OK, back in 2003 when I was huminahumina years old I was a TRL junkie. A little old for Carson Daly and boy band mania, but I wasn't allowed to watch MTV as a kid so I had to make up for lost time.
Anyhoo, I remember this Canadian pop/rock singer (kinda like Avril with a darker complexion) named Fefe Dobson and single "Take Me Away" which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 at a dismal 87. I loved it. I had the album. Her career never really took off, and attaching her single to the Scarlett Johansson/Chris Evans bomb The Perfect Score didn't help.
She managed to get a few songs from a scrapped second album recorded by teen-pop stars like Jordin Sparks, Hannah Montana and Selene Gomez & The Scene before recording a new album. Her newest release, Joy, came out in November and the lead single "Stutterin'" goes in a more poppy style like The Veronicas or Aly & AJ. I'm kinda digging it. Thoughts?
Trashy Thursdays will be happening every Thursday and will feature the trashy pop songs I kinda love. Don't get it twisted, I think pop music is an art form. But like all art, there are brilliant artistic works that are fresh and dynamic and new as well as less inspired pieces of art. Sometimes those less inspired bits are as much fun as the "good" stuff, that's why we're getting trashy!
Remember when a extremely distraught teenage twink told us all to "LEEEEEEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!"? I do. Chris Crocker was an web superstar, even before then, and he's released a few singles along the way. Like all interweb personalities tend to do (see also Tila Tequila.) He has a new single called "Freak Of Nature" and the video is freaky. Probably not safe for work, but worth watching at home...
There are lots of superstars and indie faves slated to release new albums this year!
The one I'm most excited for is Lady Gaga's Born This Way, due May 23. Elton John says the title track will be a gay anthem like no other, that single releases on the eve of Valentines Day and rumor has it Gaga will be performing it at the Grammy's that night. Her last two albums have been nothing short of perfect, and I expect good thing!
Another Pictures & Conversations fave, the legendary Ms. Britney Spears, has just released a lead single from her as-yet-untitled seventh studio album. "Hold It Against Me" leaves a good taste in my mouth for the rest of the album, especially if her producers continue in this dub-step vein. Rumored to release March 15.
No Doubt are set to release a new one this year as well. Details are skimpy, and I can't help but wonder if Gwen Stefani's solo work will be an influence on the bands sound.
Other pop stars rumored to be releasing new shizzle in 2011 are Beyonce and Kelly Clarkson. Let's hope there are no "Already Gone"/"Halo" issues this go round! Also, new discs from Avril Lavigne, Gorrillaz and comedy music troupe The Lonely Island. Amy Winehouse in performing again, which may lead to a new album. From a less glossy pop world, I'm very excited for new music from Adele. Her sophomore disc 21 comes out in less than two weeks. "Rolling In The Deep" landed on my top songs of last year, it's a departure from "Hometown Glory" and "Chasing Pavements" but feels like it comes from the same headspace.
Santigold and Patrick Wolf have albums in the works, and REM is slated to release Collapse Into Now this spring.
From the rap scene, Jay-Z and Kanye West have teamed for a EP called Watch The Throne. I'm not sure I can handle any more Yeezy. But what about Wheezy? The prolific Lil Wayne is also working on a possible new album.
Did you ever get the feeling a rapper is just filling a couple bars with idiotic nonsense for C.R.E.A.M.? What, they all do it? Well, let's explore:
"I heard you good with them soft lips" Aww, thanks. I pride myself on my ability to... kiss. Wink, nudge.
"Yeah, you know word of mouth" Word of mouth? Ah! It's a pun. You're so funny. Or should I say punny.
"The square root of 69 is 8 something" You're a math whiz, it's actually 8.30662386. I had to Google that. I'm not sure what point you're trying to make?
"Cuz I've been tryina work it out, Aaaah" Really? Couldn't finish that line, so you went with throat exam sound effects? Unless maybe you bruise your esophagus 69ing. Yeah, I got your dirty joke, Drakey poo.
"Good weed, white wine" You know what? I thought you said Good Weave. I thought it was tip on a hair salon.
"I come alive in the night time, okay, away we go" Where we going? Where we going?
