Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. 
 
This week: The New York Knicks’ first championship victory in 53 years (and the first World Cup kickoff in four years) sends sports fans to stream their favorite related anthems, while streaming audiences celebrate the late Oliver Tree and an *NSYNC classic gets a viral choreography boost.

Go New York Go: Knicks Championship Sends Streams Skyrocketing for Local Classics

The New York Knicks’ first NBA championship in 53 years sparked citywide celebrations that turned into big gains for multiple New York-related songs over the weekend.

Leading the way in volume: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys’ “Empire State of Mind” accumulated 1.4 million on-demand chart-eligible streams in the United States on June 13 (the day of the game-five win) and 14 (the day after, also including any late-night streaming as the game ended shortly before midnight), a 30% boost from 1.1 million the prior two days (June 11-12), according to preliminary reports from Luminate.

Other major leaps included gains for Frank Sinatra’s “Theme From New York, New York” (672,000 June 13-14, up 62% from 415,000 June 11-12), Ja Rule’s “New York” featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss (515,000, up 68% from 308,000), Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind” (190,000, up 71% from 111,000), Cam’ron’s Jay-Z- and Juelz Santana-featuring “Welcome to New York City” (98,000 up 62% from 60,000) and Jesse Itzler’s “Go Ny Go” (56,000, up 70% from 33,000).

Worth noting as well: comparing each song’s June 14 streams to its listens on April 18, the day the 2026 NBA playoffs began. “Empire State of Mind” pulled 374,000 streams that day, giving the song a 128% to its 852,000 on June 14 alone. The other five tracks experienced similar gains during that span, as low as 126% and as high as a five-digit-percentage-point increase of 18,465%. – KEVIN RUTHERFORD

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Oliver Tree’s Catalog Skyrockets in Streams After Singer-Songwriter’s Death

The shocking news came out over the weekend (June 14) that alt-pop hitmaker Oliver Tree was one of six dead in a mid-air crash between two helicopters above the Recreio dos Bandeirantes neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. The singer-songwriter-producer, born Oliver Tree Nickell, had been traveling through South America as part of his World’s First World Tour — which had kicked off on May 30 in Mexico and was supposed to take Tree through 70 total performances spanning all seven continents. 

The music world was stunned by Tree’s tragic passing, with many artists expressing their grief over social media — including ex-girlfriend and fellow alt-pop star Melanie Martinez, who called him “a true artist in every way.” Tree’s fans were also understandably overtaken by the loss, taking to streaming services to mourn the 32-year-old’s passing. 

The day of his June 14 death, Tree amassed 5.5 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate — a number which jumped another 135%, to 12.8 million streams, the following day. Between the two days, he accumulated nearly 18.3 million streams, a staggering 1,744% spike from the equivalent two-day period a week before (June 7-8). The leading tracks were his pair of Billboard Hot 100 hits, 2021’s “Life Goes On” (up 1,919% to 3.2 million streams) and 2022’s “Miss You” with Robin Schulz (up 1,756% to 2.3 million), as well as his 2018 breakout single “Alien Boy” (up 1,963% to 1.7 million). – ANDREW UNTERBERGER

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World Cup Anthems Soar Following Tournament Kickoff

Unless you’re in New York or Carolina still basking in the Knicks’ or Hurricanes’ respective NBA and NHL championship victories, you’re probably somewhere currently experiencing some degree of World Cup fever. The global FIFA tournament kicked off on Thursday (June 11), with games taking place across Canada, Mexico and the United States for both the past week and the next month-plus to come. 

Before that, though, a number of artists performed as part of the tournament’s official countdown concerts, taking place across World Cup sites on Wednesday (June 10). Many of the artists involved played World Cup-affiliated songs, with the songs experiencing major gains as a result. 

Shakira & Burna Boy’s “Dai Dai,” the official song of the tournament, saw some of the biggest hikes after the duo closed the Mexico opening ceremonies with the anthem, racking up over 3.3 million official on-demand U.S. streams over the three days following the concert (June 11-13) — a 74% spike from the equivalent period the week before (June 4-6), according to Luminate. Lisa, Anitta and Rema also saw a 43% gain (to 365,000 streams) for their song “Goals” over the same period, following their joint performance at the U.S. opening ceremonies. 

