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September Means Business for Jay-Z

Emma Renda — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 20:55:20 +0000

The wait for Jay-Z’s much-hyped new album will be over sooner than expected thanks to an Internet leak, according to NME.com.

The Blueprint 3 will now be released tomorrow (Sept. 8), three days earlier than plan. This will mark Hova’s third album following his alleged retirement in 2003 and the third instalment in his critically-revered Blueprint series. The Sept. 11 release was originally planned to fall eight years to the day following the 2001 release of Blueprint.

Despite being overshadowed by the 9/11 attacks, Blueprint still sold 426,000 copies in its first week and has since been named a must-have album by nearly every music critic out there. It even squeezed into Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list at #464.

The online leak of the much-awaited Blueprint 3 was a minor hitch in Jay’s plan.

“I may be the most bootlegged artist in history,” he told MTV News. “It’s a preview. I’m excited for people to hear the album. I’m very proud of the work I’ve done, so enjoy it.”

The album, produced by Kanye West, will feature the already chart-topping single “Run This Town” with West and Rihanna. It hit number one in the UK Singles Chart this week, marking Jay’s first UK single in the top spot, according to MTV UK. Clearly he has won over the oft-pop-dominated UK music world, as he is scheduled to support Coldplay at their Wembley Stadium show later this month.

A North American tour has also been announced in support of the album, including an impressive road trip through the Great White North. Aside from the mandatory stops in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, Jay will play shows in Calgary, Edmonton, Kelowna, London, and Ottawa (much to my delight.) No details about supporting acts have been released, although rumours flew about Eminem joining him on the road.

As unlikely as that roster would be, Jay does have a show scheduled for Sept. 11 at Madison Square Garden in NYC as a charity event for New York Police and Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund. Jay’s retirement concert at MSG in 2003 was a historical affair, in support of another of his acclaimed albums, The Black Album, and featuring every special guest from The Roots (his frequently employed backup band), Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, Pharrell Williams to the mothers of both Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G.

In his 40th year, Jay has a vice-like handle on the rap game and his plans for this fall only attest to it. Stay tuned to see how it pans out.

Aaron Carter Says What?

Robert Ostfield — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:16:32 +0000

Can anybody decipher what Aaron Carter is saying? He seems like a really nice guy but we are lost. Please translate for us in the comment box.

Label Says Chris Brown’s New Songs Are Old Demos

Ilan Mester — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:34:01 +0000

In May, Chris Brown posted a video online where he announced he’s working on a new album called “Grafitti.” Brown also said he planned on releasing a new single sometime in the summer. However, music is coming out before Brown intended.

“Countering misleading reports of ‘new’ Chris Brown music: there are no ‘new’ songs from Chris Brown currently being promoted by Chris or his record label,” said a representative for Jive Records in a statement. “There are several old demos circulating that are being falsely promoted as new material from Chris.”

According to MTV News, two singles have been released featuring Brown. These include “Not My Fault” and “Smash” .

Brown’s next LP has no official date of release according to MTV News.

After Brown’s alleged altercation with pop star Rihanna, he has been sentenced to 180 days of community service and five years’ probation.

Jessie James Makes Her Mark In The Country/Pop World

Eva Lam — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 01:22:15 +0000

She’s worked with some of the biggest songwriters in Nashville, contributed a song to the soundtrack of a hit movie and was personally sought out for collaboration by none other than Katy Perry – all before releasing her first album.

Clearly, Jessie James is not your average “new artist.” “I’ve been performing on stage since I was 9 years old,” the singer-songwriter, now 21, tells andPOP. “So it’s definitely something I’m used to. . . . I’ve been doing this forever.”

It’s all coming to a head with the impending release of James’s debut album via Mercury Records/Island Def Jam. Due in stores July 14, the album is a genre-hopping fusion of country, pop, rock and soul, driven by James’ powerhouse vocals. Lead single “Wanted” (co-written by “American Idol” judge Kara DioGuardi) is already playing on more than 60 stations across the U.S., and its music video was featured by iTunes as a “Video of the Week” last month.

