OVERHEARD ON TWITTER: Week of 3/27/2011

Forget artist websites and MySpaces, Twitter is the easiest way to get instant access to your favorite celebrities -- and we all know I spend far too much time on the social networking site rather than blogging these days. Thus I am introducing a weekly column posting of "important" news bites regarding my some of my favorite artists (and some of my favorite bloggers) that don't need immediate expansion upon. You'd think Twitter would teach me to not ramble but...you can't teach an old dog new tricks, I guess.

Artist Updates:

-Happy Birthday to The Saturday's Rochelle and 2NE1's Park Bom!

-Kelly Rowland's got another single coming down the pike (and it's not "I'm That Chick"). It's called "Motivation", due to iTunes "soon". Hopefully the album will be out sometime before 2015.

-It's been a long time since I've properly updated on the boys of JYJ, but they are planning another World Tour (this time co-produced by Jaejoong himself). My fingers are poised on the keyboard for when they make their illustrious return to New York. :) Hopefully that trip will include more spoken English, vague (and possibly tearful) HoMin references, and a freak accident in which I encounter Junsu on the street and he takes me out to lunch...

-Per rapid fandom, 2NE1, Brown Eyed Girls, 4minute and f(x) are all due for upcoming releases in short interim (which in South Korean standards could literaly be any second). All we need is SNSD for the Korean girl group equivilant of the Ultimate Battle Royale. Time to whip out the short shorts and get ready to dance, chickies. Excuse me while I contemplate what the new "concept" that they'll all undertake and lust after being able to dress like that on a daily basis...

-Purple Reign are also feeling the heat and anticipation for an upcoming release, continuing their relentless teasing for their upcoming second mixtape/single.

-I currently only follow three members of Super Junior, and I'm already entertained, as one goes off in a semi-English rant after being hit in the face with a light stick, and the other loses his phone and iPod (oh BB, I don't know how you are living right now!) and writes on Twitter to adorably tell it 'Bye Bye'. Now, if only the last would post recent photographs of himself and my One-True-KPop-Husband, I think I might die of the fangirling.

-I'm selfishly sad Ro Danishei won't be at her BFF Simon Curtis' show this week in Brooklyn, mostly because I was hoping I'd get to see "Michelle" performed live. Simon & Ro's producer Jadion will be there however, and I'm hearing word that Resolution Radio fave Chris Koon (who's EP was also featured Jadion production) might be too...

Blogger Updates:
-Happy Birthday to my favorite Rude Boy, Elvin.

-Nikki is making a 'comeback', ya'll! Let the countdown to mid-April commence.

-Check out Will's recent interview with the boy band that opened for Janet Jackson when I saw her last week at Radio City (article coming shortly).

-My friend and fellow Resolution Radio DJ Lilly has recently posted a fab inteview with the indelible Erika Fatale. If you don't know Erika, get to know her. Fast.

RESOLUTION RADIO: Weds, 3/23/11

I originally wanted to post my playlists from each week for my Pop Power Hour(s!) on Resolution Radio, as it is a good example of what I'm listening to for the week. So here we go:

1. Robyn - In My Eyes
2. Janet Jackson - Go Deep
3. Vanessa Hudgens - Let's Dance
4. Alexandra Burke - Bad Boys (feat. Flo Rida)
5. Chris Koon - YoYo
6. Adele - Rolling In the Deep
7. David Guetta - Love Is Gone
8. Super Junior - Sorry Sorry - Answer
9. 2NE1 - Clap Your Hands
10. Cee-Lo - F*ck You!
11. Michael & Janet Jackson - Scream
12. Britney Spears - Donni Hotwheel Blackout/Circus Megamix*
13. Britney Spears - Everytime*
14. Britney Spears - (You Drive Me) Crazy (The STOP! Remix)*
15. B2K - Hey Little Lady
16. NLT - She Said, I Said (Time We Let Go) (feat. Timbaland)
17. Mindless Behavior - My Girl
18. Pasquelina - Tabletops**
19. Chanelle Ray - High Heels**
20. Mandy Ventrice - Paradox**
21. Erika Fatale - Too Lost In You**
22. Sugababes - Freak Like Me
23. Rihanna - S&M
24. America Olivo - Deja Vu
25. Jessie J - Do It Like A Dude
26. Katy Perry - E.T.
27. Clare Maguire - The Last Dance (Chase & Status Remix)
28. Janet Jackson - Together Again

*= Artist of the Week
**=Station "Premieres"

COUNTDOWN TO LIVE: Janet Jackson, "Number Ones"...#1

I've been counting down my Top Three favorite Janet Jackson songs of all time in excitement for her upcoming concert here in New York at Radio City Music Hall, TOMORROW NIGHT which I will be seeing LIVE and IN PERSON! Finally, we've come to my favorite Janet song of all time, and while it was literally like choosing between family members, I've made my decision. (For #2 and #3, click here.)