"Only thing we have on is the radio" Way to steal a double entendre from country star Gary Allan. Jeez, Drake.
"ooooh, let it play, say you gotta leave but I know you wanna stay" Yes, cuz this pick up line contest is just getting me all hot and bothered.
"You just waiting on the traffic jam to finish, girl" Wait, I thought it was nighttime? Is there a Penn State game?
"The things we could do in twenty minutes, girl" Really? Twenty minutes? Some kind of stud you are. And did you just rhyme "girl" with "girl?" I am disappoint.
"Wear it out, its getting hot, crack a window, air it out" Aww, what did I tell you about queefing in bed? You're gross, Drake.
"I can get you through a mighty long day" Why, you got a mighty long... cup of coffee?
"Soon as you go the text that I write is gonna say..." Say what? SAY WHAT? Finish your thoughts before you drift off in post-coital slumber.
PS: Does anyone else wonder why Rihanna keeps asking her Nana what her name is? Can't she just look on her album cover? Does she have memory loss as a result of dating Chris Brown? Someone help her!
The lyrics are classic Britney: tarty, flirty and bouncy. Yeah, the chorus is a repeat of a classic pick up line, but who cares? I'm kinda digging it. And she looks so pretty in the single cover.
OK people! I have been writer's blocked (pick a reason: too happy in love to write/semi-stupefied with depression/kidnapped by vampires that sparkle/all of the above) for too long! So here goes my favorite blog exercise: list-making!
30. "Sticky With Champagne" - Semi-Precious Weapons You Love You Glam rock upstarts who toured with Lady Gaga (bisexual lead singer Justin Tranter is a friend) released their second album, which featured this ode to debauchery that is so rock n roll.
29. "Do It Like A Dude" - Jessie J Who You Are Girls going off over gender-based double standards is nothing new. Remember Xtina and Lil' Kim's "Can't Hold Us Down"? But no one has made it sound so dirty and raw as Jessie J. Her first single, a hit in the UK, comes on the heels of songwriting credits for songs like "Party In The USA."
28. "Need You Now" - Lady Antebellum Need You Now Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme. Breaking up is hard to do, but staying broken up when you're drunk and horny? Impossible. Making all that sounds sweet and beautiful? Lady A's job. Not mine.
27. "Sex & Violence" - Scissor Sisters Night Work The 80s are calling, they are telling the Scissor Sisters to keep their sound. They do it better, anyway.
26. "Radioactive" - Kings Of Leon Come Around Sundown That buzzing bass, that joyful chorus, that beat. "Radioactive" is just power, man.
25. "Animal" - Neon Trees Habits Neon Trees are filling that void that The Killers left when they got all Midwestern Realness on us. An ode to animalistic rutting that have lit the pop charts on fire, "Animal" is dancable rock at it's most rocking. Plus, they have a chick drummer. I love that.
24. "A Year Without Rain" - Selena Gomez & The Scene A Year Without Rain
Perfect techno is so hard to do. Either it's too shrill or the beat plods on. Sometimes it sounds just thrown together to get gay guys on the floor at the club. But that's what makes "A Year Without Rain" so perfect. Sure, the lyrical concept is ripped from Everything But The Girl but that just makes it even more awesome. I kinda have a girl crush on Selena. She's so pretty.
23. "Raise Your Glass" - P!nk Greatest Hits... So Far!! P!nk gives it up for the underdog with a toast to everyone who has ever been "treated like a fool." All too perfect for this moment in time.
22. "Jar Of Hearts" - Christina Perri Album TBA After being featured on So You Think You Can Dance, this unsigned pop singer/songwriter had a hit on her hands with this stunning piano and violin ballad. Christina pours out the heartbreak in the aftermath of a selfish lover.
21. "U Should Know Better" - Robyn & Snoop Dogg Body Talk Pt 2 and Body Talk Trading brags like old school trashing talking MCs, Swedish pop sensation and Dee Oh Double Jizzle get more and more ridiculous.
