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British singer/songwriter/producer Taio Cruz is no stranger to the top of the charts in his home country—in addition to his own hit "Break Your Heart" reaching #1 last year, "Never Leave You," a track he wrote for Tinchy Stryder and Sugababes member Amelle Berrabah, also achieved the same feat.
Now Taio has found himself in an enviable position in the States. Recently signed to an American deal with Mercury Records, the 26-year-old Londoner paired up with Ludacris for a reworked version of "Break Your Heart" that managed to shoot to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 last week. (Cruz also set a record for the largest jump on the Hot 100 by an artist with their debut single when "Break Your Heart" flew from #53 to #1.)
After the jump: our Q&A with Britain's latest hot export, who's currently preparing the stateside release of his album Rokstarr.
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POSTS FROM "In Conversation" CATEGORY
In Conversation
Sia: The Idolator Interview
12:28 PM on Tue Mar 9 2010 by Robbie Daw
Sia Furler knows full well that she can come off like an exuberant teenager. "There's certainly one part that's never grown up," the 34-year-old singer declares one chilly day in late February. "There's like the five-year-old, there's the adolescent and then there's the adult—and I'm really embarrassed, because the adolescent is the one I have to watch out for."
We've been watching out for Sia for a long time—though, these days, you can't really miss her. If you've flipped on the television in recent months, you've no doubt heard the Australian singer's ubiquitous 2004 track "Breathe Me" in the Winter Olympics-themed Coca Cola ad, or her cover of The Church's "Under The Milky Way" in a Lincoln car MKT commercial.
And now Sia—who penned four new tracks for Christina Aguilera's upcoming album Bionic—has found herself in the midst of a major label bidding war ahead of the release of her own fourth studio LP We Are Born. It's a record that contains guitar work from a Strokes member and production from The Bird And The Bee mastermind Greg Kurstin. And after the jump, you'll catch Sia revealing new details about her Christina Aguilera songs, her plans for Coachella weekend, plus her charitable dalliances in the underworld. More »
We've been watching out for Sia for a long time—though, these days, you can't really miss her. If you've flipped on the television in recent months, you've no doubt heard the Australian singer's ubiquitous 2004 track "Breathe Me" in the Winter Olympics-themed Coca Cola ad, or her cover of The Church's "Under The Milky Way" in a Lincoln car MKT commercial.
And now Sia—who penned four new tracks for Christina Aguilera's upcoming album Bionic—has found herself in the midst of a major label bidding war ahead of the release of her own fourth studio LP We Are Born. It's a record that contains guitar work from a Strokes member and production from The Bird And The Bee mastermind Greg Kurstin. And after the jump, you'll catch Sia revealing new details about her Christina Aguilera songs, her plans for Coachella weekend, plus her charitable dalliances in the underworld. More »
In Conversation
The Idolator Interview: Robin Thicke
10:57 AM on Wed Feb 24 2010 by Becky Bain
It's no wonder Robin Thicke tells us how impressed he is by 15-year old Justin Bieber, whom he calls "wonderful"—the seductive singer has been making tunes since he was basically the same age. Thicke has been in the limelight since he was a kid—at first by association with his famous parents (TV actors Alan Thicke and Gloria Loring), and then in his own right as as a 16-year old writing and producing wunderkind, knob twiddling and penning tracks for the likes of Christina Aguilera, Pink, Mya and more.
Sixteen years later, Thicke is a grown, sexy man and heading down a whole new path professionally and personally—he and his wife, actress Paula Patton, are expecting their first son this May, and his latest release, the seductive Sex Therapy, is full of determined beats that allow Thicke to stretch beyond his customary boudoir R&B into dancefloor-ready hip-hop. (He's a student of history, too, as his opening track, "Mrs. Sexy," is a clever cover of Eric B. and Rakim's classic "Mahogany.") "I just kind of wanted to explore my hip-hop roots a little more on this album," Robin tells us. "Take some chances and work with some new people."
That he definitely does. Read on to hear what the silky-voiced crooner thinks of the state of hip-hop, whether it was a mistake to re-record "We Are The World," and the significance of Justin Bieber. More »
Sixteen years later, Thicke is a grown, sexy man and heading down a whole new path professionally and personally—he and his wife, actress Paula Patton, are expecting their first son this May, and his latest release, the seductive Sex Therapy, is full of determined beats that allow Thicke to stretch beyond his customary boudoir R&B into dancefloor-ready hip-hop. (He's a student of history, too, as his opening track, "Mrs. Sexy," is a clever cover of Eric B. and Rakim's classic "Mahogany.") "I just kind of wanted to explore my hip-hop roots a little more on this album," Robin tells us. "Take some chances and work with some new people."
That he definitely does. Read on to hear what the silky-voiced crooner thinks of the state of hip-hop, whether it was a mistake to re-record "We Are The World," and the significance of Justin Bieber. More »
In Conversation
David Guetta: The Idolator Interview
1:48 PM on Wed Jan 27 2010 by Robbie Daw
The Grammy countdown has begun, and five-time nominee David Guetta is gearing up for a flight from Paris to L.A. "I'm going to go eat, pack and take the plane," he tells Idolator while in transit. "I made a few tracks, because every time I'm in Los Angeles I'm meeting artists. So I'll have a little bit of a studio session and then the awards."
