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Rapper K'Naan upset Mitt Romney used his song |
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Written by Staff
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Thursday, 02 February 2012 03:58 |
NEW YORK (AP) — Rapper K'Naan is upset that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney used his song "Wavin' Flag" during his Florida primary victory speech.
In a statement Wednesday, K'naan says Romney's campaign did not seek approval to use the song and that he would not have granted permission if it had.
The Somali-born, Canadian-based rapper says he would happily grant President Barack Obama's campaign the use of the song.
K'Naan says he wants to make sure Romney does not use his song again and is seeking legal action.
Romney spokesman Rick Gorka says the song was used through the campaign's regular blanket license but, out of respect for K'Naan's statement, won't be used again.
"Wavin' Flag" was an international hit for K'Naan in 2010, co-written and co-produced by Bruno Mars' production team, The Smeezingtons.
Yahoo
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Guitar Center Presents Your Next Record |
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Written by Staff
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Wednesday, 01 February 2012 11:50 |
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 Guitar Center enters 2012 with the launch of the next installment of the music retailer's inspirational artist discovery program, Guitar Center Presents Your Next Record with T-Pain. The ground-breaking, career-altering program, which begins accepting submissions on Feb. 1st, will offer one emerging artist the unprecedented opportunity to record with Grammy winning artist, writer, rapper and producer, T-Pain. As this series' host of Guitar Center Presents Your Next Record, T-Pain joins the ranks of previous hosts including legendary artists Slash, Keith Urban, and most recently, Travis Barker.
How to Enter: Starting today through April 4, 2012, unsigned artists across the United States, are invited to submit their unique music track at http://tpain.whooznxt.com/.
Your Next Record with T-Pain Winner to Receive:
- A 3-song EP produced by Young Fyre (produced several tracks on T-Pains "rEVOLVEr" album)
- T-Pain to produce and write on winner's single
- Complete Pro-tools HD Native recording studio
- MPC 5000 music production studio
- New gear and products from SHURE, iZotope and ROCKSTAR Energy Drink
- Worldwide music distribution through TuneCore
"I am all about coming up with that next, fresh, new, exciting idea," said T-Pain. "It's important that we give up-and-coming artists a chance to share their talent with the world. This is exactly what Guitar Center is doing with Your Next Record and that's why I'm proud to be part of this."
"Guitar Center Presents Your Next Record was created to give undiscovered musicians a platform to get their sound heard and their record made," said Dustin Hinz, director of music and entertainment marketing + artist relations for Guitar Center. "Each session we have seen an increase in the entries and even more talented winners, including last session's winner, Brandon Green who was hand-picked by Keith Urban. T-Pain is sure to bring a fresh perspective to judging and producing this year's competition and we can't wait to see how it all plays out."
How the Competition Works
Unsigned artists have up to nine weeks to submit their original track via Guitar Center's Your Next Record website http://tpain.whooznxt.com/. Guitar Center has commissioned leading online music company NXTM and will utilize their Whooznxt social media ranking platform to host and judge the first round. Competing artists will be ranked on how well they're able to connect with fans through social media. T-Pain and an expert panel of judges will select one winner to receive the grand prize from among the top 100 ranked entries.
Hip hop artist T-Pain, aka Faheem Rasheed Najm, is a Grammy winning, platinum-selling artist, writer, rapper and producer who has produced and written a plethora of chart-topping and platinum-selling singles, garnered "Songwriter of the Year" and "Producer of the Year" honors at the BMI Urban Awards and earned a BET Award. T-Pain has earned two Grammy Awards alongside artists Kanye West and Jamie Foxx.
Internationally renowned drummer Travis Barker jumped into the fray on the most recent installment of Guitar Center's Your Next Record, choosing Connecticut based band Twin Berlin as the Grand Prize Winner. During the second session of the groundbreaking program singer-songwriter Brandon Green received a phone call from Keith Urban informing him that he had been hand selected as the winner. Green's single "Love Lovin' You" featuring Keith Urban will be released this fall. Guitar Center's inaugural session featured legendary guitarist Slash. The winning band, State Line Empire, released their single "Drive Me" recorded with the iconic guitarist in March of 2011.