Meanwhile, a handful of older World Cup songs were not performed at the event, but are still earning streaming spikes due to being undying tournament anthems. A pair of 2010 classics, Shakira’s “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” and K’naan’s “Wavin’ Flag,” both experienced big jumps, with the former up 101% to 2.2 million streams and the latter up 124% to 630,000 over the same timespan. And Pitbull and Jennifer Lopez just can’t stop trending up this past month, with their 2014 collab “We Are One (Ola Ola)” rising 251% to 1.1 million streams.

And despite not being an official World Cup song — or really having anything to do with futból at all — Katy Perry’s 143 deep cut “Wonder” saw some of the greatest gains of the weekend. After Perry performed alongside 10-year-old Norwegian singer Tius Luka to close the U.S. opening ceremonies, the song climbed a whopping 4,009% over the same period, from just 4,000 streams to over 169,000 streams. – AU

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The Brotherhood Dance Crew Revives *NSYNC’s “I Want You Back” With Viral Choreography 

The Brotherhood dance crew strikes again! 

Led by choreographer Scott Forsyth and hailing from Canada, the frequently viral dance team score another TikTok dance trend with moves lifted from its first-place-winning performance at the International Dance League’s 2026 Vancouver Series (May 23). 

The crew delivered a pitch-perfect, boy band-inspired set built around *NSYNC’s “I Want You Back,” and the infectious choreography has spurred users to revisit the 1997 hit song on streaming. According to Luminate, “I Want You Back” earned 379,000 official on-demand U.S. streams during the week of The Brotherhood’s IDL victory (May 22-28). Once clips from their set began to make the rounds on TikTok the following week (May 29-June 4), that figure jumped 44% to over 546,000 official streams. A week later (June 5-11), “Want” leapt a further 25%, collecting over 687,000 official streams, good for a two-week increase of 81%. 

While The Brotherhood’s official TikTok account houses a clip of the winning performance with just under one million views, Forsyth (@/scott4syth) boasts two rehearsal “Want You Back” clips with over 1.2 million views each. The official “I Want You Back” TikTok sound now plays in nearly 50,000 clips, with a large portion of them finding everyday users attempting the choreography.  Notably, The Brotherhood helped Lecrae & 1K Phew’s “Move” land in this column thanks to their 2025 IDL Vancouver performance. 

With the official *NSYNC TikTok account proclaiming, “You guys win” in the comment section of The Brotherhoood’s post, expect the “I Want You Back” momentum to continue building across socials. — KYLE DENIS 

In the middle of her first-ever appearance at the Country Music Association’s CMA Fest, Melissa Etheridge mused that the experience was “like speed dating.”

Her 30-minute June 5 set, she added a few days later, was just enough to give the audience a taste: “Do you like me? You want to see me again? Okay. Bye.”

Pop and rock artists have played the country-centered festival for years. Acts who’ve graced its stages include Joan Jett, Lenny Kravitz, Don McLean, The Beach Boys, Steven Tyler, Richie Sambora, Jason Mraz, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Backstreet Boys and Pharell Williams, and most of them found their way to the big stage at Nissan Stadium.

During the latest edition, June 4-7, yacht-rock prince Michael McDonald and rapper Fetty Wap landed on the main stage. Etheridge and rap’s Waka Flocka Flame played the Dr. Amp Stage on successive days, and they made additional stops on the CMA Closeup Stage. Etheridge had a public conversation with Gretchen Wilson, while Waka Flocka joined The Nappy Roots for “Country & Rap: The Black Southern Roots of American Music.” Additionally, Bon Jovi’s Nashville bar, JBJs, presented more than two dozen rock and alternative acts, topped by Cage the Elephant, in the heart of the festival’s footprint.

Etheridge was there to work, using the occasion to promote her new album — Rise, featuring a Chris Stapleton duet and production by Shooter Jennings (Tanya Tucker, Charley Crockett) — and the 27-date Raised on Radio Tour, featuring co-headliner Wynonna Judd.

“When you’re a legacy artist, it’s not so easy to release a new album,” she told Wilson on the Closeup Stage.

The 2026 country audience, Etheridge reasoned, includes some of her fan base, and her music is compatible enough with the genre that she would likely attract some new followers. She already has her own history with country — her first two bands, as a teenager in Kansas, were country groups; she teamed with Dolly Parton in a 2003 episode of CMT Crossroads; she penned a Trisha Yearwood single, “You Can Sleep While I Drive”; and she became friends with Tammy Wynette back in the day.

