The Country Music Association’s awards ceremony took place earlier this week. And apart from looking good throughout the whole night as well as bringing the house down with her performance of her hit single ‘So Small’, Carrie Underwood also took home several awards.
The American Idol alum picked up her first single of the year award for the song ‘Before He Cheats’. She also took home the female vocalist of the year award for the second year in a row.
She’s definitely on a roll. She garnered the top spot on the albums’ chart when her CD debuted and now she’s won two CMA awards. Congratulations Carrie!
Whether it’s a sign of the times or just plain capitalist idea, you can take it for what it’s worth. Jennifer Lopez has never been shy to put her name on whatever product. Now, she’s putting her name on a USB stick by releasing her new album ‘Brave’ in one.
The typical plastic USB drive is out for JLo but in comes a classy block of African Mahogany or African Blackwood to encase her singing. The USB stick also comes complete with an autograph. It doesn’t come cheap though because the techie styled showcasing of her album is available for $80.
Tori Amos recently had a concert in Chicago this week and everyone that left the concert could only talk about one thing: her performance of the song ‘Me and a Gun’. It’s the seminal song off her debut album that talks about rape.
Tori dressed up as her ‘Pip’ character and performed the usually acapella song with her full band. At the end of the song, she even brought out some props in the form of a gun and a knife. That’s some heavy stuff right there.
On a lighter note, the singer debuted the song ‘Raspberry Swirl’ for the first time on her current tour. It’s the first time she performed that song in years.
Pony Up! are an all-female four piece hailing out of Montreal, Canada. They apparently formed on New Year’s Eve 2002 and since then have been busy touring Australia, North America, and now the United Kingdom.
Perhaps there is something special here then that did not reveal itself on the night. Perhaps it was just the bad P.A. system that made them sound boring, nervous and not particularly interesting to watch or listen to.
To be fair to the girls, every now and then you do hear a lot of potential in their playing, and they do have a few decent songs. The only problem seems to be that because they are quite a novelty in the world of rock ‘n’ roll, a girl band who are not pop - it seems that perhaps they have been let off more easily than their male counterparts would be. Sleater-Kinney they are not, though they seem to be compared to them quite often. Another part of the ‘not enough girls with guitars’ problem one must assume.
The only ray of sunshine in the band was guitarist Sarah Moundroukas who seemed to be a very talented performer. Any time she took up the reins of a song, the interest of the crowd seemed to perk up just a little bit more than usual.
Perhaps if she were the lead singer in the group the whole quality of the band would be much better. Sadly the real lead vocalist Laura Wills seems to enjoy being the centre of attention far too much for that to ever happen, even if she cannot sing very well.
Singers need more than the spotlight though, and even ones who have sold over 200 million albums still want to feel like they have something to offer. So she’s left the lights of Vegas behind, stepped back into the real world and in fairness to her, brought along a clutch of songs that actually may change a few people’s opinion.
Amongst the list of luminaries who twiddle a knob, knock out a lyric or strum a guitar for her are the all-conquering Timbaland, king of R’n’B balladry R Kelly, ex-Evanescence axe wielder Ben Moody, Christina Aguilera and Pink co-writer Linda Perry… and the always entertaining Dave Stewart, whose influence stretches so far that there’s even a lyrical snip of The Eurythemics’ “Here Comes The Rain Again” woven into the title track.
The highlights are two very different songs. In the power ballad corner, she shows off her larynx with a belting take on Heart’s endless queen of soft rock, “Alone”. Up against it for the title is the more contemporary “Shadow Of Love”, a song with enough disco and fun for Kylie to sing it.
Taking Chances doesn’t quite do what the title suggests, but it does push Celine Dion to the edge of her comfort zone and show an artist who not only wants to remain relevant but is prepared to work hard to stay that way.
British pop singer-songwriter Natasha Bedingfield made a huge splash as a new artist in late 2005 and early 2006. Her first two singles, “These Words” and “Unwritten” crackled with energy and wit that seemed to signal a unique pop talent was emerging. However, following up such an auspicious beginning has been a difficult task for Bedingfield. “I Wanna Have Your Babies,” the first single from her second album N.B., peaked at a relatively disappointing #7 in the UK in the spring of 2007 causing Epic Records to delay release of a single in the US. 6 months later “Love Like This” is being promoted as the first American single from the album.
