All photos taken by Mini’s Memories. You can contact her at minismemories@hotmail.com
Photo Gallery: Queens Of The Stone Age with Royal Blood at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage
The Meadow Is Important To Tom Waits. He Explains Why
“There’s an expression in classical music. It goes, ‘We went out to the meadow.’ It’s for those evenings that can only be described in that way: There were no walls, there were no music stands, there weren’t even any instruments. There was no ceiling, there was no floor, we all went out to the meadow. It describes a feeling. Usually someone will say it, but they’re probably reluctant to say it — you might be afraid that only you went out to the meadow last night. But it’s one of those things where you go as a group. It’s not like: ‘Last night was a really great show for me and it sucked for you.’ No. We all went out to the meadow. There’s something magical about it. And you can never plan on it.”
Beck On Why It’s Hard To Write Happy Songs
“It’s much easier to go out and get really down. There’s a multitude of things that will oblige you in misery in the culture and there’s only so many that will produce true happiness. It’s like comedy. Comedy is harder in that only certain things are going to make you laugh. I think it’s closer to the child nature in us, which the culture, for a lot of reasons, will discourage or crush. Or you mature out of it in other ways. I see it with kids. There’s that age where if you let that personal joyous side of yourself out, it’s almost more vulnerable than being emotionally vulnerable, like if you’re going through something difficult. It’s not the most clever, sophisticated part of you, but it is the most joyous.”
An Animated Miles Davis Talks About His Need To Create Music
In this episode of “Notes from the Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame,” Miles Davis tells journalist Ben Sidran about his fascination with sketching, his own personal need for creative reinvention, and the importance of music in his life. This interview was recorded on January 30, 1986 through Ben Sidran’s Talking Jazz Project.
Leonard Bernstein Once Conducted The Vienna Philharmonic…With His Eyebrows
Watch Leonard Bernstein, the 20th century cultural giant, conduct the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra through Haydn’s Symphony No. 88, using only his eyebrows and facial gestures. This is why he’s the one and only maestro.
https://youtu.be/oU0Ubs2KYUI
Dave Grohl Loves Tears For Fears
THE BEATLES, HÜSKER DÜ, AC/DC, 10cc, Sepultura, Bad Brains – the range of artists that have shaped Dave Grohl’s sonic imagination is extraordinary, but even we were surprised by one item on the menu when he sat down for an in-depth interview for the latest MOJO magazine.
“By 12 or 13, I was going in the direction of faster, louder, darker…” Grohl tells MOJO’s Keith Cameron of his fan history, “while my sister, Lisa, three years older, was getting seriously into new wave territory. We’d meet in the middle sometimes with Bowie and Siouxsie And The Banshees, but I would hardly ever dig into her record collection for fear I would find some terrible John Hughes soundtrack…
“But my sister had The Hurting and Songs From The Big Chair and I secretly fell in love with Tears For Fears. That melancholic sense of melody really encapsulated that specific place and time in my life – when you’re 13 years old, your nuts are dropping, your voice is changing, you’re breaking through puberty, so listening to Tears For Fears somehow soothes the burn.”
Big Machine Records And John Varvatos Records Team Up For New Joint Venture
Big Machine Label Group President/CEO Scott Borchetta and fashion designer John Varvatos announced today an exciting new joint venture that pairs the world’s No. 1 independent record label with the renowned American fashion designer. The venture allows the two edgy and outspoken creatives to discover and develop rock acts.
Music runs through the veins of both Borchetta and Varvatos. The two met over five years ago at an Aerosmith concert where Cheap Trick was opening. Borchetta had just begun managing Cheap Trick and signed them to his Big Machine Records imprint. Cheap Trick went on to play a 35-year anniversary show celebrating At Budokan at John Varvatos Bowery location which is where the two entrepreneurs’ paths crossed once again.
“The cultural fashion of John Varvatos has always been a powerful rock and roll brand and one I’ve aspired to be a part of,” said Borchetta. “John and I immediately connected with our outrageous love for rock music. When I discovered that he was more than just a fan, and has a true eye and ear for rock talent, I was blown away. Combining our two brands together will help us achieve our goal in finding and enabling the next great rock artists.”
“Scott and I are extremely passionate about the future of rock music! Having the opportunity to partner with the BMLG team is the perfect match and timing to find the next rock and roll rebels. We are looking for artists with passion, angst and a soul, and those that have a voice to be heard during these troubled times. People say rock is dead… we say, ‘Long Live Rock!” added Varvatos.
The first artist being represented on the newly created Big Machine Records/John Varvatos Records is California-based rock band badflower.
This venture is not the first time Borchetta and Varvatos have created together. They previously partnered on the 2015 release of Zac Brown Band’s No. 1, PLATINUM-selling album JEKYLL + HYDE.
