Author: Rap Hooks

Friendship will literally and figuratively sail on into the sunset in 2026, with organizer Gary Richards announcing that the next edition of the dance music cruise will be its last.

The event has dropped the 2026 lineup in tandem with the news, with scene luminaries including Bob Moses, Boys Noize, Polo & Pan, Mary Droppinz, Jason Bentley, Nina Las Vegas, Dita Von Teese, Mikey Lion, Justin and Christian Martin and Richards, who has long performed under his Destructo moniker, all on the bill.

See the complete lineup below, with additional names to be announced in the coming months.

“Friendship: The Final Transmission” will mark the fourth annual edition of Friendship and happens Jan. 18-22, 2026, aboard the Norwegian Joy, which can accommodate approximately 3,800 passengers in addition to crew. The voyage takes off from Miami, travels to Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas then sails back to Miami. Tickets and cabin packages are on sale now.

Richards helped forge the rave cruise model when he launched Holy Ship in 2012, with the party at sea an extension of the HARD events brand he also founded. The group of people who returned annually for Holy Ship came to be known as “Shipfam,” with many of them finding their way to Friendship when it started in 2023.

“Almost fourteen years ago, I had a vision to create something different, special and out of this world,” Richards says in a statement. “As a result of that, the Shipfam was born, a reoccurring group of people who would meet annually to travel with us. Our voyagers became a family, one that has shared moments that surpass the test of time and that feel like they’ll echo forever. Maybe this is the last one… or maybe it’s just the beginning of something new as we embark on this final transmission.”

Powerhouse regional Mexican label Rancho Humilde is locked in a bitter legal dispute with one of its fastest rising acts, the California-based band Fuerza Regida.

Rancho Humilde filed a lawsuit in September accusing the band of breaching its record deal by unilaterally doing features for other artists and inking live performance contracts with Apple Music and Live Nation. Fuerza Regida countersued a month later, alleging the indie label withheld millions of dollars in royalties and tried to “sabotage” its success — including by leaving it off Latin Grammy Awards submissions.

The dueling legal claims, moved from a California state courthouse to federal court on Oct. 20, reveal a stunning breakdown in the relationship between Fuerza Regida and its longtime label home. The fight comes just as Fuerza Regida’s star is on the rise; the band made history in May when 111XPANTIA debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, making it the highest-charting Spanish-language album ever by a duo or group.

Fuerza Regida, a quintet of regional Mexican hitmakers from San Bernardino, signed with Jimmy Humilde’s label in 2018. The band now puts out music via a joint venture between Rancho Humilde and its own Street Mob Records, with distribution by Sony Music Latin.

Rancho Humilde’s lawsuit is focused on exclusivity language in the label’s original record deal with Fuerza Regida, which allegedly entitled the label to a seat at the table and a cut of proceeds for all recording and touring contracts. According to Rancho Humilde, Fuerza Regida violated this deal by performing unauthorized features for other artists and not sharing the royalties.

The lawsuit lists 27 offending songs, including “Qué Onda,” Fuerza Regida’s Billboard Hot 100 entry from 2023 with Calle 24 and Chino Pacas, and “Modo Capone,” the band’s 2024 collaboration with Pacas and Drake that hit No. 11 on Billboard‘s Hot Latin Songs chart.

Rancho Humilde says Fuerza Regida also disregarded exclusivity by contracting directly with Apple Music this past summer for a live concert taping in Mexico City, as well as with Live Nation for U.S. tours in 2023 and 2024.

“[Rancho Humilde] has suffered damages, including, but not limited to, lost royalties, advances, fees, market-share and other compensation that should have been directed to Sony and accounted to [Rancho Humilde], lost shares of touring revenues [and] lost income from unauthorized deals such as the Apple agreement,” says the lawsuit. “The exact amount of damages is subject to proof at trial but exceeds $15 million.”

Fuerza Regida, however, tells a very different story in its countersuit. The band claims Rancho Humilde is actually the one who has breached their record deal by failing to pay millions of dollars in royalties and stonewalling audit requests.

The countersuit also says Rancho Humilde has engaged in “systematic financial malfeasance” by refusing to revert master recordings back to the band as required by the record deal, as well as by using “clandestine arrangements” with Live Nation to siphon off touring profits.

