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B-Sides Report for 12/29/2015



City Threatens Legal Action Over Justin Bieber Marketing Campaign

City officials in San Francisco are reportedly threatening to take legal action over a graffiti marketing campaign that was launched to promote Justin Bieber's new album "Purpose."

City Attorney Dennis Herrera issued an open letter to Bieber's record label and distribution company after the campaign to promote the pop star's new release used stencils and permanent spray paint instead of chalk, according to ABC.

In his letter Herrera says, "This prohibited marketing practice illegally exploits our City's walkable neighborhoods and robust tourism; intentionally creates visual distractions that pose risks to pedestrians on busy rights of way; and irresponsibly tells our youth that likeminded lawlessness and contempt for public property are condoned and encouraged by its beneficiaries -- including Mr. Bieber and the record labels that produce and promote him."

According to the report, Herrera called on the executives to help provide the identity of those responsible for the graffiti and he plans to "aggressively pursue all available penalties and costs from those responsible for lawless marketing tactics that intend to financially benefit Mr. Bieber and your respective companies." Read the report here.

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Adele's 25 Easily Tops New Release From Chris Brown

Adele's blockbuster 25 album shows no intention of slowing down momentum as the release scored its third million selling week in the U.S. during the week leading up to Christmas.

25 sold an additional 1.16 copies in the sales week that ended on Christmas Eve (December 24th), giving it a fifth consecutive week at the top of the Billboard 200 album chart.

The album, released late last month, sold an impressive 3.38 million copies its first week of release and sold an additional 1.11 million copies the following week, according to trade publication Billboard.

The Billboard 200 chart no longer reflects only sales but also includes "streaming" to account for rankings. Justin Bieber came in a distant second place last week with his new album "Purpose" with actual sales of 153,000 copies of the effort.

Chris Brown's new album "Royalty" debuted at No. 3 but actually had higher real sales than Bieber, having sold 162,000 copies during its first week of release but ranked third when streaming was taken into account.

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Keith Urban Streaming New Song 'Break On Me'

(Radio.com) Keith Urban has released the lyric video to his latest single "Break On Me." Written by Ross Copperman and Jon Night, the single is the latest from Urban's highly anticipated 2016 release, Ripcord.

The album also sees the singer working in the studio with famed producer and musician Nile Rodgers, who called Urban a "monster guitar player" in an interview with Radio.com, saying, "Why don't people think of him as a guitar god? I've played with [Mahavishnu] John McLaughlin, Steve Vai, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and he's in that league. When you hear he and I play together, we're killin it!"

While no release date has been set just yet, the singer will be starting his new year once again as one of the judges on American Idol. The final season of the show will premiere on January 6th on FOX. Check out the new song here.

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Katy Perry Grants Christmas Wish For 8-Year-Old Burn Victim

(Radio.com) Singer Katy Perry got into the spirit of Christmas this year and sent some holiday cheer to a special fan, Safyre Sweet. Within her wish for Christmas cards this year, the 8-year-old girl let it be known she wanted a card from her favorite singer and Perry responded not just with the card but many more cool gifts to brighten Sweet's holiday. Safyre Sweet was severely burned and lost a hand and foot in an arson fire. That same blaze also took the lives of her family.

Perry, 31, went above and beyond when she began fulfilling Safyre's request. Katy sent the young fan a care package that included some cool Katy Perry merchandise along with a touching hand-written note. Safyre received a copy of Perry's Prismatic Tour DVD, a DVD of the film Katy Perry: Part of Me, a book bag, a hoodie with ears on the hood, a kitty black cat purse, and an iPhone 6 case.

While the gifts were cool, Katy's note is what really brought joy to little Safyre. The message read, "Safyre, I heard about your Christmas wish and and am so honored that you saved the top of the tree for me! I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a great New Year. I'll be thinking of you on Christmas Day. Special girl." Read more here.

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2 Chainz Makes Millions From Dabbin' Santa Ugly Christmas

2 Chainz scored a massive hit this Christmas season but it wasn't with a hit song, video or remix. He made a massive splash with his "Dabbin' Santa" Ugly Christmas sweaters.

The rap star reportedly grossed $2 million dollars with the sweater line, according to Forbes (via ABC Radio). But he says that success was a long time in the making.

"I don't want people to think this was an overnight success," Chainz told Forbes. "We've been trying with a bunch of designs for a couple years now. This is just timing meets opportunity."

