"There is nothing I could write in this book or tell you that would help you get to know me," writes Sinead O'Connor in her new memoir, REMEMBERINGS (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 304 pp., $28). "It is all in the songs."
Like her recordings, O'Connor's book often veers between defiance and pain. She rejoices as she remembers first getting her head shaved. "I loved it. I looked like an alien. Looked like 'Star Trek.' Didn't matter what I wore now." But several longer set pieces recount terrifying encounters in vivid detail: one with Prince at his Los Angeles home that ended with her running away from him on foot onto a highway (apparently Prince was angry at her for signing on with his former manager).
In 1979, Jones — with jazzy chords, lowlife stories and post-beatnik glamour — exploded onto the scene, winning the best new artist Grammy and getting dubbed "The Duchess of Coolsville" in Time magazine. But the fully realized universe of her self-titled debut album (and its smash single "Chuck E's in Love") blossomed out of decades of chaos and disorder, tangled up with excitement and experience.
Jones was born in Chicago; her mother had been raised an orphan, and her father was the son of vaudeville performers. They were certainly unequipped for parenthood — often absent, sometimes abusive — yet she (like O'Connor) is both forgiving and understanding, aware of all they offered her as well as the ways they fell short. The family moved to Arizona when she was 4 and then remained in perpetual motion, which soon manifested in her own dangerous, frequently terrifying youthful adventures — the subject of most of the book. She repeatedly runs away, at one point moving into a commune located in a California cave at age 14, and is constantly getting tossed into juvenile halls and jail cells.
"Last Chance Texaco," named for one of the memorable songs on that first album, also offers accounts of her problematic romances with Tom Waits, Lowell George and Dr. John. Musicians are trouble, but it's music (starting with childhood obsessions with "West Side Story" and Laura Nyro) that provides her stability. She has a breakthrough writing the stunning ballad "Company" — "a visceral, tortuous process … these were pure feelings as airy and unrooted as a color or a tingle."
Rickie Lee Jones and Sinead O'Connor would find themselves among kindred spirits in Lesley Chow's YOU'RE HISTORY: The Twelve Strangest Women in Music (Repeater, 147 pp., paper, $14.95). The slim, sharp book considers a range of female artists from Janet Jackson and Taylor Swift to TLC and Nicki Minaj, a group that the Australian cultural critic Chow views as "outliers, marking moments where the culture might have swerved to incorporate their influence, but somehow contrived not to."
Chow makes the case for some of her subjects more convincingly than others, and a few of the women — Kate Bush, Shakespears Sister — resonate far greater in the U.K. than they do stateside. (The subtitle is also an unnecessary distraction.) But she consistently delivers observations that are bracingly smart and original: that Taylor Swift is "as enamored with fashion as Fitzgerald was," that "Rihanna doesn't so much sing as bluntly bat at the sound," that Janet Jackson's best music is defined by a "fascinating tension between rigor and relaxation."
"You're History" displays the importance of these details, but they're in service of a greater point, which is to try to grasp music's mysterious and unknowable essence. "The best pop songs are not 'universal,' but unaccountably specific in their detail," she writes, noting elsewhere that to comprehend a song "involves trying to digest the emotional meaning of sounds — something that criticism has historically been reluctant to do." Chow writes often of the wordless elements of singing, musing early in the book that the story of pop could be told as a history of the "oohs" in songs — leading, inevitably and delightfully, to the appendix: "The Greatest 'Oohs' in Modern Music."
"The raga's relationship to the world was different from Western music's," he explains, right down to the very notion of its creation; "you can't compose a raga because ragas have no composers in the conventional sense — they are 'found' material turned into fluid and imperishable forms by the culture." Chaudhuri's mother was a prominent singer, and he comes to find that the ubiquity and functionality of Indian music led to it being underappreciated, and that his embrace of this tradition was nothing short of "revolutionary."
UCF Professor Gives Gift of Music to Underserved Students
All the kids that A Gift For Music serves attend an Orange County Title I elementary, middle or high school or qualify for free or reduced lunch.
"I know the power of music," he says. "It can keep kids in school who may otherwise fall off the map."
Over the past four years, he's spent most of his Saturdays conducting free orchestra practice for about 100 students. Behind the scenes, though, he's orchestrated much more; he's also created a seamless pipeline from UCF to A Gift For Music.
