“Ripple” is in support of the Playing For Change Foundation’s music schools and programs for children worldwide and they need your help. Watch the video and then let’s turn that inspiration we all share into something bigger. Join the “Ripple Effect” campaign so we can all leave the world better than we found it, one heart and one song at a time. As Jerry Garcia said, “Let there be songs to fill the air…”
Katy Perry Shares New Single, “smile”
Katy Perry unveiled “Smile,” the title track of her new album, which will be released on August 14. The infectious, life-affirming new single is brimming with gratitude and suggests that setbacks often turn out to be blessings in disguise.
“I wrote this song when I was coming through one of the darkest periods of my life,” says Katy. “When I listen to it now, it’s a great reminder that I made it through. It’s three minutes of energizing hopefulness.”
Since its release in May, “Daisies” has amassed more than 125 million combined global streams. It is now top 10 at Hot AC radio. Last week, Katy shared an acoustic version of the song. While in quarantine, she’s won acclaim for the wide variety of performances she has given of “Daisies” – including the “American Idol” season finale, the launch of the 2020 “Good Morning America” Concert Series and the “Can’t Cancel Pride: Helping LGBTQ+ People in Need” livestream. Katy also co-headlined the recent Democracy Summer 2020 livestream. The event kicked off a campaign to register 200,000 new voters this summer, led by a coalition that includes Rock the Vote, Voto Latino Foundation, When We All Vote, March For Our Lives and others.
Since Katy Perry’s Capitol Records debut in 2008 with One of the Boys, she has racked up a cumulative 40 billion streams alongside worldwide sales of over 45 million adjusted albums and 135 million tracks with her albums One of the Boys, Teenage Dream, PRISM and Witness, and her latest singles – Gold-certified “Never Really Over,” “Never Worn White,” “Small Talk” and “Harleys In Hawaii.” Views of her 2013 video “Roar” recently surpassed three billion – making Katy the first female artist to reach this milestone. Katy was also the first female artist to have four videos surpass a billion views each. Her videos for “Firework” and “Last Friday Night” have over one billion views, while “Dark Horse” has surpassed the 2.7 billion mark. Katy’s 2015 Super Bowl performance is the highest-rated in the event’s history. She is one of only five artists in history to have topped 100 million certified units with their digital singles – and the first-ever Capitol Records recording artist to join the elite RIAA 100 Million Certified Songs club.
Aside from being one of the best-selling musical artists of all time, Katy is an active advocate of many philanthropic causes. In 2013, Katy was appointed a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador as a result of her commitment to improving the lives of children worldwide. From traveling to Vietnam and Madagascar to highlight the needs of some of the world’s most vulnerable children, to empowering girls and supporting adolescents living with HIV/AIDS, as well as raising awareness for UNICEF’s emergency relief efforts, Katy has used her powerful voice to advocate for children and support UNICEF’s mission to ensure every child’s right to health, education, equality, and protection. She was awarded with the Audrey Hepburn Humanitarian Award in 2016.
The Cranberries’ “No Need To Argue” Remastered and Expanded 2CD + 2LP Vinyl Edition
Island Records are proud to announce the release of remastered and expanded versions of No Need to Argue by The Cranberries on September 18th. Originally released in 1994, No Need To Argue was the band’s biggest selling album with global sales in excess of 17 million and contained the band’s most commercially successful single “Zombie.” The video for “Zombie” has since been viewed over 1 billion times on YouTube, making The Cranberries the only Irish band to pass this milestone and putting them in a very small club of artists to do so. Dolores O’Riordan – the band’s powerful and captivating lead singer – tragically passed away in January 2018.
The expanded 2CD and digital versions of No Need To Argue include a remaster of the album and three B-sides: “Away,” “I Don’t Need,” and “So Cold In Ireland” from the original tapes. Also included are 19 previously unreleased tracks including two songs not officially released in any format: “Yesterday’s Gone” – recorded unplugged for MTV in New York in 1995 – and a demo of “Serious,” which until now has only existed as a low quality live bootleg on YouTube. The 2CD edition features previously unseen photographs taken from the album photo sessions.
The expanded 2LP features the remastered album plus three B-sides and extra tracks “Yesterday’s Gone” and a cover of the Carpenters “(They Long To Be) Close to You.”
Both the 2LP and the 2CD sets include a 5,000 word essay on the history of the album written by the band’s archivist Eoin Devereux, who previously wrote the sleeve notes for the reissue of their debut album Uncertain.
