NFL season kicks off with free NYC concert

NEW YORK (AP) — Usher, Keith Urban and Natasha Bedingfield are kicking off the NFL season with a free concert that's expected to draw thousands to Manhattan's Columbus Circle.

They are scheduled to perform Thursday afternoon. A video about the Super Bowl champion New York Giants will be shown before the NFL Kickoff show.

Traffic at the busy intersection at the foot of Central Park is expected to come to a virtual stop as fans and speakers — including Mayor Michael Bloomberg — turn out for the event.

The NFL will air portions of the concert live on its network prior to Thursday night's game between the Giants and the Washington Redskins at Giants Stadium.

source from : yahoo music

Christina Aguilera Reaches Target Audience

Ain't no other retailer for Christina Aguilera.

The petite vocal powerhouse has inked a deal to sell her upcoming compilation album, Keeps Gettin' Better—A Decade of Hits, exclusively through Target.

She joins John Legend, whose Live From Philadelphia is a Target exclusive, Carrie Underwood and Alicia Keys among the artists who've enlisted the big-box retailer to peddle their musical wares. Groups such as the Eagles, AC/DC and Journey have made similar arrangements with Wal-Mart.

Aguilera's greatest-hits collection, which also features two new songs, will be available in stores and on Target.com starting Nov. 11.

"I can't believe it's been over 10 years since my first album, and it was really exciting to put all of my favorite songs in one collection for my fans," said the 27-year-old "Genie in a Bottle" singer, who's also busy pushing a new signature fragrance, Inspire, and mothering her 7-month-old son, Max.

source from: Yahoo music

Library of Congress to honor Stevie Wonder

The Associated Press

The Library of Congress will honor Stevie Wonder with its second Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
Librarian of Congress James Billington, who announced the prize Tuesday, noted that the prize honors an artist whose work transcends musical styles to bring diverse listeners together and foster mutual understanding. It recognizes a musician's lifetime of work.
Wonder, 58, will receive the award on Feb. 23, 2009. The first Gershwin Prize was awarded in 2007 to Paul Simon.
Self-taught on piano, harmonica and other instruments, Steveland Morris was just 12 when he first wowed national TV audiences on shows like Dick Clark's "American Bandstand." He was "Little Stevie Wonder" back then, a name he says someone at Motown Records — he can't remember exactly who — came up with.
From his earliest days as a prodigy covering Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind" through such songs of his own as "You Are the Sunshine of My Life," "My Cherie Amour" and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours," his music has sought to uplift and inform as well as entertain.
Among his albums: "Talking Book," "Innervisions," "Fulfillingness First Finale" and "Songs in the Key of Life," the last of which included his classic single "Love in Need of Love Today."

review from : Yahoo Music

Music Review: Beyonce's lil sis carves her niche

Solange, "Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams" (Geffen Records)

Over the past five years, Solange Knowles has gone through some serious changes.

After releasing her lackluster debut CD "Solo Star," she got married at 17, gave birth, and later divorced — all as big sister Beyonce grew to become one of music's biggest superstars.

But now Solange is ready to carve out her own space in the musical universe with "Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams," a retro-soul adventure that plays smooth like a magic carpet ride.

On the album's opening track, "God Given Name," Solange let's us know not to expect Beyonce 2.0 from her. She sings: "I'm not becoming expectations, I'm not her and never will be/Two girls going in different directions, striving towards the same galaxy."

Solange recruited a number of top producers for the project, including Cee-Lo, Mark Ronson, Pharrell Williams and Raphael Saadiq. She also has a duet with Bilal. But her work with producer Jack Splash (Alicia Keys, Estelle) is the highlight of her sophomore record. On the funky "T.O.N.Y.," Solange and Splash create a rhythmic, suave tune that will have fans of old-school R&B and contemporary soul replaying it over and over again.

Resource from Yahoo Music

Jennifer Hudson a Star-Spangled Obama Supporter

Oh, say can you see Jennifer Hudson in Colorado?

The Oscar winner has been tapped to sing the national anthem Thursday, the night Barack Obama is set to address the increasingly star-studded Democratic National Convention for the first time as his party's official candidate for president of the United States.

Meaning, no more of that "presumptive nominee" stuff.
"She's thrilled and excited. It's a tremendous honor," said a rep for Hudson, who told E! Online's Marc Malkin in June that she'd love to stump for Obama.

"I'm so proud and excited for him. I haven't gotten a call from them yet, but he does have my support."

The convention, currently underway in Denver, is the destination du jour this week for, among others, big-time Obama supporters such as Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Charlize Theron, George Clooney, Oprah Winfrey, Kanye West, Dave Matthews, Sheryl Crow, Spike Lee, Susan Sarandon and Annette Bening.

Bruce Springsteen will be on tap to close out the festivities Thursday night.

Resource from Yahoo Music