(antiMusic) Kid Rock is set to launch his own brand of beer. The rocker has teamed up with Drinks Americas Holdings to launch a premium domestic beer, which will be released next year. more.Another following to the Blink-182 plane crash story: An airfield memorial Saturday will pay tribute to James Bland, a veteran pilot who grew up watching airplanes at Orange County airports and died in a fiery crash that badly injured two celebrity musicians. Bland was the co-pilot of a small business jet that skidded off a runway and crashed last week in South Carolina. The plane's passengers, former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and disc jockey Adam Goldstein, known as DJ AM, were hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns. more
The Police have been named as the highest-earning musicians - having made $115 million in the past year. The Forbes Magazine poll revealed that Beyonce Knowles, Justin Timberlake and Madonna are also in the top five. more.
Rapper Busta Rhymes was briefly detained at a London airport Thursday by immigration officers who said he should not be allowed into the country, a concert promoter said. more.
Terrorist threats aside, after a 43-year wait, Paul McCartney performed his first concert in Israel on Thursday, kicking it off with the familiar Beatles' song "Hello, Goodbye" to the joy of tens of thousands of cheering fans. more.
Free Credit Report Dot Con have a new conman to pitch their not-really-free services. Former Tonight Show sidekick Ed McMahon has signed on to appear in two viral rap videos for the Experian credit bureau owned company. AP reports that "The videos feature McMahon wearing a tracksuit, being chauffeured around Los Angeles in a Cadillac Escalade golf cart and waxing lyrical about his very public financial troubles." No word if the company's usual spokesnerd will also be featured in the ads but those that want a truly free credit report can log on to annualcreditreport.com and avoid this scam.
The launch of MySpace Music ran into controversy on Thursday after the leading independent music trade body complained that its small music label members had been shut out and treated like second class citizens. The new music site opened shop with millions of free songs for streaming and paid downloads, but without agreements covering hundreds of labels representing well-known artists like Franz Ferdinand, Tom Waits, Arctic Monkeys and Bjork. more
Strangely we haven't been bombarded with angry emails from crazed Claybots after picking up part of the AP story the other day about Clay Aiken admitting he is gay. But AP did run a follow up that had one fan's reaction to the news: "This is really shocking news as I had no idea he was gay," read a comment posted by "Sheridansq." at ClayManiacs. "And now I have to deal with this. I am not sure what to say to people who know I was a fan. ... I didn't go to work today and am not answering the telephone." Denial = don't even notice I am lying. Or is this person ashamed about a major lack of observational skills? But isn't it really about the music? Who gives a damn if he's gay. Simon Cowell certainly doesn't.
The Flaming Lips' long-in-the-works film "Christmas on Mars" will arrive Oct. 28 on DVD via Warner Bros. A separate edition bundles the Lips' original score on CD with the DVD. more
Jon Bon Jovi showed off footage for the first time in public from the upcoming Phil Griffin-directed documentary about his band during a question-and-answer panel today (Sept. 25) as part of Advertising Week in New York. The clips showed the Bon Jovi being interviewed (and using a fair amount of expletives) about life on the road and what the band means to him, plus performing before vast crowds. In addition, guitarist Richie Sambora is seen talking about his addiction to painkillers and how the band eventually convinced him to go into rehab. antiMusic's very own Tony K was interviewed for the film. Will he make the final cut? That remains to be scene but you can read more about this preview here.
In support of their recently announced Singles collection, The Decemberists have announced a string of tour dates to kick off post-Election Day more
While the Red Hot Chili Peppers take some time off, Flea is spending his time in the halls of higher knowledge. The Chilis' bassist tells the Los Angeles Times he is studying music theory, jazz trumpet and composition at the University of Southern California. - more
