The Athens Blur Magazine » Jay-Z

100-Plus Stars to Appear on MTV’s Haiti Benefit

MaggieSummers — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 19:44:21 +0000

MTV’s “Hope for Haiti” television special will air commercial-free this Friday, January 22nd at 8pm on MTV, CNN, VH1 and most every other major network. Jay-Z, Bono, Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay are among the 100-plus stars who will appear on the show.

Jay-Z and U2 will perform a song at a London venue for the special, which will be available for purchase on iTunes soon, reports MTV. The event will be co-hosted by George Clooney, Anderson Cooper and Wyclef Jean.

Expect performances from Dave Matthews Band, Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, Sting, Christina Aguilera, Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Jennifer Hudson and Mary J. Blige. Springsteen, Coldplay, Taylor Swift, Shakira and Rihanna will also be participating in the event. MTV reports that more than 100 stars have signed on to the special.

All of the proceeds raised will go towards Oxfam America, Partners in Health, Red Cross, UNICEF and Wycelf’s Yele Haiti Foundation.

The special sounds like a great effort by the celebrity community, and hopefully it will raise an awesome amount of money to help those suffering in Haiti. Remember, it airs tomorrow night at 8pm ET/PT and you should be able to catch it on several networks.

-Maggie Summers

currently listening to “Volcano” by Beck

Trey Songz, Young Jeezy to join Jay-Z on tour

MaggieSummers — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:39:00 +0000

Last week, Jay-Z announced that Trey Songz and Young Jeezy will be joining him on the next part of his BP3 tour. The dates include the end of February and most of March.

The three, self-dubbed the Mob Squad, are also considering recording an album together. Songz told MTV’s Mixtape Daily recently, “It’s definitely all in the talks. It’s the Mob Squad. Me, Jay, Jeezy, we plan on working together while we on this tour because the energy we have together when we get around each other is amazing. And like I said, all aspects like that on a record is amazing. Maybe while we out on the road we get it done.”

They make a stop at Philips Arena in Atlanta on February 27th. Complete dates are below.

February
20 – Sunrise, Fla. @ Bank Atlantic Center
22 – Houston, Texas @ Toyota Center
23 – Dallas, Texas @ American Airlines Center
25 – New Orleans, La. @ New Orleans Arena
27 – Atlanta, Ga. @ Philips Arena
28 – Greensboro, N.C. @ Greensboro Coliseum Complex

March
2 – New York, N.Y. @ Madison Square Garden
3 – Washington, D.C. @ Verizon Center
5 – Uncasville, Conn. @ Mohegan Sun
6 – East Rutherford, N.J. @ Izod Center
7 – Norfolk, Va. @ Scope Arena
11 – Boston, Mass. @ TD Garden
12 – Uniondale, N.Y. @ Nassau Coliseum
14 – Detroit, Mich. @ The Palace of Auburn Hills
16 – Pittsburgh, Penn. @ Mellon Arena
18 – Chicago, Ill. @ United Center
19 – St. Louis, Mo. @ Scottrade Center
20 – Indianapolis, Ind. @ Conseco Fieldhouse
22 – Denver, Colo. @ Pepsi Center
24 – San Jose, Calif. @ HP Pavilion
26 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Staples Center

-Maggie Summers

currently listening to “Blister in the Sun” by Violent Femmes

Jay-Z And U2 To Collaborate On Haiti Benefit Song

ZackKraimer — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:39:02 +0000

Over the years, artist collaborations have become run-of-the-mill; it’s not often that one stumbles across an album without a track featuring a guest artist. One such collaboration is in the works, but this one has come about as a financial aid gesture in a time of catastrophe. In light of the recent earthquake that ravaged Haiti, Jay-Z and U2 will together record a song to benefit the people of Haiti.

The Swizz Beatz-produced track will most likely appear first on iTunes, and it may very well be the next item available from either artist. This isn’t the first effort made by musicians to contribute to the Haitian relief effort, but as both U2 and Jay-Z are two of the most recognizable figures in music today, the release shouldn’t pass over too many heads.

Though their contribution may seem trite to some, the fact of the matter is that both artists are using the tools most readily available to them to help out some less fortunate individuals, and we should respect their efforts as honest ones.

-Zack Kraimer

currently listening to “Comin’ Home” by Cheeseburger