Music News
Blink 182's Mark Hoppus Says the Band Is "Locked Down" in Hotel Following the El Paso Shooting. blink-182's Mark Hoppus is opening up about the day's events in Texas. He alerted fans that he and his bandmates were "locked down" in their El Paso hotel room following the tragic mass shooting in the city. Early on Saturday, reports surfaced that a shooting occurred at a shopping center, leaving several people dead. Hoppus took to Twitter to update fans on the current situation. He explained the band was headed to a nearby mall when their security team told them an active shooter was close to their destination. "We are locked down in our hotel in el paso. over the intercom system they just announced that there are reports of another active shooter directly across the street at a location different from the first shootings," Hoppus wrote on Twitter. "We were leaving breakfast when our security texted that there was an active shooter at the mall we were headed to. saw dozens of police cars on the freeway and surface streets. helicopters. we got back to the hotel and turned on the news to see what was happening." He continued, "the intercom said there are reports of another shooting across the street at the bassett place mall. i don't see or hear police or helicopters so hopefully it's just an over abundance of caution and someone got the malls confused so terrible." However, NBC News reported that there were two suspected shooters, not two separate shootings, at a Walmart near El Paso's Cielo Vista Mall on Saturday morning. Upon hearing the news reports, the blink-182 star later updated his tweets. "update: police confirm report of a separate incident at bassett mall is incorrect. we are still in our hotel. federal agent at the door to the building," he tweeted. The band was scheduled to play in the city at Don Haskins Center Sunday, August 4. They are currently on tour with Lil Wayne. According to NBC News, one male suspect is in custody, along with a second person (who is also suspected in the shooting). It's being reported that at least 19 people have died and 40 are injured. (Eonline)
Katy Perry, Capitol Records Hit With $2.78M in Damages Over "Dark Horse" Trial. A jury earlier this week found Perry's hit infringed on Christian rapper Flame's "Joyful Noise." Katy Perry, Capitol Records, Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald and others who worked on Perry's 2013 hit "Dark Horse" must pay a Christian rapper a combined $2.78 million in damages after a jury determined they copied his song in violation of his copyright. Marcus Gray, known professionally as Flame, in 2015 filed a lawsuit claiming "Dark Horse" infringes on his song "Joyful Noise." The trial was split into two phases, liability and damages. After a weeklong first phase and more than two days of deliberations, a Los Angeles jury found that there was indeed infringement. The damages phase of the trial began Tuesday, and the jurors were told "Dark Horse" has earned about $41 million total -- with Perry taking in just over $3 million and the bulk of the revenue going to Capitol Records. (The label contends after expenses it retained only a fraction of that.) The jury has decided Gray and his co-plaintiffs are owed $2.78 million, with just over half a million owed by Perry and most of the balance coming from the label. Still pending is a motion from Perry's lawyers asking U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder to rule that no reasonable jury could find copyright infringement based on the evidence presented at trial. If Snyder sides with the singer, this damages award would be moot. (Hollywood Reporter)
Alison Wonderland Delivers a Powerful Acoustic Version of Her Track 'Peace': Alison Wonderland photographed on March 11, 2019 at Smashbox Studios in Los Angeles. Many electronic producers say they know they've made a truly good song if they can strip away the big beats and heavy drops and be left with a solid foundational melody. With this in mind, Alison Wonderland has demonstrated the power of her 2019 track "Peace" with an acoustic version in which the Australian producer lets her voice take center stage. In the video clip, the original track's echoing beat layers and clap-stomp chorus are traded for the artist born Alexandra Sholler's dually delicate and powerful voice. (We must also nod to her Smashing Pumpkins T-shirt.) The confessional lyrics of "Peace" get even more emphasis in this stripped-down version, with the original's complex percussion traded for light guitar, keyboards and mucho candlelight. "This is a side of me I've always been too scared to show," Sholler wrote in tweet about this acoustic version. "Thank you to anyone who listens to my music. It allows me to take risks & evolve as an artist."(Billboard)
Ultra Music Festival Announces New Miami 2020 Dates in Classic Downtown Location. After a tumultuous year on Virginia Key, Ultra Music Festival's flagship Miami event will return to its longtime home of Bayfront Park for three days, March 20 to 22, 2020. These dates differ from a previously announced return March 27 to 29. The event was kicked out of its downtown location after its 20th anniversary edition in 2018 when the City Commission failed to renew its lease. After the 2019 edition on Virginia Key drew the ire of attendees and local residents, the City Commission revisited the downtown lease and reinstated the lease persuant to new agreements. According to the Miami New Times, these changes include modifying the sound level from 110 decibels to 102, limiting the capacity of attendees to 55,000 a day, eliminating one stage and moving the direction of another. The event will still end at midnight each night, as it has in past downtown iterations, but it will also leave the adjacent children's park and dog park open to public access. Ultra-officially announced its return to Bayfront Park and new dates via social media. Tickets for Ultra Miami 2020 go on sale Tuesday, Aug. 6. Visit Ultra Music Festival online for more information. (Billboard)
