Halo - Beyonce

FYI
Halo is song written and produced by Ryan Tedder and Evan "Kidd" Bogart.

Halo was originally made for Leona Lewis, but failed to record the song. Lewis didn't have the ample time to record the song in the time that the producers wanted it released.

Review
Halo, a song that contains mainstream pop sound with the r&b touch from Beyonce's vocal magic, producers of this song made it simple making it glorious with the emotional lyrical content that can be give anybody goosebumps.

Lady GaGa Draws A Pair Of No. 1s

Lady GaGa becomes the first artist in nearly ten years to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with their first two chart entries, as "Poker Face" jumps 2-1. The New York native, born Stefani Germanotta, previously led the list for three weeks with "Just Dance" in January.

The last performer to launch with a pair of Hot 100 chart-toppers was Christina Aguilera, who reigned with "Genie in a Bottle" (1999) and "What a Girl Wants" (2000). Among women, Lady GaGa is only the fourth female artist in the last 25 years to open with a pair of No. 1s, joining Aguilera, Mariah Carey (1990) and Tiffany (1987).

"Poker Face" also moves to the head of Hot Digital Songs, where it shifts 206,000 downloads in its 14th week on the chart, and rises 6-5 on Hot 100 Airplay.

source: Billboard

Three Albums for Prince this 2009

Prince will be releasing three albums this year 2009 without any assistance from a record label, it is reported he is on major talks with a music retailer that will release his albums, as reported earlier by billboard magazine, Prince will released these 3 albums through physically and digitally via his new website which will be launched soon.

The two new Prince albums are the tentatively titled "MPLSOUND" and "Lotus Flower."

Beyonce on Top for 4th Week

Beyonce's "Single Ladies" is still on top on its 4th week with a massive 382,000 downloads from last week, a 152% increase from its previous week, while Lady Gaga's "Just Dance" is on no. 2 position with 419,000 downloads, a second best from Flo Rida's "Low" with 467,000 downloads, while T.I.'s "Live your Life" is on the no. 3 spot, Kanye West's "Heartless" is up on the no 4 spot and Taylor Swift's "Love Story" is on the 5th spot.

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Taylor Swift Retaining the Top Spot

Christmas is top billed with 2 big debuts this week coming from Keshia Cole's "A Different Me" and Jamie Foxx's "Intuition", but, Taylor Swift's "Fearless" got a hold of a stronger sales with 330,000 copies sold on its 4th week and get a hold of the No. 1 spot again against "A Different Me" which solds 322,000 copies and debuted only at No. 2 and "Intuition" that landed on the No. 3 spot with 265,000 copies sold.

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'Twilight' Bumps AC/DC From Atop Billboard 200

November 12, 2008 , 11:10 AM ET
Katie Hasty, N.Y.

The soundtrack to "Twilight" starts atop The Billboard 200 this week, becoming the third No. 1 soundtrack this year after "Juno" and "Mamma Mia!"

The Chop Shop/Atlantic set moved 165,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan, 29% of which (48,000) were digital downloads, the second biggest digital week for a soundtrack since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking album download sales in 2004. "High School Musical 2 bowed with 62,000 downloads in August 2007.

"Twilight," released in advance of the movie's U.S. theatrical premiere on Nov. 21, boasts tracks from Linkin Park, Muse and Paramore. It's based on the popular vampire-themed book series from author Stephenie Meyer.

Last week's No. 1, AC/DC's "Black Ice" (Columbia), drops to No. 2 with 160,000 on a sales decrease of 41%. The soundtrack to Disney's "High School Musical 3" stays tight at No. 3 for a second week with a 32% slip to 110,000.

Moving 81,000, Hinder's sophomore Universal album "Take It to the Limit" bows at No. 4, besting the No. 6 peak of the band's 2005 debut, "Extreme Behavior." However, that effort ended up spending a whopping 96 weeks on the chart on its way to 2.7 million in sales.

Pink's LaFace/Zomba set "Funhouse" falls 2-5 with 73,000 (-60%), while John Legend's Columbia set "Evolver" is down 4-6 with 72,000 (-46%). Despite a 10% sales slip, T.I.'s Grand Hustle/Atlantic album "Paper Trail" keeps the No. 7 spot warm for a second week with 69,000.

