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Zedd to serve as “official pregame DJ” at the Super Bowl, additional pregame entertainers revealed

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The NFL has announced its pregame entertainment lineup for the Super Bowl on February 13.

Zedd will be the “official pregame DJ” for the event, providing the music during player warmups. Meanwhile, Grammy-nominated country star Mickey Guyton will sing the national anthem, and R&B singer Jhené Aiko will perform “America the Beautiful.”

In addition, gospel stars Mary Mary will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing” — sometimes called the Black national anthem — accompanied by the L.A. Philharmonic’s Youth Orchestra Los Angeles.

As Variety notes, the lineup illustrates the NFL’s attempts to be more diverse in its entertainment choices, an initiative it announced in 2019.

As previously reported, the halftime entertainment for Super Bowl LVI will include Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. The game, featuring the Bengals taking on the Rams, will take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA. It’ll air on NBC and Telemundo and stream live on Peacock.

Permanent vacation: Aerosmith cancels summer European tour due to COVID-19

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

After moving them several times, Aerosmith has now permanently canceled their planned European tour dates because of uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a Facebook message the band writes that the tour, which was to have taken place in June and July of this year, has been scrapped due to “related uncertainty around travel logistics and the continued presence of COVID restrictions and other issues.”

“The health, safety and well being of our fans is our number one priority,” the band continues, adding, “We will be back to rock out with everyone and we hope to have some exciting news to announce soon…Until then, take care and we deeply apologize for any inconvenience.”

The tour was originally supposed to take place in 2020, but it was then moved to 2021, and then to this year. The last time Aerosmith played live was February 15, 2020 as part of their Deuces Are Wild Las Vegas residency.

The band’s only live date this year is now its September 8 show in Fenway Park in Boston with Extreme. It was originally supposed to have taken place in 2020 to celebrate Aerosmith’s 50th anniversary.

Why Kanye West won’t be making an NFT anytime soon

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

As celebrities begin to hop on the NFT bandwagon, Kanye West made it clear he won’t be joining — at least not anytime soon.

On Monday, the Donda rapper took to social media to issue a PSA to those asking him to make NFTs, which stands for non-fungible tokens and is a digital asset that belongs to the buyer alone.

“STOP ASKING ME TO DO NFT’s I’M NOT FINNA CO-SIGN … FOR NOW I’M NOT ON THAT WAVE I MAKE MUSIC AND PRODUCTS IN THE REAL WORLD,” he captioned an Instagram post.

The post itself contained a letter which read, “My focus is on building real products in the real world real food real clothes real shelter do not ask me to do a f****** NFT.”

He signed the note “Ye” and added, “Ask me later.” So maybe the Yeezy founder will eventually hop on the NFT train, just not right now.

Beatles tribute tour featuring Todd Rundgren, Christopher Cross, Denny Laine & more launches in March

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

In 2019, an eclectic group of music stars took part in a U.S. tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Beatles‘ The White Album, and now, a similar-themed trek has been announced for this March with a lineup that includes some of the same artists.

The 2022 “It Was Fifty Years Ago Today: A Tribute to The Beatles” tour will feature Todd Rundgren, Christopher Cross, founding Moody Blues and Wings member Denny Laine, Badfinger‘s Joey Molland, former Chicago singer/bassist Jason Scheff and Rascal Flatts‘ Jay DeMarcus performing songs from two classic Fab Four albums — 1965’s Rubber Soul and 1966’s Revolver.

The artists also will showcase tunes from their own respective bands or solo careers.

The trek gets underway on March 1 in Montclair, New Jersey, and currently is plotted out through a March 27 show in Kansas City, Missouri. Additional performances will be announced soon.

“This time we thought: Wouldn’t it be great if we played the best songs The Beatles ever recorded for a change?” notes Rundgren, who also took part in the 2019 tour, as did Cross, Molland and Scheff. “Rubber Soul and Revolver are the boys peaking in front of our eyes and redefining what pop music would be for the foreseeable future. This is going to be fun.”

Adds Cross, “It’s always a pleasure playing these classic songs with great artists and friends.”

Laine, meanwhile, says, “The Moody Blues met The BEATLES in the early ’60s and were invited to join them on their second British tour. The thought of performing some of their classic songs with such a revered cast on this tour will bring back not only those moments in time but also fond memories as a member of Wings.”

Check out a full list of confirmed tour dates at GlassOnyonPR.com.

Ella Mai loved recording with Pharrell and her favorite rapper, J. Cole: “That was an amazing week”

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Last week, Ella Mai released her first new single since 2020, “DFMU,” from her upcoming second solo album. The Grammy winner recorded songs for the project with the legendary artist/producer Pharrell Williams, as well as with her favorite rapper, J. Cole.

The British artist says she’s looking forward to working again with the “Happy” singer.

“I definitely hope in the future that we can get back in and make some more stuff, because he’s super fun to work with, and super down-to-earth,” Ella tells Billboard.

The 27-year-old artist also bonded with Cole, and said she enjoyed sharing her experience attending his 2013 What Dreams May Come Tour in London.

“I cut college class that day and I stood outside. I was 19th in line. I know, because they give you this wristband — so you can leave but you still get your spot. It was freezing cold, but I didn’t care, and I was super front row,” Mai recalled. “I was telling him all my stories. But also as a person, Cole is very inspirational. It’s amazing to be around somebody who is what they portray [to be].”

She says recording with Williams and Cole in the same week was magical.

“I thought this was everything I ever dreamed of. Working with people that inspire me — and it’s weird when I think [about how] people I’m super fans of, are fans of me as well. It’s still a weird feeling for me and I think it always will be,” the “Boo’d Up” singer commented. “I’m just super appreciative that I’m even able to be in these rooms and experience everyone else’s process, as well as putting my process in there too. That was an amazing week for me.”

In new ad, Sarah McLachlan begs us to help all those poor, abandoned…online shopping carts?

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Remember when Sarah McLachlan made us all cry with those ASPCA commercials? Remember how she spoofed them for a Super Bowl ad in 2014? Well, she’s doing it again, in a new commercial created by fellow Canadian Ryan Reynolds’ digital marketing company Maximum Effort.

In the spot, Sarah says — in her best “won’t you please help?” voice — “Every day, 70% of all online shopping carts are abandoned at the checkout page…victims of a cruel and exhausting checkout process.” Cue forlorn images of actual shopping carts filled with items, sitting out alone in the wilderness.

Sarah explains that when most people try to buy stuff online, the checkout process is so complicated — what with entering addresses, credit card numbers and CVV numbers — that they just forget the whole thing and leave the stuff in their online cart.

The solution? Bolt.com, a company that offers a one-click shopping experience, no matter which website you go to. You enter your information once, and that’s it.

The spot ends with a guy singing, “Go to Bolt.com…come on, we got Sarah f***ing McLachlan!”

In recognition of Sarah’s special talent for drawing attention to pitiful, abandoned things, Bolt has made a $50,000 donation to the ASPCA and in addition, it’s launched Bolt.com/carts, where you can buy “Rescue Cart“ merch. Every item is under a dollar using discount code “ABANDONEDCARTS,” and for each item purchased, Bolt will donate $10 to the ASPCA, up to an additional $50,000.

This isn’t the first time Sarah and Ryan Reynolds have teamed up for an ad — sort of. In 2018, in an spot for his Aviation brand of gin, Reynolds claimed that “every bottle of Aviation is ordained by the Unitarian Church of Fresno, California and then…serenaded with the healing music of Sarah McLachlan.”

Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus is back to thinking of new song ideas: “I haven’t felt that in eight months”

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

As Blink-182‘s Mark Hoppus continues to recover from a difficult year of chemotherapy to combat cancer, he’s rediscovered a briefly forgotten joy of his life: songwriting.

In a recent tweet, Hoppus writes, “Just want to say that I’m very grateful to be back in the mindset of ‘Oh! That’s a cool idea for a song lyric, I should write that down.'”

“I haven’t felt that in eight months,” he adds, alongside a “prayer hands” emoji.

Hoppus revealed his cancer diagnosis in June 2021, sharing that he’d been undergoing chemotherapy for the previous three months. Last September, he announced he was “cancer free.”

Blink-182 had been working on new music ahead Hoppus’ diagnosis — they released the topical song “Quarantine” in August 2020. The trio’s most recent album is 2019’s Nine.

Hoppus played his first post-cancer performance last October during band mate Travis Barker‘s Halloween streaming event.

Dierks Bentley is feeling “really good” about his new album

February 1, 2022 by WDNY Radio

As Dierks Bentley continues working through his upcoming album, he reveals it took a few tries to get it right.

The hit singer has been working on the project for two years, and after a few failed attempts, he is confident in the direction the album is going.

“I’ve gone in to record it a few times and it felt good, but I didn’t feel great. So I decided to keep writing, and it just feels so great,” Dierks explains of his process. “This is my 10th album and all the pressure is coming from me. I want it to be great….[L]ike any album you’re making, [I want it] to draw off [of] what you’re interested in. I love the songs I have, love the feel of it. A lot of great country songs, a lot of great instrumentation.”

Dierks also hints that he’s uniting the past and present on the upcoming project, which follows his acclaimed 2018 album, The Mountain. He says the new music will sound different than his recently released hits, but will still fit into the modern cannon of country music.

“It’s going to sound pretty different than the current songs I’ve had out, ‘Gone’ and ‘Beers on Me,'” Dierks explains. “[I’m] trying to draw on some stuff I’ve done in the past, albums like Modern Day Drifter, but still give it a contemporary feel.”

He adds, “It’s gonna be a while before the album comes out, but it feels really good. I’m really excited about it. I feel the way you should feel when you’re making an album, and I hadn’t felt that way in the previous attempts, but this time around…a great band and great songs and really feeling good about the direction.”

“Beers on Me” featuring Breland and Hardy is currently inside the top 20 on country radio.

Def Leppard expands partnership with Primary Wave music publishing company

January 31, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Def Leppard has reached a new deal with Primary Wave Music that pours some sugar on the original agreement that the British rockers struck with the music publishing company back in 2009.

The deal, which was announced on Monday, expands Def Leppard’s partnership with Primary Wave, as the company has acquired a bigger stake in the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers’ music publishing catalog, as well as in the income stream involving their master royalties.

The new agreement involves many of the group’s classic songs, including “Pour Some Sugar On Me,” “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph.” Def Leppard’s catalog features two albums that have sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. — 1983’s Pyromania and 1987’s Hysteria — and the band is one of only five rock groups that have achieved this milestone.

Def Leppard’s 2009 deal with Primary Wave involved the company marketing and administering the band’s song catalog.

“With Def Leppard celebrating 45 years as a band this year, we at Primary Wave are beyond excited on further partnering with them in a more meaningful way,” says Primary Wave executive Rob Dippold. “We are thrilled to continue building and elevating not only the band’s musical body of work but their impact in pop culture and the industry in general.”

Happy Valentine’s Day! Musiq Soulchild and Anthony Hamilton set for February 15 Verzuz battle

January 31, 2022 by WDNY Radio

It will be a battle of veteran male crooners when Musiq Soulchild and Anthony Hamilton face off for a special Verzuz event for lovers on the day after Valentine’s Day…Tuesday, February 15.

Verzuz founders Swizz Beatz and Timbaland announced Monday that Musiq and Hamilton will perform for a live audience at Avalon Hollywood in Los Angeles. Tickets for the show are now available at VERZUZTV.com.

The performance also will be streamed on the website and the Verzuz Instagram page beginning at 5:30 p.m. PT/8:30 p.m. ET.

After releasing his first album in five years, Love Is the New Black, in September, Hamilton was nominated two weeks ago for three NAACP Image Awards. The Grammy winner is up for Outstanding Male Artist, and has two nods for Outstanding Duo or Group Collaboration: “Superstar” featuring Jennifer Hudson from the album is nominated, as is the “Complicated” remix with Leela James.

Musiq Soulchild is a 13-time Grammy nominee whose recording career began in 2000 with his hit single, “Just Friends.” The singer from Philadelphia has released nine solo albums, with his latest album, Feel the Real, dropping in 2017.

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