UPDATE: SOCO MUSIC EXPERIENCE - TEMPE, AZ - CANCELLED

August 12, 2008, LOUISVILLE, KY – Southern Comfort has announced that the SoCo Music Experience scheduled to take place on Saturday, October 18, 2008 at Phoenix Municipal Stadium has been cancelled due to an unexpected escalation in production costs. At this time, there are no plans to reschedule the event this year.

--------------------

Southern Comfort has announced that it is partnering with several music and lifestyle sites to bring the SoCo Music Experience to the web in the form of custom episodic content. Music fans will get a taste of the music festival experience from the fans perspective mixed with live performances and interviews with the artists in clips produced by Pitchfork.tv, Heavy.com, My Damn Channel, Complex.com and Death + Taxes.

Check out Heavy.com's first webisode, "Anticipation".

"The SoCo Music Experience is in its fourth year and we felt it was time to take a fresher approach as a spirits brand by extending the event to millions of music fans digitally but in a different way," said Campbell Brown, Vice President, Director Southern Comfort Americas. "We're packaging the overall festival experience with interviews from both fans and performers and delivering the content in SoCo's brand voice."

The SoCo Music Experience festival tour is going to six markets with each event showcasing five national performers with five top local acts on two stages all for the low price of free*. An outdoor venue is transformed into the complete festival experience - food and beverage vendors, poster and t-shirt shop, the local record shop, merch tent, cornhole games, photobooths and the SoCo & Lime Dome, among other areas. The festivals are open to be people 21 and over.

Digital Partnerships

Pitchfork.tv - Episodes will feature behind the scenes footage, band and fan interviews and live performances. Viewers will get to learn how the performers came together as a group, as well as how groups of friends experience music together.

Heavy.com - Episodes will feature behind-the-scenes footage, band and fan interviews and live performances. Each four-minute episode will explore themes associated with SoCo's brand positioning and the artists that embody them. The Heavy.com partnership has already launched with episodes including "Anticipation," "Energy," "Magnetism" and "Character" featuring the SoCo Music Experience in Atlanta.

My Damn Channel - Twelve weeks of episodes of "My Damn Channel Music Nights" will feature music bars and clubs in New York and Los Angeles and on the SoCo Music Experience festival tour this summer. Starting in July, original content will be produced for a customized, co-branded channel presented by Grace Helbig, host of My Damn Channel's "Daily Grace."

Complex.com - The fashion/lifestyle site is building a comprehensive guide to select SoCo Music Experience festivals, including an original "Best of" Web Series about the event and host cities, emerging artist bios and live recordings.

Death + Taxes - The music magazine will be creating custom content for their site featuring behind the scenes footage, band and fan interviews and live performances.

"These sites provide us the opportunity to bring a Southern Comfort experience produced in a way their viewers are accustomed to watching video on their sites," said Brown. "It's a partnership in the truest sense of the word."

In addition to these partnerships, festival pre-roll videos will appear on Hulu.com, Billboard, UGO.com, Crave Online, PasteMagazine.com, Virb.com and numerous other music-focused sites.

"Not only have we increased our investment around talent and the experience, we are making a strong digital play for Southern Comfort increasing our spend in this area to 25% of the total media budget versus 5% the previous year," said Brown. "Our overall digital spend is up 300% versus last year, which give us a real opportunity to engage our target consumers with a meaningful SoCo experience."

Having already been to Atlanta and Denver, the event hits four more cities this summer. This year's performers have included Against Me!, Gnarls Barkley, Ghostland Observatory and Blonde Redhead, while The Roots, French DJ duo Justice, The Black Keys, MGMT are among those scheduled to play upcoming festival dates.

The SoCo Music Experience festival tour will hit the following cities this summer:

August 23, 2008 - San Diego, Ace Parking Lot, Petco Park
Featuring Common, The Black Keys, Kinky, Saul Williams, Grand Ole Party
*Note: a donation of $5 for the San Diego Music Foundation is requested

September 6, 2008 - Madison, Willow Island at Alliant Energy Center
Featuring The Roots, The Black Keys, GZA, Benevento Russo Duo, Ha Ha Tonka

September 13, 2008 - Saratoga/Albany, New Venue TBA
Featuring Justice, MGMT, Lotus, The Whigs and other acts TBA

CANCELLEDOctober 18, 2008 - Phoenix/Tempe, Phoenix Municipal Stadium
Talent TBACANCELLED

In its fourth year, past acts at the SoCo Music Experience have included Flaming Lips, Cold War Kids, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Spank Rock, The Roots, Architecture in Helsinki, GIRL TALK, Sick Puppies, Cypress Hill, Z-Trip, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Rose Hill Drive, Galactic, Delta Spirit, among others.

