20050531
Suicide Sid
Headline: Imus Sports Anchor Pulled For Minogue Remarks
Abstract: Infinity sports WFAN New York midday co-host and Westwood One-syndicated “Imus In The Morning” sports anchor Sid Rosenberg has been pulled from the Imus show while management mulls his fate, according to the New York Daily News and New York Post. At...made regarding singer Kylie Minogue and her just-announced bout...
Date: May 28, 2005
Publication: Billboard Radio Monitor
Widely Considered the High Point of Kylie's "Fever" Tour
The Crying Game Medley
**Performed live only**
**Includes elements from the songs The Crying Game, Where Is The Feeling?, Put Yourself In My Place, Finer Feelings & Dangerous Game**
Where Is The Feeling (BIR Soundtrack Mix)
Wilf Smarties/Jayn Hanna
(Spoken) So why do I still feel this way?
Detached and vulnerable
The world on my shoulders
With just a wish for what it's worth
Just tell me everything's gonna be alright
The Crying Game
Geoff Stephens
I know all there is to know
About the crying game
I've had my share
Of the crying game
First there are kisses
Then there are sighs
And then before you know where you are
You're saying goodbye
One day soon
I'm gonna tell the moon
About the crying game
And if he knows
Maybe he'll explain
Why there are heartaches
Why there are tears
And what to do
To stop feeling blue
When love disappears
Put Yourself In My Place
Jimmy Harry
Mmmm, ahhhh
I can't take this situation
It's making me feel so blue
One moment you walked into my life
And now you're saying that we're through
I hear that you're in love now
Oh babe I don't know what to say
I can't believe that I still feel this way
I hear that you're in love now
Babe I don't know what to say
But before you decide
You won't be mine
Put yourself in my place
The circle will come around
You better put yourself (put yourself)
In my place
When your lovers bring you down
And there's no-one else around
You better put yourself
In My Place
In my place
Don't you know that
The circle will come around
Finer Feelings
Mike Stock/Pete Waterman
But what is love
Without the finer feelings?
It's just sex
Without the sexual healing
Passion dies
Without some tender meaning
It ain't love with out the finer feelings
Without the finer feelings
It's just sex
Without the sexual healing
Passion dies
Without some tender meaning
It ain't love with out the finer feelings
Dangerous Game
Steve Anderson/David Seaman
But those feelings still remain
And the embers feed the flame
How I hope you feel the same
So our love may grow again
The Crying Game (Reprise)
Geoff Stephens
Don't want no more
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
(Don't want no more)
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
(Don't want no more)
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
(Don't want no more)
Of the crying game
Don't want no more
(Don't want no more)
Of the crying game
20050524
Behind the Scenes
INTERVIEWS
Name: Michael Rooney
Job Title: Choreographer
How did you get to work with Kylie?
Director Dawn Shadsforth had requested me for Kylie's new Video 'Can't Get You Out Of My Head'. I was so thrilled to get that call from my agent. I packed my bags as fast as I could and got to London lickety-split. I do not know if Kylie knows this, but I made up all that choreography in my hotel room. I wanted to keep those movements tight and so I forced myself to rehearse in a 5X5 area! The rest is well... you know, MTV GOLD!
What does your job entail and how many people are involved in your area of tour preparation?
My part of the job is to choreograph and stage the tour and to follow William Baker's vision. I am also responsible for keeping the dancers on their toes and to make sure that all numbers are polished.
How much preparation goes into a tour of this scale and when does your involvement begin?
I started at the end of 2004 for this amazing tour when I auditioned dancers in London. And I usually prep for a big job like this about 3 weeks before I actually start to rehearse with Kylie and the dancers. Again following William Baker's lead and the Musical Director Steve Anderson's tracks, I like to close my eyes and envisage how the numbers could be. I do not like to choreograph right away. The movement usually comes to me at odd times. Sometimes in my sleep-when my subconscious can do it's best work. We had about 5 weeks of intense rehearsal for this tour. A lot of blood, sweat and tears!
How does this tour differ from Kylie's previous tours?
I think what is so wonderful about this tour is that Kylie is now able to express herself in a more womanly fashion. Doing all her number one hits in a much more mature way. Gracing the stage with her zest for her fans, keeps this singing and dancing Diva wanting to constantly grow as an Artist! Love that in her!
What is it like working with Kylie?
I get this question asked all the time and I must say again... I cant wait to get to rehearsals with Kylie, she makes my job so much fun! She works so hard and she picks up choreography in a snap! She knows how to move that body of hers, so she will tell me things that she wants incorporated into the show and I will try my best to make those moves happen in the right place on the tour.
I have never worked with someone like her before. She sings live... did you hear me? I said Kylie sings LIVE! Thats almost unheard of these days. She holds onto that microphone and switches it back and forth while doing all these incredible movements and lifts. I am just amazed at how much she memorizes all the moves with that microphone. She is a true professional and I am glad that I had a chance to choreograph for such a nice BOSS!
Best tour story?
When William Baker came into my rehearsals and saw some of the numbers that I had choreographed for the first time and at the end he told me he was GOBSMACKED!
Worst tour nightmare?
When at the last minute things get cut or changed and you have less then 24 hours to make those corrections. But I do love a challenge!
What is your favourite Kylie song?
UGHHHH!!! What a hard question! All of her songs have so much meaning. A lot of thought is put into the fact that even though Kylie is the POP DIVA of the world her lyrics are heart felt and meaningful, saying that I will have to say that my favorite song of Kylie's is 'Put Yourself In My Place'.
[Evidently related to Mickey Rooney, a fairly good dancer in his own day.]
20050522
Guardian Unlimited | Arts features
[This is not a very pleasant piece but since it reflects the impact Kylie's life and news is having on someone--not a Kylie fan--it is inmcluded here for reference.]
She seemed almost flawless, an otherworldly embodiment of physical perfection. But now, like thousands of ordinary women every year, Kylie Minogue has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Libby Brooks examines why Kylie's illness matters to us
Wednesday May 18, 2005
The Guardian
Kylie Monogue has cancelled an Australian tour and a headline performance at Glastonbury festival after being diagnosed with cancer. Photograph: Matt Dunham/Reuters
I would never have described myself as a fan. Which made it even more surprising, that whump in the stomach when I heard on the morning headlines that Kylie Minogue had postponed the Australian leg of her world tour after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Sandwiched on Radio 4 between a discussion on the role of Mary, mother of Jesus, in the Anglican and Catholic faiths and an interview with the home secretary Charles Clarke, it sounded like news from a parallel planet, as though someone had inadvertently mixed up a page of Heat magazine with the Today programme's running order. But it was true, and I felt sad. As did Audrey and Sophie and Nicky and the other friends of mine who had heard the news too and texted before I left my flat for work.
Of course there's something enormously disingenuous about feeling terribly distressed when an attractive 37-year-old celebrity has breast cancer. In common with most people reading this piece, I know a number of women who have suffered from this disease. One in nine women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime. Some, including my own mother, survive it. Others do not. Minogue's cancer appears to have been caught at an early stage - she would have been checked regularly while touring for insurance purposes - and survival rates have never been higher.
So there are no obituaries to be written today, other than for the myth that mere celebrity itself inoculates against life's quotidian dramas. Minogue's celebrated bottom may be just as pert as it was yesterday, but she is no longer an object of envy. It seems an anathema that a global brand such as Minogue might lose all her hair during a course of chemotherapy. But though she has rendered her body perfect for public consumption, that same body has not granted her immunity.
It may sound strange, but the diagnosis is also a jolting reminder that Minogue is as much blood and bone as the rest of us. She never seemed to have so mundane a component as cells. Even in the era of the I Should be so Lucky bubble perm, she was dismissed as manufactured thanks to her association with Messrs Stock, Aitken and Waterman. And as her different incarnations multiplied - Club Minogue, Sex-kitten Minogue, Indie Minogue, Avant garde Minogue - so her image became more and more highly confected until, even in the flesh, she looked airbrushed. But now the plastic has deferred to the corporeal.
