Results tagged “kanyewest”

The White House may have publicly distanced itself from former president Jimmy Carter's remarks saying that racism was at the heart of Rep. Joe Wilson's remarks and other anti-Obama sentiment—White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said, "The president does not believe that that criticism comes based on the color of his skin"—but Carter continued to hammer the point home. Yesterday, while speaking to Emory University freshman, he said, "When a radical fringe element of demonstrators and others begin to attack the president of the United States as an animal or as a reincarnation of Adolf Hitler or when they wave signs in the air that said we should have buried Obama with Kennedy, those kinds of things are beyond the bounds... I think people who are guilty of that kind of personal attack against Obama have been influenced to a major degree by a belief that he should not be president because he happens to be African-American." Carter even weighed in on Kanye West's Taylor Swift dis, saying it was "completely uncalled for" and "his punishment was to appear on the new Jay Leno show." Ha!

Thank goodness for TMZ, because now we have audio of President Obama saying that Kanye West was a "jackass" for interrupting Taylor Swift's MTV Video Music Award speech and saying that Beyonce's video was way better. Barry said, "I thought that was really inappropriate... He's a jackass." Obama is then heard asking, "Where's the pool?" which TMZ analyzes, "Presumably, he was worried the joke would go wide. He noted the last time that happened, he got burned for killing a fly." Obama also added, "C'mon guys. Cut the president some slack. I've got a lot of other stuff on my plate." White House spokesman Bill Burton told the press, "Look, I'm not going to get into what the President had to say in an off-the-record conversation. But you should see what [White House chief of staff] Rahm [Emanuel] said about it." In other news, West apologized to Swift, who said he was sincere.

Nightline co-anchor Terry Moran isn't getting an Obama scoop any time soon! Yesterday, he prematurely Tweeted, "Pres. Obama just called Kanye West a 'jackass' for his outburst at VMAs when Taylor Swift won. Now THAT'S presidential." Prematurely because it turns out the President's remarks were off-the-record and Moran deleted the Tweet (but it's still here). ABC News then told Politico: "In the process of reporting on remarks by President Obama that were made during a CNBC interview, ABC News employees prematurely tweeted a portion of those remarks that turned out to be from an off-the-record portion of the interview. This was done before our editorial process had been completed. That was wrong. We apologize to the White House and CNBC and are taking steps to ensure that it will not happen again." On the upside, Kanye probably thinks he was a jackass, too.

Barely 24 hours after causing a stir for dissing Taylor Swift—while she was accepting an award—at the MTV Video Music Awards, Kanye West appeared on The Jay Leno Show. West was a musical guest, along with Jay-Z and Rihanna, but agreed to speak with Leno before the performance. The rapper seemed very contrite, saying he felt terrible for hurting someone, it's “extremely difficult to deal with the fact that I hurt someone and took something away from a talented artist."

     

Last night, the MTV Video Music Awards returned to New York City with its usual mix of spectacle and a heavy dose of nostalgia (mostly Michael Jackson-related, with a remembrance from Madonna, then a performance of Scream by Janet Jackson). However, the whole thing was upstaged by Kanye West's antics—the rapper decided to storm the stage when Taylor Swift was the surprise winner for Best Female Video with her song "You Belong With Me." He took the microphone from the 19-year-old to declare Beyonce's "Single Ladies" "one of the best videos of all time." Here's video:

   

Click on the images for more about this Week in Rock; this week features Kanye at Webster Hallt, Spank Rock at Siren and on the Williamsburg Bridge, and a Gothamist House (at CMJ) announcement!

       

Was 2008 a ground-breaking year for music? Probably not. But the past 365 days did bring us many sonic surprises, some good and some bad. Here are a few highlights, as well as our Top 3 Bands of the Year (all, incidentally, from New York).

If Fred Armisen plays any black politician, please let it be NY Governor David Paterson! His impression of our "accidental" governor debuted on Weekend Update last night and it absolutely killed. For reference, we've placed a photograph of Paterson above—compare it to the SNL bit below:

      

Last night at the Garden was the annual Christmas concert thrown by Z100 known as the Jingle Ball. Perusing a list of its performers is a bit of an eye-opening experience for some of us in realizing just how long it's been since we had "the phrase that pays" rolling off the tips of our tongues. But dare we say that in its thirteenth year, the Jingle Ball has been running for long enough to be considered an adolescent institution here in the Big Apple. Plus we can always delude ourselves of our relative youth status by reading the Daily News description of the tweenage girls "having one heck of a good time."

