Lollapalooza, The Home Game: 2014 webcast schedule announced!

Lollapalooza 2014 is set to rock Chicago Aug. 1-3 (Photo: courtesy of travelgrom.com)

One of the biggest music festivals of the year starts in two days. Lollapalooza 2014 will rock the city of Chicago August 1-3 with some of the biggest names in the music industry. Bands and artists such as CHVRCHES, Arctic Monkeys, Eminem, Outkast, and Lorde are sure to thrill the thousands who will gather in Chicago’s Grant Park, rain or shine, but you can enjoy the performances from the comfort of your own home.

Let’s face it, not all of us have the time, money, or leeway with our bosses needed to just pick up and fly to Chicago for a 3-day weekend (plus Monday for some much needed recuperation). No problem! Many of this year’s performances will be streaming live on Redbull.tv. Maybe watching from home isn’t the same as being there in person to drink in the atmosphere and positive vibes, but it’s a close second for those who don’t want to miss their favorite artists performing live.

You can see the full schedule here or go straight to Redbull.tv and set up reminders so that you don’t miss a minute of the action from your favorite performers.

Toby Keith Rake$ it in! Edges out Taylor Swift as highest paid country star 2 years running.

Keith’s abilities as both an entertainer and a business owner make him the highest paid country music star in the world (Photo: courtesy of musicrow.com)

Toby Keith reigns as the king of country for the second year in a row according to Forbes. For two years straight, Keith has topped the financial magazine’s annual list as the highest paid superstar in country music, raking in an astounding $65 million this year alone. Even more impressive is the fact that the crooner has earned an estimated $335 over the past six years. Nice!

Keith’s success isn’t tied solely to his skills as a musician, however, as his entrepreneurial side has greatly impacted his estimated wealth. Not only does the “Big Dog” own his own record label (Show Dog-Universal), but he has also enjoyed both a longtime partnership with auto-industry giant Ford and a successful run in the food/beverage industry. Keith owns a successful chain of restaurants, appropriately named I Love This Bar and Grill, along with Wild Shot Mezcal, his own line of premium alcohol. The moral of the story? Do what you know.

Running an extremely close second to Keith was the ever-popular Taylor Swift with a paltry $64 million. Aww… poor thing. Rounding out the top five were Kenny Chesney ($44M), Jason Aldean ($37M), and Luke Bryan ($34M). You can check out the full article here.

Also, make sure to check out both KaraokeOnVEVO and Sing-N-Share, where you can sing your favorite hits by Toby Keith and more of today’s hottest country artists… free!

Geek-Fueled Karaoke! Supernatural’s Comic-Con panel teases Demon Dean karaoke session

Jensen Ackles’ character Dean will be singing a little demonic karaoke in the upcoming season of Supernatural (Photo: courtesy of spoilertv.com)

July 24-27th marked this year’s geek paradise known as Comic-Con, where fantasy, sci-fi, and comic book lovers from all around the world come together and worship the ground that their favorite characters walk on. Filled with cosplay enthusiasts, booths displaying and selling anything a nerd-at-heart could possibly want, and Hollywood mega-stars from such films as The Hobbit, The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron, and Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Comic-Con 2014 undoubtedly induced nerd-gasms which are sure to satisfy until next year’s star-studded event.

One of geekdom’s most beloved television shows is The CW’s mainstay Supernatural. The show’s cast and crew graced this year’s convention-goers with their presence during a live panel discussion, during which they shared insights and teased the fans with snippets of what to expect in the show’s upcoming 10th season. One of teases let us in on the fact that Dean, one of the series’ main characters played by actor Jensen Ackles, will be treating us to a little demonic karaoke in the season premier.

According to TV Guide, Ackles informed attendees that  “Technically in the season opener there’s singing and music involved … and a little rump-shaking,” alluding to the fact that Demon Dean (Ackles’ character was possessed in an earlier episode) apparently likes to sing karaoke. I mean, who doesn’t, right?

Anyone else want to take stab as to what song Demon Dean will karaoke to? We don’t have too much longer before we find out. The 10th season of Supernatural premiers on October 7th at 9/8c on The CW.

