British rock act Keane is set to return this Spring with its fourth album, Night Train, featuring collaborations with rapper K’Naan, Japanese MC Tigarah and a rare lead vocal performance from Keane keyboard player Tim Rice-Oxley.
The years between 2000 and 2009 were very good for Beyoncé, ‘NSYNC, Michael Jackson and Nickelback, according to figures released by the Recording Industry Association of America on Wednesday.
Berkeley, Calif. pop-punk trio Green Day has grabbed Rolling Stone’s number-one spot for best single, best album and top artist of the decade.
Two independent record labels are suing Guns ‘n’ Roses and Universal Music Group, alleging that a track off Axl Rose’s Chinese Democracy was copied from electronica artist Ulrich Schnauss.
As a throwback to the old days of the two-song 45 rpm vinyl record, the iTunes Store launched a new “D45” section Tuesday, featuring discounted prices on packs of two digital song downloads. Just like old 45s, the iTunes D45 selection includes a popular single accompanied by a B-side song. Prices on the D45s range from $1.49 to $1.99. “iTunes is bringing this concept to a new age with D45s — two great tracks at an equally great price,” the iTunes Store reads. Music company EMI announced Tuesday that the release of D45s marks the 60th anniversary of the 45… Read more »
LONDON – One in 10 albums bought in the United States last year was by a British act, figures from the BPI, which represents the British recorded music business, showed yesterday. The rise to 10 percent from 8.5 percent in 2007 was due to a mixture of established bands like Coldplay which released “VivaLa Vida or Death and All His Friends,” and Radiohead with “In Rainbows” and newer acts like Duffy, Leona Lewis and Estelle. There is one caveat, however. British pop stars are gaining a growing share of a rapidly declining U.S. market. U.S. album sales fell 14 percent… Read more »
The Live Nation Ticketmaster merger was brought before the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights yesterday, with the Chicago music scene at the epicenter of testimony both for and against the merger. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the Windy City was used as an example of how the merger wouldn’t violate antitrust laws, with Live Nation chief executive Michael Rapino citing that his company only put on 16 percent of the concerts in Chicago, compared to the 29 percent staged by Chicago-based concert company Jam Productions. However, Jam’s Jerry Mickelson, testifying against the merger, told the subcommittee that… Read more »
List of winners at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards Album of the Year: ” Raising Sand” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss ; T Bone Burnett producer; Mike Piersante, engineer/mixer; Gavin Lurssen, mastering engineer (Rounder) Rap Album: ” Tha Carter III” Lil Wayne (Cash Money/Universal Motown) Male Pop Vocal Performance : “Say,” John Mayer ; track from “Continuum” (Columbia) Record of the Year: “Please Read The Letter,” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss; T Bone Burnett, producer; Mike Piersante, engineer/mixer; track from “Raising Sand” (Rounder) New Artist: Adele Rock Album: “Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends,” Coldplay (Capitol) Pop… Read more »
This year’s transformation of the annual Grammy Awards nominations announcement into a full-blown prime-time TV special could help provide a badly needed boost in sales at a difficult time for the music industry. But the December 3 “Grammy Nominations Concert Live!” telecast on CBS fell short of being a ratings winner. The one-hour show finished fourth in its 9 p.m. time slot, averaging 7 million viewers, behind NBC’s “Life” with 8.1 million, Fox’s “Secret Millionaire” with 8.1 million and ABC’s “Private Practice” with 7.8 million, according to Nielsen Media Research The audience for the nominations special was also less than… Read more »
LOS ANGELES — Bono’s adding to his résumé for sainthood. For today’s 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day, the U2 frontman and all-around good guy is helping launch (RED)WIRE, a music-themed site to benefit the cause. “Through music [people] are not just celebrating their life, they are celebrating lives and the saving of them,” Bono says in a video message. And he’s getting some help from a few all-star pals. Among the featured tunes: the Dixie Chicks’ “Lucky Ones,” the Texas trio’s first new music since 2006’s Taking the Long Way; Jay-Z ‘s “Brooklyn Go Hard,” featuring Santogold ;… Read more »
