Bruno Mars Biography

Peter Hernandez (born October 8, 1985 in Waikiki Hawaii) better known by his stage name Bruno in March is a Hawaiian singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist chord signed to Atlantic Records, he is best known for singing and co-written hooks for the # 1 result Nothin 'On You by Bob and billionaire who Travie McCoy, he also wrote the international hit Right Round by Flo Rida After the success of these songs in March released their debut EP it's better if you do not understand in May 2010, he has plans to release his debut album Ladykiller sometime later this year

March Bruno was born and raised in Hawaii to parents Pete and Bernadette "Bernie" San Pedro Hernandez Bayot of Filipino and Puerto Rican descent Hernandez was one of six children untilAmman with brother Eric ennd sisters Jaime Tiara Tahiti Presley He came from a musical family that gives him a style mixing music Reggae Rock Hip Hop and R & B from an early age, he imitate and perform songs by influential artists such as Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley in 1990 at the tender age of 4 Hernandez was in the middle of the week the newspaper as "Little Elvis" He was President Theodore Roosevelt High School diploma in 2003 at age 17 and shortly thereafter moved to LA to pursue a career, he signed with Motown Records in 2005 and The trio formed production Smeezingtons with Phil Lawrence and Ari Levine, he formed the stage name after Bruno Sammartino a wrestler like his father, likened him as a child, he has since written songs for K'naan and Adam LEvin

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Posted in: Biography,pop

U2 end tour in Canada

Report concert U2 in Canada. U2 have brought their record-breaking '360' tour to a close in Canada after two years.

The band celebrated the end of their $736m (£447m)-grossing jaunt before a crowd of 75,000 at Moncton, New Brunswick on Saturday.

'360' was named the highest-grossing tour ever back in April, overtaking the $558m (£340m) tally set by the Rolling Stones in 2007.

Before taking their final bow, U2 frontman Bono sprayed champagne across the front rows of the audience and declared: "This is the best time we could be having anywhere."

In addition to performing some of their more notable hits such as 'Beautiful Day' and 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' at the date, U2 included their cover of folk song 'The Ballad Of Springhill' in honour of the nearby town devastated by a string of mining disasters over the last two centuries.

The song was originally performed by the band at fifteen shows on their 'Joshua Tree' tour in 1987.

U2 have played for over seven million fans in 30 countries since launching the '360' tour in June 2009.

The success of the concert series saw the band top this year's Forbes music rich list ahead of Bon Jovi, Elton John and Lady GaGa.


(digital spy)

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Posted in: concert,pop,rock,tour,u2

ACDC Next Album

AC/DC's next studio album will be exclusively sold at Wal-Mart stores in the United States, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The as-yet-untitled Columbia album, which, as previously reported, was produced by Brendan O'Brien, is expected in the fall.

AC/DC becomes the latest veteran act to pact exclusively with the retail giant, following Garth Brooks, the Eagles and Journey. The Eagles' "Long Road Out of Eden," released last summer, has been an enormous success, having sold more than 2.98 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The new AC/DC album is the legendary hard rock act's first since 2000's "Stiff Upper Lip," which has shifted more than 930,000 copies. A tour is expected to follow its release.

AC/DC is one of the only major acts yet to make its music available via Apple's iTunes Music Store. In August 2007, Verizon Wireless snagged the exclusive rights to sell the band's entire back catalog through March 2008, becoming the first and only digital music store to offer AC/DC's content.

However, the deal was limited to full-album downloads, one of the reason's AC/DC's music has not appeared in digital form to date. Since full album downloads are too large and too expensive to sell from mobile phones, Verizon only sold them from the PC version of its VCast Music service for $12 an album.

Both Columbia and Wal-Mart declined comment to the Journal.

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Posted in: AC/DC,album,rock

Remembering Amy Winehouse's talent

Amy Winehouse's rise to fame and struggles with addiction escalated on similar trajectories; that combination might be one of the things she's remembered most for, but when it comes to purely professional successes, her first might well be considered her "Back to Black" album. The musical effort won her five Grammys. Below, the title track from the album.

"I didn't go out looking to be famous," Winehouse told the Associated Press when "Back to Black" was released. "I'm just a musician." But between critical acclaim for "Back to Black" (as well as accolades in the U.K. for her freshman effort, "Frank") and her public battles with drugs and alcohol, the 27-year-old singer became incredibly famous. Among the songs she might be remembered most for is one that became a sad and tragic anthem of sorts, "Rehab."

