Month: February 2022

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Rock Daypop

Tesla announce North American tour dates for spring/summer 2022

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Tesla have announced a North American spring/summer tour.  The trek will kick off on March 10 in Plant City, Florida, making stops at the Florida Strawberry Festival and M3 Rock Festival before concluding on August 6 in Monroe, Michigan.

Tesla played the first two shows of their summer 2021 tour (August 5 in Grants Pass, Oregon and August 6 in Grand Ronde, Oregon) without guitarist Frank Hannon, who had contracted COVID-19; filling in for him was Howie Simon (Jeff Scott Soto, Graham Bonnet, Stryper).  Last August, Tesla released the official music video for their brand new single, “Cold Blue Steel”. The clip was directed by Brandon Gullion and produced by Frank Hannon.  Tesla’s latest album, Shock, was released in March 2019, produced by Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen.

For Tesla tour dates and ticket information, head here.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Rock Daypop

Smashing Pumpkins announce “Rock Invasion 2” spring tour dates

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The Smashing Pumpkins have announced 2022 dates for their “Rock Invasion 2 Tour.”  The Pumpkins will hit the road, hitting cities such as Tucson, Oklahoma City, New Orleans, Birmingham, Greensboro, and Columbus over the course of the 18-date jaunt. They’re also scheduled to play Memphis’ Beale Street Music Festival and Welcome to Rockville in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Tickets go on sale Friday, February 25th at 10:00 a.m. local time, with pre-sale tickets available now. For the complete “Rock Invasion 2 Tour” schedule, head here.

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Entertainment Daypop

Sherri Shepherd to host her own daytime talk show; will take over ‘Wendy Williams Show’ time slot

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Distributor Debmar-Mercury announced Tuesday morning that ‘The Wendy Williams Show’ will end after 14 seasons. Sherri Shepherd — who’s been a frequent guest host for Williams while she dealt with health issues this season — will headline her own daytime talk show in the fall titled ‘Sherri,’ which will take over the time periods held by ‘The Wendy Williams Show’ on Fox owned-and-operated stations.

Debmar-Mercury co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein said in a statement: “Since Wendy is still not available to host the show as she continues on her road to recovery, we believe it is best for our fans, stations and advertising partners to start making the transition now. We hope to be able to work with Wendy again in the future, and continue to wish her a speedy and full recovery.”

Shepherd said in a statement: “OMG! I am so excited to have my dream come true and debut my very own talk show ‘Sherri’ in the fall. I can’t wait until I return to NY to host the show and merge everything I love…pop culture, talk, entertainment and comedy. I am thankful for Debmar-Mercury and Fox for partnering with me on this show and look forward to this new journey.”

Shepherd was previously a co-host on ABC’s The View and is currently a co-host on Fox’s Dish Nation.

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Rock Daypop

Train to release new album, launch North American tour

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Train will be launching a North American summer tour to promote their forthcoming album, titled “AM Gold,” set to drop on May 20th.  Check out the lyric video for the new album’s title track – here.

Frontman Pat Monahan said of the band’s 11th studio LP: “writing songs is hard. Not compared to so many things I suppose, but it’s difficult to create something that you love and then other people love as well. Writing songs for two and a half years in front of video screens instead of being in the presence of other humans has been a long, strange trip. And now here we are. It has to start with love. Love that goes into work comes out of work. We love this song, this album, and our fans. Thank you for waiting so long for us. I think it was worth it. AM Gold! Here we go!”

The AM Gold Tour will kick off June 8th in Mansfield, MA, and will feature support from Jewel and Blues Traveler. Said Monahan of touring: “2022 is the year of the Tiger. It has begun in a strong, beautiful, and encouraging way and it’s only the beginning. The 2022 Summer AM Gold tour will be all those things and more, as we are joined by our dear friends Jewel and Blues Traveler! What a ride! We can’t wait to see you all out there, dancing and singing along to their amazing music as well as our new album AM Gold. Is it June yet? See you then! Love and miss you all!”

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Rock Daypop

The Police set to release “Greatest Hits” album for their 30th anniversary

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The Police’s Greatest Hits album  — remastered at Abbey Road and cut at half speed to ensure the ultimate sound quality — will be reissued on vinyl on April 15 to mark the 30th anniversary of its original release in 1992.  The reissue will be available as two heavyweight black LPs with expanded artwork and packaging in a bespoke gatefold sleeve, enhancing the original artwork.  The definitive collection features 16 tracks, including No.1 songs such as “Message In A Bottle,” “Walking On The Moon,” “Don’t Stand So Close To Me,” “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” and “Every Breath You Take.”

All three former members of The Police — Sting, Stewart Copeland, and Andy Summers — are keeping busy.  Sting will the road in March with the My Songs tour in support of his album The Bridge, playing six shows at the London Palladium from April 15-21, and dates in Europe and North America, before resuming his residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, in June.  Andy Summers’ one man multi-media music show will visit Germany, France, and Benelux in October, and his latest photo exhibition commences in July.  Steward Copeland’s Police Deranged show accompanied with an orchestra will play in North America and Europe, and he’ll also premiere his Witches Seed opera in Italy this July.