For his Steely Dan-sampled "Champion" video, Kanye West turned himself into a Muppet (video), and now The Daily News reports that West could be developing a Muppet-like television show. MTV's Doug Herzog told the paper "We're working on a pilot with Kanye. It's going to be a black version of 'The Muppets.'" Maybe Bert & Ernie could make a cameo and work on their rap game...or perhaps Roosevelt Franklin can make be resurrected! In real Muppets news, the NY Times checked out the show's comeback, which includes a Christmas special to be aired on NBC this December (being filmed in Brooklyn).

For fans of the band and their hypnotizing, yet charged live performances, Deerhunter's recent shows have been a real treat. Gone are the gimmicks and outbursts that nearly defined these guys as a one-off freak show, and replaced is an often charming group of kids who know how to make abstract music truly engaging. Those in attendance last Tuesday night at (Le) Poisson Rouge got to see this band at their best. Frontman Bradford Cox is by no means shy at the mic, but he kept the banter light and amusing, and the attention on the music between quips. Despite some sound level issues at the club, the relatively short set was entirely on point, and shines a hopeful light on the future for this promising young band. If it wasn't clear already, they should be taken seriously.

Did you wake up this morning thinking you'd like to be a little more Kanye? In all likelihood the Be Kanye subway ad campaign has sunk in to your subconscious, but watch out--as learned from the video ad that circulated last month, being Kanye is really just being drunk...on Absolut Vodka. Or more accurately, on corporate sponsorship. Today the Daily News takes a look at the subway ads, which state: "For a few hours - or for a lifetime - any time is Kanye time." Well, it's better than being Dr. Zizmor.

There was no avoiding Kanye's epic and ego boosting Glow in the Dark Tour as it rolled through New York this week. The hip hop space opera was one for the ages, walking the fine line between Spinal Tap and R. Kelly in terms of the laughing at/with ridiculousness; it included campy stage props, dry ice, and holographic strippers. The concept's absurdity was breathtaking: Kanye crash lands alone on an alien planet, with only his female talking spaceship, Jane, alongside him. He needs "star power" for the spaceship to launch again, since he's the biggest star in the universe, he is able to power up and get the ship back home. Kanye might not win a Pulitzer for the story, but that's not to say it wasn't mind-blowingly enjoyable.

Indie animator Bill Plympton has just finished his sixth animated feature, for which he hand drew every cell. Called Idiots and Angels, it tells the haunting and humorous story of a dyspeptic working stiff who wakes up one morning and finds, to his horror, angel's wings sprouting out of his back. Try as he may to rid himself of the grotesque mutation, they inevitably take over his life and soon become the wings of desire for a quack doctor and a covetous bartender at the local dive; a riot of scheming and slapstick violence ensues. Like the best of Plympton's distinctive oeuvre, Idiots and Angels bounces merrily along from the profane to the sublime, with a parade of arresting images that have a way of sticking with you for days. It premieres at the Tribeca Film Festival Saturday night; details on screenings here.

Two of the world's largest crossover Country stars joined forces this winter for a massive arena tour that came through NYC this week. Former American Idol and legitimate breakout star Carrie Underwood opened the show for Keith Urban at a sold out MSG, both dazzling the crowd with song and spectacle. While Carrie's set was slightly less ambitious – a mere 4 costume changes and a fairly pedestrian light show to complement the surprisingly competent songs – Urban was the complete package. Even somebody who couldn't hum a single one of his songs would have been transfixed by the ultra-sharp, 50 foot HD backdrop and his dazzling charisma and energy. The highlight of the set might have been when he took it into the crowd mid-song, standing in the lower ring of seats with a mob of fans and camera phones all pointed at him. In a moment of pure generosity and awesomeness, he took the guitar he was playing off his shoulder, autographed it on the spot and handed it to a stunned, random fan. An amazing move to cap off an unexpectedly spectacular show.

Well this was unexpected! Not afraid to wear a fur coat to the Natural History Museum, Kanye West made a surprise appearance at last Friday's Cool Kids/Kid Sister party. As Kid Sister was finishing up her set, Kanye jumped up on stage to throw in his part of their duet. He then stayed up there to play a short set of all his current hits. DJ A-Trak claimed it to be a last minute arrangement, getting thrown together by text messages that evening, and it was a well kept surprise. It certainly made the several long will call lines attendees were forced to wait in more tolerable in hindsight. (Pic by Justin Charles for Flavorpill, who hosted the event)

No arrests have been made, but a violent incident in Times Square originating at karaoke nightclub early Monday Spotlight LiveSpotlight Live resulted in the death of one man and the injury or hospitalization six others last night. A coat-check dispute, led to the ejection of a number of patrons and resulted in a deadly brawl.

