News Roundup

Music labels continue to unearth new Michael Jackson material, including a previously unreleased song by the Jackson 5. “That’s How Love Is,” an early Jackson 5 tune written and produced by The Corporation, can currently be heard at the group’s website. Those who crave additional material will have to wait until November, when Motown plans to release I Want You Back! Unreleased Masters, a new collection of 12 vault recordings. [Billboard.com]

Despite high-profile releases by U2, Eminem, Green Day, and Dave Matthews Band — not to mention renewed interest in the Beatles and Michael Jackson — album sales are down this year. Unless the Christmas season convinces more consumers to pay for their music, 2009 will become the 8th year since 2000 to experience a marked decrease in sales. [RollingStone.com]

Fresh off the American Idol summer tour, former contestant Allison Iraheta has put the finishing touches on her first single. “Friday I’ll Be Over U” was written by pop maestro Max Martin, the man behind many of Kelly Clarkson’s biggest hits. [PopEater.com]

Swine flu has infiltrated the ranks of the Backstreet Boys, who recently canceled a string of performances (including an appearance on CBS’ Early Show) due to Brian Litrell’s sickness. The group’s newest album, This Is Us, was released this morning as scheduled. [RollingStone.com]

As reported yesterday, Fox News employee Glenn Beck is an outspoken Muse fan. He’s also a fan of fraudulent news, apparently, as a spokesperson from Beck’s company now says that Muse never asked Beck to retract his endorsement. Who smells an uprising? [NME.com]

Weezer’s new album is chock-full of oddities, including a cameo appearance by Lil Wayne and contributions from teen-pop producers Dr. Luke and Butch Walker. In a conversation with Pitchfork, Rivers Cuomo talks about his favorite moments on Raditude, as well as his newfound love for crocheting, sculpting, and whittling. [Pitchfork.com]

The Lady Gaga/Kanye West arena tour, which was scheduled to visit 34 cities this fall, has been canceled. Although previous news reports indicated that the two artists frequently butted heads, Pollstar editor Gary Bongiovanni says the real reason behind the cancellation was sluggish ticket sales. [Variety.com]

http://blog.allmusic.com/