Before landing a flying scissor kick on two unsuspecting fans at the Billboard Music Awards on Sunday (May 19), Miguel hit up the pre-show blue carpet to talk about his next batch of Art Dealer Chic EPs. If you’ll recall, the singer first released three free EPs with that title in 2012 ahead of Kaleidoscope Dream, and earlier this year he promised he’d have three more installments. Speaking with Billboard, he confirmed that the next three volumes will be free, and that they should drop in July, August and September, respectively.
The one twist this time around (other than Miguel’s newfound fame) is that the releases are coming in conjunction with some chic threads designed by the singer himself. Late last year, the singer actually teamed up with Deer Dana to create shirts featuring the faces of female icons like Sade. So this isn’t his first foray into fashion. But maybe the ADC shirts will have Miggy’s mug on them, so you can literally let Miguel adorn you.
]]>T.I. and Lil Wayne take Miami by storm in the video for “Wit Me,” their new collaboration building buzz for their joint America’s Most Wanted tour. The video was directed by Philly FlyBoy, and finds the rappers cruising South Florida on land and on water in fast cars and fast boats, like a modern day Crockett and Tubbs from Miami Vice, except without all that distracting cop work.
Check it out up top. We know Weezy keeps saying he’s fine, but it’s good to see him bouncing around and yelping like a giddy child.
]]>Pharrell dialed into smooth ’70s disco with Daft Punk on two Random Access Memories tracks, “Get Lucky” and “Lose Yourself to Dance.” But for his new solo track, “Happy,” Mr. Williams digs back a little bit further, to the ’60s. The result is a soulful, catchy little jaunt reminiscent of Cee Lo Green‘s recent work – all handclaps and singalongs and retro pop simplicity.
“Happy” is off the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack, which Pharrell co-produced with composer Heitor Pereira (Pharrell also helmed the music for the first film). Coincidentally, the super-producer teams up with Cee Lo on another one of the movie’s tracks. But you can hear the peppy solo cut below.
Pharrell – “Happy”
Alright Beyonce, the animated film soundtrack bar has been set for this summer. Your move.
The Despicable Me 2 soundtrack drops June 18.
[via Rolling Stone]
]]>Ahoy! Let’s go around the world, shall we? As per usual in this week’s round-up of Pop Goes the World, I’ve lassoed some Scandinavians (no surprise there) — the lovely Oh Land from Denmark, Eurovision contestant Margaret Berger (spoiler alert: she didn’t win; spoiler alert 2: she’s amazing) and Swedish alt-popsters Kate Boy — as well as the ultra-hip Sinead Harnett (via the UK) and an Australian DJ named Lancelot who’s positively royal.
Passports out? Cool. Let’s do it.
]]>Last week, Diplo posted a string of tweets offering up his unflattering thoughts on Daft Punk‘s Random Access Memories. We felt they were pretty entertaining, even though they were lightly jabbing an album which we enjoyed quite a lot. Daft Punk diehards didn’t find the comments so funny, though, and apparently stormed Diplo’s Twitter and Facebook to the point that the DJ-producer felt the need to respond.
Today (May 21), Diplo posted a letter clarifying his thoughts on RAM. ”My all time favorite daft punk song was ‘make love’ from the last album, not the bangers that you might expect but the subtlety of that record was amazing and i love the production on it[...] the new album i do like a lot as well.. my favorite song being doing it right with panda bear i think its my favorite tune of the year so far. i quite like the album .. my twitters were sarcastic.”
Diplo’s main issue with the album, then, was the cheesy, good vibin’ image of L.A. that it conjures. “I don’t want music that represents excessive blissed out easy listening. I grew up being forced to listen to hotel california[...] And Im also not into the white bearded rich malibu palm tree los angeles that it paints.. LA is great because its real and gritty so that just turned me off[...] this album was obviously for people that enjoy breazy walks with their pets and smoking cigarettes in malibu.. I do not.”
Head below to see more select quotes from the letter, and for Diplo’s subsequent tweet telling people not to read it.
I wrote a letter to daft punk fans on my fb don’t read it it doesn’t even make sense I think I drank too much green tea or something
— dıpןo (@diplo) May 21, 2013
On the Robots’ passionate fan base: “Their fans did blindly get moved and angry when someone doesn’t like their idol[...] No one boycotted pitchfork or philly weekly when they trashed the last major lazer album! where’s my navy!?! I’m joking i love bad reviews they make me work harder and think more.”
On DP’s disparagement of contemporary electronic music: “i agree with everything that daft punk said in the billboard interview…. thats exactly how i feel about mainstream edm as well.”
On blogs/media: ”I also know that nobody will post this letter on a news source.. But over 50 influential blogs and music wedbsites posted my twitter one liners… Within an hour Why? Because it was funny controversial and will bring readers into there site and hopefully drive up traffic.”
Read Diplo’s full post here.