The success of the sweater line also meant holiday jobs. 2 Chainz hired 70 people to help meet the demand. "There's the whole dab thing, and Atlanta's always been somewhere that actually moves the culture a little bit.

"We have been the backbone of hip-hop for the past couple years. So with dabbing coming out of Atlanta, it just began to grow legs and start moving on its own."

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Eric Church To Rock College Football Playoff Championship

There will be plenty of music for fans to enjoy during and before the College Football Playoff National Championship that will be taking place next month, with Eric Church leading the musical lineup.

Church is scheduled to headline the Championship Tailgate event outside the stadium ahead of the game which will be taking place on January 11th at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

The tailgate activities will be free to fans with admission to the game and will kick off at 11AM MT and conclude at 5PM before the two teams take the field for the championship game. Those teams will be determined at the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl.

The Championship game will also feature a rendition of "America The Beautiful" from Canaan Smith and Ciara will be performing "The Star-Spangled Banner."

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Demi Lovato Loses Another Beloved Dog

Pop star Demi Lovato shared the sad news with fans in an online post on Sunday that her dog Spawn had passed away. This follows the loss of her dog Buddy this past summer.

Lovato posted a photo of her and Spawn with the caption, "I miss you so much already beautiful boy. When I first met you 6 years ago, I was intimidated by your size and your strong presence.. But as I got to know you, I learned you were just one big teddy bear. One handsome teddy bear that's for sure.

"I'm going to miss the way you greeted me at my car every time I came home or simply when I stepped outside. I'm going to miss the way you were so protective of Buddy and Batman and never got annoyed with them when they were excited hyper puppies. I'm going to miss the way you would nudge at my hand if I wasn't petting you. I'll even miss the way I'd need a Benadryl every time you'd give me kisses just like the way you're giving me kisses in this very picture.

"All the sneezes, the runny noses, even the occasional hives.. They were all worth it with you. Saying goodbye absolutely broke my heart and I felt as if I was saying farewell to a family member.

"The only thing that brings me comfort in this situation is knowing that Buddy is probably really happy he now gets to play with his big brother in Heaven.. We love you so much Spawn.. We miss you so much and we will never ever EVER forget you. RIP baby boy.." See the photo here.

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Richard Marx and Daisy Fuentes Share Wedding Photo Online

Music star and hit songwriter Richard Marx and TV personality Daisy Fuentes revealed in online postings that they were married last Wednesday, December 23rd, in Aspen, Co.

Both stars took to Instagram to share the news. Marx posted a photo with the caption, "On December 23rd, 2015 the magnificent @daisyfuentes gave me the honor of becoming my wife. #Aspen" See the photo here.

Fuentes posted the wedding photo and a message in both English and Spanish. She wrote, "This happened & I couldn't be happier. Nos casamos y m�s feliz no puedo estar #myhusband @therichardmarx." See her post here.

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Skrillex Releases 'Stranger' Remix with Tennyson and White Sea

Late last week, Skrillex released a new rework of "Stranger" featuring vocals from Sam Dew with additional production from White Sea and sibling duo Tennyson.

The song also comes with a video that was directed by Andrew Donoho and features OWSLA friends, family and kids from a local school in Griffen, Georgia.

As part of OWSLA's Nestivus holiday campaign, the song is available now via skrillex.com as a free download or an optional donation towards the Boys & Girls Club, Bridges for Music and Jhamtse Gatsal Children's Community. Watch the video here.

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John Legend's Wife Posts Intimate Birthday Message Online

John Legend's wife Chrissy Teigen helped the music star celebrate his 37th birthday on Monday (December 29th) in a very public way after the pregnant model posted an intimate photo online.

The photo shows Teigen lying on the ground in a gown with Legend sitting beside her with his hands on her shoulder and abdomen. She included the caption, "Another year with you has flown by and I am so proud of what you've accomplished.

"Every year, I wonder how things can even get better but you always find a way. Happy *37th* birthday to the most wonderful, hard-working, loving being I, and anyone who has ever met you, have ever known. We love you, my handsome old man." See the photo here.

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Ronnie McDowell Announce North American Tour Dates

Ronnie McDowell has announced the initial tour dates for a North American trek that he will be launching with a special New Year's Eve show in Florence, AL.

McDowell's camp says that the music star has booked dates through April of next year. The initial dates for January and February 2016 have already been revealed.

The dates will kick off with the New Year's Eve show at the Florence-Lauderdale Coliseum and includes stops in several cities in Tennessee, two shows in North Carolina and single shows in Pennsylvania and Maryland. See the dates here.

