Charley Paige is a New York City singer-songwriter garnering a lot of buzz -- in addition to her devoted following -- by playing stirring shows at legendary NYC clubs like The Bitter End and Nuyorican Cafe.
On record, however, Paige imbues her singer-songwriter material with lush flourishes of pop and soul production. On songs like "Letting Go" her sure-handed arrangements call to mind Purple Rain-era Prince, while her ballad, "Forgive And Forget," which features the acerbic kiss off, "congratulations, we're on a permanent vacation," could have been a Mariah Carey classic.
MTV Iggy caught up with the constantly-gigging Paige to find out more. In the below video interview, Paige talks about the big advantages to playing small venues, the man who who's (unwittingly) acted as her muse, the influence of Lauryn Hill on her music, and much more.
Check out the interview, as well as two lovely acoustic performances of "Letting Go" and "Forgive And Forget," below.
I was in a cab this morning when I heard Paul McCartney's power-pop classic "Jet" on a local New York radio station. Except it wasn't Paul McCartney's version of the song. It was a remake, plugging in the names of famous New York Jets like Darrelle Revis, Thomas Jones and Bart Scott into the ex-Beatles' jam.
While I do not count myself as a Jets fan, this still didn't inspire any confidence or enthusiasm on my part. Or my driver, for that mattter (he just kept talking on his phone).
I'm not a Vikings fan, either. But if I were, I would be pretty amped about the fact that no less a rock god than Prince had written and recorded an original song in honor of the Minnesota football team's playoff run.
Written immediately after the Vikings crushed the Dallas Cowboys in last week's divisional match-up, Prince's "Purple And Gold" is a very, well, Prince kind of fight song, with very Prince-like lyrics, "we r all amped up like a rock n roll band/ready 2 celebrate every score/ready 2 fight the elegant war/ready 2 hear the crowd roar."
Just in time for their huge NFC Championship confrontation with the New Orleans Saints this weekend. Check out Prince's ode to the Vikings below.
When Jason Derulo recently stopped by MTV to talk about his tour with Lady Gaga, he mentioned how much he loves artists who regularly change their style and said he tries to switch up his style on every track. Which quick-change acts have inspired Jason? Buzzworthy asked him to come up with a list of his favorite musical makeovers. Jason avoided many of the usual suspects (like Madonna, Bowie and The Beatles) and came up with a very inventive eight. Take a look at Jason Derulo's top eight biggest musical reinventions, and tell us if you agree.
8. Nelly and Tim McGraw, "Over and Over Again" -- "This song was a great combination of hip-hop and country. Both Nelly and Tim stepped out of their element to create this pop smash."
When comic book artist Cliff Chiang isn't busy drawing Batman, Green Arrow and Wonder Woman, he puts his illustration skills to awesome use, recreating classic 1980s album covers and populating them with some of our favorite superheroes.
Tracked down via Buzzfeed, Chiang's visual remixes incorporate the likes of The Teen Titans (into the cover for the soundtrack to The Breakfast Club), Batgirl (into Prince's Purple Rain) and Elektra (into the soundtrack to Flashdance). Check out some of his work below!
Teen Titans vs. The Breakfast Club
Batgirl vs. Purple Rain
Elektra vs. Flashdance
+ Classic '80s Movie Video: OMD, "If You Leave," from Pretty In Pink.
With its storming Timbaland-esque beat and R&B flavor, "Reloaded" is something of a different look from Lady Gaga. It was born from the same Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins sessions that produced "Telephone," but didn't make The Fame Monster's track list. And, we gotta say, there's no evident reason why that is. "Reloaded" is a banger, with Gaga's vocal melody on the verse eerily reminiscent of Prince's on "When Doves Cry." Jerkins' beat hearkens back to his classic work with Destiny's Child ("Say My Name") and Jennifer Lopez ("If You Had My Love").
Ultimately, I think what kept "Reloaded" off The Fame Monster is the lack of glam, the lack of epic sweep and, perhaps most importantly, the lack of Gaga flair. "Bad Romance" is unmistakeably Lady Gaga, a track only she could have made. "Reloaded," while a dope song, sounds like something any number of R&B and pop stars could have recorded. (Which doesn't mean we don't love it.)
