Easily one of the worst kept, yet most exciting reunions in recent memory, Danity Kane‘s comeback appears to be one press release away from “confirmed”.
All Summer long, the ladies have teased their re-grouping; from studio shots, to convenient lunches, members Dawn Richard, Aundrea Fimbres, Shannon Bex, and Aubrey O’Day are clearly cooking up something.
And while most of the Platinum outfit, who will reportedly rebrand as a four-piece (after it was confirmed that D.Woods will not rejoin them), have remained relatively tight-lipped about the project, their most spoken member O’Day is continuing to drop the biggest of hints.
Ever eager to keep her recently relit fire burning for her next era, Brandy continues to rock many a venue across the globe with a stage show that now readies to storm Atlanta next month.
Miley Cyrus has ample cause to celebrate today; for, her first single as a re-branded artist, ‘We Can’t Stop’, has become her first chart-topper on the Official UK Singles Chart.
Flip the hood for more on the twerk-friendly star’s latest feat…
As Emeli Sande and Adele continue to fly the flag for Brit-Pop in the USA, their predecessor Joss Stone took fresh aim at the market with her independently released ‘The Soul Sessions Vol.2‘.
Welcoming modest numbers upon release, the project saw her cover a number of soul classics released between the 60s and 80s, one of which being The Dells’ 1971 release ‘The Love We Had (Stays On My Mind)’.
Needless to say, the release of its video marks very good news for fans of the contralto, who- at least in our opinion- is only the right deal away from reclaiming her seat at Adult Contemporary’s winning table.
Three years after he was arrested for attempt solicit an undercover female officer, ‘Your Precious Love’ performer D’Angelo has cancelled a string of US performances, citing a ‘medical emergency’ as his cause for doing so.
Five months after pulling the plug on their hit series‘Spartacus’, Chris Albrecht‘s ‘Starz’ has set its sights on the TV adaptation of Philippa Gregory’s ‘The Cousin’s War‘…. ‘The White Queen’.
While the show will draw to a close in the UK next Sunday, last night saw Starz introduce the series to US audiences- months after having an alternate version of the show shot, featuring ‘explicit’ scenes that did not feature in its British airing.
On the US version, actor Max Irons explains:
“‘There’s the BBC cut and the Starz cut. You get a lot more a*** in the Starz version – the cameras kept rolling after the BBC stopped the scene.”
This week’s From The Vault pick was released in 2001 and is quite literally what “Urban-Pop dreams” are made of. We present you Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On?’ by ensemble cast Artists Against AIDS Worldwide.
The project, which consisted of numerous remixes of the Pop-Culture landmark (each time featuring different vocalists), was helmed in a bid to raise funds for AIDS programs in Africa and other poverty-stricken territories. Though recorded prior the 9/11 tragedy, the track was released in October 2001 and saw 50% of its profit also going to the United Way’s 9/11 fund (with the half going to the AIDS relief effort).
Featuring an All-Star line-up of 2001’s finest acts, two radio versions made the rounds. Both produced by Bono and Jermaine Dupri, they saw acts such as Destiny’s Child, Britney Spears, Usher, *N’SYNC, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Nelly, Ja Rule, Jennifer Lopez, Lil Kim, Nas, Wyclef Jean, TLC, Nelly Furtado, Backstreet Boys, Diddy, Gwen Stefani, Mary J.Blige, Eve and Monica to name but a few, trade verses and lines. Marvin’s daughter, Nona Gaye, is also featured aptly singing the “father, father” line.
Without any promotion, the song managed to peak at #27 in the US and an impressive #6 on the UK charts.
The videos, cooked up courtesy of Jake Scott, depict the artists as they remove “labelled” blindfolds from their eyes, symbolizing how society is blinded by prejudice and how we need to open our eyes… which ties in perfectly with the original message of the masterpiece of a track that is ‘What’s Going On?‘
It’s happenings like this one that make “Pop” (in the broader sense) one of the most exciting genres in mainstream music. In addition to being a tremendous initiative to raise awareness about AIDS and give back to the American Red Cross, it had the huge selling point of featuring all the top artists of that time on a single track – in similar fashion as Bob Geldof‘s Band Aid and Michael Jackson & Lionel Richie‘s USA For Africa – providing the genre’s enthusiasts with a glimpse of what their favorites acts would sound like together, also serving up some odd pairings that, somehow, “work”.
Great track for a great cause!
With this gem being recorded over a decade ago and the industry constantly changing, we’d like to know…
Is your ‘fave’ still relevant?
Bonus: Peep the video for JD’s R&B remix after the jump…
While all three have roots in varying musical territories, this week sees them share common ground on the UK’s Official Charts, thanks to support afforded to them by the nation’s public.
Mary Mary pose it up with Chaka Khan & Fantasia in Las Vegas at last night’s “Hoodie Awards”
Ever keen to broaden our musical scope, recent months have seen That Grape Juice venture into a number of new musical landscapes including, most recently, gospel.
Tuck in below for the latest news on Donald Lawrence, Joshua Rogers, American Idol‘s Mandisa, Michelle Williams, Ashmont Hill, and newcomers Tobbi & Tommi…
Since hitting the scene last year, Rita Ora‘s made the quite the habit of knocking out hits left, right and centre, much to the joy of her ever loyal ‘Bots’.
This week however, the star trade her mic in for boxing gloves to join British boxer David Haye for a training session, now available to view below!
Shot before the starlet relocates to the US to launch her career in the competitive market, the footage below comes courtesy of ‘Entertainment News’!
As two of the most hyped releases of the year, Lady GaGa and Katy Perry‘s respective projects – ‘ARTPOP’ and ‘Prism’ – are being pit against each other by critics and fans alike.
And we’re not against it. At all.
Purists can sing Kumbaya all day long, yet the fact remains: there is only one top spot. Indeed, given the similar lanes the ladies play in (not to mention the overlapping of their release windows), this is very much a head-on collision. A clash of the titans, if you will.
And while it’s certain that the divas (and their teams) are well-versed in this, it appears they’re playing a game of “sugar, spice, and all things nice”. For now.
Taking to Twitter, the Billboard belles discussed each other’s new singles (‘Applause’ and ‘Roar’ respectively).
Chris Brownhit headlines this week after news of his dramatic seizure spread like wildfire.
The ‘Fine China’ singer reportedly suffered the fit in a Los Angeles recording studio on Friday, yet refused medical treatment — naturally sparking intense discussion about what caused the frightening episode.
Ploughing through the speculation, the 24-year old’s publicist issued a statement over the weekend. Find out what it read after the jump…
