Japan’s ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION dropped Fujieda EP and new single “Skins” in back-to-back months. Recorded entirely at MUSIC inn Fujieda, a residential recording studio built inside a 130-year-old renovated storehouse, the four-track EP shifts texture from song to song while serving as a showcase for the quality of the Shizuoka facility. 

“Skins” is the opening theme for the TV anime Dr. STONE: SCIENCE FUTURE Season 3. The song reworks the feeling of an age of wavering values into a common sensibility that can be shared across conflict and division. Billboard Japan spoke with all four members about the making of Fujieda EP, the perspective behind “Skins,” and their enthusiasm heading into their 30th anniversary overseas shows and Ariake Arena concert.

Fujieda EP was recorded entirely at MUSIC inn Fujieda. How did this studio come to exist in the first place?

Masafumi Gotoh (frontman, guitar): When young musicians are based in Tokyo, especially in the urban center, studio costs can be prohibitively high. Some places are expensive and cramped at the same time, which is a tough situation. I wanted to create a more accessible space where people could really take their time making music, and that’s how MUSIC inn Fujieda came about. We used crowdfunding and a lot of people’s support to get it finished, but once you’re ready to actually run a studio, you need to do some test recordings. So I asked the other members of ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION to take on that role this time.

What was it like to actually use the studio?

Kensuke Kita (guitar, vocals): I’d seen photos of it before, but when I saw the real thing, the first thing that struck me was how thoroughly it had come together as a proper studio, beyond anything I’d imagined. It’s not enormous, but the high ceilings make it feel bigger than it is. Since we did our pre-production at our own studio beforehand, we were able to record the same songs under the same conditions and compare, which was great. The drum sound in particular was fantastic. I was impressed because it was clear they built the space with that sound in mind. The care that went into it really does come through in the audio.

Kiyoshi Ijichi (drums): It’s also impressive that a storehouse like this still exists in Fujieda. Renovation must cost more than clearing the land and building from scratch. We once went to RAK Studios in London to record. It’s a place that’s been around for decades, and Europe has that culture of looking after old buildings. In some places, renovation rather than demolition is actually required by law. That’s a wonderful thing, and it gives neighborhoods a cohesive beauty. I’d always envied that. Japan has its share of earthquakes, which sometimes makes rebuilding unavoidable. So something like this is all the more remarkable and it moved me.

Takahiro Yamada (bass, vocals): The materials used were wonderful as well — reclaimed wood from disaster sites, and the original storehouse floorboards repurposed as wall paneling. (The floor uses Noto hiba cypress, and the walls incorporate salvaged timber rescued from areas affected by the Noto earthquake.) The staff were warm and full of character, and the whole environment was so comfortable. Honestly, the feeling I’m left with is, thank you for letting us be the first ones to use it.

Your new single “Skins” was released in April as the opening theme for Dr. STONE: SCIENCE FUTURE Season 3. How did you go about reflecting the world of the series in the song?

Gotoh: This is actually a song I wrote quite a while ago. I believe it was after we put out “Life is Beautiful,” and I was in a headspace of feeling like the only thing worth writing was anti-war songs. I was asking myself how to write something that could push back against the way things were going. But simply shouting opposition to war doesn’t accomplish much. As I kept thinking it through, I arrived at the idea that maybe we all have no choice but to shed the things we’re carrying. What’s left once each of us has stripped everything away is our naked bodies, bare skin — just “skin.” That’s where the title “Skins” came from.

And Dr. STONE is a story about humanity starting over after being petrified. It’s an epic tale, but also carries something like a critique of the modern world. That’s where I felt the two could resonate with each other. Rather than writing something from scratch, this was more about finding where an existing song and a work of fiction overlapped.

I get a sense that your recent lyrics convey strong messages about connecting through music across conflict and division. After the recent lower house election, you mentioned the studio and said something along the lines of “it doesn’t matter what party anyone supports.” What are your thoughts on that now?

Gotoh: It’s pretty clear that the world is full of people with different positions. Even when they speak the same language, people have divided over nothing more than believing in different gods. It’s been like that throughout human history.

That’s true.

Gotoh: I don’t think music exists to highlight those differences. What I’ve come to believe is that music’s potential lies in showing us that even people who have nothing in common can end up in the same place, moving to the same sound or beat, and share a feeling of, “This is good.” That there’s something like a common feeling, not just difference. Music shouldn’t be a source of division.

One of the reasons music saved me is that it never told me I wasn’t allowed to listen. There might be communities where you feel out of place, but I have no real memory of being turned away. That’s what expression is at its core, I think — open to anyone.

Absolutely.

Gotoh: I want to keep making things like that, and keep writing down things we need to think about within them. But at the root of it is a feeling that music should be there so that everyone can confirm together that it’s OK to be here.

I also wanted to ask about opening for Oasis. What was that experience like?

Gotoh: Tokyo Dome is massive. It was our first time playing a dome as ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION. Honestly, the last time I was there was 30 years ago when I went to watch a Nippon-Ham versus Orix game because I wanted to see Ichiro. So the idea of performing at Tokyo Dome wasn’t something I’d ever pictured. I went in half-expecting the sound to be bad, [Laughs] but it was actually good. I noticed it again at the Oasis show — things have improved a lot lately. The speaker systems have really caught up with the venues.

I was genuinely nervous being on that stage. It all came together pretty quickly, too. But after 30 years as a band, I also felt like we couldn’t afford not to play well. It would have been tough if we’d been told to play for 50 minutes, but 30 minutes? We could handle that. Still, when it was over, my mouth was completely dry. Whether that was the air pressure, the nerves, the adrenaline — I’d have to do it again to know. [Laughs]

Yamada: I was nervous, of course, but the crowd was warm, and I think we were able to get through it feeling good rather than stiff. The feedback was positive too, so hopefully some of the people who saw us there also came to the Ariake Arena show in April (the 30th Anniversary Special Concert “Thirty Revolutions”). That would really mean a lot.

Gotoh: The best beer I had all last year was the one I drank right after we came off, standing in front of the first-base dugout.

Kita: You had such a great look on your face.

Ijichi: Before we went out, Gotch (Gotoh) hugged all of us for the first time ever. I was a little moved by that. We’d actually opened for Oasis once before, in Nagoya (SUMMER SONIC EVE in 2005 at the Nagoya Port Open-Air Park). That was a pretty rough crowd. [Laughs] We could feel the energy of “just bring out Oasis already” while we were playing, so I figured this one would be similarly unwelcoming and stepped onto the stage with that expectation.

Then the moment I hit the first beat of the drum intro, I thought, “Huh?” There was this huge cheer. And from there, people were singing along. I was like, “They actually know our songs!” I don’t know whether Oasis fans had come to know us over the years since Nagoya, or whether people who already knew us were just big Oasis fans too, but feeling like we were genuinely sharing a bill as equals made me really happy.

This year, you’ll be celebrating your 30th anniversary in Indonesia, Mexico, Chile, and Peru, along with the upcoming arena concert in Japan. To close, could each of you share a thought about what’s ahead and a message for readers?

Gotoh: The fans who listen to ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION in Japan are incredibly important to us, but there are also so many people listening to us all around the world. It’s one of the things driving this band right now. If people are calling us there, I want to go everywhere we can while we still can. And I want to make music and put on shows that are worthy of that feeling.

Kita: The fact that we’ve been able to keep this band going for 30 years is because there are people who keep showing up, and I’m truly grateful for that. I want to give them a show they’ll be glad they came to.

Ijichi: I want to play a range of songs, old and new, and really do them right. There will be people coming who are new to us, and people who have been with us for years, and I’d love for both groups to leave happy. When you’ve been at it for 30 years, you have an enormous number of songs, and narrowing it down to around 20-something is its own challenge. But I want to pick and play the ones that feel right for who we are now.

Yamada: I’m always aware that there are people out there waiting for us. Whether it’s the overseas shows or anything else, I want to live up to that expectation, and I’m going to think carefully about how to do that and play with everything I have.

—This interview by Takanori Kuroda first appeared on Billboard Japan

Rob Base died on Friday (May 22) just days after turning 59 years old. The “It Takes Two” rapper’s family announced on his Instagram account that the Harlem native, who made up one-half of the duo Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock, died following a private battle with cancer.

“Today, we share the heartbreaking news that hip hop legend Rob Base passed away peacefully on May 22, 2026, surrounded by family after a private battle with cancer,” the statement began.

The rapper’s family continued: “Rob’s music, energy, and legacy helped shape a generation and brought joy to millions around the world. Beyond the stage, he was a loving father, family man, friend, and creative force whose impact will never be forgotten. Thank you for the music, the memories, and the moments that became the soundtrack to our lives. Rest in Paradise, Rob Base. May 18, 1967 – May 22, 2026.”

Childhood friends Rob Base (born Robert Ginyard) and DJ E-Z Rock rose to prominence in the late 1980s, and the duo’s breakout came in 1988 with “It Takes Two” via Profile Records, which hit the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 36 and spending 16 weeks on the chart. The crossover hit is certified platinum by the RIAA.

Black Eyed Peas sampled “It Takes Two” for their top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit “Rock That Boy,” and the single was also played in plenty of movies like Love & Basketball, The Proposal, Iron Man 2, The Disaster Artist, Hey Arnold! The Movie and was part of a radio station in 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

“It Takes Two” was followed up by The Jacksons-sampling “Get on the Dance Floor,” which topped Billboard‘s Dance Club Songs chart. Rob and E-Z Rock returned to the Hot 100 for a second and final time with “Joy and Pain,” which peaked at No. 58 in July 1989.

The Harlem duo released a pair of albums together with 1988’s It Takes Two (No. 31 Billboard 200 peak, No. 4 Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums peak), and Break of Dawn in 1994. Base dropped one solo album in his career, which came in 1989 with The Incredible Base (No. 50 Billboard 200 peak, No. 20 Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums peak).

DJ E-Z Rock (born Rodney Bryce) died in 2014 due to complications related to diabetes, while Base continued their musical legacy in the years since, as he performed as part of the I Love the 90’s Tour with Vanilla Ice and other acts.

Base even extended his reach into Hollywood, where he executive produced the horror movie Urban Flesh Eaters in 2025.

Rob Base’s final public statement came earlier this week when celebrating his 59th birthday with a post to Instagram on May 18. “Happy 59th Birthday to me. God thank you for allowing me to see another year,” he wrote.

Some members of ARMY may have noticed that BTS‘ SUGA had a bit of a hitch in his step during the group’s show on Sunday (May 17) at Stanford Stadium in California. According to SF Gate, it’s because the group’s lead rapper slipped into the crowd of 30,000 at the wacky Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco on the morning of the show.

The 12K race known for attracting wildly costumed runners is a beloved, nearly 115-year-old tradition in the Bay Area. The news that SUGA had run it came during a livestream earlier this week when RM noted that SUGA often runs a 10K a day and when he heard about the Breakers race he decided to wake up at 6 a.m. and run the race before sprinting back to Palo Alto to get ready for that night’s show, SF Gate reported.

“We were all excited. This is the event to attract that kind of attention. Everyone is welcome – community members, walkers, joggers, runners – and in this case SUGA. He’s quite the runner, you can tell by his finish time,” Phyllis Blanchard, vice president of partnerships for Bay to Breakers told ABC 7.

Indeed, SUGA put up a very respectable time, finishing in 1:04:43, for an 8:41 mile pace, well behind the men’s winning time of 37:16, putting him at 1,022 among all finishers. One of the runners who spotted the K-pop superstar was Mateo Coulson, who told the station that he was running right next to SUGA and had no idea he was in the presence of pop royalty, and had no way to prove it since he runs without his phone.

“I wish I had filmed the starting line. Then I would have had a video of him at the starting line. I definitely missed out,” Coulson said, adding that he learned about the celebrity cameo after seeing pictures and video online, just like event organizers, who were not told ahead of time that SUGA — whose results were posted under his real name, Min Yoon-gi— was running the race.

“He was there to run, that’s our takeaway. He wanted to participate like everyone else. He didn’t want to let us know ahead of time. If he did, we would have given him VIP treatment. He just wanted to fit into the crowd and run his race,” Blanchard added.

SF Gate noted that SUGA was among the first wave of runners who took off at 8 a.m. from the Embarcadero, where he was “sandwiched between runners in Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes,” naturally. SUGA opted for a blue cap, black pullover and gray shorts and some fans noticed that he had a camera clipped to the front of his ball cap, raising hopes for some vlog footage in the future of his running adventure.

BTS’ Arirang tour is slated to kick of a four-show stint at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada on Saturday (May 23).

As a rock ‘n’ roll frontman, Paul Di’Anno left no stone unturned. However, after his passing in 2024, at the age of 66, the original Iron Maiden singer is surely one of the great “what ifs” in the heavier end of music.

Di’Anno’s life, career and brutal health battles are the subject of a new feature-length documentary, Di’Anno – Iron Maiden’s Lost Singer, the work of filmmaker Wes Orshoski (Lemmy, The Damned: Don’t You Wish That We Were Dead).

The film screens in North American cinemas from June 9, through Cleopatra Entertainment, and features appearances by James Hetfield (Metallica), Gene Simmons (Kiss) Maiden’s Steve Harris and members of Exodus, Slayer, Megadeth, Overkill and Sepultura.

In it, Orshoski unearths footage of Di’Anno in his pomp, a pioneer who bent metal into punk and led from the front on the first two Maiden album. Poor lifestyle choices led to poor health, and Di’Anno’s final years, as we observe in the film, are anything but a heavy metal miracle. By the mid-2010s, Di’Anno was wheelchair-bound due to crippling knee injuries, a grim situation that contributed to anxiety and depression, all of which the late rocker discusses in the film.

Still, his voice remained mighty when his body failed him, and Di’Anno was always planning, hoping to hit the road again. In one touching moment, caught on film, Di’Anno learned that his old Maiden bandmates would step in to cover his extensive medical bills.

“My film largely centers on their efforts to help Paul get back on his feet, professionally, emotionally and literally,” explains Orshoski. Through the extensive process, the setbacks, and the hope, “I grew a lot from working with Paul,” he admits.

Di’Anno was the frontman with Maiden from 1978 to 1981, leading from the front for the British band’s self-titled album from 1980 and its followup from 1981, Killers. He split with the group before their 1982 commercial breakthrough with The Number of the Beast, which introduced new vocalist Bruce Dickinson, the band’s frontman to this day.

“Those first two albums are so special to me,” says Metallica’s Hetfield at the top of the doc. “Paul had kinda like the ultimate metal voice for me.”

In his post-Maiden career, Di’Anno worked recorded and toured as a solo artist and as a member of such groups as Gogmagog, Di’Anno’s Battlezone, Killers, Rockfellas, and Warhorse.

Billboard caught up with Orshoski to discuss the film, almost 10 years in the making. And, of course, its tragic subject.

Billboard: It feels like the planets aligned this year for Iron Maiden, with Rock Hall induction, the band doing some of their biggest shows, and two documentaries. How did your film come about?

Wes Orshoski: I’m thrilled to see Maiden voted in this year. I grew up in the Cleveland area and the Rock Hall means a lot to me. There are a lot of acts that have been criminally ignored, like INXS, the Smiths and Joy Division, but Maiden to me is the biggest wrong that needed to be righted with this year’s vote.

My film has been a long time coming. I started work on it in 2017, not long after Matt Green at Cleopatra Records and his longtime friend and former Di’Anno bandmate Cliff Evans reached out to me and pitched me on it. I was intrigued and said “yes” immediately. I grew up a fan of Bruce Dickinson (Di’Anno’s replacement) and never really knew that much about Paul, but I knew that his legend still loomed large.

So, I knew there was going to be an incredible story to tell. But I can’t believe how things really came together for in the end.

Documentaries are a labor of love. Can you give me a sense of the challenges you were faced with in the making this film?

Well, before I ever even met Paul, he misled me on the phone about his physical condition. He made it seem like he would be on his feet in a month or so, after a minor medical procedure and a month after that I would be filming him on tour in Brazil. The first time I ever met him was at the front entrance to his local hospital in Salisbury, England. He was going for a doctor’s appointment before that “minor procedure” and I was there to film it.

Immediately, I realized he wouldn’t be walking any time soon. The doctor there explained that he was in need of two complete knee replacements, one extremely involved. Paul nearly flipped at one point when the doctor explained to him that there was a chance he could both lose one of his legs and potentially even die during the operation. I originally signed on to make the film over a 12-month period, and it became obvious that that was not going to happen.

After that, Paul began missing appointments, which I’ve learned is a major no-no within the British national healthcare system. He was waiting longer and longer for care, while his health was getting worse and worse. So there were tons of delays because of his health, and then Covid happened. And it was in the middle of Covid that two fans stepped in, launched a crowdfunding campaign and convinced him to seek treatment in Croatia.

They were both Paul’s guardian angels, and they gave me a film!!!

My film largely centers on their efforts to help Paul get back on his feet, professionally, emotionally and literally.

You spent time in close quarters with Paul. What can you tell us about him, and that personal time you shared?

I filmed with him on and off from 2017 to 2023. Paul could be an absolute sweetheart, a lovely man, and he could be an absolute demon. I tried to show both sides in the film. I enjoyed being around the easy-joking funny guy quite a lot. When he was in a great mood, he could be super fun and a blast. Zero ego. But when the Mr. Hyde side of him reared its head, it could be ugly for everyone within earshot. And he was sort of unapologetic about that nastiness. That said, several times I would see him blow up and then I would notice that he would almost immediately feel awful about it.

You have to understand, I was filming him during some of the worst times in his life. I mean, imagine where your mental health would be if stuck in a wheelchair going on almost a decade, and desperately trying to put your life back together and you have a camera on you. I know I for one could not endure that. So I try to keep that in mind when thinking back on the darker moments.

To be honest with you, I grew a lot from working with Paul. After the film had dragged on for a few years, I remember filming him in his care center in Croatia, and on this particular day we really got into it with the camera rolling, just yelling at each other. I watched it a few years later with a different sort of perspective and realized he was absolutely right about everything he was barking at me about. I called him up to apologize.

He was in Mexico at the time, and he couldn’t have cared less. He was more interested in what sort of tacos he was going to order for lunch. So as much as he was rightly known as The Beast, there was a certain amount of grace there, too.

Did Paul get to see an edit of the film before he passed?

He did not, no. The film was finished when he passed, but, no, he never had a chance to see it.

Were you in touch with the Iron Maiden camp during the process?

The very first thing I did after signing a contract with Cleopatra was call Iron Maiden management. Maiden manager Rod Smallwood was very kind, but immediately told me that neither he or any of the current band members would be participating.

Obviously, it was a massive bummer, but not unexpected. In the end, though, I’m very happy to say that Steve Harris and the rest of the guys do appear in the film.

Who should go see this film?

This is the first film I made for a specific audience — Maiden fans and metal fans in general. The outside world has no idea who Paul Di’Anno, nor do they care. So I didn’t really make a film that’s trying to straddle the line between appeasing metalheads and everybody else. That said, I’ve gotten some wonderful feedback from folks who’ve seen it who had no knowledge of Paul or Maiden before the film started. Ya know, girlfriends of guys with Eddie on their chest (laughs).

A special Q&A session with Orshoski will immediately follow the North American theatrical premiere on June 9 at Lumiere Music Hall Theater in Beverly Hills, CA. The film will release that day on both the digital VOD and Home Entertainment DVD/Blu-ray formats.

Visit MusicFilmNetwork for and Cleopatra Entertainment for more.

Jack White has raised a toast to Stephen Colbert, the satirist, talk-show master and Trump agitator whose 11-year reign at The Late Show came to an end Thursday evening, May 21.

Colbert gathered an all-star cast, and welcomed Beatles great Paul McCartney, for the emotional farewell. Many, however, including White, political commentator Robert Reich, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Wednesday night’s guest, Bruce Springsteen, insist that The Late Show should still be on the airwaves, but was canceled under a cloud of political censorship.

With Thursday night’s episode done, the show is over.

“America needs to give a standing ovation for this man tonight,” White writes on his socials. “God Bless Stephen, it is absolutely ridiculous that we live in a country where a President’s ego can vindictively censor network television…..and nobody stops him.”

The White Stripes frontman, himself a vocal critic of Donald Trump, continued: “Carry on down your new paths with your head held high sir. You’ve told the truth and given us so much to laugh at, and we’re expecting even more in the future. Thank you.”

Colbert’s stinging rebukes of Trump, his administration and the MAGA movement apparently hit a raw nerve with the president. In a Truth Social rant in late 2025, the president called on CBS to “put him to sleep,” and he’d go on to label Colbert a “pathetic trainwreck” and a “dead man walking.”

CBS did cancel the show in 2025, citing financial losses. Many progressives, however, point to the timing. The axe swung soon after Colbert’s criticism of CBS’s parent company, Paramount, over its $16 million legal settlement with Trump, coming at a moment when Paramount was on the brink of a merger deal that U.S. authorities could block.

Springsteen lauded Colbert on Wednesday night’s second-from-last episode. “I am here tonight to support Stephen, because you’re the first guy in America who lost his show because we’ve got a president who can’t take a joke,” he remarked. Read Jack White’s post below.

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The secret is out: BTS has revealed the venue and on-sale specifics for the Asia and Australia legs of their BTS WORLD TOUR ‘ARIRANG’.

Produced by Live Nation, the Asia swing gets underway on Thursday, Nov. 19 at Kaohsiung National Stadium and includes stops in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and Jakarta in the last quarter. Then Australia dates start Friday, Feb 12, 2026 with back-to-back nights at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium before heading to Sydney’s Accor Stadium for performances on Feb. 20 and 21, followed by shows in Hong Kong and Manila next March.

Tickets are available from Tuesday, June 2 via ARMY membership presale, with the general onsale beginning Thursday, June 4 at btsworldtourofficial.com.

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According to a statement, the production for those shows features an immersive 360-degree, in-the-round stage design, which places fans at the center of the experience while expanding overall stadium capacity, all of it in support of BTS’ fifth studio album ARIRANG.

The K-pop superstars’ tour got going in April in their homeland, South Korea, followed by dates in the United States and Mexico. Next up, Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, NV this Saturday, May 23.

Demand for tickets has been “unprecedented,” reps say. Following the initial onsale, BTS sold out all 41 stadium dates across North America, Europe, and the U.K., shifting nearly 2.4 million tickets.

To cope with “overwhelming fan demand during presales,” further dates were added and promptly sold out in Tampa, FL. Stanford, CA, and Las Vegas, NV, and in Latin America.

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BTS World Tour ‘ARIRANG’ 2026 & 2027 Asia And Australia Dates:

Nov. 19 — Kaohsiung – Kaohsiung National Stadium

Nov. 21 — Kaohsiung – Kaohsiung National Stadium

Nov. 22 — Kaohsiung – Kaohsiung National Stadium

Dec. 3 — Bangkok – Rajamangala National Stadium

Dec. 5 — Bangkok – Rajamangala National Stadium

Dec. 6 — Bangkok – Rajamangala National Stadium

Dec. 12 — Kuala Lumpur – TM Stadium Nasional

Dec. 13 — Kuala Lumpur – TM Stadium Nasional

Dec. 17 — Singapore – National Stadium

Dec. 19 — Singapore – National Stadium

Dec. 20 — Singapore – National Stadium

Dec. 22 — Singapore – National Stadium

Dec. 26 — Jakarta – Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium

Dec. 27 — Jakarta – Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium

Feb. 12 — Melbourne, AU — Marvel Stadium

Feb. 13 — Melbourne, AU — Marvel Stadium

Feb. 20 — Sydney, AU — Accor Stadium

Feb. 21 — Sydney, AU — Accor Stadium

March 4 — Hong Kong – Kai Tak Stadium

March 6 — Hong Kong – Kai Tak Stadium

March 7 — Hong Kong – Kai Tak Stadium

March 13 — Manila – Philippine Sports Stadium

March 14 — Manila – Philippine Sports Stadium

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to New Music Friday’s most essential releases each week — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

Last week, we featured Gracie Abrams, Drake and Maluma.

This week: Olivia Rodrigo shares the second single from her forthcoming You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, Lola Young returns with the hearty “From Down Here” and Charli xcx continues to tease her new album with “SS26” … plus much more. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Olivia Rodrigo, “The Cure”

From the first strummed chord of “The Cure” one thing becomes clear: indie-rocker Liv has entered the chat. Across the near five-minute song, Rodrigo flexes her singer-songwriter muscles as the initial riff continues on, resulting in a song that would sound just as good at a stripped down, acoustic open mic session (though she’s already been there, done that already for this cycle) as it would blaring through a stadium sound system. And once that bridge hits — introducing a swiftly sped up tempo for the song’s final minute — her upcoming Unraveled Tour name makes a whole lot more sense.

Lola Young, “From Down Here”

Following a Grammy win for best pop solo performance (“Messy”) and ahead of a celebrated return to headline All Things Go, Lola Young is sharing the soulful and soaring “From Down Here.” Co-written and co-produced by James Blake, his fingerprints are all over the track’s enticing layers. Together, each one helps create a plush sonic playground for Young’s vocals to jump around on — and in fact, it takes a voice like hers to not get lost in the sound but rather act as its guide no matter the vantage point.

Charli xcx, “SS26”

The second single from Charli’s upcoming album, once again, takes a turn down a new path (or, as she sings, down a “runway that goes straight to hell”). The surprisingly mid-tempo track puts Charli’s vocals at the forefront and feels far removed from the divisive lead single “Rock Music” — save for a subtle, unrelenting riff that at times leans heavy on fuzzy feedback. But really, it’s the writing that provokes a second play as Charli sings of the inevitable end of the world through the lens of a new spring/summer collection, concluding: “Nothing’s gonna save us, not music, fashion, or film.”

