LADY GAGA FAILS TO ACKNOWLEDGE EXPRESS YOURSELF & MADONNA'S BROTHER LASHES OUT

Was it Satre or Baudrillard who said that everything in Art had already been said, and there was nothing left to do except appropriate and recycle other peoples work? Whichever it was, we can apply that same arguement to the drama and criticism swirling around GaGa's new single Born This Way.

Madonna's brother Christopher Ciccone has recently lashed out about Lady GaGa; in an interview with Radar Online he said "All I can say is "What the F**K!"" and 'It sounds just like Express Yourself - I can't believe it to tell you the truth."

The similarities between GaGa's single and Madonna's iconic 1989 Express Yourself are more than obvious, but nowhere in recent press and interviews has Lady GaGa even acknowleged this, or mentioned the influence or inspiration of Madonna on her own music.

The two artists are known to be friends (going out dancing together) but who know's what Madonna will think of Born This Way. Anyone remember Madonna's track She's Not Me from the Hard Candy album?

Below are two short interviews recently filmed with GaGa where she talks about where the inspiration for the song came from and what she thinks it's about ...

Go towards the light GaGa, towards the light ...

EIGHTH BRITNEY TEASER

There have been seven days of Britney so far, and to promote her new single Hold It Against Me and its soon to be released video, here's the eighth teaser clip.

Who's being punched in the clip? GaGa? Christina? Or Britney's evil alter ego???

The video premieres Thursday on MTV.

BORN THIS WAY PREMIERES

Like a Pop nuclear bomb being dropped onto the music scene, Lady GaGa's long anticipated

Born This Way has a dramatic impact ...

It's taken me at three plays to even begin to formulate an opinion - this is almost completely not what I was expecting. Even though I'd read rumours of Madonna & 90s beats, I was still expecting the fierceness, the darkness and the camp vampire-esque gritted teeth I've come to associate with GaGa, instead we get a punchy middle-of-the-road Mardi Gras anthem about being true to yourself with some Express Yourself and Holiday dance beats thrown in here and there.

This is it.

Starts promising, with GaGa's typical sinister voiceover intro, but then it just descends into disco chaos. Some pluses for the deep electro synths, and just the lyrics to the chorus alone (the "drag- queen" verses grate on me as soon as I hear them) with "God makes no mistakes, I'm on the right track, baby I was born this way"  are incredible, but these could have been delivered SOOOO much better which in the end has left me a little dissapointed.

I was hoping for something along the EPIC line of this little taster we had a few months ago..

Well, who knows, maybe its a grower.

TRACK LEAK: DR BIEBER

For all the Bieber fans out there - and I know theres a few - here's a new track which has surfaced online. It doesn't seem clear yet whether it's a leaked single, an album track or a demo.

Dr Bieber is gonna' cure the fever.

LADY GAGA COVER ART FOR BORN THIS WAY

Here we have the cover art for GaGa's long awaited record Born This Way.

Due to be premiered at this week's Grammys, it seems like an eternity since we heard anything new from Pop's biggest artist.

What clues can we pick up from this image? That she's unclothed and showing she's proud to be who she is? We should be proud of who we are? Fierce and wild, an animal let loose? Free monsters??

We will find out in three days...

GLEE MASHUP: YEAH YEAH YEAHS vs MICHAEL JACKSON

Heads Will Roll by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs is one of my FAVOURITE pop/rock/dance records - in fact I love it so much I never talk about it, just so I can keep it a secret all to myself, like a favourite club or beach that you want nobody else to discover - and so I was shocked to find out Glee have done a mashup with Michael Jackson's Thriller.

By far the Heads Will Roll sections sound fantastic, and the Thriller parts are so-so. Well done those preppy kids for covering the Yeah Yeah Yeahs so well, but damn them to hell for exposing one of my favourite hidden gems! Now every preteen kid will be singing this!!!

MYA DOES DANCE

It seems like everyone who's anyone is hitting the dancefloor with their own up-tempo electro track at the moment, and next up is MYA.

