Phil Spector turned “Unchained Melody” into a 20th century classic with his Wall of Sound Righteous Brothers production. But on a Triple J radio session, Lykke Li takes all of that away on an intimated acoustic cover. The singer teased the audience about the song’s prominent placement in the movie “Ghost” before performing her version. All I have to say is – amazing! This rendition really impresses me. There’s so much soul in her voice and her vocal range really shines as the guitarist delicately strums along. This is true talent guys. You can’t simply take any classic and turn it into such a work of art and Lykke Li did it beautifully.
It seems that the contest has a pretty special treat planned for all of its viewers for when they will show their very first live episode. The judges of the show will be kicking it all off with a medley of Queen songs, starting with “Bohemian Rhapsody” and going through “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions”. This is what the show’s judges said on the matter in a joint statement: “Kicking off the debut of the live episode of The Voice with these high energy renditions of classic Queen hits will set the tone for our live shows.” Well that’s probably going to draw in the audiences. After all, how often does one see Cee-Lo Green, Christina Aguilera, Blake and Adam Levine singing together?
Rihanna kicked off her “Loud” world tour this past Saturday in Baltimore, Maryland. Among her exciting and lengthy set list, the R&B singer performed her brand new and controversial single “Man Down”. After the premiere of the music video for the song, the US Parents Television Council immediately went out to accuse Rihanna that the video was “an apparent enticement to young women to turn to violence”. She has since addressed the issue on BET’s 106 & Park and on Twitter. And to shut it all out, Rihanna did a killer performance of “Man Down” during her concert. Work it!
Rihanna – Man Down – Performance Video
Here?s an interesting principle that Alicia Keys has and that you might not find at too many artists. Apparently the singer doesn?t like recording a song that she wouldn?t be able to sing live. This is what Alicia Keys said on the matter: “I never use Auto-Tune, or anything like that. I won’t have that software in my life. I don’t mind others using it. But if I can’t sing on my own, then I’m not going to record it.” Well, at least some pop starts still have a bit of decency left in them? too bad for Alicia Keys that she?s part of this dwindling race.
California, US: U2 have confirmed via video blog that their sold-out concert at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California, Sunday 25th October 2009 will be streamed free, in full and live on YouTube. It’s the first time a show of this size will be streamed live.
The Rose Bowl show is the penultimate U2 show this year – with more to come in 2010 – and already is set to host the venue?s biggest ever audience of over 96, 000 fans. The 360? Tour, which has been critically acclaimed and ?re-invents rock?n?roll?*, will now boast unique access for fans worldwide – as fans in territories yet to be visited by the tour, or not at all, will be able to enjoy the whole show online. Managed in partnership with Live Nation, this sell-out tour has broken attendance records in most venues it has visited – its success due in part to increased capacity coupled with a lower ticket price and great sight lines afforded by the stunning in-the-round stage set. Visit U2.com or youtube.com/u2official for details of how to join in this ground-breaking on-line event.
U2 manager Paul McGuinness said – “The band has wanted to do something like this for a long time. As we’re filming the LA show, it’s the perfect opportunity to extend the party beyond the stadium. Fans often travel long distances to come to see U2 – this time U2 can go to them, globally.”
YouTube will be streaming live across five continents. The show will be available in the usual You Tube way, as video-on-demand, following two full replays – after the live stream – on both U2.com and You Tube.
“YouTube is thrilled to be able to provide our global audience with a live streaming performance from one of the world’s greatest bands” – Chris Maxcy, Director of YouTube Partner Development. “We are always looking for new ways to connect fans around the world with their favourite artists, and this is the perfect opportunity to do just that.”
On November 2 at 11 p.m. ET, Fuse, the national music network, will televise the worldwide premiere of Nirvana Live at Reading, the band’s legendary, never-before-released 1992 Reading concert. The show, marking the first time that Nirvana fans will experience the epochal August 30, 1992 headlining appearance at UK’s Reading Festival, will debut as an hour long broadcast the night before the limited edition 90 minute CD+DVD Deluxe Edition is by Geffen/UMe.
Featuring 25 songs including “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” “All Apologies” and “Come As You Are,” Nirvana’s performance at Reading ranked No. 1 in Kerrang Magazine’s “100 Gigs That Shook The World” chart and was voted as “Nirvana’s No. 1 Greatest Moment” by fans in a recent NME poll.
