As it so often has in recent years, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Fest has quite a lineup for this year, with the Eagles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, John Mayer and the Foo Fighters performing headline sets this year. The performances will be the first time either the Eagles or Tom Petty have performed at the New Orleans Jazz Fest, as it is commonly known.  The 2012 festival will take place over two consecutive weekends, April 27-29 and May 3-6. Other notable names playing the festival this year are My Morning Jacket, Florence + the Machine, the Zac Brown Band, Bon Iver, Al Green and Bonnie Raitt.

As always, however, most of the performances will be by Louisiana musicians, with an estimated 85 percent of the performers native to the Bayou state. Some native Louisianans performing this year are Allen Toussaint, Irma Thomas and clarinetist Pete Fountain. Festival organizer Quint Davis emphasized the importance of having a varied line up in a press release.

“At its heart, the New Orleans Festival celebrates with our own,” he said. “In addition, this year may be the broadest and most powerful line up of ‘special guests’… This festival really offers the best of both worlds. The heart and soul of the festival is all the Louisiana artists, but added to that is the very best of all these other genres.”

New Orleans Jazz Fest was started in 1970, and has been held as an annual event since that time. It is held on multiple stages set up at the Fair Grounds Race Course, and music is played all day. Additionally, the festival includes local venders who sell crafts and local food, with traditional New Orleans foods such as po’ boy sandwiches and crawfish. Though the festival began as a showcase of exclusively Louisiana musicians, it soon opened doors to performers from beyond the state’s borders, as well as to many different genres.

John Mayer has granuloma. The singer was diagnosed with the serious throat condition which is forcing him to cancel any singing plans for the near future. The guitarist explained in a blog post that over the last several months he has monitored his condition. However doctors have advised him to cancel his upcoming planned appearances, including a Los Angeles gig with Tony Bennett and Las Vegas appearance with iheartradio Music Festival.

The condition of Mayer has also caused delays to “Born and Raised,” his forthcoming album. On his blog Mayer wrote, the album is finished in terms of the song selection, music recording and some of the mixing. However due to my condition, on several tracks I wasn’t able to finish singing. So instead of being released this winter or fall it will come out next year.

Mayer is hoping his illness is just temporary. He wrote I don’t know how short or long the time period will be. I have the country’s best doctors taking care of me. As soon as they give me the all-clear I will be touring and singing again. In the meantime I will spend time composing and writing music as well as kicking empty soup cans across the West Village.

Allegedly Taylor Swift has slammed John Mayer with her song “Dear John” on her new album.

Swift and Mayer were romantically linked after Mayer reportedly told his friends earlier this year that he and the 20 year old Swift had ‘hooked up.’  Apparently Swift has attacked Mayer on the song on her new album “Speak Now.”

“Dear John,” according to People Magazine, is a ballad that tells the story of an older man messing with a younger girl using twisted and dark games.

Previously Swift has said about the song, lots of times when a relationship ends, people write an email to the person saying everything they wish they would have said.  Many times they don’t end up pushing send.

This was a very tough song from me to write.  I guess by putting it on my album I was pushing send.

In addition Taylor has revealed she wants her fans to do the talking.  She will let them choose the next single for her to release from her new album.

Swift said, it will be based on what songs the fans most like.  Every single decision we have made in terms of which song will be coming next is based on the passion level of the fans towards the song.

Taylor continued. The album hasn’t been released yet.  We really can’t get any sort of read on things yet.  That is one more reason why I am sitting at the edge on my seat.  I really would like to know which songs they like best.

With Mayer on the verge of wrapping up his Battle Studies tour and is planning to hole up in a studio in the coming months for a new studio set, the Grammy Award winner has shut down his Twitter account after earning close to 4 million Twitter followers.

The 32-year old singer/songwriter was known for using the micro-blogging site as his main avenue to express whatever bugs the living hell out of him, from giving away as much as 500 invites for one of his shows, to cleaning up his messes including that one time where he dished out juicy details about his famous ex-girlfriends – Jennifer Aniston and Jessica Simpson – and dropped the “N” bomb frequently in an interview he had given to Playboy, which he apologized for, also via Twitter.

