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What a smashing year it’s been for the stars that are rock n’ rolling in gold. The highest paid musicians of 2013 cover all genres, including folk, country, rap, rock and hip-hop. However, the bestsellers are country and rock, which seem to bring in the highest revenues, making up the majority of music’s top 10 money makers. Let’s have a look at the music industry’s 2013 greatest successes.

1. Taylor Swift (2013 Earnings: $39,699,575.60)

23-year-old country music heroine, Miss Taylor Swift, struck a double hat-trick last year in touring, digital and physical sales and in merchandising, branding and sponsorships – hitting a home run and beating high grossing artists like Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake. The singer-songwriter’s 2012 album “Red” hit nº2 in 2013 US Billboard 200 charts and sold out arenas across the world. While her six months US “Red” tour alone brought in revenue of an estimated $30 million, the album hit almost 10 million downloads, topping the country music sales, ranking sixth in digital sales, and fifth in streaming royalties. What’s more, Swift is thought to bring in an additional estimated $10 million thanks to the pandemonium caused by merchandise sales ($17 per head) and to the tour’s three sponsors (Keds, Elizabeth Arden and Diet Coke) whose cash value is estimated to be in the high seven digits.

Taylor Swift – Red (Play this video in Creation 5)

2. Kenny Chesney (2013 Earnings: $32,956,240.70)

In 2013, Kenny Chesney released his latest album “Life on a Rock”, topping the charts for the 7th time. Along with the album’s strong digital and physical sales, country music’s “stadium king” exceeded an audience of 1 million. Chesney continues to be one of the most consistent money makers in the music industry.

Kenny Chesney – Come Over (Play this video in Creation 5)

3. Justin Timberlake (2013 Earnings: $31,463,297.03)

It’s clear that after a seven-year break from music, Justin Timberlake needed to come back with a bang! “The 20/20 Experience” did anything but disappoint. In fact, it went kaboom! According to Billboard, it sold over 2 million copies and was the biggest selling album of 2013. The royalties for digital albums, tracks and streaming generated $5 million alone. Furthermore, JT grossed $43 million in his solo tour, performing in front of almost 1 million fans over 39 shows, and brought in a gross $60 million across the 12 dates of his “Legends of the Summer” stadium tour with Jay Z. What a rewarding comeback it was for our beloved JT!

Justin Timberlake – Mirrors (Play this video in Creation 5)

4. Bon Jovi (2013 Earnings: $ 29,436,801.04)

Bon Jovi’s “Because We Can Tour” is the top grossing tour of 2013. Bon Jovi’s earnings for their international non-stop stadium tour grossed more than $83 million and their twelfth studio album “What About Now” (released in 2013) peaked Billboard 200. The American rock band churned out a figure of almost $300,000 in royalties, with more than 1 million digital downloads, and $150,000 in streaming royalties. Besides their top-of-the-charts success and ceaseless sell-out-tours, merchandise sales reached the eight-figure range and has collected an estimated $2 million per year in online sales.

Bon Jovi – What About Now (Play this video in Creation 5)

5. The Rolling Stones (2013 Earnings: $26,225,121.71)

The legendary English rock band’s 50th anniversary called for a celebration and, in 2013, AEG Live offered them a limited North America tour, with an $80 million guarantee for 15 shows. The Stones sold out every show, grossing an average of $4.7 million. In addition, their greatest hits album “GRRR!” (2012), featuring two new tracks “Doom and Gloom” and “One More Shot”, reached a number of almost 300,000 in physical album sales and 1.5 million in digital track downloads. On top of that, The Stones’ 2012 5 show-tour generated an estimated $15 million in merchandise sales, excluding online and retail sales. According to Billboard sources, “a multifaceted tour partnership with Citi was worth another $5 million to the band”. One thing’s clear, The Rolling Stones definitely haven’t burnt out yet!

