Jay Z's million-album Samsung sale unlikely to count for charts
By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rapper Jay Z's upcoming studio album will go to a million users of Samsung smartphones three days before its official release in a promotional deal, but the distribution is unlikely to count toward official sales figures, an industry expert said on Monday. Jay Z, 43, announced on Sunday in a three-minute television commercial during the telecast of basketball's NBA Finals that his latest album "Magna Carter Holy Grail" will be released on July 4 exclusively to 1 million users of Samsung smartphones who had downloaded a special app. ...
Veteran bands Motorhead, Black Sabbath top UK metal music awards
By Ellen Sowerby LONDON (Reuters) - Veteran British rock bands Motorhead and Black Sabbath were crowned the kings of heavy metal on Monday, winning the top accolades at the UK's top metal music awards, the Metal Hammer Golden Gods. Motorhead, best known for its 1980 hit "Ace of Spades", received the Golden Gods awards at the 11th annual ceremony for making a significant contribution to the rock and heavy metal industry over nearly four decades. Black Sabbath won the award for best album for "13" which soared to No. ...
Black Sabbath top British album chart again: after 43 years
By Costas Pitas LONDON (Reuters) - The British rock band Black Sabbath's album "13!" has given them a first British Number One album in nearly 43 years, a record interval between chart-toppers, the Official Charts Company said on Sunday. Black Sabbath were last at the top of the UK chart with their second album, "Paranoid". "I'm in shock!" Black Sabbath front man Ozzy Osbourne told the Official Charts Company. "The success of this album has blown me off my feet. We've never had a record climb the charts so fast. ...
Bassist Kim Deal leaves alt-rock band the Pixies
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Kim Deal, the bass player behind some of the Pixies' biggest hits, has left the 1980s alternative rock band, its remaining members said on Friday. Deal's pulsing bass and understated singing punctuated the influential group's early songs, which won critical acclaim for their quick bursts of sound and wild guitars. "We are sad to say that Kim Deal has decided to leave the Pixies," the band's singer-guitarist Black Francis, drummer David Lovering and guitarist Joey Santiago said in a statement posted on their Facebook page. ...
Backup singers take center stage in new documentary film
By Andrea Burzynski NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bruce Springsteen and Mick Jagger appear in the new film "Twenty Feet from Stardom," but only to shine the spotlight on the unsung backup singers who make them sound even better. Opening in New York and Los Angeles on Friday and expanding across the United States in coming weeks, the music documentary features the lives and careers of singers who have harmonized with the likes of Ray Charles, The Rolling Stones, Elton John and many more. ...
Country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, wife to divorce after 19 years
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The wife of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus has filed for divorce in Los Angeles after 19 years of marriage, the couple said in a statement. Tish Finley Cyrus, the mother of 20-year-old pop star and actress Miley Cyrus, married the "Achy Breaky Heart" singer in December 1993, and the couple have three children together. "This is a personal matter and we are doing what is in the best interest of our family," the couple said in a statement late on Thursday. "We ask that you respect our privacy at this time. ...
