Big Boi Performs 'Shutterbug' At Microsoft Kin Concert In Atlanta

This all went down last night (Thursday, May 27) at the Shriner's Temple in Atlanta, part of a promotion Microsoft did for their new Kin 'social networking' smart phone. Yelawolf and Jay Electronica were also on the bill as support.

Read CNN's report about this show:
CNN - Big Boi Kin Phone Concert

Read Paste's review of the show:
Paste Magazine - Big Boi Kin Phone Concert

More photos here:
Creative Loafing
Getty images

(video couresy of Straight From the A)

James Cameron & Black Eyed Peas Launch Samsung 3D LED TV Times Sq Event

via T3

3DTV fight begins as Hollywood heavyweight James Cameron joins the Black Eyed Peas to hail the arrival of the Samsung's world first HD 3D LED TV at a start-studded gig in New York (Wednesday, March 10).

James Cameron took to the stage in New York's Times Square to help launch the Samsung's world's first 3D HD LED TV last night, hailing the arrival of hi-definition 3D TVs as a breakthrough for the future of entertainment.

The Avatar director was joined on stage by the Black Eyed Peas for on an impromptu pop-up style performance that was being shot in 3D using the same cameras Cameron used to create the box office smash about the blue people.

Speaking to a packed Times Square, filled with fans, passers by and the world's media, Cameron put his full backing behind the new tech, claiming it as a new dawn for the entertainment industry.

The scale of the event - the global launch for Samsung 3D - clearly demonstrates the Korean giants' commitment to 3D and is a clear nod to the size of the effort needed to broadcast the 3D message to the gadget buying public.

The launch follows hot on the heels of a raft of 3D news as all the big brands race to get their hardware and messages out.

Earlier in the week Samsung revealed details for the US roll out of their 17-strong 3D product range that includes TVs, 3D blu-ray players, glasses and content.

The glasses will be bundled in 'grab and go starter kits', free with anyone buying a 3D TV and a 3D blu-ray player in a move that's likely to be mirrored in the UK.

The Black Eyed Peas performed three of their hit singles in front of half a dozen 3D cameras and the concert footage will be used to showcase the powers of 3D when Samsung roll out their in-store demos to 800 UK (& in US) outlets towards the end of April.

Samsung's tie up with the Black Eyed Peas doesn't just stop at the night's musical fanfare, as the US pop quartet will also release a full HD 3D Black Eyed Peas concert.

T3 had a sneak preview of the footage at the after party and can honestly say this type of content lends itself nicely to 3D. Without going into too much detail, Fergie's costumes were very revealing in showcasing the powers of the new tech and the experience was pretty immersive.

We also got our hands on the 3D specs Samsung will be shipping with the 3D TVs for around £120 ($180.00).

Photos:
Getty Images 1
Getty Images 2
Wire Image 1
Wire Image 2
Film Magic
Rex Features
PR Photos
Star Traks Photo
WENN Photo

Gibson Guitar iPhone App

For guitarist, how cool is this and it's free.

via Sonic State

Gibson has introduced the Gibson App for iPhone and iPod Touch, a multi-purpose and fully interactive guitar application which they say can be used at home, on the road or in the Studio. Gibson believe that the free App is a must-have for guitarists of all abilitites and styles. Here's what they have to say about it in their own words...

Gibson is proud to announce the highly anticipated launch of the Gibson App. This free to download App is available exclusively for all Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users directly from the Apple App Store. This is one App every guitarist and fan of Gibson Guitar must own. Over the past two years over 3 Billion Apps have been downloaded around the world, the Gibson Guitar App cements Gibson's reputation as the industry's leader in innovation and music technology.

The Gibson Guitar App includes a number of special features, such as a traditional chromatic tuner which starts in "All Notes" mode that tracks whatever is played. Owners of the App can choose a tuning on the "Mode" page so the tuner will only track notes for that particular tuning. Also included is a traditional chromatic tuner, a simple tuner which allows less advanced users to tune to Standard tuning Open G, Open D etc by touching the key. For iPhone users, the Gibson headstock inlay will automatically change colour indicating if the string is sharp, flat or in tune. For iTouch users they can turn the "Play Notes" option on so they can hear the appropriate since they do not have a microphone facility.

