Bruce Springsteen to Play Intimate SXSW Set

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will play an intimate concert on March 15 at the South by Southwest Media Conference and Festival, the annual gathering of music, film and tech industry professionals.

The festival announced the show on its website. A ticket drawing will determine who’s admitted into the “intimate” venue.

Back in December, Springsteen was added to the lineup as a keynote speaker, scheduled to take the stage on the 15th — the same day as his concert — at the Austin Convention Center.

Springsteen’s latest album, “Wrecking Ball,” will be released March 6. Along with E Street, he’ll head out on a world tour beginning March 18 in Atlanta.

Robin Thicke Releases Whitney Houston Cover Song

R&B singer Robin Thicke decided to pay homage to the late Whitney Houston in his own way.

The singer dropped a cover of Houston’s classic track “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” over the weekend, arranging the song with a piano and his own sweet falsetto voice. Released in November 1995, the original version was the lead single off Houston’s “Waiting to Exhale” soundtrack. Thicke changed the song from the third person to the first person, making it a bit more personal.

“I was thinking about Whitney and how incredible she was and remembered I had recorded this song years ago but never released it,” Thicke said on Tuesday (February 21) in a statement to MTV News. “When I listened to it again, I was overcome by emotion, because the lyrics express everything I’m feeling right now.”

“That’s what was so special about Whitney, she had an amazing ability to connect to all of us and at the same time make us feel inspired,” he said. “We love Whitney Houston and always will!”

Fiona Apple Announces Tour Dates

It’s been a while since we’ve had much from Fiona Apple, but the indie-sultry singer has announced dates for a March tour, following a few scattered dates last year.

Apple’s six-date tour will begin days after the singer-songwriter’s performance at SXSW on Mar. 15. The follow-up to Apple’s 2005 album “Extraordinary Machine” may also be around the corner — last month Epic Records CEO L.A. Reid announced that the release of Apple’s fourth full-length will “absolutely be this year.”

Here are the dates for Fiona Apple’s March tour:

March 19: Chicago, Ill. (Lincoln Hall)
March 21: Washington D.C. (TBA)
March 23: Brooklyn, N.Y. (Music Hall of Williamsburg)
March 24: Atlantic City, N.J. (TBA)
March 26: New York, N.Y. (Bowery Ballroom)
March 27: Boston, Mass. (Royale Boston)

Green Day Recording New Album

Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong broke the news of a new album on his personal account last Tuesday.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” he tweeted. “Officially started recording the new record today. It’s F— TIME!!!!”

The new album will be the first studio album since the band’s 2009 effort 21st Century Breakdown. Last year, they played a secret show in California that included a reported 15 new songs, though it’s not known if those songs will make the new album.

Adele Spends 20th Week at No. 1 on Billboard Charts

Adele’s “21″ album beats out Van Halen’s new “A Different Kind of Truth” for the No. 1 slot on the Billboard 200 chart for the 20th consecutive week.

Adele’s “21″ sold 237,000 in the week that ended on Feb. 12 (the day of the Grammys) — posting a gain of 95%. Van Halen’s “A Different Kind of Truth” arrives in the No. 2 position with 187,000. Adele won six Grammy trophies on the Sunday night ceremony — including album, record and song of the year — and performed on the broadcast. It was her first stage performance since undergoing throat surgery last year.

With 20 weeks at No. 1, it marks the longest run at the top of the chart since “The Bodyguard” spent 20 weeks at No. 1 in 1992-1993. It’s quite likely “21″ will easily net a 21st frame atop the tally next week, once a full week of Grammy impact is felt.

Adele is also found at No. 9 with her debut set, “19,” selling 36,000 (up 103%). It’s the first time an act has had two albums in the top 10 since March 19, 2011, when Justin Bieber occupied the Nos. 4 and 8 slots with “Never Say Never: the Remixes” (EP) and “My World 2.0,” respectively.

Paul McCartney, who earned two performance slots on the Grammy Awards, lands at No. 5 with “Kisses on the Bottom,” selling 74,000 in its first week. It is the icon’s 18th top 10 album — including his Wings work (but not his Beatles’ releases).

