A bit of heavy-handed censorship of a Pearl Jam concert by AT&T this weekend led the band to fire off an open letter to fans—a letter in which Pearl Jam railed against media and ISP consolidation and called for readers to support network neutrality.
The incident happened during a Lollapalooza webcast over at AT&T’s “Blue Room” media showcase. Pearl Jam’s performance of their big 90’s hit “Daughter” morphed into the melody from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall,” and Eddie Vedder served up a pair of anti-Bush lyrics to the tune. “George Bush, leave this world alone,” he sang. “George Bush, find yourself another home.”
Fans at the event got to hear the words in all their glory, but in the webcast, the lines were censored—AT&T made the decision to silence them, apparently believing that they would prove offensive to listeners. When Pearl Jam found out about the censorship, the band posted a strongly-worded message on its web site.
“This, of course, troubles us as artists but also as citizens concerned with the issue of censorship and the increasingly consolidated control of the media,” wrote the band. “What happened to us this weekend was a wake-up call, and it’s about something much bigger than the censorship of a rock band.”
In Pearl Jam’s view, it’s a wake-up call for network neutrality advocates. The same sort of censorship could take place on any Internet content, and what could be done about it an a world where the only real option is… the cable company?
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Tags: Live Shows · Pearl Jam
August 9th, 2007 · 1 Comment
“Even though it’s been years since the channel has shown the videos it honors, the MTV Video Music Awards persist. This year’s top nominees, announced today, are Beyonce and Justin Timberlake with seven apiece, followed by Kanye West and Rihanna with five, and Amy Winehouse with three.
MTV typically waits until the very last second to find/announce a host for its signature awards show, but thus far West, Winehouse, Rihanna, Fall Out Boy, Lily Allen, Chris Brown and Foo Fighters are committed to perform, with more acts to be announced soon.
In at least a nod to the fact that MTV is no longer really a music video network, a few new categories have been added to the show. Male and Female artist of the year recognize an artist’s complete body of work in 2007, while Monster Single of the Year and Quadruple Threat award (honoring “those boundary-busting artists who have conquered multiple worlds including, but not limited to; music, fashion, philanthropy, business, acting and dance”) give the network’s bookers latitude to honor celebrities who haven’t had much of a video presence, but who might bring in some ratings.
If that seems slightly desperate, it is. For years, the Video Music Awards were MTV’s highest-rated programming event. Launched in 1984, with Dan Aykroyd and Bette Midler hosting, the ceremony was a remarkably fresh and satirical take on dull old awards shows. Because its premise was that the awards themselves were a joke — statuettes went to bands for videos in which they often didn’t appear, let alone direct — celebrities were looser and more spontaneous, and so was the show.”
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Tags: MTV · Music · Music Video
Who do you want to believe?
Though her record label reps still stand by their statement that Amy Winehouse’s hospital stay was caused by “exhaustion”, sources and close friends are saying “oh contraire”
The other side is claiming it was a drug overdose so bad it required an adrenaline shot and stomach pump, and that she is not “resting at home” but rather at the hospital where she belongs.
Whichever the case, Vicarious music wishes Amy a speedy recovery…and of course if it was a drug overdose we want her to get the help she needs…but preferably before or after she heads out for her U.S tour…
Sorry, we’re a little selfish
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Tags: Amy Winehouse · Drugs
Tags: On Sale
“I’m sorry blame it on me”, but this strikes me as funny…apologizing, what happened to sex, drugs & rock and roll, no apologies.
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Tags: Music Video