But Mayer isn’t done with blogging altogether.  He continues to be active via another blogging portal which allows for more words than Twitter, Tumblr.  Just recently, he slammed the Huffington Post via his Tumblr page after the online broadsheet wrote about him and Aniston allegedly rekindling old flames in one of the singer’s concerts.

So Mayer’s feisty and thought provoking words have found a new home in Tumblr and he’s obviously happy about it.  As posted in his blog, “I think I made the right choice…I now have an even larger Tumblr addiction but it’s sort of like a book addiction or a gambling addiction where you always walk away with the casino’s money”.

“I believe in second chances…If you really love someone, just tell them and be with them” were John Mayer’s words as quoted by online newspaper The Huffington Post during the singer’s concert at the Hollywood Bowl last Sunday.

Now Mayer, through his Tumblr page, is throwing back sharp words at HuffPo.  Calling the online portal “full of s*it”, “the internet death star” and “the world’s first spectator banking website”.  Which raises the question, what’s with all the rage, John?

It seems that HuffPo has been spreading the news that Mayer and ex-girlfriend Jennifer Aniston has rekindled an old flame based on Mayer’s quoted live remarks.  To further support their claims, the website also reported that the singer was conveying sweet facial expressions to a woman situated at the side of the stage who looked like the actress.

To this Mayer replied, “Huffington Post, this is reporting? How do you pay your writers now, in Silly Bandz? Do you meet your sources in a malt shoppe? This is equal parts fabricated, cobbled together and misleading”.  He even dissected the quoted statements, stating that he faintly remembered saying the first line from the quote while the succeeding the lines came from two of his songs, “Half of My Heart” and “Edge of Desire”.

Mayer even compared the website to magazines In Touch and Star for writing “stories up out of thin air” but the singer says that at least the two print magazines – or as he calls it “rags” – “know who they are” and “know where they stand”, whereas HuffPo is “dangerous”, “a stripper wearing reading glasses” and an “insolvent law student willing to dance for a few extra dollars”.

And the harsh words did not stop there, at the end of the singer’s blog entry are the words in all capital letters: “JOHN MAYER SLAMS HUFFPO: ‘GO F**K YOURSELF!’”

No one really understood why LeBron James had to make a big fuss about his decision to leave Cleveland for a more championship-promising Miami and turn it into a one-hour special, in fact, many saw it as simply narcissistic advertising tolerated by sporting networks like ESPN.

But others, such as wittingly funny and Grammy winning artist John Mayer, saw this as an opportunity not only to make fun of Cleveland’s new villain, but also to plug his upcoming tour – in complete LeBron fashion and emotionless delivery – and to show everyone that he has a funny side and the smarts to use the narcissistic whims of one LeBron James and turn it into comedic gold.

To really rise to the occasion, the first two cities that Mayer plugged was his shows in Cleveland (August 13, Blossom Music Center) and Miami (September 11, Cruzan Amphitheatre) – “I’m going to play for Cleveland…I’ll also be playing for Miami” – beat that LeBron!

Mayer also vowed to wow people with his “immense display of talent” in his other shows in New York and New Jersey later this month, and in a string of shows in the west coast from late August to September 1.  Keith Urban will be appearing in Mayer’s show in Seattle on August 28.

For a complete list of Mayer’s tour schedule, log on to the official website of John Mayer’s tour.

John Mayer‘s first stand-up comedy attempt was panned by both critics and audiences.  Despite that Mayer returned once again to the genre.

According to an online New York Post report, the singer-songwriter made his return to a New York comedy club four years after his first performance as a comedian fell flat.

In 2006 the musician, who has been entertaining the idea of being a stand-up comedian for a long time, made an appearance at Comedy Cellar in Manhattan.  However the audience didn’t care for his sets.  Critics charged Mayer with making sexist remarks and racial slurs.

Since then the Grammy award winning singer has attempted his act several times.  Last week he made a return to the venue to try to correct his previous flop there.

This time around Mayer’s show was much more impressive.  A source told the New York Post that before going on stage that Mayer was very nervous and kept looking at his notes.

His act however did go over well with the audience.  Mayer promised he would be returning soon.

Grammy award winning singer and songwriter John Mayer recently contracted an intestinal illness which forced him to axe the remaining shows of his current European tour, among those to be canceled are the shows in Amsterdam, Madrid, Manchester and the second of a two-night performance in Copenhagen scheduled for May 31, Monday. Ticket refunds are available at the point of purchase.

