May 18, 2013

Emeli Sande’s Album Breaks Beatles Record in UK

emili sande

*Singer-songwriter Emeli Sande has broken The Beatles’ long-standing record for the most consecutive weeks spent in the top ten of the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart. The Scottish songstress’s Brit Award-winning debut album “Our Version of Events,” released in February 2012, has held a slot in the charts for 63 consecutive weeks, beating the previous record [...]




Cirque du Soleil to Celebrate Michael Jackson on the Tight Ropes

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*Michael Jackson was a legend before his untimely death. But his name and collection of work is being honored in a new way, along with classic artists Elvis Presley and the Beatles. The late King of Pop is going to be celebrated with a Cirque du Soleil show. “Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour” made [...]




Alicia Keys to Honor George Harrison at Annual Charity Ball

alicia keys

*Alicia Keys’ Keep a Child Alive charity will honor late Beatle guitarist George Harrison at its annual Black Ball event next month in New York. Harrison was chosen for his “philanthropic contributions to India,” the organization announced today. Keys will perform alongside Usher, Norah Jones and will.i.am at the Nov. 3 show at Manhattan’s Hammerstein [...]




First Listen: Roberta Flack Covers Beatles in New Album

roberta flack

*Legendary singer Roberta Flack is putting the finishing touches on a collection of Beatles classics for a new album that will be her first in more than eight years. Scheduled for early February 2012, the project will be released through 429 Records/Sony ATV Music Publishing and Flack’s RAS Records. Lead single “We Can Work It [...]




Beatles Contract Shows Stand Against Segregation

The Beatles in a pose for a 1965 album cover. (Robert Freeman, Apple Corp. AP).

*A soon-to-be-auctioned Beatles contract for a 1965 California concert reveals that the group took a firm stand in support of the era’s civil rights movement, refusing to play before a segregated audience. The contact, which is signed by the Liverpool group’s manager, Brian Epstein, specifies that they “not be required to perform in front of [...]




Rihanna Makes Billboard History with 10th No. 1 Single

Rihanna S&M music video

*Rihanna has set a record on Billboard with her new single “S&M.” The track moves up one on the new Billboard Hot 100 to claim the top spot, making her the first solo artist to log the shortest span between a first and 10th number one in the chart’s 52-year history. It took her closest [...]




Photos: Winfrey, Bill T. Jones Join Kennedy Center Honorees

U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama stand with Kennedy Center Honorees in Washington December 5, 2010.

*Oprah Winfrey and Bill T. Jones were honored along with three others with the Kennedy Center Honors Sunday in Washington. Country singer Merle Haggard, Broadway composer Jerry Herman and Winfrey’s idol Paul McCartney were also among the honorees saluted during a ceremony that included the president and first lady Michelle Obama. Julia Roberts opened the [...]




Paul McCartney to Perform at Apollo Theater

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*For the first time in his legendary career, Paul McCartney is scheduled to perform at New York’s world famous Apollo Theater. The 68-year-old former Beatle is scheduled to rock the Harlem venue on Dec. 13 as part of Sirius XM’s celebration of reaching 20 million subscribers, the company announced today. The invitation-only concert will be [...]




Michael Jackson, James Brown, Aretha Franklin on ‘Icon’ Shortlist

michael-jackson-james-brown

*The Queen of Soul, Godfather of Soul and King of Pop have made a shortlist of the top 20 greatest artists in the last 50 years – as chosen by a new poll from CNN and UK-based Songlines magazine. Aretha Franklin, James Brown and Michael Jackson, respectively, join Madonna, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Bob Dylan [...]




We Remember: ‘Sunny’ Singer Bobby Hebb Dies at 72

bobbyhebb

*Bobby Hebb, whose pop song “Sunny” crossed racial and genre lines to become a huge hit, died Tuesday at a hospital in Nashville, officials said Tuesday. He was 72. A spokesman at Nashville Centennial Medical Center did not disclose the cause of death. Hebb, the son of black musicians who played city streets as “Hebb’s [...]




Cirque du Soleil Show to Feature Michael Jackson Music

michael-jackson-cirque du soleil

*Reps for Michael Jackson’s estate have announced plans for a new Cirque du Soleil show based entirely on music from the King of Pop. This third major deal by the singer’s estate since his death last June also calls for a Jackson-themed nightclub in Las Vegas and a permanent Jackson-Cirque du Soleil show that is [...]