Single Review: Britney Spears x Iggy Azalea, ‘Pretty Girls’

Pictures surfaced of a video shoot for Britney Spears upcoming single featuring Iggy Azalea that was to be titled ‘Pretty Girls.’ The pictures were quite interesting based off the tacky attire. Well fans waiting for a Britney comeback get their wish as the track has surfaced and that means that the video has to be on its way.

Britney hasn’t released any new music since Britney Jean in 2013. That album spawned the chart topper ‘Work Bitch.’ What couldve been a sure comeback didn’t get much buzz past that single. Her album before that, 2011s Femme Fatale had more buzz with hits: ‘Hold It Against Me,’ ‘Till The World Ends,’ and ‘I Wanna Go.’ Well she’s back and is teaming up with 2014 superstar Iggy Azalea. The track could be a huge smash or a flop. I wasn’t expecting much from it, but I’m impressed from what I’ve heard.

When the track began I instantly thought Gwen Stefani. Speaking of, both she and Fergie had less than stellar comebacks. The tone that Britney said the hook to the song over the beat reminded me of ‘Hollaback Girl.’ Not musically, just how it was said. The beat switched up a little bit as the song went on, but I’m not the biggest fan of it. It sounded more promising in the beginning of the song.

The lyrics are suitable and catchy enough for me to sing along to.

All around the world, pretty girls
Jump the line, to the front
Do what we like, get what we want
We’re just so pretty!

How could you not keep up with lyrics like that? Britney goes on to sing about how the predictable men are and how amazing women are. Guys have the same rotation and chase the “pretty girls” (pun intended). The lyrics are pretty basic, but this is a radio friendly song so they don’t need to be complex.

Iggy merges 3 tracks: ‘Killing Me Softly,’ ‘One More Chance,’ and ‘…Baby One More Time’ in her rhymes. She’s pretty clever in her raps although people just slaughter her on social media. Her bars worked and fit the flow of the song. I’m interested in hearing some new solo music from Iggy Igz.

Don’t expect to see Britney performing this track full out anytime soon since she’s currently injured due to a slip during her Vegas residency. As for fans that have yet to see her, she’s extended her show, Britney: Piece of Me, for an additional three months.

Listen to the track below:

This Week In Music (V.30): Top of the Charts + New Music

Welcome to another edition of This Week In Music. Let’s talk top of the charts, posts of the week, and new music. First up, incase you’ve missed it, check out my posts of the week below:

• Fire Meet Gasoline
• New Music: Hits & Misses
• Single Review: Ciara, ‘Dance Like We’re Making Love’
• Spicy Saturday (V.15): Me & My Big Ideas, “The Happy Planner,” Review

On to the top of the charts. Alabama Shakes nabs their first #1 album on the Billboard 200 with their 2nd studio album, Sound & Color with 97,000 copies sold. In at #2 is the Furious 7 Soundtrack and YelaWolf‘s, Love Story, debuts at #3. Over on the Hot 100, Wiz Khalifa‘s ‘See You Again’ remains at #1 with ‘Uptown Funk’ still in at #2. Fetty Wap‘s, ‘Trap Queen,’ comes in at #3 bumping down The Weeknd‘s, ‘Earned It.’ Check out Alabama Shakes’ ‘Sound & Color’ video below:

Ciara is gearing up to release her new album, Jackie, tomorrow (5/4) and I’m in love with her latest track ‘Dance Like We’re Making Love.’ Another track has surfaced featuring Pitbul and Missy Elliot. The track titled, ‘That’s How I’m Feelin’ is an upbeat track, but I still prefer ‘Dance Like We’re Making Love.’

In other news, Beyonce has signed three artists to Parkwood Entertainment, sisters Chloe and Halle Bailey along with past X-Factor contestant, Sophie Beem. Chloe and Halle went viral with their cover of Beyonce’s ‘Pretty Hurts.’ Both deals combined total over $1.5 million. Check out the talented girls below:

Note: Be sure to click the links in bold to find items I’ve mentioned and links to related posts.

