Bruno Mars is in “Heaven” on Top of the Charts

He first hit the charts just two years ago, but Bruno Mars has become the premiere male hit maker on the Billboard Hot 100 in that time frame with 9 top ten singles and now a fourth # 1 hit. His latest “Locked Out of Heaven” locks Rihanna out of the top spot to give him that quartet of chart toppers following “Grenade”, “Just the Way You Are” And “Nothin’ On You” featuring B.o.B. This Grammy winner also released his sophomore album, Unorthodox Jukebox, this week and could have both the top album and single in the country next week… To do so, he’ll have to fend off a strong charge from The Lumineers’ “Ho Hey” which slides up to #4. For more on Bruno’s fast rise on the charts, head to Billboard here and check out the new top ten below.

Top Ten Singles on the Billboard Hot 100:
1. “Locked Out of Heaven”- Bruno Mars (last week~ 2)
2. “Diamonds”- Rihanna (lw~ 1)
3. “Die Young”- Ke$ha (lw~ 3)
4. “Ho Hey”- The Lumineers (lw~ 5)
5. “One More Night”- Maroon 5 (lw~ 4)
6. “I Cry”- Flo Rida (lw~8)
7. “Home”- Phillip Phillips (lw~ 7)
8. “Some Nights”- fun. (lw~ 6)
9. “Beauty and a Beat”- Justin Bieber w/Nicki Minaj (lw~ 13)
10. “Let Me Love You (Until You Love Yourself)”- NeYo

Over on the Billboard 200 Albums chart, Taylor Swift returns to the summit with Red for a fourth non-consecutive week on top. She holds off debuts from Wiz Khalifa and Ke$Ha. Scroll down for the new top ten and head to Billboard for all the news on the charts.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Red- Taylor Swift (lw~ 2)
2. O.N.I.F.C.- Wiz Khalifa (debut)
3. Merry Christmas Baby- Rod Stewart (lw~ 3)
4. Take Me Home- One Direction (lw~ 4)
5. Christmas- Michael Buble (lw~ 7)
6. Warrior- Ke$ha (debut)
7. Girl on Fire- Alicia Keys (lw~ 1)
8. Cheers, It’s Christmas- Blake Shelton (lw~ 9)
9. The World from the Side of the Moon- Phillip Phillips (lw~ 5)
10. Here’s to the Good Times- Florida Georgia Line (debut)

And here’s Bruno Mars new video for his latest # 1…

Carrie Underwood Blows Away the Competition on the Charts

Grammy winning country pop superstar Carrie Underwood blows away the competition this week on the Billboard 200 Album chart as her fourth album, the fantastic Blown Away, debuts at # 1. This give her a third chart topper on this list following Play On and Carnival Ride. Surprisingly her debut album, Some Hearts, only hit # 2 despite being her biggest seller by far with over 7 million units shifted. All four albums hit # 1 on the Country Albums chart. Blown Away is also the second biggest debut of 2012 with 267,000 copies sold coming in behind Madonna’s MDNA with over 359,000 copies… Underwood leads a bunch of debuts this week from the likes of Norah Jones, B.o.B., the Smash cast and Marilyn Manson. For more on Carrie’s chart achievements (including her 15th top ten country hit “Good Girl”) and this chart, head to Billboard here.... Also of note, fans of the Beastie Boys celebrated their music this week pushing 8 of their albums back onto the Billboard 200 following the untimely and sad passing of Boys member Adam Yauch from cancer. The highest ranking was their signature debut record, Licensed to Ill, at # 18.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Blown Away- Carrie Underwood (debut)
2. Little Broken Hearts- Norah Jones (debut)
3. Now 42 Compilation- Various Artists (debut)
4. 21- Adele (last week~ 2)
5. Strange Clouds- B.o.B. (debut)
6. Tuskegee- Lionel (lw~ 3)
7. Blunderbuss- Jack White (lw~ 1)
8. Up All Night- One Direction (lw~ 4)
9. Smash soundtrack- Smash Cast (debut)
10. Born Villian- Marilyn Manson (debut)

Over on the Hot 100 singles chart, it’s business as usual with Gotye landing a fourth week on top with his crossover smash “Somebody that I Used to Know”. This song has topped the Dance and Alternative charts and is in the top ten of the Rock, Hot AC and Pop Charts as well. The rest of the top ten on the Hot 100 is stagnant. We’ll see if anyone can break in next week, but in the meantime, take a look at this week’s list below.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/Kimbra (last week~ 1) * 4 weeks on top
2. “We Are Young”- fun. w/Janelle Monae (lw~ 2)
3. “Payphone”- Maroon 5 w/ Wiz Khalifa (lw~ 3)
4. “Call Me Maybe”- Carly Rae Jepsen (lw~ 5)
5. “Wild Ones”- Flo Rida w/ Sia (lw~ 6)
6. “Glad You Came”- The Wanted (lw~ 4)
7. “Starships”- Nicki Minaj (lw~8)
8. “Boyfriend”- Justin Bieber (lw~ 7)
9. “What Makes You Beautiful”- One Direction (lw~ 9)
10. “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”- Kelly Clarkson (lw~ 10)

And before I go, please enjoy Carrie Underwood’s “Blown Away” which is set to be the second single from her new album, and trust me, it’s awesome!

Kelly is back on Top of the Singles Chart as Adele and Whitney Dominate the Billboard 200

The same three ladies who have been making a lot of noise over the past month continue to monopolize the pop charts again this week. Kelly Clarkson returns to the summit of Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart while Adele and Whitney Houston dominate half of the top ten albums on the Billboard 200.
With a 22nd week on top, Adele’s 21 now is the longest running album at # 1 since Prince’s Purple Rain soundtrack in 1984/85 (he held for 24 weeks). She also is at # 7 with her debut album, 19. Occupying three spots in the top-tier is the late great Houston whose Greatest Hits holds at # 2 while The Bodyguard and Whitney Houston make massive gains. Those records climb with physical albums finally being delivered to retailers following her untimely passing. (Most of her sales for the past 2 weeks have been on the digital front). For more on the top albums, head to Billboard here and check out the new top ten with debuts by fun., Tyga, and Chiddy Bang below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. 21- Adele (last week~ 1)
2. Whitney: The Greatest Hits- Whitney Houston (lw~ 2)
3. Some Nights- fun. (debut)
4. Careless World: Rise of the Last King- Tyga (debut)
5. Now 41 Compilation- Various Artists (lw~ 3)
6. The Bodyguard Soundtrack- Whitney Houston (lw~ 38)
7. 19- Adele (lw~ 4)
8. Breakfast- Chiddy Bang (debut)
9. Whitney Houston- Whitney Houston (lw~ 37)
10. 2012 Grammy Nominees compilation Various Artists (lw~ 5)

