Pulse Music

Nicki Minaj has been named MaximBET's first Global Ambassador. According to Rap-Up, MaximBET is a privately held, licensed sports betting and iGaming platform. In the role, Nicki will work on merchandise, parties, partnerships, fan experiences, and branding, all designed to bring together entertainment, sports, celebrity, and betting. The rapper is also the new Creative Director of Maxim magazine, special advisor to the MaximBET Board of Directors, and will be actively involved in the company's iGaming plans.

Nicki said in a statement, "I don't think I've ever been prouder of a collaboration. Merging business savvy power moves with my natural, creative, sexy, fun, and fashion-forward expression is just so spot-on as it relates to this partnership."

Her statement continued, "I'm ready to fully step into my potential as a young, influential Queen, and owner and open doors for others to dream big. Get ready for the sexy parties and remember: scared money don't make NO MONEY!!!! HA!!! Place your bets!!!! Let's GO!!!"

Alina Mawlka is speaking out about the rumors that she split up Liam Payne and his ex-fiancée Maya Henry.

A spokesperson for the 24-year-old model told E! News Sunday (May 29th), "Aliana is very taken back by the accusations that have been made regarding a relationship with Liam while he was still engaged or involved with his ex-fiancée." They continued, "Under no circumstances would Aliana have involved herself in a public relationship as such if there was any truth to the comments that have been made."

Last week, Henry fueled the speculation that Payne was unfaithful when she commented on a photo of him and Mawlka with, "I love all of the fans so much but please stop sending me these pictures of my fiancé wrapped around another woman. This is not me and it's hard enough knowing this has happened without seeing it. Enough now."

During an interview with Dazed, A$AP Rocky revealed that he'd like to raise "open-minded children with Rihanna. He said, "I hope to raise open-minded children. Not people who discriminate, And I'm not trying to describe a saint, but realistically, I just want a cool child with cool parents."

He continued, "Things like diversity and versatility are important, and they'll be embedded in the household."

Rocky and Rihanna welcomed their first child, a baby boy on May 13th.

Camila Cabello opened the Union of European Football associations' 2022 Champions League Final Saturday (May 28th), but was not happy with the fans' reaction to her performance.

According to Page Six, the singer took to Twitter after she left the field to chastise Liverpool and Real Madrid supporters for drowning out the sound of her nearly six-minute opener.

She wrote, "Playing back our performance and I can't believe people were winging their teams anthem so loud during our performance. Like my team and I worked tirelessly for so long to bring the right vibes and give a good show." In a follow up post she added, "Very rude but whatever. IM GLAD U GUYS LOVED IT."

Both tweets have since been deleted.

Jack Antonoff is engaged.

According to People, the 38-year-old Bleachers musician is set to tie the knot with 27-year-old Maid star, Margaret Qualley.

The actress was recently spotted wearing a diamond ring at the Cannes Film Festival last Wednesday (May 25th), where her latest film, Stars at Noon, held it's premiere.

The outlet reports that the couple has been dating since last summer and went public with their romance earlier this year at the AFI Awards Luncheon in March.

Machine Gun Kelly says that Pete Davidson showed up at his birthday party back in April, with Batman. The big surprised happened when Davidson asked if he could bring a plus-one and then invited Robert Pattinson.

Kelly said, "I was like, ‘You brought Batman?' Everyone kept coming up and was like, ‘Dude, is Batman at your birthday party?'"

In an interview with Jimmy Fallon, Kelly explained that one Easter, when Davidson showed up at his house with beer, he took him to Sandra Bullock's house, where they ran into Jennifer Aniston and other major stars.

The two have become good friends and Davidson is in Machine Gun Kelly's movie, Good Mourning.

TL;DR:

• Machine Gun Kelly says that Pete Davidson showed up at his birthday party back in April, with Batman.
• Kelly said, "I was like, ‘You brought Batman?' Everyone kept coming up and was like, ‘Dude, is Batman at your birthday party?'"
• Davidson is in Machine Gun Kelly's movie, Good Mourning.