NEW MUSIC: Sia, ‘Big Girls Cry’

Sia has released yet another video for featuring Maddie Ziegler, this time for ‘Big Girl Cry.’ 1000 Forms of Fear is Sia’s biggest U.S. takeover and I’m excited for her new album. Sia and Maddie first teamed up with the Summer Smash, ‘Chandelier,’ ‘Elastic Heart,’ and now ‘Big Girls Cry.’ They’ve also taken over with their innovative performances on Ellen, Dancing With the Stars, Jimmy Kimmel, SNL, and at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.

This time around Maddie still has on the signature nude leotard and blonde wig, but she’s sitting which is different from the previous two videos. She’s stated in an interview with Entertainment Weekly (January 2015) that this type of dance is different than what she’s used to:

I didn’t even know what to say. It was such a big change for me, because I’m not used to doing that style in normal dance competitions. It was definitely very different for me, but I love being able to do that kind of style.

I don’t know! It’s like, quirky, contemporary-ish. It’s pretty much all different things put together, because some parts are really soft, some parts are quirky, and then there’s the huge dance break. It’s all different.

At 12 years old she’s living a dream. She has a bright future ahead of her and it’s great that she’s able to get out of her comfort zone now and taste the fame. Hopefully more artists will call her on for some choreography. ‘Chandelier’ is definitely one of the greatest videos of all time. She’ll always have that as a reminder of how talented she is.

Sia and Maddie have had quite the run. Check out their latest collab below:

Tidal Launch

There’s a new music subscription for the public to access, but this time its backed by the stars. Jay-Z announced that he would be relaunching Tidal. Now there’s Spotify which is $9.99/month. Then there’s Beats Music  that’s $9.99/month and allows access for up to three devices. Now when I heard of Tidal I was thinking, great another music subscription. When I saw the price I knew that I wouldn’t want to sign up. $19.99 for a music subscription? What makes it so special? What am I getting in addition to the cheaper alternatives already available? This star-studded announcement that included the likes of: Jay-Z & Beyonce (of course), Kanye West, Usher, J. Cole, Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Madonna, and more. I paid this no mind until Beyoncé released a new single via the site titled,’Die For You .’ How appropriate as it is the 7th wedding anniversary of her and Jay-Z. Click HERE to listen to the track.

When going on to the site you reach a screen that states what Tidal is:

Introducing the first music streaming service that combines the best High Fidelity sound quality, High Definition music videos and expertly Curated Editorial.

Again, that doesn’t really define much of what I’d possibly be paying $19.99/month for. You could “listen now” or enter a voucher which I’m curious to know what that is. Now when going to start a free trial there are two options, Tidal Premium ($9.99/month) and Tidal HiFi ($19.99/month). From the looks of it the only difference between the two seems to be the quality of sound. When asked (in an interview with NYU) if Tidal was competing with Spotify, Jay-Z commented:

I know everyone thinks “new company, main business competitor is Spotify” but we’re really not here to compete with anyone. We’re actually here to improve the landscape. If just the presence of TIDAL causes other companies to have better pay structure, or to pay more attention to it moving forward, then we’ve been successful in one way. So we don’t really view them as competitors. As the tide rises, all the boats rise.”

When asked who’d be McDonald’s or ShakeShack he responded:

“We’re cool with, you know, they [other streaming services] can be McDonald’s, we’ll be Shake Shack. We don’t have to be number one, we just want to be very specific and very great at what we do. We want to do a very specific thing, we want people to come to TIDAL for a specific sound, a specific experience, and to know that there are going to be the greatest new artists in the world, the biggest artists, introducing the newest artists, collaborations and things you’ve never seen before. That’s what we’re going to do. After that, the world decides. The universe decides.”

As for my thoughts on this whole Tidal movement, I’m not sold on this. I see this as just another music subscription service except with a punch. The punch is that the artists are behind it and paying subscribers can have access to exclusives such as the one released by Beyoncé. Also available on the site right now are exclusives from. I’m interested in seeing where this goes. This does go hand in hand with that of the Grammy Creators Alliance which wants artists to get the respect they deserve. Whether people subscribe or not, artists have joined together for their music to be respected.

