MUSIC NEWS: TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2015
IRON MAIDEN'S BRUCE DICKINSON IS GIVEN CLEAN BILL OF HEALTH
Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson has been given the all-clear on his cancer after his most recent MRI scan.
Dickinson had been battling cancer on his tongue. He writes on the Iron Maiden website his cancer had sometimes been harder on his family than on him. He says the support from the Maiden community meant a great deal to him and he's ``extremely motivated'' to get back to work. Iron Maiden manager Rod Smallwood says the band will not play any shows until at least next year to let Dickinson get back to full strength. He says the band will work on a new studio album in the meantime.
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PUBLIC VIEWING SET FOR B.B. KING
Fans can pay their respects to B.B. King in Las Vegas before he is laid to rest in Mississippi. King's website says a public viewing will take place in Las Vegas on Friday. The mortuary's manager says King will be in an open casket and there will be no memorial service. A private funeral is set for Saturday in downtown Las Vegas. King's business manager, LaVerne Toney, says she's still arranging the burial next week in King's hometown of Indianola, Mississippi.
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CELINE DION IS READY TO COME BACK TO VEGAS
Celine Dion decided it's time to return to performing in Las Vegas because she is her husband's favourite singer and he wants to see her. Dion has been on hiatus since last summer because her husband, Rene', had a cancerous tumour removed and Dion herself had inflamed throat muscles. Dion says she did not want to return to Vegas without Rene' because he's not only her husband, but her manager. She will return to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on August 27. And all those other divas in Las Vegas, like Britney Spears, Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez? Dion says it's wonderful and she's ready for more.
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AMY WINEHOUSE FILMMAKERS DEFEND THEIR WORK
The makers of a documentary about Amy Winehouse say they did not make it to point fingers at people who should have helped her. Producer James Gay-Rees says a lot of people did try to help Winehouse, but she was stubborn and hard to manage. He says he understands why Winehouse's father, Mitch, is upset at some of the portrayals in the film because he's her father. Director Asif Kapadia says he approached the film without an agenda and he believes he made an honest representation of Winehouse's life. The film, ``Amy,'' opens in the U.S. in July.
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NICK JONAS PLANS TOUR
Nick Jonas' upcoming concert tour is not going to be only about the ladies. Jonas says his male fan base has grown and he attributes that to his music. He says he likes to have a good time and adds, ``At the core, I'm kind of a dude.'' Jonas' concert tour will kick off September 6 in Hershey, Pennsylvania. He will also appear in the upcoming movie ``Goat'' and in the new Fox series ``Scream Queens,'' as well as continue with the DirecTV show ``Kingdom.''
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KESHA OPENS UP ABOUT EATING DISORDER
Kesha would sing songs like ``We R Who We R'' and really hoped she'd believe it. Kesha tells Vogue magazine she struggled with an eating disorder and used to think feeling faint from hunger was a positive thing. She got help at a rehab facility specializing in eating disorders and she says she's trying to embrace the skin that she's in. Part of the change she's made:
less makeup. Kesha says there are still hints of glitter in her life but she wants to be ``more raw and real.''
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TAYLOR SWIFT NAMED NUMBER ONE ON MAXIM'S HOT 100 LIST
Maxim magazine says Taylor Swift is ``deeply unconcerned with whether or not you consider her attractive, which of course only makes her more so.'' Swift tops Maxim's Hot 100 list for this year. Swift calls it ``an incredible compliment.''
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DEF LEPPARD'S PHIL COLLEN IS WRITING A MEMOIR
Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen will become the first member of the group to write an autobiography. Collen will publish ``Adrenalized: Life, Def Leppard, and Beyond'' on October 27. Collen says it's fascinating to look at his life from the time he was 16 and working at a factory to his life now, travelling the world and selling millions of records.