Italian vocalist Andrea Bocelli arrives at No. 8 with "Incanto" (Decca), shifting 62,000. His last studio effort, "Amore," began at No. 3 with 113,000 in 2006.

Brad Paisley's mostly instrumental Arista Nashville album "Play" starts at No. 9 with 54,000. On Top Country Albums, it arrives at No. 1, Paisley's fourth chart-topper there. Rascal Flatts' "Greatest Hits Volume 1" (Lyric Street) rounds out the top tier on the 200, slipping 6-10 with 39,000 (-56%).

Other debuts this week include Sarah Brightman's "A Winter Symphony" (Manhattan/EMI) at No. 38 with 14,000 and the Starbucks holiday compilation "Winter Wonderland" at No. 42 with 12,000.

Album sales this week came in at 7.02 million units, up 1% from last issue's charts and down 29% from same week last year.

Lupe Fiasco Bowing Out With Triple-Disc Set?

November 10, 2008 , 3:35 PM ET
Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Atlantic Records is declining comment on reports that rapper Lupe Fiasco will retire from music after releasing a triple disc album titled "LupEND."

Fiasco made the announcement during a Halloween show in Chicago, explaining that "END" stands for "everywhere," "nowhere" and "down here." No release date has been confirmed.

If true, the news shouldn't come as much of a surprise, considering Fiasco told Billboard as much last December. "'LupEND' -- that's going to be my last album's title," he said. "When you play a videogame, you can only put in three letters for your name and when the game's over, those three letters and 'END' pop up. My next record might be my last one."

The rapper's two albums, 2006's "Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor" and last year's high-concept "The Cool," have proven him to be one of the most exciting artists in hip-hop. Sales of "The Cool" have raced by those of the debut 549,000 to 375,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Fiasco has a handful of dates on tap before the end of the year, including Wednesday (Nov. 12) in Los Angeles.

T.I. Replaces Himself Again Atop Hot 100

November 06, 2008 , 11:00 AM ET
Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

T.I. again succeeds himself at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 as "Live Your Life" featuring Rihanna, trades places 2-1 with "Whatever You Like." On Oct. 9, "Life" replaced "Like," making T.I. the ninth artist in the rock era to do this.

"Life" also returns to No. 1 on Hot Digital Songs with 184,000 downloads, while "Like" maintains the top spot for an eighth week on Hot 100 Airplay, with 162 million impressions.

There's not much other action within the top 10 of the Hot 100. Pink's "So What" rises 4-3 and Katy Perry's "Hot N Cold" moves 6-4, while Beyonce's "If I Were a Boy" slides 3-5. Britney Spears' "Womanizer" is down 5-6, with Kevin Rudolf's "Let It Rock" featuring Lil Wayne and Ne-Yo's "Miss Independent" holding at Nos. 7 and 8, respectively.

Akon's "Right Now (Na Na Na)" powers 14-9 and is the top digital gainer after selling 117,000 downloads. Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" holds at No. 10 to round out the top portion of the Hot 100.

Right below, Taylor Swift's "You're Not Sorry" is the top debut at No. 11, narrowly missing her third top 10 debut of the year. Her sophomore album, "Fearless," arrives Tuesday (Nov. 11) from Big Machine Records.

"Miss Independent" is No. 1 for a second week on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, where Jamie Foxx's "Just Like Me" featuring T.I. is the top debut at No. 48. Foxx's next album, "Intuition," is due Dec. 16 via J.

Carrie Underwood's "Just a Dream" starts a second week atop Hot Country Songs. Metallica's "The Day That Never Comes" is No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock chart for a sixth week, while the Offspring's "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid" leads Modern Rock for a seventh.

Elvis' Site Says King Still Holds No. 1 Title

You won't find Mariah Carey's name mentioned in the news announcement at the official website of Elvis Presley Enterprises, just some timely stats asserting that Presley should be credited for 18 No. 1 singles during his lifetime.

So has Carey merely tied the King, not slipped by him, on the list of all-time hit makers?

"They're wrong," Geoff Mayfield, the king of Billboard's hallowed pop charts, said Friday. Presley took 17 singles to No. 1.

