Kehlani Releases Teaser For Upcoming Third Album “Blue Water Road”

Kehlani is taking it to the Road

The 26-year-old part-Mexican American Grammy-nominated singer is set to release her next album, Blue Water Road, this winter.

Kehlani

Kehlani took to Twitter to share the minute-long trailer soundtracked by dramatic orchestral music, which shows Kehlani “coming out of the rubble of It Was Good Until It Wasnt and into the light, on to the road,” as she described it. The singer, who has an injured leg in the video, hobbles down the titular road and befriends a dragonfly that succumbs to a larger, unknown power.

The R&B singer released her second studio album It Was Good Until It Wasn’t on May 8, 2020. The project reached No. 2 on both the Billboard 200 and BillboardTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts.

One fan on Twitter noticed the continuity in the imagery from IWGUIW, which depicted on its cover art the “Toxic” singer escaping the chaos on one side of a brick wall only to find out the other side doesn’t promise an easier life, to Blue Water Road. “WAIT THIS MAKES SENSE!!! So your leg was hurt from the It was Good Until It Wasn’t Cover!” Twitter user @_serialov3r wrote.

The Grammy-nominated singer shared the theory with the bullseye emoji to commend the fan for nailing it.

Las Villa to Perform as Part of “The Rising Generation of Music” Showcase at Billboard Latin Music Week

Las Villa are on the rise…

The Colombian sister duo is among a new wave of artists set to take the stage during the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Week, which returns to Miami from September 20 to 25 with a weeklong event that unites the top Latin hitmakers, influencers, and executives, and features live performances and conversations with superstars.

Las Villa

Las Villa, along with indie Dominican newcomer The Change and the innovative Venezuelan rapper Micro TDH, have all been confirmed to perform as part of “The Rising Generation of Music” showcase presented by Warner Music Latina.

Las Villa will also form part of the “Women on the Rise” panel to discuss their music careers.

Registrants and attendees will be able to enjoy the event during Latin Music Week, taking place at 6:00 pm ET on Tuesday, September 21, at the Faena Forum main stage.

Under the slogan “The Beat of Latin Music,” making its mark as the longest running and biggest Latin music industry gathering in the world, this year’s event will continue through the end of the week as Billboard launches its En Vivo concert series.

Latin Music Week coincides with the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards, which will be broadcast live via Telemundo on September 23.

For more information, visit BillboardLatinMusicWeek.com.

Farruko to Take Part in “Moving Our Music Pa’lante” Panel at Billboard Latin Music Week

Farruko is movin’ pa’lante

The 30-year-old Puerto Rican singer and songwriter will take part in the “Moving Our Music Pa’lante” panel discussion, which is set to take place during Billboard Latin Music Week 2021.

Farruko

The event will return to Miami with a weeklong (September 20-25) event that unites the top Latin hitmakers, influencers and industry leaders, and features live performances and conversations with superstars.

Presented by HBO Max and moderated by Billboards Leila Cobo, the panel will explore how HBO Max creates and markets its slate of acquired Latin music films and documentaries, sharing their creative process and the strategies they use to deliver compelling content that resonates with fans across the U.S. and Latin America.

Panelists include Farruko; Edgar Martinez, svp entertainment, Loud and LiveJessica Vargas, director of multicultural marketing, HBO Max/HBO; and Leslie Cohen, senior vp content acquisitions for WarnerMediaHBO Max/HBO.

Other recently announced panels include “Mano a Mano” with Rauw Alejandro and Myke Towers, during which both chart-topping artists will discuss new projects, upcoming tours and the challenges and advantages for the new wave of reggaetón artists; “Making the Hit, Live” masterclass with Lunay and his longtime producers Chris Jedi and Gaby Music; and the “Coming Out Latin” panel with Raymix, Esteman, Erika Vidrio and Jhonny Caz of Grupo Firme for an insightful and heartfelt conversation on the challenges and rewards of coming out as a Latin music act.

Under the slogan “The Beat of Latin Music,” making its mark as the longest running and biggest Latin music industry gathering in the world, this year’s event will continue through the end of the week as Billboard launches its En Vivo concert series.

