Coronavirus
How We Work Now: Midem Director Alexandre Deniot
In a new series amid the coronavirus pandemic, Billboard is asking individuals from all sectors of the music business to share stories of how they work now, with much of the world quarantined at home and unable to take in-person meetings, attend conferences or even go into the office. Submissions for the series can be sent to HowWeWorkNow@Billboard.com. Read the full series here. This installment is with Midem director Alexandre Deniot, who was forced to make some big decisions about this year’s music business conference as the pandemic shut down France less than eight weeks before the annual event. Here, he speaks about how he balanced home and work while shifting the focus of the conference, which kicks off next week and runs June 2-5, to the first digital version of Midem in its 5...
Which Artist Should Do a Drive-In Concert Next? Vote!
Drive-in concerts are all the rave now, but which touring artist would you rave to from inside your car if they put on a drive-in show? Kesha would have embarked on her 2020 High Road Tour with Big Freedia had it not been for the coronavirus pandemic, but these two could raise hell from the road without ever leaving it. Similarly, Kenny Chesney pushed his NFL stadium Chillaxification Tour to 2021, apologizing to his heart-broken fans, “Sadly, we can’t find a way to make it safe, to navigate water that’s just not getting any clearer.” But the country legend has a shot at navigating those waters by finding outdoor fields that are roughly the same size of NFL stadiums and letting the shows go on. Pearl Jam ran into the same bump in the road when the band wanted to p...
Los Angeles’ Greek Theatre Cancels 2020 Concert Season
If you weren’t aware of the state of the touring world yet, the homepage for L.A.’s Greek Theatre is a cold reminder that things aren’t getting to normal any time soon. The words “POSTPONED” and “CANCELLED” are plastered before each date of the venue’s once-packed performance schedule, which included tour stops from the Goo Goo Dolls, R&B star Jhené Aiko, country singer Maren Morris and more that are either axed completely or pushed back due to COVID-19. And above the individual show postings sits Tuesday’s venue announcement: “For the first time in 90 years, The Greek Theatre Los Angeles announces cancellation of its 2020 season.” The 5,900-capacity venue announced on Tuesday that it will follow “state, county and city guidelines” regarding the coronavirus and mass...
The Pandemic Trapped a Bolivian Orchestra in a (Haunted?) German Castle
Since March 10th, a Bolivian orchestra has been stranded in the German palace at Rheinsberg. According to the BBC, the medieval palace is a moated castle, surrounded by “23 packs of wolves,” which is said to be haunted by Frederick the Great. In early March, the Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos flew to Germany to perform three concerts and see some sights, with the total trip expected to last a little over two weeks. Many of the group’s young members had never been out of Bolivia before. But as their plane landed, the orchestra learned that the Berlin region of Germany had announced bans on large gatherings of people. One member, identified as Carlos, recalled an ominous omen. “Our bus broke down on the motorway. I remember joking that this was bad luck and perhaps our concert...
US coronavirus death toll hits 100,000, cases now 1.7million
The coronavirus death toll in the United States hit 100,000 on Tuesday. According to renowned data website Worldmeters, the toll hit the mark around 6:00pm Nigerian time. On May 17, the figure reached 90,000; half of the number died in just one month. As at April 19, John Hopkins University and Worldometers, put their individual tallies at 40,000. America is currently the worst-hit country in the world. The U.S. has recorded 1,710,000 cases of coronavirus since the outbreak. Globally, over 5,630,000 cases have been recorded with nearly 350,000 deaths. 2,400,000 patients have recovered. President Donald Trump and his administration’s officials insist that China knows more than it is telling about the virus. The American leader recently suggested that Beijing wanted him lose the presidential...
Faith No More Reschedule European Comeback Tour for 2021 Due to Coronavirus
Faith No More were due to embark on a European tour this summer, their first such outing in four years. However, due to the ongoing outbreak, the band has rescheduled all of those dates for 2021. The new itinerary sees their overseas concerts pushed back almost exactly 12 months. Now set for June and July 2021, these gigs include Berlin, Oslo, Amsterdam, and two-night stints in both London and Manchester. All currently held tickets will remain valid for next year, and refunds will also be available upon request. According to a statement, an announcement regarding Faith No More’s imminent North American tour with Korn, set to launch this August, is forthcoming. Editors’ Picks Last week, it was announced that Faith No More’s shows with System of a Down and Korn, previously marked for t...
