MUSIC TALK

Ashley's new song is "alright, it's ok"

Ashley Tisdale has just released her brand new single “It’s Alright, It’s OK!” The track premiered earlier this morning live with Ryan Seacrest on KIIS FM. Co-written by Swedish production team Twin, the song is a spunky break-up anthem about being single and in control of your life for the first time.

“I love break-up songs,” Tisdale says. “Everyone can relate to those moments when you need to vent your frustration about a previous relationship. ‘It’s Alright, It’s OK’ is about how you need to stand up for yourself and not let someone walk all over you; it’s a message I wanted to get across to other girls.”

Until listening to this CD, the only memories I had of Ashley Tisdale is her clown-like performance in High School Musical 2, and a much publicized nose-job. But as she tries to carve herself a name in the music industry, it's only fair we forget her comedic performances alongside Zac Efron and give herself a chance to prove herself as the next Kelly Clarkson.

So we might be a little quick to judge her as another actress trying to make themselves into a singer, but to be quite honest, this single isn’t half bad… okay, so it’s a little Jonas Brothers meets Kelly Clarkson meets S Club 7 but somehow, crikey, it seems to work.

Claiming to love rock music, she does manage to grab the usual pretty girl attempt at punk-rock attitude with this single, and I have no doubt that it is poised to be a summer anthem, but I wouldn’t quite think she’s ‘rock’ enough for Download festival just yet.

An accompanying video to “It’s Alright, It’s OK” premiered on MySpace’s on April 21st with feature support from such major online partners as AOL Music and Yahoo! Music, and MTV.com will premiere exclusive “making of the video” footage the week of the single’s release. Tisdale stars in the video with actor Adam Gregory (the CW’s 90210), who plays her ex-boyfriend. The clip was directed by Scott Speer, who has helmed previous videos for Tisdale as well as those from Jordin Sparks and David Archuleta.

Sasha's World Tour is 'Fierce'

Beyoncé's "I Am..." World Tour marks the artist's first full-length concert tour since 2007s sold-out "The Beyoncé Experience" and showcases live performances of songs from "I Am Sasha Fierce", her latest international mega-hit album.

The tour kicked off on March 26th in Canada, was directed by world-renowned designer, director and photographer Thierry Mugler who also worked as the creative advisor and costume designer on Beyoncé's "I Am..." Tour. Knowles fell in love with his work at a recent fashion exhibition, and asked him to conduct a 58-piece wardrobe for her, her dancers and for the band for the tour.

Thierry Mugler said, "I imagine Beyoncé as a tough, chic, superheroine type who likes her power glam with a bit of froth; hence, the bow bustle and mismatched gloves that pair lacy fishnet with articulated metal, but don’t expect Beyoncé to stay in that guise for long. There will be a lot of dramatization and metamorphosis on stage."

Knowles' own clothing lines House of Deréon and Deréon also contributed to the wardrobe.

Beyoncé's new concert production features the music and film superstar, along with her extraordinary all-female band, performing musical hits, classics (including Destiny's Child songs), and surprises in a newly-created high-tech state-of-the-art concert environment.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly magazine, Knowles stated: "I've been working on this tour for eight months [...] I've been rehearsing and trying to make sure I put my set list together. Right now I'm anxious and I can't sleep -- I'll be wanting to be at rehearsal. That's the only thing I can think about. But I can't wait."

The "I Am..." Tour currently just wrapped performances in Canada and will resume on April 26th in Europe, starting in Zagreb, Croatia and then going all over the continent.  Beyoncé will also perform in several cities in Australia this Fall.

Boom Boom Pow

The Black Eyed Peas achieved international success with their last two releases ("Elephunk" and "Monkey Business"), scoring multiple chart hits globally ("Don't Phunk With My Heart," "My Humps") and selling millions of copies as a result. In the interim, Fergie stepped out as a solo artist in 2006 with "The Dutchess" and matched the Black Eyed Peas' success, notching five top five hits on the Billboard Hot 100.

It has been nearly 5 years since the Black Eyed Peas have made music together. Well, that is the case with a 4 year absence from the media spotlight, but their latest single isn't really a big bang as it could've been...

"Boom Boom Pow," the latest single from the band brings in a more techno rhythm to the funky sounds. While the song had a nice beat, it just sadly wasn't as driven as their songs from a few earlier like Don't Phunk With My Heart or My Humps showed for fans.

