[Battle] Beyonce Vs. Christina Aguilera: Which Is The Better Singer?

It's time to stir the pot again! I only realised today how successful the Demi Lovato Vs. Ariana Grande post had been, so I thought, "Hey, let's try again with two new divas".

Today's battle centers around two peers who, though having differing voices, styles and techniques, get compared an awful lot. This is perhaps understandable when you consider both are of the same generation. However, the comparisons are further fueled- in my opinion- by Beyonce fans who feel slightly aggrieved that Aguilera- aka "The Voice of a Generation"- often gets labelled a vocalist, while Bey is referred to as an "entertainer". 

A Young Christina Aguilera Covers Swv's "Weak"

Taken from Christina Aguilera's time at the Mickey Mouse Club-which would make her around thirteen/fourteen, I think- this video was sent to me via email (hooray for emails!). I wasn't even aware that Christina was singing during her stint on the show, but according to Wiki it was part of the gig. The more you know, eh?

Oddly (to me), the songs chosen, by whoever was working behind the scene, were grown-ass tracks! There are other videos of the Genie In A Bottle singer covering hits from Toni Braxton (Another Sad Love Song), CeCe Peniston (I'm Not Over You) and Mary J. Blige (Real Love), however I thought I'd go with the SWV cover of Weak because I also enjoyed the other singers (Rhona Bennett and Nita Booth ) who joined the young Diva on stage.

Watching these videos it's apparent that Christina's singing style hasn't changed all that much since she was a teenager- no shade intended. Artificially lowered timbre, vocal slides, and contrasting (oft poorly supported) upper belts are all things that have followed the Diva through into her adult years. However, age, and experience, has brought the Diva's mature singing style a believability that her youth didn't convey very well.

Was it any wonder she was called "the little girl with the big voice"!

[Watch] Lady Gaga And Christina Aguilera Perform Together On The Voice USA - Miracles Can Happen!

Did Lady Gaga and Christina Aguilera just have their Whitney Houston/ Mariah Carey moment on The Voice USA??! These two Divas are supposed to hate each other, but yet, here they are duetting together on Gaga's Do What U Want like they were super best friends!

I can't really judge the performance properly just yet- I need the shock to die down- but hearing the two Divas together does make me appreciate how similar their voices are. The whole thing could have benefited with some further rehearsal, being a little messy- vocally- in places, but I really enjoyed the staging and look of the whole thing.

Hopefully this momentous occasion- which doesn't seem to be getting as much media attention as I would have thought- will bring about a ceasefire between the duo's warring fans. Lord knows they could both do with more people buying their records.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Sings "We Remain" Duet, Live @ The Voice USA

Christina Aguilera tackling her contribution to the The Hunger Games: Catching Fire soundtrack, live, was something I've been itching to witness ever since hearing the mid-tempo ballad. However, her choice to turn We Remain into a duet for the finale of The Voice (USA) wasn't the greatest idea.

Christina, for the most part, was pretty great. Her voice sounded very much like the recording, with her coarse belt being beautifully suited to the song. However, there were definitely parts where she was out of tune- especially when attempting to harmonise on the held notes with her duetting partner Jackquie Lee- and where her falsetto sounded weaker than usual.

But my real problem was with Jackquie Lee, who, I admit, I've never heard of before. Her voice just wasn't up to the song, or being pitted against Christina. She also sounded pretty strained at the end, which makes me think Christina has been passing on that dreaded "technique" to those under her mentorship- which is not a good thing.

Still, Jackquie must have something about her to have gotten this far in the contest. It's just a shame this performance didn't do much to show what that something was.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Gives A Gorgeous (But Boring) Performance of "Say Something" @ 2013 AMA

The Voice (US) performance of Say Something had me slathering all over Christina Aguilera. The rendition at the 2013 American Music Awards, not so much. In fact, I actually got a little lethargic halfway through her duet with A Great Big World.

I do feel I should have love this, though: the song hasn't changed; the vocal was controlled and measured; and there was no random shouts of "Say!" or "Hey!" made by the Diva. But it just wasn't happening for me while watching. I know, I know, Christina can't win. If she's belting and ad-libbing, she's over the top, with bad technique and no musicality. If she's mellow and restrained, she's "boring". Life is just too complicated...(!)

Still, even though I wasn't crazy about the performance, I do hope it's a sign of the direction she'll go when she decides to record a new album.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Stuns With Performance Of "Say Something" @ The Voice (US)

Title says it all really. Just watch and be mesmerised as one half of A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera put on a beautiful performance of  Say Something, live on The Voice (USA).

