• George Strait Debuting New Music at ACM Awards; Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert and More Also Performing

    George Strait may have travelled off the touring horizon with his "The Cowboy Rides Away" farewell concert at AT&T Stadium in Dallas last year but that doesn't mean he's done with performing, or even new music. In fact, the Academy of Country Music confirmed that the icon would be playing just that, new music, when he appears at the ACM Awards on April 19. Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Florida Georgia Line, Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban will also be performing that night.
  • Rihanna, Sam Smith, Madonna, Iggy Azalea & More To Perform at 2015 iHeartRadio Awards Hosted By Jamie Foxx

    iHeartRadio is putting on its second annual iHeartRadio Music Awards at the end of the month. They revealed the nominees back in February, but now they've announced who will be taking the stage at the ceremony. Rihanna, Iggy Azalea, Sam Smith, Madonna, Jason Aldean, Meghan Trainor, Jason Derulo, Jennifer Hudson, Kelly Clarkson, Snoop Dogg, Nate Ruess, Alesso and Florida Georgia Line will all contribute live performances with Jamie Foxx hosting the show. Taylor Swift will make a non-performing appearance.
  • Kelly Clarkson Had Hard Time Finding Collaborators for 'Piece By Piece' Before John Legend

    Poor Kelly Clarkson... Despite being one of the most successful American Idol alumni of all time, two No. 1 albums, three No. 1 singles and a slew of awards, she can't get anybody to like her. In a new interview ahead of the release of her new album Piece By Piece, the "Heartbeat Song" singer revealed that she had a tough time landing collaborators for her new LP.
  • Ludacris Comes Angry, Stays Polished on 'Burning Bridges'; EP Features Rick Ross, Jason Aldean, John Legend Guest Spots

    Society always celebrates the records that top the Billboard 200 album chart. Back of The Billboards is a Music Times weekly segment that looks at the opposite end: the new record that finished closest to the back of the Billboard 200 for the previous week. We hope to give a fighting chance to the bands you haven't heard of. This week we look at Ludacris' new EP 'Burning Bridges' and its lead-up to a new album during 2015, 'Ludaversal.'
  • Taylor Swift Continues Reign on 'Billboard' 200 with '1989'; Nicki Minaj's 'The Pinkprint' Hits Number Two

    Taylor Swift's "1989" moved back into the No. 1 spot on the "Billboard" 200, bringing its total, nonconsecutive weeks at the top to six. It sold 375,000 copies last week, bringing the total for the year to 3.34 million. The record is on pace to overtake the "Frozen" soundtrack, which sold 3.46 million so far. Nicki Minaj's "The Pinkprint" sits comfortably at the No. 2 spot, "Billboard" notes.Swift is tied with Mariah Carey for total weeks at No. 1 with 30. Only one other woman has them beat with 46: Whitney Houston. The Beatles are still in first for all artists with 132 weeks at No. 1.Pentatonix has the No. 3 spot with "That's Christmas to Me." Minaj was able to crack the top 10 recently, and D'Angelo's new "Black Messiah" hit No. 5. "The Pinkprint" did not perform as well as the artist's previous effort "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded." The former sold 244,000 in its first week while the latter hit 253,000 — it also debuted at No. 1.
  • Eric Church Joins Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, Ariana Grande as 'The Outsiders' Goes Platinum

    Move over, Jason Aldean, because Eric Church is joining the platinum party. The singer recently became the second country artist to reach the 1-million mark for albums sold in 2014 with "The Outsiders." Church is only the fifth artist this year to hit the milestone. Aldean, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande and Sam Smith were all certified platinum previously and the soundtrack for Disney's "Frozen" received the honor as well.As Church's website notes, "The Outsiders," released Feb. 11, sold 288,000 copies in its first week. It went straight to No. 1 on the "Billboard" 200 and Top Country Albums charts. Church received four Grammy nods, including Country Album of the Year, Country Song of the Year, Country Solo Performance of the Year and Country Group/Duo of the Year.The Outsiders also won the Album of the Year honor at the inaugural American Country Countdown Awards recently. He stressed the importance of albums during his acceptance speech.