Ariana Grande

Ariana Grande

Photo: Jesse Grant/Getty Images

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Ariana Grande's 'Sweetener' Earns Her Third No. 1 Album

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The popstar unseats Travis Scott's top spot on the Billboard 200 with her fourth studio album, making this her third No. 1 debut
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Aug 27, 2018 - 3:19 pm

Ariana Grande's  highly anticipated Sweetener is out and the numbers are in. The GRAMMY-nominated popstar's fourth album, released on Aug. 17, has dethroned Travis Scott's No. 1 album spot on the Billboard 200. Her latest chart-topper marks her third No. 1 album debut.

Sweetener has sold 231,000 equivalent album units (which accounts for digital purchases, streams and traditional album sales) in its first week ending Aug. 23. This will place the album at the top of the latest Billboard 200 chart dated Sept. 1, replacing Scott's Astroworld, which also debuted at No. 1. The songs on the new album collected a total of 126.7 million streams in this first week, making it the biggest streaming week ever for a pop album by a woman.

Of the four studio albums the artist has released, this is her third time debuting at No. 1. Last year's Dangerous Woman was the only one to miss the mark, yet it wasn't far behind, debuting and peaking at No. 2 on the chart, behind Drake's Views.

We want to know what you're listening to right now – is Grande's "God Is A Woman" pumping you up as summer comes to a close?

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Ariana Grande & *NSYNC

Ariana Grande & *NSYNC

Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

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Ariana Grande Shines At Coachella Alongside *NSYNC, Nicki Minaj, Diddy & Mase

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"Coachella, I've been waiting my whole life for this moment," the GRAMMY-winning pop queen proclaims as she reunites the boy band, minus Timberlake, onstage
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Apr 15, 2019 - 3:08 pm

Based on Ariana Grande's headlining Coachella performance last night, it is safe to say that the 25-year-old pop star is truly living her best life and grateful to be doing so. She not only became the fourth solo female artist to headline the iconic festival for its 20th annual event, she also was the youngest-ever headliner.

She seemed just as excited to be there as her many fans singing and dancing along during her no-holds-barred show-stopping set, which included very special guests *NSYNC, Nicki Minaj, Diddy and Mase, multiple glam costume changes for her and her backup dancers between their killer moves and several occasions of bombastic fireworks.

Grande came out to a cheering crowd, establishing her powerful stage presence and angelic voice with two songs from her GRAMMY-winning Sweetener, "raindrops (an angel cried)" into "God is a woman," wearing a maroon shiny satin puffy-shoulder number. Her talented crew of dancers, who also had plenty of costume changes to coordinate with hers, surrounded her during "God is a woman" as they danced on and around a large table for a dramatic Last Supper-evoking scene.

The crowd was captivated by the whole journey Grande took them on, singing along pretty much the entire set; swaying with the slower songs and dancing it out with her for the more upbeat bops. But the biggest moments for everyone, Ari included, was when the pop star shared her special moment on stage with some special friends.

Her first guests up were Lance Bass, Joey Fatone, Chris Kirkpatrick and JC Chasez of *NSYNC, who entered during "break up with your girlfriend, i'm bored," her song from thank u, next that samples their No Strings Attached track, "It Makes Me Ill."

When the almost-fully reunited boy band entered, even Grande couldn't contain her excitement; "Coachella, I've been waiting my whole life for this moment," she gushed. They jumped in, singing part of the 2000 track, followed by *NSYNC 1997 hit "Tearin' Up My Heart, complete with epic '90s boy band dance moves. As the group left the stage, Grande's mood reflected that of the crowd. "I could die now," she said.

Oft-collaborator and friend Minaj joined her on stage for two of Grande's big tracks she was featured on, "Side To Side" and "Bang Bang." While there were some technical difficulties during the segment of the show, they danced through it and stunned in their coordinating maroon looks.

In a lavender flowy sleeve outfit, Grande welcomed her final special guests, hip-hop legends Diddy and Mase. The trio sang Notorious B.I.G.'s GRAMMY-nominated classic "Mo Money Mo Problems," which, of course, features the other two rappers on Biggie's posthumous 1997 album Life After Death. As they finished, Diddy paid tribute to some of those we've lost too soon, shouting out Biggie, Tupac, Mac Miller and Nipsey Hussle.