What do you think of Diplo’s latest comments? Let us know with *your* comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>We’re not gonna pretend like we know the difference between Miss USA and Miss America, but now we have a handy device to distinguish the two (for this year, at least): Miss USA is the one that will have a Jonas Brothers performance. The JoBros will try to get all the contestants at this year’s Miss USA pageant to put their pom poms down on June 16, and Nick Jonas is co-hosting the whole broadcast with Giuliana Rancic.
This performance comes about a month before the Bros head on a national tour, which should feature more new material from their forthcoming album. Head below to see their tweets with the Miss USA announcements.
Excited that I will be hosting the 2013 #MissUSA pageant on 6/16 LIVE on @nbc at 9pm ET w/ @giulianarancic
— Nick Jonas(@nickjonas) May 21, 2013
]]>We’re performing at the 2013 #MissUSA pageant on 6/16 LIVE on @nbc at 9pm ET!
— Jonas Brothers (@JonasBrothers) May 21, 2013
Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum and Keith Urban have joined the roster of country superstars performing at this year’s CMT Music Awards. Underwood adds this to her list of upcoming marquee TV appearances (The Sound of Music special and the Sunday Night Football theme song, both for NBC), while Lady Antebellum was recently seen performing on The Voice.
Darius Rucker, Florida Georgia Line, George Strait and Jason Aldean are confirmed to perform as well. In addition to his set, Aldean is sharing hosting duties with actress Kristen Bell. Previously announced performers for the Nashville ceremony include Taylor Swift, Hunter Hayes, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan and the Pistol Annies.
The 2013 CMT Music Awards air live at 8 p.m. ET on June 5, and fan voting is underway.
[via MTV]
]]>In our own review of Daft Punk‘s much-hyped and uber-buzzed-about fourth album, we noted that “Random Access Memories is many things: a gamble, a Genesis scroll of Daft Punk’s musical DNA, a mesmerizing summation of their career to this point and a dynamic jumping-off point for the next phase of their creative evolution. Oh, and also, it’s fun.” And for the most part, online critics seem to agree that by abandoning the use of samples and digital technology this time around, the arbiters of French electro-pop have presented us with sonic, cerebral journey through time that is as thrilling as it is ambitious.
Head below for our roundup of what the Internet at large had to say about Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories.
:: Pitchfork gives the album high marks, and notes, “You never know, but my guess is that people will be listening to Random Access Memories a decade hence, just like we’re still listening to Discovery now. You’ll forget the YouTube interviews with the collaborators, you’ll forget the day they announced the suits, you’ll forget the day the ‘Get Lucky’ snippet leaked, you’ll forget every rumor, you’ll forget the SNL commercials. But the record will remain, something that channels the past but sounds like little else right now, an album about rediscovery that’s situated in the constantly-shifting present.”
:: SPIN conjured up these comparisons: “Here’s why ‘Touch’ is the album’s centerpiece: It sounds like the Muppets if Miss Piggy were Donna Summer and Kermit were Barry Gibb. Nodding to Cabaret and The Wiz, employing a children’s choir and a string section, spanning decades, moods, sonic textures, and varying degrees of decent musical judgment, ‘Touch’ epitomizes RAM‘s ambitions: grandiose to a fault, but hard not to love.”
:: The A.V. Club zeroes in on the duo’s mission with the record: “Random Access Memories is also an all-out war on the current single-song consumption model, striking right at the heart of the beast: Its only official pre-release was a single, inseparable album-long stream on iTunes, the platform that has nearly killed the album format in a barrage of 99-cent individual tracks. Indeed, if there’s one recent event in modern music that seems to have inspired the record, it’s the gargantuan mega-production that is Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”
:: Consequence Of Sound finds Daft Punk to be human after all: “This tale of robots yearning to live like men is a motif soldered throughout the group’s multimedia career. But with Random Access Memories, the robots have found their souls. All it took was razing the digital foundations that brought the group to fame in the first place.”
:: The New York Daily News calls the album exciting, but also says, “It offers such a bold leap ahead for its genre, it’s sad that the songs aren’t as strong as they could have been. None have the genius of peak dance hits. Ultimately, that leaves Memories more an admirable reach than a perfect realization.”
:: Says the Guardian, “With RAM – a masterpiece complete with flaws – Daft Punk have shone a laser beam into dark corners of the 70s and 80s and made them sing again, with timbres more human than ever before.”
:: The Huffington Post sums RAM up this way: “A heady mix of delayed gratification songs that push boundaries, Random Access Memories is the mirror image of its authors: mysterious, challenging, brave and a little bit crazy.”
What are your own thoughts on Daft Punk’s new album? Let us know below, or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>Robin Thicke has dropped another Blurred Lines song, but unlike the bouncy, breezy title track or the buzzing “Give It to You,” this one is has no guest spots and no dance beats. “4 the Rest of My Life” is a blue-eyed soul ballad, the chorus riding along with a ’50s-style canned orchestra and eventually building to a guitar solo, as Thicke celebrates his (love) life sentence. So, yeah, time to break out those Justin Timberlake comparisons again.
It’s not as exciting as Thicke’s two prior cuts, but damn it’s a pretty listen. Hear it below.
