Archive for the ‘Lists’ Category

Best Music 2012: Adam Lambert’s ‘Trespassing’ Voted Year’s Best Album By Idolator Readers

December 31st, 2012 // 7 Comments
Best Albums 2012
See Idolator editors' picks for the best LPs of 2012. Read More »
Best EPs Of 2012
Katy B Lana Del Rey Icona Pop Azealia Banks
Check out our 12 favorite EPs of 2012. Read More »
2012's #1s Reviewed
We sum up each #1 single of the year, in one word. Read More »

What was your favorite album of 2012? It’s a question we posed to Idolator readers in a two-part poll as the year began to wind down. Over 35,000 votes came in, and we’ve now rounded up the ten most popular of your choices. The top two — Adam Lambert‘s Trespassing and Marina And The Diamonds‘ Electra Heart — were separated by a mere 238 votes, indicating that it was indeed a tight race.

Head below to see the albums you all chose as the best of the year, and let us know your thoughts on how the poll shook out in the end More »

10 Great Guilty Pleasure Christmas Songs That Make The Yuletide Gay

December 25th, 2012 // Leave a Comment
Campy Xmas LPs
Off-the-wall albums that give laughter at the holidays. Read More »
"Last Christmas" Covers
Wham! Last Christmas Video
These artists all took on Wham!'s holiday classic. Read More »
The xx's "Christmas"
The XX Promo Photo
The xx covered Wham!, and it was gorgeous. Read More »

There’s something inherently warm and fuzzy about Christmas songs that makes them hard to critique. But for every classic like Mariah Carey’s evergreen “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” there are two or three equally entertaining — if slightly less conventional — modern carols that you’ll probably skip playing in company. That is, unless you have really awesome (and understanding) friends.

We’ve put together a list of 10 festive guilty pleasures to spin this Christmas…preferably after a couple of glasses of spiked eggnog. More »

The 5 Best Pop Feuds Of 2012: From Christina Aguilera Vs. The Wanted To Lady Gaga Vs. Madonna

December 19th, 2012 // 2 Comments
Best Albums 2012
Idolator editors pick their favorite LPs of 2012. Read More »
Best EPs Of 2012
Katy B Lana Del Rey Icona Pop Azealia Banks
Check out our 12 favorite EPs of 2012. Read More »
Madonna Tops Tour List
madonna msg
Madge had the top tour of 2012. Get it, girl! Read More »

As 2012 comes to a close and we all start fondly looking back at the best music that the year had to offer, we must also remember the biggest beefs of the past 12 months. From rappers to pop tarts to boy banders, 2012 was chock full of feuds. Thankfully for us, most of them were just as entertaining as they were petty.

But not all cat fights were created equal, so here we present to you the top five juiciest, naughtiest and beefiest pop feuds of the year. Clench your fists and head below! More »

Last Christmas, They Covered “Last Christmas”: 5 Excellent Versions Of Wham!’s Classic

December 17th, 2012 // 2 Comments
Wham! Last Christmas Video
Last Christmas, I Gave You My Hair
The xx's "Christmas"
The XX Promo Photo
The xx covered Wham!, and it was gorgeous. Read More »

It’s a scientific fact that the only two truly great Christmas songs written in the last thirty years are Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” and Wham!‘s “Last Christmas.” (Disagree with us? Sorry, it’s science.) But while the sad reality is that every cover of Caraewey’s Yuletide standard pales in comparison to the original (you can’t outdo perfection), George Michael and the other dude’s track has been gamely covered by a laundry list of artists who have given Wham! a run for their money.

We were reminded of this earlier today while listening to The xx‘s dreamy, spare cover of the song — so in honor of their rendition (and the upcoming holiday, of course), here are a few other versions of “Last Christmas” that are pretty great. More »

12 For ’12: The EPs That Had Us Popping This Year

December 12th, 2012 // Leave a Comment
Best Albums 2012
See Idolator editors' picks for the best LPs of 2012. Read More »

As far as pop is concerned, 2012 may be remembered as the year that there were more exceptional EPs than albums. While we had to scrape to come up with 10 LPs we truly loved this year — at least, loved enough to feature in our Best Albums of 2012 list — there were more standout EPs than we had space to include.

Call it an indication of the shifting music industry that the most promising artists have to drop EPs first to test the waters before they’ll get the chance to shine on an LP, but the year in short-play releases, from established popstrels like Lana Del Rey and Ke$ha to rising talents like Kitten and AlunaGeorge, left us impressed. And it was the EPs, not the albums, that gave us some of our favorite songs of the year — like Solange‘s “Losing You,” Sky Ferreira‘s “Everything Is Embarrassing” and Icona Pop‘s “I Love It.”