“Fuse is excited to provide Nirvana fans with the first opportunity to witness this historic music event since the concert 17 years ago,” said David Weier, vice president, programming, Fuse. “Not only are we airing a highly anticipated, never-before-seen concert in more than 65 million homes, we are providing Nirvana’s loyal fan base with companion programming for a comprehensive and unique viewing experience.”
Leading up to the premiere of Nirvana Live at Reading, Fuse will air “Loaded: Nirvana,” a half-hour of Nirvana’s greatest music videos at 10 p.m. ET, followed by “Videos That Rocked the World: Smells Like Teen Spirit,” a celebration of the legendary music video which was a breakthrough for music, entertainment, culture and society.
While the show’s centerpiece was a performance of nearly the entire Nevermind tracklist, also noteworthy were early performances of three as yet unrecorded songs which wouldn’t be released until 2 years later on In Utero: “All Apologies,” “Dumb,” and in its first ever public performance, “Tourettes.” The career-spanning setlist also reached back to the band’s 1989 Sub Pop debut album, Bleach, for “Blew,” “About A Girl,” “School,” “Negative Creep” and first single “Love Buzz,” and even further back to the mid-’80s for “Spank Thru.” Other songs from the Reading set would appear in studio form on the Incesticide compilation later in the year: “Aneurysm,” “Been A Son” and “Sliver.” Additionally, the band played a pair of beloved covers by two bands that helped shape the formative Nirvana sound– “The Money Will Roll Right In” by Fang and “D-7″ by The Wipers.
Tune in to The Ellen DeGeneres Show on October 20th to catch a performance from OneRepublic. The band will play their current single “All The Right Moves” which appears on their forthcoming album Waking Up due out on November 17th.
OneRepublic recently premiered the Wayne Isham (Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Metallica) directed video for the track which can be seen here.
If you remember, Saturday Night Live has let one of the seven words you can?t say on television slide right on past the censors for two weeks in a row. Lady Gaga?s performance last week was off the hook but she also belted out ?shit? during the show and it wasn?t bleeped on the East Coast. The week before that, newcomer Jenny Slate dropped the f bomb. Here?s the thing though, neither SNL nor NBC will have to pay a single cent to the FCC for the cursing because it happened during a designated safe harbor time period. The FCC website explained ?Indecent or profane speech that is broadcast between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. is not actionable.?
Nirvana headlining at Reading in 1992 was something you had to see, and if you didn’t see it then it was something you pretended you saw.”
Kerrang (October 2003)
“The staggering energy and intensity radiating from the stage never let up… Cobain’s ravaged pop songs coming off like some dream marriage of the Sex Pistols and the Beatles, borne on bracing waves of distorted guitar noise.”
Rolling Stone (October 29, 1992)
Ranked #1 in Kerrang Magazine’s “100 Gigs That Shook The World” and voted as “Nirvana’s #1 Greatest Moment” by fans in an NME poll, Nirvana’s historic August 30, 1992 headlining appearance at the UK’s Reading Festival is one of the most bootlegged concerts in the annals of rock n roll. Now, fans will have an opportunity to own a pristine copy of that entire performance — color-corrected video from the original film with audio sourced from the original multi-track masters. Nirvana Live At Reading will be issued in a limited edition CD+DVD Deluxe Edition as well as DVD-only, CD-only configurations on November 3, 2009, followed by a 2LP version on November 17, 2009.
While the show’s centerpiece was a performance of nearly the entire Nevermind tracklist, also noteworthy were early performances of three as yet unrecorded songs which wouldn’t be released until 2 years later on In Utero: “All Apologies,” “Dumb,” and in its first ever public performance, “Tourettes.” The career-spanning setlist also reached back to the band’s 1989 Sub Pop debut album, Bleach, for “Blew,” “About A Girl,” “School,” “Negative Creep” and first single “Love Buzz,” and even further back to the mid-?80s for “Spank Thru.” Other songs from the Reading set would appear in studio form on the Incesticide compilation later in the year: “Aneurysm,” “Been A Son” and “Sliver.” Additionally, the band played a pair of beloved covers by two bands that helped shape the formative Nirvana sound ? “The Money Will Roll Right In” by Fang and “D-7″ by The Wipers.
