11/03/2012 - Vice President Joe Biden, joined by his wife, Jill, will hold election-eve rally
on Monday in Richmond Virginia at the American Civil War Center at Historic
Tredegar.
John Mellencamp will perform at the Richmond get-out-the-vote rally and Sen.
Mark R. Warner, D-Va., and U.S. Senate candidate Timothy M. Kaine also will
attend.
The American Civil War Center and the Richmond National Battlefield
Park/National Park Service will close at 3 p.m. Monday in preparation for the
event.
Doors will open at 5 p.m. for the rally, which is free to the public. Tickets
will be distributed starting at noon Saturday at the Obama campaign office at
408 E. Main St. in Richmond. Read More
11/02/2012 - John will perform on Saturday, November 3, 2012, at a grassroots rally in
Dubuque Iowa. President Obama will speak and actress Kate Walsh will deliver
remarks. The event will be part of an all day, four state campaign effort
leading up to Tuesday's election. The complete press release about the day long
events is available by clicking "Read More" below.
Where: Washington Park 700 Locust Street Dubuque, IA 52001
Doors Open: 2:00 PM CDT
Event Time: 5:30 PM CDT (approximate time) Read More
10/25/2012 - John has been thinking about the plight of emerging artists in light of the diminishment of intellectual property rights in the digital age. Recently, he expressed himself on this issue and offered a very plausible solution in a piece that is running on the
Huffington Post
"I love music. I love all kinds of music... old music, new music, country music,
jazz, and popular music. I care about the future of music and about the well
being of those individuals who will be making it in the future. Music has been
my passion my entire life and I have been fortunate to never have worked a
"straight" job because of it. I am one lucky guy to be able to pursue what I
love and to have gotten paid for it. Who could complain?
I've been doing this a long time and I'm confounded by the apathy of those
who have participated in music-related successes and are now witnessing the
demise of the entertainment business as it has existed since the beginning of
recorded sound and moving pictures. So here I plan to ask some questions and my
hope is offer a solution to the problem..." Read More
10/14/2012 - Sunday's Washington Post included a preview article about the Woody Guthrie Celebration. They spoke to several artists about Woody's influence on them. Here is part of the article, the complete article is available through the READ MORE link.
On Sunday night at the Kennedy Center, a group of legendary folk and rock artists will convene to pay tribute to the man who laid the foundation for them: Woody Guthrie. Here John remembers Woody:
"My parents back in the ’50s had a couple Woody Guthrie records. They were
young parents, so they were kids having kids.
You know, the music was always important, but what I really enjoyed about
Guthrie as well as the music was the way he conducted his life. He wasn’t afraid
to stand up to people, he wasn’t afraid to be unpopular, he wasn’t afraid to
speak his mind, he wasn’t afraid to go against the grain.
To put it mildly, Woody suffered the full catastrophe of life. He was I guess
what the common person would call a free spirit. But I would call it
inspiration. The more I learned about him, the more I thought: These are the
footsteps that I want to travel under. I don’t want to be part of anything. I’m
with me. . . .
I just think that it’s funny — and I think it’s very American — that we would
be honoring Guthrie here, particularly since in his lifetime he operated so far
outside of the law and society. But time has rewritten his legacy, and thank God
it did. Read the entire article along with contributions from other artists after the jump. Read More
10/02/2012 - John and Carolyn Mugar the executive director of Farm Aid sit down for a in-depth discussion about family farming and food regulations during this year's Farm Aid 2012 concert at Hershey Park Stadium show.
You can also catch two songs from John's performance that evening "The West End and "Check It Out live HERE. After the jump we have a larger version of the Farm Aid discussion with John and Carolyn video.
09/12/2012 - Jamey Johnson and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals have joined the lineup for Farm Aid 2012
Farm Aid announced that its annual benefit concert will return to Pennsylvania on Saturday, Sept. 22 at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, PA.
Farm Aid 2012 will feature Nelson and fellow board members John Mellencamp, Neil Young, and Dave Matthews—featuring Tim Reynolds—as well as Kenny Chesney, Jack Johnson, ALO, Pegi Young & The Survivors, and Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. After the jump we have complete event details: Read More
09/12/2012 - Fans at home can watch a special presentation of the concert event
from Hersheypark Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 22, from 8 to 11 p.m. EDT at
www.farmaid.org.
In addition to performances on stage, viewers of “Farm Aid 2012: A Backstage
Pass” will get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of Farm Aid 2012, featuring
interviews with artists, farmers and fans; demonstrations from the HOMEGROWN
Village and a look at Farm Aid’s signature HOMEGROWN Concessions Read More
08/28/2012 - We thought you'd enjoy this fun "Pop Culture Mysteries" piece posted on vulture.com which speculates on the specific ice cream stand John might have had in mind when he wrote "Jack & Diane." Read More
08/03/2012 - Read fan Christine Herndon's complete review of The John Steinbeck Awards Presentation and Concert after the jump. Here are some excerpts: "Unafraid, unwavering, and unashamed, John Mellencamp’s songs have always been written from truth, from inside the souls of his listeners..."
"John answered questions, blowing an occasional smoke ring, the smoke backlighting his image bathed in a clear blue light from the spotlights above, setting the stage for the Steinbeck Award recipient to impart his words of wisdom…oftentimes hilarious, and at times, very profound..." Read More
08/01/2012 - The Kennedy Center and The GRAMMY Museum® have announced This Land is Your Land ~ The Woody Guthrie Centennial Celebration Concert taking place on Sunday October 14, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall in Washington D.C.
A lineup of renowned artists including John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash, Judy Collins, Ry Cooder, Del McCoury Band with Tim O’Brien, Donovan, Dropkick Murphys, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Arlo Guthrie, Jimmy LaFave, Tom Morello, and Old Crow Medicine Show will salute folk music legend Woody Guthrie. Read the complete press release after the jump. Read More
07/31/2012 - Read Jim Harrington's of the Oakland Tribune/Contra Costa Times/San Jose Mercury News complete review of the John Steinbeck Award Show. Here are some excerpts: "Mellencamp continues to be a breath of fresh air in an industry otherwise consumed by political correctness, where watching what you tweet seems at least as important as writing what you know. That factor is one of the main reasons why he's such a deserving recipient of the 2012 John Steinbeck Award..."
"The legacy of Steinbeck colors those songs, as it does so much of Mellencamp's catalog. Now, thanks to the Center for Steinbeck Studies, the two Johns are forever linked..." Read More
07/25/2012 - In advance of his being presented with the John Steinbeck Award, John Mellencamp spoke to to Jim Harrington of the Oakland Tribune/Contra Costa Times/San Jose Mercury News, sharing his thoughts about the legendary author and honor that he's being given in Steinbeck's name. Read the complete Q & A after the jump. Read More
07/23/2012 - American Songwriter editor Evan Schlansky assigned Jim Beviglia "Jack and Diane" as the magazine's Lyric of the Week feature, offering readers a chance to take a closer look at the song and its history. We think Jim did a great job on these "two American kid's..." Read More
07/14/2012 - Read the complete Bayfest review after the jump. Here are some excerpts: "Mellencamp may have dropped the Cougar years ago, but he was still able to make the Bayfest crowd roar with a catalogue that includes 22 top-40 hits..."
“The best thing about Mellencamp is you can put the needle down and you can play whatever and not get bored of it,” said former DJ Curtis Dewar..." Read More