Back on the Singles chart, the aforementioned Clarkson returns to the summit for a third non-consecutive week at # 1 with “Stronger” making it her longest running chart-topper to date. With the Grammy glow over, several tracks from Adele and Houston fall out of the top ten allowing a big jump for British boy band The Wanted with “Glad You Came”. (The Glee version of the single also debuts at # 90 this week featuring vocals from guest villain Grant Gustin and the Warblers). Check out the action on the Hot 100 below and for more on all the charts and big single debuts from Carrie Underwood and B.o.B, head here.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”- Kelly Clarkson (last week~ 4)
2. “Set Fire to the Rain”- Adele (lw~ 2)
3. “We Are Young”- fun. featuring Janelle Monae (lw~ 6)
4. “Part of Me”- Katy Perry (lw~ 1)
5. “Glad You Came”- The Wanted (lw~ 23)
6. “We Found Love”- Rihanna w/Calvin Harris (lw~8)
7. “Good Feeling”- Flo Rida (lw~ 12)
8. “Turn Me On”- David Guetta w/Nicki Minaj (lw~ 11)
9. “Young Wild & Free”- Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa w/Bruno Mars (lw~ 14)
10. “Starships”- Nicki Minaj (lw~ 9)

And here’s that high-flying boy band single for ya one more time…. The Wanted’s “Glad You Came”

Rihanna, B.o.B. and J. Cole storm the charts

Rapper J.Cole leads six debuts in the top ten of the Billboard 200 Album charts with his debut release, Cole World: the Sideline Story. He’s the first debut artist to land a # 1 album this year. Landing just behind him in the runner-up position were punk pop rockers Blink 182 with their first top ten album in five years, Neighborhoods. Rounding out the newcomers in the upper region of the list are rockers Wilco, Switchfoot, Chickenfoot and Mastodon. Check out the new top ten below.

Top 10 Albums:
1. Cole World: The Sideline Story- J. Cole (debut)
2. Neighborhoods- Blink 182 (debut)
3. 21- Adele (last week~ 3)
4. Duets II- Tony Bennett & Various Artists (lw~ 1)
5. The Whole Love- Wilco (debut)
6. Own the Night- Lady Antebellum (lw~ 2)
7. Tha Carter IV- Lil Wayne (lw~ 5)
8. Vice Verses- Switchfoot (debut)
9. Chickenfoot III- Chickenfoot (debut)
10. The Hunter- Mastadon (debut)

Jumping over to the Hot 100 singles chart, rapper B.o.B. grabs his highest debuting track (and his fourth top ten) with his new single “Strange Clouds” featuring Lil Wayne. That’s one of three new songs in the top ten alongside David Guetta & Usher’s “Without You” and Rihanna‘s landmark 20th top ten “We Found Love” featuring Calvin Harris. Check out the top ten below which sees Adele‘s “Someone Like You” return to the summit for a second non-consecutive week and head to Billboard for more info on all the numbers.

Top Ten Songs on the Hot 100:
1. “Someone Like You”- Adele (last week~ 2)
2. “Moves Like Jagger”- Maroon 5 w/Christina Aguilera (lw~ 1)
3. “Pumped Up Kicks”- Foster the People (lw~ 3)
4. “Stereo Hearts”- Gym Class Heroes w/Adam Levine (lw~ 5)
5. “Party Rock Anthem”- LMFAO (lw~ 4)
6. “Sexy and I Know It”- LMFAO (lw~ 10)
7. “Strange Clouds”- B.o.B. w/ Lil Wayne (debut)
8. “Without You”- David Guetta w/Usher (lw~ 11)
9. “We Found Love”- Rihanna w/Calvin Harris (lw~ 16)
10. “You Make Me Feel…”- Cobra Starship w/Sabi (lw~ 9)

And before we go, let’s look at Rihanna’s twenty top ten hits. It’s also worth it to note that Rihanna has become the artist to reach this milestone the fastest outpacing Madonna by just five months. (They both trail The Beatles though). Congrats RiRi!

Here are all of Rihanna’s 20 Billboard Hot 100 top 10s (ranked by year, peak position and title):

2005, No. 2, “Pon De Replay”
2006, No. 1 (three weeks), “SOS”
2006, No. 6, “Unfaithful”
2007, No. 9, “Break It Off” (Rihanna and Sean Paul)
2007, No. 1 (seven weeks), “Umbrella” (featuring Jay-Z)
2007, No. 7, “Hate That I Love You” (featuring Ne-Yo)
2008, No. 3, “Don’t Stop the Music”
2008, No. 1 (one week), “Take a Bow”
2008, No. 1 (two weeks), “Disturbia”
2008, No. 1 (six weeks), “Live Your Life” (T.I. featuring Rihanna)
2009, No. 2, “Run This Town” (Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West)
2009, No. 9, “Russian Roulette”
2010, No. 8, “Hard” (featuring Jeezy)
2010, No. 1 (five weeks), “Rude Boy”
2010, No. 1 (seven weeks), “Love the Way You Lie” (Eminem featuring Rihanna)
2010, No. 1 (one week), “Only Girl (In the World)”
2010, No. 1 (one week), “What’s My Name?” (featuring Drake)
2011, No. 1 (one week), “S&M” (featuring Britney Spears)
2011, No. 7, “Cheers (Drink to That)”
2011, No. 9 (to-date), “We Found Love” (featuring Calvin Harris)

Rihanna w/Calvin Harris “We Found Love”

Ranking the 2011 Grammy Performances

Last night’s Grammy Awards had a nice mix of obvious wins (the Lady Antebellum sweep) and upset surprises (Best New Artist winner~ Ezperanza Spaulding, who? and Arcade Fire for Album of the Year) , but more than anything it was packed with live performances. While ony 9 actual trophies were awarded (out of the over 100 categories), instead we were treated to 16 performances from music superstars and newcomers. So, of course, I have to rank them. Take a look at my thoughts and rankings of the night’s best and worst and for all the winners, head here.

