Four months after Big Star drummer Jody Stephens and I talked about his late bandmate, singer-guitarist Alex Chilton, who died in March, we talked again – about bassist Andy Hummel, who passed away on July 19th of cancer at his home in Weatherford, Texas. Hummel was 59. His death leaves …

“We’re trying to figure out a way forward,” drummer Jody Stephens, the lone surviving original member of the band, tells Billboard.com.

Indie giants Pavement ended the fest under strings of twinkling lights, while Big Boi’s set doubled as a victory lap for his just-released solo debut “Sir Lucius Left Foot.” 

For Big Boi, creative frustration has been a blessing in disguise. The OutKast MC had been going back and forth with his label Jive for months on the direction of first official solo album Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty, turning in tracks that left label execs …

Kid Cudi has a big head — literally — in the new video for “All Summer,” the alt-rapper’s Converse-approved single with Vampire Weekend’s Rostam Batmanglij and Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino.

Hey, you guys remember back in 2003 when OutKast released what was basically a two-fer solo album in the form of Speakerboxx/The Love Below, and it was basically the only music anybody wanted to listen to? Good times.

Well, good times are here again! While we all wait for Andre3000 to get to releasing some new material, Big Boi has put together an absolutely awesome solo album called Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty. If you like Speakerboxx (and, let’s be real, you liked Speakerboxx) then you will like this new album. Done and done.

But! We’re actually more geeked on Big Boi’s new video, “Shutterbug,” off of Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty. The Scott Storch-produced, electro-bass-crazy anthem is pretty much the jam of the summer already, but the Chris Robinson-directed video takes it to a whole new level. Tuxedo-rocking Big Boi (with a puppet band), lady dancers dressed up like extras fromTron, Big Boi climbing up a mountain of sneakers, a wall of plastic cups, the world’s coolest Cadillac… and more.

Watch “Shutterbug.” Between this and Katy Perry’s “California Gurls,” things are getting a bit surreal out there in video-land, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Big Boi’s album is due out July 6th.

Boy Band Big Time Rush likes to give their fans an all-access pass to their life and work, so it only fits that you’re about to watch both the finished version of Big Time Rush’s new video “Any Kind Of Guy” and a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the video. (Just in case  you didn’t know, BTR is both the name of a vocal group and the name of a show on Nick that follows their rise to fame.)

In the sneak peek, the boys in BTR give us a taste of what’s to come, have some fun with the video’s director, wild out with some green screen action and talk about their love of snowboarding.

After that, you get to see the video, itself; a fun romp of a jam, following the decision-making process of a girl who can’t decide what kind of boy is right for her.

Watch the behind-the-scenes clip and the video for Big Time Rush’s “Any Kind Of Guy,” both below.

+ If you were wondering why the “girls” in Katy Perry’s “California Gurls” was spelled with “u,” Perry says it’s a tribute to the legendary power-pop band Big Star, their classic, “September Gurls,” and the band’s frontman Alex Chilton, who recently passed away. (MTV News)

+ Mary J. Blige will play Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic of the iconic vocalist. (Idolator)

+ Lily Allen is giving up on her solo career (again) because she’s, “‘a bit fed up of ‘Lily Allen’, the character that I’ve played for the past five years.” Get on that, Lily. (Spinner)

+ Gwen Stefani is reportedly pregnant with her third child. (LimeLife)

+ When teenage Internet sensation Greyson Michael performed his now famous cover of “Paparazzi” on Ellen DeGeneres‘ show the other day, her received a very special phone call from Lady Gaga, herself. (PopEater)

The Top 6 perform Shania’s catalogue in a twist on country night.

After numerous delays, Big Boi’s solo debut, “Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty,” will finally be available on July 6th on Def Jam Recordings

A new version of Big Audio Dynamite’s debut album may have stoked interest in a band reunion.

Imprisoned rapper Lil Wayne has taken to the net to communicate with fans.

It doesn’t take much to get the Eminem rumor mill churning, and the rapper did just that on Tuesday with a mysterious post on his Twitter account.

• OutKast’s Big Boi has inked a solo deal with Def Jam so release his long-delayed Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty, the AP reports. Exactly one year ago, the MC told RS Jive Records was holding up the disc, which will feature “electro, funk, blues, some of everything.”
• Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood’s Doghouse orchestral composition is currently streaming on the BBC’s website.
• Slash, Dave Grohl and Lemmy Kilmister are teaming up to perform Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades” at Revolver’s Golden Gods Awards. The show goes down April 8th at Los Angeles’ Club Nokia.
• Ke$ha has apologized to Justin Bieber over Twitter after calling the young star a “baby” earlier in the week. “u r obviouslyso talented andi would never mean to offend u.i think u r rad,” she wrote.