He teaches college students and then places them in instructor roles in the program, where students learn how to play string instruments. It's a win-win; students earn pay and real-world experience, and the organization has an endless pipeline of eager instructors who help expose the younger students to college – something that children from underserved communities don't always have.
"The chance to learn from Chung and give back to A Gift For Music is one of the reasons I'm going to UCF for graduate school in the fall." — Cesar Olmeda
"The chance to learn from Chung and give back to A Gift For Music is one of the reasons I'm going to UCF for graduate school in the fall," says Cesar Olmeda, a bass player, who got involved with A Gift For Music when he was in third grade at Ventura Elementary School. "Without A Gift For Music, I wouldn't be where I am right now as a musician."
Olmeda entered A Gift For Music as a violin player. He was introduced to bass as he progressed from the free after-school weekday music lessons to the Saturday orchestra practices. He is just one of hundreds of students that A Gift For Music has seen go on to college.
About 90 percent of graduates of A Gift For Music go to college, says Park, even though students from Title I schools — where at least 40 percent of students are from low-income families — are less likely to advance beyond high school. In 2016, about 20 percent of dependent undergraduate students in the United States were from low-income families, according to the Pew Research Center .
"A Gift For Music provides a sense of security for these kids. It's a place where they can talk about ambitions, good grades and can be around like-minded people," Park says.
Marion focuses on familiar food, music for the summer | WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather
MARION, Va. (WJHL) – The Town of Marion is shaping up for an active summer with a confirmation of two July concerts and multiple other events in the works.
The largest change announced in the post was a shifting focus to flagship food challenges as COVID-19 restrictions on food tasting are relaxed. The town’s famous Chili Cookoff will take place in a later event on October 9.
October will be an “all-Marion roster” featuring Jason Byrd, Morrison and Perkins, Crowe Hollerers, Jarid Reedy, HB Beverly, Blue Moon featuring the David Brothers and Michael Shawn Brown.
The post stated that more information and media is to follow, but those curious can contact Heath at 276-378-5026 in the meantime.
Officers pulled over 24-year-old Karen Garcia Euceda, of Winston-Salem, in Durham Tuesday. Authorities said she was the subject of an ongoing investigation.
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -Tonight at 12:01AM, all social distancing and capacity restrictions are ending in Virginia, though masks will still be required in certain places.
Gov. Ralph Northam originally proposed a June 15 effective date for his updated executive order but he later decided to move up that timeline by two weeks.
New cases by county: Carter +1, Greene +5, Hawkins +9, Johnson +4, Sullivan +20, Unicoi 0, and Washington +10.
Things to do in Chicago for music fans - Chicago Sun-Times
What: Tuesdays on the Terrace returns to the Museum of Contemporary Art's outdoor sculpture garden. The popular jazz concert series features an array of Chicago jazz musiciansFirst up on June 1 is Alexis Lombre's Ancestral Awakenings. Free with advance reservations. Visit mcachicago.org .
More information: Get ready for some furious fingerpicking and perfect harmonies when the Chicago bluegrass band Henhouse Prowlers celebrates the release of a new album "The Departure" with four shows at City Winery.
What: The final online event of the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra's season includes Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" and Eric Ewazen's Symphony in Brass, Valerie Coleman's "Portrait of Josephine" and Joan Tower's "Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman No. 1," which is often viewed as a feminist counterpoint to the Copland work of similar name.
What: Lollapalooza returns to Grant Park July 29-Aug. 1 with Foo Fighters, Post Malone, Tyler, the Creator, Miley Cyrus, Dababy, Marchmello, Journey, Megan Thee Stallion, Roddy Ricch, Kaytranada and more. $375+/festival pass. Visit lollapalooza.com .
What: The Pitchfork Music Festival returns to Union Park, 1501 W. Randolph. Performers include Erykah Badu Phoebe Bridgers, St. Vincent, The Fiery Furnaces, Angel Olsen, Kim Gordon Waxahatchee, Flying Lotus, Thundercat and more.
What: Riot Fest is back, this year with Nine Inch Nails, The Smashing Pumpkins, Run the Jewels, Pixies, Faith No More, Devo, Lupe Fiasco and more.
