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Exclusive: Will Mariah Carey or Jennifer Lopez Join Old Pal L.A. Reid at His New Label Under Warner Music?

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Will Mariah Carey or Jennifer Lopez Join Old Pal L.A. Reid at His New Label Under Warner Music?

The return of L.A. Reid to the record biz after a year away is like a big puzzle coming together.

First one report said he’d put together $75 million in backing. Then another said that former J Records chief under Clive Davis, Charles Goldstuck, was joining him.

I can tell you the new company has an old name– Hitco– after Reid’s former music publishing company. Hitco Entertainment is an open secret, with its own website already up. Goldstuck also has a a new bio page for his website in which he id’s himself as the head of Hitco.

Now I can also tell you that Reid and Goldstuck have likely made a distribution deal with Warner Music’s new head, the very brilliant Tom Corson. This is a smart move. Corson ran RCA Records and before that was part of the Arista and J Records teams with Goldstuck and Reid, during and after Clive Davis’s reign. In a sense they are all Clive’s guys. And now they’re going to be together.

Yes, L.A. disappeared just less than a year ago after some early or pre #TimesUp/#MeToo stuff at Epic/Sony. But you know, the nature of the record biz is such that a hit record takes precedence over problems in human resources. That’s just the way it is. Reid has an ear for hits. I wouldn’t be surprised if Republic Records’ Charlie Walk winds up there given how badly he’s been treated in this crazy new environment. He’d be the perfect marketing guy for them, and gold records would be in abundance.

Anyway, the only album Sony has right now in the top 50 is from Camilla Cabello, formerly of Fifth Harmony. Camilla and the group were L.A. Reid projects. So was DJ Khaled, another star on Epic. Also, Reid will sign likely Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez just to make noise for Hitco. (When this happens, please credit this site.)

Already, according to one report, Reid is making a smart movie hiring Kirdis Postelle– already a successful woman in the record biz– as his top executive. She was most recently already at Warner Music, and knows the lay of the land. And appointing a top female exec sends a signal that a new more enlightened chapter begins.

PS That photo was taken at the Vanity Fair Oscar party just last year, shortly before Reid left Epic. His beautiful wife, Erica, is at the far left and L.A. is at the far right. Smokey Robinson is in the middle, his wife Frances is to his left, and Janelle Monae is the woman between Smokey and L.A.

A Feisty Miley Cyrus Opens Elton John Tribute with “The Bitch is Back” at Show that Features Ed Sheeran, Chris Martin, SZA and Shawn Mendes

Roger Friedman
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A Feisty Miley Cyrus Opens Elton John Tribute with “The Bitch is Back” at Show that Features Ed Sheeran, Chris Martin, SZA and Shawn Mendes

The word from the Theater at Madison Square Garden is that the Elton John Tribute was off the charts good. (The show airs April 10th on CBS.)

Miley Cyrus opened the show with “The Bitch is Back,” and from there it was one hit after another. Highlights included Ed Sheeran singing “Candle in the Wind” (which I told you yesterday will be on Elton’s tribute album), “Rocket Man” from Little Big Town, Alessia Cara took “I Guess That’s Why They Call it the Blues,” Sam Smith handled “Daniel.”

Elton’s peeps kept the acts to all young people and contemporary stars of now– no old guys. So Kesha sang “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” Sean Mendes let SZA get on her Kiki Dee for a duet on “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,”  Miranda Lambert handled “My Father’s Gun,” Chris Martin sang “We All Fall in Love Sometimes,” and John Legend played “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.” Lady Gaga, as I reported yesterday, pre-taped “Your Song.”

Of course, reports are that Sir Elton stole his own show with a rousing finale of “Bennie and the Jets,” “Philadelphia Freedom,” “Looking Up,” and “I’m Still Standing.” Lots of well known faces in the audience, by the way, including Anna Kendrick.

I had a lot of reports of a dramatic moment when Neil Patrick Harris read a letter from late AIDS patient Ryan White to Elton with Jon Batiste providing background music. Apparently there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. Elton’s friendship with Ryan White was one of the reasons he started his important and groundbreaking AIDS Foundation.

PS I heard tonight that Elton has chosen the musical  act for his and David Furnish’s annual EJAF Oscar party following the Academy Awards. It’s Greta van Fleet, the hottest new rock band out there. They “out-Zeppelin” Led Zeppelin, according to my sources. That Oscar party is so much fun and raises so much money for AIDS research. But also, Elton picks absolutely the best new musicians as the featured entertainment. Can’t wait to hear these guys!

What a great season of Elton John. He’d better not retire after all!

 

Harvey Weinstein Denies Rose McGowan’s Accusations in Statement, Ben Affleck Issues Denial of McGowan’s Claims As Well

Roger Friedman
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Harvey Weinstein Denies Rose McGowan’s Accusations in Statement, Ben Affleck Issues Denial of McGowan’s Claims As Well

Harvey Weinstein’s attorney, Ben Brafman, has issued a statement regarding Rose McGowan, her new book “Brave” and accusations that the movie mogul raped her at Sundance in 1997.

