"It’s an album made after she thought she had let music go for a while, until it crept back in as a reliable constant while she started acting and scoring films, studied for a degree in psychology, embraced a fulfilling relationship, and became a parent. A lesser artist would find a cheap fulfillment narrative in […]
The Matthew Herbert Brexit Big Band's new album 'The State Between Us' features over 1,000 musicians across Europe, and it’s set to be released on March 29—the day the U.K. is scheduled to leave the European Union. Herbert created the new record using “the sounds of World War II planes in flight, the dismantling of a […]
A new video has surfaced proving that Kelly definitely knew Aaliyah was only 15 at the time of their marriage. The clip is taken from a 1994 documentary and unequivocally sees Kelly acknowledging Aaliyah’s age (watch it here). “Right now I’m producing a very talented lady — a young lady,” Kelly narrates in one of the scenes, […]
In recent weeks, passengers at New York’s JFK airport have reported hearing TSA agents blast explicit, uncensored versions of rap songs over the loudspeakers. 'Sicko Mode' by Travis Scott and Drake, as well as 'Lift Yourself' by Kanye West have been heard. Other tracks from Beastie Boys and Ludacris have also apparently been in rotation. […]
After a video of congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dancing to Phoenix' 'Lisztomania' in college surfaced on the Internet last week, the 2009 song had a 192 percent increase in on-demand streams (audio and video combined) in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 10 (watch the video here). It jumped from 1.07 million streams in the […]
Rapper Vic Mensa's pseudo punk-band 93PUNX released a cover of the Cranberries’ 'Zombie', on the anniversary of Dolores O’Riordan’s death (listen to it on Stereogum). Maybe a wee bit grandiose and glam for a 1990s alt-rock band. Her surviving bandmates are back as well with the lead single 'All Over Now' from their final album […]
Namibian artist Max Siedentopf has set up a sound installation Toto forever in the coastal Namib Desert to play the song 'Africa' by Toto on loop. He has chosen an undisclosed spot in the 55-million-year-old Namib desert to set up six speakers attached to an MP3 player with the single track on it. Mr Siedentopf […]
Rihanna claims her father, Ronald Fenty, and his business partner have falsely suggested that she is connected to their firm, Fenty Entertainment. Their conduct has misled the public and hurt her Fenty brand, the name of her beauty business. Mr Fenty, with whom Rihanna has said she has a difficult relationship, started the firm in […]
'Shallow', performed by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in 'A Star is Born', was named best song at the 2019 Critics' Choice Awards. 'Shallow' also won best original song at the 2019 Golden Globes on Jan. 6. (Billboard). Lady Gaga took home the award for best actress that same night, in a tie with Glenn Close […]
Outkast's Big Boi and Travis Scott have been confirmed to join Maroon 5 at their upcoming Super Bowl halftime show. Scott only agreed to perform at the sporting event on the condition that the NFL make a donation to a social justice cause, which they did, to social justice accelerator Dream Corps. Numerous stars refused […]
R Kelly's daughter Buku Abi, real name Joann Kelly, posted on Instagram saying she was "devastated" by the recent accusations in the documentary 'Surviving R Kelly'. The 20-year-old said she hasn't seen or spoken to him in years, calling him a "monster" and a "terrible" father (BBC). Guardian emphasizes how this docu-series is a watershed […]
A very nice article on Stereogum in their segment Breaks With Tradition, where they broke into segments Led Zeppelin's 'When The Levee Breaks', with John Bonham's drumming being the focal point. BWT examines a certain song that’s been frequently sampled and how that song has been used through the years.
Missy Elliott is one of the six artists in the 2019 class officially inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In addition to being the first female rapper included in the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Missy is only the third rapper to be inducted. All Hip Hop...
Robbie Williams is “blasting Black Sabbath music” at his neighbour, Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, over a home extension row, a letter signed 'Jonny' to their London council has said. It also states the singer has played Pink Floyd and Deep Purple songs at high volume, knowing “this upsets” the Led Zeppelin star. The correspondent […]
Last year there were 16.8 million vinyl albums sold in USA, up 14.6 percent from 2017., marking the 13th consecutive year of growth for the format. 16.8 million is also a new yearly high for vinyl album sales since Nielsen Music began tracking sales in 1991. Ten biggest selling vinyls were 'Guardians of the Galaxy' […]
Twenty years ago a new movement blending eastern sounds with electro and drum’n’bass arrived to give a generation of young British Asians a vibrant new voice. Guardian questions why did it fade away so quickly?