Psy Dominates YouTube’s 10 Most Liked Videos EVAR!

Psy claims the throne in YouTube’s 10 most liked videos of all time! (Photo: courtesy of zastavki.com)

Over the years YouTube has become the place to find out how the world truly feels about celebrities, especially in the music genre. If you’ve ever spent more than 30 seconds on the site you know that fans and haters alike don’t exactly hold back with their opinions about the videos or, more often than not, each other. Still, this interaction and the ability to like or dislike the videos has made YouTube an undeniable measuring stick for pop-culture trends.

Now BuzzFeed has posted a video (of course) listing the “most liked” YouTube videos of all time in one compilation. This is certain to change over time, but for now here are the videos that people all over the world have voted as the best of the net.

I’ve always found it interesting how a video with an amazing amount of “likes” can also be one of the most hated videos on the internet. For example, Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” the sixth most liked video on YouTube is also, and possibly more impressively, the #3 most disliked video! Even better, Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” the fifth most liked YouTube video, is also the single most hated video on the internet with more than 4 million thumbs down votes. Congrats, Justin.

However, it’s the Korean phenomenon known as Psy who completely dominates the list with two top 5 entries. He took the #3 slot with his hit “Gentlemen,” the comedic anthem for a-holes earning more than 3 million likes. Vastly more impressive, however, is his 2012 breakout video “Gangnam Style,” which, thus far, has lead almost 8.5 million people to hit that little thumbs up icon. That’s a difference of more than 5.2 million people from its closest competitor, Ylvis’ “What Does The Fox Say!” Now get this; the same video has been viewed by more than 2 billion people worldwide! That’s billion. With a B! As in mind-Boggling! There is no disputing that Psy is the reigning king of YouTube.

Questlove’s Quest: Bringing televised music back into prominence

The Roots’ Questlove is using his knowledge and unique position to reinvent televised music (Photo: courtesy of npr.org)

MTV has failed. Once hailed as the place to go for televised music 24/7, much of its melodic programming has been replaced by dumbed-down reality shows and celebrity gossip. Questlove knows this and he has made it his goal to see music return to prominence on TV.

Ahmir Thompson, a.k.a. Questlove, is the drummer and leader of The Roots, the extremely talented and eclectic house-band featured on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. He’s also one of the creative geniuses behind much of the musical frivolity on the show, from Jimmy and Justin Timberlake’s “History of Rap” segments to what has to be the most unique rendition ever of Idina Menzel’s hit song from the movie Frozen, “Let It Go.”

Still, that’s just not enough for Quest. As someone who was raised on televised music programs like Soul Train and Midnight Special, Questlove has an affinity for the genre and he is doing everything possible to share that love with as broad an audience as possible. Thus, the reason behind his newly created TV show, SoundClash!

The show premiered Wednesday night on VH1 and, according to an article in The Daily Beast, has a simple, yet extremely interesting concept: “Take three artists from three wildly different genres and have them play a concert together. Each artist has a chance to take the spotlight, and after an hour of music that transitions from rap to rock to pop and back again, the three acts unite for one collaborative performance.” Check out the trailer below.

As someone who has been a fan of The Roots and Questlove for sometime, I’ve got my fingers crossed that this new show will be a hit. Quest’s vision – his mission in life – is to take music out of the box and unleash it, in all of it’s wondrous forms, upon the world. Hardly anyone listens to just one genre of music, and a show like SoundClash is a perfect opportunity for people to discover diversity and collaboration. It can also go a long way towards revitalizing interest in music television in a way that popularity contests such as American Idol or X Factor could never achieve.

Monty Python Performs Together For The Last Time

The legendary comedy troupe call it quits after an amazing 45-year run (Photo: courtesy of entertainmentfuse.com)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last 45 years, you’re likely to have seen or heard at least a couple skits from the legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python. From the hit BBC TV show Monty Python’s Flying Circus to full-length films such as Monty Python and the Holy Grail and The Meaning of Life, the iconic group has been creating laughter and “wtf” moments since 1969. Now, after nearly half a century of delighting fans with sketch comedy, movies, and absolutely ridiculous songs, the surviving cast members of Monty Python are calling it quits.

