Cee Lo Green at the 59th GRAMMY Awards, 2017

Cee Lo Green

Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

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Cee Lo Green Says New Gnarls Barkley Album Is "Halfway" Done

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The GRAMMY winner claims the album's production will be finished in early 2018
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Dec 20, 2017 - 4:59 pm

Cee Lo Green spoke candidly in a new interview with authoritative hip-hop blog DJ Booth about the prospect of a new Gnarls Barkley album sometime in 2018, calling his forthcoming solo mixtape Songbirds a "prequel" to help warm fans up and build anticipation for a third trip in to the studio with Danger Mouse and the resurrection of their GRAMMY-winning psychedelic soul project.

"We have already started on a new [Gnarls Barkley] album," Green told DJ Booth, stirring excitement over the possibility of the first new Barkley-branded music since 2008's Best Alternative Music Album GRAMMY-nominated The Odd Couple. "We're halfway in and we have some overtures from the other projects that may not have stood the test of time, we don’t know yet."

Green went on to hint that his collaborations with Danger Mouse have always been easily prolific, boasting the much of the recording efforts behind their two previous albums as Gnarls Barkley were finished in the time span of about a week. "That's pretty much all the time we had to do St. Elsewhere," he says. "We were doing [Gnarls Barkley] recreationally."

Further details on the new album are still forthcoming, though Green did reveal that he and Danger Mouse will be getting together at the "top of the year" to wrap up production.

Jack White Unveils First Teases Of New Album, 'Boarding House Reach'

Mariah Carey in 2017

Mariah Carey

Photo: Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images

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Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" Nabs First Top 10 Spot

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The GRAMMY winner's 1994 rendition of "All I Want For Christmas Is You" was streamed over 25 million times in the U.S. alone last week
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Dec 18, 2017 - 5:29 pm

With the holidays fast approaching, and people everywhere sinking deeper into the nostalgic embrace of the spirit of the season, some funny things can start to happen to the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Mariah Carey Wins Best New Artist

The annual resurgence in popularity of classic holiday tunes is always to be expected, so it should come as no surprise when, say, Vince Guaraldi's soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Christmas pops back in the Top 40 of the Billboard 200 for the third year running. Even more so is the perennial holiday mainstay that is Mariah Carey's famous 1994 rendition of "All I Want For Christmas Is You," which in recent years has become almost as ubiquitous as Jackson 5's "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town."

In fact, Carey's sultry Christmas earworm has gotten so popular that listeners around the country lost in the annual grips of seasonal streaming syndrome have just propelled the track into the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time ever. The hit hopscotched its previous peak rank of No. 11 to land at No. 9. Plus, according to Billboard, "All I Want For Christmas Is You" was streamed more than 25 million times last week in the U.S. alone.

Impressive though it may be for the song to be making its first trip to the Top 10, Carey's Christmas is one of only five holiday songs to rank in the Top 10 in the history of the chart. Granted, there were two time periods, 1963—1972 and 1983—1985, during which holiday songs were not technically eligible for consideration on the Hot 100 and were instead ranked on a dedicated Holiday Songs chart. But even taking that into consideration, Carey's "All I Want …" still has the distinction of being the only song in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 to chart Top 10 with the word "Christmas" in its title.

Vince Guaraldi Trio's 'A Charlie Brown Christmas': For The Record

LiveNation President/CEO Michael Rapino in 2009

Michael Rapino

Photo: Tom Williams/Getty Images

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LiveNation Executive Michael Rapino Renews Contract

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An SEC filing has revealed the complete details of LiveNation president/CEO's new contract renewal
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Dec 18, 2017 - 1:06 pm

Alongside this morning's announcement of a new joint venture with Bowery Ballroom founders to launch the New York-centric promotion and live event booking firm Mercury East Presents, an SEC filing by LiveNation has revealed that President/CEO Michael Rapino has just inked a five-year contract renewal to stay with the company that will see him potentially earning $9 million a year, plus vested stock, through 2022.

Rapino first joined LiveNation in 2005, and around that time the company launched its initial public offering at $10.75, and as of market close last week, LiveNation's stock value sits at $42.63 a share — a four-fold increase under his leadership.