For all the visual stimuli her perfect proportions have offered, there is something curiously sexless about Minogue. She is sexualised, rather than erotic. Even those notorious gold hotpants had a cabaret feel about them, a cheeky wink rather than a full-frontal come-on. This may explain why, in the current era of Global Minogue, the whole world has taken to her. Everyone loves Minogue, from the lad mag readers to the pre-teen shriekers to the crowd at GAY.
And for those of us who grew up with Minogue, there's a further appeal. It's a shared knowledge that somewhere beneath the glitter and the gloss and the smooth, smooth hair here's Charlene, her Neighbours character, in a frothy wedding dress, stepping out of Erinsborough church with Jason Donovan on her arm. As someone who spent a succession of school discos attempting the Locomotion, I nurse a particular fondness for this woman who began her rocketing trajectory at a point when celebrity had not yet begun to eat its own tail. I would imagine that if Abi Titmuss was diagnosed with gallstones tomorrow she would gladly have the surgery live on air and then auction the scalpel to the highest bidder. Minogue, in contrast, has retained a certain freshness, a lack of cynicism and an accessibility.
Perhaps this is a consequence of that ageless, almost ethereal quality in Minogue's persona - she was well cast as the absinthe fairy in the musical Moulin Rouge. This never-quite-grown quality also seemed evident in her relationships - often brief and blazing, never quite reaching the stage of steady longevity (though her current romance with the French actor Olivier Martinez may be heading towards it). It is notable that she is still singing about love at first sight.
And here is the rub. Despite her wealth, her financial wit, her international status, over the past five years especially, the public discourse on Minogue has increasingly surrounded her romantic disappointments. Each interviewer puts the same questions, and she bats back an eloquent testament to her heartfelt desire to settle down, have children, and dust shelves. The notion of the professionally stellar but romantically defunct woman is an appealing template for habitual hounders of Modern Misses. Women are expected to crave husbands and babies. And when they do not - or are seen not to - they are punished for it. There's still a sense that women get away with their public successes, and only for so long. But how are they to be punished?
After turning 30 myself last summer, as a childless woman who is lucky enough to love her job, I'm well aware of what the statistical jeremiads have in store for the likes of me. I'm less likely to get married than to fracture my femur in three places while on a drunken bender, and likely to find my ovaries shrivelled to the size of raisins by the time I realise that child-rearing is a woman's ultimate fulfilment, and so on.
But there is one piece of information which it is difficult to sweep aside along with all that insidious, anti-women cant. I know that early childbearing and prolonged breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast cancer. I know that, although 80% of breast cancers are diagnosed in women over 50, those diagnosed in women under 40 tend to be more aggressive. It follows, then, that women who pursue their careers into their 30s, enjoying economic independence and professional fulfilment while controlling their fertility, are more at risk.
All this is a short hop from the Victorian belief that to be female was to be essentially physically vulnerable. But it seems like the worst kind of practical joke that a woman of any age should be punished with cancer, and the most frequently occurring of gender-specific cancers, simply because she has breasts. And even worse that, for younger women, cancer should puncture the bubble of possibility in the crudest of ways.
Feminism has often been described as a movement against nature, and here is the backlash at its most basic. I hope that no one will suggest that Minogue's cancer is a punishment for making her own choices but I suspect that it will be implied everywhere. (Equally, I hope that her experience will not be elevated as somehow more tragic or more significant than all the other women who were diagnosed this week.)
Naturally, choice is a vexatious element in this context. It would be miserable if Minogue's illness were taken as further evidence of why careers don't make women happy (or healthy), and why public and private lives are impossible to juggle. Even the cheerleaders of progress and independence seem confounded by the weary ping-pong over how much satisfaction a woman deserves to be able to fit into her life. Life is not all about choices - when to work, when to fall in love, when to procreate. Much of our time is spent on the things that you don't - or can't - choose, like a diagnosis of breast cancer. And it is how we cope with those events can be the hardest, and most meaningful, choices of all.
The girl who fell to earth
[This is not a very pleasant piece but since it reflects the impact Kylie's life and news is having on someone--not a Kylie fan--it is inmcluded here for reference.]
She seemed almost flawless, an otherworldly embodiment of physical perfection. But now, like thousands of ordinary women every year, Kylie Minogue has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Libby Brooks examines why Kylie's illness matters to us
Wednesday May 18, 2005
The Guardian
Kylie Monogue has cancelled an Australian tour and a headline performance at Glastonbury festival after being diagnosed with cancer. Photograph: Matt Dunham/Reuters
I would never have described myself as a fan. Which made it even more surprising, that whump in the stomach when I heard on the morning headlines that Kylie Minogue had postponed the Australian leg of her world tour after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Sandwiched on Radio 4 between a discussion on the role of Mary, mother of Jesus, in the Anglican and Catholic faiths and an interview with the home secretary Charles Clarke, it sounded like news from a parallel planet, as though someone had inadvertently mixed up a page of Heat magazine with the Today programme's running order. But it was true, and I felt sad. As did Audrey and Sophie and Nicky and the other friends of mine who had heard the news too and texted before I left my flat for work.
Of course there's something enormously disingenuous about feeling terribly distressed when an attractive 37-year-old celebrity has breast cancer. In common with most people reading this piece, I know a number of women who have suffered from this disease. One in nine women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime. Some, including my own mother, survive it. Others do not. Minogue's cancer appears to have been caught at an early stage - she would have been checked regularly while touring for insurance purposes - and survival rates have never been higher.
So there are no obituaries to be written today, other than for the myth that mere celebrity itself inoculates against life's quotidian dramas. Minogue's celebrated bottom may be just as pert as it was yesterday, but she is no longer an object of envy. It seems an anathema that a global brand such as Minogue might lose all her hair during a course of chemotherapy. But though she has rendered her body perfect for public consumption, that same body has not granted her immunity.
It may sound strange, but the diagnosis is also a jolting reminder that Minogue is as much blood and bone as the rest of us. She never seemed to have so mundane a component as cells. Even in the era of the I Should be so Lucky bubble perm, she was dismissed as manufactured thanks to her association with Messrs Stock, Aitken and Waterman. And as her different incarnations multiplied - Club Minogue, Sex-kitten Minogue, Indie Minogue, Avant garde Minogue - so her image became more and more highly confected until, even in the flesh, she looked airbrushed. But now the plastic has deferred to the corporeal.
For all the visual stimuli her perfect proportions have offered, there is something curiously sexless about Minogue. She is sexualised, rather than erotic. Even those notorious gold hotpants had a cabaret feel about them, a cheeky wink rather than a full-frontal come-on. This may explain why, in the current era of Global Minogue, the whole world has taken to her. Everyone loves Minogue, from the lad mag readers to the pre-teen shriekers to the crowd at GAY.
And for those of us who grew up with Minogue, there's a further appeal. It's a shared knowledge that somewhere beneath the glitter and the gloss and the smooth, smooth hair here's Charlene, her Neighbours character, in a frothy wedding dress, stepping out of Erinsborough church with Jason Donovan on her arm. As someone who spent a succession of school discos attempting the Locomotion, I nurse a particular fondness for this woman who began her rocketing trajectory at a point when celebrity had not yet begun to eat its own tail. I would imagine that if Abi Titmuss was diagnosed with gallstones tomorrow she would gladly have the surgery live on air and then auction the scalpel to the highest bidder. Minogue, in contrast, has retained a certain freshness, a lack of cynicism and an accessibility.
Perhaps this is a consequence of that ageless, almost ethereal quality in Minogue's persona - she was well cast as the absinthe fairy in the musical Moulin Rouge. This never-quite-grown quality also seemed evident in her relationships - often brief and blazing, never quite reaching the stage of steady longevity (though her current romance with the French actor Olivier Martinez may be heading towards it). It is notable that she is still singing about love at first sight.