This Week In Music (V.27): Destiny’s Child Reunion & More

Here’s another edition of This Week In Music. Click HERE for the previous edition and click the links below for other news this week:

• The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to be Inducted into Library of Congress
• Single Review: Rihanna, ‘B*tch Better Have My Money’

In other news, Destiny’s Child has reunited, yet again, this time at the 30th annual Stellar Awards for a performance of Michelle’s ‘Say Yes’ (click HERE for that video review). From the Instagram clips Beyoncé was feeling herself last night (pun intended), but it was great to see all three on stage. Every artist has a zone and it was clear that Michelle was comfortable on stage, they all sounded great, and they were having fun. The show will air on TV One, April 5th. In the meantime, check out a snippet of the performance HERE.

It’s been a big week for Rihanna as she’s released a new single off her upcoming album (link above) and her animation debut, ‘Home’, has topped the box office with $54 million in its opening. She’s featured not only in the movie, but 3 songs on the soundtrack. Other artists featured include Jennifer Lopez and Charlie XCX.  Click HERE to purchase soundtrack and be sure to check out the movie in theaters.

Moving on to chart news, congrats to Kendrick Lamar for having the #1 album in the country. To Pimp a Butterfly tops the Billboard 200 with 324,000 copies sold in its first week, The album was released a week prior to its scheduled date, but that didn’t stop it from topping the charts. In at #2 is last weeks #1 album, the Empire Soudntrack. Over on the Hot 100, Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars are sitting comfortably with ‘Uptown Funk’ (check out the remix HERE). So far the track has been on the chart for 17 weeks.

The iHeartRadio Music awards air tonight (3/29) so be on the lookout this week for a review of the performances.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to be Inducted into Library of Congresss

Lauryn Hill released her debut solo album,The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, on August 25, 1998. Here it is 17 years later and her 5 time Grammy winning album is being inducted into the Library of Congress. I didn’t known that albums were inducted, but here is the criteria:

culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” and be at least 10 years old.

A press release of the announcement stated:

Lauryn Hill’s debut solo record, following the breakup of the Fugees, is a work of honesty in which Hill explores her feelings on topics that included the deep wonder of pregnancy, the pitfalls of modern relationships and the experience of the sacred. The album effortlessly fuses soul, rhythm and blues, rap and reggae. Hill’s vocal range, smooth clear highs and vibrato are stunning. The rapping is rhythmically compelling while always retaining, and frequently exploiting, the natural cadences of conversational speech. Standout guest performances include Carlos Santana’s soulful acoustic guitar solo on “Zion,” and duets with Mary J. Blige and D’Angelo on “I Used to Love Him” and “Nothing Even Matters,” respectively.”

Congrats to Ms. Hill on such an honor.

This Week In Music (V.26): Lawsuits

Welcome to another edition of This Week In Music. I’ve been absent from blogging this past Friday due to being sick, but I’m back at it. Be sure to check out my Maroon 5 concert review HERE and last weeks edition of This Week In Music HERE.

So the headline of this week was the outcome of the Robin Thicke/Pharrell lawsuit against Marvin Gaye’s family. For those living under a rock, Marvin Gaye’s family were suing Pharrell and Robin Thicke for the illegal use of their fathers song, ‘Got To Give It Up’ in the 2013 summer smash, ‘Blurred Lines’. When I first heard the song I immediately thought that was what it sounded like. Well the verdict came in and Marvin Gaye’s family won LARGE. For the track to have made $16 million, the family got $7.4 million of that.

This case might be closed, but the Gaye family could be going after Pharrell’s solo smash, ‘Happy’. Gaye’s daughter says that its reminiscent of her fathers track, ‘Ain’t That Pecuilar’. Now listening to the song, yes they do sound similar, especially how each track begins. After winning $7.4 milioin is the Gaye family just being greedy? I think that ‘Blurred Lines’ was spot on ‘Got to Give It Up’. As for this one, I think that a soul clap does not account for a song being ripped off. I can hear the similarity, but not as much as ‘Blurred Lines’. If this were to go to court this surely could put into question Pharrells 20+ year as a producer. Then again, his work has never been in question before.

