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B-Sides Report for 08/31/2015



Miley Cyrus Surprises Fans With Free Album Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz

Miley Cyrus celebrated hosting the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday night by surprising fans with the release of a free 23-track album called "Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz."

The idea for the album was sparked by Miley's collaboration with The Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne and grew to include more collaborations with "producing partners", according to the announcement. Fans can get the free album here.

Cyrus recording the effort at various locations including The Flaming Lips' Oklahoma City studio, her own Los Angeles garage studio and features collaborations with Mike WiLL Made-It on several tracks, Big Sean on a track called "Tangerine," Sarah Barthel of Phantogram on additional tracks, Ariel Pink on a song called "Tiger Dreams" and producer Oren Yoel.

The title of the album, "Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz," was inspired by the death of three beloved pets: her dog Floyd, her blowfish Pablow and a friend's cat Twinkle. See the tracklisting here.

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Taylor Swift Releases Epic 'Wildest Dreams' Video

(Radio.com) Taylor Swift premiered her latest music video for "Wildest Dreams" on Sunday night during the Pre-Show of the MTV Video Music Awards. Swift had previously teased the clip, posting a short video which featured a lot of zebras and a couple sharing an amorous embrace during a rain storm. Now we have the full story.

The epic video follows two movie stars shooting a old-timey love story in Africa amidst the wildest of animals. From the costumes and props right down to Swift's hair, the video takes us back in time. Too bad Swift's on-screen love-affair doesn't last. Uh oh, should have said 'Spoiler Alert.'

The clip was directed by Joseph Kahn who has created music videos for a who's who of A-list artists including: Shakira, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, , Mariah Carey, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, and Kelly Clarkson. Watch the video and read more here.

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Justin Bieber Releases 'What Do You Mean?' Video

(Radio.com) Justin Bieber premiered his official music video for his new single "What Do You Mean?" on Sunday night immediately following the MTV Video Music Awards. Bieber also took to Twitter on Friday to announce he will release his new album on November 13.

Bieber had teased the new single for weeks, having celebrities count down the days via their Instagram accounts. The response was overwhelming, with posts from Steven Tyler, Kevin Hart, Ben Stiller, Alec Baldwin, Skrillex, Ashton Kutcher, Will Ferrell, Ellen DeGeneres, Usher and more.

The track was released this past Friday (Aug 28.) and it was accompanied by a lyric video. Now we have the official Brad Furman-directed clip, featuring John Leguizamo as the bad guy. Watch it here.

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Young Buck Sentenced For Faking Urine Test

(Radio.com) Earlier this month, rapper Young Buck was caught by his probation officer for trying to fake a urine test. But it seems that Buck will be off the hook for facing jail time.

Celebrity gossip site TMZ reports that he will have to complete a drug rehab program, serve 100 hours of community service, and pay a 7.5 thousand dollar fine.

Young Buck was caught when his probation officer saw him using a tube connected to a plastic bag filled with someone else's urine. XXL notes that this is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, so Young Buck got off easy any way you slice it. Young Buck's attorney expressed satisfaction, saying 'this was a fair result." Read more here.

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Nick Jonas Releases 'Levels' Video

(Radio.com) Nick Jonas premiered his official music video for his funky new single "Levels" on Sunday night during the MTV Video Music Awards as he prepares to launch his North American tour next weekend.

Jonas, the music curator for Miss America 2016, performed the track in public for the first time during the telecast's pre-show. The new video however, looks in on Jonas as he mixes it up with some models in a warehouse. And, as promised, it's sexy.

Jonas had previously announced a North American tour, kicking off late summer and running through the end of September. His first show will be Sept. 6 in Hershey, Pa., with the final date scheduled Sept. 29 in Silver Spring, Md.

Bebe Rexha will open on all dates. See the dates and watch the new video here.

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Foals Streaming New Album 'What Went Down' Online

(Radio.com) Foals new album What Went Down was released last Friday. But fans looking to get a full taste before making the purchase can now stream all ten tracks online.

Leading up to release day, the Oxford band had revealed several songs including "Mountain at My Gates", "A Knife in the Ocean" and "What Went Down," which briefly received U.S. radio play.

Frontman Yannis Philippakis described the new album to NME as "lean" and "punchy." The recording process was guided by Arctic Monkeys and Florence & The Machine producer James Ford. Listen to the album here.