And here is the rub. Despite her wealth, her financial wit, her international status, over the past five years especially, the public discourse on Minogue has increasingly surrounded her romantic disappointments. Each interviewer puts the same questions, and she bats back an eloquent testament to her heartfelt desire to settle down, have children, and dust shelves. The notion of the professionally stellar but romantically defunct woman is an appealing template for habitual hounders of Modern Misses. Women are expected to crave husbands and babies. And when they do not - or are seen not to - they are punished for it. There's still a sense that women get away with their public successes, and only for so long. But how are they to be punished?
After turning 30 myself last summer, as a childless woman who is lucky enough to love her job, I'm well aware of what the statistical jeremiads have in store for the likes of me. I'm less likely to get married than to fracture my femur in three places while on a drunken bender, and likely to find my ovaries shrivelled to the size of raisins by the time I realise that child-rearing is a woman's ultimate fulfilment, and so on.
But there is one piece of information which it is difficult to sweep aside along with all that insidious, anti-women cant. I know that early childbearing and prolonged breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast cancer. I know that, although 80% of breast cancers are diagnosed in women over 50, those diagnosed in women under 40 tend to be more aggressive. It follows, then, that women who pursue their careers into their 30s, enjoying economic independence and professional fulfilment while controlling their fertility, are more at risk.
All this is a short hop from the Victorian belief that to be female was to be essentially physically vulnerable. But it seems like the worst kind of practical joke that a woman of any age should be punished with cancer, and the most frequently occurring of gender-specific cancers, simply because she has breasts. And even worse that, for younger women, cancer should puncture the bubble of possibility in the crudest of ways.
Feminism has often been described as a movement against nature, and here is the backlash at its most basic. I hope that no one will suggest that Minogue's cancer is a punishment for making her own choices but I suspect that it will be implied everywhere. (Equally, I hope that her experience will not be elevated as somehow more tragic or more significant than all the other women who were diagnosed this week.)
Naturally, choice is a vexatious element in this context. It would be miserable if Minogue's illness were taken as further evidence of why careers don't make women happy (or healthy), and why public and private lives are impossible to juggle. Even the cheerleaders of progress and independence seem confounded by the weary ping-pong over how much satisfaction a woman deserves to be able to fit into her life. Life is not all about choices - when to work, when to fall in love, when to procreate. Much of our time is spent on the things that you don't - or can't - choose, like a diagnosis of breast cancer. And it is how we cope with those events can be the hardest, and most meaningful, choices of all.
20050521
Kylie 'fine' after cancer surgery
Singer Kylie Minogue has had a cancerous lump removed from her breast in what doctors described as successful surgery, at a Melbourne hospital.
"Her spirits are high and she's feeling fine," said surgeon Jenny Senior, who described her as the "perfect patient". The operation was carried out at the St Frances Xavier Cabrini Hospital.
The Australian singer's announcement on Tuesday that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer attracted sympathy from her many fans around the world.
Donations
"I am very pleased to be able to confirm that the operation was successful," said Dr Senior, who performed the operation on Friday afternoon.
"I feel confident that we caught the cancer in time and that she is now on the road to complete recovery," said the surgeon, who passed on the singer's thanks to all her friends and supporters.
The 36-year-old singer, who had to cancel the Australian leg of her "Showgirl" world tour to undergo urgent treatment, is said to be surrounded by her closest family as well as French actor boyfriend Olivier Martinez.
Minogue's UK spokesman Murray Chalmers said he could give no details of how the singer's treatment would progress, or say what kind of surgery she had undergone. But he said the singer was in "very good spirits".
Dr Sarah Rawlings, head of policy at the charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: "Our thoughts and best wishes are with Kylie at this time. We are pleased to hear the surgery appears to have been successful."
Minogue, who has had 17 Top 10 hits in the UK since her 1988 number one I Should Be So Lucky, has sold an estimated 40m records, as well as winning an Emmy.
Fans of the singer are said to have donated 8,000 Australian dollars (£3,300) to a specially-created Kylie Minogue Breast Cancer Fund in its first 24 hours.
Breast cancer is the primary cause of cancer death among Australian women, and second only to lung cancer in the US and UK.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/entertainment/4568443.stm
Published: 2005/05/21 16:15:55 GMT
© BBC MMV
Google Alert for: kylie minogue
Minogue clan supports KylieNews24 - Cape Town,South Africa
International superstar Kylie Minogue is in her Melbourne hometown receiving treatment for breast cancer that doctors said was detected before it could spread ...
See all stories on this topic
Minogue fans give
Miami Herald - FL,USA
Hundreds of Australian fans of pop princess Kylie Minogue have donated
money refunded from canceled concerts to breast cancer charities, according to IMDB.com. ...
See all stories on this topic
Singer to singer: Etheridge offers Minogue cancer advice
Arizona Republic - Phoenix,AZ,USA
If Kylie Minogue needs a little support as she begins treatment for breast cancer, she need look only as far as the celebrity community....
See all stories on this topic
Kylie Minogue told cancer hasn't spread
FemaleFirst.co.uk - Ashton-in-Makerfield,Wigan,UK
However, physicians could still recommend that Kylie have a mastectomy, the removal of the whole breast, if she is found to have an aggressive form of the ...
See all stories on this topic
Kylie Minogue to Fans: I am Sorry
Fashion Monitor Toronto - Canada
Kylie Minogue's tour, Showgirl, has been postponed; singer was scheduled to headline the prestigious Glastonbury music festival in England in late June. ...
See all stories on this topic
Kylie Minogue Must Have Surgery
Gainesville Sun - Gainesville,FL,USA
Kylie Minogue, who has been diagnosed with breast cancer, was expected to have surgery this week. "Kylie is currently undergoing tests at a first-class medical ...
Madonna urges fans to pray for Kylie Minogue
SouthFlorida.com - Fort Lauderdale,FL,USA
Pop superstar Madonna has urged fans to pray for Kylie Minogue, who is battling breast cancer. The singer took time out to post ...
Kylie Minogue
TheDay (subscription) - New London,CT,USA
Kylie Minogue, who has been diagnosed with breast cancer, was expected to have surgery this week. "Kylie is currently undergoing ...
20050519
Donate to the Kylie Minogue Breast Cancer Fund
Kylie Minogue's manager, Terry Blamey and her family have nominated The Cancer Council as their preferred cancer charity for those wishing to make donations to support breast cancer research, education and patient support in light of Ms Minogue's breast cancer diagnosis.
The Daily Telegraph | Kylie thanks fans, op this week
"Kylie is currently undergoing tests at a first-class medical facility in Melbourne in preparation for an operation this week by one of Australia's leading surgeons," Minogue's manager Terry Blamey said today.
"Thankfully tests so far have confirmed the earlier diagnosis that the cancer appears to be confined to the breast."
. . .
"My heartfelt thanks to the incredible number of people who have sent messages of love and support over the last two days," Minogue said in a statement earlier today.
"I want to reassure you that I am being well taken care of."
Minogue's operation is expected to take place at Melbourne's Cabrini Hospital.
. . .
"Olivier is by my side and I have a lot of family and friends around me," Minogue said.
"I would also like to extend my best wishes to all of the other women around Australia and around the world who are dealing with the same illness."
. . .
"'Kylie's been touched by the many fans who have asked if they can send cards or flowers,' Blamey said.
'She has suggested that instead well-wishers might like to make a small donation to the Cancer Council (www.cancervic.org.au/kylie) in her name.' "
"Kylie is currently undergoing tests at a first-class medical facility in Melbourne in preparation for an operation this week by one of Australia's leading surgeons," Minogue's manager Terry Blamey said today.
"Thankfully tests so far have confirmed the earlier diagnosis that the cancer appears to be confined to the breast."
. . .
"My heartfelt thanks to the incredible number of people who have sent messages of love and support over the last two days," Minogue said in a statement earlier today.
"I want to reassure you that I am being well taken care of."
Minogue's operation is expected to take place at Melbourne's Cabrini Hospital.
. . .
"Olivier is by my side and I have a lot of family and friends around me," Minogue said.
"I would also like to extend my best wishes to all of the other women around Australia and around the world who are dealing with the same illness."
. . .
"'Kylie's been touched by the many fans who have asked if they can send cards or flowers,' Blamey said.