Nick Jonas seemed super confident and, frankly, looked like he was really enjoying himself (which isn't to say he doesn't love being a Brother). Jonas and his band, The Administration (the band name is a nod to Elvis Costello's old group, The Attractions and Nick's fascination with the presidency), cruised through "Who I Am," an up beat pop-rock number with some funky, chicken-scratch guitar work underneath. With fellow Jonases (Jonasai?) Joe and Kevin watching, Nick worked the crowd with winks and nods.
Nick Jonas & The Administration (a band which features members of Prince's old New Power Generation crew) are due to release their debut album early next year.
What did you think of "Who I Am"? Does it hold a candle to your Jonas Brothers favorites? Let us know in the comments!
Let's hope so! Here's the Tokio Hotel frontman at the premiere of Arthur und die Minimoys 2 - Die Rueckkehr des Boesen M' (Arthur 2) -- he voiced the part of Arthur -- at Cinestar Sony Center movie theater in Berlin this weekend. And boy, does Bill got that purp!
Bill Kaulitz was resplendent in the royal color, an enormous (yet chic!) granny sweater, and platform wedges, which made us think perhaps he's making a not-so-subtle nod to the original Purple rocker, Prince.
And why not? Both Bill and Prince have a flamboyantly charismatic stage presence, as well as a penchant for gravity-defying hair and sparkles. And both Bill and Prince command undying support from an army of loyal followers.
In this new Discover & Download interview, the enigmatic Minneapolis emcee/producer/singer/multi-instrumentalist P.O.S. talks about evolution.
In the clip, P.O.S. talks about the various meanings his stage name has had over the years, from "Pissed Off Stef" in his adolescence to "Promise Of Skill" in his emcee days. He also goes into detail about his varying levels of skill on various instruments, including drums, keys, bass, and even tuba (!!!).
You'll also find out about the evolution of the Minneapolis sound (from Prince to Atmosphere), the evolution of his Discover & Download track, "Never Better" (which he calls his "favorite song" he's ever written and which you can check out below).
+ Beyonce has just been named Billboard magazine's Woman Of The Year and will be accepting the award at a ceremony to be held later this year in NYC. We smell a J-Lo-style backlash aaaaaaaany moment now (which consequently smells a lot like glitter body paint). (Billboard)
+ Also on the Billboard tip, Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas reveals what it's like to be a part of the pop supergroup that has been making Billboard chart history. (Blogamole)
+ Is Prince truly seeking a job at the White House? Would it then be called the Purple House? (The Tripwire)
+ Reigning '90s R&B supergroup TLC will return to the stage after a more-than seven-year absence, thanks to a little nudge from none other than Justin Timberlake. (Rap-Up)
+ Watch Britney Spears and Russell Brand in their second stint as VMA "lovers." It's kind of cute to see Russell throw himself at Brit so desperately -- story of his life, we're guessing, though we'd TOTALLY hit it. (Buzzworthy)
GOD! Ciara's new "Love Sex Magic" video reminds me of like EVERY NIGHT in my bedroom. I mean, like EVERY single night it's like me and Justin Timberlake slapping skins, Justin all over the place, Justin sneakin' a peek inside mah shorts, I'm whispering naughty little things in his face, then me and some of my super-hot friends put on some wigs and do sexy-time ballet to a funky Janet Jackson-meets-Prince beat, against a backdrop of disco lights. Oh, and I TOTALLY have not one but TWO of those zebra body suits! Coincidence? IT'S LIKE CIARA SECRETLY RECORDED MY LIFE AND THEN SHE AND DIANE MARTEL TOTALLY PARLAYED IT INTO THE CONCEPT FOR HER VIDEO! I should sue. As soon as I'm done watching this again... and again...
Obsessively blogging about pop music, pop videos, pop stars, and pop culture from inside the MTV headquarters in Times Square. We also have a slight Jonas Brothers problem. And a little fixation with Tokio Hotel.
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