American Idol winner Kris Allen's first music video has been released. The music video features a giant digital clock in the desert. Kris Allen talked to PopEater about the concept behind the music video.
"It was cool because we actually shot it in the desert in L.A. in the middle of nowhere in this junkyard and we had this set, it was this huge digital clock which was really cool and it was kind of raggedy looking and we shot it from 8PM to 8AM in the morning. That was crazy, with no breaks at all. The video is really cool ... It looks great. The idea behind it is that I plug in the clock and I'm pulling the big cord through the junkyard and through all these other things and then I plug in the clock and it starts counting down to zero and there's performance stuff in there. I'm playing the guitar and playing the piano and singing, too. In the end when it hits zero, it's kind of like the song, it's like we only have so much time so we gotta do what we want to do."
Coincidentally, American Idol star Katharine McPhee's recent music video for "Had it All" was also shot in the desert. However, her video was shot in daylight and lacked the giant digital clock. The desert has also been a good backdrop for music videos.
Kris Allen's first album, Kris Allen, hits stores on November 17th, 2009. Here's the music video for "Live Like We're Dying."
Katy Perry hosted MTV's European Music Awards last night and opened the show with a medley of nominated songs, including "Poker Face" and "Halo." Katy did a Cabaret-style routine, with Sally Bowles outfit, chairs and back up dancers. Take a look:
The new augmented reality (AR) music video for John Mayer's single, "Heartbreak Warfare," puts Mayer virtually in the hands of fans. To launch the AR music video, fans hold a printable marker, or "glyph," in front of their webcam and then get to watch the dynamic experience unfold on-screen. As Mayer starts to sing, his fans can then play with the animated living room scene by moving their glyph around – spinning, rotating and even flipping John's virtual world upside down. The video can be played on John Mayer's website at johnmayer.com. You will need to download a PDF file and have a webcam installed on your computer to make it work. You can get an idea for what the AR looks like in the video from Blitz below. There's no sound in this video. Take a look:
Apple Corps Ltd. and EMI Music have announced the release of a limited edition of 30,000 Beatles Stereo USB apples on December 8th. The USB apples contain the entire digitally remastered catalogue. Apple Corps is the company that owns and licenses the rights to the Beatles and not Apple, Inc. Beatles' songs are still not available on iTunes.
The apple-shaped USB drive is loaded with the re-mastered audio for The Bealtes' 14 stereo titles, as well as all of the re-mastered CDs' visual elements, including 13 mini-documentary films about the studio albums, replicated original UK art, rare photos and expanded liner notes. A specially designed Flash interface has been installed, and the 16GB USB's audio contents are compatible with PC and Mac.
The released date for the Beatles USB Apple is 12-8-09. It can be ordered here for $279.99.
Taylor Swift and Bill Hader film a promo for Saturday Night Live in which the Kanye West incident comes up. Taylor is doing the promo when Bill looks at his phone and says "Kanye just called; he thinks Beyonce should host instead." It's pretty funny. Take a look:
Those looking for an iPod dock with a retro feel can't go wrong with the
Revo Heritage radio, which is a contemporary reinterpretation of
the classic European 1960's radio design. The Revo Heritage is made with aluminium and real walnut veneer. It contains the latest in multi-platform
digital radio technology including DAB, DAB+, FM and Wi-Fi internet radio. The Revo Heritage also provides wireless audio streaming and docking for your iPod. The price is 229.95 pounds, which is about $380 U.S. The iPod radio can be pre-ordered here.
The edgy yet gloomy cover art for Rihanna's upcoming album called Rated R has been released. Pop Eater says the cover was shot by photographer Ellen von Unwerth. She says, "Rihanna was looking to create something a bit new for the look of the album."
The album will be released on November 23rd. If you forget the date you can always check Rihanna's website which has a counter tracking the remaining time down to the very last second.
Vanilla Ice's hit song "Ice Ice Baby" was used in a South African beer commercial. Now he's perfoming the 1990 classic live for the CBS Early Show. Vanilla Ice said in an interview that he is still awed by the song's success. He credits Tammy Faye with helping him find himself again. Maggie Rodriguez is clearly a fan. She joined Vanilla Ice on the stage to dance as he finished perfoming. Take a look:
Activision's Band Hero hits stores today. The game from the makers of Guitar Hero is available for the Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 and Nintendo DSLite. Players can create a band using any combination of multiple guitarists, bassists, drummers and vocalists. Each band can have up to four lead singers. Players can also use the karaoke-style Sing-Along mode. Stars including Taylor Swift and Maroon 5's Adam Levine make appearances in Band Hero as playable characters. You can watch a video about how Taylor Swift was digitized for Band Herohere.
"Band Hero takes the critically acclaimed Guitar Hero 5 game features to new heights and delivers the most popular artists into your living room," said Dan Rosensweig, president and chief executive officer of Guitar Hero. "As our first E10+ rated console game, Band Hero will become the new soundtrack to family game night."