'She has suggested that instead well-wishers might like to make a small donation to the Cancer Council (www.cancervic.org.au/kylie) in her name.' "
I think this is typical tabloid fiction
dailyrecord - KYLIE'S ' 'HONEYMOON' BEFORE H HEARTBREAK: "KYLIE'S ' 'HONEYMOON' BEFORE H HEARTBREAK May 19 2005
BRAVE AUSSIE SINGER GOES INTO HOSPITAL AS TREATMENT STARTS Cancer-hit star's nights of love in luxury hotel
By Hilary Morgan
KYLIE Minogue and boyfriend Olivier Martinez hid away like a honeymoon couple just days before the singer discovered she had breast cancer.
It emerged last night that the couple spent a few days at the presidential suite of Melbourne's plush Grand Hyatt Hotel last week. . .
As friends predicted a wedding could be on the cards once Kylie recovers, staff at the hotel said they had been holed up in their suite 'like honeymooners'."
Music news - Overwhelming support for Kylie: "'I was so looking forward to bringing the Showgirl tour to Australian audiences, and am sorry to have to disappoint my fans,' she said.
'Nevertheless hopefully all will work out fine and I'll be back with you all again.'
Kylie has sold 40 million records and had 30 consecutive Top 20 singles in Britain since starting her pop career with I Should Be Lucky in 1988."
'Nevertheless hopefully all will work out fine and I'll be back with you all again.'
Kylie has sold 40 million records and had 30 consecutive Top 20 singles in Britain since starting her pop career with I Should Be Lucky in 1988."
20050518
New York Post Online Edition:
BREAST CANCER HITS KYLIE
By BILL HOFFMANN
----------------------------------------------
Grammy winner Kylie Minogue stunned fans when she said she has cancer.
May 18, 2005 -- Gutsy pop star Kylie Minogue — facing emergency surgery for breast cancer — vowed last night to beat the disease and return to performing as soon as possible.
"Hopefully all will work out fine and I'll be back with you all again soon. I am sorry I have to disappoint my fans," the 36-year-old hitmaker said.
Minogue, whose hits include "Can't Get You Out of My Head" and "The Loco-Motion," was forced to cancel her "Showgirl" world tour, the biggest of her career.
She was resting at her family's home in Melbourne, Australia, as she prepared to kick off the Down Under leg of the tour Saturday, when tests detected "early breast cancer" needing immediate attention, her management team said.
Last night, the Grammy-winning entertainer's family and friends, including her pop-star kid sister Danni and Elton John, were praying for her recovery.
"We are all very optimistic that everything will be OK," said Danni, 33.
Her promoter, Michael Gudinski, said: "The one thing I know about Kylie is she's a fighter, and we're all thinking very, very positively and can't wait for the day she is smiling and back in action.
"But she's got a few tough weeks ahead of her. Let's all keep our fingers crossed."
Kylie's boyfriend, French actor Oliver Martinez, was at her side last night.
Dr. Julia Smith, a top oncologist at NYU Medical Center, told The Post that while the disease is serious, "if she has effective therapy at an early stage, she has a good chance of beating it."
One out of every 257 women in their 30s will be diagnosed with breast cancer, experts said.
Notables who have successfully battled the dread disease include Melissa Etheridge, Anastacia, Olivia Newton-John, Kate Jackson, Nancy Reagan, Gloria Steinem and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
Kylie's dad, Ron, fought prostate cancer four years ago and doctors note that women with any kind of cancer in the family are at a higher risk of developing breast cancer at an early age.
About 5 to 10 percent of breast cancers are thought to be triggered by inherited genes.
BILLBOARD
Edited By Jonathan Cohen. May 17, 2005, 9:45 AM ET
Kylie Minogue Diagnosed With Breast Cancer
Australian pop icon Kylie Minogue has been diagnosed with breast cancer, her management representatives said today (May 17). All remaining dates of her "Showgirl" tour, including concerts in Australia and Asia, will be postponed.
According to a statement from Frontier Touring Co., the singer was diagnosed with "early breast cancer" while visiting her family in Melbourne this week.
Minogue, 36, was due to begin her Australian concerts at the Sydney Superdome on Thursday (May 19) before embarking on a tour of Asia. Her planned headline slot at Glastonbury Festival in England next month will be canceled.
"I was so looking forward to bringing the Showgirl tour to Australian audiences, and am sorry to have to disappoint my fans," Minogue says in a statement. "Nevertheless hopefully all will work out fine and I'll be back with you all again soon."
Minogue's sister Dannii, who had a string of top 10 U.K. chart hits during the 1990s, remains upbeat on the health scare. "Although as the cancer has been diagnosed at such an early stage we are all very optimistic that everything will be OK," she says in a statement.
On another positive note, Melbourne-based Frontier Touring says those who missed out on the tour Down Under should "hang onto their tickets pending the announcement of new Showgirl dates."
Minogue's enduring popularity in Britain was confirmed this year when the London leg of her tour stretched to seven performances at the Earls Court venue, breaking the record number of nights played by a solo female artist there. Madonna previously had that record with six nights in 2001. Minogue's May 7 final performance at the 18,500-seat capacity venue aired on national television network Channel 4.
In this week's Billboard Boxscore, the artist occupies the top two slots stemming from the Earls Court dates and a five-night run of sellouts in Manchester, pulling in combined grosses of more than $12.3 million.
The "Showgirl" dates also helped push her 2004 hits album "Ultimate Kylie" (Parlophone) up to 58-38 this week on the U.K. albums chart. In the United Kingdom, "Ultimate Kylie" has certified doubled platinum with shipments in excess of 600,000 units during 23 weeks on the chart. It has also garnered an IFPI Platinum Europe award, for European shipments of 1 million copies.
-- Lars Brandle, London
Find this article at:
http://www.billboard.com/bb/icopyright_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000921766
© 2005 VNU eMedia Inc. All rights reserved.
20050517
Link to LiMBO built
Please check LiMBO and SloKylie for news developments. There may be delays due to high web traffic.
And if you are a Believer, please pray for Kylie, her family, and that she can be a mother very soon. Prayer really works.
KYLIE DIAGNOSED WITH BREAST CANCER
kylie.com 17-05-2005
Official Kylie Statement
Whilst at home in Melbourne with her family this week prior to her Australian Showgirl Tour, Kylie was diagnosed with early breast cancer. She will undergo immediate treatment and consequently her Showgirl tour will not be able to proceed as planned.
Kylie said: "I was so looking forward to bringing the Showgirl tour to Australian audiences, and am sorry to have to disappoint my fans. Nevertheless hopefully all will work out fine and Ill be back with you all again soon."
KYLIE HAS BREAST CANCERThe Sun 17-05-2005
SUPERSTAR Kylie Minogue has been diagnosed with breast cancer, her management company said today. The singer, who will be 37 later this month, cancelled her sell-out tour of Australia after the diagnosis, her touring company said.
Click below for link to full article.
Read also:
STAR FACES LONG BATTLE
WORLD RALLIES ROUND KYLIE
KYLIE - GET WELL SOON
KYLIE HAS BREAST CANCER
Sky News 17-04-2005
Kylie Minogue, who turns 37 next week, has been diagnosed with breast cancer. The Australian pop star has postponed the Australian and Asian leg of her Showgirl - The Greatest Hits tour, as well as her appearance at Glastonbury at the end of June. Kylie was enjoying a holiday in Melbourne with her family and her boyfriend of two years, French actor Olivier Martinez, 39, when she discovered she had early breast cancer. She will undergo treatment immediately, heading to hospital as early as tomorrow.Click below for link to full article.
CANCER DIAGNOSIS POSTPONES KYLIE'S TOUR
smh.com.au 17-05-2005
Of her desire to start a family, Kylie Minogue was already wearing her heart on her diaphanous sleeve. "Obviously a woman of my age can't help but think about those things," she told the talk show host Michael Parkinson two years ago when he asked the baby question. Now her priority is fighting for her life. Yesterday the 36-year-old singer announced she had been diagnosed with early breast cancer. And as doctors work out her best course of treatment and how to spare her fertility, she, like thousands of other women with cancer, will be coming to terms with this alarming fact: 30 per cent of women diagnosed under the age of 40 die within 10 years - a higher proportion than among older patients.Click below for link to full article.
