Pedro Tovar Signs Worldwide Publishing Deal with Kobalt Music

Pedro Tovar has a new deal…

The 22-year-old Mexican American lead vocalist, founding member and primary songwriter for Eslabón Armado has signed a worldwide publishing deal with Kobalt Music.

Pedro TovarThe agreement was done via Tovar’s Armado Publishing; Kobalt will administer his future songs globally.

“I’m excited to join the Kobalt Music family in this new career stage,” Tovar said in a statement. “As a songwriter, I have always sought a company that values creativity and provides the necessary support to elevate my music to a global audience. I know that with Kobalt, I’ll continue growing and sharing my stories through my songs.”

Since having a major breakthrough in 2020, the sierreño act has been on a winning streak and fueling the música mexicana (Regional Mexican) movement along the way.

Over the course of four years, Eslabon Armado released six consecutive chart-topping albums — all of which hit No. 1 on Billboard’Regional Mexican Albums chart. In 2022, the group made history, with Nostalgia becoming the first top 10-charting regional Mexican album ever on the Billboard 200. 

A year later, Eslabon Armado released its blockbuster hit “Ella Baila Sola” with Peso Pluma. The song was a runaway success and made history when it entered the Billboard Hot 100‘s top five.

Last week, Eslabon Armado released its eight studio album, Vibras de Noche II, a follow-up to the band’s 2020 set Vibras de Noche.

“Pedro Tovar is one of the most exciting artists and songwriters making music today,” added Nestor Casonu, president of Kobalt Music Latin America. “Through this partnership, we’ve had the privilege of understanding the values of an extraordinary family, led by Doña Nelly, with whom we’ve built both a professional and personal bond. I’m excited about the great things we’ll achieve together in the future.”

“At Kobalt, we want to sign songwriters who have singular voices that resonate with a wide audience,” said Teresa Romo, Kobalt’s senior creative director for Latin America. “Our partnership with Pedro Tovar represents an exciting new phase in his songwriting career, and we’re honored to support his creative independence and nurture  new opportunities.”

Bruno Mars’ Lady Gaga-Collaboration “Die With a Smile” Returns to No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100

Bruno Mars is on the rebound….

The 39-year-old part-Puerto Rican Grammy-winning superstar and Lady Gaga’s smash “Die With a Smile” has returned to the No. 1 for a fifth total week atop the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart.

Bruno Mars“Die With a Smile,” released via Streamline/Interscope/Atlantic/ICLG, totaled 62.5 million radio airplay audience impressions (essentially even week-over-week), 28.6 million official streams (up 3%) and 10,000 sold (up 96%) in the United States during the week of January 31-February 6.

The ballad became Gaga’s sixth Hot 100 leader and Mars’ ninth.

Gaga moves to within one week of tying her longest No. 1 stay – she dominated for six weeks in 2011 with “Born This Way.” Mars logs his third reign of five or more weeks.

“Die With a Smile” also ascends to its first week at No. 1 on the Radio Songs chart, marking Gaga’s third leader – and first since “Born This Way” – and Mars’ milestone 10th.

The ballad won the Grammy for best pop duo/group performance, while Gaga and Mars performed a cover of the Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreamin’” as a tribute to Los Angeles during the Grammys.

“Die With a Smile” rises 2-1 for its first week atop Radio Songs; dips to No. 2 after three weeks leading Streaming Songs; and keeps at No. 4 on Digital Song Sales, which it led for two weeks.

Gaga claims her third Radio Songs leader – and first since “Born This Way,” which led for a week in April 2011. Before that, “Paparazzi” spent a week on top in November 2009. She sets two records in her return to No. 1 on the chart: She ends the longest gap between time on top (13 years, 10 months and two weeks) and now boasts the longest span of leading the list (15 years, two months and three weeks; Chris Brown previously held both marks).

Mars earns his 10th Radio Songs No. 1, the third-most since the chart began in December 1990. Rihanna leads with 13, followed by Mariah Carey with 11.

“Die With a Smile” halts the record 27-week Radio Songs reign of Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy).

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data, the lattermost metric reflecting purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers; digital singles sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites are excluded from chart calculations.

 

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Bruno Mars Becomes First Artist to Reach 150 Million Monthly Listeners on Spotify

Bruno Mars is officially a Spotify superstar…

The 39-year-old part-Puerto Rican Grammy-winning singer’s is officially the first artist in Spotify history to reach 150 million monthly listeners, the streaming platform has announced.

Bruno MarsMars is currently the number one artist on Spotify.

