Category: Music

The Kansas City Chiefs’ disappointing loss at the 2025 Super Bowl is one that fans of the team — including Taylor Swift and MGK — will remember all too well.

Both musicians were present at the big game against the Philadelphia Eagles in February, with the pop star there to support boyfriend Travis Kelce and the former rapper on site to cheer on Kansas City before performing at the team’s afterparty later that night. But while hopes that the Chiefs could snag a “three-peat” Super Bowl win were high at the beginning of the game, they quickly faltered as the Eagles kept scoring to win 40-22 — something MGK reflected on talking to Swift about that day in an interview with ABC News on Wednesday (Aug. 6).

“I was in Travis’ suite, and at the beginning of it, Taylor was like, ‘Hell yeah, we’re gonna come watch you perform, it’s gonna be crazy tonight,’” the musician began. “Internally, I was stoked. I was like, ‘Oh what a legendary night this is gonna be.’”

“By the third quarter, dude, I was looking at that score,” he continued, laughing at the memory. “I went up to Taylor, I was like, ‘Y’all aren’t coming tonight, huh?’ She was like, ‘I don’t think so, man. I’ll see if I can get [Travis] to get out, but I don’t think [so].’”

MGK still had to perform at the losing team’s post-game party in New Orleans that night — a gig he does not recommend to other artists. “Don’t ever sign yourself up for that,” he said before joking, “Wait to sign the paper ’til third quarter or something, ’til it looks like it’s going one way or the other.”

But while the afterparty was a little bit grim, MGK will always support Kelce — a fellow Ohioan — and the rest of the Chiefs. “That’s my dawg,” the artist added of the athlete. “He’s from Cleveland. He’s from right next to where I’m from.”

Shortly after the interview, MGK went on to release his new album, Lost Americana, on Friday (Aug. 8). With none other than Bob Dylan in his corner during the rollout, his rootsy new project marks a shift away from the hip-hop and pop-punk genres he previously experimented with.

As for the Chiefs, Kelce and his teammates have been hard at work training for the upcoming season, which kicks off in early September. And after becoming a mainstay at Arrowhead Stadium throughout the past two NFL seasons after beginning her romance with the tight end in 2023, Swift is expected to appear at even more games this year now that she’s finished her global Eras Tour.

Watch MGK recall his conversation with Swift at the Super Bowl below.

As summer begins to officially wind down, why not start updating your fall playlists with some new songs from your favorite queer artists? Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ+ artists.

From Ethel Cain’s long-awaited sophomore album to Lucy Dacus’ surprise new singles, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:

Ethel Cain, Willoughby Trucker, I’ll Always Love You

With Preacher’s Daughter, singer-songwriter Hayden Anhedönia introduced the world to the tragic, brutal story of Ethel Cain, the first in what she promised would become a trilogy of stories about her family. But Willoughby Trucker, I’ll Always Love You, the long-awaited follow-up to Cain’s breakout album, zigs where audiences thought Cain might zag. Telling the story of a doomed romance earlier in her character’s life, Cain spends this expansive album touching on the fragility and intensity of young love over a set of songs that create a sense of warm — but still somewhat sinister — ambiance for you to bask in.

Lucy Dacus, “Bus Back to Richmond” / “More Than Friends”

Who doesn’t love a set of bonus tracks? After releasing her critically beloved new album Forever Is a Feeling in March, Lucy Dacus decided to give fans a little something extra with the release of her new pair of singles, “Bus Back to Richmond” and “More Than Friends.” Over gentle harmonies, Dacus continues her songwriting hot streak with some truly heartbreaking lines on both her new tracks. Whether insisting that “You said, ‘please give me a chance’/ You didn’t know that I already had” on “Richmond,” or singing that “When you die, I’ll be a wreck/ When I die, don’t pine until you’re dead” on “Friends,” Dacus continues to show what a generational songwriting star she is on these lovely new songs.

Sasha Keable, Act Right

Projects about heartbreak may be all too common in R&B, but Sasha Keable is bringing her distinct voice to the well-trodden format. On her stunning new project Act Right, Keable places her extremely expressive voice front and center, as she charts a path through betrayal and rage to find herself again on the other side of heartbreak. With smart production choices and a unique perspective, Keable wastes no time getting to the heart of the issue on Act Right, solidifying herself as a name to watch.

Big Thief, “Los Angeles”

In hard times, it’s good to celebrate the good in the world around you. That’s exactly what Big Thief sets out to do on “Los Angeles,” their sun-soaked, beautiful new ballad that sees the band offering a simple, uncomplicated song about an enduring, powerful love. Lush live instrumentation and vocals (courtesy of Adrianne Lenker), “Los Angeles” feels instantly enchanting as the band jams their way through this stunning track.

Daya, “Agnostic”

Daya is back, baby. With her latest single “Agnostic,” the pop singer is trading in the bright sound that defined so much of her early career for a moodier, alternative take on the format. Crooning over a slick bass line, Daya paints a vivid portrait of a loss of faith in love, as she declares to her ex that the end of their relationship has her questioning everything. For all the uncertainty that “Agnostic” revels in, we can’t help but feel the opposite as the singer sets her sights on a new musical era.

