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Margaret Thatcher & The Rise & Fall of the Great British Pop Protest Song
April 09, 2013 6:17 AM EDT 8 34 0 0 In early 1997, I interviewed the Spice Girls who were already massive in their U.K. homeland but had yet to release their debut single “Wannabe” in America. Amid frequent and voluble declarations of their Girl Power manifesto, Geri Halliwell blur ...
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Noel Gallagher, Damon Albarn Bury Hatchet for ‘Tender’ Performance
March 25, 2013 12:51 AM EDT In 1995, at the height of “Britpop,” there was no rivalry quite like that of Blur and Oasis. Now, those one-time best-of-enemies have done the unimaginable with their respective frontmen dueting on stage. Blur’s frontman Damon Albarn and guitarist ...
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Emeli Sande, Mumford & Sons Lead BRIT Award Nominations
January 10, 2013 7:05 PM EST British music stars Emeli Sande, Mumford & Sons, Alt-J and Rita Ora lead the nominations for the 2013 BRIT Awards, which were announced on Thursday (Jan. 10). The annual salute to U.K. artists will be held on Feb. 20, with performances from One ...
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Bobby Womack Says He Has Alzheimer's
January 02, 2013 1:05 PM EST "How can I not remember songs that I wrote? That's frustrating," soul legend says Bobby Womack, the soul singer behind such songs as "Lookin' for a Love," says he's been diagnosed with early signs of Alzheimer' ...
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Morning Fix: WMG To Bid on Sony/ATV's Rosetta (Report); Joel Klaiman to Columbia; What Spotify's Valuation Means; Bandpage Expands
November 13, 2012 7:55 AM EST Head HERE to have Billboard's Morning Fix and other free music-business newsletters sent directly to your inbox BUSINESS MATTERS: A $3 BILLION VALUATION BRINGS SPOTIFY EXPECTATIONS BACK TO EARTH: News that Spotify raised money at a $3 billion ...
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Backbeat: The Great Bobby Womack Rocks NYC Apple Store With Damon Albarn, XL's Richard Russell
September 19, 2012 1:00 PM EDT Rocking the tech emporium: From left: XL's Richard Russell, TV on the Radio's Jaleel Bunton, Bobby Womack, Remi Kabaka, Kwes (behind the piano) and Damon Albarn playing NYC's SoHo Apple Store. (Photo: Andy Gensler) 'It fired me ...
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Blur Triumph at Way Out West in Pre-Olympic Set
August 11, 2012 4:45 PM EDT "We've got to do something quite formal on Sunday," said Blur frontman Damon Albarn toward the end of the band's Friday night set at Sweden's Way Out West festival . "So this is a good way to prepare for it." Few b ...
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Listen: Blur Unveils Two New Songs in London
July 02, 2012 5:15 PM EDT As promised , the boys of Blur ripped through two new songs, "Under The Westway" and "The Puritan," on Monday (July 2) in a live performance from an undisclosed rooftop in London that was livestreamed through a link on the group& ...
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Blur to Unveil New Songs on London Roof
June 25, 2012 10:40 AM EDT Band Will Play 'The Puritan' and 'Under the Westway' Scores of Londoners will be craning their necks on July 2nd, when a reunited Blur will perform two new songs -- on a mystery rooftop -- for the first time in a live broadcast v ...
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Chart Moves: Jimmy Fallon's 'Blow' Bows on Billboard 200, Bobby Womack's (Electronic) Debut, 'Purple Rain' Returns
June 22, 2012 2:33 PM EDT The Billboard 200: This past week on the Billboard 200 albums chart, the big news was Usher's arrival at No. 1 with Looking 4 Myself . The set garnered the star his fourth chart-topping effort, following Confessions , Here I Stand and Raymond ...
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Damon Albarn Plotting Next Solo Album, Talks Olympics
May 08, 2012 8:40 PM EDT With his opera recording, "Dr Dee," out today, Damon Albarn is already at work on his next project. The former Blur and Gorillaz frontman told the BBC Radio 4 that the future album will be released as Damon Albarn, not via one of his numer ...
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Alison Donald, Mark Terry Appointed Co-Presidents of Columbia Records U.K.
April 26, 2012 11:06 AM EDT Alison Donald and Mark Terry are to replace outgoing Columbia Records U.K. managing director Mike Smith. Effective May 1, Donald and Terry will assume joint responsibility for the running of the label, reporting to Nick Gatfield, Chairman and CEO ...
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Why The Tupac Hologram Was Actually A 2D Tupac
April 18, 2012 2:05 PM EDT Tupac Shakur is back in the headlines again for his posthumous show-stopping performance at Coachella last weekend, which just about everyone took to be a 3D hologram. It simply looked too realistic not to be, as you can sort of tell from the vide ...
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Damon Albarn Preps 'Dr. Dee' Opera Recording
March 27, 2012 9:22 PM EDT Damon Albarn seems determined to be rock's busiest man. In between Blur reunion appearances, launching new group Rocket Juice and the Moon, and recording a Converse track with Andre 3000 and James Murphy, the musician found time to finish recor ...
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Bobby Womack Released From Hospital, Will Undergo Surgery
March 27, 2012 12:20 PM EDT Soul singer Bobby Womack has been released from the hospital following a successful recovery from pneumonia. The cancer-stricken Womack also is scheduled to undergo surgery at a later date. In a statement through his New York publicist, the 68-year- ...
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Bobby Womack Diagnosed With Colon Cancer
March 26, 2012 12:14 PM EDT Classic soul-funk singer and guitarist Bobby Womack has been diagnosed with colon cancer, according to bassist Bootsy Collins. The 68-year-old originally rose to prominence due to his association with Sam Cooke, who had signed him to his SAR Recor ...
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Apple's Garageband Adds Real-Time Jamming, iCloud Sync
March 08, 2012 6:15 AM EST Maybe it's time to get the band back together. On top of all the other stuff Apple announced yesterday (March 7), including a new iPad and Apple TV, the company demonstrated a new version of its Garageband music app that can sync tracks up an ...
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Gorillaz Animation + Live Action = 'DoYaThing' Video: Watch
February 29, 2012 2:35 PM EST The bonkers collaboration of Gorillaz leader Damon Albarn, OutKast rapper Andre 3000 and LCD Soundsystem mastermind James Murphy -- titled "DoYaThing" -- now has an equally bonkers video. Complete with the signature Gorillaz animation by t ...
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Listen: Gorillaz's Converse Single with James Murphy, Andre 3000
February 23, 2012 12:30 PM EST "DoYaThing," the one-off collaboration between Gorillaz , LCD Soundsystem 's James Murphy and Outkast 's Andre 3000 for Converse Inc.'s "3 Artists. 1 Song" campaign, was unveiled as a free download on Converse' ...
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Adele Receives Apology From BRIT Awards for Acceptance-Speech Interruption
February 22, 2012 10:47 AM EST The organizers of this year's Brit Awards have issued an apology to Adele for cutting short her second acceptance speech of the evening -- an incident which led to the singer raising her middle finger to the crowd and millions of watching TV ...
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Adele Gives Finger, Receives Apology at BRIT Awards
February 22, 2012 10:15 AM EST The organizers of this year's Brit Awards have issued an apology to Adele for cutting short her second acceptance speech of the evening -- an incident which led to the singer raising her middle finger to the crowd and millions of watching TV vi ...
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BRIT Awards 2012: Adele, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay Win Big
February 21, 2012 6:36 PM EST (Photo: Jon Furniss) Adele's already packed award shelf just got that extra bit crowded. On top of the six Grammy Awards that the "Someone Like You" singer picked up earlier this month, Adele took home two of the biggest prizes at t ...
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BRIT Awards 2012: Adele, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay Win Big
February 21, 2012 5:55 PM EST Adele 's already packed award shelf just got that extra bit crowded. On top of the six Grammy Awards that the "Someone Like You" singer picked up earlier this month, Adele took home two of the biggest prizes at the 2012 Brit Awards, h ...
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Gorillaz/Andre 3000/LCD's James Murphy's Converse Track: The Story Behind The Song
February 21, 2012 1:53 PM EST In the most high-profile offering of its "3 Artists. 1 Song" campaign to date, Converse Inc. announced on Feb. 9 that Gorillaz, LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and OutKast rapper Andre 300 had teamed up to record an original song f ...
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Gorillaz/James Murphy/Andre 3000's Converse Track: The Story Behind The Song
February 21, 2012 1:30 PM EST In the most high-profile offering of its "3 Artists. 1 Song" campaign to date, Converse Inc. announced on Feb. 9 that Gorillaz , LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and OutKast rapper Andre 3000 had teamed up to record an original song f ...
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Blur to Play 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony Concert
February 20, 2012 9:25 PM EST The members of Blur are taking their reunion to the world stage. The reformed British band will join the Specials and New Order to play the 2012 Olympics' Closing Ceremony Celebration Concert on August 12. This year's Summer Olympics will ...
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Andre 3000, Gorillaz, LCD's James Murphy Team Up for Converse Track
February 09, 2012 11:40 AM EST As part of Converse Inc.'s continuing "Three Artists. One Song" campaign, Gorillaz, former LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and Outkast rapper Andre 3000 have teamed up for an original track. "DoYaThing" will be relea ...
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Andre 3000, Gorillaz, LCD's James Murphy Team Up for Converse Track
February 09, 2012 9:00 AM EST James Murphy Calls Creating Song 'A Bunch of Kids Playing with Toys' As part of Converse Inc.'s continuing "Three Artists. One Song" campaign, Gorillaz , former LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and Outkast rapper Andre ...
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XL's Richard Russell On Adele, Six Grammy Noms, What's Next (Bobby Womack!)
December 09, 2011 8:30 AM EST Banner Year: Richard Russell, co-founder and CEO of XL Recordings (Photo: Courtesy XL) All said, 2011 has been a phenomenal year for Richard Russell and XL Recordings, the London-based independent that he co-founded in 1989 and now runs. Since its ...
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Blur to Receive BRIT Career Award
December 08, 2011 3:40 PM EST Blur are to be honored at the 2012 BRIT Awards with a prize celebrating two decades of influence on British music. 21 years since the release of their debut album "Leisure," the band was announced Thursday as the 2012 winner of the Outstan ...
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Albarn and Flea's 'Rocketjuice and the Moon' Live Debut: Listen
October 31, 2011 7:45 PM EDT The sounds of "Rocketjuice and the Moon" have hit the web. The new project is a collaboration between a trio of musicians with extensive resumes: Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Atoms for Peace), Damon Albarn (Blur; Gorillaz; the Good, the Ba ...
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Uncharted Territory: Noisia Crack Top 5; Mackelmore Re-Enters
September 30, 2011 6:00 PM EDT This week, the Dutch electronica trio Noisia shot into the Top 5 of Uncharted this week on the strength of a their new, spaced-out-turned-bass-whomping track, "Tommy's Theme." At No. 13 last week, Noisia racked up a whopping 142,000 S ...
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Billboard Bits: 'Punk'd' Returns With Bieber Pranking Swift, Beach Boys 'Smile' Gets Release Date
August 30, 2011 6:00 PM EDT Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip. 'Punk'd' Returns With Justin Bieber Pranking Taylor Swift MTV's revamped and reincarnated prank show "Punk'd" is back, and instead of A ...
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Billboard Bits: Madonna Heading into Studio, Bruce Springsteen Talks Clarence Clemons' Stroke
June 14, 2011 6:40 PM EDT Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip. Madonna Heading to Studio Next Month, Says Manager Madonna 's manager Guy Oseary announced on Twitter that the pop star "goes into the recording studio next mon ...
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Beatles, Keith Urban, Katy Perry Among EMI Acts Supporting Charity Auction For Japan
April 05, 2011 4:15 PM EDT From the Beatles to Katy Perry to Keith Urban, artists signed to the EMI label group are doing their part to support the Red Cross by donating memorabilia for worldwide auction to benefit victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. There will ...
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Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa to Shoot 'Comedy Stoner Movie' in May
March 21, 2011 11:19 AM EDT Rap icon Snoop Dogg and upstart Wiz Khalifa are teaming for a new film, "High School," which the former calls "a comedy stoner movie, a little something for the stoners." Snoop told Billboard.com that the duo -- who also joined f ...
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Blur Guitarist Hints At Band Recording Again
February 04, 2011 3:09 PM EST Has Blur finally returned to the studio? The veteran Britpop band may be recording its first new batch of material since 2003's "Think Tank," according to guitarist Graham Coxon's recent hints about a studio meet-up on Twitter. A ...
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Billboard Bits: Christina's Love Triangle at Home, John Mellencamp and Meg Ryan Dating?
January 05, 2011 5:10 PM EST Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip. Christina Aguilera No Longer Living With Both Ex-Husband, New Boyfriend Life just got a whole less awkward for Christina Aguilera. Recent reports claim that until yesterd ...
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Little Dragon Preps New Album After Gorillaz Tour
December 29, 2010 12:45 PM EST Earlier this year, Little Dragon was slowly building an underground U.S. following thanks to their 2009 release, "Machine Dreams," and the small tour supporting it. Soon after, the electro-indie band was jamming out on arena stages around ...
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Gorillaz Release New Album Recorded And Mixed Entirely On iPad
December 27, 2010 12:00 AM EST The Gorillaz have dropped a special Christmas present for fans -- "The Fall," an album mixed and recorded by frontman Damon Albarn using the iPad, is available on the band's website (thefall.gorillaz.com) as of Dec. 25. Over a dozen ...
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Gorillaz Release Christmas iPad Album, 'The Fall'
December 25, 2010 11:13 AM EST The Gorillaz have dropped a special Christmas present for fans -- "The Fall," an album mixed and recorded by frontman Damon Albarn using the iPad, is available on the band's website ( thefall.gorillaz.com ) as of today (Dec. 25). Over ...
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Billboard Bits: System of a Down Announce Reunion, Kelly Osbourne Dresses Up Like Miley Cyrus
December 23, 2010 4:55 PM EST Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip. System of a Down Announce 2011 Reunion After being defunct for over three years, hard rockers System of a Down has announced that they will return with new tour dates in ...
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Gorillaz to Release Free iPad Album on Christmas Day
December 09, 2010 1:00 PM EST The Gorillaz will play Santa this year and deliver their newest album to fans on Christmas Day -- for free. "At the moment, we've got an Advent calendar on our website, and there is a daily door that opens to reveal a gift," Gorillaz ...
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Gorillaz: We Won't Let 'Glee' Cover Our Songs
October 12, 2010 7:50 AM EDT The virtual band Gorillaz isn't exactly going bananas over the television musical series "Glee." Lead singer Damon Albarn says he's not interested in letting the hit show perform covers of his band's songs. "We wouldn&# ...
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Gorillaz: We Won't Let 'Glee' Cover Our Songs
October 12, 2010 12:00 AM EDT The virtual band Gorillaz isn't exactly going bananas over the television musical series "Glee." Lead singer Damon Albarn says he's not interested in letting the hit show perform covers of his band's songs. "We wouldn ...
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Glastonbury Festival Gears Up For Gorillaz
June 24, 2010 12:06 PM EDT Nearly 180,000 fans will descend on a farm in southwest England from Thursday for four days of music, and, if the rain falls, mud, for which the annual Glastonbury music festival is justly famous. British band Gorillaz , fronted by Damon Albarn, wil ...
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Gorillaz Replaces U2 At Glastonbury
May 26, 2010 9:41 AM EDT Gorillaz has stepped in to replace U2 at Glastonbury festival. Damon Albarn's animated pop act will make its only U.K. festival appearance this summer at Glastonbury on the Pyramid Stage on Friday, June 25. U2 has pulled out because of a seriou ...
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Gorillaz Replaces U2 At Glastonbury
May 26, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Gorillaz has stepped in to replace U2 at Glastonbury festival. Damon Albarn 's animated pop act will make its only U.K. festival appearance this summer at Glastonbury on the Pyramid Stage on Friday, June 25. U2 has pulled out because of a ser ...
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Billboard Bits: Lil Wayne, Katy Perry, Interpol, Blur and More
May 11, 2010 6:47 PM EDT Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip each day. Lil Wayne has been caught with unauthorized electronics in his jail cell, according to a Village Voice report . A search turned up headphones and a charger, and ...
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Billboard Bits: My Morning Jacket, SPIN Magazine, Allman Brothers, Gorillaz and more
April 26, 2010 6:50 PM EDT Billboard Bits serves up the best bite-sized nuggets of music news and gossip each day. SPIN magazine turns 25 years old this month, and as part of its anniversary issue the magazine's editors have compiled a list of the 125 best albums of the ...
