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Daily Music News Report for 06/09/2016


Ed Sheeran Sued For Alleged 'Photograph' Theft

(Radio.com) Two songwriters are suing Ed Sheeran for allegedly lifting their melody, rhythm and more for his hit single "Photograph." Martin Harrington and Thomas Leonard wrote a song titled "Amazing" in 2009.

It would go on to be recorded by The X Factor's season 10 winner Matt Cardle, appearing on his debut studio album Letters in 2011. Fast forward to Sheeran's 2014 album X, which contains the hit "Photograph," a song that shares more than a few parallels to Harrington and Leonard's work.

"The songs' similarities reach the very essence of the work," the lawsuit states, according to Billboard. "The similarities go beyond substantial, which is itself sufficient to establish copyright infringement, and are in fact striking. The similarity of words, vocal style, vocal melody, melody, and rhythm are clear indicators, among other things, that 'Photograph' copies 'Amazing.'" Read more here.

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David Bowie Producer Questions Authenticity of Adele's Voice

(Radio.com) Tony Visconti, the record producer best known for his work with David Bowie throughout the late singer's career, from his second album in 1969 to final album Blackstar is concerned about the current state of modern pop music.

Speaking to The Daily Star, Visconti he said: "You turn the radio on and it's fluff, you are listening to 90% computerized voices' There's a sound to pop now that is so perfect it's boring, because everything is fixed."

He went on to say: "We know Adele has a great voice but it's even questionable if that is actually her voice or how much has been manipulated. We don't know." Read more here.

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Missy Elliott Lost Music Sent To Her By Prince

(Radio.com) No one would like to hear a collaboration between Missy Elliott and Prince more than Missy Elliott. Problem is, she can't find the new music he sent her before he died.

"He had sent me some stuff, music of his and I moved and I could never find that music," Elliott told The Strombo Show. 'Yesterday, I was sitting there saying, I have to go to my house, in my storage space, and find this music."

The idea for the duet started when Elliott contacted Prince to ask for permission to use a lookalike of him for one of her shows. The two met in Los Angeles to discuss the details and then Prince sent her new music for a possible collaboration. Read more here.

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George Harrison, Keith Richards Twitter Hacker Comes Clean

(Radio.com) Rolling Stones legend Keith Richards, George Harrison, Sonic Youth and Brett Eldredge are among the many celebrities whose Twitter accounts have recently been hacked. On Tuesday night, a hacker who goes by the handle J5Z took credit for the personal invasions and said he did so to teach the social media community a lesson.

The hacker says musicians and artists are easily hacked and they all need to change their passwords right away. "It's famous musicians and artists at risk," j5Z told The Daily Beast. "If you're a celebrity, you should change your password immediately. Literally everyone should just create a new email, think of a new password, and do it for every account."

At around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, J5Z posted the following on George Harrison's Twitter account: "Hey George, follow @j5zlol when you see this and shoot me a DM. I'll help you secure your accounts I don't want to cause you any harm, bud."

Minutes later, @j5zlol tweeted on his own account, 'Well s- I hacked someone and I didn't even know they was dead.. my bad." Then his account was suspended. A tweet from Harrison's hacked account echoed the sentiment, saying, "SORRY" for not knowing about Harrison's death and adding "IVE BEEN LIVING UNDER A ROCK. MY BAD PPL." Read more here.

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Dolly Parton Renews Wedding Vows For 50th Anniversary

(Radio.com) Dolly Parton and her husband Carl Dean celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in May. The couple originally married on May 30, 1966 and to honor their life together, they renewed their wedding vows on the momentous occasion.

Parton displayed her trademark sass in speaking about the ceremony. "If I had it to do all over, I'd do it all over again, and we did," she said. "I'm dragging him kicking and screaming into the next 50 years. Wish us luck."

Parton and Dean will be auctioning off photos from their 2016 ceremony to the highest bidder with all proceeds benefitting children's charities. "In all honesty, the only way I was able to get Carl to do any of this in the first place was that it was a great opportunity for us to raise money for some very worthy causes," said Parton. Read more here.

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Skrillex and Chance the Rapper Remix Stephen Colbert Monologue

(Radio.com) The late-night talk show monologue can become a stale proceeding. A writers' room turns to stories like a new General Mills cereal, and a host does his best with the bottom of the news cycle.

On Tuesday night, to liven up the monotony, Stephen Colbert invited Skrillex and Chance the Rapper to perform a dance-rap remix of his opening monologue.

"Not a serial number/ Not serial like a killer/ Talkin' a complete breakfast, pure tummy filler," rapped Chance, proving that even the dullest stories can make beautiful music (and comedy) in the proper hands. Skrillex and Colbert danced approvingly while he delivered more rhymes.

