Aerosmith drummer writes of "Hitting Rock Bottom"

(AEROSMITH, KRAMER, PEOPLE, ABOUT, HAMILTON, ALBUM)

By Gary Graff
DETROIT (Billboard) - Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer says he wrote his new book, "Hit Hard: A Story of Hitting Rock Bottom at the Top," in order "to be entertaining, but at the same to ... help people."
Kramer tells Billboard.com that "Hit Hard," which was published Tuesday (June 30), is the result of a four-year process with writers William Patrick and Keith Garde. The book, which includes a forward by Motley Crue`s Nikki Sixx, chronicles the drummer`s substance abuse problems, his psychologically scarring relationship with his father and a similarly tumultuous, "co-dependent" battle with Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. Kramer hopes that the book will shed some light for those dealing with the same issues in their lives.
"My desire to help people plays a strong part in my character," Kramer says. "Because I`ve been allowed to do what I`ve done via Aerosmith, I`d like to be able to carry it on as I get older, on another level. Whatever that may be is really unbeknownst to me -- maybe some sort of a lecture series or circuit or whatever -- but I know that it will come."
Kramer says that Tyler -- whose own autobiography, "Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?," has been pushed from an October publication date to the summer of 2010 -- was supportive during his bandmate`s book-writing process. "When I was trying to tell him about some of the stuff that was in the book, his comment was ... `Hey, man, as long as it`s the truth, I don`t care,`" Kramer recalls. "And that`s pretty much where Steven is at. He`s about the truth."
Bassist Tom Hamilton, who Kramer portrays in "Hit Hard" as perhaps his closest friend in Aerosmith, calls his rhythm section partner`s tome "pretty amazing. It`s a really hard-hitting book ... but there`s also a lot of neat references to people that we knew when the band started and things that happened that I forgot about. So it has some real entertainment value, too."
Aerosmith as a band collaborated with author Stephen Davis on 1997`s "Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith," but Hamilton says he does not anticipate each member of the Boston quintet bringing out his own book.
"Right now my passion is expressing myself through music," Hamilton says. "I think the thing to do is to be the last one to write a book. That way you can let everybody else put things in their book that are gonna make you mad, and then you can answer back and (have) the last word."
Aerosmith is on the road with ZZ Top until mid-September and performing its 1975 album "Toys in the Attic" during the shows. The group plans to return to work on its next album with producer Brendan O`Brien after the tour.
(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)
Original article

U2 launch world tour in Barcelona on giant stage

(BARCELONA, MILLION, WHICH, SHARPLY, UNITED, STATES)

By Ben Harding
BARCELONA (Reuters) - Irish rock group U2 kick off their first tour in three years on Tuesday, playing to 90,000 fans in Barcelona on one of the biggest concert stages ever built.
Over the next four months U2 will perform to an estimated three million fans in 31 cities across Europe and North America, with more dates expected to be announced next year.
The " U2 360 Tour" lives up to its name with a round stage which fans will surround inside FC Barcelona`s Nou Camp stadium.
Around 500 ticket holders slept outside the venue on Monday night hoping to grab a spot right by the stage when the doors open, local media reported.
That will be easier this time around, organizers say, with the new stage concept giving more fans a clearer view as well as allowing for more people, meaning lower ticket prices during the recession.
The U2 360 Tour is reported to be the group`s most expensive to date, costing an estimated $100 million, but industry experts suggest it could be money well spent.
Live performance is becoming an increasingly important source of revenue for major acts like U2 as sales of physical CDs declines sharply and online piracy remains rampant.
Billboard, an authoritative music industry publication, believes the U2 360 Tour could become one of the highest grossing ever, possibly eclipsing its 2005-6 Vertigo tour which earned the band $389 million.
GRAND STATEMENT
The stage, which takes 120 trucks to transport, is another grand statement from the four rockers who have won more Grammy awards than any other band.
On the Zoo TV tour, huge video screens overloaded fans with flashing images of pop culture. On the PopMart tour lead singer Bono appeared from inside a 12 meter glitterball shaped like a lemon.
The abiding visual memory on this tour is sure to be the "Claw," a four-legged "monster" that towers 50 meters over the band`s heads and on which the sound system is mounted.
Bono, plus guitarists The Edge and Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen, Jr on drums will be showcasing their 12th studio album, "No Line on the Horizon."
Reviews of the record, which mixes trademark atmospheric guitars with more eclectic sounds from Morocco where it was partly recorded, were generally good, and it went straight to No. 1 in 30 countries including the United States and Britain.
Early sales in the United States, however, were sharply down on those for U2`s previous album "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," released in 2004.
(Editing by Mike Collett-White and Paul Casciato)
Original article

Michael Jackson fans hold candlelit vigil in Moscow

(JACKSON, MICHAEL, DEATH, WHILE, SEVERAL, FAILED, AFTER)

Michael Jackson, the King of pop
Michael Jackson - pop music legend
Russia had special romance with Michael Jackson - expert
Fans sing Michael Jackson’s songs on Los Angeles streets
MOSCOW, June 28 (RIA Novosti) - A crowd of Michael Jackson fans held a candlelit vigil outside the U.S. Embassy in Moscow overnight, placing flowers and pictures by the wall.
A steady stream of fans has been visiting the site to pay respects since Friday morning, when news of the King of Pop`s death broke.
Among the many messages placed among the flowers and candles is one in colored chalk that reads: "Michael Jackson, we will love you forever! Rest in peace, King."
About 100 cards have been stuck to the wall with images of Jackson, while portraits tied with black ribbons line the pavement. One of the cards carries the message: "Michael lives, and will live forever."
Jackson`s death of a heart attack at the age of 50 has dominated the global media over the past three days, and social networking and video sites have been flooded with tributes. While grieving fans have been celebrating Jackson`s musical legacy, several questions have arisen over the circumstances of his death.
Los Angeles police have held an "extensive interview" with the cardiologist who tried to resuscitate Michael Jackson before his death.
Dr Conrad Murray reportedly disappeared several hours after Jackson`s death on Thursday, and failed to sign a death certificate.
The Rev Jesse Jackson, a long-serving politician who has been maintaining close contact with Michael Jackson`s family, told reporters that the doctor had failed to speak to relatives after the death, and that many questions remained unanswered.
 
