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The Pointer Sisters and The Commodores have certainly marked time together.
Both began making their marks during the mid-’70s and had hits on the charts simultaneously; during 1981, for instance, the Pointers’ “Slow Hand” and The Commodores’ “Lady (You Bring Me Up)” were both in the Billboard Hot 100 top 10, and a few years later, the Pointers were ruling with “Automatic” and “Jump for My Love” just before their compatriots went on the “Nightshift.” Combined, they’ve sold more than 100 million albums and scored 20 chart-topping hits.
And they’ve found themselves sharing the same concert bills on more than a few occasions.
That will be the case again starting July 26, when the two acts kick off An Evening With Icons concerts, five dates starting in Oxon Hill, Md., and continuing Oct. 5 in Durant, Okla., Nov. 14 in Tampa, Fla., Nov. 15 in Hollywood, Fla., and Nov. 30 in Primm, Nevada. The current incarnation of The Spinners will open all of the dates.
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As the tour approaches, Billboard got together with Ruth Pointer, who currently leads her group with daughter Issa and granddaughter Sadako, and with multi-instrumentalist William “WAK” King, The Commodores’ sole remaining founding member, to discuss the shows, their collaboration and what we can expect.
How did these dates come together?
King: It was done through the agencies. It wasn’t as though we and The Pointer Sisters sat down one day and said, “Hey, let’s put a tour together.” It was brought about through the agencies we both worked with and we both said, “Yeah, it would be great.” So here we are.
Pointer: When they introduced the whole idea to me, I thought, “Yeah, that could be fun. I haven’t seen those guys in quite awhile, but that sounds like a good time to me!”
King: I think it’s a good package because of the music. I always like the female-male combinations. We did it back in the day, and it gives a variety to the people. They’ve got some really good songs, and that’s what people come out for, right? They want to reminisce and enjoy the past as well as now. It’s all about hearing that music again and being in the past, in the present — if that makes sense. I’m just looking forward to it, man. Let’s go out and have a blast.
What kind of history do you have in working together?
Pointer: We worked with them — quite awhile ago, actually. They’re a band and they’re a boy band and boy bands were always big back then with The Commodores, DeBarge, The Spinners, there were so many of them and I loved them. We did Lionel [Richie]’s first solo tour with him, which was probably the best tour we’ve ever done; it was when he was just leaving The Commodores, so it was a big deal. And then we’ve done a couple other engagements with the actual Commodores after that.
King: In the early days we would do some shows together, but actually not a whole lot, I’m sorry to say. It was actually JD [James Dean Nicholas], one of The Commodores, who said, “Y’know what — we haven’t done anything with them for years. We haven’t played music with them, anything. So I think it would be a good idea.”
What’s your favorite song of each other’s?
King: “Jump (For My Love),” that’s my favorite. [Sings “Jump”] People think uptempo songs, fast songs are easy. I beg to differ; the whole thing about a song that’s uptempo is the groove. You’ve got to have the right groove to catch people, so it doesn’t just speed by them. It’s got to have a hook in there. The track has to grab you…and that’s what [“Jump”] does.
Pointer: I would probably say “Nightshift.” We were recording around the same time and we happened to be working with [producer-writer] Peter Wolf and he told us he worked on that song with them and we were like, “Oh, well, OK, let’s go…”
Both of your bands are still going, more than 50 years later, and you’ve both had some significant lineup changes. What is it that keeps you going?
Pointer: The way I look at it is it’s life. Me and my sisters, we were women starting off early in our 20s, and of course life brings on changes where you marry and have children and it changes your priorities. And life goes on and you lose people, which is what happened to us. It’s definitely a challenge a lot of times, but that’s just the way life is. You just roll along.
King: It’s just for the love of being out there, the love of music. We enjoy each other. We enjoy what we’re doing. We actually don’t fight, to tell you the truth, but we have spats, disagreements at times. But it’s kind of like a well-oiled machine right now. Everybody knows that they do, everybody knows what’s expected, and what’s expected is for you to sometimes come up with the unexpected. It’s about keeping things the way people want to hear them from the past but bringing some newness as well. That challenge keeps us on our toes.
You also both recorded for Motown — The Commodores for longer, of course. What does your association with that legendary label mean to you?
King: I’ve got to tell you, Motown was incredible for us. It was incredible for most of its star acts. For me it was just legendary because it was Motown; all the artists I had grown up with — The Temptations, The Four Tops, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye — all those people were there, it was like we’d really made the big time. So when we got there it was really nice that a lot of these artists came to our sessions. They all said, “You guys need anything? You want us to sing on it, do that, do this?” Marvin always wanted to go play basketball; there was a park right across the street, but I’d say, “Marvin, we’re paying for these sessions. We can’t leave here and go out and play basketball!”
