Music news

• Stevie Wonder calls on Biden administration to launch commission on racial inequality

  18-01-2021 23:48 via nme.com
  
  Stevie Wonder has shared an open letter on Martin Luther King Jr day (January 18) in which he urges the incoming Joe Biden administration to launch a commission on inequality.
  The singer shone light on racial issues on MLK day today (a federal holiday that marks the late civil rights activist’s birthday) by making an emotional speech in a four-minute video.
  In the clip Wonder reminisces about meeting the King when he was 14 years old, hailing him a “true hero and inspiration”.
  
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• How to Watch ‘United We Serve: A Celebration of the National MLK Day of Service’ With Aloe Blacc, Chesca & More

  18-01-2021 23:06
  
  Ahead of this week’s inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the Presidential Inaugural Committee and special guests will honor Martin Luther King Jr. and his commitment to community service during United We Serve: A Celebration of the National MLK Day of Service, which streams Monday night (Jan. 18).
  “On Monday the 18th, join us for a celebration of the National MLK #DayOfService. After a day of Americans serving their communities, we’ll come together for an evening of mu
  
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• Weezer announce new album ‘OK Human’ dropping next week

  18-01-2021 22:46 via nme.com
  
  Weezer have shared details of a new album arriving next week called ‘OK Human’.READ MORE: Weezer’s 10 best songsThe record, which will be the Californian band’s 14th, was first teased in 2019 alongside ‘Van Weezer’, the latter album of which originally had a May 2020 release date before being shelved due to the coronavirus pandemic.
  Now, ‘OK Human’ – described by frontman Rivers Cuomo in a previous Entertainment Weekly interview as a piano-ba
  
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• Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, T.I. & More Recognize Loss of Black Americans in ’17 More Ways’ Video: Watch

  18-01-2021 22:11
  
  Music stars like Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige and T.I. have joined forces to recognize the loss of Black Americans in recent years, and call on the Biden-Harris Administration to take steps to end racism.
  In conjunction with Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday (Jan. 18), the Black Music Action Coalition and #breathewithme Revolution have shared a new video, titled “17 More Ways You Could Be Killed if You Are Black in America,” featuring numerous music artists bringing attention to Afr
  
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• Stevie Wonder Calls for ‘Truth Commission’ in Open Letter Honoring Dr. King

  18-01-2021 22:08 via rollingstone.com
  
  "For 36 years we've had a national holiday honoring your birthday and principles; yet you would not believe the lack of progress," singer writes
  
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• MGMT’s Andrew VanWyngarden releases new track as Gentle Dom ‘I Miss Dancing In New York’

  18-01-2021 22:00 via nme.com
  
  MGMT‘s Andrew VanWyngarden has shared a new song under his solo moniker Gentle Dom called ‘I Miss Dancing In New York’.
  The up-tempo house track appeared on the musician’s Soundcloud over the weekend. You can take a listen below.
  It’s VanWyngarden’s first material for three months as Gentle Dom, the name under which he’s released a number of standalone singles and mixes over the last five years.The project came to greater prominence after Gentle Dom&rsqu
  
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• TikTok Scrambling After Source Code Leaks — Hacker Calls Platform “Legitimate Spyware”

  18-01-2021 21:56 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  TikTok is using DMCA takedown requests to remove a source code leak online. A coder has reverse-engineered the TikTok Android app, showcasing how it works. The coder says TikTok is a data collection engine rather than a social network and calls it “legitimate spyware.” It’s the same reason the app came under fire at the […]
  The post TikTok Scrambling After Source Code Leaks — Hacker Calls Platform “Legitimate Spyware” appeared first on Digital Music New
  
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• TikTok Left Scrambling After Source Code Leaks — Hacker Calls Platform “Legitimate Spyware”