Bleachers, everyone for ten minutes

Focus track “we should talk,” from Bleachers’ fifth album that arrives on Friday (May 22), wastes no time setting the agenda for what exactly should be talked about. “We had a band, we had a life, we had dreams/ In a van we wrote our own Bible supreme/ Then you got a house, a lawn, a wife and a kid/ And those dreams turned to memories and that’s where it ends.” The flittering pop-rock track paints a picture a familiar crossroads between the life you’ve already lived and the one that feels fast approaching — and what you want to do about it.

Blondshell, Heart Has To Work So Hard

Indie rocker Blondshell is preparing for a big season ahead, announcing her biggest headlining shows for the fall and now launching her next cycle with the aching and angry “Heart Has To Work So Hard.” And while her distinct dismal tone stamps the song as only her own, the unrelenting production and musicianship create a new point of intriguing tension that could — and should — be explored more on a future project. As Blondshell shared in a statement: “This song is really about friendship and betrayal, getting stuck in a dynamic and letting things fester…but it’s also about a love so enduring that you find compassion no matter what.”

Dua Lipa is putting a bow on the Radical Optimism era with a gift for the fans. The “Levitating” singer turned her three-show run in Mexico City to close out the Radical Optimism Tour into a live album as Live From Mexico hit streaming services on Friday (May 22).

The live album boasts 21 tracks in total, which is filled with Dua hits like “Electricity,” “One Kiss,” “Levitating,” “Illusion,” “Don’t Start Now” and “Houdini.” There’s even a cover of Mana’s “Oye Mi Amor,” as Fher Olvera joined her for a surprise performance at the Estadio GNP Seguros show in December 2025.

“Live From Mexico the concert film is out now on YouTube and the album drops everywhere at midnight 2 of the most special years wrapped up into 2 hours.. the end of an era,” she wrote to social media on Thursday (May 21).

Dua continued: “I hope watching and listening to this shows the euphoria, the love, the blood sweat and tears and most importantly the radical optimism (!!) that we all shared on this tour, we will have it forever now so thank you!!!!”

Fans have the opportunity to purchase a CD or vinyl edition of Live From Mexico to commemorate their tour memories as well.

The pop star also shared a concert film for Live From Mexico, which was released on YouTube for free on Thursday (May 21), as fans could relive the thrills from the Radical Optimism Tour experience.

The Radical Optimism Tour came in support of Dua Lipa’s 2024 album Radical Optimism, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, earning 83,000 album equivalent units, according to Luminate.

The global trek scored Dua the third biggest tour of any from a pop star in 2025. According to Billboard Boxscore, the 30-year-old grossed more than $141 million with 1.2 million tickets sold throughout 59 shows.

Stream Live from Mexico below.

Mgk and Wiz Khalifa emerged as stars at the turn of the 2010s, and they’re paying homage to their breakthrough era with the Blog Era Boyz joint mixtape, which hit streaming services on Friday (May 22).

Wiz and Kels originally teamed up back in 2013 for “Mind of a Stoner,” and rekindled their working relationship in 2026. They duo joined forces for a pair of singles — “Girl Next Door” and “Everything Tatted” — to gain momentum heading into the collab tape more than a decade later.

Friendship and nostalgia power the mixtape, which boasts nine tracks in total. Mgk and the Pittsburgh rapper are also currently on the road together, so some fresh tunes from the duo made sense.

Wiz joined Kels for his Lost Americana Tour, which kicked off a second leg in California on May 15 and will be heading to Austin, Dallas, Atlanta, St. Louis, Toronto, Kansas City and Vancouver, B.C., before closing up shop in Ridgefield, Wash., on July 1 with a final date.

Mgk has been busy coming off of 2025’s Lost Americana, which went No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart. In April, the Cleveland native recruited Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst for “Fix Ur Face” in April, which topped the Hot Hard Rock Songs chart.

As for Wiz, he’s been a machine when it comes to keeping his fan base fed with new music this year. Through May, the “Black and Yellow” rapper has already been part of five projects outside of Blog Era Boyz, which includes Khaotic, helming the Moses the Black soundtrack, Girls Love Horses and the Roofless Records for Drop Tops double disc joint album with Curren$y.

Stream Blog Era Boyz below.