6weeksatnumber7

Not that they really need it but this is great publicity for SP outside of the core fanbase, particularly as Leona keeps bigging them up both as a band and as great songwriters. I assume permission was given somewhere down the live for it to be recorded.

BSCXII Press release Inner Massivia are delighted to announce that they have secured the services of one of the world's most exciting new artists as their first representative in the Buzzjack Song Contest. The artist is Leona Lewis. She has promised to bring something fresh to the table with her song Fool, hopefully a side of Leona unheard of before by the various other competing countries. Leona was quoted today as saying: "This is an amazing opportunity to represent an amazing country in an amazing competition. I'm amazed." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-c5-Pf3SS10E

Country: Inner Massivia Capital: Attacktonia Official Language: Belsh Currency: Scroat (100 grommets to a scroat) Population: 83 million http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7533/bff863ed651fb0707a782d9ok4.jpg Geography The People's Republic of Inner Massivia is a landlocked country in Central Quilvoria. It is bordered on the east by the allied countries #75, #76 and #77, to the north by Lorikeet and Skall, to the west by the Democratic Republic of #71, and to the south by the United States of #74, this border being entirely defined by the River Quango. The southern part of the country is hilly and swathed in lush tropical forest which leads to vast acres of savanna in the north. Politics and Economy The United Nations defines Inner Massivia as a "benign dictatorship". It is governed by Professor Sir Quintas de Cancellara and his small team of advisers. Prof de Cancellara led a science-based coup in 1988 against the highly religious ruling party, the Bruges-Abertawe Alliance. The country had been languishing at the lower end of most UN social, eductaional, health and prosperity tables at the time but de Cancellara has brought forward an incredible set of advances over the last 19 years, funded by the discovery of large deposits of both diamonds and Uranium under the extinct volcano Oooguooogu. This has led Inner Massivia to develop a highly efficient set of nuclear reactors and become a net exporter of energy across Quilvoria. It is also home to the world's largest jewellery and diamond market. The benefits of these natural resources has seen Inner Massivia forge ahead as a progressive nation and de Cancellara's reign remains unchallenged despite the lack of true democracy. Langauges There are five official languages: English, Welsh, Flemish, Belsh and Kliik. Kliik is the native language of the aboriginal peoples but has mainly receded to small isolated tribes in deep pockets of the jungle now. English is taught is all schools since 1991 under the 3rd de Cancellara Education Act and many claim will become the predominant language soon. Welsh and Flemish are spoken mostly by older members of the country, but both have been superseded by Belsh, the official language and a hybrid of Welsh and Flemish. This arose from the colonisation during the 1800s by Catholic nuns from Belgium and Presbyterian ministers from South Wales. Both aimed to convert the local tribes people to their religion but interbreeding over the years between both the indigenous and exogenous populations led to the evolution of the hybrid Belsh language. 50% of all TV and radio output must be in Belsh as set down by law. Flag The flag of Inner Massivia was designed by renowned artist Damien Gokwan. The colours represent the pink diamonds found in the deep mines of the country and the green radioactive Uranium that has brought so much prosperity. The six dots represent the six city states Attacktonia, Melt, Pordraet, Karmacoma, Unfinsym and Aqualinia. The three lines represent the rural States of Jungleville, Madprof and Bristool. Music Due to the restrictions of the Telecommunications Act of 1989, 50% of all TV and radio must be broadcast in the hybrid language Belsh. This phlegmy, nasally, guttural language doesn't lend itself well to musical composition so the pop charts are filled with English language singles and albums from across the globe. Professor Sir Quintas de Cancellara spent seven years in his twenties in England studying for first his degree and then his PhD in Advance Physics at Cambridge University, and developed a strong appreciation of glam rock, punk and new wave. His favourite DJ was Dave Lee Travis and favourite artists Slade, David Bowie and the Icicle Works. He has decreed that Inner Massivia will scour the globe for the best artists to represent the country in the Buzzjack Song Contest, and will promise never to be boring in its song choice. Venues The main indoor venue in Attacktonia is the recently completed Mezzanine Bowl which sits on the banks of the River Quango. It has a capacity of 23,000. The venue also boasts the smaller Lively Lounge with a capacity of just 340 for acoustic gigs and VIP after show performances. The botanical gardens of Fabian Park are frequently used for larger open air concerts, where crowds of up to 84,000 can be accommodated. The exclusive Chart Club in Attacktonia is home to the BJSC Appreciation Society and is the venue where the voting for all BJSC competitions take place. The Chart Club has a maximum capacity of 112, and can be found tucked away above the Old Bristolian Microbrewery in Attacktonia's Alt Markt. Membership is by invitation only. Other countries' BJSC competitors are always welcome to perform to the BJSCAS on the Chart Club's intimate stage. The Alt Markt itself has a big screen and is the place where the people of Inner Massivia gather to watch live transmissions of the semi-finals and finals of the BJSC. Free food and drink is provided by corporate sponsors Tescbury's. TV Shows By far the most important TV show in Inner Massivia is The Early Mid Afternoon Not A Repeat Show. It is broadcast on Massivia TV each day from 1pm to 2pm and is hosted by showbusiness legend Teddy Blizzard. BJSC XVII: Brandi Carlile - The Story ncRQMB90_FQ

