music

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Napster Just Sold for $207M
Napster Just Sold for $207M
Mar 26, 2025 11:10 AM CDT

Napster Just Sold for $207M

Tech startup hopes to transform the service once known for music piracy into a social music platform

(Newser) - A brand that was notoriously connected to music piracy before reemerging as a subscription music service has been sold to Infinite Reality for $207 million. The tech startup announced Tuesday it had bought Napster in hopes of transforming the streaming service into a social music platform where artists can connect...

R. Kelly: 'I've Written Like 25 Albums' in Prison

Rapper serving 30-year sentence sings on podcast, says bursting out in song is his 'uncurable' disease

(Newser) - From the J6 Prison Choir's songwriting to Sam Bankman-Fried's chess play , it sounds like our most headline-making prisoners are finding ways to stay entertained while behind bars. R. Kelly has emerged as the latest incarcerated Renaissance man, revealing that he's been spending his free time in North...

King Charles Reveals His Playlist
Get Ready for
DJ King Charles
Mar 7, 2025 11:47 AM CST

Get Ready for DJ King Charles

Monarch celebrates Commonwealth Day with his playlist of favorite songs via Apple Music

(Newser) - Watch out, Barack —Chuck now has his own playlist to recommend to the masses. Commonwealth Day is on Monday, and the British monarch decided to celebrate in advance by revealing the tunes he's got on loop, reports the Guardian . Apple Music on Friday introduced The King's Music ...

Some of UK's Biggest Musicians Release Silent Album

It was released to protest proposed copyright law changes that benefit AI companies

(Newser) - Some of the biggest names in the British music industry have joined forces to release an album without any music. Kate Bush, Damon Albarn, and Annie Lennox are among more than 1,000 artists behind a silent album called Is This What We Want?, reports the BBC . It was released...

These Great Albums Each Claim a So-So Song

The Police's 'Mother,' from Synchronicity , tops Rolling Stone ?'s ranking as worst of the bunch

(Newser) - Much like a pitcher who screws up his perfect game in the ninth, there's nothing more frustrating than that almost-impeccable album that blows its streak with just one mediocre song—or, as Andy Greene puts it for Rolling Stone , a song that "sucks to such a profound degree...

This Year's Rock Hall Nominations Include 8 Newbies

Phish and OutKast among them

(Newser) - Mariah Carey, Chubby Checker, Cyndi Lauper, OutKast, and Phish are some the 2025 nominees for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, a list that also includes two sets of musical brothers who've had public feuds and recent reunions—the Black Crowes and Oasis. The Hall revealed...

10 Songs That Define David Lynch's Musical Legacy

Late film director also left his imprint in the musical world

(Newser) - The loss of visionary filmmaker David Lynch is also felt in the world of music, where he had inextricable influence on multiple generations of artists. Lynch composed music for many of his films, collaborated with others, directed music videos, released albums, and inspired legions of creatives. Learn about his musical...

Airports Are Starting to Take Their Music Seriously

Travel hubs tap into local artists, curated playlists to soothe angsty travelers

(Newser) - Background music is no longer an afterthought at many airports, which are hiring local musicians and carefully curating playlists to help lighten travelers' moods. London's Heathrow Airport built a stage to showcase emerging British performers for the first time this summer, reports the AP . Nashville International Airport has five...

Internet's 'Most Mysterious Song' Finally Identified
'Most Mysterious Song'
Finally Identified
in case you missed it
Nov 9, 2024 6:00 AM CST

'Most Mysterious Song' Finally Identified

The German band that recorded it in the '80s is getting back together

(Newser) - One of the internet's longest-running song mysteries has finally been cracked—and the band behind it is getting back together. It all started when a German man taped a song off the radio in the early '80s but never wrote the name down, I FLScience reports. In 2007,...

175 Years After His Death, New Music From Chopin

Unknown waltz believed to have been penned by the composer discovered in New York

(Newser) - An unknown waltz believed to have been written almost 200 years ago by the legendary composer Frederic Chopin has been discovered in a New York museum. Robinson McClellan, a curator at the Morgan Library & Museum, came upon the music on a card bearing Chopin's name inside a vault...

