Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on August 23rd, 2026

The sequel to the blockbuster Michael Jackson biopic Michael will address child abuse allegations against the late King of Pop "from his point of view", says his nephew Jafaar Jackson, the titular actor in the film. Michael, which has become the highest-grossing biopic ever made, followed the beginning of Jackson's career in the Jackson 5 up until the "Bad"world tour in the late 1980s. Michael notably didn't include any reference to the child sexual abuse allegations against Jackson, though the story was included in the initial screenplay. However, a clause in a legal settlement was discovered, which forbid the Jackson estate from mentioning one of the accusers, Jordan Chandler, meaning that the production spent $15 million on reshoots. The movie ultimately ended at a different point in Jackson's life, shifting the narrative tension onto his relationship with his father, Joe Jackson, played by Colman Domingo. Earlier in August, it was revealed that the sequel is officially set to start filming later in 2026, and now Jaafar has provided some insight into the potential plot. Speaking to GQ Middle East, Jafaar said it will depict the abuse allegations "from [Michael's] point of view." "I think the second film will give even more insight from his point of view, because at the end of the day, [the allegations] are always from someone else's," he said. "It's someone else's story. It's someone else's idea of what it is, and it's mainly driven by an agenda. And that's really the issue we've been having as a family -- not having Michael's voice being heard. I think that's very, very important, especially in the late years," he added. The article points out the screenplay is still in development and that Jafaar has no real say in its story, but is rather noting what he would like to see. After debuting to the largest-ever opening weekend for a biopic, it was confirmed in July that the movie had taken in $1.001 billion (£750 million) globally, making it the first of its genre to pass the milestone. - New Musical Express, 8/22/26...... Legendary British Invasion pop stars The Hollies have announced the end of their touring career after 63 years, bringing one of England's longest-running rock bands to a close. The news was confirmed in a statement on Aug. 20, which explained that guitarist Tony Hicks was stepping away from touring for health reasons. Drummer Bobby Elliott, the other long-running member still with the group, added that he was also retiring in solidarity with his bandmate. "After more than six decades, The Hollies' touring career will come to a close with immense gratitude to the fans who have supported them around the world," the statement read. Naming themselves after legendary '50s Rock & Roll star Buddy Holly, The Hollies were formed in Manchester in 1962 by childhood friends Allan Clarke and Graham Nash and joined by Hicks in 1963, the band made a successful for Parlophone Records at Abbey Road Studios, while Hicks' former bandmate in The Dolphin, Elliott, followed later in the year, with bassist Eric Haydock completing the classic line-up. The band became known for their distinctive three-part harmonies and became one of the defining bands of the British Invasion, with hits including "I'm Alive," "Bus Stop," "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother," "Stop Stop Stop," "The Air That I Breathe" and "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress)," a No. 2 US hit in 1972. Nash left the group in Dec. 1968 and went on to form Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, with Terry Sylvester replacing him in the band the following year. Clarke retired from the performing with the band in 2000. Hicks and Elliott remained in the band throughout, being joined in the last two decades by singer Peter Howarth, guitarist Steve Lauri, bassist Ray Stiles and keyboardist Ian Parker. Their most recent album was Then, Now, Always in 2009. The Hollies were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2010, although Hicks and Elliott did not attend the ceremony as The Hollies had a previously booked concert that night. "He's Not Heavy, He's My Brother" became a UK Number One single on re-release in 1988, and The Hollies sold and estimated 60 million+ records worldwide across their career. NME, 8/21/26...... After losing a court battle against the UK paper The Daily Mail in which it was claimed the media outlet published stories after unlawfully obtaining information by hacking into their messages, tapping landlines or acquiring medical records, several high profile celebrities including Elton John and Prince Harry have been ordered to repay a £9.54 million ($13 million) legal bill. On Aug. 21 UK