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Ne-Yo Signs Artist During Gig
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Concerts / Tours, Industry News, Performances, Hip-Hop & Rap, R&B / Soul,
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Ne-Yo surprised new artist Sonna Rele by signing her to Motown Records Thursday night.
The "Closer" star invited the London-born singer - whom he discovered on Facebook - on stage with him at Under the Bridge venue in Chelsea where he offered her to opportunity to join the iconic label, which has been home to Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross and the Temptations.
Speaking about Ne-Yo - who is Vice President of A& R at Motown - Sonna exclusively told BANG Showbiz, "I have a lot of respect for him, he's an amazing artist, an amazing songwriter. I feel like I've got a really good team around me where I can kind of grow as a songwriter and an artist. I'm smiling from ear-to-ear right now. I'm really, really excited."
The 25- year old has already worked with Fugees star Wyclef Jean and music producer Dallas Austin, who between them have worked with likes of Michael Jackson, Madonna, TLC, Boys II Men and Gwen Stefani.
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The Killers’ Record Company Revenge
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Awards, Editorials, Industry News, Pop, Rock,
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The Killers were turned down by every major record label in the US.
The "Somebody Told Me" band found it hard to get a deal in their home country at the start of their career, but a good review and radio play in Britain helped kick started their career.
"Every major label in America turned us down, then we got a glowing review in NME magazine and every single one of those labels offered us a record deal. So I will always be thankful to the NME," frontman Brandon Flowers said.
The band were awarded the Best International Band trophy at the recent NME Awards, and said they were amazed to be at the ceremony alongside their hero, guitar player Johnny Marr. Referencing two of Johnny's bands, Brandon added to NME magazine, "It's a big honor just to be here with Johnny Marr. I mean have you ever heard Electronic? But The Smiths were a staple for so many of us that were in that room. It's incredible, the influence they had."
Gallery: The Killers’ Record Company Revenge
Kanye West: My Image Causes Bias
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Industry News, Hip-Hop & Rap,
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Kanye West thinks that his relationship with Kim Kardashian biases people against his rapping.
The "Stronger" hitmaker - who is expecting his first child with the reality TV star - is unhappy MTV's Hip-Hop Brain Trust voted him the seventh Hottest MC in the Game and he feels his ranking would've been higher if it were based solely on his music skills.
"Yeah, number seven bothers me. To me, I feel like in order for them to put me as number seven, they had to bring up things they didn't like. They didn't like the Cruel Summer album, and I'm like, 'That's just [a] compilation.' I don't know, it's definitely not based on a body of work. It possibly could just be like overall rap-MC-swag. What happens is, with these types of things... They don't like 'Givenchy Kanye,' they don't like Kanye in a kilt, they don't like Kanye in a relationship."
However, the "All of the Lights" star doesn't believe he deserved top spot on the list, as he still thinks the world's best rapper is Lil Wayne.
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Timbaland Signs with Jay-Z
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Collaborations, Industry News, Upcoming Releases, Hip-Hop & Rap,
Timbaland has signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation label. The rapper and producer - who has worked on tracks for Missy Elliott, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Rowland and a host of other stars - has signed with Jay's label, which is also home to Rita Ora and Alexis Jordan.
Jay posted a picture of them together on his Life + Times blog, with a caption reading, "We would like to welcome Timbaland to the Roc Nation family!"
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Snoop Dogg: ‘The Music Industry Isn’t in Decline’
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Industry News, Leaks, Hip-Hop & Rap,
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Snoop Dogg does not think the music industry is in a state of decline. The legendary rapper believes artists in the industry still have ways of controlling their output, and even those new to the scene can find a break if their material is good enough.
"There's certainly ways to maximize the mistakes that we've made with CDs and the crash and people stealing music: You can still control the material. Now, you can make a video and put it on YouTube and display your skills: record label staffers are sitting in an office all day, every day, looking for it. It's definitely not as bad as people want to make it."
He thinks those who are struggling are doing so because they are stuck in the past and need to see things differently. "A lot of people are still stuck in the 90s. They think the days still exist where you get a lot of money upfront and labels give you two or three videos with big budgets. That ####'s over with," he told The Hollywood Reporter.