Later on, Skrillex, Chance the Rapper and Hundred Waters performed "Show Me Love." Watch here.

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Sharon Jones Covers Allman Brothers Band's 'Midnight Rider'

(Radio.com) Lincoln Motor Company is clearly trying to convey that they are the automobile brand with the most soul with their new ad campaign. In a new commercial, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are seen in a club, covering the Allman Brothers Band's "Midnight Rider."

The clip ends with Lincoln's favorite celebrity, Matthew McConaughey, driving his Lincoln while listening to the song; in the clip, he refrains from the deadpan True Detective-like musings of most of his appearances in their commercials. Watch the commercial below.

"Midnight Rider" is one of the most enduring songs in the classic rock cannon. The Allman Brothers Band released the original version on their second album, 1970's Idlewild South. The song didn't hit the charts in its original incarnation; however, singer Gregg Allman did a new version of the song on his debut solo album, 1973's Laid Back, and it went on to become a top 20 hit. It's also been covered by Willie Nelson and Joe Cocker. See the commercial here.

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Martin Short Resurrects Jiminy Glick To Roast Drake

(Radio.com) Comedian Martin Short trotted out his famous character, the inept entertainment reporter Jiminy Glick, on Tuesday night (June 7) when he sat down to interview Drake. The bit appeared as part of new variety show Maya & Marty.

Always one step behind pop culture trends, Glick doesn't seem to know why he's interviewing Drake. He announces in the beginning that he normally interviews celebrities. "So this is going to be a change," he tells Drake, who takes it all in good stride. The Canadian rapper shows off his own comedic timing, playing off Glick's insults and beats perfectly.

'So you're a Canadian former child star, so literally we're talking about zero street cred," Glick says. "Zero. Zero street cred. And you're real name is Aubrey, well that changes it. That certainly ramps it up." Drake can't even respond because he's so dumbstruck by the comment.

Besides remarking about Drake's Jewish heritage, Glick also goes after his looks. "You're in wonderful shape for someone who's let himself go." The whole thing comes to a screeching end when Glick invites Drake to take a steam with him in order so they can compare how much each one is packing. Drake tries to get out of it by claiming he has other obligations.

Throughout the sketch, Drake, who recently pulled double duty hosting and performing on Saturday Night Live, showed he's got strong comedic chops should the whole rap thing not pan out. Watch it here.

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Billy Ray Cyrus Announces Guest Filled New Album 'Thin Line'

(Radio.com) It's been four years since Billy Ray Cyrus released new music, but the country singer is returning with a new project titled Thin Line which will be released on September 9th.

The album boasts 15 tracks and numerous features, including daughter Miley Cyrus, Aerosmith's Joe Perry, Bryan Adams and Shooter Jennings. Cyrus plans on releasing a handful of tracks from Thin Line during July and August, but to tide fans over while they wait he released the music video for "Hey Elvis."

The song was co-written by Adams and Gretchen Peters, according to The Boot. Besides helping create the song, Adams also appears alongside Glenn Hughes (who was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Deep Purple; he was also once Black Sabbath's lead singer for a brief time) on the song.

The video takes clips from Cyrus' upcoming television series Still the King, a sit-com which focuses on Vernon Brownmule aka "Burnin' Vernon," who (according to the show's premise) is the second best Elvis impersonator and a former country music star. Check out the tracklist and watch the video for "Hey Elvis" here.

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Nick Jonas Gets Complicated on Sophomore Album

(Radio.com) Nick Jonas' sophomore solo album Last Year Was Complicated summarizes everything the artist's life in the title. The transition from child star to pop icon could not have been easy, especially given that the transition involved the breakup of the band featuring his two brothers. But Nick never shied away from the challenge, and at age 23 is now a bona fide solo star.

The youngest member of The Jonas Brothers has done a lot of growing up since the group disbanded in October 2013 after selling millions of albums and touring the world numerous times. Last Year Was Complicated builds off his 2014 self-titled effort, and continues exploring darker sounds that include a stronger R&B and hip-hop flare. As a result, listeners meet a more mature Nick than they may have heard in his previous work.

The single "Close" featuring Tove Lo is a moody, tantalizing tune that blends together EDM synths with the sounds of bedroom R&B. In the song, Nick bemoans the heartache of modern day relationships, the desire to get close combined with the inability to shrink the gap between two people. "Space was just a word made up by someone who's afraid to get too/ Close," Nick sings with Tove Lo's harmonies adding richer complexities.

Then there's the feel good track "Bacon" featuring Ty Dolla $ign, which celebrates those large nights lived alone when freedom trumps a relationship. The song has an R&B backbone mixed with light-hearted pop on the verses and hip-hop's heavy beats on the chorus. Plus, Nick shares a new saying that's sure to join the modern lexicon: "Throw some bacon on it." Read more here.

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Meek Mill Reunites With Rick Ross and Wale For 'Make It Work'

(Radio.com) Meek Mill has reunited with Wale and Rick Ross for a new track called "Make It Work." While Meek Mill finishes his house arrest sentence, the squabble he had with Wale is finished. Wale is busy putting the final touches on his next album.

The music faction is also gearing up to release their fourth compilation album Self Made vol. 4. The first single from that is the aptly titled "Make It Work."

Rick Ross spits his usual materialistic bars. He talks about running around in his Balenciaga sneakers like they're Nikes. Wale speeds things up by rapping double time. Meek is relegated to hook duty. Check out the track here.

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Trivium Feared For The Future During Vocal Crisis

(TeamRock Radio) Trivium have admitted they feared for the band's future when frontman Matt Heafy was forced to steer clear of screaming. The singer suffered vocal cord damage during a 2014 gig in Columbus, Ohio, and Trivium cancelled a number of shows as a result. Their latest album, 2015's Silence In The Snow, featured no Heafy screaming vocals.

Bass player Paolo Gregoletto tells Artisan News (via Blabbermouth): "Matt's voice was toast. He had to re-learn a lot of techniques. In my mind, I'm, like, 'This could change our band forever, if he can't do that stuff.' And there was a technique Matt learned, but it was gonna take time, and there was no guarantee that he was gonna get it.

"And now, within the last three or four months, it finally clicked, and Matt is able to do pretty much 99% of the stuff he was doing before. That presents us with the opportunity of going forward with the record. Now we don't have to worry as much about it." Read more here.

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Korn's Head Once Shipped Drugs Via FedEx

(TeamRock Radio) Korn guitarist Brian 'Head' Welch has recalled the "gutter" moment when he sent a supply of drugs from the US to Germany via FedEx - knowing that he was risking everything while he did it.

The incident took place during a European tour in 2004 while he was at his lowest ebb, before leaving the band a year later and returning, refreshed, in 2012.

Head tells the Allegedly Podcast (via the New York Daily News): "I was watching a package come from California into New York, the UK and then it landed in Germany. I was watching it through FedEx online.

"It had my three 8-balls of meth in it. That was the gutter. I could get arrested for stuff like that. I've got my daughter at home - I'm risking everything in my life."

He adds: "That was the period when I was suicidal. I just hated myself. Guilt, shame and all that." Read more here.

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Diamond Head Inspired More Aggressive Metal Says Brian Tatler

(Classic Rock) Brian Tatler says Diamond Head inspired the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) bands to adopt a faster, aggressive edge to their music. The guitarist and founder of the pioneering metal outfit says his love of punk rock fuelled the band's DIY attitude - and taught him that you don't have to play "like Ritchie Blackmore" to be a rockstar.

When asked how Diamond Head influenced the NWOBHM movement, Tatler tells Loudwire: "I suppose we took things further in a speed way. I always said that I really liked punk rock.

"I was 17 when punk exploded in the UK. It was very aggressive and raw. It was very fast, and it sort of left behind a lot of the prog bands of the 70s. I picked up on that."

Tatler says it was listening to John Peel's radio show in the 70s that made him want to become a musician. He adds: "It made me think you haven't got to spend 15 years in your bedroom learning to play the guitar to the standard of someone like Richie Blackmore." Read more here.

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Vince Neil Reflects On The End For Motley Crue, The Dirt Movie Plan

(hennemusic) Motley Crue singer Vince Neil is sharing his thoughts on the band's legacy ahead of the June 14 cinema premiere of their final farewell concert film "The End."

Directed by Christian Lamb, the project captures the group live at the Staples Center in their hometown of Los Angeles, CA this past New Year's Eve.

"It's forever," Neil tells Palm Springs Life. "'The End', the movie of the final show, is coming out in the theaters, and there's also going to be the movie 'The Dirt' [based on the band's 2001 autobiography]. I see it in the reaction to the songs, you know? I could be walking into a place just picking up a prescription or something, and somebody's got an old M�tley shirt on.

"I'm proud to be that guy. I've never run from who I am, and the legacy is not only going to continue, it's continuing as we speak here. Like I said, I'm thankful for the support, and I'm thankful for the love. And I'm very thankful for the people helping to keep this music alive. Without people like you, it wouldn't have the legs that it has."

Neil is on the road playing sets mixing solo tunes with Motley classics, and has a busy year of live dates ahead. "Listen, I love the stuff," he says. "I proudly call the tour, 'The Legacy Continues.' You have to live every day like it could be your last, but I also plan on doing some great things ahead. I am who I am in my own skin, and I'm OK with it." Read more here.

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Why Fabulous Thunderbirds Stopped Preaching The Blues

(The Blues) Fabulous Thunderbirds leader Kim Wilson says he gave up on trying to advance the interests of blues music years ago - because he felt he was "barking up the wrong tree."

Instead, his band concentrate on making the music they want to make, and leave others to decide for themselves what they'll do. Asked about "carrying the torch into the next generation," Wilson tells Greenville Online: "I gave up on that a long time ago.

"As far as standing up on a soapbox, trying to preach to people about things that they have no desire to do and they're not capable of doing - you're just barking up the wrong tree. So you just do what you like." Read more here.

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A Look Back At Genesis' 'Invisible Touch' 30 Years Later

(Radio.com) It's strange in 2016 to think of Phil Collins as an artist at risk of overexposure. He's rarely recorded, toured or made any public appearances in the past decade, and doesn't do many interviews. He's had other issues to deal with, of course: namely some rather serious physical ailments that have prevented him from playing his beloved drums.

But in the '80s and early '90s, it seemed like he was kind of everywhere. He'd go from multi-platinum solo album and arena tour to multi-platinum Genesis album and stadium tour. Somewhere in the middle, he'd produce other artists (including Frida, Howard Jones, Adam Ant and Eric Clapton) and play drums for other artists (including Robert Plant, Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel and Clapton). He even was getting into acting (with a one-off role on Miami Vice and a staring role in the film Buster). He was on MTV and VH1 a lot during an era where that really mattered. And you could hear him, and Genesis, on a number of radio formats in high rotation.

But while broadcasters and fans couldn't get enough of them, the critics cheerily had their knives out for both Collins and Genesis (Collins, of course, was the band's drummer and singer; the group also included guitarist/bass player Mike Rutherford and keyboardist Tony Banks).

Genesis combined two things that critics didn't digest well: progressive rock (the roots from whence the group came) and adult contemporary (a direction that Collins was credited, or blamed, with bringing them in).

By 1986, when the band released their most successful album, Invisible Touch, Collins was a bona-fide solo superstar; his latest album, 1985's No Jacket Required, topped the charts, won three GRAMMYs (including Album of the Year) and sold over ten million copies in the U.S. alone. Few bands would ignore that kind of success when starting to work on their new album. But Mike Rutherford's influence could also be felt: his band, Mike + the Mechanics, debuted with a self-titled EP in 1985 that yielded three hits, including "Taken In," which easily fit into the "soft rock" category.

The band's old-school prog-rock fans would often grouse about the group's more accessible work. But by the mid-'80s, Collins, Rutherford and Banks were in their mid-30s; at that point in one's life, not every song is going to fit on a black-light poster. Divorces happen; so does heartbreak and other disappointments that come with adult life. That's the "adult" part of "adult contemporary." It may not be sexy, but artists like Collins, James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt and Billy Joel were writing and singing about what it's like to be a grown-up (which was not necessarily what rock and roll was designed to do). Read more here.

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Singled Out: Blindman's Feels Good

Genre-bending artist, songwriter and producer Blindman tells us the story behind his latest single "Feels Good," which features Erica Newell (The Melody Makers, Stephen Marley, Dennis Brown, The Black Crows). Here is the story:

When I wrote "Feels Good" I was actually not feeling so good at all. I remember sitting with my Pappy after he recently had gotten out of the hospital. He couldn't speak to me and I knew he was in a ton of pain from the surgery. I felt so damn helpless. All I wanted to do was make him feel better. Armed with a keyboard and a bible I thought, man I wish I knew a nice happy song to play for him but unfortunately I didn't have any of those in my repertoire at that time. So I just played the two happiest chords I knew and started singing what became the chorus. I knew if he could hear me sing to him how good it feels to know he loved me, it would provide relief to him. Now when I sing the song, it provides relief to me, because I call to mind how good it feels to know I am still loved by him. Love never dies. It is eternal.

When I recorded the track, I was pretty fortunate to work with Erica Newell. Before working with her I never really knew how many of my favorite records she sang on. It's kind of funny because when I picked her up from her hotel, when she was on tour with Stephen Marley, I had her autograph every record I had in my car that I knew she sang on. I asked her about every question I could once she told me she grew up with The Marley's and how Rita Marley pretty much convinced her to pursue a career in music. I was such a fan driving her around. All I could think is she must think I am such a geek but I didn't care! When I called her a few months later to sing on another track she was totally down, so I guess geeking out didn't bother her so much. She actually encouraged me and said she would help me out on the condition that I kept loving my wife and daughter as she noticed some of my posts on social media included them! Talk about spreading love. Erica Newell is definitely riding the Zion train indeed!
By far the coolest thing about "feels good" is profits from the song will go to support widows and orphans. The song has always been meant to heal from the start. I am hopeful that as the years go by people who download the song not only feel better by remembering the good times they shared with their loved ones, but also feel good about helping those who are in need simply by downloading the song.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself right here!

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