Even before "queen of all media" Perez Hilton took the stage and proclaimed her "the new princess of pop," Lady GaGa showed she’s a serious contender to Madonna’s crown Friday at the Wiltern.

She might be a relative newcomer, but the artist born Stefani Joanne Germanotta commanded the stage with a royal air during her hour-long set, at times even sporting a glowing scepter.

With two chart-topping singles to her credit and her debut album, "The Fame," climbing the upper reaches of the Billboard 200, GaGa’s first theater tour is a hot ticket — and the Lady did not disappoint. Borrowing from Madonna, Grace Jones, David Bowie and Daryl Hannah’s "Blade Runner" replicant, GaGa put on a compelling show revolving around her mysterious persona, a trio of leather-jacketed dancers, multiple costume changes and props and a lone DJ providing musical accompaniment.

Old-schoolers might bemoan the lack of a live band, but GaGa’s eye candy and an onslaught of beats delivered by DJ Space Cowboy filled the void effectively. Opening with the dance-pop basher "Paparazzi," trapped on a platform that complemented her angular modern ensemble, GaGa focused on the beat-heavy pop that comprises most of "Fame."

But midset she pulled out a surprise: a translucent purple piano she claimed was designed specifically to match her dress, made of giant plastic bubbles. At the keyboard she proceeded to perform a drastically rearranged bluesy lounge version of her current hit "Poker Face," proving her talent extends beyond the dance floor.

It’s the sort of stunt a veteran artist pulls after performing one of their biggest hits for decades, but GaGa had the chutzpah to circumvent the wait and go directly for the kill. She followed with the not-yet-released doo-wop-flavored space oddity "Future Love," again performed on piano while she serenaded a glowing mannequin.

In an age of too much information, one of the most refreshing things about GaGa is her mystery. She often hid behind shades, and her mostly incomprehensible, coy and semi-robotic stage patter did little to tell us who’s that Lady.

"Some people say Lady GaGa is a lie, and they’re right," she said at one point. "But every day I kill to make it true."

Whatever the case, by the time GaGa pulled out her big hits, "Just Dance" and the more familiar version of "Poker Face," she had transformed the Wiltern into a joyous dance party that might have made even that other Stefani a little jealous.

Source: Reuters

The Toronto-based electro-dance band Fritz Helder & the Phantoms is the first act signed to Nelstar and will release its debut album July 7.

"Nelly just wasn’t that interested in doing a OneRepublic/Timbaland type of thing," says Chris Taylor, president of Last Gang and Furtado’s longtime attorney. "She’s an independent spirit, and she wants to make sure we build the band at the right pace. It’s also very important to launch a band with indie branding behind them and be able to build them brick by brick."

Taylor points out that Furtado has close ties to the band, noting that two members are her backup dancers.

Furtado says she never considered introducing the Nelstar imprint via her label, Interscope.

"I’m happy there, and it would be great if Fritz got signed there at some point in the future," Furtado says. "But I also think that it’s best to start off an indie. When you are a new band and you sign to a major, you get thrown to the fire. Plus, I always secretly wanted to be an indie artist. When I was a teenager, I loved Ani DiFranco and hoped I could do something like that. A major turned out to be my destiny, but I’m enjoying reconnecting with the indie world."

Furtado adds that Interscope is aware of the project but says, "They have enough going on without my label adding to everything." Interscope didn’t respond to an e-mail request for comment.

The model might resemble one commonly used in hip-hop, where a rapper signs his or her protege, then builds the artist up through a series of guest spots on tracks and promotional appearances, but Taylor says there are some differences.

"Nelly’s not on the album in a meaningful way," he says. "She’s in one of the videos, but that’s really it. She’s not like Puff Daddy in that respect."

But that doesn’t mean Furtado has just signed the band and handed it over. "We had a meeting a few weeks ago to look at all the pictures, and Nelly was really concerned that (band member) Raquel Gil-Jimenez didn’t look foxy enough," Taylor says. "She insisted we do reshoots, and we’re going to send the new pictures to the Maxims of the world to promote the band."

The deal is also unique in that Fritz Helder & the Phantoms will remain signed to their own label, House of Helder, which will become an imprint of Nelstar. "We still have the label and we still control the creative aspect," Helder says. "Nelly is acting as a mentor, Last Gang will coordinate the distribution, and we’ll still do the videos and things like that."

Helder and Furtado describe the deal as a long-term partnership. "It’s a three- to five-year deal, with one or two albums," she says. "I’m doing this for a band I love, and I don’t want it to be too restrictive."

Furtado adds that she’s looking at signing a few other bands. "I’m busy enough right now, and I don’t want this to get to a point where it’s something I’m not passionate about," she says. "I want this to be something that really grows organically."