Gallery: Snoop Dogg: ‘The Music Industry Isn’t in Decline’
Coldplay, Pink Floyd and Kylie Minogue to Be Dropped From Label
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Gossip, Industry News, Alternative, Dance, Electronic, Hip-Hop & Rap, Pop, R&B / Soul, Rock,
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Coldplay, Pink Floyd and Kylie Minogue are to be dropped by their label.
Troubled British record company EMI is undergoing a takeover by Universal Music Group, and the European Commission ruled today it can go ahead on condition it sells off most of its smaller record labels.
Acts who will now find themselves without a parent label include David Guetta, Tinie Tempah, Gorillaz, Cliff Richard, David Bowie, Tina Turner and Duran Duran, who are all signed to Parlophone. Chrysalis - home to Depeche Mode and Moby - will also have to go, as will Mute, home to the Ramones and Jethro Tull.
One act EMI will be keep are The Beatles, a hugely lucrative band, who still sell millions of albums even though they split in 1970.
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Dr. Dre Named Hip-Hop’s Highest Earner
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Industry News, Hip-Hop & Rap,
The rap mogul may still not have released his long-awaited Detox, album but he made an estimated $110 million last year, largely thanks to his Beats by Dr. Dre headphone collection, which saw him earn $100 million when HTC bought a 51 per cent stake in the company for $300 million.
P. Diddy was ranked second on the list with $45 million, with a huge percentage of his income coming from his share of profits for Diageo's Ciroc vodka, while third-placed Jay-Z brought in more than half of his $38 million through business deals including ownership stakes in cosmetics company Carol's Daughter, the Brooklyn Nets and a joint venture with Duracell.
Former Def Jam President Kevin Liles - who now manages a number of hip-hop artists - says it is typical for his acts to make a lot of their money from endorsements:
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Bruce Willis to Sue Apple?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Industry News, Rumors, iTunes,
The 57-year-old actor wants to leave to his huge digital music collection to his daughters - Rumer, 24, Scout, 20, and 18-year-old Tallulah, whom he has with ex-wife Demi Moore - after he dies but iTunes customers are only allowed to "borrow" tracks rather than own them outright.
Digital campaigners Open Rights Group are backing Bruce in his challenge. "You can't resell downloads to friends - and are not allowed to leave them in your will. It's great that Bruce Willis is challenging it," said Jim Killock, of Open Rights Group.
Bruce - who also has five-month-old daughter Mabel with wife Emma Heming - has spent thousands on his music collection, which reportedly includes songs by The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, and downloaded his tunes onto "many, many iPods." The Sixth Sense actor is thought to be thinking of asking his legal team to suggest to Apple that family trusts could be the "holders" of his downloaded music.
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Billy Corgan: Music Is Dumbed Down
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Industry News, Alternative, Rock,
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Billy Corgan claims the music industry "operates on a dumbing down principle."
The Smashing Pumpkins singer and guitarist feels only a few bands, such as Radiohead, get to keep their integrity and "intelligence" on the records they make. "It's incredible to me how sophisticated people really are when you give them the opportunity to be sophisticated. The music business essentially operates on a dumbing down principle. How dumb do we have to go to sell this record to the most amount of people? There are very few bands who are able to keep their intelligence on record, Radiohead are a good example. They have a very high message and are still very popular. But for the most part the charts are dominated by music that's essentially dumbed down in melody, style, tone, texture, and message because it reaches the most amount of people," he said.
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Slash Receives Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Awards, Industry News, Rock,
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The former Guns N' Roses guitarist attended a ceremony outside the Hard Rock Cafe in Los Angeles on Tuesday for the unveiling of the 2,473rd star where he was feted by friends including Charlie Sheen, music producer Robert Evans and radio host Jim Ladd.
"I've been a part of the Hollywood fabric for a long time and to actually be appreciated by the city of Hollywood is a huge, huge honour. And so I want to thank everybody for this; it's unbelievable. This is a really special acknowledgement ... it's the coolest thing you could ever get. I'm such a part of this scenery. I went to school here, and started playing guitar here, literally 100 yards down the street ... I got a very technicolor education up here."
Charlie made a heartfelt speech in honor of his friend but also used the opportunity to take a swipe at Slash's former Guns N' Roses bandmate Axl Rose. "It's quite fitting, I think, that Slash is getting a star on the very street that Axl Rose will one day be sleeping on. This man here, through his music and through his person, through his compassion, has changed the way that I look at the world forever. That can only happen through true artistry," he joked.
Gallery: Slash Receives Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
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