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Slash on Eddie Van Halen: “Any Instrument He Had Chosen to Play Would Have Been Phenomenal”
There have been countless tributes to the great Eddie Van Halen since his passing on October 6th. One of the millions of fans mourning his death is fellow guitar legend Slash. Van Halen released their groundbreaking self-titled debut in 1978, and by the time Guns N’ Roses formed in 1985, one can easily argue that Van Halen were the biggest hard-rock band on the planet — until GN’R took that title with their own masterful debut, Appetite for Destruction. We recently caught up with Slash to discuss the new Guns N’ Roses pinball machines, as well as his new custom collection with Gibson Guitars. While speaking with the GN’R axeman, we asked him for his thoughts on Eddie Van Halen, specifically what it was about the Van Halen legend’s playing that made him such an iconic guitarist. Slash graci...
Bandcamp Fridays Raised $40 Million (!) for Musicians in 2020
Earlier this year, as the pandemic strangled the live events economy, the artist-oriented platform Bandcamp decided to waive its own cut on sales of music and merch on Friday, March 20th. The one-off sale was such a success that the website soon extended it to the first Friday of every month in 2020. With the year almost over, the results are in: artists earned more than $40 million on Bandcamp Fridays in 2020. And since the vaccine isn’t widely available yet, and live music unlikely to return for several months, the platform has announced four more Bandcamp Fridays extending into 2021. While competitors like YouTube and Spotify have long been criticized for their miniscule streaming payout rates, Bandcamp has helped normalize consumers paying for music again. On those special Fridays, the...
HBO Max Also Pulls Chappelle’s Show at Dave Chappelle’s Request
Last month, Netflix removed Chappelle’s Show from their service at the behest of Dave Chappelle himself. The beloved comedian has now asked HBO Max to pull the iconic sketch series from their library, and they’re granting his request. In a lengthy Instagram video posted in late November, Chappelle explained that because of the contract he signed with ViacomCBS back when the show was made in the mid-2000s — years before streaming services even existed — he actually doesn’t see a penny of the money that ViacomCBS receives when it licenses the show out to companies like Netflix and HBO Max. “They [ViacomCBS] didn’t have to pay me because I signed the contract,” Chappelle said in the clip, which compiles footage from recent stand-up gigs. “But is that right? I found out that these people were ...
Sundance Film Festival Announces 2021 Virtual Lineup
The Sundance Film Festival will continue in 2021 and returns with a new upgrade amidst the ensuing pandemic. For the first time ever, the entire festival will take place digitally through “a feature-rich, Sundance-built online platform” in conjunction with in-person festivities that will air through Satellite Screens across the country from January 28th to February 3rd, 2021 “Togetherness has been an animating principle here at the Sundance Institute as we’ve worked to reimagine the Festival for 2021, because there is no Sundance without our community,” said Sundance Institute Founder and President Robert Redford. “Under Tabitha’s leadership, we’ve forged a new collective vision: one that honors the spirit and tradition of these invigorating yearly gatherings in Utah, while making roo...
MAGA Mascot Kanye West & Kim Kardashian Reportedly Still Together While Chasing Different Creative Pursuits
Source: NurPhoto / Getty Kanye West and Kim Kardashian appeared to be a power couple surviving the odds that two famous people can be married to one another and endure rough patches. The pair are still an item but the key to their success might be linked to them chasing separate creative pursuits. A source close to the couple tells PEOPLE that West, 43, and Kardashian, 40, are like most couples who have suffered the typical ups and downs of marriage. The source revealed that the prison reform work that Kardashian has thrown herself into and West’s fashion and land building aims have kept their lives from clashing as of late. “Kim has work and projects that are important to her, and Kanye has his,” said the source to the outlet. “Their lives don’t overlap much.” Kardashian is currently stud...
Tyler Perry Donates $100K Toward Legal Fees For Breonna Taylor’s Boyfriend
Source: Christopher Polk/E! Entertainment / Getty Tyler Perry has donated a large sum of money to Kenneth Walker’s GoFundMe that’s raising money for his legal battle against one of the cops responsible for the death of his girlfriend, Breonna Taylor. According to TMZ, the 51-year-old billionaire contributed a whopping $100,000 paid in two installments of $10,000, one $50,000 and a $30,000 to reach the fund’s asking amount. The media mogul has been on a philanthropic streak over the last couple of years. His recent work helped pay for the funeral of Rayshard Brooks who was gunned down by Atlanta PD in a parking lot, paid for the groceries for senior citizens across multiple grocery stores, fed families for Thanksgiving, and covered the funeral and rent for Tyne...