KYLIE'S GREAT SHOCK
These stories are linked from here.
20050515
Love Kylie - Spring/Summer 2004
French romance and Parisian vintage glamour set the tone for the latest styles from Kylie Minogue’s self-designed collection of seductive lingerie, Love Kylie.
The Spring Summer 2004 range features the delicate detailing of French lace, ribbons, bows and ruffles - a diverse range of lingerie designed to make a girl feel special on any given day or occasion. Splendour puts curves in all the right places. Wonderfully romantic, it features woven stretch satin with detailed eyelash lace made on vintage sewing machines to achieve “old-worldly” glamour. Available in a cleavage enhancing balconette-bra, French knickers and g-string with detachable suspenders, Splendour epitomises sexy sophistication.
Vanity continues the romantic story with French contour detailing, ruffles and bows. The Balconette cup bra in ivory or crystal blue is sculptured with contrasting velvet ribbon trimming and overlaid with lattice lace - perfect for the femme fatale.
“I think more and more girls are enjoying life's little luxuries for their own benefit. ‘Sex in the City’ has been hugely influential on the way women perceive and define themselves,” Kylie says.
“Before, lingerie was perceived by women as something to entertain their partners, whereas now women are enjoying being sexy for themselves.”
Bows are the must-have adornment this season and Goddess will have you all tied up. Be a silver screen siren in sexy black featuring an orange bow or vintage ivory with pink. Goddess is the princess of pop’s favourite this season.
Understanding the need for functional basics, Kylie has developed the new Love Kylie Basics Range. The LK Logo Mesh bra is edged with velvet and literally has the LK stamp of approval with the logo device cleverly knitted into a stretch mesh – simple, practical lingerie that doesn’t compromise on sexiness.
It’s all about the derrière when it comes to Love Kylie briefs.
“A lot of my friends are enjoying being able to wear a fuller shape that is still sexy - the hipster briefs, the 'boy' pant and the rouched bottom seams. All have been inspired by the seventies and are very popular,” Kylie says.
Featuring a gold charm trinket suspended in a peek-a-boo rear keyhole, Cheekies in stretch mesh have quickly become a signature style for the Love Kylie collection and the only way to improve on the style has been to get Cheekier.
Featuring double peek-a-boo keyholes and gold trinkets, the ruched rear seam detail taken from the original Cheekies design is incorporated on Cheekier to ensure the renowned flattering cut remains.
“Knickers have become like shoes - a girl can never have enough,” Kylie says.
The Love Kylie Spring/Summer 2004 range is available nationally from select Farmers stores, leading department stores and lingerie retailers from September 2004. RRP $9:99 - $69:99.
For stockists phone 08000 800 390
Behind the feathers with Team Kylie - Music - Entertainment - smh.com.au
Behind the feathers with Team Kylie
May 16, 2005
The Sun-Herald
Amazing energy ... Kylie Minogue on stage in her Showgirl tour.
Photo: AP
Kylie Minogue is hands-on down to the smallest details of her huge production of Showgirl, writes Christine Sams.
"Get your Kylie hat, this is your chance to wear Kylie's hat," yelled the Irishman flogging sequined cowboy hats on the street corner near The Point theatre in Dublin, where Australia's biggest pop export was about to perform her Showgirl concert. But forget about hats, how about an opportunity to step into Kylie's shoes?
OK, there were no tiny stilettos lined up backstage at the Dublin concert last month, but in the softly lit backstage area of the Showgirl tour, there were obvious pockets of Minogue razzle-dazzle. Amid the piles of black amplifiers and the busy technicians preparing for the unveiling of the concert, there was a rack of feathered costumes - large angel wings, yellow feathers, sequins twinkling here and there.
It might look like every aspect of Kylie's life is dazzling (boyfriend included, but more on him later) but there's hard graft beneath those feathers. Minogue's manager Terry Blamey, who invited S backstage in Dublin, said there was every reason for the Las Vegas feel: "This is a show, not a concert," he said, matter-of-factly.
Blamey is the guard dog of Minogue's career, an incredibly successful music manager who heads up the close-knit team the singer keeps around her. Behind the stage curtains and the smiling, fresh-faced pop princess who has charmed millions of fans around the world, a finely tuned machine creates the Showgirl experience.
The machine is made up of more than 100 crew members and headed by long-term associates of the singer, including Blamey, Minogue's mum Carol and grandmother Milly, who travelled with her everywhere during the European leg of the tour. But insiders say it is Minogue, with her perfectionist tendencies and work ethic, who firmly controls proceedings.
"When she gets herself into tour mode, that's it, it's rigorous," says Michael Gudinski, the promoter for the Australian leg of Showgirl, who first backed Minogue when she was a teen star on Neighbours. "If things aren't right, whether it's the fourth night in Dublin or the fifth night in Sydney, if something's not right, she's onto it. She wants perfection."
Even the tiniest details are patently important to Minogue's team. In Dublin, Blamey was keen to boast that during her show, Minogue is never away from the stage for more than 45 seconds. Pedantic reviewers such as myself might suggest her absences stretched to about two minutes (with Minogue sometimes returning to stage with a slightly desperate, just-zipped-up energy) but that statistic in itself is impressive, given Minogue's spectacular costume shifts during Showgirl.
When she steps on stage in Sydney on Thursday night for her first Australian Showgirl concert, Minogue will be primed to deliver her best-known pop hits amid a flurry of dancers, laser lights and shimmering sets, including a giant silver moon.
The triumphant, exciting, dazzling nature of the show is at best a celebration of everything Minogue has achieved, at worst a recognition of the extraordinary powers of manufactured pop. But you'd have to be crazy not to take your hat off to Minogue, for her determination has yielded a level of success rarely matched by local or international artists.
"This tour has just completely stamped her as the Queen," says Gudinski. "She's in her own space."
For the record, Minogue turns 37 at the end of this month, midway through her Australian tour. The singer's phenomenal success has not come without hard work, often to the detriment of her personal life. It's something Minogue has referred to openly in the past, but she insists she is happy in her relationship with French actor Olivier Martinez, despite the current rigours of touring. "It's going great, contrary to what you might have read," she told reporters in the UK. "He's been fantastic, really amazing and supportive."
Behind the scenes on the European tour, Blamey made it clear Minogue's key focus is on the show, not her private life. Despite occasionally relaxing with a late-night dinner and some wine, Minogue does not go out partying while she's on the road. Gudinski backs this up: "When she's on the road it's hard for her because her whole focus is on the show, she hardly ever goes out," he says. "Even if she wanted to go out, it's a real hassle for her [because] of how much work there is, but also it's pretty hard to go out as Kylie Minogue. She does get irritated when there are paparazzi chasing her. It is part of the deal, but it is a disease which has really come out of England. It just puts a whole further pressure on things."
Gudinski provided a rare insight into the working relationship between Minogue and Blamey, something he compares to Elvis and Colonel Tom. "[Terry] has had an enormous part in her career having such longevity," he says. "I think in a business where there's very little loyalty from all sides of the fence, it's been incredibly refreshing to see two people work together for so long and achieve so much.
"I think one of the keys to their success is they're not in each other's face. They're absolutely partners as such, that's the relationship they have. [But] they're not close friends. They can rely on each other heavily and yet they keep a certain distance. They don't go off on holidays together and stuff like that."
On the road, though, Blamey and Minogue work intensely together to make sure everything runs smoothly. But there are still some light-hearted moments. Half an hour before the Dublin concert, Minogue was wandering around pretending to be a gypsy, jokingly reading people's palms. But friends say she still suffers from pre-show nerves.
"There's immense pressure on her because you've got a crew on the road of 100 or so people and you've got 15 to 20,000 people in the audience and they're all there for her," says Gudinski. "The show can't go on without her.