Borchetta’s Big Machine Label Group not only finds its superstar roster of artists on top of the pop and Country charts, it has also found much success in re-launching household rock and roll acts like Steven Tyler and Cheap Trick, the latter currently experiencing its 12th week at No. 1 on the Classic Rock Chart with “Long Time Coming.”
Fantasy, By George Michael Featuring Nile Rodgers, Is Now Out
Sony Music announces today the release of Fantasy, a single by the late George Michael featuring Nile Rodgers. First recorded by the superstar in the late ’80s, the track was intended to be featured on George Michael’s second solo album, the multi-platinum, Listen Without Prejudice Vol.1, but was left off. It was subsequently a B-side of the U.S. release of the single, Freedom! ’90 and on the UK version of the single, Waiting For That Day in 1990. But as one of his favorite tracks, George always intended for Fantasy to be a single in it’s own right.
George went on to perform Fantasy live during his hugely successful Cover To Cover tour in 1991 and rewarded his loyal fans with the track on free cassettes placed on every seat in the venues he played during the tour. George also later performed Fantasy during his 25 Live Tour over a decade later.
In early 2016, George selected Fantasy as the single to launch the highly anticipated reissue of Listen Without Prejudice Vol.1/MTV Unplugged. He contacted hitmaker Nile Rodgers to update the track for the project and the result is an uptempo track with Nile’s signature production and George’s iconic voice and songwriting.
On October 20th, Sony Music will re-release George’s groundbreaking second solo album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol 1/MTV Unplugged. Originally released in 1990, Listen Without Prejudice Vol.1, outsold Faith in the UK. The album was produced, arranged and almost entirely written by George himself and features hits like Freedom ’90, Waiting, Praying For Time and more. The MTV Unplugged performance was recorded in London in 1996 and features career defining songs from George’s Wham! period right through to Older. George’s glittering career spanned four decades and he has sold 120 million albums.
Chelsea Clinton, Jordan Fisher, Whoopi Goldberg, and More Unite at WE Day UN in New York
WE Day, an international series of events that ignites millions of young people around the globe to build a more caring and compassionate world, releases a first teaser of the lineup of speakers, and performers attending the inaugural WE Day UN, with more names to be announced soon. In partnership with UNAIDS, UN Global Compact, and other UN agencies, and with the support of the Government of Canada, WE Day UN will take place during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on September 20, 2017 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. WE and the UN agencies have long been aligned in their beliefs that youth play an integral role in building peace and stability and share in the responsibility of improving our world. Alongside partners, led by Co-Title Sponsors The Allstate Foundation, Unilever, Walgreens and Microsoft, WE Day UN will bring thousands of Tri-state area youth together with celebrity speakers, renowned performers, and world leaders to share in celebrating the power of young people to change the world. Thousands more from all around the globe will tune it online via live webcast.
WE Day is part of WE, a family of organizations making doing good, doable. WE is made up of WE Charity, empowering domestic and international change, ME to WE, a social enterprise that creates socially conscious products and experiences to help support the charity, and WE Day, filling stadiums around the world with the greatest celebration of social good. WE enables youth and families to better the world – supporting 2,500+ local and global causes by volunteering millions of hours of service, shopping daily with an impact, and raising millions of dollars that directly benefit their local communities and the world. Globally, our teams in Asia, Africa, and Latin America have provided more than 1 million people with clean water, built 1,000 schools and schoolrooms overseas, and empowered more than 200,000 children with access to education. WE was founded more than 20 years ago by social entrepreneurs, brothers Craig and Marc Kielburger. Join the movement today at WE.org.
Hosted by Jordan Fisher, distinguished speakers and performers taking the stage include, Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary of York, Chelsea Clinton, Whoopi Goldberg, Laurie Hernandez, Jessie Reyez, Margaret Trudeau, and more, alongside world leaders, including Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Mary Robinson and President Ellen Sirleaf. This renowned lineup—with more exciting additions still to be announced—will join international activists and WE co-founders, Craig and Marc Kielburger. Together they will share their passion for change and energize the crowd with unforgettable performances and motivational dialogue to define a stronger world—this year, by 2030, and beyond—and what people of all ages can do collectively to ensure that future is met.
“WE is an organization that is very close to my heart and I couldn’t be happier to be back at WE Day for the fifth time as host of WE Day UN,” said actor and recording artist, Jordan Fisher. “The thousands of young people coming to WE Day UN realize the special power in community. They will join together to raise their voices and help others raise their voices, and I’m thrilled to share a room with these future leaders of our world.”
This academic year, WE joins forces with UNAIDS, UN Global Compact, and other UN agencies to incorporate Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into more than 14,500 schools across the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada through WE Schools, WE’s domestic educational program. Building upon the local, community focus of WE Day New York | Welcome—which took place in April, 2017 at Radio City Music Hall—WE Day UN will have a distinctly global focus. As the UNGA amasses 193 world leaders to present their outlooks about pressing world issues, WE Day UN will continue these instrumental conversations to motivate the next generation of world leaders. Together WE and the UN agencies believe that young people are powerful and active agents for change, and to meet the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, it is imperative that organizations engage youth, providing tools and resources that support them in their actions to create global change.
“We are thrilled to be back in New York for WE Day UN, celebrating the young leaders who have worked to make an impact on their communities at home and around the globe,” said Craig Kielburger, co-founder of WE. “It is a true honor to partner with agencies of the United Nations, and together engage an entire generation in the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We know that the thousands of passionate New York youth—and thousands more watching online—will be moved to challenge and encourage current world leaders to live up to their commitments.”
More than a one-day event, WE Day is connected to the free, yearlong educational program WE Schools. Providing schools and community groups with curriculum, educational resources and action campaigns, the program is designed to enhance a school’s existing social initiatives or spark new ones. WE Schools encourages students to further their curricular learning and develop life skills for success beyond the classroom. In a recent survey of American educators with student participants in WE Schools, it was found that 90.6 percent felt their students had developed stronger communication skills, 90.8 percent said students established a greater connection to their local and global community, and 88.9 percent believed students had greater enthusiasm for learning as a direct result of WE Schools’ programming.
Students can’t buy a ticket to WE Day—youth from across the country earn their way by the actions they take on one local and one global cause of their choice. This year WE Day is celebrating Generation WE—a generation filled with young people coming together to show their strength in numbers, Generation WE has the power to change local landscapes, for good. Generation WE is also about tackling global issues beyond one’s local sphere, expanding horizons to build worldwide cultural and social bridges. WE Day—the world’s largest youth empowerment event—is free of charge to students and educators, thanks to the generous support of partners led by Co-Title Sponsors The Allstate Foundation, Unilever, Walgreens and Microsoft.
WE Day is supported in the Tri-state area by Co-Chairs Carolyn Everson, Vice President, Global Marketing Solutions, Facebook; Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever; Ornella Barra, Co-Chief Operating Officer, Walgreens Boots Alliance; and Lynne Doughtie, Chairman and CEO, KPMG US. Nationally, WE Day is supported by Co-Chairs Tom Wilson, Chairman and CEO, Allstate; Jane Francisco, Editorial Director of Hearst Lifestyle Group and Editor in Chief of Good Housekeeping; Steve Robinson, CEO, Reimagine & Janet Crown, Philanthropist, Crown Family Philanthropies; Brett Tollman, CEO, The Travel Corporation, and Mike Dobbins Head, Strategy and Corporate Development, RBC.
The initial list of WE Day UN performers and speakers in alphabetical order, announced to date includes:
Host: Jordan Fisher
Performers: Celebrity Marauders, Kenyan Boys Choir, Jessie Reyez
Speakers: Katherine Chambers, Chelsea Clinton, Monique Coleman, Whoopi Goldberg, Laurie Hernandez, Brandon Larracuente, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Ashley Murphy, Mpumi Nobiva, Mary Robinson, Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin, Her Excellency President Ellen Sirleaf, Margaret Trudeau, Spencer West, Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary of York, Ambassador Andrew Young
Anyone can find their place with WE and commit to making a change in the world. The first step is to take the WE Pledge at WE.org. By taking the pledge, participants join the WE community and make a commitment to “live WE” every day.
The Chainsmokers And Los Angeles Youth Network Announce Partnership To House Foster, Runaway, And Homeless Youth
Los Angeles Youth Network (LAYN) is proud to announce a new partnership from the Grammy Award winning artist/producer duo The Chainsmokers. The donation will help fund LAYN’s services for homeless and foster youth in Los Angeles. The donation will help in the vital services including emergency shelter, transitional housing, education and job development, health and wellness, and aftercare program.
“The issues facing the youth served by LAYN are not insurmountable and we knew we could help,” said Taggart. “These homeless, runaway and foster youth are bright, intelligent and have determination to achieve their goals and LAYN is there alongside them to motivate and inspire them,” Taggart added. “The issues facing these youth seem daunting, but we are happy to support this cause and LAYN in its mission to create permanent solutions for these young people.”
“We are honored that Alex and Andrew chose LAYN as their charity of choice,” said Mark Supper, CEO and President of Los Angeles Youth Network. “Partnerships like this, play a critical role in driving momentum and fueling community awareness, and support. This donation and their partnership will make a significant impact on the lives of the homeless and foster youth we serve.”
Annually, LAYN houses over 500 youth and provides more than 16,000 bed nights and 97,000 meals, to youth 12-21 years old. For youth whose histories of trauma have driven them to the streets or placed them in the foster care system, LAYN is there to help and support them. Beyond the basics of shelter, food, and clothing, LAYN gives youth the tools and mindset they need to imagine positive futures. LAYN empowers each youth to realize their academic potential, to identify their career aspirations, and advocate for themselves.