And I’m done with “The Voice”

So, if you watched last night’s episode of The Voice, you saw the show’s best and most talented contestant, Amanda Brown, get eliminated. It was horrifying and upsetting and another in a long line of singing show voting injustices. Following in the footsteps of singers like American Idol’s Jennifer Hudson, Carly Smithson, Pia Toscano and Chris Daughtry getting the boot before they should’ve, Brown was sent packing. With that news, I am sending the show packing. If you read my recap from Tuesday night, I was very dissatisfied with the show as it devolved into an overproduced X-Factor type mess (much like its first two seasons). So, with the show’s continuing decline and the wonderfully talented Ms. Brown no longer in the running, I am done with The Voice. There’s really no reason to watch for me anymore. So, sorry but my recaps are done for this season. We’ll see if I return in the Spring when there will be some new judging blood in Usher and Shakira (replacing the delightful but derivative Cee Lo and the incredibly rude, egotistical and annoying Christina Aguilera). Until then, I would recommend mjsbigblog for good recaps and news on the show…. And I’ll just look positively towards a new season of the only talent show that actually produces successful pop stars and remains the gold standard, American Idol.

Rihanna Double Dips at the Top of the Charts

Rihanna had a fantastic post-Thanksgiving week as she topped both the Billboard Albums and Singles Charts. Despite releasing a new album every five minutes, she has never reached the top of the Billboard 200 until this week with her seventh release, Unapologetic. The singer also tops the Hot 100 singles chart for a second week with “Diamonds” becoming the second artist to lead both charts this year after Adele. Speaking of Adele, her 21 passes 10 million in sales this week for Diamond certification which is pretty much unheard of these days. The last album to hit that mark was Usher’s Confessions from 2004 and it just hit the mark earlier this year. Congrats Adele!… Back on the Billboard 200, American Idol proved it can keep pumping out successful music stars as this year’s winner Phillip Phillips debuts at # 4 just ahead of the latest from Kid Rock. Also, premiering in the top ten are Led Zeppelin and Keyshia Cole while the original Idol Kelly Clarkson sells 75000 copies of her first Greatest Hits album to debut at # 11. For more on all these records, head to Billboard here and check out the new top eleven below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Unapologetic- Rihanna (debut)
2. Red- Taylor Swift (last week~ 2)
3. Take Me Home- One Direction (lw~ 1)
4. The World from the Side of the Moon- Phillip Phillips (debut)
5. Rebel Soul- Kid Rock (debut)
6. Merry Christmas Baby- Rod Stewart (lw~ 6)
7. The Truth About Love- P!nk (lw~ 22)
8. Night Train- Jason Aldean (lw~ 13)
9. Celebration Day- Led Zeppelin (debut)
10. Woman to Woman- Keyshia Cole (debut)
11. Greatest Hits: Chapter 1: Kelly Clarkson (debut)

Switching over to the Hot 100, Rihanna holds off a surging Ke$ha whose “Die Young” could pose a real threat to the top next week… And giving him a matching top ten album and single, Phillip Phillip’s “Home” returns to the top-tier with a new peak at # 8. This song has become the best selling coronation single in Idol history as it nears the 3 million mark topping sales of David Cook‘s “Time of My Life” and Clarkson’s “A Moment Like This”. He’s also hit # 1 at AAA radio, # 2 on Hot Adult Top 40 and Top Ten on the Rock, AC and Pop charts now. That’s pretty amazing when you think about it. We’ll see if he can keep up with his new single “Gone Gone Gone” due to hit radio soon. In the meantime, head to Billboard to see all your favorite genre charts and take a look at the new top ten below.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Diamonds”- Rihanna (lw~ 2)
2. “Die Young”- Ke$ha (lw~ 3)
3. “One More Night”- Maroon 5 (lw~ 2)
4. “Locked Out of Heaven”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 4)
5. “Gangnam Style”- Psy (lw~ 7)
6. “Some Nights”- fun. (lw~ 5)
7. “Ho Hey”- The Lumineers (lw~8)
8. “Home”- Phillip Phillips (lw~ 12)
9. “I Cry”- Flo Rida (lw~ 10)
10. “Let Me Love You (Until You Love Yourself)”- NeYo (lw~ 6)