Listen to the similarities below:

With a lawsuit win like this it’s a wonder how many other songs artists have ripped off. Jermaine Dupri feels that Ciara ripped off his track for Usher, ‘U Got It Bad’. With news of Marvin Gaye’s family winning a lawsuit like this, Jermaine Durpi is speaking out. In an interview with the Associated Press he stated:

“Ciara’s new single is a complete rip-off of Usher’s ‘U Got It Bad.’ I’m clear on what I made and I’m clear on how music influences people and I’m clear on chord changes and how people move things. It might not be as evident as the ‘Blurred Lines’ situation, but I believe the same thing happened to me.”

I stated in my review (click HERE for that) that the song sounded a lot like ‘U Got It Bad’, especially during the hook.  It’s nothing wrong with being inspired by another artists contribution to music, but it is wrong to put out a track and pass it off without giving credit. Hopefully these two can hash everything out without it having to go to court.

Listen to the similarities below:

 

Teenage Dream Spends 200th Week on Billboard 200

Katy Perry joins the likes of Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Mumford & Sons, and Nirvana as her album, Teenage Dream, spends its 200th week on the Billboard 200. The album was released nearly 5 years ago (Aug. 24, 2010), and its current position on the chart is #126. Not too shabby at all. To date it has sold nearly 3 million copies.

This Week In Music (V.25): Kanye, Rihanna, Big Sean + More

Welcome to another edition of This Week In Music (my usual intro) and this week I’ve finally come up with a schedule for the blog that I want to share PLUS music news of the week. So expect a post every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Now let’s get into the news.

First up, Mr. West has announced via Twitter that his new album will be titled So Help Me God. Kanye is now trainer to having themed album titles. I mean look at his first three: College Dropout, Late Registration, and Graduation. His last album had the controversial title Yeezus along with the track ‘I am a God.’ As for what’s to be fettered on this album it’s safe to assume that ‘Only One’ (click HERE for video review) and ‘All Day’ will be featured on the album. As for the tracklist that is circulating, it’s been confirmed that it’s fake. Come on, as secretive as Kanye is, it’s a given that the tracklist would be fake. No date as to when the album will be released, but the video for ‘All Day’ is on its way. In the meantime, check out his Brit Awards performance below:

Kanye isn’t the only rapper that has a new album on the way. Kendrick Lamar has a date set for his album which is available for pre-order on iTunes, but the only confirmed track thus far is ‘The Blacker the Berry’ (click HERE to listen). His Grammy winning single ‘i’ is not included on the imaginary list so who knows if it will be on the album. The yet to be titled album drops March 23rd.

Third times a charm for G.O.O.D Music artist, Big Sean, as Dark Sky Paradise lands in at #1 on the Billboard 200. This marks his first #1 album on the Billboard 200 selling 173,000 copies. His previous works Finally Famous and Hall of Fame did not exceed 100,000 sales. The album features 15 tracks on the deluxe edition (more bang for your buck) with features from: Drake, Kanye West, Chris Brown, Ty Dolla $ign, John Legend, Jhené Aikp, Lil Wayne, PARTY NEXT DOOR, and his booskie Ariana Grande. It also features the smash hit ‘I Don’t F*ck With You’ featuring E-40′ and ‘Blessings’ (click HERE and HERE for those reviews). CONGRATS BIG SEAN!

Wrapping up this week is Rihanna who has teased three new tracks off her upcoming album R8. Is that really the title or is everyone calling it that? Moving on, the three new tracks she’s teased via her Instagram are ‘Higher’, ‘Towards the Sun’ (from her upcoming movie Home), and the anthem for this years NCAA March Madness, ‘American Oxygen’. I did hear ‘Towards the Sun’ on the radio. The ‘Higher’ snippet is another slow track. I’m still waiting for her to release some party music. Who knows when her album will be released, just hopefully sooner than later. Check out the NCAA promo below:

That’s it for this week. Until next time…

Sound Off: Kardashian Krew VS. Amber Rose

I’ve been debating how I wanted to discuss ALL the drama that’s happened this week via social media and what’s come up in recent interviews concerning the Kardashian Krew (including Ye and Tyga) and Amber Rose. So here’s my take on the drama and where it all stems from, the 8 year age difference between Tyga and Kylie Jenner.