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Bono Wants to Kill Comedians?
U2 singer Bono recently offered an unusual suggestion for fighting terrorism in front of a Senate subcommittee. The singer said that “comedy should be deployed,” arguing that fighting violence with more violence isn’t working, so making fun of terrorists might do the trick. He then offered up sacrificial funny people, saying, “I’m suggesting that the Senate send in Amy Schumer, Chris Rock and Sacha Baron Cohen.” Though he assured the committee he was being serious, he didn’t explain how it would work. ISIS and its ilk are mercilessly mocked by comedians already; is he suggesting an actual comedian helicopter-drop in the heart of the Islamic State?
WARM: Artists Still Fighting Dumb Law
Earlier this month, Bruce Springsteen became the first high-profile artist to cancel a concert in North Carolina due to the state’s law that forces transgender people to use public restrooms that align with the sex listed on their birth certificates. Since then, performers have responded in different ways. Pearl Jam and Ringo Starr have canceled their forthcoming shows, but artists like Cyndi Lauper, Against Me! (fronted by trans singer Laura Jane Grace) and others have decided to play their scheduled N.C. shows and use them as a means to rally people (and raise money) to repeal the law.
COLD” A ‘Pablo’ Suit
When Kanye West released The Life of Pablo on artist-run Tidal service, he tweeted, “My album will never never never be on Apple. And it will never be for sale.” For fans, that seemed like a pretty good reason to sign up for Tidal. But earlier this month, Pablo appeared on Apple Music, Spotify and went on sale. One fan was upset enough about it that he’s proposed a class action lawsuit, saying he and, reportedly, many others were essentially tricked into joining Tidal to be able to hear the album. West’s move to take Pablo wider paid off — after the expanded release, it became the first album to go to No. 1 almost exclusively based on streaming numbers.
This article appears in Apr 20-27, 2016.