” It doesn’t get any bigger,” Usher says of his Feb. 11 gig.
While Usher‘s blockbuster Las Vegas residency is one reason he landed the 2024 Super Bowl halftime show, he makes it clear in a new interview that his preparation began long before his recent Vegas stint.
” When I got the call, I was like, ‘Man, I’ve been working really hard my entire career,'” he told Extra “The preparation didn’t start within the last two years of performing in Las Vegas. It really started 30 years ago, and my commitment to it and the journey that I’ve taken musically is why I think I’m given that moment.”
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He got that call from Jay-Z– the chairman and founder of Roc Nation, which has produced the Super Bowl halftime show since Jennifer Lopez and Shakira took the stage in Miami in 2020– and Usher recalled Hov telling him: “It’s your magic moment. This is it. This is your Michael moment.”
” I was like, ‘That’s a lot of pressure, bro,'” Usher laughed. “But so many incredible artists that I respect played that stage, whether it was Beyoncé, Prince. … It’s like, ‘Wow, it’s the most compact 13 minutes of your life.'”
So what can fans expect from the halftime gig? “You’re going to get hit records,” he teased. “I do want to play the songs that people obviously recognize and the ones that I celebrate. I’ve been able to laugh, I have been able to cry, I have been vulnerable, I’ve been telling and honest. … I found really great ways to help us communicate better through my music and that celebration is inside this curation.”
He also hinted that some guests could possibly join him onstage at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. “I’ve also collaborated with a lot of people in the process, so … there’s a celebration there. … I just gave it all to you. You got ta decode it.”
We’ll have to wait until Feb. 11 to fully decode what Usher has planned. “It doesn’t get any bigger,” Usher said of the Super Bowl spot.
The Pollstar ‘Top 10 Worldwide Tour’ headliner Chris Tomlin kicked off his “An Evening of Worship” tour last night with every concert already sold out! On the day of the launch Chris received a Billboard Music Awards nomination for Top Christian Song for “Holy Forever.”
“I am truly at a loss for words… I hopped on a plane yesterday to start a tour that is completely sold out, and found out on the flight that ‘Holy Forever’ has been nominated for a Billboard Music Award…” Chris shared, “I have always tried to write songs that help give people a voice to worship God and this song has traveled and touched more lives than I could have ever hoped for or imagined. Congratulations to all the other nominees, truly an honor to be amongst you all.”
The “2023 Billboard Music Awards” (BBMAs) presented by Marriott Convoy, is a celebration of music’s greatest achievements, honoring the year’s hottest names in music determined by year-end performance metrics on the Billboard charts. The awards will be held on Sunday November 19th.
“An Evening Of Worship Tour”, kicking off last night in Miami, features new songs from Tomlin’s Billboard Christian chart-topping album Always including the Grammy-nominated, six-week #1 hit “Holy Forever.” The song became the 21st #1 single of his career and also marked the historic career achievement of holding the #1 position on a radio chart for OVER 3 YEARS, totaling in 158+ weeks.
“An Evening of Worship” tour is nationally promoted by Transparent Productions and will benefit “Food for the Hungry.” Singer/songwriter Pat Barrett, signed to Chris’ Bowyer & Bow record label, is the special guest on the tour.
From special guests like John Legend to throwback hits like “Bad and Boujee,” check out Billboard’s five biggest highlights from Metro Boomin’s Red Bull Symphonic concert.
” S– t’s so beautiful,” Metro Boomin beamed during his Red Bull Symphonic concert at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre Thursday night (Oct. 26).
His one-night-only experience marks the West Coast premiere of the Red Bull Symphonic, which showcases a collaboration between a modern artist and a classical musical director, together with a full-scale symphonic orchestra. It made its U.S. debut last November, when Rick Ross teamed up with conductor Maestro Jason Rodgers and the 50-piece, all-Black Orchestra Noir in Atlanta.
But this time around, the hip-hop super-producer partnered with conductor Anthony Parnther ( Encanto, Star Wars: The Mandalorian, Creed II, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) and the Symphonic Orchestra to reimagine many of his biggest hits, including Future‘s “Mask Off,” Migos and Lil Uzi Vert‘s “Bad and Boujee,” Post Malone and Quavo‘s “Congratulations,” Kanye West‘s “Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1” and his own “Creepin'” alongside The Weeknd and 21 Savage Considering his star-studded list of collaborators, Metro treated attendees with surprise guests John Legend, Swae Lee, Nav and Roisee to perform songs from his 2022 Billboard 200– topping album Heroes & & Villains, and the 2023 Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack he executive produced.
It’s rare to see Metro’s DJ controller not be the main instrument of his show, but the 45-piece ensemble elevated the cinematic, orchestral elements embedded in his production’s DNA. And while the Symphonic Orchestra adhered to every one of Parnther’s precise, nimble hand gestures, the black tux-clad hitmaker still ran the show from behind the booth (and sometimes from standing on top of it), his white-gloved hands waving through the air. Metro’s recent ascent into rarefied air as a producer-turned-superstar artist has allowed him to continue headlining major gigs and building out his own sonic, heroic world on new stages across the world.
” Tonight is a celebration. We celebrate music, we celebrate culture, we celebrate y’ all for listening to this music and making it what it is,” Metro told his devout fans.
Check out Billboard‘s five biggest highlights from Metro Boomin’s Red Bull Symphonic concert below.