Robin Thicke – “4 the Rest of My Life”
What do you think of Robin’s new ballad? Let us know below, or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>Well, a version of Beyonce‘s Timbaland-produced five-minute Pepsi jingle “Grown Woman” leaked last night, and it’s definitely good if you like tribal beats and the absence of a chorus (personally, I do), but not so great if you were expecting a big commercial single with a big commercial hook. Then again, it’s Beyonce, so she’s not really playing by anyone’s rules but her own. Maybe this is what commercial sounds like in 2013. Who knows.
Our own Carl Williott wrote that the song is “a frenetic, globetrotting dance track with a tribal rhythm, chants and a descending bass line,” which it certainly is — and critics seemed to steer clear of offering too much judgment, instead simply noting the production quirks. Perhaps they, too, fear the wrath of the BeyHive. Check their thoughts below.
:: Vulture felt that “listening to it is a lot more fun than watching shaky concert videos or soda commercials,” writing: “Lyrically, it’s a less grandiose continuation of ‘Run the World (Girls)’ — it’s also impossible to hear ‘bitches, I run this’ without thinking of non-single ‘Bow Down’ — but the beat certainly feels like new territory for Bey.
:: SPIN called it “a thrilling five minutes, winding up in an African-style percussion-and-vocal breakdown. The leak is better than nothing, and that ain’t bad at all.”
:: Slate thought the track was anthemic, writing: “To be a lead single from Beyoncé these days, you need four things: A syncopated, up-tempo beat, some stabs of brass or synths to go over it, a chorus of female shout-along voices (mostly Beyoncé’s), and a message of female empowerment.”
:: Fuse complimented the song’s production: “Musically, a chugging Afro-pop beat gives way to a full-blown African drum and vocal breakdown that will inevitably trigger numerous misplaced, but well-intentioned, “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” references. But yeah, any excuse to have African drums on a mainstream dance-pop track is good enough for us.”
:: Elle dug the track and its female-empowerment message: “The soft reggae beat makes it a perfect dance song for sultry summer nights. Once again, queen Bey dictates that girls really do run the world.”
:: Said some commenter on a forum somewhere, “YASSSSSSS!!!! MY QUEEN IS SLAYING!!!” — probably. No, definitely. I’m sure of it.
What do you think of the critics’ reviews? Tell us in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>This is really shaping up to be Kelly Rowland‘s year, isn’t it? She’s going to be judging The X Factor! Talk a Good Game is finally coming out! Everyone loves “Dirty Laundry”! “Kisses Down Low” is available on iTunes! Yes, I think 2013 is going to belong to Miss Kelly. Bow down, as it were. (Sorry.)
The latest feather in the “Stole” songstress’ cap is a nice, seductive performance on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, where she joined The-Dream to perform their duet “Where Have You Been” from his upcoming album IV Play; rocking all-white everything, the sultry chanteuse delivered velvety vocals (so did Dream, as ever) on the piano-led ballad.
Watch up top.
]]>Bay Area duo The Limousines try to resist temptation with ”Love Is A Dog From Hell” — the new single we’re excited to premiere from their upcoming sophomore album, Hush. The track is an ’80s-inspired New Wave gem about the temptations of falling in love. Interestingly enough, the song’s title is borrowed from a book by poet Charles Bukowski that discusses the darker side of love. Heady stuff!
The track’s shimmering, dream-like synths are paired with lyrics about cigarettes, kisses and heaven, and it’ll surely leave you reminiscing about the one who got away. Head below to hear “Love Is a Dog From Hell,” and to check out the Hush trailer/album teaser, which briefly demonstrates how The Limos have diversified their electro-pop stylings (peep that velvety sax on “Fool’s Gold”!).
The Limousines — “Love Is a Dog From Hell”
Hush, The Limos’ follow-up to 2010′s Get Sharp, drops on June 6.
Do you believe that “Love Is A Dog From Hell”? Let us know in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>Good news: Britney Spears is doing press! The pop princess sat down with her former X Factor colleague Mario Lopez on Extra for a little chat about her Shape magazine cover shoot, her upcoming album and the Vegas show that’s been rumored for the last twenty years. The bad news is that, while perfectly congenial, she still seems a little bit shut-down — somewhere between “low battery” and “a husk of her former self.” Maybe a little chattier than normal, but no light in her eyes, really. Ah, well.
She’s still fairly tight-lipped about anything particularly revealing, but did say that she and Album 8 executive producer Will.i.am have #worked #on #two #new #tracks #together, and that she’s excited about the Vegas show, so, um, there’s that. Also, she still craves fried chicken. Also, she loves her boys. Did you know that Britney loves her boys? There’s a part of me that just wants her For the Record fantasy to come true, so she can just get away from all the terrible people and terrible lights and people like Mario Lopez (who’s literally a gleaming abdomen with a smiley face emoticon painted on it) and not have to talk about this sort of thing anymore. Just her, her boys and a bucket of fried chicken. That’s the dream.
Watch up top.
]]>In March, we first announced Kia’s Sorento Serenades contest, where three nominated people would be surprised in some manner by meeting legendary vocal group Boyz II Men. Last week we presented you with Nikki and Stephen, who Boyz II Men gave a little musical backup to after Stephen proposed to his girlfriend. Now it’s time to meet Cory and Cassandra from Boston.
