LAS VEGAS – Jay-Z rapped about his beef with corporate radio in the monster jam “99 Problems,” noting that stations won’t play his hits if he doesn’t do their shows. But on Friday, he played savior to radio station giant Clear Channel, headlining a two-night concert billed as the largest in radio history and a major step toward keeping the industry alive in the dot-com era.

Jay-Z’s was the final performance of a night that saw confetti bombs dust the shoulders of pop sensations Kelly Clarkson, the Black Eyed Peas, Bruno Mars and Carrie Underwood. The spectacle continued Saturday night, with headliners Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Sting and Steven Tyler.

The star-studded lineup usually reserved for charity concerts was a marketing blitz that drew thousands to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and was broadcast to more than 10 million radio listeners across the country. Its intended beneficiary was iHeartRadio, Clear Channel’s revamped free personalized music website that allows users to create custom radio stations and is meant to compete with the web’s most popular online music services, especially Pandora.

The concert hosted by Ryan Seacrest began with the Black Eyed Peas taking the stage in a fit of confetti and pyrotechnics. Concertgoers also waved their glowing cellphones in the air for Alicia Keys, Coldplay and rock band Jane’s Addiction during the nearly five-hour concert. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Mars each paid tribute to late British soul diva Amy Winehouse, with Mars performing Winehouse’s “Valerie” and Martin urging the packed arena to join him in a mournful chorus of her prophetic hit “Rehab.”

‘All My Children’ signs off with a bang

NEW YORK – Tissues were on hand but there were few tears among two dozen soap opera fans gathered to watch “All My Children” sign off from ABC on Friday after more than 40 years.

That’s because the screen faded to black with a gunshot and a cliffhanger — an indication that the story may not be dead, even if the television series is. ABC has licensed the story to a production company that is hoping to keep “All My Children” going online after the first of next year.

Carolyn Hinsey, author of “Afternoon Delight: Why Soaps Still Matter,” organized a watching party at a Manhattan sports bar as a message to television executives who apparently think soap operas don’t matter anymore.

Two of ABC’s three daytime dramas, “All My Children” and “One Life to Live,” were canceled this year. That leaves only four soaps on network television, with “General Hospital” the only one on ABC when “One Life to Live” formally leaves in a few months.

 

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