Apr 082020
 

In the Spotlight showcases a cross-section of an artist’s cover work. View past installments, then post suggestions for future picks in the comments!

Timbaland

Like his childhood friend Pharrell Williams, Timbaland is also a man of many talents. He is a performer in his own right and has helped launch and rebrand careers of others through his production prowess. As evidence of his dedication, when Timbaland was fourteen he was partially paralyzed for almost a year after an accidental shooting; undeterred, he learned to DJ left-handed. Growing up in Norfolk, Virginia, Timbaland had a variety of childhood friends that would also rise to stardom. Along with Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams, Timbaland was also friends with Pusha T and Malice from Clipse.

After the short-lived Surrounded By Idiots group formed with the boys from The Neptunes, Timbaland and Magoo branched off to be their own performing duo in the late ’90s while Timbaland’s solo production built in popularity. In the early ’00s, Timbaland started to focus more on being a producer before returning to working double duty by releasing his second solo album in 2007.

Timbaland is a master collaborator, performing alongside artists from a wide range of genres. I recently rediscovered his albums Shock Value and Shock Value II, and as each track played I was more and more surprised and then ultimately delighted by the blend of Timbaland’s signature sound with others’ eclectic styles. Reportedly, one of the collaborations that didn’t make the cut for Shock Value or its sequel was with the Jonas Brothers, and honestly, with their big comeback, I would like to see Timbaland revisit this idea.

Today we’ll focus on covers of Timbaland’s own performances, and tomorrow we will discover which hits Timbaland played a major role in as writer and producer.

Continue reading »

Apr 202011
 

Every Wednesday, our resident Gleek Eric Garneau gives his take on last night’s Glee covers.


In “A Night of Neglect,” the glee club decide to put on a benefit concert to raise money for their trip to Nationals. The theme of the concert: neglected artists! Of course, scheming Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) vows to make sure the show shan’t go on.

Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Glee’s a comedy. Usually the show drenches itself in melodrama, which can be one of its charms, but the laughs don’t always flow. I warmly welcomed, then, last night’s embracing of the ridiculous. The guest stars really helped in that regard — kudos to the show’s producers for bringing back the characters played by incredibly gifted comic actors Stephen Toblowsky and Cheyenne Jackson. I think Glee gave Jackson more to do in his three scenes tonight than 30 Rock has all season. Continue reading »

Mar 312011
 

The astute Cover Me reader may have already noticed the disproportionately large number of great covers that come out of BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge. Perhaps there’s something in the air there, or maybe just a producer who knows how to bring quality covers out of all their performers. British singer-songwriter Jamie Woon recently emerged from the lounge with a cover of Adele‘s “Someone Like You.” Continue reading »