Madonna and Alex Rodriguez in sex tape scandal? July 21, 2008
Posted by grhomeboy in Music.Tags: Music
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A cameraman has attempted to sell a sex tape allegedly featuring Madonna and Alex Rodriguez.
Madonna, who is married to director Guy Ritchie, was romantically linked to the basketball star earlier this month. However, the singer has repeatedly denied rumours of an affair. According to the Daily Star, Madonna’s legal team is aware of the cameraman’s allegations.
The video, which was reportedly filmed by a hidden camera, apparently features the veteran popstar sleeping with Rodriguez. A source commented: “If footage was obtained in this way it would be an outrageous invasion of privacy. But more than that he would not have had his friend’s consent to install the camera and must have entered the apartment without approval to hide it. That is burglary. He would be prima facie guilty of voyeurism. Instead of making a million he’d be going to jail for a few years. Even if the video existed it would probably be seized by the courts.”
Gay Serbs find glimmer of hope in Eurovision Song Contest May 21, 2008
Posted by grhomeboy in Gay Life, Music.Tags: Gay Life, Music
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Annual song competition this week in Belgrade > Twelve points? This year’s Eurovision final takes place in Belgrade this Saturday. Serbia’s gay community feels the event is a chance to express itself.
The last time gay men and women took to the streets of Serbia’s capital, they were beaten by nationalist gangs while police looked on.
Seven years after their first and only Pride march, activists now see the glitz, media attention and gay tourists coming to Serbia with the Eurovision Song Contest as a big chance to come out again, louder and more confident than before.
“There are no gay celebrities in Serbia, nobody’s out,” said Predrag Azdejkovic, one of a handful of openly gay Serbs. “Eurovision is so gay, so camp, it’ll be a shock to the system.” “Yes, maybe it reinforces stereotypes, so people think all gay men are effeminate and all lesbians drive trucks. I have no problem with that. All visibility is good and we must use it.”
Homosexuality is a taboo subject across the Balkans’ largely conservative and patriarchal societies, where many people view it as a treatable mental illness. Boban Stojanovic, who runs the gay rights group Queeria with Azdejkovic, said homophobia in Serbia stems from an obsession with national identity in the 1990s, a notion of aggressive masculinity created by and for the Yugoslav wars, and the increased influence of the Orthodox Church.
“Before 1990 the gay scene was more free. Although formally illegal, homosexuality was tolerated because the social climate was more liberal,” Stojanovic said. “But when Yugoslavia started breaking up, there was a rush in all the republics to define a very clear national identity. Today, to be a Serb means to be Orthodox and heterosexual. Being Serb and gay is seen as incompatible. The macho warrior culture of the 1990s is the root of Serbia’s homophobia today.”
Eurovision’s mix of high camp and low culture attracts millions of viewers and a loyal gay following. The 2008 event is held in Serbia after Marija Serifovic won last year’s contest with the ballad “Molitva” and a daringly lesbian chic-tinged act. The nuance was lost on far-right groups who declared open season on gay visitors.
“We are waiting for them,” the Obraz group said, adding it would patrol Belgrade’s streets and show “zero tolerance to the promotion and spread of evil” and use “all means to stop it.” Authorities initially pondered having policemen escorting gay visitors, then opted for increased security across the city for the week of semifinals and up to Saturday’s final. The attention meant the time was ripe for the first campaign in years, Stojanovic said. Discreet posters featuring same-sex couples called for “Love on the streets, hooligans in prison.” They survived several days on the streets of Belgrade before being torn down or defaced.
“With all this repression there is huge pressure to be invisible,” Stojanovic said. “We don’t agree. First we must be visible to the majority and then we can start to communicate.” Azdejkovic and Stojanovic say the influx of color and fun that comes with Eurovision will be a much-needed challenge to Serbia. An international pariah in the 1990s for its role in the wars, it still has a love-hate relationship with the West.
The two men don’t expect any violence because the flipside of nationalism is “an obsession with being a great host.” ”The government wants to project a great image of Serbia and make this the best Eurovision ever,” Azdejkovic said, adding that there was pressure on police to contain extremists. “We can only ask our government: Please, if you are going to protect gay foreigners, also protect gay Serbs. The foreigners will be here for a week and then leave, but they’ll have a freedom we can only dream of.”