“Boom Boom Pow” sounds exactly like you think it would. It’s ridiculous, fun music delivered in a fashion only will.i.am, Fergie and the gang could. It looks like 2009 will be just as vocoder-filled as 2008 was. It’s sort of ironic how the BEPs are talkin’ about the future of music and dropping beats and effects that have been working since 2005. Let’s throw the question of originality out for a second (this is the Black Eyed Peas we’re talking about here…) and just enjoy the song. You know you like the beat they drop halfway into the song...       In fact, selling nearly 465,000 downloads for the week, "Boom Boom Pow" gives the Peas the biggest digital week ever for a group.

 (FYI: "Boom Boom Pow," the first single from the group's new album "The E.N.D.," due on June 9th.)

From Rock to Country to Tutu: The Evolution of Hootie & the Blowfish

"Our story begins with four young men, how they discovered music, met each other and their eventual rise to fame..."

The opening line of the Hootie and the Blowfish Ballet extravaganza (opens today at 7:30pm in Columbia, SC at the Koger Center) truly sounds like one of those great "VH1 Behind-the-Music" documentaries where we'll hear the music band's ups and downs and hopefully some dirt and scandalous headlines along the way, paired with arrests, drug addiction and nasty band member fights...

However, it is not about Britney's life or a Destiny's Child reunion... the subject of the "ballet-comeback" is Hootie & the Blowfish, South Carolina's rock ambassador that enjoyed a widespread popularity in the second half of the 1990s.

After a decade of winning two grammys and with the recent success of their lead singer's, Darius Rucker's hit country album (currently topping the Billboard country music charts with his song "It Won't Be Like This For Long"), these guys kept it professional with no diva-like attitude.  In short, they remained approachable, kind of like the guys next door.

The band was originally formed in 1986 at the University of South Carolina by Darius Rucker, Dean Felber, Jim Sonefeld, and Mark Bryan. They have recorded seven studio albums to date, and has charted sixteen singles on various Billboard singles charts. Their 1994 debut album, Cracked Rear View, is one of the best selling albums of all time, going platinum sixteen times.

The latest project of Hootie and the Blowfish is a collaboration with Columbia City Ballet's legendary artistic directior, William Starrett, who created a full-length autobiographical ballet about them.

"This is a true success story," said William Starrett, who came up with the idea. "I wanted to celebrate a positive."

The band members are played by professional ballet dancers who portray them during their rise to fame. The band's cast includes: Mark Bryan (Mark Krieger) ; Dean Felber (Robert Michalski) ; Darius Rucker (Wayland Anderson) ; Jim Sonefeld (Tory Morton) ; and ex-member, Brantley Smith (John Karim). 

During the ballet performance, the band plays live (accompanied with big projection screens), giving the audience a real live concert experience as well. This unlikely fusion might sound like a joke at first, but according to Robert Thompson, Syracuse University's pop culture guru, "... in a culture that actually can take a string of ABBA songs, which we used to laugh at, and can make a significant hit musical and movie ... all of a sudden, a ballet about the career of Hootie and the Blowfish is kind of traditional."

So maybe no one should judge the "ballet by its cover" and keep an open mind when it comes to new art genres. After all, throughout history artists have shaped the world with their innovative visions.

Performances are at the Koger Center on Friday (7:30 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.). Tickets range from $22 to $68 and are available online at capitoltickets.com or by phone at 251-2222. For more information, call 803-799-7605.

After being "Torn," Natalie "Come to Life"

Natalie Imbruglia has enlisted some of the biggest names in music, including her ex-husband Daniel Johns and Coldplay's Chris Martin, for her new album.

Imbruglia is set to release her fourth studio album, Come To Life, later this year.

Ben Hillier - who has worked with Blur, Doves and Depeche Mode - produced the album, while Johns and Martin have songwriting credits.

"I've got some Chris Martin songs that have come in at the last minute [which are] really cool," Imbruglia said. "So that's been really exciting. I'm a very lucky girl."

However, Coldplay's Chris Martin has revealed his dismay at giving Natalie Imbruglia a track that he claims could have been the "best Coldplay song ever."

The song is expected to be the first single from Imbruglia's forthcoming new album, Come To Life.