In the clip above, Cory talks about his loving relationship with Cassandra, who he surprises with a trip to Los Angeles. Cory brings his girlfriend to a karaoke bar, and informs us that he’s never actually done karaoke before — something that becomes quite evident when he picks up the mic and starts singing B2M’s hit “I’ll Make Love To You.” (Don’t quit the day job, Cory!)
Thankfully for all within earshot, Boyz II Men’s Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris and Shawn Stockman walk on stage and take over the song from Cory, delivering the chorus fully a cappella.
There’s no marriage proposal between this week’s lovebirds, but we still get to see one extremely happy couple meeting their music heroes. Watch all the karaoke action above, and stay tuned for one more Sorento Serenades videos featuring Boyz II Men here on Idolator!
]]>There really isn’t much to say about this song that I didn’t already say when the snippet leaked a week ago, so I’ll say it again: New Beyonce. New Beyonce! New Beyonce. It’s just a guest spot on a new track from The-Dream, but it’s still something, right? Right.
So what kind of something is it? Well, it gives Beyonce a space to be a hook girl, which feels a bit odd, given the total absence of vocal pyrotechnics — frankly, LaTavia Roberson could have pulled off this hook capably — but she namedrops Billy Bob Thornton and Angelina Jolie, and that’s pretty weird/cool. Also, 2 Chainz‘s rap is great in a slightly stomach-turning sort of way (he says he’d drink your bathwater, which is just so ugh). I don’t know. It’s effectively ratchet, so if that’s what they were going for, A+ all around, but I think all parties involved can probably do better.
Listen below.
The-Dream feat. Beyonce & 2 Chainz
What do you think of the new collab? Let us know in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
]]>The girls of Fifth Harmony cut their teeth on The X Factor performing lushly harmonized (per the name) covers of pop hits, so when they stopped by Idolator headquarters in New York City, it only felt natural that they’d turn out a cover or two for your enjoyment — and to wit, the girls were willing to put their spin on Taylor Swift‘s album title track “Red.”
There are a bunch of things about this that are phenomenal: Camila Cabello‘s absolutely sickening vocal performance on the second verse; the way Ally Brooke demolishes those vocal runs in the last chorus; that funny moment between Camila and Normani Hamilton just before they finish the song — but the best thing about this video is how nicely the girls work together in synchronicity. They really do like each other as much as they claim to, and it comes through watching them together.
Watch up top and revel in the greatness of 5H.
What do you think of their version? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter, then head over toDirectlyrics.com to read the song’s full lyrics.
]]>What distinguishes RAM from a six-disc ’70s/’80s club compendium advertised on Palladia and Fuse at 3:00 a.m. on a Tuesday not only has to do with Bangalter and De Homem-Christo’s complete and utter devotion to the classic styles, and makers, of the dance music they are undoubtedly obsessed with, but it also has to do with their ability to curate every aspect of the album experience — the announcement ads, the teaser spot premieres at Coachella and SNL, The Collaborators video series, the actual sequencing and track progression of the album, the songs themselves — in the manner of a spectacle that was mysterious and alluring. This was all a huge risk, but it’s ultimately rewarding.
The fact that Daft Punk can pull off such a feat of buildup and delivery for RAM in the age of global digital ubiquity and endless content is alone unique and deserves praise — as well as not being photographed separate from their robot costumes since the late ’90s — but that wouldn’t matter if the album itself wasn’t a stunning, seemingly effortlessly constructed piece of subatomically calibrated dance music, gleaming from every perceivable angle like a precision cut diamond hit with a strobe. “Seemingly” being the operative word, because putting RAM together was far from easy: writing and recording the album was a multi-year, globetrotting effort where Bangalter and De Homem-Christo worked with close to 25 collaborators (all extremely accomplished professionals themselves) in five different, world class studios, with the entire project funded by themselves. (“With this record, we had the luxury to do things many people can not do,” Bangalter told Pitchfork earlier this month. “But luxury does not come with comfort.”)
No record released yet this year is capable of surpassing the sheer technical wizardry and eye-popping grandeur of RAM, but Daft Punk do much more on this album than show off the magic that can happen with proper, disciplined use of a professional recording studio. After spending their entire career exploring the emotions hiding inside their robot personas (re: the computers that make their music), Bangalter and De Homem-Christo bridge the gaps between their three original releases — the house-obliterating edginess of Homework, the child-like wonder and somehow retro-future dance floor bangers of Discovery, the joyless, brittle techno of Human After All — by creating vibrant, living takes on the music that originally inspired them to make music with the actual people who did the inspiring. It’s a Mobius strip of fevered reverence for sure, but when you listen to a song like lead single “Get Lucky,” an almost criminally danceable piece of classic disco with vocals by Pharrell and that Chic Guitar Lick (TM) played by none other than Nile Goddamn Rodgers, it’s thrilling to experience that philosophy in real time, and that feeling never really dissipates.
