Paul Rudd in talks for 'Ant-Man' role, say reports

December 19, 2013 12:54

Reports say actor has edged ahead of Joseph Gordon-Levitt in studio's pecking order

Paul Rudd is in talks with Marvel about taking on the lead role in the forthcoming Ant-Man adaptation, according to reports.

The Wrap claims that Rudd has been involved in early negotiations with the studio about playing Hank Pym in Edgar Wright's big-screen treatment of the comic book, and is now favourite to land the role ahead of early front-runner Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

The character of Ant-Man made his Marvel comic book debut in 1962 but has never appeared on screen before. In the books he is the superhero alter ego of Dr Hank Pym, a scientist who invents a shrinking serum that makes him insect size. Once miniature, he is able to solve mysteries and take out bad guys.

Speaking previously about his plans for the film, Wright said he was eager to bring his own sensibilities and idiosyncrasies to the Hollywood project. "I think there will be some elements of my previous movies in there, and I think that's why Marvel wanted me to do it in the first place," he stated. "I don't think they hired me to do something completely anonymous. So it's fun – it's got lots of new elements. I'm excited about it."

As well as directing, Wright co-wrote the film's script with Joe Cornish, also his collaborator on the screenplay for The Adventures Of Tintin. Ant-Man has been scheduled to open in US cinemas on July 31, 2015 - just two weeks after the Batman v Superman movie - but its UK release date has yet to be confirmed.

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Huey Lewis Talks 'Frightening' New Song

by Gary Graff, Detroit  |   August 07, 2012 5:33 EDT

Huey Lewis & the News are starting to think about new music -- and even have something in their pocket already.

"We wrote a new song, one very good new song -- which is pretty frightening," Lewis tells Billboard with a laugh. It's called "While We're Young," and Lewis describes it as "a little tongue-in-cheek thing. I think it's fabulous. But now we need nine more. And I think we're going to try. The band is playing really great now, so I think it's a good time to get something going."

Huey Lewis & The News Live in Boston, 8/1/12

The group's last album, the Stax/Volt tribute "Soulsville," came out in 2010 and was recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis, while it's been 11 years since the Lewis and company's last set of original material, "Plan B." The band is also in a period of transition, having split from longtime manager Bob Brown. "It wasn't right for a long time, in my mind, and you don't want to work when you don't feel right about it," Lewis explains. "So we feel much better right now. We're booking a lot of shows, working hard this year and re-establishing some ties."

Lewis has also been in touch with EMI's catalog division and is in talks for a 30th anniversary edition of the band's seven-times platinum album "Sports" next year.

"They want to make a big deal out of it, so I'm listening," he says.

The News' other new development is a new office and studio complex in a space owned by Grateful Dead alumnus Bob Weir in the San Francisco Bay Area. "It's perfect. It's got everything we need," says Lewis, who's thinking about hosting performances at the facility as well. "I think when we get off the road we'll take a break and then maybe go in and see what we can come up with as far as more (new) songs."

Lewis and the News are touring with Joe Cocker until Aug. 19, then has its own dates booked into November, including performances at the Snowy Range Music Festival in Laramie, Wyo., and the Spokane County Interstate Fair in Washington State.

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A$AP Rocky Talks 'LongLiveA$AP' Album, Discovers The Dirty Projectors

by Jason Lipshutz, Chicago  |   July 14, 2012 11:05 EDT

"Who's that?" A$AP Rocky asks when the Dirty Projectors begin their set and start emitting their pitch-perfect vocal harmonies at the 2012 Pitchfork Music Festival. When informed of the Brooklyn indie rock group's handle, Rocky stands up to get a better view of the group. When he sits back down a minute later, he asks an ASAP Mob member to write the name 'Dirty Projectors' down and asks, "What do they make? Reggae?"

So it goes at Chicago's Pitchfork Music Festival, where genres awkwardly bump against each other and tastemaker-approved artists unwittingly discover each other's mass appeal. An hour before speaking with Billboard.com, Rocky had wrapped up an unrelenting, brilliantly vacuous set alongside his A$AP Mob cohorts, stomping through "LiveLoveA$AP" cuts while threatening the audience to put their hands up. When the rain started and quickly intensified, no one in the crowd moved a muscle; instead, they bounced along with the bass of "Hands on the Wheel" and supported crowd-surfers during "Wassup."

