Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott Folds (born September 12, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. After playing in several small independent bands throughout the late 80s and into the early 90s, Folds came to prominence as the frontman and pianist of the alternative rock trio Ben Folds Five from 1993 to 2000, and again during their reunion from 2011 to 2013. He has recorded a number of solo albums, most recently '' Sleigher'' (2024). He has also collaborated with musicians such as Regina Spektor, "Weird Al" Yankovic and yMusic, and undertaken experimental songwriting projects with actor William Shatner and authors such as Nick Hornby and Neil Gaiman. He was the artistic advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. from 2019 until 2025. Folds has frequently performed arrangements of his music with uncommon instrumentation for rock and pop music, including symphony orchestras and a cappella groups. In addition to contributin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Who Killed Amanda Palmer
''Who Killed Amanda Palmer'' is the first solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Amanda Palmer. The album was largely recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, with collaborator Ben Folds and was released on Roadrunner Records (also home to The Dresden Dolls) on 16 September 2008. The name of the album is a reference to the series ''Twin Peaks'', which revolves around events surrounding the death of Laura Palmer. Background Certain tracks also featured Folds on percussion and keyboards and former Rasputina (band), Rasputina member Zoë Keating on cello. In 2007, Palmer self-released the song "I Will Follow You into the Dark", a cover of the Death Cab for Cutie song, on her Myspace. The ID3, ID3 tags listed the source album as ''Nashville''. Fans discussed the possibility of the solo album having this name, but Palmer dispelled rumors on the Dresden Dolls' forum, The Shadowbox, stating: that was titled 'nashville' because that is the location that i am recording the solo album ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the List of municipalities in North Carolina, fifth-most populous city in North Carolina and the List of United States cities by population, 91st-most populous city in the United States. The population of the Winston-Salem Metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan area was estimated to be 695,630 in 2023. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina's Piedmont Triad region, home to about 1.7 million residents. Winston-Salem is called the "Twin City" for its dual heritage, and the "Camel City" as a reference to the city's historic involvement in the tobacco industry related to locally based R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, R. J. Reynolds' Camel (cigarette), Camel cigarettes. Many North Carolina, North Carolinians refer to the city as "Winston" in informal speech. Winston-Salem is also home to si ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Nick Hornby
Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born 17 April 1957) is an English writer. He is best known for his memoir '' Fever Pitch'' (1992) and novels ''High Fidelity'' and '' About a Boy'', all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work frequently touches upon music, sport, and the aimless and obsessive natures of his protagonists. His books have sold more than 5 million copies worldwide as of 2018. In a 2004 poll for the BBC, Hornby was named the 29th most influential person in British culture. He has received two Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay nominations for '' An Education'' (2009), and ''Brooklyn'' (2015). Early life and education Hornby was born in Redhill, Surrey, the son of Sir Derek Hornby, the chairman of London and Continental Railways, and Margaret Audrey Withers. He was brought up in Maidenhead, and educated at Maidenhead Grammar School and Jesus College, Cambridge, where he read English. His parents divorced when he was eleven. Before becoming a nov ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Barter
In trade, barter (derived from ''bareter'') is a system of exchange (economics), exchange in which participants in a financial transaction, transaction directly exchange good (economics), goods or service (economics), services for other goods or services without using a medium of exchange, such as money. Economists usually distinguish barter from gift economy, gift economies in many ways; barter, for example, features immediate reciprocity (cultural anthropology), reciprocal exchange, not one delayed in time. Barter usually takes place on a bilateral trade, bilateral basis, but may be multilateral exchange, multilateral (if it is mediated through a trade exchange). In most developed countries, barter usually exists parallel to monetary systems only to a very limited extent. Market actors use barter as a replacement for money as the method of exchange in times of monetary crisis, such as when currency becomes unstable (such as hyperinflation or a Deflation#Deflationary spiral, de ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Billboard (magazine)
''Billboard'' (stylized in letter case, lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to the music industry. Its Billboard charts, music charts include the Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100, the Billboard 200, 200, and the Billboard Global 200, Global 200, tracking the most popular albums and songs in various music genres. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm and operates several television shows. ''Billboard'' was founded in 1894 by William Donaldson and James Hennegan as a trade publication for bill posters. Donaldson acquired Hennegan's interest in 1900 for $500. In the early years of the 20th century, it covered the entertainment industry, such as circuses, fairs and burlesque shows, and also created a mail service for travelling entertainers. ''Billboard'' began focusing more on the music industry as the jukebox ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
A Dream About Lightning Bugs
''A Dream About Lightning Bugs: A Life of Music and Cheap Lessons'' is a memoir written by musician Ben Folds, first published in July 2019. It reflects on his early life, time as a member of Ben Folds Five, and his solo career to the near present. Reception The book received generally positive reviews and became a ''New York Times'' Best Seller. Allison Stewart of ''The Washington Post'' commented, "Once an artist plays their first sold-out show, or signs their first record deal, they are no longer relatable human beings whose experiences in earlier chapters — childhood crushes, bullies, trouble at school — mirror our own. ..It’s an unbridgeable gap, one that Ben Folds, a singer, pianist and musical Everyman whose relatability seems to have been factory-issued, does his best to navigate in his engaging and solid new memoir." John Young of the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving Great ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