Mase, Ariana Grande & Diddy

Mase, Ariana Grande & Diddy | Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Grande made sure to include all of her big hits and fan favorites, all in very big ways. For "7 rings" her and her dance crew shared the stage with a pink car that said "Arichella" spray painted across it. For "breathin," another crowd pleaser, she was joined by an orchestra who seemed to magically appear on stage as fireworks shot out up above the stage.

"This has been unbelievable. Love you, thank you!" Grande said, smiling at the crowd as she went into her final two songs. She then sang "no tears left to cry," a powerful moment, especially given it was the first song she released following—and as response to—the tragic events at her 2017 Manchester concert.

She closed out with her "thank u, next," her first No. 1 single, as the crowd sang along, extra loud, for one last time as more fireworks filled the sky.

Sofi Tukker On Crafting Their "Ideal" Coachella Set, Giving Hugs To Maggie Rogers & More

Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran

Photo: Simone Joyner/Getty Images

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Ed Sheeran, Mariah Carey & More Broke Big Music Records In 2018

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Find out which artists made massive waves with record-breaking numbers this year, including GRAMMY winner Sheeran, whose Divide Tour made the most money in a single year of any tour ever
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 28, 2018 - 9:37 am

Before you can listen to all of your favorite songs from this year one more time, we'll be saying "Thank U, Next" to 2018 and ringing in the New Year. As we jump into 2019, let's take a look back at some of the biggest music records your favorite artists broke this year. From Ariana Grande's viral "Thank U, Next" earning the popstar her first No. 1 song while breaking YouTube and other streaming records to BTS earning the title of the first-ever Korean artist with a No. 1 album in the U.S. to Drake beating a record previously held by the Beatles, 2018 was a landmark year for music. Read on to learn more about the big achievements these artists, along with Mariah Carey, Ed Sheeran, Cardi B and Queen, hit this year.

GRAMMY nominee Grande really lived up to her name in 2018—in addition to releasing her currently-GRAMMY-nominated fourth studio album, Sweetener, and her third No. 1 album, she landed her first-ever No. 1 single on Billboard's Hot 100, "Thank U, Next." Following the release of the song's hotly anticipated, 2000s-nostaglia-inspired video, she earned the biggest ever streaming week for a female artist with 93.8 million U.S. streams. A testament to the video's viral success, it also holds the current record for YouTube's most-viewed video in the first 24-hours of its release with 55.4 million views in its first day on the platform, taking the place of BTS' "Idol," which racked up 45.9 million upon its release earlier in the year.

Speaking of the K-pop phenoms, BTS had a record-breaking year as well. They made news in May when their album Love Yourself: Tear debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, making them the first K-pop artist with a No. 1 album in the U.S. on the all-genre chart. As the songs are sung mostly in Korean, this was the first primarily foreign-language album to reach No. 1 in over 12 years. This follows their previous record as the first-ever K-pop group to break the top ten on the same chart when Love Yourself: Her hit No. 7 after its release in October 2017.

BTS On What They're Listening To Now & More

GRAMMY winner Drake also had a big year, thanks to the June release of his eighth studio album, Scorpion, which earned the rapper several more GRAMMY nominations for the upcoming 61st GRAMMY Awards. The double album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, earning his eighth in a row to do so, tying him with fellow GRAMMY winners the Beatles, Jay-Z and Kanye West, who all also have eight No. 1 albums.

In July Drake broke another record previously-held by the Beatles: having the most songs in the top 10 of the Hot 100 at the same time. Drake had seven top 10 songs (from Scorpion) at once, while the Beatles hit the previous record of five back in 1964. With four of the album's singles debuting in the top 10 in the same week, he became the first artist with that many top 10 songs in a week; the previous record was J. Cole's three top 10 debuts earlier in the year.

This year was a huge year for hip-hop, with GRAMMY nominee Cardi B also helping lead the charge for the genre. Her debut studio album, Invasion Of Privacy, also earned her several more GRAMMY nods and other big accolades, including the title of the first female artist to have an album with all of its songs certified gold or above by the RIAA. The LP itself was certified gold only hours after its release in April and ends the year with a double-platinum stamp in the organization's end of year count, tying it for No. 1 with Post Malone's Beerbongs & Bentleys and Migos’ Culture II.

It was a big year for music overall, with 2018 clocking in as the biggest-earning year to-date for live music. Global concert sales hit a record-setting high of $2 billion dollars in 2018, up from $1.8 million in 2017. Leading the charge was GRAMMY winner Ed Sheeran, who's Divide Tour made the most money in a single year of any tour ever, earning $432 million across 94 events in 53 cities.

