Photos From the NIN Tour

Nine Inch Nails has been on the ball with still keeping their site and fans up to date despite them being in the middle of their tour. They have been posting mobile photos every day from various places they visit along the tour. In addition to that they have actively been updating their Flickr page with photos from their performances at various venues.

If you are still on the fence about going to the show then this would be a great way for you to get a better grasp of the visual elements and the feel for the performance. If you already have your tickets then this will only make you salivate more than you already are.

Lights In The Sky: Over North America Tour 2008 Photos

Future Plies Singles Feature Many Guests

(Written by Shaheem Reid on MTV.com) Plies insists a trio is better than a duo. After his first single, “Bust It Baby Pt. 2,” featured only one guest star (Ne-Yo), he’s going in for the kill by giving fans a pair of collaborators (plus himself, of course) on his next two tracks.

“That record, I feel, is a helluva second single,” he said of Definition of Real’s “Please Excuse My Hands,” which features Jamie Foxx and The-Dream. “To come behind a #1 record and have a person who’s currently relevant in Dream, one of the better songwriters to come through this industry, and then do the Jamie Foxx thing, the boss of all bosses — I wanted to try something differently than I did on my last album.

“Even my third single, ‘#1 Fan,’ with Keyshia Cole and J. Holiday,” he added. “I wanted to load up two big features on that record as well. Try something different. A lot of times you get a feature, and it’s just you and that other artist. I wanted to see if I could bring something different to the game, see if I can force people to follow my trend.”

The video for “Please Excuse My Hands” is almost here, and Plies said he’s getting positive reviews thus far. He said the record describes a scenario we’ve all been through: when lust takes over our minds.

“I think at some point in time, we always see that person from afar or in a club or in an elevator that allows us to look at them, and in our mind, we already lived that [sexual] situation out,” he explained of the cut. “To run with that whole concept, ‘Please Excuse My Hands,’ the male embracement of that record has been crazy to me. When I go to radio stations, I hear DJs, jocks tell me, ‘Man, I love this way better than “Bust It Baby.” ‘ I thought it was gonna be a female-driven record.”

Circus Profile: America’s Best Clown, Bello

Agile, athletic and full of fun, that master of merriment Bello is back like you’ve never seen him before, bringing loads of laughs and daredevil hilarity to The Greatest Show On Earth®. Whether bungling into another performer’s thrill act and scaring himself silly or doing battle with a bouncy bungee, the madcap Bello always succeeds in making the perilous look funny. His hair-raising antics and lighthearted way with danger have won him the affection of audiences young and old. No wonder TIME Magazine named him “America’s Best Clown.”

Born in 1968 in Sarasota, Florida, this seventh-generation member of a Swiss circus dynasty brings excitement and comic appeal to the ring. Bello’s days of performing began at age three when he dressed as a clown for the first time and acted in a Dumbo circus routine.

At age six, Bello was cast to play Little Michael Darling in the touring version of Peter Pan with Cathy Rigby, and at age nine his family began performing in the Tommy Bartlett Thrill Show in Dells, Wisconsin, that is still playing today.

“I always want to capture the attention of children,” says Bello. “After my performance, adults will remember being a kid again.”

To stay energetic and inspiring to Children Of All Ages, Bello always remembers what his father taught him: “Never think you can’t improve — you can never learn enough.”

Bello married his high school sweetheart, Jenny, and has one son, Alex, two daughters, Amariah and Analiese. Bello feels very strongly about instilling the many morals he has learned from his family and he also influences his children with Bible stories.

DID YOU KNOW?
Bello acted in his first clown act on a nine-foot low wire at age nine and performed in his first tent show in 1998 for the Big Apple Circus.

Source: Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus

Nine Inch Nails Rehearsal Videos

Videos of their rehearsal for their upcoming tour were recently released on the Nine Inch Nails website. It will give you an idea of who you can expect to see alongside Trent Reznor on the stage this summer. Each video is a rehearsal of a song off their new album The Slip (available FREE online) which was just released. Below are images that link to each video, click them to play the video of that song.

It is safe to say there will be plenty of songs off their new album in the setlist for the show. I am sure this isn’t the last thing they will do before the show so stay tuned to this blog and we will be sure to keep you in-the-know about any videos/songs/graphics that they offer up on their site.

Videos Hosted and Available at NIN.com :: Originally Released at Pitchfork.tv

Nine Inch Novelties

Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails has made lots of news lately for his innovative ways to release music and interactivity with the Nine Inch Nails fan base. In line with their recent generosity (releasing a full album for free online), Nine Inch Nails has released some media (desktop wallpapers, buddy icons, posters, etc.) for their upcoming Lights In The Sky Over North America 2008 tour that will be at Rupp Arena on August 31st. I thought people may be interested in downloading the PDF of the tour poster. You can either download the whole extras pack, or click on the image below to download just the poster.