From the opening proggy bombast of lead track “Give Life Back to Music,” to the song-length tribute to Giorgio Moroder’s life and contribution to electronic dance music “Giorgio by Moroder” (featuring Moroder himself reciting a monologue on his life in music and Daft Punk’s approximation of the early techno he rode to the top of the charts with “I Feel Love” by Donna Summer), to the pulse-quickening orchestral arrangements and subsequent chilly comedown of “Beyond,” Daft Punk are entirely and completely in control of this album, subconsciously directing the listener to synchronize their brainwaves to the music. That’s never more apparent than on the 8:18 album centerpiece “Touch,” a sprawling, emotional collaboration with undisputed ’70s songwriting legend Paul Williams that cycles through ambient techno, disco and melodramatic soft rock that practically hypnotizes the moment Williams achingly croons “Touch, I remember touch / Pictures came with touch / A painter in my mind / Tell me what you see.”
In the end, Random Access Memories is many things: a gamble, a Genesis scroll of Daft Punk’s musical DNA, a mesmerizing summation of their career to this point and a dynamic jumping-off point for the next phase of their creative evolution. Oh, and also, it’s fun. Extremely fucking fun, like album-on-repeat-late-apartment-dance-party- neighbors-calling-the-cops super-fun, which seems like a redundant thing to say about a Daft Punk album at this point. But it’s fun in a totally different way than people were expecting a 2013 Daft Punk album to be fun. If you’re still on the fence regarding your summer soundtrack, Random Access Memories will keep you dancing through September.
Best Song that’s Not the Single: The Paul Williams showcase “Touch” is a stone cold showstopper, a truly ambitious, emotional song built on a seriously out-of-vogue musical style (’70s prog pop) that somehow seems cool as hell.
Best Listened To: When you’re sick of rolling/fist pumping to bro-step from Skrillex, Avicii and Bassnectar and actually want to dance.
Idolator Score: 4.5/5
—Patrick Bowman
Do you think RAM was worth the wait? Tell us in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
When faced with eloquently acknowledging a tragedy on a live show, The Voice knows the right man for the job: Carson Daly. Alright, so he’s a little awkward when he tries to broach any hard-hitting news, but at least he’s better than bubbly pipsqueak Christina Milian. The yikes of the delivery vehicles aside, The Voice appropriately acknowledges Monday’s tragic tornado in Oklahoma before starting up the performances.
Oklahoman Blake Shelton, notably affected by the natural disaster in his home state, says, “It makes it hard to sit here and do this tonight,” but he fulfills his obligations with Oklahoma in his thoughts. Usher gets serious about the things, describing competing in the final ten as “guerrilla warfare,” perhaps adding a bit more intensity to the competition than it warrants. Save the war comparisons until the final four!
Shakira has a full lion mane going on, in the fiercest way possible. The curly haired coach is thrilled that her team was able to work with substitute mentor Cee Lo on their performances. “I got to work with one of the sexiest coaches in the history of The Voice,” she jokes.
Coach Adam Levine and Maroon 5 kick off the live performance of the night with their new single “Love Somebody.” (Not up on the lyrics to the band’s fourth Overexposed single? Brush up here, then.) Wearing coordinating white outfits, the band must be hoping for the same Voice Effect their past three performances has delivered, which is to say, a boost to #1 each time. Maroon 5’s single will, for tonight anyway, have to compete with those of the iTunes friendly contestants.
Team Blake: Holly Tucker
Holly Tucker chooses the gospel standard “How Great Thou Art,” which feels pretty religious for prime time. “It would be a shame to not share all of who I am,” Holly explains. Whether a mass audience can relate to the religious message remains to be seen, but her vocals were on point.
“It was a different shift for you,” Usher tells her. “I did feel like it was a bit of a departure from what I know and expect of you vocally.”
“That was heavenly. You look like an angel and you moved me,” Shakira raves.
“The pristine quality of the voice and the grace with which you delivered it with is what this is all about,” Adam says.
“I’ve never heard you sing so strong before ever,” Blake says.
Team Blake: The Swon Brothers
When explaining why The Swon Brothers have the chance to be successful, mentor Sheryl Crow brings up other successful bands with two frontmen: The Eagles and The Beatles. It seems a little early to draw a comparison between Zach and Colton Swon and John Lennon and Paul McCartney, but at the very least their mentor has confidence.
The Swon Brothers sing Randy Houser’s “How Country Feels,” feeling that it will bring them one step closer to showing America everything they have to offer. While it’s technically fine, it feels like a whole lot of the same guitar-driven country they sing most weeks.
“You guys make me feel good every time you hit the stage,” Shakira tells them, which is approximately the same thing she tells them every week.
“That was a lot of fun,” Adam says.
“People are starting to realize that these guys are goofy and crazy, but they’re great artists on top of all that,” Blake says of his duo.
Whether they make it past this round of elimination remains to be seen, but they’ll kill it on the State Fair circuit during Summer 2014.
