Love For David

I've been fighting with myself in terms of writing lately. I have so many ideas and things I want to expand on, but never the energy to sit down and actually write. You should know in advance this week will be hectic -- my cousin is getting married this upcoming weekend and I will be spending a lot of time at work to make up for leaving early to catch a train back to my hometown on Friday. But moving on...

David Guetta is an interesting subject to me. He dropped his latest effort, One Love, this past Tuesday. I've taken a leisurely listen after being intrigued by "When Love Takes Over" with the flawless Kelly Rowland and yes, even "Sexy Bitch", which despite Akon's best efforts, is still mind-numbingly catchy. The list of artists featured are like a treasure-trove of unexpectedness, including Rowland, Ne-Yo, Akon, Wynter Gordon, 1/2 of the Black Eyed Peas, Estelle, Kid Cudi and many others.

I first heard of David by accident -- about two years ago, during the summer of 2007. While working as a customer service agent at a local insurance company during my summer off from college, I would spent the usually monotonous eight hour work day listening to music, tuning in to various radio stations that would play music I wouldn't normally hear on my own local Clear Channel clone. One such station I became a fan of was WMPH Wilmington, a dance-based "indie-esque" and largely commercial-free station in Delaware. They were on my radar because they occasionally played Candy Coated Chaos' debut "Take Me Home Tonight", and being the rabid fangirl I was, I often listened in for that thrill of hearing a fan favorite on an actual radio station. But, in between spins of "TMHT", I was also formally introduced to many artists that I'm quite partial to now -- including Sophie Ellis Bextor, Amy Winehouse (yes, I was late to the party with her) and Mr. Guetta.

The song that introduced me to him was the epic "Love Is Gone", which featured Chris Willis. As far as I know, the song never charted on the US Hot 100, but did hit #1 on the Dance Charts, and ranked in the Top 10 in the UK. It's definitely a great dance ditty, and I can hear it's influence on another great work of Mr. Guetta's -- the Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling" -- as the backbeats are almost identical. One Love's third official single will be "Getting Over" which also features Willis, which sonically is very reminicent of "Gone"...so I suppose it could be a "Part 2" to it.

As much as I enjoy "Feeling," it's clear David saves his best work for himself, which is why I can't stop scratching my head as to why America just isn't getting it yet. "Sexy Bitch" flounders in the middle of the pack, and even worse, "When Love Takes Over" literally sits at the bottom of the heap. (Both songs have gone to #1 over in the UK, further confirming my desperate need to move to London, stat.)

This is even sadder considering that to my ears anyway, those cuts are the most U.S. pop radio friendly tracks on One Love. That is not to say whatsoever that the rest of the album is filler by any means. I'm growing fonder of "Choose", which features Kelly Rowland (the second of three tracks on the disc that feature her) and a very different-in-a-good-way Ne-Yo, despite the fact that the song is getting a somewhat mixed reaction from most critics. In fact, this album truly confirms to me that Kelly should really scrap the whole R&B goddess deal in favor of this dancey direction. It really suits her. The final song featuring her, "It's the Way You Love Me", is also a lot of fun, and like "When Love Takes Over", it very much stands out on it's own amongst a package of songs that all contain a similar beat-feel.

I'm also very partial to the album's title track, "One Love", which features a very bluesy Estelle. It's mixture of background noise is a particularly intriguing complement to Estelle's tone choices. Her vocals also suggest the song could have been a big epic, gospel-esque ballad, but yet, the pulsating backbeat and Caribbean-influenced drums turn it into something else entirely.

The two tracks that feature BEP's Will.I.Am do leave me kind of cold, mostly because of Will's lack of originality, as they sound like leftover cuts from The E.N.D. (and they very possibly could be). However, thanks to the almost obscene success of "Feeling" on the Hot 100, I'm not surprised that "I Wanna Go Crazy" is in preparation to be a potential fourth single. Whatever gets Guetta the attention he deserves, I suppose, but it's a bit sad that they choose such a weak song to do the trick for him. I also had high hopes for "Toyfriend" which features the criminally underrated Wynter Gordon, but the song's filthy lyrics leave me a little unenthused (despite my love for "Sexy Bitch" -- yes, I know).

I praise Guetta for sticking to a formula that works for him, and is very clearly him-centric. If you dig dance music -- you need this album. However, if you are looking for more radio-friendly jams, you may be a little dissapointed. It's the kind of record that will be a great soundtrack for a fun night out (or prepping for a great night out), for sure. I'm hoping America starts getting the memo soon...

[WGO] Hot 100 POI 8/29

First, and foremost: RIP DJ AM. We're losing too many good ones in the music community this year. And Happy Birthday, MJ. Hope you're blowing out the candles in style up in Heaven.

The Almighty Hot 100 Top 10:

1. The Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling
2. Miley Cyrus - Party In the USA
3. Jay Sean - Down (feat. Lil Wayne) (AIRPLAY GAINER)
4. Taylor Swift - You Belong With me
5. Jay-Z - Run This Town (feat. Rihanna and Kanye West)
6. Kings of Leon - Use Somebody
7. Drake - Best I Ever Had
8. Keri Hilson - Knock You Down (feat. Kanye West and Ne-Yo)
9. Cobra Starship - Good Girls Go Bad (feat. Leighton Meester)
10. Pitbull - Hotel Room Service

And Mel's Best of the Rest:

12. Shakira - She Wolf
13. Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow
16. Jordin Sparks - Battlefield
18. Lady Gaga - LoveGame
19. Pitbull - I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
26. Boys Like Girls - Love Drunk
29. P!NK - Please Don't Leave Me
32. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
34. Rob Thomas - Her Diamonds
35. Lady Gaga - Poker Face
45. Justin Bieber - One Time (up from #63!)
50. Beyonce - Sweet Dreams
57. Cascada - Evacuate the Dance Floor (up from #80!)
66. Jessie James - Wanted
69. Gloriana - Wild At Heart
70. Keyshia Cole - Trust (feat. Monica)
80. David Cook - Come Back to Me
81. Mary J Blige - The One (feat. Drake)
89. Demi Lovato - Here We Go Again
92. David Guetta - Sexy Bitch (feat. Akon)
93. Pussycat Dolls - Hush Hush; Hush Hush
99. Whitney Houston - I Look To You
100. David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (feat. Kelly Rowland)

[Interview] Sean Ray

This interview was originally printed at the lovely Pop+Nation, so as always -- thanks to beE for the incredible opportunity to interview this up and comer.

Sean Ray is a New Jersey born singer/songwriter of the R&B persuasion, and is coming through in a impressive way. Despite being an independent artist, his list of achievements is already pretty staggering: opening for Lupe Fiasco, working on his own self-written album (single set to hit iTunes in October -- keep an eye out), and lending his talents to his sister, Chanelle Ray, and her upcoming music career as well. We were lucky enough to ask him a few questions and get to know him a little bit better. If you're interested, be sure to check out his MySpace page and groove out to his stellar tunes.

