Vanilla Ice Helped Eminem Become Successful

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Gossip, Hip-Hop & Rap,

Vanilla Ice claims he helped Eminem become a successful rapper. The "Ice Ice Baby" star shot to fame with the hit single when he was just 16 years old and claims he "paved the way" for other white rappers such as the "Slim Shady" hitmaker.

"I definitely opened doors and made it acceptable to get into hip-hop. White rappers are few and far between and, during that era, I made it possible to move into that genre and be very successful," he said.

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MIA: I’m Madonna and Johnny Rotten

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Gossip, Alternative, Electronic, Hip-Hop & Rap,

M.I.A. believes she is a cross between Madonna and Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten.

The "Paper Planes" hitmaker - real name Mathangi Arulpragasam - says as an artist she is like the "Material Girl" singer as she can create all different types of music, but she has a rebellious side like punk rocker Rotten, real name John Lydon.

"People come up to me and say, 'Oh my God it's a thin line, you could either be Madonna or Jonny Rotten' ... I'm both, that's what it is," she said in an interview with UK station BBC Radio 1.

M.I.A. has previously collaborated with Madonna on the track "Give Me All Your Luvin" on her 2012 album MDNA. However, their relationship was soured when M.I.A. caused controversy by flipping her middle finger at a camera their performance at the Super Bowl XLVI NFL half-time show in February 2012, an action Madonna described as "negative" and "out of place."

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Muse Explore Electronica and Funk

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Alternative, Electronic, Rock, New Releases,

Muse were inspired by Prince on The 2nd Law.

The British rock legends have embraced electronic music as well as funk on their new album, taking them back to their very earliest influences. "Yep, funk! What are we doing? But 'Panic Station' is a track that reminds me of my youth. Prince, Primus and Michael Jackson all influenced that song," drummer Dominic Howard said.

Frontman Matt Bellamy took a new approach with the track "Unsustainable" and despite many people being skeptical, he is pleased with the end results. "For 'Unsustainable' I wanted to write the idea electronically and when we came to record it, we did it with real, organic instruments and got a real orchestra in. We were trying to see if real instruments could make a sound like electronica. A lot of people were sceptical about it but it works."

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Muse’s Most Diverse Album Yet

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Upcoming Releases, Alternative, Electronic, Jazz, Rock,

Muse has included jazz, brass and dubstep on The 2nd Law.

The band unveiled the first track from their sixth album, "Survival" - the official song of the London Olympics - last night, and have promised it contains a diverse range of musical styles: "There's a bigger emphasis on groove, we've always tried to improve on that with every album and I think on two or three tracks we've really nailed it. There's a couple of tracks where we've captured the other side of us too, they're quite minimal. There's a really jazzy brass number, I even tried to get a sax solo," singer Matt Bellamy said.

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