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Jake Shane, who has nearly 3 million followers on TikTok thanks to his viral comedy videos under the handle @octopusslover8, is reviewing albums for Billboard with exclusive new essays and videos. Find his latest Billboard album review below, for Taylor Swift’s just-released The Tortured Poets Department album.
Taylor Swift, known for her vulnerability, has never been so vulnerable.
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First thing Friday (April 19), Swift welcomed us into The Tortured Poets Department, her earth-shattering 11th studio album. Except, upon arrival, listeners discovered it was more a graveyard than a classroom. The air is cold and filled with tension from ghosts of relationships past — each step inviting the listener closer and closer into stories frozen in time. The end result is an album that feels like pages ripped from Swift’s diary loosely scattered across a frosty gravesite — each tomb sharing its own story of grief, loss and, in some instances, love.
Tortured Poets is undoubtably Swift’s most personal album to date — which, for Swift is a hard feat to beat. Through classic Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner production, Swift’s pen floats on lyrics sharp to the touch. This is especially true on the Dessner-produced track 5, “So Long, London.” In it, Swift says goodbye to a relationship she gave everything for, but received no ROI. “My spine split from carrying us up the hill,” Swift proclaims; this is Swift at her very best, painting a photo of heartbreak so vivid that it almost feels like our bones are breaking too. Close listeners will notice the beginning of the track sounds similar to Swift’s love song “Call It What You Want” off her sixth studio album Reputation. Perhaps the most cutting lyrics, though, on “So Long, London” come in the second verse, when Swift admits her regret for holding on to the “sinking ship” that the relationship was: “I’m pissed off you let me give you all that youth for free.”
One of Swift’s defining talents is how she builds a cohesive narrative throughout her albums, and here, that ability has never been more on display. On Tortured Poets, Swift walks the listener through a barren graveyard filled with withered bones and torn memories, only to finally reach sunlight — on the final two tracks of the album (not including the extra 15 songs that dropped at 2 a.m. ET), Swift has once again found love. On “The Alchemy,” Swift sings of a love so undeniable, she is returning to her old, pre-tortured ways: “I haven’t come around in so long. But I’m making a comeback to where I belong.”
As always, Swift’s lyricism shines bright (arguably brighter than ever before). This is notable on the absolutely devastating “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived,” where Swift looks in the rearview of a past relationship with more questions than answers. “You hung me on your wall. Stabbed me with your push pins. In public, showed me off. Then sank in stoned oblivion.” Swift’s pen is pointed, but, then again, when is it not? She doesn’t want to talk to said “man,” but she wants a message delivered: “You didn’t measure up in any measure of a man.”
On “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart,” Swift is at her most bare, detailing the heartbreak-turned -depression she faced while performing the biggest tour of her career (and perhaps of all time). “She’s having the time of her life there in her glittering prime. The lights refract sequin stars off her silhouette every night. I can show you lies,” Swift croons over a synth beat. Swift calls back to folklore’s “mirrorball” by proving once again that she can be anything we want her to be, even if it’s not true. It is one of the first times Swift has broken the third wall since the start of the record-breaking tour, and it is almost reassuring to listeners and fans alike. Taylor is human, too, even when her stardom questions the laws of physics.
One of the greatest tales Swift tells is that of heartbreak to healing; she did it on Reputation, and on Tortured Poets she has done it once more — this time, though, with more maturity and the clarity only age can bring. At the end of the album, Swift has once again found love and forgiven heartbreak. It might not be her true love, but she’s happy — oh, and she’s Taylor Swift. Who can argue with that?
You can find Shane’s review of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter here.
Nearly two weeks after he was arrested for allegedly throwing a chair off the roof of a Nashville bar, country superstar Morgan Wallen has posted a statement on his X account addressing the incident. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In a two-part response, the country superstar tweeted, […]
Live Nation shares fell 10.9% to $89.98 this week after The Wall Street Journal reported the U.S. Department of Justice plans to file a lawsuit against the company in the coming weeks. The DOJ could seek any number of remedies, but, in recent years, there have been calls from both the public and private sectors to break up the company and separate the concert promotion business from the ticketing business.
