Dany Garcia’s XFL to Merge with USFL

Dany Garcia is preparing for a merger…

The XFL, whose latest revival as a springtime alternative to the NFL has been steered by the 54-year-old Cuban American film producer and businesswoman and her ex-husband Dwayne Johnson , is merging with the USFL.

Dany GarciaA brief announcement on Thursday indicated the plan, but offered no details, saying more would be announced “at a later date.”

Both leagues have been operating under the shadow of not only the NFL, which occupies vast real estate in terms of player talent and the public’s attention, but also their own back stories.

Prior to being acquired in 2020 by Johnson, Garcia and RedBird Capital for $15 million, the XFL had been the passion project of Vince McMahon, the longtime head of the WWE. Reprising a previous venture with NBC, which sought to draft off the WWE’s edgy showmanship but wound up one of primetime television’s most notorious turkeys, the XFL 2.0 was a more buttoned-down affair. Even so, the upstart league was aiming to stir things up with an array of newer rules and a looser approach than the NFL.

The USFL, meanwhile, had similarly looked to challenge the NFL but a bit more head-on. In its first incarnation in the 1980s, the league self-destructed when it attempted to move into the fall and go head-to-head with the NFL. That first iteration ended in a legal mess. Decades later, it was revived with an unusual joint broadcast deal with both NBC and Fox, with Fox also taking a minority stake in the league.

“Subject to customary regulatory approvals and if the transaction is consummated, the new league will establish best-in-class operations based on the most recent seasons of both leagues,” today’s announcement said. “This historic combination will anchor professional spring football with substantial capabilities and resources to ensure future growth and continue to enhance the development of the collective players, coaches, and staff that are coming together.”

Hope springs eternal for a challenger to come along and gain enough momentum to survive as a legitimate “other” pro football league, but history is littered with failed attempts like the WFL and the AAF. As gargantuan as the TV audience for the NFL remains, it is far from clear whether viewers will turn out in anywhere near the same numbers for players and teams populated by far lower-profile names. The USFL Championship last July drew about 1.16 million viewers on NBC, about double the regular-season average. The XFL title game a few weeks later pulled in 1.43 million viewers on ABC.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day. This league isn’t going to be built in a day,” Johnson told USA Today last summer. “It’s day-by-day, year over year.”

Yandel Signs with Warner Music Latina

Yandel has a new deal…

The 46-year-old Puerto Rican singer and songwriter, whose real name is Llandel Veguilla Malavé, has signed with Warner Music Latina, marking his first deal with a major label after releasing his latest albums (Quien Contra Mi 2 and Resistencia) via his own company, Y Entertainment.

YandelThe signing took place at the Empire State Building in New York City, where Yandel kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month festivities by leading the lighting ceremony and treating a group of attendees to an intimate concert at the Empire State Building Observatory.

“I am truly excited to join the Warner Music Latina family and look forward to bringing new music to fans worldwide, fostering this new adventure with the label, and continuing to write my musical story together,” said Yandel, who rose to fame more than 20 years ago as one half of the iconic reggaetón duo, Wisin & Yandel.

Yandel’s first release on the label was his Myke Towers collaboration “Borracho y Loco,” which came out on Thursday, September 21.

After scoring countless hits as part of Wisin & Yandel, including “Abusadora” and “Rakata,” Yandel launched a full-fledged solo career in 2013.

In addition to 2003’s Quien Contra Mí — a solo album released prior to Wisin & Yandel’s 2013 hiatus — he’s released a total of eight solo albums, including his 2013’s De Líder a Leyenda, which peaked at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Latin Albums chart. In February, he scored his first solo Billboard Hot 100 entry with “Yandel 150” in collaboration with Feid.

“Yandel’s iconic career has resonated with audiences worldwide, and his influence in the music industry is undeniable,” said Warner Music Latina Alejandro Duque. “This collaboration signifies a new chapter of innovation and creativity. We are excited to work hand in hand with Yandel to bring his music to fans across the globe.”

“Yandel is an artist who embodies both iconic status and forward-thinking vision,” added Warner Music Latina MD Roberto Andrade. “We take immense pride in joining him on this new chapter of his career, contributing to its evolution alongside his dedicated and collaborative team.”