Listen and get this music album for free > May 18, 2008
Posted by grhomeboy in Music.Tags: Music, Music downloads
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We have received the following email from Jack Rubinacci and we are happy to share it with you. Here’s what Jack had to say to us >
“As you may be aware, the music industry in trying to find its place in the completely new landscape of downloads and digital distribution. I’ve just finished making my debut album, and I’ve been getting a lot of press in my country (Norway) because of the way we are distributing it. Despite it being one of the most expensive debut albums made in recent history, we are giving it away for absolutely free, as a HQ Mp3 download.
I am the first artist in the world to give away a big budget debut album as a free download. But I believe that this is the way the music industry is going; Free music, better merchandise and unique membership packages. I’m trying to make people on the internet aware of the new way we have approached the music industry. So I’m reaching out to bloggers for their help.
We have created alternative and unique ways to make money. We are giving away the music , but have introduced a very unique membership package and have spent 5 months creating special merchandise, by asking 4 separate artists to create their own visual interpretations of my lyrics. If you have time come over and take a look at what we’ve done… download the album, it takes 2 minutes as we have our own dedicated server.
I worked with two of the biggest record producers in the world; Tchad Blake and Ian Grimble (Paul Simon, Tracy Chapman, Pearl Jam, Travis, Texas, Paul McCartney, Sheryl Crow, Suzanne Vega) We recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studio and at Abbey Road Studio london.
Download the entire debut album for FREE > www.jackrubinacci.com Or listen > http://www.myspace.com/jackrubinaccimusic
Described by Ian Grimble, producer of The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Travis, and Kt Tunstall as “Undiscovered diamond”, and by Nigel Gray, producer of the first three albums by The Police, as “The most exciting new singer songwriter I’ve heard in years” after three years in the making, Jack Rubinacci finally releases his debut album. Produced by Tchad Blake and Ian Grimble, (Paul Simon, Tracy Chapman, Sheryl Crow and Pearl Jam) and recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studio and Abbey Road Studio in London, these 11 songs showcase Jack’s unique song writing talent and remarkable voice.
Already identified as one of the most promising new artists in his home country of Norway, where his first single “She Makes Me Feel” was play listed by virtually every radio station in the country, he is now reaching out to the wider public via the internet. Despite being one of the most expensive debut albums in recent history, in line with the new developments in the music industry, this album is now available for absolutely free, as a high quality Mp3 download, off Jack’s official website www.jackrubinacci.com No tricks. No spam. Just the music.
Jack’s album is available for free, simply because we recognize the possibilities the internet offers in introducing Jack and his music to a large audience. Instead of running from the “download problem”, we are embracing it as a huge possibility for new people to discover Jack’s songs. The album is available for FREE here www.jackrubinacci.com or listen http://www.myspace.com/jackrubinaccimusic
Youtube Video’s
http://uk.youtube.com/user/jackrubinacci2
Related Links > www.jackrubinacci.com
Madonna’s gig upset May 13, 2008
Posted by grhomeboy in Music.Tags: Concerts, Music
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So Madonna hit the stage for Radio 1’s big weekend on Saturday.
And true to form, she wasn’t your average wallflower. In fact, she managed to stir up a bit of controversy. First off, Madge offended peeps by using the f-word twice during a broadcast of her singing stint, which went out live on BBC3.
The singer, wearing a titalicious top, introduced her song Hung Up by telling the crowd: “You guys are going to have to start f***king it up out there ‘cos I need to feel some love. I’m going to do an old song. But not too old. F*** the present. Let’s live in the past.”
This lil’ bit of excitement apparently prompted a bevy of viewer complaints, not forgetting the BBC have been warned before for allowing Madge to swear live at last year’s Live Earth gig. Meanwhile, backstage there was also a bit of a drama, as Madge and her entourage ruffled the feathers of rock band The Fratellis.
“Who does Madonna think she is?” Jon Fratelli ranted to the 3am Girls from the Daily Mirror, after she and her 70-strong crew reportedly held up rehearsals and hogged some of the food and drink backstage. “I’m not into all this,” he continued. “We’re all here to perform together. What happened to rock ‘n’ roll? Why is she (Madonna) even here?” he continued.
Oops. Sounds like Madge might have to mind her manners with her fellow musicians from now on. And her language as well, for that matter.