In February, Senator Amy Klobuchar, who helped organize the Jan. 2023 Senate hearing at which Live Nation president/CFO Joe Berchtold testified, called on lawmakers to “update and enforce antitrust laws” to prevent Live Nation and Ticketmaster from working on concert to “keep ticket prices high.”
“This merger never should have been allowed to happen,” Klobuchar wrote on X in February. “Break them up,” Senator Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote in November 2022 following the Taylor Swift pre-sale fiasco. Likewise, the American Economic Liberties Project and the American Antitrust Institute have both called for the DOJ to break up the company.
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Live Nation shares have fallen 15.1% in the four weeks since the week ended March 22 but remain up 34.3% year to date. The company will report first-quarter earnings on May 2.
The large declines seen among some of the most valuable music companies caused the Billboard Global Music Index to drop 4.5% this week — its largest one-week loss since November 2022. That brought the index’s decline over the past two weeks to 7.5% after it reached an all-time high the week ended April 5.
Major stock indexes also suffered substantial losses this week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 5.5% to 15,282.01 as video streaming giant Netflix and chipmaker Nvidia fell 9.1% and 10%, respectively, on Friday (April 19). The S&P 500 dropped 3.0% to 4,967.23. In the United Kingdom, the FTSE 100 fell just 1.2% to 7,895.85. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index lost 3.4% to 2,591.86. China’s Shanghai Composite Index was an outlier, rising 1.5% to 3,065.26.
Radio giant iHeartMedia had the biggest decline of the week after dropping 12.8% to $1.90. That brought the company’s year-to-date loss to 28.8% and its 52-week decline to 54.3%. Music streaming leader Spotify suffered the largest drop in terms of lost market capitalization, however, after an 8.2% decline, to $275.79, raised $4.9 billion of market value. Spotify will release first-quarter earnings on Tuesday (April 23).
Hipgnosis Songs Fund shares predictably surged this week on news that Concord has offered to acquire the company for $1.4 billion, or $1.16 (0.94 pounds) per share. The stock finished the week up 24.2% to 0.919 pounds ($1.14), just under Concord’s offer price. The board encouraged shareholders to accept Concord’s bid, which was a 32.2% premium over the prior day’s closing price. That would provide immediate returns, the board explained, because the company needs “substantial financial and governance changes to improve its financial performance” that will suppress the share price in the meantime.
The other big gainers for the week came from South Korea. HYBE gained 8.2% to 230,500 won ($167.70) and SM Entertainment rose 4.0% to 78,100 won ($56.82). Year to date, HYBE is down 1.3% and SM Entertainment is off 15.2%.
In case you’ve always wondered what Taylor Swift would look like with Post Malone‘s face tattoos, “Fortnight” is the video for you. On Friday night (April 19), Swift unveiled the video for “Fortnight,” featuring Malone. It’s the first visual from her brand-new 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, and it goes alongside the project’s […]
Taylor Swift has released her first Tortured Poets Department music video. The visual is for the album’s opener, “Fortnight,” featuring Post Malone. Watch the new video below.Just two hours after Swift released The Tortured Poets Department, she surprised fans with a second volume of music. The full double album, The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology, spans 31 songs. Swift worked on her new music with Jack Antonoff and Bleachers, Aaron Dessner, Florence Welch, Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche, Sufjan Stevens collaborators James McAlister and Thomas Bartlett, and many others.Swift released music videos to go with Midnights: “Anti-Hero,” “Bejeweled,” “Lavender Haze,” and “Karma.” She also shared a visual for Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)’s “I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault).”Read “8 Takeaways From Taylor Swift’s New Album The Tortured Poets Department” on the Pitch.
It’s Friday, April 19th, and there’s been a ton of new singles dropped by some of your favorite artists! Taylor Swift announced “Fortnight,” featuring Post Malone, as her lead single prior to the release of her new double album, ‘The Tortured Poets Department.’ Nicki Minaj released her new single, “FTCU Remix” and after previewing “Teka” […]
When it comes to dresses, I’m all about finding comfort and flow. You can never go wrong with a maxi dress whether you’re running errands, lounging in the park, or attending a brunch, it’s perfect for all occasions and requires no effort. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and […]
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DIRECTV is offering a homerun of a deal for sports and entertainment fans that’ll get you seven months of DIRECTV Sports Pack at no extra cost.*
DIRECTV Sports Pack will allow you to indulge in more than 20 channels including the MLB Network and MLB Strike Zone, so you can follow your team all baseball season long. The offer is only going on until April 30, which means you don’t want to wait too long before taking advantage of the limited-time promo.
