and even with DOOM, it was like, damn, this dude was with KMD and running around with MC Serch back in the day, and it blew my mind. F.G.: When Lambo took me to Stones Throw, I was like, “What the f—k is this sh—t? And he introduced me to Otis and he just started sending me some beats. I didn’t even know how the f—k I was gonna rap on them s—ts. Talk about “Thuggin'” because you’ve mentioned how that unlocked a chamber for you. F.G.: My boy Josh was like, “We gotta just figure it out,” so then we just start piecing it together and recording, and it just became a snowball effect. I wasn’t really hip to Madlib either, but those sessions made me a better rapper. That Jaylib tape f—ked my head up. Were you up on Dilla since you’re from that area? Because that wasn’t mainstream sh—t. F.G.: It wasn’t. Lambo put me on and unfortunately, he passed before we could ever do something. During that time when I was learning about MF DOOM and what they were doing at Stone Throw, I started working with Otis and the crazy part is I was still signed to Jeezy. So, I would take a lot of the sh—t that I was doing with him and be like, “Listen to this, this is what I’m doing right now.” That motherf—ker would look at me like, “You weird, bro. What is this? You’re supposed to be making songs like Meek Mill.” He didn’t see the vision. A.: S—t was starting to change. For me, I just moved around 2010 back to LA and built a studio. There’s kind of like a change, if you studied my whole run. Once I moved back to LA, I was hanging my man Hip-Hop — Kyambo — and he was around me a lot, and he was always a big underground fan, even though he worked for Roc-A-Fella. That’s right when Born Like This came out and of course, I knew DOOM, but during the Mobb Deep days I had tunnel vision, so there was a lot of s—t I missed. Even with the Jaylib stuff, I always knew Otis from the early Lootpack days and me and his brother Oh No have a group together, I started listening to that stuff around 2010, 2011, and he had a bunch of Madlib beat tapes and that s—t f—ked me up. I remember specifically hitting Madlib up like, “You’re insane.” I always wondered if he influenced you because you can hear it like the way you use tv or movie samples. A.: I tell him that all the time. Roc Marci did too. All my friends inspire me. I was more strict with my style. And I think if you ask Pete Rock, he’ll tell you the same thing happened with him and Dilla. Listen to Pete’s old s—t, it was formulated, the high hats, the horn. Once he started listening to Dilla, it cracked his head and he got freer. Now, you could hear a Pete Rock beat, you’re not sure if he did it or not. Same thing happened with me with Madlib. He would do this style and this genre and this one is live. I would hear his beat tapes and just be like, I want to be freer. I want to be more vast with my s—t. And I still find it interesting that you still have that darkness to your s—t that I feel like comes from Soul Assassins when you were with Muggs during the early days. A.: For sure. Muggs is the master, which is crazy because I always did what he did. I learned so much from him. That’s my point. We all inspire each other. Word, you can still hear that DNA in your s—t. A.: Yeah, my man Riggs used to call me the Minister of Sinister. So, was Fetti always part of this series? F.G.: I say so. A.: It’s definitely apart of our lineage. Did you already have Alfredo planned already? A.: Not at all. F.G.: I would say that kind of inspired me to be like, you know what? I’m about to do something, just me and Al. A.: That’s where we saw the potential. Well, first it was on “Scottie Pippen.” Then I remember we were tapped in at the time, but not working how we are now, nd I remember he was pitching Devil’s Palace. He already had a name. He had a whole idea, but I wasn’t ready yet. I wasn’t at the place I’m at now. You said for Fetti that you came up with the artwork, you did this, you did that. F.G.: I was trying to make it happen, man. A.: He had the idea early. I didn’t see it yet. A lot of times it’d be about timing. We let s—t culminate to Alfredo. F.G.: I was hungry. I wanted to really show what I could do. A.: And I don’t know who came up the name. I think Lambo came up with the name. Lambo: Making a song for GTA 5. A.: That song was called “Fetti.” L.: Then we started making a joke, like fettuccine alfredo, Al and Freddie. A.: Right, right. Shout out to Rockstar because they were the first to put us three together: me, Freddie and Spitta. Those are our friends. I gotta say somewhere in this lineage, we gotta give them some credit too because it all sprouted from there. But once we locked in, it was like we knew we had something with Alfredo 1. Are you gonna have your own channel on GTA 6? A.: I can neither confirm nor deny. I assumed so. You already said that. A.: And Freddie I’m sure he could neither confirm nor deny. What made you guys want to take it to Japan on this next one? F.G.: Just really, to be honest, it was just a theme. I just wanted to do a theme that I wasn’t seeing in rap and I had went the year before to Japan, and was super inspired by the architecture, the art, the food, everything. The first one was kind of like Italian mafia-style and with this one, I was like, let’s go Yakuza with this. It was all about creating the world, man, and with this album we had more freedom because we got to do the film. A Grammy nomination will do that. F.G.: Now, I don’t even wanna do an album without a film. There’s gotta be something with it, you know. Can’t be just giving you a bunch of songs on a Friday and forget about them by Monday. A.: I think it just feels like the right thing to do. It feels like more mature. It makes it feel premium. A.: We’re in the field of entertainment. We’re in the big leagues, I feel like we can do whatever we want. He already acts, he’s been in s—t. So, for me, it was just making sure I could keep up with him, because I actually enjoy it. I never thought I would. We