The 2021 Latin Music Week will take place from September 20 to 25 at the Faena Forum in Miami, and coincides with the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards broadcasting live via Telemundo on Sept. 23.

To register and for more information, visit BillboardLatinMusicWeek.com.

Disney+ Renews Frankie A. Rodriguez’s “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” for a Third Season

Frankie A. Rodriguez is preparing for an encore…

Disney+ has renewed the acclaimed original series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, starring the 22-year-old Mexican American actor/singer, for a third season.

Frankie Rodriguez

Created and executive-produced by Tim Federle, season three will follow the Wildcats as they leave the hallways of East High for the ultimate summer at sleepaway camp, complete with campfires, summer romances and curfew-less nights.

Production for the third season will relocate from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles and begin later this year.

“We are overjoyed to be heading to the great outdoors for season three, and grateful to our partners and friends at Disney+ for their continued support of our next-generation Wildcats,” said Federle.

Seasons one and two are set at East High School, the setting and filming location of the original movies. In season one, the series follows members of the drama club and their faculty advisors as they work their way to opening night of their school’s first-ever production of High School Musical: The Musical. 

Season two culminates in a performance of Beauty and the Beast.

The soundtracks for High School Musical: The Musical: The Series season one, season two, and High School Musical: The Musical: The Holiday Special have drawn 1 billion, 438 million combined streams to date.

Seasons one and two of the GLAAD Media Award-winning series are currently available on Disney+.

In addition to Rodriguez, who plays Carlos Rodriguez, the series also stars Olivia Rodrigo, Joshua Bassett, Matt Cornett and Sofia Wylie.

J Balvin Announces “Jose” Tour Dates

J Balvin is hittin’ the road…

After releasing his fifth studio album Jose, the 36-year-old Colombian singer, songwriter, rapper has revealed the dates for his 2022 U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico tour.

J Balvin

Produced by Cárdenas Marketing Network (CMN), J Balvin’s 25-date Jose trek is set to kick off April 19 in San Antonio’s AT&T Center and wrap up June 4 at El Coliseo de Puerto Rico — with stops in Las Vegas, Miami and New York.

“I think he’s in the best moment of his life,” Henry Cárdenas, CEO of CMN, tells Billboard. “Between Balvin and CMN, we’re going to sell out.”

J Balvin has grossed more than $20 million and sold over 300,000 tickets, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore.

His new set — home to 24 tracks including the Grammy Award-nominated “Un Día (One Day)”  and “Qué Más Pues?” — follows Balvin’s 2020 Colores, which peaked No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart and at No. 15 on the Billboard 200.

The “Que Locura” singer has been busy this year releasing a handful of singles, jumping on star-studded remixes and slowly returning to live shows with sporadic performances at festivals such as Baja Beach Fest in Mexico and Neon Experience in Las Vegas, an event curated by the artist himself featuring artists such as Karol G, Nio Garcia and Jowell & Randy.

Most recently, Balvin logged his 31st No. 1 on Billboard‘s Latin Airplay chart thanks to the ’90s dance hit-interpolated, Skrillex-assisted “In Da Getto,” tying him with Enrique Iglesias for the most leaders in the chart’s history.

J Balvin is a nine-time finalist at the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards. He’s garnered four nods for “Ritmo (Bad Boys for Life),” the blockbuster track with Black Eyed Peas, and is also up for artist of the year.

Tickets will be available for presale September 13 at 12:00 pm local time and for general sale on September 17 through TicketmasterAXSSeatGeekEvenko.ca and Ticketerapr.com.