Boardering on one-hit-wonder, MYA has had a couple of big hits Ghetto Superstar, Case of the Ex and the Lady Marmalade colloboration (all of which were AMAZING records), but for someone who's been on the music scene for such a long time she hasn't done much else. She may be more big in U.S. but here in the UK, MYA has a looong way to go before she reaches the Rihanna or Beyonce levels, and with comeback tracks as weak and vaccuous as this, I think its easy to see why.

Have a listen and see what you think...

Love Is The Answer (feat. Mya) by alwayssAboutMusics

FURORE AS BBC RADIO RENAME RIHANNA'S S&M AS "COME ON"

Ever the PC purveryors, the BBC have decided to rename Rihanna's single S & M as Come On, much to the annoyance of RiRi herself.

Several words have been dropped from BBC Radio One's PG version, such as "sex" and "chains". Radio One have said "'During daytime hours, as younger audiences are listening, we are playing the radio edit which is called 'Come On'. This is due to the strong nature of the content in the original version of the track. However we will continue to play the original track in specialist shows with an appropriate introduction."

Rihanna has had to say on her twitter "Are you f---ing kidding me??? I'm on it!" and asked by fans if she was OK with this she said "Absolutely Not!"

JESSIE J SCORES FIRST UK #1

Congratulations to Jessie J who last night knocked Ke$ha of the UK top spot and claimed her first number one record with Price Tag. Her debut single Do It Like A Dude only made no. 2.

I still think the song is quite average but it's still an achievement for a great new UK artist.

CHRISTINA FLUFFS AMERICAN ANTHEM AT SUPERBOWL

Its been a tough time recently for Xtina, what with the under performance of Bionic, divorce from her husband and then average performance of movie Burlesque - and things don't seem to be getting any better...

All over the press today is her live performance at yesterday's American SuperBowl (I'm sure you all know what a huge deal this is in the U.S.) where she fluffed the line "O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming" and replaced it with an improvised "What so proudly we watched at the twilight's last reaming".

About 0:50 through ...

People in the press are calling this a DISASTER and Christina is said to have been devasted. She's since issued the statement "I can only hope that everyone could feel my love for this country and that the true spirit of its anthem still came through".

Can't help but feel sorry for the Aguilera, as we all slip up now and again - and she did hammer home the performance with some incredible notes - but if you're going to go on the SuperBowl and sing the national anthem, live to MILLIONS OF PEOPLE, at least know the words.

DAVID LACHAPELLE NOT HAPPY WITH RIHANNA

Iconic artist, photographer and director David Lachapelle has finally spoken over the contraversy and criticism poured at Rihanna's video for latest single S & M.

Anyone who is familiar with the incredible Lachapelle will know his distinct and flamboyant style, often highly colourful, highly sexualised and referencing Popular Culture through its celebrity portrayals. Comparing his work to Rihanna's latest video, its doesn't take an Art Historian to spot the similiarities.

Lachapelle had this to say on twitter...

ADELLE ON FIRE IN RADIO1 LIVELOUNGE

No, not a tragic accident, but merely an incredible acoustic session from rocketing UK star Adelle.

On her debut I wasn't an Adelle fan, and thought she lacked personality and edge - "should I give up or should I just keep walking pavements" was played to D.E.A.T.H. here in the UK - but I'm big enough to admit when I'm wrong.

First up, a huge soulful barrage of a song Adelle performs Rolling In The Deep, with such power and conviction you cannot argue with her star talent.

From that Adelle goes on to work her magic on none other that Cheryl Cole's Promise This. BBC1's LiveLounge are noted for getting unusal cover versions from their guests, and this is no acception.   The first 1:15 of the song is beautiful with a very gospel feel, and makes me see the lyrics to the song in a completely different light - this could have been a Motown or soul classic - but as soon as that God-awful "Alouette" comes in it ruins the song.

Either way, praise be to Adelle for a stunning LiveLounge session. I will deffinately be downloading my copy of 21 today.

SINGLE REVIEW: JESSIE J feat BOB - PRICE TAG

The follow up to Do It Like A Dude shows Jessie J getting deep, or at least not shallow (money isn't everything etc etc) on us. Can't help but feeling like I've heard this all before, agreed it's not as politcally motivated as M.I.A.'s punch in the face that was Paper Planes, but still the message of there's more to life than designer label's is such a cliche, that it's going to take cleverer lyrics than this to put a new spin on it.