  18-01-2021 21:56 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  TikTok is using DMCA takedown requests to remove a source code leak online. A coder has reverse-engineered the TikTok Android app, showcasing how it works. The coder says TikTok is a data collection engine rather than a social network and calls it “legitimate spyware.” It’s the same reason the app came under fire at the […]
  The post TikTok Left Scrambling After Source Code Leaks — Hacker Calls Platform “Legitimate Spyware” appeared first on Digital Musi
  
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• TikTok Goes After Source Code Leak with DMCA Takedowns

  18-01-2021 21:56 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  TikTok is using DMCA takedown requests to remove a source code leak online. A coder has reverse-engineered the TikTok Android app, showcasing how it works. The coder says TikTok is a data collection engine rather than a social network and calls it “legitimate spyware.” It’s the same reason the app came under fire at the […]
  The post TikTok Goes After Source Code Leak with DMCA Takedowns appeared first on Digital Music News.
  
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• Take That hits sold by songwriter in publishing deal

  18-01-2021 21:45 via music-news.com
  
  Songwriter/producer Ian Levine has sold his rights.
  
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• Music Producer Phil Spector Dead – Convicted Murderer Dies Aged 81

  18-01-2021 21:36 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  Music producer Phil Spector is dead at age 81, another COVID-19 casualty. Spector is noted for his “Wall of Sound” recordings in the 1960s. He was convicted of the murder of an actress in 2003 and was serving out his life sentence in prison when he died. The gruesome murder overshadowed Spector’s prowess as a […]
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• Donald Trump orders construction of 250 statues including Whitney Houston, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash

  18-01-2021 21:24 via nme.com
  
  Outgoing US president Donald Trump has ordered the construction of 250 statues, following through on a previous pledge to build a ‘Garden of American Heroes’.READ MORE: Why we never, ever need to see a Donald Trump biopicIn an executive order issued today (January 18), Trump released a list of all 250 of the statues to be constructed, with little indication of the motives behind the selection. They range from historical figures and politicians to sportspeople and light entertainers.
  
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• Switching from Spotify to Apple Music? – How to Keep Your Playlists

  18-01-2021 21:08 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  Are you switching from Spotify to Apple Music? Here’s how to keep your playlists during the move. One of the most cited reasons users are reluctant to switch music streaming services is curated playlists. Spending years with a music service and curating playlists for your moods can seem daunting. But there are several services online […]
  The post Switching from Spotify to Apple Music? – How to Keep Your Playlists appeared first on Digital Music News.
  
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• Garth Brooks to Perform at Biden Inauguration: ‘This Is a Statement of Unity’

  18-01-2021 20:39
  
  Country music icon Garth Brooks will perform at President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ inauguration on Jan. 20. The Presidential Inaugural Committee revealed the Brooks performance in a press conference Monday (Jan. 18).
  “This is a great day in our household, this is not a political statement, this is a statement of unity,” Brooks said. “This is history, and it is an honor to get to serve.”
  Brooks says he was asked to perform by Dr. Jill B
  
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• The Vaccines tease cover of Queens Of The Stone Age’s ‘No One Knows’

  18-01-2021 20:36 via nme.com
  
  The Vaccines have teased a cover version of Queens Of The Stone Age‘s ‘No One Knows’, which is set to arrive later this week.READ MORE: Justin Young on “liberating” new side project Halloween – “It’s allowed The Vaccines to flourish”The band said their take on Josh Homme and co’s 2002 single, taken from their third album ‘Songs For The Deaf‘ is part of a ‘Cosy Karaoke’ covers EP. The release date and full trackli
  
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• Jorja Smith launches BBC Radio 3 series ‘Tearjerker’ about the healing power of music

  18-01-2021 20:36 via nme.com
  
  Jorja Smith is hosting a new BBC Radio 3 show that aims to soothe listeners and provide escape through music.
  The singer’s programme, titled ‘Tearjerker’, is a 12-part series that launched its first two episodes on Saturday night (January 16). The first one-hour part is described as “string-inspired music that just catches you”, and the second is a collection of Smith’s favourite piano pieces. You can listen to the series on BBC Sounds.
  Episode one “focu
  