My favorite Janet song is the namesake from the album that many consider to be her breakthrough, as it was her first to chart on the Billboard 200 and garner her the attention as a solo artist she deserved. That album, despite being just nine tracks long (and almost every single track was released as a single!), debuted to us a new side to the Jackson's kid sis -- a side that was strong, confident and very much in control.

Despite the fact that 1986's Control was her third solo album, many often mistake it to be her debut. It was the beginning of a semblance of her desire to get out from her brothers' (large) shadows as well as spread her wings not just as an artist, but was a young woman.

"Control" was the album's fourth single (following popular titles like "What Have You Done For Me Lately" and "Nasty"), and spoke to the theme of Janet's new confident mindset that would follow her throughout her musical career. As a young woman myself, it's hard to not find the lyrics spelled out in "Control" inviting, and by the time I turned 17, I had adopted it to be my own personal anthem. In college, I offered it up as one of my favorite songs of all time toward a handful of friends for our own "mixtape" project we created to bond us together. And to this day, "Control" serves as a reminder that I can be strong and confident and take the lead in my life and career.

The big day is literally just HOURS away! Stay tuned after Monday's show for a detailed gushfest!

NOW KPOPPING: Boy Bands A-Go-Go with Big Bang, Super Junior and TVXQ!

The last time I went on a KPOP kick on the blog, it was celebrating TVXQ! (or at least 2/5ths of them) and their incredible single that was/is/will always be "Why (Keep Your Head Down)". Luckily for me (and those of you who dig boy bands -- be honest!), South Korea is rife with them. The "idol scene" in Korea is literally full of boy bands of every type, style, sound, variety and member count. It all depends on who you prefer. Below represent the latest releases from some of Korea's most popular young men -- there's something for every fancy, I think. And be warned, my favorite isn't what you think it might be...well, who am I kidding?

BIG BANG - "Tonight"

This One's For You If You Dig: The Black Eyed Peas's last few discs (or at least the good parts of them), David Guetta, and unrelenting exciting  noisy dancefloor pop in general.

Allow me to welcome Big Bang into the Melismatic fold, as they were one of the most successful groups that I glazed over during my "introduction" to Korean pop music last January (can you believe it was that long ago?). The five member group made their debut back in 2006, under the YG Family entertainment group, which also brings us Se7en and my unadulterated favorite KPOP girl group 2NE1. YG is known, especially recently, for their more raucous, "street savvy" and trance-y dance floor sounds, and Big Bang fill the shoes as the label's requisite group of "bad boys". 

Unlike other labels (who shall remain anonymous...until in a few minutes at least), YG has stated time and time again that they dislike putting boundaries on their artists, whether it's on their sound as a artists or their permissions as members within that group. Big Bang has used this to their advantage in a myriad of interesting ways, with several of its group members releasing solo material. One of the most popular "sub"-releases by their members, while still very much a part of the group, was the works by the group's "leader", G-Dragon, who released his single "Heartbreaker" in 2009 to massive acclaim, and many foul cries when it was oft compared to Flo Rida's international hit "Right Round". More recently (as in just a few months ago), G-Dragon and resident rapper TOP (pronounced T-O-P...I think?) released a joint project that also fared well. 

The main reason why Big Bang were left wanting on my KPOP initial adoration list was mostly because of the gangster-ish (if you can call it) "swagger" (there's that word again) that they were attemping to embody. What can I say -- I generally like my boy bands where you can at least bring them home to Mama. They also weren't releasing material as a group when I first joined the genre. I was initially only drawn to the group's main crooner, Taeyang (think the Korean Usher) and his respective solo releases, mostly because they were considerably more R&B and less in-your-face. The one Big Bang song that did catch my ear was the Japanese based single, 2009's "Gara Gara Go!" -- a relatively safe, familiar, and earwormy little gem. 

However, Big Bang is back (and in Korea) as a whole in 2011, with their most recent mini-album release, Tonight, seeing release this past February. Much of the hype is fueled on the back of the main single, also titled "Tonight". While it does sound like two or three songs pieced together as one, as Big Bang is proving to be more and more a melting pot of styles and opinions than a cohesive group unit these days, it certainly holds no grudges on the dance floor. To say it's making noise in Korea is an understatement, as Big Bang was and remains to be one of the country's most popular young artists. What is interesting is it's impact around the world -- as the mini-album, available for purchase on iTunes, saw a HUGE rise in sales, making them the first Korean artist to hit the US iTunes Top 10 (it also went Top 10 on Canadian iTunes), AND made waves on several different Billboard Charts.