[New Music] Christina Aguilera Guest Vocals On Great Big World's "Say Something"

Christina Aguilera has bestowed her grace on the relatively (compared to her, at least) unknown A Great Big World. Having heard their melancholy Say Something played on So You Think You Can Dance, the singer was swift in sending word to the duo that the Voice of a Generation was willing to bless their track with her unearthly pipes. Unsurprisingly they accepted her overflowing generosity, and here we are today with this beautiful and haunting duet.

A reigned in vocal was the order of the day, with Chrissy bringing a softer and sympathetic delivery to the song; never overshadowing or detracting from the lead. It functions as a reminder to vocalists everywhere that volume and power aren't the only way to impress an audience, with tone, timbre and control being just as inspiring to hear when used correctly!

Take a listen to Say Something below. Those more marshmallow in constitution be prepared to tear up!

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Sings Beyonce's "Listen" OnThe Voice US

It's an incy wincy clip, but I thought it was worth posting as it shows Christina Aguilera's voice in a different light- at least to me!

Giving her team on The Voice US some coaching on their delivery of Listen, the Lady Marmalade singer went into a head voice-weighted chest mix on the line "you don't know what I'm feeling". The tone produced was a surprise to me, being light-weight, sweet and like nothing I've heard from the Diva before. Her mid-range on the following demo was also music to my ears, showing how beautiful Christina's voice can be when it's not smashing you around the head with volume and faux-power.

Is this a versatility that has come with the vocal traning she was reportedly undergoing months back, or is this just the Diva using her voice in a way that she hasn't yet utalised in her recordings? Either way, I'd certainly like to hear more of this variety in texture and tone!

[Review] Christina Aguilera "We Remain"

What is Christina Aguilera's next move going to be? Sure, she can keep collecting those massive checks from The Voice USA while sitting grandly (and richly) upon her swivelling throne. But this is a singer who has often proclaimed the importance of using her gift, so she can't be satisfied with this strategy, long-term.

So with this in mind, how can Christina continue with the music, stay relevant and not risk another a flop- like back-to-back bombs Bionic and Lotus? Well she could keep doing what she is now: featuring on other people's tracks- à la successful collabs with Pitbull and Maroon 5- while periodically tossing us original material via soundtracks- as she has just done with her contribution to the The Hunger Games: Catching Fire OST. It's not an idea situation, but it sure feels sweeter to me (see what I did there?- only the die hard fans will get that) than a prolonged Christina Aguilera famine.

Her contribution to the aforementioned soundtrack, We Remain, is actually a beautiful one. It not only benefits from the Diva's capable pipes, but she also had a hand in composing the uplifting lyrics. This may be the reason why the vocal on the Ryan Tedder-produced cut sounds like one of Aguilera's most emotive to date.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Rocks Billboard With Pitbull and A-ha's Morten Harket

Christina Aguilera sounded great during her 2013 Billboard Awards showing of Feel This Moment with Pitbull. But don't get excited, this isn't the performance where X-Tina was finally rocking good technique or a healthier set of pipes. Nope, this was a case of a louder backing track and a turned down microphone. Considering Christina sings live, loud and proud regardless of the quality of her voice, it does leave me wondering whose decision it was to level the tracks in that way. I'm calling on an old friend to investigate....

[New Music] Christina Aguilera & Alejandro Fernandez - "Hoy Tengo Ganas De Ti"

I was going to take up a Rosetta stone* course in Spanish before I reviewed this Alejandro Fernandez and Christina Aguilera duet.You know, just so I could get the FULL picture of what was going on, lyrically. But since I'm such a perceptive fellow, i figured you'd all probably want to hear the song, Hoy Tengo Ganas De Ti, sometime before the turn of the next century. Hence, I'm posting it for you to enjoy in the present!

I did try to translate the title for you/us English speakers, but Google came back with the meaning, "Today I have Ganas De Ti". Now, I'm no expert, but I'm not convinced that that translation is a 100% accurate- unless "Ganas De Ti" has crept into the English vernacular without my knowledge. So I'll leave that mess there for one of you guys to clean up in the comments, and I'll move on to the song.

Tengo Ganas De Ti sounds like a big budget ballad with its decadent instrumentation and both singers compliment each other on the vocal front. Christina had me reminiscing about her early days with the lyrical, sweet and youthful tone she uses during the song's verse. Of course, things change when she belts, but since she stays (mostly) in her comfortable range, it's a pleasant experience on this front, too. Fans of the singer will probably most enjoy the falsetto she uses at the close of the song, so it's worth waiting till the end if you like to hear Aggie playing in the rafters.

