“I absolutely love doing covers. It’s such a joy to offer my perspective on songs I admire and spread the word about amazing artists" - California folk singer-songwriter Shannon Lay said sharing her cover of Elliott Smnith's 'Angeles'. "'Covers Vol. 1' is the first in a series of cover records celebrating my obsession with shannonizing songs” - Lay announced her new album, out April 14th.
British musician Will Pearce likes insects and music, so he combines these two affections and shares it with the world. He makes lovely little songs about insects, especially beetles, such as mole beetle, and crucifix ground beetle. But, Pearce also comes out of the exoskeleton, singing about grass, toads, bees, and other beings from nature.
Neil Young performed last weekend in Victoria, British Columbia at the United For Old Growth march and rally, aimed at protecting old-growth trees and promoting “forest stewardship.” In his first live appearance since Farm Aid in September 2019 he said: “I’m only here for those trees up there. It’s a precious, sacred thing, these old trees. They show us the power of nature when we are being threatened. They show us the past. They show us our future. That’s something that I hope our Canadian government and business section will recognize. This has to do with Canada. It has to do with the ages, if we’re lucky enough to have ages. These trees have lasted so long. They deserve Canada’s respect.” Then he played 'Heart of Gold'.
"In recent years, Kyiv’s vibrant and progressive dance scene earned the city the nickname 'new Berlin'. Amazingly, the war hasn’t stopped the scene from thriving, and many Ukrainian DJs and promoters have managed to make the most out of the dire circumstance" - Vice goes to Ukraine to check the pulse on the nation's clubbing scene. Harry Pledov, musician and event organiser, believes partying is important since it provides a feeling of normalcy - "as the war drags on, everyone understands the importance of partying.” Also, he notes that the war has given the Ukrainian electronic music scene a huge boost - “International DJs no longer dare to come because of the shelling. And we’ve gotten rid of anything related to Russian culture – the songs, videos and movies that were popular. We now see it as our mission to fill that gap with Ukrainian culture.”
R Kelly has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for child sex crime charges, the New York Times reports. He was found guilty in 6 of the 13 counts against him, including three counts of coercing minors into sexual activity and three of producing sex tapes involving a minor. Kelly will serve 19 of his 20 years concurrently with another separate sentence he is serving, a 30-year bid for racketeering and sex trafficking.
Greg Prato interviewed over 20 musicians, friends, and admirers of his music for his latest book 'Lanegan' about the iconic frontman of Screaming Trees and solo artist. Nick Oliveri (ex-Queens of the Stone Age, ex-Kyuss) has an interesting story to tell: "Mark said he wrote some lyrics on 'Something in the Way' with Kurt on 'Nevermind'. But Kurt had played on some of Mark’s solo stuff, 'The Winding Sheet'. So, instead of getting paid, they just did this thing where, 'Hey man, I added a lyric on your song and you added a lyric on my song. Let’s just call it even. Whatever happens, happens.' Little did Mark know, if he would have had publishing on 'Something in the Way' on 'Nevermind', he would have had a lot of money. I remember him kicking himself in the butt a little bit about that – 'If I had that ‘Something in the Way’ publishing…'" Consequence picks out several quotes.
Concerts giant Live Nation generated revenues of $16.7 billion in 2022, with the concerts business being its primary revenue driver, generating $13.5 billion in 2022. The company also says that it "invested $9.6 billion in putting on artists’ shows in 2022" and claims to be "the largest contributor to artist income".
Spotify has launched a new AI feature called “DJ” which will deliver a curated selection of music, The Verge reports. It also features AI-powered spoken commentary about the tracks and artists, using a “stunningly realistic voice.” The idea is for Spotify to get to know users so well that the DJ can choose what to play. Spotify feels this is life putting an “AI DJ in your pocket.”
Taylor Swift has been named the Global Recording Artist Chart for 2022 by the IFPI, the global recorded music trade body. This chart is the only global ranking to accurately measure consumption across all formats, including streaming formats, digital and physical album and singles sales and all countries. The IFPI’s Top 20 list reveals, in order, the artists who generated the most money last year globally across streaming, download, and physical record sales combined in 2022. Here it its:
Harry Styles had the world’s best-selling single of the year across all digital formats last year – including paid subscription streaming, ad-supported platforms, and single-track downloads with his single 'As It Was', making him the winner of IFPI’s Global Single Award for 2022. His single 'As It Was', according to IFPI, generated 2.28 billion global subscription stream equivalent units last year.