The cause of Winehouse's death remains unclear. She appeared on stage during Dionne Bromfield's performance of "Mama Said" on July 20 at the iTunes Festival in London. You can watch her appearance below.

Crowds are currently gathering outside Winehouse's London home, and at a pub she frequented, The Hawley, in Camden. You can leave your remembrance of the singer below. 

(scoop today)

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Posted in: amy winehouse,pop

Demi Lovato Sets Sept. 20 Album Release Date

One day after her ballad "Skyscraper" notched a Top 10 debut on the Hot 100, Demi Lovato announced a Sept. 20 release date for her third album on Thursday (July 21) during a live video chat on Cambio.

"September 20! Exactly a month after my birthday!" Lovato exclaimed in the chat. When asked about a follow-up single, the teen star replied, "I've actually recorded about like 20-something songs, so we have to cut it down to fit the album, and then we'll choose the next single."

 

Lovato also hinted at an upcoming tour in support of the still-untitled album: "If I was to tour, I would announce it soon and maybe, possibly, I'm in the works of putting together a tour. Maybe. And maybe it'll be all around the world."

The album news arrives after Lovato released the somber new single "Skyscraper" on July 12, and a sparse music video for the track was released days later. "Skyscraper" showcases the 19-year-old singer's resilience after she entered a treatment facility for "physical and emotional issues" late last year.

"Skyscraper" also gave Lovato her highest career debut on the Hot 100 when it entered the chart this week at No. 10. Her first chart entry, "This Is Me" with Joe Jonas, debuted at No. 11 and peaked at No. 9 in July 2008.

(billboard)

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Posted in: album,pop

SLIPKNOT EYE U.S. TOUR IN 2012

SLIPKNOT are eyeing a U.S. tour next year (12) after a series of comeback shows in Europe left them feeling more "positive" about the future of the band following the death of bassist PAUL GRAY.
The rockers recently played dates in the U.K. and across mainland Europe as part of the Sonisphere travelling festival, marking their return to the stage following the tragedy last year (10).

They had previously thrown the group's future into doubt by warning fans they might never record a new album - but frontman Corey Taylor has now confirmed they have held talks about a U.S. tour next year following their Sonisphere success.

He tells Hard Drive Radio, "Definitely after this tour, I'm definitely much more positive than I was. Am I ready to run into a studio? No. Everybody just slow down, because it's still very fresh to me. It still doesn't make sense yet, you know, there's still a lot of healing that we've got to do before we can get there.

"Am I open to more tours? Absolutely. I mean, we've talked about doing something next year in the States and, you know, letting the fans kind of celebrate as well. So time will tell." Taylor also thanked fans who attended their set at Sonisphere shows and observed the two-minute silence in honour of their late bandmate, adding: "The whole tour has been great. Thank you to everyone who came and everyone who participated in the two minutes of silence for Paulie - he would have been so proud." Gray died from an accidental drug overdose in a motel room in Iowa in May last year.

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Posted in: concert,metal,slipknot

Vedder, Flea & Cyrus Remember Nirvana’s Nevermind

Eddie Vedder, Flea, R.E.M’s Peter Buck and even Billy Ray Cyrus have paid tribute to Nirvana’s Nevermind as part of a Spin magazine special to mark the upcoming 20th anniversary of the iconic album’s release.

Vedder reveals he can no longer listen to the 1991 album because it’s “too difficult”, while Flea recalls it came out on the same day as Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Blood Sugar Sex Magik – and took a lot of radio play away from his band.

Buck remembers Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain and his bandmates staying at his house in Athens, Georgia following a local gig a month after the album had become an instant cult hit, adding, “It’s hard to believe that in the year Nevermind was released, they weren’t the biggest band in the world… I had them stay at my house; they didn’t have anywhere else to go.”

But the oddest tribute comes from Achy Breaky Heart hitmaker Cyrus, who recalls living in his Chevy Beretta car when the album hit stores.

He says, “I was 29, my life had fallen apart – I was going through a divorce, losing my home and my cat. It was the background music for the drama unfolding in my world.”

Cyrus admits he and Cobain became unlikely friends after meeting on the road in between shows, and he was thrilled when his daughter Miley decided to cover Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit track from Nevermind on tour in South America.

He adds, “The crowd just went crazy and I thought, ‘How beautiful, man,’ because I do believe Kurt’s spirit is very much still on this earth, through his fans and his music.

“I did have a very surreal moment watching my little girl do their song, realising, ‘Wow, these kids are singing along to this in English, every word. And I’m sure that Kurt loves it.”

Others offering up tributes to Cobain and his music in the Spin special include Ray Davies, Henry Rollins, the Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne, Mark Ronson, Nikki Sixx and Sammy Hagar.

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Posted in: album,Nirvana,rock

Archive immortalizes East German Punk rock scene

(Reuters) - A punk rock pioneer of former communist East Germany (GDR) has opened the world's first archive about the underground GDR youth culture which survived oppression and infiltration by the state's repressive regime.

Michael Boehlke, who fronted a band called Planlos ('Aimless') told Reuters that choosing to be a punk rocker in affected every aspect of your life.

To be a punk in the communist state meant an end to job prospects or further education. Interrogations, jail time, and pressure from the secret police to become an informant on the local punk scene characterized day-to-day life.

"The police interrogated me every day," said Boehlke, adding that prison time was an ever-present possibility for everyone.

And while the feared Stasi secret police never managed to infiltrate Boehlke's band Planlos, two members of another major East German punk band -- Wutanfall ('Tantrum') -- turned out to be government informants.

To bring this history to a broader audience, Boehlke has collected 5,000 photographs, hours of 8 mm video material and original tapes of almost the entirety of the East German punk music in an archive in Berlin's northeast district of Pankow.

"I don't want some West German to tell me how the punk scene was in East Germany," Boehlke said, now sporting short grey hair and business attire, rather than the ripped clothes and black leathers of a punk.

"We were a part of that scene, have explored its history and have something to say about it," he said, adding that East German reality is often misrepresented in various media.

Punk reached the GDR in the late 1970s and early 1980s where it developed in urban centers like Berlin or Leipzig, following the trends in Britain, the United States and western Europe.

"We all listened to Western radio stations in Berlin and the weekly BBC radio show of John Peel played a major role in my discovery of punk music," Boehlke told Reuters.

CHURCHES SHELTER PUNKS

"There was no public space for us, and we would hang around in the streets all day long."

After a time, East Germany's protestant church provided rooms where punks could meet and play music, feeling it was its duty to shelter youths discriminated against.

"The church was soon totally overwhelmed by the mess we caused," Boehlke said, adding that "big concerts took place there, with hundreds or even a thousand coming."

These gatherings soon attracted the attention of East Germany's secret police, the Stasi.

"Outside pressure was enormous," he told Reuters, adding that the Stasi especially targeted punk bands, believing it provided them with a way to get at leaders of a subversive youth culture.

"But the movement had no leaders, and was organized more along anarchic lines," he said, adding that the Stasi never succeeded in breaking up the scene. Many informants fed them wrong information.

But then there were also many who did spy on their friends for years and gave them away to the state's security apparatus.

Boehlke learnt many of these stories only when he prepared an exhibition about the GDR's punk scene back in 2005 which toured Berlin and other East German cities and forced him to revisit his own history and that of former companions.

Following the fall of the wall, Boehlke and many others turned to all the things they had not been able to do as punks in the GDR. They went back to school or got jobs and adapted to the new realities of a unified democratic Germany.

But it is hard to get the punk out of the system, even years later. "Punk is foremost an attitude," Boehlke said, adding that he will never really lose his sense of skepticism when it comes to the authorities and state power.

(reueter)

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Posted in: punk,underground

Indonesia’s Premier Rock Music Festival: Java Rockin’Land

 

The Cranberries fronted by Dolores O’Riordan is among the headliners at this years

Java Rockin’land concert in Jakarta, Indonesia. (EPA Photo)  

Even though it’s only three years old, Java Rockin’Land is already being seen as the premier rock music festival in the country. While a few other rock festivals have tried to promote themselves using similar concepts, none match the stature that JRL has established in just two editions. The news of the festival’s lineup each year is always one of the most-anticipated musical events on the calendar. With 10 different stages showcasing a variety of musical styles, there is a wealth of bands and musicians, both local and foreign, for fans to watch every year.

This year’s JRL, which will run from Friday to Sunday at Carnaval Beach in Jakarta, is headlined by emo rockers 30 Seconds to Mars and The Cranberries, the veteran Irish rock band.

The JRL festival has built its reputation by consistently managing to put together solid musical lineups of bands that, while not the hottest, still have legions of dedicated fans.

Previous festivals have included former alternative-rock titans the Smashing Pumpkins, Australian garage rockers Wolfmother and The Vines, as well as successful British act Stereophonics, among many others.

Rolling Stone journalist Wendy Putranto considers JRL “not only the biggest, but the best” festival of its kind in the country.

“The festival is a triumph in terms of lineup, ambience, sound quality, stage lighting and scheduling, which, for the most part, is always on the clock,” he said. He added that it was also important to see the festival’s success in the context of how segmented the market for rock music still is here.

While some of the festival acts may be past their prime, Wendy says this is an understandable consequence of the summer festival seasons going on in Europe and America. “The organizers have had trouble, I guess, in booking bigger name acts that are probably already set to play at other festivals overseas,” he said.

While not all of the headliners may be considered major acts, some are — or once were — considered international stars.

Though previous actor-led bands have, for the most part, met premature demises (for a good example, consider Keanu Reeves’s grunge-lite Dogstar), 30 Seconds to Mars, with movie star frontman Jared Leto, has had a commercially successful career.

Its second album, 2005’s “A Beautiful Lie,” sold 1.2 million copies in the United States and 3.5 million worldwide. Images of the band adorn the majority of JRL’s promotional posters, highlighting its crowd-drawing power.

This year’s other big headliner is the Cranberries. With uber-popular singles such as 1993’s “Linger” and “Dreams,” and 1994’s “Zombie” and “Ode to my Family,” the band reached the apex of its stardom in the mid-’90s with its unique brand of melancholy alternative-pop. Lead singer Dolores O’Riordan’s chant-like vocals also gave the band a strong personality, which influenced numerous Indonesian female singers.

The band went on hiatus after the release of 2001’s “Wake Up and Smell the Coffee” and a greatest hits album in 2002, but reunited in 2009. They are set to release their first album in almost 10 years in the fall of this year, titled “Roses.”

Other acts appearing at this year’s festival include pop-punk rockers Good Charlotte, Ed Kowalczyk, the former vocalist for alternative rock band Live, New York City indie rockers We Are Scientists, Australian folk alternative group Frente, which hit it big on these shores with its cover of New Order’s “Bizarre Love Triangle,” and a slew of newer acts such as indie-lite hipsters Neon Trees and Californian rockers Young the Giant.

One act that stands out is influential Manchester alternative rock group Happy Mondays, one of the major forces to come out of Britain’s “Madchester” scene during the ’80s. Though the Happy Mondays have gone through numerous lineup changes — this being their third incarnation ­— old-school music fans will certainly be happy at the chance to see them.

JRL has also received praise for its support of local independent acts, many of whom have graced the stages of the festival over the years. Some of the hot independent acts set to perform this year include grunge band Alien Sick, post-punkers Morfem, electronic rockers PAL/NTSC, songstress Sarasvati and many more.

Singer-pianist Luky Annash, an independent artist who will be promoting his just-released debut album at the festival, said he felt “very honored to be part of this annual greatness.”

“[JRL] has been very active in exposing, supporting and providing opportunities for local indie acts to showcase their music,” he said.

Luky also said that the festival had “opened the gates for quality Indonesian music to be something that is highly significant again.”

To avoid too much repetition, the festival has avoided booking independent acts that appeared at the festival the previous two years, which is why some critics say the quality of acts has gone down a bit this year.

“I understand that they are avoiding repeating themselves, but I also think that they should consider each band’s fan base and popularity. Or they could let the bigger indie acts that played last year play on the larger stages,” Wendy said.

Nevertheless, the bands that will be playing seem eager to do so. Jimi Multhazam, who sings in the band Morfem, said, “It’s like a dream to take part in a rock festival where the sound mixes are of the same quality for every performer. The only bad thing I can say about JRL is that they have yet to invite punk legend Iggy Pop to perform.”

