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L.A. GUNS Bassist KELLY NICKELS On Late 1980s Sunset Strip Rock Scene: ‘I Wouldn’t Say It Was A United Front’
Bassist Kelly Nickels, a member of L.A. GUNS‘ “classic” incarnation who currently plays for Steve Riley‘s version of L.A. GUNS, was asked in a new interview with Australia’s Heavy if there was a sense of competition between the bands on the late 1980s Sunset Strip rock scene or if there was more of a “united front” between all the acts. He responded (hear audio below): “I wouldn’t say it was a united front. We were all kind of indirectly maybe trying to outdo each other and stuff, hoping to draw the bigger crowds and sell more records and everything. You were kind of focused on what you were doing that you didn’t really pay attention to other bands that much. I knew who was happening and who people were talking about, but I didn&#...
PAPA ROACH Checks In From Studio: ‘Live From The Bubble Pt. 2’
PAPA ROACH recently entered a studio in Southern California to begin writing and recording material for the follow-up to last year’s “Who Do You Trust?” album. Earlier today, the quartet uploaded another short video from the studio dubbed “Papa Roach – Live From The Bubble Pt. 2” and included the following message: “It’s 2020 and like all bands, we had to cancel massive tours, so we’re taking this opportunity to get in the studio and write new music together. We all got tested and quarantined ourselves in ‘the bubble’ to write our next album.” In September, PAPA ROACH singer Jacoby Shaddix spoke to Shroom of the WEBN radio station about the musical direction of the band’s new material. He said: “This stuff ...
Lil Pump Joins Donald Trump for Election Eve Rally, Introduced as “Little Pimp”
As Lady Gaga stumped for Joe Biden in Pittsburgh, Donald Trump countered with his own “celebrity” endorser. During a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Monday night, Trump was joined on stage by Lil Pump. The Harvard Dropout rapper came out in support of Trump last week, after apparently learning of Biden’s plan to tax individuals making over $400,000 a year. “Fuck I look like payin’ an extra 33 in tax for Biden, bitch ass n*gga? Fuck Sleepy Joe, n*gga! Trump 2020, bitch,” he yelled in a clip posted to social media. Word apparently got back to the reality show president, who’s always on the lookout for a new attraction for his “COVID-19 Superspreader World Tour”. Of course, neither man bothered to do one iota of research on the other before taking the stage together. Trump introduced Lil P...
Big Boi, Sleepy Brown, and Killer Mike Perform “We the Ones (Remix)” on Fallon: Watch
It was Atlanta night in New York City on Monday as Big Boi and Sleepy Brown brought their new remix of “We the Ones” to The Tonight Show. They were joined by fellow Dungeon Family alums Killer Mike and Big Rube. In its original form, “We the Ones” appeared on the self-titled 2017 EP from production trio Organized Noize, of which Brown is a member. Bigs Boi and Rube were already present, but it took last month’s remix to add Killer Mike of Run the Jewels. The track has always been a protest song, but since it came out Killer Mike has become one of the most notable voices of the resistance. His verse added a new perspective centered around aspiration and faith. After an introduction from Jimmy Fallon, the song opened with Big Rube at a podium labelled with the official “Seal o...
Louisiana Man Who Burned Down Churches to Raise His “Black Metal Profile” Gets 25-Year Prison Sentence
Holden Matthews, who set fire to three churches last year to “raise his profile as a black-metal musician”, was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison. The 23-year-old Louisiana man was also ordered to pay $2.6 million in damages to the affected churches. As previously reported, Matthews, who played bass in the band Vodka Vultures, faced between 10 and 70 years in prison for burning three predominantly Black churches in the spring of 2019. According to a statement on the sentencing from U.S. Attorney Alexander Van Hook, “Matthews admitted to setting the fires because of the religious character of these buildings, in an effort to raise his profile as a ‘Black Metal’ musician by copying similar crimes committed in Norway in the 1990s.” Matthews’ actions came just a few months after the relea...
Eddie Vedder on Losing Chris Cornell: “I Still Haven’t Quite Dealt With It”
Howard Stern can get anyone to talk — anyone — and Eddie Vedder was no exception. On Monday, the Pearl Jam frontman joined the veteran broadcaster for a spirited three-hour conversation chock full of stories both humorous and heartwarming. Things took a turn, however, when their dialogue shifted to the tragic passing of friend and colleague Chris Cornell. “I’ve had to be somewhat in denial,” Vedder explained. “One way I was even able to do it, and I don’t think I had a choice. It’s just like, I was terrified of where I would go if I allowed myself to feel what I needed to feel or what I instinctively wanted to feel or how dark I felt. Because I didn’t see him that often in the last 10 years, probably only like four, five times and usually at a gig or something, I just kind of–I still haven...