The Gibson app also features a standard metronome that allows users to choose a specific BPM or tap the screen three times to automatically set the tempo. Other key features of the app include over 30 chord charts with finger markings to help the user with mastering the chord. For those who prefer to learn new guitar riffs, licks or chord sequences via video tuition can now have that option from their Gibson App. The app will be updated frequently with new video content so users of all guitar ability can improve their technique from the comfort of their home.

For those who want to keep up with everything Gibson Guitar related including the announcement of new products, artist activity, news stories, interesting and factual features, exclusive contests and special events to name a few can now do this via the Gibson.com option. By popular demand the Gibson Guitar App is multi-purpose and fully interactive which can be used at home, on the road or in the Studio. It's a must have free download for guitarists of all ability and style, get yours today.

For more info and to download app:
Gibson.com

Pocket Sitar On Your iPhone

via press release

VENTURA, Calif., Feb. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- MachCUBED today launches the Pocket Sitar, an application for iPhone and iPod Touch that gives both longtime lovers and newcomers to the fabled Indian string instrument the chance to learn and play a sitar on a mobile device.

From the makers of the Pocket Tabla, the Pocket Sitar lets anyone strum away or create the distinctive sound of bending a sitar's strings – known as a meend – on a multi-touch interface on the iPhone. The Pocket Sitar is available for 99 cents on Apple's iTunes store.

Pocket Sitar developer MachCUBED enlisted sitar Maestro Aloke Dasgupta, the versatile, genre-jumping musician, to create the sounds on the application. The seasoned world music artist received the prestigious SOPAN Award, presented by leading intellectuals of Bengal, for creative excellence in music. He also played on the multimillion-selling disc "Tragic Kingdom," by No Doubt, and at the Hollywood Bowl as a part of "Sgt. Pepper's at 40 ... A Beatles Celebration," featuring Cheap Trick. Aloke has performed across the globe and for TV audiences on the Disney Channel ("The Suite Life on Deck"), NBC, CBS and ESPN.

"The Pocket Sitar lets anyone experience the thrill of playing the sitar, whether as a training program for the sitar or just for the fun of it,'' said designer and Pocket Sitar developer Alonzo Machiraju. "I hope this can expose the sitar to an even larger audience and perhaps even inspire more people to pick up the actual instrument."

The modern day sitar, the most widely played instrument of its kind, has a history dating back to Middle Ages. A staple of Hindustani classical music, it was more recently embraced by Western audiences through both traditional ensembles and rock and jazz acts that since the 1960s have adopted the instrument.

A sitar has 21 to 23 strings, with six to seven of them strung over frets. As a plucked string reverberates, its length changes slightly as its edge touches the instrument's bridge, creating overtones and giving the sitar sound its distinctive tone. Anyone with a Pocket Sitar can learn to successfully create these effects by deftly touching the iPhone's face.

"I'm thrilled to contribute the music to the Pocket Sitar," said Dasgupta. "I have long embraced the idea of exposing this wonderful art form to a wide range of audiences, whether by performing traditional concerts around the world or by playing the sitar on jazz or rock recordings. The Pocket Sitar continues this by making the application available to anyone with an iPhone or iPod Touch."

Create Your Own iPhone App with AppOmator

More information here:
MacProVideo.com

Stevie Wonder Joins John Legend For A Surprise Performance In Las Vegas

Amazing to see John Legend and a true Motown living legend Stevie Wonder on stage together for the private Monster Cable concert/event at CES 2010 in Las Vegas Friday January 8. There are no words for their rendition of 'Ordinary People' & 'My Cherie Amour', other than Amazing!

PHOTOS:
Corbis Images

(video courtesy of timpage74 &chriscrutch)

Art Clokey: Creator Of Gumby And Davey & Goliath Children's Animator Dies at 88

Ironic that the Consumer Electronics Show, the technology fair in Las Vegas, is in full swing as one of the early innovators of technology specifically stop motion film/claymation/animator pioneer Art Clokey dies at 88.

via the Assoicated Press

LOS OSOS, Calif. — Animator Art Clokey, whose bendable creation Gumby became a pop culture phenomenon through decades of toys, revivals and satires, died Friday. He was 88.