Bass player Deta Beringas, whose band Kelelawar Malam (Night Bat) is set to perform on Saturday evening, said his band getting booked at JRL was already opening new doors for him.

“I just enjoy the fact that girls have been coming up to me and saying ‘You’re a hit,’ now that they know my band will be playing there,” he said.

(Jakarta Globe)

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Posted in: concert,Festival

Katy Perry leads MTV nominations

 

US pop star Katy Perry leads the way at this year's MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) with nine nominations.

The singer's nods include video of the year for Firework, best pop video and best special effects.

British singer Adele and Kanye West picked up seven nominations apiece. Other multiple nominees included Lady Gaga, Beyonce, and Bruno Mars.

The VMAs are scheduled to take place on 28 August in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live in the US.

Perry, who married comedian Russell Brand last year, was also nominated for best female video, best collaboration, best art direction and best cinematography.

"I have nine nominations. I thought that was a typo or something," the star told MTV.

"That's the most nominations I've ever gotten for anything."

In the video of the year category - considered to be the most prominent award of the night - Perry will compete alongside Adele, Mars, the Beastie Boys and Tyler, The Creator. 

After a record-breaking 13 nominations last year, Lady Gaga received just three.

She will take on Perry, Adele, Beyonce and Nicki Minaj in the best female video award.

Last year the Bad Romance singer dominated the awards ceremony, taking home eight prizes.

Mars and West will do battle in the best male video category, alongside Justin Bieber, Cee-Lo Green and Eminem.

And Perry, Adele and Mars will take on Britney Spears and Pitbull in the battle for best pop video.

BBC

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Posted in: katy perry,mtv,pop

30 Seconds to Mars Biography

Formed in 1998 by frontman Jared Leto and his older brother, 30 Seconds to Mars found success in the 2000s with a mix of post-grunge, screamo, and hard rock. The band gained a modest audience with its debut album, but it was the platinum-selling sophomore effort A Beautiful Lie that officially opened the flood gates in 2005, securing the band a frequent presence on MTV while paving the way for a number of successful tours. By placing all-access passes into 12 copies of the album, the bandmates also showed a savvy appreciation for marketing, which they revisited several years later by putting fans' photographs on the cover of their third album, This Is War.

Initially known for his work as an actor (most notably on the '90s TV drama My So-Called Life, as well as movies like Requiem for a Dream and Fight Club), Jared Leto decided to flex his musical muscles as he approached his 30s. He enlisted the help of his brother, drummer Shannon Leto, and co-founded 30 Seconds to Mars in 1998. The group made its studio debut four years later, releasing a self-titled album whose post-grunge sound showed an affinity for groups like Chevelle and Incubus. Although only modestly successful, the album convinced the bandmates to continue making music in spite of Jared Leto's busy acting schedule, which had filled up with roles in Panic Room, Highway, American Pyscho, and Requiem for a Dream.

It took three years to record A Beautiful Lie, with the bandmates traveling to four different continents to work with Leto on his movie sets. Released in 2005, A Beautiful Lie widened the band's sound by sampling from metal, neo-prog, and screamo. It also expanded the group's audience by going platinum in America, reaching gold status in several foreign countries, and spawning two Top 10 modern rock hits. 30 Seconds to Mars toured heavily as a result, sporting a new lineup that included lead guitarist Tomo Milicevic and bassist Matt Wachter (both of whom had also contributed to the album) in addition to the two Letos. Although Wachter threw in the towel in 2007, the band continued to tour around the world for the rest of that year, making stops at several major festivals (Roskilde, Pinkpop, Download) and opening shows for bands like the Used and Linkin Park.

Despite their growing momentum, 30 Seconds to Mars soon found themselves at war with their label, EMI/Virgin Records. The band had attempted to sign with a new label after the Beautiful Lie tour, prompting EMI to file a lawsuit for 30 million, claiming that 30 Seconds to Mars was contractually obligated to produce three more albums before signing with another company. The legal dust settled as the band relented and returned to EMI's roster, and This Is War -- the band's third album, not to mention a stylistic return to the sound of their self-titled debut -- arrived in December 2009. To encourage audience participation, the band solicited photographs from their fans, the first 2,000 of which were used to create the album's 2,000 different covers. Andrew Leahey, Rovi

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Posted in: 30 Seconds to Mars Biography,Biography,rock,Thirty Seconds To Mars