Where Natasha Bedingfield’s first hits inspired with their words of self-awareness and personal encouragement, “Love Like This” is a somewhat dull, breezy, simplistic dissertation on romance between long-term friends. It would be very easy for this single to get lost amid more unique or challenging pop songs. Natasha Bedingfield sounds like just another pop singer here. Uniqueness and the ability to stand out are lacking.
In a clear effort to give the song a pop boost, Sean Kingston is brought in for a brief featured part. This vocal serves no purpose other than providing an extra element for the single’s marketing campaign. Natasha Bedingfield needs to step up her game if she will avoid losing a significant part of her initial pop audience.
Everyone predicted that Carrie Underwood’s CD would sell a lot and would go to the top of the charts but it actually did even better than any prediction made. ‘Carnival Ride’ is currently the #1 album in the US and has sold over 527,000 copies during its debut week. This is the American Idol alum’s first #1 album and also bested her previous effort ‘Some Hearts’ which sold 315,000 units in its first week.
Her record sales is also the best sales week for a female country artist since Shania Twain’s ‘Greatest Hits’ release back in November 2004. Carrie’s debut is also double what Kelly Clarkson’s ‘My December’ CD sold in its first week.
Chris Brown has ended hip-hop sensation Soulja Boy’s reign at the top of the U.S. pop charts with his new song Kiss Kiss. Brown’s collaboration with rapper T-Pain has toppled Soulja Boy’s Crank That (Soulja Boy), which spent seven weeks at number one. I think Chris Brown is HOT so he should stay him self! And about this toppling thing, well music today is as creepy as these guys themselves. There are just a few good looking males in the music industry and the other just a stinking pigs using a hell lot of perfume to hide that bad odor slipping out from underneath their armpits. Well that’s all that I’d like to these guys, for me the music of the Rolling Stones and other established artist is more fun listening to rather than have some cranked up music make me deaf in the ears.
Jive Records is officially giving up on trying to get Britney Spears to promote her new album. They’re not even planning a tour despite her single “Gimme More” topping the charts. The label realizes that Britney doesn’t care and is apparently becoming fed up with her antics. Her label should understand that she is basically in turmoil right now and she is clearly unfit to be on tour right now. What if she goes on a tour promoting the album and during an interview she starts crying because there is some bad news that coming from her custody trail. Then the media and her record would be at logger heads, her record label would have to defend her because she is in a way representing them when on tour and that paparazzi as usual needless to say would be out there in their full numbers trying to blow up the story by saying she is mentally ill. Best that she doesn’t tour right now.
Mary J. Blige has just released a new video for her new single called ‘Just Fine’. The video is awesome and the song is a great jam. Mary J’s new single is a bit of a departure for the R&B diva. It’s up-tempo and is a feel-good anthem. She most definitely left the gut-wrenching and tortured emotions outside of the recording booth.
Different as the sound may be for all you die-hard fans of Mary J, she’s still the same diva. Except, instead of wanting to wallow in your tears while listening to her sing all her anguish out, she’ll make you want to sing that today is going to be a better day, today is going to be just fine.
Carrie Underwood released her sophomore album on Tuesday of this week. And based on the first day sales and projections, she is headed for the top spot of the charts and could sell up to 450,000 copies in the first week of release.
If you compare those numbers to the numbers of Kelly Clarkson’s latest CD ‘My December’, Carrie clearly wins because Kelly only sold 291,000 copies in its first week and then took a nosedive. Carrie’s radio-friendly disc is expected to ‘have legs’ as music industry people say for albums with longevity.
Congratulations goes out to Carrie and a better luck next time goes to Kelly.
Public image is vital to pop stars, but few stars have been so inextricably tied to their image as Britney Spears. Think back to “…Baby One More Time” — it has an indelible hook. Every one of Britney’s hits had an accompanying image, as she relied on her carefully sculpted sexpot-next-door persona as much as she did on her records, but what happens when the image turns sour, as it certainly did for Britney in the years following the release of In the Zone?
Emotionally, this isn’t a progression from In the Zone, but it is a cannily contemporary dance album, sounding nearly as fresh as Rihanna and JT, even if it’s hardly as trend-setting as either. Those producers turn Blackout into a sleek, shiny collection of 12 guiltily addictive dance tracks where the only weak link is Britney herself.
Blackout is state-of-the-art dance-pop, a testament to the skills of the producers and perhaps even Britney being somehow cognizant enough to realize she should hire the best, even if she’s not at her best.
The Spice Girls’ newest single ‘Headlines (Friendship Never Ends) was played simultaneously by radio station across the UK yesterday morning. After the 30-second snippet that they used to tease fans a few days ago, it’s nice to hear the whole thing.