The video though is glossy, polished, shows Jessie's style off to a tee and is in general pretty faultless. The track also is bright and breezy with a deffinate summer vibe going on - I can just imagine cruising along in the sunshine with this on the radio.

Overall, I want to like Jessie J, but after this and the over-hyped Do It Like A Dude, I'm not jumping on the bandwagon just yet.

ELTON: CHERYL COLE IS CRAP

The great queen of music Sir Elton John is all over the UK press today after having this latest opinion to share with the world in an interview with The Word magazine:

 "(The music is) all awful. Frankly, they all sound the same. It's hard to tell Girls Aloud from The Saturdays. And then there's Cheryl Cole... It's all c**p.

"British pop music like that is the worst. It's just awful. It could have been made by anybody."

Elton must be more of a Sugababes fan then.

SINGLE REVIEW: ALEXIS JORDAN - GOOD GIRL

Finally. Something to be excited about.

Good Girl by AlexisJordan

A 100% sparkly little pop gem. Alexis' r'n'b vocals give an Ashanti style credibility to this otherwise simple but insanely catchy dance pop record.

My Verdict? Very good sleeper hit. A successful club track, not a world conquering mega smash, but could be the -Pon De Replay - start of something amazing.

SINGLE REVIEW: NATALIA KILLS - MIRRORS

Floating sexily around on the web for some time now, Natalia Kills has been gaining pace in the U.S. and Europe and is soon to release her debut UK single Mirrors.

I first read about Natalia ages ago and since she's failed to make an impact since then wondered if she would only exist in music cyber-space ("Music CyberSpace"? I can see the  Tron/BladeRunner/LadyGaGa movie epic now) and on the Pop forums.

So for anyone new to Natalia Kills, here's the Mirrors video...

Sex, Love, Control, Vanity. Miss Jackson anyone??

If you close your eyes on the verses you could almost be listening to LadyGaga. And the chorus? Its not just me with the Eurythmics The Collection on cd then.
Natalia looks very cool, I like the darkness, the attitude but darkness & attitude isn't everything.
With SO many people doing similar stuff at the moment - Jessie J, Nicole Scherzinger, Lady GaGa - I'm not sure how big Natatlia will make it in the UK.

VIDEO REVIEW: RIHANNA - S&M

Sexy in the air? Where was the sexy part of this video?? Candy floss OD, maybe she's been spending too much timewith Katy Perry. Where its meant to be edgy, its just blunt. All the PG
bondage just seems fake. The best bit is RiRi in the white shower cap straddling a fat man in a mocked-up CCTV scene.

I am a BIG fan of RiRi, but I'm afraid its a "must do better next time".

**It's been how many singles off Loud now? I'm sure a re-release with some better singles is already on the way**

WHITE STRIPES SPLIT

Seemingly out of nowhere has come the announcement that The White Stripes are splitting up. I can't even remember the last record they put out, and their heyday of the all conquering Seven Nation Army seems a distant memory now. Such a once mighty and iconic band, who produced ground breaking music videos (Hardest Button to Button), made Baccarach cool again (I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself Kate Moss pole dancing in her underwear???? INCREDIBLE) and gave us generally insane tunes (My Doorbell) - as well as showcasing the importance and power of a colour scheme to a band's image - will deffinately be missed.

One of the best bands of all time. RIP The White Stripes.

But what now? Massively talented Jack White has The Raconteurs and , and after the experimental collobaration with Alicia Keys I could see a Lady GaGa hook up being I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E.

And as for Meg? The future looks grim...

MUTYA BUENA (NEW TRACK) GIVE ME LOVE

The legendary Mutya Buena comes back from the music wilderness to bring us this fantastic new dance tune Give Me Love, mixed and produced by up & coming UK dance producer Paul Morrell. Lets take a listen/look ...

Strings, moodiness, heartbreak and 90s dance beats. This is like Sophie Ellis Bextor but better. A pure house tune that reminds us how fantasticly moody Buena's vocals are. It's been a long time since she hooked up with Groove Armada on the incredible Song4Mutya, we've had a lot of r'n'b and garage sleeper records but nothing that feels as big or as polished as this. Let's hope 2011 won't just see the return of one solo Sugababe.