The Rolling Stones – Doom and Gloom (Play this video in Creation 5)

6. Beyoncé (2013 Earnings: $24,429,176.86)

Beyoncé’s 2013 surprise itunes album release took the world by storm, kicking off at nº1 on Billboard 200 and earning a total of $1.6 million in album sales. Ranking at nº8 on Billboard’s top 25 tours of 2013, Beyoncé’s 132-date “Mrs. Carter Show World Tour”, including her appearance at the SuperBowl, grossed a fierce $104.4 million, $59 of which accounted for U.S. dates only.

Beyoncé – Drunk in Love (Play this video in Creation 5)

7. Maroon 5 (2013 Earnings: $22,284,754.07)

Maroon 5’s “Overexposed” World Tour made over $17.6 million in 2013, landing the group in the ranking of top 10 biggest music money makers of 2013. This included the group’s headlining slot on the 12th run of the annual Honda Civic Tour and an appearance at the Hollywood Bowl. While three of the band’s tracks landed spots on Billboard Hot 100, with “Payphone” at nº2, “Daylight” at nº7 and “One More Night” peaking for nine weeks straight, their track sales hit a total of 7.6 million, almost amounting to what they earned on catalogue album sales royalties.

Maroon 5 – One More Night (Play this video in Creation 5)

8. Luke Bryan (2013 Earnings: $22,142,235.98)

American pop country singer, Luke Bryan, is the swiftest rising star in country music since Miss Swift herself, selling a total of 23 million albums and 7.6 million digital tracks in 2013, with an additional $15.4 million earned in his fourth studio album, “Crash My Party”, 2013 tour.

Luke Bryan – Crash My Party (Play this video in Creation 5)

9. P!nk (2013 Earnings: $20,072,072.32)

Her 2012 album “The Truth About Love” was P!nk’s first nº1 album, accounting for 934,000 of the 1.3 million albums she sold in 2013. “Try” reached nº9 on Billboard’s 2013 Hot 100, while “Just Give Me A Reason” featuring Nate Reuss (performed at the 2013 Grammy Awards) hit nº1, rising to 8 million in digital song sales and earning $1.4 in royalties. She also brought home $15.1 million from the U.S. leg of her world tour, and broke records by selling out 18 consecutive shows in Melbourne, Australia – A highly deserved success for 34-year-old singer-songwriter, A.K.A Billboard’s 2013 Woman of the Year.

P!nk – Just Give Me A Reason ft. Nate Ruess (Play this video in Creation 5)

10. Fleetwood Mac (2013 Earnings: $19,123,101.98)

The British rock band went home with a total of $17.4 million, after hitting 34 cities in their 2013 World tour. The highest point of the tour consisted of three nights at London’s O2 Arena, where Christine McVie joined the band to perform “Don’t Stop” on their last two nights of glory, plugging her full-time come-back for their 2014 Reunion Tour. What’s more, “Extended Play”, Fleetwood Mac’s first new studio material release in a decade reached nº48 on the Billboard 200.

Fleetwood Mac – Extended Play EP (Play this video in Creation 5)

Top 20 Grossing Artists of 2014
1. Taylor Swift ($39,699,575.60)
2. Kenny Chesney ($32,956,240.70)
3. Justin Timberlake ($31,463,297.03)
4. Bon Jovi ($29,436,801.46)
5. The Rolling Stones ($26,225,121.71)
6. Beyoncé ($24, 429, 176.86)
7. Maroon 5 ($22,284,754.07)
8. Luke Bryan ($22,142,235.98)
9. P!nk ($20,072,072.32)
10. Fleetwood Mac ($19,123,101.98)
11. Justin Bieber ($18,873,458.41)
12. Bruno Mars ($18,839,681)
13. One Direction ($18,041,472.69)
14. Jason Aldean ($17,896,191.98)
15. George Strait ($16,002,761.63)
16. Jay Z ($15,652,428.82)
17. Michael Bublé ($14,478,084)
18. Mumford & Sons ($14,172,940.87)
19. Dave Matthews Band ($13,932,731.14)
20. Rihanna ($13,794,186.16)

To see Billboard’s Top 40 Moneymakers of 2013, click here.

