Category: 5. Entertainment

Key stat: Streaming accounts for almost half (45.3%) of total US time spent with ad-supported TV, according to a July report from Nielsen.

Beyond the chart:

• YouTube dominates streaming, making up 13.4% of US time spent with streaming TV, according to July data from Nielsen. Netflix is the second-highest streamer, making up 8.8% of time spent.
• A third of US adults spend one to two hours a day streaming TV, according to April data from Attest.

Use this chart: Marketers can use this chart as justification to prioritize CTV platforms in their media mix, especially for campaigns targeting younger, digital-first audiences. Media planners should reevaluate linear TV investments and shift toward platforms like YouTube, Hulu, and FAST services that dominate the streaming ad space.

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Is the beef between Gavin Adcock and Charley Crockett over?

It appears so. Adcock posted a video to Instagram on Thursday (Aug. 21), noting that Crockett is attempting to bury the hatchet. The video clip shows Adcock sitting in a backstage area and holding a large bouquet of roses and a copy of Crockett’s new album Dollar a Day. Adcock poked fun at Crockett while accepting flowers and vinyl.

“Apparently last night Charley Crockett was supposed to play the venue that we’re playing tonight, but he didn’t sell enough tickets, so he had to move to a smaller venue down the street — but before he left he sent me 60 roses and a $3 vinyl, so shout-out to Charley Crockett,” Adcock says with a smile. “I appreciate ya, buddy.”

Adcock’s tour schedule has him slated to perform at WAVE in Wichita, Kansas, on Thursday night, while Crockett performed at Wichita’s The Cotillion on Wednesday. Crockett had previously been scheduled to perform at WAVE back in May, but the show was postponed and moved to The Cotillion.

In June, Adcock had some thoughts to share about Beyoncé’s Grammy-winning Cowboy Carter album during one of his concerts. Adcock blasted Bey’s project, which was keeping his own album out of the top three on Apple Music’s country albums chart at the time.

Earlier this week, Crockett issued a lengthy Instagram post that seemingly called out Adcock and other country stars who have spoken out against Cowboy Carter, and also defended Beyoncé. Crockett didn’t mention Adcock by name, but in his message he wrote, “I don’t need to put down a Black woman to advance my music. That’s just embarrassing to the idea of America and I got no respect for it.”

Adcock quickly fired back at Crockett on social media. He also didn’t mention Crockett by name, but wrote, “Somebody needs to tell the ‘act’ that has let out (the cover) of James town ferry 6 times he should just work on letting out quality original music. I got more cowsh– under my pinky then you have seen your whole f—in’ life. Hank sr called and asked about the cosplay cowboy.”

“Jamestown Ferry,” which Tanya Tucker first recorded in 1972, was included on Crockett’s 2017 album Lil G.L.’s Honky Tonk Jubilee and then on 2023’s Live From The Ryman, as well as a remixed version of the song on 2025’s Lonesome Drifter.

A spokesperson for Crockett had not returned Billboard‘s request for comment by press time to confirm whether the flowers and album came from him.

Kid Cudi has returned to release his 10th studio album, as Free hit streaming services on Friday (Aug. 22).

The 13-track effort is free of features and includes previously-released singles such as “Neverland,” “Mr. Miracle” and “Grave.” It’s Cudder’s first LP since 2024’s Insano, which debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard 200.

For the cover art, Cudi took inspiration from The Truman Show. Like Jim Carrey leaving Seahaven, Cudi steps through a doorway in the cloudy sky,

“I wanted something that really expressed freedom, so the concept of me leaping into the clouds made so much sense,” he wrote on IG when revealing the cover. “Inspired by The Truman Show. I cant WAIT for u guys to hear this album and really see the album art brought to life. You’re in for a beautiful ride. Promise.”

August has been a busy month for Kid Cudi, who released his vulnerable memoir on Aug. 12. He opened up his world to GQ, who received an early excerpt from the book, which found Cudi recalling a near-drug overdose circa 2010.

“I was at peace with dying,” Cudi wrote. “After doing more coke than I ever had in my life I was losing all sense of what was real. I’d been alone in my New York apartment, crying for hours, listening to the Lykke Li song ‘Time Flies’ on repeat. It was a love song, but the melodies and her voice filled me with despair.”