The Sing-Off
''The Sing-Off'' is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It debuted on NBC on December 14, 2009, and was produced by Sony Pictures Television and Outlaw Productions, with Mark Burnett's One Three Media (for a time called United Artists Media Group) being added for the fourth season. A fifth season aired as a holiday special in December 2014. Summary It was hosted by Nick Lachey (from the boy band 98 Degrees), with judges Ben Folds, Shawn Stockman (of the rhythm-and-blues vocal group Boyz II Men), and originally Nicole Scherzinger, later replaced by Sara Bareilles. Bareilles left the show after the third season and was replaced by Jewel (singer), Jewel for the fourth season. Several members of the show's music staff have come from the a cappella community, including Deke Sharon (music director/vocal producer), Bill Hare, Ed Boyer, Ben Bram, Robert Dietz, Christopher Diaz, and Nick Girard. A cappella groups from the United States, including Puert ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Amanda Palmer
Amanda MacKinnon Palmer (born April 30, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and performance artist who is the lead vocalist, pianist, and lyricist of the duo the Dresden Dolls. She performs as a solo artist and was also a member of the duo Evelyn Evelyn and the lead singer and songwriter of Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra. She has gained a cult fanbase and was one of the first musical artists to popularize the use of crowdfunding websites. Early life and education Amanda MacKinnon Palmer was born in the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, and grew up in Lexington, Massachusetts. Her father was a physicist and her mother was a computer programmer. Her parents divorced when she was one year old, and as a child she rarely saw her father. Palmer has described her parents as "middle-upper class". She attended Lexington High School, where she was involved in the drama department, and later attended Wesleyan University where she studied theater a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Over The Hedge
''Over the Hedge'' is a 2006 American animated heist comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation SKG. Based on the comic strip of the same name, the film was directed by Tim Johnson and Karey Kirkpatrick from a screenplay by Len Blum, Lorne Cameron, David Hoselton and Kirkpatrick, and features the voices of Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Steve Carell, William Shatner, Wanda Sykes and Nick Nolte. Set in Indiana, the plot follows RJ, a raccoon who is forced to deliver food to a bear named Vincent after accidentally destroying his stockpile of food, whereupon he manipulates a family of woodland animals who have recently awakened from hibernation into helping him steal food in order to speed up the process. ''Over the Hedge'' was theatrically released in the United States on May 19, 2006 and released on home video on October 17, 2006. The film received generally positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success, grossing $339.8 million worldwide on an $80 millio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
Hoodwinked!
''Hoodwinked!'' is a 2005 American animated musical mystery comedy film directed and written by Cory Edwards along with Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech, and produced by Katie Hooten, Maurice Kanbar, David K. Lovegren, Sue Bea Montgomery, and Preston Stutzman. It retells the folktale " Little Red Riding Hood" as a police procedural, using backstories to show multiple characters' points of view. Produced independently by Blue Yonder Films with Kanbar Entertainment, the film features the voices of Anne Hathaway, Glenn Close, Jim Belushi, Patrick Warburton, Anthony Anderson, David Ogden Stiers, Xzibit, Chazz Palminteri, and Andy Dick. ''Hoodwinked!'' was among the earliest computer-animated films to be completely independently funded. Working apart from a major studio allowed the filmmakers greater creative control, but also restrained them economically. Due to the film's low budget, its animation was produced in the Philippines with a stylized design inspired by stop ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
A Cappella
Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance music, Renaissance polyphony and Baroque (music), Baroque concertato musical styles. In the 19th century, a renewed interest in Renaissance polyphony, coupled with an ignorance of the fact that vocal parts were often doubled by instrumentalists, led to the term coming to mean unaccompanied vocal music. The term is also used, rarely, as a synonym for ''alla breve''. Early history Research suggests that singing and vocables may have been what early humans used to communicate before the invention of language. The earliest piece of sheet music is thought to have originated from times as early as 2000 BC, while the earliest that has survived in its entirety is from the first century AD: a piece from Greece called the Seikilos epi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
|
BroadwayWorld
BroadwayWorld is a theatre news website based in New York City, New York. Launched in 2003, the site covers Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional, and international theater productions, with sections devoted to particular countries, cities, or regions. The website publishes theatre news, interviews, reviews, and other coverage related to theater. It also includes an online message board for theater fans. The UK / West End section awards the UK / West End BroadwayWorld Awards each year, based on votes by theater-goers to productions in the UK. History Published by Wisdom Digital Media Publishing (launched in 2001), BroadwayWorld.com was founded in 2003 to cover theater news. As of September 2018, the website had a readership of 5.5 million monthly online visitors and an Alexa PageRank of 16,156 worldwide. The site also produces annual fan-voted awards and competitions related to various types of production. In 2020, the site underwent a major redesign, and which included the cr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |