Shout It Out Loud! Happy 70th Birthday to KISS frontman Paul Stanley!

Shout It Out Loud! Happy 70th Birthday to KISS frontman Paul Stanley!
Shout It Out Loud! Happy 70th Birthday to KISS frontman Paul Stanley!
Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Here’s wishing a very happy birthday to KISSPaul Stanley, who was born 70 years ago today.

The band’s frontman, co-lead singer and rhythm guitarist was born Stanley Eisen in New York City. He was born with a deformed ear caused by a defect called microsia that also left him deaf in that ear.

In his late teens, Paul joined a group called Rainbow that featured bassist/singer Gene Simmons. The band changed its name to Wicked Lester in 1971 and eventually recruited drummer Peter Criss and guitarist Ace Frehley. In 1973, the group again changed its name…to KISS. The band members soon came up with costumes and face makeup for themselves, with Stanley choosing the persona “The Starchild,” featuring a star over his right eye.

With their cartoonish look and over-the-top live shows featuring pyrotechnics and other dramatic effects, KISS soon became one of the most popular rock bands on the planet. Over the years, Stanley has written or co-written many of KISS’ biggest hits and most popular songs, including “Rock and Roll All Nite,” “Shout It Out Loud,” “Detroit Rock City,” “Hard Luck Woman,” “I Was Made for Lovin’ You,” “Lick It Up” and “Forever.”

Stanley and Simmons have continued to lead KISS through the band’s entire history, while a number of musicians have filled the guitarist and drummer slots over the years.

In 2014, Stanley was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of KISS.

Outside of KISS, Stanley is an accomplished painter and also has released a few solo projects. His most recent was the debut album by his side project Paul Stanley’s Soul Station, Now and Then, which arrived in 2021. The album featured covers of a variety of classic soul tunes from the 1960s and ’70s, as well as a handful of originals.

Meanwhile, Stanley has had a rough go of it during the last several months, overcoming two bouts with COVID-19 and undergoing shoulder surgery in late 2021.

Thankfully, Paul appears to be on the mend as KISS prepares to relaunch its End of the Road farewell tour with an Australian leg that kicks off in March.

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The *NSYNC road trip movie is underway, says Lance Bass: “There’s gonna be a ton of music in it”

The *NSYNC road trip movie is underway, says Lance Bass: “There’s gonna be a ton of music in it”
The *NSYNC road trip movie is underway, says Lance Bass: “There’s gonna be a ton of music in it”
J. Vespa/WireImage

24 years ago today, *NSYNC‘s debut single “I Want You Back” was released in the U.S., so let’s check in and find out the status of that movie Lance Bass announced he was making based on the true story of two girls who won a Winnebago on The Price Is Right in 1999 and used it to follow *NSYNC on tour that year. Well, it’s definitely happening.

“It is finally being written right now,” Lance told ABC Audio a few months ago. “I wanted to make sure that this movie was written by, one, females, and people that knew that fandom and appreciated that fandom. And this writing team knows that.”

Lance added that Rachel Bloom –best known for co-creating and starring in the musical comedy series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend — is involved.

“We’re toying with how much of a musical we’re doing,” he explained. “There’s going to be tons of music in it, y’know, the way Pitch Perfect does it, where they break into song and dance, but it makes sense.”

The movie’s set 20 years after the original 1999 road trip, Lance said, adding, “We just want it to be kind of fun, over-the-top…I want that R-rated road trip comedy that you just have a lot of fun with.”

Meanwhile, *NSYNC’s Joey Fatone told ABC Audio that Lance has wanted to make this movie since the original 1999 road trip.

“From day one, when these girls won The Price Is Right, and they were following us, we started giving them tickets…we kinda sponsored them a little bit,” he noted. “And [Lance] even said, ‘One day, I want to do a film about this’…so it was really cool to hear that he’s going to be doing this, [with] a couple of really, really, really great writers.” 

