Mary J. Blige made a promotional appearance on ‘The Ellen Degeneres Show’ recently. The singer performed ‘I Am’, the new single from her ‘Stronger With Each Tear’ album. The song has thus far peaked at #13 on the Hip-Hop/R&B chart and #65 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Every time Blige performs this song, I grow to like it even more. The raw yet honest vocals display a singer who isn’t afraid to ‘go there’ on stage, without worrying too much about how she looks or sounds. A true performer.

Thoughts?

Kelis was spotted out and about in London recently. The singer is currently preparing to release her new LP, ‘Flesh Tones’ this year. Peep more pics below:

What do you think of the pics?

Despite being the target of accusations by her former backup singers band members, a new track as emerged from Nicole Scherzinger. The Akon-assited song is entitled ‘By My Side’. There is no word on whether this will be included on her upcoming solo project, ‘Her Name Is Nicole’, which is set to hit stores this year.

Backed by such solid production and thumping beats, one would assume that Nicole has a hit on her hands. However, the hook is almost inaudible and very difficult to understand. Furthermore, her voice in the chorus sounds like she was trying very hard to imitate Leona Lewis. Add that to Akon’s surprisingly lazy and uninspired verse, and I can easily see why her solo album is yet to hit stores. Next.

Hit or Miss?

With sales surpassing 100 million records worldwide, Janet Jackson is ranked as one of the best-selling artists of  contemporary music. As the youngest of the famous Jackson clan, she was primed for success from a young age; geared to follow in the footsteps of her elder brothers. However, Janet blazed her own trail in the industry, and at her peak, she even managed to overshadow the successes of her brother Michael.

Nonetheless, fortune has not shined its favour on Janet in recent times. She hasn’t had a top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in over 9 years and her album sales struggle to achieve platinum status; arguably as an implication of her infamous Superbowl performance in 2004. In addition, Janet faced several other problems, including illness, an unsuccessful world tour, label conflicts and, of course, the death of her brother.

Interestingly, it seems that Michael’s passing has given Janet new life. Her recent single ‘Make Me’ became her 19th #1 song to top the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs and she has once again peaked public interest with her live performances. Indeed, Janet is once again in high demand by audiences, with magazines and other mass media outlets eager to catch a glimpse of her during her rare public appearances. As harsh as it sounds, it seems that with his passing, Michael has set the stage for his sister to reestablish herself as one of the few acts who can rightfully claim the title of  the Queen of Pop.

Conversely, the following questions remain: is Janet finally primed to return to the top of the charts after a string of commercial and personal disappointments? Or will she continue to fade into the past after the public’s fascination surrounding her brother’s death has subsided? Anything is possible at this point but one thing is certain: Ms. Jackson is undoubtedly ‘a diva on the verge’.

Do you think Janet finally ready to return to the top

of the charts?

It seems that Rihanna is working on a new album, or at least a repackaged version of her ‘Rated R‘ LP. The news come forth from Ke$ha who recently revealed that she has written a song for the imitation singer’s next project. Check out an excerpt from her interview below:

The 22-year-old singer, who released her debut album Animal last week, has penned a song for Rihanna. “I just wrote a song for Rihanna,” Ke$ha told BRAVO WebTV. While she didn’t divulge details, she did say that she “hopes” it will appear on RiRi’s next project. {Source}

Although conclusive details weren’t provided, it seems that the wheels have begun turning on Rihanna’s next release (as predicted by Sam last week). ‘Rated R’ has become the model’s fastest selling album to date, having already passed the 1 million mark on the worldwide tally. However, as her label proved with ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’, her team is keen to try their best to milk this project for everything it’s worth. That is a wise move because the attempted singer is not getting any younger, thus they better beat the iron while it’s hot before her looks begin to resemble her voice.

Thoughts?

Yet another track from Christina Milian’s recent studio sessions has emerged. ‘Welcome To Vegas’ was produced by Tricky Stewart and written by her husband, The-Dream. ‘Elope’ is still awaiting a release date.

This is the best track come forth from Milian in a long time. Despite the song sounding very similar to The-Dream’s personal material, it is different from her previously released music, including yesterday’s ‘I’m Sexy’. However, I am still waiting to hear Milian apply this experimentation to her vocals. Thus far, she has been using a lot of restraint and not pushing her voice. Hopefully, there are ballads on the album that show growth in her voice as well.

Hit or Miss?

Pop phenomenon Lady GaGa will further cement her place as music royalty with an appearance on the legendary Oprah Winfrey Show. Executive Producer for the  renown show, Sheri Salata, confirmed the news on Twitter a few hours. While it’s currently unknown when exactly the show will air, it has been revealed that GaGa’s appearance will be taped this Friday in Chicago. {Source}

As OTT as it may sound, I really feel we’re witness someone legendary in-the-making with GaGa. Not for a long while has there been an artist who has managed to captivate the industry to the level which GaGa has in such a short space of time – a feat I’m sure attracted Oprah producers to wanting her on the show in the first place. In any case, it’ll be interesting to see whether she’ll be in ‘character’ or if we’ll get a rare glimpse into the person behind the GaGa persona.

Your thoughts?

With Omarion‘s new LP ‘Ollusion’ set to hit stores tomorrow, it’s perhaps no surprise that the former B2K star picked today to debut the video for his latest single ‘Speedin’. Though rather glossy the clip is pretty much standard-fare. However, the song is good enough to warrant much chart success IMO – and certainly the most deserving of his recent material. Whether or not it does in actuality perform well will be interesting to see.

What do you think of the song / video?

The hotly anticipated video for soulful singer Sade‘s new single ‘Soldier of Love’ premiered today. Simple, classy and elegant, the clip is really befitting to both the song and Sade as an artist. I like.

Sade’s first album in over a decade, also titled ‘Soldier of Love’, hits stores February 8th in the UK and February 9th in the US.

What do you think of the video?

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Check out episode 11 of the hilarious ‘Cleveland Show’.

Enjoy!

Christina Milian enters new territory with her latest track to surface from her delayed ‘Elope’ LP entitled ‘I’m Sexy’. The song was written by her hit-making husband The-Dream and produced by Tricky Stewart. There is still no word on when ‘Elope’ will hit stores.

Though her vocals initially sound quite jarring in the midst of the beats, I sense that Milian has stumbled upon something very interesting with this one. The record is definitely different from anything put forward by her before and it seems that she has made a staunch effort this time around to distinguish herself from her peers (Beyonce, Rihanna). I am more than ready to hear the full album whenever it drops.

Hit or Miss?

Check out episode 1 of R&B star Fantasia‘s brand new VH1 reality series ‘Fantasia For Real’ below. Having just watched the show – which premieres on TV this coming Monday – I must say I’m already hooked! As well as the drama (namely the fact she’s taking care of six people financially) and the musical side of things, Fantasia has such a radiant personality that one can’t help but warm to her – and be certain to tune in to the next episode. Good stuff.

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Your thoughts?