Jamie Foxx started his career as a comedian, then became an actor, then a movie star, and lately he’s keeping himself busy putting the finishing touches on his upcoming fourth studio album, Body. (His timing could hardly be better—he just drew three Grammy nominations and his last Oscar-baiting role in The Soloist barely made a dent in the public’s consciousness—or their wallets.)
Truth is, as far as his music career goes, Foxx isn’t doing too badly at all: “Blame It,” from his previous LP Intuition, dominated the charts this year, in spite—or was it because—of its unhealthiness. Now he’s teamed up with Justin Timberlake for the track “Winner,” and although we’d prefer seeing this duo pair up on the big-screen in some off-the-walls comedy (we know they’ve both got the chops), their audio collaboration is pretty respectable, too. Check out the horn-blaring track behind the jump, and keep in mind that the third verse of the still-in-progress song has yet to be filled—may we suggest Susan Boyle? More »
In the weekend following Michael Jackson’s death at 50, many radio stations across the country switched to all-MJ playlists. The New York station I had tuned into sprinkled moments from his career into the wall-to-wall playings of “Remember The Time” and “Jam,” and among them was his younger sister Janet’s speech to her brother when he accepted the Grammys’ Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993: “I just want to tell you how proud I am of you, and how much you’ve inspired me, and how proud I am to be your sister,” she told him. “I love you.” It made seeing her eulogize her brother on last night’s BET Awards–a pop star in her own right obviously grieving, trying to be composed and “professional”–even more gutting than it probably already would have been. (A clip of the Grammy moment is after the jump; it begins at the 2:30 mark.) More »
The most notable move on any of Billboard‘s flagship singles charts this week isn’t on the Hot 100, where the Black Eyed Peas make it a month at No. 1 with the tiresome “Boom Boom Pow.”
Instead, over on the normally snoozy Modern Rock chart, a veteran band makes the second-biggest leap to No. 1 in a decade and a half, and in the process breaks out of a tie with U2 for the second-biggest roster of penthouse-dwellers in this chart’s history.
I’m speaking of Green Day, a band with arguably the most daunting challenge of any act in post-millennial rock (especially since Axl Rose finally got Chinese Democracy out of his system): following up an album that hit the trifecta of popular success, critical acclaim and industry recognition.
Scoring a No. 1 hit right away at radio sets up that forthcoming album nicely. But a close examination of the erstwhile Bay Area punkers’ chart history indicates that this quick score doesn’t necessarily mean much as a predictor of Green Day’s success. More »
You know who’s coming back to perform on tonight’s American Idol? Taylor Hicks, the season-five winner whose and angered Simon Cowell for his lack of “bona fide recording artist” credentials. But you know who one of Cowell’s top picks to go all the way is this year? Danny Gokey, whose overall stage presence keeps reminding me of Hicks–only Gokey has a little less polish, a lot more smugness, and a super-extensive eyewear collection. Last night’s parade of Rat Pack songs was no exception, yet Cowell seemed in the tank for Gokey anyway, continuing his press tour rantings about the Wisconsin worship leader’s singing ability even though there were at least three other singers who completely owned him on the Idol stage. More »
In today’s wrapup of lunchtime headlines: Jamie Foxx and Def Leppard try to cross over on TV, the Rothbury festival gets even greener, and Pete Doherty might not be all that healthy! More »
Amazon has entered the world of charging $1.29 for certain songs, following the lead taken by iTunes yesterday and rendering somewhat irrelevant the snarky remarks of Diggsters. By and large, iTunes’ pricing scheme has resulted in popular songs having their prices jacked up; in contrast, if there’s some logic to which songs saw a hike on Amazon, I’m certainly not seeing it.
Sir Mix-A-Lot‘s ode to ladies’ larger-than-life posteriors “Baby Got Back” is now being used to sell kiddie meals for Burger King, with the help of SpongeBob SquarePants and the masked Burger King who’s been a staple of the fast-food emporium’s commercials since the subservient chicken era. How did a song that was seen as kind of racy when it was first released make the evolution to kid-testedness and motherly approval? Come with me as I take you on a Flash video-aided ride through “Baby Got Back”‘s hold on the world’s consciousness.
The Hype Williams-directed video for Jamie Foxx‘s ode to the deleterious effects of alcohol, “Blame It,” seems to focus on two things: the color red and bizarre celebrity cameos. In the credit sequence (yep), Jarhead costar Jake Gyllenhaal, Forest Whitaker, Ron Howard, and Jamie Foxx are highlighted, but there are plenty more to come. Wait. Ron Howard?! Yep, Opie Cunningham himself.
Obviously, we need to talk about the new song that takes over the top of Billboard‘s Hot 100, and the mind-blowing record it sets.
But before we do that, let’s talk about Hilary Swank.
I find Swank’s movie career totally incomprehensible: She either wins Oscars, or she tanks. Not even Meryl Streep has won two Best Actress statues, yet in under a decade Swank has gone to that podium twice, like some kind of modern-day Katharine Hepburn. You’d think that would make her one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, or at least its most respected. Sure, she wins roles in some blockbuster-type stuff (The Core) or prestige-like stuff (The Black Dahlia), but these movies are invariably flops. Swank’s successes seem to have had no impact on her career, or the way she’s regarded by the general public. She’s some kind of metaphor for the in-and-out nature of post-millennial fame.
All this leaps to my mind when I consider Flo Rida, the rapper who reaches No. 1 on the Hot 100 for the second time, with the kind of sales total that you’d think would make Lil Wayne, Kanye West or Jay-Z bow respectfully.
But if I were them, I wouldn’t. Because after all, who is this clown? How did Flo Rida become the Hilary Swank of pop music?
