''Like, they'll always catch on to things that are completely wrong,'' she told Jimmy Fallon.

Billy Eff is the Content Director for Rolling Stone Canada. An award-winning journalist and columnist, he has previously contributed to outlets including VICE and Urbania. A passionate advocate for underground music and a musician himself, he has conducted several hundred interviews with artists and industry professionals across a wide range of styles and genres over the past 15 years. He is based in Montréal, Québec.

Tate McRae has seemingly taked a page out of Taylor Swift's notebook, dropping Easter eggs for her fans to find in her sets and social media posts.

However, the Canadian singer seems to believe her fans might not be astute as they think.

Appearing on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show on Wednesday, she revealed to the host that she drops ''Easter eggs all the time'', but that her fans ''get none of them.''''Like, they'll always catch on to things that are completely wrong,'' she told Fallon. ''They'll be like, 'Oh, she wore a sunglass, her next single is called Sunglass', and I'm like, 'What?' They never get the most obvious Easter eggs.''

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She goes on to explain that the title of her forthcoming single, ''Housewife'', was actually displayed on the screen at her Lollapalooza set earlier this summer, but her fans still couldn't figure it out.

The Calgary-born pop star will release ''Housewife'' next week, October 15. It will be accompanied by a video which was filmed in the South of France, according to McRae's revelations on The Tonight Show.

It's been a while since we had a new, unhinged update from everyone's favourite uncancelleable entertainer, Azealia Banks. After years of criticizing Israel, to the point where her comments have their own section on her Wikipedia page (which is a fascinating read), the 212 rapper has moved to Tel Aviv.

"If you would have told me years ago id end up moving to Tel Aviv and liking it, I would have said youre crazy 🤪🇮🇱," she shared on X on Tuesday, October 6. She has also said she is working on new music with Israeli producer Yinon Yahel and has found the country’s music scene unusually welcoming.

In 2018, Banks performed in Tel Aviv and subsequently said she would never return to Israel after describing experiences she characterized as racist. She even told her followers that her Israeli fans would have to travel to see her because she would not be coming back.

In 2025, Banks returned to Tel Aviv and performed while wearing an Israeli flag and Star of David necklace. Around the same period, she became an outspoken supporter of Israel and identified herself as a Zionist, while attacking the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement as antisemitic. She also argued against the idea of a Palestinian state and said Palestinian territory should instead be part of Israel.

Then, in March 2026, amid the war involving Israel and Iran, Banks publicly turned on Israel again, writing that she hoped Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was dead and declaring, "F*** ISRAEL." She criticized Israel's actions and said she no longer supported the country.Azealia Banks is scheduled to perform her first concert in her new hometown tomorrow, October 8, at at the Tel Aviv Amphitheater.

Olivia Rodrigo attends the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscar Party in March in Los Angeles

Olivia Rodrigo originally planned to hit the stage at her inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival in August in an iconic floor-length, flowing white gown. The singer-songwriter had purchased the exact vintage Gunne Sax maxi dress Meg White wore on the cover of the White Stripes’ 2003 album Elephant, released the same year she was born. But the heat had other plans.

Looking at the forecast for Great Park in Irvine, California, Rodrigo realized it was “too fucking hot,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “Maybe if I do Daisy Chain in the winter, I can wear it.”

Julien’s Auctions estimated the dress, which Tracee Mae Miller pulled from her closet for the shoot, to be worth between $4,000 and $6,000. When it went to auction, it sold for $25,600, an “exorbitant amount of money” per Rodrigo. But according to the listing, it did at least come with a copy of Elephant on CD.

Regardless, the White Stripes and Rodrigo are aligned in other ways. While the band fronted by Jack White couldn’t have been included on the all-woman festival inspired by Lilith Fair, Rodrigo stands proudly alongside White and other artists who aren’t shying away from using their platform to speak politics.

“When Lilith Fair was happening 30 years ago, women in America had more rights, had more autonomy over their bodies,” Rodrigo said. “I’ve always felt really protective of my young fans, and when I play a show and I look out into the audience and see young girls with their friends or their moms or their families, I feel such a kinship with them. And if I could be a small part in making the world a safer and better place for them to grow up and live, that’s what I want.”

Rodrigo “one hundred percent” saw Daisy Chain Fields as political. The event, which she organized over the course of a year-and-a-half and jokes felt more like a wedding, donated net earnings in the amount of $10 million to nonprofits benefiting women and girls, including National Domestic Workers Alliance, Planned Parenthood, National Institute for Reproductive Health, and more. Melinda French Gates later matched the donation, bringing the total revenue raised to $20 million.