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• Garth Brooks to Perform at President-Elect Joe Biden’s Inauguration

  18-01-2021 20:31 via rollingstone.com
  
  "This is not a political statement, this is a statement of unity," says the country star, who joins previously announced performers Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez
  
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• Stevie Wonder Uses MLK Day to Request Inequality Commission From Biden Administration

  18-01-2021 20:05
  
  Stevie Wonder on Monday (Jan. 18) posted an emotional open letter to Martin Luther King, Jr. in which he said he was using the holiday to call on the Biden-Harris Administration to launch a truth commission on inequality in America.
  In the video that is a bit more than four-minutes long, the iconic singer reminisces about meeting the late King when he was 14, calling the Civil Rights leader a “true hero and inspiration.”
  It was that inspiration Wonder he says helped him to “pus
  
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• The Jesus And Mary Chain announced rescheduled ‘Darklands’ tour dates

  18-01-2021 19:47 via nme.com
  
  The Jesus And Mary Chain have announced rescheduled dates for their upcoming UK tour in which they will play their 1987 album ‘Darklands’ in full.READ MORE: The Jesus & Mary Chain: ‘There’s no place in the world for us’The shows were initially due to take place in March and April 2020 and were then postponed to February 2021. They were rescheduled once again last week due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
  The band have now announced that the gigs will go ahea
  
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• Bearded Theory announces Placebo to headline as festival moves to September

  18-01-2021 19:24 via nme.com
  
  Bearded Theory festival has confirmed Placebo as its first headliner of its 2021 event, which has also been postponed to September.READ MORE: Restarting live music in 2021: Gig and festival bosses on what to expectThe Derbyshire festival has been moved from May 27-30, 2021 to September 9-12, 2021 in the hope that live events will have resumed in the UK by then. The Catton Hall event is one of hundreds of festivals waiting for positive news in the containment of – and the vaccination agains
  
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• Phil Spector Built a Wall of Sound That Couldn’t Contain the Monster Within Him

  18-01-2021 19:04
  
  He was a small man. To crease the air past five foot two, he needed to sculpt his hair upwards — when he had it, before the wigs — and wear lifts in his boots. But the sound he made was huge, massed ensembles of drums, bass, and guitar (in that order), reinforced by percussion, boosted by brass, and sweetened with perfectly placed instrumental hooks — indelible guitar or horn fills, backing vocals, or more drums, the bigger the better. He was obsessed with music — its sou
  
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• Stewart Lee film ‘King Rocker’ lands February premiere date

  18-01-2021 18:57 via nme.com
  
  Upcoming Stewart Lee film King Rocker has landed a premiere date on Sky Arts next month.READ MORE: Stewart Lee: “People like Sleaford Mods’ powerless rage – I have that too”The documentary delves into punk history and follows The Nightingales and The Prefects frontman Robert Lloyd, who has gone “under the radar for four decades”.
  Set to premiere on Sky Arts on February 6 at 9pm, the film features the likes of Lee and a host of well-known faces including Frank
  
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• You Me At Six tracking towards second UK Number 1 album with 'Suckapunch'

  18-01-2021 18:55 via music-news.com
  
  You Me At Six are leading the race for this week’s Number 1 album with Suckapunch.
  
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• Willie Jones: 'We've come a long way, but we got a long way to go'

  18-01-2021 18:54 via music-news.com
  
  Country star Willie Jones joins Zane Lowe on Apple Music to discuss his new song “American Dream”, why he released it
  
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• Dub Pistols and Dubmatix release ‘Blue Monday’ cover in aid of mental health charity

  18-01-2021 18:53 via nme.com
  
  Dub Pistols have shared a cover of New Order‘s 1983 classic ‘Blue Monday’ in collaboration with Canadian artist Dubmatix and dub producer Gaudi.READ MORE: Dub Pistols – “If you write about history, it will catch up with you”The track, as well as a dub version of the original, is released today on Blue Monday itself, the third Monday of January that is supposedly the most depressing day of the year. Take a listen below.
  All proceeds from the release will go to
  
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• Roger Waters Drops New Recording and Video for ‘The Gunner’s Dream’

  18-01-2021 18:35 via rollingstone.com
  
  New version of Pink Floyd's 1983 The Final Cut track released "on Dr. King's name day"
  
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• Hear Julien Baker cover Soundgarden’s ‘Fell On Black Days’

  18-01-2021 18:21 via nme.com
  
  Julien Baker has covered Soundgarden‘s 1995 single ‘Fell On Black Days’ – watch below.READ MORE: Chris Cornell – his 10 best songsThe singer-songwriter said she was floored by the song when digging into the band’s back catalogue, prompting her to choose it for a filmed home session.
  Baker told Seattle’s KEPX radio that she is a big fan of Audioslave – one of late frontman Chris Cornell‘s bands alongside Soundgarden – while growing up an
  
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• Masked Wolf, Serena Isioma, and Tai Verdes make it onto The Shazam Predictions 2021 playlist

  18-01-2021 18:06 via music-news.com
  
  Masked Wolf, Serena Isioma, and Tai Verdes are among the acts who have made it onto Shazam and Apple Music’s new ‘The Shazam Predictions 2021’ playlist.
  
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• Justin Timberlake Confirms Birth of Second Baby With Jessica Biel, Reveals New Son’s Name

  18-01-2021 18:04
  
  Justin Timberlake has finally confirmed that he and wife Jessica Biel have welcomed their second child, a baby boy.
  The 39-year-old superstar opened up about the couple’s new bundle of joy during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which airs Monday (Jan. 18). The singer and actor revealed that their new son’s name is Phineas and that they’re excited to be parents for a second time.
  “He’s awesome and so cute. Nobody’s sleeping,” Timberlake joked.
  
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• Watch Fall Out Boy perform at Joe Biden’s pre-inauguration concert

  18-01-2021 18:03 via nme.com
  
  Fall Out Boy played ‘Centuries’ as part of a special pre-inauguration concert for US president-elect Joe Biden last night (January 17) – watch footage below.
  The Chicago band were joined by James Taylor, Carole King and more at the We The People event, which was co-hosted by Keegan-Michael Key and Debra Messing.
  For the performance Fall Out Boy played their 2014 track ‘Centuries’ in a studio setting.Joe Biden is set to be inaugurated as the next US President on Wedn
  
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• Take That producer Ian Levine has sold his rights to a string of the band’s early hits

  18-01-2021 17:48 via music-news.com
  
  Ian, 67, has made a deal with music publisher One Media iP Group to sell his stake in Take That hits from their 1992 debut album
  
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• Spotify Stock (SPOT) Dips as Citi Tells Investors to ‘Sell’

  18-01-2021 17:48 via digitalmusicnews.com
  
  Spotify stock (SPOT) has dipped in value following Citigroup’s changing its rating from “neutral” to “sell” and expressing doubts about podcasts’ ability to attract premium subscribers. Citi analyst Jason Bazinet recently unveiled his bearish stance on Spotify stock, which recorded substantial gains in 2020 and reached yet another all-time-high per-share price ($370.95) earlier this month. […]
  The post Spotify Stock (SPOT) Dips as Citi Tells Investors t
  
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• 20,000 people in New Zealand attend biggest concert since lockdown

  18-01-2021 17:39 via nme.com
  
  Thousands of music fans went to a concert in Waitangi, New Zealand on Saturday (January 16) for what was the biggest single gig since the coronavirus pandemic began.READ MORE: Restarting live music in 2021: Gig and festival bosses on what to expectNew Zealand has managed to tackle and contain the virus so effectively that its alert level sits at one, with only a few imported cases or isolated local cases occurring (it currently has fewer than 80 active cases). This has meant that mass gatherings
  
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• Dua Lipa teases release of ‘Future Nostalgia’ b-sides

  18-01-2021 17:21 via nme.com
  
  Dua Lipa has teased the forthcoming release of a series of ‘Future Nostalgia’ b-sides.READ MORE: Dua Lipa: “If somebody told me not to discuss issues I’m passionate about? I wouldn’t listen”The singer’s second album arrived in March and was followed in August by its subsequent remix record ‘Club Future Nostalgia’, compiled by The Blessed Madonna.
  Since then the singer has shared a new single called ‘Fever’, and shared a
  
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• Alicia Keys, Khalid, More Artists Call for Racial Justice in New Video

  18-01-2021 17:05 via rollingstone.com
  
  Clip supports a call for Biden-Harris administration to launch commission for "Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation"
  
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• Watch Black Pumas perform for Biden-Harris inauguration welcome event

  18-01-2021 16:45 via nme.com
  
  Black Pumas performed their Grammy nominated song ‘Colors’ for an inauguration welcome livestream event broadcast over the weekend.READ MORE: Black Pumas – soul-stirring psychedelia from America’s new favourite bandThe first Joe Biden-Kamala Harris pre-inauguration event, titled ‘America United: An Inauguration Welcome Event Celebrating America’s Changemakers’, saw the band join other famous names including Whoopi Goldberg and Darren Criss to show their
  
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• Zara Larsson announces full details of new album ‘Poster Girl’

  18-01-2021 16:24 via nme.com
  Zara Larsson has announced details of her new album, ‘Poster Girl’.READ MORE: Friends Like These: Zara Larsson and MNEKThe record, which follows the Swedish pop star’s 2017 album ‘So Good’, is set to land on March 5 via Black Butter.
  The new album follows Larsson’s recent single ‘Talk About Love’, a collaboration with Young Thug.
  “‘Talk About Love’ is about that phase before two people work out what they are to one another,&r
  
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• Saweetie eyes Cardi B collab: “That would tear the club up”

  18-01-2021 16:02 via nme.com
  
  U.S. rapper Saweetie has revealed that she’s hoping to hook up with Cardi B for a collaboration in the near future.
  Appearing on Atlanta’s V-103 FM, the ‘Icy Girl’ rapper said that a potential duet with the ‘WAP’ star would mark a “special” moment in her career.
  “I can [hear that] too. That would tear the club up, okay?! I think that would be cute. I think that would be a special moment as well. I can’t wait to collaborate with her!,&rd
  
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• Willie Jones Addresses Race in the U.S. in the Stunning ‘American Dream’

  18-01-2021 16:00 via rollingstone.com
  
  "Proud to be a black man/Living in the land of the brave and the free," the country artist sings
  
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• From ‘Rompe’ To ‘Con Calma,’ Here Are Daddy Yankee’s Longest-Leading Latin Airplay Hits

  18-01-2021 16:00
  
  Daddy Yankee recently made Billboard history, becoming the artist with the most top 10s on the Latin Airplay chart since its inception in 1994.
  The Puerto Rican star broke out of a tie with Enrique Iglesias after his Marc Anthony-assisted “De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta” hit No. 8 on the chart dated Jan. 16, 2021.
  In total, DY has 41 top 10s on Latin Airplay, 22 of which hit No. 1, including “Despacito” with Luis Fonsi and Justin Bieber, which spent a total of 19 weeks at
  
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• Shame say keeping the same sound on album two would’ve been “fucking boring”

  18-01-2021 15:55 via nme.com
  
  Shame have discussed their new sonic identity on their second album, labelling the idea of staying the same “fucking boring”.
  The band released ‘Drunk Tank Pink’, their follow-up to 2018’s acclaimed debut ‘Songs of Praise’, on Friday (January 15).READ MORE: Shame: “If this is a good year, everything can change around”Speaking in a new NME cover feature, the band say the new style put forward on the second record was a necessity rather than a
  
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• Bow Wow responds to criticism after performing to packed nightclub crowd

  18-01-2021 15:11 via nme.com
  
  Bow Wow has responded to the backlash he faced after a video showed him performing to a crowded nightclub in Houston, Texas, as the U.S. continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.
  Footage posted to social media showed the star performing ‘Like You’ to a largely maskless crowd at Houston’s Cle nightclub – despite the venue’s official policy website stating that masks are required inside the venue.
  He was criticised by famous faces including actor Zach Braff, who
  
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• Martin Luther King Jr. Was Assassinated 4 Days Before the 1968 Oscars: The Show Did Not Go On

  18-01-2021 15:00
  
  Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., whose birthday we celebrate on Monday (Jan. 18), was assassinated on April 4, 1968 — just four days before the 40th annual Academy Awards were scheduled to take place at the Santa Monica (Calif.) Civic Auditorium.
  President Lyndon Johnson declared a national day of mourning for the civil rights leader on Sunday, April 7, but his funeral wouldn’t take place until Tuesday, April 9 — the day after the Oscars.
  All four of the African-American stars who
  
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• Robbie Williams to avenge troll with a song

  18-01-2021 14:30 via music-news.com
  
  Robbie Williams is planning to get his own back on a troll by writing a song about them.
  
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• Phoebe Bridgers inks tattoo of a sword impaled with a letter from a fan

  18-01-2021 14:26 via music-news.com
  
  The 26-year-old singer has shown off her new ink of the gift one of her fans gave to her at one of her gigs in 2019.
  
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• Dionne Warwick is now on TikTok: “I am told that the possibilities are endless”

  18-01-2021 14:20 via nme.com
  
  Soul icon and recent internet personality Dionne Warwick has joined TikTok.
  “Who knows what I’ll create,” the singer joked on Saturday (January 16) as she joined the social media platform.READ MORE: What makes an old song go viral on TikTok?“Ok… Auntie created a TikTok,” Warwick tweeted over the weekend. “If I get enough followers I’ll start using that platform. Who knows what I’ll create.”
  “I am told that the possibilities
  
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• Music Companies Among Those Backing Away From Republicans Who Voted Against Election Certification

  18-01-2021 14:00
  
  For the past week, a growing number of major corporations have been announcing that they will no longer donate to the Republican legislators who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election on Jan. 6. The major labels and the industry’s two most important trade organizations have joined them: The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which represents the major labels, announced on Jan. 11 that it would not be “contributing to those who voted against t
  
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• Martin Luther King Jr.’s History With the Grammy Awards

  18-01-2021 14:00
  
  Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., whose birthday we celebrate on Monday (Jan. 18), received the Nobel Peace Prize for 1964 and was Time’s man of the year for 1963. It’s not as widely known, but he was also a (posthumous) Grammy winner for best spoken word recording.
  King received three Grammy nominations in that category: one in his lifetime and two after his assassination on April 4, 1968.We Shall Overcome (The March on Washington…August 28, 1963), containing his landmark “I
  
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• MF DOOM fans hit out at his inclusion on Joe Biden’s inauguration playlist

  18-01-2021 13:35 via nme.com
  
  MF DOOM fans have hit out after the late rapper was included on US President-elect Joe Biden‘s new inauguration playlist.
  The unhappiness stems from DOOM, who was British-born and never obtained US citizenship, being refused re-entry into the States in 2010 after a European tour, when Joe Biden was Vice President to Barack Obama.READ MORE: MF DOOM, 1971 – 2020: world-building rap hero who styled himself as a supervillainBiden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ playlist was
  
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• Kate Nash speaks out against streaming model: “Music is not a club for the rich”

  18-01-2021 13:19 via nme.com
  
  Kate Nash has become the latest artist to speak out against purported inequalities in streaming payments.
  The singer’s latest comments come months after a select committee of MPs examined the economic impact that music streaming is having on artists, record labels and the wider music industry in a new inquiry.
  Over £1 billion in revenue was generated from 114 billion music streams in the UK in 2019, but the inquiry noted that “artists can be paid as little as 13% of the in
  
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