We’ll be having the time of our lives when this movie comes out.

Inaugural Entertainment announced Tuesday (May 12) that its Green Day-inspired comedy NIMRODS —named after the band’s 1997 Billboard 200 top 10 album Nimrod — will hit theaters this summer. Alongside the release date, Inaugural Entertainment also shared that it is partnering with with Legion M, the world’s first fan-owned entertainment company.

Directed by Lee Kirk, NIMRODS is a coming-of-age film that follows a group of three friends who embark on a cross-country road trip to Los Angeles after mistakenly believing that their band is opening up for Green Day at a New Year’s Eve show. The misadventures of the trio are inspired by Green Day’s years of living in a tour van.

The NIMRODS cast includes teen stars Mason Thames (The Black Phone; How to Train Your Dragon), Mckenna Grace (Scream 7; Regretting You), and comedian Fred Armisen. Rounding out the cast is Kylr Coffman, Ryan Foust, Ignacio Diaz- Silverio, Keen Ruffalo, Jenna Fischer, Angela Kinsey, Bobby Lee and Sean Gunn.

Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool are slated to produce the film along with Ryan Kroft and Michael Rapino Live Nation Entertainment, Tim Perell for Process and Jonathan Daniel.

“Green Day wouldn’t exist without the fans, and we’re excited to give those fans the opportunity to own a stake in the film as we work with the incredibly talented teams at Inaugural, Live Nation and Green Day to bring it to audiences,” said Legion M co-founders Jeff Annison and Paul Scanlan in the press statement announcing the film.

NIMRODS originally premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival under its original title New Year’s Rev. The film is set to hit theaters on Aug. 14.

Kacey Musgraves’ new album Middle of Nowhere debuts in the top 10 across seven Billboard charts (dated May 16), including a trio of No. 1 bows. The singer-songwriter’s sixth studio release arrives on Top Album Sales (No. 1), Vinyl Albums (No. 1), Indie Store Album Sales (No. 1), Top Country Albums (No. 2), Americana/Folk Albums (No. 2), Billboard 200 (No. 3) and Top Streaming Albums (No. 10).

The project launches with 100,000 equivalent album units earned in the United States in the week ending May 7, marking Musgraves’ best week ever by units. Of that sum, vinyl purchases comprise a little more than 37,000 — her best sales week ever on vinyl.

Middle of Nowhere is Musgrave’s sixth studio album and was announced in early March. The project — which features collaborations with Gregory Alan Isakov, Miranda Lambert, Willie Nelson and Billy Strings — was led by the single “Dry Spell” (peaking at No. 15 on Hot Country Songs in March) and released on May 1. Musgraves’ Middle of Nowhere arena tour launches on Aug. 21 in Chicago and continues through the end of October.

On Top Album Sales, Middle of Nowhere is Musgraves’ third No. 1, all earned consecutively. She also topped the tally with Deeper Well (in 2024) and Star-Crossed (2021).

Musgraves leads a busy top 10 on the latest Top Album Sales ranking, where five more albums debut in the top 10: ILLIT’s MAMIHLAPINATAPAI (No. 3), The Black Keys’ PEACHES! (No. 6), Isaiah Rashad’s It’s Been Awful (No. 7), Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live) (No. 9) and Tori Amos’ In Times of Dragons (No. 10). Meanwhile, Noah Kahan’s The Great Divide falls to No. 2 after debuting at No. 1 a week ago, BTS’ former leader ARIRANG is steady at No. 4, and Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Number Ones both jump, climbing 7-5 and 12-8, respectively.

Björn Bauer has been named CFO of the newly combined BMG and Concord, it was announced on Tuesday (May 12). Based in Nashville, Bauer will report to Bob Valentine, who has been designated CEO of the combined entity.

Bauer joins from entertainment company RTL Group, which is majority-owned by BMG parent company Bertelsmann. At RTL, where he’s been CFO since 2019, he serves as an executive director and member of the executive committee. In his role there, Bauer “has played a key part in advancing RTL Group’s transformation, including focusing the Group’s portfolio on its largest business units, diversifying its global content business Fremantle and building a profitable streaming business,” according to a press release. He has been involved in RTL deals including its acquisition of Sky Deutschland (GSA) and the sale of RTL Netherlands.

Before joining RTL Group, Bauer had held senior leadership roles at Bertelsmann since 2007, including as executive vp of corporate controlling and strategy and CFO of Relias, Bertelsmann’s U.S.-based online learning provider.