One thing that bothers me about McGowan’s claims– she says Affleck told her — to paraphrase– that he’d warned Weinstein not to do something– attack women, presumably– in a past conversation. But “Good Will Hunting” wasn’t released until December 1997. Even though Affleck and McGowan had small parts in a Dimension movie shown at Sundance in January 1997– a year earlier– Affleck and Weinstein did not have that kind of pal-sy relationship before “Good Will Hunting” opened and was a hit. That part of McGowan’s recollection rings false to me.

Here’s Brafman’s statement:

“As a general matter, Harvey Weinstein and his attorneys have refrained from publicly criticizing any of the women who have made allegations of sexual assault against Mr. Weinstein despite a wealth of evidence that would demonstrate the patent falsity of these claims. Watching the “performance” by Rose McGowan as she looks to promote her new book however, has made it impossible to remain quiet as she tries to smear Mr. Weinstein with a bold lie that is denied not only by Mr. Weinstein himself, but by at least two witnesses, including Ms. McGowan’s own Manager at the time who Ms. McGowan claims to have confided in the day after the alleged assault and an A-list actor Ben Affleck who Ms. McGowan claims to have also told about her encounter with Mr. Weinstein shortly after the incident she now describes as “rape”, but which in 1997 she described to her Manager as a “consensual” act of sex.

“In an email to Mr. Weinstein regarding the encounter, Jill Messick says the following, “When we met up the following day, she hesitantly told me of her own accord that during the meeting that night before she had gotten into a hot tub with Mr. Weinstein. She was very clear about the fact that getting into that hot tub was something that she did consensually and that in hindsight it was also something that she regretted having done.”

“Ben Affleck expressed the following in an email to Mr. Weinstein, “She never told me nor did I ever infer that she was attacked by anyone. Any accounts to the contrary are false. I have no knowledge about anything Rose did or claimed to have done.”

Lady Gaga Pre-Tapes “Your Song” for Elton John Special, May Be Included in Album of Elton Cover Songs

Roger Friedman
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Lady Gaga Pre-Tapes “Your Song” for Elton John Special, May Be Included in Album of Elton Cover Songs

Lady Gaga couldn’t stick around in New York for the taping of tonight’s Elton John: I’m Still Standing TV special. She’s on stage tomorrow night in Birmingham, UK. So she did the next best thing: she pre-taped “Younr Song” to be dropped into the special.

Tonight’s guests include John Legend, Miranda Lambert, Miley Cyrus, Ed Sheeran, Alessia Cara, and a bunch of stars who are still in town following the Grammys. They’ll each do an Elton song and of course, Elton himself will hit the piano keys at some point. The show airs April 10th on CBS.

I’m told Miley will not again be singing “Tiny Dancer” as she did with Elton on the Grammys. Instead, she’ll perform “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me,” which she’s also singing for an Elton covers album coming this spring. Other artists on the covers album include the aforementioned Lady Gaga, Ed Sheeran and Florence and the Machine.

Marvel’s “Black Panther” Unveiled in Hollywood to Ecstatic Social Media Reviews: “Best Ever”

Roger Friedman
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Marvel’s “Black Panther” Unveiled in Hollywood to Ecstatic Social Media Reviews: “Best Ever”

Is Ryan Coogler 30 years old yet? He had such an amazing launch with “Fruitvale Station” and then “Creed.” Now Coogler’s Marvel movie, “Black Panther,” premiered in Hollywood tonight to ecstatic reviews and raves. It should set records for February openings, comic book movies, Marvel films, etc.

“Black Panther” opens February 15th. Right now Disney is embargoing reviews, allowing only Twitter reactions. New York press doesn’t see the movie until February 6th. But it’s pretty clear that Coogler and his stars Chadwick Boseman and  Michael B. Jordan are about to go through the roof. Can’t think of three guys who deserve it more!

We’ll check Twitter in the AM for a round up of comments!

Broadway Box Office: “Hello, Dolly!” Without Bette Midler Falls to Earth, Is Audra McDonald Next to Join Show?

Roger Friedman
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Broadway Box Office: “Hello, Dolly!” Without Bette Midler Falls to Earth, Is Audra McDonald Next to Join Show?

The party is over at the Shubert Theater.

“Hello,Dolly!” without Bette Midler has fallen back to Earth at the box office.

The show averaged $2.4 million a week under Midler’s spell from last March through this past January 14th. That’s when Midler left and Bernadette Peters came in to succeed her.

During Midler’s run people were paying astronomical amounts for seats from secondary brokers. The top price on the regular market was over $800.

Now “Dolly!” can be had for a song. Last week, the average ticket cost $103.56. The week’s take was just $1.1 million– $300,000 short of sold out. The show itself was the 9th highest grossing musical, dropping behind “Come from Away” and “Waitress.” How the might have fallen!

It’s not clear how long Peters will stay– I’ll bet she’s great. But there is talk that when she’s done, Audra McDonald might be the next Dolly Levi. That would be a swell twist for producer Scott Rudin, whose ill-fated “Shuffle Along” McDonald starred in until she became pregnant and had to leave that show before it closed in a heap.

