Last year, while getting the crowd pumped during a rave, Mashd N Kutcher dropped Spandau Ballet’s 1983 classic, “True,” effectively deflating the energy in the room instantly
While the partygoers may not have been happy with the set in the moment, I’m sure they all had a good laugh afterwards.
So they did it again.
Drake has overtaken Justin Bieber as the all-time most-streamed artist on Spotify, thanks to his Views album and that album cover. Thee internet had a field day photoshopping tiny Drake into anything and everything. Here are some of the best ones.
Here’s the original:
…and here are the best!
Headlines over the last day have pointed to Drake overtaking Justin Bieber as the all-time most-streamed artist on Spotify, citing numbers on analytics aggregator Kworb. The feat — which covers global listening — is accurate, Spotify confirmed to Billboardthis morning.
The milestone is especially impressive given the limited time that the whole of Drake’s new record, Views, has been available on the platform — less than a week. Its first two weeks were spent as an Apple Music exclusive, yielding a streaming record of 245.1 million listens in the U.S. during the record’s first tracking week. (That sum includes plays of the album’s songs on Apple Music, as well as the handful of songs from the set that were available at other streaming services like Spotify.) Views quickly sold more than a million copies (1.03 million) in two weeks’ time, and it is the first album released in 2016 to surpass 1 million copies sold. Only two albums have sold more than a million this year: Views, and Adele’s 25, which was released in 2015.
TNT, a division of Turner, today announced a new series with Channel 4 titled Foreign Bodies, a comedic drama about a group of young adults venturing across China, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The two companies have ordered eight episodes of the series from Eleven and Entertainment One (eOne). Foreign Bodies is scheduled to launch on E4 in early 2017, followed later in the year by its U.S. debut on TNT.
Created by actor-writer Tom Basden (Plebs, Peep Show, Fresh Meat), Foreign Bodies is being scripted by Basden, James Wood (Rev, Ambassadors), Amy Roberts (The Village, Shameless), Loren McLaughlin (Coronation Street, Shameless), Charlie Covell (Banana, Burn Burn Burn), Tim Key (We Need Answers, Screenwipe) and Jonny Sweet (Together, Chickens). The series is being produced by Jamie Campbell and Joel Wilson’s BAFTA-nominated production company Eleven and global studio eOne. Award-winning director Jonathan van Tulleken (Off Season, Movie 43, Misfits) has signed on to direct the first block of episodes. eOne controls worldwide rights to the series outside of the U.K. The eight-part series was commissioned for Channel 4 by Piers Wenger and Roberto Troni. Carrie Stein, executive vice president of global production, will oversee the series for eOne.
Foreign Bodies is the story of a motley gang of travellers embarking on a three-month trip around Asia. British lads Sean (Ade Oyefeso) and Dylan (Anders Hayward) meet American girls May (Alice Lee) and Ashley (Brittney Wilson) in Beijing and opt to undergo the first leg of their travels together. But they soon find that their journey takes them much further than any of them expected.
The cast of Foreign Bodies, drawn from the U.S., Canada and the U.K., includes newcomer Anders Hayward (Sistema) plays delusional romantic Dylan, who thinks every woman he meets is a potential life partner. BAFTA Breakthrough Brit Ade Oyefeso (Unforgotten, E4’s Youngers) is Sean, a friendly, easy-going guy hoping for a bit of escapism. They are joined by emerging Canadian star Brittney Wilson (Bates Motel), who plays blunt and headstrong Ashley, a young American student who is academically intelligent but emotionally unintelligent. Alongside her is Alice Lee (Jack, Jules, Esther & Me, Faking It) as May, a highly strung worrier who tends to overthink every situation. British actor, writer, performance poet and Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Tim Key (Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, I Give It A Year) joins them as Greg, a 38-year-old in denial about his marriage, his business and life in general. His upbeat energy hides a multitude of problems.
All the members of our gang have personal quests that have brought them halfway round the world. May wants to meet her extended family in China and reconnect with her roots, Ashley is hell-bent on cramming in a lifetime of exotic experiences before she starts her high-flying career back home, Dylan wants to track down and win back his ex-girlfriend, Sean wants to shed his innocence and forcibly grow up, and Greg, a divorcee who doesn’t want to travel alone, hopes to roll back the years and relive the wild hedonism of his youth. In the end, they may or may not get what they hoped for, but they’ll all come away with something better: the realization that no matter how far you go, no matter how hard you try, you can’t take a holiday from yourself.