*New resid. customers w/24 mo. agmt. DIRECTV Sports Pack auto-renews monthly after 7 mos. at then-prevailing rate (currently $14.99/mo. + tax) unless cancelled. Select sales channels only.
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Blackout restrictions and other conditions apply to all sports programming. Regional Sports Networks included with CHOICE Package or higher. Actual number of channels and games varies by market. Some channels may be incl in base pkg. Visit directv.com/sportspack for more info.
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How to Get 7 Months of DIRECTV Sports Pack at No Extra Cost
In order to score seven months of DIRECTV Sports Pack, new subscribers must sign up for the ENTERTAINMENT Package, CHOICE Package or ULTIMATE Package.
Get over 75 national, local and sports channels with DIRECTV’s ENTERTAINMENT Package including ABC, AMC, BBC, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CNBC, CNN, Discovery, ESPN, Food Network, Fox News, FS1, HGTV, Lifetime, MSNBC, MTV, Paramount Network and many more.
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If you’re looking for more content, the CHOICE Package has over 105 channels and offers regional sports networks including ACC Network, Big Ten Network, MLB Network, NBA TV and SEC Network. The package is $84.99/month.
$84.99/month* for 24 months, plus taxes and fees, with a 24-month agreement. Autopay and Paperless bill req’d. Advanced Receiver Service Fee $15/month and Regional Sports Fee up to $15.99/mo. are extra and apply.
The DIRECTV ULTIMATE Package includes everything within the ENTERTAINMENT and CHOICE Packages as well as additional sports and movie channels like CBS Sports, Discovery Family, FX Movie Channel, NHL Network and more for a total of over 140 channels.
$114.99/mo.*for 24-months +taxes and fees, with a 24-month agreement. Autopay and Paperless Bill req’d. Advanced Receiver Service Fee $15/mo and Regional Sports Fee up to $15.99/mo are extra and apply.
*New approved residential customers, price inc. TV pkg & equip. fees for first TV. Add’l fees may apply to non-qualified customers. Equipment lease req’d. Early agmt termination fee applies ($20/mo.) & add’l fee(s) may apply if equip.is not returned. Credit card req’d. Restr’s apply. $19.95 activation applies for satellite customers.
Cancel DIRECTV Sports Pack online or by phone. Offer subject to change. Some channels may be included in base package, visit DIRECTV.com/sportspack for more info.
Service subject to DIRECTV delivered via internet terms and conditions (see directv.com/legal/legal-policy-center/). Available only in the U.S. (excludes Puerto Rico and U.S.V.I.). Some offers may not be available through all channels and in select areas. Different offers may apply for eligible multi-dwelling units. Early termination fees apply for a maximum of $480, prorated at $20 per month over the 24-month term. If you cancel your service within the first 14 days of ordering, a full refund of charges will be applied, and the early termination fees will be waived. If service is canceled after 14 days, you can continue to access DIRECTV through the end of the bill period, but there is no refund or credit for partial-month or unwatched content.Requires high speed internet. Minimum internet speed of 8Mbps per stream recommended for optimal viewing. Pricing: ENTERTAINMENT $69.99/mo.; CHOICE $84.99/mo; ULTIMATE $114.99/mo. PREMIER $159.99/mo. for two years. After 2 years, continues month to month at then-current prevailing prices unless cancelled. Additional Fees & Taxes: Price excludes Advanced Receiver Service Fee of $15/mo. (which is extra and applies to all packages) and Regional Sports Fee of up to $15.99/mo. (which is extra & applies to CHOICE pkg or higher. $7/mo. lease fee per each additional device will be charged on your account. State and local taxes or other governmental fees and charges may apply including any such taxes, fees or charges assessed against discounted fees or service credits. See directv.com/directv-fees/ for additional information.
Equipment Non-Return Fees: If service is cancelled you must return the included and leased device to avoid a non-return fee of $120 per device.Regional Sports & Local Channels: Regional Sports available with CHOICE and above. Not available in select areas. Channels vary by package & billing region. Device may need to be in billing region in order to view. Limits: Programming subject to blackout restrictions.