Jose 2022 tour dates:
April 19 — San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
April 20 — Austin, TX @ HEB Center
April 22 — Tucson, AZ @ Tucson Arena
April 23 — Las Vegas, NV @ Michelob Ultra Arena
April 24 — San Diego, CA @ Pechanga Arena
April 26 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
April 28 — Portland, OR @ MODA Center
April 30 — San Jose, CA @ SAP Center
May 1 — Oakland, CA @ Oakland Arena
May 4 — El Paso, TX @ Don Haskins Center
May 5 — Laredo, TX @ Sames Auto Arena
May 6 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
May 7 — Hidalgo, TX @ Payne Arena
May 8 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
May 11 — Ft Myers, FL @ Hertz Arena
May 13 — Miami, FL @ FTX Arena
May 14 — Orlando, FL @ Amway Center
May 15 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
May 18 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center
May 20 — Washington DC @ Capitol One Arena
May 21 — Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
May 22 — New York, NY @ Barclays Center
May 25 — Bridgeport, CT @ Webster Bank Arena
May 26 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
May 27 — Montreal, Canada @ Bell Centre
May 28 — Toronto, Canada @ Scotia Bank Arena
June 4 — San Juan, PR @ Coliseo de Puerto Rico

Peacock Releases Trailer for Demi Lovato’s Docuseries “Unidentified With Demi Lovato”

Demi Lovato is on a mission to find extraterrestrial life…

Following the 29-year-old half-Mexican American singer, songwriter and actor’s surreal Joshua Tree trip when they saw something strange in the sky, Lovato is embarking on an extra-journey journey to find out more.

Demi Lovato

“I had this crazy experience that happened to me in Joshua Tree,” the singer recalls in the official trailer for their new Peacock series Unidentified With Demi Lovato, which was released on Thursday (September 9). “It was this bright light, kind of moved in, like, these weird ways that a plane wouldn’t move. My goal is to find out what really happened.”

The self-proclaimed “UFO experiencer” will be joined by their best friend Matthew Scott Montgomery and sister Dallas Lovato, both of whom appeared in the four-part YouTube Originals docuseries Demi Lovato: Dancing With the Devil, which opened SXSW this year, to “investigate the unexplained and the unidentified,” Lovato said in the video. The gasp-worthy, shocking trailer even features an unidentified voice saying “hello” to the singer when prompted by experts.

Lovato’s new four-part limited unscripted series will begin streaming on Peacock on September 30.

 

Unidentified With Demi Lovato is executive produced by Lovato, their manager Scooter Braun, Scott Manson, Allison Kaye, JD Roth, Adam Greener, Sara Hansemann and Andrew Nick.

Lovato’s most recent album, Dancing With the Devil… The Art of Starting Over, was released via Island Records. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top Album Sales chart.

Netflix to Premiere Season 2 of JJ Soria’s “Gentefied” in November

JJ Soria is returning to East L.A. in November…

Netflix’s half-hour Latinx dramedy Gentefied, starring the 40-year-old Mexican American actor, is returning for Season 2 on November 10.

Gentefied

From creators Marvin Lemus and Linda Yvette Chávez, the series follows East Los Angeles Latinos on their respective and collective search for the American Dream.

Season 2 picks up after the emotional debut season’s finale that saw Erik Morales (Soria) and his girlfriend Lidia (Annie Gonzalez) welcome a daughter, Delfina. As Erik realizes his grandfather Pops (Joaquin Cosio) is missing from the hospital celebration, it is revealed that he has been arrested for an outstanding warrant and his beloved pick-up truck is being impounded.

The streamer teases the return will tackle Erik and his cousin Chris’s (Carlos Santos) struggle to keep Pops in the country while dealing with new love, new babies, estranged fathers, and tracking down Bad Bunny at a Halloween party. They’ll fight to thrive, but along the way will question where they truly belong in a world made up of borders, family separation, and the potential loss of their beloved taco shop, Mama Fina’s.

Gentefied is a Netflix production also starring Karrie Martin Lachney, Julissa Calderon; and newly added season 2 cast Melinna Bobadilla, Manuel Uriza, Ivana Rojas, and Clarissa Thibeaux.

The series is executive produced by Lemus, Chávez, Charles D. King, Marta Fernandez of MACRO, America Ferrera of Take Fountain, Aaliyah Williams, Kim Roth, and Teri Weinberg of Yellow Brick Road.

Kid Cudi Joins Young Thug & Strick for Psychedelic New “Moon Man” Video

Kid Cudi is trippin’ through space…

Young Thug and fellow Young Stoner Life Records (YSL) signee, Strick, have enlisted the 37-year-old half-Mexican American rapper/singer and veteran moon traveler  for their psychedelic new video for “Moon Man.”