Rickrolling and the league of web fame > II April 20, 2008
Posted by grhomeboy in Music, Pop Culture.Tags: Music, Pop Culture
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Never Gonna Give You Up reached number one in 1987 > A new internet craze known as ‘rickrolling’ has thrust Newton-le-Willows’ 1980s pop star Rick Astley back into the spotlight, BBC reports.
Rick Roll
Here are some other recent cultural phenomena that have captured people’s imaginations, for good or for bad.
OK GO DANCING ON TREADMILLS > OK Go were a struggling power pop band when they released the video for Here It Goes Again in June 2006.
It only cost $5 (£2.50) to make, and featured the four musicians surfing along four facing treadmills, passing under each other’s arms and jogging on the spot – all while singing the song’s catchy, guitar-laden hook. Word about the quirky clip quickly spread around music blogs, and it now ranks as one of the most watched videos of all time on Youtube – with more than 32 million people stopping by to take a look. And the band benefited from the success, too – they picked up a Grammy for best short form music video, and were asked to perform their synchronised steps live at the MTV Awards.
BEYONCE TAKES A TUMBLE > There is nothing the public cherishes more than seeing a superstar in an unplanned moment of vulnerability.
So, when Beyonce fell headfirst down a flight of stairs during a concert in Orlando last year, fans instantly started uploading their amateur videos of the incident to the internet. In the shaky, low-quality clips, the R&B diva appears to step on her trench coat and plummet down eight steps. Then, ever the professional, she gets straight back up and launches into her dance routine, to applause from the audience. On YouTube, the comments range from the awestruck (“What a trooper”, “She’s still hot”) to the mean-spirited (“I laughed so hard”).
FAKE MOVIE TRAILERS > In 2005, a film-making body in New York issued a challenge to America’s assistant film editors – take an existing movie trailer, and re-edit it in an entirely different genre.
see also > http://www.robertryangandfriends.com
The winner was 25-year-old Robert Ryang, who took Stanley Kubrick’s psychological horror The Shining and turned it into a breezy romantic comedy, set to the tune of Peter Gabriel’s Salisbury Hill. Having won, he sent a couple of friends a link to a “secret area” on his company’s website where they could watch the video. One of them posted the link on his blog, and soon the video was being watched by more than 12,000 people a day. Celebrity fans included Jack Black and Fight Club director David Fincher – and the clip has inspired a whole host of fake trailers on YouTube. Other examples include Good Will Hunted , in which Matt Damon’s character becomes the target of a government assassination plot, and Brokeback To The Future , which convincingly splices the gay cowboy movie with Michael J Fox’s time-travel comedy.
OFFICE LIP DUBS > YouTube and its competitors allow fans to emulate their musical heroes and let the world judge their performances – like a giant, untrammelled version of The X-Factor minus Simon Cowell.
But while YouTube is littered with kids in their bedroom miming to pre-recorded tracks – Gary Brosloma’s Numa Numa Dance is a popular example – a group of office workers in New York went one better. After finishing the day’s business, they hooked up an iPod to a speaker and filmed the entire workforce performing Harvey Danger’s Flagpole Sitta (the theme tune to Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show). It comes across like a bizarre amateur version of Band Aid, with each member of staff taking a line or two of the song before everyone comes together for the final chorus. “We really just threw it together quickly. It’s the kind of thing anybody can do,” said ringleader Jakob Lodwick – who founded video sharing website Vimeo.
WILL FERRELL’S CREATIVE OUTLET > Best known for family-friendly, semi-improvised comedies like Anchorman, Elf and Blades of Glory, comedian Will Ferrell used to be part of the iconic Saturday Night Live team. Hollywood doesn’t allow him to indulge in his sketch comedy roots, so when he was approached by venture capital company Sequoia with the idea of setting up a website, he jumped at the idea. Along with comedy writer Chris Henchy and former Saturday Night Live head writer Adam McKay, Ferrell creates exclusive web-only skits that provide a creative outlet that is often a test-bed for his film work. The breakout clip is The Landlord, in which Ferrell is berated by a foul-mouthed toddler for failing to meet his rent payments. His success has convinced the likes of Adam Sandler, Will Arnett and Judd Apatow to contribute their own videos.
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/74 (Warning: offensive language)
Source > BBC http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7325280.stm
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