The only thing less likely than Thunderclap Newman, the strange band masterminded by Pete Townshend in 1969, having a No. 1 single is the notion that a 400-plus page history of them would be published 55 years later. Yet both of those things happened: The group’s Townshend-produced first single and only hit, the generational anthem […]

“Dynasty” is a big word — one thinks of the New York Yankees (well, maybe not this year), MGM Pictures, Motown — and Republic Records is deep into its reign. The company has been Variety’s Hitmakers label of the year five out of the last eight years, and it’s had the most consistently high market share of […]

“It was pretty dire,” says Warner Records co-chairman-COO Tom Corson of his first few months at the label. A veteran executive who’s held senior roles at A&M, Capitol, Columbia, Arista and J Records, Corson came to Warner after a very successful run as COO of RCA Records. But even he was daunted by the task […]

Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff have written more than a hundred songs together. So how do they keep things interesting? Especially when Swift is releasing multiple albums every year — not only rerecorded versions of her past albums but all-new ones, including this year’s sprawling, 31- song “Tortured Poets Department.” “I never know what’s gonna […]

The common perception of a professional songwriter (if there is one) is that they’re usually working behind the scenes while a superstar artist is mobbed by adoring fans. But in October, Amy Allen — Variety’s Hitmakers Songwriter of the Year and a nominee for the 2025 Grammy award of the same name — played Madison Square […]

Back in the day, you knew a song was a hit when you heard it everywhere. Well, at what passed for everywhere back in the day: blasting from open windows, backyards, cars, stores, boomboxes, maybe transistor radios (remember those?). And when it made the jump to your younger sibling or cousin’s Walkman, that was the […]

Sony Music Publishing has unveiled its new flagship office and “creative hub” for songwriters in Los Angeles, which bring every element of its work under one roof. Along with office space for the company’s staff, the hub boasts five dedicated writer studios, six listening rooms, an artist lounge and a state-of-the-art recording studio with a […]

If a genetic engineer — or a version of AI way better than the ones we’ve got now — could conjure a perfect song of the summer, there’s a good chance it would sound a lot like Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso”: frothy, effervescent, instantly identifiable and as catchy as poison oak. It even opens with a […]

If there’s a patron saint of New York City’s rock scene, it’s Jesse Malin. The frontman for the bands Heart Attack (a punk outfit he formed when he was 14) and D Generation, as well as a prolific solo artist, he’s been a vibrant presence on the city’s venues, rocker bars — some of which […]

In 2024, a hit song is more like something you can’t escape than something you can measure. There are countless charts and services and data dumps that measure streams and memes and airplay and anything else you can count. But none of them can fully explain “Brat Summer” — the cultural phenomenon surrounding British singer-songwriter […]

Team Roc, Roc Nation’s social justice division, has announced the launch of a new true crime podcast called “Corruption Uncovered” that will investigate and examine the misconduct and systemic failures within the criminal justice system in Kansas City, Kansas. The inaugural episode of the weekly series will be available on Dec. 6. According to the announcement, […]

AC/DC have unveiled dates for the 2025 “Power Up” North American tour — the band’s first dates on the continent since 2016. It will also be singer Brian Johnson’s first run in an even longer time. During that 2016 tour, he suffered hearing loss and had to bow out — none other than Guns N’ Roses […]

In the latest twist in the bruising beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, the Canadian rapper has initiated legal action against Universal Music Group over allegations that the company conspired using Spotify to artificially inflate the popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” The action is doubly surprising because UMG distributes both artists’ recordings. In […]

Zach Bryan, Taylor Swift, Morgan Wallen and Sabrina Carpenter are among the artists leading the 2024 Billboard Music Awards nominees, with Swift facing off against Drake to compete for the most all-time wins. The eligibility dates for this year’s awards are aligned with Billboard’s Year-End Charts tracking period, which measures music consumption from the charts […]

Elton John explained his ongoing eye ailment on “Good Morning America” Monday, an infection that has impaired his ability to work and held up the release of a new album. On the show, Elton gave an update on his previously reported eye infection, which has caused him to lose his eyesight in his right eye […]

Midway through his snarling Drake diss, “Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar issued a succinct, but forceful personal mandate: “Sometimes you gotta pop out and show n—as.” It was both a plan of action and a self-fulfilling mandate.  Since then, he’s won that rap beef in the most unequivocal terms imaginable: “Not Like Us” has been […]

As rumored, Kendrick Lamar appears to have new music on the way, and on Friday morning he dropped a minute-long teaser titled “GNX” that is presumably part of a larger work. The song features a siren-like drone in the background while many multitracked Lamar vocals create a complex, chant-like melody more similar in feel to […]

A day after “Brat” teaser billboards appeared outside several U.S. venues, as expected, Charli xcx has announced dates for a brief U.S. headlining arena tour that will follow her top billing at the 2025 Coachella festival, which also was announced earlier this week. Full dates appear below. The tour follows both her June club tour […]