Kid Cudi

The deep cut is featured on the label’s compilation album Slime Language 2, which was released on April 16 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. SL2 showcased YSL’s roster of artists including Strick, a college graduate and veteran-turned-artist who is slated to release his new album Strickland by the end of the year.

“‘Moon Man’ feels like the lighting ceremony for my torch,” North Carolina native Strick tells Billboard. “I wouldn’t say passing the torch because Thug and Cudi are both still very relevant, but it’s two of the most influential artists in the game stamping my versatility and influence for my own lane in the business.”

Freeform Renews Cierra Ramirez’s “Good Trouble” for Fourth Season

Cierra Ramirez’s troubles continue…

Freeform has renewed Good Touble, starring the 26-year-old Colombian and Mexican American actress/singer, for a fourth season.

Cierra Ramirez

The announcement arrived on the heels of the 90-minute Season 3 finale airing on the East Coast on Wednesday.

The network released a new poster celebrating the news featuring stars Maia Mitchell, Ramirez, Sherry Cola, Tommy Martinez, Zuri Adele, Emma Hunton, Josh Pence and Beau Mirchoff.

Good Trouble

Good Trouble, a spinoff of The Fosters, follows the residents of Downtown Los Angeles’ The Coterie as they juggle career, love, and friendship and learn that standing up for what you believe in requires making a little noise and getting into trouble. The season 3 finale finds Callie (Maia Mitchell) questioning the career choices she’s made.

The series is enjoying its most-watched season ever on Hulu and currently ranks as one of the year’s Top 10 Primetime cable drama series among Women 18-34. All three seasons are currently available to stream via Hulu.

Good Trouble is co-created by Joanna Johnson, Peter Paige, and Bradley Bredeweg. Johnson serves as executive producer along with Gregory Gugliotta, Christine Sacani, Maia Mitchell, Cierra Ramirez, Jennifer Lopez, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, and Benny Medina.

Luna Blaise Closes Deal to Return for Fourth & Final Season of Netflix-Saved Series “Manifest”

Luna Blaise is manifesting her destiny…

The 19-year-old Mexican American actress/singer has closed a deal to return for a new season of Netflix and Warner Bros. Television’s Manifest.

Luna Blaise

Blaise is among the key cast members who’ve secured their contracts for the upcoming supersized, 20-episode fourth and final season of the missing plane drama.

In addition to Blaise, eries regulars Parveen Kaur and Holly Taylor have closed deals to return for the new season, joining Josh DallasMelissa Roxburgh and J.R. Ramirez who had completed their negotiations on the eve of the 8/28 announcement of Manifest‘s resurrection by Netflix two and a half months after the show’s cancellation by NBC.

Additionally, Ty Doran who guest-starred as an older version of Cal Stone in one of the big twists during the Season 3 finale, is joining the cast as a series regular for Season 4.

Doran will be taking over playing the character from Jack Messina who portrayed younger Cal Stone for the first three seasons of the show. He’s leaving the series alongside Athena Karkanis who played Cal and Olive’s (Blaise) mom and died in the Season 3 finale just as Cal aged.

The last remaining Season 3 series regular, Matt Long, is also a series regular on the NBC drama pilot Getaway with one-year that could allow him to also do Manifest subject to synching up dates but that is still very much up in the air.)

According to sources, the new deals for the cast, whose original contracts expired in June, include sizable pay increases. The Manifest actors all participated in the #SaveManifest campaign which helped keep the show at the top of the Netflix streaming rankings — and ultimately bring it back from the dead.

In Manifest, created by Jeff Rake, when Montego Air Flight 828 landed safely after a turbulent but routine flight, the crew and passengers were relieved. Yet in the span of those few hours, the world had aged five years — and their friends, families and colleagues, after mourning their loss, had given up hope and moved on. Now, faced with the impossible, they’re all given a second chance. But as their new realities become clear, a deeper mystery unfolds and some of the returned passengers soon realize they may be meant for something greater than they ever thought possible.