Jake Paul Calls Out Conor McGregor & Dana White, But Nate Diaz Responds
Source: Mike Roach / Getty Ever since turning Nate Robinson into the butt of many jokes and even an online challenge, Jake Paul‘s really been feeling himself something ridiculous. It’s gotten to the point where the YouTube personality has been talking ish to UFC icon and former champion, Conor McGregor and not only challenging him to a fight but even offered the Irish arse kicker a $50 million purse to get it done. Taking to IG to call him out for “ducking” him (uh-huh), Paul went for the jugular and called him a “c*nt” and even called his wife a “4” on a scale from 1 to 10. Accusing McGregor of being scared of losing to a YouTuber, Paul went on to call out UFC’s head white man in charge, Dana White by calling him a “p*ssy” and a “bald b*tch!” While this seems like all showmanship and/or o...
Lamar Jackson Denies He Dropped A Deuce During Last Night’s MNF Game
Source: Jason Miller / Getty Last night’s Monday Night Football matchup between the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens turned out to be a thriller as reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson was able to deliver to his team a “W” during the final minutes of the game. But it almost didn’t happen. During the third quarter of the game, Lamar unexpectedly trooped it to the locker room with no explanation given to reporters. When the 4th quarter came arund, reports began to come out that the superstar quarterback was cramping badly in his arm and had to get it massaged out. Then, with the game on the line, time ticking away, and Baltimore’s third-string quarte back writhing in pain on the field with an apparent knee injury, Jackson emerged from the locker room looking like a spring chicken running up a...
Billie Eilish Washes Her Dream Car And Ponders Existence In Revealing Doc Trailer
In three days, Billie Eilish turns 19, and yet she’s already become one of the most celebrated artists of her generation. It might be hard to remember a time before her Grammys sweep, before every new song drop was An Event, before she became a veritable auteur crafting her own visual identity. Luckily, filmmaker R.J. Cutler spent time documenting that very space in Eilish’s life. And the efforts of his time behind the scenes with her — a new doc called Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry — look to provide those intimate details, the kind you might expect from a global musical sensation who recorded a No. 1 album from her brother’s childhood bedroom. In the trailer, released today (December 15), we see Eilish pass her driver’s test and look forward to c...
DJ Pauly D And Vinny Are About To ‘Prank The Sh*t Out Of You’
DJ Pauly D and Vinny are here to “prank the sh*t out of you.” The Jersey Shore boys are back with new episodes of Revenge Prank with DJ Pauly D and Vinny, which features the lovable pair helping the target of a viral Internet prank get payback on a friend, family member or loved one who embarrassed them in the past. “If you can dream it, they can prank it!” “It’s about to go down!” Vinny states in the first look at the upcoming antics, above. What exactly does that mean? An engagement gone awry, a bunch of people puking and someone throwing weights at glass. “Awkward!” sounds accurate. See more of Revenge Prank with DJ Pauly D and Vinny in the sneak peek — and do not miss the premiere on Thursday, January 7 at 9/8c (right after a ...
Tulum’s Upcoming Zamna Festival is Feared to Be a Superspreader Event in the Making
Tulum is seemingly becoming a hub for in-person festivals amid the pandemic, and a reported lack of precautions is causing concern over repeated COVID-19 superspreader events. Even worse, the upcoming Zamna Festival is not your ordinary dance music event. The festival spans an astounding 17 days, according to The Daily Beast, and promises to be an “immersive electronic experience.” If recent past events are any indication, the adherence to social distancing and mask-wearing ordinances are unlikely. Zamna Festival, which is scheduled for December 31st through January 16th, has Tulum’s locals on alert, many of whom would bear the brunt of the effects of such events with superspreader potential. Art With Me, a recent five-day festival in the area that was like...
Visual Artist for Skrillex, Zedd Sells Digital Art Collection for $777,777
Beeple, one of the most prolific visual graphics artists in dance music, has sold a collection of digital artworks for an astounding $777,777 via auction. If you don’t know Beeple by name, there’s still a good chance you’ve seen his work at a dance music show. The designer has worked with the upper echelon of music producers including Skrillex, Zedd, deadmau5, and many more to develop mind-bending visuals and artwork. Over the weekend, numerous artwork auctions from the designer were hosted via Nifty Gateway, a budding marketplace for digital assets. With the advent of blockchain technology, true ownership of digital assets (referred to as “nifties” on the platform) is now a possibility. Participants bid on a variety of singular prints from Beeple, many ...