2012 was the year of the EP, and that’s a good thing. Head below to see what Idolator editors Robbie Daw, Carl Williott, Sam Lansky and Erika Brooks Adickman selected as the best of 2012. More »

Grammys: The Most Outrageous Snubs From This Year’s Nominations

December 6th, 2012 // 27 Comments
Grammy Noms 2013
The Grammys Grammy Awards
Who was nominated for the 2013 Grammys? Read More »
Tay and LL Get "Mean"
Taylor Swift LL Cool J Perform "Mean" At the Grammy Nominations
Taylor Swift & LL Cool J beatbox. Yup. Beatbox. Read More »
Best Albums 2012
See Idolator editors' picks for the best LPs of 2012. Read More »

The 2013 Grammy Awards nominations arrived last night courtesy of an impressively weird CBS concert, but amidst the many thrilling surprises the evening packed — who among us wasn’t exhilarated by the frissons we felt upon realizing that LMFAO‘s “Sexy and I Know It” had finally received the recognition it  so sorely deserves? — there were also some disappointments. Why did nobody believe in Justin BieberWhy were they so mulishly unwilling to take a ride with Lana Del Rey? Doesn’t anyone want to take One Direction home? These were the questions that kept us up all night.

Head below to see the most outrageous snubs from this year’s Grammys. More »

2012′s Best Albums: Idolator Editors Pick Their Favorite 10

December 6th, 2012 // 7 Comments
Vote For The Best
2012 Maroon 5 Nicki MInaj Lana Del Rey album Usher One Direction Adam Lambert Madonna Justin Bieber fun
Pick your favorite album of the first half of 2012! Read More »

Here at Idolator, the editors have been continuously sifting through 2012′s releases and poring over tracks to suss out the best of the best. Of course, let’s face it: it was a dire year as far as consistent, solid albums are concerned. Forget the lack of a breakout smash like Adele‘s 21 (which, to be fair, is an anomaly in this day and age) — despite steady sales for Mumford & SonsBabel and One Direction‘s Up All Night, there wasn’t that clear-cut collision of critical praise and commercial crossover with any album, save for maybe Taylor Swift‘s Red.

And, well, lo and behold — Red made our list. As did nine other standout LPs released over the past year that span several genres. After all, cha-ching is not what defines a good album; it’s simply a blend of both songs that impact our daily lives made by artists who tap into a collective commonality and some damn fine hooks.

Head below to see what Idolator’s resident music fanatics Robbie Daw, Carl Williott, Sam Lansky and Erika Brooks Adickman chose as their favorite albums of 2012. More »

Backstreet Boys, Eminem Each Have Two Of The 21 Best-Selling Albums Of The SoundScan Era

November 29th, 2012 // 1 Comment
Backstreet Debut Is 15
The Boys made a splashy debut in '97. Revisit the LP. Read More »
BSB On GMA
backstreet boys gma
Watch all five Boys perform two classics. Read More »
Great UK Boy Bands
Take That One Direction
The 11 best boy bands ever from across the pond. Read More »

Given that Adele‘s 21 recently became the 21st album to sell 10 million copies in the SoundScan era (since 1991), Billboard chart sage Keith Caulfield took it upon himself to tally up the facts, the figures and the legendary crooners who make up this elite group of Diamond-status pop acts.

For music-and-numbers geeks it’s quite an interesting list. For instance, did you know Metallica‘s classic, self-titled LP from 1991 is tops? Or that pop-country diva Shania Twain‘s Come On Over has sold more copies than Alanis Morissette‘s angsty ’90s must-have Jagged Little Pill? Also, Backstreet Boys and Eminem are the only juggernauts who have managed to pull off two albums that crossed 10 million copies, while, in this age of piracy, Adele is the only artist to achieve the feat in this decade (so far).

Catch the full roundup below. More »

It’s Thanksgiving: The Top 10 Things We’re Thankful For In 2012

November 22nd, 2012 // Leave a Comment
Attitude Of Gratitude

Thanksgiving is a magical holiday, isn’t it? It’s a time for reflection on the past year and the many bounties it brought our way — and here at Idolator, we can’t help but feel that 2012 gave us an extraordinary cornucopia of pop culture moments for which we want to give thanks. From the instant classic that is Nicole Westbrook‘s smash single “It’s Thanksgiving” (see above) to the hyper-memeability of Lana Del Rey, our staffers each contributed a few items that made us feel grateful.

Head below to see the full list. More »

American Music Awards 2012: The 10 Best & Worst Moments From The Show

November 19th, 2012 // 10 Comments
2012 AMAs Recap
The 40th American Music Awards - justin bieber nicki minaj
Check out our recap of the whole pop extravaganza. Read More »
AMA Performances
The 40th American Music Awards - Arrivals
Watch all the performances from the 2012 AMAs. Read More »
All The AMAs Winners!
40th Anniversary American Music Awards - Arrivals
See who won at the 2012 AMAs. Read More »

Last night’s 2012 American Music Awards telecast felt more like an all-star concert than a typical awards show, jammed with performances as it was — but there’s no denying that some artists fared better than others. From the great moments (Christina Aguilera‘s astoundingly insane medley and Justin Bieber trolling “the haters”) to the lackluster ones (a sleepy Nicki Minaj and another exhausting take on novelty hit “Gangnam Style”), the AMAs were a definite mixed bag, with spectacular highs and dreary lows.

Head below to see the best and worst moments from last night’s performances-heavy, awards-light ceremony. More »