Remember what I said about the Hallyu Wave hitting America? Wake up, people. It's happening.

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SUPER JUNIOR - M - "Too Perfect"
This One's For You If You Dig: A more "on the nose" kind of boy band, along the lines of a 2011 version of up-tempo *NSYNC, if their member count was multiplied by three.

To talk about Super Junior's member count would literally take me all night. Technically, the main group, houses ten active members (and three more non-active ones), and the group is so large and has become so popular, it has spawned several "sub-groups". Super Junior-M, was crafted by parent company SM Entertainment (home of TVXQ!, Girls Generation, BoA and SHINee amongst others) in 2008, three years after the main Super Junior debuted, and is more geared toward being released in the Chinese market, with songs being released in Mandarin (hence the 'M'). The sub-group originally included five members from the original Super Junior, as well as two new members of Chinese descent. Since then, the group's "leader" (and former original Super Junior member) has waged a lawsuit against SM (and by all technical accounts has won) and returned to China to pursue a solo career, leaving him no longer a part of the group. In his absence, two members from the original Super Junior (why two and not just one, I don't know) have also been added to this line up for their current release, the mini-album Perfection.

Still with me? Good. Because the single from Perfection, "Too Perfect", is kind of the business. Check out the Chinese version below:

Admittedly, I'm not Super Junior's biggest fan, other than their incredible breakaway hit that was 2009's "Sorry Sorry" (king of the KPOP earworms), but thanks to yet ANOTHER SM sub-group that included SJ member Kyuhyun (also included in this sub-unit) alongside SHINee member Jonghyun called SM-The Ballad and their baby-making jam that is "Hot Times", I was forced to take a second look. That and group member Donghae (sings much of the first chorus in "Too Perfect") is just too adorable.

"Too Perfect" took a few spins to grow on me, but once it did, oh my how it's stuck. When I find myself spinning it, I end up spinning it ad naseum, over and over again into some distinct blackhole. I enjoy it mostly because, in a KPOP landscape that often is victim of repetition rather than artistic growth, "Too Perfect" sees a interesting turn in sound for the young men without polarizing their fan base with something too far off the mark. Perhaps it's because the only music I've really listened to from the Super Junior fandom is from its original lineup, and not of its subgroups, but "Too Perfect" (both it's Mandarin version and its Korean version -- in fact, in particular it's Korean version) is boatloads of zippy fun. Rather than being too four-on-the-floor-ish in terms of the back beat, laser synths heard in "Sorry Sorry" and their most recent big hit in their original formation "BONAMANA" are replaced with more crunchy electric guitars, giving it a bit of an almost twangy (meets dancefloor?) feel. The best part is the pre-chorus go-stop go-stop robotic bits before launching into the full swing chorus.

As if the song itself wasn't a good enough guilty pleasure, how about them outfits (and headwear) in that video, eh? Oh SM Entertainment's Style Department, you never let me down.

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TVXQ! (or HoMin for the OT5 Cassies) - "Before U Go"
This One's For You If You Dig: The more epic, swoony boy band ballads of yore, complete with very melismatic warbling.

Calling this my current favorite on the Korean pop music landscape is not bias when a tune of this caliber is being belted out by two very capable men. Period.

My fandom of TVXQ! has been well documented on this blog. I'm sure even the most casual of readers of my column are aware of my stanning of the five men that make up Dong Bang Shin Ki, no matter their lineup(s). "Why (Keep Your Head Down)" would be a difficult number for Yunho and Changmin (or rather, U-Know and Max, as they seem to appear on stage more as) to outdo, so rather than try to amp things up to 12, they dialed it down with the emotional mid-tempo ballad that is "Before U Go", released as a new single to fit with their recently repackaged release of Keep Your Head Down, the full album.

Sigh. Where do I begin. For a group potentially crippled by bad press and tearful potential, and a song that literally could read as a humdinger if performed with five-voice male harmony, the memories of past TVXQ! baby-making ballads is replaced with what HoMin is able to do so well as a duo. It's sweepy and epic, without the melodrama, and it's masculine without being callous or cliche. Some may argue I'm so overcome simply because Shim "Choikang/Max" Changmin does much of the vocal heavy lifting, demonstrating his frighteningly incredible vocal range time and time again. They would be partially correct. The vocal hysteronics are both goosebump-inducing (for yours truly) and a sullen reminder of what the duo TVXQ! lacks without three middle voices to flesh them out. It makes the song even more sharp and poignant.

Does it stack up to TVXQ!'s previous ballads (both in Korean and Japanese)? I should say so. To put it mildly. It's hardly an easy song to sing live, and yet they do it with their now seemingly omni-present hardened "charisma" stares, complete with seductive choreography performed with purpose and relative ease. It's hard to tear your eyes away, even if the visible passion in their eyes seems to have wilted a bit. If you don't believe me, take a gander at their recent Music Bank live performance.

Don't mind me while I surrupticiously wipe the drool from my keyboard. That, my friends, is KPOP done right. Better yet, it's pop music done right.

MIXTAPE: Alesha Dixon, Tino Coury & Girls Nite Out (Oh My!)

In light of the old 'WGO' type of posts I used to churn out reflecting which songs have recently undergone the most abuse on my iPod, let's take a look at three recent ditties...

ALESHA DIXON - "Every Little Part of Me" (feat. Jay Sean)

Can you really do this?

No, no -- not not not not me

I never saw me falling hard

Got me like a new hit

No, no -- not not not not me

You took away my guard  

The former Mis-Teeq chanteuse turned heads with her second solo bow The Alesha Show in the UK in 2008, giving us the Xenomania goodie "The Boy Does Nothing" and the more sultry Soulshock/Karlin dub "Breathe Slow". It's been a bit of a rough go for her since then, which explains why I wasn't even aware her third album The Entertainer was already released this past November. The project's third single, "Every Little Part of Me", gives me nostalgia for "Nothing", because from the minute I heard the intro's synthy beats, I was hooked and kept it on replay for a solid hour. That is no exaggeration. Unlike with previous singles, there appears to be a more dedicated push with this one to the US Market (given Jay Sean had a #1 hit with "Down" last year). So far, the prospects for chart success haven't been very strong (perhaps after a 2010 full to the brim with pop cuts featuring the term "put my hands up", it feels a bit tired to some) but the song remains as scorching as ever to yours truly.

TINO COURY - "Up Against the Wall"

You got me up against the wall

You keep pushing me back

And everything you do

Know I like it like that

Indie singer-songwriter Tino Coury first came to my attention thanks to John and his recommendation of Tino's excellent debut single "Diary" (epic for the "My heart is bleeding/Paper cut from reading Page One" and "I feel just like J.T. on that 'Cry Me A River' ish" lines alone). Tino popped back up on my screen of consciousness recently when he was chosen to be one of our more recent 'Artists of the Week' at Resolution Radio. In addition to "Diary", I spun this little synthy gem which also serves as Tino's followup single. The production is very familiar -- all it's missing is Jason DeRulo and J.R. Rotem's trademark airhorn blares and it would be a certifiable Beluga Heights radio-ready cut. But it's not. Don't hold that against Tino, who is every bit as deserving of radio success as Rotem's non-stop hit brigade. "Up Against the Wall" is instantaneously infectious, and I do "like it like that". Tino's full length album is hopefully coming to us shortly.

GIRLS NITE OUT - "Too Much Information"

I'm a believer
I won't be second best
I'm a believer
That some things are better not said
Too much information
I don't wanna wanna
Don't wanna hear it

It's hard for me not to smile when I see the girls in GNO (Girls Nite Out). My other favorite Boston girl group is ramping up their promo in a big way with a brand new member in tow (Alyna -- the cutie in the sequined black shirt in the video below).  Their recently released promo video for "Too Much Information" highlights their playful adorabableness, staying age appropriate all the while holding up a crafty little pop song with an unrelenting chorus. In short, it embodies what I loved so much about The Saturdays in the beginning -- their down-to-earth relatability to the fans, and their penchant for the shamelessly charming. That and I really want to rock Cynthia's outfit, complete with headband. So cute!

FREE MUSIC/INTERVIEW: Pasquelina's 'Young & N' Love'

2011 is already a good one for pop, especially of the DIY variety. Musicians are getting more and more creative with means to promote themselves via themselves, reaching out via social networking avenues to create Internet-based buzz. In a music business world plagued due to the gap between indie and record label crafted, artist-built pop remains to be among some of the most interesting to my ears, and hopefully to yours. As I grow older, I've begun to wean myself away from the Billboard Hot 100 and delving deeper into what goes beyond, to the certainly radio-friendly but currently radio-inaccessible. A&R representatives are always looking for the "next best thing", but when they do, they often get lost in the shuffle of the release scheduling process, victims of identity crisis or problematic branding.

Enter the New School of Pop, artists who know what they want and aren't afraid to go get it on their own.

I first encountered now 19-year-old Brittany "Pasquelina" back in 2006, when she was the requisite blonde member of a fledgling pop girl group from New Jersey called Bliss. Shortly thereafter, the group's name was changed to Candy Coated Chaos (I may have written about them here once or twice...), a Jadion-assisted production that recorded numbers penned by Simon Curtis, poised for radio ready stardom. Several of their tunes stormed Internet radio, and were often featured on various MTV shows including "The Hills" and even rather recently on "Jersey Shore".

Cut to 2011. The group has since gone its separate ways, each member pursuing a different path. Ro Danishei has blazed on to the West Coast and released her free dirty-electro-pop soaked debut solo album, End of the Rainbow, Stephanie Ugaro has pursued modeling, and Brittany, now known formerly as Pasquelina has also finally come forth with her own set of solo tunes, all the while juggling school at New York's famed Fashion Institute of Technology.

Right around Valentine's Day, Ms. Pasquelina unveiled her debut buzz single, "Young & N' Love", for free download on her website. Take a listen below.

Walking in the City late at night

Just the City lights shinin' oh-so-bright

Just you and me, all I can see

Nothing else matters

Nothing else matters

The song is pure sparkly pop candy (and for those of you who were curious, Pasquelina technically was the 'Candy' in Candy Coated Chaos) from the minute the song is cued up with brassy wah wah blares seguing into the stobe-lights-come-down-on-the-dance-floor synth, conjuring images of a vibrant rainbow after the storm. It's the type of typical pop anthem that just about everyone can relate to at some point in their lives, wanting to scream from the mountaintops that you're head over heels in love. 

The chorus and bridge remains to be the song's biggest asset -- poppy earworms of the best type. The chorus' hook alone ("Oh Oh/Younnnnnnnng and n' Looooooooove/We are young young young and in love love love") is simple but effective in getting stuck in your head long after the three and a half minute sparkler is through.The image campaign related to the song is highly indicative of this, featuring a barrage of color. It's highly representative of Pasquelina's sunny, silly personality (as showcased on her YouTube account). Think Jessie J's "Price Tag" meets Katy Perry's "Firework" with a little bit of Ke$ha's silliness thrown in.

As a fan and close follower of Candy Coated Chaos for several years, I've been waiting on pins and needles for releases from all of its alumna, and Pasquelina doesn't disappoint. While "Young & N' Love" is lots of fun, it only hints at what's to come. 

Recently, I got the chance to ask her a few questions regarding her music and her new direction as a solo artist. Click here to read the full interview.

My many thanks to Pasquelina herself and her management team for allowing me this possibility! You can download "Young & N' Love" now for free at www.pasquelina.com, "like" her on Facebook or "follow" her on Twitter via @Pasquelina21 .

COUNTDOWN TO LIVE: Simon Curtis

This is big news. Very big news. Somewhere out there in Brit land, my friend Paul will be very excited and both jealous, methinks...

Blogger extraordinare Arjan Writes has put together an upcoming pop show of epic proportions, to include Databoy, She's the Queen, Sky Ferreira and Simon Curtis, for April 1st in Brooklyn.

Yes, Simon Curtis. SIMON CURTIS. SIMON FRICKIN' CURTIS.

Needless to say, my tickets are already booked. Expect an eye-witness recapping and hopefully some pictures (fingers crossed). Until then, I leave you with these links, for those of you who are still unaware of Mr. Curtis.

- Details on his upcoming sophomore release are due any day now.

-You can download his debut album, 8 Bit Heart, for free at www.simon-curtis.com. You can read my review of it right here.

- You can read my interview with Simon's main producer, Jadion, from late 2009, where we discuss the 8 Bit Heart project right here.

- The debut single from 8 Bit Heart, "Delusional", was #17 on my list of Top 2(00)9 Songs of 2009.

- In addition to writing his own pop masterpieces highlighted on 8 Bit Heart and beyond, he also co-wrote some of the late Candy Coated Chaos's best cuts ("Utopia" anyone?) He also recently provided duet vocals to former cCc-er Ro Danishei's fab cut "Michelle" off her free album, End of the Rainbow.

- Basically, he's our "Pop Messiah". That is all...