-Have you chosen your first single? When will it hit iTunes? Are you planning a big release campaign?
I haven't chosen my first single just yet. I'm actually in the recording process still, so you never know which could be the single until the project is wrapped up. My single will definitely hit ITunes sometime in October. My team & I have been discussing a release party. We have big plans! It's going to be a nice celebration.

-What do you consider your first big break in your career?
I think my first "big break" would be signing to a major record company. That's definitely one of my goals & a big dream of mine!

-What is your songwriting/song creating process like? Do you get lyric ideas first or build your lyrics around a beat?
My songwriting process starts with inspiration. I usually hear a "track/beat" that I like and just zone out. Before I jot down any lyrics I let the track "speak" to me. I search for a concept that fits the track then I begin to sing different melodies. I usually start with the "hook", B section, the verses, then the bridge. I know that sounds funny but just call it unique!

-What's your favorite song you've written/finished so far, and why?
My favorite song (so far) would have to be "Hole In My Heart". The writing & recording process of this song is just unforgetable. I actually recorded this song in my home studio. Everything flowed nicely that night. You would think I really had a hole in my heart after hearing the record.

-You have opened for Lupe Fiasco and Rick Ross. Any fun, crazy touring stories?
Yeah opening up for rappers are pretty cool. Lupe is a real chill & humble person. I respect him for that. I don't have any crazy touring stories YET (laughing) - but I am definitely looking forward to those!

-What is the best music industry advice you've ever received that you'd like to pass on to aspiring performers?
Be patient and be humble!!! Don't be scared to show your talents! Go for what you want! It's possible if you let it!!

-Your commitment to bringing a positive influence toward the younger generation is really refreshing in the r&b/hip hop scene. Was this a conscious decision? Is being a positive role model something that is very important to you?
Being a positive role model is something I've been all my life. I have younger cousins & sisters who are as talented as I am and they look at me like a mentor or "the family star" even. I'm just a positive person all around. I'd like to make positivity a trend one day. Hoping more artists would do the same. As a Pop artist, I'd love to see all genre's join the movement.

-In your biography, you mention the influence of the late and great Michael Jackson. Which of his songs has the most meaning to you, and which would you love to perform live with your own spin?
I grew up on Michael Jackson's music, etc. His passing felt like losing a close family member. A few of my favorite songs are "Human Nature", & "Who is it". I'd love to perform "Human Nature". Maybe I'll "cover" it one day.

-You have an incredible and professional online presence between your social networking profiles and street team. How important do you feel the online side of your campaign is to you?
My online campaign is very important to me. I love to network and be heard. I also like to give my fans a chance to get to know the real me but keep it professional at the same time.

-What musician or song is your greatest guilty pleasure?
I honestly don't think I have one (laughing)...

-If you could cover any song that's currently on radio playlists right now, what would it be?
I'd probley cover "Boyfriend #2" by Pleasure P. That was my joint for a while!

-What was the first album you ever owned (and loved) and what was the last album you bought?
My first album was Musiq Soulchild's Aijuswanasing! I love that CD so much I still listen to it this day & I was 15 when I bought it (laughing). The last CD I bought was Brandy's Human.

-What's one random tidbit about yourself that most fans wouldn't know?
(Laughing) Most fans wouldn't know I hate washing my own hair!

-Do you have any upcoming touring plans?
Yes, we're discussing a tour with a major artist so stay tuned!

-Message to the fans?
"Live your life to the fullest - Experiences are necessary!"

It's Been Too Long And I'm Lost Without You

My, how the years fly. It was on this very sad day eight short years ago that Ms. Aaliyah Haughton passed away due to an ill-fated plane crash when she was just 22 years old -- exactly how old I am now.

Now I'm sittin' here
Thinkin' 'bout you
And the days we used to share
It's drivin' me crazy
I don't know what to do
I'm just wonderin' if you still care
I don't wanna let you know
That it's killin' me
I know you got another life you gotta concentrate, baby
Come back...to me
Can you...feel me (callin')
Hear me...callin' (for you)
For you...

Words can't express how much of an influence Aaliyah has had on R&B, both universally and in my own personal collection. We miss you, Baby Girl -- and it just hasn't been the same since you first "Rock[ed] the Boat."

If the video below for her postmortem single "Miss You" doesn't leave you feeling extreme longing for what she could have been, I don't wish to speak to you today. It's nothing personal, that's just the way I feel. The reality is -- Aaliyah was 'one in a million'. Today is a sad day.

Melismatic Is Your New Best Friend

I have big things to report, ya'll. Firstly, I am officially on the staff of the incredible Pop Nation, as an artist interviewer, so there will be lots (and I mean, lots) of interesting artist interview reads both on Pop Nation and re-printed here on Melismatic. I've already sort of conducted one with an independent artist that should making its premiere soon, and on Wednesday, I will conduct a phone interview with a major label artist (if you follow my Twitter, you'll already know who it is...but hint -- I've written about her once before), so that interview should be making it's debut probably by this weekend at the very latest both at Pop Nation and here at Melismatic. Be sure to show your love.

On more personal news, I have booked tickets to see the incomparable Paramore at the classy Hammerstein Ballroom here in NYC (is it classy? I've never been). I've wanted to see those crazy kids live since I first heard "Misery Business" on the radio back in the summer of '07 (and one of my peers/friends from my internship has already seen them a whopping 14 times...I really need to get on the stick, I guess). Since then, I've become a big fan of Hayley and the boys, devouring their Riot! album (there were so many potential singles on that album, it's almost sinful), and eventually also getting into their debut, All We Know Is Falling. Despite my love-hate with "Twilight", their soundtrack single "Decode" is also one for the ages in my opinion.

The concert is on October 21st, so it will be almost a full month after their third album, brand new eyes, is due for release. The first single, "Ignorance", is available now on iTunes and if you're a fan of Paramore, you won't dissapointed, as it follows their emo/pop/punk formula in a very good way. It may not be as catchy as "Crush Crush Crush" (or as I affectionately refer to it: "Crush 3X"...I'm so clever), but it's still very good, none-the-less.

Forever Is Fading Away

My dear friends in Saturdays fanship, the time has come.

In true pop form, the ladies Satz have wasted no time in striking the iron while it's hot, and their brand new single off their upcoming sophomore album, entitled "Forever Is Over", made it's debut on a radio station in the UK. Let the squeeing begin!

What makes this such a good gift is the fact that I was not even expecting a new single so soon, seeing as "Work" was only released not that long ago. In fact, if what I hear is true, the song isn't even due for formal release till October. How's that for torture?

If you were expecting something like "If This Is Love", "Up", "Issues" or "Work", you're in for a serious disappointment. However, if you're ready (if) for Saturdays 2.0, which is a mashup of all these excellent singles with something dark and eerie and new but still familiar (complete with crunchy electric guitar), you're pretty much getting Christmas in August.

The song is excellent. It highlights the group's vocals perfectly (and after hearing their iTunes Live Mini Disc and some rather sour notes, this helps reassure my fandom of these girls). The song was written by James Bourne, formerly of Busted fame (who wrote the Jonas Brothers cover "breakthrough"/comic masterpiece "Year 3000") and was produced by Watters and Biancaniello, who brought us Jordin Sparks' epic "Battlefield." And that equals a superb concoction of fabulosity that I can't even begin to accurately explain.

I'm sure those girls are tired of the Girls Aloud comparisons by now, but this has a distinct GA feel -- not in sound, but in career-track. GA had a grand, splashy introduction before seguing into a more reputable but still very pop transitition. However, it finally does something that GA hasn't been able to totally nail -- each girl is allowed to sing in a powerful way that complements their respective vocal chops. ('Cept we all know who the star of the show is in this one: Vanessa, you go, girl! Although, I dig Mollie's bit during the pre-choruses too.)

"Forever Is Over" is sure to be a nod toward very big things, and if this isn't their first number one, what will be?

[WGO] Hot 100 POI 8/22

The Almighty Hot 100 Top 10:

1. Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling
2. Miley Cyrus - Party In The USA (DEBUT)
3. Jay-Z - Run This Town (feat. Rihanna & Kanye West) (up from #66)
4. Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
5. Kings of Leon - Use Somebody
6. Drake - Best I Ever Had
7. Jay Sean - Down (feat. Lil Wayne) (AIRPLAY GAINER)
8. Keri Hilson - Knock You Down (feat. Kanye West & Ne-Yo)
9. Cobra Starship - Good Girls Go Bad (feat. Leighton Meester)
10. Pitbull - Hotel Room Service

And Mel's Favorites of the Rest:

12. Shakira - She Wolf
15. Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow
16. Lady Gaga - LoveGame
17. Jordin Sparks - Battlefield
18. Pitbull - I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
20. Disney's "Friends for Change" - Send It On (Charity Single) (DEBUT)
26. P!NK - Please Don't Leave Me
29. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
33. Boys Like Girls - Love Drunk
35. Rob Thomas - Her Diamonds
39. Lady Gaga - Poker Face
40. Jessie James - Wanted (DIGITAL GAINER)
49. Taylor Swift - Love Story
63. Justin Bieber - One Time
64. Cobra Starship - Hot Mess (DEBUT)
66. Gloriana - Wild At Heart
68. Beyonce - Sweet Dreams
73. Keyshia Cole - Trust (feat. Monica)
80. Cascada - Evacuate the Dancefloor (DEBUT)
84. PCD - Hush Hush; Hush Hush
87. Demi Lovato - Here We Go Again
88. David Cook - Come Back To Me
89. Mary J Blige - The One (feat. Drake)

ALBUM NEWS:
As predicted, George Strait's new disc, Twang, debut at #1, and Neil Diamond's Hot August Night/NYC debuted at #2. Cobra Starship debuted higher than predicted, with Hot Mess clocking in at #4. The only other new disc was Justin Moore's debut, which entered at #10. The rest of the top ten included Black Eyed Peas, Kings of Leon, Now 31, Maxwell, Daughtry and Taylor Swift, respectively.

Reba McEntire is expected to debut next week at #1, selling close to 100K of her new disc, Keep on Loving You. Other big debuts include Third Eye Blind (holy 90's flashback) and Sean Paul. As reported by Hits Daily Double, this will be only the second week since his death that an artist other than Michael Jackson holds the #1 spot on the 200.

Upcoming Releases for August 25th: Colbie Caillat, David Guetta, Jet, LeToya, Imogen Heap, Queen Latifah, Willie Nelson and Phil Stacey (his second album this past year -- GET ON THE STICK, Chris Richardson!). Of all of these, Colbie or LeToya is expected to sell the most.

In Radio News:
-While I was hoping Ms. Gaga would take time off to give us some new tracks, Euro single "Paparazzi" is starting to gain momentum in the US as "LoveGame" starts to run it's course. "Pap" lands her at #50 on the Top 40 chart, and is gaining by 105%. I also happened to catch the video on MTV Hits this morning for the first time on regular television airplay...Hmmm...
-Black Eyed Peas continue to dominate at Top 40, but we may finally start to see a regime change on the Hot 100 given the strides being made by Miley Cyrus annd Taylor Swift..."Party In the USA" lurks at #23 at Top 40 (despite crazy sales landing her at #2 on the Hot 100), and is gaining spins at a rate of almost 41%. Meanwhile, "You Belong With Me" waits patiently for "Feeling"s to wane at #2.
-Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody" takes over the #1 spot on AAA.
-Jay Sean's "Down" gained almost 800 spins this week, bringing him to a Top 10 position on Top 40 radio.
-Shakira's "She Wolf" continues to make big strides toward Top 10 territory, landing at #14 this week.
-News of Mariah's "Obsessed" being "recalled" must have helped generate interest. It gained 300 spins and sits at #25, up from #32.
-Justin Bieber, the little (literally) engine that could, sees "One Time" land at #34 on the Top 40 chart, up from #38.

Back In the Day: Genie In A Bottle

This 'Back in the Day' is so overdue, it's "body is saying 'let's go'."

At this time ten years ago, we were smack in the middle of the official ushering of the Teen Pop Extravaganza that was known as Christina Aguilera's "Genie In A Bottle." The song was Xtina's official debut single, and landed her five weeks atop the Hot 100, holding on to her reign for virtually the entire month of August. "Genie" was Christina's first of three solo #1 singles (all of which coming from her debut album, the others being "What A Girl Wants" and "Come On Over, Baby (All I Want Is You)"), and she would also go on to have a collaborative #1 with P!NK, Missy Elliot, Lil Kim and Maya with their "cover" of LaBelle's 1974 classic "Lady Marmalade" for the film Moulin Rouge in 2001.

"Genie" was written and produced by David Frank and Steve Kipner (the latter has written the likes of Olivia Newton-John's "Physical", Kelly Rowland's "Stole" and Dream's "He Luvs U Not", amongst several others), and was originally titled "If You Wanna Be With Me." The title was scraped in favor of the more "exotic" "Genie In A Bottle" offering. As stated several times during her Stripped era, Xtina used to somewhat bemoan her first single, occasionally dusting it off as cheesy and not enough of a catalyst to show what her voice can really do. It was often hinted that of her debut album, Christina Aguilera, the third single and big ballad "I Turn To You" was her first choice as a first single, but considering her promotional single "Reflection" failed to make a major impact (despite the fact that it's been covered by every wannabe diva on "American Idol" since), a more uptempo song was chosen in its stead. No matter her thoughts on the song, it did in fact lead to her win of the notorioius "Best New Artist" Grammy Award the following year.

To this day, "Genie" still has a punch -- it doesn't quite linger with the now quintessential "90's teen pop" sound, and continues to sound different and fun to this day. It is still the type of song that is fun to sing along to at the top of your lungs when driving with your girlfriends...

The song may not be a stunner vocal-wise, but it certainly made me sit up and listen those ten years ago. I vividly remember sitting at the dinner table with my extended family (every Tuesday night we used to have dinner in our fancy dining room as a family...such American Pie we were!) and mentioning to my sister that this new girl playing on the radio is gonna be around for awhile as "Genie" wafted from the kitchen radio. Music tends to have that effect on people -- when it's something you really loved, you can often remember specific times and places when it first truly moved you...and here we are, ten years later, still remembering how perfect a pop song it was.