Until the BMG-Concord transaction closes, current BMG CFO Mathis Wolter will continue in his role at the Berlin-based company and support the integration with Concord before moving to a new role within Bertelsmann. Current Concord CFO Kent Hoskins will also continue serving in his role there until the close of the deal, at which point he’s expected to take on another senior leadership position at the combined company.

“Björn brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of delivering strong results through operational excellence and disciplined financial management,” said Thomas Coesfeld, designated chairman of the combined BMG and Concord, in a statement. “We are delighted that he is expected to join the combined company following completion of the transaction and look forward to the impact he will have as we continue to strengthen and grow the business. At the same time, I would like to thank Mathis for playing an instrumental role in shaping BMG’s strategic transformation, and for being a trusted partner to me and the executive team over the past three years.”

“We are pleased that Björn is expected to join the combined company as CFO. His deep financial expertise will be invaluable as the company continues to focus on sustainable growth and long-term value creation after the transaction closes,” added Valentine.

For his part, Bauer said: “As the global music industry evolves, the combination of BMG and Concord will be uniquely positioned to capture new opportunities through its talent focus, entrepreneurial spirit and global scale, supported by continued investments in catalogs and talent. I am excited to join the combined company upon closing of the transaction, a pivotal moment in its growth journey. I look forward to partnering with the teams to drive the combined company’s next phase of growth and support its long-term strategic ambitions.”

A jury says Ye (formerly Kanye West) must pay a six-figure damages award for failing to clear a sample included in an early version of the Grammy-winning song “Hurricane” from his chart-topping album Donda.

The Tuesday (May 12) verdict, which followed a weeklong trial, held Ye and his companies liable for infringing the copyrighted instrumental track “MSD PT2” on an early demo of “Hurricane,” which the rapper played to a stadium of fans at a pre-release Donda listening party in 2021. Jurors said Ye must share a cut of his profits from that listening party, held in Atlanta and streamed live on Apple Music, with the sample’s owners.

The final amount of those damages was not immediately clear. According to Rolling Stone, jurors held Ye personally liable for $176,153 and awarded damages of $176,153, $41,625 and $44,627 against three of the rapper’s companies. If combined, this would make for a total verdict of $438,558.

However, Ye’s team insists that the corporate damages will be folded into Ye’s own liability for a total award of $176,153.

“This is a failed shakedown,” said a Yeezy spokesperson in a statement to Billboard. “Six months ago, they wanted $30 million out of Ye. They got 0.5% of that today.”

The Yeezy spokesperson said the plaintiffs spent millions of dollars in legal fees for this outcome. “The moral of the story? There is a cost attached to thinking you can take advantage of Ye,” added the spokesperson.

A rep for the plaintiffs did not immediately return a request for comment on the verdict.

The lawsuit dates back to 2024, when the producers of “MSD PT2” — DJ Khalil (Khalil Abdul-Rahman), Sam Barsh, Dan Seeff and Josh Mease — sued Ye through a business entity called Artist Revenue Advocates LLC. Initially, they were seeking royalties from the commercially successful final versions of both “Hurricane” and fellow Donda track “Moon,” alleging that both songs interpolated “MSD PT2″ without approval.

However, a judge dismissed the bulk of the lawsuit in February after determining that Artist Revenue Advocates owns only the “MSD PT2” master recording rights, not the composition rights. This means that while the company can sue over a sample, it does not have any standing to bring claims over an interpolation.

The judge, therefore, allowed a narrow trial to go forward only on the early “Hurricane” demo, which did include a direct sample, but not the far more lucrative final songs, which only included interpolations. Artist Revenue Advocates plans to eventually appeal the decision in the hopes of restoring the full lawsuit — but in the meantime, the company sought $500,000 in damages from Ye’s listening party profits, encompassing a slice of ticket sales, merch and an Apple Music livestreaming deal.

During the trial, which began on May 4 in Los Angeles federal court, Ye’s lawyers argued that the case was meritless because his team tried to clear the “MSD PT2” sample, but that the four producers intentionally dragged their feet and refused to approve industry-standard splits. They also pointed out that the plaintiffs had already collected some royalties from various publishers.

Ye himself testified in court that he “went through the normal process” to clear the “MSD PT2” sample.” The rapper told jurors that he’s “very generous” about giving credit and royalties to collaborators when it’s due, but lamented, “I feel like a lot of people try to take advantage of me.”

The jury ultimately sided with Artist Revenue Advocates and against Ye. Jurors did not give an explanation for their verdict, as is typical.

This was far from the only copyright lawsuit Ye has faced throughout his career; the rapper has been sued dozens of times over the years for allegedly using unlicensed samples and interpolations in his music. This was, however, the first time he’d taken a legal battle all the way to trial, as he’s historically opted to settle the majority of claims.