The games features songs from artists and bands including Taylor Swift, No Doubt, Lily Allen, The All-American Rejects and Jackson 5. Destructoid notes that Styx "Mr. Roboto" is on the song list. A complete song list can be found here on Amazon.com's product page and on the Band Hero website. Players can also import select songs from Guitar Hero 5, Guitar Hero Smash Hits and Guitar Hero World Tour.
The new Band Hero commercial features Taylor Swift singing while Travis Barker, Pete Wentz and Rivers Cuomo rock out to Taylor Swift's song "Love Story." You can watch the making of for the commercial below.
Angela Lansbury returns to musical theater and Catherine Zeta Jones makes her Broadway debut with the revival of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music. Multiple Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Angela talks about how thrilled she is to be back on the stage singing and Oscar-winner Catherine says she has a blast working with Angela. The show debuts December 15 at the Walter Kerr theater in New York and is sure to be a hot ticket. You can learn more and buy tickets at Broadway.com. Take a look:
Weezer has a special Snuggie offer with its new album, Raditude. You can get a Weezer Snuggie with the new album for $30. They are also selling a Safari Snuggie, deluxe Raditude cd and photo book for $50. The Snuggie-CD combos are available on Weezer's website. Weezer also inserted itself into a Snuggie infomercial. Take a look:
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Give Peace a Chance," Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon and Julian Lennon have partnered with EMI Music and Sony/ATV Music Publishing to donate net proceeds from the sale of a commemorative 40th Anniversary digital single to the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (PBF). Beginning today, iTunes will exclusively offer the single's special anniversary edition for download purchase, with net proceeds benefiting the PBF through December 31. The song can be found here on iTunes.com.
Yoko Ono says, "I am thrilled that so many in the music business are readily supporting 'Give Peace a Chance' on its 40th anniversary. It is indeed a time when we are all getting more aware of the necessity of doing something to achieve world peace, no matter how small. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I feel deeply that we are all one, regardless of where we stand."
"Give Peace a Chance" was written during John Lennon and Yoko Ono's 1969 honeymoon bed as a protest against the Vietnam War. It was inspired by Lennon's off-the-cuff explanation to a visiting reporter of the couple's purpose for protesting the war by remaining in their honeymoon bed. From March 25 to March 31, the couple invited media to visit and interview them daily between the hours of 9am and 9pm in their bed at the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel. The song was recorded live on June 1, 1969 in a room at Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel.
Beth Ditto chatted with Style.com about her love of fashion and style. Beth talks about growing up really poor and how that pretty much defined how she could dress in high school. Beth says she has always been heavy and how finally she decided to ignore all the rules she was taught about not wearing horizontal stripes or bright colors. She also talks about how her fashion line came into being, with a little help from Kate Moss. Take a look:
Many people listen to music as they exercise. Experts say
that listening to music not only makes exercise seem easier, it really does make it easier. The rhythmic beat helps synchronize movements which promotes more efficient oxygen use. That makes you more efficient, so you can run longer. The music also helps drown out the voice in your head that's saying "let's stop now and have ice cream." Sports psychologist Costas Karageorghis of Britain's Brunel University has been researching the issue for twenty years.
According to Kargeorghis, there are four factors that contribute to a song's motivational qualities: rhythm response, musicality, cultural impact and association.
The first two are known as "internal" factors as they relate to the music's structure while the second two are "external" factors that reflect how we interpret the music. Rhythm response is tied to the beats per minute (bpm) of the song and how well it matches either the cadence or the heartbeat of the runner. A song's structure such as its melody and harmony contribute to its musicality. The external factors consider our musical background and the preferences we have for a certain genre of music and what we have learned to associate with certain songs and artists.
Picking the right music can have several benefits.
Syncing beats per minute with an exercise pace increases your efficiency. In a recent study, subjects who cycled in time to music found that they required 7 percent less oxygen to do the same work when compared to music playing in the background. Music can also help block out the little voice in your brain telling you its time to quit. Research shows that this dissociation effect results in a 10 percent reduction in perceived effort during treadmill running at a moderate intensity.
In one study, those that listened to music while exercising had a 15 percent improvement in endurance. For professional athletes that is a huge difference which could be the difference in winning a marathon. For exercisers, it means that you can go much longer thereby burning more calories.
NME reports that the Spice Girls are rumored to be the opening act for the 2012 Olympics in London.
The girl group's manager Simon Fuller said the time frame of the games would be perfect for a reunion to take place, adding that the band want to perform again before they are too old. "They will not want to be performing hits like 'Wannabe' in their 40s, but it's amazing how often people talk about another reunion. And I think if they do it, it's going to be in 2012," he explained.
The Spice Girls last tour was in 2007 and 2008 so that would make for a four year spread between tours. Wikipedia says the last tour for the Spice Girls was a success and grossed over $70 million. A performance at the 2012 Olympics could give a tour a big boost.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Give Peace a Chance," Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon and Julian Lennon have partnered with EMI Music and Sony/ATV Music Publishing to donate net proceeds from the sale of a commemorative 40th Anniversary digital single to the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (PBF). Beginning today, iTunes will exclusively offer the single's special anniversary edition for download purchase, with net proceeds benefiting the PBF through December 31. The song can be found 