Don’t have Creation 5? Download it on the App Store!

iPhone Free	iPhone Pro	iPad Free	iPad Pro

If you are already using Creation 5 Media app, don’t forget that you can expand your music collection, for free, by downloading any of the video clips that appear in the above article.
Here’s how:

Open the video in Creation 5 – we have created links by the side of each song title for this very purpose, so just click on any of these and the video will open inside Creation 5.	Once the video is playing inside the app, press and hold the song title and choose DOWNLOAD from the options. That’s it! You can now find the video in your ‘Favorites’ folder.	Press and hold the song title and choose SHARE. If your friends don’t have Creation 5, they will be directed to the App store where they can download the app for free.

Released yesterday (March 3) the long awaited new album from the man of the moment has arrived! There are so many fantastic collaborations on the album – Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Daft Punk, Alicia Keys – it’s too good to be true! Billboard have given the album an 85 rating and Pharrell himself describes it rather succinctly as “festive and urgent”. The album is incredibly positive, packed full of joie de vivre – it’s just the summer album we need.

Pharrell has spoken about it being a “celebration of women”, because we all know how much Pharrell loves women, right? It’s perfect for the helpless romantics amongst us and is loaded with sexual metaphors, but nothing heavy, it’s all about playfulness and joy.

Pharrell’s latest single, Happy, the fifth track on the new album, is Nº1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Nº1 in the UK – in fact it has broken all records in the UK by becoming the first single in 57 years to reach number 1 three times! It has spawned a plethora of covers and copies and is likely to stay on the radio waves for weeks to come. And why not? What a great song – brilliantly simple and incredibly contagious, just listening to it makes you Happy!

Here’s a track by track review

1- Marilyn Monroe
With the strings arrangement by Hans Zimmer, this opening cinematic song is performed by a 30-piece orchestra. You’ll hear plenty of famous women’s names in the chorus and will be exhorted to “dance and elevate each other”.

2- Brand New ft. Justin Timberlake
High falsettos and congo rhythms, this song is about the rejuvenating power of love. Certainly one of the stronger candidates for a single. Great to hear Justin and Pharrell together, this partnership just works.

3- Hunter
A sexy, heavy breathing number “Hey baby, my love is callin’ / Hey baby, my sex is callin’”. It’s a track straight out of the 70’s.

4- Gush
Well, I guess you could say this is the sex song of the album (not surprising with a title like that). The lyrics tell the steamy story “take off your halo and wings” – “light that ass on fire” and “leave those panties in flames.” Well, girls, why not?

5- Happy – no explanation needed!

Pharrell Williams – Happy (Play this video in Creation 5)

6- Come Get it Bae ft. Miley Cyrus
Pharrell has been instrumental in helping the singer’s transition from child star to superstar, and in this track they have fun. There’s plenty of clapping and screams – a bit of a party number. Chorus: “You wanna ride it, my motorcycle / You got a license, well you got a right to / wanna pop a wheelie, don’t try too hard to, cuz girl I like you.”

7- Gust of Wind ft. Daft Punk
For us this is the stand out track on the album. It’s a strings-and-bass disco jam that will have you wearing out the repeat button. It feels like it could have come from Random Access Memories – but feels completely at home next to tracks like Happy.

Pharrell ft. Daft Punk – Gust of Wind

8- Lost Queen
Could be a tribute to women that are out of this world? “What planet are you from, girl?” It’s sort of tribal and does promise “hot sex and gold shiny things”.

9- I Know Who You Are ft. Alicia Keys
A bit of sensitivity from Pharrell “I know who you are and I know what you’re feeling” with a taste of ska flavor. Alicia is wonderfully soulful.

10- It Girl
It’s all about the sex, basically. The power that women exert over men “your waves wash all over me,”. For sure this album has been inspired by the great time Pharrell has with women.

Pharrel talks about his new album at the Brit Awards (Play this video in Creation 5)

Don’t have Creation 5? Download it on the App Store!

iPhone Free	iPhone Pro	iPad Free	iPad Pro

If you are already using Creation 5 Media app, don’t forget that you can expand your music collection, for free, by downloading any of the video clips that appear in the above article.
Here’s how:

Open the video in Creation 5 – we have created links by the side of each song title for this very purpose, so just click on any of these and the video will open inside Creation 5.	Once the video is playing inside the app, press and hold the song title and choose DOWNLOAD from the options. That’s it! You can now find the video in your ‘Favorites’ folder.	Press and hold the song title and choose SHARE. If your friends don’t have Creation 5, they will be directed to the App store where they can download the app for free.