One small criticism though? Keep away from the green lipstuff love, it's not a good look.

SPARK ft THE STREETS - REVOLVING

New up & coming British artist Spark caught my attention online with a different song Crave, so I had a look into her further - theres quite a few videos & performances on YouTube - and came across Revolving.

Not sure what it was about Spark that intrigued me enough to find out more - could it be the leather, could it be the retro shades, could it be the vague eighties resemblance to Belinda Carlisle or even Alison Moyet - but I was pleasantly surprised. Revolving is a quirky catchy electro pop tune with an urban beat which is pretty good by itself (listen to the original here) but so much D.A.M.N. better when you add Mike Skinner aka The Streets. With more than a handfull of dark dance remixes online, Skinner takes the track to a whole new level and turns up the volume on the urban street flavour. 

One of the most original & exciting tracks I've heard in a while.
Deffinately one I'll be listening to again and again.

WTF: TINIE TEMPAH MEETS ELLIE GOULDING

Tinie has certainly been busy of late, collaborating with many an artist and the lastest to the list is duller-than-dull poor-little-rich-girl Ellie Goulding. Surprise? You Betcha.

Like some funky retro James Bond meets Charlies Angels meets Shaft, the artwork for the single deffinately looks promising, and somehow Ellie Goulding manages to pull off almost looking vaguely sexy. So has Tinie managed to do a Michael-Hutchence-corruption-of-Kylie-Minogue-esque reimagining of Ellie? Lets not get carried away, but from the single cover its deffinately makes her more interesting. I just hope Tinie doesn't dilute all his credibility and duet with Susan Boyle next ...

MATT CARDLE & AIDEN GRIMSHAW COLLABORATION?

XFactor fans may be pleased to read the news which is in the UK press today that XFactor winner Matt Cardle plans to duet with BFF Aiden Grimshaw.

Matt is planning to release his debut album this year, for which he hopes to write all the material himself - apparently he's been writing songs since he was 11, so that means he must be good at it. The pair have shared a much publicised bromance during the last series of the show, and any collaboration could help Aiden get some much needed publicity after finishing in which place during the contest? ...

Who will survive in life after the XFactor from this series? My money's on Cher Lloyd/Rebecca Ferguson/One Erection.

SARAH HARDING'S "BUM" NOTE

Just watched this hilarious clip online of one fifth of Girls Aloud showcasing her vocal talents.

I love the way Cheryl looks over at Sarah, as if she's heard the bum note and all in one look manages to get across: acknowledgement of the bum note, reassurance that we - as in Cheryl - all have a bum note now and then, and just to smile and style it out. Incredible.

Yet more proof of why Sugababes - and not Girls Aloud - are the UKs best girl group.



ON THE FLOOR- JENNIFER LOPEZ ft PIT BULL

Its been a while since Jennifer Lopez has been relevant music-wise, with I don't know how many leaked tracks, demos and rurmoured new singles appearing and dissapearing online. It seems now though, we deffinately have something to go with:

Jennifer Lopez - On The Floor ft. Pitbull by Guzzo

Lopez goes 90s club classics, using the type of sound now being popularised in songs like Lady GaGa's Alejandro. Produced by REDONE, the track will be premiered on Ryan Seacrests radio show next week. This is most reminiscent of J-Lo's Waiting For Tonight - a distant memory of when she was really at her peak - with the irritating Pitbull and a hint of "hotel motel holiday inn" thrown in for good luck. 

I'm not sure though if this is original and exciting enough to catch up with what everyone else in the music industry is doing at the moment. It has its moments, and is deffinately the best thing Lopez has done in a LONG time, but I don't see this with #1 smash written all over it.

RIHANNA & NICKI ARE NOT LESBIAN COUPLE

Appently, according to the UK press, there has been speculation about a blossoming romance between Rihanna and Nicki Minaj with reports saying the pair are living together.

Rihanna & Nicki have since laughed of these claims and posted this spoof picture on twitter.

My main thought?? DAMN!! Those two SHOULD be lesbians! They would be the hottest girl-on-girl couple ever!

JUSTIN BIEBER CSI

Like everyone who's anyone in showbiz at the moment (you gotta have a sponsorship deal, be the face of a brand, have your own fragrance - you can't just release music anymore you also have to be an actor, a director, a businessman, an author, a charitable philanthropist - the list goes on), the BeeB's is branching into new grounds...

Already having starred in one episode, Justin Bieber is filming his second appearance in the massively popular TV show next month in the "Targets of Obsession" episode - and I'm sure Justin can relate to being the target of many an obsession.

Also in February, we will be hit with Never Say Never the 3-D Justin Bieber biopic. How anyone his age can have a biopic movie is beyond me, but the tween sensation has got one. See it if you dare!..

BRITNEY SPEARS ARTWORK

What is it with V/W magazines at the moment? We've had an awesome funky photoshoot with Nicki Minaj, and now its time for Britney to turn up the heat, and she certainly does . . .

With sexy bondage & leather, snakes and plenty of skin on show, Britney is one goddamn sexy mama! Reminiscent of one of her most sexiest moments; the Slave 4 U video. I deffinately hope she encorporates some of this sizzling vibe into her new music video for Hold It Against Me.

Also, for any Britney & Glee fans out there; Spears herself will be making a guest appearance in this weeks episode where character Brittany is anesthetized and dreams of herself performing a medley of Britney's hits. Sneak preview ...

CEE LO GREEN - F*CK YOU (IN SIGN LANGUAGE)

Here we have of the most popular hits of 2010, performed by an ASL sign language student to her class of fellow students - all of whom totally lap it up cheering & clapping along.

It would be excellent to see our usual TV sign lady do something like this . . . Perhaps we could have a sign lady on some of our music channels - I would watch just for that.

BRIT AWARDS: TINIE TEMPAH & JESSIE J LEAD THE CHARGE

The biggest event in British Music is coming around soon, and the nominations have been released.

Tinie Tempah (deservedly) leads the pack with four nominations - breakthrough act, best British single, top British male and album of the year. Winning would be a massive achievement for Tinie, who at only 22 was nowhere this time last year and now is one of the UKs biggest acts.

Jessie J who performed her hit Do It Like A Dude at the nominations party, has already been announced as the Critic's choice winner. It appears to be too late for her to be considered for breakthrough act - but I'm sure she'll feature in the nominations for this category next year.

 

Housewives favourite & cardigan models Take That have two nominations - album of the year and best group - if they win either category it will be their 13th Brit Award, which I find incredible when you think of some of the amazing British talent who've only won a single or even no awards.

The awards show next month looks set to be a bit of an extravaganza, with Rihanna also set to perform. Last years big winner was Lady GaGa who took home three trophies.

LET IT RAIN - TINCHEY STRYDER ft. MELANIE FIONA

No not the EPIC ballard by Jordin Sparks (see here), this is a brand new track from Tinchey's album Third Strike, featuring the completely overlooked Melanie Fiona.

(Melanie Fiona who for anyone that's unfamiliar with her, is a Canadian artist, she's friends with Kanye & Jay-Z and has written songs for Rihanna. She released her debut album The Bridge in 2009, which sold reasonably well in the U.S. but not so great over here, and her track It Kills Me topped the Billboard Hot 100 R&B/HipHop chart for 10 weeks. Her track Give It To Me Right, is also v-e-r-y good.)

Like most songs with "rain" in the title, it's epic, emotional, dramatic and ballad-eqsue. There are emotional wet people, slow motion dance moves and "I'm gonna be alright" survivor lyrics. Yes, this is deffinately a song about rain.

Heartfelt and emotional, its nice to see Tinchey - who's one of the most talented and successful UK urban acts around - release something different to his usual HipHop-Pop and shows that he's more than a one trick pony, who I'm sure will be around for a few years to come.

NICKI MINAJ ARTWORK

Heres a shot from the recent V magazine photoshoot & interview with Nicki Minaj.

Remind you of anyone? . . .

If you'd like to see more shots from the session with bad-ass Nicki, head here.

TAKE YOUR CLOTHES OFF - MISSY & TIMBALAND

Heres new music from Timbaland's Thursdays, a series of tracks which the hiphop maestro will be releasing one per week, on ... you guessed it ... a Thursday. This one features Missy Elliott.

Timbaland's Shock Value III is due out later this year.

