MAJOR MAESTRO: Bruno Mars

Showing posts with label Bruno Mars. Show all posts

2018 Recap: A Year in Music

Attention!!!

Ladies and gents, this is the moment you've waited for. It’s time to say goodbye to 2018. If it’s meant to be, it’ll be, and no tears will be left to cry for the past year. It’s a no brainer that it was a fantastic year for music. According to God’s plan all the stars aligned for Rap & Hip-Hop, as if I’m taken back to 2002. I like it how the Spanglish resurgence incorporated Rap and EDM into its fold. I've told you one, two, three, four, five, six thousand times that the recap is always under seven segments: genres, albums, singles, milestones, shockers, talent and obituaries. While we will never be the same after 2018, we have high hopes for 2019; thank u, next:

1. Genres

The most conspicuous changes in the mainstream genres were:

Continuing their reign from last year Rap and Hip-Hop ruled the first half of the year with Cloud Rap being the main subgenre on the charts.
Pop which took a backseat to the new trends in fusion music resurfaced in the latter half of the year.
The next phase of the Latin resurgence was the fusion of the genre with EDM and Rap with some hits and a few epic fails.
Mega collaborations was the order of the day be it any genre.
K-Pop conquered the world with BTS and BLACKPINK leading the fray.
The age of Hard Rock and Metal is definitely over with the few hits from the genre being produced only by mainstream artists.
Country music had a big year with the genre doing well on the charts particularly due to crossover artists.
It was a great year for movie musicals with their soundtracks performing extremely well.

2. Albums

Some of the best albums released in 2018 were:

Migos – Culture II (3rd studio album)
Justin Timberlake – Man of the Woods (5th studio album)
George Ezra – Staying at Tamara’s (2nd studio album)
Kacey Musgraves – Golden Hour (4th studio album)
CNCO – CNCO (2nd studio album)
Kylie Minogue – Golden (14th studio album)
Charlie Puth – Voicenotes (2nd studio album)
Maluma – F.A.M.E. (3rd studio album)
Shawn Mendes – Shawn Mendes (3rd studio album)
J Balvin – Vibras (5th studio album)
Marshmello – Joytime II (2nd studio album)
Panic! At the Disco – Pray for the Wicked (6th studio album)
Ariana Grande – Sweetener (4th studio album)
Post Malone – Beerbongs & Bentleys (2nd studio album)
Lily Allen – No Shame (4th studio album)
Jess Glynne – Always in Between (2nd studio album)
Christina Aguilera – Liberation (8th studio album)
Drake – Scorpion (5th studio album)
5 Seconds of Summer – Youngblood (3rd studio album)
Eminem – Kamikaze (10th studio album)
BTS – Love Yourself: Tear (3rd Korean studio album)
XXXTentacion – ? (2nd studio album)
Nicki Minaj – Queen (4th studio album)
Clean Bandit – What is Love? (2nd studio album)
Rita Ora – Phoenix (2nd studio album)
Little Mix – LM5 (5th studio album)

Most of the anticipated albums in 2018 were debut studio albums:

Camila Cabello – Camila
Sigala – Brighter Days
Bebe Rexha – Expectations
Alan Walker – Different World
Cardi B – Invasion of Privacy
Anne-Marie – Speak Your Mind
Calum Scott – Only Human
Jorja Smith – Lost & Found
Mike Shinoda – Post Traumatic

