After a week of interviews and “making of” video clips, the full version of Janet’s “Make Me” video has made its way out onto the Internet. The clip is primarily a dance performance, but there is some CG going on that gives it a bit of a “Scream” tribute vibe. Janet looks stunning, the dance routines are typical of Janet’s bubbly choreography preference, and the black and white color scheme really strips it down to just her. My fingers are still crossed for this to become a hit, but I don’t know if I get the way this is being promoted. Here’s hoping that her show-opening performance on the American Music Awards Sunday night kicks some life into the track.
Video Notables – Janet Jackson
November 21, 2009 · 11 Comments
→ 11 CommentsCategories: videos · youtube
Tagged: janet jackson
GaGa: Too Much Too Soon?
November 18, 2009 · 16 Comments
If you even glance at music blogs once a month, there is no way that you have not experienced the GaGa firestorm that has consumed pop music lovers around the globe. It is pretty staggering to see just how pervasive she has become in the span of a year, especially when you take into account that her first single “Just Dance” didn’t even hit #1 in the US until this past January. Now, you can’t listen to a pop radio station an hour without hearing one of her five hits.
In reading Will-W’s review of The Fame Monster, due in stores and online November 23rd, I was struck first by his enthusiasm for the opus, but I started to wonder about her still-building popularity. Four top 10 singles is a huge year for any artist, but “Bad Romance” makes #5, and there are at least two more hits waiting in the wings. Should GaGa have left her monsters waiting to build some anticipation? Or did she do the right thing by striking while the iron is still hot? I know that this was supposed to be part of a re-issue (a practice I already have a huge bias against), but it appears that this has grown well beyond the original plan. “Bad Romance” is almost a given to hit #1 soon (possibly even in two weeks, once the EP hits, and Fame Monster may give Adam Lambert’s For Your Entertainment a run for the #1 album.
You know what song “Bad Romance” reminds of at times? Don’t laugh…New Kids on the Block’s “Step By Step”. And there’s a reason for that. After the huge response to Hangin’ Tough and the resulting tour, “Step” sounded like a huge, well, step ahead, with a much larger sound and an arena-inspiring chorus. “Step” is the one song of theirs from the 80s that actually holds up well. To me, there are a lot of comparison between NKOTB and GaGa right now (minus the branded bedsheets). Both seemed to come out of nowhere, both broke wide open globally, and both racked up multiple top 10 hits off of their breakthrough records (Hangin’ Tough was NKOTB’s 2nd album). And let’s not forget that they have already recorded together on the GaGa-penned “Big Girl Now”.
Here’s the big difference, though. New Kids had a bit of a break from the charts between 1989 and 1990 (Christmas single “This One’s For the Children” excepted). There is no break for GaGa, who is still at #7 on the Hot 100 with “Paparazzi”. Even with a break, the NKOTB backlash started in 1990, and continued on through the next couple of years, culminating in 1992 when they were accused of lip-syncing music sung by other singers. The fact that “If You Go Away”, arguably their finest moment, only got to #16 that year in the US demonstrates how quickly the biggest group in the world can plummet. I am not wishing a similar backlash for GaGa, as I hope she keeps pushing boundaries for years to come. My concern is that the public at large may not be as dedicated to her longevity, and she will be left behind for the next flash in the pan.
So what do you all think? Too much too soon? Cash in while the demand is there? Some other option?
→ 16 CommentsCategories: commentary · music industry · upcoming
Tagged: lady gaga, nkotb
Tell Me Why
November 14, 2009 · 6 Comments
If you want to talk about one of the classiest pop songs of the ’90s, you wouldn’t have to look any further than Annie Lennox’s debut disc Diva, which yielded several top 10 hits around the globe, although she just hit the Top 40 in the US with two singles. In fact, Diva only reached #23 in America, which was a bit stunning to me, given how pervasive that disc was in my life when it came out. While songs like “Little Bird”, “Precious”, and “Walking on Broken Glass” are all great songs, it is “Why” that has to be considered a highlight of Annie’s career.
The first few notes instantly transport me to an isolated room, where a woman rehashes just what went wrong in her relationship, and what she may have done to brought it on. Amazingly, Annie’s first solo video perfectly captures the song, and adds an additional layer of weariness to the protagonist’s story. You’ll have to click through for the original, but the live version shows an additional layer of depth that only comes from a classic song having time to age and live.
→ 6 CommentsCategories: Uncategorized
What’s A Video For?
November 12, 2009 · 6 Comments
Music videos have seen their better days in being able to help a song get a foothold in the marketplace, with only a few recent examples of ones that can be directly attributed with a song’s success (“Single Ladies”, anyone?). In most cases, the videos just seem like an afterthought or a mandatory exercise in futility. That’s why when a video comes along that stands out, it really stands out. Here are two such videos…
- Randy Houser “Boots On” – It’s a country video, so you’ve been forewarned, but the 3 minutes to watch it is completely worthwhile. Pay close attention to Dillon Dixon, the kid in the backseat who is a born rock star.
-Ryan Star “Breathe” – Ryan has opened for the majority of David Cook’s tour this year, and it seems like he’s made a good number of fans in the process. In addition, he was a member of the group Stage, who were signed to Maverick Records in the early part of this decade. Here is his current video “Breathe” from his upcoming debut CD on Atlantic Records, which highlights the plight of actual jobless Americans, acting as a virtual want ad. To check out his efforts to get them jobs, go to breathe4jobs.com.
→ 6 CommentsCategories: videos · youtube
Tagged: randy houser, ryan star
When Rappers Go Pop
November 10, 2009 · 4 Comments
Mr Hudson posted a video today of a Jay-Z show in London that he showed up at to sing “Young Forever”, a riff on Alphaville’s “Forever Young”. Here’s a clip of the chorus done a couple of times. You better bet that this will show up in a concert video or promotional video for the clip:
The most striking thing to me, though, was at the end of the second round, where Hova kicks in to the intro of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. This happens at every concert…someone segues from their own song into a crowd-pleaser that gets the audience hyped, or maybe they play a bunch of party jams right before the show starts. For Jay, the fact that he can stage a huge sing-along for a song that was considered alternative in the 80s, it becomes a blessing and a curse. On the positive side, there is no question that Jay-Z can rock a crowd, no matter where they are. But does that ability hurt his street cred? Sadly, it does. There’s a double-standard playing here…so much of the rap body of work talks about escaping poverty and making it big. Yet Jay has to deal with the “sell out” tag, amid accusations that he isn’t street anymore. There’s no winning for winning, is there?
When you get to travel the world and meet people of different cultures and ethnicities, that changes you. If Jay-Z brings other influences to his music, that makes him better, right? Well, you would hope so. And yet, using “Forever Young” as the hook on a track also creates a built-in sing-along for a certain portion of his audience, especially in foreign territories. The hook is undeniable, and the associations for people my age are ingrained. This begs the question of whether “Forever”’s inclusion is strictly for artistic purposes, or if it is just a crowd-pleaser. From my perspective, I think “Young Forever” is one of the stronger tracks on Blueprint 3, but maybe I need to remove myself from the debate, since I would have been right there in the middle of the crowd, singing at the top of my lungs.
We talk about selling out, catering to certain audiences, working with the “right” producer, but at the end of it all, if the listener finds something that resonates, then the music has done its job. As much as I hate the God-and-nation forms of country music, it works for someone, and who am I to deprive them of that. So the same goes for rap music. If you can bridge the gap by speaking the musical language of the audience you are playing to, more power to you.
→ 4 CommentsCategories: concerts · videos · youtube
Tagged: alphaville, jay z, mr hudson
This Could Be the Last of My Control
November 9, 2009 · 2 Comments
Popjustice posted a pretty brilliant remix of Mini Viva’s “I Wish” today, and I listened to it several times this morning as I was getting ready for work. One of the great things about YouTube videos is that they also show you related videos, and through this I discovered a live performance of “I Wish” from September. Witness the fun for yourself, and let me know what you think.
1. The girls can sing, can’t they?
2. Despite what some other bloggers might think, they are pretty cute.
3. A dance-pop group with a backing band? Revolutionary, I tell ya!
4. I want to hear the full version of this on a dancefloor, STAT!
In a somewhat related note, I heard a remix of Cheryl Cole’s “Fight For This Love” in a bar over the weekend. Pretty brilliant in that form, I must say.
→ 2 CommentsCategories: concerts · videos · youtube
Tagged: cheryl cole, mini viva
“It’s Only” Lame
November 6, 2009 · 6 Comments
So Kris, Adam, and Alison have all dropped their first singles, which meant that Danny Gokey’s first offering couldn’t be too far behind. Courtesy of MJ’s Blog, here is “It’s Only”:
If you want to see a perfect example of someone that is so desperate for fame that they will latch on to anything that seems to resonate with the public, here’s your man. The song itself is calculated religious country at its worst, and makes “Jesus Take the Wheel” sound downright transcendent. The “whoa ah ohhh”s at the end of each chorus are just bizarre, and the desperation of trying to find a niche on the first try is palpable. Only adding to my disappointment is the fact that one of my favorite country groups, Lady Antebellum, had a hand in this by writing this drivel.
If you think that I was waiting for a flop, you might be right. I am not a fan, and his prominence in the early going was one factor that caused me to abandon ship this year. Having said that, if Gokey had come out with something stellar, I would have been the first to admit I was wrong. No surprises today, though. This is the calculated lameness that I expected from a contestant who seemed hell-bent on making it big, even on the back of his wife’s memory. Danny’s got his fans, and I am sure I will catch some grief for this, but I don’t claim to be the voice of the people, so to each their own. I am just not hopping on this crazy train.
→ 6 CommentsCategories: american idol · videos · youtube
Tagged: danny gokey
Video Notables – Mini Viva
November 3, 2009 · 7 Comments
With a big ol’ h/t to Scopitone Saturday, here’s the new Mini Viva video for “I Wish”. SS notes that there has been a buzz about the track being as epic as GA’s “Untouchable”, and while I agree it doesn’t quite hit that height, this is a pretty solid second offering from MV, and worthy of a near-comparison. Here’s hoping that they can keep up the output. We may be looking at the Saturdays of ‘09.
more about "Mini Viva – I Wish", posted with vodpod
→ 7 CommentsCategories: videos
Tagged: mini viva
Video Notables – Adam Lambert
October 21, 2009 · 4 Comments
Wow…how quickly was Adam absorbed into the corporate pop machine? “Time for Miracles”, from the upcoming movie 2012, is as slick a power soundtrack ballad as they come, and the video is as cheesy as you would expect. But it’s really about the song itself, and that song is pretty decent compared to the usual movie-closing filler. If Adam can carry a tune like “Miracles”, his solo debut coming out next month should be monumental.
→ 4 CommentsCategories: videos · youtube
Tagged: adam lambert
Stumble It!
Random Notes – 11-19-09
November 20, 2009 · 5 Comments
In searching for more info on this, I also came across an interview and free download that he did for *cough*Wal-Mart*choke*. “Floating Off the Ground” definitely fits into the current pop landscape, although trying to break through without a major label behind you can be tough. Just ask Elliot Yamin about that one. I’ve listened to the track about 10 times over the past two days, and it has me intrigued about the rest of his long-delayed new record, which is now supposed to be released in 2010. Get your guilt-free download of the song here (signup necessary to download). You can also check out the tune in the video posted below. I read somewhere that this is his new single, but I can’t believe that he would be giving away a single that he actually hopes gets him some chart action.
Having said all of this, his record company has already announced that they are planning a re-issue of Crazy Love, which was only released 7 weeks ago. While I am glad that the record company is behind him, this re-issue craze is just getting out of hand. Here’s hoping that Lady GaGa is able to show the industry next week that a brand-new album is a better value to the consumer than just the same 10 tracks with a few new ones thrown in for good measure.
For those of you who are unfamiliar, the members of Lady Antebellum have some serious music business roots. Hillary Scott is the daughter of Linda Davis, who is most well-known from her duet with Reba McEntire on the original version of “Does He Love You”, and Charles Kelley is the brother of pop singer Josh Kelley. In fact, Josh actually helped the band out early on by letting them crash at his place and use his recording equipment as they were pursuing a recording contract. “Need You Now” is only their fourth single, but it is already their second Country #1. Look for them to partake in some Sugarland-like domination over the next few years.
→ 5 CommentsCategories: american idol · charts · commentary · music industry · singles · videos · youtube
Tagged: chris richardson, lady antebellum, michael buble