MUSIC NEWS: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2015
ALICE COOPER, JOE PERRY - BRAZIL - HEARING AIDS
Alice Cooper and Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry are making good for all the hearing they've blown out over the years.
Cooper and Perry, along with Johnny Depp, helped fit customized hearing devices for 218 residents of Rio de Janeiro at the Rock in Rio music festival on Thursday. Perry says the impact on the lives of the children who now can hear is ``astounding.'' Cooper jokes maybe the people who can now hear should start listening to music that's a little lighter and work up to his music. The Starkey Hearing Foundation sponsored the hearing devices. Cooper, Perry and Depp performed as Hollywood Vampires at Rock in Rio.
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SHAKIRA - FISHER-PRICE
Shakira believes toys can be empowering to children, not a way to spoil them. Shakira says a child's primary obligation is to play, and a toy can be a tool to help a child discover the world. She has teamed with Fisher-Price for a line of children's educational toys and an app to assist teachers. Shakira has been a longtime supporter of education initiatives and now that she's a mother, she's amped that up. She says she sends messages with ideas for improvements all day to her son's school principal and the principal has got to be sick of her by now.
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TEMPE MUSIC FESTIVAL - STAMPEDE
Authorities in Tempe, Arizona, say as many as 12 people were taken to hospitals after a crowd surged toward the stage at the Summer Ends Music Festival on Saturday. The Arizona Republic reports fans rushed the stage and caused a crush during reggae band Rebelution's set around 7 p.m. Temperatures had gotten as high as 105 degrees that day. The promoter, Lucky Man Concerts, pulled the plug on Rebelution to deal with what it called a medical emergency, but the music resumed a short time later. Other performers that day included J. Cole, Slightly Stoopid, Big Sean and G-Eazy.
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GLOBAL CITIZEN FESTIVAL - COLLABORATIONS
The Global Citizen Festival in New York over the weekend was a nice reward for people who have done good deeds. The fact that they got to see interesting musical collaborations was a bonus. Fans earned free tickets by taking action to defeat global poverty. Beyonce' and Ed Sheeran teamed up on her song ``Drunk in Love.'' Beyonce performed with Eddie Vedder, Sting sang with Common, and Ariana Grande sang with Coldplay. Other celebrities who appeared include Stephen Colbert, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, Hugh Jackman, Leonardo DiCaprio and Bono.
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TOMORROWWORLD FESTIVAL
Organizers of the three-day TomorrowWorld electronic dance music festival limited entry yesterday because of the effects of bad weather. Festival officials say the heavy rainfall of the past few days messed up the parking fields, drop-off locations and shuttle system at the site in Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia. Yesterday the festival allowed access only to those who had camped onsite. David Guetta was yesterday's headliner.
Refund information will be announced later.
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DAVID CASSIDY - HOUSE SALE
A bankruptcy court has approved the sale of David Cassidy's house for just over 2-million dollars.
Details of the buyer were not released. Cassidy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year. He bought the 7,000-square-foot house in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for 1.1-million in 2001. The sale of the house should close within 30 days.
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MUSICIANS SING FOR THE POPE
Aretha Franklin had hopes to surprise Pope Francis by singing ``Nessun Dorma'' as an encore during the Festival of Families in Philadelphia on Saturday. Unfortunately, he left by the time she returned to the stage. He did get to hear her sing ``Amazing Grace,'' though. Sister Sledge changed the words of ``We Are Family'' to ``I've got all my sisters and brothers with me,'' and they referred to Jesus as ``the way, the truth, the light.''
Other performers include The Fray, Andrea Bocelli, Columbia pop star Juanes and folk singer Marie Miller. Mark Wahlberg was the host.
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FETTY WAP - TRAFFIC ACCIDENT
Fetty Wap has received three summonses after he was injured in a motorcycle crash in his hometown of Paterson, New Jersey. Paterson Police Director Jerry Speziale says Wap has been cited for driving without a license, not having insurance and failing to produce a vehicle registration card. Wap's motorcycle collided with a car Saturday afternoon. He was hospitalized but his injuries are not considered life-threatening.
The woman driving the car was not injured and was not identified.
Wap just released his self-titled debut album on Friday.
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DMX - FREE
D-M-X is out of jail. His lawyer, Dominic Candino, says a judge granted a stay on D-M-X's sentence which allowed him to leave a jail in Buffalo, New York, on Friday. D-M-X had served more than two months in jail for failing to pay child support. Candino says D-M-X is ``ecstatic'' about his release and still must deal with some legal issues, but Candino did not elaborate. D-M-X will have a court appearance in November.
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KELLY CLARKSON CANCELS CONCERTS FOR 2015
Kelly Clarkson will have to be quiet longer than she had anticipated. Clarkson had planned to return to performing on Thursday after doctors ordered her to vocal rest. Now she's called off all her concerts for the rest of the year because she must continue resting her voice. The dates affected are across Canada and the U-K.
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KENNY ROGERS - FINAL TOUR
Kenny Rogers thinks maybe it's time to settle down a bit. Rogers announced on N-B-C'S ``Today'' show on Friday that he's going to retire from touring. Rogers plans to launch a farewell tour next year. The dates will be announced in the coming months. In the meantime, Rogers has released his sixth holiday album, called ``Once Again It's Christmas.''
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RICK ROSS - COUNTERSUIT
Rick Ross has filed a countersuit against two landscapers who claim Ross attacked them. Landscapers Jonathan Zamudio and Leonardo Caceres sued Ross last month, claiming he stormed into his guest house, where they were living, and beat them with a gun. Ross' countersuit says the two men were not supposed to be living on his property. Ross also disputes the beating allegations and says their lawsuit is an extortion attempt.
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CHRIS BROWN - AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT
The Australian government has formally warned Chris Brown his tour there will probably not happen because he will likely be denied a visa. The Australian immigration department has informed Brown he has 28 days to present evidence supporting why he should be allowed to enter the country. Just last week, former Immigration Minister Michaelia Cash had recommended Brown be denied entry into the country because of his criminal conviction for beating up Rihanna in 2009. Brown's tour was supposed to begin in December. The immigration department will decide after the 28-day period whether to grant Brown a visa. Brown's publicist was unavailable for comment. Britain, Canada and New Zealand have refused to give Brown visas.
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EDDIE MONTGOMERY'S SON DIES
The 19-year-old son of Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry has died. His spokeswoman says in a statement Montgomery's son Hunter died yesterday after an accident that put him on life support in a Kentucky hospital. Details of what happened are being withheld until the family is ready to release them.
Montgomery thanks fans for their support and asks for privacy.
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RANDY TRAVIS MAKES APPEARANCE AT GRAND OLE OPRY
Randy Travis has returned to the Opry. The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville has posted photos of Travis' surprise appearance there on Friday. Travis did not perform but he did appear on stage with Tanya Tucker. Travis suffered a stroke two years ago that affected his power to speak.
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(The Associated Press)