3. Singles

Drake’s God’s Plan topped the charts in 14 countries and entered the top ten in 9 others and ended the year as the most successful single of the year.
Camila Cabello who left the girl band Fifth Harmony in 2016 achieved monumental global fame with her summer smash hit Havana featuring Young Thug.
Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B’s Girls Like You was the most watched music video of 2018 with over 1.5 billion views. Due to this being her third chart topper, Cardi B extended her record in the US for most number ones by a female rapper.
BTS’ Fake Love became the highest charting K-Pop single by a group in the US while BLACKPINK became the highest charting K-Pop female act with Ddu Du Ddu Du.
Ariana Grande revisited the noughties in her Thank U, Next video which became her most successful hit to date and broke the record for most-watched video on YouTube within 24 hours by achieving 55.4 million views passing BTS’ Idol.
With the success of Drake’s In My Feelings boosted by the Kiki Challenge, biggest viral sensation on social media made the artist the rapper with the most number ones in the US.
Little Mix left Simon Cowell’s record label Syco Music over creative differences particularly their hit Woman Like Me featuring Nicki Minaj.
Lady Gaga returned to the top of the charts with Shallow a duet with Bradley Cooper from the soundtrack of their box office hit movie musical A Star is Born.
Lauryn Hill’s 1998-hit Ex-Factor was sampled by Drake and Cardi B in their hits Nice for What and Be Careful respectively.
Panic! At the Disco scored their biggest hit to date with High Hopes surpassing the success of I Write Sins Not Tragedies way back in 2006.
Dad blogger LadBaby claimed the coveted Christmas No.1 with his cover of Starship's We Built This City beating stiff competition from Ariana Grande's Thank U, Next and Ava Max's Sweet But Psycho.
Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You became the first Christmas song in 60 years to enter the top 5 in the US reaching a peak of No.3.
Pinkfong's Baby Shark became a viral hit with over 2 billion views on YouTube and several artists such as BLACKPINK and Girls Generation covering the song and parodies being done on talk shows such as Ellen Degeneres and James Corden and a performance at the X Factor final.
Drake's In My Feelings was the biggest viral sensation of the year with the Kiki Challenge being performed around the world and with its success, Drake became the rapper with the most number one hits in the US.

4. Milestones

Bruno Mars took home the big 3 at the Grammy Awards with Record of the Year for 24K Magic, Album of the Year for 24K Magic and Song of the Year for That’s What I Like
Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez won Best Original Song at the Academy Awards for Remember Me from Coco
US President Donald Trump awarded the late Elvis Presley, the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Martin Garrix took the No.1 spot on the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs for 2018
Ariana Grande was named Billboard Woman of the Year
BTS became the youngest recipients of the Order of Cultural Merit from the South Korean government.
Jess Glynne broke Cheryl Cole’s record for most number ones by a British female artist in the UK with 7 chart toppers.
Billboard Hot 100 celebrated its 60th anniversary in August.
Jennifer Lopez received the prestigious Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards
Justin Timberlake performed at the Super Bowl LII Halftime Show
Daddy Yankee was awarded the Icon Award for his contribution to Latin Music and Maluma was awarded the Extraordinary Evolution Award at the Latin American Music Awards
Janet Jackson received the Icon Awards at the MTV Europe Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards and Radio Disney Music Awards
Wolf Alice’s Visions of a Life won the coveted Mercury Prize
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa was awarded the Member of the Order of Companions of Honour in the Queen’s 2019 Birthday Honours
Kelly Clarkson was honored with the Icon Award at the Radio Disney Music Awards
Mary Poppins Returns, the sequel to Walt Disney’s beloved musical-fantasy film was released after a lapse of 54 years starring Emily Blunt in the titular role.
Cher, Reba McEntire, Philip Glass and Wayne Shorter were the honorees at the Kennedy Center Honors.
Taylor Swift became the most awarded female winner in American Music Awards history with a total of 23 awards, breaking the record held by Whitney Houston.

5. Shockers

Spice Girls excluding Victoria Beckham (Posh Spice) announced their much anticipated return with the Spice World 2019 Tour with 13 shows.
Boyzone released their seventh and final album Thank You & Goodnight marking their 25th anniversary and a farewell tour with the same name.
Tulisa won the legal battle against Will.I.Am and Britney Spears for Scream & Shout ensuring a songwriting credit.
The remaining members of Fifth Harmony declared a hiatus to pursue solo endeavors.
The final judgment was delivered in favour of the Marvin Gaye estate in the Blurred Lines copyright suit against Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams.
Axwell, Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso confirmed that Swedish House Mafia have reunited and will tour and release new music in 2019.
The rap beef between Eminem and Machine Gun Kelly reached a climax with Not Alike released by Eminem with a response by MGK with Rap Devil and the final cannon shot at MGK by Eminem with Killshot.
In her new memoir, Brutally Honest, Spice Girl Mel B revealed that just before the X Factor UK final in 2014 where she was a judge she had taken 200 aspirin pills in an attempt to end her life due to her difficult marriage to Stephen Belafonte.
6ix9ine was arrested by US police for racketeering and conspiracy murder charges and if found guilty, the rapper may face 32 years to life in prison.
In the Woolsey Fires that burned through California several artists’ homes including that of Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke and Lil Pump were burned to the ground.

