James Brown

With 'Get On Up', rising-star actor Chadwick Boseman takes on his second American icon, the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. This follows his break-out role as baseball legend Jackie Robinson in last year's '42'.

Chadwick Boseman is set to appear in 2016's 'Captain America: Civil War' as Black Panther

"It actually might be harder to play baseball than sing and dance like James Brown," he says. "As Jackie Robinson I had to play baseball like a professional. But Get On Up was technically complicated. I'm not a dancer, so it was new to me."

Continue reading: 'Get On Up' Gives Chadwick Boseman Another Showcase

James Brown is well-known as one of the greatest American entertainers of all time and his brand new biopic, 'Get On Up' starring Chadwick Boseman displays some of the most memorable moments in his life - most notably, his 1960s show at Harlem's Apollo theater.

Chadwick Boseman stars as dance pioneer James Brown in 'Get On Up'

Star Dan Aykroyd, who plays James Brown's manager Ben Bart in the film, describes his own experience of the hit Apollo show; a non-stop revue that brought him worldwide acclaim and recognition when it was recorded for his 1963 live album 'Live At The Apollo'. 'I remember it, when the show started, James came out and then you had four other dancing girls, then you had two timpani players and then there were probably 25 people on stage', Aykroyd recalls. 'It just never stopped. Then it went into 'Sex Machine'; it just ripped the roof off the place and tore everybody's hair out.'

Continue reading: How James Brown's Famed Apollo Show Inspired 'Get On Up' Creators

Some great news for fans of James Brown: Universal Music Enterprises have announced the immediate release of seventeen rare albums by the late singer. The albums have been reissued on all major streaming and download sites.

James Brown, portrayed above by Chadwick Boseman in the film Get On Up, is the subject of a large album reissue campaign

The albums in question span from 1962 to 1981, the two decades that account for pretty much the entirety of Brown’s golden age when he recorded the songs for which he is best remembered. Included in this announcement is the issue of a box set of Brown’s famous Live At The Apollo albums, which includes a fourth, previously unreleased record to go with the three currently in existence.

Continue reading: Seventeen Rare James Brown Albums Released

The story of American funk, soul and dance legend James Brown is set to be portrayed on the big screen Brown’s music is some of the most influential in the pop era.

Chadwick Boseman (r) plays musical legend James Brown in Get On Up

So many of his own and his band’s guitar licks, vocal tics and drum breaks have been sampled by hip-hop artists over the last thirty years that to do so now seems like a cliché. So it seems incredible that nobody has ever made a film about him until now. Chadwick Boseman plays James Brown as Get On Up depicts the tough early childhood, imprisonment for armed robbery and subsequent rise to fame of one of the twentieth century’s most enduring musical icons. Boseman is joined on the cast list by Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis and Dan Aykroyd.

Continue reading: Reviews Round-Up: Critics Fall For The James Brown Biopic 'Get On Up'

Chadwick Boseman is quickly becoming Hollywood’s go-to man to portray cultural and historical icons. After playing baseball legend Jackie Robinson in 42, the 32-year-old actor is now in the role of James Brown in Universal and United Entertainment’s flick Get On Up.

Chadwick Boseman in Get On Up.

The studio reportedly struggled for a long time to find the right actor and get the biopic off the ground, the task made even more difficult by Brown’s death in 2006.

Continue reading: Chadwick Boseman Was Hesitant About Starring In The James Brown Biopic "Get On Up"

Dave Grohl has entered middle age, and as such it is time for the Foo Fighters frontman to branch out away from music as is the norm for the rock elite. With Sound City, Grohl has don't exactly this with his insightful look into one of Los Angeles' hidden relics, Sound City Recording Studio.

Attached as director, it is hard to think that anyone would be too enthused about going to see the film were anyone other than Dave Grohl signed up for the documentary, but this is far more than just a vehicle for Grohl to further demonstrate how cool he is. Lovingly referred to as a "sh*thole" throughout, the documentary is like an encyclopaedia of the indie world, with some big names such as Paul McCartney, James Brown and Mick Fleetwood appear alongside such underground heroes as Frank Black, Rivers Cuomo and Trent Reznor.

Grohl has recently been doing the rounds promoting the film and in a recent interview for 'The Nerdist' podcast, the former Nirvana drummer also opened up on the traumatic split of the trio. He tells the podcast, "It was heartbreaking. We were fucked up by what happened. So it was just, 'I gotta keep playing music, I gotta keep playing music.'"

Continue reading: Dave Grohl's 'Sound City' Brings Light To A Usually Backlit Piece Of Recording History

Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney are amongst the artists to have songs inducted into the Grammy Museum’s Hall of Fame in 2013. Dylan has ‘the Times They Are A Changin’’ up for the honour and Macca has ‘Band on the Run’ on the list.

In a statement from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, reported by the Sacramento Bee, Neil Portnow said “With the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame celebrating 40 years, it's especially important to note that these entries continue the tradition of inducting a wide variety of recordings that have inspired and influenced both fans and music makers for generations. Memorable for being both culturally and historically significant, we are proud to add them to our growing catalog of outstanding recordings that have become part of our musical, social and cultural history.”

One stipulation of being entered onto the list is that the song must have been recorded at least 25 years ago and have had lasting significance. Also on the list of inductees are Whitney Houston and Elton John’s self-titled albums, Billy Joel’s ‘Piano Man,’ recordings by James Brown, Richard Pryor and Little Richard, amongst others. Next year’s Grammy awards will be broadcast on February 10, 2013 at 8pm ET/PT on the CBS Network, they are amongst the most highly regarded awards in the music industry. This years awards were marked with a tribute to the late Whitney Houston, who died just the day before the ceremony. 

Continue reading: Bob Dylan And Paul McCartney Songs Among Grammy Hall Of Fame List

Since 1973, the Grammys have been inducting particular recordings that have stood the test of time into their hall of fame. The list doesn't only include music and one of the most famous hall of famers in there is Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have A Dream' speech. The institution have just released a few of the artists and tracks that will be included in the hall of fame for 2013 on their home website.

Included in the list are James Brown, Bob Dylan, Carlos Gardel, Buck Owens, Richard Pryor, Little Richard, Paul McCartney & The Wings, and Billy Joel. Neil Portnow, the President and CEO of the Recording Academy spoke of next year's importance. "With the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame celebrating 40 years, it's especially important to note that these entries continue the tradition of inducting a wide variety of recordings that have inspired and influenced both fans and music makers for generations," he said. "Memorable for being both culturally and historically significant, we are proud to add them to our growing catalog of outstanding recordings that have become part of our musical, social, and cultural history."

There are a couple of tracks in this years list of 27 entrants that are surprising, if only that it's take 40 years for them to make the cut. Frank Sinatra's 'New York, New York' will be in the hall of fame as of next year, though surely its iconographic status had already more proven its worth. AC/DC's 'Back in Black' also appears in the list. Perhaps to pay tribute to a great figure in music, Whitney Houston's self titled album will also be inducted, marking the further great achievements and talents from all over the world, and rounding off a great 40 years of the Grammy hall of fame.