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A RAYE OF HOPE 💫 After years languishing in label limbo, @raye is riding her independence toward global superstardom.

She opens up about taking control as an independent artist, her latest album ‘THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE,’ making art she’s proud of and more in her cover story for Billboard’s Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.

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Photographer: @jingyulin_
Styling: @enied
Hair: @alexpriceglam
Makeup: @_ern.3st
Location:@auditoriumtheatre
Writer: @hannah_dailey

When @raye signed her first record deal in 2014, she thought she'd made it. But her dream of making her own album would be long-delayed, and her own voice deprioritized.⁠
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"[It was] seven years of a very tumultuous and complicated relationship with life and my purpose and what I was creating,” she says of the time before going independent and creating her critically acclaimed debut, 'My 21st Century Blues.' “The person I am now is so different. I really like who I am now.”⁠
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She reflects more on her journey, her latest album 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and more for the cover of Billboard's Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: @jingyulin_

When @raye signed her first record deal in 2014, she thought she'd made it. But her dream of making her own album would be long-delayed, and her own voice deprioritized.⁠
⁠
"[It was] seven years of a very tumultuous and complicated relationship with life and my purpose and what I was creating,” she says of the time before going independent and creating her critically acclaimed debut, 'My 21st Century Blues.' “The person I am now is so different. I really like who I am now.”⁠
⁠
She reflects more on her journey, her latest album 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and more for the cover of Billboard's Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: @jingyulin_

When @raye signed her first record deal in 2014, she thought she'd made it. But her dream of making her own album would be long-delayed, and her own voice deprioritized.⁠
⁠
"[It was] seven years of a very tumultuous and complicated relationship with life and my purpose and what I was creating,” she says of the time before going independent and creating her critically acclaimed debut, 'My 21st Century Blues.' “The person I am now is so different. I really like who I am now.”⁠
⁠
She reflects more on her journey, her latest album 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and more for the cover of Billboard's Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: @jingyulin_

When @raye signed her first record deal in 2014, she thought she'd made it. But her dream of making her own album would be long-delayed, and her own voice deprioritized.⁠
⁠
"[It was] seven years of a very tumultuous and complicated relationship with life and my purpose and what I was creating,” she says of the time before going independent and creating her critically acclaimed debut, 'My 21st Century Blues.' “The person I am now is so different. I really like who I am now.”⁠
⁠
She reflects more on her journey, her latest album 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and more for the cover of Billboard's Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: @jingyulin_

When @raye signed her first record deal in 2014, she thought she'd made it. But her dream of making her own album would be long-delayed, and her own voice deprioritized.⁠
⁠
"[It was] seven years of a very tumultuous and complicated relationship with life and my purpose and what I was creating,” she says of the time before going independent and creating her critically acclaimed debut, 'My 21st Century Blues.' “The person I am now is so different. I really like who I am now.”⁠
⁠
She reflects more on her journey, her latest album 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and more for the cover of Billboard's Indie issue. Read it at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: @jingyulin_

@raye reacts to the Amy Winehouse comparisons and shares how she deals with critics and negativity surrounding her art.

Watch her interview for the cover of Billboard’s Indie issue at the link in bio.

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Producer: Jerah Milligan
Editor: @jsuhadol

En una conversación profunda y desde su tierra, @maluma abre su corazón y se sincera sobre lo que, en realidad, lo llevó a querer darle un giro a su carrera.

Mira la entrevista completa haciendo clic en el enlace de la bio.

T.O.P knows exactly what he was doing when he opens his first-ever solo album with a baby voice cooing, "I may be 99 percent angel, but that one percent gets me in trouble."⁠
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It's unexpectedly disarming, slightly devastating, but also funny, and ultimately sets the tone for 'TOP SPOT – ANOTHER DIMENSION.' Despite the innocent intro, the opening track "SELF CRUCIFIXION" brings a boom-bap beat and a sampled soul singer pleading to "set me free," before a torrent of news clips, pulled from Korean and English broadcasts, discuss highs and lows throughout 20 years in the entertainment world.⁠
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While T.O.P's voice is temporarily buried beneath the headlines and as others step forward to define him, the audio drops out and he reclaims the mic by the song's end: "What am I doing these days? I make my music. Our music."⁠
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Read his exclusive interview with Billboard at the link in bio.