It has a pervading melodramatic and hammy feel about it... and having just checked Wikipedia- literally after typing the start of this sentence- I found out it's the theme song for La tempestad, which is apparently a Mexican telenovela! (By this point I got tired of clicking on links, so feel free to go check out exactly what a "Mexican telenovela" is because I haven't the foggiest. My best guess: it's a soap/Drama.) So the song's mood and direction is actually pitched about right!

[Watch] Christina Aguilera And PitBull Perform "Feel This Moment" @ 2013 Kids' Choice Awards

It seems Christina Aguilera's collaboration with Pitbull might actually see the singer getting her first big hit since...anyone? That being so, I'm willing to get over how crappy Feel This Moment is-even getting behind it- if there's a chance that it blowing-up big might resuscitate the Diva's career.

[Music Video] Pitbull And Christina Aguilera Make Ugly Music Together On "Feel This Moment"...Ergh(!)

I just can't be dealing with Pitbull and his smug self today, but since our Chrissy is featured in the song I had to post this. The video for Feel This Moment has been a long time coming, but since it has Christina Aguilera involved, I can't imagine anyone is surprised with the delay; this is one Diva who doesn't seem to understand the importance of timing when it comes to promotion.

Christina Aguilera And CeeLo Green: "Baby, It's Cold Outside"

Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green team up again, but this time it's for his Christmas album, Cee Lo's Magic Moment! Having already recorded an original cut, in the form of Lotus' Make The World Move, the pair opt to tackle the pop standard Baby, It's Cold Outside this time round.

Despite Christina Aguilera only "featuring" on the song, it's perhaps unsurprising she remains the more striking voice on the classic: dancing all over CeeLo Green's grounding bass like a butterfly fluttering spasmodically around a slug.

The overall quality of her voice- tone/ timbre/ belts- is definitely much improved on the majority of tracks on her own album Lotus; an odd fact considering it was released after Cee Lo's album. Also, the balanced out dynamics on the top belt make her voice much more palatable. I just wish she'd chosen to attack the notes like this on Lotus: it would have made it a much more enjoyable affair.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Performs "Let There Be Love" @The Voice

Another day, another Christina Aguilera post. I should have posted this yesterday, but if I'm getting tired of all this Aguilera, I can only imagine how you guys feel. Thus, I thought I'd give you all a day off.

Once again Christina took her Lotus promotion to The Voice, this time singing Let There Be Love. I'm not sure why she hasn't realised she's wasting her time promoting here. It's clear from the sales that the millions of viewers aren't buying what she's peddling! She needs to stop being lazy and perform at other shows, hitting other demographics, if she really wants Lotus to fly.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera Duets With Blake Shelton on "The Voice"

I feel like I've overdosed on Christina Aguilera these past two weeks. After yesterdays awful performance at the American Music Awards [here], I've decided to go on an Aguilera fast for a few days. However that doesn't mean you guys shouldn't enjoy a live performance of the most successful song (on Itunes,) from new album Lotus.

[Rant] Christina Aguilera Performs Lotus Medley @2012 AMAs

The post and performance from the 2012 American Music Awards I'm sure most of you were looking forward to: Christina Aguilera! God help us.

There is one thing I need to quickly say about her-it's a realisation I came to yesterday unexpectedly- and it's that she is the most consistently bad vocalist I think I have ever had the pleasure of being a fan of. If it wasn't for her recording voice, I'm pretty sure I would have jettisoned her from my affections  a long time ago. Anyway, back to the performance.

[Album Review] Christina Aguilera "Lotus"

Christina Aguilera returns to the world of music with her seventh studio album, Lotus. After the commercial failure of last album Bionic it was always going to be a more "mainstream" sounding album that followed, for no artist can sustain multiple flops, no matter how big they are. However, even I was taken aback at how unimaginative and derivative the club inspired songs of Lotus turned out to be. Thankfully the few ballads on the album at least keep Christina's knack for inspired slow numbers intact.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera And Cee Lo Green Perform "Make The World Move" @ The Voice

I love how the judges on The Voice get up on that same stage as the contestants and show- via 100% live vocals- why they have the right to be judging other people's talent. With new album Lotus to promote, Christina Aguilera was the latest of the line-up to put her money where her mouth is and perform on the main stage.

[Watch] Christina Aguilera and Mary J Blige @ "Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together" Benefit Concert

Christina Aguilera and Mary J Blige were two females representing the Divas at the Coming Together benefit concert in aid of those who have suffered under Hurricane Sandy. The one-hour concert was aired on American network NBC and managed to raise an impressive 23 million dollars for the victims of the natural disaster, with donations still coming in.