Original article

`King of pop` Michael Jackson dies at 50

(JACKSON, MICHAEL, 50, US, THEIR, BROTHER, ALBUM)

Pop icon Michael Jackson dies at 50
Michael Jackson sets London concerts
Talk Of TheTown: Jackson on top
Michael Jackson turns 50
MOSCOW, June 26 (RIA Novosti) - Michael Jackson, the U.S. pop star whose career spanned five decades, has died of a heart attack in Los Angeles. He was 50.
Emergency services were called to his Beverly Hills home at 12.21 p.m. on Thursday (19.21 GMT), the TMZ.com website said. He was pronounced dead some three hours later at the UCLA medical centre.
His death came shortly before he was about to take part in series of comeback concerts in London.
His brother, Jermaine, told journalists that doctors had attempted to revive the singer for more than an hour.
"The family request that the media please respect our privacy during this tough time," he added.
Jackson, born in Gary, Indiana, near Chicago spent almost his entire life in the public eye, shooting to stardom in the 1970s with the Jackson 5, a pre-teen Michael and brothers stunning the U.S. with their vocals and synchronized dance routines. The group, who recorded for Motown, was the first to see their four debut singles reach the top of the U.S. charts.
As an adult, his Thriller album sold more than 50 million copies worldwide, making it the best selling album of all time.
His later career was hit by allegations of child abuse and financial difficulties.
"Today, the world has lost one of the most influential and iconic figures in the music industry. From his performances with the Jackson 5, to the premiere of the `moonwalk` and `Thriller,` Michael was a pop phenomenon who never stopped pushing the envelope of creativity," California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said in a statement.
 
Original article

Related articles:
BET Awards pay tribute to Michael Jackson

Bon Jovi makes "Stand" with Iranian protest video

(VIDEO, IRANIAN, MADADIAN, SESSION, FARSI, SAMBORA, RECORD)

By Gary Graff
DETROIT (Billboard) - A new version of Ben E. King`s "Stand By Me" featuring Jon Bon Jovi dueting in Farsi with exiled Iranian singer Andy Madadian, is making the rounds as an online video.
The track`s co-producer, Don Was, says the video is meant to send "a musical message of worldwide solidarity" to the Iranian people in the aftermath of the country`s recent disputed election.
Was tells Billboard.com that the session, which took place last Wednesday in Los Angeles, was spurred by a conversation he had with Madadian about "whether there was something we could do just to send out a little message of solidarity, remembering the `60s, believing music can change things."
When they arrived to record the song, they found Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora and John Shanks, who`s producing their next album, sitting outside and having lunch.
"They asked what we were doing, I told them, and Jon said, `Look, man, if you do it right now we`ll do it with you,`" Was recalls. "So we did."
Madadian -- who`s lived in the U.S. since the Iranian revolution of 1979 -- and Bon Jovi duet on the song, with both men singing the first verse in Farsi. Sambora plays a guitar solo, with Was on bass, Patrick Leonard on keyboards and Jeff Rothchild on drums.
"We just cut it," Was says, "and the video is the session. It took about four hours and just fell into place nicely." The video, which features footage and still photos from the session, went up on Was` portion of My Damn Channel (www.mydamnchannel.com) on Saturday and was quickly disseminated via MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and other sites. At the end of the video Madadian and Bon Jovi stand next to each other, with the latter holding a sign saying "We are one" in Farsi.
"It is not for sale," Was says. "It wasn`t intended to be on the Billboard charts, wasn`t meant to be a hit record or even pressed on a CD. It`s intended to be downloaded and shared by the Iranian people. The whole idea was to get it into Iran and tell them...to carry on, that the world is watching and we`re with you."
(Editing by Dean Goodman at Reuters)
Original article

Rock legends form new band, call it Chickenfoot

(CHICKENFOOT, HAGAR, SMITH, CHART, WE`RE, CHILI, PEPPERS)

By Mike Collett-White
LONDON (Reuters) - Some of the biggest names in rock have banded together to form a new supergroup. They call it Chickenfoot, a name they readily admit is "silly."
While the name may not be to everyone`s taste, Van Halen veterans Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and virtuoso guitarist Joe Satriani rose high in the U.S. charts with their eponymous debut album this month.
"We called ourselves Chickenfoot as a kind of a joke, and people started digging it, and so Chad`s going, `Let`s start a real band`," Hagar said during a boisterous interview with the band in London, where they performed during a European tour.
"Joe had a band called the Squares -- all of a sudden Chickenfoot sounded like a really good name," Hagar joked.
Hagar and Anthony used to jam together at Hagar`s club in Mexico, and when Smith joined them, they gelled. Smith, who still plays for the Chili Peppers, suggested forming a group, and Satriani was invited as the final piece in the jigsaw.
The four members of Chickenfoot have sold tens of millions of records and played thousands of gigs between them over the years, but the childlike enthusiasm for their latest venture comes from starting all over again.
"We`re a new band, even though we`ve got names, we`ve all been in other bands," Hagar told Reuters. "So we have to kind of let the world know who Chickenfoot is, I think."
Bass player Anthony added that he took exception to the term "supergroup."
"For me, when I hear the name supergroup I think of some pre-fab type of thing ... If the chemistry is not there you can be the best musicians, best players there are, it`s not going to come out the way I think this came out.
"This was born out of friendship, it was more organic in that sense."
The band has played a series of small gigs in the United States before flying to Europe for a tour, and returns to North America winding up its travels at the end of September.
"We`re a new band and when you`re a new band you start and play clubs and you play to your fans," said Smith. "We`re not playing stuff from Van Halen, or Joe, or Chili Peppers, we`re just playing Chickenfoot."
CHART SUCCESS
Chickenfoot`s debut album, released earlier in June, opened at No. 4 in the U.S. pop chart and No. 1 in the independent music chart. It maintained its position in the main chart the following week before slipping to No. 7 in the latest list.
"It`s the first time I`ve ever been up in that territory, above the clouds," said Satriani, who is embroiled in a copyright infringement suit with British band Coldplay over its hit single "Viva La Vida."  Continued...
Original article

