MUSIC NEWS: MONDAY, JANUARY 18, 2016
DAVID BOWIE - ``BLACKSTAR''
David Bowie's final album is number one. It's also his first number-one album ever. ``Blackstar'' debuts at the top of the Billboard 200 album chart, moving 181-thousand units its first week. It knocks Adele's ``25'' down to second after seven weeks at number one.
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MOS DEF - ARRESTED
Mos Def's attempt to leave South Africa improperly could get him banned from the country. Mos Def has 14 days to leave South Africa after he was arrested for violating local immigration laws while trying to leave the country. He was arrested at Cape Town International Airport on Thursday. A spokesman for South Africa's Department of Home Affairs says Mos Def produced an unrecognized ``world passport'' when he tried to leave the country.
Mos Def had previously overstayed his visitor's permit in 2014 after entering with an American passport. The spokesman says the court order to leave South Africa means he's banned for five years but he can appeal that.
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CHER - FLINT - MICHIGAN
The residents of Flint, Michigan, are getting clean drinking water thanks to Cher. She is sending more than 180-thousand bottles of water to Flint starting today. Flint has not had safe drinking water since 2014, when officials started drawing water from the Flint River as a cost-saving measure. However, the city did not treat corrosive water properly, and the old pipes leached metal into the water. Cher says it's a ``tragedy of staggering proportion and shocking that it's happening in the middle of our country.''
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50 CENT - APPEALS COURT
50 Cent has won an appeal concerning a dispute over his song ``I Get Money.'' An appeals court in New York agreed with a judge who rejected a copyright lawsuit filed by rapper Young Caliber against 50 Cent on the grounds that it was filed too late.
It said Young Caliber brought his lawsuit after the three-year statute of limitations had expired. Young Caliber had sought unspecified damages because he said he bought the exclusive rights to a beat in 2006 that was used in ``I Get Money'' in 2007. 50 Cent's attorney says the ruling vindicates his client. Young Caliber's lawyer did not return a message seeking comment.
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JESUS' LIFE - YEARWOOD - ROYCE
Trisha Yearwood and Prince Royce will star in the story of Jesus that will run on Fox on Palm Sunday, March 20th. Yearwood plays Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Royce plays the disciple Peter. Tyler Perry will host and narrate. The show is a musical that will focus on the last hours of Jesus' life.
It will be staged live in New Orleans, with a procession of hundreds of people carrying a 20-foot illuminated cross from the Superdome to the live stage at Woldenburg Park near the Mississippi River.
(The Associated Press)
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RENE ANGELIL - FUNERAL
The funeral for Rene Angelil, husband and manager of Canadian superstar Celine Dion, will be held next Friday in the same Montreal church where the couple married 21 years ago.
Angelil died Thursday morning at his home in Las Vegas after a long battle with throat cancer. He was 73.
Dion's publicist, Francine Chaloult, says Angelil wanted to have his funeral at the same church.
A wake will be held a day earlier where the public will be able to pay their respects, and a celebration of Angelil's life will also be held on February 3rd in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace Colosseum.
OBIT Daniel Dion
Daniel Dion, the brother of Canadian singer Celine Dion, has died of cancer at age 59.
The death was announced two days after Celine Dion's husband, Rene Angelil, died at age 73 after a long battle with throat cancer.
A news release from one of Celine Dion's publicists says Daniel was the eighth of 14 Dion children and a father of two.
The release says he died Saturday morning in a palliative care residence outside Montreal.
A viewing will take place next Saturday, the day after Angelil's funeral is set to take place in Montreal.
(The Canadian Press)
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(MUSIC-Billy-Talent)
The drummer for Canadian punk rock band Billy Talent is stepping away from recording with the group to deal with a health setback.
In a video posted on the band's YouTube channel, Aaron Solowoniuk says he's been living with multiple sclerosis for more than 15 years.
Solowoniuk says the disease hadn't previously stopped him from recording music or touring, but he's been dealing with a relapse and won't be able to play drums on Billy Talent's forthcoming record.
Alexisonfire drummer Jordan Hastings will be filling in for him on the new album.
In the meantime, Solowoniuk says he'll be switching his medication and doing everything he can to get back to drumming.
(The Canadian Press)
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