make music, I don’t sit in the f—king mirror and look at myself and be like, render a laugh, render a smile. But when we shoot s—t and I’ll be thinking I’m making a certain face and I see the footage later, I’ll be like, I gotta look in the mirror because that’s not what I thought I was doing. It’s a challenge, it’s fun for me to step into a world where we’re like acting. Were there any movies that inspired the short film? Some scenes from it reminded me of Tokyo Vice. Have you guys watched that show? F.G.: Me and Lambo is watching that s—t, like, what? Two years ago? L.: Bianco Bianco worked on Tokyo Vice. So, the Tokyo production team from our movie worked on Tokyo Vice. That makes sense because some of the scenes while outside the restaurant reminded me of Tokyo Vice. F.G.: My favorite Yakuza movie is Outrage, so I was thinking about that when we were making the short film. I was nervous about this interview. I was like, “Is he gonna troll me like he does on Twitter?” A.: [Laughs.] Nah, we in an interview, son. That s—t be funny. Somebody asks him a question and he replies with some crazy s—t. A.: That’s my airplane entertainment, I just be having fun. I feel like it’s cool to talk to people too, because in this era where a lot of artists aren’t really there, you know that’s me, for better or worse, it’s f—king me, so I like to just reach out. Also, it’s cool to have that line for people to be able to reach you and know you’re a real human. And you’re already doing direct to consumer on the business side, so that makes sense. A.: When I do the pop ups, it’s not even to make money. If tomorrow I promote that I’m going to be at this store, you’re gonna get the die hards. These are the people that f—king help pay our mortgage and everything. I want to meet them. I want to say, “What’s up? Peace” and sign something. When you do a show and you’re on stage and you make eye contact with one fan for one second — I’ve been a fan in the crowd — and you’re watching your favorite artist, if they look at you and make eye contact, you get that one second like, “They recognize me,” and you’ll go home happy. When you do these pop ups, they get to come up and talk to you. You feel that love. A.: They appreciate it so much and it’s way better than going to the merch booth after the show, when you’re sweating and s—t and trying to sell a bunch of vinyl and get back to the hotel. F.G.: I want the hoes to freak on me like they do Chris Brown. Those Chris Brown pics be crazy. F.G.: Bruh, he got the best meet and greet. You gotta figure out a price point. He be charging $1,000. F.G.: Oh, yeah, we about to do it. It’s lit. A.: He gotta do no men, though. F.G.: Yo, the ones with dudes be crazy. I saw someone on joking around on Twitter, saying imagine telling wifey what you did that that band missing from the joint bank account. A.: “I’m sorry, baby.” Him and Chris were doing like a jail pose. F.G.: And Chris was sitting there lookin’ at the n—a like, “What are you doing, bro?” Did you learn any martial arts while you was filming? That s—t was like Kill Bill. F.G.: I know a little somethin’. I’m crafty with the sword. A.: He cut that orange for real. That was insane. F.G.: I had to train a little bit. I got in crazy shape for it. I was running every morning and working out. I was like, yeah, I wanna make this s—t look crazy. A.: No special effects, he does his own stunts. Are you planning on acting more? F.G.: Yeah, I got a couple films that’s about to come out. I got a horror movie that’s about to drop, the vampire joint, Night Patrol. I just did that and then I got another movie that I just signed on for called Lifeboat. There’s a couple of things that I’m working on. The crossover begins. The project you have with Erykah Badu is on the way. How do you feel about it? A.: I’m still bugging that I have a record with her. It’s coming out, it’s finished. This is a big step for me. When you hear it, you’ll see that I didn’t jump out of my element. I loved the first single. A.: I don’t know if that’s a good representation, it just felt like that one was catchy because of the beat, obviously, and it reminded us of like some Ron G mixtape s—t, so we were like let’s just let it fly. I promise you, that’s the only record on the album that’s not original. What I was getting at is it’s crazy that she picked the beat from “The Realest” because that’s one of my favorite songs. And while I feel like I was aware of you by then, I couldn’t believe that you really started to make your name and blow up around Mobb Deep’s Murda Muzik. A.: If you put my career as a producer on a timeline, it would be before Mobb Deep and after Mobb Deep. Whenever I hear that song, I remember going to the bootleg liquor spot in my childhood neighborhood back in the day. Havoc didn’t help you with that beat at all? A.: I had that beat on a DAP tape. I had like 25 beats on this DAP, and I didn’t know them yet, I knew Big Twin and them, and they said, “Come to the studio to play beats for Mobb Deep.” So, I would go and it would be Prodigy but Havoc wasn’t there. I played them all these fancy beats on my DAP and then it was one joint. That was just a loop right? A.: Back then, I wouldn’t have made beats like that, because that’s like a one shot loop, nothing fancy. It’s a perfect beat. A.: I would put those on beat tapes as interludes. So, P listened to all these beats that I crafted and chopped up, and he heard that and goes, “I like this one.” I was like, “The interlude?” Then I came back like two days later, and Havoc was there and he picked the same beat. That’s just crazy. It’s fascinating that they picked the same beat. I know that probably felt surreal. A.: Havoc is such a good producer and they don’t really let people in. I learned so much from him, it’s insane. I’m assuming you guys are looking to make another one, right? Finish the trilogy. F.G.: Yeah, for sure. Hell yeah. A.: It’s a franchise. We can stop now. There’s a video of you digging for records at an