Classic: Summer Girls

It's summertime, so I can't neglect this song. Of all the songs that came out of the boy band era about 10 years ago, this has to be my favorite. At least now I have a convenient excuse if anyone catches be playing it.

PS-RIP Rich Cronin

Rookie of the Year

So the year is about half over, and I think so far this year one man has stood above the rest. And unlikely newcomer that has reached the top (of the Billboard Hot 100). Maybe it's his stoner following or his contagious flow, but people have been digging him this year. And I must admit, every time I hear the song Roll Up on the radio, I listen. Everyone loves a good double entendre, right?

You can't deny that Wiz got pretty luck though. Right when his song Black and Yellow was blowing up, the Steelers won the Superbowl. It's pretty convenient that his song was about their colors, and it also applied to the Bruins now. However he got his success, I'm not complaining because I like that he's popular. And as long as he keeps putting out fresh music, I'll be listening.

Haterade: Jill Taylor

Anyone watch the show Home Improvement? I've tried, but it's difficult with this vile hag on the show. Tim "Tayor's" wife Jill is easily the worst woman ever portrayed on television in my opinion. I felt she only got married to complain and have everything handed to her. She acted like she wore the pants in the family (which is ironic because there's an episode where she refuses to wear a dress) but made a minimal contribution to the family. She was hardly supportive to her husband, hardly a mother to her children, and completely annoying to watch. No wonder Nick at Nite doesn't play the show any more.

Why Ke$ha Is Better

I feel like every time I turn on the radio, I hear this girl's music. It's fun, contagious, but not particularly outstanding. Despite the lack of a deeper meaning, I feel Ke$ha is providing her fans with something other artists aren't: legitimacy.

Take a look at the other artists that are popular today. Beyonce has a bunch of songs about finding love or nasty break ups, but she's married to Jay-Z. Britney Spears is doing alright nowadays, but her career began as an innocent Disney girl that sang racy songs. Katy Perry came from a sheltered Catholic background, and did not kiss a girl. Lady Gaga places WAAAAAY too much emphasis on controversial topics such as religion or homosexuality, and I find that hard to relate to. And Rihanna is the biggest hypocrite of them all. Just listen to Take a Bow and Unfaithful.

The bulk of Ke$ha's songs are about being a drunken slut, and I believe that Ke$ha is just that. While it might not be the best idea to glamorize this, at least I feel she's being real to herself. She's found her niche, and he fans cling to that. She song's aren't exceptional, but she knows what her fans want. That's what she has a constant string for top 10 hits. So as long of Ke$ha stays true to herself, I'll be listening.

Toy Story 4 In the Works!

Are three Toy Stories enough? I don't think so, and neither do Disney/Pixar. Apparently Tom Hanks has confirmed that the fourth installment of the series is in its early staged. I am excited. Unlike a lot of fans of the series, I can see the story continuing after being separated from Andy.

This is also a HUGE risk. Toy Story 3 received such great reviews that I think it would be hard to top. Pixar usually doesn't disappoint though, so I think #4 will be good. Maybe not the best, but I'm sure it will not be a waste of money.

Blowin' Up: Mac Miller

Mac Miller is a mix between Justin Bieber and Wiz Khalifa. He's a recent high school grad that raps about high school, pot, booze, & making money like Donald Trump. He recently went on tour with Mr. Khalifa, and his songs are becoming more and more popular. While I don't think Mac will ever be huge like Biebs, I do think he will have at least one big hit. He already has a pretty big fan base, and it's growing by the days.

Ultimately I think the misconception that there's only room for one white rapper will keep him from being huge, but I do look forward to hearing more from him.

5 Foods That Make Me Love America

This weekend is the 4th of July weekend. While the country has a lot of domestic accomplishments to celebrate, I was wondering what foods make us unique. Other parts of the world eat rice in almost every dish, enjoy an abundance of canned meats, or eat nothing that's packed. So here's what America has made:

Chicken Nuggets

America didn't invent chicken, or fried chicken for that matter. We've just perfected it. Little pieces of fried goodness with a limitless number of dipping sauces. Delicious!

American Hero: Kanye West

There are many things that may come to mind when the name Kanye West is mentioned. For me, I think of a brave individual. He's absolutely crazy, but incredibly talented at the same time. He speaks up for himself, and won't take shit from anyone. Sure, he may hurt a few people along the way, but who gives a fuck? Certainly not him.