Rapino's renewed contract, which will remain in effect until Dec. 31, 2022, promises 289,505 shares of common stock, 700,000 shares of performance equity, and a base salary of $3 million per year with eligibility for a performance-based bonus of $6 million. He will also receive an additional one-time bonus of $1 million for 2017, thanks in part to his securing several high-profile acquisitions including the purchase of the Napa, Calif.-based BottleRock Festival, Israel's Blue Note Entertainment, and today's Mercury East Presents launch.

Should Rapino be terminated by LiveNation "without cause" or if he terminates his own employment "for good reason" at any point during the contract period, he will receive a lump-sum cash payment equal to the sum of his base salary and his most recent performance bonus, multiplied by two, and the immediate acceleration of all unvested equity.

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GRAMMYs

Photo: Recording Academy

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'2018 GRAMMY Nominees' Album: Pre-Order Now

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24th edition of the best-selling series to feature music by top nominees from the 60th GRAMMY Awards; pre-order the album to enter a chance to attend Music's Biggest Night
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Nov 20, 2017 - 6:30 am

The 2018 GRAMMY Nominees Album commemorating the 60th GRAMMY Awards is officially set for release on Jan. 12, 2018.

Featuring music from the nominees in consideration for the 60th GRAMMY Awards, the album will be compiled by the Recording Academy in partnership with RCA Records.

The album will be available for pre-order starting on Black Friday, Nov. 24, during the Recording Academy’s "GRAMMYs Greatest Stories: A 60th Anniversary Special" on CBS, starting at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Music fans can log on to 2018grammyalbum.com to secure their pre-order, and also enter for a chance to win a trip for two to the 60th GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018, at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Proceed from the album sales with benefit the charitable efforts of the GRAMMY Museum and MusiCares.

"We are pleased to partner with RCA Records to showcase a unique collection of GRAMMY-nominated tracks on one album," said Recording Academy President/CEO Neil Portnow in a statement. "This is always a rewarding project for the Academy, as we not only offer one lucky winner a chance to attend the 60th GRAMMY Awards in New York City, but we also donate a portion of album sales to music education programs and music people in need through MusiCares and the GRAMMY Museum.”

When Will The 60th GRAMMY Nominations Be Announced?

Facebook For Creators, 2017

Photo: Jaap Arriens/Getty Images

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Facebook Unveils New Creators Tools For Independent Brand Development

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The new tools expand the functionality of Facebook Live and position Facebook Stories to better compete with Snapchat
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Nov 17, 2017 - 12:41 pm

Bands, lifestyle brands, and other independent creators may soon get a leg up in the world, thanks to a new suite of tools unveiled on Facebook today: the Facebook Creators app.

Aimed at servicing content creators and rising movers-and-shakers in creative industries, the new app provides a host of expanded plugins for Facebook users' Brand or Public Person pages, all of which can be used directly from their phone or mobile device.

Perhaps the most exciting addition is the introduction of the Live Creative Kit, which provides exclusive tools for users to tailor the brand experience of their Facebook Live broadcasts by adding custom intro/outro bumpers, graphic frames that can be displayed during the livestream, and custom live stickers that users can select to interact with the broadcast in unique and brand-specific manner.

All Live Creative Kit features will be easily accessible directly from the user's smartphone or mobile device, and will integrate with a newly added suite of camera and frames to expand the functionality of  Facebook Stories to align more closely (read: better compete with) rival apps like Snapchat.

On the back-end of the site, creators and brand/community managers will be able to enjoy a new Community Tab, which features a unified inbox capable of centralizing all Facebook/Instagram comments and direct messages from Messenger into a single communications portal, as well as expanded Insights data for tracking and building fan engagement.

Alongside the new tools, Facebook has also rolled out a new learning resource they're calling Facebook For Creators, which will field new users Frequently Asked Questions and host articles and videos aimed at providing "tips on how to create great videos, connect with fans, and grow on Facebook."

In a statement about their new services, reps for Facebook said, "We are just getting started, and look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with creators to make their experience on Facebook even better."

Facebook Creators app is currently only available on iOS devices, but the company plans to roll out Android support as well in the coming months.

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