Check out ‘Hole In The Head’, the Justin Timberlake assisted bonus track from Rihanna’s new ‘Rated R’ LP.

Judging by Ms. Fenty’s uberly nasally vocals here and the track’s overall sub-par aura, there’s no surprises as to why this was left on the cutting room floor. Though, I must say I’m feeling her swagger-heavy delivery. No, the song is not awful, rather distinctly average – at best.

Hit or Miss?

As with all the major awards shows, That Grape Juice will be providing live on-the-minute coverage of the American Music Awards 2009, which take place this tomorrow (November 22nd) live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. News, commentary and of course performances, That Grape Juice will be the spot for them all!

The AMA’s this year boasts a performers list unlike any other in recent years, with the likes of Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, Lady GaGa, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Eminem, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys all taking to the stage, this will be unmissable!

Former ‘it’ rapper 50 Cent has been on the interview trail over the last few weeks attempting to promote his new album, ‘Before I Self Destruct’. In two of those conversations, the mogul elaborated on why he thinks his new LP is set to debut with numbers far below his usual standard. Here are excerpts from the discussions with Hot 97 and Jenny Boom Boom TV respectively:

“With the actual outcome of the project, once the record leaks from the international plant, what more can I do,” 50 explained in an interview [with Hot 97]. “I can’t, I held the record long enough to get it to them, to mix and master it and for them to ship it and then it leaks from the plant internationally, I’m like come on, then that’s it. They lost the ball. You know what I mean, if the numbers look funny to me, it’s they fault.”

“All you gotta do is get the response,” Fif explained to radio personality Jenny Boom Boom. “The response is so well, so good, that I know the record is a hit. So whether they consumed it from actually purchasing it or they got it off the web or wherever they got it from, when they hear it and enjoy it, they end up at the show. How can I focus on album sales now when it’s to the point where my record is released four weeks before schedule. The marketing, everything that’s planned to sell the actual record, is happening four weeks late, now that the record is out a month early. You know, those things are happening after they had an opportunity to hear it and it’s confirmation to the doubters that the record wouldn’t be good.” {Source}

As usual 50 serves up a long list of excuses to compensate for his short-comings. People have not been anxious for his material since his marketing scheme feud with Kanye West in 2007, and even then their were whispers that his days as Hip-Hop’s biggest star were numbered. Maybe if he spent more time perfecting his craft rather than instigating conflict with other artists, he might be able to produce a quality LP like ‘Get Rich Or Die Trying’ instead of the filth that we have been subjected to for the last 5 years. Get it together 50.

Thoughts?

Check out the video for ‘I Like’, Keri Hilson‘s contribution to the soundtrack for German movie ‘Zweiohrküken’. Though nothing amazing per se, I’m quite liking the song. Kudos to Keri for expanding her profile outside of the US.

What do you think of the song / video?

The new-look Sugababes took to the stage at the BBC’s annual Children In Need special which aired last night. Amelle, Heidi and Jade gave their first live rendition of the Keisha-heavy ‘Get Sexy’, which to put it politely was passable at best. The vocals were a hot steaming mess – this coming from one who knows they can all sing. Their ‘About A Girl’ performance, which you can watch below, was marginally better, but still nothing to scream about. After watching this, it’s vividly clear that they need more time to gel as a group, because this was not the business.

What do you think of the performances?

The video for Janet Jackson‘s new single ‘Make Me’, the lead single from her ‘Number Ones’ compilation (out now), premiered a few moments ago on ABC’s 20/20. With the song and accompanying video seeming only to serve the purpose of promoting her greatest hits, I guess I was never expecting an-all out big budget affair, but I’d be deceiving myself and you if I said I wasn’t slightly disappointed. I can’t put my finger on why, but between the not-so-enthralling choreography and the overall so-so’ness of the clip, I found myself a tad underwhelmed. Ms. Jackson usually comes a lot harder. That said, in view of all that’s been going on, she kinda gets a pass. Here’s hoping she nails it with her hotly anticipated performance at Sunday’s American Music Awards, where she opens the star-studded event with an 8-minute medley.

What do you think of the video?