The accomplishment comes shortly after he broke another Spotify record with his Lady Gaga collaboration, “Die With a Smile,” which became the fastest song to hit one billion streams in the platforms history.

Shortly after, his ROSÉ collaboration “APT.” also hit one billion streams, giving Mars the top two fastest songs to reach the milestone.

Overall, Mars has 17 songs with more than one billion Spotify streams, including “That’s What I Like,” “Locked Out of Heaven,” “Just the Way You Are” and more.

It’s been an exciting few months for Mars on the Billboard charts as well. “Die With a Smile” spends four weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, a full five months after the two pop superstars teamed up to drop the duet on August 16.

The track soon reached No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, where it proceeded to spend eight weeks in the top spot. The swoon-worthy ballad is Gaga’s sixth Hot 100 leader and Mars’ ninth.

Meanwhile, “APT.” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, becoming the first song by a Western act to rule the Japan song chart in more than 11 years.

The song also spent 11 weeks atop both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts. It also becomes the first No. 1 on Billboard’s Pop Airplay chart by an act prominent in K-pop.

Bad Bunny’s “DTMF” Debuts at No. 1 on TikTok Billboard Top 50 Chart

Bad Bunny is making major moved on TikTok

The 30-year-old Puerto Rican Grammy-winning rapper, singer, actor and record producer’s “DTMF” becomes the first song to debut at No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart since August 2024, bowing atop the January 18-dated survey.

Bad BunnyThe TikTok Billboard Top 50 is a weekly ranking of the most popular songs on TikTok in the United States based on creations, video views and user engagement. The latest chart reflects activity January 6-12. Activity on TikTok is not included in Billboard charts except for the TikTok Billboard Top 50.

“DTMF” starts at No. 1 after the release of its parent album, Debi Tirar Mas Fotos, on January 5. It’s the fifth song since the ranking’s inception to debut atop the tally, following FamousSally and YB’s “Wassup Gwayy” (September 23, 2023), Playboi Carti’s “Sky” (Oct. 7, 2023), Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do for Love” (February 24, 2024) and Clean Bandit’s “Symphony,” featuring Zara Larsson (August 31, 2024).

It’s also Bad Bunny’s first No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50, which began in September 2023.

His previous best, “Monaco,” peaked at No. 5 in November 2023

“DTMF” benefits from uploads referencing the song’s lyrics (DTMF is an acronym for the album’s title), with users lamenting the losses of relatives, pets and relationships with photos and videos of their own. Bad Bunny himself posted a video on TikTok reacting to the trend.

“DTMF” concurrently debuts at No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 despite just five days of tracking (January 5-9), earning 11 million official U.S. streams in that span, according to Luminate. It’s expected to sport a sizable gain on the Billboard charts dated January 25 (Jan. 10-16), following its first full week of tracking.

Bruno Mars’ Lady Gaga-Collaboration “Die With a Smile” Notches Second Week at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100

Bruno Mars is still smiling

The 39-year-old part-Puerto Rican Grammy-winning singer and songwriter’s Lady Gaga-collaboration “Die With a Smile”logs its second week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Bruno MarsA week earlier, the ballad became Mars’ ninth chart-topper on the Hot 100 and Gaga’s sixth.

“Die With a Smile,” on Streamline/Interscope/Atlantic/ICLG, totaled 61.8 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 4% week-over-week), 28 million official streams (up 3%) and 5,000 sold (down 8%) in the United States January 3-9.

The track tallies a second week at No. 1 on the Streaming Songs chart, holds at its No. 2 high on Radio Songs and lifts 4-3 on Digital Song Sales, which it led for two weeks.

Meanwhile, ROSÉ and Mars’ “APT.” keeps at its No. 5 Hot 100 high.

 

Bruno Mars’ Lady Gaga-Collaboration “Die With a Smile” Rises to No. 1 on Billboard’s Streaming Songs Chart

Bruno Mars has yet another reason to smile

In its 20th week on Billboard’s Streaming Songs chart, the 39-year-old part-Puerto Rican Grammy-winning singer’s Lady Gaga-collaboration “Die With a Smile” hits No. 1 for the first time, soaring 25-1 on the Jan. 11-dated tally.

Bruno Mars“Die With a Smile” earned 27.1 million official U.S. streams in the week ending January 2, up 11%, according to Luminate.

The song’s precipitous positional gain on the chart comes after the close of the 2024 holiday season, with seasonal tunes falling off the ranking; the entire top 24 of the January 4-dated list were such songs.