Young, Springsteen give Hyde Park rock masterclass

(YOUNG, SPRINGSTEEN, STAGE, LONDON, PLAYED, VERSION, SONGS)

By Angus MacSwan
LONDON (Reuters) - If Mount Rushmore featured rock `n` rollers instead of U.S. presidents, the faces of Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen would surely be carved there.
The two elder statesmen showed just why they are venerated by fans of all ages at the Hard Rock Calling festival in central London`s Hyde Park this weekend in performances brimming with passion, energy and timeless songs.
To cap it all, Sir Paul McCartney joined Young on stage for his encore, literally bowing at his feet as the Canadian played a feedback-drenched version of the Beatles "A Day in the Life."
Now aged 63 and 59, neither Young nor Springsteen has let up the pace in recent years. Both have released new albums in the past several months which had their moments even if they did not reach the heights of past classics.
They each took prominent positions against former U.S. President George W. Bush and the Iraq War. Springsteen campaigned hard for Barack Obama and played at his presidential inauguration.
Politics was largely absent from the Hyde Park shows though as they focused on entertaining the summer crowds in London, after headlining the Glastonbury Festival earlier in the week.
Young took to the stage on Saturday night looking like an old mountain man seeking shelter from a storm, with his bedraggled, thinning hair, craggy features and muttonchop sideburns. Not known for indulging his audiences, he played a crowd-pleasing set which drew heavily on "Harvest," his best-known album, and the guitar-heavy "Everybody Knows this is Nowhere."
He kicked off in his "Godfather of Grunge" persona with a crunching version of "Hey, Hey, My, My" and its refrain "it`s better to burn out than to fade away." He then stormed though a number of hard rockers, delighting rapturous fans, before switching to a mellow mood with a run of country-flavored numbers including "Heart of Gold" and "Old Man," as night fell on the park.
Young finished with a blazing version of "Rockin` in the Free World," uncharacteristically leading the crowd in a bout of arm-waving and leaving his black guitar wailing feedback, its strings shredded.
McCartney, an old friend, bounded on stage to join Young for the encore of "A Day in the Life," hugging Young and dancing around him. The two were clearly having fun.
Among the crowd was Beth Harley, a 26-year-old archaeologist, who had just arrived from Turkey on Saturday morning to see Young. She said she had grown up listening to his music as her parents played it all the time.
"It`s got a lot of edge. The songs don`t seem to age. It still seems relevant to what`s going on now," she said.
If Young is a willful eccentric, Springsteen is the great showman who delivers every time.
Taking the stage with the mighty, black-clad E. Street band, he launched into The Clash song "London Calling," bellowing its refrain "we live by the river" loud enough to be heard just down the road at Buckingham Palace. He then moved into more familiar territory with "Badlands" and the pace didn`t let up for the next three hours.
Springsteen ran around the stage, danced, and strutted along a special platform to get close to the fans and collect signs with song requests. He sang plenty of old favorites, switching from songs on the dreams and struggles of the working man to joyful sing-alongs.  Continued...
Original article

Disney star Ashley Tisdale gets edgy on new album

(TISDALE, NEW, ALBUM, WANTED, WARNER, GUILTY, PLEASURE)

By Mikael Wood
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Ashley Tisdale knows it sounds silly, but her new album has a lot to do with the color of her hair.
"For the last few years everyone has thought of me as Sharpay," the 23-year-old singer/actor says, referring to her blonde-and-bubbly character in Disney`s smash "High School Musical" films.
"So after I`d finished all the promotion for `High School Musical 3` I dyed my hair back to its original color. I`d been a blonde for five years; Disney wanted us to be those characters. But the new songs I was working on felt edgier, sort of back to how I was before `High School Musical.` I wanted to show people a side of me they haven`t seen before."
Tisdale accomplishes that -- well, sort of -- on "Guilty Pleasure," due July 28 from Warner Bros. Like her 2007 debut, "Headstrong" (which, according to Nielsen SoundScan, has sold 471,000 copies in the United States), the new 14-track set offers plenty of catchy choruses and lyrics about boys.
But with songwriting and production credits from "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi, among others, "Guilty Pleasure" is a more mature, guitar-driven outing than the dance-pop "Headstrong." In the opener, "Acting Out," she promises to "break these chains" over driving bubble-punk drums, while the lead single, "It`s Alright, It`s OK," could be the younger sister of Pink`s "So What."
"A lot of the songs on the album are about survival and staying strong," says Tisdale, who co-wrote four cuts. "I really wanted it to be a statement and a reflection of what I`ve been through over the past year and how I`ve grown up."
Warner Bros. senior VP of marketing David Grant says the first component of the label`s album rollout was revealing Tisdale`s new look with a relaunch of her Web site in March and the cover of Cosmopolitan`s April issue. "We wanted to create a conversation and then follow quickly with the music," he says.
According to Grant, "High School Musical" fans have aged along with Tisdale, and they still constitute a significant portion of her audience. "But she`s taken it beyond that, too," he says. For "Headstrong" the label targeted tweens; this time, "we`re definitely looking to teenage girls."
Social-networking technology plays a central role in the label`s plans to reach that demographic. Tisdale is an especially avid Twitterer, with more than 750,000 followers.
"She`s very protective of it in terms of it sounding authentic," according to Warner Bros. senior VP of new media Jeremy Welt. "There have been a couple of times where we`ve said to her, `Hey, why don`t you mention so-and-so?` and she`s told us, `I wouldn`t say that.`" (What would she say? One recent Tweet read, "Happy fathers day!!! Goin to dinner with my family and the most amazing dad ever! I love you daddy!")
Facebook and MySpace also figure into Warner`s new-media campaign, the latter particularly as an "important streaming partner," Welt says. MySpace is streaming two tracks from "Guilty Pleasure," and Grant expects the site to feature the entire album before release date.
In the realm of retail, Grant says Target and Wal-Mart will sell exclusive editions of the album with bonus material, while a direct-to-consumer version will feature six posters and two extra songs.
Once "Guilty Pleasure" is out, Tisdale says she hopes to tour the United States and Europe (where the set was released earlier this month). "This album is so important to me," she says. "I really want to support it as much as I can. You put your heart and soul into something and it makes you a little bit vulnerable. It is who I am -- hopefully people will like that."
(Editing by Dean Gooodman at Reuters)
Original article

