Luciana Jumps To Her Next Hit

Luciana has only been back in LA for a couple of days but the inventor of electro-shouting is already back at work, filming the video of her next European single "Jump". The track is aimed squarely at the lucrative Italian dance market but I think this has huge crossover potential. Perhaps even more than "Pop My Trigger" and "Wicked Workout" - songs that have already been earmarked as future Australian/American releases. Think "We No Speak Americano"...

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Melissa Tkautz & Other Legendary Pop Icons Celebrate 'Smash Hits'

Last night's Pop Life (a book about Smash Hits magazine) launch party at Sydney's Hard Rock Cafe was all that I hoped for and so much more. It was a trip to the land of lost pop stars, a place where 90s has-beens were mobbed like Rihanna - or, more accurately, like Deni Hines - and the legendary Melissa Tkautz shared the stage with that "Introvert/Extrovert" dude from X Factor. This nuclear-powered hot mess made my year and, more importantly, reminded...

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All Hail Queen Ami!

Throw away your copy of "Ultimate Kylie" and bin the "Immaculate Collection". Who needs flops like that when you could be treating your ears to the greatest hits of Ami Suzuki? Yes, the Queen of Avex is back with a 'best of' and a new single called "Freedom". If Amigod's new anthem is half as brilliant as "Free Free" or "One", it will be a late contender for single of the year! Stay tuned for more very soon. So what about "Ami Selection"? It's a...

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Bey Outsells Your Faves (Unless They're Adele Or Gaga) - You Mad?

It's official. "4" is a US chart smash, shifting almost a million copies since its July release to land at number 7 on Billboard's list of 2011's best-sellers. Quite an achievement for an album that dared to stray from the well-worn Dr. Luke/Max Martin/RedOne path to chart glory. It's even more impressive when you consider that Beyoncé only promoted two singles before announcing her pregnancy and is yet to land a top 10 hit this era. I guess it just...

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Vengaboys Release Australian Tour CD

Quick, somebody call Uncle John from Jamaica and let him know that the most essential pop album of 2011 hits stores Decemember. Yes, people. The Vengabus is heading for Australia this Summer and Central Station is releasing a long-overdue greatest hits package to celebrate. All your favourites are present and accounted for including the seminal "We Like To Party (The Vengabus)" and the most played song on Dannii's iPod ("We're Going To Ibiza"). The...

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Lorie Returns With A Flawless Pop Anthem

I don't get to write about it very often but I love French pop music. And while Queen Mylène still reigns supreme en France, I've always had a soft spot for her one-time rival Lorie. Often likened to Britney Spears due to her teenage success and dubious talent, the now 29-year-old has returned to the studio after an extended break to pursue a career in acting. She did quite well, scoring a role on The Young and the Restless as a fashion model but...

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Seriously, What Is This?

Please help me out because I'm confused. When did David Campbell (Australia's answer to Michael Buble) ditch his finely tailored suit for a leather jacket and Aviators? More importantly, why is the nation's Sultan of Swing churning out dubious '80s cover versions with videos that cost less than his sunglasses? I don't even know what to write about this mess. It's stuck in that awkward limbo between completely embarrassing and so-bad-it's-amazing....

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Zowie - Live At The Oxford Art Factory

Zowie brought her live show to Sydney on Friday night, warming up the crowd for Strange Talk at the Oxford Art Factory. I like what I've heard from New Zealand's next big thing so far - particularly her debut single "Broken Machine" and current release "Smash It" (below) - but I've literally only heard four of her songs and really didn't know what to expect. Would she be all hype like Annie (still the worst gig I've ever seen in my life) or a revelation...

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Why 'Dance For You' Is The Worst Video Of The '4' Era

Before I get into why "Dance For You" is the first visual fail of the "4" era, I would like to qualify this post by reminding everyone that Bey's film noir adventure is just a random clip for a song on her DVD anthology. It's not a random international release like "Love On Top" or even a buzz single like "1+1". The fact that Queen B took time out from running the world to make it at all is blessing and I definitely wasn't expecting a big budget...

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Attention, Ms Kelly: Tenitra Is Coming For Your Wig!

