Dua Lipa & Megan Thee Stallion, Grimes & Elon Musk, Glass Animals and More of the Week’s Biggest Winners (March 10)

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From Dua Lipa and Megan Thee Stallion's sweet new collab to Glass Animals' scorching No. 1, take a look at the "awards" Billboard gave this week's headlines.

 

Glass Animals

 

Who would’ve thought we could feel “Heat Waves” in March? Not even Glass Animals, who finally reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with the song after a record-breaking 59 weeks.

But it took Eminem‘s decades to become the most-decorated musician for singles in the RIAA’s Gold & Platinum certifications program.

 

In light of International Women’s Day on Tuesday (March 8), we have to give the women their flowers, and for some artists like Brent Faiyaz, “flowers” look more like $60,000 in the form of a grant program geared toward Black businesswomen. Or if you’re Mary J. Blige, she’s giving local, minority and female-owned businesses and vendors a platform during her and Pepsi’s inaugural Strength of a Woman Festival and Summit this May.

Taylor Swift & Adele Lead 2022 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards Nominees
03/11/2022

 

Take a look at Billboard’s weekly roundup and the “awards” we’re giving to this week’s headlines.

Funniest Music News: Camila Cabello reflects on wardrobe malfunction in hilarious TikTok video 

Cabello laughed off her nip slip while appearing on The BBC’s The One Show on Monday (March 7) with a TikTok clip, with the help of fellow artist Muni Long. While using Long’s 2021 now-viral track “Time Machine,” the “Bam Bam” singer documented her regret of when “my stylist asked me if I wanted nip covers and I said no.” Check out the hilarious clip here.

Sweetest Music News: Dua Lipa and Megan Thee Stallion serve up the “Sweetest Pie” in new collab

Dua and Meg might give you a bite of the “Sweetest Pie,” their latest finger-licking collaboration the pop stars dropped on Friday (March 11). And for fans who have built up their appetite for the music video, the body-ody-ody horror visual might not be as sweet as they had hoped. Watch the “Sweetest Pie” video here.

Savviest Music News: TikTok launches its own music distributor platform

TikTok began rolling out its new marketing and distribution tool for independent artists on Wednesday (March 9). While using SoundOn, musicians can upload their own music and get paid for its use, market and promote themselves on the platform, view how their music is performing on the app using a dashboard of real-time analytics and distribute their music to outside DSPs. Learn more about it here.

Zaniest Music News: Grimes and Elon Musk welcome secret second baby, a girl named Exa Dark Sideræl

Grimes revealed to Vanity Fair in her cover story Thursday (March 10) that she and Musk had another baby, and hopefully, the superstar parents won’t get in trouble with California law this time around about the spelling of the name. They welcomed a new daughter, Exa Dark Sideræl (nicknamed “Y”), via surrogate in December, who joins 1-year-old brother X AE A-XII. Read how they landed on her unique name here.

Most Record-Breaking Music News: Glass Animals’ “Heat Waves” finally tops Billboard Hot 100 in record 59th week

Glass Animals was able to bring slow-burning “Heat Waves” in March, when their 2020 single, about late nights in the middle of June, finally reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 after 59 weeks. The British indie rock band defeats Mariah Carey’s 35-week odyssey to the top with “All I Want For Christmas Is You” in December 2019. “….We were all in the bus, and our bass player [Edmund Irwin-Singer] has the bunk above me. And he just – he shouted, ‘F–KING NO. 1!!’ And that’s what woke me up in the morning,” lead vocalist Dave Bayley told Billboard about how he found out about their chart-topping smash. Read more about Glass Animals’ latest chart feat here, as well as Bayley’s Billboard interview here and our staff’s Five Burning Questions here.

Most Impressive Music News: Mary J. Blige and Brent Faiyaz empower women with their respective new festival and grant program

A month after performing in the 2022 Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show, Blige is teaming up with Pepsi again to head the inaugural Strength of a Woman Festival and Summit in partnership with Live Nation Urban. The Grammy winner will headline a three-day festival, alongside Chaka Khan, Xscape and many more, in Atlanta this May, and she will work with Pepsi to launch community-led initiatives and givebacks leading up to and during the weekend. Meanwhile, Faiyaz launched his second annual “Show U Off” grant program that uplifts and promotes Black female entrepreneurs by pledging a total of $60,000 to six applicants. Learn more about Blige’s new festival here and Faiyaz’s new grant program here.

Most Bad-Ass Music News: Young Thug & Gunna, Kygo and Sebastián Yatra star on the SXSW covers of Billboard

Ahead of their performances at Samsung + Billboard Present THE STAGE at SXSW on March 17, Young Thug and Gunna, Kygo and Sebastián Yatra take over Billboard‘s covers this week. The Atlanta hip-hop stars discuss how they’re capital-P pushing the culture forward, while the Norwegian DJ-producer opens up about his Palm Tree brand potentially becoming the next Margaritaville and the Colombian singer reflects on what his Encanto success could mean for the rest of his career. Read their cover stories here, here and here. (A final SXSW cover will be revealed on Monday, March 14).

Most Dazzling Music News: Eminem makes history as most-certified artist for singles in RIAA Gold & Platinum program history

The RIAA crowned Slim Shady the Diamond King on Tuesday (March 8) after the rapper became the No. 1 awarded musician for singles in the RIAA’s Gold & Platinum certifications program, as he adds 73.5 million new certifications to his resume. “These awards recognize Eminem’s unflinching commitment to his craft and the enduring connection he has forged with fans over the last twenty years,” said RIAA chairman/CEO Mitch Glazier in a statement. He now has six Diamond awards, three for albums and three for singles, further establishing himself as one of the biggest-selling acts in music history. Learn more about Em’s sparkling achievements here.