Like 'Booksmart,' the sharp-witted film boasts breakthrough performances and a funny, feminist spin.
That one proposal by Mayor Lightfoot sticks out like a sore thumb in her otherwise pro-business pandemic relief initiative.
U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood ordered Venkatesh Bhogireddy taken into custody shortly after jurors convicted him on five of six counts.
Today I learned the PS5's controller can buzz along to your music on Spotify - The Verge
The DualSense controller for PS5 has great haptic feedback for games like Returnal and Demon's Souls . But today I found out that it's also good at humming along to tunes on Spotify when plugged into a PC.
While browsing Reddit, I stumbled across an ancient thread from six months ago where a user explained that, by plugging in a DualSense and tweaking a few settings, the device's built-in haptics motors will do their best to play your music from the Spotify app on Windows 10. If you press your ear to the controller, it's like listening into the world's smallest rave ever, perhaps with a few Astro Bots in attendance.
I assume you just ran to go get your controller to try this out — because that's the same reaction that I had. Okay, but first lower your expectations before you get started. The haptics likely won't blow you away, as they aren't tuned for this particular use case — this is just for fun!
How to watch the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards
Singing their way into our hearts, the songs and artists we clung to most during this wild year will be revealed Thursday night.
The eighth-annual iHeartRadio Music Awards will be a star-studded event to celebrate the most played artists and songs on iHeartRadio stations and the iHeartRadio app throughout 2020.
After a year of learning TikTok dances while trapped indoors, this year will see the first-ever TikTok Bop of the Year Award.
The Weeknd, who was infamously snubbed by the Grammys and vowed to boycott them forever , is nominated six times.
After winning Best New Artist at the Grammys, Megan Thee Stallion has the most iHeartRadio nominations with eight nominations.
The red carpet pre-show is hosted by Elvis Duran along with co-hosts Amy Brown, Maxwell and Emily Curl.
The Weeknd, Post Malone, Dua Lipa, DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch and Harry Styles are nominated for Song of the Year.
Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Dua Lipa, Megan Thee Stallion and Taylor Swift are nominated for Female Artist of the Year.
COVID-friendly concerts: German music festival tries out new concept | Culture| Arts, music and
Organizers of the Rheingau Music Festival, slated to start in late June, have come up with new ideas to hold concerts keeping COVID-19 restrictions in mind.
For a year now, the Rheingau Music Festival organizers have been preparing for the 2021 season — and not just musically. Exactly one year ago, the festival had to be canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Canceling for the second year running was out of the question, and so the organizers immediately began to work out how a festival could go ahead despite the pandemic.
Since 1987, the Rheingau Music Festival , of which DW is a partner, has been enriching the European festival scene with top-class concerts, including classical, pop and jazz music. Marsilius von Ingelheim, managing director of the festival, describes its special charm: "It is the combination of music, historical venues and the fascinating landscape, which is famous for its Riesling wines." In other words, a place where one could sip a glass of wine while listening to good music.
However, many of the historical venues high above the vineyards are too small to accommodate enough audiences given the COVID restrictions. This is also the case with one of the most popular venues for concerts at the Rheingau: the Fürst von Metternich Hall in the Johannisberg castle. Director General Michael Hermann did not want to exclude this venue, which offers an expansive view of the Rhine Valley. He therefore commissioned an architectural firm to design a mobile cube, which would meet all acoustic and visual requirements. Work on the cube, which will be constructed directly next to the castle, is due to start in the first week of June.
"We have built one of the biggest mobile concert halls in Europe: a cube for around 1,000 visitors that has been specially developed for concerts," says von Ingelheim in a conversation with DW. The cube, made of wood, glass and metal, will be used above all, to present chamber music to newcomers, which is a highlight at the festival.
Visually, lighting effects will be used to change the colors within the cube. The seating arrangements meet social distancing requirements and 500 visitors can be accommodated at a time. Seats further away from the stage are positioned higher to afford visitors a good view.
The most important is, of course, the acoustics in the 45 by 20-meter space. "It's not a big tent like at other events, but a fixed room with adjustable acoustic panels on the walls, which can be aligned for acoustic optimization depending on the requirements," Ingelheim explains. The special walls reflect the sound right up to the last row.