For the performer born Jessica Rose James, the rise to stardom was a slow but steady process that began with a decidely atypical upbringing. A self-described “military brat,” James spent her childhood living in a number of different places in the U.S. and abroad – 14 in all. Looking back, she sees the constant uprooting as having been both a crutch and a blessing for her musical ambitions.

“I would move within six months or a year, so it took a long time to finally stay somewhere long enough so I could really get my music out there,” says James, who performed at events like the Republican Convention and the opening of Sea World as a youngster.

“But it also influenced me so I’m able to adapt in different situations, and I’m great with meeting lots of new people. It’s easy for me to visit different places and be comfortable.”

James finally landed in Georgia, where she lived for seven years. From there, she commuted back and forth to Nashville, working at the age of 15 with a string of top songwriters. The early experience taught James some valuable lessons about songwriting.

“I learned how organic it actually is,” she says. “I’m so glad I started in Nashville, because Nashville is the most traditional way of songwriting. It’s just you and the guitar and writing a song and a melody, and that’s that.”

The back-to-basics approach to writing is something James continues to take with all her songs, from the sassy “My Cowboy” – which received a shout-out from Perez Hilton on his blog last summer – to the no-holds-barred ballad “Guilty.”

“If I’m upset about something or angry, I tend to write it down – it’s my therapy,” she says. “I’ve never written anything that I didn’t mean. Everything that you hear me saying or singing is something that has happened to me and it’s a real situation.

James says inspiration can hit at any time. “My songwriting is very natural and I’m influenced by every day or anything that I’m doing. I could be on a plane and I could be crying about missing my mom or missing family, and I could just write out lyrics immediately. And it comes quick, ’cause I mean it and it’s real.”

Take “Guilty,” for example. The song, which James co-wrote with Josh Kear (a Grammy winner for Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats”) and Mark Irwin (Garth Brooks), details the turbulence of James’ relationship at the time with an unidentified famous rocker.

“He was on tour all the time, and I was in Nashville by myself,” she says. “I was just waiting for him and I pretty much told myself he’s got to be cheating if he’s on tour – ‘I mean, he’s cheating, so –’ and in turn I cheated on him. And so that’s pretty much what the song is about.”

James says “Guilty” is her favourite song to perform. “It was a real story, and I think you can feel it when you hear me singing it and any time I play it.”

Not that James’ entire album is drawn from such an emotionally gut-wrenching place. One track that keeps things light and playful is “Blue Jeans,” a hip-hop-flavoured ode to the clothing staple buoyed by such empowering refrains as: “Don’t matter what ya wearin’ (hey hey)/It’s about the way you wear it (hey hey).”

The tune certainly caught the attention of the producers behind this year’s “Confessions of a Shopaholic.” The big-screen adaptation of Sophie Kinsella’s bestselling novel featured “Blue Jeans” on its soundtrack, much to James’ delight – and surprise.

“I didn’t even know it was going to be in the movie!” she says. “I’d been told that they had an interest in using the song ’cause it was obviously about shopping, but I didn’t know until I kept getting text messages on Christmas Day from people saying, “Oh my gosh, I heard your song in the movie trailer for ‘Confessions of a Shopaholic’ when I went to see ‘Marley and Me.’ I couldn’t believe it. . . . It was very exciting.”

Something else James is excited for is the release of her second single, “Bullet,” on which she shares writing credits with current princess of pop Katy Perry. James reveals that the collaboration actually came about two years ago, when a pre-chart-topping Perry got wind of the then-teenager’s work.

“She emailed me – and this was before she even blew up – (and) she was like, ‘I want to work with you, I think you’re great,’” says James. “And so we had our labels set us up together and we had a writing appointment.”

