HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Michael Reaves / Getty The Chicago Bears are looking to rebuild their franchise with the help of a new quarterback. They have drafted Caleb Williams with their pick. As per the organization’s official news site the house that Mike Ditka built will be welcoming one of the hottest college prospects of the decade. On Thursday, April 25 the Chicago Bears chose the University of South California junior to be the face of the franchise. The choice came to the football industry as no surprise as the Washington D.C. native had a stellar year with 3,333 yards, 30 passing touchdowns throughout the season. He also took home the very prestigious Heisman Award back in 2022. Caleb Williams showed up to the 2024 NFL Draft wearing a custom one of one Chrome Hearts suit with nails to match. Bears General Manager Ryan Poles made it clear that he impressed the team on and off the field during recruitment process. “When you talk to his teammates, they don’t like him, they love him,” Poles explained. “His leadership, how he brings people together, he’s intentional with his leadership. Same goes with the staff. I’m having a hard time finding a person that doesn’t like him or even love him and thinks that he can reach the highest limits. The feedback’s been good.” Last week Caleb Williams was a guest on the Pivot Podcast. When asked his thoughts on potentially being drafted by Chicago. “I want to play in one place for 20 years, and chase one guy, No. 12 (Tom Brady),” Williams said. “I want a place that loves ball. That’s all I’ve heard about Chicago so far, which is exciting for me.” The Chicago Bears finished with a record of 7-10.

With summer fast-approaching, why not fill up your warm-weather playlists with new songs from your favorite queer artists? Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news From St. Vincent’s raucous new album to Anitta’s exhilarating funk-flavored new LP, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below: St. Vincent, All Born Screaming [embedded content] To distill All Born Screaming down to one particular concept is to misinterpret it as a work of art. Throughout St. Vincent’s stunning, self-produced seventh studio album, Annie Clark flits in and out of genres, themes and ideas with ease, instead opting to create an album that is at all times changing its shape while maintaining the artistry it took to make it. Whether she’s waxing romantic via art-rock banger “Flea” or giving nihilism a disco-funk makeover on “Big Time Nothing,” St. Vincent has never been more immediately herself than on this thrilling new project. Trending on Billboard Anitta, Funk Generation [embedded content] After proving her dominance as the premiere Brazilian pop sensation, Anitta is ready to help introduce you to her culture. Funk Generation, the latest LP from the Grammy-nominated artist, is a love letter to Brazilian funk music, as she showcases a formative genre of her home for an international audience. The entire album plays as a well-crafted ode to the sounds of favelas, but “Ahi” in particular stands out, as Anitta and guest Sam Smith give audiences a crash course in how to get down. Salute feat. Rina Sawayama, “Saving Flowers” [embedded content] Salute wants you to immediately fall into the sounds of summertime with their thrilling new song “Saving Flower.” An ecstatic electronic anthem featuring vocals from British pop star Rina Sawayama, “Saving Flowers” is a song that refuses to take its foot off the gas, maintaining its fervent pop sound for a blissful three and a half minutes. Pairing nicely with Sawayama’s airy voice, Salute’s new song comes just in time to become your new favorite song of the summer. c Trixie Mattel, “Shadow” (Ashlee Simpson cover) Drag superstar Trixie Mattel delivering a stirring acoustic rendition of a 20-year-old pop-rock track may not have been on your bingo card for 2024, but that only makes her new Spotify Single that much more interesting. Taking Ashlee Simpson’s “Shadow” and transforming it into a heartfelt ballad, Mattel flexes her crystal-clear baritone voice, adding in just enough folk-flavored twang to make the song definitively her own. Christine and the Queens, “Rentrer Chez Moi” [embedded content] After experimenting with his sound, his look and his persona for the last few years, Christine and the Queens would like to come back home. On his moving new song “Rentrer Chez Moi,” Chris returns to the quiet, echoing music that defined much of his early career, singing entirely in his native French about a relationship that’s run its course. The simple-yet-elegant production (the artist produced the song himself) matches Chris’ vocal fragility on this stunning new single. Isaac Dunbar, Beep Beep Repeat [embedded content] Step into Isaac Dunbar’s time machine and allow him to transport you back to the musical universe of 1970’s New York City. That’s the world Dunbar thrives in throughout his new EP Beep Beep Repeat — one populated by transient bass, four-on-the-floor drums and theatrical vocals. For six songs, Beep Beep Repeat invites you to disengage from our stark reality and simply revel in some good old-fashioned house parties (“Apartment A”), hangovers (“American High”) and heartpounding rhythms (“Photoshoot Tonight”). Durand Bernarr, “Unknown” [embedded content] Durand Bernarr doesn’t have time to wait around for you to make up your mind. On “Unknown,” the latest slice of smooth R&B from the fast-rising artist, follows Bernarr as he narrates the story of a frustrating, lovesick missed connection, where two people who could have been together missed their moment. The slick, pared down production certainly gives the track a boost, but as with every other Durand Bernarr song, the true star is the singer’s unmatched vocals; Bernarr dives into his soulful baritone just as effortlessly as he flips into a sonorous falsetto, making “Unknown” the best kind of sensual vocal rollercoaster ride that you could ask for. Trinity the Tuck feat. Jujubee, “‘Til Death Becomes Us” [embedded content] In the immortal (literally) words of Meryl Streep, “these are the moments that make life worth living.” With her new song “‘Til Death Becomes Us,” Drag Race star Trinity the Tuck aims for revenge in a thrilling homage to 1992’s Death Becomes Her. With fellow Drag Race alum Jujubee, the pair deliver a slick, early-2000’s dance-pop banger based solely on that deep, petty loathing you feel for that one person who just won’t get out of your life. Add in their hilarious, campy music video, and you’ve got the recipe for a winning new song from a pair of drag superstars. Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:

Bunnie XO has always been an open book, and her latest TikTok shares insight to her traumatic upbringing. The Dumb Blonde podcast host took part in a recent trend on the platform to the tune of Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department hit, “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,” in which she sings, “You wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me.” Participants of the trend share the various “asylums” they grew up experiencing. In Bunnie’s version, she shows a photo of her teenage self before showing a picture of a church as the “asylum” that hurt her. “Pentacostals & Mental Hospitals,” she captioned the photos set, adding, “That pic was taken shortly after I left home at 14. Wait ’til y’all read my book.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Watch the TikTok here. Trending on Billboard Last week, Bunnie got vulnerable on her podcast and discussed how online bullying and harsh comments have affected her husband, country superstar Jelly Roll. “My husband got off the internet because he is so tired of being bullied about his f–king weight,” she said on the podcast. “And that makes me want to cry, because he is the sweetest angel baby. My husband doesn’t show it to you guys, but I’m going to have a very vulnerable moment here. It hurts him. “The internet can say whatever they f–king want about you and they say, ‘You’re a celebrity. You’re supposed to be able to handle it.’ No the f–k we’re not … Enough is enough,” she continued. “Don’t bully people, because you never know where they are mentally. There are a lot of people who are not as strong as me, that are on the internet and they don’t deserve to f–kin’ be bullied.” The entrepreneur also called out internet trolls and bullies who try to intimidate her and her family. “I’m going to stand up for all the f–kin’ underdogs. You’re never going to bully me. You’re never going to lie about me or my family, and I will fight to the end,” she said. “I love it when people say, ‘Bunnie is a bad human. Just wait and you’ll see.’ I’ve been on the internet 15 f–kin’ years. When are they gonna see? I’m waiting. What you see is what you get with me. I don’t f–kin’ pretend to be something I’m not … all you gotta do is leave me and my family the f–k alone, and you won’t get called out.”

What’s behind Keityn’s extraordinary ability to pen hits? The 27-year-old from the small city of Palmira, Colombia, was ASCAP’s Latin Music Songwriter of the Year for the second consecutive year, thanks to a string of hits that included Shakira’s “Acróstico” and Shakira and Karol G’s “TQG.” But, he says, it’s not like everything he touches turns to gold, and definitely not immediately. “Out of 10 songs I make, one becomes a hit,” Keityn said in a candid interview with Billboard News. “There are many more songs that never come out. You do a lot, and out of that whole, two or three become huge hits.” In the last couple of months, Keityn (real name Kevyn Mauricio Cruz Moreno) has had plenty of huge hits. They include Karol G’s “Me Curo Del Cora,” which was inspired by the title of the album Mañana Será Bonito (Tomorrow Will Be Pretty). “If tomorrow will be pretty, it means today isn’t. That’s why we made ‘Me Curo del Cora’ (I Heal My Heart).” As for “TQG,” the track was written with Karol G while the singer was in Los Angeles filming Griselda, the Netflix series starring Sofia Vergara. “Karol had the foresight to send the song to Shakira,” says Keityn. And then, there’s the most meaningful song for him, Shakira’s “Acróstico.” “The fact that such an important woman would let me make a song about something so personal … it’s something that fills me with pride,” Keityn says. “I’ve seen her as a mom, and she’s an amazing mom and sings what she feels. I said, ‘If you want to sing what you feel, let’s give some play to the kids.’” Watch the full interview here.

04/26/2024 The Atlanta duo's game-changing debut dropped 30 years ago today. 04/26/2024