It’s finally here!
Nelly Furtado‘s long-awaited comeback single ‘Big Hoops (Bigger The Better)’ premiered moments ago on CHUM FM.

What are you waiting for? Sink your teeth into the Darkchild-baked cut after the jump…

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Much like a certain Dolly Parton, Madonna‘s sales have always been top heavy.

Starting off impressive in their first week, the ‘Material Girl’s LP’s find themselves sliding down the chart by its second week, much to dismay of her staunchest fans.

However, her latest effort ‘MDNA‘ has found itself becoming the mother of all disappointments.

Find out why below…

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Aging pop star Madonna‘s accomplishments this era have been disproportionately…top heavy.

Meaning her endeavors usually pull in record-breaking numbers their debuting week, only to completely lose steam and die-out in their following weeks. Take the No. 1 flop ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’ for example.

Continuing Madge’s latest pattern of see-sawed success comes ‘MDNA’‘s second week sales figures which are expected to set a new record as the largest 1st-to-2nd week drop in Billboard history.

See the full details below.

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Lil Kim– regardless of what you think of her- is iconic.

Yes, while the above should be obvious to any in tune with her career, recent years have made her legacy all too easy to forget.

Indeed, while many of her contemporaries have gone onto become world figures and moguls in their respective fields, Kim- rather unfortunately- has evaded such success.

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Rihanna‘s ‘We Found Love’ seems to be song of choice for a line of singers with actual talent to inadvertedly show the model up.

The latest songbird to bless the track? Dance diva Wynter Gordon.

Gordon, who recently performed on That Grape Juice’s Splash, once again took centre-stage – this time at the First Fleet showcase in Iowa this week, where she served up a uniquely fresh Fenty’s global smash.

Watch Ms. Gordon school the vocal deviant after the jump…

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After whipping up a frenzy with her debut ‘Pink Friday’ in 2010, this week sees Nicki Minaj stake her claim as a formidable chart force with the arrival of her eagerly awaited sophomore set ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded‘.

A pick ‘n’ mix of genres, the project is split loosely in two; a musical melee, the set finds itself divided between songs rolled in Hip-Hop grit and others soaked in Pop fantasy.

Boasting a tracklist as polarised as the artist performing them, the question on the lips of many remains: beyond the wigs, schtick, and “eccentric”, does Nicki deliver on the most important release of her career?

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As is the case with many acts, Nicki Minaj is eager to avoid the infamous sophomore slump.

Indeed, despite her debut LP being the 7th highest selling release in 2011, the concern around sales of its follow up ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded‘ is ever present- following its untimely leak last week.

So in response the concern, Minaj shared her ambitions with Power 105.1‘s ‘DJ Clue Show’, explaining how she feels it will do.

Interview below…

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In 2011, three years after the release of ‘I Am..’, Beyonce delivered ‘4′- her first predominately R&B piece since 2003’s ‘Dangerously In Love‘.

Laced with Summer soaked medleys, stripped back ballads and Afro centric power jams, the project’s campaign was essentially cut short to make way for the star’s first child, Blue Ivy. This, despite marking the happiest time in Knowles’ life, also left many questions unanswered:

Would the album’s era continue well into 2012?

Would Blue’s arrival put B’s career on hiatus?

However, much to the relief of her fans, Knowles confirmed her return to the stage this month, readying a three day concert at New Jersey’s Revel Resorts in May.

As was to be expected, with this announcement came reports that a ‘re-boot’ of ‘4’ was also on its way- with the promise of singles that would soar to heights their predecessors didn’t. Indeed, despite reaching #1, the album is yet to spawn a Billboard #1 Hot 100 single- meaning 2008’s ‘Single Ladies’ was single by Mrs. C to sit atop the coveted tally.

A fact, much of her ‘Beyhive’ resents.

So, with Rihanna turning up  the heat on a singles front and GaGa reportedly releasing  her fourth studio LP this year, we ask:

What should Beyonce do next?

Weigh in below…

R&B-Soul ensemble Lucy Pearl and their debut single ‘Dance Tonight’ serve as this week’s From The Vault pick.

Comprised of the great Raphael Saadiq, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and funky diva Dawn Robinson, the trio were somewhat of a super-group, having been part of Tony! Toni! Toné!, A Tribe Called Quest and En Vogue respectively. (Neo-Soul pioneer D’Angelo was intended to be part of the line-up but such plans fell through when he decided to concentrate on finishing his own record.)

Lifted from their eponymous album, ‘Dance’ was released during the Spring of 2000 and was hailed by critics who raved about its lush production and noted an incredible vocal chemistry between Saadiq and Robinson.

And yet, commercially, this piece of R&B-Soul only managed to reach the lower tier of the Top 40 (#36).  A respectable feat for a new band you’d say; only this song had (and still has #1 inked all over it) and was an edible anthesis to the Bubblegum-Pop that was flooding the airwaves at that time… and stays superior to most of the fast-food pop that is topping iTunes today.

Still, justice was soemwhat served when the cut was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2001 in the Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group or a Duo category.

From its vintage sets and an overall ‘zen’ vibe, the groove’s accompanying video is a perfect fit, bringing an already shy-high track to even higher grounds.

With the likes of Nas & Damian Marley, The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye) and Duck Sauce (Armand Van Helden & A-Trak) killing in more ways than one the charts and stages of the world, it seems the music industry is slowly re-embracing the idea of supergroups like Lucy Pearl. Leading us to ask you…

Which artists would you put together in a supergroup?

A Madonna campaign just wouldn’t be right without a little controversy.

For, after releasing the well received clip that is ‘Girl Gone Wild‘ last week, it has been restricted by YouTube, deemed too raunchy to be seen by the masses.

Details below…

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X Factor and Ndubz star Tulisa attempts to rebrand as a solo force with her debut single ‘We Are Young’.

Produced by former bandmate, Fazer, ‘Young’ serves as the lead track from the Londoner’s as yet untitled first album, the recording of which has seen her hit the studio with US hitmakers The-Dream and Rico Love.

How does the 22 year old fare? Find out after the jump…

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For Madonna‘s twelfth studio album, the Material Girl has ditched the ‘hard candy’ in favor of something stronger, something meaner. Something she bills, her ‘MDNA’.

A Pop triangulation of sorts, the set was primary produced by the singer’s longtime collaborator William Orbit and two contemporary composers, Benny Benassi and Martin Solveig, to inject an air of “fresh” and “exciting”. As always, being the businesswoman that she is, M shares a songwriting and producing credit on every track.

As her first release not to be associated with Warner Bros. Records (the label she called home since 1982), all eyes are on whether the ‘Queen of Pop’ has crafted a blockbuster Pop LP. One which firmly plants her as a viable contender against the Rihanna‘s and Katy Perry‘s of the world. And one which, at the same time, reintroduces her brand to the ‘YouTube Generation’.

Beyond this, there also remains the penultimate question: as a solid body of work, how hard does ‘MDNA’ hit? Swallow the full review after the jump.

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