It was also a good year for movies about music, with the Queen film, Bohemian Rhapsody, taking the place of highest-grossing music biopic of all time. As of Dec. 12, the movie had earned $608.7 million globally, surpassing 2015's Straight Outta Compton, the film about gangsta rap pioneers N.W.A.

Ending the year on a festive note, Mariah Carey's holiday classic "All I Want For Christmas" ended 2018 with another record broken. On Dec. 24, the 1994 song broke Spotify's one-day streaming record, racking up 10.8 million streams on Christmas Eve.

Which music records will be shattered in 2019? We'll have to wait for the next viral hits and game-changing albums to find out…

Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas" Breaks Streaming Record

JPEGMAFIA

JPEGMAFIA

Photo: Dave Pedly/Getty Images for SXSW

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Bhad Bhabie, JPEGMAFIA & Lil Skies Named Bandsintown's Fastest Growing New Artists

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The platform released its year-end report, revealing the most popular artists among their users
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Dec 19, 2018 - 1:10 pm

Bandsintown, the concert discovery platform, released their 2018 Year in Live Music report, revealing trending artists from their over 50 million global users, featuring the artists who were RSVP'd (GRAMMY winners Twenty One Pilots top the list), as well as their top five "fastest growing new artists," led by Bhad Bhabie and JPEGMAFIA.

In addition to the more than 50 million fans who use Bandsintown, the company reports that over 500,000 artists are registered on the platform. The "Artist With The Most RSVP's" list comes from the numbers of users who said they planned on going to an artist's show (regardless of if they actually bought tickets).

The highest number of users wanted to catch Twenty One Pilots on their 2018 Bandito Tour, followed by GRAMMY nominees Panic! At The Disco and Shawn Mendes. Number four on the list is The 1975, with GRAMMY nominee Ariana Grande the No. 5 most RSVP'd artist, with fans preparing for her 2019 Sweetener World Tour.

Bandsintown’s "Fastest Growing New Artists" list is led by Bhad Bhabie, the rap moniker of 15-year-old internet personality Danielle Bregolli, followed by L.A.-based socially conscious rapper JPEGMAFIA, who was recently announced as support for Vince Staples' 2019 tour. No. 3 on the list is hip-hop/spoken-word artist Hobo Johnson, followed by rapper Lil Skies and psych rock group Blac Rabbit.

Twenty One Pilots Wins Best Pop Duo / Group Performance | Acceptance Speech | 59th GRAMMYs

Report: Ticket Sales For Tours Thrived In 2018's Digital Music Environment

Vampire Weekend

Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend

Photo: Joshua Brasted/Getty Images

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Vampire Weekend, The Lumineers, GRiZ & More Make Stacked Hangout Music Fest Lineup

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The "music vacation" on the beach in Gulf Shores, Ala. just revealed an incredibly full lineup of artists for its 10th anniversary festival in May
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Nov 29, 2018 - 1:53 pm

On Nov. 29, Hangout Music Fest released the lineup for their 10th anniversary event, which they've coined a "music vacation," is set to take place May 17-19, 2019 alongside the ocean in Gulf Shores, Ala. A quick glance at the performers shows six big-name headliners from across genres: GRAMMY-winning indie rock heroes Vampire Weekend, GRAMMY-nominated folk/pop favorites The Lumineers, GRAMMY-nominated hip-hop powerhouses Cardi B and Travis Scott, fellow GRAMMY nominee and rising R&B star Khalid, plus tropical house DJ/producer Kygo.

The incredibly stacked lineup definitely points to quite the musical retreat, featuring over 50 performers reveals an equally exciting mix of artists and genres, sure to keep festival goers dancing all three days. It includes big names in dance music such as GRAMMY winner Diplo, GRAMMY nominees Mura Masa and Sofi Tukker, plus GRiZ, Alison Wonderland, Hippie Sabotage and Gorgon City. There are also notable names of the pop/indie-rock arena, including GRAMMY nominee Hozier, as well as The 1975, Walk The Moon and Jimmy Eat World.

There are also plenty of talented rising artists performing that you may very well likely already be a big fan of, such as Bebe Rexha, Bishop Briggs, Bazzi and Pale Waves. Hangout Fest 2019 seems like just the event to see your favorite artists as well as find your new favorite.

Tickets go on sale Dec. 4. For more info and to see the complete list of artists, visit the event's website.

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