He's a very opinionated man, and he makes his opinions known. All Americans have the right to free speech, and it's a shame to let our freedom go to waste. At the end of the day, Kanye is able to maintain his fan base because he has great music. The future is bright for Kanye, and I don't think he'll shut up any time soon.

How Apple Changed My Life

Growing up, my household was loyal PC fans. Whenever my parents got a computer, it was a PC. I think we got our first desktop computer in 1995, and it had 1 GB of storage. As slow as the thing was, it was SICK. It actually ran pretty well, and we only got rid of it because it was so slow, but we did hold onto it for about 6 years.

At school, we used Apple Macintosh computers.

Save Winehouse

Amy Winehouse is the ultimate trainwreck celebrity. In and out of rehab, always looks a mess in public and always stumbling around. Behind the sloppy persona is a talented singer. Her music is great, and her voice is unique. However, she always blows her opportunities to succeed. She got booed off stage last week, and had to cancel her tour. I hope someone can save her, because she's going nowhere fast.

Blowin' Up: She Ain't You

In my opinion, this is a stand out track on Chris Brown's album FAME. It samples the song Human Nature by Michael Jackson, so I figured it would be appropriate to post it today. This song is all over the radio now, and I'm glad to hear it. Chris Brown has really revamped his career, and it looks like he has a bright future. Maybe he's a little off his rocker, but he's definitely moving in the right direction if you ask me. If nothing else, he can make some good tunes.

2 Years Without MJ

It was two years ago on this day that the King of Pop passed away, so of course I am going to pay respects. Michael Jackson is probably the most influential musical figure in the world, and it’s a shame we lost him so soon. Since his passing, I always blast his songs when they come on the radio, and I feel the country is giving him more respect…the respect he deserves.

Whether you think MJ was innocent or guilt, his influence is undeniable. He paved the path of black artists on mainstream stations, and without the music industry would be drastically different.

Haterade: Mary J. Blige

 

Mary J. Blige is one of those celebrities that I see everywhere, and I’m not really sure why. Sure, she’s had a could of hit songs, but so did Milli Vanilli. Nothing about her is unique, yet somehow she stays relevant. Whether it’s appearing at award shows or guest judging on Idol, she acts like she’s a musical legend. She’s not.

I’ll admit, I like the song Family Affair even though she creates nonsense words just to make the song flow (holleration, hateration). Her other big song is Be Without You, which prompts the listener to request the song on the radio. Shameless promotion? I think so. Now, she has a song with Nicki Minaj that’s going to be on her next album. The song’s OK, nothing special, nothing unique. A fairly typical Nicki verse, but it will create some buzz for her.

So Ms. Blige, I’m over you.

Classic: Paper Planes

My posting it’s going to be minimal this week, so I’m just going to update with a quick classic. This is one of my favorite songs. It blew up when it was feature in the Pineapple Express commercial, but it never gets old. It’s been remixed 1000 times (thank you TI), and the song can have 1000 different meanings. Even MIA herself acknowledges that there isn’t just one meaning for the song. And by the way, this song feature fantastic use of onomatopoeia.

Girls (Who Ran the World)

As of right now, Kelly Rowland's music is more popular than Beyonce's. Her sales are higher, as are her radio plays. Once Bey left Destiny's child I never expected much from Kelly Rowland. I expected her to have a solo career, and I know she'd be more successful than background bitch Michelle Williams, but 2011 seems to be a good year for her.

Right now, Motivation is all over the radio. Her album drops in late July and this is her next single. I can see the radio eating it up, and it feature Big Sean who's blowin' up right now.

Tupac's 40

Based on the title of this post, some people may jump to the assumption that I’d talking about a bottle of beer. That would be wrong.

Today, Tupac Shakur would have been 40 years old. I was listening to the radio, and they were playing an hour of commercial-free Tupac. Great! So I listened, and I heard the song Runnin’ which is a mix of Tupac and Biggie which was released in the early 00′s. I understand that people associate Pac and Biggie because they both died in the middle of the East Coast/ West Coast feud, but the truth of the matter is that they didn’t die friends. Tupac never forgave Biggie, so I don’t understand why people feel the need to mash the two on a track. To be honest, I view this as kind of disrespectful.

Pac’s dislike for Biggie stems from a 1994 shooting, which Pac accused Biggie of. Yesterday, a New York prisoner confessed to the shooting. Keep in mind, this is now the shooting that took Pac’s life, but it was the one that prompted him to wear his iconic bulletproof vest. Whether or not this guy is telling the truth is open for debate, but if it’s true I don’t see him lasting too much longer in jail.