Pointer: I appreciate it because Motown was always something I admired. Any artist that came out of there — The Supremes and Temptations, Michael and The Jacksons — they were always so polished with the perfection and the look and the direction and all of that. Even as briefly as we were with Motown, we had a chance to experience a little bit of that. As a matter of fact there’s a photograph we did while we were there that’s one of my favorites; I was thinking, “They really know how to dress a girl!”
Has there ever been a point in your careers where you’ve thought about packing it in?
Pointer: Definitely. I mean, recently I have had thoughts of…I wouldn’t call it throwing up my hands. I would just say I’ve really had some thoughts about whether I wanted to continue or not because all of my sisters are gone and I feel the pressure of being the last surviving sister. I’m still working with my daughter and granddaughter, but at the beginning when I first pulled them in it was really hard, and I dis have those thoughts of “Do I really want to do this?” ’cause I knew the sound and the energy were not gonna be the same. But the more I continue to just go on out there, I have to say that our fans and the audience give me the confidence and desire to keep going. I wasn’t sure how we were going to receive it with just me, but it goes over really well.
King: The one thing is when we knew Richie was going to leave, I wish we would’ve done that better. I don’t think we did it badly, I really don’t. It didn’t look like it was horrible and we hated each other, because we didn’t. And we both went on and had success. But it could’ve been better, between ourselves.
Are there prospects for new music from either of you?
King: I just finished doing a song for a movie that’s coming out soon about President Reagan and his wife, Nancy. I wrote the love song for that particular movie. And we’re actually working on a new album; we just finished the first three tracks and have to put the vocals on them, and we’ll be doing more after that.
Pointer: Not at the moment, no. I’m just cruising right now. I did write a book about myself and my experience with the Sisters, Still So Excited, and there are people who are talking to me about a biopic and also about [stage] musicals about the Pointers experience in the business. But we just want to honor the group really. I’m not desperate to have something out there just for the sake of having it out there. If it happens it’ll be right, and if it doesn’t happen, I’m good.
King: We’re in the midst of doing a bio of the group; hopefully that’ll be out in about a year, a year and a half. We’re just getting started. We’ve already done some of the interviews, and we’ve got a lot more of them to do. So many of the people we want to interview are older now so we need to get them as soon as possible.
Ruth, we’d be remiss to not ask you about what it was like to be Cupcake on The Masked Singer.
Pointer: [Laughs] That was fun, and kind of bittersweet for me ’cause me and Anita were supposed to do it together and she and I had gone to the fitting for the costumes. She got the call that day from her doctor that gave her the diagnosis of lung cancer, stage four. She said, “Look, I’m gonna have to pull out. If you want to continue and do it yourself, I would love for you to do that.” I just felt like I had to do it because she would’ve wanted me to do it. It was a fun show, but actually a lot more work than people can imagine, especially because no one can see you while you’re on the lots, so you have to wear [the costume] every time you’re there. But I had fun.
Jay-Z and Alicia Keys gave New York City an official anthem with “Empire State of Mind,” and 15 years later, their ode to the Big Apple is certified diamond. The Recording Industry Association of America announced on Wednesday (July 24) that “Empire State of Mind” had gone diamond. It’s Jay’s second diamond plaque following Watch […]
Karlie Kloss is still a Swiftie. The model sat down for an interview with Yahoo! News recently, nearly a year after she surprised fans by attending Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Los Angeles, despite longtime rumors of a feud between the two former besties. When asked by the publication about her favorite song from Swift’s […]
Milan, Design Week 2024, a big party in a wonderful location with Meduza’s Mattia Vitale at the DJ booth. Waves of people reach the dance floor: first a group of Dutch designers in their 40s dancing with cocktails in hand, then a wave of 20-year-olds raising their hands in the air when they hear the hooks of “Piece of Your Heart” and “Lose Control.” At the end, everyone passionately sings Daft Punk’s “One More Time,” while Mattia has fun playing with the effects. Meduza are capable of making themselves loved by a transversal audience.
If artists like Daft Punk have exported the “French touch” to the rest of the world, then Meduza could be considered flag bearers of the “Italian touch,” the tradition of Italian DJs and producers who have transmitted a certain style in dance music, from Giorgio Moroder to Tale of Us.
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Before the interview, they have some fun commenting on a handful of 12-inch vinyl singles contained in a DJ bag. The eyes of Mattia Vitale, Luca De Gregorio and Simone Giani lit up when looking at the covers of tracks that made the history of dance music. “Groovejet” by Spiller, “Needin’ U” by David Morales, “Music Sounds Better With You” by Stardust, just to mention a few.
