The year isn’t half over, but Shaboozey’s already had a great 2024: After collaborating on two tracks for Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter, the Nigerian-American singer-songwriter-producer has a hit of his own with “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” currently hovering in the Top Five of the pop charts. On Friday, May 17, Shaboozey stopped by Brooklyn’s intimate Baby’s All Right for a raucous yet intimate show. Check out these exclusive photos.
Oliver Tree
Oliver Tree, the eccentric singer known for viral hits like “Alien Boy” and “Life Goes On,” has died at the age of 32 following a helicopter crash in Rio de Janeiro.
The musician born Oliver Tree Nickell was one of six people killed when two helicopters collided mid-air over the Brazilian city; Rio de Janeiro police told the Associated Press that Tree was on one of the helicopter’s passenger list, with CNN Brazil confirming that Tree was on board at the time of the crash.
The musician, who initially recorded under the name “Tree,” formed a following by self-releasing his own music over the Internet in the 2010s, including a Thom Yorke-approved cover of Radiohead’s “Karma Police” that featured on his debut EP Demons.
After attending CalArts, Tree returned to making music in 2016, including releasing his first official single “Welcome to LA.” Known for his quirky look and viral, self-directed music videos — visuals he would later accuse other artists of ripping off — Tree soon became a favorite on TikTok and the festival circuit, culminating with his debut album Ugly Is Beautiful in 2020.
Tree’s second album Cowboy Tears — “a country album for people who don’t like country,” he said of the LP — arrived in 2022, followed 18 months later by 2023’s Alone in a Crowd. Earlier this year, Tree returned to his independent roots to release his fourth album Love You Madly Hate You Badly via his own Alien Boy Records.In May, the singer announced plans to embark on Oliver Tree World’s First World Tour; the South American leg of the trek began May 30 in Mexico and concluded with Tree’s final concert, a June 6 show in Sao Paolo.
Olivia Rodrigo performs in concert during Primavera Sound 2026 at Parc Del Forum on June 06, 2026 in Barcelona, Spain.
Welcome to our weekly rundown of the best new music — featuring big singles, key tracks from our favorite albums, and more. This week, Olivia Rodrigo dances her way into her sweetheart’s arms on a standout from You Seem Pretty Sad, New York rockers Interpol offer a first look into their new album, and L’Rain alchemizes distortion and harmony on an avalanche of a track. Plus, new music from Tove Lo, Mon Laferte, the Menzingers, Rose Gray, and Nick Hakim.
Olivia Rodrigo, “U + Me = <3” (YouTube)
Interpol, “This Mirror Weighs a Ton” (YouTube)
L’Rain, “Soulless Cycle” (YouTube)
Tove Lo, Stromae, “Des Fleurs X Stromae” (YouTube)
Mon Laferte, “A Pesar De Ti y De Mí” (YouTube)
The Menzingers, “Better Angels” (YouTube)
Goose, “Good Times // End Times” (YouTube)
Rose Gray, “Club to Your Arms” (YouTube)
Kelsey Lu, “Cutting Off the Head of a Ghost” (YouTube)
Rick Ross feat. T.I. “Mahogany Caskets” (YouTube)
Alan Vuong, “For Certain?!” (YouTube)
Nick Hakim, “I Can See” (YouTube)
Slow Pulp, “Better Man” (YouTube)
Eartheater, “Crown Jewel” (YouTube)
Infinity Song, “Sayonara” (YouTube)
Erick the Architect, “No Doubt (I’m In Love)” (YouTube)
Adéla, “Red Bottoms” (YouTube)
Molly Santana, “Can’t Touch This” (YouTube)
Midland feat. Clint Black, “Up In Texas” (YouTube)
Facta, “T66” (YouTube)
Sylvan Esso, “Hot Slob” (YouTube)
Overmono, Kindora, “Even Angels Ghost” (YouTube)
Anysia Kym, Tony Seltzer, FearDorian, “Do 4 U – FearDorian Flip” (YouTube)
Wiki, “IHNY” (YouTube)
Hank Heaven, “Thread” (YouTube)
Morrissey
Morrissey has an update from the Web Sheriff, an anti-piracy company he wrote on his website is helping him get to the bottom of “the very worst case of online identity fraud,” stating that there are “nine individuals masquerading as Morrissey operating on behalf of various political groups.”
The former Smiths frontman first voiced his concerns about being impersonated online in April 2025. At the time, he warned fans via Morrissey Central about his identity being used across social media and fake websites. The post read, “Emerging online data is falsely signed in Morrissey’s name in an attempt to associate the artist with false narratives designed to destroy his career.”
Morrissey’s latest catch up with the Web Sheriff, who contacted his former manager Merck Mercuriadis, thickens the plot. The nine individuals believed to be impersonating the musician, a new Morrissey Central post reads, includes someone who “had connections to an ex-member of The Smiths.” There are two others, it continues, who are connected to “a generally unsupportive ‘Morrissey’ website operating in the US.”
The post clarifies that Morrissey’s online presence is limited to Morrissey Central, even going so far as to stress that he has never owned a smartphone. His concern with the impersonations, it continues, is that “their commentaries severely harmed Morrissey’s status and character.”
Now, Morrissey is gearing up to enter the next phase of addressing the situation he previously said is “one of the worst and most malicious ever seen” by the Web Sheriff.
“The planned operation to take police action against the nine individuals requires appointment of two legal firms,” the new post reads. “The financial commitment of extensive and unremitting expenditure is outside of Morrissey’s personal capacity to shoulder. The next move is under consideration.”
Taylor Swift was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 11, 2026.
Taylor Swift reflected on her career and celebrated the craft of songwriting as she was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame Thursday, June 11, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.
Swift began her speech by sharing that when asked by the institution who she wanted to have induct her, she named Steven Spielberg. Within an hour, the legendary director and his wife, actress Kate Capshaw, were on the phone with Swift; Spielberg said he would be “thrilled to be here.” Swift, who was “blown away” by his answer, asked if it would be difficult for him to attend the ceremony as his film, Disclosure Day, was releasing at midnight on the same day. That’s when Capshaw responded with words of wisdom Swift will never forget: “Good and true things are easy.”
The Grammy-winning singer continued, “If I look back at my entire 23 year career in music, the ups and downs, the industry battles, the trials and tribulations, the tears and the cheers, and the dog piling of doubt, the criticisms of fair and unfair, the complete loss of privacy, the world tours and the ego wars and the twists of fate, the absolute magical chaos of this path that I chose when I was too young to remember it ever being a choice at all: songwriting was the easiest thing I ever did.” Swift added, “Not because it didn’t take effort — definitely did — not that it wasn’t frustrating at times — because it could be — and not that my songwriting didn’t haunt me relentlessly until I cracked the perfect internal rhyme scheme for the third line, the second verse of the hook, where my teachers called me out in class without paying attention — because that definitely happened.”
Swift recalled her parents telling her stories from her childhood of the young singer on drives home from watching Disney movies and singing songs from the films, except she “was changing the lyrics and the melodies to be about my own life.”
In an emotional moment during her speech, Swift said that it “couldn’t have been easy for my parents and brother to pick up and move our entire family from Pennsylvania to relocate to Nashville, so that I could hone my craft in the songwriting capital of the world.” Addressing them directly, she said, “Even though words are supposed to kind of be my thing, I will never be able to express my gratitude to you guys for doing that for me. You’re the reason I’m here tonight.”
Earlier in the night, Sombr, who appeared on the red carpet and posed for photos with Swift, sang a rendition of her beloved Folklore track “Cardigan” and her biting ballad, “Dear John.” When taking the stage later, Swift thanked Sombr and called his performance “perfect.”
During the event, Swift sat with her fiancé and Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce along with their mothers Andrea Swift and Donna Kelce. Spielberg also sat at their table next to Swift.
Swift, at 36, is the youngest female artist to be inducted into the prestigious institution, and the second youngest artist to earn the honor. She’s just three years older than Stevie Wonder was when he became the youngest Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee in 1983 at the age of 33.
Songwriters become eligible for the Songwriters Hall of Fame 20 years after the commercial release of their first song. Swift, unsurprisingly, was a first-ballot inductee, with her debut track, “Tim McGraw,” arriving in 2006 when she was just 15 years old.
This isn’t the first time Swift’s been recognized by the Songwriters Hall of Fame either. Back in 2010, she received the Hal David Starlight Award, named after the late legendary lyricist (and former Hall of Fame chairman), and established to honor young songwriters at an apex in their careers. (The recipient of Hal David Starlight prize this year will be Raye.)
Along with Swift, the 2026 Songwriters Hall of Fame class boasts Alanis Morissette, Kenny Loggins, Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Kiss’ Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, Terry Britten and Graham Lyle, and Walter Afanasieff.
Swift’s Songwriters Hall of Fame honor comes just a week after she released a new song, “I Knew It, I Knew You,” for the Toy Story 5 soundtrack. Swift co-wrote and produced the song with longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff, marking their first collaboration since 2024’s The Tortured Poets Department. Swift released her most recent album, The Life of a Showgirl, last October.
Lil Wayne at the BottleRock festival on May 22, 2026 in Napa, California.
A judge has ordered a security guard and his lawyer to pay Lil Wayne $29,225, plus the Grammy-winning musician’s legal fees, after their lawsuit accusing the “Lollipop” rapper of striking the man while holding a gun was thrown out.
According to a judgment signed Wednesday and obtained by Rolling Stone, plaintiff Christian Carlos and his lawyer are jointly liable for the monetary sanctions and legal costs after the court ruled in April that they repeatedly disobeyed orders. The judge subsequently terminated the lawsuit and scrapped a trial set for August.
“The court is granting terminating sanctions because plaintiff willfully refused to comply with three discovery orders over nearly ten months, made affirmative misrepresentations to the court about compliance, and has still provided no responses as of April 21, 2026,” the judge said in a recent ruling. Lawyers for Lil Wayne and Carlos did not respond to Rolling Stone‘s requests for comment on Thursday.
Carlos filed his lawsuit in December 2023. The security staffer claimed the musician, born Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., pointed a semiautomatic rifle at him “as a threat” and punched him in the ear with a fist during an incident at the rapper’s residence in Hidden Hills, California.
“Plaintiff suffered severe emotional distress, requiring him to seek mental health treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) stemming directly from this incident,” the lawsuit said. Carlos claimed he racked up medical expenses from the alleged assault and battery and lost both wages and earning capacity.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department previously told Rolling Stone it was investigating a “verbal altercation” involving a security staffer and an adult male who allegedly “brandished a firearm” on Dec. 1, 2021 at the Hidden Hills address. The department didn’t name Carter specifically, but it issued the statement in response to a request naming the rapper.
Anonymous law enforcement sources reportedly told TMZ that the dispute involved Carter accusing the security guard of taking photos and leaking them to the media. Sources close to Carter denied the incident took place and said the rapper didn’t own a gun, TMZ reported.