Guetta's global floorfiller "When Love Takes Over," which features a booming Kelly Rowland on vocals, is up for Best Dance Recording and Best Remixed Recording, while his LP One Love snagged a nomination for Best Electronic/Dance Album. But the sought-after French DJ has earned acclaim far beyond clubland and the Academy’s dance audience: he also received a Record Of The Year nod for producing the Black Eyed Peas' inescapable radio hit "I Gotta Feeling," and thus could also share in the wealth if the band wins a statue for Album Of The Year for The E.N.D.
Guetta, who recently whipped up material for Madonna's upcoming album, explains that what he loves about working with such varied artists "is that our music can reach people that are not even from hip hop or electro" scenes. "It's just music that touches your soul." And now he says he and the Black Eyed Peas have yet another "I Gotta Feeling"-sized smash waiting in the wings. Head below to read our full interview with David Guetta! More »
Guetta's global floorfiller "When Love Takes Over," which features a booming Kelly Rowland on vocals, is up for Best Dance Recording and Best Remixed Recording, while his LP One Love snagged a nomination for Best Electronic/Dance Album. But the sought-after French DJ has earned acclaim far beyond clubland and the Academy’s dance audience: he also received a Record Of The Year nod for producing the Black Eyed Peas' inescapable radio hit "I Gotta Feeling," and thus could also share in the wealth if the band wins a statue for Album Of The Year for The E.N.D.
Guetta, who recently whipped up material for Madonna's upcoming album, explains that what he loves about working with such varied artists "is that our music can reach people that are not even from hip hop or electro" scenes. "It's just music that touches your soul." And now he says he and the Black Eyed Peas have yet another "I Gotta Feeling"-sized smash waiting in the wings. Head below to read our full interview with David Guetta! More »
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Idolator @ KIIS’ Jingle Ball 2009: The Ting Tings, Jason Derulo And More
3:44 PM on Mon Dec 7 2009 by Becky Bain
While the goss rags salivated over the Taylor2 sighting at KIIS FM’s annual Jingle Ball show this weekend, we managed to snag some time with Los Angeles radio station fest’s biggest acts—The Ting Tings, Jason Derulo, Orianthi, and Jay Sean all dropped by to dish on their hits and the latest music news, including Grammy reactions, Gaga’s wardrobe dysfunction and the last days of Michael Jackson. Our pre-performance chit-chats with the artists after the jump: More »
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Kris Allen on ‘Kris Allen’
12:15 PM on Fri Nov 20 2009 by Becky Bain
Kris Allen certainly has his work cut out for him. His album is expected to post the lowest first-week sales from an American Idol winner in the show’s eight seasons—not that opening weeks mean everything. (Ruben Studdard’s best-ever first week didn’t exactly herald longevity.) And although Kris beat Adam Lambert for the AI title back in May, Adam seemed pre-destined to become the bigger media darling/pull-quote generator.
But in reality, Allen’s no less passionate about music (and he did win), so we chatted up the soft rock singer/songwriter at Us Weekly’s Hot in Hollywood Party in Los Angeles, the same bash where we talked pop with Adam Lambert. Check out what Kris has to say about his debut album, and what he thinks might be wrong with it: More »
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The Idolator Interview: Adam Lambert
12:02 PM on Thu Nov 19 2009 by Becky Bain
For your entertainment (and, sure, ours too), we caught up with Adam Lambert and Kris Allen at the Us Weekly Hot in Hollywood party at Voyeur nightclub last night. (The magazine honored both guys in its “Stars of the Year” coverage—Adam was named “Glam God of the Year” and Kris “Victor of the Year.”) Tomorrow we’ll be posting our interview with the adorable and subdued Allen, but for now, check out our heart-to-heart with the delicious little space alien known as @adamlambert: More »
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The Idolator Interview: Annie
1:01 PM on Tue Nov 17 2009 by Robbie Daw
In 2004, Annie—Bergen, Norway’s sunniest export—scored both club hits and indie cred with her debut album Anniemal. Her sophomore LP Don’t Stop was initially announced in early 2008, but got tangled up, as she explains it, in a nasty case of record label drama. “I kept on delivering things but it was never enough,” says the singer.
Fast forward a year-and-a-half later, and Don’t Stop has finally arrived on these shores, thanks to Oslo-based label Smalltown Supersound. Idolator met up with 31-year-old Annie (real name: Anne Lilia Berge Strand) in Los Angeles on the eve of her album’s release to discuss her upcoming American DJ gigs and how she eventually got the spectacularly upbeat Don’t Stop into her fans’ hands. More »
In Conversation
5 Albums To Look Forward To
4:30 PM on Mon Sep 7 2009 by Maura
Popping in on this Labor Day to say that if you missed me chatting with National Public Radio’s Guy Raz yesterday about five albums to look forward to this fall—including this Friday’s release of Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3, as well as albums by Miranda Lambert, Annie, the Roots, and Hope Sandoval—you can hit up NPR’s Web site to hear it. And feel free to tell me what you thought I forgot! Time constraints, you know. [NPR] More »
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The Idolator Q & A: The Pet Shop Boys
11:00 AM on Tue Apr 21 2009 by Dan Gibson
The idea of even speaking to the Pet Shop Boys–one of my favorite acts–was nearly too much for me to take, and it completely obliterated any pretense of journalistic cool I might have previously had. What do you ask Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, who made me nearly burst into tears when they performed “It’s A Sin” at the Arizona State Fair? I managed to largely keep it together, share a few memories about the aforementioned fair, and talk a bit about the new album in chats with each member–although for some reason my digital audio recorder decided to only record Chris when he sang a portion of “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” near the end of our discussion. He’s a delightful interview, however, one who laughs more than I would have imagined. My conversation with Neil below the cut. More »