The song’s 20-week climb to No. 1 is the sixth longest since the chart began in 2013 and the lengthiest since Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” reigned in 2023 after 27 weeks.

Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” holds the all-time record at 43 weeks ending in 2023.

It’s the second No. 1 for Lady Gaga on Streaming Songs. Her previous, “Dope,” reigned for a week in November 2013.

Between “Dope” and “Die With a Smile,” Lady Gaga’s best rank had been the No. 2 debut and peak of “Rain On Me,” with Ariana Grande, in 2020.

As for Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile” marks his third leader, following the 12-week rule of Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk!,” on which he’s featured, in 2015, and then his Cardi B collaboration “Finesse” in 2018.

Between “Finesse” and “Die With a Smile,” Mars rose as high as No. 2 three times, via fellow Cardi B collaboration “Please Me” in 2019, Silk Sonic’s “Smokin Out the Window” in 2021 and his Rose duet “APT.” in 2024.

Though the Jan. 11 chart marks the first week at No. 1 for “Die With a Smile,” it’s not the song’s biggest streaming week; that came on the September 7-dated Billboard charts, its second week of release, when it accrued 30.8 million streams. It is, however, the song’s best week since the September 14, 2014, survey, toward which it earned 27.2 million streams.

Concurrently, “Die With a Smile” reaches No. 1 on the multimetric Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, also concluding a 20-week wait.

Mariah Carey Returns to No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100 with “All I Want for Christmas Is You”

It’s December… And (no surprise) Mariah Carey‘ is back atop the Billboard charts.

The 55-year-old half-Venezuelan American Grammy-winning singer’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” dashes through all competition on the Billboard Hot 100 once again, surging nine spots to No. 1 for a 15th total week at the summit on the chart.

Mariah CareyThe carol reigns in a record-extending sixth holiday season.

It was originally released on Carey’s album Merry Christmas in November 1994 and, as streaming has grown and holiday music has become more prominent on streaming services’ playlists, it hit the Hot 100’s top 10 for the first time in December 2017, and the top five for the first time in the 2018 holiday season.

It led at last, prior to this week, over the holidays in 2019 (for three weeks), 2020 (two), 2021 (three), 2022 (four) and 2023 (two).

“When I wrote [it], I had absolutely no idea the impact the song would eventually have worldwide,” Carey marveled in 2021. “I’m so full of gratitude that so many people enjoy it with me every year.”

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” became Carey’s 19th Hot 100 No. 1, the most among soloists and one away from The Beatles’ overall record 20. It also made Carey the first artist to have ranked at No. 1 on the chart in four distinct decades (1990s, 2000s, ‘10s and ‘20s). 

Carey’s insta-classic drew 38.2 million streams (up 42%) and 24.4 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 56%) and sold 3,000 downloads (up 81%) in the U.S. Nov. 29-Dec. 5, according to Luminate.

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” ties for the sixth-longest command among the 1,176 total No. 1s dating to the Hot 100’s Aug. 4, 1958. start. (All seven songs have led since the list adopted electronically-monitored Luminate data in November 1991, at which point longer commands than before subsequently became more common.)

Below is a recap of the seven longest-leading Hot 100 No. 1s – with Carey the only artist with two entries on the elite list:

19 weeks, “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” Shaboozey, 2024
19, “Old Town Road,” Lil Nas X feat. Billy Ray Cyrus, 2019
16, “Last Night,” Morgan Wallen, 2023
16, “Despacito,” Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber, 2017
16, “One Sweet Day,” Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men, 1995-96
15, “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey, 2019-24
15, “As It Was,” Harry Styles, 2022

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data, the lattermost metric reflecting purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers; digital singles sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites are excluded from chart calculations.

Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” Tops the First Billboard Holiday 100 Chart of the 2025 Holiday Season

It wouldn’t be the holiday season without Mariah Carey’s return to the summit on the holiday charts.

The Holiday 100 has made its annual jolly jaunt back to Billboard’s charts menu, with the 55-year-old half-Venezuelan American Grammy-winning songstress’ “All I Want for Christmas Is You” ruling the tally.

The track is No. 1 for the 61st week of the chart’s 69 total weeks since it was launched in 2011.

The survey ranks the top seasonal songs of all eras via the same formula used for the Billboard Hot 100, blending streaming, airplay and sales data.

The only other Holiday 100 No. 1s to date: Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe,” for a week in the 2011-12 holiday season; Pentatonix’s “Little Drummer Boy” (one, 2013-14) and “Mary, Did You Know?” (two, 2014-15); Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me” (one, 2014-15); and Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” – which reigned for three weeks on both the Holiday 100 and Hot 100 last holiday season, granting the legendary singer a gift 65 years in the making, following the song’s 1958 release.