Between her time as the frontwoman for 4 Non Blondes, her legendary songwriting catalog (for Christina Aguilera, P!nk, Gwen Stefani, Alicia Keys and more), her own solo career, and her outspoken activism, Linda Perry has already lived countless lives in the public eye. But the new documentary Linda Perry: Let It Die Here peels back brand-new layers to the musical firebrand, from being a mom to 9-year-old Rhodes to losing her own mother just after the singer/songwriter was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy.

In addition to the film — which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival and is now in select theaters — Perry also released the album Let It Die Here on Friday, her first solo album in more than a decade. When Perry sat down with the Billboard Pop Shop Podcast in March, she explained that the film and album were both a bit unexpected, with the documentary emerging from director Dan Hardy asking if he could shadow her in the studio and the album sort of pouring out from there.

“I didn’t know an album was coming. I didn’t know I was there yet,” she tells Katie & Keith on the podcast, surprising herself when songs started organically flowing. “I was like, ‘Holy sh–. I guess I’ve got something to say after all.’”

Listen to Perry’s full conversation now:

In addition to the new film and album, we also spoke with Perry about reuniting with her 4 Non Blondes bandmates for new performances and a new album, set for this year, and what she thought of their 1992 hit “What’s Up?” having a viral resurgence late last year. Find highlights from our conversation with Perry below:

On following her instincts on her Let It Die solo album:

“My process has always been to let things happen organically. And if you listen to that record, I mean, there’s so many different characters. I don’t know what the f— is going on, it’s kind of funny. I have my Neil Diamond moment … and it’s like, ‘What the hell? Where is this coming from?’ But it’s what the song is asking. I didn’t write the song to sound like Neil Diamond. The song wrote itself and asked me to sing it in a certain way.”

On covering Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful” for the album, which Perry wrote for the pop star in 2002:

“I can go and redo this song and make it sound completely different, so I’m not copying, but it’s my song. This is the way I wanted it back then, so I’m just gonna do the version I would have done for myself, you know? And so that’s what I did. … I think it was my radio guy, Todd Sievers, who said, ‘Have you ever thought about doing a cover of “Beautiful”?’ And I was like, ‘No.’ He planted it in my head. And I was sitting here at the studio, I’m like, ‘Let me just try, you know? Let me see what happens.’ And that’s what happened.”

On making a sophomore album with 4 Non Blondes, more than 30 years later:

“It is so opposite of my album — thank you, Jesus. I think my album is great, but this is, like, fun and dumb. … If we’re gonna f—ing do this after 30 years, I’m gonna make this album the best it can be. But it is like a ’90s record. It’s like I wrote this in ’93, it’s so f—ing good. I’m not even tooting my own horn; I’m just giving you a fact right now. It is a f—ing great album filled with such great hooks, and it’s fun, it’s dumb. There’s a couple songs, maybe a little thoughtful, but, you know, I didn’t go there. I just wanted to just do an album that you’re rocking and you’re jumping.”

On “What’s Up?” going viral through a TikTok mash-up with Nicki Minaj’s “Beez in the Trap” in 2025:

“You can’t buy that kind of marketing or social media presence. I mean, people try to, but it doesn’t work exactly, and it happened organically. And we [4 Non Blondes] were already together — the band already had played a few festivals before that happened. So it was like, ‘Hello, thank you, universe.’”

On Minaj facing backlash following the viral mash-up because of her vocal support for President Trump:

“I think everybody has a lapse of judgment. … In Nicki’s case, it seems that she wanted something from the [president’s] office and was trying to maybe help herself, a friend, a boyfriend — whatever — and was promised something and felt that it was worth the risk to take. You know, if my best friend or Sara [Gilbert, Perry’s former spouse and co-parent of Rhodes] or someone in my family needed something and I had to go begging and groveling to somebody to get it to happen, I probably would have made a bad judgment as well, because sometimes when we’re thinking about loved ones or trying to get out of a situation, we’re not thinking clearly. So I’m not judging Nicki for what happened, what she did. I think she’s judging herself enough, and she’s suffering by her own decision. I don’t think we need to go ahead and make her feel worse than she probably already does.”

In addition to the Pop Shop interview with Perry, we’ve got chart news on how Noah Kahan holds atop the Billboard 200 albums chart for a second week with The Great Divide, and how uncommon that is for a rock set; how Tame Impala gets its first top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart with “Dracula,” alongside BLACKPINK’s JENNIE (her first top 10, too!); and how Madonna is back on the Hot 100 with her Sabrina Carpenter duet “Bring Your Love.”