"A bit annoyingly we've given her the best Coldplay song of all time," Martin said to Heraldsun.com.au. "But because we're off-cycle we can't do it ourselves."

Imbruglia says her ex-husband had a lot of creative input on the record.

"He did some beautiful work on there actually," she said. "In fact one of the parts he wrote in one of the songs is my favorite two notes on the whole album.

And while happy to talk about their professional collaborations, Imbruglia refused further comment and would not address rumours she's dating Prince Harry.

Imbruglia also scotched reports she was planning to hold a bushfire benefit concert with Kylie and Dannii Minogue, saying she's been misquoted.

Greatest + New Hits by Madonna

The 50-year-old pop queen is heading into the studio shortly to create a few new tracks to tack onto the compilation, which will be her final outing with Warner Bros. Records. "We're hoping to have a greatest hits package come out in September," the star's rep, Liz Rosenberg, said in a statement.

Details on the project are not yet final, but all different options are being explored regarding packaging and content...

One of those options might involve input from Madonna's fans on which tunes should be included on the album. Guy Oseary, the singer's manager, has posted missives to his Twitter account, soliciting suggestions from Madonna's devotees about which tracks "must be on" the album.

While there's no guarantee what songs will make the latest venture, it's a safe bet that it will be dominated by tracks from her three most recent albums, "American Life," "Confessions on a Dance Floor" and "Hard Candy."

As for what man she'll be dating come September, it's anyone's guess.

Madonna has released two previous best-ofs: 1990's "The Immaculate Collection" and 2001's "GHV2: Greatest Hits Volume 2." She also issued the ballads collection, "Something To Remember," in 1995. "Immaculate" is tied with Patsy Cline's "Greatest Hits" as the top-selling hits albums ever by a solo female in the U.S. -- both are certified at 10 million sold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Chris Cornell & Timbaland? Scream!

Samples, hip-hop beats, record scratches, synthesizers, and... Chris Cornell?

The grunge icon has teamed with pop/hip-hop mega producer Timbaland on what is easily his most daring solo effort, "Scream," out this week.

The photo on the cover of Chris Cornell's latest solo album shows the gifted rock wailer forcefully smashing his electric guitar. This ax execution is not in the spirit of, say, Courtney Love. Cornell simply didn't need a guitar to create this Timbaland-produced, computer-generated dance-floor disaster.

Longtime fans of the former Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman's work may easily be turned off by his latest experiment, which gives a slick and almost synthetic feel — no doubt due to Timbaland — to his otherwise earthy music and vocals.

Gleaming ballads like "Long Gone" and the title track wring mild drama from a combination of Cornell's husky crooning and stacks of portentous Phil Collins–derived synths. Now, some of this stuff isn't bad, but the fast numbers ("Time," "Get Up"), with Cornell's angsty rock-god vocals are fresher and more enjoyable, at least in a monkey-riding-a-tricycle sort of way.

These synth-driven tracks will send you into convulsions at best, make you choke yourself with your iPod earbuds at worst. Cornell's sky-scraping power scream has been neutered by technology, urban beats and face-numbing "soundscape" production. What is that vocal effect? Vocoder? Auto-Tune? Cylon?

It's natural for a 44-year-old man to crave experimentation. Cornell's first solo album, 1999's "Euphoria Morning," was an innocuous-enough outlet. Even his cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" on 2007's "Carry On" was tolerable. But for a guy with Cornell's pipes, "Scream" is a bizarre waste.

Michael Jackson Comeback Tour?

Michael Jackson has returned to the spotlight after eight years marked by scandals and announced that he would play a series of London engagements (his first concerts since 2001).

Wearing his trademark sunglasses and a silver-embroidered black military-style jacket, the King of Pop said his series of shows in July will be his "final curtain call" in the British capital.

Although Jackson said the shows would be his last in London, his statement left the door open for further concerts elsewhere. Promoter AEG Live told the BBC the shows might be part of a bigger, final world tour.

An hour and a half late, Jackson appeared at the O2 — where the series of 10 concerts are due to be staged this summer — to announce the gigs.

More than 300 journalists had been marshaled to capture the event, even though news of the concerts had leaked out to the media days before. A telegenic army of screaming fans was there to greet their star.

"Thriller" is still the best-selling album of all time, but Jackson — who has sold more than 750 million albums and won 13 Grammys — has not performed a major concert since 2001.

