Random Music News for Monday, January 18, 2016

Isn’t this supposed to be Blue Monday, the most depressing day of the year? It is! Here’s how to beat that. It’s also MLK Day in the US (here’s how Stevie Wonder helped with that.) Let’s now move on with some music news:

1. The final resting place of David Bowie’s ashes will remain a secret because he didn’t want it to turn into a shrine. But people are already talking about where that place might be.
2. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs: The Musical.
3. Apple Music’s iTunes Radio will no longer be free as of January 31. Beats 1, however, will continue to operate and won’t need a subscription.
4. Justin Bieber has been singing the praises of a megachurch called Hillsong. Maybe he’d better look into the church’s past a little more…
5. Is it time for the UK to consider a new national anthem? Some people think so.
6. Elton John mends fences with his mother by paying $60,000 for her hip operation.
7. Think Bieber, Drake and The Weeknd couldn’t get even more pop? Meet Kidz Bop.
8. Cher just donated thousands of bottles of water to Flint, Michigan, where everything is tainted with lead.
9. Here’s the soundtrack from the upcoming HBO rock’n’roll series, Vinyl. It debuts February 14.
10. This new book about the dark side of London club life looks really interesting.
11. There’s a new book called Beatlebone that re-imagines who John Lennon was.
12. Dave Stewart of Eurythmics has a new tell-all book.
13. A new way the Michael Jackson estate is helping at-risk kids.
14. Well, this is an interesting-looking electric guitar.
15. The 100 most-interesting podcasts for 2016.