British pop songstress Jessie J has had a breakout year with hit singles “Price Tag” and “Domino.” Arguably one of the few musicians who has had a better year is Rihanna, who climbed the charts this fall with her sixth album, Talk That Talk. During her visit to BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge last week, Jessie J covered her controversy-courting contemporary’s smash “We Found Love.” Continue reading »
U.K. hitmaker Jessie J has come quite a ways from her beginnings as a talented songwriter – believe it or not, she’s the one behind hits like Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the U.S.A.” It seems about time, then, that she receive some of the spotlight as a star in her own right. In the past few years, pop tracks like “Price Tag” have helped Jessie J make a bigger name for herself in the music world. But it’s heartfelt songs like “Who You Are,” the title track off of Jessie J’s most recent album, that really showcase her songwriting talents. Scottish band Twin Atlantic brings said talents to light with their acoustic alt-rock rendition of the original at the BBC Live Lounge. Continue reading »
They Say It’s Your Birthday celebrates an artist’s big day with cover tributes to his or her songs. Let others do the work for a while. Happy birthday!
In her 48 years, Whitney Houston has accomplished more than most of us will in a whole lifetime. From modeling to acting to (of course) singing, this New Jersey native has done it all. Her signature powerhouse voice has won her over 400 awards over the course of her career, and ever since her self-titled debut album, Whitney Houston, was released back in 1985, Houston has proven herself to be a game-changer. Her outstanding success helped topple gender and racial barriers in the music industry, paving the way for female recording artists like Beyoncé and Rihanna, who rule the airwaves today. But, really, who would expect anything less from the cousin of Dionne Warwick and goddaughter of Aretha Franklin? Continue reading »
It seems that few folks in the US had heard of Jessie J when VEVO started advertising the premier of “Price Tag” on every music video you might try to watch. Just because you hadn’t heard of her, though, doesn’t mean you didn’t know her music. Born Jessica Cornish, the UK songstress co-wrote Miley Cyrus’s ubiquitous, hate-it-so-much-you-love-it “Party in the USA.”
In a grand mishmash of a music-loving Anglophile’s dream, Liverpool indie rockers The Wombats just performed a set on BBC’s Live Lounge. They were a bit elusive about what song they were planning to perform, but commented that they saw the song performed live and “her voice is just absolutely insane; her voice is unbelievable.” For anybody who is familiar with the pop tune – especially after the radio host guessed at Jessie or Gaga – it was a fair hint when one of the band members asked, “am I gonna do this coconut man thing?” Continue reading »