“In addition to its fraudulent schemes and systematic contract breaches, Rancho and its principal Jimmy Humilde escalated to a malicious campaign of active sabotage designed to destroy [Fuerza Regida’s] professional relationships and career opportunities within the entertainment industry,” reads the countersuit.

Fuerza Regida says that as part of this campaign of “sabotage,” Rancho Humilde requested that Sony remove the band from Latin Grammy Awards submissions in 2024, even though they had been a top-selling act that year.

Additionally, the countersuit claims Jimmy Humilde sent “threatening and intimidating text messages” to Apple’s head of Latin music in an attempt to “derail” Fuerza Regida’s live concert taping. Overall, Fuerza Regida is seeking at least $25 million in damages from the label.

In a statement to Billboard on Monday (Oct. 27), the band’s attorney Kenneth D. Freundlich says, “Rancho Humilde and Jimmy Humilde have for years engaged in brazen self-dealing, enriching itself at the expense of our client Fuerza Regida.”

“Rancho’s bad faith state court lawsuit against Fuerza was the last straw,” adds Freundlich. “After our removal, the disputes will air in federal court where Rancho must now respond to our detailed claims of wrongdoing.”

Reps for Rancho Humilde did not return a request for comment.

The Fuerza Regida fight is not Rancho Humilde’s only ongoing legal battle with top talent. Regional Mexican artist Codiciado, who was signed to Rancho Humilde as part of the ensemble Grupo Codiciado but has since parted ways and gone solo, sued the label in June, alleging it infringed his intellectual property by getting the rest of the band back together with a new act called Los Codicia2. Rancho Humilde has not yet responded to Codiciado’s claims.

“Take your time, what’s the rush?” The lyric from Leon Thomas‘ 2024 hit “Mutt” couldn’t be more fitting to describe the song’s yearlong journey to the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, which it finally reaches this week.

To be exact, “Mutt” took 38 chart weeks to reach its current position at No. 10, marking the third-longest trip to the top 10 of the all-genre songs tally’s 67-year history. It’s also Thomas’ first top 10 hit as a recording artist and his fourth as a writer and producer, following Drake’s “In the Bible,” featuring Lil Durk and Givēon (No. 7, 2021) and “Love All,” featuring Jay-Z (No. 10, 2021) as well as SZA’s “Snooze” (No. 2, 2023).

“This would not have been possible without my PHOLKS, so thank you to every single one of you who has made this possible and let this be a sign to keep on working and chase your dreams!” Thomas wrote on Instagram Monday (Oct. 27) while sharing a custom graphic featuring him performing onstage with his guitar and our Hot 100 top 10 graphic for the chart dated Nov. 1.

The good news arrives three days after Thomas’ funk-focused seven-song EP PHOLKS. His headlining Mutts Don’t Heel Tour starts Thursday (Oct. 30) at Dallas’ House of Blues. The Breakthrough of the Year Award recipient at Billboard‘s 2025 R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players will perform across the U.S., Europe and Australia before wrapping on April 19 at Perth’s Metro City.

See Thomas’ post here.

Face value ticket exchange CashorTrade has added two major names to its leadership ranks as the fan-first ticketing platform continues to gain traction across the live music industry. Industry veterans Andrew Dreskin — best known as co-founder and former CEO of Ticketfly and TicketWeb — and Craig Snyder, formerly of Intellitix and Lyte, have joined the company’s executive team in key leadership roles.

Dreskin joins as strategic advisor while Snyder takes on the role of vp of business development & partnerships. In his role, Snyder will focus on expanding alliances with artists, promoters and festivals that share the company’s commitment to equitable access to live events.

“When veterans like Dreskin and Snyder join forces with a grassroots platform like CashorTrade, it’s a clear signal that the face value movement is no longer fringe — it’s the future,” said Brando Rich, co-founder of CashorTrade, in a statement. “Their expertise will help us scale our mission to make live events more accessible, equitable, and community-driven.”

