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CHICAGO — The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Refugee Coalition are hosting a one-of-a-kind event Thursday night to present a new narrative around refugees and migrants. Members of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago will host a cultural event and play alongside a few immigrants and asylum seekers from Venezuela, Africa, and Asia. Tickets are sold out for Thursday’s event.

It’s the Great Fright Way. Broadway musicians say they are being preyed upon by violent criminals at the stage door of the beloved “The Lion King” musical and other shows. Video obtained by The Post shows the moment a violinist with the Disney production was suddenly shoved to the ground in the breezeway of the Minkskoff Theater after exiting an Aug. 5 matinee via the stage door, breaking her wrist in 10 places and nearly ending her decades-long career.

Russia says it will deploy musicians to the front lines of its war in Ukraine in a bid to boost morale. The defence ministry announced the formation of the "front-line creative brigade" this week, saying it would include both vocalists and musicians. ... But they questioned whether the new brigade would actually distract troops, who have been primarily concerned about "very high casualty rates, poor leadership, pay problems, lack of equipment and ammunition, and lack of clarity about the war's objectives". ... The new unit will be tasked with maintaining "a high moral, political and psychological state [among] the participants...

A decade ago, we created Spotify to enable the work of creators around the world to be heard and enjoyed by listeners around the world. To our very core, we believe that listening is everything. Pick almost any issue and you will find people and opinions on either side of it. Personally, there are plenty of individuals and views on Spotify that I disagree with strongly. We know we have a critical role to play in supporting creator expression while balancing it with the safety of our users. In that role, it is important to me that we don’t take...

The end, we are told, is in sight. Yet the issue of Covid-19 vaccines continues to tear the music world apart...there’s a growing schism emerging between musicians, fans and promoters who believe universal vaccinations are the best way to combat the deadly pandemic and those who don’t. And there’s no middle ground.......So why are vaccines so un-rock ’n’ roll to so many people? Largely, because people don’t like being told what to do. Artists are libertarians. They support personal rights and freedoms. Fans, too. As Parada suggests, there’s an inherent distrust of The Man and big corporations. Add to this...

Taylor Swift’s return to No. 1 on Billboard’s 2020 Money Makers list is one of the few unsurprising results of a ranking that holds many surprises. A year with little touring resulted in many of rock and country music’s regular road warriors giving up their spots to artists with strong 2020 streaming and physical sales performances — many of them hip-hop acts.It’s also no surprise that the dearth of live revenue led to a precipitous decline in the paychecks of music’s top earners, who collectively took home $387 million in 2020, down from $969 million in 2019. Even Swift, that...

SNIP “I was 14 when [Buddy Holly] died,” McLean says, “which was the same year my father died. It’s all wrapped up together. We basically had no money coming in when my dad left. We were destitute. But the thing I remember most from that time is, Buddy Holly is gone.” It inspired him to write and record his breakout hit, 1971’s “American Pie,” which went on to be named one of the top five songs of the century by the National Endowment for the Arts and RIAA. Stars on the Record Even today, far removed from the tragedy, he...

Country star John Rich revealed this week that fellow artists have told him that they are being “muzzled” by the industry “when it comes to them expressing their frustration and anger about the targeting of conservatives.” “The list of country artists calling me is growing by the day who are saying they’re being ‘muzzled’ by the industry when it comes to them expressing their frustration and anger about the targeting of conservatives, and suppression of free speech by the powers that be,” the Big & Rich star said in a tweet to his 259,000 Twitter followers alongside the hashtag “#BlackBall.”

The millions donated to Ethiopia in 1985 thanks to Live Aid were supposed to go towards relieving a natural disaster. In reality, donors became participants in a civil war. Many lives were saved, but even more may have been lost in Live Aid's unwitting support of a Stalinist-style resettlement project Isn't it better to do something rather than give in to despair or cynicism and do nothing? This is the reproachful question familiar to anyone who has criticised organisations that view themselves as dedicated to doing good in the world. To those UN agencies, relief organisations and development groups working...

Our morning commutes are tough enough as it is. Heading to the daily grind can be challenging, and even though we think we’re ‘used to it,’ having the strength to pull it off day after day after day can be…well…tough. So anytime something can take our minds out of that place for even a little bit, it’s a good thing. And nothing does that like a couple of talented musicians playing for Union Station commuters as they shuffle to and fro catching trains and making their way to their respective places of employment. If you don’t get happy after watching...