6. Talent

Here are the winners of those talent/reality contests which produce some of the best artists:

63rd Eurovision Song Contest – Israel with Netta’s Toy
The X Factor (15th Season) – Dalton Harris mentored by Louis Tomlinson
The Voice (14th Season) – Brynn Cartelli coached by Kelly Clarkson
The Voice UK (7th Season) – Ruti Olajugbagbe coached by Sir Tom Jones
The Voice (15th Season) – Chevel Shepherd coached by Kelly Clarkson
The Four: Battle for Stardom (1st Season) – Evvie McKinney
The Four: Battle for Stardom (2nd Season) – James Graham

7. Obituaries

Ray Thomas of The Moody Blues (29 December 1941 – 04 January 2018)
Dolores O’Riordan of The Cranberries (06 September 1971 – 15 January 2018)
Mark Salling of former Glee Cast (17 August 1982 – 30 January 2018)
Dennis Edwards of The Temptations (03 February 1943 – 01 February 2018)
Barbara Alston of The Crystals (29 December 1943 – 16 February 2018)
Yvonne Staples of The Staple Singers (23 October 1937 – 10 April 2018)
Avicii (08 September 1989 – 20 April 2018)
XXXTentacion (23 January 1998 – 18 June 2018)
Vinnie Paul of Pantera (11 March 1964 – 22 June 2018)
Aretha Franklin (25 March 1942 – 16 August 2018)
Ed King of Lynrd Skynyrd(14 September 1949 – 22 August 2018)
Mac Miller (19 January 1992 – 07 September 2018)
Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane/Starship (30 January 1942 – 27 September 2018)
Freddie Hart (21 December 1926 – 27 October 2018)
Roy Clark (15 April 1933 – 15 November 2018)
Devin Lima of LFO (18 March 18 1977 – 21 November 2018)

Till next year...

At Ease!!!

Most Underrated Songs of 2017

Attention!!!

Now that we have skimmed through the overrated hits of yesteryear, it is time to take a glance at those songs that were overlooked. Before moving on to the year-end compilations of 2018, we must finally recognize those undervalued records that were passed over for one reason or the other. Similar to the overrated hits, we have reduced the number of entries to make room for the explanations. However, here too we have the honorable entries.

It is quite interesting to note that most of the underrated songs on this list are by well-known mainstream artists unlike the compilation last year. Some of the reasons that these tracks did not receive the due recognition was that 2017 was a gargantuan year for pop with heavy weights such as Ed Sheeran maintaining chart dominance and a sudden wave of Spanglish remixes and rap overtaking the industry in the latter part of the year. Lana Del Rey ft. The Weeknd’s Lust for Life takes the crown, with DNCE ft. Nicki Minaj’s Kissing Strangers in second place. As far as genres are concerned, the entire list is pop with subgenres of electropop, dreampop, synthpop and dancepop in the mix. So here are the 15 most underrated songs of 2017:

1. Lana Del Rey ft. The Weeknd – Lust for life

As far as dreampop goes Del Rey always manages to deliver. Lust for Life sees her collaborating with The Weeknd and hit making producer Max Martin on the title track of the global chart topping album. The sultry production includes a creative music video and is a departure from the melancholic undertones of her other hits achieving the perfect duet. The failure of this song to achieve its chart potential may be Del Rey’s mistake in overlooking this track and releasing Love as the lead single.

2. DNCE ft. Nicki Minaj – Kissing strangers

It is absolutely bewildering how Cake by the Ocean was such a monumental hit and this being equally great failed to even chart. This fast paced dance pop track features Nicki Minaj who delivers a banger of a rap verse. While the charts did not acknowledge its worth, radio stations and dance floors worldwide recognized its value.

3. Lorde ft. Post Malone, Khalid & SZA – Homemade dynamite

It was extremely surprising to see that this did not receive the chart success it deserved considering the current chart darlings featured on the record. While the single version does not give out much oomph, the remix featuring the other trio really adds color to a somewhat somber anthem. This perfect collaboration fuses R&B with Synthpop and sees the individual artists complementing each other’s genres and presence on the track.