Popcaan earns his first career entry on the Hot 100 this week, thanks to his guest appearance on “Amazing Shape,” with Drake! 📈

Tap the link in bio for more details.

Drake didn’t just drop albums, he flooded the entire Billboard charts. 📈⁠
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After releasing 'ICEMAN,' 'HABIBTI' and 'MAID OF HONOUR' on the same day, Drake became the first artist in Billboard 200 history to debut at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 simultaneously.⁠
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He also landed 42 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 in a single week, breaking the previous record and becoming the first artist ever to surpass 400 career Hot 100 entries.⁠
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Now, Billboard’s Pop Shop Podcast is asking the big question: is there anyone else who could realistically pull this off?⁠
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Listen to the full breakdown at the link in bio.⁠

Drake extends several of his Hot 100 chart records this week following the debuts of songs from ‘ICEMAN,’ ‘HABIBTI’ and ‘MAID OF HONOUR.’ 📈🧊

Take a look at some of the Hot 100 records Drake extends this week and tap the link in bio for details.

Katy Perry will perform a free concert in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí on Aug. 25 as part of the lineup for the annual state fair, Feria Nacional Potosina, or FENAPO.⁠
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The pop superstar made the surprise announcement in a video posted to her Instagram on Tuesday night. "I'm really excited about this announcement. I told you I'd be coming back, and now I am," Perry said in the clip. "Free show for all of my Mexican KatyGatos! Let’s go!"⁠
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More details at the link in bio.

KATSEYE may be one of the biggest girl groups in the world right now, but meeting BTS still left them completely starstruck. 🤩⁠
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During a recent Weverse livestream, member Yoonchae revealed she “forgot” how to speak Korean after meeting BTS backstage at the AIRIRANG World Tour stop in Las Vegas.⁠
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“I started crying,” she admitted. “After that, my brain was blank.”⁠
Sophia added that the BTS members were “so down to earth” and “so kind,” joking that she had to remind Yoonchae she could actually speak Korean during the interaction.⁠
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The two groups crossed paths while both were in Las Vegas for the 2026 American Music Awards, where KATSEYE won new artist of the year and gave BTS a heartfelt shoutout during their acceptance speech.⁠
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More details on the fangirl moment are at the link in bio.⁠
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📸: Getty Images, @polkimaging

KATSEYE may be one of the biggest girl groups in the world right now, but meeting BTS still left them completely starstruck. 🤩⁠
⁠
During a recent Weverse livestream, member Yoonchae revealed she “forgot” how to speak Korean after meeting BTS backstage at the AIRIRANG World Tour stop in Las Vegas.⁠
⁠
“I started crying,” she admitted. “After that, my brain was blank.”⁠
Sophia added that the BTS members were “so down to earth” and “so kind,” joking that she had to remind Yoonchae she could actually speak Korean during the interaction.⁠
⁠
The two groups crossed paths while both were in Las Vegas for the 2026 American Music Awards, where KATSEYE won new artist of the year and gave BTS a heartfelt shoutout during their acceptance speech.⁠
⁠
More details on the fangirl moment are at the link in bio.⁠
⁠
📸: Getty Images, @polkimaging

Drake keeps making Billboard history. 🏆⁠
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Not only did Drake earn his 15th No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with 'ICEMAN' while simultaneously holding the chart’s entire top three with 'HABIBTI' and 'MAID OF HONOUR,' he also placed 12 albums on the Billboard 200 at the same time for the first time in his career.⁠
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That achievement makes Drake the first living solo artist to chart 12 albums simultaneously on the Billboard 200 since the chart became a unified ranking in 1963.⁠
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More details on Drake's chart success are at the link in bio.⁠

Bad Bunny is already dominating the touring world in 2026. 🎟️⁠
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With just the first leg of his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour complete, Bad Bunny tops Billboard’s midyear Boxscore charts after grossing $230.3 million and selling nearly 1.5 million tickets across 27 shows.⁠
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The massive run makes him the bestselling tour of the midyear period by attendance, the biggest reported midyear ticket total in 15 years, while also placing him at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Tours chart.⁠
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More details on his touring success are at the link in bio.⁠