The discrepancy stems from the double-sided hit "Don't Be Cruel/Hound Dog" and partly from the fact that the Hot 100 chart, which has long been the industry standard for such accolades, didn't exist in 1956 when that single came out. The pre-1958 numbers that appear in Joel Whitburn's series of pop music chart stats often reflect a combination of listings that predated the Hot 100.

Like the baseball-stat freaks who argue that Babe Ruth's home run record should still stand because the season was lengthened after his career ended, some Elvis fans, and the Elvis Presley Enterprises site, consider "Don't Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" as two No. 1 hits. Whitburn's "Top Pop Singles, 1955-2006," drawn from Billboard's charts, lists it as a single entry, and Mayfield said it's the only example on which fans and Billboard experts differ.

But as far as Billboard is concerned, since both songs appeared on a single disc, it's one hit. Period.

Mariah Closing In On Record For No. 1 Hits

March 28, 2008, 10:30 AM ET
Fred Bronson, L.A.

Mariah Carey is on track to collect her 18th No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart next week.

"Touch My Body," the first single from her upcoming album, dipped one place to No. 15 on the latest survey. But the fresh availability of a digital download should send the song hurtling to the top next week.

That will push Carey to second place among artists with the most No. 1s in the rock era. The record is held by the Beatles with 20; Carey is currently tied with Elvis Presley.

Carey's album, "E=MC2," the follow-up to her 2005 Grammy-winning smash "The Emancipation of Mimi," arrives April 15 via Island Def Jam.

Asked recently by Billboard if she ever thinks about surpassing the Beatles' record, Carey admitted with a laugh, "I do, because people bring it up. But it's not like I sit around thinking about that type of stuff while I'm creating something. I did write this record in terms of wanting it to be a lot of songs that could potentially be singles, because people like that."

"I think it would be phenomenal," Island Def Jam Music Group chairman Antonio "L.A." Reid says of the prospect. "But the real goal is to create music the whole world can sing. And if we break records and set some milestones while doing that, that would be beautiful."

Source: Billboard

Dupri: Usher 'Itching' To Release New CD

January 11, 2008, 10:45 AM ET
Clover Hope, N.Y.

Usher's 2004 Jive album, "Confessions," has shifted 9.4 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, but tentative release dates keep coming and going for its follow-up, which is now nebulously slated for sometime this year.

So what's the holdup? "He has been taking a pretty long time to put it out, but I think he's ready now," says Jermaine Dupri, who has worked closely with Usher for years but scaled back his contributions to the new album after taking the reins of Island's urban music department.

"The last couple times I've been around [him], you could tell he's got the bug to hurry up and put this record out. He wants to get back out here and give the people that. He's got that itch."

Dupri is known to have produced the track "The Realest," which was at one time mentioned as a possible first single. T-Pain produced "All the Time," while Ludacris guests on "Dat Girl Right There," which leaked last month. Dre & Vidal and Cool and Dre are also said to have contributed to the album.

Dupri declined to reveal other specifics to Track, but conceded with a laugh, "I know that I've done my songs and I know that my songs on his record are crazy."

Source: Billboard

January 09, 1986

The day when my parent's misery was born. LOL! It's been a stumbling 22 years of existence... The 379th Anniversary of The Black Nazarene celebration marks the day of the birth of a stubborn and unreliable child of a family and that is me! But I've changed a lot... I changed the way I see life and changed the way I viewed myself 20 years from now. I learned that money only provides and I learned that maturity is a continual process. Along with this I also realized how and when to respect people and their perspectives, that friends are priceless, and ultimately come to a conclusion that GOD will and never leave me - that he's my ultimate and absolute defense!

The only thing that will never change is my shyness... May alam ba kayong drugstore na nagbebenta ng pantanggal ng hiya???

Flo Rida Bumps Keys From Atop Hot 100

December 27, 2007, 12:55 PM ET
Source: Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Rapper Flo Rida scores a No. 1 Hot 100 hit this week with his debut single, as "Low" featuring T-Pain" jumps 2-1. Increased airplay and digital sales of 178,000 units helped the track dethrone Alicia Keys' "No One," which slips to No. 2 after five weeks atop the chart.