20. "Barbra Streisand" - Duck Sauce Album TBA
A strange twisted instrumental with two lyrics: a melodious "ooh" and "Barbara Streisand." The quintessential New Yorker serves as a springboard for this bouncy house tune that brings out all the hipsters for the video.
19. "Monster" - Kanye West feat Bon Iver, Rick Ross, Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy 'Ye has an ego bigger than Frankenstein's monster and an appetite for applause that would make Dracula blush. But he has the drive for success and a talent to back it up. But here, Nicki Minaj shines brighter than the blood dripping from the Wolfman's teeth. Every line a threat, every word spoken so eloquently and full of venom, she is Medusa and Lady Gaga rolled in one. "Pink wig, thick ass, give 'em whiplash" Points off for Jay-Z phoning it in and way too much use of the N-word.
18. "All The Lovers" - Kylie Minogue Aphrodite
Sleek Euro-disco from the queen of sleek Euro-Disco.
17. "Only Girl In The World" - Rihanna Loud I may have been the only person in the world to like the darkness of Rihanna's Rated R, but I was quite pleased with her return to the dancefloor. When I hear this song, I feel like the only girl in the world.
16. "King Of Anything" - Sara Bareilles Kaleidoscope Heart Some people are asses. Smug, self-righteous know-it-alls who will not shut up. But enough about me. Let's talk about Sara's brilliant and, dare I say, sunny kiss-off to such a prick. Piano pop is so passive agressive.
15. "Fuck You" - Cee Lo Green The Lady Killer As a child I was so sheltered I thought the "f-word" was "fart." As an adult, I found it a powerful word, used best when you want to nail a point home. Clearly, Cee Lo has a point. Stax horns and Motown background vocals have never created a break up song so angry until now.
14. "Bed Intruder Song" - Antoine Dodson & The Gregory Brothers feat Kelly Dodson iTunes Single
Antoine was my hero after pulling an attempted rapist off his sister and then going off on the idiot on the news. Then came the brilliant remix of said interview that took internet fame to the Billboard charts and my playlists.
13. "Your Love" - Nicki Minaj Pink Friday Nicki's raps on her debut album may not match the guest verses she's been throwing out all year, but when you rely so heavily on a sample from Annie Lennox and include a chorus that is one part sweet and one part hard you can't help but love it.
12. "Like A G6" - Far*East Movement feat. Cataracs & Dev Free Wired Have you ever felt like you lost a few brain cells listening to a song, but couldn't stop listening? That's the story of "Like A G6" - a beat like a taut rubberband and rap that could be in Chinese for all I care about it. The hook is mere white-girl gang posturing, leaving a song with as much substance as Cool Whip. And I keep coming back for another spoonful.
11. "Rolling In The Deep" - Adele 21
If you ever looked at my music collection, you know I love a slow-burning torch song. The lead single from Adele's 2011 album is torchy and sung with a confidence not found on 19. Perhaps she's grown up? Add a great beat and piano and I am hooked.
10. "Alejandro" - Lady Gaga The Fame Monster Lady G may never make a single as fabulous as "Bad Romance" but stealing from Swedish pop masters ABBA for a title and Ace Of Base for a melody isn't a shabby way to create magic. The video may have been too crazy by half, but the song grabs you by the hair and will not let go.
9. "Whip My Hair" - Willow Album TBA
Oh, Scientology! You do create some adorable moppets. See also: Suri Cruise. Who knew a 9-year-old would force us all to risk whiplash just to get our groove on? I don't condone child labor, but I cannot resist!
8. "Shark In the Water" - V.V. Brown Travelling Like The Light The Fauxtown boom led by Amy Winehouse may be winding down, but that doesn't mean we should retire our tambourines just yet. This light and airy pop-soul single from the British Ms. Brown is a gem.
7. "We R Who We R" - Ke$ha Cannibal
Even though the trashiest pop singer since Paris Hilton (oh snap!) can't spell to save her life, and never met a glitter-based make-up product she didn't love, I find her blend of party-hearty techno and love-everybody neo-hippie message refreshing. "We R Who We R" stands in solidarity with bullied youths, and the videos image of K-Dolla falling from a building but being caught by her fans is beautiful. In a totally trashy way.