And here’s the new single from Phillip Phillips “Gone Gone Gone”. He’s making like Mumford & Sons again people. At least it’s not a Dave Matthews Band retread…

First Listen~ New Whitney Houston Music “Never Give Up”

We lost a legend earlier this year with the passing of my favorite vocalist of all time, the most-Awarded female singer of all time, Whitney Houston. While “the voice” has officially been silenced, her legacy lives on with her new Hits collection, I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston out November 13th. Lucky for us, we will get some new music on this collection that will include her 11 # 1 Hits and more. Earlier this fall, I shared the new duet version of her single “I Look to You” with R. Kelly and now we get another new track “Never Give Up”. The inspirational mid-tempo R&B track sounds like it would’ve gone perfectly with the music of her last album, 2009′s I Look to You. The song, written by Jermaine Dupri and Bryan Michael-Cox, will be available for purchase next week at all digital retailers, but you can listen to it below. Enjoy…. And watch for the CBS Whitney special We Will Always Love You: A Grammy Tribute to Whitney Houston featuring performances from Jennifer Hudson, Usher and Celine Dion along with classic Houston clips to air Nov. 16th. For more on all things Whitney, head here and check out “Never Give Up” below.

Whitney Houston “Never Give Up”

The American Music Award Nominations go Pop with Rihanna and Nicki Minaj Leading the Way

This year’s American Music Award nominations were controlled by several big pop artists this year with Rihanna and Nicki Minaj leading the way. Those ladies landed 4 bids apiece while Maroon 5, Justin Bieber, Usher, Drake and One Direction each grabbed 3 nods. Two of my favorite ladies, Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson, picked up two nominations each as well. Take a look at all of this year’s contenders below and be sure to watch the show with performances by a ton of superstars including Christina Aguilera November 18th on ABC.

2012 American Music Award Nominations~

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Justin Bieber
Drake
Maroon 5
Katy Perry
Rihanna

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
J. Cole
fun.
Gotye
Carly Rae Jepsen
One Direction

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Justin Bieber
Flo Rida
Pitbull
Usher

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Kelly Clarkson
Nicki Minaj
Katy Perry
Rihanna

FAVORITE BAND, DUO OR GROUP – POP/ROCK
fun.
Maroon 5
One Direction
The Wanted

FAVORITE ALBUM – POP/ROCK
Justin Bieber, “Believe”
Maroon 5, “Overexposed”
Nicki Minaj, “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded”
One Direction, “Up All Night”

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Eric Church

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Miranda Lambert
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

FAVORITE BAND, DUO or GROUP – COUNTRY
Zac Brown Band
Lady Antebellum
Rascal Flatts

FAVORITE ALBUM – COUNTRY
Luke Bryan, “Tailgates & Tanlines”
Lionel Richie, “Tuskegee”
Carrie Underwood, “Blown Away”

FAVORITE ARTIST – RAP/HIP-HOP
Drake
Nicki Minaj
Tyga

FAVORITE ALBUM – RAP/HIP-HOP
J. Cole, “Cole World: The Sideline Story”
Drake, “Take Care”
Nicki Minaj, “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded”

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Chris Brown
Trey Songz
Usher

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Beyoncé
Mary J. Blige
Rihanna

FAVORITE ALBUM – SOUL/R&B
Chris Brown, “Fortune”
Rihanna, “Talk That Talk”
Usher, “Looking 4 Myself”

FAVORITE ARTIST – ALTERNATIVE ROCK
The Black Keys
Gotye
Linkin Park

FAVORITE ARTIST – ADULT CONTEMPORARY
Adele
Kelly Clarkson
Train

FAVORITE ARTIST – LATIN
Don Omar
Pitbull
Shakira

FAVORITE ARTIST – CONTEMPORARY INSPIRATIONAL
Jeremy Camp
Newsboys
tobyMac

FAVORITE ARTIST – ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC (EDM)
David Guetta
Calvin Harris
Skrillex