What is even more exciting is that the free downloads don’t stop there. Nine Inch Nails released a tour EP that you can download for free on their site. It features a Nine Inch Nails song off their newest album as well as a song by the bands that are opening for them around the country at various venues. It is a great way to listen to the opening talent and get a feel for their sound before seeing them on stage. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen a band only to fully appreciate them a month after I saw them. With this, if you like their music, then you could listen to them more and have an understanding of them already when you see them in concert. Click on the below image of the EP album art and it will direct you to the Nine Inch Nails site where you can download it for free.

If you haven’t gotten your tickets yet because you are in question about the show, let me give you some insight. Nine Inch Nails is just as visually appealing and innovative as they are socially innovative online. Their show in 2006 was absolutely stunning and had some of the coolest stage lighting and effects that I have ever seen. I hope everyone is able to go and experience it for themselves.

American Idols Come To Rupp Arena!

It’s official. The American Idols Live Tour will be coming to Rupp Arena this summer, August 16th. This will be the only appearance they are making in Kentucky. We will be reminding you when tickets become available so you can be sure to get one of the hotly-sought-after seats.

There is not a lot of information available other than the date they will be here and when the official on-sale date is, which is May 17th at 10 AM. As information becomes available, you can check it out at our page dedicated to the concert on Rupp Arena’s website, or general tour information on the tour page on American Idol’s website.

Bill Keightley Memorial Videos

I had the chance to attend the memorial for Bill “Mr. Wildcat” Keightley last night at 6 PM in Rupp Arena. There was a good show of fans and supporters, but the most amazing aspect was the amount of coaches and players there to pay their respects. Among the players were this past year’s team, as well as Kenny Walker, Jeff Sheppard, Jay Shidler, Kyle Macy, Dwayne Casey, Cameron Mills, Scott Pagent, and Walter McCarty as well as many many more. Beyond the players, there were many coaches who were good friends with Keightley that were present. Three of the five coaches and Keightley served under were there (Joe B. Hall, Rick Pitino, Billy Gillispie, with Tubby Smith’s flight being delayed on his way to the service), as well as John Pelphrey (former player and current head coach of Arkansas), Billy Donovan (former assistant coach and current head coach of Florida), Rick Stansbury (native Kentuckian and current head coach of Mississippi State), and Jeff Morrow (head coach of a Kentucky high school basketball team). there were some great speeches given, but my favorite by far came from an unlikely source, Rick Pitino. Here is a video of the great speech Rick gave last night.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqTv8PA0Bd0]

It is easy to say that Bill Keightley impacted many people’s lives. He turned boys into leaders, nervous and youthful coaches into experienced veterans, and anyone he met into a friend. One of the overlooked things he did was not only prepare college athletes for pro sports, but people for whatever life they lead. There are doctors, real estate agents, firemen and more than all dawned a jersey during school.

To see all the speeches as well as the tribute video, you can CLICK HERE and view sections of the memorial that someone captured from TV last night and put up on Youtube. You can also stop by the news page on ESPN and on WKYT to view all the kind and thoughtful comments at both places.

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss at Rupp Arena

If you look at the post below this one, I was seeing if anyone could guess who just announced that they are coming to Rupp Arena. There were some decent guesses, and others that were creative to say the least. As you can see from the image above, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are the artists that just announced that they are coming this summer to Rupp Arena. Alison Krauss is extremely well known as being an incredibly talented singer and violinist. Robert Plant is somewhat known as well. He is only a part of one of the greatest Rock Bands of all time, Led Zeppelin (although Matt, our webmaster sees no competition). In fact, he was more than a part of it, he was the all-too-familiar vocalist. Plant is the one you hear daily on the radio serenading you with songs about love, Valhalla, The Lord of the Rings, and a stairway that leads to heaven. Plant’s set of pipes and Alison’s graceful bow strokes will be captivating the audience at Rupp Arena on Friday, July 18.

For more information on the show, keep checking the page dedicated to the concert on Rupp Arena’s Website. You can also read the press release on the news section on the Rupp Arena Website.

Bill Keightley “Mr. Wildcat” Public Memorial

There will be a public memorial held for “Mr. Wildcat” Bill Keightley this Thursday, April 3rd. Starting at 10 o’clock AM and going to 4 o’clock PM, there will be a viewing in the Rupp Arena lobby at the High Street entrance. The memorial service will take place at 6 o’clock PM in Rupp Arena. For more details about the service, please visit the memorial page on Rupp Arena’s website.

The Rupp Arena Blog gives its best wishes to the Keightley family.

Keith and Carrie Pre-sale

Psst… yeah you… I have an inside tip for ya. Just a heads up to all those Keith Urban and/or Carrie Underwood fans out there (wow, that covers a lot of people, right?), you may want to join our First in Line list if you haven’t already. I just overheard some people talking about the pre-sale code for the Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood concert being sent out via email to the First in Line subscribers.

First in Line is free and basically to inform people of shows coming up as well as give them pre-sale information for them. Even if you are just interested in Keith and Carrie, it is a good way to get your tickets early. No need to miss out on getting them in advance when the concert is looking like it will sell out.

I will keep you up to date on this specific concert as well as other pre-sales happening in the future. Time is of the essence for Keith and Carrie, since the email goes out tomorrow so be sure to put your name on our list so you will get one.

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