undisclosed location. A.: Sounds about right. What sticks out to you when you’re digging? A.: It’s through all these years and years. It’s like a checklist of things that I go over in my brain when I’m looking for a record, over 20 things. You kind of do a quick inventory, bring a list with years, artists, labels, what the grooves look like; I can tell you 100 things. It’s just Intuition through the years, and it’s just part of the hunt. It keeps you on your toes too, just the idea of discovery. Can you talk about the convo you had with Benny? F.G.: Oh, yeah, we can talk about it. I mean, it was nothing. I didn’t have no conversation with him. There’s a picture where it looks like you guys were talking. F.G.: That was fake, man. That was some WWF s—t. I seen them, but there wasn’t no conversation. All that’s fake, it’s all propaganda that they tried to create. I didn’t have no convo with Westside Gunn. I seen them, but, you know, we in an airport. I’m like, “Man, this ain’t the time to come talk to me.” See, my arms was folded. First of all, man, I got the No. 1 independent album in the country and I can understand how motherf—kers want to reach and do s—t and use your energy to promote themselves. I just don’t let people do that. I think motherf—kers was trying to just take my energy away because my s—t is doing so well. I don’t got no problem, man. I just do me and I don’t even pay attention to that s—t. That wasn’t what people thought it was, man. I guess it got people talking and excited because you guys made good music together. F.G.: Who? You and Benny. F.G.: I mean, I make good music. You know, sometimes you’re fortunate to get on a song with me you gonna feel the effects of it. Bill Cartwright wouldn’t have championship without Michael Jordan, but without him, what he got? You feel me? It is what it is, man, I’m just good at what I do. It just let me know the type of person I am, and the type of caliber I am that people want to do crazy s—t to attach themselves what I got going on. I’m just keeping it about the music, man, and doing what I gotta do. I don’t even pay no attention to all that Internet s—t. I’m an artist. I’m not an influencer. I use the Internet to post midgets getting f—ked and people getting shot. I don’t care about no other rappers, nothing they got going on, man. It’s just about me in that booth and me doing what I gotta do. God bless everybody. I wasn’t really trying to be on some controversial s—t. People were hyped and I assumed you and Benny had talked. Okay, let’s switch gears. Al, you send Future some beats. A.: Uh, I have in the past. Nothing landed yet, but you know. F.G.: I love Future too. I wanna work with him one day. That’s one of my favorite rappers. He does something that I don’t do. That’s why I like him. It’s like he made his own genre. He influenced a lot of the young guys. The real rap conversation surrounding be funny because he’s Dungeon Family. How much real rap can you get? And they named him Future. F.G.: Correct. His name should be that. A.: I’m a fan of Future, I f—k with him, and I can’t give up too much. I be seeing you on Twitter. A.: I say nothing and they run with it. You never know if he’s trolling on there. A.: Hey, man. F.G.: Future is like the king of doing melodies. He got some of the best melodies with his flow in the way he gets on a record. He just know how make that s—t into something different. That’s why he is where his is. He kinda sits alone. A.: He kind of rules this generation in terms of influence to me. There’s a couple others that you could put up there, but when I think of this generation, they all f—k with Future like in the way when he was coming up, it was like Jay or somebody. F.G.: He had n—as wearing cowboy hats at Sunday brunch, when cowboy hats. That n—a’s mad influential. A.: And Metro’s the man too. He has the best beat tag of all time. “Young Metro don’t trust you. I’m gonna shoot you.” Fire. I wish that was my beat tag. Metro is incredible, we haven’t even seen where he’s going yet. F.G.: I love Metro. Metro made me leave Italy when I was with Kanye. Bro, what? What you mean? A.: [Laughs.] Man, don’t tell that story. F.G.: I’m just gonna leave it there. [Laughs.] Switching gears again. Do you feel like you’re a better producer now than you were 10-20, years ago? A.: 100 percent. I pay attention to more things. There’s an innocence about you when you’re younger. When I listen to my old beats and I think about the s—t I didn’t know. I’m way better now. There’s fans who will be like, “I love that era from 2000 to 2004,” and I’m not even mad at them because there’s peaks and valleys, and that was a time where I had access to the some of the best rappers to ever do it, and they were also all selling records. Anyone who knows me knows I’m way better now than I was then, and I could say that with confidence and still not be mad if a guy is like, “I don’t really like your new s—t. I like that older s—t better.” Cool, I get it, because that’s what it’s about. You got to know where you’re at. Not everyone is on this walk that you’re on. We movin’. Some people stay with me the whole path and remember this phase and that phase and they understand what I’m saying. They know I’m better. F.G.: My grandma always said s—t gets greater later. I think that we both just evolving as artists, and we’re getting better and showing the longevity. A.: He pushes himself. He don’t want to do nothing regular. it’s never gonna be the same record, the same flow. He might go into the melody bag. He’s a dynamic MC. He got a lot of bags he could pick from, and I think that sets him apart from a lot of guys in our world, because some of them don’t have the same toolbox. That helps us to go even further. We do some stuff together, a lot of s—t he does on his own, in his spot with his engineer, and they send it to me. I like to be there because I enjoy it. It’s dope to see him come up with the rhyme and layer it. And we did a lot of the record like that.

