Salon.com > Mesfin Fekadu

Taylor Swift leads Billboard winners

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:25:00 +0000

Another day, another domination for Taylor Swift: She was the red hot winner at the Billboard Music Awards.

Swift won eight of 11 awards, including top artist and top Billboard 200 album for "Red." She told the crowd: "You are the longest and best relationship I ever had."

She also had a colorful performance of her hit "22" — starting backstage and working her way to the main stage on the back of a bike with help from a dozen background dancers and a flurry of red balloons.

Justin Bieber also performed — twice — and was also a multiple winner with three awards, including top male artist, social artist and the fan-voted milestone award, beating out Swift and Bruno Mars. When accepting the latter — where boos were heard — he alluded to the tumultuous weeks he's had in the public eye.

"I'm 19 years old; I think I'm doing a pretty good job. And basically from my heart I really just want to say it should really be about the music, it should be about the craft that I'm making. This is not a gimmick," he said. "I'm an artist and I should be taken seriously and all this other bull should not be spoken."

Stone Temple Pilots fire Scott Weiland

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 21:25:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- Singer Scott Weiland said he learned that he'd been fired by the Stone Temple Pilots when the band released a one-sentence statement to the media Wednesday.

"I learned of my supposed `termination' from Stone Temple Pilots this morning by reading about it in the press," he wrote in a statement. "Not sure how I can be `terminated' from a band that I founded, fronted and co-wrote many of its biggest hits, but that's something for the lawyers to figure out."

The statement by the band said: "Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland." No other information was provided.

Weiland said he's focusing on his solo tour, which kicks off Friday in Flint, Mich.

Fleetwood Mac readies tour and new music

Tue, 04 Dec 2012 17:32:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- Fleetwood Mac is heading back on the road, and that means the top-selling group will release new music - sort of.

On its 34-city North American tour, which kicks off April 4 in Columbus, Ohio, the band will perform two new songs, and it could mean a new album will follow. Or not.

Stevie Nicks recently sang on tracks that Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie worked on, calling the sessions "great." But Nicks also says she's not sure where the band fits in today's music industry.

"Whether or not we're gonna do any more (songs), we don't know because we're so completely bummed out with the state of the music industry and the fact that nobody even wants a full record," she said. "Everybody wants two songs, so we're going to give them two songs."

Nicks said depending on the response to the new tracks - which Buckingham calls "the most Fleetwood Mac-y stuff ... in a long time" - more material could come next.

"Maybe we'll get an EP out of it or something," Buckingham said.

Nicks will continue to record solo albums, though. The group is celebrating the 35th anniversary of the best-selling "Rumours" album, which has moved some 20 million units in the United States. She knows that's not possible again, despite the success of Adele's "21," which has sold 10 million units in America in less than two years.

Alicia keys launches storytelling app for kids

Thu, 25 Oct 2012 13:11:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- Alicia Keys, after giving birth to her son two years ago, said she wanted to create tools for children. Now she's launching an app for kids.

"The Journals of Mama Mae and LeeLee" is about a young New York City girl's relationship with her wise grandmother. Keys produced music for the interactive app, which will be released Thursday for $3.99.

"It's a new adventure for me, and I'm really enjoying it," the Grammy Award winner said in an interview Wednesday.

The app is loosely based on Keys' relationship with her grandmother. It's centered in LeeLee's bedroom, and it allows users to read books, play music and write in a journal.

"It does remind me of my world," the New York-born singer said. "The piano, the journal, music's such a big part of my life, the city, all of that."

Keys is launching the app through her company AK Worldwide and Bento Box Interactive. She said raising her 2-year-old son, Egypt, was part of the app's inspiration.

"I was just getting introduced to kind of the TV shows and the DVDs and all the things you start kind of introducing your kids to, and I thought how cool it would be to be a part of something that really allows them to hear music from different places, different cultures, different sounds," she said. "That's what we're able to do with this."

An excited Drake: “I got my high school diploma”

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 13:01:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- A day after earning his high school diploma, an excited Drake performed hit songs for a few hundred people at an event for Tyra Banks.

The 25-year-old told the crowd Thursday night that he took a small break from music and "spent some time going back to high school."

"I got my high school diploma," he said with excitement as the crowd roared.