Ranking the 2011 Grammy Performances~

16. Justin Bieber/Usher/Jaden Smith ”Baby/Never Say Never/OMG”: I’m sorry why did they get a standing ovation. This was a big ole obnoxious mess with Bieber and Usher flirting and flitting through their annoying hits from the past year. And Jaden Smith is perhaps the most irritating child in Hollywood. At least Biebs did do a lil acoustic strumming in the beginning… Grade: D+
15. Rihanna/Drake “What’s My Name?”: um where’s your pitch? … and is it me or was it more just a mating call for these two performers to hook up later at the after party? Grade: C
14. Mumford & Sons/Bob Dylan/The Avett Brothers: first~ who are the Avett Bros? Second~ what was up with all the technical difficulties. Third: was it me or did the lead singer of Mumford look like he was about to drop off the kids at the pool if you know what I mean… But props to Dylan for still delivering a song decently at age 170… Grade: C+
13. Arcade Fire “Month of May“: maybe it was all the BMX or the fact that I wasn’t into the song, but by the time they showed up at the end, I was ready for bed and this sorta gave me a headache. Grade: C+
12. Miranda Lambert “The House that Built Me“: Sure, she had lovely vocals and gave a heartfelt performance, but this was a bit boring. Grade: B-
11. Barbra Streisand “Evergreen”: Ok, she sang it very well, but she looked a tad distraught throughout and what was up with her using Jennifer Aniston’s hair. Grade: B
10. Muse “Uprising”: I really like them and it was a perfunctory performance, but it felt like they were ripping off Green Day’s Broadway musical American Idiot. Grade: B
9. Lady Antebellum “If You Don’t Know Me By Now/American Honey/Need You Now”: Gorgeous harmonies, but rather staid and uneventful. Grade: B
8. Mick Jagger “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love”: who knew this ancient rocker had so much energy. I just wish the song had more words and that Mick would eat a sandwich. Grade: B
7. Katy Perry “Not Like the Movies/Teenage Dream”: I have to say well done Katy. I was shocked at how good your live vocals were for the most part. I dare say they were the best I’ve ever heard live and I loved the candy fun “Dream” section. Also, she got Nicole Kidman singing and dancing in the aisles. Grade: B
6. John Mayer/Norah Jones/Keith Urban “Jolene”: for their brief take on Dolly Parton’s classic, Jones and Urban were utterly flawless. Unfortunately, Mayer was channelling Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow looking terribly sick and clearly out-of-place. But Urban and Jones were so good, they still get a…. Grade: B+
5. Christina Aguilera/Jennifer Hudson/Florence Welch/Yolanda Adams/Martina McBride “The Aretha Tribute”: They were surprisingly strong together and it was lovely to see them support each other for the most part. However, McBride also seemed out-of-place and Xtina was trying to outperform the others. That said Adams and Hudson were incredible. Grade: B+

4. Eminem/Rihanna/Skylar Grey/Dr. Dre “Love the Way You Lie, Pt. II/I Need a Doctor“: Eminem was so awesomely intense it made me nervous. Rihanna gave one of her best vocals ever. Grey was a surprise star, but we didn’t really get to see her face, and welcome back Dre. Grade: A-

3. Lady Gaga “Born This Way”: who cares if people thing she’s taking a few too many pages from Madonna. This new anthem is awesome and her performance was super EGGSciting! Grade: A-

2. Bruno Mars/B.o.B/Janelle Monae “Nothin’ on You/Grenade/Cold War”: Um, we all just got served by awesomeness. And hello, the 50′s version of “Grenade” was incredible. Mars was not playing! And can Monae finally be a star now? Grade: A

1. Cee Lo Green & Gwyneth Paltrow “Forget You”: Um, Cee Lo + Puppets + Gwyneth and her heels = AMAAAAAAZING! Grade: A

My Big Bold Grammy Award WINNER Predictions

Well, music’s biggest night is this Sunday as CBS airs the Grammy Awards and what does that mean for you? It means it’s time for my latest round of big bold award winner predictions. It looks like Eminem will finally win that elusive album of the year award on his fourth try with his massive smash Recovery which is just one of several trophies he should take home. Also watch for multiple wins for Lady Gaga, Lady Antebellum, and Miranda Lambert. Take a look at all my predix below. Also, make sure to capture the show which will feature performances from all the big nominees including Eminem, Gaga, Lady Antebellum, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Arcade Fire, Lambert, Justin Bieber, Drake, B.o.B and Bruno Mars, plus a rare performance from Grammy Legend winner Barbra Streisand and an all-star tribute to Aretha Franklin featuring Grammy winners Christina Aguilera, Yolanda Adams, Jennifer Hudson and Grammy nominees Martina McBride and Florence Welch (of Florence + the Machine). Head to the Grammy website for more information.

MY BIG BOLD GRAMMY AWARD WINNER PREDICTIONS 2011!!

Album of the Year:

The Suburbs- Arcade Fire, Recovery- Eminem, Need You Now- Lady Antebellum, The Fame Monster- Lady Gaga, Teenage Dream- Katy Perry

Will win: Eminem

Should win: Lady Gaga

~spoiler: Arcade Fire

Record of the Year (award to the producer & artist):

“Empire State of Mind”- Jay Z & Alicia Keyes, “Love the Way You Lie”- Eminem & Rihanna, “Need You Now”- Lady Antebellum, “Nothin’ on You”- B.o.B. w/Bruno Mars

Will win: “Love the Way You Lie”

Should win: “Empire State of Mind” (it’s an anthem for the ages, and “Love the Way..” is great but sounds  little like B.o.B. & Hayley Williams “Airplanes”)

~spoiler: “Need You Now”

Song of the Year (award to the songwriter):

“Beg Steal or Borrow”- Ray LaMontagne, “Fuck You”- CeeLo Green, “The House that Built Me”- Miranda Lambert, “Love the Way You Lie”- Eminem & Rihanna, “Need You Now”- Lady Antebellum

Will & Should win: “Need You Now”

~spoiler: “Fuck You” (and how awesome would that be?! Hehe)

Best New Artist:

Justin Bieber, Drake, Florence + the Machine, Mumford & Sons, Esperanza Spalding

Will win: Drake

Should win: Florence + the Machine

~spoiler: Florence + the Machine

Pop Album:

My World 2.0- Justin Bieber, I Dreamed a Dream- Susan Boyle, The Fame Monster- Lady Gaga, Battle Studies- John Mayer, Teenage Dream- Katy Perry