“My lifestyle and stuff was always sort of outside of the country music realm, but in the last decade or so, it’s opened up,” Etheridge says. “The country music world is a place now where people are still buying albums, they want to go on the whole journey, they want to go see the artist live. That excitement for music is still there, and the kind of rock ‘n’ roll that I play, it’s country now.”

Country is extraordinarily wide in its current stylistic range,  as demonstrated at CMA Fest. It still boasts artists with strong traditional roots — Riley Green’s “Worst Way” and “Change My Mind” brought old-school vibes to the stadium, while newcomer Braxton Keith injected agile and authentic western swing into his June 5 appearance at Billboard Country Live.

There are plenty of other sonics, too. HARDY packed thundering hard-rock chords into “God’s Country” and Nirvana guitar tones into “Truck Bed” at Nissan; Stephen Wilson Jr. used a buzzing guitar texture and from-the-gut intensity on “Gary” the same night; Atlus evinced 1980s and ‘90s power pop in his June 5 performance at the Good Molecules Reverb Stage; Kameron Marlowe utilized a meaty, soulful vocal resonance that’s mindful of Paul Carrack or Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers; and Graham Barham infused hip-hop influence into several songs in his June 4 set at the Chevy Vibes Stage.

While it might fold in those other influences, country has a reputation for a more tangible bond between artist and fan, and that’s evident from some of the other activities at CMA Fest. Carly Pearce brought her annual Carly’s Closet auction to the festival to raise money for the CMA Foundation; Ty Myers, Tyler Braden, Randy Travis and Walker Hayes were among the acts who signed autographs and posed for fan photos; and numerous performers met their most ardent followers at fan club events.

Hunter Hayes, as an example, hosted four intimate performances at the Vinyl Vault, inside Mel’s Diner, for about 50-70 people per show. He took requests, answered off-the-cuff questions and even had one fan — experiencing her 385th Hayes performance in 15 years — duet with him.

“CMA Fest is phenomenal,” he told one group of fans on June 6. “You could see anything and everything at any time, and I wanted a moment where I could just kind of be human with you.”

That kind of personal interaction, even if it is somewhat orchestrated, unites artists and fans, and while country has plenty of egos, it’s an experience that reminds the industry as a whole how much it depends on the interest of millions of ordinary people to keep it humming.

“It’s not normal to be famous,” Clint Black told the audience on June 5 in a Country Closeup Q&A with Lorianne Crook and Charlie Chase. “You guys are watching as Ella [Langley] or Riley Green are skyrocketing, and they’re there in a storm swirling around them, and they’re learning, and I think they’re handling it really well. But if you watch people rise to stardom and all of that stuff, pray for them, pray for them to be able to handle the weirdness.”

Changes are afoot for the festival, which is scheduled to take place again June 10-13, 2027. The nightly shows will likely be moving into a new stadium, and CMA will have a new CEO, as current leader Sarah Trahern preps for retirement. Luke Bryan closed out the final Nissan night, wrapping with his party number “Country Girl (Shake It for Me)” and sending a shoutout to Trahern from the stage.

The festival will be back, Trahern has indicated she will still attend as a fan, and Etheridge demonstrated why pop, rock and R&B acts would want to keep dipping their toes in the festival water.

She was impressed by the professionalism she witnessed as CMA handled the on-and-off logistics of staging hundreds of acts, and felt like she was playing to an audience that suits her music.

Etheridge was enthusiastic about returning “if,” she said, “they’ll have me. I think it’s a great experience.”

10 Years Ago

When Dierks Bentley’s ‘Black’ Eyed The Summit On Top Country Albums

The project took its title from a song conceived after his 10th wedding anniversary

In the wake of Dierks Bentley’s diamond anniversary in 2015, he wrote a song inspired by his wife, Cassidy, branding it “Black” in recognition of her maiden name.

That song emerged as the title track of his eighth Capitol Nashville album, and on June 18, 2016, Black topped Billboard’s Top Country Albums in its first chart week, becoming the sixth of Bentley’s seven trips to the list’s summit.

Produced by Ross Copperman (Darius Rucker, Gabby Barrett), the project was shaped around the topics of love and sex, exploring some of the dark feelings and inner fears that are, at times, tested by relationships. The first single, “Somewhere on a Beach,” burned its way to No. 1 on Hot Country Songs for three weeks beginning on the April 30, 2016, list, ahead of the album’s May 27 release. “Different for Girls,” a collaboration with Elle King, rose to No. 3, while “Black” painted the list at No. 4.

