Search Results for: Set It off

“How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” Michael Stipe asked the crowd soon after R.E.M. took the stage Thursday night at the venerable venue. “Practice,” the crowd blurted in unison. “Well, we didn’t,” Stipe responded. “So if you hear a bum note or something that doesn’t sound right, I urge you to sing louder in your head.” The tour-shy Athens rockers and granola-pop folkie Jewel were among those on hand for an evening of spirited entertainment at “You Gotta Have Friends: Partners in the Fight Against AIDS,” a benefit for the Gay Men’s Health Crisis. ( from the event.) Judging… Read more »

A week after paying Mariah Carey nearly $30 million to walk away from her contract, EMI Recorded Music CEO Alain Levy took the wraps off a massive restructuring at the top of the company’s North American unit, marking his most aggressive moves yet to yank the British music major out of a persistent financial slump. Levy’s plan infuses EMI’s U.S. executive suite with new blood: His longtime deputy David Munns becomes chairman and chief executive of EMI North America, overseeing the flagship Capitol Records and Virgin Records America imprints. Veteran producer Matt Serletic has been named chairman and CEO of… Read more »

A Los Angeles judge has tentatively approved a deal requiring record giant Universal Music to pay $4.75 million in back royalties to as many as 300 performers to settle a class-action lawsuit led by torch singer Peggy Lee, court papers showed Wednesday. Lee, 81, was the lead plaintiff in the two-year court case that claimed that Universal, a unit of Vivendi Universal, failed to pay her and other artists – many of whom are now dead – millions of dollars by underreporting sales figures and overcharging for services. Legal experts said this was the first class-action lawsuit on behalf of… Read more »

From the big screen to the small screen to the studio to the stage, DMX is going to be everywhere this year. The rapper’s spokesperson said he just signed on to kick butt alongside Jet Li in the Warner Bros. action vehicle “Cradle to the Grave,” which ramps up next month and reunites the two “Romeo Must Die” stars. Warner Bros. said that while X has not officially signed on, they are close to sealing the deal. At the beginning of May, DMX will embark on a 30-city tour with artists from his Bloodline label that will carry on through… Read more »

The country’s leading concert ticket distributor will be more cautious in offering free trial magazine subscriptions to callers after an investigation found consumers were being automatically charged for full subscriptions, something many of them did not want. Ticketmaster and Time, Inc. answered allegations from New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer Monday (January 7) over the concert ticket giant’s “up-selling” of subscriptions to customers who phoned to purchase tickets for events across the country. An investigation by Spitzer’s office discovered that since 1999, Ticketmaster operators have been offering free eight-week subscriptions to Entertainment Weekly or Sports Illustrated to its customers only… Read more »

Pete Townshend is continuing to mine the aborted Lifehouse rock opera project for new products to offer fans. The Who leader is releasing Pete Townshend: Music From Lifehouse, which features 16 songs from the Lifehouse performances that were staged at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theater on February 25 and 26, 2000. Pete Townshend: Music From Lifehouse is due February 26, and will be available on DVD (with a $24.99 list price) and VHS ($19.98 list) via Image Entertainment. The songs featured in Pete Townshend: Music From Lifehouse include: “Fantasia Upon One Note,” “Teenage Wasteland,” “Love Ain’t For Keeping,” “Greyhound Girl,” “Mary,”… Read more »

‘NSYNC, Creed, Dave Matthews Band, Marc Anthony and Foo Fighters are among the artists scheduled to perform during a series of 16 nightly concerts at the Olympic Winter Games in February. The Hallmark Olympic Celebration Series will also feature Stone Temple Pilots, Sheryl Crow, Barenaked Ladies, Smash Mouth and Train, the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002 (SLOC) announced Tuesday (December 18). The concerts will be held at Olympic Medals Plaza in Salt Lake City, Utah, where the games will be held. With an estimated capacity of 20,000, the plaza will host the largest medal… Read more »

Music and broadcasting companies told the U.S. government on Friday that they have tentatively settled on royalty rates that radio stations should pay when they stream their broadcasts over the Internet. In a filing with the U.S. Copyright Office, attorneys for recording companies, performing-rights groups and radio stations said they had reached a tentative settlement on what those rates should be, but did not offer any specifics. The two sides requested that the settlement be approved by the Copyright Office and removed from an ongoing arbitration hearing known as the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel, or CARP. “The Settling Parties hereby… Read more »

Curb Records has announced the signing of recording artist Plumb. “I’m really excited,” says Plumb. “After having lunch with Mike Curb and his wife Linda, I knew that Curb Records was the place I needed to be and I feel very comfortable with my decision.” Music-lovers and critics alike have embraced Plumb’s music resulting in a string of hits at CCM radio including “Here With Me,” “Phobic,” “God Shaped Hole” and “Stranded”. Those releases went on to sell in excess of 250,000 units. In 2000, Plumb took home a prestigious Dove Award in the Alternative/Modern Rock Album category for the… Read more »

Redman and Method Man are heading out on the “How High” tour next week in support of their upcoming movie and soundtrack, yet the dynamic duo are already very vocal about another potential outing. “I hope Jay-Z starts [another] Hard Knock Life tour,” said Redman, who, along with Meth, was the opening act on the 1999 multi-artist trek. “That’s what I’m waiting on. Come on, Jay-Z, you got five mics in The Source magazine. Start that tour up and throw me and [Method] Man on there, ’cause you know we’re blowing the spot. I don’t care who you’re putting on… Read more »