2CD Digital Tracklist
2020 Remaster + Extras
- Ode To My Family
- I Can’t Be With You
- Twenty One
- Zombie
- Empty
- Everything I Said
- The Icicle Melts
- Disappointment
- Ridiculous Thoughts
- Dreaming My Dreams
- Yeats’ Grave
- Daffodil Lament
- No Need To Argue
B-Sides + Extras
14. Yesterday’s Gone (MTV Unplugged)
15. Away
16. I Don’t Need
17. So Cold In Ireland
18. (They Long To Be) Close To You
19. Zombie (A Camel’s Hump Remix by The Orb)
Demos + Live Tracks
Magic shop demos
1. Song To My Family
2. So Cold In Ireland
3. Empty
4. Ridiculous Thoughts
5. Everything I Said
6. Yeats’ Grave
Demos
7. Serious
8. Away
9. I don’t need
Live @ Liverpool Royal Court 14.10.1994
10. Dreaming My Dreams
11. Daffodil Lament
12. The Icicle Melts
13. No Need To Argue
14. Empty
Live @ National Stadium, Milton Keynes, 30.07.1995
15. I Can’t Be With You
16. Ridiculous Thoughts
17. Zombie
2LP Tracklist
A
1. Ode to My Family
2. I Can’t Be with You
3. Twenty One
4. Zombie
B
1. Empty
2. Everything I Said
3. The Icicle Melts
4. Disappointment
5. Ridiculous Thoughts
C
1. Dreaming My Dreams
2. Yeats’ Grave
3. Daffodil Lament
4. No Need to Argue
D – Bonus Tracks
1. Yesterday’s Gone (MTV unplugged)
2. Away
3. I Don’t Need
4. So Cold in Ireland
5. Close to You
Live Nation Partners With MelodyVR & Announces Live Virtual Concerts Using Cutting-Edge Technology
Following the momentous success of Wireless Connect, Live Nation U.K. and MelodyVR today announce Live From O2 Academy Brixton, a pioneering new live experience connecting artists and fans for live concerts in 360° virtual reality.
The news follows the success of Wireless Festival’s virtual incarnation, Wireless Connect, which concluded yesterday. The ambitious three-day 360° event featured new and exclusive performances from London and LA, with 70 artists representing the best of UK and US hip hop, rap, R&B and grime. Delivered by Festival Republic and MelodyVR, Wireless Connect was the first event of its kind with over 132,000 fans tuned in from over 34 countries, the MelodyVR audience interacting with the performance more than a million times over the weekend.
Live From O2 Academy Brixton will deliver live performances from artists using cutting-edge virtual reality technology, transporting the audience into the iconic London venue from around the world. Each show will be entirely bespoke and created in collaboration with artist teams, to deliver an exclusive, unique and premium event with world-class production values. Fans will be able to select the vantage point from which they watch, from multiple spots within the venue and even on stage with the artists themselves. Performances will be available in 360° and virtual reality on the MelodyVR app for anyone with a smartphone or an Oculus VR device.
Denis Desmond, Chairman Live Nation U.K. said, “We look forward to partnering with MelodyVR and presenting Live From O2 Academy Brixton which will connect artists with fans globally through the latest and exciting 360° VR technology, direct from a purpose-built studio set within this iconic and world-famous venue.”
CEO of MelodyVR Anthony Matchett said “MelodyVR’s mission is to use our innovative technology to make sure artists can keep staging amazing shows and fans can continue to experience and enjoy the live music that they love. We’ve helped to take Wireless virtual this weekend, co-creating the successful Wireless Connect, and Live From O2 Academy Brixton is another exciting venture in partnership with Live Nation. Virtual shows are here to complement and support live entertainment, and we are proud to be working with the rest of the industry to ensure that live music doesn’t stop.”
Performances will be available on the MelodyVR app for anyone with a smartphone or an Oculus VR device across the UK, USA Canada, France, Germany, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria, Greece and Belgium. Ticketmaster is the exclusive ticketing agent for the series. Fans will be able to purchase access to each concert individually.
The full series of Live From O2 Academy Brixton to be announced soon.
“Queen – The Studio Collection” To Be Reissued
Due to overwhelming fan demand, this stunning vinyl box set, which had completely sold out, has been re-manufactured in limited quantities and is once again available to order.
Queen – The Studio Collection will be reissued on July 17th and available to pre-order now across various retailers.
All 15 hit studio albums sourced from the original master tapes
– Mastered by Bob Ludwig
– Half-speed lacquers cut at Abbey Road Studios
– Pressed on heavyweight 180 gram coloured vinyl
– Includes a lavishly illustrated 108-page hardback book
Finneas O’Connell And Glen Hansard In Conversation
Writer-producer Finneas O’Connell and his sister Billie Eilish became record-breaking superstars in 2019 with the year’s best-selling album in the US. Glen Hansard is an Oscar and Grammy winner best known for “Falling Slowly” from Once (which he also starred in). The pair will take part in a wide-ranging conversation about music, acting and life.
