Expanded edition of Luther Vandross’ ‘Live Radio City Music Hall 2003’ to drop in honor of 20th anniversary

J Records/Legacy Recordings

Nearly 20 years ago, Luther Vandross performed his last two shows at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall and dropped an edited version of the concert that was 11 songs long. With the milestone anniversary of the show approaching, J Records/Legacy Recordings have announced that a special 20th anniversary edition will be released.

Luther Vandross – Live Radio City Music Hall 2003 – Expanded 20th Anniversary Edition – The Last Concert will drop on February 10 featuring the full concert, during which Luther displays his onstage banter, and the original track list, plus four new songs: “Power of Love/Love Power,” “Going Out of My Head,” “Any Day Now” and “Say It Now.”

The singer’s rendition of “I’d Rather,” which he also performed at the show, will be released Friday with an accompanying lyric video.

Luther passed away from a heart attack on July 1, 2005, two years after suffering a severe stroke.

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Britney Spears says her new tattoo has nothing to do with ex Justin Timberlake

Denise Truscello/WireImage

Britney Spears learned how quickly the internet can take things out of context when she posted, and quickly deleted, something about her ex Justin Timberlake after talking about getting a new tattoo.

The singer shared a video earlier this week of her getting a tattoo on her right forearm and told fans she “can’t show it because it sucks… I have to fix it.”

Later on, she posted a photo from 2001 of her and Justin wearing Los Angeles Knights jerseys and wrote in part, “When we used to shoot hoops TOGETHER … that’s when miracles happened.”

That update was quickly deleted, but fans felt there were some dots to connect between the two posts. Rumors sparked that Britney had gotten a tattoo in honor of her ex.

The rumor mill became too persistent for Britney, so she took to her Instagram Story to clear the air. “My tattoo had nothing to do with an ex in the past !!! I simply did it because I wanted to !!!”

“The pic with my ex is a time where there was less confusion on what it meant to be together … it is what it is,” she continued.

Britney and Justin dated from 1998 to 2002. 

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Whitney Houston to be honored with a Grammy-week residency in Hollywood

Courtesy of the Estate of Whitney E. Houston

Whitney Houston would have turned 60 this August, so her estate and Primary Wave have arranged a special weeklong event in Hollywood to honor her memory.

The Whitney Houston Hotel was announced Friday, which will run during Grammy week in celebration of her life and achievements. The singer’s memorabilia will be featured at Hollywood’s W Hotel, as well as Sony’s 360 Reality Audio Immersive Listening Lounge.

Fans will be able to see photos of the late singer and some of the most iconic gowns she wore throughout her career.

In addition, the hotel will open its doors to two days of live music with performances by Destiny’s Child singer Michelle WilliamsGlee alum Amber Riley, “Bad for Me” singer Teddy Swims, TikTok singer Natalie Jane and more.

The event will lead up to a Saturday night pre-Grammy gala hosted by Primary Wave Music and Whitney’s estate. The night will also include a special guest DJ, whose identity has not been revealed.

The weeklong event begins Wednesday, February 1, with an official unveiling and the opening of the Whitney Houston pop-up retail shop and gallery.

Whitney accidentally drowned in her hotel bathtub in 2012; drugs were found in her system. She was 48.

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Pantera announces North American tour

courtesy of Live Nation

Pantera fans in North America have been waiting patiently for a U.S. tour since the announcement of their reunion — and now it’s here. 

The band, which consists of original members Philip Anselmo and Rex Brown joined by Zakk Wylde on guitar and Charlie Benante on drums, just announced a 20-city North American tour, featuring special guests Lamb of God

The tour kicks off July 28 in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, and wraps September 15 in Bristow, Virginia. Tickets go on sale January 27 at 10 a.m.

Of course, these dates aren’t your only chance to see Pantera on the road. They are playing several rock festivals in 2023, including Welcome to Rockville,  Inkcarceration and Rocklahoma, and they are also opening select dates on Metallica’s M72 tour in 2023 and 2024. A complete list of Pantera tour dates can be found at Pantera.com.

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Remy Ma, Ashanti and Fivio Foreign part of lineup for Lil Kim’s headlining show at the Apollo

Aaron J. Thornton/WireImage

Earlier this week, the Harlem Festival of Culture announced that Lil’ Kim was launching the countdown to the annual event with The Jump Off with Lil’ Kim and Friends, the rapper’s first headlining show at the Apollo Theater. No lineup was unveiled at the time, but now a few of those “friends” have been revealed.

Joining Kim’s show will be Remy MaAshanti and fellow Brooklynite Fivio Foreign. Additional performers will be announced at a later date.

The Jump Off with Lil’ Kim and Friends is slated to take place January 26, the 89th anniversary of the Apollo. According to the HFC, the event is also a perfect way to kick off the year celebrating hip-hop’s 50th anniversary.

“One of the tenants of HFC’s mission is to celebrate and preserve the cultural contributions of the Black Diaspora in music, media, art, fashion and entertainment,” said Yvonne McNair, HFC’s co-founder and technical & talent producer. 

She added, “Hip hop culture has touched every single part of society and there is no artist that better represents its far-reaching impact than Lil’ Kim. We are so thrilled that Kim will help us to curate the evening to bring a full one-of-kind music experience to audiences in the city where it all began.”

 

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Rick Wakeman reveals release date and track list for new album, A Gallery of the Imagination

Madfish Music

Rick Wakeman is sharing some more info about his upcoming new album, A Gallery of the Imagination. The Yes keyboardist just announced the record will drop February 24, and he’s also shared the 12-song track list.

Wakeman describes A Gallery of the Imagination as a concept album inspired by his first piano teacher, Mrs. Symes, who taught him a lesson he never forgot: “When you play, you are painting pictures through music.” 

“It is a very tactile album,” Rick explains. “I’d like to feel that people can actually touch the music.”

The album is available for preorder now and will come out in a variety of formats, including CD, two-disc CD+ DVD set with surround sound audio and hi-res stereo, two-LP on black vinyl, two-LP on colored vinyl and a super deluxe limited edition set that includes a 24-page book.

A Gallery of the Imagination track list:

“Hidden Depths”
“The Man In The Moon”
“A Mirage in the Clouds”
“The Creek”
“My Moonlight Dream”
“Only When I Cry”
“Cuban Carnival”
“Just A Memory”
“The Dinner Party”
“A Day Spent On The Pier”
“The Visitation”
“The Eyes of a Child”

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See Gloria, Cyndi, Belinda and Dolly rock football jerseys in new video for “Gonna Be You”

BMG

Gloria Estefan, Cyndi Lauper, Belinda Carlisle and Dolly Parton are wearing their game day best in the new video for “Gonna Be You,” from the upcoming movie 80 for Brady.

The movie, based on a true story, stars Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Sally Field and Lily Tomlin as four best friends who take a trip to the Super Bowl in 2017 to see their hero Tom Brady play. It hits theaters on February 3.

Songwriter Diane Warren recruited Gloria, Cyndi, Belinda, Dolly and Blondie‘s Debbie Harry to sing on “Gonna Be You.” Debbie doesn’t appear in the video, but the other women do, all rocking blinged-out Tom Brady football jerseys with their names on the back and singing the song, intercut with footage of the film.

“What an honor to sing a song by my favorite songwriter with four other women who I have been a fan of for years! It doesn’t get much better than this,” says Belinda in a statement.

Cyndi adds, “This was such a great project to be part of because it was nice to be able to join forces with my pals for the song. Each of these women mean a lot to me. Friendships between women are important and I think Diane’s lyrics captured that. It was really touching. You don’t often see female ‘buddy movies’ so this was fun.”

Dolly says the project was a joy, adding, “This is very exciting to me. I love feeling like I’m still part of something great and being with those gals that we know are great was a thrill.”

And Gloria says, “What an honor to share this incredible experience with women that I have admired for decades!”

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Selena Gomez seemingly denies she’s dating The Chainsmokers’ Drew Taggart

Christopher Polk/NBC

Selena Gomez seems to want to shut down reports that she’s dating The Chainsmokers Drew Taggart — or anyone, really.

The New York Post ran pictures of Selena and Drew on a “date” at a New York City bowling alley on Sunday and reported they were “making out” like teenagers. But on Thursday, she posted a black-and-white image in a now-deleted Instagram Story — captured by Pop Base — that reads “I Like Being Alone Too Much.”

On the bottom, she added #iamsingle.

A source tells People that Selena and Drew were at the bowling alley as part of a group, not on a one-on-one date.

Drew had recently been linked to Steve Jobs‘ daughter Eve. Before that, he dated model and DJ Chantel Jeffries; the two broke up in April 2021. As for Selena, in November she told Jay Shetty‘s On Purpose podcast  that she “still believes and still hopes” for love, adding, “I would rather continue to get my heart broken than to not feel at all.”

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On album’s 40th anniversary, Bryan Adams says MTV was “hugely” responsible for ‘Cuts Like a Knife’ success

A&M/UMG Recordings

This week marked the 40th anniversary of the release of Bryan Adams’ breakthrough album, Cuts Like a Knife. The album, Bryan’s third, was his first U.S. top 10 album and gave him his first three U.S. hit singles: “Straight from the Heart,” the title track and “This Time.” Bryan says credit for much of the album’s success goes to MTV. 

Bryan tells ABC Audio that MTV was hugely responsible for the successful 1983 release: “There was a fraternity of probably 10 artists that they put on heavy rotation: MadonnaDire StraitsMichael Jackson, myself, Duran Duran. And we got played over and over.”

In fact, the video for “Cuts Like a Knife,” starring a Penthouse model named Raquel Pena, was one of the most popular videos of 1983. It was filmed in the empty swimming pool of an abandoned YMCA in LA, which was also the location for the party Bryan’s label threw when the album went Platinum.

“Back then, when MTV first started, it was a cable thing … and not everybody had cable,” Bryan says. “But anyone that did have cable was getting all these songs all the time. So I’m really, really grateful to them. I wish it still existed.”

As previously reported, Bryan and his band performed Cuts Like a Knife in its entirety at London’s Royal Albert Hall in May 2022; the full performance hits streaming on February 3. He believes the album holds up after 40 years.

“It was really exciting to go back and listen to those songs,” Bryan says. “Some of the songs I’d never played ever live. I had to sit in a rehearsal hall for a few days and get my head around it.” 

 

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Kim Petras chills out with new single, “brrr,” books ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ appearance

Republic Records/Amigo Records

After teasing it with images of a snowflake, Kim Petras has finally revealed her new single, which is called, appropriately, “brrr.”

The industrial-tinged track also comes with a lyric video, in which Kim sings, “You should pull me up closer/Turn the heat up in your Rover/Why don’t you take it out on me/If you think you’re so cold — brrr!”

“brrr” is the follow-up to Kim’s single “If Jesus Was a Rock Star.”

On Monday, Kim will appear on Late Night with Seth Meyers. In addition to giving the debut live performance of “brr,” she’ll sit for her first late-night television interview.

It’s the start of a busy couple months for Kim: She and Sam Smith‘s number-one duet, “Unholy,” will compete for Best Group/Duo Performance at the Grammys on February 5, and the two will also perform “Unholy” at the BRIT Awards on February 11, where it’s up for Song of the Year.

Kim, Spotify’s Songwriter of the Month for January, also just received a GLAAD Media Award nomination for Outstanding Music Artist.  On top of all that, she’ll headline Sydney WorldPride this March in Australia.

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