You can pre-order The Police’s Greatest Hits, set for release on April 15.

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Entertainment Daypop

Britney Spears signs ‘tell-all’ book deal worth a reported $15 Million

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Britney Spears has reportedly signed one of the biggest book deals in publishing history, securing a deal worth as much as $15 million with publishing house Simon & Schuster.

The “tell-all” memoir will cover Spears’ career and family life.  Reports state that Spears’ decision to pen a book came as her sister Jamie Lynn released Things I Should Have Said, over which the two have been publicly feuding. Jamie’s book was release during the end of Britney’s 13-year-long conservatorship.

Spears’ conservatorship was officially terminated in November, after her father—who was appointed as co-conservator with Andrew Wallet in 2008—was suspended from the role in September. Spears asked the court to terminate the conservatorship during a hearing on June 23, and said she hadn’t had control over her finances, medical decisions, and other aspects of her life as a result.

Spears previously teased a potential book when she posted a photo of a typewriter back in January with the caption “shall I start from the beginning.”

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Entertainment Daypop

Dave Chappelle is returning to Netflix with new series, ‘Chappelle’s Home Team’

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Dave Chappelle is set to produce a series of comedy specials for Netflix.  The streaming service announced that the comedian will serve as executive producer for the upcoming series titled “Chappelle’s Home Team.”  The series will feature a total of four specials.  The first special, “Earthquake: Legendary,” features the comedian Earthquake and will premiere on Feb. 28. Donnell Rawlings will appear in the next special, with a release date TBD.

In a statement, Chappelle said: “I’ve been doing this a long time and comedians like Quake and Donnell are not only friends but have inspired my own career. Anyone in the comedy community knows these names and knows their time to shine is long overdue. I am proud to be a part of this moment.”

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Entertainment Daypop

‘Peacemaker’ creator James Gunn engaged to series star Jennifer Holland

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‘Peacemaker” creator James Gunn and series star Jennifer Holland are engaged after 7 years together. The 55-year-old filmmaker and 35-year-old actress announced the news on social media. Gunn simply wrote “😏❤” in the caption of his Instagram post, which featured a photo of Holland sipping from a mug with a diamond ring visible on her left hand.  Holland simply posted a picture of the couple with the caption “Happiness”.  Holland and Gunn have been in a relationship since 2015, when they were first introduced by their mutual friend Michael Rosenbaum.

Gunn is the director of box office hits such as the Guardians of the Galaxy series and The Suicide Squad, as well as the writer, director, and creator of the Suicide Squad spin-off series Peacemaker, starring John Cena as the titular superhero. Holland first teamed-up with Gunn in the 2019 superhero horror film Brightburn, produced by Gunn.  She joined the DCEU with last year’s The Suicide Squad, which was written and directed by Gunn, and originated the onscreen role of Emilia Harcourt, an A.R.G.U.S. agent assisting the rag-tag group of supers through their mission from the comms room. In HBO Max’s Peacemaker, Harcourt is part of the black ops team working on “Project Butterfly,” fighting against the parasitic butterfly-like alien species that’s begun taking human form.

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Rock Daypop

Paul McCartney will hit the road for 13-date ‘Got Back’ North American tour

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Paul McCartney will hit the road on the Got Back Tour, a 13-city trek that will take him across the U.S. between April and June. The Got Back Tour will begin on April 28 with his first-ever show in Spokane, WA, before wrapping-up on June 16 with a show in East Rutherford, NJ.  Said McCartney: “I said at the end of the last tour that I’d see you next timeI said I was going to get back to you. Well, I got back!”

The tour is McCartney’s first since the the 39-date, 12-country Freshen Up Tour concluded in July 2019 with a sold-out show at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Tickets for all dates on the tour will go on sale to the public on Friday, February 25 at 10am local time at https://paulmccartneygotback.com/.  American Express Card Members can purchase tickets from February 22, again at 10am local time, until February 24 at 10pm local time.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Rock Daypop

Bon Jovi launches contest for local bands to open for them on upcoming U.S. tour

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Bon Jovi has launched a new contest that will allow local bands to open for them on their upcoming U.S. tour. Local bands can upload an audition video featuring original music to Bon Jovi’s official website for a chance to open for the group; one local band will be selected for each tour date. Said Jon Bon Jovi: “We have all missed touring and we know that nothing can replace the energy of a live show for the fans or the band.”

Bon Jovi spent much of the past two years recording and releasing new music, while also creating livestream performance content and launching Bon Jovi radio for their fans. The group’s latest album was “2020.”

Bon Jovi’s 2022 tour is set to kick-off April 1 at the CHI Health Center in Omaha, Neb., before wrapping-up on April 30 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.  For more information and to upload a submission, visit www.bonjovi.com.

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