The song was unintentionally Christina's first big "controversy" due to its "explicit" lyrical content, due to the chorus' mention of "you gotta rub me the right way". In fact, on certain stations, the line was redubbed to "you gotta treat me the right way." I remember a plethora of interviews in which Christina insists that's what the song truly meant, and I still don't get why it was such a big deal. I don't recall such a big controversy of "(Hit Me)...Baby, One More Time"...but maybe I'm wrong? That seems much more sexual to me than "Genie" ever was.

When "Genie" took over the top spot, it was then that the Teen Pop Explosion of the late 90's/early 00's was really solidified, and soon after, every blonde, young, female singer was compared to either Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera (Jessica Simpson, Mandy Moore, Hoku...you name it...). It also served as a way Christina threw her hat into the burgeoning Latin Explosion with its spanish translation, "Genio Atrapado", popular thanks to Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" and Jennifer Lopez's "If You Had My Love", which both also hit the #1 spot in 1999 back to back from June to July.

An eletronic funkified version dubbed "Genie 2.0" appeared on Christina's "greatest hits...so far" package dubbed "Keeps Gettin' Better: A Decade of Hits" late last year in a style that will apparently be more of a reflection of her upcoming era, tentatively titled Light and Darkness. It was premiered at last year's Video Music Awards and helped perpetuate the comparisons to Lady Gaga, who at the time was just starting to gain true momentum with "Just Dance."

Nuggets of News

Rather than break this up into many mini posts (which would inevitably take me forever and some of the good stuff below would get put on the predictable back burner), let's just streamline and put them all here, shall we?

• Shakira's "She Wolf/Loba" sounds better every time I effing hear it (which has been a darn lot this week). The video is kinda random and her physical contortions scare me a little bit, but I can't get the melody (and the wolf noises and the heavy breathing) out of my head. I think it's the song of August so far.
  
  
• That new Miley Cyrus song "Party In the USA" is darn addictive. I thought when I first heard the title she was on the backslide from "See You Again" and "The Climb", but I should have known better considering it was produced by Dr. Luke and Claude Kelly. Even though it's such throwaway pop, I still put it on repeat over and over again. That "yeah-yeah-yea-eee-ahh" bit gets me everytime. Do I agree with the whole pole-dancing stunt on the Teen Choice Awards? Not really. But I mean, while everyone wants to compare it to Britney's career-changing performance of "Satisfaction/Oops! I Did It Again" on the VMA's so many years ago, I don't think it warrants too much of a connection. And on a sidenote: I get the Britney reference in the song, but Jay-Z? Interesting.
  
  
• Speaking of the HOVA, while I enjoyed Jay-Z's statement on the "death of AutoTune", I really really enjoy his new track with Rihanna and Kanye West. Yes, it's the "Live Your Life" of 2009, but it also stands up on its own accord with the verses. It's catchy and poignant, the way hip hop should be.
  
  
• My girl Jessica Castellanos (a former member of Soluna) has updated her MySpace that she will be releasing her debut solo CD independently in early 2010. Although she (and the rest of the former Soluna members) are American, she currently resides in the UK with her husband and gorgeous baby girl (trust me, she's one of the most adorable babies anywhere), and apparently has been influenced by the UK electro scene (SQUEEEE!). She mentions that she has already worked with producer Fraser Smith, who according to Wikipedia was/is a close personal friend of Craig David and has co-written Pixie Lott's new single "Boys and Girls" and the beautiful James Morrison/Nelly Furtado duet "Broken Strings." She has also worked with Tinchy Stryder. (Cut to Mel passing out of extreme excitement and happiness -- so psyched for you, Jess!!! Trust me on this -- if anyone deserves recognition, she does.)
  
  
• While we're on the subject of former Soluna girls, America Olivo (who had a brief but memorable role in "Friday the 13th" and recently covered Playboy) has officially gotten her solo music career of the ground in addition to her budding acting career. Her first single, the dance infused "Deja Vu" will be released to clubs shortly and you can download a bunch of the different remixs for free at her website. Now, if only Cash Money would stop loving on Drake and release T Lopez's music, we'd be pretty much set on the Soluna scene...
  
  
• Apparently Mariah Carey is no longer "obsessed" with "Obsessed." Wow, she sure got her memo late, huh? The label is trying to pass this "flop" (it's not a real flop -- it's still spinning okay in comparison to others, but I think if the song was done by literally anyone else, it wouldn't have any kind of impact) off as a "hype single", and word is starting to come in that the real "first" single off the Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (which has been pushed back, again) will be a cover of Foreigner's "I Wanna Know What Love Is." While a cover of an 80's rock ballad may seem like a terrible idea to some, it remains to be the one track that I was really psyched to hear when I heard breakdowns of the new album. Maybe that was because I was such a fan of her 2002 cover of Def Leppard's 1981 hit "Bringing On the Heartbreak" from her Charmbracelet era. Fingers cross, MC.
  
  
• The lovely Mandy Ventrice has just posted up a brand new song to her MySpace called "Lie For You" which is much more acoustical like her older stuff and different from her more current electro-ish sound. It really highlights how great and distinct her voice is, and I adorrrre it.
  
  
• Lights has released a new single called "Saviour" and it is predictably divine. The reason I write this though is because she has suddenly become an en vogue thing to like for musicians on Twitter. Interesting.
  
  
• V Factory's new follow up single to "Love Struck" (which still remains to be my most played song of 2009 so far) will be called "Get Up". Click here to check out the boys performing the song this past weekend at a venue now far from me (cut to Mel hitting her head against the wall for missing it -- grrrr).
  
  
• Speaking of boy bands, or some other attempt at a proper segway, the ridiculously talented Travis Garland (and former member of NLT) posted this cute little video-lette of him singing Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog" while sitting in the backseat of a car for fun. His randomness amuses me.
  
  
• Staying with this strain, former Dream Street member (for those of you aren't familiar, Jesse McCartney's old boy band) Chris Trousdale has come back out of hiding for what feels like forever in my eyes. This excites me as he was my favorite of the group. There's no new music really (all the clips on his MySpace were recorded wayyyy back in 2002-2003, no joke), but he does have a SayNow Fan Line number now. The big news is he now has a YouTube channel (uh, finally) and one of the two videos posted is a clip of a new-ish song called "If Only", which is a duet with Swedish singer Anna Sundstrand, a former member of early 00's pop group Play (who duetted with Trousdale shortly after Dream Street ended -- a cover of "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me"). He's sounding good, which is exciting to me after a series of less than stellar live performances a few years ago, although his speaking voice sounds different to me...like his voice dropped. Which is weird? Late bloomer? I'm confused...
  
  
• I'm a big fan of a clever music mashup, and no one does it better than DJ Earworm (who I have not talked near enough about on this blog). He's just released a new mashup video of Annie Lennox songs and it is epic. Watcchhhhhhh.