By Tej. S. Haldule

How exactly is one to introduce a veritable institution in modern music? The critically acclaimed underground legend Sasu Ripatti (aka Vladislav Delay) has been at the forefront of so many genres and sub-genres of electronic production as to defy expectation.

Over the years after his breakout release (Vocalcity, composed under the moniker Luomo when he was only 25, remains an oft referenced landmark in house music), Ripatti has only gone from strength to strength, mastering house, techno, dub, experimental, ambient, jazz (he’s originally a percussionist) and whatever else he chooses to dabble in – he’s a polyglot with the Midas touch. It’s impossible to condense Sasu Ripatti’s output into this space, so to find out more about the artist, read his biography here.

Luomo – The Present Lover (Play this video in Creation 5)

In this revealing interview, the reclusive genius (he lives in near isolation on an island near the Arctic Circle) behind the many monikers speaks out.

You’ve been putting out music under a different name for nearly every sub-genre you experiment with. Why choose to do this when output from a single pseudonym can be far more recognizable to listeners? Don’t you want a familiarity to exist?

First off, I’m really not about being recognizable or having a brand or any such thing. Overall, it just feels right to give differing names to different projects or concepts. I like to produce and be involved with lots of different kinds of music, and they don’t always go hand in hand. To me, it wouldn’t make sense to put out the material I do as Delay and as Luomo under the same alias, it would be rather confusing for people. What really matters, actually, is that it doesn’t feel right to me. I’m all for confusing people, after all.
Often people are only aware of a certain strain of my music, or like a specific project.

Not only do you perform and record as a percussionist in the Moritz von Oswald trio (headed by Moritz von Oswald, one of the fathers of 90s techno), but you also have your own experimental jazz quartet. This is, of course, besides your electronic output as Luomo, Conoco or Sistol – not to mention Vladislav Delay. That’s a mammoth oeuvre. How do you manage it all?

From my perspective it’s the other way around. Had I only been making experimental ambient music for the past ten years, for example, I’d need professional help. I can’t imagine restricting myself like that. Again and again I come back to the analogy of food. There’s no way I would eat any food for more than a week in a row, no matter how good. And the same goes for my favourite albums: there’s a limit after which (the music) just doesn’t work anymore, you need variety. Making music is exactly the same thing. There’s a whole world out there, why would I stick to one genre? It makes no sense to me.

But this also means that you can’t keep doing everything all the time. I’m not working on Luomo/ Conoco/ Sistol nowadays, and I recently stopped playing with the Moritz von Oswald trio as well – it’s time to move on and do other things. There are other collaborations and projects to look forward to. I don’t like to get stuck on a particular thing and, more often than not, things eventually tend to slow down creatively. It’s hard to bring new fire into a project sometimes.
In the end, it’s just waveforms that you try to create emotions with. This tempo or that tempo, this mood or that… I’m rather omnivorous.

Vladislav Delay – Whistleblower (Play this video in Creation 5)

In 2011, Animal Collective invited you to perform at the All Tomorrow’s Parties that they curated. How was the experience?

It was one of my better shows for sure. A dedicated audience and a massive high quality PA – what more could one ask for? I also enjoyed seeing some bands that I had no idea existed, trendy indie stuff and acts I wasn’t very familiar with.

Vocalcity is my personal favourite Sasu Ripatti album – like all your best work, none of the cinematic tracks dips below ten minutes in length. Do you believe longer, free-flowing compositions afford the artist greater scope?

It’s not that simple. I often seem to just need time to build things, and I don’t really work well with the ‘three minutes thirty seconds’ format (even when it’s something relatively pop-like, such as Luomo). I’m in no rush, I don’t need to shorten tracks for any practical reasons, and I like to take my time. Lots of the music I’m influenced by is also lengthy and developing in structure, although I do enjoy some mainstream forms of music that clock in at 3:30 each and every time – no surprises there. It’s difficult for me personally to make short tracks, let’s put it like that. There’s always too much to say, too much to put into a very short format; but I never try to extend tracks intentionally to make them long. I’ve done smaller pieces, and some of them are my favourites. I have, slowly, also perhaps become slightly better at arranging and composing and need less time to say what I want to say musically.

Where did the ideas for Luomo and Vocalcity come from? What propelled you to try to inject emotion and warmth to the niche sub-genre of micro-house at such a young age? Did it not daunt you, a task that would daunt even a far more experienced and mature artist?

I didn’t care at all, to be honest. I had no idea what house music was, never mind micro-house… it was one of the least interesting forms I could ever imagine listening to. I really hadn’t even heard any actual house music, just the cheap commercial stuff off the radio. For me it was never about house music: it was about pop music. I never wanted to start a band for my pop or vocal music. Electronic backing, however, suits me well when I choose to write pop with vocals. It’s just a vehicle.

Back then I was doing lots of ambient stuff and getting a little bored of it. I was garnering attention for said ambient stuff, and the labels attached to me bothered me to the extent that I decided to do something totally different. I had made strange electronica for years on end and I think I had a little breakdown or something.

I knew a jazz singer from the time I was heavily into the jazz scene and used to play drums. I asked her and a keyboard player to join me. I just got on with it without much planning or thought. I remember the time I sent the first tracks to the label that released Luomo. They said there weren’t enough kick-drums… I remember I tried putting them in – and that’s the house thing I guess. It was a hard period in my life, personally. I was quite a mess and it was somehow therapeutic to write those lyrics and make emotional music.

What are your favourite places in the world to perform at, and why?

I have noticed I’m changing in this respect. It’s partly due to having moved to a remote location (an island in the Baltic Sea, near the Arctic Circle) which makes travelling rather challenging, but beyond that I have realized more and more that my main interest lies in the studio rather than in playing concerts. Don’t get me wrong, I like to play some good shows (and still do every now and then) – but the fact is also that not every show is a good one, and often unrelated to what you’re producing. Those tend to kill me every time a little bit.

Anyway, Tokyo and Kyoto are probably my favourite places followed by random smatterings everywhere. If it’s more dance-oriented music it’s often better the more south you go; for experimental stuff it’s often places where conditions are harsher, or at least less sunny. Still, these are stereotypes and they often fall short. Shows in Japan usually don’t fail, though. People are very considerate and interested in what you’re doing, there’s a certain dedication in Japan that’s more of a norm there than the random, surprise adulation you get elsewhere.

You’re a Pitchfork darling, and arguably one of the most respected producers in the world today. What are your own inspirations? And what new talent have you heard that impresses you?

Am I a Pitchfork darling? I think they’ve routinely ignored everything I have done for years. I’m just not trendy enough.
My own inspirations are rather varied. Obviously there’s music, which has been a part of my life non-stop ever since I was a child. My first memories are almost all connected to music or other creative media.

Music in its many forms still inspires me: mainly older jazz, Jamaican, world music, hip-hop, classical. But I must say I’m connecting less and less with most of the music being made today, compared to some music I’ve truly been inspired by in the past. I still look for new stuff, but maybe less than I used to. It’s just that there’s so much, and not all of it is good. My time is limited. The music I listen to is therapeutic above all. I easily spend 10 to 12 hours in the studio every day, listening to stuff I’m working on. After that I really don’t want to challenge my ears, I want to do the opposite. More often than not it’s something like Bill Evans trio or Chet Baker or I-Roy or some entertaining hip-hop, maybe some solo piano music. Not the latest electronic assault, though; it’s too much. I must add that I generally just don’t like the sound of most music made in the past few years. I’m not contesting its musicality – just what it sounds like. I mean it’s fucking loud, and it’s over-processed, -produced, and pushed to its limits – often, nowadays, with cheap digital gear by people who don’t know much about the technical side of things… about the art of recording. There’s not much room for my own creativity to play around there because there’s no space. The music I love always has plenty of room to hang around and add your self to.

Books have also been quite an inspiration, since both my parents are/were authors. Movies to some extent. Food and cooking to a much greater extent. I cook almost every day. My daughter is arguably the biggest inspiration of them all. I’m inspired by interesting people, from farmers and fishermen to artists and criminals and everything in between. I’m inspired by travel, what I see and learn and notice. There’s so much inspiration around, it just flows in…

Vladislav Delay is possibly your most famous and prolific project. Is there an especial stylistic attachment you have to it over your other work?

Somewhat. It’s more of my own thing than anything else I’ve done. Delay’s music is more expressive and true to my self, to the point that I don’t have to work all that much on this project as compared to the sportsman-like feeling I sometimes get when I’m making vocal or club music. There’s no intention or trying, I just let it go where it wants to.

Vladislav Delay – Huone (Play this video in Creation 5)

Despite the incredible adulation and critical acclaim most of you projects have received, you have, somehow, remained reluctant to toy with mainstream success. Was it a conscious choice to remain an underground artist?

Yes.

Sasu Ripatti chose our Sunday Sessions this week. Listen to them on YouTube!

Don’t have Creation 5? Download it on the App Store!

iPhone Free	iPhone Pro	iPad Free	iPad Pro

If you are already using Creation 5 Media app, don’t forget that you can expand your music collection, for free, by downloading any of the video clips that appear in the above article.
Here’s how:

Open the video in Creation 5 – we have created links by the side of each song title for this very purpose, so just click on any of these and the video will open inside Creation 5.Once the video is playing inside the app, press and hold the song title and choose DOWNLOAD from the options. That’s it! You can now find the video in your ‘Favorites’ folder.Press and hold the song title and choose SHARE. Even if your friends don’t have Creation 5, with the link you send them they will be directed to the App store where they can download the app for free.

The Kings of Rumba are celebrating 25 years in the music world by releasing their first studio album for 7 years. Named “Savor Flamenco”, it is the first album in their whole career written and produced entirely by themselves. The Reyes and Baliardo brothers have once again succeeded in producing an unmistakable sound that blends rumba, flamenco, pop and Latin rhythms like no other.

The Gipsy Kings are Nicolás, Canut, Paul, Patchai and André Reyes, along with their cousins, the Tonino, Paco and Diego Baliardo brothers. Children of two Spanish gypsy families that fled from the horrors of the Civil War to the Southern French town of Arles. The Reyes’ father, Jose Reyes, was a renowned Flamenco vocalist, gaining the admiration of iconic cultural figures such as John Steinbeck, Charlie Chaplin, Pablo Picasso, Miles Davis and Salvador Dali. As his children grew, Jose Reyes passed on his love of and passion for music to them. By the 1970’s, they formed Los Reyes, and began to gain a following in their community. Playing traditional Flamenco, the Reyes brothers performed with their father until his death.

Nicolas and Andre began playing with the Baliardo brothers in the Southern French town of Arles. They traveled throughout the country, busking on the streets of Cannes, playing wherever they could—weddings, parties, festivals. Having adopted the perpetual motion of the gypsy lifestyle, they eventually translated “Los Reyes” and changed their name to the Gipsy Kings.

“Music has always been a passion,” says lead guitarist Tonino Baliardo. “Even after all this time, after all these years of touring and working. It has given us so much. We have matured, we have developed in music, and it has been so good for us.”

In addition to the release of this ninth studio album of completely new and original material, they have been touring the world to commemorate their 25th anniversary. They played at the Royal Albert Hall in London on February 20, 2014 and bought the house down – one member of the audience had this to say: “I knew they were going to be good, I didn’t realise just how good. They had the Royal Albert Hall up all night dancing and singing. People were dancing up and down the aisles – such a great atmosphere.”

Gipsy Kings – 25th Anniversary / Plaza de toro de Arles (Play this video in Creation 5)

“Savor Flamenco” consists of 11 songs in the purest Gipsy Kings style: Great vocal harmonies, guitar riffs with touches of clapping, Tonino Baliardo solos and warm melodies from the powerful voice of Nicolas Reyes. The album was awarded as Best Album in the World Music category in the last edition of the Grammy Awards. It was the sixth nomination of the band in this category – a new record in the history of these prestigious music awards. The first single is called “Samba, Samba”, a song with the Brazilian flavor of beautiful beaches and wonderful parties.