The Billboard Pop Shop Podcast is your one-stop shop for all things pop on Billboard‘s weekly charts. You can always count on a lively discussion about the latest pop news, fun chart stats and stories, new music, and guest interviews with music stars and folks from the world of pop. Casual pop fans and chart junkies can hear Billboard‘s executive digital director, West Coast, Katie Atkinson and Billboard’s managing director, charts and data operations, Keith Caulfield every week on the podcast, which can be streamed on Billboard.com or downloaded in Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast provider. (Click here to listen to the previous edition of the show on Billboard.com.)

Whoever did this to Oliver Sykes, you might be doomed.

Sykes, the frontman of two-time Billboard Hot 100 hitmaking British rock band Bring Me the Horizon, suffered a mild concussion after an audience member tossed a phone onstage Monday night during the band’s concert in St. Louis.

In fan-captured footage of the incident, the offending phone can be seen striking Sykes in the head as he sang “Happy Song” from Bring Me the Horizon’s 2015 album That’s the Spirit.

“Who the f— just threw a phone at my f—ing head?” Sykes exclaims after getting hit and throwing the device back toward the crowd. In later footage, the singer can be seen feeling at his head and checking his hands, presumably for blood. While singing “Can You Feel My Heart,” Sykes pauses multiple times to continue rubbing his temples and forehead.

Following the incident, Sykes took to his Instagram Story on Tuesday (May 12) to update his fans and offer an explanation of what happened.

“Alright everyone – just wanted to let you know I’m all good,” Sykes writes. “The phone to the head definitely smarted and I ended up with a mild concussion, but the swelling’s gone down a decent amount already.”

Sykes also offered an apology to fans in the audience who witnessed how he performed after the incident.

Sykes continues: “Last night I was struggling a bit on stage afterwards because singing was putting a lot of pressure on the wound and making things feel a bit disorienting while performing, so I’m sorry on my part for what may of seemed like a half hearted performance.”

The rocker concluded by letting fans attending their Tuesday show in Kansas City that “everything should be fine for tonight’s gig.”

Country singer/songwriter Meghan Patrick, best known for her Country Airplay top 20 song “Golden Child,” has canceled the remainder of her 2026 tour dates, starting in June.

In a social media video, Patrick told fans that she’s taking time off the road to prioritize her health, as she and husband Mitchell Tenpenny are expecting their first child together, a daughter, later this year. 

“This is hard to say, but I need to be honest with myself and with y’all… I was wrong. When I found out I was pregnant, my first thought after the excitement was, ‘How is this going to affect my career?’ I was determined not to slow down. I thought I had to prove that pregnancy wouldn’t change anything and that I could push through no matter what,” she said in a statement on social media.

“But over the last few weeks, after a lot of conversations with my doctor, my family, my team, and Mitchell, I’ve realized I was wrong to think that I had anything to prove. More importantly, I’ve realized my health and my baby girl’s well-being have to come first. So with a very heavy heart, I’ve made the difficult decision to cancel the remainder of my shows for the year, starting in June.”

Patrick added that she intends to reschedule the Golden Child tour dates when she’s able to. Refunds for tickets to headlining shows will be available at point of purchase.

In her statement, Patrick also spoke of the difficulties of balancing touring life and pregnancy.

 “A lot of this tour was booked before I knew I was pregnant, and before I understood just how physically and mentally difficult this season would be. Between complications, hospital visits, exhaustion, and the anxiety that comes with experiencing a previous miscarriage, I’ve had to take a hard look at what’s truly important right now. I’ve spent years believing I had to constantly push harder, sacrifice more, and prove myself to deserve a place in this industry. But I don’t want to contribute to the idea that women have to run themselves into the ground to succeed. Right now, being the best mother I can be matters more than anything else. I also recognize that right now many people are struggling to pay the bills, put food on the table, and gas in your car, let alone have something left over at the end of the month to let loose and have some fun. I am not comfortable taking your money or time to give you a show that I feel does not meet the high standard I have set and maintained for years when it comes to my live show.”

Though she won’t be touring beginning in June, she will still be making music. Patrick told fans she feels like she’s writing “some of the best songs of my life right now.” She added, “Thank you to everyone who has supported me, bought tickets, shown me grace, and loved me through every season. I promise I’ll be back when the time is right, and it will be worth the wait.”

Earlier this year, Patrick’s album Golden Child was nominated for a Juno Award for country album of the year. The album was also nominated for album of the year at the Canadian Country Music Association Awards. This year, Patrick was one of six artists featured during this year’s New Faces of Country Music Show during the annual Country Radio Seminar in Nashville.