KEISHA BUCHANAN: UNDER CONTROL

HOLD EVERYTHING!

This is it.

The first leak/clue/snippet/taste of Keisha Buchanan's new solo material (apart from the brief clip of Fearless). Not just a snippet, we have a whole, entire, track. Yes, Under Control (reference to the incredible Janet here anyone??) has just leaked online today, and I for one died when I heard it. I have had high hopes for Keisha - always the hardest working of the Sugababes, writing the majority of their hit singles and with her incredible vocal talent, the benchmark for her solo material was/is high.
But if this leaked track is anything to go by, the future looks bright ...

Powerful Push-The-Button-esque synths provide the beat, to this sassy survivor song of determination and defiance. Screw the haters, Keisha's got it Under Control. While this doesn't showcase her incredible singing ability as would a ballad, it does display the effortlessness in which she can turn out an up-tempo fresh athem - without getting lost in the production around her - not too disimilar from Push The Button and About You Now.

Hopefully, a taste of things to come.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS - YELLE

I came across "Yelle" today, and liked their track Safari Disco Club so much I thought it was worthy of a post. It's the first time I've come across the French group - probably because we don't get many French groups here in the UK - but they've already had one album Pop Up and one top five French single Je Veux Te Voir. If you like your pop music arty, alternative or left field, this could be for you ...

Something about this reminds me of the quirky New Young Pony Club (remember them? I think a "where are they now?" post may in order) from a few years ago, and also the French popiness of Alizee (remember her???). Below is an equation exploring these findings...

WORST YEAR EVER FOR ROCK MUSIC IN UK CHARTS

Only three songs featured in the 100 biggest singles of 2010 (news article) which is the lowest ever since 1960. The three songs included were Journey's Don't Stop Believein' (thanks to Glee), Florence & The Machine's Dog Days Are Over and Train's Hey Soul Sister (random?).

The 100 biggest UK singles in 2010 were made up of 47% R'N'B, 40% Pop and 10% Dance. I think from the massive tide of female eletronic dance/pop/r'n'b artist's we have in both the UK & USA at the moment, the tide has completely turned against the Indie & Rock flood of a few years ago. I for one am starting to feel a little overdosed though . . . perhaps a change is coming? . . .

H.A.M. FIRST SINGLE FROM KAYNE & JAY-Z

For all those Kanye & Jay-z fans out there, here's the cover artwork to the duos new single H.A.M. (which in case you didn't know, stands for Hard As a Motherfu***r).

The hip hop masters plan to release a collaboration album Watch The Throne, and H.A.M. is the first clue as to what we can expect from the two joining forces. Huge, over-the-top production and almost operatics from Kanye, and the hard-hitting gravitas from Jay-Z. The synths sound slightly like KnightRider to me, but then in bursts the screaming, chanting & strings . . . I'm not sure how successful this will be, as it's quite explicit and could be too out-there for a mainstream market. All the same, there's plenty of fierceness & drama in there, so credit to them for trying something different.

Inspired? Groundbreaking? Or just insane? You decide.

SUGABABES 4.0 RELEASE GREATEST HITS - PUSH THE BUTTON: THE COLLECTION

I couldn't believe this when I read it today, well I could, but I was still shocked.

Britain's most talented girl-group The Sugababes (the latest version) will release Push The Button: The Collection next month, February 28th to be exact. DOES THIS MEAN A NEW SINGLE TO PROMOTE THE ALBUM???

This will be the group's second retrospective, the first being Overloaded: The Singles Collection (2006), and Sugababes have released three studio albums since then, all with potential hit singles for a new collection. Overloaded marked the departure of founding member Mutya Buena and introduction of Amelle Berrabah to the group, so it seems fitting to mark the (dramatic, and in my opinion terrible) departure of final founding member Keisha Buchanan and introduction of Jade Ewen to the band. A new greatest hits will provide closure to the much publicised reformation of the group, ending one era and welcoming another - as well as paying tribute to the massive part Keisha has played in the Sugababes succes.

SINGLE REVIEW: BRITNEY SPEARS - HOLD IT AGAINST ME

Ok, so "the wait is ova" (see previous post). It has taken at least a couple of listens to this before I could even attempt to form an opinion...

HOLD IT AGAINST ME

This goes for an all out instant adreneline rush, similar to the drama and urgency of Womanizer, but with some killer dubstep breakdowns. This is Britney as dominatrix, as femme fatale, and in the techno auto-tune style du jour. Although undoubtedly fierce, I can't help but feel I've heard better uses of dubstep by mainstream artists (see Christina meets MIA) and I don't think this is as catchy - or as completely refined into one solid polished track - as comeback singles Womanizer or Gimme More before it. While deffinately better than all those wannabe GaGa/Britney's out there at the moment, this isn't in the iconic league of Toxic, but a sure fire hit all the same.

RIHANNA BREAKS 5TH CONSECUTIVE #1 RECORD

Congratulations to the magnificent Robyn Rihanna Fenty who yesterday scored her fifth UK #1 with What's My Name, which makes her the only female artist to achieve five top singles in five consecutive years. What's My Name in 2011, Only Girl (In The World) in 2010, Run This Town in 2009, Take A Bow in 2008 and Umbrella in 2007. Only Elvis can match this record.

Currently holding the top of the singles and albums chart, as well as having two other singles in the top ten ... all hail Rihanna.

INTRODUCING YASMIN & SINGLE REVIEW: ON MY OWN

For anyone who hasn't heard On My Own the debut single from UK artist Yasmin, they're in for a treat.

Yasmin is a UK artist, already touted by names such a Pharrel Williams, Eve, Taio Cruz and Tinie Tempah as the next big thing. Hailing from Manchester, she's signed to Ministry of Sound and has recently toured with Example as a supporting act last year.

On My Own shows this newcomer as a little lady with a big voice. She's got tatoos, she's got nails like a rude girl and she sings with enough of a hint of attitude to convince you she's been there and seen a few things. The production to the single is moody and melancholic, but dancey at the same, reminiscent of a Massive Attack single. This is modern r'n'b pop, with style and substance. I actually prefer this to the highly touted Jessie J. Lets hope there's more to come from Yasmin.

BRITNEY SINGLE COVER FOR "HOLD IT AGAINST ME"

Britney fans have been screaming all over the place as an early demo for her new track

Hold It Against Me has leaked and Britney herself has tweeted;

"Heard an early demo of my new single leaked. If u think that's good, wait til you hear the real one Tuesday."

So until we get the official version to critique, lets make do with her new cover artwork.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELVIS

Before Justin Timberlake brought Sexy Back, it started here. Happy Birthday to Elvis, who would have been 76 today if he was still with us. Like the greats Kurt Cobain & Michael Jackson, a star that burnt out before his time but will always be remembered by old fans and new ones into their retro music.

Here's a video of when he still had his looks & moves.

NEW LOOK AMERICAN IDOL

Take one long running high-profile talent show, subtract one lesbian comedienne and one iconic British villain, add one "noughties" Latino diva and one ageing rock legend, shake, gloss and serve.

Can't helping searching for the hint of terror in their eyes, what with the sure to be global phenomenom of American X-Factor looming on the horizon ...

SINGLE REVIEW: JLS - EYES WIDE SHUT feat TINIE TEMPAH

The boys are back, and after the grating The Club is Alive and then the non event which was Love You More (both of which were UK #1s), Jack the Lads Swing are releasing this collaboration with rapper du jour Tine Tempah. Slick, sophisticated dance-pop it show's JLS can mature and that they've got potential for a long future not just here but perhaps in the U.S. too. Tinie Tempah adds urban credibility.

AMY WINEHOUSE ON THE MEND AND READY TO RETURN?

Someone who truly deserves a comeback, is Amy Winehouse, and from these pictures in the press at the moment it looks like she's healthier than she's been in a long time and finally regained some of her figure back.

She will be playing shows in Brazil (where these photographs are taken) over the weekend, and fans are hoping she'll premiere some of the new tracks she's recorded. It seems like forever that she's been working on her follow up album to Back to Black (a genuinely incredible album from a genuinely incredible artist) and rumours are rife that she may release her new record this year ...

BBC SOUND OF 2011: JESSIE J

The BBC's annual "SOUND OF .." award has this year been won by London artist Jessie J. Signed to American label Universal Repbulic, Jessie has already had a #25 hit single here in the UK with Do It Like A Dude - a song which was intended for Rihanna but that Jessie J decided to release herself.