“Daisy Chain is a real example to me of how it actually is a real power that you can use for good,” Rodrigo said. “I can call Karen O and ask her if she wants to be a part of this festival. I can try and rally all these troops together to raise $20 million for these causes that I really care about.” She also sees the festival as a celebration of joy. “I think the two things can exist at the same time, they kind of have to.”

She added, “I think young people have lost hope in our leaders and lost hope in each other. I really wanted to galvanize people and be evidence of what can happen when you come together and are part of something and contribute.”

The Backstreet Boys are adding even more dates to their Toronto residency.

The group announced two additional Rogers Centre concerts on February 26 and 27, expanding their Into The Millennium – HOMECOMING: Live in Canada residency to eight officially announced dates. The new shows come just two days after the band added February 14 and 21 to the original four-date run.

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The Backstreet Boys cited “overwhelming demand” for the latest additions. The Toronto residency now runs February 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 26 and 27, with all eight concerts, their only shows in North America, taking place at Rogers Centre.

The shows are built around Millennium, the group’s 1999 blockbuster, with the concert production featuring hits including “I Want It That Way” and “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)”.

General public tickets for the newly added shows are scheduled to go on sale Friday, October 9 at 10 a.m. ET.

Toronto will also host the Backstreet Boys YYZ Terminal, a temporary fan experience inspired by the airport imagery on the Millennium album cover, with official merchandise, photo opportunities and fan events planned throughout the residency.

Sean "Diddy" Combs

Sean Combs has been ordered to pay nearly $500,000 in legal fees after losing his defamation lawsuit against NBCUniversal for its 2025 Peacock documentary, Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy.

A New York state judge ordered the Bad Boy founder to pay NBCUniversal’s high-paid lawyers $477,700 for bringing the unsuccessful suit, which was dismissed in April. (Combs filed an appeal.) Although Combs owes nearly half a million dollars, that is a significant reduction from the $990,000 legal bill the attorneys originally sought, according to court papers filed Tuesday.

A representative for Combs did not immediately return Rolling Stone‘s request for comment.

Combs had filed the $100 million lawsuit against the network in February 2025, claiming the documentary promoted conspiracy theories and “maliciously advanc[ed] the unhinged narrative that Mr. Combs is a serial killer” by highlighting the deaths of The Notorious B.I.G. and his ex-partner Kim Porter.

“[The documentary] shamelessly advances conspiracy theories that lack any foundation in reality, repeatedly insinuating that Mr. Combs is a serial killer because it cannot be a ‘coincidence’ that multiple people in Mr. Combs’s orbit have died,” the 17-page lawsuit claimed. “[Amplifying these claims] with absolutely no evidence or logic to stand on and in the face of clear evidence to the contrary – Defendants spread fake news of the most damaging kind.”

But earlier this year, a judge rejected Combs’ claim that he was defamed, noting in a 12-page decision that the documentary makers did not act irresponsibly or defame him.

“It is inconceivable as to how the Documentary created additional damage to [Combs’] reputation, which was already tarnished by the numerous lawsuits, domestic violence video, press coverage, and a criminal indictment before the Documentary’s publication,” the judge wrote.

This isn’t the only hefty legal bill Combs is facing. Last month, his longstanding civil lawyers who had been representing him in the NBC case, as well as numerous sexual assault lawsuits, withdrew from their representation of the multi-millionaire. They cited a “total breakdown in cooperation and communication” and at least six months of outstanding legal bills.

Combs is currently serving a 50-month prison sentence after he was convicted last summer of transportation to engage in prostitution charges. He was acquitted of the more serious offenses of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.

His current release date is scheduled for March 2028, a recent change after he was reportedly caught using a contraband cell phone to scroll on Instagram.

Olivia Rodrigo, Slayyyter, and Olivia Dean are likely nominees for Best Pop Solo Performance at the 2027 Grammys.

Leading up to the Grammy nominations on Nov. 16, “Rolling Stone” is breaking down 11 different categories. For each, we’re predicting the nominees, as well as who will (and who should) win on Grammy night.

The Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance was introduced 14 years ago, merging Best Female, Male, and Instrumental Pop Vocal Performance into one category. Among its biggest winners are vocal powerhouses Adele and Olivia Rodrigo, though the category is not without its surprises. Lola Young won for her quietly powerful performance of “Messy” in 2026, beating out nominees Lady Gaga and Sabrina Carpenter, while 2025 saw Miley Cyrus’ ubiquitous “Flowers” win the accolade. Best Pop Solo Performance can be a space where the Recording Academy recognizes — and perhaps awards — artists with songs that truly connect with the world, regardless of vocal chops.