Cardi's sophomore album is slated to arrive Sept. 19.

Cardi B figured out another way to jokingly guilt her fans into purchasing a new box set she released for Am I the Drama? earlier this week. The Grammy-winning rapper hopped on X Spaces and playfully claimed that if fans didn’t support her, she’d be facing eviction and have all of her cars repossessed. Cardi joked that she blew her budget on the “Imaginary Playerz” video. Related Cardi B Explains Why Other Female Rappers ‘Can’t Stand’ Her: ‘They Can’t F–k With Me’ Here's What Selena Gomez Has to Say About Sharing Her Engagement Era With 'Bestie' Taylor Swift Ye Documentary 'In Whose Name?' Drops Explosive Trailer Featuring Kim Kardashian, Drake & Elon Musk “I’m about to get evicted from my mansion,” she said, according to Complex. “They’re about to repo all my cars. They’re about to take my Lambos and my Rolls-Royce. I couldn’t even get my pool cleaned this week, you know what I’m saying? I’m fucked up in the game right now.” Cardi continued to weep: “Please donate to my album because it’s going to come out on Sept. 19 and it’s all I got. I just want to say thank you guys so much, because it’s been very hard for me.” The PRETTY & PETTY boxset and alt cover for AM I THE DRAMA? are available NOW… support a working single mother of 3 and get yours now! 😂💕 https://t.co/ctvTAGv9gJ pic.twitter.com/RFCUlN1EwM — Cardi B (@iamcardib) August 27, 2025 Cardi B revealed an alternate light pink-drenched cover art for Am I the Drama? on Wednesday (Aug. 27), which finds Cardi dressed in lace couture. There are signed CDs, vinyl and box sets available on her website for $14.98 and $39.98, respectively. Am I the Drama? serves as Cardi’s long-awaited sophomore album, arriving seven years after her Grammy-winning debut. The project is set to boast 23 tracks, including previously released 2025 singles “Outside and “Imaginary Playerz,” the latter of which debuted at No. 70 on this week’s Billboard Hot 100. “Up” and “WAP” are also calling the album home. Find the alternate cover art for Am I the Drama? here.