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Keith Urban Releases 'John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16' Video

(Radio.com) Keith Urban released his video for "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16," and it's a trip down memory lane. The clip shows off Keith playing his bass guitar between snippets of nostalgic scenes that include old stores, young loves, family, cars, churches, and simpler times. Urban uses a vintage microphone to go along with the theme of his film.

"It was a blast. I had a great time doing it with Shane Drake. We'd never worked before other than on the Tim McGraw and Taylor video for "Highway Don't Care," said Keith.

"It was a fun video to do. It was challenging, because we didn't want it to be a hundred percent literal about every lyric. That was the most important thing for me," he went on.

"I like everybody to be able to paint their own picture of things, so there's sort of more random imagery, I guess, of certain things that relate to the song, without it being so specific." Watch the video here.

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Straight Outta Compton Breaks Box Office Record

(Radio.com) In just three weeks, Straight Outta Compton has become the highest grossing music biopic in history, with $134.1 million ticket receipts in the U.S. and Canada.

Straight Outta Compton overtook Walk The Line, a biopic about Johnny and June Carter Cash, which had peaked at $119 million. As previously reported by Radio.com, the N.W.A. biopic earned $56.1 million in its opening weekend, setting the F. Gary Gray-directed flick on track for historic success.

The film showcases the rise of N.W.A, the gangsta rap supergroup of the 1980s that included Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E and DJ Yella (Arabian Prince was also associated with the group early on). Read more here.

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Drake's Manager Blocked Tidal's Lil WeezyAna Live Stream Not Apple

(Radio.com) Turns out that Drake's manager was the one who prohibited Tidal-a music streaming company owned by Jay-Z-from broadcasting Drake's portion of the Lil Wayne's Lil WeezyAna Fest on Friday (August 28).

While Drake does have a business partnership with Apple, whose streaming music platform is in competition with Tidal, his Future The Prince says it was all his call.

"The decision to not have Drake participate in the Tidal stream has nothing to do with Apple or Drake's deal � Point blank, 100 percent. I made a business decision," Drake's manager Future The Prince told BuzzFeed News.

"Apple doesn't have the power to stop us from being part of a live stream. The only people that have the power to do that are Cash Money and Universal, and they're our partners." Read more here.

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Avicii Reveals New Track 'Pure Grinding'

(Radio.com) EDM star Avicii has released a new track called "Pure Grinding". Radio.com has these details: Avicii blasted into global consciousness with high-octane EDM smash hits like "Levels" and the like. With signs pointing towards a slowdown in the monster EDM trend over the last year (the bankruptcy of electronic festival powerhouse SFX Entertainment, for one) it's not altogether surprising that Avicii's latest song takes a strong left turn away from the sort of brash festival tracks that made his reputation.

While his latest single is by no means an acoustic torch song, it's definitely slower and more contemplative than we've come to expect from the Swedish wunderkind.

It features rolling 808 percussion and sparkling pads, with the drop structured more like something you'd expect from hip-hop inspired EDM producers like Baauer and RL Grime. Check out the song and read more here.

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OMI Announces ME 4 U Album And Streams New Song

(Radio.com) OMI has announced that his debut album ME 4 U will be released on October 16th and he has also released a stream of a new single called "Hula Hoop".

OMI's "Cheerleader" is a frontrunner for song of the summer 2015. The track currently holds #1 spot on Billboard's Hot 100 chart for the sixth week, which ties it for the longest run at #1 on the Hot 100 for a reggae song in more than twenty-two years.

The Jamaican-born singer, whose real name is Omar Pasley, had worked on track called "Cheerleader" as early as 2008, and released the first official version in 2012. But it's actually the 2014 remix by twenty year old German DJ Felix Jaehn that has gone platinum in nine countries.

Listen to the new single "Hula Hoop" here.

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Deadmau5 and Skrillex Lead Day of the Dead Lineup

(Radio.com) HARD revealed the lineup to its annual Halloween concert, Day of the Dead, and it is set feature Deadmau5 and Skrillex as the headliners for the two day Southern California event.

The event will also be held at the Pomona Fairplex, but taking place on October 31 and November 1. In an effort to become more safe, the event will be strictly 21+ and will have its capacity lowered from 65,000 to 40,000.