Brooke Reese, the host of Apple Music’s Global Chart Show, says that beyond radio play and chart domination, audiences appreciate an evocative and vulnerable performance, which doesn’t always require jaw-dropping vocals. Music fans want pop music that makes them feel something, whether it’s to get up and dance, quietly weep, or scream along. When it comes to this year’s nominees, “People need authenticity,” Reese says. “I think we’re all just craving that.”

Olivia Dean, “So Easy (To Fall in Love)”Olivia Rodrigo, “Drop Dead”Slayyyter, “Brand New Chanel$”Sombr, “Homewrecker”Harry Styles, “American Girls”

Olivia Dean, “So Easy (To Fall in Love)”The British pop singer had a major breakthrough last year after winning Best New Artist, and is already shaping up to be a Grammy favorite. Her sophomore effort The Art of Loving was released last September, after the eligibility period ended for the 2026 ceremony, so all those songs are fair play, including the bossa nova swooner “So Easy (To Fall in Love).” “Olivia Dean is an artist I love and adore, [I] just knew there was something special about her,” Reese says. “The minute that The Art of Loving came out, I felt like there was nothing like it at the time.” Dean’s vocals are syrupy sweet and evocative, fitting the idea of what many would consider a true “performance,” and the track has been everywhere in the year since it was released. Grammy voters will have a hard time not falling in love with Dean’s charm.

Olivia Rodrigo, “Drop Dead”Rodrigo had already been writing Grammy-winning love songs since her debut in 2021; “Driver’s License” won this award in 2022 and she’s poised to take it home again with “Drop Dead.” Rodrigo’s third album You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love displayed a marked maturity in her artistry and its lead single, “Drop Dead,” melds her greatest sensibilities into an infectious lovesick ditty. Her voice on the starry-eyed chorus helps check off the capital-P performance criteria, and she gets kudos for letting her inner theater kid come out on the quirky second verse. Her tangible growth, too, should resonate with the Recording Academy (the Livies certainly notice it). “[Rodrigo is] one of those young female artists who knows exactly who she is and exactly the stories she wants to tell,” Reese says. “She’s grown through her last few projects, especially into this one.”

This year’s nominees are a series of battles: Olivia versus Olivia, America versus England, the old versus the new guard. Dean and Sombr were among last year’s nominees for Best New Artist, though their recorded work fell outside of the eligibility period, so we may end up seeing pop’s newest voices usurping seats in the category from the genre’s biggest voices (Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, etc.). “We’re gonna see a big wave of [Best New Artists nominees] because they were just on the cusp of huge moments with their music,” Reese says. “I feel like we’ll see more of them at the 2027 Grammy Awards. “

More than ever, Reese says, people are connecting with authenticity. “With social media, there’s nowhere to hide. You can’t not be who you are … The more authenticity we’re getting from artists and their performances, the more people are going to connect with it.” That’s why she believes soft-rock sad boy Sombr may receive a nomination in this category and beyond. “He is one of my favorite artists right now,” she says. “There’s something so brilliant in his vulnerability.” She also recognizes he’s taken naysayers’ opinions as a challenge to improve on his craft. “Instead of letting it break him, he took it and said, ‘OK, let me prove to you why I’m doing what I do.’”

That’s also why Reese believes electroclash star Slayyyter could nab a nomination. Slayyyter was ready to hang things up as she released her third album Wor$t Girl in America this spring, but the combination of a fiery Coachella performance, TikTok trends, and an album stuffed with good-ass pop music led to one of the year’s most notable breakthroughs, seven years after she dropped her debut mixtape. “Brand New Chanel$” will appear on her companion follow-up to WGIA$, and is one of her most accessible (and best) songs yet. “I feel like this is [Slayyyter’s] time,” Reese declares. “Slayyyter has never changed who she is or the type of music she’s made. In the likes of Charli XCX, she’s never strayed from who she is to fit in.” Reese also notes Slayyyter spent years cultivating her sound and fanbase without once sacrificing her true self. “Everybody finally caught on.”

Where does this leave pop prince Harry Styles, who swept at his last Grammys with Harry’s House? Like so many before him, Styles found transcendence at the techno club on his newest album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally, and previously won Best Pop Solo Performance for “Watermelon Sugar.” This combo of dominance and vulnerability means he could take the category once again with “American Girls,” where he struts to the discotheque looking for love (and with tears in his eyes). Either way, the trend report of the 2027 Grammys is this: vulnerability is in.