He continued: “I was a role model, but I didn’t feel like one. People called me their savior. But who was going to save me? I was a lighthouse for others, but I couldn’t find my own way,” he added. “It was peace I was after. Here, crippled on the floor, minutes from overdosing, was the closest I’d ever come to finding it. ‘You made great music that people loved,’ I thought, ‘but this is the end.’”

Stream Free below.

Country’s favorite rapper BigXthaPlug released his highly-anticipated I Hope You’re Happy album on Friday (Aug. 21).

The country-trap effort delves into all the emotions surrounding a recent relationship BigX was in that resulted in the couple going their separate ways.

The Dallas native tapped a handful of country stars to join him on the effort, including Jelly Roll, Darius Rucker, Luke Combs, Bailey Zimmerman, Thomas Rhett, Tucker Wetmore, Shaboozey and Ella Langley.

BigX credited a Billboard interview at the top of the year with pushing him to complete a country project. During his chat with Billboard, he teased that he had the pillars of a project jumping into country ready, but the truth was that none of that was actually in motion at the time.

“I go and do a Billboard interview and I straight up say, ‘I got a country project on the way,’” he told the New York Times’ Popcast. “And I never had a country project on the way… I wasn’t thinking properly, they had just made me cry in the middle of the interview… We come back and I’m kinda trying to change the narrative, ‘I got a country project on the way.’ After I was like, ‘Damn.’

He continued: “I said that and my team was like, ‘You know you gotta do it now, right?’ Days later, You got Jelly Roll saying [he wants in on the album] and we getting demo after demo from all these other artists.”

I Hope You’re Happy, which BigX originally titled Not Just Country, serves as his first project since 2024’s Take Care, which debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200.

Stream I Hope You’re Happy below.

The Belfast hip-hop trio Kneecap are ploughing ahead with their European tour despite a ban on entering Hungary, the cancellation of a string of concerts in Austria and Germany, and the intense scrutiny of authorities in France.

The Irish-language group will this Sunday play in front an expected 40,000 spectators at the Rock en Seine festival west of Paris, one of France’s biggest live music events of the year, just days after one of their members appeared at a London court on a terrorism charge.

France’s interior ministry gave the green light to the Paris concert after establishing that “there is no longer a risk of serious disturbance to public order” that would justify banning the band from appearing at the festival in the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, a 460-hectare park.

Kneecap had agreed to abide by a code of conduct after facing a ban from playing the Eurockéennes festival at the Lac de Malsaucy Belfort nature reserve in July and had abided by that code since, said the interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, in a letter to the French MP Caroline Yadan. Yadan has called for the group to be banned from entering the country. “Any excesses will be immediately prosecuted,” Retailleau said.

Yadan, who represents French residents overseas in parliament, has accused Kneecap of promoting Islamist terrorism and inciting “murder and hatred of Jews”.

Last month, the town council of Saint-Cloud withdrew a €40,000 (£35,000) subsidy for Rock en Seine over the rappers’ appearance, saying “it does not finance political action, nor demands, and even less calls to violence, such as calls to kill lawmakers, whatever their nationality”.

Founded in 2017 by Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí, Kneecap first made a name for themselves with bawdy songs that explored Irish identity and drug culture. At the Coachella music festival in California in April, however, the group invited political scrutiny when they accused Israel of carrying out a genocide on the Palestinian people.

Footage was uncovered of incendiary on-stage statements from their 2023 UK tour, including “Up Hamas, up Hezbollah” and “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP”, which brought condemnation from the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and an investigation by the Metropolitan police’s counter-terrorism command.

In an ensuing statement, the band apologised to the families of two murdered British MPS, saying they “never intended to cause you hurt” and adding: “We do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all attacks on civilians, always … We also reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual.”

Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who goes by the name Mo Chara, was greeted by hundreds of supporters as he arrived at Westminster magistrates court on Wednesday for a three-hour hearing. Prosecutors allege Ó hAnnaidh, 27, displayed a flag in support of the proscribed terror organisation Hezbollah at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, last November. Ó hAnnaidh, of Belfast, is yet to enter a plea to the charge and is on unconditional bail.

Reaction to Kneecap in some parts of Europe has been swift. Shortly after the Coachella furore, the band was uninvited from the Hurricane and Southside festivals in Germany, on 20 and 22 June; gigs in Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg were cancelled when the UK police started to investigate the group over the Hezbollah flag incident in May.