COUNTDOWN TO LIVE: Janet Jackson, "Number Ones"...#2

In excitement for my date with Ms. Jackson live and in concert on March 21st, I've been counting down my Top 3 Favorite Janet Songs of All Time. Click here for #3 in case you've forgotten.

My #2 Favorite Janet Song comes to us from one of her most celebrated albums, spawning seven Top 5 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 -- Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814. While singles like "Miss You Much", "Black Cat", "Escapade" and "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" will always rank high in terms of favorites, my overwhelming favorite goes to the title piece.

To this day, "Rhythm Nation" remains to be one of Janet's most recognizable songs, and this feat is especially important because of the song's progressive message, dreaming of a world free from "social injustice". It's a message that continues to ring loud and clear, just as important now as when it was released over two decades ago.

It must be something in the Jackson genes to allows them to be able to express such important messages to a beat that is not only memorable, but so moving and instantly ear-catching it becomes a part of you. It's also a cause for lament -- can you imagine something like this being on the radio now? Music with a message, and it makes you want to dance? Yes, please.

HEAR THIS: Jennifer Lopez for the 'New Generation'

There are a few nouns in the music blogging dictionary that I very, very much dislike as they are the epitome of that which is subjective. The overuse of the word 'swagger' is one of them (I'm looking at you, 2010), and 'comeback' is another (blame it on the KPop, I suppose). However, in the case of one Ms. Jennifer Lopez, that word is very much appropriate.

Until very recently, the last time I spun a new J-Lo cut ad naseum unabashedly was during her glory days in the early 2000's, when she defined the words triple threat all the while insisting she was just "Jenny From the Block". Unexpectedly, she has crept back up on the unsuspecting public who thought her days of shakin' her big booty on the dance floor were over, all at the age of 41 years young. Young Divas of today, take note -- and bow down.

While her last "big" hit can be attributed to 2005's "Get Right", there is no denying that not much of Jennifer's material post-third album This Is Me...Then,  released in late 2002, has set the music world on fire. Looking back on it now, the shift was palpable, as her meteroric rise from film star to music mogul only properly began in 1999. Her mammoth sophomore album, J.Lo, (along with its subsequent Remixes! co-release), spawned no less than six hits (two of them #1 on the Hot 100), helped solidify the then-red hot career of Ja Rule (he was the early 2000's Flo Rida, when you think about it), and basically served as an unofficial soundtrack to my middle school years.

Just when it seemed like she could do no wrong, adapting to a handful of genres from pop, to dance, to hip hop, to latin, and back again, the press started to swing backward, and what started as a playful nickname turned into a inescapable moniker that continues to follow her to this day. Her love life started becoming more exciting to the media than her music, and by the time she released her fourth album, Rebirth (which gave us "Get Right" and not much else), mass interest had waned.

What with a very public failure of the purposed first single from her upcoming seventh album Love? (2009's "I'm throwin' on my Louboutins!"....Girrrrrl, in this economy?), including several high profile botched performances, her breakup with long-time label supporter Epic Records, and the underwhelming success of her "comeback" (there's that word again) film The Back-Up Plan, many were starting to say that perhaps Ms. Lopez's time in the poppy sun had faded to pleasant memory. Admittedly, I also had those thoughts.

Then came the end of 2010. Jenny wasted no time in doing damage control and proving to all the nay-sayers she was HBIC -- signing up with Island/Def Jam Records, snagging herself a role as judge on the tenth season of "American Idol" along with a handful of various commercial ad campaigns for the likes of L'Oreal and Venus, hopping into the studio with Lady Gaga's right-hand man RedOne, and creating the dance floor stomper that is "On the Floor".

Patterning it's melody line off of French group  Kaoma's 1989 hit "Lambada" (which in itself was patterned off a Brazilian dance hit from 1986), "On The Floor" is an instantaneous earworm. Clearly, RedOne was willing to give A-Material to the Latina Diva, as gone are the recycled cymbal crashes and coo-ing chants of "Red-One!" that swamped the airwaves in 2009/2010. Replacing the Ja Rule or LL Cool J of yesterday's collabs, she pairs herself with the latest rent-a-rapper of the moment (and a frequent RedOne collaborator) Pitbull. It harkens back one of her biggest (and most well-attributed) hits, "Waiting For Tonight", mixed with an unrelenting tour de force that is that hard-hitting back beat. The ball is officially back in her court.

