MUSIC NEWS: FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2015
TAYLOR SWIFT VIDEO SETS NEW HIGH FOR VEVO VIEWS
Taylor Swift's video for ``Bad Blood'' has set a new record on Vevo. It was viewed 20.1 million times its first day of release, setting a Vevo record for most views in a 24-hour period. The previous record-holder was ``Anaconda'' by Nicki Minaj.
That had 19.6 million views when it came out last August.
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ELTON JOHN ATTENDS GRAMMAR SCHOOL REUNION
The Pinner County Grammar School in London held a reunion for the class of 1958 and Elton John showed up. John posts on Instagram he has not seen many of his schoolmates in more than 50 years and it was as if they had never left school. While his classmates may have been impressed he attended, John was more impressed that his oldest pal, Keith Francis, made it. John says Francis flew all the way from Australia for the reunion.
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MADONNA TOUR WILL HAVE LATE START
Madonna is delaying the start of her tour because she says all the elements have to be perfect. The tour was supposed to begin August 29th in Miami. It will now begin September 9th in Montreal. Madonna says assembling the elements of her show is taking longer than expected, but she promises it will be worth the wait.
The concerts set for Miami, Atlanta and San Juan, Puerto Rico, will be moved to January.
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B.B. KING'S DAUGHTER WILL HOLD TRIBUTE
B.B. King's eldest daughter is inviting the public to see her father's body, then celebrate his life. Shirley King will hold a free musical tribute tonight in Las Vegas. A public viewing for her father will be held this afternoon in Las Vegas.
Shirley King says when people are done being sad about her father's death, she wants them to come out and let the good times roll.
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JON BON JOVI PREMIERES NEW SONG AT RUTGERS' COMMENCEMENT
Jon Bon Jovi's advice to graduates at Rutgers University came in the form of a song. Bon Jovi played a new song called ``Reunion'' that began, ``This isn't how the story ends, my friends. It's just a fork along the road.'' Bon Jovi was one of the speakers at yesterday's commencement ceremony. He was also given an honorary doctorate of letters for his achievements in entertainment and philanthropy.
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PASSION PIT SINGER IS NOT A SOCIAL MEDIA GUY
Sending a message to Passion Pit singer Michael Angelakos (an-jeh-LAH'-kuhs) is like sending it into outer space. He probably is not going to answer. Angelakos says he sees the value in promoting his music on social media, but he values the distance he's created. He says if he does respond on social media, he wants it to mean something. He prefers to communicate with fans by getting personal with his music and his videos. Sometimes the videos get too personal. Angelakos says he really did get punched in the video for ``Lifted Up (1985)'' and the moshing was so intense he ripped his pants.
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GRANDMASTER FLASH JOINS ``THE GET DOWN''
Grandmaster Flash will be one of the creative forces behind a new Netflix drama directed by Baz Luhrmann. The Hollywood Reporter reports Flash will be an associate producer and adviser on the show ``The Get Down.'' He'll even be a character. The series is about teenagers in the South Bronx in the 1970s who create hip-hop, punk and disco. The teenagers are fictitious characters, but they'll encounter historical figures, including Flash. ``The Get Down'' will premiere next year.
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MUSICIANS, FORMER MLB PLAYERS SIGN UP FOR ALL-STAR SOFTBALL GAME
Macklemore, Snoop Dogg, Justin Moore and Nick Lachey (lah-SHAY') will show off their sports skills when they play in the MLB All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game. Former pros Andre Dawson, Fred Lynn, Sean Casey, Paul O'Neill, Eric Davis and Aaron Boone will also play, as will Olympic softball gold medalist Jennie Finch. The game will be July 12th in Cincinnati.
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COUNTRY MUSIC TRAIL WILL HONOUR MISSISSIPPIANS IN TENNESSEE
The Mississippi Country Music Trail will place a marker in Tennessee. The marker will be placed in Nashville to commemorate the musicians from Mississippi who came to Nashville to make it big in country music. That includes Elvis Presley, Conway Twitty, Bobbie Gentry, Marty Stuart, Jimmie Rodgers, Tammy Wynette, Charley Pride, Moe Bandy and Faith Hill. The marker will be revealed June 4th.
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JONATHAN EDWARDS REVEALS HE WAS ADOPTED AND HE GAVE UP A CHILD
The man who turned ``Sunshine'' into a hit in 1971 is giving a clue to the secrets of his past with his new album cover. Jonathan Edwards says the photograph used as the cover art for his new album ``Tomorrow's Child'' is Edwards himself as a child, taken on the day he was adopted. Moreover, Edwards reveals he gave up a child for adoption before his music career took off.
Decades later, he has reunited with both his birth mother and the daughter he gave up. He writes about those emotions in the song ``Jonny's Come Home.'' ``Tomorrow's Child'' comes out June 23rd.
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