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It was crazy enough when a plane was quarantined at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on Wednesday — several passengers became ill during the flight from Dubai, and authorities were concerned about the spread of any potential disease. Crazier still: Vanilla Ice was on the plane.

The "Ice Ice Baby" hitmaker tweeted from the upper deck of the plane while sick passengers were treated on the lower deck. Twitter immediately lit up with responses like "Ice is back with a brand new infection" and, "This is a problem. I thought you'd solve it?"

The coincidence seemed so crazy, that some people started speculating that it was all a hoax perpetrated by the '90s star to gain some quick viral (so to speak) fame. It looks like Ice was actually on the plane, though: he described the situation in an interview after deplaning, and the delay made him miss a connecting flight to Florida.

Stop! Quarantine and listen. (Consequence of Sound, Mashable)

Details on death of Dolores O'Riordan emerge

Dolores O'Riordan, lead singer of the Cranberries, died in January due to accidental drowning while intoxicated on alcohol. That's the newly-released report of a London coroner, who added that there was no evidence of self-harm. In a statement, the surviving Cranberries say they are struggling "to come to terms with what happened" and that they have been comforted "to see how much of a positive impact she had on people's lives." (New York Times)

Joni Mitchell birthday tribute concert announced

Chaka Khan, Emmylou Harris, Norah Jones, Los Lobos, and Rufus Wainwright are among the artists who will pay tribute to Joni Mitchell at a pair of concerts celebrating the legendary singer-songwriter's 75th birthday in November. The concerts will take place at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Nov. 6 and 7; on the second day, Mitchell's actual birthday, a related charity dinner will raise funds for music programming and education. (Billboard)

Apple acquisition of Shazam cleared

After months of investigation, European authorities have cleared Apple to acquire the music-recognition service Shazam. The European Union has been tough on U.S. tech mergers, but in this case, regulators concluded that "access to Shazam's data would not materially increase Apple's ability to target music enthusiasts." Competitors like Spotify and Amazon are concerned that the merger will point more people towards Apple's music services. (New York Times)

Metallica, R.E.M. announce big box sets

In these days of declining physical media sales, you need to do something dramatic to sell units. That's exactly what two big bands are doing: Metallica and R.E.M. have just announced massive box sets.

Metallica's is an expanded/deluxe/super-deluxe edition of their 1988 album ...And Justice for All, the LP that represented their crossover from metal favorites to worldwide stars. The Nov. 2 reissue will come in a variety of sizes and shapes; the biggest edition will include ten discs (!) of unreleased demos, rough mixes, interviews and live tracks as well as a hardcover book and a bunch of swag. (Rolling Stone)

The R.E.M. release is an eight-CD, one DVD set compiling the band's recordings for the BBC between 1984 and 2008. That includes in-studio sessions, interviews, and live concert broadcasts including their headlining set at Glastonbury in 1999. R.E.M. at the BBC lands on Oct. 19. (Rolling Stone)

A close-up look at the new Mac

Fleetwood Mac are preparing for a fall tour that kicks off last month, with a new lineup. Lindsey Buckingham — who will simultaneously be on his own solo tour — is out, replaced by guitarist Mike Campbell (the Heartbreakers) and singer-guitarist Neil Finn (Crowded House).

On Wednesday, the band debuted the new lineup with a pair of songs on The Ellen DeGeneres Show: "The Chain" and "Gypsy." "Both guitarists delivered flawless performances on the show," opines Billboard, "with Finn handling the vocal parts previously sung by Buckingham as naturally as Nicks."

Songs sampled in podcast
Jahzzar: "Comedie" (CC BY 4.0)
BoxCat Games: "Against the Wall" (CC BY 3.0)
Vanilla Ice: "Ice Ice Baby"
R.E.M.: "Losing My Religion"
Fleetwood Mac: "The Chain"