Will & Should win: Lady Gaga

~spoiler: Katy Perry

Female Pop Vocal Performance:

“King of Anything”- Sara Bareilles, “Halo (live)”- Beyonce, “Bad Romance”- Lady Gaga, “Chasing Pirates”- Norah Jones, “Teenage Dream”- Katy Perry

Will & Should win: Lady Gaga

~spoiler: Katy Perry

* I’d love to see Sara Bareilles pull out a shocker here though

 

Male Pop Vocal Performance:

“Haven’t Met You Yet”- Michael Buble, “This is It”- Michael Jackson, “Whataya Want from Me”- Adam Lambert, “Half of My Heart”- John Mayer, “Just the Way You Are”- Bruno Mars

Will win: Michael Jackson

Should win: Adam Lambert

~spoiler: Bruno Mars

Pop Vocal Collaboration:

“Imagine”- Herbie Hancock, Seal, Pink & India.Arie, “If It Wasn’t for Bad”- Elton John & Leon Russell,  “Telephone”- Lady Gaga & Beyonce, “California Gurls”- Katy Perry w/Snoop Dogg, “Airplanes Pt. II”- B.o.B. w/Hayley Williams & Eminem

Will & Should win: Lady Gaga & Beyonce

~spoiler: Herbie Hancock and friends

Pop Vocal Duo/Group:

“Don’t Stop Believin’”- Glee Cast, “Misery”- Maroon 5, “The Only Exception”- Paramore, “Babyfather”- Sade, “Hey Soul Sister”- Train

Will & Should win: Train

~spoiler: Glee cast

Dance Recording:

“Rocket”- Goldfrapp, “In for the Kill”- La Roux, “Dancer in the Dark”- Lady Gaga, “Only Girl in the World”- Rihanna,  “Dancing on My Own”- Robyn

Will win: “Only Girl in the World”- Rihanna

Should win: “Dancing on My Own”- Robyn

~spoiler: La Roux

OTHER CATEGORIES~ I’m just giving you who I think will win…

Dance Album: La Roux

Traditional Pop Album: Michael Buble (over Barbra Streisand even!)

Short Form Music Video: “Bad Romance”- Lady Gaga

Male Country Vocal: Keith Urban

Female Country Vocal: Miranda Lambert

Country Song: “Need You Now”- Lady Antebellum

Country Album: The House that Built Me- Miranda Lambert

Country Vocal duo/group: Lady Antebellum

R&B Male Vocal: Usher

R&B Female Vocal: Fantasia (and it would be her first win!)

R&B Duo/Group: Sade

R&B Album: John Legend & the Roots

Contemporary R&B Album: Usher

Urban/Alternative Performance: “Fuck You”- Cee Lo Green

Rap Solo: Eminem

Rap Album: Recovery- Eminem

Rap Sung Collaboration: “Empire State of Mind”- Jay Z & Alicia Keyes

Rap Song: “Empire State of Mind”

Score Soundtrack Album: Inception- Hans Zimmer

Song Written for Film/TV: “The Weary Kind” (from Crazy Heart)

Compilation Soundtrack Album: Glee The Music, Vol. 1

Musical Show Album: American Idiot (featuring Green Day)

2010 Music~ The Year of the Collaboration

It you turn on the radio these days, you can’t go a minute without hearing two big artists team up on new song. It seems to be the easiest and best way to get a hit these days. Witness the biggest hits of 2010 and you’ll see collaborations all over the place (Eminem/Rihanna, Jay Z/Alicia Keyes, Beyonce/Lady Gaga) and luckily, most of them, produce some fantastic music. So, here’s my take on the 15 best music collaborations of 2010. Take note that French DJ David Guetta is all over this chart and big new stars B.o.B. and  Bruno Mars makes two appearances as well.

Top 15 Collaborations of 2010:

15. “Billionaire”- Travis McCoy w/Bruno Mars (this top 5 hit was covered on Glee and introduced us to Mars who would later conquer the pop charts with his own hits including the # 1 “Just the Way You Are”)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aRor905cCw

14. “Club Can’t Handle Me”- Flo Rida w/David Guetta (this undeniable dance hit was featured in Step Up 3D and is the first of three Guetta songs on the list)

13. “Gettin’ Over You”- David Guetta & Chris Willis w/Fergie & LMFAO (here’s Guetta again this time with frequent collaborator Willis and Fergie who he worked with on the Black Eye Peas’ The E.N.D. album)

12. “Let it Be”- Jennifer Hudson w/The Roots (one of two songs from the Hope for Haiti telethon, Hudson brought a gorgeous gospel and R&N vibe to this Beatles’ classic)

11. “I Like It”- Enrique Iglesias & Pitbull (Iglesias nabbed his first top ten hit in 8 years with this simple but undeniable dance/pop hit)

10. “Nothin’ on You”- B.o.B. w/Bruno Mars (here’s Mars second song and B.o.B’s first of two entries on the list. It’s a massive smash and a Grammy nominee for Record of the Year to boot!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PTDv_szmL0

9. “Hallelujah”- Justin Timberlake & Matt Morris (on this haunting track from the Hope for Haiti telethon, Timberlake and buddy Morris beautifully tackle Leonard Cohen’s iconic track)

8. “Break Your Heart”- Taio Cruz w/Ludacris (for his first single, Cruz enlisted rapper Ludacris and subsequently, “Heart” became a # 1 hit)

7. “Empire State of Mind”- Jay Z & Alicia Keyes (this song was arguably 2009′s best collaboration and continued to make impressions all year-long)

6. “Commander”- Kelly Rowland w/David Guetta (this is Guetta’s third appearance on the list on the best dance track of 2010 and it’s also a worldwide smash)

5. “Airplanes”- B.o.B. w/Hayley Williams (B.o.B got a little help from Paramore’s Hayley Williams for this megahit)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kn6-c223DUU

4. “Don’t You Wanna Stay”- Jason Aldean & Kelly Clarkson (this gorgeous ballad is only just starting to fly up the charts and could top this list next year. Aldean wisely asked Clarkson to duet with him to an amazing result and a brilliant vocal from Clarkson)

3. “Love the Way You Lie”- Eminem w/Rihanna (this multiple Grammy nominated # 1 hit was inescapable this summer and fall and is the front-runner to win in several categories at the upcoming ceremony)

2. “California Gurls”- Katy Perry w/Snoop Dogg (here’s another Grammy nominated # 1 smash which was also the song of the summer and cemented Perry as a giant pop star)

1. “Telephone”- Lady Gaga & Beyonce (What happens when you get two of the biggest ladies in the biz together? “Telephone” happens, that’s what. It was a giant hit. It’s a Grammy nominee and have you seen that video? It’s all just too delicious to deny.)

