While you were stuffing your gourd with turkey yesterday, Katherine McPhee was earning a paycheck at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Kath performed “Have It All” off her upcoming album Unbroken, standing on a colorful Jimmy Dean float that other Idol runner-up Adam Lambert would probably have felt more at home on. And if you had any doubts that Americans truly do not care if their performers lip-synch, check out the clip above. (Though Kath certainly wasn’t the only one guilty of mouthing the words in front of millions of freezing New Yorkers.) Other heavily-mimed T-Day performances after the jump: More »
This week’s installment in the sorta-halfhearted scuffle between songs that are biding time at the top of the Hot 100 until the Black Eyed Peas return to the No. 1 slot for the kajillionth week this year: Jay Sean’s “Down” reclaimed the top spot after last week’s No. 1, Britney Spears’ Real Dollish “3,” sagged in sales by 33% and fell to No. 5. (It’s gaining in airplay, though, so don’t count her out just yet.) Rounding out the top 5 is a trio of familiar tunes to any chart-watcher: Jason DeRulo’s “Whatcha Say” (No. 2), Miley Cyrus’ “Party In The U.S.A.” (No. 3), and the Jay-Z/Rihanna/Kanye collab “Run This Town” (No. 4). [Billboard] More »
So apparently that cryptic message about Nov. 23 left on Rihanna’s Web site last night was not about anything egg-related, despite its use of “ova”; instead, it was meant to be a signal that the Barbadian singer’s still-untitled fourth studio album will come out on that day. That’s the Monday before Thanksgiving, and the Monday before the holiday-shopping season kicks in. And to celebrate, Universal Music Group is apparently readying six big-name releases for that day! The list of “Super Monday” albums, via Rap-Up: More »
Remember Lost in Space? What a timeless film: William Hurt, Mimi Rogers, Heather Graham, and TV greats Lacey Chabert and Matt LeBlanc. Back in 1998, there was such excitement for this cinematic recreation of the classic ’60s CBS series.
What’s that? You say you don’t remember this bit of Clinton-era movie magic? Or…you do, vaguely — but you seem to recall that it kind of blew chunks?
Well, how could that be? After all, Lost in Space was the movie that evicted Titanic, the highest-grossing and Oscar-winningest movie of all time, from the top of the U.S. box office after a record-setting, still unbeaten run.
This bit of throwaway trivia (regarding a movie that, all kidding aside, was a serious flop) leaps to mind as I consider the song that finally terminates the Black Eyed Peas’ half-year run atop the Billboard Hot 100.
Jay Sean’s “Down,” to be fair, isn’t half as bad a song as Lost in Space was a movie. It’s a pleasant little ditty, a Chris Brown‒like midtempo jam with a not-embarrassing supporting rap from prodigal chart hero Lil Wayne. London native Sean — born Kamaljit Singh Jhooti — also earns the happy status as one of the few people of South Asian descent to top our singles chart, after a successful half-decade career hitting charts in the United Kingdom and India.
Still, there’s no question that the Hot 100 win by “Down,” over a very competitive field of songs-in-waiting, has less to do with love for the track than with the Peas at last letting go. Jay Sean should enjoy the victory he’s eked out, because it will likely be short-lived. More »
Yes, it’s true: Jay Sean’s Lil Wayne-assisted R & B track “Down” will be your No. 1 single beginning tomorrow, evicting the Black Eyed Peas from their 26-week run at the top of the Hot 100 and answering the question plaguing many will.i.am-weary chart-watchers for so, so long. The question, of course, is this: Can you hum a few bars of the British crooner’s debut single? Sure, it may be the most-played-song on radio, but that doesn’t necessarily mean “widespread recognition” in 2009’s crazy pop-music marketplace. A video of the track, and a few fun facts about the singer with which you can impress your friends at parties, after the jump! More »