In July, Hungary’s rightwing populist government announced Kneecap had been classified as a national security threat and formally banned for three years from entering the country. They had been scheduled to appear at the Sziget festival in northern Budapest earlier this month.

A concert in Vienna on 1 September was cancelled at the start of this month after political pressure from Austria’s far-right Freedom party and the conservative ÖVP, with the promoter Racoon Live Entertainment citing “acute security concerns on behalf of the relevant authorities”. A screening of Kneecap’s Bafta-winning biopic as part of Vienna’s mobile open-air film festival Volxkino was also called off.

The band’s appearances at festivals in Poland, Finland, Norway and Belgium have gone ahead, however, and Kneecap are due to play sold-out solo shows in Copenhagen and Amsterdam next month.

“We are aware that one member of Kneecap has been charged under British law with glorifying a terrorist organisation,” said Søren Gaden, a spokesperson for Copenhagen’s municipality-backed Vega concert venue, where Kneecap are due to play on 3 and 4 September.

“In Denmark, we follow the principle of being ‘innocent until proven guilty’, and no conviction has been made,” Gaden added. “The group has also issued a clear statement that they do not support violence against civilians, terrorism, or the organisations Hamas or Hezbollah.”

The decision to book Kneecap at Vega has been criticised by Copenhagen’s mayor for children and youth, who said: “We are pure idiots.” Gaden said: “We comply fully with Danish law in all respects, both on and off stage – including the right to freedom of expression.”

Jurry Oortwijn, a spokesperson for Amsterdam’s Paradiso venue, said he had received strong negative reactions from the public over the two sold-out Kneecap shows his cultural centre is due to host on 5 and 6 September. Nonetheless, he affirmed the shows would go ahead.

“We consciously choose to programme Kneecap,” Oortwijn said. “Not to provoke, but out of the belief that a free pop culture must make space for sharp voices. Paradiso is not a place where criticism is silenced, but where dialogue remains possible.”

On “Back in the Mode,” a smooth banger on his stellar new album Kiari, Offset admits, ”Lost a bitch last year and got another one,” making it clear that he feels like getting more than a few things off his chest. Having suffered a public divorce from Cardi B last July, those bars home in on what many listeners have wanted to know. Even more to the point, “Move On,” the album’s fiery last song finds Offset quipping, “You fucked around with the wrong dude/Hope your next nigga will be great.” But you’d be mistaken if you thought that he’s just about drama here. Finding solace and looking inward are some of Offset’s objectives on this fluid follow-up to 2023’s Set It Off, in addition to skewering his opps with the barbs he’s always good for.

Since Donald Glover’s Golden Globes assertion, in 2017, that “Bad and Boujee” is “the best song ever,” the whole planet has known that the mild-voiced rapper is that dude. Indeed, every time you hear “Raindrops, droptop,” it immediately follows that you’re about to hear some top-tier bars. Offset is the ne plus ultra of verbal polish. No doubt, craft, finesse, and professionalism are evident in his lithesome, always-in-pocket raps. He gave us some real lyrical oomph on Father of 4, his 2019 solo album, but much of that project seemed centered around family matters. And some fans may have desired more of the unadulterated flames he spit on bangers like “Slippery.” Though Set It Off debuted at number 2 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop chart, it struck even less of a balance, jumping off with restless skippables like the shmaltzy “Fan.” Fortunately, Kiari underscores Offset’s critical gifts, tapping into his chutzpah while demonstrating even more growth.

Energy and shit talk propel the bass-suffused “Professional,” where the Northside, Atlanta native brags, “Head of the food chain, the top of the top/Kickin’ shit — Louis Cane — I cannot flop.” And it’s great to hear him this focused, floating over the track’s infectious snares and ready flutes. Even though he’s traveled the world and made a ton of hits, Offset is still close enough to the streets to remember “I had to go trap and go kick me a door ‘fore I ever had rapped to a fan.” Similarly, the J.I.D-assisted “Bodies” is informed by the “Bad and Boujee” rapper’s byzantine observation that “I keep a stick or a blicky in case it get sticky.”

