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Los Angeles: Sports Illustrated magazine on Monday unveiled its annual swimsuit issue with model Kate Upton on the cover in a two-toned, red string bikini with a bottom piece that, literally, appears to be little more than a string.

Upton, 19, a native of Melbourne, Florida, is the latest in a long line of models including Heidi Klum, Elle MacPherson, Tyra Banks and Brooklyn Decker, who have appeared in the coveted role as the swimsuit issue’s cover girl.

M.J. Daly, senior editor for Sports Illustrated, said Upton "embodies the sophistication and sexiness" called for in the issue that is seen by some 70 million readers in the magazine, the Web and on mobile devices like phones and tablet computers.

This year’s 17 models in the swimsuit edition were photographed in Australia, Zambia, the Republic of Seychelles, Panama and in the United States in Apalachicola, Florida.

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Story By: by Dan Raby

Thinking of Nashville’s Lambchop probably doesn’t bring up images of of spandex leotards, bodyslams and chokeholds. Kurt Wagner and his band are masters of the slight, gentle moments — emphasizing the melancholy and joy in small things. The sweet orchestrations of its song “Gone Tomorrow,” from their 11th album, the upcoming Mr. M, could seem out of place in its video’s world of professional wrestling, but Wagner’s lyrics are universal.

Credit: Courtesy of the Artist

Wagner told us in an email about his experience making the video and how he came to the wrestling concept.

“There is a real Nashville grit to this video. On scouting the location and meeting up with its star Jocephus, I hadn’t stepped out of the car for more than a minute when I was approached by a man who wanted my hat and showed me his knife. From my point of view, in a good video, the song does not have to relate to what the video ‘is’ or ‘is about.’ That’s up to the maker of the video.

Director Zach Spiger’s video for “Gone Tomorrow” is a small document about the Stadium Inn — a hotel-slash-wrestling arena in Nashville. As Jocephus Brody (who wears an amazing shirt with his own face on it at the beginning of the video) and Wolfie D clash in the ring, Spiger shows the crowd’s reaction to every every slam into the mat. Spiger avoids the easy trap of viewing wrestling as a joke and instead gives an intimate portrait of two wrestlers and the community that cheers them on. There’s no ironic detachment or gross spectacle about the video. These are just men — extremely muscular men — doing what they love to do in front of fans.

We asked Spiger about filming at the Stadium Inn:

I was in Nashville about a year ago working on a music video with a friend of mine, Stone Jack Jones. One night he took me to the Stadium Inn to see a guy wrestle that sometimes played accordion with the band. The venue was really something else. They had permanently set up a ring in the old conference room of the hotel. The wrestling was spectacular and hilarious. I got so excited about the whole ordeal that I decided to film bits and pieces of the match. The material ended up not making it into the video, but a few months later the idea came up about doing a video for the upcoming Lambchop album. I showed Kurt and the record label the 16mm stuff that I had shot and pitched a very vague idea that would feature Jocephus, the local wrestling hero and this strange hotel where the matches take place every week.

I approached the project more like a documentary and began to immerse myself in wrestling culture. During the month before the shoot I went to the Stadium Inn for every match, hung out in the locker rooms, and watched all wrestling matches that Jocephus would recommend. When it came time to shoot, we just shot the real match and the audience. Then we went back the next day and shot the band playing on a little “stage” inside the locker room. I knew that Kurt didn’t want anything narrative, but something enigmatic and cinematic, so I tried my best to keep things real loose. In the end I think the video really captures the ambiance in that part of Nashville and the infamous Stadium Inn. And I’d highly recommend it anyone in Nashville on a Friday night. It’s good fun for the whole family.

Lambchop’s Mr. M will be out on February 21st from Merge Records. You can listen to the whole album today as part of our First Listen series.

Egyptian singer Amro Diab
announced that he has cancelled his previously scheduled in celebration of
Valentine’s Day due to the fact that he is in mourning over the loss of
innocent victims in the recent Bor Saeed massacre that took the lives of 75
during a heated soccer game that turned tragic.

Amro was scheduled t hold a
performance on February 14 at the Hockey Stadium in Cairo Egypt.

Egyptian singer Mohammad Hamaki
has also called off his Valentine’s Day concert as a sign of respect to the
lives of victims. Mohammad stated that he does not plan on holding any live
performances in the upcoming period because he is filled with so much sorrow
and grief. He said that he is unable to sing in such conditions that are filled
with so much bloodshed, destruction and corruption.

Lebanese singer Nicole Saba has
also cancelled her performance in Cairo’s 6 October city, stating that what is
taking place in Egypt makes her unable to stand on stage and sing while there
are mothers grieving the death of their children.

In addition Lebanese singer Wael
Jassar cancelled his concert along Egyptian singer Amal Maher in Egypt for the
same reasons.

Story By: World Cafe

Grammy-winning producer and record-label owner Aaron Levinson is in the studio to introduce us to a corner of Latin roots music called cumbia. Affiliated with a number of professional recording academies and societies, this internationally known musician also owns a recording studio in Ardmore, and has consistently received recognition for his work with Latin music. In the studio today, Levinson and host David Dye talk about the origin and evolution of cumbia, including its late resurgence in popularity in New York.

Cumbia, the manifestation of a melding of cultures, originated in Colombia. Mixing the music of native Colombians, slaves from Africa and Spanish colonizers, cumbia first rose to prominence in the 1960s on the coasts of Colombia. It made its way across the continents, evolving for Mexican and Peruvian listeners, and eventually reached the U.S. in the 21st century. Cumbia enthusiasm was rekindled in Colombia as New York artists began to popularize the music. In this interview, Levinson and Dye explore the many forms of cumbia — from the hip-hop elements in today’s cumbia to the geographical understanding of cumbia to traditional cumbia elements of many drums, claves, guitars, clarinet and flute.

