Atlanta’s WSB-TV’s Fred Blankenship and Mark Arum are at it again. Watch how they drop a slick tribute to The Notorious B.I.G.
Ed Sheeran Announces North American Arena Tour And Combatting Bots, Too
Multiple GRAMMY Award-winning global superstar Ed Sheeran has announced details for his North American arena tour. Dates begins June 29th at Kansas City, Mo’s Sprint Center and then continue through early October.
Pre-sales for all North American dates on the tour – powered by Ticketmaster Verified Fan, an innovative new tech product from Ticketmaster built to help artists combat bots and get tickets into the hands of real fans who intend to go to the event – are set to begin Monday, March 13th at 10 AM and run through Thursday, March 16th at 10 PM (all times local); supplies are limited. All remaining tickets will then be released to the general public on Friday, March 17th at 10 AM (local) except the July 19th date at Montreal, QC’s Bell Centre, on sale at 12 Noon (local).
The tour celebrates Sheeran’s landmark third studio album, “÷.” The album – pronounced “divide” – includes the universal hit singles, “Shape of You” and “Castle On The Hill,” both of which made incredible chart entries after their simultaneous January release.
Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” remains at number one on the All Format chart for the fourth week in Canada and sets a new one week spin record with just under 4,200 spins. It surpasses the record set in July by Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop The Feeling.” The song holds at No. 1 for the fourth week at CHR and the third week at Hot AC and jumps to No. 1 on the Mainstream AC list. It is his fourth chart-topper at the format. “Shape Of You” remains at number one on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 for the eighth straight week, holding at the top of the Streaming, Digital Songs and Hot 100 Airplay charts. “Shape of You” has been certified 4x platinum in Canada, while “Castle on the Hill” has earned platinum status.
The song’s official companion video – directed by MTV Video Music Award winner Jason Koenig– is further achieving record-shattering numbers of its own, with individual views in excess of 300 million at Sheeran’s official YouTube alone.
“÷” has fast proven an even greater phenomenon than Sheeran’s 4x Music Canada Platinum certified second album, 2014’s “x.” Released March 3rd, the album immediately rocketed to #1 on iTunes charts in 96 countries around the world, including the United States and the United Kingdom. “÷” has also achieved historic levels of steaming success including the best-ever one day streams for a single artist (68,695,172), best one day streams for an individual album (56,727,861), and best first day streams for an individual album (56,727,861), the latter two statistics almost doubling the previous record-holder’s success. In addition, “Shape of You,” the album’s stellar first single, earned the best one day streams for a single track with a remarkable 10,123.630 streams – besting Sheeran’s own record set earlier this year upon the single’s initial release.
“÷” also stormed streaming worldwide charts, with all 16 of the album’s tracks forming the actual top 16 on Spotify’s “Top 50” in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The complete tracklisting also instantly entered Spotify’s “Global Top 50” chart, as well as the “Top 50” in 13 international markets including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, The Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, and Switzerland.
Sheeran is celebrating the announcement of the tour this morning with a live appearance in New York City’s Rockefeller Center as part of NBC’s TODAY “Citi Concert Series.” The performance continues a long series of high profile media appearances supporting “÷,” including NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Saturday Night Live, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, CBS This Morning, and both the 59 Annual GRAMMY® Awards and the 2017 iHeartRadio Music Awards.