For 20 years R Kelly has faced numerous accusations of sexual misconduct - with many of the stories alleging he preyed on teenage girls. But the singer has never been convicted and denies any wrongdoing, and nothing really happened, until US channel Lifetime released a six-part documentary called 'Surviving R Kelly' - which has been […]
In an interview for American GQ, Frank Ocean explained why he decided to open his Instagram account for the public: "I feel like there was dissonance between how I was seen by the audience and where I was actually, so that contributed to the decision to make my Instagram public, for sure. But there's also […]
"Unpredictability is a rare and rather valuable commodity in a world of media-trained personalities and music dictated by the metrics of streaming services, and it’s something 'Why Hasn’t Everything Already Disappeared?' has in abundance. Far less aesthetically cohesive than 'Monomania' or 'Fading Frontier', it never settles, skipping without warning from harpsichord-bedecked psych-pop to icy Tubeway […]
The Queen biopic 'Bohemian Rhapsody' will give moviegoers an opportunity to rock out with the film - it will be released as a sing-along in more than 750 theaters in North America on Friday (Jan. 11). “We are delighted to give audiences the opportunity to see this outstanding Golden Globe-winning film featuring Rami Malek’s amazing Golden […]
The movie 'Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile' about serial killer Ted Bundy, starring Metallica's James Hetfield will premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Hetfield portrays Officer Bob Hayward, the first police officer who arrested Bundy. The fest will be held between Jan. 24 an Feb. 3. 'Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile' also stars Zac […]
Super Bowl’s half-time slot this year has become more about politics than music - musicians are deciding not to perform on the show next month in support of Colin Kaepernick, the star quarterback who refused to stand for the national anthem in protest at police brutality against racial minorities. The fact that the Super Bowl […]
Lady Gaga has apologised for working with R Kelly on duet 'Do What U Want' and said she intends to remove the song from download and streaming services. Kelly has been accused by numerous women of violent and controlling behaviour, including keeping them, some while under the age of consent, in what’s been described as […]
Coachella released its lineup last night, and its depth and singularity are surprising. There is a reason that Coachella has stuck around for so long, and it lies with its ability to innovate, to take risks, and to understand and respond to the cultural zeitgeist that each year encapsulates. This year, against all odds, California […]
British artists, blockbuster film soundtracks, vibrant streaming growth & resilient demand for physical formats combine to fuel a near 6% rise in music consumption in 2018 – the fourth year of growth in a row. A total of 142.9 million albums or their equivalent were either streamed, purchased on physical format, and/or downloaded over the […]
Guardian made a list of 15 of the best finger-pointing, hip-wiggling hits, form Limp Bizkit's 'Rollin'' to Village People's 'YMCA'.
John Legend is the highest profile musician to participate in Lifetime’s new R. Kelly documentary series 'Surviving R. Kelly'. Filmmaker and executive producer Dream Hampton, she had reached out to many of Kelly’s other contemporaries, including Mary J. Blige, Lil’ Kim, Erykah Badu, Dave Chappelle, Lady Gaga, and JAY-Z, but all of them passed on […]
Pegi Young, a musician, an activist, and Neil Young's former wife, died on New Year's Day following a yearlong battle with cancer. After singing back-up on Neil Young’s tours, she started her career as a solo musician with her debut self-titled album in 2007. She released five albums and fronted a band called Pegi Young […]
1. Deafheaven: 'Ordinary Corrupt Human Love' 2. Sons Of Kemet: 'Your Queen Is a Reptile' 3. Møl: 'Jord' 4. Mitski: 'Be The Cowboy' 5. Earl Sweatshirt: 'Some Rap Songs' 6. NoName: 'Room 25' 7. Rivers of Nihil: 'Where Owls Know My Name' 8. Pusha T: 'Daytona' 9. Kendrick Lamar: 'Bad Kid Chill City' 10. Kids […]
Using a ghostwriter is basically a sin in the rap world - but it's something Drake, Jay-Z and Kanye West have all been accused of. "So many rappers work with writers and it's such a blurred line now with people doing the melodic stuff as well", British rapper Ms Banks tells BBC. There's also high-level camps […]
"She enjoyed fashion and had a performer’s joy in being looked at, in satin, silks, heels and hairstyles" - the Guardian writes about the fashion choices Billie Holiday made, and what they meant. "For a Black woman in the US at that time, this glamour could be seen as a kind of resistance, too... People said, ‘How dare she wear diamonds, how dare she wear fur,’ but she dressed as a woman of her stature should have. She represented herself exactly as she wanted to and that in itself was revolutionary”. Lee Daniels’ film 'The United States Vs Billie Holiday' is released this week.
