MUSIC NEWS: THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2015
STREAMING MUSIC
It's adios, Songza. Nearly a year and a half after Google acquired the popular music streaming service, the technology company will shut it down as of January 31st, choosing to integrate Songza's popular Concierge playlist features into its own Google Play Music. The move comes as Google looks to step up its game in the increasingly competitive streaming music industry. Google Play Music, which has only been available in the past as a paid subscription service, will now also have a free version supported by advertisements in Canada.
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OBIT - CYNTHIA ROBINSON - SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE
Sly and the Family Stone trumpeter and singer Cynthia Robinson has died. Sax player Jerry Martini says Robinson died of cancer November 23rd at her sister's home in Carmichael, California. Robinson was 71. She's the one on the song ``Dance To The Music'' who yells at the beginning, ``Get up and dance to the music!'' and later in the song says, ``All the squares, go home!''
Robinson was one of the first black female trumpet players to rise to national prominence. Sly and the Family Stone's other hits include ``Family Affair,'' ''Hot Fun in The Summertime`` and ''Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again).`` Martini says he was present when Robinson. He says Robinson ''didn't consider herself a great soloist, but she was.``
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BATACLAN - REOPENS
The directors of the Paris concert hall where gunmen killed 89 people during an Eagles Of Death Metal concert last month are promising to reopen. Jules Frutos tells Le Monde, ``It's necessary to see the doors open again'' at the Bataclan. Olivier Poubelle says the hall should not be turned into a mausoleum or a pilgrimage site. Frutos and Poubelle say they intend to open by the end of next year. Eagles of Death Metal frontman Jesse Hughes told Vice he wants to be the first band to play at the Bataclan when it opens again.
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CHRIS BROWN - TOUR
Chris Brown has cancelled his tour of Australia and New Zealand after Australian authorities warned him they would probably refuse his visa. Australia's immigration department declined to say whether Brown's visa was refused, citing privacy concerns. However, in September, it had issued Brown a ``notice of intention to consider refusal,'' based on his criminal conviction for assaulting Rihanna is 2009. Brown had intended to play one show in Auckland, New Zealand. Immigration officials there say Brown withdrew his visa application before they could rule on it. Brown also cancelled his appearance on last night's ``Daily Show'' at the last minute, but Comedy Central would not say why.
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JOURNEY - NEAL SCHON - SETTLEMENT
Journey guitarist Neal Schon has won a fight against the city of San Francisco over his wedding. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a 290-thousand dollar payout to Schon. He and his wife, Michaele Salahi of ``Real Housewives of D.C.,'' held their December 2013 wedding at the Palace of Fine Arts and an adjacent building.
Schon said he agreed to pay the city 58-thousand dolllars for the use of the buildings. He says days before the wedding, the price went up to 240-thousand dollars when the city found out the wedding was on pay-per-view. The couple sued in February.
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TAYLOR SWIFT - INSTAGRAM
Taylor Swift owns five of the 10 most popular photos on Instagram of the past year, and three of those are with her cat. Her photos of roses from Kanye West, one with boyfriend Calvin Harris and three with her cat Meredith were among the most-liked Instagram photos of 2015. Kendall Jenner lying on the floor with her hair swirled in the shape of hearts was the most-liked photo of the year, with more than 3.2 million. Other photos in the top 10 include Beyonce's formal portrait with her daughter, Blue Ivy, and Selena Gomez's selfie in her favourite sweatshirt in a car.
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OSCAR - DOCUMENTARIES - CONSIDERATIONS
Films about Amy Winehouse and Nina Simone and one by Laurie Anderson have made the short list for Oscar consideration for best documentary. The movies ``Amy'' and ``What Happened, Miss Simone?'' are two of 15 films on the list, along with ``Heart of a Dog,'' Anderson's ode to her late dog, Lolabelle. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences says 124 documentaries were submitted. Five nominees will be announced on January 14th. The Oscars are February 28th.
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G-EAZY - YOUNG ARTISTS
G-Eazy's advice for aspiring rappers: giving him your mixtape is not going to make you a star. G-Eazy says the music business is no longer built around people getting their music into the right hands and their lives change instantly. He says musicians who want to make it big will have a better chance creating at home with affordable tools and sharing their music online. G-Eazy is one who will be listening. He says he's always on blogs checking out new music and there's a great joy in discovering new artists that way.
G-Eazy's album, ``When It's Dark Out,'' comes out tomorrow.
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KEITH URBAN - EXHIBIT
When Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum staffers asked Keith Urban for help with putting together an exhibit about him, Urban pointed them to his attic and to his mom. That was the extent of his involvement. Urban had not seen the exhibit until it opened this week, and some of the items are things he had not seen since his childhood. He says his daughters will probably laugh at the strange clothes he wore as a kid. Urban says a lot has changed since he came to Nashville, and he's glad he was naive about it all. He says it's better that he didn't know how long it would take to make his name there. The exhibit ``Keith Urban: So Far'' runs through May 16th.
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SEBASTIAN BACH - MEMOIR
Sebastian Bach is writing his life story. Bach tells Billboard his autobiography, ``18 and Life on Skid Row,'' will include ``all that I could put in without getting arrested...again.'' It comes out April 12th.
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(The Associated Press)