How is it setting a precedent when: i) many artists have done it before ii) the album chart now and for the next few weeks will be engulfed with deluxe editions which were planned months ago - we already know The Killers have a deluxe edition ready and their non-deluxe album hasn't even be released yet

I didn't think it was a great idea at all. It's a model which has been pushed in America with some success. I suppose the record companies will argue that if, as a collective, we didn't download so much music for free they wouldn't have to resort to these retail tactics. Though I'm not quite sure if there's much difference between this and bands releasing 3 or 4 versions of a single with a different B-side on each forcing hardcore fans to buy the lot. It's a tactic which has been used for donkeys years in indie music and for some reason they never get the same stick.

I do - unfortunately The Killers already have the deluxe planned before we even get to see the original edition next week!

Just back from shopping in Morrisons, popped my head into the music section and Spirit was the only album completely sold out. Plenty of stock of the rest. Had a quick look at Rihanna's while I was in there, but wasn't sure it was the reloaded, the reissued reloaded, or the reissued reissued reloaded. They should have handy guides for customers to help us through this musical maze.

Thanks for the answers Overloaded. Thought she might not be doing any promo outside of the UK as well as here. The British public are very cynical and don't seem to take lightly to British artists not working the local scene hard.

As I said on another thread yesterday, it's standard policy now at Universal (to name one studio) that all major releases get a deluxe/re-release version. There was a big article on it in the Guardian a while back. It's the record companies ' attempt to offset the still plummeting sales in the overall market.

Overloaded - you're clearly a huge Dido fan so a few questions. Are fans totally frustrated with the lack of promo? Has it been explained why? And how is the album itself going down with the fansbase?

Take That is released on the 24th I think so they'll be on their second week? Britney's already out and then there's Leona's release of Run on Dec 1st. Not sure Britney will make it.

It'll be an early track but not on either of the two demo albums that did the rounds. I think it's a little bit of genius myself. Want to keep it a surprise so stop guessing ;) :P btw I'd never spotted this forum before or I'd have joined in months ago!

Thank you. I apologise for my flag in advance.

Why do posters have to slag off other artists? Not just this one post but the Dido fans slagging off Beyonce and Leona etc They're not in a competition. People like what they like and buy what they buy.

Right I've just registered to take part for the first time. Can I reserve Leona Lewis. The track will be nothing mainstream.

Inner Massivia http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7533/bff863ed651fb0707a782d9ok4.jpg

Can I claim #73? Country name: Inner Massivia just registered on the other thread.

Country: Inner Massivia Capital: Attacktonia Language: Belsh Currency: Scroat (100 grommets to a scroat) http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7533/bff863ed651fb0707a782d9ok4.jpg

Got to hold my hands up - wasn't impressed at all at first but it's definitely sneaked up from nowhere and grown on me. It's no Rule The World but it's still a good classical pop song, of the sort Gary Barlow is very adept at writing.

How was RTW robbed? It was outsold fairly and squarely in the same way Take That outsold the opposition on ten previous occasions to hit the top spot. It was just one of the rare times when two modern classics happened to clash in exactly the same week. Can't see anything stopping Take That next week - all the major rivals are slowing (Killers might get a small jump with the release of their limted edition 7" this week but that will disppear next week). Run will be available for download the week after if people are still interested in it by then.

Very little movement today. Quite surprised - have we seen a full update today or do you reckon it was just an early mini-update?.

Any early indications of what's shifting in the shops?

But surely you see this is causing a major loss of goodwill for the sake of a few thousand album sales? And with 5 million already sold it's the equivalent of spitting in a bucket. Why should Leona's UK fanbase hang around and watch "newcomers" get immediate access to the track while their options are to either rebuy the songs they already own or wait another three weeks? And that's without mentioning the immediate digital release across Europe. In effect they're being penalised for having invested most in her career. And then there's the loss of sales from those who would have bought it as a single track but have no interest in the album. It's a cynical and short-termist move and leaves a very bad taste in the mouth.

Fully understand what they're trying to do, it's the UK version of Kid Rock in the States, but the British are far more cynical and this is just pouring a huge amount of good will down the drain for the sake of a few thousand album sales, when it has already shifter the best part of 5 million worldwide. In the grand scheme of things it's a crass move by SonyBMG/Syco.

The performance of Run for Divas II was also recorded a few weeks back. The release date of Run on iTunes hasn't changed at all. Just being used to promote the deluxe album in the UK which was always coming out tomorrow, and there's no sign of a physical release in the UK.