After a ten straight nights of farewell performances, the quintet (consisting of Eric Idle, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam) performed live together for the last time on Sunday night, July 20th. Properly and hilariously dubbed “Monty Python Live (Mostly): One Down, Five To Go” (referencing the fact that fellow founding member Graham Chapman passed away in 1989), the reunion/farewell show culminated with the cast leading the audience in a stirring rendition of their classic song “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life” from their irreverent 1979 movie, Life of Brian. Finally, the night ended as you might expect, with a standing ovation and raucous applause.

Monty Python is not only my favorite comedy troupe of all time, but one of the most influential. Without Monty Python’s Flying Circus I think it’s fair to say that other sketch comedy shows such as Saturday Night Live and In Living Color might never have existed.

I found the farewell show to be bitter-sweet, but apparently not so much as director/cast member Terry Gilliam. “I find it depressing that we’re getting back together again,” he stated cheekily in a recent interview with the London Evening Standard. “We worked so hard to get careers beyond it, to get to this stage, and now we’re being dragged back again.”

And for those who don’t quite get British humor, yes… he was joking (mostly). 🙂

Sad Irony: George Harrison Memorial Tree killed… by beetles.

A beautifully rendered tribute to George Harrison by Deviant Art member Legitturtle (Photo: courtesy of legitturtle.diviantart.com)

In 2001, former Beatle George Harrison died at the all-too-early age of 58. A tree was planted at a Los Angeles memorial garden in 2004 in order to honor the memory of the iconic singer/songwriter. Unfortunately, barely ten years later, that peaceful and unobtrusive pine has met a sad, yet fitting end; it was killed off by an infestation of beetles.

Harrison, who lived out the last years of his life in the Los Angeles area before falling victim to lung cancer, was a noted follower of Buddhist and Hindu traditions, fueling his love for nature and gardening. The simple 10-foot-tall pine was a perfect tribute to the singer as it was largely unnoticeable and blended well with the rest of the garden’s foliage.

Known simply as The George Harrison Tree, the memorial includes a ground level plaque which reads, “In memory of a great humanitarian who touched the world as an artist, a musician and a gardener.” It also includes a quote from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of the Transcendental Meditation movement, of which Harrison was a follower. It reads, “For the forest to be green, each tree must be green.”

Thankfully, the tree is due to be replaced soon. One pilgrim to the memorial wrote a beautifully worded review of the site on Yelp, which reads:

“On the day I was there, many tourists and visitors, in fact, walked right by it without noticing it at all. There is no signage that leads people to the tree, and the memorial plaque is near the ground and out-of-sight. Furthermore, I didn’t see any buskers or fans with guitars either playing ‘Here Comes the Sun,’ ‘Something,’ or ‘My Sweet Lord’ (or any of Harrison’s many other well known songs). Instead, with my own private thoughts and reflections, I enjoyed that pine tree in peace just as George, I’m sure, would have wanted it.”

Eddie Vedder Performs “Imagine” Live, Maintains Pacifist Beliefs.

Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder showcases anti-war sentiment with live performance of John Lennon’s classic “Imagine.” (Photo: courtesy of MTV.com)

Anyone who pays attention to news casts or happens to have picked up a recent newspaper knows that conflict and violence are, as usual, at the top of today’s headlines. The Israeli-Hamas conflict continues in Gaza, Iranian nuclear talks continue to stall, and world leaders are voicing strong condemnation of Russian president Vladimir Putin over the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 tragedy.

In the face of these violent times, Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder decided to showcase his pacifist views with a live concert performance of John Lennon’s classic call for peace, “Imagine.”

Vedder has long been an anti-war activist, but he has recently taken flack for his pacifist stance, even from Israeli media sources implying that his anti-war statements are actually anti-Israeli. Vedder addressed these allegations on his website. “The majority of humans on this planet are more consumed by the pursuit of love, health, family, food and shelter than any kind of war,” he wrote. “War hurts. It hurts no matter which sides the bombs are falling on.”