Singer/actress Jennifer Lopez has been hard at work preparing for her upcoming performance on the American Music Awards this Sunday, where she will be performing her new song ‘Louboutins’. In the mean time, however, the singer has decided to release the video her her ‘buzz’ single ‘Fresh Out The Oven’. The clip was directed by Jonas Åkerlund and features Pitbull. Lopez’s new album, ‘Love?’, hits stores on January 26th 2010.

As the video was made to support a promotional single, I can understand why the budget was not very expansive. However, given the fact that Lady Lo has not been present on the broadcast airwaves for such a long time, I assumed that she would have tried a bit harder to ensure that she made a bigger splash. Certainly the the lackluster response of radio to the track should have compelled her to produce something of greater substance. Either way, I eagerly await her performance this weekend; that is if Janet doesn’t give me a heart attack first.

Sidebar: Is anyone seeing all the similarities between Jennifer and Beyonce lately? The alter ego was one thing but that leopard print cat suit and heavy eye makeup looks awfully familiar…

Thoughts?

Chocolate contralto Toni Braxton released the music video for the remix of the first single off her upcoming album, ‘Yesterday‘. The clip was directed by Billie Woodruff and features Braxton’s collaborator on the track, Trey Songz. To date, ‘Yesterday’ has climbed to #49 on the Hip-Hop/R&B charts. Braxton’s new album, ‘Pulse’, hits stores in February 2010.

This video is the typical ‘recession special’ that has come to define the caliber of music videos given the current economy. Either way, there is no denying that Toni is possibly the beautiful woman in the music industry today – beautiful face, body, skin and voice. I am surprised that there wasn’t any more chemistry between her and Trey in the video though, especially given their recent passionate performance at the Soul Train Music Awards. I was really hoping to see more intimacy between the two, rather than having them in completely different shots without any interaction what so ever.

Sidebar: Toni’s wig collection sure got some air time in this video huh?

Thoughts?

Since launching That Grape Juice 2.0 the site’s traffic has almost doubled! While this has been a blessing, it’s dually also been a bit of a nag, as the site’s server has been experiencing difficulties in trying to cope with the increased traffic.

As a result, we’ll be moving to a more advanced server later today, so as to keep things afloat here at your favourite site and mine. If everything goes to plan, you won’t experience any difficulty accessing the site at all. However, if you do, continue to refresh the page until it comes up.

Thanks for your patience!

Remember, keep it locked on That Grape Juice!

UK media darling Cheryl Cole performed at the Children In Need concert, which aired on BBC1 yesterday, offering a ‘live’ rendition of smash single ‘Fight For This Love’.

I oft find myself quite torn with how I feel about Ms. Cole. The critic side of me knows she couldn’t sing her ABC’s in tune if she tried (as evidenced by this performance), yet the consumer side sees the spectacle and media-flooding, which is hard not to fall victim to. Either way, I doubt she cares too much; her album ‘Three Words’, though critically panned, has been certified Platinum here in the UK and her profile seems to be expanding with each passing day (see: X-Factor, L’Oreal).

What do you think of the performance?

After a lengthy hiatus Jennifer Lopez hoping make a dent on the music scene with new single ‘Louboutins’ (lifted from new album ‘Love?’) which premiered moments ago. Unfortunately for Ms. Jenny From The Block, this cut is…well…not cutting it. Repetitive lyrically and showing little in the way of vocal growth (something which IMO was necessary for Jennifer coming out this go round), the Tricky Stewart produced track’s only worthwhile offering is it’s stellar production which screams epic and ‘I’m back’. It such a shame that the rest of the track doesn’t.

Hearing this has me wondering what exactly is going on with her team, as the previously heard ‘Hooked On You’ was the epitome of fire on a track and a sure hit had it been released. In any case, whose to say this won’t be a grower (the ‘hook’, though redundant is quite catchy), particularly after her upcoming performance at the American Music Awards this Sunday.

Hit or Miss?

As many of you may know, we announced several  months back that you can now follow That Grape Juice on Twitter! Adding to the ever-expanding ways to be apart of the That Grape Juice community, our Twitter page allows you to receive up-to-the-minute updates about the latest posts on the site as well as what’s happening in the Urban Pop Culture world more generally.

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The That Grape Juice Facebook Group launched last year, as I’m sure many of you will know. Work, school, college, home, wherever; I’m sure many of you – like myself – spend a ridiculous amount of time on Facebook. Yes, it’s ‘that’ addictive!