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
June 29 || Kansas City, MO || Sprint Center
June 30 || Des Moines, IA || Wells Fargo Arena
July 1 || St. Paul, MN || Xcel Energy Center
July 7 || Toronto, ON || Air Canada Centre
July 9 || Buffalo, NY || KeyBank Center
July 11 || Philadelphia, PA || Wells Fargo Center
July 14 || Uncasville, CT || Mohegan Sun Arena
July 15 || Uncasville, CT || Mohegan Sun Arena
July 18 || Quebec City, QC || Videotron Centre
July 19 || Montreal, QC || Bell Centre
July 22 || Winnipeg, MB || MTS Centre
July 23 || Saskatoon, SK || SaskTel Centre
July 25 || Edmonton, AB || Rogers Place
July 28 || Vancouver, BC || Rogers Arena
July 29 || Tacoma, WA || Tacoma Dome
July 30 || Portland, OR || Mode Center
August 1 || Sacramento, CA || Golden 1 Center
August 2 || Oakland, CA || Oracle Arena
August 4 || Las Vegas, NV || T-Mobile Arena
August 5 || Glendale, AZ || Gila River Arena
August 6 || San Diego, CA || Valley View Casino Center
August 10 || Los Angeles, CA || Staples Center
August 15 || Denver, CO || Pepsi Center
August 17 || Tulsa, OK || BOK Center
August 18 || Dallas, TX || American Airlines Center
August 19 || Houston, TX || Toyota Center
August 22 || San Antonio, TX || AT&T Center
August 25 || Duluth, GA || Infinite Energy Center
August 29 || Tampa, FL || Amalie Arena
August 30 || Miami, FL || American Airlines Arena
August 31 || Orlando, FL || Amway Center
September 2 || Raleigh, NC || PNC Arena
September 3 || Charlotte, NC || Spectrum Center
September 5 || Charleston, SC || North Charleston Center
September 7 || Louisville, KY || KFC YUM! Center
September 8 || Indianapolis, IN || Bankers Life Fieldhouse
September 9 || Cleveland, OH || Quicken Loans Arena
September 12 || Omaha, NE || CenturyLink Center
September 15 || Chicago, IL || Allstate Arena
September 17 || St. Louis, MO || Scottrade Center
September 19 || Washington, DC || Verizon Center
September 22 || Boston, MA || TD Garden
September 26 || Pittsburgh, PA || PPG Paints Arena
September 27 || Detroit, MI || Little Caesars Arena
September 29 || Brooklyn, NY || Barclays Center
September 30 || Brooklyn, NY || Barclays Center
October 3 || Columbus, OH || Nationwide Arena
October 6 || Nashville, TN || Bridgestone Arena
The 1961 Ad Promoting The Ultimate In Television!
“The greatest advance in television since color television itself! Yes, here is the ultimate in television, a supreme achievement in television engineering — a color set that puts RCA Victor years ahead in dependable performance, armchair convenience, luxurious styling — a set where the pride of ownership is truly second only to the pleasure.”
RCA’s 1961 wireless wizard remote control offered a 7 function hand held unit that could adjust the TV’s tint, colour, brightness, volume, fine tuning, channel selection and on/off functions. The 7 function remote introduced in 1961 replaced the companies 5 function unit that went on sale in 1959.
https://youtu.be/2PfXiMZbrNU
Alfred Hitchcock on Dead Bodies
“If I did a story or a musical about Cinderella, they would be waiting for the body to turn up.” – Alfred Hitchcock in 1957
The master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, sat down for a short interview on the set of a film tentatively titled, From Amongst The Dead. The film would be released in early 1958 as Vertigo, the classic starring jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak. In this interview, we go inside the mind of a master storyteller with a penchant for fear.
50 Classic Wah-Wah Riffs
It’s been 50 years since the Cry Baby Wah hit the market and inspired a new legion of guitar players to push the envelope of conventional guitar sounds. Watch Reverb.com’s Joe pay homage to those who helped cement the effect in rock music history by performing 50 of the most classic Wah-Wah riffs in a single take.
Mac Lethal Raps While Skipping Rope
Mac Lethal continues to prove that nothing can stand in the way of him rapping. Here he rattles off his latest song while he gets a serious workout jumping rope, two things I can’t do well, way to go, Mac.
Take your own virtual tour of Roland’s synthesizer museum
At the Roland R&D Center in Hamamatsu, Japan, the instrument company maintain a private museum that exhibits Roland and BOSS musical instruments that date all the way back to our foundation in 1972 and span the genre-defining musical eras of the ’80s and ’90s. The instruments on display are still used as references for current product development.
While the museum is not open to the public, they’ve released exclusive online access through a 360-degree VR experience. You can view the museum in a guided 360-degree video tour, or explore the displays at your own pace with a virtual walk-through in Google Street View.
“The History of Roland Innovation” exhibit presents many vintage musical instruments, from synthesizers, pianos, and organs to electronic drums, guitar products, recorders, sequencers, and more.