 Justin Timberlake claims she is "the best singer in the world right now".

Her song Do It Like A Dude (see video below) although being in the current fashion of electronic r'n'b dance pop and showcasing her undoubted talent, can't help but seem a little same-ish to me. How many more electronic diva's with fierce stylin' and swaaag are we going to get? It's starting to look like the Indie landfill of the music industry in 2007/2008/2009 has now turned into electronic saturation by female artists (this being the repercussions of the huge success of GaGa).

On the plus side, Jessie J does seem talented, fierce, alternative and she writes her own lyrics. Also, anyone who flies the flag for British talent on a global scale automatically gets a bonus in my book. The most interesting fact I've read about Jessie J is that she wrote the Miley Cyrus song PARTY IN THE U.S.A (one of my FAVOURITE records of 2009!).

The BBC's SOUND OF 2010 last year was won by Ellie Goulding, and anyone has to be better than the mind numbingly dull personality of the poor little rich girl trying to be a pop star. Let's hope Jessie can show her how its done.

PREDICTIONS - AND WISHES - FOR MUSIC IN 2011

1. GAGA returns with something amazing, something incredible, something ... epic. A record so ground breaking and pivotal full of enough electronic anthems and iconic outfits to solely support an entire series of Glee.

Chance of happening? ... quite possible.

2. MADONNA returns. There have been rumours circulating that she has been back in the studio, going back to her dance roots (after the mediocre success of Hard Candy) to bring us a new record. But will it be finished by the end of 2011? Who knows.

Chance of happening? ... slim, but possible.

3. THE RESSURECTION OF MICHAEL JACKSON. Well, as this has already happened - with the 2010 Christmas issued Michael - and with the fact many sources have said there's enough unreleased material for ten albums or so, it looks like there'll be more Michael this year.

Chance of happening? ... deffinately at some point.

4. RIHANNA RELEASES ONE MORE SINGLE FROM LOUD, GOES AWAY FOR ONE MONTH & COMES BACK WITH LOUD:RELOADED (THE DELUXE EDITION)

One of the most frustrating aspects of the music industry at the moment is the constant re-release, repackaging and recycling again and again of albums only within months of their last edition, and usually only with some extra bonus tracks, one new hit single and a duet they did with Eminem. If its not Leona, its Beyonce, or Rihanna or Alexandra Burke. Can't wait for Susan Boyle's The Gift: Reloaded

Chance of this happening? ... I should put money on it.

6. MARIAH CAREY GIVES BIRTH TO WHISPER AND ENCHANTRESS WORLD CONQUERING VOCAL PRINCESSES OF DOOM AND R'N'B

The ULTIMATE diva is pregnant with twins, due some time in 2011, and your imagination can only run wild as to the possibilities for these two children and what impact they will have on the future of the music industry and the world as a whole (sort of like if Hitler had won WWII, we might all be speaking German now - will Mariah's children be so incredible they will obliterate all Leona Lewis's to come? Or will they fight it out in an epic sing-off and ego battle to the death? Or will they go on tour with  mommy Mariah when she's got old and fat like some sort of R'N'B Brady Bunch? Think of the movie!)

Chance of this happening? ... ANYTHING could happen.

7. SIOBHAN. MUTYA. KEISHA. THE SUGABABES (the originals) REFORMATION

Yes. Could anything be more epic for British POP music than the reformation and reunion of the founding Sugababes???? Think of the music, think of the drama. Sugababes 4.0 Heidi, Amelle and Jade bring out a new album next year, but to maximise publicity and to maximise record sales, the original three decide to bury their hatchets and give the haters a run for the money. ITS LIKE A TARANTINO REVENGE MOVIE!!

Lets take a look at the potential:

The soul, sexiness & fierceness of Keisha Buchanan, the husky tones, attitude & street credibility or Mutya Buena, and the haunting vocals, supernatural lyrics and general Kate-Bush-ness of Siobhan Donaghy. The result of could only be something INCREDIBLE and highly unique. How could the latest Sugababes and their imitation PussyCatDolls music compete?
Chances of happening? ... slim but possible (I've got fingers crossed)