• The Band Perry Is Working with 'Little Red Wagon' Writer Audra Mae for Follow-Up to 'Pioneer'

    The Band Perry recently opened up about their new album, the follow-up to 2013's "Pioneer." The siblings are bringing in up-and-coming songwriter Audra Mae to help out on the record. Mae is known for writing Miranda Lambert's tune "Little Red Wagon." She also collaborated with The Forest Rangers a few times for FX's "Sons of Anarchy" in addition to her solo material.According to Taste of Country, Kimberly Perry called into iHeartRadio's Electric Barnyard with Broadway show to talk about the progress."[It's] goin' great, you know," she said. "We're slowly but surely recording band here in the Band Perry. I'd say we have about half of it done. It'll definitely — you guys will have new music certainly in the first half of 2015."The trio is especially excited to co-write tunes with Mae."We have interesting things happening and, you know, the co-writes are one thing that we're really excited about as well," Kimberly added. "A new girl that's been here in Nashville writing, her name is Audra Mae, she's a very spirited young lady. So we've just made a lot of new writing friendships and can't wait for you guys to hear it."

  • Hunter Hayes New Album: 'Storyline' Singer Spent Holidays Working on Music

    Hunter Hayes was able to take a break from the road this Christmas season, but that does not mean he was not working on new material. The Louisiana native said he would be working with other songwriters during the holidays before heading to Nashville for a couple shows at the venerable Bluebird Café."My favorite thing to do is just go down to Louisiana — that's where I'm from — and just chill with the family," Hayes told Western TV in December. "Just go and sit on the couch and talk. Quality time is one of my favorite things in the world because we're always moving. So to sit still for a day is kind of unheard of."He reiterated that sentiment to ABC News Radio this week, but added in some work plans."I just wanna chill," he said. "I just got a little bit of time to be creative in my little studio at home. Got some writers that are coming out to hang."While being at home is nice, it's not exactly Hayes's favorite place to be.

  • Hip-Hop Artists React to News of ESPN's Stuart Scott's Passing Via Twitter

    The relationship between competitive sports and hip-hop is an inspiring and important one. With many athletes looking to performing artists for motivational soundtracks to their daily workouts and hip-hop artists supporting athletes just the same, both teams were affected by today's news that ESPN sports anchor Stuart Scott has died after battling cancer.ESPN reported that the beloved anchor has lost his battle with cancer at age 49.Stuart Scott was known for interjecting elements of hip-hop culture into his reporting, such as coining hip catchphrases such as "Cooler than the other side of the pillow," and "Boo-Yah," to name a couple, to an audience hungry for journalists mixing it up in their reporting.As ESPN President John Skipper said, Scott spoke to athletes with a flair that "changed everything."The reporter was an inspiration for many beyond the realms of sports reporting and was known for pushing the envelope in everything he did.Stuart Scott worked at ESPN for 21 years, and in July accepted the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance, stating, "When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live and in the manner in which you live."Clearly an inspiration to many. Check out what some members of the hip-hop community are saying on Twitter after hearing the news:

  • Gia Giudice's Tweet Raises Concern Hours Before Her Mother Teresa Begins Prison Sentence

    Can you imagine being 13 years old and knowing that you are about to lose your mother for 15 months because she has to report to prison? That is the position Gia Giudice is in now that her mother, Teresa Giudice, is hours away from turning herself in to a Connecticut prison camp. While Teresa was granted an extra three months of freedom so she could spend this holiday season with her kids, the time has come for her to pay for years of bank fraud and other financial crimes, and her oldest daughter is reportedly feeling the stress.On Saturday night, Jan. 3, Gia tweeted about not being able to sleep — it has since been deleted — because she had too much on her mind, and while she has always seemed like a tough kid, she certainly has a rough road ahead of her and she knows it. While "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" star has claimed that she always puts her kids first, her presence is not going to be felt for more than a year, and that could potentially leave a lot resting on Gia's shoulders.Joe Giudice is expected to take over all the family duties, but that sounds problematic, especially since he originally used his alcoholism as a way of getting out of doing federal time. Now we know he will do that federal time after Teresa is released, and we also know he has spent the majority of his time these last several months drinking and avoiding the stress at home. It is a mystery how he will clean himself up in order to morph into the role of a responsible father.

  • French Montana and Lil Boosie Announce Future Movie Roles [WATCH]

    It is essentially a rite of passage for hip-hop artists to have a cameo or involvement in a major motion picture to elevate their careers. Hip-hop is a visual genre by nature, and that is not exclusive to solely creative album covers these days.French Montana and Lil Boosie agree with this sentiment and recently announced that they will be acting in movies as the new year continues.As told in a BET interview feature, French Montana spoke about his plans for 2015, saying, "Definitely next year (2015) [I'm] on the acting tip. I came in on the 'Cocaine' set of DVDs. I just love the visuals, so I definitely went to L.A. [and] I'm definitely trying to put something together as far as a movie. I've got a movie called 'Respect the Shooter' coming out early next year."Lil Boosie is also joining the fun and discussed his potential involvement in filming an autobiographical film to accompany his forthcoming album, "Touch Down 2 Cause Hell."Lil Boosie told BET, "In 2015 you can expect the album, you can expect the movie. I'm shooting my life story movie, it's crazy."The rapper has also referred to his idea for "Boosie the Movie" in the past, mentioning that in addition to song-writing, he writes his own films as well.