Tickets priced between 50 pounds and 75 pounds ($70 and $105), are expected to sell quickly for the shows, despite concerns the 50-year-old star may not be up for a return to the spotlight.

Jackson has appeared in public rarely since being acquitted of child molestation in California in 2005, and he has struggled to pay his debts — last year, he was forced to give up the deed to Neverland, his 2,500-acre (1,000 hectare) ranch and miniature amusement park in California.

On Wednesday, Jackson launched a lawsuit against an auction house to stop the scheduled sale of more than 2,000 personal items from Neverland, including platinum and gold records, a customized Harley Davidson and a Rolls Royce limousine.

The O2 has become a venue of choice for big-name acts and comeback performers. Britney Spears is due to play there for eight nights in June, Madonna will re-open her "Sticky & Sweet" tour there for two nights in July and Prince did a 21-day series of shows at the arena in 2007.

The concerts — possibly followed by other gigs and a 3-D movie based on "Thriller" — could end up netting Jackson more than $400 million, Randy Phillips, the chief executive of AEG Live, was quoted by the BBC as saying.

The Annie Lennox Collection

If Annie Lennox had only her time in Eurythmics to claim, she'd still be recognized as one of the greatest modern pop and soul singers. In addition however, she has enjoyed massive success as a solo artist.  Spanning seventeen years, a proper Annie Lennox retrospective of her solo material finally arrives. Heavily built on '90s-era hits, The Annie Lennox Collection is a mix of grooves, ballads, and two new recordings, and it is the artist's first official assembly of top charters and best tracks that represent her albums Diva (1992), Medusa (1995), Bare (2003), and Songs of Mass Destruction (2008). Much like the artist, all of these recordings have aged very well, with main producer Steve Lipson's synth-dominated soundscapes still as engaging as when they first were released.

Lennox's smart sequence perfectly juggles song keys and topics that pace the collection with a loose storyline filled with love, feminism and self-exploration. From the opening song's vibrant "ah" crescendos to the last track's lone "yeah..." backed by a solo piano, this project proceeds more like a well-conceived, original album than a simple retrospective. And though lyrics are included in the white eco-friendly packaging, Lennox emotes so much through her icy-to-passionate phrasings that it's almost distracting to be reading along while the CD plays.

The majority of this album's songs showcase Lennox, if not in crisis, in heightened drama. One sensational four-song sequence starts with the emotionally drained artist walking against the "Pavement Cracks" of a gray-skied city, asking, "Where is my comfort zone, a simple place to call my own." We may find a clue as to why she's feeling so drained in "Love Song For A Vampire" from Francis Ford Coppola's Hollywood take on Bram Stoker's Dracula. Its imagery and line, "Let me be the only one to keep you from the cold," cues-up "Cold," whose clever lyrics, "Dying is easy, it's living that scares me to death," serve as a potential alternate conclusion to "...Vampire." Then comes her "Dark Road" (with its slight melodic pilfering of Tom Petty's "Free Fallin'") that, as Lennox writes in the package's notes, is a "metaphor for life's journey"--the artist on "a dark way" that leads to her "house." Like the house, she has an open door that "didn't get there by itself," so we're left wondering if this is a warning, an invitation for love, or evidence of a great escape.

Mostly, The Annie Lennox Collection is a testament to her strength. You especially can hear a celebration of that growth in the last track, "Shining Light" (originally, an award-winning recording by the Irish alt-rock group, Ash), in which she pumps out affirmations such as, "You are a force, you are a constant source" and "You are a shining light, incandescent in the darkest night," like she was tossing around fistfuls of Halloween candy.

It's her powerful, rapturous voice that always seals the deal, and it conquers all fourteen pitch-perfect tracks, a feat seldom achieved by CDs (or CD/DVDs) with the word "Collection" in the title.