"I'm sure like most performers she gets a bit of nerves. She's a true entertainer and those first-night nerves are there. On the Australian tour she's done a lot of shows already, so the pressure isn't there as much. But there's nothing more important to Kylie than coming home and playing to her home audiences."
There have been hints that when Minogue performs her Australian concerts for the Showgirl tour, and a final concert at England's legendary Glastonbury Festival in June, she may take an extended break from performing live.
Gudinski believes she could carry on for decades. "Someone asked me the other day 'how long do you think Kylie can keep going and keep doing it?'. Kylie is an artist that can keep going and doing it as long as she wants to," he said. "I'm not suggesting this will be the case, but when Kylie's 60 she will still have an audience. If she's doing shows then, it will be something else again."
But Minogue herself has pretty much confirmed she'll be taking a break: "I think an audience devotes a lot of energy to a greatest-hits show like this and I don't think you can keep asking that of them," she told Time Out in the UK. "So yeah, I don't see myself doing this again in a hurry."
They're strong words from a woman who has been known to crank out back-to-back tours and who rebuilt the second half of her career on the hype and spectacle surrounding her big-budget shows.
But perhaps Minogue is becoming more comfortable with what she's achieved so far. For a woman who was once accused (by people envious of those famous gold hotpants) of getting Botox injections in her behind, the one thing that stood out about Minogue during her performance in Dublin was her wrinkles: up on the big screen, you could actually see a few friendly creases around her eyes, but nothing out of the ordinary for a woman in her 30s. Maybe it means Minogue is finally more relaxed in her own skin - no sequins necessary.
Kylie Minogue performs at the Sydney SuperDome on Thursday and Friday nights (sold out) but a new show has been added on Saturday night (May 21). Bookings through Ticketek on 9266 4800 or http://www.ticketek.com.au. She will return to Sydney for sold-out shows at the Sydney Entertainment Centre on Tuesday, May 31, and Wednesday, June 1, but has added another new show on Thursday, June 2. Bookings through Ticketmaster7 on 136 100.
20050514
DWF15-312724 (Rights Managed
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Kylie Minogue's First American Concert Kylie Minogue performs in her first American concert at the Tsongas Arena as part of KISS 108 Boston's Jingle Ball.
Image: © Steve Sands/New York Newswire/Corbis
Photographer: Steve Sands
Date Photographed: December 11, 2002
Location Information: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
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First US Tour 2002
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Kylie Minogue's First American Concert
Kylie Minogue performs in her first American concert at the Tsongas Arena as part of KISS 108 Boston's Jingle Ball.
Image: © Steve Sands/New York Newswire/Corbis
Photographer: Steve Sands
Date Photographed: December 11, 2002
Location Information: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Caption Disclaimer
Image Feedback
Warning: The usage has not been set for this image. Corbis recommends that usage be set before comping.
DWF15-312724| RM| © Steve Sands/New York Newswire/Corbis
20050512
The New York Times > Technology > Circuits > Basics: Now, Audio Blogs for Those Who Aspire to Be D.J.'s
BASICS
Now, Audio Blogs for Those Who Aspire to Be D.J.'s
By JOHN R. QUAIN
Published: May 12, 2005
What do the pope and Paris Hilton have in common? They're both podcasters - and you can be one too.
Ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous, podcasts are essentially do-it-yourself recorded radio programs posted online. Anyone can download them free, and, using special software, listeners can subscribe to favorite shows and even have them automatically downloaded to a portable digital music player.
Despite what the name suggests, podcasts can be played not just on iPods but on any device that has an MP3 player program, including PC's and laptops.
Podcasts are the natural technological offspring of Web logs or blogs, those endlessly meandering personal Web musings that now seem to be everywhere online. Similarly, many podcasters have a diaristic bent, ranging from Mr. X, in upstate New York (ifthensoftware.blogspot.com), who has recorded his ruminations while driving to work, to Dan Klass, an underemployed actor in California whose podcast, "The Bitterest Pill" (www.thebitterestpill.com), has been known to feature invectives against Elmo.
There are celebrity podcasts like Paris Hilton's (houseofwaxmovie .warnerbros.com), intended to promote movies. Another, more high-minded site, Catholic Insider (www.catholicinsider.com), links to podcasts of Pope Benedict XVI from Vatican Radio.
Many radio stations are embracing the technology. WGBH in Boston, Q107 in Toronto and BBC Radio are already offering regular podcasts. Tomorrow, Sirius Satellite Radio will begin broadcasting a best-of-podcasting program with the podfather of podcasting, Adam Curry, formerly of MTV, as host.
Taking the experiment a step further, Infinity Broadcasting plans to restart its San Francisco talk station KYCY-AM (1550) with an all-podcasting format beginning Monday. KYCY's broadcasts will feature amateur programs from around the Web, but because of Federal Communications Commission regulations, each will be screened in advance.
Record companies are also beginning to use podcasts to fish for fans. "We think podcasts are a great way to form a relationship with our fans," said Damian Kulash, the lead singer of the rock band OK Go, which has an album coming out this summer on Capitol Records. When the band is on tour, OK Go phones in its podcasts (www.okgo.net).
Finding and Listening
For those wanting to find a podcast, there are online directories that list thousands of them, including Podcast.net (www.podcast.net), Podcasting News (podcastingnews.com), Podcast Alley (www.podcastalley.com) and iPodder.org (www.ipodder.org).
Several free software programs - like Doppler (www.dopplerradio.net) and iPodder (www.ipodder.org) - help users subscribe to and download podcasts. IPodder comes in Windows and Mac versions. The program includes a directory of podcasts available for subscribing on a scheduled basis or for downloading at will. The Web address of a podcast that is not listed can be cut and pasted into iPodder to add it to a user's roster of subscriptions.
Podcasts are usually indicated by an orange logo with the initials RSS (for really simple syndication) or XML (for extensible markup language), standing for the technologies that make such subscriptions possible.
IPod enthusiasts and Mac owners might also consider iPodderX (www.ipodderx.com), a $19.95 program that not only downloads programs but also puts them directly into the iTunes manager so that they can be automatically copied to a connected iPod player.
Unencumbered by professional standards or government broadcast rules, podcasts can devolve into fits of uncontrollable giggling and include more than their share of expletives. (Family Friendly Podcasts, at www.familyfriendlypodcasts.com, has some suggestions for those who prefer tamer shows.) Still, it is the freedom that has inspired many homegrown podcast producers.
"The whole beauty of it is that I don't have to censor myself," says Jason Evangelho, host of "Insomnia Radio," which showcases independent radio (hardcoreinsomniaradio.blogspot.com). "And I can say 'um.' "
Programs dedicated to music still dominate the podcast universe. Many offer an eclectic mix of underground music, but there are also classical music shows like "Your Daily Opera." While most get only a handful of listeners, some programs have developed a devoted fan base.
"I'm averaging about 10,000 to 11,000 listeners per show," says Brian Ibbott, whose "Coverville" (www.coverville.com) originates from his basement outside Denver. Mr. Ibbott's podcasts feature rare and unusual cover songs. He has a sponsor to offset the $30 to $40 a month he says he pays his hosting service for the extra traffic that his listeners create downloading his shows.
Making and Distributing
In addition to the chance to be heard by millions of Internet users, the relative ease of producing a show has driven the popularity of podcasting. A group of college friends unable to get their film careers off the ground, for example, decided to tell their stories, which are a cross between Firesign Theater and Hunter S. Thompson, in a podcast at the Peanut Gallery (www.thepeanutgallery.info). Those looking for a similar creative outlet need only a computer with a connected microphone and Web access.
Stay-at-home disc jockeys can record tracks using the basic recording software included with the Mac and Windows operating systems. Free software like EasyPodcast (www.easypodcast.com) can help upload efforts to a Web site. Services like Liberated Syndication (www.libsyn.com) will provide Web hosting for as little as $5 a month.
Many podcasters end up creating digital studios, using more expensive microphones, mixers and audio editing software, like Adobe Audition ($299, www.adobe.com). Audition lets a podcaster carefully edit voiceovers, mix up to 128 stereo sound tracks and even correct the pitch of a recording. Unfortunately, Audition does not include the tools for uploading to the Web.
