Rocker Lordd Virgil is recording his global, viral hit song “Flint, Michigan” with Sponge producers Andy and Tim Patalan (Sponge, Taproot, Throttlebody). The original viral video for the song has been seen in 60 countries thanks to YouTube and now the rocker is taking the original bedroom-demo version of the song into the studio at The Loft in Saline, Michigan.

“Virtually, the video for ‘Flint Michigan’ did a world tour without me. Hey, what gives?!,” Lordd Virgil said with a laugh. “That video probably has more frequent flyer miles than Richard Branson, but the original song didn't travel much further than the bedroom until now. The least I could do was drive a couple hundred miles and get into the studio to make a proper recording.”

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After three years in the making, Saginaw Michigan's rasta-reggae rockers The Process have released, "The Lion Of Judah Hath Prevailed; The Process Meets Ghetto Priest" (Temple Gong Recordings 2011.), a seven-track EP containing no less that five re-mixes of the title track by London artists and producers Skip "Little Axe" McDonald, Adrian Sherwood, Congo Natty, and David Harrow. The record also includes an exclusive sneek-peek of London's Ghetto Priest (a.k.a Squidz) with the track, "Ghetto Life" from his forthcoming record "Sacred Ground" witch will be released later this year on On-U Sound Records.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: The Process will be celebrating the release at White's Bar in Saginaw, MI on Friday, April 8th from 10:00 pm. and  The Elbow Room in Ypsilanti. on Saturday, May 7th  Click "read more" below for details and links.

As you probably know by now, The 2011 Detroit Music Awards voting phase is well under way and for the past couple of weeks we've been posting video and music links from the ballot to our Facebook page. This helps faciliatate the process for ourselves as much as for our friends.   We never seem to get a concentrated dose of the nominated local music before the ballot is sitting in front of us so I'm glad we started early. So skip on over to our facebook page, have a listen to some of the nominees and register (if you're not already) and vote for your favorites at: http://www.detroitmusicawards.net.  The show is slated for April 15th at The Fillmore. Buy tickets by clicking HERE.  Oh, and don't forget to check out the VitaminWater "People's Choice" player on the DMA's home page. You can download music and vote directly for your favorites and have your choice shared on Facebook.

Jackson, Michigan will explode with sound of screaming guitars and heart racing drums as bands take the stage at Rockapalooza June 25th

Including a diversity of Rock music with a focus on melodic hard rock and heavy metal bands that play original music, this event will be hosted by Tim Corser and the Kings of Rock Entertainment. This event will be held at the racetrack on the Jackson County Fairgrounds.

Last year 30 bands took to three stages over the event. This included headliners Sevendust, Otep and Egypt Central, with Bury Tomorrow, coming in from Southampton/Portsmouth, England. This year Chiodos, Silverstein, Sleeping with Sirens, Mushroomhead, Sore Eyes, Violets for Verona, State Your Cause, Shallow Side, Killjay, As Summer Dies, Hollow Drive, Lifeline, Oh No Fiasco, and Despite the Risk, with others to be announced will take the stage.
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   SOUL DIVIDE is a high energy band based in southeast Michigan. The idea for the band was born into the hearts and minds of the brothers Matt and Pete Hamann, (guitar and bass) who had a vision to take their brand of music to a new level, to embrace the essence or soul of all kinds of music, utilizing pieces from every genre, and smash it all together to create Soul Divide. With the addition of sonic poet Austin Dunsen (vocals) and rhythm monster Bryce Harding, (drums) the group was complete, and the music soared higher than the brothers ever predicted. Between the 4 members they created an audacious new sound- It was rock, it was funk, it was hip hop, it was blues. It combines simple good old fashion foot stomping Detroit thrash with the added variety and complexity of all 4 members’ unique artistry and musical ability. 

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With a wind chill factor registering almost 20 below it may have been one of the coldest nights in six years for the Jackson, Michigan area, but for the residents of south-central Michigan, particularly those who like hard and driving rock, the five bands that provided talent at the Michigan Theater tonight raised temps as they really cooked on stage.

This bill featuring Michigan bands Neon Escape, Lifeline Revolution, Under The Vine, Fifth Way, and the headlining Pop Evil was organized by Tim Corser, head of Kings of Rock Entertainment.

Corser, 28, has been promoting rock bands in and around the Jackson area for the past eight years. Last year during the depths of Michigan's deepest recession, at a time when even the biggest promoters were taking a hit, he promoted 30 bands on three stages at what was called Rockapalooza.

He is all too aware that roller coaster effect that the music business has experienced over the past couple of years and speaks with an authority on this matter perhaps belying his age. Despite this, he is intrepid rock devotee and is determined to produce the best shows for the dollar, something much needed and surely appreciated in the Jackson area.

Hailing from Flint Michigan comes Weekend Warriors. The culmination of former FlintDrive founding member and lead guitarist Mike Allen, former FlintDrive bassist Doug Watson and Josh Cox former band mate and drummer from the band Mindspeed and back-up drummer for FlintDrive. In the late  90s Josh and Mike Formed the band MadHouse, a Ted Nugent Tribute Band.  That was an unfinished project as they soon joined forces with the band Mindspeed in 2000. In 2002 Allen left Mindspeed to Form the original act FlintDrive which toured from 2002 until 2010. Feeling the need to continue the unfinished project in 2011, Allen, Cox and Watson are joining forces to launch Weekend Warriors, A Ted Nugent Tribute Band. Mixed with a Few Nugent Inspired Originals that Allen created over the years with FlintDrive, WeekendWarriors can be found in our Cover Bands / Specialties / Tribute Bands category or on the web at www.rawtonemusic.com.
 

Detroit natives Dirty Americans will be playing a rare metro Detroit show on New Years Eve, at New York New York, in Chesterfield, Michigan on December 31st, 2010. Joining them for the even are fellow Detroit natives Dirty Whiskey, who have been playing the metro Detroit scene since late 2002.

The Dirty Americans, who have toured the United States, and United Kingdom since their formation in 2001, have played some of the worlds most prestigious tours including The Download Festival at Donnington Park, with Metallica, Slayer, Korn & Slipknot. They have also played the Summer Sonic Festival with Green Day, Beastie Boys, MC5 and Silvertide, they have also played Rock Am Ring & Rock Im Park with Korn, Yellowcard, The Black Eyed Peas. They have also played Detroits own HarleyFest with Trapt, Clutch, Tantric, and have gone on tour with Alice Cooper. Click "read more" below.