On the Hot 100, Timbaland's "Apologize" featuring OneRepublic holds at No. 3, Chris Brown's "Kiss Kiss" featuring T-Pain remains at No. 4 and Fergie's "Clumsy" sticks at No. 5. Finger Eleven's "Paralyzer" inches up 7-6, trading places with Colbie Caillat's "Bubbly."

Jordin Sparks' "Tattoo" holds at No. 8, followed by Sara Bareilles' "Love Song," up 16-9 due to continued exposure from a Rhapsody TV commercial. Rihanna's "Hate That I Love You" featuring Ne-Yo is down 9-10 to round out the top tier.

Another Chris Brown track, "With You," is the chart's fastest grower at radio and moves 25-16. The Hot 100's top debut is Alvin and the Chipmunks' "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late) (2007)," at No. 70. The update of the 1958 holiday evergreen appears on the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" film soundtrack, which soars 67-48 this week on The Billboard 200.

On Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, Keys becomes only the second artist since this chart began using Nielsen Music data in 1992 to succeed herself at No. 1, as "Like You'll Never See Me Again" jumps 2-1 and trades places with "No One," which had ruled for 10 weeks. Nelly accomplished the feet in 2002 with "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma."

Taylor Swift begins a third week at No. 1 on Hot Country Songs, where Carrie Underwood is the greatest gainer with "All-American Girl" (25-17). On the Modern Rock chart, Seether's "Fake It" ends the record-breaking 18-week run at the top by the Foo Fighters' "The Pretender," which falls to No. 2. "Fake It" is also No. 1 on Mainstream Rock for an eighth frame.

'Oprah' Visit Helps Groban Soar To No. 1

After seven weeks on the chart, Josh Groban's holiday set "Noel" finally overtakes The Billboard 200 at No. 1. The 143/Reprise album ascends 2-1, selling 405,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. The 81% increase was fueled in part by his surprise appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" last week.

"Noel" is the first Christmas-themed set to top the chart since Kenny G's 1994 album "Miracles," and the 405,000 units marks Groban's best sales week ever.

Alicia Keys' "As I Am" (J) flip-flops with "Noel," slipping 1-2 with a 53% sales decrease to 349,000. The hits compilation "Now 26" climbs a notch 4-3 with 234,000. Garth Brooks' "The Ultimate Hits" (Pearl) moves up 5-4 with 192,000 (-6%) and the Eagles' "Long Road Out of Eden" (Eagles Recording Co.) follows suit, ascending 6-5 with 184,000 (-7%).

The soundtrack to Disney's "High School Musical 2" rockets up 14-6 with a 130% sales increase to 183,000; with that, the set surpasses Daughtry's self-titled set as the top selling album in 2007.

Carrie Underwood's "Carnival Ride" (Arista Nashville) climbs 9-7 with 141,000 and a 25% sales bump, while Celine Dion's Columbia album "Taking Chances" falls 3-8 following a 40% sales decrease to 128,000. Inching up 10-9, Chris Brown's "Exclusive" (Jive) sells 121,000 (+10%).

Jordin Sparks, who was crowned the winner on "American Idol" earlier this year, starts at No. 10 with her self-titled 19 Recordings/Jive set, moving 119,000. It is the lowest start and smallest sales debut for any of the show's winners on the tally.

Keith Urban's first best-of collection, Capitol's "Greatest Hits," debuts at No. 11 with 117,000. It's the Aussie country singer's fourth straight album to start in the top 11, dating back to 2002's "Golden Road," which also entered at No. 11. MercyMe's "All That Is Within Me" (Columbia) lands at No. 15 with 84,000 and is also the act's fourth No. 1 on Top Christian Albums.

Only two other albums bow inside of the top 50 on The Billboard 200: Philly rapper Freeway's "Free at Last" (G-Unit/Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam) starts at No. 42 with 36,000 and the soundtrack to "Enchanted" (Disney) debuts at No. 48 with 31,000.

This week, the top 11 albums all sold more than 100,000 copies, helped by the first week of the post-Thanksgiving shopping season. However, sales this week (13.94 million units) are down 18.1% from the same week last year (17.02 million). This week's sum is up 19% from last week's.