Canadian rockers Billy Talent eye foreign success

(TALENT, BILLY, CANADA, ALBUM, BAND`S, ACCORDING, III)

By Robert Thompson
TORONTO (Billboard) - Most guitarists would be perturbed to discover that their label was issuing their band`s latest album with a bonus CD of the songs stripped of the guitar.
But the guitarist with Canadian rock group Billy Talent looked at the bigger picture and realized the bonus disc -- complete with chord chart -- would allow bedroom dreamers raised on "Guitar Hero" to play along.
"I`m pretty sure no one has done it before," Ian D`Sa says. "When I was a kid I would have killed to be able to play along with the vocals, bass and drums on `Led Zeppelin IV.` I think this opens the boundaries between the band and our fans."
It shouldn`t surprise anyone that amateur guitarists are fans of the band`s mix of hard rock and punk. The act`s latest album, "Billy Talent III," produced by Brendan O`Brien (Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam), hits stores via Warner Music Canada July 14 in Canada, where the band is already an arena-size draw.
Billy Talent`s primary markets are Canada and Germany. The band`s two previous albums, "Billy Talent I" and "Billy Talent II," sold 330,000 and 280,000 copies in Canada, respectively, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In Germany -- where "III" will be released July 10 -- the band`s first two albums have shipped 460,000 copies, according to Warner.
Warner Music Canada president Steve Kane says the United Kingdom is a priority for the label, as part of an overall European strategy. There, sales stand at 48,000 for "I" and 61,000 for "II," according to the Official Charts Co.; "III" will be released July 13.
"We need to superserve a lot of markets in Europe, but we can`t take Canada and Germany for granted," he says. "In the U.K. I think we`re one radio song away (from mainstream success)."
The band has had limited success in the United States despite significant touring commitments for its first two albums, which have sold 120,000 and 59,000 U.S. copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band`s manager Pierre Tremblay, senior VP at Nettwerk Music Group, says Billy Talent`s reputation as a top live act should help it make inroads in the U.S. market, and then onward to Australia and New Zealand.
"This will take some patience," Tremblay adds. "Billy Talent isn`t just some pop act that you can throw a lot of money at and land on radio."
(Editing by Dean Gooodman at Reuters)
Original article

Related articles:
Canadian rockers Billy Talent eye foreign success

Canadian rockers Billy Talent eye foreign success

(TALENT, BILLY, CANADA, ALBUM, BAND`S, ACCORDING, III)

By Robert Thompson
TORONTO (Billboard) - Most guitarists would be perturbed to discover that their label was issuing their band`s latest album with a bonus CD of the songs stripped of the guitar.
But the guitarist with Canadian rock group Billy Talent looked at the bigger picture and realized the bonus disc -- complete with chord chart -- would allow bedroom dreamers raised on "Guitar Hero" to play along.
"I`m pretty sure no one has done it before," Ian D`Sa says. "When I was a kid I would have killed to be able to play along with the vocals, bass and drums on `Led Zeppelin IV.` I think this opens the boundaries between the band and our fans."
It shouldn`t surprise anyone that amateur guitarists are fans of the band`s mix of hard rock and punk. The act`s latest album, "Billy Talent III," produced by Brendan O`Brien (Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam), hits stores via Warner Music Canada July 14 in Canada, where the band is already an arena-size draw.
Billy Talent`s primary markets are Canada and Germany. The band`s two previous albums, "Billy Talent I" and "Billy Talent II," sold 330,000 and 280,000 copies in Canada, respectively, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In Germany -- where "III" will be released July 10 -- the band`s first two albums have shipped 460,000 copies, according to Warner.
Warner Music Canada president Steve Kane says the United Kingdom is a priority for the label, as part of an overall European strategy. There, sales stand at 48,000 for "I" and 61,000 for "II," according to the Official Charts Co.; "III" will be released July 13.
"We need to superserve a lot of markets in Europe, but we can`t take Canada and Germany for granted," he says. "In the U.K. I think we`re one radio song away (from mainstream success)."
The band has had limited success in the United States despite significant touring commitments for its first two albums, which have sold 120,000 and 59,000 U.S. copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band`s manager Pierre Tremblay, senior VP at Nettwerk Music Group, says Billy Talent`s reputation as a top live act should help it make inroads in the U.S. market, and then onward to Australia and New Zealand.
"This will take some patience," Tremblay adds. "Billy Talent isn`t just some pop act that you can throw a lot of money at and land on radio."
(Editing by Dean Gooodman at Reuters)
Original article