judge Mr. Justice Nicklin detailed the "conduct of the trial" in his ruling and criticized the case put forward by the claimants' legal team. In particular, he noted "the objective breadth and character of the case as advanced, the speculative and inferential foundation on which many serious allegations rested, the maintenance of serious allegations after the evidential position should have been reassessed, the way in which unpleaded or unsupported allegations were put at trial, the failure to withdraw serious allegations when they were no longer being pursued, and the cumulative effect of those matters." An initial payment of £9.54 million will be due by Aug. 28, and Nicklin said that was making an exception order to force the claimants to pay up to £34.5 million ($47 million) in costs incurred by the Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), the Daily Mail's publisher, because of the way the case had been brought. John and their co-claimants have until Oct. 2 to attempt to launch an appeal. The interim payment will come ahead of future hearings to decide ANL's legal costs in full. - Billboard, 8/21/26...... Friends and family of Earth, Wind & Fire drummer John Paris have given an update on the musician's recovery from what was described as a critical medical emergency earlier in August that resulted in doctors putting the 58-year-old in a medically induced coma. In a post on the Standing for John Paris Facebook page -- maintained by EW&F co-founder bassist Verdine White and several of Paris and his wife Kathy Merrick's friends -- the past week has featured "encouraging moments and new challenges." They recalled that Paris briefly woke up from his coma and then needed to be sedated again, before recently waking up again. "This time, there was encouraging progress," they wrote. "Over the next couple of days, his medical team monitored him closely. Unlike the first time he awakened, John's blood pressure remained stable and his breathing stayed strong, allowing doctors to continue evaluating his condition. While continuing to evaluate John's condition, doctors performed additional testing that gave them a much clearer understanding of what his body needs to continue healing." The post added it's been determined that Paris will need two more unspecified "major surgeries" as part of his recovery, which will require him to remain in the ICU longer than anticipated. EW&F was back on the tour two days after the postponed show, with former member Sonny Emory filling in for Paris, who joined the veteran band founded in 1969 in 2001; the San Francisco show has been rescheduled for Sept. 26. A GoFundMe has been started to help the family with medical expenses and to date it has raised more than $82,000 of its $90,000 goal. - Billboard, 8/21/26...... The Beatles' company Apple Corps Ltd have announced a new unique partnership with Universal Music Group (UMG) to handle the licensing and merchandising for the renowned band. Apple Corps, founded in 1968 by The Fab Four to handle their business interests, and UMG announced on Aug. 19 that they had reached a "holistic agreement" that will see the latter "take The Beatles' iconic story to fans across generations and around the world." The deal relates to digital and physical merchandising, licensing, and e-commerce surrounding the legendary band. Apple Corps' headquarters at 3 Savile Row will also be open to the public for the first time in 2027, with a fan experience that promises "seven floors of never-seen-before material from Apple Corps Ltd's extensive archives, rotating exhibitions, a fan store, and the recreation of the original studio where 'Let it Be' was recorded." Tom Greene, CEO of Apple Corps Ltd, said in a press release: "We are delighted to partner with UMG on a new global merchandising deal. There has never been a more exciting time to work on The Beatles as we look ahead to the 3 Saville Row fan experience in 2027, and our biopic movies in 2028. The Beatles message has never been more relevant or needed in the world today, and we look forward to delighting millions of fans with everything we have planned." The announcement comes ahead of director Sam Mendes' four-part Beatles biopic The Beatles -- A Four-Film Cinematic Event, due for simultaneous release in 2028. - NME, 8/20/26...... Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has revealed that he is once again fighting cancer. In an interview with El Salvadorian station YSKL, the 63-year-old musician discussed his philosophy for keeping a positive, hopeful attitude after revealing in 2013 that he was battle Hodgkin's lymphoma, which he said returned in 2015 and yet again recently. "There's only been one time that I felt it was gonna kill me," Campbell said of his diagnosis. "In the winter of 2023, I got really scared about what was happening and the pace at which it was happening. And I realized at that point that I had to do a donor transplant. It was my only hope to survive I did that in January of '25 . Unfortunately, it didn't stick. So the cancer has returned, and I'm continuing treatments to manage it." Campbell said he plans to try another transplant within the next few years with a different donor to see if that will stick, but in the meantime, he is going to keep performing with the band as well as his side project, the Last in Line, and racing rally cars, a lifelong obsession. "I love cars and I love driving," he said. "And as a child, I thought, 'If I don't play guitar for a living, I'm gonna be a race-car driver.' So I'm very, very, very fortunate and blessed that I get to do both." Campbell, who logged time in Ronnie James Dio's band, Dio, as well as Whitesnake and the British new wave metal band Sweet Savage, joined Def Leppard in 1992 following the death of founding guitarist Steve Clark. Def Leppard are slated to play the Seminole Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Fla. on Oct. 15, followed by dates in Mexico and Central and South America in October and November. - Billboard, 8/21/26...... Footage has been unearthed from Jimi Hendrix's iconic 1969 Woodstock performance, which was filmed by a drama student who snuck onto the stage. Hendrix's now-legendary gig took place at Woodstock in Bethel, N.Y., in Aug. 1969, where the guitar icon took to the stage with his newly formed band Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, a.k.a. Band of Gypsys. The set closed out the festival, and is now set to mark its 57th anniversary. To mark the occasion, a new film called Jimi Hendrix: Live at Woodstock - A Second Look has been released, and it features rarely seen footage from the show. Some of that new material is recently unearthed footage from 22-year-old drama student Albert Goodman, who snuck onto the stage during the set and filmed some of it using two open-reel videotapes. Goodman hid behind a friend carrying a guitar to get access to the stage, and filmed it from behind percussionist Juma Sultan. He was assumed to be a member of the film crew who were hired to capture footage of the whole show, and his footage shows Hendrix standing just 15 feet in front of him. In the newly unearthed footage, Hendrix is seen playing "Purple Haze," "Voodoo Child," "Message To Love," and his improvised interpretation of "The Star-Spangled Banner," as well as rare footage of him playing "Hear My Train a Comin'." The latter song is available for streaming on YouTube. After storing the footage for three decades, Goodman then made it available to the late guitarist's family. It is now available to view in the new Live at Woodstock - A Second Look film, which premiered on YouTube on Aug. 18. - NME, 8/20/26...... Janie Bradford, the songwriter behind "Money (That's What I Want)" which was later covered by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, died at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles on Aug. 21, following an extended illness. She was 87. Born in Charleston, Mo. in 1939, Ms. Bradford later moved to Detroit, where her neighbor Jackie Wilson introduced her to Motown founder Berry Gordy. Ms. Wilson had already recorded a number of hits written by Gordy, including "Reet Petite" and "Lonely Teardrops." Ms. Bradford began working with Gordy in 1958, before the Motown label had even been officially founded, and as well as working as a secretary, she quickly became involved in the company's creative process. While Gordy was developing "Money (That's What I Want)" at the piano in 1958, Bradford helped to complete the song by contributing an additional verse. The finished composition was recorded by Barrett Strong and became Motown's first hit single. It later reached a wider audience thanks to a cover version by The Beatles on the closing track of their 1963 album With The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones also recording their own version on their first EP in 1964. Ms. Bradford went on to co-write several other hit songs, including "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" with Strong and Norman Whitfield. The Temptations first recorded the song in 1966, before Marvin Gaye scored a hit with it three years later. She also received writing credits on songs recorded by Mary Wells, Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, Diana Ross and The Marvelettes. After leaving Motown, Bradford founded the Heroes And Legends Awards, which established a scholarship fund in the 1990s. The awards honored figures from the music industry and supported young people pursuing careers in the performing arts. She