Team Blake: Danielle Bradbery
Last up for Team Blake is Danielle Bradbery, who sold 50,000 copies of “Maybe It Was Memphis” last week on iTunes. Not too shabby for the 16-year-old newcomer! Danielle chooses an upbeat song this time around: Jo Dee Messina’s “Heads Carolina, Tails California.” Sheryl Crow tells her to work on connecting with the audience, and opens up a bit about her shift in perspective since surviving breast cancer.
“Before [breast cancer], I like my lights down low. I didn’t want to see anybody. After I had breast cancer, I wanted the lights up! I wanted to have an experience with people,” she says.
As per usual, Danielle delivers a technically sound, strong vocal performance. Improving upon past weeks, she seems to be having a bit more fun, and connecting with the audience.
“You look like summer in California. Where we are now,” Carson Daly says, clearly having graduated from the Christina Milian School Of Obvious Statements.
“I’ll go to Carolina or California with you,” Usher tells the teen.
“One of the things that I love about it is that it was carefree,” Blake says. “I like hearing her get up there as a country artist and just solidly deliver a lyric that the audience can relate to.”
Team Adam: Judith Hill
Judith Hill is visibly, genuinely torn over singing a Michael Jackson song in competition. Fearful that it will come across as exploitive to critics saying she is taking advantage of his legacy to advance, she tears up more than once over the conflicting emotions. Nonetheless, her coach encourages her to celebrate Jackson’s life and perform “The Way You Make Me Feel” — to hell with the haters.
Mentor Hillary Scott chimes in, “She deserves to have that moment, and I know she is going to do such an unbelievable job.”
Unbelievable job she does, starting the song with the slow, sultry draw of a jazz singer, and then kicking it up into full tempo. Judith certainly knows how to have fun and strut to some MJ, and it’s a real crowd pleaser.
“That was equal parts you paying homage to someone that was a big part of your life, and you being you, incredibly” Carson tells Judith when she tears up after the song.
Blake struggles and fails to find anything wrong with the performance, and Usher continues to sing her praises. “It almost conjured the same emotions you’re feeling right now just hearing the song. I miss him so much” he says.
Team Adam: Amber Carrington
“This song lines up perfectly with my life,” says Amber Carrington of Kelly Clarkson’s “Breakaway.” Arguably, anyone moving from anywhere to anywhere else and trying to achieve anything could say the same thing, but Amber seems to feel a real personal connection with her coach’s song choice, so we’ll give it to her.
Other than some overdone backup vocals and the high-powered fan blowing her hair everywhere, her country take on the pop song is powerful.
“That was a good call with the Kelly Clarkson song,” Blake says, much to Adam’s satisfaction.
“I was blown away, literally,” says Usher. “I loved it.”
“I think just the fact that Kelly Clarkson is in your wheelhouse means that you have an incredible voice,” Adam tells her. You can just about see Amber mentally drawing a deep connection with “A Moment Like This” through all the praise.
Team Adam – Sarah Simmons:
At some point last week, Sarah Simmons must have had her “A ha!” moment. The audience fully understands her capability to sing ethereal, folksy songs while dressed like Stevie Nicks, but has all but forgotten that she can also rock out. She, in fact, has a background in rocking out, and used to sing with a hard rock scream punk band.
Sarah’s rocking performance of Jessie J’s “Mama Knows Best” is a huge departure from past weeks in the best way possible. She’s got the range, she’s got the controlled screams, and she’s got the ability to reign it all in to a perfect performance.
“That is just rock. You just radiated sexy tonight, and I think you turned a corner musically,” Blake tells her.
“If you got it, you got it!” says Usher, “I’m really eager to hear Adam praise you because you really do deserve it.”
“You are so awesome. And I love hearing Blake wet his pants over you,” Adam says.
“Just when we think we know everything about what it is you do, you totally flip it on everybody. This was the performance of the night tonight.”
Team Shakira: Sasha Allen
Shakira has been really hit or miss with her song choices on The Voice (lest we forget the eliminated Garrett Gardner and his Backstreet Boys cover and a non-ironic use of Heart all in one week). This week, however, she manages to find a great choice for powerhouse Sasha Allen. Making her take a break from her classic renditions, Shakira selects Emile Sande’s “Next to Me.”
Cee Lo, who has a disappointing zero animals in tow and is wearing a black button up with no ridiculous accessories, encourages Sasha to “find that character on stage.” Through the Top 40 hit, Sasha manages to hold on to her classically trained tone, and it works. She lets loose on the chorus and has Shakira up out of her seat dancing. We would have liked to see a little more movement on stage from Sasha, but that’s for another reality show.
“I’m really super proud of you,” Adam says.
“I think it was time for you to come out and just be uptempo, fun and rocking out. Your coach had some sort of a fit,” Blake tells Sasha of Shakira’s enthusiastic dancing.
“Your an incredible artist and an incredible singer,” says Usher, “I’m really happy to see you having fun this week.”
“I’m so happy because you look fabulous. I’m so proud as a coach that you were able to show your versatility. You completely rocked this song!” Shakira raves.