Photo: Mullen/WireImage
Just as everyone at the SXSW Music Festival was finding their groove Wednesday, news of the death of Alex Chilton hit. “Austin’s in shock about Alex,” read one of the countless social media memes. On Saturday, heartsick Big Star fans got to hear Chilton songs performed by a cast of guest musicians sitting in on the regularly scheduled Big Star showcase, held down by the remaining members of the band’s current incarnation, Jon Auer, Ken Stringfellow and Jody Stephens.

But first a letter from Chilton’s widow, Laura, who the 59-year-old musician had only recently married, was read by publicist Heather West. The note highlighted some aspects of Chilton’s inner world: He was a person who did what he wanted; he was a preservationist; he was a good listener; he was compassionate, always willing to give change to a homeless person; his relationship with music was all about analysis, wherein he gave each separate element of a song its rightful due; and he was really proud of the Cramps records he produced. “He valued spontaneity,” the letter read, “and while that seemed to contradict his analytical nature, that was why he was a mystery.”

Quite obviously this was a celebration of a man’s character — unconventional, humane, inspirational — but the music had to go on. Curt Kirkwood of the Meat Puppets lumbered through “In the Street,” otherwise known as the theme song for That 70’s Show. M. Ward of She & Him croaked an elegant “Big Black Car.” Mike Mills of R.E.M. found his religion with “Jesus Christ.” John Doe of X dispatched a crystal clear “I’m in Love with a Girl.” And in what was the night’s biggest surprise, Sondre Lerche provided an intense, harmonic “The Ballad of El Goodo.”

And that’s how it went for the entire hour and a half, with guest musicians including Chris Stamey, Chuck Prophet, Evan Dando, Amy Speace, the Watson Twins, Susan Cowsill, and original Big Star member Andy Hummel (who came in from Lithuania for the show) all getting a chance to pay tribute to Chilton. A rendition of the classic “Thirteen” was one of the final songs of the night, the lyrics of which encapsulated not only the special moment that was taking place in the storied Antone’s blues club, but the entire SXSW Music Festival: “Rock & roll is here to stay/ Come inside where it’s okay.”

More SXSW 2010:

• RS’ SXSW Twitter Marathon: Catch the Tweets Here!
• Spoon, Broken Bells Grab the Spotlight as SXSW 2010 Launches
• Stone Temple Pilots Debut Songs, Rock With Robby Krieger at SXSW
• Broken Social Scene, Band of Horses, Drive-By Truckers Bring Big Guitar Rock to SXSW
• Hole Cover the Rolling Stones, And Courtney Love Isn’t Satisfied at SXSW

This week the rock world lost Alex Chilton, so we’re devoting our Flashback to covers of Big Star songs by artists ranging from Beck to Wilco to the Bangles, who perform the classic “September Gurls” in the video above. As Rob Sheffield wrote in his remembrance of Chilton, the singer was “the ultimate indie cult hero”, who despite “years of hard living, always seemed indestructible — and thanks to his music, he always will be.”

Below, watch four artists — Beck, Bat for Lashes, This Mortal Coil and Jeff Buckley — take on Third/Sister Lovers’s “Kanga Roo,” while Wilco, Garbage and Elliott Smith each cover “Thirteen.”

Beck – “Kanga Roo”

Bat for Lashes – “Kanga Roo”

Jeff Buckley – “Kanga Roo”

This Mortal Coil – “Kanga Roo”

Wilco – “Thirteen”

Elliott Smith – “Thirteen”

Garbage – “Thirteen”

Photo: Michael Ochs Archive/Getty

Alex Chilton, singer and guitarist of Big Star, one of the most influential rock groups to emerge from the early 1970s, has passed away at the age of 59. Chilton reportedly suffered a heart attack today in New Orleans, just days before Big Star were scheduled to perform at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas. Chilton had been complaining about his health earlier in the day, and was eventually taken to a New Orleans hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Big Star drummer Jody Stephens confirmed Chilton’s passing, Memphis’ Commercial Appeal reports. “Alex passed away a couple of hours ago,” Stephens said. “I don’t have a lot of particulars, but they kind of suspect that it was a heart attack.”

