October 23, 2018 11:43AM PT Tracy Chapman has filed a copyright infringement suit against Nicki Minaj, accusing her of lifting the lyrics and melody from the 1988 song “Baby Can I Hold You.” According to the suit, Minaj sought permission over the summer to sample the song in a track entitled “Sorry,” which was to
Music
“Teddy Pendergrass – If You Don’t Know Me,” the upcoming feature documentary that tells the tumultuous life story of the R&B and soul legend, will go out on Showtime in the U.S. and Sky Arts and the BBC in the U.K., where Moviehouse will also handle a theatrical release. The film will premiere at the Philadelphia Film
Over the past 25 years, multiple women have accused singer R. Kelly of sexual, mental and physical abuse. The singer was charged with child pornography in 2000, and in recent years of holding women against their will in a “sex cult.” While Kelly was acquitted of the child-pornography charges and has never been convicted of
Gibson Brands Inc., the iconic but troubled guitar brand that recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, announced on Tuesday the appointment of James “JC” Curleigh as president and chief executive officer. Curleigh joins Gibson from Levi Strauss & Co., where he served as president of the Levi’s brand, and was a member of its worldwide leadership team.
The Recording Academy and CBS announced today the dates for the Grammy Awards in 2020 and 2021. The 62nd annual Grammy Awards will air on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020, and the 63rd will air on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021. As previously announced, both shows will take place at the Grammys’ usual location, the Staples Center
October 23, 2018 7:27AM PT Esports organization 100 Thieves completed its Series A funding round with the investment co-lead by artist Drake and entrepreneur Scooter Braun, the company announced Tuesday. Drake and Braun join the founder of 100 Thieves, former Call of Duty world champion and current YouTube personality, Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag as well as
October 23, 2018 6:58AM PT Ariana Grande posted a touching video late Monday of Mac Miller getting dressed for Oscar night, taken just weeks before the couple split and two months before he died of an apparent drug overdose. In the clip, Miller is seen standing alongside two women who may be Grande’s mother Joan
October 22, 2018 2:17PM PT A newly constructed residence in the thickly wooded and relatively unsung but hardly inexpensive North Sea area of Southampton, N.Y., conceived and built by a consortium of investors that include Santa Monica-based boutique developer Confluent Development, NBA player Luol Deng and hip hop heavyweight and social media marketing powerhouse DJ
October 22, 2018 1:53PM PT The 22-year-old is only the third artist to hit #1 on DJ Mag’s list three times, along with fellow Dutchmen Armin van Buuren and Tiësto. For the third year in a row, Dutch DJ Martin Garrix has nabbed the top spot in DJ Mag’s “Top 100 DJs.” The 22-year-old is
In an effort to promote diversity in the music business, Creative Artists Agency today announced the Hubb, which is described as an invitation-only networking and professional development summit designed to provide diverse internship- and career-ready college students with the tools and resources needed to successfully enter the music business. The event was named in honor
October 22, 2018 12:30PM PT [embedded content] Paula Abdul took a tumble during her concert on Saturday. The former “American Idol” judge fell head-first into the crowd at the Hard Rock Live in Biloxi, Mississippi as she sang her 1991 hit “The Promise of a New Day.” A fan recorded the stumble, which shows Abdul
October 22, 2018 12:00PM PT Country music star Dierks Bentley can now add scripted TV producer to his resume. Variety has learned exclusively that Bentley is attached to executive produce a single-camera comedy that has received a put pilot commitment at Fox. The untitled series is set in a Nashville bar, where singers and songwriters go to
October 22, 2018 9:20AM PT After returning last summer with their first extensive North American tour since 1981, Jeff Lynne’s ELO have announced dates for a summer 2019 trek. Produced by Live Nation, the jaunt will kick off June 20 in Anaheim, CA and travel across North America to cities like Vancouver, Nashville, Atlanta, Washington
October 22, 2018 7:15AM PT Mariah Carey has announced her upcoming “Caution World Tour,” set to launch in February of next year. The 22-city run, produced by Live Nation and in support of her forthcoming album “Caution,” starts in Dallas and will visit Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto, Atlantic City, Philadelphia, and more. Legacy members of Honey B. Fly,
A Philadelphia songwriter who claims he was cut out of profits and credit from song that was recorded by Usher in 2004 has been awarded more than $44 million in damages, according to The Associated Press and the Philadelphia Inquirer. The suit targeted the track’s other co-writers; Usher was not named in it. The lawsuit