Team Shakira: Kris Thomas
“You have the sexiest coach in the history of The Voice here to coach you,” Shakira tells Kris Thomas when she introduces him to Cee Lo. Together, they try to mentor Kris through Miguel’s “Adorn.” Kris tells both Grammy winners about his on-again, off-again girlfriend (they could not care less), and that he has trouble relating to Miguel’s seductive tune.
“Find someone in the audience and sing to them. You’ll find that swagger you need,” says Cee Lo, ever the philosopher. For more practical advice, Cee Lo encourages Kris to check out Marvin Gaye and Prince for swagger inspiration.
Vocally, the performance is sound, but Kris never quite loosens up. His effortless falsettos impress the judges, who are more taken with his voice than his overall performance.
“You did a great job. You have a fantastic voice,” Adam says, but adds, “I want to just feel you thinking less. Just throw it away and have more fun.”
“You could have chosen a better song, but it was 100% a great attempt,” Usher tells Kris, setting off Shakira’s rage trigger.
“I honestly think that that song was perfect for him,” she counters. “He showed us everything that he was capable of doing with his voice.”
By the time Shakira is done arguing why “Adorn” was the perfect choice for Kris, Usher is hiding behind his chair. Literally.
Team Usher: Josiah Hawley
Josiah Hawley continues to be so pretty, but Pharrell Williams is having none of his back-up career. “The model thing? I would leave that alone,” he says, fully believing in Josiah’s ability to move audiences with more than just his chiseled features.
Usher picks Coldplay’s “Clocks” for Josiah, and it immediately appears to be an uphill battle to hit the higher end of Chris Martin’s range. The song choice doesn’t do Josiah any favors. He fails to add any touches that would set him apart from the band, so it sounds like a watered-down cover. Wearing the guitar instead of playing it after the first verse never helps. At the very least, he’s a hit with the ladies, who need to be calmed down before the judges can get into their comments.
“Any attempt from us mere mortals to try to evoke the magic that happens in Coldplay’s performance is almost Mission Impossible,” says Shakira. “However, you did a great attempt.”
“It was a little inconsistent for me, but you really did a great job,” Adam tells him.
“I will say that it is good to be able to take constructive criticism and make yourself better,” says Usher. “I’m going to continue to nurture that voice.”
Coaches comments aside, if the live audience is any indication, Josiah has a whole lot of ladies pulling for him to make it through to next week. They’re probably still screaming for him.
Team Usher: Michelle Chamuel
Michelle Chamuel closes out the night with Pink’s “Just Give Me a Reason.” Before she hits the stage, she gets some soaring praise from Pharrell. “I know genius monster singers when I see them that are going to have long careers,” he says. “You are one of them.”
The song does, indeed, allow Michelle to showcase her monster voice, and even though it’s slower than some of her past performances, it still includes a series of her signature lunges.
Usher can barely stay in his seat to hear what the other coaches have to say, he is so happy with the performance.
“I’m a fan of yours. I’m so happy and proud every time I see you perform,” Adam tells her.
“I love how dramatic you are when you’re performing. It’s amazing,” Blake says, marveling at her intense lunges.
“I’ll say that that was the performance of the night,” Usher says, countering Adam’s earlier assertion that Sarah Simmons held that honor. “You are the theatrics. You are the vocals. You are everything. There’s nothing on the stage but you,” he says, beaming.
Before the results are in on Tuesday night’s show, both Shakira and Usher will perform with their teams. Here’s hoping that Shakira’s hip shaking carries over to her contestants, and that an epic Usher/Michelle Chamuel dance-off erupts on stage.
]]>Well! After all that speculation, our Season 3 judges for The X Factor have been unveiled — and there were some unexpected choices! (Well, one unexpected choice. Kelly Rowland had already been revealed, sort of.) The final judging panel will include Rowland alongside returning judges Simon Cowell and Demi Lovato, as well as Latin superstar Paulina Rubio.
It’s been a bumpy ride for The X Factor: Season 1 saw the more-or-less incoherent Paula Abdul team up with the hugely unlikable Nicole Scherzinger and the authoritative-but-not-particularly-great-television L.A. Reid, resulting in mediocre ratings; Season 2 brought out the big guns with Britney Spears and Demi Lovato replacing Abdul and Scherzinger, but not even Spears could save the show’s ratings. Now, it seems, Cowell’s going for interesting characters: Lovato has proven her mettle as a capable and empathetic judge with a lot of insight to share, while Rowland already has experience judging The X Factor in the UK (where she proved to have a ton of character), and Rubio — while a lesser-known commodity in the United States — is enormous in Latin America and has been a judge on The Voice in Mexico.
Point being that they didn’t snag another huge pop star, as with last year when Mariah Carey, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were all inking deals at around the same time. Instead, Cowell roped in judges who actually know how to deliver critiques effectively — people who aren’t great divas, necessarily, but make for great television. It’s a better strategy.
Most importantly, it means there’s a shot a contestant will audition with “Kisses Down Low” this year.
]]>Backtracking is our recurring look back at the pop music that shaped our lives. Our friends may come and go, but we’ll be spinning our favorite albums forever.