Vedder also took the opportunity to confront these accusations live as he spoke to the audience at his solo show in Meco, Portugal, on July 18. In his introduction to “Imagine” he stated, “If you’re anti-war it doesn’t mean you are ‘pro’ one side or the other in a conflict. However, it does make you ‘pro’ many things…Pro-peace, pro-human, pro-evolution, [it] makes you pro-communication, pro-diplomacy, pro-love, pro-understanding, pro-forgiveness.”

Here at DigitTrax/Karaoke Cloud, our thoughts and prayers are with all those who are facing the horrors of war and with the families of those lost in the tragedy of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. Peace be with you…

Here Are The 2014 VMA Nominees! And, of course, Beyonce leads the pack.

Check out the list of nominees for this year’s MTV Video Music Awards! (Photo: courtesy of college-of-music.com)

A lot of questions will be answered in August at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards. How many Moonmen will Beyoncé win? Who will be the next superstar to get all butthurt? Will Jay Z and Solange square off for another elevator kickboxing match afterwards? We’ll find out on August 24 at 9 p.m. (EST) as the ceremony airs live from The Forum in Inglewood, California.

In the meantime, we get to take a look at the list of nominees more than a month ahead of time. Beyoncé leads the way (not unexpectedly) with a whopping eight nominations, including video of the year for her collaboration with husband Jay Z, “Drunk In Love.” Close behind her are Eminem and Iggy Azalea with seven nods each.

Pharrell Williams is also sitting pretty with multiple nominations for his phenomenally popular song “Happy.” He’ll have some stiff competition in the video of the year category, however, going up against juggernauts such as Miley Cyrus (“Wrecking Ball“), Iggy Azalea (“Fancy“), Sia (“Chandelier“), and the aforementioned Beyoncé (“Drunk In Love”).

Pharrell is also up for the best male video award, going head-to-head not only with the likes of Eminem and John Legend, but also with… himself! Both “Happy” and “Sing,” his video collaboration with Ed Sheeran, are nominated in the category so it’s entirely possible that Williams could both win and lose at the same time. Something tells me he wouldn’t be too crushed, though.

Click this link to see the full list of this year’s VMA nominees, including the categories only the nominees themselves care about. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and share your picks for this year’s big winners!

Will Drake’s Butthurt Ever End? The rapper disses Macklemore at the ESPY Awards

Drake used his status as host of the ESPYs to take another potshot at Macklemore (Photo: courtesy of laineygossip.com)

Feuds in the music industry are certainly nothing new. Eminem and his mom, Pearl Jam and Ticketmaster, Jay Z and Solange… all of these extremely public disputes have one thing in common; they usually stem from some deep seeded personal or professional issue. Drake‘s recent issues with Grammy winner Macklemore, however, seem to be rooted in nothing more than jealousy and an inability to just let things go.

He further proved this assumption by taking yet another shot at his perceived foe while hosting last night’s ESPY Awards on ESPN. As he performed an original (and admittedly entertaining) song titled “Honorable Mentions/Side Pieces,” Drake had a picture of Macklemore holding his newly won Grammys posted on the screen behind him as he belted out the lyrics “Real talent doesn’t always win championships, like real music doesn’t always win Grammys.” Classy.

(Photo: courtesy of Twitter.com)

Apparently, Drake still feels slighted after losing to Macklemore and Ryan Lewis at the 2014 Annual Grammy Awards, at which the pair dominated the rap category by picking up awards for Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance, and Best Rap Album. After the awards, Drake did an interview with Rolling Stone in which he stated that he felt “robbed” by the duo and slighted personally because he didn’t get a text from Macklemore like Kendrick Lamar did. Really, dude?

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems to me that “real talent” doesn’t need validation from other artists or awards organizations. Nor do “real artists” feel the need to belittle or begrudge others for their success. And here’s the thing; Drake is talented! Very talented. So why waste so much energy on such a pointless grudge? I guarantee Macklemore isn’t losing any sleep over it. Just my opinion.