Tupac released some aggressive material in his day, but he also released a lot of meaningful music. The message in most of his songs is still very relevant to today’s culture.

Girls of Hollywood

Every time a new male child star appears that’s under that age of 16, people are so quick to label them a female. Example: Justin Bieber. And while Justin has a lot of feminine qualities, his pre-pubescent voice is not a real concern of mine. But now there’s a new singer named Cody Simpson, and he’s clearly coat-tailing off of Biebers fame. However, his management is promoting that fact that he doesn’t sound like a girl. I’d say his future is grim, because he can’t crack the top 150 on iTunes, and Bieber fans won’t be converting any time soon.
However, I do think that people should be legitimately concerned about these young stars with feminine qualities. Back in the day, Aaron Carter was marketed as God’s gift to the 4th grade.

He could easily be mistaken for a female. Yet somehow, he became famous, had fans, and fell off the face of the earth. Now, he is a druggie and has been arrested. His only hope for fame was Dancing With the Stars, but now he seems to have moved back to the rock that he’s been living under.
Hopefully Bieber gets out while he can. Otherwise, he’ll be on Dancing With the Stars season 46.

American Hero: Willow Smith

When I think of Willow Smith, one thing comes to mind: self-empowerment. This girl is paving the path for ALL people to express themselves freely and inspiring people to better themselves. If you listen to her song Whip My Hair, it has a clear message: do whatever the fuck you wanna do! Willow Smith sees a world without boundaries, and as a result her fans will push aside their own personal boundaries in an attempt to achieve a quarter of the success Willow has.

So what's Willow's next adventure? Playing the role of little Orphan Annie. Just goes to show you that the message of self-empowerment does not discriminate according to socioeconomic status. But if you're wondering Willow Smith is really, really rich in real life. After all, her father is fucking WILL SMITH.

Blowin' Up: Party

Beyonce’s new album 4 has leaked, and is receiving mixed reviews. Some say it seems like the put little effort into the album, while others are praising it up and down.


While some of her other tracks from the album don’t seem like her best work, I love this one. It has an old school sound, but features the fresh voice of Kanye. Hopefully this gets on the radio really soon.

Classic: Together Again

This may be Janet Jackson’s most famous song, and I certainly think it’s one of her best. Ever since her brother Michael passed away I think the song has new meaning. Listen to it and think of Michael. How uplifting!

Haterade: Danny Tamberelli

Remember him from Nickelodeon way be in the late 90s? From Pete and Pete, Figure it Out, some random show set in space, or All That?

If you answered no, I’d say you’re lucky, but if you answered yes I think you’ll be able to relate.

He was the most annoying person to ever be on Nickelodeon. I never watched Pete and Pete, but he was annoying as all hell on Figure it Out. He went out of his way to do the secret slime action, and always guzzled the slime like it was the blood of Christ. Then on All That, he wasn’t funy. To make matters worse, he took over for Lori Beth on Vital Information. Needless to say he failed at the job and drove the show into the ground.

Good riddance Danny. Doubt I’ll ever see you on TV again.

Enough, Beatles!

Let me start off by saying that I am in no way knock the Beatles or their music. Listen to it, buy it, love it, do what you please. My complaint goes to iTunes.

Every time I click on the iTunes music store homepage, I see some type of Beatles music being advertised. I know that last November iTunes recently added the Beatles to their catalog, but they still are promoting Beatles albums on the homepage. Anyone that knows of the Beatles should know that they're on iTunes. There has been so much buzz about out.

I'll repeat, I have no problem with the Beatles at all, in fact I like them a lot, but their music is decades old. There are other artists struggling to have a fraction of the success the Beatle's have that could really use the ad space on the iTunes homepage. It's about time that iTunes acknowledges that people know that they can buy Beatles music on the site, and give the space to those that want it more.

Blowin' Up: Last Friday Night

Here's the official music video for Katy Perry's sing Last Friday Night off of her album Teenage Dream

It's a really good video. As I've said before, Katy Perry is looking to get 5 #1 singles off of the same album, the only other artist in history to do so was Michael Jackson. Last Friday Night may be my favorite song on her album, and if she can get a #1 single with ET, I think getting Last Friday Night to the top should be doable. Best of luck to Katy!

Bieber Vaccine on the Way

Selena Gomez has spent the weekend in and out of the hospital, complaining of nausea and headaches.

