Natalie Maines Gets the Runs
Dixie Chick Natalie Maines worked on her fitness by hiking in L.A. this weekend.
The recently shorn 34-year-old mother of two is not ashamed to break a sweat in public.
Filed under: Paparazzi Photo, Beauty, Hot Bodies
All posts containing the tag: "DixieChicks"
Natalie Maines, Sans Mane
Dixie Chick Natalie Maines in Venice, CA yesterday ... with a super cut. 
Filed under: Paparazzi Photo, Beauty
Dixie Chick Won't Beat Around the Bush
If there's one thing Natalie Maines is good for -- other than playing a mean six-string -- it's bashing President Bush every chance she gets.
Filed under: Prez Election 2008
Who Says Simon Cowell Stinks?
You've seen him on "American Idol," but it probably never crossed your mind that you wanted to smell like Simon Cowell. But now's your chance.
Cowell has announced that he's releasing a fragrance. He told British reporters, "There's this cologne I really like and it's not very well known, so I'm thinking of partnering up with them and giving it my name."
TMZ is betting that Cowell favors the fragrance by Brute.
Deal, No Deal
Brooke Hogan went into the LF store on Fifth Avenue with her dad, wrestling legend Hulk Hogan and a camera crew from Teen People in tow, Page Six reported today. She spent over an hour trying on clothes, eventually walking out with $900 worth a stuff. After the camera crew took off, one of her flunkies went back and returned a bunch of stuff, reportedly saying, "We didn't think you were going to charge us!"
The flunky told the paper, "When she got to her car she realized she'd overspent, but she did keep a bag and a necklace."
50 Cent Still In Da Club
50 Cent's not thief -- at least, that's what a Florida judged ruled yesterday in a copyright infringement suit over his 2003 hit, "In Da Club." The suit alleged that the opening phrase of the song, "Go shorty, it's your birthday," was similar to the song, "It's Your Birthday" by former 2 Live Crew frontman Luther Campbell. The 2 Live Crew version had the lyrics, "Go Sheila, it's your birthday." Close, but no cigar. The judge threw the case out, noting that the disputed phrase took up only 11 seconds of the entire three-minute song, and that the rest was completely different.
Party Favors
Jon Stewart's "Daily Show" will broadcast from Ohio next week, beginning with a special preview appearance today. The "Midwest Midterm Spectacular," as it's being called, marks the first time the show has taped off of the East or West coasts ... NBC is refusing to run a national ad for the new Dixie Chicks movie, "Shut Up and Sing," because it disparaged President Bush. CBS has agreed to run the ad, while ABC and Fox have not yet decided. The CW network has also refused to run it.
Filed under: Let's Get This Party Started
Dixie Chicks Nest in Big Radio's Hair
Wow.
Last night, I caught a look at two-time Oscar winning documentarian Barbara Kopple's amazing new film, "Shut Up and Sing," about the obnoxious obloquy that followed the Dixie Chicks now infamous remarks about President Bush in the run-up to "Gulf War 2: Insurgent Bugaloo."
Back in 2003, the Chicks' lead singer Natalie Maines uttered only 15 words at a London concert: "Just so you know, we're ashamed the President of the United States is from Texas." -- but they got the Chicks far more than 15 minutes of fame.
You would think the largest selling female act of the last eight years could be forgiven a lot, perhaps even such a trifecta of etiquette breaches: The airing of soiled domestic laundry on foreign soil; the declaring of war on the commander-in-chief with the nation on the verge of war, and most egregiously, making political statements guaranteed to alienate the Chicks' conservative fan base.
And as The Nation columnist John Nichols wrote last June, in light of current public opinion, those first two transgressions now seem almost quaint.
Viz,
"For the 'crime' of prematurely voicing a sentiment that is now close to universal in the US - with more than two-thirds of Americans expressing disapproval of Bush - the Dixie Chicks were hit with a full-frontal assault by right-wing media. Talk radio and television labeled them the Ditzy Chicks and their popular songs suddenly were yanked from country-music playlists. Boycotts were announced."
That third "sin" -- angering the group's conservative fan base -- may seem self-inflicted, but in point of fact, it largely wasn't.
Sure, no one held a gun to Maines' head to make her say what she said. But the disproportionate influence of right wing pressure groups on radio stations to dump the Chicks wasn't the result of a massive groundswell of righteous anger from the heartland's populace. The fix was in long before the Chicks were even popular.
Kopple addresses the sheer heft of radio station conglomerates only glancingly in her new film, with Sen. John McCain seen haranguing a disingenuous a radio mogul in a Senate hearing. What got the senator from Arizona so riled up was the fact some 200 radio stations, all owned by the same mega-company, all suddenly got the same idea - simultaneously - to ban the Chicks from the airwaves. Curious, indeed.
As such, it's worth noting how we, and the Chicks, got into such a Wag-the-Dog kind of mess in radio.
Ten years ago, in 1996, the most sweeping reform of communications law in over half a century occurred. Deceptively called the Telecommunications Act, it in fact loosened all sorts of restrictions on media ownership, including the ownership of radio stations, which became totally "all you can eat."