Eminem leads the Grammy noms but Bruno Mars, Cee Lo and the Lady’s Antbellum and Gaga are hot on his heels

Eminem completed his career Recovery with his recent # 1 album of the same name and now he has grabbed a leading 10 Grammy Award  nominations including Album and Record and Song of the Year for “Love the Way You Lie” with Rihanna. He may just be the first rap artist to actually win Record of the Year come February 13, 2011 when the awards are handed out. He does have some stiff competition in a very competitive year from big names like Jay Z, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, but also from some strong upstarts like Bruno Mars, B.o.B and the surprise big contender Cee Lo Green. In fact, Cee Lo and his expletive laden track “F##k You” netted 7 nominations, as did Mars. Up next with 6 apiece were Lady Gaga and country superstars Lady Antebellum. Also grabbing multiple noms were Perry (a shocker in the Album of the Year category), Usher, Miranda Lambert, Arcade Fire, Rihanna, Drake, John Mayer, and last year’s Best New Artist winners The Zac Brown Band. Take a look at the full list on the Grammy website here. Below I have the big contenders in the pop, country, dance, rap, rock, R&B and a few other choice fields.

First here’s a few comments on the contenders…

Big snubs this year include Ke$ha (not much of a surprise, but she’s had a big year), The Script, Alicia Keyes (for her solo work aside from the Jay Z single), Sheryl Crow and Taylor Swift (last year’s big winner got the goose egg despite being eligible for her singles “Mine” and “Today was a Fairytale”)

Happy Inclusions: A big congrats to Idols Fantasia who nabbed 2 nominations, Carrie Underwood in Country Female and Adam Lambert in the Pop Male category and the Glee cast in Pop Vocal Duo or Group. Plus it’s a Female Comedy showdown between the hilarious Kathy Griffin and Margaret Cho for Comedy Album. Congrats to Robyn for grabbing a nod in the Dance field.  

The Bad nominees:
~Justin Bieber for New Artist and Pop Album… um vomit!
~Beyonce is nomm’d for Pop Female for “Halo” again. Yeah, it’s a new live version, but she won this category for that song last year. And she got in over Pink, Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow and Christina Aguilera? Not right!
~Where’s Carrie Underwood in Country Album?
~ Where are Pink and Madonna in Long Form Music Video?
~ Why is B.o.B’s “Nothin’ on You” in Record of the Year instead of the superior “Airplanes”?
~ No “Bad Romance” in Record of the Year??? (well, Gaga did get 6 other noms, so I shouldn’t complain)
~ No Kylie Minogue in the Dance categories~ a travesty!
~ No Melissa Etheridge in the Rock categories~ another travesty
~ Susan Boyle in Pop Album? Oh please! (and she got in over Sheryl, Sarah, Adam, Maroon 5 and more~ ridiculous) 

Ok, I could go on and on, but I’ll let the nominee list do the talking for you… Check them out below!

The 53rd Annual Grammy Award Nominations List

GENERAL FIELD

Album Of The Year

The Suburbs — Arcade Fire
Recovery — Eminem
Need You Now — Lady Antebellum
The Fame Monster — Lady Gaga
Teenage Dream — Katy Perry

Record Of The Year

“Nothin’ On You” — B.o.B Featuring Bruno Mars
“Love The Way You Lie” — Eminem Featuring Rihanna
“…. You” — Cee Lo Green
“Empire State Of Mind” — Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
“Need You Now” — Lady Antebellum

Best New Artist

Justin Bieber
Drake
Florence & The Machine
Mumford & Sons
Esperanza Spalding

Song Of The Year

“Beg Steal Or Borrow” — Ray LaMontagne, songwriter (Ray LaMontagne And The Pariah Dogs)
“… You” — Cee Lo Green, Philip Lawrence & Bruno Mars, songwriters (Cee Lo Green)
“The House That Built Me” –Tom Douglas & Allen Shamblin, songwriters (Miranda Lambert)
“Love The Way You Lie” — Alexander Grant, Skylar Grey & Marshall Mathers, songwriters
(Eminem Featuring Rihanna)
“Need You Now” — Dave Haywood, Josh Kear, Charles Kelley & Hillary Scott, songwriters (Lady Antebellum)

POP FIELD

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

“King Of Anything” — Sara Bareilles
“Halo (Live)” — Beyoncé
“Chasing Pirates” — Norah Jones
“Bad Romance” — Lady Gaga
“Teenage Dream” — Katy Perry

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance

“Haven’t Met You Yet” — Michael Bublé
“This Is It” — Michael Jackson
“Whataya Want From Me” — Adam Lambert
“Just The Way You Are” — Bruno Mars
“Half Of My Heart — John Mayer

Best Pop Instrumental Performance

“Flow” — Laurie Anderson
“Nessun Dorma” — Jeff Beck
“No Mystery” — Stanley Clarke
“Orchestral Intro” — Gorillaz
“Sleepwalk” — The Brian Setzer Orchestra

Best Pop Instrumental Album

“Pushing The Envelope” — Gerald Albright
“Take Your Pick” — Larry Carlton & Tak Matsumoto
“Heart And Soul” — Kenny G
“Singularity” — Robby Krieger
“Everything Is Everything: The Music Of Donny Hathaway” — Kirk Whalum

Best Pop Vocal Album

“My World 2.0″ — Justin Bieber
“I Dreamed A Dream” — Susan Boyle
“The Fame Monster” — Lady Gaga
“Battle Studies” — John Mayer
“Teenage Dream” — Katy Perry

Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals

“Don’t Stop Believin’ (Regionals Version)” — “Glee” Cast
“Misery” — Maroon 5
“The Only Exception” — Paramore
“Babyfather” — Sade
“Hey, Soul Sister (Live)” — Train

Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals

“Airplanes II” — B.o.B, Eminem & Hayley Williams
“Imagine” — Herbie Hancock, Pink, India.Arie, Seal, Konono No. 1, Jeff Beck & Oumou Sangare
“If It Wasn’t For Bad” — Elton John & Leon Russell
“Telephone” — Lady Gaga & Beyoncé
“California Gurls” — Katy Perry & Snoop Dogg