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If he didn’t, on “Back in the Mode,” insist that he’s got “another one,” you would wonder who Offset refers to on the lush heater, “Love You Down,” but, anyway, he’s “coming to visit no matter how long I’ll be gone.” The cool, quiet-storm ambiance gives this ballad an Eighties slow-dance feel. And he raps with both compassion and conviction. Offset is a better balladeer than we give him credit for. (Typically, Quavo gets the top melody-maker love, and rightfully so.) But “Love You Down” is more earnest and smooth than just about any of his big R&B-informed missives. The “On Fleek” MC’s tuneful crooning on “Set It Off” is instantly hummable. His verses on this Kiari highlight are nothing to sneeze at either, as he’s, fortuitously, brought back that trenchant stop-motion “Bad and Boujee” flow, revealing, “I’m pullin’ up trim/stepping out/You getting money like who/Boy, cut it out.”

Regrettably, “All My Hoes,” with its sleepy hacienda vibe, comes up short. As does the treacly “Calories,” where Offset raps in a geeky, affected tone toward the song’s end. Still, “Prada By Myself,” boasting cavernous, Liquid Liquid–style bass and a soaring Teezo Touchdown hook, gives us some needed introspection with such insights as, “Nigga turned friend to a foe/But I had to learn to let it go/Coming like a man as a pro.” Offset has never been more on.

Though Timothee Chalamet could not make it to Kylie Jenner’s birthday bash organized by Kendall Jenner due to work commitments, he made sure to make his girlfriend “feel special” from afar.

While filming overseas, Timothee pulled out a thoughtful way to mark Kylie’s special day.

“Timothée went out of his way to make her feel special on her birthday,” a source told Us Weekly. “He sent gifts, they had a FaceTime call and he coordinated meaningful gestures with Kylie’s friends that made her feel very special.”

The couple is “very much together and don’t need to be in person together every day for it to work.”

“They adore each other and really make it work even with two busy schedules and sometimes not even being in the same time zone,” the insider continued.

The tipster further noted that this is “one of [Jenner’s] healthiest” relationships that brings her “a sense of calm and stability that she hasn’t always had in the past.”

“[Timothée] lets Kylie just be herself, and there is no pressure from either of them,” the source added. “They have the same sense of humor and understanding of their two different lives. It just works. Their ability to keep things low-key, even with their high-profile careers, has made the connection feel even more genuine.”

Dakota Johnson is happy to transform for a role, but when it comes to her signature look, she’s not giving up her hair anytime soon. 

In a new interview with Etalk published Aug. 20, the Splitsville star laughed about the fact that many people consider her “hair goals” both on and off screen.

“Oh, God. You know what? I’m like obviously physically attached to my hair, but I’m very emotionally attached to it, and I should probably change things up, but I don’t think I will,” Johnson admitted.

The actress, 35, has long been recognized for her dark brown locks paired with a fringe. 

Hairstylist Joel Goncalves of the Nicola Clarke salon described her current style as effortless but with a subtle twist. He noted that her fringe now leans more into a ’70s vibe compared to the ’60s-inspired bangs she usually wears.

While Johnson may keep her hair consistent, she isn’t afraid to experiment with fashion. 

Back in May, she was spotted in New York City wearing a standout look, a suede yellow blazer over a black leotard, paired with light blue jeans and black heels.

Her style choices weren’t the only thing making headlines recently. 

At the Los Angeles premiere of Splitsville, Johnson shocked the crowd during an onstage conversation with her cast when she abruptly walked off. 

The moment came after her co-star Nicholas Braun revealed that he learned a card trick used in the film only hours before shooting, with the help of fellow actor Kyle Marvin.

“He taught me how to hide a card in my hand,” Braun explained, recalling how quickly he picked up the trick. Johnson, visibly surprised, interrupted him, “Nick. I thought, Wait, Kyle taught you this?” When Braun confirmed, she blurted out, “I hate this f—–g movie,” before dramatically standing up, dropping her microphone, and walking away.

The crowd, however, erupted into laughter and applause, clearly enjoying the playful moment. 

Braun tried to clarify, saying the trick was finalized the night before and not something he had been rehearsing for weeks. Johnson pressed him again, half-amused and half-exasperated, before exiting the stage in mock frustration.

The clip has since gone viral on TikTok, with fans debating whether the actress’s dramatic exit was genuine annoyance or just her sharp sense of humour on display.