MUSIC NEWS: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2017
JASON ALDEAN - ON STAGE
Country star Jason Aldean brought the party back yesterday, but the fun was tempered. Three songs into his show in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he launched into a five-minute speech honouring the 58 killed including four Canadians and nearly 500 hurt when a gunman opened fire in Las Vegas as he was performing on stage.
Aldean took a defiant tone as he in telling concertgoers to resist living in fear, and he called for more of the national unity he's seen since the attack. Fans pumped their fists and held up American flags as Aldean continued. Aldean cancelled shows in California last week to mourn those killed Oct. 1st at the outdoor Route 91 festival.
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CMT - ``ARTISTS OF THE YEAR''
One of the C-M-T Artists of the Year says the right song at the right moment can bring everyone together, even when things are their darkest. Chris Stapleton says the tragedy of the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas nearly two weeks ago is still fresh, but musicians need to keep making music and he can't let fear win. The ``Artists of the Year'' special is changing its format this year to focus on hope and healing, rather than the achievements of the artists. Stapleton, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Keith Urban and Florida Georgia Line were already announced as honourees. They all agreed to the program changes. The show will air live from Nashville next Wednesday.
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DEMI LOVATO - ``SIMPLY COMPLICATED''
Demi Lovato has been honest about her personal demons. She still was not prepared to see herself dealing with them in the film ``Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated.'' Lovato says she opens up about struggles that she still deals with today and it was hard to watch herself so vulnerable. The film chronicles the making of her ``Tell Me You Love Me'' album. Lovato says the cool part is fans can see her triumphs as well as her weaknesses. The film premieres on YouTube on Tuesday.
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``DESPACITO'' - YOUTUBE VIEWS
Remember in August when the video for ``Despacito'' hit the unheard-of milestone of three-billion YouTube views? It just added another one-billion more. The Luis Fonsi-Daddy Yankee version of the video crossed the four-billion mark this week.
That does not include views of the Justin Bieber remix video, which has 548-million views. Fonsi writes on Instagram instead of celebrating, they are focusing on rebuilding the place where it all started. The video was shot in Puerto Rico, which is rebuilding after being devastated by hurricane Maria.
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PRINCE'S SISTERS - MASTER TAPES
Two of Prince's sisters are angry that one of the most valuable assets he left behind has been moved from his Paisley Park studio outside Minneapolis. Sharon and Norrine Nelson say they want the master tapes of his unreleased music to be returned. They say Comerica, the executor of the estate, did not tell them why the music was taken or where, but they believe the tapes are in California. Comerica says an entertainment storage and archive company, Iron Mountain Entertainment Services, was chosen to preserve the tapes. Comerica says it discussed the issues with Prince's heirs four separate times.
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AMAS - NOMINATIONS
Bruno Mars says he woke up yesterday ``feelin like a pop/rock/adult contemporary/RnB/soul...superstar!'' Mars leads the nominations for the American Music Awards with eight and his nominations cover all those genres. He'll compete for artist of the year against The Chainsmokers, Canadian rap artist Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Ed Sheeran. None of them have ever won that award. The A-M-A's will be Nov. 19th in Los Angeles and shown live on A-B-C.
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(The Associated Press)
