It's The Joke-Telling D-O-Double-G

Few would deny that Snoop Dogg already has many strings to his bow, and he’s just about to add another by performing alongside stand-up comedian Mike Epps. Imagine That is a comedy stage show which tells the tale of two night-club performers who end up in prison and have to find their way out. Though the concept is unusual, Snoop Dogg is convinced it already has an audience waiting to see it: “We’ve worked together in the past on some projects and knew that our audiences would love to see us bring Hip-Hop music and Hip-Hop comedy together on stage.”

The recent death of Ron Banks, founder of The Dramatics -- the group which inspired a plethora of hip-hop samples and a particular favorite of the Doggfather -- may have dented Snoop’s mood recently, but this latest venture will find him too busy to stay down for long. In addition to the new comedy show, he appears on the new Gorillaz album Plastic Beach and is still promoting the December release of his latest album Malice N Wonderland.

Visit Snoop Dogg's page

9th March 2010

Amanda Palmer Recruits Singer Called Cobain

Frances Bean Cobain applied for a restraining order against her mom Courtney Love recently, resulting in public unpleasantness between the two. But it seems that, even if her mother isn’t on her side, Amanda Palmer is. “Given her life situation, she could be totally messed up,” said Palmer, “but she actually seems like she really has her s*** together.”

The two met up following a tentative email from Palmer to Cobain, resulting in Cobain’s inclusion on Evelyn Evelyn, Palmer’s latest concept album telling the fictional story of singing conjoined-twin sisters. Unfortunately it’s impossible to tell if Frances has inherited her parents’ vocal talents, since her 3-second vocal appearance is mixed into a collage of voices on the track “My Space.” On her blog Palmer revealed her vision for the song: “Everybody took 45 seconds out of their lives and e-mailed us a file of their voice singing the same line, and we mixed it all together, gang-vocal-style.”

The finished track includes contributions from several unexpected musicians, including "Weird Al" Yankovic, Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance) and Andrew W.K. You can hear the finished results when Evelyn Evelyn is released at the end of the month.

Visit Amanda Palmer's page

8th March 2010

Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous Is Dead

Sparklehorse singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mark Linkous has died. According to early reports, he shot himself in the chest outside a friend’s house on Saturday afternoon.

Linkous struggled with internal demons: in 1996 he momentarily died after taking a mix of sedative and antidepressant drugs while on a UK tour; he had a heart attack and lost the use of his legs for six months.

Despite his troubles, his group Sparklehorse released four critically acclaimed studio albums. Recently, Linkous has focused on collaborations with other musicians. Last year he worked with producer Danger Mouse, director David Lynch and a range of singers on an album called Dark Night Of The Soul. The album will be released this summer, following a year of delays due to legal problems.

“We are thankful for his time with us and will hold him forever in our hearts,” his family said in a statement. “May his journey be peaceful, happy and free. There’s a heaven and there’s a star for you.”

Visit Mark Linkous's page