Velvet Revolver Deny Canadian Singer Is Group's New Frontman

Velvet Revolver are denying they've hired a Canadian singer to fill the frontman position vacated by Scott Weiland last year. Rumors began circulating online that Gord Prior, singer of the band Blu Bones, was the group's new vocalist after videos of him singing over two unreleased Velvet Revolver demos were posted onto YouTube. However, a rep for the band tells Music Radar, "Gord Prior isn't the new guy. In fact, no decision has been made as to who the singer is." That news is a little surprising since in early February, bassist Duff McKagan told Rock Daily a new hire was "weeks away."

Two demos, titled "Mutha Fuka" (above) and "Slappy," were sent out to numerous candidates vying for the vocalist job, and each potential replacement was asked to write words, construct melodies and sing over the instrumental tracks. "He's just one of numerous singers that tapes went out to," the band's spokesperson told Music Radar. "Gord submitted his demos just like everybody else. He wasn't even asked to come in and do a formal audition. I don't know why these videos get out there, but that's just the nature of the Internet."

Prior is just the latest in a long stream of singers who have been rumored to take over for the exiled Scott Weiland. Everyone from Lenny Kravitz to Chris Cornell to Spacehog's Royston Langdon to Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy to Sebastian Bach have been rumored at one point to take over mic duties.

"It's down to a couple of guys," McKagan told Rolling Stone last month. "That's way down from the 400 original guys we got submissions from." Whether or not Prior was one of those couple of guys remains to be seen.

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Song Stories

“Weird”

Hanson | 1997

Accomplished tunesmith Desmond Child co-wrote "Weird" with the three brothers that make up Hanson. Credited for dozens of cuts, including songs by Kiss, Cher, Bon Jovi and Aerosmith, Child told Rolling Stone that "Weird" holds a special place in his heart, "because it's about being different--and I grew up poor, I grew up being Latin, I grew up being gay, and now I'm fat!" The song was included on Hanson's 1997 album Middle of Nowhere, which sold more than ten million units.

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