Music News

NEW YORK - Rihanna on Friday described the horror she felt as her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown was biting and punching her during a violent argument in February, saying she saw "no soul in his eyes."

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - An unseasonal gust of wind greets Alicia Keys as she steps out of a doorway behind a Beverly Hills hotel on a late October afternoon.

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - In the latest addition to the popular book series "Chicken Soup for the Soul," music fans can satisfy their curiosity about the origins of their favorite songs.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - For the mini-orchestra Pink Martini, taking the slow but steady independent route has paid off during its 15-year career.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - A year ago, Justin Bieber was a kid from Toronto who had a gift for singing sweet-natured covers of Usher hits, a penchant for playing the drums and a resourceful mother who posted clips of him on YouTube.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Label executives occasionally write books about the record business, but it's far rarer to see someone from music retailing knock out a tome about record stores.

NEW YORK - Art D'Lugoff (Duh-LOO'-guhf), who owned the famed Village Gate nightclub in New York City, has died. He was 85.

LOS ANGELES - Michael Jackson's father is seeking an allowance from his son's estate to help cover expenses that exceed $15,000 a month, according to court documents filed Friday.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The emerging genre of "island pop" has enjoyed recent success with the music of Sean Kingston and Jason DeRulo, and now 22-year-old recording artist Iyaz has landed a hit single in the genre.

LONDON (Billboard) - Scoring a fifth successive U.K. No. 1 album should be a momentous occasion for any band, but in October 2007 the Welsh rock outfit Stereophonics wasn't able to savor the achievement for long.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Singer/guitarist Dave Rawlings has spent the past decade establishing himself as one of the most prominent sidemen in roots music, working in the studio and on the road with the likes of Old Crow Medicine Show, Bright Eyes and his longtime partner Gillian Welch. But this month Rawlings makes a move toward center stage with the release of "A Friend of a Friend," the debut album by the Dave Rawlings Machine.

Courtesy of NME.com - Slash says White 'was the one guy [he] wanted to work with'

Courtesy of NME.com - 'We've already done bits and bobs,' he says

LONDON (Reuters) - London-based record label EMI has won an injunction against music website BlueBeat.com which it said was selling Beatles songs without its permission.

Courtesy of NME.com - Bono admits his band 'didn't pull off the pop songs'

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Puerto-Rican hip-hop duo Calle 13 won five Latin Grammy awards on Thursday, including the coveted Album of the Year, helping cement their reputation as being among the vanguard of alternative reggaeton music.

Courtesy of NME.com - Motown sound singer to follow in footsteps of Lou Reed at Austin event

ARTIST: JOHN MAYER

ALBUM: BATTLE STUDIES

NEW YORK (Billboard) - With all of his recent tweeting and tabloid coverage, it's a wonder John Mayer had time to write new music -- much less the best and most adventurous of his four studio albums.

LOS ANGELES - A federal judge has temporarily blocked two music-sharing Web sites from selling songs by The Beatles and other artists for 25 cents apiece.

Courtesy of NME.com - Sectioned man accused of assault confined to hospital

NEW YORK - Broadway has found its Spider-Man — rock singer Reeve Carney.

Courtesy of NME.com - Cave's novel features a character fixated on the singers

ARTIST: RASCAL FLATTS

SINGLE: WHY

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Rascal Flatts' third single from the album "Unstoppable" tackles what might be the group's darkest subject yet: the loss of a friend to suicide.

ATLANTA - R&B singer Usher's divorce from his wife is final, according to court documents.

Courtesy of NME.com - Singer is currently under observation, his agent confirms

NEW YORK - A reality show miniseries about the Jackson family will premiere Dec. 13 on A&E, the network says. Back-to-back hour episodes will air that night at 9 p.m. EST.

Courtesy of NME.com - Tracklisting announced for November release

MOSCOW - A symphony dedicated to Mikhail Khodorkovsky has premiered in Moscow in a rare show of support for the jailed tycoon in his native Russia.

Courtesy of NME.com - He also takes a swipe at Noel Gallagher for dressing 'like Liz Hurley's son'