The video below allows you to experience the museum in a 360-degree tour. It also includes aerial views of Roland Headquarters, the Miyakoda Factory, and the R&D Center. On a smartphone, you can change your view by turning your phone in different directions. On a computer, simply drag the screen with your mouse.
How Emma Watson Ruined Take After Take in Harry Potter
Jimmy Kimmel reveals an embarrassing habit that Emma Watson had as a kid when he shows an old outtake of her shooting a scene for Harry Potter.
Colin James Blows The Roof Off His Stingray PausePlay Set
Canadian Blues icon, Colin James, joins us for another episode of Stingray PausePlay to chat about picking up his first guitar, performing with his music heroes and of course his new album, Blue Highways, an incredible tribute to some of Blues’ greatest players.
Fleet Foxes Announce New Album “Crack Up” Out June 16 And New North American Tour Dates
On June 16, Fleet Foxes will release Crack-Up (Nonesuch Records), its long awaited and highly anticipated third album. Crack-Up comes six years after the 2011 release of Helplessness Blues and nearly a decade since the band’s 2008 self-titled debut. Fleet Foxes has released the album track “Third of May / Ōdaigahara,” a nearly nine-minute epic powered by piano and electric twelve-string guitar, string quartet, and the group’s trademark sparkling harmonies. In addition, the band has announced new tour dates, including their first North American shows since October 2011.
All eleven of the songs on Crack-Up were written by Robin Pecknold. The album was co-produced by Pecknold and Skyler Skjelset, his longtime bandmate, collaborator, and childhood friend. Crack-Up was recorded at various locations across the United States between July 2016 and January 2017: at Electric Lady Studios, Sear Sound, The Void, Rare Book Room, Avast, and The Unknown. Phil Ek mixed the album, at Sear Sound, and it was mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. Fleet Foxes is Robin Pecknold (vocals, multi-instrumentalist), Skyler Skjelset (multi-instrumentalist, vocals), Casey Wescott (multi-instrumentalist, vocals), Christian Wargo (multi-instrumentalist, vocals), and Morgan Henderson (multi-instrumentalist).
Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut made a profound impact on the international musical landscape, earning them Uncut’s first ever Music Award Prize, and topping numerous “Best of ” lists, including Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Albums of the 2000’s and Pitchfork’s 50 Best Albums of 2008. Fleet Foxes is certified Gold in North America and Platinum in both the UK and Australia. The follow-up album Helplessness Blues was met with the same critical praise as its predecessor (MOJO five stars, Rolling Stone four stars, Pitchfork Best New Music); that album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200, went Gold in the UK, and earned the band a GRAMMY nomination.
Fleet Foxes 2017 International Tour Dates
* Most North American venues will offer ticket buyers the ability to add the new album to their purchase as an LP, CD, or digital pre-order.
May 26 | Sydney, Australia at Sydney Opera House
May 27 | Sydney, Australia at Sydney Opera House
May 28 | Sydney, Australia at Sydney Opera House
May 29 | Sydney, Australia at Sydney Opera House
July 1 | Spain, Vilanova i la Geltrú at Vida Festival
July 3 | Italy, Ferrara at Bands Apart
July 7 | Spain, Bilbao at Bilbao BBK Live
July 13 | Ireland, Dublin at The Iveagh Gardens
July 14 | Ireland, Dublin at The Iveagh Gardens (SOLD OUT)
July 16 | United Kingdom, Southwold at Latitude Festival
July 27 | Portland ME at Thompson’s Point
July 28 | Newport RI at Newport Folk Festival (SOLD OUT)
July 29 | Columbia MD at Merriweather Post Pavilion w/ Animal Collective
July 31 | Philadelphia PA at Mann Center for the Performing Arts w/ Animal Collective
August 1 | Brooklyn NY at BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival at the Prospect Park Bandshell
August 4 | Toronto ON at Massey Hall
August 6 | Detroit MI at The Masonic
September 23 | Los Angeles CA at Hollywood Bowl w/ Beach House
September 27 | Morrison CO at Red Rocks Amphitheatre w/ Beach House