Frank Ocean, the Zac Brown Band, P!nk and, yes, Adele, make Noise on the Charts

Proving they can pull a Mariah Carey or a Sheryl Crow and beat the Best New Artist Grammy curse, country crooners the Zac Brown Band land at # 1 on the Billboard 200 this week with their sophomore release, Uncaged. They also top the country charts. Debuting big right behind them is the first out and proud gay R&B hip hop artist Frank Ocean with his major label debut, Channel Orange. Ocean’s debut is also of note because the record beat out much more highly promoted recent releases by Usher and that bastard Chris Brown…. The other album making noise in the top ten was Adele‘s 21 which extended its run in the top ten to an astonishing 73 weeks giving it the record for the longest weeks in the top ten for an album by a female artist. Adele beats out Alanis Morissette’s debut album Jagged Little Pill which had reigned for the past 17 years with 72 weeks. Congrats Adele…. For more on these albums, head to Billboard here and check out the new top ten below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Uncaged- Zac Brown Band (debut)
2. Channel Orange- Frank Ocean
3. Believe- Justin Bieber (last week~ 3)
4. Fortune- Chris Brown (lw~ 1)
5. Overexposed- Maroon 5 (lw~ 4)
6. Living Things- Linkin Park (lw~ 5)
7. Up All Night- One Direction (lw~ 11)
8. 21- Adele (lw~ 9)
9. Teenage Dream- Katy Perry (lw~ 2)
10. Welcome to the Fishbowl- Kenny Chesney (lw~8)

Over on the Hot 100 Singles chart, P!nk blasts into the top ten with her brand new single “Blow Me (One Last Kiss)” which sails up from 58-9. This song gives P!nk her 12th Hot 100 top ten. She previously hit # 1 on the Hot 100 with “So What”, “Raise Your Glass” and “Lady Marmalade” with Christina Aguilera, Mya and Lil Kim. P!nk could hit the top soon but she will have to fend off Carly Rae Jepsen whose “Call Me Maybe” extends its run to 6 weeks at # 1 this week. For more on this chart and all the charts, head to Billboard here and scroll down for this week’s new top ten.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Call Me Maybe”- Carly Rae Jepsen (last week~ 1)
2. “Payphone”- Maroon 5 w/ Wiz Khalifa (lw~ 2)
3. “Wide Awake”- Katy Perry (lw~ 4)
4. “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/Kimbra (lw~ 3)
5. “Lights”- Ellie Goulding (lw~ 5)
6. “Where Have You Been?”- Rihanna (lw~ 6)
7. “Whistle”- Flo Rida (lw~ 12)
8. “Titanium”- David Guetta w/ Sia (lw~ 7)
9. “Blow Me (One Last Kiss)”- P!nk (lw~ 58)
10. “Scream”- Usher (lw~ 1)

You Better “Believe” Justin Bieber tops the Charts Again

Teen sensation, and one of the most annoying pop stars around in my opinion, Justin Bieber has done it again… His new album, Believe debuts at # 1 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart giving him his 4th chart topper. It also sells 374,000 units for the biggest debut of 2012 edging out Madonna’s MDNA. Bieber leads a slew of debuts in the top five from Kenny Chesney (with his 10th top ten album and 11th #1 country album), Fiona Apple and the Smashing Pumpkins plus a surging Rock of Ages soundtrack. Take a look at all the moves in the top ten below and head to Billboard for more info here.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Believe- Justin Bieber (debut)
2. Welcome to the Fishbowl- Kenny Chesney (debut)
3. The Idler Wheel is Wiser…- Fiona Apple (debut)
4. Oceania- Smashing Pumpkins (debut)
5. Rock of Ages soundtrack- Various Artists (lw~ 9)
6. Looking 4 Myself- Usher (lw~ 1)
7. 21- Adele (lw~ 3)
8. Up All Night- One Direction (lw~ 6)
9. Tailgates & Tanlines- Luke Bryan (lw~ 13)
10. Clockwork Angels- Rush (lw~ 2)