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KC and The Sunshine Band To Broadcast New Year's Eve Concert

(Webster) SiriusXM has announced that they will be celebrating New Year's Eve by broadcasting KC and The Sunshine Band's full concert from the Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln, California as part of their holiday programming. We were sent the following details:

The live broadcast will be aired on the satellite radio platform's 70's on 7 channel as part of an exclusive LIVE concert series. The show will begin at 1:30 a.m. on the East Coast on Friday, January 1.

The 90-minute concert broadcast of KC and The Sunshine Band will feature the band's scheduled set list of classic hits as well as new music from their latest album, Feeling You! The 60s, which hit stores in Spring 2015. With 15 band members, choreography, multiple brass instruments, elaborate stage lighting and various special effects, a KC and The Sunshine Band show is not just a concert - it's a production meant to get listeners up on their feet and moving to every funky groove. Having been one of the most progressive bands of the 70s, KC and The Sunshine Band celebrate over 100 million albums sold, nine GRAMMY nominations, three GRAMMY Awards, and has been credited with changing the sound of pop music.

Fronted by Miami-born Founder of the Dance Revolution, Harry Wayne "KC" Casey, the band's music still remains popular today, appearing in over 200 movies, films and commercials and on party playlists around the world.

KC and The Sunshine Band joins SiriusXM's New Year's Eve LIVE concert series line-up of A-list artists like Willie Nelson, Greg Allman, Jimmy Buffett, Widespread Panic, among others. The network's holiday programming will also include its year-end countdown specials across fourteen music channels, classic New Year's Eve concert broadcasts like Bruce Springsteen at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania in 1975 on E Street Radio and Elvis Presley at the Civic Center Arena in Pittsburgh in 1976s on Elvis Radio, and much more.

KC and The Sunshine Band - LIVE in Concert on SiriusXM will be rebroadcasted on Jan. 1 at Noon and 6 p.m. ET, Jan. 2 at 9 p.m. ET and available On Demand.

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Wiz Khalifa Releasing New Project Next Month

(Radio.com) Pittsburgh rapper Wiz Khalifa is a busy man. After delivering his mixtape Cabin Fever 3 a mere two weeks ago (Dec. 15), the rapper posted a video online announcing he would be releasing another project in January.

Wiz posted the announcement video to YouTube the day after Christmas, saying, "Nobody really knows this, I plan on putting out a project with some unreleased music that nobody's ever heard before and I'm gonna call it Project Wiz Khalifa. And that's actually gonna be available in January."

But it doesn't stop there. On Monday (December 28th) the rapper went on to release his new music video for his latest single, "King of Everything." See the announcement video here.

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Sister Hazel Announce First Album In 5 Years 'Lighter In The Dark'

(KG) Big news for Sister Hazel fans. The band has announced that they will be releasing their first new studio album in five years, entitled "Lighter In The Dark," on February, 19th of next year. We were sent the following details:

The 14-track album was produced by noted Nashville producer Chip Matthews and fans that order the CD at the live shows or the digital album from iTunes will receive an instant download of "We Got It All Tonight," the album's debut single which was written by Chris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley and 2015 BMI Songwriter of the Year Rodney Clawson.

"And we've always been unclassifiable," says Jett Beres. "We'll put out a record and go, 'What is it? Is it country music? Is it Southern rock? Is it pop? is it college acoustic, alternative?'

"It doesn't matter! It's just us doing what we've always done. We're writing about who we are, where we've been and where we're going. And we've never done it as well as we have on Lighter In The Dark." See the tracklisting here.

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'Bad Blood' Helped Taylor Swift Have A Huge 2015

(Radio.com) Taylor Swift made waves in late 2014 when she released 1989, an album that moved her from pop-based country to straight up pop music. Though it was the fourth single from the project, "Bad Blood," may have made the album's biggest statement.

"I think there's an emotional undercurrent that expresses how my life has changed priority-wise," Swift said of 1989. "There's nothing overt, nothing that comes out and says 'I only care about my girlfriends now, and I don't need a man to make me happy.' It's just the idea that right now I'm thrilled, excited, fascinated by things other than boys."

"Bad Blood" did just that, focusing on the end of friendship rather than romance. The song, which has been highly speculated to be about a rift between Swift and Katy Perry, went on to inspire one of the biggest music videos of the year.