While it should be said that "On The Floor" hardly should win points for lyrical originality (for obvious reasons), it does the job for Ms. Lopez in that it reminds us what she's so great at -- performing. Jennifer was never a Class A vocalist, but never has she claimed to be. With Jen, she's about making you want to shake your booty, forget your cares and just "dance the night away". "On The Floor" fits that bill very nice, as the star of the show is that beat, its counterpoint mixture with melody, and a unique infusion of hazy, exotic synth sounds that depending on your set of ears harken to many of the places shouted out during the refrain ("Brazil! Morocco! London to Ibiza! Straight to L.A.! New York! Vegas to Af-rica!" ...although I'd throw in Rome or Paris in there, too) . She's not re-inventing the wheel, she's reminding us that she may have been down but certainly not out.

The same can be said for RedOne, who, despite crafting some of the late 2000's biggest hits, has found himself somewhat pigeonheld for taking the easy way out. Rather than falling victim to the rising tide of backlash, he's come back just as hard with a sound that remains familiar but still fresh, beginning with Enrique Igelasias's "I Like It" (also featuring a famous sample), and somewhat recently with Nicole Scherzinger's "Poison".

"On The Floor" has only been officially released for a few weeks, and has debuted Top 10 on the Hot 100 (and is rising), has already gone Top 5 in several countries around the world, and is on target to continue to slay. In a music market that proclaimed early 2011 to be a war between Britney Spears and Lady Gaga, "On The Floor" beat out both cuts on the iTunes charts (proof that not only the song is popular, but people are willing to pay for it -- very key). Not only that, but the song it samples, "Lambada" by Kaoma, has raced up the World Digital Chart to #3, returning to the charts for the first time in over two decades per Billboard.

All that, and "American Idol" and endorsements and sponsorships galore from a woman who's last proper "hit" was six years ago? Yes, I certainly have no problem calling that a "comeback". Go on, girl.

HEAR THIS: Garland, Travis Garland

Travis Garland has a voice that truly everyone should get to know.

In 2011, my ears (and yours) live in a world that is too often saturated in over-processed pop music. Some of it is good based on its sizzling beats alone. Some of it is terrible because of its everything-including-the-kitchen-sink production mentality. It's up to us as music lovers to sift through the bad, the bearable and the good to find artists that possess the vocal talent that is becoming more and more of a rarity in the Top 40 Music Market. Travis Garland has one of those voices. Unfortunately for Travis, the obstacles that stand in his way toward discovery and mass consumption are currently blockading his potential to be truly great.

I've mentioned Travis several times before. Many know him as the main vocalist for the now defunct boy band pop group NLT (Not Like Them), which also featured Kevin McHale (current star of 'Glee'), Justin Thorne (currently of Darkchild-assisted boy band One Call, managed by Johnny Wright) and V Sevani (currently pursuing indie solo work). Of the four, Travis was the first to be snatched up post NLT-Apocalypse, signing a deal with Universal Interscope. His signature melismatic vocal acrobatics were more akin to R&B and urban artists rather than that of the frothy boy band variety, and his current musical exploits are more indicative of his personal vocal capabilities. That's not to say NLT wasn't worthy of attention, and their potential to be great still makes me mourn for what could have been..

However, the past is definitely past, and now two or so years after the NLT breakup, we're still waiting for a legitamite release from Mr. Garland. Shortly after the breakup, he announced his relation to Jessica Simpson's father's management company (Papa Joe), and sometime after that, he "released" a hype song in the form of a "remake" of T.I. and Justin Timberlake's "Dead and Gone", and eventually an indie video rough cut for his redub of Beyonce's "Sweet Dreams", as "Beautiful Nightmare." Then came the "stamp of approval" from the notorious Perez Hilton (like it or not, it's a meaningful boost of awareness) and the Danja-produced single "Believe". MTV dubbed him a 'New Artist to Watch'. He even debuted the song live in a performance on last season's 'American Idol'.

Then the gravy train just stopped. Just when it seemed to be finally picking up in his favor.

Travis is a perfect example of the disconnect in the state of pop music affairs. It is growing more and more difficult to break a new artist because record labels are afraid of offering up new product if it may not have instantaneous appeal and immediate recoupment. Hence the fact that a vocalist like Garland was offered up with a comparison tag to Justin Bieber, despite the fact that his music is much less saccharine, much more vocally intense, and feature much more of his own creative input. Almost all of Garland's promotion post 'Idol' has been of his own accord. Despite Perez Hilton's insistance of his support from the very beginning, his championing of Garland has virtually been silenced when "Believe" failed to burst into the stratosphere.