Consequently, a new class of software designed for podcasters is beginning to emerge. Two noteworthy examples are Propaganda ($49.95, www.makepropaganda.com) and iPodcast Producer ($149.95, www.industrialaudiosoftware.com). Both Windows applications enable producers to record, mix multiple tracks and automatically post shows to the Web.
Of course, unlike a live radio broadcast or streaming music online, podcasts are downloaded and stored in their entirety. So the programs have the potential to generate thousands of copies of songs, raising legal issues. "Podcasters, like the users of any other sound recordings, must obtain the appropriate licenses from the copyright owners, or their designees," the Recording Industry Association of America said.
At "Insomnia Radio," Mr. Evangelho plays only independent bands that own the rights to their own songs, and gets permission directly from the artists to play their music. At "Coverville," to satisfy the royalties owed to songwriters and composers, Mr. Ibbott pays annual licensing fees totaling about $500 to Ascap and B.M.I. The R.I.A.A. has not specified if or how podcasters should pay the labels.
The programs are stored in the MP3 file format, and companies that use MP3 compression must pay a licensing fee to Thomson, a co-creator of the technology. But according to Rocky Caldwell at Thomson's licensing unit, fees are not applicable unless users make at least $100,000 a year from their podcasts. Now that's the kind of problem many podcasters wish they had.
BASICS
Now, Audio Blogs for Those Who Aspire to Be D.J.'s
By JOHN R. QUAIN
Published: May 12, 2005
What do the pope and Paris Hilton have in common? They're both podcasters - and you can be one too.
Ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous, podcasts are essentially do-it-yourself recorded radio programs posted online. Anyone can download them free, and, using special software, listeners can subscribe to favorite shows and even have them automatically downloaded to a portable digital music player.
Despite what the name suggests, podcasts can be played not just on iPods but on any device that has an MP3 player program, including PC's and laptops.
Podcasts are the natural technological offspring of Web logs or blogs, those endlessly meandering personal Web musings that now seem to be everywhere online. Similarly, many podcasters have a diaristic bent, ranging from Mr. X, in upstate New York (ifthensoftware.blogspot.com), who has recorded his ruminations while driving to work, to Dan Klass, an underemployed actor in California whose podcast, "The Bitterest Pill" (www.thebitterestpill.com), has been known to feature invectives against Elmo.
There are celebrity podcasts like Paris Hilton's (houseofwaxmovie .warnerbros.com), intended to promote movies. Another, more high-minded site, Catholic Insider (www.catholicinsider.com), links to podcasts of Pope Benedict XVI from Vatican Radio.
Many radio stations are embracing the technology. WGBH in Boston, Q107 in Toronto and BBC Radio are already offering regular podcasts. Tomorrow, Sirius Satellite Radio will begin broadcasting a best-of-podcasting program with the podfather of podcasting, Adam Curry, formerly of MTV, as host.
Taking the experiment a step further, Infinity Broadcasting plans to restart its San Francisco talk station KYCY-AM (1550) with an all-podcasting format beginning Monday. KYCY's broadcasts will feature amateur programs from around the Web, but because of Federal Communications Commission regulations, each will be screened in advance.
Record companies are also beginning to use podcasts to fish for fans. "We think podcasts are a great way to form a relationship with our fans," said Damian Kulash, the lead singer of the rock band OK Go, which has an album coming out this summer on Capitol Records. When the band is on tour, OK Go phones in its podcasts (www.okgo.net).
Finding and Listening
For those wanting to find a podcast, there are online directories that list thousands of them, including Podcast.net (www.podcast.net), Podcasting News (podcastingnews.com), Podcast Alley (www.podcastalley.com) and iPodder.org (www.ipodder.org).
Several free software programs - like Doppler (www.dopplerradio.net) and iPodder (www.ipodder.org) - help users subscribe to and download podcasts. IPodder comes in Windows and Mac versions. The program includes a directory of podcasts available for subscribing on a scheduled basis or for downloading at will. The Web address of a podcast that is not listed can be cut and pasted into iPodder to add it to a user's roster of subscriptions.
Podcasts are usually indicated by an orange logo with the initials RSS (for really simple syndication) or XML (for extensible markup language), standing for the technologies that make such subscriptions possible.
IPod enthusiasts and Mac owners might also consider iPodderX (www.ipodderx.com), a $19.95 program that not only downloads programs but also puts them directly into the iTunes manager so that they can be automatically copied to a connected iPod player.
Unencumbered by professional standards or government broadcast rules, podcasts can devolve into fits of uncontrollable giggling and include more than their share of expletives. (Family Friendly Podcasts, at www.familyfriendlypodcasts.com, has some suggestions for those who prefer tamer shows.) Still, it is the freedom that has inspired many homegrown podcast producers.
"The whole beauty of it is that I don't have to censor myself," says Jason Evangelho, host of "Insomnia Radio," which showcases independent radio (hardcoreinsomniaradio.blogspot.com). "And I can say 'um.' "
Programs dedicated to music still dominate the podcast universe. Many offer an eclectic mix of underground music, but there are also classical music shows like "Your Daily Opera." While most get only a handful of listeners, some programs have developed a devoted fan base.
"I'm averaging about 10,000 to 11,000 listeners per show," says Brian Ibbott, whose "Coverville" (www.coverville.com) originates from his basement outside Denver. Mr. Ibbott's podcasts feature rare and unusual cover songs. He has a sponsor to offset the $30 to $40 a month he says he pays his hosting service for the extra traffic that his listeners create downloading his shows.
Making and Distributing
In addition to the chance to be heard by millions of Internet users, the relative ease of producing a show has driven the popularity of podcasting. A group of college friends unable to get their film careers off the ground, for example, decided to tell their stories, which are a cross between Firesign Theater and Hunter S. Thompson, in a podcast at the Peanut Gallery (www.thepeanutgallery.info). Those looking for a similar creative outlet need only a computer with a connected microphone and Web access.
Stay-at-home disc jockeys can record tracks using the basic recording software included with the Mac and Windows operating systems. Free software like EasyPodcast (www.easypodcast.com) can help upload efforts to a Web site. Services like Liberated Syndication (www.libsyn.com) will provide Web hosting for as little as $5 a month.
Many podcasters end up creating digital studios, using more expensive microphones, mixers and audio editing software, like Adobe Audition ($299, www.adobe.com). Audition lets a podcaster carefully edit voiceovers, mix up to 128 stereo sound tracks and even correct the pitch of a recording. Unfortunately, Audition does not include the tools for uploading to the Web.
Consequently, a new class of software designed for podcasters is beginning to emerge. Two noteworthy examples are Propaganda ($49.95, www.makepropaganda.com) and iPodcast Producer ($149.95, www.industrialaudiosoftware.com). Both Windows applications enable producers to record, mix multiple tracks and automatically post shows to the Web.
Of course, unlike a live radio broadcast or streaming music online, podcasts are downloaded and stored in their entirety. So the programs have the potential to generate thousands of copies of songs, raising legal issues. "Podcasters, like the users of any other sound recordings, must obtain the appropriate licenses from the copyright owners, or their designees," the Recording Industry Association of America said.
At "Insomnia Radio," Mr. Evangelho plays only independent bands that own the rights to their own songs, and gets permission directly from the artists to play their music. At "Coverville," to satisfy the royalties owed to songwriters and composers, Mr. Ibbott pays annual licensing fees totaling about $500 to Ascap and B.M.I. The R.I.A.A. has not specified if or how podcasters should pay the labels.
The programs are stored in the MP3 file format, and companies that use MP3 compression must pay a licensing fee to Thomson, a co-creator of the technology. But according to Rocky Caldwell at Thomson's licensing unit, fees are not applicable unless users make at least $100,000 a year from their podcasts. Now that's the kind of problem many podcasters wish they had.
More Rubbish for your consideration
MegaStar - Madge 4 Kylie: "Madge 4 Kylie
Julia Raeside
Kylie queens up her act
It looks like the Queen of Pop has taken a liking to pint-sized buttock-flaunter Kylie Minogue. Madonna turned up at Kylie's sell-out Earl's Court gig last week.