Lana Del Rey Releases Cinematic 'Norman F---ing Rockwell' Trailer: As Lana Del Rey gears up to release her forthcoming album Norman Fucking Rockwell on Aug. 30, she has released a trailer for the album. The cinematic, three-minute clip, uploaded on Thursday (Aug. 1), starts out with a lo-fi shot of a sunset and a voiceover: "In the beginning, there was the sun. Nothing but the sun moving through the heavens. Covering the surface of the Earth were seas, and the seas were turmoil." Then Del Rey makes her entrance, riding a surfboard. "With civilization came the surfer, with his urge to conquer these moving walls of water," the voiceover continues. Album credits appear on the screen, stating that the album was produced by Jack Antonoff and will feature videos from Chuck Grant and Rich Lee. (It's also revealed that Del Rey and her buff surfing partner are on a set with a green screen.) We also get a taste of a couple of songs on the record, accompanied by more lo-fi clips of LDR. Teasers of "Doin' Time," "Venice Bitch," "Mariners Apartment Complex," and the album's title track are all heard in the trailer, plus several unreleased songs. (Billboard)
Brasstracks Team Up With Charles Gaines For Powerful Live Performance Of 'Snowdaze': Exclusive. The duo's EP, 'Before We Go: Live From Capitol Studios,' is out now. After signing to EQT/Capitol Records, New York duo Brasstracks went into the legendary Studio B at Hollywood's Capitol Records to record live versions of the songs from their album released earlier this year, Before We Go. They've been sharing a track each day from the new EP, entitled Before We Go: Live From Capitol Studios, along with an accompanying video. Friday (Aug. 2), Billboard is premiering the final component in the series: "Snowdaze" featuring Charles Gaines. In the live performance, the Grammy Award winners recreate the jazzy, hip-hop-tinged track with smooth perfection. The video is powerful, as Gaines delivers delicate vocals and Ivan Jackson and Conor Rayne effortlessly take up the trumpet and drums, respectively. They're also backed up by a great crew of players, featuring backup singers, a guitarist, upright bassist, and a brass section. "It's been nearly five years of making music for us. Four EPs, dozens of collaborations, and countless tours," Jackson and Rayne of Brasstracks tell Billboard. "We've been doing it all ourselves. Upon finalizing Before We Go, we realized we needed some help to scale what we've been doing globally, so we went on a search for a label home." "We're super excited to announce that we've signed with our family, EQT and Capitol Records," they continue. "This live album is the first time we get to put our music out as major label artists (boy, that's surreal), and we're so thankful we got to do it this way. We're just having fun with it -- and that's why we started this whole journey in the first place. So much more coming soon." Of the song, the duo shares, "We first heard 'Snowdaze' as a piano demo from Charles Gaines. We immediately asked for the stems after 30 seconds of listening -- the lyrics, chords and melodies all came together to feel so haunting in the perfect way." EQT co-founder Henny Yegezu tells Billboard, "Watching Ivan and Conor develop over the last few years as producers into, now, full-blown artists touring the world has been great. Now, with this partnership, we can't wait to continue to help them build and take the record making process to the next level." Fellow EQT co-founder Dan Friedman adds: "We're excited to be able to combine the forces of EQT and Capitol Records to add to the foundation that Brasstracks has been able to build these past few years. They're a uniquely talented musical duo with a big vision and we look forward to helping to amplify that vision, and their sound, to new fans and audiences." The duo is gearing up to release a new single later this summer and are set to perform at Outside Lands on Aug. 9. (Billboard)
Katy Perry, Capitol Records Hit With $2.78M in Damages Over "Dark Horse" Trial. A jury earlier this week found Perry's hit infringed on Christian rapper Flame's "Joyful Noise." Katy Perry, Capitol Records, Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald and others who worked on Perry's 2013 hit "Dark Horse" must pay a Christian rapper a combined $2.78 million in damages after a jury determined they copied his song in violation of his copyright. Marcus Gray, known professionally as Flame, in 2015 filed a lawsuit claiming "Dark Horse" infringes on his song "Joyful Noise." The trial was split into two phases, liability and damages. After a weeklong first phase and more than two days of deliberations, a Los Angeles jury found that there was indeed infringement. The damages phase of the trial began Tuesday, and the jurors were told "Dark Horse" has earned about $41 million total -- with Perry taking in just over $3 million and the bulk of the revenue going to Capitol Records. (The label contends after expenses it retained only a fraction of that.) The jury has decided Gray and his co-plaintiffs are owed $2.78 million, with just over half a million owed by Perry and most of the balance coming from the label. Still pending is a motion from Perry's lawyers asking U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder to rule that no reasonable jury could find copyright infringement based on the evidence presented at trial. If Snyder sides with the singer, this damages award would be moot. (Hollywood Reporter)