TRADITIONAL POP FIELD

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album

“Crazy Love” — Michael Bublé
“The Greatest Love Songs Of All Time” — Barry Manilow
“Let It Be Me: Mathis In Nashville” — Johnny Mathis
“Fly Me To The Moon…The Great American Songbook: Volume V” — Rod Stewart
“Love Is The Answer” — Barbra Streisand

DANCE FIELD

Best Dance Recording

“Rocket” — Goldfrapp
“In For The Kill” — La Roux
“Dance In The Dark” — Lady Gaga
“Only Girl (In The World)” — Rihanna
“Dancing On My Own” — Robyn

Best Electronic/Dance Album

“These Hopeful Machines” — BT
“Further” — The Chemical Brothers
“Head First” — Goldfrapp
“Black Light” — Groove Armada
“La Roux” — La Roux

ROCK FIELD

Best Rock Song

“Angry World” — Neil Young, songwriter (Neil Young)
“Little Lion Man” — Ted Dwane, Ben Lovett, Marcus Mumford & Country Winston, songwriters (Mumford & Sons)
“Radioactive” — Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, songwriters (Kings Of Leon)
“Resistance” — Matthew Bellamy, songwriter (Muse)
“Tighten Up” — Dan Auerbach & Patrick Carney, songwriters (The Black Keys)

Best Rock Album

Emotion & Commotion — Jeff Beck
“The Resistance” — Muse
“Backspacer” — Pearl Jam
“Mojo” — Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
“Le Noise” — Neil Young

Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance

“Run Back To Your Side” — Eric Clapton
“Crossroads” — John Mayer
“Helter Skelter” — Paul McCartney
“Silver Rider” — Robert Plant
“Angry World” — Neil Young

Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals

“Ready To Start” — Arcade Fire
“I Put A Spell On You” — Jeff Beck & Joss Stone
“Tighten Up” — The Black Keys
“Radioactive” — Kings Of Leon
“Resistance” — Muse

Best Hard Rock Performance

“A Looking In View” — Alice In Chains
“Let Me Hear You Scream” — Ozzy Osbourne
“Black Rain” — Soundgarden
“Between The Lines” — Stone Temple Pilots
“New Fang” — Them Crooked Vultures

Best Rock Song

“Angry World” — Neil Young, songwriter (Neil Young)
“Little Lion Man” — Ted Dwane, Ben Lovett, Marcus Mumford & Country Winston, songwriters
(Mumford & Sons)
“Radioactive” — Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, songwriters
(Kings Of Leon)
“Resistance” — Matthew Bellamy, songwriter (Muse)
“Tighten Up” — Dan Auerbach & Patrick Carney, songwriter (The Black Keys)

Best Metal Performance

“El Dorado” — Iron Maiden
“Let The Guilt Go” — Korn
“In Your Words” — Lamb Of God
“Sudden Death” — Megadeth
“World Painted Blood” — Slayer

Best Rock Instrumental Performance

“Hammerhead” — Jeff Beck
“Black Mud” — The Black Keys
“Do The Murray” — Los Lobos
“Kundalini Bonfire” — Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
“The Deathless Horsie” — Dweezil Zappa

ALTERNATIVE FIELD

Best Alternative Music Album

The Suburbs — Arcade Fire
Infinite Arms — Band Of Horses
Brothers — The Black Keys
Broken Bells — Broken Bells
Contra — Vampire Weekend

R&B FIELD

Best R&B Song

“Bittersweet” — Charles Harmon & Claude Kelly, songwriters (Fantasia)
“Finding My Way Back” — Ivan “Orthodox” Barias, Curt Chambers, Carvin ”Ransum” Haggins, Jaheim Hoagland & Miquel Jontel, songwriters (Jaheim)
“Second Chance” — E. Debarge & Mischke, songwriters (El DeBarge)
“Shine” — John Stephens, songwriter (John Legend & The Roots)
“Why Would You Stay” — K. Owens, songwriter (Kem)

Best R&B Album

The Love & War Masterpeace – Raheem DeVaughn
Back To Me — Fantasia
Another Round — Jaheim
Wake Up! — John Legend & The Roots
Still Standing — Monica

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance

“Gone Already” — Faith Evans
“Bittersweet” — Fantasia
“Everything To Me” — Monica
“Tired” — Kelly Price
“Holding You Down (Going In Circles)” — Jazmine Sullivan

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance

“Second Chance” — El DeBarge
“Finding My Way Back” — Jaheim
“Why Would You Stay” — Kem
“We’re Still Friends” — (Kirk Whalum &) Musiq Soulchild
“There Goes My Baby” — Usher

Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance

“When A Woman Loves” — R. Kelly
“Hang On In There” — John Legend & The Roots
“You’re So Amazing” — Calvin Richardson
“In Between” — Ryan Shaw
“Go [Live]” — Betty Wright

Best Urban/Alternative Performance

“Little One” — Bilal
“… You” — Cee Lo Green
“Orion” — Carolyn Malachi
“Tightrope” — Janelle Monáe & Big Boi
“Still” — Eric Roberson

Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals

“Take My Time” — Chris Brown & Tank
“Love” — Chuck Brown, Jill Scott & Marcus Miller
“You’ve Got A Friend” — Ronald Isley & Aretha Franklin
“Shine” — John Legend & The Roots
“Soldier Of Love” — Sade

Best Contemporary R&B Album

Graffiti — Chris Brown
Untitled — R. Kelly
Transition — Ryan Leslie
The ArchAndroid – Janelle Monáe
Raymond V Raymond — Usher

RAP FIELD

Best Rap Solo Performance

“Over” — Drake
“Not Afraid” — Eminem
“How Low” — Ludacris
“I’m Back” — T.I.
“Power” — Kanye West

Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group

“Shutterbugg” — Big Boi & Cutty
“Fancy” — Drake, T.I. & Swizz Beatz
“On To The Next One” — Jay-Z & Swizz Beatz
“My Chick Bad” — Ludacris & Nicki Minaj
“Lose My Mind” — Young Jeezy & Plies

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration

“Nothin’ On You” — B.o.B Featuring Bruno Mars
“Deuces” — Chris Brown, Tyga & Kevin McCall
“Love The Way You Lie” — Eminem & Rihanna
“Empire State Of Mind” — Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
“Wake Up! Everybody” — John Legend, The Roots, Melanie Fiona & Common