CD Tracks:
1. Little Bird - from the album Diva
2. Walking On Broken Glass - from the album Diva
3. Why - from the album Diva
4. No More "I Love You's" - from the album Medusa
5. Precious - from the album Diva
6. A Whiter Shade Of Pale - from the album Medusa
7. A Thousand Beautiful Things - from the album Bare
8. Sing - from the album Songs of Mass Destruction
9. Pavement Cracks - from the album Bare
10. Love Song For A Vampire - from the movie Bram Stoker's Dracula
11. Cold - from the album Diva
12. Dark Road - from the album Songs of Mass Destruction
13. Pattern Of My Life - new
14. Shining Light - new

DVD Tracks:
1. Little Bird
2. Walking On Broken Glass
3. Why
4. No More "I Love You's"
5. Precious
6. A Whiter Shade Of Pale
7. A Thousand Beautiful Things
8. Sing
9. Pavement Cracks
1o. Cold
11. Dark Road
12. Something So Right
13. Waiting In Vain

Musical Guests
	Fergie
	Shingai Shoniwa
	Dido
	Faith Hill
	Isobel Campbell
	Joss Stone
	K.D. Lang
	Madonna
	Martha Wainwright
	Melissa Etheridge
	Anastacia
	Angelique Kidjo
	Pink
	Sarah McLachlan
	Shakira
	Sugababes
	Beth Gibbons
	Beth Orton
	Beverley Knight
	Gladys Knig

War Child Heroes

Album review:

There’s a convention to some charity albums: good cause, don’t worry about the tunes. Fortunately, that’s not an attitude War Child abide by. The concept with ‘Heroes’ is that a bunch of ‘legends’ have selected ‘younger’ acts to have a crack at a special moment from their catalogue. Beck transforms Bob Dylan’s ‘Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat’ into a glam-rock stomp, Elbow let the stadium rock tyres down on U2’s ‘Running To Stand Still’, leaving it achingly tender, while Hot Chip’s Kraftwerk reconstruction of Joy Division’s ‘Transmission’ swaps menace for haunting chills.

Peaches’ dominatrix revision of Iggy Pop’s ‘Search And Destroy’ should achieve indie disco domination and Rufus Wainwright serves up baroque Beach Boys, while Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ thrillingly gutter-rock take on ‘Sheena Is A Punk Rocker’ suggests their singer should rename herself Karen Ramone.

Straighter renditions from Duffy (Wings’ Live And Let Die’) and Estelle (Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’) aren’t without charm, but it’s Lily Allen and TV On The Radio who come top of the class. Lily gets the added scrutiny of tackling The Clash’s ‘Straight To Hell’ with Mick Jones onboard, but rather than retreat into orthodoxy, Big Audio Dynamite dub beats see them turn combat rock into a touching lullaby.

Sitek and co have the thankless task of covering ‘“Heroes”’ itself, but with spacey beats and almost balladeering vocals they recapture the spirit of the original without sounding anything like it.

Like all covers albums, the temptation to dig out the originals is not far away, but there’s enough electricity pulsing around these versions to not only justify a charitable contribution but also make it a worthy addition to your record collection.

Ticketmaster and Live Nation merge is put on hold

The Justice Department will investigate the proposed merger of ticketing giant Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. with Live Nation Inc.. to see if the combined company would create an unfair monopoly in the ticket-selling business.

The deal would match the world's dominant ticket seller, Ticketmaster, with Live Nation, which was once it's biggest client and is the world's No. 1 concert promoter.

A Justice Department investigation could take months or longer, and the department has probed Ticketmaster in the past.

Some lawmakers are already urging the government to reject the deal. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., want the government to stop the deal in part because of problems experienced with Ticketmaster's recent offering of tickets to Bruce Springsteen shows. The Boss has also weighed in, opposing the deal.

"The one thing that would make the current ticket situation even worse for the fan than it is now would be Ticketmaster and Live Nation coming up with a single system, thereby returning us to a near-monopoly situation in music ticketing," Springsteen said on his Web site.

Live Nation owns 140-plus venues and has multiyear comprehensive rights deals covering the tours of Madonna, Jay-Z, U2, Nickelback and Shakira.

Live Nation last year ended a long-term contract to sell its concert tickets through Ticketmaster, and it launched its own ticketing service for its venues in January. That threatened to siphon off at least 15 percent of Ticketmaster's revenue and had set the two companies up for a head-to-head fight to win ticketing contracts.

A merger would quell that fight — which could raise the ire of regulators, antitrust experts said.

Because both companies are large — with market capitalizations of around $400 million — they are required to submit a notice to the Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department for review of antitrust issues.