King wasn’t alone among the album’s familiar contributors. Also on the Black list were Maren Morris, who showed up on “I’ll be the Moon”; and New Orleans’ Trombone Shorty, who appeared on “Mardi Gras.” Black earned a Gold album from the RIAA on Feb. 22, 2017, and was elevated to Platinum status on Oct. 28, 2022.

Bentley’s inaugural run to No. 1 on Top Country Albums came with Modern Day Drifter, which led the chart dated May 28, 2005. His most recent return to the summit came with The Mountain, which peaked on the list dated June 23, 2018.

                         

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After a 53-year drought, the New York Knicks won the 2026 NBA Finals defeating the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5, with Jalen Brunson named NBA Finals MVP. The feelings of excitement and joy are felt throughout New York City, especially for the first-ever championship parade for the team (there were no parades in 1970 or 1973).

On Thursday (June 18), the New York Knicks ticker-tape parade takes place on Lower Manhattan, as it travels north on Broadway through the “Canyon of Heroes.” It ends at New York City Hall with a ceremony, in which the team receives the keys to the city from Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

How to Watch 2026 NY Knicks Championship Parade Online, At a Glance:

Which Celebrities Are Making Appearances During 2026 NY Knicks Championship Parade?

It’s likely there may be a number of other celebrities and famous recording artists in attendance during the championship parade, such as NY Knicks fans Spike Lee, Timothée Chalamet, 50 Cent, Fat Joe, Ben Stiller, Busta Rhymes, Alicia Keys, Tracy Morgan, Ice Spice, Cardi B, Michael J. Fox, Mariska Hargitay, Anne Hathaway and others. Who knows? Maybe even Haim and Taylor Swift might make an appearance for the parade.

When Does 2026 NY Knicks Championship Parade Start?

The NY Knicks parade starts at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT and airs across local New York channels, including NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY, ABC7NY and CBS 2 New York. TV coverage begins at 9 a.m. ET/6 a.m. PT.

Where to Watch 2026 NY Knicks Championship Parade Online for Free

Cord-cutters have a few ways to watch the Knicks ticker-tape parade online, especially for free. Online streaming platforms, like DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV and others offer free trials.

You can livestream the Knicks parade on NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY, ABC7NY and CBS 2 New York with DirecTV’s “Entertainment” package, which is comprehensive with more than 90 channels. For a limited time, new subscribers can get DirecTV for just $59.99 for the first month of service (reg. $89.99 per month) with DirecTV’s current deals.

The streamer offers the “MyNews Genre Pack” with over 10 news channels, like NBC, FOX, ABC and CBS, as well as CNN, MS Now, FOX News and others. It goes for $39.99 per month.

You can stream up to three devices with a subscription to DirecTV, as well as get unlimited cloud DVR to record your favorite TV shows to watch back on demand. Sign up for a five-day free trial to start watching online.

Want to watch the Knicks parade outside of New York City? ExpressVPN is a virtual private network that allows you to watch different broadcasts from various cities.

For example: If you’re a New Yorker and Knicks fan, but you live in Los Angeles, then you can still watch the Knicks championship parade live on NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY, ABC7NY or CBS 2 New York — even if you’re in Southern California.

Just launch the ExpressVPN app on your smartphone, laptop, streaming device or web browser (via extension), set your location to New York, and then fire up one of the listed streaming services to start watching. You’ll be able to watch local New York TV channels even if you’re outside of the greater metro area with prices starting at $2.79 per month for 28 months. Learn more about ExpressVPN here.

A subscription to Sling Orange & Blue — which comes with NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY and ABC7NY, and goes for $60.99 per month — gets you access to more than 50 live TV, local and cable channels. The streaming service includes free cloud DVR with up to 50 hours of storage, compatibility with more than 20 of the top streaming services, like Apple TV, Fire TV, Google TV, Roku and others, and access to over 600 free additional channels.

Please note: Prices and channel availability depend on your local TV market. You can learn more about Sling TV here.

If you don’t already have a Hulu + Live TV subscription, the streamer offers a free trial that’ll get you your first three days free to access NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY, ABC7NY and CBS 2 New York. Once the free trial is over, you’ll be charged the regular subscription fee, which starts at $89.99 per month. For even more content, Hulu + Live TV bundles with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited at no extra cost to watch even more exclusive and original sporting events and programming.

In the meantime, 2026 New York Knicks Championship Parade is available to watch on NBC 4 New York, FOX 5 NY, ABC7NY and CBS 2 New York via DirecTV, on Thursday (June 18).