“Foreign Bodies is a terrific opportunity for TNT to work with eOne, Eleven and E4 on a series that will appeal to young adults not only in the U.S. and the U.K. but also around the globe,” said Sarah Aubrey, executive vice president of original programming for TNT. “It’s also a great chance to bring Tom Basden’s unique voice to our stateside viewers.”
“We are thrilled to be bringing Foreign Bodies to audiences in the U.S. and the U.K.,” said Pancho Mansfield, president of global scripted programming, Entertainment One Television. “TNT and Channel 4 are the perfect broadcast partners for this show. We’re also delighted to expand our ongoing partnership with Eleven as we continue making first-rate shows with wide global appeal. We’re excited to take this journey and look forward to delivering this standout series to the international market.”
“We’re very excited to be working with TNT in bringing Foreign Bodies alive,” said Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell of Eleven. “Along with Channel 4, TNT has shared and supported our vision for the show from the moment we pitched it. It’s a great privilege to be working with such a dynamic pair of broadcasters on a show of such scale and ambition. Tom is a true visionary, and we can’t wait to get shooting.”
Piers Wenger, head of drama for Channel 4, said, “Tom Basden and the team of outstanding British writers have created a show that perfectly captures the hilarity of a gap year going wrong when five would-be travellers embark on an epic quest to find paradise…and themselves. I’m thrilled that Foreign Bodies will have a U.S. home on TNT and look forward to working with Eleven to bring this fresh and exciting project to both U.K. and U.S. audiences.”
Entertainment One (eOne), the global independent studio, has appointed Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing master publishing partner for its hit animated preschool series PJ Masks in North America. The debut collection of books will let fans of the top-rated series, which airs daily on Disney Junior Block and Disney Junior the Channel, to more fully immerse themselves in their favorite superheroes’ action-packed adventures while honing their budding reading skills. The new PJ Masks titles arrive at retail beginning this fall.
“We’re thrilled to team up with Simon & Schuster on a ‘super’ collection of PJ Masks books that will help young children develop a love of reading as they join in the heroic adventures of the PJ Masks,” said Joan Grasso, VP of Licensing, North America at Entertainment One. “The appointment of Simon & Schuster is part of our ongoing strategy to select best-in-class partners for the brand, and we look forward to working together to develop an even broader range of books for young fans to enjoy this fall and in the years ahead.”
“With the superhero craze reaching even our youngest readers, we were looking for a property with adventure and spirit, but one that was perfectly targeted for preschoolers,” said Valerie Garfield, VP, Publisher of Novelty and Licensed Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing. “It was PJ Masks to the rescue!”
The new PJ Masks books from Simon & Schuster set to soar at retail include a broad mix of story, novelty, and board books, as well as ready-to-reads. They join an introductory range of toys and playthings from master toy licensee Just Play, which begins rolling out at retail across North America this fall and then expands into international markets in 2017. With these initial licensing partners, eOne has built a strong foundation for a successful and expansive consumer products program for the popular brand that will span a wide array of additional categories. In addition to the upcoming licensed products, a new PJ Masks website, a free app and music videos are all set to launch this year, further extending consumer engagement with the standout brand.
In the U.S., the pajama-sporting preschool superheroes – Catboy, Gekko and Owlette – won over young audiences and their families with the very first episode, which attracted 1.6 million unique viewers on the Disney Channel and Disney Junior, the #1 24-hour preschool network for the past three years. Since its September 2015 premiere, the CGI animated series quickly became one of Disney Channel’s top rated shows. For Q1 2016, PJ Masks reached 8 million kids ages 2-5, including 4 million boys ages 2-5.
Following the show’s mighty U.S. debut, PJ Masks went on to thrill young audiences around the world, including France, the UK, Italy, Spain, Germany, and beyond.
Produced by eOne and Frog Box, in collaboration with the award-winning French animation studio TeamTO, along with Disney Junior and France 5, PJ Masks is based on French author Romuald Racioppo’s popular picture book series “Les Pyjamasques.” By day, 6-year-olds Connor, Amaya and Greg go to school like kids everywhere. But when they put on their pajamas and activate their animal amulets, the crime-fighters magically transform into their dynamic superhero alter egos and become the PJ Masks: Catboy, super-fast and agile; Gekko, super strong and able to scale walls; and Owlette, with the power to fly and see great distances. In each episode, the three heroes embark on exciting adventures and work together to solve mysteries and learn valuable lessons along the way.
