Permission to reband
Hard rock band The Darkness has announced that they have reformed and will be touring with their original lineup in 2011. The reformation marks the end of a five-year feud between guitarist Dan Hawkins and lead singer Justin Hawkins. The founding members and siblings split in 2006 due to Justin’s drug and alcohol related health problems, leading to The Darkness’ dissolution later that same year. This news comes after the frontman famously denied last year’s reunion rumours, calling them “essentially horse shit” on his Twitter in July. You can check out the band’s new website www.theactualdarkness.com
Alice In Chains bassist to revisit Dirt
Former Alice In Chains bassist Mike Starr was found dead at a house in Salt Lake City last Tuesday. Starr, who had exposed his drug problems to the world on the reality TV show Celebrity Rehab, had been battling a heroin addiction and had been arrested last February for outstanding drug charges. These facts, in conjunction with a voicemail message in which Starr is heard pleading for drugs on the night of his death, have led many to speculate that his death was drug related, though the toxicology reports that would confirm or deny this could take up to two months to come back.
From “November Rain” to financial gain
Former Guns N’ Roses bassist and current Velvet Revolver member Duff Mckagan has launched his own wealth management firm, Meridian Rock. Mckagan, who obtained a degree in economics from Seattle University, explained the purpose of his firm as a way for young musicians to make sound financial decisions – something he himself had trouble with in his GNR heyday. “You think the money is going to keep coming,” he said in an interview with Fortune Magazine. “When you get that big contract, or your record goes platinum and you’re selling out concerts, you don’t see that it’s going to end.” Should anyone be interested in hearing some of the 47-year-old rocker’s advice for free, check out Duffonomics, a weekly financial column Mckagan writes for Playboy.
NAACP honours white trash
The Detroit chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s decision to honour musician Kid Rock has irked some African-American civil rights leaders. The issue at hand is Rock’s association with the confederate flag and its association to the once-segregated south. Adolph Mongo, the head of Detroiters For Progress, said that Rock’s use of the flag is “a slap in the face of anyone who fought for civil rights in this country.” Mongo is among a group of NAACP members who will be boycotting the May 1 event due to Rock’s presence. Kid Rock, real name Robert James Ritchie, is set to receive the Great Expectations Award as acknowledgment for his work with African-Americans and the city of Detroit.
Ja Rule Ja-iled
American rapper Ja Rule has been sentenced to two years in jail starting this June after his July 2007 arrest for attempted criminal possession of a loaded gun. The “Between Me and You” lyricist had plead guilty in the case and called his sentencing a “minor setback for a major comeback” on Twitter. The judge ruled the rapper could start serving his time in June so that he could use the time he had left to resolve a federal tax issue and put the finishing touches on his upcoming album, The Renaissance Project.
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