The song was written by Matt Rowe, Richard ‘Biff’ Stannard, Ginger and Baby. The pop girl group also made the video for the new single last Friday at Pinewood Studios. ‘Headlines (Friendship Never Ends) will be available digitally in the UK on November 5 and physically on November 19. It’s only a matter of time now and the world will once again be Spice World.
With the release date of her album looming in the horizon, Celine Dion took some time to glam it up for a photo shoot for her upcoming album ‘Taking Chances’. The French Canadian singer recently released her music video for ‘Taking Chances’, the first single which bears the same name as the album. The album is set for release on November 13.
Let me just say that Celine looks magnificent in her photo shoot. I wonder how they describe the theme of the photo shoot. Mysterious and alluring goddess, perhaps? She looks so fabulous! You’d almost think that there were no retouches done.
Ashley Tisdale performed her new single “He Said, She Said” at Good Morning America last Friday. Ms. Tisdale is going to release on November 13th this Year.
I did say a few days ago that Jennifer Lopez’s new album ‘Brave’ was expected to bring in low numbers for its first week out. Apparently, even that was an understatement. To make cut it short, the album bombed big time.
JLo’s new album failed to make it to the Top Ten in the US and came in at #12 by selling just 53,000 units. All of the Latin pop star’s six previous studio albums, even her Spanish language one, broke into the Top 10 when they debuted.
LeAnn Rimes, Sara Evans, Kid Rock, Bruce Springsteen, Rascal Flatts and even Josh Groban who released a Christmas album in October beat her to the Top 10. Ouch!
With record stores going on respirators with the falling record sales, it shouldn’t be a wonder why a lot of artists are going digital with their releases. And it doesn’t apply to just the new artists. Take the Spice Girls as an example.
The 90s super girl group recently announced that their new Greatest Hits album wouldn’t be sold in traditional retail outlets. Their new record will only be available at online retailers, like iTunes, and Victoria’s Secret stores. Ladies, don’t forget to buy some lingerie while you’re at it.
Maybe they’re getting money from the store too just like a lot of artists being sponsored by retail brands.
Britney Spears’ life, by all appearances, is off track; her album, however, is on the fast track. I think the album is going to do well…all this publicity actually has helped launch her to stardom even more. It’s true what has always been said, there is no such thing as bad publicity! The more things are said about you, good or bad, negative or positive, once the media is printing all that there are going to be some readers who are going bump into that story and then maybe read it, people start talking about the music release, she already has a great past track record and the whole cycle converts into rating and music reviews and bang you are in the ‘picture’ of things. That’s exactly that the record company is trying to do, they know that there have been a few positives for Britney in the past 2 weeks and they think time is ripe for the release. These records companies are really good at the marketing as well, as good as marketing gurus themselves, now we have to wait and see the outcome.
Christina Aguilera and her husband Jordan Bratman were spotted grabbing a late lunch at Magnolia restaurant on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood last Saturday. It is being reported that the lunch date at one of Christina’s favorite restaurants came at the heels of the singer shooting the music video for ‘Oh Mother’ from her third studio album ‘Back to Basics’.
Speaking of mother, her chic maternity clothes are doing all the announcing for her when it comes to being a mother. If there is justice in the world, let’s all hope that they’re actually having a girl. Don’t tell me you can’t imagine Christina slapping on the bright red lipstick and fake lashes on a baby girl.
Robyn may not have had a hit in years but that doesn’t take away from her talent. And I’m glad to say that she finally got the recognition she deserves.
She released her latest album on her own label and on her own terms. Now, all her hard work has paid off because she recently scored a deal with Interscope Records to release her amazing new album. Let’s all hope that it wouldn’t just be released in the UK but in the international market as well.
Congrats to Robyn!
If you can’t wait for the release, head on over to MySpace and listen to her tracks on her page.
On Wednesday September 26th, Gloria Estefan will go to her fans in the Bronx for an in-store autograph signing at Starbucks in the Kingsbride Plaza (225th and Broadway, Bronx NY). She will be signing copies of her new Spanish language CD - 90 Millas – available on Burgundy Records/Sony BMG on September 18th. This proves that there is new age media and advertising but you still have to meet and reach out to your fans the old fashion way, meeting them face to face. In the yester years artist meet at city squares and common place of the community and sing for them too, today its at a Starbucks coffee outlet but you have to go there sign autographs and mingle with the fans. I think this kind of interaction could be very positive for the artist, coz most of the time the fans that come to meet you will say all the goods things about you and that would eventually boost your confidence that people like you.