Snyder added that CashorTrade’s fan-first foundation, founded in 2009, now has more than 1 million verified members. “Throughout my career, I’ve worked to tackle one of the industry’s biggest challenges — scalping and sky-high resale prices that hurt everyone: fans, artists, and venues,” he said. “CashorTrade is built differently. Whether a show is sold out or not, it gives fans a legitimate place to exchange tickets at fair prices while helping promoters fill seats. I’m looking forward to building partnerships that expand this community and make CashorTrade’s Gold Membership even more essential for live music fans.”

Billboard‘s Live Music Summit will be held in Los Angeles on Nov. 3. For tickets and more information, visit https://www.billboardlivemusicsummit.com/2025/home-launch.

Shakira and The Weeknd are two of several big names joining the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund’s Advisory Board ahead of next year’s World Cup, it was announced Monday (Oct. 27).

The Latin music superstar and Canadian hitmaker will work with fellow board members Ivanka Trump, Hugh Jackman, Gianni Infantino, Hugh Evans and Serena Williams — as well as other “leading figures across entertainment, sports, and business,” according to a release — in overseeing the fund’s efforts to make education more accessible around the world. They’ll draw on their own personal experiences and careers to provide guidance and ensure that the fund “achieves maximum impact” ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup next summer.

The goal is to raise $100 million for education efforts, with Global Citizen aiming to service 100,000 children across 200+ communities worldwide. The first round of grantees will be announced in early 2026; to apply, visit globalcitizen.org/education-fund-apply.

News of the board’s A-list membership comes months after the March announcement that Coldplay’s Chris Martin will curate FIFA’s first-ever Super Bowl-style halftime show for the 2026 World Cup, taking place at the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. “This will be a historic moment for the FIFA World Cup and a show befitting the biggest sporting event in the world,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said at the time.

A multifaceted charity organization, Global Citizen works to address critical issues such as climate change, poverty and inequality through campaigns, conferences and other awareness-raising events. This weekend, Global Citizen Festival: Amazônia will take place in Brazil, marking the first Global Citizen Fest in Latin America, where Martin is set to perform along with Anitta, Charlie Puth, Seu Jorge and more. The festival’s goal is to amplify the voices of indigenous peoples and local communities in the Amazon rainforest and raise $1 billion to protect, restore and rewild the Amazon rainforest.

Global Citizen’s partnership with FIFA comes at a time when 350 million children worldwide are currently not in school, the organization reports.

LE SSERAFIM’s new collaboration with BTS’ j-hope has topped this week’s new music poll.

In a poll published Friday (Oct. 24) by Billboard, music fans chose the powerhouse team-up’s “Spaghetti” as their favorite new release of the week.

“Spaghetti” earned 77% of the vote, beating out new projects from Demi Lovato (It’s Not That Deep), Megan Thee Stallion (“LOVER GIRL”), Bruce Springsteen (Nebraska ’82), Daniel Caesar (Son of Spergy), Leon Thomas (Pholks), and more.

The track serves as the lead single from LE SSERAFIM’s eight-track HYBE compilation of the same name and marks j-hope’s first-ever feature on a K-pop girl group song.

Earlier in the week, the song was teased through a YouTube video titled “The Kick,” featuring j-hope in a Matrix-inspired outfit and shades, surrounded by flashing strobe lights. The clip ends with a snippet of LE SSERAFIM members — KIM CHAEWON, SAKURA, HUH YUNJIN, KAZUHA, and HONG EUNCHAE — delivering the line “eat it up.”

Speaking with Billboard Philippines, LE SSERAFIM shared insights into the making of “Spaghetti.” The song “expresses LE SSERAFIM’s charm that you just can’t get away from, like spaghetti that’s stuck in your teeth,” SAKURA said. “The part where we sing ‘eat it up’ over and over is the highlight, and since each of us members delivers it in our own styles, it adds even more playfulness to the song.”

LE SSERAFIM have been on a hot streak this year. In March, the group’s album HOT debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, marking their fifth top 10 entry and second chart-topper after 2024’s Crazy.

Placing second in this week’s poll was Lovato’s new album, It’s Not That Deep, which secured 7% of the vote.

Check out the full results of this week’s poll below, and visit Billboard’s Friday Music Guide for more must-hear new releases.