Single review and Video: Katy Perry Ft Kanye west "E.T" #winning

I must admit I'm out of the loop when it comes to most things Katy Perry. I hadn't even heard of her new song E.T until it was in the entertainment news for not only ending Lady Gaga's 6 week Born this way reign, but also achieving the more impressive feat of being her fourth number 1  from her latest album Teenage Dreams. Still, it wasn't until the video was released today that I actually heard the song, which features Kanye West, and am pleasantly surprised that I quite like it.



The song has Katy Perry ditching the sunny, bubble gum world of the past singles and has her venturing towards a darker feel , with a heavy beat, electronic synths and an almost industrial rock vibe.

The vocals are varied, with Katy talk-singing through much of the verse, belting-some may call it shouting- in the chorus and, as a contrast to the overall harshness of the track,  travelling up into her sweet soft falsetto during the middle 8. Vocals, production, an interesting take on love, and two appearances by Kanye West make this song "#winning" in my opinion!

The video is truly breathtaking. Watch how Katy plays the alien who fell from the heavens to find her love- in the form of albino model Shaun Ross- at the end. Part sci-fi, part steam-punk, part Dr Manhattan's scenes in Watchmen! watch below


 

Lady Gaga "Born this way" video

Lady Gaga in Born this way

I've just watched the video for Gaga's Born this way and don't want to make the same mistake I made by reviewing Britney's Hold it against me without letting the video truly sink in. Instead I'll post the video here, for you guys to check out, while I watch the video a few more times and ruminate on my thoughts.

Look out for the Madonna reference at the end!

Watch Mariah Carey's video for "Old Lang Syne": Laughs a plenty!

Mariah Carey in the video for Auld lang syne: seen the image, basically seen the video

Boy oh boy has the recession hit Mariah Carey hard if her current video is anything to go by. The video for Auld Lang Syne, from the Merry christmas ii you album, has got to be the cheapest video I have EVER seen from any singer, let alone an A-lister.

The video just has Mariah dancing- am i allowed to call it that?- in front of a green screen that has fireworks projected on to it while she mimes BADLY to the song. I think Mariah might have actually filmed this herself, maybe in her shed under the influence of all those pregnancy hormones, and released it online before anyone could stop her because the production values are next to nil. I especially love 2.45 when she twirls majestically onto the screen. Delightful.

Perhaps Mariah has just decided to inforce some austerity measures on her spending habits, she has got a baby on the way after all. Besides why should she still  spend huge amounts of money on her videos when it's not converting into sales for her.

Loving Mariah even more after this video. What do you think?

Nicole Scherzinger - Poison Official video

Nicole Scherzinger - Poison

I initially really disliked Nicole Scherzinger's new song Posion due to it  sounding like a weak, mess of noise to me. But today, for no reason, I succumbed to a craving for the song and since then, like some kind of fungus, its taken root in my mind and now I actually quite like it.

Maybe I've finally succumbed to Nicole's poision (shock!)! oh and props to her for keeping fully clothed  in the superhero inspired video.

WIki desciption:
"Poison" is an up-tempo synthpop and dance-pop song produced by RedOne. The "guitar-driven" number uses a "pulsating" and "toxic" beat throughout, which is similar to that used in the Britney Spears's song "Toxic". The lyrics were also compared to "Toxic" and said to have similar themes, according to BBC Music blogger, Fraser McAlpine.

Brandys : Warm It Up (with love) 2009

Brandy 2010

An album track from Brandy called Warm it up (with love) is an unashamedly uplifting song with a commendable message about resisting the current climate of fear and strife with the use of Love and hope.

Warm it up features Brandy's unique alto over a simple backing track that consists essentially of a piano and drum loop, with soft synths used during chorus and middle eight to create contrast to the verses. The overall simplicity of the backing track allows, quite rightly, the lyrics to take centre stage.

The message  Brandy brought on this song  highlights by comparison how overtly self-indulgent and decadent contemporary music has become of late.  Here's hoping her seed of positivity  will bloom and blossom in 2011, spawning a new batch of socially aware music to grow and flourish. India Arie I'm looking at you to come back and show the world how its done!

Watch the video for Mariah Carey & Patricia Carey - Oh Come All Ye Faithful / Hallelujah Chorus

Mariah Carey and her mother Patricia
Carey perform "Oh Come all ye Faithful"

The video for one of my favourite cuts from Mariah Careys' Merry Christmas ii You album, "Oh come All ye Faithful" has just been released. The video features both Carey and her mother, Patricia, singing the medley in a Christmassy studio environment.

Though the video is clearly low budget and is pretty much trading on watching mother and daughter together to carry it, the song itself is pure gold with stunning production and a rousing vocal from both.It's sure to brighten anyone's Monday with festive goodness.

Do you agree? Comment below or by clicking here!

Watch and read the review of Keri Hilson ‘The Way You Love Me (ft. Rick Ross)

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Kerri Hilson gets practically
nude in the video of "The way
you love me". 

So what do you do when your last album didn't live up to industry expectations. You do what Keri Hilson has done with her new single "The way You love me" off her upcoming second album  and switch to sex to sell your music.

The song:
Don't let the title of the song fool you; this is not a love song or  a ballad. Its an up-tempo track about sex that is neither subtle or poetic about it. In fact I'm surprised they went with such a tame title considering the lyrical content being so crude and the obvious desire to shock with this release.

Warning to anyone listening with kids about: DON'T! This song has repeated swears in the chorus!The whole thing is all just TMI (too much information).

The video:
The video looks like its had a lot of money thrown at it and features a lot of suggestive dancing and semi clothed ladies.To "cleverly" try and disguise it from being being a desperate attempt to sell music using ones body, they've thrown in a thin plot about Kerri and a group of femme fatales-including Faith Evans(?!) - successfully carrying out a heist for a group of  male gangsters who doubted their ability. In fact if you concentrate REAL hard you can see that its not actually a load of smut, but an advert for feminism and female empowerment...(!)

Unfortunately for all there is more to come because the video ends with the joyous line"to be continued.". Yikes

Summary: "The way you Love me" and it's video were undoubtedly chosen to wake the world up to Kerri Hilson again, and it succeeds for the duration of its playtime. However, once you get over the lyrics and the seedy video , the song, at its core, is ultimately bad and forgettable.

Comment as to what you think of the video/song/review/Kerri Hilson/ at the bottom of the post or by clicking here.

Keri Hilson and Rick Ross together in her new video "The Way you Love me"

Cheryl Cole "The Flood" : Video and Review

Cheryl Cole still taken from "The Flood"

Cheryl Cole is back with new single The Flood, a soppy, mid-tempo ballad about, you guessed it, Love (symbolised by the water) and its transient nature. All in all it's a pretty mediocre and forgettable follow up to her last single Promise This, but will no doubt go top 10 thanks to her X-factor profile.

Watch the video below:

Do you Agree or do you think Cheryl Can do no wrong?

Watch the Official video for Rhianna's- "What's My Name?"

Rihanna's new video to accompany her American number 1 hit Whats my name? featuring Drake. Yeh or meh?

Rihanna and Drake

Alexandra Burke & Beyoncé duet on "Listen"

Alexandra Burke , Beyonce and Cheryl Cole

Alexandra Burkeduets withBeyoncéon the song "Listen". This performance was ultimately what sealed Alexandra's fate as the winner of the X-factor in 2008 and its not surprising considering she held her own against such a formidable singer.

Its amazing to watch this performance two years later and still marvel at how professional Beyoncé was and how easy and effortless she made singing the song look especially considering she arrived from the US that day!

Would you like them to duet again? Let the world, know.

Christina Aguilera can sing without shouting!! Shock! Who'd have thunk it? Watch her new song

Christina Aguilera has jettisoned  her last album Bionic, after the lukewarm reception, and is instead concentrating on her new film Burlesque. Below is a new song from the film called "I Am a Good Girl" and shows Ms Aguilera's demonstrating a softer vocal styling.  I am enjoying the break from the usual high belts and indulgent melisma. Enjoy

Christina Aguilera - I Am Good Girl ( Burlesque )

Ciara- "Gimme dat" official video

Ciara's back with a new song called Gimme that from her upcoming album "Basic Instinct" (scheduled for release on the 29th of November). Ciaras' going back to her roots with  a song that's bass heavy, fast-paced and has a crazy beat that just makes you want to dance.

The video is great too and has Ciara displaying some amazing choreography, reminding us that she- move over Beyonce- is the strongest female dancer out there.

Ciara you certainly have been "gone for too long" and  I, for one, am looking forward to the return of the Queen of Crunk!

"Gimme That" lyrics

Willow Smith - "Whip my hair" Video and lyrics

Willow Smith, the daughter of Will and Jada Smith, is launching her music career at the unbelievably young age of 10 with the sassy tune Whip my Hair.  It's essentially an empowering  song about doing your own thing and not letting anybody's hate or negativity  get to you. Advice she may need to remember when the "too young to be in music" and  the "Rihanna Jnr" comments start biting.

Whillow's talk/singing is set over a heavy, imposing, hip-hop beat, which is reminiscent of Beyoncé's Diva,and  is decorated with electronic flourishes that add to the track without distracting  from a beat that has been designed solely to get people dancing.

Whip my hair is a catchy song and showcases a surprising level of attitude and confidence for someone so young. It'll be interesting to see where this Diva in training goes next musically.

Whip my hair Lyrics:

Whip My Hair lyrics found at elyricsworld.com

Rihanna- Watch both video versions of "who's that chick" (Day and night)

Day version                                                   Night version

Not content with having a single out already (see Only girl in the world Rihanna has released not one but two videos for a David Guetta track named Who's that chick.The song itself is a campy, fun if throwaway, dance number that doesn't take itself too seriously.

The two video versions for the single have the corresponding names of Day and Night.The Day video is bright, fun, and incorporates the 80's vibe that is prevalent at the moment in popular culture. Its' also similar to that found in her other single Only Girl.  

The Night video is less saturated in colour and has an eerie, Gothic feel that brings to mind the Russian Roulette video and the Rated R Rihanna.

With her last album Rated R underselling, by her previous standards, this era's happier Rihanna could be in danger of looking like a reversion to that successful incarnation, rather than an artistic progression forward, potentially rubbing out any credibility garnered from the Rated R album. To counter this the Rihanna team seem to have created these two contrasting videos in an attempt to smooth that transition in a way that makes it appear less contrived and more natural a progression.

Beyonce- "Halo" live at NAACP

Beyonce gets emotional while
singing Halo live.

I previously reviewed Halo and in that review commented on Beyonce's vocal delivery not really sounding like,well,  Beyonce. To further illustrate my point and show you what the Beyonce way of singing the song would have been like, if she had conducted the vocal arrangement, I present to you her NNACP performance.

*Interesting fact: It turns out that the song was actually meant for Leona Lewis which makes the album vocal arrangement make more sense*