2 Chainz Campaigns For Joe Biden & Kamala Harris In Atlanta
Source: WENN/Avalon / WENN It’s election day! With the future of the country’s democracy hanging in the balance and rappers like Lil Wayne, Lil Pump and 50 Cent already having endorsed the current Racist-In-Chief’s re-election campaign, 2 Chainz has decided to get on the right side of history and threw his support behind the Biden/Harris democratic ticket. Yesterday the artist formerly known as Titi Boi stomped for the Biden campaign during their pit stop in his hometown of Atlanta and riled up the crowd in hopes of getting as many voters to the ballots as possible. Hyping up the good people of the A while leaning into his hit “I’m Different,” Chainz explained why he was supporting the Biden/Harris ticket saying “I think this next administration that I support, which is Biden-Harris, they ...
50 Cent Imagines Mock Meat Political Beef Between Eminem & Lil Wayne
Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty Election Day is upon us and like clockwork, lines are being drawn in the political sand right before our eyes. Sensing this natural divide, 50 Cent took it as a moment to imagine a mock meat beef between Eminem and Lil Wayne given their political affiliations of late. The artist born Curtis Jackson rarely misses a moment to troll, doing so via his favored tool of social media to get some jokes off at someone else’s expense. Using a photo of a Black man holding a large confederate facing off against a white man with a Black Lives Matter sign, Fif captioned the image “Wanye vs. Eminem” with a laughing emoji. Recently, Wayne has joined an alarmingly growing list of rappers who have put their faith into President Donald Trump. On the reverse, Eminem gave Joe Biden a...
The 35 Best Songs of the Last 35 Years
They’re the songs that changed the face of music. To create the most bad-ass (and possibly random) playlist of all time, we’ve been sure to limit each artist to one song only—and our choice may surprise you. Some might really surprise you. They are anthems, they are bedrocks. Game-changers, decade-definers. They are really great fucking songs. That’s what makes them the best of our best—the best of the last 35 years. 35. “Black Hole Sun” Soundgarden (1994) In an interview with Uncut, Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell stated: “What’s interesting to me is the combination of a black hole and a sun…. A black hole is a billion times larger than a sun, it’s a void, a giant circle of nothing, and then you have the sun, the giver of all life.” RIP, Chris Cornell...
Patti Smith Busks “People Have the Power” for NYC Voters: Watch
During the last few hours before Election Day, Patti Smith took to the streets of New York City to busk for those in line for early voting. The punk legend aptly delivered an impromptu yet still wholly inspiring performance of “People Have the Power”, while accompanied by longtime collaborator and friend Lenny Kaye. Standing on a Sixth Avenue street corner in Manhattan, Smith drew a sizable crowd on Monday. Some even knew the lyrics of Smith’s 1988 single and fervently sang along with the veteran rocker. Smith, who briefly took off her mask to sing, made sure to keep a safe distance from those around her, but the passion in her body language was readily apparent. The 73-year-old became especially fired up during the song’s rousing end. “The power to dream to rule/ To wrestle the world...
Grammys Rename Best World Music Category Due to “Connotations of Colonialism”
In a continued push towards cultural sensitivity, the Grammys have changed the name of the Best World Music Album category to Best Global Music Album. The move comes a little under five months after the Recording Academy dropped “Urban” from what are now the Best Progressive R&B Album and Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album categories. (They still use the word in the Best Latin Pop or Urban Album category, for some reason.) It also echoes a change over at the Oscars, where Best Foreign Language Film is now known as Best International Feature Film. In a statement, the Recording Academy said the decision reflects a desire to “embrace a truly global mindset.” They continued (via Billboard), “Over the summer we held discussions with artists, ethnomusicologists, and linguists from around t...
Spotify Offering to Boost Artists’ Algorithm Placement in Exchange for Reduced Royalties
Just days after the Musician Workers Union launched their “Justice at Spotify” campaign to demand better royalty rates, the music streamer has announced a way to take more money from artists. Spotify has begun testing a new product called “Discovery Mode” that would boost a song’s algorithmic placement in exchange for lower royalties. Spotify has a pretty decent track record of recommendation through its Autoplay and Radio features, which automatically play music it thinks listeners may like based on a number of “signals” (time of day, tempo, song length, etc). Discovery Mode adds in the element of money, giving artists a chance to give an extra push to “music that’s a priority for them.” The trade off is a “promotional” (read: reduced) royalty rate. Essentially, when an artist has a song ...