was also inducted into the Women Songwriters Hall Of Fame earlier this year. Berry Gordy paid tribute to her in a statement, saying: "Janie was there with me from the very beginning, before there was even a Motown. Janie was smart, clever, witty and fun. She was also talented and determined. In those early days, everybody did what was needed to be done, and Janie was no exception. She became Motown's first receptionist, but her talents quickly took her far beyond the desk." She is survived by her husband Wardean Hobbs, her daughter Nicole Hobbs, her son Lance Finney and two grandsons. - NME, 8/22/26...... Ray Stevens is set to be honored with a star-studded concert at Nashville's Opry House on Nov. 9. "Don't Look, Ethel! A Salute to the Musical Genius of Ray Stevens" will be hosted by comedian Cledus T. Judd with performances from Ricky Skaggs, Ronnie Milsap, Jamey Johnson, Gretchen Wilson, Mark Chesnutt, The Gatlin Brothers, Lee Greenwood and many more. "I've always been so fond of the Nashville music community, and I'm truly honored that they would want to do this tribute," Stevens said in a statement. "All my life I've wanted to be successful in the music business and have people appreciate what I create. That's impossible without the fans. I'm so grateful for all of them!" In the 1960s, Stevens' slate of novelty hits such as "Gitarzan" and "Harry the Hairy Ape" earned him pop hits, while he also became an in-demand Nashville studio musician and songwriter, including playing trumpet during recording session for Elvis Presley and playing on Waylon Jennings' recording of "Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line." Stevens also wrote and produced Dolly Parton's 1966 song "Busy Signal." By 1970, he had been called upon as a summer replacement for television host Andy Williams, and in preparing for the gig, he wrote the uplifting track "Everything Is Beautiful," which won a Grammy in 1971 for best contemporary vocal performance, male. The 1970s and 1980s saw Stevens continue to earn hits with novelty songs including "Mississippi Squirrel Revival," No. 1 Pop and Country smash "The Streak." The line "Don't Look, Ethel!,"( which is part of the name of this event, comes from this song) and "Shriner's Convention." In 1976, he won another Grammy, this time for a fiddle-dominated arrangement of the standard "Misty." He continued expanding his business ventures, opening the Ray Stevens Theatre in Branson, Mo., in the '90s, and in 2015, he launched the weekly music variety cable show Ray Stevens Nashville. Beyond his membership in the Country Music Hall of Fame, he's also a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Musicians Hall of Fame, the Georgia Hall of Fame and has a star on the Music City Walk of Fame. - Billboard, 8/18/26...... Barbra Streisand has sent a sweet message to her friend Rosie O'Donnell after O'Donnell filled in for the vacationing Jimmy Kimmel for a week on the late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Streisand reached out with a short but incredibly sweet message on Instagram to celebrate the return to television of the comedian, who has recently relocated to Ireland. O'Donnell shared a screenshot via Instagram on Aug. 20, giving her audience a peek at the unexpected note. "Be still my heart she is a class act what a way to finish my week on Kimmel!!!" O'Donnell wrote alongside the screenshot, adding the hashtags "#love" and "#barbra." The two have shared a memorable history dating back to the comedian's days hosting The Rosie O'Donnell Show, when Streisand appeared as a guest. O'Donnell has previously spoken about how significant that interview was to her, making the singer's encouragement all the more special now. - Billboard, 8/20/26...... Former Queen bassist Barry Mitchell has died. The news was shared on Facebook by Greg Brooks, the band's official archivist. "Terribly sad news just received that early Queen bass player (circa 1970), Barry Mitchell, has passed away," the post read. "His anecdotes at the convention were fascinating and offered rare insight. He will be greatly missed." Mitchell was the second bassist in the band, joining after the departure of founding member Mike Grose. He stayed in the band between Aug. 1970 and Jan. 1971 -- two years before their breakthrough 1973 self-titled debut album -- and reportedly played the original bass lines on songs "Liar" and "Son And Daughter." He left the line-up as he "wasn't enthusiastic enough about their music", he revealed in a 2018 interview with Rolling Stone, looking back at his time playing live with Freddie Mercury & co. After leaving Queen, Mitchell went on to join the proto-punk band Tiger, who formed in the late '60s. He then made a comeback in the early '90s, playing as part of Jayne