The new cube is not the only attractive concert venue with sufficient space. Even historical places like the Kurhaus of Wiesbaden or the Eberbach Abbey will be hosting shows. Stars like Canadian jazz musician and pianist Chilly Gonzales, and Georgian pianist Khatia Buniatishvili will be playing at the Kurhaus Wiesbaden. Buniatishvili is the "Artist in Residence" at this year's Rheingau Music Festival.
Both the Spanish cellist Pablo Ferrandez as well as the clarinettist Annelien Van Wauwe and the Camerata Salzburg ensemble will be playing at the Eberbach Abbey. Instead of one concert with a fully packed hall, there will be two concerts a day with half the number of visitors that can be accommodated at these venues in normal circumstances.
10 AAPI Executives Making an Impact in the Music Industry - Variety
As the world trains its attention on members of the AAPI community who are are making a difference, Variety is putting a spotlight on 10 executives from the music business who are helping lead the way into an era of greater representation and awareness — on top of just navigating the industry through its own upheaval. Here are 10 key execs for the likes of YouTube, ASCAP, CAA, Endeavor, Warner Music Group, Interscope Geffen A&M, Epic Records, TaP Music Group, Beggars Group and Cashmere Agency who are proudly setting the standard:
Eric Wong is noting a gradual shift. He says, “There has been relatively little AAPI representation in the music industry, but in recent years, we have begun to see that changing. Not only can this be seen in the AAPI artists who are breaking through to new markets across the globe, but also with professionals who make up a field that’s more diverse than we have ever seen before in our industry. I’m honored to be a part of that progress and help create real, lasting change.”
Wong, who held internships at WEA Media and Atlantic Records before being hired by V2 Records in 1997, says it was challenging to walk into a room and not see a reflection of himself in senior positions. He felt like he didn’t belong. But that didn’t stop him. “I’m still here, and I’m making sure I lift up those who come after me. I’m proud to have built a long and successful career that has granted me the opportunity to work with some of the greatest artists in music history – including Jay-Z, Kanye, Rihanna, Shawn Mendes, Elton John, Mariah Carey, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, to name a few.” He adds, “In my post at Warner, I’m excited to be a part of an amazing team working to make a global impact and elevate incredible talent like Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, and Saweetie.”
Miwa Okumura strives to be a role model for her younger colleagues in the AAPI community and continues to do outreach. Part of making an impact, she says, is “strengthening my professional relationships that go back to the early ’90s. I’m very pleased to say that it’s a bigger and more vibrant scene, and ever-growing, on both the label side as well as the creative side.”
With DJ Shadow, Ellie Goulding and Dua Lipa on the roster, Ong says, “The only thing that matters to me at the end of the day is making my family proud. My parents have seen me through a lot of tough disappointments over the course of my career. I certainly didn’t set out to work at so many different companies but finding one that actually supports me and gives me credit when it’s due – that’s been hard to come by. This is why I feel immensely proud to work for Tap Music, because Ben Mawson and Ed Millett are, in my mind, the best in class at artist management and genuinely care about people and making positive change.”
Stephanie Yu- Executive Vice President and Head of Business & Legal Affairs at Epic Records
In March of 2020, Stephanie Yu was boosted to EVP and head of business and legal affairs by Epic’s chairwoman-CEO, Sylvia Rhone. The position has her tasked with leading the label’s new brand marketing and sync licensing group. Yu has been with Sony Music for 16 years now, 11 at Epic, after beginning her legal career in 2002 at the firm Covington & Burling. after graduating with honors from the University of Chicago Law School. There, she was awarded the Bell, Boyd & Lloyd Prize for legal writing.
Rhone said last year that Yu is “widely respected throughout Epic and Sony Music for her all-encompassing knowledge, consummate professionalism, and mastery of the most intricate aspects of the Business & Legal Affairs sector, which she has successfully navigated for more than a decade. Her experience working with the industry’s biggest artists and their representatives suitably positions her to oversee these new initiatives.”
Says Yu: “I’m proud to be a member of the AAPI community, but I also believe that a sign of equality will be when these questions are no longer asked. My hope is that a successful person is seen as a representative of the industry as a whole, regardless of race.
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