Chilton began his musical career in his teens as a member of the Box-Tops before returning to his native Memphis to form Big Star with guitarist/co-songwriter Chris Bell, drummer Jody Stephens and bassist Andy Hummel. Blending power pop with the sound of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, Big Star were critically acclaimed in their time but largely ignored commercially. In their short time together in the early-’70s — though Bell and Hummel exited the band after #1 Record — Big Star only released three studio albums, but what three incredible albums they were: 1972’s #1 Record, 1974’s Radio City and 1978’s dark but beautiful Third/Sister Lovers all placed on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and their classic tracks “Thirteen” and “September Gurls” were both named to our list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Read David Fricke’s review of Big Star’s last New York City concert here.

While they only lasted a few years, Big Star’s impact continues to reverberate decades later. R.E.M. and the Replacements both named Big Star and Alex Chilton as major influences, with the Replacements even titling a song “Alex Chilton” on their album Pleased to Meet Me. Chilton became a cult musical icon, and artists as diverse as Beck, Wilco, Elliott Smith, R.E.M., Cheap Trick, Jeff Buckley, Garbage, Bat For Lashes and Whiskeytown have covered Big Star’s songs. Renewed interest in the band’s music led to a reunion of sorts in the early ’90s and a new album in 2005’s In Space, which featured two members of the Posies, Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer. Just last year, a box set celebrating Big Star’s entire catalog, Keep an Eye on the Sky was released.

“It’s not like I’m a ‘big star’ constantly getting noticed, but I do get recognized,” Chilton told Rolling Stone in 2000 of the fame that eluded Big Star during their first years together. “What’s nice is that the people in my neighborhood just know me as Alex. It’s funny, because I spent so much of my life moving from place to place and I went through a few dark periods, but in the last few years I’ve kind of settled down.” Chilton is survived by his wife Laura and son Timothy.

For more on Chilton’s musical legacy, watch a handful of Big Star classics below, and be sure to remember Alex by looking back at our Rolling Stone features below:

“Thirteen”

“September Gurls”

“Life is White”

“In the Street”

“Kanga Roo”

Jeff Buckley performing Big Star’s “Kanga Roo”

• Big Star Rock “#1 Record,” “Radio City” Classics at Rare NYC Gig
• <Alex Chilton Set to Go
• <Big Star Travel “Space”
Big Star Album Reviews

Fo Yo Sorrows VIDEO Big Boi Ft. Too Short and George Clinton from SNORT THIS TV on Vimeo.

A whole battalion of new music videos has made their way onto the Web and for your viewing pleasure Rolling Stone has corralled them into this post. First up is Big Boi’s latest single off his much-anticipated Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son of Chico Dusty, “Fo Yo Sorrows.” The OutKast rapper had previously promised vids for every track off his solo disc, so like the video above and Boi’s previous “Shine Blockas,” they’ll likely be low-key affairs. That isn’t stopping Big Boi from calling in guests George Clinton and Too $hort to appear in the clip. Any time George Clinton shows up in a music video, we get nostalgic for P.C.U., so definitely check out “Fo Yo Sorrows” above.

For “In the Sun,” She & Him’s first video off their upcoming Volume 2, Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward go the High School Musical/Glee route as Deschanel and her clique of peers and teachers go dancing around hallways and classrooms in pursuit of the object of her desire, played here by a way-too-old-to-be-in-high-school Ward. It’s sort of like Feist’s “1, 2, 3, 4″ video combined with Britney Spears’ “…Baby One More Time” clip. Adding authenticity to the sing-along is director Peyton Reed, who previously mastered the art of high school and dancing with his cheerleading flick Bring It On.

Finally, we have the official music video for the Runaways’ “Cherry Bomb” that combines the band’s classic track with a ton of new footage from the film The Runaways. In the video, we see Dakota Fanning completely morphing into her role of Cherie Currie, plus brief clips of the cinematic Runaways from their rise to their eventual crash. As Rolling Stone previously reported, both Fanning and Kristen Stewart, who plays Joan Jett, sing on the soundtrack, which is available for pre-order now.

Thirteen years ago today (March 9), hip-hop lost one of its most beloved and talented MCs: the Notorious B.I.G.

Photo: Forrest/WireImage
Lady Gaga promised to retool her Monster Ball show for its European launch, and she delivered in Manchester, England, last night. According to the BBC, the new electro opera featured a loose narrative (Gaga and her pals race to a party), a 40-foot animatronic sea monster (for the fleeting three minutes she performed “Paparazzi”) and more than a dozen costume changes.

Get a look at the show in our gallery from last night’s gig, plus check out some of Lady Gaga’s most outrageous outfits:

• Lady Gaga’s New Monster Ball: The Electro Opera Begins in England

• Lady Gaga’s Wild Looks: The New Princess of Pop’s Craziest Wardrobe Moments