Now it’s their turn to speak, in the aftermath of their new single “Fire,” the official anthem of the European football championship.
You have a lot of gigs this summer — more than 40 in three months.
Mattia Vitale: Plus some pre-shows at Cafè Mambo in Ibiza!
Luca De Gregorio: Those are cool. We mix for an hour, sometimes back-to-back with some guests, while the sun sets. In Ibiza we also play at “Our House” parties at Hï.
You are now regulars in Ibiza. Has your audience changed in recent years?
Vitale: In my opinion there is a completely different generation than before, and the average age has dropped a lot.
Simone Giani: The type of music offered is also changing. I could say that it is much more linked to international successes than in the past, when DJs tried to maintain that certain Ibizan identity in the sounds.
Vitale: Obviously in July and August the island becomes much more musically commercial, due to the type of tourists who arrive. But compared to the past, Ibiza has become more open to the demands of what the audience wants. In September, you will also find industry insiders in the clubs and that segment of pure clubbers, true enthusiasts and many Americans. At that time of the season, you can really have fun and feel more free as a DJ.
You are experts at DJing in every situation. What does it mean for you as a DJ to be on the decks at Tomorrowland and then move on to the decks at Lollapalooza, to give two examples?
Vitale: This is all very interesting. I grew up as a resident DJ, so always used to changing the set depending on the audience or the type of evening. For me, the fact that I play in different situations every week also helps myself to be able to work on the tracks, on the edits, and to completely change my perspective. Of course, when you go to play a festival you have to play your own music. We present ourselves as Meduza: we are there because the public expects our performance, with our productions.
Giani: At Tomorrowland, we feel like we are in our natural habitat, within the company of other DJs and producers, while at Lollapalooza we are among bands and artists who do something completely different. It is precisely at that moment that we often feel even more gratified, because our singles played on the radio or streamed online bring together a diverse audience that you often find at festivals, such as Lollapalooza.
The acceptance of dance music at festivals began between 1997 and 1998 with Chemical Brothers and Daft Punk, remember? People who danced to rock began to respect clubbers and mix with them.
De Gregorio: In the last 15 years, electronic music has really exploded as a presence at festivals, as well as having created a circuit of festivals where the genre is dominant. Today, electronic music has the same value as genres such as rock, pop, hip-hop.
Giani: You mentioned the Chemical Brothers. What comes to mind is not only their courage to play at festivals where rock was the main genre, but also the fact that they managed to make a difference! This reminds me of my time at the conservatory: I too did my act of courage by demonstrating my interest and passion for dance music. I remember finding myself mocked most of the time!
Italy has always exported great dance music. Your tracks have a sense for melody that is also the result of this long tradition.
Vitale: Sure. We grew up with Italian pop music from an early age. We feel that legacy emerge when we get into the studio, where we always make a mix of all the experiences we have in our heads. Those melodies become present again.
Giani: I grew up with the songs of Lucio Battisti and Lucio Dalla, for example. From the 17th century onwards, we Italians have been masters of melody.
Vitale: In the ranking of the most listened to Italian authors in the world, there is Vivaldi! Luckily, I’d say.
Giani: I don’t really like very rhythmic DJ sets without melody. I respect “purist” techno DJs, but for me it’s an approach that becomes monotonous after a while. I need breaks, singing and melodies that take you on a journey. That’s what we do in our DJ sets.
Your case is special. Thanks to your hit songs, even the most traditional media play your music, but today many good Italian artists of the electronic scene are not broadcast on radio or TV.
De Gregorio: I can’t explain it. It’s strange, because in Italy in the ’90s, dance music reigned everywhere, becoming a global phenomenon. Then evidently our dance music lost appeal on TV and radio.
Giani: Since then, dance music has often been considered a second-class production.
Yet today many hip-hop, trap and even pop artists flirt a lot with contemporary dance.
Vitale: The thing that really saddens me is that there are artists who gather large audiences with their shows and don’t have visibility elsewhere. Benny Benassi and Tale of Us have a media impact, yet the reaction of the mainstream media is close to zero. There is also a certain lack of respect, if we consider that we are all “children” of Giorgio Moroder, who exported that Italian touch we are talking about to the world. It’s sad to achieve success first abroad and then in Italy. When we enter some recording studios abroad, we see that there are a lot of Italians working there who had to go there to demonstrate their skills. In our country, they didn’t give them a chance.
With your latest single, “Fire,” you worked on commission for the first time.
De Gregorio: You don’t know how many versions we have made. … We have more than a thousand files in one folder! For that track we worked with a great professional, Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic.
The thing that strikes me about your productions is that in seven years, you have produced seven hit songs. On one hand, you are not very prolific, you don’t release a lot of new music. But on the other hand, it is not easy to churn out a sure hit every year.
Vitale: We prefer quality over quantity. Everything that comes out of the studio must be approved and precise. Before starting the interview, we were talking about the vinyl of David Morales’, “Needin’ U”: Before releasing it, he tested it in DJ sets, and only after seeing the public’s reaction did he decide to release it as a single. It is now one of the classics of house music.
De Gregorio: The opposite happened to us. For the third single, after “Lose Control,” we were sure we wanted to release a certain song. It was conceived during the pandemic, so it hadn’t had the opportunity to get played in clubs. After the lockdown, we tested it live. We looked at each other and immediately changed direction. Then we worked on “Paradise.” Testing a track “on field” has always helped us; it’s an advantage of dance music that other genres don’t have.
Meduza
Cosimo Buccolieri/Billboard Italy
–This article originally appeared in Billboard Italy
The fallout from Drake’s feud with Kendrick Lamar hasn’t put a damper on his summer. According to his Honestly, Nevermind collaborator Gordo, the producer hasn’t seen Drake happier. Gordo, formerly known as Carnage, provided an update on the 6 God’s state of mind during a conversation with People in an interview published on Wednesday (July […]
Phish’s Trey Anastasio has 17 years of sobriety under his belt and in late 2023 he paid it forward by opening a residential recovery program, Divided Sky, in his native Vermont with the caseworker who helped him after a 2006 arrest for heroin possession and DWI.
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According to People, the 46-bed facility in Ludlow, VT is a “nonclinical, abstinence-based center that follows the 12-step program” and costs $7,500 for a 30 day stay; financial aid is available for those in need. “I’ve seen people in dire situations come back from this. It’s never too late to have hope,” Anastasio, 59, told the magazine. “Families can be saved.”
The facility’s model is based on The Minnesota recovery center The Retreat, which does not put patients through detox, which Anastasio said helps to keep the cost down. “So basically, you know you’re a drug addict, you’re an alcoholic when you walk in the door. If you need to do detox, we are connected in the local Vermont sober community with places where we would send you to a medical facility to detox,” he said. “Some people need longer than others. There’s a staff that assesses the condition that your loved one is in, and some people would come 20, 30 days, other people might need 90. It’s based on your individual situation. Some people might need longer and that’s perfectly fine.”
Anastasio developed an addiction to OxyContin in 2000 after first taking the prescription painkiller following dental surgery. Within four year, though, the married father of two adult daughters said, “I lost my band, then I almost lost my family,” in reference the substance issues that forced Phish into a two-year hiatus (2000-2002) that led to a reunion and then to another break in 2004 that lasted until 2008. “Drinking and drugging, for me it was a slow death of isolation.”
Anastasio got professional help after a Dec. 15, 2006 arrest in upstate New York on drug and DWI charges. “The minute I got arrested, I was relieved,” he said, adding that when he was handcuffed he “knew it was over.” At the time, prosecutors said Anastasio was arrested for weaving down a rural road near the Vermont border and was facing felony drug possession charges after police found hydrocodone, as well as misdemeanor drug possession charges for heroin, oxycodone and the anti-anxiety drug alprazolam (also known as Xanax).
The jam band leader and solo star pleaded guilty in April 2007 to a felony drug charge and avoided jail time in a plea agreement in which the more serious charges were dropped and he agreed to enter a 14-month drug court program in which he attended meetings and did court-ordered community service. According to People he hasn’t touched drugs or drink since.
Divided Sky’s program director is Melanie Gulde, who served as Anastasio’s caseworker at the time. “She saved my life,” Anastasio said of Gulde. “She’s a badass, but she’s also very loving.” Anastasio began raising the funds to open Divided Sky in 2020 via his “Beacon Jams” residency shows at the Beacon Theatre in New York.
“I hope people take away the fact that humans are resilient. Recovery is the greatest gift we can give ourselves,” said Gulde. “Divided Sky came about as Trey’s desire to give back on a bigger scale. I have had countless people tell me that Trey has been an inspiration for their own recovery. We must do the work, and that is exactly what he does.”
In addition to his ongoing touring and recording with Phish — who recently released their 16th studio album, Evolve — Anastasio has released a dozen albums, including 2022’s Mercy.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
With Kamala Harris poised to possibly become the nation’s first-ever female president, the current VP is already facing a barrage of sexist comments on social media — and Cardi B is having none of it.
