Janelle Monae: I Didn’t Like the Coachella Crowd

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Collaborations, Concerts / Tours, Gossip, Performances, Hip-Hop & Rap, Pop, R&B / Soul,

Janelle Monae didn't like the audience at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

The "Tightrope" singer joined OutKast on stage to sing with Big Boi at the event in Indio, California last month, and while critics claimed the show failed to live up to expectations but Janelle blames the crowd.

"I didn't like that Coachella audience. I'm happy I got to CounterPoint [Music Festival] in Georgia, because those were real festival-goers, in my opinion," she said.

Janelle joined Andre 3000 at the CounterPoint Music Festival to dance on stage during "Hey Ya!" last weekend and gushed about the band who have reunited onstage after a near decade-long hiatus: "That is my favorite duo, favorite rap group ever invented. They were in their time travel machine and they came back to see us, and I think we should all be grateful that they came back. The music is more fun, and lives are enriched with those two ATLiens performing. They're also great friends of mine, so it's great to see your friends do what they love doing and get the love and support they need."

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Justin Bieber’s New Song Is About Selena Gomez

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Hip-Hop & Rap, Pop, R&B / Soul, New Releases,

Justin Bieber's new love ballad is about Selena Gomez.

The 20-year-old singer posted a teaser for the track "Life Is Worth Living Again" on his Instagram account on March 15 and it is reportedly one of many new songs the "Boyfriend" hitmaker has written about his 21-year-old on/off girlfriend.

"Yes, 'Live Is Worth Living Again' was all for Selena and that's not the only song he's written for her. He's written a bunch of stuff for her, she's his biggest inspiration," a source said.

Justin, who has been dating Selena on/off since 2010, also dedicated a song to the brunette beauty during a surprise performance in Texas earlier this month. He turned up at the Banger's Sausage House and Beer Garden in Austin for the South by Southwest festival and sang his hit "As Long As You Love Me" for his "baby," who was standing in the wings. After his romantic gesture, the pair reportedly hung out together for an hour after everyone left the venue.

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Austin Refused to Let Lady Gaga Perform in a Vending Machine

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Concerts / Tours, Gossip, Performances, Pop,

Lady Gaga has been refused a permit to perform in a giant vending machine.

The "Do What You Want" hitmaker was hoping to entertain fans at the annual South by Southwest festival (SXSW) held in Austin, Texas between March 7 - 16 on the Doritos Stage, which has been designed to look like a huge snack machine, but due to concerns over health and safety she's had to reconsider.

"Our conclusion was based primarily on public safety concerns ... We look at the size and capacity of the location covered by the permit being sought and how it fits with the anticipated attendance, based on event capacity and promotion. At the end of the day, it's a parking lot," said Don Pitts of Austin's Music And Entertainment division.

Gaga - real name Stefani Germanotta - is still set to play at the nine-day festival but has been urged to find a location with "the necessary permanent infrastructure" to support her performance.

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Lily Allen Turned Down $100 Million Gig

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gossip, Performances, Pop,

Lily Allen feels like an "idiot" for turning down a gig worth "$100 million."

The "Hard Out Here" singer was asked to perform on the website, Second Life, which she would have been paid in the "virtual" currency, Bitcoin. The singer, who is believed to be worth more than $10 million, turned down the offer, despite Bitcoins now selling for about $100 each.

Lily took to Twitter to reveal her mistake at the weekend, posting, "About 5 years ago someone asked me to stream a gig live on second life for hundreds of thousands of bitcoins, 'as if' I said. #idiot #idiot [sic]."

The 28-year-old star, who gave birth to her second child, Marnie Rose, in January last year, came back to the music industry at the end of 2013, recording a version of Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" for the John Lewis Christmas advert. It spent two weeks at number one last month.

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OutKast Set to Reunite at Coachella

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Collaborations, Concerts / Tours, Gossip, Reunions, Rumors, Hip-Hop & Rap,

OutKast is set to reunite at Coachella 2014.

Producer Rico Wade has confirmed Andre 3000 and Big Boi will be gracing the stage at this year's festival after a seven-year hiatus. Rico told music website Stereogum that he wants his cousin, rapper Future, to join the pair at their reunion in California in April.

"As we bide our time in the lobby, he [Rico] affably spills the beans about unreleased Andre 3000 solo songs from a decade ago and his hopes to score Future a cameo during OutKast's reunion sets at Coachella. Eventually he pulls out his iPhone and plays me a Future/Andre collaboration he produced called 'Benz Bitch' that's earmarked for Honest [Future's next LP]. It's yet another side of Future and one rarely heard: brainy, libidinous space-age funk mined from Stankonia's dankest caverns, an homage to his Dungeon Family roots," the article reads.