Latin acts Peso Pluma, Young Miko, Ivan Cornejo & more will also perform at Bogotá’s premier music event.

Estéreo Picnic has unveiled its star-studded lineup for 2026, promising another epic musical experience at the Parque Metropolitano Simón Bolívar in Bogotá. On March 20-22, fans will gather for performances from headliners The Killers, Tyler, The Creator and Sabrina Carpenter. Joining them are a mix of international stars such as Lorde, Interpol and Turnstile, setting the stage for a genre-blurring, world-class event. Related Sabrina Carpenter, Tyler, The Creator, Chappell Roan & More to Headline 2026 Lollapalooza in Chile, Argentina & Brazil Sting Is Reportedly Being Sued By His Police Bandmates Over Missing Royalties Here's What Selena Gomez Has to Say About Sharing Her Engagement Era With 'Bestie' Taylor Swift The 15th edition of the festival will continue to embrace its Latin roots with performances from some of the brightest stars. Leading the charge is Peso Pluma, the trailblazing música Mexicana sensation, alongside breakout Mexican-American singer/songwriter Ivan Cornejo and Puerto Rican rapper Young Miko, who’s been making waves in Latin rap and reggaeton. Argentine punk queen Six Sex and Mexican rock band The Warning also join the stacked lineup. National pride shines through with Colombian acts such as TIMØ, Briela Veneno, Elniko Arias, and Nicolás y Los Fumadores, surely to deliver exciting homegrown performances to local fans. In addition to the Latin presence, global pop and rock heavyweights will dominate the festival’s main stage. Fans can look forward to seeing Addison Rae, Doechii, Katseye, Viagra Boys and Aitana — all adding to the event’s eclectic soundscape. Whether you crave indie, pop, rock, rap or reggaeton vibes, you’re sure to find an artist to love at Estéreo Picnic 2026. Earlier Thursday (Aug. 28), Lollapalooza 2026 in Chile, Argentina and Brazil also announced their lineup with Sabrina Carpenter, Tyler, The Creator and Chappell Roan as headliners. Tickets for Estéreo Picnic 2026 go on sale starting Wednesday (Sept. 3) at 10 a.m (COT) through the festival’s official website and Ticketmaster. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Festival Estéreo Picnic (@festereopicnic)