Over on the Hot 100 Singles Chart, Carly Rae Jepsen makes it three weeks on top with “Call Me Maybe” while another new female singer makes a bold move for the top. U.K. songstress Ellie Goulding grabs her first American top ten hit with “Lights” as it flies up from # 12 to # 6 and could be a big threat in the weeks ahead. Also landing in the top ten this week is Usher‘s “Scream” which gives him an 18th top ten single! Check out the brand new top ten below and for more on all the music charts, head to Billboard.com.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Call Me Maybe”- Carly Rae Jepsen (last week~ 1) * 3 weeks on top
2. “Payphone”- Maroon 5 w/Wiz Khalifa (lw~ 3)
3. “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/ Kimbra (lw~ 2)
4. “Wide Awake”- Katy Perry (lw~ 4)
5. “Where Have You Been?”- Rihanna (lw~8)
6. “Lights”- Ellie Goulding (lw~ 12)
7. “We Are Young”- fun. w/Janelle Monae (lw~ 5)
8. “Starships”- Nicki Minaj (lw~ 7)
9. “What Makes You Beautiful”- One Direction (lw~ 6)
10. “Scream”- Usher (lw~ 11)

And here’s Ellie Goulding’s new smash “Lights”. Enjoy

Usher, Carly Rae Jepsen and “Rock of Ages” rock the Charts

Usher bags his 4th # 1 album this week as his latest, Looking 4 Myself, debuts atop the Billboard 200 Albums chart. However, with only 128,000 copies sold, that is the lowest start for any of his albums since 1997. Nonetheless, he holds off debuts from classic rockers Rush, country crooner Josh Turner, British newbie Ed Sheeran and rapper Waka Flocka Flame. Also moving into the top ten this week is the super-entertaining Rock of Ages soundtrack which flies up to # 9 after the film hit theaters this weekend. Check out the new top ten below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Looking 4 Myself- Usher (debut)
2. Clockwork Angels- Rush (debut)
3. 21- Adele (last week~ 1)
4. Punching Bag- Josh Turner (debut)
5. + – Ed Sheeran (debut)
6. Up All Night- One Direction (lw~ 6)
7. Americana- Neil Young and Crazy Horse (lw~ 4)
8. Thirty Miles West- Alan Jackson (lw~ 2)
9. Rock of Ages soundtrack- Various Artists (lw~ 15)
10. Triple F Life- Waka Flocka Flame (debut)

And enjoy the video for Rock of Ages version of Journey‘s “Anyway You Want It” featuring vocals from Mary J. Blige, Julianne Hough and the Tony nominated star of the Broadway version of Ages who cameos in the film, American Idol’s Constantine Maroulis.

Over on the Hot 100 singles chart, Carly Rae Jepsen extends her streak at # 1 to two weeks with “Call Me Maybe”. She may have some competition soon though from Katy Perry’s “Wide Awake” which charges up to # 4. Take a look at the new top ten below and head to Billboard here for more on all the charts.

Top Ten Singles on the Billboard Hot 100:
1. “Call Me Maybe”- Carly Rae Jepsen (last week~ 1) * 2 weeks on top
2. “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/Kimra (lw~ 2)
3. “Payphone”- Maroon 5 w/Wiz Khalifa (lw~ 3)
4. “Wide Awake”- Katy Perry (lw~ 9)
5. “We Are Young”- fun. w/Janelle Monae (lw~ 4)
6. “What Makes you Beautiful”- One Direction (lw~ 5)
7. “Starships”- Nicki Minaj (lw~ 6)
8. “Where Have You Been?”- Rihanna (lw~8)
9. “Wild Ones”- Flo Rida w/Sia (lw~ 7)
10. “Boyfriend”- Justin Bieber (lw~ 10)