Madonna was spotted sitting next to Tory Lanez at the Gervonta Davis vs Ronaldo Romero fight on Sunday (May 29th) night, despite their copyright infringement drama.

The Blast reports that the two appeared to be having a 'heartfelt conversation' despite their recent dispute.

Last year the "Like A Virgin" singer slammed the Canadian rapper for sampling her music illegally.

Harry Styles announced Friday (May 27th) that he is planning on donating proceeds from Love On Tour 2022 to help end gun violence.

In the wake of recent mass shootings across the US, including the events that took place in Uvalde, Texas last week, he will be donating proceeds from the tour, with Live Nation matching, equaling over $1 million to Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund.

The singer said in a press release, "Along with all of you, I have been absolutely devastated by the recent string of mass shootings in America, culminating at Robb Elementary School in Texas. On our North American tour, we will be partnering with Everytown who work to end gun violence, donating to support their efforts, and sharing their suggested action items."

Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund is the education, research, and litigation arm of Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country.

ED SHEERAN DROPS EXTENDED EDITION OF '=': Ed Sheeran released = ('Equals' Tour Edition) on Friday (May 27th). The extended version of his chart-topping album features nine additional tracks, four of which were previously unavailable. Joining the original 14-track album are brand new songs, "I Will Remember You" and "Welcome to the World" alongside previously unreleased fan favorites, "One Live" and "Penguins."

DEMI LOVATO TEASES 'SKIN OF MY TEETH': Demi Lovato announced on social media that their forthcoming single, "Skin of My Teeth" will drop on June 10th. A snippet of the song shared to Instagram has more of a rock vibe than her last album, which is expected following the "funeral" they held for their pop music in January.

PANIC! AT THE DISCO TEASES 'VIVA LAS VENGANCE' AND MORE: Panic! At The Disco announced Sunday (May 29th) that their next single "and so much more" will be dropping on June 1st. According to the Brendan Urie project's Instagram page, the track "Viva Las Vengance" will be released Wednesday (June 1st) at 10amET.

Ed Sheeran is releasing more new music today (5-27).

He made the announcement through a video on his social media. It's part of what will be a new deluxe edition of his latest album, = (Equals).

The Tour Edition of (Equals) drops today and will include 9 additional tracks. Two of them are brand new and two others are from the 2018 musical film, Yesterday.

Although he performed them on screen, "One Life" and "Penguins" were never officially released until now.

The original version of the album was released in October and became Sheeran's 4^th consecutive #1 album on the Billboard 200.

TL;DR:

BTS is headed to Washington D.C. next week in celebration of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Month.

The group will join President Biden at the White House and will participate in a discussion about Asian inclusion and the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination

The President has credited K-pop for growing "people-to-people and cultural connections" between the US and South Korea.

The visit will take place on May 31^st.

TL;DR:

• BTS is headed to Washington D.C. next week in celebration of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Month.
• The group will join President Biden at the White House.
• The visit will take place on May 31^st.

Nick Jonas has confirmed that he his brothers are working on new music. He was asked about it during an interview with Kelly Clarkson and said, "I can tell you I think it's my favorite stuff we've ever done. It's basically an evolution of the sound in a way I think is really natural for us and feels like a great next step."

He told her the new Jonas Brothers songs will feature some exciting unnamed collaborators. He didn't give away any names, but said they've always wanted to work with them.

TL;DR:

• Nick Jonas has confirmed that he his brothers are working on new music. He said, "It's my favorite stuff we've ever done."
• It will feature some exciting unnamed collaborators.

The members of BLACKPINK are in discussions about their comeback and that will include a big tour. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Jennie revealed that they're in preparation mode to make their return.

She also shared that the last tour was so strenuous that she became sick, both physically and mentally. Along with other members Jisoo, Lisa, and Rose, they worked non-stop without resting for 3 years following their debut.

