Daryl Hannah and Neil Young

Daryl Hannah and Neil Young

Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

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Neil Young Premieres Experimental New Film 'Paradox' At SXSW 2018

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Young and actress-turned-director Daryl Hannah unveil their new "more pot than plot" western film in Austin
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Mar 16, 2018 - 5:53 pm

Neil Young's latest project is an experimental western film he made with renowned actress-turned-director Daryl Hannah in the Rocky Mountains over a four-day period between tour dates. It comes packaged with every bit of strangeness you'd expect. Have a look:

Young and Hannah premiered the film on Mar. 15 before a packed house at Austin's Paramount Theatre during SXSW. "We made this in the spirit of lighthearted fun," Hannah announced before the screening, according to Rolling Stone. "So we hope you can relax your brains."

The fun the duo had making Paradox -- which was shot on partly on Super 8 film and partly on Hannah's iPhone -- is palpable in the trailer. Set "many months ago, in the future," the film's rustic imagery, wacky characters and trippy scenes of vaguely Western narrative fragments support the "more pot than plot" description Hannah claims for the project.

But considering the lack of, well, any budget, script, crew etc… the trailer manages a highly compelling patina. For the music fans, Young's brilliance is back at work with his band Promise Of The Real (who also back the music efforts of Willie Nelson's son Lukas Nelson) churning out inspired versions of Young classics such as "Cowgirls In The Sand," and the timeless "Pocahontas," sung by Young's disembodied face superimposed over the moon. Young called the project "a labor of love," before clarifying, "well ... not a lot of labor." 

Perhaps this is a sign of what's to come for Hannah, though. "I'd like to make a real movie some day," she said, which drew a chuckle from her co-creators. "No offense guys. Just you know, something with a crew and a budget."

Those unable to make the screening in Austin won't have to wait long to see the spectacle of Paradox for themselves — the film will be available on Netflix on Mar. 23.

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Pegi Young

Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images

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Pegi Young, Musician And Neil Young's Former Wife, Dies At 66

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Young died following a yearlong battle with cancer
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Jan 3, 2019 - 1:24 pm

Pegi Young, singer/songwriter, activist and musician, whose career includes solo work as well as being frontwoman of Pegi Young & The Survivors, has died following a yearlong battle with cancer. She was 66.

Young's death was confirmed via her official social-media accounts. She died surrounded by family and friends in California, where she was born.

Young released five albums both as a solo artist and with Pegi Young & The Survivors. Her last tour was in the fall of 2017. 

The musician's last album, Raw, released in 2017, addresses her separation from Neil Young, to whom she was married for 36 years. They share two children. The album is a deeply emotional account of their relationship.

"As we were making [Raw], I was encouraging her to write self-affirming songs," bandmate Phil Jones said. "And I believe she did that."

Pegi and Neil met in 1974 and were married in the late ‘70s. They began to perform together in the 1990s; Pegi was Neil's backup singer.

Neil recalls how they met in "Unknown Legend."

In 1987, Pegi and Neil opened the Bridge School which serves children with physical and speech impairments. They were inspired to do so by their son, Ben, who has cerebral palsy.

Years before becoming a musician, Young, who was born in San Mateo, Calif., taught herself folk covers on an acoustic guitar. She wrote poetry in grade school and studied it in college.

Young saw herself as a survivor. "Although we named the band The Survivors after Ben Keith died, we didn’t have any idea some 10 years ago, what an apt name it would turn out to be! I’ve gone through a lot of good stuff and scary stuff, and I will keep going forward," she said on her site.

"I’d like to be remembered for the good I tried to do in my life and for the world. I’m just a human being who tried to be a good person, despite my failings," Pegi Young told Thread MB.

Young leaves behind her son, Ben, and daughter, Amber.

Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Miley Cyrus & Katy Perry Added To MusiCares Person Of The Year Honoring Dolly Parton

Shania Twain_122718

Shania Twain

Photo: Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images

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The Top 100 Best-Selling Albums Ever: Eagles, Michael Jackson, Shania Twain & More

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Heading into the new year, the RIAA has updated its list of the albums that moved the most units—where does your favorite artist rank?
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Dec 27, 2018 - 12:24 pm

As the sun sets on 2018 and the music industry looks forward to the year ahead, the Recording Industry Association Of America has updated its list of gold and platinum album sales, providing a look in the rear view mirror.

The battle for the top spot continues, as the Eagles and Michael Jackson both jockey for No. 1. The Eagles dethroned the King of Pop this past summer—in terms of album sales, that is— when the RIAA certified Their Greatest Hits as 38x platinum, edging out M.J.’s Thriller at 33x platinum. The latest top five includes another Eagles album, Hotel California, at 26x platinum, as well as Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits Volume I and Volume II and Led Zeppelin’s Led Zeppelin IV with 23x platinum sales each.

Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 classic, Rumours, rounds out the top 10, followed closely by Shania Twain’s Come On Over, making Twain’s 1997 hit the highest ranking album by a female solo artist. Both albums sold over 20 million copies.

The folks at Digital Music News took the list a step further, compiling the top-selling artists of all-time, according to RIAA’s certified gold and platinum sales data. The Beatles top that list with 178 million certified units, followed by Garth Brooks, Elvis Presley, the Eagles, and Led Zeppelin rounding out the top 5. Women in the top 20 include Barbra Streisand (No. 12), Madonna (No. 16), Mariah Carey (No. 17), and Whitney Houston (No. 19).

Looking ahead, the RIAA has a big change of its own coming in 2019. Longtime chairman and CEO Cary Sherman is retiring after over 20 years with the organization, leaving behind an admirable legacy as a true music champion as an advocate for empowering music to thrive in the digital marketplace. With all the industry’s changes, one wonders who will top this list in another 20 years.

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Paul McCartney and Emma Stone

Paul McCartney & Emma Stone

Photo: Courtesy of Paul McCartney

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Paul McCartney Teams Up With Emma Stone For "Who Cares" Short Music Film

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The former Beatle's new short musical film takes on an anti-bullying theme with a little help from his Academy award-winning friend
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Dec 17, 2018 - 11:38 am

Some of the best of the best in the world of music, acting and filmmaking collide in Paul McCartney's new short music film for "Who Cares," the newest single from his chart-topping album Egypt Station. The song and video take on the tough topic of bullying and stars McCartney and Emma Stone, Academy award-winning actress from La La Land. This is music—and film—with a positive, uplifting message.

“My hope is that if there are kids being bullied—and there are," McCartney said in a statement.  "Maybe by listening to this song and watching this video, they might just think it’s not as bad… that it’s the kind of thing you can just stand up to and laugh off and get through.”

The colorful and stark video is the vehicle for McCartney's partnership with Creative Visions, a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of media and the arts to ignite positive social change. The song and video come complete with the launch of the #WhoCaresIDo campaign, aimed at raising awareness of the issues tackled in the video and empowering people to treat each other with support and kindness.

More than mere positive suggestion, with partners Facebook, Enso, Aremis Rising Foundation, the Blue Chip Foundation and Subtractive Inc., the latter being the video's producers and creative force behind the videos unique look shot on 65mm Kodak Film with Panavision Cameras, the campaign hopes to reach millions and actually provide tools to take action through a network of experts and partners. In short, to help those affected by bullying get by with a little help from their friends.

“Millions of people around the world feel silenced, subjugated—bullied—and believe that no one cares,” Creative Visions Founder Kathy Eldon said in a statement. “Our intention with this campaign is to put the power of the song to work and inspire us to show up and care—and let others know that we do care.”

The video is viewable exclusively on Apple Music for the first 24 hours.

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Five Finger Death Punch_121318

Five Finger Death Punch

Photo: Jason Swarr

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Five Finger Death Punch & Breaking Benjamin Donate Tour Proceeds To Charity

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The $60,000 donations from two of music's most intense bands push their 2018 charity donation total past $250,000
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Dec 13, 2018 - 5:08 pm

Co-headliners Five Finger Death Punch and Breaking Benjamin certainly made the most out of their sprawling 2018 arena tour, which wrapped earlier this week. The bands have announced they will donate a portion of the ticket sales from their fall shows to two charity organizations close to their hearts.

Five Finger Death Punch chose VETPAW, an organization devoted to ending illegal poaching of Rhinos in Africa, while Breaking Benjamin selected St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital as their charity of choice. Each organization received $30,000, sending the bands combined annual total donation amount north of $250,000—a generous sum, indeed.

The tour, which began in outdoor amphitheaters earlier in the year before graduating to arenas in the fall, also featured appearances by GRAMMY nominees Nothing More as well as Bad Wolves, In Flames and From Ashes To New. The tour turned out to be a who's who of rock-radio giants, as year-end radio play reports placed Five Finger Death Punch at No. 1 as the most-played artist on U.S. rock radio, with Bad Wolves at No. 3 and Breaking Benjamin at No. 9.

FFDP’s latest single, "Sham Pain," from their seventh studio album, And Justice For None, earned the band its fifth No.1 on Billboard's mainstream rock songs chart, putting them back on top of that chart for the first time since 2016.

Breaking Benjamin have also enjoyed a big year, releasing their self-produced sixth album, EMBER, in late April. The album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.

With these sizable charity donations the bands have no doubt paired their commercial success with philanthropy in a remarkable way in 2018.

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