DIRECTV SPORTS PACK 7 MONTHS ON US OFFER: Ends 4/30/24. With ENTERTAINMENT, CHOICE or ULTIMATE package. Account must remain in good standing. DIRECTV Sports Pack auto-renews monthly unless you cancel online at directv.com or by calling 800.531.5000. However, once you’ve canceled, you can access it through the remaining monthly period. No refunds or credits for any partial-month periods or unwatched content. If you cancel your service, you will no longer be eligible for this offer. Blackout restrictions and other conditions apply to all sports programming. Regional Sports Networks included with CHOICE Package or higher. Actual number of channels and games varies by market. Returning customers who disconnected service within previous 12 months are not eligible for offer. LIMIT ONE OFFER PER DIRECTV ACCOUNT. May be combined with other promotional offers on same services. Offer may be changed or discontinued at any time.
DIRECTV Svc Terms: Subject to Equipment Lease & Customer Agreement. Taxes, surcharges, add-on programming (including premium channels), DIRECTV TECH PROTECT, transactional fees, and Federal Cost Recovery Fee are not included in two-year price guarantee. Visit directv.com/legal/ or call for details.
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On Thursday, the music world lost an irreplaceable voice. In a statement to Billboard, a representative for Grammy-winning Christian contemporary music artist and American Idol alum Mandisa confirmed that the singer passed at age 47 in her home.
“We can confirm that yesterday Mandisa was found in her home deceased,” read the statement. “At this time, we do not know the cause of death or any further details. We ask for your prayers for her family and close-knit circle of friends during this incredibly difficult time.”
A contestant on season 5 of American Idol, Mandisa went on to find considerable success in the Christian music industry. All six of her studio albums reached the Billboard 200, with half of those LPs reaching No. 1 on the Top Christian Albums chart: 2007’s True Beauty, 2013’s Overcomer and 2017’s Out of the Dark. She has also sent several songs onto Hot Christian Songs, including the chart-toppers “Stronger” and “Overcomer,” the latter of which spent a whopping 10 weeks atop the ranking.
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In 2014, Mandisa won her first and only Grammy, taking home best contemporary Christian music album for Overcomer. In addition to her five career Grammy nominations, the star accumulated 15 GMA Dove Award nominations, including a win for pop/contemporary album of the year for Overcomer.
On Friday (April 19), Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper Paul Abdul, who served as a judge during Mandisa’s Idol season, called the late vocalist a “true beacon of light.” In a statement to People, she said, “Her warmth and unwavering kindness towards everyone, even in the face of harsh criticism, was truly unmatched. Not only was she a beautiful person, but she was also a true powerhouse performer.”
“I still think of her taking the stage during American Idol to perform her rendition of Chaka Khan‘s ‘I’m Every Woman’ and absolutely brought the house down,” she continued. “I’ll always remember her poise, grace and dignity — and how could anyone forget those incomparable vocals!”
Read on for more tributes to the late Mandisa, including messages of love and remembrance from fellow American Idol alums like Danny Gokey and season 5 champ Taylor Hicks.
Heartbroken over the loss of this beautiful soul. Her voice, her heart, her joy will be missed by us all this side of Heaven…and so thankful for the living hope that she sang (& now sings in the presence of Jesus) so powerfully about…it’s all true! Mandisa, we’ll see you in a… pic.twitter.com/wBKEZvfhg8— Steven Curtis Chapman (@StevenCurtis) April 19, 2024
Mandisa was a friend to everybody. I was blessed enough to share the stage with her numerous times and watched her bring people together. She lit up every room and everyone around her. Her music & story touched many with the love of Jesus. Join me in praying for her family today. pic.twitter.com/O6YNHmIzeY— Jason Crabb (@JasonCrabbMusic) April 19, 2024
I am so incredibly saddened to hear about the loss of my friend Mandisa. I will always cherish the memories of times we spent together hosting award shows, going on tour, and most of all helping her tell her story in the songwriting room. The first song she released after… pic.twitter.com/Xk04rdwxme— Matthew West (@matthew_west) April 19, 2024
Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department class is finally in session, as the superstar dropped the project in the form of a surprise double album on Friday (April 19). Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “An anthology of new works that reflect events, opinions and sentiments from […]
