Music News

ABC Jay-Z and Roc Nation's 10th annual Made in America festival kicks off Labor Day weekend with performances from headliners Lil Baby and Justin Bieber. The lineup for the two-day event was unveiled Monday on Instagram, and will include additional sets from Roddy Ricch, Megan Thee Stallion, Doja Cat,MoneyBagg Yo, Lil Durk, A$AP Rocky, Freddie Gibbs, Tinashe, 42 Dugg and more. Fans also will definitely be excited to see artists like North Carolina rapper Morray, as well as New York native Bobby Shmurda, who who returned home from prison earlier this year. Made in America is produced by Jay's Roc Nation, and will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, on Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia. This year's event will benefit the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania as its official charity partner. A portion of the net proceeds also will support The REFORM Alliance, a criminal justice reform organization chaired by Jay-Z, Meek Mill ..

Paul Archuleta/Getty Images American Idol season seven runner-up David Archuleta is opening up about his sexuality this Pride Month. In a vulnerable social media post over the weekend, the 30-year-old discussed his struggle reconciling his faith as a Mormon with being a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. “I like to keep to myself but also thought this was important to share because I know so many other people from religious upbringings feel the same way,” David began. He went on to say that he is still "not sure" how he identifies -- he came out to his family and friends as gay in 2014, but has since considered that he may be “a spectrum of bisexual” or asexual. “Idk what to make of it and I don’t have all the answers,” he continued. “I just invite you to please consider making room to be more understanding and compassionate to those who are LGBTQIA+, and those who are a part of that community and trying to find that balance with their faith which also is a huge part of their iden..

Stefania D'Alessandro/Getty Images If you’re a hopelessly devoted fan of Ed Sheeran, you’ll probably want to place your bids on this latest auction. A DVD of a 15-year-old Ed in his high school performance of Grease is now up for auction as part of a sale of music memorabilia on Omega Auctions. He may be a star now, but back then he didn't nab the lead role. "This amazing footage spans two DVDs with nearly two hours of acting and singing as performed by Ed and school friends back in 2006,” the description on the Omega website reads. “Ed plays a major part in the performance as the character 'Putzie' or 'Rump,' who was one of the T-Birds." In the footage, which Omega says has never before been seen publicly, Ed “has a number of lines” and has a “major backing singer/dancer role for all the songs” in the production at Thomas Hills High School in Framlingham, U.K. You’ll hear him perform a duet of "Those Magic Changes" and a solo of the song "Mooning." ..

Ray Burmiston/Photoshot/Getty Images Spice up your summer! The Spice Girls are planning something special for the 25th anniversary of their debut single, “Wannabe,” MusicWeek reports. They’ll be releasing a limited edition EP, Wannabe25, which will include the original single, a remix by Junior Vasquez, the original demo recording, and “Feed Your Love,” a demo of a previously unreleased ballad. The EP will be available to stream July 9 and will be released on vinyl and cassette on July 23. “The Spice Girls belong to everyone and that’s why we want to mark 25 years of ‘Wannabe’ by celebrating our incredible fans,” the Spice Girls said in a statement to MusicWeek. In addition to the anniversary release, the Spice Girls have also launched their #IAmASpiceGirl campaign, where they’re encouraging fans on social media to share their stories and memories of the group. You can submit using the hashtag #IAmASpiceGirl or via email at spicegirls@umusic.com. A selection of messages will be s..

Boris Streubel/Getty Images for Laureus From boy band to movie star! Liam Payne has revealed he will star in a short film. While appearing on The Diary of a CEO podcast, the 27-year-old singer opened up about the project that he's been working on. "I've been working on something for a while...and it's funny that it's based around [Alcoholics Anonymous]," he said. The "Strip That Down" singer, who is a month sober, then went on to recall that his first experience with AA was with comedian Russell Brand and shared that the short film is based on their experiences attending meetings together. "I am not going to give the script...and I’ve not spoken to Russ about it yet. But I am one of the characters," he said. "I’m excited about the film. I showed it to one of my friends and she laughed a lot." Payne did not disclose when or where the film will be available. Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Shervin Lainez The three brothers who make up the trio AJR are in their 20s, but their latest hit, "Way Less Sad," is built around a sample of a song that came out before they were born. But the group says the legendary artist who wrote the song fully approves of what they did with it. "Way Less Sad" includes a portion of the 1975 top-10 hit "My Little Town" by Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Simon & Garfunkel. "That was one of our favorite songs growing up, we were huge fans of [Simon & Garfunkel]," AJR's Jack Met tells ABC Audio. "And in 'My Little Town,' the part that we sampled comes at the last three seconds of a song, which is the fadeout," he explains. "So to even hear the melody that we sampled, you have to bump your phone up to, like, max volume!" "We always felt like, 'This is the catchiest part of the song. I'm not sure why Paul Simon didn't kinda move it back to the beginning,'" Jack continues. "So we said, 'What a great opportunity..

KMazur/WireImage Backstreet Boys could have taken the Super Bowl halftime show stage with NSYNC and Britney Spears back in 2001 -- but they turned it down, Nick Carter reveals to Entertainment Tonight. "It's interesting because we were presented the opportunity to perform at the halftime at the Super Bowl and it was in Tampa, my home town," Nick tells ET. "At the time we came from the era of, we loved the Whitney Houston rendition of the national anthem. And for us, we got the choice and we passed on the halftime,” he laughs. BSB performed the national anthem before the game instead. "But it was a memorable experience for everyone," Nick adds. "And everyone was able to share [the stage] and NSYNC did a great job at halftime, and I like to say we did a really good job at the national anthem as well." Now, Nick says, he’d love to do the halftime show in the future, and says it would be "pretty cool" if BSB and NSYNC did one together. As previously reported, Nick, AJ McLean and..

Burak Cingi/Redferns Lorde’s new song “Solar Power” may have leaked earlier than she intended, but she’s taking it all in stride. In a new interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, the singer says she’s not angry about the change of plans. “I mean, listen I love it. Kids are insane,” Lorde says. “I love it. I respect it. I love how hungry they are. Tonight is the solar eclipse, you know, you got to follow the vibes.” And indeed the song, released Thursday night, captures a sunny, summery vibe. Lorde says the tune was inspired after a fun summer day on Martha’s Vineyard. After a day of swimming, she started playing around on her keyboard and came up with the melody. “I was like, I don't know what's going on here, but I love it,” she says. “And then I just put it away and had a paddle board, I think, but it really was such a natural, like joyful extension of an awesome day. Lorde later took it to producer Jack Antonoff and they finished the song. “We had all the windows ope..

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic The countdown is on for Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton's wedding. Gwen revealed on Instagram that she celebrated her bridal shower Thursday ahead of their summer nuptials. "I got kidnapped by family to celebrate that I'm getting married!" she said in a post on her Instagram Story. She captioned another post, "Feeling loved, feeling blessed." Gwen also showed off a wrapped gift box and a card she received that included "something old": a copy of "The Mass on the Day of Marriage" from her parents' wedding on June 11, 1966. The singer previously revealed during an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers that she and Blake would be keeping their wedding "very simple." "I think the guest list will not have a lot of musicians," she said. "It'll be like my mom and my dad. It's literally going to be just family. We are looking forward to that, though." She added, "It's going to be fun. We're going to make it really fun,..

Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images Ricky Martin is honoring the memory of the lives lost in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting. Ricky has teamed up with Chilean singer Paloma Mami for "Qué Rico Fuera," a spirited dance track to recognize the 5th anniversary of the tragic shooting that claimed the lives of 49 people and wounded 53 others at the club in Orlando, Florida, that catered to gay clientele. “All [the Pulse victims] wanted was to dance, and that’s why I wanted to release this song as soon as possible because all I want is for people to dance,” Ricky shares with Billboard. “They were part of the inspiration of this release, to be honest.” The song also ties into Ricky's efforts spearheading the OnePulse Foundation to build the National Pulse Memorial and Museumin Orlando, scheduled to open next year. The Grammy-winner is also the national spokesperson for the OUTLOVE Hate campaign that calls on communities to donate to the OnePulse Foundation. “At the end of the day, it was a..