6. "Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)" - Alicia Keys The Element Of Freedom Alicia has always has a brilliant knack for pop sounds that don't bury the soul in her voice and lyrics. This smooth-as-glass production is full of mood and a quietly dark beauty.
5. "Heavy In Your Arms" - Florence + The Machine The Twilight Saga: Eclipse Soundtrack Taylor Lautner's well-honed abs are not the only good thing to come from the filmed version of Stephanie Meyer's bestselling novels. This cut from the soundtrack to the third film is cinematic in scope, and it's little wonder Flo's debut album was called Lungs, the girl has plenty of power residing there.
4. "If I Die Young" - The Band Perry The Band Perry
Country music has always depended on melancholic songs that reflect a belief in the hereafter, but none did it in such an emo way as The Band Perry on their debut single. After the recent trend of teen suicides, the song takes on an even sadder tone.
3. "Naturally" - Selena Gomez & The Scene Kiss & Tell
Produced by the same outfit as fellow Disney star Miley Cyrus's "See You Again," "Naturally" is teen dance pop at its catchiest! The pulsing beat, Selena's sweet vocals and that chorus that just won't stop ringing in your brain are a deadly combo.
2. "Invisible Light" - Scissor Sisters Night Work If adding Ian McKellen to your Stuart Price-helmed epic story-song of debauched clubbing isn't gay enough for you, then you're too demanding. The sleek dance sound is the Sisters' at the best.
1. "Dancing On My Own" - Robyn Body TalkPt. 1 and Body Talk
From the first of her three EPs this year come this tribute to the "sad gay disco songs" Robyn loves. Sheer pop beauty, sad yet dancable at the same time, "Dancing On My Own" secedes her prior UK smashes "With Every Heartbeat" and "Be Mine!" as the soundtrack for heartbreak.
In the wake of teen suicides nationwide, it's easy to wonder where these teens can turn. For the first time that I can recall, pop radio may hold the answer.
OK, I may be putting pop songs on a pedestal, but pop stars are releasing songs that people can dance and sing along with but also encourage young people who are bullied without being schmaltzy. And while these are not the newest themes, as Christina Aguilera and Cyndi Lauper would be quick to remind you, this is the first time I've seen a recurring theme of singles and album tracks that are directed at bullied youth (and LGBT ones in particular.)
That naughty trash-pop minx Ke$ha tells Entertainment Weekly that her mini-album Cannibal's lead single "We R Who We R" is intended to be a pride anthem, a "celebration of any sort of quirks or eccentricities." It's also a lot of fun to dance to, as well:
Meanwhile, Katy Perry's tumultuous relationship with the gay community takes a turn for the better with the "Fireworks" - a Jack Kerouac-referencing ditty of empowerment, with boys kissing in the video:
Over in P!nk's world, one of two news songs included on the US release of her Greatest Hits... So Far!!! album is "Raise Your Glass." Besides quoting the Joker, this anthem for underdogs and sundry other "dirty little freaks" continues P!nk's strong commitment to gay rights. She performs the song at a gay wedding in the video for the song:
The Facebook Generation's songwriter of record, Taylor Swift includes the song "Mean" on her platinum-selling disc Speak Now. It's a simple tale of childhood bullies left in the dust as Taylor goes on to selling a million-plus CDs in a week. "Someday I'll be big enough that you can't hit me" the country-pop cutie sings, and I pray that troubles kids are singing along. Because it's true!
I'm still on the fence about Eminem and Lil' Wayne's Haddaway-sampling single "No Love" The video is heartbreaking, but as usual Wayne and Em can't control their potty-mouth, including both racial and homosexual slurs in the rhymes. Thoughts?
Let's clean our ears out with some very positive music from Broadway cast members! The proceeds from the iTunes downloads of "It Gets Better" directly benefits The Trevor Project, the only national suicide prevention hotline for LGBT youth. It's very inspirational and catchy, too!
And we cannot forget the classics, Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors" has been a source of inspiration for gay people for years. In support of the "It Gets Better" project, the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles performed the song. Truly beautiful!
Of course, you know Lady Gaga will be weighing in soon...
