Music – Page 2898 – 105.7 WDNY

The Weeknd spotted having dinner with Angelina Jolie

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

It appears that The Weeknd and Angelina Jolie have struck up a friendship.

Tabloid magazine The Sun captured photos of the Academy Award-winning actress and superstar singer as they headed to dinner at Giorgio Baldi in Los Angeles.

Although the nature of the meeting isn’t know, the pair share a common interest in Ethiopia: Both of The Weeknd’s parents are from the African nation, and Jolie and ex-husband Brad Pitt adopted their second child, daughter Zahara Marley, from Ethiopia in 2005.

In April, the “Blinding Lights” singer donated $1 million to the United Nations World Food Programme to provide two million meals to the country, where a conflict between the Ethiopian government and region of Tigray broke out in early 2021, leading to a humanitarian crisis that has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions of citizens.

“My heart breaks for my people of Ethiopia as innocent civilians ranging from small children to the elderly are being senselessly murdered and entire villages are being displaced out of fear and destruction,” The Weeknd wrote in a post announcing his donation.

Paul McCartney gives props to Tenacious D’s new Beatles mashup benefiting Doctors Without Borders

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Tenacious D is adding a bit more tenacity to The Beatles with a new charity single that has gotten a thumbs-up from Paul McCartney himself.

The comedy duo has released “You Never Give Me Your Money”/”The End,” an acoustic mashup of two tracks from the Fab Four’s Abbey Road medley. Being a Tenacious D performance, the cover also includes some extra four-letter words that pop up amid Jack Black‘s signature riffing vocal style.

Reacting to the cover, McCartney writes on his Facebook page, “This Tenacious D cover of our song is fantastic! It’s so imaginative and so well performed. What a great tribute to the original. Guys — I love it.”

Black and band mate Kyle Gass also have debuted an over-the-top mixed-media music video for their Beatles homage, which depicts the duo an a variety of surreal scenarios and locations, including on a mountain top, at Stonehenge, at Big Ben, in a forest, and in a jail cell. Gass dons a poorly fitting Beatles wig throughout most of the clip.

“Tenacious D are paying tribute to the greatest band in the world…not themselves…The Beatles!!!” the duo proclaims. “In the spirit of healing the world…please enjoy Tenacious D’s mashup of two classics from Abbey Road.”

You can download “You Never Give Me Your Money”/”The End,” now via digital outlets. The vinyl single version, which is available now for pre-order, will raise money for Doctors Without Borders.

Last fall, the D released a star-studded cover of the Rocky Horror Picture Show classic “Time Warp” to encourage voting.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

This Saturday marks the 50th anniversary of Doors singer Jim Morrison’s death

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Jim Morrison, the iconic lead singer of The Doors, died 50 years ago this Saturday, July 3, 1971, at age 27.

Morrison died unexpectedly during an extended stay in Paris while on hiatus from The Doors. He was found dead by his longtime girlfriend, Pamela Courson, in the bathtub of their rented apartment. His official cause of death was listed as heart failure, but the actual cause remains a mystery, since no autopsy was performed.

The late Doors frontman’s influence on music and popular culture has been immeasurable, thanks to his charismatic persona, his powerful vocal style, his exploration of dark themes and his talent for combining poetry with rock music.

Morrison had a fascination with pushing social boundaries that, unfortunately, coincided with a penchant for excess that included a serious alcohol dependency.

Doors drummer John Densmore recalls that he heard that Morrison had died while he was jamming with band mates Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger.

“[Jim] had been away for a few months and we wanted to make music and we were jamming on stuff, hoping he’d be back to help us,” Densmore tells ABC Audio. “And then, the manager came downstairs and said Jim had passed.”

John says that when Morrison was in Paris, he worried about the singer knowing his issues with alcohol.

“I was hoping he wasn’t drinking, but, you know, the Parisians have wine for breakfast,” Densmore notes. “[Paris] might not have been such a good place for him.”

As tragic as Morrison’s young death was, Densmore says he’s grateful for what he and the band created together.

“[I]t became bigger than its ingredients that came together in a garage in Venice [Beach, California,]” John notes. “And we gotta honor that muse and be thankful that something came in [that was] magic.”

Machine Gun Kelly guests on new jxdn song, “Wanna Be”; name of upcoming film changed after criticism

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Machine Gun Kelly has collaborated with jxdn on a new song called “Wanna Be.”

The pop-punk banger, which is available now for digital download, is accompanied by a video starring both artists, as well as Blink-182‘s Travis Barker, whose DTA Records released jxdn’s brand-new debut album, Tell Me About Tomorrow.

You can watch the “Wanna Be” video streaming now on YouTube.

MGK and jxdn will reunite this fall when the latter opens for the former’s Tickets to My Downfall tour, which kicks off in September.

In related news, Machine Gun Kelly is set to star in an upcoming movie that at one time was called Good News, but is now changing its title.

The film, according to Deadline, follows the “last days of a rising but troubled musician,” played by Kelly under his birth name, Colson Baker. It’s said to be a fictional work that takes inspiration from late artists including Mac Miller, Lil Peep, Juice WRLD and Pop Smoke, and its title is a reference to a posthumous Miller song.

That last bit irked Miller’s brother, Miller McCormick, who reportedly posted an Instagram Story reading, “F*** you f*** your movie at least change the title.”

In a statement to E! News, the film’s production company says it will be adopting a new title.

“Our film is about a fictional musician on the rise with a troubled life,” the statement reads. “It’s not in any way a biopic or based on any artist’s true life. We realize the title, which was intended as an homage to Mac Miller, and other artists gone too soon, feels disrespectful. We’ve heard from many people on social media who have found offense with the title so, without hesitation, we will change it.”

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

Ed Sheeran reveals sweet meaning behind daughter Lyra Antarctica’s name

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ed Sheeran opened up about the special meaning behind his daughter’s unique name. Last summer, the “Bad Habits” singer welcomed Lyra Antarctica alongside wife Cherry Seaborn.

“I realize some people think it’s quite a strange name,” Ed said on the British morning show Lorraine on Thursday. “But my wife’s called Cherry, and she is the only Cherry that I’ve ever met and I think that she’s the only Cherry that she’s ever met and I quite like that.”

Ed continued with a smile, “In my class at school, there were probably more Eds.”

Because of that, Ed revealed that he and Cherry “wanted to give [our daughter] a name that was unique, so that she would be the only one.”

However, the singer noted the name Lyra may continue to grow in popularity because of the successful fantasy trilogy-turned-television-series His Dark Materials, which features a protagonist with the same name.

Ed also divulged why he gave his daughter the middle name Antarctica, saying he visited the continent with Cherry before she became pregnant.

“I’ve basically toured every single continent but I’ve never been to Antarctica so that was always on our list,” he gushed. “So we went down there in 2019 and it was just incredible. The most amazing place on earth.”

The “Shape of You” singer also noted that his experiences as a first-time father influenced his upcoming album that is due out later this year.

Wealth management firm pulls out of Britney Spears’ conservatorship

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Bessemer Trust, the wealth management firm approved Wednesday to act as co-conservator over Britney Spears‘ finances, has asked to be removed from the role.

Attorneys for Bessemer Trust filed resignation paperwork Thursday, noting that Britney’s testimony on June 23 indicated the conservatorship was not voluntary, as the firm understood it to be.

Bessemer Trust was not authorized to act as a co-conservator until Wednesday, so it has not taken any actions in the position, or had it taken any fees, according to the court documents.

Once the resignation is approved, Jamie Spears, the pop star’s father, will once again be the sole conservator of his daughter’s estate.

“Petitioner has become aware that the Conservatee [Spears] objects to the continuance of her Conservatorship and desires to terminate the Conservatorship,” the documents read. “Petitioner [Bessemer Trust] has heard the Conservatee and respects her wishes.”

A conservatorship governing Britney’s personal affairs and finances has been in place since 2008, when the pop star was hospitalized twice for psychiatric evaluations. Jodi Montgomery was appointed to serve as conservator of Spears’ personal affairs in 2019, after Jamie Spears stepped down from the position.

Jamie Spears is still in charge of his daughter’s finances, despite the singer’s request last year to remove him from her conservatorship. The pop star had petitioned for her father to be suspended as a conservator as soon as a corporate fiduciary was put into a position of control.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda J. Penny agreed to appoint Bessemer Trust as a co-conservator last November, but she declined to remove Jamie Spears from his role. That order was officially signed Wednesday.

Britney pleaded with a judge last month to end her conservatorship, claiming that it is “abusive” and is “doing me way more harm than good.”

Listen to Taylor Swift sing on new Big Red Machine collab “Renegade”

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

L-Taylor, R-Aaron Dessner; Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

Two days after it was announced Taylor Swift would be again teaming up with her folklore and evermore collaborators, Bon Iver‘s Justin Vernon and The National‘s Aaron Dessner, the trio dropped “Renegade” at the stroke of midnight Friday.

The song was recorded for Vernon’s and Dessner’s indie rock band Big Red Machine and will be featured in its upcoming album How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?, due out August 27. Taylor recorded another song for BRM’s upcoming album, “Birch.”

“Renegade” is about wanting someone to drop their defenses and become a better person so a romance can bloom.

“You’ve come a long way/ Open the blinds, let me see your face/ You wouldn’t be the first renegade/ To need somebody/ Is it insensitive for me to say/ Get your s*** together/ So I can love you,” Taylor gently sings in the chorus.

Taylor gushed about her latest collab, writing on Instagram following the song’s release, “I can’t believe I get to work with Aaron Dessner. When Aaron came into my life, I was ushered into his world of free-flowing creativity where you don’t overthink, you just make music.”

“His generosity of spirit and humility bleeds into every part of his life, and that’s why so many artists have jumped at the chance to be a part of his collaborative project, Big Red Machine,” she continued.

Dessner also raved about the collab on social media, writing, “Taylor’s words hit me so hard when I heard her first voice memo and still do, every time.”

“I’m so grateful to Taylor for continuing to share her incredible talent with me and that we are still finding excuses to make music together,” he added.

Dessner was one of several people who shared the Album of the Year Grammy for folklore with Taylor.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

Foreigner’s chart-topping fourth studio album, ‘4,’ was released 40 years ago today

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the release of Foreigner‘s hit-packed fourth studio album, the aptly titled 4.

The album featured such enduring tunes as “Waiting for a Girl Like You,” “Urgent” and “Juke Box Hero,” which peaked at #2, #4 and #26, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100.

Propelled by those hits and a fourth top-40 single, “Break It Up,” 4 became Foreigner’s only album to reach #1 on the Billboard 200, spending 10 non-consecutive weeks atop the chart from August 1981 to January 1982. 4 has sold over 6 million copies in the U.S.

Interestingly, “Waiting for a Girl Like You” set a Billboard record by spending 10 weeks at #2 on the Hot 100 tally without ever reaching the top. It was blocked from #1 by Olivia Newton-John‘s “Physical” and Hall & Oates‘ “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do).”

The title 4 also was a reference to the fact that Foreigner had become a quartet after the exit of founding multi-intrumentalist Ian McDonald and keyboardist Al Greenwood in 1980.

Founding guitarist and main songwriter Mick Jones co-produced the album with “Mutt” Lange, then famous for producing AC/DC‘s Back in Black and soon to become more famous for his work with Def Leppard.

4 was the first Foreigner album to make significant use of session musicians. Thomas Dolby, who had a big hit of his own in 1982 with “She Blinded Me with Science,” played synthesizers, while Motown sax legend Junior Walker contributed a memorable solo to “Urgent.”

Singer Lou Gramm told ABC Audio that while “Waiting for a Girl Like You” may be the tune that fans remember most from 4, he considers “Juke Box Hero” to be “the quintessential Foreigner song.”

Here’s 4‘s full track list:

“Night Life”
“Juke Box Hero”
“Break It Up”
“Waiting for a Girl Like You”
“Luanne”
“Urgent”
“I’m Gonna Win”
“Woman in Black”
“Girl on the Moon”
“Don’t Let Go”

Listen to new Imagine Dragons song, “Wrecked”

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Imagine Dragons has released a new song called “Wrecked.”

The tune will appear on the band’s upcoming album, Mercury — Act 1, which was announced earlier this week. The record, which is due out September 3, also includes the previously released songs “Follow You” and “Cutthroat.”

Dan Reynolds and company recorded Mercury — Act 1 with famed producer Rick Rubin. They describe the album as being about “love, faith, pain, passion and loss.”

Mercury — Act 1 is Imagine Dragons’ fifth studio effort. It follows the one-two punch of 2017’s Believer and 2018’s Origins.

Nashville notes

July 2, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The Cadillac Three celebrate their love of skateboarding in the new video for their song “Bridges,” which finds the band converting Nashville venue Exit/In into a pop-up skate park. The video also features a number of skaters, including pro Jake Wooten.

Alan Jackson is joining forces with Cornerstone Building Brands to provide relief for those affected by the spring tornado that hit Alan’s hometown of Newnan, Georgia. Cornerstone is donating $500,000 in supplies to Habitat for Humanity and $100,000 to the Coweta Community Foundation to aid in recovery efforts.

Travis Denning and Jon Langston join newcomer Noah Hicks for his new single, “Drinkin’ in a College Town.”

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