Melodic Tree’s Top 40 Photos From 2017
Solange opens up about health issues
Solange has cancelled her headlining set at Afropunk Festival Johannesburg on New Year’s Eve because of a recent diagnosis of an autonomic disorder. In a statement on Instagram, she talks about her health issues. “The past five months I have been quietly treating, and working through an Autonomic Disorder,” she writes. “It been a journey that hasn’t been easy on me… Sometimes I feel cool, and other times not so cool at all.” She explains that her Afropunk cancellation is due to doctors’ orders, writing, “Right now, my doctors are not clearing me for such an extended lengthy flight, and doing a rigorous show right after.” View her full note below.
The Melodic Tree’s Weekly Playlist
1. Adriana – Montero
2. Lost and Found – The Cry
3. The World Should Be More Wonderful – Shintaro Sakamoto
4. Anyone – Swim Mountain
5. Your Motion Says – Arthur Russell
6. Shinzo No Tobia – Mariah
7. Camino Del Sol – Antena
8. Antabus – Makthaverskan
9. Fire By the River – Harumi
10. Trust, In Love – Anna Domino
11. Khala My Friend – Amanaz
12. Dooyo – Dur-Dur Band
13. Haenim – Kim Jung Mi
14. It’s So Different Here- Rachel Sweet
15. Cacti for Clothes – Pageants
16. Dancing – Fringe
17. California Shake – Margo Guryan
18. I Walk Alone – Marijata
19. I Don’t Like – Lee Jung Hwa
20. How Can You Say It – Gloria Ann Taylor
Sufjan Stevens shares new “Life with Dignity” bideo
Sufjan Stevens has released a new video for the Helado Negro-remixed track “Life with Dignity.” Watch it through Apple Music. The video follows three cancer patients, Theresa, Roland, and Justin as they battle the disease. The song is featured on Stevens’ new mixtape The Greatest Gift, and is remixed from his Carrie & Lowell song “Death With Dignity.”
James Blake releases cover of Don McLean’s “Vincent”
James Blake has shared a studio recording of Don McLean’s “Vincent,” which he occasionally performs at his live sets. Watch the performance video that was shot yesterday at L.A.’s Conway Studios here. McLean’s song was written as a tribute to Van Gogh and appeared originally on his LP American Pie.
The Coup’s Pam the Funkstress dead at 51
Pam the Funkstress, member of the hip-hop group the Coup, has died due to organ failure, as the San Francisco Chronicle and Bay Area radio station KBLX report. Pam Warren had been hospitalized for over a month after organ transplant surgery. She was 51. She joined the Coup in the 1990s and provided scratches for their debut album Kill My Landlord.
Run the Jewels appear on Hannibal Buress’ podcast
Run the Jewels were the latest to appear on “The Handsome Rambler,” a podcast that is co-hosted by Hannibal Buress and DJ Tony Trimm. They discussed the next Run the Jewels album, stereotypes, making workout music during the episode. Listen to it below.
Animal Collective shares new live album
Animal Collective have released a recording of their performance at New Haven, Conn.’s College Street Music Hall in May, 2017. It is available as pay-what-you-want, with all of the proceeds going to Direct Relief, a non-profit organization that helps “improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty or emergencies.” Listen below and download it here.
New Velvet Underground vinyl box set announced
The Velvet Underground will celebrate their 50th anniversary with a new vinyl box set. The 6xLP box set will include four studio albums: The Velvet Underground and Nico, White Light/White Heat, The Velvet Underground, and Loaded. It will also feature Nico’s debut, Chelsea Girl, and a recreation of the Velvet Underground’s “lost” studio album, 1969, which will feature two bonus tracks. It will also come with a 48-page booklet with a foreword by drummer Maureen “Moe” Tucker. The set will have a limited release of 1000 copies, and is set to be out February 23rd via Verve Records/UMe.
Watch Rihanna in the first Ocean’s 8 trailer
The Ocean’s 8 trailer, the Ocean’s Eleven spin-off led by women, has come out. Watch the video below. The film features Rihanna, Anne Hathaway, Sandra Bullock, Sarah Paulson, Helena Bonham Carter, Awkwafina, Mindy Kaling, and more. It was co-written and directed by The Hunger Games director Gary Ross. The film follows a heist at New York City’s Met Gala. The film is set to be out June 8th, 2018.
The Melodic Tree 