Random music news for Tuesday, February 19, 2019

I rolled up the rim to win and all I got was four more weeks of winter. Now all I can offer is this round-up of music news for February 19, 2019.

1. Weekly Canadian music sales and streaming stats last week vs. the same time last year: Total albums, -21.5%; CDs, -22.1%; digital albums, -22.1%; digital tracks, -32%; vinyl LPs, 14.1%; on-demand audio streams, +37.6% (1.316 billion streams last week.)
2. Did an NYPD commander once order that 50 Cent should be shot on sight? There’s an investigation.
3. R Kelly’s lawyer says there’s no truth that a grand jury has been called to investigate a newly-uncovered sex tape featuring an underaged girl.
4. Diddy’s Madame Tussaud’s wax statue in New York was decapitated.
5. When the power goes out in the middle of a gig, you do the best you can. Ask the RHCP.
6. Here’s what happens when you create a fake record label and upload music to Spotify.
7. Rumour: The next edition of Apple AirPods may also come in black. A little more discrete, you know?
8. My idea of musical hell: a collaboration between Kanye West and Kenny G.
9. People in the US are having a hard time wrapping their heads around the fact that smart speakers can play terrestrial radio station.
10. This is a milestone: The New York Times is now making more money from digital than from print.
11. Vinyl: DEFINITELY not a fad. See?
12. Here are the nominees for the 2019 Indigenous Music Awards.
13. The LA Times took a look at behind the scenes of the KISS farewell tour.
14. If you’re an artist uploading music for the rest of us to hear, PLEASE FOLLOW THIS ADVICE.