To celebrate the release of their eighth studio album, Crash Love, AFI took to the stage at the world famous Roxy on Sunset thanks to local Los Angeles radio station KROQ. In front of an intimate crowd of hundred’s, rather than thousands that typically fill AFI shows, the band played a thrashing 14 song set filled with classics of the past, and a handful of Crash Love gems that are soon to be just that. Highlights of the night were too many to capsulize, but front man Davey Havok’s front flip into the waiting crowd on “Kill Caustic” and the stunning rendition of The Cure’s classic “Just Like Heaven” marked just a few of the moments that lit up the night. Reminiscent of 1995, AFI welcomed Nick 13 (Tiger Army) and Geoff Kresge (ex AFI/Tiger Army) to the stage to sing “Nyquil,” a track from the band’s first album, Answer That and Stay Fashionable. Electric performances of AFI’s radio singles “Miss Murder” and Crash Love’s “Medicate” put a cap on a night that will not soon be forgotten by the fan’s lucky enough to be present that night.
Fans of AFI who could not be at the show now have the chance to watch a handful of videos from the epic evening on KROQ.com. To find out when and where you can see AFI live, visit www.AFireInside.net/events. Crash Love is in-stores now and available everywhere good music is sold.
Jonas Brothers are keeping plenty busy as they gear up to release their new 3D movie and Soundtrack later this month. After taking over the CW last night, Kevin, Joe and Nick are slated to appear everywhere on TV from SNL to Ellen in the coming weeks. Check out their schedule below!
Jonas Brothers: the 3D Concert Experience Soundtrack will be available February 24th.
February 12th ? ET/Insider Takeover & Late Show with David Letterman
February 13th ? Late Night with Conan O?Brien
February 14th ? Saturday Night Live
February 16th ? Good Morning America and Live with Regis & Kelly
February 17th ? Ellen
February 21st ? MTV Special
February 22nd ? Barbara Walters? Special
February 23rd ? Jimmy Kimmel Live
February 21st ? MTV Special
February 27th ? CBS Early Show
U2, MULTI-BRIT AWARD WINNERS, TO PERFORM
BRAND NEW SINGLE LIVE AT
THE BRIT AWARDS 2009 WITH MASTERCARD
www.brits.co.uk
The BPI, the UK record labels? body, today announced the exciting news that the mighty U2, one of the world?s biggest bands, will perform their brand new single ?Get On Your Boots? live at The BRIT Awards 2009 with MasterCard. This highly anticipated annual event takes place on Wednesday 18 February at London?s Earls Court.
This year?s BRIT Awards, the premiere event in the British music calendar, is shaping up to be one of the strongest yet, with U2 confirmed, Pet Shop Boys being honoured with the Outstanding Contribution to Music Award and further intriguing live performances to be announced over the coming weeks. The show will be a spectacular night of great music, featuring and honoring the hottest music talent and thrilling the eleven thousand audience at Earls Court, as well as making it a must tune-in for the millions watching The BRITs live on ITV1.
Ged Doherty, Chairman of The BRITs Committee said, ?We?re thrilled to be able to confirm that U2 have chosen The BRITs for their first global TV performance on their new album. Their addition to the line-up for this year?s show makes it possibly the best we have ever had. This cements The BRITs as one of the biggest TV events in the world.?
Formed in 1976, U2 consists of Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jnr. Over their three-decade career the band have sold over 140 million albums worldwide – with multiple gold, platinum and diamond certifications, and have amassed more awards than any other band. They have been awarded seven coveted BRIT Awards including five acclaimed Best International Group awards, Best Live Act and the Outstanding Contribution to Music Award in 2001.
With several chart topping albums under their belt, U2 will release their forthcoming album ?No Line on the Horizon? – tipped as their best to date – this spring and join the prestigious line up at The BRIT Awards 2009 with MasterCard ceremony at Earls Court, London on Wednesday 18 February.