Relatives of Prince have asked President Trump to stop playing “Purple Rain” at campaign rallies, echoing similar requests made previously on behalf of fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees ranging from Aerosmith to Queen.

It's funny how most people come to the conclusion musicians are the least funded in the music industry or the general consensus is focused on music artists receiving support. This is so far from the truth as people sometimes forget about the music writers and bloggers. It's like they do not even exist. Though in actual fact they pour a tremendous amount of creativity into their art, just like the musicians and even more so at times.

The prestigious Musicians Institute, which was established in 1977 has built on the idea that musicians should teach and learn from other musicians. It is launching online courses for the first time this month which means musicians can now get access to these musical legend lead courses absolutely anywhere in the world. Donny Gruendler, the LA-based President at Musicians Institute and someone who has been in the music industry for many years tells us more about the courses and his very interesting and versatile musical background.

Over 100 artists have signed an acoustic guitar for Planned Parenthood and for $10 you can buy a drawing ticket to enter to win the guitar. Among the artists to sign it are R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine, Feist, Fred Armisen, Sleater-Kinney's Carrie Brownstein, Mac DeMarco, Lady Gaga, Arctic Monkey's Alex Turner, My Morning Jacket's Jim James, The National's Matt Berninger, Perfume Genius, The War on Drugs' Adam Granduciel, Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry, Tom Petty, Andrew Bird, Queens of the Stone Age, Ryan Adams, Katy Perry, Ty Segall, Luna's Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips,...

GROTON, Massachusetts — 5 Investigates has learned John Warren Geils Jr., the artist known professionally as J. Geils and part of the rock group The J. Geils Band, was found dead in his Groton, Massachusetts home. He was 71. Geils and the band are best known for their album, "Freeze Frame" and the song "Centerfold," which hit No. 1 for six weeks. Geils formed the band during his time at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he studied mechanical engineering. At Worcester, he formed J. Geils Blues Band with Danny Klein, Magic Dick Salwitz, Stephen Jo Bladd, and Peter Wolf, with Seth...

From The Baltimore Sun:  When the longtime organist at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Havre de Grace announced her retirement last fall, the leaders of the small 200-year-old congregation faced a bigger challenge than they knew.Music — particularly the music of the organ — is central to the life of the church. Members say the instrument’s rich sounds complement their liturgy, inspire congregational singing and even seem to invite the Holy Spirit into their presence.But a six-month search has turned up just one potential applicant. Church leaders are trying every new strategy they can think of to get things...

NEW ORLEANS — At 75, Deacon John Moore considers himself one of the lucky ones: The scion of three generations of music-making Creoles, he’s been able to sustain himself with his guitar, raise a family, buy a house. Most other musicians here, he says, aren’t so fortunate. He’s tooling around the streets of Treme — one of the nation’s oldest black neighborhoods and the birthplace of jazz — in his ancient Volvo, pointing out all the gentrified houses, the ones with the jacked up rents. Everybody wants to live here now, he said. New Orleans is enjoying a renaissance 12...

President Trump's political opponents in the music industry would like his help in at least one regard: The laws that govern who makes money off of music. "The Recording Academy, together with America's music makers, call on the president and Congress to help keep the music playing by updating music laws, protecting music education, and renewing America's commitment to the arts," Neil Portnow, the president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, said during the 2017 Grammy Awards Sunday night. The appeal demonstrated how the business side of the music industry will have to grapple with the reality...

Democratic Party rock singer Bruce Springsteen spoke out against President Donald Trump at a concert in Perth, Australia on Sunday, declaring, “We are the new American resistance.” The show was the opening night of Springsteen and his E Street Band’s ‘Summer 2017’ tour of Australia and New Zealand. View image on Twitter View image on Twitter Follow Dave Clark @DaveClarkTV #Springsteen smashed it! The seats were pretty good too #Perth 10:36 AM - 22 Jan 2017 3 3 Retweets 64 64 likes Springsteen, who has become a Democratic Party shill, playing campaign concerts for every Democratic presidential campaign since 2004...

While Barack Obama delivered his final address as president, celebrities were gushing with heartfelt tributes. Many took to Twitter where record producer Russell Simmons posted a sweet snap of Obama posing for a selfie with two young black boys. He then wrote: 'President Obama, because of you "those brown kids" know that they too can one day be President of the U.S. #ObamaAndKids #ObamaFarewell' Meanwhile other celebrities wrote about how much they enjoyed the speech, with some pleading for Obama be allowed to stay on in the White House.