Shakira already knows how to put out a hit record – but now she’s tackling an even bigger subject: the history of western civilization. Isn’t this piece of news something so different from what we all have being listening, viewing, reading for so many days now. News of the MTV VMAs where singers just boozed, parties, broke relations, fought with each other, gave bad performances bla bla bla. With so much happening isn’t it so cool of Shakira to sit down and learn something that’s worthy of a mention. While everyone else has been at the beach, the MTV Awards and the Emmys, Shakira’s been studying History of Western Civilization all summer at UCLA. I think this is absolutely cool thing that she has enrolled herself into, instead of wasting time and energy of wasteful matter she’s decide that there is time for better things in life and she is utilizing that time for something good, babes you rock!
For all the good Lil’ Kim says it does, the “Magic Stick” can’t make a lawsuit disappear.
The raunchy rapper and guest-MC 50 Cent have been sued by a record producer who claims he never cashed in on the royalties he was due from his work on the hit single, which appeared on Kim’s 2003 album La Bella Mafia. Carlos Evans claims, he was paid a $7,500 advance and was promised a cut of the profits, Evans says, but he hasn’t been paid and his requests for a royalty audit have been ignored. Screwed up guy who ever he is, why didn’t he shout so loudly before when he has a lounge in his mouth? What did he think, like they going to come at his house and tell him, ‘hey Evans you did a fanstatic job in that 2003 album, I can’t remember the name of the album but I can remember you, your share of 50 cents as royalty share’. It’s a doggy dog business out there and none’s going to give you your share until you have the tenacity to get what’s yours.
This is really kind of a weird co-incidence but it just happens to be that when ever I am writing about Lindsay Lohan there is some news that has Paris Hilton too. After getting out of jail this girl has not been in the news for anything and so should it be coz this girl’s got nothing in her to suggest that she is worth a penny. But loves to be seen and written about so how she could possibly manage to keep herself in the spotlight. Isn’t this the weirdest thing you’ve seen in a long time? When I first saw this picture, I thought it was a fluke. But then I could see the point of the two of them being together well coz both of them are pretty much the worst things in their own field, Paris cannot sing, act and Curtis, well he can sing but he has such bad lyrics and such a nasty looking personality that no one would bother if he went past them. Paris is just a person who wants attention even if it meant being in the company of the worst men in town, she’ll be happy just to smile for the camera. These two were at his party for his new album “Curtis” at the Hard Rock last night.
It may not have been her summer, but it’s gearing up to be Kelly Clarkson’s December. Although previous plans for an arena tour fizzled in the face of lackluster ticket sales, the pop star is now ready to hit the road in support of her latest album, My December. It has held its own on the charts, despite her label’s concerns that the tracks were too edgy for Clarkson’s fan base. Kelly’s not a consistently good song writer. She’s pretty much up and down. This album would’ve done better had she not been so stubborn about all of the songs being hers. Still, you gotta love her. And her curves, which she steadfastly refuses to abandon despite the increasing media pressure. But also you have to give it to her, if she has to make it to the top and remain there then she has to do what she believes is the right, things might not always work out the way she wants but that’s the only way she can get it right – by being herself.
Natalie Imbruglia will release on September 10th her singles’s collection entitled “Glorious: The Singles 97-07″. The album includes 9 singles from Nat’s previous three albums plus 4 new tracks. “Glorious” is the album’s first single which you already heard.
It’s a good strategic move to leak out some songs especially when you’re trying to build up some hype but when the songs aren’t even on the mediocre level, you might want to think of a better strategy. Britney Spears’ record label has reportedly leaked four songs that won’t even make her album. Simultaneously.‘Everybody’ is the song that seems to be the ‘best’, mainly because is samples the Eurythmics classic ‘Sweet Dreams’. You can never go wrong with that song. The songs ‘Been a While’, ‘Your…’ and ‘Got Me High’ are songs that this world can definitely do better without. They should have been entitled ‘Blah 1’, ‘Blah 2’ and ‘Blah 3’.
Here is official tracklist of the upcoming English album of pop singer Jennifer Lopez entitled “Brave”.”BRAVE” TRACKLIST
01. Stay Together
02. Hold It, Don’t Drop It
03. Do It Well
04. Gotta Be There
05. Never Gonna Give Up
06. Mile In These Shoes
07. The Way It Is
08. Be Mine
09. I Need Love
10. Wrong When You’re Gone
11. Brave