BET Awards pay tribute to Michael Jackson

By Bob Tourtellotte
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The BET Awards kicked off on Sunday night with a musical tribute to Michael Jackson in which host Jamie Foxx did Jackson`s famous moonwalk and sung his hit song "Beat It" in a classic King of Pop costume -- red leather jacket and one white glove.
Oscar-winning actor and singer Foxx told the packed house in Los Angeles` Shrine Auditorium the awards program would honor Jackson, the music star who died suddenly last Thursday after suffering cardiac arrest at his rented Los Angeles home.
"We`re going to celebrate this black man. He belongs to us, and we shared him with everybody else," Foxx told the crowd.
"I`m going to moonwalk tonight -- going to moonwalk from here, all the way to there, for Michael Jackson," Foxx said, pointing across the stage.
He then performed the backwards shuffle dance step that Jackson made famous, but Foxx didn`t even come close to mastering the move. In fact, he tripped.
The awards given annually by the BET television network honor the best African American singers, actors, actresses and athletes. This year`s show was revamped at the last minute due to Jackson`s death, and many early performers and winners dedicated their awards to Jackson and his family.
A member of 1970s brother band the Jackson 5 and a global star, Jackson`s 1982 smash "Thriller" is the best-selling album of all time and the superstar was a major influence on R&B, hip hop and many other forms of music.
"He is one of our heroes. As African Americans, we are not going to let everybody beat him up," music mogul and rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs said of Jackson ahead of the show.
While the 50-year-old Jackson was loved by many, he lived a reclusive live in his final years, and in the 1990s he was twice accused of child molestation. One claim was settled out of court, and the second accusation resulted in a criminal trial. Jackson was acquitted of charges in the second case.
His death continues to be shrouded in questions of prescription drug use and, although an autopsy was performed, it will be four to six weeks before an official cause of death can be determined after toxicology tests are completed.
Family patriarch Joe Jackson told the CNN television network outside the show that there were still "a lot of concerns about what happened" in final hours of son`s life.
But inside the Shrine, the show focused on glorifying Jackson`s life. In fact, Foxx noted that as in New Orleans, where people celebrated a person`s life after his or her death, the BET Awards audience would be encouraged to party.
Early winners included Day 26 for best music group, basketball star LeBron James for best athlete, and Lil Wayne for best male hip hop artist.
(Reporting by Bob Tourtellott; editing by Todd Eastham)
Original article

Connery blasts BBC at Edinburgh film awards ceremony

By Ian MacKenzie
EDINBURGH (Reuters) - Actor Sean Connery lashed out at the BBC for its coverage of the awards ceremony at the Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) on Sunday when he handed out the prizes.
The EIFF award for the best new British feature film went to Moon, a "creepy, poignant and funny" sci-fi film directed by Duncan Jones. The film, which received a prize of 20,000 pounds, stars Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey.
Connery, a festival patron who gained worldwide fame for his portrayal of British secret agent James Bond, told a packed audience on the final day of the EIFF that the BBC had 300 technicians at the current Glastonbury pop and folk festival in southwest England.
"Not one (technician) at the Edinburgh International Film Festival," he said.
"It affects us all, it certainly affects me, and I think we should do something about it."
The BBC said in response: "BBC news outlets covered the Edinburgh International Film Festival on radio, TV and online. Obviously Glastonbury is a huge live music, arts and performance event and cannot be compared as like for like."
It said the BBC would cover the Edinburgh international arts festival and T in the Park pop concert later this summer.
In Moon, Rockwell`s character has almost ended his three-year solitary posting mining fuel for earth on the moon with thoughts of returning to the planet and his family.
But as his return date approaches, life on his self-contained world takes a startling turn. The jury praised Moon for its "singular vision and remarkably assured direction"
The award for best performance in a British feature film went to Katie Jarvis for her role as 15-year-old Mia in Fish Tank, "an intense and surprising story of love, lust and family."
Jarvis turned 18 last week and said this was her best birthday gift.
Easier With Practice, directed by American Kyle Patrick Alvarez took the best new international feature award featuring sex, love and loneliness over the phone.
Best documentary award was taken by Aliona Van der Horst of The Netherlands with a lament for cult Russian poet Boris Ryzhy, who committed suicide in 2001 aged 26.
American director and writer Cary Jojo Fukunaga won the new director award for Sin Nombre centered on Honduran teenager Sayra and her involvement with a dangerous gang member on the run.
The Edinburgh film festival, which opened on June 17, has as one of its major aims discovering and promoting new talent in the industry.  Continued...
Original article

Michael Jackson set to make chart history, again

By Keith Caulfield
LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Michael Jackson will once again make music history next week as many of his albums are poised to shake up the Billboard charts with incredible sales increases.
The impact of Jackson`s shock death on Thursday was felt immediately in the marketplace. Industry sources report that the demand for Jackson`s albums were so high, many stores simply ran out of his CDs.
The albums with the greatest sales increases -- at least on the physical side of things -- look to be his greatest hits packages "Number Ones" and "The Essential Michael Jackson" along with the expanded reissue of "Thriller." The sets, released between 2003 and 2008, were the three Jackson albums that perhaps had the most stock available in stores.
In the digital realm, where the supply problem doesn`t exist, Jackson`s songs and albums swarmed the top of the constantly-updating best sellers lists in both the iTunes` and Amazon`s online music stores. At one point on Friday in the iTunes Store, nine out of the top 10-selling albums and 40 of the top 100-selling songs were by Jackson.
The three aforementioned albums, along with Jackson`s classic studio sets "Off the Wall," "Bad" and "Dangerous" all will likely zoom into the upper region of Billboard`s Top Pop Catalog Albums chart next week. Initial reports of Jackson`s album sales from Thursday alone indicate that one of his albums -- possibly "Number Ones" -- will easily fly to No. 1 on the chart next week. Last week, the set -- which also was his top-selling album of the week -- was at No. 20 on the Catalog chart with 4,000 sold.
To compare, last week`s No. 1 on the Catalog chart was TobyMac`s "Portable Sounds" with 9,000 copies sold. Sources say that at least one of Jackson`s albums sold more than double that amount just on Thursday.
Nielsen SoundScan`s tracking week ends at the close of business on Sunday (28). Billboard and SoundScan`s new weekly charts will be released on Wednesday, July 1.
(Editing by Dean Gooodman)
Original article