Notable is the lineup, though, with Deadmau5 and Skrillex both in line as headliners, and other confirmed acts including Hot Chip, Future, Nero, Flying Lotus, A$AP Ferg, Juicy J, and Vic Mensa. Read more here.

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Nas Voices 'We Play' Promo For ESPN's U.S. Open Coverage

(Radio.com) Nas is the voice for a new ESPN commercial highlighting the virtue of tennis and the U.S. Open. And it's epic. While Nas is a rapper who is not associated with many sports, the U.S. Open takes place in his Queens borough. The images of ordinary people playing tennis resembles something out of a Nike "Just Do It" campaign.

There are sweeping broad shots and slow motion clips of tennis players in various life stations coming together to compete everyday. Then there is the words voiced by Nas.

For two weeks this summer, one game old us under its sway / Across the five borrows after sunrise, waiting all day / We Play / From Hive to Oasis, Uptown to downtown, Jungle to clay / Behind a grand window there's a secret / Lets keep it that way / We play / In Flushing on courts named for Jazz men and heros / A train ride away / The heat and the heartbeat /rocking til midnight where legends are made

The U.S. Open will begin this Sunday (Aug. 31) as Serena Williams sets off on her road to become Grand Slam Champion and win of all four major tennis tournaments.

Check out the ESPN "We Play" commercial, featuring Nas here.

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Wiz Khalifa Joins Rita Ora On Stage To Debut New Song 'Religion'

(Radio.com) To add more kindle to the rumors of their relationship Rita Ora brought out a special guest Wiz Khalifa on stage to debut their song "Religion" during the LA stop of her Body On Me tour.

The 50 minute set, according to Rapup, opened with "R.I.P." and included hits "Black Widow" and "I Will Never Let You Down." But it she also debuted new tracks "Champagne Lights" and "Religion," where Wiz joined her to rap his verse.

Last week the remix to "Body On Me," a song that features Chris Brown, dropped with additional vocals from Fetty Wap. Flicks from the show, which took place at the El Ray Theater in LA, were posted to their Instagram accounts. Check out the posts here.

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Stevie J and Joseline Hernandez In Vh1 Love and Hip Hop Spin-Off

(Radio.com) Hollywood look out. VH1's "Love & Hip Hop Atlanta" reality series will be launching a spin-off with Stevie J and Joseline Hernandez at the center of the Tinseltown drama.

The network that has spun reality shows into ratings gold made the announcement last Thursday (Aug. 27). The move comes, the network said in a statement, as hip hop culture supplants America's popular culture.

"In a summer where the film Straight Outta Compton went straight to #1, Taylor Swift's collaboration with Kendrick Lamar topped the Billboard charts and our own 'Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta' ranked as the #1 reality show on cable, hip hop's dominance of pop culture was confirmed yet again," said Susan Levison, EVP of Original Programming and Production, VH1 in a statement.

"We're excited to fuel our audience's continued fascination with all things hip hop by extending the storylines of some of their favorite "Love & Hip Hop" cast members."

According to the release, the show will be set in LA as the two embark on a career in film. Read more here.

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Singled Out: Jain's Come

Today French artist Jain tells us the story behind her single "Come" and the video for the track. The song comes from her brand new EP "Hope", which was just released last Friday (August 28th). Here is the story:

"Come" was one of the first song that I wrote when I was 16. At the time I lived in Congo, in a little town called "Pointe Noire". Due to my father's job, me and my family moved around a lot, between France, Dubai, Congo and Abu Dhabi. It was an amazing experience because I met a lot of incredible people, but it was quite hard sometimes because I had to leave them�This song is about that situation, I wanted to call my friends and bring them back by my side.

When I moved back to Paris after my graduation, I went to art school and it made me realize that I really wanted to get involved in the making of the image for my album.

I found this idea of the silhouette with multiple arms, like a multitasking warrior and wanted the music video to play with that idea, with multiplication and illusions. Then my label introduced me to Greg and Lio, two young video makers, here in Paris, very talented and full of very cool ideas. It all went really fast, we wanted to make something fun, so we shot during two days in "La mason Louis Carr�" designed by Alvar Aalto, a very graphic house, a beautiful space.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself as you watch the video here and learn more about the EP right here!

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