Drake also posted on Twitter late Wednesday that he earned a 97 percent on his final exam and an 88 percent in his last class through work with a private tutor. The Canadian dropped out of high school, ironically, to star in the high school TV series "Degrassi: The Next Generation." He played the role of Jimmy Brooks.

Eminem to fans: Thanks for help in dark times

Fri, 10 Aug 2012 06:22:43 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Eminem, who battled an addiction to prescription drugs, thanked his fans at a New York concert for helping him get through dark times.

The 39-year-old told hundreds Thursday night that he "wouldn't have gotten out of that dark place without y'all" before he performed the Grammy-winning song "Not Afraid." He said the performance was "dedicated to anybody tonight who's been through personal struggles."

Eminem's addiction and climb to sobriety is detailed in his 2010 album "Recovery." It was that year's best-selling album.

At the Hammerstein Ballroom the rapper performed more than a dozen songs at an event for the watch brand G-Shock, including the hits "Lose Yourself," ''Love the Way You Lie" and "The Real Slim Shady."

Hip-hop foursome Slaughterhouse opened for the Detroit-born rapper.

Snoop Dogg becomes Snoop Lion, readies reggae CD

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 16:09:20 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Snoop Dogg says he was "born again" during a visit to Jamaica in January, is changing his name to Snoop Lion and is ready to make music that his "kids and grandparents can listen to."

The artist known for gangster rap is releasing a reggae album called "Reincarnated" in the fall.

The West Coast rapper held a news conference in New York on Monday. Later he played five songs for a small crowd, including one called "No Guns Allowed." It features his daughter.

The album will be followed with a documentary of the same name. It features him making music and will include some personal elements of his life, a producer of the film said. It will debut at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

Singer Darlene Love recovering from heart attack

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 18:41:03 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Darlene Love, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who's considered one of the best background singers of all time, is recovering from a mild heart attack.

Her agent Eric Stevens says the 71-year-old experienced some discomfort prior to a performance over the weekend in Asbury Park, N.J. As the pain grew a day later, Love went to a hospital and was told she suffered a mild heart attack.

Steven says doctors "expect a hundred and ten percent recovery as early as next week" for Love. She has returned home and her planned concerts will go on.

Love lent her voice to several of Phil Spector's hits in the 1960s, in acts like the Crystals and Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans. Love also has Broadway and film credits.

Donna Summer, Queen of Disco, dies at 63

Thu, 17 May 2012 18:45:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Disco queen Donna Summer, whose pulsing anthems such as "Last Dance," ''Love to Love You Baby" and "Bad Girls" became the soundtrack for a glittery age of sex, drugs, dance and flashy clothes, has died. She was 63.

Her family released a statement Thursday saying Summer died and that they "are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continue legacy."

Summer gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s, and released a number of albums that have reach gold or platinum status, including the multiplatinum "Bad Girls" and "On the Radio, Volume I & II." Her No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits include "Hot Stuff" and "MacArthur Park."

Her sound was a mix of genres, and helped her earn Grammy Awards in the dance, rock, R&B and inspirational categories.

She released her last album, "Crayons," in 2008. She also performed on "American Idol" that year with its top female contestants.

Golden Globe-winning “Glee” could snag Grammy

Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:58:00 +0000

Yes, 106 songs from the "Glee" cast have landed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. And yes, the cast's five albums have reached platinum or gold status. And yes, the stars of the show performed on a sold-out tour.

And yes, they can actually sing.

But could the "Glee" cast win a Grammy? Well, maybe so.

At Sunday's award show, the cast of "Glee" will compete for two awards. The first isn't a surprise: Their first album, "Glee: The Music, Volume 1," is up for best compilation soundtrack album for motion picture, television or other visual media. The competition includes TV series "True Blood" and "Treme," and films "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" and "Crazy Heart."

The cast's second nomination, though, is where the real contest is. They're up for best pop performance by a duo or group with vocals for their rendition of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin.'" The song peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100 chart and is the cast's best-seller and highest-charter.

"Don't Stop Believin'" will battle it out with hits from Maroon 5, Paramore, Sade and Train, who's up for a live version of the smash "Hey, Soul Sister."

The nomination for the cast of "Glee" brings up the question: Is this a real band or musical group outside of its hit TV show, which recently picked up three Golden Globes.