New York, United States | AFP | Pop diva Beyonce on Tuesday led nominations for next year’s Grammy Awards but faced tough competition from fellow chart-topping artists including Adele. Beyonce received nods in nine categories for the music industry’s biggest night including Album of the Year for “Lemonade,” her contemplative …
Read More »Drake dominates Spotify for another year
New York, United States | AFP | Rap superstar Drake has dominated Spotify for the second straight year, ending 2016 as the most streamed artist and with both the most heard album and song. The world’s leading streaming service, releasing figures Thursday for the past one-year period, said that its …
Read More »Kanye suffers mental breakdown
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Rapper Kanye West was taken to a hospital in Los Angeles after his doctor called the emergency services to report he was suffering a mental breakdown, news reports said Tuesday. The musician’s personal physician Michael Farzam told police that his 39-year-old patient was …
Read More »Kanye scraps US tour after rant about Jay Z, Beyonce
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Rap superstar Kanye West has pulled the plug on his North American tour, organizers said Monday, two days after a rambling onstage tirade against fellow artists Jay Z and Beyonce. The “Saint Pablo Tour” was set to run through December 31 but all …
Read More »Kanye West stuns crowd with Trump support
New York, United States | AFP | Rap superstar Kanye West stunned a crowd by revealing his support for US President-elect Donald Trump while suggesting he still plans to challenge him in 2020. After a campaign in which fellow artists and African Americans overwhelmingly backed rival Hillary Clinton, the rapper …
Read More »German YouTube alive with sound of music after copyright deal
Frankfurt, Germany | AFP | One of the world’s most restrictive countries on access to music videos opened up on Tuesday as YouTube announced a deal with musicians’ body GEMA to pay when people stream music in Germany. YouTube users in the country had for years been confronted with a …
Read More »World dances to African beat
Local Africa beat is major attraction in music industry Demand for homegrown contemporary music is sweeping Africa and driving a creative boom in an industry otherwise battered by falling CD sales and rampant piracy. A recent study of the entertainment sector by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) accountants showed rapid earnings growth in …
Read More »US rapper Coolio avoids jail in firearms case
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | US rapper Coolio was given community service on Wednesday after admitting carrying a handgun in a backpack at Los Angeles International Airport. The weapon was discovered in the bag as a member of the 53-year-old’s entourage went through a security screening checkpoint on …
Read More »Drake plans new release and takes shot at rival
New York, United States | AFP | Drake, the rapper who has dominated the charts with his latest album, celebrated his 30th birthday Monday by announcing a new release that includes a song dissing a critic. The Toronto rapper said he would release “More Life” in December and described it …
Read More »Nigeria’s Wizkid, SA’s Semenya take top MTV awards
Ugandans edged out as Nigeria’s Wizkid, SA’s Semenya take top MTV awards Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Nigerian afro-pop star Wizkid and South Africa’s Olympic gold medallist Caster Semenya won top prizes at the 2016 MTV Africa Music Awards in Johannesburg on Saturday. Wizkid was named artist of the …
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