DMX ’s debut is a landmark hip-hop album, but it’s also a pop album (as in, popular), which is utterly hilarious. It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot, released on May 19, 1998, went straight to No. 1 its opening week, and it went 4x Platinum in just over two years. That’s despite the fact that it was a sociopathic, off-putting collection of shouted rhymes about righteous vengeance and nihilistic violence paired with grimy, foreboding beats. So how did such a carnival of misery and carnage become such a mainstream hit?
Teenage boys, mainly. DMX’s debut may have been the product of a grizzled 27-year-old street hustler, but it was an album for kids half his age. Pubescent males know not about subtlety, and the album had a mindlessly overt potency. When my friends and I were 14, the album’s energy matched ours (the motherfucker was barking!), and the CD’s fury broke through our relentless clatter of imbecility.
But the album had appeal beyond the mallrats because DMX (real name Earl Simmons) and primary producer Dame Grease created a suffocatingly dark stomp that was a whisker shy of being a concept album, with hooks that were just as badass as the MC. And that’s how it became the bleakest of pop beasts.
X wastes no time unleashing pure menace, first as the hyper-aggressive street raconteur on the crackling “Intro,” followed by “Ruff Ryders Anthem,” his invitation for listeners to join (or at least chant along to) the movement. Next up was the ferocious “Fuckin’ Wit D,” closing out one of the strongest opening salvos in hip-hop history.
But it’s not until “Look Thru My Eyes” that you realize just how committed and/or unhinged Simmons is. He was barking and growling before, but here he whimpers like a stray mutt. It’s beautifully absurd, but also secretly brilliant because he seems dead fucking serious.
Also absurd and deadly serious (and grotesque) is the murderous “X-Is Coming,” which finds our gracious MC threatening, “If you got a daughter older than 15, I’mma rape her.” I mean, Jesus Christ. I remember first hearing this on my Aiwa and wondering if he was actually allowed to say that. And I remember later listening to only that song to get fired up before high school football games. If art is at its best when it draws out emotions, then this track was a (troubling) masterpiece. Sure, there was repugnant stuff like this in rap before and after DMX — from the proto-horrorcore of Geto Boys to Odd Future‘s outrage-baiting — but other MCs were always in on the joke or using alter egos for plausible deniability. DMX’s Damien/Devil persona was MORE REASONABLE than plain old X.
But this album wasn’t all shock factor. Whether DMX was basking in his street sweeping skills (“Crime Story”) or his inner moral conflicts (“The Convo”), there was lyrical prowess and narrative depth behind the lunacy. “ATF,” for instance, was a heist film condensed into a two-minute Ouroboros. X’s herky-jerk, stop-start cadence was similar to how New York City cabbies drive — always unpredictable and getting as close as possible to disaster…but you sort of find yourself in awe of their ability to harness the recklessness. Case in point: “Get at Me Dog,” wherein X hollers, feigns a horror movie scream and imitates the “protected by Viper” car alarm in a matter of seconds.
“Stop Being Greedy” is another master class in controlled chaos: over a high-octane beat that sounds like it came straight out of Transylvania, DMX alternates between restrained pleas and guttural rage, the refrain another rap-along call to arms. And just for good measure, the last thing he leaves us with is a marathon verse on “Niggaz Done Started Something,” closing the loop on the record’s mad-dash opener.
Seven months later, DMX would release the equally macabre Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood, whose cover was literally a bloodbath. The production was a little flashier this time, but the result was the same: number one. With that, DMX became the first rapper since 2Pac to have two albums at the top of the charts in the same year.
By then, the dog had earned the right to start being greedy, so 1999′s …And Then There Was X was the cash grab, with dancefloor magnet “Party Up” and Sisqo (LOL) feature “What These Bitches Want” helping it become X’s best-selling LP and Ruff Ryders’ pinnacle. But the success coincided with an uptick in legal troubles. [Cue Behind The Music music] The rapper soon pinballed between short stints behind bars while releasing a few non-event albums in the aughts, never regaining his hip-hop stranglehold.
Now, DMX is old and goofy. Just like Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube and every other gangsta rapper lucky enough to outgrow gangsta rap. An old dog who doesn’t growl anymore when the mailman comes around and you weirdly miss the days when he was just a mangy, mean bastard.
But DMX’s debut album holds up 15 years later, and perhaps is even more remarkable considering it emerged when the toothless, gold-toothed rap of Master P was running things and rap-metal was the hotness. It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot was a perfectly executed, perfectly timed, frightening (and frighteningly enjoyable) blast of bloodlust in ’98. Today, it’s an anomalous masterpiece of menace, completely out of place in the self-consciously artsy rap world.
That doesn’t mean it didn’t help shape the current landscape, though. For one thing, X and Dame Grease pretty much put Swizz Beatz on the map. And notably, Kendrick Lamar said the LP inspired him to be a rapper. Still, few current MCs can (or even care to) match DMX’s visceral aggression on one track, let alone over an entire album. But that just strengthens the alpha dog myth behind It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot.
Do you think DMX’s debut stands the test of time? Let us know in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook and Twitter!
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