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MONDAY 25 FEBRUARY 2019 | COMPLETEMUSICUPDATE.COM | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TODAY'S TOP STORY: R Kelly was charged on Friday with ten counts of aggravated sexual assault against four women. The charges were formally made at a court hearing in Chicago. He is currently being held pending a bail payment... [READ MORE] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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R Kelly charged with ten counts of sexual assault, fails to raise bail money Bail has been set at $1 million. He needs to hand over 10% of that to secure release from police custody, but his widely reported financial difficulties of recent years mean he hasn't as yet been able to make payment. Meanwhile music industry business partners which in the past may have covered the bill are likely nervous of doing so given the ongoing controversy around the musician's alleged conduct over many years. The musician turned himself in to police on Friday after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He is accused of sexually assaulting four women between 1998 and 2010, three of whom were underage at the time of the alleged crimes. One of these women says that she met Kelly in 2008 while he was previously on trial for sexually abusing a fourteen year old girl. Regarding Kelly's ability to pay the $100,000 bail payment, it had been reported that he would first have to clear outstanding child support debts before using any funds for the bail money, although CNN has said that this is not actually the case. Kelly currently owes his former wife over $169,000 and has been ordered to pay $161,663 by 6 Mar in order to avoid being in contempt of court. He also owes more than $166,000 in unpaid rent on his Chicago studio, the owners of which have been attempting to evict him. After the bail hearing on Saturday, Kelly's attorney Steve Greenberg told reporters that he was "very happy" with the $1 million figure, which he said was "fair and reasonable". However, he added that Kelly "really doesn't have any money at this point", blaming "mismanagement, "bad deals" and "hangers-on" for his client being broke. Greenberg added that Kelly expected to be able to get the money together, although he has so far not managed to do so. Though he might not as yet have to, Chicago-based reporter Will Lee said on Twitter that he'd been told that numerous female fans of Kelly's have called the court offering to pay the $100,000. Allegations of sexual abuse against Kelly have persisted for many years now, of course, and came under more scrutiny recently, firstly following reports that he is operating a "sex cult", and then after the screening in the US of a new documentary about the abuse claims. Of the many civil actions launched against him over the years alleging abuse, Kelly has settled the majority out of court. Though on that one previous occasion criminal charges were brought against him he was acquitted after his legal team argued that the identity of the girl a video at the heart of the case could not be proven conclusively. Following the screening of the 'Surviving R Kelly' documentary by the Lifetime network, Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx called for alleged victims to come forward. It then emerged that new video evidence had been unearthed that allegedly incriminated Kelly, and one of the four women he is now charged with assaulting appears in that video. Kelly has always denied all the accusations made against him and continues to do so. As do his legal team on his behalf. Speaking to Rolling Stone, one of the singer's lawyers, Brian Nix, said that his client "is disappointed by the unsubstantiated allegations of behaviour that portrays him as a monster by people with a pecuniary motive. He believes that the scripted documentary by Lifetime has created collusion between and amongst female friends who have been converted to victims". He continued: "The dissemination of information through media and social outlets have created an environment of possible collusion amongst female acquaintances who have been mistakenly coached to become victims". If Kelly can come up with the money to secure his release on bail, he will also have to agree to surrender his passport and avoid coming into contact with anyone under the age of eighteen. If convicted, he is facing a sentence of up to 70 years in prison. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Closed HMV stores re-opening, as Sunrise does new deals on rent It was announced earlier this month that Canadian music retailer Sunrise Records had agreed a deal to take on the UK chain, which was put into administration by previous owner Hilco shortly after Christmas. That deal initially meant that 100 HMV and Fopp stores would be saved, with 27 closing down due to high rents. However, of those closed stores, five HMV shops - in Glasgow, Bath, Sheffield, Reading and the Bluewater shopping centre in Dartford - plus the Glasgow branch of Fopp have now opened their doors to customers again. The shops were seemingly re-opened after Sunrise managed to strike new deals with landlords on rent for the premises. It remains to be seen if further such deals can be done in order to reinstate more shops - particularly the flagship store on London's Oxford Street. Of course, all of the remaining HMV and Fopp shops saved by Sunrise are currently still operating as they were when Hilco put them into administration at the end of last year. The big plan to reenergise the business and get them bringing in more money is yet to come. Recently, Sunrise