BuzzSugar

Estelle and Kid Rock Join List of Artists Saying No to iTunes

BuzzSugar — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:30:48 -0700

There's an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal today about a trend toward record companies pulling their artists' records from the iTunes Music Store - and/or avoiding iTunes altogether - because selling singles at Apple's mp3 store isn't always as profitable (or necessary) as people think. Kid Rock's latest album, Rock 'n Roll Jesus, was never sold on iTunes, for example, and he still managed to sell 1.7 million copies in the US alone. Estelle is on the same label as Rock, and after seeing how well his album has done, the label yanked hers from iTunes as well - even though she currently has one of the hottest singles of the Summer.

I naively thought the ailing music business had finally surrendered to the download. Now I'm not sure where I stand on all this. From an artistic perspective, I think some albums really are a total package, and it's a shame to pick them apart by only buying singles. That's why Jay-Z refused to sell his American Gangster album on iTunes last year, stating, "As movies are not sold scene by scene, this collection will not be sold as individual singles."

On the other hand, not all "collections" are a work of art. Do we really need to listen to Katy Perry's album front to back rather than picking and choosing what songs we like? I bet a lot of people are glad they could buy just "I Kissed a Girl" on iTunes rather than shelling out $10 or more to get that one song.

So what do you think? Is this smart on the part of record labels, and does it preserve the integrity of the album format? Or is this just delaying the inevitable? I have to say, as I scan my iTunes library, I sure have a lot of unrelated singles mashed together, which is really different from my CD book from the old high school and college days.

Source

Buzz In: What's Your Worst Movie Audience Experience?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:30:53 -0700

I'm probably an overly conscientious film goer - I'm hyper aware of blocking little kids sitting behind me, and I always try to open candy pre-show, so as not to deal with those noisy plastic wrappers. Unfortunately, not everyone around me upholds the same courtesy. I remember going to a rock-doc earlier this Spring, where two teenagers in front of me had their tongues down each other's throats from the opening sequence all the way to the end credits. And a couple of weeks ago when I was checking out The Invention of Lying, there was a row of men behind me with possibly the loudest echoing laughs I've ever heard.

I'm not trying to be a sour puss here, but sitting near people like that is seriously distracting. In fact, it kind of ruined both films for me, and now I feel like I'll have to go back and watch them on DVD eventually. I was so concentrated on overlooking the horny high schoolers and the guys' cackles that I probably missed some of the best parts. Normally, I'd give them my "death stare" in the hopes that they'd simmer down (come on, like you haven't done that too), but that doesn't always work.

OK, enough of my venting - what's been your most annoying audience experience? Did someone answer a cell phone mid-movie and have an entire conversation? Were you stuck behind a fidgety tall guy? Please share!

Link Time!

BuzzSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:30:02 -0700

Will Ferrell will star in indie comedy Everything Must Go - Zap2it
Ugly Betty is back tonight! - TV.com
Ian Somerhalder will star in romantic gothic fairy tale Cradlewood - The Wrap
The Big Chill: where are they now? - Moviefone
Last night's 30 Rock is even more meta thanks to low ratings - Vulture
Hilarious: old folks review MGMT's video for "Kids" - Stereogum
Penelope Cruz is going to make a cameo in the Sex and the City sequel - Cinematical
The Top 20 Celebrity Twilight fans - PopSugar
Telling the difference between Where the Wild Things Are and Wild Things - MTV Movies Blog