Clokey, who suffered from repeated bladder infections, died in his sleep at his home in Los Osos on California’s Central Coast, son Joseph told the Los Angeles Times.

Gumby grew out of a student project Clokey produced at the University of Southern California in the early 1950s called "Gumbasia."

That led to his making shorts featuring Gumby and his horse friend Pokey for the "Howdy Doody Show" and several series through the years.

He said he based Gumby’s swooping head on the cowlick hairdo of his father, who died in a car accident when Clokey was nine. And Clokey’s wife suggested he give Gumby the body of a gingerbread man.

Clokey said that though Gumby eventually became one of the most familiar toys of all time, he was at first resistant to roll out the bendable doll.

"I didn’t allow merchandising for seven years after it was on the air," Clokey told San Luis Obispo Tribune in 2002, "because I was very idealistic, and I didn’t want parents to think we were trying to exploit their children."



Clokey also created the moralizing and often satirized claymation duo "Davey and Goliath."

The Lutheran Church hired Clokey to make the "Davey and Goliath" shorts, and Clokey used the money to help bring a Gumby series back to television in the 1960s.

Eddie Murphy brought a surge in Gumby’s popularity in the 1980s with his send-up of the character on "Saturday Night Live" as a cigar-smoking show business primadonna.

Clokey said he enjoyed Murphy’s profane Gumby.

"Gumby can laugh at himself," Clokey told the Tribune.

Murphy’s Gumby brought new toy sales and eventually led to a new syndicated series starting in 1988.

It was only then that Clokey started seeing serious financial returns on his creation.

"It took 40 years," he said.

CNN Takes A Look At The Gadgets From CES 2010

3D TV, computer tablets, car company Ford's on board Tweeter system and check out at the 2:00 mark, a flying camera controlled by your iPhone.

Recording Studio Software For The Masses?: 2 Industry Heavyweights Think So

via Digital Music News

The concept is designed to be daringly easy and hopelessly addictive. So what better place to unveil it than CES? In the City of Sin, Ted Cohen is now generating buzz on Music Mastermind, a startup that aims to deliver a ProTools for the masses. In short, Mastermind wants to allow anyone to make good music, regardless of training or musical experience. And, the whole process is designed to be game-like and multi-platform.

The top-level was shared exclusively with Digital Music News on Wednesday, and a private presentation is also happening at the Mirage on Thursday evening. But the company is also offering presentations at the show floor at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Cohen (TAG Strategic) is being tapped to broaden awareness and strike deals, though the company was started in 2008 by Matt Serletic, a Grammy Award-winning producer and songwriter. Some of Serletic's credits includes Santana, Matchbox 20, and Gloriana, and Rob Thomas is on board as an investor and endorser. Serletic is also the former Chairman and CEO of Virgin Records America.

An additional article in the Los Angeles Times:
CES: Music Mastermind proposes a 21st century musical instrument

Clear The Way For Dr. Dre At The Consumer Electronics Show 2010 Las Vegas

Related:
Dr. Dre Unveils The New Beats Solo HD (PRODUCT)RED Headphones at CES

(video courtesy of Blushift)

Dr. Dre Unveils The New Beats Solo HD (PRODUCT)RED Headphones at CES

via the press release

JANUARY 07, 2010 -- LAS VEGAS, BUSINESS WIRE --
Monster, a world leader in the audio/video accessories category, Beats' by Dr. Dre', co-founded by legendary artist and producer Dr. Dre and Interscope Geffen A&M Chairman Jimmy Iovine, Lady Gaga and (RED)' are teaming up to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. At a live press conference from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, the group announced a new Monster (PRODUCT)RED' Special Edition Beats Solo Headphone, in which $5 from the sale of each product will go directly to the Global Fund to support AIDS programs in Africa that provide testing, counseling, treatment and other services for those affected by AIDS. In addition, the group announced that a special Heartbeats' headphone will be developed for (RED) later this year.