The late Whitney Houston’s “Whitney: The Greatest Hits,” re-enters at No. 6 with 64,000 (up a whopping 10,419%). It’s one of six total albums for Houston on the chart. Her next-largest seller was her 1986 debut, “Whitney Houston,” which re-enters at No. 72 with 8,000 (up 3,901%).

Adele to Release “Rumour Has It” as Next Single

Adele’s next single, her fourth off the Grammy winning “21″ album, will be “Rumour Has It,” Billboard has confirmed.

Adele collaborator Ryan Tedder, who co-wrote the song with Adele and produced it, revealed the news on the Grammy red carpet on Sunday (Feb. 12). “I found out three days ago that I have the next single,” Tedder told Billboard. “I’m very excited about it.”

“Rumour Has It” is heading to pop, adult pop and adult contemporary radio in mid-March, a Columbia Records executive confirmed on Monday.

The track already has a history on the singles chart. “Rumour” reached No. 60 on the Hot 100 in December, fueled largely by the “Glee” cast’s exposure of the song.

Previously, “Rumour” had been serviced only to adult alternative radio and it reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Triple A chart in August. The song will follow “Rolling in the Deep,” “Someone Like You” and “Set Fire to the Rain” as multi-format singles.

Adele Proves her Voice is Perfect Post-Surgery

Putting worries to rest, Adele’s voice is perfectly fine after her vocal surgery. The Grammy nominated singer sang public for the first time since throat surgery in early November in an interview with “60 Minutes.” A preview aired Friday morning on “CBS This Morning” in which the soul-pop star sang three verses — acappella style — of her hit song, “Rolling in the Deep.”

In the “60 Minutes” interview, she also talks about when she first realized there was something wrong with her voice and describes how she managed to communicate without speech.

“It was really hard,” she says in the clip. “I love talking… I had a note pad and an application on my phone. You talk the words into it and then it speaks it. The great thing is, I love to swear… and I found one where you can swear, so I could get my point across.”

The interview airs on CBS before the Grammys, where she’s up for six nominations, including album and song of the year.

Adele’s throat problems have plagued her throughout the past year. On Oct. 7, Adele was set to kick off a string of U.S. tour dates — rescheduled from a June bout of laryngitis — but announced that she would be unable to perform due to the vocal cord hemorrhage. It was revealed in late She had surgery in early November at Massachusetts General Hospital under the direction of the same surgeon who performed a similar procedure on Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler.

Bobble Head Releases “Sometimes” Music Video

Featured on the hit MTV show, “Jersey Shore,” Bobble Head is causing a buzz in the industry, grabbing attention with his hot dance floor jams. His latest single, “Sometimes,” is quickly getting noticed, and Bobble Head has just released the official music video for the new song.

“Sometimes” showcases Bobble Head’s versatility as an artist. Check out the hot new music video and let us know what you think!

Jay-Z, Kanye West Premiere “N****s in Paris” Video

Kanye West and Jay-Z’s premiered the music video for “N—as in Paris” video, released Thursday (February 9).

The video was directed by Kanye West. Filmed in part during the run of Throne shows at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The video is filled with eye-catching kaleidoscopic effects, creating dizzying visuals. No wonder the clip is preceded by an epilepsy warning.

Given the size and scope of both the song and the artists performing it, the “Paris” video is also loaded with lasers, prowling panthers, pop-up-book cityscapes and models.

Check out the video and let us know what you think!

Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger” Rises to Number 1

Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” rises from No. 2 to No. 1 on this week’s Billboard Hot 100 songs chart.

On the Digital Songs survey, “Stronger” spends a second week at No. 1. The song sold 237,000 downloads (up 6%) in the list’s tracking week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The sum marks Clarkson’s second-best sales week, outpaced only by the debut frame of “My Life” (280,000).

As Clarkson rises to the Hot 100′s top spot, Adele’s “Set Fire to the Rain” descends to No. 2 after two weeks at No. 1. The song pushes 4-2 on Radio Songs (127 million, up 8%) and holds at No. 2 on Digital Songs (after leading the tally three weeks ago) with 165,000 downloads sold (down 1%).

Adele’s “21,” meanwhile, logs a 19th week atop the Billboard 200 albums chart.

Both Clarkson and Adele are among the scheduled performers at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, to be broadcast Sunday (Feb. 12) at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

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