With the SoCo Music Experience, Southern Comfort continues to back great live music experiences in 2008, including the Voodoo Experience, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Lollapalooza, Forecastle Festival and countless other live music events.

For more information and continued updates about the SoCo Music Experience, please visit (restrictions may apply):

Southern Comfort Music Experience

Coldplay's latest album, 'Viva La Vida', debuts at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 with over 720,000 copies sold in its first week of release in the U.S. 'Viva La Vida' has topped the UK album chart for the second week in a row, where it is the fastest-selling album of the year, and No. 1 rankings continue to come in from around the globe including Japan, Australia, Canada, France and Germany.

Already the biggest album pre-order in iTunes history, 'Viva La Vida' also set the record for highest first-week album sales ever on the iTunes® Store worldwide. Today the album's title song surpasses "Clocks" as the band's biggest-selling single to date on the iTunes Store.

"Viva La Vida" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 last week, marking Coldplay's first Hot 100 No. 1 single ever, and it debuted this week at No. 1 on the UK Singles chart.

Coldplay will perform on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" June 25th, 2008 and on the "TODAY" show on NBC Friday, June 27th, 2008. The band will also appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on July 17th, 2008. Lead singer Chris Martin is featured on the cover of the current Rolling Stone and Coldplay is on the cover of Spin's July issue (on sale now).

The band celebrated the release of 'Viva La Vida' with a free concert at New York City's Madison Square Garden and will launch its North American tour with two sold out dates at The Forum in Los Angeles on July 14th and 15th. Details on the tour are available at www.coldplay.com or at www.livenation.com.

Produced by Brian Eno and Markus Dravs, 'Viva La Vida' is the follow-up to 2005's X&Y, which also debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200, the UK album chart and in numerous other countries, going on to sell 10 million copies worldwide to date.

Coldplay - Viva La Vida on amazon.co.uk

Viva La Vida on amazon.com

Photo Credit: Tom Sheehan

Coldplay Official Website

Celebrating four decades of milestones, Donna Summer adds another accomplishment to her list with the success of her new album 'Crayons'. The album debuted at #17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart making it Summer's highest debuting album ever. It also debuted at #5 on the Billboard R&B chart - another personal best.

'Crayons' is Donna Summer's first album of all new studio material in 17 years and is her highest charting album since 'She Works Hard For The Money' in 1983.

Adding to her list of accomplishments is the recent success "I'm A Fire," the first single from 'Crayons' which rose to #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Charts making it her 13th #1 single to top the club charts and her 19th #1 charting single across all charts. Donna Summer is the only artist to have had a #1 charting dance hit in every decade since the 1970's. "I'm A Fire" was remixed by several remixers including Solitaire, Craig C, Rod Carillo, Redtop, Matty Soulflower and Baggi Begovic & Soul Conspiracy. The Rocasound original version is found on the full album.

Containing a potent mix of the up-tempo tunes and ballads, 'Crayons' showcases incredible new material, all cowritten by Donna (who wrote or co-wrote the majority of her hits of the 70's and 80's).

Working with Donna were renowned writers and producers including: Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen, Pink), Danielle Brisebois (Natasha Bedingfield, New Radicals), JR Rotem (Sean Kingston, Rihanna), Toby Gad (Fergie, Natasha Bedingfield), Evan Bogart (co-writer of Rihanna's smash "SOS" and the son of legendary record executive, Casablanca Records founder and Donna's mentor, Neil Bogart), and Lester Mendez (Shakira, Santana).

Donna describes the background of the title 'Crayons' and the aesthetic of the album as "a menagerie of colors and styles, with hints of different ethnic traditions and sounds. My dream is that when people hear the music it will remind them of their youth, their childhood and the joy and wonderment they felt exploring their first pack of Crayons."

Donna Summer's long list of musical accomplishments include: 19 #1 Billboard singles, 12 Gold and Platinum singles, 5 Grammy Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 2 Double Platinum albums, 1 Platinum album, 8 Gold albums. Her song "Last Dance" won both Oscar and Golden Globe awards.