Candy Coated Chaos: Static Ever After

I was wondering who was going to end up being the first to post about this -- myself or Paul, as we tend to be the ones who cover the adorable cuties of Candy Coated Chaos, a New Jersey pop/electro trio. I guess it seems I will be the one who breaks the news...

It can now be confirmed that Candy Coated Chaos (above left to right: Stephanie Ugaro, Brittany Pasqeulina and Ro Danishei, all 18) is no longer together. You can still listen to a great number of their tracks on their MySpace page.

I know, it breaks my heart, too. As of July 2009, the three girls have gone their separate ways. I've yet to nail down what Stephanie Ugaro is up to, but Rochella Danishei and Brittany Pasquelina are both pursuing solo projects.

A "fan" page has already popped up for Britt on Facebook that you can join, and has a bunch of newer pictures of Brittany that were taken quite recently. Her solo music MySpace will be revamped and launched shortly (with a new single to be unleashed quite soon, but I'll withold the title until Britt releases the news herself), and feature more of Britt's own artwork (in case you were unaware, she actually designed cCc's logo). You can also follow her daily affairs on Twitter. However, Britt, ever the one to keep the public entranced with her creativity, has launched her own YouTube channel. Be sure to visit and subscribe. She has already posted a video of her singing acapella the United States' National Anthem and Taylor Swift's "White Horse", amongst a series of comedic dance-type videos. It's definitely worth some of your time...

A "fan" page has also popped up for Ro on Facebook, but due to a Facebook glitch, I cannot link you to it at the moment. You can also follow her on Twitter. She has been back in forth to Miami to do some recording with Nick Scapa, who to my knowledge has written tracks with Vanessa Hudgens and Aly & AJ. She will be going for more of a power pop/rock vibe, and it has been confirmed that she will be recording the Leighton Meester demo, "Birthday".

I first heard of the girls through MySpace perusal back in late 2006, back when the trio was known as "Bliss", and had just uploaded their freshly recorded cover of "Take Me Home Tonight." I was priviledged enough to talk to them, and helped launch a mini-street team for the group, which then led to the launch of CCCFans.net, which lasted till late 2008 before updates started to slow. Despite following their career almost from the beginning stage, I never got to see them perform in concert, which still makes me a little upset. Hopefully more opportunities will arise now that Ro and Britt are both going solo...

Should I recieve news on what's going on with Steph, I will let you know. Otherwise, I will continue to cover the careers of Britt and Ro in their solo exploits. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end sometime, and all three of the girls are just bursting with potential.

[WGO] Hot 100 POI 8/15

I love looking into the Billboard charts, but I feel so many others do analysis better than I do, so when I feel like check in to the official state of what's hot, I will simply do this from here on in...

The Almighty Top 10:
1. Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling
2. Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
3. Drake - Best I Ever Had
4. Keri Hilson - Knock You Down (w/ Kanye West and Ne-Yo)
5. Kings of Leon - Use Somebody
6. Jay Sean - Down (feat. Lil Wayne) (AIRPLAY GAINER)
7. Cobra Starship - Good Girls Go Bad (feat. Leighton Meester)
8. Sean Kingston - Fire Burning
9. Pitbull - Hotel Room Service
10. Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

And for the rest of the chart...
12. Lady Gaga - LoveGame
13. Shakira - She Wolf (DIGITAL GAINER)
16. Jordin Sparks - Battlefield
18. P!NK - Please Don't Leave Me
23. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
31. Lady Gaga - Poker Face
35. Rob Thomas - Her Diamonds
48. The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name
53. Gloriana - Wild At Heart
61. Selena Gomez - Magic
62. Justin Bieber - One Time
66. Jay-Z - Run This Town (feat. Rihanna and Kanye West)
71. Madonna - Celebration
72. Jessie James - Wanted
74. Whitney Houston - I Look To You
78. PCD - Hush Hush (Remix)
79. Kristina DeBarge - Goodbye
80. Demi Lovato - Here We Go Again
83. Beyonce - Sweet Dreams
87. David Cook - Come Back To Me
93. David Guetta - Sexy Bitch (feat. Akon)
95. Mary J Blige - The One (feat. Drake)
97. Jay-Z - D.O.A. (Death of Autotune)
99. David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (feat. Kelly Rowland)

For the incoming week on the Billboard 200, George Strait is expected to debut in the top spot, selling around 140K. Cobra Starship, thanks to momentum off their now Top 10 hit "Good Girls Go Bad" with Leighton Meester, is expected to debut possibly in the Top 5. Kings of Leon and Taylor Swift are also expected to see big increases of their titles.

In radio news for the week, Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling" will also continue to dominate Top 40 Radio. Linkin Park's "New Divide" tops Alt, Rock and Active Rock, while Daughtry's "No Surprise" reigns at Hot AC. Maxwell's "Pretty Wings" is the most spun song at Urban AC, and Miley Cyrus' "The Climb" rules at Adult Contemporary. Drake is still viewed as the new Prince of Hip Hop with "Best I Ever Had" #1 one at Rhythmic, and Mario's new one "Break Up" which features Gucci Mane lands him at #1 on Urban Radio. Rounding it out, Wilco's "You Never Know" rules AAA.

More in depth into Top 40:

• Jay Sean is the new catch to watch, as his single with Lil Wayne, "Down", lands him at #15, up from #22, and gaining at a rate of almost 50%. However, the title of most increased spins (unsuprisingly) goes to Miley Cyrus' new one, "Party In the USA",which sits at #27 (up from #40), and isincreasing at a rate of over 110%. The real surprise is the song is actually halfway decent if you like mindless pop (which I do).
• Kelly Clarkson's "Halo"...I mean, "Already Gone", lands her within the Top 50 thisweek at #49, and is increasing by almost 85%. Take that, RCA and Ryan Tedder!
• Jay-Z's new one with Rihanna and Kanye ("Run This Town" -- solid!) continue's it's slow accent at #47 and is increasing by almost 30%. This one should be a grower...it's good.
• Katy Perry's "Waking Up In Vegas" sits at #2 but saw a small dip in spins this week. Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me" seems poised at the ready at #3 to take her place.
• Lady Gaga's "LoveGame" sits at #5 but dropped more than 600 spins this past week. I think we're ready for her to take some time off and give us a new record already...
• Oh-ooooh! Kings of Leon take a upswing with "Use Somebody" landing them up three spots to #7, and increasing at a rate of almost 22%.
• Jordin Sparks' still royally underrated "Battlefield" stays steady at #8.
• P!NK and 3OH!3 both saw the same percentage drop in their songs "Please Don't Leave Me" and "Don't Trust Me", landing back to back at #13 and #14 respectively.
• Shakira's "She Wolf" comes out of the closet and lurks at #17 (my favorite number -- how appropriate) and is increasing steadily.
• The Ting Tings dropped more than 1000 spins this week with "That's Not My Name" landing at #25, down from #17.
• Jessie James drops out of the 1000 spins a week club with "Wanted" dropping to #40, and Tina Parol also slides down to #45 (from #37 last week) with "Who's Got Your Money." Meanwhile, Kristinia DeBarge has fallen out of the Top 40 entirely.
• Sounds redundant, but there is still no sign of V Factory. As much as I love "Love Struck", I think it's time for them to pick a new single and try it again. I've heard rumblings about a new one called "Fade", and from what I've seen on YouTube, it's pretty darn catchy too...
  

Love Is Atomic (Call Me Invincible): A Night of Chick Rock

As I mentioned before and throughout the night on my Twitter, on Thursday night I attended a free concert featuring The Donnas, Pat Benatar and Blondie -- which put me into rock 'n' roll chick overload in a very good way. It was a very good reminder of just how good 80's power pop was, and the mere fact that I got to see Pat and Debbie in the same night for free is just magical.

The Donnas only played a super short 4-song set, which upset me a little bit. I'm not super familiar with their "newer" material, but I do own Spend the Night, so I was happy they closed with "Take It Off." That record made me briefly want to start my own chick band. Then I realized I can't play a rock instrument. That's kind of crucial.

After The Donnas, Pat took the stage. I've seen her once before a few years back in a smaller theatre when she was the headliner. I was super stoked until during the concert I realized how much she caters to her husband, Neil Giraldo. When I think of Pat Benatar, I think of classic 80's girl power, so when you find out her husband has written a lot of her material and hogs a lot of stage time with his arbitrary guitar solos, it's a little disheartening. Luckily, this time 'round, Pat was on a time crunch as the concert was in a residential area, so she stuck to playing the hits and kept her husband's filibustering to a minimum. Her voice is more gravely than I recall the last time I saw her, and her hair is long. My favorite song of hers will always be this one, but I was particularly struck by her acoustical version of "In the Heat of the Night."

Finally, Blondie took the stage, and Debbie Harry came out kicking. Despite somewhat recently turning 64 years young, she kicked, flailed, rocked out and rapped with her cohorts for an hour long set that never lost momentum. They closed their set with their arguably most famous song, "Heart of Glass" (as seen in the video below from a live performance back in 1982), but toward the end, they surprisingly fused it with "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" by the late Michael Jackson as a tribute. If it sounds like a strange pairing to you, I will say I would agree on paper -- but hearing it live, it just made sense. Here's the MJ part from the show that I saw.

RIP to a Guitar Hero

We're losing a lot of good ones this year.

R.I.P. Mr. Les Paul. You were a legend in your own right. Rock on.

Time After Time We Will Survive...

Just a little plug and FYI -- if you're into pop/rock with a little something extra, you definitely want to check out Papertongues. The seven member band is managed by Randy Jackson of "American Idol" fame and has signed with a certain record label that has some importance to me. After hearing quite a few of their tracks in office, I am here to tell you they are the real deal, and are definitely a refreshing burst of energy into the pop/rock scene. If you dig interesting voices (kind of like Cage the Elephant, Thriving Ivory or OneRepublic, except wholly different, because it's hard to pinpoint PT's exact sound), you might like them too. Their single "Trinity" is officially on iTunes now, and it's well worth the chunk change should you decide you enjoy them. You can hear a snippet on their freshly spruced up MySpace page.

Just saying.

A Red Blooded Update

More posts are coming soon. I just had no motivation to write this past weekend (which is when I write the majority of my posts, and then set them to appear equally spaced throughout the week...sneaky, I know). I'm going to hammer something out tonight, and a few more things to appear later on in the coming days. Tomorrow night I will be busy at a free (!!) concert featuring Pat Benatar, The Donnas and Blondie. So psyched.

So, what to expect? A 'Back In the Day', a potential 'Last.FM' related post, an analysis of new songs I'm enjoying, and (eventually) a few more detailed album reviews (probably of Kristina DeBarge and possibly of Tynisha Keli...you listening, J?). I will also be posting shortly (as in, probably on Friday) about the status of one of my fave pop groups, but here's some news on a different fave pop group --

This is from Red Blooded Women's official Twitter page, from real time at the time that I posted this blog (8:20PM Eastern Standard Time). The girls have officially wrapped vocals on their debut album, as you can read from these two tweets, the latest of which being directed at yours truly, because I'm cool like that. ;) And if you want more on RBW and are still unaware of them (where have you been, she asks? haha), I suggest their MySpace.

And to pull a Perez, if you have a "Twitter" account, and haven't followed me yet, what are you waiting for? Trust me, I'm enthralling. Heh.

Ashley Still Wants To Be A Guilty Pleasure...Kind Of

Oh, Ashley.

From the first time I stumbled upon the "hot mess" that was 'High School Musical', complete with catchy saccharine melodies and cheesy acting, I was hooked in bad, bad way. And while the majority of the world focused on Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, I found myself drawn to Ashley Tisdale.

She gives off a vibe that is interesting to me. She doesn't try to be anything she isn't, she isn't fake or manufactured (or at least...wasn't). She seemed like a real girl with a not-so-normal day-to-day life, and I liked that about her. Hence the fact that when her debut album Headstrong was released in 2007, I snapped it up first day unabashedly, despite the confused and disapproving looks of my friends. And that album was awesome. From beginning to end awesome -- that is if you love cheesy, unabashed pop.

When it was announced the name of her sophomore album would be "Guilty Pleasure", I was so tickled pink, I cannot even begin to tell you, because girlfriend got that is exactly what she is. And that is hardly such a bad thing to be. Then the images started coming in. Her look is sexier to be sure, but people tend to forget that she is in fact now 24 years old. Of course she wants to distance herself from 'High School Musical.' That's not biting the hand that feeds you, it's called growing up and moving on. She never once dissed the franchise, she is simply continuing her growth process.

Unfortunately, if Guilty Pleasure the album equals her growth, than I may have to distance myself from her, because I'm not so sure I dig this whole rocked up Ashley. I will always like Ashley as a person, and as a role model. She seems like a cool chick, and if ever the day comes that we meet on the street and she says, "Hey Mel, let's go shopping and talk about cute boys," I'd always be down. But I'm not feeling this set as much as I was with Headstrong. Maybe because this had so much poppy potential, but it got too caught up in being in with the trends and fitting in, and less about standing out on your own two feet, a mantra that Ashley always seemed to stand for.

Ashley always struck me as such a bubbly girl, a stereotypical pop darling, that this whole rock thing makes me kind of suspicious and cynical, to the point that I feel like it might be her label attempting to cash in on what's hot. However, Ashley did four of the fourteen tracks...so, take that for what it's worth. I don't know her personally, so who am I to say what her true personality is? Much of the album is probably amazing for the tweenage emo set who dig the big Paramore singles and whatnot (not like I don't, I'm just saying). Maybe that is the real Ashley, and that's cool for them. I, for one, miss her popalicious side, and find it kind of sad when people who do the pop thing so well insist on changing their image as the years go on, insisting they've "grown up", like that equals no more pop.

She tricked me into thinking Guilty Pleasure would be an evolution of her old sound but what I got, for the most part, was a transition into a brand new package. The first song that leaked from the package was the JR Rotem produced "I'm Back" several months ago, and it sounded like it belonged on Headstrong, but boasted more adult lyrics. I dug it. Then came "Guilty Pleasure", which, despite it having the same name as the album, was de-moted to bonus cut status for the record. The song was so electro and 80's, it was effing amazing. Then the record came, and for the most part, I was left confused.

It's not that this album is bad. It's not. It's just confused, straddling this line between commercialized rock-pop and 80's-electro-pop, and not something I was expecting from her. The latter inspired tracks are much better than the former, and yet the former gets hyped most. I fear she is suffering from the same thing Vanessa Hudgens is suffering from -- she doesn't have a musical identity yet. Therefore, this new "rock" image is being projected, even though this is hardly a rock record, but a pop record set to electric guitar.

My excitement initially started to wane on this project upon hearing the first single, "It's Alright, It's OK". As I stated before, despite the fact that this track was produced by the geniuses of TWIN that brought us V Factory's "Love Struck", it was far too Kelly Clarkson/P!NK wannabe, and left me wanting so much more. It's catchy, sure, but it's not something I was interested in putting on repeat.

Possible followup single, "Masquerade", for whatever reason, reminds me sonically of a rocked-up version of Kristinia DeBarge's "Goodbye". Suffice to say, I prefer Candy Coated Chaos's "Masquerade" to this one. "Erase & Rewind" desperately wants to be "Since U Been Gone" on every level. It gets more enjoyable the more time you spend with it, but I can't get that Kelly song out of my head when I hear it. "Hair" is probably one of the few songs that sounds like a true extension of Headstrong, but it's lyrics turn me off in such an extreme way. Meh.

However, I do appreciate some of the songs. "Hot Mess" probably won't be a single (and really, I kind of shouldn't), and when I first saw the song title, I cracked up. I was expecting something much lighter than what I got, but it's still a fun little ditty that I think just about every girl can relate to. Her vocals remind me quite a bit of the Clique Girlz "Smile"...and I say that in a good way, as that's the only Clique Girlz song I like.

"How Do You Love Someone" is positively 80's sounding and epic, and was written about a child going through her parents divorce. As someone who has gone through this in my own life, it rung quite intense for me. It comes complete with banging drums reminiscent of an army march and sweeping vocals, and was the first song on this record (that wasn't a bonus cut) that I instantly put on repeat.

"Delete You" was written by Diane Warren, but that doesn't really show in the production or the lyrics. For a woman who well known for her power ballads, I was a bit turned off by this rocked up version, but it's not too bad. I do like the backround synth and echo-iness that sounds almost Duran Duran or Flock of Seagulls. I wonder if she did that purposefully.

"What If" drops the rocker girl edge, and comes to us thanks to Kara DioGuardi in collaboration with the aforementioned TWIN. It harkens back to her older song "Suddenly" in places, and is a beautiful ballad that I can guarantee won't get the notice it deserves.

TWIN finally delivers with "Crank It Up", a fusion track of the two genres Ashley attempts to pass off as cohesive with this record. While the album on the whole feels confused, this song works, and is the only uptempo song on the set that I adore right away. It's full of cliqued lyrics that are pretty much ripped off from other pop, urban and dance songs, but I like it nontheless.

Overall, the electro-inspired half of the album varies from listenable to awesome (and I'm including the two bonus cuts, "Guilty Pleasure" and "I'm Back" into this mix -- as those two are the songs from this set that I most enjoy overall). The rest is fine if you like that kind of thing, but it's not up my alley. I only ended up adding five of the fourteen cuts (not including the two bonus songs I already had) to my iPod.

I'm hoping Ashley figures herself out (come back to the pop side, Ash -- we have cookies!). This isn't to say that an artist isn't allowed to experiment -- that usually leads to amazing results (Christina Aguilera, anyone?), but this just feels somewhat forced to me, and I'm hoping Ashley can get down to the real nitty-gritty and put herself out there as really is. When she does, I'll be supporting her, but until then, I'll just groove to the dancey songs.

Travis Garland Wants It All

In light of my recent sighting of the boys in One Call, I have been waiting for some time on some inspiration to strike me regarding the completion of an article about Travis Garland. Like JJ Thorne of One Call, Travis is also a former member of NLT (Not Like Them), and is the only member of the former group who is pursuing a solo music career post-boy band (although, who knows what V Sevani is up to as news on him has pretty much gone dark). Travis provided the majority of the vocals for NLT (along with the other remaining member, Kevin McHale, who will soon be starring in the FOX television show "Glee" this fall -- but more on that when time timing's right). Take a look here and check the boy out. He sings the first verse and the much of the riffs toward the end (while Kevin sings the second).

I was a big fan of NLT since I first heard their 'first' first single, "That Girl", back in 2006. What would be their final single, "Karma", was my #21st song on my Top 28 Songs of 2008 Countdown. Their breakup was due to a lot of unfortunate things -- the omniprescent delay, the label's struggle to market them correctly, the question of genre, the boy band stigma here in America, and finally, the magnetic pull of other opportunities.

A lot of the issues with NLT (from left to right in the picture to the left: JJ Thorne, Travis Garland, V Sevani and Kevin McHale) was blamed on the extreme amount of leaking -- depending on how you wanted to look at it, people were either desperate to hear their tunes or desperate to knock a good boy band while they're down. Hindsight is always 20/20, but now that the group is officially over with no album having been released, it's nice that a lot of songs leaked, whether they would have turned up on an album or not. If they hadn't we wouldn't have a clear copy of this song (Travis sings the first verse and that "da didda da didda da" bit), which once I play it once, I can't get it out of my head for the rest of the darn day...They did not breakup due to in-fighting, and so long as that rings true, I wasn't too upset. But really, as long as I still get to hear Travis' voice, I'm still walking away a winner.

Travis has one of those awe-inducing sounds, that has soul and cadence even though it seems so effortless. It's a mixture of R&B and pop, and makes him a perfect successor to the Justin Timberlakes and the Chris Browns of the world. He has officially joined the embarssingly long list of male voices who make my ovaries quiver upon first listen (which also includes Justin Timberlake, Gavin DeGraw, Caleb Followill of Kings of Leon, and way too many others to name...told you it was embarassingly long). Currently represented by Papa Joe Management (the father of Jessica/Ashlee Simpson), Travis is signed to Universal and is in the recording stages of his debut solo album.

Several songs written by Travis and demoed by him back in 2007/2008 while he was still in NLT began to filter out and leak last year. The songs were not truly written for him, as he was very much dedicated to NLT, and if they weren't going to be used for his group, he had every intention of giving them to other artists. Several songs, including the ridiculously catchy "Electromagnetic", were written for female artists. That song in particularly was reportedly written for Ms. Britney Spears for her 'Circus' album but she ended up passing on it (stupid) and, or so I hear, it will now go to another Papa Joe artist that has recieved a little bit of buzz lately, An Ya.

I'm having trouble deciphering which songs are new and which are older demos, because Travis' voice is so buttery and good that I just tend to like them all. The latest is "Can't Wait To Meet Ya", which you can hear at his MySpace page. I'm quite partial to "Stranger", which is new-ish and is a possible reflection of his post-NLT style which is a bit more R&B and chilled out. "Glow Stick" also somewhat recently leaked, and it sounds very Chris Brown "Forever", so take that anyway you'd like.

My hands down favorite is a three-way tie between the heart-wrenching "Heart Speaks First" ("We're still a team as much as it hurts/Remember that they're only words/My heart speaks first"), "I Wanted It All" ("I wanted it all/But everything is nothing/Nothing if I ain't got you"), and of course, his mashed up new version of T.I. and Justin Timberlake's "Dead & Gone", which depending on how you take it could be a statement about the end of NLT, and that the old him is dead and gone...

The difference between NLT Travis and Solo Travis is a big one, in that, while NLT did have a fair amount of say in terms of their look, sound, and lyrics, Travis is writing or co-writing virtually all of his new material, and is even co-producing and engineering his own music. Solid stuff for a recently turned 20 year-old kid. His usual partner in crime is another Papa Joe protege, RAS, who has been producing material lately for everyone from my girl Nikki Flores to the now trio-ized Girlicious. However, if you follow her brand new Twitter, JoJo mentioned this week how she was in the studio with Beau Dozier and Travis himself....

....

Sorry, I just fainted at the possibilties.

Kid Sister-Ah Says 'Hi'

I've stated many times before that when presented with the possibility to listen to the latest glittery pop song over the biggest up-and-comer in the hip hop game, I'll take the former. I'm not really ashamed of it. It's just my musical opinion. However, this artist just screamed 'NOTICE ME' when I nonchalantly took a listen to her latest single, and I may have just stumbled upon one of the rap game's most interesting new stars, clearly far too late.

Her name is Kid Sister, she's from the Chi, and if you're into underground hip hop, you may have already heard of her. She's indie for the most part, but her first real single, "Pro Nails", included a feature by Mr. Kanye West (who's he, anyway? heh) and was released last year. It's her current offering however that's really got me jumping at the sheer pop stickiness of it. It's definitely hip hop but straddles the line of mainstream and underground --and in my opinion, that's really the best of both worlds.

If I had to put her in a category box, she reminds me of the best material by Kanye and Kid Cudi put in a blender and with some M.I.A. and Santigold, as well as a penchant for poppy hooks like Lil Mama, with some jammin' beats produced by The Neptunes that sound very reminiscent of EARLY hip hop (meaning: when it was truly great and wasn't all about production value, hot beats, dollas and ho's). In fact, Pharrell Williams will be doing quite a bit of the production on her upcoming debut album, dubbed Ultraviolet, due out later this year.

From what I gather, her album will contain features from Queen Latifah and Estelle in addition to Kanye, and will also have some production by Brian Kennedy (who, BTW, gave us Chris Brown's "Forever", Jesse McCartney's "It's Over", the best stuff off Corbin Bleu's new record, and Rihanna's epic "Disturbia").

Kid Sister first grabbed my attention when I was browsing the Hype Machine, as I do from time to time to get a feel for what's buzzing on the blogging underground. Her song, "Right Hand Hi", had a whopping 1000+ "loves" from various fans. That's a darn lot for an artist/song you've never heard of, so of course it forced me to take notice. I'm so glad I did. Ever since I've heard it, it's been on constant repeat on my brand spankin' new blue iPod nano.

I love these types of songs. It's like a big brash wakeup call that somehow stands out without being too offcenter that perks you up when things in the musical landscape start to all sound a bit similar...

To listen to more tunes, check out her MySpace.

JADA's Still Looking For Their Cowboy(s)

It's been over a month since I posted my little interview with the lovely ladies of Jada (in the above picture from left to right: Elle, April, Lauren and Jacyn) so I figured now would be a good a time as any to do a little follow up recon on their careers, as they continue to gear up for their September 22nd album release.

Their debut single, "American Cowboy", (produced by RedOne, featuring Akon) was released to the radio formats a few months back, and seems to have hit it's peak in terms of spins back at the end of May. This is completely criminal considering it's just as good if not better than the pack of RedOne-produced material that is currently spinning on Top 40 radio. Not to mention the fact that it's been a long long time since we've had a girl group on the radio with a geniunely impressive harmony (last time that I can recall was my dear Soluna's semi-blip with Top 40 success with "For All Time").

People definitely need to call up their local station and request the song. From what I gather, it's still being played reguarly in Detroit (Motor City, Baby! -- WKQI), Palm Springs in Cali (KKUU) and in Wisconsin (WKSZ). The first two just recently added the song -- so a resurgence of the "American Cowboy" is definitely possible. Do your duty, ninjas!

Whining aside, the girls don't seem to have let any minor setbacks slow them down. They are continuing to promote full force, and several newer video interviews (get to know the real Jada here and here) of them have cropped up on YouTube. The more videos I see of these girls, be they interviews or of singing, the more I begin to fall for them. They have this charisma that you just can't fake, and it's so nice to see a geniunely happy group of girls that get along, are talented, and are super role models for young women. At the risk of redundancy, the deja vu they give me of my Soluna days is so intense for me at times. And for a girl group, that couldn't be a better thing. (Mel's Note: I've mentioned this before on this blog, but check out my in-person interview with the ladies of what formerly made up Soluna from 2002 when I was 14 years old. You'll see the similarities in their playfulness.)

Anywho, last week Jada posted the following video to their YouTube account and it really made me smile. It shows how silly and goofy (and down-to-earth) they can be as they walk into various shops near their homebase of Bristol Studios in Boston during some down time. Watch it, and I dare you to not get a little grin on your face at the fact that they totally do not take themselves too seriously. (BTW - when April talks to the armyman statue and straightfaced said, "You're the strong and silent type. I like that.", I will not lie, I cracked up.)

Songs of the Summer (So Far)

I haven't done a trusty Last.FM article in awhile (and I will get back to the whole 'If Last.FM Says So' idea I had so long ago -- maybe next week), and pretty much abandoned the weekly song countdown idea as I knew I would, because I don't really have the energy, time or attention span to commit to that each week. So, in place of that, here is a countdown of the songs I have most played since May 1st, in honor of the current entrance into the final month of the summer (sad!).

20. Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow
19. Gloriana - Wild At Heart
18. Toni Braxton - Get Loose
17. Jessie James - Bullet
16. Paula DeAnda - Stunned Out (feat. Yung Joc)
15. Robyn - Because of Boys (Yelle Cover)
14. Candy Coated Chaos - Utopia
13. Tina Parol - Who's Got Your Money
12. Agnes - Release Me
11. Black Eyed Peas - Rock That Body
10. Kings of Leon - Sex On Fire
09. VV Brown - Shark In the Water
08. Pixie Lott - Here We Go Again
07. Ashley Tisdale - Guilty Pleasure
06. Sugababes - Get Sexy
05. Little Boots - New In Town
04. V Factory - Love Struck
03. Paradiso Girls - Patron Tequila
02. Tynisha Keli - Shatter'd

01. Jordin Sparks - Battlefield