Alison Wonderland Delivers a Powerful Acoustic Version of Her Track 'Peace': Alison Wonderland photographed on March 11, 2019 at Smashbox Studios in Los Angeles. Many electronic producers say they know they've made a truly good song if they can strip away the big beats and heavy drops and be left with a solid foundational melody. With this in mind, Alison Wonderland has demonstrated the power of her 2019 track "Peace" with an acoustic version in which the Australian producer lets her voice take center stage. In the video clip, the original track's echoing beat layers and clap-stomp chorus are traded for the artist born Alexandra Sholler's dually delicate and powerful voice. (We must also nod to her Smashing Pumpkins T-shirt.) The confessional lyrics of "Peace" get even more emphasis in this stripped-down version, with the original's complex percussion traded for light guitar, keyboards and mucho candlelight. "This is a side of me I've always been too scared to show," Sholler wrote in tweet about this acoustic version. "Thank you to anyone who listens to my music. It allows me to take risks & evolve as an artist."(Billboard)
Ultra Music Festival Announces New Miami 2020 Dates in Classic Downtown Location. After a tumultuous year on Virginia Key, Ultra Music Festival's flagship Miami event will return to its longtime home of Bayfront Park for three days, March 20 to 22, 2020. These dates differ from a previously announced return March 27 to 29. The event was kicked out of its downtown location after its 20th anniversary edition in 2018 when the City Commission failed to renew its lease. After the 2019 edition on Virginia Key drew the ire of attendees and local residents, the City Commission revisited the downtown lease and reinstated the lease persuant to new agreements. According to the Miami New Times, these changes include modifying the sound level from 110 decibels to 102, limiting the capacity of attendees to 55,000 a day, eliminating one stage and moving the direction of another. The event will still end at midnight each night, as it has in past downtown iterations, but it will also leave the adjacent children's park and dog park open to public access. Ultra-officially announced its return to Bayfront Park and new dates via social media. Tickets for Ultra Miami 2020 go on sale Tuesday, Aug. 6. Visit Ultra Music Festival online for more information. (Billboard)
Lana Del Rey Releases Cinematic 'Norman F---ing Rockwell' Trailer: As Lana Del Rey gears up to release her forthcoming album Norman Fucking Rockwell on Aug. 30, she has released a trailer for the album. The cinematic, three-minute clip, uploaded on Thursday (Aug. 1), starts out with a lo-fi shot of a sunset and a voiceover: "In the beginning, there was the sun. Nothing but the sun moving through the heavens. Covering the surface of the Earth were seas, and the seas were turmoil." Then Del Rey makes her entrance, riding a surfboard. "With civilization came the surfer, with his urge to conquer these moving walls of water," the voiceover continues. Album credits appear on the screen, stating that the album was produced by Jack Antonoff and will feature videos from Chuck Grant and Rich Lee. (It's also revealed that Del Rey and her buff surfing partner are on a set with a green screen.) We also get a taste of a couple of songs on the record, accompanied by more lo-fi clips of LDR. Teasers of "Doin' Time," "Venice Bitch," "Mariners Apartment Complex," and the album's title track are all heard in the trailer, plus several unreleased songs. (Billboard)
Brasstracks Team Up With Charles Gaines For Powerful Live Performance Of 'Snowdaze': Exclusive. The duo's EP, 'Before We Go: Live From Capitol Studios,' is out now. After signing to EQT/Capitol Records, New York duo Brasstracks went into the legendary Studio B at Hollywood's Capitol Records to record live versions of the songs from their album released earlier this year, Before We Go. They've been sharing a track each day from the new EP, entitled Before We Go: Live From Capitol Studios, along with an accompanying video. Friday (Aug. 2), Billboard is premiering the final component in the series: "Snowdaze" featuring Charles Gaines. In the live performance, the Grammy Award winners recreate the jazzy, hip-hop-tinged track with smooth perfection. The video is powerful, as Gaines delivers delicate vocals and Ivan Jackson and Conor Rayne effortlessly take up the trumpet and drums, respectively. They're also backed up by a great crew of players, featuring backup singers, a guitarist, upright bassist, and a brass section. "It's been nearly five years of making music for us. Four EPs, dozens of collaborations, and countless tours," Jackson and Rayne of Brasstracks tell Billboard. "We've been doing it all ourselves. Upon finalizing Before We Go, we realized we needed some help to scale what we've been doing globally, so we went on a search for a label home." "We're super excited to announce that we've signed with our family, EQT and Capitol Records," they continue. "This live album is the first time we get to put our music out as major label artists (boy, that's surreal), and we're so thankful we got to do it this way. We're just having fun with it -- and that's why we started this whole journey in the first place. So much more coming soon." Of the song, the duo shares, "We first heard 'Snowdaze' as a piano demo from Charles Gaines. We immediately asked for the stems after 30 seconds of listening -- the lyrics, chords and melodies all came together to feel so haunting in the perfect way." EQT co-founder Henny Yegezu tells Billboard, "Watching Ivan and Conor develop over the last few years as producers into, now, full-blown artists touring the world has been great. Now, with this partnership, we can't wait to continue to help them build and take the record making process to the next level." Fellow EQT co-founder Dan Friedman adds: "We're excited to be able to combine the forces of EQT and Capitol Records to add to the foundation that Brasstracks has been able to build these past few years. They're a uniquely talented musical duo with a big vision and we look forward to helping to amplify that vision, and their sound, to new fans and audiences." The duo is gearing up to release a new single later this summer and are set to perform at Outside Lands on Aug. 9. (Billboard)
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