Okay, that was Tracy Jordan, not R. Kelly, but it may as well be. R. Kelly dropped his song “Pregnant” off his upcoming album Untitled (seriously, Kel? You couldn’t think of one thing to call it?). The slow jam features The-Dream, Robin Thicke, and, yes, even model-turned-actor-turned rapper Tyrese. Hey, why not! Everybody come on board, it’s a party! In fact, that’s exactly how R. Kelly wrote his album—nonstop partying. More »
Another song off Usher’s indefinitely postponed album Raymond vs. Raymond dropped, and this one’s called “In My Bag” (it also features T.I.). The newly divorced Ush starts the mid-tempo club song off by declaring he’s “single and I’m ready to mingle” with “women I barely know.” That’s a little bit classier than telling the world you’re “ready to sign them papers” while your divorce is still being finalized, as well as not-so-subtly naming your album to reflect the messy feud with your ex-wife. (Hey, at least he’s writing music as opposed to writing out a ranting blog post against his ex like other musicians are wont to do.)
Track after the jump! More »
The suspense surrounding the John Mayer/50 Cent/Kris Allen/Norah Jones/Justin Bieber/Leona Lewis battle ended today, as Billboard has reported the Top 200 Albums chart positions for the new entries.
It’s probably no surprise that John Mayer landed at #1 after selling 286,000 copies of Battle Studies. However, Kris Allen’s chart debut might make a few of the American Idol winner’s fans live like they’re dying—or just drop dead in general. More »
Adam Lambert trotted onto CBS’s Early Show this morning, after ABC canceled his scheduled Good Morning America appearance. Hopefully you weren’t expecting the American Idol runner-up to issue an apology for his so-called raunchy American Music Awards performance on Sunday night—because that clearly wasn’t gonna happen.
“I’m not a babysitter,” Lambert said, when asked if he felt he should apologize to his child fans who may have been watching the AMAs. “I’m a performer.”
Catch Adam’s interview and performances below. More »
Are those leggings with knee spikes that Alicia Keys is donning on the (possibly fan made?) cover art for “Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down”? Is the shoulder spike fad that populated the AMAs already on its way out? Alicia Keys’ voice soars here like it did on the original “Empire State Of Mind,” as we already heard in a live performance of the song last week. But now that the official track list for The Element Of Freedom has appeared on Keys’ official site, it seems that the rumored Jay-Z rap on this version was just that—a rumor.
Listen to “Empire State Of Mind (Part II) Broken Down” after the jump. More »
Kudos to PopJustice for tipping the planet off to Ellie Goulding and Erik Hassle’s quite lovely cover of Robyn’s “Be Mine!” The frantic strings and urgent beats that punctuated the pixie-coiffed singer’s original version are swapped out here for an acoustic guitar. And you know what? Not only does it work in its own right, it offers a neat reminder that Robyn can write some heart-rending lyrics.
Yes, we know lots of up-and-comers perform covers to get attention, but we still applaud Hassle (an emerging Swedish talent) and “Girl Wonder” Goulding (a Welsh chanteuse) for displaying some great taste. Have a listen after the jump: More »
Wait, this is how to defuse controversy? Oh that’s right—they’re not really trying to. Adam Lambert’s council of advisors picked a rather opportune moment to release the vid for his lead single, “For Your Entertainment.” The vid — which initally looked plenty debaucherous — is a lot less provocative than his American Music Awards performance. But there’s certainly no shortage of seductive smirks, eyebrow raises, male-and-female flirting, and tons of snake-handling—no, not that snake handling. Check out the sex-ay video after the jump. More »
Coldplay may be on a “break,” but justlikethat the band’s bassist, Guy Berryman, has emerged with a side project: Apparatjik (which we’ll probably pronounce incorrectly every single time), which plans to move swiftly—the band has already e-mailed its first song to select fans and is aiming to release its debut album next week. Some break. More »
As a pre-Thanksgiving weekend treat, The Muppets Studio has gifted the world with The Muppets covering Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” complete with their own take of the iconic video. Why? Who cares why. It exists, and you should be thankful just for that.
Amazing video after the jump (though, to be nitpicky, we’re curious what the Muppets could do with the more current “Bad Romance” or “Russian Roulette” vids). More »
If nothing else, Adam Lambert has pretty much guaranteed that no one is talking about Kris Allen this week. After his simulated sex extravaganza on ABC’s broadcast of the American Music Awards, the American Idol runner-up has been officially un-invited from a planned appearance on the network’s Good Morning America program tomorrow. More »