The moment we've all been waiting for is here - Michelle Williams is back to revolutionise pop music as we know it! After years of shivering in Beyoncé's shadow, the Jason Orange of Destiny's Child has finally stepped into the light. And she's not returning with another aluminium-selling gospel album. Instead, Shell is gunning for Kelly Rowland's UK dance crown. A preview of "On The Run" (below) leaked months ago but the full version hit the net...

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The Best Thing To Come Out Of Sweden - EVER!

Sweden and fine pop music go together like La Toya and publicity whoring, so it shouldn't surprise anyone that the best advertising jingle of all time has been penned for a Scandinavian weight loss product. Words can not express how obsessed I am with this mess. The clip has only racked up 1,000 views on YouTube and I'm sure at least half of them were me. It needs to be released as a single today! My favourite line? "It's loaded with minerals and...

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Shakira Jumps On Live Album Bandwagon

You know it's almost Christmas when the shelves start filling with Greatest Hits collections and live albums. The latter is a particularly hot trend this year with concert recordings from Beyoncé, Adele, Kylie and Taylor Swift on the way. Joining those heavy-hitters is Colombian goddess Shakira, who continues to rule the charts just about everywhere but Australia. I can't wait to get my hands on her "Live From Paris" CD/DVD. The pop icon's last two...

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All Hail The Return Of K-Lo!

It's hard to type when you're crying, shaking and masturbating but I'll do my best. My beloved orange goddess is back! Naturally, I'm talking about the former first lady of AATW - the divine Kelly Llorenna. A woman that has clocked up more dance hits (and hours at the tanning salon) than all of your faves put together! This is literally the most exciting thing to happen to me since McDonalds brought back shaker-fries. But where to start? In late...

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Selegend Hits The Lights & Kills Your Fave's Career

Selena Gomez is the best-kept secret in pop. That might sound ridiculous given her high-profile relationship and burgeoning acting career but the 19-year-old's flawless music is more neglected than Susan Boyle's vagina. The Texan beauty should be racking up top 10 hits with gems like "Bang Bang Bang" and "Like A Love Song" instead of tickling the lower reaches of the top 40. Take her latest single. "Hit The Lights", written by Australia's own Leah...

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Beyoncé Notches Up 3rd Platinum Single From '4'

Australia is quickly turning into one of Beyoncé's biggest markets. This week King B racks up her third consecutive platinum single with "Love On Top" passing 75,000 downloads sold. I actually think the song would have performed even better if it got an official digital release with the video edit and/or Mike Rizzo remix but it's hard to knock another top 20 hit. That raises the question of Bey's next Australian single. I asked Sony that very question...

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La Toya Answers Our Prayers

Since becoming the most relevant and successful Jackson, La Toya has been on a roll. Her tireless work on the talk-show circuit single-handedly brought Michael's murderer to justice, she charmed Cardiff with one of the greatest mimed live performances of all time and now delivers us the holy grail of her discography on CD. Yes, Toy Soldiers - I'm talking about "Imagination"! The iconic diva's fourth studio album was only released on vinyl. And unlike...

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Stan Walker On Why Beyoncé Is The Best And Other Important Topics

Stan Walker is a man on a mission. The 21-year-old released this third album in as many years today and he's hoping it will propel his already hugely successful career to the next level. Earlier this afternoon I spoke with the Australian Idol winner about his move towards dance music, killer seagulls and the undeniable awesomeness of Justin Bieber. Even more excitingly, I discovered that Stan stans for Beyoncé and we had a good chat about why she...

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A Double Dose Of Beyoncé Live

Queen B dropped two live videos today to promote her soon-to-be-released "Live At Roseland" DVD. Needless to say both are flawless demonstrations in wig snatching but I have a huge problem with the "End Of Time" clip. Why is footage from Glastonbury spliced into it? I was lucky enough to be at her first Roseland concert and it was breathtaking from beginning to end. There's no need to cut other performances into it. Hopefully they just jazzed up...

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Korean Diva Jacks Luciana's Swagger

Seo In Young is on the fast track to becoming my new K-Pop fave. As if the scandal surrounding her ever-changing nose wasn't fabulous enough, Korea's plastic angel has endeared herself to me even further by ripping off Luciana's "I Like That" on her latest single. Which not only reveals exquisite taste in dance divas but also a willingness to embrace electro. Two characteristics I greatly admire. And while "Oh My Gosh" isn't quite as good as Luci's...