'We're honored to have the opportunity for Beats by Dr. Dre to join Lady Gaga with Bono and (PRODUCT)RED in its effort in fighting AIDS in Africa,' said Jimmy Iovine.

Noel Lee, the Head Monster, noted: 'Monster has always been committed to developing products and technologies that make music sound better, but we're also a family business that feels just as strongly about doing everything we can to share the success we've had and give something back. That's why we're so pleased to be able to join in offering the (PRODUCT)RED' Special Edition Beats Solo Headphone. This launch allows us to share a product with the world that will help people not only get more enjoyment from the music they love, but know that they have contributed to helping make the world a better place.'

'Music is part of (RED)'s DNA. We were co-founded by Bono, we sponsor (RED) NIGHTS concerts, we partner with companies like Apple and Shazam. Partnering with Beats by Dr. Dre builds on this and gives music fans a way to help reverse the epidemic of AIDS in Africa by listening to the music they love,' said Susan Smith Ellis, CEO, (RED). 'Through partnerships like this, we've generated more than $140 million to support the Global Fund's fight against AIDS. (RED)'s growth is based in part on people like Dr. Dre, Lady Gaga, Jimmy Iovine and Noel Lee making a stand against a merciless epidemic. We're proud to have them partner with us.'

The new Monster (PRODUCT)RED' Special Edition Beats Solo Headphone will be available in early February at several US and UK retailers with an MSRP of $229.95.

For more info:
Monster Cable
Beats By Dr. Dre

Photos for the press event here:
Las Vegas Entertainment Blog 1
Las Vegas Entertainment Blog 2
PR Photos
WENN Photo

Lady Gaga Named Creative Director For Polaroid Specialty Line At CES Press Event

Formally announced at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, NV. Lady Gaga appears at the 1:25 mark.

via the Wall Street Journal

If Polaroid wanted attention by hiring Lady Gaga as its new creative director, it certainly succeeded.

I arrived 45 minutes early for Polaroid’s CES event Thursday, only to find 200 people already crowded into a press pen. The pop star’s music, with lyrics such as “I love your psycho, your vertigo stareschtick,” blared from the speakers (sadly, I know all the words).

While the brand that created the iconic instantaneous film remains well known around the world, Polaroid filed for bankruptcy in 2008 and was purchased and relaunched in 2009 by PLR IP Holdings. The troubled company made a splash on Tuesday prior to CES with the announcement that Lady Gaga, the 23-year-old singer known as much for her eccentric costumes as for her hit songs “Poker Face” and “Paparazzi,” would serve as a creative director for a “specialty line of Polaroid imaging products.” Whether or not she will actually have strong creative input remains to be seen.

Thursday’s crowd consisted of a horde of gray-haired, suit-clad buyers and exhibitors angling for a glimpse of the celeb. The most-cited reason for being there? Curiosity.

“Is she going to sing?” asked one buyer from Kohl’s who had positioned himself at the front of the crowd, right behind the chain-link rope. He’s here because his 12-year-old daughter is “a big fan,” he said. “I don’t know why.”

Another gray-haired buyer says his 21-year-old daughter loves Lady Gaga. “I’ll try to take a picture and email it,” he said.

Half an hour behind schedule, a Polaroid rep said that the company was “very, very excited” about its collaboration with the singer. Hundreds of cameras flashed as she took the stage, wearing her platinum blond hair in spikes that radiated outward from her head in the shape of a parasol.

Ms. Gaga wore large black sunglasses and her trademark deadpan expression. She expressed her excitement about her new position with Polaroid and joked that her parents were thrilled she finally has a “real job.”

“I myself am a Polaroid girl,” she told the crowd, which was still busy jostling each other for a photo.

After about two minutes, her microphone seemed to malfunction and her voice was barely audible. In earshot, however, she did announce: “This is not an endorsement deal. We won’t be selling cameras that have my face on them.” She also said she was pleased to be bringing instant cameras “into the future.”