'It's Not Me, It's You'

If there’s a theory that can be substantiated properly from musicians highly publicised as being “troubled”, then it’s to stay productive musically and give people something real to talk about. Amy Winehouse is a case in point- with no new material after nearly three years, media outlets once in her praises have done nothing but focus on her every move, from blonde hair to visits to the corner store. Courtney Love, another highly-publicised trainwreck, has been better known in the last few years for drunken rants on her blog and losing/regaining custody of Frances Bean than her music (still no word on her sophomore solo album). And, of course, today’s central focus: miss Lily Allen.

In the past three years since the release of her debut album Alright, Still, the daughter of Keith and the sister of the infamous Alfie has made several transitions in terms of her public image (she's been called a  drunken festival nightmare, controversy queen, purported alcoholic, purported druggie, bitchy blogger, public enemy #1, pink-haired party-goer etc.) 

So, imagine the relief for fans and tabloids alike as Allen’s sophomore emerges in 2009. Titled It’s Not Me, It’s You, it is bold, spacious, chameleon-like pop music with a distinct, scornful twist that adds a little sourness to the sugar and spice- an almost idiosyncratic contrast which, once again, works well; but this time, it’s with flying colours.

Back in 2006, Brit import Lily Allen seemed like the perfect antidote to America's vacuous top 40 sausage factory.  But as another pop rebel, Cyndi Lauper, once wisely said, money changes everything.

Behind her new album's, It's Not Me, It's You's deceptively breezy melodies, Allen often sounds chastened, introspective, even sad — her subjects now include the dark side of drug use (''Everyone's at It''), fractured family relationships (''Back to the Start''), and vanishing youth (''22'').

A highlight comes in the form of “Who’d Have Known”, presenting an honest intimacy in both lyric and music; the likes of which Lily has never before seen. Her character is a confused lover, left wanting more from a close friend with which a lot of time is spent. There is a certainty that there is an attraction between the two- “Today, you accidentally called me ‘baby’”, sings Allen with a sense of lovelorn awkwardness- but neither know properly just how to move it forward.

It’s Not Me, It’s You is a feverishly catchy and bona fide favourite. And so, despite public lashings and continued tabloid exposure, Britain’s mouthy pop idol returns triumphantly and with the brawny guts to stick with what she knows best.

Madonna is back on tour!

Madonna is to resume her Sticky & Sweet tour this summer, adding 25 more shows in the UK and Europe. (A message on the singer's website - entitled 'It's Official: Madonna To Tour This Summer' - confirmed the continuation of the Sticky and Sweet shows.)

The final leg of the tour will start in London at the O2 Arena on July 4.

Tour producer Arthur Fogel said the tour takes in stadiums the Material Girl has never played at or has not visited in several years.

The extension will take Sticky & Sweet to around 80 shows, and boost it well into the top five grossing tours of all time.

Despite the more than six-month break, the tour will feature the same production and performers as in 2008.

The Sticky and Sweet tour was the highest-grossing series of concerts in 2008, with a massive worldwide haul of $281.6 million (£193 million).

The Material Girl's global jaunt, which featured a virtual duet with Justin Timberlake and a Ukrainian gypsy band, also became the eighth highest-grossing tour of all time in the US, according to music trade publication 'Pollstar'.

In 2008, the 'Sticky & Sweet Tour' was seen by 2,350,285 fans in 58 cities. With record breaking ticket sales everywhere, including 650,000 tickets sold in her series of South American dates, 72,000 tickets at Zurich's Dübendorf Airfield - the largest audience ever assembled for a show in Switzerland, 75,000 tickets in London and four sell outs in New York's Madison Square Garden (60,364 tickets).

MADONNA 2009 'STICKY & SWEET TOUR' SCHEDULE

04 July - London, United Kingdom - The 02 London - On sale Feb. 06
07 July - Manchester, United Kingdom - MEN Arena - On sale Feb. 06
11 July - Werchter, Belgium - Festivalpark - On sale Feb. 07
14 July - Milan, Italy - San Siro - On sale Feb. 06
21 July - Barcelona, Spain - Olympic Stadium
23 July - Madrid, Spain - Vicente Calderon
28 July - Hamburg, Germany - Trab-Arena Hamburg Bahrenfeld
30 July - Oslo, Norwary - Vallehovin - On sale Feb. 09
04 Aug - Tallinn, Estonia - Tallinn Song Festival Ground
06 Aug - Helsinki, Finland - West Harbour - On sale Feb. 09
09 Aug - Gothenburg, Sweden - Ullevi - On sale Feb. 09
11 Aug - Copenhagen, Denmark - Parken - On sale Feb. 09
13 Aug - Prague, Czech Republic - Chodov Natural Amphitheatre
15 Aug - Warsaw, Poland - Bemowo Airport
18 Aug - Munich, Germany - Olympic Stadium
20 Aug - Ljubljana, Slovenia - Hippodrome

In 2009, Madonna's 'Sticky & Sweet Tour' will also visit Marseille in addition to performances in Bulgaria, Hungary, Russia, Romania, and Serbia.