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Dolly Parton to Headline Glastonbury 2014?

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Concerts / Tours, Gossip, Rumors, Country,

Dolly Parton is reportedly set to headline Glastonbury 2014.

The country music icon has been secretly booked to fill the Glastonbury Legends slot on the Sunday of the UK festival, according to The Sun newspaper. "Dolly is perfect for the Sunday Legends slot. It didn't take any convincing - she's always wanted to play Glastonbury," a source told the publication.

The "9 to 5" hitmaker is expected to perform a setlist comprising her greatest hits from her lengthy career when she takes to the Pyramid Stage at Worthy Farm in Somerset, South West England, next June.

Dolly is supposedly jetting in from London after performing at the O2 arena on the Saturday evening as part of her Blue Smoke tour, and conveniently has a "day off" on the Sunday, according to her schedule. "It is being kept free deliberately. She'll get a helicopter straight down on Sunday, or maybe even Saturday night after the show," the festival insider added.

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Lily Allen to Perform at Glastonbury

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Concerts / Tours, Pop,

Lily Allen will perform at Glastonbury 2014.

The "Hard Out Here" singer - on the comeback trail after initially quitting music in 2011 - is the first high profile artist to confirm she has been booked for the iconic British festival, which will take place in June next year.

"I'm playing Glastonbury. It's official. I got the news yesterday. You can catch me, I'm doing an acoustic session at the Stone Circle on Sunday night," she said, speaking on BBC Radio 1 this morning.

Lily is a regular visitor to Glastonbury festival and usually attends even if she is not performing, although it is not the only festival she will be playing next summer. "I'll be doing 16 weeks of festivals over the summer and then tour," she added.

The 28-year-old star is about to release her third album, but admits it was harder to make than her first two, because she now has daughters Ethel, who turns two next week, and Marnie, ten months, with husband Sam Cooper: "At first it was really, really difficult because I was pregnant when I was making it [her new album], with my second baby. For a long time I found it really difficult and it wasn't until I stopped breastfeeding that I started to connect with myself again, so it was hard, much harder than it has been in the past."

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Mumford and Sons: Glastonbury Is a Risk

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Concerts / Tours, Performances, Folk, Rock,

Mumford and Sons aren't sure they can compete with The Rolling Stones at Glastonbury and admit the festival appearance is a big "risk."

The "I Will Wait" band see headlining the world renowned event as the biggest "gamble" they've ever taken, and aren't sure if they can live up to the legacy of their co-headliners - who have been touring for 50 years.

"It's a really huge deal to headline Glastonbury; we're a young band with only two records behind us. This summer is probably the biggest risk we've ever taken," frontman Marcus Mumford said.

Banjo player Winston Marshall added, "I've seen The Stones play for three hours and the crowd knew every song. It's what you want in a headline slot at a festival. I'm scared because it feels like a gamble. We don't know if we've earned it yet or not."

Bass player Ted Dwayne also admits he's getting nervous in the run up to their closing festival slot on Sunday June 30: "The other night was the first time I visualized the [main] Pyramid Stage in my head. I hadn't made that connection before, and it actually real, it's really, really scary."

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Metallica Pay Tribute to Green Day

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Concerts / Tours, Performances, Covers, Rock,

Metallica paid tribute to Green Day after replacing them at a festival. The heavy metal group stepped in for the "Oh Love" punk band at the Voodoo Festival in New Orleans, after they cancelled all forthcoming dates due to frontman Billie Joe Armstrong's ongoing rehab.

Two songs into their set, Metallica singer James Hetfield told the crowd: ''We! Are! Green Day! - Except a little taller!" He later added, "You're hoping Green Day are going to show up, right? So am I. They're getting help. They're getting it sorted out. The world needs them." He also dedicated the track "Battery" to the front man, saying: "This one's for Billie."

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Rolling Stones to Headline Glastonbury?

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Concerts / Tours, Gossip, Rumors, Rock,

The Rolling Stones may headline Glastonbury next year.

The "Brown Sugar" group are celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2013 with a series of concerts, and are rumored to be topping the bill at the iconic British festival, one of the largest music events in Europe.

"The band are gearing up for a load of live dates but tend to leave big decisions like this until the last minute. [Organizer] Michael Eavis is desperate to get the band confirmed and has made initial contact with their people. It would be a massive coup to get the band playing Glasto on what could be their last round of live dates. Getting a decision from the whole band can be tough and at the moment they are without an agent for live shows, which is not helping the situation. But there is a good chance 2013 will finally be the year they make it," a source told The Sun.

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