She explained, "Our sleep systems were breaking down; we weren't eating properly; I wasn't hydrating myself. We did that for three to four years, and then started our tour.

She said, at one point they were on the road for a solid year and a half… and the road was their home.

She did not mention an expectation date.

TL;DR:

• The members of BLACKPINK are in discussions about their comeback
• Jennie revealed that they're in preparation mode to make their return.
• She says the last tour was so strenuous that she became sick, both physically and mentally.
• She did not mention an expectation date.

Machine Gun Kelly is learning how the movie industry works… He wanted Drake to be in his new movie, but couldn't afford him. The two had discussed it, but when it came down to scheduling the day of the shoot, Drake's travel expense of booking a private jet from Toronto to LA was going to cost too much. Kelly said, "That's the whole movie budget."

In the end, he decided it was more economical to just get an actor to play Drake.

Kelly wrote and directed the new stoner-comedy called Good Mourning, with his friend and fellow musician, Mod Sun.

TL;DR:

• Machine Gun Kelly wanted Drake to be in his new movie, but couldn't afford him. Drake's travel expense of booking a private jet from Toronto to LA was "the whole movie budget."
• It was more economical to just get an actor to play Drake.

Rumors have been swirling about Taylor Swift making a cameo appearance on the season finale of Grey's Anatomy. It started after she was listed in the credits on the IMDb page and her fans caught on to it and reposted it.

Billboard reached out to ABC and Taylor Swift's team and she is yet to confirm or deny it.

The page, which has since been taken down, had her listed as appearing as herself. It wasn't clear if any of her music would be included in the show.

Swift is famously a longtime fan of the series and even named her cat Meredith Grey, after Ellen Pompeo's iconic character

The season finale of Grey's Anatomy airs tonight (May 26) on ABC.

TL;DR:

• Rumors have been swirling about Taylor Swift making a cameo appearance on the finale of Grey's Anatomy.
• She was listed in the credits on the IMDb page.
• The season finale of Grey's Anatomy airs tonight (May 26) on ABC.

Harry Styles has broken the modern-era, vinyl sales record for the United States.

According to Billboard, his new album, Harry's House has sold more than 146,000 copies within three days of its May 20 release. Styles takes the crown from Taylor Swift, whose vinyl version of Red (Taylor's Version) broke previous records when it debuted last year.

Harry's House has made its mark outside of vinyl as well. The lead single, "As It Was" debuted at #1 on Billboard's Top 100 and became the most-streamed song in 24 hours on Spotify upon its release.

This is his 3^rd sold release.

TL;DR:

• Harry Styles has broken the modern-era, vinyl sales record for the United States.
• Harry's House has sold more than 146,000 copies within three days of its May 20 release.
• Styles takes the crown from Taylor Swift's Red (Taylor's Version)
• This is his 3^rd sold release.

Kelly Clarkson has announced that she'll be releasing an EP of covers next month.

Known for being able to sing just about anything, she has chosen songs like "Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish and The Weeknd's "Call Out My Name." She also included songs by Radiohead, Whitney Houston, Linda Ronstadt, and Shaed.

She and her band have covered over 500 songs since The Kelly Clarkson Show premiered in 2019, but this marks the first time she's gone into a studio to record an entire collection for sale.

Explaining how the project came about, she simply said, "Music is in the DNA of everything I do."

Clarkson's six-song project called Kellyoke will be out June 9^th.

TL;DR:

• Kelly Clarkson will be releasing an EP of covers on June 9.
• Songs like "Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish and The Weeknd's "Call Out My Name."
• She also included tracks by Radiohead, Whitney Houston, Linda Ronstadt, and Shaed.

Olivia Rodrigo took time out during her concert in Los Angeles on Tuesday night (May 24) to talk to her audience about common sense gun legislation. Her emotional plea came only hours after the mass school murder of 19 children and 2 adults at a Texas elementary school.