Big Freedia, Pressing Onward

New Orleans bounce icon Big Freedia has never been shy about creating communal spaces out of every audience she performed in front of; so it should come as no surprise that the performer knows how to make an excellent gospel album. On Pressing Forward, Freedia manages to blend her iconic dance sound seamlessly into the worship genre, while also leaving space for her to grieve the loss of her long-term partner earlier this year. From top to bottom, the album is emotionally arresting, sonically ambitious and a phenomenal encapsulation of everything that makes Big Freedia the celebrated artist that she is.

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:

As trial nears in the sexual assault case against legendary music executive Antonio “L.A.” Reid, a judge has ruled that former Arista A&R executive Drew Dixon can keep seeking damages over commissions she supposedly lost when Reid refused to sign Ye (formerly Kanye West) and John Legend to the label.

The ruling on Thursday (Aug. 7) comes just one month before Dixon’s civil claims against Reid are scheduled to go to trial in New York federal court. Dixon’s 2023 lawsuit alleges that Reid — who headed up Epic, Island Def Jam and Arista over the course of a storied career — sexually harassed her repeatedly and then forcibly kissed and groped her twice in 2001.

Dixon says that in addition to making her “depressed and suicidal,” Reid’s alleged abuse cost her valuable professional opportunities. She claims that after she rejected Reid’s sexual advances, he retaliated against her by refusing to sign two promising young artists she wanted to bring to Arista: Ye and Legend.

The lawsuit alleges that Reid berated Dixon in front of Arista’s entire A&R department about Ye’s audition being a “waste of his time,” and that he didn’t even bother to show up for Legend’s audition. Dixon says she lost out on hefty future commissions because of these signing snubs. Neither Ye nor Legend is accused of any wrongdoing.

Reid “adamantly” denies all of Dixon’s claims and is scheduled to contest them before a jury starting Sept. 8. Ahead of trial, his lawyers had sought to limit Dixon’s potential recovery by arguing in a so-called summary judgment motion that any damages over the Ye and Legend auditions are outside the statute of limitations.

But Judge Jeannette A. Vargas refused in Thursday’s order to bar these lost commissions from the upcoming trial. The judge says Dixon can keep pursing such damages, at least for now, under New York’s Adult Survivors Act (ASA) — a law that created a one-year window for otherwise time-barred sexual assault claims to be brought in court.

“Defendant is correct that, for a cause of action to be revived under ASA, it must be brought for an injury or condition suffered as a result of conduct which would constitute a sexual offense,” writes Judge Vargas. “It does not follow from this, however, that damages are limited once a cause of action has been revived.”

The judge notes, however, that Dixon’s summary judgment ruling is only considering the issue of the statute of limitations, and “it may well be that plaintiff cannot recover lost commissions under any of the asserted causes of action.” Thus, it remains to be seen whether Dixon will actually be able to win a money judgment for these lost signing fees at trial.

Reps for Dixon and Reid both did not return requests for comment on the decision.

Reid’s public image has been shaky since 2017, when, during his tenure as head of Epic Record,s he was accused of sexually harassing a female assistant. He exited Epic but stayed in the music business, launching the HitCo label and later co-founding music collective Mega alongside Usher.

While Reid has been represented in the Dixon lawsuit by powerhouse entertainment lawyer Shawn Holley, he’s currently staring down the September trial without an attorney after falling behind on his legal bills and refusing to return Holley’s calls.

Judge Vargas is allowing Holley and her team to step away from the case due to this rift, but says Reid’s Sept. 8 trial date is firm. That means Reid must either get a new lawyer before then, represent himself or be subjected to a default loss if he’s a no-show.

Dixon is also among multiple women who’ve accused Def Jam Recordings founder Russell Simmons of rape. Simmons has publicly accused Dixon of lying about the incident, leading to ongoing defamation litigation between the two.

Lil Wayne has just about done it all and seen it all in life, but there are rare moments he takes a step back to recognize the rooms he’s in.

Weezy joined SportsCenter earlier this week while kicking off his Tha Carter VI Tour, and was asked about a time he was starstruck, which took Wayne back to recently seeing LeBron James again on the set of a commercial.

The New Orleans rap deity described it as a “huge full-circle moment” for him, after meeting the NBA phenom as a high schooler before his global fame.

“I gotta say when I finally met Bron as LeBron James,” he said. “Because I met him when he was about, I think, 16. He came to a party, my boss at the time told me, he was like, ‘Yo, I need you to bring this kid with you to your show.’ And so the kid was LeBron, right? And to see him become who he was.”

Wayne continued: “I think it was a commercial we shot recently. I was on the set and just looking up at him and asking him about his son and the NBA. That was a huge full-circle moment for me. I don’t know about him, but for me, I was like, ‘What just happened?’”

Weezy and LeBron met while their stardom was just in its infancy stages in the early 2000s, before going on to become respective faces of rap and basketball in the 21st century.

Their careers have intertwined at various points, like when Wayne performed at LeBron’s 21st birthday party in 2005, and the Young Money boss also performed at the hooper’s Beats By Dre NBA All-Star Weekend party alongside the Hot Boys in 2017.

As LeBron has continued to pile up the accolades in a decorated Hall-of-Fame career, Wayne became convinced he’s the greatest to ever pick up a basketball.

“He ain’t got six, but he done it with three different teams. And not on one of those motherf—g teams did he play role two,” Wayne told the All the Smoke podcast. “That right there is what tipped him over the Jordan scale for me.”

Watch the clip below.