Besides writing together, Perry also played James two songs she had previously penned, “Bullet” and “Girl Next Door.” Both tracks will now appear on James’ album – “Bullet” features background vocals from Perry, while “Girl Next Door” is a poignant reminder about staying “that down-home girl” in the face of burgeoning stardom, says James. “I cried when I first heard it,” she recalls about the latter tune. “It’s so beautiful.”

So what was it like working with Miss Perry? James has nothing but high praise.

“She is just like you see her. She is a real artist; if I can say anything about her – she is real. She’s not phony and superficial or fake like a lot of these celebrity girls you see out there,” says James.

“She loves music and, you know, you hear a lot of the stuff that she sings on the radio and they’re really great radio songs. But deep down she is a deep, deep person and she writes deep music and real lyrics. . . . She’s worked hard her entire life and I really appreciate that from her. She’s never given up, and I think that’s a good lesson out there to a lot of people.”

Katy Perry’s not the only music heavyweight James is hob-knobbing with these days. In the run-up to her album’s release, she’s lined up several high-profile shows where she shares the bill with “American Idol” winner David Cook, including an upcoming June 20 date at the Red White and Boom Festival in Kansas.

It’s just the beginning of what James envisions as being a long, wide-ranging career. “I see myself doing this forever. If you look at Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn . . . they’re doing it still, they’re still making music, and that is what my plan is,” she says.

“And if for some reason I get too old, then I’m going to start producing artists myself. I want to produce artists and I want to have a label and I want to have my own publishing company. I plan to make a business out of my career.”

For the time being, James plans to keep putting out her personalized brand of tell-it-like-it-is music. She draws inspiration from her music idols including Janis Joplin, Bobbie Gentry and Shania Twain, whom she lauds for being “ballsy,” strong women.

“I get so frustrated when I turn on the radio and there’s a girl singing, ‘Please come back to me’ – I mean, you’ve got to be kidding me!” she says with a laugh.

“I think it’s so important to empower women. You can be confident and you can be single, or you need to have your man earn the respect or the guy will walk all over you. You do the walking.”

Mandy Moore Interview

Robert Ostfield — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 03:50:11 +0000

We love Mandy Moore here at andPOP. We were a little upset when she dumped Vince on Entourage but we have slowly recovered from that pain. Jordan speaks with Mandy about the latest album, life in Hollywood, and give us her thoughts on gay marriage and Proposition 8 in California.

Sugar Ray Returns With New Album In July

Eva Lam — Wed, 06 May 2009 19:23:09 +0000

After a stint co-hosting the celebrity news show “Extra,” Mark McGrath is back full-time as the frontman of Sugar Ray as the band preps for the release of their first full album of new material in six years.

“Music for Cougars,” the follow-up to 2003’s “In Pursuit of Leisure,” comes out July 21 and will be supported by a summer tour of clubs and festivals.

In an interview with Billboard, McGrath said the group – which still has all of its original members after 21 years – jumped at the chance to record a new album.

“I left ‘Extra’ in September and focused full time on the band and making this record,” he told the magazine. “It’s purely a passion, a labour of love basically making this record.”

He added, “We have realistic views of how the music industry is today. I know people aren’t sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for a Sugar Ray record. But that wasn’t the point. It was purely because we love to make music.”

According to Billboard, the album sees the band returning to its signature sound of “lazy grooves, easy beats, and catchy harmonies.” Recorded in Los Angeles, “Cougars” also features guest appearances from the likes of Rivers Cuomo and Donovan Frankenreiter.

First single “Boardwalk” will be released to radio in May. The band will follow up on the album’s release with an extensive U.S. tour that kicks off July 24 in Hankinson, ND and runs through Sept. 26 in San Diego, CA.

Sugar Ray had a string of reggae-tinged radio hits in the late-1990s and early-2000s, including “Fly” and “Every Morning.” They released a best-of album in 2005 and were featured on the soundtrack to the 2007 computer-animated flick “Surf’s Up.”

Kings OF Leon Add North American Dates

Eva Lam — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 04:40:08 +0000

Kings of Leon have extended their current North American tour into the summer in support of their fourth album, “Only By The Night.”