2012's Brightest New Stars (So Far)

For Rocky, a 23-year-old Harlem native who inked a deal with Polo Grounds/RCA late last year, performing at 5:30 PM to a crowd of indie rock fans is nothing new; in fact, it's sometimes preferred. "I got supporters from all demographics," says the rapper. "There are people that don't fuck with rap but fuck with A$AP, just because I give them a feeling that they can't explain. I'm used to this happening - even when it's not at one of these festivals, my crowd is real diverse. If you've ever been to one of my shows, you'd be like, 'What the fuck did I just step into?'"

"LongLiveA$AP," Rocky's major label debut, is slated for a Sept. 11 release date, but the MC says that a record featuring his entire A$AP Mob hip-hop crew -- which includes A$AP Twelvy, A$AP Yams and A$AP Ferg, among others -- will be out before that. Rocky won't give an exact date, but says that fans will have it "in two weeks." A$AP Ferg chimes in that, on the Mob album, "Everybody has their own unique sound. Rocky set the tone."

One week after Friday's performance at Pitchfork Fest, A$AP Rocky will make his network TV debut on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," with a song scheduled for Friday, July 20. But when asked about a radio single from "LongLiveA$AP" that could provide a strong hook on "Fallon," Rocky insists that he's not going through the standard tropes of a major label artist.

"I'd put out some whack, slow shit, straight up. I'll just put out a song saying nothing - call me Pootie Tang," Rocky says with a laugh. "Putting out that motherfucking tastemaker music that we do, we change the sound of mainstream. The mainstream isn't gonna be that bullshit that you hear on the radio all day. The mainstream's gonna be that A$AP -- we're gonna change the whole world with this shit. I have a dream! I'm the trill Martin Luther King, straight up."

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Track Review: Of Monsters and Men, 'Little Talks'

by Ryan Reed  |   April 29, 2012 10:00 EDT

OF MONSTERS AND MEN
"Little Talks" (4:26)
Producers: Of Monsters and Men, Ingolfur Arnarsson
Writer: Of Monsters and Men
Publishers: Amar Rosenkranz Hilmarsson/Brynjar Leifsson/Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir/Ragnar Porhallsson (BMI)
Skrimslehflaekjaras 1/Universal Republic

One could probably count the number of successful Icelandic musical imports on one hand, and based on the influence of forward-thinking acts like Björk and Sigur Rós, Iceland is now stereotyped as a glacial nation of insular, twinkling art-rock experimenters. But with its boisterously catchy single "Little Talks," indie-pop sextet Of Monsters and Men aims to set the record straight, clearing off decades of cultural cobwebs with a blast of radiant sonic sunshine. "I don't like walking around this old and empty house," Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir sings in a soulful, ecstatic croon. "So hold my hand/I'll walk with you, my dear." It's a simple lyrical message, but the group's innocent, hook-filled ruckus speaks volumes. Underneath the vocals, Of Monsters and Men conjures epic sea-shanty joy, with brass blasts and gang hand claps punctuating acoustic strums and clattering drums.

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Nicki Minaj Talks World Tour, 'Roman Reloaded,' on 'Today' Show: Watch

by Khalila Douze, N.Y.  |   April 06, 2012 2:50 EDT

Early this morning (April 5), Nicki Minaj, decked in an a "black everything" 'fit,  stopped through "Today" to chat and perform a few hits from "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded" (April 3).

Nicki Minaj's 25 Most Outrageous Outfits

Before performing the RedOne-produced track "Starships" and "Right By My Side," Minaj sat down to discuss Madonna, women of power, "Roman Reloaded," and touring.

The rapstress, who has worked with and spoken highly of Madonna, lists the legend as one of the inspirations behind her own evolution: "She's re-invented not only herself but pop culture... What inspires me about Madonna is that she's able to balance this, all of this, with her family and her personal life."

Nicki continued to share her views on women of power. "I feel like a lot of women in power, or successful women, as successful as they are they have that desire to still be loved, to still be always great, to still be approved. And it's like no matter how many times you tell them they're great, they don't believe it."

Before hitting the stage, Minaj touched on her sophomore full-length and upcoming worldwide tour. '"I don't get the jitters at all. Because this one, honestly, it's a better album. It's so much more well-rounded. It's way more songs. Everything is way more exciting on this album," Nicki said. "I'm about to start my world tour this year. My fans across seas have been going crazy. I'm just excited, more than anything, more than the album, eventually people are going to buy the album, but more than anything for me the fact this album is now  done and out of the way and I can go see my fans. I haven't been able to really touch and be one on one with them in a long time."