Days after seemingly extending an olive branch to Drake regarding not wanting to see him lose, Rick Ross appeared to take a swipe at the 6 God’s upcoming Iceman album release during an appearance on Hot 97.

Rozay stopped by Hot 97 on Tuesday (May 12) for an interview with Nessa in support of his new Renaissance of a Boss book, which saw the MMG boss vaguely detail his feud with Drake and how “nobody” fears the OVO rapper’s next album.

“People would love for me to say, ‘I hate this n—a forever.’ Nah, homie, it ain’t that. When somebody step out of line and you gotta chastise them or give them a spanking, that’s what you do,” he said. “But is it one of those things where there’s a conspiracy? Hell no. Don’t nobody fear Drake’s album release. Nobody.”

When asked by Nessa about potentially ever reconciling with Drake, Ross said that he would probably have to go through French Montana as a mediator for both parties.

“[Drake] speaks to French. French says a lot of positive things that he should maybe send French a pecan pie for … because nobody would speak on his behalf to me,” he added. “But French do and that’s what I made it clear if anything was to ever come from that it would come through French because it wouldn’t directly come to Rozay.”

Just last week, following his Verzuz Battle with French Montana, Rick Ross appeared to put an end to dissing his “Money in the Grave” collaborator during an interview on Apple Music.

“Drake, if you listening to this homie, listen to me, my n—a, shine,” he said. “I don’t want to see you lose. No real n—a want to see you lose. That ain’t what about. This culture, this game, this rap this ain’t what it’s about.”

The root of Drake and Rozay’s issues remains unclear, as their relationship soured in 2024 when Drizzy dissed Ross on “Push Up”s and the Miami native responded with his “Champagne Moments” diss track.

The duo has been a lethal combination in the past, teaming up on Billboard Hot 100 hits like “Money in the Grave,” “Lemon Pepper Freestyle,” “Gold Roses,” “Aston Martin Music” and “Stay Schemin.”

Drake will make his anticipated return with his Iceman album on Friday (May 15), which will be his first solo LP since 2023’s For All the Dogs, and we’ll see if he has any words for the “Hustlin’” rapper.

Watch Rick Ross’ full interview with Hot 97 below. Talk about Drake starts around the 10-minute mark.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed a new law Tuesday (May 12) restricting when prosecutors can rely on rap lyrics as criminal evidence, marking the latest legislative victory for opponents of the controversial practice.

At a signing ceremony in Annapolis, Moore formally greenlit the Protecting Artists’ Creative Expression (PACE) Act, a law passed last month that allows authorities to use rap lyrics and other “creative expression” as criminal evidence only in limited circumstances.

Critics say using rap lyrics as evidence stifles free speech by penalizing creative expression, and that it can unfairly sway juries by stoking racial bias against young Black men. As he signed the bill, Moore said hip-hop lyrics had been cited in court more than 800 times, while songs of all other genres combined had been used by prosecutors just four times.

“This is not a coincidence. This is bias,” Moore said. “In Maryland, that ends today.”

Prosecutors have used rap lyrics for decades to win convictions against the people who wrote them. Stars like Young Thug and Lil Durk have both faced recent indictments that quoted their lyrics, as have hundreds of lesser-known and amateur rappers over the years.

Opponents, including prominent voices in the music industry, have waged an increasingly organized campaign to limit the practice, often termed “rap on trial.” California enacted the first-ever legislation on this front in 2022, followed by Louisiana in 2023. Maryland’s new law makes it the third state to pass such a law, with proposed legislation in New York, Georgia and Missouri targeted next.

“Today, Maryland makes history and sends a message that our creativity is not a confession, and our imagination does not belong in an indictment,” said Kevin Liles, the CEO of Warner Music Group’s 300 Entertainment and a longtime advocate on the issue, in a statement Tuesday.

“Lyrics are a powerful tool for personal expression, not a shortcut to criminalization,” said Harvey Mason jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, in the same statement. “This legislation helps establish important guardrails that ensure artists’ creativity is not unfairly used against them.”

Like the laws passed in other states, Maryland’s new legislation would not outright ban the use of lyrics in criminal cases and would still allow prosecutors to cite music in obvious cases where it’s particularly relevant. Instead, it would merely require prosecutors to show by a “preponderance of evidence” that the lyrics are worthwhile evidence before they are admitted at trial.

Under the new law, before lyrics and other creative expressions are shown to jurors, judges will be required to rule that the artist intended them as literal statements; that they refer to the facts of the case; and that they are relevant to a disputed fact in the case.