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Cyndi Lauper is in the lead after the first week of fan voting for the Rock Hall. She is one of four nominees with more than 100-thousand votes. Following Cyndi Lauper is the late George Michael, Warren Zevon and Soundgarden. Willie Nelson is fifth, just three-thousand votes ahead of Iron Maiden. Fan voting runs through April 28th.
Duran Duran kicks off a North American tour in late spring. The "Future Past" tour includes a stop at Amalie Arena in Tampa on June 17th. Duran Duran will be joined by Bastille and, speaking of Hall of Famers: Nile Rodgers and CHIC. Tickets go on sale to the general public one week from today.
https://variety.com/2023/music/news/duran-duran-tour-tickets-1235516879/
An episode of "The Simpsons" is not available on Disney-plus in Hong Kong because it is critical of the Chinese government. The episode is titled "One Angry Lisa" and features Marge becoming obsessed with her exercise bike. While on a virutal bike tour, the instructor says the following.: "Behold the wonders of China, Bitcoin mines and forced labor camps where children make smartphones." Disney-plus previously removed an older 2005 episode in which the Simpsons visit China and see this sign at Tiananmen Square, reading "On this site, in 1989, nothing happened."
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-64550177
A couple of California woodpeckers are most likely pretty bummed after their stash of acorns was found inside a home near San Francisco. The couple who own the home called Nick's Extreme Pest Control after they spotted worms coming from a wall in a bedroom. The worms ended up being mealworms, eating on a stash of acorns that equaled around 700 pounds. The woodpeckers were able to drop the acorns through a hole in the chimney and were able to enter the attic through a different hole to feast on their massive stash. The pile of acorns reached an estimated 20 feet high.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/08/us/california-acorns-woodpeckers/index.html
The wife of Pink Floyd singer and guitarist David Gilmour has re-ignited a feud with a former bandmate. Polly Samson tweeted a number of insults directed at co-founder Roger Waters ranging from "antisemitic" to "tax-avoiding" to "lip-syncing." Gilmour re-tweeted Samson's tweet and added "Every word demonstrably true." Waters refuted the tweet and called the comments "wildly inaccurate." Samson's tweet stemmed from Waters' criticism of a 2022 Pink Floyd song and video in support of Ukraine. Waters, who left Pink Floyd in 1985, was not involved in the song.
It was on this date, February 9th, 1964, that the Beatles were introduced to the United States on the Ed Sullivan Show. Their appearance was watched by a then-record 73-million people. Quoting Wikipedia here, it came to be regarded as a cultural watershed that launched American Beatlemania-as well as the wider British Invasion of American pop music-and inspired many young viewers to become rock musicians. (And it began my personal life-long love affair with The Beatles.) The band made appearances the next two weeks on the Sullivan show and again during their 1965 U.S. tour.
https://www.mojo4music.com/articles/stories/the-beatles-debut-on-the-ed-sullivan-show/