Brown Fends Off Keys, Timbaland To Remain No. 1

Chris Brown's "Kiss Kiss" featuring T-Pain begins a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, again fending off Alicia Keys' "No One" (3-2) and Timbaland's "Apologize" featuring OneRepublic (2-3). Soulja Boy's "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" holds at No. 4, while Colbie Caillat's "Bubbly" jumps 6-5.

With an enormous 64-6 increase, newcomer Flo Rida makes a major impression with "Low." The track sold 131,000 digital downloads; it will appear on the artist's Poe Boy/Atlantic debut, due in the first quarter of 2008.

Kanye West's "Good Life" featuring T-Pain inches up 8-7, trading places with Baby Bash's "Cyclone," also featuring T-Pain. West's "Stronger" slides 6-9, while Finger Eleven's "Paralyzer" continues to climb, this week up 14-10.

T-Pain is a featured artist on four top 10 tracks this week, becoming the first act to achieve the feat since 50 Cent in 2005.

The chart's greatest digital gainer is Fergie's "Clumsy," which jumps 20-12. The top debut is DJ Felli's "Get Buck In Here" at No. 44. The cut, which features Didy, Akon, Ludacris and Lil Jon, is a career high chart placement for the KPRW Los Angeles night DJ.

Also new on the Hot 100 are Lifehouse's "From Where You Are" at No. 61, currently soundtracking an Allstate ad, and CSS' "Music Is My Hot Hot Sex" at No. 84.

Keys' "No One" is No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for a fifth week, and another song from the artist, "Like You'll Never See Me Again," jumps 22-15. Keys' new J album, "As I Am," is expected to debut next week at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 next week.

On Hot Country Songs, Dierks Bentley claims his fift No. 1 with "Free and Easy (Down the Road I Go)." Alan Jackson has the top debut this week with "Small Town Southern Man" at No. 42, the first track from his next album, "Good Time." The Arista Nashville set is due early next year.

The Foo Fighters' "The Pretender" is No. 1 on the Modern Rock chart for a 13th week, and another Foo tune, "Long Road To Ruin," earns the most airplay ads and climbs 39-32. Seether's "Fake It" is No. 1 on Mainstream Rock for a second week.

Source: Billboard.com

Amy Winehouse Booed in Concert as Crowd Bolts

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 15, 2007 08:40 AM EST

By Caris Davis

For the first time since her husband's arrest, Amy Winehouse performed Wednesday night in the U.K. in a controversial comeback that resulted in her storming off stage after being booed by the audience, the BBC reports.

Sporting a shiny silver top and short black skirt – paired with her trademark beehive – the 24-year-old slurred her words and was a little unsteady on her feet during the performance at the Birmingham Indoor Arena, but she did make it through her hits "Back to Black," "Tears Dry on Their Own" and "Rehab."

The troubled chanteuse dedicated her song "Wake Up Alone" to Blake Fielder-Civil, who is currently in a London prison awaiting trial on charges of witness tampering. "This is for my husband," Winehouse said from the stage.

As disgruntled fans headed for the exits, Winehouse reportedly announced: "To them people booing, wait 'til my husband gets out of incarceration. And I mean that."

Drops the Mic

Her closing number, a cover of The Zutons' "Valerie," descended into chaos when she stopped singing, dropped the microphone and walked off stage.

"When she did sing she sounded phenomenal," one fan, Zoe Giorgio, told the BBC, "but she was not ready to be up on that stage. She was so weak, so vulnerable."

The gig marked the first night of the headliner's 17-date U.K. tour. In August, Winehouse canceled her summer shows amid reports of drug and alcohol abuse.

Source: People Magazine

Jay-Z Leapfrogs Eagles, Britney For No. 1 Debut

November 14, 2007, 11:10 AM ET

Katie Hasty, N.Y.

Jay-Z scores his 10th No. 1 album on The Billboard 200, as "American Gangster" (Def Jam) debuts on top this week after selling 425,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The rapper thus ties Elvis Presley in second place for the most No. 1 albums on the chart; only the Beatles have had more, with 19.

Since 1998, all eight of Jay-Z's solo studio albums have hit No. 1, in addition to his "Collision Course" project with Linkin Park and his "Unfinished Business" collaboration with R. Kelly.