There are a couple of explanations for her ailment. Firstly, the girl may just be dizzy. She’s been spending too much time going round and round. Another possibility is that she has the Bieber Fever. People thought that it was just a cute name for an obsession with Justin Bieber, but Ms. Gomez is proving that it can actually affect your health. Hopefully she can afford to stay hydrated. After a year without rain, water bills have skyrocketed. Even celebrities are having a hard time getting enough fluids.

Get better Selena!

Blowin' Up: Stereo Hearts

Here ya go. I found it, the summer’s smash. Last summer Travie McCoy had Billionaire, but this summer he’s back with his band Gym Class Heroes, and he put Adam Levine on the track. A good move considering he’s made himself a big name by being a coach on The Voice.

Honestly, I love the track.

Classic: He Wasn't Man Enough

Yesterday I was taking a Sporcle quiz about the top 25 selling female artists. #14 was Toni Braxton, which I found surprising. She was beating a lot of singers that I would consider much more popular than her. In my opinion, Toni Braxton isn't really a legend, and she can't sell like a lot of other artists.

But she did win a Grammy for best new artists. And her music is pretty catchy.

The Right Way To Laugh

LOL. LMAO. Hahaha. The Internet is full of different ways to laugh. So many in fact, that it’s hard to decipher the meaning of each. To the naive mind, they all mean the same thing, but in reality there’s a big difference between them all.

 

So let’s start with the most common way of laughing: LOL.

LOL literally means laughing out loud. However, it has lost its meaning over the years. How many times do people put LOL after their own statement? LOL is simply used to acknowledge that something should not be taken seriously, or is not being taken seriously. It is rarely used to express laughter.

Hahaha is another common way of laughing. This is older than the Internet, but is often used online. When something is slightly funny, it is appropriate to say “Hahaha.” What someone says “hahaha” they may or may not have actually laughed, but if they did, the laughter was minimal.

ROFL literally means “rolling on the floor laughing.” This is correctly used when you actually laughed. Did you actually roll on the floor? Nope. Not even close. But whatever was said did provoke some laughter.

LMAO means “laughing my ass off.” When you see someone use LMAO, you know that they thought what they read was really  funny. Of course, their bottom is still attached to their body, but the person did have a good laugh. Occasionally, an F will be inserted into the acronym standing for the F-bomb. This is only to intensify the saying, indicating that the person laughed really, really hard.

Now, I’m going to talk about the single ha. When you get that single ha, it’s a not a good sign. The person that said it was unamused, but replied with a ha because he or she knew what was said should have been funny. However, they did not think it was actually funny.

There’s also the evil “mwhaha.” This is used when someone finds something funny that shouldn’t be. For example, if someone sees another person getting hurt, and they find it funny, “mwhaha” would be an appropriate response because a typical person would feel sympathetic, or at least grossed out. The “mwhaha” is slightly psychotic,  but we all have our moment when we could use it.

Anyone that has been using the Internet over the past decade should now that there is a unique language that should be used online. Understanding it is important, and hopefully this post has made you more fluent in Internetz.

Asstounding

When people think of Nicki Minaj, some think of her phat verses. Others, the record label she name drops in almost all of her songs (Young Money!) And for some, they think of her gigantic ass. Nicki’s ass has become one of her trademark features, and she seems rather committed to it. Her implanted ass is so big, that it must cause difficulty for her to sit down. While she makes owning a large ass look like fun and games, it’s more of a lifestyle than anything else. I can only imagine how difficult it is for her to go out in public and get all those stares. And she must have a custom made toilet in her house. Despite these great burdens, Nicki keeps her ass, and for that I applaud her.

American Hero: Lil Mama

 

There are many words that can be used to describe Lil Mama such as: Humble, Beautiful, Talented, Outspoken, Innovative, New Yorker...the list could go on and on. She burst onto the music scene in 2008 with her self-empowerment anthem Lip Gloss, and since that day she has been a role model to mankind. Her album is titled Voice of the Young People, and that is exactly what Lil Mama is. I feel that today's youth would not be well represented if it wasn't for Lil Mama. Now, she is a judge on America's Best Dance Crew (the only judge that knows what she's talking about). MTV is lucky to have her on board, because she will remain in the public's eye for decades to come.

 

Trouble in Paradise?

 

There are new accusations surfacing that the packaging on Barbie dolls come from materials that destroy the Indonesian rainforests. Banners such as the one above are being hung from the Mattel company's building, placed there by protesters dressed as Ken. 

