LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Britney Spears hasn't even taken her seat as the new judge of "The X Factor," but the pop icon is already getting a lesson in the media glare of live, talent show television. Spears had barely wrapped up an appearance in New York confirming she is joining the singing contest before the celebrity knives were out, raising the question of how well the singer, who went through a public meltdown in 2007, can handle all the newfound attention. ...
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - On the face of it, Universal Music Group's bid to buy a big chunk of EMI stands to make the world's leading music company an even more formidable force, combining Universal's star lineup of Lady Gaga and Rihanna with the British company's deep library of The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Katy Perry. Certainly the fierce opposition from rival Warner Music Group, consumer groups and independent music companies makes it seem that way. They have all vowed to fight it tooth and nail, telling U.S. ...
2012-05-16T20:46:55Z Carrie Underwood keeps Billboard No. 1, Adele going strong LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Country singer and "American Idol" winner Carrie Underwood continued her reign on the Billboard 200 album chart on Wednesday, while British songstress Adele climbed back to No. 2 after 64 weeks on the chart with "21." Underwood's fourth studio album "Blown Away" sold 119,000 copies this week, down from the 267,000 sales debut last week, but enough to keep her No. 1 position on the chart. Grammy-winner Adele's "21" shows no sign of slowing down, selling 101,000 copies over the past week, bringing total sales of the album in the U.S. to more than 9 million. ...
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Some thoughts on Lisa Marie Presley: "Too bad she ain't just like her daddy/Oh what a shame/She got no talent of her own/It's just her name." No, that's not our review. That's Presley anticipating (or reviving) some of the conventional/cynical wisdom about her musical career in "Sticks and Stones," a bonus track on the deluxe version of her new album, "Storm & Grace." She even refers to her own possibly hereditary pout: "She looks bad, she looks mad... ...
2012-05-16T19:56:20Z Nas, Wiz Khalifa, Kid Cudi headline Rock the Bells NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Kid Cudi, Nas and Wiz Khalifa are just a few of the hip-hop heavyweights headlining the 2012 "Rock the Bells Festival," Guerilla Union and Boost Mobile announced on Wednesday. The annual touring festival series always boasts many of the top artists from the world of rap and hip-hop, and this year's installment will kick off in San Bernadino on August 18 and 19. That means it has expanded into a two-day festival. Missy Elliot, who has been battling Graves' disease, will also make an "exclusive North American festival performance" with longtime collaborator Timbaland. ...
