Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers has formed a new side group with Damon Albarn (Blur, Gorillaz) and Tony Allen (Fela Kuti) called Rocket Juice and the Moon. The group has recorded an album and are in the process of rehearsing for live shows.
Flea told Mojo "We met on a plane in 2008. The three of us were going to Lagos as part of Damon’s Africa Express Collective. I’m a huge Fela Kuti fan and Tony [Allen] is one of my favourite drummers, so to get to talk and play with him was phenomenal. The way I approach rhythm and groove is very similar to the way he does, and I feel with him a special something that is hard to put into words… but it’s a beautiful thing."
Sinéad O'Connor has reconciled with her new husband Barry Herridge. The two were married in Las Vegas on December 8 and were split up by Christmas, reportedly due to pressure from his family and an incident on the day they were married where O'Connor went on a joyride looking for some marijuana.
O'Connor took to Twitter recently, though, and announced that the couple were back together, detailing maybe just a bit too much as to how that happened.
Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead will open a new restaurant and performance space in San Raphael, CA. Terrapin Crossroad, which should open in March, will include jam nights that Lesh compares to Levon Helm's Midnight Rambles.
No matter how happy George Michael is to be feeling better, he has taken time to blast a group called Christians for a Moral America that reportedly were praying for the singer to die.
How very sweet of them, considering how busy they must be on the whole. Now don't get me wrong, I know for a fact that many devout Christians, such as the ones I work rest and play with on a daily basis, are truly wonderful, kind-hearted men and women who take the best parts of that religion and live admirable, generous and loving lives. But in my opinion, and I think made evident by those who prayed for my death, there are others who use their twisted interpretations of ancient scriptures as a pathetic excuse.
Slash will be the recipient of the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award from Guitar International magazine. The award goes to those who "have deepened our passion for our favourite music, as well as entertained and inspired guitarists around the world."
Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, author Maya Angelou, filmmaker Spike Lee, the Tuskegee Airmen and educator Beverly Kearny have been chosen to receive the BET Honors. Performers at the ceremony will include Aretha Franklin, Patti Labelle and Common. The awards will be held on January 14 at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. and will air on BET on February 13.