After seeing that people online were attacking the Democratic party’s presumptive 2024 nominee — who President Joe Biden endorsed shortly after announcing that he was dropping out of the race last weekend — the rapper took to X Tuesday (July 23) to specifically shut down misogynistic criticism regarding Harris’ husband, lawyer Doug Emhoff.
“What does Kamala Harris husband or relationships have to do wit her credentials?” Cardi tweeted. “Do y’all hire people based on who they f–king??”
The Grammy winner’s comment seemingly comes in response to a wave of attacks baselessly suggesting that Harris has cheated on Emhoff, whom she’s been married to since 2014, in order to achieve career success. Some of the attacks have had racist and antisemitic overtones, with people taking aim at the couple’s interracial relationship and Emhoff’s Jewish descent.
Cardi isn’t the only star to come to Harris’ defense lately. Earlier this week, Lizzo slammed critics who’ve alleged that the former prosecutor “didn’t do anything” during her ongoing tenure as Biden’s vice president, challenging, “Please, for $5,000, do not use Google, tell me what any vice president has ever done during their term that was notable that you noticed.”
“The vice president’s job is to take a backseat and support while the president does everything that’s forward-facing,” the “About Damn Time” had singer added.
Several other musicians have also endorsed Harris over the past few days, from Ariana Grande to Barbra Streisand, Carole King, John Legend and more. As she was quick to remind fans recently, though, Cardi beat most of her peers to the punch, having said in a June livestream before Biden dropped out that she thought Harris should’ve been the Democratic presidential candidate instead.
See Cardi’s tweet defending Kamala Harris below.
What does Kamala Harris husband or relationships have to do wit her credentials? Do y’all hire people based on who they fcking??— Cardi B (@iamcardib) July 23, 2024
Cher‘s life has been so epic that one volume won’t suffice. The singer posted the cover of her upcoming two-part memoir on her Instagram on Wednesday (July 24), revealing a throwback pic from early in her six-decade career and her name splayed in color-shifting font just above.
According to The Hollywood Reporter Cher: The Memoir, Part One, is due out on November 19 through Dey Street Books, an imprint of the William Morrow Group at Harper Collins. “After more than seventy years of fighting to live her life on her own terms, Cher finally reveals her true story in intimate detail, in a two-part memoir,” the publisher wrote in a statement about the book that will chronicle the 78-year-old singer’s childhood and tumultuous marriage to late partner Sonny Bono. “With her trademark honesty and humor, Cher: The Memoir traces how this diamond in the rough succeeded with no plan and little confidence to become the trailblazing superstar the world has been unable to ignore for more than half a century.”
The second part of the anticipated autobiography is slated for release in 2025.
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The singer cemented her pop icon credentials further in December when she earned a No. 1 hit on the Billboard songs chart with “DJ Play a Christmas Song,” tying her with the Rolling Stones as the only acts to have at least one new No. 1 on a Billboard songs chart in each of seven decades from the 1960s through the 2020s.
The road to the memoir has been a long one, with the Cher tweeting in 2018 that the first part of the book would drop in 2020, while also hyping a biopic whose details have not yet been confirmed; in 1998, Cher released a memoir entitled The First Time, a collection of essays that recounted a number of the major first-time events in her life.
Then, on the Tonight Show in November, Cher told Jimmy Fallon that she wasn’t quite ready to share her full story with her fans, saying she didn’t have a title for the book at the time. “I just totally chickened out. I didn’t put in some things that need to be in, and they’re not comfortable,” she told Fallon. “But they need to be put in, so I have to go back and man up… I’ve lived too long and done too much, and so it’s like it should be the encyclopedia.”
The Oscar, Grammy, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning singer/actress who rose to fame in the 1960s as part of the duo Sonny & Cher with Bono is best known for their signature duet “I Got You Babe,” as well as solo hits “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down),” “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves,” “If I Could Turn Back Time” and “Believe,” and acting in films such as Silkwood, Mask, Moonstruck and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Check out the cover of Cher: The Memoir, Part One below.
Put your hands up, they’re playing her song — a billion times and counting. Miley Cyrus‘ smash “Party in the U.S.A.” has surpassed the nine-zeros mark on YouTube, marking her second music video to reach the milestone. Uploaded in September 2009, the Chris Applebaum-directed video finds the then-16-year-old pop star, well, partying in the U.S.A. […]
Broadway fans will soon have to bid “auf wiedersehen” to Eddie Redmayne and Gayle Rankin when they depart from the Tony Award-winning musical Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. But soon after, they’ll be saying “willkommen, bienvenue, welcome” to a new set of Broadway stars. On Wednesday (July 24), the production announced that pop singer […]