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Twenty One Pilots grab milestone 10th number-one hit on ‘Billboard’ Alternative chart

Twenty One Pilots grab milestone 10th number-one hit on ‘Billboard’ Alternative chart
Twenty One Pilots grab milestone 10th number-one hit on ‘Billboard’ Alternative chart
ABC/Randy Holmes

Twenty One Pilots have earned a new chart milestone thanks to “The Outside.”

The track, the current single off the duo’s new album, Scaled and Icy, has hit number one on the Billboard Alternative Airplay ranking, making it the 10th Twenty One Pilots tune to achieve that feat.

The “Stressed Out” outfit is now just the sixth act to rack up at least 10 Alternative Airplay leaders since the chart first began in 1988. The other five are Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day, Linkin Park, Foo Fighters and Cage the Elephant.

The Chili Peppers have the most number-ones, with 13.

Scaled and Icy also produced chart-toppers in “Shy Away” and “Saturday.” Twenty One Pilots will launch a U.S. tour in support of the record in August.

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Anthony Hamilton hopes his career can inspire aspiring artists

Anthony Hamilton hopes his career can inspire aspiring artists
Anthony Hamilton hopes his career can inspire aspiring artists
Prince Williams/Wireimage

After releasing his first album in five years, Love Is the New Black, in September, Anthony Hamilton is celebrating receiving three NAACP Image Awards nominations on Tuesday. 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 well the “Complicated” remix with Leela James.

Growing up in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a teenager Anthony chose to be adopted by another family after his mother struggled with substance abuse. He became a father right out of high school and supported his son working as a barber and as a cook. Eventually, at 21 he moved to New York City to pursue a music career, then returned home where his career took off. Last year, Hamilton celebrated his 25th anniversary as a recording artist.

His life has been a struggle, and he believes his journey can inspire others.

“I’m at an age where I’m not ashamed by it,” the 50-year-old singer tells Shadow and Act. “If it can be used to tell the story of Anthony Hamilton, maybe some young kid or one of my own kids can see something in that to push them through to their next level of greatness.”

Now the “Charlene” singer is diversifying and owns the Hamilton Corner Store in Pineville, NC where he sells the southern foods he grew up on.

“I want my own grocery stores in the urban communities like Whole Foods and Publix for my people,” Anthony says. “We deserve the best of the best.”

Hamilton will join Joe on Maxwell‘s NIGHT tour kicking off March 2 in Dallas. They will perform 25 shows, and cities will include New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, and Oakland. The tour wraps in Miami on May 8.

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“Midnight Rider’s Prayer” is Brothers Osborne’s answer to a Willie Nelson classic

“Midnight Rider’s Prayer” is Brothers Osborne’s answer to a Willie Nelson classic
“Midnight Rider’s Prayer” is Brothers Osborne’s answer to a Willie Nelson classic
ABC

The deluxe version of Brothers Osborne’s Skeletons arrives on Friday, bumping up the original track list to 15 with three new songs.

Fans have already heard one of those, “Younger Me,” and the other two are called “Headstone” and “Midnight Rider’s Prayer.” The latter is a tip-of-the-hat to Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again,” which it even samples.

The idea came after band mate John Osborne was looking for a chorus with the same feel and style as “On the Road Again,” and his brother TJ Osborne suggested simply using it.

“TJ just goes, ‘Well, why don’t we use that chorus?’ I’m like, ‘Because it’s already been written,’” John remembers. “He’s like, no, no, no…they do that a lot in pop songs and stuff.’ This has never really been done in country before.”

They sent the demo to the legend himself, and got a response that was even better than they could have dreamed.

“He liked it enough that he played it for Kris Kristofferson,” John continues.

But while the song pays homage — literally — to “On the Road Again,” “Midnight Rider’s Prayer” isn’t quite as carefree as the original. “At the time when we wrote that song, John and I were still in the phase of riding around in 12-passenger vans and getting beat up by the road,” TJ remembers.

“There’s a spot in the song John and I both really love,” he continues. “‘When your night is ending, ours is just beginning, on the road again.’ And that’s how it is.”

Look for Brothers Osborne on an upcoming episode of ABC’s Nightline. The show airs weeknights at 12:35AM ET.

