Bad Bunny is topping the charts in Canada for the first time.

The Puerto Rico native is No. 1 on Billboard Canadian Hot 100 with “DTMF,” which rises all the way from No. 16, while its namesake album, Debi Tirar Más Fotos, rises from No. 5 to No. 1 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart — both dated Feb. 21.

The chart-topping feat follows the success of Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show, which drew in the fourth biggest audience ever for a halftime set. Dubbed the “Benito Bowl” the performance was a call for unity in America, featuring artists including Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin and featured a Canada namedrop.

It’s the first time a Spanish language works top both charts at the same time.

In the top 10 of the Canadian Hot 100, Bad Bunny lands three other songs, all of which he performed at the Super Bowl: “Nuevayol,” which bounds 33-3 for a new high, and “Baile Inolvidable,” up 38-7, also a new best. Plus, “Tití Me Preguntó,” from 2022’s Un Verano Sin Ti, soars 91-8.

“EOO” momentously rises 70-15 and “Voy A Llevarte Pa PR” climbs 80-20. “Monaco” re-enters at No. 42, “MIA” featuring Drake hits No. 44, “Velda” featuring Omar Courtz & Dei V emerges at No. 52, securing a new peak along with the Jhay Cortex-featuring “Dakiti” Bad Bunny at No. 48. “I Like It,” his collaboration with Cardi B and J. Balvin, moves in at No. 54, “Weltita” featuring Chuwi scores a new high at No. 70 and “Perfumito Nuevo” featuring RaiNao re-enters at No. 88.

Bad Bunny’s hop to No. 1 on the Canadian Hot 100 dethrones Olivia Dean’s “Man I Need,” — which ascended to the top last week after spending 24 weeks on the ranking — and Don Toliver’s Octane, which drops to No. 3 on Canadian Albums.

On Canadian Albums, he scores three additional entries as Un Verano Sin Ti climbs 7-4, 2023’s Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va A Pasar Manana re-enters at No. 53 and 2020’s YHLQMDLG emerges at No. 63.

Bad Bunny’s chart-topping week is a key indicator that Canadians are tuned into Latin music. In 2024, a national report found that the genre was on a red-hot rise, but highlighted its need for support in the music industry. To reflect this, the forthcoming Juno Awards includes a Latin music recording of the year category.

Read more on the chart feat here. — Heather Taylor-Singh

NBA Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Becomes Part-Owner of Hamilton’s TD Coliseum

Canadian basketball star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has now heavily invested in his hometown of Hamilton, purchasing an ownership stake in that city’s downtown arena, the recently rejuvenated TD Coliseum.

The facility’s developer, U.S. company Oak View Group (OVG), announced the investment did not reveal any financial terms. The 18,000-seat TD Coliseum, originally Copps Coliseum and FirstOntario Centre, was renamed last year after a $300-million renovation and reopened as a music-first venue. Next month it will host the 2026 Juno Awards.

The NBA’s reigning most valuable player and Billboard cover star, the 27-year-old Gilgeous-Alexander plays for the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder. His investment is made through his charitable organization, the SGA Foundation, and the partnership includes naming the Ares Atrium inside the venue, as a tribute to his son.

“His investment reflects a desire to help position Hamilton on the world stage and bring world-class entertainment and sports to the city,” touts OVG. Gilgeous-Alexander adds that “growing up in Hamilton shaped who I am, so having the opportunity to help build something special in my hometown means everything.”

As a kid, Gilgeous-Alexander used to travel to Toronto with his younger brother and mother to attend concerts; now, he has helped to bring mainstream music back to Hamilton itself as an investor in the venue, with artists like Nine Inch Nails, Charlie Puth and GIVĒON performing there this year. Last August, Hamilton offered its prodigal son the key to the city and named a street in his honour.

The partnership will include events and programming at the arena through the SGA foundation and a new music production program for kids through the Hamilton Music Collective [HMC]. In partnership with the Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club, HMC has launched the SGA/HMC Musical Futures Production Program, funded through the 2K Foundations SGA Music Program, which will give over 250 young people the opportunity to explore music creation with mentorship by producers, film composers, recording artists and DJs.

