Yes its a terrible Photoshop, but I needed a picture.. :D
Sent to a video, via a link, supposedly directing me to a new Christina Aguilera demo entitled Last Dance, I excitedly followed it, eager to hear what direction her and David Guetta- who was credited as the producer on the video- were going to take on their collaboration.
I had to post this moving performance of Lady Gaga singing Hair at the Iheartmusic Festival this weekend. It was dedicated to a young fan, named Jamey Rodemeyer, who sadly took his own life after being bullied at school because he was gay. Whatever people think of Lady Gaga, something good that has come from her being in the limelight is that she is given a very public, prominent voice to a whole section of society that feels excluded and ostracised by and from it, and credit has to be given for that.
Here's hoping that Lady Gaga's tribute will not only give those who are suffering, like Jamey did, hope for a better future but will more importantly give them strength to persevere through their struggle because it gets better.
Jennifer Lopez wheeled out her surprisingly memorable back catalogue- seriously, I forgot how many hits she has- for her set at the Iheartmusic festival. Now there is no question that Jennifer Lopez's set was anything but A-list and she looked stunning to boot, but many a person were asking about whether it was mimed or sung live.
Lets examine her first performance, which was of Get Right, to get a flavour of things. The dance moves weren't too heavy, or strenuous, so we could logically conclude that this was choreographed with the intention of allowing for Jennifer to sing live. You can clearly hear that there are volumes changes in the vocal, where at some points are voice isn't as pronounced as others- contrast when she goes lower in her range (3.16), to when she makes her exclamations to the crowd. 4.25 also leads me to think it was live as that section of chest notes is intermixed with a shout out to the crowd that maintains the same volume and texture as the chest notes. Finally, at 4.42 Jennifer seems to suffer from a slight breathlessness that would coincide nicely with the rather strenuous movements that had just come before it.
Lady Gaga did what she does best and put on a show stopping performance of Scheißeand Judas at the iHeartRadio music festival in Las Vegas this weekend. Gaga appeared on stage atop of a motorbike, that can only be described as a piece of modern art, and proceeded to sing and dance the crowd into a frenzy. I can't even imagine how much Lady Gaga spends on these one time set pieces and costumes!
Vocal Type: Soprano Vocal Range: 2 Octaves 2 notes and a1 semitone F#3-Bb5 (Note: she has claimed to have had a 4 octave range. If anyone knows any lower, or higher notes she has sung, please get in contact or comment.) Whistle Register: No Vocal Pluses: Classically trained, powerful yet dexterous soprano, with a gorgeous clarity to her tone and a natural vibrato. Seamless transition between registers. Vocal stamina in her youth - she was on Broadway constantly from the age of 20 - 23. Wonderfully expressive phrasing and emotive interpretation of song. Also a superb actor (Oscar-winning) and dancer. Vocal Negatives: Due to her reliance on classical technique, she struggles with certain styles (ie her 'Jazz Hot Baby' from 'Victor Victoria' isn't really that jazzy or bluesy!). However superb at musicals, operetta and light classical music.
Thanks To Karen V for directing me to the notes, and providing the positives and negatives.
Vocal Type: Mezzo-Soprano Vocal Range: 3 Octaves 5 notes D3-B6 Whistle Register: No Vocal Pluses: The voice has a distinctive character that is audible throughout the range. Incredibly elastic, clear chest voice that can reach high up into the fifth octave via deft mixing with the head voice. The narrow vibrato she can apply gives the voice a jazzy, soulful colour. Vocal Negatives: The voice can be biting at times, in it's extreme, due to its clarity.
Seems like Rihanna is still riding the Euphoric Club sound that she opened last album Loud-which was only released LAST YEAR!- with on Only Girl (in the world). This time she's enlisted British producer Calvin Harris to come up with the lead single, called We Found Love, from the as yet untitled album due in November.
First listen to Rihanna's new single has me feeling like its missing a little magic, perhaps a punchier middle eight or a stronger melody. It's compounded by the song veering towards sounding lazy, lyrically, with way too much repetition occurring. Its a styling that will find We Found Love no doubt sounding amazing in the club, with the right atmosphere, bass heavy speakers, and a few drinks- doesn't everything?- but it doesn't translate well to a more intimate listen.
Ultimately the song is a yawn fest, that could have been helmed by any singer. Stripped is any of Rihanna feistiness or character, and the song comes off being more about Calvin Harris' production than Rihanna's voice. We Found Love should really have been reserved for Calvin Harris' new album, and as such been credited the other way round as himself featuring Rihanna, because she most certainly is not coming off as the main attraction to his show.