Noah Centineo Signs with William Morris Endeavor (WME)

Noah Centineo has new representation…

The 27-year-old part-Puerto Rican actor has signed with William Morris Endeavor (WME) for representation.

Noah CentineoMost recently, Centineo starred in and served as Executive Producer of the Netflix series The Recruit, which returns for a second season next year.

Centineo will also be featured in A24’s Dream Scenario, which made its debut to rave reviews at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.

This year, Centineo launched production company Arkhum Productions alongside Head of Production Enzo Marc focusing on comedy and drama projects with an emphasis on social commentary. The Greatest Disaster in Cinema History will mark one of their first projects, with Centineo set to star.

In 2022, Centineo played Atom Smasher in Black Adam from the Warner Bros. DC Universe.

Centineo rose to fame in the popular Netflix trilogy To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, for which he won an MTV Movie & TV Award for Best Breakthrough Performance.

 

Christian Alicea Signs Exclusive Booking Agreement with Loud and Live

Christian Alicea has a new deal…

The Puerto Rican artist and developing salsa star has signed an exclusive booking agreement with Nelson Albareda’s Loud and Live.

Christian Alicea

Albareda has always carried tropical music in general and salsa in particular, deep inside him. A die-hard fan of Cuban salsero Willy Chirino, he also worked closely with salsa queen Celia Cruz and, through Loud and Live, represents the Celia Cruz estate today.

Now, Albareda is on a quest to elevate and grow the music with which he started his career. As he’s been saying for months, tropical music is having a moment. This week, via his powerhouse promotion and entertainment company, Albareda signed Alicea.

Loud and Live already books major tropical music names like Carlos Vives and Juan Luis Guerra. But the Alicea deal is different in that in addition to booking Alicea’s concerts, Loud and Live will also work in partnership with his management team to support marketing and promotional endeavors surrounding the artist and his music.

Although Alicea has just one album under his belt — Yo, released this past May — he has already placed two tracks in the Top 25 of Billboard’s Tropical Airplay chart. This week, a third single, “Aroma,” is at No. 15 on the list.

“Christian is an exceptionally talented young man who, because of his humility, charisma and spectacular and unique voice, we are confident that he will conquer and lead the tropical genre worldwide for many years to come,” said Albareda in a statement.

The partnership, says Alicea’s producer, Urales ‘Dj Buddha’ Vargas, is “the icing on the cake. For us, having someone like Nelson see the vision and the potential of Christian means a lot.”

As Latin music’s focus has slowly shifted from solely reggaetón in the past year, other genres are beginning to rise on the charts. While regional Mexican music undoubtedly leads the fray, pop is also seeing a resurgence, and tropical music — long focused on legacy acts — is finally seeing a smattering of new names, including Luis Figueroa, teenager Luis Vazquez, and, Alicea.

Rosalía Signs with Jaime Levine for Global Management

Rosalía is under new management.

The 30-year-old Spanish Grammy-winning superstar has signed with Jaime Levine of Seven Mantels for global management.

RosaliaRosalía was previously managed by Rebecca León of Lionfish Entertainment, with whom she parted ways this past February after a five-year relationship.

Levine spent more than a decade managing global superstar Shakira but recently transitioned from management into a senior advisor role for the Colombian star on ongoing projects, sources say.

By all accounts, the two continue to have an amicable professional and personal relationship.

Shakira, who was named Billboard’s Woman of the year during the first-ever Billboard Latin Women In Music event in May, is currently recording a new album and planning a new tour for 2024.

Rosalía’s albums have earned a combined 747,000 equivalent album units in the United States, according to Luminate, with 880 million on-demand official streams across her catalog, 84,000 albums sold and 98,000 song downloads.

She also has seven entries on the Billboard Hot 100, the latest of which — “Beso” with Rauw Alejandro — is her highest-charting there, peaking at No. 52. She also has 21 entries on Hot Latin Songs, including seven top 10s; 10 entries on Latin Airplay, of which eight reached the top 10 and seven hit No. 1.

Her 2022 release, Motomami — her third studio album — ruled Latin Pop Albums for 25 weeks, making it the longest-leading Latin Pop set this decade. The album earned Rosalía her first and only entry on the Billboard 200, debuting and peaking at No. 33 in April 2022; it also received the Latin pop album of the year award at the Billboard Latin Music Awards.

Rosalía was poised to launch her international tour at the time of her split with León, with stops at major festivals including Coachella and Lollapalooza Chile and Argentina. She continued successfully with her touring plans, amidst much speculation about who would eventually take over as her manager.

Rosalía’s Motomami tour, her first-ever global trek, included 66 performances in 21 countries across three continents. The “Saoko” singer performed to nearly two million people around the world, according to a press statement. The tour ended with a July 22 performance at Lollapalooza Paris, where Rosalía gave an emotional speech.

“The blessings that Motomami has given me are endless,” she told a crowd during the tour. “Many of you discovered me thanks to this project, thanks to this album. I’m so thankful to all of you. I don’t know what the next chapter will look like, there are some ideas but I don’t know. Only God knows.”

Kehlani Signs with Wasserman Music for Global Representation

Kehlani has new representation…

The 28-year-old part-Mexican American singer-songwriter and two-time Grammy nominee has signed with Wasserman Music for global representation.

KehlaniAgents Brent Smith and Eli Gelernter will serve as Kehlani’s representatives at the company.

The signing follows the singer-songwriter’s extensive world tour supporting her most recent album, Blue Water Road.

In 2017, Kehlani was awarded the Rulebreaker Award at the Billboard Women in Music event.

Kehlani is managed by David Ali at Above Ground Management and signed to Atlantic Records.

Ice Spice & Dunkin’ Donuts Tease Upcoming Collaboration

Donut count out Ice Spice’s sweet business prowess!

The 23-year-old half-Dominican American rap sensation and Dunkin’ Donuts have a collaboration of princess proportions in the works.

Ice SpiceOver the weekend, Ice Spice tantalized fans with a sugary post on X, with her tweet reading, “america runs on MUNCHKINS.” The photo displayed a puffy munchkin wearing a diamond necklace Princess chain, illustrating the newly minted collaboration between the two parties.

Dunkin’ doubled down on Instagram and shared a post with the same photo, but with a different caption, playing off the name of the “Princess Diana” rapper. “Putting the ice in pumpkin spice,” said the Instagram caption. Both parties further tantalized customers by teasing the date September 13.

This isn’t the first time this year that the donut and coffee chain has worked with a musician.

In February, Jennifer Lopez made a surprise cameo in husband Ben Affleck’s ad for Dunkin’ that aired during the Super Bowl.

2023 has proven to be a banner year for Ice Spice, as she’s netted four songs in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, including collaborations with Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj. Spice’s torrid streak earned her the Billboard R&B / Hip-Hop Rookie of the Year award in August.

“I have put in so much hard work, and it means a lot to be recognized for it and have more than just plaques to show for it,” she told Billboard at the time. “I hope to push the genre forward in whatever ways I can, but I know I’ll have a huge impact on the youngins coming up now.”

Last week, Spice continued to stockpile her wins when she received the inaugural BMI Impact Award at the 2023 R&B/Hip-Hop Awards.

Jennifer Lopez Signs New Recording & Publishing Partnership with BMG

Jennifer Lopez is celebrating a new deal…

The 54-year-old Puerto Rican superstar has agreed to a new recording and publishing partnership with BMG.

Jennifer LopezUnder the global alliance, J.Lo will release her forthcoming ninth studio album, This Is Me…Now—home to 13 tracks, released via Nuyorican/BMG.

The set will mark Lopez’s first studio album as a solo artist in nine years, following the 2014 release of A.K.A. on Capitol Records. That album, produced by RedOne, peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 chart. In 2022, she and Maluma released the soundtrack to their film Marry Me under Universal Studios/Sony Music US Latin.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with her and her team to release her first album in nearly a decade,” said Thomas Coesfeld, BMG’s CEO in a statement, calling Lopez a “global superstar artist, entertainer… a phenomenon.”