Nicki Minaj's 'Roman' Ready for No. 1 on Billboard 200

"Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded" is headed for No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and is expected to reach sales of 200,0000-250,00 copies by the end of its first week.

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Game Talks 50 Cent Beef on 'Behind The Music' Episode

by Erika Ramirez, N.Y.  |   March 22, 2012 10:35 EDT

Game and 50 Cent's rap beef, which began in 2005, still "haunts" Game's career.

On VH1's "Behind the Music: Game," premiering tonight (March 22) at 9 p.m. ET, the rapper goes into depth of how the rivalry unraveled after 50 Cent claimed to have written his songs.

"50 didn't write my songs, that's just his ego rising above the team aspect of what Aftermath was all about," Game says. "I could easily say, 'Yo, I wrote this song on "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" it was a team effort."

Game continues to explain how his anger towards 50 Cent and G-Unit turned into a movement. ""300 Bars," when I wrote that I was angry I wanted G-Unit to die as a brand, a record label, a group... There was a bar that said 'you sell records but a G-G-G you not.' And all it was, was a metaphor. I didn't know what I created. Next thing I know fans started yelling G-G-G U NOT! [They] started making T-shirts and the movement it got bigger than me."

Check out a sneak peek at tonight's 'Behind the Music' episode, starring Game.

Earlier in the month, Game told Billboard.com that he's already working on new music. He's currently working on his fifth studio album, "FIVE: Fear Is Victory's Evolution," and is set to release his mixtape, "California Republic," by the end of the month. While in the studio, Game continues to promote his recent album, "R.E.D. Album." Yesterday (March 21), Game debuted his video for the Kendrick Lamar assisted, "The City," on RollingStone.com.

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James Wesley Talks New Single, Touring With Taylor Swift & Ronnie Dunn

Much has been made of the glamour of the road life for a studio musician. If you truly want glamour, talk to Broken Bow recording artist James Wesley.

"I've got a small fifteen passenger bus that we take out for some of our shorter shows with," he begins. "I've got a heater on the back of the bus, and it's been cold lately. The heater that I have -- you have the front heater, and there's one in the back. With all of our equipment, it covers the heater up. So, it really doesn't get out. I don't want to burn the heater up, so I will run it for a while, and then go shut it off. So, we're all bundled up in the back trying to keep warm," he says, chuckling. "But, there's always some kind of road story. It's things like that that make it all worthwhile. It makes you what you are today."

And who James Wesley is today is one of the top rising stars in the business. Singles like "Didn't I" and "Real" have helped him carve out a name for himself at radio and with fans. He says that as his career continues to progress, he is grateful for the support he has received. 

"I'm very thankful to country radio and the friends that I've made," he says. "It's a big circle, but there are a lot of people that are pulling for me. I can't thank them enough."

His new single, "Walking Contradiction," is one that he feels a lot of people will identify with. "I think we've all got a little walking contradiction in us. We're not all perfect. Like the song says, 'We go to Church, we go to bars, we read the word, we read the stars. It's true. If we were perfect, we wouldn't be here. Westin Davis, Kip Moore, and Dan Couch wrote this song, and I was fortunate enough to be the messenger on it. A lot of it speaks true. I'm looking forward to getting it out there."

He'll also be performing the single on the road this spring -- opening for one of country's legends. 

"We've got a lot of shows coming up -- a lot of dates on the books. I've got some dates with Ronnie Dunn, that's going to be awesome. The guy can sing. When we did 'Bleed Red' at the ACM's last year, it was so moving. It really was. It's like getting invited to the Opry, standing to the side of the stage, and thinking 'I can't believe I'm here."

Wesley had had those moments at the Opry on several occasions, and it's something he doesn't take for granted. "I just feel blessed that they ask me to the Opry to come over and sing. It was Oct. 16, 2010 when they asked me to sing there for the first time. Since then, I've been on there 12 times. Every time seems like the first time."

As a performer who values the artists that have come before him, he feels every country artist needs to know about the roots of the format. "The thing I like about it is the tradition. Without the Opry, I don't think there would be a Nashville. There's so much history. I think if you're going to be in country music, you need to know about the roots and history of it, and how we got here. We're on a paved road. When it started, it was dirt. People like Marty Robbins, Patsy Cline paved the road, and it's them we should pay tribute to. Without them, we wouldn't be here." 