Swift enlisted her now-famous girl squad for the clip in which she plays a futuristic super solider, Catastrophe, who is betrayed by her friend Arsyn, played by Selena Gomez. The video includes a slew of stars, each with a clever name. Read more here.

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Fetty Wap Breaks Out In 2015

(Radio.com) Rapper Fetty Wap, aka Willie Maxwell II, may have released his hit single "Trap Queen" in 2014, but it would take until mid-2015 before the track garnered significant attention. From there, things took off quickly.

Not only did "Trap Queen" perform well on the charts, but it also earned some GRAMMY love. The track received nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance.

Yet, more than quick verses or sharp rhymes, Fetty Wap is such a standout in each category thanks to his voice. Like Drake and other rappers who weave melodic components in between their verses, Fetty Wap distinguishes himself from the pack by singing. But he doesn't have the smooth polish someone like R&B singer Jason Derulo offers, nor does he have the overreaching vocals someone like Lil Wayne throws in as an afterthought.

That's the point. Fetty Wap's warbling, almost off-kilter vocals make his work instantly recognizable. Combined with the hard-edged rhythms and at-times darker melodies that define his music, it all leads to something different in rap. Read more here.

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Jungle Opened The Door For X Ambassadors In 2015

(Radio.com) In 2014 when the Radio.com editorial team got a call from Interscope Records telling us that we should check out this new band X Ambassadors, we added it to the "priority listen list." Frankly, that list can sometimes get a little long. But then we heard that they were discovered by Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons. Ok� that moves the band up a few notches.

The song was "Jungle." Wow. Ok, let's keep listening. As the story goes, Reynolds heard the band's song "Unconsolable" on a Norfolk, Virginia radio station. Moved by the tune, he asked the Interscope to sign the band as soon as possible. Reynolds even co-wrote the song "Stranger" found on the band's major label debut EP, Love Songs Drug Songs.

But the New York-based four piece really started to break with the release of the anthemic thundering track called "Jungle." It was good: really good. Then, in 2015, everything changed. Already riding high on two successful tours with Imagine Dragons, the band would rise to a whole new level with their first full-length album boasting the breakout cross-format radio smash, "Renegades."

After all, "Renegades" was featured in a massive Jeep ad campaign, which gave the song an audience of millions; getting into people's ears is one thing, but getting into their hearts isn't quite so easy. But the song's (and perhaps, the band's) staying power was proven when it reached No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Rock Songs, Rock Airplay, and Adult Top 40 charts.

"Dude, it is the craziest thing," frontman Sam Harris told Radio.com of the experience. "I mean, the song just kinda came about with myself and Alex da Kid. He and I are constantly writing stuff. We're always going back and forth. Sometimes he'll send me stuff and I'll write it all on my own. Sometimes he has ideas that he brings to me. This is one of the latter." Read more here.

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Zac Brown Band Expanded Their Appeal In 2015 With 'Homegrown'

(Radio.com) "Homegrown" is a song about appreciating what you have, rather than lusting after things you may never obtain, a quintessential theme in country music. The tune was the lead single from the Zac Brown Band's fourth studio album, Jekyll+Hyde.

The tune, which topped the country charts, set up an album that appealed to different genres. "Homegrown" was followed by "Heavy is the Head" featuring Chris Cornell, which was released to rock radio, rather than country. Clearly, making a diverse album was a goal of Brown's; another song on the album featured Sara Bareilles.

Since first making a splash on the country scene, the Zac Brown Band has been able to deftly balance his left-field sensibility with mainstream appeal, allowing him to stand out in a crowded genre. As he sings in "Homegrown," "I've got everything I need, and nothing that I don't." Read more here.

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The Weeknd's 'Can't Feel My Face' Among The Best of 2015

(Radio.com) Bubbling on the mixtape circuit since 2011, The Weeknd cemented his status as one of the leaders of R&B's new school with the release of "I Can't Feel My Face."

Known for singing about the dark side of love and relationships, The Weeknd flipped the script and hit fans with a funky disco-lite jam reminiscent of Michael Jackson's Off the Wall days. The Toronto native, born Abel Tesfaye, had everyone - from grannies to toddlers - hitting the dance floor.

Casual listeners didn't realize what exactly The Weeknd was singing about on the No. 1 pop record, but people who had been fans of his 2011 trio of mixtapes House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence knew this was just another way for him to sing about drug use. In spite of its subject matter, "I Can't Feel My Face" was so huge even Tom Cruise lip synced the Max Martin-produced hit on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Read more here.

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