The claims come less than a week after the back-flipping pop singer began a world tour supporting his sophomore album.

Sony merch venture Ceremony of Roses has brought a lawsuit seeking to stop counterfeiters from selling knockoff Benson Boone goods outside the pop singer’s American Heart arena tour. The claims come less than a week after Boone began a world tour supporting his sophomore album American Heart, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 this summer. Ceremony of Roses is the official merch retailer for Boone’s 30-date U.S. leg, which opened Aug. 22 and runs through Oct. 11. Related Tate McRae’s Merch Partner Sues to Stop Knockoff Sellers at Miss Possessive Tour 'American Idol' Music Supervisor's Cause of Death Revealed: Reports Dom Dolla Leads Australia's 2026 Wildlands Festival Lineup Ceremony of Roses, which partnered with Sony via a strategic investment in 2022, claims in a Thursday (Aug. 28) federal court lawsuit that a hoard of anonymous bootleggers are already selling phony merch outside Boone’s tour stops and will continue to do so without court intervention. “The infringing merchandise that defendants sell is generally of inferior quality,” write the company’s lawyers, Mark Bradford and Cara Burns. “The sale of such merchandise has injured and is likely to injure the reputation of the artist which has developed by virtue of his public performances and the reputation of the plaintiff for high quality authorized tour merchandise.” Ceremony of Roses is seeking a legal injunction that would empower law enforcement to seize and impound counterfeit merch. The lawsuit includes a declaration from Ceremony of Roses’ touring vp Alan Sitchon, who says merch bootleggers have showed up for Boone’s shows this past week at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn; United Center in Chicago; Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio; and Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. “Individual bootleggers follow tours, or arrange to have local individuals sell the infringing merchandise for them,” writes Sitchon. “Many designs also have tour dates and venues on them, which also indicates that they will continue to go from venue to venue to sell their infringing merchandise.” Boone’s reps did not immediately return a request for comment on the lawsuit. Related Benson Boone’s ‘American Heart’ Beats at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart The claims are nearly identical to another lawsuit filed this week by fellow merch retailer Merch Traffic. Represented by the same attorneys as Ceremony of Roses, Merch Traffic alleged on Tuesday (Aug. 26) that bootleggers are selling fake Tate McRae merch outside the singer’s Miss Possessive tour. Such lawsuits are common in the live music industry. Official merch retailers have previously obtained court injunctions against knockoff sellers at the tours of artists including Harry Styles, Drake, Beyoncé, Post Malone, Billie Eilish and Justin Bieber.

The "Domino" singer's October dates throughout Europe will now take place in April of next year.

