Soulful singer-songwriter Diane Birch will release her long-awaited follow-up to her 2009 debut Bible Belt this year, and she’s hooked up with some of the best producers around: Eg White (Adele), Steve Greenberg (Joss Stone), The Roots’ Questlove and the Dap Kings’ Homer Steinweiss, who worked with Birch on the LP’s lead single, “Speak A Little Louder”. The earthy, emotional tune is the perfect chill-out song for your upcoming weekend, and we’ve got the exclusive premiere. Check it out below.

Diane Birch - Speak A Little Louder

Like what you hear? If you’re in Austin this week, you can see Diane live at one of her many South By Southwest performances:

Thursday, 3/15
5 PM @ Lomography Gallery (912 Congress Ave.)
10:15 PM – Official Showcase: Stephen F’s @ The InterContinental (701 Congress Ave.)

Friday, 3/16
1 PM – KAMX West of the Fest, Key Bar (617 W. 6th St.)
3 PM – Quantum Collective Presents O.N.E. Coconut Water Live @ the Whole Foods Rooftop (525 N. Lamar Blvd.)

Sometimes, folks, we need a reminder that not all music videos need be women-in prison tour de forces, big budget Transformers-esque exploits or montages of symbolic sexual imagery to capture our undivided attention. Occasionally it’s the simple concepts that glue us to our seats for three minutes—such as with the clip for Diane Birch’s jolly projector-screen romp, “Valentino.”

Dennis Liu directed “Valentino.” And if his style seems a bit familiar, it could be because he also directed Sia’s just-as-playful “You’ve Changed” video.

Here’s “Valentino”:

Fun. And let’s just state again that we still really wish Diane had been nominated for a Best New Artist Grammy, as we kind of hoped she would be back in December.

Anyway, also as enjoyable as the actual video is this special “behind the screen” look at “Valentino,” before all the special effects were added in:

Diane’s YouTube page liner notes point out that the music video for took “weeks of preparation that led to one final day of the ‘one take’ shot.”

In addition to appearing on Birch’s 2009 debut album Bible Belt, “Valentino” also rather appropriately appears on the soundtrack for romantic comedy Valentine’s Day.

We’re down to just one day before the announcement of the 2010 Grammy nominations, and before the academy makes it all official we figured we’d weigh in with some thoughts on who’s likely to be singled out. (For the love of God, no “Boom Boom Pow”!) The lucky nominees will be announced tomorrow night during CBS’s LL Cool J-hosted The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!!—Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night telecast, which is slated to include performances from the Black Eyed Peas, Nick Jonas, Sugarland and Maxwell.

Right off the bat, we’ll go out on a short limb and acknowledge that Beyonce, Green Day and Taylor Swift are probably all shoe-ins for numerous nominations. Also, it’s already clear that it’s a no-go for Lady Gaga in the Best New Artist category. Still, we’re crossing our fingers that the Recording Academy will throw a curve ball or two this year, if for no other reason than to stand out from some of the more recent yawn-inducing awards show choices.

Below are our predictions for who’s probably going to make the ballot in the four main categories of the Grammy fest’s general field, based on such scientific data as the strength of our gag reflex when we review lists of the various tunes radio programmers jammed down our throats during the past 12 months. But screw the obvious! We also included our own wish list of picks for who ought to receive nods for Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Record Of The Year and Best New Artist.

Album Of The Year predictions:
Beyonce, I Am… Sasha Fierce
Green Day, 21st Century Breakdown
Taylor Swift, Fearless
Whitney Houston, I Look To You
U2, No Line On The Horizon

WHO SHOULD BE NOMINATED: Lily Allen, for sophomore album It’s Not Me, It’s You. Yeah, yeah, she’s got plenty of detractors—and admittedly, the bitter warbling on “Smile” proved to be quite grating on these ears during her first outing. But like all artists worth their mustard, Lily displayed both maturity and guts as she created her next recording (thanks in no small part to L.A.-based producer Greg Kurstin). A long shot for snagging a nomination? Most definitely. Then again, Three 6 Mafia have an Oscar next to their collective pimp cup.

Song Of The Year predictions:
Beyonce, “Halo”
Beyonce, “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)”
Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
Kanye West, “Heartless”
T.I. featuring Justin Timberlake, “Dead And Gone”

WHO SHOULD BE NOMINATED: Pink, for either “Sober” or “Please Don’t Leave Me.” Look, those definitely weren’t the songs of the year. But if we’re forced to choose from the pool of radio tunes that were (over-)played in 2008 and 2009—which, let’s face it, is where the majority of these nominees will come from—Pink is just as deserving as Beyonce. Plus, she makes out with herself in the “Sober” video! Hand her the award already.

Record Of The Year predictions:
Beyonce, “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)”
Green Day, “21 Guns”
Kings Of Leon, “Use Somebody”
Lady Gaga, “Poker Face”
Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”

WHO SHOULD BE NOMINATED: Actually, Beyonce and Lady Gaga both deserve nods here, since their respective singles both took up residence in the pop zeitgeist. That said, writer-producers Max Martin and Dr. Luke handily crafted endless batches of radio ear candy over recent years, and if Kelly Clarkson’s “My Life Would Suck Without You” were to be nominated and win, it’d kill two birds with one stone. However, Record Of The Year going to a song with “suck” in the title? Maybe Grammy should just stick with—ahem—”Poker Face.”

Best New Artist predictions:
David Cook
Keri Hilson
MGMT
Owl City
Zac Brown Band

WHO SHOULD BE NOMINATED: Diane Birch, whose swoony AM Gold throwbacks like “Mirror Mirror,” the epic “Rewind” and vastly under-appreciated single “Nothing But A Miracle” made her album Bible Belt such a quiet, potent joy earlier this year. If ’60s retro-soul was the sound du jour at the previous two years’ Grammy ceremonies (Amy Winehouse, Duffy, Adele), then Birch’s modern take on ’70s piano pop surely deserves its day in the sun, too.

Check back tomorrow evening for the official list of Grammy nominees.