My Next Read: The Conscious Creative: Practical Ethics for Purposeful Work by Kelly Small
It can be difficult to live according to our values in a complicated world. At a time when capitalism seems most unforgiving but the need for paying work remains high, it is important to learn how we can be more mindful and intentional about our impact — personal, social, economic, and environmental.
As designer and creative director Kelly Small had to do to navigate a crisis of ethics and burnout in their career in advertising, we can admit our complicity in problematic systems and take on the responsibility of letting our own conscience guide our decisions.
In The Conscious Creative: Practical Ethics for Purposeful Work, Small will get you on right path with one or many of these 100+ rigorously researched, ultra-practical action steps:
- Co-create and collaborate
- Get obsessed with accessibility
- Demand diverse teams
- Commit to self-care
- Make ethics a competitive edge
- Be mindful of privilege
- Create for empowerment, not exploitation
With a humorous and irreverent tone, Small reveals how when we release unnecessary judgement and become action-oriented, we can clarify the complicated business of achieving an ethical practice in the creative industries. Discover the power of incremental, positive changes in our daily work-lives and the fulfillment of purposeful work.
It’s truly an actionable guide to mindfulness and practical ethics for any creative professional who wants to make a living without selling their soul.
Get it here.
Showtime Documentary Films Announces New Feature from Martin Scorsese About David Johansen
SHOWTIME Documentary Films today announced a new feature documentary from Academy Award Winning director Martin Scorsese that profiles David Johansen, the celebrated frontman of the New York Dolls. Emmy nominee David Tedeschi will co-direct with Scorsese, and Scorsese and Sikelia Productions will executive produce with Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Imagine Documentaries. The announcement was made by Vinnie Malhotra, Executive Vice President, Nonfiction Programming, Showtime Networks Inc.
“I’ve known David Johansen for decades, and his music has been a touchstone ever since I listened to the Dolls when I was making Mean Streets,” said Scorsese. “Then and now, David’s music captures the energy and excitement of New York City. I often see him perform, and over the years I’ve gotten to know the depth of his musical inspirations. After seeing his show last year at the Café Carlyle, I knew I had to film it because it was so extraordinary to see the evolution of his life and his musical talent in such an intimate setting. For me, the show captured the true emotional potential of a live musical experience.”
The film will reveal the many faces of Johansen in an extraordinarily intimate feature documentary. Growing up on Staten Island, Johansen landed in New York’s East Village in the late 1960s; a 16-year-old dropped into the epicenter of the counter-cultural revolution in music, theatre, fashion, art, writing, and social change – a seismic moment that still reverberates today. Johansen’s musical career started in the 1970s as lead singer for the punk/glam pioneers the New York Dolls, continued as he helped to usher in the swing revival as Buster Poindexter in the 1980s and dug deep into the blues with the Harry Smiths in the 1990s.
“It is an honor for all of us at SHOWTIME to be working with Martin Scorsese, who unquestionably stands as one of the greatest filmmakers of our time,” said Malhotra. “Over the past few decades his documentary work has taken us inside the lives of some of the most iconic musicians, from The Band to The Rolling Stones to Bob Dylan, and now David Johansen and the New York Dolls. Johansen’s story transcends the walls of music and is a window into the art and cultural evolution of New York City.”
“We’re ecstatic to have SHOWTIME as our partners and to be in business with Marty on his next feature doc,” said Imagine Documentaries president Justin Wilkes. “Ron, Sara (Bernstein) and I had the thrill of attending the Carlyle performance where we witnessed David’s electricity burning up the stage, which Marty masterfully harnessed into his battery of cameras. If that’s not the beginning of a movie, I’m not sure what is… ”
To tell this story, Scorsese is working with longtime collaborators including producer Margaret Bodde, director of photography Ellen Kuras, and Tedeschi. Scorsese and his team filmed Johansen earlier this year at New York’s legendary Café Carlyle. Johansen performed songs he had written over the years and told vivid stories from his astonishing life. As he has done with all of his acclaimed documentaries, Scorsese will take the audience on an unforgettable New York journey from the 1970s through today, revealing Johansen through exclusive performances, archival footage and present-day verité of the artist and raconteur.
Scorsese has earned 14 Oscar nominations in his career – directing nine Best Picture nominees from Taxi Driver to The Irishman – and won Oscar, Golden Globe and DGA awards for directing The Departed. He has also received 11 Emmy nominations, winning director honors for Boardwalk Empire and two Emmys for George Harrison: Living in the Material World. In addition, he earned a Grammy Award for Best Music Film for No Direction Home. Scorsese is the most-nominated living director in Oscar history.
The documentary is produced for SHOWTIME by Margaret Bodde for Sikelia Productions and Justin Wilkes and Sara Bernstein of Imagine Documentaries. The film is executive produced by Scorsese alongside Imagine Entertainment chairmen Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, Rick Yorn, and Mara Hennessey.