Best Rap Song

“Empire State Of Mind” — Shawn Carter, Angela Hunte, Burt Keyes, Alicia Keys, Jane’t ”Jnay” Sewell-Ulepic & Alexander Shuckburgh, songwriters (Sylvia Robinson, songwriter) (Jay-Z & Alicia Keys)
“Love The Way You Lie” — Alexander Grant, Skylar Grey & Marshall Mathers, songwriters
(Eminem & Rihanna)
“Not Afraid” — M. Burnett, J. Evans, Marshall Mathers, L. Resto & M. Samuels, songwriters (Eminem)
“Nothin’ On You” — Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, Bruno Mars & Bobby Simmons Jr., songwriters (B.o.B Featuring Bruno Mars)
“On To The Next One” — Shawn Carter, J. Chaton & K. Dean, songwriters (G. Auge & X. De Rosnay, songwriters) (Jay-Z & Swizz Beatz)

Best Rap Album

The Adventures Of Bobby Ray — B.o.B
Thank Me Later — Drake
Recovery — Eminem
The Blueprint 3 — Jay-Z
How I Got Over — The Roots

COUNTRY FIELD

Best Country Song

“The Breath You Take” — Casey Beathard, Dean Dillon & Jessie Jo Dillon, songwriters (George Strait)
“Free” — Zac Brown, songwriter (Zac Brown Band)
“The House That Built Me” — Tom Douglas & Allen Shamblin, songwriters (Miranda Lambert)
“I’d Love To Be Your Last” — Rivers Rutherford, Annie Tate & Sam Tate, songwriters (Gretchen Wilson)
“If I Die Young” — Kimberly Perry, songwriter (The Band Perry)
“Need You Now” — Dave Haywood, Josh Kear, Charles Kelley & Hillary Scott, songwriters (Lady Antebellum)

Best Country Album

Up On The Ridge — Dierks Bentley
You Get What You Give — Zac Brown Band
The Guitar Song — Jamey Johnson
Need You Now — Lady Antebellum
Revolution — Miranda Lambert

Best Female Country Vocal Performance

“Satisfied” — Jewel
“The House That Built Me” — Miranda Lambert
“Swingin’” — LeAnn Rimes
“Temporary Home” — Carrie Underwood
“I’d Love To Be Your Last” — Gretchen Wilson

Best Male Country Vocal Performance

“Macon” — Jamey Johnson
“Cryin’ For Me (Wayman’s Song)” — Toby Keith
“Turning Home” — David Nail
“‘Til Summer Comes Around” — Keith Urban
“Gettin’ You Home” — Chris Young

Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals

“Free” — Zac Brown Band
“Elizabeth” — Dailey & Vincent
“Need You Now” — Lady Antebellum
“Little White Church” — Little Big Town
“Where Rainbows Never Die” — The SteelDrivers

Best Country Instrumental Performance

“Tattoo Of A Smudge” — Cherryholmes
“Magic #9″ — The Infamous Stringdusters
“New Chance Blues” — Punch Brothers
“Willow Creek” — Darrell Scott
“Hummingbyrd” — Marty Stuart

Best Country Collaboration With Vocals

“Bad Angel” — Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert & Jamey Johnson
“Pride (In The Name Of Love)” — Dierks Bentley, Del McCoury & The Punch Brothers
“As She’s Walking Away” — Zac Brown Band & Alan Jackson
“Hillbilly Bone” — Blake Shelton & Trace Adkins
“I Run To You” — Marty Stuart & Connie Smith

COMEDY FIELD

Best Comedy Album

Cho Dependent — Margaret Cho
I Told You I Was Freaky — Flight Of The Conchords
Kathy Griffin Does The Bible Belt — Kathy Griffin
Stark Raving Black — Lewis Black
Weapons Of Self Destruction — Robin Williams

MUSICAL SHOW FIELD

Best Musical Show Album

American Idiot (Featuring Green Day) — Billie Joe Armstrong, producer (Green Day, composers; Billie Joe Armstrong, lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast With John Gallagher, Jr., Michael Esper & Others)
Fela! — Robert Sher, producer (Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, composer; Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast With Sahr Ngaujah, Lillias White & Others)
A Little Night Music — Tommy Krasker, producer (Stephen Sondheim, composer; Stephen Sondheim, lyricist) (2009 Broadway Revival Cast With Catherine Zeta-Jones, Angela Lansbury & Others)
Promises, Promises — David Caddick & David Lai, producers (Burt Bacharach, composer; Hal David, lyricist) (New Broadway Cast With Sean Hayes, Kristin Chenoweth & Others)
Sondheim On Sondheim — Philip Chaffin & Tommy Krasker, producers (Stephen Sondheim, composer; Stephen Sondheim, lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast With Barbara Cook , Vanessa Williams, Tom Wopat & Others)

FILM/TV/VISUAL MEDIA FIELD

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media

“Crazy Heart” — (Various Artists)
“Glee: The Music, Volume 1″ — (Glee Cast)
“Tremé” — (Various Artists)
“True Blood – Volume 2″ — (Various Artists)
“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” — (Various Artists)

Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media

“Alice In Wonderland” — Danny Elfman, composer
“Avatar” — James Horner, composer
“Inception” — Hans Zimmer, composer
“Sherlock Holmes” — Hans Zimmer, composer
“Toy Story 3″ — Randy Newman, composer

Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media

“Down In New Orleans” (From “The Princess And The Frog”) — Randy Newman, songwriter (Dr. John)
“I See You” (From “Avatar”) — Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell & James Horner, songwriters (Leona Lewis)
“Kiss Like Your Kiss” (From “True Blood”) — Lucinda Williams, songwriter (Lucinda Williams & Elvis Costello)
“This City” (From “Tremé”) — Steve Earle, songwriter (Steve Earle)
“The Weary Kind” (From “Crazy Heart”) — Ryan Bingham & T Bone Burnett, songwriters (Ryan Bingham)

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical

Rob Cavallo – Brand New Eyes (Paramore) (A); Hang Cool Teddy Bear (Meat Loaf) (A); Happy Hour (Uncle Kracker) (A); Music Again (Adam Lambert) (T); Soaked (Adam Lambert) (T); Sure Fire Winners (Adam Lambert) (T); Time For Miracles (Adam Lambert) (T); When It’s Time (Green Day) (T)

Danger Mouse — Broken Bells (Broken Bells) (A); Dark Night Of The Soul (Danger Mouse And Sparklehorse) (A); Tighten Up (The Black Keys) (T)