Photos from the event here:
Getty Images
Film Magic
Corbis Images
Rex Features
PR Photos

RZA: New iPhone App iDrum

via the Wall Street Journal

RZA has brought his beats to the iPhone App Store. The famed hip-hop producer and rapper from the Wu-Tang Clan has released a branded edition of iZotope’s popular iDrum application.

The iDrum app is a consumer version iZotope’s professional grade software. The application allows users to combine pre-recorded beats and loops to compose original music with much more control than was possible in previous music making programs. For CEO Mark Ethier, the iPhone edition of the software is meant to fill a niche between games like Guitar Hero and high-end audio-engineering programs, like ProTools.

Previous versions of the app allowed users to produce music in genres like rock or club music. iZotope also began partnering with established musicians, such as Depeche Mode and Ministry of Sound to use elements from their music. The RZA edition includes a mix of 17 new and classic beats that users can use as a foundation for their own creations.

For artists, the chance to release elements of music through iDrum presents an opportunity to promote their music in a new format and to increase sales at a time music business is struggling. Depeche Mode took advantage of the opportunity by releasing their version of iDrum along with their latest album.

RZA says that the benefits of releasing original loops to the public doesn’t have any obvious economic benefit for him, besides the contract he has with iZotope. He doesn’t have a new album out and isn’t putting together a concert tour. But he thinks that, “eventually it will all come back around” by introducing new people to his back catalog. RZA said that it took him and his engineer eight days to dig through old digital audio tapes and floppy disks and to create new sounds in his studio.

The app, which costs $4.99, was released in late November. Though iZotope wouldn’t say how many times it has been downloaded, the company says the RZA edition is its popular iDrum yet and is planning to partner with more artists in the future.

Genius!: Boogie Down Productions 'Criminal Minded' Album 9mm USB

As seen on East Coast Digital Radio

Jay-Z Sits Down And Talks DJ Hero & 'The BP3'

Jay-Z sits down and talks with Time Magazine/Online Tech Editor Peter Ha to discuss DJ Hero, The Blueprint 3 and others topics.

(video courtesy of Techland)

Chamillionaire Explains The Virtues Of Twitter

via Los Angeles Times

After dominating the iTunes charts, winning a Grammy Award in 2007 and nurturing his music label on Universal Records, Chamillionaire certainly has money in the bank.

But the rapper is fulfilling his self-professed transformation. In chameleon-like fashion, he appears to be changing -- from feared underground-rap up-and-comer to a technology-consumed geek.

Like many celebrities, Chamillionaire has taken to Twitter. He uses the service to promote things such as his new single, "Good Morning," which shot up iTunes when it was released Tuesday.

He spends a great deal of time on Twitter, conversing directly with fans and sending dozens of tweets some days. That time commitment is one of the reasons Miley Cyrus says she ditched Twitter.

Read the rest of the L.A. Times Chamillionaire article:
L.A. Times - Chamillionaire not a geek, but he plays one on Twitter

Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine Take Over The Audio Spectrum With New HP Envy PCs

via press release

October 09, 2009 - HP (NYSE:HPQ) and Beats Electronics, LLC, today announced an alliance to achieve higher-quality sound from digital music through technology innovation.

The HP ENVY 15 Beats limited edition notebook PC with integrated Beats Audio emerged from close collaboration between legendary artist and producer Dr. Dre, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records and Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine, and HP engineers.

The HP ENVY 15 Beats limited edition notebook PC – the latest edition to HP's flagship ENVY line -- features a sleek, piano black, high-gloss finish and signature Beats design as found in the Beats by Dr. Dre™ line of headphones. It includes the high-performance Beats Audio solution and software popular among professional and aspiring DJs. Influential music producers and artists who lent their expertise to the project include Will.i.am, Timbaland, Polow Da Don and Pharrell.

"Beats is about sound. That's all it's ever been about, starting with the headphones and now moving to the Beats Envy computer we're doing with HP," said Dr. Dre. "The laptop is the new stereo for a lot of people and that's why we're putting out this computer with incredible sound."

Read more of the press release here:
HP ENVY press release