Crayons track listing:

1. STAMP YOUR FEET
2. MR. MUSIC
3. CRAYONS featuring Ziggy Marley
4. THE QUEEN IS BACK
5. FAME (THE GAME)
6. SAND ON MY FEET
7. DRIVIN' DOWN BRAZIL
8. I'M A FIRE
9. SLIDE OVER BACKWARDS
10. SCIENCE OF LOVE
11. BE MYSELF AGAIN
12. BRING DOWN THE REIGN

Donna Summer - Crayons on amazon.com

Crayons on amazon.co.uk

Donna Summer

With over 20 million albums sold worldwide, eight Top 5 singles, and three records that have broken the Top 5 on the Billboard 200, Counting Crows are set to release an expanded deluxe version of their seminal album, 'August and Everything After' in the UK on January 28th, 2008 (Universal/Geffen).

'August and Everything After', the Counting Crows first album released in 1994, showcased the band as a chart-topping powerhouse. Once MTV aired the video to their top 5 track "Mr. Jones," the album jumped 40 spots on the Billboard Top 200 in one week.

In addition to the original songs on 'August and Everything After', the deluxe version will include previously unreleased demos plus the entire final show from the August Tour in 1994 from Elysee Montmartre in Paris, France. Also included are liner notes written by lead singer/songwriter, Adam Duritz.

Still going strong today, most recently, their single "Accidentally In Love" from the Shrek 2 soundtrack earned them an Oscar™, Grammy, and Golden Globe nomination, and reached the #1 position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Following up the deluxe version of 'August and Everything After', the Counting Crows will release their long awaited new album 'Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings' within weeks. The record is the Crows' first studio album in almost 5 years, since the release of 'Hard Candy' in 2002.

Counting Crows: August and Everything After [Extra Tracks] [Deluxe Edition] on amazon.co.uk

For more information about the Counting Crows, please visit:

Counting Crows on Myspace
Counting Crows Official Website

Dionne Warwick is one of the most astounding female singers of the 20th century. Her career spans over 40 years - she has won 5 Grammy Awards and is second only to Aretha Franklin with the most Billboard Hot 100 singles during 1955-1999.

Her first Hit in the UK was in 1964 with "Walk On By". This went to #9, and since then she has gone on to have great chart success with "Heartbreaker" and "All The Love In The World". She is one of the only African-American female recording artists that has stayed true to her soul roots and not branched into Pop or mainstream R&B.

Dionne Warwick - 'The Love Collection', set for release 4th February, 2008, is a selection of all her best Love Songs on one amazing disc. The album includes solo work "Say A Little Prayer" and "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself".

Also present are duets with legends Luther Vandross, "How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye", and Stevie Wonder, "It's You" and the incredible ensemble with Elton John, Glady's Knight and Stevie Wonder in "That's What Friends Are For". To celebrate 'The Love Collection' Dionne Warwick shall be performing at the London Palladium the night before the release.

Show that special someone how much you care with one of the most romantic singers of all time.

Dionne Warwick - 'The Love Collection' track list:

1. Heartbreaker
2. Walk On By
3. I Say A Little Prayer
4. Do You Know The Way To San Jose
5. All The Love In The World
6. That's What Friends Are For (with Elton John Gladys Knight & Stevie Wonder)
7. Deja Vu
8. So Amazing
9. It's You (with Stevie Wonder)
10. The Look Of Love
11. How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye (with Luther Vandross)
12. Anyone Who Had A Heart
13. Friends In Love (with Johnny Mathis)
14. I Don't Need Another Love (with The Detroit Spinners)
15. I'll Never Fall In Love Again
16. Reach Out For Me
17. Love Power (with Jeffrey Osborne)
18. (They Long To Be) Close To You
19. I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself
20. What The World Needs Now

Dionne Warwick is scheduled to perform at the London Palladium on 3rd February 2008.

For more information, go to:

Dionne Warwick Official Website

In-the-know Premiership players, Beyonce and, erm, SpongeBob SquarePants all have one thing in common - they know how to do the 'Crank That' Dance. The infectious dance has spawned numerous remixes and encouraged a staggering 16 million people to view the 'How to Crank That - Instructional video' on YouTube. The man behind this furore is Soulja Boy Tell'em and his hot debut single "Crank That (Soulja Boy)".

Soulja Boy Tell'em is the hottest rapper in the States. His debut single "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" has been #1 for seven weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Airplay, Digital and Ringtone charts. That's quite an achievement for a 17 year old who has only been signed to Interscope Records for a year.

