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John Mellencamp releases Springsteen duet “Did You Say Such a Thing” as latest single from brand-new album

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Cover: Speck Mellencamp/Republic Records

Coinciding with today’s release of John Mellencamp‘s latest studio album, Strictly a One-Eyed Jack, the famed singer-songwriter has released a new single from the record called “Did You Say Such a Thing.”

The gritty-sounding blues-rock tune, which is available now via digital formats, features backing vocals from Bruce Springsteen, and is one of three collaborations with the Boss featured on the album.

You can check out a visualizer video for “Did You Say Such a Thing” on Mellencamp’s official YouTube channel.

Mellencamp wrote and self-produced Strictly a One-Eyed Jack at his Belmont Mall Studios in Bloomington, Indiana. He’d previously released one of the other Springsteen collaborations, “Wasted Days,” as an advance single back in September of last year.

Strictly a One-Eyed Jack is currently available everywhere.

Tupac Shakur “Wake Me When I’m Free” museum exhibit opens in Los Angeles

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The legacy of the late Tupac Shakur is explored in an immersive museum experience titled “Wake Me When I’m Free,” which opened Friday at The Canvas @ L.A. Live in Los Angeles.

Created in collaboration with the Shakur Estate, “Wake Me When I’m Free” is described as “part museum, part art installation, part sensory experience.”

In a promo video for the exhibit, the Poetic Justice star is heard in an archival audio clip saying, “I rap about wrongs and injustices that are done to all people, Black, white, women, men… I’m a young Black male so I have more experience with the injustices and problems happening to young Black males.”

Tupac adds, “I always go for the underdog. I believe in the underdog. Anybody, no matter who it is, if you are getting beat down, fight back. That’s what I believe and I’m telling people through my music that that’s what I believe.”

The “California Love” rapper was always known as a rebel, which he confirmed with the words “I’m not going to try to assimilate. I’m gonna be myself.”

Tupac died on September 13, 1996, six days after being shot while riding in Las Vegas with Death Row Records founder Suge Knight. He was 25 years old.

Patti LaBelle featured on soundtrack to the new Apple TV+ reboot of ‘Fraggle Rock’

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, a reboot of the original show, premiered today on Apple TV+, and coinciding with its debut, a soundtrack has been released via digital formats.

One of the songs on the album, “Shine on Us Now,” features soaring vocals from Patti LaBelle, who also appears as a special guest on the new series.

In addition, Rock & Roll Hall of Famers the Foo Fighters, who also had previously been announced as making a “special appearance” in the series, have recorded a song called “Fraggle Rock Rock” for the soundtrack. Other guest stars appearing on Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock include Saturday Night Live‘s Kenan Thompson and The Office‘s Ed Helms.

All the songs from the soundtrack are featured in the new 13-episode series.

Hear Foo Fighters rock out with ‘Fraggle Rock’

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, a reboot of the original show created by the late Jim Henson, is now streaming on Apple TV+, and a soundtrack has also been released, with the hardest-rocking song coming courtesy of Foo Fighters.

The band, which had previously been announced as making a “special appearance” in the new series, has recorded a song called “Fraggle Rock Rock” for the soundtrack. The album also features guest stars like Patti LaBelle, Saturday Night Live‘s Kenan Thompson and The Office‘s Ed Helms. All the songs are featured in the new 13-episode series.

You can watch a clip of Dave Grohl and the guys rocking out with the Fraggles on Instagram.

Halsey teases cover of tATu’s “All The Things She Said”

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Halsey revealed they did a little more than sample a tATu song when creating their 2019 song “Nightmare” — they apparently went ahead and recorded their own cover, as well.

Taking to TikTok on Friday, Halsey shared that the chorus from “Nightmare” contains elements from tATu’s 2002 hit “All The Things She Said,” and then proved it by playing “Nightmare” and their own version of “All the Things She Said” together.

Halsey then teased their full-length cover of the Russian duo’s song, writing, “should I leak this version?” A quick look at the comments section shows that people are dying to hear the whole thing, with some saying the song needs to come out “immediately.”

“All The Things She Said” ignited worldwide controversy for referencing a same-sex relationship and the music video caused further controversy because it featured the two artists kissing. Several conservative organizations attempted to ban the song outright for promoting lesbianism.

Fans serenade Barry Manilow with “Copacabana” singalong

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Barry Manilow enjoyed a little surprise when enjoying dinner with songwriting partner Bruce Sussman at a New York City restaurant Thursday night. According to Page Six, once the patrons figured out the legendary singer was in the house, they burst into a performance of his signature song, “Copacabana.”

A witness to the impromptu celebration at Fresco by Scotto told Page Six, “It was insane. Almost everyone dropped their pasta and meatballs to form a conga line that snaked around the restaurant before arriving at the foot of Bruce and Barry’s table.”

Barry was delighted by the sight and, the insider dished, “[He] was giggling and screaming to Bruce, ‘I can’t believe they all know all the lyrics!'”

The 78-year-old hitmaker was so moved by the display that he told the co-owner, “We have to come back.” A spy adds the two tipped 100 percent of their bill, paying the good vibes forward to their server.

As for why Barry is is hanging around NYC, it’s because he and Sussman are working on their new musical, Harmony, which will go into previews in March. The story is about the singing group Comedian Harmonists, a band of six German men of Jewish descent who became musical sensations in the 1920s, before facing danger due to the rise of the Nazi party.