Source: BillBoard.com

Cohen, 74, broke a 15-year hiatus from touring in 2008 with shows in Canada, Europe and New Zealand. His AEG-promoted North American tour will begin April 2 in Austin, Texas, and run through June 2 at Red Rocks outside Denver. He will also make a previously announced appearance on April 17 at the Coachella festival in Indio, Calif.

In what was just the second show at the newly reopened Beacon, Cohen dazzled the sold-out crowd with a career-spanning set, backed by an ace six-piece band and three female vocalists.
He frequently thanked the audience for its devotion, and the crowd ate up Big Apple references in songs like "Chelsea Hotel" and the funky "First We Take Manhattan."

Cohen was in fine, deep voice throughout, dropping to his knees to sing "Hallelujah" and dabbling in guitar and synthesizer throughout the performance.

As previously reported, Columbia will on March 31 release Cohen’s "Live in London," taped last summer at the city’s O2 Arena.

Here is Leonard Cohen’s set list:

Set one:
"Dance Me To The End of Love"
"The Future"
"Ain’t No Cure For Love"
"Bird on the Wire"
"Everybody Knows"
"In My Secret Life"
"Who By Fire"
"Chelsea Hotel"
"Hey That’s No Way"/"Sisters of Mercy"
"Anthem
Set two:
"Tower of Song"
"Suzanne"
"The Gypsy’s Wife"
"The Partisan"
"Boogie Street"
"Hallelujah"
"I’m Your Man"
Poem
"Take This Waltz"

Encores:
"So Long. Marianne"
"First We Take Manhattan"
"Famous Blue Raincoat"
"If It Be Your Will"
"Democracy"
"I Tried To Leave You"
"Whither Thou Goest"
"Heart With No Companion"
"A Thousand Kisses Deep"
"This Is a War"
"One of Us Cannot Be Wrong"
"That Don’t Make It Junk"
"Passing Through"
"Waiting for the Miracle"
"Avalanche"
"Closing Time"
"Sisters of Mercy"

Here are Leonard Cohen’s North American tour dates:
April 2: Austin, Texas (Long Center)
April 3: Grand Prairie, Texas (Nokia Theatre)
April 5: Phoenix (Dodge Theatre)
April 7: San Diego (Copley Hall)
April 10: Los Angeles (Nokia Theatre)
April 13: Oakland, Calif. (Paramount Theatre)
April 17: Indio, Calif. (Coachella Festival)
April 19: Vancouver (GM Place)
April 21: Victoria, B.C. (Save-On Foods Memorial Centre)
April 23: Seattle (WaMu Theatre)
April 25: Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Place)
April 26: Calgary, Alberta (Jack Singer Hall)
April 28: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Credit Union Centre)
April 30: Winnipeg, Manitoba (MTS Centre)
May 3: Minneapolis (Orpheum Theatre)
May 5: Chicago (Chicago Theatre)
May 9: Detroit (Fox Theatre)
May 11: Columbia, Md. (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
May 12: Philadelphia (Academy of Music)
May 14: Waterbury, Conn. (Palace Theatre)
May 16: New York (Radio City Music Hall)
May 19: Hamilton, Ontario (Copps Coliseum)
May 21: Quebec City, Quebec (Pavillon de la Jeunesse)
May 22: Kingston, Ontario (K-Rock Centre)
May 24: London, Ontario (Labatt Centre)
May 25: Ottawa, Ontario (National Arts Centre)
May 29: Boston (Wang Theatre)
June 2: Morrison, Colo. (Red Rocks)

Source: Billboard.com

The dates will follow a previously announced spring run, which kicks off April 14 at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Support acts for the summer shows include Robert Randolph, Femi Kuti, the Hold Steady, Umphrey’s McGee, Old Crow Medicine Show and Switchfoot.

Rumors suggest the band may play Boston’s Fenway Park on May 29-30, but no announcement has yet been made.

Meanwhile, DMB plans to zip over to Europe for a quick tour during late June and early July. For the band’s full itinerary, visit its Web site.

The new DMB album was produced by Rob Cavallo. A number of songs have been played live since the summer of 2007, including "Round and Round," "Cornbread," "#27" and "Falling Off the Roof," but it is unknown if they will appear on the upcoming project.

Source: Billboard.com

Selling 77,000 on a whopping 715% increase, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss’ "Raising Sand" (Rounder) zooms 69-2 following its album of the year win at the Grammys. The set debuted at No. 2 in late 2007 with 112,000 and has now sold 1.26 million to date.