Carey’s carol reigns with 26.8 million streams (up 52% week-over-week), 15.7 million airplay audience impressions (up 68%) and 2,000 sold (up 25%) in the United States Nov. 22-28, according to Luminate.

The song also boasts top honors on Billboard’s Greatest of All Time Holiday 100 Songs chart.

“When I wrote [it], I had absolutely no idea the impact the song would eventually have worldwide,” Carey marveled of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” in 2021; it was originally released 30 years ago. “I’m so full of gratitude that so many people enjoy it with me every year.”

Rounding out the Holiday 100’s top five are Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (No. 2); Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” which marks its 40th anniversary this year (No. 3); Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock,” from 1957 (No. 4); and Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” which turns 60 this year (No. 5).

Additionally, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” surges six spots to No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Demi Lovato to Perform at 2024 Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Gala

Demi Lovato is helping supports ick Los Angeles children…

The 32-year-old half-Mexican American singer/actress will perform at the 2024 Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Gala on Saturday, October 5, at The Event Deck at LA LIVE in downtown Los Angeles.

Demi Lovato The biannual Gala raises funds to support the hospital’s mission.

“Children’s Hospital Los Angeles holds a very special place in my heart,” Lovato said in a statement. “Over the years, it’s been my personal honor to meet so many families in their care and witness first-hand the compassion and brilliance of their staff. Creating hope and building healthier futures is at the heart of their mission, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate and support that at this memorable event.”

Lovato has notched eight top 10 albums on the Billboard 200, including Here We Go Again, which debuted at No. 1 in 2009. She has also had four top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, topped by “Sorry Not Sorry,” which reached No. 6 in 2017.

Her awards include an MTV Video Music Award for “Skyscraper” and two Grammy nods.

Chuck Lorre, Bernadette and Sugar Ray Leonard, and AEG will each receive the Courage to Care Award for their humanitarian efforts at CHLA and beyond.

Lorre is one of the most successful producers in TV history, with such smash hits as Two and Half Men, The Big Bang Theory and Mom. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2012.

Actor Jon Cryer, one of the stars of Two and a Half Men, and his wife, actress and producer Lisa Joyner, will co-host the event. Kaley Cuoco, one of the stars of The Big Bang Theory, will serve as a presenter, along with actor Jamie Lee Curtis (a past winner of the Courage to Care award), actor Colin Hanks and radio broadcaster

This year’s honorary co-chairs are Jimmy Kimmel and wife Molly McNearny, and Kristin and Jeffrey Worthe. Kimmel and McNearny both won Primetime Emmys earlier in September for their work on the 2024 Oscars, which was voted outstanding variety special (live). Kimmel won as host; McNearny as an executive producer.

Ice Spice Releases Highly Anticipated Debut Album “Y2K!”

Ice Spice has finally released her debut album…

The 24-year-old half-Dominican American Grammy-nominated rapper dropped Y2K! on Friday, July 26 via 10K Projects and Capitol Records.

Ice SpiceIce Spice’s 10-song set features previously released singles “Phat Butt,” “Think U the Shit (Fart)” and “Gimmie a Light.”

“Think U the Shit (Fart)” became Ice’s highest charting unaccompanied solo Billboard Hot 100 hit to date, and she performed the song and “Phat Butt” at the 2024 BET Awards, where she was nominated for best collaboration and video of the year for “Barbie World” with Nicki Minaj and Aqua, as well as best female hip-hop artist.

“I think this is some of my best work,” she told Billboard when she was named the 2024 Women in Music Hitmaker Award honoree.

“I’s not going to be too long — it’s going to be sweet and to the point.”

Y2K! also features collaborations with Travis Scott (“Oh Shhh…”), Gunna (“Bitch I’m Packin’”) and Central Cee (“Did It First”), the lattermost of which debuted at No. 62 on the Hot 100 dated July 27.

Scott recently previewed their collaboration during his London tour stop.

Y2K! comes a year and a half after her debut EP Like..?, which reached No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and No. 5 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and featured hit singles “Munch (Feelin’ U)” and “Princess Diana,” which later got a Hot 100 No. 4 remix with Minaj.

Ice Spice landed at No. 5 on Billboard‘s 10 Hottest Female Rappers Right Now list in June. And she embarked on her Y2K! World Tour earlier this month, which will make its way stateside next week in Washington, D.C., before wrapping on August 31 in Miami, Fla.