Gibson unveiled a new limited edition version of Tom Petty's beloved SJ-200 Wildflower acoustic guitar in honor of the late artist's beloved album, Wildflowers.
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The original SJ-200 Wildflower was a one-off that was built exclusively for Petty during the Wildflowers era in the 1990s.

The new guitar, priced at $9,999, will have all the features of Petty's original classic SJ-200 ornamentation.

The 127 year-old musical instrument manufacturer said it will make only 100 pieces of the signature guitar handcrafted at the Gibson Acoustic Custom Shop in Bozeman, Montana.


​Both solo and with his band, the world-renowned music icon created some of the most beloved and enduring music of the rock era.
Adria Petty, the daughter of the lead vocalist and guitarist of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, said, "It is so incredible to see the SJ-200 design our Dad worked on so long ago, lovingly brought to fruition with his long-time guitar tech and friend Alan Weidel and the craftsmen and women at Gibson guitars."

Songs by Janet Jackson and Kool & the Gang are among the 25 recordings added to the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry.

The latest titles inducted into the Registry include Jackson's clarion call for action and healing in "Rhythm Nation 1814", Kool & the Gang's "Celebration," Louis Armstrong's "When the Saints Go Marching In," Labelle's "Lady Marmalade," Nas' "Illmatic," and Kermit the Frog's "The Rainbow Connection."

Jackson Browne's critically acclaimed album Late for the Sky, Pat Metheny's album Bright Size Life, and Jimmy Cliff's album The Harder They Come were also added.

Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden on Wednesday named 25 recordings as audio treasures worthy of preservation for all time based on their cultural, historical or aesthetic importance in the nation's recorded sound heritage.

​They were selected from about 900 public nominations that the Library received this year.
This brings the total number of titles on the registry to 575.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young are set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Déjà Vu album by releasing a deluxe edition on May 14, via Rhino Records.

Déjà Vu, which was originally released in March 1970, was the first album featuring the then-newly expanded lineup of David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young.

Though the official 50th anniversary of the album happened last year, the coronavirus pandemic and discord among the members delayed production of the box set.

Rhino, which announced the news, also shared the demo recording of Young and Nash's duet performance on "Birds."
The expansive new edition, which will be available on both LP and CD, will feature a remastered version of the original album that includes songs such as "Carry On" and "Teach Your Children."

The set will also have 38 bonus tracks, along with discs that contain demos, outakes and alternates from the recording sessions.

The edition, which will come in a 12 x 12 hardcover book and contain rare photos and liner notes from Cameron Crowe, is priced at $99.98. A deluxe vinyl version with the full content across 5 LPs of 180-gram vinyl, priced at $249.98, will also be available on the same date.

"Fifty years later, with the sonic aperture fully opened, it's a wide-screen look at the big picture of Deja Vu, with more music, including a batch of surprises, unseen photos and a lot more clarity," noted Crowe.
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Joel Bernstein produced the reissue of the record alongside Rhino's Patrick Milligan.

Village People founder Victor Willis is teeing off on the Grammys, saying it disrespects recording artists and has a Hall of Fame so lame ... the group's rejecting the recent induction of its biggest hit.
Willis told TMZ ... his legendary disco group told Grammy Interim President Harvey Mason that it's declining induction into the 2021 Grammy Hall of Fame because the Hall is "lacking" and "not taken seriously by the recording academy."
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Willis -- the cop in the Village People -- takes serious issue with the lack of attention Grammy Hall inductees get, saying there's no mention of them during the actual Grammy Awards ... and there's no induction ceremony.

​For the record, the group's iconic track "Y.M.C.A." specifically was inducted into the Grammys Hall of Fame in December, because it's only for singles or albums, not the artists -- but Victor's not even down with them honoring the song.
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He calls the whole thing an insult the Village People want no part of until the Grammys "get their act together." He adds that when the group releases an album later this year, it likely won't even submit it for Grammy consideration.

Simpsonville based "Your Own FM" has entered into an agreement to use Zeno Media exclusively as its distribution service.

​"Your Own FM" designs, builds, and implements internet streaming stations for both private individuals as well as businesses, civic organizations, non-profits, and churches.

The $600 package includes a fully stocked music library, radio automation software, imaging material, micro-site, and fully functioning world wide streaming signal. According to Founder, Larry Tallant, "When we flip the switch, your station can be heard worldwide." The station runs hands free 24x7 for the owner.
www.yourownfm.com

Zeno Media, s one of the largest streaming companies in the world with millions of listeners tuning in daily across 25,000+ stations. Serving broadcasting giants and small community broadcasters alike, they provide world-class streaming, a self-serve radio management platform, podcast hosting, mobile apps, innovative monetization strategies, video streaming and more.
www.zenomedia.com

It can be tough getting the word out if you are a non-profit organization.
"Thinking out of the box" is more than a philosophy, it's a necessity.
Without a big marketing budget, the pressing question was "how to let people know about the unique offerings of a music museum?" 
​The answer....create something no other museum has.  A radio station!

In just over 18 months the Sigal Music Museum has built literally a world wide audience. Not a theoretical or virtual audience, the real thing. To achieve that the Sigal enlisted the services of Your Own FM, a designer and programmer of internet streaming radio stations. Using a combination of multiple music genres, informational programming and event promotion the reputation of the music is now growing world wide.

Listeners from over 10 countries and and more than 63 international cities enjoy the entertainment every day.
With programming by Your Own FM, and displays, concerts, and educational work by the staff of the Sigal, the "it" factor has been established and the reputation continues to grow.

In short, The Sigal Museum is no long a secret.

Radio Garden has partnered with Simpsonville based "Your Own FM" to serve as a hub for three local streaming radio stations.  Radio Garden is an application that serves as a launching pad for radio stations around the world.

Your Own FM is a local firm that designs, programs and implements streaming radio stations for personal use, commercial entities, non-profits, churches, etc. Each station from YOFM runs 24x7 and provides the owner a world wide audience.

The three initial stations chosen are:
The Sigal Music Museum in Greenville, SC 
Simpsonville United Methodist Church 
and the demo station for Your Own FM, a variety hits music station 
YourOwnFM.com was founded in 2018 by 40 year radio veteran Larry Tallant.

Radio Garden started in 2016 as an exhibition project commissioned by the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision in the context of the research project Transnational Radio Encounters.

Radio Garden works like any other digital radio but, in this case, the world is your tuning dial.  The site interface is a three-dimensional geolocation, where the user navigates through a representation of the globe, listening to broadcasts of local radio stations.

The project was designed by Amsterdam’s Studio Puckey. It lets users listen to over 10,000 radio stations around the world by dragging and dropping a pointer over a 3D Google Earth interface.