2011 featured many highlights for Wesley, including opening for the CMA Entertainer of the Year. "It's been great. We were fortunate enough to open for Taylor Swift. It was mind blowing. You go from playing honky-tonks to 60,000 people at Foxboro. It was insane. For her to ask me to come out with her, that was one of the greatest things I've been a part of."

Wesley said he admires Swift for how she treats her fans, sometimes even sending them pizzas while waiting in line for tickets. "Call them fans, but I like to call them friends. After a while, they get to know you, and you get to know them. They come out night after night, rain or shine. It's awesome how she treats people. When you get as successful as she is, it's amazing how she gives back. Someday..," he says hopefully, eager to follow in her footsteps.

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Talks break down between AFTRA, record labels (Reuters)

By Joshua L. Weinstein Joshua L. Weinstein – Fri Oct 7, 9:26 pm ET

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Talks between AFTRA and record labels have broken down.

The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the labels have been negotiating since August and despite about 16 meetings, have been unable to come to an agreement.

No more negotiating sessions are scheduled.

Major issues standing between the two sides include health care and pension security and transparency of accounting.

The current contract, which covers about 14,500 people, expires December 31.

AFTRA and representatives from Sony, UMG, Warner, EMI, Disney and most of their subsidiary labels began formal negotiations August 15 in New York. Talks went for two weeks. After that, the sides met for another week in Los Angeles.

Because they couldn't reach an agreement, they met for a final day in New York on October 5 -- but still couldn't agree.

On October 2, AFTRA's national board of directors gave the union's negotiating committee permission to seek a strike authorization vote.

"While AFTRA is not currently on strike in Sound Recordings, the AFTRA National Board has unanimously authorized the Negotiating Committee to take all actions necessary, up to and including ... a strike authorization vote," according to a statement AFTRA released Friday.

According to the union, "the AFTRA Negotiating Committee stands ready, willing and able to meet and receive a fair proposal from the major labels in order to resolve a fair contract for the session singers and royalty artists whose talents provide the music that keeps these multibillion dollar corporations in business."

The contract was originally set to expire in 2010, but was extended for one year.

The Sound Recordings Code "covers singers, royalty and non-royalty artists, as well as announcers, actors, comedians, narrators and sound effects artists who work on recordings in all new and traditional media and all music formats, in addition to audio books, comedy albums and cast albums."

According to the union, the code generates more than $140 million annually in AFTRA-covered earnings and benefits for both major artists and session singers around the country.

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Talks break down between AFTRA, record labels

By Joshua L. Weinstein

Fri Oct 7, 2011 9:26pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Talks between AFTRA and record labels have broken down.

The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the labels have been negotiating since August and despite about 16 meetings, have been unable to come to an agreement.

No more negotiating sessions are scheduled.

Major issues standing between the two sides include health care and pension security and transparency of accounting.

The current contract, which covers about 14,500 people, expires December 31.

AFTRA and representatives from Sony, UMG, Warner, EMI, Disney and most of their subsidiary labels began formal negotiations August 15 in New York. Talks went for two weeks. After that, the sides met for another week in Los Angeles.

Because they couldn't reach an agreement, they met for a final day in New York on October 5 -- but still couldn't agree.

On October 2, AFTRA's national board of directors gave the union's negotiating committee permission to seek a strike authorization vote.

"While AFTRA is not currently on strike in Sound Recordings, the AFTRA National Board has unanimously authorized the Negotiating Committee to take all actions necessary, up to and including ... a strike authorization vote," according to a statement AFTRA released Friday.

According to the union, "the AFTRA Negotiating Committee stands ready, willing and able to meet and receive a fair proposal from the major labels in order to resolve a fair contract for the session singers and royalty artists whose talents provide the music that keeps these multibillion dollar corporations in business."

The contract was originally set to expire in 2010, but was extended for one year.

The Sound Recordings Code "covers singers, royalty and non-royalty artists, as well as announcers, actors, comedians, narrators and sound effects artists who work on recordings in all new and traditional media and all music formats, in addition to audio books, comedy albums and cast albums."

According to the union, the code generates more than $140 million annually in AFTRA-covered earnings and benefits for both major artists and session singers around the country.

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