Now, there is reason to believe that Barbie is not guilty of destroying the rainforest for her packaging. The main argument is that Barbie loves nature. In fact, she has numerous outfit designed just for her outdoor adventures. She would never destroy the rain forest, because then she would not be able to wear these outfits and would have to donate them to the Salvation Army. If you look to the left, you'll see a picture of Barbie in a thriving garden. Is that the type of woman that would want to destroy the rain forest? I don't think so. Ever since Barbie and Ken have gotten a divorce, the nation has been divided between Barbie fans and Ken fans, and this slander is just the bitter action of some Ken fans.

Classic: I Wanna Be Bad

The main reason I'm posting this song isn't because I have a guilty obsession with it (although I do have one). Recently, Royce da 5'9" has been trying to make a name for himself, releasing a lot of material with Eminem. Well, if we go back into my music vault we'll see that Royce isn't such a newcomer. Here he can be seen with Willa Ford, encouraging her naughty behavior.

Haterade: Baby Leah

Out of all of the babies on Teen Mom, Leah is the worst! She is out of control, and a terrible example for all toddlers out there. She is violent (like her mom), loud, annoying, and accident prone. I'm not sure if it's bad parenting or bad genes, but she is walking down a bad road. Hopefully someone will teach her to keep her clothes on before it's too late. I don't think I'll be able to tolerate watching her for a third season of Teen Mom, but I guess I have no choice.

Blowin' Up: Bang Bang Bang

I knew this song was going to be good, but I was not prepared for this…

I really think this is going to be Selena’s biggest hit. Her last song Who Says did alright, but it was really just a censored version of P!nk’s Fuckin’ Perfect. This is a fun, party song and people are going to associate it with Bieber, whic will help it. I just paid for this song with real money to support the cause.

The 10 Hottest Acts of Summer 2011

Please click to read the whole post.

Classic: No Scrubs

This song still gets a decent amount of radio play, and every time I hear it I turn up the volume. TLC was one of those rare groups that didn't break up and had hit songs together for more than just 2 years. It's such a shame Left Eye passed when she did, but she will always be remembered for this classic.

Blowin' Up: The Lonely Island

The Lonely Island are back in town with a new album, but that's not what I'm here to talk about. A couple of weeks ago on SNL, Justin Timberlake was the host, and he teamed up with the Lonely Island to record the song 3-Way. I like the song, it's not phenomenal, but it's good. However, The Lonely Island is really flexing their A-List muscles by getting JT and Lady Gaga on the same track. They're two of the biggest names in pop music today, so I know it's only a matter of time before Adele gets on a track.

Americans are Pit Bullies

I just read an interesting blog about the role of pit bulls in America. It seems that over the past hundred years, their reputation has changed from respected guard dogs to the most vicious, dangerous dogs on the market. For shame America! Just because Michael Vicks had a couple of dogs fight each other does not mean the dogs will go and bite anyone on the street. The grim reality for pit bulls is that they get put to sleep more than any other breed. It's time we start saving them!

Blowin' Up: Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall

I think it's fairly safe to say this will be a popular song just because the name Coldplay is on it. I like the song, but it's not their best work. Reviews on the song thus far have been pretty dismal, but I've always been a bigger fan of new Coldplay, so I going to give this song a chance.

Publish Post

One Hit Wonder In the Making

I can't even classify this band as blowin' up, because I know they're not. At best, they'll be as popular as Metro Station. However, I do like this one song of theirs. It's a really catchy, fun, summer song. Prior to this song, I'd never heard of the band Hot Chelle Rae, and I'm sure I won't remember them in 2 years. For now, this song is worth listening to.

Haterade: Freddie

If you turn on Nickelodeon, there's a 95% chance the show iCarly will be on. On the show, Carly's best friend and neighbor's name is Freddie Benson, played by Nathan Kress. Now, I know this show is aimed at children under the age of 13. I get that. But Mr. Benson needs to start taking some pride in his job. He is always very stiff while acting, and he is the worst actor on the show. Granted, the show does not require outstanding acting, but the other kids on the show seem to understand that they need to relax while in character. Nickelodeon is supposed to inspire children to make something of their lives, but this kid's acting will make children want to end their life.

OK, that may be drastic, but Freddie, step up your game!

PREACH IT!

It's nice to see that some people get it...

She has really funny videos. I'm not a big Youtube person, so that fact that I watch her videos is a compliment to her. I usually just use Youtube for music videos.

Tornado Watch!

Oh no! It looks like Massachusetts (and the rest of the northeast) has been plagued with some unlikely weather! Tornadoes! While the threat is actually minimal, Twitter is abuzz, and branches will be broken. So if I don't make it out alive, you'll know what happened and where I went!

Sorry, this is the best update I had.