Mariah Carey performed live on the Jimmy Kimmel Live! Show during a concert at Babylon Court at Hollywood and Highland last week in Hollywood. The 38-year old curvaceous diva performed five songs and even featured a guest appearance by rapper Young Jeezy. She performed ?Shake It Off?, ?We Belong Together?, ?I?m That Chick?, and a medley of ?I?ll Be Lovin? U/Touch My Body?. The mini concert served as a kickoff for the 2008 Samsung AT&T Summer Krush tour which also includes the participation of Gavin Rossdale, LeAnn Rimes, Nelly, Smashing Pumpkins and Good Charlotte. All those stars and they still enlisted the help of Nick Cannon?s lip synching wife.
MTV is ALL OVER Tokio Hotel. The band?s last Times Square takeover was so successful that they have been invited back to spend an entire week on TRL. Check out what MTV has to say about Tokio Hotel below.
?Just another reason why we should petition the U.S. government (they?re not busy, right?) to officially change ?August? to ?Tokio Hotel Month?; Bill, Gustav, Tom, and Georg ? collectively known as Tokio Hotel, and usually referred to between breathless gasps of OH MEIN GOTT! ? are bringing their cat eyes, impressive biceps, copious dreadlocks and brooding stares back to TRL for an entire week, beginning August 4.
Mark your calendars, phone a friend, and/or tattoo it on some inconspicuous part of your face before Tokio Hotel melts it off: Tokio Hotel, live and in the flesh, will be on TRL all week beginning Monday, August 4th.
Tokio Hotel not only rocked a performance of ?Ready, Set, Go!? LIVE on MTV?s TRL but they also reached the coveted number one spot on the countdown! Fans lined the streets and packed the studio to catch the band?s first ever TV appearance in the U.S. and now you can see it here.
SCREAM featuring ?Ready, Set, Go!? is in stores NOW!
In celebration of the release of Madonna’s upcoming album HARD CANDY, Control Room, MSN and Verizon Wireless will present the one and only Madonna live in New York’s famed Roseland Ballroom on Wednesday, April 30th. The show will be available live on MSN Music In Concert at music.msn.com/inconcert and will also be available for viewing post-show.
Now fans can Madonna-fy their online world with promo banners, Myspace codes, and desktop backgrounds:
Be sure to tune in, set your TiVos, DVRs, VCRs or whathaveyous! Alanis Morissette is set to appear on the following programs to promote her new album, Flavors of Entanglement, due out in the US on June 10.
May 20 ? Ellen
May 23 – The Today Show
June 9 – The Today Show
June 10 – Late Show With David Letterman
June 12 – Howard Stern (radio)
July 18 – Jimmy Kimmel Live!
June 11 – The View
?more to come soon!
Listen to Alanis? new single, ?Underneath,? below.
Oasis is hitting the road at the end of August. Sadly, they band is only going to be playing a few cities. The UK band will play their first live show in over two years at Seattle?s WaMu Theater on the 26th of August before crossing the border over to Canada to play shows in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary. Pre-sale tickets have already gone on sale April 1. Oasis will be joined by Ryan Adams and his band The Cardinals for the tour. Oasis is a pretty big band and it?s tragic that they only get to tour a few cities. Oh yeah, I forgot they?re indie artists now and released their latest album for free.
Madonna has revealed that whilst on a recent holiday in the Rajasthan desert she sang karaoke for an Indian Maharaja after a royal feast at his desert fort.
The pop queen, accompanied by her kids Lourdes, ten, and Rocco, seven, put on an impromptu show to thank Maharaja Gaj Singhji II for his hospitality
She said: ?It was great to be in royal company. Lourdes and Rocco were in awe of him – they kept hugging him. It was fabulous, we sang karaoke for him.?
The holiday with Guy Ritchie was taken to relieve them of the stress caused during their battle to adopt two-year-old David Banda.
Even the big stars still have a good old sing-along on the karaoke it seems.
It seems to be happening all over the place at the moment; celebs cancelling gigs due to illnesses etc?
But it has been revealed that The White Stripes may never tour again. Oh the travesty! The band cancelled their 2007 tour earlier this year after drummer Meg White was diagnosed with acute anxiety.
Jack White has now suggested the band may follow the lead of The Beatles in the ’60s and stop playing live, depending on how it affects Meg.
Oh no! I guess if it happens then we will have to pacify ourselves with TV appearances and DVDs. Not the same though?
Pete Wentz and the rest of his band Fall Out Boy attended People magazine?s Grammy nominations party at Avalon Hollywood in Hollywood on Thursday night. And he was not a happy camper.