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LES PAUL'S BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS PLANNED
The 100th anniversary of the birth of Les Paul is getting nationwide recognition. June 9 will be ``Les Paul Day'' in the cities of New York, Nashville and Waukesha, Wisconsin, where Paul was born. The state of Wisconsin will declare ``Les Paul Day'' as well. The free mobile touring exhibit known as Les Paul's Big Sound Experience will make its first stop in New York that day. Steve Miller, Joe Satriani, Neal Schon of Journey, Warren Haynes of Gov't Mule, Steve Vai (VY) and the Les Paul Trio are among those who will perform at a Paul tribute concert in New York that night. A greatest-hits CD and reissues of four of Paul's albums will hit stores on June 9 as well. Paul die in August of 2009.
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''THE VOICE``-FINALE TONIGHT
The odds are with Team Pharrell on ``The Voice.'' That's because Pharrell Williams is the only coach with two singers going into tonight's Season 8 finale. Pharrell's two singers have also been among the coaches' and viewers' favourites. Last night, the kid of the season, Team Pharrell's Sawyer Fredericks had standout performances. Adam Levine says young Swayer is the ``real deal.'' Koryn Hawthorne, also from Team Pharrell, did an original song written by her coach. Team Blake's Meghan Linsey went from country to soul with a solid version of ``When a Man Loves a Woman.'' Team Adam's Joshua Davis' selections included ``Hallelujah.'' Christina Aguilera is the only coach who will be out of contention when the winner is crowned tonight.
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BUDDY GUY SAYS HE WAS NOT ALLOWED TO VISIT B.B. KING
Buddy Guy says he was denied permission to visit B.B. King when Guy's tour came through Las Vegas last month. Guy says he knew King wasn't doing well and he was refused a visit ``by some lady who's got control over him.'' Guy says he found out the woman wouldn't let anybody see him and that's not the way King was.
King's longtime business manager, LaVerne Toney, had control over his business affairs. She says she is still carrying out King's wishes after his death on Thursday. One of King's daughters says Toney kept King's children from visiting. Toney has said visits could always be arranged.
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B.B. KING'S HOMETOWN REMEMBER ``MR. RILEY''
The man known as B.B. King to all the world was known in his hometown as Mr. Riley, and they all knew him.
King's real name was Riley B. King. He would visit the small farming town on Indianola, Mississippi, every year and play the blues.
Resident Ruthie King, who is not related, says King would be there all day and people could hear the guitar all over town because he used an amplifier. King died Thursday at his home in Las Vegas. Fans and friends have been remembering King's legacy at Club Ebony, the historic club in Indianola where King got his start and later purchased.
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STEVE AOKI NEEDS VOCAL CORD SURGERY
Steve Aoki will have surgery to repair his vocal cords. Aoki says in a video posted on Facebook all the screaming he's done in the past 20 years has ``severely messed up'' his voice.
He even showed photos of his damaged vocal cords. He says he's put off the surgery for some time but his doctor has told him it's now or never. Aoki is calling off five performances in Europe.
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BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS GO QUIET?
The most intriguing parts of the Billboard Music Awards were the parts you could not hear. Sam Smith won top male artist and gave his speech by cue card because he's recovering from vocal cord surgery. He asked Taylor Swift to bet for him in Las Vegas, admired Nicki Minaj's rear end and told Ed Sheeran he arranged a dance for him at Chippendale's. Kanye West closed the show and huge chunks of his performance were muted. One chunk was 13 seconds long. Taylor Swift won the awards for top artist, top female artist and top album for ``1989.'' One Direction won awards for top group and top touring artist. John Legend won top radio song for ``All of Me,'' and Meghan Trainor won top Hot 100 song for ``All About That Bass.'' Florida Georgia Line were named top country artist.
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GEORGE HARRISON, ELVIS PRESLEY ITEMS SELL AT AUCTION
One of George Harrison's guitars has sold at auction for near half a million dollars. Julien's Auctions says the 1963 Mastersound electric guitar was sold to an undisclosed bidder.
Harrison borrowed it from a British music store and played it onstage several times in the summer of 1963. An outfit dubbed the ``penguin'' suit that Elvis Presley wore onstage in Las Vegas in
1975 sold for nearly 122-thousand dollars. Presley's 1967 marriage certificate sold for more than 40-thousand.
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