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“Stairway” to ‘Hushed’: Mastodon’s Brann Dailor ponders connection between Led Zeppelin cover & new album

“Stairway” to ‘Hushed’: Mastodon’s Brann Dailor ponders connection between Led Zeppelin cover & new album
“Stairway” to ‘Hushed’: Mastodon’s Brann Dailor ponders connection between Led Zeppelin cover & new album
Scott Legato/Getty Images

In 2019, Mastodon released a cover of the Led Zeppelin classic “Stairway to Heaven” as a tribute to their late manager, Nick John. The band continued to honor John with their new album, Hushed and Grim, which is dedicated to his memory.

In listening to both the “Stairway” cover and Hushed and Grim, you may find that both have a similar, well, hushed quality. When asked whether he thinks any of “Stairway to Heaven” made its way into Hushed and Grim, drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor tells ABC Audio, “I hope it found its way into something.”

“I’d never claim that,” Dailor laughs.

Covering “Stairway” in the first place, was, of course, a daunting task for Mastodon. After all, “No ‘Stairway'” is, as Wayne’s World taught us, one of the few rules of rock n’ roll.

“When you do a cover, especially something so iconic like that, like, who’s covering ‘Stairway to Heaven?'” Dailor says. “It’s, like, a big no-no, you know what I mean?”

Mastodon eventually decided to go through with it as a special tribute to John by performing “Stairway” at his funeral. They later recorded the cover and released it to raise money for cancer research.

In addition to honoring Mastodon’s beloved manager, covering “Stairway” allowed Dailor to dig deeper into the epic rock classic. That exploration of its iconic slow build and massive crescendo, Dailor thinks, may have influenced Hushed and Grim.

“I guess that I would say that there’s some stuff on the record that’s more in-line with something like that than anything we’ve really done previously,” Dailor says. “So maybe it subconsciously made its way into [us thinking], ‘Let’s try to have a vibe like that.'”

Hushed and Grim is out now. It includes the single “Teardrinker.”

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Chris Daughtry reveals daughter’s cause of death, says she’ll “forever be in [our] hearts and minds”

Chris Daughtry reveals daughter’s cause of death, says she’ll “forever be in [our] hearts and minds”
Chris Daughtry reveals daughter’s cause of death, says she’ll “forever be in [our] hearts and minds”
Mickey Bernal/Getty Images

Last November, fans were shocked to hear that 25-year-old Hannah Price — daughter of Chris Daughtry and his wife Deanna — had died.  Now, the couple has issued a statement revealing that she died by suicide while under the influence of narcotics.

The statement explains that Hannah had always “struggled with mental illness and was in and out of therapy and treatment centers.”  She also “began using drugs and often found herself abusive relationships.” Then, just months after she lost her biological father to suicide, Hannah was the victim of a crime and was shot in the face.

“We did everything we could to support her and get her the help she needed to recover from these tragedies and get her life back on track,” Chris and Deanna say. “We had just recently made plans with Hannah for her to seek further treatment and move closer to the family.”

On the morning of November 12, the couple says Hannah told them she feared for her life because her boyfriend had allegedly physically abused her and taken her car.  Chris and Deanna asked the local police department to perform a wellness check; they found she was O.K.  But later that afternoon, Hannah was found hanging by her boyfriend, who called 911. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

“After a thorough investigation…they have determined her official cause of death as suicide by hanging while under the influence of narcotics,” the statement concludes. “It has been determined that there is no evidence of foul play.”

The couple adds that Hannah “was a generous and loving person who wanted more for herself and others. She will forever be in the hearts and minds of those of us who love her.”

Daughtry’s tour resumes February 9.

If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. You can reach Trans Lifeline at 877-565-8860 (U.S.) or 877-330-6366 (Canada) and The Trevor Project at 866-488-7386. 

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The Scorpions debut music video for title track of forthcoming album, ‘Rock Believer’

The Scorpions debut music video for title track of forthcoming album, ‘Rock Believer’
The Scorpions debut music video for title track of forthcoming album, ‘Rock Believer’
Klaus Voormann/Spinefarm Records

The Scorpions celebrate the joy of rocking their fans like a hurricane in the official video for the title track of their forthcoming studio album, Rock Believer.