New Music Friday: Mary J. Blige, French Montana, Young Dolph, and Da Baby

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

As Mary J. Blige prepares to perform with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and Snoop Dogg during the Super Bowl halftime show on February 13, she dropped her new track, “Rent Money” featuring Dave East, on Friday. The mid-tempo groove is the latest release from The Queen of Hip Hop Soul’s 15th solo album, GOOD MORNING GORGEOUS, due out February 11. Mary previously released the title track, and “Amazing” featuring DJ Khaled.

As previously reported, a cinematic trailer for the halftime show, titled “The Call,” dropped Thursday in which the stars drop everything to meet at the site of the big game, Sofi Stadium in Englewood, California, after receiving a call from Dre.

French Montana traveled to Cuba to co-direct the remix video for “FWMGAB” featuring Moneybagg Yo. The rappers engage in a high stakes poker game, and make it rain in a pool full of bikini clad booty shakers. The track is from Montana’s fourth studio album, They Got Amnesia, which dropped on November 19, 2021.

The Paper Route Empire label released the Young Dolph tribute album, Long Live Dolph, an eight-track project dedicated to the memory of the late rapper who was murdered November 17 in Memphis. Opening with Jay Fizzle’s title track, the album features Dolph’s roster of artists: Key Glock, Big Moochie Grape, Kenny Muney, Jay Fizzle, Joddy Badass, Snupe Bandz, Paper Route Woo and Chitana. A posthumous album of unreleased Dolph music, titled Paper Route Frank, will be released later this year.

Finally, Da Baby directed his new “Book It” video, which finds him having fun working as a cook in a diner, and sending a customer out in a coffin.

GAYLE enjoys comparisons to Olivia Rodrigo, but worries critics will “start competing us against each other”

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

GAYLE is enjoying her meteoric rise to fame thanks to her breakout hit “abcdefu,” and revealed on Thursday that while she’d love to work with fellow teen female singer Olivia Rodrigo, she doesn’t want to be pitted against her.

Speaking to E! News, the 17-year-old revealed, “Olivia Rodrigo DMed me. That was insane. She was just congratulating me on the success of the song. She told me that I was killing it and that was very just nice to hear from her, especially because she’s just such an amazing artist and talented human being.”

GAYLE mused over how similar her success story is to Olivia’s: Both became famous after releasing their brutally honest breakup anthems online at age 17. But though she’s “happy” to be compared to Olivia, she also worries that people might “start competing us against each other.”

“I truly believe that we both can be great in our own ways, and she’s already great. And I’m just trying to do my thing and not suck, you know?,” she added.

That doesn’t mean GAYLE isn’t open to jumping into the studio with Olivia, even though she knows it’ll be some time before that happens.

“I would love to collaborate with Olivia. I had an opportunity to ask that but I didn’t because, you know, everybody wants to collaborate with Olivia Rodrigo,” she remarked. GAYLE noted that while it would be “amazing” to do a song with her, “I’m also not going to be, like, stalking her for it, because she knows what she wants to do.”

Gayle, who is currently working on her debut album, just released a new single, “ur so horny” and its companion music video on Wednesday.

Listen to AWOLNATION cover The Scorpions’ 1991 hit “Wind of Change”

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

AWOLNATION has given us the first taste of their forthcoming covers album My Echo, My Shadow, My Covers and Me, which is due out May 6.

Aaron Bruno and company’s version of The Scorpions’ 1991 classic “Wind of Change,” featuring contributions from Portugal .The Man and Brandon Boyd of Incubus, is out now. On Instagram, Bruno writes, “I’ll never claim this to be as good as the original by @scorpions, but with the help of @portugaltheman and @brandonboyd i hope it brings you a similar optimistic feeling that the song gave me as a kid when it was always on MTV.”

He adds, “Can’t wait to share more of these covers and special guests with you!“

“Wind of Change,” Scorpions’ biggest U.S. hit, became synonymous with the end of the Cold War and the Soviet Union. The song resurfaced in 2020 thanks to a podcast that explored the rumor that “Wind of Change” had been written by the CIA.

Fun fact: AWOLNATION’s version of the song arrives exactly 31 years and one day after the original was released, on January 20, 1991.

Queen’s Brian May to make acting debut on upcoming episode of UK kids show ‘Andy and the Band’

January 21, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Queen guitarist Brian May will make his acting debut in an upcoming episode of Andy and the Band, a popular U.K. TV show geared toward children.

The show stars Andy Day as the leader of a rock band called The Odd Socks that’s made up of a group of his offbeat friends. May will appear as the Godfather of Rock in an episode titled “Planet Rock” that will premiere on January 24 on the BBC iPlayer and January 27 on the CBBC channel.

On the program, May’s character will join Andy and the Odd Socks to play the “best jam ever” and also will help the group overcome what’s described as a “a global ‘rocktastrophe.'”

The plot of the episode involves The Odd Socks visiting Planet Rock to seek the Godfather’s help in reuniting them with the group’s guitarist, Rio, who has lost his confidence, and his beloved air guitar.

In conjunction with the show, May has recorded a new song with Andy and the Odd Socks called “Planet Rock” that will be released on February 18.

“I have loved working with the Odd Socks! Playing the role of their Godfather of Rock was actually a very emotional experience,” May says. “The episode is a wonderful message of hope to kids who lose their self-confidence. The symbolic use of air guitar is beautifully apt. And on a broader scale I absolutely align with Andy and the Band in their quest for every kid to feel proud of their individual qualities.”

He adds, “I’m backing their anti-bullying campaign to the hilt!”

Meanwhile, Day notes, “Working with Brian has been a musical dream come true, as I am a huge Queen fan, but most importantly he completely understood the ethos and message of inclusivity we share in everything we do.”

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