“Borders are a dreadful invention of mankind, and so we are just putting up another one, and I think it’s a dreadful retrograde step” - Queen's drummer Roger Taylor said about consequences Brexit will have on UK touring bands, NME reports. His band is OK, he said - "we can fall back on our songwriting and our publishing", it's the road crew that are suffering - "it’s a daily, weekly job for them and so it’s made it really hard for our industry, very hard indeed”. Guardian reports about road crews for some of the biggest bands in music that are being forced into homelessness and turning to food banks to survive during the pandemic.
Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson of the Roots will direct a documentary about Sly & The Family Stone, with Common executive producing it, Deadline reports. “It goes beyond saying that Sly’s creative legacy is in my DNA….it’s a black musician’s blueprint" Questlove said, with producers MRC Entertainment adding the film "follows the story of the influential artist, king of funk, and fashion icon". Questlove's directorial debut, the music documentary 'Summer of Soul', recently won two awards at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival.
Morgan Wallen stays on top of the Billboard 200 chart for the sixth week in a row, amidst his racial slur scandal which got him canceled from the radio, Billboard reports. 'Dangerous: The Double Album' sold 93,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 18, down 38% from the previous week. Wallen captures the most weeks atop the list for a male artist’s album since Drake’s 'Views' in 2016, and the most for a male country artist since Garth Brooks' 'TheHits' in 1995.
De La Soul were the latest guests at the animated show 'Teen Titans Go!' where they had their music eaten by an enormous monster, Rolling Stone reports. It's a direct reference to the band's troubles with their publisher. De La Soul are one of the foundational voices of modern rap, but today most of their catalogue remains digitally unavailable, with everything before 2004 missing from streaming services. The reasons are said to involve issues with sample clearance, bureaucratic feet-dragging across Warner and Tommy Boy Records, and muddled contract disputes.
Five nights of protests in Barcelona have followed after the arrest of rapper Pablo Hasél, convicted of criticizing the country's monarchy and glorifying a separatist group in a series of tweets, Reuters reports. Thousands took to the streets Saturday night, protesting Hasél's conviction and nine-month sentence. Protests turned violent on Saturday with protesters throwing objects at police, setting fires and looting and vandalizing many luxury shops.
Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda becomes the first major label artist to launch a single via NFT - non-fungible token auction, according to Loudwire. 'Happy Endings' is a collaboration featuring rising vocalist Upsahl and alt-pop star Iann Dior, and he is using the cryptocurrency as a new avenue to promote his music. Shinoda gave his fans the opportunity to bid for a chance to win an original print of the single artwork signed by him and contemporary artist Cain Caser at a cryptocurrency auction.
Discogs has seen a big growth in sales last year, their year-end report shows: the marketplace is up 35.78% to 8,845,534 orders over the prior year and in total 16,290,197 pieces of physical music were sold around the world, bringing an overall 40.12% increase year-over-year. The most popular physical music format sold in 2020 was vinyl - 11,961,998 records were sold, up 40.75% from 2019. CDs have also increased 37.18% year-over-year with 3,441,769 compact discs purchased. Interest in cassettes hasn’t died down, with a total of 282,798 sold through the Marketplace, a 33.33% increase over 2019.
Kim Kardashian has filed for divorce from rapper Kanye West, according to CBS. The couple have been married for almost seven years and have four children together. Reports suggest Kardashian has requested joint legal and physical custody of their children.
"Surrounding her voice with saxophone and fretless bass, drum loops and field recordings, acoustic instruments and new age synth, Jenkins’ accompanists mirror the conversational tone of her writing, ensuring that the revelations aren’t limited to the lyric sheet" - Pitchfork writes in the review of Cassandra Jenkins' second album (tagged it Best New Music, grade 8.3). Brooklyn Vegan thinks highly of it as well: "Warm, '70s-style folk music is still one of the big influences here, but 'Overview' also finds Cassandra embracing a sophisti-pop/indie rock blend... The instrumentals alone on this album are gripping enough to stop you in your tracks, but sealing the deal is Cassandra's lyricism and vocal delivery, which feel casual and conversational but also poetic and quietly devastating".