Thomas Scherer, BMG’s president, repertoire & marketing, Los Angeles and New York, added: “We are both excited and proud to partner with Jennifer Lopez on this long-awaited sequel to ‘This is Me… Then.’ Clearly written with love and through experience, ‘This Is Me..Now’ is uplifting and inspiring. ‘Jenny From The Block’ is back at a point in her career when her message is bigger than ever.”

Produced by J.Lo, Rogét Chahayed, Angel Lopez and Jeff “Gitty” GitelmanThis Is Me…Now was created during 2022 and 2023 at Lopez’s home studio in Los Angeles.

Other songwriter-producers who worked on the album include Hitboy, Ink, Tay Keith, Yeti Beats, Carter Lang, Kim “Kaydence” Krysiuk, with BMG’s Brandon Riester serving as the album’s A&R.

According to the press statement, the upcoming set “is an exciting musical trilogy showcasing the triple-threat’s extraordinary talents.”

The full This Is Me…Now track list includes:

“This Is Me…Now”
“To Be Yours”
“Mad in Love”
“Can’t Get Enough”
“Rebound”
“not.going.anywhere.”
“Dear Ben, Pt. II”
“Hummingbird”
“Hearts and Flowers”
“Broken Like Me”
“This Time Around”
“Midnight Trip to Vegas”
“Greatest Love Story Never Told”

Michael Chaves’ “The Nun II” Tops Weekend Box Office with $32.6 Million

Michael Chaves is celebrating a box office victory…

The 38-year-old Latino filmmaker’s The Nun II topped the box office charts, scaring up $32.6 million this weekend from 3,728 locations.

Michael ChavesThat was more than enough to unseat Sony’s The Equalizer 3, which features Denzel Washington as a mysterious avenging angel, from the first place perch it held last weekend.

The Equalizer 3 racked up over $12.1 million in its second weekend to push its domestic gross to $61.9 million. Globally, the action sequel crossed $100 million at worldwide box office, bringing its haul to $107.7 million.

Though impressive, The Nun II, which is the ninth chapter in Warner Bros.’ ongoing Conjuring series, couldn’t match the high-water mark set by its 2018 predecessor The Nun, which opened with $53.8 million.

The film sees Taissa Farmiga and Bonnie Aarons return as Sister Irene and the titular Nun, respectively, with newcomers to the franchise, Jonas Bloquet, Storm Reid and Anna Popplewell, rounding out the ensemble of frequently habit-wearing characters.

Chaves, who directed The Curse of La Llorona and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, slid behind the camera for this installment.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, the weekend’s other new wide release, opened in third place with $10 million. The film was written and directed by Nia Vardalos, who also stars alongside John Corbett. Focus Features is distributing the film in the North America, while Universal Pictures International has foreign territories. The third chapter in the comedy series follows the eccentric Portokalos family as they travel to Greece for a family reunion.

Demi Lovato Signs with Brandon Creed’s Good World Management

Demi Lovato has a new representation…

The 31-year-old half-Mexican American Grammy-nominated superstar has signed with Brandon Creed and his newly-launched firm Good World Management.

Demi LovatoAt the end of August,. Lovato parted ways with Scooter Braun‘s SB Projects in July after originally signing with Braun and his firm in 2019. She was previously managed by Phil McIntyre of PhilyMack.

That report was followed by news that Ariana Grande and Idina Menzel had left the SB roster, too.

Lovato is the second major signing to Creed’s Good World.

At the beginning of August, he and Lydia Asrat announced they had signed Normani to a co-management deal through Good World and Asrat’s Q10.

Creed announced Good World Management in July, with an official launch date of August 1. His last major move came in 2017, when he merged his own The Creed Company with Irving and Jeffrey Azoff‘s firm to form Full Stop Management.

Creed’s current roster includes Mark RonsonTroye Sivan and Charli XCX, among others.

His first order of business with Lovato will be the release of Demi Lovato Revamped, out September 15, which includes reworked rock versions of her biggest hits including “Heart Attack,” “Sorry Not Sorry” featuring Slash and “Cool For the Summer.”

Lovato has charted 36 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, including four top 10 hits. Over on the Billboard 200, she has charted eight albums. Her second studio album, 2009’s Here We Go Again, hit No. 1 and spent 24 weeks on the tally.