The Women of “Idol” wow at the Billboard Awards

Last night’s Billboard Awards aired on ABC, but there was a whole lot of Fox going on as three previous winners of American Idol stole the show. Those three women Grammy winners Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood and Grammy nominee Jordin Sparks all gave astounding performances that made everyone else look pretty silly. Kelly did her amazing new single “Dark Side” and it was simply a gorgeous vocal (and she looked wonderful too) while Carrie threw down the gauntlet with a soaring version of her next single “Blown Away”. However, I actually think the best performance of the night belonged to Sparks who tackled the late great Whitney Houston‘s “I Will Always Love You” in a special tribute to her. It was beautiful, powerful and emotional and a fitting tribute to this brilliant lost singer who Sparks will costar with in her final film this summer, Sparkle.
There were other performances of course and I will rank them below, but the night was also about awards as Billboard handed out trophies for the biggest hits, albums and artists of the past year. Adele (who was conspicuously absent and thus all of her wins were off camera) was the big winner with 12 awards including Artist and Album of the Year. LMFAO grabbed 6 awards while Coldplay nabbed 4. For more on the awards show which also featured tributes to Stevie Wonder and the recently passed Queen of Disco Donna Summer and all the winners, head to Billboard here. And check out all the winners below.

2012 Billboard Music Award Winners~
ARTIST AWARDS

Top Artist: Adele
Top New Artist: Wiz Khalifa
Top Male Artist: Lil Wayne
Top Female Artist: Adele
Top Duo/Group: – LMFAO
Top Billboard 200 Artist: Adele
Top Hot 100 Artist: Adele
Top Digital Songs Artist: – Adele
Top Radio Songs Artist: – Adele
Top Touring Artist – U2
Top Social Artist: – Justin Bieber
Top Streaming Artist: – Rihanna
Top Digital Media Artist – Adele
Top Pop Artist: – Adele
Top R&B Artist: – Chris Brown
Top Rap Artist: – Lil Wayne
Top Country Artist: – Lady Antebellum
Top Rock Artist: – Coldplay
Top Alternative Artist: – Coldplay
Top Latin Artist – Shakira
Top Dance Artist – Lady Gaga
Top Christian Artist – Casting Crowns

ALBUMS AWARDS:

Top Billboard 200 Album: – Adele “21”
Top Pop Album – Adele “21”
Top R&B Album – Beyonce “4”
Top Rap Album: – Lil Wayne “Tha Carter IV”
Top Country Album: – Jason Aldean “My Kinda Party”
Top Rock Album: – Coldplay “Mylo Xyloto”
Top Alternative Album: – Coldplay “Mylo Xyloto”
Top Latin Album: -Romeo Santos “Formula: Vol. 1″
Top Dance Album: – Lady Gaga “Born This Way”
Top Christian Album: – Casting Crowns “Come To The Well”

SONG AWARDS:

Top Hot 100 Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Digital Song : – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Radio Song: – Pitbull Feat. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer “Give Me Everything”
Top Streaming Song (Audio): – Adele “Rolling in the Deep”
Top Streaming Song (Video): – Nicki Minaj “Super Bass”
Top Pop Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top R&B Song: – Kelly Rowland Feat. Lil Wayne “Motivation”
Top Rap Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Country Song: – Jason Aldean “Dirt Road Anthem”
Top Rock Song: – Foster The People “Pumped Up Kicks”
Top Alternative Song: – Adele “Rolling In The Deep”
Top Latin Song: – Don Omar & Lucenzo “Danza Kuduro”
Top Dance Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Christian Song: – Laura Story “Blessings”

Ranking the 2012 Billboard Award Performances:
~ the great
1. Jordin Sparks- “I Will Always Love You”: brilliant and heartbreaking

2. Carrie Underwood- “Blown Away”: FANtastic… literally!

3. Kelly Clarkson- “Dark Side”: all hail Ms. Clarkson!

~the good
4. John Legend- “Greatest Love of All”: lovely
5. CeeLo Green & Goodie Mob- “Fight to Win/Fight for Your Right to Party”: awesome and that one-legged dancer was incredible!
~ the pretty good
6. Usher- “Scream”
7. Stevie Wonder & Alicia Keyes medley
8. The Wanted- “Chasing the Sun/Glad You Came”: um, yes, they’re hot and I think they were on key!
9. Carly Rae Jepsen- “Call Me Maybe”: well, that was surprisingly delightful!
10. Natasha Bedingfield- “Last Dance”: it felt a bit off vocally at times, but it was a nice sentiment to the late Ms. Summer
~ the decent
11. LMFAO- “Party Rock Anthem/Sexy and I Know It”: it was a hot mess, but a really fun one
12. Linkin Park- “Building it Up”
~ the BAD
13. Katy Perry- “Wide Awake”: um, Pink did that at the Grammys a million times better than you girl
14. Justin Bieber- “Boyfriend”: boyfriend sure likes to lip sync for his life!
15. Nelly Furtado- “Big Hoops”: has her voice always been this awful, nasal and annoying? And um, that song kinda sucks.
16. Chris Brown- “Turn Up the Radio: Um, everything he does is awful. He is a hateful talentless lip syncing turd.