boss Doug Putman told The Canadian Press that his company was still trying to "get a handle on the market and what is happening here" in the UK. Although he said that there was already a plan to "add a lot of vinyl to the mix". | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Outstanding Attitude shortlists announced Commenting on the shortlists, Attitude Is Everything boss Suzanne Bull said: "There can't be many award shows that cover nominations from live music's biggest and most recognised global brands next to those from outdoor toilet specialists and tiny local venues. That's what makes the Outstanding Attitude Awards so special". "It highlights how, regardless of size, scale and budget, everyone has the capacity to tear down barriers and make music more inclusive", she added. "The only limit is our imagination, and that's what we'll be celebrating on 12 Mar". The shortlists are as follows... Access Starts Online Award - Outdoor Event Access Starts Online Award - Venue Over 500 Capacity Access Starts Online Award - Venue Under 500 Capacity Accessible Infrastructure Award Big Ambition Award The Nigel McCune DIY Access Award The Customer Service Award The Tech Innovation Award Ticketing Without Barriers Award - Plarform Ticketing Without Barriers Award - Venue / Event | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
YouTube supports new video production suite at BRIT School The tie up between YouTube and the BRIT Trust-supported secondary school will result in the creation of a new studio that will, and I quote, "help young and emerging musicians/artists share their talents with the world through video". What will now be known as the YouTube Music Studio is basically a significant refurb of the school's existing video production suite which, once finished, will include, and I quote again, "a sixteen-channel audio desk, three studio cameras, playback screens, and monitors". YouTube's Head Of Music Content Partnerships in the UK, Azi Eftekhari, said: "We are committed to fostering the next generation of talent in the UK and are so pleased to be working with The BRIT Trust on the launch of the YouTube Music BRIT Studios. We look forward to seeing the success of future students from the programme and the impact they have on the world of music in the UK and beyond". Meanwhile BRIT School Principal Stuart Worden added: "This is an exciting opportunity to have world class facilities that will help train our students to work in a creative sector that is growing at a rapid rate. The BRIT School has always celebrated new voices in music, performing arts, TV, film and digital arts. This major refurbishment will allow us to develop the talent of thousands of creative artists for years to come". | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Peter Frampton announces farewell tour following muscle disease diagnosis The guitarist announced his diagnosis at the weekend on CBS show 'This Morning', saying: "The reason I'm calling it the 'farewell tour' is because I know that I will be at the top of my game for this tour and I will make it through this and people won't be saying, 'Oh you know, he can't play as good'. I can. But we just don't know for how long". "I'm a perfectionist", he added. "I do not want to go out there and feel like, 'Oh I can't, this isn't good'. That would be a nightmare for me. It's my passion. I've been playing guitar for 60 years. Started when I was eight and now I'm 68. So, I've had a very good run". The US tour is set to begin in July and run through to mid-October. Each ticket sold will include a $1 donation to the Peter Frampton Myositis Research Fund. -------------------------------------------------- KD Lang announces Ingénue 25th anniversary shows The shows will see Lang perform 'Ingénue' in full, as well as other songs from across her career, including the newly released 'Sleeping Alone' - originally written during sessions for her 2011 album 'Sing It Loud'. Here are the dates: 13 Jul: Hull, Bonus Arena | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bohemian Rhapsody takes home four Oscars In his acceptance speech, Malek thanked Queen for "allowing me to be the tiniest part of your phenomenal legacy". He also said that the success of the film shows that the world is "longing for stories" about people like Mercury, "who lived his life just unapologetically himself". As well as Malek's acting prize, 'Bohemian Rhapsody' also took the sound editing, sound mixing and film editing awards. The only trophy for which it was nominated that it didn't win was Best Picture, which went to 'Green Book'. Queen and Adam Lambert were also at the ceremony, opening the whole show with a performance of 'We Will Rock You' and 'We Are The Champions'. Elsewhere in music wins, 'Shallow' from 'A Star Is Born' took Best Original Song. The film's stars, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, also performed the song together at the ceremony. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Real Estate say song in flat Earth doc is "pretty funny" but they were unaware it was being used Asked how they felt about it, the band tweeted: "Haven't seen the movie yet. Found out about our song being in it last night from a friend, and while I do think it's a pretty funny recontextualization to use our song 'Horizon' in a doc about flat earthers, no one in the band approved it". The makers of the film later clarified that the track had been properly licensed from Domino. The band say that they are "looking into it on our end". | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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