4. Taylor Swift – Call it what you want

Hailing from the much anticipated album Reputation, this soft pop ballad really outshines all the rest including the lead single Look What You Made Me Do, the edgy starter ….Ready For It? and the radio hit Delicate. However, Swift only released this as a promotional single. It’s a shame since we never even got the chance to witness whether it will have any potential on the charts.

5. Bruno Mars vs. David Guetta – Versace on the floor

Mars’ 24K Magic is not everyone’s kettle of fish as even his sweeping Grammy wins were heavily criticized by those who believed there were other nominees that deserved the wins over him. One thing for sure, out of the singles released from the album this definitely stands out. While the single is good, Guetta’s remix adds more flavour to the song, producing a dance anthem out of the otherwise very slow and laidback record.

6. Nick Jonas – Find you

This pop track featuring an acoustic guitar and an understated electronic beat is better than all of his previous singles combined. Released as the second single off his upcoming fourth studio album, the track was also performed at the American Music Awards last year. While live performances of such caliber usually boost sales and as a result chart movements, it is surprising how badly this single performed.

7. Ariana Grande ft. Future – Everyday

This electropop and trap record was the fourth single off her third studio album Dangerous Woman. Three hits preceded this track all different from the other. However, this was the edgiest out of all of them with an EDM banger of a chorus and a verse by Future. The reason due to its mediocre performance could be Grande’s continued presence in the charts and radio for over a year leading to fans getting a bit tired of Grande particularly with Side to Side which ruled airplay for quite a while. So this should have been ideally released as the second single after the title lead single.

8. Echosmith – Goodbye

Echosmith first entered the mainstream with their insecurity anthem Cool Kids. However, they have failed to garner any attention since then. Goodbye is a promotional single off their third EP Inside a Dream. It features a catchy guitar riff accompanied by memorable lyrics and a peppy beat. When the song was released accompanied by a music video preceding the album, the record was considered and ideally suited to be the lead single. However, Echosmith too committed the fatal mistake of passing this and selecting Over My Head as the lead single.

9. Niall Horan – Too much to ask

As far as music goes, Horan has far exceeded the expectations of all One Directioners. He turned out to be the most creative in his music surpassing Liam Payne with his mainstream fetish, Harry Styles with his glam rock feel, Zayn Mallik with his tripping sound and Louis Tomlinson with only his fan appeal. His single Too Much to Ask follows in the footsteps of his hit Slow Hands. While it received moderate chart success this slow pop ballad should have fared better.

10. Stargate ft. Pink & Sia – Waterfall

Stargate is a Norwegian production duo behind the biggest hits in the industry ranging from those of Beyonce, Rihanna, Ne-Yo, Wiz Khalifa, Selena Gomez, Coldplay, Tinie Tempah and many more. So when they released a track of their own featuring the powerful vocals of Sia and Pink, it was predicted to be a chart success. But this proved to be wrong as the record failed to gain any ground even in their home state, only achieving moderate success in Australia.

Honorable mentions

11. David Guetta ft. Nicki Minaj & Lil Wayne – Light my body up

12. Olly Murs & Louisa Johnson – Unpredictable

13. Gabrielle Aplin – Love so slow

14. Halsey ft. Lauren Jauregui – Strangers

15. Pixie Lott ft. Stylo G – Won’t forget you

Till the next chord...

At Ease!!!

Xposition - July, 2018

Attention!!!

The nominations for the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards were announced with Cardi B leading the pack with a whopping 10 nods including Video, Song and Artist of the Year and The Carters (Beyonce & Jay-Z) with 8 nods. The Video of the Year nominations are:

Ariana Grande - No tears left to cry
Bruno Mars ft. Cardi B - Finesse (Remix)
The Carters - APESHIT
Drake - God's plan
Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug - Havana
Childish Gambino - This is America

The shortlist for this year's coveted Mercury Prize has been revealed which will be awarded in September. Among the known names are:

Lily Allen - No Shame
Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino
Jorja Smith - Lost & Found
Florence + The Machine - High as Hope

Forbes has released its list of 100 Highest Paid Celebrities and some of our favorite musicians are on it. Highest on list at No.6 is the Irish band U2 with a massive USD 118 Million followed by Coldplay at No.7 and Ed Sheeran No.9. In the top 20 we have Bruno Mars at No. 11 and Katy Perry at No.19. The others featured in the Top 50 are:

21 - Taylor Swift

25 - Jay-Z

27 - Guns N' Roses

32 - Sean Combs

35 - Beyonce

37 - Kendrick Lamar

39 - The Weeknd

41 - The Eagles

44 - Depeche Mode

45 - Pink/Luke Bryan

49 - Lady Gaga

50 - Calvin Harris

It appears that the X Factor UK panel for 2018 has been completely reformed with the exception of Simon Cowell. Robbie Williams, his wife Ayda Field and former One Direction member Louis Tomlinson replace Louise Walsh, Sharon Osbourne and Nicole Scherzinger for the newest season of this global reality show which seeks to find the next best superstar.

Rumours have it that Dua Lipa will in fact be recording the theme song for the next James Bond movie. In a massive slip up Years & Years member Mikey Goldsworthy said in an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live, that Dua Lipa had been selected to sing the theme. Her appeal may be after she won British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Artist at the 2018 BRIT Awards coupled with her back to back hits with New Rules, IDGAF and One Kiss.

Former Destiny's Child member Michelle Williams has checked into a mental health center for depression. It is a known fact that she has been struggling with mental health issues, particularly during the peak of Destiny's Child's fame and success where she admitted she even felt suicidal at times.

In chart news, in the US, Cardi B, J Balvin and Bad Bunny's I Like It opened the month at the top overthrowing XXXTentacion's Sad! which had peaked at the end of June following the latter's death. However, this was short-lived as Drake returned to the top with Nice for What which he replaced with In My Feelings which remained at its peak for the remainder of the month. Meanwhile, with Drake's newest album Scorpion out in July saw all of the singles from the album enter the Billboard Hot 100 including several into the top 10 such as Nonstop, Emotionless and I'm Upset.

Meanwhile, in the UK, George Ezra's Shortgun was the first No.1 of the month as it replaced Clean Bandit ft. Demi Lovato's Solo. It continued for two weeks at the top after which Baddiel, Skinner and the Lightning Seeds' Three Lions roared to the top propelled by the United Kingdom reaching the semi finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It was again overthrown next week by Drake's In My Feelings. During the month Jonas Blue ft. Jack & Jack's Rise, Ariana Grande's God is a Woman, Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B's Girls Like You and XXXTentacion's Sad! entered the top 10.

Other songs which became popular during the month were:

5 Seconds of Summer - Youngblood
Drake ft. Michael Jackson - Don't matter to me
Tiësto & Dzeko ft Preme & Post Malone - Jackie Chan
Cheat Codes & Little Mix - Only you
Kygo & Imagine Dragons - Born to be yours
Rudimental & Major Lazer ft. Anne-Marie & Mr.Eazi - Let me live
Jax Jones ft. Mabel & Rich the Kid - Ring ring

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Best Music Videos of 2017

Attention!!!

In this day and age music videos have now become part and parcel of the music industry. The official visual is preceded by an official lyric video which also garners certain attention, for instance, the global smash hit, Closer by The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey had a lyric video which had billions of views and still receives more attention than the official video featuring the artists.

In 2017, the directors and the choreographers clearly went all out in terms of their concept and creativity surpassing the somewhat mediocre productions of yesteryear. Kendrick Lamar’s Humble. takes the top spot in this compilation which is critically acclaimed winning the Best Music Video at the Grammy Awards as well as the Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards. At second place we have the visually pleasing Venus Fly by Grimes ft. Janelle Monae followed by the heavily choreographed New Rules by Dua Lipa. Kendrick Lamar has the highest number of entries with three followed by Dua Lipa, Selena Gomez, Pink, Jason Derulo, Katy Perry, Lana Del Rey and Fergie.

The compilation features a smorgasbord of genres ranging from Rap and Hip-Hop to EDM and Rock. Entries of significance consist of Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s Despacito which is the world’s most watched music video and Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do which holds the record for the highest views during its first 24 hours of release. The list also features the video for Kesha’s return to the industry after her ongoing battle with producer Dr.Luke commenced and Logic’s single based on the suicide hotline in the US. An evident omission from the list is Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You which had an extremely vapid video, having no relation to the song whatsoever. So here are the 50 best music videos of the 2017: