Executive Director, Music at
@Billboard
. My first book, IT STARTS WITH ONE: THE LEGEND AND LEGACY OF LINKIN PARK, is out 10/1/24. Repped by
@ajmattero
.
I’m thrilled to announce that my first book, IT STARTS WITH ONE: THE LEGEND AND LEGACY OF LINKIN PARK, will be out on Oct. 1, and is available now for pre-order. An absolute dream to help tell the story of the 21st century’s most significant rock group.
Very valid case to be made that Taylor Swift just notched the best commercial week of her entire career... during the same week that another artist suffered the worst commercial week of his career... 13 years after a memorable awards show encounter!
More than anything, "She doesn’t write her own songs" is just the STRANGEST criticism one could lob at Taylor Swift without any actual evidence in an on-the-record interview. It's like deciding not to say "I don't like ice cream," and instead saying "Ice cream is actually warm"
One of my favorite parts of my job is witnessing the genuine joy of a major chart accomplishment. Chatting with
@Stray_Kids
right after they scored their first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 was very uplifting & cool. Thank you
@Jeff__Benjamin
& the many thousands of listeners!
Stevie Nicks calling Harry Styles' 'Fine Line' his 'Rumours' should be just about all anyone who hasn't fallen in love with it yet needs to convince themselves to dive in
“...they’re just so thoughtful with their music... they have so much to say & they really use their platform to say it in a really compelling way.” - Billboard
@BTS_twt
congrats on being nonmiated again for Top Social Artist award @ 2018 BBMAs 🎊
On the same night that Beyoncé becomes the woman with the most Grammy wins ever, Taylor Swift becomes the first woman with three album of the year trophies. Historic evening
Our August Chartbreaker artist is
@jadenhossler
, who's threading the needle between rock and modern music consumption. Nice profile from
@LyndseyAlana
Hello! I spent an afternoon chatting with Taylor Swift,
@billboard
's Woman of the Decade, about 'Lover,' artist rights, TikTok, mentorship, criticism and the advice she would have given herself at the beginning of the 2010s
Some in the industry have been skeptical that Taylor would actually re-record her older albums, but when I spoke to her last year she seemed genuinely pumped to be doing so. Excited to hear them and not surprised that it's been a creatively fulfilling process for her
K-pop girl group BLACKPINK has yet to play a proper U.S. concert -- but had the power to book a North American arena tour for this spring. A quick chat with Goldenvoice's Susan Rosenbluth on how that happened:
‼️
@BTS_twt
announce the first dates of their 'Love Yourself' World Tour:
Seoul - 8/25-26
Los Angeles - 9/5-6, 8
Oakland - 9/12
Fort Worth - 9/15-16
Hamilton - 9/20, 22-23
Newark - 9/28-29
Chicago - 10/2-3
London - 10/9-10
Amsterdam - 10/13
Berlin - 10/16-17
Paris - 10/19-20
Expecting a stripped-down version of what
@taylorswift13
has already done? Sorry. There is nothing quiet about 'Folklore,' which is a total songwriting tour de force. My review:
After 19 weeks -- since April! -- "Old Town Road" is no longer the No. 1 song in the country. Pumped for Billie Eilish, but also, round of applause for the longest-leading No. 1 in the chart's history
The new
@BLACKPINK
/
@selenagomez
team-up "Ice Cream" is one of the most ambitious single releases of the year, with a custom ice cream flavor, giveaways, radio push and an ice cream truck blasting a MIDI version of the song. Here's how it came together:
The media depiction and personal treatment of Britney Spears in the mid-2000s was, in a word, tragic. The fact that such treatment seemingly twisted itself into a totally DIFFERENT type of tragedy, for over a decade, as a result? Haunting, and heartbreaking, and unacceptable
A few weeks ago Jack told me about the orchestral version of "The Lakes," and I geeked out to him about needing to hear it. I included that tidbit in this week's cover story, a ton of fans caught on, and now, "The Lakes (Original Version)" is out in the world. Unreal
It’s been 1 year since we escaped the real world together and imagined ourselves someplace simpler. With tall trees & salt air. Where you can wear lace nightgowns that make you look like a Victorian ghost & no one will side eye you cause no one is around
'The Tortured Poets Department' is knowingly messy and wildly unguarded. It's a risk that
@taylorswift13
absolutely didn't need to take. And it's a triumph.
Whew! Full review for
@billboard
Taylor Swift writing and directing a feature film, in between enormous No. 1 albums and stadium shows, is making me feel extremely lazy this morning lol
this is the exact moment
@Camila_Cabello
was told HAVANA finally reached No. 1 on the
#Hot100
after 23 weeks on the chart. so in the past 24 hours she learned her debut solo album
#CAMILA
went No. 1 on the
@billboard
200 and HAVANA topped the Hot 100. epic day for her!
Yesterday morning, I chatted with
@selenagomez
about the peace she found on RARE: "It just took me a couple years to get through some s--t. But then it came out great!"
Taylor Swift's 'Midnights' is a focused, personal project - middle-of-the-night ruminations built around synths, rhythms and razor-sharp songwriting. These are songs straight from Taylor's sleepless mind, and they enrich her legacy.
My early review:
So I just landed in L.A. to a few notifications! I appreciate Taylor’s time, thoughts and kind words. Looking forward to Billboard’s Women In Music event tomorrow night, and will also be sharing a few more amazing bits from the interview that didn’t make the final cut...
HEY THANKS
@BILLBOARD
🙏 it was a whole entire party chatting with
@jasonlipshutz
and Sami Drasin killed it with these photos!! Thank you so much for this honor. 😸
Yesterday I ranked “Daylight” as the best song on LOVER. A controversial take, I know, but here’s the thing: “Daylight” is one of the best songs Taylor Swift has ever made
JUST IN:
@ABC
News will host a town hall with
@JoeBiden
moderated by
@GStephanopoulos
on October 15th. The primetime event will take place in Philadelphia where the former vice president will answer questions from voters.
Here were my five favorite things from last night's Harry Styles show, from the way 'Fine Line' has already evolved to some of the best fans I've ever seen at an arena show:
What a triumph
@ArianaGrande
's SWEETENER is, as a meditation on the patience it takes to work through grief and self-discovery. As a snapshot of where is she as a person and artist today, it's both detailed and straightforward. I think it's her best work by far.
A few weeks ago I got lunch with
@SabrinaAnnLynn
, a former Disney Channel star who's going to make some really compelling music as an adult. We talked about a whole lot, but mostly, we talked about being emotionally honest in your art.
Posted late last night: a quick recap of Justin Bieber's L.A. album listening party yesterday, in which he cried, danced with a hockey stick, serenaded his wife and called Shawn Mendes, who was in attendance, "another Canadian treasure"
- Frank Ocean is a great get
- You got a former headliner (Calvin Harris) & a shoulda-been-a-headliner (Lana) on the second line
- BIGBANG set will be bananas
- Danny Elfman!
- Too low: Carly Rae, Lauren Daigle, 100 gecs, Lil Nas X
- “Someone You Loved” will be sung at Coachella
I think part of the frustration is that 'Renaissance' is not 'The Departed' or Al Pacino in 'Scent of a Woman.' Beyoncé was clearly due for an AOTY win, but 'Renaissance' is a vital, exquisite project, not a late-career make-up call. Hope she wins someday, but this was deserving!
Thinking about a Sixers playoff path…
- Revenge against Boston round 1
- Revenge against Ben Simmons round 2
- Revenge against Jimmy Butler round 3
- “This one’s for James!” revenge against Golden State in the Finals
As promised, a few of my favorite outtakes from the Taylor Swift cover story! She spoke at length about what her song "The Man" represents, and why "It's Nice To Have A Friend" (my favorite song on 'Lover') hints at future experimentation:
Taylor Swift once again remade popular music in her own image this year. To conclude
@billboard
's countdown of the Greatest Pop Stars of 2021, I wrote about
@taylorswift13
, making moves from superstar to legend
In the year that spanned July 2011 and June 2012, songs by LMFAO, Fun. and Gotye spent a combined 22 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart.
None of those three artists have released an album in the 10 years since.
Being a few feet from
@HillaryClinton
as Christina Aguilera performed a set that emphasized empowerment and inclusivity - “Can’t Hold Us Down,” “Fighter,” “Fall In Line,” “Beautiful” - proved to be a pretty moving experience
Love that
@Camila_Cabello
dropped two new, ambitious singles today - a lot of artists would be content coasting on the success of “Senorita” for a few months, but she’s going for the jugular. Also: the flamenco influence on “Liar”!
At Billboard, we've been talking a lot about how many big names -- Adele, Harry, Kendrick, Bad Bunny, etc. -- could be in the upcoming album of the year Grammy race. Feels like Beyoncé just blew by all of them into pole position
Saw Harry Styles at the Forum in LA in December 2019, where he played all of ‘Fine Line’ on the day it was released. Seeing him tonight at MSG and curious/excited to see how these rich, heartfelt songs have evolved in the meantime
Not too many other outtakes except for this one, in which I asked Taylor if she considered continuing down a darker path following 'Reputation,' and then ended up advocating that she make a screamo album!