The material girl arrived late and had nowhere to sit, but Brit actor Rupert Everett budged up and made some space for her next to him.
Actually, Madge is more like the Queen Mum of Pop, because Kylie's the Queen and Britney's the Princess. They're all knocking on a bit now, anyway.
Onlookers say it looked like Madge was having a whale of a time during the show, but couldn't confirm whether she actually knew all the words or not. It won't be the first time the material girl's mimed at Earl's Court. Allegedly.
The love affair between the two lady-crooners has been going on for a while. Madge was spotted wearing a Kylie t-shirt at a gig last year. [It was five years ago!] The pop pixie was said to be overwhelmed at one of her idols giving her the nod. [Kylie never indicated that Madonna was one of her idols.]
We wonder if they'll release a single together. The photoshoot for the cover would be a laugh. The loos could be made into a make-shift botox clinic for touch-ups.
20050511
Diamonds are a girl's best friend
Herald Sun: Kylie blings it on [11may05]: "Kylie blings it on
Shannon McRae
11may05
THE brightest sparkle of Kylie Minogue's on-stage ensemble isn't emitted by the lights above, special effects or any of the shimmering creations in which she sashays around.The singer is dazzling adoring audiences during her Show Girl world tour with eye-catching jewellery that features more than 50 diamonds.
Fans in Glasgow last week saw flashes of Minogue's Bulgari High Jewellery bracelet, complemented by matching earrings and a pendant.
The intricately designed, one-of-a-kind pieces will be a wardrobe fixture for Minogue during the tour, which comes to Melbourne this month.
The Herald Sun is giving readers the chance to win tickets to see the superstar in concert.
From tomorrow, SMS your name and contact details to 197 012 34 to win. Entries close at midnight, Sunday. "
20050510
slow
'SLOW'
Knew you'd be here tonight
So I put my best dress on
Boy I was so right
Our eyes connected
Now nothing's how it used to be
No second guesses
Track in on this feeling
Pull focus close up you and me
Nobody's leaving
Got me affected
Spun me 180 degrees
It's so electric
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Don't wanna rush it
Let the rhythm pull you in
It's here so touch it
You know what I'm saying
And I haven't said a thing
Keep the record playing
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Read my body language
Take it down, down
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Skip a beat and move with my body
Skip a beat and move with my body
Slow
'SLOW'
Knew you'd be here tonight
So I put my best dress on
Boy I was so right
Our eyes connected
Now nothing's how it used to be
No second guesses
Track in on this feeling
Pull focus close up you and me
Nobody's leaving
Got me affected
Spun me 180 degrees
It's so electric
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Don't wanna rush it
Let the rhythm pull you in
It's here so touch it
You know what I'm saying
And I haven't said a thing
Keep the record playing
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Read my body language
Take it down, down
Slow down and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Come on and dance with me
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Yeah, slow
Skip a beat and move with my body
Skip a beat and move with my body
Skip a beat and move with my body
Slow
20050508
Oh Dear!
Kylie Minogue, Earls Court, London
By Ludovic Hunter-Tilney
Published: May 6 2005 03:00
Divas are supposed to be capricious, emotional women with complicated private lives and powerful vocals, so how Kylie Minogue has become such a successful one is mystifying. Her manner is down-to-earth and professional; her voice is reedy but cheerful. She's more trouper than diva.Her one diva-ish attribute is that she's a survivor, career-wise at least. Whenever she has seemed on the slide, she has managed to bounce back with a new image and an irresistibly catchy song.
She is currently sashaying around the globe in her Showgirl tour, which as its name not-so-subtly suggests is a high-camp affair. In the course of the evening Kylie appears in a tiny outfit accessorised with huge feathers, a Barbarella-style catsuit and a Bardot-esque stripy top with tight Capri pants. She sings, badly, a version of "Over the Rainbow". Her dancers perform routines themed around bullfighting and working out at the gym. This is Kylie in her latest and possibly most successful incarnation, as gay icon.
Occasionally the hi-nrg songs wilt to reveal the desperate limitations of her singing. But there are moments of pure pop genius too, such as her best-received songs "I Should Be So Lucky" and "Can't Get You Out of My Head", whose titles sum up the mix of good fortune and captivating tunes that explains Kylie's ascendancy.
Tel 020 7385 1200
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Oh dear. There was not Barberella catsuit that I saw. A black rhinestone skin tight number with a sparkly cape and the Bardot-esque stripy top was in the Money Can't Buy Concert in the Hammersmith Appollo, two years ago. The veracity of these fashion reports is indicative of the accuracy of the 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' singing evaluation. It was breathtaking actually.
Perhaps posting ones phone number with incorrect negative remarks is a way of getting attention for FT reporters or just for Ludovic? At least he's right about the diva part.
Kylie Minogue Forgets Her Song Lyrics Whilst On Stage!!!
by Lowri Williams on 5/6/2005
Kylie Minogue was left embarrassed on stage last night in Earls Court after she forgot the lyrics to one of her songs.The Australian pop star stopped mid-way through ‘I Should Be So Lucky’, reports Contact Music, and was left looking a little red faced.
An eye witness said: "She was half-way through the song and then she stopped.
"She looked a bit embarrassed and asked the audience to help out."
The strain of her ‘Showgirl’ tour is showing on parts of her stage scenery also, the huge model of a crescent moon that she sings ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ from broke down leaving poor Kylie stranded and needing to be rescued!
Her ‘Showgirl’ tour travels next to Australia.
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The moon worked perfectly on Thursday night 05/05/05. It was Wednesday night when the moon jammed, but Kylie expected it and prepared the crowd, "I'll bet you want me to come closer," before it set her down at the topmost platform, fade to black so she can undo the safety belt and dismount, and light her up agian coming down the stairs. There was no "stranding" at all involved.
Kylie has a 'Senior Moment'
Kylie Minogue Forgets Words To I Should Be So Lucky
May 7, 2005, 6:51:31
Kylie Minogue
MINOGUE FORGETS WORDS TO HER MOST FAMOUS SONG
Pop babe KYLIE MINOGUE was left red-faced onstage last night (05MAY05) when she forgot the words to I SHOULD BE SO LUCKY.
The audience, attending the London show of her SHOWGIRL tour, were amazed when the sexy Antipodean suddenly stopped in the middle of what is arguably her most famous hit.
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Your webmaster was present for this show (election night UK) and I must confess I noticed the break in singing but didn't attribute it to forgetful eness. Kylie asks the audience to sing along in that song every show and this break seemed only slightly longer than the others.
The real news from that show was the rare and unusual "second encore." When Kylie is thrilled by the audience and doesn't want to leave, she has taken to requesting a Mexican wave after all the bows are done. She did it twice in Manchester that I saw and thrice in London. But at this show as she bagan to request the wave but before giving directions for it, an audience member up front in block A2, got her attention. We only heard what she said and it was, "That's all. I have nothing more." Then another cry out from the audience, and Kylie implored, "I don't have another song. My pockets are empty!" Whatever the fan said turned the trick and Kylie said, "Okay I will do this but just because of you." She went into about five or six lines of Got To Be Certain" and then said "I remembered the verse!" This of course was acapella since the band and backups were long gone offstage. Only then, a final "goodnight" and "love to you all."
20050504
Kylie: a free exhibition now tours to Canberra, Brisbane and Sydney before heading overseas. Melbourne Kylie fans can still own their own piece of the Kylie exhibition with the catalogue of the entire Kylie Minogue Collection continuing to be on sale at the Arts Centre concierge desk or via www.theartscentre.net.au.
20050503
Field Report promised
Your webmaster has been traveling in England to see Kylie and the show is fantabulous. One in Birmingham, four in Manchester and the first of three in London. The girl is mind boggling. More details later and photos from other audience Kylie fans.
Chris Brown, bass player for the last three tours, brought his girl up onstage last night at Kylie's urging where he proposed to her in front of the entire Earl's Court crowd. Kylie was so excited!
