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Day in Pop Report for 08/20/2014


Coldplay, Katy Perry and Rihanna Super Bowl Halftime Pay To Play?
(Radio.com) For most bands, the Super Bowl halftime show is pretty much the best gig on earth. It would be easy to assume that artists are awarded big bucks for scoring that coveted slot, but not exactly.

In fact, the three artists in the running for the 2015 Super Bowl are being asked to pay the NFL for the right to perform their music during what is usually the biggest TV broadcast of the year, much like the high-profile (and expensive) commercials that often generate as much interest as the game itself (the 2014 Super Bowl earned 111.5 million viewers in the U.S. alone).

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the considered acts for this season's Super Bowl are being asked "if they would be willing to contribute a portion of their post-Super Bowl tour income to the league, or if they would make some other type of financial contribution, in exchange for the halftime gig."

The acts in question? Coldplay, Katy Perry, and Rihanna. Spin notes that so far, the NFL's financial request has been met with "a chilly response." more on this story

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Brad Paisley Leaks New Song To Outer Space
(Radio.com) Brad Paisley and his song leaks will not be stopped - by industry executives or by anything else on planet Earth. The country singer, who's been on a Twitter spree, posting leaks from his upcoming album Moonshine in the Trunk - and subsequent letters he's received from industry higher-ups asking him to stop - just took his song leaks to an entirely new stratosphere. Literally.

Paisley sent his new leak, "American Flag on the Moon," to astronaut Reid Weisman via Twitter, of course, while standing at Florida's Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39B, which was fittingly close to the launching point of Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins' Apollo 11 spaceflight that made them the first men on the moon.

Reid tweeted back, "Hold on @BradPaisley, we don't usually like leaks at the launch pad ;)," along with a picture of his current view of where Paisley was standing, before playing the leak in space and adding, "just listened to your song on the #ISS - thanks!!" more on this story

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Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga Release New Duet
(Radio.com) Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett's jazz album Cheek to Cheek isn't out until September, but the singers are giving a preview with new track "I Can't Give You Anything But Love."

On Tuesday (Aug. 19), Gaga tweeted out the audio to the song, which features the Brian Newman Quintet, with the track also going live on streaming services and available for download on iTunes. The stripped-down track has Gaga and Bennett alternating verses alongside piano, a brass section and drums.

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Bennett said Gaga actually reached out to him about the project. "Of all things, she called me from New Zealand and said, 'I want to do a jazz album with you,'" he told the magazine. "And I said, 'You got it!'"

The legend also revealed that they'd be working with a big swing band along with a little secret about Mother Monster: "A lot of people don't know it, but she's a phenomenal jazz singer."

Check out the song and tracklisting here.

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Leonard Cohen Announces New Album and Reveals New Song
(Radio.com) After speculation that he'd release an album next month, Leonard Cohen announced Tuesday (Aug. 19) he will release a new album on Sept. 23, called Popular Problems - and he's got a new song to prove it, "Almost Like the Blues," streaming.

The album comes just in time for his 80th birthday, which is on Sept. 21 of this year. His previous albums have also been made available anew, with all 12 getting a remaster for iTunes - indicating Cohen's full intent to stay relevant for generations to come.

The album is produced by and co-written with Patrick Leonard, who worked with Cohen on a few previous projects but who is perhaps best known for his work writing for and producing Madonna from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s.

Check out the new song and the album's tracklist here.

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Bow Wow Cast As A Hacker In CSI: Cyber
(Radio.com) Shad Moss, perhaps better known as Bow Wow will soon be appearing on TV with Patricia Arquette and James Van Der Beek in CBS' new series CSI: Cyber.

He will play a hacker named Brody "Baby Face" Nelson, who must work with the police or go to jail, Deadline reports. Nelson must assist the cops in the shadier corners of the web without falling back into his criminal ways.

According to creator Anthony E. Zuiker, "Bow Wow is a gifted young actor who will have the responsibility, through his character, to set an example for young people who watch the show to 'do what's right' even when you know 'nothing but wrong.' It will be a redemption story and a cautionary tale all wrapped into one. more on this story

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Puff Daddy and Guy Gerber's House Album Streaming
(Radio.com) Puff Daddy has spent the last several years teasing a deep house album, and this spring he finally announced the details of 11:11, his collaboration with Israeli producer Guy Gerber. Now it's finally here.

The rapper wasn't playing: this really is a deep house album, with pounding, minimal production you wouldn't be surprised to hear soundtracking a swank beach club in Ibiza. Four-to-the-floor percussion and swooshing filter sounds are the name of the game.
Puff is largely relegated to a source of vocal samples. His disembodied voice, processed into oblivion, haunts the dark corners of the tracks. He rarely utters more than a handful of words per song, like the loop of "I've got to go" cycling over the low-slung bustle of "Broken Windows."

Another highlight is "Terminal K", a slice of industrial house that wouldn't sound out of place at a 6 a.m. warehouse after-hours party. After decades of opulence, Puff Daddy seems to have decided that less is more.

Stream the full album here.

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The New Pornographers Streaming New Album 'Brill Bruisers'
(Radio.com) When we last left the New Pornographers, the Canadian indie rockers released Together, their highest charting album in the U.S. of their career, in 2010.

It took them four years - the longest in between albums in their career - but after side-projects and other releases, the band is back with new album Brill Bruisers - and it's available to stream now via iTunes Radio .

The new album, Consequence of Sound reports, was recorded both north and south of the border - Vancouver, British Columbia, and Woodstock, N.Y. "This is a celebration record," bandleader A.C. Newman said of the album in an earlier press release. more on this story

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Blake Shelton Releases New Single 'Neon Light'
(Radio.com) Blake Shelton tries to mend his broken heart on his new song, "Neon Light." The first single off his forthcoming studio album Bringing Back the Sunshine, due out Sept. 30, "Neon Light" is a bluesy jam written by Andrew Dorff, Mark Irwin and Josh Kear that has Shelton lamenting after the end of an awful relationship.

"When we were together I thought life would suck forever/Even though I knew better then the pain would never end," he sings. Lucky for him the pain does end because he finds his "Neon Light" at the end of the tunnel.

Bringing Back the Sunshine follows Shelton's 2013 release Based on a True Story� You can check out the album's complete tracklist and listen to the new track here.

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Ariana Grande Loves Making Music With Big Sean
(Extra) "Extra's" Mario Lopez sat down exclusively with Ariana Grande after he hosted her album release party on the Honda Stage at the iHeartRadio theater in Burbank.

The 21 year old tearing up the charts with songs like "Problem" talking about her new music and success, "The last I guess, six months have been really really exciting, I've obviously been working on this new album for a while now and putting it out's been almost seamless, I feel every things fallen into places with such ease and grace that it was just meant to be."

While Grande has collaborated with stars like Iggy Azalea, Jessie J, Nicki Minaj, and Zedd, she does have a favorite, Big Sean, who she has also been linked to romantically, "I love working with him obviously, we've done many songs together�We even have a few that y'all haven't heard yet, so yeah, I love making music with him he's very talented."

Ariana still emotional over the recent death of her grandfather, remembering words of wisdom he once shared with her, "In his business he was the top of his game and people were so mean to him left and right, trying to tear him down�He was telling me I'd be in the same situation, he said, baby doll, you keep your chin up, you keep going and you sing, that's it, you focus on the good." more on this story

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Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift Fragrances Tank
(Radio.com) Elizabeth Arden, a household name and cosmetics empire, has somehow been kicked to the beauty market's proverbial curb because of Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift.

The brand, which is also known for its fragrances, apparently can't sell Justin Bieber's and Taylor Swift's scents; sadly, few want to smell like either of them.

The company's quarterly sales had the steepest drop in a decade, 28.4 percent, and claimed that their poor performance would continue for the next six months, which then rippled to the value of their trading shares, reports the Chicago Tribune. more on this story

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Kendrick Lamar Took All Of Flying Lotus' Beats?
(Radio.com) While the creative love affair between Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar seems to be in full swing, things may have grown chilly in music making paradise.

The history between the pair includes Lamar recruiting the L.A.-based electronic guru for help in his Yeezus support slot, using FlyLo's visual collaborator, Kahlil Joseph, to direct his short film, and FlyLo in turn booking Lamar for a track on his upcoming October 7 release, You're Dead!

But did Lamar go too far with their friendship? Maybe, according to Pitchfork (via Hot New Hip-Hop). "We've been working on stuff together," Flying Lotus (AKASteven Ellison) said in an interview with the popular website. "I went on tour and he recorded to a bunch of my songs. I don't know if he's gonna use them or not, but he recorded a bunch of stuff, which is why there's no Captain Murphy album out yet. He took all my beats! more on this story

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Sam Smith Thinks Tinder Is Ruining Romance
(Radio.com) In 2014, the Internet has made it remarkably easy to find a hookup if you are just somewhat normal, and probably even if you aren't. But "Stay with Me" singer Sam Smith has spoken out against dating apps like Tinder and Grindr. His model for ditching this methods? Himself.

"No offense to people who go on Tinder but I just feel like it's ruining romance, I really do," Smith told Metro. "From my experience, the most beautiful people I've been on dates with are the dumbest," Smith said, "so why would I swipe people who are 'unattractive' when I could potentially fall in love with them? Stop Tinder and Grindr!"

Smith's path to success in the dating arena (you know, the old-fashioned way) has yielded some positive results, though the "Latch" singer is holding back any self-congratulatory sentiment. more on this story

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Jennifer Hudson Reveals 'Dangerous' New Track
(Radio.com) Jennifer Hudson is a ride or die chick on "Dangerous," the latest taste of her upcoming album JHUD. Following in the disco sheen of "It's Your World," the duet with R. Kelly she shared back in July, "Dangerous" shows that Hudson's diva vocals were meant to be paired with dance beats. On it, she's as much of a vocal powerhouse as ever, singing about the things she'd do for her man.

"Think we're running for the cops now/ Even if we get caught now/ Anything for you/ Hold my body up for ransom/ Because I want to get hands on," she belts out over a stomping beat.

The track is one of the more upbeat cuts in her catalog, especially in contrast to the slow-burning jam, "Walk It Out," produced by Timbaland. It also makes one wonder when Hudson is going to gift us all with a straight dance album.

Listen to the track here.

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Lil Mama Takes On Lil Wayne's Krazy
(Radio.com) Lil Mama has spent the past few weeks leaving her indelible spin on some of the biggest rap hits of the year: she's blessed the instrumentals for "We Dem Boyz", "No Flex Zone," and "0 to 100" with her ferocious energy as part of her "Lyrical Purge" series. Now she's added "Krazy," the new song from Lil Wayne, to the mix.

The video, directed by Taylor Camro, finds Lil Mama stunting in the booth and taking her subject very literally: "I'm Hannibal Lecter, Anthony Hopkins / I'm shining like Jack Nicholson / I'm the best, I'm the one who flew over the cuckoo's nest / I'm crazy."

She further demonstrates her crazy bona-fides with a reference to the notorious incident at the 2009 VMAs when she jumped on stage while Jay-Z and Alicia Keys were performing: "on stage when I'm uninvited," she barks.

Check it out here.

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Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Avicii Among World's Highest Paid DJs
(Radio.com) Fact: superstar DJs make a lot of money. For the world's most popular DJs, those massive piles of cash are just getting bigger, with the third annual Forbes' list of the "Electronic Cash Kings" revealing that the scene's biggest stars are raking in even more money than they did last year.

Last year's No. 1 DJ, Calvin Harris, is still sitting pretty atop the list, generating a bank-breaking $66 million, a full $20 million more than he pulled in 2013. That's more than double the dough earned by the No. 2 DJ, David Guetta, who's no slouch in the financial portfolio department with $30 million.

Despite having to deal with a serious illness and two high-profile concerts marred by dozens of attendees being rushed to the hospital with drug and alcohol related illnesses, Avicii still managed to generate $28 million to land in the No. 3 position, which he shares with Tiesto, who had his own physical maladies to manage after bashing his head open at a show in San Jose, CA. more on this story

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Pharrell's Grammy Hat Headed To The Newseum
(Radio.com) Ever wondered what happened to the original infamous hat in Pharrell's repertoire, the one that he donned at the Grammys earlier this year, thus spawning a thousand memes and parodies?

The Washington Post reports that Pharrell's famed Grammy hat has landed a home, for a time. It will be going on display at the Newseum in Washington D.C.

Arby's acquired the Vivienne Westwood-designed hat in an eBay auction after the GRAMMYs, with proceeds going to From One Hand to Another, a charity that supports Pharrell Williams' Resource Centers with learning programs for youth aged 7-20. more on this story

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Haim Go Jerry Springer With A$AP Ferg For 'My Song 5 Video
(Radio.com) Haim bring the drama in their latest video. In the clip for "My Song 5″ remix featuring A$AP Ferg, the sisters play guests on a Jerry Springer-type talk show called The Dallas Murphy Show, which is hosted by Saturday Night Live star (and Sound Advice giver) Vanessa Bayer.

On this particular episode of the fake talk show, bassist Este Haim is revealing she has a thing for mimes, while Ferg proves the truth can be hard to handle, especially when your girl is cheating on you with another girl.

But it's really Danielle who's the Haim sister you have to watch out for. Don't miss the sisters break out in a synchronized dance (Taylor Swift could learn a few things) along with cameos from some of their famous friends like Kesha, Grimes, Big Sean, Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig and Days Are Gone producer Ariel Rechtshaid. Even Mama and Papa Haim get in on the action.

Watch the video here.

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Johnny Cash's Childhood Home Open To The Public
(Gibson) The home in which Johnny Cash spent his childhood years has opened to the public. The Cash family moved in to the cottage in Dyess, Arkansas, when Johnny was three years old in 1935.

The Cash family worked the land as cotton farmers. At night they would gather around the piano singing gospel songs. That original piano is now on display in the refurbished home.

"We've got everything just as it was," said Johnny's sister Joanne Cash, 76, in an interview with the New York Times. "It took a lot of hard work. It's been very emotional for me." All the items in the house have been approved by Johnny's siblings Tommy and Joanne.

Fans of the late singer have been stopping by taking pictures of the dilapidated house for years, prompting the town of Dyess, in conjunction with Arkansas State University, to restore the house and open it up to the public in order to generate revenue for the town, and to share its history with the rest of the world before it is forgotten. more on this story

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Taylor Swift's 1989: An Odd Year for Pop Music
(Radio.com) Taylor Swift took over the internet for a short time yesterday to declare herself no longer a country crossover queen, but a pop star. She debuted her new single and music video, "Shake It Off" and announced her forthcoming album 1989, named after the year she was born, and the music from that time.

One quarter of a century ago, before Spotify, before iTunes, before mp3s and Napster and the resurgence of vinyl, way back in the monoculture before YouTube and Twitter, what did 1989 sound like?

One of the most lasting moments that year was Michael Jackson being dubbed the King of Pop for the first time when Elizabeth Taylor and Eddie Murphy presented him with the Soul Train Heritage award. The lowest moment came courtesy of Milli Vanilli, who had several singles on the charts including the big hit "Girl You Know It's True," and who were subsequently discovered to be lip synching the whole time and had their Best New Artist GRAMMY stripped from them.

In between those extremes, however, is the real 1989. At best, pop music was off-kilter. At worst, it was a disaster. It was the time before SoundScan, which wouldn't launch until 1991, so there was no reliable public mechanism for tracking record sales. C+C Music Factory formed and the Who broke up. New wave was dead and hair metal thrived. Billboard's No. 1 single for the year was Chicago's "Look Away," but the kids were more into the No. 2 track, Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative" - which Britney Spears would go on to cover in 2004.

Even ranking on the Billboard charts was different. The chart today includes streaming data from places like YouTube and Spotify, which would have precluded Chicago's odd reign at the top of the 1989 chart. These additions emphasize things people want to hear, rather than relying heavily on what radio programmers were playing in a time when payola was rampant. If today's technology were available in 1989, the top single of the year would undoubtedly have been Madonna's "Like A Prayer." It was the biggest musical event of the year. The track was sort of popular on the radio, but Madge was a ubiquitous star of the MTV generation. Her big deal with Pepsi kicked in around the album's release, but after the release of her controversial video for "Like A Prayer," it left. So did as did her then-husband Sean Penn; events that would start a social media wildfire in this day and age. But as it is, Billboard only ranked it as the No. 25 song of 1989.

It was also an excellent year for one-off, joke hip hop tracks crossing into the mainstream. It was the year of Young MC's "Bust A Move," Tone Lōc's "Funky Cold Medina," Biz Markee's "Just A Friend" and Prince's "Batdance" (that was a joke single, right?). "Shake It Off," owes a debt to is Young MC's track. Her cadence, her narration as the straight man in an unreasonable situation, the appeal to the listener to be on her side: all of these things are tricks he pulled in "Bust A Move."

When Swift says she was sonically influenced by 1989 pop, though, and that she's working with Max Martin, citing "bright colors, bold chances, rebellion" as the reference points, it's hard to know what she means. That particular year at the end of the decade was one of the least colorful, in literal presentation, and most filled with morose singles of possibly the entire decade. The Cure's "Lovesong," Martika's "Toy Soldiers" and Poison's "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" were the jams. Beaches, the world's most depressing movie, came out accompanied by the sob-along song "The Wind Beneath My Wings." One of the all-time great karaoke songs, the Bangles "Eternal Flame" was a huge, successful single. The most rebellious pop music moment, after Madonna of course, came when Cher released her butt-bearing video for "If I Could Turn Back Time."

The song Swift and Martin hopefully drew their strongest influence from that year is the B-52's "Love Shack." The underdog band from Athens, GA kind of rode their friends in R.E.M.'s coattails into the mainstream and dropped this weird gem on the world. If Swift has one track as bright, colorful and catchy as "Love Shack" on her album she'll be minting gold.

With her video for "Shake It Off," Swift taps into a very 1989 idea, that of the superstar, name brand video director. She landed Mark Romanek, who has helmed some of the most iconic music videos of all time. Under his belt are: Nine Inch Nails' "Closer," Michael and Janet Jackson's "Scream," Jay Z's "99 Problems," Johnny Cash's "Hurt" and Fiona Apple's "Criminal." more.

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