Betty White Is “Doing Very Well” and Staying Safe During Coronavirus Pandemic
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to stretch on and the number of deaths surpass 100,000, it’s natural to fear for the health of those close to you — and those not so close to you. Betty White celebrated her 98th birthday in January, and fans have been wondering how the veteran actress has been holding up amidst the spread of COVID-19. Thankfully, her representative has passed along a message from White to assure everyone that she’s “doing very well” and is staying safe. In an email statement to Today, a rep said White is “being very safe during these very trying times.” That means nobody is permitted access to The Golden Girls star except for “those who must” and people who were already a part of her regular day-to-day activities at home. Those lucky enough to get face time with ...
Shinedown Cancel Summer Tour After Singer Previously Hoped to Stick With Timeline
Shinedown singer Brent Smith recently made headlines when he said that the band was “not afraid” to play for fans amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, he insisted that Shinedown were “not backing off” their summer “Deep Dive Tour”, but now the band has officially canceled the outing. In an interview with Jose Mangin for Zippo Live earlier this month, Smith said, “You can’t stay inside forever … if you shelter at home for too long, it’s going to deplete your immune system.” He continued, “Don’t be paralyzed by fear. You can’t allow that to happen, because then this invisible virus, however you wanna put it, then it begins to win.” Regarding the U.S. summer tour, Smith added, “As of right now, that’s all a go. So we’re not backing off of that rescheduled timeline.” While the singer did...
Nnamdi Kanu: No sit-at home for Biafrans from 27th to 30th of May
YouTube The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, Tuesday advised Biafrans to dedicate three days to pray for her fallen heroes. Kanu who disclosed this in a statement sent to newsmen by the groups publicity scretary, Emma Powerful, said this years Biafra day would start with prayers and end with prayers. He said there would be no sit-at home, noting that people have stayed longer at home during the coronavirus lockdown. “IPOB wouldn’t like to bother people with another lockdown in form of sit-at home”, he said. The statement reads, “We, the global and indefatigable family of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) ably led by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the prophet and liberator of our time, wish to announce to the people of Biafra, friends of Biafra, enemies of Biafra, love...
2 Chainz’s Atlanta Restaurant Shut Down by Police for Violating COVID-19 Guidelines
It’s probably no coincidence that a number of states began rolling back lockdown restrictions right around Memorial Day. While some businesses have committed to continuing operating cautiously within local health guidelines, others have been throwing caution dangerously to the wind. That includes rapper and restaurateur 2 Chainz, whose Atlanta eatery Escobar Restaurant & Tapas was so packed on Monday that police had to shut it down. As TMZ reports, Georgia State Police drove by Escobar on Monday night and noticed it “was rather loud, busy, and occupied to be operating as a restaurant at that time of night.” A look at the establishment’s Instagram Stories reveals more than food service was indeed going on, as there are clips of people dancing, receiving bottle service with sparklers, an...
Promoters Aren’t Expecting Large Concerts to Return Until Summer 2021
In what should come as a surprise to almost no one, live music promoters are ready to throw in the towel for 2020 in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. A New York Times article published on Sunday (May 24) spoke with a number of prominent executives, all who are pointing to next summer as the time when they can realistically expect the concert business to get back on track. Despite local governments allowing steady reopening and for some concerts to take place, the executives appear to be realistic about the situation. “While we think that phenomenal strides are being made in both cases, given the lead time involved in planning major concert tours, and the uncertainties that exist today, we don’t expect a large volume of major tours in the fall,” Live Nation president Joe Berchtold said...
No masking it: Joe Biden eyes stark contrast with Donald Trump over virus
Joe Biden squared off with Donald Trump on Tuesday over the wearing of masks one day after the White House challenger emerged from coronavirus-imposed lockdown donning one while the president attended two events bare-faced. By wearing a mask at a Memorial Day ceremony in Delaware — and by changing his Twitter profile to a photograph of him donning the black covering — Biden signalled he is putting the coronavirus front and center during the US presidential race in a nation increasingly divided over the pandemic. After the president mocked him for his protective mask, Biden hit back, blasting Trump as an “absolute fool.” It appeared to mark a new front in the war of words between the rival politicians. Trump also attended a somber Monday ceremony honoring America’s fallen, in Baltimore. Ins...