After bowing at No. 1 last week, the Eagles' "Long Road Out of Eden" (Eagles Recording Co.) slips to No. 2 with 359,000, a 49% sales decrease. Garth Brooks' "The Ultimate Hits" (Pearl) debuts at No. 3 after shifting 352,000 units. Brooks' last studio set, 2001's "Scarecrow," debuted at No. 1 with 466,000. His only releases since then have been Wal-Mart exclusives and were thus not eligible to appear on The Billboard 200.

Teenaged R&B heartthrob Chris Brown starts at No. 4 with his sophomore Jive album, "Exclusive," which sold 294,000. His self-titled 2005 debut opened at No. 2 with 154,000. "Exclusive" features Brown's recent Hot 100 chart-topper, "Kiss Kiss," featuring T-Pain.

Carrie Underwood's 19 Recordings/Arista Nashville set "Carnival Ride" falls 3-5 with 121,000 (-29%), while Josh Groban's holiday album, "Noel" (143/Reprise), ascends 8-6 with a 52% sales increase to 116,000.

Selling 87,000 copies, Britney Spears' "Blackout" (Jive) slips 2-7 with a 70% sales hit in its second week. At No. 8, Taylor Swift's self-titled Big Machine debut flies from No. 26 with a 156% sales increase (68,000) in its 55th week. The boost came with the album's DVD-enhanced reissue and her Horizon award win at the recent CMA Awards.

Angels & Airwaves' second Geffen album, "I-Empire," begins at No. 9 with 66,000. The band's first set, "We Don't Need to Whisper," bowed higher, at No. 4, with 127,000 in May 2006.

His first album since completing jail time and surviving a near-fatal car accident in 2006, Cassidy's Full Surface/J set "B.A.R.S. The Barry Adrian Reese Story" begins at No. 10 after shifting 63,000. His sophomore release, 2005's "I'm a Hustla," started at No. 5 with 93,000.

Other big debuts this week include Latin reggaeton duo Wisin & Yandel's "Wisin Vs. Yandel: Los Extraterrestres" (Machete) at No. 14 with 53,000, country quartet Little Big Town's "Place to Land" (Equity Music Group) at No. 24 with 35,000, the Def Jam score/soundtrack to "American Gangster" at No. 36 with 21,000 and the Starbucks Entertainment holiday compilation "Stockings by the Fire" at No. 43 with 18,000.

Album sales are up 7.5% from last week at 9.95 million units and down 16.8% from the same week in 2006 (11.95 million).

matchbox twenty Returning To The Road

For the first time in four years, matchbox twenty will hit the road for two months this winter. With Alanis Morissette and MuteMath as openers, the tour begins Jan. 25 at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Fla., and continues through March 18 at the Pearl Theater in Las Vegas.

This marks the first tour since matchbox twenty became a quartet, after rhythm guitarist Adam Gaynor left the band in 2005. Former drummer Paul Doucette has since shifted to that position. The group was absent from the road while frontman Rob Thomas spent time promoting his first solo album, "Something To Be," over the last three years.

The stint comes in support of matchbox twenty's recent hits collection, "Exile on Mainstream" (Atlantic), which bowed at No. 3 on The Billboard 200 last month. The set includes six new tracks, including the single "How Far We've Come"; that song peaked at No. 11 on The Billboard Hot 100.

"This is different than any record we've made, and different than my solo record," frontman Rob Thomas told Billboard.com about the Steve Lillywhite-produced sessions. "We got together for a week at my house and we all had song ideas, but they didn't sound like what we wanted to play together. Between that vibe and working with Steve, it's a much more raw, energetic, live-sounding record than we've done in the past."

Morissette will release a new album, "Flavors of Entanglement," in 2008 on Maverick Records. As previously reported, she will also star as Sylvia in the film adaptation of Philip K. Dick's "Radio Free Albemuth."