Jessie J has canceled her upcoming U.S. tour dates and postponed her shows in Europe, with the star explaining that she must now undergo a second surgery to treat her breast cancer during the period of time she was supposed to be on the road. Related Jessie J Reveals ‘Early Breast Cancer’ Diagnosis: ‘Cancer Sucks in Any Form’ Jessie J Shares Update as She Undergoes Breast Cancer Surgery Jessie J Gives Update After Hospitalization Following Breast Cancer Surgery: ‘Not Expected or Planned’ In a video posted to Instagram on Thursday (Aug. 28), the vocalist cut straight to the chase, telling followers she’d rather be “blunt” than get emotional on camera. “Unfortunately I have to have a second surgery,” she said. “Nothing too serious, but it has to be done by the end of this year. This falls in the middle of the tour I had booked.” “I’m so sorry, I feel frustrated and sad,” Jessie added. “But I need to be better, I need to be healed.” The canceled performances include all of the shows the “Price Tag” singer had scheduled for this November. Her October concerts in Europe have all been pushed to April 2026. Jessie’s update comes about three months after she first revealed that, shortly before the release of her single “No Secrets” in April, she’d received an “early breast cancer” diagnosis. Later in June, she announced that she’d undergone her first surgery to treat the cancer. Six weeks after that, Jessie returned to the hospital with symptoms that turned out to be the result of an infection, though her doctors had originally suspected she had a blood clot. In July, when Jessie underwent tests showing that her cancer had not spread, she shared the emotional moment with Instagram followers. “Happy tears are real,” she wrote at the time. “Thank YOU for the prayers, the love, the well wishes, the joy and all the positive energy.” See Jessie’s post below. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jessie J (@jessiej)

Whether you're a fan of pop, rock, country or all of the above, these resale sites will have discounted tickets to shows.

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. This year is jam-packed with tours and festivals around the world, from Lady Gaga’s “Mayhem Tour” to Backstreet Boys “Into The Millennium” concert at the Sphere to Addison Rae’s “The Addison Tour”. There’s a long list of music events going on, from Las Vegas residencies and country music tours to K-pop groups making their first treks (or a return trek) back to North America. No matter what kind of music you love, there is an endless amount of shows to attend. Unfortunately, purchasing tickets can be costly, and that doesn’t take into account the stress of getting a presale code (when applicable). That’s where resale ticket sites come in. And thanks to ongoing deals and promos, you can score cheap tickets to events you want to attend. Rather than purchase overpriced tickets from scalpers, there are numerous third-party sites that’ll provide budget-friendly concert tickets, plus, there are Billboard exclusive promo codes that’ll score you even more savings to see your favorite artists and festivals. What Are the Best Cheap Ticket Sites? Whether you’re on the hunt for last-minute Morgan Wallen tickets or just need some weekend plans, these ticket sites usually come with backed up, protected sales featuring lower prices than what most scalpers are selling for. Before you make your purchase, check the buyer’s guarantee — which most of these sites feature — to see how your purchases will protected. To take the work out of researching where to find reliable resale tickets, ShopBillboard did the work and rounded up the best cheap ticket sites so you can see your favorite artists live while avoiding emptying your wallet. Keep reading to see where to score affordable tickets to concerts and festivals. Ticketmaster Ticketmaster’s deals page is offering four deals you can take advantage of including up to 50% off select shows, Me+3 4-Packs, 2-for-1 tickets and tickets under $40. Check out the deals page here to see what shows and concerts are eligible for the deals. In addition to concerts, current Ticketmaster deals include cheap seats for Broadway shows and musicals, stand-up comedy, sports and more. Some shows will require a promo code to use at checkout, which will be listed underneath the show name. Find Cheap Tickets at Ticketmaster get ticketmaster tickets here Vivid Seats Rather than wait in a virtual line, Vivid Seats gives you access to thousands of events from live sports to concerts and festivals. You can search based on artist, team, venue and more, whether you’ve scored a travel deal or just want to stay local. When looking at tickets, some sales are verified with a checkmark to show they’re from what the site considers a “super seller” and the brand guarantees instant delivery to your smart device. Bonus offer: You can score $30 off purchases with the code BB30 at checkout. Find Cheap Tickets at Vivid Seats Find Tickets Here Ticketnetwork Ticketnetwork is a non-primary seller that aims to get tickets in your hands without you having to worry about signing up for a presale. You can take advantage of $150 off orders of $500+ when you enter the code BILLBOARD150 at checkout or get $300 off ticket purchases of $1,000+ with the code BILLBOARD300. The brand does notify shoppers that some tickets may be sold at above face value, but it offers a place that helps minimize the risk of being scammed. 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Plus, if it’s your first time using the seller, you can get $20 off purchases of $150+ when you enter the code SAVE20 at checkout. find tickets here StubHub StubHub is another popular choice that people go to for when grabbing resale tickets at a more affordable price. The site allows you to search by artists, genre or even in alphabetic order to see all artists playing this year. It also uses a verified Fan Protect system to help shield you from scammers. find tickets here Even More Great Cheap Ticket Sites Today Tix Today Tix is the destination to go to if you’re on the hunt for last-minute, wallet-friendly Broadway tickets. The site offers everything from plays, Broadway musicals, off-Broadway shows, comedies and select concerts. The site’s deals and offers page will tell you the “hottest deals,” including offers that can save you up to 40%. 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Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong, the stars of “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere,” and the director Scott Cooper on capturing a haunted rock icon.