Gipsy Kings – Samba, Samba (Play this video in Creation 5)

This song is the opening track of the “Savor Flamenco” album; titled “Caramelo”. A Flamenco and gypsy party, with a French accent.

Gipsy Kings – Caramelo (Play this video in Creation 5)

The Gipsy Kings legend began in the U.S. in 1988 with a self-titled album and record sales figures. Over 40 weeks at the top of the U.S. charts, so far unmatched by any French artists, with several gold and platinum albums. From there, they have had countless tours to the most remote corners of the planet and sales, which to this day, exceed 25 million albums. There are two legendary singles that have become immortal, “Djobi, Djoba” and the equally popular “Bamboleo”.

Gipsy Kings – Djobi, Djoba (Play this video in Creation 5)

Gipsy Kings – Bamboleo (Play this video in Creation 5)

Two years after the release of “Bamboleo”, the success of the band was already established worldwide. Music greats like Julio Iglesias and Celia Cruz have made covers of their hits. There is no party, festival, fair or celebration which has not played their songs.

The group’s next album, “Mosaïque” (1989), gave us another fantastic hit, “Volare”. This was their cover of the classic “Nel blu dipinto di blu” by Italian Domenico Modugno which won the San Remo Festival in 1958.

Gipsy Kings – Volare (Play this video in Creation 5)

It was in 1992, the year of the Expo in Seville and the Olympics in Barcelona, when the Gipsy Kings visited Madrid for the first time. Their album “The World” (1991) also ruled the charts with the single “Baila Me”.

Gipsy Kings – Baila Me (Play this video in Creation 5)

One of the most legendary collaborations of this Hispano-French band was in the film industry. The following is a scene in which the actor John Turturro shows his bowling skills in the great movie “The Big Lebowski” (1998), directed by the Coen brothers. The song is a cover of “Hotel California” by the Eagles.

Hotel California – Sequence from The Big Lebowski (Play this video in Creation 5)

The collaboration of the Gipsy Kings in the film world was only just beginning! We can hear their version of the song “Hay un Amigo en Mí” in the successful “Toy Story 3” (2010), by Disney Pixar.

Gipsy Kings – Hay un Amigo en Mí (Toy Story 3) (Play this video in Creation 5)

The Gipsy Kings, a band born in the 80’s, which has created its own particular style, born from the tradition of Flamenco, Rumba and other popular rhythms of world music. A great example of perseverance, unity, joy and passion. Here’s to another 25 years…

“Even though it’s been 25 years, we want to keep on making new music because it’s our life, it’s who we are,” says Nicolas Reyes. “But I think there will be a time when we pass down the Gipsy Kings to our sons.”

“They will take over what we have started,” says Canut Reyes. “This way the legacy will survive.”

Savor Flamenco – Tracklist 1. “Caramelo” 2. “Bye Bye (Ella Me Dice Vay)” 3. “Como L’agua” 4. “Tiempo del Sol” 5. “Me Voy” 6. “Fairies Melody” 7. “Samba Samba” 8. “Corazón” 9. “Savor Flamenco” 10. “Sueños” 11. “Habla Contingo”

Don’t have Creation 5? Download it on the App Store!

iPhone Free	iPhone Pro	iPad Free	iPad Pro

If you are already using Creation 5 Media app, don’t forget that you can expand your music collection, for free, by downloading any of the video clips that appear in the above article.
Here’s how:

Open the video in Creation 5 – we have created links by the side of each song title for this very purpose, so just click on any of these and the video will open inside Creation 5.Once the video is playing inside the app, press and hold the song title and choose DOWNLOAD from the options. That’s it! You can now find the video in your ‘Favorites’ folder.Press and hold the song title and choose SHARE. Even if your friends don’t have Creation 5, with the link you send them they will be directed to the App store where they can download the app for free.

