Showing posts with label jay z. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jay z. Show all posts

Wednesday, 13 August 2014

Music collabs that will go down in history:

With my previous music review being single 'Bang Bang' by female pop divas Nicki Minaj, Jessie J and Ariana Grande, I take a look at what could arguably be the best collaborations in the history of music or ones that will at least bring back great memories.

Lady Gaga and Beyoncé
The two biggest names in pop came together to release the track Telephone that peaked at number one and sold 7.4 million copies in 2010 WORLDWIDE. This song and its video really stood apart from the rest and is still popular today.

Eminem and Rihanna:
Rapper Eminem and singer Rihanna released Love The Way You Lie, also released in 2010, and was the UK's best selling song of that year. Singing about a love-hate relationship, it was clear that it was all pure love when it came to buying the song. 

Jay-Z and Alicia Keys:
*NEW YOOOORRRRRRKK* Alicia Keys went back to the streets, New York's streets to be exact, when she collaborated with Jay Z for Empire State of Mind way back in 2009. With Alicia's vocals and piano, and Jay Z's lyrics it wasn't hard for this song to become a hit.

Big Sean and Ariana Grande:
When pop princess Ariana Grande and rapper Big Sean released the catchy Right There in 2013, after her success with songs The Way and Baby I, it was clear the two had musical chemistry. The two seem to be great pals, with Ariana rapping Big Sean's track Guap in a radio interview.


Timbaland and Aaliyah:
Timbaland and the sorely missed 'baby girl' Aaliyah worked in numerous musical projects, one of them including Try Again, which was nominated for a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. The song reached Number One in America and Number Five in the UK, also winning two MTV VMAs for its music video.


Avicii and Aloe Blacc:
Mixing country and dance together was a bold move for Avicii when it came to this hit Wake Me Up in 2013, but it paid off when it reached number one in over 20 countries.

Pharrell Williams and Daft Punk:
You couldn't drive anywhere without hearing this hit on the radio. When Get Lucky was released in 2013 its success boomed, winning Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Record of the Year at the Grammy awards.

What are your favourite music collaborations? Or is there a collab that you wish you could un-hear? Leave a comment below!

Thursday, 18 July 2013

The Weeknd, Jay Z and Justin Timberlake in new music releases

Newly released songs and videos to check out:

The Weeknd - Belong To The World

Abel Tesfaye has released a video to his new single Belong To The World! It's been a year since the release of his album Trilogy, an album that helped to further spread Abel's popularity and grow his fanbase since the release of his three mixtapes. The song comes from The Weeknd's new album Kiss Land, which will be released this summer on August 27th. Belong To The World emanates The Weeknd's style which consists of echoes of Abel's slow and soft voice mixed to a beat which when heard creates a dream-like experience. The song, as like much of The Weeknd's work, is centred on love but also has the ability to create a dark, saddening element to it with lyrics such as 'I'm not a fool I just love that you're dead inside, I'm not a fool, I'm just lifeless too'. With the song being the first to be released and heard from the new album Kiss Land it gives us new music from Abel to treat our ears to and gives the excited fanbase of The Weeknd wondering what will be next.
 The video was released on July 16, 2013. You can hear the song and watch Abel in the video directed by Anthony Mandler by clicking here.

Jay Z - Holy Grail ft Justin Timberlake

After the release of Kanye West's eagerly awaited album Yeezus and the release of HOVA's new album Magna Carta Holy Grail, it felt like the two biggest names in hip hop were out to show the world how it should be done. With Yeezus' fresh and innovative beats, Jay Z had a lot to follow on the release of M.C.H.G. Released on July 4th, just over two weeks since Ye's album release, Magna Carta... opens with the song Holy Grail. Featuring Justin Timberlake, the song is arguably the best song on the album and will most likely get the most airplay on the radio, with JT being the highlight of the song with his verse's and chorus. Jay Z makes reference to Mike Tyson, Kurt Cobain (and adding the lines 'And we all just entertainers, And we're stupid and contagious, And we all just entertainers' from the popular Nirvana song 'Smells Like Teen Spirit') and Michael Jackson. Magna Carta Holy Grail is definitely an album to buy to join your collection of albums that top the rest. But with this being Jay Z's sixteenth studio album, it does make you wonder if he will ever run out of things to rap about. But then you have to remind yourself that Jay Z has been in the game since 1986, and won't be going anywhere for a very long time (hopefully).
 The album was released on July 4, 2013 for those on Samsung phones. For those without, the album could be heard from July 8, 2013. You can hear the album on Spotify and or watch a video uploaded for 'Holy Grail' here.

What do you think about The Weeknd's new song? Who's album is better - Jay Z's or Kanye's? Leave a comment below.