The clip, which premiered this week at the veteran German hard rockers’ YouTube channel, features new scenes of The Scorpions performing “Rock Believer” in a studio, mixed with archival footage of the band playing at a variety of major concerts and behind-the-scenes footage of the group interacting with fans and having fun offstage.

The video also incorporates glimpses of childhood photos of the band members.

The group has posted a message on its Facebook page about the inspiration behind the song that reads, “Over the years, we’ve heard people say lots of times that rock is dead. But there are still millions of rock believers out there all over the world to prove them wrong. Our fans are the best in the world…We’ll see you someday somewhere out there, because we’re Rock Believers just like you.”

The Scorpions released “Rock Believer” as an advanced digital single last week, while the album, which can be pre-ordered now, is due out on February 25.

In conjunction with the video’s premiere, the band members took part in an online afterparty and Q&A event that was accessible by subscribers of the YouTube Premium service. The 50-minute presentation is available on demand at The Scorpions’ YouTube channel. A free YouTube Premium trial also is being offered.

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Micky Dolenz releasing vinyl EP of songs by late Monkees band mate Mike Nesmith in March

Micky Dolenz releasing vinyl EP of songs by late Monkees band mate Mike Nesmith in March
Micky Dolenz releasing vinyl EP of songs by late Monkees band mate Mike Nesmith in March
7a Records

Last March, Micky Dolenz issued a full-length album titled Dolenz Sings Nesmith made up of covers of songs by his Monkees band mate Mike Nesmith, and now, in the wake of Nesmith’s passing in December, plans have been announced for a follow-up EP featuring Micky’s versions of four more songs penned by Mike.

Dolenz Sings Nesmith — The EP is due out on March 18 and will be available as a 10-inch vinyl disc pressed on blue vinyl. The EP can be pre-ordered at MickyDolenz.com and DeepDiscount.com, and Dolenz is offering signed and unsigned versions of the disc at his website.

Dolenz Sings Nesmith — The EP features tracks from the same sessions that yielded last year’s album. They include a song called “Soul-Writer’s Birthday” that Mike wrote in 1967 but never recorded.

The EP also features a version of “Some of Shelly’s Blues,” a song that The Monkees recorded in 1968, but whose rendition wasn’t released until it appeared on the 1990 Missing Links Volume Two compilation. The other songs on the EP are “The Crippled Lion” and “Grand Ennui,” which first were released on Nesmith albums in 1970 and ’71, respectively.

Micky’s cover of “Grand Ennui” also appeared as a bonus track on the CD version of the Dolenz Sings Nesmith album.

Nesmith died of heart failure on December 10, 2021. He was 78.

In other news, Dolenz has a series of five joint concerts with Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals lined up in the northeastern U.S. this spring, running from an April 23 show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, through a June 4 gig in Lynn, Massachusetts.

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Deftones’ Sergio Vega selling studio & stage-used basses

Deftones’ Sergio Vega selling studio & stage-used basses
Deftones’ Sergio Vega selling studio & stage-used basses
Scott Legato/Getty Images

DeftonesSergio Vega has opened his own shop with the online gear marketplace Reverb to sell some of his own basses from throughout his career.

Among the instruments available for purchase include basses used in studio and on tour with Deftones, as well as others used with Vega’s band Quicksand. Vega is also parting ways with various preamp and effects processors used for Deftones songs including “Diamond Eyes,” “Tempest” and “Poltergeist.”

“This stuff is near and dear to me,” Vega says. “I’ve used these things for the past 10-plus years with Quicksand and Deftones. These are things I [used on] tours with Deftones around the world. [Gear that] I’ve been in writing sessions with, that I’ve been in the studio with.”

You can check out Vega’s Reverb shop now via Reverb.com.

Deftones released their latest album, Ohms, in 2020. The record’s title track and its song “Genesis” are nominated for Best Rock Performance and Best Metal Performance, respectively, at the 2022 Grammys.

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