Duffy, Coldplay and the British Music Awards

Soul singer Duffy and Coldplay dominate the nominations for Britain's prestigious music awards.

Coldplay's first album in three years, "Viva La Vida" and Duffy's "Rockferry" are both nominated for the title of best British album at the Brit Awards.

Coldplay will also compete with Elbow, Girls Aloud, Radiohead and revived boyband Take That for the title of best British Group.

Kanye West, Beyonce and Kings of Leon are nominated for the international categories.

The Brit Awards are the British equivalent of the Grammys and the nominations were announced Tuesday. The winners will be announced in London on Feb. 18.

Most winners are selected by a vote of over 1,000 industry members and include representatives from record companies, retailers and disc jockeys.

Inaugural Celebration with Music's Top Names

Sunday's inaugural celebration for Barack Obama at the Lincoln Memorial is a coveted gig for music's top names.

Beyonce, U2, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Usher, Shakira, Sheryl Crow, Josh Groban and James Taylor are among the musicians scheduled to perform Sunday afternoon. The president-elect and his family are due to attend, with Obama expected to speak.

The artists won't be performing their big hits, but will be asked to perform material appropriate to the occasion. One musician will be asked to perform "A Change Is Gonna Come," the song made famous by Sam Cooke.

Other performers include Stevie Wonder, Renee Fleming, Garth Brooks, Mary J. Blige, Heather Headley, John Legend and Jennifer Nettles. Historical passages will be read by Jamie Foxx, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah and Denzel Washington, with other celebrities expected to join them.

HBO will televise the show at 7 p.m. EST.

After getting the go-ahead from the Presidential Inaugural Committee two and a half weeks ago to put the show together, executive producer George Stevens Jr. said he quickly learned it would not be like any other special event he's tried to book.

Stevens said he tried to reach out to a diversity of artists. The theme for the show, titled "We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial," is less about celebration than national unification.

Katy Perry is "Thinking of Tou"

I truly believe that Katy Perry is the best new artist in the music industry. Her unique voice is always paired with unique songs. After the 90's, I would have never thought I would hear another female artist singing about kissing another girl, but Katy Perry proved me wrong with her song “I Kissed A Girl”.  

Her first album called Katy Hudson was a Christian gospel music album. But after that she went from being a good religious girl to a rebel!

I have listened to her whole album called One Of The Boys, and just like any album, it has it’s ups and downs... Next to “Hot N Cold” and “I Kissed A Girl”, Katy Perry’s latest single may seem like a snoozer. But what’s lacking in dance-floor readiness, is made up for by Alanis-like phrasing and the shock value of seeing the burlesque-inspired vixen going all ballad on us. Plus, it won’t be too long before somebody turns out a dance remix to get your ass shaking.

Listen to the best ballad of the album, “Thinking of You” at:

www.myspace.com/katyperry

2008 is 'Sticky & Sweet'

According to numbers released by concert trade magazine Pollstar, Madonna was the year's top concert draw in North America with ticket sales in excess of $105 million. After launching last summer in Wales, her Sticky & Sweet tour hit North America in early October for nearly eight weeks of concert dates.

Worldwide the Material Girl's tour actually grossed more than $280 million, making Sticky & Sweet the highest-grossing tour ever by a solo artist. Fittingly, the solo record she broke was her own: $195 million for her 2006 Confessions tour.

"Not only will this tour be the top selling tour of all time for a solo artist and a female artist (eclipsing her own record), but it will position her as one of the top selling touring artists of all time," noted Arthur Fogel, Live Nation's Chairman of Global Music and CEO of Global Touring, in a statement.

Sticky & Sweet, which promotes her 2008 chart-topping album Hard Candy, is the Madonna's first major venture as part of a new recording, touring and business deal—reportedly worth about $120 million—that she signed with Live Nation in late '07.

