Search Results for: The Chicks

A tiny Brooklyn, New York, record label is redefining the age-old battle of the punks vs. the suits. Go-Kart Records founder Greg Ross has a problem with the RIAA’s use of lawsuits to fight online piracy, so he began giving away music for free on Friday. First he wrote an open letter to the recording industry trade group, lambasting its take on the problem of illegal downloading. Then he posted six full albums from his latest signings on the Go-Kart Web site. The response has been overwhelming. “Our tech guy just told me we had 80,000 hits in one second… Read more »

Sony Corp. plans to launch a music download service in the spring, vice chairman Howard Stringer said Thursday at a gathering of electronics dealers in Paris. Stringer briefly mentioned the initiative during a presentation with Kunitake Ando, president and group chief operating officer of Sony Corp. “We believe in maximizing the opportunities for people to enjoy music by making networks much friendlier places to visit and easier to obtain music from – in a legal manner,” said Stringer, who also is chairman and CEO of Sony Corp. of America. Few details were disclosed at the Sony Dream World exhibition, but… Read more »

America’s country music scene isn’t exactly known for its gay artists, but a colorful pack of wanna-be stars pulled out their best rustic twangs and wailing guitars on Thursday to try to change all that. Scores of country music hopefuls auditioned in New York for what is being billed as a television show to pick an openly gay country music star from about 50 contestants. The musicians – most of whom wore jeans and spit-polished boots – wailed through Willie Nelson songs, crooned like Lyle Lovett and belted out ballads like Garth Brooks. Livening up the day was The Dixie… Read more »

The former music exec, who stepped down as head honcho at Sony Music in January, has teamed up with Universal Music Group to head up a modern-day version of a retro record label. The mastermind behind the careers of Mariah Carey, Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez will run Casablanca Records, a label founded by Neil Bogart that had its heyday in 1970s with acts like KISS, Donna Summer and the Village People. According to UMG execs, a five-year contract was inked Monday (reportedly to the tune of $50 million), and Mottola is ready to start producing for the New York-based… Read more »

Rancid frontman Tim Armstrong is turning to Charles Manson for salvation, and he’s bringing Kelly Osbourne and members of Blink-182, Green Day and AFI along for the ride. When he finishes this year’s Vans Warped Tour, Armstrong will put the finishing touches on the upcoming stop-motion animated film “Live Freaky! Die Freaky!” in which Manson surfaces in a post-apocalyptic wasteland to guide a group of survivors who are desperately searching for a spiritual leader. Armstrong is producing the film for his Hellcat Pictures company. The movie was written and directed by John Roecker, an independent filmmaker in Los Angeles who… Read more »

Their profanity-laced rock shows in the 1970s and ’80s drew the ire of the U.S. Senate, where Al and Tipper Gore accused them of endangering the morals of America’s youth and undermining parental authority. Two decades later, Twisted Sister is playing New Jersey’s two most family friendly venues – the Meadowlands State Fair, and Six Flags Great Adventure – and the “F” word is strictly off limits, by mutual agreement. Lead singer Dee Snider, who uses it dozens of times in a 90-minute concert, said the costumed, mascara-wearing band best known for hits like “We’re Not Gonna Take It” and… Read more »

Ticket sales are down, and big tours are scaling back to smaller venues. It looks to be a long, hot summer for the touring industry. On the cusp of the industry’s peak period, a number of high-profile tours and festivals have already hit snags, among them highly touted outings from Mariah Carey, the Field Day Music Festival, Lollapalooza, and Beck and Dashboard Confessional. Faced with a crowded tour market combined with high ticket prices, permit hassles, a sluggish economy and poor buzz, these tours and a handful of others have either had to scale back the size of the venues… Read more »

New Sony Nashville head John Grady cleaned house at the label last week, dropping almost half of the current roster, including Tammy Cochran, Billy Gilman, Pam Tillis, Mark Chesnutt, Cledus T. Judd, Little Big Town, Brad Martin, Clint Daniels, and Wynn Varble. Sony’s active roster now consists of Mary Chapin Carpenter, Rodney Crowell, the Derailers, Dixie Chicks, Buddy Jewell, Patty Loveless, Montgomery Gentry, Colt Prather, Charlie Robison, Marty Stuart and Travis Tritt.

British singer-songwriter Elvis Costello on Tuesday defended musicians who speak their minds in these “fairly dangerous times” and warned Americans to guard against “any attempts by people who swindle their way into office.” Addressing a music industry dinner in Beverly Hills, California, Costello also criticized the British political system, which he described as “privileged people handing wigs to one another making the laws of the land.” The 48-year-old musician, famed for such songs as “Oliver’s Army” and “Everyday I Write the Book,” was being honored by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, a music licensing group that also… Read more »