While telling the crowd she was devastated and heartbroken about the latest mass shooting, she talked about how America needed stricter gun control laws.

Videos were posted online of her short speech and she said, "I wish we would never have to worry about our safety or our lives at places that are dedicated to our learning and growing,"

The 19 year old was one of many artist that spoke out. Others included Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez.

TL;DR:

• Olivia Rodrigo took time out during her concert in Los Angeles on Tuesday night (May 24) to talk to her audience about common sense gun legislation.
• She said, "I wish we would never have to worry about our safety or our lives at places that are dedicated to our learning and growing,"

Blink-182's Mark Hoppus has teamed with others to launch Verswire, which will utilize a venture capital approach to help artists make money and grow their business without going into deep debt while doing so.

The company will help artists with distribution, sponsorships, artist development and Web strategy.

Hoppus said, "So many times, labels will sign something that's hot, hope they can get a hit and then move on quickly. We want to go back to, ‘OK , you're a band starting out. What do you need? What can we bring to you? How can we make this thing blow up?'"

Opposite of a major label, artists will participate immediately in revenue streams with Verswire and keep majority ownership of their masters.

Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz will also be involved as a strategic advisor.

TL;DR:

James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett performed the National Anthem during Metallica Night at the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night (May 24th).

Hetfield sang a few notes from the band's classic "Master of Puppets" at the end of the performance. They also played "City Connect."

Harry Styles has announced an additional five New York and five Los Angeles dates to his massive Love On Tour 2022 in support of his new album Harry's House.

Coming off two special One Night Only shows in New York and London, the highly anticipated 2022 tour will allow fans to have access to multiple nights in each major city turning iconic venues into Harry's House for the run of shows.

Tickets for the massive 42-city trek go on sale Thursday (May 26th).

Calvin Harris confirmed Tuesday (May 24th) that his next single, "Potion" is a collaboration with Dua Lipa.

In a TikTok video captioned, "How I made Potion," Harris included the step, "Facetime Dua" where the singer "absolutely" agreed to provide vocals.

The two last collaborated on "One Kiss" in 2018.

"Potion", which is rumored to also feature Young Thug, will be released on Friday (May 27th).

Lorde shared her admiration for Kendrick Lamar in her latest newsletter.

In an email sent to fans on Tuesday (May 24th) the singer called him the "most influential artist in modern music."

She wrote, "I'm loving Kendrick. I cannot get over the most popular and influential artist in modern music displaying a working nervous system, admitting mistakes, trying to process intergenerational trauma and prejudice. I love the way the album opens, the pace and heat of the first few songs, and later 'Count Me Out,' the build and strings in 'Auntie Diaries' … special."

Doja Cat has been considered a star in both pop and rap, but she says her next release will be a rap album.

During an interview in the June/July 2022 issue of Elle magazine, Doja explained that her next project will be mostly rap music.

"I haven't started just because of all the rehearsal and touring. I've got a lot going on, but it's coming up," she said, likely before announcing that she'd no longer be touring with The Weeknd due to tonsil surgery.

The release is in the early stages, but Doja also said, "I have been getting songs and things sent to me…. Oh f**k, I wish I could tell people! There's some really cool stuff that I got sent from friends. They're all working on beats, and I'm giving them notes and they know what I want, so I'm excited."

Doja has demanded her respect in the genre, tweeting at one point that she should be viewed as a rapper.

She continued, "When I was little, that's kind of all I listened to. I've rapped since the beginning, and I really couldn't even sing that well to begin with–I got a lot better."

She then said, "I use my voice as a tool to create these worlds, and it's fine if people think that I can't rap. The only person who should be rating hip-hop is an OG or somebody who is respected in hip-hop."

Doja went on to praise her fellow women rappers, like City Girls, Rico Nasty and Saweetie, adding, "There's an explosion of amazing female rap talent out there right now. It's so cool to see that, because we didn't have that when we were younger."