Here’s a great 360 degree video of ArcAttack turning electricity into pretty cool music using Tesla coils at Maker Faire Austin 2016.
The show consists of bolts of lightning ripping through the air at different frequencies to play music, something that is nearly indescribable when you feel it in person. At one point, the guitar player will don a chain maille suit allowing him to play a solo with the arcs of lightning actually hitting him, safely passing through his suit to the metal mesh on the floor below. The rest of their Maker Faire version of the show consists of bringing volunteers on stage, placing them inside a protective faraday cage, and letting them dance while being blasted with tens of thousands of volts.
The Lonely Island joins Jimmy Fallon and The Roots in the Tonight Show Music Room to perform “I’m On A Boat” with classroom instruments.
https://youtu.be/FXrnuAOoM6A
YONGE-DUNDAS SQUARE (YDS) is proud to present Indie Fridays, the free concert series that will kickstart the weekends in the heart of the city from June 24 – September 2 starting at 8pm.
Join the summer fun every Friday night (with a break on Canada Day) at YDS for an eclectic mix of live performances curated by the programming team at Massey Hall, covering diverse musical genres from reggae to hip-hop and sultry soul to Latin world beats.
On Friday, June 24, with support from Canadian Reggae World, the legendary Canadian reggae band Messenjah opens Indie Fridays with their progressive roots sound; with special guest Exco Levi, winner of four consecutive JUNO Awards for Best Reggae Recording.
On Friday, July 8, Halifax indie-rocker AA Wallace instills wicked wit into his lo-fi electro-pop songs; with special guest vocalists, Liz Loughrey whose voice belies her youth and channels soul and jazz masters, and Jordan Alexander performing heartfelt and catchy tracks from her debut album.
On Friday, July 15, in association with Franco-Fête de Toronto, Mehdi Cayenne brings his funky, melodic francophone pop to the stage; with special guest Mélanie Brulée, whose voice dances on the lines between sultry pop star and classic cabaret singer.
On Friday, July 22, with support from Good Kind Productions, Radio Radio, the Montreal-based electro hip-hop band, break down language barriers with their eclectic French-Acadian lyrics and contagious hip-hop beats; with special guests Herencia de Timbiquí who mesh the musical traditions of their tiny home village on Colombia’s Pacific coast with the sounds of the city they now inhabit.
On Friday, July 29, JUNO Award-winning vocalist/producer Boogat unleashes his world beat and tropical bass vibe; with special guests hip-hop crew Los Poetas, who make it their duty to preserve their Latin roots through beats and rhymes.
Indie Fridays continue through September 2 with Ben Caplan (Aug 5), The Heavyweights Brass Band (Aug 12), The Massey Hall Band (Aug 19), Pierre Kwenders (Aug 26), and more.
With the launch of leading-edge proprietary service Royalty Guru, SOCAN is enabling its members to use high-quality, flexible analytics tools to assess and monitor their royalties.
An integral part of SOCAN’s strategy to leverage and deploy digital tools to lead the global transformation of music rights and designed specifically for songwriters, composers and music publishers, Royalty Guru’s analytics capabilities allow SOCAN’s more than 135,000 members to visualize their data in a variety of easy-to-use ways to help them manage their business and career in music.
SOCAN is believed to be the first major performing rights organization to offer such a royalty-analysis business intelligence tool to its creator and music publisher members.
SOCAN’s exclusive Royalty Guru services run on any web browser and enable SOCAN members to understand better the trends in royalties earned when their music is played live, on radio, television and streamed on the Internet. The service will be accessible in English and French through the secure members’ portal at socan.ca.
The tool simplifies royalty analysis, doing in seconds what otherwise would take hours, days or even weeks to determine using complicated spreadsheets.
“Data and effective data analysis are more than ever keys to success in the digital music economy,” said Michael McCarty, Chief Membership & Business Development Officer at SOCAN. “Royalty Guru is the latest career and business advantage that SOCAN brings to its members as SOCAN continues to broaden our role as the world’s leading and most transparent music rights organization.”
SOCAN’s Royalty Guru is now available free to all SOCAN members, and the company will continue to maintain and develop the application going forward, enhancing the service with members’ needs in mind.
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Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.
Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com
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