Coldplay’s "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends" (Capitol rebounds 31-8 with 62,000 (+271%); the album generated three Grammys, including song of the year for "Viva La Vida." Best new artist winner Adele’s Columbia debut "19" climbs from 27-10 with 57,000 on 218% bump, and the "Grammy Nominees 2009" compilation posts a 114% increase to 61,000, resulting in a 12-9 jump.

Elsewhere on The Bilboard 2000, India.Arie’s "Testimony: Vol. 2 — Love & Politics" (Universal Republic) arrives at No. 3 with 76,000. The singer/songwriter’s last release, 2006’s "Testimony: Vol. 1 — Life & Relationship," started at No. 1 with 161,000.

After topping the chart last week, the Fray’s self-titled Epic album slips to No. 4 with 75,000 (-58%). Directly behind is Lily Allen’s sophomore album, "It’s Not Me, It’s You" (Capitol), which starts with 70,000 at No. 5. The British singer’s debut release, 2007’s "Alright, Still…," bowed at No. 20 with 34,000.

Bruce Springsteen’s "Working on a Dream" (Columbia) falls 2-6 with 65,000 (-36%), and R&B crooner Bobby Valentino’s "The Rebirth" (Blu Kolla Dreams/Capitol) enters at No. 7 with 64,000 copies. The artist’s new single, "Beep," is No. 14 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart this week.

"Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg’s comedy troupe the Lonely Island earns a No. 13 entry for its Universal Republic debut, "Incredibad," which sold 48,000 copies. Other debuts this week include Red’s "Innocence & Instinct" (Essential) at No. 15 with 39,000 and Ryan Leslie’s self-titled NextSelection/Casablanca debut at No. 35 with 24,000.

At 8.56 million units, sales are up 16.8% compared to last week, but are off by 12.6% compared to the same week in 2008.

Source: Billboard.com

Collecting her first award for British female, she commented, "It’s a good job my mother didn’t have a boy." She beat rivals M.I.A., Adele, Beth Rowley and Estelle in that category.

For her final award, for British album, Duffy was tearful as she accepted it from fellow Welsh singer Sir Tom Jones. She also performed "Warwick Avenue" at the ceremony.

The awards show, aired live on ITV1, was opened by U2 performing its new single "Get on Your Boots." Bono sang on a platform in front of a giant screen showing images of the British union flag and the Irish flag.

Nashville rock band Kings Of Leon won the international group award as well as the international album BRIT for "Only by the Night" (Hand Me Down/Sony Music Entertainment). The current Billboard cover stars acknowledged the importance of the British market to their success.

"Thank you, God, thank you, mom, thank you U.K.," drummer Nathan Followill told the audience. "Without y’all, we would be nothing." "If it weren’t for England, Kings Of Leon wouldn’t be a band right now," added singer and guitarist Caleb Followill.

Elbow was something of a surprise in the British group category, beating Coldplay, whose "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends" (Parlophone/EMI) was the biggest global seller of 2008, according to the IFPI, with sales of 6.8 million.

Katy Perry beat Beyonce, Gabriella Cilmi, Pink and Santigold for the international female award. The Virgin/EMI recording artist also hinted that she had been tipped off about her win. "I’m so sick right now," she told the cheering crowd. "But they said I should show up to the BRITS because something special might happen."

The British single award, decided by mobile phone voting, was won by girl group Girls Aloud for "The Promise" (Fascination/Polydor).

The ceremony was presented by Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue and comedy actor James Corden. Reformed boy band Take That performed on a UFO-style platform above the crowd, which then descended into the middle of the room. Other performers included Girls Aloud, Coldplay (who went home empty-handed) and rock duo the Ting Tings with Estelle.

The Pet Shop Boys received the outstanding contribution to music honor, and were duo was joined by Lady GaGa and the Killers’ Brandon Flowers during their closing performance.

Source: Billboard.com

In a blog post on the band’s official site, frontwoman Hayley Williams writes about the progress of all three … with a special focus on the status of Paramore’s much-anticipated new album and her gustatory struggles.

"We decided not to go to our practice space today. Each of us are at our respective homes writing our own stuff to bring to practice tomorrow. Doubtful we’ll all be successful," she wrote. "I’m still finishing lyrics to some of the music demos we’ve already recorded. Some perdy good shtuff here!
"I’m stuck here at home," she continued. "There’s nothing to eat here but one pack of ramen. No, really."

Cue the Fueled By Ramen puns. Since the beginning of the year, Williams and Paramore have been working on the follow-up to Riot! in their home state of Tennessee. They’ve been keeping fans updated on their progress via photos on their site (and the occasional blog), which show them rehearsing new tunes.

In one post, Williams refers to one new song as carrying the working title "Sumo Sandwich" (she really does have food on the brain).

The stated plan is to record the new album in Nashville, though it’s not known just who will produce it. A spokesperson for Fueled By Ramen/ Atlantic Records told MTV News that the band intend to have the new album in stores after they wrap their tour with No Doubt, which kicks off in May.

Source: MTV.ca

In the clip, 50 is sitting down in the studio, writing a poem, then the footage switches to a house that he claims belongs to Khaled’s mom. Later, 50 says he knows where DJ Khaled lives and all but takes responsibility for the DJ’s car tires recently being slashed. Then the video shows some men in Thisis50.com T-Shirts arriving at Khaled’s mother’s purported workplace. The woman they claim is the DJ’s mother is asleep at a desk, as the cameraman zooms in on photos of Khaled and Fat Joe. At the end of the video, 50 declares he has "less compassion than the average human." He crumples the poem he was working on, a ThisIs50.com logo comes on the screen and there is the sound of gunshots.

Viewers were left in a state of shock, as the clip seems to indicate that the beef between 50, Rick Ross and Khaled has taken an uglier turn.

Meanwhile, both Khaled and Ross were in New York on Thursday, shooting a video that had nothing to do with hip-hop quarrels, but in fact promoted unity. The two Miami hip-hop staples joined Fabolous, Ludacris and Juelz Santana for The-Dream’s video for the remix of "Rockin’ That Thang."
On the set, Khaled refused to address the 50 issue. "I’m not gonna let him bait me," he said. But Ricky Ross had plenty to say on the latest round.

"I’mma be honest; I didn’t have a reaction," Ross said. "Watching that, understanding the monkey, it’s like its no threat whatsoever. … To me, it’s a sign of reassuring you’re people’s safety. Where I come from, Gs, if they had that information [of where your enemies and their families live], I’m not exposing nothing. I’m acting like I don’t know nothing. To the real Gs, they don’t even watch it or entertain it. … Khaled, his mom knows she’s safe. All the Gs worldwide know what it is, and it gets no points."

In his defense, 50 told radio personality Miss Info that his threat to Khaled’s mom was in response to ThisIsCurly.com, a site promoting Ross’ album that had featured a picture of Fif’s son Marquise Photoshopped on the head of a monkey.

"How come everyone hears the shot, but nobody sees the slap before the shot?" 50 asked Miss Info. He also further explained his fight strategy: "You push, I punch. You stab, I shoot."
Info says Ross’ camp denied having anything to do with ThisIsCurly.com, which has since apparently been hacked. It now appears to be a site for a sex shop that is streaming 50’s own "Pimpin’ Curly" spoof video, in which he wears a wig and plays a crude pimp, apparently responding to Ross’ dis record, "Kiss My Pinky Ring, Curly."

The video of the threat to Khaled and his mom was removed from ThisIs50 on Thursday. In the meantime, however, 50 released a new dis record called "Tia Told Me," referring to Tia Kemp, Ross’ baby’s mother. The G-Unit also just dropped a dis video for "I’ll Be the Shooter."
At press time, reps for 50 Cent had no comment on the situation.

Source: MTV.ca

Regardless of genre, retail sales or radio play, each of the 20 acts on the moneymakers list toured last year. For almost all of them, touring generated the most revenue. And in a year when recorded-music sales declined yet again, many earned more at the box office than ever before.

Madonna was No. 1 on the list with $242.2 million. She had the 50th-best-selling album in the country and ranked 14th on the list of digital track sellers — but had the highest-earning 2008 tour.

Madonna was followed on the moneymakers list by Bon Jovi with $157.2 million, Bruce Springsteen ($156.3 million), the Police ($110 million), Celine Dion ($99.2 million), Kenny Chesney ($90.8 million), Neil Diamond ($82.2 million), Rascall Flatts ($63.5 million), Jonas Brothers ($62.6 million) and Coldplay ($62.2 million).

The top-five moneymakers are also the five acts that earned the most on tour, and in the same order, according to Billboard Boxscore.

Those questioning whether Madonna rates the reported 10-year, $120 million multi-rights deal with concert promoter Live Nation might reconsider. Madonna’s Sticky & Sweet tour took in $229.9 million at the box office, although the extravagant production might have cost up to 40% of that gross, according to industry estimates. The margin is much better on tour merchandise, where Madonna probably raked in more than $18 million in sales, not counting her licensing business.

Of course, nothing helps reduce tour production costs like more touring. So Madonna will perform another run of concerts this summer — 25 shows in the U.K. and Europe — which will add to the take of the top-grossing tour by a female or solo artist.

Outside of the U.K., all of Madonna’s concerts will be in stadiums, so she’ll gross several million dollars per night. By fall, Sticky & Sweet will have run for 80 shows and earned a place in the top-five grossing tours in history.

More on Madonna
Source: Reuters

Source: The Star.ca