Giles Martin, most recently renowned for his work on remixing key components of the Beatles’ catalog, has officially joined Universal Music Group in the role of Head of Audio & Sound, a global position the company created for him. A spokesperson says Martin will “help UMG explore new studio technologies and work with artists to
Leaders of SAG-AFTRA have taken several steps towards improving safety on production sets. The union’s national board of directors announced Sunday that it had approved the creation of a “Stunt Coordinator Minimum General Standards Eligibility Process Guideline” during its two-day plenary on Oct. 20 and 21 in Los Angeles. The program, set to launch in
You could say Lil Yachty is keeping expectations low on his latest album. After all, he did name his third studio effort “Nuthin’ 2 Prove.” The Atlanta rapper’s strength has never been in lyrical abilities; rather, he’s won fans for his playful demeanor and the infectiously upbeat subgenre he’s dubbed “bubblegum trap.” Lighthearted and full
Devotees of confessional rock and roll will find a lot to work with in Elle King’s “Shake the Spirit,” a first-rate second album that deals frankly with a rough year or two the singer has had since “Ex’s and Oh’s” took her big-time. It’s infused with divorce, self-doubt, medicinal drinking, self-described PTSD and, well, more
UPDATE: A record label spokesperson for Loretta Lynn has issued a statement on her behalf, in which the country star says she had “a brief hospital visit” but is now “enjoying a weekend of resting up at home.” Lynn’s representative also said: “Please note, Michael Lynn is not a known relative and does not speak on
It’s a good thing Britney Spears isn’t getting paid by the word. Her big reveal in Las Vegas Thursday night, at the end of a breathlessly narrated half-hour live stream on Ellen DeGeneres’ YouTube channel, was… the sight of Spears finally appearing amid some pyrotechnics, and then walking down to her limo without uttering a
In today’s TV News roundup, Showtime dropped a new trailer for its upcoming comedy “Black Monday” and Facebook Watch released a new clip from the second season of “Red Table Talk.” DATES Netflix will release “Motown Magic” on Nov. 20. The children’s series inspired by the iconic music of Motown will feature original characters in a fantastical world
SAG-AFTRA and the major record labels reached a tentative three-year agreement on a successor contract to the SAG-AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Sound Recordings. The deal was reached late Thursday after two days of bargaining in New Orleans. Negotiations began in April — three months after expiration of the current deal — in
October 19, 2018 12:43PM PT Though fall has only just set in, NBC is already anticipating springtime with the announcement of The 2019 Billboard Music Awards. The network announced Friday that the awards will air live on Wednesday, May 1 on NBC. The three hour telecast will begin at 8 p.m. EST, with a delayed
NEW YORK — It’s hard to know how to experience an album by a talented, 21-year-old dead person, let alone market it. The pleasure and elation that one can feel from music is weighted down by melancholy, whether you knew the artist or not, and the traditional methods of getting people excited about a new
The spring and summer of 1988 were consumed with a writers’ strike within the film and television industry, but one project that launched in the fall came out of it unscathed: “Dance ‘Til Dawn,” an original television movie about Hoover High’s senior prom first aired on NBC Oct. 23, 1988. The movie was a who’s
From the moment news broke that Maroon 5 was to be this year’s Super Bowl halftime show headliner, it seemed clear that there was something more afoot. After all, this is a performance that typically is viewed by even more people who tune into the game itself. And that game is TV’s marquee event of
To date, the most significant day in the career of Big Machine Records chief Scott Borchetta was Nov. 2, 2004, when he met 14-year-old Taylor Swift, who signed with his then-fledgling label and has become one of the 21st century’s most successful and influential recording stars. But as with all “overnight” success stories, Borchetta’s preparation
On this week’s “CMT Artists of the Year” show, Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild roused the crowd by using her acceptance speech to run through a list of 35 younger female country artists who are “there for you to support and play on the radio.” Not every singer on her list has found radio play
October 19, 2018 8:32AM PT The singer, who has not commented, is said to disagree with the NFL’s stance on kneeling during the National Anthem. Rihanna turned down the offer of a Super Bowl performance in support of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who has essentially been exiled from the National Football League