The track "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" is ready to make its mark in the UK, when it is released on December 10th, 2007 through Collipark Music/Interscope Records. The track will also be digitally available from November 5th exclusively on iTunes. The single includes a remix from Travis Barker (Blink 182/+44).

Part of Soulja Boy Tell'em's magic is what he brings to the scene as an entertainer. With his personalized Soulja Boy Sunglasses and unique dance routines, he's putting the fun back into hip hop. Along with putting his own shows and songs together plus producing all his own music, Soulja Boy Tell'em is a rare breed.

Watch Soulja Boy Tell'em How to Crank That - Instructional Video:

Not surprisingly, www.souljaboytellem.com has become the most viewed artist site on the web. It's quite fitting then that his debut album should be called 'souljaboytellem.com', which is released on November 19th.

Soulja Boy Tell'em How to Crank That - Instructional Video link

Soulja Boy Tell'em Official Website
Soulja Boy Tell'em on Myspace

The band has released four albums and now Plain White T's and their hit song "Hey There Delilah" - originally off of their third album All That We Needed (2005) and re-released on Every Second Counts (2006) - have been receiving a great deal of attention recently.

In July "Hey There Delilah" sold over 1 million digital downloads on iTunes, the video for the song has received over 5 million views on YouTube and Plain White T's were scheduled to perform on LIVE! with Regis and Kelly today.

Watch Plain White T's video for "Hey There Delilah":

Buy the enhanced Hey There Delilah EP on amazon.com.

"The CD features of new version of "Hey There Delilah" plus four new songs. Also included is a live version with 1,000 fans singing along, plus an enhanced component with four music videos."

Plain White T's 2007 tour dates:

Dates could be added or changed! Go to Plain White T's Official Website for the latest tour dates and information.

August 1 2007 LIVE! With Regis & Kelly - New York, New York
August 2 2007 Chemung County Fair - Horseheads, New York
August 3 2007 Six Flags St. Louis - St. Louis, Missouri
August 4 2007 Virginia Center Commons - Simon DTour - Glen Allen, Virginia
August 9 2007 Six Flags Fiesta Texas - San Antonio, Texas
August 10 2007 Six Flags Over Georgia - Austell, Georgia
August 11 2007 "KTCL's Big Gig" @ Coors - Englewood, Colorado
August 12 2007 Memorial Park Festival - Omaha, Nebraska
August 17 2007 Six Flags Great America - Gurnee, Illinois
August 18 2007 Tippecanoe Mall - Simon DTour Lafayette, Indiana
August 19 2007 KRBZ Beach Ball @ City Market - Kansas City, Missouri
October 6 2007 Wild Adventures Theme Park - Valdosta, Georgia

Band Members:

Tom Higgenson
Dave Tirio
Mike Retondo
De'Mar Hamilton
Tim Lopez

Record Label: Hollywood / Fearless

Plain White T's Official Website
Plain White T's on Myspace
Plain White T's "Hey There Delilah" video link

By: Jenny May - Band Weblogs

According to Billboard, so far the lineup includes, "a reunited Rage Against The Machine, Bjork and the Red Hot Chili Peppers". This is great news for Rage Against The Machine fans as the band hasn't played together with their eccentric and outspoken front-man Zach de la Rocha for over six years. I've always been quite fascinated by him and he seems to have kept more of a low profile than his band mates who went on to form Audioslave with Chris Cornell.

Billboard's sources are also reporting that the Coachella Festival will include, "a reunion gig from Crowded House as well as the Arcade Fire, Sonic Youth, Air, the Roots, Willie Nelson, Interpol, Manu Chao, Fountains Of Wayne, Jarvis Cocker, the Good, the Bad and the Queen, Hot Chip, Peeping Tom, the Decemberists, Arctic Monkeys, Tiesto, Kings Of Leon, Travis, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Lily Allen, Kaiser Chiefs, Silversun Pickups and LCD Soundsystem".

Tickets will be going on sale Saturday January 27th. If you want to go to this festival, I highly recommend getting up very early that day to buy tickets. They will most likely sell out fast - as there will be many Rage fans wanting in.

The actual 2007 Coachella Festival line-up will be announced soon and if Billboard's sources are anything to go by, this looks to be one of the most exciting and eclectic festivals announced this year.

Official Coachella Valley Music Festival
Rage Against The Machine

By: Jenny May