Glee Highlights from “Yes/No”

This week Glee returned from the holiday hiatus with one of the best episodes of the season as several couples ruminated about the status of their relationships, and Mr. Shu (Emmy nominee Matthew Morrison) debated asking Miss Pillsbury (Jayma Mays) to marry him. It featured some fantastic covers including the current # 1 smash “We Found Love” by Rihanna. But my two favorites were the girls take on Roberta Flack’s iconic 70′s ballad “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” that will bring you to tears and an anthemic and brilliant version of “Without You” the recent top 5 hit by David Guetta and Usher. As sung by Emmy nominee Lea Michelle, the euphoric dance track became a gorgeous lament for everlasting love and it’s currently sitting at # 1 on the iTunes sales chart. Check out both wonderful songs below, and for more on Glee, head here.

Glee: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” by Naya Rivera, Amber Riley, Jenna Ushkowitz and Lea Michelle

Glee: ”Without You” by Lea Michelle

My Top 5 Albums of 2011

I’m way behind on all my recaps for the year, but here’s a quickie to tide you over… Check out my top five albums of 2011… Now, I have to put a little asterisk on this list because like most pop music listeners, and ahem, teenagers, I am more of a singles buyer these days. It brings me back to my youth! And let’s be honest, most albums are just really good for a few songs. Rarely does a masterpiece that is brilliant from beginning to end happen anymore. But it sure did with the top-selling and critically acclaimed, soon to be Grammy winning, 21 by Adele. It’s pretty much perfect and it’s my fave of the year. Take a gander at the rest of my top 5 below (and some choice tracks from each album) and watch for more on the year in music to come.

My Top 5 Albums of 2011:

1. 21- Adele: basically every song was flawless, heart wrenching and beautiful. It already has yield two #1 singles “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You” and “Set Fire to the Rain” just hit the top ten. Watch for this hit heavy record to continue to thrive in 2012. It’s also the biggest selling album in the US since 2004 as it nears 6 million copies sold.
Adele “Rumour Has It”

2. Stronger- Kelly Clarkson: this Grammy winning came back with a vengeance and arguably her strongest record to date. It features the top ten smash “Mr. Know It All” and the #1 country and AC duet “Don’t You Wanna Stay” with Jason Aldean. Watch for several more smashes on the way. And damn does she have some soul for the girl next door.
Kelly Clarkson “What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger)”

3. Lady Gaga- Born This Way: with the biggest sales week of the year at over 1 million units on its debut, Gaga’s third record was another smash. It yielded the hits “Born This Way” (# 1), “The Edge of Glory” (# 3), “You and I” (# 6), Judas (#10) and “Marry The Night” which just went top 40. It was more fabulous fancy fun dance pop from Gaga.
Lady Gaga “Hair”

4. Body Talk- Robyn: this Swedish dance chanteuse cranked out dance smash after smash from this album grabbing a Grammy nomination last year and two more this year. All the tracks are infectious and unique and it’s hard to pick just one favorite. She also is finally breaking through in the US, thank goodness!
Robyn “Call Your Girlfriend”

5. Nothing But the Beat- David Guetta (with various artists): this dance smash was a nonstop party with wonderful pairings from the French DJ and artists like Jennifer Hudson (the anthemic “Night of Your Life”), Jessie J, Will I Am, and Usher (the top five smash “Without You”). But the best was the brilliant and haunting “Titanium” with Sia.
“Titanium”- David Guetta w/Sia

So those are my favorites. What are yours? And who are you looking forward to in the next year. I don’t know about you, but I’m counting the days til the new releases from Madonna and Adam Lambert.