To recap, the year's Top 10 highest-grossing tours were as follows:

1. Madonna ($105 million)

2. Celine Dion ($94 million)

3. The Eagles ($73.4 million)

4. Kenny Chesney ($72.2 million)

5. Bon Jovi ($70.4 million)

6. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band ($69.3 million)

7. Neil Diamond ($59.8 million)

8. Rascal Flatts ($55.8 million)

9. The Police ($48 million)

10. Tina Turner ($47.7 million)

Top 5 Singles of 2008

Estelle featuring Kanye West - "American Boy"

The British soul singer/rapper debuted a few years back with the remarkable The 18th Day, but it wasn't until she dropped this one that people started paying attention. Off her sophomore album Shine, "American Boy" is all that and more in a single.

Beyonce - "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"

Beyonce has become a staple on year-end lists ever since she debuted as a solo artist with Dangerously in Love back in 2005. With each release, she pushes her musical limits, and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" is no exception.

 Lil Wayne - "A Milli"

Everyone has their own favorite Lil Wayne song, but fans are still not tired of this one. On the Bangladesh-produced monster, Weezy F. Baby dizzies with his complex rhymes, all while a repeating sample spins in the background like a wobbling spinning top.

Coldplay - "Viva La Vida

Coldplay always manages to crank out a single worthy of being included on the "Best Singles" year-end lists, and "Viva La Vida" only continues the trend. With its sweeping orchestration and unresolving melody, "Viva" shows the band evolving from the soft-bellied alt-rock dudes they once were into full-fledged superstars.

Rihanna - "Disturbia"

The last song on my list comes from the current reigning princess of R&B. Rihanna, who released 8 singles from her third album Good Girl Gone Bad, came hard with "Disturbia," one of the three new tracks on the Reloaded edition of the disc.

This Christmas...

This holiday season DNI records releases “This Christmas Aretha,” the first ever seasonal recording from The Queen of Soul. In royal fashion, its grand billboard placement in the middle of Time Square instantly stamps the album a collector’s item.

Franklin’s spellbinding interpretation of the evergreen “Ave Maria” will bring tears to your eyes with every crescendo of the harp and orchestra accompaniment and passionate vibrato of each milky phrase she sings. The unprecedented album is worth buying for this performance alone. That’s if you can get past pressing repeat on track #1 “Angels We Have Heard on High.”  

Franklin’s voice is pure liquid soul as it guides a majestic choir and orchestra to hevenly heights. In the intro to track #2 she answers a phone call that she has to rush off to save her Christmas dinner (can’t let that pot of Greens burn!)  She then breaks into a jammin’ jazz-forward duet with her vocally talented son Eddie on Donnie Hathaway’s “This Christmas.”   

On the opposite end of seasonal standards, the daughter of the late  Rev. C.L. Franklin takes us to church with her melodically gutteral confession of God's faithfulness on the "The Lord Will Make A Way Somehow" an encouraging traditonal gospel tune.

But, even on a Christmas CD the famously heart-broken, hard-lovin’  legend couldn't resist mentioning man problems, as evidenced on the final cut, a grown up, satirical spoken word adaptation of "‘Twas the Night Before Christmas."  Otherwise, Aretha delivers a high-spirited, passionate and happy reflection on the most wonderful time of the year.

Brandy is 'Human'

"I don't want to live my life in vain," says Brandy, who released her first CD in four years, "Human," this week. "That is the most important thing ... not just to be here to be here."

Brandy's new focus reflects lessons learned from a tumultuous time, including her involvement in a car accident that left one woman dead. The 2006 accident did not result in charges against Brandy, although she faces a lawsuit and has sued another party in the accident herself.

The tragedy was a "life-changing" experience for the Grammy-winning singer/actress.

The accident came as Brandy, a former child actress who became a multiplatinum singing sensation as a teen, was in flux professionally. She had left longtime label Atlantic Records after disappointing sales of 2004's "Afrodisiac," her fourth CD, and was contemplating a career switch.

She reunited with longtime producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jenkins, linked up with Epic Records and co-wrote some of the album's most personal songs, including the title track, on which she sings: "I make mistakes but I can't turn back time, I'm only human, forgive me."

So far, her comeback has been solid, though not huge. She has had a respectable showing on the charts and "Right Here (Departed)" has gotten consistent radio play.

"Human" is out now.