Story By: by Michaelangelo Matos

Group Inerane’s “Tamidit In Aicha” is raw and scrawny-sounding, but it also pulses with life and good cheer.

Song: “Tamidit In Aicha”

Artist: Group Inerane

CD: Guitars From Agadez, Vol. 3

Genre: World

Group Inerane is a guitar-rock band from Niger’s Tuareg area that’s part of a late-breaking wave of acts from along the Sahara that have been filed, in the main, as “desert blues.” It’s true that Inerane’s music often earns that appellation, at least on musical terms; blues and traditional music figure heavily into its catalog on the Seattle raw-internationalist label Sublime Frequencies. But the fetching “Tamidit In Aicha” has little in common with the rough power of an Etran Finatawa, or the bristling edges and casual hugeness of a Tinariwen.

“Tamidit In Aicha” is slighter and sweeter: Think of it as a kind of jangle-pop tune. The guitar sways lightly, while the drums are busy but remain in thrall to a straight-ahead beat. It’s raw and scrawny-sounding — the album was recorded live, and you can tell — but it’s also pulsing with life and good cheer, like the best moments on a U.S. college station back when bedroom-label seven-inch singles were experiencing a surge. “Tamidit In Aicha” is the kind of record you might hear slotted between the Vulgar Boatmen and early Built to Spill, had it come the right DJ’s way.

"There is no God but Allah, and Mohammad is the messenger of Allah."

In neat gold calligraphy, the words of "La Elaha Illa Allah" are inscribed in the ceiling recess, bright spotlights highlighting the walkways through this representation of the Five Pillars of Islam.

But this is no mosque — this is a library in the heart of what was the most Catholic nation in Europe.

Outside, just metres away, Vikings once grounded their longboats on the shores of Dubh Linn — the black pool — the muddy waters that gave Dublin its name and helped build a permanent settlement 12 centuries ago. While the Scandinavian warriors were busy marauding coastal communities around the British Isles, Islamic scholars in the Middle East were busy writing down the secrets of science, medicine, mathematics and religion.

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Dubai: Corruption may be the flavour of the season – what with antigraft crusader Anna Hazare fighting for a cleaner India – but the stars of Gali Gali Chor Hai, a satirical film on the same topic, were nothing short of synonyms of righteousness.

The meet began with lead actor Akshaye Khanna sincerely apologising for delaying the event by a good two hours. The reason, as he explained at length, was because his leading ladies – actors Mughda Godse and Shriya Saran – had misplaced their luggage.

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As a spotty 13-year-old, I used to pride myself on knowing not just every single line of Mr Wendal but also the way each word was emphasised.

Poised metres from the DJ booth waiting for my request to get things moving at the weekly school disco, it’s only now I can admit I’d never really considered what those thought-provoking syllables were trying to say.

“
Yeah, I do look back and say crazy … I say beautiful and I say memorable. I say very, very memorable times

Speech, lead singer of Arrested Development

For lead singer of Arrested Development, Speech, who wrote the words, the fact his lyrics reached the masses was enough.

"Yeah, I do look back and say crazy," he said of his 20-year music career. "I say beautiful and I say memorable. I say very, very memorable times."

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LOS ANGELES, Jan 31 (TheWrap.com) – Justin Bieber is confirmed as a first-time host and return musical guest on “Saturday Night Live” — at least that’s what Alec Baldwin revealed during his “Here’s the Thing” podcast on WNYC.

Baldwin traveled to 30 Rock — specifically, the office of “SNL” creator Lorne Michaels — to chat with Michaels about his career and the late-night series. While describing Michaels’ office, Baldwin focused in on a bulletin board that holds the names of “SNL” hosts for the whole season.

“The biggest names in the business are coming here thirty-something years (after the show’s 1975 debut) to host the show,” Baldwin says. “You have Ben Stiller, Melissa McCarthy, (who) won the Emmy award, and Katy Perry’s coming and Jimmy Fallon, who’s obviously double-dipping on your payroll, Jonah Hill, and I don’t want to ruin any other names . Bieber’s confirmed, he’s the music and the (host)” .

“Yeah,” Michaels replies.

Baldwin himself is the record holder for most times hosting “SNL,” marking his 16th time as host with his stint as the season 37 premiere host in September.

Meanwhile, Oscar nominee Jonah Hill will make his second appearance as “SNL” host — for the March 10 episode — EW.com reports.

NBC did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on upcoming “SNL” hosts.

(Editing By Zorianna Kit)

Story By: by Robin Hilton

The secretary of the Beatles fan club, surrounded by hundreds of Valentine’s cards sent to the group by adoring fans.

Each year at All Songs Considered, we like to celebrate Valentine’s Day with music. Filmmaker John Waters and crooner Tom Jones played guest DJ for us in years past. We’ve also done lesser-known love songs and our favorite breakup songs. This year, we’re turning the mic over to you. Dedicate a song to a certain someone you love or miss. Or you could dedicate one to that dirtbag you recently broke up with. Either way, tell us the song, who it’s for (first names only, please) and the story behind it.

Record your dedications, thoughts and stories on our Soundcloud page:

You can record directly into the Soundcloud site or upload a pre-recorded file. We’ll play some of the stories on an upcoming edition of All Songs Considered. Remember: Tell us about the dedication, don’t just play the song. We’ll add the song to your story later.

You can also leave your dedications in our comments section, too. (But recording the audio is better!)