  • Run the Jewels Song Plays in ESPN Commercial for NFL Playoff Game [WATCH]

    Run the Jewels received more national attention this weekend when ESPN aired a promo for yesterday, Jan. 3's NFL playoff game between the Carolina Panthers and the Arizona Cardinals. The commercial features players from both teams getting psyched for the game while the band's lead single from their self-titled debut plays, "Deadspin" notes.Killer Mike and El-P had a big year in 2014. The duo dropped its second studio album, "Run the Jewels 2," in October. It hit No. 50 on the "Billboard 200" behind singles like "Blockbuster Pt. 1," "Oh My Darling (Don't Cry)" and "Close Your Eyes (And Count to F--k)." The effort topped year-end lists by tons of media outlets."On their second album as Run the Jewels, noise-loving Brooklyn rapper-producer El-P and Atlanta's Killer Mike make the most explosive hip-hop you'll hear all year. The best tracks give criminal-minded menace a radical edge: 'Close Your Eyes (And Count to F--k)' is a prison-riot fantasy, and on the blazing 'All Due Respect,' Mike hints at the roots of his messed-up ways," "Rolling Stone" wrote, giving the album four out of five stars.

  • New Aiden Album, Tour Coming in 2015, According to William Control

    William Francis has been touring solo under the name "William Control" for the past couple years, but that does not mean his original band Aiden is completely out of the picture.Francis is the only remaining member from the Seattle group that formed in the early 2000s, and he took to the band's website to reach fans still interested in the project."2015 is going to be a very busy year," he wrote, before hashing out the following promises, via AltPress:• He will be opening his own screen printing shop. "I know it's frustrating waiting so long for the t-shirts and booty shorts you order to arrive," he wrote. "I'm going to try and streamline this process." Apparently, he has already rented out a warehouse and is in the process of readying it.• He will be playing "a few acoustic shows" in the next month near the West Coast. There will be more details on these shows soon.• William Control will be part of The Punishment Tour US in April. "This will probably be my last tour for a while as William Control," he wrote.• He is already working on the next Aiden record. "Yes you heard that right," he wrote. "There will be an Aiden record and most likely a tour."

  • Cloud Control Bassist Quits Band: Jeremy Kelshaw Wants 'Return to Civilian Life'

    Cloud Control is down a bassist after Jeremy Kelshaw announced his plans to leave the group and pursue "civilian life." The Australian group, which formed in 2007, posted Kelshaw's goodbye note on their Facebook page Thursday, Jan. 1.Here is the message, via "NME":"Dear music lovers. After 10 years of blissfully rocking out & playing bass all over the world, I've decided to step out of cloud control & return to civilian life. I'm so proud of what we've accomplished & it's not been easy arriving at this point, but that's ok."I love my band & I love our fans. To Heidi, Al & Ulrich: thanks for creating this dream with me, you guys are the best. To everyone who has worked with us, played with us, come to a show or listened to our music: you guys are second best & I love you all."CC album #3 is being worked on, never fear, but these Falls & Southbound shows are my last."Life is extreme, so's my new hair cut. Music is the best thing ever, but you knew this already. Much love. Jeremy"

  • Dalai Lama to Give Speech at Glastonbury 2015

    Glastonbury has always had a social awareness component to it since the modern Glastonbury Festival was founded in the 1970s. According to reports, the legendary festival will now play host to the one and only Dalai Lama on the final day of the festival, June 28. In a now-deleted post on his holiness's website, according to reports, he announces the news saying, "His Holiness will give a talk at the Glastonbury Festival in the morning." The Dalai Lama will also be in England the next day, June 29, to give a talk.Glastonbury will take place over five days in 2015, from June 24 to 28. There has been only one artist confirmed thus far on the lineup: Lionel Richie. Richie will be playing the Sunday afternoon legends slot."I'm really excited to play Glastonbury next year, as it's one of the most iconic festivals in the world," Richie told "The Guardian." "It has a phenomenal history and the alumni of artists who have previously played is incredible, so I'm honored to be joining that club. It will be a really special moment for me and I can't wait to share it with everyone.Additional artists have been rumored to join the lineup like Fleetwood Mac and AC/DC, but there have been no official announcements as of yet.

  • New Video for Young Buck's 'New Year's Cake' [WATCH]

    Young Buck is proving that he is wasting little time this year.A couple days after dropping his freestyle titled "New Year's Cake," he has released a music video for the track. Although short, clocking in at 2:35, the video features Young Buck in the studio after a brief introduction reminiscent of that of a radio host's voice.Young Buck has been working on his solo career while still vocalizing support for the reunion of his group G-Unit. Last year, we saw exclusive interviews in "XXL Mag" and the release of a 25-minute documentary about G-Unit, as well as the release of the highly anticipated "The Beauty of Independence" EP, released in 2014, and "The Beast Is G-Unit" EP, which has been pushed back to a later release date.

  • Despite Rumors of Breakup, Ariana Grande and Big Sean Are Still Together

    While still a relatively new couple, Ariana Grande and Big Sean are not excluded from the world of reports speculating that the couple has broken up.Just Jared reported confirmation from Grande's representative this morning, Jan. 4, saying that the rumors that the couple have split are false, saying that the reports that had surfaced saying that the couple split following the Christmas holiday are "absolutely not true."Confirming the relationship in October 2014 in an interview with "The Daily Telegraph," Grande spoke fondly of Big Sean — real name "Sean Anderson" — saying, "He is one of the most amazing men in the whole world, and that includes my grandfather and my brother. I think the world of him, and he's an amazing person. That's kind of all there is to it."Fans of each artist have had their eyes on the couple following their collaborative efforts on Ariana Grande's new album "My Everything."Grande's sophomore album, of which Big Sean appears on as a featured artist on the track "Best Mistake," debuted at the No. 1 slot in the "Billboard" charts in September.
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