Stevie Nicks: This 'May Be the Most Important Thing I Ever Do'

Singer releases new 'anthem' in response to Roe v. Wade reversal

(Newser) - Stevie Nicks' first new single in years comes out of an angry place. After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, "people were saying 'What can we, as a collective force, do about this?'" Nicks writes in a press release. For her, it was writing...

The Cure's First New Music in 16 Years Is On the Way

New album will reportedly follow single 'Alone,' out Thursday

(Newser) - Six years after teasing new music, The Cure is finally ready. The new single, "Alone," representing the band's first new music in 16 years, will premiere on BBC Radio 6 before its release at 7am ET Thursday, per Pitchfork . Hear a snippet here . The Guardian describes it...

Obama Drops His Summer Reading, Music Lists

Former president is having a 'brat' summer with Charli XCX's '365,' among other tunes

(Newser) - With the year's warmest weather heading into its final stretch, former President Obama has dropped his summer song and reading lists. "With summer winding down, I wanted to share some songs that I've been listening to lately—and it wouldn't be my playlist if it didn'...

She Just Drew Lollapalooza's Biggest Crowd Ever

Chappell Roan continues her 'meteoric rise'

(Newser) - It's the summer of Chappell Roan. The 26-year-old pop star has had a "meteoric rise" over the last few months, with single "Good Luck, Babe!" climbing the charts and the earlier "Femininomenon" taking over social media, CNN reports. And now, Roan appears to have drawn...

Think Pop Song Melodies Seem Simpler? They Are
Pop Songs Have
Changed in a Big Way
Since the '50s
NEW STUDY
Jul 27, 2024 5:30 AM CDT

Pop Songs Have Changed in a Big Way Since the '50s

Researchers find melody complexity has dropped big time, with simpler rhythms and pitch

(Newser) - If you've ever seen the viral clip of popular radio tunes that all use the same four chords , this latest study will, well ... strike a chord. The research published earlier this month in the journal Scientific Reports isn't about chords per se, but about rhythm and pitch—both...

One of the Oak Ridge Boys Has Died
One of the Oak Ridge Boys
Has Died
obituary
Jul 9, 2024 2:33 PM CDT

One of the Oak Ridge Boys Has Died

Tenor Joe Bonsall was 76

(Newser) - Joe Bonsall, Grammy award winner and celebrated tenor of the country and gospel group the Oak Ridge Boys, died Tuesday at age 76. Bonsall died from complications of the neuromuscular disorder Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease, according to a statement from his family, per the AP .
  • A
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His Band Created 'One of the Anthems of the 2000s'
His Band Created 'One
of the Anthems of the 2000s'
obituary
Jun 25, 2024 12:32 PM CDT

His Band Created 'One of the Anthems of the 2000s'

Shifty Shellshock, 49, rapped on 'Butterfly' with his group Crazy Town

(Newser) - The lead singer of the band behind the song "Butterfly" —described by Deadline as "one of the anthems of the 2000s"—has died at age 49. The singer known as Shifty Shellshock (real name Seth Binzer) co-founded the rap-rock group Crazy Town in the mid-1990s with...

Big-Time Hitmaker Accused of Raping His Protege

Lawsuit accuses 'Single Ladies' songwriter The-Dream of physical, psychological abuse

(Newser) - A music producer responsible for some of the biggest pop hits of the last two decades, including Rihanna's "Umbrella" and Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," has been hit with rape allegations. The-Dream, an eight-time Grammy winner who also worked on Justin Bieber'...

He Transformed Hip-Hop From the 'Tame'
He Was One of
Hip-Hop's 'Early
Provocateurs'
OBITUARY
Jun 4, 2024 1:42 PM CDT

He Was One of Hip-Hop's 'Early Provocateurs'

2 Live Crew member Brother Marquis dead at 58

(Newser) - Influential hip-hop group 2 Live Crew has lost an integral member. Brother Marquis, whose real name was Mark Ross, died at age 58, the group announced Monday on social media. A cause of death wasn't provided. Brother Marquis was one of the most notable members of the Miami hip-hop...

Eurovision Contestant Booted Right Before Finale

Joost Klein of the Netherlands was removed over a backstage incident now being investigation

(Newser) - A Dutch public broadcaster reacted angrily after the Netherlands' contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest was dramatically expelled from the competition hours before Saturday's final over a backstage incident that's being investigated by police. The European Broadcasting Union, which organizes Eurovision, said Swedish police were investigating "a...

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