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NEWS & NOTES

MADONNA CELEBRATES HARD CANDY IN NYC
Madonna played an intimate set for a few thousand lucky fans last night (April 30) at New York City's Roseland Ballroom to celebrate the release of her latest album, Hard Candy, which hit stores Tuesday. Fans packed themselves like sardines into the 2,200 capacity venue to get a preview of the artist's latest laser-light, choreographed dance fest that one would expect from a Madonna show. Those not in attendance had the ability to watch the show's first four songs on a live simulcast to subscribers worldwide, thanks to the show's sponsor Verizon. The entire concert is also streaming on demand via MSN Music here.
Her set lasted just under 40 minutes, and according to multiple reports, included a blend of older and newer tracks. The performance began with Hard Candy's opening track "Candy Shop," as the Material Girl emerged on the stage sitting atop a throne, while visions of swirling candies moved in unison to a vast array of lights, lasers and dancers.
Madonna was then handed an acoustic guitar and began to strum along to another new song "Miles Away," after which she briefly retreated backstage, only to emerge a moment later to her latest single "4 Minutes." Fans erupted with applause when song collaborator Justin Timberlake hit the stage to perform his vocal duties. The song concluded with the two stars performing the intricate dance moves found in the "4 Minute" music video. Afterwards, Madonna took time to give thanks to album collaborators Timberlake, Kanye West, Timbaland and others, "I feel like the luckiest girl in the world," she said. "Even though I've made what seems like 100 records, every time I put one out it's like the first time, and the best time."
Madonna played the opening riff to the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction," before dedicating a heavy guitar layered version of "Hung Up" to "all you people I saw asleep on the sidewalk last night." She added, "This song is for you, and I want to hear you singing it loud and clear," according to Rolling Stone.
Madonna played "Give It to Me," the second single from the new album, as images of the tracks producer Pharell flashed in the background. The brief show concluded with a heavily synth-ed out remix of her smash hit "Music," while dancers entered the stage on a prop subway car.

ALICIA KEYS: A MAGICAL NIGHT IN PHILLY!
It’s been some time since I’ve seen a concert performance worthy of five stars, but Alicia Keys performance on the second date (4/24) of her 2008 “As I Am” tour in Philadelphia was just that. Her 30-song, two-hour set not only met expectations but far exceeded them. Keys didn’t use her piano as a ball and chain as she moved about the stage with well timed choreography. But make no mistake, this show was not about Alicia Keys “The Dancer,” but the girl does know how to get her groove on much to the delight of an audience who more than likely was expecting a full night of piano magic from this multi-talented Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter. The magic did come from the minute Alicia told the crowd eight songs into the set that she was more than ready to play her piano…and play she did… delivering a melody and vocal performance filled with emotion and passion. Her set list included all the hits and even some special Old Skool classics from Force MDs (“Tender Love”) and Michael Jackson (“Got To Be There”), which sounded as if Keys had recorded them in 2008, they might become bigger hits than the originals. Chances are good that Alicia Keys is coming to a town near you and it would be wise to plan to experience this truly gifted artist on what is sure to become one of 2008’s must see events!

B104 CELEBRATES MAYFAIR IN ALLENTOWN
Clear Channel Top 40 WAEB (B104)/Allentown celebrates "Mayfair" with a concert featuring Jesse McCartney, American Idol’s Ace Young, The Dollyrots, and local artists The Sandlot Heroes on May 23. The event begins at 8 pm at Mayfair’s Cabaret Stage at Cedar Beach Park in Allentown.

MARIAH HOLDS AT #1
Mariah Carey's new album, E=MC2, debuted at #1 this last week by selling 463,000 copies, according to SoundScan. This marked the highest first week sales of Mariah's storied career. This week Mariah holds the top slot with another 181,899 in sales.

LEONA LEWIS "Bleeding Love" (J/RMG)
The huge buzz on Leona Lewis helped her debut album land at #1 following up her #1 debut single “Bleeding Love.” The song is on-fire at Pop radio where it's up over 10,000 spins with a 800 spin increase! We’re witnessing another star being born under the watchful eye of Clive Davis who has once again produced another #1 album while launching a career that is sure to make Leona Lewis a household name for many years to come.

JORDIN SPARKS & CHRIS BROWN "No Air" (Jive/Zomba)
"Tattoo" as predicted has become a major hit at Pop radio. It was the perfect single to introduce Sparks to the Pop music world. This girl can flat-out sing and that alone makes Jordin Sparks an FMQB "Artist To Watch" in 2008. Sparks' duet with Chris Brown "No Air" is already on-fire up over 9,500 spins (+138) at Pop radio! Look for Sparks to resume her openning slot alongside Ne-Yo on the Alicia Keys tour with a month. It really doesn't get much better than that!!!

BUZZCUTS

MARIAH CAREY “Bye Bye” (Island/IDJMG)
The last time Mariah Carey and Johnta Austin collaborated, it resulted in the two biggest hits of Carey’s career with “We Belong Together” and “Don’t Forget About Us.” So it should come as no surprise that “Bye Bye” is another gem with multi-format hit potential. While Carey has delivered her share of great uptempo hits throughout the years, some might agree that nowadays MC sounds best on records that evoke this kind of emotion and passion. Carey knows how to connect with the audience on a personal level and this song about loss is no exception and is sure to strike a chord with many. Songwriting is an art and no one has perfected that art form better than Mariah Carey, who has delivered a single that is destined to be her nineteenth #1 hit.

ARTIST TO WATCH

KATE VOEGELE “Only Fooling Myself” (MySpace.com/Interscope)
We’re telling you now…Kate Voegele is an “Artist To Watch”…she’s that good! Massive exposure on MySpace and a featured role as “Mia” on The CW’s One Tree Hill can only ensure success for this truly gifted singer/songwriter with enough talent to be considered one of 2008's Breakthrough Artists. If sales spikes that have followed her television appearences are an indication of anything, it’s that the character of “Mia” is helping expose the music of Kate Voegele to a much wider audience who’s also buying it. Her debut album, Don’t Look Away is loaded with many great songs including: "Kindly Unspoken," "Wish You Were" and her debut single, “Only Fooling Myself,” which recently made its OTH debut. It's the perfect tempo driven song to introduce her as an artist, but it’s endless touring that will showcase Kate Voegele as a talent who doesn’t just play a singer/songwriter on TV…she’s one in real life!