Guitar Center's commitment to unsigned artists runs deep with a full calendar year of programs that aim to provide musicians with the opportunity and exposure they need to be successful. In addition to Guitar CenterSinger-Songwriter, these include:
- Guitar Center On-Stage is an annual competition that provides unsigned artist that chance to open for established artists such as Motley Crue, KISS and Jane's Addiction.
- Guitar Center Singer-Songwriter is an artist discovery program which aims to find the nation's best unsigned singer-songwriter. The winner receives a career-altering prize package including recording 3 songs with accomplished Grammy Award-winning Producer John Shanks, recording time at Converse Rubber Tracks studio and $10,000 cash. The grand finale takes place in Los Angeles on Feb. 18.
- Guitar Center's King of the Blues is a nationwide amateur guitar skills competition with the goal of finding the next great undiscovered blues guitar player. This year's winner, Jonathon "Boogie" Long, performed alongside Grammy-winning guitarist Warren Haynes at the Grand Finals in LA, and won an incredible prize package valued at over $50,000.
- Guitar Center's Drum-Off, entering its 24th year, is the nationwide search for the next great undiscovered drummer. Drummers from across the nation compete in the world's largest drum competition, vying for thousands of dollars in prizes and the coveted title of Guitar Center's Drum-Off Champion. The grand prize package is valued at nearly $50,000.
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 01 February 2012 11:51 |
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'Soul Train' creator Don Cornelius commits suicide |
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Written by Staff
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Wednesday, 01 February 2012 13:34 |
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Police responding to a report of a shooting found Cornelius at his Sherman Oaks, Calif., home around 4 a.m. He was pronounced dead about an hour later at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, according to the coroner's office.
Us Weekly reports that when Cornelius was in court in 2009 for divorce proceedings, he complained of "significant health issues."
"Soul Train" began in 1970 in Chicago and aired in syndication from 1971 to March 2006, featuring primarily African-American musicians. It brought the best R&B, soul and later hip-hop acts to TV and had teenagers dance to them. It was one of the first shows to showcase African-Americans prominently, although the dance group was racially mixed.
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 01 February 2012 13:39 |
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12 City Civil Rights Bus Tour |
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Written by Staff
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Wednesday, 01 February 2012 07:37 |
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Through local performances, concerts, exhibits and employee events in 12 cities, The PNC Financial Services Group will celebrate the history of African Americans during the month of February.
In recognition of Black History Month, PNC-sponsored programs and activities will be held in Chicago, Ill.; Cincinnati, Ohio.; Cleveland, Ohio; Detroit, Mich.; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Kalamazoo, Mich.; Newark, N.J., Pittsburgh, Pa.; Philadelphia, Pa.; St. Louis, Mo.; Towson, Md.; and Washington, D.C.
Highlights of PNC events include:
•"Teenie Harris, Photographer: An American Story," an exhibit at the Chicago Public Library.
•A series of events in partnership with the Cleveland Cavaliers including a Martin Luther King, Jr. Tribute Night and Gospel Night.
•"Courage," an award-winning traveling exhibit at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati that follows the story of Rev. J.A. DeLaine.
•An event in Philadelphia celebrating the life of Joan Myers Brown, the founder of the Philadelphia Dance Company, with guest speaker Brenda Dixon Gottschild, author of "Joan Myers Brown & the Audacios Hope of the Black Ballerina: A biohistory of American Performance."
•"We Wear the Mask," an exhibition on black dramatic theatre at the Newark Public Library.
•A series of events in Pittsburgh honoring the legacy of Chuck Cooper, the first African American drafted into the N.B.A. and a panel discussion on African American inspired arts and culture in the region.
•A "Salute to Young Leaders" in St. Louis, honoring 20 outstanding African American professionals age 40 or younger.
•An event honoring the life and legacy of the late civil rights champion Dr. Arthur L. Johnson in Detroit.
•A moderated discussion in Washington, D.C. at the African American Civil War Memorial & Museum, featuring NPR host and author Michel Martin, African American Civil War Memorial & Museum Director Dr. Frank Smith, and The Atlantic Senior Editor and Blogger Ta-Nehisi Coates.
In addition to local community and employee events, for the tenth consecutive year, PNC will sponsor the "Returning to the Roots of the Civil Rights Bus Tour," which travels to landmark cities of the American civil rights movement.
To learn more about diversity and inclusion at PNC or for additional information on attending PNC celebrations of Black History Month, visit http://www.pnc.com/diversity or email
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 01 February 2012 07:38 |
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