Hello Goodbye: Jackson`s Beatles rights at risk

By Gina Keating
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Beatles For Sale?
The Fab Four`s prized catalog -- specifically 267 songs mostly written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney -- is embarking on a long and winding road of ownership uncertainty following the death of Michael Jackson on Thursday.
The pop singer and Sony Corp`s Sony Music arm operated a lucrative joint venture that either owns or administers the copyrights to about 750,000 compositions written by the likes of Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, Taylor Swift and the Jonas Brothers.
Industry analysts estimate that Sony/ATV Music Publishing is worth at least $1 billion, making Jackson one savvy entertainer. His initial investment cost him $47.5 million in 1985. Music publishing is considered a license to print money. Not quite as exciting as the piracy-ravaged recorded-music side, it involves collecting royalties from such diverse avenues as downloads, radio airplay and videogames.
But mystery now surrounds the beneficial ownership of Jackson`s stake. According to a lawsuit filed in 2002 by a creditor, he secured bank loans totaling $270 million two years earlier using both his Sony/ATV stake and the copyrights to his own songs as collateral.
Jackson lived an extravagant lifestyle, even as his commercial appeal dwindled amid damaging child-abuse allegations and changing music tastes. The Wall Street Journal reported in 2005 that his cash reserves ran so low earlier that year that he worried about paying his electric bill. The paper reported earlier this month that he had racked up about $500 million of debt.
"VERY COMPLEX" VALUATIONS
A clearer picture of his finances will emerge during the administration period of his estate that usually lasts about 18 months, said Renee Gabbard of the law firm Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker in Costa Mesa, California.
Jackson`s executors will evaluate his assets, file the estate tax return and invite creditors to submit invoices, said Gabbard, who has a number of wealthy clients with entertainment-related estates.
The process of valuing estate assets, especially intellectual property like music copyrights, is "very complex" and often takes "quite a while," said Gabbard.
"When you have entertainers and musicians they usually have quite extensive royalty contracts. It`s very tough to put a value on a catalog of songs," she said.
Jackson and Sony formed their joint venture in 1995, with the singer contributing ATV Songs, whose 4,000 tunes included most of the Beatles catalog. He had bought ATV a decade earlier from Australian businessman Robert Holmes a Court, famously outbidding McCartney in the process.
Jackson was not involved in the day-to-day operations of Sony/ATV, but as a lover of the songwriting process was known to be "incredibly proud" of the company and its fast growth, according to a publishing industry source.
A spokesman for Sony/ATV declined to comment.
His stakes in both Sony/ATV and in Mijac, which holds his own copyrights, were owned by trusts. It was not clear if they were irrevocable or not. If they are revocable, then they could be dismantled to satisfy creditors, Gabbard said.  Continued...
Original article

Jackson leaves hefty debts, unrealized comeback

By Nichola Groom and Yinka Adegoke
LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Along with a vast musical legacy and legions of adoring fans, pop superstar Michael Jackson leaves behind a mountain of debt and an unfulfilled comeback many hoped would rake in millions and erase his financial troubles.
The King of Pop died suddenly on Thursday at the age of 50, after a career spanning 40 years that included the biggest-selling pop album of all time, "Thriller."
Despite taking in hundreds of millions of dollars as one of the most successful pop musicians of all time, Jackson racked up about $500 million of debt, according to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal earlier this month.
His top assets, however, including copyrights to his own songs and a stake in the Beatles` song catalog, are worth more than $1 billion, according to a music industry source.
Jackson`s career and image were tarnished by his mounting financial and legal troubles in recent years [ID:nN25299926].
Known for huge shopping sprees for toys and antiques, Jackson was accused by an accountant during his 2005 trial on child molestation charges of spending $20 million to $30 million more than he was bringing in per year.
The lavish lifestyle was made possible in part by a $200 million loan secured by his stake in the Beatles catalog. Jackson owned the music in a joint venture with Sony Corp known as Sony/ATV. Jackson refinanced those loans in 2006 in a bid to stave off insolvency.
In addition, Jackson last November had to hand over the title on his Neverland estate in California to a company made up of himself and Los Angeles-based real estate investment trust Colony Capital LLC, the firm that holds his $23 million loan on the property.
Colony Capital has been sprucing up the ranch and planned to sell it, according to the Journal. Colony Chief Executive Tom Barrack told the newspaper last month the estate could fetch $70 million to $80 million, or more if Jackson`s career were revitalized.
In a statement on Thursday, Barrack said he was "deeply saddened" by Jackson`s death, but did not comment on the impact on Colony`s business.
PLANNED BIG COMEBACK
To help turn around his financial fortunes, Jackson was planning a major comeback in London this summer, 12 years since his last tour.
AEG Live, which was promoting the 50-concert run at the 02 Arena, stands to lose as much as $40 million if its insurance is not substantial enough to cover what it has already spent on the production, Billboard reported, and one attorney said the company would not be able to recover any of those costs from Jackson`s estate.
"The concert promoters can`t sue the estate," said Bob Rasmussen, dean of the Gould Law School at the University of Southern California. "Once he dies, he doesn`t have any obligation to perform."
AEG, wholly owned by privately held Anschutz Co, will also certainly miss out on the $400 million the company estimated it could raise through a 3 1/2-year plan to work with Jackson.  Continued...
Original article