It appears that Pete is one very sore loser especially since he and the band attended the party and even had to perform at the party yet they had no Grammy nominations to show for it. And Pete had no problem letting the audience know his displeasure. He pitched a fit, threw his mic stand in the air and flung his bass against the speakers. Was that a fit or just part of the show?
Fergie gave a very priceless reaction when it was announced that she got a Grammy nomination on Thursday. The singer was one of the musicians on hand to announce who got the nods. It would have been very embarrassing if she didn?t get any.
But it?s still a very bittersweet reward for Fergie as she was a big favorite to get many Grammy nominations before the nominees were announced. She was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal. But when your album has 5 hit singles, it doesn?t really matter how many nods you get. Just think about that for a good while.
Taylor Swift was thrilled to be asked to help announce Grammy nominees on Thursday. She became ecstatic when she heard her own name called by the Foo Fighters. She is nominated for best new artist.
As soon as she heard that, she ran over to the Foo Fighters (Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins). She grabbed them and repeatedly hugged the two. George Lopez, another announcer, leaned over and hugged her as well. He encouraged her by saying, “You got it in the bag.”
Taylor has seen immense success with her self-titled album. She has already sold more than 1 million copies since its release last year.
While Beyonce went green, Carrie Underwood decided to go red. It?s Christmas people!
The American Idol alum showed up in a red Grecian-inspired Naeem Khan Resort gown at ?Movies Rock: A Celebration of Music in Film? which was held at the Kodak Theatre on Sunday in Hollywood.
The 24-year old singer took to the stage when she performed a Julie Andrews classic, ?The Sound of Music? from the movie of the same title. Incidentally, it?s the favorite movie of Carrie?s mom. Also, Julie Andrews is the narrator of the movie ?Enchanted? for which Carrie sand ?Ever Ever After?. What goes around, comes around.
Mika is making his final trek across the US and Canada in January and February. His North American tour is going to be called the ?Dodgy Holiday Tour?. Funny since the holiday season would be over before his tour even kicks off.
The ?Grace Kelly? singer?s tour has twelve dates listed. It will kick off on January 28 in Montreal at the Bell Centre and ends on February 15 in Vancouver at the Orpheum. There?s almost no break in between dates having only the 7th, 9th and 10th of February being free. Tickets for the first two dates go on sale on December 7.
Well they finally began their first tour together since 1999 and the Spice Girls appear to have pleased the crowd at the gig in Vancouver. With celebrity guests including Avril Lavigne and David Beckham as well as 15,000 teenagers, or women who were teenagers when the girls did this first time around; the show went without a hitch.Hang on didn?t Victoria ban David from attending? I assume she changed her mind. Maybe it was something to do with having very little confidence in the critics review. When a recent interviewer wished her luck, Posh replied: ?Luck? That
doesn?t matter, people will still say we?re s*** anyway.?
Charming! But maybe it?s not all wrong. The rumor in the music business is if they don?t fall out in the next three months then the quintet are likely to bring Spice Mania back with a vengeance. But bookies are already taking bets on who will be the first to put an end to all and walk out.
All I can say is, though its not my cup of tea, the girls have a lot of bottle; not only do they have to follow huge boy band Take That in the reunion success tables, but they have had very little rehearsal time for this. Girl Power and all that eh?
The Jonas Brothers are really proving that they?re a hardworking group. The musical family trio took some time for a quick photo shoot backstage at Good Morning America on Friday. The three teen hunks performed their smash single ?S.O.S.? for the throng of screaming fan girls.
The brothers didn?t travel alone though. Their dad Kevin Sr., mom Denise and younger brother Frankie were also with them. If Frankie was only old enough, he?d be in the group too. Maybe they could make like Menudo and exchange an older member for a younger one someday. It could be like a Jonas family right of passage.
His looks scare us, his songs scare us and his paintings scare us. Everything that goes on around Marilyn Manson is scary so what makes us think that his performances, and even his props, would be any different?Manson decided to up the ante to his scary factor by adding a massive butcher knife to the end of his microphone. The 38-year old kicked off his tour in Madrid earlier in the week where fans got a slice, pun intended, of crazy from the drag goth rocker.
Maybe the only scarier thing that he could do now is to remove his make up using acid.