The southern rockers, who are in the midst of a spring trek that takes them to Europe in June, will return to their home continent in August for six newly-added dates.

These include three Canadian stops: Edmonton on Aug. 12, Calgary on Aug. 13 and Vancouver on Aug. 15. Tickets for those shows went on sale Friday.

Released last September, “Only By The Night” debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and received three Grammy nominations, including best album. The band eventually took home a win for best rock performance by a duo or group with vocals for the single “Sex on Fire.”

The foursome have already begun writing songs for a new album, which guitarist Matthew Followill says may be “a little grungier” than their previous releases. “We’re touring until the end of this year so we can’t start until 2010 but it’ll come out probably fall of 2010,” Followill told BBC 6 Music recently.

Here are King of Leon’s newly-announced North American dates:

- Aug. 9 – Morrison, CO (Red Rocks Amphitheatre)
- Aug. 12 – Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Place)
- Aug. 13 – Calgary, Alberta (Pengrowth Saddledome)
- Aug. 15 – Vancouver, British Columbia (General Motors Place)
- Aug. 17 – Portland, OR (Rose Garden)
- Aug. 22 – Los Angeles, CA (The Forum)

J.T. Will Release A New Album When He Loses Sleep Over It

Ilan Mester — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 18:51:18 +0000

If you want Justin Timberlake to release a new album, the best way to get him to do so is to mess with his sleep. J.T. told Entertainment Weekly he will release a new album when his sleep pattern is disturbed.

“I was heavily fulfilled with the last one and I always have this thing with myself that if I can’t sleep because I need to do it, then I’m gonna do it,” he said of his last album to Entertainment Weekly. “But if I’m not losing sleep over it, then …”

Timberlake is still active in the music business. He has recently collaborated with T.I. and the steamy video for Ciara’s “Love Sex Magic” featuring Timberlake has everyone talking.

“Right now, I like the idea that things can just kind of pop up and if they feel right I can do them,” Timberlake told Entertainment Weekly.

Besides music, he’s also working on executive-producing the new MTV show “The Phone”.

New Green Day Album Coming In May

Eva Lam — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 03:59:22 +0000

Green Day have confirmed they will release their eighth studio album, “21st Century Breakdown,” on May 15.

“Breakdown” is the band’s first full-length release since 2004’s “American Idiot” and, like its predecessor, features a narrative structure. According to Billboard, it tells the story of a young couple named Christian and Gloria and is divided into three acts – “Heroes and Cons,” “Charlatans and Saints” and “Horseshoes and Handgrenades.”

The album was produced by Butch Vig, who has worked with the likes of Against Me! and Nirvana. First single “Know Your Enemy” will go on sale digitally in April.

Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong previously told Rolling Stone that it will be another political album.

“A lot of people were born into an unlucky time, the era of George W. Bush,” Armstrong said. “There is an optimism now with Obama … Be aware. Don’t look at this guy as the answer to our prayers. You still need to be involved.”

The band is expected to kick off a North American arena tour in early July, followed by shows in Europe. They will then return to North America – as well as hit Japan, southeast Asia and South America – in 2010.

U2 Could Release Another Album In 2009

Ilan Mester — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 17:15:16 +0000

It’s possible that in the near future, maybe even as close as later this year, U2 will release another album, according to MTV News.

The band is said to have material they compiled in the original “No Line” recording with Rick Rubin nearly three years ago. However, after recording with Rubin in 2006, they decided to move into a new direction, leaving enough songs for another LP.

“We have talked about a second album. We certainly have loads of material,” said U2’s The Edge to MTV News. “But we’re still so delighted with this record. It’s hard to put a timetable on it.”

U2 drummer Larry Mullen also explained to MTV News why they moved into a new direction. “It wasn’t like we fell out with Rick — it just wasn’t the right time for us,” he said. “It went really well. The songs were fantastic. It would have been great for Atomic Bomb … [the songs] weren’t right for this.”