In recent years, Tanglewood has become visibly more welcoming to its youngest audiences. Just ask this critic’s three kids.

The journeyman musician has played a pivotal role in a wide variety of acts. An unexpected recent exit from Foo Fighters briefly made him the center of attention.

In Salzburg, an anniversary of “The Sound of Music” looks grand through a child’s eyes, even if the locals are gazing elsewhere.

Chiefs fans have been cheering on their star football player’s romance with the pop star for two years. They have the T-shirts, earrings and baked goods to prove it.

Sure, one couple stole the spotlight on Tuesday. But other couples who also got engaged had their own news to share — though some were more thrilled by the frenzy than others.

It’s picture-perfect, of course.

A language student’s guide to the French capital highlights the culinary, literary and musical influences that quietly shape everyday life.

Bogie and Bacall, Marilyn and Joe DiMaggio, Beyoncé and Jay-Z: The new celebrity power couple might overshadow them all.

Police in Indiana accused Julian Wachner, the former music director at Trinity Church in New York, of possessing sex abuse imagery purchased with cryptocurrency.

Hang on to the last gasps of the season — and prepare for the encroaching fall — with songs by Lana Del Rey, Maxwell, Pavement and more.

The news was announced on Instagram: “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”

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He was both the longtime archivist of folk music at the Library of Congress and a widely respected singer and songwriter.

Marisha Wallace, headlining the final months of “Cabaret” in New York, returns to the city with Olivier nominations and newly minted British citizenship.

The 27-year-old singer’s new album is a faithful revisiting of a time when country music’s revivalists were sometimes rowdy.

One member of the Northern Irish rap group, which is known for its anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian views, is accused of displaying a flag supporting Hezbollah.

The guitarist and frontman chat about their fraught partnership, earliest goals and (possibly) final shows on the road.

There’s a new generation of fans for the singer known as Thompson, who uses the salute and nationalist rhetoric to cast himself as a guardian of Croatian heritage.

The singer and songwriter proved she’s operating at the peak of her powers during a two-and-a-half-hour set that drew sharp connections between her past and present.

Nelly’s “Tip Drill” video from 2003 was instantly controversial. It’s one of many stories explored in a new docuseries about Magic City in Atlanta.

Handwritten journals, durable boots, tomato seeds: the country singer and songwriter on what fueled her latest album, “Hard Headed Woman.”

Listen to tracks by Deftones, Lila Iké, Chance the Rapper and others.

Video showed the pop star walking down a major street in only underwear some time before an encounter with police officers.

The cult rapper, who broke out at 16 as a member of Odd Future, spoke with Popcast about cutting his own path around fame and into fatherhood.

The male soprano Samuel Mariño’s “Lumina,” a suite from Thomas Adès’s “The Tempest” and Ginastera’s string quartets are among the highlights.