Here are matchbox twenty's tour dates:

Jan. 25: Hollywood, Fla. (Hard Rock Live)
Jan. 26: Tampa, Fla. (St. Pete Times Forum)
Jan. 28: Atlanta (Philips Arena)
Jan. 29: Charlotte (Cricket Arena)
Feb. 1: Chicago (Sears Centre)
Feb. 2: Detroit (Palace of Auburn Hills)
Feb. 4: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
Feb. 5: Milwaukee, Wis. (Bradley Center)
Feb. 7: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
Feb. 8: Fairfax, Va. (Patriot Center)
Feb. 12: Verona, N.Y. (Turning Stone Resort & Casino)
Feb. 14: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Feb. 15: Atlantic City, N.J. (Borgata Hotel Event Center)
Feb. 16: Niagara Falls, N.Y. (Seneca Niagara Casino Theatre)
Feb. 18: Uncasville, Conn. (Mohegan Sun Arena)
Feb. 19: Reading, Pa. (Sovereign Center)
Feb. 21: Albany, N.Y. (Times Union Center)
Feb. 22: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Feb. 25: Kansas City, Mo. (Sprint Center)
Feb. 26: Omaha, Neb. (Qwest Center)
Feb. 28: Houston (Toyota Center)
Feb. 29: Dallas (Nokia Theatre)
March 2: Oklahoma City (Ford Center)
March 4: Colorado Springs, Colo. (World Arena)
March 5: Denver (Broomfield Events Center)
March 6: Salt Lake City (E Center)
March 8: Seattle (Key Arena)
March 9: Vancouver (General Motors Place)
March 12: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
March 14: Reno, Nev. (Reno Events Center)
March 16: Los Angeles (Staples Center Arena)
March 17: Phoenix (Cricket Pavilion)
March 18: Las Vegas (The Pearl Concert Theater)

Seal goes back to basics

With his first studio album since 2003, singer / songwriter Seal hopes to rediscover the youthful energy of his self-titled debut 16 years ago reports Reuters.

"My main objective on this was to go back to my roots -- that's been a kind of mission statement," Seal says. "But a couple of people have misunderstood that. I didn't mean back to dance, although some people will say I did emerge from the dance scene, and that's partly true."

Seal's first UK hit was as guest vocalist on Adamski's floor-filling crossover hit "Killer" in 1990.

"Dance music in 1988-89 was just fantastic. It just exploded," he reflects. "Technology was a big part of that, and it was affordable. You had bands like 808 State and A Guy Called Gerald making music in their bedrooms. Then I was able to lock it in with (debut solo hit) 'Crazy'."

For Seal, returning to his roots means "going back to the fundamentals of how I wrote, which was on the guitar, writing basic chords and relying on my voice and a sense of melody to create the song. My first and this album are probably my two best, and I'd (likely) give the edge to this one."

"System" is due out November 12 in most international markets and November 13 in the United States.

Seal plans to tour extensively in support of "System," with dates to be announced.

Source: Music-News

Artist Update: Goo Goo Dolls

"The Goo Goo Dolls Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 -- The Singles" comes out Nov. 13, featuring 14 chart entries since "Name" gave the band its first Hot 100 berth in 1995. The album includes chart-toppers such as "Iris" and "Slide" as well as "Before It's Too Late (Sam and Mikaela's Theme)" from the "Transformers" film soundtrack. A "Vol. 2" is slated for February with B-sides, rarities, remixes and some new tracks.

By that time, Rzeznik tells Billboard.com, the Goos should be back in their Buffalo, N.Y., studio working on the follow-up to 2006's "Let Love In."

"I'm going into the studio in Buffalo in January and gonna hang out there until the record's done, which will probably be, like, June," Rzeznik says. He has "maybe six or eight (song) ideas floating around in my head," as well as a concrete idea of how he wants the album to sound.

"I want the next record to have a little more of an edge on it," Rzeznik explains. "I don't want the rough edges taken off so much. The band's gonna play live on it more, not so many overdubs. When we were on tour we recorded every single show and we would listen back, and the difference between the band on record and the band live was ... I want it to sound more like we do live. It's a lot more energy. It's a more aggressive sound."

Rzeznik says he'd also like the Goos to work with "a tougher producer" this time around, listing Gil Norton, Tim Palmer and Rich Costey (The Kills) among those who could push the band.

"We've learned so much from so many great people," Rzeznik says, "working with Rob Cavallo and Glen Ballard, Jack Joseph Puig and all those guys. I just think sometimes the albums may be a little too polished. I don't want to give you the idea I'm about to make a metal record or something; I still want to have good songwriting on the record, but I want some more muscle this time, too."

The Goos have one more show scheduled for this year, on New Year's Eve in Las Vegas.

source: Billboard Music News