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Luciana Breaks The Drought

This week Luciana scores her first top 50 hit as the lead artist since 1994. That's a 17-year gap, people! While many fans think the dance diva began her career singing "Yeah Yeah" for Bodyrox, she actually started out making R&B-tinged pop as a veritable foetus in the early '90s. Since then she's been in three bands, released countless records as the featured artist and even recorded a duet with Betty White. I'm glad she can finally add solo...

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Beyoncé Has Reason To Party

Beyoncé bagged her first urban airplay chart-topper of the "4" era yesterday when "Party" dethroned the charmingly titled "Niggas In Paris". That sound you hear is a heavily pregnant woman snatching your fave's wig. It's funny. When Bey announced dual 3rd singles in the States, I thought "Countdown" would be the runaway hit. That glorious anthem is still a standout for me but, like the equally awesome "Get Me Bodied", it just didn't work. Instead,...

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Sydney K-Pop Festival 2011 - Review

Last night's K-Pop Festival was one of the most surreal experiences of my life. From the bizarre pre-event press conference to the post-concert wave-a-thon, I felt like I had been transported to alternate universe. Or plied with acid and let loose in Koreatown. The result was not entirely unpleasant but I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. Maybe I should just start at the beginning. Regular readers of this blog will know that I'm a casual...

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Elen Levon's French Adventure

While "Naughty" failed to set the charts on fire in Australia, Universal France is banking on a warmer reception in the land of fine wine and fromage. They have snapped up Elen Levon's debut single and plan on rush-releasing it by the end of the year. Which means it will be out in a matter of weeks! I really think this could work. The French have exquisite taste in urban-dance music (Kat DeLuna's era-defining "Push Push" reached the top 10 over there)...

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Sorry For Being Mean, Taylor

Earlier this week the bonus disc of Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" was released on US iTunes. Considering the album has already sold almost 4 million copies in that country (more that Rihanna's "Loud" and Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" put together), it should have been a minor footnote on another impressive year for the country diva. Instead, three tracks rocketed into the top 10 - with the rather lovely "If This Was A Movie" knocking Ri-cycle's "We Found...

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My 2 Cents On Madonna's Latest

An exclusive first look at Madonna's "Give Me All Your Love" artworkI still remember the first and only time I listened to "Hard Candy". My ears started to bleed and I had to douche with holy water before throwing the CD under the nearest moving vehicle. It took me years to recover but lately I've become a bit sentimental about the old girl and found myself revisiting her earlier work - particularly 2003's underrated "American Life". I was actually...

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Win A Signed Luciana Promo Single!

This is my favourite competition ever. Because it literally is exclusive to this blog. I've got a handful of "I'm Still Hot" promo singles to give away that were pressed simply due to my annoying kindly asking the record company. So this is THE only place to pick up a physical copy of the hottest dance track on radio. Luciana's latest is turning out to be something of a smash (#35 on iTunes and climbing), so I'm sure you will be hearing a lot more...

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Traci Lords' Last Drag

Traci Lords is back with new music! A stunning turn of events that will no doubt overshadow Madonna's comeback and force poor Rihanna into retirement. The underage-porn-star-turned-cult-actress is a true underground pop icon. Her 1995 opus "1000 Fires" remains one of my favourite dance albums of that decade and has rightly won a loyal following due to the 43-year-old's unusually dark and depressing lyrics. "Fallen Angel", in particular, holds up...

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Janet Jackson - Up Close & Personal In Sydney

Contrary to popular belief, I like Janet. A lot. Of course, my loyalties lie with the thinking man's Jackson (ie. La Toya) but for most of the '90s her less attractive sister ranked as one of my favourite divas - right alongside Kylie, Whitney and Mariah. That admiration began to fade with the release of "All For You" and was pretty much gone by 2004's horrendous "Damita Jo" but time has not wearied the brilliance of albums like "Rhythm Nation 1814"...

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Luciana Heats Up Newcastle

A lot has happened since Luciana last blessed us with a visit. "I Like That" continued to make waves internationally long after it had achieved double platinum status in Australia and she featured on a bunch of well-received floorfillers - most notably Lethal Bizzle & Nick Bridges' "Go Go Go", which charted on the back of Neon Stereo's popular remix and Nari + Milani's amazing "I Got My Eye On U". And then came "I'm Still Hot". A number one US...

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