King of Pop Michael Jackson is dead: official

By Bob Tourtellotte
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson, the child star turned King of Pop who set the world dancing but whose musical genius was overshadowed by a bizarre lifestyle and sex scandals, died on Thursday. He was 50.
Jackson was pronounced dead at about 2:26 p.m. PDT (5:26 EDT) after arriving at a Los Angeles hospital in full cardiac arrest, said Fred Corral of the Los Angeles County Coroner`s office. The cause of death was not known and an autopsy would likely take place on Friday, he said.
Jackson`s sudden death had been reported earlier by U.S. media, which said he was taken ill at his home and rushed to the hospital by paramedics who found him not breathing when they arrived.
Known as the "King of Pop," for hits that included "Thriller" and "Billie Jean," Jackson`s dramatic, one-gloved stage presence and innovative dance moves were imitated by legions of fans around the world.
He transformed music videos and his lifetime record sales tally is believed to be around 750 million, which, added to the 13 Grammy Awards he received, made him one of the most successful entertainers of all time.
But Jackson`s belief that "I am Peter Pan in my heart", his preference for the company of children, his friendship with a chimp, his high-pitched voice and numerous plastic surgeries also earned him critics and the nickname "Wacko Jacko."
Jackson, who had lived as a virtual recluse since his acquittal in 2005 on charges of child molestation, had been scheduled to launch a comeback tour from London next month.
Quincy Jones, who helped arrange the music on the album "Thriller" and produced the "Off the Wall" album, told MSNBC: "I am absolutely devastated at this tragic and unexpected news."
"For Michael to be taken away from us so suddenly at such a young age, I just don`t have the words. I`ve lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him."
SOLD-OUT SHOWS
Jackson had been due to start a series of concerts in London on July 13 running until March 2010. The singer had been rehearsing in the Los Angeles area for the past two months. The shows for the 50 London concerts sold out within minutes of going on sale in March.
"Rarely has the world received a gift with the magnitude of artistry, talent, and vision as Michael Jackson," said Neil Portnow, president and CEO of The Recording Academy in a statement.
"He was a true musical icon whose identifiable voice, innovative dance moves, stunning musical versatility, and sheer star power carried him from childhood to worldwide acclaim."
There were concerns about Jackson`s health in recent years but the promoters of the London shows, AEG Live, said in March that Jackson had passed a 4-1/2 hour physical examination with independent doctors.
Outside the hospital in Los Angeles about 200 fans and reporters gathered on Thursday, waiting for confirmation of Jackson`s death or condition.  Continued...
Original article

"Billy Elliot" dances away with 10 Tony Awards

By Michelle Nichols and Claudia ParsonsNEW YORK (Reuters) - "Billy Elliot The Musical" swept the top U.S. theater honors on Sunday, winning 10 Tony Awards for a Broadway season that defied a recession with record ticket sales.
"Billy Elliot" is based on Oscar-nominated director Stephen Daldry's 2000 film about a ballet dancing schoolboy in a mining town in northern England. Elton John, who suggested the film be adapted for theater, wrote the music for the production.
"We came here at a hard time economically, you opened your wallets and your hearts to us and we love you for it," said John, one of Britain's best-known musicians whose hit songs include "Candle in the Wind" and "Rocket Man."
"Billy Elliot" was named best musical and the three teenage actors who play the title role -- David Alvarez, Trent Kowalik and Kiril Kulish -- were all named best actor in a musical, the first time three actors have shared the award.
"We want to say to all the kids out there who might want to dance, never give up," Kulish said.
Daldry, who won best musical director, said the boys were "three great gifts of Broadway" and that he was "blessed in the past 10 years of my life to be working on 'Billy Elliot.'" The show has also played in Britain and Australia.
Gregory Jbara won best featured actor in a musical for his role as Billy's father and the show also won best book of a musical and scenic, lighting, sound and choreography awards. It tied with "Next to Normal" for best orchestration.
Alice Ripley was named best actress in a musical for her role as a bipolar suburban housewife in "Next to Normal," which also picked up best original score, beating nominees including Elton John and Lee Hall for "Billy Elliot" and Dolly Parton for "9 to 5: The Musical."
"Billy Elliot" had matched the record number of Tony Award nominations set by "The Producers" in 2001, picking up 15 nods. "The Producers" went on to win a record 12 awards.
"Hair," the new production of the groundbreaking 1960s musical, won the Tony for best revival of a musical.
LIZA AND LANSBURY AMONG WINNERS
"God of Carnage" -- with an all-star cast of "Sopranos" star James Gandolfini, Marcia Gay Harden, Hope Davis and Jeff Daniels -- picked up the most awards for a play, winning best play, director of a play, and best actress for Harden.
"God of Carnage" director Matthew Warchus beat himself -- he was also nominated for best director for "The Norman Conquests," a trilogy of comedies that came to Broadway from a sold-out run in London, which won the Tony best play revival.
Liza Minnelli won the best special theatrical event Tony for "Liza's at the Palace," which featured a musical tribute to the 1940's nightclub act of her godmother, Kay Thompson.
"This is exquisite," a breathless Minnelli said. "I thought my beautiful man over there was going to win," she added, referring to comedian Will Ferrell, who was nominated for "You're Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush." Continued...
Source: Reuters

"Billy Elliot" early winner at Tony Awards

By Michelle Nichols and Claudia ParsonsNEW YORK (Reuters) - "Billy Elliot The Musical" was an early winner at the top U.S. theater honors on Sunday, picking up six behind-the-scenes Tony Awards for a Broadway season that defied recession with record ticket sales.
"Billy Elliot" is based on Oscar-nominated director Stephen Daldry's 2000 film about a ballet dancing schoolboy in a mining town in northern England. The show won 10 Drama Desk Awards and seven Outer Critics Circle Awards in the lead up to the Tonys.
"I have to thank Elton John. It was his idea to make this a musical in the first place," said Lee Hall, who won the Tony Award for best book of a musical. "He insisted we start with the music."
Hall and John, whose many hit songs include "Candle in the Wind" and "Rocket Man," are also nominated for best original score for "Billy Elliot."
Hundreds of people lined the street outside New York City's Radio City Hall, cheering nominees including singer Dolly Parton, comedian Will Ferrell, "Sopranos" star James Gandolfini and Oscar winners Liza Minnelli and Geoffrey Rush.
The Tony Awards were established in 1947 and are named for Antoinette Perry, whose nickname was Toni. Perry, who died in 1946, was an actress, stage director and philanthropist who was a founder of the American Theater Wing.
Around 750 people from the theater industry -- from actors, to directors to journalists -- vote for the Tony Awards.
The Broadway League says the 39 theaters in the famous district contribute $5.1 billion per year to the economy of New York, on top of ticket sales, and support 44,000 jobs.
During the 12-month Broadway season ending May 24, 43 shows opened -- the most in more than 25 years, said the Broadway League. There were 10 new musicals, eight new plays, four musical revivals, 16 play revivals and five special shows.
Broadway's paid attendance was 12.15 million tickets, down from 12.27 million the previous season, but gross takings rose $6 million, or 0.6 percent, to $943.3 million, beating the previous record set in the 2006/07 season of $938.5 million.
(Additional reporting by Carmen Perry)