The 2014 BRIT Awards – the 34th edition of the British Phonographic Industry’s annual pop music awards was held at The O2 Arena in London on February 19, presented by James Corden.

It was a fantastic evening at the 2014 BRIT Awards. It was so much more than just an award ceremony – there were plenty of surprises and comical moments that made it so very British (even though most of the performers were American). The ceremony was streamed worldwide on YouTube for the first time attracting millions more viewers. The highlights of the night were the following:

1) David Bowie winning British Male Solo Artist Award was quite surreal – especially seeing as he wasn’t even there to collect his award. Instead he sent supermodel Kate Moss “who is his representative on earth” to say a few words on his behalf. Noel Gallagher came on to announce the winner saying “You maniacs didn’t think David Bowie was actually going to be here, did you? He’s too cool for that, he wouldn’t do this shit.” Kate Moss then read a short speech on his behalf, which included the brilliant line: “Kate is from Venus and I from Mars,” and then ended with “I’m completely delighted to have a Brit for being the best male – but I am, aren’t I Kate? Yes. I think it’s a great way to end the day. Thank you very, very much and Scotland stay with us,” (referring to the upcoming referendum on Scottish independence).

Arctic Monkeys open the show with ‘R U Mine’ (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

2) The Artic Monkeys opened the show with a stunning performance of “R U Mine” playing behind massive flaming A and M letters. They won Best British Group and Best Album for the third time. Alex Turner gave a great acceptance speech, very Rock and Roll: “That rock & roll eh? It just won’t go away. It might hibernate from time to time… but it’s always waiting just around the corner, ready to smash through the glass ceiling, looking better than ever.” He then dropped the microphone (on purpose) telling the organizers to “invoice me.”

The awesome Katy Perry gave an incredible neon-Egyptian inspired performance of ‘Dark Horse.’ (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

3) Brilliant performances from the Americans gave the show it’s star spangled quality. Bruno Mars gave a very slick performance of Treasure – what an incredible showman he is, very deserving of his International Male Solo Artist award. Katy Perry wowed everyone with her neon-Egyptian performance of ‘Dark Horse’ and Beyonce sang XO in public for the first time – it was almost too glittery and beautiful to watch. The closing show with Pharrell, Nile Rodgers and the Northern Soul Dancers performing a medley of Get Lucky, Good Times and Happy was electric!

International Male Solo Artist winner Bruno Mars performs ‘Treasure’ at the BRITs 2014. (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

4) The host, James Corden did a splendid job, as usual (this was his fifth time hosting the awards) – even though some people find him a little too near-the-knuckle. Events did get out of hand when Nick Grimshaw was onstage kissing James – but hey, what do you expect, this is show business?

A truly global collaboration as four time nominated Disclosure team up with New Zealand’s Lorde and AlunaGeorge to perform a special version of ‘Royals’ and ‘White Noise.’ (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

5) The best lines of the night have to go to Harry Styles, who was late onstage to accept One Direction’s win for the Global Success Award “Sorry, I was having a wee”….and to Alex Turner for saying what everyone always thinks at these award ceremonies “There’s a lot of people to thank, but they need to hear their names read out about as much as you need to hear another list.”

Ellie Goulding performed a medley of her BRIT 2014 nominated tracks, ‘I Need Your Love’ and ‘Burn’ after picking up British Female Solo Artist. (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

BRIT Awards’ Winners List
British Male Solo Artist – David Bowie
British Female Solo Artist – Ellie Goulding
British Group – Arctic Monkeys
British Breakthrough Act – Bastille
British Single – “Waiting All Night” by Rudimental feat. Ella Eyre
British Album of the Year – AM by Arctic Monkeys
Best Video (Public Vote) – “Best Song Ever” by One Direction
International Male Solo Artist – Bruno Mars
International Female Solo Artist – Lorde
International Group – Daft Punk
Global Success – One Direction
Critics’ Choice – Sam Smith
British Producer of the Year – Flood & Alan Moulder

What a great way to finish the BRITs 2014! Pharrell and Nile Rodgers perform a medley of ‘Get Lucky,’ ‘Good Times’ and ‘Happy.’ (Click here to watch in Creation 5)

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