Raydio. Friends and fans have taken to social media to pay tribute to Mitchell following news of his death. "Farewell to a genuinely lovely man," wrote friend Mark Cotterill. "A pleasure to call him friend. He had time for everyone at the Queen conventions. He had some great stories to tell re his music career. A man who could make any hat look cool. RIP Barry." Another friend, Gary Taylor, shared on Facebook: "RIP Barry Mitchell, Queen's second bass player, who sadly passed away on August 17. He was a great guy, and a friend, and we had some very interesting chats over the years on the phone and in person." Born in London, Mitchell attended Claremont High School in Harrow in the mid 1960s, and went on to live in Northampton shortly before his death. Details about his death have yet to be publicly disclosed. - NME, 8/21/26...... Long-tenured ZZ Top drummer Frank Beard, a key part of one of the longest-lasting consistent band lineups in rock history, passed away at his ranch in Richmond, Tex., on Aug. 17. He was 77. A press release from longtime band publicist Bob Merlis confirmed his passing on Aug. 18, stating that Beard was "in hospice care when he passed away at his ranch in Richmond, TX with family members at his side." Born on June 11, 1949, in Frankton, Tex., Beard had served as stickman for the Texas blues-rock trio since 1969, when he made the jump from the more psychedelic-oriented local group American Blues to ZZ Top. At that point, the latter group consisted of Beard, singer-guitarist Billy Gibbons and bassist Billy Ethridge. After Ethridge quit the band and was replaced by Dusty Hill, the band's power-trio lineup was locked in, and would not change for the next half-century. ZZ Top became national rock stars in the mid-'70s with the release of its breakthrough LP Tres Hombres, with Beard's explosive-but-swinging drumming playing a huge part in the band's sonic identity. While "La Grange," the album's breakout hit single and a future classic-rock radio staple, is perhaps best remembered for frontman Gibbons' limber guitar riffing and haw-haw-haw vocal sleaze, equally crucial was Beard's frisky stick-tapping on the song's intro and clipped gallop on its main groove. The trio found continued success throughout the late '70s and early '80s, hitting the Billboard Hot 100's top 40 with the horny rave-up "Tush" and the spiky Sam + Dave cover "I Thank You." During this time, Beard struggled with substance abuse, with the band going on hiatus in the late '70s as Beard dealt with his issues. He got clean in the early '80s, and shortly after, ZZ Top really went into mid-'80s commercial overdrive, thanks largely to the advent of MTV -- a format not often charitable to the AOR rockers of yesteryear, but one that ZZ Top embraced with particular lan, becoming music video icons as the mystical hairy dudes with the fuzzy guitars, the cool car and the hot chicks. (Ironically, Beard was the one member of the group to go clean-shaven; "Frank's beard is on his driver's license," quipped Gibbons.) ZZ Top's 1983 album Eliminator spawned a trio of MTV smashes ("Gimme All Your Lovin," "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Legs") and would ultimately be certified diamond by the RIAA, becoming the group's biggest album. While Beard's drumming on the set was somewhat smoothed out by the group's increasingly processed, new wave-friendlier sound, he still helped provide the singles much-needed muscle and backbone under the shiny guitars and synths. (Beard also got married for the second time shortly before the album's release, with he and wife Debbie Meredith remaining together -- with twin sons Rory and Nico born in 1985 -- until his death.) The group released two albums in the 21st century, 2003's Mescalero and 2012's La Futura, and continued to tour with the same three-man lineup it had held since 1969, the longtime consistency of its lineup an extreme rarity among popular rock bands. In 2004, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2019, it was the subject of the Netflix documentary That Little Ol' Band From Texas. Sadly, the group was finally forced into lineup changes with the death of Hill in 2021, with longtime guitar tech Elwood Francis replacing him at live performances. Now, with Beard's death, Gibbons remains the lone living member from the group's classic lineup. The press release also stated that Beard's death "necessitates the cancellation of ZZ Top tour dates that had been scheduled for [Aug. 18] in Salt Lake City and [Aug. 19] in Colorado Springs," but that the band "will resume its current The Big One! Tour this weekend with two dates in at Austin City Limits, one of Frank's favorite venues and in a city that had been something of a second home for him." - Billboard, 8/18/26.