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Today Would Have Been Michael Jackson's 55th Birthday

Michael Jackson in New York City, New York on January 1, 1990.
Kevin Mazur
/
WireImage
Michael Jackson in New York City, New York on January 1, 1990.

Happy Birthday To The King Of Pop
Michael Jackson was born 55 years ago today. Since Jackson's death in 2009, three official albums have been released with his name on them: the concert film soundtrack This Is It, the 2010 unreleased odds-and-ends collection Michael and the Cirque du Soleil remix album Immortal. No surprise that the week of his birthday, we'd hear rumors of more posthumous releases. In a slightly mysterious 39 second video posted over the weekend, super producer Timbaland hinted that he might be producing music for a new Michael Jackson release.

Sir Paul McCartney Is Back
Paul McCartney announced on Wednesday that his next album, New, would arrive in stores on Oct. 15th. The album's title track, produced by Mark Ronson, was released on iTunes and from the sound of it Beatles fans will be more than pleased; "New" reminds us of "It's Getting Better All the Time."

Kendrick Lamar Responds To 'Control' Verse
Back from touring in Europe Kendrick Lamar has been making the radio rounds to discuss the aftermath of his now infamous verse on Big Sean's "Control," in which he calls out major players in the rap game and proclaims himself the King of New York.

"I think it's a case of maybe I should dumb down my lyrics just a little bit, — The irony of that line is that the people who actually understood it and got it were the actual kings of New York, you know, me sitting down with them this past week, and them understanding, it's not actually about being the king of whatever coast, it's about leaving a mark as great as Biggie, as great as Pac."

Kendrick told Peter Rosenberg of New York radio station Hot 97 that Baltimore rapper King Los had the best response record and squashed any rumors of a new East Coast/West Coast beef: "Not on my watch." Hopefully when the dust clears there will be some classic hip-hop albums for the people to dissect. Kendrick said he doesn't have a tentative date for a new project but he doesn't want to wait too long.

Robin Thicke Is Still No. 1
Miley Cyrus might be getting all the column inches, but her duet partner at Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards still has the biggest song in the country. Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines" held onto the top spot on Billboard's Hot 100 chart for the 12th week in a row, thanks to massive radio play. The next three spots on the chart are held by Katy Perry's "Roar," Cyrus's "We Can't Stop" and Lady Gaga's "Applause," but it's unclear if any of them will unseat "Blurred Lines" any time soon.

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Cedric Shine
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