After months of buzz, Kelly Rowland‘s ‘Talk A Good Game’ finally strut into stores…today!

Preceded by Urban hits ‘Kisses Down Low’ and ‘Dirty Laundry’, the LP arrives on the heels of the singer’s unveiling as the new X Factor USA judge, as well as at a time when her overall “solo stock” is the highest it’s ever been. Indeed, these days the Destiny’s Child alum is omnipresent on R&B radio – by way of her own tracks as well as a number of features. Put simply, she’s winning. Still, it begs the question, though: is the album a “winner”?

In short, “yes”. Obvious singles may be a hard find (though ‘Gone’ is a must) and the lack of an uptempo grates, however the project is easily Rowland’s most sonically cohesive yet. A solid “body of work” in the truest sense. An album.

And while there are countless songs which cement this, there are three in particular that we’ve had on heavy rotation here at That Grape Juice HQ.

Check them out after the jump…

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Wale succeeds in bringing the heat today, with the unveiling of his brand new single ‘Clappers‘!

Featuring ‘Envy’ star Nicki Minaj, the jam comes courtesy of his new album ‘Gifted’ and is no doubt on course to becoming one of 2013’s more celebrated Hip Hop offerings.

Peep Wale, Nicki and Juicy J in action below…

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June 18th.

It’s a day many Hip-Hop enthusiasts had etched in their minds, for two of the genre’s most pronounced titans go head-to-head in a bid for chart glory.

The initial “owner” of the date is controversial Kanye West, whose ‘Yeesuz’ album has provoked pandemonium of all varieties. Keen to embrace the art of competition Roc Nation’s Cole actually moved up the release of his sophomore set ‘Born Sinner’ so as to go toe-to-toe with West – a move many have hailed for its bravery (and audacity).

And while the real “winner” is arguably fans of Hip-Hop, we -as ever-want to plough through the smoke and mirrors to find out which releases the masses are truly “here” for. Forget the leaks, the babies, and the media spin and let us know…

Beyonce and Jay Z rubbed shoulders with many a celeb pal last night, as they celebrated the 10th anniversary of the latter’s ’40/40′ Club in NYC.

Arriving at the exclusive spot after scoring a number of respective wins, the influential pair enjoyed the company of Kylie Minogue, T.I., Adrienne Baillon, Robert Kraft and former ‘Real Housewife of New York’ Bethenny Frankel.

Pics from last night’s fun below….

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If it feels as though you aren’t seeing as much of Rita Ora as you used to, it’s with good reason.

For, after watching her debut album reach unexpected heights in the UK, the Eastern belle is currently hard at work on her sophomore set- set to dwarf its predecessor on all fronts.

Today, as she continued work on that album, she was snapped out and about in Los Angeles with a friend- reportedly swarmed by fans sporting a fresher look and longer locks, more of which can be seen below!

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Let’s face it…as far as fan support and branding is concerned, Rihanna and her fan base are on a proverbial high right now.

While that doesn’t excuse the myth that is her allegedly sold out dates at Twickenham Stadium, it’s safe to say that the absence of Katy Perry and Lady GaGa has seen Rihanna soar on a popularity front yet again.

Only right then, that she thanked the very people who afforded her that popularity today, meeting and greeting her the ‘Rihanna Navi’ outside her London Hotel, days after she touched down in the city.

One more pic below…

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For all her success, Rita Ora seems well-versed in today’s need for new artists to consistently be “seen”. Indeed, though the Roc Nation favourite has been working hard on her sophomore album (which will dub as her US debut), her promo game hasn’t missed a beat. Concerts, festivals, photoshoots, the 22-year-old is working.

Her latest stop? The cover of Germany’s Interview magazine.

Fierce, right?

Your thoughts?

He’s the Hip Hop heart throb on course to dominate the thriving scene. Now, in pushing his cause to the masses even further, B.Smyth blasts off with his new song ‘Win Win’, featuring Future.

Is it any good?

We’d say so- void of the dated cheese that often plagues R&B hopefuls his age…packing a candy coated edge that should see him win over a number of different audiences.

Press play below…

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Stop whatever you’re doing and meet ‘Made To Love‘, the brand new single by ‘Ordinary People‘ singer John Legend.

Haunting, romantic and easily one of our favorite numbers from the Grammy winner, ‘Made’ may remind some fans of the Alicia Keys gem ‘Love Is Blind’– packing a reggae tinged echo and production that screams ‘Last Shadow Puppets‘.

By no means are we exaggerating when we say that this song is the primary reason we’re picking up his new album ‘Love In The Future‘ once it drops.

Fall in love below….

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Much like our ‘Retro Rewind’ and ‘From the Vault’ segments, readers of That Grape Juice know what avid music lovers we are – especially of hits past.  So in a quest to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday we introduced a new retrospective segment – ‘TGJ Replay’.

Unlike its ‘Rewind’ and ‘Vault’ predecessors, ‘Replay’ looks to dust off and showcase albums (and eras) from a library of pop music hits.  Today, we go back to Missy Elliott’s best selling album to date – 2002’s ‘Under Construction’.  It all awaits under the hood…

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Guess which singer/actress was snapped rocking out at 2013 Northside Festival in Brooklyn’s McCarren Park yesterday.

Hint: Her sophomore album featured production from Jack Splash, Pharrell Williams and Cee-Lo Green.

Lost?

Meet us below and we’ll fill you in…

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With American Idol wrapped, it’s back to business for Nicki Minaj.

The Young Money madam joins R&B crooner Mario as a guest on his comeback single ‘Somebody Else’ – which hit the net last month.

As the old age adage goes, time waits for no one. Hence, in a bid to give the track an added push, the pair came together to shoot its accompanying video.

Peep the freshly released behind the scenes video after the jump…

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