Dr. Luke — California Gurls (Katy Perry Featuring Snoop Dogg) (T); For Your Entertainment (Adam Lambert) (T); Hungover (Kesha) (T); Kiss N Tell (Kesha) (T); Magic (B.o.B. Featuring Rivers Cuomo) (T); Take It Off (Kesha) (T); Teenage Dream (Katy Perry) (T); Your Love Is My Drug (Kesha) (T)

RedOne — Alejandro (Lady Gaga) (S); Bad Romance (Lady Gaga) (S); The Fame Monster (Lady Gaga) (A); I Like It (Enrique Iglesias Featuring Pitbull) (S); More (Usher) (T); We Are The World 25 For Haiti (Artists For Haiti) (S); Whole Lotta Love (Mary J. Blige) (S)

The Smeezingtons (Bruno Mars, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine) — Billionaire (Travie McCoy Featuring Bruno Mars) (T); Bow Chicka Wow Wow (Mike Posner) (T); … You (Cee Lo Green) (S); Island Queen (Sean Kingston) (T); Just The Way You Are (Bruno Mars) (S); Nothin’ On You (B.o.B Featuring Bruno Mars) (T)

Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical

Fantasy (Morgan Page Remix) — Morgan Page, remixer (Nadia Ali)
Funk Nasty (Wolfgang Gartner Remix Edit) — Wolfgang Gartner, remixer (Andy Caldwell Featuring Gram’ma Funk)
Orpheus (Quiet Carnival) (Funk Generation Mix) — Mike Rizzo, remixer (Sergio Mendes)
Revolver (David Guetta’s One Love Club Remix) — David Guetta, remixer (Madonna)
Sweet Disposition (Axwell & Dirty South Remix) — Axel Hedfors & Dragan Roganovic, remixers (The Temper Trap)

MUSIC VIDEOS

Best Short Form Music Video

“Ain’t No Grave / The Johnny Cash Project” — Johnny Cash; Chris Milk, video director; Jennifer Heath, Aaron Koblin & Rick Rubin, video producers
“Love The Way You Lie (Explicit Version)” — Eminem & Rihanna; Joseph Kahn, video director; Maryann Tanedo, video producer
“Stylo” — Gorillaz, Mos Def & Bobby Womack; Pete Candeland & Jamie Hewlett, video directors; Cara Speller, video producer
“… You” — Cee Lo Green; Matt Stawski, video director; Paul Bock, video producer
“Bad Romance” — Lady Gaga; Francis Lawrence, video director; Heather Heller, video producer

Best Long Form Music Video

“No Distance Left To Run” — Blur; Will Lovelace, Dylan Southern & Giorgio Testi, video directors; Thomas Benski, Laura Collins & Lucas Ochoa, video producers
“When You’re Strange” — The Doors; Tom Dicillo, video director; John Beug, Jeff Jampol, Peter Jankowski & Dick Wolf, video producers
“The Greatest Ears In Town: The Arif Mardin Story” — Arif Mardin; Doug Biro & Joe Mardin, video directors; Doug Biro & Joe Mardin, video producers
“Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage” — Rush; Sam Dunn & Scot McFadyen, video directors; Sam Dunn & Scot McFadyen, video producers
“Under Great White Northern Lights” — The White Stripes; Emmett Malloy, video director; Ian Montone & Mike Sarkissian, video producers

Can T.I. take Christina back to the Top?

It’s been a rollercoaster year for Grammy winning pop diva Christina Aguilera. Despite two # 1 dance singles (“You Lost Me”, “Not Myself Tonight”), her last album Bionic bombed selling less than 300,000 copies. She also announced her impending divorce and has been a target in the media for her weight fluxuations and supposed “diva” behavior. Regardless of all of that, she has persevered and just released a fantastic new album in her soundtrack to her film debut Burlesque. The album is selling briskly and despite negative reviews, the movie opened decently to $17 million at the box office. Audiences polled have also been pretty favorable to the fun and very entertaining film. (I found it to be a really good time film with fantastic musical numbers and gave it a “B” grade overall). Currently on iTunes, Christina has several songs charting from the soundtrack with “Show Me How You Burlesque” in the top 30 and “Express” in the top 50. So, things could be on an upswing for Ms. Aguilera.
One thing that may cement her trek back to the top of the charts is a brand new collaboration with Grammy winning rap superstar (and criminal!) T.I entitled “Castle Walls”. It is from his new album, No Mercy, which drops on Nov. 7th and it sounds like a smash. It’s right in the same vein as recent # 1′s “Love the Way You Lie” by Eminem and Rihanna and “Airplanes” by B.o.B with Hayley Williams, so I’m expecting it to race up the charts. Check out “Castle Walls” below and let me know if you think it will put Christina back on top. Then watch her Dancing with the Stars performance of  ”Show Me How You Burlesque” from Burlesque below as well. It’s hot!

“Castle Walls” -T.I. with Christina Aguilera

Christina Aguilera “Show Me How You Burlesque” (from her Dancing with the Stars performance)

Amazing Acapella Cover of Katy Perry & Bruno Mars!

Check out this amazing a capella cover of Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” and Bruno Mars’ “Just the Way You Are” by Mike Tompkins. He does all the music with his own voice too. It’s incredible. For more on Mike, head to his twitter page here. And watch the awesome video below.

Mike Tompkins “Teenage Dream/Just the Way You Are”

And speaking of Katy and Bruno, they are both riding high on those current smashes. Katy’s “Dream” is the # 1 song in the country and she looks to be a big contender at the Grammys in January. Watch for Katy to grab these nods…

Best Female Pop Vocal: “Teenage Dream”
Best Pop Vocal Collaboration: “California Gurls” with Snoop Dogg
~she could also land here
Record of the Year: “California Gurls”
Pop Album: Teenage Dream

Katy Perry “Teenage Dream”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98WtmW-lfeE

As for Bruno, his single “Just the Way You Are” is currently # 3 on the pop charts and follows his smashes “Nothin’ on You” with B.o.B and “Billionaire” with Travis McCoy. Watch for Mars to grab these Grammy nods…

Best Male Pop Vocal: “Just the Way You Are”
Pop Vocal Collaboration: “Billionaire”- Travis McCoy w/Bruno Mars
Rap Sung Collaboration: “Nothin’ on You”- B.o.B w/Bruno Mars
Best New Artist

Bruno Mars “Just the Way You Are”