Aug 2

Scary Spice goes to court
[source: NME.com] Spice Girl Mel B has filed a petition in a Los Angeles court that could force actor Eddie Murphy to cough up thousands of dollars in child support.
A paternity test taken by Murphy in June proved he is the father of Melanie Brown's four-month-old daughter Angel Iris Murphy Brown, although Murphy has yet to "legally acknowledge" he is the father.
In court, Brown stated the baby was mutually planned and conceived by her and Murphy during their four-month relationship. She is seeking "reasonable child support".
Brown also has an eight-year-old daughter named Phoenix Chi, while Murphy has five children with ex-wife Nicole Mitchell. He recently became engaged to producer Tracey Edmonds.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Melanie-B.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Spice-Girls.aspx

TV On The Radio man producing Scarlett Johansson album?
[source: NME.com] Dave Sitek of TV On The Radio is rumoured to be producing an album for Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson.
Johansson has already spent more than a month in a Louisiana recording studio working on the material, which also features members of Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Celebration, according to Pitchfork.
Dockside Studio owner Steve Nails said the actress's sound is "avant garde" and "very Marilyn Monroe". He believes the album could go on to win a Grammy.
Johansson famously appeared onstage with The Jesus And Mary Chain for "Just Like Honey" at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival earlier this summer, and other reports suggest she has been working on an album of Tom Waits covers.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Tv-On-The-Radio.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Jesus-And-Mary-Chain.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Tom-Waits.aspx


Tricky launches new record label
[source: NME.com] Trip-hop star Tricky has teamed up with former Island Records boss Chris Blackwell to launch new imprint Brown Punk.
His first signings are Iggy Pop-associates The Dirty, blues act The Gospel (featuring Kira) and Laid Blak, who has supported John Legend and Julian Marley.
The label's first release will be "Skating Your Pool", a single by The Gospel (featuring Kira) that's due out on Monday September 10.
"Brown Punk represents a positive movement where you find intellectuals mixing with the working class, rock mixing with reggae and indie mixing with emo," Tricky explained.
The rapper has directed a film about the launch of the label, which will be shown at club nights in London.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Tricky.aspx

R Kelly to go to trial over child pornography
American r&b star R Kelly will go to trial to contest child pornography charges.
The 40-year-old performer hit the top of the charts in the US with songs like "Rise Up" and "I Believe I Can Fly" but Kelly will face a judge in September over accusations that he videotaped himself having sex with an underage girl.
The videotape in question was widely circulated at the time of the incident (more than five years ago), with prosecutors stating they believe the girl might have been as young as 13 at the time. If convicted, Kelly could spend up to 15 years in prison.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/R-Kelly.aspx


Muse to tour Australia twice in one year
Having last visited Australia in January for the Big Day Out festival, English prog rockers Muse are returning to Oz in November.
Matt Bellamy (vocals/guitar/keys), Chris Wolstenholme (bass/vocals) and Dominic Howard (drums) are widely considered one of the most powerful live bands on the planet.
"We've always had big, ridiculous ideas for live shows," lead singer Bellamy said.
"[Nothing's too over-the-top], so long as, artistically, it still has some kind of emotional connection to the crowd."
Tickets go on sale Thursday August 16 at 9am.

Tour dates:

Saturday November 10 – Supreme Court Gardens, Perth
Wednesday November 14 – Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Thursday November 15 – Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne
Saturday November 17 – Sydney Entertainment Centre
Wednesday November 21 – Riverstage, Brisbane

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Muse.aspx


Missy Higgins back on the road
Melbourne singer-songwriter Missy Higgins is packing her bags and heading across Australia on a 16-date trek called For One Night Only.
Encompassing both regional and urban centres, the tour will see Higgins perform tracks from latest LP On A Clear Night. Coming along for the ride is Tim Rogers, whose new LP, The Luxury Of Hysteria, is due out in September.
Tickets for the tour go on sale at 9am on Tuesday August 14.

Tour dates:

Saturday November 17 – Kuranda Amphitheatre, Cairns
Sunday November 18 – Townsville Entertainment & Convention Centre
Tuesday November 20 – Great Western Hotel, Rockhampton
Thursday November 22 – Gold Coast Convention Centre
Friday November 23 – Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Saturday November 24 – Mullumbimby Showgrounds
Sunday November 25 – Coffs Harbour Showgrounds
Tuesday November 27 – Port Macquarie Panthers
Wednesday November 28 – Tamworth Regional Entertainment Centre
Friday November 30 – Newcastle Entertainment Centre
Saturday December 1 – Sydney Entertainment Centre
Sunday December 2 – Belvoir Amphitheatre, Perth
Wednesday December 5 – Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne
Friday December 7 – Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Saturday December 8 – Homebake Festival, The Domain, Sydney
Sunday December 9 – Wollongong Entertainment Centre

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Missy-Higgins.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Tim-Rogers.aspx


Kylie throws a celebration… and becomes a waitress?
Aussie pop starlet Kylie Minogue is set to be honoured tomorrow night with a private party to celebrate 20 years since "Locomotion" shot to the top of the charts.
According to Murray Chalmers, the PR director at London record label Parlophone, the bash is "a private party that she and her manager are throwing", which will reportedly see ex-Neighbours castmate Jason Donovan in attendance.
Meanwhile, Minogue was mistaken for a waitress recently by an elderly customer in a hotel when on the set for a cameo appearance in the Christmas special of British sci-fi series Dr Who.
"It was absolutely comical. Kylie is an international star but obviously this old dear didn't know who she was. She said to Kylie: 'Excuse me, love, is it too late for a cup of tea?'."
In the show, Minogue plays a waitress called Astrid on the Titanic.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Kylie-Minogue.aspx


Dolly Parton to launch record label
Country music icon Dolly Parton is set to launch Dolly Records in February 2008.
The label is being established solely to distribute Parton's records, according to her manager, Danny Nozell.
"It's really the first mainstream country record Dolly has done in 17 years," he said.
"She's a free agent right now so we decided to go around to the majors to at least see what kind of distribution deals they were bringing in. We didn't see anything I was interested in."
The first single from the disc will be "Better Get To Livin'", which will hit radio in the US on Monday September 24. Meanwhile, the "Jolene" singer is set to head Down Under as part of a world tour beginning in March 2008.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Dolly-Parton.aspx


Blur helps young musos learn the ropes
If you've always wanted to learn how to strum hits like "Song 2", there's a new website that can help you.
Nowplayit.com acts as an "internet tutorial", helping to teach visitors how to play tracks from some of the UK's best-loved artists. Recent additions to the site include Blur's Alex James and Dave Rowntree, who've offered instructions on how to belt out hits like "Coffee & TV", "Song 2", "Tender" and "Girls And Boys".
Other artists who've joined the site include Gaz Coombs of Supergrass, Ben Byrne of Starsailor, KT Tunstall, Olly Knights and Gale Paridjanian of Turin Brakes and Romeo Stodart of The Magic Numbers.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Blur.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Supergrass.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Starsailor.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Magic-Numbers-The.aspx
http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Kt-Tunstall.aspx