McDonald would also be carrying the torch for Pearl Bailey, who legendarily fronted an all black  production of the show in the 60s for David Merrick when Carol Channing left the show. Of course, McDonald now would star in a multi-cultural cast.

 

Diane Keaton Still Supports Woody Allen: “He is my friend and I continue to believe him”

Roger Friedman
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Diane Keaton Still Supports Woody Allen: “He is my friend and I continue to believe him”

Diane Keaton has posted a Tweet to support her pal Woody Allen, ex boyfriend and director who she won an Oscar with in 1978. Keaton is one of many actors from Woody’s original ensemble who’ve always supported him including Tony Roberts, Michael Murphy and others. Back in 1993, when the Mia Farrow scandal first broke, Diane stepped in and starred in a great Woody comedy “Manhattan Murder Mystery.”

Grammy’s Best Party: Quincy Jones Holds Court, Dave Chappelle Jokes, Sting Makes a Swing Through the Room

Roger Friedman
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Grammy’s Best Party: Quincy Jones Holds Court, Dave Chappelle Jokes, Sting Makes a Swing Through the Room

The best Grammy party? Universal Music Group nailed it at Spring Studios in Soho, with Quincy Jones holding court, Dave Chappelle joking around, and Erykah Badu DJing. (No mention of her Hitler mess.)

Sting and Trudie Styler took a swing through the room and talked to everyone. “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah was just happy to be out late at night.

The rooms — there were many– airy and light– a very cool environment– were filled with UMG stars like Luis Fonsi, the guy behind “Despacito”– and Lorde, who was enjoying herself despite not performing on the Grammy show. She still had a great credit from Friday night’s MusiCares benefit. She sang Stevie Nicks’s “Silver Spring.” She didn’t know — I told her– that Courtney Love had a hit with it years ago. Also in the house: Sir Andrew Lloyd Weber, singer Julia Michaels, and “Colbert” bandleader Jon Batiste.

Q– Quincy, by the way– is very excited about like 19 projects including a new app called Zig that he just invested in. He’s 84 years young and looks terrific– “I gave up drinking!” he declared, “it saved my life.” He is still interested in dating, however. Q is a role model!

UMG chairman and chief Lucien Grainge still commands the biggest of all the record companies with panache and style!

Exclusive: Paul McCartney is Surprise Grammy “Winner” As Producer of New Record Wins Top Award

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Paul McCartney is Surprise Grammy “Winner” As Producer of New Record Wins Top Award

Paul McCartney wasn’t at the Grammys and didn’t win anything officially.

But he’s the surprise winner of the night. That’s because the producer of his new record, Greg Kurstin, won Producer of the Year.

Kurstin is one of a couple of producers including Ryan Tedder working with McCartney on his first new album in several years. I’m told the songs are “amazing” — as in maybe we’re amazed.

Kurstin is best known for working with Adele, writing her hit, “Hello,” and producing her zillion selling “25” album.

Tedder, of course, has written hits for everyone on the charts and fronts his own hit band, One Republic.

Grammy Awards: Ratings Worst Ever, Down 24% from Last Year, Reasons Will Be Debated Hotly

Roger Friedman
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Grammy Awards: Ratings Worst Ever, Down 24% from Last Year, Reasons Will Be Debated Hotly

Were they too political? Too rap oriented?

For whatever reasons, the 2018 Grammy Awards scored the lowest rating ever for a Grammy show, down 24% from last year. And this was without competition of any notable kind.

It was also the lowest-watched show since 2009. The total viewers came to just under 20 million.

There will be plenty of speculation about why this happened. But it can’t really be that the show was too political since no one could have predicted that going in. And the now famous video spot of various celebs reading “Fate and the Fury” aloud was in the second half of the show.

Everyone will be a Monday morning quarterback. But I did wonder why the show began with an extended performance piece by Kendrick Lamar– clearly announced as a satire– in which a lot of people were killed on stage. Not exactly upbeat. The next segment, after James Corden’s introduction, was Lady Gaga singing about her dead aunt. From there, you were either interested in the very depressing, or you were gone.

On top of that, the Grammys faced several obstacles. The biggest one was the snubbing of Ed Sheeran, whose “Divide” album is still at the very top of the charts. Sheeran would have been the main attraction of the show, but he received no major nominations and wouldn’t appear because of it.

Then there was the Lorde issue: she was not offered a spot on the show because of her stand on Israel. Then to obscure that fact, they let it seem like it was some kind of anti-female thing, which it wasn’t. But that’s what it became.

There were a lot of weird choices made by the production team. Right after Lady Gaga sang two dirges, Pink appeared and sang another one. Oy vey. There were no thrilling moments. There were moving moments– like Kesha– but there was no fun, no sense of humor, a taped segment from U2 that was palmed off as a live one…

As Sam Cooke sang, a change is gonna come to the Grammys for next year after this debacle. When the show returns to Los Angeles, there’s going to be a lot of re-thinking about how this happened. It can’t happen again.

 

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