MUSIC: Merkin Concert Hall is reopening, and to help celebrate some of the piano greats will be on hand for a free, six hour concert. Philip Glass and John Medeski will be amongst those who will perform. Get more details here.

For the second year running, the Food Bank for New York City and the Lunchbox Fund of South Africa have enlisted over 100 celebrities in their holiday fundraiser. Boldface names like Kanye West, Elton John, Cameron Diaz, Mike Meyers, William Wegman and, um, Urban Outfitters, have created personalized, autographed lunchboxes that are now onsale via online auction. At Thursday night's kick-off event at Saatchi & Saatchi, a lunchbox by Michael Stipe was snatched up...

It's all in an Upper West Side day for the Material Girl! The tabloids have reported that Madonna is suing her co-op, claiming the board blocked her attempt to buy a neighbor's apartment. Madonna has a 6,000 square foot apartment at Harperley Hall at 41 Central Park West - a duplex with hair salon and gym. The summons filed in Manhattan Supreme Court accuses the board and Midboro Management of "breach of contract...and orders...

Today we have illusionists like David Blaine performing "stunts" in the city, but back in the day there was the real deal stuntman, Evel Knievel. Just after making news by making nice with Kanye West (after suing him over this video), he died yesterday in Clearwater, Florida at the age of 69. The NY Times reports he had "failing health for years with diabetes and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, an incurable lung condition. In 1999, he...

It's been five years since Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell) was murdered in his Queens studio, and though some people have recently started piping up about who may have pulled the trigger - no suspect has been named. Moving forward -- his friends, family and fellow musicians have begun to get closure in other ways. Mizell's widow, Terri, started the Jam Master Jay Foundation for Music -- a non-profit that provides funding and resources to...

This weekend Kanye West's mother (and manager), Dr. Donda West, died after surgery - which the BBC is reporting was cosmetic (UPDATE: she was warned prior to getting the surgery). West was very close with his 58-year-old mother, often speaking publicly about their bond and even writing a song for her. Just this summer the two were at Borders to promote her new book, Raising Kanye. Kanye was in London when told of the death,...

We're sure to take a bunch of flack about this, but bear with us for a sec. Maroon 5? Not so bad. In fact, at least judging by the first two singles off their latest album, they've moved past the tasteless soccer-mom rock into a legitimately perverted cocaine-sex territory (Exhibit 1: Their amazingly over the top video for 'Wake Up Call'). And that's a good thing. Combine that with a clever SNL/Samberg cameo on Iran So Far and an arena debut at MSG this week with Kanye West coming out as a surprise guest, we're officially impressed. Watch out. (pic via Jen DeRosa's Flickr)

SNL is back! Not sure if the exclamation point is necessary, but their 33rd season kicked off this past weekend with some good stuff. LeBron James was host and Kanye West was the musical guest -- West actually showed up in a good sketch, though oddly enough not this musical one. The below is a ballad to the President of Iran called "Iran So Far" delivered by Andy Samberg and Maroon 5's Adam Levine. "You can't deny there's something between us. I know you say there's no gays in Iran, but you're in New York now, baby!"

Last night the 59th Annual Emmy Awards took place on the left coast, but New Yorkers made out very well. New York productions/creative types that took home the gold: Late Night with Conan O'Brien (writing), The Daily Show (variety-comedy show series), 30 Rock (best comedy), and Dick Wolf (for producing Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee). In the would-have-been arena, America Ferrera won best actress in a comedy, Ugly Betty, which was originally supposed to shoot in the Big Apple but shoots in L.A. because it's cheaper. We'll also count Rob Marshall, who won for directing the Best Variety-Musical Special, Tony Bennett: An American Classic, since he has Broadway roots.

Distributer of royalties, BMI, filed a federal lawsuit against Jay-Z's 40/40 Club yesterday. The performing right organization holds the licensing rights to 6.5 million songs, and apparently plenty of them are being played at the club, the lawsuit cites "unauthorized public performance of musical compositions." In other words, Jay-Z has been holding out and skimping on royalties owed to fellow musicians!

It's not just venues closing down these days, the latest real estate casualty is still music-related, however. AMNY reports that Sony BMG is closing its Hell's Kitchen studios.

MOVIE: By now you've probably seen Grizzly Man. The Werner Herzog directed documentary depicts one (slightly off kilter) man's relationship with nature. Over the course of 13 summers, Timothy Treadwell lived amongst the animals - most notably the bears, in the Alaskan wild. You know this doesn't end well.

Al Gore is a VP again, of Live Earth - an organization/music event that he says "will help us reach a tipping point that's needed to move corporations and governments to take decisive action to solve the climate crisis."