However, it hasn't been all for naught. Garland appeared on friend and fellow underappreciated young vocal-juggernaut JoJo's free mixtape project Can't Take That Away From Me last September by way of the gorgeous duet piece "When Does It Go Away", which he co-wrote. He also premiered two more 'cover remixes', the most recent of which being of P!NK's hit "F*ckin' Perfect". Take a listen below:

He also released a mixtape project of his own for free on his Tumblr blog/new official website, appropriately titled Last Man Standing. The five song project was inspired by various James Bond films, and often feature samples from the series more poignant film scores. My favorite cut, the album's namesake, features a melody line that harkens to Chris Brown's "Wall to Wall", outfitted with zappy synthy underbeats, and displays his incredible vocal range. It's infused to capacity with the project's cool, mature, confident mantra, and helps shuck off the pre-concieved notions that seem to be dogging him.

The single from the project, "Everything Right Now", also follows that lead -- smoky, confident and highlighting Garland's desperation toward total creative control, and the ability to stand on a stage as himself. The video also provides the necessary aesthetics in the pop music world (read: he's easy on the eyes, but this is hardly news to moi), and while truly debonair like 007 he may not quite be, it's not so much about the image as it is about the drive, the mentality, and at the end of the day the voice, which just cannot be denied.

These days, just about any one can be a pop singer. The true vocal greats, the creative visionaries, the performers, this is who should be celebrated. For that reason alone, Travis Garland deserves his share of the pop landscape.

COUNTDOWN TO LIVE: Janet Jackson, "Number Ones"...#3

Fam, it's time to get back into the blogging groove and what better way to get right back into it than with this...

This is the first of three posts in a 'Countdown' series leading up to March 21, 2011. For on that night, I shall finally experience live and in person one of the few artists who have forever shaped my musical adoration: Ms. Janet Jackson. I will be in live attendance for one of a series of shows Ms. Jackson will be performing at the legendary Radio City Music Hall here in New York City, in support of her latest 'greatest hits' package Number Ones.

The concert will be extra special because unlike other tours which are usually in support of a particular album release, Janet will be focusing on showcasing her hits (and we all know she's got a ton of 'em). Her career is currently in its fourth decade, and now ten albums of original material strong. Janet has proven her worth time and time again, not just as an artist, performer and songwriter, but also as a sophisticated and downright commendable woman of class and integrity. 

Considering I was born in the late 80's, and was just a little too young to be fully submerged in the impact made by her older brother(s), it was Janet who had the first and deepest impression on me of the Jackson clan, beginning first with 1993's janet. The album was one of the very first CDs in my collection, and looking back on it now, it's hardly the type of material a typical six year-old would be devouring. Blame it on my older cousins, who would blare "Funky Big Band" while babysitting me but the rhythm took me over, and my interest in Janet began to outweigh your typical childish desire to want to be like her elders. I didn't truly appreciate janet. until I was a teenager, when I revisted it, along with 1986's Control, 1989's Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814, and 1997's The Velvet Rope after I gained word that my bubble-gum boy band of choice -- *NSYNC -- would be opening up for her on tour. The adoration stuck, and regardless of career highs and lows, acting choices, weight fluctutations, bad press, good press, and everything in between, Janet Jackson has remained one of the few staples in my music collection, and one of the few artists who has multiple albums under her belt that I find downright fundamental to any music fan's collection.

In my excitement leading up to this sure to be life-changing night, I shall be reminiscing about my Top 3 Janet songs of all time -- a decision-making challenge of epic proportions. There's a million songs that could be my favorite Janet song, and my personal feelings on the subject change with the day, hour and minute. She has songs for when you're sad, songs for when you're happy, songs when you just wanna dance, songs for when you want to cry it all out. Janet's got a little something for everyone. Tunes like "Miss You Much", "Black Cat", "All For You", "What Have You Done For Me Lately", "Feedback", "Together Again", "Go Deep", "That's The Way Love Goes", "Let's Wait A While" -- they all have a different story and a different meaning to me. They are all essential. To narrow it down to just three is semi-impossible, but I've done my very best to pinpoint my absolute favorites, bar none.

Given janet.'s impact on my musical history, it shouldn't surprise you one of my Top 3 is from that album.  While I went back and forth between my eventual "Number Three" and another unbelievably worthy contender, I've made my decision. So I present to you... #3:

I can't really explain my attachement to this song, other than it began in my single-digit years. I heard the song once, and found it so haunting it seemed to follow me throughout my life. It's a shining example of what a team Janet makes with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis as songwriters, as it is the epitome of relatable; soft, tender and yet heartbreakingly vulnerable and sad while being tearfully optimistic. In terms of beautiful tearjerkers, it doesn't come more striking than "Again".

For more info on Janet's tour, click here.