At the time, when the Chicks were still playing the produce section of supermarket openings, communications scholar Robert McChesney called the bill "the worst of both worlds: More concentrated ownership over communications with less possibility for regulation in the public interest."
In other words, with so few owners controlling so much radio, a handful of radio executives could determine what was acceptable to play, seriously undermining free speech.
Or as McCain himself put it in 1999, "The Telecommunications Reforms Act of 1996 is a lemon and it's not hard to understand why. When the bill was written, special interests had a seat at the table, but consumers, in whose name the bill was advanced, did not."
The result? When artists exercise freedom of speech, even off the airwaves, a handful of fat media slobs can cut their First Amendment workout extremely short.
My recommendation: Run, don't walk, to "Shut Up and Sing" when it opens on October 27th.
It would seem there are 2,771 reasons to see it, and counting.
Get Ready to Jam, Dixie Chicks Style
When the Dixie Chicks aren't out pissing off a certain section of their fan base or doing interviews about a certain leader of the free world, they actually have a recording career.
Now you can put politics behind you and start your own personal hoe-down with instruments signed by the Chicks themselves.
eBay has two items up for auction right now that will make your Dixie Chick dreams come true. The first is a guitar signed by not only the Dixie Chicks but also Alec Baldwin, Alan Alda, Peter, Paul and Mary and the Indigo Girls (to name a few). Proceeds from the guitar's auction will benefit "Americans for Arts."
The second is a fiddle signed by the Dixie Chicks exclusively. So whether you plan on playing the instruments or if you just want to place the instruments in a case for all the world to see, it's time to get those eBay accounts fired up and ready to rock er... country.
Filed under: Celebrity Auctions
Not Ready to "Shut Up and Sing"
Natalie Maines obviously isn't out to make friends with President Bush anytime soon -- expressing her embarrassment towards #43 and calling him a "dumb f**k" in a new documentary.
Though the Dixie Chicks initially set out to make a rockumentary, "Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing" quickly became more politically charged after the group's frontwoman told a London audience, "We're embarrassed that the President is from Texas," at a 2003 concert.
"We felt like it was time to have cameras follow us around for a little while and just show the next cycle of touring," says Emily Robison about the filming, "and then when Natalie said what she said it turned into a totally different animal. It was one of those things where we knew it was important to continue filming."
The documentary, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, depicts the backlash towards the Chicks and their new album, "Taking the Long Way," which had difficulty getting airplay on country radio stations. The film will open this month in limited release.
Filed under: Music, Movies, Celebrity Feuds
Dixie Chicks To Bush: "You're a Dumb F**k"
It's been more than three years since the Dixie Chicks sparked a media firestorm by announcing they were "ashamed the President of the United States is from Texas." Now, the embattled country stars are reigniting the blaze with a highly controversial documentary featuring lead singer Natalie Maines calling President Bush a "dumb f---."
Click here... it's not over yet
Filed under: Movies, Celebrity Feuds
Dixie Chicks Still Not Making Nice
The Dixie Chicks are re-writing the rule books on how to market music. A standard rule of thumb is that you absolutely need major radio airplay to sell records. Well, the Dixie Chicks have proven that wrong.
The Chicks have held the top spot on the charts for two weeks now despite media stories that country music stations across the U.S. are not playing tunes from their new record "Taking the Long Way."
While record sales are soaring, the Chicks have taken a hit at the ticket counter. Sales have been slow in some markets and the ladies have issued a statement on their website denying speculation that there tour will be canceled: "Any reports being made about the cancellation of our upcoming 'Accidents And Accusations' tour are completely false.
We have known since March 2003 [when Natalie Maines spoke out against the Iraq war] that our path in this business would have obstacles at every pass. We have enjoyed meeting each one head-on and we will continue to do so. Dixie Chicks fans are as active and dedicated as they come. This time around we are willingly feeling our way through uncharted territory. Things don't come as easy as they might have come in the past, and it makes each accomplishment more exciting and appreciated. We will go where the fans are with great anticipation and no regrets."
It's impressive to see the Chicks stick to their guns in the face of a concerted effort from various politicians, activists and media outlets to shout them down or build up talk of their so-called demise. Their June 15th show in London - the site of their infamous comments that kicked off the backlash - is sold out. It'll be interesting to see how many sell outs they can muster back home here in the States.
Filed under: Music, Sound Bytes
Dixie Chicks Still Mad
The Dixie Chicks are still mad as hell -- at least according to their new single, 'Not Ready to Make Nice.'
"I'm not ready to bow down," croons lead singer Natalie Maines. "I'm still mad as hell and I don't have time to go round and round and round."
It appears the Chicks haven't gotten over being blacklisted by country music after Maines told a London audience in 2003, "Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas."Click here... it's not over yet
Filed under: Music
Time Honors Most Influential
The stars showed up Monday night in New York to honor Time magazine's 100 most influential people.
Will Smith was flying solo after being recognized along with hip-hop mogul Diddy, who said he feels like "a big old kid that came home with a good report card."
Related links
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Filed under: Music, The Biz, Awards/Awards Shows
Springsteen, Sting, Simon Serenade James Taylor With His Tunes
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Filed under: Music, The Biz, Awards/Awards Shows