Source: Reuters

Q&A: Julian Marley carries on the family tradition

By Monica HerreraNEW YORK (Billboard) - After a six-year hiatus, Julian "JuJu" Marley is back with his third album, "Awake."
The Ghetto Youths/Universal release, which he co-produced with his brothers Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley and Stephen Marley, drew inspiration from the spirit of Cedella Marley Booker, their grandmother (and Bob Marley's mother), who died in 2008.
Marley spoke to Billboard about maturing as an artist, youth-on-youth crime and the family legacy that inspires his music.
Billboard: "Awake" is your first album since 2003. Have you been working on it this whole time?
Julian Marley: Overall it took me two years to really start and complete it. Before that I was helping out with different Marley family projects, like the Roots Rock Reggae Fest and Africa Unite, and working on Stephen's and Damian's albums. I wrote and recorded "Awake" during the months in between and had input on everything, from the riddims on down. On my first two albums, I was still growing and still unsure about music. I ran into problems where I'd even written songs in a key that wasn't right for me. This time I found my own comfort zone, and the songs are tailor-made.
Billboard: What is the concept behind the album?
Marley: What's going on in the world right now is a sign of the times -- in Jamaica we say "judgment time." Jobs are gone, there's violence in the streets, and everything that we want exceeds the money that there is. On the title track I sing, "For many years we have been lost in our tears/For many years the prophets have spoke/And still we can't find no peace of mind/When will we wake?" We need to awaken the mentality of mankind.
Billboard: Stephen sings on "Too Little Too Late," and Damian is featured on "Violence in the Streets." What's it like working so closely with your brothers?
Marley: Putting "Too Little Too Late" together with Stephen was a great experience. It was like we were playing a game of soccer. I didn't know what to expect, but I loved how it came out. Jr. Gong and I have done other collaborations, but "Violence in the Streets" is about how we see the violence in Jamaica, or really anywhere. In England, you have 15-year-olds killing 15-year-olds, and no one understands why. It's because of lack of education.
Billboard: How are you promoting the album?
Marley: We've been playing new songs from the album live since April. We did three shows in the U.S. in April, in Mississippi, St. Petersburg (Florida) and the Jazz Fest in New Orleans. Now we're headed back to Jamaica to do a lot of promotional appearances and performances.
Billboard: Are you influenced by dancehall and other contemporary offshoots of classic, Marley-style reggae?
Marley: It's all natural. If I'm influenced enough to move my head and dance, then that's enough. The single "Boom Draw" is like street-style dancehall, but downtempo. We're promoting Jamaica on that song. As an artist, I can be inspired by other music -- that's how you learn.
Billboard: How does your family's influence run through "Awake?"
Marley: Our grandmother, Mrs. Booker, passed away while I was making the album, before I had started to record my vocals. I wouldn't say I was influenced by sadness, but "Awake" was born right there. I didn't take a pause with the recording process, because our grandmother was a person who would say, "Everything is all right. You need to do what you have to do." And she might be vexed if you're not doing it. To me, it's like, our ancestors that we love so much -- we're not going to see them again on this side of the fence. The only way I can feel them is through their spiritual energy, the same way that you see God through divine energy. At the end of the day, that energy runs through all of us as brothers.
(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)

Source: Reuters

Rock band Sugar Ray back in the ring as indie act

By David J. PrinceNEW YORK (Billboard) - Mark McGrath, the lead singer of Sugar Ray and former host of the celebrity news show "Extra," has often employed an old political tactic for his career: Set expectations low so success seems all the sweeter.
The self-deprecating attitude served him and his band well. He has joked about his looks, voice, penis and fleeting fame -- one album was called "14:59," just short of the 15 minutes Andy Warhol famously described -- while the band's steady stream of reggae-tinged mid-'90s radio hits sold more than 5 million albums, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and made McGrath a star.
So when the band announced in April that it regrouped in a Los Angeles recording studio, made a new album ("Music for Cougars") and was ready to head back out on the road for another turn in the spotlight, McGrath was quick to acknowledge that many would wonder why. "I know people aren't sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for a Sugar Ray record," he says. "But that wasn't the point."
Contrary to popular perception, Sugar Ray never broke up. The band's original lineup of childhood friends from Newport Beach, California, moved from rap-punk to power-pop and from broke unknowns to wealthy platinum-sellers over the course of five albums on Atlantic.
But by 2003, the writing was on the wall for bands like Sugar Ray, and that year the group's "In the Pursuit of Leisure" album -- an attempted reinvention that included several songs produced by the Neptunes -- flopped. McGrath took the TV job, and the rest of the guys went back to the beach. They would reconvene every year for a few corporate gigs, state-fair-type concerts and an occasional soundtrack song, but Sugar Ray was on the back burner. Atlantic dropped the act in 2006.
When McGrath's contract with "Extra" was about to expire, he, the band and longtime manager Chip Quigley quietly began plotting Sugar Ray's return. Jason Bernard, a music producer and longtime friend of the band's whose Pulse Studios encompasses a recording studio, publishing company and record label with a distribution deal through Fontana, was eager to cut a deal.
"We realized there are bands out there in the world that major labels were turning their heads on," says Bernard, who last year brought alternative rock band Filter out of retirement. "We can make world-class records for pennies on the dollar with our sweat equity."
The resulting "Cougars" marks a return to the tried-and-true formula that made 1997's "Fly" a radio staple. The first single, "Boardwalk," is a straight-down-the-center, sunny, unmistakably Sugar Ray song. Other cuts on the album include the uptempo dance track "She's Got The ... (Woo-Hoo)," the midtempo romancer "Love Is the Answer" and the reggae-influenced remake of Eddie Hodges' "(Girls Girls Girls Are) Made to Love" featuring Collie Buddz.
"We were part of a business where you had a hit single and you sold 3 million records, but it's different now," Quigley says. "The real core of our business is the live arena, and for that you need songs on the radio. So we're really going to try and get the song on radio and go out there touring this summer and show folks we're still a great live band."
(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)

Source: Reuters