Eminem became the first artist to sell 1 million digital copies of a single album

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With music magazines powering down their printing presses, record companies slashing expense accounts, venerable chains like Tower Records closing shop, and even A-list pop stars failing to fill seats in this nation's concert venues (even with Groupon's help), it seems clear that the music industry is in serious trouble. But rock 'n' roll is not dead, dear readers. According to an encouraging mid-year report by Nielsen SoundScan, album sales experienced their first boost since SoundScan started tracking digital sales in 2004--up 8.5 percent from last year's all-time lows. This is good news, and on top of that, this week Eminem became the first artist to sell 1 million digital copies of a single album. Physical album sales may be down 11 percent--that's the bad news--but digital album sales are in fact up 19 percent, so maybe downloading (at least the legal kind) isn't killing music after all.
Eminem's aptly titled Recovery passed the 1 million digital mark this week; of this milestone, his manager Paul Rosenberg declared in a happy statement: "Over the years, we've made a concerted effort to engage Em's online fanbase, so this achievement is especially rewarding." Lady Gaga's The Fame is close to joining Eminem, with more than 900,000 digital sales and counting, but it's looking likely that Adele will actually be the next member of the million-album-download club, since her sophomore smash 21 has already sold a whopping 992,000 digital copies in just 19 weeks.
Of course, in an era when individual digital songs sell by the millions (the most-downloaded track of all time, the Black Eyed Peas' "I Got A Feeling," has sold seven times more copies than Recovery; Flo Rida, Gaga, Jason Mraz, and Ke$ha have all sold 5 million or more copies of a single song; and more than 200 songs have sold 2 million downloads), Recovery's digital numbers seem a tad less impressive. But album sales are moving in the right direction--UP, that is--so allow us to celebrate a little.
Maybe the Stateside launch of the British digital music service Spotify will help the music biz even more. This week Spotify announced on its website that its innovative free streaming service, which basically makes it possible to turn any computer into a never-ending jukebox of one's dreams, will soon be available in America. Spotify's slogan is "Any track, any time, anywhere. And it's free," which might make it seem like record labels wouldn't exactly be thrilled about this company's existence. But four major labels have already signed off on Spotify's U.S. launch, which will generate revenue via a combination of advertising, subscription services, and digital downloads. Will Spotify revive the music business, or hurt it? Apparently we will all find out "soon," according to Spotify's cryptic announcement.
Music industry machinations may have dominated headlines this week, but the artists behind the music kept pretty busy themselves. Bow Wow revealed that he has a secret daughter; ex-Oasis man Noel Gallagher held a London press conference to announce two forthcoming solo albums and, of course, talk smack about his estranged little brother Liam; Ghostface Killah was sued for allegedly illegally sampling the "Iron Man" theme; "American Idol" castoff Pia Toscano signed the dotted line on her Interscope Records contract, then hit the road with her Season 10 "Idol" castmates for a big summer tour; a bunch of Latin jazz musicians threatened to sue the Grammys; Gucci Mane was freed from prison; and, back to the subject of sales, Justin Bieber may sell downloads, but pretty much no one wanted to buy his cover issue of Vanity Fair this week.
And finally, in heavier, sadder news, Nicki Minaj's cousin, 27-year-old Nicholas Telemaque, was shot dead in Brooklyn in what police believe was a case of mistaken identity--and a lost track she recorded last year, "We Miss You," seemed to eerily predict his fate. We send our condolences to Nicki and her entire family.

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Eminem, Lil Wayne Added To Guinness Book Of World Records

Eminem And Lil Wayne Break Guinness World Records For Social Media
The Guinness Book Of World Records is announcing the latest accolades in social media to coincide with Thursday’s global Social Media Day.
Including in that record breaking list are two of Hip-Hop’s biggest acts, Eminem and Lil Wayne, both of which broke records through Facebook.
Eminem made the book for his official Facebook page which earned 42.05 million likes while Wayne was noticed for garnering “Most Likes” on a Facebook item with 668,198 on his official page.
The record number was in response to a post made on 15 February as an attempt to set the record for the “Most likes in 24 hours in response to an earlier attempt at the same record by Oreo.
The cookie brand held the record for just 5 hours before it was snatched away by Lil Wayne and his army of fans.
The title Most likes on a Facebook item in 24 hours is also held by the official page for Lil Wayne, a.k.a Dewayne Michael Carter, Jr. (USA) with 588,243 likes.
Singer Justin Bieber was also recognized for having “The Most “disliked” video on YouTube for “Baby”, with 1,490,076.

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Lil Wayne & Eminem Headline 2011 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival

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Lil Wayne has been confirmed as one of the main performers at the 2011 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival that will take place in Manchester, Tennessee from June 9 – 12, 2011. Tickets go on sale February 19 at noon EST, and you can purchase tickets from the Bonnaroo website here! Don’t forget, Tune is also performing at the 2011 Bamboozle Music Festival from April 29 to May 1, 2011!

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Eminem Reveals He's Still Grappling With 'Trust Issues'

Detroit MC tells Rolling Stone that with women, in particular, 'You always wonder what their real motives are.'

Eminem has been basking in success this year. He was named 2010's Hottest MC in the Game, and on Sunday, he took the award for Best Hip-Hop Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards. But in a revealing interview with Rolling Stone, the rapper opens up about getting through some hard times.
Em is featured on the cover of the magazine's upcoming November 25 issue, excerpts of which surfaced on the Internet on Monday (November 8), and during the sit-down, Slim Shady delves into why it's difficult for him to share his world with women — and everyone else.
"I have trust issues — with women, friends, whatever. You always wonder what their real motives are," the Detroit MC admitted. "I've got a small circle of friends, and it's a lot of the same friends I've known forever. Right now, that works for me.
"I came out of some difficult things these past couple of years," he continued. "I kind of feel like I'm just now finding my footing, so I want to make sure that's secure before I go out and do anything else. I need to keep working on myself for a while."
Em went on to describe how difficult it would be to even begin a relationship.
"As far as going out, like dinner and a movie — I just can't. Going out in public is just too crazy," he said when asked if he was dating. "I mean, I'd like to be in a relationship again someday. Who doesn't? It's just hard to meet new people, in my position."
Eminem is wrapping up an eventful year with the release of his highly successful Recovery LP, Home and Home Tour and guest features alongside B.o.B ("Airplanes") and Nicki Minaj ("Roman's Revenge"), among others.
What do you think of Em revealing that he still struggles with trust issues? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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