Mayer, however, still pushed through with his first show in Copenhagen scheduled on May 30, Sunday. After which, he started to complain of nausea, dizziness and dehydration.

The artist is now on his way back to the US to receive further treatment and to recuperate.

Meanwhile, Mayer will still push through with his scheduled North American tour set to be launched in Charlotte, NC on July 16. The tour is set to make stops in 37 cities across the US with one stop in Toronto, which will eventually conclude with a show in West Palm Beach, FL on September 11. Mayer will also be performing in Manila, Philippines on October.

The tour is aimed to promote Mayer’s fourth studio effort “Battle Studies” which hit stores fall of last year and topped the Billboard 200 upon its release.

John Mayer and Keith Urban will be coming together on August 28 in George, WA at The Gorge to provide a live special performance.

Mayer and Urban first met in Nashville while taping a show for “CMT Crossroads.” According to a recent press release, the two collaborated together on several songs.

Mayer said, the first time performing with Keith was on “CMT Crossroads.” Right away we had creative rapport. I hope this is the first of many opportunities we have for working together.

The special on “CMT Crossroads” will be airing on CMT on June 18.

The Gorge show pre-sale tickets will be available May 3-7 on the CMT.com website. Regular ticket sales will start on May 8.

Mayer and Urban will offer pre-sale tickets from their individual websites starting on May 1.

John Mayer’s world tour is still in full effect, and it just got a bit longer. The controversial singer/songwriter is extending his “Battle Studies Tour” starting July 16 in Charlotte, North Carolina and continuing on through to West Palm Beach, Florida on September 11. A full listing of tour dates, including the eight stops left on his current North American tour, are listed below.

Particularly noteworthy is that this tour will require the concert goers to buy paperless tickets on all pavilion seats. Translation means that the buyer will have to have all of their party with them on entry and the attendant will swipe the buyer’s credit card for entry. Think of it as high tech will call. Tickets can be resold but only through Ticketmaster’s site where they will rape you for additional fees.

Given John’s recent brush with controversy through his incendiary Playboy interview you’d think he’d be more interested in selling any tickets at all to his shows instead of putting restrictive measures in place to inconvenience his fans. Miley Cyrus’ last tour fell flat on its face when she tried to employ such measures so we wish John luck with his ill-advised experiment.

2010 John Mayer Concert Tour
March 2010
31 – Seattle, WA – KeyArena

April 2010
1 – Vancouver, British Columbia – General Motors Place
3 – Calgary, Alberta – Pengrowth Saddledome
4 – Edmonton, Alberta – Rexall Place
6 – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – Credit Union Centre
7 – Winnipeg, Manitoba – MTS Centre
8 – Fargo, ND – Fargodome
10 – Chicago, IL – United Center

July 2010
16 – Charlotte, NC – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Charlotte
17 – Raleigh, NC – Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion @ Walnut Creek
18 – Virginia Beach, VA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
21 – Wantagh, NY – Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
24 – Scranton, PA – Toyota Pavilion @ Montage Mountain
25 – Hershey, PA – Hershey Park Stadium
27 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
28 – Clarkston, MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre
30 – Camden, NJ – Susquehanna Bank Center
31 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live

August 2010
1 – Burgettstown, PA – First Niagara Pavilion
3 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
6 – Mansfield, MA – Comcast Center
7 – Hartford, CT – Comcast Theatre
8 – Saratoga, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
10 – Toronto, Ontario – Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
11 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
13 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
14 – Tinley Park, IL – First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
15 – Noblesville, IN – Verizon Wireless Music Center
18 – Phoenix, AZ – Cricket Wireless Pavilion
20 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
21 – Wheatland, CA – Sleep Train Amphitheatre
22 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
24 – Irvine, CA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
25 – Chula Vista, CA – Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
31 – West Valley City, UT – USANA Amphitheater

September 2010
1 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
4 – Dallas, TX – Superpages.com Center
5 – Woodlands, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
6 – Orange Beach, AL – The Amphitheatre @ the Wharf
8 – Atlanta, GA – Aaron’s Amphitheatre @ Lakewood
10 – Tampa, FL – The Ford Amphitheatre
11 – West Palm Beach, FL – Cruzan Amphitheatre