Read more here. — Kerry Doole

Executive of the Week: Margaret McGuffin, CEO of Music Publishers Canada on Intellectual Property in the Age of AI

Music publishing is one of the least visible but most powerful forces in the music industry. In Canada, it’s also often one of the most misunderstood.

Canadian artists like Tate McRae, Justin Bieber and The Weeknd are rightfully celebrated for topping the charts, but an equally important export story is unfolding behind the scenes — one driven by songwriters, composers and the publishers who help their work travel the world. As in many other creative fields, Canadian producers and songwriters are well-represented in the writing credits of the world’s biggest hits by artists like Beyoncé, Dua Lipa, Benson Boone, Lady Gaga and Kpop Demon Hunters — even if you don’t know their names.

Margaret McGuffin, CEO of Music Publishers Canada, represents companies responsible for the vast majority of songs heard across streaming platforms, social media, film, television and games. The company creates opportunities for publishers and their clients, educates the industry and public about their role, runs trade missions, advocates and educates through programming and, most crucially at this moment, makes sure their work is properly paid.

As AI threatens to upend copyright for Canadian artists and rightsholders, McGuffin has been a fierce advocate for proper licensing. It’s a stance that others, like SOCAN and many musicians across the country, have also adopted as AI music accelerates.

McGuffin is not against AI, she stresses. In fact, she sees it as a good business opportunity for those in the field. But she wants to ensure that copyright is respected and royalties are paid to the right people.

“The idea that it isn’t possible to license, this is a myth being driven by tech companies who do not want to invest in the creators who are supplying what they’re using,” she says.

As she argued recently in the House of Commons, that doesn’t require a massive overhaul of the legislation. In fact, as her argument goes, the law already covers it. Those suggesting it’s more complicated than that are doing so to avoid paying.

“There is no grey area. People who say there is, don’t want to license,” she says.

Read the full Executive of the Week conversation here. — Richard Trapunski

Live Nation has quietly taken down a blog post in which its top lawyer publicly urged the Department of Justice (DOJ) to settle its antitrust case against the promotion giant without forcing the sale of Ticketmaster.

On Thursday (Feb. 19), Live Nation head of corporate and regulatory affairs Dan Wall argued in a post titled “It’s Time to Move On” that the DOJ has already lost its legal arguments for breaking up Live Nation and Ticketmaster. But as of Friday morning (Feb. 20), that post had become a dead link on Live Nation’s site.

Live Nation reps did not return inquiries from Billboard as to why the post was deleted.

A trial is currently scheduled to begin next month in the DOJ’s blockbuster legal action — in which it was joined by dozens of state attorneys general — that seeks to reduce Live Nation’s market share across the live music industry. The lawsuit alleges that Live Nation has monopolistically impeded competition — claims the company strongly denies.

Wall’s now-deleted blog post appealed to the DOJ to enter into a “realistic, common-sense” settlement rather than take the case to trial. It was an unusual public negotiating tactic, but not the first sign that Live Nation wants a deal; Semafor recently reported that Kellyanne Conway and Mike Davis, allies of President Donald Trump, are lobbying the administration on the company’s behalf.

The crux of Wall’s post was his interpretation of a key Wednesday (Feb. 18) court ruling in the lawsuit. In that ruling, Judge Arun Subramanian held that the trial should go forward on the legality of both Ticketmaster’s exclusive venue contracts and Live Nation’s policy of “tying” its artist promotion services to shows at its amphitheaters — though he ruled there’s insufficient evidence for the DOJ’s claim that the company has broadly monopolized the national concert promotion market.

Wall’s post argued that the ruling “undermines any serious argument for breaking up Live Nation and Ticketmaster.” He suggested the DOJ’s case has been seriously weakened now that it can no longer claim a concert promotions monopoly, and that the best path forward is a settlement that contains some “meaningful” relief without spinning off Ticketmaster.

Separately from Wall weighing in, the implications of Judge Subramanian’s Wednesday order are already being litigated in court. Live Nation’s outside lawyers filed papers on Thursday arguing that the dismissal of promotion-monopoly claims fatally dooms the tying allegations, and that the decision also should bar the DOJ from introducing evidence at trial that Live Nation allegedly threatened to withhold Live Nation acts from venues if they didn’t use Ticketmaster.

The government has been ordered to respond to these arguments by midday on Saturday (Feb. 21).